Betrayal

Betrayal

Chapter 1

It was the beginning of their seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione were on the train heading back. Harry was pretending to stare out the window at the fast moving scenery while stealing glances at Ron and Hermione, who were sitting across from him and bickering, as usual.

"Ron! I'm not kidding, this year I am not letting you copy my notes or helping you with your homework just because you put it off until the last minute! Honestly, this year you need to concentrate on studying for your N.E.W.T.s if you are seriously thinking about becoming an Auror!" She did not understand why Ron was taking this so lightly. Their time to goof off had come and gone; this was their future they were talking about.

Her cheeks were flushed and the frayed ends of her soft brown hair were dancing wildly while she spoke, as if the energy of her conviction reached the tips of every fiber of her being. Harry thought she was simply stunning. Since the end of last year, had begun to notice that Hermione was a very, very attractive young lady. She had filled out a great deal and had taken to dressing more stylishly, and, Harry would say, more provocatively. The skirt she was wearing was low cut and had ridden up her thigh since the beginning of their argument. Harry tried not to notice that her underwear appeared to be pink and satin.

"Hermione, we haven't even reached school and you are already starting with this!" yelled Ron. He turned frantically towards Harry for support. He knew Harry would back him up on this, because it had always been he and Ron against Hermione when it came to her relentless nagging about schoolwork. Harry, a bit slow on the uptake as he was staring at Hermione's thigh, snapped his head up and quickly stuttered an agreement. Ron studied him as he did this. "Yes," Harry said quickly, "It is a bit early for...all this." He trailed off, not having fully formed his thought. He looked away wondering if they had noticed what he was looking at just moments ago. Hermione let out an exasperated sigh and looked at the ceiling. Ron's gaze, Harry noticed with guilt-stricken horror, went slowly from Harry's face to Hermione's thigh and then quickly back to Harry's face. His eyes narrowed. Harry avoided his friend's gaze and looked out the window again. Hermione resumed her argument.

"Look, all I'm saying is that, if we all want to be Aurors and help fight Voldemort, we have to take studies this year seriously. They only take the best! If you and Harry carry on like you have in the past, then you won't even qualify to apply!" At this, Harry turned his gaze towards Hermione. Not only had what she said made a lot of sense, but also one of the things he admired about her was her passion to fight the wizard who had killed his parents. Hermione looked slightly triumphant at Harry's look in her direction. At least Harry was listening to reason, she thought. Ron, however, was still staring intently at Harry, which was making him very uncomfortable. Was he looking up her skirt? Ron asked himself. Harry half expected Ron to ask him what he had been staring at, right in front of Hermione, when the food trolley stopped at their door. Ron looked at the trolley and immediately began digging in his pockets for money; the thought of chocolate frogs and other treats took over and saved Harry from any further embarrassment.

Hermione looked at Ron with irritation at first, but then her gaze softened to fond adoration. She thought he was utterly hopeless, but she loved him anyway. They had started dating at the beginning of the summer when Hermione had stormed into his bedroom and demanded to know if he fancied her. Ron, who was lying on the floor playing Wizard's Chess with Harry, looked up, completely shocked. "Wha-wha-what?" he gasped, and then cast a sheepish glance at Harry. Harry, of course, knew he had fancied her since the Yule Ball in the fourth year. He had tried to discuss this with Ron shortly afterwards, but Ron changed the subject. However, that was before he had noticed his newfound attraction towards Hermione. Since then, he had made it a point to not bring it up.

"Ginny just told me you did! She said you told her last week, but you were too afraid to tell me!" She was breathless, no doubt having just run up several flights of stairs to reach the bedroom. Ginny lingered in the doorway, looking guilty and staring at the floor. Ron gave her a scathing look before returning his gaze to Hermione. He took a deep breath and sat up. "Yes, I fancy you", he said quietly. Harry was surprised that Ron had confided in his little sister such valuable and potentially embarrassing information. He was also surprised that Hermione was acting as if this was new to her. Harry suspected that she knew even before him or Ron. Hermione, in fact, did know. She also knew that she had been in love with him for ages and he had to be especially daft to not have picked up on it. Hearing Ginny tell her this had pushed her over the edge and gave her the confidence she needed for this confrontation.

Ron looked at the floor as if expecting Hermione to scold him. Harry stared at Hermione waiting for her response and feeling guilty about what he had hoped she would say. She looked very sexy in the tight fitting tank top and white shorts she was wearing. Harry could see her nipples through the tank and wondered if she were wearing a bra. Ron looked up at her, obviously expecting the worse.

"Ron!" she said in an exasperated voice, "I fancy you too, how could you not know?" Ron smiled with relief, his shoulders sagged, and his heart soared. He looked at her thoughtfully and said; "You know I'm pretty thick when it comes to these things. I thought I'd better leave it up to you, seeing as how you are so clever with emotions and stuff." Harry's heart sank into the pit of his stomach. He had lost whatever chance he had with her.

Seeing the adoring look Hermione was giving Ron on the train made his heart do a similar dive. He knew the feeling well, as it was what he experienced every time they had snuck off together during the remainder of the holidays. He knew that she would never look at him the way she was looking at Ron at that moment. A sharp pang of anger shot through his body, followed closely by guilt. He knew he should have been happy that his best friends had fallen in love, but the fact was that he could not stop thinking about her. He was entranced by everything about her, the way she smelled, the way she held herself, the way her breasts swelled every time she took a deep breath. She was gorgeous.

Ron had noticed this about Hermione as well and could not believe his luck that he had gotten her. After he paid for his sweets he came and sat down close to Hermione and held out a chocolate frog. "Peace?" he said smiling slyly. She pretended to still be mad, but her stern expression melted into a warm smile. She took the frog and kissed Ron softly on the cheek. As he watched her open the wrapper he caught a glimpse of the top of her breast through the neckline of her shirt. His heart sped up and a strong feeling of desire shot through him, making him tingle just below his waistline. He wished Harry were not sitting across from them. He sat back staring at her, wishing they were alone so that he could pull her on his lap and bury his face in her bare breasts. Then he stopped himself, feeling guilty he had pictured her in such a filthy position. He loved her and never wanted to do or think of anything that would offend or disrespect her. This was why he had not yet asked her to sleep with him, or even gotten to second base for that matter. He wanted to take things nice and slow.

Hermione, on the other hand, had become slightly irritated by the fact that he had not been more aggressive during their snogging sessions. He always left her wanting more and feeling as if they were doing something wrong. She decided that she needed to be the aggressive one and would begin as soon as they got back to school. She didn't want Mrs. Weasley walking in on her attempts to corrupt her youngest son.

As she unwrapped the chocolate frog Ron had given to her she studied Harry, who was looking somewhat angry as he stared out the window. "What's up, Harry?" He looked at her, and then saw the loving way Ron was staring at her from behind. He returned his gaze to the window and muttered "Nothing..."