It Could Have Gone That Way; A Harmione Fanfiction

Chapter 46: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

"NO!" Harry screamed for the final time, his voice hoarse.

Dumbledore didn't say anything, he simply picked Harry up with surprising strength for a man of his age and placed him on his feet as Amos Diggory wailed loudly beside them. Harry's leg was still shaking - more so than the rest of him - and he was certain his ankle was broken.

On the far side of the stands, Harry was more than a little surprised to see Hermione struggling to get past a Ministry official. It was clear that she wanted to get down off of the stands, but the official wasn't having it. Hermione locked eyes with Harry, and something told him she was trying to get over to where he - in particular - was standing. All of a sudden, both Harry's leg and scar erupted into pain once more. His leg gave out and he staggered. A pair of ridiculously strong arms caught Harry and immediately started dragging him towards the castle. Moody.

As the professor led him into the castle, Harry looked back at Hermione. She was slowing her struggle and watching Harry leave. Her nose was bleeding.

Harry didn't get back to the common room until about three o'clock in the morning. It was dark in there. The light that sprinkled the room when he opened the portrait hole showed the figure sitting on the sofa. It was Hermione. She was sitting cross-legged, staring stonily into the unlit fire. She looked as though she had been crying, but she wasn't at that time.

"I thought it was you." She breathed as Harry sat down next to her.

"What?"

"I thought you were...dead."

"Oh. Nearly." Harry quietly told her everything that had happened since he had entered the maze. By the end of his story, tears were slowly rolling down her smooth cheeks again.

"Oh, Harry...I'm sorry..."

"Don't be. That won't bring him back."

It took Hermione a couple of seconds to realise that Harry meant Cedric, not Voldemort. "I know it won't, Harry." Hermione said gently,"Nothing will."

Harry met her eyes for the first time since he had come in. Everything started disappearing again, just like it had back in Diagon Alley two years before then, when Hermione had seen Quirrell attacking Harry.

Once everything around them had returned, Hermione looked terrified, "C-Cedric..."

"Hermione?" Harry put his hands on her arms steadily.

"I...I saw him die..."

Harry looked down,"No, Hermione-"

"In your eyes."

He looked up,"Like...like last time?"

Hermione nodded. She wrapped her arms around Harry's shoulders,"I'm so sorry, Harry."

***********

"I won't write, you know I won't write." Ron said as the trio settled into their booth on the train.

"Harry will, won't you?" Hermione turned to him expectantly.

Harry laughed,"Yeah, every day, like always."

Ron muttered something along the lines of,"Waste of bloody parchment..." as the Hogwarts Express began chugging along.

"You know what else is a waste of bloody parchment?" Harry nodded at Ron's pocket.

"Excuse me!" Ron said indignantly, pulling out the two small slips of parchment that had been carefully stored above his heart,"Viktor Krum is a world famous Quidditch player! Of course I wanted his autograph!"