Lessons In Love

Chapter 52: Carry the Soul-part 1

Hermione took short breaths and stumbled into the Leaky Cauldron with a blank expression on her face. What had just happened? Everything was a blur and nothing seemed to matter anymore. Each step she took, she saw a slight cloud of dust swirl around her and her lips twitched with unfeeling written all over her actions and mixed into her unresponsive eyes. A storm was rolling in and she could hear the swirl of the wind surround the shaky building and rap on the windows, expressing the mood in perfect clarity. Her eyes found the empty pub cover her as a shell to shield from her feelings in the darkness. It was a cover that one other had taken upon them to hide. Hide emotions and sensations from the world for what they had taken from him. Hermione was dead inside. The clicking of her heels drummed a silent sentencing of a casualty, the casualty of the burning fire that was once lit inside her. It was blown out by the howling winds of the world against her and the man that had been taken from her heart.

"Hermione! The test... how did it go?" a familiar voice whispered animatedly from the dark and she could see a silhouette sitting at one of the tables, illuminated by the lightning through the window panes.

She bowed her head and kept her slow pace towards the stairs. Another voice came, "'Mione?"

Hermione slowly turned to see the boy who had never left her side during the task she was set in the Potions test, "Please... just let me be for the night." She quietly pleaded, her voice completely broken.

The figure from the window stood up and walked to the defeated girl and wrapped her up in his arms, "I love you Hermione, I promise I will make this right."

She closed her eyes in hurt and coldly pulled away. Although she was grateful for everything he had done, she just wanted to be alone, "Harry... let me go."

The lightning flashed again and the fiery red hair of the boy next to her glowed in the radiance, "You can't do this,"

Turning slowly, she faced Ron's worried expression, "I have nothing else."

He bowed his head in hurt, "That is not true. You have me. You have Harry."

Her face was expressionless, "Who does he have?"

"All of us, Hermione." Harry interjected, "We are all on Snape's side, as well as yours."

Her eyes averted back to Ron, "You?" she asked helplessly.

His mouth made a firm line and he swallowed hard, "For you, I am."

"Just hear us out," Harry motioned for her to sit at the table and Hermione just stared blankly, still numb, but felt Ron pull her down into a seat.

She didn't fight but let the boys do as they pleased. Harry pulled up a chair in front of Hermione and sighed, "You have to trust us, we are doing everything we can."

Ron sat beside her and grabbed her hand in comfort but let his friend continue speaking, "We won't-"

"Where is he? Where are they keeping him?" she interrupted helplessly as her hand was limp in Ron's. She turned to each of her friends, looking for answers. They wouldn't look her in the eye and Hermione found herself starting to panic, the last of her emotions were being laid out on the table, "They didn't... Harry you didn't let them take him to-"

She broke off her last sentence as she saw Harry finally meet her gaze with his emerald eyes, "Hermione," he whispered, sympathetically.

She abruptly stood up, the last of her strength being used from the exhausting test, "Harry Potter where is he?" Hermione pulled her wand out and pointed it at him.

Standing next to her, Ron snatched it out of her hand and unhappily started, "Stop it, 'Mione. You are not the only miserable one here."

Turning her head to him, she saw the pain in his grey-blue eyes through the darkness. He was referring to himself, she knew it. She had torn his heart in half and there she was throwing a tired fit for another man, a man he hated more than life itself, "We are trying to help you and all you can think about is him!"