Harry Potter: Stuck

Chapter 15

Scotland was so peaceful.

The sun, orange and bright, was setting, a mixture of colors decorated the sky. The clouds had adopted the orange of the sun and so did the sky. The bright light of the setting sun was reflected by the Black Lake- still, peaceful, and calm. Ripples emanated from the serene surface of the water. Even the Forbidden Forest was calm and quiet, with no evidence of the magical creatures that resided in those woods. Hogwarts was bathed in the beauty of the setting sun. The castle was also peaceful, as if there were no students inside the castle walls. The breeze fanned lightly over her face, the air, humid and calming. Her eyes closed as she savored the moment, so calm and peaceful, with no evidence of the impending war which they participated in. She breathed in deeply, feeling the rich, clean air fill her lungs before she exhaled just as deeply as she breathed in. It helped that she was atop the Astronomy Tower, at Hogwarts.

She stood, holding on to the railing, overlooking the landscape of Hogwarts. The scenery was so calm, so quiet, so peaceful, so rare to experience a moment like this- a moment in  time where Voldemort never existed; where there was no war occurring; where they weren't in danger and on the run, that the wizarding world was living their everyday life in normalcy- as normal as magic was supposed to be. She sighed, savoring every bit of air that calmed her nerves and relaxed her brain- which was an impossible feat for the always over-analyzing witch. 

She never wanted this moment to end. But she wished she wasn't alone- not able to share this wonderful feeling with someone she loves and trusts. At that thought, she felt a presence behind her. Her eyes slowly opened as she felt the presence approach her. She didn't understand how or why she doesn't feel any fear or caution even if she hadn't checked to see who was behind her. Maybe because the presence felt familiar and calming... yeah, that was it. Come to think of it, the presence did feel familiar, like she knew them for most of her life and would entrust her life to that person, like she knew and trust that person herself to want to do anything for them. And the only person who would fit that description was...

"Hey, 'Mione..." a voice sounded behind her. She felt warm and tingly inside at the mention of her nickname. She smiled at her nickname, the nickname in where only a certain special someone was allowed to call her. She already knew who it was even before she saw him.

Still smiling, he turned around to find Harry in his school robes, standing directly behind her. There was a gold pin on the left breast of his robes with a big 'H' on it. He was five inches taller than her 5'7" form that she had to look up to meet his intense emerald eyes. He smiled when she did, obviously enjoying the fact that he had grown taller ever since they had returned to finish their final year at Hogwarts. He looked down and fiddled with something on the left breast of her robes. She looked down to see an identical gold pin in his fingers.

"It all seems so surreal, isn't it?" she asked him while snaking her arms around his waist, holding him close to her.

"How? I mean... you should already have seen it coming, you know? You've deserved this pin ever since you step foot on the train in our first year," he said distantly, letting go of the gold pin to rest the palm of his hand on her cheek. She instinctively leaned in closer to his touch, savoring the feel of his calloused fingers and warm touch.

She laughed softly. "No... it's not that. Though I have to admit, the fact that I was made Head Girl was kind of unexpected. I wanted it but I didn't think I deserved it..." Harry opened his mouth to argue but she continued,"But it's not what I was talking about."

He furrowed his brows. "What then?"

She sighed, resting her head on his chest. "It all seems so peaceful, like Voldemort and the war never existed. I can't help but think that this was the life we were always meant to live."

Harry rested his chin on her head, breathing in her scent- a combination of fresh parchment, quills and ink, and books. He smiled at that. It was so Hermione. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close to him, not wanting the moment to end yet. Hermione pulled back a bit which disappointed Harry a little but was quickly appeased when her lips softly met his. He smiled into the kiss. They both felt the familiar tingling sensation in the pit of their stomachs and the warm, fuzzy feeling in their hearts. Harry tilted his head as he softly palmed her cheeks and deepened the kiss, causing Hermione to sigh softly into his mouth.

A few seconds later, Harry hesitantly pulled back and chuckled when Hermione gave him a pout. He laughed at her expression. She looked so much like a kid who had been deprived of her favorite sweets. But her eyes held so much love and raw passion it, her gaze floored him.

"I'm sorry for cutting that short but we have to get back now. And Ron's going spare with his History of Magic essay, by the way, he says he needs your help," he said.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You came here for Ron?" Her tone was sarcastic but Harry noticed the underlying pain in it. He pulled her in for a hug again.

"No, it's not that. It was just a side comment. We still have classes, remember?" he appeased her. Hermione nuzzled her nose in his neck and grumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" Harry asked.

"Can't we just stay here? I don't feel like moving somewhere," she mumbled, her voice still muffled by the collar of his robes. Harry chuckled softly.

"Never thought I'd see the day when Hermione Granger wouldn't want to go to classes. What have you been eating?" he teased. Hermione hit his chest weakly.

"Just... give me a few more moments. I just want to be here with you." Harry nodded silently. They stood there overlooking the Hogwarts grounds as the sun had finally set, giving way to a dark sky with thousands of twinkling lights known as stars. The moon was beginning to make its appearance, providing the land with its own borrowed light, bathing Hogwarts in a solemn glow.

Hermione closed her eyes as she breathed in Harry's scent of fresh grass, treacle tart, with an odd mixture of the forest. He smelt so good she felt like sleeping.

"Don't you go sleeping on me, 'Mione, I can feel you starting to nod off," Harry's voice snapped her out of her sleep-like trance. She grumbled again. She pulled back to glare at him.

"Fine... but give me one last kiss." Harry guffawed at her demand but was cut off by Hermione grabbing his collar and pulling him in another deep kiss. Her tongue forced its way into his mouth and battled his own for dominance. Their tongues clashed, their teeth grazed into each other, and hands roamed around when a voice broke Hermione out of her thoughts.

"Hermione?" She felt confused as the voice sounded like Harry when he was with her as she snogged the hell out of him.

"'Mione?!" There it was again. Confused, she broke away from the kiss, gasping for air. Harry smiled at her but it was wiped from his face when he saw the look on her own features.

"What's wrong?" He asked but the voice in her head was insisting. She was about to answer him when everything disappeared. Harry disappeared from her view. But she felt a hand was on her shoulder, shaking her.

"Hey, 'Mione, are you okay?"