Hello and welcome to the final chapter of the story! *sniff sniff* can you believe it's almost over? Ah well. Now to answer the questions people have sent me. Um, one quick question of mine to a reviewer; I'm . . . evil? You're joking, right? Normally I can tell with these sort of things, but for some reason, I'm taking this literally. I probably shouldn't huh. Oh yeah, and how is it the best and the worst break up? Is it really that poorly written? (Can you tell I don't to fights well? My friend has been harping on me for a while about that.) *Wilts beneath heat of reviewes* ah well, enough of that. Onto the e mails people have sent me. Someone asked me which my favorite HP character was. Well, it's Harry and Hermione. I love them to death, and I think I said this somewhere already. What else . . . gee, i think that's it. well then, here's the last and final chapter!

Yours forever and ever:

pottergal



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Only Talking
Chapter Six
By: pottergal
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Over the next few days, Harry couldn't help but avoid Hermione. He wasn't sure what it was, but every time he saw her coming up to him, his brain would fly into a panic and his feet would carry him as fast as they could in the opposite direction. He really didn't like doing it, but he couldn't stop himself. He just couldn't. Ron also began to give him annoyingly know-it-all looks, and Harry found himself avoiding Ron as well. It made things increasingly difficult, mostly because both of them seemed set on finding him, but also because when he wasn't avoiding them, Harry was bored out of his mind. He knew it would be only a matter of time before one of them would corner him, and he had to laugh at the irony when he found himself in a hallway with Hermione coming up one stairwell and Ron coming down the one behind him.

Great, just great. Harry thought, struggling to maintain some of his composure. Now what do I do? But neither one had seen him, thank the lord. Hermione had her nose buried in a book and Ron was talking to a second year Harry had never spoken to. Harry stood rooted to the spot, his mind trying to choose between the one he'd rather be caught by. He finally cursed himself and ran towards Hermione, clamped a hand over her mouth, and pulled her down a hallway veering to the left. He dimly heard her gasp in surprise, but kept running; he didn't want to be found by Ron, he really didn't.

What finally made him stop was not the fact that he'd gotten far enough away; it was Hermione sinking her teeth into his hand. Harry howled in pain and let her go, and she reeled on him with her wand out in an instant.

"Who the hell are - " Her mouth fell open as she saw it was Harry, who was nursing his bitten hand sullenly. "Ha . . . Harry? What . . . what in the world were you thinking? Why did you grab me like that? I thought you were someone who was going to try and . . ." He frowned as her cheeks went slightly red. "Well, ah, um . . ."

"I'm sorry I did that, Hermione, but I needed to get away from Ron. I figured you'd chase me if I just ran past you, so I grabbed you." Hermione gave him a curious look and Harry couldn't help but fidget beneath it. "I'm sorry if I hurt you or anything. I really didn't mean to, I just . . . well . . ." Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure why he'd grabbed Hermione like that. It probably would've been better to ask her quickly to go with him or something.

"You just didn't think, did you." He nodded sheepishly. "It's okay, I suppose. You didn't hurt me so much as you stunned me. I wasn't expecting to be yanked down a hallway like that." She picked up the book she'd dropped when she'd spun to face him and put it in her bag. "So why did you need to get away from Ron? Does it have anything to do with the conversation from that lunch?" Harry grimaced.

"I didn't want Ron to start hounding me about, um . . ." He trailed off, his face heating as he thought about the reason Ron would be pestering him. "Well, yes, I suppose you could say it does." There was a pause of silence in which Harry began to chew at the inside of his cheek nervously; he couldn't tell her what the conversation was about. He drew a deep breath and tried a different track. Think, he told himself. What can you talk about? "Hermione, I want to apologize for avoiding you. I, uh . . . I guess I just . . ." Damn, he couldn't tell her why he'd been avoiding her either.

A long silence passed between them, Harry racking his suddenly blank mind for something, anything, to say to her. But he continued to come up with nothing, his thoughts going in circles of "Ooh, try that!" and "No, that wouldn't work . . ."

"You don't have to explain, Harry." Hermione said after a moment, her voice rather stiff and he could tell she'd been hurt. "I can understand why you've been avoiding me. I mean, who wouldn't? Who'd want to hang around with a dull and boring bookworm like myself?" She said curtly and she looked away hastily.

"That's not true and you know it, Hermione. Since when has the fact that you read a lot made me stop talking to you?" She shrugged a little. "Never, that's what. If anything, your reading has saved my neck quite a few times."

"Then what is it? Ever since you got out of the hospital wing, you've been avoiding me." She looked back up at him, her jaw clenched slightly and her eyes holding both determination and a faint sheen of tears. "Did I say something? Did I do something to offend you? What happened to those talks that we used to have? What . . . what's happened to our friendship?" Her voice grew soft and she looked at her feet. "I . . . I feel like I've lost you, Harry. I've lost your friendship, and I'd like to know why." Her voice hardened as she looked back up to him.

"You haven't lost a friend, Hermione! I . . . I just . . ." He trailed off awkwardly a second time, mentally kicking himself repeatedly. Ron had told him to go for her, hadn't he? So why . . . why couldn't he say anything? Why was he so frustratedly tongue-tied? "I . . . I can't exactly say why I've been staying away lately. It's rather complicated, I suppose." He said and felt as though he were fumbling for words. Yet another long silent pause passed between them, Hermione staring at him with a frown and he staring back, desperately trying to communicate to her that he didn't hate her. It was just . . . he was afraid. He didn't want to have another relationship like the one with Cho . . . he didn't want to tell her that he'd started liking her as more than a friend. If he did, he'd definitely lose her friendship.

"If you can't tell me, that's fine, Harry. I seem to have been under the impression that we were better friends then that." She said at last, breaking the silence and jerking Harry from his revelation. There was a sharpness to her words that cut him and made him bristle with anger. "But I was wrong, wasn't I." The barb stung Harry deeply and he couldn't help the glare that formed.

"Well, I can't tell you everything, can I? There are some things you just can't tell a girl." He retorted harshly and mentally told the part of him that was appalled to keep quiet. He watched as Hermione blinked a little before returning his glare with an icy stare.

"Is that so." She said simply and turned on her heel. "I guess you don't need me, then do you? I was just some meager replacement until you had Ron's pure friendship again." It was Harry's turn to blink; he hadn't expected this reaction. He'd expected a yell, a glare . . . he'd expected anger, but not cheerless defeat. "I'll see you around then, all right?" She said with a small tremor to her voice and began to walk off down the hallway, back to the place Harry had dragged her from. There was something in her stature, something in her voice that told Harry she wasn't just leaving him alone. From the way she'd acted, he could swear that this was . . . this was the end. By walking away now, she was going to end their friendship completely.

"WAIT!" Harry yelled, not bothering to keep the desperation from his voice, and she stopped in mid-stride. He was a fool, the biggest fool on the face of the earth. He knew Hermione, and he knew better than to retort so acidly. He had to tell her, tell her why he'd been staying away. She was walking away now, wasn't she? If he told her, she might still walk away, but . . . but she'd know why. She'd know the reason why he'd avoided her.

"What is it?" She asked rather tartly and Harry drew a deep breath, screwing his eyes shut and drawing on every shred of courage he possessed.

"The reason why . . . well, it's because . . ." His voice wavered, and he opened his eyes slowly. His gaze met Hermione's and he heard her gasp slightly. He took a small step towards her, their eyes locked, and he saw panic creep into her expression. "It's because I think . . ."

"No, I don't want to hear it!" She shouted suddenly, stunning him. She clamped her hands over her ears and shook her head. "I don't want to hear it if it's what I think you're going to say! I won't hear you say it!" She shook her head again, a bit more vigorously. "If you want me from your sight, then I'll go now!"

"Hermione!" He yelled as she turned and began to run in the opposite direction. "Hermione, stop! You don't understand!" Harry cursed himself and drew a deep breath. There was only one option now; chase her and make her listen to him.

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Hermione stood infront of Harry, her heart feeling as though it had been ripped out, stomped on, trampled, shot a few times for good measure, and then put back. When he'd started avoiding her, as it was blatantly obvious to her despite his attempts at subtlety, it had sent small pangs of hurt through her. Each time he changed course in the halls, got up from the table to leave when she sat down, hardly said a single word to her, the pain grew. Ron had cursed him out a few times, and she'd learned that he'd started avoiding him as well. But Ron, who seemed to know why Harry had been avoiding her, remained totally silent when she'd asked him. He finally had said something, but it had made her frown.

"If he's too chicken shit to say anything, then I'll be damned if I will." Say what, she'd wondered? Had she done something, said something, to upset him? What? Why wouldn't someone just tell her?! Her inner self screamed. So when he'd grabbed her and dragged her down the deserted hall, she'd felt glad. Finally he was ready to tell her what'd been bothering him.

But she'd been wrong. Talking with him had only made her insides writhe with more pain, her heart aching. The pain had made her realize that she really did care about him, that Ron had been right all along. What he'd seen years and years in advance, Hermione herself hadn't realized until she stood a few feet from Harry, her heart aching because he wasn't being the same friend as usual. Another realization occurred then; she couldn't chase someone who was oblivious, and Harry was most certainly oblivious.

"If you can't tell me, that's fine, Harry. I seem to have been under the impression that we were better friends then that." She said after another long moment of silence, her heart breaking. Since when had he stopped confiding in her? Hadn't they grown closer this past year? Or was that her imagination? Had it all been a dream, that power drawing her to him? She'd nearly drowned in his gaze, had wanted to stay forever looking at him, taking in his every move . . . could that have been what was driving him away? Had he realized that she felt something she shouldn't feel for her friend?

"Well, I can't tell you everything, can I? There are some things you just can't tell a girl." He said bitingly and she blinked as he glared at her, that dark frightening glare. Her insides went cold, and his words seemed to confirm her very thoughts. They really hadn't grown closer, nothing had changed. Her heart hardened and she couldn't stop the icy stare that formed.

"Is that so." She said simply, unable to think of a decent retort, and turned on her heel. "I guess you don't need me, then do you? I was just some meager replacement until you had Ron's pure friendship again." Bitterness rose within her as she lifted her foot to walk away from him. How could she have been so stupid? How could she have been so goddamn blind? How could she have believed Ron when he'd said that she and Harry had something? She was a fool, a fool! "I'll see you around, all right?" She said in what she hoped was an offhand manner. She began to walk quickly, before the tears could fall from her eyes. She wanted to get out of here as fast as possible, she wanted to get away from him.

"WAIT!" Harry yelled, and she stopped in mid-stride. There was something in his voice, a note of desperation that made her put her foot down and turn slowly, cautiously, to face him. His face was taught, his green eyes darting back and forth across the hallway. He looked incredibly tense, as if he was fighting something within.

"What is it?" She asked, unable to keep the bitter notes from her voice. She watched Harry draw a deep breath and shut both of his eyes tight. She frowned, but didn't leave. Silence mounted, but something kept her rooted to the spot. If she moved now, she felt, she'd break his concentration and she'd never say another word to him because she'd been about to abandon their friendship.

"The reason why . . . well, it's because . . ." His voice wavered slightly and he opened his eyes. Hermione gasped as their gazes locked, his eyes holding a completely different expression. Guilt, remorse, sorrow, and . . . was that longing, or . . . or disgust? No, no it couldn't be. Fear rose in her then; this couldn't be happening. He couldn't be dismissing her . . . but she knew Harry. Even if he didn't like someone, he'd be as kind as possible. By avoiding her, he'd been trying to give her a hint. "It's because I think . . ."

"No, I don't want to hear it!" She shouted. She didn't want this to be happening . . . she wouldn't let it happen! She clamped her hands over her ears and shook her head. "I don't want to hear it if it's what I think you're going to say! I won't hear you say it!" She shook her head a second time. "If you want me from your sight, I'll just go now!"

"Hermione!" She heard him yell as she turned and started running away from him. "Hermione, stop! You don't understand!" But she wasn't about to; she understood completely. She was going to run, and run, and run . . . she didn't want to hear him say it.

What the . . . She looked over her shoulder at the sound of footfalls and gasped as she saw Harry running after her, his expression determined and slightly angry. Oh no . . . She tried to put on more speed, but failed. It was clear which one of them was the athlete; all the rough Quidditch practices had paid off for Harry as he quickly closed the gap between them.

"Stop . . . running!" He yelled through clenched teeth and Hermione felt a hand grab the back of her collar, yanking her to a halt. They landed in a giant heap, both breathing hard from the chase. Hermione sniffed a little as she rolled onto her hands and knees and struggled to stand up. Her neck hurt from where her collar had choked her and tears were beginning to trickle down her cheeks. If she got up now, he might be stunned enough for her to get to where some people were . . .

"Are you still going to try and run?!" She'd managed to get to her feet, but the moment Harry grabbed her wrist, she sank back down to her knees and buried her face in her hands. She wouldn't cry infront of him, she just couldn't! She sniffed again, fighting the lump in her throat. "Hermione, face me! I think you've . . ." He jerked her around, but the second their eyes met, his angry expression melted and she sensed him draw back slightly. Anger filled her then; did he really hate her that much?

"I'm sorry I'm so stupid, Harry! I'm sorry I couldn't take a hint and understand!" She shouted, forgetting about the tears. "You tried to tell me to stay away, that you didn't want me around, but it never seemed to click! So I'll keep out of your way from now on, all right? Will that make you happy?" Tears clouded her vision and trailed down her cheeks. She sniffed angrily and started to turn away from him.

"Oh, Hermione . . ." From the corner of her eye, she noticed him shaking his head ever so slightly. "You've misunderstood completely, haven't you." She blinked and looked back at him with a frown.

"What?" He gave her a gentle half-smile.

"The reason I've been avoiding you wasn't because I hate you, Hermione. In fact, it's the exact opposite." She felt her eyes widen as he drew a deep breath. "It's because I think I like you. A lot, actually." It took her a moment to register what he'd said, as her brain wasn't functioning properly. She stared into his eyes, his oh so beautiful green eyes, and suddenly it had hit her like a giant slap. She jerked back in surprise and she watched Harry look away sullenly. "I know I shouldn't feel this way, but . . . I do." He said softly, as though he were speaking to the floor. "I tried to stop it, make it go away, but it kept getting stronger, and I wanted . . . I wanted to stare at you forever, and not share you with anyone." His lips tightened in a grimace. "But you're one of my best friends, who was going out with my other best friend! What a better way to ruin everything by starting to like you, huh?" He snapped, his voice full of bitterness. His eyes grew angry for a moment, but he sighed and the expression faded to one of regret. "But I . . . I couldn't help it." He looked back to her, back to her stunned expression. "And now you're running away, trying to get away from me. Well, I couldn't let you leave without knowing. So now you'll have a proper reason to leave, to abandon the idiot who started to fall for one of his best friends."

She stared at him for a while in silence, her voice paralyzed from shock and her heart utterly dancing with joy. He continued to sit beside her quietly, his expression full of remorse, his eyes focused on her, waiting for her to leave, to get up and walk away and never speak to him again . . .

But she didn't. Instead, she felt her face break into a grin, and threw her arms around his neck. His eyes widened in shock, and he gasped as she essentially tackled him and they fell backwards. Hermione hugged him as tightly as she could, nearly squeezing the life out of him from sheer happiness. He coughed finally, and she stood. He stared up at her, his mouth hanging open slightly. She smiled and pulled him to his feet before hugging him again and laughing.

" . . . Hermione?" He asked, his voice awash with about a million different emotions. He pushed her off of him somewhat reluctantly and frowned down at her face. She'd started crying again, though she was laughing at the same time. "What is it? What did I say?" She couldn't endure the look of pure concern in his eyes so she hugged him again and pressed her lips to his ear.

"You great git, you're even more thick than Ron." She could sense his confusion, but she didn't allow him to break free from her grip. "I'm just so very relieved, that's all. And you know why?" He shook his head, his hair tickling her face. "Because I feel the exact same way."

"What?!" He finally jerked free, his expression so very stunned and his mouth hanging open. Hermione beamed at him though her tears of joy, and he stared, goggling at her. "But you . . . I mean, you . . . you . . . you can't like me. That . . . it just doesn't . . . it can't . . ." His mouth was opening and closing, his brain trying desperately to make sense of her words. "You like Ron! You can't like me, that's impossible!"

"Give it a rest, already!" She nearly shouted. "Accept it, Harry. I like you. And I have for a while now." He gulped and she slipped her arms around him for the fourth time. Her head came to rest on his shoulder and she buried her face in his neck. "So quit being such a blockhead, okay?"

"You felt it too, then. Didn't you." He finally wrapped his arms around her, his face pressed against her hair. "Every time I looked at you, I just couldn't get enough. Your eyes . . . they held me forever." She giggled slightly and nodded. "I wanted to be lost in your eyes, never having to think about another thing."

"That's exactly how I felt." She murmured, little tingles running though her body. It felt so incredibly wonderful, in Harry's arms. His strength seemed to envelop her, protecting her, shielding her from everything. She never wanted to leave, she wanted to stay in his embrace forever, not have to return to the world of classes and teachers and other students . . . This was a million times better than anything else at Hogwarts, and she wanted it to continue on, never ending . . .

"Hermione?" Harry's soft question barely registered; her mind was off somewhere and she was floating in a sea of bliss. "When did you start liking me?" She shrugged as best she could.

"I don't know. It feels like I have forever." He murmured an assent, his arms tightening around her. "Harry? Can we stay like this always? I don't ever want to move . . ." She whispered, but suddenly his grip loosened and he took a small step away from her. She frowned angrily; she'd been enjoying herself and suddenly it was over.

"Neither do I. But . . ." Their gazes locked and suddenly Hermione understood. They couldn't stay in the hallway forever, it was impossible. They would be missed and then people would come looking, and then . . . "We do have lives, and we still have to live them."

"Darn, and I was hoping we could run away together." She said slightly sarcastically and Harry raised his eyebrows. "I know, I know, Harry." She sighed. "But at least we know now, right? And since I'm no longer going out with Ron, it's okay. We can be a couple." She took his hands and squeezed them warmly as he turned over the word a few times. "That's right, you heard me. A couple, a pair, a duet, two people together."

"I know, Hermione." He said exasperatedly and she giggled. "It's just . . . strange. That's all. I never thought that I'd ever have another girlfriend, especially after Cho." Hermione felt a flash of indignation at the mention of the other girl's name and drew herself up haughtily.

"If you think for one moment of comparing me to her, Harry Potter, I will hex you into the next country." He grinned sheepishly and she melted. The way his eyes sparkled, the way his mouth curved, it was enough to turn her into a pile of mushy Hermione. "Don't do that!" She said with laughter and he frowned in confusion. "You just have to turn me to jello, don't you?"

"I didn't know I could. What did I do? This?" He grinned again and she laughed again.

"I'm not telling. I don't want to be weak-kneed for the rest of my life."

"That's quite the compliment. I can make the infamous Hermione Granger, the one who'd never so much as look at a guy, weak in the knees just by grinning, can I?" She cuffed him lightly on the shoulder as he continued grinning at her. "Most interesting. Now I know exactly how to break your concentration during Transfiguration and Charms . . . you'll never do a proper spell again."

"Is that so?" She said, but before she could think of a good retort, a voice called her from further down the hall.

"Hermione! Where are you?" She cursed under her breath and looked at Harry. His expression was slightly sad, and she couldn't help but feel slightly cheered by it. It meant that he too had wanted their time alone to last just a little bit longer.

"That'll be Ron looking for me. We were going to meet to work on our Potions homework." Harry looked crestfallen, and she touched his cheek gently. "Don't look so down, all right? We've got plenty of time to do things together. Now come on, let's go find Ron." She slipped her hand through his and they started off towards Ron's voice. But before they got very far, Hermione stopped walking and looked up at Harry. "One more thing before we go. Do you think we could keep this as low key as possible? When we're around others, that is. I really didn't like the way you became the odd one out when I was going out with Ron."

"I understand completely, being the one who knows what it's like to be the third wheel. I'll try and not let this affect my friendship with Ron, all right?" She beamed at him and suppressed a giggle as a faint red tinge appeared on his cheeks.

"You look so cute when you blush, did you know that?" She grinned as his face went even redder. "Oh, but I forgot. Guys don't blush do they."

"We do." His voice came out as a small squeak and she laughed.

"One last thing before we go." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. His face looked like a sun burnt tomato as she stepped back and she couldn't help but shake her head. "Come along, Mr. Potter. It's time to rejoin the real world." He smiled at her just as Ron came around the corner. Hermione saw him and grinned; he was shaking his head slowly, his hands on his hips, but a wry smile tugged at his lips.

"So what have you two been up to?" Ron asked, his gaze flicking between them. Harry went red again and Hermione almost kicked him. "That bad, huh? Wow, I would've given you at least a few more weeks. Who would've thought you'd start out at that level."

"Oh shut up, Ron. We were only talking." She gave Harry a pointed look and he nodded vigorously.

"That's right, only talking. Nothing more." Ron gave him a skeptical look as Harry met Hermione's gaze. She smiled gently as the spell came back yet again, making her float away dreamily in his wonderful emerald eyes. "We were . . . only talking."

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YEY! It's done! Took me long enough, sheesh. I apologize if people are ooc, and I'd love to hear what you think. Um, I'm thinking of doing a short sequel to this, one that involves Harry and Hermione either a few months into their relationship, or one at the end of seventh year. It definitely wouldn't be as long as this one (so I say now . . .), I think it'd be more of thoughts or something. Anyway, tell me if you think it is worthy enough of my time. Thanks a lot to everyone who has reviewed with their two cents.

Yours forever and ever:
pottergal