A/N - Another Harry Potter tale, and another musical one! I own neither the HP saga, or 'Forevermore' by Whitesnake (the featured song).
This follows neatly on from my other story 'Love Will Set You Free' - it can also be read as a standalone one-shot!
Either way, enjoy!
Looking back across the years
The good times and the bad
All echo in my mind
Harry sighed as he held Hermione in his arms. It was snowing hard outside and the winter had well and truly hit Hogwarts. It wouldn't take long for the students to make their way outside and spend all day throwing snowballs at each other, revelling in the snow, opting to stay in the cold for hours rather than remain inside where it was warm. Like any other student, Harry loved the snow, but he found that as he grew older he preferred to stay indoors – snow was such an inconvenience. More importantly, it stopped all Quidditch play, something that did not sit well with him at all. The snowfall had already led to two games being cancelled. Harry had spent countless hours training with the team – all for nothing, apparently. Still, he thought to himself. I'm inside, in the warm – and I have Hermione with me.
He looked down at her figure, curled up and leaning into him. Her eyes were closed and he could feel her body rise and fall rhythmically as she slept. The roaring fire that burned in the Gryffindor common room kept the pair warm.
Whispered on the breeze
Sweet and bitter memories
Of all I left behind
If it wasn't for your love
I don't know where I'd be
Don't know what I'd do
Time and time again
I sing the same refrain
It's all because of you
Enjoying the peace and quiet, Harry closed his eyes, resting himself after yet another hard day. It had been another hard day in this hard term; almost everyone that he and Hermione knew had asked about their relationship. Malfoy, taking full advantage, mocked them to no end; he and his cronies would follow them throughout the school, slandering them with derogatory remarks as they went about their day. It was childish and infuriating. Harry's eyes opened again as he cursed under his breath. You'd have thought Malfoy would have grown up by now, he thought to himself.
For you will be my love
And I will feel your heart beat
Forevermore
Rest here in my arms
Forevermore
Forevermore
Through the dark night of my soul
You gave me a hand to hold
And helped me make it through
Now all my doubts and my fears
Held inside for all those years
Disappear when I'm with you
Despite the near-constant hounding by friends and foes alike, Harry found an escape from reality whenever he spent some quality time with her. Clichéd as it might seem, Harry was sure that he'd found true love in Hermione. She had been his best friend since their first year, and after her messy breakup with Ron and his own split with Ginny, the two had naturally progressed into a loving relationship. The very thought of this made him smile. He sat there for some time replaying their intimate moments to himself, a goofy smile across his face.
For you will be my love
And I will feel your heart beat
Forevermore
Rest here in my arms
Give me all your love
Give me all your love
I'll be in your loving arms
Forevermore
In their past seven years at Hogwarts, they had been through so much – no Muggle endeavours could really scratch the surface. Not only had they successfully defeated the biggest evil in the wizarding world, but juggling a school life and a social life certainly made the pair's lives challenging. Needless to say, Harry felt like throwing in the towel on many occasions – sometimes, life would get the better of him, haunting him while he woke and slept. The life he'd led thusfar would be hard for any adult to take on, let alone a young man of his age. Nonetheless, Harry found strength through his love for his friends; in particular Ron and Hermione. The pair completed him. Ron was the brother that he never truly had and the entire Weasley clan accepted Harry as one of their own. He loved them like his own family, maintaining a strong friendship with them – save for one Ginny Weasley.
Hermione, on the other hand, always had an odd friendship with Harry. For a long, long time, he had accepted that she was the sister he never had. However, most of the time he felt that there was always something more than that…
He sighed as he reminisced. Harry had been such a confused young teenager.
…Hermione had always loved him and held him close; indeed, the feelings were mutual. They were definitely best friends over the years, but occasionally something would happen that made Harry feel that their friendship was not the end of the story. The way she acted around him sometimes, the hugs, the closeness…he was left on more than one occasion wondering how Hermione truly felt about him.
After many years of such a close friendship, it had all started to fall into place during their year out to locate the Horcruxes. Spending such a long time alone, without Ron… without realising, Harry had began to fall for Hermione. Likewise, she had begun to develop something more than platonic love for Harry, but their pride had led them away from one another and into the arms of different people. They each misunderstood their feelings, dismissing it is nothing more than 'a phase' or something similar. Their stubbornness to accept the truth had resulted in the pair getting strung up with the two youngest Weasleys.
For you will be my love
And I will feel your heart beat
Forevermore
Rest here in my arms
After a year of being with their respective partners, Harry and Hermione found everything collapsing around them – Hermione and Ron had ground to a halt; Harry had found that Ginny was seeing somebody else. It seemed that this particular summer break would hold no good for either Harry or Hermione.
Give me all your love
Give me all your love
I'll be in your loving arms
Give me all your love
That very same summer had led to the pair finally realising where they really stood with one another. Harry soon came to realise that his feelings for Hermione were completely different to any other girl he'd ever been involved with. It was a different love; a 'true' love.
Give me all your love
Give me all your love
I'll be in your loving arms
Give me all your love
As the fire crackled away, Hermione began to stir, opening her eyes slowly and pulling herself up to sit upright. She wrapped her arms around Harry, who maintained his hold on her.
"How long have I been asleep?"
"Not long," he replied softly. She had actually been asleep for an hour. Probably best I don't tell her that, Harry thought to himself. She'd probably complain that I hadn't woken her up earlier so she could head to the library…
"It's so warm in here… I might stay here for a while longer." Hermione had once again nestled into Harry's side, her eyes shut. She was still sleepy.
Harry kissed her head softly as he smiled to himself. She always did look so beautiful at rest. Her features glimmered in the light from the fire. He leant in to kiss her again, this time receiving a reply as she cocked her head up.
After their intimate moment, Hermione spoke, her voice soft.
"Stay with me, Harry."
"I will." He replied with confidence.
"Stay with me forever."
Harry's voice was barely more than a whisper. "Forever and a day."
Hermione smiled back at him, kissing him one last time before putting her head back on his lap, drifting into a comfortable sleep.
Harry couldn't help but smile to himself. This was, to him, a situation that he'd merely dreamed of when he was younger. It had been a long seven years coming, but finally he and Hermione had made it.
At this rate, their love would hold strong and true forever.
Forevermore.