Amour by FLH

Prologue

Hermione woke up at 10 o'clock, near the noon. The golden sunshine was wonderful, the sea outside was turquoise, someone said that it was her eyes' color. Who said that, she seemed to have forgotten it completely, but deeply inside, she knew that. The man she didn't want to think about anymore, and couldn't help herself to do it. She opened the window, and the irony air came in. She could hear the voice of cry. Since the end of the war, every smell has been sensed blood, every baby's cry seemed that the family which got new death information, but always reminded her the death. All things she didn't want to experience, and she did.

It was the mid of June, when some conflicts began. Many people thought that it would end soon, that they didn't have to prepare to do anything. However, the result turned to be wrong. It was an approach to test whether they were ready. She hated it, she hated all wars, but she had no choice, like the others. She loved peace, but sometimes one must fight to get the peace they want. She had to attend the war even though she was in her twenties. None could escape. It was hell. She went to one of the place that battles took place. It didn't matter if she is one of the people to fight, she needed to know how things happens. Actually, there was something other than she expected waiting for her. She saw a figure standing near the tower, dressing a black cloak, not well built, but health. She stared at him for a long time. It must have been the first time she loses all her manner, and can't help herself to look at someone so directly. She didn't have the answer why, why it was him, why she caught sight of him first of all.

Over the hard distance between them, she looked into his eyes. The cold one with no emotions which made her hurt. She continued to look at him, continued to be the silly one she had once loathed to be. Nothing can be last till the end of the world. She was forced to look away, the curse was behind her. The unfamiliar pain stroke her down. It was the first time she suffered the Cruciatus Curse. Every cell of her ached, only one part of the body was fortunately spared from it. She could hear her heart pumping in her chest, so sweetly, so warm. Everything other people said was insufferable only made her remember him in an unusual way.

The second time they meet was almost a month after. She couldn't describe how she was when during the month, the one thing that couldn't be wrong was she was somehow missing them. Missing the stranger she had come across in a battle who obviously rejected her by his eyes. More details should have been remembered, such as the other customers in that place, however, she got nothing of it. He sat in a café, sipping espresso. The dusk fell, stars tickling in a dim light. She came in, after took off gloves, ordered a cup of hot chocolate. It was one of her habits to enjoy her summer holiday, even though it wasn't a "holiday" for the battles were stroking many places right at that moment.

The café was crowded, she settled her cup next to his. They were so close, cuddled like a couple. "Hey!" she said as a greet. She had no idea whether he could recognize her. He nodded in return, and suddenly, her world brightened. His cup was empty, but he stayed there. As though her was waiting for someone. She didn't ask who, little flames were burning in her stomach.

The clouds slowly drifted closer, moonlight was weaker.

She finally decided to stand up, in the silence, in the crowded world, lifted an eye upon his, the darken one which reflected her figure, she liked to see it in his eyes, and their eyes met. It was a lovely night, all the emotions started to grown under the clouds and moon and stars. Everything hugged them to congratulate.

They wandered down the path lead to Hogwarts. A old path famous for love birds. It had started raining, no moon could be seen, water drops running down her skin. Slowly wet, she hummed some tunes. She couldn't help to smile every time she glanced at him.

The night had fallen, and the temperature was getting dawn. She sneezed, coughed with hoarse voice. She didn't take enough clothes with her. She assumed she could be back much earlier, but it was a good coincidence that she met him. To her surprise, he put his cloak on her shoulder, the smell of potions surprisingly calmed her, the warmth in it nearly made her cry. She thought he wasn't the man to give clothes to a girl, it might have been that she was special for him. She thanked his kindness, his face reddened like parrot, like clouds at dusk, like red hat she got in Christmas that she adored all those years. She adored his expression like a kid. She laughed, her voice echoed around.

She can hear it now.

They entered the hall. Both of them wanted to have a longer walk, but they discovered that it had been long passed the time they should have been back. Their bodies trembled, maybe because of the cold weather, maybe excitement, who knew.

Students were interrupted by their appearance, she stood still with her mind blank. Her hands sweated, clinging his sleeve. It seemed that after his appearance, her mind worked childish, disabled to deal with things. Unaware of pupils' curious looks, she whispered to him, requiring him what to do.

He made up an excuse. They were forgiven not until she said his words again. Apparently, something had been changed, not only between them.

He didn't ask her to give back the cloak, and she was too cold and nervous that she forgot it completely. He found his seat next to her. She didn't believe that humming birds got that heartbeats quick enough to kill a human. But she thought her heart had something changed, and somehow beat so quickly that she might end up heart-attack.

She put his cloak to her bag, under the books borrowed from library. The position for precious things.

The bread was well-toasted, smelled delicious. The bacon and butter mixed perfectly, milk remained her favorite hot one, everything except herself was the way it used to be.

Harry and Ron talked something to her, failed to get it through. She heard the words, she saw their mouth repeated the actions—open and close. She didn't know what are they talking about. She didn't have the right to stop them, though she badly desired it.

She couldn't give an answer to Harry and Ron's questions. She fallen in love with a stranger, and who so familiar as if they were lovers before.

Déjà vu.