A/N This is part of a Lyric Llama challenge from the harmony & Co 18+ Facebook group. It's an excellent community that I highly recommend if you enjoy Harmony stories.

This fic was inspired by the lyrics "I cannot go to the ocean, I cannot drive the streets at night, I cannot wake up in the morning with you on my mind. So you're gone and I'm haunted and I bet you are just fine. Did I make it that easy to walk right in and out of my life?" from the song, Almost Lover by A Fine Frenzy. I claim no ownership of it, I only used it as inspiration.

8th year fic. H/Hr fic. Molly, Ron & Ginny Weasley bashing.

Harry's face was an expressionless mask as he sat on the Hogwarts Express heading to London for Christmas. He kept a a slight smile that deflected comments that might otherwise have been made.

Across from him, a giggly Hermione looked adoringly at her boyfriend Ron and pecked him on the lips. Beside him, Ginny was attempting to engage him in conversation. This endeavor was meeting with as much success as all her previous attempts since they returned to Hogwarts, which was to say none at all. Harry's answers tended to be mono-syllables at best.

Ginny actually had a better idea of why that was than Harry, but it didn't mean she would stop trying. Harry hadn't asked her out again after Riddle had been defeated, but she was certain she could change his mind since the minor obstacle in her way had been removed.

Harry's thoughts turned back to the summer past. After the battle of Hogwarts, Ron and Hermione had been dating briefly until they had one argument too many. Not wanting to be alone in Grimmauld Place, Harry had gone and stayed with Hermione and her parents Dan and Emma. His memories of that time were a little hazy, but he knew he had enjoyed himself immensely. He had grown even closer to Hermione. He had been planning on asking her out, but that had never seemed to happen. Then they went to the Burrow together for a few days and suddenly Hermione was with Ron.

Harry had had to leave and go back to Grimmauld Place, despite repeated attempts by Molly and Ginny to keep him there. He had been haunted by thoughts of Hermione and the time that they had spent together in the summer ever since. It seemed like a half-remembered dream that had turned into a nightmare. He thought to himself 'She's fine…How could she find it so easy to walk right in to my heart and then walk right back out.' But Harry didn't begrudge her this, he truly wanted her to be happy. Even if it was at the expense of his own happiness.

Eventually, after what seemed like forever to Harry, they reached King's Cross.

Hermione kissed Ron goodbye and just before he left with his family, he handed Hermione a package that Molly have given him. "Here Hermione, this is like the advert calendar you told me about. I want you to eat one of the chocolates every day and think of me."

Hermione grabbed him in one of her patented Hermi-hugs™ and kissed him again. 'I am so lucky to have such a thoughtful boyfriend,' she gushed mentally. She looked at Harry, who was refusing, again, Molly's offer to stay with the Weasleys for Christmas.

She went over to him and was about to hug him when he reached out his hand to shake hers. Automatically, she took his hand as he said. "See you in a couple of weeks." With that he turned and walked away, avoiding Ginny who tried to hug him as well. She didn't see Ron smirking behind her as the Weasley's left using the Floo to get back to Devon.

Hermione was stunned and hurt. How could Harry be so cold and formal with her? She always hugged him, well she hadn't since she had started going out with her wonderful boyfriend, but still. Confused, she turned to her parents who looked surprised as well.

"Hermione, did you have a fight with Harry?" queried her mother.

"No mum, I don't understand. I mean I know Ron and I haven't spent as much time with him since we got together, but we haven't fought."

Her mother sighed. "Maybe he's just finding it hard to adjust to the changed relationship. I must say I was surprised when you wrote that you were seeing Ron. I don't know why, but I expected it to be Harry."

Hermione frowned, "but Ron is just so wonderful!"

Emma laughed, "Far be it for me to stand in the way of young love!"

Hermione blushed. "Mum!" she exclaimed as they departed the station. Dan, walking behind, frowned as well. He wasn't sure why, but a feeling nagged at him that Harry would be a better choice, a choice that part of him thought had already been made.

Hermione arrived back home and immediately unpacked with a wave of her wand. It was so nice being able to magic at home now that she was of age!

She took the chocolates Ron had given her down to the kitchen to store them in a cupboard. Her mother looked at her disapprovingly. "Hermione, you know the rules in this house, no sweets."

Hermione flushed slightly, "It's only one a day."

Emma simply raised an eyebrow. Hermione looked down and thought. "How about I cut them into eighths and only have two over the two weeks?"

Emma nodded. "Thanks mum!" enthused Hermione.

Harry arrived at Grimmauld Place and dumped his bags in the entry way. He looked f at the chocolates Ginny had given him and tossed them in the bin. He trudged into the library and slumped down in a chair as he remembered time spent sitting there chatting with Hermione. Eventually he put his head in his hands and wept.

Hermione and her parents had spent an enjoyable morning having a leisurely breakfast after opening their presents. Harry had sent her a gift voucher for Flourish and Botts. She was again puzzled and a little hurt. Harry's gifts were normally perfect, something that she really liked, but would never buy for herself. This just seemed so… impersonal. Ron's gift had been some Bertie Botts every flavored beans, which had irritated her as she had told Ron about her parents views on sweets. That had gotten her thinking and she couldn't work out why she had been doing Ron's homework for him. She also frowned about Ron distracting her from her studies, insisting on kissing her whenever Harry appeared. It was only now that she noticed that was when it was happening.

Dan turned to the other two in the house and said, "Why don't we look at the video we shot over the summer? I haven't looked at the camera since you left to go to the Burrow. I had the footage moved to DVD, but we haven't seen it yet."

Emma smiled, "I seem to remember you saying you had something to embarrass Hermione with. We will make hot chocolate if you get the DVD set up."

A few minutes later Hermione was following her mother into the front room when her mother stopped abruptly and gasped. Worried about the cause of this behaviour, Hermione stepped around her mother and stopped as well as her hot chocolate slipped out of her suddenly nerveless fingers.

There, on the screen, was video of her in a bikini passionately kissing Harry by the pool… and she didn't remember it at all.