||Now It's Just Us||

Chapter 12 ||Flashback||

"Where's Harry?" Hermione worried her bottom lip as she waited for Ron to answer her.

She'd been asking whoever she saw in the hallways. She'd asked Parvati and Dean, Seamus, Professor McGonnagall. None of them knew where Harry had gone off too.

"I dunno," Ron said vacantly, "he came back in with us after he snapped the wand, remember?"

"Yes, but where is he now?" Hermione pressed on. 

She hadn't seen Harry in the past hour. They had all come back inside, and gathered outside the Great Hall. McGonnagall had given them instructions in a broken, bleary voice, directing them as to which part of the castle to repair first. Hermione had been the first in line to volunteer. Harry had been with her then, but he had drifted off. And now she couldn't find him. She felt awful about bothering Ron with it though. She only barely managed to keep from crying every time she glanced at the Weasleys.

"I don't know, Hermione," Ron said exasperatedly, "I should go."

He turned and walked off up the corridor, his steps unmeasured and his stance swaying. He didn't look back.

Hermione swallowed the lump in her throat and took a shuddering breath. She'd go to him later, when he was in a better state of mind. Now she needed to find Harry.

"Hermione?" 

She turned on hearing Neville's voice. The boy wore a small lopsided smile on his face. 

Hermione walked in quick steps to him and wrapped him in a hug. He hugged her back earnestly.

"It's over now, isn't it," Neville said when they had let go of each other.

"It is," Hermione agreed. 

"McGonnagall just offered me a position as herbology professor," Neville said, a tinge of excitement seeping into his voice, "Professor Sprout is retiring, she's moving to Tibet to study some native plant species."

"That's amazing, Neville," Hermione was genuinely happy for him. 

But she was getting sidetracked. She had to find Harry.

"Neville, have you seen Harry, by any chance?" she asked.

"Yea he was going off to one of the bathrooms," Neville said, "sixth floor, I think. But that was half an hour ago, isn't he here now?"

"No," Hermione paled, "I'll-I'll just go check on him. Thank you."

"See you later, then."

Hermione turned and ran. She took the stairs three at a time. Her muscles were screaming by the time she came to a stop on the sixth floor, having narrowly jumped from a moving staircase to reach the landing. She stood and panted for a while, trying to catch her breath. Once she was sure she could breathe normally, she began her walk to the bathrooms. 

Professor Slughorn and a few students were repairing a part of the hallway. Hermione smiled apologetically at Slughorn for not stopping to help. She ran on. A large boulder blocked her path, and she noticed the exploded part of the wall. She flicked her wand and waited while the rock shifted and grated back into place. She cast a permanent sticking charm on it to add durability. Then she was off again. 

"Harry?" her voice sounded too loud in the otherwise silent corridor, but she didn't care. 

She heard a sniffle.

"Harry is that you?" Hermione cautiously made her way inside, blatantly ignoring the sign outside the door that specifically said " boys' ". 

Harry was perched on the granite of the row of sinks. His head was leaned back and rested against the mirror behind him. His legs swung free. His jacket had been discarded, and the sleeves of his jumper were rolled up. Hermione gasped when she saw the small red cuts peppered along them.