Demigods at Hogwarts | the rescue mission ✔

46| Five Minutes

Harry's POV

I stared at the grandfather clock above Ginny's head. Was it just me, or was time moving slower than ever? My fingers curled up into a ball and I felt cold sweat make my palms clammy. I had no clue what the final task would be, even though I knew the Quidditch pitch had been converted into some kind of maze.

Five minutes. Five more minutes until I had to gather with the other champions to prepare.

"Try to relax. You can't let your nerves get the better of you."

It sounded like something Hermione would say, but it was Ginny who had spoken. She was giving me a reassuring smile as she offered me a Chocolate Frog. I quickly chewed and swallowed, trying to ignore the fact that it tasted like cardboard.

"You have your wand with you, Harry?" Ron asked. I managed to nod just before Ginny elbowed him, a scowl on her face.

"Of course he has his wand with him! Spare us all from your stupid questions, will you?" she said spitefully, her tone reprimanding. Ron opened his mouth, about to make a snide comment, but quickly shut it when Ginny gave him a warning glare.

I glanced at the clock again. 6:31—I was slightly off schedule. Scrambling up from my seat, I bid a quick farewell to the Weaslys and headed towards the Quidditch pitch. Hermione was still nowhere to be seen, having been absent from both breakfast, lunch and dinner. Come to think of it, she had been acting weird for the whole week.

I was halfway across the courtyard when I heard someone call my name.

Startled, I spun around. Hermione was heading towards me, her cheeks flushed from running. "Harry," she breathed, her voice barely a whisper as she took my hand. I found myself pulling away reluctantly—if I didn't make it to the pitch in three minutes, I would be in a lot of trouble.

I forced a smile. "This can wait, right? I'm already late, and this isn't the last time you're going to see me." It was meant to be a joke, but it was a sore topic for both of us. Hermione flinched, but she met my gaze steadily.

"No, this can't wait," she said softly. "Harry, we've been friends for so long, and I think we have something else between us. Something that could help us become more than friends." The calculating, judgemental look in her eyes had disappeared, replaced by the look of a desperately lovestruck teenage girl.

This wasn't the Hermione I knew.

Before I could say anything, I felt her arms wrap around my neck. She didn't smell like strawberry or lavender, but had a distinct scent of vanilla and melting chocolate. Her delicate lips brushed mine's softly and slowly, like a butterfly's wings. Our breaths mingled, and for a moment, it seemed like our hearts were beating at the exact same at the same rate.

But instead of fireworks and tingles of desire, kissing her was no different from snogging a cold, mechanical robot.

I rested my hands on her shoulders, gently easing her away from me. "Hermione," I murmured, hoping that she would take the hint to step back and give me some space. But instead she held me tighter, her brown eyes two dark pits of hunger...

"Hermione!"

I had meant for it to be a louder whisper, but it came out as a half-shout. Hermione drew back, her eyes filled with something much worse than disappointment. Letting out a small, stifled sob, she tore away from me and ran back into the castle.

My lips still numb from where her tongue had been just a minute ago, I didn't go after her.

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Hermione's POV

I slammed the bathroom door shut, drawing a shaky breath as I leaned against the wall. Then everything came crashing down, and I had to cover my mouth to muffle the screams that would sometimes escape from my lips.

Pathetic. Just pathetic.

Because I had known, from when my lips first met his, that his feelings for me had never extended beyond friendship and a mutal understanding. But I had let myself cling onto the fantasy that he would eventually fall for me if I kissed him hard enough.

He was Harry Potter, and I was just another silly schoolgirl who had fallen for his heroics.

I didn't want to care about him anymore. I didn't want to remember what had just happened, and the sheer humiliation I had felt when he let go of my hand...almost like he was afraid to touch it.

"Five minutes," I found myself muttering aloud. "Five minutes, and you're going to forget that this ever happened." The Triwizard Tournament was starting in half an hour, and I had to be there. For Viktor, not for Harry.

One... I inhaled deeply, taking steady breaths so that my heart would stop racing in my chest.

Two...I wiped away the tears that were rolling down my cheeks, and bottled up my emotions so that no more would come.

Three...I gathered enough energy to push myself off from the bathroom floor, then stared at my reflection in the mirror for a while.

Four... I forced on the biggest smile I could onto my face, so that no one would notice the hurt lying underneath everything.

Five...I flung open the bathroom door and walked out into the chaos that was about to greet me.