Through The War

did you hear that?

Hermione Pov:

Harry and I twist on the spot under the invisibility cloak, landing on cold, wet earth, and I lose my footing. So does Harry, judging by the harsh thud I hears behind me, and a groan. I smile a little, something I haven't done in a while. It's been hard, but I think I'm finally getting over Ron, I think that maybe, I'll be able to forget about the incident - never about him, but maybe what happened. Forgiving him is a whole other story, but I choose to ignore that part for now and focus on the quest at hand.

We hike around in the forest, searching for a secluded or hidden clearing, until we find one not too far away from a large, and frozen lake. I set Harry to do the enchantments while I get a fire started and put up the tent, using mostly magic. These woods remind me of camping with mum and how dad insisted we set up the tent together, and how mum picked flowers with me, and the stories we'd share around the fire. My heart aches at the memories, and I hold in the tears. Not the time to cry. Get it together, Granger.

I glance over at Harry, because he suddenly stopped muttering and casting protection spells, he's unusually quiet. Even more quiet than normal these days. Turning to completely face him, I can sense that he's worried or concerned. Standing still, his head tilted to the side, eyes sharp and barely making a sound. His fists clench. " Harry?" I ask gently, my heart rate picking up.

" Did you hear that?" He looks at me, his face set in worry, and I shake my head, closing my eyes slightly as if that will help me listen. What is he talking about? I'm definitely worried now.

" Hear what?" I respond, suddenly becoming very weary of all of my surroundings, fearing the worst - I'm still shaken from the incident in Godric's Hollow. That resulted in fang bites and broken wands, and we really don't need this. " Harry, what did you hear?"

" Voices." He whispers fearfully, and then I hear them - and I must be mad, but it sounds a bit like Ginny. Her hushed and angry voice. I'm going insane. She should be at Hogwarts or the Burrow, definitely not a forest in the middle of of nowhere. I look to Harry, and it seems like he's thinking the same thing, but then shakes his head, a pained expression on his face. He shakes his body out and stretches his fingers, trying to distract himself. I can tell that being away from Ginny is killing him, especially with the short goodbye they had.

" Nevermind, that. I need to cast the enchantments, can't take anymore chances." He says sadly, and I almost couldn't hear him. He goes back to work and starts muttering and waving his wand, so I turn back to setting the tent, but I can't rid my mind of that voice. It sounded so like Ginny, it hurts. I miss her a lot, she's like my sister.

Once the tent is up, I start to gather wood, and Harry's already done with the protective charms, so he helps me. He goes a little bit away to collect wood and I grab some leaves and set them up in a small pit. I hear a snap of wood and subtle movement and look over at Harry, who also heard it. He goes still, his breathing constricting. A snake slithered away from a bush and I relaxed a bit. Glancing over at Harry again, he seems to be breathing heavily, as if he was running miles. Worried, I walk over to him, watching him as he shuts his eyes, looking up.

" Harry?" He doesn't respond, like he can't hear me. His hands in his hair, his breathing becomes quicker and he's shaking. " Harry, what is it? Is it your scar? What's wrong?"

He opens his mouth to respond but shuts it quickly again, backing away from me like a frightened animal. Tears trickle down his cheeks and I suddenly realize - he's having an anxiety attack. I rush quickly over to him, and put a hand on his shoulder, trying to get him to look at me. He recoils from my touch and takes a huge shuddering breath, as if he was dunked in cold water. He falls backwards onto a tree trunk and buries his face into his hands, curled up with his knees to his chest. " No - I'm fine! I - I - water!" He chokes out and I summon a flask and fill it with water quickly, and give it to him. " I can't - I'm sorry - M-Mione, I don't know w-what happened-