[HP] The magic thieves #4 (Patreon)

*All characters are eighteen or older*

Chapter #4: Us against the world.

PDF DOWNLOAD (For wizard experts and above) [17-MagicThieves04.pdf]: January PDF downloads

“Hey mate, wanna play a game of wizard’s chess?” A redhead young man asked Harry while the dark-haired wizard carried many books.

“Sorry mate, I can’t, I’m going to spend some time with Hermione, we don’t want her to get too bored while she’s in bed, right?” Asked Harry with a slight smirk.

It seems like Ron wasn’t too amused about it, he didn’t know how to feel about it, on one hand, he wasn’t spending too much time with his best friend, and on the other, his best friend was spending too much time with the girl he has been crushing since the Yule ball.

“You two are spending too much time together lately, don't you?” Asked Ron with a not-so-happy expression.

Harry couldn’t help but sigh internally, he knew what was coming.

“Now that I think about it, yes, you’re right…I guess I got used to being with her after you abandoned me when my name came out of the goblet of fire,” Harry said with a mix of amusement and sarcasm.

Ron’s face suddenly turned red, he knew he shouldn’t feel attacked because that’s the reality of the situation but on the other hand, he hated when people made him remember his mistakes.

“Now, if you excuse me, Hermione needs these books, so, if you don’t want to join us, I better get going to give her the books as soon as possible I don’t want her to get desperate or worried about my whereabouts,” Harry said and he waited for a few moments to see if Ron would try to include himself.

“Nah, I’m fine…You know? You should go with her, I know I’m not as smart as you two are,” Ron’s tone was bitter and Harry didn’t have time to tell him that they didn’t think that but Ron marched towards his room at an incredible speed.

Harry couldn’t help but sigh, he didn’t know how to feel about this, on one hand, Ron was his first friend but after last year’s events, their friendship didn’t recover even if the redhead tried to pretend that nothing happened, Harry knew that someone like Ron who could get mad at him at any moment was someone unreliable for the plans Harry and Hermione had.

On the other hand, he felt relieved that he decided to not come with him, he and Hermione were going to discuss their next course of action in their plans, and that had to be a secret between Harry and Hermione and it wasn't just because Ron was unreliable, in the end, it was also because despite his attitude they didn’t want to put him in danger.

Soon, Harry got back to Hermione’s room, the bushy-haired witch was reading a book about strange rituals people practice around the world, she was searching for something that could help them with their ‘squibization’ project.

“Hey,” Harry said with a smile as he saw how cute his best friend looked while reading a book while she was covered in blankets.

“Oh, hey…Did you find books about what we wanted to know?” Asked the bushy-haired witch with a slight smile.

“Yes, thankfully Sirius gave me full access to the secret section of his library, I found two books about the theories that surround the origin of magic, ‘Anatomy of Wizards and Witches' and ‘Magical Cores and What You Should Know About Them’,” Harry suddenly handed Hermione the four books he was carrying.

She felt as if it were her birthday as she received the books Harry found, he suddenly remembered to put a silencing charm on the room and also a charm to lock the door with the spare wand that belonged to Sirius’ father.

“Oh, Harry…Before we start discussing our ideas,” Hermione suddenly raised the wand that belonged to Sirius' mother and stared into his eyes. “Legilimens!” She said in a harsh tone.

Harry was taken aback by her sudden attack but he wasn’t complaining, they needed to practice, after all, he was the one who told her to read his mind whenever she wanted to, this was a good way to train.

However, Harry wasn’t prepared enough and Hermione suddenly saw the memory of the recent argument between Harry and Ron, still, surprisingly, Harry managed to push Hermione back a little but she was still able to see his memories, this was so frustrating for Harry as they’ve been practicing since Hermione came back from the hospital five days ago.

“Harry…Don’t lose your composure!” Hermione suddenly told him after finishing the attack.

“Sorry,” he said as he managed to weakly sit on a chair close to Hermione’s bed.

The bushy-haired witch could only sigh, she hated to do this, Harry was her best friend and her long-time crush and she hated to attack his mind like this, according to the book Sirius lent them, too many attacks on an inexperienced occlumens could result in something similar to being exposed to the cruciatus curse for a long time, they could lose their minds.

“It’s alright, we’ve just started practicing, I know you didn’t have a good talk with Ron but you need to keep your mind and your emotions in check Harry,” Hermione tried to not sound like she was scolding him.

“I know it’s just that…My problem is that I care too much about people’s opinion even the one of those who wronged me in the past like Ron,” Harry said with a sad tone.

Hermione suddenly decided to close the book she had been reading the whole evening and soon, she got on her feet, she walked slowly towards Harry and he couldn’t help but blush at the sight of her looking so cute and lovely with her sleeping robes and her mess of a hair.

“Harry…If you get too emotionally attached to people, you’re not going to be able to make those bastards pay,” Hermione was surprisingly cold, and yet, Harry knew she was right.

“You seem to not care too much Hermione…How do you do it?” He asked with a defeated tone.

She suddenly chuckled and Harry looked at her with a curious expression.

“Oh Harry…I care, I care more than you think…However, the number of people I care about it’s limited, it’s sad to say this but If I had the chance to put myself in front of a bullet, I would only do it for my dad, my mum…And you,” she said as she kneeled before she started to hold his hand.

She was staring at him with a loving expression, and he wanted to stay like this for the rest of his life.

“This world is brutal Harry, regardless if we’re talking about the magical or the muggle world, you can’t care and save everyone, you can try but you need to give priority to some people or even none if that serves your purpose,” she said with a sad tone.

Harry remained in silence for a few moments, Hermione thought that he was going to get angry at her for telling him to be selfish, however, she was surprised the moment he decided to grab her cheeks before giving her lips a soft peck and to say that Hermione was shocked would be an understatement.

“Being selfish…I’m sorry for being selfish right now Hermione because I’m in love with you, and you may not love me back but…I’ve decided that I’m going to care only about you and—” He couldn’t continue as Hermione suddenly fiercely kissed him.

He was surprised not only because of the kiss but also because she was now climbing on his seat as they kissed, they were kissing as if their lives depended on it, and it wasn’t until the need for air became too obvious that they stopped the kiss.

“If that kiss wasn’t clear…Let me tell you that I love you too Harry James Potter, I’ve been in love with you since you saved me from that troll, I want you to be selfish to only care about us and maybe in the future about my parents,” she said as she panted.

Harry nodded furiously.

“Yes, it’s going to be only us from now onwards, you and me against the world, so…Would you like to be my girlfriend Hermione?” Harry asked bravely.

The intense kiss he received was enough answer to that question.