Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to Harry Potter stories or characters. They are all property of J.K. Rowling and her associates. I only play with them for my pleasure, and hopefully yours.

1-The First Day

(14/11/97)

The night after Ron left them, neither Harry nor Hermione managed to sleep. Although they divided the night watch between them and stayed in bed about half the night each, they only thought about what Ron had done and what he had said, and tried to find what they could have done differently to make him stay. It was futile, of course, and each of them knew it, but they couldn't help acting this way.

Come morning, both were barely keeping their eyes open, but neither would admit to having lost any sleep due to Ron abandoning them although each was aware of the lack of sleep of both.

"I think we should move camp elsewhere," Hermione said.

"But Ron…" Harry started.

"Ron won't come back so quickly, if at all. You know how long it takes him to cool down and engage his brain again. If we stay here much longer we'll only make it easier for the Death Eaters to find us." Despite the lack of sleep, her mind was still clear enough.

Harry sighed. "I know… and yet… It's all the same, you know. We make camp in one forest or another; we freeze in the cold; we have no running water; we lack the minimal hygienic facilities; we lack food. How long can we do that? There must be a better way, I'm sure!"

Hermione frowned and tried to think. It was difficult to contemplate new ideas when her body ached for some rest and her mind too. "I can't think clearly," she finally confessed. "Maybe we should just move camp and get some sleep before we try to think of any new ideas."

"Out there in the cold? We won't be able to sleep, I'm sure." Harry suddenly remembered the forced trip he had taken with his relatives before the first year. "Maybe we could check into a hotel, just for one day, so we can bathe and sleep comfortably before we continue our search? I have some muggle money with me, although I don't know how much we may need."

Hermione tried to consider the idea. It was very attractive to her. A hot shower or even a hot bath would be more than welcome, and then a soft bed… Hmm… Maybe they could do it for one day. "Where would you suggest we try to find a hotel?"

Harry had already thought of that. "Near this forest, or any other that you know. We can pretend to have lost our way while hiking in the forest. That would explain our dirty clothes and our tiredness. We may need to take two rooms, though."

Hermione didn't like the last idea. "No, Harry. We're together in this. We've been sharing this tent for some time. I'm sure we can also share a hotel room."

"I'll let you sleep in bed, then, and I'll sleep on the couch or the floor," Harry suggested.

Hermione wouldn't hear of that. "You need to sleep just as much as I do. We may ask for a room with twin beds, but they are not too common. We can share a double bed, though. I trust you not to do anything I wouldn't approve of."

Harry felt his cheeks heat but was too tired to start arguing. Without further talking they dismantled their camp. Hermione conjured two backpacks to fit their story and moved some of their clothes into them, keeping the bulk of their stuff in her beaded handbag that she also put in her backpack.

Just before disapparating away, Harry asked, "What names should we give at the reception?"

Hermione thought for a second. "Valerie and Peter Gordon, newly married. Nobody would connect these names with our real ones. You should also wear a bandana or a hat to cover your scar." She conjured a colourful bandana to do as she suggested before grabbing Harry's hand and apparating to the chosen town.

Since this was the low-season, the hotel had quite a few vacant rooms and the receptionist was glad to give them the best room, one especially intended for newly-wed. Hermione's credit card was accepted with no problems after she'd made sure it showed her new alias.

Hermione was first to enjoy the bathroom, although not for too long. Her tiredness dictated another priority. She came out, wearing the hotel's bathrobe. "Take a quick bath or shower and come to bed. We need at least four hours of sleep now. Later, we may take a real meal and discuss our options."

Harry complied. He felt a bit embarrassed when he noticed Hermione's underwear on the floor, but the bath was too tempting to let that disturb him.

A short while later, when he finished washing, he wondered what he could wear. He had no pyjama ready, and everything he had seemed to be quite dirty. That made him wonder what Hermione put on after bathing.

When he approached the bed, he found out that Hermione was already asleep and the blanket was covering her up to her nose. He wouldn't wake her up just for a question. He silently took the cleanest boxers he could find and put them on before going to the other side of the bed. A minute later, he was already asleep.

\/\/\/

The alarm clock on the bedside table awakened them. Evidently, Hermione had set it before falling asleep. It was early afternoon, early enough for a late lunch, but Harry didn't feel like leaving the bed. For too long he'd slept in the tent on a bunk bed. He wanted to enjoy the luxury a bit longer. Hermione didn't seem to be in a hurry either. She stretched in bed, exposing her arms and her shoulders. Harry was surprised not to see any sign of sleepwear on her. She then turned in Harry's direction and scooted closer.

Harry was immediately made aware of some facts. First, Hermione didn't wear any sleepwear to bed. Second, Hermione had very nice, warm breasts that were pressing on his side. Third, she didn't seem to mind her nudity at all. His mind went lower, wondering if she was even wearing any knickers. Somehow, he doubted it.

"Slept well?" she asked, seemingly unaware of his surprise.

"Splendidly! And you?" he replied.

"Fantastic! The bed was so comfortable and I could finally be rid of the thick garments I had to wear for sleeping in the tent." She then turned mischievous. "Don't you like my attire?"

He wasn't sure what he could say, but his mouth seemed to speak without his mind directing it. "What are you wearing?"

Her mischief became more evident. She flung the blanket aside, revealing her body completely. "Nothing! That's the best way to sleep. Don't you agree?"

Harry's eyes opened as wide as they could. He'd never seen his best friend even slightly indecent and now he could see everything. He couldn't say he disliked it. Compared to the few nude photos he had a chance to glimpse, Hermione looked much nicer, in his opinion. Her body was well proportioned and nothing seemed too big or too small. "You're fabulous!" he blurted.

"Well, thank you. You look quite nice too," she said. When flinging the blanket, it also revealed most of his body.

Harry was becoming aware of his tenting boxers, especially since Hermione's eyes seemed to be attracted there. She didn't make it easy for him either. "You shouldn't have worn anything to bed. Besides, these boxers are way too large. I think we should both do some shopping before dinner."

This made his mind shift to other directions. "I'm not sure I have enough money…"

"We can use my credit card. If we make it, you may pay me back." There was no need to mention the alternative.

Harry grimaced, thinking of the huge problem they were facing. Hermione didn't let him dwell on it. "We should get up and get dressed. You can use the bathroom if you like. Wear your best clothes. We're going shopping. I only need to get some directions at the lobby before we go out."

They left the hotel a short while later, riding a taxi that the reception clerk called for them. They first stopped at a fish-and-chips outlet for a quick belated lunch and then did some window shopping at the small commercial area, deciding on the shops and items they needed. Harry then bought a few pairs of jeans, several shirts for daily use and two more elegant, as well as assorted underwear, all under Hermione's supervision. She made sure that he also bought some warm underwear for the cold days, in case they needed to stay outside. She also bought him an elegant pyjama, "just so you can open the door for room service," and a dressing gown, "as any gentleman needs". He didn't need overcoats, but he bought a few sweaters too.

Hermione let Harry help her choose some shirts for her, to complement her choice of jeans. She didn't let him help with her underwear. She actually sent him to the shoe shop to get himself fitted with sneakers, walking shoes and elegant shoes as well as a pair of boots for the snowy days. She joined him there, buying herself appropriate footwear too.

By the time they finished their shopping, it was late enough for dinner. They found a small restaurant and had a lovely meal. They didn't have much privacy there, but after spending more than two months in relative solitude, they enjoyed having some company, despite being unable to talk of anything important.

Throughout that afternoon and evening, they held hands as much as they could, playing the role of newly-wed just perfectly. Harry didn't feel like this was a chore. He actually liked holding Hermione's hand and he had a feeling she was enjoying it too.

With dinner finished, they walked hand-in-hand back to the hotel, which wasn't very far. Hermione let her head rest on Harry's shoulder part of the way. He didn't mind.

Back in their room, they unpacked everything. Hermione discarded all of Harry's hand-me-down clothes, except for the overcoats. They then repacked all their magical stuff in Hermione's bag. They also put about half their clothes there, packing the rest in their backpacks, so they won't attract undue attention.

With that taken care of, it was time for the serious discussion, postponed since that early morning. "Is there any reason for us to live in a tent while searching those items?" Harry asked.

Hermione gave it a thought. "Not really. We couldn't live in Muggle areas before due to Ron. He would have stood out everywhere with his lack of knowledge and understanding. We two can live perfectly in Muggle areas while on the search."

Harry nodded, agreeing with her words and asked some more. "Can we just move from one hotel to another? Do we have enough money for that? Alternately, we may opt to buy a house or an apartment and use it as our base."

Hermione sighed. "That depends. I have access to enough money to last us more than a year living in medium-class hotels and eating at restaurants. We may opt for cheaper hotels and use it even longer. We can probably buy an apartment or even a small house to live in with less money, and then we only need to buy groceries for food, but then we may become easier targets. How long do you think this may take?"

It was Harry's turn to sigh. "I wish I knew. Right now, we don't even know how to destroy the one we found."

That made Hermione think harder. "How did you destroy the first one in the second year?"

That was easy to answer. "I used Godric's sword, brought to me by Fawkes in the sorting hat, to kill the basilisk, and stabbed the diary with a fang. The sword can probably suffice since it got coated with basilisk venom."

"Where is it now?"

He shrugged. "Probably at school, but we can't just go and take it from there."

"We can ask somebody to do it for us. Can't one of the house-elves bring it?"

"You mean Kreacher or Dobby? We can try. They should both be at school right now."

"Which one would you trust?" Despite his new bond to Kreacher, Harry still felt ambivalent about him.

"Dobby has been working there longer and seems to adore you. I believe he'll do his best to bring it as requested." Hermione was no longer concerned with the house-elves' bonds, after Kreacher had explained it to her. She still didn't like it, though.

Harry nodded. "Dobby!"

It took a few seconds for the house-elf to appear. He seemed a bit confused by the clearly muggle room but didn't comment on it.

"Dobby, can you bring the sword of Gryffindor to me? I suppose it's somewhere in the headmaster's office," Harry requested. "I don't need it right now. You may look for the most appropriate time to fetch it unseen and bring it to me. No need to put yourself in danger," he added hastily, just to make sure Dobby understood what he wanted.

Dobby gave it a thought. "Dobby can do this before dawn, when everybody's asleep."

Harry smiled at the small creature. "That's just fine, Dobby. Just make sure it's the real one. The sword on display is a fake, so I heard."

Dobby nodded as if he already knew.

"We're staying here tonight and you may bring it here when you're ready, even if we're asleep. We shall probably move somewhere else later tomorrow. Will you be able to find us?"

The little house-elf smiled. "Dobby can always find his Master and Mistress," he said proudly.

"I'm not your Master."

"I'm not your Mistress." Both teens said as one.

Dobby shook his head and seemed a bit apprehensive. He then explained. "When the Great Harry Potter Sir freed Dobby from bad Master, Dobby needed a new Master, so Dobby bonded to the greatest wizard he adored. Now that Master is bonding with his Grangy, she's becoming my Mistress."

Hermione seemed tongue-tied for a moment. Harry hoped she won't start to rant about house-elf rights, so he quickly dismissed Dobby. "Alright. Go back so you won't be missed and bring the sword when you can do it with no danger to yourself and to others. Don't touch the blade, though, as it can easily kill even with a slight scratch."

"Dobby will be careful and bring it as soon as possible," the house-elf promised and vanished.

Harry turned to Hermione. "Do you know anything about that bond thing he mentioned?"

She shrugged. "We had no lessons about magical bonds and the few books mentioning them in the library are hopelessly vague. Still, that may not even be relevant. We've been friends since our first year at school. That in itself is a kind of bond, even if not magical. Since our friendship was getting stronger and we're even sharing a bed now, it means that our bond is also stronger. Don't you agree?"

He smiled. "Whenever you explain something to me, it suddenly makes sense. I think I need you to always be at my side."

"And I know I always want you, no – I need you at my side," she said very seriously.

The moment was marred by a large yawn that escaped her control. "Maybe we should go to bed now? Go brush your teeth first and then wait for me in bed. You should keep the same attire as I do." Her mischief was very clear.

Harry felt himself blush. "Alright. I'll do as you say."

Despite his excitement at their nudity, Harry was too tired to dwell on it. By the time Hermione came to bed, Harry was already sleeping. She felt a pang of disappointment, but she was also too tired to really mind. She cuddled closer to Harry and fell asleep at once.