Complete Faith in You



The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances:
if there is any reaction, both are transformed.
-Carl Jung




“Yeah, well, food’s one of the five exceptions to Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration.�

Did he really say that?

Fortunately, every one else also stared at Ron, so Hermione’s suddenly warm face went unnoticed.

The Room of Requirement appeared cosy, but one look at the occupants cancelled the impression. Hermione sighed and involuntarily flinched when she heard a familiar voice, Lavender’s— but she was on the other side of the room— and Hermione laughed inwardly, immersed in another stray moment of mirth, remembering Ron diving behind her last year, saying ‘Hide me! Hide me!’

Was it last year? Just last year?

These past months had seemed like lifetimes. And she wouldn’t even think about those weeks when Ron had gone away.

The one ear she tuned to the conversation around her perked up at the sound of his voice. “It hasn’t exactly been a picnic, mate.�

My thoughts exactly. Brevity is the soul of wit.



♥



She’s quiet. Even as Ron shouted at her sister’s old boyfriend, his peripheral vision was trained on Hermione. She seemed alright. Well, except for her half-healed burns. She’d been near hysterics during the dragon ride, but he’d made sure she was fine back in that lake. She had laughed right along with him and Harry, and she’d been his normal, sweet and sympathetic Hermione when they’d had that dramatic recount from Aberforth. But now she’s quiet, watching every one, watching him.

He paid attention to the conversation with half of his senses. The other half were focused on this girl beside him, looking worried to death, yet still strong and standing tall, as if she had never been Petrified, dunked overnight in a lake, nearly slashed in half— and agreeing with him now as if he’d never kissed a girl just to spite her and just recently left her because of his own stupidity in giving in to his temper and fears... They’d been through so much. And she was still beside him, his constant, if sometimes exasperating, beacon. She’d beat the Deluminator any time. It was her, really, his longing for her, which brought him back.

“I think Ron’s right—�

Wow. He had an insane urge to crow. Or snatch her into his arms and kiss her.



♥



On Ginny’s rather clever and equally cleverly disguised command, Luna went with Harry and Harry took Luna. Hermione nearly smirked at Cho’s disappointment. Not that she had anything against the Chinese girl, but Ginny was the one for Harry just as she was the one for—

A little belatedly and with embarrassment, she realised every one was looking at her and Ron now.

“Well, what would the seconds-in-command have to say?� Fred said.

“Any orders?� George said.

In spite of her bravado to Harry about having help, she was at sea now that help was actually offering their many hands. She turned to Ron. To her astonishment and slight discomfiture, he was gazing intently at her, as though reading something in her face. And then he grabbed her hand.

“We need to go to the bathroom.�

“Ron—what?�

“Come on, quick!�

“Ron, they have a toilet right here!�

“And the room locks, too!�

Ron ignored the twins. She had to, as well, or she would have hexed them. Hermione just allowed Ron to drag her through the room to the little cupboard Harry and Luna had disappeared to moments before. The crowd parted for them, though not without grinning and sniggering, the idiots. Hermione hoped she was not blushing.

“Ron, where are we going?� she whispered as they climbed the staircase.

“I’ve been thinking about it since we rode the dragon. I was reminded of another deadly reptile, blind now, too. We must destroy the cup after all, and we’re here.�

The only thing that stopped Hermione from squealing at his inspired and horrible idea was the staircase’s landing. They emerged onto a deserted corridor. At the end of which they could see the Fat Lady. They both sighed and proceeded to the staircase to go down to the second floor.

Something rustled behind them. Ron stiffened and shielded Hermione with his body, raising his wand. A familiar mousy head furtively crept out and along as though trying to blend in with the walls.

“Colin, Ron!�

“Psst, Colin!�

He jumped so high into the air Hermione couldn’t help snorting with amusement like Ron did.

“SHH! What are you doing?�

“I want to back up Harry,� Colin said, half-sheepish, half-adamant.

“Neville contacted you?� Hermione asked disbelievingly.

“Our coins burned— Dennis’s, too. But I made him stay at the house to look after Mum and Dad. Where are you going?�

“Bathroom break, Colin. A girl has to go, you know? I asked Ron to escort me. The toilet at the Room of Requirement is busy and I just had to go! Bye! Go back to the Room of Requirement!�

And she dashed away, Ron chortling.

“What are you laughing about?�

“Nothing, nothing,� he said airily, giving her hand a squeeze. And then he pulled her back. “Wait. Colin!�

Colin, whose robe hem was just whipping out of sight at the corner leading to Barnabas’s corridor, poked his head around.

“Fetch me a broom, any broom. There’s bound to be one in the common room! Just Summon it! The Fat Lady will let you in, say it’s an emergency. We’re overthrowing Snape and You-Know-Who!�

It was Hermione’s turn to give Ron’s hand a fond squeeze. “Good thinking.�

He brought her knuckles to his lips. “I learned from the best.�



♥



“How are we going to open it? What did you have in mind?�

Ron stared at Hermione.

“What?�

“Are you alright? I didn’t knock your head during our corridor and staircase flight, did I?� He peered into her eyes, checking their lucidity, and simply drinking her up. He could get lost in those deep chocolate pools and never return, nor would he wish to.

He shook his head at his tawdry thoughts. Maybe he was the one who knocked onto something.

“Ron, what’s wrong with you? Why are you looking at me like that?�

“And why are looking at me like that? No demands at all? No reproaches that we came all the way here for nothing?�

“No, of course not, I have complete faith in you. What do we do next?�

Now, he did feel like something clobbered him. He loved this girl.



♥



Stop staring at me like that or Merlin help me, I might just forget we’re in the entrance to a basilisk pit and snog you the way I’ve seen that twit Lavender do.

Maybe he heard her. He smiled and led her to one of the sinks. “I watched Harry do it last time when we destroyed the locket. I’ll try to do it now. Do you think it will work?�

“Do it.�

And he did.

She wasn’t cognizant of how many tries he made before the entrance finally revealed itself, but she barely heard the spitting and hissing noises he made, she was just anchored by his hold on her hand. And then the sink descended and his grip tightened.

“You don’t have to go down with me—�

“Yes, I do—�

“Hermione, there will be several vertical dives—�

Hermione laughed. She didn’t know where it came from, but it just bubbled out of her, as did her next words. “I love you, Ron, but don’t worry about me—I’ve just ridden a dragon, have you forgotten?�



♥



Ron blinked at her. She didn’t just day that, did she? That she loved him?

“You’re not afraid to fly down with me?�

She was already astride the broom behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist. “Does this answer your question? Come on, Ron, time’s ticking!�

Right. They’d finish this War and then no one could blame him if he lost it afterwards and just snogged her senseless. He smirked as he nosed his broom into the opening. She wouldn’t be hugging him if she knew the way his thoughts were running. He let gravity pull the broom. She screamed. But he relished the feel of her against him, holding on to him, trusting him.

He hissed and spat again at the Chamber door.

“That was creepy,� Hermione mumbled to his ear, shuddering as they went through the threshold. And then they saw the rotten carcass of the basilisk and she retched. “I can’t believe Harry faced that at twelve years old.�

He could only nod. The monster was hideous and immense, its gruesomeness doubled by its decaying state.

“Hermione, can you do a charm for the smell?� he asked through his robes. She nodded, waved her wand and emerged from her own collar.

“It’s alright now.�

“Well.� He dismounted and helped her to the slimy, wet floor. Without preamble, he bent over and began pulling at the fangs. He handed her each tooth he pulled. Of course, she wasn’t content with that. She took her share of fang-pulling... and retched at the first try. He couldn’t blame her; the gums still held and gave the most feeble and most repulsive kind of resistance— it was rather like pulling sugar quills stuck in giant Chocoballs.

Somehow, he didn’t feel like it would be good to tell her that. So he just said, “I appreciate dentists now.�

That did it. He was rewarded with a small giggle from her. “Oh, Ron.�

He loved it when she said that, and not in exasperation.



♥



“Right, come on, we’ve got more than enough to tempt Fred and George later.�

Hermione was only too relieved to agree and get out of that place. The ride back up to Myrtle’s bathroom was not as bad as the descent. She grabbed one of the sinks when Ron helped her dismount and willed her shaky legs to solidify again.

“Hermione, I destroyed the locket. Do you want to have your way with the cup?�

She swayed where she stood. Merlin. “Okay. It’s right here.� She opened her purse and Summoned the cup into her hand.

Ron placed it in the sink. “It will be nasty but you can do it.�

“Nasty how? It will fight me, won’t it?�

“Yes. But if I was able to resist, it has no chance against you at all.�

“Oh, Ron.� Before her resolve could waver, she took one of the fangs and unceremoniously brought it down on the cup.

She gasped. Darkness swallowed her. It subsided only to spotlight her friends lying prone around her, lifeless.

“No!� she screamed, running to the place where Professor McGonagall’s crumpled body lay. Beside her favourite mentor was— “Harry! Harry!�

A dread seemed to knock at the back of her mind; she turned her head and saw him, also dead. Her heart felt like something crushed it in a vise. No scream rose from her this time. She just stared in horror and forgot to breathe— she didn’t want to breathe anymore.

“Hermione, let go and fight it.�

And she felt glorious warmth on her hand. She let it guide her. She listened to his voice, clung to it.

She closed her eyes against the crushing sight of his dead body— and it was then that she came back to the light. She blinked and realised her hand and the fang were frozen against the cup. Ron held that hand. She turned her head, found strength from his blue eyes and raised her hand and brought it back down resoundingly on the cup. This time, no darkness overcame her. A distant-sounding howl erupted from the cup and it caved in and crumpled as if in a furnace.

Hermione braced herself onto the sink as her knees unlocked. Ron supported her though. She leaned into him and let out one painful sob.

“You saw Harry?�

All coherent thought came crashing back to her at his sharp voice. How could she tell him that it was him she saw, the vision of his death that nearly took her over, not Harry’s? “Oh, Ron, please—�

He tightened his embrace. “It’s alright; you don’t have to tell me. I’m afraid for him, too.�

There was no jealousy or resentment in his eyes at all. Something else was there. Something that left her helpless against the great urge to hug him. So she slid her arms around his neck and held him. It was bliss.



~*~

To be trusted
is a better compliment
than to be loved.
-George MacDonald



Author’s Note: I wanted Hermione to say the three words for a change. ^_^ As for THE kiss, I don’t feel like it should be broken down into a description of sensations, so I’ll just let that revered scene be the canon climax of this fic. Loved it or loathed it? Do tell. Thank you for reading!

Oh and that was my little tribute to poor Colin.