I charged down the hall, my entire life coming to this moment. I had once feared losing him, I had once lost him, and he had just lost me. Now, though, we had an ephemeral chance to be together, and I was not going to waste it.
A Healer saw me, and I told him about the thugs in a single breath before racing to the research department, heading straight for Ron’s file, and pulling it open.
File. Life. File. I threw my eyes down the page, my heart aching as I imagined him muttering spell after spell in an attempt to give me time, in an attempt to give himself more life. I couldn’t help thinking how we’d reached this point of agony. Had twenty years of ease been quite enough? Were we subject to many more years of suffering?
Paralysis Letalis. Lethal paralysis. Damn brains, damn Goyle getting some. Only known cure: bone marrow of a dragon bred by the wizard sect of Soviet Russia, extinct since the nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl. I felt my heart sink.
–I’ve always wanted to see true love in its truest form - anguish. Maybe that’s why I targeted the two of you first, I guess. To see what several adjustments to one perfect life could do,†I heard Goyle say. I heard the thump of a body, and thought of Ron, or the Healer I’d sent to deliver me from his thugs. I thought of Rose, or Scorpius, or Lily, or Mini. Any number of people that he’d targeted, that had fallen.
–You can’t hurt me anymore than you already have,†I told him bravely, thinking of my wand. Thinking of turning and killing him. Thinking of destroying every last cell of his body. Thinking of the havoc that my brilliance had always granted me, but that I had always turned down. Is this what it took to want to kill? The necessary skills, and uncontrollable, love-spawned anger. I felt my fingers clutch the filing cabinet. I felt them grip the corners, eager to lift. I felt my muscles prepare, and my head start to turn, the hair spinning around as I thrust the metal object across the room, diving to the ground as the box became airborne, and Goyle ducked. Common sense said blast it from the air, make it fall, make it smash. But Goyle had none, and he ducked as I did, as I let my eyes fall on this recent victim.
Scorpius. Beaten, bruised, bloody. Barely breathing. I dove to him, and he coughed, his eyes opening. –Mrs. Weasley . . . Rose . . .â€
I took his hand and pulled him to his feet, running as I did so and trying to bring the boy along with me. He stumbled, his gaze locking on mine. It hurt, physically hurt, to see one so young so filled with grief and pain as this child did. I’d prayed that by ending Voldemort’s reign, we’d be putting a stop to this. No such luck for anyone I loved.
–Hermione, she’s gone.â€
I didn’t hear him. I lost his words on an overwhelming silence, borne on the pounding beats of my heart, the roaring rush of blood in my body. The sounds of life, I realized. The sounds I was striving to restore to my broken family. I pulled my daughter’s boyfriend with me around the corner from the file room and slid to the floor, imagining Ron casting spells as his breath shivered out slower and slower, holding himself to this Earth so I could rush back with the answer, as I had for most of my life. I closed my eyes to brace against the tears. I let Scorpius’ words in now. Rose was gone.
I imagined my wand, and I imagined clutching it between my hands, power and poise rushing back to me. I’d always been the clever one, and my brain now told me that lightning didn’t strike twice on people with problems like ours.
For a moment, I was seventeen again, and Ron was by my side, and we had an entire future in front of us, possible. I didn’t know if I’d live to have kids, only that if I did, it would mean that the world was peaceful.
Draco’s son sat at my side, equally broken over the death of my daughter. I struggled to breathe, to maintain some type of normality. I imagined Hugo, and his face while he slept. He’d be sleeping right now, out at the Burrow, unprotected. Goyle would go there next. I shivered, picturing him shaken awake, told the truth, and destroyed.
–Granger . . . your husband doesn’t have much time!†I heard the enemy call, and I put my hand on Scorpius’ leg.
–Can you run?†I hissed to him.
–Don’t wanna,†he said, tears vanishing, eyes steeling, face hardening. Goyle had manifested a monster.
–Is she really . . .†I couldn’t bring myself to say the word. –Scorpius, where is Rose?â€
He shook his head, standing, moving to fight. –They told me to give up, that she was already gone. That I should move on. Run back to my daddy and tell him what the bullies did.â€
–She isn’t dead,†I breathed, standing, a new fire in me.
–She doesn’t have long, and they vanished with her again.â€
I took his hand and tore down the hallway, back to Ron’s room, imagining the people in the other wards, sleeping obliviously, hoping to be healed quickly.
I tore back in, and the sight that met my eyes made me stumble back, shocked, confused.
Ron was standing, his arms around Rose, who was beaten, bruised, groggy, and alive. I gasped.
–The curse was lifted!†Ron cried, ignorant of the villains beyond the door, aware only of our reunion and the end of his pain.
–Scorpius!†Rose sobbed, pulling him into an embrace.
I saw fury flash on Ron’s face, but it passed quickly at a glance at me.
–Ron, Goyle probably lifted it, he’s in the hallway, he’s coming,†I told them, taking Rose from Scorpius and holding her to my chest. I felt her shiver a breath into my heart.
–We should get out of here,†Ron told me, glancing sideways at the newcomer, Scorpius. –We need to get to Hugo.â€
I nodded my head, then stuck it out the door. Goyle was nowhere to be seen, and that made me nervous. What made me even more nervous was why they’d released Rose, and why Ron was healed. I was uneasy.
I saw my discomfort reflected in my husband’s eyes. How terrible could it be, to wonder if your miraculous recovery was a ploy to kill your family? I went to him and kissed him, thinking of hope and the way we’d overcome worse before. When we stood together in victory later, Harry would laugh and wish he’d been in on the action. This was no different that what life at Hogwarts had been like, was it?
Rose and Scorpius were holding hands, and I knew Ron was doing his best to ignore it, given the situation. We had to escape, not lecture our daughter on who she was allowed to date, and when.
****
ROSE’s POV
****
I was happy. Mum obviously believed this turn of events in our favor was a trap. I saw the wheels in her lovely head whirring. But I was happy. Scorpius was at my side, my parents were together and well, and Hugo was miles from me, where I liked him. Maybe Lily and Dominique were upstairs, sleeping but not waking. Maybe there was a crazy, murderous thug searching for us in the hallways, his perverted goons in tow. But I was safe for now, and in that safety, I was content.
Then we all heard it. I think Mum turned first, her eyes burning with determination. Whatever happened next, this saga of pain would end, she would make sure of that. They wouldn’t touch Hugo.
It was the sound of men laughing, deep laughs, deep chuckles, deep rumbles of thirst for revenge. They had us cornered.
Dad stuck out his head out, and then yanked it back in as a curse flew past him and into the room. It was silvery in nature, and left a crater on the drywall behind Scorpius’ head. He ran to my side, and dragged me into a corner, behind the overturned hospital bed. Mum and Dad took up positions on either side of the door, and I saw a look of true love and companionship pass between them - one of decades of togetherness. Scorpius’ hand was warm against mine. This was what I’d always wished for - true love, an adventure to rival that of my parents. What would the ending be? Who would I lose?
Goyle appeared in the doorway, his eyes shifting from my father to my mother, and back again. It was then that I realized my mum didn’t have a wand. I wanted to cry out, but Scorpius restrained me, pulling me down, further into hiding. The contentness’ last touch left me, and I felt hot tears roll down my face. I shut my eyes tight and sent myself to Grandma Weasley’s kitchen at the Burrow, to laughter at Uncle George and Uncle Charlie and their ridiculous antics against Dad and Uncle Percy. I sent myself to the dorms and my four poster and my friends, who would be wondering where I was - who would be fearing for me like a second family.
Scorpius’ face was inches from mine. We were together, and we were touching, and we were free. We were breathing. He drew me in, and an embrace was what bound us - and I tried to shut my ears to the hiss of villainy that I heard echo from outside.
Mum didn’t have a wand.
There was a scuffle, and a bang, and more people came in, and there were shouts of pain, grief, and anger. Names were screamed in pain and anger. Scorpius clutched me tighter. We hid, cowards, young, afraid.
When finally a hand found me, it was soft and smooth. I looked up, into Lily’s tears, and I knew whatever had been plaguing us for so long was over.
Dad and Mum stood in the center in the room, their bodies entertwined as they kissed passionately, uncaring about my wellbeing, or anyone else’s. What they had was so real.
When they finally released to find me, I was folded into their hug. We could live now. The last vestiges of evil would draw their grips from my parents’ lives - this world would be good to them now. And that was all I could ever have wanted.
My Brave Face by grangergirl35
Chapter Notes: Sorry about the delay!! Sophomore year really hit me between the eyes:O We are very near the end - thanks to all of you who reviewed and stuck with this story! I am so near the end of my first fanfic - over 9000 reads and 70 reviews means a lot :) Will have a conclusion and epilogue after this! Keep reading, keep reviewing!!