**”HERMIONE!” The sound of someone screaming her name met her ears and mingled with her own shrieks. Ron.
Through her agony, a clear image of him appeared in her mind. His bright, red hair as blinding as ever, his freckles standing out against his pale skin, a grin spreading across those kissable lips….
**”What else did you take? What else have you got? Tell me the truth or, I swear, I shall run you through with this knife!”
What could she do? Her body was still ringing from the last curse and she didn’t have an ounce of hope, or strength for that matter, left.
**”What else did you take, what else? ANSWER ME! CRUCIO!”
She wanted to give in to the blackness, she welcomed any escape, death even would be better than this. She writhed in pain and screamed. For a moment, it seemed like she was watching it unravel from a distance.
The screaming emanating from her body did not seem like her own. More pain. However, this time it was a different kind of pain. One in her heart. She would never see that lopsided grin and freckles again.
**”HERMIONE! HERMIONE!” Something snapped. She heard him again. He was alive, Ron was alive. She had to come up with something for him, to get them out of this.
But her head throbbed along with the rest of her shaking body and her mind was clouded. Mustering a strength she wasn’t sure she contained she forced herself to stay awake.
**”How did you get into my vault? Did that dirty little goblin in the cellar help you?” Bellatrix screamed.
**”We only met him tonight! We’ve never been inside your vault….It isn’t the real sword! It’s a copy, just a copy!” She managed to choke out, sobbing.
But it seemed to have drained her remaining strength.
She thought it was all over. Her thoughts were horribly interrupted when a jolt of pain coursed through her body. She was being tortured again.
This woman was going to kill her. It really was all over. Once again the screaming did not sound like her own as she was drowned in agony. She didn’t hear what was going on around her and all of the sudden with one last flutter of her eyelids she caught a glimpse of red hair. And then she succumbed, everything went black.
Hermione awoke and was jolted into a sitting position, gasping for air. It was just a dream. Except the scariest thing was that, it wasn’t just a dream, because that nightmare of a night had actually happened.
That night had been playing out in her mind for the past two years like a broken record. She was so frustrated. Why hadn’t these stopped? It was so painful, reliving the worst night of her life, all the time.
She was still trying to regulate her gasps for air when she instinctively looked over at Ron. He was sleeping peacefully, or so it seemed, with one hand parallel with his head, palm faced down.
He was lying flat on his stomach with his face towards her, the other hand beneath him. She was glad that she hadn’t woke him up.
Though her happiness left her when she remembered what had awoken her in the first place. She thought she was going to lose him.
She really thought that she was never going to be able to kiss him or tell him that she loved him. That thought alone brought prickly hot tears to the backs of her eyes.
When she could hold them in no longer she pressed her knees to her chest and cried. Her almost silent tears streaked her face and dropped into her lap, and Ron stirred.
He squinted into the dark room and immediately became alert at seeing her frail body shaking with sobs. He sat up quickly and placed two firm hands on her shoulders.
She jumped at his touch but soon leaned into him, crying harder. He let her cry, holding her tight, rocking her and kissing her hair that was pressed into his face.
It hurt him to see her like this and he felt pressure behind his own eyes as she started to calm down and breathe deeper.
“Same dream?” His voice barely above a whisper.
She simply nodded her head as silent tears pooled in her brown eyes and spilled onto her already soaked cheeks.
“Shhhhhhhhh…” Ron whispered softly and squeezed her tighter giving her another kiss in her hair. He turned her to face him and wiped away her remaining tears with his thumb until her cheeks were dry.
“I know that I can’t make that night go away forever but”, he lifted her trembling chin with his fingers and stared into her eyes, “but, I love you, Hermione. I’m here, beside you now, and I’m not going anywhere. I’m not going anywhere.” He repeated firmly, before adding, “Unless, my beautiful girlfriend would be coming with me.” He grinned at her and she smiled, sniffling.
“Thanks, Ron.” She smiled again and shut her eyes settling into him, sighing. “How is it that you always know what to say lately?” She added, a little more suspiciously.
“What do you mean lately?!” He asked incredulously, but she could hear the laugh in his voice. What she didn’t know however, was how clearly Ron was picturing the well-worn copy of ‘The 12 Fail-Safe Ways to Charm Witches’ underneath his night stand.
She laughed softly and said, “Oh, no, of course not, Ronald, you always know the right things to say, I must have been absolutely mad to have set those horrible birds on you in 6th year.” They laughed and agreed that she had indeed been mad, just a different meaning of the word.
They leaned back onto the mattress in their little flat in London and fell asleep in each other’s arms, laughing and smiling. She wasn’t lost in that nightmare anymore, she was lost in, simply, Ron. Her Ron.
Her Ron by laughalot25
Story Notes:
Disclaimer: I do not own anything; this magical world belongs to J.K. Rowling and I just have fun playing with her characters! All double-starred sentences belong to the one and only J.K. Rowling :)
Please Enjoy!
Chapter Notes: Disclaimer: I do not own anything; this magical world belongs to J.K. Rowling and I just have fun playing with her characters! All double-starred sentences belong to the one and only J.K. Rowling :)
Chapter Endnotes: Thanks for reading, please review!