A/N: Ok, so this is just something that came to mind the other night... and as most authors know, when the muse strikes... lol. Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!
Pain… Pain…
How many days had it been now? How many weeks? Had it turned into months yet? No… it couldn't have been that long… Could it?
Pain… Pain…
God… It hurt to think. It hurt to breath. Just being alive was hurting at that moment. He was hurting in places he had never known existed. But they knew… Oh yes... They knew everything… Everything except that one little piece of information they needed. The piece of information he, Ron Weasley, held locked away in the darkest corners of his mind. The piece of information he'd never tell... would he?
Pain… Pain…
If he had to pick, he would have to say the Cruciatus curse was the easiest to handle. Of course, it never felt like it at the time, but the side-effects were generally short-lived, compared to most of what had been done. And Gods above, what had been done…
Pain… Pain…
He couldn't feel his hands anymore. He knew they were still there –unlike four of his fingers, an ear, and one of his eyes –but he couldn't feel them, just like his feet. He wondered if it was from the cold, or lack of circulation. Or severe blood loss?
Pain… Pain…
It was dark. So dark. And cold. He hadn't seen the sunlight in… how many days? Weeks? Months? No, not months yet. Did the sun still exist? Of course it did, just not in that little cell that had become his home. His hell. His home?
Pain… Pain…
No, not his home… His home was with Hermione and Harry. They'd come to save him. Of course they would. They had to save him. That was how they worked. He saved them, they saved him, sometimes them and him mixed to save the other them… It was the natural order of things. Hermione and Harry save Ron, Harry and Ron save Hermione, Hermione and Ron save Harry… it's just how things were done.
Pain… Pain…
The burns were starting to hurt again. They were the worst. The burns that hurt no matter how still he lay. He knew the scars would be bad. He wouldn't be able to go out in public anymore, would he? No, of course not… But Hermione would still love him, and Harry would still be his best mate. Right? No matter what?
Pain… Pain…
Voices? Were those really voices? Outside his home… his hell –not his home, his hell –but were they voices?
Pain… Pain…
They were voices. And now there were hands. Hands, pulling him up. Not their rough hands, no. But their gentle hands. The hands of his friends?
Pain… Pain…
"Hold on, Ron. We'll get you out of here… Oh Merlin… Ron, what did they do to you?"
Pain… Pain…
Was that scream coming from him? Maybe… Maybe not. Most definitely. The chains were falling off. No, not falling; being taken off. Harry was taking them off. So that was… Hermione holding him up?
Pain… Pain…
He tried to make his cracked, dried, and bloody lips move. But he couldn't. It hurt too much. Too much…
Pain… Pain…
"Shh… It's alright, Ron… We're taking you home now." Hermione's comforting voice. He was being carried. Carried outside… Outside into the… sun… So it did still exist…
Pain… Pain…
Loving arms holding him. Loving lips comforting and encouraging him. Loving hands steadying him.
Love… Love…
Love…
Ron smiled. And let his eyes close.
End Note: So let me know what you think. The ending is left like that for a reason, take it how you want to. But I'm interested in how you think it should end. Please let me know in a review? Just how you think it ends. I'm curious to see what you say. I know how I wanted it to end, but to each his own. Again, thanks for reading!