Disclaimer: Sadly.. I own nothing... you know, apart from my oh-so-amazing original characters.
~ Difficult Choices ~
Hermione stared at the red head in front of her, tears running down her face as he looked at her in disgust, "I had no choice.." She whispered to him, shaking her head. She had never wanted this conversation, she had always hoped this day would never come but she was in too deep, and she needed his help. "I thought... I had to choose, Ronald.. I had to make a choice.." She couldn't look at him, the anger in his eyes breaking her heart even more so than it already was.
"Everyone has a choice.." He whispered angrily in her ear, pressing his wand even deeper into her neck as she sobbed his name. She had never expected him to wait for her, and welcome her back with open arms, but she had never thought Ron would turn his wand on her. "Ron.. .please.." She whispered hoarsely, closing her eyes tight to stop the tears.
She didn't want to be weak, especially not in front of him but, in some way, he was the only person she could be weak in front of. Her body shook, looking at the man in front of her, silently begging him to not be mad at her, as she wished she had never come to him. His hand shook as he looked into her eyes, slowly releasing her, not moving or saying anything as she gasped for air, coughing.
The shocked faces of the people she used to consider family had circled around them, she could feel the hate from them all, and decided this was the reason they didn't help her. They hate me that much. The thought hurt, as she bit down on her lip and rubbed her neck, "Give me a chance to explain.. please.." She whispered, looking down at the ground, closing her eyes as the world around her begun to spin. "Please.. give me a chance." She could feel the floor getting closer, her knees buckling beneath her before a strong pair of arms held her close to a warm body. And then everything went black, and she was left alone once more.
She looked down at a sleeping Ron, kissing his forehead before dropping the note to the vacant spot beside him and walking out of the bedroom silently. Tears ran down her face, as she walked down the stairs of the Burrow for the last time, whispering a goodbye before walking outside and apparating the moment she could.
The tears poured down her face when she got to the apartment she had bought, muttering the necessary protection charms before sitting down. She rested her hand on her stomach, "I am so sorry.." She whispered, sobbing. "I am so, so, so sorry."
The first night was the hardest, she was haunted by images of Ron, but they became lesser over the years. She could imagine Ron finding the note, she could imagine the amount of hate he must have for her right now.
Ron watched over her, slowly feeling the anger leave, replaced by the sadness. He had missed out on so much, they could have had what Harry and Ginny had, he always wanted that but only with Hermione; he could never imagine himself with anyone else. He played with the ends of her hair, staring down at her as he tried to determine just how much she had changed in the past four years.
He noticed the dark circles under her eyes, the way her skin seemed to have aged beyond her twenty two years. He had noticed the way her hair was scruffily, and quickly put back into a bun, and the loose strands that his anger had stopped him from brushing from her pale face. His fingers brushed past her protruding cheekbones, and he wondered how she had gotten so thin in the first place. She was not like his perfect Hermione, she was different – tired, stressed, scared.
He had seen the fear in her eyes, his wand held to her neck but it was something more than that, he had noticed it even before, a permanent look of fear. It was the way she kept looking behind her, as though somebody was following her, and the way her hands shook. For a second, he had wondered what was wrong with her, if she was okay. And for that one moment, he had wanted to take her in his arms and hold her close, breathing in her scent, burying his face in her hair as he whispered about how much he had missed her. But he couldn't, he remembered how she had left him, and the pain took over, quickly turning into anger.
And then she had fallen unconscious, and he finally got to hold her in his arms after four years of hell. He hadn't want to put her down, but his mum had insisted on checking over the girl before putting her in his bed. He had laughed bitterly, the memory of this being the last place he had seen her, he had held her in his arms in this very bed, he had made love to her for the last time. She had left him, sleeping, alone in this bed... and he wasn't sure he would ever be able to forgive her.
But here she was. She was back, and he had no idea what to do. The note she had left him burned in his mind, he could remember spending days clutching at it, reading the few words over and over again. Harry tried to tell him that Hermione would be back, but they both knew that once she made up her mind, she would never turn back. She wasn't like Ron, she didn't lose her temper and then leave, only to decide to come back. She was stubborn, and strong, and he knew how much of a big decision it must have been for her.
He had blamed himself, she had left him because of him. He had tried to read between the words, trying to see the reason why she left. He had tried looking for her, but she had cleared everything. Nobody knew where she had gone, she had told no one and there was no trail. It was the first time that he wished she wasn't so good at magic, because he knew if this was the other way around, she'd find him in an instant.
And now here he was, almost four years after she left, watching her sleep in that very bed. He wanted to reverse time, he wanted to wake up before she left and beg her not to leave him. He wanted to tell her about his dreams, and now they all involved her and nobody, and nothing else. He had thought she understood that, she was the centre of his world. There was nothing without her.
Hermione woke up, looking at the man by her bedside. "How long have I been out?" She whispered, scared of the answer, "Two days.. you were exhausted." He jumped back, when she shot up, wide eyed as her heart felt like it was going to thump right out of her chest. She had to get away, she had to get out.
"I-I.. my babies.. I.." She took a deep breath, "Oh Merlin.. two days.." Hermione could feel herself close to tears, putting her hand on her chest. She didn't care that she had just told Ron about her children, she didn't care about anything other than getting home to them.
"Where are they?" He was in shock, but he thought about how Harry would feel if James had been left alone for two days, or even with strangers. He could see the woman before him starting to panic, holding her chest as she clutched to the air so she could focus her mind for just a second.
"W-with.. a muggle babysitter.. I had.. I thought I'd only be a few hours. What if she's left them alone.. what if she's got the police involved?" She pushed past him suddenly, running downstairs, ignoring the calls of Mrs and Mr Weasley behind her, not noticing Ron following her. She got past the boundaries, apparating quickly, not noticing Ron holding onto her arm until it was too late.
