"Ron!", Fleur gasped as Ron stumbled into Shell Cottage, holding a now unconscious Hermione in his arms. He struggled to take in his surroundings, his heart heavy in his chest as he looked down at her sleeping face. He finally looked up at a startled Fleur with a sombre expression, his face covered in muck, tear stains trailed down his normally flushed cheeks as he searched for the words to speak. "Ron, what happened?", Fleur quizzed.
"She was tor-tortured", he struggled to speak. Fleur gasped at the information as she neared closer, getting a good look at Hermione as she placed the back of her hand gently against her forehead.
"William!", she called into the kitchen. Bill entered the front living room quite casually before taking in the sight of his younger brother, whose clothes were dirty and his face ashen.
"Are you alright?", Bill asked worriedly, feeling quite stupid for asking such a question. Ron shook his head hesitantly, using all the energy he had left to hold back his tears. Bill sighed sadly, sharing a worried look with Fleur. "Let me take her upstairs", he offered. Ron nodded as he reluctantly transitioned Hermione from his arms to his brother's. Bill carefully carried Hermione up the stairs as Ron watched them attentively, a large lump forming in his throat.
"I have to help Harry", he suddenly said, turning to the front door as he opened it.
"Where is he? Is he alright?", Fleur asked. Ron nodded slowly.
"It's Dobby. He was- he was killed", he told her sadly. Fleur gasped sorrowfully.
"Oh how awful", she said. "Is there anything I can do?", she asked.
"Look after Hermione?", he asked. She nodded as Ron smiled faintly at her, turning to face the open space outside, readying himself to return to the place Dobby had tragically passed. An hour had passed when Ron returned to Shell Cottage with Harry, Dean, Luna and Bill, who had heard the news from Fleur and joined them to help.
"I made some tea", Fleur said as she set down a tray holding a teapot and six teacups. Luna sat in the far corner with Dean discussing an article from the Quibbler she found particularly interesting whilst Harry informed Bill of the events that had taken place. Ron sat alone in the middle of a large three-seater sofa. His tea going cold in his hands as he thought of Hermione lying unconscious upstairs. He could still hear her screams of anguish. He wanted to be with her. He wanted to hold her hand and tell her that everything was going to be okay, like she had once done for him. But how could he? She hadn't spoken to him since he had returned to their campsite after disappearing. Why would she want him there? "Ron", Fleur spoke, pulling him away from his thoughts. He looked up at her to see her holding a small basin full of warm water and a wash cloth. "Let me clean you up", she said. Ron didn't respond as she knelt down in front of him, dipping the wash cloth into the water as she gently began to dab his face with it. Ron could suddenly feel Bill's eyes on him, like they were burning into his skin, but all he could think about was Hermione. He felt a little guilty that she was all that was on his mind, given the circumstances, but he couldn't help it. She was always on his mind, although he was sure he'd never admit it. "She's going to be alright, you know?", Fleur suddenly said. He hadn't even realised that she had finished cleaning his face and was still knelt down in front of him, watching him lost in his thoughts. "I used an essence of dittany to heal her wounds whilst you were out. And I gave her some calming draught too, to help her rest easier", she told him. Ron smiled faintly at her, showing his gratitude even though smiling seemed like the last thing he wanted to do. "You can go and see her whenever you like", she continued, placing a caring hand on his knee before getting up and disappearing into the kitchen.
"I've left some clean clothes on my bed for you upstairs, Ron. Why don't you go and get changed?", Bill suggested. Ron nodded slowly before getting up and heading towards the stairs. As he walked across the landing, he caught a quick glimpse of Hermione's slumbering face through an almost shut door. He decided it would be best to close it, so that she wouldn't be disturbed by the conversations downstairs. He made his way to Bill and Fleur's bedroom where Bill had laid out some jeans and a red jumper. Taking off his tee-shirt, he realised just how much he ached himself. His injured arm throbbed with pain and every move of a muscle caused him to wince. But he didn't care. Nothing that he was feeling could possibly compare to how much pain Hermione must have been in. After getting dressed, he threw his dirt stained clothes in a nearby laundry basket before leaving the bedroom to sit outside of the spare room where Hermione slept. He sat outside the door, listening for her carefully as he twiddled his thumbs, only hoping that she was sleeping peacefully and not in too much pain. He hadn't realised how long he'd been sat there when Harry approached him.
"How is she doing?", Harry asked.
"I don't know", Ron told him.
"You haven't been in?", Harry quizzed. Ron shook his head as he sighed, standing to his feet before running his fingers through his fiery red hair. "Why not?", he asked.
"I'm the last person she'll want to see when she wakes up", Ron told him. Harry gave him a confused look before Ron sighed once more. "I abandoned you both, Harry. I abandoned her! And then I couldn't even save her from Bellatrix! She won't want to look at my bloody useless face", he continued, sniffing as he wiped his nose with his sleeve.
"But you did save her, Ron. She wouldn't be here right now if it weren't for you", Harry attempted to comfort him.
"Not in time though", he replied almost silently as his eyes became lustrous with tears.
"Ron. Listen to me; Hermione was a mess when you were away", Harry said. Ron gave him a puzzled look as he waited for him to continue. "She barely ate, she barely spoke. All she would do was throw herself into figuring out where the next horcrux was going to be. Don't tell her I said she was a mess though", he joked. "You're the first person she'll want to see. Trust me".
"I wasn't there for her when I should've been", Ron said.
"You're here now", Harry smiled warmly at him as he patted his friend on the shoulder. "Go", he encouraged him. Ron smiled faintly at him before taking a deep breath and readying himself to open the door. He stepped in quietly, carefully closing the door behind him as he turned to face her. It was like a scene from one of the muggle fairy tales she had told him about. Which one was it? He thought. Snow White. She laid on her back, her eyelids closed softly and her lips still. But her face was colourless and her temple and forearms were bruised and he only wished that he could fix her with a kiss. A red knitted blanket covered her lower torso and he had noticed that Fleur had changed her out of her dirty, dingy clothes. He began to near towards a small pouffe that sat beside the bed, sitting down carefully as he continued to watch her. The rise and fall of her chest relieved him as he hesitantly took her hand within his own. He looked down at her dainty fingers as he took in each detail; he had never noticed that she had a small scar just above her knuckle on her index finger. He lowered his head slowly until his lips made contact with the top of her hand, kissing her ever so delicately.
"I will never leave you again. I promise", he said in almost a whisper as he rested his head on the edge of the bed. In his slumber, Ron found himself back in Malfoy Manor. This time he was alone as Hermione's screams of terror rang in his ears. He tried with all the strength he could muster to move but he couldn't. Stuck to the spot he could only listen on as Hermione began to scream his name, Bellatrix cackling over her as Ron could feel his heart aching within his chest. His eyes suddenly snapped open, sitting up in a fast motion as he looked around the room, relieved to see that he was still at Shell Cottage.
"Ron", Hermione's small, weary voice spoke, his heart fluttering at the sound of her speaking his name as his eyes met hers.
"Hey", he spoke casually and softly.
"Where are we?", she asked.
"Shell Cottage", he told her simply. Hermione's tired eyes scanned the room around her before meeting back with Ron's.
"Harry?", she said.
"He's fine", Ron reassured her as he tightened his grip on her hand.
"And you?", she continued. Ron gave a breathy laugh as he smiled warmly at her.
"You know me; I'm alright", he told her. Hermione managed to raise a judgmental eyebrow at him in her sleepy state before he sighed. "Was- was just worried about you", he mumbled. He wasn't sure whether it was the draught or whether the room was too warm but he could've sworn he saw her blush a little.
"I just ache a little. That's all. I'm fine", she said in almost a whisper, her voice a little hoarse, Ron assumed, from the screaming she had done. And then he noticed her hand still within his own as she gave it a gentle squeeze. He fixated his eyes upon the scar he had noticed earlier above her knuckle. "Dobby?", she said wearily, the draught Fleur had given her clearly beginning to work it's magic as he watched her eyelids attempting to succumb to darkness as she fought against it.
"We buried him", he told her sadly.
"I- I'm sorry I wasn't there", she replied quietly. Ron smiled warmly at her as he began to caress the back of her hand gently with his thumb. He greatly admired her selflessness. Even more so at a time where she really had every right to be selfish.
"It's alright. You need your rest", he told her soothingly.
"I just wish I could've paid my respects", she said honestly, still battling her tiredness as she focused on him and only him.
"Well, tomorrow when you've gotten some rest, I'll take you to see him, alright?", he offered. She gave a small nod as she smiled faintly at him. Ron stared at her silently for a moment, taking in every feature he could as he watched her drifting in and out of consciousness when he slowly began to let go of her hand. "I'm going to let you get some sleep", he told her as he stood up from the pouffe beneath him and turned to leave. He suddenly felt a semi-forceful tug on his hand, forcing him to turn back to her. She was holding to his hand for dear life, a despairing look on her face as she looked up at him.
"Please. Don't leave", she begged of him. The sheer neediness in her voice was enough to make Ron weak at the knees, his heart thumping loudly within his chest. He gave her a slight nod of acknowledgement as he stood staring awkwardly at her, unsure of what to do next. "Will you lay with me?", she suddenly asked. His hands suddenly became clammy as his cheeks began to feel warm and he knew he was blushing bright red. He gave her another nod, nonetheless. Using every ounce of energy she had, Hermione shuffled aside to give him room to join her. He nervously sat on the edge of the bed before getting himself comfortable against the headboard. He dared to put his arm around her to comfort her but before he even could, she had nestled herself by his side, her head laying against his chest and one arm draped over his stomach as she gave a small sigh of content. Ron hesitantly wrapped his arm around her small shoulders, feeling her relax under his touch as he suddenly began to relax under hers. "Did you mean it?", she suddenly asked, her sleepy voice making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
"Mean what?", he quizzed nervously.
"When you promised you'd never leave me again", she answered simply. Ron's eyes widened at her revelation. He had truly believed that she couldn't have heard him, and he began to feel an uncomfortable lump beginning to form in his throat once again before swallowing it.
"Of course I did", he said honestly. He suddenly felt her grip on him tighten ever so slightly as she sighed once more.
"Good", she said, her body totally at peace as her eyelids closed softly, not a flicker or a twitch in sight. Ron sighed in relieved content as he gazed down at her resting face against his chest. For the first time in what had felt like an eternity, he was also at peace.