A/N: A Deathly Hallows missing moment.

Ron and Hermione find a little peace the first night at Shell Cottage after they escape from the Manor. I know this has been done a million times and yet I just had to write this down.

Thanks to each one of you for reading.

ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO JKR

Finding her Patronus

Ron shifted his position on the couch again. The room was silent except for the sound of the gushing sea that played constantly in the background like a melancholy symphony. From his left he could hear the gentle snoring that was Dean's. Occasional twisting and turning, which caused the temporary camp cot to make little screeching sounds came from his right. Harry was awake. Ron wasn't surprised.

How long had it been since they had wrapped up for the night? Maybe an hour, maybe more.

Putting his right arm under his head, he turned slightly to his left where the stairs began. In the faint light from the moon outside that seeped into the room through the glass windows, the whitewashed and shell studded room glowed softly. He physically ached to go up to the tiny bedroom and peek in once, just once to see if she was fine. The camp cot screeched again and he could hear Harry turning the other way.

Minutes passed or maybe hours. Another sound of faint breathing accompanied Dean's and yet Ron still laid wide awake, eyes glued to the stairs.

His senses picked up every little noise as if he was still sitting guard outside their tent; the sea gushing forward and back, the soft breathing and faint snoring from his sides, the clock on the mantelpiece ticking off seconds.

The rhythm had almost become a lullaby pulling him into a state of drowsiness when another sound, a softer one, joined the others; a delicate footstep walking down the stairs, soft rustling of a dressing gown and a faint whisper of a suppressed sob.

He was up in a flash. He could identify that whimper anywhere, especially after hearing it so many times today. The main door creaked softly as it was opened and making as less noise as he could, he followed her wake.

Ron didn't suppose she heard him. He walked out into the porch to find a form huddled in the cane sofa that sat there. So as not to startle her with his sudden appearance, he called softly.

"Hermione..."

The whimpering stopped and she replied in teary surprise. –"Ron?"

He sat down next to her and placed an arm around her. Hermione turned slightly and buried her face in his chest. As tears rolled down, she shook with the intensity of the sob that muffled in his chest, muffled to all but him. He heard them loud and clear, close to his heart. Placing the other arm over her too, he pulled her closer.

"I miss my parents." She said in between hiccups after a long time.

"I know." He replied softly.

"I want this to end Ron, I want to go home." She said moving a little apart but still close enough for him to see the moisture trickling down her pale cheeks.

"I want..."

"To be safe, to be with family. I know Hermione, I know."

"When will all this be over Ron?" she asked like a child seeking assurance.

"Soon Hermione, I promise."

Silence reigned for a while between them, with nothing but the sea playing in the background.

"Harry was right. You were very brave in there."

"So were you both and Dobby... I thought we had no chance... I thought I'll die."

"DON'T SAY THAT!" he admonished sternly but not too loud as he pulled her closer again into his chest.

Nuzzled close to him she heard the beating of his heart and after everything they had gone through, it was the sound of his beating heart that soothed her down. They were alive, they had made it. And now they had a plan.

Feeling marginally better she moved slightly so as to be able to see his face.

She looked into his eyes, noticing even in the moonlight, the pain those orbs held. She remembered seeing fear in them as he had lowered her down on the bed after their escape from the Manor. She remembered seeing his frightened yet fierce look as she dangled in his arms as he walked up to the cottage and up the stairs into the tiny bedroom. And if it wasn't the pain that was playing tricks on her mind, she thought she had seen a couple of tears in his eyes as he put her down on the bed in the gentlest manner.

Ron. It was now more than ever when she realised how much she had missed him and how grateful she was that he had returned back to them, to her.

With a deep sigh he held her hand and pulled back the sleeves as she struggled to shake him off.

"Ron..."

"Shhh" he muttered as he ran his finger over the slur Bellatrix had traced on her arm. And then without warning, he pulled her arm to his lips and kissed it.

Hermione watched in surprise as their eyes met, realising only now how close they were to each other, physically and in every other sense.

Ron was looking at her so intensely now that she couldn't break the gaze. She lowered her eyes after a while only to move over his unshaven face. It had a darker tint to it where the Snacher's fist had hit him while he fought for them to leave her.

"No!" he had shouted at Bellatrix. "You can have me, keep me!" How many times had she heard him screaming her name from the cellar? A hundred? Maybe more, she didn't really know. What she knew was that it was his voice that had kept her sane through all the pain.

Even as she watched mesmerised, he undid the button of the gown at her neck. She shivered as his fingers touched her skin ever so slightly.

Picking up his wand that he had left on his side, Ron cast a light. Lifting up her chin with his finger, he directed the light to her throat where the evil witch had placed her dagger. He noticed the faint scar and ran his thumb gently over it, a blazed look forming in his eyes.

Hermione quivered at his touch. He was close and as he scrutinized her scar, she felt his breath on her skin. She closed her eyes as he leaned in closer and she almost wished him to kiss her on this scar too but the moment passed and after a while she felt him pulling her dressing gown to cover her.

She opened her eyes to find him watching her and with a faint trace of a smile he kissed her on the forehead. Her heart groaned a little at the lost chance but then this wasn't the time. This was war.

He spoke after quite a while during which she remained snuggled in his arms, "I think you should go to bed, get some rest. And its getting cold here."

He looked tired too. She nodded silently. As they unwrapped from each other's arms, he got up first. The moment the contact with him ceased, the horrors came crashing again, the same horrors she had been trying unsuccessfully to rid herself off. When the room had threatened to strangle her she had escaped out, hoping the sea and the wind would give her peace and rest. But it was still the same, like a hundred Dementors were drawing close, leaving her with just the terrible memories and sucking away all her hopes and dreams.

"Hermione?" called Ron softly.

"I...I'll sit here for a while...you go ahead."

He resumed his position next to her.

"What happened?" he asked in a murmur, tucking a curl behind her ear and lifting up her chin to meet her eyes, his thumb traced her jawline delicately.

"I can't sleep in there."

She didn't need to tell him more. He understood.

He conjured a blanket as she curled down on the small sofa with her head on his lap without question. He covered her with the blanket and ran his fingers in her hair. She felt the sense of comfort returning back. The dementors were finally receding back in the darkness, the world had hope again.

"You need your sleep too Ron." She muttered, cocooned in the warmth of the blanket and the fragrance of his presence.

"I will." He told her as he stretched to rest his head back, feeling way more at peace now than before.

They remained silent till the soft ebb and flow of their breathing melted into one. The last thought on Hermione's mind before she fell asleep with his fingers still caressing her hair was that she had finally found her true patronus.

A/N: This is a one shot. But I might add other missing moments to it depending on the reader responses I get. Do you want me to continue?

Please do leave a review.