When I Knew
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. This is a quick one-shot I wrote tonight for a Harry Potter website application. I'm not too terribly proud of it, but I am extremely tired, took sleeping medication about an hour ago, and I wanted to post it here anyways. Not my best work, but I didn't have too much inspiration for it. One of those grit your teeth and write it sort of deals, but I still like it. Hope some of you enjoy it:)
Hermione barreled through the front door of the Burrow and on into the living area, completely ignoring the throbbing pain in her left arm. She stopped dead in her tracks at the site of George Weasley, bloody and laying on the couch surrounded by a myriad of people. She migrated over to Harry who was standing alone and off to the side, staring down at nothing.
"Harry, what happened?" She whispered and lay a hand on her friends shoulder. She was shaking from her encounter with the Death Eaters and briefly with Voldemort. She spoke to Harry, but continued to glance around the room looking for the one red-headed Weasley who would calm her nerves.
"She's gone." He muttered mostly to himself. Hermione's head snapped to Harry and she put her other hand on his other shoulder, forcing him to face her. 'Who was gone? Who was she?'
"Who is gone, Harry?" She glanced around quickly, he couldn't be referring to Tonks or Fleur, as neither of their counterparts had arrived. Unless...
"Hedwig." Hermione's jaw dropped and Harry brought his hands to his face and fell onto Hermione's shoulder. She hugged him close, and try as she might to be upset for Harry, her mind wouldn't veer away from Ron. He still hadn't arrived and she wanted to go see about him. She could hear noise behind her get louder and she jumped when a hand rested upon her shoulder. She turned her head slightly to see Ginny standing there, but Ginny was looking at Harry. Hermione pulled back from Harry a little, and was surprised to see a mostly dry face. Ginny took him by the waist and led him away. Hermione watched them go before turning on her heel towards the injured Weasley.
"What happened?" She said in a whisper. If this had happened to George, who was older then Ron and protected by Remus Lupin, then anything could have happened to Ron.
"It was a dark curse." Came a calm but somewhat shaky voice to Hermione's right. She looked up at Professor Lupin.
"Do you know who cast it?" He did not look at Hermione, but instead at George Weasley, whom he was assigned to see safely to the Burrow, and he couldn't even manage that. How was he to manage a child? How could Nymphadora have so much faith in him? He shook his head and caught the last of Hermione's question.
"What was that?" He pulled his eyes away from George and towards the girl.
"I asked you if you saw who cast the spell." She watched his face twist together in anger and what seemed to be a hint of betrayal, although she couldn't identify why.
"Snape." He ground out. She had opened her mouth in response when the voice of Kingsley Shackelbolt came from somewhere in the house.
"Tonks and Ronald have arrived." In mere moments both Lupin and Hermione were in the front yard heading towards the new arrivals. Hermione's body slammed into Ron's and she felt his arms twist around her automatically. She could tell he was breathing hard and attempted to pull away immediately, fearing he was injured, but when she went to pull away, Ron's grip only tightened.
"Don't." Was all he said. Hermione closed her eyes, not allowing the tears of relief to fall.
"You could have died." She choked out and Ron squeezed tighter.
"I didn't get hurt, Hermione. No one did, did they?" Hermione held her breath, and when she didn't reply, Ron pulled away, placing Hermione at shoulder's length away.
"Who? Who got hurt?" He watched as she avoided eye contact.
"He's okay now. But-"
"Who was it, Hermione?" Ron cut her off and asked more forcefully. Hermione winced.
"George." She all but whispered. She watched Ron's eyes go wide and almost fell over when he rushed passed her and into the house.
Hermione wanted to follow, but knew that he needed to be with his family. She looked out towards the dark horizon and took a deep shaky breath, but it didn't sooth her and she fell to her knee's. She let out a sob that went unheard, masked by the roar of the wind. Every memory involving Ron she could conjure flashed through her mind. And then the image of George laying on the couch came to mind, only, it wasn't George, but Ron. It was in that horrifying moment that she realized she loved Ronald Weasley. She had absolutely no idea what she would do if he weren't in her life. She wanted to grow old with him, to raise children with him. Spoil as many grandchildren and maybe even great-grandchildren as they could. It was Ron whom she wanted to wake up to every day. It was his face she wanted to see at the end of the isle. She thought of all the possibilities they had together, a shadow of a smile playing on her face. But then it all ended. The face of Voldemort flashed before her and all her images of herself and Rons future turned to ones of horror. Hermione shook her head forcefully and with renewed motivation stood to her feat. She turned and walked into the Burrow with a purpose.
She wasn't sure what she had walked in on, but the occupants of the house were completely silent. She met Ron's eyes and quickly made her way to his side where he wrapped an arm around her waist and leant in to whisper in her ear.
"Mad-Eye is dead. Mundungus abandoned him." He straightened back up.
"Who is in charge of the Order now?" She said a little louder then she'd have liked. She really wanted to know exactly what had happened, but she suspected that the details had already been given and she was not about to ask for them to be repeated. So she went for the second biggest question. Almost everyone's gaze seemed to drift towards Harry's position.
"Absolutely not!" Molly Weasley stepped forward with her hands on her hips, daring anyone to go against her. Almost immediately everyone's eyes then shifted towards Kingsley, who was very important in the Ministry and was an excellent Auror. He nodded in consent.
"There is a lot to be done."
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