"Yes…" he said softly, struggling to keep the fear out of his voice, "it's the only way; I've got to be taken."
"NO!" Harry and Hermione shouted together.
"That's chess!" Ron retorted quickly swallowing a lump in his throat. He needed to make them understand. "You've gotta make some sacrifices…." He spoke slowly, but deliberately, knowing what he said was important. They needed to finish the game after he was gone. "Look, if you don't hurry up, he'll already have the Stone!"
No one argued. He had convinced them; he had done what he needed to do. Now all that was life was to do it. Ron felt himself growing weak at the knees. He glanced at the blank face of the white queen awaiting his next move.
"Ready?" he said slowly, "Here I go – now, don't hang around once you've won." He began to tremble. Would they hang around? Would they check to see if he was okay? Although part of him wished his friends would stay with him, he hoped they didn't. There was no time. Besides, what if he wasn't okay?
Ron's mind raced as he forced himself to move: two squares forward, one to the left. He didn't know how he managed it, trembling as he was. He fought back tears as the giant queen turned and started toward him. Images of his family and friends flashed in his head. Would he ever see them again, or was he going to die down here? Would they forget about him?
He glanced quickly at Harry and their eyes met. Ron felt a sudden calm come over him. Suddenly it didn't matter anymore what happened to him. He knew he had made the right decision. He took a deep breath and looked up at the queen towering over him, just in time to feel her cold stone arm smash into the side of his head.
Ron lost his balance and dropped to the floor. He felt the stone hand of the queen close around his arm and drag him off the board. As his body was tossed limply against the wall of the chamber, the room went as dark as it was when they first entered and Ron lost consciousness.
"Ron! Ron! Oh, please wake up!" The voice sounded so far away. His head was spinning as he slowly opened his eyes.
"H-Hermione?" His friend's face slowly came into focus in the now dimly-lit room.
"You're alive!" she shouted and threw her arms around him. Ron winced in pain and looked at Hermione, started by her sudden emotional outburst.
"I-I'm sorry." she replied quickly, "It's just; I thought you might be – well – you know…"
"I think I'm okay now," Ron said quietly, "just a bit dizzy…w-where's Harry?"
"He's gone on without us. We need to get to the owlery. He needs help." Hermione bit her lip looking at Ron with an uncertain expression on her face.
"What is it?" Ron urged. She hesitated for a moment before answering.
"W-Why did you do it? I mean, y-you could've died."
"It was the only way."
"B-but you're the best chess player I've ever seen. I'm sure you could've figured something out. W-What if you – hadn't been so lucky?"
Ron looked away for a moment, unsure how to answer. Did he dare tell Hermione how afraid he had been of the worst happening? In his mind he traveled back to the moments just before the queen had struck him.
"Sometimes - you just gotta do the right thing – no matter what might happen." He looked up at Hermione and she smiled back at him.
"You're really brave you know." Ron winced at her words. Why did she have to say that? Ron? Brave? He had to tell her. He didn't want one of his best friends thinking something that wasn't true.
"H-Hermione, I was terrified. M-maybe you couldn't tell from where you standing, but I was shaking the entire time. I-I almost didn't know if I could go through with it…"
"But you did. That's all that matters. You faced your fears. That's what being a Gryffindor is all about!" Ron smiled at her and allowed her to slowly help him to his feet.
"C-c'mon," he said leaning on her shoulder for support, "Harry needs us."
