The peace of falling asleep to the sound of each others breathing was short lived. It was just after two a.m. when Hermione was awaken by a groan from Ron. She opened her eyes and looked up. He was obviously immersed in a terrible dream - drenched in sweat, tossing and turning, muttering indistinguishable sentences in his sleep. Every now and then, she could make out a word or two – "no" "stop" "please" "Fred" and especially her name, Hermione. Over and over he cried her name while he fought violently with the terrors that filled his mind in his sleep.
"Ron." Hermione whispered, placing a hand gently on his face so as not to startle him awake. Ron was not roused though and began tossing and turning even more violently.
"Ron!" Hermione said a little louder, becoming alarmed now.
Ron's eyes sprang open, out of focus and full of terror. "No! Not Hermione!" Ron yelled, springing up in bed.
"Ron, Ron! It's ok!" Hermione said, putting her hands on Ron's shoulders to steady him.
It took a moment for his eyes to focus on her. It was like he was still stuck in his nightmare. When his eyes finally met hers, she was alarmed at the terror she saw in them. She was just reaching up to embrace him when Ron's face turned pale as the moonlight and he sprinted out of bed, through his bedroom door, and down the hall to the bathroom. Hermione ran after him and arrived just as Ron bent over the toilet and emptied the contents of his stomach.
"Ron! Are you alright?" Hermione cried. She grabbed a washcloth off the sink and ran it under the cold water. She knelt down next to Ron and gently placed it on the back of his neck while he heaved again.
"It's ok, Ron. It's ok. I'm here! What can I do?" Hermione asked desperately, sponging Ron's neck and back. He was still drenched with sweat.
Ron took a deep breath and spit the last residue of vomit in the toilet before flushing it and sitting back against the tub. He looked exhausted and sick.
"Just give me a second." Ron said weakly, his eyes closed. But he reached for Hermione's hand and she took it. She noticed it was clammy and ice cold.
After a few minutes of sitting like that, Hermione staring at Ron nervously, Ron opened his eyes and looked at Hermione.
"I'm ok." He said weakly. He shakily got to his feet and leaned over the sink. He placed his hand on either side and took another deep breath.
"Ron?" Hermione asked, placing her hand lightly on his back.
"I'm really ok, Hermione. Could you just give me a few minutes, please? I want to brush my teeth and wash up a little." Ron said. He sounded shaky.
"Of… of course." Hermione said, not really wanting to leave his side.
"I'll be back in a minute." Ron said. "I promise." He looked up from the sink and gave Hermione a weak smile before caressing her face gently with the back of his hand. Hermione nodded and backed out of the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She tiptoed back to Ron's room and lay back down in his bed. She had no idea what just happened. Was Ron sick, or was he so troubled by what he saw in his dreams that it literally made him ill?
A few minutes later, Ron returned to the room. He was not drenched in sweat any more but he was still a little paler than usual. Hermione scooted over in the bed as Ron crawled in. The moment he was settled, he rolled on his side and wrapped Hermione in his arms and held her more tightly then he ever had before. She noticed he was shaking slightly so she grabbed the blanket and pulled it over them before encircling him with her arms. His face was buried in her neck and he was breathing heavily, as though he was in pain.
"Ron? Please tell me if you are ok." Hermione pleaded softly.
Ron pulled his face from the crook of Hermione's neck and looked into her eyes. His were rimmed with tears. He pulled away from Hermione and sat up on the edge of the bed, burying his face in his hands.
"I thought it was you. It was so real. It was bad enough losing Fred, but seeing you lying there…" Ron trailed off with a visible shudder.
"It's alright, Ron." Hermione soothed, coming up behind him and placing her hands on either shoulder.
"You were lying there in the hallway, exactly where Fred was. Except you were lying in a pool of blood that just kept spreading until it was pouring down the stairs. And Bellatrix was standing over you, slashing you with her knife over and over again! You were screaming so loud but I couldn't get to you because I kept slipping on the blood! Hermione… I have never been so effing scared in my life! I thought I had lost you." Ron said, tears leaking out of his eyes. He turned around and wrapped his arms around her tightly.
"It's ok, Ron. It's ok." Hermione soothed. "I'm here… I'm here in your arms and I promise to be in them for as long as you want me." Hermione said, kissing a tear from Ron's cheek.
"Forever, then?" Ron asked and Hermione smiled softly.
"Forever." She answered, a sense of certainty accompanying her words.
Ron leaned in and placed his lips on Hermione's. She wrapped her arms around his still bare torso and pulled herself as close to him as she could. Ron responded in kind, holding her to his body so tightly and then gently weaving his hands underneath Hermione's night shirt and sliding them up her bare back. She sighed with pleasure at the feel of Ron's hands – no longer cold, but warm and gentle - touching her bare flesh. Her reaction made Ron deepen their kiss, caressing her tongue with his. She could taste his spearmint toothpaste and smiled against Ron's lips at the memory of the first time she recognized that smell in amortensia potion. She wanted him so much, even back then.
Hermione was surprised but not at all hesitant when she felt Ron's hands slide down her back to the hem of her nightshirt. He slid it over her head in one fluid motion and dropped it on the floor beside the bed. She felt no embarrassment as Ron's eyes traveled her mostly nude form, drinking in her every curve. She was doing the same to Ron who was still dressed in nothing but his boxer shorts, which now had a very prominent protuberance in the front that kept drawing Hermione's eye.
When he had finished perusing Hermione's body, Ron's eyes met Hermione's.
"Do you have any idea how beautiful you are, Hermione? How beautiful you have always been?" Ron said, gently running his fingers slowly down her arm. Only now did Hermione blush. Other than her parents, no one had ever called her beautiful. Viktor had complimented her… told her she was smart and "pretty", but never beautiful - and never with as much sincerity in his eyes as Ron had right now. Hermione found herself lost for words, a tight knot in her throat as she gazed at Ron and he did likewise.
Ron leaned in and captured Hermione's lips with his. There was pure fire in this kiss, more intense than they had ever shared before. Hermione felt it course through her body, igniting her most intimate areas. Ron wrapped his arms around Hermione and pulled her against him so she was straddling his waist. She felt a desire more intense then she had ever felt before pushing her closer and closer to Ron, making her instinctively grind her pelvis against his hardness. Ron moaned and moved his lips from hers, down her neck, to her exposed breasts. Hermione thought she might burst into flames when Ron began kissing her full breasts. She threaded her hands in his hair and wrapped her legs tighter around his waist. She wanted the last thin layer of clothes, the final barrier between her and Ron and absolute ecstasy, gone! Ron seemed to have the same idea. In one quick fluid motion, Ron picked Hermione up in his arms and laid her back on the bed. She watched with her heart beating like a hummingbirds wings as Ron pulled down his boxer shorts, revealing his erect manhood. He stood there and looked at her, slightly red in the cheeks, but otherwise looking confident and calm.
Hermione's hands were quivering both with excitement and nerves when she hooked her thumbs in the waistband of her own underwear and slowly, under Ron's lovingly watchful eye, pulled them off. Hermione heard Ron's breath trembling and she knew he was just as nervous as she. Somehow, that comforted her. She smiled at him and held out her arms, which he immediately entered, coming to rest on top of her.
Ron's lips met Hermione's again and he kissed her passionately. She could feel his hardness against her opening and the desire to feel Ron inside her was so overwhelming that she thrust her pelvis against his.
There was a gasp both from Ron and Hermione - Ron from surprise, Hermione from pain. She had always heard the first time was painful. Ginny had practically given her a play by play of what to expect. But, the sting of losing her virginity still caught her by surprise.
Ron lay still and looked at Hermione with concern. She smiled at him and pulled his lips down to meet hers.
"I'm ok." She whispered. "Just go slow."
Ron nodded. Hermione could feel him trembling again – his heart racing in his chest as he started to move very slowly inside her. He was obviously as nervous as she was and Hermione was comforted and relieved by that. She doubted Ron would be this nervous if he had done this with anyone else, and being each others firsts made it seem more special, somehow.
They both felt a little awkward at first – Ron trying to be gentle while driven by passion; Hermione driven by passion but stifled by pain. But, being together in that moment as one - sharing a love so deep that both were trembling with emotion - made even their clumsy lovemaking seem incredible. They soon started to follow their sensual instincts and allowed their senses to be consumed with each other. Passion began to replace the initial awkwardness, and ecstasy eased out Hermione's pain. Their nervous trembling soon turned to shivers of pleasure as they explored each others bodies – teased and kissed and caressed each others most intimate areas.
It was nearly daybreak when they finally collapsed in each others arms, exhausted in the best of ways. Hermione lay with her head on Ron's chest, a small smile adorning her lips, and listened to Ron's heart return to it's normal pace. She was sore where Ron's manhood had pleasured her for so long that night, but at the same time, her entire body was tingling with pleasure. She sighed and wrapped her arms a little tighter around Ron.
"Are you ok?" He asked, running his fingers through her now disheveled hair.
"I'm better than ok. I feel amazing." Hermione said honestly.
"So do I." Ron said and Hermione could hear the smile in his voice. She sighed again.
It didn't take long for sleep to claim them again. Still wrapped in each others arms, Ron drifted off first as always, and Hermione followed when she heard his comforting snores. Hermione's dreams that early morning were the most peaceful she'd had since long before the war.
