A/N: Hey guys! This chapter is rather short, but it ended in a nice spot here, so it's ending here. I'm thinking that this might be the last bit of the real battle to include- I like Fred's death in the movie more than in the books for Hermione's perspective, so I wanted to write it from that perspective, but I don't actually like how the battle goes from there. So there will probably be a bit of "jumping over the rest of the actual plot parts true to the movie/book" moment at the beginning of the next chapter. Also-since I'd had some questions about this, updates on this story will more than likely be coming once a week. While I'd love to update more often than that, there's this thing called college that I'm trying to get through as well, and unfortunately, that has to be my priority. Anyway, here's the third chapter! Please keep the reviews and such coming, they make my day :) -Shane
I lay in that position for another fifteen minutes or so. Everything was pain, and it took me much longer than it should have to clear my head. But then I remembered where I was, what was at stake here, what Fred had died for. How much of the hour had been used up? The castle was still fairly quiet, so I knew that battle was still ceased. But where was Harry? How could I have left the most important part of the battle alone, even for a second? I scrambled up, grabbing my dropped wand (how could I have been so stupid as to drop my wand in a war zone?!), and bolted back for the Great Hall. But I knew he wouldn't be there. As soon as George had started uttering that awful cry, I know that Harry would have bolted as well. He didn't handle other people's pain well. He wouldn't have gone to the common room, there was no point, and there were too many memories there for me to even think about searching it. Then the thought occurred to me. If the hour was almost up, and if Fred had died, Harry might have thought the only way to end it was to give himself up.
This thought was enough to jolt me into action. I sprinted for the doors of the castle, gaining my bearings only as I turned wrong corners, screaming Harry's name even though I knew it could mean his demise. I turned the corner that would lead me to the main staircase and smacked into someone, knocking us both down.
"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?! We can hear you screaming for him all the way down in the hall, you'll give him up!" Ron's cheeks were tear stained, and his speech was somewhat impeded with sobs.
"I'm trying to find him, you idiot! He's disappeared, and in who knows how long, battle will start again, unless he gives himself up to Voldemort. So I don't care if I wake the entire dead Death Eater community, I'm going to bloody well find him before he does something he can't un-do!" This shocked Ron enough to get him to stop glaring at me.
"You don't think...he wouldn't actually..."
"Yes, he would, Ron. I don't know who else we've lost, but any death is going to come as a personal loss to him, because he is, in a way, responsible for it. If he knows he can stop it, he's going to, don't you think?"
"Yeah...especially if he saw Lupin and Tonks."
"What?! Saw Lupin and Tonks where?" No, no no no, not them too, they'd just been parents! But Ron's look of grief was enough to confirm it, and the tears started again. And in that moment I didn't care where Harry was, I needed someone to hold off the shaking and the sense of paralysis, so I threw myself into Ron's arms and sobbed until I heard his voice.
"Guys?" His voice sounded so far away, but so close.
"Harry! Thank god you didn't go..." Ron's voice trailed off, and I picked my head up out of his chest. Harry stood, shoulders hunched, a look of expectation on his face. So I was right. He was going to do it. In a way, he had to. There was no other choice. Voldemort wouldn't come right into battle...he'd threaten it, but he wouldn't actually do it. So there was really no way of ending it without Harry going to him.
"Please...please...I'll go with you." I knew I couldn't talk him out of doing it. "You can't be alone for this...just please let me go with you."
"No, I can't put you in more danger than you're in here. I think I need to do this by myself. Just...take care of each other. You're stronger together. You'll be alright. I..." His voice trailed off and I couldn't stand it anymore. I broke out of Ron's arms and threw myself at Harry, who wrapped me in his arms sadly. "Kill the snake, Hermione. Just make sure someone kills the bloody snake. If the snake isn't gone, there's no point in me walking to that forest." He looked over my shoulder at Ron, nodded his head, and forced himself out of my grip. I couldn't hold myself up.
From my spot on the floor, I watched my best friend walk out the doors of the castle. It hadn't even taken an hour, but the battle had officially ripped everything out of my life. And Voldemort would pay. You want the snake killed, Harry? I won't stop there. I'll personally make sure that every last Death Eater will sleep on a pillow of their own blood and dismantled body parts tonight.