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-Unlock the Gates-

It was quickly becoming the oddest and longest day of Ron's entire life. First, he and his friends broke into Gringotts Bank, the most secure bank in the wizarding world. Not only did they escape with their lives, but on the back of a dragon no less! Then, they rode the freaking thing to a lake and swan-dived off its back.

You know, just for kicks.

When Charlie hears about this his eyes are going to fall out of his head. Well, maybe after he takes the mickey out of Bill for allowing the goblins to keep a dragon captive like that.

Next, Harry had a vision, which thankfully did not happen when they were clinging for their lives on the back of a flying death trap.

Apparently, the last unknown Horcrux was hidden at Hogwarts, just as Harry thought it would be. The connection between Harry and You-Know-Who really frightened Ron sometimes. He wasn't scared of Harry per se, but rather for him. What if Voldemort tried to drive Harry mad again like he had in fifth year? Would Harry be able to stay focused when the final confrontation came?

No, he had to stop thinking like that. His best friend would find a way to win in the end. But there was no time to worry about that now; they had to get to Hogwarts and find the blasted thing before You-Know-Who.

As always, they decided to screw the plan and dive headfirst into trouble.

Then, so much random crap happened Ron was still reeling from it all. Apparently, it was Aberforth, Dumbledore's brother, who Harry had seen in the mirror. He was the one who sent Dobby to rescue them from Malfoy Manor.

Okay… at least that little mystery had been cleared up.

But the one thing that left a major impression on Ron was Aberforth's description of his brother. Godric, young Dumbledore really reminded him of Percy. From his arrogance and intelligence, to his need for power blinding him of what was truly important: his family. Yes, young Professor Dumbledore had a lot in common with his estranged brother. Thinking of Percy made Ron both mad and sad, all at the same time. But he had hope that Perce would try to make amends one day. And unlike Aberforth, he knew his entire family would eventually take Percy back. Everyone makes mistakes, and at the end of the day, Percy was still his brother. Ron would make sure that his family did not end up like the Dumbledores.

The portrait of Ariana then swung open to reveal… Neville?

The beaten and bloodied form of his friend enveloped Ron in a joyful hug. Everything about it was totally surreal; from Neville's physical appearance to his confident demeanor. His body was one big bruise, and he was cut up worse than Hermione had been when the chandler fell on her. But the extent his injuries simply didn't faze him.

The three of them were now following Neville's lead down the long corridor. According to their friend, all the other passages into Hogwarts had been sealed off. Ron was stunned at what Neville had gone through. It was horrific. Students were made to practice the Cruciatus Curse on people given detention? They tried to kidnap Neville's grandmother?

Though, somehow, the cruelty Neville had suffered finally made him grow one mighty back bone. Ron had to admit, he had noticed a lot changes in his friend over the last couple years. Neville was nothing like the wimpy, klutzy kid Ron had known in first year.

Unlike his friendship Luna, Ron had always liked Neville. He felt camaraderie with the quiet boy because he lacked self-confidence just like Ron. But the major difference between them was when pushed Ron would act, whereas Neville wouldn't. Ron often felt frustrated with Neville when he just let people walk all over him. But that hesitant part of Neville had faded away over time.

It wasn't until the DA was formed that Ron really started to notice a major change in him. There was a drive and determination that Ron hadn't seen before. Like Luna, Neville had accompanied them to the Department of Mysteries where he had been an invaluable asset. And now, a strong and confident Neville stood before him, one fully grown into his adult skin. Ron couldn't be prouder of his friend. He guessed Hermione was right when she once said that people either rose to face adversity or were crushed by it.

After much walking and climbing, they finally reached a door similar to the one hidden behind Ariana's portrait. As Neville pushed it open he called out, "Look who it is! Didn't I tell you?"

The trio was immediately swamped by joyful students celebrating their arrival. The effect it had on Ron was euphoric. Apparently, the passageway was created by the Room of Requirement. Neville had been using it as a hiding place from the Carrows. The room created the tunnel to Hogsmeade so Neville could find food.

"Yeah, well, food's one of the five exceptions to Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration," said Ron with a nod. When he looked up everyone was staring at him like he had grown a second head.

"What? Oh, come on! It's not that surprising. I know things!"

Though, Seamus (who had been kicked down the shifting stairways by the look of him) changed the subject before Ron could retort.

When Gringotts was mentioned Ron couldn't help but take a bow. It really was quite the accomplishment.

But the joyful moment came to a screeching halt, when Harry suddenly turned away from the crowd. His face scrunched up in pain as he desperately reached out to Ron. He grabbed Harry the second his knees started to buckle. Harry gripped the sleeve of Ron's jacket like a lifeline. Ron's support was the only thing keeping Harry on his feet. Seeing his friend like this made Ron's worry increase tenfold. He could tell Harry's strength was fading fast.

When Harry came back to himself, he stared Ron dead in the eyes.

They were running out of time.

Luckily, no one else in the room (other than Hermione) seemed to take much notice of Harry's moment of weakness.

But he and Hermione could tell… Harry was in agony.

Harry fought through the pain and tried to make Neville and the others understand that they weren't here to fight a battle. Luna's sudden appearance did not help the situation either. The heated discussion was wasting them precious time. Then Ginny showed up with the twins, Dean, and Lee and Harry pretty much forgot about everything else.

At this point, Ron had had enough. There were tons of people here, ready to offer their aid. The trio had no clue what or where the thing they were looking for was. All they knew was it had probably been a possession of Ravenclaw's. Voldemort was going to show up at any minute and murder everyone in the damn castle. They had to get moving!

Ron spun to address Harry.

"Why can't they help?"

"What?"

"They can help." He dropped his voice and said, so that none of them could hear but Hermione, who stood between them, "We don't know where it is. We've got to find it fast. We don't have to tell them it's a Horcrux."

Harry looked from Ron to Hermione, who murmured, "I think Ron's right. We don't even know what we're looking for, we need them." And when Harry looked unconvinced, "You don't have to do everything alone, Harry."

"Please, mate. See reason," thought Ron as he and Hermione shared a tense glance.

After what seemed like an eternity, Harry finally agreed. The Ravenclaws were quite helpful. They all seemed to think the object must be her lost diadem- crown- thing. Apparently, the statue in the Ravenclaw common room shows her wearing it. Harry quickly warned them both that You-Know-Who was once again on the move. He then asked for a volunteer to take him into the Ravenclaw wing. Cho stood up and Ginny immediately shot her down by suggesting Luna be his guide. Ron would have snickered aloud if the situation wasn't so dire. Besides, he also trusted Luna more than Cho, but for entirely different reasons.

Neville then directed them to the exit. Harry said a quick good-bye and left, leaving Ron and Hermione to stand there twiddling their thumbs.

Ron let out a mournful sigh. He really didn't want to let Harry go off on his own. Something always seems to happen to him when he's on his own. But Luna was with him so maybe he'd be alright this time.

"Now, what?" he grumbled to Hermione, hoping she had some ideas.

"Oh, Ron. Even if we find the other one, how are we going to get rid of it? We still haven't got rid of the cup," she answered with a hopeless air.

Then, all at once, interlinking ideas started to flash through his mind. In an instant, answer struck him like a physical blow. His eyes went wide and a wild grin slid across his face.

It was perfect. Slytherin's pet would once again help destroy his heir.

He whirled around and grabbed Hermione's wrist.

"The basilisk!" he exclaimed in a moment of revelation, "Hermione! We can get fangs from the dead basilisk!"

"The basil-" she started to say, but stopped in a breathless gasp as the meaning behind his words caught up with her.

He quickly dragged her over to the broomstick stand at the far back of the room. Ron reached out, grabbed one, and placed it snuggly under his arm.

When he turned back around to look at Hermione, she was staring at him with a sense of awe.

"Ron, that's-that's brilliant!" she exclaimed throwing her arms around him in a tight hug. "Positively ingenious, even!"

"Always the tone of surprise," he sighed dramatically, once again earning himself a punch to the arm.

"Stop saying that!" she hissed in reply.

He of course, ignored her request as always.

"Come on, let's head to the bathroom," said Ron as he dragged Hermione past Ginny and a couple other people, "We don't have a lot of time before Harry gets back."

"Right, lead the way…" she said as they rushed toward the door.

They moved as quickly as they could down the halls, ducking from time to time when they heard footsteps. Luckily, the Room of Requirement had dropped them off on the same floor as the bathroom. It wasn't too long before they had reached their destination. They slipped inside as fast as they could.

"Okay, look for a spout that has a snake engraved on it," said Ron as he and Hermione went about searching the sinks.

"Oh! Here, Ron! I think-"

A long laboring wail then assaulted their senses.

"Oh, please, don't tell me-"

"Get out of my- oh, it's you two," said Moaning Myrtle as she flew out of one of the stalls.

Hermione turned to the ghost with a false smile and asked, "Hello, Myrtle. How have you been?"

"Oh…dreadful. It's always been dreadful. But it's been even more so since those Carrows have been in charge. They have gone to great lengths to get rid of the annoying little Muggle-born ghost, but I WON'T LEAVE," she screeched at them.

"Good for you, Myrtle!" said Ron, quickly trying to get her to keep it down. "Sticking it to them and all that, but you see, we really are in a hurry-"

"Yes, yes always in a hurry. No time to stop and talk to pooooor, Moaning Myrtle," she lamented. "By the way, I noticed Harry's not with you. He wouldn't happen to be dead, would he?"

Ron fought down the chill that engulfed him from hearing those words.

"No, he's off somewhere else in the castle," responded Hermione coldly.

"What a pity… I wouldn't mind sharing my toilet with him… " she said as she floated off to pout.

"Whew, glad that's over," thought Ron as he and Hermione approached the sink.

Suddenly, Hermione's hands flew up to her face as she gasped, "Oh, no! Ron, we forgot! You need to speak Parseltongue to open it… And it was such an amazing plan, too."

Ron laughed at her saying, "Don't worry, Hermione. I thought of that before we left. It's a long shot, but I figured I'd give it a try."

"Give it a try? Ron, we can't just waste time randomly hissing at a sink!"

"Ah, but you see, it won't be random," said Ron with a lecturing air that Hermione often used. "I was with Harry when he opened the Chamber the first time, and he used the same exact hiss to open the Locket. Trust me. I remember the pitch and length of the sound he made."

Ron then approached the sink. He glared down at the snake determined. "I can do it, Hermione. I know I can."

"Then, I'll back you up every step of the way," she said softly. Hermione then gently placed her hand on his back. He could feel her faith in him strengthening his resolve.

He would not let her down.

Again and again he tried, but to no avail. His throat was quickly becoming raw and sore, but he kept going. Myrtle zipped by to mock him a few times, once asking who he thought he was, Harry Potter? He had to stop Hermione from hexing her back to kingdom come.

"It's okay," said Ron grabbing her hands in own. And for a moment, Ron swore he saw her blush. "Besides, we really don't want her making a fuss."

She mumbled something like he was right and Ron turned back to sink. Once again, he deeply inhaled and let out a long strangled hiss that dipped and twisted across his tongue. Just as he was about to take another breath to try again, the tap suddenly glowed with a familiar white light and started to spin.

"You did it! That was amazing, Ron! You actually did it!" exclaimed Hermione jumping up and down from joy.

He laughed, "Always the-"

But she hit him before he could finish saying it. "Ow!"

"I told you to quit saying that! Come on, we have basilisk fangs to find!"

She was about to jump into the hole when Ron exclaimed, "Wait! It's kind of, well, a rough ride. The door will stay open until we leave so we don't have to worry about that. But I brought the broom so we could just fly in and out."

"Oh, right. Didn't think of that," she said with a blush. Ron smiled at her and mounted the broom. She looked at him worriedly.

"I know how much you hate riding these things," sighed Ron as he held out his hand to her. "But don't worry. I won't let anything to you."

And for a moment, they stared into each other's eyes.

"I know, you won't," was Hermione's eventual reply. She gently took his hand and climbed on the back behind him.

She automatically wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. He felt his face heat up in a blush.

"O-okay," he croaked out before clearing his throat. He then lifted up his feet and hovered over the floor. "Don't worry, I'll fly slowly."

And with that, they flew off into the dark unknown.

When they touched down at the bottom of the slide, it was just as dank and ominous as Ron remembered.

Both he and Hermione lit their wands aglow.

"Goodness, that's a lot of bones," said Hermione as she glanced at the remains of several small creatures.

"I know, hopefully we won't run across another snake skin. Though, I'm sure seeing the real thing will be far more terrifying."

"Trust me," said Hermione, "Seeing just its reflection was enough to last me a lifetime."

They both shared a determined nod. And together, they made their way through the tunnel.

"Oh, my! Ron, look at that," said Hermione pointing at the large pile of rocks blocking their way. "Was it like this the last time you came?"

"Well, yeah, I told you I got separated from Harry when Lockhart used my wand…" replied Ron as he stared at the pile of rubble. A bloody handprint of his still rested on one of the stones. He had been so scared. Ginny was trapped in the Chamber and Harry and to go off alone to save her. Ron should have never let Lockhart get the drop on him. He remembered clawing at the rocks, tearing at them with all his might...

He had to get out! He had to help Harry save Gin! Ron ignored Lockhart babbling like an idiot in the corner as he dug. Blood freely dripped from his hands but he didn't care. People that he loved were in danger and that was all that mattered. He had finally gotten the hole large enough for him to fit through when Harry returned with Ginny. His baby sister was crying, but that was okay. She was alive. He was so relieved that they were both alright.

He laughed for a moment as he recalled how dumbstruck he was seeing Harry return with a bird and a sword.

"Ron, you dug through all of this without a wand? Your poor hands must have been shredded," said Hermione in shock.

"Yeah, well you know," he answered shyly, brushing her off. He really didn't want to talk about it right now. "Anyway, that opening isn't even close to being large enough for us to fit through. Let's get to work, okay?"

Hermione looked at him with that penetrating stare of hers, but eventually, she relented and carefully helped him float the larger rocks out of the way.

After they crawled through the newly made opening, he and Hermione walked down the long and winding corridor they found on the other side. A feeling of trepidation slowly built in Ron's heart. It would be the first time he saw the inside of the Chamber. Ron would view the spot where Ginny had almost died, and where the decaying remains of the creature that tried to kill Hermione lay.

Finally, the two came to a sold wall with two intricately carved snakes on it.

This had to be it.

Hermione reached out and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. All his doubts melted blissfully away.

He offered her a small smile in thanks and quickly got to work. It only took him two tries to get it right this time. The wall cracked open, and Ron and Hermione walked together as one into the Chamber of Secrets.

The first thing that caught Ron's attention was the smell. God it was awful! Like rancid meat and Charlie's stinky socks. It burned the back of his throat like the fumes from Snape's potions did.

Massive snake carvings curled around the stone pillars supporting the ceiling. The entire room was dimly lit and gave off an eerie glow. Shadows danced across the mildew covered walls. Ron reached into his pocket and took out the Deluminator. He clicked it and orbs of light flew up into the dark ceiling and illuminated the entire space.

Both he and Hermione gasped at the horrific sight. The statue of Salazar Slytherin stood imposingly at the back of the room. Blood and gore were streaked across the smooth surface of the stone floor. And lying there, at the base of the statue's right foot were the twisted, rotting remains of Salazar's once great creature, the basilisk.

It was enormous. Bones protruded from its shriveled carcass. Its mouth, still hung open in its final breath; its long curved teeth glistened menacingly in the light, as if still ready to strike.

"Merlin, Harry fought that thing alone, at the age of twelve? And Ginny…oh Ginny…" thought Ron as he and Hermione slowly approached the corpse.

"You know," said Hermione to Ron, "I find this scene strangely comforting."

Ron looked as if she had lost her mind.

"Really?"

"Yes, I finally get to see for myself that it's truly dead," she said with a sigh. "It can't hurt me or anyone else anymore."

Ron nodded his head and responded, "I get what you mean."

Together, they then used Severing charms to loosen the teeth from the monster's jaw. Then, ever so carefully, they collected the fangs into a pile. They were going to take as many as they could carry. There was no way they were going to end up in a similar situation to when they lost the Sword of Gryffindor. Whatever happened, they'd have several weapons immediately on hand, when the time came to destroy another Horcrux.

When they finally felt they had collected enough, Hermione pulled the cup out from under her jacket. Ron looked at her surprised.

"What?" she asked defensively. "We have the fangs; why not finish it off right here?"

"That's not what I-" said Ron as he took a moment to rearrange his jumbled thoughts. "Hermione, you really shouldn't keep that thing too close to you."

"I know, Ron. But I had to. If I put in in my bag, I might have lost it somewhere. Don't worry; it's not affecting or anything."

"Okay…"

"Good. Now, which one of us should do it?" she asked, looking down at the cup.

Ron audibly gulped; he really didn't want to destroy another of these evil things again.

"I-"

"Ron, if you're that hesitant, I'll finish it off this time," she said with a shrug.

As she got down on her knees, Ron suddenly had a really bad feeling about this.

It was true that the cup wasn't on her person for very long, like the Locket had been with Ron. But that didn't mean it wouldn't still try to defend itself. Ron really didn't want to tell Hermione what happened in the Forest of Dean, but he had to warn her.

"Whoa! Wait a second, time out! " exclaimed Ron as she reached for a basilisk fang.

"What? You and Harry each destroyed one," she said defensively as she steadied the cup on the floor with her left hand.

"I know, but-"

It was then that Hermione's head whipped up and glared at him. "You don't think I can do it, do you? That I'm not as strong as you or Harry."

"I- No! I'm trying-"

"Look here, Ronald Weasley. I'm destroying this thing, right here and now! The weak little girl shall save you the pleasure."

"The pleasure? You think destroying the damn Locket was some kind of great joy for me?" yelled Ron in heated disbelief.

Was she seriously going to start a fight with him over this?

"Then by all means!" snapped Ron irately, giving her a mock bow, "Allow me, to give you the pleasure!"

"Why thank you, Ronald. You're so kind," was her terse reply. She then raised the fang high above her head. The action shocked Ron out of his blind rage.

"WAIT!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs just as she was about to bring her hand down.

"What is it, now?" she demanded.

"It didn't just scream!" blurted out Ron, before he could stop himself.

"Wait, what?" asked Hermione as she brought her arm back down to her side.

"The Locket…" he sighed and looked away ashamed. "It…did more than scream…"

"I-…Okay, so what-"

"Just- be prepared, Hermione. It's probably going to defend itself somehow," he answered solemnly.

Hermione stared at him for a moment. She then took a deep breath and tightened her grip on the cup. Ron had his wand at the ready.

"Okay, I'll stab it on three. One…Two… Three!"

Her hand plunged.

A jet of water suddenly shot forth from inside the cup. It shifted into the form of a hand and caught Hermione by the wrist, halting the fangs' descent.

"Shit!" thought Ron as he raised his wand. But before he could cast anything, another jet of water sprung out of the cup, this time in the form of a human fist. It lashed out and knocked him onto his back with a quick blow.

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed as the watery hand holding her expanded and took on the full torso form of… himself… the bloody Horcrux had made a copy of him. The duplicate had no legs, just a jet of water that connected it to the cup like a tail.

Hermione gasped as the watery doppelganger coiled itself around her like a snake. His copy appeared much stronger and more intimidating than Ron was in real life. The duplicate's red hair flowed around him like the water he was made out of. She stared at it, completely entranced.

"Ron?" she whispered.

"Herm-" he tried to yell as the second jet of water once again grabbed him. This time it slammed Ron hard back against the leg of Slytherin's statue.

Great bursts of light danced in front of his eyes. The jet of water then suddenly became cold, freezing Ron's arms and torso securely to the stone structure.

"Enough out of you," said a familiar voice next to his ear. It was the same one that had mocked Ron from the Locket.

"You," he growled as the arc of water took on the form of a young man. His eyes were the same ones that had stared at Ron out of the windows of that accursed Horcrux. The same ones Voldemort used to possess, back when he was still human.

"Riddle," he said with a gasp of pain. The ice on his chest was constricting his air flow. Ron tested his extremities to find them still in functioning order. Luckily, Ron had kept a strong grip on his wand. He could feel it in his hand under the ice. Silently, he cast a Warming charm and waited for the right moment to strike.

"The very same," Tom answered with a fanged smile.

In the background, Ron could hear his duplicate speaking to Hermione, "You are really naïve, you know? As if I would ever fall in love with a Know-It-All like you. All you do is nag and annoy me! You're so strange, not at all like other girls. Why do you think I went out with Lavender? Because she's everything you're not, you stuck-up little prude!"

"No… Ron, please, you don't really mean that, do you?" she cried, falling to her knees. The fang dropped from her hands forgotten. She then covered her face and shook her head in denial.

He stared at the scene in shock. Were Hermione's fears really so similar to his own?

"Oh, her pain is so delicious. Rich and vibrant like a fine wine," purred Riddle lustfully into Ron's ear.

"B-but, h-how do you know all this? She only held the cup for a few seconds!" he asked, trying to buy time.

"Please, vulnerability practically exudes from her very pores. All her feelings are right there on the surface. A single touch was all I needed to know her inside and out."

"HERMIONE! HERMIONE! HE'S LYING! THAT'S NOT ME!" shouted Ron, desperate for his voice to reach her.

"Yell all you want," laughed Riddle merrily, as his watery hand shifted into the elongated form of a sharp claw. "She'll never hear you. I'll drain her soul dry and become whole once more. Your skeletons will both forever lie in the Chamber of Secrets."

"Oh, god. It's exactly like what happened to Ginny," thought Ron as he tested the strength of his icy bonds. "Almost there, just a bit more. Hang in there, love."

"You bet I mean it," replied Ron's copy to Hermione as it grew larger. "You'll never be accepted by anybody. You just don't fit in. The Muggle world never accepted you and the wizarding world won't either. Face it, no matter what you do, you'll always be alone. I used you for your knowledge, so did Harry. Now that school's over, both Harry and I don't need you anymore. We can finally be free of you. I'll never love you! You are nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing to me! And you never will be!"

Hermione's small frame shook with the intensity of her sadness. She lifted her head back up and stared his copy in the eye. Riddle turned away from Ron to watch.

Now was his chance.

Ron cracked his right arm free from the wall and roared, "SITIS!"

He blasted Tom right in the chest. The charm instantly turned a large chunk of its watery body into steam. The monster screamed out in agony as Ron broke through the rest of the ice.

The second his feet hit the floor, Ron launched the same spell right at his doppelganger's head. It exploded into a giant ball of evaporated water on impact.

He quickly rushed to Hermione's side. Her eyes were wide with terror as he turned her to face him.

"Hermione! Hermione, can you hear me?" he asked, giving her shoulders a quick shake.

"I-I… Ron? What?" she said coming out of her daze.

"It was lying to you! The Locket did the same thing to me. I don't think any of those things, Hermione! You're so amazing and beautiful; don't you ever think otherwise!" he exclaimed stroking her hair lovingly.

"Ron," she whispered his name with tears in her eyes. It was then, that a noise to their left drew their attention. The watery creatures were starting to reform and grow larger.

"Listen, Hermione. I'll keep it busy while you sneak up from behind and stab the cup."

"Ron, no. You do it, I'm not strong enough."

"Hermione, look at me," said Ron pointing to himself, "Trust me. You can do this. You're one of the strongest people I've ever known. These are your demons, Hermione, and you have to be the one to vanquish them. You're the only one who can."

For a moment, their eyes locked in an intense stare. Hermione's tears ceased and her face became determined.

"All right," she said, taking up one of the fangs from off the floor.

The watery jets from the cup transformed into a massive two-headed snake. The creature let out an otherworldly hiss and dove at them.

He and Hermione split apart as Ron shouted, "Oi! Ugly! I'm the one you want! Sitis!"

The charm once again hit its mark. A large cloud of steam flew off the mighty beast. It then set its crimson sights on Ron. The second he was sure he had its undivided attention, Ron turned tail and ran.

He heard the watery rush of the snake as it perused him. The small golden cup clanked every so often as its tail scraped across the stone floor.

The creature then suddenly dove at Ron. He just barely dodged the blow. The force of the attack sent him tumbling to the floor. He turned to face the monster as it approached.

The beast opened its mighty jaws and dove in for its final strike.

Ron closed his eyes.

The two-headed creature then suddenly reeled back its heads and let out a ghastly scream. The form of the snake then burst apart, drenching Ron in the ensuing cascade of water.

"Ron! Are you okay?" Hermione called out as she slipped over to his side. When she reached him, she fell to her knees and enveloped him in a tight hug.

He enthusiastically returned it.

"Yeah, just a little wet, nothing a quick Drying spell won't fix."

"You were brilliant!" Hermione exclaimed as she dried them both off, "Where on earth did you learn a charm like that? It really dealt that thing a large blow!"

"Oh, that?" asked Ron as he stood up. "Don't you remember? It's that Drought charm that we found when we were looking for something to help Harry during the Second Task. I'm surprised you don't remember it."

"Oh, of course! It's the one that dries up small ponds and puddles."

"Yeah, I knew fire or the normal Drying charm wasn't going to cut it, so I figured I had nothing to lose by giving it a go."

"Well, regardless, it was brilliant, Ron. I really should have thought of that."

"Doesn't matter, it's over now. I knew you could do it," said Ron encouragingly.

"Thanks, but you know… That was a lot more than a loud scream, Ronald," she said teasingly trying to break the tension.

"Well," he said flippantly, "I was the one who thought you should do it. After all, you hadn't yet had the pleasure."

"Oh, quiet you!" she exclaimed punching him in the arm.

"Ow! What is it with you and the punching?" he asked while mockingly rubbing his injury.

For a moment, the two just laughed, having once again cheated death.

They both then became quiet and simply stared into one another's eyes.

Hermione suddenly licked her lips and looked away ashamed. "I- so you heard all that, then."

"Yeah… but like I said Hermione, the Locket did the same thing to me. Trust me; you have nothing to be embarrassed about."

"But Ron, all the things it said-"

"-are your darkest fears," finished Ron as he took up her hands in his own. "And not a single thing he said was true…"

Ron gathered up his courage as he looked into her hopeful eyes.

"I-"

But before he could say anything further, a loud rumbling noise from overhead caught their attention. Dirt drifted down from the ceiling as the far off echoes of distant screams vibrated down through the open pipes.

"What on earth was that? We're several hundred feet underground, Ron. Far beneath even the dungeons! What could-"

The cold reality of that answer suddenly dawned on them.

Voldemort had finally arrived.

They faced each other. Knowing that once again, they would have to put off what they were feeling for the greater good.

"Come on," said Ron as he grabbed the broken cup up off the floor and put it inside his jacket. He then took hold of Hermione's hand and pulled her back to where the broom and the rest of the fangs were.

"Let's gather these up and get out of here," he said and they both quickly got to work.

Just as Ron climbed on the broom, Hermione stopped him with her hand.

"What's wrong?" he asked worriedly, noticing her frown.

"Ron I- before we go, I-I just have to know… When I… woke up, at Shell Cottage…. For a second, for a second I- thought I heard you say something. That… you called me 'love.' D-did you?"

Ron felt his whole face become bright red. Crap, he was worried that she might have heard that.

"I-I well… I was pretty distraught, s-so yeah I guess maybe… I- might have said something like that…" he stuttered out stupidly.

But his fumbled explanation seemed to be enough for Hermione. She gave him a small smile and climbed on the back of the broom. Just as he was about to take off, she rested her chin on his back and whispered, "So absolutely nothing he said was true, right?"

Ron smiled knowing what she was trying to ask.

"Not a single word," was his heartfelt reply.

As they flew off back into the sewers, Ron was sure she understood what that meant.

She was after all, the smartest witch of their age.

Author's Notes: OMG! That was such a tough one to write! The balancing between all the little facts, moments, and events I wanted to address, GAHH! I worked really hard to make this chapter work in the context of DH, but still be unique from other fans' versions of it. Hoped you all liked my use of the Drought charm, too. "Sitis" is the Latin word for "drought." I figured it would make a good fit because Jo uses Latin words for most of her spells. She never mentions what the incantation for that charm is so I figured it was a good match. I also added a lot of touches from "Chamber of Secrets" in there as well.

Anyway, Next Time!

"A Moment of Bliss"

The moment you have all been waiting for!

THE KISS! YAY!

Thanks again to all my readers, you input really encourages me to keep writing! Ten chapters down, and seven left to go!

Please remember to review!