The silence in the tent is tense and awkward. Hermione stares blankly at her books, and Ron stands by the flaps, gathering his courage. Narcissa glances between them, closes her book, stands from her cot and, pausing just long enough to give Hermione's shoulder a reassuring squeeze, she ducks out of the tent.
A long minute stretches between them.
"What do you want, Ron?"
"To apologize. I'm sorry, Hermione, I shouldn't have said - "
"That you're the only one who cares about Harry?" Hermione snaps, her eyes flashing.
The tips of Ron's ears turn red. He rubs the back of his neck. "Yeah... I shouldn't have said that. I know you care about Harry. I'm sorry. I just...between Fred and Harry...and then I needed you and you were off - " He stops. His voice had begun rising, and he takes a deep breath and lets it out, clenching and unclenching his fist. "You stopped talking to me. You were avoiding me, but you'll talk to Narcissa instead of me, and..."
Hermione frowns, feeling guilty. "I couldn't talk about it. We weren't safe. I couldn't...I couldn't let myself break down. And I...couldn't face you...not knowing..."
"Not knowing what?" Ron asks. "Is this - is this because of our kiss? Do you regret it? Did you just do it because you thought you had to? Did - "
Hermione takes a deep breath, not wanting to go down that particular track. "It's my fault Harry's dead." The words come out in a rush, and she blinks against the tears stinging her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault, I should have killed the snake, if I had Harry wouldn't be - "
Ron stares at her blankly. "What...?" He blinks and straightens up. "What, no, Hermione - no! It's not your fault! I could have - it's not your fault, Hermione. It just...it just happened. I could have killed the snake too, but I didn't, I barely did anything - "
Hermione shakes her head. "That isn't true. You - I'm the one who's supposed to take care of everything - "
"You can't put that on yourself, Hermione, you'll explode," Ron says. "From all the pressure, you know? It wasn't just you. I could have killed the snake. Harry - Harry could have killed the snake too. Is it his fault what happened?"
"No! Of course not!"
"See." Ron spreads his arms out in front of him, palms up. "You can't do that yourself. The only one to blame is You-Know-Who."
Hermione rubs the back of her hand across her cheeks, wiping away the tears. "I'm sorry, Ron. I should have been there for you."
"I'm sorry too. I got so wrapped up in myself I wasn't there for you either," Ron says, sitting beside her at the table.
"And it didn't...I didn't kiss you because I thought I had to or because I thought we wouldn't make it or anything like that, but..." She trails off, staring back down at her book. "I don't think..."
Ron smiles sadly. "Things are different now. Aren't they?"
Hermione nods miserably, tears blurring her vision again. Ron wraps an arm around her shoulders and gives her a tight side hug.
"It's okay. I think...I think I already knew. I'm not sure I'm in a place for that right now anyway after...after everything," Ron finishes.
Hermione leans into Ron and rests her head on his shoulder, remembering when she did this with Harry after Ron left. She still feels lingering hurt. It will take time, she thinks, but it's a start. A weight feels as though it has been lifted from her chest. It's a little easier to breathe.
She feels something in her hair. Shifting slightly, she sees tears sliding down Ron's cheeks. Hermione swallows.
"I'm so sorry about Fred," she whispers brokenly. Tears sting her eyes, and she does not fight them. Ron hugs her tighter, and they sit together in silence.
A few minutes later, Narcissa poked her head into the tent warily. "Oh good."
Ron clears his throat and hastily wipes away his tears. "Worried we might have killed each other?" He tries for a smile.
Narcissa raises an eyebrow. "That assumes I believe you could take Miss Granger in a fight, and I do not for one second believe that."
"Ron is a good wizard. He's a lot better in a fight than I am," Hermione says. "He's much better strategist."
"I see," Narcissa says, though she sounds unconvinced.
Ron glares at her.
Rolling her eyes, Hermione pulls away. "Please don't fight. We need to work together if we're going to defeat You-Know-Who."
"Right." Ron grabs the papers and books Hermione was looking over and pulls them closer to him, eyes scanning the parchment and pages, a thoughtful frown on his face.
Hermione glances at Narcissa. She, too, is frowning.
"You really believe you can beat him," Narcissa says.
"Yes," Hermione says. "I do."
Narcissa studies her for a moment. Then she turns and leaves the tent, and Hermione feels disappointment settle in the pit of her stomach.