Ron stumbled out of the fireplace into the entrance hall of St. Mungo's and took off at a sprint towards the ward his brother was in. He skidded into the room stopping as he took in his brother lying eerily still on the bed.

"How's he doing?" Hermione flinched at the sound of Ron's voice from the doorway.

"The Healer's aren't sure but I know it's going to be okay."

Ron crossed the room and was by her side before she finished her sentence. Pulling her into his embrace he kissed the top of her head as he watched his brother. He pulled back far enough that he could see her, "Hermione, what happened? Is he going to be okay? All Harry said was that the two of you had been attacked and that Charlie was here."

Hermione shook her head, "I'll tell you when everyone else gets here. It'll be easier that way." She pulled away from him and ran her fingers lightly across Charlie's face.

"It's okay, you know."

Hermione flinched at his words; she had been so concerned about Charlie she had forgotten that they hadn't told Ron yet. It wasn't that she was worried about his reaction. It had just seemed in considerate to announce to his family that they were together without telling him first, even without their past romantic history and the fact that Charlie was one of his favorite brothers, he was one of her best friends and he deserved to know before the whole world.

"I'm not saying I wasn't surprised and maybe I accused him of doing something to you but you've been happy the past few months, happier than you have been in a long time."

"He told you?"

"Yesterday, he came by the flat, said he wanted to tell me something." Ron chuckled, "I couldn't figure out what I had done, Charlie never just pops in for a visit. The two of you have been pretty damn sneaky. I had no idea."

"Ron you never have a clue." The smile on her face was shaky but it was there and that's all that mattered to Ron at the moment. He had moved on, hell he was engaged to someone else but the woman in front of him would always have a piece of his heart. "Stop being sentimental, don't cock your eyebrows at me Ronald Weasley, I know that look on your face" He chuckled at her and pulled her back to his side.

"He's going to be okay, Hermione. There is no way that he's leaving you now."

Ginny burst into the room and ran straight to Charlie. "Charlie, wake up, this isn't funny!" She collapsed into the chair next to the bed, her head falling onto her brother's chest. "Wake up, Charlie, come on. I can't lose you too."

Harry came into the room not long after her. "I've contacted everyone, they are on their way. Bill is dropping Vic off and then they're coming here, George is closing up shop, I couldn't find Molly and Arthur but Percy is trying to track them down." He told Hermione as he wrapped his arms around his sobbing wife.

George found Hermione doubled over in the hallway when he arrived a few minutes later. "What are you doing out here? Is he…" He trailed off unable to finish his sentence.

She raised her hand to stop him from starting up again. "He's the same. I'm fine. I needed some air." George let out a sigh of relief. He had assumed the worse when he had come upon his brother's girl devastated in the hall. He just patted her on the shoulder and walked into the room. Immediately he figured out why Hermione had needed to escape. He needed to escape and he had just walked into the room. Ginny was sobbing into Harry's shoulder and Ron was staring at his brother as if he would disappear if Ron were to look away. Harry wasn't fairing much better than Ron but his attention was tuned to his pregnant wife.

"Ginny, pull yourself together, you're mum and dad will be here soon and they have enough to worry about without seeing you like this and it's not good for the baby. Ron stop awkwardly staring at your brother. Someone find out where your mum and dad are." Hermione barked out orders before returning to Charlie's side, the fire in her eyes quickly changing into worry and fear.

Harry ushered Ginny out into the hall and led her to sit in a chair in the hallway. "Love, Hermione's right, you need to calm down. The doctors already warned you that you have to keep your blood pressure down." Ron joined the pair in the hall not long after Ginny's breathing had returned to normal. Bill found them like that when he walked into the waiting room.

"Hermione, how are you?" Bill went straight to her when he walked into the room. Harry had filled him in on the situation with Charlie when he had flooed him earlier. Hearing his voice Hermione flung herself into his arms, sobbing into his chest, "I…I…he's…"

"Shh, Hermione, it's going to be okay." Bill mumbled into her hair, rubbing his hand comfortingly in circles on her back. "Don't worry; it's going to be alright." Hermione's knees gave out and Bill moved her back down to the chair next to the bed.

Molly burst into the room, Arthur hot on her heels, her hands balling into fists at her side as she saw Charlie lying in the bed. "What happened to my son?" her face quickly becoming as red as her children's hair. "Where is the Healer in charge?" She pushed the chair Hermione had just dozed off in away from the bed in her haste to get to her son. Startled Hermione jumped up from the chair, straight into Molly. "Oh dear, have you seen the Healer? Harry said they'd tell us what happened when we got here. Do you know if they gave him something to help him sleep?"

While Molly's focus was focused in on her son, Arthur was staring at Hermione. He couldn't seem to understand why Hermione was the one curled up in a chair next to the bed when his children were outside in the hallway. Hermione slipped her arm around Molly, "Why don't you two come outside with me and let him rest and I can make sure everyone knows what's happening."

"Hermione, come on, you have to leave here. You haven't left his side in two weeks." Harry moved so that he was kneeling in front of her chair. "If Charlie saw you sitting here like this day after day he would kill you Hermione. You have to go back to work; even if you don't go back to work you have to do something other than sit in this damn chair!"

Hermione didn't respond, her eyes staring straight through the man in front of her, eyes unfocused and unblinking. He looked up when a firm hand descended onto his shoulder. "Go on, dear, let me."

Molly Weasley conjured a chair up next to the one Hermione was sitting in and reached over and took her hand in her own. "Hermione I know you feel responsible for what happened to Charlie, but it wasn't your fault. Charlie's a grown man and it was his choice to go back down that hallway alone and frankly I'd be disappointed if he had left you alone in a house when he thought something was wrong." She stood and moved Hermione's chair around to face her, "Hermione Granger, get out of this chair right now or I will force you from it myself." Molly was seething, this was not healthy for Hermione and she was not about to lose yet another child. "You have been ignoring reality long enough. I am the last person that wants to admit this but Charlie may never wake back up. The Healers told you that if he didn't wake up within a week that the chances went down exponentially, it's been over two weeks and he hasn't improved at all. You can not spend the rest of your life sitting in this chair." Molly grabbed Hermione and pulled her up from the chair. "Now get out. I don't want to see you again until you have showered, eaten, and spent time at work."