If I had no more time
No more time left to be here
Would you cherish what we had?
Was it everything that you were looking for?
If I couldn't feel your touch
And no longer were you with me
I'd be wishing you were here
To be everything that I'd be looking for
I don't wanna forget the present is a gift
And I don't wanna take for granted the time you may have here with me
'Cause Lord only knows another day is not really guaranteed
-Alicia Keys Like You'll Never See Me Again
Chapter Thirty-Five: Mending The Broken Part 2
Ron didn't get a wink of sleep for the rest of the night making him extremely irritable that morning. He wished he could skip out of class and go see Hermione, but that was a no go.
McGonagall had the other teachers that participated swear to secrecy that word not get out to the rest of the school about what happened. They didn't want students to panic again and not want to attend Hogwarts anymore. The ministry had came and retrieved Rodolphus body, repaired the damage that they claimed was caused by spell practice gone wrong, and modified the students that went there with the teachers memories so that they wouldn't slip up and tell. They trusted the others not to say a word.
He went through the school day with no word on Hermione's condition. He was angry and hurt, the thought of not being able to help her made him feel weak and useless.
How could he had just knelt there and yelled? He should have taken that curse. He should have been the one that was hit. He had vowed to protect Hermione from anything and everything ever since Malfoy Manor, and he had allowed her to end up cursed. What kind of a man was he?
Night soon approached at Ron had had enough. He begged Harry to let him use his invisibility cloak and around midnight when he knew Madam Pomfrey would be sleep, he snuck into the infirmary.
He took off the cloak to property look around. Soon, he saw Daphne sleeping and two beds down from her was Hermione.
He rushed over as quietly as he could and sat down in the chair next to her bed. He looked at Hermione and wanted to cry. She looked troubled, as if someone was bothering her.
"Mione, I'm here." whispered Ron as he took her hand. Warm. That was a good sign.
"Hermione, I'm so so sorry this happened to you and I wish I knew what to do to wake you up." said Ron. "I feel like a bloody prat, just like at the manor. You was taken back to that evil place and tortured once again and I had promised you I would be there for you and just like last time I was useless to you. I just yelled your name once again like a bloody idiot. I don't know how the hell you put up with me. I feel as if I'm nothing to you. Can I properly take care of you if something happened? What good am I?"
Hermione made a small moaning sound. Ron watched as Hermione struggled to wake herself up. She groaned in her sleep, turning her head back and forth. Finally, she slowly opened her eyes and looked over at Ron, a smile crept on her lips.
Ron tried his best to contain his happiness. He wanted to shout til the windows shattered, but he didn't want to get caught.
"Merlin, I missed that smile." he whispered instead.
Hermione smiled harder and tries to move, but pain shot through her side, causing her to cry out loudly. Ron quickly got up and moved behind Hermione's bed, draping the invisibility cloak over him. Daphne woke up as well, sitting up to see about Hermione.
A few seconds later, Madam Pomfrey came from her room swiftly, carrying a vial of potion and a glass or water. She rushed over to Hermione and helped her drink the potion in the vial, and then the water. A moment later, Hermione stopped screaming.
"Dear, you mustn't move much, you still have a lot of nerve pain." said Madam Pomfrey, calmly. Hermione nodded, and the woman helped her to lay back down.
"Do you think you need something else? Let me know, just let out a call." she said sweetly to Hermione, who nodded. She then rushed over to check on Daphne, who was fine, and then went back to her room.
Ron waited a few seconds before he revealed himself once again and sat down in the chair. Daphne and Hermione both giggled.
"I take it, you're not allowed here." whispered Hermione as Ron took her hand and gave her a kiss on her palm.
"No. Harry let me borrow his cloak. I had to see you." said Ron.
"While I don't like you much breaking the rules, I am glad to see you. Glad to see anyone really." sighed Hermione.
"I thought I was going to lose you."
"I'm right here, Ron. See?" said Hermione, wiggling her fingers in Ron's face to make him laugh.
"How do you feel?" asked Ron, not really in the mood for jokes.
"Dreadful" she whispered. "That stuff Madam Pomfrey gave me helped a lot, but I still feel out of sorts."
"I lied to you." said Ron, a tear rolling down his cheek.
Hermione was confused. "What do you mean you lied to me?"
"Remember the first night when you had that dream? And I told you that I promised I would be there for you the next time she came back? I wasn't there, Hermione. I just knelt beside you and screamed your name once again like a useless prat."
Hermione was saddened by Ron's words. "Darling, it's not your fault." she said, reaching up to touch his cheek. "None of us knew this was going to happen. And Bellatrix, the real one, she is truly dead. Do not sit there and blame yourself, please Ron. You were still with me. I could still hear you screaming my name."
"You...you could?"
"Yes. You still saved me. You always save me. Please don't do this to yourself." pleaded Hermione, tears filling her eyes.
"I'll try not to." said Ron. "It was just so hard to see you suffering like that. And I was right beside you and couldn't do a damn thing. Harry felt the same way with Daphne."
They both looked over at Daphne, who had fallen back asleep.
"She's so great for Harry." whispered Hermione. "He seems happier nowadays, doesn't he? Now that she is with him. He seems to not be so broody and take on all the burdens of the world."
"I agree. She came at the best time for him." said Ron. "Who would have though? Harry falling for a Slytherin."
"Speaking of falling for Slytherins, is Ginny okay?" asked Hermione with a giggle.
Ron groaned. "She was shut up in that ferret's room the other night I bet. And today, she wouldn't leave his damn side. It's like she is stuck on his ass."
Hermione laughed louder and then covered her mouth quickly. They stopped talking and listened out for Madam Pomfrey.
When the coast was clear, Hermione started again. "I think you should leave them alone, Ron." said Hermione. "I think what they have is real and special, and that Malfoy is going to take good care of her, you know? You saw how fiercely he protected her while fighting Lestrange "
Ron nodded, not being able to deny that Draco did indeed defend his sister with no hesitation.
"It's just gonna be hard, you know? Seeing someone I consider my enemy with my little sister? I truly don't want it. I really don't want it. But Ginny is bloody stubborn, there isn't anything I can do that won't land me into Azkaban bit accept it right?"
"Ronald..." said Hermione as a playful warning.
Ron kissed Hermione gently on the cheek. "I missed you calling me Ronald." he said, giving her two more light kisses on the lips.
"You should go." whispered Hermione. "I don't want you to get in trouble."
Ron nodded. "Fine. But as soon as I can, I'll be back, okay?"
"Okay." said Hermione, giving Ron a gentle touch on his cheek.
"I love you." said Ron. "I don't want anything like that to ever happen to you again."
Hermione smiled, pulled Ron down to her by his shirt, and kissed him softly on the lips. "I love you too."
Ron got up, draped the cloak over himself, and headed towards the door. He turned around to look at Hermione once again, and then opened the door as quietly as he could, then left.
Madam Pomfrey came out of her room a few seconds later, carrying a tar with a basin and a couple potion vials. She sat them down on the nightstand beside Hermione's bed.
"That boyfriend of yours is a true Gryffindor. Very sweet boy" she said, winking at Hermione, who laughed. Seemed like nothing got past that woman. Not even kings in invisibility cloaks.