George was shocked by Fred's voice. He smiled put a finger to his lips to indicate quiet and left the room to alert the healers of his brothers awakening.

In the days that followed Fred and Hermione were briefed on their conditions and given multiple potions to take daily. Hermione was warned about the pain that would be an ever-present part of her life due to the torture she had withstood. Fred was sent home to be on bed rest. He could stand and transfer to a wheelchair for meals and to get to the bathroom but other than that he was to await the healers go ahead to beginning to walk again.

Harry and Ron were spending their time helping Kingsley and the aurors round up the last of the death eaters and Bill, Fleur, Charlie, and Percy were helping McGonagall and the professors with Hogwarts repairs. Mr Weasley of course was helping with both tasks along with helping Kingsley rebuild the ministry. This left Ginny, George, Angelina, and Mrs Weasley to help collect Fred and Hermione and set them up at home.

Fred was set up in his and Georges old room and Hermione across the hall sharing with Ginny as per usual.

Hermione avoided large gatherings of the Weasleys and struggled to even stay in the same room as them from dinners. Her first attempt at lunch had led to a panic attack so rough it had taken her three days to recover from the exhaustion. After her first family dinner she had taken to eating leftovers from a tray in her room kindly delivered by Ginny or George and Angelina mainly. Harry and Ron occasionally popped into see her together as they were rarely at home. Hermione was extremely thankful that Harry had yet to leave her alone with Ron she wasn't sure that she was quite ready for that. Wasn't ready for the conversation to come, about their relationship, about their kiss. But the more time she had to the think the more she cringed about their kiss, it was adrenaline fuelled and desperate. She wasn't sure she was going to live. She wasn't sure he was going to live and the more and more she thought about him the angrier she got.

When he pooped in for a visit with Harry and sat and held her hand, like he had a right too she seethed. After his first visit and he had done this she had shared a look with Harry who had happily smiled back, back to his usual oblivious self. The next time he visited she had pulled her hand from his grasp immediately, he didn't seem happy with this but when he got up to leave the room and turned to kiss her full on the lips she turned her face so that he caught her cheek Ron looked sand and harry hadn't noticed, Ginny just coming through the door caught it and made eye contact with Hermione over Ron's shoulder. Evidently, she would be talking about this sooner rather than later but not with Ron but with Ginny.

Later that evening Ginny made a point of staying in the room with Hermione and settling into her own bed which she had been sneaking out of to go and stay with Harry. Hermione had been glad of this occurrence because it meant that she had been able to cast silencing charms to not wake up the whole Weasley household with her nightmares, which were never too far away. Ginny turned to Hermione and waggled her eyebrows in a way that only Ginny could.

"so Mione, are you going to tell me why you don't want Ron to kiss you after you both kissed each other during the battle"

With this sentence Ginny felt the change in the atmosphere of the room and saw the change on her friend's face. Hermione began breathing shallowly and shaking, Ginny rushed to her best friends' side only to see her shrink away from her in fear

"Shit, Mione I didn't mean anything by it I just wanted to lighten the mood, shit, shit, shit" Ginny looked around the room trying to think of anything that she could possibly do to help "shit, shit, shit" Ginny repeated and ran out of the room to the top of the stairs "guys I need help now" she shouted sounding just like her mother, the next thing she knew George, Angelina and Fred in his wheelchair were on the landing wands drawn, Molly, Arthur and Charlie and Bill were running up the stairs and Harry and Ron were tripping downstairs from their rooms. "It's Mione" Ginny cried "I can't get her to breathe we were talking and now she's not breathing and, and" Ginny broke down in sobs on Harry's chest.

Ron rushed into the room and attempted to gather Hermione up in his arms to which she fought back and began screaming " no, no, no please don't hurt me ahhhh, please don't hurt me" Charlie and Bill scooped Ron up under his armpits and moved him to the landing with the rest of the family "Ron she needs space she had a few moments like this when I healed her at shell cottage the only people who stopped them were Fleur and Fred"

Fleur squeezed her husband's shoulder and quietly made her way into the girl's room. Ron looked at his family and then between Bill and Fred. "How did Fred get her to calm down I can't even remember you visiting shell cottage Fred" Ron asked

"a mission for the order went wrong, was too injured to get home. I knew I could make it to Bill's and that him and Fleur would fix me up you and Harry were walking on the beach with Griphook. Fleur was with Hermione and Bill had just popped out for supplies when it started, the screaming and Fleur rushed downstairs saying she couldn't calm her I went up to help she let me closer than she did fleur and I helped her to relax he shoulders which helped her breathe and then stroked her hair until she slept, ."

Just at that moment Fleur made her way onto the landing "she as let me close but I av not been able to calm er I can't get er breathing to slow down"

Bill grabbed Fred's shoulder, "looks like your up, baby brother go and work some Freddie magic"

Fred blushed "George can you help me get next to the bed so I can sit with her" George just saluted his twin and pushed his wheelchair into the room closing the door behind him he imagined Hermione wouldn't want an audience for her panic attack. As George pushed his wheelchair Fred waved his wand and made Hermione's bed bigger so that there was room for him to comfortably stand and transfer to the bed and to not fall off. Hermione just glanced at the twins entry breathing still erratic and shallow. George wheeled Fred's chair into place and watched as Hermione moved slightly so that his brother could sit and swing his gangly legs onto her bed back against the headboard. When Fred was situated he nodded to George who began to leave as he was turning and closing the door George watched Fred hook his hands under Hermione's elbows and haul her up the bed to his chest her, took one of her hand placing it on his chest and began to take exaggerated beaths.

When George had started to leave the room Fred moved Hermione's head to his shoulder and hand to his chest slowing down his own breathing but exaggerating his own chest movements so she could match his slowly he noticed her breathing slow back to normal he then tipped her chin so she could look him in the eye "Granger, how we doing now"

"Getting there Fred, I'm sorry you had to come and help"

"hey no worries I've been feeling rather useless of late" he said and gestured to his legs and wheelchair "I'm happy to help, bet your knackered now though, go to sleep, I've got you"

Hermione yawned and protested "your back Fred you can't be comfy"

"ah, ah, ah" he said shaking his finger in a sassy no motion "I've just had my pain potion so I'm fine, come on get comfy, I will go when you have settled"

"Thanks Fred, I don't want to be alone" he nodded and began stroking her hair until her breathing deepened and he felt her relax into him, Fred thought he kind of liked this feeling but looked down at her and remembered Ron and how he felt towards her. When he was sure she was deeply asleep he untangled his arm from her shoulders and transferred back to his chair" out on the landing only Bill, George, Fleur and Ginny remained "she's flat out guys, go and get yourselves something to eat, I'm going to bed now my pain potions kicking in. Gred, come and help please".

"of course, forge" George replies holding the bedroom door open for his twin.