A/N: Well, "my" story goes on, I guess… It's always like that – I have more fun writing the stuff than other people reading it. Ego… J Hope you're not tooo tired of my "The Road" stuff… My second real fiction I published on the Internet, after all. Don't mind me – read on.
Disclaimer: As always – I own the universe – J. K. Rowling owns the rest (that means this entire story) – division of labor – this is called…
The Road Part 3
Hermione was lying in the bush for an hour more. She was thinking why, why? Why did Ron betray Harry and her? Why did he save her now? Why?
Lynn and Carrie woke up again, Lynn – crying.
Hermione tried to calm her down, but Carrie soon joined her – their cried seemed awfully loud in the calm dawn.
Hermione decided on one thing. She will now go into the hide somewhere – first thing was, to find Sirius… She was so sure that Harry was dead – and she had no clue – what if somebody is still in the house, waiting for her to return? If it's Ron… But still – may be Ron was just so at that very moment, he might regret what he did – he might want to give her in, he might want to kill her, and Lynn, and Carrie…
Hermione decided to the village. She went on, wet branched of the trees whipped her legs. Carrie and Lynn calmed down, looking scared.
Hermione no longer felt grief. She no longer felt anything – fear, anger, love, happiness, sorrow… She was no longer there – there was some other Hermione Granger Potter, but she was as if not her, as if that was some other girl walking through the woods, as if it was some other girl with a fatal wound on her heart – a wound no medicine can cure.
Hermione walked through the woods, walked to the nearest village – the Raccoon Jar. It was twenty miles from London – twenty miles from Sirius's house, twenty miles from safety. Twenty miles of death, with a threat of Death Eaters catching her on every corner. Even now. Even in these wild woods. Even now she can be killed at any moment. No time to cry, no time…
No, I am not saying I regret what I did. Neither before nor after, but this whole thing just doesn't seem right. It seems to be the weirdest thing that happened to me. I can feel two Rons inside of me – one, crying hysterically, yelling "what have you done, oh, what have you done! Betrayed your best friends! Betrayed Harry and Hermione, your best friends!" and the other one, looking at me with cold eyes, saying, "you've let her go, fool! You've let her go! You knew where she was – and now you failed to kill her, idiot!" And I am somewhere in the middle, unable to listen to any of them, unable to jump on to either side. If I listen to the first Ron I might never live normal life. Nobody will be a friend of a wizard who betrayed his best friends, who sold them her to Voldemort. Oh, yes. I will be sent to Azkaban for that. The mere thought about the Dementors makes me shudder. I will never go there, never in my life.
But I can't listen to the second Ron, I just can't. Hermione, I mean, really, you know what I mean. I mean, these girls they just didn't do anything, they are just born, I mean, I don't want them to be without a father and a mother. I mean, it's just not fair.
"Oh yes, and being a shadow is fair? You're gonna go to Azkaban, and you know that. That wicked girl is going to put you in there before you say "Boo!" – second Ron says, while the first one remains silent.
"Why, Ron, why?" – I hear Hermione's voice in my brain. Yes, Ron, this is time to answer the question – why?
- To London? Are you mad? – Hooked-nosed witch said to Hermione – or are you… Hermione!
- Yes, yes, Voldemort…
The witch twitched and hissed "D'n't say the name!"
- Harry, Harry… dead… nowhere to go…
The rest of the scene is a blur. Hermione cannot remember anything afterwards, even if she tried. She remembers walking, without sleep, without eating, walking through fear, through the darkness, to London, and looking for Sirius everywhere. She remembers meeting him, at his dog-stage in some dirty shop, and him turning back into himself, and murmuring 'oh, no, not… " She remembers telling him, as if dreaming, what happened, how Ron betrayed them, how he saved her, and asking the same basic question 'why?"
She remembers Sirius's house, and two identical faces of Carrie and Lynn, sitting on the coach. She remembers herself as if she woke up from the sleep once, while staring into Lynn's bright-green eyes. They were just like Harry's. Just like his. She burst into tears there, and, sobbing quietly watched the sun set down, when Sirius came in.
- Hermione. Good and bad news – he said.
She rose her head – what good news might there be? The time is short for happiness now – and it is short for anything – for the world might no longer be the same… never…
- What is the news? – she asked
- Okay, first. Harry is not dead…
Hermione looked at him, unable to speak.
- He… he's alive? – She murmured, and then smiled –weak, sad smile – her first smile in days.
- Yes, Hermione. But here come the bad news – he's insane, just like Neville's parents…
A/N: Okay, we'll leave it on that. I never expected the story to take such twist. That was my drug-doing fingers again, I guess… I though – Harry dead, and no thoughts about that – but no! I'll tell you a secret – my fingers love Harry Potter too much… Evil me, but I am leaving you until some other time…