Darkness Supreme

By *Lilith*

A/N: Okay, all I have to say is: Did you people *honestly* think I was going to kill Hermione off like that? How could this be a Ron/Hermione fic if she's dead? My mind is not so perverted as to have something like that in one of my fics... ew! But come on, Hermione's alive... duh! Plus, Lanz would never forgive me if I killed Hermione off, considering she *is* Hermione. Truly, she is. It's scary. So anyway, onwards to the fic-in-which-Hermione-is-alive, thank you very much.

~~~

Chapter two: Awakenings

Ron's mouth closed, dropped open, closed again, then finally he managed a small "How?" before sitting down very hard on the stone floor.

"She stumbled in about five minutes ago, demanding to see the Minister of Magic and complaining about Broomstick transportation," Harry said, looking worried now. "Then she passed out at Katie Bell's feet. The girl had the sense to carry her up here and alert me right away." Harry put a hand on Hermione's forehead. Madam Pomfrey was sitting on a chair next to the bed, a small tear hanging off the edge of her nose as she healed Hermione's wounds.

Hermione looked like a bloodied rag doll. There was a long scratch that ran from her cheekbone down past her ear to her jawline, as well as many other smaller scratches on her face. There was a large gash on her shoulder, which ran down across her chest and stained her robes red. Her legs were scratched and bleeding, and her fingers were swollen and purple. Her eyes were purple and puffy, she had a cut on her lip, and her hair was filled with mud, sticks, and dark clumps of dried blood. Her face was covered in bruises, and her eyelashes were stuck together in one large glob with dried blood sticking to them. Madam Pomfrey shooed Harry and Ron out as she tended to the wounds in places that boys shouldn't see.

Ron's blue eyes were wide, and he was still pale. Even the few freckles he had left had gone pale.

"She's alive," he whispered, mostly to himself. He was completely in shock. Madam Pomfrey opened the curtains gravely, looking worried.

"She's lost too much blood," she said sadly. "Her wounds are infected, and her left arm's been smashed in several places." She choked back a sob. "It's unlikely that she'll last the night. I've healed the arm as best I can, but I can't put her body under too much strain this early." She looked miserable, and Ron suddenly saw her as a tired old woman, wanting desperately to rest, and being held back by her duty and her love for those who still had their lives to live.

"Can't you do anything?" Ron asked, and he must have sounded extremely pitiful, because Madam Pomfrey bit her lip and looked him up and down.

"You're still too weak, boy," she said. "She needs a lot of blood. I don't have any to spare, I've got five other patients needing it, and I'm sorry to say..." Her voice lowered, "They were here first. It's policy, Mr. Weasley, and I can't... I'm sorry," she said helplessly. "The blood's already in their drips. I can't take them off it now," she said, pushing her hair back from her face.

"But... couldn't you take my blood?" Ron pressed. "I read something about that, Muggle doctors can do it, and if *they* can, I'm sure you-"

"I can do it, yes," said Madam Pomfrey, "But you're too weak. The amount of blood she needs would kill you if I took it from you."

"But what about me?" asked Harry desperately. "I'm sure if you used both of us...?" Madam Pomfrey sighed. She bit her lip, then nodded.

"You'll both be left very weak," she said, going back inside the curtains. "And I can't use more than two people, in case you're thinking of going to get the entire Resistance in here to help her. If I use more than two people's blood, their conflicting magic types will do more harm than good." As she said this, Madam Pomfrey was setting up an elaborate wire structure. It was already mostly finished, she was simply stringing beads onto one of the wires. After there were five beads on two wires, she tapped each bead with her wand. She then walked over to Harry and Ron, and made them both sit down.

"Drink." She had Summoned two more of her foul-tasting potions, but both boys drank without hesitation. They both suddenly felt filled with energy, and both found it a trial to sit still. Madam Pomfrey inserted a small silver wire into the crook of Ron's elbow, then did the same to Harry. She joined each wire to a bead with a long thin glistening strand of blood-red light.

"This will take a while. I'll go find some more comfortable chairs," she said, and waves her wand. The hard wooden chairs Ron and Harry were sitting on were replaced with large squashy armchairs that reclined if you pushed a button. Harry settled back into his, green eyes bloodshot and anxious. Ron leaned on the edge of his chair, biting his knuckle.

She can't... she has to live, she just has to! I couldn't just get her back... only to lose her again! It can't work like that... she has to get better... Ron stifled a sob and turned it quickly into a cough. However, he didn't fool Harry. He felt a hand on his elbow, and he turned to meet the startling green eyes which locked with his own icy blue ones.

"She'll be okay," said Harry, with calm force behind his voice. "I mean, she's Hermione. Tough as a Bludger Hermione. She'll be fine." The confidence behind Harry's words made Ron feel a tiny bit better.

"Yeah?" he said hopefully, leaning back into his armchair. He continued to bite his knuckle, and Harry knew that as a sign of extreme anxiety. He remembered Ron had started doing it in their Fifth Year at Hogwarts, the year after Lord Voldemort had risen for the second time. He hadn't really done anything to Hogwarts, but after Harry had graduated...

Harry shuddered, not wanting to think about it. For a moment, just s fleeting moment, he thought how unfair this war was... a group of wizards, their leader only twenty years old, against the most evil wizard the world had ever known. He quickly shoved the thought into the back of his head.

And people like Hermione and Hagrid get taken because I'm such a rotten leader, he thought sourly, remembering the last time he'd seen the half-giant. Hagrid had been beaming at him through the glass window of the train, and had waved vigorously. Olympe Maxime had been sitting across from Hagrid, and she had smiled at him reassuringly. As the train pulled out of the station, Hagrid had bellowed "See yeh soon, Harry!" from inside the train. Harry had waved until the train was gone from sight, and had left to go back to the hideout.

That had been three years ago.

Harry was pulled back into the present by a small sigh. He looked over at Ron, who was looking pale again. Harry noticed that he was feeling rather weak, and quickly looked at the wire structure. Four beads were filled with his blood, and four with Ron's.

"One more bead to go," he whispered to his friend. Ron nodded, looking completely drained. The redhead reached out and grabbed Hermione's hand, leaned forward, and pressed it to his forehead.

"Wake up, 'Mione," he whispered, feeling her cold fingers against his skin. "Come on... if you don't wake up, who's going to nag me about what I eat? Who'll I beat at chess?" Ron's voice was low, hardly a murmur, but he tried to will Hermione to hear the words.

"Oh dear!" Madam Pomfrey was back, looking at the beads. She snapped her wand against her hand, and the wire withdrew from Harry and Ron's veins. The moment it did, Ron collapsed against Hermione's bed, her hand still clutched in his. Harry shot up to help his friend, but became overcome with dizziness and fell onto his knees. Madam Pomfrey clucked disapprovingly, and aimed her wand at Harry. He slowly floated onto a bed, and she quickly force-fed him a sickeningly sweet potion. Harry immediately stopped feeling dizzy, but Madam Pomfrey forced him to lie down. She then bustled over to Ron, whom her assistant Nurse was making eyes at and trying to pick him up. Madam Pomfrey shoved her to the side, pointed her wand and Ron and said "Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron floated up about two feet off the ground, still clutching Hermione's hand. Madam Pomfrey tried to move him to another bed, but even unconscious, Ron refused to loosen his grip on Hermione. Madam Pomfrey gave up and dropped Ron on Hermione's bed, and closed the curtains around the bed. Harry noticed all this, and made sure to thank Madam Pomfrey before he drifted off to a dreamless, well-earned sleep.

***

Pain. Pain. Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow... I didn't think I could hurt this much and still be alive. Oh, that smarts... that's the absolute last time I *ever* Apparate on less than half-energy. Hermione thought, trying to wince and failing. She tried open her eyes, and discovered she couldn't. What's going on?! Where am I? Who's... who's holding my hand? Hermione tried to move her arms, her legs, anything, but found she was paralyzed. The only thing she could do was breathe. Bloody hell! What is going on here?

"Ron?" She heard a voice, and recognized it as Madam Pomfrey's. Madam Pomfrey! I must be in the Hospital Wing!

"Mmph?" She heard a sleepy affirmative come from somewhere near her left ear, and her breath caught in her throat. That was Ron's voice. Oh God. He's sleeping next to me. Oh God, and I can't open my eyes and see him! I haven't seen him for a year... and I can't even say anything... If she had been able, Hermione would have cried right then. She was so close to him! So close! For the whole year, he was all she had thought about. During fighting, during the agonising long hours spent planning how to best contact Severus... he was always lurking in her thoughts. Whenever things had become too dismal, all she had to do was conjure up in her mind a certain red-headed face, and everything seemed alright again.

"Oh, good, you're awake," Madam Pomfrey's voice said briskly. "You dropped off before I could give you the nutrient potion, it'll help restore the minerals and vitamins you lost with that blood." Oh no, Hermione thought, Is he sick? And if he is, why is he in bed with me?

"Is she awake yet?" Ron's voice was suddenly alert, and Hermione was touched. She felt the hand around her own squeeze.

"No, I'm afraid she isn't." Madam Pomfrey sounded slightly puzzled. "The amount of blood you and Mr. Potter gave her should be enough that she'd at least be conscious... but I'm afraid there's more to this than I thought." He and Harry gave blood to save me? What did I ever do to deserve such loyal friends...?

"What do you mean?" Ron demanded. "Is she alright, though? Is she going to live?"

"As far as I can tell, she will," replied Madam Pomfrey. "Her arm's healed up nicely, though it'll always be a little weak. Bones that are broken like hers were are always hard to repair, and they're never the same as before they were broken." Broken? When did I break my arm? Hermione wondered. She had a sudden vision of a flash of green light and a scream that sounded like Neville Longbottom, but it was gone in a second.

"And her cuts?" asked Ron.

"They're doing well. The swelling and bruising has gone down, and she's due for another speed-healing in a half-hour. I'm injecting food straight into her bloodstream, since she obviously can't eat." Hermione felt Ron move off the bed, though the fingers that were laced in hers didn't move.

"Good," said Ron. Suddenly, there was a slamming noise, and a loud voice pierced the relative quiet of the Hospital Wing.

"Ron!!!!" Hermione recognized Ginny Weasley's voice. "Ron, I'm so happy you're alive!" Hermione heard footsteps pounding on the floor, the sound of a small body hitting a very tall one, and a slight "Oof!" that sounded like Ron. There was the sound of the girl sobbing, then a sniffling, and the shuffling of feet.

"Oh, Ron, you have no idea how happy I am to see you alive," sniffled Ginny after a while. "Well hello, who's hand are you hold—" Ginny's sentence suddenly stopped, and she sucked in a breath. "R-R-Ron? Is that who I think it is?"

"If you think it's Hermione, you're right." Ron's voice sounded a little choked up. The sound of someone sitting down hard on the stone floor reached Hermione's ears.

"They told me she was dead," Ginny said feebly. "They said you were, too."

"Well, they obviously don't know very much," said Ron.

"I just... I can't... why isn't she awake?"

"I don't know. Something's wrong, she's not waking up."

"What do you mean?" Ginny's voice was slightly panicked.

"She's not waking up. Madam Pomfrey says that there's something wrong."

"Oh... bloody hell." Ginny had never cursed in that tone before, Hermione reflected. She must have changed a lot in one year. Hermione felt slightly callused fingers smooth back her hair. They weren't Ron's, so she figured they must be Ginny's. She breathed out sharply through her nose.

"Did you hear that?" Ginny suddenly asked.

"Hear what?"

"She breathed funny." Hermione felt Ginny's hair tickle her nose, and she exhaled sharply again, trying to blow it away. "She just... exhaled really fast." Something seemed to occur to Ginny. "Hermione?" she asked tentatively. Hermione breathed out twice, very fast. She felt Ginny straighten up suddenly. "Get Madam Pomfrey," she said in a strangled voice. "Ron, Ron, she's awake in there!" Hermione suddenly felt Ron's face close to hers.

"Hermione? Are you awake?" She breathed out hard. Ron gave a strangled cry. "Oh God," he said. "Are you okay? Does it hurt? Can you move?"

"Breathe out once for yes, twice for no," came Madam Pomfrey's voice. I'm fine, she tried to cry out. I'm fine, I'm alright, I've made it back. But nothing came out. She breathed out twice.

"Bloody hell," muttered Madam Pomfrey. "I think I know what this is. Hang on." There was a popping noise, and the rustle of pages. Hermione supposed she must have Summoned a book.

"Yes, it's right here. This is a side effect of a long-standing, very powerful Imperius Curse. If what I'm reading is right, she'll have no idea what happened while she was under the curse... oh, wait... she should start remembering some things," Ron read. There was the rustle of robes, and the door shut. Ron clutched Hermione's hand tightly. "There's a potion here, Hermione. We'll be able to fix you. It takes about an hour to prepare, and there's a spell involved... but you'll be okay, won't you?" She breathed out once. "Good... and I'll stay with you, of course," he said slightly awkwardly. "In the meantime, do you think you can sleep?" Breathe out once. "Okay, just try and sleep. I'm kind of tired too, so I'll sleep right here."

"I'll get you some books," came Ginny's voice. "We can read to you, so you don't get too bored." The door opened, then closed, and Hermione felt new hands smoothing back her hair.

"It's me, Hermione," said Harry, sounding close to tears. "Look, I'm really sorry but I can't stay too long... I have some things I have to organize, but I'll do that quick as I can. I just wanted to say I'm sorry for sending you to find Severus... and I'm sorry all this had to happen..." He made a funny noise, and Hermione breathed out hard, trying to tell him it was alright, that she forgave him... but she couldn't. I could just scream, she thought acidly to herself. "I've got to go," said Harry, squeezing her arm. "I'll be back. Ron will talk to you, and keep you company. Ginny should be back soon, and I'll be back in about three hours." His hand left her arm, and she heard footsteps walk away from her bed, and the door open, then close. She was alone with Ron. She heard him take a deep breath.

"Hermione, I'm going to get this out, while you can't talk. That night... the last night we had together... meant a lot to me. I realize time's gone by, and... and if you feel differently, I just want you to know that I don't. So, if you still..." his voice cracked slightly, "Still... love me... I still love you." He cleared his throat. "So, um. I... I rescued Mr. Ollivander from the Pens, actually... made it back about three weeks ago. You know, Hermione... Lavender Apparated back here, said you were dead and that Seamus and Neville were missing. Dunno what that was all about." He stopped. "Well, just to let you know, you've been thought dead to all of us here," he said, and she inhaled sharply. I heard Ginny say something about that... but wait... they believed Lavender? She wasn't even there! Hermione tried to tell Ron this, but failed. She sighed.

"Hermione, go to sleep," Ron said. "Madam Pomfrey will be here in a while to speed heal you, so you'll get better." A slightly damp towel rested on her forehead, and she felt the towel move over her face, wiping away the grime that she felt on her skin. "Before you go to sleep," Ron whispered, his breath close to her ear, "I'm going to give you something." A moment later, she felt a gentle pressure on her lips, and a slightly sweet and tangy taste, like oranges. It was over in a moment, but that small kiss from Ron was enough to give her strength. She felt him lie his head down next to their entwined hands, and she allowed her mind to wander, to relax... to sleep...

"Hermione! Hermione!" The frozen girl felt someone shaking her, and she jerked into consciousness. She breathed out hard through her nostrils, and the shaking stopped. "You're awake?" She breathed an affirmative to Ron's voice. "Um, Madam Pomfrey speed healed you, and the Potion's ready. Are you ready to take it?" She breathed out hard. How could I not be? This is beyond aggravating, and I'm starting to feel claustrophobic...

Hermione felt callused fingers part her lips, which were stiff and refused to move easily. When they were a good distance apart, she felt cool glass touch her lips.

"I'm going to pour this down your throat," Madam Pomfrey instructed. "Try as hard as you can to swallow. If you can't breathe, well... deal with it for a little bit, but if you feel yourself in danger, snort." Hermione snorted, testing her ability to do so, then felt the glass tip back and cool liquid slide into her parched throat. She tried to swallow, but it felt as though ice was growing inside of her, freezing her through and through... suddenly, she felt her throat begin to work, and she gulped the icy liquid down forcefully. Madam Pomfrey saw this, and poured some more into Hermione's mouth. The girl quickly swallowed that, and then downed the whole goblet. Starting at her toes, a warmth was growing... she could wriggle her toes! The warmth was slowly spreading up her feet, her ankles, now her shins and knees... Up to her waist, her chest, through her fingers, and her shoulders, throat... and finally her face.

Hermione sat straight up, her fingers closing reflexively around Ron's hand. Her eyes went wide, and she was about to let out a shout of joy, when something went wrong. Her body began to shake erratically, and she let out a low scream of pain. White hot knives were being pushed into her head, through her temples...

A cool finger in the center of her forehead relieved her of the pain. Her eyes opened, and at first the room was blurred. She blinked a few times, and everything began to swim into focus.

Ginny was sitting in an armchair by the foot of her bed. She looked older than she had a year ago, and there were worries traced on her face that had not been there before. She no longer looked quite so carefree, and her face held lines of sorrow and suffering. A scar ran from the center of her forehead, close to her hairline, down across her temple to the tip of her ear. It had faded, and was simply a thin white line, but it was visible. Ginny's fingers were currently digging into the arms of her chair, and she looked torn between worry and grief.

At the very foot of her bed stood Harry, who looked like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. His black hair was spiky and tousled, and his eyes looked more alert than she remembered. His robes looked dusty, and the lightning scar on his forehead looked livid and red, as though it was new. His fingers were clasped together so tightly his knuckles were white, and he was biting his lip so hard a drop of blood was visible.

Sitting on her bed, clasping her hand, was Ron.

He looked different... there was a scar on his cheek that hadn't been there before, and his hair was a darker red than before. It was stilly unruly and spiky, and his blue eyes spilled volumes about how worried he was... Ron was looking at her hopefully, his eyes searching, his lips slightly parted. Hermione licked her lips to wet them, and a small whisper filled the silence in the room.

"Ron?" Ron's eyes trembled, as did his lower lip. Her fingers tightened around his hand, and she tried again. "Ron... I..." her voice failed, and she coughed. Everyone in the room held their breath, lest they drown out what she had to say. "I'm... sorry..." was all she could managed before a fit of coughing forced her to stop talking. Madam Pomfrey grabbed a glass of water and forced the glass to her lips, and tipped the cup back. Hermione drank it all greedily, and when she was finished, she smiled.

"Hey everyone! Long time no see, huh?" Her words, spoken in a voice still hoarse from disuse, broke the tension in the room. Hermione was tackled by Harry and Ginny, who both began talking at once. Ginny was sobbing, and tears were rolling down Harry's cheeks, but about halfway down they bumped into a large grin. Only Ron was silent, and tried to remove his hand from hers. She tightened her grip. Oh no you don't, Ronald Weasley. I will talk to you today if it kills me. Hermione put on a large smile, and hugged her two friends as best she could with one arm, the other one straining to keep Ron by her side. Harry and Ginny both noticed this, looked at each other, and pulled away from Hermione. Both were grinning, but Ginny was wiping her eyes whereas Harry simply left his tears on his face.

"We'll be right back with some food!" Ginny promised, and pulled Madam Pomfrey out with her and Harry, closing the door behind her. Hermione turned to Ron, looking, searching in his face... Then she pulled him in to her, and kissed him.

The world stopped turning for both of them. They stayed, locked in a moment that both had dreamed of while they were parted. The two halves of the whole had been brought back together, and their hearts admitted what their minds had been trying to tell each other for so long...

They belonged together.

And for a moment... just a moment... all was right with the world.

~~~

A/N: Aww, now isn't that just the fluffiest thing? ^_^;; Well, don't go away yet, this fic is *far* from over. This is just wrapping up what I started in "Here's to the Night" and was too lazy to finish. So now I have to post this right now, otherwise Lanz will hunt me down and murder me. Honestly. Well, with my trusty crossbow and my trusty flamethrower, I should be able to fend her off until she starts throwing tests at me. Love you, Lanz! So, anyway, now to post this... and get to work on the next chapter. And it's only 3:07 am!!

--Lilith

"I have PMS and a gun, now what were you saying?"