A/N- This is Hermione's story. She knows things that the others didn't. But
really, knowing Hermione, is that a surprise?
I sit here, watching him flinch, and wishing I were strong enough to force- feed him the pain-killing potion I made. He needs it so badly, and yet refuses to take it. He thinks that we don't know that he considers it his penance for the deaths that have occurred and he was powerless to stop. He thinks that he's got us all fooled- Ron, Ginny and I. But he doesn't. The constant pain warns us that Voldemort is growing ever nearer and we are going to need him in fighting condition. Yet, even that argument will not convince him. It is time for drastic measures.
I casually wander over to where Ron is sitting, attempting to stay engrossed in a game of chess. I can tell his mind isn't on it. He's playing against Neville, and he's losing. Ron hasn't lost a chess game since we started Hogwarts. I almost leave him, thinking a humbling might do him some good, but he needs all of his confidence now.
I drag him away from the game, and pull him into a hidden corner of the common room.
"We need to help Harry," I say quietly.
Ron looks over to where our best friend is sitting, pale and withdrawn. His scar stands out livid on his forehead, a testament to everything that we are fighting.
"I know. The question is, how? He won't stop blaming himself. We've tried everything from cajoling to screaming. He won't listen." I nod. It's true. He sits there and smiles at us, listening politely, and then goes right on thinking exactly what he wants to.
"It's time to do something drastic. Can you hold him down?" I ask, getting to my original idea. Ron smiles at me.
"I like the way you think, love," he says, a ghost of a twinkle in his beautiful blue eyes. "Go get out the potion, I'll bring him up to your room."
"Meet you there in five," I respond. I give him a quick kiss, and run up the stairs. I can feel Harry's eyes on my back as I make my way out of sight.
I go into the room they gave me when they made me Head Girl. It is one of the very few benefits for an exhausting job. Harry, too, feels the pressure. With Voldemort coming, Dumbledore told him he couldn't see appointing anyone but Harry as Head Boy. What made this more unusual was that Harry wasn't even a prefect until sixth year, when Voldemort really began to make his rise known. Ron and I had been appointed the prefects for Gryffindor for our year. With Harry as Quidditch captain, no one wanted to put even more responsibility onto his uncomplaining shoulders.
I move swiftly across my room, and head towards the shelf that I keep my potions on. I find the small vial full of pale purple liquid and secret it in my robe sleeve. I can hear Harry and Ron coming up the stairs, discussing strategy. I know that Ginny has been spending all her free time in the library, looking for a spell that will defeat Voldemort. I'm hoping she finds one other then the one I was able to locate. If she finds that one, there will be no stopping her or Harry from sacrificing themselves for everyone else.
There just outside my room. I can hear Harry hesitate as Ron walks in.
"Are you decent?" he calls before entering the room. Ron and I laugh. Last summer, Harry inadvertently walked in on me after following Ron into Ginny's room. He has very carefully avoided repeating the experience.
"Perfectly, " I say, and he cautiously walks into the room. I signal Ron, and he pounces on him. Dumbledore had added a permanent magical shield to Harry's arsenal of protections, so a mere stunning spell wouldn't stand a chance. We need to do this the old fashioned way.
Harry struggles as Ron sits on him. His hands are pinned above his head, and he glares at the both of us. I pull out the potion.
"Damn it, I told you two I'm fine!" he swears at us.
"Of course you are. That's why you flinch every time there's a loud noise," Ron says sarcastically.
"Or bright light, or come to think of it, really anything out of the ordinary at all," I note. "Face it, Harry. You are drinking this potion, and you have no say," I tell him, my voice smug. Harry clamps his mouth shut in defiance.
"Oh, please," Ron sighs disgustedly, and plugs Harry's nose. As soon as he opens his mouth to breathe, I pour the potion down the back of his throat. Almost instantly, the distended scar becomes smooth, and Harry's face is no longer drawn. Ron gets off of him.
"If you two EVER do that again, I will have to kill you. Understood?" He looks at both of us. We only grin at him, and his face suddenly relaxes. "Thanks. I needed that."
The three of us settle into silence. It's almost like we're memorizing each other, and with a chill I realize that we are doing exactly that. The final battle will happen soon, and the chances of us surviving are nil. Ron and I, because we are Harry's friends, and Harry- well, just because he's Harry.
"I'm going back down to the common room. I'll meet you two there," Harry says abruptly, and leaves the room. Ron looks at me, and the slow grin that I've come to learn means trouble slowly crosses his face. I look forward to this grin- I happen to enjoy Ron's brand of trouble. "You know you were undressing me with your eyes, Hermione?" He teases me. "I most certainly was not!" I exclaim. "I love it when something makes you mad. You blush." I look at him again, my eyes drawn on his sparkling face. I know that this could be our last chance to be together. I'm determined to take it. "Ron," I sigh, and look into his eyes. He holds his arms out, and I step into them. I can feel the strength in them as they wrap around me. My head rests on his shoulder, and I relax into his embrace. "It'll be OK, Hermione. Either way, we will be together, " he reassures me.
"But how do we know? What happens if you die, if I die, and the other is left alone? What then?" I ask him, genuinely afraid. "We're soul mates, you and I. When one dies, so does the other. We will go to Summerlands together, or we'll stay here together. We are not going to be separated. After all, aren't you wearing my ring?" He smiles at me, lifting away my fears. My eyes drift down to the Celtic ring, its infinity knot telling me all I need to know. I remember his proposal under the tree last summer, and I give him a watery smile. I lift my head up for a kiss, and almost instantly feel his lips on mine. We start kissing frantically, as if this will be the last time we will love. Who knows, it may be. I have a feeling the final battle will be soon.
My hands are all over him, and I make short work of his robes. He shrugs out of them, leaving them pooled on the floor. He's standing in front of me, only boxers covering his freckly, toned body. I move to take off my own robes, but he shakes his head. "I want to do it, love." He unclasps my robes, and I feel them slide down my shoulders and off my body. I'm standing in front of him in only my underwear, faintly embarrassed that it isn't anything special. I can see his eyes flare as he reaches for me. His big hands aren't even remotely clumsy as he undoes the delicate buttons in the back, and soon my underwear is no longer a concern, since it has joined his boxers on the floor. I cast an absent-minded locking charm, and we shut out the world. "Let it all go away for a while," I whisper as we fall into my bed. "It will, Hermione, it will," Ron promises me. He makes my name sound like an endearment.
All too soon, we must end out isolation and meet the others back downstairs. It is my job to help Harry send the stragglers in the common room up to bed, and I can't do that if I'm sequestered up here. Much as I hate it, we have to get dressed and head back to reality. I look at Ron and smile, admiring him while he pulls his trousers back on. He catches me and smiles.
"Lady, Hermione, if you keep looking at me like that we'll never make it back downstairs," he laughs.
"I love you, Ron," I tell him quietly. Suddenly telling him that seems terribly urgent and important. "I love you too, bookworm," he answers me with his trademark grin. I swat him, he laughs, and hand in hand we head downstairs.
One of the cozy armchairs near the fire is open, and Ron and I cuddle in it. The only people left are seventh years, so our emergence from upstairs was unnecessary. I feel a little wistful at that. Harry is again sitting by himself, staring into the fire.
All of a sudden, a redheaded whirlwind comes dashing into the common room. It can only be Ginny. She flies like a homing beacon, straight towards Harry. Excitedly, she shows him something from a book.
Oh, no. She found it. She must have, it was the only useful thing in that book. I know, I read it once. And then I hid it in the deepest depths of the restricted section, praying that no one would ever find it. For in it, there is a spell.
I look at the hated book, knowing that the spell my friend has found will kill them both. Even if there was a way for them to survive the coming battle, their own spell will require so much energy that it will sap them, drain them, and kill them. There is nothing I can do about it.
I try not to let my dismay show on my face. The look on both their faces is so intense that I can tell arguing would be a lost cause. They have already made their choices. I wish that they'd had more time to be together, to learn about the love that is written so plainly all over both their faces. They've only had three weeks, just twenty-one days. From the looks of things, they won't have much more.
McGonagall just came in. It's happening. Voldemort is attacking Hogwarts, and we are right in the middle of it. All seventh years are going to the Great Hall. Everyone else is heading to the dungeons. Thank god. Maybe this will keep Ginny from sacrificing herself.
I'm deluding myself and I know it. Shaking my head to clear it, I join my year mates. The eight of us line up behind McGonagall, Harry in the lead. Except for him in front and Neville at the rear, we are walking in twos. Ron and I, right behind Harry as we always will be. Parvati and Dean, looking grim but determined, are behind us. Seamus and Lavender followed them. As much as Harry, Ron, and I stuck together, so did those four. Neville floated, which was how he liked it.
I don't want to think about what will happen in a few minutes. I resort to an old trick- reciting forgotten curses and unknown hexes. It calms me, and helps me focus for the task ahead. I don't want to use Unforgivables. I have a repertoire of unknowns already.
We enter the great hall, and I see most of us already there. There are only three Slytherin seventh years left. I doubt very much that they will survive the fighting. Their old classmates are bound to attempt to kill them off first. Hufflepuffs- it looks like Hannah finally told Ernie she was pregnant. I wondered if she was even going to. It was an open secret in Herbology class, but all of the men were too dense to notice. Or perhaps they just had other things on their minds. Ah, yes, Madam Pomfrey is leading her away. She doesn't look like she wants to go. I can't blame her; they couldn't make me leave Ron. I drift to the Ravenclaws. Most are looking very nervous. While their intelligence will help them with the spells they need to know, I doubt that many of them know the practical side. If I wasn't friends with Harry, it wouldn't have been on my list of priorities either.
I can hear the Death Eaters approaching. I know that the doors have been enchanted, since I was one of the ones working on them, but I really can't see them holding out for much longer. Too much is barraging against them. The teachers are standing guard on the doorways, and most of us already have our wands out. I'm shaking, but my mind is clear. We can't afford to lose this battle. It sounds melodramatic and trite, but it's true. We can't lose.
My god, they haven't even breached the doors yet and already killing curses are flying. That one nearly hit Ron! But how did they know where to aim? Merlin, it must be the hair. They have to know that wherever he is, so is Harry. For the first time in my life, I'm glad to have my plain brown hair. Harry must notice what's happening at the same time I do. He shouts at us before launching himself into battle.
"Ron, do something about you're hair! It's a walking target!"
"Come here!" I shout, and pull him close.
"Wear this! You need it!" I say, and cast a Glamour on his hair, making it the same shade as mine.
I turn to Harry. His looks will make him easy to find. I start to cast another, but he shakes me off.
"Save your energy for when you need it!" he says roughly, and dives into the fray.
I don't have any time to think. Soon, I am battling with all the force I have behind me. I glimpse familiar faces all over the Hall, on both sides. I watch as Parvati and Dean fight, side by side. Padma is fighting on her sister's other side. My god, is that Victor with a Dark Mark? I don't have time to wonder why. He's now the enemy, that's what I have to focus on. I duck out of the way as a nasty severing hex comes flying my way. I glance over at Harry. He's letting off so much sheer power that he may survive this after all. Damn it, this is no time for wishful thinking. I turn my attention to the fight, but I am too late.
It happens so fast I don't see it coming. A shrapnel curse hits the floor, and Parvati and Padma both slump and fall. I see Dean whip around, as if in slow motion, and kneel beside them. I look at him, and he shakes his head.
They aren't the first casualties by any means. Bodies are littering the floor. I hear an inhuman screaming, and turn to face it. Neville is writhing on the ground, being driven insane by the pain of the Cruciatus curse. I see a gaunt man, and a gray woman holding their wands towards him. I aim, but I am too late. I watch helplessly as the boy I never really had time for in a flash of green light. I look up, blinded by rage, to see Harry looking at the scene as well.
"Like mother, like son," I hear one of the slime snicker. Harry's eyes meet mine in complete agreement. We both shed what innocence we have left as we take our first lives.
"Avada Kedavra!" we both scream, and watch with great satisfaction as they fall. I hear a voice shout, "About time, Potter!" Apparently, many regard Harry as a leader. He dives back into the fighting, and I attempt to rejoin as well. It's no good, we're going to lose this battle unless something drastic happens. I shudder when I realize that our salvation will mean my best friends death. There is no other way- there are too many of them.
My cheek feels strange.
I reach up and touch it, and my fingers are red. Parvati's death replays in my mind- my cheek had burned for a moment. That must have been when it happened. I touch my face again, and find a small cut underneath my eye. Shaking my head, I keep fighting. It's almost pointless. So many of us are down already.
I look around for Ron, almost automatically hunting for his bright red hair. I nearly go into a panic before I remember that I changed it. I look again, and see him very close to Harry. He takes out two more Death Eaters, catching one right before he threw a curse at Harry's back. I fight my way over to him, and grin.
"Hell of a party we have going here, isn't it, love?" I comment. He smiles back at me before we go our separate ways again. Harry pops up beside me. He looks like a warrior, covered with dirt and sweat and other people's blood.
He points at my cheek, mutely asking what happened. "Shrapnel curse." I shrug. It's not important. Remembering, I have to tell him. "Bastards have gotten Parvati and Padma." I see him look, and see black hair spread over blood soaked scarlet and blue robes.
"Damn them to Hades!" he swears bitterly. We fight side by side for moments, and I realize that this is it. I avoid looking over at my blood brother, and snap out another curse. I know what he's thinking. He's got to be thinking the same thing I am. And I'm the closest person to send. Goddess, please don't ask me to deliver her to death! "Hermione, go get Ginny," he says it quickly, and I know he hates the idea even more then I do. Oh, no. But it's necessary.
I must look confused. He explains, fast.
"That book? It has the spell I'm going to use. She knows it, I don't. I need her." My face is an open book, and it gives away that I know.
"You knew about the spell," he says calmly.
"I knew. I hoped it wouldn't come to that." I shake my head, not wanting to accept the course of action that must be taken. "We have no time. Don't you dare die while I'm not watching your back, Potter," I say, knowing that he doesn't really have a choice.
"I'll try." He shoots me a ghost of a grin, and then is off fighting again.
I slip out a guarded door, motioning to Sinistra where I'm going. She nods, and a sad look crosses her eyes. She must know what is going to happen, and neither she nor I can do anything about it. It makes me feel sick.
I quickly make my way down to the dungeons, and let myself through the small, little known passageways until I come to where the younger school is hiding. Even down here I can hear the screaming and sounds of battle being staged in the Great Hall.
Ginny is in a corner, trying to keep the rest calm. She sees me from a long way off. No words are needed between us. She knows why I am here. She nods, as if confirming something to herself, and then stands. I give her instructions as we make our way upstairs.
"We're losing. They've gotten most of the Hufflepuffs and over half the Ravenclaws. We still had five Gryffindors when I left. I don't know how many are left now. Unforgivables are necessary. Take them out quickly, and then move on." My voice is hard.
I can see the shock on her face. She can't believe that I just told her to kill people. She will see, soon enough.
As we get closer, she tries to dive straight into the fray. Almost instantly, a sickly green shot of light comes flying our way.
"Are you insane?" I snarl, angry. "I didn't stop watching Harry's back just to have you killed the second you step out. Wait a minute." I cast glamour on her hair as well.
"Well, shall we go rescue the men?" she asks, almost gaily.
"I think so," I reply, and shoot a battle hardened grin at her. This will be the last time I can talk to my friend. I think she knows it, too.
We wait a moment, and then we slip unnoticed into the fray.
We make our way back up to Harry, and Ginny is making herself known. The sheer power of the stunning spells she's throwing out would equal most peoples killing curses. Someone will notice soon. She's moving far faster then I am, and I stop for a moment to wipe the blood off my face. She makes it to Harry before I do. My head snaps up as I hear her shout for Ron to duck.
She is too late.
Ron falls, splitting his head open on the hard floor.
His eyes are vacant, life light flown. He is gone.
I am still here.
My pain filled eyes look up just in time to see the harsh orange light of the Cruciatus curse head straight for me. I don't bother to duck.
It can't hurt more then I already do.
I finally let the screams out, and my body is twitching. Ginny swings around, trying to find the person who is holding the curse on me. She couldn't know. I only caught a glimpse. Since Viktor is hiding, she won't find him.
I'll be with Ron again soon.
Finally, that sickly green light comes my way. I feel my soul be freed from my body, and everything is so bright.
Many people are with me. I can see Ron, just a little ways ahead. I call his name, and he turns.
"See Hermione, I told you we would always be together." He smiles at me.
I regret not seeing the end of the battle. I lean, and look back at the mortal world. Harry and Ginny will join us soon. Lovingly, I shape their last energy into a Phoenix, and smile at the harsh screams being emitted by our foe. I see a red haired woman waiting, nod at her, and look up towards Ron. He takes my hand in his.
Together, my love and I walk towards the Summerlands.
I sit here, watching him flinch, and wishing I were strong enough to force- feed him the pain-killing potion I made. He needs it so badly, and yet refuses to take it. He thinks that we don't know that he considers it his penance for the deaths that have occurred and he was powerless to stop. He thinks that he's got us all fooled- Ron, Ginny and I. But he doesn't. The constant pain warns us that Voldemort is growing ever nearer and we are going to need him in fighting condition. Yet, even that argument will not convince him. It is time for drastic measures.
I casually wander over to where Ron is sitting, attempting to stay engrossed in a game of chess. I can tell his mind isn't on it. He's playing against Neville, and he's losing. Ron hasn't lost a chess game since we started Hogwarts. I almost leave him, thinking a humbling might do him some good, but he needs all of his confidence now.
I drag him away from the game, and pull him into a hidden corner of the common room.
"We need to help Harry," I say quietly.
Ron looks over to where our best friend is sitting, pale and withdrawn. His scar stands out livid on his forehead, a testament to everything that we are fighting.
"I know. The question is, how? He won't stop blaming himself. We've tried everything from cajoling to screaming. He won't listen." I nod. It's true. He sits there and smiles at us, listening politely, and then goes right on thinking exactly what he wants to.
"It's time to do something drastic. Can you hold him down?" I ask, getting to my original idea. Ron smiles at me.
"I like the way you think, love," he says, a ghost of a twinkle in his beautiful blue eyes. "Go get out the potion, I'll bring him up to your room."
"Meet you there in five," I respond. I give him a quick kiss, and run up the stairs. I can feel Harry's eyes on my back as I make my way out of sight.
I go into the room they gave me when they made me Head Girl. It is one of the very few benefits for an exhausting job. Harry, too, feels the pressure. With Voldemort coming, Dumbledore told him he couldn't see appointing anyone but Harry as Head Boy. What made this more unusual was that Harry wasn't even a prefect until sixth year, when Voldemort really began to make his rise known. Ron and I had been appointed the prefects for Gryffindor for our year. With Harry as Quidditch captain, no one wanted to put even more responsibility onto his uncomplaining shoulders.
I move swiftly across my room, and head towards the shelf that I keep my potions on. I find the small vial full of pale purple liquid and secret it in my robe sleeve. I can hear Harry and Ron coming up the stairs, discussing strategy. I know that Ginny has been spending all her free time in the library, looking for a spell that will defeat Voldemort. I'm hoping she finds one other then the one I was able to locate. If she finds that one, there will be no stopping her or Harry from sacrificing themselves for everyone else.
There just outside my room. I can hear Harry hesitate as Ron walks in.
"Are you decent?" he calls before entering the room. Ron and I laugh. Last summer, Harry inadvertently walked in on me after following Ron into Ginny's room. He has very carefully avoided repeating the experience.
"Perfectly, " I say, and he cautiously walks into the room. I signal Ron, and he pounces on him. Dumbledore had added a permanent magical shield to Harry's arsenal of protections, so a mere stunning spell wouldn't stand a chance. We need to do this the old fashioned way.
Harry struggles as Ron sits on him. His hands are pinned above his head, and he glares at the both of us. I pull out the potion.
"Damn it, I told you two I'm fine!" he swears at us.
"Of course you are. That's why you flinch every time there's a loud noise," Ron says sarcastically.
"Or bright light, or come to think of it, really anything out of the ordinary at all," I note. "Face it, Harry. You are drinking this potion, and you have no say," I tell him, my voice smug. Harry clamps his mouth shut in defiance.
"Oh, please," Ron sighs disgustedly, and plugs Harry's nose. As soon as he opens his mouth to breathe, I pour the potion down the back of his throat. Almost instantly, the distended scar becomes smooth, and Harry's face is no longer drawn. Ron gets off of him.
"If you two EVER do that again, I will have to kill you. Understood?" He looks at both of us. We only grin at him, and his face suddenly relaxes. "Thanks. I needed that."
The three of us settle into silence. It's almost like we're memorizing each other, and with a chill I realize that we are doing exactly that. The final battle will happen soon, and the chances of us surviving are nil. Ron and I, because we are Harry's friends, and Harry- well, just because he's Harry.
"I'm going back down to the common room. I'll meet you two there," Harry says abruptly, and leaves the room. Ron looks at me, and the slow grin that I've come to learn means trouble slowly crosses his face. I look forward to this grin- I happen to enjoy Ron's brand of trouble. "You know you were undressing me with your eyes, Hermione?" He teases me. "I most certainly was not!" I exclaim. "I love it when something makes you mad. You blush." I look at him again, my eyes drawn on his sparkling face. I know that this could be our last chance to be together. I'm determined to take it. "Ron," I sigh, and look into his eyes. He holds his arms out, and I step into them. I can feel the strength in them as they wrap around me. My head rests on his shoulder, and I relax into his embrace. "It'll be OK, Hermione. Either way, we will be together, " he reassures me.
"But how do we know? What happens if you die, if I die, and the other is left alone? What then?" I ask him, genuinely afraid. "We're soul mates, you and I. When one dies, so does the other. We will go to Summerlands together, or we'll stay here together. We are not going to be separated. After all, aren't you wearing my ring?" He smiles at me, lifting away my fears. My eyes drift down to the Celtic ring, its infinity knot telling me all I need to know. I remember his proposal under the tree last summer, and I give him a watery smile. I lift my head up for a kiss, and almost instantly feel his lips on mine. We start kissing frantically, as if this will be the last time we will love. Who knows, it may be. I have a feeling the final battle will be soon.
My hands are all over him, and I make short work of his robes. He shrugs out of them, leaving them pooled on the floor. He's standing in front of me, only boxers covering his freckly, toned body. I move to take off my own robes, but he shakes his head. "I want to do it, love." He unclasps my robes, and I feel them slide down my shoulders and off my body. I'm standing in front of him in only my underwear, faintly embarrassed that it isn't anything special. I can see his eyes flare as he reaches for me. His big hands aren't even remotely clumsy as he undoes the delicate buttons in the back, and soon my underwear is no longer a concern, since it has joined his boxers on the floor. I cast an absent-minded locking charm, and we shut out the world. "Let it all go away for a while," I whisper as we fall into my bed. "It will, Hermione, it will," Ron promises me. He makes my name sound like an endearment.
All too soon, we must end out isolation and meet the others back downstairs. It is my job to help Harry send the stragglers in the common room up to bed, and I can't do that if I'm sequestered up here. Much as I hate it, we have to get dressed and head back to reality. I look at Ron and smile, admiring him while he pulls his trousers back on. He catches me and smiles.
"Lady, Hermione, if you keep looking at me like that we'll never make it back downstairs," he laughs.
"I love you, Ron," I tell him quietly. Suddenly telling him that seems terribly urgent and important. "I love you too, bookworm," he answers me with his trademark grin. I swat him, he laughs, and hand in hand we head downstairs.
One of the cozy armchairs near the fire is open, and Ron and I cuddle in it. The only people left are seventh years, so our emergence from upstairs was unnecessary. I feel a little wistful at that. Harry is again sitting by himself, staring into the fire.
All of a sudden, a redheaded whirlwind comes dashing into the common room. It can only be Ginny. She flies like a homing beacon, straight towards Harry. Excitedly, she shows him something from a book.
Oh, no. She found it. She must have, it was the only useful thing in that book. I know, I read it once. And then I hid it in the deepest depths of the restricted section, praying that no one would ever find it. For in it, there is a spell.
I look at the hated book, knowing that the spell my friend has found will kill them both. Even if there was a way for them to survive the coming battle, their own spell will require so much energy that it will sap them, drain them, and kill them. There is nothing I can do about it.
I try not to let my dismay show on my face. The look on both their faces is so intense that I can tell arguing would be a lost cause. They have already made their choices. I wish that they'd had more time to be together, to learn about the love that is written so plainly all over both their faces. They've only had three weeks, just twenty-one days. From the looks of things, they won't have much more.
McGonagall just came in. It's happening. Voldemort is attacking Hogwarts, and we are right in the middle of it. All seventh years are going to the Great Hall. Everyone else is heading to the dungeons. Thank god. Maybe this will keep Ginny from sacrificing herself.
I'm deluding myself and I know it. Shaking my head to clear it, I join my year mates. The eight of us line up behind McGonagall, Harry in the lead. Except for him in front and Neville at the rear, we are walking in twos. Ron and I, right behind Harry as we always will be. Parvati and Dean, looking grim but determined, are behind us. Seamus and Lavender followed them. As much as Harry, Ron, and I stuck together, so did those four. Neville floated, which was how he liked it.
I don't want to think about what will happen in a few minutes. I resort to an old trick- reciting forgotten curses and unknown hexes. It calms me, and helps me focus for the task ahead. I don't want to use Unforgivables. I have a repertoire of unknowns already.
We enter the great hall, and I see most of us already there. There are only three Slytherin seventh years left. I doubt very much that they will survive the fighting. Their old classmates are bound to attempt to kill them off first. Hufflepuffs- it looks like Hannah finally told Ernie she was pregnant. I wondered if she was even going to. It was an open secret in Herbology class, but all of the men were too dense to notice. Or perhaps they just had other things on their minds. Ah, yes, Madam Pomfrey is leading her away. She doesn't look like she wants to go. I can't blame her; they couldn't make me leave Ron. I drift to the Ravenclaws. Most are looking very nervous. While their intelligence will help them with the spells they need to know, I doubt that many of them know the practical side. If I wasn't friends with Harry, it wouldn't have been on my list of priorities either.
I can hear the Death Eaters approaching. I know that the doors have been enchanted, since I was one of the ones working on them, but I really can't see them holding out for much longer. Too much is barraging against them. The teachers are standing guard on the doorways, and most of us already have our wands out. I'm shaking, but my mind is clear. We can't afford to lose this battle. It sounds melodramatic and trite, but it's true. We can't lose.
My god, they haven't even breached the doors yet and already killing curses are flying. That one nearly hit Ron! But how did they know where to aim? Merlin, it must be the hair. They have to know that wherever he is, so is Harry. For the first time in my life, I'm glad to have my plain brown hair. Harry must notice what's happening at the same time I do. He shouts at us before launching himself into battle.
"Ron, do something about you're hair! It's a walking target!"
"Come here!" I shout, and pull him close.
"Wear this! You need it!" I say, and cast a Glamour on his hair, making it the same shade as mine.
I turn to Harry. His looks will make him easy to find. I start to cast another, but he shakes me off.
"Save your energy for when you need it!" he says roughly, and dives into the fray.
I don't have any time to think. Soon, I am battling with all the force I have behind me. I glimpse familiar faces all over the Hall, on both sides. I watch as Parvati and Dean fight, side by side. Padma is fighting on her sister's other side. My god, is that Victor with a Dark Mark? I don't have time to wonder why. He's now the enemy, that's what I have to focus on. I duck out of the way as a nasty severing hex comes flying my way. I glance over at Harry. He's letting off so much sheer power that he may survive this after all. Damn it, this is no time for wishful thinking. I turn my attention to the fight, but I am too late.
It happens so fast I don't see it coming. A shrapnel curse hits the floor, and Parvati and Padma both slump and fall. I see Dean whip around, as if in slow motion, and kneel beside them. I look at him, and he shakes his head.
They aren't the first casualties by any means. Bodies are littering the floor. I hear an inhuman screaming, and turn to face it. Neville is writhing on the ground, being driven insane by the pain of the Cruciatus curse. I see a gaunt man, and a gray woman holding their wands towards him. I aim, but I am too late. I watch helplessly as the boy I never really had time for in a flash of green light. I look up, blinded by rage, to see Harry looking at the scene as well.
"Like mother, like son," I hear one of the slime snicker. Harry's eyes meet mine in complete agreement. We both shed what innocence we have left as we take our first lives.
"Avada Kedavra!" we both scream, and watch with great satisfaction as they fall. I hear a voice shout, "About time, Potter!" Apparently, many regard Harry as a leader. He dives back into the fighting, and I attempt to rejoin as well. It's no good, we're going to lose this battle unless something drastic happens. I shudder when I realize that our salvation will mean my best friends death. There is no other way- there are too many of them.
My cheek feels strange.
I reach up and touch it, and my fingers are red. Parvati's death replays in my mind- my cheek had burned for a moment. That must have been when it happened. I touch my face again, and find a small cut underneath my eye. Shaking my head, I keep fighting. It's almost pointless. So many of us are down already.
I look around for Ron, almost automatically hunting for his bright red hair. I nearly go into a panic before I remember that I changed it. I look again, and see him very close to Harry. He takes out two more Death Eaters, catching one right before he threw a curse at Harry's back. I fight my way over to him, and grin.
"Hell of a party we have going here, isn't it, love?" I comment. He smiles back at me before we go our separate ways again. Harry pops up beside me. He looks like a warrior, covered with dirt and sweat and other people's blood.
He points at my cheek, mutely asking what happened. "Shrapnel curse." I shrug. It's not important. Remembering, I have to tell him. "Bastards have gotten Parvati and Padma." I see him look, and see black hair spread over blood soaked scarlet and blue robes.
"Damn them to Hades!" he swears bitterly. We fight side by side for moments, and I realize that this is it. I avoid looking over at my blood brother, and snap out another curse. I know what he's thinking. He's got to be thinking the same thing I am. And I'm the closest person to send. Goddess, please don't ask me to deliver her to death! "Hermione, go get Ginny," he says it quickly, and I know he hates the idea even more then I do. Oh, no. But it's necessary.
I must look confused. He explains, fast.
"That book? It has the spell I'm going to use. She knows it, I don't. I need her." My face is an open book, and it gives away that I know.
"You knew about the spell," he says calmly.
"I knew. I hoped it wouldn't come to that." I shake my head, not wanting to accept the course of action that must be taken. "We have no time. Don't you dare die while I'm not watching your back, Potter," I say, knowing that he doesn't really have a choice.
"I'll try." He shoots me a ghost of a grin, and then is off fighting again.
I slip out a guarded door, motioning to Sinistra where I'm going. She nods, and a sad look crosses her eyes. She must know what is going to happen, and neither she nor I can do anything about it. It makes me feel sick.
I quickly make my way down to the dungeons, and let myself through the small, little known passageways until I come to where the younger school is hiding. Even down here I can hear the screaming and sounds of battle being staged in the Great Hall.
Ginny is in a corner, trying to keep the rest calm. She sees me from a long way off. No words are needed between us. She knows why I am here. She nods, as if confirming something to herself, and then stands. I give her instructions as we make our way upstairs.
"We're losing. They've gotten most of the Hufflepuffs and over half the Ravenclaws. We still had five Gryffindors when I left. I don't know how many are left now. Unforgivables are necessary. Take them out quickly, and then move on." My voice is hard.
I can see the shock on her face. She can't believe that I just told her to kill people. She will see, soon enough.
As we get closer, she tries to dive straight into the fray. Almost instantly, a sickly green shot of light comes flying our way.
"Are you insane?" I snarl, angry. "I didn't stop watching Harry's back just to have you killed the second you step out. Wait a minute." I cast glamour on her hair as well.
"Well, shall we go rescue the men?" she asks, almost gaily.
"I think so," I reply, and shoot a battle hardened grin at her. This will be the last time I can talk to my friend. I think she knows it, too.
We wait a moment, and then we slip unnoticed into the fray.
We make our way back up to Harry, and Ginny is making herself known. The sheer power of the stunning spells she's throwing out would equal most peoples killing curses. Someone will notice soon. She's moving far faster then I am, and I stop for a moment to wipe the blood off my face. She makes it to Harry before I do. My head snaps up as I hear her shout for Ron to duck.
She is too late.
Ron falls, splitting his head open on the hard floor.
His eyes are vacant, life light flown. He is gone.
I am still here.
My pain filled eyes look up just in time to see the harsh orange light of the Cruciatus curse head straight for me. I don't bother to duck.
It can't hurt more then I already do.
I finally let the screams out, and my body is twitching. Ginny swings around, trying to find the person who is holding the curse on me. She couldn't know. I only caught a glimpse. Since Viktor is hiding, she won't find him.
I'll be with Ron again soon.
Finally, that sickly green light comes my way. I feel my soul be freed from my body, and everything is so bright.
Many people are with me. I can see Ron, just a little ways ahead. I call his name, and he turns.
"See Hermione, I told you we would always be together." He smiles at me.
I regret not seeing the end of the battle. I lean, and look back at the mortal world. Harry and Ginny will join us soon. Lovingly, I shape their last energy into a Phoenix, and smile at the harsh screams being emitted by our foe. I see a red haired woman waiting, nod at her, and look up towards Ron. He takes my hand in his.
Together, my love and I walk towards the Summerlands.