Take Away My Pain
Chapter 3: Seeing Things
Hermione walked into the Great Hall for breakfast, ignoring the other students stares. They always stared at her. It was their favorite thing to do during meals. And so she ignored them, taking her seat next to Ron and muttering a "Good morning," to him even though she expected no response. All he did was pass the orange juice. Predictable.
She poured some into her cup and took out her sketchpad finding nothing better to do with her time. Using a piece of charcoal, she began etching a drawing of her surroundings. The only thing she found worthy of drawing was the thing that looked most beautiful to her. Ron. She looked at his face and noted the things she would need to capture. His deep facial expression that looked as though he was trying to hide literally everything about him was going to be the hardest feature to express. His eyes told the story of a weary man who was in need of a lifetime of rest.
She began sketching and looking over at him. As she kept her head down, she noticed a shadow hanging over her. Looking up, she saw Harry. "Good work," he said.
She smiled warmly at him. "You're not real," she said in a voice that sent chills down her own spine. "You're only a figment of my imagination."
He rubbed her shoulders gently and kissed her cheek lovingly, whispering, "You're wonderful," into her ear. "So what class do we have first?" he asked.
"Double Potions with Slytherins," she said frowning, knowing that it was his least favorite class. He hated Slytherins... and who could blame him?
She had almost begun to give in to the hallucination when Seamus' voice brought her back to Earth. "Hermione? Who are you talking to?"
She shook her head and looked around again to see that Harry was gone. "No one, Seamus. Just day dreaming again, that's all."
From out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ron looking at her with an even more depressed face than before.
Now not only ignoring the stares from the other houses but from her own best friend as well, she got up and ran out of the hall with fresh tears falling down her pale cheeks. Would life ever be good again?
As Ron watched her flee, he saw his own Harry sitting right next to him, eating a chocolate frog. "Look Ron, I got a Sirius Black!" he exclaimed, showing him a card of the man who had changed Harry's life. "I talked to him yesterday! It's so good to see him again! He said that when you come to visit, we can all play a round of Quidditch with he and my parents. They told me to tell you they say hi by the way."
Ron laughed and was about to respond when he finally realized he too was hallucinating and so he stood up and left ignoring his sister shouting behind him, asking him what was wrong and where he was going.
He walked past the library and saw a girl sitting at one of the back tables, her head bobbing up and down due to the fact that she was hysterically crying. Her brown hair was covering her face but he knew right away that it was Hermione. But he passed by anyway. He didn't say anything to her. He just kept going, knowing that eventually she would be all right again. Unlike himself.
He left the school grounds, deciding that he would skip classes that day and go for a flight of his own. He took off and flew around the Quidditch Pitch. It was something he and Harry liked to do often, memorizing every turn they could possibly make. Harry had helped Ron become quite skilled at being the team Keeper but now without him, Ron felt as though he had lost all his abilities in Quidditch. Not only that. Now it meant nothing to him. He didn't love it any longer. He didn't want to win the House Cup. He didn't want to be named captain of the team. All he wanted to do was die and meet up with Harry behind Sirius' veil.
His thoughts wandered to Hermione and how she was doing. It was obvious that she was having a tough time pulling through. Maybe even tougher than him. He figured she had had a hallucination this morning as well considering she was talking to no one.
He flew over to the Keeper posts and took a seat on one of the rings. Wrapping his legs around the ring, he leaned backwards so he was hanging upside down. The blood was rushing to his brain and he felt an enormous adrenaline rush and for a moment, he considered letting his legs unlatch themselves but the thought of all the people who were 'praying' for him was too much for him to let go of. It was sad that they were so set on getting him better. He wasn't going to be better any time soon. He wasn't even going to bother trying.
He sat up in his seat and when he looked at the smaller rings, he found his good friend sitting right next to him. "You've got to help her out, Ron," Harry said solemnly. "She NEEDS you! I left you to take care of her! You got the note I left!"
And it was true. Ron had received a note from Harry. It appeared as though he had been prepared for his death. And so he had written three notes. One to Ron. One to Hermione. And One to Who it May Concern. Ron's note read:
Dear Ron,
If you're reading this than that means that I'm dead. Whether or not I took him down with me is irrelevant because if I am gone, than that leaves you in charge of watching out for Hermione. She's precious to me and I couldn't take it if anything were to happen to her. If I am gone, then it is your responsibility to make sure she doesn't blame herself. If I am gone, I give you my full permission to heal her pain in whatever way necessary (other than killing her of course.) And make sure that you don't take it too hard either. I won't be gone. Not really. I'll still live in your heart and you never know. Maybe one day we'll meet again... behind the veil.
Now I want you to know that you're my brother. I'm not going to waste my time saying You're LIKE a brother to me 'cause you're not. You're my brother and I love you. Without you, I wouldn't have made it this far. Hey remember that time when we played that real game of wizards chess in order to find the sorcerers stone? And remember when we drove your dad's car, more like flew it actually, and then we crashed it into the Whomping Willow Tree? And don't forget about the D.A. and the headmaster from hell. Now that was an interesting year.
What I'm trying to get at Ron is that I've faced all of these things with you by my side and I wouldn't have had it any other way. Thanks mate. For everything.
Take care of yourself and Hermione.
All my love,
Harry James Potter
But Ron had forgotten his orders and completely lost his mind. He wanted so badly to get it back but it was lost and gone forever. "WHY AREN'T YOU PROTECTING HER FROM THE PAIN SHE'S FEELING, RON?" Harry asked getting angrier by the second. "I LEFT HER HAPPINESS UP TO YOU!" Ron looked away, ashamed that he had ever made his best friend that angry with him. "Listen," Harry said calmly. "I know 'Mione. All you have to do is distract her. So take her mind off things. Use books, use flying, use anything. Just take her mind off of me!"
And with that, Harry was gone. Flew away with the wind. Ron watched as he disappeared into the blue sky, his robes flying behind him, the last thing to fade away.
A/N... I know. More depressing-ness but trust me. They'll get together soon. I promise. Just keep with me. I hope you liked this chapter and I thank you all for your lovely reviews from chapter 2.
Thanks and I hope you review and tell me what you thought about this one too. I'm really excited to see how you liked it... or didn't like it depending on what you think. Tell me if you want something to be improved and I'll see how I can fix it. Thanks.
Chapter 3: Seeing Things
Hermione walked into the Great Hall for breakfast, ignoring the other students stares. They always stared at her. It was their favorite thing to do during meals. And so she ignored them, taking her seat next to Ron and muttering a "Good morning," to him even though she expected no response. All he did was pass the orange juice. Predictable.
She poured some into her cup and took out her sketchpad finding nothing better to do with her time. Using a piece of charcoal, she began etching a drawing of her surroundings. The only thing she found worthy of drawing was the thing that looked most beautiful to her. Ron. She looked at his face and noted the things she would need to capture. His deep facial expression that looked as though he was trying to hide literally everything about him was going to be the hardest feature to express. His eyes told the story of a weary man who was in need of a lifetime of rest.
She began sketching and looking over at him. As she kept her head down, she noticed a shadow hanging over her. Looking up, she saw Harry. "Good work," he said.
She smiled warmly at him. "You're not real," she said in a voice that sent chills down her own spine. "You're only a figment of my imagination."
He rubbed her shoulders gently and kissed her cheek lovingly, whispering, "You're wonderful," into her ear. "So what class do we have first?" he asked.
"Double Potions with Slytherins," she said frowning, knowing that it was his least favorite class. He hated Slytherins... and who could blame him?
She had almost begun to give in to the hallucination when Seamus' voice brought her back to Earth. "Hermione? Who are you talking to?"
She shook her head and looked around again to see that Harry was gone. "No one, Seamus. Just day dreaming again, that's all."
From out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ron looking at her with an even more depressed face than before.
Now not only ignoring the stares from the other houses but from her own best friend as well, she got up and ran out of the hall with fresh tears falling down her pale cheeks. Would life ever be good again?
As Ron watched her flee, he saw his own Harry sitting right next to him, eating a chocolate frog. "Look Ron, I got a Sirius Black!" he exclaimed, showing him a card of the man who had changed Harry's life. "I talked to him yesterday! It's so good to see him again! He said that when you come to visit, we can all play a round of Quidditch with he and my parents. They told me to tell you they say hi by the way."
Ron laughed and was about to respond when he finally realized he too was hallucinating and so he stood up and left ignoring his sister shouting behind him, asking him what was wrong and where he was going.
He walked past the library and saw a girl sitting at one of the back tables, her head bobbing up and down due to the fact that she was hysterically crying. Her brown hair was covering her face but he knew right away that it was Hermione. But he passed by anyway. He didn't say anything to her. He just kept going, knowing that eventually she would be all right again. Unlike himself.
He left the school grounds, deciding that he would skip classes that day and go for a flight of his own. He took off and flew around the Quidditch Pitch. It was something he and Harry liked to do often, memorizing every turn they could possibly make. Harry had helped Ron become quite skilled at being the team Keeper but now without him, Ron felt as though he had lost all his abilities in Quidditch. Not only that. Now it meant nothing to him. He didn't love it any longer. He didn't want to win the House Cup. He didn't want to be named captain of the team. All he wanted to do was die and meet up with Harry behind Sirius' veil.
His thoughts wandered to Hermione and how she was doing. It was obvious that she was having a tough time pulling through. Maybe even tougher than him. He figured she had had a hallucination this morning as well considering she was talking to no one.
He flew over to the Keeper posts and took a seat on one of the rings. Wrapping his legs around the ring, he leaned backwards so he was hanging upside down. The blood was rushing to his brain and he felt an enormous adrenaline rush and for a moment, he considered letting his legs unlatch themselves but the thought of all the people who were 'praying' for him was too much for him to let go of. It was sad that they were so set on getting him better. He wasn't going to be better any time soon. He wasn't even going to bother trying.
He sat up in his seat and when he looked at the smaller rings, he found his good friend sitting right next to him. "You've got to help her out, Ron," Harry said solemnly. "She NEEDS you! I left you to take care of her! You got the note I left!"
And it was true. Ron had received a note from Harry. It appeared as though he had been prepared for his death. And so he had written three notes. One to Ron. One to Hermione. And One to Who it May Concern. Ron's note read:
Dear Ron,
If you're reading this than that means that I'm dead. Whether or not I took him down with me is irrelevant because if I am gone, than that leaves you in charge of watching out for Hermione. She's precious to me and I couldn't take it if anything were to happen to her. If I am gone, then it is your responsibility to make sure she doesn't blame herself. If I am gone, I give you my full permission to heal her pain in whatever way necessary (other than killing her of course.) And make sure that you don't take it too hard either. I won't be gone. Not really. I'll still live in your heart and you never know. Maybe one day we'll meet again... behind the veil.
Now I want you to know that you're my brother. I'm not going to waste my time saying You're LIKE a brother to me 'cause you're not. You're my brother and I love you. Without you, I wouldn't have made it this far. Hey remember that time when we played that real game of wizards chess in order to find the sorcerers stone? And remember when we drove your dad's car, more like flew it actually, and then we crashed it into the Whomping Willow Tree? And don't forget about the D.A. and the headmaster from hell. Now that was an interesting year.
What I'm trying to get at Ron is that I've faced all of these things with you by my side and I wouldn't have had it any other way. Thanks mate. For everything.
Take care of yourself and Hermione.
All my love,
Harry James Potter
But Ron had forgotten his orders and completely lost his mind. He wanted so badly to get it back but it was lost and gone forever. "WHY AREN'T YOU PROTECTING HER FROM THE PAIN SHE'S FEELING, RON?" Harry asked getting angrier by the second. "I LEFT HER HAPPINESS UP TO YOU!" Ron looked away, ashamed that he had ever made his best friend that angry with him. "Listen," Harry said calmly. "I know 'Mione. All you have to do is distract her. So take her mind off things. Use books, use flying, use anything. Just take her mind off of me!"
And with that, Harry was gone. Flew away with the wind. Ron watched as he disappeared into the blue sky, his robes flying behind him, the last thing to fade away.
A/N... I know. More depressing-ness but trust me. They'll get together soon. I promise. Just keep with me. I hope you liked this chapter and I thank you all for your lovely reviews from chapter 2.
Thanks and I hope you review and tell me what you thought about this one too. I'm really excited to see how you liked it... or didn't like it depending on what you think. Tell me if you want something to be improved and I'll see how I can fix it. Thanks.