a/n- Okay, there's good news and bad news...The good news is that you all have another chapter to read. The bad news is that I don't know when the next one will be out. As I said before I'm updating and fixing the story as I go along. I have about twenty or so chapters written already, but I want to do some work on them before I post them. I also need to write the ending...As I am a college student and I have exams ALL next week I don't know if I will be posting any next week. I might though. At any rate you will have this chapter and maybe one more before my hell week starts! Cheers!
Chapter Six: Screaming for Help
Harry opened his eyes to discover he was still in the in the study. He looked around him and all he could see was darkness. He got up and stepped out of the room following the flickering orange glow coming from the living room. When he entered the room he was immediately embraced by warmth of the fire. Once inside, Harry noticed that he was not alone. Sitting on the couch facing the fire was a very angry looking Jack Weasley. Harry walked toward him slowly and watched him stare into the flames.
"Sorry, I didn't know anyone was in here," Harry said as he turned to leave, not even thinking that Ron and Hermione had forgotten to tell him what room he could stay in.
"No stay, I could use some company," Jack said running his fingers along the rim of the mug in his right hand. He was still wearing the cloths Harry had last seen him in when he and Lily left to go talk to Richard Luis.
Harry took a seat in the overstuffed chair across from the couch, "You look pissed off to put it lightly."
"Yeah …well that man has that affect of me I guess," Jack said as he took as sip of his tea.
"Are you talking about this Luis guy," Harry asked.
"Yeah, he and I don't get along too well…or at least not anymore."
"Why is that?"
"Let's just say he did something that put someone I love in danger, and that person has never been the same since," Jack replied softly.
"You're talking about Lily aren't you…you're girlfriend?" Harry was eager to get on the subject of his daughter.
"Yeah."
"Does this have something to do with the battle at Hogwarts last spring?"
Jack smiled sarcastically, "You heard about that too, huh?"
"Who didn't," Harry said shrugging his shoulders, "It was in all the papers."
Jack nodded his head and looked down, "Lily could have died that night. And all because that man didn't think things through before he sent us on his stupid mission. I don't care what he says; Malfoy it was us who set him up. If he didn't then he wouldn't have come to Hogwarts in the first place."
"I read that you were the one injured," Harry said honestly. He had read that Lily was involved but he hadn't read she was in that much danger.
"I was injured. We were out at the Qudditch field when we saw some flashes coming from the school. We raced up there and the place was already in chaos. I got separated from her just after that. I was dueling with a group of death eaters for a good half hour before everything went blank. I woke up in the hospital wing and they told me they didn't know where Lily was. Turns out she was in the dungeons with Allan fighting some death eaters. Allan was killed and that left her to finish them off on her own. She could have just as easily died herself. She wasn't hurt bad, she only dislocated a shoulder and had a few scrapes and cuts. But a part of her did died that day and she's still trying to get it back."
Harry tried to hide the tears in his eyes despite the fact that Jack hadn't looked up at him in several minutes. "Does that have to do with your friend Allan dying?"
"Partly," Jack said looking over at the fire and seeing it was burning low. He got up and placed several logs on top until the fire was raging again. "She had to kill two people that night. I don't think she's ever forgiven herself for it. Lily always blames herself for things she has no control over. She's been like that for as long as I've known her," he said shaking his head.
Harry recognized this kind of guilt. "But they would have killed her if she hadn't killed them first, right?"
"Yes, they would have. But she doesn't see it that way. She blames herself for Allan's death too. And she blames herself for not being able to find an alternative for killing the death eaters responsible for his death. She was so angry at herself after it happened. It took me weeks to get to the bottom of what was troubling her."
"You both are so young. I can't believe all the obstacles you've faced together."
"Well, don't let anyone fool you. She's the strong one. I don't know what I'd do if it weren't for her," Jack looked over at Harry and gave him a stern look. From the look in his eyes Jack was telling the truth, he would be lost without her.
"Where is she now?" Harry asked looking around the room.
"She wasn't too happy about what Luis had to say either. She said she was going up to bed, but if I know Lily she's up in her room right now doing anything but sleeping. She can never sleep with things on her mind either," Jack said chuckling to himself.
"How long has she been your girlfriend?" Harry asked even though he already knew the answer because Ron had told him earlier. He was hoping to change the subject away from the battle. He could tell Jack was upset about it.
"We started dating two years ago, but Lily's more than just my girlfriend. She's my best friend. She has been for years now, since that first night at the welcoming feast. She just sat down and we hit it off. When I think about something happening to her I just…" Jack stopped talking suddenly and looked toward to ceiling listening closely.
"What is it…?" Harry wondered now looking at the ceiling himself. Just then they heard a female voice screaming in great pain from the floor above.
Jack raced up the stairs with Harry close behind him. "Who is that screaming?" he asked when they were halfway up the stairs.
"It's Lily," Jack answered as he ran up the remaining stairs and down the right. As they approached the door the screams got louder. When Jack opened the door, Harry heard his daughter not only screaming in pain but pleading for her life.
"PLEASE JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING! I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU WANT FROM ME!" Lily was tossing and turning in her bed with tears streaming down her face.
Jack ran to one side of the bed and Harry ran to the other. By now Ron and Hermione were awake and came running into the room rubbing their eyes but looking extremely concerned.
"What is it, Son?" Ron asked frantically as he came closer to the four poster bed.
"I don't know she just started screaming like this again," Jack replied sitting on the bed next to Lily.
"Again? This has happened before," Harry asked frantically.
Ignoring Harry's question Jack started shaking Lily's shoulders trying to wake her up, "Come on Lily! Its Jack…I'm right here…you need to wake up and come back to us! Whatever they're doing to you will be over once you open your eyes." Lily continued crying and trashing about in her sleep in spite of all Jack's efforts.
"PLEASE…I'LL DO ANYTHING…JUST PLEASE STOP…I DON'T UNDERSTAND…," Lily screamed once more and arched her shoulders as if someone had hit her in the small of her back. Harry looked down at the sheets and saw blood. Her lip was bleeding and her cheek looked bruised.
Harry quickly grew tired of people ignoring him and walked around the bed to where Ron stood with Hermione. He took Ron by the arm and got his attention by shaking him firmly. "Who is she talking to?"
"We don't know, she won't tell anyone," Ron answered flatly not taking his eyes off Lily.
Harry looked over at Lily and Jack and was glad to see that he had gotten her to open her eyes and look at him. "What the hell happened?" Jack said as he bent over to hold her close in his arms as she began to sob uncontrollably. She didn't say anything; she just clung to Jack as if her life depended on it.
"Lil, I've got you now. Mum and Dad are here. It's just us, no one is going to hurt you anymore. But I can't help you if don't tell me who's been hurting you." Jack pulled away from Lily and held her by her shoulders looking at her now with tears in his own eyes. Harry could tell that it physically hurt Jack to see her in such incredible pain, and once again he was grateful to him for taking care for her so much.
Jack reached up to her lip and wiped some blood away along with some tears. He traced the bruise on her cheek with his index finger. He asked in a very soft and comforting voice, "Who hurt you?"
Lily opened her month to speak but instead of words she suddenly began screaming again. Jack let go of her in astonishment and looked at his parents for help. Lily was now curled up in a little ball screaming and whimpering in agony. Harry had tears in his own eyes and was also looking at Ron and Hermione. Hermione put her hand on Harry's shoulder. No one was really all that sure what they should do.
"Can't you do something?" Harry asked with a shaky voice. Both Ron and Hermione shook their heads.
Jack turned his attention back to Lily and touched her shoulder gently, "Lily you've got to tell me where it hurts, baby."
Through clinched teeth Lily replied, "EVERYWHERE" Jack looked at his parents in horror.
Ron looked at Harry again and said with confidence, "The Cruciatus Curse."
"It has to be…but how…no one here has put it on her," Harry asked half to Ron and half to himself.
Jack was so absorbed with what was happening to Lily that he didn't hear any of Ron and Harry's conversation. If he had, he most likely would have wondered why a stranger was this concerned.
"That's it…I'm taking her to St. Mungos," Jack said scooping her up in his arms and looking to his parents before disappearing. Harry, Ron, and Hermione soon followed where they knew he had gone. Once things came into sight they saw Jack running up the steps of the hospital. They ran after him not even thinking about the fact that Ron and Hermione were still in their night cloths.
Jack busted through the front doors and immediately started screaming himself, "SOMEBODY HELP ME! PLEASE WE NEED HELP!" Two healers came over to Jack and they led him behind a set of double doors. Another healer stopped Harry, Ron and Hermione from going after them.
"You'll have to wait in here. Someone will be with you shortly." They were led into a private waiting room off to the side of the emergency area. This place had changed a lot since the last time Harry had seen it.
"What the hell is going on?" Harry asked as soon as the healer closed the door.
"We don't know, Harry. Lily started having those dreams last year after she and Jack went on their first mission. They've steadily gotten worst. She screams in pain but her pain usually ends when Jack or one of us wakes her up. She usually fine after that, but the last few times it's happened she had been really tired and achy for a few days after the dreams. I've even seen bruises on her arms and legs after she has had a dream, though she does her best to hide them. We know that in her dreams she's reliving a memory. We just can't get her to tell us what it is. Jacks tried to get her to talk to him and so have Ron and I. She just won't talk," Hermione said quickly.
"It's something that happened to her before she came to Hogwarts. It has to be because I think Hermione and I would know about something had happened after she came to school," Ron said taking a seat and running his hands through his hair.
Harry was pacing the room and staring at the door waiting for someone to come back and give them some kind of news, "Whatever it is it was something big to have caused her such pain all these years."
Hermione spoke up again, "That's just it Harry I don't recall her having any problems with dreams until they posed as a death eater couple for the first time at that party last summer. Perhaps that party brought back a memory her mind had suppressed."
"I don't know what is causing this. But someone is trying to hurt my little girl and I'll be damned if I just stand by and let it happen," Harry said angrily.
"I don't know what we can do, Harry. Until she tells us what happened to her. There is no way to know what memory or experience is causing this until that happens," Ron stated.
Harry stopped pacing and looked his friend in the eye. "Ron, she's my daughter. I know what its like to be haunted by a past you don't want to talk to anyone about, even those you love. She's not alone in that aspect of things anymore."
"You're going to tell her?" Hermione wondered hopefully.
"As soon as we know she's okay," Harry said firmly.
Several minutes passed between the friends in complete silence. Harry was running the events of the night through his mind. He couldn't get the image of his daughter in that much pain out of his mind.
After about an hour a female healer came into the waiting room, "You may go back and see her now. She is stable though very weak. She's been sedated to help control the pain and cease anymore nightmares. She will be allowed to go home tomorrow if all goes well and as long as you promise to have her rest. You are forbidden from asking her any questions regarding her dreams tonight. The other healers and myself feel it would be unhealthy for her because she is so frail at the moment."
With that and not another word the healer walked out of the room with Ron, Hermione, and Harry close in toe. They went through the double doors and down a long hallway filled with people and medical instruments lining the walls. They came to the last door on the left. The healer opened the door and stood aside letting the three adults pass her. Once they were inside she closed the door to keep out the noise from the hallway.
Lily was on the hospital bed, looking about as pale as the bed sheets around her. She had her eyes closed but they could tell she really was sleeping peacefully this time because her breathing was very steady. Jack was sitting in a chair with his back to the door holding her hand.
Ron came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Is she okay?"
"They say she will be, but I know better. She's not okay. She's suffering in silence and has been for a long time. I just don't know what to do about it," Jack said as he lowered his head and rested it on the edge of Lily's bed never letting go of her hand.
"What happened at that first party you went to where you posed as the death eater couple?" Hermione asked as she patted Jack on the back and then walked over to Ron and leaned against the wall.
Jack raised his head up and looked over at Lily's sleeping form on the bed. He began his story in a very quiet voice first. "We got there just as everyone else was arriving. We mingled for a few moments before we met Malfoy. He greeted us and when she took Lily's hand she got this strange expression on her face. Afterward she glanced at me and got all pale and scared looking, and then she excused herself to the restroom."
"And she started having these dreams after that?" Harry wondered, unable to keep silent any longer.
"I don't know exactly. She could have had them before this but I know they got a lot worse after that yes," Jack answered looking Harry in the eye silently pleading for help. Harry looked away not wanting to Jack to realize the pain in his eyes was the pain a father has when his child has been hurt.
"How long has she had those scars on her back," Harry asked remembering them from earlier in the evening.
"She's had them since I've known her. She says they're birth marks," Jack said looking down to make sure she wasn't waking up.
"Strange looking birthmarks," Harry replied knowing full well it was a lie. He would have remembered something like that. She certainly had gotten the scars between the time after he left and before she came to Hogwarts.
"We've got to get back to the house to check on the other children. Did they give Lily a dreamless sleep potion," Hermione asked.
"Yes, but you guys go on without me. I'm not leaving her, nor after all that's happened. She may not remember coming here and I want to be here when she wakes up," Jack said looking back to his mother.
"Okay, we'll come back tomorrow morning to help you bring her home. And I'll owl Luis at the department. It's not a good idea for you guys to be going on that mission this weekend and I think for once he'll agree with me," Ron said as he and Hermione walked toward the door. Jack nodded in response but his eyes never left the lifeless girl in front of him.
When Ron looked back he noticed that Harry had not moved from Lily's bedside. "Harold, are you coming with us?" Ron asked reminding Harry that in the eyes of Jack he was still just a friend of the family and not Lily's father. Harry reluctantly followed his friends out of the hospital room.
Once outside the room Harry asked Ron, "Do you really think it's wise to leave them alone?"
"Harry, Jack and Lily have been taking care of themselves and each other for years now. If anyone can help Lily now, Jack can. I know you're upset about all this, but we'll talk to Lily tomorrow when she comes home," Ron patted his friend on the back before they apparated back to their house.
The minutes passed like hours for Jack sitting by Lily's bedside hopping for her to wake up. He ran the events of the past few hours over and over in his mind. Obviously she had had these dreams before, but they were never this bad.
Most of the time she would have them in the early morning, and Jack would be the only one she woke up because he was a light sleeper. Other times she would have them in the middle of the night, but wouldn't make a noise. Jack would instinctively wake up with the feeling that she needed him. He would go into her room and find her tossing and turning in her sleep. He'd wake her up and hold her in his arms for a little while. Then she was usually fine.
Now however the dreams had intensified. She was physically being beaten up in her dreams and had the bruises the prove it. Jack looked at her right arm, the one he was not holding, and noticed a large bruise between her elbow and her wrist.
He stood up from his chair and gently pulled back the sheets so they were past Lily's waist. He could see from the gap between her shirt and her pants that she also had bruises on her stomach. Moving her hands away from her stomach, Jack pulled her shirt up to her lower ribcage. Her entire ribcage was bruised and he could tell she had some bruised ribs. But it was something else on the side of her ribcage that caught his attention. She had a deep scar that by the looks of it must have been at least a few years old.
Unable to take anymore, he pulled her top down and covered her back up. Sitting down in his chair Jack laid his forehead on the bed once more and let the tears in his eyes flow. He couldn't understand why anyone would want to hurt Lily. She had done nothing wrong.
"J…Jack," he heard a groggy voice say.
He raised his head to find Lily was awake and looking at him through squinted eyes. He grabbed her hand and wiped a tear from her face, "Thank god you're alright." He kissed the back of her hand softly and brushed small strands of hair off her face.
"I'm fine Jack…but how did I get here," she asked looking around the hospital room.
"I brought you here. You woke up screaming and I couldn't get you to stop this time…I didn't know what else to do," he said as tears once again began to fall, "Lil, it kills me to see you like this."
She brought her hand up to his face this time and wiped several of his fallen tears away. She looked him in the eye and could see his conflicting emotions, "I'm sorry I put you through this," she said before turning her head, beginning to sob quietly.
He reached over and tenderly turned her head to face him again, "Don't even think about being sorry. I'm just glad I came in when I did. I don't know what was happening to you, but I do know it was going to kill you if you didn't wake up. And it may have killed you again if I hadn't gotten you here when I did. The healer's told me that much."
She took hold of his other hand and looked at him through puffy eyes, "Let's not talk about this tonight…can't you just hold me?"
Jack hesitated for a second. He had seen the bruises all over her body even if she didn't think he had, "I want to Lil…it's just that…I don't want to hurt you anymore than you already have been."
"I think the healer gave me something for pain because I'm basically numb. Besides, I know you could never hurt me."
He nodded his head and got into bed with her. She placed her head on his chest and let out a deep sigh. Laying there in each other's arms they forgot about all that had happened for a little while and let sleep take them to a place without the pain they were both feeling.
Morning came to the Weasley house at a later hour than usual. Harry of course had not slept a wink, but everyone else slept in due to their lack of sleep the night before. When Harry, Ron, and Hermione arrived home from the hospital they found the remaining four Weasley children wide awake and waiting for them in the living room. They all seemed so concerned for Lily and wanted to know where they were.
Harry was sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee when Hermione and Ron came down the stairs around ten-o-clock due to their late night trip to the hospital. "Hey, how ya doing mate," Ron asked as he poured himself a large cup of coffee and sat down next to him.
"I've been better," Harry answered under his breath.
The back door was pushed open at that exact second and Jack peeked his head in the house, "Morning everyone," he said as he stepped aside to reveal that he had Lily with him. She looked considerably better than she had the night before. Her bruises her healed, but she still appeared to be very weak.
Hermione ran over to the door, "Lily how are you feeling, dear?"
Jack held her hand tightly to steady her and she held on to his arm with the hand he was not holding, looking rather stiff and in a little bit of pain. She was very off balance and looked like she had been up for days.
She offered Hermione a small smile, "I'm fine, Aunt Hermione."
Jack led her into the living room and sat her down on the couch taking a seat next to her. Hermione entered moments later with a cup of tea for Lily and she handed Jack a cup of coffee. Jack took the mug but never drank out of it; he was too busy staring at Lily trying to see if she was really okay.
"We didn't know they were going to release her so early. We would have come up and helped you," Ron said taking a seat and gesturing for Harry to do the same.
"We just wanted to get out of there," Jack told his father in a low voice. Lily said nothing for several minutes.
After taking several very short sips of tea Lily turned to Ron, "I'm really sorry about waking you guys up last night, Uncle Ron."
Ron shuck his head, "No Lily we're just glad that you're okay now. You had us worried sick."
Setting her cup down on the coffee table she looked down at her feet, "I know and I'm sorry I put you through that."
"It's not your fault. We just need to know why you keep having these dreams. Obviously they're getting worse and we need to think of a way to stop them," Ron said eyeing Harry cautiously.
"You can't stop them, no one can. But I don't want to talk about it. I'd rather forget the whole thing actually," Lily said standing up and walking over to the window.
Jack was not taking no for an answer however. He snapped his head towards her and spoke forcefully, "No Lily, not this time. I'm not letting you brush this off again and wake up to find you dead in your bed one morning. Tell us what is causing you to have these dreams."
"Please Jack, I just want to forget about it. It's something I've spent the better part of seven years trying to forget," Lily said looking at him with very visible tears in her eyes.
"Well clearly that isn't working. Tell me the truth! You've always been able to tell me anything. When did that change?" Jack asked looking hurt.
Lily looked at him with eyes that had now turned to anger, "You want to know the truth? You really want to know? Well here it is Jack Weasley…I spent the last five months before I came to Hogwarts in a prison. Oh yes…a prison where I was tortured in mind and body everyday. I spent five months in the custody of death eaters who had every intention of keeping me there for the rest of my life…or how ever long they were going to let me live." Her voice had now reached the level of screaming and her eyes never left Jack's.
Lily said all this while walking closer to Jack who was still sitting on the couch looking stunned beyond words. When she got close enough to him he stood up and tried to reach out to her, but she pushed his hands away.
"No Jack, you wanted the truth so you're going to get it! You want to know about the all those times I sat in that dungeon praying that God would let me die so that my pain would go away. When I was first brought there I begged and pleaded for days to know what I had done to deserve such treatment. It didn't take me long to realize that it was not me who had done anything wrong; it was who I was plain and simply wrong. I'm the famous Harry Potter's daughter, destined for hardship and pain since the day I was born! Not long after I realized this, I started begging for a different kind of mercy. I begged them to end my life and have it all be over. The Potter bloodline would be gone and all their problems would be solved. Then Draco Malfoy paid me a little visit one day," Lily saw the shock in Jack's eyes, "Oh yes the same Draco Malfoy we all know and love. He explained to me that he was not going to kill me just then. He said he wanted Harry Potter to know just how much he made his daughter suffer. And when I was old enough he said he would take pleasure in knowing how angry Harry Potter would be if he knew I had been forced to carry the next generation of Malfoy children. He was going to rape me Jack! Rape me and force me to give birth to his bastard children. Do you know what it's like to live in that kind of fear?"
Jack tried again to reach out to comfort her once more but this time she shoved him away so hard he nearly fell over. Hermione had her hand over her mouth and tears where running down her face. Ron sat with Harry, both of them in complete silence.
Lily began talking again this time though her voice softer as tears too made their way down her cheeks, "I was ten years old Jack! Ten years old and all I wanted to do was die so that it would be over! Not only was I tormented for five solid months, but the things I was subjected to continue to haunt me to this day. I see him in my dreams. He comes to me and tells me that his plans for me are not yet over, and that one day he'll come for me again and finish what he started. And now after what happened last night it appears that he has the power to hurt me while I'm awake. Well you know what, Jack? I wish he would just come and take me already and get it over with, because I can't take much more of this!"
With those last words Lily started sobbing into her hands and allowed Jack to take her in his arms. She buried her face in his chest and after a few moments she wrapped her own arms around his waist and returned his embrace. She continued to sob as her body shook with grief, having finally let go of the horrors she had been carrying all by herself for seven years.
Jack rubbed her back and tried to comfort her in the only way he knew how, "Lily, everything is going to be okay. I'm never going to let anything happen to you. You've got to believe me. I just wish you would have told me about this sooner. I could have helped you deal with it…I could have been there for you. All I've ever wanted to do was keep you safe. I'd die if something happened to you," he said pulling away from her slightly and walking her toward the stairs. They walked up the stairs without a backward glance at the stunned parents they were leaving behind.
Once they were out of hearing range Hermione let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding, "I can't believe she's been carrying that around all this time."
Harry simply put his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands. Ron put his hand on his friend's shoulder, "You alright, Harry?"
"No Ron, I am very far from being alright!" Harry said angrily as he stood up and started pacing the room.
"Harry," Ron began cautiously. "I know you're upset…but you can't-"
Harry snapped his head violently in to look Ron in the eye. "Upset? I'm more than upset! I've never been so infuriated in my entire life!"
"Harry, please! Keep your voice down!" Hermione pleaded glancing up at the ceiling where Jack and Lily were on the floor above.
Harry was about to recant with something smart, but instead took a tense but cleansing breath and looked down. "I need some air," he told them. "I'm going outside for a few minutes." With that, Harry walked stiffly out the door and into the backyard.
"You'd better go after him," Hermione advised.
"Maybe he needs some time alone," Ron guessed.
"Ron, this is what Harry does when he's hurting. He runs away. He may say he wants to be alone, but he really needs to face this. It's the only way he's going to accept it and be there for Lily," Hermione said seriously.
"I know," Ron said looking at the door. "I'm going. I just don't really know what to say. What would I want him to say to me if it were my daughter in this position?"
"Lily is the closest thing you have to a daughter. You've loved her like she was our own child for as long as you've known her. How are you handling this news?" Hermione asked looking at her husband closer.
Ron thought about the question for a minute before responding. How did he feel about it? He hadn't really had time to think about all of it yet. The thought of someone hurting Lily made him crazy with anger. Hermione saw the conflicted look on his face and walked over to him, encircling him with her arms from behind.
"It's okay to be upset. We all are," she told him gently.
"We need to be strong for her," Ron said in an unsteady voice.
"Lily's not here right now. It's just you and me. I won't tell anyone you let your guard down for a few minutes."
Ron turned around to look Hermione in the eye. "I'm angry that this happened to her. I'm angry that I wasn't there to stop it. I'm hurt that she didn't tell us about it sooner. We could have helped her. There was no reason for her to go through this alone."
Hermione smiled through her unshed tears and shook her head. "Lily is a Potter. She likes to hide from the things that cause her pain. Just like her father is doing right now. You can't blame yourself for that, it's genetic."
Ron's eyes that were once glazed over now brimmed red with tears. "I just hope we don't loose her like we lost Harry."
"We didn't loose Harry. He came back," Hermione reminded him.
"No, we lost who Harry used to be. Come on, 'Mione. I know you've noticed how much he's changed."
"Harry is just plagued by the past. He'll be back to normal once he knows everything is going to be alright," Hermione said, trying to sound confident.
"That's the problem. I don't know if things are going to be alright. I don't know how Lily's going to get past this."
"With our help. She's got to know that we're there for her. And she's got to know Harry's there for her too."
Ron kissed his wife's forehead. She always knew the right things to say. "Speaking of Harry, I guess I'd better get out there, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess you better," Hermione said with a small smile.
"We might be a while. Come get us if Jack or Lily needs something."
"I will," she replied as she watched Ron walk slowly and mournfully out the back door.
Ron stepped out into the muggy summer air and looked around for where Harry had gone to. He didn't see him right away, so he decided to take a little walk around. He got to the tree line in their backyard and when he passed the first oak tree, he saw his friend sitting up against the tree.
"I don't know what to do," Harry said without even looking up.
Ron took a seat next to him and gazed up at the milky sky. "You don't know what to do about what?"
"I don't know how to face her again. I'm the reason this happened. If Malfoy hadn't hated me so much, maybe he wouldn't have done this to my daughter. She shouldn't have to pay for my mistakes."
"Harry, the only person at fault here is Draco Malfoy. He may have hated you, yes, but that doesn't give him the right to do what he did to Lily. Nothing would ever give him that right."
"But still…" Harry took a deep breath and stood up.
"Don't run away from this. You've got to face it. What happened happened; there was nothing you could do about it then, and there is nothing you can do about it now. We've all just got to face it and help Lily get through this."
Harry turned to face him and threw his hands up in frustration. "What do you want me to do, Ron? How can I tell her who I am now? I wasn't there when I should have been! I wasn't there when she needed me the most!"
Ron stood up as well. "She needs you just as much now as she ever has in the past. I've never seen Lily broken like this. All the fight in her is gone. She needs you to help her get it back!"
"I don't know how to help her!" Harry admitted, his face growing red with anger.
"All you have to do is be here!" Ron said taking a step forward.
"My being there isn't going to take it away! It isn't going to make it all disappear!" Harry countered taking yet another challenging step towards Ron.
"It isn't your job to make it disappear! It's your job to let her know that you love her! It's your job to show her that its okay to be afraid and angry and upset."
"Yeah well, I don't know how to show her that!"
"Welcome to parenthood," Ron said darkly, under his breath.
Without warning, Harry shoved Ron away from him. "Back off, Ron!"
The two friends stood staring at each other for a few tense seconds. Ron spoke first, breaking their awkward silence. "You wanna fight me? Fine, go ahead! If fighting me will help you escape the pain you're going through, then by all means be my guest. But whatever you're trying to get rid of, I promise you it'll be right there waiting for you when the fight's over."
Harry continued to stare at Ron with a hard expression, but all of a sudden backed off and walked a few steps away. "Why did this have to happen to her? Why couldn't they just leave her alone?" he asked miserably.
Ron claimed his voice slightly, but not much. "Look mate, I know you're hurting over this. It's got to be killing you to know what that man has done to her. But do not make the mistake of thinking that you're the only one who loves that girl in there. It's killing all of us."
Harry looked down at the ground and turned his back to Ron. A few minutes went by before Ron saw any movement from him at all. His shoulders were shaking and he could hear Harry's nearly silent sobs. He allowed Harry a few moments alone with his grief before he walked over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.
"It's gonna to be alright. We'll get thought this together…You, me, "Mione, Jack and kids…We've got to stick together if we're going to help Lily at all. We're the only family she's got."
Harry turned to face Ron and nodded his head slowly. "I…um…haven't really got the chance to thank you for all you've done for her over the past few years."
"She's the daughter I never had, mate. I mean that," Ron said with certainty.
"Thank you, that means a lot to me that you love her so much. I know she loves you all. I can see it in her eyes."
Neither of them noticed when the Weasley's second oldest son Andrew stuck his head out the back door. "What's wrong?" Andrew asked with concern in his voice.
Harry and Ron both looked up, startled to see Andy standing there. "Nothing Andy, Lily's just a little upset after last night, that's all," Ron said trying to sound reassuring but failing miserably.
"Is she going to be okay?" Andrew wondered with concern.
"Jack's with her now…I'm sure she'll be just fine after he gets her calmed down. Tell you what, why don't you take your brothers and go stay with your grandparents at the Burrow for the night. Things might get a little rough here and I don't want them to see it."
"Okay Dad," Andrew replied as he turned to go back into the house.
Ron turned to Harry. "Take a few minutes. Get yourself together and then come inside. I'm going to go help them get ready."
"Thanks," Harry replied watching Ron walk back up towards the house.
a/n- Well...review please!