Chapter Twenty One:
Hermione's Vow
A/N: So far in the Legend of Potter, Ron Weasley has been decimated, effectively eliminated from the Worldwide Wizard's Dueling Tournament. He is unconscious and in the infirmary. The Dark Wizards have revealed themselves to Harry and the crew. How will all this affect our heroes in the times to come? Also, as the Battle Royal Round draws to a close, there is the Preliminary Round match between Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy to look forward to! Read and Review please and let me know whether you love or hate this story!
As they arrived to the infirmary, the healers were getting Ron's condition to stabilize. Draco had a look of genuine worry on his face, and perhaps a bit of guilt. It had been Draco, after all, who appealed to Ron's stubbornness, and fired him up for the match. Hermione had finally stopped crying, but could only look on helplessly with sadness at the lifeless form that was her fiancée. Harry was extremely worried. He had NEVER seen that particular look in her eyes. There was a mixed expression of fury and vengeance. There was genuine hatred in her eyes as she looked on at Ron's lifeless body, yet none of it was directed at Ron.
Fleur had been crying as well, since she was worried about her brother-in-law. Both she and Hermione had won their Battle Royal matches and Ginny still didn't know as her match was just beginning as Ron's came to its tragic end. Hermione went over to his bedside and held his hand gently.
A healer walked up to Harry and Draco, "He's got a dislocated shoulder, three cracked ribs, a fractured skull, a shattered collar bone, and several burns," the healer was nervous, "Whatever curse was used on your friend is unlike anything we've ever seen, definitely Dark Magic. We've done everything we can for him, his condition has stabilized, but it may not be enough," he said somberly. Harry nodded his face paling even further.
He turned to walk out of the infirmary when Draco grabbed his arm, "It's not you fault," Harry simply shrugged off Malfoy's arm.
"I'm going to Ginny, she doesn't know yet," with that Harry set off and made his way to Ring #14 to ensure his wife was safe.
In the ring were Ginny and two other opponents, both of whom seemed to have an unspoken truce and were flinging curses and hexes at her. One was a tall man of average build, and blonde hair. The other looked very familiar to Harry; she had long black hair and was stunningly beautiful.
"Stupefy!" they both shouted.
"Protego!" shouted Ginny. The man's curse merely bounced off the shield, but the woman's curse cancelled out Ginny's shield.
"Rictu Sempra!" shouted the man.
"Expelliarmus!" shouted the woman, Ginny easily deflected the tickling charm with her wand, like Harry had shown her, and dodged the disarming charm.
"Batos Mucosa!" shouted Ginny; her infamous Bat-Bogey Hex hit the man dead on. He dropped his wand as the hex did its job. Both Ginny and the woman used chain magic against each other. Each dodged each others hexes with relative ease, but Ginny's reflexes seemed a bit slower. Harry was surprised that the woman's dueling style seemed very familiar. In fact, it was almost identical to Ginny's. Finally, Ginny gave up casting hexes and curses at her opponent and started to deflect and dodge.
It wasn't long before Ginny threw up a shield charm which was bombarded with spells. Ginny put as much into the shield as she could, but it wasn't enough. The shield became strained and shattered. Three curses hit Ginny, and went through her. Ginny shimmered and faded, Harry smiled. The woman hesitated, not sure what had happened. "Expelliarmus!" shouted Ginny from behind the woman. The woman's wand spun up in the air and Ginny caught it. Harry was proud of Ginny; even Hermione still couldn't apparate silently.
The woman had a disappointed look on her face, but she took her loss with dignity. "Well, I had hoped Ginny… but it looks like being married to Harry has paid off," she said to Ginny as she shook her hand and took back her wand. She had a touch of jealousy and envy in her voice.
"Wish it were you?" asked Ginny, a bit harshly, with a protective tone in her voice. They began to walk out of the ring, when Ginny saw Harry. Immediately she knew by Harry's expression that something was wrong. "Harry, what's wrong?" asked Ginny, who was very concerned. The woman also looked worried.
"I-It's Ron… He's been hurt pretty bad…" he hesitated saying in front of the woman, but his wife really needed to know, "He's in the infirmary," Ginny was at a loss for words. As angry as she was at Ron before, she still loved her brother very dearly.
"Harry, what happened to Ron?" asked the woman. Harry gave her a strange look.
"I'll explain on the way," he said, leading his wife and the woman to the infirmary. It was strange how normally she acted around him. She seemed familiar to him, and she even seemed to know him, but Harry still couldn't place how he knew her. He explained to both of them about the match and Ron's refusal to give up. He also told them about Ron's injuries and the seriousness about his condition. He left out the part about what the white haired wizard had said to Harry after the match.
"Harry, what is it that you're not telling us?" asked the woman, "We may not have been all that close, but I can still tell when you're hiding something."
"Who are you?" asked Harry a bit suspiciously. The woman gave a slight giggle.
"Do you honestly not recognize me?" Harry gave he a stern look as she giggled again, Ginny gave her a glare that could have killed. Before she could elaborate further, it was Draco that spoke up first, as they arrived at the infirmary.
"Ms. Chang, it's been a long time," he said coolly.
"Malfoy," she said coldly, even after all this time, she still didn't like him. That's when it dawned on Harry who the woman was.
"Cho? I didn't recognize you!" said Harry a bit astonished.
"Don't worry about;" said Cho, "You've been busy."
Both Draco and Fleur had been standing outside the infirmary. "She looked like she wanted some time alone," said Draco, Fleur nodded in agreement.
"I'll go to her," Harry said entering alone. When he entered he saw Hermione still sobbing over Ron's unconscious body.
"I-I swear Ronald… I'll get them…" Hermione vowed, "I'll make them pay… I'll do anything to have you back… P-Please please come back to me!" Hermione sobbed. Harry gave her a moment longer, before resting his hand on her shoulder. She took his hand in both of hers as he kneeled down. Once again she cried into his shoulder. "Oh Harry… If Ron… I-If he…" she was sobbing too uncontrollably to string sentences together.
"Don't worry 'Mione," comforted Harry, "It'll all be fine. Ron WILL be okay, just give him time. He'll be with us again begging to have you in his arms." Harry said this to make himself believe as much as Hermione. They had been the closest he'd had to family since his parents had died. If anything happened to either of them he knew he'd be devastated even more than anyone. They were the first people who had shown him any form of love or compassion. They were the first people who didn't think of him as some sort of criminal or gape at him because of his scar. They were the closest thing to a brother and sister he'd ever had, and he'd do anything to keep them safe. The fact that Ron had been so brutally tortured because of Harry only magnified his guilt.
"But… If he… We…" stammered Hermione. Harry understood her feelings completely, and knew what she was trying to say.
"I know, but it's too late for that," said Harry, "Just be there for him when he wakes up. You love him and he loves you, everything else will just fall into place. That's all that's important right now," he hugged her tightly, his own feeling of guilt gnawing at his insides and now Hermione, Ginny, Draco, Fleur and now maybe Cho were all in danger, as was anyone else who dared to get too close.
A/N: Harry, Draco, Fleur, Hermione and Ginny have all advanced to the Preliminary Round, but who will be the next to fall? What will be the outcome in the next chapter, when Harry goes one-on-one against Draco? What challenges lie ahead as the World Tournament progresses? Find out in the next exciting chapter of The Legend of Potter: Harry vs. Draco!