AN: Once again thank you for all the reviews, always make me smile.

I'd like to make one thing clear so there will be no misunderstandings. It really doesn't matter have you or have you not read Alexander Dumas novel "Le Comte de Monte Cristo" because my fic is going to be very simplified version of that great classic. Just letting you know.

Oh, and I don't know really anything about Azkaban so I make it up to my own mind.

Disclaimer: I do not owe any Harry Potter- character.

BARON RÖNNSKÄR

CHAPTER 3 MEMORIES OF THE PRISONER

When conscious slowly crept back to Ron he wasn't sure was he dead or alive. Only thing that he knew was that wherever he was he didn't know the place. He was surrounded by stone; stonewalls, stone floor, stone ceiling. There was only one window and it had bars. The iron door was locked. Ron tried to apparate but couldn't. It was then when he noticed his clothing; clothes he had worn earlier had been replaced by prisoner's uniform. Ron's heart missed a beat. This place…it couldn't be…oh sweet Merlin NO!

Ron started to bang the door and screamed as loud as he could. After few minutes somebody finally came.

"What is it?" asked very irritated male voice from the other side of the door.

"Where am I? Please, tell me where am I?" Ron pleaded.

A cruel laugh came from the other side. "My friend, you are enjoying the hospitality of the Azkaban".

Ron could feel how every colour from his face disappeared. "There…there has been a mistake. I'm not supposed to be here!" Ron screamed.

"Just try to guess how many times I've heard that one" said the male voice and then Ron heard footsteps going away.

"No! Don't go! I'm not joking, my name is Ronald Weasley! I'm member of the Order of the Phoenix and personal friend of Harry Potter! Come back! At least take a message to my…" Ron's sound faded away as he was about to say 'family'. He knew that there was nobody listening him. Why am I here? What is my crime? Taking a letter, perhaps? Certainly they wouldn't send me here because of that!

After few hours Ron heard footsteps behind the door. He was anxiously expecting the door to open and minister or somebody to be there apologising from him. To his disappointment only a small hatchet was opened from where came one plate and one basket.

"In the plate is your food" said the voice from other side. "It shall be filled twice a day. You use the bucket as a toilet".

"I'm innocent, goddamn! I demand to speak to some authority!" Ron yelled.

"All in good time" said very bored voice.

"WHEN!" Ron yelled but didn't receive any answer. He gave one quick glance toward the plate, before kicking to the wall. He didn't even dare to think what that 'food' had been in its former life.

The following days went by and Ron stayed in his little cell. He refused to give up hope. He also refused to eat. But after the fifth day he gave in to the hunger. Sadly he wasn't hungry enough to forget how disgusting the food was. How he missed to get back eating his mother Molly's food. He kept demanding to speak to some authority. After two months: still nothing.

Days became weeks. Weeks became months.

Before Ron noticed it he had been a year in that small room. Why do they keep me in solitude? He sometimes wondered. He cried then, praying he would see his family, his friends and Hermione again. She would be my wife by now, he thought bitterly.

After two years Ron snapped. He screamed and screamed and screamed. Ever since the second war

Azkaban had been guarded by wards and spells, instead of Dementors as they were banished from Britain for fighting at Voldemort's side. Still they had left their mark to the place: as Ron screamed he felt that he would never be happy again.

Ron had absolutely no idea how long had he been there by now. Sometimes when he woke up he didn't even know had he been sleeping for hours or days. Where was his family? Where was his life? The memories were the only thing Ron had anymore. As he lay on the cold stone floor he remembered his past.

He was eight years old:

"Faster, Ron, faster!" seven years old Ginny shouted to her brother while laughing. Ron was pushing her in the swing.

"If I push faster you'll be flying off" he shouted behind her. And with that Ginny let go and for a moment flew in the air before elegantly landing to the ground without any harm. Ron was so stunned that he didn't realise to duck the swing that came back to his direction and hit his straight to face.

Next thing he knew he was in his bed.

"You should rest. You survived but you might be dizzy this afternoon" Molly said. Ginny was behind her, looking ashamed.

"I'm sorry, Ron" she said and Ron could have swear he heard a sob.

"That's okay" he said. It was in his nature to forgive things to Ginny; after all he loves his sister very much.

Ron had another memory about his sister, this time he was 18:

"Don't worry about Harry, Ginny. He'll be fine" Ron tried to comfort his little sister who was bouncing up and down.

She turned around to look at him face as red as her hair. "You don't know that! You don't know if he will survive! How can you know! His just 18 years old and he has to face You-Know-Who! His survived in his life this far because his been helped in the end he has to face him alone!" Ginny was hysterical now.

"Do you think I don't know that?" Ron shouted back. "Do you think I'm not afraid? I'm paralyzed! It's true that Harry has gotten this far because he was helped, but who helped him? The order and his friends, which I happen to be! And I'm going to help him during this time as I have helped him past eight years! I and Hermione are both also afraid of loosing him".

Ginny's eyes were now filled with tears.

"Ginny…" Ron tried and soon found his baby sister hugging him.

"I can't loose him! I can't! I can't!" she kept crying. Ron hugged her for several minutes till she had calmed down.

"I'm sorry I shouted" she said after pulling herself off from him.

"That's okay" he said. He always forgave her. "You love him, don't you?" he asked.

She nodded. "Does it bother you?" she asked.

"No". It had been weird when they had started to date couple of years back; his sister and best friend. Now Ron only hoped they would all come out of this alive.

They had come out of it alive. He had, Hermione had, Harry had, and Ginny had. Some people weren't as lucky. Ron remembered how he had seen the death of Luna Lovegood during the final battle, he had been 19, 20 in a month.

"Well, well, well…the last Longbottom" Bellatrix Lestrange laughed as her wand pointed straight to Neville. The final battle had in the end taken its place in the school of Hogwarts. From what Ron saw while he was fighting Bellatrix had cast a curse that had hit Neville towards armour on the wall. Armour had fallen to pieces and Neville had lost his wand.

"Just before I torture you lunatic like I tortured you parents, I shall free this world of one loony" Bellatrix said, eyes glowing. And before anyone could do a thing she cast a killing curse towards a blonde girl fighting on the order's side. Neville watched in horror as his girlfriend Luna Lovegood died.

Bellatrix laughed, obviously believing that Neville could not be thread to her. It was just as big surprised to her as to Neville, when Neville found strength to raise the armours sword from the floor and cut a wand holding hand from Bellatrix Lestrange. Ron could hear her screaming but was busy at the moment with his own fight to actually see what happened. When he next time looked Neville was on his way towards Luna's body while Bellatrix was dead. Not by curse.

Battle had lasted what seemed like hours. Ron had not seen Harry's triumph over the most evil wizard ever lived. At the moment he was unconscious from loosing lots of blood. He had jumped in front of a sectumsempra- curse that was about to hit Hermione. When he woke up he was at St. Mungo.

"I take it we won as you are standing there" Ron said to Harry, who was standing by his bed.

Harry had a small smile. "Yeah, we did" he said.

"Is he truly dead? V-Voldemort won't come back this time" Ron asked, for the first time in his life being able to say the feared name.

Harry smiled to that. "No, he won't be coming back anymore".

"Who of us survived?" Ron asked though he feared what he would hear.

Harry's smile disappeared. "I'm sorry Ron. Your brother Charlie didn't make it".

Ron had been prepared that his whole family wouldn't survive. It wasn't any easier still.

Harry continued. "Everyone else in your family survived. Also Remus, Tonks and Moody, though it isn't sure if he will live for long, he was badly injured. Neville and Seamus and Malfoy survived also. Luna died…" Harry was cut of by Ron saying that he had seen it. After almost ten minutes Harry had informed Ron what had happened.

"I'll be going now" Harry said. "I promised to tell Hermione the moment you would wake up. She would have stayed here but her healer skills were needed".

10 minutes after Harry's leaving Hermione came running to his side. After another 10 minutes she calmed down a little bit and started to believe that Ron wasn't dying anytime soon.

"What possessed you to do it, Ron?" she asked. "Why did you take the curse?"

Ron realised that during the last two years when they had been more than just best friends neither had said the 'l' word to another. They had simply taken it granted; their gestures and eyes told it. But now Ron decided to take the final step he had wanted to take for years now.

"Because it was going to hit you, 'Mione" he said. "Haven't you figured yet how much I love you?" he then asked.

Hermione seemed to also realise that they hadn't said it before because her eyes were full of tears now. She rested her head carefully on his chest.

"I love you too, Ron".

Ron would have been ready to kiss Voldemort's butt if he could see Hermione's eyes and hear her saying those words to him again. And then Ron cried as he finally realised that he would probably never here them again.

AN: I have a hunch that these chapters will become longer in the near future. As always: reviews are welcomed.