AN: Okay, I don't really know where this came from but it was definitely triggered by my current obsession with 'Long Live' by Taylor Swift. I know this song wasn't out in 1998, but it's honestly so perfect and when I got this idea, I had to run with it. I hope you'll enjoy it, though.
"I did it!"
Ron looked up from his tea, surprised by Hermione's shout. She sounded excited for the first time in weeks, and although he didn't share the same enthusiasm yet, it was nice to hear. She appeared in the kitchen, holding a piece of parchment in her hand like it was a lifeline, and her eyes looked a little damp.
"What did you do?" Ron asked curiously.
Her cheeks flushed a little, like she hadn't meant to tell him, "It's a bit silly, but it just makes sense."
"Right?" Ron pressed, even more confused.
"We spent a long time in that tent, and we talked about a lot of nonsense if you remember. Well, one night when you were gone, Harry and I were talking about what we'd do if the other died. You know, he's basically my brother, and I'd be... I am lost without him," She paused, placing the parchment down on the table. Ron nodded to himself – they had both admitted to each other that they felt lost without him.
"I don't know how serious either of us were, but we mentioned getting tattoos to honour the other. We agreed on what we wanted to be written, it's from a muggle song, and we said we'd write it down so we could get it in each other's handwriting. We never did," Hermione finished.
Ron frowned, "So, what have you got there?"
"It turns out that the professors keep copies of all of our essays, and none of them were damaged. With a bit of research and magic, I managed to find the words I needed and copy them to a piece of parchment, adjusting for size. I even managed to get the date, which was harder but doable..."
She stopped, stepping back from the table as tears streamed down her face. Ron got up, walking around the table to embrace his girlfriend, refusing to look at the parchment. He knew he'd cry if he did, and she needed him at that moment.
Once she had calmed down, Ron stepped back, letting her have her space. She smiled sadly at him, "I'm going to see if I can get it tattooed on my upper arm, just below the shoulder."
"Would you mind if... if I got it tattooed on me, too?" He asked softly, "He was my brother, too."
Hermione nodded, "If that's what you want."
Ron stepped over to the table, looking at the parchment. He smiled at it, chuckling a little. It was perfect for them, for all three of them. Cheesy, but perfect.
I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you
02.05.1998
"I love it," Ron murmured, smiling up at her, "It's perfect."
"Yeah," She agreed, "We have a day off – should we do it now?"
When they got back to the Burrow that afternoon, their arms tingling from what they had done, they found Molly cooking.
"Hey Mum," Ron greeted carefully, knowing this could go horribly wrong, but before he could say anything else, he was interrupted.
"Hermione, is –" Ginny paused, her eyes fixed to Hermione's arm, "That's Harry's handwriting."
Molly turned to the teens, "What are you on about?"
"We got tattoos," Ron said, lifting up the sleeve on his t-shirt, "As a tribute to Harry."
Molly stepped towards Ron, running her thumb over the words on his arm as her eyes filled with tears, "It's perfect."
Ginny agreed, nodding her head, "I love it."
"I want to get another one for Fred," Ron admitted, "I have an old letter from him that has 'Love, Fred' at the end, so I was thinking of getting that tattooed on my ankle, and I thought George and the others would like that, too."
He hadn't expected the hug that came his way, almost suffocating in intensity. Ron hugged Molly back, not complaining like he used to. He made eye contact with Ginny, who was trying to stop her own tears, and she smiled sadly at him, mouthing 'thank you.'
Ron looked over to Hermione, indicating that she was thanking the wrong person, and Hermione found herself almost flattened with the hug she received.
Molly stepped back, "Sorry, I just..."
"It's fine, Mum," Ron soothed, "We're all a mess right now."
He didn't tell her that the tattoo had made him feel better, like he was carrying Harry with him. That would stay between him and Hermione.
AN: I put the tattoo in as it looks in my head, as closely as possible, so with the way the lines are. If I could have shared the font, I would have done so, too. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and please review.
