A/N: I don't own Harry Potter or any related characters

Warning: death, blood, grieving,

Word Count: 1363

The sound of stone crashing pulled Hermione's attention from the battle surrounding her. She looked over in time to see the wall broken in bricks on the ground, a pale hand sticking out of the rubble. For a moment, her heart sank. She recognized that skin, even covered in the dust. She knew he'd been over there, fighting over there by that window. Ignoring all logical thinking, she ran over, her eyes wide with panic. She started grabbing the small stones, tossing them, throwing them over her shoulder. She had to get him out.

"Someone help me!" she screamed. Her words swallowed up by the battle around her. After what seemed like an eternity, hands grabbed her shoulder, pulling her back. The stones were lifted, levitated slowly off the body. Hermione's screams grew louder as his torso was revealed, as she saw his blood stained shirt and jeans. His head was last, crushed to be almost recognizable. She knew it was him.

"Ron," she whispered, tears falling freely from her eyes. Their trails cleaned the dust from her cheeks. She reached out and took his hand, it was limp in hers.

"He's gone, Hermione. There's nothing we can do for him."

"No, no, that's got to be a way to save him," she stated, her voice trembling as she frantically felt for a pulse, for any way that he could still be alive. She knew the truth, she just, she just refused to accept it. Hands pulled her back away from him. She heard Mrs. Weasley screaming, wailing. Hermione's own voice joined hers. Ron had been one of her best friends. He had kissed her! He had finally kissed her and now...now he was dead! He'd finally noticed her and now he was dead!

"We need to help those who can be saved."

"Fuck off!" Hermione yelled, pushing the person who'd been trying to take her away from Ron. She crawled back to his body, his motionless, lifeless body.

"Hermione, please, come on." Hands grabbed her again, she kicked, wiggled, until she was released again. Sitting on the stone floor, bits of the broken wall stabbing her legs, she rocked back and forth, sobbing.

"Leave her for now. We've got injured to help," someone ordered. Hermione felt like they were talking somewhere else, somewhere far away, like they were at one end of a tunnel and she the other. She rocked back and forth, the stone bits cutting into her legs where her jeans were ripped. Her shirt was covered in blood, her hands in cuts and bruises. She wasn't sure how long she sat there. Time had lost all it's meaning. Ron had kissed her! He'd finally kissed her and they were going to live happily ever after!

"How dare you!" she finally screamed at his body. "How dare you leave me now! We were supposed to have forever!" She pounded her fists against the ground in anger, in frustration that she'd lost something she didn't even have yet. She felt slight pops in her left hand, pops that were followed by pain like she'd never felt before. In her head, she knew she's broken something, bones probably, but her heart didn't care. It was hurting too much for that pain to mean anything. It felt like hours later, although it could only have been minutes, the adrenaline wore off, the shock wore off. Slowly, Hermione became extremely aware of the pain her in hands, the pain her left leg. She looked down at it, at the blood seeping through her jeans. In a daze, she rose to her feet, the world spinning around her. Had she lost a lot of blood? There was a puddle of it, but was it hers or Ron's? She didn't know. She looked around, the edges of her vision dimmed, everything was through a tunnel, a pinprick.

"Hermione? Hermione, are you alright?"

She tried to shake her head, her breath catching in her chest.

"She's hurt, someone help!"

Hermione realized she couldn't hear the noise anymore, the background noises of screams, of those mourning the loss of life. She felt the world collapsing beneath her, or maybe it was just her own legs. She pitched backwards, something catching her. She didn't feel the ground beneath her.

"I've got you."

"Ron's dead," she slurred, as the world finally went entirely black.

"Miss Granger, can you hear me?"

Hermione blinked her eyes open. The world was bright, sunlight shining through the windows of the room. She looked around. Madame Pomfrey was standing over her.

"Miss Granger?"

"Yes," Hermione answered. Why was she here? She couldn't remember why she was here? Wasn't there somewhere she was supposed to be, somewhere important? Wait! Lord Voldemort! She, Ron and Harry needed to stop him, needed to get to the castle. That's where he was going. She tried to sit up only to find she couldn't.

"You're under a partial body bind, Miss Granger."

"We need to..." Hermione's voice trailed off as she realized she was in the castle. She was hurt. She blinked, trying to piece together what had happened. It was like having three puzzles mixed up together and trying to figure out what piece went where.

"Do you know what day it is?" Madame Pomfrey asked.

"No. Wait, it's May. I know that much. Where are Ron and Harry? We need to stop him! He's after the diadam!"

"Miss Granger, the diadam has been destroyed, the battle has been won. Do you remember the battle?"

Flashes of people, wands in the air, spells flying through the air filled Hermione's memory. Harry had been dead, but then, no he wasn't dead. Someone was dead. Lord Voldemort was dead, wasn't he? Madame Pomfrey had said they'd won. Lord Voldemort must be dead then. No, someone else was dead, someone more...someone closer.

"Who?" she asked. "Who died?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you. This is the second time you've woken up since you were brought here. Your injuries were minor, although you'd lost a fair amount of blood. However, you had be to be sedated with a calming draught and bond to keep you from hurting yourself."

"Who?" Hermione asked, her eyes darkening.

"Hermione! You're awake," Ginny's voice yelled. Hermione blinked as the younger girl threw her arms around Hermione.

"Ginny, they won't tell me. Who's dead?" Hermione asked, tears starting to form in the edges of her brown eyes. They wouldn't tell her, it was someone she knew, someone she was close to. Harry wasn't dead. She was sure of that.

"I should get Mum."

"Ginny."

Ginny glanced at Madame Pomfrey who had stepped back.

"Alright, I'll tell you, but please, please stay calm this time, please?"

Hermione nodded slowly, her mind already starting to put the puzzle pieces together again. Harry wasn't dead. Ginny wasn't dead. There were only a handful of people left.

"Ron's dead isn't he?" she asked, looking at Ginny, as if hoping she would deny it, that Ron was alive and fine and in the other room waiting to see her. Ginny nodded, tears starting to fall. Hermione reached out and took her hand.

"They couldn't get away from his body. You nearly attacked Madame Pomfrey when you woke up the first time. I know you were grieving, we're all grieving. Mum's with him, his body anyway."

"He kissed me, Ginny. He finally kissed me," Hermione whispered. Ginny sat down on the edge of Hermione's bed.

"Can you unbind her please? She's not doing to do anything."

Hermione felt the spell being lifted, could move her legs again. She curled against Ginny, laying her head in her lap. Ginny stroked Hermione's hair.

"We're going to get through this, Hermione. Somehow, we're going to survive. It's what he would have wanted, he would have wanted us both to survive, to live," she whispered. Hermione merely nodded. She was tired, she hadn't slept much lately, she knew that. Slowly, she closed her eyes, Ginny holding her.

"We're going to get through this," Ginny repeated, leaning over and gently kissing Hermione's hair as Hermione allowed sleep to claim her, maybe asleep, her mind, her body could start to heal.