A Different Kind of Fear

Ron was certain he had never felt more scared and vulnerable in all his life. At the same time he was angry, angrier than he'd been in awhile. He glared at Bellatrix as she approached them, her cold eyes roaming over their faces. Ron blocked out what she was saying, trying his best to think up a story. He was starting to get desperate – he knew that Bellatrix hated Muggle-borns above just about everything.

Bellatrix stopped moving which caught Ron's attention. He heard, 'Take these prisoners to the cellar, Greyback,' and had just started to think that they would be momentarily okay, when he heard Bellatrix's shrilly voice say, "Wait, all except…except for the Mudblood."

Ron's stomach tightened into a knot and he felt as though he was going to be sick. Thinking to spare Hermione if at all possible, he shouted out, "NO! You can have me, keep me!"

Suddenly a sharp pain sprung up in his cheek and he realized that Bellatrix had slapped him. "If she dies under questioning, I'll take you next," she sneered, with a nod to Greyback.

Ron felt Greyback nudge them along and struggled to turn his head; he had to see Hermione, try to tell her that he would somehow rescue her. For one fleeting moment, their gazes met, and in that brief time, Hermione half-smiled at him. Ron closed his eyes as he and Harry were dragged away, burning the image of her into his mind.

Hurricanes of disconnected thoughts were buzzing through his head, but every plan he thought up had a massive flaw in one area or another. Greyback's voice broke through Ron's reverie, and Ron heard him say, "Reckon she'll let me have a bite of the girl when she's finished with her? I'd say I'll get a bite or two, wouldn't you, ginger?"

Ron was so furious now that he was shaking with his anger. He wanted nothing more than to kill them all. After descending a flight of stairs, they had finally reached the cellar, and Greyback shoved them in, slamming the door behind them. Instantly, Hermione's first scream rent the air. "HERMIONE!" Ron began to bellow, struggling fiercely against the ropes now.

Ron vaguely registered that Harry was saying something to him; instead, he bellowed Hermione's name again, hoping beyond hope that she was still alive.

When he heard her scream again, it tore him apart. He continued to struggle, feeling as though time was moving slowly. "Shut – work out –" he caught fragments of what Harry was saying as he continued to yell Hermione's name.

"Plan – stop –" But Ron could not stop…he would not rest until Hermione was alive and out of harm's way. Why had he never told her how he felt about her? He'd loved her for so long, yet he'd never admitted his feelings to her.

"HERMIONE!" He yelled again, feeling more helpless than he'd ever felt. Nothing had ever terrified him more than he was now – well, except for when Hermione had been petrified – and he felt as though he were drowning in an emotional waterfall.

"Harry? Ron? Is that you?" A musical voice that Ron would have recognized anywhere called out in the darkness. It caught him so off guard that for a split second he stopped screaming. He was only half-listening to what was going on, desperate to know if Hermione still…. He couldn't even think it.

Hermione screamed again suddenly and Ron felt terror mixed with relief. "HERMIONE! HERMIONE!" She was still alive, but he could only imagine what those monsters were doing to her.

He could feel someone tugging on the ropes, but he couldn't care less. He struggled to hear any noise from above which would assure him that Hermione was – for the moment – all right. "Where did you get this sword? Where?!"

"We found it – we found it – PLEASE!" Hermione screamed again and Ron felt his control snap. He began to struggle harder than he had before; he had to get to Hermione, he needed her.

"…see what I'm doing," Luna muttered.

"My pocket!" Ron called out quickly, thinking fast. "In my pocket, there's a Deluminator, and it's full of light!"

As the ropes fell away, Ron ran forward, looking up at the ceiling for some sort of trap door. This was a very creepy dungeon belonging to the creepiest bloke he'd ever known – surely they would have a trapdoor. When that failed, he began trying to Disapparate. If only he had a wand…..

Tears coursed down his face as she screamed again and again, the sound ripping through him and leaving him feeling as though he were being cursed as well. Almost totally unaware of what he was doing, he began to pound the wall, yelling her name over and over again. Don't leave me, he thought hopelessly. Don't take her away.

As Malfoy's voice sounded from the other side of the door, Ron was smart enough to click the Deluminator again, trapping the lights once more as Malfoy entered. The moment he left, Ron returned the lights to the air, his eyes falling on Dobby. His shock was so great that he opened his mouth without thinking, "DOB–"

Harry hit his arm and he closed his mouth instantly, realizing what he had potentially just done. He offered his brother's cottage as a place of refuge when needed, but he was so totally focused on Hermione above him. Fear shuddered through him as Dobby's Disapparating crack caught attention from above.

"We're going to have to tackle him," Harry whispered to Ron. Ron nodded in response, letting his anger and rage fill him. "Leave the lights on."

As Wormtail entered, they caught him unaware and Ron began to fight with an unmatchable rage. He put his anger into everything he did and was able to overpower Wormtail. "We'll have that," Ron hissed, taking his wand from him.

When Wormtail's own silver hand began to strangle the life from him, Ron's immediate thought was good. He had caused them nothing but pain and heartache over the years. On the heels of that thought, though, was the realization that if he let this happen, he was no better than those he was fighting against. "Relashio!" He said in a last-ditch effort. He wasn't expecting it to work, and was therefore not surprised as he stood powerless and watched Wormtail's last breaths.

Ron ran up the stairs and into the shadows, cautiously advancing to the drawing room door. He wanted nothing more than to tear in there and rip them each limb from limb with his bare hands for what they had done to Hermione. He felt such a riot of emotions that he didn't react when Griphook confirmed the sword as a copy. He was just taking a deep breath of relief when Bellatrix's voice cut through his haze.

"And I think we can dispose of the Mudblood. Greyback, take her if you want her."

Ron saw red as he bellowed, "NOOOOOOOOO!" and charged into the room. Pointing the wand at Bellatrix, he yelled, "Expelliarmus!" He fought the urge to laugh deliriously as Harry stunned Lucius, putting them on more equal footing.

Just as he began to really think they could do it, Bellatrix yelled, "STOP OR SHE DIES!"

Ron stood absolutely motionless. If there was any way to stop him, this was it. He watched in horror as Bellatrix pressed the knife into Hermione's neck and blood appeared. He was shaking with fury as he dropped his wand and raised his hands.

No one could have guessed what would happen next. With a loud ripping noise, the chandelier above Bellatrix snapped and plummeted to the ground, trapping Hermione under it. Ron didn't think as he raced forward, tears crowding his eyes.

He pulled Hermione gently out from the wreckage, holding her as gently as he could. Her eyes were closed and she wasn't moving, though he could hear her light, raspy breaths. "I've got you, Hermione," he said quietly.

"Ron, catch – and GO!" Harry's voice caused Ron to look up as a wand tumbled through the air towards him.

He caught it in his left hand and spun on his heel, holding Hermione as tightly as he dared, focusing on Shell Cottage, and praying they would get there without any trouble.