Disclaimer: No worries. I didn't copy anything.

Ginny ran up to Harry, grabbing him and pulling him into a suffocating embrace, burying her face in his neck.

"Don't you ever do that again," she whispered.

Harry held her close. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to scare you," he whispered.

Ginny nodded, pulling away from him and wiping her eyes.

"How's Ron?" Harry asked.

Ginny looked up at him, her eyes filling again. "We don't know… they haven't come out… Harry, he doesn't look good."

"But he's alive?"

Ginny nodded. "Barely," she murmured.

"Leave me alone! I'm not seeing anyone until I see him…. Of course I know him! He's my husband!"

Everyone in the hall turned to see the commotion. Every single Weasley gasped at the sight they beheld.

"Harry," Ginny gasped, holding onto Harry's arm. "Does she…"

Hermione burst passed the concerned healers and ran over to Harry. "Where is he?" she demanded.

"Hermione… you remember," Ginny whispered, her eyes still on Hermione.

Hermione turned to Ginny and her eyes watered. Soon the two women were sobbing into each other's arms. The other Weasleys ran over to the three. They all chattered excitedly. Around them, other families waited for the news of their loved one's well being. The emotional overload surrounding Hermione was overwhelming, making her cry harder as several other women expressed their joy in her remembrance.

"Excuse me. Mrs. Weasley?"

Seven different women turned to the healer, who blushed immediately at her error and looked down at her clipboard. She then looked back up.

"Mrs. Molly Weasley?" she asked.

Disregarding the call for one, everyone crowded around the Healer, desperate for the news of not only Ron, but Bill, Fred and Charlie. The Healer looked around then coughed.

"Hello, I'm Georgiana Hartfield. I'm the healer overseeing your family. Fred, Bill and Charlie will be ready to leave today after a few more potions," she told them.

"What about Ron?" demanded Mr. Weasley.

The healer looked down at her notes then stiffened. She looked up through sad eyes. "Ron is… Ron isn't doing very well. We've been able to stop the bleeding… but… He's gone under a coma and his health isn't improving. You must be prepared for the worst," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"He's dying?"

Hartfield was about to say something then stopped herself, looking around at all the faces. Taking a deep breath she looked at Arthur Weasley. "I'm not going to lie to you. The curse that hit Ron was dark magic and there's a good chance he won't make it. The only hope I can give you is that there have been a few who have survived, though…" she trailed off.

"Though what?" Ginny asked shakily, clinging to Hermione.

"As you know, he is under a coma. I must tell you that, with a curse like the one he was hit with, there's very little chance that he'll come out of the coma without some brain damage," she told them.

"Brain damage," Hermione stammered, breaking her silence. "What type of brain damage?" she asked.

Hartfield pursed her lips. "Well, there have been cases in which the patient came out of the coma only to just forget they owned a dog. Some have forgotten addresses, names… stuff that is easily gotten back…"

"What about the other ones?" Harry asked.

Hartfield looked at Harry. "Others have come out forgetting completely who they are or unable to use their limbs. Some have lost the ability to speak while others have been reduced to the I.Q. of a five year old… I must be honest with you. The chances of Ron coming out of the coma are not great. And even then, the chances of him not suffering from major brain damage are one in a million. I just want you to be careful in how you view this. I'd hate for you to get your hopes up to have something bad happen," she whispered before starting to move towards another couple.

Everyone didn't know what to do. Finally they had been given the opportunity to get back to the life they had had before the accident seven years ago and now… things might never be the same…

Hermione looked up at the knock in the door. "Come in," she whispered.

Laurie Granger entered, carrying some towels. She stopped upon seeing Hermione sitting on the bedside, watching four sleeping girls. Hermione looked up and smiled.

"They all went to bed about an hour ago… their so tired," she whispered.

Laurie nodded, setting down the towels and watching her daughter carefully. "You know… its ok to cry…" she said.

Hermione looked up at her. "Did Ron cry?"

Mrs. Granger nodded. "Only five minutes after he found out…. He left the next morning looking for you," she told the younger woman.

Hermione looked down for a minute then at the slumbering girls. "I thought I was going to die," she whispered. "Those last four months before I was captured… I thought I was going to die…"

"Ron never stopped looking for you," Laurie whispered, moving over towards the bed.

"Yeah, but he forgot he had another daughter to take care of…"

"He didn't forget."

"No… I suppose not… Triniti. I watched my little girl die… I am not going to watch my husband die as well," she whispered, her voice shaking.

Mrs. Granger moved over to her daughter and pulled the woman up into a much needed hug. Hermione broke down, holding onto her mother, desperate for assurance. She needed to know that it would be ok. Laurie held her daughter close, stroking her hair soothingly.

"It'll be ok," she whispered. "Ron's a strong man. He's made it this far…"

Hermione sniffed. "I shouldn't have gone for the wand," she whispered.

"No… No, Hermione. It's not your fault."

"Yes it is! It's my fault for making Ron suffer for the past seven years and it's my fault he's suffering right now!"

"Ron's not suffering," Laurie said, glancing over at the children. By now, the anguished ramblings of their mother had invaded their dreams and brought them back to a reality they'd rather not be in. They were all watching their mother, a fearful look in their eyes.

"Hermione, please! Ron wouldn't want you tormenting yourself," Laurie implored, her heart breaking to see her daughter tear herself apart over this. "Don't become what Ron was," she whispered.

Hermione looked over at her mother. "What? What did he do?"

"Dad got drunk every Christmas," Lorel answered.

Hermione bit her lip. "Drunk?"

Lorel got out of bed. "He almost hit me," she exclaimed.

"And he would have if someone hadn't stopped him," Mrs. Granger finished.

For a moment all Hermione could do was just stare, then she got up and left the room. Going down the stairs and entering the kitchen, she bypassed all the concerned faces and exited the Burrow, bursting into a sprint until she reached the pond. Falling to her knees she stayed there for a while, not knowing exactly why she had come out here.

"Hermione?"

"What Harry?"

Harry didn't answer, just standing there watching her. Turning slightly from her position on the ground, Hermione looked over at him.

"Did he really drink?"

At first the question startled him, but then he realized what she meant. He frowned and walked over to her.

"Ron… Ron did a lot of things after you disappeared," he answered carefully.

"Was he really that horrible?"

"He was hardly here, Hermione," Harry answered, his voice tainted with a slight bitterness that surprised Hermione.

"You were left to raise Lorel… you all were," she whispered.

Harry nodded. He picked up some stones and commenced to skip them across the pond. "He couldn't really bring himself to face Lorel again. Reminded him to much of what he'd lost…"

There was a short pause then Hermione began fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "Now I'm going to lose him," she whispered.

"You don't know that."

"Oh come on, Harry. You heard her! She said even if he does come out of the coma, he'll have brains damage. He might not remember any of us. He might end up having the intelligence of a five year old! Or he might just-" She stopped suddenly and turned away.

Harry dropped his rocks and went over to her. "Ron's not going to die," he said.

"You don't know that," she whispered. She looked around then turned to him. "I never told you this, but they came to me later… Asked me if I wanted to take him off of the potions," she whispered.

"Hermione, no," Harry murmured.

"I told them no… but… they also said that there was a possibility that he'd… that he'd never wake up… that he'd just… lay there… like a vegetable."

Harry observed her for a minute then touched her arm. "What are you going to do?" he asked.

Hermione looked up at him and shook her head. "I don't know…"

Ginny looked up from her book.

"Have you talked to Hermione?" she asked, watching as Harry got ready for bed.

He glanced over at her then nodded. "She's… She's been given the choice of taking Ron off of the potions or not," he whispered.

Ginny shut her book sharply and frowned. "Today?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah…"

"He just got there," Ginny said.

"I know… but they already know how things are most likely going to turn out and Hermione doesn't want him to suffer."

"But he's not suffering. He's not aware of anything!"

"Don't you think I know that?!" Harry retorted, turning away from the drawer to her.

Ginny shoved the covers off her legs and stood up. "What did she decide?"

Harry watched her carefully, taking in her nervous movements and aggressive voice. Sighing, he turned back to the drawer, taking off his shirt and tossing it over to the small chair in the corner.

"She's said no for right now," he answered.

"You mean she's considering it?!"

"Shh!" Harry warned, moving over to the door and closing it. He turned to his wife and ran his hands through his hair. "She said she didn't know. Look Ginny," he said quickly, noticing her objection. "Hermione's confused right now. It's been seven years since she's seen Ron and now he's comatose. She has four kids to think about and doesn't know what to do. You can't expect her not to think about it. If Ron doesn't die, he'll be mentally damaged. Who knows what will happen if he wakes up. Do you think that Hermione would be able to stand it if Ron woke up, completely oblivious to whom she is?"

"Hermione's been that way for the past seven years Harry! Ron's had to endure that last week of it!"

"That's not the same, Ginny and you know it," Harry shot.

Ginny flung up her hands. "She shouldn't just give up because of brain damage. The healer said that he could be fine," she said.

"The healer said that there was a small chance of that. A very small chance of that," Harry whispered.

"There's still a chance!"

Harry sighed and walked over to Ginny, taking her face in his hands. "This is Hermione's choice. She doesn't want to be hurt," he whispered.

"She doesn't have to kill him!"

"What do you think letting him live will do to her, Ginny! If he doesn't remember or his intelligence is reduced! How do you think this will affect her? She just remembered everything and to make her suffer through the same thing Ron suffered through is worse than killing him," Harry retorted.

"What do you think being responsible for his death will do to her? She has to think this through? It's not just her, Harry. We all should have a say in this. We shouldn't be hurt because of this," she growled.

"Hermione doesn't want to hurt anyone," Harry whispered.

"Then don't be responsible for killing him," Ginny replied, pulling away from Harry and walking into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

A/N: Oooooo... the tension's rising!

laura truewood: Thank you.

sballLuvr5: Well... Now he might be worse than dead.

charma10: No... not dead... yet...

Hello.I'mMarySue: I'm glad you like it so much.

Mandy: He's not dead yet. Hermione still has to go through a lot more before he dies.

Avanell: Thanx!

Cynthia Cacciola: "Not hurt to badly" is an understatement.

Wesker888: Maybe not after all of this, but if I feel that his presense is no longer needed... (draws a finger across throat)

Chapter Tease: (Because I'm nice)

"I mean… He's basically killing himself," she whispered.