There are going to be several chapters like this from time to time, I've wrestled with the idea of doing a Ron/Hermione story in a world where Harry went missing before he met them. But I could never bring myself to compose such a thing. This is what I'm doing instead. These Chapters will be shorter than the others. Sorry if that bothers you but there is only so much I can write about.

These chapters will largely look at Ron, Hermione and the Wizarding World as it copes without Harry, because let's face it he did so much for that world before his 18th birthday, one can only imagine what would happen without him. So that's what I'm going to do, imagine it

Interlude: moving on without you

Meanwhile back on Earth

Hermione found herself walking much slower than normal as she passed through Kings Cross. It was that time of year again, 1st September, time to get the train to school. But images of what happened at the beginning of the summer, her friend burning alive, her Aguamenti Charm incapable of helping him.

The carriage had been engulfed in a magical fire. No trace of it was left, Dumbledore said that the fire must have been so severe that it had completely vaporised Harry, Ginny, Luna, the carriage and everything on it.

Hermione found herself stopping at the secret passage that lead to Platform 9¾. Her hands and legs were shaking like crazy.

"Hermione." Said her mother kindly.

She turned to look at her mother, tears were flowing down her cheeks.

"Oh sweetie" Mrs Granger pulled her daughter into a tight hug. "Do you want to go home?"

"N… no… Harry… he wouldn't want me to give up everything." Hermione croaked. "But I miss him so much and… and… Hogwarts will never…"

"It is hard losing someone so close to you." Said Mr Granger. "But you have to move on. The way you and Ron spoken about Harry. The way Ron's family have spoken about him. I think he would want you to go on too."

Hermione nodded and allowed her parents to guide her through the wall between platforms 9 and 10.

They were still quite early so the platform was not very crowded. But those who were there, when they noticed Hermione, looked at her sympathetically. Even some of the more arrogant people seemed to at least respect the fact she had a great loss.

Mr Granger placed his daughter's trunk on the rack. Hermione made a weak smile of thanks before plopping on a seat and leaning against the window.

"Do you want us to leave you?" Asked Mrs Granger.

Hermione looked at her mother but couldn't bring herself to give an answer.

"I understand." She said. "Come on dear."

Mrs Granger encouraged her husband outside and off the train. Hermione could hear her parents talk as they left.

"Are you sure?" Said her father. "I think we should talk to her."

"We've spent the whole summer talking to her, we've both done as much as we can she needs to work this out herself. Besides, we both know there is someone she'd much rather speak to than us."

Hermione just sat still as the minutes went by, more people arrived at the platform and more people boarded the train. She was vaguely aware of people stopping to look at her as they passed the compartment door. But she didn't care, she just wanted her friends back. Harry was the most caring person she'd ever met and Ginny was the first girl she could ever truly call a friend. They were both gone now, never to come back.

Then the person she'd been waiting for stuck his head in.

"Hey." Said Ron.

Hermione leaped to her feet and pulled herself tightly into her best friend. Her only remaining best friend.

Ron readily accepted her hug. The two of them had not seen each other since the funeral and so much had happened since then.

ORACLE2PHOENIX

When Dumbledore presided over the memorial, no one could ever recall seeing him so sad or upset. Vernon had been waiting for Harry to get back from the train, being on the Muggle side he did not know about the fire. He waited fifteen minutes after the train was supposed to arrive then left. Professor McGonagall had gone to Privet Drive the day after to inform them of the news, as no one seemed to have contacted the Dursleys in regards to the matter. When she got there, instead of having to deal with grieving relatives, all three members of the family were overjoyed. It had been rather easy to figure out why. Between comments made and a follow-up investigation by authorities from both worlds, the entire Wizarding World was shocked to learn that Harry had grown up in an abusive environment.

Ron and Hermione had known. Harry had told them, about growing up in a cupboard, the cruel activities of his relatives, the starving, the lying, the beatings and the put downs. But Harry had sworn them to secrecy.

But thanks to leaks in the Ministry, the whole Wizarding World knew what the boy had gone through. Dumbledore's judgement for putting him there was brought into question but the old man was genuinely repentant and he truly believed that Harry would be safe. Most of the Wizarding World accepted his reasons for putting the boy there, besides which it was obvious no one blamed him more than he did when McGonagall brought him the news.

Ron and the Weasleys of course had another reason to grieve. Their youngest member, Ginny, was dead, only just after her life was saved, by Harry and Ron. Then there was Luna, their neighbour. Xenophilius was now a regular guest at the Burrow. The poor soul had lost both his wife and his daughter. The Weasleys reached out to him, in order to share the burden the deaths had left them with.

The man was now broken though. His quirky and unique paper, the Quibbler, had released one edition since the carriage fire, but after that, the man simply stopped working. Concerned, Molly Weasley had him see a Healer. The week before Ron and Hermione went back to Hogwarts, he was placed in St Mungos for the long term, he had stopped looking after himself and his health was deteriorating rapidly.

A month after the fire, the Weasleys had won the Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon. It did little lift their spirits though. They tried going to Egypt for a family reunion, they managed weak smiles on the picture the Prophet took but it was a sombre affair. Things got worse when they got back. The Ministry had pulled Arthur from the compassionate leave they'd given him. It was originally meant to last the summer, but a week after the Prophet took the picture in Thebes, a dangerous murderer, Sirius Black, escaped from Azkaban. Arthur was no Auror, but as his office was part of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, he needed to do his bit to help the Ministry recapture this man.

Ron and Hermione gave the escapee little thought at first, but then an article in the Prophet revealed that the reason for Black's imprisonment was because he betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort and then went on to murderer thirteen people, including a friend of the Potter family.

ORACLE2PHOENIX

Sirius Black did not read all the print below the image Fudge had given him, if he had, he would likely have lost what little will he had to live. He recognised the family as the Weasleys and the rat as the real traitor Pettigrew. He read enough of the text to know that he was going to Hogwarts, and given the date, Harry would be attending the school by now. Everyone thought Pettigrew was dead. Sirius had thought it himself, he was never sure that Pettigrew managed to survive the explosion, he thought the rat dead but was always consciously aware that he could still be alive. Now it was evident he was still out there and he was a danger to Harry.

Sirius Black, incarcerated in a prison labelled as escape proof, was the only person who knew that the Death Eater Peter Pettigrew was still alive. He was the only person who knew the threat the rat posed to Harry. Sirius had to get out of here before the real traitor could harm his godson, maybe even lead Voldemort right to him. The murmurs of the other prisoners indicated many of the Death Eaters believed their master was weak and half dead, but still alive. If that was true, he had already tried to kill Harry twelve years ago, he could again.

For a number of months, maybe years he wasn't too sure, Sirius had a potential plan to escape Azkaban, but he had nowhere to go and nothing to prove his innocence, therefore he wasn't willing to risk his life or maybe even his soul on doing what no one before him had managed. But now he had no choice. Harry was in danger and he was the only one who could save him.

ORACLE2PHOENIX

Ron and Hermione felt terrible when they boarded the train that morning. When they got near the Dementors, those horrible feelings were intensified. As the carriage passed the school gates with the two guards, Hermione actually squealed in despair. In a rare physical demonstration of the care he had for his friend, Ron pulled her close to him. The Patil sisters were sharing the carriage with them, but they didn't dare make any comment about the interaction. They both knew Harry and they both liked Harry, they were, much like most of the school population, mortified by his death. They knew Luna and Ginny less well, but they still felt horrible that the two had died and they felt especially bad for Ron who lost his sister.

The opening feast too lacked the welcoming joy that usually came with the occasion. Dumbledore did not look well, he looked rather ill actually. Ron and Hermione knew why, but they weren't too sorry for him. Dumbledore had been the one to put Harry with the Dursleys, they felt the Headmaster was partly to blame for the abuse Harry suffered. They did not know of course that the old man's troubles ran far deeper than anything the Dursleys could have done.

Dumbledore did not say anything. The welcoming to Hogwarts Professor Lupin speech, as well as the reminder of school rules and the speech remembering Harry, Ginny and Luna were all conducted by Professor McGonagall.

Dinner was sombre and Hermione and Ron only felt worse when, on the way out of the Great Hall Draco Malfoy had to express his personal opinion.

"I personally think the school will be much better without Saint Potter and those two idiotic girls…"

Ron didn't even remember the fight, but according to Madam Pomfrey, his curses and jinxes severely damaged Malfoy. One of Draco's friends had apparently fired a Reductor that broken Ron's shoulder, but the youngest remaining Weasley was so blinded by rage that he still managed to cause a great deal of damage.

He was fortunate the fight was broken up quickly because a large number of students, most of them Slytherins, were coming to Malfoy's aid. Snape himself stopped the fight and punished the boys, Ron thought he must be delirious. He got off with ten points and a detention, while Malfoy got off with a hundred points and ten detentions.

Hermione had been shaken by the fight, but only a little. A year ago she would have scolded Ron horribly, but after what Malfoy said about Harry… She concluded that Snape had come down hard enough on Ron.

Just before they reached the Gryffindor Tower she came to a decision.

"Ron can we talk alone for a bit?" She asked.

Ron turned to look to her, nodded and then allowed her to lead him to an empty classroom.

Hermione sat on the teacher's desk and then patted the space next to her. Ron moved and sat down next to her.

"It's really just us now isn't it?" Said Hermione.

"Yeah." Said Ron. He knew what she was saying, they could and probably would make other friends, maybe even people they could be close to like they were with each other and with Harry, but there would never be someone like their now dead friend. Harry was unique, as we are all unique, no one could ever replace him.

"All those things we did. Between the troll, the stone, the petrifications and the Chamber of Secrets. It's all over."

"Yeah." Said Ron, agreeing with her.

"I… I don't want to live in this world without him…" Said Hermione. "He… he was like my brother…"

"I know." Said Ron. "He was like mine as well. The feeling of losing him, it was the same as losing Ginny."

Hermione turned to look at him. There was an understanding between the two of them in that moment. They both knew that each of their own fates was permanently entwined with the fate of the other.

"Ron. Please, don't ever leave me." Said Hermione.

"I won't." Said Ron pulling her into a hug. "I promise. I will always be there for you and I will always put you before anyone. Even Mum."

They stayed in the classroom entwined in one another for a few minutes before.

"Don't ever tell my Mum I promised you that ok?" Said Ron.

Hermione cracked a giggle.

"Is this really what Harry would want?" Said Ron. "He would want us to move on without him, despite what happened?"

"I don't know. But I do know Harry loved both of us." Said Hermione. "We became friends in First Year but by the time we started Second Year we were family. We understood him better than anyone. I believe he would want us to be happy."

"I think you're right. I know you're right you're always right Hermione. But still…"

"If you died you would want me to move on and be happy with my life, but never to forget you." Said Hermione.

"Yeah I would." Said Ron. "And if you died… you would want me to do the same. But you would also want me to study my hardest and pass all my classes in your honour."

Hermione chuckled "You're right, I would."

"Harry would want us to move on." Said Ron. "But I'm not ready yet…"

"He would understand." Said Hermione. "I'm not sure we'll ever be ready. But I think we're ready to start working towards getting ready."

"That makes no sense." Said Ron.

"I know." Said Hermione.

"Except it kind of does." Said Ron.

"I think we need to go to bed." Said Hermione. "We've got a whole new year ahead of us… I hope we can make it."

The two of them got up and made their way towards the door.

Ron slowed to a stop and thought for a few seconds. "Hermione."

She turned around and looked at him.

"I really mean it… I won't leave you… I don't think I ever could, not even if this happened… I will always be there for you."

Hermione smiled as tears welled in her eyes. She took Ron into one more hug then kissed his cheek.

"I'm really going to miss him." Said Ron.

"I know." Said Hermione.

ORACLE2PHOENIX

Fifty miles north of the Iselia House of Salvation

Many lightyears from Earth, Harry looked up at the stars. He kept thoughts of his two best friends in his mind. He would return to Earth given the chance, but not because it was home, but because of those whom he left behind.

"Are you worried about Ginny and Luna?" Asked Colette.

Harry turned to look at her. "No… well yes but that's not what's keeping me up…"

"Oh… do you want to talk?"

Harry closed his eyes. "It's just… it's been two months since we left Earth. Around about now, Ron and Hermione will be going back to Hogwarts."

"Ron and Hermione?" Said Colette. "Those are odd names… but they're nice names."

"My best friends back on Earth." Said Harry. "The things we've been through…"

Colette sat up on her knees and looked at her alien friend. "Can you please tell me about them?"

Harry smiled and told Colette tales of Hogwarts, trolls, baby dragons, giant spiders, a giant snake with a look that kill and the two 13-year-olds who'd faced them alongside him. Harry, Ron and Hermione… for a time they had been like one great entity. He was now without them, but the memories of them would carry with him for the rest of his days, and one day, maybe, he could meet with them again.

Unless it's not obvious, these interludes will one day (in the far far stages of this story) result in a Ron/Hermione pairing.

If you have a problem with Ron/Hermione pairings or Harry/Ginny pairings or any other pairing in this story or any of my other stories, then please, by all means, keep it to yourself (This rant was originally longer but I decided to leave it at that).

Please review.