Chapter 2: Goodbyes

The residents of the Borrow woke to an ear-splitting scream from Mrs. Weasley the next morning. Moments later the kitchen was filled with people, all of them alert yet still somewhat groggy. The wedding celebration had lasted until nearly two in the morning.

"What's going on, Mum?" Ginny asked as she wiped sleep from her eyes.

"We have to go to St. Mungo's right now!"

"St. Mungo's? But why, Molly?" asked a concerned Mr. Weasley.

Mrs. Weasley was so upset she could hardly get the words out without sobbing. She took a deep breath and wrung her hands together. "I was about to start making breakfast when a Patronus appeared. I wasn't sure whose it was – it looked like a hare to me – but once it spoke I knew it was Luna's. She said we all need to go to St. Mungo's right away. She said something about Hermione being there and needing us. She said Hermione is very sick. We have to go!"

The moment Hermione's name was mentioned, everyone went into a panic. In less than twenty minutes every single Weasley and Potter were dressed and apparating in pairs to the hospital.

It didn't take long for the Welcome Witch to learn that a frazzled Mrs. Weasley should not be messed with. It wasn't long before everyone was gathered together in the second floor's visitor's room, waiting for a Healer of Luna to come explain everything. After nearly an hour of worried waiting, a Healer finally came to speak to them. He was leading them to Hermione's private room when he spoke.

"Now, I must warn you," said the ancient looking Healer. "Miss Granger slipped into a coma shortly after coming back here last night. She is currently unresponsive. You can speak to her if you wish but, chances are she may not be able to hear you."

"Wait," said an ashen-faced Fred. "What do you mean she came back here last night?"

The Healer looked mildly surprised by this question but answered quickly anyway. "Miss Granger has been a patient here for the past fifteen months. Until recently she was only coming in once a week to monitor her condition. Then she had a bad episode about four weeks ago and she's been a permanent resident here ever since."

They all exchanged horrified looks and without another word they entered the private ward. No one expected the scene that met their eyes. Hermione was laying on a bed with stark white sheets, still in her party dress from the night before. Luna clung to her hand with a pained expression on her face. They all noticed Hermione's dangerously slow breathing. Harry and Ron instantly rushed to her side and, after a moment, Harry spoke to the Healer with tears forming in his eyes.

"What's happened to her?"

"Where'd that mark on her chest come from?" George demanded suddenly, indicating a solid black, circular mark that had appeared directly over her heart. "She didn't have that last night and she didn't look like Death either. She looked perfectly normal!"

The Healer nodded with understanding in his eyes. "It is my understanding that Miss Granger wished to keep her illness private. She's been performing a number of concealment spells on herself to hide the physical signs. That black mark there is the most obvious sign of her affliction."

"What exactly is her affliction?" asked a teary-eyed Ginny from Harry's side.

"She's got a broken heart," Luna said in a quiet, numb voice.

Silence hung in the air for a moment before Harry spoke again. "What do you mean, Luna?"

"I mean," said Luna, looking up at them all. "That Hermione is dying because of a broken heart."

"Dying?" said a pale Ron. "She can't be dying! There's got to be something you can do!" he demanded of the Healer.

The Healer sighed and shook his head. "Unfortunately, Miss Lovegood is right, she's dying. Miss Granger is suffering from a rare condition known as a Dead Heart."

Mrs. Weasley gasped and shared a look with her husband.

"What is it?" Harry asked as he stroked Hermione's hair.

"Well," said the Healer in a factual voice. "A Dead Heart is, for the most part, exactly what Miss Lovegood said; a broken heart. A Dead Heart occurs when an individual meets of realizes who their – for lack of a better term – 'true love' is and it is apparent that they are committed to another. The only cure for a Dead Heart is for the other person to reciprocate her love. They have to admit it out loud and it must ring true."

"Then we have to find this person at once!" exclaimed Mrs. Weasley with a sniff.

"Ah," said the Healer with a sad finality in his voice. "I'm afraid that's not possible any longer. Unfortunately, Miss Granger refused to tell any of our staff who this person is and without her awake to communicate with us, we have no way of knowing who it is."

"B-b-but why wouldn't s-s-she t-t-tell you?" blubbered Ginny through a cascade of tears.

The Healer paused briefly. "In the beginning she claimed she didn't know who it was. It wasn't until recently that Miss Granger admitted that she did know, but she still refused to tell anyone. If memory serves me correctly, she said 'I will not interrupt his happiness to achieve my own.'"

Harry nodded sadly. "Sounds exactly like something she would say."

"What else can we do to help her?" George asked quietly.

Again, the Healer sighed. "I'm afraid there's nothing we can do now. Miss Granger is… I'm afraid she only had a few hours left. I'm sorry."

Anguished sobs broke out among the group as the Healer quietly excused himself from the room. Shortly after the news had been broken, Luna stood cautiously from her chair to address the group.

"Hermione said she wrote everyone a letter. She make me promise to give them to you." Carefully, Luna passed out all the envelopes, meeting eyes with all except Fred, who did not miss this. She held up a piece of parchment with Hermione's tiny scrawl on its front. "Hermione also addressed this letter to everyone. I – I think she'd like me to read this one first."

No one spoke but everyone nodded so, Luna gently unfolded the letter and began to read in her soft voice.

"To my friends and Family,

I certainly hope this letter finds you all well. I am so sorry you had to discover my illness this way. I know that some of you are probably very angry with me for keeping it a secret and that's okay. I don't blame you at all. I chose to keep my condition private for several reasons, chief among them being that I didn't' want to disrupt anyone's lives or happiness.

I know that probably sounds stupid to you, but you guys are my family. You're all I have and I couldn't bear to burden you. You're happiness is all that matters to me.

By now, I'm sure, the Healer had explained my condition to you. And I'm sure you're all wondering who my 'true love' is. Well, I'm sorry, but that is something I want to keep private. I know, you're frustrated with me now, but trust me. My true love is in love with someone else, and before you begin to argue – yes, it is quite possible. I will not ruin their happiness. Besides, as much as I care for him, I think they make quite a happy match.

Now, as some of you may have noticed, you have been unable to open the individual letters I've written you. I've charmed them not to open until Luna finishes reading this letter out loud. I thought about charming them not to open until I was gone but, that seemed like it might just be a little too…morbid.

Well, I won't take up any more of your time. I just wanted all of you to know how important you are to me. I love you all very mush. Please, don't cry. I'll see you all again one day.

Love from,

Hermione

P.S. My Last Will and Testament has already been taken care of. A Ministry Official will stop by the Burrow no more than two days after my death to discuss funeral arrangements and personal possessions. Take care, all of you."

Despite Hermione's request for no crying, tears stained every face of those surrounding her bed. For nearly twenty minutes the family cried and held each other close. It wasn't until Luna spoke again that anyone attempted to dry their eyes.

"I think it would be best if we all read our letters and then, perhaps we could each say our goodbyes to her in private."

No one dared argue with Luna. Silence filled the room as everyone filed out of the room to give Harry and Ron some privacy with Hermione first. For a moment, neither Harry nor Ron spoke. They just sat there in silence with one of Hermione's hands in each of their own. After a few minutes, the two looked at each other and nodded. Together they opened their letters and began to read.

A/N: I have thought about posting each letter Hermione wrote as their own, separate chapters. This way you can all see the individuals reaction to them and at the end I'll post a chapter for the conclusion. What do you all think of that? Will that be all right?

~Andromeda