Author's Note: Hello everyone and happy 2010! I'm really sorry for another wait, but short vacation and a various other things made my fingers slower... Anyway, I just really hope that this- quite long- chapter will do its trick and you all like it...

Now now, I'm rather bored and without any other inspiration as to what to say or write, so I'll just let you read... Enjoy! :)

Love And War Don't Discriminate Between Nations

~A Minute Taste Of Something New~

She woke up with a weightless feeling lingering in her chest, and she absentmindedly smiled softly with her eyes still closed. She felt some warm, hesitant sunbeams stroking her bare skin and she felt like finally waking up; if she was right, the previous night gave her more reasons to stand up and cope with whatever would come her way.

Her eyes opened sleepily and she looked rather unfocusedly at the fireplace, where, instead of the glorious fire was only some ashes. Her mind went back to the sight of the once existent fire and of its orange tints- the warm colours brought her other thoughts, much more essential than the temporary warmth of an element. The memory of the dark blue and of the pale skin brought another, brighter smile on her lips and she instantly turned around, wanting so badly to see him again… no; she just needed to lay her eyes on him. But when she looked behind her covered back, she found… nothing….

She was immediately ready to sink in emotions of anxiousness, hurt and even mourning- she was even already able to feel her heart beginning to clench painfully-, but that only happening for a millisecond, as her eyes took a glimpse of something purple and lilac resting near her head. Curious to know what it was, she turned around fully and her eyes observed the object only for a brief second before another smile brightening her pale face. She instantly took her one hand out of the blanket and took the little bunch of wild flowers in it, bringing it near her face, smelling its delicate fragrance like it was the most precious scent after his own one. The mere thought of him made her want more than anything to see him and she instantly stood up, already looking for her clothes and getting ready.

Not many minutes later, she was finally dressed and she tried to tame with her hands her unruly hair- it most probably was the very first time she cared about making her hair more presentable… She looked around at the room but there was no sight of him, so she quickly went to the other, smaller sort of room in the hut, she eyes already restless to take even a small glimpse of him. When she was there- which only took her a couple of seconds due to her rather hurried, yet light pace. She felt her heart swelling from the mere joy, as the one person she craved to see was there along with his little daughter, his enormous eyes already looking at her, like they were waiting for her to appear since forever. A wide smile reached her lucky eyes and she instantly saw his face glowing by an identical beam; her soul felt so light, just because of his handsome, so joyful smile…

She instantly took the essential steps so she could stand in front of his sitting form, her eyes filled with this brilliant image while her ears filled with happy, cheery voices: "Hel-mimi! Hel-mimi!"

Hermione heard Ron laughing gently and she followed suit lightly, feeling lighter than a feather at the moment. Ron's eyes were so very dazzling at the moment as his arm stretched a bit to stroke her wild locks for a moment, then cupping her cheek and instantly sending her to heaven- it was more than just amazing…

"Bongiorno" he said with his rich voice, his tone weightless and pleased as he was looking at her eyes. Hermione felt her cheeks a bit warmer but she smiled nonetheless and tried to say his wish back to him. "Bongiorno" she answered back, even though her accent was so flawed. Ron laughed merrily for a moment at that and leaned up to her face, giving a soft kiss to her warm, probably a bit pink cheek. Hermione let a small laugh to escape from her lips and she sat on a chair next to his, then she looked for the first time at the small, old table before them.

"I make food…" he said rather shyly and she looked back at him for a moment, making out his a-bit-flushed cheeks. She smiled gleefully and looked back at the table, where in a plate just in front of her were some berries and hazelnuts and next to it, a small cup was filled with a steaming drink, from its aroma Hermione guessed that it was chamomile. She suddenly heard the little girl squealing and both she and Ron looked at her with some interest.

"Daddy cook!" she giggled merrily and the woman saw with the tail of her eye Ron blushing some and lowering his head rather shyly. "Daddy take flower too!" Luna continued and Hermione couldn't do anything but laugh softly for a short moment, thinking that the child was so cute. She hesitantly looked at Ron, whose eyes were still staring at the floor as his ears were pink. Hermione wanted to feel some pity for him, but oh, how charming he was when he looked like that!

"Luna, tell Hermione good morning…" she then heard the man saying softly and Luna squealed as a response and jumped from her seat. The woman looked at her as she was running towards her. She waited patiently, with a small smile never leaving from her face, as the little girl shyly looked up to her and whispered an also shy 'goo molnin'. Hermione felt her heart bigger and lighter as, without uncertainty, took the girl in her arms and let her sit on her lap, kissing her head softly before starting to share her meager breakfast with the baby. After some moments, Hermione glanced coyly with the tail of her eye at Ron, wanting to see his reaction; on his pale face there was only a shadow of a tiny smile and the mere fact worried her a bit, but as she looked a bit more carefully in his eyes, she made out contentment that was shining so brilliantly that would make evil get eternally blind… She felt something blossoming inside her and she sighed silently before taking a sip of the warm drink.

Was it possible to feel like this throughout times like those? Even though her logic said no, her heart seemed to have another opinion…

…

She spent almost her whole morning with Luna, teaching her some more English, telling her tales and singing her songs and lullabies. The little girl seemed more than just happy with the pastime, and as the brown-haired woman felt considerably lighter with the little angel, she was sure that she wanted to spend as much time with her as well. But on the other hand, it wasn't only the balm feelings of satisfaction and glee inside her that made her more motivated, but it was also the dazzling stare of his every time he was there and able to look at them. At first, Hermione had thought that maybe Ron was quite uncomfortable with it, that he may not want her so close to his daughter, but of course, the prospect seemed ludicrous even to her after a good moment of better judgment. Evidently, the brilliance of his crystal blue eyes weren't apparent because of uncertainty, but due to some gladness and maybe even admiration. Hermione always felt her cheeks warmer because of this, but she was also happy to know that she most probably was one of the reasons this handsome shine in his bottomless eyes was existent.

She then looked down, merely escaping from the comforting thoughts so she can focus on the girl that's sleeping in her arms. Hermione smiled softly to herself as she stroked the girl's long hair soothingly. Surely the day so far was exhausting for the child and a nap after meager lunch was absolutely necessary for her. She smiled to herself once more, the sight way too comforting for her soul and after another moment, she covered Luna with a blanket and let her sleep comfortably.

She silently went to the other room and instantly before the window, her pupils restless as they were trying to catch a glimpse of Ron's tall figure. After some moments of searching, she hadn't still managed to lay her eyes on the person her heart desired to see at the moment greatly.

"What so interesting?"

The deep voice startled her and she looked behind her with her breathing still heavy and her hand on her chest, trying to sooth poorly the wild beating of the vital organ in her ribcage. She eventually saw Ron sitting on the floor, his lips wearing a funny smile at the moment that also showed some of his pearly teeth. His gentle chuckling was barely audible as she was approaching him with a steady, slow pace, an eyebrow of hers shot up at him.

"Answer" he spoke again, his soft voice lingering in her ears like a prayer. She was sure she was sitting comfortably next to him and looking at his handsome face before opening her mouth.

"Well…" she started slowly, looking around innocently as if she was trying to find an excuse- yet the smile broadened on her face. "I was looking for someone…" she whispered rather conspiratorially to him and she saw him shaking a bit from the soundless sniggering. It took him a moment to stop and after that, Hermione felt the warmth of his arms as he was wrapping them around her shoulders and waist, bringing her slightly closer to his body.

"I know who?" he whispered with a falsely tiny voice which immediately made Hermione giggling lightly, feeling exceptionally, yet necessarily, lighter and restful; she thought naively that it wouldn't harm to play along with it for some minutes that were entirely theirs.

"No" she just said positively and she shook her head to prove her point. Ron, while looking back at her with a mock, surprised look and wide eyes, he shook his head as well, mirroring in a child-like way her motions. She giggled once again for a second and he smiled gently, the brightness of the pale face and of the innocent eyes were shooing away the evidence of the torturous past or the tiredness; she was glad for that.

"Then meet" he said simply and kissed the tip of her nose affectionately, making her feel balm in her stomach. She looked up to him lovingly and he wholeheartedly returned the look, set her heart free; she glanced down, sighing lightly while she felt his hand stroking slowly her forearm, and she made out then an open pocket-knife on his lap along with a rather small stick. As she looked closer, she observed the beautiful inscribes on it and she immediately looked up to the man.

"What is this?" she asked him kindly, her finger pointing on his lap. He took a glance before meeting her eyes once more, and he parted his lips slowly.

"Nothing" he said and shrugged gently, as he was looking at her face "You know I work wood and I see wood and I want to cut it some" he explained casually and for moment he looked ahead, his eyes a bit unfocused. The brunette examined his profile for a bit as she felt the stillness of his hand, not knowing exactly what to do so he could be out of this sad state.

"You miss your work, don't you?" she finally asked and that instantly seemed to bring him back to reality, as he exhaled and looked back at her.

"Yes" he whispered sincerely and he briefly looked down at the space between them before raising his head once again. "Mean lots". Hermione was able to make out a quite vulnerable look deep into his eyes and without hesitation, she cupped his cheek with her palm, feeling some stubble making contact with her skin; in a tick, she saw Ron giving her a small, thankful smile.

"Were you working alone?" she asked then slight curiously, wanting to know as much of him as possible. It suddenly then occurred to her if this probably made Ron feel uncomfortable, but the hand of his that started once again its soothing motions on her arm was more than an honest reply.

"No, I work with brother, William, learn from papa" he replied and a small smile plastered on his face, the memories appeared to have a bittersweet effect on him. "We have good time together". The woman gave him a sweet smile and her arms snaked loosely around his slim waist, making the bodies coming even closer to each other. A second later, she felt her head being kissed and in response, she kissed lightly below his jaw-line, the rather rough stubble there tickled her lips, but she let a tiny smile appear nevertheless.

"What about the rest of your family?" she asked softly and closed her eyes contentedly; the warmth emitted from him was utterly welcoming. As her breathing became even steadier, she felt his big palms rubbing the back smoothly and his chin rested gently on top of her head.

"Carlo be farmer, love animals… he have farm near house at Napoli and we brothers go there and ride horses and go in forest, have fun" the man started softly another of his fascinating sort of memoirs, his rich, expressive voice silky and so gentle, like a feather was tickling dearly her eardrums. "Then Pier, he be very clever and love books, so he be then Rabbi and every Hanukah we be home and lit candles and pray together, very happy".

He only stopped his soft talking to take a breath and kiss once again her hair. As he started speaking again, Hermione buried herself in his torso and he put his arms more tightly around her, like he never wanted her to go; the woman didn't want that, too, so she gently nuzzled in his chest for a moment while she was listening to his words:

"Freyde and Giorgio born together and make joke all time- they be always cheerful and laugh… when old, they be clown and child happy and laugh and give candy" Hermione heard him laugh softly for a short moment before beginning his little story again, this time one of his hands stroking her unruly curls. "After, I born, but I boring so then be Virginia, little sister…" he sighed at the mention of the name but he kept on, "We all love Virginia, she be little girl after many, many boys and when old enough, mama teach Virginia cook and knit and then she marry Harry, Catholic friend, and they have many child and happy".

He finished with another, almost inaudible sigh and they remained silent for a couple of minutes comfortably. Hermione was thinking of all the things Ron said about his big family, all seemed special and very, very happy and caring with each other; however, the woman couldn't pass by his tone at the end, when he was talking about his sister's family, especially about the children she had with her husband. The tone seemed quite heavy and cheerless and then a thought occurred to her: maybe it was his dream, as well, to have a big, happy family and live all together, however, he got nothing from this… He once made a family only to be separated by prejudice, cruelty, then death and war… The only that he probably had now was his daughter, and her only in deep desperation to keep her safe and sound, in a poor environment that meagerly provided her the necessary.

"And you?" she suddenly heard his voice, which brought her instantly back to reality, "Tell me" he asked her softly and rubbed comfortingly her back and hair, making her feel calm, even though she suddenly became a bit worried and restless on the inside. Her heart started fluttering and her pulse points were trembling madly; she had to be calm, just for the two of them.

"Well, I'm quite uninteresting as a person, you see" she started lightly, commanding on her heart to stop this wild pace immediately altogether, "No big family, not even brothers or sisters to spent my time with!" she tried poorly to crack some sort of joke and she felt his palms rubbing her back more reassuringly and warmly.

"I have lot, we can have together" he said lightly and he breathed a so weightless laugh that made her shiver briefly, nevertheless. She inhaled shakily, a ridiculous way to laugh back gently, even though she was very grateful for his so kind manner of showing his probable interest or his willingness to sooth her even in the slightest.

"Thank you, Ron, but I'm alright" she answered gently and shortly after he gifted her with another kiss on her hair. "Well, I lived at England with my parents, a small, quite family, but really loving and caring for each other. They taught me a lot of things and I inherit their love for books, so despite I haven't much company, I always had my books."

She stopped for a bit, thinking about what else was harmless for telling him, but she couldn't think much. She kept listening to his steady heart-beating and his slow breathing, his motions so tender, just like himself, but she didn't hear his voice. She realized that his palms' movements were slightly slower and she wondered if he was thoughtful about something. He didn't speak for some moments and she didn't dare to break the consoling silence that was embracing, so she just let herself get lost in him, and she closed her eyes slowly, feeling her head lighter as the seconds were flowing. She was about to fall asleep when she suddenly heard his relaxing voice.

"No friends?" he asked with a tiny voice that seemed a bit childish and naïve. Hermione now wanted to look into his dazzling eyes, to get lost in their so-strangely-intact innocence, to get reassured and comforted by their pureness, but his arms and body were too soft, warm and appealing to be away from them now, so she just tried to imagine them as successfully as feasible.

"Not actually, no, but I had quite a few cousins with whom I spent many time and had much fun; well, every now and then I would chat some with some classmate, but I hadn't a real friend or something" she confessed softly, feeling a bit sad herself for being like this while younger, but she knew that past was inerasable and regretting about it would only bring depression, thus a present as flawed as the said past; she exhaled quite dejectedly.

"I sorry" she heard after a long moment his apologetic, so sincere voice lingering in her ears and then she felt vaguely surprised, because she didn't expect a response to her words. She finally pulled a bit away from his warm torso, his arms still around her petite body as she looked up to him, seeing the slightly burnt skin of his face and the warm colour of his gleaming irises- she was surely lost in the sight.

"For what?" she asked after a moment of staring in each other's eyes with a combination of various, different emotions. Ron let a small, quite sad smile to appear on his mouth for a brief second before letting it leave him. The woman was about to mourn for the loss but a second latter, she felt one of his warm palms covering her left cheek, the contact electrifying, yet relaxing, and her heart was gradually melting gladly.

"You alone… it be sad, right?" Ron whispered with his somewhat remorseful tone still coloring his rich voice while his thumb gently caressed her briefly closed eyelid. Hermione inhaled shakily under his dear touch and she opened her eyes slowly, looking at him before answering.

"To be honest, I sometimes felt distant from my environment and as a girl this made me a bit sad, but it's alright, I guess… no hard feelings or something" she whispered back and with her eyes she tried to show him that it was like this, so he shouldn't be saddened by this at all.

"I sorry" he repeated softly, his eyes still a bit stained from the unreasonable guilt he was most probably feeling. She smiled reassuringly up to him and his thumb stroked lightly her cheekbone as a response.

"No need to be sorry- I'm fine now" she told him with a quite sweet tone in her low voice and he briefly smiled brilliantly at her, his eyes seeming quite less troubled after her simple words of assurance. They gazed at each other's eyes for a split second after which Hermione had to deal with an exceedingly fast pulsation and a lost breath; his face was steadily leaning closer to hers…

The plain act of dear fondness warmed her crazy heart swiftly, and his arms tightened lovingly and caringly around her, his balm lips still engaged with hers amorously. Her hands without much difficulty found their way on his chest, her one palm resting on top of his heart while they were kissing each other slowly; time slowly dragged away from them, leaving them essentially alone.

After some unknown moments, they slowly pulled away from each other, even if their hands and arms were still around the other's body. They looked at each other for a short moment; their sentiments poured out entirely before Ron slowly leaned again and kissed her above her eyebrow, his full lips lingering a bit on the spot. Hermione felt so safe there, with him at the moment and she let a satisfied, small smile to reach her lips. The man immediately smiled back at her beautifully and he took her once again in his arms; Hermione keenly buried herself in his broad, warm body and they stayed like that for some time unknown, with her staying like that serenely while the redhead man was stroking her hair and humming some sweet melodies. Hermione got lost in the gentle sounds as Ron was stroking her curls more and more soothingly, until her breathing, ever so slowly, started to be deeper and more even, her eyes closed peacefully. Without realizing and without minding, she lost herself in his sweet existence and in wonderful dreamland…

…

She woke up with a so strange feeling of renewal inside her, but she rather liked it so she let an inaudible sigh to escape from her. She turned a bit her body, so she could nuzzle on his arms and maybe even kiss his covered chest, but his arms- or his entire body for the matter- was nowhere to be felt, despite the warm softness she was able to feel around her body. She gradually opened her eyes and after rubbing them with the back of her hand, she looked around expectantly, only to see herself lying on the floor with a small, worn pillow under her head and an also worn blanket around her body. A smile easily appeared on her face as the thought of Ron putting gently her head above a pillow and covering her body with the cloth was so sweet and overwhelming; she sighed again.

She finally sat up and after yawning lightly and stretching a bit, she stood up, her pupils instantly looking around with some anticipation. Of course, the search wasn't at all long, as the one person she wanted to lay her eyes on was already on the very same room, yet on its far end. Hermione looked at him curiously and it took her some moments to understand what he was doing; when she did however, she actually discovered a whole new side of him, in a way and that made her respect him even more.

He was standing very close to the stony wall of the room, his face only millimeters away from it. His forehead was gently resting on the hard stone as his eyes were closed and cast down, exactly the way his head was. His posture was a bit shrunk now, holding a so humble air around it, while his hands were holding a rather small, open book. His face seemed very engrossed to what he was doing at the moment, his expression serious, yet serene as well, as his lips were a bit parted, mouthing with respect and faith precious words of hymn.

Hermione gazed at him lovingly for another second before going silently to the other room, wanting to let him pray alone and peacefully.

When she reached the other room, her sight was immediately filled with the girl, who was sitting beneath a small blanket, her eyes wide and maybe a little scared as she was all alone, curled body at the far corner of the little room. Hermione understood perfectly her fear, as Luna most probably woke up to find no one near her, so the woman approached her slowly and peacefully, not wanting to startle her with any way. The sound of her soft steps and her more clear presence in the room made Luna to look up half-afraid, half-expectantly and when she round, blue-grey eyes laid on her, the child seemed much more relieved and gleeful. Hermione gave her a sweet smile as she went and sat next to her, instantly responding in the open, awaiting arms of the girl with her own, longer ones since she gently took her in her hug.

"Did you sleep well, Luna?" Hermione asked softly, stroking the long, wavy hair of the child in her arms. The girl looked up to her with shiny eyes that were holding something that seemed like worship; she nodded vividly and smiled stunningly.

"I'm sorry dear that I wasn't there when you woke up, but I feel asleep just like you" Hermione said then with some apology, yet sweetness as well, in her voice and then the child giggled a bit as her eyes widened comically, showing some surprise about the older one's 'inattention'; the brunette could do nothing but laugh softly, too. As Hermione kept on stroking the baby's hair and massaging the skull, and some moments later, Luna leaned on her body, her cheek resting on the spot above her heart. The silent moment was comfortingly serene and Hermione was just lost in this land of complete sentiments, feeling oddly composed by just caressing the girl's silken locks. Suddenly, the woman was able to hear the angelic voice of the little girl.

"You… you new mama?"

She was entirely able to hear the hesitation in her voice, but God… The question made Hermione stay completely still, her eyes gazing into vacancy as the echoes of the innocent voice were still in her ears, making her heart so restless and full with questions, all of the sudden- what was that able? She took a so deep breath and tried to compose herself as much as possible, her mind spinning while trying to find an answer to the child's so pure question; she suddenly wanted to cry until there was no more water and salt in her system.

"Luna…" she whispered to her with quite cracked voice that made her shiver. She looked down, looking at the girl that was staring back at her with so huge, shining eyes and she instantly thought of Ron, but the thought was as comforting as she had hoped… How could she… could she replace in any way the woman both of them were so close with… "I… I don't know, dear…" she finally finished her sentence, even though in her mind suddenly appeared millions of thoughts, doubts and possibilities, an endless sea without a tiny rock somewhere to clung on, to save your helpless existence.

She really felt so helpless out of the blue, but she tried with everything she had to put aside the new-born fears of emotional rejection and neglect.

Luna was still staring at her with her brilliant eyes and a second later, she was smiling coyly at her. Hermione smiled back briefly and brushed the long hair with her thin fingers, liking the soft feeling much.

"Would you like to make your hair?" the woman then said out of the blue, the mere idea suddenly popping into her mind. She looked down expectantly and she immediately saw Luna nodding vigorously up to her, her beautiful eyes smiling to her innocently- she felt instantly better. The girl then stood away from her lap and when Hermione opened her bended legs, she eagerly sat between them, her head taking a good position for the hair-making. Hermione took all the hair in her hands and brushed them gently with her hands before letting them all fall on her back and them separating them so she could make a lovely twist.

"Hello"

The voice quite startled Hermione for the second time that day, but she immediately looked up, momentarily forgetting about Luna's hair. Ron was standing under the doorway, looking at them with a smiling face that was glowing handsomely. Whatever traces of fear and doubt were immediately vanished from her soul as the beautiful sight filled her completely, making her feel quite weightless. She then heard the girl's cute squeals as her dad was approaching them, kissing is daughter's forehead and her own cheek sweetly, kneeling next to them and looking at them with sparkly eyes.

"Papa! Hel-mimi make hail!" Luna exclaimed happily as she was looking with identically round eyes on her father; when the man heard his daughter, he laughed a bit gently.

"That a good thing, right?" he said lightly and stood up before sitting on the floor once again, but this time behind Hermione, their bodies almost touching as he let his long legs to be on each side of her own ones, while his arms wrapped loosely around her, reaching easily the girl's knees. He secretly gave a chaste kiss on the back of her neck and he let his head rest on top of her left shoulder. The woman felt really warm inside her, as she let her back rest on his torso; she then took a deep breath before finally starting to braid the child's so long hair, all the environment and the process so very peaceful and endearing… She wouldn't mind being like this for the rest of her life…

Minutes passed easily like this, with Ron having both of them in his arms while Hermione was making Luna's hair. Every now and then, Luna would say something random to the older ones, making them laugh merrily of her innocence and her pure lovability or Ron would sing ever so softly some song from his homeland, making the brunette getting lost in the perfect voice and in the unknown words; her heart was drown in difficult-to-be-found sentiments of mere bliss. As another minute passed, Hermione suddenly heard Luna's girly voice once more:

"Papa?" she said rather impatiently, probably wanting to know that she had her father's entire attention.

"What, Luna?" Ron asked her gently, his eyes looking interestedly at his daughter's little back. As Hermione was making the girl's hair, she heard it:

"Mama give Hel-mimi, light?" she spoke expectantly, the naïve voice lingering in their ears, but…

Oh, my…

Hermione instantly felt the man's body froze; the muscles stiff around her and his chin on top of her shoulder was clenched for a millisecond before starting quivering rather uncontrollably. Her own blood froze and she didn't know what to do as the air around them suddenly seemed heavy and stuffy.

"I…" she heard Ron started saying, but he trailed off and the woman felt the violent contractions of the muscles in his upper abdomen, which made her feel so very sorry for him. "No idea, my Luna… maybe yes…" he finally managed to finish with awfully shaky voice and brought wetness in her eyes, both from hurt because of his state but also from his words that brought weird feelings of unidentified questions, of warmth tangled with confound and slight oddity; did he really believe those words?

She felt his face buried on the curve of her neck and her hair, inhaling deeply yet unsurely as he was most probably trying to compose himself. A single droplet hit her bare skin and she tried hard not to gasp, both those restless souls needed probably her comfort, which was more than agreeable to give them. With as much steady hands as she could muster, she finished the plait and after tying gently its end, she gave a kiss to the girl's head. Luna turned around and smiled happily to the woman, while she felt Ron hiding his face behind her shoulder plate, probably in unreasonable, yet understandable shame.

"Thank" Luna exclaimed gleefully and hugged her with her tiny arms for a brief moment before standing up and going eagerly to their side. "Papa, you like hail?"

The brunette heard the almost inaudible sniffing and a deep inhalation before the man finally raised his head slowly, looking up to his one daughter. Hermione instantly made out the so wet eyes and the few damp trickles on his face as his swiftly-so-tired eyes were glued up to the child, and she felt quite miserable; she saw Ron smiling up to the girl only a little.

"So beautiful" he just said with his hoarse voice and his eyes suddenly seemed somewhat unfocused, facing sights too far away from the mere room. Luna though appeared to notice the awful state of her father, as her eyes widened and she looked quite terrified.

"Papa?" she whispered with some fear in her voice as her one hand hesitantly went towards her father, touching his thin cheek unsurely. Ron appeared to try hard to twist the corners of his eyes more upwards, just to reassure this girl that everything was alright, that he was as strong as he should be only for his daughter.

"No worry, Luna… something in eye" he said quickly, his voice steadier this time as to reassure the child with the lame, so-common excuse. The girl already seemed quite calmer and suddenly Hermione heard Ron's voice getting louder and more alive, which surprised her a bit.

"Luna, want see some magic?" he exclaimed with falsely cheerful tone that Hermione managed to identify but of course the 4-year-old child wasn't able to do so; the child's face lit up right away and she nodded vividly, looking with wide eyes full of anticipation at her father. "Then close eyes" he instructed her then and the girl, without hesitation did as said, shutting firmly her eyes. With this, Hermione turned a bit her head around, looking with some sadness at the man, who was roughly and hurriedly was wiping away all the evidence of his ache from his face and then wiping his eyes with his sleeve painfully hard, as if he was punishing himself for letting his offspring seeing him like this. When he was sure that he was ok, he breathed deeply and then told his daughter to open her eyes. When Luna obeyed eagerly, Ron let a huge smile to be plastered on his face- even though it never reached his eyes- and his arms shot up in the air, like he was presenting something awesome.

"Ta-ta!" he said in a quite sing-song voice and he tried to make his false smile even wider while he was looking steadily up to his little girl, his breath most probably being held until a reaction was come from her part. "See? Papa happy and love his Luna!" he continued with hollowly merry voice that broke her heart a bit, but she just looked at the girl, who was giggling innocently to him before going and burying herself in his big torso. Ron wrapped his arms tightly around the girl's small body and kissed her hair with sealed eyes and some force in his lips, his large hands rubbing the body comfortingly. Hermione lost a part of herself in the sight that brought inside her thousands of conflicting emotions which tried to tame, at least for now. After some long moments, Ron let the girl out of his arms and as he was stroking her cheek with his palm, he spoke softly:

"Want go inside and play with ball and sticks?" When Luna showed her desire to do so with a high-pitched 'yes', Ron smiled absentmindedly for a split second before continuing, "Go then and stay there, no outside, yes?" When the little girl nodded vigorously, her eyes filled with pure happiness, Ron nodded as well, probably just an unconscious reaction to her own one. "I be there soon" he confirmed her sweetly and as a result, the child nodded once more swiftly before running with a little squeal towards the other, larger room. Hermione's eyes followed the gleeful girl for a bit, her mind elsewhere but unknown where exactly, until she heard a small sound and her eyes instantly travelled towards the redhead man, anxious to see his state.

His eyes were firmly closed, the back of his head resting weakly on the wall and his lips were parted, breaths thoughtfully being taken from the weary existence; a tear that was loosely hooked on his long eyelashes managed to fall on the skin and slowly start its journey towards the cliff of his jaw-line- towards the poorly mended wound in his heart. She heard a weak sob that motivated her to go nearer him and stroke his forearm.

"I'm sure everything will be alright" she whispered softly, not knowing what else to him; of course she knew that promising fragile things to a desperate soul wasn't a very wise thing, but comforting was all that had left to caress his abused spirit- she really wanted to cure him...

She saw him opening gradually his eyes after a moment of silence, the enlarged pupils already staring at her with despair. "Sometimes... sometimes it so hard… Luna a lot like her and when she ask for mama… I cannot give it Luna… I no good papa…"

"Don't say that ever again!" Hermione instantly hushed him seriously, her palm firmly on top of his slightly cool cheek while trying to show him with her eyes that the words steamed from her heart, not from her pity. "What I see every single day, whatever you do for Luna… it's just immeasurable! You are more than just a great father to her, Ron…"

The words, along with the sound of his name from her lips seemed to be an efficient support for the man, as the look at the depths of his eyes became less hard, while his breathing became more even. He sighed silently, as if letting as the invisible weight to lift for a moment from his chest and shoulders and he took her hand from his cheek in his own one, the thump shakily stroking the knuckles. Hermione smiled reassuringly at him as he pulled her in his life-depending embrace, making both of their hearts less miserable and more oblivious to the cruelty of the world out of this hut. The woman let her eyes close while she smelled his sweet scent and forgot about everything else- he was the centre of the entire universe. His warm lips lingered on the top of her head for a moment and then she felt those same lips brushing on her hair as her ears heard the so kind words:

"Thank you…"

She silently told him that he had nothing to thank her about; she was the one thankful, thanking fate for sending him in her own path called as 'life'…

…

She was there, in front of the fire, gazing at the dancing flames vaguely, only comforted by the warm caresses it sent her way. She then took a glance of the sleeping girl at the other side of the room, sighing at the peaceful sight there. She herself felt quite tired and sleepy, so she decided to lean on the blanket under her body, her eyes still fixed on the small, yet calming fire. She didn't know how many more minutes she was looking at the element during its proud state in the fireplace, until some of her sleepiness flew away as she felt a pair of strong arms encircling her middle from behind, her back then making contact with another body. Her heart fluttered delightfully and she forgot all about the fire, instantly turning around so she could face him. When she did so, his eyes met with hers and a tiny, adorable smile appeared on his glowing-by-firelight face; he seemed calmer now, as the night had reached them, and a small smile made also its way on her face, as she felt calmer herself, seeing him like this.

They didn't speak as his hands once again started to rub soothingly the small of her back, their sets of eyes holding a silent conversation. Contentment engulfed them gracefully as their bodies touched, as their spirits were now bonded tightly, yet no painfully…

"You be so beautiful…" he whispered unexpectedly, his eyes shining lovingly as the words were out, lingering on the air and in her ears. She felt her heart in total ease and her cheeks were suddenly a bit flushed from some traces of shyness inside her; however, she looked up to him and with the tiny smile still on his lips, he kissed her cheeks kindly. When he pulled a bit away to look in her eyes, he inhaled a bit deeply before saying more words.

"Maybe… Maybe Luna right… Maybe Flora send you to we… a good woman be with…" he whispered quite unsurely, yet his voice didn't crack or shake when he pronounced his wife's name- it was wholly steady. The words' meaning was vast and she gasped softly, slightly uncertain if her presumptions were even in the slightest rational, so she hesitantly looked up to his enormous eyes, to this pools of pure sentiments- she wasn't at all disappointed, neither she nor her hopeful heart…

"I… I l-love you…" he whispered ever so gently to her, his eyes sparkling angelically as he was starring at her; her heart most probably hadn't felt this kind of harmony and completion before…

"I love you, too" she whispered almost inaudibly and as a quiet response to this, his eyes smiled and the exhaustion disappeared like it was never there to blemish them. The man hugged her tighter, bringing her closer to his chest, letting her hear the response of his heart to her little, four words- the so brisk, merry rhythm made her feel drunk from glee.

Then, the sweet breaths of his were caressing the skin of her face relaxingly and she looked up to him immediately, new-found enthusiasm underlined in her motions. They didn't actually need to look into each other's eyes this time; their childlike enthusiasm leaded them now and they instantly leaned closer to each other, letting them meet in a merry, pure, lingering kiss that confirmed everything, even though there wasn't a need to…

Maybe war was able to ruin lives, to tarnish and rape souls, to exterminate nations and destroy entire worlds, but love was able to rebuild and mend everything and everyone under its healing touch…

Yes, it's true that light vanquishes darkness… and that was the inevitable evidence of it…

-Oh well, that was a long one to write... And as for the names, well, I tried as much as possible to either find ones that are Italian or Hebrew ones and quite similar with the original ones, or even improvise some (sorry for the 'Pier' thing...). In Yiddish, Freyde means 'joy'; as for Ron, in Hebrew it also means 'joy' and 'song'...

-Well, after that quite tiring chapter, all I want is your so-much-appreciated feedback; it really makes the author so, so happy!

-And of course I'll try to update the last two ones as soon as possibly feasible... Until then, my pals... xxx :)