By My Side: 07 | Rated: R | Ron Weasley Centric
Title: By My Side
Rating: R for language in later chapters
Pairings: Canon pairings
Words: 1,400 ish
Warnings: Okay, just presume there's angst all the time! More pain. Upset Ron.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter characters, I am merely playing with them. I shall return then when I'm done!
Authors Note: Firstly thank you to mrsquizzical and oncelikeshari for reading it through and putting up with my 'is this okay...how about this?' questions, of which there were many! Secondly thanks to my super fast beta deenas. Yes that's right, I've been through the beta process before putting it up on here, shock horror!
I cannot take credit for the baseline plot of this fic. I blatantly stole borrowed it from Stargate SG-1, series 7, which they then recycled in Stargate Atlantis, series 2, so you know, if they can use it twice, I can borrow it this once!
Chapter 6: Hermione
Ron blinked and opened his eyes. He looked around but didn’t know where he was. He turned his head to his right where the light was coming into the cave. The light hurt his eyes and his head. He closed his eyes and sank back into the blackness of unconsciousness.
...
It was his cough that forced his eyes open. He groaned at the pain it caused. He brought his hands to his face and called out in pain when they landed heavily on his nose. He gingerly felt his nose and groaned when it wasn’t the shape he knew it should be.
‘Fuck!’ he mumbled.
He heard rustling and then felt a warm hand stroking his hair and the side of his face. He gripped the hand, knowing it was the hand of someone he loved, knowing that touch anywhere.
‘Hermione?’
‘I’m here, Ron.’
Ron focused as best as he could on her eyes.
‘Are you really? Or are you just in my head.’
Hermione smiled. ‘I’m real in here,’ she put her other hand on his head and ran her fingers through his hair. ‘But only in here, I’m afraid.’
Ron smiled. ‘Ah well, better than nothing. Are you going to shout at me?’
‘I should do, really, but I can’t when you’re ill, can I? That’s the Ronald Weasley rule, isn’t it?’
Ron smirked. ‘Absolutely!’
‘But you should be prepared for harsh words from the real me when you've recovered. I’m not going to let this one go!’
‘I know. But if I get out of here, I’ll let you shout at me all you want. I’d love nothing more than to hear you shouting at me, if it meant you were really with me.’
‘I’m coming for you, Ron. We promised we’d take care of each other and that’s what I’m doing. You just have to hold on for me, okay?’
‘I tried…tried to find a way h…home but…I couldn’t. I t…tried!’
‘Shh, Ron! Calm down, you just need to hang on for a bit longer, okay?’
Ron automatically went to nod but regretted his decision.
‘I will. Promise.’
He closed his eyes and the need to sleep overtook him.
‘Hang on for me, Ron. Just hang on.’
...
‘H’mione,’
He waited for an answer, but didn’t get one.
Determined not to pass out again soon, he rolled onto his right side and crawled towards the wall of the cave. He propped himself against the cold stone and tried to focus on a point in front of him. Disturbingly, that point was a dried pool of blood, no doubt from his most recent injury. He managed to look at it for a minute before starting to feel dizzy, yet again.
He didn’t care that his only chance of company wasn’t real; he wanted to speak to Hermione, regardless of whether she was a figment of his imagination.
‘Her…Hermione?’ he said, his voice rough.
Again nothing replied to him.
‘Please! I need you, Hermione.’
‘I’m here,’ Hermione’s voice replied.
He forced his eyes open and managed to pull his mouth into a smile. It hurt his face but he refused to stop smiling when he saw Hermione.
‘Hi,’ he said sleepily.
‘Hi,’ she replied with a smile. ‘Oh, Ron, what have you done to yourself?’
Her fingers gently touched Ron’s face. He expected to feel pain but he didn’t, just her touch on his skin.
‘I don’t care if you’re not real, I’m so happy you’re here.’
‘I’ll always be with you, Ron, so will your friends and family…even those who you won’t see again, in this life anyway.’
Ron nodded his head an inch.
‘I know.’
‘And you also know that they, we, won’t stop looking for you until we find you.’
‘I know, but if you could hurry up, it’d be much appreciated!’
Hermione smiled.
Ron cleared his throat and frowned at how that very simple thing hurt him.
‘Hermione,’
‘Yes, Ron,’
‘I know you’re not real, but I need to tell you some things, just in case, you know?’
‘That’s not the attitude to have, Ron. I don’t want you thinking like that.’
'I know, but...please, if nothing else it gives me practice saying them to you before I say them to the real you!'
He expected her to smile but she frowned slightly.
'I know you love me, Ron.'
'Yeah, but I never told you, did I? I tried on a few occasions, but I never thought I could do it justice. I wanted it to be an occasion that you would remember.'
'Ron, any time you decide to say those words to me would be an occasion to remember, however mundane the circumstances. Whenever you're ready to say those words will be perfect.'
'That's the thing though!' he exclaimed. He sat forward with the force of his words and immediately felt dizziness overtake him and his head throbbed. He gritted his teeth, determined to carry on talking. 'I've always felt this way, since I realised I liked you more than friends, it's always been you, Hermione, always, and I've never told you!'
The pain in his head was unbearable and he whimpered with the pain.
'Ron, please calm down. Sit back and rest. Getting worked up won't help!'
'I can't believe this is...the way I'm gonna...'
'Don't you dare finish that sentence, Ronald Weasley!' Hermione snapped as she leaned in towards him. 'I. Will. Find. You. You know that!'
Ron felt a little ashamed.
'I know, you will, I just don't know...whether I...I can hold on until you g...get here.'
Tears filled his eyes.
'You're strong, Ron, you know that.'
He nodded, and tried to ignore the black spots clouding his vision.
'Remember, I love you,' he said before falling unconscious again.
He was lying on the ground but failed to realise he hadn't voluntarily lain down. He forced his eyes open but couldn't see anything but darkness.
'l...love you...H'mio...ne.'
...
He could feel hands on his face, their touch gentle but firm.
'Ron! Ron, open your eyes for me, please. Oh, Merlin! What have you done to yourself?'
He heard rummaging and then the hands were back on his face, something cool dripped onto his nose and it tingled.
'Ron, come on, wake up for me, I need to know you can hear me.'
With all the energy he could muster, he forced his eyelids apart. He couldn't focus but could see shapes moving in front of him.
'Oh, thank God! Ron, are you okay? Well, obviously you're not! I'm going to get some help, okay, Ron? Stay awake for me, I won't be a minute.'
The shapes moved away from him, he couldn't see her properly but he knew Hermione was visiting him again. He managed a smile and closed his eyes again.
'Expecto Patronum! Please hurry!'
The shapes appeared in front of him.
'You...c...came back again!'
'Again? What do you mean again? Has someone else been here, Ron?'
'Everyone's been here! You, Harry...Fred...'
'Fred? Ron, Fred's...never mind, just lie still for me, Ron. I don't want to move you in case it does any more damage. You've done enough as it is.'
He felt her take his hand and he squeezed hers tightly.
'You know, even though you're in my head, you feel very real!'
She didn't reply right away.
'Ron, I don't understand, what do you mean I 'feel very real'?'
'No, no, I know you're real, you told me that you were real in here.'
Clumsily he brought his hand to his head a tapped it. He felt Hermione grab his arm and lower it to the ground.
'You've done yourself enough mischief, Ron. We’ll have no more of that, thank you.'
'I meant what I said earlier you know, and I know the real you won't...won't hear it, but I need to tell you again, I l...love you, Hermione.'
He heard a small gasp. The shape that he knew was Hermione moved towards him and she came into focus a little more.
'I love you too, Ron.'
He felt her kiss his forehead and he smiled.
'Hermione!'
He recognised the second voice but didn't know who it was.
Hermione's grasp on his hand disappeared and she moved away from him.
'I'm here, he's here! He's injured, looks like he's hit his head really hard. He's confused and...'
The rest of the words were muffled as he closed his eyes once more. He felt more hands on him and then felt himself being moved and lifted into the air.
Maybe this is it, he thought. It's not so bad, nothing hurts anymore and it's peaceful.
With that last thought, he thought no more.
Only one more to go!
Rating: R for language in later chapters
Pairings: Canon pairings
Words: 1,400 ish
Warnings: Okay, just presume there's angst all the time! More pain. Upset Ron.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter characters, I am merely playing with them. I shall return then when I'm done!
Authors Note: Firstly thank you to mrsquizzical and oncelikeshari for reading it through and putting up with my 'is this okay...how about this?' questions, of which there were many! Secondly thanks to my super fast beta deenas. Yes that's right, I've been through the beta process before putting it up on here, shock horror!
I cannot take credit for the baseline plot of this fic. I blatantly stole borrowed it from Stargate SG-1, series 7, which they then recycled in Stargate Atlantis, series 2, so you know, if they can use it twice, I can borrow it this once!
Chapter 6: Hermione
Ron blinked and opened his eyes. He looked around but didn’t know where he was. He turned his head to his right where the light was coming into the cave. The light hurt his eyes and his head. He closed his eyes and sank back into the blackness of unconsciousness.
...
It was his cough that forced his eyes open. He groaned at the pain it caused. He brought his hands to his face and called out in pain when they landed heavily on his nose. He gingerly felt his nose and groaned when it wasn’t the shape he knew it should be.
‘Fuck!’ he mumbled.
He heard rustling and then felt a warm hand stroking his hair and the side of his face. He gripped the hand, knowing it was the hand of someone he loved, knowing that touch anywhere.
‘Hermione?’
‘I’m here, Ron.’
Ron focused as best as he could on her eyes.
‘Are you really? Or are you just in my head.’
Hermione smiled. ‘I’m real in here,’ she put her other hand on his head and ran her fingers through his hair. ‘But only in here, I’m afraid.’
Ron smiled. ‘Ah well, better than nothing. Are you going to shout at me?’
‘I should do, really, but I can’t when you’re ill, can I? That’s the Ronald Weasley rule, isn’t it?’
Ron smirked. ‘Absolutely!’
‘But you should be prepared for harsh words from the real me when you've recovered. I’m not going to let this one go!’
‘I know. But if I get out of here, I’ll let you shout at me all you want. I’d love nothing more than to hear you shouting at me, if it meant you were really with me.’
‘I’m coming for you, Ron. We promised we’d take care of each other and that’s what I’m doing. You just have to hold on for me, okay?’
‘I tried…tried to find a way h…home but…I couldn’t. I t…tried!’
‘Shh, Ron! Calm down, you just need to hang on for a bit longer, okay?’
Ron automatically went to nod but regretted his decision.
‘I will. Promise.’
He closed his eyes and the need to sleep overtook him.
‘Hang on for me, Ron. Just hang on.’
...
‘H’mione,’
He waited for an answer, but didn’t get one.
Determined not to pass out again soon, he rolled onto his right side and crawled towards the wall of the cave. He propped himself against the cold stone and tried to focus on a point in front of him. Disturbingly, that point was a dried pool of blood, no doubt from his most recent injury. He managed to look at it for a minute before starting to feel dizzy, yet again.
He didn’t care that his only chance of company wasn’t real; he wanted to speak to Hermione, regardless of whether she was a figment of his imagination.
‘Her…Hermione?’ he said, his voice rough.
Again nothing replied to him.
‘Please! I need you, Hermione.’
‘I’m here,’ Hermione’s voice replied.
He forced his eyes open and managed to pull his mouth into a smile. It hurt his face but he refused to stop smiling when he saw Hermione.
‘Hi,’ he said sleepily.
‘Hi,’ she replied with a smile. ‘Oh, Ron, what have you done to yourself?’
Her fingers gently touched Ron’s face. He expected to feel pain but he didn’t, just her touch on his skin.
‘I don’t care if you’re not real, I’m so happy you’re here.’
‘I’ll always be with you, Ron, so will your friends and family…even those who you won’t see again, in this life anyway.’
Ron nodded his head an inch.
‘I know.’
‘And you also know that they, we, won’t stop looking for you until we find you.’
‘I know, but if you could hurry up, it’d be much appreciated!’
Hermione smiled.
Ron cleared his throat and frowned at how that very simple thing hurt him.
‘Hermione,’
‘Yes, Ron,’
‘I know you’re not real, but I need to tell you some things, just in case, you know?’
‘That’s not the attitude to have, Ron. I don’t want you thinking like that.’
'I know, but...please, if nothing else it gives me practice saying them to you before I say them to the real you!'
He expected her to smile but she frowned slightly.
'I know you love me, Ron.'
'Yeah, but I never told you, did I? I tried on a few occasions, but I never thought I could do it justice. I wanted it to be an occasion that you would remember.'
'Ron, any time you decide to say those words to me would be an occasion to remember, however mundane the circumstances. Whenever you're ready to say those words will be perfect.'
'That's the thing though!' he exclaimed. He sat forward with the force of his words and immediately felt dizziness overtake him and his head throbbed. He gritted his teeth, determined to carry on talking. 'I've always felt this way, since I realised I liked you more than friends, it's always been you, Hermione, always, and I've never told you!'
The pain in his head was unbearable and he whimpered with the pain.
'Ron, please calm down. Sit back and rest. Getting worked up won't help!'
'I can't believe this is...the way I'm gonna...'
'Don't you dare finish that sentence, Ronald Weasley!' Hermione snapped as she leaned in towards him. 'I. Will. Find. You. You know that!'
Ron felt a little ashamed.
'I know, you will, I just don't know...whether I...I can hold on until you g...get here.'
Tears filled his eyes.
'You're strong, Ron, you know that.'
He nodded, and tried to ignore the black spots clouding his vision.
'Remember, I love you,' he said before falling unconscious again.
He was lying on the ground but failed to realise he hadn't voluntarily lain down. He forced his eyes open but couldn't see anything but darkness.
'l...love you...H'mio...ne.'
...
He could feel hands on his face, their touch gentle but firm.
'Ron! Ron, open your eyes for me, please. Oh, Merlin! What have you done to yourself?'
He heard rummaging and then the hands were back on his face, something cool dripped onto his nose and it tingled.
'Ron, come on, wake up for me, I need to know you can hear me.'
With all the energy he could muster, he forced his eyelids apart. He couldn't focus but could see shapes moving in front of him.
'Oh, thank God! Ron, are you okay? Well, obviously you're not! I'm going to get some help, okay, Ron? Stay awake for me, I won't be a minute.'
The shapes moved away from him, he couldn't see her properly but he knew Hermione was visiting him again. He managed a smile and closed his eyes again.
'Expecto Patronum! Please hurry!'
The shapes appeared in front of him.
'You...c...came back again!'
'Again? What do you mean again? Has someone else been here, Ron?'
'Everyone's been here! You, Harry...Fred...'
'Fred? Ron, Fred's...never mind, just lie still for me, Ron. I don't want to move you in case it does any more damage. You've done enough as it is.'
He felt her take his hand and he squeezed hers tightly.
'You know, even though you're in my head, you feel very real!'
She didn't reply right away.
'Ron, I don't understand, what do you mean I 'feel very real'?'
'No, no, I know you're real, you told me that you were real in here.'
Clumsily he brought his hand to his head a tapped it. He felt Hermione grab his arm and lower it to the ground.
'You've done yourself enough mischief, Ron. We’ll have no more of that, thank you.'
'I meant what I said earlier you know, and I know the real you won't...won't hear it, but I need to tell you again, I l...love you, Hermione.'
He heard a small gasp. The shape that he knew was Hermione moved towards him and she came into focus a little more.
'I love you too, Ron.'
He felt her kiss his forehead and he smiled.
'Hermione!'
He recognised the second voice but didn't know who it was.
Hermione's grasp on his hand disappeared and she moved away from him.
'I'm here, he's here! He's injured, looks like he's hit his head really hard. He's confused and...'
The rest of the words were muffled as he closed his eyes once more. He felt more hands on him and then felt himself being moved and lifted into the air.
Maybe this is it, he thought. It's not so bad, nothing hurts anymore and it's peaceful.
With that last thought, he thought no more.
Only one more to go!