Author's Note: Next to last one, all. :D I have had so much fun writing this story, and I'm glad that it seems you all have had just as much fun reading it! I'm almost sorry that it has to end. L I've got another couple of stories that I plan to start on soon, so I'll try not to keep you waiting for them. And so, without further ado, here is Chapter 21. J Enjoy!
************************************************************************
Hermione was moving almost as soon as her feet hit the hardwood floor of Harry's apartment. Incredibly, although Ron had apparated only a matter of seconds before she had, he was already disappearing into the bedroom at the end of the hall. She followed, her heart breaking in her chest as she heard Harry let out a savage scream.
"Leave him alone!" she heard Ron howl as she stopped in the doorway. Harry was lying in the corner of his room, huddled into a ball with his hands over his head, panting as though he'd never catch his breath again. Lucius Malfoy stood over him, a sneer on his face even as he shielded himself from the curses Ron was hurling at him.
"Look, Potter," he drawled, flicking his wand to send one of Ron's own spells back at him. "Your dear friends have come to save you. As if they could. How very-sweet. Well, sweet for me, anyway. Now I can take care of all three of you at once."
Hermione felt rage fire up within her and she raised her wand, but Ron caught her eye. He shook his head vehemently, and Hermione knew what he meant. He wanted to take care of Lucius himself.
Although she wasn't sure it was the best idea, Hermione lowered her wand, ducking behind the doorframe as Lucius fired off a spell in her direction. She heard Ron let out a cry of fury, and glanced around again to check on Harry. He was still lying on his side, but his body was now limp. Hermione let out a whimper, wishing she could get to him. Lucius was still standing there, though, and she wasn't about to go across him while he was still armed and vicious. "Hang on, Harry," she whispered, clenching her wand tightly. "Please hang on."
The curses were still flying, and Ron was doing a fair job holding his own. Then, without warning, Ron sent out a curse that hit Lucius dead in the chest, despite his shield. Malfoy eyes widened and his shoulders hunched as he stumbled backward from the force of it. He bounced off the wall and fell forward, hitting the floor with a loud Thud, and staying there.
Ron seemed almost as surprised as Lucius had, but he stepped round the bed on shaky legs. "Did I-Is he--?"
Hermione chewed her lip, edging closer. "I-I don't know. Wh-what was that spell?"
He shook his head, paling. His silence spoke volumes to Hermione, though. She knelt beside Lucius and tentatively reached a hand out to feel his neck. After a minute of searching, she sighed. "He's-dead, Ron."
Ron sank onto the bed, dropping his head into his hands. "Oh, God. I didn't-mean to. I mean, I did-but I didn't-I didn't think it would actually work! Oh God!"
Hermione sniffed, but managed to stand. Her heart was torn between going to Ron and checking on Harry. Finally, she forced herself to move over and give Ron a small hug, patting his back. "It's okay, Ron. You didn't mean it. I know you didn't."
His shoulders shook with sobs and he let out a wail. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I never-never meant to kill him."
"I know you didn't. It's all right. He deserved it."
Ron looked up at her, his eyes red, tears streaming down his face. "What are you, nuts? You should be checking on Harry!"
She laughed softly, almost incredulously. "I was-worried about you."
"I'm fine. Go-check him. Is he even breathing?"
Hermione hurried over and dropped to her knees next to Harry's limp form. "God, please. Please, please, please," she muttered as she felt his neck for a pulse. "Oh thank God," she sniffed. "He's alive, Ron."
"I'm-ow-fine," Harry rasped, sounding anything but fine. "I'm okay."
Hermione helped him sit up, taking a blanket that Ron offered her and wrapping it around his shoulders. "Sit still, all right. Don't move around too much."
"I'm fine," he insisted, wincing as he shifted. His eyes fell on Lucius and he froze. "Holy hell," he muttered, glancing at Ron. "D-Did you--?"
Ron nodded, swallowing hard. "Yeah."
Harry's mouth dropped open and he gaped at Ron a moment. "Oh."
"Look, mate, maybe we ought to get you checked out?"
Harry shook his head. "No. I'm fine. Just-need to rest for a minute."
Ron and Hermione helped him back into his bed, where he curled up under the blankets. "I'm sorry, Harry," Hermione said softly. "This was-all my fault. Draco overheard me telling Ron about your magic, and he-must have told his dad. I'm so sorry. I should have been more careful."
"It's all right, Hermione," he muttered, reaching up to brush her hair away from her face. "You didn't mean to."
She bit back a sob. "I should have known better, though. I should have never left you alone. I knew Malfoy was still out there. I should have--."
"There was nothing you should have done, Hermione," Ron broke in. He was sitting with his back against the wall, his knees drawn up to his chest. "You didn't know that Malfoy was in the pub. Hell, I still don't know where he could have been. The place was nearly empty."
"It was," Hermione agreed, except for the dodgy old guy at the bar and that-witch-Oh, God," she muttered. "The witch. I thought she looked familiar, but-I never even imagined it could be--."
"Wait. Malfoy was-in drag?" Harry asked, coughing out a laugh. "You're kidding, right?"
Hermione shook her head. "No, I'm not. It makes perfect sense that he would be out in disguise. They are supposedly being hunted, after all, or so the Ministry would have us believe. I'm so stupid-I should have-UGH!"
Ron blushed deeply, covering his eyes with his hand. "Oh my God. That was-Malfoy?" He shivered slightly. "Blimey, and I thought she-he-was attractive. Oh, I have got to get out more."
Harry bit back a laugh, and Hermione smiled sympathetically. "It was a really good disguise, Ron. I don't think anyone could have guessed it was him." She glanced at Lucius, then back at Harry. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"
"A bit," Harry muttered. "I'll be all right."
Hermione looked him over, wincing at a bruise that was growing on the side of his face. "Do you want me to heal that?"
Harry shrugged. "It's fine," he muttered, rubbing his forehead. "It's just-throbbing a bit. It'll stop."
Ron stood up and walked over to Lucius, pushing the dead man's shoulder with his foot. "What do we-do with-him?"
"Get rid of him," Harry said softly. "I don't know how, but-we can't let it be traced back to you."
"But, I-I killed him. Shouldn't I-have to, I dunno-pay for that?"
Hermione sniffed, shaking her head vehemently. "No, Ron. You did what you had to do. There's no reason to feel guilty about it."
Harry snorted. "You can tell him that all you like, but he'll have to realize it for himself. It's always the hardest after the first person you kill."
Ron quirked an eyebrow at Hermione. "You didn't tell him?"
"Tell me what?" Harry frowned.
"Ron was-at the fight against Voldemort. He, um-he's the one who killed Bellatrix Lestrange."
Harry gasped, shaking his head. "That-But-you mean I did all of this for nothing?" he snapped. "I went through hell to keep you away and you still--." He broke off, slamming his fist against the bed. "For fuck's sake, Ron, you were supposed to not be there! That was the whole bloody point!"
Ron scowled at him, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, well, I didn't know that, did I? You didn't bother to let me in on it. As far as I knew, you were just being a jerk because you wanted to be."
Harry started to respond, but Hermione held up a hand. "No, Harry, just stop. He's right, you know. You didn't tell him that you didn't want him there. It might have been easier if you had, but you can't control what he does."
"Damn right he can't," Ron muttered.
"I was trying to help!" Harry cried, throwing his hands up in the air. "I was trying to save your life! Don't you get that?"
"I don't need you to save my life, Harry!" Ron yelled. "I did just fine on my own!"
"Yeah, maybe, but how was I supposed to know that would happen? I was scared for you. Forgive me for trying to help you!"
Ron laughed softly. "Yeah, you know what? I can-forgive you for that. I can forgive you for trying to be a friend. What I can't forgive you for is that you didn't have the guts to tell me that you were going to take Hermione from me, and that you were going to run me off by acting like you didn't give a damn about me, all because you thought it best. Who the hell are you to decide what's best for me, Harry?"
Hermione could see the exact moment that the anger burned out of Harry's eyes to be replaced by exhaustion. "I-was trying-to help." He fell back against the pillows again, sighing.
"You didn't trust me, you mean? You didn't think I was capable of fighting?"
"Ron, I-It wasn't--." Harry took a deep breath, and Hermione recognized the strained look on his face. He wanted to tell Ron the truth, but knew how hurtful it would be. Finally, he said, "No. I didn't think you would live through it."
"Well, you were wrong, weren't you? I'm still here. Not a scratch on me. I didn't need you to save me."
"Maybe not," Hermione said softly. "But can you blame him for trying? He did it because he cared, Ron. He did it for the same reason you showed up to fight that day, actually. You fought because you cared. Right?"
Ron blinked at her, his mouth moving silently. "Well-yeah, but--."
"You did it because you wanted all of this to end, and everyone to be safe."
"Yes, but--."
"You tried to talk Ginny out of being there too, didn't you? You asked me not to be there. Why?"
Ron sighed. "Because I was-scared for you."
"You would have done anything you could to keep Ginny or I from getting hurt."
He nodded. "Which is exactly what Harry did."
The room was quiet for a minute, save the sounds of Harry's uneven breathing and slight sniffling. Finally, after a long moment, Ron cleared his throat.
"Harry?"
"Yeah?" Harry's voice was thick.
"Mate, I'm-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ever-been that angry with you. Well, not after I-found out what you did."
Harry didn't answer, but Hermione could hear his choked sobs. "Does that mean that you forgive him?" she asked quietly.
Ron hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah, I forgive him."
He and Hermione probably never felt anything. In an instant, quicker than a blink, they were gone. They just disappeared. Harry had slightly longer, just enough time to see them vanish into thin air, and to begin to panic about what might have happened to them. Then, the blanket that was covering him dissipated into nothingness, followed by the bed below him and the room around him. It happened quickly, the darkness rolling in around him like a fog.
His body shifted, seemingly of its own accord, and he found himself standing, pressed against something, desperate to catch a breath. He jerked himself backward, breaking the kiss with Hermione, taking his hands off of her. A word was caught on the tip of his tongue and he recognized it, immediately, as the incantation for a bonding spell.
************************************************************************
Yes, I know it's a bit of a "cliffie" as well. This one, however, isn't quite as bad, because I think a lot of you will be able to figure out what happened. If not, all will be explained in the next-the last-chapter.
Thanks, as always, to HarrynHermione4eva! You are far beyond incredible at this point!
And to all who have left reviews throughout this story, THANK YOU! I know there are times when you just don't really have anything to say, but even a short little something lets me know it's all good! You all truly Rock!