(You guys are crazy. I know my wording was bad but did you really think that I would end ThoW like that?! No way… we still have a few chapters yet to go. When those are done, then I am making a sequel. Sorry for the confusion! *GLOMPS*)
The Horrors of War
By: FayeValentine00
Chapter 22
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Hermione allowed herself to relax in the safety of Bill's arms for several minutes as she tried to gather together all of her courage. She knew that she'd need as much as she could muster in the days to come. She knew that she had to have faith in Harry because, as she looked at the expressions of her friends, she knew that they'd already lost theirs.
Hermione was pulled from her thoughts when the door to the hospital room opened and several pairs of footsteps approached. The curtains around the bed blocked her view but a familiar voice spoke up with an odd tone.
"Oh no," Mr. Weasley and Charlie said softly in unison.
"What's wrong, Mum?" Fred asked with obvious fear in his voice.
"What's happened?" George's voice spoke up next with the same obvious worry.
It took Hermione a moment to realize that the men had entered the room to find their mother and sister crying at her bedside. They must have been concerned about her. Quickly, she pulled back from Bill a bit and pulled the curtain away so she could see the new visitors. "It's okay."
All four men let out deep breaths and, much to her surprise, the twins rushed over and gave her another big hug similar to Bill's.
"Everyone's been so worried," George said when he'd calmed down enough to speak.
"When we saw Mum crying, I thought the worst," Fred added.
"I'll be fine," Hermione said in her most confident voice. "Harry will be too."
Every eye in the room turned to Hermione with a pained expression. She knew what they were thinking. She knew that they were scared that she would get her hopes up and then be disappointed but she didn't care. She had to keep her hopes up and hold on to her belief that Harry would be by her side once more.
No one said anything for a long time until a strange gleam flashed in Bill's eyes and he smiled. "You're right. Harry will be okay. We all have to believe that."
"I agree," Ginny said a moment later, tears no longer shining in her pretty eyes.
After all the others nodded their agreement, Molly turned to Arthur with another concerned look. "What about the Death Eaters? Where did they go?"
Much to Hermione's surprise, George cursed loudly and Charlie clenched his fists in anger before Arthur could respond.
"They got away."
"All of them?" she asked with disbelief.
"Yes. They all vanished. Not even one person tried to claim that they'd been controlled," he nodded slowly.
"Oh dear," was all Molly could say as her face paled before their eyes.
"Then it's not over, is it? The Death Eaters will come back for revenge, won't they?" Hermione asked with wide eyes. Although she knew that they were telling the truth, she didn't want to believe it. Voldemort was finally gone. Wouldn't there ever be a time for peace?
No one answered her questions because everyone already knew the answers. The room fell quiet for quite some time. Everyone was lost in there thoughts. She suddenly wanted to see Harry. She still had so many things to tell him and she had to tell him now before it was too late.
"I want to see Harry," she said suddenly in a defiant voice, as if daring anyone to try to talk her out of it.
"But dear, he's unconscious."
"I don't care. I need to see him. … Please."
A few minutes later, Fred and George made their way down the hall with Hermione. To be exact, George carried her down the hall while Fred opened all the doors because they'd decided that she was too weak to be walking around on her own just yet.
When they got to Harry's room, they found him lying on his bed. He looked so peaceful, as if he was merely asleep and it was hard to believe that he was in such grave danger.
"We'll leave you here. Just call for us when you want to come back to the room," Fred said softly, pushing something into her hand that looked like a Muggle walkie-talkie.
"Thank you," she said softly and waited until the twins left before turning to face Harry's bed.
She simply watched him for a long time. She wanted to crawl into the bed with him and lay in his arms but fear of causing more harm then good is what held her back. Instead, she wrapped her hand around his and held it tightly.
"Oh Harry, why does it always have to end up like this? You've got to wake up. Everyone is so worried and…" her voice trailed off. She tried her best to hold back the tears but they still fell and she found herself having to talk through them.
"Damn it, Harry. I need you. What am I going to do? This wasn't supposed to happen… yet you warned me that it would. I was so stupid … so stupid not to listen to you. I'm so sorry."
She laid her head down on the edge of the bed, her tears soaking into the mattress but she still continued to talk. She knew that Harry probably couldn't hear a word of what she said but just talking to him at all made her feel better.
"This is probably stupid because we've never talked about it but I always thought that we'd be married some day. We'd be living in a peaceful world with kids and careers. Doesn't that sound nice? I'd … I'd really like that," she said while silent sobs tore through her. "Oh Harry, please come back. I'll never give up so you never give up either, alright?"
Hermione didn't know how long she sat next to Harry but at some point, George came back in and scooped her up after informing her that the doctors had some work to do on Harry. He neglected to tell her that the doctors had worked to do on her as well. Much to her relief, Ginny stayed with her the whole time while Molly took all the men back to the Burrow for some much needed rest.
Once the tests were over and the room was emptied, Ginny and Hermione were left alone to have a heart to heart talk. The red-haired girl climbed up into the bed with Hermione and they sat cross-legged looked at each other with concern.
"Hermione, I have something to show you but you have to swear never to tell Harry that you saw it, okay?"
She gave the younger girl a strange look but nodded. "I promise."
Once the promise was made, Ginny pulled a crumbled piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Hermione. It was the letter that Harry's owled only just last night. That night felt like a hundred years ago.
Dear Ginny,
I'm sorry that we left you in tears at Hogwarts yesterday but I am sure that you'll be fine once the next school year starts. You have a ton of friends so I know you won't be lonely. Hermione and I will try to send you a letter by owl every day if we can.
I am writing to ask you for a favor. I am really going to need your help on this one.
I'd like your help buying an engagement ring from Hermione but it has to be a secret! Do you think you can help me? I know nothing about rings and fashion. Please send Hedwig back as soon as possible with your answer. I'd like to go shopping with you in Diagon Alley a week from today.
Thanks a lot.
Harry
"Oh my God," Hermione said after she'd read and reread the letter several times.
"Everything will be okay, you see? He's going to marry you," Ginny said with tears glistening in her eyes.
"I don't know what to say."
"I thought you'd want to see it. Was I wrong to show you?" Ginny said, suddenly looking concerned.
"No! I'm glad you showed me, I really am. It's just a surprise," she said quickly.
"He really loves you, Hermione. He always had. Like I said before, Ron knew ages ago. We all knew that he had a crush on you but he seemed to know that what you and Harry have is destiny."
Hermione nodded, not trusting her own voice. She wished Ron could be with her now. It wasn't that she didn't believe Ginny, but it would have been nice to hear the words coming straight from Ron.
"Thank you. Is it okay if I keep this?" Hermione asked, holding up the letter.
"Yeah, sure. I'll head home before Mum gets too worried but owl us if anything happens, okay?"
"Alright."
Ginny smiled and walked towards the door but stopped one more time before leaving. "I'll be back later but don't ever forget that Harry loves you just as much as you love him."
Several hours later, when Hermione was resting comfortably in her room dreaming of Harry waking up, the man in question's eyes were beginning to flutter open.
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Thanks for all of the support. All your reviews really make my day. I am thinking there will be 2 more chapters of ThoW but that could change. Thanks again and I love ya all!