Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/10066400.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Major_Character_Death, Underage, Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence
  Category:
      F/M
  Fandom:
      Harry_Potter_-_J._K._Rowling
  Relationship:
      Hermione_Granger/Ron_Weasley, Hermione_Granger/Severus_Snape
  Character:
      Draco_Malfoy, Albus_Dumbledore, Harry_Potter, Hermione_Granger, Molly
      Weasley, Ron_Weasley, Severus_Snape, Arthur_Weasley, Voldemort
  Additional Tags:
      Explicit_Language, Action/Adventure, Angst, Tragedy, Drama, Horror,
      Supernatural_-_Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, Mystery, Suspense, Romance
  Collections:
      HPFandom
  Stats:
      Published: 2007-01-28 Chapters: 2/2 Words: 2020
****** The Worst Nightmare ******
by manoverboard182 [archived by HPFandom_archivist]
Summary
     With Voldemort killing again, the school year starts off rough but
     when the gangs stronghold dies, things go downhill. Can Harry and
     Hermionie go on without their wisecracking, Ron, or will they perish?
     And can the teachers help save their students?
Notes
     Note from SeparatriX, the archivist: this story was originally
     archived at HP_Fandom, which was closed for health and financial
     reasons. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its
     works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I
     e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but
     may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator,
     please contact me using the e-mail address on HP_Fandom_collection
     profile.
***** Prologue *****
                              The Worst Nightmare
Prologue:
“My knuckles have turned too white.
There’s no turning back tonight,
Kiss me one last time…”
It’s_Dangerous_Business_Walking_Out_Your_Front_Door, Underoath
Life had a way of shitting on you so what was happening didn’t seem to surprise
her at all. From all the bad luck that had come her way since that summer
earlier, she was ready for anything. After all, what else did she have to lose?
Her parents were killed in a raid during the summer before she had returned to
school. A month earlier Ginny had been found raped and beaten in the forbidden
woods. Harry seemed to have gone crazy with guilt over the fact that he was the
cause for everyone’s pain. So holding a dying Ron in her arms didn’t seem to
evoke as much emotion as she thought.
She brushed back his red hair from his eyes, a small watery smile on her face
as she assured him everything was okay. That the gaping wound in his chest
wasn’t going to kill him. That soon he’d wake up to find everything the way it
should be. Lies tumbled from her lips easily, comforting the young man in front
of her. She caressed his cheek lovingly, whispering glimpses of the future they
should but would never have.
His breathing was slowing now, coming in harsh short pants as he reached up
with his bloody hand to push stray hair behind her ear. “Just tell me you love
me. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to hear,” he whispered, his voice horse and
weak. The first sob became stuck in her throat. There it was, the emotion she
had been missing. It had found her just when she felt as if it had abandoned
her.
“I love you, I love you so much. You have to stay; you have to be strong,
please. You can’t leave me,” she whispered, sobs coming from her like annoying
hiccups that wouldn’t go away. Ron gave a forced laugh.
“I thought you said that everything would be okay,” he whispered with a smile.
A tear fell from Hermione’s left eye, running down her cheek, hanging on her
chin before dropping. It left a dry crusted feeling down her cheek. “I love you
Mione. No matter what, forever.”
“Forever,” she echoed. He smiled, nodding as he closed his eyes, taking a deep
breath before opening them. In that one second, her heart had speed up in her
chest as she had thought that he had left her for good.
“I think this is really it. This is all I’ll ever have,” he stated. Hermione
shook her head, feverent ‘no’s falling from her lips as she held him tighter in
her arms. “And it’s all I’ve ever wanted. You’ll see, things will get better
for you. Maybe not now or in ten years, but they will. Just live for me. Live
the life we wanted, that’s all I ask.” Hermione shook her head again,
swallowing back a sob as she closed her eyes and opened them quickly in a
blink, afraid that he’d leave her if she lost sight of him for one second.
“No. You can’t give up. I won’t let you. I won’t let you go.”
                                       +
His long fingers circled around her arm, pulling her up harshly as she clung to
Ron’s dead body. His body fell from hers, a lifeless lump of nothing hitting
the ground with a soft thud. The face that had been so full of life was now
pale and dull. His eyes were open, staring at her. She pulled away from the man
holding her, reaching out for the red hair which she loved so dearly. But the
man’s grip only tightened as she pulled her away. She fought back, kicking and
screaming, her hand outstretched to take back the body which had just been
pulled from her.
She soon felt the man’s arms around her waist, picking her up and carrying her
away from Ron’s lifeless body. He was gone and had been gone for sometime. She
didn’t know how long she had held him in her arms, how long she had cried over
him, how long she had clutched to him, begging him to open his eyes and look at
her once again.
She struggled in the man’s arms; wanting nothing more than for him to let her
go so she could go back and pick Ron up. He shouldn’t have been left out there
to rot away. It was wrong, so wrong. He deserved so much more then that, even
in death. But the man didn’t agree with her as he grunted and tightened his
grip on her.
She gave up when she realized it was a lost cause. There was no use fighting
against him and she soon sagged against him, her eyes closed, her lips
trembling. Tears slipped down her cheeks and small whimpers erupted from her.
The man’s grip loosened as he realized she wasn’t trying to escape. She rested
her head against his shoulder, breathing in the musty smell of him.
She opened her eyes and looked up at the man who had taken her away from Ron.
His black hair had been pulled back with strands falling into his hard face as
he walked on. His robes were tattered and torn, showing the dirty white shirt
and black slacks underneath. Thin lipped, he walked on with a sour look upon
his face. He looked down, his dark eyes meeting hers in a steady gaze. His
facial expression didn’t change as he slowly looked back up and kept walking.
She closed her eyes, a new round of sobs erupting from her as she cried over
the love she had lost.
***** Chapter One *****
                              The Worst Nightmare
Chapter One:
“Lie to me,
Give me something worth living for,
Tell me a reason worth fighting for,
Give me anything to keep me breathing”
Your_Stories,_My_Alibis, Matchbook Romance
“Where was she?”
“I found her out in one of the fields. She was clinging to Weasely’s body. She
wouldn’t let him go, put up quiet a fight for him. I had to drag her away.”
“Is he-“
“No, he’s gone. He had been for a while when I found her.”
“That’s one more student too many Severus. This is getting bad. I don’t know if
the children are safe here anymore.”
“If he hadn’t have left, this would’ve never-“
“Don’t Severus. Not tonight. I’ll send Hagrid out to retrieve his body.
Tonight, we must mourn and thank the stars that Ms. Granger is alive and well.”
“She’s not well, Albus. She’s anything but.”
                                       +
Her eyes felt dry as if she had nothing left to cry. She was cold even though
she had pulled her duvet up to her neck. She felt empty, hollowed out. Ron was
gone. He was really dead and gone. He was never coming back. The thought of not
seeing his red hair again made her eyes well up with tears. She closed her
eyes, squeezing them shut as she willed herself not to cry. She couldn’t
anymore. She was so tired of crying, so ready for the pain to stop.
She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. The blank ceiling
made her feel even more empty and lost. She sat up and rubbed her eyes before
pushing her covers off and getting out of bed. She slipped her slippers on and
pulled on her robe. It was dark out and the clock was blinking midnight at her.
She grabbed her wand and lit its tip, lighting up her worn, tired face as she
walked out of her room much like a zombie.
She wandered aimlessly around the empty school, wondering if someone would see
her. She didn’t care if she got in trouble. She was past caring. She walked
down the hall towards the great double doors that lead out onto Hogwarts
grounds. As long as she stayed on the grounds she was safe. She opened the
doors, not caring about the loud creaking sound they made.
“Hermione?” The voice was soft, tired, and worn. She turned around to find
Harry standing there, his invisibility cloak clutched in his hands. He hadn’t
changed from the small war which had taken place a few hours before. His
clothes were matted in blood, along with his face and his hair. His green eyes
were sparkling, no doubt from tears that had been shed. He walked up to her and
they hugged, two friends mourning the lost of their best friend. “I’m so sorry.
I’m so sorry Mione, I’m sorry,” he sobbed into her hair as she tightened her
grip on him.
“It’s not your fault Harry. It’s not your fault,” she whispered. He didn’t
object but she could tell that he wasn’t close to believing her. She wasn’t
sure she believed it herself but Harry was her friend and Ron’s. She had no
doubt in her mind that if he could, he would gladly trade places with Ron. She
pulled away and gave him a small, weak, sad smile as she took his hand in hers.
“You don’t think he’s still out there?” he whispered. He was frightened. The
thought hit her that this was the first time she had ever seen Harry so
frightened, so lost, so scared and it scared her.
“I don’t know,” she whispered back. “There’s only one way to find out.” He
nodded and gripped her hand tighter as the two walked out into the cold, dark
night, both squinting their eyes to see if he was still there or if he was
gone.
                                       +
His eyes opened before he heard the creaking of the main doors from above him.
Immediately he knew it was Granger and Potter gone to see if Ron’s body was
still lying there, eyes open, staring blankly out into the world. Severus sat
up in bed with a long sigh, as he ran a hand through his greasy black hair. He
threw off his blankets and grabbed his pants, throwing them on before grabbing
his robe to cover his bare, scarred chest. He slipped on his slippers and
grabbed his wand, lighting its tip before he started out to retrieve them.
When he reached the first floor, Dumbledore was already there; his white hair
and beard shinning in the moonlight. Severus walked over to the older man and
stood next to him as he looked out onto Hogwarts ground where Harry and
Hermione were standing, staring at the spot where Ron’s body had lain. “They’re
so young. They should be upstairs, sound asleep in their beds or at least
sneaking off to do something childish. Not sneaking off to mourn the death of
their best friend. He should be out there with him. Not being prepared to be
buried in the ground.”
“Molly and Arthur?”
“They’re arriving tomorrow morning, bright and early. They have to identify the
body. They have to look at their dead son and identify him,” he said the last
part bitterly. Severus looked at him, somewhat worried for the old man.
“Sixteen with his birthday only a week away.” Dumbledore shook his head sadly
before he turned to go back to his room.
“Should I bring them in?” Severus asked, looking out at them. Hermione was now
crying into Harry’s shoulder while he looked out into the grounds, his face
expressionless.
“Give them a few minuets Severus. This is all the time they’re going to get.
Tomorrow, they’ll have to put on their masks again.” He turned and looked at
Severus, raising his bushy grey eyebrows. “You should take off your mask too
before the night is over or you will drown in it and perish,” he stated before
continuing his way to his room. Severus stared at the back of the old
headmaster, unsure of what he meant. He mentally shrugged, looking back out
into the grounds. Hermione was still crying. Harry was still starring. And Ron
was still dead, his body tucked away from prying eyes while his own eyes still
lay open.
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