Sunday Morning

Sunday Morning

By Kay Kay

~

Ron turned the corner to see more Death Eaters looming there, looking more menacing than ever, with their hoods pulled over their faces. They were waiting for them at the end of the dark alley. Behind him Hogsmeade was shooting bright orange and red flames into the dark night sky and people could be heard yelling and screaming. Ron could even make out the sound of a child crying piteously, asking for it's mother.

Dementors were swirling in the sky, looping and rolling, and sucking the life force out of anyone they could get near enough to. The flashes of green light were tell-tale signs of death flooding at innocent - and not so innocent - victims. The Dark Mark was visible in the distance, looming large and menacing over Hogwarts castle.

Ron had already seen Harry fall. Voldemort had killed him, and Ron knew that all hope was already lost, if only he could fight to preserve what little was left. His mother and father had both been dead for over a year now. Bill had been kidnapped and killed a few months earlier, leaving Fleur to raise their 10-year-old daughter. Charlie was still alive as far as Ron knew, which wasn't saying much since it has been at least a dozen hours since he'd last seen him. Percy was long gone, forced under Imperius by the corrupt ministry and then killed when it became too difficult to maintain. Fred was alive, as was Angelina, but they had escaped to America the year before, when Angelina became pregnant. George had already been dead for about a year when they'd gone. Ginny was alive, but it seemed only a matter of time for her, as she tried to claim revenge for Harry's death. Dumbledore had some small hope that the child Ginny carried of Harry's would give her the power that had once belonged to Harry.

As Ron walked fearlessly toward the waiting Death Eaters he saw other bodies of his friends and classmates littering the alley. Parvati Patil had been burned, and Dean sat vacant eyed and still beside her. Neville was up and about, but seemed confused, and was obviously addled by Cruciatus.

Finally Ron reached the cluster of Death Eaters at the end of their alley. They seemed to notice him, but instead of hexing him as he thought they would one docilely stepped forward, and his smooth voice was unmistakable.

"Weasley," said Lucius Malfoy silkily, "this is it. You are the last. All your friends and classmates are gone. All your family; your brothers and your sister. Your precious Potter is gone."

"It's not all," said Ron quietly, but with surety in his voice as he stared down Lucius Malfoy.

The group of Death Eaters parted to reveal the body of Hermione Granger, bushy brown hair covered in blood from a wound in her head, her eyes wide and devoid of the bright light they usually held. Her jaw hung open in a silent look of astonishment, like she'd just been told there was something that couldn't be found in the library.

"It is all." Ron could almost hear Lucius Malfoy smirking at him. Ron dropped to his knees with a pained hiss, touching Hermione's hair. He hardly heard when Lucius Malfoy bellowed, "Avada Kedavra!"

~

Ron woke with a start, at the same place he always awoke in this nightmare, where he died. The dream had started the day of Harry's actual defeat of Voldemort, a kind of remembrance of all that could have happened.

Ron turned over, hoping to see Hermione in bed next to him, have her their to help him forget.

Even though the nightmare wasn't entirely accurate, it wasn't totally inaccurate either. His mum and dad, Bill, Percy, and George were all gone, helpless victims of Voldemort's rise to power. The wizarding world was fraught with terror, even as Aurors like him and Harry worked to capture renegade Death Eaters. Despite Voldemort being gone, there was still so much to be afraid of, and so much Ron still wanted to forget.

Hermione, unfortunately, often had late nights. She was an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries and when they were on the brink of some new innovation Hermione often stayed late, researching. It wasn't helped any by the fact that they had to juggle work schedules, working strange night, morning, and afternoon shifts, so that one of them would always be home with the children. They both had Sundays off but many times, like this early Sunday morning, Hermione wouldn't get home until the very early hours of the morning and sleep all day.

Ron groaned as he heard the whimper of a baby on the Magi Monitor almost immediately followed by cries of, "DADDY! Make Flori be quiet, I'm trying to sleep!"

Ron sighed, but dutifully got up and went to his son Florizel's room. Florizel, or Flori, as he was more often called, was two and liked to be lavished in attention. He had Hermione's dark brown hair, and it grew in thick curls on his head. His eyes were blue like his father's. Ron picked him up.

"Hello, Flori, old boy. What is it?" Ron cooed.

"Nappy," chirped Flori.

"Really, you're too old for them if you can go about telling me." Ron sighed, but moved the boy to the changing table and changed Florizel before settling him back in his crib, where he curled up and shut his eyes sweetly.

Ron's next stop was to the twin's room. Perdita and Mamillus were 5 and far too mischievous for their own goods. Perdita was quite spoiled as the only girl in the family, and had her fathers looks through and through, from her red hair to her bright blue eyes. Mamillus (they had yet to think of a good nickname for him, though Perdy insisted on calling him Mammy, which drove Ron absolutely crazy) had red hair, but he was smaller than his sister and his brown eyes were definitely a product of his mother. He was also missing the freckles across his face. Along with the red hair, they had both inherited Fred and George's ability to drive one to distraction.

"Quit jumping on the bed," Ron admonished.

"Is it morning now?" asked Perdy excitedly.

"Yeah, Dad, we heard Flori crying and we thought it might be morning, and today is the day we get to go see-"

"Uncle Harry!"

"Yeah, and Uncle Harry promised us to have a try on his Firebolt Silver!"

"Actually, Mammy, if you were listening, he said if he could manage to get us past Mum and Aunt Ginny, and escape helping Aunt Ginny with Lily and James and Eva."

"Oh shut up, Perdita. So, is it morning Dad?"

Ron had to hide his smile so as not to egg them on. There was no way that Harry would escape his child duties when they were over tonight. However, even this amusement lasted only a second when Perdy jumped over to Mamillus' bed, and was reigning blows down upon him. Ron quickly pulled them apart, yelling for them to stop, but Perdy's lip was already bleeding. He warned Mamillus to stay in bed as he carried Perdy into the loo to mend it.

"Oh, Daddy, punish him! Punish him!" sobbed Perdy.

Ron sighed and rubbed his head, trying to force back the headache the was encroaching on his brain. "I think you got what you deserved." He murmured a healing spell and sent the indignant Perdita back to bed.

He had heard the rain start, and as he walked past the kitchen to get back to bed he heard the drip! on the floor, and remembered the leak he was supposed to have fixed in his off shift on Friday. Oops. He ran to a closet and pulled out a sand pail to place under the leak.

"Hey," Ron suddenly heard behind him. Hermione was standing in the door, looking amused. "Rough night?"

"You have no idea." He leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. She giggled as she tried to smooth his hair, which was on end from his hand running through it so many times.

"Sorry I'm late," she whispered, kissing him again before pulling him towards their bedroom.

"I have a feeling you're about to make up for it," said Ron roguishly, eyeing the sway of Hermione hips that could only mean one thing.

She pushed him back on the bed and pulled her shirt off, revealing nothing but smooth white flesh. She straddled Ron and kissed him hotly. His hands traced a bright pattern of fire across her stomach and breasts, and Hermione had to admire the way his body instantly molded to hers.

"I'm sorry for the trouble tonight," Hermione breathed into Ron's ear, trailing her tongue around it.

"Never mind that," Ron whispered coarsely, pulling her even closer. "I love you so much. Just as long as you're here."

"Yes," murmured Hermione, "thank God for Sundays at least."

~

Sunday morning rain is fallin'/Steal some covers share some skin/Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable/You twist to fit the mold that I am in/ But things just get so crazy livin' life gets hard to do/And I would gladly hit the road get up and go if I knew/That someday it would lead me back to you/Fingers trace your every outline/Paint a picture with my hands/Back and forth we sway like branches in a storm/Change the weather still together when it ends/That may be all I need/In darkness she is all I see/Come and rest your bones with me/Driving slow on Sunday morning/And I never want to leave/-"Sunday Morning" Maroon 5

Fin.