Chess

Chapter one: The War

The days passed in a blur for Ron. He slept only when forced by exhaustion and often when he should have been sleeping he watched the Marauders Map hoping for a glimpse Padma's name, or Colin's or any of them.

On the fourth day after their disappearance Dumbledore received a report that there was a large group of Death Eaters holed up in a chapel at the far edge of the Forbidden Forest. Harry and a large group of students including Ron and Seamus were desperate to go in with everything blazing but they were checked by Hermione and the other information gatherers who knew that would be madness.

Plans were made to lure the Death Eaters out by a show of force nearby. The diversion was left to a group led by Tonks whilst Remus, Harry, Ron, Megan Jones and Hannah Abbott were to move on the Chapel.

When they arrived at the doors of the building they saw that only two had been left on guard, Gregory Goyle and Cho Chang, they were disarmed easily by Remus and Harry. Slowly the small group entered the dark interior of the chapel.

"Everybody be careful, we don't know what we're going to find." Remus' voice was calm but Ron noticed his hand was trembling slightly.

In the entrance there were chairs and a small table littered with empty bottles the Death Eaters had obviously left when disturbed by Tonks' distraction. Taking a deep breath, Ron pushed past the rubbish and into the main body of the building. The room was almost completely black though he could make out shadows and strange shapes in the gloom. As his eyes became accustomed to the dark he was horrified to realise that the dark shape on the floor beside him was in fact a body.

"I've found something!" He called out to the others trying not to let the panic he felt enter his voice. As he looked down at the corpse he was hardly aware of Hannah and Harry rushing to his side.

The body was laid out flat on the floor as if being prepared for burial but there were so many cuts and bruises that Ron could barely make out Colin's features. The boy was obviously dead and Ron felt his head swim as beside him Hannah retched miserably but this was only the start.

A little further in they found Neville, at first they believed he too was dead, his skin was almost shredded and in places there were pieces of bone showing but Hannah found a slight pulse and she and Remus immediately began working to revive him.

"Susan!" As they were focussing on Neville Megan suddenly cried out. Ron stumbled through the darkness to her side, she had found Tracy and Susan leaning against the altar. "They're here! Susan and Tracy!" Megan's voice was decidedly unsteady, "Susan?"

Tracy was clinging to Susan's body and crying softly. They were both alive, just. Tracy was covered with injuries as Neville and Colin had been but Susan looked untouched. She was lying in Tracy's arms staring into the distance as if nothing was there and she barely reacted to the arrival of Megan and Ron.

Leaving Megan with the pair of girls Ron moved on, around the altar and into the small room behind the sanctuary looking for the Patils. He found them easily enough, they were lying in the middle of the floor, their clothes ripped and torn and their bodies covered in scratches. Their bodies were twisted in such a way that Ron knew they must both be dead. Trying to hold back the sickness that threatened to overwhelm him he inched forwards and reached out to shut Parvati's cold, staring eyes.

"Ron..."

The voice was barely more than a whisper and at first Ron though he had imagined it, but no, Padma's eyes flickered as she looked at her rescuer.

"Pawn to E5."

Ron felt his breath catch at her words and then, as Remus entered the room, he came to himself and helped the fainting girl out of the room containing her dead twin.

***

In the weeks following the abduction of the patrol the inhabitants of Hogwarts attempted to pull themselves back together. They were scared, that some of their own had been taken so easily and for what seemed like little more than sport. They had lost Colin and Parvati, they had been unable to do a thing as they had been tortured to death. Susan Bones had lost her mind to the pain of Cruciatus and whilst Tracy, Neville and Padma were alive all had been badly injured and were now struggling to recover.

In the distraction organised by Tonks two more had been killed, Eloise Midgen and kindly Professor Sprout had been taken from them. It was hard to go on with such losses before their faces but there was no other choice. Whilst Neville slipped in and out of consciousness Tracy and Padma healed much faster.

Barely a fortnight after her recovery Ron watched as Padma returned to her place at the table amongst her relieved Ravenclaw friends. Unwilling to disturb such a precious moment he quietly dropped a note in her place as he passed by.

Glad you're home but now you're back, Pawn to F4

"Sending notes to other girls Ron?" Behind him Ron recognised Harry's voice, though the amusement in it had been lacking for many days. "What would Hermione say?"

"As if I'd dare!" Ron turned to his friend, grateful for the smiling face that greeted him. "As if I'd want to anyway!"

Harry was sitting on one of the big armchairs at the end of the hall so Ron threw himself into another one and grinned at him.

"Actually, I was being sensitive. I didn't want to disturb Padma and her friends."

"You? Sensitive?" Harry laughed. "I think Hermione would die of shock if she knew!"

"Probably. Don't tell her will you," Ron looked half serious as he spoke. "I'd hate for her to know I can be sensitive, she'd be expecting flowers next and for me to actually ask her out."

"No danger of that." Harry threw a cushion straight at Ron's head with amazing accuracy. "Even from the new improved sensitive Ron Weasley that'd be unlikely!"

Ron attempted to look offended at that but the brief respite from seriousness was so welcome he ended up rocking with suppressed laughter instead. Looking around for a way out he grabbed at a nearby magazine, an old issue of Quidditch Weekly with Viktor Krum on the front. Hiding his head in it he tried to ignore Harry's determined teasing but Harry was not to be put off. Getting up from his chair he snatched the magazine out of Ron's hands and looked at the page Ron had been staring at.

"The Wasps Ron?" He threw his hands up in mock amazement. "I never thought I'd see the day, I thought you would be a Cannon's fan to the end!"

"Of course I bloody am." Ron hit Harry with his own cushion. "As if I'd..."

At that moment a loud crash came from the other end of the hall and both boys dropped what they were holding. They were half way across the room before Ernie's voice rang out.

"Don't panic! It was just an accident," he sounded slightly shaken. "Just a stray hex hitting one of the suits of armour. Nobody's hurt."

As Ron and Harry surveyed the scene they both saw he was right. Hannah had a slightly tearful student well in hand and Ernie, with some help, was picking up the pieces of the armour.

"What happened?" Harry's voice had lost any of the amusement it had held a few moments ago.

"Nothing serious," Ernie assured him. "Katy over there just missed her aim with an Expelliarmus and hit the armour. No damage done except possibly to her nerves."

Harry nodded and, after ensuring that Hannah had the little girl under control, moved away. Ron followed and as they stepped outside the doors of the Great Hall he reached for Harry's arm. Both of their faces were completely white from the shock and Harry's eyes had hardened once more.

"You'd have laughed at that a few years back." Ron's voice was quiet and dull.

Harry smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes, and made a harsh laughing sound. "So would you a few years ago. Go back to your Wasps article Ron."

For a moment Ron thought about arguing but he couldn't think of anything to say so he turned back into the Hall leaving Harry with his thoughts.

***

They were all more on edge than they had been. Ron would have doubted that was possible a month ago but it was true. He sat and watched the room from a chair in the shadows one afternoon and saw children try to be fighters and yet jump at the slightest sound. There were first years here still, eleven-year-old kids struggling to master the shielding spells that might save their lives one day.

He did his best for them. Ron became known for his storytelling, he would gather the younger ones around him and try to give them some semblance of childhood. Once he saw Hermione watching with a smile in her eyes as he told of their search for the Philosophers Stone, an amusing story now though it had been terrifying at the time.

Looking around the Hall Ron caught sight of Padma by the large table of researchers and tacticians. She had watched her sister die, she had lain with the body for goodness knows how long but she worked on steadily and calmly exuding a powerful influence of normality over all around her. He had no idea how she could but she did.

"Oh Ron," Padma's voice cut across his daydreaming. "If you'll stop cloud gathering for a moment and pass that manuscript I'd be ever so grateful."

Her words were light though the accompanying smile never quite reached her eyes.

"Here you go, though I warn you I think Hermione was using it earlier."

"I'll take the risk." This time there was almost a twinkle in her eye, "oh and Bishop to C5."

Ron laughed and moved off to watch the group working on the patronus spell under Dennis Creevy's tutelage. The idea of a Creevy being in charge of teaching students might have been laughable once but Dennis was a DA survivor and worked well with the younger kids. He too managed to keep going even though something inside him seemed to have been lost when they carried Colin's body home. He never laughed anymore, he barely ever smiled, and when he spoke of Voldemort or the Death Eaters a bitterness entered his voice that made him sound much older than his fifteen years.

"Ron, come and give Euan a hand will you."

Ron nodded at Dennis and moved over to the Gryffindor. Within a few minutes he was caught up in correcting wand grips, pronunciation and trying to find happy thoughts for the group. He was just demonstrating his own Patronus when a thought occurred to him.

"Hey, Padma, Knight to F3!"

***

In a corner of the Infirmary Neville still lay on a bed as Madame Pomfrey worked on him. His body had been ripped to shreds by the spells of his captors and some of them seemed to have been poisoned to keep them open and bleeding. As well as that he had been subjected to Cruciatus and whilst he was not broken as poor Susan had been his mind was still trying to recover.

Most days Seamus could be found by Neville's bed, talking to him, trying to bring him back to the world. Ron, and Neville's other friends, visited as often as possible but Seamus barely ever left. Slowly, day by day, Neville began to come back. His physical wounds were almost all healed except the nerves in his right leg which Madame Pomfrey was unable to repair and then Neville started to recognise those around him.

The day he first said Seamus' name that young man came running into the Great Hall shouting the news at the top of his voice and bringing much needed good news to them all. He grabbed Padma and spun her round.

"He knows me, he saw me, he's back."

Nobody could escape the infectious joy that spilled over from Seamus' grin, even Dennis smiled slightly. As Seamus finally started to calm down, and was led away by a group of fifth years, Padma sat down hard on a bench at the side of the room.

"It's great news isn't it?" Ron sat himself down beside her.

"It is. It really is. I just can't quite..."

Padma shook herself hard as if trying to rid herself of an evil thought but she recovered herself and smiled at Ron.

"Pawn to D6."

Ron looked carefully at Padma and saw the tears welling in her eyes. Suddenly he realised the flip side of Neville's recovery, the broken body of Padma's own sister who would never wake again. He wished there was something he could say to ease her pain but knew that there wasn't. He put his hand over hers and squeezed gently but no words came.

As they sat there, Hermione came over to them and seeing Padma's face put her arms around the other girl holding her tightly. Knowing he was not needed here, what could he do after all, Ron got up to leave. As he walked away he looked back to see Padma watching him from Hermione's shoulder and, as he still could not find the right words, he called to her,

"Knight to C3."

***

They were back to the waiting game again. News came in from the outside world of attacks. Sometimes they were on familiar names. Every few days another student would hear of the death of their mother or father or a sibling. The Ministry still insisted there was no need to panic and said that Hogwarts would soon be liberated. With news flowing in and out it sometimes felt as if they were free but then another noise would be heard from the Forest or a body would be found on the doorstep and they would remember how trapped they were.

Harry paced around the castle like a trapped lion. Sometimes Ron or Hermione would walk with him and try to make him talk but they soon learned that the pacing was Harry's only way of dealing with what was happening, just as Hermione coped by burying herself in her books.

For Ron though neither of these methods worked. His stories gave him a chance to escape sometimes and so did games of chess against Seamus but it was his game against Padma that was able to make him smile. In response to a moment of despair in Ron's eyes she had given him,

"Knight to F6."

When she had worked herself into exhaustion and frustration he recalled her to her surroundings with,

"Bishop to C3."

And when Harry finally told them all of the Prophecy and Ron was left without a thread of hope to cling to that there was a happy ending ahead she had touched his cheek and offered,

"Knight to C6."

***

Most of the students slept in the Hufflepuff rooms these days, they were closest to the Great Hall and nobody was willing to go too far. More often than not, however, Ron and many of the others would fall asleep in one of the large chairs in the Hall itself. One night he awoke to the soft sound of sobbing from nearby. He untangled himself from Hermione who had fallen asleep next to him and crept over to where the noise seemed to be coming from.

"Hello... is anyone there?" As he came closer he saw the shape of the crying girl uncurl and look up at him, "Padma?"

"S..Sorry. Shouldn't have woken..." She gulped hard trying to stop the tears and then put her head between her hands again.

"Hey...shhh... It's ok..."

Ron's voice was hesitant as was the hand that he reached out to pat her back. She looked up at him then and the pain in her eyes stunned him.

"She's not here."

The words were choked out, as if she had to force them from herself. Seeing Padma, the girl who was normally so calm and collected, seeing her in this much pain amazed Ron. Of course he knew she mourned her twin but she'd never really spoken of it to him before and he had no idea what to say.

"I can't...without her... I can't go on. I can't live without her. I'm not a person without her."

She was shaking violently now and Ron was frightened she would make herself ill. He looked around for help but everyone was asleep except those on duty and they were needed elsewhere. He sent a wistful glance over to where Hermione lay and then took a deep breath.

"You are a person. You're a whole, wonderful, brilliant witch, just like Parvati was."

Her breath caught and Ron wondered if he had said the wrong thing but she swallowed hard and tried to smile.

"She was, she was so bright and without her everything looks darker," even in the darkness Ron could see the dullness in her eyes as she spoke, "and I miss her so much."

"I know. I know you do. I wish I could bring her back for you but she's safe now and you've got to keep going because we need you. We need Padma."

She looked at him slightly disbelievingly but he nodded and smiled.

"We need your tactical skills and we need you to translate Hermione and we need you to look after the Ravenclaws and I need you." He hesitated, uncertain that this was right but knowing he had to say something, "I need you to tell me how you'll respond to Pawn to D3."

She took a deep breath and her whole body relaxed.

"I'll think about that."

"You do that, but now you have to sleep."

As he said the last sentence Ron drew her head down into his lap and stroked her hair gently. He continued, staring into the darkness, until long after she had fallen asleep. It was so unfair. They were supposed to be children, still at school, worrying about exams and essays and the next Quidditch match not grieving for their siblings and preparing for battle.

As his thoughts drifted across the faces of his friends, who had suffered so much he tried to stop himself remembering the prophecy. That was the most unfair thing of all, to be murdered or a murderer, that was all the choice left to Harry and there was nothing Ron could do about it however much he wished it.

There wasn't much he could do for any of them really. He couldn't bring back Parvati or Dean, he couldn't wake Susan from her stupor and he couldn't save his sister from this waking nightmare. All he could do was be there and as he looked down at Padma's sleeping form he realised that maybe, for now, that was enough.

The next morning he was shaken gently awake by Hermione with a cup of coffee.

"Padma says to tell you Bishop to G4."

***

Later that day Ron found Hermione and Padma pouring over a text on the uses of the Confundus charm in warfare. Their heads were close together and their muttered comments made no sense to him at all. The new charms and jinxes that had been developed by the students over the last months were ingenious. They took common roots and developed them, they combined jinxes to create strange hybrids and some even braved Snape's domain to work on new potions for bombs or poisons. This was all unfamiliar territory for Ron. He could work on tactics and use texts for pure research but he had no head for developing new spells, his mind just wasn't wired that way. He was jerked from a daydream in which they were back in the library researching for one of Hermione's "ideas" like in the old days by the sound of giggles.

"Daydreaming again Ron, are you ever on this planet with the rest of us?"

Hermione poked him gently in the side as she spoke. Rasing his eyebrows and acting mightily put out Ron made to stomp off when Hermione grabbed his arm and pulled him in for a kiss.

"That woke him up."

Padma giggled in a manner quite unlike the state she'd been in last night as Hermione grinned broadly. Ron decided it was better to give in graciously and kissed his girlfriend again before turning to Padma and sticking his tongue out.

"What do you say to Knight to A4 Missy?"

She never got to answer though as at that moment Dumbledore arrived looking for their progress report.

Their timing was perfect, Ron could see that, just as reports from the outside world showed that people were learning to cope with the constant Death Eater presence and just as those trapped at Hogwarts felt they were making progress. Their guard was down and the attack took everyone by surprise. Ron knew something was wrong as soon as he saw Tonks' face.

The Auror had been trapped in the castle with the rest of them as she had been visiting Dumbledore at the start of the siege. Secretly Ron was glad of her presence though he knew better than to mention it to her.

"I should be there. I should bloody well be there."

Tonks threw herself into a chair and her hair changed to a lurid shade of red, an obvious sign of her frustration.

"They've attacked Gringotts," she addressed the room at large. "Dumbledore sensed the power surge as the security measures kicked in but something's stopped them."

She clenched her fists tightly and took a deep breath to try and regain control but Ron had stopped paying attention. Gringotts. That meant Bill was in danger, and if Diagon Alley was under attack hundreds of witches and wizards could be there too.

Around the room the realisation of just how devastating an attack in the centre of Diagon Alley could be began to show on the faces of the students. Those with relatives how lived or worked there gathered around the door waiting for further news from Professor Dumbledore, hoping against hope that it was all a mistake.

Ron felt Ginny's hand slip into his own and he squeezed tightly. For what seemed like eternity the Great Hall was quiet, any conversations were muttered and nobody could escape the tense atmosphere. Gradually people went back to their activities but the fear and the tension remained, as Ron stared blankly at the report he was reading from yesterdays patrols Padma looked at him sadly.

"Pawn to F4, takes your pawn."

Her voice was quiet and dull and Ron felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. It was cheap symbolism but that's all any of them were in this war, pawns, trapped in a situation they could not escape just waiting to be captured. A commotion at the end of the Hall caught his attention and he looked up in time to see Dumbledore entre the Hall.

"Diagon Alley has fallen." The Headmaster's tone was pained but determined. "At eleven o'clock Death Eaters attacked from inside Gringotts Bank with the support of a small group of Goblins. Most of the Goblins and Gringotts human staff retaliated but soon the fighting spread to Diagon Alley itself and more Death Eaters arrived from Knockturn Alley. As soon as I have details of the dead from my sources I shall let you know. Many were killed, nobody left the bank and it is believed that all those inside were slaughtered."

There was silence for a moment and then a wail went up from Sandra Cooke, a fourth year whose Mother worked in the bank. At that noise something in the Hall broke and the children, still afraid for their families, fell to speaking all at once, asking questions they did not want answered.

In the middle of the crowd Ginny clung on to Ron as if afraid of drowning. He buried his head in her hair and whispered reassurances that he knew meant nothing. Bill was dead. Their big brother, the invulnerable curse breaker, the tireless warrior, was dead.

The list of dead from the Battle for Diagon Alley was long. There were few at the school other than the Muggleborns who did not know at least one of the victims. The battle marked a watershed in the war, from then on barely a day went passed without news of an attack on some magical community or an innocent muggle family.

There was little time to think or talk outside of the preparations that were being made for an attack on the forces surrounding the castle. In a rare moment of calm Padma held Ron's arm for a moment as if wishing to imbue him with her understanding of the pain of losing a sibling but she had no words and he had few words for her.

"Thank you. I'm alright, I'll keep going." Ron looked at her with a wry smile, "Knight to C4 there goes your Bishop."

She looked away sadly and moved off to help compile an up-to-date list of dead from the latest report Dumbledore had received. News had started to arrive of battles raging across Europe. They read the names of children from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang who had been killed in battles at their schools.

***

The attack on Hogsmeade was the last in a long string of battles that exhausted the morale of the students. They were so close now, not just their invisible captors but the marauding bands of Death Eaters attacking across the country. Even Seamus could not find a smile to give when the news of those killed came in. Madame Rosmerta had been tortured in her pub, Mr Honeyduke had been killed and few had escaped.

The Weasley twins had rescued a few using an emergency route they had planned as soon as their new shop opened but in the rush to get the refugees out Fred had been left to defend their rear and was now lying in a hospital bed on the brink of death. Ron could not let himself think of Fred lying there. Ginny spoke only of Percy's safety, of the fact that there was no news of Charlie and of their parents. Nether of them could imagine one of the twins without the other or either of them incapacitated in hospital.

Sometimes Ron saw that Padma wanted to speak but he wouldn't let he. She reminded him of her dead twin and of the possibility of Fred's death and he couldn't bear that.

***

Amongst the tragedy there were moments of victory. The news that Bellatrix Lestrange had been killed whilst attacking a magical community in Paris was received with a vindictive glee by Remus, Tonks and Harry.

That night somebody found a stash of fire whisky and Ron found himself in a group mourning Sirius and the other casualties of the war in an impromptu wake. There were so many names that he no longer remembered them as people. He remembered Bill though and Fred, however hard he tried not to. He remembered Colin and Parvati. Dean. Sirius. He remembered that Luna was now an orphan and that Mandy Brocklehurst had tried to slit her wrists when news had come in that her whole family had been killed.

***

Ron's whole world seemed to be spiralling into darkness in those awful days. Hermione and Harry had their own troubles, Ginny had her own friends, and alone he couldn't cope with the crushing fear that threatened to engulf him. He was all too aware that even if he made it out alive he had lost one brother and in all likelihood would lose more before the end. The days passed and there was no news of Fred's condition. When he couldn't distract himself Ron clung to the fact that his name hadn't yet appeared in the lists of the dead. Mostly he just tried to forget he'd ever had brother's or even that there was a world outside the school.

"You'll have to look at me eventually."

Late one night, as he sat trying to read another book on tactics, Padma cornered him.

"You can't pretend I don't exist, you can't pretend he doesn't exist."

Ron didn't look up. He hadn't been consciously ignoring Padma but he wasn't going to talk about Fred because that would have meant admitting how scared he was.

"Ignoring me isn't going to change the fact that he's in danger." Padma just kept pushing and Ron snapped.

"I know! I bloody well know." Ron turned away angrily, as if he could forget his brother.

"He's strong, stronger than Parvati ever was, if there's a chance then he'll survive. "Ignoring the angry tone Padma kept talking. "I know it."

Ron felt his head spinning at her words, she gave him hope but he couldn't quite believe her.

"There's still a chance. Don't give up on him now. Don't give up on us. This isn't over." She touched his arm lightly but he couldn't speak. He didn't need to, she could see it all in his eyes.

"You need to sleep Ron. Go. Find a bed, you're no good half dead with your head miles away from here. You need to be here, all here."

She pulled him into a quick embrace and then pointed to the sofa where Hermione was already curled up and pushed him towards her, whispering as he left.

"Pawn to C5 takes Knight."

***

They all knew that Hogsmeade marked the start of the countdown to the end. Nobody ever said it, noone could explain why it was so but they all knew it. None were more aware of how bad things were than Ron and Hermione; Harry's dreams were getting worse.

He had managed his nightmares for the last two years, learning to cope with the pain and the horrific images and providing useful information for the Order, especially once he had learner the basics of Occlumency so that he could protect himself.

In the weeks leading up to the Hogsmeade battle however the dreams had been getting worse, more vivid and yet less detailed. Night after night he would wake in agony, screaming in pain with little knowledge of what he had dreamed except an ever growing sense of dread. He slept alone, in the Room of Requirement usually, far away from prying eyes. Ron and Hermione tried to spend as much time with him as possible but their own fears and exhaustion prevented them from staying by his side all the time.

A week after the attack the Trio found themselves together in the Room of Requirement, alone for once. With the comforting presence of the two people who knew him best in the world Harry soon fell asleep. Sitting on cushions beside the bed Ron cradled Hermione in his arms as they watched Harry sleep. Holding Hermione, Ron found a strength and a calm he didn't know he possessed. The last year had forced them all to grow up far too fast but they'd never outgrown the friendship that had existed from their first term together. For all their bickering and teasing he and Hermione needed each other and they both needed Harry.

"He looks so peaceful." Ron could hear the smile in Hermione's voice and he responded in kind.

"I wish he always looked so calm. I'll stay by his side no matter what but I wish I could give him this more often."

Stroking Hermione's hair Ron found himself drifting into a state of contentment he had thought long forgotten.

"It's coming you know," Hermione's eyes were fixed on their sleeping friend. "The end, it's getting closer every day and..."

Her voice trailed off and she turned her head into Ron's chest, hiding from the world.

"And we'll face it together. All three of us. He won't be alone in this." Ron tried to sound firm but he knew that his voice wavered.

None of them knew exactly what was to come and though the Trio had enormous strength to draw on they knew it would come down to Harry in the end. As they lay together, grasping these few moments of peace Harry began to toss and turn in his sleep. Slowly his mutterings turned to screams and Hermione and Ron rushed to his side. Beyond stroking his hair and speaking reassuring words there was little they could do for him and knowing that they fought the helplessness they felt.

***

In the end the Final Battle passed in a blur for Ron. For weeks they have been training an army of children, learning new curses, manufacturing new weapons, and then suddenly it was time. Looking across the Hall on the evening they had decided to make their final stand Ron found himself confronted with the truth that however well prepared they were he was still about to go into battle against an enemy that was stronger, more ruthless, and much more prepared for the reality of war than they were. They were children fighting adults and no amount of preparation had could change that.

Harry was quietly determined, Hermione was giving last minute orders, Padma was checking maps for the last time and Seamus was doing his best to rouse the frightened kids whilst hiding his own fear.

In the first clashes the determination of the ragtag Hogwarts army made some head way. They pushed outwards fighting an enemy who weren't quite ready and weren't expecting children to be so violent.

As the Death Eaters pulled themselves together however the fighting became fiercer. Ron cast his first Avada Kedavra barely a few minutes into the fight and from that moment on events merged into one as he struggled to keep himself close to Harry knowing that Hermione was doing the same.

Then it had happened. The flash of red light slashed straight across Hermione's stomach and she stumbled. The whole world seemed to shift into slow motion and Ron watched as Hermione fell unconscious into the arms of Padma who was just behind, as he moved towards her side there was a sudden crack of thunder and in the midst of the battle Lord Voldemort appeared.

Torn between Hermione and Harry, Ron felt every second as if it were a lifetime. Padma waved him on towards Harry, dragging the limp body of Hermione backwards and as Ron turned to his best friend he saw the flash of green light from Voldemort's wand meet a red glow that seemed to emanating from Harry himself. Ron ran towards the pair, pushing himself beyond all physical limits in his attempt to get between Harry and that awful green light but he was too slow and as his legs gave way and he sank to the ground a blinding silver flash engulfed the whole battle field and then there was darkness.