The Unspoken Passion

The Death Eater made a sudden slashing movement with his wand and it released what looked like purple flame. The spell struck Hermione across the chest and she fell to the floor in a crumpled heap.

"HERMIONE!" Harry shouted.

"NO! HERMIONE! NO!" Ron screamed. He tried to reach out to her, but he couldn't move. He watched as Harry dropped onto his knees next to her and Neville crawled toward them. Ron wanted desperately to help them as well, but the scene seemed to fading away. Just as the Death Eater approached Harry, everything went blank, and Ron awoke to find himself in a bright orange room.

He sat up abruptly and found that he was drenched in sweat. His clothes, the bed sheets, and his very face were soaked. The dream had been so vivid, just like the countless other nights he had had the dream since leaving the Ministry of Magic that fateful night. The night in which Sirius would die, and the entire wizarding world would finally come to find that Lord Voldemort had indeed returned.

Ron, once again, tried to recap what he had seen. Hermione falling to the floor, Harry rushing toward her, the Death Eater smirking as he approached them...and he, Ron, trying to save them. But he couldn't, he hadn't, for he had not even been there when that event had taken place. Even so, when Harry and Neville had described it to him, the dreams started, as clear and as vivid as if he were there. At times he wondered if perhaps he were having visions like Harry, and if he might one day witness some of You-Know-Who's wrath. But he discarded this idea, thinking it was preposterous and that these kinds of powers had been indebted to Harry Potter alone. Still, it had seemed so real...

At that moment, Ron's door flew open and his mother walked in. Molly Weasley was wearing a hairnet and a nightgown, and was showing all the signs of having been in a deep slumber.

"Ronald, what on earth are you screaming about?" she exclaimed.

Ron stared at her. Had he been screaming Hermione's name out loud?

"Nothing, mum," he lied. "I just, hit my head."

"Well you must have hit it hard," she said. "You were going on like a banshee."

"I'm fine, mum, really," he assured her. "Go back to bed."

"Alright then," she said, "just be more careful."

She left his room and shut the door behind her.

Ron's head fell back on his pillow. He'd never be able to get back to sleep now; he never could when he had the dream because he stayed up trying to figure out why he'd had it. However, each time he did so he would ponder it until sunrise, and in the end he'd still be as clueless as when he began.

Ron got up and paced around the room.

What did it mean? Were his dreams trying to tell him something? Should he talk to someone about it?

Ron, however, did not know whom he was supposed to talk to about such a thing. His parents would not understand, nor would the rest of his family. He didn't want to tell Hermione herself; she might think it a bit strange that he had been dreaming about her. Of course, there was always Harry. Harry had experience with unusual dreams, and might be able to work it out better than Ron. With no other ideas on mind, Ron sat down at his desk, pulled out a piece of parchment, and began a letter to his best friend.

***

Half an hour later, Ron was reading over his letter. He had carefully noted every detail of the dream, making it easier for Harry to get the picture. He only hoped that his friend could help. Rolling up the parchment, Ron walked over to Pigwidgeon's cage and poked the tiny sleeping owl. The miniature bird fluttered awake, not looking too happy at having been disturbed.

"Come on, Pig," said Ron. "I've got something for you to deliver."

At these words, Pigwidgeon began bouncing wildly about his cage. He was always eager to make a delivery. Ron tied the letter around the owl's leg, and it immediately took off out the open window.

***

Harry Potter awoke at 5 o'clock in the morning to a screeching Hedwig. The snowy white owl was squawking like mad, and Harry jumped out of bed to calm her. He managed to settle her down before she woke Uncle Vernon into one of his steaming rages.

"What's wrong, girl?" he whispered.

It wasn't until then that he noticed that her large amber eyes were fixed on the window. He followed her gaze until he saw something twittering beyond the glass. It was none other than Ron's faithful owl, Pigwidgeon. Harry quickly made to open the window, and the diminutive owl fluttered in and attempted to nibble at Hedwig's food. She snapped at him.

"Be nice, Hedwig," said Harry as he made to untie to note from Pigwidgeon's leg.

He read the letter twice, trying to take in everything it said. But after he read it, he was just as baffled as Ron had been. Even he, Harry, did not relive that event in his dreams and he had been there. Was it just a random image that kept coming back to him, or was there a specific reason behind it? Most of Harry's dreams had some meaning behind them, but he could not see why Ron was having this dream. However, he didn't want to be of no use to his friend, so he sat down with a piece of parchment and tried to think up some advice to give Ron.

***

I'm sure it's nothing. You're probably just having random nightmares about the Department of Mysteries. I've had them, too. Don't put too much thought into it.

Harry

Ron read Harry's letter and sighed. This hadn't exactly been the answer he was looking for. While it made sense, he was convinced that there was more to it than that. This was not just some wild dream that popped up one night. It was a dream about an actual event, and he had had the dream dozens of times. It all had to mean something, but what?

At that moment, Ginny burst through his door wearing pink pajamas. Ron looked out the window and realized it was after dawn.

"Reading a letter at this hour?" she yawned.

Ron quickly made to hide the letter.

"Oh, I see," she snickered. "It must be private. What, is it from your girlfriend?"

"I don't have a girlfriend," he snapped. Ginny had taken the twins place at teasing Ron about his love life.

"Oh, really?" she said. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she grumbled.

"Oh, it's just that I thought you and...oh never mind."

Ron spun around and glared at her. "Who?" he demanded,

"Oh, nobody," she said, making to leave.

Ron snapped his fingers and his door immediately shut and locked itself. It was a personal charm he'd done years ago, not that anyone knew.

"Ginny," he said. "You're not leaving this room until you tell me who you thought I was dating."

Ginny attempted to open the door to no avail, and finally complied.

"It's just, I always thought that you and Hermione-"

"Hermione!" Ron exclaimed. "Ginny, are you crazy? She's my friend!"

"A very, very close friend it would seem," she smirked.

Ron stared at her. He snapped his fingers again and the door swung open.

"Get out," he said.

She walked toward the hall, smirking all the way, but just as she reached the door she said, "You two would just make such a cute couple."

"GO!"

She took off running down the stairs.

Honestly, he thought, Ginny can be so off her rocket at times.

But as he sat back down on his bed, what she had said began to concern him more and more. Hermione was his friend, like he had said, but was she something more? A good homework source, Ron thought with a laugh, but seriously, was Ron's relationship with her closer than he thought? It was then that he remembered the dream, and about how he had seen her get struck by that spell, and thought she had died...

His heart became constricted in his chest. He became sick to his stomach, feeling as though he might vomit. He suddenly couldn't breathe...

The next thing he knew he was lying face down in the carpet of his floor. He sat up and felt that he was sweating again. What had happened? He had been thinking about the dream, and the possibility of Hermione dying-

At that, he felt a little sick again.

Dead.

The thought of Hermione dead made him feel like dying himself. He could not imagine life without Hermione. Since he'd met her, his life had not been the same. When she was petrified by the basilisk in their second year, he had wanted to throw himself on her body and cry her awake. But he hadn't, mainly because of Harry. When the mermaids had captured her during the Triwizard Tournament, he wished he could have been there to rescue her instead of that idiot, Krum. And when that Death Eater had attacked her in the Department of Mysteries, he wanted nothing more than to have been there and saved her.

So what did all that mean? Ron pondered this question for several minutes. All of a sudden he sprung from his seat as if it had become red-hot. He had finally realized the answer to all of his problems.

"I LOVE HER!"