HP&SB: The Deathly Hallows

Chapter 9

Chapter 9/Godric's Hallow

My boots sunk into the snow, the white frost nearly coming to my knees with each step I took. Behind me I could hear the voices, could hear the calls of the Death Eaters.

"You can't run forever, Black!"

"Given up yet? I want to be back in time for tea."

"You're only getting slower, girl!"

I refused to stop- Not now, not when I felt so close to freedom. But each step felt heavier than the last, and without proper clothes the cold bit into my skin. I didn't have long no matter which way I ran. But I could be damn sure I wasn't going to end up in the stomach of that damn snake.

I missed the tent. I missed warmth. I missed my friends. I missed Harry most of all, with his humor and the green eyes I had become so fond of. But I couldn't dwell on that now. Not with what was at stake- If I didn't get to him now, if I didn't tell him what I knew- I refused to think about it.

I forced another step forward, too cold to even open my mouth properly and scream when the Death Eater appeared in front of me.

_

When I woke up the next morning, it took me a little while to remember everything, and once I did, I wished I didn't.

I had hoped, childishly maybe, that last night had all been a dream, that Ron was still here and had never left, that Siri was still here and that soon they'd be up, joking and teasing and bringing back some light into the dreary days. But they were both gone, and there was nothing that could be done. Not anymore.

Slipping down from my bunk, I tried to keep my eyes away from Ron's deserted one, but it was like a dead body in the way that it seemed to constantly draw my eyes, holding them captive. Hermione, who was already up and busy in the kitchen, did not say a word to me but turned her face away from me as I walked by.

He's gone. I told myself morosely. He's gone and he's not coming back. I had to keep thinking it as I washed and changed, as though thinking about it would dull the shock out of it. But it was two blows in one night. We had not only lost Ron, and now we knew that Siri had been captured.

They were gone. That was the simple truth, I knew, because the protective enchantments around the tent meant that it would be impossible for Ron to find us again once we left this spot. And Siri... I shook the thought away from my head. She had to be alive. She had to be. That's all there was to it.

We ate breakfast in silence. Hermione's eyes were red and puffy, and the dark circles under her eyes told me she had not slept well, if she had managed to at all. We packed up our things, Hermione dawdling, trying to put our leave off, most likely in hope that Ron would return, that he would come walking out of the forest with a grin and open arms as though last night had never happened, and he had merely been out for a stroll.

Many times she would look up eagerly, surely having deluded herself into thinking that she heard footsteps through the heavy rain, but no red-haired figure appeared between the trees. Everytime I copied her and looked around, for I couldn't help but hope a little bit myself, but I saw nothing but rain-soaked woods and the roaring river, and another little bought of fury exploded inside me as Ron's words echoed in my head. He hadn't wanted to be here. Why would he change his mind?

We had lingered an hour after we would have normally departed the camp site. Finally having repacked the beaded bag three times, Hermione seemed unable to find anymore reasons to stay.

She took my hand, holding it much tighter than necessary, and took one last look at the campsite before disapparating, reappearing on a windswept, rocky hillside.