Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Our Last Summer	By : starstruck86 Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Snape/Ron Views: 3906 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter nor do I make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
***

Severus
dodged a suffocation hex thrown by a masked Death Eater he didn�t recognise.
The world and its mate appeared to be aiming for him. He was duelling
constantly and his reserve was flagging. All the while he was fighting; his
eyes were darting around, looking for Ron, his heart pricking every time he
caught a flash of red hair, which, considering there were so many Weasleys in
the room, was cruelly often.

A shout
rang out in the middle of the room and he whirled round to see Harry tumble to
the floor, a great spurt of blood shooting from his face as he did so. Without
thinking, Severus leapt over bodies and broken debris to land next to Harry and
yank him to his feet without even stopping to think that this now truly showed
his allegiance once and for all.

�Well,
well, Severus,� came a cold, dark voice he hadn�t heard in months.

He
staggered slightly as someone bumped into him, and he put out a hand to steady
Remus Lupin who had bruises all down the right side of his face. Recovering his
balance, he pointed his wand at Voldemort, joining Harry and Severus.

If the
situation hadn�t been so terrifying, so be-all-and-end-all, Severus would have
taken a moment to appreciate the irony of three men who had had their lives so
cruelly blighted by the monster in front of them, lives which involved all of
the same people, standing facing him united.

�Severus,
I�ve been waiting for you to come and find me� I presume you know what they did
to your precious new little lover?�

His heart
actually skipped a bit as his knuckles fell slack on his wand.

�Oh��
Voldemort�s face relaxed. �So you don�t. Well, never you mind, Severus, Lucius
said he was weaker than most. He wasn�t worth your valour. Don�t bother trying
to fight for revenge, Severus. You will lose. Come back to me.�

Harry
looked at Severus with fear written all of his face. �What has he done to Ron?�

�You see,
Severus� you provided me with such an opportunity. You fell in love with one
person who Harry Potter really and truly loved as well. And he was a blood
traitor too� he deserved what happened to him. And now you both suffer. He
loses his best friend and you lose the love of your life. Again. By my hand. I
think that�s enough to be going on with before I kill you, don�t you?�

Fear was
coursing through Severus� veins like he�d never known it before, not even when
he feared for his life after Lily�s death. It was a different kind of fear, the
fear of having to live a life without the man he loved who loved him back. �Fuck you,� Severus spat on the ground between
them, raised his wand and sent a complex stunning hex from the end of his wand.

�Now, now,
Severus. Don�t turn my own spells against me, that�s not fair.�

�Like hell
it isn�t,� Severus hissed, and stepped forward. �Remus, go to my house. He will
have trapped him there. Go. Now. Do what you can.�

He didn�t
have to turn around to see Remus running, and he deftly shot up a protego
shield charm to deflect the curses Voldemort sent at his disappearing back. He
looked at Harry beside him and suddenly felt a strange affinity to him, joined
in their shared fear in Ron�s fate.

�Oh come
on,� Voldemort drawled, sending a hex at a passing Ministry worker who fell
twitching to the ground. �You two fighting me is pointless. Join me. I�m
telling you, it�s the only way.�

A
disturbing shriek of laughter came from past the fountain and Severus used the
distraction to send a disarming spell at his old Master. A disarming spell? What the fuck, have you turned into Harry Potter?
Fucking moron!

However
stupid he thought the move was, it actually worked. Voldemort�s wand flew out
of his hand and clattered on the floor between them. Harry, with all the
seeker�s stealth he possessed, shot out and picked it up before he really even
realised it was gone from his hand.

Severus
turned to Harry and shouted, �Break it, Harry!�

The roar of
rage, Severus realised, he should have suspected. Harry, in a moment of apt
brilliance, considering, raised his knee, grabbed both ends of the wand, and
snapped it clean down the middle in a very Muggle action. What Severus was not
expecting, however, were the gloomy clouds of grey that spurted out of the
wand, into the air, forming figures in the clouds. Voldemort apparently didn�t
expect it either. Severus turned his wand on him again and was about to blow
him to hell and back when there was a cackle; Bellatrix Lestrange was hanging
off the fountain. She shot a severing charm at his shoulder and there was
nothing he could do to defend himself, she was too quick.

�PROTEGO!� Harry shouted, too late, as Severus fell to the floor, with blood
rushing everywhere, pain coursing through his upper body. The shield did serve
to stop her attacking again, and the grey clouds from the broken wand pressed
around her and she screamed.

�Severus, get out of here, you�re done,� Harry shouted at him on the floor.
�Get the hell up, get to Ron. You�re done.�

Severus
nodded. �Harry, finish it. Take her down first, as soon as you get rid of the
shield. And then use a special charm called �Revenio debeo�. You don�t have to
do anything, just point, mean it, and say it. And then when you�re pretty sure
it�s working, fucking run, Harry, do you understand me?�

Harry
nodded and Severus struggled to his feet, his hand slipping in the blood of his
half severed shoulder. �And God, Harry, if you see Ron anywhere in what comes
out of your wand, you fucking give hell.�

Harry
turned away from him and Severus staggered with his breathing hoarse towards
the nearest exit. He wasn�t going to be able to disapparate, he would have to
go to the Floo.

�Severus?�
Ginny�s voice floated out to him and she ran over, her long hair escaped from
whatever binding it had had, It bounced in shiny waves down her back, just like
Lily�s once had.

�Ginny,� he
breathed, stumbling slightly.

�Oh my God,
what�� She took in his half severed shoulder and fought a serious battle to
hold on to her stomach.

�I need to
get to the h-h-hospital,� his legs gave way.

Ginny
nodded and hoisted him back up, putting his arm around her shoulders, but
casting a worrying glance back at Harry.

�He knows
what he has to do,� Severus explained. �It should work.�

***

With some
dim hope, Severus kept looking around the packed ward to see Ron in his Trainee
Healer robes, bustling about, totally unscathed by the battle raging in the
Ministry. Maybe he�d just said it to provoke him, what happened. Lupin hadn�t
returned into the A&E. A MediWitch had cleaned his wound thoroughly with
some solution which stung like mad. Then she had asked him what she wanted her
to do� take the arm off, or reattach it and perform the healing spells. Either
way, he pretty much knew his wand arm was gone. If the muscles took and
knitted, the nerves would still be shot to pieces. He told her to heal it,
simply because he knew that would keep him from frantically searching. Inside
he was on fire, he had to know what had happened to Ron. A million and one
terrible things were flying through his mind, each more insidious than the
last. He was making himself feel sick.

�There,� the MediWitch had bandaged him up with bandages containing permanently
refreshing healing solution, and she had arranged him into a sling and knocked
half a bottle of pain potion down his throat. �The scarring is going to be
pretty hideous and I hope you�re good at magic with your left hand. It�s the
best I could do,� she shook her head bleakly. �I�m sorry.�

�Can I go
now?� Severus asked, simply not caring. �Have you had any admissions under the
name of Weasley?�

�I don�t
know,� she shook her head. �There are so many people. There�s a list at the
station over there, it�s going to be easiest if you just look yourself.�

Severus
didn�t need telling twice, and although his arm ached as he moved so quickly,
he snatched up the clipboard. It was messy, names were being hand scrawled on
it by an enchanted quill, the MediWitches had no time. His obsidian eyes
scanned down the page looking for anything that began with an R or a W. There
was nothing. A feeling of desperation overpowered him and he wobbled on the
spot. He should just apparate but he knew he didn�t have any strength left to
do so. He looked out into the corridor which was full of groaning casualties.

He looked
around for Ginny, but she had left him after she had seen that he was in safe
hands. He walked dizzily into the hall and peered among the groaning people
lining the walls. No red hair. This was agonizing. Oh God if he�s hurt I will never rest until Lucius Malfoy is rotting in
the ground.

He read the
sign on the wall, he was heading to the intensive care unit. His heart was
sinking but he knew he should check. His old Master had evidentially been
beyond livid and not many people could survive against that sort of rage. Ron
certainly couldn�t. As he rounded the corner he held his breath, hoping his
worst fears wouldn�t be confirmed by seeing anyone he knew when he turned it.

His stomach
plummeted, Remus rushed up to him with a terrified look on his prematurely aged
face. �Severus,� he took in Severus� bandaged shoulder with wide eyes. �Severus
you need to stop, I need to explain before you-�

�Where is
he?� Severus growled, face paling and teeth gritting.

�He�s in a
room over there but Severus you have to let me talk to you first; you have to
know before you walk in and see him-�

�Remus let
me in there,� Severus threatened.

Remus� eyes
were pleading with him but Severus wasn�t going to take it. He needed to see
Ron before he could achieve anything. So he was in intensive care. I can handle it. It�s not like he�s dead.

He weaved
past a Healer, narrowly missing squashing his shoulder on the doorframe. His
eyes fell first on Molly, sobbing gently into her husband�s neck. Arthur had a
nasty cut on his forehead. Hermione, Ginny, Harry, Bill and George were all
missing, but Fred had hold of Ron�s hand and Charlie looked faintly sick as he
stood looking down at him.

And then
Severus� eyes really fell down to the bed and what he saw made him wish he had
never, ever let Ronald Weasley into his office on that Saturday morning in May
for tea and to let him ask a question about a dream he�d had. Ron was deathly
pale. He had angry cuts on his face, his throat, some dangerously close to his
jugular, and across his chest. The blanket covered up other cuts. From the
pallor of his face, Severus knew he�d been through more than just a few cuts.
His knees weakened and he gripped the end of the bedstead with his one good
hand.

�Severus!�
Fred looked up, taking in his heavily bandaged shoulder and sling. �What in
Merlin�s name happened to you? Your shoulder!�

�It�s not
important,� Severus said, his eyes never leaving Ron�s motionless body, trying
to see if his eyes could catch the rise and fall of his chest. There was a mask
over his mouth and nose, with a magical air bag attached squeezing in and out,
presumably to help him breathe. His face was bruised and Severus could see
hideous bruising all down the right hand side of his ribcage. He fought down
the bile rising in his throat.

�What
happened to him?� He croaked, unable to muster a strong enough voice.

�I can�t
hear it again,� Molly sobbed.

�Come on, Severus,�
Remus grabbed his good arm and he pulled him from the room, even though
Severus� head turned and gravitated, following Ron as he was pulled. �We should
talk with the healer out here.�

He steadied
him with his hands and didn�t take them away. Severus was too shocked to speak.

�This is
Ron�s partner,� Remus said quietly to the healer. �I think you will get a more
accurate survey of questions from him� but, for the love of God, be gentle.�

Severus�
head snapped up and looked at Remus with a frown. �Lupin, what�s going on?�

�Ron has
severe injuries. He�s been cursed badly,� Remus said gently. �I� I� when I
found him, he was lying naked in a pool of what I can only assume was his own
vomit and blood. Someone had covered him up with the robes he had been wearing
and left this,� he pulled a note from his pocket, �by his side.�

Severus
took it with a shaking hand and read it.

Trunco connubialis viscus. Soul
burning. Rape. I tried for you Severus but I lost. I am done with his monstrous
life. N.

Rage filled
his veins like he had never, ever known. Remus must have seen it because he
tightened his grip. �Severus, if you want to help Ron you will not go off the
deep end now. You will stay calm and tell us what this means,� he grabbed the
note and shook it. �You need to tell us, we don�t know, its darker magic than
I�ve ever come across. It�s� it�s their own, isn�t it?�

Severus
managed to get out a nod and a gasp broke out of his lips. �Those sons of
fucking bitches,� he whispered, the numbness in his chest bleeding out to his
limbs.

�What is
it?� The Healer asked. �I know the latin translation, but what does it mean?�

�It means what it translates to,� Severus closed his eyes. �So �Maim sexual
organs or flesh�. It is an extremely painful method of g-genital torture,� his
eyes filled with tears. �That will usually render the victim sexually inactive
for the rest of their life, if they survive the pain to l-live it.�

Remus went
green next to him. �And the soul burning?�

�Again,
it�s what it says,� tears spilled down his face. �They� set a torch to your
soul, they burn it, and damage it, it slowly burns away and you are left
without whole chunks of your very being. If it is only used for a very short
period of time, sometimes the victim can walk away.�

�But teemed
with what else they did��

�It is a
miracle that any breath, no matter how tiny, is still coming out of his chest.�

�Talking of
his chest,� the Healer said quietly. �He has four broken ribs, one of which
punctured his lung. If it hadn�t been for the very quick work of Mr Lupin, we
would never have even got him onto the bed and semi-stabilised. But the thing
is� the ribs� they had been broken recently. Do you know anything about that?
He was already badly bruised before this took place.�

�I don�t,�
Severus was shocked. �I�ve been with him since May and he�s� how recent?�

�In the
last few days,� the Healer looked at Lupin and Severus blinked.

�But he
hasn�t��

�Severus,
if something happened, if it was an accident or on purpose, you have to tell
us,� Remus said gently. �Every tiny little thing is important for his
survival.�

�Are you asking me if I broke four of his ribs?!� Severus couldn�t believe what
he was hearing.

�I�m
asking, but I�m shortly going to switch to telling,� The Healer lost her
patience. �I have a statement from one of our Trainee Healers that Ron came to
him this morning with four broken ribs, which he fixed for him. Ron said that
you had done it but it had been a complete accident. That you were both drunk,
and he tried to help you, and you pushed him down the stairs trying to put him
off. Now, my trainee says Ron was just trying to protect you, that if you had
found out what you�d done, you would break down.�

It all came
flooding back to Severus, the way Ron had moved so awkwardly that morning, been
so eager to get out of the house, had not moved a muscle as he�d lain in bed,
looked so haunted when Severus had first come down the stairs in the small
hours of the morning. �Oh Merlin,� his knees gave out and Remus caught him.

�Is that
true?� Remus asked gently.

�It� it must be. I don�t� I was inebriated; I don�t remember much of last
night. I� can�t��

�It�s
okay,� Remus held him still. �Severus, it�s okay. If it was an accident, it was
an accident. Any fool can see you love him.�

�And that was it, wasn�t it? Because of me, he�s lying there, lost in� god
knows what, dreaming god knows what and he�s probably never going to come out
of it.�

Their chat
was ended abruptly by the arrival of Harry, who sprinted, his face covered in
dust and blood, straight to Ron�s bedside. �What? What�s happened to him?� He
cried, desperate as he clung onto Ron�s hand.

�Severus?
What�s going on?� Hermione tearfully asked from his side.

Severus
swallowed in quick succession. Get out.
Get out and go home and leave them all to it. Just go home and forget. His
mind was telling him to pull his usual actions, to go home, give up and let the
misery have him. But there was a pull in his chest which stopped him. So
instead he ignored Hermione, and spoke directly to the healer. �Do nothing. If
he shows sign of being in distress, you can give him basic pain medication, but
anything else could make the curses worse� the trunco cannot be healed. Only
time is going to tell how he heals� though� Remus, I have a question. Is Lucius
Malfoy dead?� He had no idea how he was managing to speak so calmly now.

�I have no
idea,� Remus shook his head desperately. �Why?�

�These
spells� if a person is strong enough to survive them� if the caster of the
curse dies first, they can lessen immensely. It will never completely leave but
it can help.�

�Can the caster lift the curse?� Remus asked. �Can it be lifted?�

�I have
never seen anyone with the inclination to try,� Severus swallowed. �It might. I
highly doubt it. Malfoy was cursing to kill to ruin me. I can�t think he would
willingly surrender now by lifting the curse.�

�He was
willingly surrendering in the fucking Ministry,� Harry spat hotly from the bed.
�Right after I killed his leader he was happy to turn sides.�

�Y-you
killed Voldemort?� Molly asked Harry in a stunned voice, seeming to forget all
of her sudden that her youngest son was on his deathbed between them.

Harry
nodded. �Thanks to Severus. Without him I would have lost.�

Remus had
pulled out his wand and drummed up his patronus. �Kingsley, do not kill Lucius
Malfoy. Do not kill, and do not Dementor Kiss. If he is already dead, send
word. Capture if not and bring him, immediately, to the ICU of St. Mungo�s.�

His wolf
leapt off through the wall.

�Will
someone please tell me what the hell is wrong with him?� Harry asked
desperately, clutching Ron�s hand tighter. �Is he going to die?�

The room
filled with palpable tension and Molly broke into a fresh wave of tears. �It
doesn�t look good,� Charlie swallowed in a choked voice. �There was�a lot of
dark magic used.�

�No,�
Hermione rushed into the room and threw herself on the side of Ron�s bed,
feeling his brow. �No. He can�t die. He��

�Hermione,�
Arthur shook his head, his face a grim mirror into his mind. �He wasn�t meant
to survive this.�

At those
words Severus retched, and found Remus holding a basin under his mouth to catch
the vomit. Everyone looked at him, pale, swaying, arm bandaged up. He retched
again.

�Remus,�
came a soft voice, and Severus groaned into the basin.

I don�t fucking need your wisdom
right now. Try again later. Please.

�Remus,
your wife is looking for you at the Ministry in some distress. I think you had
better go and find her and tell her you�re safe.�

Severus
staggered to the door frame to support himself as Remus let go.

�Molly,
Arthur, your other children are safe. George is just getting himself patched
up, he received a head wound. Bill is with his wife. Ginny is doing an
immaculate job of helping the injured back at the ministry. Percy is helping to
try and restore some order in what is left of the Ministry atrium. Harry rather
finished it off in the end.�

�It was all
Severus� work.�

�You held
the wand,� Severus shook his head and spitting off to the side. �You bought him
down. It had to be you. I didn�t get my shoulder cleaved down the middle for
nothing, Harry.�

�You got
your shoulder-?! What?!� Molly erupted, springing forward instantly to fuss
over him but he held his hand up. �Molly, it�s healed. I will never regain use
of my right arm again, the nerves are too shot, I can tell.�

�Oh this is
just awful,� she dissolved into tears. �Why? Two people who were just starting
their lives together�� She dissolved into Arthur�s arms and the room fell
silent.

Severus was
staring at Ron�s body like he might be sick again. Every vile and twisted thing
his poor lover had been through was down to him, he realised. He was ashamed to
look at the body then. And surely that was all it could be, a body� there
couldn�t really be any hope of any wisp of the man he had loved in that broken
shell.

�Severus,
do not give up hope,� Albus warned him, recognising the look on his face. �The
last thing he needs for you is to give up hope on him.�

�Don�t
start, Albus,� Severus heard himself thunder. �Not now. I won�t stand here and
listen to it.�

�There is
hope then?� Hermione breathed tearfully.

�There can always be hope,� Albus said. �He is breathing, which my sources tell
me is no small miracle. He has been through an immense amount of trauma and his
mind has simply shut down to escape it. Who can blame him? He could come back
from this, when he has healed enough.�

�The bloody
point is,� Severus snarled gripping the door frame, �If he wakes up and he
finds himself emasculated and soulfully incomplete he will probably wish he was
dead.�

�He�s� he�s
what?� Harry asked loudly. �You mean they� they? Oh I am going to rip Malfoy�s
head from his body,� he yanked out his wand and made for the door but Charlie
grabbed him in a bear hold from behind.

�Severus, I
am begging you not to give up hope on him. For all you know he�s holding on to
the thought of you to pull him through.�

�IT DOESN�T
WORK LIKE THAT!� Severus shouted. �You think it�s just so simple. But no. He
has gone through hell. His mind isn�t even thinking about anything. HE IS ALL
BUT BRAINDEAD. YOU KNOW IT AS WELL AS I DO.�

Shaking, he
heaved himself to stand properly. �I�m sorry, I can�t� I can�t stay here and
watch him die slowly. Someone should� someone should put him out of his misery
now.� His chest was heaving and his shoulder was aching so much he could have
ripped it off. �I�m going. I can�t do this.�

�Don�t,
Severus, please don�t go,� Molly was begging him tearfully, �If Ron is as close
to the end as you assume then you can�t leave him. He loves you so much.�

Severus
swallowed. You mean loved. You mean he
loved me. He�s gone now. �He loved me,� he corrected her, shaking his head.
�And now I have to go.�

He turned
to Albus. �One more thing, Albus. I quit.�

***

He didn�t
know what he was expecting as he entered his home, whether it would be trashed,
or there would be any marks left from the brutal attack that had taken place
there. But as he stood in the living room, shoulder throbbing, there was
nothing. Everything was in place, and the floor was clean. Lupin must have cleaned the mess up� He licked his lips and looked
around at the book clad living room. It had been the last thing Ron would have
seen as he was tortured. What a fucking
miserable sight. His eyes caught the picture frame on his windowsill and
his stomach flipped. It was the picture taken of himself and Ron at the Burrow
on the 31^st July, look at each other with the fire of passion in
their eyes. He crossed the room and picked it up, brain unable to stop
comparing the man in the picture to the man lying in the hospital, broken. His
thumb crept onto the glass before he could stop it, touching the face with the
soft skin of the thumb pad. Photograph Ron shook his head as he was touched and
looked affrontedly back at him.

Severus
swallowed and set the photograph down with his hand. He really didn�t know what
he was feeling. His shoulder was aching as though something were inside, trying
to gnaw its way out of his skin. He tried to flex his hand poking out of the
sling and nothing happened. Just fucking
brilliant� you�re never going to be able to fuck again and I�ve lost my wanking
hand. For fuck�s sake.

It was that
ridiculous, selfish thought that finally seemed to tease the grief into
crashing down on his chest. �Oh,� he gasped, feeling for all the world as
though someone had run him through with a sword. There it was, the grief. And
the crashing realisation that what he�d been saying to Ron all along, that he
was no good for him, had come to light.

He
staggered into the kitchen, using his good hand to steady himself and pulled a
bottle of firewhiskey off the top of the fridge. He slumped back into the
hallway, heading for the living room, but as the memory of what the floor in
the hallway had seen, rather than the floor in the in the living room, came to
him, he sank down awkwardly with his back against the stairs. He fumbled with
cap of the bottle and bought it up to his mouth, taking a gulp which scorched
painfully. Before he could swallow a thought plagued him. Alcohol caused his broken ribs� his pierced lung� you hurt him. He
spat out the liquid all over himself in disgust, and replaced the cap, and sent
the bottle skidding out of his reach.

He let his
hand trail down onto the floorboards, where Ron�s head had once touched on that
warm night. Come on then. Cry. Grieve.
But tears just refused to come. He was feeling the grief, all right, but there
was no salty accompaniment, no physical show of it. His hand smoothed over the
wood which Ron had so carefully varnished. He realised the irony of the
varnishing, that Ron probably wouldn�t have broken so many ribs if he�d not
taken the carpet off the stairs.

Severus
strained his memory, trying to send his mind back to think what really happened
the night before, if he had really pushed him down the stairs. He felt overwhelmingly
stupid that he had missed all of Ron�s awkward movements that morning, and
mistaken them for nerves. The thought of causing him pain as he�d hugged him
intensified the sick feeling in his stomach. He couldn�t bring anything back
from before Ron had given him the sobering solution. Nothing short of
mortified, he closed his eyes, tipping his head back against the wood, fingers
arching to grip the floor till his nails hurt.

�Are you
fucking happy now?!� He yelled, his eyes still shut. �This house expects misery
and you made it happen! Are you fucking happy now Dad?� Silence followed his
words because the house was empty and the dead didn�t answer. He didn�t know
how long he sat there, staring at the newly painted wall, staring into the
creamy magnolia colour hoping it could give him some comfort.

He still
wasn�t crying. Considering his tear ducts had been so active since he�d met
Ron, he found it discomfiting to know that, when Ron had abandoned him, so had
they. He�s not dead yet, a voice in
his mind reminded him.

�He�s as
fucking good as,� Severus spat. �He�s not coming back. If he does he will wish
he hadn�t. He will lead a hideous life.�

A life you�d be around to help him
with.

�No. No. He
is dead, I can�t pretend otherwise. I don�t do hope.�

Just because hoping hasn�t worked
out before doesn�t mean it won�t this time.

With a
lurch, Severus realised that the annoying voice in his head was surprisingly
familiar. It was like his own sub-conscience had taken on Ron�s form, his line
of argument. Ron had always been extremely hopeful even when he was acting
otherwise. An eternal optimist deep down. And now he seemed to have planted the
seed within Severus.

He can come through this, and no
matter what tattered shreds of life he has left when he does, you can help to
put him back together again.

�He will be
irreparable,� Severus shook his head in reply.

You don�t know that. Dare to dream.

�Just fuck off,� Severus groaned, another anvil of
grief pressing down on his chest.

�Severus,
just give me a chance,� came a human voice and Severus jumped and opened his
eyes.

He looked
up and saw Remus standing over him, looking worried. Severus groaned again and
said. �You can go. I don�t need company.�

Remus
sighed and to his annoyance, Severus heard him sit down opposite him, leaning
against the paint at which he had been staring.

�You�re
blocking my view,� Severus said acidly.

Remus said
nothing again and didn�t look at him. He was looking at the bottle of
Firewhiskey just placed out of Severus� reach. He turned his head with a raised
eyebrow.

�Poison,�
Severus spat in the bottle�s direction. �Fucking poison. I�ve brewed some evil
liquid in my time but the worst is the one we can all get our hands on without
any problem at all.�

Remus
bought the bottle to his hand wordlessly and weighed it in his hands. �Do you
mind if I? It�s been a long, long day.�

�Knock
yourself round the head with it for all I care,� Severus said indifferently,
flattening his hand over the floorboards again.

�Severus,�
Remus breathed, setting the bottle down.

�I don�t
want to hear it,� Severus snarled. �I don�t care if they all hate me for what I
said in the hospital. It�s the truth.�

�They don�t
hate you, far from it,� Remus explained. �They wanted to come themselves but� I
told them I had known you since you were a teenager and you didn�t handle group
support very well.�

Severus
gave a mirthless laugh.

�They send
their love.�

�Yeah,
right.�

�No, they
really did. They are all heartbroken for you.�

�Heartbroken
because it�s their loss too.�

�Yes, it is
their loss. A family member might die. Of course they�re hurting. But have you
not considered that, even though you�ve only been seeing them for a small
while, they might have started to look on you as one of the family too?�

�Bollocks,� Severus said flatly. �They all hate me. And I don�t blame them.
Look at the misery I�ve bought crashing down around their ears.�

His head
swam as he thought of Ron�s ears and the thick, long hair that framed them.

�There was
always the potential for that misery, it�s there for all of us. I could have
lost Dora, and they could have lost any member of their family without your
input.�

�But
because of my input they�ve lost him in the most hideous manner possible.�

�They
haven�t lost him at all yet,� Remus shook his head with a look in his eye.

�What?�
Severus questioned. �I�m guessing something happened after I left. Spit it
out.�

�As soon as
you were gone, Ron went into a series of fits, apparently. I got back just
towards the end of them and they filled me on where� where you�d gone.�

�But that would mean��

�Yes, it
would imply that there�s brain power there to fit with, yes.�

�That�s
insane, and virtually impossible. It must have been a fluke.�

�Or it was
Ron reacting in the only way he knew how to you leaving him.�

�He�s
dead,� Severus whispered.

�He is not
dead, he�s still breathing, Severus.�

�But he�s as good as.�

�No.
Severus, stop this.�

�And I
didn�t leave him. I can�t keep a vigil by a dead body.�

�HE�S STILL
BREATHING,� Remus uncharacteristically lost his temper with the shadow of the
man he had known on the floor in front of him. �He is still breathing and you
walked out on him because you�re too fucking emotionally impeded to stay and
hold the poor bastard�s hand after what he went through, FOR YOU.�

Severus
heard the words and was frightened that he couldn�t muster up the energy to be
furious about them. That�s because the
werewolf is fucking right. Like he normally fucking is.

�I�m sorry
for shouting,� Remus took another swig of whiskey. �But anyone else would be
clinging onto the small shreds of hope they had� not automatically casting them
on the fire to burn.�

�Hoping has never worked out well for me before,� Severus shook his head. �I
don�t� I�m not sure I even know how to hope, Remus.�

�Well learn
fast, because if he comes through this, and you�re not there to hold his hand,
he really will be dead.�

�He isn�t
going to come through it.�

�They�re
more hopeful now. Lucius Malfoy was force fed Veritaserum and the Healers have
the full story of what� happened to Ron. He has said he can lift the curse. He
confessed that he didn�t know what kind of effect it would have as he shot it,
uh, deep and concentrated. But, we do know the soul burning wasn�t even on him
for a full minute. The damage from that will hopefully be minimal. But we don�t
know, because nobody can examine him properly without possibly making it worse,
what damage the rape caused.�

Severus�
eyes fell into his lap. �When did that happen? Before or after the cursing?�

Remus
wouldn�t answer.

�Just tell
me.�

�Before.�

�Oh god,� Severus whispered. �He must have felt� humiliated.�

�We can�t
know how he felt. Lucius confessed that he fought everything though� and that
he said you would fix him.�

Such blind faith in me Ron. I always
warned you I would shatter your Illusions.

�There is
something else� but I don�t know whether I should tell you or not.�

�Just tell
me, how much more horrific can it get?� Severus shrugged his shoulders.
�Fucking nyaargh,� he gasped, as his right shoulder screamed in protest at the
movement.

�You�re
badly injured,� Remus shook his head sadly. �You should be in the hospital
under observation.�

�Not on your hairy life,� Severus spat viciously.

�Alright,�
Remus held up a hand. �Lucius said that before Ron eventually passed out, much
later than he should have done -he was fighting for so long, the last thing he
said was your name.�

�Where is
the bastard now, can I go and rip his lungs out?�

�He�s
locked up. They� they want him to perform the curse lifting but Albus� he
insists you have to be there.�

�No fucking way,� Severus shook his head. �No. I�m not going in there to watch
him die.�

�He needs
you,� Remus said firmly.

�He won�t even know I�m there.�

�He knew
you left him!�

�No, his
brain was causing his body to fit from the trauma he�d been through, Remus. Why
do you always have to put a romantic spin on everything? We�re not in those
Muggle books you used to read now. This is reality.�

�Why do you
automatically have to assume everything is a failure? We�re not all living inside
your twisted head, this is reality!�
Remus countered in a flash.

Severus
didn�t have an answer to that, he just felt his shoulder throb along with his
heartbeat.

�You make a
habit of being the man who runs away, Severus. You ran away from an abusive
father. You ran away from your continual tormentors at school. You ran from the
Death Eaters when they killed Lily and James. You ran away from me when you
couldn�t take the heartbreak not fading�� his voice faltered. �Don�t you think,
instead of running away you should just stop? Just stop and deal with it?�

�I am not
the man that runs away,� Severus snarled.

�Funny, because I could have sworn that�s what you did this afternoon,� Remus
gestured with his hand. �You ran away from that hospital room and left the
person you�ve loved the most in your life in agony on the bed. You came back
here and you hid.�

�It�s just
how I deal with grief.�

�That is no
excuse. You entered into a relationship with Ron Weasley when everyone,
including myself, was horrified by it. We all thought you would hurt him but up
until today we were all being pleasantly shocked into silence. I�m telling you,
Severus, you run away, you prove every single one of us right. And before the
Weasley family get their hands on you, I might wring your neck myself, because
frankly, I have always hoped you were
more than Sirius accused you of. I always hoped you were a bigger man than you
seemed.�

�Shut up,�
Severus desperately tried to tune out the voice delivering all the harsh truths
to him punch after punch. �Please shut up.�

Remus
shifted and he realised he was crossing over to sit beside him, next to his
good shoulder. He felt an arm go around his waist and a hand take his good one.

�I�m only
telling you this because I know, Severus, that you deal in truth in your brain.
You�ve always been the most logical soul I�ve known. I know that by telling you
this �and all the grisly details of how I found Ron, it�ll make you choose the
right decision here.�

�It�s not a
decision if you force me into it,� Severus hated how weak his voice sounded.

Remus
sighed. �No. But it�s the decision you should make, anyhow.�

Severus
fell silent, his brain marvellously empty despite everything that Remus had
just said. He knew he should be thinking it over, but somehow, he couldn�t
concentrate his mind. All he could think of was the feeling of how nice it was
to be held like this. Yet it still felt wrong, somehow, because the smell of
the person was all out of place. The person holding him should smell of soap
and musk, their hair should waft fruity air towards him as they sat there. But
it didn�t. He knew that was because the person that should have been holding
him was Ron. All those things were quintessentially Ron. He swallowed.

�Did you
mean what you said to Albus, that you�re quitting your position at Hogwarts?�
Remus asked softly.

�Yes,� he
croaked. �I�m not going back there.�

�Why not?�

�Because,� Severus sighed and straightened, wincing at the pain. �If he comes
out of this he�s going to need constant care. And with my arm, I�m not going to
be in any fit state to brew properly or teach. I won�t even be able to write
any more.�

�Christ, just think of it. Generations of students unscarred without crying
over acerbic marks on their Potions homework�� Severus could hear the smile in
his voice.

�How did
you draw the short straw of coming to talk to me?�

�Like I
said, some of the Weasleys wanted to come themselves. Charlie and George,
particularly, were so concerned for you. Harry even offered. Harry, Severus.
You know how he feels about you because it�s the same as you feel about him.�

Severus
gave a weak attempt at laughing. �He�s just confounded by the drama, he�ll be
back to normal in the morning.�

Remus
laughed.

�So what�s�
so Voldemort is dead?� Severus asked warily. �His followers?�

�Were
stupid enough to linger long enough in the Ministry to be captured. Idiots.
Obviously there will be more out there but still� we got plenty of main
players.�

�God that�s
such a weird concept. He�s gone. And now we�re free to live our lives until the
next jumped up dictator comes along.�

Remus
laughed again. �You always did have a way with words,� without thinking he
brushed Severus� tangled hair away from his eye.

�Remus, let
go of me,� Severus requested, and Remus complied immediately. �Thank you.�

�Does Ron
know� about us?� Remus motioned between them unnecessarily.

�He knows a
watered down version. He would have got the full version but he got a little
het up hearing some of my sexual history and I didn�t think it�d make for good
relations to tell him that you were probably the only serious relationship I�d
ever had in my life.�

�So what
does he know?�

�He thinks
that we lost our virginity together in a broom cupboard,� Severus said glumly.

�Well, that�s the truth, but he doesn�t know about after Lily died and Sirius�
went to prison?�

Severus
shook his head. �No. I didn�t tell him. I will, one day though.�

�I�m sorry
I didn�t tell you about the wedding�� Remus murmured guiltily. �I should have.�

�No,�
Severus shook his head. �Water under the bridge and all that. I�ve moved on,
too.�

�I�m so
glad,� Remus said. �You know, I was only trying to make sure you were okay,
when I came here looking for you that night��

Severus
stood up with a struggle. �I know.�

�Where are
you going?� Remus asked as Severus carefully stepped over him.

�To collect
some of Ron�s things� he should have them with him in� hospital.�

He walked
up the stairs as fast as his injuries would allow, leaving Remus sat on the
floor alone, with a sad smile on his face.
- 4
- 5
- 6
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Our Last Summer