The cool night air washed over me as Hermione and I cast the protective spells around our campsite. We whispered into the night, our breaths billowing out in a grey smoke. I hoped that Harry and Ron were finding suitable wood to make a fire because it was really cold. Stopping for a second, I wrap my jacket tighter around my body. Actually, it wasn't my jacket. It was Ron's and that made me really happy. 

"Okay, I think we're good," Hermione said from the opposite side of the campsite. She had a frown on her face as she stared out into the woods, so I walked over to her, throwing my arms around her shoulders. "Y/N, what are you doing?"

"You look like you need a hug." She sighed in my ear but wrapped her arms around my waist. "I know that this isn't what you wanted to be doing during your seventh year, but it's necessary. Harry is our friend, but this war isn't just about him, it's about us."

"I know," she whispered softly. "But it's so hard! These Horcruxes are going to be the death of me, Y/N." Hermione quickly composed herself and took a step away from me, shaking her head. "I shouldn't even be like this. We're making history, and all I can do is whine about it. What kind of person am I?"

"A normal one." Cracking a grin, Hermione hit my shoulder. "Oh, that's right, you aren't normal. You're the smartest witch at Hogwarts! No! You're the smartest witch in the world!"

"Don't you forget that!" Harry said happily from behind me. I spin around and see him walking forward, his arms full of sticks. Ron was trailing behind him, a sour look on his face. At least he had bigger logs in his arms. "Did you guys miss us?"

"Nope," Hermione said, shaking her head. She pointed to a spot on the grass where the boys could place the wood before walking into the tent to grab a match. 

Harry and Ron threw their piles of wood onto the grass, and Ron stalked toward the tent. He didn't go inside, though. "Ron, are you alright?" I asked him, taking a couple of steps toward him. 

He plopped down in the grass, snapping, "Of course I'm alright."

"Okay," I said, throwing my arms up into the air. I glanced over at Harry and he shrugs. Before I could say anything else to Ron, Hermione walked out of the tent, a couple of matches in her hands. "FInd everything okay?"

"Yeah." She quickly lit a match and threw it into the sticks. I spotted a couple of rocks near the edge of the barrier, so I grabbed them and encircled the wood so that the fire wouldn't get out of control. Hermione sat down in front of the fire, stretching her arms out. "Ron, Harry, Y/N, come join me."

"Yes, ma'am," I said, plopping down next to her. Harry and Ron sat down on either side of us, with Ron to my left and Hermione to my right. I nudged Ron with a grin, saying, "Why don't you take off the locket and enjoy tonight?"

"What is there to enjoy?" He shook his head, his red hair falling into his eyes. He looked so adorable, but I couldn't let my feelings for him get in the way of his bad mood. "We were sent on a bloody impossible quest to find Horcruxes that I'm not even sure actually exist."

"Well, we know that the locket exists because it's around your neck."

"Y/N," he snapped, turning to face me, "don't you think I know that? But what about the rest of the Horcruxes? What if they don't exist?"

"I'm sure they do," I said, shifting uncomfortably away from him. I crossed my arms over my chest, cocking an eyebrow. "If they weren't real, then why is Voldemort still after Harry? Isn't his soul attached to these Horcruxes?" Ron nodded begrudgingly. "Okay, so they have to be real because Voldemort is still alive."

"Whatever." Ron jerked his head away, a furious look on his face. He was starting to annoy me, which was hard for me to do because I was practically in love with him. I hit his shoulder and he growled, saying, "Y/N, stop it."

"Just - let me take the locket off," I said, turning away from Harry and Hermione. I knew they would make fun of me for saying that, but I knew Ron wouldn't take the locket off by himself. I reached out toward his neck, but he jumped away from me. "Ronald Weasley, do as I say."

"I don't have to," he said, scowling. "You aren't the boss of me."

"I may not be the boss of you, but you can still listen to me." Scooting forward, I hurriedly grabbed at the locket. My fingers didn't even grasp the chain as Ron wrapped his hands around my wrists. His touch burned against my skin, but the fire behind his eyes scared me more. "Ron, let go of me." His grip tightened and the dark look in his blue eyes sent chills down my spine. 

"Ron," Hermione said, a warning in her voice, "let her go."

Ron stared down at me for a second longer before releasing my wrists. He quickly stood up and walked toward the edge of the campsite. "Where are you going?" Harry asked, jumping up. He stopped behind Ron and grabbed at his coat. "Ron!"

"What?" Ron spun around, ripping his coat out of Harry's grip. He threw his hands up into the air, nearly hitting Harry. "I just don't feel like I belong in this group." For the first time that night, I saw tears glistening in his eyes. "You three are always whispering about something and whenever I ask about it, you blow me off. I'm done." And with that, he spun on his heel and ran out of the barriers. 

"We're always whispering about him," I whispered, dropping my head into my hands. Hermione placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Do you think he'll come back?"

"I haven't a clue," she said sadly. I lifted my head from my hands, sucking in a deep breath. "Ron will be okay. He just needs to cool down."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Nodding, I slowly stood up. Harry looked in my direction, a frown on his face. "You aren't going to leave, are you?"

"No." I pointed to the tent, shrugging tiredly. They both nodded, so I turn around and head into the tent. The small outside fooled me the first time I had seen it, but now it felt like home. 

Crawling into my bed, I pulled the covers up to my chin. My fuzzy blanket I had brought from home brushed against my skin, drawing the tears out of my eyes. Why did Ron have to wear that bloody locket? We all knew that the locket was terrible and that it magnified the sad feelings, so why did he have to wear it? Curse his stubborn pride! 

He must've felt the bad feelings about the three of us for a while. Putting the locket on, though, really blew them up and made Ron depressed. It wasn't my fault that Harry and Hermione kept teasing me about my crush on him. It was my fault from keeping my crush a secret from Ron. I didn't want him to know because I didn't want our friendship to be ruined if he didn't feel the same way I did. 

Throughout the night, I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep. My mind was racing and so was my heart. I was worried about Ron. He had been gone all night, which wasn't a good sign. That meant that he was really leaving us. 

Soft morning light filtered in through the opening in the tent, but a shout cut through beautiful morning. I shot out of bed, almost colliding into Hermione. "What was that?" she cried, her bushy hair stick up in tufts. 

"It sounded like Harry," I said, frowning. "I thought he was in bed."

"He never came to bed."

Hermione and I hurried outside. Harry was pacing back and forth by the edge of the barriers, his wand in his hand. "What do you want?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. 

"I heard Ron." He glanced up at us before pointing out into the woods. "I stayed up all night, listening to the sounds of the forest. Early this morning, I heard someone speaking and I knew it was Ron."

"It could have been anyone else," Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "Why did you think it was Ron?"

"The person kept cursing." 

"Yeah, that sounds like him," I said, hope blossoming in the pit of my stomach. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go find him!"

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but I was already running toward the tent to grab my wand. Searching through my bag, I produced my wand from the depths of my things and ran back outside. Harry was already outside of the barrier, and I intended to follow him. That didn't go as planned since Hermione gripped onto my arm, stopping me from chasing after Harry. "What if it isn't Ron out there?" she whispered, her dark eyes wide. "We've been followed before, Y/N."

"If we go out there, we can see who it is."

"How will we find the campsite again?" She cocked an eyebrow, making me sigh. "You all never think of these things."

"So sorry that we aren't as smart as you." Biting my tongue, I shrugged. "You can stay here if you like. I'm going to find Ron." I tugged my arm away from her before running out into the forest. I could hear her exasperated sigh behind me, but it didn't stop me from going after Ron and Harry. 

The wind had picked up overnight, whipping my blonde hair into my face. Quickly pulling it back, I slid to a stop. I could see Harry and Ron a few meters ahead, but there were other people lurking in the shadows. I wanted to scream at them, to tell them that there were people there, but something stopped me from doing that. A hand covered my mouth and an arm wrapped around my body, dragging me backwards. A scream hit the air, and I knew that it was Hermione that did it. I could see the boys spin around and Ron's eyes locked on me, his mouth falling open. 

And then everything went dark. 

There was a dull ache spreading throughout my body, but the worst of it was on the top of my head. I couldn't hardly lift my head nor my limbs. My eyelids were so heavy, but I forced myself to open them. The room I was in was dark, through there was a window across the room. No light was shining through and there were faint outlines of iron bars around the window. 

A movement in the corner of the room caught my eye. There was someone else in the room with me. The person stepped forward and my eyes adjusted to the darkness to see that it was a female. Her hair was curly and wild, a nest of hair on top of her head. She wore dark clothes and had a wicked smile on her face, her dark wand clutched in her claws. "It's so good to see you awake," she said, her voice carrying across the otherwise silent room. "I thought that I'd have to wake you up myself."

"Who are you?" I asked, slowly standing up. At that moment, I realized that my hands were tied behind my back and my wand was nowhere to be found. Great. "Where am I?"

"Now, now," she said, clucking her tongue, "why should I give away my secrets?" She cackled, the high pitched noise hurting my ears. "You need to give me your secrets on the Horcruxes, though, and if you don't, serious things will happen to you."

"Where are my friends?" I asked instead of focusing on her scary words. 

"They cannot get you. They are locked up in the dungeon." Her dark eyes focused on my face, a crazy grin replacing the regular smile. "So, where are the Horcruxes that you and your little team of crazies?"

"I'm not telling you." She flicked her wand at me and I grit my teeth as pain rushed through my veins. I didn't want to give her the satisfaction of hurting me. "You're just a crazy old lady. Who do you work for anyway?"

Before she could answer, someone burst into the room. Light fell in, and I had to shut my eyes because it was so bright. The person yelled a spell and my eyes popped open. I knew that voice. It was Ron. 

"Y/N!" he said, running over toward me. I collapsed into his arms, taking a deep breath. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," I said, closing my eyes as he held me. "Are you okay?"

"Never better." He let out a chuckle, making me smile. "Harry and Hermione are creating a diversion for us. We're escaping from Malfoy Manor."

"That's where we are?" I pulled away from his embrace, giving him a grin. "No wonder Draco is a bad dude. It's so dark here that he wouldn't be able to see his goodness. Well, if he has any goodness in him."

Ron laughed and then led me out of the room. I saw Harry and Hermione standing at the other end of the corridor, their wands drawn out. We ran toward them, our footfalls silent. A small figure stepped out from behind Harry, and I realized that it was Dobby. Ron and I joined the group of three, and Harry got ready to apparate us out of the manor. 

The lady who was in the room with me sauntered out, holding a dagger in her hand. She quickly threw it as we apparated. My body was ripped away from the room and the first thing I heard was the sound of gently crashing waves. The landscape around us changed into a beach, with a house in the background. My knees buckled below me as my eyesight went dark. I must've suffered more injuries than I thought I did. 

There was soft chattering around me as I came to. I was on something soft, and there was a blanket wrapped around me. Taking a deep breath, I slowly open my eyes. The sunlight hurt my eyes, but I kept them open. I didn't want to faint again. There was someone sitting in a chair at the end of my bed. The familiar red hair told me that it was Ron. I quietly said his name and he jumped awake, a grin on his face. "Y/N!" he said, moving to the side of the bed. 

"Hey, Ron," I said, sitting up. My body ached, but I brushed the pain aside. "I didn't mean to pass out again."

"I figured." Ron's smile was huge as he stared down at me. "I am so glad you are okay."

"Me too." My mind went back to the fight we had, so I said, "Are you alright, though? Because last night, you said something about how you're always left out."

Ron's smile dropped and he gently sat down on the edge of the bed. "I was feeling a little left out, but that locket really blew things out of proportion." He shrugged and then glanced at me. "Why were you three so secretive, though?"

My heart sped up as I thought about the reason. I had to tell him. There was no point in keeping him in the dark for much longer. "Harry and Hermione were teasing me about you," I said, shifting my gaze away from him. "I told them how I have this huge crush on you and they wouldn't stop making fun of me."

"You like me?"

"How could I not?" I asked, plopping back down on the bed. "You're really attractive, smart, kind, sweet . . . I could go on and on about the things I like about you." Risking a glance at him, I was surprised to see a goofy little grin on his face. "This isn't funny, Ronald."

"No, it's not," he said, taking my hand in his. "Because I like you back."

I was shocked. He had never expressed feelings for me before. "For real?"

"For real." Ron laughed, making my nerves ease up. "Do you remember the couple of days we spent together at my house last year? Harry and Hermione hadn't made it to my house yet, but you were there. That's when I started liking you, Y/N."

"Oh, well, I've liked you for much longer than that." Ron pulled me into a sitting position and I threw my arms around him. "This is the best day of my life!" He chuckled in my ear, so I pulled back and pressed my lips against his. 

This was what I had been dreaming of since first year. Having him hold me like this and like me back is the wildest thing in the world, but it was the best thing in the world. Even with this war going on, I knew we would be okay because we would be together with our friends.