Why Did You Leave? | A Romione Story

A Vague Explanation...

Minutes later, Ron appeared inside the tent.

"Hermione. If you would just let me ex-"

"Okay. Fine, Ronald. But I don't want to hear your soppy story about balls of light and my voice again. I don't care how or why you came back. I want to know exactly why you ever thought it nessecary to leave in the first place."

He started at me sheepishly. His ears went as red as his hair.

"Ever since I got splinched, I've felt like a dead weight. Like extra baggage. Because I'm here, you can't apparate. We had to walk every mile. There were no shortcuts. I was holding everything back. I know I was."

This is exactly what I expected. This story.

"If you felt like you were slowing Harry and I down, then why would you ask me to come with you when you left?"

That left him confused. He's known me since I was 11, and he still underestimates me. I know why he left already, but I'll only forgive him if he can admit it.

"Fine. I left because I didn't want to get in your way."

"You're being very vague, Ronald. Why did you leave when I nee- when we needed you most?"

"You didn't need me." His face dropped and he looked like he was going to cry. As angry as I was, I felt guilty. Maybe I shouldn't have been so harsh. He sat down on the bed, his head in his hands. I sat beside him.

There was a long silence. Then I found a way that I thought might get him to admit it.

"What did you see, Ron? When you destroyed the horcrux. What did it show you?"

He looked up at me. He had been crying. He sniffed, cleared his throat then spoke.

"I saw...I saw the reason I left, the thing that made me regret leaving and the thing that made me hesitate towards coming back"

"And that is..."

"Oh COME ON HERMIONE! Don't make me say it out loud. You know what it is. Now Harry knows too. Please don't make me say it. I don't want to talk about it"

He went back to crying into his palms. My anger was starting to wear off, I could never stay mad at him for long.
But he still hadn't admitted it.

It had been a long night. I'll talk to him in the morning.