8Okay, let's just hope this is better than my "Just a Boggart" disaster... (Don't even bother reading it to see what I'm talking about.)
Disclaimer: Disclaimer? Why do I need a disclaimer? Harry Potter is mine! J. K. Rowling is a lying fool, she stole the whole idea from me:crickets chirping: ...And if you believed a word of that, I suggest you get some help. Fast.
Hermione descended slowly down the steps, rubbing her eyes. She hadn't gotten much sleep lately, considering- Well, she didn't really want to think about that.
She immediately noticed that there was someone sitting in the chair closest to the fire. Ron. She walked over and looked at him. His eyes seemed lifeless. He didn't even look up at her. He just sat there staring at the fire.
"Ron?" she said quietly, taking his hand. He pulled it away, and finally brought his eyes to meet hers. She almost had to look away... She didn't know anyone could look so miserable. (A/N: Do you realize how much I hate myself for writing that? Must- kill- stupid- sappiness- Did I even spell that right? Oh... yeah, I did. Alright, fine, back to the story.)
Ron finally spoke.
"He just wanted to be normal."
Hermione narrowed her eyes. "What?"
"He just wanted to be normal! To be like everybody else! And he never got that..." He closed his eyes. "If he had to die, why couldn't he just die happy?"
"But I did," came a voice from behind him.
Ron jumped in his skin. He knew that voice, but... Terrified of what he was about to see, he stood up and turned around.
It was Harry.
"W-what-" He couldn't believe his eyes. "Harry? You're alive?"
Harry shook his head.
"No. This isn't real. Well-" He stopped, trying to find the right words. "It is and it isn't. You're dreaming, Ron."
"So... You're not real?" Ron said in a small voice.
Harry shook his head again.
"When you die, if you decide to go on, you're allowed to settle one thing in your life first. I never told you this, but when I went back to Privet Drive after our fifth year, I talked to Sirius. He told me that his death wasn't my fault. And he thanked me for all that I'd done for him. I didn't understand it at the time, but now I do... I need to talk to you, Ron."
Ron's heart sank.
"Harry, I'm so sorry- it was all my fault- if I'd only-"
Harry held up a silencing hand.
"Did you hear a word I just said? I'm here to thank you, you prat!"
"What for?"
Harry laughed sadly.
"You sound just like I did." He took a deep breath. "I want to thank you for all you've done for me. Mate, the only thing I regret about dying is that I never told you this when I was alive;you, your family, Hermione- you guys were my life. You made my life worth living. Okay, so I had it rough sometimes-" Ron snorted. Harry rolled his eyes. "All right, a lot of times- but I never would have been able to survive that if I didn't have you. I think I might have actually killed myself at some point if everyone didn't keep telling me that I was still loved.
"And Ron- I want you to live your life. I want you to be happy. I died weeks ago, and you're still cutting yourself off from the rest of the world. Please, don't waste your time brooding about it like I did with Sirius."
Ron just stood there, stunned. After a few seconds of silence, he stuttered, "I-is that all?" He felt his ears go red. How could he say something so stupid?
Harry, however, laughed again.
"Just one more thing. Could you tell the others about this? Because I don't want anyone mourning over me. I just thought you needed to hear it the most."
"I bet they won't believe me," Ron muttered. "I mean, they'll probably think I'm having grief-induced hallucinations or something."
"They won't." Ron looked at him skeptically. "Just trust me on this one." He took another deep breath.
"Good-bye, Ron."
"What?" Ron hadn't even thought about the prospect of Harry leaving again. "No! I- you can't- Harry-" He gulped. "I can't stand the idea of never seeing you again!"
Harry smiled.
"One more bit of advise: I think you need to have a talk with Luna Lovegood."
He disappeared.
"Ron! Ron, are you all right?"
He opened his eyes. He was still in his favorite chair by the fire, as he had been when he had fallen asleep. Hermione and Ginny were crouched next to him, looking extremely worried.
"Are you all right?" Hermione said again. "You were thrashing around in your sleep-" A look of comprehension dawned on her face, and her eyes filled with tears. "You were dreaming about Harry again, weren't you?" she whispered.
Ron smiled weakly.
"Come on. I have something to tell you guys..."
Wow, that was fun to write! Well, not fun exactly, but... Oh, you know what I mean. If you're wondering how Harry died, or why Ron was blaming himself, well, that's really up to you. I want you to be able to fill in the blanks yourself- I always like to do that. As always, please review, and constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated. And so... badly imitates Porky Pig B-duh, b-duh, b-duh, that's all, folks!