The Strongest Signal of All

Ron came home that day, refreshed. It had been a busy day but thanks to the changes he had implemented for the admission process of dark wizards being brought into custody, things moved faster and less mistakes were made. He had caught several errors made in previous documents and the Ministry praised him. He had been given the position as Head of the Department for Prisoner Admission. It came with a nice salary increase and very generous benefits.



He brought home a bottle of wine to celebrate, anxious to tell Pansy. It felt good to go home to her at the end of the day and it lightened his heart. It also made him feel sad that she only ended up at his house because of what happened. It angered him that if this never happened, if his sister never went to visit, she would still be married and living with Brames, unaware of her invisible cage.



She was at his house now, safe and sound and Brames would never touch her again. Fates, cruel though it was, had brought her back to him, and he wanted her to stay with him. He smiled to himself as he came out of the floo into his front room. Pansy was sitting in her favorite armchair with a Quibbler in her hands.



“What’s that?” He asked.



“Luna sent a copy so we could see it before it was released tomorrow.” She set the magazine aside and smiled. “What’s that?” She asked, gesturing to the bottle he was holding.



Ron filled her in on his day and together they poured the wine. “That’s fabulous Ron!” She was happy for his success and she could easily see his pride.



Ron quickly scanned the paper. “Luna is a wonder.” He took his usual place on the loveseat. Pansy settled next to him.



“You like what she wrote?”



“Yes. She did brilliantly. It goes out tomorrow morning?” Pansy nodded.



“Ron, I wanted to talk with you about something.” She was speaking quietly and even though she was sitting beside him, she was keeping her distance from him slightly.



“What did you want to talk to me about?” He asked.



“I was thinking about what Neville said. About us practicing contact and I wanted to ask you for something.” She was nervous, he could tell. She always played with her nails when she was nervous.



“You can ask for anything and I will try and give it to you.” She nodded. “What did you want?”



“I was wondering….. if we might be able…….. to sleep together tonight.” She whispered.



“Are you ready for that?” He asked. He was showing calmness but inside his heart was racing. He didn’t expect her to ask for something like that.



“Well, I didn’t…..I mean I was……I’ve made a mess of it.” She said, rubbing her eyes.



“Well, start again and tell me exactly what you want.” He said, shifting slightly turning in her direction.



Pansy turned and faced him completely. “I wondered if we might sleep in the same bed. I understand if you would rather not. I know you must be expecting….”



“I’m expecting nothing.” He said cutting her off. Pansy looked at him. “I won’t expect sex. If you want to try sleeping in the same bed, we can. I’ll leave my door open and you can leave anytime you wish. I won’t ask any questions or try and persuade you to stay.” Pansy smiled at him.



“Your very understanding about this.” She said.



“Pansy, to be honest, I’ve wanted you back since you left, but having you here as been a joy and being able to sleep next to you, even if I can’t touch you or hold you is more then I had hoped for and I’m not going to miss the chance.”



“Ron, I need to tell you something.” He remained silent so she could continue. “I never stopped loving you. I didn’t leave because I stopped loving you, I left because…..”



“Pansy don’t.” He wanted to take her hand but didn’t want to frighten her. “I know why you felt you needed to leave. I understand that. Let’s not go into the past. You said you never stopped loving me and I am so happy to hear that.”



“You are?”



“Yes. I am. Pansy, I’m not asking outright, I just want to know how you feel, but have you thought about getting married again? Do you think it might work this time around?” She looked aside slightly. “You don’t have to answer if it’s too soon to think about that.” She looked up into his eyes. Those blue eyes that she once lost herself in.



“I’ll be honest Ron, yes, it would be a dream of mine to marry again, but I…….” He stopped her.



“Please don’t say you don’t deserve it.” Ron spoke with pain in his eyes.



“I have too much to deal with right now.” She whispered.



“That’s fine. We’ll talk about us later then.” He smiled, relieved at her admission. “Take all the time you need Pansy, I wont rush you.”



The evening passed on as any other. They shared a meal together and while Pansy read the rest of the Quibbler, Ron went through some parchments he had brought home with him. “I’m going to go to bed now.” She said quietly.



“Alright, I’ll put these away and be there in a bit.” She nodded and walked to the back. Ron knew she would feel better changing alone so he waited until he heard her move down the hall from her room to his.



He tried not to look at her as he entered his room. She was laying in his bed on her side, the duvet pulled up under her bare arm. He saw the black strap on her shoulder. He went to his dresser and pulled out his dark blue pajamas.



While her back was turned, he quickly changed his clothes. He was sure she could hear the belt and jeans coming off. He tried to move fast and not scare her. Gathering his clothes he dropped them in a hamper. He made sure to lights in the hallway were on and approached the bed. “Do you want the lights on?” He asked.



“No, I know you can’t sleep with them on.” She said not moving. He waved his wand and eliminated the lights in the room. The hallway gave a nice illumination without being bright.



Ron raised the blanket on his side. “When did you start wearing tops to sleep?” She asked.



“I thought it might be more comfortable for you.” He said. He had always slept bare-chested, sometimes naked. She knew that from being married to him, she had assumed that hadn’t changed and apparently it hadn’t. He was concerned about her.



She said nothing, just settled into her pillow as Ron climbed in and relaxed on his side. When they slept together they usually spooned. Pansy had always loved his arm around her waist, sometimes holding her breast as she slept.



She was facing him tonight and Ron could see the nerves. “The door is open Pansy. If you feel scared for any reason, you can get up and go to your room. I don’t want you to think you have to stay here all night just because you asked.” She nodded.



“Ron?” When he lifted his eyebrows, she continued. “Would you hold my hand?” She whispered. Ron let his hand fall close to her. He made sure his palm was up as she placed hers over it. He wanted her to remain in control, and secure.



For several moments they stayed this way, not moving, only blinking at each other. Pansy moved closer and slid her other hand under Ron’s, holding his hand in both of hers. Ron felt the joy he had when they were first married. She was reaching out to him.



He gave her hand a slight squeeze which she returned. Pansy felt her heart lighten. Ever since he heard of her arrest Ron had shown her that he was on her side. He would support her and take care of her and fight with her when she needed to. He never once told her she made a bad choice or that she had made mistakes. He never once made her feel bad. She was watching him intently and he wondered what thoughts were going through her head. His heart pounded as she gave into temptation and pulled his hand close, placing a kiss on the back of his hand.



He wanted to take her in his arms and make love to her, but he knew it might send her running from the room. She was gazing at him. “What are you thinking?’ He whispered.



“How much I’ve missed this.” She whispered back. Ron felt his heart melt. This was the Pansy he loved. She loved contact. It was one of the reasons the early part of their marriage was so troubled. She wanted to be touched and he had to spend long hours away.



She always managed to cuddle up against him in her sleep, always reaching out to him. She surprised him and herself even when she turned her back and slid up against him. Spooning up against Ron was something she had not done for a long.



Ron felt himself hardening. He pulled his pelvis back so she would feel his erection. “I felt it already Ron.” She said.



“I’m sorry, I just….” He stammered.



“It’s ok. I’m glad that you still feel that way about me.” She said, keeping still. Ron held her as she fell asleep. She was a fairy when she slept and he rose up on his elbow to look at her. He had dreamed of having her back in his bed again, but having her this close was playing havoc with his control.



He slipped out of bed and went to his bathroom. For the first in a long time, Ron wanked off like a Hogwart’s fifth year. He felt dirty climbing into bed with her but he fell asleep quickly.





The next morning, The Quibbler was released. When Pansy was released from custody, Ron had mail diverted to a owlry and picked up mail there. He was able to keep harassing letters away from her.



It was a benefit in this case as well. He asked the postmaster to screen his mail for jinxes and curses on all his mail. Ron then had the rest of the mail bundled for Pansy, she could toss then aside if she wanted.



Luna had likewise been bombarded with owls. She had them screened as well, which eliminated on about two percent of the letters. She then began going through the letters and sorted them into piles of supportive letters and those of a slanderous nature.



Pansy had a point in that printing both sides would make the Quibbler seems unbiased. Under her helm the paper had a reputation for fair opinions. She still planned to let Pansy see what was printed first.



She made arrangements to meet her for lunch and had a demo article for her to see.



“Wow, some of these are very opinionated.” Her eyes rose at both points of view.



“I wanted to print letters that came from intelligent writers, not just ranting and raving. There was a lot of letters with nothing but nonsense.” She handed Pansy a handful of letters. “Here’s the rest. I’ll send more if I get any. I also wanted to ask you if you wished to respond to letters with questions.”



“Were there enough letters like that?” Luna held up another stack. “Wow, do you think it would be a good idea.”



“I think it would make a great follow up.” Pansy agreed and with quill in hand Luna wrote her responses on the letters that would be printed in an ‘Ask Pansy’ style article that would run along the reaction article. Luna also mentioned that speaking out again would rile up the other reporters who were trying to speak to her. Pansy knew the blonde was secretly reveling in the joy of getting an exclusive that Rita Skeeter was no doubt dying for.



The article appeared in the Quibbler the next morning. Pansy answered the questions as candidly as she could. More then 80 percent of the letters that came in were supportive, saying they understood how trapped she was. Very few of the letters that came in were negative, coming from archaic women who believed she should have known what her husband had expected shouldn’t have angered him. They were allowed their opinion as everyone else was, but Pansy didn’t pay much attention. They weren’t in the house that day, she was. So focused instead on giving honest answers.



‘If she had a way out would she have taken it?’ Yes.



‘Why had she gone to her ex husbands home?’ He offered and she didn’t want to be alone in the home she was attacked in.



‘What did she do with the house and belongings that by law were now hers?’ She had sold them all and was using the money to live off. She was also donating a large sum to shelters around England that provided legal assistance and help to abused women.



‘Did she ever love James Brames and if not why marry him?’ She didn’t love him, she liked him and since he had lost his own wife if would have been convenient for both of them. It wasn’t a love match but they each kept the loneliness away., that was the reason they married.



‘Did she regret what she did?’ She wished she didn’t have to kill him to get away, but no she didn’t not regret defending herself.



‘Why did James forbid her contact with her former in laws?’ She was told her late husband that she was not part of the family anymore so she didn’t need to associate with them. That was the reason he gave her, if he had different reasons she didn’t know what they were.



‘What is she panning on doing now?’ She hadn’t thought about it, but she was always an avid drawer, maybe she would focus on that again. She was always a reader, and had thought of opening a trading store and used bookstore. There was nothing she enjoyed more then a good hunt for a hard to find book.



‘Is she going to reform her relationship with her ex-husband?’ That remained to be seen. Ron had admitted he would like to, so for now they are taking things as they unfolded. They will let fate play out as it will.