Warning: Minor suggestive adult themes
Ron groaned in dismay as he wandered back into his flat. The student apartment he shared with six others from his year group was in constant disarray. He almost tripped over undisposed bin bags as he walked through the door, and something sticky attached itself to the base of his shoe as he made his way down the hall and into the kitchen.
Deliberately ignoring the state of things there too, he went straight to the cupboard for a glass. His pounding headache demanded attention more urgently than the washing up, but finding no sufficiently clean vessel he was forced to forage through the ever-growing pile of dishes stacked by the sink before he could take a drink.
With one hand to his head, nursing his hang-over, Ron stumbled unsteadily the rest of the way down the hall to his bedroom.
This was now how he had intended the start of term to go.
Loud music blared out of the speakers on either side of the stage, and Ron bounced eagerly just at the edge of the crowd. Term had kicked off with a blast, and the haunts that he and his fellow classmates had often frequented before the summer break were once again alive with bustling bodies. The music dropped a steady beat and the crowd rolled with it.
Beside him his girlfriend swayed her hips sensuously, and Ron didn't miss the way she looked at him through the flashing disco lighting. He wasn't ready to get out of here yet, but he couldn't deny the semi that rose at the sight of her either. Grabbing her he pulled her to him, and letting the music guide them they swayed to the booming of the bass.
Ron rolled over with a groan. Lavender retched beside him, and he tried not to think of whether or not she'd managed to make it to the side of the bed as he swallowed his own rising nausea.
Unconsciously, Ron fingered the ends of the cloth that bound his hands. He'd been told to wait, and Harry had advised him beforehand, rather ambiguously, not to fight it too much. The initiation was an important rite of passage when it came to college fraternity, and he knew he wouldn't be moving into the flat without it - but that didn't help with the suspense.
He heard mock-worthy giggles around him, and what he suspected was the shuffling of feet as they arranged whatever test or surprise it was they had in mind for him. Then, after a few moments of silence during which he braced himself (thankfully) something exploded over him – wet, and cold, and… beery. Around him chanting chorused up, and he accepted his fate valiantly,
"Drink, drink, drink, drink, drink!"
It wasn't the Burrow, but the beer quickly made up for that. Ron had a good feeling about this year.
Written for: the 'Game of Life' Challenge. Prompts: Initiate, dishes and Ron/Lavender.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
CC cover image (entitled 'DSC01104') courtesy of John Corey Terveer on Flickr.
A/N: What happened here!? I have no idea where this came from. I think I hate it a bit, what a bleak and grimey ficlet. So you know, these scenes are not in chronological order. Didn't think it was so bad? Hated it as much as I do? Let me know! :) GG x