The spell seemed simple enough. But like all things that appear simple at first glance, it was difficult to execute. The complicated wand work would have been tough enough to overcome for any witch or wizard. The intricate combination of a swish, a small twirl, and a flick, ended by a sharp jab in the direction of the wandholders choosing were simple in theory, but required an amount of dexterity Ron was unaccustomed to. The spell itself was also a rather tongue-twisting (for Ron at least) splancus thintríficus.
But the most difficult part of the spell was the mental state one had to be in to execute it correctly. It required complete control of your emotions. If you were too excited, the lightening would be uncontrollably powerful and burn everything around the practitioner. Too depressed, and there was no lightening. Not to mention the deadly consequences if you couldn't be focused. Lightening emanating from a wand could fork and arc uncontrollably, just like in nature, if the user wasn't focused. The potential to kill was always present, harm was almost guaranteed when using lightening. To be sure, it could be controlled, in both strength and direction, but it required complete control. One thought out of line, one mental slip up, and it wasn't possible to control the lightening.
And yet here, Ron of all people was, trying to master lightening. Then again all the aurors had to learn the spell, as per orders from Harry. Oddly enough he had gotten the idea from muggles, and their "tazers". Harry had thought out the spells particulars, but Hermione had been the one to determine the mental state necessary and to perform it properly. The aurors had to learn it as a new way to subdue suspects. But that required the absolute control of the lightening. Too powerful and its use amounted to murder. To weak and it was useless. And it had to hit them in the first place to be useful, requiring that the lightening bolt didn't fork or arc in odd directions.
So for what felt like the hundredth time that night, Ron closed his eyes, sighed deeply, opened his eyes and said, "splancus thintríficus."
The stone basement was aglow with pure white light for a flash of a second. It seared Ron's eyes. Blinded, Ron blinked furiously, trying to regain his sight. Once it came back he squinted at the far wall of the basement. He had painted a large X to aim at. Burn marks scarred the wall, but none were within a meter of the X. Another miss, and judging by the three smoking spots, the bolt had splintered on its way to the wall. "Bloody hell!" he thought, "How long is this going to take!?"
Spellwork had always been one of Ron's weak points. He didn't have the intelligence like Hermione to work through spells so quickly. Harry was powerful and brave, but he was no slouch himself when it came to learning new spells. Ron was well…normal. Bravery, loyalty, and strength of will were great qualities to have as an auror, but weren't very helpful when it cam to spellwork. Ron had barely passed that part of the auror exam, and that was after months of practice and study. How was he possibly going to learn the lightening spell in a week?
"Splancus thintríficus," Ron said. A puff of smoke came out of his wand.
"Argh, SPLANCUS THINTRÍFICUS," he roared. The flash came, as bright as ever, and seared his vision. A quick glance at the wall after a few seconds revealed the results. A stone was missing. The lightening had struck a blow so hard that the stone had been blasted into the dirt around the house.
It was all Ron could do to keep himself from throwing his wand at the wall and calling it quits. Groaning, Ron looked at his watch. It read 12:47. He groaned loudly at this new revelation of the time. He had work in the morning. "Once more, just once more, then it's over for the night," he thought.
Bringing he wand to bear, he breathed deeply, trying to clear his head. Then after a short pause, he spoke. ""Splancus thintríficus," he said.
After his vision cleared, he again peered at the far wall. But there was no stone smoking there. Scanning the room he found where the lightening had struck. Smoke was rising from a stone almost directly to his right. "How is that even possible?" he thought, incredulously.
"What would Hermione do in this situation?" Ron thought. Well first, she would go to the library and find a book on lightening spells. But as far as Ron knew, Harry and Hermione had been the ones to invent the spell, so there wasn't any literature on it. Not that Ron would have actually read the book. Maybe skimmed it, but that was beside the point. Harry would show Ron how to do it, but wouldn't be able to explain it well. Bravery and willpower, which were Harry and Ron's strong suits, weren't very helpful for this spell. Then how in merlin's beard was Ron supposed to figure out how to do this spell properly?
Control. That was the key to this spell. Ron had to be in complete control for this spell to work. He needed to feel in control for it to work. "Well since when have I ever been in control?" Ron thought. For most of his life, Ron had adapted to the situations thrust upon him. He had never been the Harry type to take command of a situation. And it never felt like he had ever really controlled something his entire life. As a child, his mother had been the controlling one. At Hogwarts it always felt like dangerous situations came crashing down around him and his friends, always controlled by other people. And after the war Ron had gotten a job as an auror because, well, he felt like that was all he was good at. Plus Hermione was always there to control him. "Ah," the voice in his head said," you were in control, once. Not that long ago even"
"Yes that." He thought, "my darkest moment. When I left Harry…and Hermione." He had felt in control then. He had felt like he was determining his own destiny when he had left. He regretted it, but looking back, he had been in control for that moment in time. "But I can't use that thought. I won't use that thought." Ron said to himself angrily. But what else was there? What other option did he have.
The voice of Albus Dumbledore then appeared in his mind and whispered, "What about when you came back?"
When he came back?
"Yes. That's it!" Ron thought. His inner thought of Dumbledore had brought to mind what he had forgotten. He had controlled the fact that he came back. In a war not of his own making, in a situation he regretted but had brought upon himself, here was a moment of positive control. He had come back under his own volition.
Closing his eyes, and clearing his mind of all the frustration from that night and the remembered regret of leaving, he thought hard to remember his feeling when he had decided to come back. After a few seconds he felt it. That same sense of purpose, of providence and fate, came to him. He felt warmth throughout his body.
Opening his eyes, he stood silently for several seconds. Then he uttered firmly and purposefully, "splancus thintríficus."
Before his vision cleared, he knew. The lightening had stayed straight and true. It struck dead center on the X. As a broad grin swept upon Ron's face, he heard enthusiastic clapping coming from the stairwell. Turning, he saw Hermione, smiling just as broadly as him.