AN: I am SOOO sorry that this is so late...but yeah I barely had time off of work and when I did I didn't have the computer, but here is chapter two, I hope you like it, and thanks to all of my reviewers.
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, nor any rights to Harry Potter.
The trio sat in the Great Hall, finishing up their homework. No one had spoken of Ron's lashing out or his upcoming detention with Malfoy.
In fact Ron had barely said a word since before the fight. He didn't want to talk about how he'd lost so many points for the house before the year had started to earn such points, or that he'd let Malfoy get under his skin so badly he lashed out, or about the fact that his first detention was under the supervision of Professor Snape.
Ron was just finishing up his Charms Essay when Professor McGonagall came up behind him. "Mr. Weasley, your parents are waiting for you in Professor Dumbledore's office." Ron paled almost immediately. "Mr. Weasley?"
"Yes Professor, I'm coming." The redhead stood trembling and looked at his friends before he actually left. They looked at him with the utmost sympathy for him.
Harry and Hermione watched as their friend slowly left the Great Hall without looking back.
"You know he's in trouble if his parents came all the way to the school instead of just sending another Howler." Hermione said gravely.
All Harry could do was nod and watch after the empty doorway that his best friend had just abandoned for what seemed doom for him.
Ron walked the same path that he had the night before, only this time he wasn't angry nor going to just receive punishment, tonight he felt he'd be lucky just to stay long enough to carry out his punishment. His pace slowed as he remembered the last time he'd gotten in trouble with his parents, his mother had told him the next time he stepped out of line they were bringing him home, and here they were in Hogwarts asking for him.
He'd reached the statue up to Dumbledore's, the stairs were already raised and waiting for him to tread up them. The climb seemed to take forever tonight. It was almost as if they'd added a few dozen here and there. When he reached the top he heard some raised voices and realized they weren't his parents, but Lucius Malfoy's, and a woman's voice he'd never heard before, but only thought it could be Draco's mother's.
He'd let out a sight of relief when he was hit from behind by something, or more correctly, someone. "What are you relieved about, Weasel? Just because my father is louder than yours doesn't mean that you're off the hook." The blonde passed him in the hall to the Headmaster's.
Both boys entered the room side by side to see their parents furious and looking on the verge of killing. Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy stood to one side boring a hole through Ron, accusing him of provoking their son into this trouble, without saying a word. On the other side Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were thinking the same of Draco.
It was silent for a good minute before anyone said anything, and the first to say something wasn't the one anyone wanted saying anything at that moment.
"Well, it seems the boys have made their way up here, now might I ask as to why they were both summoned? For all any of you told me, was that you wanted to see your son, well there they are, but do mind that I would let any harm come to them, in my presence or not…" His attention turned to Lucius, who just gave him the infamous Malfoy smile and looked back at his son.
"All I wish to know is who started the fight…as I'm sure so is everyone else. And the only people who know that true answer would be them." Narcissa Malfoy said quietly from behind her husband, she'd seemed to calm down more from earlier.
"Malfoy."
"Weasley."
Both boys looked at each other frustrated. "Malfoy, you were the one throwing around insults, so in all of it, you started it."
"You were the one that threw the first punch though, Weasel."
"And you wonder why your son has no friends, Lucius? He's lucky more people don't deck him for the way he treats people…but I guess that's because he's just like his father."
"Excuse me, Arthur? You are just upset that your son is violent, and he's the one that in truth started the fight."
"I'm talking about the name calling, Malfoy."
"He only calls him by his name."
"You know our last name is not Weasel. Are you ever going to have respect for others?"
"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Weasley, this is not an argument between yourselves, but your children, though your actions between one another prove that the blame cannot be held upon your children completely, though I would hope they'd have more sense at times." Dumbledore said looking at Ron, who flushed a pale pink.
"I will not stand for my son being forced to spend time with that child." The older blonde retorted violently. He turned and faced Ron, who immediately paled again. "Nor will I allow you to take away Draco's Hogsmeade privileges."
"They may have those back if they prove themselves worthy of that privilege. It is just that Lucius, a privilege, and they were bad and got it taken away, like anything else."
"It may do the children some good, if they were to spend time with someone not like themselves, it shows them different people do exist and shouldn't just be shunned because they are different than themselves." Mrs. Weasley said confidently.
"Of course you would think such a thing." Mrs. Malfoy replied. "Though I don't agree with your sentiment, I do think it best to allow Dumbledore's punishment, for he has always known what is best for the children." Lucius stared at his wife hard in disbelief. "Allow it Lucius, and let's just get out of here before you end up getting into a childish fight much like the children."
Ron couldn't believe that the woman that thought, in a sense, rationally was the mother of the blonde beside him. He raised an eyebrow to her actions as she pulled her husband to the door.
"This is not over; you have not heard the end of my side of this…" Narcissa finally got her husband all the way out the door and his words trailed, as he began fussing at her for her actions.
Dumbledore then turned his attention the Weasleys, and made notion for their final words. Mrs. Weasley turned and faced her son. "Ronald, do behave yourself, if it weren't for the knowledge that you were provoked you would be finding yourself in our living room and staying there, locked away until you were 17." Ron blushed a vivid red that matched his hair uncannily.
Mrs. Weasley began pulling her husband out the door much in the same manner as the woman before her. She gave her son a kiss on the head which he quickly brushed her off for, then they left, leaving the boys to face Dumbledore again.
"As I said, I do not blame you for the two of you hating one another, for as anyone can see your fathers have a rivalry that you'll never live up to no matter how old you get. Though do take caution as you are in your detentions, I hear of any kind of confrontation between the two of you and you will be out of the school." He said before waving them off.
Without a word of argument the boys left. Walking down the stairs, Ron decided he'd say what he'd been thinking during the whole fight of their parents. "Do you really think that the only reason why we hate one another is because our fathers do?" The blonde paused on the last step.
"I think at this moment, I'd hate you even if our parents didn't." Then he disappeared around the corner towards his common room.
The other boy rolled his eyes and shrugged it off. He walked back towards his common room knowing that study hall was over and his friends would be back in the common room waiting for dinner.
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Draco walked into the Slytherin Common Room and collapsed on the big leather couch. No one was in the room; he assumed they were all in their rooms preparing for dinner, but in all honesty he didn't really care either way. He just wanted to be alone, and think about the madness that had just unfolded in front of his eyes moments before.
After the fight upstairs between his father and Ron's he'd realized just how much alike they were to their fathers. Draco felt slightly light-headed in the thought that he was so much like his father, for he never wanted to think himself as menacing, or as conniving as his father. He knew he was both, but he didn't think he was as much, until both Dumbledore and Ron had pointed it out.
Did they really hate one another because their fathers did, well yes of course, but Draco just felt that there was more than that to it. Yes, he was raised to believe that the Weasleys were traitors to the Wizarding World, and that they were unworthy of his friendship, but he felt as if there was something more that made him pick on Ron more than he probably should.
But before Draco began to think about it too much or find answers to his questions, Pansy walked in and told him it was time for dinner and they should be leaving soon or they'd have to sit at bad parts of the table. Draco obliged and followed the dark-haired girl out of the common room and down to the Great Hall.
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Meanwhile Ron had found himself in a very empty Gryffindor Common Room. He'd had thought everyone would be here, but there was no one. Not wanting to be alone at the moment Ron turned and left to go and find someone…anyone he could talk to.
After wandering around the corridors for a few minutes he saw Harry and Hermione sitting outside the Great Hall. They both looked up and saw him at the same time. Both were just happy to see he was still in Hogwarts. Ron smiled as he saw them relieve themselves of heavy breaths.
"Ron, we are so happy you are still here."
"Yeah, we were beginning to slightly worry that your parents had taken you home with them."
Ron just laughed. "I was worried about that, but no, in fact my father and Draco's father began to get really heated with one another before both mothers took them away. It was rather interesting, because I've never seen Lucius Malfoy loose himself like he did."
"Wow, I would've paid to see Mr. Malfoy unwound."
"Harry, that's not funny." Hermione was already backing into her motherly mode. "He's dangerous when he's himself, do you really think he's not more dangerous when he's backed into a corner?"
"Sometimes I wonder about you Hermione." Was the only response she got, which frustrated her so much she walked in for dinner without the boys.
"So, are you ready for you first detention with Malfoy yet?" It was the first mention of the detention sentence. Ron looked over at his best friend.
"Never in a million years will I be ready to be on my own in a room with Malfoy and Snape…" Ron caught a flicker of a smile on the passing blonde as he finished his sentence. "He has the upper hand; I'll never have the upper hand, because there's not a teacher that'll take sides like Snape."
"Well I'm wishing you luck now."
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8 o'clock chimed as Ron stared at the dungeon door not wanting to go in and face an inevitably horrid detention. But he figured he should probably enter before the last chime or face Snape telling him he was already late.
The door swung open to reveal a young blonde sitting far to the right and an older man standing in front of a chalkboard staring at the entrant.
"Take a seat, Mr. Weasley." Ron walked towards the left, but was stopped before reaching a desk. "As much as I don't want my classroom destroyed, I've been told by Professor Dumbledore that you two must sit next to one another…so, Mr. Weasley, take your seat." Snape pointed at the seat next to the blonde. Ron look absolutely mortified and Draco's hand immediately shot into the air. "No protest Mr. Malfoy."
Ron dragged himself over to the empty seat next to his rival, the boy that had gotten them into this situation. He noticed Draco's eyes were colder than ever as he took his seat.
"Now the two of you should have homework to do, for I assigned it, I will be in my office preparing for tomorrow, if I hear the slightest sound of a quarrel, I'll be back. As I said boys, I don't wish for my classroom to be destroyed, so behave or both of you will be out of here."
Ron noticed that Snape actually wasn't giving Draco any kind of special treatment in his speech. He figured Snape was probably so upset at Draco's performance, because it looked bad upon him.
The older man walked out. For a moment neither boy moved; then the blonde turned to the other. "You do realize that this is your fault, right?"
"How do you figure that, Malfoy?"
"It's not my fault that you have a temper that you can't keep under control is all."
"Oh, so you insulting me every five seconds has nothing to do with it, right? You're completely clean."
The blonde just shrugged. "You said that, not me."
"Malfoy."
"Shut up, Weasel. If you raise your voice at me, he'll be back and then where will we be? I'll tell you, on a train home."
Ron stared at the other boy in sheer hatred. "Malfoy, one day this will all come back to you, and you will have a horrible life with a horrid wife and no love between the two of you and nothing good to show off for everything you've ever done, for everyone won't be as afraid of you as they are your father. Needless to say, you have nothing on your father."
Draco stared at the redhead half in hatred and the other half in amazement, then without warning smacked the other boy from behind. Ron looked at him in utter shock and was about to retaliate when the older man walked back out. Both boys froze and looked at him.
Snape stared at them hard, and looked as if trying to read them and see if anything had happened he should know about. "Mr. Malfoy, keep your hands to yourself please." Then he left again.
Ron wanted to just pick up his stuff and leave, he was so angry at the older man; then he turned to the other boy. "You're never going to get into trouble, no matter what you do, are you?"
"I'm never going to get into trouble, Weasley? What the bloody hell do you call this?"
"You touched me, you should be out of here, but no, since we're in oh lovely Snape's you won't get into anything—"
"Shut up." Draco clasped his hand over the other's mouth. "You're raising your voice."
Draco removed his hand. "What's it matter to you, if I get in trouble, I'll be gone." The blonde stared thoughtfully at this comment, but couldn't come up with a response. For he knew it was true that, he wouldn't get in trouble in Snape's classroom, no matter what he'd done before, but Ron would, and yet he still stopped the redhead every time from getting to loud and getting kicked out.
Ron just rolled his eyes at the other's silence and took out his potions book and began doing the mound of homework the older man had assigned just a few hours before.
Neither boy spoke to one another for the rest of the detention, though every now and then they'd find themselves giving the other one a glance or a stare.
Finally Snape returned to the room and released both boys, who greatly gathered their things and left without another look back.
AN: Whoot...well another chapter down and a slow progression into feelings...but I hoped you liked it, and I'll try and update sooner than this one took.
