It was mentally exhausting; it felt as though Ron ran a hundred miles after the first private lesson with Professor Dumbledore that evening. He panted and sweated beads from his body even though he was standing in the middle of the headmaster's office. Learning Occlumency was a different experience from the way he learned spells and wards; there were no tricks or special way to learn the mind art; just pure focus and large amounts of willpower that he could muster.
There was no doubt someone like Dumbledore would be able to enter his mind easily and it was difficult (to say the least) to push someone out of his mind. He could understand why the mind wasn't very easy to sort; memories kept passing by, some being played out while others were like flashes. After what seemed to be an hour, it was over. "How do you feel, Mr. Weasley?" asked the older wizard as he sat back in his high chair.
"Like I was forced to do a hundred-mile run while watching someone meddling my belongings and I can't do anything about it." grunted Ron between deep breaths.
"It will be like that for the first couple of sessions, but you will be able to grasp it soon."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, professor." He muttered, sagging on the squishy chair.
"I do have faith in you, Mr. Weasley. You have shown great potential. I did hear you're one of the few students who is capable of throwing off the Imperius Curse. Both Legilimency and the Imperius Curse are similar albeit different. What is the same is how determined you are in pushing out attacks from your mind." said Dumbledore encouragingly.
Ron could only nod.
"I will let you know when the next lesson will be. You may rest now, Mr. Weasley." smiled the headmaster.
Ron bid the headmaster and left the room. As he got out of the spiralling staircase, he was surprised to see Ginny and, to his further bewilderment, Harry. His younger sister turned and her eyes widened upon seeing him. It was clear her cheeks were red.
"What are you doing here, Gin?" questioned Ron, glancing between her and the Boy-Who-Lived. He didn't see the raven-haired Gryffindor narrowing his eyes at him.
"I should be asking you the same," retorted back Ginny. "What got you to land in Dumbledore's office?"
Ron bit back as he considered Harry's presence. "I got in detention for hexing Malfoy since he was being a git as usual." He lied. Ginny didn't seem to question his answer and nodded. "And what are you doing here anyway?" With Potter on top of that.
"Ha-he and I are just talking about Quidditch," she said hastily. Seeing him raise his eyebrows, she added, "I was thinking about going for our House's Quidditch try-outs for reserve Chaser post."
Ron was surprised to hear this but then remembered his younger sister would become one of the best Chasers in England and eventually be part of Hollyhead Harpies, the only all-female Quidditch team in Wizarding Britain. "And I suppose you're asking Potter for some tips, then?" he asked carefully.
"Yes," she answered rather quickly which caught his attention.
"There's nothing suspicious with us talking about Quidditch," added Harry calmly.
She's usually a good liar, thought Ron. "Alright. I'll just wish you the best. I know you'll get in." He looked at the two again, his look lingering more on Harry, then walked off. I wonder what they're actually talking about. I don't see any reason for Potter to approach Gin since she's a year below. Then a thought entered his mind, causing to stop his tracks. Does he fancy her? It was impossible. He had heard the Boy-Who-Lived had set his sights on Susan Bones, the Hufflepuff in his year.
"Maybe I'm just overthinking," convinced the redhead to himself. Yeah, that must be it. Sighing to himself, he continued his walk toward the Slytherin dungeons.
Two days after the first private lesson, before Ron could even reach the Great Hall to have breakfast, Daphne suddenly pulled him aside and dragged him to the secret meeting room, much to his annoyance. "Can't it just wait until I had my fill?" he grumbled. He sat down on the sofa and crossed his arms while scowling at her as he felt his stomach rumbling in hunger.
Daphne rolled her eyes and said, "Mopsy." A low crack erupted and a House-elf appeared. "Could you please send us breakfast? We couldn't go to the Great Hall since we're too busy with schoolwork. Is that all right with you?" she asked sweetly.
"It is nothing to problem, Missus." Squeaked Mopsy the House-elf, her ears flapping as she shook her head vigorously. With another crack, she was gone.
"There's your issue with food." said the blonde Slytherin pointedly.
On cue, Theodore entered the room. "I'm astounded you managed to steer him away from breakfast." He remarked.
"Are you mocking me, Nott?" glared Ron at the dark teen.
"Depends on how you interpret my words, Weasley." replied Theodore coolly. "You haven't told us your lesson with Dumbledore. You went straight to bed without a single word. Then acted like some Inferius doing homework and what-not!"
"I was tired! Learning Occlumency is hard, let me tell you! Dumbledore made it sound so peachy but I sweated buckets." Ranted the redhead. He went on, describing the sensation and how it actually felt like when a Legilimens probed inside one's head. "Anyway, he said I did show potential but I doubt that." Then he remembered the discussion before the lesson. "By the way, he confirmed about your trail about that Gaunt family."
"Really? What did he say?" asked Daphne curiously.
Before Ron could say anything, a crack echoed and Mopsy returned with plates of food levitating above her tiny form. "Breakfast is being serve, Missus!" announced the House-elf.
His mouth watering at the sight of the food, Ron dived in and began stuffing his mouth.
"Honestly, Ronald." Said Daphne exasperatedly but sat down and took a plate, fork and knife. "Might as well eat. You too, Theodore."
"A second helping won't hurt, I guess." Shrugged Theodore as he took a plate as well.
As the three ate, Daphne continued with her questioning. "What did Dumbledore say about the Gaunt family?"
Ron shoved another strip of bacon in his mouth and chewed in content. Then he swallowed. "That the Gaunt family is the last pureblood family ever descended from Slytherin. You-Know-Who's related to the Gaunts through Merope Gaunt. And guess what I learned more about our favourite dark wizard?"
Both Daphne and Theodore shared a look before turning to Ron. "What?"
"Merope dosed this Muggle whom she was attracted to with love potion and had a child. That child is no other than –"
"You-Know-Who." confirmed Daphne, staring at him in bewilderment. "You're saying that the darkest wizard of all time since Grindelwald is a Halfblood?" she jerked her head to Theodore's direction and said, "Does your father even know about this piece of information?"
"I'm not even sure about that." muttered Theodore. "But one thing is certain."
"And what's that?" asked Ron.
"This piece of information can sway a lot of his supporters." Said Theodore pointedly. "Sure, the Dark lord is still descended from Slytherin, but the fact remains he is still a Halfblood. And no pureblood would even follow a Halfblood."
Ron smirked. "And that, we'll use it to our advantage." Something came to mind and he said, "I've always wondered about this, Nott. Why aren't you like Malfoy and his goons who follow the likes of You-Know-Who? You know a lot more dark spells than the rest of them lot and you don't even sprout those pureblood nonsense. And your father's a Death Eater."
"I wonder the same thing, Weasley." shrugged Theodore. "I can say that I have a more of an open mind. And among other reasons." He glanced over to Daphne who caught his gaze and smirked.
Ron furrowed his eyebrows as he saw the silent interaction between the two but shrugged. "Right. Anyway, that's all there is to discuss from last night." He piled his plate with food again and munched on.
"One of Ronald's top lists, food." Daphne sighed.
"Food is important."
As soon as all are done filling their stomachs, they left the room with Mopsy clearing up the table. All three went ahead to History of Magic classroom where nearly everyone was present. Ron took the seat at the backmost end, Daphne sat beside Tracy and Millicent, and Theodore settled in the middle with Hannah Abbott and Blaise. Binns, the resident ghost who taught the subject even after his passing, droned on about Goblin wars in his monotone voice which caused most of the students to become drowsy.
Ron half-listened, with his other attention on the things he had to accomplish. He glanced over to Susan Bones, who was diligently taking notes before nudging Hannah who was on the verge of dozing off. He knew as much that the Bones family was one who had taken a hard hit from the previous war; You-Know-Who and his devout followers had killed off a large portion from their family. Very few of them survived when he was vanquished.
He shuddered to think if his family would end up the same. No, it's not going to happen, thought Ron stubbornly.
Then he remembered Cedric's words. It was true that once a war broke out, all lives were affected. And it's already happening but it was silent and no one could determine what the other side was planning.
By the end of the lesson, Ron could only say that his actions were justified. That him hiding what he knew and his ability was for the greater good. He didn't want to be anyone's puppet.
The month of September had finally ended so quick and it was already October. Ron and the rest of the fifth year students have gotten used to the hectic school schedule they had, as well as the loads of homework they had to finish up in order to have a bit of semblance of leisure time. And as close as October would come, so did the first Hogsmeade weekend.
With the loaded schedule he and the rest of the fifth years were experiencing, a visit to the wizarding village was a treat. When the day had arrived, Ron was still inside the dormitory sleeping. He had woken up around ten minutes past eight in the morning as he felt his stomach rumble, signalling him to go down to have breakfast. As soon as he was dressed, he head up to the Great Hall. When he arrived, he had seen both Luna and Ginny eating together. He knew it was a long time since he got go spend time with them. "Morning you two." He greeted as he sat down by the Ravenclaw table. Some of the Ravenclaw students glanced over but didn't say a word. They knew it wasn't a good idea to argue against someone like Ron.
"We're feeling rather excited." replied Ginny with a grin. "Hogsmeade weekend, you see."
Ron feigned surprise and said, "Is it really? I wasn't informed!" his younger sister snorting at him, he turned to Luna and asked, "Are you going as well?"
"Hogsmeade is nice but Daddy says not to go near Madam Puddifoot's shop since it's heavily infested with Flirgles." She told them rather seriously. "They're related to Nargles and they usually target couples that causes their logic and common sense to vanish."
Both Ron and Ginny shared a look and dared not to snigger, so he said assuredly, "Well, we're not going there anyway and we'll do our best to steer clear away from that place."
"I suppose I can go," mused the eccentric Ravenclaw in her dreamy tone.
"Great, you can come with me and Demelza. We're going to meet up with the others." Said Ginny with enthusiasm.
"Oy how about me?" said Ron in mock-complaint.
"I dunno, I guess you can go there with Greengrass." Suggested Ginny slyly and Ron flushed.
"I don't even like her that way, Gin!" he hissed. "She's not someone I could ever like –"
"And what kind of girl you are looking for, huh?
At first thought, the first person that appeared was, to his shock, Hermione but he shook his head vehemently. "I'm not interested in dates or what at the moment. I have other things to do." He said forcefully as he stood up.
"Where are you going?" asked Luna.
"To the old snake table. Gin just lost me my appetite so I have to reclaim it by staying away from her," teased Ron and managed to slip out before Ginny could hit him with a piece of kipper at his face. "And you missed Little Gin-Bug –" a pancake flew at his face he decidedly caught it with his mouth, earning odd and amused looks from the onlookers. He munched on it until it was gone and smirked. "Better luck next time."
"Oh go back to your lair," huffed Ginny but grinned.
Ron mock-saluted her and sat down at the Slytherin table to eat. Once he was down, he walked outside to grounds with the rest of the students to the gates of Hogsmeade. He got through the inspection via Filch who kept muttering angrily about the students with Mrs. Norris by his side and made his way first to Honeydukes. As he perused through the displays being offered, he found a particular sweet he knew was the limited edition Honeydukes deluxe chocolate with rich cream inside. The moment he grabbed it, someone else did as well. Feeling as though someone invaded his privacy, he said roughly, "Mate, I got this first – bloody hell! Viktor K-!"
Before he could even complete it, the wizard grabbed him and covered his mouth. "It's vest if you don't shout vy name, Veesly." The familiar accent of the famous Seeker whispered to Ron.
Upon seeing him nod, Viktor let him go. Ron looked around and realised everyone inside the store was staring at them. "Er – Victorino, my Spanish penpal whom I've just met today! Ha-ha you surprised me!" he said loudly to divert the attention to himself. "How are you?" Realising he won't speak because his voice might give him away, he continued hastily, "Oh right, you don't speak much English, do you? Como esta?" He was thankful that he remembered some basic Spanish phrases when he was younger since his mother forced him and his siblings to learn a second language. "Let's go somewhere less crowded." He suggested lowly.
The two left the store without buying anything and went somewhere with lesser people. Arriving at the corner of Hog's Head, a dingy-looking bar at the end of the wizarding town, Ron faced Viktor. "You surprised me back there. What are you doing here anyway?"
"The captain gave us a free day," he answered while lowering his hood. He didn't change much from the last time he had seen him: his hair was a few inches longer and he had grown a short stubble which was obviously maintained. "How are you?" he asked in return.
"I'm doing alright, I guess." Shrugged Ron but eyed on the other wizard he was with. "I don't suppose you're here because of Mione, right? Ha, I knew it!"
"She doesn't know I'm here," explained the famous seeker. "I vonted to surprise her."
"Well, I can help you look for her so you two can have some quality time – but not in that sense, okay?"
"Are you sure?"
"Of course I am," he said offhandedly. "We're –" he stopped, unsure what to call on this relationship.
"Friends," confirmed Viktor with a gruff smile. "I do see you as one, Ron."
Hearing this caused his heart to swell. He had another friend. A famous one at that. "I'm honoured you see me that way." He said honestly. "Anyway, let's not waste any more time, shall we?"
And the two began on their search for the bushy haired Gryffindor. After nearly 15 minutes, Ron was the first to glimpse on the bright brunette. "Just wait here, Vikky," he told him abruptly as he walked toward her. It was no surprise she was with her two best friends Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom so it would be futile to argue with them on having to drag Hermione. He'd have to drag those two along. "Oy Mione!" he called out.
Hermione jumped and looked around before seeing him. "Ron, what is it?" she asked. Both Harry and Neville looked curious as the redhead Slytherin approached them.
"Actually, I need you to come with me but considering you're with your best lot, they'll have to come along." He said promptly, earning odd looks.
"Why me?" she asked quizzically.
"And why did you imply that we also have come along?" asked Neville with a furrowed look.
"We're wasting time," said Ron impatiently and grabbed Hermione by the hand. "Come on." The Golden Trio had no choice but to follow him and after a moment, he finally got them to their destination.
"Why are we -?" she saw a hooded wizard standing nearby. Harry and Neville instinctively took out their wands. Then Hermione gasped. "Viktor?"
Harry stared at her then to the hooded wizard. "You mean Krum?" As Viktor revealed himself, he lowered his wand. "Why didn't you just tell us?" he questioned Ron.
"If I told earlier, there's a chance someone else would overhear us." snorted Ron. "Anyway, you two just give them some time."
"And why is that?" asked Neville, moving his gaze away from the couple.
"She didn't really tell you two?" he shook his head. "Well, it's obvious. And I don't need to explain myself. I'm going back to Honeydukes. See you sometime, Viktor." Without waiting for a response, he left the four and walked back to the famous Sweets shop. As he got back to check on the deluxe chocolates, he knew that the panging feeling he felt when he saw Hermione's expression as she looked at Krum lingers.
For the next couple of days, Ron focused himself harder on his studies and the event at Hogsmeade seemed to have had vanished from his mind. He helped Daphne and Theodore with the research whenever he had some time to spare and although there were no leads yet, they had gathered a lot of information that seemed useful. As they reached mid of October, the atmosphere inside the castle became more pronounced. There was one reason for that and it was the Quidditch season. The first match was already scheduled on the first Saturday of November and it was no other than Gryffindor against Slytherin.
Because of that very reason, the Quidditch pitch was always booked by both Slytherin and Gryffindor teams and the Heads Snape and McGonagall would make sure they had the most time to prepare. Ron honestly didn't like the Quidditch season only because he wasn't able to fly around the pitch leisurely. But the bets were only the upside since for the past four years he garnered more than two-hundred Galleons which was more than he could ever imagine. It was something that kept his spirits up for the moment and it was one of the few things he was good at, besides chess.
One day after Muggle Studies class, Ron, out of whim, decided to go straight to the pitch and play for a short moment before either team would come. Even after more than a month, he was much stressed from all the workload no matter how much he was used to it. He knew hexing targets or students wouldn't help but Quidditch would.
Borrowing one of the school brooms (which in his opinion, needed much replacement) and a couple of Quaffles, he kicked off the ground and flew up in the air. He used his wand and enchanted the large balls which so it would to go through the hoops. Ron hastily tucked back his wand and zoomed as fast as he could to block the Quaffles before it could pass him by. Since he was young, whenever he and his brothers played Quidditch at the Burrow, he always played as Keeper. He could say he was used to it and it was the only thing he knew. He did this for a couple of times until he was out of breath. Before he returned to the ground, a Quaffle zoomed at his direction and he grabbed just on time before he could even be smacked in the face.
"Bloody hell! Who did -?" looking around, he finally saw the culprit who turned out to be Adrian Pucey, an upperclassman who was part of the Slytherin Quidditch team as Chaser. As he descended back, Pucey did as well.
Ron went to grab his wand, watching cautiously at the older student. "Leave in five minutes, Weasel. The team's about to practice." sneered Pucey.
"I was about to, but you're in the way." growled Ron. He took out his wand (to which Pucey instinctively take out his) and casted for the Quaffles and the broom to go back to their respective storages. "There." Without anything more to add, he stalked off and Pucey watched him go.
That git, said Ron mentally. "And now I'm pissed."
"Why is it so?"
He looked back and saw Luna alone with her feet bare. This scowled him further. "Don't tell me someone took your shoes again?"
"I'm not sure. It could be the Snathidler's doing again," said the eccentric Ravenclaw in her usual dreamy tone. "How are you, Ron? You've been rather busy since school started. And we only got to talk momentarily few days ago."
Ron blinked at her question. It was true. He rarely got to spend time with her and his siblings due to schoolwork. "I...just got caught up, is all. You know, OWL year." He told her. And other things you don't need to know. "Anyway, let's look for your shoes. They could be hanging up in the chandelier like last time."
"It'll show up," said Luna dreamily as if it was the normal and the two began to walk in search of her missing shoes. "You just got back from practicing?" she inquired, surprising him more.
"And how did you know that?" he asked her.
"It was rather obvious. You wouldn't be sweating yourself if it's not a morning exercise." She answered simply.
Ron could only stare at her more. How is she knowing all about this? Don't tell me she knows about me being a Seer as well? The very idea of another person knowing his secret bothered him but he thought of her friend and if she did know, she wasn't inclined on letting him know. I'm overthinking again.
They continued on their search with Ron listening to her about the creatures she had yet to encounter (or he had not yet seen) until they arrived in front of the Prefect's bathroom in which Cedric just got out.
They had asked if he had seen a pair and he confirmed it, going back inside to retrieve it. "I'm not even surprised," muttered Ron angrily, watching Luna wear it again.
Cedric looked grim. "It's been happening often, isn't it?"
"The bullying? Yeah, too often to count." snorted the redhead. "Prefects are involved too, it seems."
"I'll do something about this, Ron." promised Cedric. "It isn't right nor fair."
"You're too nice, Diggory." said Luna suddenly. "Besides Ron and Ginny, you're the only one who's nice to me as well even without reason."
This caused the Headboy to stare at her. Ron chuckled. "She's like that. And it's her way to say you're kind-hearted. Too kind I must say." He told the Headboy nonchalantly.
"I can get angry, you know." pointed out Cedric with the corner of his lips curving upward to a small grin. "I'll escort you back to your common room."
"Oh you don't need to do that." said Luna dreamily.
"It's my responsibility as Headboy to watch out for my fellow schoolmates." He said firmly. "And besides, I didn't get to talk with Cho today." Ron snorted at this and Cedric shook his head at him. "Let's go. See you later Ron."
"Just make sure she doesn't get hurt." reminded Ron.
He returned to the Slytherin dungeons and was glad neither Malfoy and his goons were present. Of course he knew he was at the Quidditch pitch practicing. From what he had heard, his sidekicks Crabbe and Goyle got the posts as Beaters. "They can't even distinguish between a Bludger and his teammates." He sneered at the thought. He went inside the boys' dormitory to get his unfinished homework in Muggle Studies about the uses of "Electricity" and its uses to make Muggle lives easier. He was thankful he had Hermione as a friend since she had the best books explaining these things. And that she was Muggleborn herself. "Better make the best of my time." He muttered.
As he wrote down on the parchment, he had realised it had been a long time since he got a vision out from someone. It was due to the heavy schoolwork that he had neglected his other duty to fish out more information about the war. He had OWLs, Occlumency lessons, and research about You-Know-Who's Horcruxes to keep his hands full.
But who am I going to get information? Choosing his source was difficult enough and he didn't need any nonsense from any random wizard or witch.
By the time he was done, he checked the time from the grandfather clock inside and noted it was already time for dinner. Ron stretched his arms and gave out a loud yawn. "Being productive is a drag." He mused. He left the dormitory and found Daphne standing near the entrance. "You waiting for someone?"
She nodded. "I just thought of having a bit of quality time with Tori."
"Ah." He acknowledged. "Don't mind me. I'll just head straight to the Great Hall." Before he could get out, Daphne grabbed his hand and his sights began to blur.
"He's hiding something from us." Insisted Daphne to Theodore. There were alone in an empty corridor. "Ever since that incident."
"I know." Said Theodore. "But we both know forcing him to tell us won't do any of us good."
"What are we going to do, then? Just wait?" she said with a frown. "He might do something rash before we could stop him."
Theodore watched her, as if contemplating. He placed a hand on her shoulder to ease her tension and worry. "Yes. We just wait. Because it's the best thing we can do for him."
Ron blinked as the vision faded. Daphne watched him closely, knowing fully well what it was. "That...was surprising." Was all he could say to her.
"Is it important? Is it related to you-know-what?" she whispered.
He shook his head. "I didn't understand much. You...are going to be worried about someone. That's all I can make out of it." He told her.
Before she could say anything, her younger sister arrived. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Daphne." She glanced over to Ron and smiled. "Hello Ron. Are you heading for dinner as well?"
"Oh yeah," he nodded hastily. "Too hungry."
The three of them walked together to the Great Hall. Both the Greengrass sisters talked about their happenings while Ron let his mind drift off to figure out the vision he just had. He was surprised to say the least that both Daphne and Theodore actually looked concerned. But then again, who was it they were talking about? Is it about me? Somehow, he felt numb at the conclusion. It seemed unlikely they would feel that way for someone like him. A poor, blood-traitor.
When they have arrived, Ron separated himself and sat alone so no one could ever bother him. It could be anyone, speculated the redhead. Yes, that's probably it. Letting out a sigh, he picked up a fork and knife and began to fill his plate with food.
Three days later, he received another note from Dumbledore for their next lesson. He was surprised how soon it was but he didn't mind one bit. As he set off to his destination, he had overheard something that piqued his interest.
"...to do? We don't have a replacement." muttered Montague, the House's Quidditch captain.
"The question is, how did he get antlers in the first place?" supplied Warrington, earning low guffaws from the others, particularly from Crabbe and Goyle.
"Shut it, all of you." snarled Montague at the lot. "We'll find one. Just do what I tell you to do. We're going to make sure we'll beat 'em Gryffindors until they have nothing left to brag. That Quidditch cup is ours." The other team members murmured in agreement.
Ron knew it was time to leave before any of them would notice him.
He slipped out from the entrance and walked all the way to the second floor where the headmaster's office was located. He gave out the password "Butterbeer pops" and got in. "Good evening, professor." He greeted.
"Good evening, Mr. Weasley." Greeted back the older wizard. "I do apologise for having you to come here. Unfortunately, I will be unavailable in the next coming weeks so I had to set our next lesson at an earlier date. How is your meditation coming along?"
Ron grimaced. He had done meditation every evening before going to sleep then clearing up his mind, however it was proving to be difficult just like the last time he was first introduced with the mind art. He had a lot of things to think about it was hard to keep his mind clear. "I'm just following what I had to do for this." He said. "Had a lot to think of these days."
"Ah yes, a busy mind can hinder peacefulness." understood Dumbledore. "A Pensieve does come in handy in these times."
"Must be nice to have one," mused Ron.
"Well then, let's start our lesson shall we?" Both stood in the middle of the room, facing each other. He let Ron relax and give him time to prepare. Raising his wand to Ron's temple, he said, "On the count of three – two – one – Legilimens."
Ron felt his surroundings being pulled in; numerous memories came flashing to his eyes. When he was six years old when Bill was teaching him how to ride a broom, At three years old when his favourite teddy bear turned into a huge spider, At eleven years old as he was being sorted, and many more. Focus, Ron, focus, willed the redhead like a chant. He tried to locate Dumbledore in his mind while keeping his memories apart. After what seemed a long time, he could make out the outline of the older wizard. He was surprised he made progress on the second lesson but reminded himself on what he needed to do. How to push him out? It was something he hadn't considered. He raised his right hand like he had a wand and instinctively used the Knock-back jinx.
Before the spell could reach Dumbledore, his surroundings returned to normal. "Well done, Mr. Weasley. You've made huge progress. Although I suggest you push me out without using your wand."
Ron looked down to his right hand where his wand was being held. He flushed. "Er, it was an accident. Sorry, sir."
Dumbledore waved his hand. "It is no problem. Progress is still progress. You just have to force me out using your mind. Let's try again." Ron hastily straightened up and closed his eyes. This time, he didn't give him a breather. "Legilimens."
The redhead Slytherin didn't have time to prepare himself and as before, helpless while his memories came in flashes. He was currently witnessing the event in second year wherein he got bumped into Harry and Neville moments after he was told of Ginny's kidnapping before the scene dissolved and was replaced with another memory of cornering Peter Pettigrew with Theodore and Daphne. No, no, he can't see this, panicked Ron. Come on, focus and push him out. He concentrated hard before he could locate the headmaster once more and the thought of forcing him out with just his mind was frustrating to say the least. After a while, he knew Dumbledore purposely withdrew.
"It was quite interesting to see you three work together, Mr. Weasley." remarked Dumbledore, referring to his interactions with Daphne and Theodore.
"I...don't know how to stop it," breathed Ron as he slowly sat down to rest. "I'm not even sure if I can master Occlumency." He muttered the last few words but the headmaster caught it.
"Do not be too hard on yourself. You have, as I said earlier, shown great progress. In fact, I do believe you have what it takes to master Occlumency." responded the older wizard kindly. "You just need not to overthink of it. Once you understood my words, it'll come much easier to you."
"You don't say things directly, do you sir?" said Ron in an amused tone. "If you don't mind me asking, are you also going to teach Potter Occlumency?"
Dumbledore had a look that he didn't quite understand. "He will, when the need arises. At the moment, protecting your mind is a must before anyone can get through it." He said genuinely, and Ron could sense the urgency of it.
Is he not telling me something?
Before he could even think about it, the lesson continued. Somehow, it was longer than the first one and by the end of it he didn't manage to push Dumbledore out but the older wizard told him he was getting there. How close he wasn't sure but his reassurance kept his spirits up at least. As he returned to the Slytherin dungeons, he saw a pair that caught his attention: Luna and no other than Harry Potter himself.
First Ginny and now Luna? What the bloody hell is going on? Ron didn't understand why the raven-haired Gryffindor would suddenly be talking to either of them. He was certain Luna wasn't a fan of Quidditch nor she was interested in joining her House's team. There was absolutely no reason for him to become suspicious of Harry because for the past few years both of them had been civil, even cordial. Even so, Ron had the urge of protectiveness over those he cared of and marched his way over. "What's going on?" he questioned Harry as he arrived at the scene and standing before the eccentric Ravenclaw. "Luna?" he asked concernedly to his friend.
"There's nothing going on here, Weasley, I'm just helping her out." explained Harry but Ron didn't believe him.
"And what were you helping her out with anyway?" he probed doubtfully. "I doubt she needed help if it's schoolwork – she's a Ravenclaw if you haven't noticed."
"He was interested about Crumpled-Horned Snorkacks," piped up Luna with her usual misty tone. "He helped me pick up some things I accidentally dropped and he asked me about it." She sounded quite ecstatic that someone else was interested in the creatures she had yet to encounter and prove its existence.
"Is that all?" confirmed Ron, glancing at Harry, still doubtful.
"Yes Ron," she nodded. "You're surrounded with a huge infestation of Wrackspurts again."
He blinked at her statement and sighed. "Alright, I'll stop." He turned to Harry and grunted, "Thanks."
"No problem. It's my duty as Prefect so yeah." He replied but he suddenly frowned and clutched his forehead as if he was in pain.
"Are you alright -?"
Harry jerked his head and hissed angrily, "It's nothing, Weasley. Just had an headache."
Ron raised his eyebrows at the sudden change of attitude. "...right. We'll go now." Without anything else to add, he steered Luna away from the Gryffindor and both went to the Great Hall. "Are you alright?" he asked, still concerned.
"I'm fine," said Luna firmly. "He did help me, and was kind like Diggory. Although," she paused and Ron looked at her inquisitively, "before you arrived, he looked like he wanted to ask something else." This got the redhead's attention. "But I suppose it's related to Crumpled-Horned Snorkacks. They're quite beautiful creatures, Daddy says they're hard to find but –"
Ron didn't listen to her anyone as he was focused on her assessment on Harry. He doubted anyone, not even Harry Potter, would be interested in learning about something like Crumpled-Horned Snorkacks. There was something amiss and he needed to find out. He massaged his temples. "Another one to fill up my time," he grumbled. "Say Luna, let's go to the Kitchens instead. We can ask the House-elves to give you some pudding." He suggested to his blonde quirky friend.
"That sounds nice," said Luna dreamily and the two set off down to the Kitchens where Ron stuffed himself with all he was offered while Luna quietly savoured her pudding.
When he arrived in front of the entrance of the Slytherin dungeons from his little excursion from the Kitchens, he was suddenly cornered by no other than Montague, Warrington, and Pucey. He quickly got to his wand due to his reflexes and as soon as he pointed it directly under Montague's chin, the other Slytherin said, "I'm not here to fight, Weasley."
Ron snorted derisively. "Like I'm going to believe in that."
"You see us holding our wands?" sneered Montague. "I wouldn't have approached you even if someone offered me a thousand Galleons but there are exemptions."
He quickly glanced at the three with distrust and hated to admit that the Slytherin Captain was right; they weren't holding their wands. But he still didn't trust them. "Alright. Let's say that you three did want to talk to me for something: What do you want?" he said sarcastically, his wand still raised.
"You'll be Keeper in this coming match against Gryffindor."
There was silence. Then Ron laughed. "Me? Be part of your team as Keeper? Are you mad?"
Warrington looked like he was about to say something but Montague shot him a hard look. "I told you, I wouldn't have approached you in the first place but there weren't any choices left. And I hate losing against anyone, especially against Gryffindor." Said Montague tersely.
"Your team kept on losing against them ever since Potter got in on their team. Except on that time when he was stuck at the Hospital for the Quidditch final then you lot won." pointed out Ron in his usual blunt tone.
"Why you –" Warrington made to grab his wand but Ron pointed his wand under his chin in retaliation.
"Cassius, drop it." growled Montague in his authoritative tone. "I'm not joking, Weasley. Adrian saw you practicing one time and he said you got good reflexes. I doubt about what he saw but I'm not going to get picky when the match's around the corner."
Ron shot an annoyed look at the other Slytherin who just stared back at him coolly. "No. I won't join. You can look for someone else. And I don't want to deal with you or Malfoy and his two troll-like goons." He sneered. Before he could get inside, he heard Montague saying, "Four days, Weasley. Think about it." He didn't dare look back as he knew that they had hit a mark.
Ron didn't say a single word about what happened to anyone, not even to Luna or his siblings. He could tell that the twins would tell him off and ignore it and Ginny would say a similar, adding that it would be like betraying them since they were on the Gryffindor team. And yet, his heart and mind yearned for it. Of course, even without the confirmation it wasn't like he would replace Miles Bletchley, the Slytherin who was the House's Keeper. He was just going to be temporary and nothing more. And this didn't bother him at the very least. But he didn't want to succumb to it so he forced himself to concentrate on the classes and homework and it worked. But only for while he could. It was driving Ron mad.
"Forget it," said Ron to himself. "You can't betray them like that." He didn't want to cause any kind of conflict with any of them. And he didn't want to be branded as a hypocrite. It took him a long time to establish himself as a Slytherin who hated his own House. And so for he kept it to himself and unconsciously avoided everyone.
He was thankful, rather, that none of the three didn't speak a word as well so it was like the talk never happened. He didn't have the time to deal with the rumours and ill whispers that might occur. Especially the likes of Draco Malfoy and his followers.
Because of his concentration on his homework, Ron had managed to finish it all. On Friday, he had gone to visit Damon. As he played with his familiar, he knew he had a few hours left before the day ended. Then he wouldn't have to deal with Montague and the rest. And he was fine with it. Or so he thought. Lying under the same old oak tree near the Black Lake, he let out a sigh. "Just one hour left, then it's gone." He muttered, his eyes closed while petting Damon on the head lazily.
"What are you muttering to yourself about?" questioned Daphne who stood just above him with an inquisitive expression on her face. "Something bothering you?"
Ron opened his eyes and said defiantly, "No, you're mad if you heard me." Sitting up, he asked, "What is it do you want?"
"Forcing me to leave so soon? How rude. I was about to tell you something that will interest you but alright. If you insist," she said coolly before turning away as she flicked her long blonde hair.
"I didn't say to leave me, woman," scowled Ron, stopping her from leaving. "Go on, just tell me." Seeing her eyebrow rise, he added with exasperation, "Please."
"You really need too work on your manners, Ronald." She tutted. Daphne sat down beside him and Damon barked enthusiastically, approaching her and laying down by her side. "Anyway, about the Gaunt family, my sources found their home. It looks pretty dreadful let me you – the point is, their old home is somehow close to the cemetery where You-Know-Who and his followers were caught by the Aurors last year. Adding to that, they told me the house itself is heavily guarded; a lot of dark and defensive wards and spells and curses are cast upon that home. Obviously something important is in it so we can safely assume it's there." She informed the redhead in a low voice.
Ron nodded. "That – that's great to hear." Now the only problem was to remove those enchantments and retrieve the Horcrux without rising suspicion from You-Know-Who. "Thanks for telling me this. We just only need to figure out how to get it from the inside."
"Are you going to tell this to Dumbledore?"
Ron stopped but nodded once more. "He's the only who can destroy it with the best means." He told her. "So, is there anything else you want to tell me about?"
She looked up at him, as if she were say something he might set him off. But she said, "That's all. Just let Theodore and I know what you two will discuss." For once, she gave him a smile (not a smirk nor the usual playful ones whenever she'd annoy him) and stood up. But before she left, Daphne said something that caught his attention.
"I can leave you now and you can mope to yourself until the sun has set down," she said, looking back at him. "Or you can let out and I can just listen to you."
Ron stared at her. "What are you talking about?" But he knew what she was talking about.
"Do I have to point it out or would you best be honest with yourself?" she suggested, finally facing him. "Something's bothering you."
"There's nothing –"
"You've been throwing yourself with schoolwork for three days, count today and it's four." She said sharply. "And you are avoiding Theodore and I, even your siblings and that Lovegood friend of yours."
Ron clamped his mouth as he heard this from her. "I don't need to tell you," he said angrily, his temper rising. "You're too nosy –"
"And you're going to explode if you keep it to yourself longer. I know you, Ronald." retorted Daphne, coming up close to the redhead with a blazing look. "And here I am lending an ear to you as a good gesture, but I guess I am sorely mistaken." She turned away and began walking back to the castle.
He watched then without thinking, he blurted out, "They wanted me to be Keeper just for one game." Daphne stopped but didn't say a word. "Today's the last day I'll give them my answer."
"And you don't want to be part of the Quidditch team?" she inquired, facing him again.
He let out a frustrated noise. "Of course I want to! It's one of my dreams ever since I got here but it's not like I'll be able to get in since I'm in Slytherin! Both Fred and George are part of the Gryffindor's team and Ginny – she's a reserved Chaser! I can't just join and betray them like that! And with that ferret and his two trolls there as part of the team, there's no other reason why I should accept it!" he said angrily.
"And why are you still hung up about it if you're firm on your decision?" she asked simply.
"Because –" he paused, wanting to keep himself from saying it, but his heart and mind wouldn't let it. "despite all those cons, I'd accept it." He said finally. "I love Quidditch."
Daphne gave him a patronising look. "Well, there's your answer, isn't it?" Sighing, she prodded him on the chest and said matter-of-factly, "Since first year, you've been putting others first before yourself and that's admirable. But only to an extent. Sometimes, you have to do things for your own. It's fine to think for yourself and it's not wrong. Being selfless all the time will lose your sense of self. That's how I see it anyway."
The two looked at each other as the sun began to vanish behind the mountains, casting its vermilion glow against the dark sky.
"I-I should go." said Ron.
"I suppose you should." agreed Daphne.
Without another word, Ron sprinted off. As he ran and his heart beating fast, he thought to himself, Screw everything. I'm going to be selfish for once.
On the day of the match, the stadium filled with students from all Houses. Some students had wondered who replaced Slytherin team's Miles Bletchley and it was all hushed up, causing even the least interested to attend the match.
Up on the stands, Lee Jordan was given a piece of parchment by Professor McGonagall who sat beside him. "Hello ladies and gents for this year's Quidditch season here at Hogwarts! As expected, the first match is as explosive as usual – Gryffindor" the students under the House of Lions screamed as they cheered for their team, including the other students from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, "- versus Slytherin!" the House of Salazar let out a tremendous noise before being drowned out with boos by the others, obviously showing unpopularity.
"Let's make some noise to the Gryffindor team! Johnson, Bell, Spinnet, Weasley, Weasley, Potter, and McLaggen!" the Gryffindor team zoomed out into the air with their brooms, circling around the pitch. Fred and George Weasley were seen waving and blowing kisses at the crowd as they passed by.
"And to the Slytherin team! Montague, Warrington, Pucey, Crabbe, Goyle, Malfoy, and replacing Bletchley is no other than – bloody hell!" Lee Jordan yelped, earning a hard look from his Head of House and curious looks from the crowd.
"Mr. Jordan! Watch your words!" the Transfiguration professor said scoldingly.
"Sorry, Professor!" the Gryffindor commentator glanced uneasily at the twins and said in an apologetic tone, "And the replacement Keeper for the Slytherin team is Ronald Weasley! Sorry Fred, George."
The cheers were subdued for a moment, and gasps and whispers were replaced instead as Ron flew out in the air from below, wearing Keeper robes and gear as he rode on a Nimbus 2001 he had been borrowed from Bletchley himself. He kept his head high even if facing opposite of him were his brothers' outraged expressions.
He knew this would happen but right now, he didn't care for one single bit. All he wanted was to play Quidditch.
And here's the latest!
I think it's high time that Ron starts thinking for himself and not place others first all the time. He's not Harry Potter haha. Speaking of Harry, he has a lot things going on his mind – Voldemort, the dream to the DoM, and spying on Ron Weasley. And the mood swings haha.
Anyway, I know this is shameless advertising but I have decided to create my own Facebook page. I will post the link on my profile page and it's up to you if you are interested to check it out!
Reviews are welcome as always! Thank you!
