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One Step at a Time
A Knight Shining Golden Red
He was in way over his head.
Ron wasn't sure how everyone was so certain he was destined to be the knight because right now he didn't feel like he should be in charge of anything. He shouldn't be commanding wizards and witches over twice his age, his professors, and especially not his parents into battle.
He was crazy thinking he could do this. Everyone else was even more crazy for thinking he could.
His insides were rolling with terror as the screaming, yelling horde of black robes and white skull masks drew closer and closer to where he'd set up the first wave of their defense. The traps were working at slowing down the masses and even eliminating quite a number from play.
The noises they made though as they died… maybe Hermione was right and the giant stone gargoyles were a bit too much. He glanced to the west, just in time to see a Death Eater who had broken free of the sand traps Fred and George had donated get squashed by one of the animated gargoyles. The lighting was dim this far away from the castle, but he could still see bits of something fly in all directions.
"Please don't throw up," he prayed at himself. He knew that all of the Death Eaters had done bad things and he really shouldn't feel any sympathy for them, but it was harder than just saying that when they were screaming in such pain.
So far his orders to the Ministry and Order members in the front line had been simple: Use distance-based spells to attack the Death Eaters as they encountered the traps. And it was working, but it was only a matter of time before the Death Eaters lost enough members to the pitfalls and they would be able to proceed unimpeded.
And their sheer numbers were boggling. Ron knew, of course, that they were a large number. But whenever they spoke of them he always pictured a small group of the higher ranked members that he could put names to. This was in the hundreds and more just kept coming in through the broken down front gate.
He gave it maybe five minutes before the first wave was clear of all of the traps. So much for a home field advantage; they just didn't have what was needed to defend against those numbers.
"Orders, Sir?" asked one of the Ministry aurors, a grizzled fellow, standing just to the right of Ron. He must have been a lead auror, as there seemed to be a team behind him. Ron cursed at himself again at his lack of planning. He should have been meeting with the various heads to learn who they were. He might be leading these people to their deaths and he had no idea who they even were.
Well, there was no time to be embarrassed about it now. "Your name?" he asked, pleased when his voice held none of the nerves his stomach wanted to expel.
"Szilage, Jarvis Szilage."
"Szilage, take your team down the west line and intercept any Death Eaters coming up from that flank. Make sure to avoid the gargoyles." He glanced around for another apparent team lead and a petite brunette auror stepped up to him. "Paige Bond, Sir. Where would you like my team?"
"Eastern line," he said. "You'll have a lot of support on that side from the Hogwarts staff."
Both aurors nodded and departed with their teams further from the main group.
Tonks popped up next to him a second later, although it took him a moment to place her as she'd altered her skin tone to a dark olive and her hair was cropped short and black. Only the "Wotcher, Ron?" gave her away.
"Tonks, I don't think I can do this," he said quietly, desperately, as the Death Eaters moved even closer. "What were we thinking?"
"You're a good leader, Ron," she said softly, voice uncharacteristically serious. "Just tell us what to do."
A flush crept up the back of his neck. "I don't even know who anyone is."
"We were planning on introducing you to the auror teams next week actually," Tonks said, rubbing the back of her head. "No one's fault that it's like this. Just poor timing."
"I'll say," he muttered.
"Well, here's something to help," she said. "All team heads have a silver line on their robes," she said, indicating her own dark purple in its place. "Auror team members have bronze."
"And yours?" he asked.
A grin lit up her darkened face. "I'm special forces. And I'm happy to direct some folks for you as needed."
"I need another team backing up Bond's group due to their position. I want to avoid using Hogwarts students if I can other than for support. And I need a group to act as a relay and alert me to anything happening where I can't see it."
"Roger that. Tonks raised her voice. "Pippin's team, you're backing up Bond! Gardner, your team is jackrabbit, foxhole is Weasley. All others, disperse as needed."
The aurors split apart from the other groups with shouts of acknowledgement and a thin, willowy man approached Ron.
"I am Kenneth Gardner," he introduced himself with a short inclination of his head. "Take this stone," he continued. "It links to each one of my team's matching ones and will allow them to find you in any circumstance. We will report back in as we can and act as backup support to engage only as needed."
"Thanks," Ron said, pocketing the heavier than it appeared amber stone.
Gardner gave a thin-lipped smile. "Then I shall see you shortly." And he practically melted away in front of Ron. He blinked and reached out a hand, but encountered nothing.
"His team's specialty is reconnaissance," Tonks explained. "Super high level of cloaking magic and invisibility charms. Don't scream if you feel someone tap your elbow; that's their way of alerting you to their presence."
Ron seemed to minutely relax, before he gave a sudden start. "Stone! The transfer stone. Tonks, I don't have it!"
"Oh!" she exclaimed, sticking her hands in her robe. "I have it here. Moody just finished applying all of the security charms."
"That's one bit of good news," Ron said, gratefully accepting the rough-cut emerald. It served as an immediate portkey to any area that they had previously enchanted on the grounds. It was Hermione's idea since Ron needed to be able to move around freely and they couldn't trust that he'd be able to walk anywhere quickly in the middle of a battle. Since he wasn't legally of age to learn apparting yet and it wasn't something that could be rushed they had to come up with another solution.
Hermione, absolutely brilliant witch that she was, had thought that there must be some way to combine an instantaneous portkey with multiple locations. As it so happened, Mr. Weasley was quite an expert with Portkeys and had brought the idea to his Ministry team as an experiment. They'd been quite successful and the stone was set to activate with each cardinal direction Ron spoke.
The only negative they had found was he had to always return to the "center" spot and could not portkey from east to west per se. Given more time they surely would have come up with a way to bypass that, but it was decided they'd get a working model to start and keep experimenting as time went on. No one knew when the battle was going to happen, but since school let out in about two months and they were pretty convinced it would be this year, it was best to move quickly. And in this case it really paid off.
The only downside was he had yet to practice with it yet. It seemed simple enough, but he hoped that they'd reduced the nauseating pull of a typical portkey because appearing in the middle of battle puking was not a good idea.
Moody had demanded the stone before it was turned over to Ron to apply several safety features to the travel. Ron could now not apparate on top of anyone (it would shift him two feet to the left of the set point), no one except himself or anyone with Weasley blood could activate it, and it was charmed to not be able to leave his person once he had touched it. It would always reappear in a pocket, which is why Ron had made certain to wear a jacket with deep ones that were easily accessible.
"See, it's all good," she comforted, reaching up and awkwardly giving him a pat on the head.
"What the hell would I do without you?" Ron expressed gratefully, not even minding the mused hair.
"You've got this," she encouraged, clapping him on the shoulder. "I know you do."
Ron took a deep breath. "Okay. Okay. Here I go."
He made his way to the front of the line. The Death Eaters had maybe three minutes now before they were upon them and already some were firing spells that the immediate front Order members were blocking.
"Attention!" he called, not daring to use a sonorous at this point so the Death Eaters could not hear. He didn't need to, as every head turned his direction. "Um, hi. I'm Ron Weasley. If you missed the announcement at Hogwarts, I'll be directing our forces." To his great relief no one seemed to question it, even the Ministry aurors and members who he had not first addressed or ever even met.
"Our main goal is to hold everyone back so that Harry can do what he needs to do. So do that in whatever means you feel is necessary." He glanced down each side of the line, trying to commit every face to memory. "I'll be positioned as best I can in the center to direct where we need to go. I apologize in advance that I do not know most of your names and will likely be calling you out based on appearance and rank.
"Our main purpose is to stop the Death Eaters, but please do not put that effort above your own safety. Stay in at least a set of two at all times and watch each other's backs. Medical is set up inside Hogwarts and should you or someone else become injured enough to need it, please retreat there."
An enormous booming sound shook the earth as several Death Eaters together managed to blow apart one of the stone gargoyles and its pieces flew everywhere, some into the auror ranks and members having to blast pieces out of the sky.
"Front row, for the first wave of Death Eaters and as long as you can, you are in charge of shield spells and blocking any projectiles headed this way," Ron continued after he regained his balance from the blast. "Second row, you're on offense. All other rows assist as you can until ranks have to break up as we engage.
"And that's all," Ron concluded as the enemy drew closer. "Good luck, Godspeed, and thank you for your service."
A resounding cheer went up as he stepped back and the knot in his stomach loosened slightly. They could do this. If they all worked together and fought together and watched out for each other they could actually do this.
He glanced as best he could across the sea of heads that led all the way back to Hogwarts, counting them off. He'd estimate they had a force of maybe three hundred, while the Death Eaters had easily double that. He never knew there were so many out there who hated the idea of muggleborns and muggles so much, but it was disgustingly high.
The yelling was so close now that individual words were distinguishable and he readied his wand. If all went according to plan he wouldn't have to actually fight as he'd be commanding, but nothing ever really was that simple.
He spotted Bill in the crowd, standing a good half-foot taller than any of the other wizards and witches around him, although his brother did not seem to see him. There was the barest hint of pale blonde hair next to him, and he breathed a sigh of relief that Fleur was there. She had been named the Beauxbatons champion after all, so she was more than capable of taking on a few Death Eaters.
Tonks was remaining near him for the time being, which he greatly appreciated, and he could see… Percy?! His horn-rimmed glasses brother was bobbing –likely jumping foot to foot like he always did when he was nervous – with a group of Ministry members. A grin Ron didn't know he could produce filled his face then. Looked like Perce had regained his senses.
He was still trying to locate any other family members (the red hair stood out well in the dim lighting) when a pair of arms suddenly closed around him along with the soft cry of "Ron!" He recognized that hug from anywhere and relaxed gratefully into it.
"Mum," he murmured, having to blink back the sudden tears that sprung to his eyes.
"Oh, look at you," she said, releasing him and moving to cup his face, although he had to stoop slightly. "My baby boy is all grown up."
The tears vanished as soon as they came as the tips of his ears reddened in embarrassment. "Mum…."
"Don't give me that," she admonished without any heat, her thumb tracing along his cheek. "Oh, Ron. I'm so proud of you."
He pulled her into a tight hug then, trying to pretend that it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The yells as the front line shouted out the first round of shield spells though made him very clear that this was the reality he found himself in now.
"Where are your brothers?" Molly asked, pulling back to look at his face, every freckle already committed to memory although she traced them anyway.
"I saw Bill over—"
"Not Bill," she interrupted. "Fred and George." A sob caught in the back of her throat. "Our clock, Ron. They were listed in mortal peril when we received the summons to come here."
She must have seen something in his face, because the sob turned to one of relief. "They're all right?"
"Snape rescued them," he said, not really ready to commit to "all right." He'd only seen George and the image of his brother's all too still and bloody body would be one he was sure would haunt him for a long time to come.
His mum was too perceptive though and she frowned at his answer. "How are they, Ron? And what do you mean rescued? Where were they?"
"Hurt," he said after a beat. "Badly. They'll be fine though. Pomfrey's with them and she knows her stuff."
"And?"
He was saved from having to tell his mother the bits and pieces of torture from a blast arcing overhead and crashing into the ground just yards from them and sending up chunks of lawn but fortunately not striking any people.
"Go back to dad!" he shouted over the sudden influx of noise, giving her hand one last squeeze. "I'll see you after."
"Be careful," she whispered, before letting go of his hand and melting into the crowd.
Ron squared his shoulders and turned to face the front. He could not see much over his own troops though and after a quick curse he pulled himself atop a large chunk of earth that had uplifted. It provided him cover should he need to duck down, but gave him a good view of the field in front of him.
His heart near stopped at the writhing line of black meeting the front forces. There were so many of them and they were already trying to break through the front line shield, who were mostly blocking spells and not physical attacks.
Fortunately, if there was one thing he was prepared on, it was various spells needed for situations like these. He owed Hermione for all the hours she'd forced him to read and practice the spells because although it had seemed tedious at the time he was never so happy to know the wall blocking charm.
"Terra Crescitus!" he shouted from his position, drawing a line with his wand. "Quine!"
Practice paid off. A wall of earth pulled itself up from underneath the Death Eaters (that bit was luck as it could have easily thrown his own team off balance, duly noted) and rose about five feet high.
"Attack team use lobbing spells," Ron ordered as several dumbfounded aurors and Order members turned his way at the obstruction while others used the respite to pull injured comrades away. "That wall won't hold for long!"
There weren't too many spells wizards had developed that did not follow a direct path, and many Order members and regular Ministry volunteers seemed at a loss of what to do. But the aurors all moved with particular gusto to use the Arcing Arrow spell and the cries of pain from the other side showed it was working.
But the pause in attack was brief, as reductor spells were already plowing into the wall and holes and chunks were tearing it apart. But the light side was re-energized and pushed back against the Death Eaters as they tried to breach.
Death Eaters had already breached one part of the line further east and Ron's eyes widened in horror as several of the black cloaked figures appeared to be floating. Those were dementors, not Death Eaters! And they'd already bypassed the first group of aurors, who were busy trying to contend with the Death Eaters that came in their wake to stop the deadly creatures.
Ron glanced to the further back forces to see who among them would be available and capable to create a Patronus and chase the dementors back. His eyes lighted on the figure of McGonagall, who had not engaged directly in battle and was having her team, which included Ginny, throwing up shield spells to protect those fighting.
How on earth though was he supposed to alert her to the impending dementors, who he could only just see because of his high position and not alert everyone else of his plan?
Oh, duh. The stone. Right. He allowed himself a rueful grin that no one had seen that moment of panic. All right then, time to test it out.
"East," he whispered, one hand clutching the stone inside his pocket.
And to his great delight he popped over to the eastern marking with barely a stomach twinge. He was still quite a few yards from McGonagall, but it was much better than where he was. He broke into a quick jog, the ranks more loosely formed back here and requiring no shoving his way through.
"Professor!" he called, realizing the poor choice of words when a half-dozen heads turned towards him. Hogwarts staff section. He was just killing it today.
He winced. Terribly poor choice of words.
"McGonagall!" he added. His house professor turned towards him with an inclination of her head, her eyes still mostly focused on the students under her command who were continuing to feed shield spells into a barrier.
"Dementors are coming up," he said, just paces away now. "Far east line by the stone garden. Can your group rally up some Patronuses?"
She gave a grim smile. "It would be my absolute pleasure, Mr. Weasley."
Ron didn't stick around to watch her orders, as he was already hurrying back to the east portkey spot to return to his central post because now he saw giants – where on earth did Voldemort find them? – and he needed to re-direct some auror groups to head them off before they reached the main battle.
And as he said 'central' and was whisked away Ron had the fleeting thought that he was very glad he'd put on comfortable shoes.
xxx
Hermione had fortunately never seen a battlefield in her lifetime.
Sure, there'd been their fights with Death Eaters in the Ministry of Magic and Harry had gone up against both Quirrell and a basilisk in what could maybe be called a one-person battlefield, which she had not seen in any case so it didn't even count.
She had nothing personally to base on what an actual war would look like except for movies and history books. And if she was going to be completely honest, none of those scripted scenes or still photos could quite prepare her for the reality of what she saw when she stepped outside of Hogwarts.
For one thing, it was nearly pitch black outside, save for the lights that came from inside Hogwarts. Clouds blocked most of the stars and the moon making the grounds appear solid black with no discernible features. The traps they had laid and McGonagall had activated were camouflaged perfectly in the low light and Death Eaters had already stumbled into several.
She and Harry were nearly the last group out, seeing as they had a completely different objective than the rest of their force, which meant that plenty of Order and ministry members had already begun to engage the Death Eaters, who had already managed to breach the gate.
Jets of green light lit up the night and revealed in the flashes the waves of Death Eaters slowly gaining ground towards the castle. She did not see in their limited lighting though Voldemort or the tell-tale color of Lucius Malfoy's hair. Figured they wouldn't be out front. Screams and yells filled the air; some full of pain, others insane and others still crying for courage.
She clutched Harry's hand, trying to quell the shudders that had just taken over her. They were going to fight against that? That awful, pulsating evil that seemed to fill the air with killing intent from masked faces and dark robes?
She had been brave in the face of danger many times. But never, ever had she felt such darkness. And she realized why her innards were feeling like ice when the shadowed appearance of dementors glided across the grass.
Others had seen them too though, and she watched as McGonagall's squadron under the direction of Ron— Please be careful everyone –moved to intercept, a beautiful silver mare and tabby cat leading the charge.
Harry seemed just as frozen as her, as the two stood alone on the steps. On the steps where they could easily be seen, Hermione realized, and shook off her own stupor to pull on Harry's hand to tug him down.
"We need to focus," she whispered, putting down her expandable bag by their feet. "We only have so much time."
Harry nodded, the light returning to his eyes. "Right. Let's get to work."
Hermione drew her wand, said a quick prayer, and began.
xxx
Author's Notes:
And so it begins. Ron is being kick-arse to start this and I really hope all of you have enjoyed the growth of his character as much as I have enjoyed writing him.
Thank you so much to the readers who have left comments. To one comment, I no longer do shout outs as over half of the names these days are anonymous "Guest" and that seems a tad redundant :p But I read and appreciate every comment and I thank those who do so much for taking the time to leave one. Truly. Thank you.
Please do leave a comment below if you enjoyed. Thanks so much!
Updated; January 14, 2018
