Disclaimer: I don't own them, but sometimes I sneak into JK Rowling's back
yard to play with them.
Chapter 2 - The Lines We Cannot See
Ronald Weasley was not a quiet boy by nature. In fact, if the truth were told he was prone to loud outbursts, expansive gestures and a volatile temperament. But at this moment he could be found sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room playing chess with one of his best friends, Harry Potter. The untrained eye would believe that the redheaded Gryff was pensive and silent due to a deep absorption in the game. The untrained eye would be wrong. Everyone at Hogwarts knew Ron and his chess pieces were full of bravado and taunting comments when playing. Harry Potter was in no better shape. He was also sullen and withdrawn. His knight and bishop were settling in for a nap, since over twenty minutes had passed and Harry had yet to look at the board or make a move. After another ten minutes Ron closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose. When he looked up it was to pierce Harry with a look full of sorrow and frustration. Were it not for his own preoccupation with similar emotions, Harry would have been taken aback by the sheer impact of that gaze.
As one they began to pack away the old chess set and its pieces. After the last pawn was placed in the velvet lining of the beautiful antique chest that Hermione had bought Ron for his last birthday, the sixth year Weasley ran a tender hand over the engraved lid before shutting it with a resounding click. The sound worked as a trigger for the repressed words between the two boys.
"Something has to be done! We have to find out what is wrong with her. Something happened to her and for all our sakes we need to know."
"This is not the time or the place for this conversation," Harry pronounced as he took Ron by the arm and dragged him up to their dorm room.
"Harry we have to talk to her!" Ron quickly raised a silencing hand. "Hear me out. Hermione needs us. If the situation were reversed, she would never abandon us. She would push and prod and investigate and do something absolutely brilliant. She would never leave us in the care of a Malfoy just because Dumbledore told her to. She has more gumption than that and so do we. We need to act.now.tonight."
Harry looked up to the ceiling as if seeking strength from a higher power.
"Ron you need to listen and hear me for once in your life. Dumbledore is the most powerful wizard of our time for a good reason. I trust him completely, so does Hermione and so should you. He knows light years more than we do and I know he has a good reason for telling us to back off. If he wants us to leave her the hell alone, then that is what we will bloody well do. I will not collaborate with you on some cockamamie half-arsed scheme, which will probably put Mione in greater danger than she's already in. You know, I wish just once you would let your head rather than your arse lead the way."
"Bull Dumbledore and fucking bull you too Harry. You know I'm not the same immature fuck-up I was even a year ago. You however, are exactly the same. You're still Dumbledore little lapdog. For the record, I love Hermione and I would never put her at risk.knowingly." Ron grimaced over his hesitation, briefly assailed by memories of a time when he couldn't protect her and unwittingly landed them all in this position. His eyes were shuttered and disdainful when they fell upon Harry. "If you didn't have your head stuck so far up Dumbledore's arse you would see that."
Harry's left fist shot out and connected firmly with Ron's freckled face. Ron's gangly frame went careening backwards into a bedpost and before he could recover himself Harry's wand was pressed firmly against his throat. With the most ruthless eyes Ron had ever seen Harry looked at him and spoke through gritted teeth.
"Watch yourself Ron. Friendship can only take us so far and excuse so much before you walk onto dangerous ground. Oh and for the record, I am just as loyal to Hermione as you and for that reason I will chance hurting your feelings if it stops you from fucking things up. Now if you don't have anything else to say, then why don't we abandon this entire conversation?" Harry punctuated this question by placing even further pressure on Ron's vulnerable throat.
The young Weasley was taking shallow staccato breaths while his chocolate brown eyes looked warily into Harry's emerald glare. In a hoarse voice Ron managed to recall a modified line from a movie called Snatch that Hermione had made them watch. "All right now, just hold tight rude boy and put your fucking wand away."
As attempts at levity went it was weak, but it managed to get Harry to step away and lower his wand with a shaky chuckle.
"Look Ron I apologize, but we can't take any risks. She means too much. Right now Dumbledore is our one eyed man in the land of the blind. He may not see everything, but he does see more than we do. And you are absolutely right, Hermione would not have just abandoned us at Dumbledore's request, but she was not foolish either. She didn't make a single move without research and lots of it. We still have two hours until curfew and I still have the self-refreshing pass to the restricted section that Professor Zareb gave me when I started taking those extra DADA lessons. Right now this is the only constructive action we can take.now.tonight." Harry lightly mocked.
Ron's face twisted into an unattractive grimace before asking.
"To the library?"
"To the library my friend."
Harry gave his friend a conciliatory pat on the back as they strode out of their room and headed to the portrait hole. To all observers in the common room nothing seemed amiss, but both boys knew their friendship had taken some hard hits just now. The days and weeks ahead did not promise to be easy.
Chapter 2 - The Lines We Cannot See
Ronald Weasley was not a quiet boy by nature. In fact, if the truth were told he was prone to loud outbursts, expansive gestures and a volatile temperament. But at this moment he could be found sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room playing chess with one of his best friends, Harry Potter. The untrained eye would believe that the redheaded Gryff was pensive and silent due to a deep absorption in the game. The untrained eye would be wrong. Everyone at Hogwarts knew Ron and his chess pieces were full of bravado and taunting comments when playing. Harry Potter was in no better shape. He was also sullen and withdrawn. His knight and bishop were settling in for a nap, since over twenty minutes had passed and Harry had yet to look at the board or make a move. After another ten minutes Ron closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose. When he looked up it was to pierce Harry with a look full of sorrow and frustration. Were it not for his own preoccupation with similar emotions, Harry would have been taken aback by the sheer impact of that gaze.
As one they began to pack away the old chess set and its pieces. After the last pawn was placed in the velvet lining of the beautiful antique chest that Hermione had bought Ron for his last birthday, the sixth year Weasley ran a tender hand over the engraved lid before shutting it with a resounding click. The sound worked as a trigger for the repressed words between the two boys.
"Something has to be done! We have to find out what is wrong with her. Something happened to her and for all our sakes we need to know."
"This is not the time or the place for this conversation," Harry pronounced as he took Ron by the arm and dragged him up to their dorm room.
"Harry we have to talk to her!" Ron quickly raised a silencing hand. "Hear me out. Hermione needs us. If the situation were reversed, she would never abandon us. She would push and prod and investigate and do something absolutely brilliant. She would never leave us in the care of a Malfoy just because Dumbledore told her to. She has more gumption than that and so do we. We need to act.now.tonight."
Harry looked up to the ceiling as if seeking strength from a higher power.
"Ron you need to listen and hear me for once in your life. Dumbledore is the most powerful wizard of our time for a good reason. I trust him completely, so does Hermione and so should you. He knows light years more than we do and I know he has a good reason for telling us to back off. If he wants us to leave her the hell alone, then that is what we will bloody well do. I will not collaborate with you on some cockamamie half-arsed scheme, which will probably put Mione in greater danger than she's already in. You know, I wish just once you would let your head rather than your arse lead the way."
"Bull Dumbledore and fucking bull you too Harry. You know I'm not the same immature fuck-up I was even a year ago. You however, are exactly the same. You're still Dumbledore little lapdog. For the record, I love Hermione and I would never put her at risk.knowingly." Ron grimaced over his hesitation, briefly assailed by memories of a time when he couldn't protect her and unwittingly landed them all in this position. His eyes were shuttered and disdainful when they fell upon Harry. "If you didn't have your head stuck so far up Dumbledore's arse you would see that."
Harry's left fist shot out and connected firmly with Ron's freckled face. Ron's gangly frame went careening backwards into a bedpost and before he could recover himself Harry's wand was pressed firmly against his throat. With the most ruthless eyes Ron had ever seen Harry looked at him and spoke through gritted teeth.
"Watch yourself Ron. Friendship can only take us so far and excuse so much before you walk onto dangerous ground. Oh and for the record, I am just as loyal to Hermione as you and for that reason I will chance hurting your feelings if it stops you from fucking things up. Now if you don't have anything else to say, then why don't we abandon this entire conversation?" Harry punctuated this question by placing even further pressure on Ron's vulnerable throat.
The young Weasley was taking shallow staccato breaths while his chocolate brown eyes looked warily into Harry's emerald glare. In a hoarse voice Ron managed to recall a modified line from a movie called Snatch that Hermione had made them watch. "All right now, just hold tight rude boy and put your fucking wand away."
As attempts at levity went it was weak, but it managed to get Harry to step away and lower his wand with a shaky chuckle.
"Look Ron I apologize, but we can't take any risks. She means too much. Right now Dumbledore is our one eyed man in the land of the blind. He may not see everything, but he does see more than we do. And you are absolutely right, Hermione would not have just abandoned us at Dumbledore's request, but she was not foolish either. She didn't make a single move without research and lots of it. We still have two hours until curfew and I still have the self-refreshing pass to the restricted section that Professor Zareb gave me when I started taking those extra DADA lessons. Right now this is the only constructive action we can take.now.tonight." Harry lightly mocked.
Ron's face twisted into an unattractive grimace before asking.
"To the library?"
"To the library my friend."
Harry gave his friend a conciliatory pat on the back as they strode out of their room and headed to the portrait hole. To all observers in the common room nothing seemed amiss, but both boys knew their friendship had taken some hard hits just now. The days and weeks ahead did not promise to be easy.