Chapter Four- And Then There was Harry

A rainstorm began raging outside the Burrow, and thunder could be heard rumbling in the distance.  It was a welcome relief because they hadn't had much rain this summer, and the garden certainly needed it.   Other than the sounds of the rain, things were quiet for once at the Burrow, which in itself is entirely odd.  Most of the family had left a few days ago, leaving Ron and Draco alone together.

Dumbledore insisted that they all needed a break from everything, and the situation concerning You-Know-Who was relatively quiet at the moment. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny had helped Fred and George move to Diagon Alley and were currently visiting Charlie in Romania.  Ron was somewhat upset that he wasn't able to visit Charlie as well, but his mother explained that someone had to stay and keep Draco company. He reluctantly agreed to the task, hating that his enemy was keeping him from observing his brother handle wild dragons.

Ron found that he was quite proud of the Fred and George for following their dreams and setting up their joke shop.  He knew that he would still see those two a lot because they thoroughly enjoyed popping in and out of the Burrow, startling Ron every chance they got. But he was glad that he was no longer their primary test subject for their joke products.  He was still angry with himself for stupidly trying a piece of chocolate that was conveniently laid out on the kitchen table in a small box. Sweets never lasted long in this house, and they certainly would never be left behind on a table when they could be stashed away into some secret hiding place. 

Mr. Weasley and Bill still insisted on working tirelessly for the order. They took turns being home with Ron and Draco in order to ensure their safety.  Bill was currently upstairs catching up on some much needed sleep in Ginny's room.  He had looked utterly exhausted when he had first arrived home.  Ron was no longer privy to information surrounding the Order of the Phoenix, but he did see some of the members at the Burrow from time to time. 

Remus, Tonks, and Moody occasionally stopped by to check on the wards surrounding the Burrow and to sneak a home-cooked meal from Mrs. Weasley.  Remus appeared to be grieving still for Sirius, and was taking things pretty hard.  He was mostly quiet when he was around, and he seemed to ignore Ron altogether. Ron wondered if Remus partly blamed him for accompanying Harry to the Department of Mysteries.  After all, if they hadn't gone there that night, wouldn't Sirius still be alive? Ron was grateful that he hadn't had to see much of that git of a potions professor this summer. The few occasions in which Snape did stop by were to check up on his godson, Draco.

Draco and Ron and had become accustomed to each others presence at the Burrow.  They no longer addressed each other by their surname, and treated one another civilly.  They managed to avoid fighting again since that first night that Draco came.  They slowly began to learn about one another and respected each other in an odd sort of way.  Ron wondered what would happen between them once they returned to Hogwarts. They decided to avoid most serious conversations and stick to topics about Quidditch and homework.

They had resumed their usual late night positions while studying.  Draco was sitting on the couch in the living room. Ron was at the kitchen table.  He was unsuccessful at making himself crack open his history of magic homework, so he decided to write Hermione instead.  They were both deeply worried about Harry.  They hadn't received a thank you from Harry for his birthday gifts, which was very unusual.  The few letters that they did receive from him this summer said that he was fine, but they were far too short and to the point.  His mother and father insisted that he was probably still grieving for Sirius and that he didn't feel like writing much.  They believed wholeheartedly that the Dursleys were treating him fine because the order threatened to come and hex their family if they didn't.  Ron wasn't so sure.  He had already made up his mind to go retrieve Harry by the end of this week while everyone was gone if he did not hear back from his friend.

Ron suddenly became aware that Draco had stood up and walked to the window. He was squinting outside with an odd expression on his face.  "What's that coming down the road?" he asked.

Ron curiously joined him at the window.  Through the steady stream of rain they could make out twin lights beaming through the darkness bouncing along down the road.  They appeared to be attached to a rather large vehicle.

"Oh, I know what that is.  It's the Knight Bus! But who could be coming here at this time of night?"  Ron asked.  They watched as it came closer and closer, until it finally stopped some distance away.  They were unable to make out who the passenger was because of the pouring rain, but it was clear that this person was slowly making their way towards the Burrow. 

Ron was hoping in his heart that it might be Harry, but not being unable to see who it was made him feel a little apprehensive.  He wondered if he should go wake Bill just in case.  Draco and Ron looked at one another, nodded, and slowly pulled out their wands.  They were given permission to do magic over the holiday only in the case of an emergency. They had both agreed to carry their wands on them at all times just in case something happened. It was silly to think that a death eater would take a bus to the Burrow, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

The dark figure slowly crossed the rest of the distance to the house, and walked up the steps.  Finally being able to see who it was, Ron quickly put his wand away and threw open the door to let him in.

"HARRY!"

"Hi," Harry said quietly.  He was soaking wet from the rain and looking a little worse for wear.

Ron grabbed his wrist and pulled him inside.   Not caring about the fact that Harry was dripping wet, he pulled his best friend into a friendly hug.  He could feel Harry stiffen in his warm embrace and push him away slightly. 

"Ron, listen!  I know that if is not safe for your family if I stay here, but I have no other place to go.  I just needed a couple of nights to figure out what I am going to do next.  I just can't go back to that house right now!" Harry was pleading frantically to Ron.  His eyes were wild in fear as he glanced up at the taller boy.  He seemed oblivious to the fact that Draco was standing in the room.

Ron looked down at Harry, getting a good look at him for the first time. He looked extremely fatigued, and he appeared to be holding an invisible bundle in his left hand. His clothes were dirty and worn through and he seemed so much thinner than the last time he saw him.  Not knowing what was wrong; Ron feared the worst had happened to Harry over the summer.

"What are you talking about?  What do you mean you can't go back to that house? What happened?  Are you alright? Didn't you get my owls?" Ron began to berate him with too many questions at once.  After not seeing or hearing from his friend for so long, he was overwhelmed with emotion about the situation.

Harry glanced nervously over to Draco, seeing him for the first time.  The blonde haired boy had not moved from his position by the window since he came in. Harry looked back and forth between Ron and Draco with confusion.

"What? I don't understand?  Owls?" Harry asked tiredly. It appeared as though it were taking a tremendous amount of energy for him to remain upright.

"Yes! Hermione and I have been owling you all summer.  Dumbledore said it was okay for you to stay at the Burrow for the remainder of the holiday.  He had to put up some wards around the house because of Draco."

"Really? I didn't get any owls. Why is he here anyway? So it is safe for me to be here?" Harry began to ask his questions quickly, unaware that he sounded a lot like Ron's early ranting. He looked somewhat relieved that he would not bring anyone else close to him in danger.

"Yes! How did you not get any of my owls?  You wrote to me back a few times!" Ron was getting irritated that he was getting the answers that he wanted, and tried to be a little more forceful.  He noticed that Harry seemed to cower slightly as he raised his voice.

"Oh...well…my uncle told me what to write in those letters. I was never allowed to read any of my owl mail," said Harry.

Ron was noticeably furious. "THAT UGLY BASTARD! I knew something was wrong.  Why weren't the owls able to reach you?  They all came back empty handed. Did he put bars on your window again?"

Harry flinched and looked down. He was unresponsive to Ron's last question. Ron looked over at Draco for some support, but he was wide eyed at the course their conversation had taken. He wasn't going to be much use.

"Harry?" Ron asked again.

"No, he didn't put up the bars again," he said quietly.

"Than what happened Harry? Why can't you go back there?"

Harry looked over at Draco and then back at Ron. He could see that Ron was going to let the situation go and sighed deeply. "I was locked back in the cupboard again," he said quietly.

Ron and Draco gasped at this comment at the sometime.  They looked at one another horrified.