Chapter 2

            First thing first, no I still don't own Ron ::cry:: or any of the others so you can all stop looking at me.

            Next, ~cosmoz~ thank you for reviewing and your compliment, and yes I know that it may not seem like a Ron and Draco story, but trust me it will be in a few chapter (even if I do like still Ron and Harry together)

            Now, on with the story!!

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            Harry and Hermione stared over at Seamus who had just told them a slightly modified version of what happened between Ron and him. Of course, the adapted story favored him more than the red-head. Actually it made Ron seem like a complete jerk who started a fight with Seamus for no reason at all. It also didn't help Ron's reputation when the Irish boy began to all but his 'beating' from the boy. Some where amazed, some were amused, some sympathetic, and some were shocked.

            Naturally, it wasn't hard to tell which group Ron's two best friends were in. They sat there across from Seamus and Dean, asking why they were late to dinner and if they have seen Ron. Dean, who refused to say anything on the subject, avoided looking at them and quickly began eating while the other boy was enjoying the attention he was receiving from Harry went off into his detailed, even if it was somewhat false, account of the fight.

            Harry and Hermione were amazed to say the least. They didn't even bother to finish their dinner as they rushed out of the Great Hall, curious stares following them. They ran past anybody and barged through the picture causing the Lady in Pink to yell. They didn't even bother to control themselves until they reached the 7th year boy's dormitory, where they found a sleeping Ron sprawled on the bed.

            Harry immediately walked over and began to shake the boy. Ron simply nudged the hand off and continued his nap. The black haired Gryffindor sighed in impatience and once again began to shake the lump. Ron just pushed his face further into the pillow and mumbled, "Bugger off…George…or Fred…whichever the damned one you are."

            "It's neither. Now get up!" the frustrated friend said as he leaned over and began to shake him even more violently.

            Ron woke up with a start when the fact he had an audience sunk through the fuzzy haze of his nap. He yawned, stretched, and rubbed his eyes before looking to the person who interrupted his rest. "Harry? Why the hell are you waking me up?" however, he was pleased to find that his headache fully subsided.

            The other boy rolled his eyes, "What else would I be here? What the hell did you do to Seamus?!"

            He racked his brain trying to remember what the said thing he did was, only to come up blank. That was, of course, before he saw the boy and before he soreness finally caught up with him. He laid back down, trying to relive some of the pressure. He felt two movements and turned to see that Harry and Hermione were also sitting on the bed, while the other three who lived in the dormitory sat themselves on the bed next to his.

            "Can we talk later? I have a detention to get to by eight." Ron said not bothering to get up or make room.

            "You have plenty of time," the only female replied.

            "Guess I really didn't sleep that long." He mumbled to himself.

            The other member of the bed snorted, "You slept through dinner."

            "That would explain why I'm hungry."

            "Ron! This is serious! We have decided to call an intervention." Harry said in a stern and commanding tone.

            The other five instantaneously sat at attention, "What?!"

            Harry nodded, "Yea, an intervention is…"

            Ron, who was now sitting with his head on his knees, interrupted, "I know what intervention is. What I want to know is why we're supposedly having one?"

            It was Hermione's turn to talk, "Ron, we're worried about you." She placed her hand on his hand, "You've been acting awfully strange lately."

            "So I've heard," he muttered, looking between the two, "but I'm not a child, I know what to do to take care of myself. Plus," he turned to Harry, "You've acted strangely plenty of times and we've never called for an intervention."

            "Yea, but he has never beaten someone up before."

            "Shut up, Finnigin, or do you want to start another fight."

            "Oh please, Ron, he already told us that you were the one to start the fight."

            "And you actually believed him?"

            "Well, I've actually been normal lately, haven't I?"

            "Seamus, shut up!" everyone turned to look at the generally quiet Neville who was blushing and began stuttering, "I mean, please stop provoking Ron, especially knowing that he has an advantage over you."

            Ron beamed at the shy boy, "Thank You!"

            Harry, however, didn't look thrilled by the way his intervention was going, "Please, this is about Ron."

            "No, Harry this is about something stupid. Malfoy and you always get into fights, this is just like that."

            Harry stared with an open mouth at his friend, "This is not like our fights. I never put him the Hospital Wing."

            "That's just because you never wanted to mar his pretty little face." Harry flushed with embarrassment at the implication the comment made about him. "Besides," Ron lazily waved his hand as if dismissing the whole comment, "I guess I never meant to hurt him that badly."

            "But Seamus said that you came after him because brought up the subject of you losing points. You did say that was why you went and punched him?" Dean asked his friend.

            Ron began laughing, "Oh Seamus, Seamus, Seamus." He wiped his eyes, "You really shouldn't lie to you friends, you know? It's not very nice."

            The other Gryffindor sneered, "Who said I was lying?"

            Ron stopped laughing, and looked seriously at the boy, "I did."

            "And why should they believe you?"

            "Because I would never lie about something so meaningless."

            Hermione spoke up again, "Ron, this is serious. You actually hurt Seamus, and we are only trying to work this out."

            The red-head jumped up and began pacing, from the edge of the bed to the door and back. "Why are you all making such a big deal about this?! For Merlin's sake, Harry's been in much dangerous situations and yet none of you actually acted so foolishly about it. This is all just a big waste of time!"

            "I think in your in denial. You can't accept the fact that you really gravely hurt a friend."

            If you could even call him a friend, Ron thought to himself. He paused and looked at the door thinking about just walking out of this nightmare. Then it stuck him. If it was cooperation and acceptance they wanted than that is what they would get. He made sure to be clear of thought and put on the right façade so that is little act would work.

            He turned slowly, his eyes shining with tears, and looked at Hermione, "You're right. I can't believe what I did this afternoon. It was not at all like me." Don't laugh, don't smile, don't laugh, don't smile, he kept repeating like a mantra in his head.

            He wiped furiously at his eyes, before covering his face, which was really a ploy to cover his growing grin until he could once again get his emotions under control. He bit his lip and bowed his head to Harry, "I'm sorry, mate. I know that you were just trying to help me. I have been acting like a complete bastard lately. I was just overreacting about some guy that I liked, you were right, like always." He finished with a small smile before turning on to his toughest performance yet.

            He really had to concentrate on something other than Seamus's smug face. He tried thinking of the right emotion he would need, apologetic and…submissive. He'll probably leave me alone if he thinks that he is the stronger in mind…yea right. He thought of Harry's sad face when Ron beat him at a continuous round of wizard's chess, which he was truly sorry for, however a pouting Harry did create a certain appeal.

            Now all he needed was something to make him feel subservient; the first memory was when he had to work with the Ferret in Potions class. Normally, he would have tried to rile the ice-hearted boy up but said boy seeming to be all powerful in a sense. Nothing seemed to get at him, not any of the insults or the comments that Ron made…nothing. In fact, he was amused, that arrogant smirk of his gleaming in the dim dungeon light. The red-head felt something that day back in his 6th year. It wasn't disgust…nor was it anything akin to respect…it was just that he…well…he felt as if that moment he could and would obey Draco's every command.  

            Ron snapped out of his daydreaming quickly enough for anyone else to notice. He hasn't told anybody what he felt that moment, embarrassed by the fact he even experienced it. He combined the two images together to get the emotion he wanted, though the fact that he was trying to concentrate on Malfoy's face made him feel a little ill.

            He walked closer to where Seamus was sitting, bowing his head just a bit lower for him than for Harry, and took a deep breath before looking into his eyes, which were immediately replaced with Harry's emerald eyes, and his grin replaced with Malfoy's superior smirk. He almost forgot for a moment that he was actually talking to the Irish lad, "I'm sorry, Seamus. I never meant anything I said today and I hope you can forgive me for my actions. If you want we can talk, like the reasonable adults we are, about what we were really fighting about sometime. But I have a feeling that most of what you said is true." He bent his head again, the picture of Harry fading but the one of Malfoy staid strong. "I truly hope you can forgive me."

            The room was silent for a moment before the boy nodded a wary suspicion in his eyes, "Of course, we're friends aren't we?"

            "Of course." He smiled, fake sincerity dripping from the corners. That was all that was needed for the tension to clear out of the room.

            "Well," began Dean, "now that everything is back to normal, can anyone help with the Potions homework?"

            The comment sparked a memory in that was temporarily forgotten. "What times is it?"

            Hermione looked at her red-haired friend, "It's almost eight…why?"

            He didn't even bother to answer as he ran out the door and down the stairs. The five looked at each other with perplexed expressions. "That's right," Seamus said, "he has almost a month's worth of detention with Snape." All of the Gryffindors cringed in sympathy.

            Oh Merlin! thought Ron as he raced to the dungeons, If I'm late that arse will add on to my already ridiculously long detention. He couldn't remember a time when he ran so quickly. Well, expect maybe that one time when he got Hermione angry about something and she chased him all around the school. Good times, he thought being only a little sarcastic.

            He saw the stairway leading down to the dungeons, Yes! I may still make it. However, poor Ron didn't see the water that was lying on the floor from when Peeves was throwing water balloons at innocent and unsuspecting students. He made a dash to the stairs, only to slip on the puddle and tumble down them, all parts of his body colliding with the hard stone floor.

            When he roused himself a very short time later, and he found himself staring, not up at the ceiling, but rather at the faces of the two Slytherins he hated the most: Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy. He groaned as he rubbed the back throbbing head, and his aching arms and legs, and his sore back. "What the fuck?"

            Snape made a disapproving noise, while Malfoy seemed to be holding in his laughter, "Nice tumbling trick, Weasly. And here I thought you had no talent."

            "Mr. Weasly, I said get to my classroom by eight o'clock, not try and kill yourself along the way. By the way, you now have two more detentions."

            Ron stood on shaky legs as he followed the retreating backs of the two Slytherins. "Yea, I think I would be better off with death than a full month serving detention with you. If I may say, sir."

            "Well then Mr. Weasly, you're in luck," Ron stopped listening as he sat down on one of the stools in the Potions Master's classroom, which they finally arrived to. All he caught was "Mr. Malfoy."

            He quickly looked at his teacher, "What?"

            Professor Snape sneered at his lack of attention, "I said that since I have more important things to do than baby sit you, Mr. Malfoy has kindly offered to take the job."

            The red-haired boy stared at the black haired man, with an open mouth and a look of pure shock on his face, "Please, Mr. Wealsy, close your mouth. It doesn't become you to have it hanging open like that."  

            He flushed with embarrassment, and scowled at the laughter coming from Malfoy's mouth. "With all due respect, sir, you can't do that. He's not a teacher; you're not allowed to leave me alone with a student."  

            "Mr. Weasly, you are also not a teacher and therefore cannot make the rules. Mr. Malfoy, on the other hand, is a prefect and is perfectly capable of watching over you, aren't you Mr. Malfoy?"

            "Naturally, Professor." Malfoy drawled. Ron again scowled at the other boy, You have a little brown spot on your nose, don't you Mr. Malfoy? It seems you're right, Professor Snape, allow me to remove it before kissing your arse again. Ron had to duck his head to hide the grin that came over him while making up the mental conversation.

            "And Mr. Weasly, I expect that you will listen to everything that Mr. Malfoy says for what he tells you to do is coming directly from me. Understood?"

            The boy sighed, "Yes, sir, Professor, sir."

            Snape nodded and walked out of the classroom to do more important things than baby sit Ron. He turned and glared a Malfoy who was smirking and stood with even more arrogance than usual. "So, Weasel, before we start, why did you beat up the Irish idiot?"

            "That's none of your damn business, Ferret."

            Malfoy shook his head, "Now, now, there is really no need for swearing. Then again I wouldn't want you to harbor that anger of yours. You might hurt another one of your dear Gryffindor friends."

            "Or it might be you, if you don't shut up." Ron closed his eyes and tried to take deep calming breaths that usually allowed him to focus and clear his mind; but it wasn't working, nor were the pictures of Harry that he usually thought of to help calm him down. For some reason, when Malfoy wanted to, he could get under the red-head's skin and stay there no matter what Ron tired. He opened his eyes only to look directly into the grey steal of Malfoy's. This is going to be a very long detention.

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            Before I forget, even though I wrote the story after the 5th book came out, I'm only going to take the actual Order and a few other things from the book (at least for the moment) instead of just placing my story after the fifth year. Plus, I don't like the way that Draco kept helping that horrible Umbridge. I HATE that woman! Bad Draco! BAD! So if you have any questions on what's what than feel free to review and ask me.

            And if you have any ideas on a good detention, then please review, or e-mail me. The idea I have so far is kinda pathetic and needs some action, or I may just skip right to the bonding (NO, NOT bondage! -.-)

~bye for now,

Ryuu Madoshi