Petra: This one came to me... Okay, that's total bs, I have no idea what I was thinking when I wrote this. sighs
Kati: We just needed to see more.
Petra: Don't ask us why... we don't know...
Kati: But here it is...

DEDICATED: To those that have been unknowingly hurt by people they thought were their friends. You're not alone...
WARNING: Angst
DISCLAIMER: See chapters 1 or 2.

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Family and Friends

" . . . maybe having no one know you, inside and out, isn't real loneliness. Maybe having friends who might know you as well as could be managed, and still don'tlove you... That, I decided, is what it means to truly be alone." -Sol 1056; Nothing Like the Sun

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Ron Weasley walked down the hall quickly, excitement in every step, and he wondered what Harry would think of him. He hadn't changed much, he admitted, but he had, much to this mother's consternation, gotten his right ear pierced. He smirked as he fingered the small gem which wasn't just the decoration his mother thought it was; in actuality, he had chosen it so that he could lay a simple protection spell on it, something that, unlike a necklace, couldn't be easily pulled off. Ron had drifted between jobs at first, not knowing what exactly he wanted to do. The fact of the matter, now that Ron thought of it, was he had many skills. He could play chess with the best and had had an offer from the English Chess League. He'd had a couple offers for playing Quiditch professionally and he had, for a while, contemplated that… but after all that he and Harry and Hermione had been through, he couldn't help the wild blood that ran through him. So, much to his mother's horror and his father's pride, he'd become an Auror.

Ron passed a couple students in the hall and smiled at them, winking when they stared at the Auror with gaping jaws. Had he really not seen Harry Potter, his best friend, for a year and a half? In some ways, it seemed as though he hadn't seen Harry in so many years and yet… in Harry's letters he sensed something… different. A peace that Harry hadn't ever had due to the kind of anxious acceptance for family that Ron had felt since he had first met the orphan. It was still amazing to Ron to know that Harry would have traded all his fame for Ron's simple family life, yet Ron knew he probably would have too, in Harry's position.

Ron sighed and then proceeded down the hallway, counting doors on his right until he came to the sixth one. The hallways were deserted down near the teacher's corridors; the Christmas season left most people up in their rooms. Ron breathed in deeply, anticipation and nervousness making his stomach jump about. One and a half years… God… Sure they had kept in touch be letters but… Ron raised his hand and knocked.

After a few minutes Harry opened the door, his hair still tousled and the familiar lightning bolt scar still peeking out through his bangs.

"Ron?" Harry said in surprise, his eyes going wide as his gaze swept over his friend.

"Surprise," Ron announced, a big, rather silly smile, taking over his lips.

"Ron!" Harry cried with joy, stepping forward, and embracing the young man. "How have you been?" He laughed at himself as he said, "What am I doing? Come in, we'll talk inside. I hope you don't mind but I have company over." There was an odd twinkle in Harry's eyes that Ron didn't like…

Ron entered the room and followed after Harry as Harry led him down a short hallway to the living room. "Ron…" Harry moved the side as he continued, "You remember Professor Severus Snape, don't you?"

Ron stared in shock at the older man who sat in Harry's living room, a teacup not doing much to cover up the smile that was forming as the teacher saw the look on Ron's face. "I'm sure he hasn't forgotten me, Harry," Snape replied, laughter dancing in his eyes.

Ron couldn't believe it. Was this really Severus Snape, the potion's teacher? It looked like him, but his manner was completely different; he moved with a grace and enthusiasm that Ron's most despised teacher never had. He was smiling and laughing, he didn't sit as though the entire world sat upon his shoulder, but most notably of all, was the simple fact that he was talking to Harry as though they were old friends.

"Ron? Ron…?" Ron finally realized that Harry was standing in front of him, waving his hand. "Ron, are you alright?"

"Um… yeah… sure…" Ron stammered, glancing at Snape and shocked to find that the man, unlike the past, wasn't smirking cruelly at his discomfort, but was laughing as a friend would at the look on his face.

"I'll go get him a cup of tea, Harry," Snape said, standing with a grace that made Ron's head spin.

"Alright, Severus. Two sugars and a splash of milk?" Harry asked, glancing at Ron for confirmation, which the young man gave.

As soon as Snape was out of sight Ron leaned forward and grabbed Harry's arm, making Harry turn in surprise. "What the hell is that stupid git doing here?" Ron whispered angrily.

Ron saw a brief flash of fury cross Harry's features before it disappeared, carefully masked by a neutral face; Ron couldn't help the hurt that flashed through him. Since when did Harry feel he needed to hide his feelings from Ron? "He's not a 'stupid git', Ron, and I would ask you not to call him that," Harry said, gently prying Ron's fingers off his arm. "I realize that this may come as a shock to you but… well… you and Hermione left me alone and you were the only friends I'd ever had. He and I spent Christmas together last year and we'll probably spend it together this year as well. Severus isn't as bad as you may think; everything he did to us was because of me, and for that I'm sorry."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Ron asked, hurt dancing in his eyes. Okay, sure, it was true that he and Hermione had left Harry alone but Harry could have come and visit them… Well… not really… except during break… and then they had always been busy… But still! Snape?!

Harry pointed to a picture on the wall and said, "Severus and my mum were best friends." Ron turned in shock to see a small child, which vaguely reminded him of Snape, and Harry's mum playing with each other. A soft peaceful smile came over Harry's face as he stared at the picture. "It's kind of funny, but until last year I didn't realize that everyone was always talking about my dad with me and I never really thought about my mum, about how little I knew about her. Severus and I… we started out talking about her and we found that we other things in common as well. He became my friend…"

Harry looked at Ron who sputtered, "But…"

Harry shook his head, looking sad, and said, "And he was there for me when you weren't, Ron." His gaze was slightly cold when he looked Ron in the eye again. "Did you even come and visit me on the day Sirius died?" Ron barely managed to hold back a grimace. "No, Ron, neither you or Hermione did. It doesn't get easier through the years, Ron. They lied, the people who said that. It still hurts as much today as it did that day all those years ago. Severus was here for me, Ron, and you weren't…" Harry sighed and blinked. "I didn't mind Christmas… or even my birthday… but you didn't even come on that day…"

Ron didn't like the fact that he was feeling guilty, especially since Harry had gone and become friends with Snape. "Well, you could have told me in the letters how you felt!" Ron practically screamed.

"How?" Harry asked, shaking his head. "Dear Ron, I feel like shit today because you weren't here yesterday. I'm sorry that I'm not important enough to care about. I'm sorry that our friendship was special to me, but apparently not to you."

"What do you mean?!" Ron wanted to scream at the young man in front of him.

"You don't understand!" Harry yelled. "You don't understand because you always had friends and didn't know what it was like to go without any! But you were one of my first friends! Don't you remember fourth year? You were my most special thing, because you were the first real best friend I had ever had! But you don't understand that! You don't understand that you, Sirius, and Hermione were the closest things to family that I ever had! And Sirius died and the rest of my family wasn't even here to mourn him with me." He looked at Ron, tears making his eyes appear brighter and more luminous than usual. "But, see, even now you don't understand how that can be. I think that's what hurts the most… the fact that you never felt as strongly as I did. I could never mean as much to you as you do to me. And the fact that I haven't seen you in a year and a half shows that much." Harry looked down and single tear managed to escape its emerald prison to fall to the carpet. "You were my special something, Ron, that something that would hurt me beyond anything else if it left... and you did leave and you did hurt me. I'm thankful for the time we had… but it's been a year and a half…"

"But Harry… we're not that different… and next time…" Ron couldn't help the shock that was coursing through him. To know that Harry had carried all these feelings inside him… Ron also couldn't help the irritation that coursed through him over the fact that Harry was right; he didn't, couldn't, understand the feelings that Harry had.

"How long?" the sudden question made Ron pause.

"What?"

"How long, till the next time?" Harry asked, looking up, his gaze still clouded, even though the rain was gone now. "Another year and a half? Will you come strolling back in expecting everything to be the same?" A sad look was on Harry's face. "I can't take another year and a half not knowing if you're ever going to visit." Harry looked Ron in the eye and Ron was suddenly treated with a look that he had never thought to get from Harry; it was distant and Ron almost wondered who, exactly, he was looking at. "Don't bother coming back," Harry whispered, "If you're going to walk out that door and not bother on visiting for another year and a half. Next time, I'll close the goddamn door on your face."

"Harry?"

"I think you should leave now, Ron… And think about what I said…" A sad smile crossed over Harry's face. "Severus understands me, Ron, and that means everything to me... When you walk out that door, I want you to go and think… and if you think you can accept the new me, with Severus who, through the past year, has been a truer friend then you, come back tomorrow. If not… don't bother coming back at all."

Ron, in shock, didn't offer any resistance as Harry all but pushed Ron through the hallway and out the door. Before he closed it, Harry said, "I'll be waiting… but I won't expect anything…" A sad smile. "It won't be the first time you've let me down…" And them Harry was gone, leaving Ron to stare at a blank door, wondering why he had been such a stupid git all these years.

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IMPORTANT NOTE: For those of you that wish it, DUE TO MY SPORADIC postings, I am offering you, the readers, A MAILING LIST to sign up to. When I finally UPDATE, I will SEND OUT AN EMAIL informing those of you that are on the list that I have finally updated. I need you to EMAIL me, telling that you wish to sign up, and whether it's for ORIGINAL FICTION or FANFICTION. I WILL NOT accept those people that ask to be up on it in a review because I can't be sure that email is real. The mailing list will ALSO OFFER the TITLES of those works that I am posting, the COUPLES (if any) that are in it, which FANDOM it is from, and whether it is a SEQUEL to anything.

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Petra: So, there it is... I think we did a really good job on it.
Kati: How do you think we did on the characters?
Petra: Obviously, Severus was out of character but, then, he was supposed to be.
Kati: And Harry and Ron?
Petra: Tell me how I did folks!
Kati: Also, please remember to check out our site!
Petra: Also, thanks to:

MYSTIC DRAGONSFIRE: Thank you! Here's more... At the moment I don't have anything else planned, just vague ideas but nothing clear. shrug Who knows, this might be the end of the arc... though, somehow, I doubt it.
C-CHAN: That's okay. It confused me but I shrugged on and answered it anyways. laugh Do you really think Snape was in-character? looks at fic I think that's one of the best compliments I've ever been given. I just wrote and, though in my opinion, I don't think he's in character at all... shrug As long as you, adored reader, like it, who am I to say nay? laugh How did you like this chapter?

"I dream of a day when I can open my eyes, and my dreams won't disappear."
-Rose Marie Ledam

Petra Megami Assari
The Gentle Tiger Goddess