a/n: Lillian Marie Potter thanks sooo much for the review! anyway, i thought this chapter would take longer to write but i used most of my vacation time and managed to pull it off ) so read and review!
Chapter 26- Ron's Strange Behavior
Harry was disturbed in the middle of the night by the sound of heavy footsteps walking across the room. He sat up in his four-poster and fumbled around, trying to find his glasses while adjusting his eyes to the darkness. As his hands found their way to the bedside table he slipped his glasses on just in time to see a Ron plop down onto his bed with a groan.
"Ron?" Harry asked with a yawn, knowing that most of his consciousness hadn't wakened.
Ron never answered and Harry just shrugged it off and forced himself back to sleep, knowing fully well that Hermione would already be on his case about his work for the D.A. when he woke up the next morning.
"Harry!" A loud voice jolted Harry out of his slumber and the shock of the sound caused him to fall out of his four-poster. He scrambled out of the tangle of sheets and looked up at a very disgruntled looking Hermione. He quickly scanned the room, wondering why any of the boys in their year had allowed her in (although it wasn't quite uncommon), but observed that they must have cleared out earlier that morning.
"Have you any idea what time it is? You've slept nearly half the day away and there's work to be done! I would have gone ahead to start the research but seeing as all the good books are in the Restricted section and you're the only one with a bloody key then I…"
"Hermione do you ever stop talking?" Ron's voice groaned from his bed. Harry looked over at him at saw large bags under his bloodshot eyes and it seemed as though he had been through some dreadful war. His hair was sticking up in many directions and it seemed as though he was fighting with himself just to sit up and speak.
"What happened to you?" Harry asked bluntly, unsure of how else to voice his concern.
"I feel like I've been hit by a bus," Ron said darkly, holding his head in his hands.
"What's going on with you Ron?" Hermione asked quietly, going into her maternal mode. But Ron didn't answer right away. He stared at the floor for a while, thinking of how to put his condition into words.
"It feels like a chunk of my brain is missing," he said slowly, his gaze still fixed on the ground. "And I don't know why but I'm incredibly tired, I don't think I even slept last night."
Harry and Hermione just looked at each other and waited for Ron to continue.
"And I think I was sleep walking last night, I remember waking up in the common room."
"Yeah, I heard you come in," Harry confirmed.
"What happened to your hands?" Hermione asked inquisitively.
Harry's eyes flickered to Ron's hands as she said this, not noticing if anything was wrong with them until that moment. His knuckles looked very raw, they were swollen and stained brown, as though he had been in some sort of blood fight.
"I dunno," Ron shrugged as he flexed his fingers, examining them for himself. There was a short moment of silence while Harry and Hermione just watched as Ron slowly drifted deeply into some sort of trance. His eyes were dazed, as though he was staring right through the dorm's walls. It was almost like Harry and Hermione weren't even there.
"I'm going back to bed." Ron said rather robotically, after giving it much contemplation. He rolled over on his side and pulled all the curtains around him. Hermione shot Harry a quizzical look, which Harry could only return, still not fully understanding what Ron was feeling.
Hermione shrugged and turned her attention back to Harry. "Just let him rest I guess. But you on the other hand have got to get moving!"
After Hermione dragged Harry out of bed, shoved toast down his throat and lugged him down the many corridors of the castle towards the library. Madame Pince glowered at the pair as they shuffled to the back of the library to the Restricted Section. Harry pulled the key that Dumbledore had given him the day before out of his robe pocket (apparently not quick enough as Hermione was tapping her foot impatiently). He pushed the door open with a creak and stepped into the dusty area.
The floorboards squeaked under his feet as he stepped further into the room and Hermione wandered around in awe.
"Wow," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Imagine all the stuff that's in here…"
Harry rolled his eyes at Hermione's eager attitude and took a look at the whole area. It was quite dusty and dark from lack of use but it did seem as though there would be a lot of valuable information within the tall bookshelves crowding around him.
"Its hard to know where to get started," Harry said after much thought.
"Let's just find a place to work first," Hermione said, Harry couldn't tell if it was a suggestion or a command. He wandered down the halls of books, in search of a table or some kind of flat surface to take notes and read on but he searched in vain.
He turned around and followed another aisle of books all the way to the end and found an old door. He slowly turned the knob and the opened door revealed a tiny office-like room. It had a long table in the middle with chairs all around it. There were two armchairs in the corner around a small coffee table in front of a fireplace. The whole room was covered in a layer of dust but it still had a cozy feel to it.
"Hermione," Harry called. "I think I found a spot!"
"Great," Hermione's voice called distantly. She soon came lugging into the room with some very heavy-looking books in her arms. She brushed passed Harry and dropped the volumes on the table with a loud slam. "Now we can get started."
'This is going to be a long day…' Harry thought.
Harry and Hermione spent the whole day in the Restricted section going through ancient volumes of Defense Against the Dark Arts and taking notes on everything useful. There were tons of different articles on artifacts, incantations and even a few potions that Harry found interesting.
"Have you looked through this one yet?" Hermione asked, dropping a massive old book on their worktable.
"Not yet," Harry said, not looking up from the parchment he was scribbling on. "All the ones I've gone through are over there." He pointed to a pile of ancient titles at the other end of the long table. "How much longer until we get out of here?" Harry asked somewhat impatiently, closing the book he was leaning over.
"We've got to get as much done as possible Harry," Hermione said, leafing through the book she had just found. "We can't leave anything until the last minute. And this is only the first part of it. We still need to make a schedule and come up with lesson plans and…"
"Hermione," Harry interrupted. "We've done enough research to last a week in just one day, making a schedule for at least the next few weeks shouldn't take much time and we've got tons of material to make lessons with."
Harry had spoken very truthfully. They had a pile of parchment between the two of them a foot high with notes they had taken and Harry thought that if he had to write anything more that his hand would fall off.
Hermione sighed, knowing Harry was right (but secretly not wanting him to be). "I suppose we can call it a day. But I'm taking some of these back to the common room."
"Whatever," Harry mumbled under his breath as he began to start collecting his things. After a few minutes they were exiting the Restricted section, locking the door behind them. As they walked towards the exit of the library Harry saw that it had gotten very late. Through the windows he could see the orange and purple blend of the sky as the sun set. He guessed that it was nearly time for dinner.
Upon entering the common room they most of the other Gryffindors there getting ready to head down to the Great Hall. When Hermione closed the door behind her (rather loudly since she was unable to balance properly with all the books in her arms) Harry saw Cassie's head look back at them from behind the couch in front of the fire. She gave them a half hearted smile and turned back around to stare at the fireplace.
"I see you two have made progress," she said as Harry collapsed onto one of the armchairs, dropping his pile of parchment next to him.
"Yup," Harry said tiredly, wanting nothing more than to stuff his face and then head straight to bed. After spending a whole day in the library, in a small room, with tons of books containing too much information, and Hermione, his head was bound to burst any second. "How's Ron?" He asked absentmindedly, although the question had been buzzing in the back of his head all day.
"Terribly cranky," she replied, seeming a bit offended. "I went up there today to check on him and he called me some kind of a thief. I have no idea what he was talking about but he kept going on about how everyone around him was unfaithful and I should return what I stole."
Harry looked at her quizzically and then turned to Hermione, automatically hoping that she would have an answer. She was already looking through some of the articles she had brought back but was paying attention to the conversation nonetheless. She shrugged when Harry's gave fell upon her, already knowing he'd assume she'd have answers. "Maybe he's got some kind of a head cold and now he's just delusional."
Harry wasn't sure what exactly was going on with Ron today but he thought that maybe dinner would snap him out of it. He lugged himself out of his seat and started to head up the stairs. "Careful," Cassie warned him from below as he headed towards the dorms.
As Harry approached the door as Seamus emerged rather quickly, slamming it behind him in a fit. Upon seeing Harry he hurried over to him. "What's wrong with your mate Harry?"
"What?" Harry asked, slightly confused, although he had a pretty good idea what it was about.
"Ron," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You'd think he's got a shovel up his arse or something."
"How so?"
"He's acting like a bloody lunatic! He's ransacking through all of our trunks, called Neville a stuttering twit and he keeps tell me I'm some kind of half-breed! Not to mention he's throwing books about and what not. I was lucky to get out alive," he added dramatically. "I think he's looking for something and unless you've got it Harry, I wouldn't go in there."
"Is he talking to anybody?" Harry asked hopefully, wishing that maybe Ron was dipping in and out from sane to insane and not just acting insanely all day.
"No, but he's mumbling to himself about incompetent underlings or something like that."
"Oh dear," Harry said under his breath.
"Anyway, I'm getting out of here before he decides to come after me. Good luck Harry." Seamus gave him a quick reassuring pat on the back and disappeared down the stairs. Harry took a deep breath then pushed open the door to a disastrous site.
All of the boys' beds were complete wrecks. Most of them were missing pillows and had their sheets tossed onto the floor. Trunks were thrown in multiple directions with personal belongings spilling out of them, and in a huddled mass in the corner, Harry saw Ron. He was facing the wall, hugging his knees to his chest and rocking back and forth and whimpering to himself. Harry got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he navigated through the mess and approached his friend.
"Ron?" He asked quietly, somewhat frightened from hearing of his wild behavior. Ron didn't answer, but the sound of his whimpering increased.
"Everything okay?" He questioned, a bit more assertively, not wanting to baby him.
Ron turned at looked to look at Harry; his blue eyes seemed enlarged as they bulged out of his freckled face. He had that dazed look again and was just staring at Harry in awe.
"Harry," Ron distantly, his gaze still fixed on the wizard towering above him. "What's wrong with me?"
"I don't know Ron," Harry shrugged. "Maybe we should go down to the hospital wing and…"
"No," Ron said darkly, taking Harry by surprise.
"Erm…okay…well um…what have you been doing today?" He asked, trying to gain some information.
"I slept," Ron answered casually.
"Are you sure?"
"No…no I'm not." He shook his head and looked at the floor, suddenly finding it very interesting.
"It seems like someone's always reading my mind…invading my thoughts…And then I went down to the Great Hall for lunch today and everyone's looking at me very strangely…This whole day just seemed to be a blur."
Harry had never seen Ron so miserable. For as long as Harry had known him, Ron had always been relatively normal and got on well with everyone (except for the Slytherins but they were a different story) and now to be shunned by his peers, not even knowing their reason, Harry felt nothing but pity for him. He knew something was going on with Ron but Harry couldn't put his finger on it.
"Ron, there's some stuff you should know," Harry started.
"Apparently you've been acting very," he searched for the right word, "peculiar today."
"How?"
"You've just been causing a ruckus to put it simply." Harry sat down on the closest bed, suddenly feeling more comfortable talking to Ron.
"Oh," Ron answered, seeming even more down than before. For a while they just sat in silence, Harry watching Ron, and Ron watching the floor. After some time, Harry found the silence too unbearable.
"Do you want to go down for dinner? Maybe if you eat something you'll feel better."
"No thanks, I'm not hungry."
'Ron is very sick,' Harry thought. "If you're sure then." He got up and navigated through the mess towards the door. Harry nearly pulled the door shut behind him when he heard Ron's quiet voice from the other side.
"Can you ask Cassie if she's been reading my mind today? I keep having that feeling like I'm being watched."
Harry poked his head in through the gap and nodded before he shut the door with a small click. As he trudged downstairs the common room was nearly empty. Hermione was deeply engrossed in one of her books and Cassie was sitting on the couch with Seamus, and Harry was positive they were discussing Ron's odd behavior.
Harry dropped himself back into the armchair he was sitting in moments ago and sighed heavily.
"Wow, you're alive?" Seamus said incredulously.
"Yeah," Harry said halfheartedly.
"Did he throw anything at you?" He inquired. Harry shook his head.
"Yell at you?"
"No."
"Weird…" He said, before getting up and exiting the common room.
"So what happened?" Cassie asked, anxious and nervous at the same time.
"Firstly, he wants to know if you've been reading his mind all day."
"Well I tried once earlier this morning but it was weird," she replied. "I wasn't getting anything. It's like he wasn't thinking or he was half asleep or something…"
"He says it feels like someone's always watching him or invading his thoughts. And apparently he doesn't remember doing anything to anybody. He thinks he's slept for most of the day." Harry put extreme emphasis on the word 'thinks.'
Hermione had put her book down to listen to Harry (very attentively he might add) and seemed to be very deep in thought.
"You don't think he's losing it do you?" Cassie asked.
"I don't think so," Hermione said thoughtfully.
"Maybe he's just paranoid," Harry suggested.
"He's taking paranoia to a new level," Cassie murmured.
"Harry, you said he felt like someone's been reading his thoughts all day, correct?" Hermione asked and Harry nodded in response.
"You don't think anyone here knows Legilimency do you?" Harry wondered.
"I highly doubt it," Hermione replied, scratching her chin.
"This is too weird," Cassie said (as if it wasn't obvious). "I'm heading down for dinner. I'll see you two later." She got up from her seat and exited the common room, leaving Harry and Hermione alone. They didn't say anything for a while, each wrapped up in their own minds.
"Oh!" Hermione said at last, as though just realizing something. "I think I read something about this before." She turned to the pile of books behind her and read the titles to herself quietly. Upon finding the volume she was looking for, she pulled it out from the stack and opened it to the table of contents. Harry's curiosity got the better of him and he got up from his seat and kneeled next to Hermione on the floor and began scanning the page.
Apparently, the book was about psychological disorders. It had countless chapters of diagnosing the problem, prevention of the disease, history of its discovery, everything you could think of. Hermione was unsatisfied with the results from the chapter list and flipped the wrinkled pages all the way to the index in the back. She trailed her finger down the column of the 'a' topics and stopped at 'amnesia, temporary; p. 548' and flipped backwards in the book again, creating a large gust of air.
"Here it is," she said airily, her eyes quickly moving back and forth as she read. "Aggressive behavior paired with paranoia and obliviousness to the afore mentioned behavior are symptoms of mind control and possession."
"No way," Harry said in awe, almost refusing to believe this ludicrous book.
"You don't think…" Hermione started.
"Don't think what?" A voice said from the staircase, startling both Harry and Hermione. Ron was looking at them curiously and his sudden appearance had frightened Harry to the point that it took all of his willpower to keep from screaming.
