"Why did they have to be here?" He said softly to nobody in particular.
"Hey mate," Blaise Zabini said as he slid into the seat across from his best friend. He had heard Ron mumble about a 'they,' and by process of elimination figured that he was talking about the Snapes.
Ron glanced up from the firewiskey that he had been nursing, and smiled at his friend's intrusion. 'Leave it to Blaise to cheer me up.' Ron thought, as he stood out of courtesy to shake his friend's hand. "Hey Blaise, how are you doing?"
Blaise frowned, at the offered hand and glanced away. Truth be told, he had news for Ron that he knew the redhead wasn't going to like. Especially at a time like this, when he knew very well that he had been reminiscing about his Hogwarts days and the "Dream Team."
He had been the one to find Ron after he had his fall out with his best friends, and for the first time he put aside his loyalties to help out the enemy. Ron's passion towards the protection of his friends made him see that he wasn't the wanker that Malfoy had made him out to be. Not that Malfoy was any better.
Draco had always made Blaise out to be the black sheep amongst the death eaters, so the friendships that he had in the inner circle began to run thin. Not that he could blame them for not trusting him, after Malfoy's comments because every one of them had been true. They just couldn't prove it.
But seeing Ron in the state he had been in after Hermione's rejection, a plan formed in his mind. And so, after a few weeks, Blaise had convinced him to join the death eaters...as a spy.
The rest of his plan fell into place as he was honored by Voldemort for bringing someone so valuable into the circle.
It had been almost three and a half years since that particular turn of events, and Blaise had been there for every moment. Backing Ron up when Malfoy got out of hand, and consoling him when he had to lose his old friends by making them believe he was a minion of Voldemort. For the longest time it had been just the two of them...and Dumbledore who knew their little secret. The secret itself was enough to make them inseparable.
Then Pansy entered the picture, when they found out that she was one of Dumbledore's spies as well. It didn't take Ron long to fall for her, and Blaise was really surprised that 'Promiscuous Parkinson' actually said yes to Ron's offer of marriage.
They had a small wedding with just their close friends and a few prominent figures of society as witnesses. But, unbeknownst to Ron, everything went down hill from there.
Now watching his friend stand before him with his hand outstretched, Blaise shook his head. "Ron, mate. You better sit down. I've got some bad news, and you're not going to like it."
Ron glared at his friend, before taking his seat again. Blaise had never lied to him, in the years that they had been friends, and if he said that he had bad news, it wasn't a good thing. Steeling himself, he waited for his friend to continue.
"It's about Pansy. While you were gone, it was known in the inner circle that she's been seeing Malfoy." Blaise watched his friend closely and noticed the unmistakable signs of rage peeking out behind his usually outgoing demeanor.
Leaning on the table, Blaise took a deep breath. He hated telling that to his friend, but he was going to hate the next part even more. Telling him the one secret that he'd been keeping from him for a month.
Taking another deep breath, he continued. "Ron, you're going to need to hold it together, because that wasn't all I had to say."
Ron's eyes flashed, what could be worse that what he had just heard? What, was his wife dead? Breathing heavily he gripped the table until his fingers took on a sickly white color. "What else is there for you to say?" He ground out through clenched teeth.
"Do you remember that night when I got so inebriated, and you couldn't take me home because Voldemort needed you?" Blaise asked. At Ron's nod, he continued. "The next morning I woke up with your wife in my bed."
Ron's nostrils flared.
"Ron, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do it, honest." He pleaded. But truth be told, the look on Ron's face scared him to death. It could easily be describable as 'murderous.' Standing up, Blaise headed for the fireplace.
He couldn't believe what had just happened. His only friend, gone in an instant all because of one stupid mistake. Grabbing some powder off of the mantle, he called out his destination and disappeared in a flash of green flame and smoke.