Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Harry and Ginny had been kissing on the sofa for so long now that Harry could no longer feel his lips. She had been slowly warming to the idea of sleeping over at the flat, 'but only sleeping' she had specified, and it was beginning to look as if tonight might be the night. Ron had gone straight to bed as soon as he got home that afternoon with a headache and Hermione hadn't been over for four days now due to her growing workload at St Mungo's.

The only reason Harry was still on edge about the progression of his relationship with Ginny that evening was that the twins hadn't stopped by for a couple of days and this meant that the fireplace could ignite any time now and they could blunder out into the living room and totally kill the mood.

"Harry?" Ginny breathed into his ear, causing his whole body to shiver, "I think I'd better go home now."

Harry looked down into Ginny's eyes and heaved a sigh of resignation.

"Yeah?" he frowned half-heartedly.

"Yeah," she nodded with a sympathetic smile, "and I think you should get an early night too y'know? You and Ron have been working really hard at that place and I'm sure it's not just talking its toll on him is it?"

Harry shifted around so Ginny could settle her head in the crook of his neck.

"It's just the damn altitude sickness that's all. Ron's not managed to shake it off like we all expected him to."

Ginny tilted her head to cast a sceptical gaze up at her boyfriend.

"Harry altitude sickness doesn't give you migraines hours later and it fades as a person gets used to it too. You two are being overworked at that place and that commute sounds like the last thing you need. Why does it have to be so remote and why do you have to get there using muggle methods?"

Harry rolled his eyes and gave a tut.

"It's a magic-free area Ginny. You can't apparate into a magic free area. There are anti magic wards around it and no magic can be used within. It's what the patients need."

Ginny sighed and snuggled into Harry's side, giving him a squeeze, before mumbling something so low that Harry had to ask her to repeat herself.

"I said that if Ron's still struggling the next time I come round I'm telling mum and she'll be here all night every night and I'm sure you don't want that do you? Neither of you."

The fireplace exploded in green flames before Harry could decide between warning Ginny to keep her trap shut or reassure her that he and Ron were just fine. They both jumped apart and saw Mrs Weasley's face emerging from the flames and looking around the room.

"Oh there you are Ginny dear," she said when she found her daughter straightening her crumpled skirt, "I think it's time you came home don't you? Harry and your brother have got a busy day tomorrow and don't need you keeping them up all night."

"I'm coming mum," Ginny said, still a little too flustered to snap at her mother for treating her as if she was a child, "Goodnight Harry."

Ginny bent over and gave Harry a peck on the cheek before heading towards the fireplace.

"Aren't you going to say goodnight to your brother Ginny?" Mrs Weasley said primly.

"He's gone to bed already mum."

Mrs Weasley immediately picked up on this as slightly strange news but seemed to decide not to comment on it. Harry waved her off as her head disappeared from the fireplace and Ginny took a handful of floo powder to head back to the Burrow. Harry hoped that Ginny wasn't in for the questioning about Ron's welfare when she got back. He also hoped that Ginny wouldn't confide what she really thought about that subject either.

It was bad enough that Harry had already been worrying about Ron's supposed 'altitude sickness' for over a week now.

"It was the same person but now he's burning," Jess was explaining her latest vision to Ron and Harry at the clinic, "The white light is burning him and he just disappears in it."

Harry was having trouble this afternoon with his translating duties. Well not the whole afternoon, only since they had been talking to Jess really. Ron had been using signs for words that Harry didn't know to interpret and then his best friend began using words that even he didn't seem to have signs for and was now writing on his pad and handing it to Harry to read aloud to Jess more and more often.

Ron was writing such clinical stuff and so fast that it was almost like watching Hermione taking notes in class at Hogwarts.

"So it's a reoccurring vision involving the same people every time?" Harry read from the pad and Jess frowned and nodded.

Ron was already scribbling and soon stabbed his finger down at the pad, ordering Harry to read what he had just written immediately.

"Is this a tactile vision or do you experience it as if you were in a dream?" Harry turned to his friend in astonishment, "Ron what the...?"

Ron waved his hand to silence Harry and stared intently at Jess with unblinking eyes.

"I don't know what you mean Ron. Are you alright?" Jess was asking as she fumbled for him to reassure herself that she was really talking to the same person.

Ron jumped up from his seat and stepped out of her reach while mouthing something that Harry could've sworn was 'Don't touch him'.

Him?

Ron paced up and down the room a few times before taking a deep breath and sitting down again. Jess sat in a nervous silence and Harry stared into his friend's face as Ron blinked a couple of times before turning to Harry and smiling. On seeing Harry's concerned expression Ron's face fell and he twirled his fingers and gave a shrug.

"What happened?" Harry repeated in astonishment, "I was about to ask you the same thing mate. Are you sure you're alright?"

Ron looked totally bewildered and turned from Jess to Harry with a deep frown setting into his forehead. The red head shrugged and gave a thumbs up.

"Harry what's happening?" Jess said nervously.

"Um Ron's just a little out-of-sorts today," Harry began to explain while Ron stared at his friend at a total loss as to what he was on about, "Do you want to go on or do you want to talk about anything else with us?"

"No it's fine, I'm fine for today I think," Jess reached out for Ron again, "Just get some rest alright Ron. I'm getting worried about you."

Ron was still utterly lost it seemed but smiled and snatched something away from his face and seemed to toss it over his shoulder.

"Forget it," Harry translated, glad to be back to sign language once again and cautiously slipping the notepad into his pocket and wondering what Hermione would make of this intense articulate Ron, "I know I have."

Ron was smiling a confused smile and leaned forward to take Jess' hand just as her fingers curled around his wrist and then it happened. Jess's screams were enough to shatter glass but Harry wasn't focused on her at all. He was on his knees supporting Ron who was curled up into the foetal position clutching his head as if in fear of it splitting open.

"Nurse Stour!" Harry roared, "Somebody, we need some help in here!"

Jess was still screaming, holding her own head and pulling on her hair with her face contorted in pain and distress.

"She's burning him! Please stop her, she's killing him!" Jess was sobbing now as the screams faded and she seemed to emerge from her vision.

Some of the staff from the clinic were hauling Jess over to a bed to attempt to calm her down and sedate her while nurse Stour crouched down beside Harry and Ron and tried to pry Ron's hands away from his head to see what the problem was.

"Did she strike him Harry? What on earth happened here?"

"She didn't hit him she..." Harry remembered the strange thing he thought he'd seen Ron mouthing earlier, "She touched him that's all. She just touched him gently on the arm and he seemed to get a really painful headache all of a sudden."

"At the same time Jess had her vision?" Stour frowned and Harry nodded, glad not to be the only one to make that connection and not like it one little bit, "Alright so let's just make sure he's okay shall we? Ron? Ron can you hear me?"

Ron was panting heavily and blinking his eyes back into focus as he nodded his head and then winced. That had obviously hurt a bit.

"Can you stand Ron?" Stour was saying as she and Harry tried to heave Ron to his feet and sit him back into his chair.

Ron was shaking quite violently now and just about managed to sign the letter J. Harry squeezed his friend's shoulders and whispered a reassurance that Jess was going to be fine and not to worry about her for the time being.

"This has never happened before," Stour was muttering to herself as a colleague presented her with a medical bag before moving on to assist with the calming of Jess on the other side of the room, "You don't have any seers in your family do you Ron?"

Ron shook his head and closed his eyes again. Harry made himself a rigid as he could so Ron had a strong support to lean on while nurse Stour thought a little more.

"I don't know, it's unprecedented, but if I didn't know any better I'd say you were acting like an antenna for her visions. It's almost as if you activated it but that's impossible, even with seer ancestry."

Ron swallowed and opened his eyes again. He looked to Harry and signed with twirling fingers and a lost look on his face.

"I don't know what's going on mate but we'll figure it out and you'll be fine alright?" Harry tried to smile reassuringly. Thankfully Ron nodded and supported his head in his hands.

"Does it still hurt?" Stour asked as she began to rifle through her medical bag.

Ron shook his head slowly before making a pulsing movement on either side of his head very slowly with both hands.

"It's throbbing," Harry told her and wished they were somewhere magical treatment could be administered.

"Listen Harry I think you should get him home and put him straight to bed. It seems to be a migraine and nothing more so let's treat it like that for now shall we?"

Harry nodded at the nurse and, when another member of staff came along to help remove Ron from the room and get him away from Jess in case they were the causes of each other's problems, nurse Stour pulled Harry to one side and began to talk in hushed tones.

"I'd recommend he stay at home tomorrow and rest up properly but in case he seems fine and insists coming to work I don't want him to work with Jess okay?"

"Right," Harry nodded.

"I'm not saying this is either of their fault but you've got to admit Harry, this definitely isn't altitude sickness he's been dealing with. That would have faded long ago and if anything it's just getting worse."

"I know," Harry sighed.

"If it is a reaction to Jess' visions then we can just assign somebody else to work with her one on one and Ron can continue to deal with all the others."

"What if it's not?" Harry said, not wanting to know the answer to this.

Nurse Stour smiled at the scruffy, bespectacled translator sadly.

"Why don't you just get him home for now eh?"

Hermione read and reread the notepad in silence before sitting back in the armchair and putting her hand to her face and frowning.

"Well?" Harry pressed.

"Well you're definitely right about this not being like Ron at all," she sighed before tossing the pad back down and sitting up again, "the language, the clinical, analytical tone, you said he was focused while writing and listening to this patient's responses?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded as he sat so far forward on the edge of the sofa that he was practically floating on the thin air just ahead of the seat rather than on it.

"And he's been getting more worn down every visit he makes to the clinic?" Harry nodded again, "The nurse doesn't think it's altitude sickness anymore either."

"She says the symptoms are all wrong," Harry said, eager to fill in every possible blank in this puzzle for Hermione, "it's supposed to fade as he gets used to the air up there but he's just been getting worse."

Hermione's head snapped up to stare at Harry and her eyes were wide. Harry wondered if she had worked it all out already, he hoped so.

"And you're just telling me all this now are you?" she hissed at him with barely concealed rage.

Harry had forgotten about this possibility. That Hermione might have, who was he kidding, would have wanted to know about Ron's tiredness and headaches the moment Harry noticed them.

"Look I wasn't sure what was going on and the nurse kept telling us it was the altitude. I'm sorry Hermione I came to you as soon as I got him home today didn't I?"

Hermione jumped to her feet and began pacing up and down the living room.

"I haven't seen him in days, too busy with my own thing, this is my fault."

"Don't say that Hermione!" Harry demanded as he rose to his own feet and stood before her to stop the pacing, "Ron doesn't need another guilt complex on top of mine thank you very much."

Hermione's shoulders slumped and she crumpled into Harry's arms. They hugged while Hermione let some of her built up stress go for once.

"But I'm training to be a healer Harry. I'm all about helping people and making sick people feel better and all at the expense of my own boyfriend being a magical antenna or something!"

Harry rubbed small circles on Hermione back and shushed her soothingly.

"He's not an antenna, even Stour dismissed it as soon as she said it, it's not possible. She was just saying what it seemed like. The coincidence in the timing that just as Jess was struck down with a vision Ron gets a crippling migraine. They're being kept apart the next time we go there so we should find out once and for all if it was Jess who was making him feel woozy won't we?"

Hermione nodded and sniffed.

"How are we feeling today?" nurse Stour said when Ron and Harry stepped into the clinic from the frosty morning mist they both had to trudge through to get to the clinic.

Ron smiled and gave her a thumbs up while Harry nodded from behind his friend to ensure the nurse that Ron genuinely did seem okay that morning.

"Oh good, I was worried you know?" she beamed as she waved the two of them inside and closed the door behind them.

Ron had barely shuffled his coat off before he was signing to enquire how Jess was doing.

"Much better," Stour said as they followed her through to the day room, "she always recovers from visions remarkably quickly. I think she has developed quite a high tolerance for the discomfort now. She's been asking after you in fact Ron. I'll leave you both to get started while I go to her room and reassure her that you're right as rain."

Ron smiled and nodded before turning to Harry and sharing a questioning look before glancing around the group of patients scattered around the day room.

"I dunno," Harry shrugged, "do you want to get the difficult one over with first?"

Ron nodded and made his way over to the sapper who sat alone in the far corner of the room. Ron pulled up and empty chair and set it before the unshaven wizard. He waited until the man looked up at him to see what he was waiting for and then nodded down at the chair and raised his eyebrows.

"If you want," the sapper grunted with a shrug.

Ron shared a small smile with Harry as he sat down opposite the man and put his hand to his chin and moved it away before holding his hands in front of him and waggling his fingers in a 'come-on' motion. Harry chuckled at this and pulled up his own chair.

"Thanks for the warm welcome," Harry smirked while Ron pointed at his eye and then the sapper before shaking his head, rubbing his hands together and pointing at his eye and then at himself, "I've never seen you so happy to see me before."

Ron and Harry tried not to laugh as the sapper turned his face away from the two of them and Ron arched both his eyebrows in the hope that they'd maybe made this guy laugh at long last.

"What d'you want?" the sapper mumbled.

Ron pointed at himself before twirling his finger at the side of his head while pointing skyward and then tapping his forehead with two fingers and pointing them at the sapper.

"I was wondering what your name was," Harry translated.

The sapper huffed and folded his arms across his chest while maintaining his focus on the view outside the window. Ron leaned forward and followed his gaze. He made a pointing gesture from his eye out to the sky and splayed both hands and motioned downwards with them.

"It looks like rain," Harry said while nodding his agreement.

"Listen I told you to stay away from me. I told you I don't want to talk to you and I told you," the sapper turned and pointed directly into Ron's face while staring at him with fierce dark eyes.

The sapper's little protest never got to be completed however. Ron's whole body slumped and Harry barely had the reaction time to catch him as he fell from his chair.

"Ron?" Harry said as he tapped the side of Ron's face, "Ron!"

The sapper got up from his seat and stormed away while snarling to the approaching medical staff that were rushing to assist Harry with the unconscious Ron.

"He shouldn't be here."

He could hear his own name as if it were echoing around a deep dark cave and tried to look around to see where it was coming from. Then he realised that his eyes were closed so he opened them. That was when reality came hurtling back to him.

"Ron, oh thank Godric, you scared the hell out of me!" Harry was saying as he lifted him into the sitting position.

Ron tried to ask what had happened but all he could do was expel air from his lungs. Then he remembered. Ron always hated it when he woke up and forgot he couldn't talk. There was always a split second every morning when he would try to mumble something to himself or answer whoever had been rude enough to wake him when he would be normal. He would just be Ron, good old grumpy in the morning Ron, and not Ronald Weasley the mute.

Ron twirled his index fingers and tried to shrug, signing what he had just tried to say.

"You fainted," Harry said unsteadily.

I what?

Ron had never fainted in his entire life; he didn't think it was even possible. Sure he could fall asleep at the drop of a hat. He could fall asleep at will within a second of deciding to do so but he'd never fainted before.

Ron pointed at himself with a disgusted look on his face and tapped the side of his cheek with his finger.

"You're not a total girl!" Harry laughed; the relief on his face at Ron's ability to make a joke was obvious.

Nurse Stour was leaning over him and looking into his eyes while shining a tiny white light into his face.

"Have you ever fainted before Ron?" she asked as she put the light away and held up a finger in front of his face and ordered him to follow it with his eyes.

Ron tried to shake his head but Stour held his chin in a vice like grip and he couldn't. She must've felt his attempt to answer in the negative though as she took 'no' to be his answer. Ron traced the letter 'J' on his palm from the tip of his middle finger and down before curling up towards his thumb and gesturing around the room.

"Jess wasn't anywhere near you when it happened Ron," Harry answered.

"Indeed not," nurse Stour nodded, "she was taking a stroll on the other side of the grounds, she wasn't in or anywhere near the building and she didn't have any visions either. The incident earlier in the week seems to have been a coincidence after all."

"But..." Harry began before stopping himself and shaking his head as if dismissing his own thought.

"But what Harry?" Stour said attentively.

"Well we were talking to that sapper guy and he pointed right at Ron and that was it," Harry clicked his fingers, "he was down like a sack of spuds!"

"Well it could be another coincidence," nurse Stour frowned before giving Ron a beam of reassurance, "If I find out you've got a flu bug or something and have infected all my staff and patients I'll give you something to swoon about young man!"

Ron gave a silent chuckle and his ears flushed scarlet. He was clearly embarrassed about having fainted in front of so many people. If the twins found out about this he'd never live it down.

"Harry," nurse Stour said as she took Harry's arm and headed out into the hallway with the young interpreter, "could I have a quick word before you take him home?"

Ron watched them go with a frown before another member of the nursing staff got his attention and handed him a glass of water.

"Don't feel so bad," she smiled down at him, "I reckon it takes a real man to faint."

"So what did the nurse at the clinic think?" Neville asked Hermione as they talked about this latest development over lunch in the cafeteria.

Hermione twirled a piece of lettuce around on the end of her fork before tossing the piece of cutlery down and shoving her plate away with her lunch barely touched.

"She asked him to check that Ron wasn't taking any potions or under any spells or enchantments for his throat or anything else," Hermione sighed as she slumped back in her chair, "Harry told her that Ron was clean as far as he knew and asked her why she'd asked."

Neville nodded his head and leaned across the table to make Hermione meet his eyes.

"She thought that if he was under some kind of magical treatment the sapper bloke was draining it from him and that was what's been causing his problems at work," he said.

"How did you know?" Hermione gasped.

"I'm studying head trauma remember?" Neville shrugged, "It's what I'd ask."

Hermione sighed again and nodded to herself in deep thought before continuing.

"Well Harry said he didn't think Ron was undergoing any treatment but said that if anybody knew something about Ron that he didn't it would be me. He told me all about Ron's episode yesterday when I came by the flat to see him and he asked me."

Neville stared at Hermione's sad face and took her hand where it rested on top of the table.

"And Ron's not taking any potions or sleeping draught or...anything?"

Hermione shook her head.

"I asked him and then asked him if he would ever keep anything from me to save me the worry and we ended up having a big fight. I was going to spend the night but I thought he needed the rest and he can't rest knowing I'm fretting about something so..."

Hermione shook her head as if trying to clear all the clutter away and see exactly what she was looking for. She needed to see the solution to Ron's problems.

"You want him to stop going don't you?" Neville asked her in a low voice, "You want him to give up the job."

She wiped her eyes and nodded.

"I feel so awful about it Neville," she sniffed, "he's waited so long for an opportunity to work, to be of any use other than teaching trainee Aurors how to perform non verbal magic as well as a mute can, and I can't ask him to give all that up now he has it."

"Shhh, don't do this to yourself Hermione, you're not a bad person for wanting to protect him y'know?" Neville forced a reassuring smile onto his face.

"I know but I can't stand seeing him so...weary," Hermione wiped her welling eyes with the heel of her palm again, "and that stuff he wrote on his pad, it was like my medical notes not Ron talking to a frightened girl about her awful nightmare visions. I'm scared for him Neville."

"Listen, I think I know Ron pretty well after living in each other's pockets for all those years as dorm mates and I think I have a pretty good idea of how to handle him when he's being moody and defensive."

"I thought I did too," Hermione said sulkily.

"Yeah well, as much as I like Ron, I never did that with him to cheer him up!"

Hermione's eyes flashed with the old sparkle that had been missing for the past week and she let out a genuine burst of laughter while playfully slapping Neville on the arm.

"Neville, you're as bad as Harry!" she giggled as she calmed down from her mini tension release.

"What I was going to say was let him binge on chocolate. It's got that ingredient that makes you happier and calms you down doesn't it? That's why you're supposed to eat it after being around Dementors after all. If chocolate makes you relax and a little happier then it's got to be ten times more powerful in Ron's case 'cause that guy's got an addiction to the stuff."

Hermione blinked and nodded, this wasn't a bad idea at all really.

"Just sit up all night with enough chocolate to kill most other normal human beings and talk about everything but what's going on. I think that's what Ron needs more than worry and accusations of keeping things from you right now."

Hermione couldn't remember the last time she and Ron had sat in front of the fire feeding each other chocolate until they both fell asleep. The next morning she felt sick, fat and spotty while Ron was practically dancing. She always did marvel at how his skin was so clear and his build was so slim while he ate the way he did. Damn him and his metabolism.

"Well I suppose I'd better go shopping then eh?" she smiled.

Harry was relieved that the day had gone so well. Ron had managed to get through a whole hour with Jess and she hadn't had any visions and Ron hadn't gone all McGonagall on him, although neither of them dared to make physical contact after the last time. The only thing Harry did notice was Ron rubbing his head as they left Jess' room. When he asked if everything was okay Ron smiled and adopted a playful scowl while moving his hand on either side of his head.

"I'm not worrying, I'm just asking!" Harry had laughed.

They had avoided another session with the sapper, nurse Stour advised it and the sapper had no desire to talk to them anyway, and Harry couldn't help himself as he glared at the moody wizard as they passed the day room on their way from one patients room to another. He could've sworn he heard the man growling to a nearby member of staff that 'that kid shouldn't bloody be here'.

The day was over. Ron's mini headache never returned and everybody was happy. That was until Ron pulled on his coat and walked back over to Stour's office, which was opposite the entrance to the day room, to say goodbye.

"I'll get you to talk to Swanwick tomorrow, I've been keeping him to one side until you found your feet here, he can be very shy around new people and with you and Harry there'll be two for him to deal with so..." she waved her hand and rolled her eyes.

Ron laughed at this and pointed at her before waving his hands in front of him, pointing his fingers while keeping his fists together and then pulling them apart horizontally.

"He said he's got you using sign language now," Harry called down from the front door where he was wrestling his own coat on.

"What can I say?" nurse Stour shrugged, "You've grown on me."

Ron pretended to be embarrassed and gave her a wave before turning back to rejoin Harry when his face fell and his body with it. Neither Stour nor Harry was close enough to catch him and he hit the floor with a thud.

"Ron!" Harry yelled as he skidded across the floor on his knees to roll his best friend over and see that he was already coming round, "Merlin Ron, where did that one come from?"

Stour instinctively looked into the day room and saw the sapper snoozing at his window on the far side of the room and back down the corridor where she knew Jess was in her room a safe distance away.

"Harry seriously, is he taking something? That's the only reason I can come up with for him to be struggling here. There's nothing around that could possibly be triggering him."

Ron sat up and rubbed his face where he had hit the floor while glaring at the nurse. He pointed at himself and then gestured around at his surroundings.

"I am here y'know?" Harry translated half heartedly while helping Ron back up to his feet and making sure that he was steady enough to let go of.

"I'm sorry Ron but I really need you to see somebody in St Mungo's before you come back to work tomorrow. The last thing I want is for you to be damaging yourself just to prove a point."

Ron huffed and looked with great annoyance from Stour to Harry and back again. He shrugged his shoulders with resignation and pointed at his eye and then away from himself to rub his fist down the side of his upper arm.

"I'll go and see a healer," Harry said with relief and he looked at Ron with a grateful smile, "we'll go to St Mungo's with Hermione in the morning and see somebody before we come here okay. You won't even be late for your first patient."

Ron nodded and headed for the door.

"Tell the healer to trace any residual magic in him that even he might not know about," Stour said quietly to Harry, "I'm sure that's what's causing this."

Harry nodded and followed Ron out the door.