A/N - Good news - I've got a new laptop and have written my first chapters of the year. I will have to actually finish some stories before publishing can really begin again, but finishing stories is my top priority so hopefully I can start publishing a new story within the next couple of months.
Exposed.
Lounging on his bed at Grimmauld Place, Harry Potter watched as his best friend, Ron Weasley checked his reflection for the tenth time in as many minutes. What he thought was going to change in that time, Harry didn't know. Although to be fair he also didn't know why Ron was being so fussy as he was only off to see his girlfriend, Lavender Brown, and by now she had to have seen him in pretty much every state imaginable.
"Thanks for doing this, Harry," Ron said, turning around and flashing his friend a wide smile.
"It's what friends are for," Harry returned with a casual shrug.
"Well, I appreciate it," Ron remarked. "Although if Mum wasn't so damn old-fashioned, we wouldn't have to do this. I mean, I'm seventeen, an adult in the eyes of the world. Yet she won't even let my girlfriend spend the night."
"I doubt she did it for any of your brothers, so she can't really do it for you."
"The woman is just out to stop me having sex," Ron grouched. "I wish she was more like Sirius. He never bothers when you want Hermione to stay over."
"Sirius is pretty laid back," Harry agreed as he swung his legs off the bed and got to his feet. "Are you ready to go?"
"I am," Ron confirmed with a nod, even as he turned back to the mirror to check his appearance yet again. "And you're sure Sirius won't notice anything? Mum will kill me if she finds I've sneaked away to go to see Lavender."
"She won't find out anything, and Sirius won't notice anything either," Harry assured his friend. "I've got it all sorted. While I'm distracting Sirius in the kitchen, you sneak out the front door. Sirius will think you're still up here, and as we know from experience he doesn't exactly bother us. But I guess if he does poke his head into my room, I can say you're in the bathroom."
"And in the morning?" Ron checked, happy that Harry had him covered and Sirius wouldn't even know he'd left.
"I'll get up first and say you're still in bed," Harry said, running over the plan yet again, even though he'd told Ron all of this several times already. "Sirius normally pops to the shops on a Saturday morning, so he'll go off thinking you're still here, and when he comes back, I'll tell him you've already gone home. Trust me, Ron, this is foolproof. You get to spend the night with Lavender, and as far as anyone is concerned, you're here with me."
With their plan ready to go the two boys headed downstairs. While Ron remained at the bottom of the stairs, Harry headed back towards the kitchen, which was located at the rear of the house. Opening the kitchen door and finding his godfather, Sirius Black, Harry shot Ron a quick grin over his shoulder, before closing the door and leaving his friend free to make his escape.
"Is it time?" Sirius asked Harry, keeping his voice low in case Ron overheard them.
"Yeah, Ron's still upstairs and I offered to grab us some hot chocolate," Harry replied.
"But are you sure he'll not notice if I'm gone for the weekend?" Sirius checked with a frown. "Maybe I should wait until next weekend, and you can just go to The Burrow."
"I thought you liked this witch you've been seeing," Harry reminded his godfather. "And I thought you said she was pretty busy."
"She is," Sirius admitted. "It's been hard enough finding time to see each other, let alone plan to spend a few days together. But I shouldn't really be leaving you. If Molly Weasley finds out, she'll go ballistic. She wasn't happy with me becoming your guardian as it was. I think I'm too irresponsible for her liking."
"Don't get me wrong, I like Molly, but she does tend to fuss," Harry said. "I'm almost seventeen, almost an adult. I think I can be left alone for one weekend. Not that I'll be alone though. Ron is here tonight and then Hermione is coming to stay from tomorrow."
"Yeah, and that's another thing Molly disapproves of," Sirius snorted. "Do you have any idea how many lectures she's given me over you and Hermione? Apparently I'm encouraging you to have sex."
"All you're encouraging is Hermione and I to be somewhere safe," Harry argued. "We'd be having sex anyway, so all you're doing is ensuring we're safe at home."
"I don't think Molly views it that way," Sirius said with a sigh.
"No offence, but it is not her life, and I am not her son," Harry retorted. "If you really don't want to go then you don't have to, but you know I have no problem with you going. Besides, you'll be back on Sunday evening."
"I guess I will," Sirius conceded with a nod. "And you're sure Ron won't notice I'm gone?"
"Of course not, as I said, he's upstairs and as long as I keep coming for drinks and snacks, there's no reason for him to come back down. And since you're not like Molly, you don't poke your head in my room every five minutes to check on us. And come the morning, I'll just say you've already gone to the shops."
"Okay so Ron won't notice my absence, but Hermione will," Sirius pointed out.
"Hermione is not Ron, and she will not go running to Molly," Harry reminded his godfather. "I promise you, Hermione will not say a word about you not being here. Now go and have fun."
"Okay, but don't do anything I wouldn't do," Sirius called as he headed towards the back door.
"That leaves me with plenty of scope as there's not much you wouldn't do," Harry chuckled as his godfather waved goodbye and slipped off for his naughty weekend with the young witch he'd been seeing for the last few months.
As the door closed behind Sirius, Harry felt a smirk breaking out on his lips. Retracing his steps, he headed to the front door to check that Ron had also gone. Sure enough he was alone in the house and both Ron and Sirius thought his offer to help them had been purely about helping them get some action from their respective girlfriends. Chuckling at how gullible the two wizards were, he headed back to the kitchen to grab himself a snack and make some hot chocolate.
As he waited for his hot chocolate, Harry's hand slipped into his trouser pocket and found the galleon that he always kept on him. Running his finger around the edge of the coin, he circled it three times, feeling the gold heat up as he did so. When he removed his fingers from the gold he felt a pulse of energy from his pocket and knew his message had been delivered.
"it's show time," he muttered to himself, half-wishing he could be part of he action himself. But he was needed here, and in his own way he would be playing a part in events over the weekend.
The Browns lived in a rather large house on the edge of a posh wizarding village. If Ron hadn't been there a couple of times before, he would have been intimidated by his girlfriend's home and the fact she came from a fairly well off family. While Lavender's family weren't anywhere near the level of the wizarding world's super rich, like the Malfoys, they were certainly comfortable and worth a damn sight more than Ron's family. But Lavender herself was a pretty down to earth person and never flaunted the fact she had more money than Ron, and even though Ron suspected her parents looked down on him slightly, he knew he wouldn't be running into them as Lavender had promised him that they were away for the evening.
Rather than approaching via the village and risk someone spotting him and informing Lavender's parents of what had been happening, Ron took the back route. Landing on a deserted pathway, all he had to do was cut over a field to reach Lavender's back yard. From there he could enter and then exit the property without anyone ever knowing that Lavender hadn't spent the night alone.
Eager to get to his girlfriend, Ron hopped over the fence into the field that backed onto Lavender's house. Marching over the field, Ron was lost in thoughts of how he was going to spend his evening. As such he didn't notice the shadows following his path through the field. Not did he notice the spike trap on the ground, until he stood on it and it snapped shut around his ankle, causing him to fall to the ground as he cried out in pain.
"Well, well, well, boys, it looks like we've caught ourselves a Weasel," a familiar voice drawled from the darkness.
The voice combined with the spikes digging into the flesh around his ankle, sent Ron into a panic and he scrambled for his wand. However, the pain in his leg was making his movements a bit unsteady, and while he managed to pull his wand out of his pocket, he didn't have a chance to even think about using it before it was plucked from his fingers and he realised he was surrounded by three figures. The moonlight revealed to Ron exactly who was surrounding him, but even without the dim light he would have known as he'd recognised the voice who had spoken.
"What do you want, Malfoy?" he spat to the ringleader of the three boys.
"I've got what I want," Draco responded with a laugh. "I set a trap and caught myself a Weasel."
Cursing under his breath, Ron tried to yank at the metal jaws cutting into his leg, but nothing was budging the damn trap that had him caught. With the trap around his ankle, he knew he wouldn't be able to run. Although even if it was off, he wasn't sure about running as the wounds around where the trap was clamped onto him were oozing blood, and he wasn't sure how badly damaged his leg was. If he couldn't run, fighting was his only option, but now only was he unarmed, but he was also outnumbered. If he was lucky he might be able to physically injure one of his captors, but he knew he couldn't escape from them all, and quite honestly in trying to escape he could end up more badly injured.
"So what are you going to do with me?" he asked.
"You're accepting defeat so quickly?" Draco questioned, obviously shocked to find Ron giving in without a fight.
"I'm hardly in a position to run, am I," Ron sneered sarcastically.
"He does have a point," Blaise Zabini remarked. "We do rather have him at a disadvantage."
"I suppose we do," Draco agreed with a sharp nod of his head. "So let's get on with this. Grab him and we'll be off. I don't think anyone has seen us, but if we stay here much longer, someone might spot us."
"You won't get away with this you know," Ron warned as Blaise and Theo Nott grabbed him by the arms and held onto him. "I will be missed, and I will be searched for. I will be found and you will pay for this."
"We'll see," Draco replied with an infuriating smirk. "Boys, to the cottage."
Where exactly the cottage was, or how they got there, Ron didn't find out as when Theo and Blaise yanked him roughly to his feet, the pain from the trap around his ankle proved so intense that he passed out in the arms of the two Slytherins.
It was the pain that roused Ron again, and instinctively his hand fell to his throbbing ankle. For some reason the metal trap had been removed and his ankle had been cleaned and bandaged. However, the pain was still pretty intense and Ron had to wonder if any permanent damage had been done. Deciding that he needed to check out how badly he was injured, Ron gingerly sat up and took in his surroundings.
Ron found he was in a basic bedroom, lying on a rather comfortable single bed. Several sconces on the wall were lit, meaning he could see everything clearly. Not that there was much to see as aside from the bed he was lying on the only other furniture in the room was a chest of drawers and an armchair, both of which were over the other side of the small room. Off to Ron's side was the window, but a pair of dark purple curtains were drawn, meaning that Ron couldn't guess how long he'd been held captive.
Deciding that it didn't matter how long he'd been held, he needed to find a way to escape, Ron turned his attention to himself. The ankle that had been trapped had indeed been freed and treated. However, his good ankle was now enclosed in a metal ring and a chain ran from the ring down to the floor. Following the chain, Ron found it was clipped to a second ring on the wall beside the bed. Pulling at the chain, Ron found it was pretty secure on both ends, but if anywhere was going to give, it would be the part attached to the wall.
Gingerly getting off the bed, Ron yelped in pain as he tried to put some weight on his bad ankle. Deciding not to risk causing himself any unnecessary pain, he slumped back down onto the bed. For a moment he sat still, trying to keep calm and not to panic. Not that it was easy as all he really wanted to do was curl up and wait for help to come his way. However, a voice in his head was telling him that he needed to save himself, or at the very least try to escape. As such he turned his attention to the chain that was keeping him trapped, and he began to work on the ring attached to the wall.
Ron figured he must have been tugging on the chain for almost ten minutes, with very little effect, when he heard movement outside of the room he was in. Whirling himself around so he was facing the door, he braced himself for who, or what, was coming his way. In the quiet, he was able to hear some of what was going on outside, and he clearly heard Malfoy's voice telling someone that he had a surprise for them. Ron wasn't an idiot, and he knew that he was the surprise, but the question was, who was he a surprise for.
When the door opened, Ron held his breath for whoever was with Malfoy to enter. Although as it was, Malfoy entered the room first, and after flashing Ron a wicked smirk, he reached his hand back towards the door. When his hand reappeared, he was holding a smaller, feminine hand and guiding her into the room. Confused as to who on earth could be entering the room, Ron inched forward on the bed to see who his visitor was.
"No," he gasped, shrinking back when the visitor came into view and he recognised her as his best friend, and Harry's girlfriend, Hermione Granger.
"Ron," Hermione gasped, her eyes flying open.
"Surprise!" Draco chuckled.
"Hermione, how did they capture you?" Ron cried. "You bastard, Malfoy. If you've hurt her, I'll kill you."
"I'm so scared," Draco drawled with a roll of his eyes.
"How did you manage this?" Hermione asked Draco, ignoring Ron for the moment.
"I set a trap, and this was what I caught," Draco replied. "I thought you would like it."
"Oh, I do," Hermione purred. Breaking away from Draco, she walked over to the bed and sat down next to Ron. "Hello Ronald. Fancy seeing you here."
"Hermione, what is going on?" Ron hissed. "How did you get here?"
"Draco brought me here to see my surprise," Hermione replied. "I had no idea, he meant you."
"Draco?" Ron echoed, his eyes flicking between the two people in the room with him.
"Oh, I think he's getting it," Draco laughed as he settled back against the wall beside the door and folded his arms to watch the action. "Maybe he's not as dimwitted as I always thought."
"I don't know, he's still not quite there yet," Hermione remarked. "Or, are you Ron? Have you worked it out yet?"
"You're not a prisoner," Ron whispered.
"No, I am not," Hermione confirmed as Draco chuckled behind her. "I am here of my own free will."
"Why? How? I don't understand," Ron cried, not able to comprehend what was going on as nothing made any sense.
"I'm not really in the mood to share my life story with you, but rest assured I'm not who you think I am," Hermione answered with a shrug as she got to her feet and wandered over to the window. "And just in case you haven't worked it out yet, that means my loyalty is to The Dark Lord."
"You're a Death Eater?" Ron questioned in a hollow voice.
"Not officially," Hermione answered with a shrug. "Unlike some people, I haven't had that chance yet," she added, shooting an annoyed glare towards Draco.
"Only because it's too risky for you to have the mark," Draco laughed. "No-one will think anything of me having the mark, but suspicions would be raised if you turned up bearing it."
"I suppose so, but I don't like being left out," Hermione pouted.
"Your time will come," Draco said with a shrug. "And in the mean time, you've got a toy to play with. Now, don't ever say I don't love you."
"You do give me the best presents," Hermione agreed with a smirk. "You're such a good boyfriend."
"Boyfriend?" Ron exploded. "What about Harry? Does Malfoy know you've been shagging Harry for months?"
"Draco is well aware of the way things stand between Harry and I," Hermione answered with a shrug. "Not that it's any of your concern, Ronald. It's not like you can run back to Harry and tell him what's going on."
"Don't count on it, Hermione," Ron hissed. "I won't let you get away with this."
"He said that before," Draco informed Hermione in a bored voice. "He seems to think he's getting away from here."
"Poor deluded fool," Hermione chuckled. "You will be leaving here, Ron, but not to go home. The only person you'll be seeing after us is The Dark Lord himself. But before that, we're going to have some fun with you. Do you want to know the worst part of my act? You. Putting up with you has been so hard. You have no idea how many times I've wanted to hex you."
"And now you can," Draco offered, flashing Ron a devious smirk. "Hex away. He's all ours for the next couple of days."
"Oh, this is going to be fun," Hermione laughed as she pulled her wand out with a flourish and gave Ron a cold smirk.
With the look Hermione gave him, Ron knew he was in for a world of pain, and he was right as the girl he thought of as one of his best friends, hit him with the Cruciatus curse. Ron couldn't help but cry out as the curse hit him and it seemed to accentuate the pain in his bad foot. After a few minutes, Draco joined in with the torture and as Ron screamed with pain, part of his mind wondered if there was anyone close by to hear him. But then again, if someone could have heard him, then they wouldn't be torturing him the way they were. As depressing as it was, he was alone, and there was nothing he could do but endure whatever torment was coming his way, and just hope he lived through it.
As he lounged around his bedroom, flicking through a quidditch magazine with the radio on quietly in the background, Harry couldn't help but wonder how things were progressing elsewhere. However, a quick check of the time revealed he would soon be needed again and he began to work on how he was going to play things when he was needed. A few minutes later, he was still mulling over how he would proceed next when he heard the front door slamming from downstairs. When a voice drifted from down below, Harry sprung from his bed with a smirk. At the last minute he paused in the doorway and pulled his t-shirt off, throwing it into his bed, before he headed downstairs in just his jogging bottoms.
"Hi, Molly," he greeted, finding Ron's mother coming from the back of the house where the kitchen was located.
Molly scowled at the sight of a half-naked Harry, and he could see that she wanted to say something about his state of dress, and the reason she no doubt thought he wasn't fully dressed. However, she quickly brushed off her concern for how Harry was dressed as her irritation became evident.
"I'm here for Ron," she said. "He was supposed to be home by lunchtime."
"Ron's not here," Harry replied.
"What do you mean, he's not here?" Molly snapped.
"He's not here, Molly," Harry insisted. "He left this morning."
"This morning? What time this morning?"
"I'm not really sure," Harry admitted with a shrug.
"Would Sirius know?" Molly asked. "Where is Sirius?"
"He's gone out for a few hours," Harry replied. "But he wasn't here when Ron left. He always goes shopping on a Saturday morning, and he'd already left when Ron headed home. He's then gone out again."
"Leaving you alone?" Molly tutted, her eyes drifting towards the stairs, silently telling Harry she was aware he wasn't alone.
"No, Hermione's upstairs," Harry confirmed with an unconcerned shrug. "Anyway back to Ron, are you saying he isn't at home?"
"If he was at home, I wouldn't be here," Molly snapped. "I'm sorry, Harry," she apologised with a sigh. "I'm just worried. I don't mind Ron staying here, but we all know how dangerous our world can be. Are you sure he was okay when he left this morning?"
"Yeah, I think so," Harry said, nervously looking away from Molly and biting his lower lip.
"Harry, what are you not telling me?" Molly snapped, instantly picking up on Harry's evasive behaviour. "Did you and Ron have a falling out? Did he leave in a huff?"
"I shouldn't do this, but you're right, Ron might be in danger," Harry said with a reluctant sigh. "The truth is, he didn't stay here last night."
"He what?" Molly screeched. "Where the hell was he?"
"He went to see Lavender," Harry admitted. "He promised me he would go straight home this morning."
"We will be having words about this, Harry," Molly seethed. "But right now, I've got a horny teenager to deal with. And Sirius will hear about this."
"Yes Molly," Harry muttered meekly as Molly swept back out of the house.
Once she was gone, he couldn't help but laugh out loud and satisfied that he'd stirred the pot, he headed back upstairs to retrieve his t-shirt. Flicking off the radio, he grabbed his magazine and headed back downstairs just in case Molly put in another appearance. However, the rest of the day passed without another visit from the Weasley matriarch, but Harry knew it would only be a matter of time before she was back. After all, it wasn't like she would have found Ron at Lavender's house.
Ron didn't know how long the first batch of torture lasted, but it felt like he drifted in and consciousness for days. Sometimes he woke up and he was alone, and other times he would wake up and the torture would start again. As well as Hermione and Malfoy, Nott and Zabini also joined in the torture, and a good part of their torture was to remind him that there was worse to come. So far he was being targeted by four people his own age. Soon he would be handed over to people far darker than the teenagers he was dealing with.
"Well Ron, it's been fun, but I've got things to do," Hermione remarked one time Ron was conscious.
"And you've got places to be," Draco added with a chuckle. "Boys, make sure he's all ready to go. I'm going to say goodbye to Hermione."
"Bye Ronald, I might see you around one day," Hermione called, giving Ron a wave as she and Draco departed the room.
With Draco and Hermione gone, Blaise and Theo made their way towards the bed and Blaise unshackled Ron from the wall. If Ron had been in better shape, he might have tried to get away from the pair, but he was exhausted by the constant torture and was in no shape to fight his way out.
"Blaise, Theo," Draco's voice called. "Get out here a minute."
"He couldn't have said before I undid this thing," Blaise muttered, bending back down to attach Ron to the wall.
"Blaise, Theo," Draco called again, sounding annoyed that his friends hadn't jumped at his summons.
"Coming," Blaise shouted back, looking up from what he was doing.
As Blaise finished re-fastening the chains, Ron noticed that in his distracted state he hadn't fully snapped the ring to the wall. Pretending not to notice, Ron lay passively on the bed, watching as the two Slytherins departed the room. Moments later he heard the slam of the door and he strongly suspected he was now alone. Struggling to sit up, Ron took a few minutes to gather his strength before checking his chains. As he suspected, Blaise hadn't fastened the ring properly and there was a small gap where he might just be able to wiggle the chain from it. Of course it would take time, especially given his weak condition, but he had hope now, and Ron wasn't going to rest until he was free and away from the terrible place he'd been held prisoner.
Keeping one ear open for anyone returning, Ron worked on loosening the chain from the ring attached to the wall. Given his weakened state, he had to keep stopping for rests and his sense of time was all disorientated, but after what must have been several hours, he slipped the chain free from its ring on the wall. Now all he had to do was escape, make his way home and warn everyone that they had a traitor in their midst and that Hermione was not to be trusted.
Sirius returned home in a bright mood on Sunday afternoon, but the second he saw Harry, he knew something was wrong. He and Hermione were sitting curled up in the living room, but they both looked serious, and Harry especially looked worried.
"What's wrong?" he asked in concern.
"Ron's missing," Harry replied in a low voice.
"What the hell happened?" Sirius asked, slumping down in a chair and staring at Harry as if he was speaking a foreign language.
"I have a confession to make," Harry said reluctantly when Hermione nudged him in the ribs. "Ron left on Friday night. I covered for him so he could spend the night with Lavender."
"I told you Molly was too strict," Sirius remarked. "Oh, hold on. Does that mean she knows I haven't been here this weekend?"
"No, we covered for you," Hermione said with a sweet smile. "When she came over yesterday, Harry said you'd gone out for a few hours, and when we were talking to her earlier, we said you were in the shower."
"Thanks, but I guess I need to come clean," Sirius remarked with a sigh. "Especially if Ron is missing. When did he go missing?"
"Molly came looking for him yesterday, but it turns out he never made it to Lavender's," Harry admitted. "Since she knew he wasn't supposed to be visiting her, she couldn't contact him to check what had gone wrong. She assumed Molly had gotten wind of their plan and stopped him."
"So no-one has seen him since he left here?" Sirius checked. "Damn, am I in trouble. If I'd been here, I might have noticed something."
"No, you wouldn't have," Harry assured his godfather. "I had it all sorted. Ron went out while I was talking to you. If you'd been here and had checked on us, I would have said he was in the bathroom. And the next morning I would have said he was still in bed, and then said he'd gone home while you were at the shops. In fact, that's what we should say happened. There's no reason for anyone to know you haven't been here."
"And you're okay with lying, Hermione?" Sirius checked, aware that she was more likely to want to be honest.
"We need to focus on Ron, and bringing up the fact you weren't here will only complicate matters," Hermione said. "Besides, as Harry said, it makes no difference in regards to Ron going off. I think Harry is right, you say you were here all the time and just never saw Ron after he arrived. Harry's willing to admit that he covered for him. I just wish someone had told me before, and I could have stopped it," she added, throwing Harry a stern look.
"I know you would," Harry said with a small smile. "But I was being a good friend to Ron. We're lucky, I've got Sirius. He never minds you staying over. But Ron can never get time alone with Lavender. I was just helping their romance."
"I know," Hermione said, giving Harry's arm a sympathetic squeeze. "I just hope nothing bad has happened to him."
"So do I," Harry agreed sadly.
"I'm sure everything will be okay," Sirius said reassuringly. "Maybe we should contact Molly and ask if there's been any news."
"That sounds like a good idea," Hermione said, giving Harry a smile. "What do you think, Harry?"
"Yeah, we need some news," Harry agreed with a nod. "Let's do it."
After reminding Sirius that he had been there all weekend, they contacted The Burrow to get an update on Ron. Sadly, he was still missing, but Arthur informed them that they'd been in touch with Dumbledore and he was arranging an Order meeting so they could work out the best way to find Ron.
"Wait, something's happening," Arthur cried, momentarily disappearing from the floo connection, before he returned in a fluster. "It's Ron, he's here, I'll call you back."
"Ron's back, we need to get over there," Harry cried as Arthur broke the connection and rushed off to see what had happened with his son.
With everyone in agreement, the trio rushed over to The Burrow, where they found Ron had simply turned up at home, before collapsing with exhaustion. Whatever had happened to him, he'd clearly been hurt as one of his ankles was bandaged and the other one was encased in a ring with an attached chain. It was looking as though he'd been help captive, but had managed to escape, but they wouldn't know for sure until he woke up and was well enough to tell his story and reveal what had happened to him over the weekend.
Upon arriving home, Ron hadn't managed to say much before collapsing in both exhaustion and relief. For a while he drifted in and out of consciousness, and even though he tried to tell his story every time he was awake, he wasn't sure he was making sense. But eventually he woke feeling less groggy than he had on any previous occasion. Hoping he would be able to stay awake long enough to deliver the warning about Hermione he lay quiet for a few moments before turning his head. The second he moved, Molly was right there and as she bombarded him with questions, he noticed Harry hovering in the background.
"Mum, I'm fine," he insisted weakly. "Or at least I will be now I'm safe at home."
"I am so mad at you, Ronald, we will be having words when you're better," Molly scolded, although she sounded more worried than angry.
"Sorry mate, I had to tell her what was happening when you went missing," Harry apologised.
"It doesn't matter now," Ron conceded. No doubt he would be in trouble for trying to sneak off to see Lavender, but right at this moment he had more pressing concerns.
"What happened?" Harry asked as Molly fussed around Ron, checking he was comfortable.
"You don't have to say if you're not up to it," Molly assured her son as Ron seemed to struggle for words.
"No, there's something I need to tell you," Ron said as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. "I was taken on my way to Lavender's by Malfoy and his friends. But when I was with them they brought Hermione to see me."
"Hermione?" Harry interrupted with a confused frown.
"She's one of them, Harry," Ron said sadly.
"One of whom?" Molly asked, looking as confused as Harry.
"A Death Eater," Ron explained. "She did say she doesn't have the mark, but she was on their side. I hate to tell you this Harry, but she's also been using you. She shagging Malfoy behind your back."
"Mmm, are you sure you haven't banged your head, Ron?" Harry asked gently, sharing a concerned look with Molly.
"I know what happened, Harry," Ron snapped. "We can't trust Hermione. She's a supporter of You-Know-Who."
"Okay, we can discuss it," Harry said warily, his expression showing that he was merely humouring his friend.
"Tomorrow," Molly jumped in as Ron opened his mouth to argue. "You need to rest, Ron. But we promise that tomorrow, we will listen to everything you have to say."
"Make sure you do," Ron muttered. "I know it sounds crazy, but I know what happened. Please Harry, you have to trust me."
"We'll talk tomorrow, Ron," Harry said.
Leaving Molly to settle Ron back down for the night, he headed downstairs where he informed everyone the crazy claim Ron had made about Hermione.
"Why would he say that?" Hermione questioned with a sob. "I've never done anything to him. Why would he turn on me like that?"
"Don't worry, Hermione, he's likely just confused," Arthur assured the young witch. "A good night's rest will undoubtedly help him to see things more clearly."
"I hope so, because right now he's coming off as unstable," Harry said, wrapping a comforting arm around Hermione and hugging her to him. "Not only is it unbelievable that Hermione was part of his kidnapping, but it's impossible as well. She's been with me all weekend."
"No-one really believes Hermione was involved," Sirius assured his godson. "Arthur's right, he's just confused right now. I'm sure things will look very different in the morning."
"I hope so," Harry muttered, even though he knew nothing was going to change by morning. If anything Ron was only going to become more insistent and things were about to get a lot more interesting.
The next morning Ron was still adamant that Hermione had been involved in his kidnapping, so Molly had spoken to Dumbledore and it had been decided that the best way to sort things out was to have an Order meeting, where Ron could explain himself in person. Of course The Order meeting was due to the held at Grimmauld Place, and Harry and Hermione were there as everyone arrived.
Dumbledore was the first to arrive, along with a couple of other Professors from Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape. Sirius's best friend, Remus Lupin arrived with his younger girlfriend, Nymphadora Tonks. Tonks's Auror colleague, Kingsley Shackelbolt arrived with their former boss, Alastor Moody, and Harry and Hermione's school-mate Neville Longbottom attended with his formidable gran, Augusta.
And finally, the Weasleys arrived. Ron arrived on crutches, but looking perkier than he had the previous evening. He was accompanied by his parents, his younger sister Ginny, and his twin brothers, Fred and George.
"Ron, how are you?" Hermione asked in concern upon seeing her friend.
"Still alive no thanks to you and Malfoy," Ron spat. "Don't think you're going to get away with this, Hermione. I am going to expose you to everyone."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Ron," Hermione protested. "I would never hurt you. You're my friend."
"Not any more, you traitorous bitch," Ron snapped, causing Hermione to flinch away from him.
"That's enough," Harry said, pulling Hermione into his arms and steering her away from Ron.
"Perhaps we should begin before things get too heated," Dumbledore suggested when it appeared Ron was going to start yelling. "We thought it best that if we let you tell your story, Ron. You can tell us in your own words what happened over the weekend."
"Sit down, Ron," Molly said gently, gesturing to an empty chair on the other side of the table to where Harry and Hermione had settled down beside Sirius.
"I know no-one is ready to believe me, but I know what happened to me," Ron insisted as he eased himself into the chair. "I know exactly who hurt me," he said stonily, glaring across the table at Hermione.
"We may have our doubts, but we're all ready to listen," Dumbledore assured the young wizard. "So tell us, Ron, what happened to you?"
"I was supposed to be staying here for the night, but it was a cover so I could spend the night with Lavender," Ron began. Since his parents knew exactly what had happened, he saw no point in lying about anything that had happened over the weekend. "Lavender lives on the edge of the village, and I can get to hers unseen if I enter via the field at the back of her house. I was halfway over the field when something snapped around my ankle. I thought it was just an animal trap at first, but then Malfoy appeared and it was clear the trap was his."
"Are we talking Lucius or Draco?" Severus questioned.
"Draco," Ron answered, shooting the Potions Professor an unimpressed glare for interrupting him. "He was with Nott and Zabini. He ordered them to take me to a cottage. I must have passed out as I don't remember leaving the field, but when I woke up the ankle that had been trapped had been bandaged, but my other ankle was shackled to the wall. And that's when, she came into things."
Hermione flinched at the hateful look Ron shot her way, and she squeezed Harry's hand tighter as she sought support from him. She knew Harry was on her side, and while at the moment no-one seemed ready to believe Ron, that could change in a heartbeat as he told his story.
"How did Hermione enter the picture?" Dumbledore asked.
"I heard Malfoy outside, saying he had a surprise for someone," Ron answered, turning his head away from Hermione. "He came into the room, and he was leading Hermione. At first, I thought she'd been caught as well, but then she made it clear that she wasn't a prisoner. She was with Malfoy of her own free will. She then told me that she wasn't on our side. She said she didn't have the mark as it would have exposed her, but Malfoy claimed that he has it. It was also clear that her and Malfoy were together, and she admitted using Harry. I'm sorry Harry, but her whole romance with you is fake. She doesn't love you."
"What else happened?" Dumbledore asked when Harry just stared at Ron, seemingly unable to think of anything to say.
"The torture began," Ron replied with a shudder. "She started and Malfoy joined in. I drifted in and our of consciousness, and sometimes Nott and Zabini were there as well. To be honest, I don't know how long this went on for. Eventually she said she had to go, and Malfoy said he would deliver me to You-Know-Who. Malfoy headed off to say goodbye to Hermione, and he told Nott and Zabini to get me ready to move. But then something must have happened and he called for them to join him. In his haste, Zabini didn't fasten me back to the wall properly and I was able to get myself free. From there, I got outside and just ran. When I thought it was safe, I apparated home, and you know the rest."
"It's an interesting story," Harry said once it was clear Ron had finished.
"Story?" Ron exploded. "It's not a sodding story. It's what really happened."
"I think it's what you believe happened, but I don't think it's what truly happened," Harry said. "It can't be, because Hermione was here with me all weekend."
"I know what happened, Harry, and I know what part she played in it," Ron spat, jerking his head in Hermione's direction. "You cannot trust the evil little cow."
"Let's play devil's advocate for a minute and say that Ron is right," McGonagall suggested. "Harry, is it at all possible that Hermione could have been sneaking away?"
"No," Harry answered with a shake of his head. "I can't say we've been together every minute of the day, but she hasn't had time to sneak off, torture Ron and get back as though nothing has happened. Tell them Sirius, she's been here the entire time."
"She has," Sirius confirmed with a nod.
"There is another problem as well," Severus offered. "Mr Weasley is claiming Draco and his friends are behind what happened to him over the weekend, but I happen to know they're not even in the country. The Malfoys headed to the South of France for their summer holidays last week, and they took Blaise and Theo with them."
"They could have came back," Ron argued. "They did come back, because they had me all weekend. They tortured me, along with Hermione."
"No-one is denying the torture, Ron," Dumbledore said gently. "We can all see the trauma you've been through. But what if things weren't exactly as you thought. What if someone used Mr Malfoy and his friends, and set them up as the perpetrators."
"So if there was any comeback, it wouldn't be on them," McGonagall said with an agreeable nod. "It makes sense."
"No, it doesn't," Ron exploded. "It was Malfoy, I know it was. I know it was him. I'll accept it might not have been Nott and Zabini, just people who look like them. I don't know either of them well enough to tell. But I know Malfoy, and I know I was dealing with the real thing. Just like I was dealing with the real Hermione. I know it was you, Hermione. I know what you are."
"All I am is your friend, Ron," Hermione said quietly. "You know things can be deceptive in our world, so why are you so eager to believe the worst of me? Why can't you accept someone was messing with you?"
"The only person messing with me is you," Ron hissed. "I know it was you, Hermione, not some imposter. You may have everyone else fooled, but not me. I can see through you. I know what you are. You're an evil bitch. You're Malfoy's whore, and I will not rest until everyone else can see it too."
With a sob, Hermione jerked to her feet and fled from the kitchen. For a moment everyone sat in stunned silence, before Harry rose to his feet, his attention firmly fixed on Ron.
"I think it's time you left," he said stoically.
"Harry, you have to believe me," Ron pleaded "I know what I saw."
"And I know I've spent the weekend with Hermione," Harry countered. "Because you're my friend, I will give you a chance. Apologise to Hermione and accept you're mistaken and I will forgive you and we can carry on as normal."
"I will not apologise to that bitch, not after what she's done to me," Ron hissed.
"Then you need to leave and stay out of my way," Harry said. "And that goes for anyone else who believes this nonsense. If anyone has any doubts about Hermione, then we're through. I will not stand for anyone insulting her. And don't forget by questioning her, you're also calling me a liar. I know I spent the weekend with Hermione, meaning she couldn't have been anywhere near Ron. So if you doubt Hermione, you doubt me. You all need to decide where your loyalties lie."
"My loyalties lie with you, Harry, and that's why I can't back down," Ron insisted. "I know what she's like. I know her soul is black. Even if you don't believe me, I will save you from her."
"You will leave me the hell alone until you're ready to apologise," Harry snarled. "Now get out of my sight, Ron."
Not bothering to see if Ron obeyed his instructions, Harry stormed from the kitchen and headed upstairs. Entering his room, he found Hermione sitting on his bed, her head in her hands as though she was upset. However, the second he closed the door behind him, she raised her head and shot him a wicked smirk.
"That was amazing," she breathed.
"It got better after you'd left," Harry chuckled. "I told Ron to leave. I said that unless he apologised to you, I didn't want to see him again."
"He's not going to apologise," Hermione laughed. "Not when he's so convinced he's in the right."
"He is in the right," Harry pointed out, flopping down on the bed beside Hermione. "Draco did kidnap him, and you did torture him."
"So I did," Hermione agreed with a wicked grin. "And it was so worth it. I've been wanting to hurt him for years."
"I know," Harry replied with a roll of his eyes. "That's partly why I organised this. I know how hard you've found it putting up with him."
"It hasn't been the easiest six years," Hermione conceded.
"Well at least our last year will be Weasley free," Harry said with a grin. "Ron won't back down and apologise, and even though I don't think they really believe him, his family will also keep their distance. Although to be fair, we'd already gotten rid of Ginny thanks to this fake dating. But this will mean we'll see less of Molly as well."
"Always a plus," Hermione laughed. "And it will be nice to have a bit more freedom for our last year."
"That's what I thought," Harry said with a nod. "I'm seventeen next week, and these so called protective spells Dumbledore has on me will end. And since he'll think I'm safe at Hogwarts, he won't think about adding any extras until school's over."
"And by then it'll be too late," Hermione declared with a gleeful smirk.
"I can't wait to see what people will think when they realise Ron was right all along, and you were involved in his kidnapping," Harry laughed.
"I think people will be more concerned to find out you're not exactly innocent yourself," Hermione chuckled. "I can't wait to see Dumbledore's face when he realises he's spent all this time trying to protect you from your own father."
"More like he's trying to use me as a weapon against him," Harry corrected. "Not that it's going to happen."
"So what do you think will happen now?" Hermione asked. "Even if this keeps Ron out of our hair, he's not going to let it drop."
"The problem is, he has no proof of what he's saying," Harry said. "I can vouch you've been with me all weekend, and Sirius will back me up. As for Draco, he's safely in France with Blaise and Theo and his parents. And knowing Lucius, he won't let an accusation like this go without demanding retribution. Trust me Hermione, I've got it all covered. No-one is going to believe Ron, well not until it's far too late."
"Thank you, Harry," Hermione said, giving her best friend a peck on the cheek. "Thank you for organising this. It was a wonderful surprise."
"What are best friends for?" Harry chuckled. "Come on, let's go back downstairs to see what's going on. I'm sure there's plenty of people who want to reassure you that they're on our side."
Heading back downstairs, Harry was proved right, and aside from the Weasleys, everyone else had remained behind to pledge their support to Hermione. However, since Ron had vowed to make an official complaint to the Ministry, the incident would be followed up and more questions would be asked. However, as Harry predicted answers were already in place for the difficult questions the Aurors posed. Not only did Hermione have a cast iron alibi, but she was backed up by both Harry and Sirius, both of whom swore she'd been with them the entire weekend.
As for the accusations regarding Draco and his friends, they caused the Weasleys a whole host of trouble as Lucius had travelled back from France to deal with the accusations. Once it had been established that the family had been in France at the time of the incident, Lucius set about claiming compensation from the Weasleys for slandering his family name. Of course, he got no money from the family, but he dragged their name through the mud and ensured that no-one believed a word that came out of Ron's mouth.
Less than a year later the wizarding world was shaken to the core when they discovered that they'd believed the wrong people the entire time. At a graduation ceremony, Harry and Hermione's true allegiance was revealed, but by then it was too late for anyone to listen to Ron. The damage had been done, and with Harry and Hermione at the very heart of things, Voldemort triumphed and at long last he gained the power he'd craved for so long, thanks to his son, Harry, and his best friend.