Chapter: Midnight Duels and Friday Do-overs.
Ron could feel Hermione's stare digging into the side of his face, but as he did most things, he ignored it. They could hear the noise of the other students settling for dinner. Everyone's chatter filtering through his ears with a buzzing hum. The rest of their Gryffindor year mates opted to save the trio a seat rather than wait. Ron couldn't help but wish Neville had at least stayed. If only so he could distract Hermione.
"What happened to you on the training grounds?" Hermione bluntly asked.
Ron looked over to her with a shrug while leaning back against the wall.
"Dunno, what you mean?"
The bushy haired girl let out a growl of frustration and stepped closer to him, glaring up at him with that death stare of hers. Ron wasn't in the slightest intimidated. He continued to appear unbothered and gave a short nod to one of the twins friends who watched as they passed. Hermione pointed her pencil in his face, her scowl fierce and stubborn. Ron looked down at the pencil with a sardonic smirk.
"Really, Hermione? What, you going to draw on my face or something?"
"Don't tempt me Weasley. Just answer the question. You were clutching at your chest like you were in pain or something!" she accused.
Ron tensed at her accusation and hoped she'd drop the subject. By the glint in her eyes, he knew she was both curious and concerned, but he didn't want to talk about it. He looked down at her with a glare of his own.
"It's nothing Hermione. Don't mention it," the 'ever' was implied, but she got the message.
To her credit she backs off, but he's known Hermione long enough to figure her out. She's not likely to forget. He knows, by the way she continued to watch him, that her brain was coming up with theory after theory. He feels his scar faintly ache, as if fond, and sighs at the feeling. How would he even begin to explain it? No, it was better to ignore it for now. He'll tell them eventually, maybe… probably.
"Stop it. Your brain's so loud I think it's screaming," he grumbles.
He grins when her thinking face shifts into an annoyed sneer, which he considers to be her version of a pout.
"Prat," she huffs
"Psycho," he throws back.
Hermione snorts and irately responds back.
"Bloody Lavender needs to stop spreading that. I'm NOT a psycho."
Ron snickers and nudges her side playfully, earning himself another dull stare which amuses him even more.
"Just a weirdo, right?"
"An intellectual one," she corrects with a tiny smirk on her lips.
They share a bit of laughter only stopping when they hear someone make a noise of disgust. They look up only to see Malfoy and his new goons watching them. Ron rolls his eyes and scowls at the blond pest. For the most part, Malfoy was easy enough to ignore. But the boy was like an annoying fly constantly buzzing about the room. Eventually, you're going to have to deal with him.
"Keep moving, Malfoy," He dismisses.
Malfoy's cheeks flush pink and his eyes spark with rage. Ron can't help the smirk that forms on his lips at the blonds rage. Before either Zabini or Nott could stop him, Malfoy stomps over to them with a furious sneer.
"You think you're so cool, don't you Weasley! Just because your brother's a prefect and Potter constantly chases after you like a desperate mutt begging to be fed."
"Careful Malfoy, you sound rather jealous," Hermione drawls.
Malfoy turns his glare to her and sneers with pure disgust in his eyes. Ron's can't help but grudgingly acknowledge the blond was braver than he thought to go toe to toe with Hermione, that or suicidal.
"Was I talking to you beaver teeth?"
Hermione growled but Ron stopped her from lunging by grabbing her by the hand. She turned to him with an angry snarl, but he sternly shook his head.
"Don't. He's just trying to get a rise out of us. Don't give him what he wants," Ron lowly orders.
Hermione's jaw clenches but she does as he asks and takes a deep breath to calm down. Ron carefully moves so they have their backs to Malfoy, who's still watching them, his face turning a darker red the longer they ignore him. The red head can feel his lips twitching as the laugh in his chest continues to build.
Yeah, he knows exactly how to deal with someone like Malfoy.
"Don't ignore me!" Malfoy shouts with a stomp of his foot.
He's loud enough to draw a bit of attention. Hermione peers over his shoulder at the blond, but Ron keeps his back to the boy.
He continues to ignore the blond, until Malfoy can't take it any longer.
"I'M TALKING TO YOU WEASLEY!"
Malfoy grabs at his arm to turn him but Hermione is quicker. She's got her wand out with her death stare at full force. Nott has his own wand pointed at Hermione and Zabini has a grip on Malfoy. But Ron's not worried, he looks behind Malfoy and Zabini and smiles.
"Alright Harry?" he greets.
"Great, you?" Harry returns but his wand is still pointed at Zabini and Malfoy.
Hermione rolls her eyes as they continue to casually chat despite the tension among their gathered group.
"Unless you wish to invite the attention of a Professor, I suggest we put our wands away," Zabini interrupts.
Ron shrugs but Harry snorts.
"Yeah right, like I'm going to trust Malfoy not to try something after earlier."
Harry turns his piercing stare onto a red-faced Malfoy and quirks his brow.
"You're certainly a lot braver here on the ground than in the air."
Malfoy makes a noise just short of a scream but Zabini interferes once again. Ron finds it kind of funny that he looks to him and not Hermione when he talks.
"We'll leave you be if this whole thing can go ignored."
The trio share glances all of them confused by the pointed phrase. It almost sounds as if Zabini is requesting they not tell someone. Ron wonders just who the snake thinks they'd go blabbing to and why it matters? He shares another pointed glance with Harry and Hermione and they slowly come to an agreement. None of them know what the snake is alluding to but, they're willing to ignore it if that's what it'll take to go to dinner.
"Sure…. We can ignore it. No need to go telling anybody," Ron slowly assures.
Harry and Hermione put their wands down at the same time as Nott. Malfoy turns his furious stare towards Zabini but the Italian boy silences him with a sharp glare.
"Appreciate it," Zabini thanks with a nod.
Its clear to all of them that Malfoy is not at all happy, but the Italian boy pushes him forward. The trio watch the snakes disappear into the great hall with considering eyes.
"Right, so that just happened," Harry mused with a grin.
"Ugh, between you and all of that, I'm definitely in need of food," Ron groaned before marching forward.
Harry made an offended noise but followed him due to Hermione's pushing.
"Me? What did I do?"
"What didn't you do, Potter," Hermione snorted.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
Harry tells them everything during dinner, what he doesn't tell them, Oliver happily fills in.
"The youngest seeker in a century, unbelievable," Neville marvels.
Harry nods in complete agreement as he chews his chicken.
"It's ridiculous, not impressive," Hermione scoffs as she spoons more mash onto her plate.
Harry glares at her while Seamus eagerly tells the tale of their flying class to the rest of the Gryffindor table.
"…And Harry just swoops down! Going so fast he was literally just a blur to the eye!" the Irish lad enthusiastically boasts.
" I start training next week, though I think it's supposed to be a secret," Harry continues ignoring Hermione's unimpressed stare.
"Hah! Good luck with that. So long as Oliver's got that dopey grin on his face, there's no way it'll stay secret for long," Ron snickers.
Harry is mid laugh when he's surprised by the twin whispers on either side of his head.
"Heard the news, Potter," the twins greet.
Harry jumps and reflexively elbows his cup causing it to spill. Ron glares at his brothers from across the table while Neville grins with poorly hidden amusement.
"Well done, bit of an overachievement if you ask me," Fred starts with a casual shrug
"What with last Friday's excitement and now this," George continues.
Harry can't help but shrink a bit at the reminder. He's relieved the Weasley Twins weren't loud enough to remind anyone else. They then pat him on the back, jolting him forward with a grunt.
"Time will tell if you survive it," they ominously say with innocent grins.
"Get out of here already," Ron groans with a grumble.
The twins give a jaunty wave, but Fred eagerly shouts one last remark before they wander further down the table to their friends.
"You're playing with the big boys now, Potter."
Harry swallows, suddenly feeling rather apprehensive about playing on the Quidditch team. Maybe he was too quick to accept the position?
"Uh oh…." Neville mumbles sounding sympathetic.
"What?" Harry quips not wanting any more bad news.
He follows Neville's line of sight and the trio immediately understand the round boy's mutter. Percy had only just arrived and by the stern expression he wears as he sharply exchanges words with Oliver, he was not pleased.
"Oh no, that's his disappointed face," Ron groans while ducking out of sight.
"Well it's not like he can ground us again," Hermione shrugs as she wryly watches Oliver and Percy chat.
Harry desperately nods in agreement with her, hoping Ron's words aren't worth the worry. By the dry stare he levels at both Harry and Hermione, he's not in the slightest reassured.
"Here he comes," Neville helpfully pointed out.
The trio stiffly look up at Percy who looms over them with a disappointed glare.
"Are the three of you trying to compete against the twins for most troublesome?"
Harry gives a sorry shrug and keeps his eyes on his plate; Hermione doesn't blink as she sips at her cup while Ron gives an apologetic smile. Percy's stare lingers on Ron for a few seconds before he heaves out a heavy sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose. Harry peeks through his bangs when Percy turns to him with a frown.
"McGonagall's word is law, but don't get too comfortable. Quidditch is a hazardous sport, Potter, and you risk more than just your pride if you lose."
Harry gulps at the warning but perks up when Hermione nudges him and Ron scoffs.
"He'll be fine, Perce. He's a natural now but imagine how he'll be when he's trained. Besides, Oliver will look out for him and the twins won't let him die."
Percy sighs again, muttering something under his breath that nobody caught. He lifts one finger and reminds them sternly.
"One more day. Don't give me a reason to ground you for a second week."
Having said that, the prefect then made his way to where Oliver was seated and watching with a hopeful smile. They watched the two boys share another few words before Oliver leapt out of his seat and smothered the prefect in a hug.
"Is Oliver…. Crying?" Hermione slowly questioned.
"Told you, complete quidditch nutter," Ron confirmed with a shake of his head.
Neville chuckles and turns to them with a dopey grin of his own.
"I think it's rather sweet."
"Ron… what did you mean I won't die?" Harry blurted, no longer feeling as excited.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
It happens on their way back from dinner.
Ron and Hermione were further ahead, bickering as usual over something unimportant. Harry and Neville took their time walking back to Gryffindor tower. Harry was not at all eager for the extra two hours of studying and Neville had eaten a bit too much desert. They must have lost sight of Ron and Hermione for a few seconds before Harry felt himself being dragged into a corner.
"Malfoy!" He growled at the blond.
Neville was fumbling to reach for his wand, but Malfoy had his wand trained on him in a blink.
"Save yourself the effort Longbottom. I have no interest in wasting anymore of my precious time with you two pathetic imbeciles."
Harry scoffed and tried to dislodge the blonds grip on his collar but remained unsuccessful. He hated being at a disadvantage and should have known better than to let his guard down. He wasn't afraid of Malfoy, but with Neville stuck under wand point, Harry knew to be careful.
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry spat out with a growl.
Malfoy's glare was fierce, and Harry uncomfortably noticed that his eyes were a steel grey. The blond was obviously furious.
"Midnight. Tonight. You and Me in a Wizards duel. Wands only. No contact."
Neville's eyes widened at Malfoy's words.
"Harry don't-"
"Shut up!" Malfoy snapped while pushing his wand closer to Neville's face.
"Fine! You're on!" Harry impulsively agreed.
Malfoy smirked, looking cruel but satisfied.
"Good. I'll be sure to show you the true merits expected of a Wizard."
Harry snorts and takes the opportunity to finally free himself. He doesn't hesitate to retort back, glaring harshly. Neville wanders over to stand supportively behind Harry the second Malfoy lowers his wand.
"Sure, you do that. But don't go writing to Daddy after I beat you."
Malfoy's face flushes dark red again but Harry just smirks in return.
"Whatever scar head. Meet me in the trophy room, its always unlocked."
Malfoy then turns his eye to Neville and gives a disgusted grunt.
"And if you bring a second, at least choose someone not as useless as Longbottom."
Harry grins sharply and confirms he'll meet him then.
Neither Harry nor Neville relax until the blond is completely out of sight. Only then does Neville turn to him with his eyes wide and his skin pale. Clearly, the round boy was on the verge of freaking out. Harry quickly turned to Neville and started hushing him as he rapidly started to breathe.
"What are you going to do?"
"It'll be fine Nev, I know what I'm doing," Harry quickly assured.
"Know what you're doing? Do you even know what a Wizards duel is?" Neville stressed.
Harry shrugged not feeling too panicked about the subject.
"Dunno, a fight or something."
Neville let out a trembling laugh but doesn't look the slightest bit amused.
"You're joking. He's joking. Harry! This isn't something to joke about!"
When Harry tries to get Neville to loosen up by grinning sheepishly, Neville stares at him, blinks then turns to walk away.
"Neville wait, Hey? Where are you going?" Harry sighs.
"I'm telling Ron!" Neville bites back.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
To Neville's credit, he at least waits until after study club to spill the beans. They're gathered in the boys dorm when the round boy delivers the news. To which, Harry can't help but be relieved by because he'd been unbearably allusive all throughout study. Harry knows he bruised Neville's shin from the amount of times he kicked him. The last thing he needed was Neville blurting everything out in front of Percy.
Nobody moves after Neville's shouted bit of news.
To the shock of everyone, Ron doesn't respond the way they expected him to.
The tall red head throws his head back and laughs himself silly. He laughs so hard he grips at his belly and falls back on his bed.
"Ron…" Harry sighs when the boy's laugh doesn't seem to stop.
"W-what? What else do you expect me to do?" Ron counters with a shrug as he calms down.
"Are you seriously going to battle Malfoy in a Wizards duel?" Seamus pipes looking rather curious.
Harry shrugs while Neville continues to do a scary impression of Percy.
"I guess? I mean I wasn't going to back down when he offered. Ron can be my second since Neville refused to do it."
Neville is shaking his head as he settles next to Dean.
"He's crazy! This is insane!" he listlessly repeats accepting Dean's comforting pat.
"Harry… Wizards duel to the death…." Seamus slowly elaborates.
Harry blinks and starts to understand Neville's reaction a little bit more. He turns to Ron who's looking rather comfortable on his bed as he watches everyone with amusement. The red head smirks at him as if Harry's done something funny.
"Merlin, you really don't make life easy for yourself," the red head comments, confirming Seamus's words.
Harry's heart drops to his stomach, suddenly realising he might have bit off more than he could chew. It must have shown on his face as Ron snorts and continues to speak.
"Relax Harry. You'll be fine because we're not going to turn up."
"What?" everyone blurts in shock.
Ron looks at them as if their the crazy ones.
"We're grounded, remember? Midnight is long after curfew and you've already tested Percy a bit after today's flying. Don't try to push your luck."
"Can you do that? Just, not turn up?" Dean asks
"I guess?" Neville answers looking thoughtful.
Harry is too busy gaping at Ron to pay them any mind. He hurries over to Ron's bed and looks at his friend with wide eyes of disbelief.
"But we can't just not go!" he insists.
Ron stares at him drolly and slowly gives his answer.
"Yes Harry, we can."
"But we're Gryffindors! If we don't show up than we might as well call ourselves cowards!"
Ron frowns and sits up, looking a little more serious.
"No, it makes us sensible. Just because someone dares you to do something stupid, doesn't mean you have to do it. Honestly, Harry, is Malfoy worth the risk of an extra week of punishment? You just got put on the Quidditch team and are going to start training next week. Weren't you the one complaining just this morning about studying so much?"
Harry frowns and grudgingly nods, knowing Ron is speaking sense. By the amused glint in his eyes, he knows it too.
"Now, imagine extra studies with the bonus of Quidditch training with Oliver. Are you that confident you'll survive it all?"
Harry slumps with defeat, knowing Ron is completely right.
"But… it's Malfoy! He's so… He's just so annoying."
Ron scoffs and reaches for his Quidditch mag and gives a sympathetic nod.
"I know, but if you let him get to you, we're probably going to see even more of him. He's just an attention seeking spoiled brat."
Harry sighs and settles more comfortably on Ron's bed, giving up on the subject.
"Fine, we won't go."
Ron nods with satisfaction and then whacks Harry with the magazine with a pointed stare.
"Good. Now here, let's get you educated on what you need to know about Quidditch."
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
Down in the dungeons, a group of Slytherin first years are having a meeting of their own.
"You did what?" Blaise slowly gritted through his teeth.
Draco flushed pink as everyone stared at him looking completely gobsmacked.
"Tell me your joking! Please Merlin, say you're just pulling my leg!" Theo pleads as he shakes his head with horror.
Draco continues to keep his silence which proves just how guilty he is. Pansy let out a distressed cry as she falls back into Millicent's arms. Greg and Vincent slow their munching in favour of gaping at him. But Draco avoids looking at Blaise knowing the Italian boy was glaring holes into his head.
"What part of 'stay clear of Potter' did you not understand at dinner?" Blaise growls
Draco scowls and unapologetically lifts his head with a stubborn glare.
"I don't take orders from you Zabini," he sneered.
Theo snorts and shakes his head.
"Well maybe if you did, you wouldn't have done something so completely reckless!"
Draco turns his glare on him instead at inadvertently being described as something Gryffindors had a reputation of being. Millicent helpfully adds her own opinion to the unwanted topic.
"He's not wrong. You completely lose all sense of dignity when you face Potter or Weasley."
Draco sneers and shoots back a reply of his own.
"As if you wouldn't hesitate to go toe to toe with the mudblood when given the opportunity."
To his annoyance, Millicent snorts and sardonically considers him with an arched brow.
"But I'm not the one who goes preaching for all to hear about how great I think I am."
Draco growls but Blaise speaks up again with another one of his warning lectures.
"Enough! We must keep this from reaching Drake, Farley, or Flint. If word gets back to them were bound to feel the repercussions."
Draco clenches his jaw but doesn't disagree. He knew better than to push his luck after flying and now this. Blaise was right to be frustrated but Draco would rather die than admit such a thing. He couldn't help it though, not after Weasley had so blatantly ignored him. As if he, a fucking Weasel, was better than him. Then Potter, with his arrogant smirk and mocking smile. just pushed him over the edge.
"You need to work on that temper of yours, Malfoy," Theo casually added.
"Shut up, Nott!" he snapped back.
"But you're not actually going to turn up, are you?" Pansy pushed looking rightly concerned.
Draco levelled an insulted glare her way, but she unabashedly waited for him to answer.
"Knowing Potter, he's most likely chosen Weasley as his second," Blaise absently mused.
"Potter and Weasley aren't too far behind the mudblood when it comes to class rankings," Millicent added.
"Weasley's no dummy. Greg and I saw him ace Flitwick's task yesterday while casually chatting with Brown," Vincent contributed.
Crabbe and Goyle turned playing stupid into an artform, the two were scarily observant with the right kind of motivation. Pansy hummed thoughtfully and shared a look with Blaise.
"If you're going, you need to take Theo with you." she concluded.
Blaise nodded and Theo sighed heavily while accepting his fate. Out of all of them, Theo was their most experienced dueller with a quick wand draw. He might not know as many spells as Blaise, Pansy and Millicent, but his reflexes were sharp.
"So, we're doing this. Great. Thanks a lot Malfoy," he grumbled.
Draco snarled finally finding his voice while the others continued to discuss the duel.
"Shut up Nott! Bloody hell Pansy, of course I'm not going to go. How much of a bloody Gryffindor idiot do you people think I am?" he snapped.
Theo snorted and mockingly teased him with a sardonic drawl.
"There's that temper of yours again, Malfoy."
"Still enough of a priss to put Pansy to shame," Millicent snickered causing Pansy to smirk, further sparking Draco's temper.
"I admit I lost my sense for a bit, but I'm not stupid enough to go against Drake or Flint," he growled indignantly.
The others share wary looks feeling apprehensive at the mentioned names.
They were Slytherins but House Slytherin was nothing like their parents said it would be. Being in the snake pit was a game of survival, and to their misfortune, they were the most vulnerable of the lot. None of them could stop themselves from imagining the worst upon worst possibilities if one of the older snakes overheard their talk.
Corvus Drake's threatening speech on their first night still haunted their memories.
Also, Flint and Farley had made it clear they were to keep their distance with the Gryffindors. Something about keeping things fair.
"Whatever, it doesn't matter. I'm not going and if Potter's gonna risk breaking curfew it'll be on his own head," Draco repeats.
They share slow nods and mutually decide to forget the conversation ever happened.
"I'll keep a close ear on things and make sure nothing gets back to Farley or Flint," Pansy confirms.
Draco slumps relieved the topic was over. Though they discussed other things and eventually went their separate ways for bed, Draco couldn't stop wondering if Potter was waiting for him in the trophy room. He fell asleep feeling oddly discomforted about how much he cared.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
Harry tossed and turned unable to forget about Malfoy. He could hear the other boys sleeping comfortably and felt rather annoyed at their ease. He sat up and looked over to Ron's bed, only to find the boy snoring away without care. Carefully, Harry pulled back his blanket and tip toed towards the door. He checked on Ron once more, before sneaking down the stairs.
He fingered his wand, nervous but determined.
He was only going to check and see if Malfoy turned up or not. Nothing else. He'd stay hidden and nobody will need to know. Harry had just stepped into the Common room when he gets the greatest shock of his life.
"Harry? What are you doing?" Percy questions with an intrigued quirk of his brow.
Harry swallows and stammers to answer the question.
"U-um I was just… I um couldn't sleep. What are you doing here?"
Percy looked amused by his words and Harry fought to keep his blush from being to obvious. Percy motioned to the scattered books and parchment around him.
"A bit of revision for my own classes."
Harry couldn't help but curiously wander closer. He blinked at the complicated looking scrawls and drawings with little idea as to what he was looking at. Percy chuckled and turned the page of his textbook.
"Rest assured, you'll have no need to worry about any of this for a long while."
Harry gives a half smile and awkwardly shuffles for a few seconds more.
"Well, I guess I should leave you to it. I'm going to go try sleeping again."
Percy hums, still looking rather amused and bids him goodnight.
Harry tries not to stomp his way back to the dorms. When he enters the dorms and flops back into bed he turns over and finds Ron awake and smirking at him.
"You just couldn't help yourself, could you mate?" he teases.
"Shut up, Ron," Harry groans and stuffs his head under his pillow.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
Come next morning, Harry was once again feeling rather sulky.
How could he not when the first thing Hermione says when she sees him is "Heard you got caught trying to sneak out."
Ron immediately started to snicker while Neville grinned. Harry glared at the two boys irately until they denied spreading the word.
"Well if you didn't tell her who did?" Harry demanded.
"Dean saw you sneak out and told Seamus who told Lavender who then shared it with Parvati and I after we'd finished brushing our teeth," Hermione grinned.
He looked incredulously over to the chirpy Irish boy walking alongside Dean. He then turned to Ron and Neville motioning towards the boy with disbelief.
"How? How did he even- just HOW!?"
Ron snickered and pushed him forward with a teasing smirk.
"It's Seamus, Harry, we'll never know. Now come on mate, breakfast is calling."
"Do you ever think about something other than your stomach?" Hermione started.
Ron boyishly smirked her way and started their usual morning bickering. Neville grinned as he tugged Harry along behind the two while Harry continued to sulk.
"I'm not sulking, Nev!" he protested.
"Of course not, Harry," Neville assured but the glint in his eyes proved how much fun he was having.
They were well settled and midway through their breakfast routine when Malfoy walked into the room. Harry couldn't help but notice the blond and Ron, Hermione and Neville followed his stare. Malfoy must have been looking too as he momentarily stopped once he spotted them. Then the blond smirked obnoxiously, and Harry wished he could hex the bloody ponce.
"Good thing we didn't waste our time then," Ron muttered as he turned back to his letter from Ginny.
Hermione hummed and stabbed at her eggs with a thoughtful grin.
"I'm sure if you told Percy you were just sneaking out to meet up with a boy at midnight, he would have been a little more understanding."
Neville snorted into his juice and Ron barked out a short laugh as Harry blushed. He leaned forward and hissed at the cheeky girl with a snarl.
"Real funny, how's the juice by the way? I forget, is it as bitter as your soul?"
Hermione growls at his reminder of her lack of coffee. She points her fork in his direction and lowly hissed.
"I'll slow roast you over a fire pit, Potter," she threatened.
"Great, now I want pork. Do you think they'll offer it for Lunch, or will I have to wait for dinner?" Ron mused.
Neville shook his head as the three continued to bicker and tease one another. He'd grown to appreciate the free morning entertainment. They startle when a bunch of owls fly through with a huge package, coming towards their section of the table. Of course, Seamus gets everyone's attention by loudly pointing at it.
"Look over there? What'd you think it is?" he pestered.
"Gee, I wonder…" Harry muttered sarcastically.
They could all make out the shape of the package which was clearly a broomstick.
"So much for keeping it a secret," Hermione scoffed.
Ron hummed in agreement and looked over to where Percy and Oliver ate. The two looked to be having a profoundly serious conversation, especially for so early in the morning.
"Do you think McGonagall did it on purpose?" Neville idly wondered as he was watching the teachers table.
They all looked at the teachers table and saw their House head sip at her cuppa looking completely unphased. Snape on the other hand looked like he was sucking on a lemon. In complete contrast, Flitwick and Sprout looked incredibly cheery as they clinked cups.
"The sad part is we'll never know," Ron sighed.
"Well, it's Friday and I don't think I need to remind the three of you of what we have first," Hermione reminded them with a pointed stare.
Harry groaned and wondered if it was too late to try drowning himself in his cereal. Even Neville suddenly looked rather sick. Ron directed an irritated glare Hermione's way and elbowed Harry out of his slump.
"Don't sweat it, guys, come on. Percy's been working with us all week. We also have Hermione who made all of us skim through 'Advanced Potions' at least once."
Harry nodded feeling a little surer and turned to Neville with a determined nod.
"Ron's right. We've totally got this."
Neville nodded but it was clear by the panic in his eyes that he greatly doubted Harry's words.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
Yet, despite their preparation and worst imaginings, Potions went nothing like they expected. The first years entered the classroom in a silent march, not daring to say a word. They settled into their seats and stiffly waited for Snape to call the registry. The greasy haired professor did exactly that and nothing more.
"What do you think he's playing at?" Ron suspiciously muttered to Neville.
But Neville was too stiff to reply, he didn't want to try his luck and be the one to set Snape off.
"You will pair up and begin preparation," Snape instructed.
He didn't address anyone directly; he didn't ask a single question and he most certainly didn't look at Harry Potter even once. Potions, to Harry's disbelief and Neville's utter joy, passed with little to no drama at all.
"Ron, did you see? I didn't mess up anything at least once, today!" Neville excitedly gushed to the tall red head.
Ron grinned and pat Neville's back in congratulations.
"Proud of you mate. Just you wait, by the end of this year, you'll be ace at this too," Ron assured causing Neville to beam at him.
Seamus joined them by jumping Neville from behind with a hug. Dean followed him with an embarrassed shake of his head.
"And I didn't set fire to Dean this time! I'm improving too, right Ron?" the Irish boy chirped.
Ron gave a slow nod feeling confused by Seamus' manic energy while Neville weakly begged him to loosen his grip. Dean covered his face and turned to the giggly Lavender and Parvati looking pained.
"Has he no dignity?" he questioned.
"Shameless Seamus strikes again," Parvati smirked causing Lavender to give a proper laugh.
Ron noticed that Harry and Hermione were walking rather slowly and falling behind. He stopped and turned to them with a furrowed brow and confused frown.
"Oi? Are you two pretending to be snails or something?"
The first sign that his two friends were going to say something exhausting was by the glint in Harry's eyes and Hermione's jaw. The second, more important sign Ron should have noticed, was Harry's angry scowl. The third sign was when Harry opened his mouth to speak.
"He didn't even look at me! Not once," the green-eyed boy exclaimed while throwing his hands in the air.
The other first year Gryffindors exchanged glances behind Ron's back. Clearly this was going to be another one of those conversations between the trio.
"You saw, didn't you? He skipped my name on the registry and pretended I didn't even exist!"
Ron sighed and did a marvellous impression of Percy before replying to Harry's frustrated rant.
"That's a good thing, innit? The less attention he gives you the less chances we'll have a repeat of last Friday," Ron reasoned.
But Harry glared up at the taller boy with that poisoning green stare of his. The other Gryffindor's warily stepped closer behind Ron. Who knew Harry Potter had a death stare as lethal as Hermione Granger? Ron seemed completely unphased by Harry's stare and patiently waited for him to finish getting his feelings off his chest.
"I didn't study and read Advanced Potions with Hermione and Percy, for him to just-just IGNORE all my effort, Ron!"
Ron nodded agreeably knowing Harry was not in the slightest done. At some point during his angry ranting, Harry had begun to pace, and they all watched the boy-who-lived, express himself through what could only be described as angry stomping.
"…And that hooked nosed, greasy haired batman twirling git is going to look me dead in the eye and congratulate me! At the end of this year, I'll force him to have at least once say the words 'Impressive, Potter'."
By this point, Ron was not the only one with his eyebrows raised rather high at Harry's incredibly ambitious goals. Lavender couldn't help herself; she blurted her comment after ensuring she was still safely behind Ron.
"Merlin, Potter, will you make him beg on his knees and name you supreme emperor or some other too?"
Ron, Seamus, and Neville snorted out a laugh and Harry turned his glare on her with an indignant huff.
"I'm serious! If he thinks I'm going to just let him pretend I don't exist for the rest of my Hogwarts years, he's got another thing coming. I'll become a Potions Master myself and steal his job if I have to," Harry insisted.
Lavender rolled her eyes, no longer feeling as intimidated now that the worst of Harry's rant had passed. Honestly, and he wondered why they called him dramatic? Harry Potter was just too easy to tease, she sometimes struggled to remember he was some great big hero and not just a dork.
Ron looked over to the suspiciously quiet Hermione behind Harry. She was still standing rather tensely with her death stare at full force and her hair frizzy.
"What about you Hermione? You're awfully quiet back there," he prompts.
Hermione looks up at him, glowering darkly as she lowly uttered her reply.
"I had a question… I raised my hand because I had a question… he ignored the fact I had a question Ron!"
Harry looked entirely too encouraging as Hermione took her turn to rant. Their fellow Gryffindors cringed as they watched the two validate one another's feelings and fuel each other's angry annoyance.
"Goodness, they're a terrible influence on each other," Dean muttered with a shake of his head.
Ron and the others all nodded in complete agreement, until Parvati thoughtfully commented gaining everyone's attention.
"I think he ignored Hermione because she was partnered with Harry."
Hermione immediately stopped ranting and straightened immediately with a look of realization. Harry was still frowning but Ron just looked like he was thinking about food again. Completely understandable as they'd been stuck in the corridors for almost more than five minutes now.
"Of course! Parvati's right. So long as I'm partnered with Harry, Snape is going to continue to ignore me. The solution is obvious then."
She then turned to Ron with a determined stance and practically demanded he be her partner instead.
"What? Hermione!" Harry shouted with betrayal, but it was drowned out by a surprising shout from Neville.
"Absolutely NOT happening Granger!" the usually timid boy refused.
Everyone blinked in shock as Neville all but grabbed Ron's arm rather possessively and held him far away from Harry and Hermione. Parvati and Lavender gave sharp gasps of entertained pleasure while Dean raised his brows, impressed by the sudden turn of events. Seamus even let out a whistle as he admiringly watched Neville stand his ground.
"Why not? You've already partnered with him twice Neville, and you did fine today," Hermione pointed out.
"And why can't I partner with Ron?" Harry adds.
Ron dryly looks between his friends with an exasperated sigh. He's suddenly reminded of the time Ginny and the twins did something similar when they were younger, all because they insisted, they needed Ron's help for two different things.
"At least the twins fed me while they argued it out…" he grumbled as he felt his belly rumble.
Neville glared at Harry and Hermione, not loosening his grip on Ron for a second.
"I did fine today because I know how to work with Ron and am used to sharing a potions table with him. Snape's not that scary when Ron's helping me."
Ron feels his ears grow hot with embarrassment as Lavender grins teasingly at him from her place beside Parvati. He has no idea how a conversation about Snape had suddenly turned into a fight over having him as a potions partner.
"If you two need Snape to give you verbal praise or want to be Potion Master's or whatever, that's your own problem. I'm just looking to do the best I can and Ron's way of doing things works for me. Isn't it enough that Snape's not bullying us anymore? Why can't you just be satisfied with that?"
Everyone looked at Hermione and Harry who had fallen strangely silent at Neville's question.
It is in this sense, the two didn't feel the others would understand. Hermione, a child genius, who spent majority of her younger years fighting to certify her intelligence to condescending adults; Harry, an orphan neglected by his guardians, constantly fighting to validate his existence. They didn't come from big families nor did they grow up in a world full of magic. They share an uncomfortable glance with one another, knowing the others will not understand their reasons. Not really.
"You're right," Harry solemnly says with an apologetic smile.
"We're sorry Neville, for getting so caught up in the moment. Of course, you're Ron's partner," Hermione sighs and nods in agreement.
Neville refrains from rolling his eyes at her words. Why did she say it like it was ever in doubt? Sometimes, Neville really couldn't help but wonder how Ron survived being friends with two dramatic berks like Hermione and Harry. This one conversation had completely exhausted him.
Ron snorts and finally speaks up now that everyone had had their go of ranting.
"For the record, if anyone would be interested to know, I wasn't going to swap partners anyway."
Neville grinned as Hermione glared and Harry huffed. Ron shook his head at his two friends and dryly continued as he slung his arm over Neville's shoulder.
"When it comes to potions, Nev and I are a great team. No way would I survive being partnered with either one of you."
"What do you mean?" Harry protested with an offended gape.
"Hermione's obsessed with control over everything! I saw her re-chop your snakeskin because it was a millimetre too long. And Harry, mate, if Hermione didn't have eyes on the back of her head you would have dumped who knows what into today's potion."
Ron barked out another laugh and shook his head as he started to lead the way to great hall.
"Hell, yeah I'm partnering with Nev. He at least won't have me challenging Dumbledore for best head of white hair at the end of the year."
The trio eventually ended up in another one of their bickering bantering, leaving the rest of their housemates to follow behind them. Neville walked with a rather giddy spring to his step earning more than a few amused glances from Lavender, Parvati, and Dean.
"You look awfully pleased with yourself," Lavender leadingly whispered in Neville's ear.
"Of course, I am! Gran's gonna be so unbelievably pleased with me at the end of the year. Potions might even become my favourite subject if every class goes exactly like today did," he explained.
Lavender and Parvati hummed in unison before dissolving into whispers and giggling chatter. Neville was surprised again by Seamus who jumped him into a hug from behind. Neville yelped at the rough treatment before Seamus had cupped his face with both hands and stared him dead in the eye.
"That was brave of you, Nev, truly Gryffindor of you. Percy will be proud when I tell him, but on a serious note…"
Neville blinked as Dean watched warily from behind him.
"I know you won't trade with Granger or Potter, but what about with me? I can give you Dean. He's clean, independent and knows how to feed himself. He can take instruction too."
"Oh, for goodness sake, Seamus!" Dean groaned.
Neville laughed and shook his head, but Seamus wasn't done.
"Wait, Wait! I haven't even gotten to the best part about him!"
Dean and Neville waited for him to continue, and Seamus released Neville in favour of patting Dean's shoulder.
"Dean is completely Flame resistant! The amount of times I almost lit this lad on fire is- OMPH!"
Dean huffed as Seamus clutched at his stomach with a groan from his punch. He then took Neville by his robes and led him to the Gryffindor table.
"Don't know if you've heard Nev, but as of right now, I'm in need of a new best mate. Interested?"
Neville grinned and jokingly nodded.
"Sure, never had an official one before."
They left Seamus groaning out Dean's name and happily dug into some tuna sandwiches.
~(*)\(*)/(*)~
The trio's last day of punishment proved to be completely drama free. By dinner, Ron was starting to think he could really come to love Hogwarts if this were all the excitement he would have. It was different to the Burrow, still busy and crowded, still full of rules and expectations. But Ron had friends here and bigger challenges that he didn't necessarily experience back at home. He felt, dare he say it, rather content and no longer as grumpy.
"Harry!" Oliver called with a large grin on his face.
The trio looked up at his call, pausing momentarily mid dinner with caution.
"We seriously didn't do anything today, honest," Harry immediately defended.
Oliver looked amused while Hermione rolled her eyes and muttered unfavourable things about Harry's terrible acting skills.
"Relax Potter, I'm not Percy. Besides, what kind of a Captain would I be if I let you get punished again after you've just gained your freedom."
"A responsible one, I would hope," Hermione muttered, but was ignored.
Ron looked around the tables with a furrowed brow, noticing something that didn't sit right with him. He was only half listening as Oliver continued to talk to Harry.
"Anyway, I want you to meet me at seven over at the Quidditch pitch. I want to get a head start on training you as soon as possible. We're a bit behind as Try outs were on Monday and the other teams already got a start on breaking in their newbies. But, before I get you facing the rest of our team, I need to make sure you can dodge. Fred & George showed me a few new moves they'd been practising. I need to be sure you won't lose your head, or worse."
Harry gulped and looked over to where Fred & George sat, laughing loudly with their mates. Fred's ominous words from yesterday sparking to life in his mind once more.
Hermione however jolted forward with demanding persistence.
"Seven? Tonight! But what about study group?" she pressed.
Oliver shook his head before giving his reply, looking a little too casual and unbothered in Ron's opinion.
"Percy's busy tonight and none of you are grounded. If you still want to make it a thing, you'll just have to do it without him some nights."
"Where is Percy anyway? How come he's not the one telling us all this?" Ron just as 'casually' asked.
Oliver shrugged making obvious motions to leave.
"You know your brother, always busy with something. I'll see you at seven Potter."
Ron tried not to think of Oliver's retreat as 'running away' but that's exactly what it seemed like. Hermione and Harry had also noticed his change in mood and nudged him from under the table. He looked to them and did his best to show it wasn't anything big, just some thoughts. Though they dropped it for the moment, Ron knew it was just another thing added to their list of 'not forgotten'.
Ron looked about the great hall, wondering if he'll see Percy at any point and time.
By Seven, when he and Hermione walked Harry to the Quidditch pitch, Ron still hadn't seen any sign of his Older brother.
He tried not to let his worry and paranoid thoughts consume him. This was Percy after all, and Percy could handle himself on his own without help. Ron knew that for certain.
But…
Bill's lecture to Ron and the twins about looking out for one another still weighed on the eleven-year old's mind. One they took seriously after what happened to Charlie when Bill was a prefect.
Ron shook his head, pushing back his worries with a stubborn shove. He'll find Fred and George later and see if they'd noticed Percy during or after dinner. For now, he and Hermione watched Harry swoop around in the air and catch golf balls.