16
Sarah POV
Once Harry showed me the map, I realized immediately where Malfoy was going. I knew that he was going to the Room of Requirement. I wanted to go to the room right away, but I watched Harry shove the map out of sight every night when I returned from wandering the same path- he was watching my movements. I'd have to go at a time when he wasn't watching, either early or late. I also had to plan around Occlumency lessons every Wednesday- for the rest of the week I felt too ill to do much of anything. After searching for an acceptable day, I finally decided on Ron's birthday. He and I weren't speaking anyway- it'd be perfect. I'd still gotten him a birthday present, a newer, advanced copy of Quidditch Through the Ages, but he and Harry would be distracted in the morning- a perfect chance for me to escape. When the day arrived, I rose early and crept downstairs. I started across the room, but nearly leapt into the air when a voice called out to me. "Doing alright, Sarah?" Seamus Finnigan called from the fireplace. He and Dean Thomas were playing Exploding Snap. Seamus wiggled his eyebrows at me, crossing his arms and bumping the cards. Seconds later, the pile exploded in his face, making Dean roar with laughter. Before I could continue out, feet pounded down the boys' staircase and Ron nearly ran me over.
"Sarah! I need your help, your advice. I love her, I love her so much- and you're a girl, you can tell me what she's like-" Ron looked positively mad. He was pale, and his eyes were far too excited. His hands were trembling.
"Ron!" Harry hissed, appearing at the top of the staircase and nearly running down it.
"You have to help me," Ron said, taking the front of my robes and giving me a little shake.
"What's going on?" I asked Harry, while patting Ron on the shoulder, slowly pulling out of his grasp.
"He ate some spiked candy Romilda Vane gave me-" he started.
"Romilda? Did you say Romilda, Harry?" Ron piped up instantly, then sighed dreamily. "I love her," he sighed happily, and I raised my eyebrows.
"She put love potion in them." Harry finished, looking pained, rubbing his ear, which, for some reason, was bright red, as if he'd been punched. "I'm taking him to Slughorn, he'll know what to do. But he wants your advice on girls." He said, pulling a face. We stared at each other a second. Ever since he'd brought up Malfoy again, I'd ignored him, and vice versa.
"Come on then, Ron, I'll give you advice as we walk." I said quickly, looking away from Harry and hooking arms with Ron, following Harry out of the portrait hole.
"So, what do girls like?" Ron asked, hanging off my every word.
"Well," I started, trying not to laugh at the look on his face. "Girls like talking-"
"We're talking!" Ron piped up brightly. I looked at him, amused, before continuing.
"We like men who are polite-Ron!" I almost shouted as he suddenly scooped me up in a bridal style hold.
"I'm only being polite, like you said." Ron insisted, and Harry looked back and did a double take. I gave him a look that said, 'shut up and never speak of this again', and he grinned, turning back around.
"Well, put me down, please." I said, biting back a laugh, and he gracefully put me down. "Um, girls like laughing-" Ron broke me off with a hearty guffaw that echoed down the corridor. I heard Harry snort in front of us, but Ron didn't even notice. He was looking at me expectantly, like a proud child. "Girls like kissing-" Ron instantly dipped me low, almost hitting the floor and kissed me without hesitation. It didn't bother him that I did nothing, he took advantage of the fact that I'd gasped to fully snog me, French kissing and all. I beat on his shoulder but he didn't move or relinquish his hold. I heard Harry stop, realizing that we weren't following and choke. I beat on his shoulder harder with the heel of my hand- I needed to breathe! After a second, Ron broke the kiss and stood me up again, beaming.
"Good, eh?" Ron chirped, looking pleased with himself. I put a hand on my chest, trying to repress the fact that Ron had just freaking snogged me.
"For Merlin's sake, Ron," I gasped, feeling myself blush hot, high across my cheekbones. "Save it for Romilda," I forced out, trying not to freak out, and Ron frowned.
"You're right. I apologize, because I'm polite." He said with regal stiffness, hooking arms with me again. Harry was still standing down the hall, looking at us open mouthed. "Come on, Harry. I need to see Romilda." Ron said impatiently as we drew even with him.
"Uh, right," Harry said, looking as shocked as I was, turning back around setting out at a faster pace. Ron drilled me on how he should act around Romilda as we walked, but, thankfully, he didn't try anything out on me again. We arrived at Slughorn's office and I led him through, trying to keep him calm, even though he was bouncing on his heels, looking around in excitement.
"What's this?" He asked Slughorn as he handed him the antidote.
"Tonic, for the nerves, boy, you understand." Slughorn said breezily.
"Brilliant!" Ron said, and chugged it. Seconds later, his eyes lost their luster and his mouth sagged open.
"Back to normal then? Thank Merlin," I muttered, falling onto the couch.
"Did-Did I…snog you?" Ron breathed, horrified.
"Yes, yes you did." Harry said grimly, sitting next to me. I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead tiredly as Slughorn pattered around, looking for a 'pick-me-up' as he called it, for Ron. I got up and accepted a glass from Slughorn as we passed each other. I stood by the bookcase, looking at the titles of his books, and felt a pang of irritation. I'd have to find another day to corner Malfoy, and somehow, I'd have to tell Hermione that the boy she loved had accidentally snogged me.
"Here, m'boy. To love!" Slughorn said, clearly a toast. I didn't drink when they did- I really didn't believe in love. It only got people hurt, like Hermione. Then I raised my glass to take a sip.
"Ron!" Harry yelled suddenly, and I whirled around, lowering my glass. Ron's glass lay on the carpet, smashed. Ron was on the floor, writhing and foaming at the mouth. "Professor, do something!" Harry yelled as Ron continued to writhe. Without thinking, I dropped my glass, letting it shatter, and ran past them to Slughorn's potion kit. Ron's reaction had to be one to poison. He needed an antidote-
"I don't understand!" Slughorn wailed, beyond consternation. Frantic, I threw ingredients on the floor, searching, desperate, for the only antidote I could think of- a bezoar. Harry suddenly appeared at my side.
"What are you looking for?" He asked frantically.
"A bezoar," I panted, shoving boxes aside, my hands trembling. Harry's arm abruptly shot under mine and grabbed a box. Then he was gone, running back to Ron, who wasn't writhing anymore, and his lips were blue. Harry ripped open the box and shoved the wrinkled looking stone into Ron's mouth…
OoOoOoO
I sat in the hospital wing on the bed next to Ron's, trying to quell my shaking hands. Hermione was holding his hand, sitting on a stool beside him. Fred, George and Ginny had joined us, sitting in a little semi-circle around his bed. "Ok, Harry, what happened?" Ginny asked once everyone had settled down. Harry told the story about Ron eating the spiked candy, and about how he insisted that I go with him and give him advice. (Mercifully he left out the snogging portion) He described how Slughorn had cured him, then poured us all glasses of oak-matured mead.
"It was kind of odd, he said it was supposed to be a Christmas gift for Dumbledore." Harry said, frowning whilst looking at Ron. I felt my insides clench. Harry hadn't put it all together yet, but I had. This was the second item this year that had been meant for Dumbledore and had hurt a student. The mead had to have been spiked by Malfoy, there was no other explanation I could think of. Such hatred rose in me that my hands tightened their grip on each other and I had to fight off my instinct to stand up, storm out, and corner Malfoy again. Katie Bell had been different- we really didn't know each other. But this was Ron, one of my best friends, even if we hadn't been talking for half the year.
"But who'd want to poison Slughorn?" George asked. "Maybe Slughorn bought it for himself and then decided to give it away."
"Maybe the whole bottle wasn't poisoned, maybe Slughorn wanted to poison one or all of you three," Ginny, said, her eyes flashing between Ron, Harry and I.
"That doesn't make sense," I interjected for the first time, releasing my hands but curling my left one into a fist almost unconsciously. "Slughorn doesn't know Ron or I, and he loves Harry."
"That's just it, isn't? Harry really isn't the most popular guy with Death Eaters right now." Fred said, and Harry snorted.
"Because Slughorn is obviously a…Death Eater." He said, recognition lighting in his eyes as he put it together, pausing before he said Death Eater. No one else noticed though, they just kept up their heated debate. Harry turned and looked at me, frowning. "Can I have a word?" He asked quietly, over George's head, and, regretfully, I nodded, getting up and following Harry further down the ward. He slipped into a curtained off bed, and I followed, filling with dread. This wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. "What's going on with you?" He asked brusquely as soon as I followed him in.
"I don't quite understand what you mean, please elaborate." I said through gritted teeth, crossing my arms. Harry leaned closer, scowling now.
"Did you know that another attack would happen? Do you know if someone is trying to kill Dumbledore this year?" He pressed. He'd obviously done some thinking on the topic, and as he bore down over me, I yearned to be able to tell him, to be able to get this all off my chest. I opened my mouth to say something and struggled for about thirty seconds to think of what I could say.
"I can't answer that," I said finally, and to my distaste, it came out broken and hurt. Harry raised a fist, tugged on his hair and almost turned away in frustration to my answer before turning back.
"And why not?" He asked aggressively. "Because you don't want to?" He accused, and I felt my eyes flash.
"Are you saying it's my fault that Ron was poisoned? Are accusing me of single handedly letting Ron get hurt? Let me make one thing clear right now. It's disgusting to me, how quickly you blame me because you don't think, or understand what I say to you. I love Ron like a brother. If I could have drunk the mead first out of all of us, I would, and I'd do it even if I knew the consequences. Don't you dare suggest ever again that I'd let any of my friends get hurt." I hissed, my hand floating down and resting on my wand.
"Then why won't you let your friends help you, Sarah? Something's been bothering you; for Merlin's sake, share!" Harry's said loudly, but I didn't even think about it, I was to busy rising up on my tippy toes with furious anger so I could get in Harry's face better.
"Haven't you been listening to anything, anything I say to you? I already told you everything I can- and if I could tell you everything, I would have already. Now leave me alone!" I very nearly shouted, before whipping out of the curtain and almost running out of the Hospital Wing, trying not to cry because I felt guilty enough to be sent to Azkaban with a life's sentence.