Harry Potter and the Fate of Destiny

Chapter 2

My parents had written back to me in regards to my request of a private tutor and to say that it was a resounding no was an understatement. They said it was too expensive and that I should just be grateful to be at the renowned Hogwarts in the first place.

Over the next few weeks I watched Ron Weasley closely, and I kept seeing a disturbing trend. He kept on demeaning Hermione! He'd insult her again and again. Furthermore, Harry did little to nothing about it. Sure, Hermione would occasionally fire something back but it wasn't like he called her a loser. It was much more insidious. He didn't attack directly but he'd grind her down. If he continued to do that to her it'd break her psyche.

Now the next questions arose: Was he doing it intentionally? Or was it that he was just such a cruel monster that he'd just naturally do that? Either way I had to find a way to protect her. Even if I didn't have a huge crush on her I'd still have had trouble turning my back on something like that.

So the question remained: Why would he do that if he was intentionally? But the most important question to me was: "How do I save her?"

She wouldn't believe me if I just came out and said it. That much was obvious. For the first time in my life, I had an opportunity to really, truly help someone and I didn't have a clue how to do it! Being helpless is the worst thing I've ever experienced. Truly.

While I argued with myself I managed to become a friend and rival of Hermione. We would compete for the top spot for grades. She'd beat me out on the practical most of the time but I usually could hold my own on the theoretical and when it came to creating a new solution to a problem I won most of the time.

I was embarrassed to admit that Hermione was more powerful than I was. She also could at the very least match my mind. My greatest source of pride. I had been dethroned. I was no longer a special guy that had a place. Still, instead of inspiring jealousy I managed to push that aside and respect her for beating me. I didn't tell her that I had begrudgingly admitted that she was better than me and so our rival status stayed secure.

I then pushed myself more than ever before to try to keep up. I wouldn't fall behind her!

A couple teachers noticed our friendly rivalry and started putting together in group projects.

"Why do you put up with him? He's a git! Just as bad as Malfoy!" Ron snarled after Transfiguration where Hermione and I had been paired up for the second time.

"He's my friend!"She hissed.

For the first time I felt happy outside of my family. As someone who has trouble associating with others friends weren't exactly common. I could count my friends on one hand and have fingers to spare. In Hogwarts I could count one.

Looking back I realized that I could have done things differently. Maybe if I had just...

"Damn it Hermione he's a loser. His only friend is you and that's only because you like the competition he gives you." Harry said as their voices trailed down the hall.

I stopped dead in my tracks.

Was Harry right? Was I really that bad? Was that the only reason Hermione liked me as a friend? I shook my head. Harry didn't like me and I didn't like him. He'd do anything to interfere with my friendship with Hermione.

I looked around, and noticed something that hadn't really bothered me before. I was alone. No friend to lean on. No friend to be there for. No one.

"I don't care what Potter has to say. His opinion doesn't matter." I muttered furiously.

I then headed to my solace point: the library. I studied furiously.

For all the girls reading this please take note here. I'm a guy. I don't have feelings. I'm invincible. The only emotion I show is anger. Ah who am I kidding? I just hide the hurt. Men don't cry. It's not because we can't but we won't. It'd be showing weakness. I hate being weak. I study hard and learn as much as I can so as to not be weak.

"I thought you might be here." Hermione said as she slipped into a chair next to me.

"Hermione." I say as a levelly as I can.

"They hurt you didn't they?"

How can she read me like this? I haven't known her that long!

"Of course not." I object.

The look she gives me proves that she's not convinced.

"Blast it... Are they right? Is it only the rivalry that I offer that matters?" I ask quietly; privately ashamed I actually asked her that.

"No. You're a good man David. Rough around the social edges but that's something I can relate to."

"Thanks. You're too good to me." I smiled at Hermione who blushed lightly.

"You're flirting with me." She smiled lightly.

My own face flushes. I'm not a social creature. I didn't even realize that I had been flirting with her!

"Oh...Uh..." I mumble.

She chuckled lightly as she opened her Transfiguration textbook.

"So, what are you working on?" She asked.

I unfurl the transfiguration equation in front of me.

The work I showed her was something I had worked on for years. I wanted to boil the animagus transformation down to a simple mathematical equation.

Her eyes ran across the parchment, reading the formula at a fast pace.

"This is something indeed. Is this...?"

"The mathematics for the Animagus form? I think so. I'm still struggling with it in parts."

"Like what?"

I pointed to a set of figures in the left corner.

"These in particular. They just won't match up in the right sequence. I've been stuck on this part for the better part of this year."

She nodded and looked at it with a slight frown.

"This must have taken years." She said.

I nodded.

"Yeah, I just want to be able to prove that even Transfiguration has a basis in science. But I just can't seem to connect all the dots."

"Some things can't just be explained." Hermione said gently.

"But why is that? We can prove that the earth orbits the sun. We can prove that space is cold, and that the earth is round. We can prove that comets exist and that the moon has an effect on the tides. So why can this be any different?" I asked.

"Can science explain a thought or the human soul?"

"Not yet." I admitted.

We challenged each other like this all the time and I found myself eagerly awaiting the next time we talked. At the end of our debate-which drew to a hanged jury. Each one of us unsure who was right. I walked with Hermione back to the tower.

"Are you willing to talk to my friends yet?" Hermione asked.

I shook my head.

"Sorry, but I can't stand how Ron insults you all the time. I'd be too tempted to try to transfigure him into a flobberworm."

"What do you mean? He's not that bad." Hermione protested.

I raised an eyebrow.

"Do you want me to really answer that?"

She nodded and I sighed in frustration.

"Okay. I won't lie or hold back." She knew I wasn't kidding when I said that too.

"Yesterday he called you a know-it-all bookworm nine times in the time I saw you. He said that you were irritating six times that I saw. He called you a nag four times and mocked you twice for your knowledge. I wasn't even around you three much yesterday." I said quietly.

"You counted?" Hermione seemed stunned by the amount of insults that had come from Ron.

I nodded.

"Remember when you asked me to tell you what I knew?" I asked.

Perhaps this was my chance to help Hermione! She nodded.

"I thought that he might be your friend only because he could use you. Everything I've seen points towards him not respecting you. I think he could be-"

At that she slapped me; hard.

"Ron's my friend. I-I won't let you tear our friendship apart!" She cried and ran off.

I felt my heart shatter. I had failed her again. I thought I was doing the right thing. I told her the truth. What did I do wrong? How could I have done that better? What was I supposed to do? For the first time in almost three years tears stung my eyes. It wasn't the physical pain, but from the knowledge that I had hurt Hermione in a way that if even if she forgave me I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for.

I sat down on the nearest steps and looked at the floor. Totally disheartened. I had failed her.

Thus I lost my only friend.

The day passed with me withdrawing more into myself. That night I headed to my bed, drew the curtains and slept.

A new schedule began. Get up early. Read in the library as soon as it opened; skip breakfast. Head to class, eat a sandwich on the go for lunch, and go to classes. After classes grab another sandwich, and find an abandoned classroom to study in.

I didn't want to hurt her ever again. If I stayed away maybe she'd be able to heal without me bothering her.

It took a week before Ron found me.

"You tried to tell her something huh?" He snarled as he entered my classroom.

"What do you want?" I asked without bothering to face him.

"You're a worthless git. You almost ruined a good thing I had going."

"I knew there was more to you than just a complete idiot...Chessmaster." At that I turned and faced him.

His grin was nothing short of creepy.

"I'm glad you pushed so soon. If you had been more patient it might have ruined everything."

"So what's your master plan?" I asked indifferently.

"She's a good resource to have my homework done. You almost ruined that." Ron had already won, he didn't need to hide the truth from me. No one would have believed me anyways. We both knew it.

I shrugged. It didn't matter anymore. I couldn't save her now.

"I think I should teach you a lesson though. You interfered with me."

"You can't beat me." I said.

At that he drew his wand and fired off a curse. I flung myself out of my desk and grabbed my wand.

"Stupefy!" I muttered.

He rolled out of the way and rushed towards me firing off a barrage of spells.

I managed to deflect them with a hastily created shield charm.

He then finished his barrage with a heavy punch to my jaw. He wasn't the most powerful wizard in magic but he could pack a mean punch. He sent me rolling across the floor and I shook my head clearing the bright spots that appeared when he struck me. I managed to put up another shield to block his next barrage and even managed to fire off several spells of my own.

Now, I was cautious. Ron had proved to have experience fighting. Last time I had caught him unawares and this time I was facing a fully alert Ron Weasley.

I however managed to eventually bind him with magical cords and then stunned him. After which I removed his bindings and staggered out of the classroom and back to my bed. Ron was a prefect he'd be fine if he was caught after hours. I could out duel him but he would still have me in the end and I knew it. He was a prefect. He'd definitely assign a detention for me or two or even more. In the end I still lost.

Why couldn't I get anything to go right? Oh yes, he was the 'golden boy's' friend. I could never win.

"Mr. Lammings." The head of Gryffindor called for me.

Big surprise.

"Yes professor?" I asked as I approached her, trying to hide the bruise on my jaw by not directly facing her.

"You will have detention with Professor Snape for the next week."

"Yes professor." I said without objecting.

It wouldn't do any good.

"Go to the hospital wing and get your injuries taken care of. Normally, I'd detract points but it would also harm the victim in this case. Nevertheless I'm very disappointed in you."

Why was I not surprised?

These chapters are meant to be short, faster updates. Crystal song will have large novel length updates. This...not so much...

Hope you enjoyed Fate of Destiny Pt2. David's been kicked while he's down... Ouch.