Disclaimer: I do not own anything of this story. Harry Potter and all of the notable characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Magnolia Crescent

Chapter Thirty-Three

Dragon Fights

"Harry," Sirius called as his godson was packing up his Defense books. He snapped his head up to look at his godfather. "Oh, don't give me that look. I'm not going to give you detention."

He relaxed a bit as Sirius leaned back on his desk. They watched the rest of the students file out. "If you have any questions, feel free to bring them up. My door is open at seven after the dining hall closes," he reminded the class as the room emptied.

"Not going to try and be subtle about this?" Harry asked, looking up at him. He smirked, showing off his teeth.

"Nope, I got a letter from Mrs. Weasley telling me how bad of a parent I am and that I should be keeping a closer eye on you," he said, pulling out the parchment. "Oddly enough, she then goes on to tell me that one of her sons is coming home from Romania, of all places. He'll be staying for the first task and leaving shortly thereafter. How odd, huh?" Sirius asked. Harry gulped.

"So, dragons, huh?" he asked. Sirius only shrugged.

"Wouldn't know but I felt you should let Ron know his older brother is going to be home. She says to let Harry know to tell Ron, right here," he said, poking at the paper.

"A hint," Harry surmised. Sirius shrugged again.

"Well, I have no idea. It could just be a coincidence," he said, standing up. "Just thought I should let you know. Better go tell Ron; I have papers to grade." He moved around his desk, grabbing the papers as he went.

Harry walked out of the classroom, Sirius watching him out of the corner of his eye. He tapped the papers with his wand and marks began to appear. Sirius took out a pocket watch. "Five minutes," he told himself, making his way out the door. He locked the door to his room before taking one last look around and disappearing.

Harry made a face later that day as another "Potter Stinks" badge caught his eye. He shook his head, having seen them around already, mostly sported by Slytherins. Although, there was at least a handful of students from other house sporting them as well. He suppressed an annoyed grumble when a low chanting filled his ear.

"Fight! Fight! Fight!" came the chant. Harry paused, closing his eyes and trying his best to fight a desire to investigate.

"Curses," he grumbled, running down the outside corridor. But his path was blocked by a large group of students. He shoved past them and his blood went cold.

Ron landed a hard blow on Leo's shoulder. Leo grabbed onto his robe, pulling him to the ground with him. Harry shoved past the last few people, fighting his way for the center to put an end to the fight. Ron rolled to the side, trying to get his feet under him. But Leo rushed, slamming his shoulder into Ron. The onlookers parted as they stumbled into the courtyard. Blood dripped from what looked like a broken nose on Leo.

"Ronald!" Hermione shouted, grabbing onto his arms in an attempt to break up the fight. Luna grabbed Leo and her feet tore into the grass with the effort. Hermione's grip began to falter. Then she fell back and this time it was Ron who charged with Leo's arms still locked behind him. Harry finally pushed through the inner circle but caught his foot and fell.

Ron knocked into Leo, sending Luna to the ground. A gasp went up and Harry realized that he couldn't see as his glasses were missing. He hurriedly reached out and found them and spotted Luna underneath the fight. There was a loud crack and Harry watched as Ron dropped from a massive haymaker that Leo had dealt him. He winced as the blow sent Ron careening to the ground, grasping at his chin.

Leo got to his feet, glaring down at Ron, who was staring back with eyes hot with fire. Harry stepped forward, leveling his wand at Leo. The crowd went silent as Leo raised his hands.

"You're a good friend, coming to his rescue. But he hit me first," Leo said, glancing down at Ron.

"Ron would never," Hermione defended hotly.

"Ouch," Luna said, stepping closer.

"Luna?" Harry asked, lowering his wand. "Ouch, looks like they got you good on the eye, Luna." Leo took out his wand and the scratch around her left eye slowly healed and vanished.

"He's telling the truth, Ron did hit him in the back," Luna said, a little too chipper. Hermione glared down at Ron and Harry turned his gaze on him.

"It's not his fault. I was antagonizing him," Leo said, glancing down at the ground.

"No, you weren't," Luna replied, bouncing on her toes ever so slightly. Harry turned to her with a curious expression. Leo sighed heavily, hanging his head in defeat. "He was getting on Ron's case for being such a bad friend to you, Harry."

Harry glanced at Leo but the Slytherin averted his gaze. The students began to part as the fight was over but also because of a teacher pushing their way through.

"What is the meaning of this?" Professor Snape demanded. Everyone tensed up. The onlookers departed, leaving the five involved. "Potter," he grunted, glaring at the Boy Who Lived.

"Ron and Leo got into a spat," Luna said before anyone could speak up. He looked down at Ron, then at Leo, his eyes betraying nothing.

"50 points from Slytherin for getting into a fight. 50 from Ravenclaw and 150 from Gryffindor. Each of you will be spending some time in detention. As for you," he said, glancing at Leo, "I hope you realize that a friend in Gryffindor is never a friend for long. Come along, I don't need another fight breaking out. To the hospital wing, Weasley," Snape said, realizing that Ron and Leo were the only ones injured.

"Thanks, Professor." Leo took out his wand and pointed it at his face. "Carne Reparatoine," he said. His broken nose popped back into place. "But I can handle myself." They all stood in silence as he walked off.

"Well, what are you all waiting for?" Snape said curtly.

Harry felt his brow wrinkle as he looked up at Ron. "Hit him in the back, huh?" he asked, feeling a level of coldness he never knew he had. "I guess I can't tell who the wrong sort are, after all," he said.

Ron at least had the decency to flinch as the words reached him. He seemed to choke on his words before finally spitting them out. "I'm tired of sitting by," he said. "You've always been better than me, smart, the damn hero. I'm always in someone's shadow. Now, you seek even more attention, but you won't even confide in me!" he nearly shouted. Hermione jumped but Harry barely batted an eyelash. He had a feeling this was the reason.

"When have I ever lied?" Harry asked, his voice low and cold. "I have never lied, I have always been honest and told you everything I knew. Ron, you can believe whatever you want. I am honest with you and Hermione. I have never withheld anything from you. Not once; if you are my friend, you will believe that," he said, clapping a hand on Ron's shoulder and looking him in the eye. "Also, your mother sent a letter to Sirius. Said your brother is back from Romania," he said, turning away. He felt a growing need to hit something, anything at this point in time. And he had to get away before Ron became the target.

He opened up the doors to the training room a few minutes later and heard the sound of panting. He found Neville on his hands and knees, panting for breath. "Neville?" Harry asked. The boy suddenly shot to his feet.

"Harry?" he asked, dusting himself off and doing his best to look presentable. Harry glanced at him; his body seemed to shake uncontrollably. "What are you doing here?" he asked. Harry didn't reply but took out his wand instead.

"Accio bench," he said, pulling the bench forwards and forcing Neville to sit down. He let out a sigh of relief. "I could ask you the same thing," Harry said, sitting down as well.

"Well, Ron was so worked up about losing you on the team. I have to be better; I can't let the team down," he said, slumping in clear exhaustion.

"Yeah, just do your best. It's not like any of us actually expect to win. It's all for fun," Harry said, slapping him on the back.

"Easy for you to say. You're used to pleasure. I mean, when have you ever failed to rise to the occasion?" Neville asked.

"Well, it always seems like the right thing to do," Harry admitted, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"Well, this feels like the right thing to do to me," Neville replied with a nod of his head.

"By working yourself half to death?" Harry asked. Neville had the decency to look sheepish.

"Well, that wasn't part of the plan. But I need to be better, I can't let them down," he said, his resolve solid.

"Let's get you down to the dorm, all the same. You can't even stand up straight," Harry said. He hefted Neville's arm over his shoulder and helped him to the door. "Man, those stairs are going to be a pain," he grumbled, making his way to the dorm.

"Wow, Potter, heard you and Weaslbee got into a spat, but you sure find a new boyfriend really quick," Malfoy called out. Harry simply rolled his eyes. "Hey Potter, I am talking to you!" he shouted, but Harry continued to ignore him. He had more pressing matters to attend to, like the moving stairs.

"Harry, what are you doing?" asked Ginny, looking over at him. Harry gave a nervous grin at her.

"Just helping Neville get back to the dorm. He wore himself out practicing today," he said, mentally gulping. After Ron had gotten into the fight, he wasn't sure how the rest of the family would react.

"Right, so any idea what happened to my brother?" Ginny asked, crossing her arms

"Which one? I heard Charlie was coming back for a while," he said, unable to stop the nervous grin from spreading over his face.

"No, you know the one you had all your adventures with? The one who is currently residing in the hospital wing?" she asked.

"Well, um, you see. I lost my temper with him and yelled at him for getting into a fight with Leo. Not sure of the details on it, but well, we are all going to be serving some time in detention," he said, trying to keep things to a bare minimum.

"About time," she said, walking with the pair and taking Neville's other arm. "All he's been nagging about was you. I thought he needed a good beating. I just think it would have meant more if it was you who had put him in the hospital."

"Ouch," Neville said, trying to move away from Ginny.

"Yeah, that sounded better in my head," she admitted. "But, to be honest, someone had to call him out on it. Half the house can see this for what it is. And we are just trying to support you," she said, giving Harry a light smile.

"Really?" he said, a smile flashing on his lips.

"Kinda. Some think the threats died with the diary in second year," Neville replied. Ginny shot him a dirty look. "Not that I believe them, Harry. You're too good of a guy," he said, smiling at his friend helping him up the stairs.

"It's no big deal, I'm just worried. Ron's one of my best friends. I don't much like the idea of Leo chasing him off." He glanced over at Ginny. "Good intentions or otherwise, I don't need any more problems," he said with a grunt.

"You can't seem to catch a break, can you?" asked Neville as they made their way up another stair.

"It can get tiring," he admitted, his mind replaying what he had learned about dragons. "So, what do you know about dragons?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Um, plants are more my thing. So, not much," Neville admitted.

"Dragons are big fire-breathing reptiles. Despite their breath, they are cold blooded and typically lay about five eggs at one time. Normally, only about one or two actually hatch. Only one can hope to reach adulthood," Ginny said proudly. Harry glanced past Neville at her. "I had a phase," she admitted, a blush stealing across her cheeks.

"Right, any spells that might affect them?" he asked.

"Well, it's been a while but dragons are difficult. Even a group of fully trained wizards have trouble handling them. Why the sudden interest?" Ginny asked.

"I got a hint that I might be dealing with dragons for the first task. I'm not sure exactly how, but I have bad feeling that beating or taming it is out of the question," he replied.

"Yeah, if anything, you will have to take something from a dragon, seeing as they hoard fiercely. Or something along the lines of avoiding or getting around it. Not even someone like Krum could fight one on his own," Ginny replied.

"So, how do you know so much about dragons?" Neville asked, looking at the redhead.

"Dragons are cool, leave it at that," she said, glancing at him with a look that said 'drop it'.

"Yes, Ma'am," Neville replied as they finally reached the top of Gryffindor tower. Neville gave the password to the Fat Lady and they shuffled through the opening. Harry set him down on the couch and groaned in relief.

"If you want, I could get a few of my books on dragons. It's all basic stuff," she admitted, glancing away from him.

"Anything would be helpful. Maybe I can find something that can scare them off," Harry said with a chuckle.

"Give me a second," she said, scurrying off.

"You know, she is a lot different with you around," Neville said, raising his head from the back of the couch.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, glancing at the stairs to the girls dorm.

"Well, she's normally really tough. I mean, living in a house full of boys, I guess she would be but nobody messes with her."

"With who?" Ginny asked, all but leaping off the stairs.

"With Hermione. Did you see what she did during her last match?" Neville asked, glancing at Harry with a bit of fear in his eyes. Harry felt his brow furrow a bit, but went along with it.

"Yeah, I hear Malfoy is terrified of her," Harry added. A flash of suspicion crossed Ginny's face but it was only for a second.

"So, here you are," she said, handing Harry a very old and worn book. "Don't lose it, it's very important to me, okay," she said. A flash of fear entered his mind when he realized that she wasn't going to let go of it right away. Harry nodded and she released her grip on it. He opened the book and glanced at the table of contents.

"Wow, that's a lot of dragons," he said, setting the book down on the table.

"Yeah," she said, licking her finger and flipping through a few pages until she reached a chapter titled 'General Information'. She took her time, reading each as if in search of something. "Ah, here it is," she said, pointing to a paragraph.

"'All dragons have a natural dislike of bunnies.' Bunnies?" he asked, glancing at Ginny.

"They're not afraid of them, if that's what you are thinking. They actually go after them with a blind determination," she explained.

"I see where you are going with this. It would be a perfect distraction," he said with a smile.

"Of course that is where I was going with it," she said, staring at him owlishly. Her odd behavior didn't faze him. "That leaves an option on Transfiguration," he said. Perhaps he could ask Professor McGonagall about this.

"You don't mind if I look this book over, do you?" Harry asked, hoping to find more options.

"Sure, I have some homework. Would you mind the company?" she asked, her voice trailing off.

"Not at all, I could always use some company," he said, smiling as her freckles vanished under a red blush again. 'Weird', he thought to himself. He heard some light snoring and they realized that Neville had drifted off to sleep.

Harry created a mental list of dragon aversions as he looked over the book. Water was a rather obvious one, blind spots located behind and above, plus places where a dragon was a bit more vulnerable to jinxes and stunning spells.

"Trouble is, I have no idea what I am dealing with or where I am going to be at. Or even what kind of dragon I will be facing," Harry grumbled as the portrait hole opened up and Ron walked in.

"Hagrid wants to see you," Ron said in a beaten tone as he glanced at Harry. And with that, Harry and Ginny watched him walk to his dorm.

"I think Leo shook him up a bit," Ginny said, watching her brother disappear.

"I hope he is alright," Harry said.

"He's used to it, he's just trying to guilt you," Ginny said, waving it off. "He's just mad that you get to do what he wishes he could do."

"Harsh much?" he asked. She glanced at him out of the corner of his eye.

"You are way too nice," she said with a smile.

"Not really," Harry muttered.

"I beg to differ," Hermione said, climbing through the portrait hole.

"If there is someone with patience for him," Harry said, more to himself. But Ginny couldn't help but nod as well. Hermione glanced at both of them.

"Homework," Ginny replied, holding up her book. Hermione nodded, clearly half asleep.

"Sometimes, I wonder why I put up with him," she sighed, heading to her dorm.

"That's million Galleon question," Ginny said.

"Shouldn't you support family?" Harry asked, glancing at her. He pointed in a random direction, unsure of where he should be pointing.

"I have my favorites; Ron needs to man up and he won't get any help from me until he does so," Ginny said, giving a strong nod of her head.

"Harsh," Harry thought to himself.

"That's why I like you, nothing scares you," she said, smiling ever so slightly.

"I wouldn't go that far; I just hide it very well," Harry admitted. She seemed shocked at that addition.

"But you are facing a dragon, and you're not shaken. You've faced the Dark Lord, a basilisk, even a boggart," she said. "You've never batted an eye, even when you were dying from the venom," she all but blurted out.

"Shh," he hushed, nodding at Neville as he shifted on the couch. "I hide it really well," he admitted. "Everything I have done, I have always done because I wanted to help, but fear has always been there. But I knew in those moments, it was me or nobody else."

"Oh," she said, glancing down at her book. "Look, I am going to head to bed. I'll see you around," she said, standing up. Harry glanced down at his book, only for something soft to touch the side of his face. He turned only to see Ginny vanish up the stairs. He reached out, but lowered his hand after a second.

So, Ron and Leo got their butts kicked. Way to go guys... But maybe now Ron will start shaping up. Anyways next chapter is on it's way!

~LE