Train Ride

The next day, which was September 1st and a Friday, Harry shared a compartment with Neville, Ginny, and a girl called Luna, who was fascinating. She was obviously highborn as well, but she carried it so naturally and with such grace it was actually quite unobtrusive, it was astounding to Harry.

Hermione and Ron arrived later after the prefect meeting was over and Ron groused about Malfoy being a prefect, too.

In a quiet moment Hermione said seriously, "Ron, I need to give you a fair warning."

"About what?" Ron's hackles went up quickly, but Hermione soldiered on, "This is my OWL year and I have made some decisions."

"About what?" Ron looked impatient.

"As the adults think, you are responsible enough to be a prefect, you don't need me to push and pull you to do your jobs like homework and stuff."

"Good, at last!"

"So, you need to think of your responsibilities yourself and not rely on me to remind you, all right?"

"Bah, when do I ever?" Ron blustered.

"Great! Happy you understand. The teachers were right then, you are responsible enough."

Ron nodded proudly. Harry mouthed 'Slytherin' to Hermione, Ginny facepalmed and Neville looked out of the window, biting his lips. Hard.

Luna lay her head to the side and told Ron, "You have got a Nargle infection, did you know?" and went back to reading the Quibbler upside-down. The rest of the students in the compartment looked a little lost, but then they shrugged, and Harry asked about Neville's summer.

A little later Hermione looked at her wristwatch very obviously and got up. She slowly walked to the door, looked back at her friends, and then left.

"Where is she going?" Ron asked.

"You tell me. What time is it?" Harry answered, heavily hinting, as well.

Everyone in the compartment waited for Ron's penny to drop.

It didn't, "It's two, mate. Just when is the trolley coming?"

Harry sighed.


New Impressions

The first days of school were strange. The other children reacted instinctively to Harry's new behavior. It was like the school at large relaxed around him as he was giving the right signals at last. Most of it was nonverbal. Just his posture and bearings were enough, it seemed.

Malfoy even cornered Harry after just two days, on the grounds where Harry had been flying his broom and asked about it. The Malfoy heir wasn't his usual confrontational self, as he was too confused.

Harry answered honestly, "I just learned about my station and am learning all the things, I should have been taught from early childhood on, now."

"You... You didn't know?"

"I knew very little. Muggle-raised, you know?"

"But we were told you had tutors from a young age on."

"Really? By whom?"

Malfoy thought about it and then sighed, "By some fiction books. Sorry. It seems we all fell for it. I just wonder who published them. One cannot do this without the consent of a guardian."

"Is that so? Thank you for telling me that. I will have it investigated."

"Someone really did you a disservice. May I spread the word?"

"Please do."

They shook hands and parted ways.

Only later did they both realize the significance of that gesture.

And so, the weekend went. Draco spread the word, Harry contacted Sirius via the mirror and Hermione did her prefects duty. But only her own, while Ron lazed about.


Monday

Monday started with the 'delightful' classes of Potions and History; to be followed by Defense.

Potion lessons were strange. Snape tried to get a rise out of Harry, but the boy stayed as cool as a cucumber, and Snape could not read the boy anymore, either! Additionally, none of his Slytherins laughed at his 'jokes' about the Gryffindor. What was going on? He started to feel rather silly about his schoolyard bullying, Snape noticed. But just the sight of the boy made Snape so angry, and that familiar hate rose in him, like always!

History was sleep- and homework time, like always, and Defense was a bore as well. They had to sit around and read a very boring book, while the simpering and fidgeting Professor watched. Harry knew her from the hearing, she had been in pink robes then too, but not as twitchy. She tried to get a rise out of them, but only managed to do so with Ron, who glowered at Harry for not defending Remus. In the end, Ron earned himself detention.

As soon as they had left the classroom, Ron rounded on Harry, "Why didn't you say something?"

"What was there to say?"

"That what she was saying was not true!"

"Everyone knew that."

"But we should have told her!"

"Do you actually think she would have believed us?"

"No. But still!"

"I get your frustration with her, but it was strategically nonsense to get into a fight with her at this point in time."

"Don't tell me about strategy!"

"Huh, ok."

With that, Harry walked on, ducking away from Ron's long arm, which was reaching for him, and went up to the common room.

Ron stood there fuming. He was the strategist! He alone!


Ron had to write lines with a pink, fluffy quill, and pink ink! The horror!

Umbridge wasn't so stupid as to have a pureblood son of a Ministry Head of Office use a blood quill, even if that family were blood traitors in her eyes and that office was looked down on.


Friday

On Friday evening September 8th, Professor McGonagall had enough and called her 5th-year prefects to her office.

She had them standing in front of her desk and said, "You know, why I called you."

Even though no question had been asked, Hermione Granger answered, "Actually, I don't."

McGonagall was taken aback, "You are not fulfilling your duties!"

"Please tell me one instance, where I didn't Professor."

"Well, you always are there, but Mr. Weasley wasn't!"

"Whut?"

"You, Mr. Weasley missed every prefect meeting and every round you had on your schedule. You are not helping the first years. Do I need to go on?"

"But... Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Do you remember, what I told you about on the train ride a week ago?"

"Uh… yeah."

"Then there you have it."

"Uh."

"Please tell me as well, Miss Granger."

"Very well, I told him that since the staff found him to be responsible enough to be a prefect, it would be on him to carry his weight. That I had enough to do with my own duties as a prefect and OWL studies. He agreed that he didn't need to depend on me. May I go now?"

"No. I will make it your job now, Miss Granger, to remind Mr. Weasley and push him if needed. Have I made myself clear?"

Hermione looked at the teacher she had always respected the most and then at Ron, who looked back triumphantly. She turned back to her professor, swallowed, and asked in a small voice, "Is this your last word?"

"Yes, Miss Granger," McGonagall said, looking righteous and proud.

"Very well then." Hermione nestled with her badge, pulled it off, put it on her professor's desk, and said, "I refuse to do the work for two, just because I am a muggle-born girl, and he a pureblood boy. I resign."

With that, she whirled around and left.

Silence.

"Uh, can I go too?"

"No!"

Silence.

"Tell me, Mr. Weasley, what are the duties of a prefect?"

"Uh, to boss everyone around? To take points?... Uh... no?"

"Did you read the rules?"

Ron frowned, he had chucked a leaflet to the side, when he found the badge in his Hogwarts letter... He shook his head. Shit.

"Do you actually want to be prefect? Or did you just want that broom?"

"Uh."

"I am waiting."

"I don't know."

"I give you until tomorrow at lunch to decide. Here are the rules again. Maybe you read them now! Now leave!"

Ron ran out, the leaflet pushed into his pocket.

McGonagall sat there for a long time, head in her hands. She really had botched this up. Hermione Granger reminded her so much of her young and idealistic self. How had she become, what she had hated when she was young?

This situation had happened before, but she had been in the role of the half-blood to be exploited. And now she had become the monster behind the desk. It was a very painful realization.

She pulled out her own copy of the Hogwarts rulebook, to read up on the duties of her three offices as a teacher, as a head of house, and as a deputy, and then she read up on Headmaster duties as well.

It was a hard night for her, full of realizations. But in the early morning, she made some decisions. She had realized she had done, what Miss Granger refused to do. She did most of the job of her male counterpart, as well.

But not anymore!

She didn't go to bed that night and therefore didn't turn on her alarm for the Gryffindor common room, which she normally turned on every evening and off again, every morning.


Ron stomped into the common room, ready to lay into Hermione. Who did she think she was?

But she wasn't there, "Where is she?" He yelled.

"Who?" Ginny asked.

"Hermione!"

"Could you yell a little less loudly?" A 7th- year called out, annoyed.

"She is in her dorm, Ron. Crying. You broke her dream!" Harry said.

"Yeah? What do you know? Perfect Potter! I might have to give back my broom, because of her!"

"Why?"

"She made me look bad in front of McGonagall! And now I might lose my badge and with that my broom!"

The 7th- year prefect scoffed, "You didn't need her, to look bad, mate. You managed that all by yourself."

Ron got so incensed by that, that he swung his fist and hit the perfect in the face, breaking his nose.

In reaction, quite a few stunners and binding charms came flying in his direction. And one bat-bogey hex. He fell over unceremoniously.

"Shit. Take Seth to the hospital wing." The other 7th- year prefect ordered, and two classmates rushed to help the boy to the Hospital Wing.

"What do we do with him?" Someone asked, pointing to the stunned Ron.

All looked helpless at one another. No one had the idea to get their Head of House.

"Let's just levitate him onto the couch and cover him. He might be more himself tomorrow morning."

They really didn't think that that would be an improvement but didn't know, what else to do.

So, they laid Ron on a couch, bound, and stunned with bat-shaped bogeys hitting his face, but with a blanket draped over him.

The rest left the common room to go to their dorms and Hermione had her first honest and meaningful conversation with her dormmates. The only problem she saw, no one wanted to be the 5th-year female prefect now. Especially not with Ron.


In the other 5th-year dorm, the remaining boys had a good and silent night. No loud snoring at all!

But before that, Neville and Harry filled the other two in. They all could understand Hermione perfectly now!

"And who cares if one was a prefect in Hogwarts later, anyway?" Neville asked rhetorically.

Harry said, "Good question. It might just be a big hoax."

"Well, I think it teaches leadership?" Dean said.

"Hm, I don't know. It also saves money, right? No staff needed to watch over the kids." Harry answered thoughtfully.

"I think Harry is right. In the end, it always comes down to money, me dad always says."

"Huh? I thought I was the devil incarnate?"

"Nah, sorry Harry! I got pulled in by me ma and the Prophet. Dean talked some sense into me."

"Oh good! Otherwise, this dorm would have become a real minefield."

Neville looked confused, "A what?"


A/N: I really must write a story with an awesome Ron and Molly Weasley, to apologize for my horrible misuse of their characters one of these days. It's just so much fun, to write them this way!