AUTHOR'S NOTES: Let me start off with an apology! I went to my parents' house and forgot my laptop charger... so yeah... Onto Chapter 24!

Please enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter, and I do not intend to make any money off of this. Harry Potter is the intellectual property of J. K. Rowling , and I take no credit of it whatsoever.

I was also inspired by Demon Eyes Laharl's: THE RED KNIGHT! and also from Random-Fruitcake04's: CHOICES! I hope you check them out as well because they are genuinely very good stories.

Fate

Chapter 24 – Another Mystery to Solve

Ronald Weasley's POV

August 11th, 1992

"Happy Birthday!" they all yelled as Ginny cut the cake. They were all outside once again as there were too many people to fit inside. Ron smiled at sight of his little sister, in her purple fluffy dress, feeding Fred the piece of cake that she had just cut. Ginny was officially eleven years old now, and she was ready to attend Hogwarts. The thought both excited and scared Ron… He felt excited at the thought of seeing her on a more daily basis and maybe even helping her with her schoolwork. But he felt worried because he knew that Hogwarts was a dangerous place, he'd learned that the hard way… Not to mention this threat that 'Dobby' had warned Harry about…

"Ron?" came Ginny's voice. Ron blinked and looked at her standing in front of him with a quizzical look on her face, and she had a piece of cake in her hand. "Cake?" she asked as she offered him a bite. Ron grinned at the offer, and then took a massive bite which made her shriek. "RON! You nearly got cake on my dress!" Ginny whined as she jumped back.

"Delicious!" Ron said with a mouthful of cake, and Ginny frowned.

"EW! Eat with your mouth closed!" Ginny ordered, but a smile was breaking out on her face. The adults all chuckled at the sight, and his siblings snickered. Ginny then poked out her tongue at Ron and marched off to get another piece of cake. Ginny put the piece of cake on a plate and walked up to Harry apprehensively. "Here…" Ginny muttered, and Harry took the plate with a kind smile.

"Thanks, Ginny" Harry said politely. "Happy Birthday." Ginny smiled widely at that nodded her thanks, taking Harry by surprise. She then quickly trotted off to Luna's side, and Ron couldn't understand why she was so crimson in the face. Is she feeling sick? I mean… it was pretty hot today, maybe she got heat-stroke… I should tell mum.

"Mum…" Ron said softly as he approached Molly and Pandora.

"Yes, dear?" Molly said, looking down at him with a wide smile.

"I think Ginny is feeling sick…" Ron said, and his mother looked over to Ginny. "She went red in the face just now… like really red! And it was really hot today, and we all spent the day outside…" Molly looked genuinely worried until Pandora, who was smirking, whispered something in her ear. Molly then chuckled heartily, and Pandora joined her. What the…? Why are they laughing? I'm being serious here!

"Ginny is fine, dear" Molly told Ron in between her chuckles. "Don't worry about her… Spend some more time with poor Harry, he seems to be having some trouble over there." Ron turned around and looked at Harry. Harry was just standing there and listening to Ron's brothers having a heated debate about something. He probably can't get a word in… I've told mum about Ginny, so I guess I'd better go and keep Harry company.

"Hey Harry" Ron greeted as he approached the boy-who-lived, Harry looked quite relieved. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah, Ron" Harry said with a smile, and both boys steeped away from Ron's brothers. "I finished my homework by the way, so I put all of your notes back in your desk. Thanks for that, you saved me hours."

"Just don't tell anyone and we'll be even" Ron chuckled as he imagined what Hermione would do. She'd lose it at Harry and me! "How are you settling in, mate? I know the Burrow can be… small…"

"I love it here" Harry quickly said. "It's the best house I've ever been in… Your family is amazing, Ron. Especially the twins! They've been showing me some of their own pranks that they made themselves! And…" Harry trailed off at that.

"And?"

"And I've told them about… Dobby…" Harry said softly. "They told me that Dobby probably belongs to the Malfoy family…"

"Malfoy family?" Ron asked with a furrowed brow. Are the Malfoys plotting against Hogwarts? Are they working for you-know-who?

"Yeah…" Harry replied. "They told me that Mr. Malfoy worked for Voldemort…" Ron flinched and cut Harry off.

"Don't say his name" Ron said with a firm tone.

"Ron… that's his name. And I'm not afraid of him…" Harry said stubbornly.

"You should be…" was all Ron could say to that. He probably doesn't understand why that name is taboo… Whatever, I want to know more about this Dobby. "Tell me more on Dobby and Mr. Malfoy." Harry frowned for a second, but then he shook his head slowly and continued on about Lucius Malfoy.

"Well, the twins told me that he worked for… Anyway, he claimed to be under a spell the entire time… And the Ministry believed him, and so they let him go free…" Harry frowned deeply as he said that. "They didn't even give Sirius a trial… but they let one of his followers go free…" Even Ron frowned at that. The Ministry… I swear I never hear anything good about them…

"So Dobby's warning…" Ron started. "Do you think it's about the Malfoy family? Are they plotting something against Hogwarts?"

"I'm not sure… The twins could be wrong, they were only guessing at who Dobby may belong to" Harry replied. "I guess we have another mystery to solve next year" Harry joked, but Ron didn't laugh. He was not happy to have this 'mystery' lurking about. Last year was exciting enough… And I haven't had a vision in… Merlin I don't even remember…

"Speaking of next year" Ron said as he remembered Ginny's broom issue. "I need a favor from you Harry…" Harry looked intrigued at that.

"What is it, Ron?" Harry asked.

"I need you to sneak in Ginny's Comet 260 alongside your Nimbus 2001 when we go to Hogwarts this year…" Ron said, hoping that Harry would agree to this. "First years can't have their own brooms… but if you pretend like it's yours, then Ginny can just 'borrow' it off of you when she wants to practice. Is that alright?"

"Yeah, I guess…" Harry said slowly. "I don't mind doing it… it's just that your sister can be… odd…" Odd?

"What do you mean by 'odd'?" Ron asked with narrowed eyes.

"She always goes red in the face around me and runs off…" Harry said as he thought back to his encounters with Ginny. "And she never talks to me when we're alone… Or at all whenever I enter a room… Are you sure it should be me holding onto the broom? Why don't you ask the twins?"

"The twins…" Ron started with a frown. "They won't let her use the broom, we can be quite protective of Ginny… And they'd probably start using it themselves! I got that broom for Ginny, and only for Ginny… Please, Harry."

"I'll do it, Ron" Harry said with a faint smile. "I was just wondering why you didn't ask your brothers… I can understand why you didn't ask Percy…" Ron chuckled at that.

"He'd confiscate it" Ron laughed, and Harry snickered at that.

"I figured as much… I'll do it, Ron. Just let Ginny know that she can come and ask for it anytime she wants."

"Thanks, Harry. I really appreciate this!"

August 15th, 1992

Ron sat on his father's left side, and Lord Greengrass and Daphne sat in front of them. They were inside the Burrow's kitchen, and the two adults were talking about Ron's contract. Ron however, was looking down at the table in-order to avoid Daphne's hateful glare. Turns out, lying to your closest friends doesn't end well when the truth comes to light… And the truth had been revealed to Daphne last night when her Lord Father had abruptly asked her to accompany him to the Burrow. If looks could kill… Ron felt someone kick his left shin under the table and he winced in pain.

"Are you alright, son?" Arthur asked with a worried look.

"I'm fine, dad…" Ron said with a forced smile. Arthur nodded slowly, and then he turned back to Lord Greengrass.

"Sorry, Sebastian" Arthur said. "You were saying?" Lord Greengrass was frowning at his daughter's behavior, and she looked a little sheepish under his gaze. Lord Greengrass then turned to Arthur with a faint smile.

"I was about to ask if you wanted to add anything to the contract" Lord Greengrass said smoothly. Arthur picked up the contract and began reading it over again. "Please take your time. Children this could take a while, you two are dismissed." Ron looked to his father, and his father smiled and waved him off.

Ron and Daphne did as they were told and left the adults to their work. Ron decided to step outside the Burrow to enjoy the sun, and Daphne followed him menacingly. She is planning to murder me, isn't she? Ron felt his skin crawl with anxiety at the thought of what she was planning, her dark looks during the negotiations didn't help… The moment the door closed behind them, Daphne ran up and pinched Ron's right arm so hard that he actually screamed.

"WHY?!" Ron demanded, rubbing his sore spot. Daphne just glared murder at him.

"You lying, traitorous… arse, Ronald Weasley!" Daphne yelled, and then she tried to pinch him again. Ron dodged her grabby hands and decided to bolt, and Daphne decided to give chase. "Come back here!"

"NO!" Ron yelled back, doing his best to outrun her. Thank Merlin, her dress is slowing her down! "You're going to hurt me again!"

"You deserve it, you liar!" Daphne yelled. They traded more obscenities as Ron ran from her, but he was beginning to slow down. She on the other hand, was gaining speed. I'M GONNA DIE!

"DAPHNE, PLEASE!" Ron yelled as they approached the pond. Ron shot a quick look back and saw that she was a mere foot away, and she was smiling like a mad-woman. Ron yelped at the sight, and then she grabbed his right wrist.

"I got you!" Daphne exclaimed, and then she dragged her feet and slowed them both down. "You'd better start explaining Weasley!" Daphne ordered, and she tightened her grip on his wrist. OW! That hurts… Ron's head started spinning, and his body felt weightless once again. Oh shite…

Ron found himself in a black-and-white hallway, and he immediately recognized it as a hallway out of Hogwarts. Ron looked around and he was surprised to see a tapestry of a man trying to teach trolls ballet. Where am I? I know this is Hogwarts because of the design, but I haven't seen this part of the castle… Ron then heard footsteps, and he turned in their direction. An older girl was walking towards him in a rush, and she was in color. Ron looked at her blonde, parted hair and her dark blue eyes, and he immediately recognized her. Daphne!

She looked around sixteen or seventeen, and Ron had to admit that she was a beauty. Her skin was as fair as it was now, her hair was longer, her cheek bones were more defined, and she had filled out in all the right places. Ron blushed at that thought, wondering why he was thinking of her like that. When she got closer, Ron could see that she was troubled. She began pacing in between the tapestry and the wall on the opposite side of it. What is she doing? And then a large door appeared on the wall opposite the tapestry, and Ron's jaw hit the floor. What the hell?!

Daphne entered through the door quickly and Ron ran in behind her. They were now inside a room that looked awfully similar to the Slytherin common room, and they weren't alone… Ron could see three girls sitting in front a cozy-looking fire. Is that Pansy, Tracey, and Mille? IT IS! Daphne approached the girls quickly and sat down on a love-seat next to Pansy.

"Did you find him?" Tracey asked. She had her hair in a ponytail, and she too looked rather appealing. Stop it… What's wrong with me?!

"No" Daphne said softly. Millie sighed loudly at that, and the other girls looked rather dejected. Who's him?

"He's disappeared again…" Pansy muttered to herself. She didn't really have a pug-face anymore and was rather pretty, though her saddened look ruined that a bit. "That's the sixth time so far this year…" The girls were all quiet for a few seconds, and Ron wondered about who they were referring to. Has to be Theo, Blaise, or me… Ugh… this is too far into the future for me to guess correctly!

"Where are Theo and Blaise?" Tracey asked.

"Still out looking for him" Daphne replied, and then she put her hands over her face. That takes out two suspects… Daphne rubbed her forehead with her fingers, and Ron noticed that she was wearing the tennis bracelet that he had gotten for her. Ron felt quite proud at the sight of it, she was still wearing it after four or five years!

"We need to talk about this…" Millie said as she faced Daphne. "None of us can keep denying it any longer…" Daphne uncovered her face and frowned at Millie.

"Millie, don't…" Pansy muttered, she looked so tired.

"No, go on!" Daphne challenged Millie, and Millie clenched her jaw. Um… get along please?

"You already know what I want to say" Millie grit out, and Tracey sighed in annoyance.

"Millie…" Tracey sighed. "Ron is not a Death-Eater…" Huh? Ron felt like he had the wind kicked out of his lungs, and he instinctively took a few steps back. What are they talking about…?

"I'm not saying that, I'm not insane like Potter…" Millie replied to Tracey. "But I am saying that he is deceiving all of us! You can all keep denying it, but I'm not going to… not anymore. He is hiding something horrible from us… I just know it!" I don't understand…

"Ron has always been secretive" Pansy jumped in. "We all know that…"

"Secretive, sure… but he wasn't a liar!" Mille argued, her eyes becoming wet. "But now he lies to us constantly! Disappears for days on end! Barely speaks to us! And now he is best friends with Draco?! Tell me I'm wrong! Go on, deny it!" Millie finished with a loud sniffle and tears fell down her face. The other girls were just silent, and Ron felt sick. His head was spinning from all of this, it couldn't be true… What the hell is happening…? Best friends with Malfoy? Disappearing and lying? What the fuck…?

"Draco and he aren't friends…" Pansy said softly.

"But they do spend a lot of time together…" Tracey mused, her voice taking on a bitter edge.

"No… you're wrong…" Daphne muttered as she shook her head. "Ron isn't like that, he is still one of us…"

"Stop lying to yourself, Daphne" Millie said with another sniffle. "You know I'm right… you all do… Theo and Blaise agree with me completely…"

"We should confront him" Tracey declared, her face taking on a dark look.

"Confront Ron…" Pansy said with wide-eyes. "Have you gone mad…? How do you think he will react to that?" The girls were silent again for a few moments, but then Tracey broke the silence.

"I don't care about his reaction… I'm done waiting for answers" Tracey said firmly. Please do! I need to see this! I need to know…

"What are you even going to ask him?" Pansy asked, her voice becoming a little frantic. "Don't do this… please. We should just trust him… He would never do anything to endanger any of us!" Is she… is she scared of me?

"It's him I'm worried about!" Tracey argued, her temper flaring up. "I mean, we all put up with his secrets for years… And when has he ever revealed anything to us?! NEVER!" The other girls flinched at that. "Every time we discover one of his secrets… it's always something terrible…" What is she talking about? Ron's mind was being bombarded with millions of questions… Who is this 'Ron'? That isn't the kind of person I am… I would never become like that!

"And he never explains himself!" Tracey continued, her rant becoming frantic. "None of us know why he keeps going to Dumbledore's office for hours and hours! None of us know why he can speak Parseltongue! He was the last person seen with Umbridge and she is still missing! Not to mention his daily meetings with Snape, and his sneaking around with Malfoy!" Tracey clenched her jaw at the end of her rant. "I know you all want answers just as much as I do… Help me get them!" Ron went over all the information Tracey had just spilled in his head, and none of it made sense… There was a long pause between the girls, and Ron sat down on the floor. Did she say Parseltongue? I can't speak Parseltongue… Ron closed his eyes and rubbed his temple as hard as he could, this vision was insane…

"Tonight…" Daphne said softly. "We'll all talk to him tonight…" Ron kept his eyes closed and kept rubbing his temples, his head was beginning to hurt. There was a loud ringing in his ears again, and his body felt weightless. And then he felt grass on his face…

"Ron, are you ok?!" came Daphne's voice, and Ron opened his eyes. He was lying on the ground with his face on the grass. "I'm getting your dad!" Daphne made to leave but Ron grabbed her hand and sat up.

"I'm fine… what happened?" Ron asked, his head was still hurting from his confusing vision. Daphne looked extremely relieved.

"You fell over suddenly…" Daphne said softly. "Are you sure you're alright?" No… That vision was mental…

"Yeah" Ron lied. "I shouldn't have pushed myself so hard… I still get tired from moving around too much…" The truth was that he didn't get tired from moving around anymore, but he couldn't tell that to Daphne. Daphne looked quite guilty when she heard that.

"I'm sorry…" Daphne whispered. "I shouldn't have chased you around like that."

"Why did you?" Ron asked, hoping to learn why she was so angry. If anything, she should be happy about this!

"You lied to me… to us…" Daphne muttered, and then she sat down next to Ron. "I thought that you were hurt because of my father's 'rejection' and I sent him so many angry letters… You made me look and feel like a fool, Ron…" Daphne finished meekly, and she kept her eyes on the pond. Ron felt a massive pang of guilt due to her subdued demeanor, and he decided to tell her why he had lied.

"Your dad" Ron started "broke a few rules by signing up with me right after the tournament." Daphne looked at Ron with a confused look. "He was meant to wait for a week or so for news to travel, that way other potential sponsors would have time to hear about me… But your dad didn't want to wait, so we made a plan. I wanted to tell all of you immediately, believe me… But Lord Greengrass asked me not to. And I agreed to go with his plan… So here" Ron finished, and then he presented his left arm to Daphne. "Pinch me as hard as you want."

Daphne reached over and grabbed his arm, and Ron closed his eyes to prepare himself. Daphne pinched his arm quite softly, and Ron was taken by surprise. He opened his eyes and looked at her, but she was looking at the pond with a thoughtful look. Ron looked at the pond thoughtfully as well, his latest vision playing havoc in his mind. Dumbledore's office… Meetings with Snape… Friends with Malfoy… 'Death-Eater'… Parseltongue… Deceiving my friends constantly… Images of the older girls' distressed faces flashed in Ron's head, and he cringed internally. I did that to them… To my own friends…

"Don't lie to me again…" Daphne whispered after a few minutes.

"I won't" Ron promised. I won't let it get that bad… I have to change… I have to be better than that… Better than the 'Ron' that my friends knew in my vision...

August 17th, 1992

"He's waiting for you in his study, Ronald" Lady Greengrass said as she guided him through the mansion. Today was Ron's first day of his apprenticeship under Lord Greengrass, and he was barely containing his excitement.

"Please call me Ron, my Lady" Ron said politely, and Lady Greengrass smiled at him.

"Then you may call me Mary, Ron. You are an ally of our family now, I think that is only fair" Lady Greengrass said in a pleasant tone. "Speaking of family, I don't think I've seen my daughters this morning… They were waiting for your arrival quite eagerly yesterday, and now they are nowhere to be found."

"Perhaps they are still asleep, it is quite early after all…" Ron provided. Though I doubt Daphne would ever sleep in… She's too proper for that sort of behavior.

"Astoria, I could believe. But Daphne would never sleep in, especially on a day as important as this. Your skill in chess is all that she spoke about during dinner last night" Mary said merrily. Ron felt his ear grow hot, and his cheeks go red. She's been hyping me up… What if I lose really badly? Will Lord Greengrass kick me out?! Merlin I wish Daphne didn't do that! "And here we are" Mary said as they approached an ebony door. She then knocked on the door lightly, and Lord Greengrass' voice responded.

"Come in" Lord Greengrass said clearly. Mary opened the door, and then she guided Ron inside. The study was bigger than the bottom half of the Burrow, and it was filled with several bookcases that were filled with tomes. The floor, ceiling, and walls of the room were designed with a dark brown wood that almost looked black. In the center of the study were two black leather seats that were facing each other, and they had a chess table in-between them. The seat on the left was occupied by Lord Greengrass and the seat on the right was occupied by Daphne.

"You're finally here" Daphne said with a smile, and Ron smiled back at her.

"Daphne, I've been looking everywhere for you" Mary mock-scolded her daughter, and Daphne looked at her sheepishly.

"Sorry, mother" Daphne apologized. "I was playing a few games with father…"

"I can see that" Mary chuckled. "Come now, my sweet. Let Ron and your father begin their work…"

"I was thinking I'd watch…" Daphne said, shooting her mother and Ron her best pleading look. Just let her… I can't stand that look! Mary looked to her husband, and Lord Greengrass sighed.

"Daphne" Lord Greengrass said in a firm voice. "I need Ronald's absolute attention, therefore you cannot stay. Please follow your mother out." Daphne pouted, but she did as she was told. Ron flashed her an apologetic smile as she and Mary left. "Come, take a seat." Lord Greengrass said in a welcoming tone, and Ron sat down across from him. Ohhh… these chairs are so comfortable…

"So…" Ron started "how do we start, my Lord?" Lord Greengrass raised his hand and stopped Ron from continuing.

"Astoria, my dear" Lord Greengrass said with a smirk, and Ron looked around for her. She wasn't even in the room… "Come out from back there, and go join your mother and sister." Ron heard shuffling from behind one of the bookcases, and then a pouting Astoria Greengrass hopped into their view.

"Awww…" Astoria moaned, and Ron stared at her with wide-eyes. "I spent all morning hiding back there… How did you know?" Lord Greengrass just smirked in response and pointed to the door. "Fine…" Astoria said with another pout, and then she dragged herself out.

"Forgive my daughters, Ronald" Lord Greengrass chuckled. "But they can be a handful at times." Bloody hell… what was she doing back there? "Now, let's play a game. I wish to test your skill before we start our day, and it will be a long day…" Ron gulped at that. "White starts" Lord Greengrass said with a smirk, and Ron made his first move.

The first five minutes were going well for Ron, he was already on route to establish a strong presence in the middle of the board. But he was becoming increasingly wary of Lord Greengrass' moves. The older wizard was placing his pieces in a defensive position, and all but ignoring Ron's game. Ron could tell that he was planning to play around Ron's strong position on the board, and so Ron decided to interfere with Lord Greengrass' moves and lure him into traps. That was a fatal error…

Turns out, Lord Greengrass was baiting Ron to give away his position on the board. Ron figured that out quickly after losing three pawns for one, and he decided to regroup. Lord Greengrass was playing just like Ron liked to… He was setting traps and not being overly aggressive. That jarred Ron a bit, just like it had when Mikasa had done the same thing to him at the tournament. He hated playing against people who played just like he did. It forced him to take on a more aggressive role, and he wasn't half as good at that as he was when compared to his preferred style of playing.

The game slowly started going to hell from there… Lord Greengrass suddenly became extremely aggressive, and Ron was forced to move his stronger pieces back and sacrifice some more pawns in the process. Ron had overreached, and now he was forced to waste turns in order to save his stronger pieces. Lord Greengrass took advantage of Ron's wasted turns in a way Ron hadn't seen before. The older wizard attacked Ron with his stronger pieces with no apparent care for them. And Ron was jarred again… Why was Lord Greengrass being so careless all of a sudden? Was this another trap? There was no way that a Chess Master would make such foolish moves… and yet, he was making them!

Ron decided to use the opportunities being presented and fought back valiantly, but to no avail. Ron had lost more than half of his pawns already during his 'retreat', and Lord Greengrass wasn't relenting. Ron lost his queen to a bishop in exchange for a rook… and that was blow that Ron wouldn't recover from easily. At the end of their bloody battle, Ron was barely left standing. All he had was a knight, two pawns, one rook, and his king… But Lord Greengrass still had half of his pawns, two knights, one rook, his queen, and his king. The match was over… Ron knew it… He had lost for the first time in his life, and he was left in awe. Lord Greengrass had beaten him. Ron toppled his king, and then he just stared at his fallen king.

"You played well, Ronald" Lord Greengrass said with a proud smirk. "I chose well in picking you as my apprentice." Played well? He destroyed me… "But we have a long way to go from here, I was merely testing my theory about your playstyle during that game."

"Your theory, my Lord?" Ron asked, still reeling from his first loss.

"Yes, my theory" Lord Greengrass explained. "When I watched you play at the tournament, one match stood out to me the most. It was your match against Mikasa Hasashi… Am I right in saying that that was one of the hardest matches you've ever played?"

"Yes, my Lord" Ron replied, awed by his mentor's observations from months ago.

"That is why I chose to copy your playstyle" Lord Greengrass said with a sly smile. "You Ronald, play in a very reactive way. You wait for your opponents to make the first move, and you play around their strategies. That is an admirable technique, but you limit yourself quite a lot because of it."

"Limit myself?" Ron asked.

"Indeed, Ronald. If you are waiting for your opponent to make all the moves, they dictate the game. Against a more experienced player, such as myself, your playstyle is a death sentence. You will always lose if you aren't confident in making your own moves… Which brings us to the core of your playstyle…" Lord Greengrass sighed before he continued. "You lack that self-confidence, don't you?" They both stared at each other for a few moments, and Ron felt his ears burn. When Ron didn't say anything, Lord Greengrass decided to speak.

"I'm not judging you, Ronald" Lord Greengrass said with a kind smile. "My duty is to help you improve… in all things. Whatever we speak of inside this room, or any other, is strictly between us. Do you understand?"

"Yes…" Ron answered awkwardly.

"Good" Lord Greengrass said. "During the second half of our game, you spent more time lamenting about your mistakes than you did thinking my moves against you. Only when I left you no choice did you decide to attack me, but it was too late by then. The real mistake you made that game was having too much faith in my abilities, but none in your own. And that's why you lost to me, and that's why you almost lost to Mikasa Hasashi."

Ron listened intently, and he had to agree with that analyses. He had been worried about Lord Greengrass' playstyle, just like he had been with Mikasa's. And the both of them had copied his playstyle and forced him to take on an aggressive role… And Ron knew that he wasn't very good at that. He would spend more time second guessing himself rather than playing the game. He just knew that he was going to mess something up… and so it was easier for him to wait for other people to make the mistakes. That's why he was so reactive in his playstyle. He didn't feel confident enough to get things right if he was taking the lead… It's still uncomfortable to hear other people say it…

"Shall we play again?" Ron asked, hoping to move past the awkwardness he was feeling.

"No" Lord Greengrass said. "No, I have other things planned for you today." Lord Greengrass flicked his wand and a red book flew over to his free hand. "This book is filled with hundreds of diagrams of different moves being played on a chess board. Your job is to figure out the best possible move in each diagram, it will help stimulate your mind. And it will teach you to think in a more strategic manner. We have to break this reactive playstyle of yours, and start anew. This will be instrumental in that." Lord Greengrass handed Ron the book, and Ron opened it to the first page with diagrams on it.

"How do we know what the most strategic move is?" Ron asked, looking at the first diagram intently.

"I have another book which contains all the answers. And yes Ronald, those answers are indeed correct. These book were written by Chess Masters who played this game before even I was born… I used them when I was younger myself."

"How many should I solve?" Ron asked.

"Up to page sixty…" Lord Greengrass smirked. WHAT?! I'll be here for days!

"My Lord… isn't that a bit too much?" Ron asked sheepishly, worried about being scolded.

"Not at all… You have three minutes to solve each. Good luck" Lord Greengrass smirked.

"And what about you?" Ron asked, feeling overwhelmed.

"I will be reading a Muggle romance novel, and drinking Aged Apple Brandy." What the hell?! "Get started, now." Ron did as he was told, and began jotting down moves on a piece of parchment Lord Greengrass handed him. It was going to be a long day…

August 17th, 1992 (Dinner-time)

"That's enough for today, Ronald" Lord Greengrass said humorously. Ron put the quill down and sighed in relief, massaging his right gloved hand with his left naked one. "You did exceptionally. I must admit, your focus is refreshing to see. Perhaps that is the key to your success?" Lord Greengrass chuckled. I'm glad you're enjoying your day… Blood hell…

"Come, let's get you some dinner" Lord Greengrass said as he stood up. Ron tried to get up but his legs gave out and he fell back in the chair. "Ronald?" Lord Greengrass said softly, and then he moved to Ron's right side. "Are you alright?"

"I'm just tired… I'm not used to concentrating over such a long period of time…" Ron exhaled. "Not since the attack anyway… I just need a minute…" Lord Greengrass frowned at hearing that.

"Why did you not say anything?" Lord Greengrass scolded. "You should have told me when you started to feel tired…" And show you that I can't even concentrate? Piss on that… "Come, let's get some more food in you." Lord Greengrass then helped Ron up from the seat and they both walked to the dining room. Lord Greengrass helped Ron into his seat next to Daphne, and the girl began asking questions immediately. Lord Greengrass explained that Ron was just tired, and that he would be fine with a little rest. But that did not sit well with Daphne and Mary…

Ron ate quietly while Daphne and Mary glared at Lord Greengrass for different reasons. Daphne was annoyed with her father for pushing Ron too hard considering what he had gone through recently. And Mary was annoyed at her husband for ruining the welcome dinner she had planned for Ron… Ron still enjoyed the food because it was damn delicious. But the only conversation happening on the table was between Astoria and Ron.

"So you lost to father?" Astoria asked with a grin.

"Yes" Ron replied in a tired tone.

"But I thought you never lost" Astoria said sweetly, tapping her chin with her index finger. "Daphne said that you never lose… Guess she was lying…" Is that how it is? Bring it on little girl…

"Guess she is liar" Ron said with a kind smile which jarred Astoria.

"You shouldn't call your friends liars" Astoria mock-scolded after she regained her composure.

"But you just called your own sister a liar… isn't that worse?" Ron asked innocently. Get on Theo and Blaise's level, and then we can banter…

"No… no, I never said that…" Astoria stuttered, making Ron chuckle. She narrowed her eyes on him, but her slightly chubby cheeks made her look adorable instead of threatening. Ron laughed at her and gave her a wink, which flustered her even more. Her cheeks went crimson, but she didn't lose her 'threatening' face. Haha, Daphne was right about Astoria! She's adorable!

"Stop picking on my sister" Daphne said seriously, and then she looked at Astoria's face. Even she had to stifle a laugh at the sight. "Astoria… behave…" Daphne managed in between her chuckling.

"You two are mean…" Astoria pouted, looking thoroughly put off. That's what you get!

August 26th, 1992

Ron was waiting alone in The Leaky Cauldron, and he was looking around in-order to spot a familiar face. It was Tracey's birthday today, and Ron was going to be spending the day in Muggle London! Ron chuckled at the envy that his father had displayed this morning, it was quite fun to tease his old man.

"There he is" came Blaise's voice, and Ron turned to it with a grin. Blaise was accompanied by Theo, Tracey, Mille, Pansy, Daphne, and Tracey's parents.

"Hello" Ron greeted them, and they all exchanged niceties.

"I'm pleasantly surprised, Ron" Susan Davis, Tracey's mum, said as she studied Ron's attire. "I didn't know that you knew how to dress Muggle." And I don't...

"I don't, Mrs. Davis" Ron said honestly. "Harry let me borrow some of his clothes and taught me how to behave around Muggles. Though I can't make any promises on the latter…"

"Wait, Potter gave you those?" Theo asked, surprised at the revelation.

"Yeah" Ron replied. "He's staying in my house for the holidays… In my room actually…"

"Why?" Blaise asked with narrowed eyes, and Ron looked at Blaise with a sheepish expression. Because I bloody kidnapped him from his Muggle family…

"It's a long story…" Ron sighed.

"And we should be cracking on!" James Davis, Tracey's dad, said quickly. Ron could tell that Mr. Davis was trying to pull Ron out of the incoming interrogation, and Ron was grateful for it. "C'mon kids, the zoo opens in twenty minutes so we should go and get in line." A Muggle zoo? That could be fun… I've always wondered if Muggle animals are like ours… They made their way out of The Leaky Cauldron and into Muggle London. Ron slowed his pace down until he was walking next to Tracey.

"Happy Birthday, Trace" Ron said with a smile, and Tracey grinned back at him.

"Thanks, Ron!" Tracey replied, and then she leaned in closer to Ron. "Did you bring them?" Ron's smile turned mischievous, and he looked to Tracey's parents who were guiding the children on from ahead.

"Here…" Ron whispered, and then he smuggled Tracey a box of Dung-bombs that he was hiding in his jacket. Tracey took the box and slid it into her handbag.

"Thanks, Ron" Tracey said in a hushed whisper, her voice was extremely excited. "You're the best! Mum and dad never let me use Zonko's products…" My mum isn't so different… Thank Merlin for the twins and Sirius…

"What are you two doing?" Pansy said from behind them, and Ron jumped a little in fright.

"Nothing" both Tracey and Ron said in unison, and Pansy narrowed her eyes on them.

"Please don't do something that will make the Muggles attack us…" Pansy sighed out in annoyance. They won't attack us… Will they? Do Muggles attack people that annoy them?

"Muggles don't just attack people…" Tracey said with a frown. "They are just like us… except they don't have magic…"

"That makes them not like us" Theo interjected, and Ron couldn't help but notice that Theo was being rather jumpy. Why is he looking around like we are in danger? "We all need to stick together, and keep your wands at the ready…" Tracey frowned even more at that.

"Stop acting like that" Tracey scolded Theo and Pansy. "We are perfectly fine, I've done this for most of my life remember. I grew up in the Muggle World…" Theo and Pansy eased up a little at the sound of that, and even Ron felt some relief.

"Come on kids, we'll be taking this bus" Mr. Davis said with a wide smile. All of them boarded the bus, and Ron sat down with next to Theo.

"Is this like the Knight Bus?" Theo asked Ron, looking at all of the Muggles on the bus with caution. Okay… what's his deal? Even Pansy isn't being this skittish…

"I don't know mate…" Ron replied. "Do Muggles have a Knight Bus?"

"Why are you asking me?" Theo replied indignantly.

"Same reason you bloody asked me…" Ron retorted with a frown.

"I thought your father would have taught you everything about Muggles…" Theo whispered.

"My dad may love Muggles, but he doesn't know a thing about them" Ron chuckled. "Trust me on that."

"Did you get your Hogwarts letter yet?" Theo asked out of nowhere. "We have to buy seven books written by Gilderoy Lockhart… can you believe that?!" Ron frowned deeply at the mention of Lockhart… His books are causing my family so much grief… And my vault is taking a heavy hit because of that tosser…

"Believe me, no one is more annoyed about Lockhart than me…" Ron sighed. After their letters had come in, Ron was saddened to see his mother and father so distraught about the prices of the books. So he had given his father his own Gringotts pouch, which his father had outright refused. But Ron had kept offering it, telling his father that he had the money saved up. That he wanted to make sure Ginny and the others had new books and new robes this year… Eventually, his father had relented. Even if he looked extremely sad about accepting Ron's money. Ron didn't get why his father was being like this… Ron had offered him the money with his own free-will…

"Are you guys talking about Lockhart?" Tracey asked as she turned around from her seat in front of them.

"Yes…" Theo responded slowly. "We were talking about his seven books…"

"I've already bought my copies" Tracey said excitedly. "So has Daphne!" Ron looked to Daphne who was sitting next to Tracey, and Ron noticed a blush on Daphne's face. "Can I tell you guys a secret? My dad told me that Lockhart will be teaching at Hogwarts this year… as the D.A.D.A professor! Isn't that amazing?!" Ron and Theo exchanged quick looks at that.

"How do does he know that?" Ron asked, feeling vexed. First Quirrell and now this guy… At least he knows what he's doing…

"My father is on the board of Governors for Hogwarts" Daphne piped up. "He told a select few people… Aren't you happy, Ron? D.A.D.A is your favorite subject right? I bet you're excited!"

"So excited…" Ron said sarcastically, but it went over Daphne's head. Tracey and Daphne started talking animatedly about Lockhart, while Ron and Theo exchanged another look.

"Girls…" Theo muttered. Seeing Daphne and Tracey so excited for D.A.D.A this year began to excite Ron as well. Maybe Lockhart won't be so bad… He has won a lot of awards for saving people from the Dark Arts and dark creatures… Yeah, this could be good. I can finally show off my knowledge in D.A.D.A this year!

They all got off of the bus and marched towards the zoo, and Ron noticed that all four girls were now talking about Lockhart in hushed whispers. Theo was filling Blaise in about Lockhart joining the staff this year, and Tracey's parents were talking to each other happily as they led the children. Ron took this time to look around and observe the Muggles. There were quite a few of them walking around, despite it being early in the morning, and most of them looked to be in a rush. Ron was also happy to see some Muggles doing morning runs, and he sighed longingly. Mum still won't let me go for a run… But once I get to Hogwarts, she won't know if I do!

"Here we are!" Mr. Davis announced, pointing the zoo out. "And there's no line because we came so early! You kids will have the entire zoo to yourselves! Figuratively speaking…" Ron smirked at Theo and Blaise at the sound of that, and they returned his smirk with their own. They all marched down and got tickets from a teenager in a booth. And then they were off to enjoy the zoo!

After taking a vote, it was decided that they would go to the 'Aquatic Life' section first. Ron was in awe at the massive fish tanks that contained all manner of beasts! Even Theo and Blaise were outright impressed as they saw a 'Great White Shark' swim past them. The girls, except for Millie, were cooing at all the smaller creatures like the crabs and sea horses. Millie decided to join the boys instead because she wasn't big on cooing in public, and Ron was happy to see at least one girl act normally. The best part of the 'Aquatic Life' section was the carnivore display, at least Ron, Theo, Blaise, and Millie thought so anyway. Turns out, Muggles had to deal with some pretty horrifying creatures like the 'Hammer-head Shark' or the 'Angler Fish'. Ron shuddered at the thought of facing one of these things…

They then marched to the 'Safari' section, and Ron was again impressed. There were animals of all sorts behind cages that resembled their natural habitats. Ron decided that he would bring Luna and Xenophilius here one day soon, and he knew that they would love this place. Blaise was quite vocal about his admiration of the 'Leopards', and even Ron was impressed at the massive cats. But it was the Elephant that took the cake, all of the children were awestruck at the size of the creature! It stared back at them with indifferent eyes, and Ron wondered if the Elephant could beat a few magical creatures in a fight.

The next section was the 'Reptile Exhibit', and this was when Ron started feeling nervous. His vision played back in his head on repeat, apparently he could speak Parseltongue… According to Tracey anyway, but Ron decided that he would test it out. He had never tried talking to snakes before, mostly because if he ever saw one around the Burrow he would run away in full-tilt… Ron decided to go for it, he was too excited not to.

Ron approached a Python that was resting in its cage, a cage that was designed to represent a swamp of sorts. Ron shot quick looks around him just to make sure he was alone, and he was glad to see that all of his companions were enamored by other creatures and they weren't paying Ron any attention. Ron looked back at the large dark brown snake, and Ron gulped at the sight. Here I go…

"Hello" Ron said lamely, and the snake ignored him. "Can you understand me?" Ron asked slowly, but the snake continued to ignore him. Okay… Maybe I don't know how to speak Parseltongue… yet. Ron decided to give it another go, but this would be his last attempt. Ron lightly knocked on the glass barrier, and the snake turned to face him menacingly.

"Annoying child…" the Python hissed, Ron's jaw dropped to the floor. Merlin… I understood the snake's… hissing…

"Hello" Ron greeted the snake again, but this time it was the Python that was shocked. "Can you understand me?" Ron asked slowly, his own eyes-wide from shock. The Python nodded.

"You speak my tongue?" the Python questioned, and then it slithered closer to the barrier. It raised its head and came face-to-face with Ron.

"Apparently so…" Ron hissed softly, staring at the snake nervously. How is this even possible?! I can talk to snakes! What the fuck?!

"My, my…" the Python hissed. "This is not something I see every day… What is your name, child?"

"Ronald… Ronald Weasley" Ron hissed his reply, he was still reeling from shock. "What's your n… name?"

"I have none…" the Python whispered sadly. "I was born and raised by your kind. I have known no other home besides this… place…"

"I'm sorry to hear that…" Ron hissed, feeling pity for the large snake.

"Don't be, child… I am fed daily and admired by hundreds. I may lack a name, but my life isn't so bad. Where do you come from?" the serpent asked in a soft hiss. This is surreal…

"I come from the… Burrow…" Ron replied lamely.

"The Burrow? Is it a wondrous place? Describe it to me, please. I wish to know what the world looks like outside of this place…"

"Oh…" Ron hissed in mild surprise. "Well, I live at the Burrow with my entire family… I have five older brothers, and two younger sisters… The Burrow isn't a large place but it's my home and I love it… We have open fields around our home, and a pond in which my siblings and I sometimes swim…"

"That does sound lovely, Ronald" the snake hissed, and then it hissed out an odd laugh of sorts. "Is that boy your friend?" That boy? Ron turned around slowly and he blanched at the sight. Blaise was standing behind Ron, and he had a scared look on his face. FUCK! I stopped paying attention because of the conversation with the snake…

"R… Ron, were you… talking to the snake?" Blaise muttered, his voice was shaky. What do I do now?! He bloody saw me! I'm so fucking stupid!

"Um… no…" Ron stuttered, but Blaise wasn't convinced. Why is it always him?! He always catches me doing things that I shouldn't be doing…

"I heard you… You were hissing at it… and it was responding to you…" Blaise said in his shaky voice. Ron was starting to get worried for Blaise, and for himself. He had just revealed his Parseltongue ability the first time he had ever used it! This is why the girls knew of my Parseltongue ability in the future… Blaise must've told them! The thought of the vision reminded Ron that he had vowed to be better than the 'Ron' he had learned about in his vision. I'm not going to lie to his face… He already saw me…

"Blaise… let me explain…" Ron said softly, and Blaise just stared at him. "I didn't know that I could talk to it… It just sort of happened, I swear. Please don't tell the others…" Blaise was just staring at Ron with disbelief written all over his face.

"How do you do it?" Blaise asked in a whisper. "How do you just… talk to the snake?"

"I don't know…" Ron replied honestly. "I just talk… and it understands me…"

"And you understand it?" Blaise asked, and then he approached the glass and stood next to Ron. "Can you… talk to it… again?" Ron wasn't sure if he should, but he wanted to convince Blaise that this was an accident.

"I'll try…" Ron muttered, and then he turned to the snake. "Can you understand me?" Ron asked the Python, and the Python nodded. Blaise took in a sharp breath, and went wide-eyed.

"It understood you!" Blaise exclaimed, and Ron shushed him quickly. "Sorry… You speak Parseltongue? What the fuck, Ron? How is that even possible?"

"I don't know… I swear Blaise, I don't" Ron replied honestly. "I've never talked to a snake before in my life… I don't know how I can…"

"Salazar…" Blaise muttered, as if coming to some amazing revelation. "Salazar Slytherin was a Parseltongue… You're probably related to him because I read that Parseltongue is a hereditary gift… Only his descendants can speak Parseltongue… in England anyway." Salazar Slytherin?! My ancestor?! No blood way… My family has never been sorted into Slytherin before me. And I was only sorted there because the Sorting Hat told me it was the best choice… Wait… Did the Hat know already? No… How could it know? I didn't fucking know!

"What are you two doing?" came Theo's voice from behind them, and both Ron and Blaise jumped.

"Nothing" Blaise said quickly. "Just admiring this snake…" He isn't telling Theo? Thank you Blaise…

"Admiring that snake…" Theo said with narrowed eyes. "Then why are you being so weird? Whispering to each other and then jumping at the sound of my voice…"

"You scared us" Ron said lamely. "That's all…" Theo cocked an eyebrow at Ron and Blaise, and then he sighed.

"We're going to go get some lunch…" Theo said. "Mr. Davis asked me to come and grab you two. Let's go." Ron and Blaise quickly followed Theo, and Ron shot one last look back at the snake. The Python nodded at Ron, and then it disappeared from sight. Ron shot Blaise a nervous look, and he saw that his friend was looking ahead with a distant look. Bloody hell…

August 26th, 1992 (Lunch-time)

Ron bit into his 'Ham-Burger' and he was floored by the taste, it was amazing! Merlin! Do all Muggles eat this stuff?! I have to ask Harry when I get home! Ron took another massive bite and chewed in bliss, but that bliss was interrupted by Tracey.

"Enjoying yourself?" Tracey giggled, and then she reached over with a napkin and cleaned Ron's left cheek.

"Hey!" Ron whined. "I'm not a baby…"

"I never said that you were" Tracey cooed, she was trying to rattle him and he knew it. Calm down… Everything is fine… Blaise still hadn't mentioned his Parseltongue abilities to anyone, but Ron was understandably worried that Blaise would eventually. If my friends learn about my Parseltongue ability, then a part of that mental vision comes true…

"You know what, thanks Tracey. Can you clean my other cheek too?" Ron asked innocently, deciding to turn this on Tracey. Tracey was ruffled for a second but then she smiled happily and cleaned his other cheek. "Thanks, you're the best!"

"You're a weirdo" Tracey chuckled. Ron laughed with her, but their friends were staring at them like they were freaks. Except for Daphne, Daphne was giving them both a rather grim look…

"You're both weirdos…" Millie interjected, and Ron turned to her with a grin. "Stop grinning like that…" Millie muttered, her lips twitching up in a smile. Got her! Ron also took the chance to look at Blaise, and Blaise looked back at him with an indifferent face. At least he isn't in shock anymore…

"Finish up kids" Mrs. Davis said pleasantly. "We still haven't seen the 'Antarctic Display' yet!"

August 26th, 1992 (Bus ride home)

"I still can't believe it…" Blaise whispered to Ron, they were sitting together on bus ride back to The Leaky Cauldron. "You can speak Parseltongue…"

"Shhh" Ron shushed with a furrowed brow. "Seriously Blaise, don't tell a soul. Even I don't fully understand what's going on here, and I want to figure it out before I tell anyone…"

"Well, I'm going to help" Blaise said, making Ron feel baffled at Blaise's uncharacteristic eagerness to help others.

"Seriously?" Ron asked with a confused look and Blaise frowned at him.

"This is too intriguing to just ignore" Blaise replied. "I want to know which of your family ancestors are related to Salazar… I mean c'mon, aren't you interested in that too?" I'm not sure that I want to know…

"Maybe… so can you promise to keep it to yourself?" Ron asked hopefully. Blaise smiled slyly at that.

"Of course…" Blaise said deviously. "But I expect you to give me something in return…" And there it is!

"What do you want?" Ron asked in an annoyed tone.

"Well, first things first… you still haven't taught me that spell that made you appear in the dorm suddenly, so I want you to teach me that first! As for keeping this thing a secret, you'll owe me a favor. A favor that I can ask anytime I need, is that fair?" Blaise finished with a smirk.

"Fine…" Ron grit out. "Now drop it, please." Damn me and my shite luck!

August 30th, 1992

"Mum, it is fine…" Ron grit out for the tenth time. Why is she being like this?! They were going to Diagon Alley today, and his mother had learned about his deal with his father… The resulting argument had lasted all morning, and all of Ron's siblings and Harry had scattered away upstairs. Remus and Sirius weren't here yet, and Pandora and Xenophilius had taken Luna back to the Rookery to get ready.

"No, Ronald" Molly whispered furiously. "That is your money, not ours… Arthur, give him his Gringotts pouch back right now…" Ron's father was about to do as he was told and Ron frowned.

"Dad, we agreed… I want to pay for new school supplies…" Ron pleaded, and Arthur looked extremely conflicted.

"Absolutely not" Molly interjected. "I won't let you…"

"Why?!" Ron shouted as he finally got fed up, his shout took his parents by surprise. Ron turned his head and cracked his neck loudly, which further bewildered his parents. "I'm offering to buy them, no one is twisting my arm! Why are you being so stubborn?!" Arthur looked at his son's angry outburst with a gaping mouth, while Molly felt her blood boil at his tone.

"Ronald. Weasley. How dare you speak to us in the tone?" Molly grit out, her kind face turning a shade of purple. I'm not the one being completely unreasonable! Ron decided to not back off, his siblings had the chance to attend Hogwarts with new things for once… but his parents were getting in his way… His own parents… It made no sense! Ron's eyes clashed against his mother's, and neither were backing off.

"Molly, leave us please" Arthur said with a sigh. Molly frowned at her husband, but his determined look was enough to convince her. Molly huffed and marched out of the room, heading upstairs. She shot Ron an angry glare, one that he returned just as fiercely. And then she was gone… Merlin! She is bloody mental! "Son… I'm disappointed in you" Arthur said in a tired voice. "We didn't raise you to yell at us like that…" Ron felt a small pang of guilt at that, but it didn't stop his anger at his parents' stubbornness.

"We agreed…" Ron managed to say to his father. "We agreed that I'd pay… I'm offering it willingly… I don't understand why you two are being like this…" Arthur just stared at his son with disappointment marking his features. He was disappointed at Ron's behavior, but he was also disappointed in himself… No child should have to pay for the house-hold…

"Listen to me" Arthur said clearly. "Lockhart's books alone will cost you a total of one-hundred and seventy five Galleons…" Ron was shocked to hear that.

"How? Are they really that expensive?!" Ron asked in a bewildered voice.

"There are seven books, son. And there are five Weasley children attending Hogwarts this year… Each book costs five Galleons, you do the math…" Arthur said softly. Ron did the math, and he winced at the realization that his father was right. What is wrong with this Lockhart bastard?! Five Galleons a book?! What the hell?!

"Now do you understand why we want to buy second-hand books?" Arthur asked Ron, and Ron nodded stubbornly. "You want to spend so much of your own money just to buy books that we can get for a much cheaper price… We don't want to see you waste your hard-earned money, that's all…"

"What about robes then? And school supplies like cauldrons?" Ron asked, still eager to make sure that his siblings had new things. Ron hated having second hand things, and he refused to let Ginny go through that! He had the means to buy her new things, and it was unfair that his own parents were getting in his way!

"Ron… what's this really about?" Arthur asked kindly, trying to calm his son down. Ron shuffled his feet and his ears went red. He didn't want to say that he felt embarrassed about having hand-me-downs, and that he didn't want Ginny to feel like he used to… When Ron didn't say anything, Arthur decided to continue. "I caught her with her new broom, Ron. I know you bought it for her… and that you hid that from us. Just like you hid everything Pandora bought you from us…" Ron blanched at that.

"I'm not angry with you, son" Arthur said softly. "But Ginny could get hurt on that broom… And since she sneaks around at night, no one would be there to help her if she did… Don't worry, I didn't tell your mother… But Ron, she and I are concerned about your behavior. You've been… different… ever since you came back. And we're worried, so please tell me what's wrong."

What's wrong? People like the Greengrass' live in mansions, but we live in this… in this pathetic little house… We are part of the Sacred Twenty Eight as well! So why are we living in such a sorry state?! WE CAN'T EVEN AFFORD SCHOOL BOOKS! Ron clenched his jaw and stared at the floor, his blood boiled because of the thoughts in his head. He was feeling jealous once again, but this time he was jealous of his friends… They were just born with everything that he could ever want… Even if he spent his entire life working, he'd still never reach their level of wealth and power… How was that fair?! Ron swallowed his frustrations and didn't say a word, and Arthur sighed at that.

"Here" Arthur said as he handed Ron his Gringotts pouch back. Ron took it with a deep frown. "You should save your money, your mother and I can handle things. And Ron…" Ron looked up at that. "Don't go behind our backs again, please. You can come to me for anything, I want you to know that…"

August 30th, 1992 (Diagon Alley)

They all stepped into Diagon Alley together, all thirteen of them. Sirius and Remus had shown up at the Burrow shortly after Ron's argument with his parents, and then Pandora and her family had also shown up. They had all flooed to The Leakey Cauldron together, and Harry had flooed with Sirius at his side because Harry had never used the floo system before. They all marched towards Gringotts Bank together, and people moved out of the way to accommodate the large family.

Ron was in a foul mood because of his recent row, and his siblings kept their distance from him. Even Ginny was clinging to their mother, who was smiling happily. But Ron could tell that his mother's smile was forced on for the public… As they approached Gringotts Bank, a girl's voice called out to Harry.

"Harry! Harry! Over here, Harry!" the voice yelled, and all of them looked up to see Hermione running down the front-steps. Harry ran forward to greet his friend while Sirius and Remus chuckled to themselves. They began talking animatedly until the rest of Harry's companions joined them. Hermione greeted all of them in a cheery voice, and then she got to Ron. "Ron! It's wonderful to see you again" Hermione exclaimed.

"You too, Hermione" Ron said with a forced smile. Just because I'm in a sorry mood doesn't mean that I should take it out on her… Hermione missed the fact that Ron was forcing on his smile, and she smiled happily at the sight of her red-haired friend.

"How were your holidays, Hermione?" Harry asked as they all climbed the steps leading into Gringotts.

"They were great, especially after Ron…" Hermione trailed off and gave Ron an apologetic look. Ugh… I'm fine, stop… "But yes, they were great. My parents and I traveled all over Italy just like I told you in my letters! It was so beautiful there! Venice was the best part of the trip, and…" Hermione kept going, and Ron zoned out. He'd heard this story before, and he wasn't in the mood to hear it again. As they entered the bank, Ron's eyes fell on a pair of Muggles who were looking rather nervous and exchanging Muggle money for Wizard money. When the Muggles saw Hermione, they smiled at their daughter and her friends.

"You two are Muggles!" Ron's father exclaimed suddenly, his excitement making the pair go wide-eyed. "Oh we must have a drink! What's that in your hand?! Molly look, they have Muggle money!" Ron rolled his eyes at his father's behavior, while Molly frowned at Arthur. Everyone but Ron and Percy chuckled at Arthur's behavior.

"Arthur…" Molly scolded. "Don't make such a ruckus, you're scaring them…" Arthur looked a bit sheepish, but he still stepped forward and began a conversation with Hermione's parents. A Goblin came up and offered to take the rest of them down to their vaults.

"We're fine, mate" Sirius said with a smile, but the Goblin frowned at him menacingly.

"We'll be coming with you" Molly said as she guided the Weasley family, with the exception of Arthur, and the Lovegood family towards the Goblin.

"I'll see you guys in a bit" Ron told Harry and Hermione, and then he followed after his family. The ride down was terrifying as always, and Ron feared that his neck would snap at one of the sharp turns. Eventually they got off and walked to the Weasley vault, and the Goblin opened it with a key that Molly handed him. The moment the vault opened, Ron frowned deeply at its contents. A handful of sickles and one bloody Galleon…

Ron looked around and noticed his siblings all looking squeamish, and his frown deepened. I could have paid for all of their needs… But no, let's spend this meager sum of money instead… Let's send our children to school in second-hand garbage instead! Ron turned his head and cracked his neck, and then he tightened the grip on his Gringotts pouch. This isn't right… How are they going to get Ginny a wand?!

"Ron?" Pandora's voice came, shaking Ron out of his thoughts. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine…" Ron said flatly, and Pandora gave him a piercing gaze. Bloody hell… I haven't seen that look in ages! But she didn't say anything, and Ron decided to ignore her looks. After his mother had shoveled the handful of coins into her purse, they all went down to the Lovegood vault. The Lovegoods weren't swimming in wealth, but they had a lot more than the Weasleys. Ron couldn't help but wonder how that was possible… He didn't even know what Pandora and Xenophilius Lovegood did for a living, but it was clearly more lucrative than his father's 'job'… Then, after another break-neck journey, they were back upstairs and Ron joined his two Hogwarts friends.

Once they were outside, they all separated. Pandora and Molly decided to take their daughters to get fitted for robes. Arthur, Remus, Sirius, and Xenophilius decided to take the Grangers to The Leaky Cauldron for a drink. Percy said that he 'needed a new quill' and then he just marched off. Fred and George saw a friend of theirs from Hogwarts and decided to go meet up with him. This left Harry, Ron, and Hermione behind.

"We should all meet back in an hour near Flourish and Blotts" Molly said as she walked away with Ginny. "Don't do anything silly" Molly quickly added to the twins because they were grinning. And just like that, Ron and his two friends were alone in front of Gringotts.

They travelled down the winding, cobbled street and talked to each animatedly. Actually, it was mostly Hermione that was doing all the talking while the two boys listened. She told them that Neville had already gotten his school supplies with his Grandmother, and that he was sad that he couldn't see Harry before the train ride to school. Harry looked quite eager to see Neville again, and Ron was happy for the 'Golden Trio' to be reunited once again. Along the way, Harry bought the three of them strawberry and peanut butter ice-creams. Once they finished eating their sweets, Hermione dragged them off to buy more ink and parchment.

Once that was done, the trio met up with Fred and George in a joke shop. They were with their friend, Lee Jordan, and they were buying new items and pranks. Hermione told them that they couldn't bring their newly acquired assets to Hogwarts, but the three older boys had just laughed at her. After that, they ran into Percy who had just bought a small book. Ron asked him what the book was about, and Percy had happily told him that it was a book about finding success after becoming a prefect. Ron was somewhat happy to see this ambitious side of Percy, it was refreshing after seeing the Weasley vault. As they said their goodbyes to Percy, Hermione asked Ron how well Percy had done in his O.W.L.S. Ron proudly told her that his big brother had earned twelve O.W.L.S. Hermione was awed beyond words, while Harry just sighed with a smile.

Once their hour was finished, the trio made their way to Flourish and Blotts. Ron was shocked to see a massive line of middle-aged and young women formed outside. Upon closer inspection, the trio saw the massive banner that claimed that Gilderoy Lockhart would be signing copies of his autobiography 'Magical Me!' today. Ron frowned at the banner, remembering the ridiculous prices of his books.

"He's here today!" Hermione squealed in a very girly shriek. "We can actually meet him today! He wrote most of the books on our booklist!" Don't remind me… Five galleons a book, what a joke… "C'mon you two! Let's get inside quickly!" Hermione then dragged Harry and Ron with her, where they joined the rest of the Weasleys. Everyone was there, and Sirius sighed in relief at the sight of Harry.

"There you are…" Sirius said. "We were beginning to worry. Quick, hop into the line with us. We already got your books ready." Harry smiled gratefully at Sirius, while Ron frown at Ginny's tattered old books. They look like they're coming apart… Ron chose to stand next to Harry and Sirius instead, the sight of Ginny's old books was making him angry with his parents again.

And then, Gilderoy Lockhart came into view. He was signing copies of his autobiography, and there was a massive portrait of himself behind him. The portrait was winking at the customers with a wide smile that showed Gilderoy's perfect teeth. Ron heard women gushing about Lockhart in hushed whispers, and even Pandora and Molly were giggling and whispering to each other… There was an excited man running around with a big camera, and he was taking photo after photo of Lockhart. The man pushed Ron against Sirius' side.

"Move out of the way boy…" the man with the camera growled. "This is for the Daily Prophet!"

"Watch it you tosser" Sirius growled back.

"Big deal" Ron said at the same time, annoyed with the rude man. Gilderoy Lockhart looked up at that, and his eyes widened when he saw Sirius and Ron standing together. And then his eyes almost popped out of his head when he saw Harry next to them.

"It can't be Harry Potter!" Lockhart yelled as he stood up from his seat. Harry's eyes widened at Lockhart's reaction, and Harry looked to an annoyed Sirius for help. Lockhart dived forward and grabbed Harry's arm, dragging Harry to himself. Ron heard Sirius yell a cuss word and then Sirius marched up to the blonde, wavy haired celebrity. "Ah, the Godfather as well then! Come join us!" Lockhart exclaimed as he ignored Sirius' angered features, and then Lockhart positioned Sirius roughly by his side and he began shaking Harry's hand vigorously. The man with the camera took photo after photo, filling the shop up with smoke. The women around Ron applauded wildly, including his two mothers and Hermione.

"You there!" Lockhart shouted over the crowd, pointing straight at Ron. Me…? "Come up here!" Ron took a step backwards but his mother ushered him forward into Lockhart's death grip. Lockhart dragged Ron next to Sirius, and then he dragged Harry to his other side. Lockhart then put both of his arms around Harry and Ron, while Sirius stood next to Ron with a scowl. "Nice big smiles boys…" Lockhart whispered through his gleaming teeth. "Together, we four will make the front page." Ron tried to smile, but the attention he was getting turned his face crimson and he was nearly blinded by the camera's bright flash.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Lockhart announced, stopping the applause from all of his 'fans'. "What an extraordinary moment this is! A perfect moment, if I do say so myself, for me to make an announcement that I've been sitting on for some time! When young Harry and… Slytherin's Prodigy… wandered into this shop today, no doubt here to buy my autobiography, they had no idea that I would be giving it to them personally… free of charge!" The crowd applauded again, and Lockhart gave Harry a hard shake that almost threw off the boy's glasses. He doesn't even know my name… Slytherin's Prodigy my arse…

"But they aren't just getting my autobiography" Lockhart continued in an enthusiastic voice. "This year, both boys will be getting the true Magical Me! That's right everyone, I am proud to announce that I will be joining Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor this September!" Lockhart smiled ear-to-ear at the sound of his own voice, and all the women clapped loudly. Two shop assistants walked up and shoved Lockhart's entire collection of books into Ron and Harry's arms. Ron almost fell over because of their weight, and he quickly limped over to his mother. Molly took the books from him with a smile aimed at Lockhart.

"You go on, Ron… I'll get these signed" Molly said quickly, not even looking at Ron. Ron didn't care though, mostly because he wanted to get away from Lockhart… I think he broke my arm… Ron rubbed his arm and sulked to himself, until he spotted Harry talking to Malfoy. Malfoy was sneering at Harry, and Ginny was standing next to Harry. What's going on there? What is Malfoy doing near my sister?! Ron marched over to them, and Hermione joined him when he was halfway there.

"You got yourself a girlfriend, Potter" Malfoy sneered at Ginny, Ron immediately got annoyed at the git.

"What's going on here?" Ron interjected, looking at Ginny's crimson face.

"And the 'Slytherin Prodigy'…" Malfoy spat out, glaring daggers at Ron. "Salazar would be turning in his grave if he knew…"

"Well it's a good thing he's dead then…" Ron said menacingly. "Just like you will be if you don't back off of my sister…"

"Your sister?" Malfoy smirked at Ginny. "I should've known… the way she dresses… Your family is a…" Arthur's voice cut Malfoy off.

"Ron!" Arthur said as he struggled past all of Lockhart's fans, Ron's brothers were following him. "There you are son, let's get out of here… It's too packed in here…"

"Well, well, well… Arthur Weasley" came a cold, silky voice from behind Malfoy. It was Mr. Malfoy, Draco's father, and he was standing behind his son with a cold sneer aimed at Ron's father.

"Lucius…" Arthur greeted in a cold voice which took Ron by surprise. I've never heard dad sound so cold!

"Busy time at Ministry, Arthur?" Lucius asked, his voice was as cold as his demeanor. "All these raids under your new 'law'… I certainly hope that they are paying you well for it…" Then Lucius reached into Ginny's cauldron and pulled out a tatty, old copy of 'A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration'. "Obviously not…" Lucius smirked. Ron felt his heart thump like a battle drum, all of his frustrations with his parents coming to the surface slowly.

"Dear me" Lucius said coldly, smirking a smirk that Draco wished he had. "What's the use of being a disgrace to the name of Wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?" Arthur flushed crimson and gritted his teeth, and Ron did the same when he saw Draco smirking at him. Should've left this git in the Forest… Why's he acting like he had anything to do with his family's wealth?! He was just born rich…

"We have a very different notion on what disgraces the name of Wizards, Malfoy…" Arthur retorted.

"Cleary" Lucius sneered, and then he turned his attention to the Grangers. They were watching the scene apprehensively, and Mrs. Granger was hiding Hermione behind her. "The company you keep… And here I believed that your family could sink no lower…" There was a loud clatter as Ginny's cauldron fell to the floor; Arthur had thrown himself at Lucius, both men stumbling back into a bookshelf. Ginny squealed in fright, while Draco and Ron went wide-eyed. Ron immediately broke out of his stupor and decided to take out his own frustrations on Draco. This is for going after me non-stop! And for everything you've ever said about my family!

Ron punched an unsuspecting Draco Malfoy right on the cheek bone, and Draco fell to the ground hard. Ron immediately felt a hand grab him and yank him back, it was his mother who had pulled him back… Ron heard the twins cheering hard, while Sirius and Remus tried pulling Arthur off of Lucius. But it was Hagrid, who had shown up out of nowhere, that managed to separate the two men. Lucius freed himself from Hagrid's grip violently and sneered at Arthur. Arthur had a bloody lip, Lucius had a scrape on his jaw, Draco's right cheek was already swelling up, and Ron's right hand throbbed with pain. Lucius Malfoy sneered at Ginny and thrust her book back into her cauldron.

"Here, girl…" Lucius grit out. "Take your book… It's the best that your pathetic father can give you…" With that, Lucius shoved the books back into Ginny's cauldron. He helped Draco up and glared at Ron with cold fury, and then father and son disappeared from sight. You better run… Molly grabbed Ron by the ear and dragged him out of the shop, while Arthur was picked up by Hagrid. Hagrid was saying something to Arthur but Ron couldn't hear because his ear was being twisted by his mother.

"Arthur Weasley!" Molly shrieked, still twisting Ron's ear. "How could you! Way to set a good example for your children! What will poor Gilderoy think of us now?! We ruined his signing!" Arthur looked sheepish as Hagrid put him down, and the Grangers were a bit startled. Harry and Hermione were wincing at the sight of Ron being manhandled by his mother, and even Remus and Sirius were shooting him pitying looks. Pandora and Xenophilius were frowning deeply at Ron… Great, I'm going to get another lecture tonight… I don't care, that ungrateful git deserved it! I save his life, and he keeps throwing dirt on my family? Why is he such a tosser?!

They all marched for home from there, and Ron rubbed his ear the entire way home with a deep frown on his face. They said their goodbyes to the Grangers, and Hermione waved goodbye to Ron with a sorry look. Ron waved back, doing his best to give her a reassuring smile. I'm gonna get my ears chewed off tonight…

August 30th, 1992 (After Dinner)

Ron went straight to his room after dinner, his mother hadn't even looked his way all day after everything he had done today. All I did was offer to buy my family new things, and then I defended our honor! I did nothing wrong… Ron turned his head and cracked his neck, his anger burning his heart out. Ron had noticed his siblings avoiding him as well, which further infuriated him. Percy had been giving him disappointed looks all day, and Harry was just smiling sheepishly at him. Even Sirius and Remus were upset when they had heard how Ron had behaved all day. I did nothing wrong! None of them have to deal with Malfoy daily, so they can't understand anything… Even dad attacked that git's father!

"Ron?" Pandora called as she entered the room, and Ron stopped his pacing. She sighed sadly at the sight of his angry features. "Your mother isn't too pleased with you… neither are the rest of us… What's gotten into you today?"

"Nothing's gotten into me" Ron said firmly. "I hit Malfoy because he was bullying my sister in broad daylight!" Pandora frowned at that.

"And yelling at your parents?" Pandora asked, gazing at Ron in a piercing manner. "You hurt them deeply when you did that, you understand that right?" Ron frowned at that, and shuffled his feet.

"They ignored me when I offered to buy everyone new things…" Ron muttered, feeling a pang of guilt for yelling at his parents. "Ginny has to go to school in second-hand robes because of it… I offered them money, and they refused for no reason…" Pandora sighed as she finally understood Ron's behavior. He was embarrassed of his family's finances… and that's why he was so eager to buy things for his siblings, it was a kindness born out of insecurity. She felt disappointed with Ron, she didn't remember him being so materialistic… Molly was right when she had claimed that Ron had been different since he came home.

"Tell me, Ron" Pandora said softly. "Did you want to buy them new things because you wanted to make them happy, or was it to make yourself happy?" Ron gave her a confused look. "I saw your reaction at your family's vault… Tell me, Ron. What was the real reason behind all of this? And don't you dare lie to me?" Pandora said firmly, and Ron was shocked to see her so strict with him. But Ron knew the truth already, and he knew that she knew it as well. He did want to buy them new things, but it was because he was tired of being called poor or seen as lesser by his house-mates… Pandora walked up to him and handed him a platinum ring with runes on it.

"Here…" Pandora said with a sad voice. "You should be ashamed of yourself today…" Pandora left quietly after that, and Ron just stared at the ring in silence. He did feel ashamed of himself… but he also felt angry at everything else…

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well there you go! Some big reveals in this chapter, I hope you enjoyed them! Sorry again for the delay... See you all soon!