Fate

by TheTrueSpartan

When Ron discovers that he can see the future, his entire fate is thrown off of its course. A story about adventure, friendship, growing up, and pushing forward through hardships. This story will get darker as it progresses, just like the original Harry Potter novels. It will cover all Seven Years of Hogwarts, but mostly from Ron's perspective. No Mary Sues, no Character bashing.

52. Chapter 52 - Hurt and Comfort

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Chapter 52 is here, and sorry for the delay! I'm in Midterms, got a lot on my plate so I dropped the ball a bit. But I'm back, and fret not, this story will not be abandoned. It WILL be finished. Now, a few things:

1. Gylfaginning, thank you for your review and for bring something very important to my attention. Allow me to publicly apologize to you, and to all of my Romanian viewers. Snape's comment comparing Romanian Gypsies to Werewolves, and such, was never meant to cause my viewers any offence. I have never met any of the Romanian people, nor been to Romania. And I certainly never meant to cause any offence. But saying that, I will point out that this story deals with discrimination of many different kinds. What I write in my Character POVs does not necessarily reflect my views on the matter, it reflects the Character's.

And Snape, despite being a fan favorite, is not a nice person. He is a bully, he is cruel, and he is spiteful. And I will not shy away from giving my Character's varying views of the World around them in order to create Mary Sues. Being flawed is being human, and this story will continue to focus on discrimination and it's negative effects on society. Once again, I am sorry if I caused any unintentional offence. Please don't mistake my Character's views with my own. Thank you Gylfaginning for bringing this to my attention, I truly appreciate it.

2. Thank you to Starway Man and NowGodsStandUpForBastards for showing me that I wrote Louis wrong, whoops =P (I fixed it in this chapter)

3. Sadly, no Pomfrey this chapter. A lot had to be covered, and I didn't want to cut the sections short just to add one rushed scene.

4. Next Chapter will be in fast forward, and it will end second year. Pomfrey will get her scene with Ron, have no doubt.

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 52 – Hurt and Comfort

Ronald Weasley's POV

Friday 3rd April, 1993 (Gala at Carrousel du Louvre – Evening)

"So who do we talk to first?" Ron asked Daphne, she was accompanying him for the night. But this was mostly because Lord Greengrass wanted to make sure that Ron didn't get in any trouble, not that Daphne minded. She seems far too pleased, actually.

"Let's keep our distance from the Veelas for now" Daphne replied, and Ron wasn't even surprised. "I saw Professor Snape hovering near the beverages, maybe we should talk to him." Hmm, I already know him. I would much rather speak to some potential allies.

"What about Amanda?" Ron asked.

"She shouldn't be hard to find, considering that she's probably looking for you" Daphne replied.

"Good, I want to speak to her" Ron responded.

"About?" Daphne asked.

"I want her to know that she can contact me when I'm at Hogwarts" Ron replied, and Daphne tightened her hold on his arm a bit. "I want to stay friends with her."

"I see" Daphne said. "Then let's start by looking for her mother, and proceed from there." Ron nodded, and they both started walking around the ballroom. It had been extended magically, and it was decorated with lavish ornaments that were brought to life with a few nifty spells. Glass Fairies flew around the ballroom, white light glittering in their trail. A golden chandelier floated in midair, and it had white glowing crystals instead of conventional lights. But Ron's favorite ornament were the glass serpents that hugged the walls, the light from the chandelier made them glow as they slithered across the walls.

"There, I see her" Ron stated as he saw her talking to the Delacour sisters. They look like they're in deep discussion. I hope nothing is wrong, and I hope that Fleur isn't bothering Amanda.

"So much for keeping our distance from the Veelas" Daphne huffed.

"Don't worry, there's just two of them" Ron said as he guided Daphne with him. "I won't even feel their allures, trust me."

"You realize how insane your ability to resist them is, don't you?" Daphne asked, her voice mildly humorous. "Every other boy in the world would be drooling at the sight of that Fleur girl, even I think that she's beyond gorgeous."

"I can see how gorgeous she is, Daph" Ron chuckled. "But she abuses her allure to get attention, and I find that annoying at best."

"And at worse?" Daphne asked.

"I want to punch her in the throat" Ron stated truthfully, and he missed Daphne giving him a slightly scared look. If she had learned one thing this year, and from that damn Dueling Club, it was that Ron was really scary when he gave into his rage.

"Well, try and refrain from doing so" Daphne said, she made sure that her voice came out firm. "Or else my father might punch you in yours. And smile Ron, this party is in your honor."

"I know" Ron sighed, and then he put on a practiced smile. It was Gabriella Delacour who saw them approaching first, and her eyes widened at the sight of Ron. I need to show her that I'm not someone to fear. It's her sister's fault that my eyes are like this, not mine. Gabriella said something to her sister quickly, and Ron didn't quite hear it. But he figured that she had warned her sister about Ron approaching them because Amanda and Fleur turned to face him and Daphne.

"Ron" Amanda greeted with a smile, and Ron smiled more genuinely.

"Amanda, I hope you're enjoying the party" Ron greeted her.

"We are" Amanda responded. "Such pretty decorations, no? Zey are truly magnifique." That probably means magnificent.

"Ze snakes are not so prettee…" Fleur said in a rather dismissive tone, her eyes focused on Ron's.

"They represent my House's animal" Ron told her. "Daphne and I are proud Slytherins, as were Lord and Lady Greengrass."

"Ze 'ouse of ze Cunning, no?" Amanda smiled, and Ron was actually surprised that she knew that.

"Do you know much about Hogwarts?" Daphne asked her, and Amanda shook her head.

"Ron said zat I would be a Gryffindor, so I did some research" Amanda replied, and Ron let out a soft chuckle. "I believe 'e is right, I am brave and bold." That you are, especially because you stood up for what you believed. Despite going against your Madame for a complete stranger.

"Cunneeng?" Fleur asked

"Ruse" Daphne replied in French, and Ron had to hide his surprise. Wait… Tori has French lessons. Daphne probably had them too, and something tells me that she took them seriously.

"Ruse" Fleur repeated, and then she smiled a little as she stared at Ron. Why is she looking at me like that? I can't feel her allure, so it's really weird.

"Pourquoi ses yeux sont rouges?" Gabriella said suddenly, and Ron look straight at her. She quickly moved behind her sister, her eyes fixed on Ron's disturbingly creepy ones.

"She's asking why you're eyes are so red" Daphne translated, and Ron smiled at the little Veela.

"Tell her that I forgot to sleep last night" Ron joked, and Amanda chuckled softly.

"Il n'a pas dormi la nuit derniére" Daphne told Gabriella, and the little girl blinked at her in disbelief. "I don't think she bought it."

"Do not mind 'er" Fleur said as she held her sister's hand in a comforting way. "She ees just um… what ees ze word?"

"Scared?" Ron provided, and Fleur nodded.

"Oui, scared" Fleur replied. Can't say I blame her… If I saw my reflection in a dark alley, I'd fucking bolt. But enough wasting time, I need to talk to Amanda and then move on. I should meet as many people as I can.

"Amanda, can I please speak to you in private?" Ron asked Amanda, and she nodded once. "Daphne, please excuse me." Ron then disentangled their arms, and he followed Amanda a short ways away. He could hear Daphne talking to the Veelas in French, and he was rather impressed. Should I learn a second language? Meh… If I get any spare time, I'll give it a shot.

"What do you wish to talk about?" Amanda asked with a happy smile. "Oh, and before I forget. You look very dashing tonight, as does your date." Ron blushed a bit, mostly because Amanda had called Daphne his date.

"Thank you, and you look as beautiful as always" Ron complimented back, he had a handful of compliments memorized for such occasions. Ron knew that his words had the desired effect as he saw Amanda blush rather noticeably.

"You are polite to say so, I zank you" Amanda smiled widely. "Now, let's talk no?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I want to stay friends even after I leave" Ron told her, and she nodded slowly. "We can send each other letters, if that's alright with you?"

"I zink zat is a wonderful idea" Amanda beamed, and Ron found himself beaming too. "We can be pen-pals, and discuss future Chess events! Oh, and share strategies!" And maintain our alliance, just in case.

"Great, I'm really glad that you're on board" Ron smiled. One down, let's go find some more.

---

Friday 3rd April, 1993 (Gala at Carrousel du Louvre – Evening)

Daphne and he had spoken to Amanda and the Delacour sisters some more, and then they had both moved on. Ron was kind of glad about that, he didn't like the constant staring from Fleur or the frightened looks from Gabriella.

"She told me why she was scared of you, by the way" Daphne said as they both moved around the room.

"Really? Does it have something to do with my eyes?" Ron asked as he rolled said eyes. I'm probably going to give Ginny a heartache tomorrow. Ron felt a sudden sense of anxiety at the thought of finally seeing her again, he didn't want her knowing about his brain damage. Or any of his siblings for that matter.

"Yes, and no" Daphne replied. "Turns out, Veelas have some rather scary legends. One of them is about a monster so hateful that he could even resist their beauty. Said monster had red-eyes, and it feasted on the hearts of Veelas for centuries. Many of the Veelas believe that he exists, and that he changes his form constantly. They believe that he constantly hungers for their blood, and I think she believes you to be said monster."

"What the hell?" Ron couldn't help but laugh. "That got really dark… I'm actually kind of sorry now, she must be scared witless." Wait a second… That sounds an awful lot like a certain being that I know of. Hey Entity, are you that monster? Ron heard no reply, and he figured that the Entity couldn't care less about his inquiries.

"Her sister's presence is helping her stay calm" Daphne shrugged. "Regardless of how you feel, it's a stupid story and she needs to grow up."

"She's just a little kid, Daph" Ron excused Gabriella's behavior. "And even you have to admit, I look rather terrifying right now."

"I suppose you do" Daphne said. "But I still like you." Ron blushed a bit again, and he cursed his face for giving away his embarrassment. What do I say to that? Just repeat what she said, I think that ought to be good enough.

"Thanks… I like you too…" Ron mumbled as he kept his eyes forward. Ugh… That was embarrassing.

"Awww" Daphne cooed, and Ron's ears turned red.

"I'm taking that back" Ron frowned. But you can keep my self-respect, it's yours now...

"You can't do that" Daphne giggled as she tightened her hold on his arm. "That was really sweet of you, Ron. I wasn't trying to tease you, chiefly because I know that you have trouble saying things like that. I was just really surprised that you did." Ron shot her a quick look, and he saw her beaming at him. Ron managed a weak smile, and he decided that he probably wouldn't be saying that again any time soon. He didn't feel comfortable saying that to anyone, not even the person that he probably felt the most comfortable around. Which I guess is her, I tell her pretty much everything. How did that even start?

"Ahem" Ron cleared his throat, and it was a clear signal that he was done with this topic. "Where do you reckon Madame Maxime is?"

"Ron, do you really want to speak with that woman?" Daphne asked slowly. "After everything that she put you through?" I don't want to, but I should. She needs to at least know that I don't hold it against her. A complete lie, but it's one that she needs to believe.

"I just want to have a quick chat, and tell her that I'm willing to look past her actions" Ron replied, and Daphne gave him a confused look.

"You don't hold it against her?" Daphne asked. "You?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron asked in a slightly annoyed tone.

"Ron, you know that I like you" Daphne sighed. "But you are probably the most unforgiving person that I know, and your actions have proven that time and time again. Potter, Longbottom, even Granger… And I'm not trying to anger you, I just want to know what you're planning to do."

"I'm trying to make her my ally" Ron responded, his tone coming out harsher than he intended. I'm not unforgiving, I just don't like people betraying me. And those three did it for no good reason, they did it just because they're self-righteous Gryffindors. Ron turned his head and cracked his neck, something that made Daphne grimace.

"Why do you do that?" Daphne asked with a slightly disgusted tone. "Cracking your neck makes a really gross sound, Ron."

"I don't know, just a habit of mine" Ron replied. "Now can we please find Madame Maxime? Wait, she's right over there…" Ron gave a deadpan look in her direction, the woman was towering over everyone.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Daphne asked, and Ron gave her a confused look.

"You don't want to see her?" Ron guessed, and Daphne nodded.

"I don't like her, especially after everything that she put you through" Daphne replied. "If you want to make her your ally, it'll be easier if I'm not there."

"And you say I'm unforgiving" Ron smirked, and Daphne huffed in indignation.

"Whatever" Daphne responded stubbornly, and Ron let out a soft chuckle.

"Did I just turn the tables on you, I think I did" Ron smirked.

"Do you want me to put you through a table?" Daphne asked with an innocent smile, and Ron chuckled again.

"I'll be right back" Ron said, and then he disentangled from her and walked over to Madame Maxime. She was standing alone for some reason, a glass of champagne in her hand. "Madame Maxime" Ron greeted, and she looked down at him.

"Mr. Weasley" Madame Maxime greeted back, her face expressionless. "Have you come to keep me company? No one else seems to want to." Ron blinked at her, and then he noticed that her face was slightly flushed. She then downed the whole glass of champagne in one go, and she took another glass from a passing waiter. Is she drunk?

"I wanted to speak to you" Ron replied with a smile.

"Certainly, what can I help you with?" the gigantic woman asked.

"I wanted to talk about what happened at the Tournament…" Ron started, but Madame Maxime scoffed.

"The Tournament…" she said bitterly as she looked off in the distance. "What a mess… In hindsight, I should've stayed well away from politics. Especially with that spineless man running things in Wizarding France. Quel imbécile je suis…" Ron had no clue about what she just said, but he could tell that it was something bitter.

"I see that you don't quite like your Minister" Ron said with a polite smile, and she scoffed again. "Was it his plan?" Madame Maxime looked to him quickly, her expression showing slight annoyance at Ron's boldness. Shite, think before you speak. Her expression softened when she looked into his damaged eyes, and her face showed signs of remorse. This might be the only time that I don't mind being pitied.

"No…" Madame Maxime sighed as she closed her eyes in a resigned manner. "It was my own, and now I am going to pay for my actions… Your mentor is a hard man, and he will ruin my reputation if I don't publicly embarrass myself tonight by admitting my wrongdoings. Not that I have much reputation left. Even those who heartily agreed with my plans are avoiding me tonight, they do not want to be seen associating with me."

"Well, it's their loss" Ron smiled, and Madame Maxime gave him a slightly confused look. "You tried to further your Academy's prestige, and your plan would've worked if I didn't show up. They were willing to join in on getting the glory, but now that things have soured, they've run off. They don't sound like very dependable allies to me." Sheesh, I'm laying it on too thick. But I don't really know how to talk to gigantic, drunk women.

"It is the way of the world, Mr. Weasley" Madame Maxime told him. "Today's friends can be your enemies tomorrow."

"Does that mean that yesterday's enemies can be your friends today?" Ron asked, and she blinked at him. And then, a smile graced her face.

"You are a peculiar boy, one that I imagine is quite clever" Madame Maxime said, her voice slightly more lively.

"I have my moments" Ron smiled his best smile, and that earned a chuckle from her.

"I sense that there is more to this conversation than I previously believed" Madame Maxime said. "What are your real intentions?"

"I want us to be friends" Ron replied, there was no point in beating around the bush anymore.

"Is that so?" she smiled more widely, and she looked him over with an inspecting gaze. "I can now safely believe that exclusive of yours. Children your age usually don't speak the way you do."

"I speak differently from other children?" Ron asked with a bemused expression.

"Yes, you do" Madame Maxime replied. "It is not a bad thing, of course. It is actually rather refreshing… I imagine that you will be quite the wizard once you're fully grown. But I digress, why do you wish for us to be friends? I have done you many ills in the past two weeks, ills that haunt even my own conscience."

"I know how that feels" Ron told her, and she gave him a look that suggested that she wanted to know more. "I got into a fight with some of my friends at the end of last year, and I did something that was… harmful to them. We're slowly trying to make peace, but it'll always be there to haunt us all. And sometimes I think that what I did was the right thing… That's the worst part of it all."

"I am sorry to hear that" Madame Maxime said with a kind tone. "But you are still young, and time will heal those wounds."

"I hope you're right, for both our sakes" Ron smiled sympathetically. Maybe she isn't so bad. I mean, I'm not over what she did. But I think I understand it a little better now. She let her anger get the better of her, and that anger twisted her intentions to help her Academy.

"You didn't answer my question, Mr. Weasley" Madame Maxime stated. "Why do you wish for us to be friends?"

"You're the Headmistress of Beauxbatons, one of the Eleven Wizarding Schools out there" Ron replied. "I want to have strong allies for the future."

"The future?" Madame Maxime smiled, this boy was far too interesting. What thirteen year old boy would even think like this? It was completely surreal.

"When I'm a grown wizard looking to make a name for myself" Ron smiled. But mostly just for the upcoming war. If I have her on my side, Dumbledore will definitely take me more seriously. Not to mention that she has to be incredibly powerful, considering that she is a Headmistress of a Wizarding School.

"You are already making quite the name for yourself, Mr. Weasley" Madame Maxime chuckled.

"All the more reason for us to be friends" Ron shot back, and she gave him pleased smile.

"Are you sure that you are thirteen years old?" Madame Maxime asked humorously. "Never in my life have I had such a conversation with a boy your age. Most boys your age would either stare at me, or be intimidated."

"I'm not like most boys" Ron shrugged with a smile. I might've been, if it wasn't for this demon in my head.

"I can see that now" Madame Maxime chuckled. "Have you ever considered changing schools, Mr. Weasley? Beauxbatons can be very accommodating to those who possess your talents." Ron blinked at that, was she trying to recruit him? It's supposed to be the other way around, isn't it?

"I have no doubt about that, but Hogwarts is my home" Ron replied, and she nodded in understanding.

"Albus Dumbledore is a lucky Headmaster then" Madame Maxime said. "And I am lucky to have found such a valuable 'friend', despite everything that has happened." Ron smiled widely at that.

"I'd say that we're both lucky, I never imagined that I'd be 'friends' with the Headmistress of Beauxbatons" Ron said, and she let out another chuckle.

"I think I quite like you, Mr. Weasley" Madame Maxime stated. "It appears that fate has brought us together, and we'd be fools to deny her."

"Then please call me Ron, all my friends do" Ron responded as he fought the urge to break out into a happy dance. I fucking did it! Entity, did you see that shite?

"Very well, Ron" Madame Maxime said as she presented her massive hand to him. Ron took it, kissed her knuckles, and gave her a respectful bow.

---

Friday 3rd April, 1993 (Gala at Carrousel du Louvre – Late Evening)

"On behalf of the French Ministry of Magic and Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, we would like to extend our sincerest apologies to Mr. Weasley" Louis Wallace said from the podium, the French Minister was currently giving his public apology to Ron. Madame Maxime stood behind him, her hands held in front of her and her face expressionless. "We understand that Mr. Weasley came to the Junior League Tournament in the hopes of furthering his Chess career, but our selfish actions caused him great difficulty… and pain." Wallace sighed deeply, he was literally reading his apology off of a piece of parchment. And judging from Lord Greengrass' smirk, the Minister is just a mouthpiece.

"For our selfish machinations, we apologize" Wallace went on. "We take full responsibility for our actions, and we understand that Mr. Weasley is to be celebrated for his determination and hard-work. On…" the Minster stopped, and then started again. "On behalf of the French Magical Community, please find it within yourself to forgive the foolish actions of two individuals…" Ouch, Lord Greengrass is harsh. Madame Maxime looks like she's eaten a lemon, and the Minister looks like he just got diagnosed with the Dragon Pox. There were soft murmurs throughout the ballroom, and Lord Greengrass' smirk grew.

"To show…" the Minster started with a slightly raised voice, but then he blinked at the parchment. "To show you how remorseful we are, we have deemed it necessary to compensate you for your ordeals… The French Ministry will be recompensing you with… with ten thousand Galleons…" Ron's jaw dropped as the soft murmurs increased to loud chattering. Ron looked to see Lord Greengrass smiling at the French Ministry, he was clearly quite pleased with himself. "We… we bid you good fortunes on your future endeavors… And we hope to host you again someday…" The Minister walked away from the podium at that, his head hanging low. Madame Maxime followed after him, but she still kept her demeanor strong. She was no doubt furious with the apology, but she didn't outwardly show it. Ron saw the Minister walk directly towards Lord and Lady Greengrass, who were accompanied by Tori, and Ron made his way towards them.

"You have ended my career" were the first words that Ron overheard over the loud chattering. The Minister seemed livid, but Lord Greengrass just cocked his eyebrow.

"You ended your own career, Wallace" Lord Greengrass replied coldly. "I have merely allowed you to save what's left of your tattered reputation. You should thank me…"

"Thank you? I curse…" the Minister started bitterly, but Lord Greengrass suddenly moved forward and towered over the man. His mentor's cold gaze made even Ron shudder, while Tori and Mary just watched quietly.

"Thank me, and pay my protégé what he is owed" Lord Greengrass hissed, his gaze cutting through the much smaller man. The Minister stared up at Lord Greengrass defiantly for a few moments, but then his resolve slowly gave away. The Minister didn't thank Lord Greengrass however, instead he turned to leave. Ron's eyes met the Minister's for a passing moment, and then Louis Wallace marched away towards the exit.

"My Lord, is he seriously going to pay me ten thousand Galleons for ruining his plans?" Ron asked quickly, and Lord Greengrass smirked.

"He will, or I'll tell everyone that he went back on his word" Lord Greengrass replied, and Ron blinked in awe.

"You mean your words, don't you?" Ron asked softly, and Lord Greengrass just kept smirking. "Thank you, my Lord." Ron wanted to hug his mentor as hard as he could, but he resisted that urge. Lord Greengrass wasn't one of outward signs of affection, and neither was Ron. But I should pay him back for my shopping spree, I still haven't asked him how much I owe him. "My Lord, I still don't know how much I owe you for my shopping spree from before." Lord Greengrass blinked at that, and then he smiled warmly.

"You owe me just over three hundred Galleons" Lord Greengrass replied.

"Sebastian…" came Mary's sigh from behind her husband.

"I'll pay you back tomorrow, I promise" Ron beamed, and Lord Greengrass nodded. Especially now that I'm rolling in Galleons! Woohoo! I'm so fucking rich!

"Enjoy the party Ron, we will speak later" Lord Greengrass instructed, and Ron nodded firmly before making his way back to find Daphne.

---

Friday 3rd April, 1993 (Gala at Carrousel du Louvre – Late Evening)

"Congratulations, Mr. Weasley" came an icy voice from behind him, and both Daphne and Ron turned to face their Potions Professor. Snape had a slight smirk on his face, and Ron smiled at him.

"Thank you, Sir" Ron replied. "I hope you are enjoying the gala."

"I am, it is good to attend such a civilized gathering every now and then" Snape nodded curtly. "But enough about that, I'd like to speak to you about something important."

"I'll be with my parents" Daphne excused herself as she disentangled her arm from Ron's. "It is good to see you again, Professor."

"Likewise, Ms. Greengrass" Snape responded, and Daphne left after giving a polite curtsy. "I see that you two have become… friendlier with each other." Ron immediately felt the need to swallow and rub the back of his neck. "She is a good ally to have Mr. Weasley, well done."

"Thank you, Sir" Ron replied as calmly as he could. He doesn't suspect anything, does he? No way, we're really careful. Just don't panic, stay calm.

"I saw, and overheard, your conversation with Madame Maxime" Snape drawled, his smirk still in place. "I must admit that I was… pleased. You have a knack for making friends with powerful people." Not a knack, a need. This is all for our future.

"I saw no point in having her hate me" Ron shrugged. "I already have plenty of people who don't like me back home." Like your godson.

"Understandable" Snape responded. "Perhaps you should make a greater effort in befriending them as well. They will no doubt help you 'make a name for yourself', if you play your cards right."

"Are you asking me to befriend Draco Malfoy?" Ron asked bluntly.

"I am advising you to bury the hatchet with the heir of a prominent family within Wizarding Britain" Snape replied bluntly, his smirk disappearing.

"I have tried that, Sir" Ron told the Potions Master. "You can ask any of my friends if you need proof, and they will tell you that I have. But Malfoy is… He is arrogant, and self-entitled. He's the sort who would sell me out the first chance that he gets, and so I see no benefit in being his friend."

"I can understand why you might think that, but I've known Mr. Malfoy for the entirety of his life" Snape responded. "He is not the sort to betray his friends and allies, especially those who can benefit him."

"Sir, do I need to tell you what he calls me every time he sees me?" Ron frowned slightly, and Snape held out his hand to stop Ron.

"I know" Snape replied coldly. "It was just advice from your Head of House, act on it if you wish to. Or don't. Good night, Mr. Weasley. Enjoy your gala, I will see you again at Hogwarts." With that, Snape turned around and billowed away. Ugh… Damn.

Ron rubbed his forehead with his gloved hand as he thought of Malfoy, his vision of Malfoy's death still haunted him. Draco Malfoy had been brave, even fucking heroic, in his final moments. Ron wanted to be friends with that Draco Malfoy, not the bigoted and arrogant twat that he was now. I really haven't given his future much thought, have I? Did Ron hate Malfoy? Sort of… Sure, they fought each other more often than Ron cared to admit. But still… They had survived the Dark Lord together in the Forbidden Forest, and things between them right now were… oddly tense. Ron regretted their last encounter, and he knew that Malfoy did too. Why Malfoy regretted it, Ron had no clue. But he could see it in Malfoy's face. I'll leave him be for now, but I do need to talk to him eventually.

---

Sebastian Greengrass' POV

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (Greengrass Holiday Home – Midnight)

"I still can't believe that you're making Ron pay you back, Sebastian" Mary sighed from the bed. They were in their bedroom right now, and Sebastian was putting on his sleeping t-shirt. It had to be done, for his own sake.

"Love, it was necessary for me to do that" Sebastian sighed as he looked to find her frowning at him. "The more time I spend with him, the more I come to realize that Ron is a very proud individual. If I didn't let him pay me back, he would most certainly be insulted. But just between you and me, I'm only making him pay me half of what's owed. The boy has no idea how Muggle currency works, or just how expensive those 'designer clothes' were." Mary's frown disappeared at that.

"I see" she smiled faintly, and then she held out her hand. Sebastian took it as he lay down next to her, and she quickly put her head on his chest as she nestled against him. "Well now that I know that you've thought this through, I'm rather happy with your decision. And yes, he is rather proud isn't he?" Mary chuckled, and Sebastian felt her laugh vibrate throughout his chest.

"Some would say pigheaded" Sebastian joked.

"I'd say noble" Mary shot back quickly.

"Noble…" Sebastian whispered to himself as he thought about Ron's actions over the past two weeks. "And brave…"

"Yes, definitely brave" Mary hummed. "Most people would buckle under the weight of everything he just went through, but he didn't even think of giving up. It's hard to believe that he's just a boy."

"He is a young man, beloved" Sebastian corrected her.

"Ah, yes" Mary chuckled again. "He has turned thirteen, hasn't he? I almost forgot about your family's tradition."

"I had a drink with him, after he came back from his petrification" Sebastian told her, and she smiled widely. "He is… How can I describe it? His drive to be better is inspiring…"

"Maybe our girls really should learn from his example" Mary remarked.

"They most certainly should, especially Astoria" Sebastian agreed. "She will be attending Hogwarts soon, and she needs to know what is expected of her."

"You are right, husband" Mary agreed as well. "But please be gentle with her, she isn't like Daphne."

"I know" Sebastian said sadly, and he quickly tried to forget about Astoria's Blood Curse. His heart clenched from the pain of maybe losing her one day, and he used his Occlumency to calm himself down. That won't happen, we have been preparing for that day from the moment that she was born. I'll teach her to be careful, and we'll figure something out.

"Do you want me to come with you tomorrow?" Mary asked, and Sebastian was ripped from his thoughts about Tori. "To see Ron's family?"

"Yes, I do" Sebastian replied. "Just to make sure that he keeps himself in check, I imagine that I'll be verbally abused quite ferociously."

"I understand" Mary sighed.

"Don't be upset, love" Sebastian said as he rubbed his long fingers across her back. "I've brought this upon myself."

"We both have" Mary corrected him.

"Let me take the hit on this one, just keep Ron calm as best you can" Sebastian said. "Once it's all over, perhaps they might even forgive us someday."

"I hope so" Mary hummed. "I want to make sure that we keep the Weasley's tethered to us."

"Planning something, my dear?" Sebastian chuckled.

"I am" Mary replied in a happy tone.

---

Hermione Granger's POV

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (Longbottom Manor – After Breakfast)

The last two weeks had been bliss for Hermione, but she was now ready to go back to Hogwarts. Her parents had taken her to a getaway cabin in Scotland, away from all of her trauma and worries. She had spent her Break huddled up with her parents in front of a cozy fire, reading her favorite childhood stories over and over again. The Wizarding World was a faraway memory during her Break, as was the Muggle World. Her parents made sure of that.

She had come back home last night, only to floo to Longbottom Manor for the weekend. She had arrived well past curfew, and Mrs. Longbottom had sent her off to bed without even letting her greet her friends. Hermione didn't argue, not only was she exhausted, but she would never dare refuse the authoritative witch. She was woken up by Neville and Harry knocking on her door, and it was all just a haze of greetings and hugs from there. They had talked animatedly with each other about their Easter Breaks, but that all stopped once they sat down for breakfast.

Mrs. Longbottom was not in a good mood, especially after she had read the morning Daily Prophet out loud for Neville to hear. It turned out that Ron had become extremely famous around the Wizarding World during her absence, and not only that, but he had once again won the Junior League Tournament. The Daily Prophet explained that the French Minister and the Headmistress of Beauxbatons had apologized to Ron publicly for their underhanded tactics, something that baffled Hermione. Why would a respected Headmistress and a Minister of Magic try to thwart Ron's chances of winning? Mrs. Longbottom kept emphasizing the word 'apology' for some reason, and Hermione decided that she'd ask Neville to elaborate on this later.

"You were right, Nev" Harry sighed, and Hermione was pulled out of her mind. "Things are really awkward here…"

"You have no idea, mate" Neville smiled sadly. Mrs. Longbottom had just left for Diagon Alley to attend to some business, and they were all sitting in the Living Room which was the size of Hermione's house. Okay, maybe not. But still, this place is massive. And to think that there are people in the Wizarding World who live in squalor. People like Mrs. Longbottom really ought to do something about that.

"Why is she angry with you?" Hermione asked, and both Harry and Neville gave her sheepish smiles.

"She's angry at all of us" Harry explained, and Hermione blinked. She's angry with me? Why?!

"I told her about how things went with Ron this year" Neville said apologetically. "She had given Ron her word that he'd forever be a friend to the Longbottom Family, and my actions broke her promise." Oh… Hermione fought the urge to berate them both, mostly because she was just as guilty as them. I shouldn't have been so easily swayed.

"I kept telling you to come over, Nev" Harry frowned slightly. "Sirius and Remus were slightly annoyed with me at first, but they quickly got over it. You'd have at least enjoyed your Break a little if you had come over."

"I know" Neville sighed, but then he smiled at Harry. "Actions have consequences, that's what I've learned this year. And my actions towards Ron were… I didn't deserve to have a happy Break, I didn't deserve to just forget what I did." Hermione was touched by his words, and she smiled widely.

"Oh, Neville" Hermione choked slightly, and both boys gave her quizzical looks. "I think that's very brave of you, and mature. But I am sorry that your Break wasn't very fun."

"It's alright" Neville shrugged with a smile. "It's already getting better with you two here." Hermione beamed, and before she knew it, she was sitting right next to him on the couch. Even Harry was blushing and smiling slightly, and that was a big deal because she knew how difficult it was for Harry to open up.

"I feel like I've missed so much" Hermione said as she just smiled at Neville, and Neville shifted in his seat a bit.

"Not much happened truth be told" Neville muttered. "Harry spent a lot of time with the Weasleys, I stayed here with my Gran." Weasleys?

"You spent time with the Weasleys?" Hermione asked Harry.

"Oh, yeah" Harry nodded. "Sirius and Remus are great friends with Mr. Weasley, and we went over for dinner almost every night. Mrs. Weasley is an amazing cook, and she never let us leave until past midnight." Harry chuckled to himself at that. "They're a really lively family, especially the twins."

"Ginny? How's Ginny?" Hermione asked quickly, and she even blinked at her own speed. "Is she recovering? I've read that people who are traumatized close off easily…"

"She's fine" Harry chuckled. Fine? How could she be fine after all that? Ugh… Boys… "She even tried talking to me a few times, believe it or not. Though she always went red and ran off… The twins enjoyed taking the mickey out of her, but Percy would just glare at them until they stopped."

"And how are they taking Ron's sudden celebrity status?" Neville asked with an easy smile. I want to know more about this 'celebrity' business.

"They were really excited at first" Harry sighed. "But after reports came in about his… accident, they've been worried sick. Especially Mrs. Weasley… I caught her crying when she was doing the dishes." Hermione's heart stopped for a second, and she let out a shaky breath.

"Accident?" Hermione muttered, and both boys looked at her with slightly widened eyes.

"I forgot that you didn't hear…" Harry mumbled, which earned him an annoyed frown from Neville.

"He's fine, Hermione" Neville quickly assured her, and she waited for him to continue. "But the French Minister and the Headmistress of Beauxbatons had some ploy with the Veelas to get a French Champion this year… It all turned into a massive mess because Ron was able to resist them all."

"What? How? That's not possible, I've read about Veelas" Hermione bombarded Neville, her mind going into overdrive. No male can overcome a Veelas' allure, not unless they've trained themselves to. And when would Ron even have the time to do that? "How many Veelas were there?"

"Well over fifty allegedly" Harry answered for Neville. "I don't know much about Veelas, but Sirius and Remus talked about it like Ron was almost beyond human. Sirius won't stop talking about Ron… Everything third sentence out of his mouth is about Ron…" Neville and Hermione exchanged quiet looks, was Harry jealous? It would make sense, considering his terrible childhood. But Sirius should be allowed to talk about Ron, he owes Ron everything. And did Harry say 'well over fifty'?!

"That's not possible… He must've used a Potion of some sort maybe?" Hermione talked to herself.

"Nope, they had every contestant tested" Neville told her, and Hermione blinked.

"There is no way that he could do that, it's not possible" Hermione told them both. "I've read that even the strongest willed men can't resist more than three or four Veelas at once, and Ron's only thirteen. To be able to resist over fifty at once is… is pure nonsense."

"Books can be wrong, Hermione" Harry teased, and she shot him a scathing look that made him avert his gaze.

"Nonsense or not, Ron has everyone baffled" Neville told her. "It's why he's become such a hot topic everywhere, people all over the world want to know how he did it. And after his… accident, people are hailing him as a hero who won against all the odds."

"What accident?" Hermione asked.

"He collapsed after winning the final match" Harry told her. "And he was bleeding… From his mouth, nose, and eyes…" Hermione's hands clapped against her mouth as her eyes widened.

"Why?" Hermione gasped.

"The Daily Prophet, backed by a lot of Healers, say that he was probably concentrating so hard on resisting the allures that he caused himself a great deal of pain" Neville shuddered, and Hermione felt the blood leave her face. Oh my god, Ron…

"His family hasn't taken that well, especially his parents and Ginny" Harry informed them. "They got a letter from Mr. Greengrass informing them that Ron was fine, and the Daily Prophet confirmed that, but his family is still worried."

"Why would Mr. Greengrass let him compete?" Hermione asked, her righteous anger rising at the thought of Mr. Greengrass' irresponsible behavior. What kind of adult lets a child suffer like that?

"Gran told me that Lord Greengrass' business is now booming" Neville said slowly. "She says that his title as Ron's mentor is earning him quite a lot of notoriety, especially amongst other Chess Masters."

"So he did it to benefit himself?" Harry asked bitterly. "Typical Slytherin… Ron could've gotten hurt, or worse. And why are you calling him 'Lord'?"

"That's his title" Neville blinked. "Oh, sorry… I forget that you two aren't familiar with Pure-Blood customs. He is the Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass, and therefore, he is a Lord."

"Sounds rather… arrogant to me" Hermione said haughtily. Lord? Talk about a sense of self-importance. "And Noble?"

"Probably something they all say to please themselves" Harry frowned deeply. "Oh, look at me… I'm a Noble Lord…" Harry mocked, and Neville frowned slightly.

"Sirius is the Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Black" Neville told Harry.

"Sirius doesn't think like that" Harry shot back.

"Yeah, well Ron does" Neville told them, and Hermione and Harry both frowned at Neville.

"No, he doesn't" Hermione argued vehemently. "He's not like those other Slytherins."

"I'm with Hermione, Ron isn't a bigoted arse" Harry joined in. Language!

"There is difference between following the old ways, and bigotry" Neville frowned. "My Gran follows the old ways, are you calling her a bigot too then?"

"We never said that" Hermione argued, why was he starting a fight?

"And Ron's family don't follow the 'old ways', trust me" Harry added on. "I stayed at their house for pretty much the entire break, they're rather against the 'old ways'."

"Well, that's their choice" Neville responded. "But Ron does follow the old ways, my Gran told me herself. Hell, I've seen him referring to Lord Greengrass by his proper title. And by the way, my Gran taught me to follow the old ways too. And someday, I'll be known as Lord Longbottom."

"But you're not like the Greengrasses" Harry argued hotly. "The twins told me that they were with Voldemort during the Great War, just like the Malfoys." Neville twitched at the mention of Voldemort's name, something that made both Harry and Hermione feel riled up. It's just a name, why do they all flinch at the mention of it?!

"I'm not defending them, I'm defending our customs" Neville frowned. "I don't make fun of Muggles, and their ways of doing things… So why are you two saying that honoring the old ways is like being a bigot?"

"We never said that" Hermione repeated. "We're saying that the 'Pure-Blood' Families like the Greengrasses are all self-entitled, and beyond arrogant." Is he even listening to us?

"I'm part of a Pure-Blood Family" Neville grit out. "And before you say something like 'but you're not like the Malfoys', you should know that there are plenty of Pure-Blood Families out there that honor the old ways and don't act like the Malfoys. My Family included."

"Is 'Lord' Greengrass part of that exclusive group?" Hermione cocked an eyebrow, she had him now.

"Again, you're acting like I'm defending Lord Greengrass" Neville frowned deeply. "I'm defending our customs, customs that you two are mocking right in front of me. Customs that you don't even understand, or want to understand. Isn't that bigotry?"

"How dare you?!" Hermione hissed as she stood up, her eyes boring into his now wide ones. "You're accusing me of being a bigot? Like them? How many times has Draco Malfoy, or the other Slytherin boys, called me a Mud-Blood this year?" Her eyes stung because of the word, and its disgusting meaning. I deserve to be a part of this World just as much as them!

"Again, I'm not defending them!" Neville shouted as he stood up too. "I'm defending our customs, customs that Ron also believes in." Hermione gnashed her teeth together at the mention of Ron, and she decided to walk away before she said something hurtful to him. Ron isn't like them, why does he keep saying that he is?!

"Look at what you just did" came Harry's voice, and she then heard him following after her. "Hermione, wait… Let's not fight, please? We all just got together again, let's just forget this conversation."

"I want to take a shower, Harry James Potter" Hermione said without turning around. "And I'd rather not 'offend' Neville's customs…" With that, she shut her door behind her. Ron isn't a bigot like the rest of the Slytherins, and he'd never stoop to their level.

---

Draco Malfoy's POV

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (Malfoy Manor – Afternoon)

Draco was where he always went when he had too much on his mind, soaring through the sky on his Nimbus 2001. The Easter Break had been a disaster, and it was all Blaise Zabini's fault. Not only had his former best friend told Draco's mother the truth, but he had also made sure to talk Weasley up like he was some God. And then, Weasley had all but proven Blaise's words to be true with his triumph within France. Draco's mother loved him to bits, there was no doubt about that, but even she was having trouble not being angry at him lately. He had lied to her and his father for the better part of the school year, and now she knew it.

Luckily for Draco, his mother had decided not to tell his father. But that was mostly because his father was clearly stressed from his overseas work. And yet despite surviving his father's potential ire, Draco still felt worthless. Just like he had been feeling ever since that damn party that Weasley threw.

It had felt like a great idea at first, telling Snape that Weasley was breaking school rules out in the open. Draco was sure that his Godfather would reprimand Weasley for his arrogant and foolish actions, but instead of Weasley getting detention, that red haired tumor had turned the whole thing on Snape's head. And Draco's Godfather being who he is, was rightly impressed with Weasley and disappointed in Draco. That had hurt. It had hurt so much that Draco had started drinking Weasley's 'amazing' punch in order to just salvage his night. But that resulted in even more shame for Draco.

After seeing the red twat take Pansy back to her dorm, an odd sort of jealousy had stirred in Draco. His insecurities stemming from being outdone by a Blood-Traitor in everything had resurfaced, and in a moment of blind rage, he had pinned Weasley against the wall. Draco had all but shown Weasley just how insecure he was, but that brute didn't even recognize the reason behind Draco's actions. Instead, Weasley had nearly broken his arm with his grip alone. And when he was towering over Draco, hissing those cruel words, Draco had teared up. Draco Malfoy had fucking teared up in the face of a Weasley… It had been too much for Draco to bear. His hurt over losing his childhood friends, his father's cold treatment at the end of first year, Snape's constant disappointment in him, and especially the fact that Draco owed Weasley his life had been too much. And so Draco's eyes had welled up with heavy unshed tears, and he had barely managed to stop his sobs from breaking out.

But Weasley didn't care. No, he instead threw all of Draco's insecurities in his face with the coldest voice that Draco had ever heard. A voice that he wished he possessed. And then, Weasley had topped it all off with telling Draco that he should've let the Malfoy Heir die at the hands of the Dark Lord. But before Draco could break down in tears, Weasley had let go of him like he was diseased. The look on Weasley's face had baffled Malfoy, and then his apology had just left Draco utterly stunned. Weasley had gone from terrifying to remorseful within a heartbeat, and Draco had no clue about what to do with that. So he had found himself a dark corner, and just quietly sobbed his night away. No one noticed him, probably because everyone hated him. And in that moment, he hated himself. His father would be utterly ashamed of him if he had seen his son in such a state.

Draco let out a deep sigh, and then he blasted off towards the Manor. The cool wind felt amazing as it hit his warm face, and as it weaved its way through his hair. Flying always calmed him down, and he was rather amazing at it. Draco landed near the entrance of the Manor, and he quickly made his way inside for a cold drink. The Manor felt utterly devoid of life, and Draco knew why. His father was still in a mood, and that meant that every House-Elf would be in hiding. Draco didn't really mind his father giving the Elves a slap every now and then, but he hated it when his father hurt them in cruel ways. More than once Draco had found himself disgusted as his father made the Elves iron their own hands, or when his father had broken Dobby's fingers with his steel-heeled boot. Where is Dobby? I haven't seen him for a long time.

Draco shuddered as he wondered whether his father had finally killed the poor Elf in a fit of rage. No, father only hurts them for their disobedience. He'd never kill them outright… Would he? Draco shook the thought out of his head, he didn't want to think about something so macabre. After getting his cold drink of apple juice from a happy Elf, Draco traveled up to his room. As far as rooms went, it was decent enough. I bet Weasley sleeps in a ditch behind his family's wood shack. Draco dropped onto his bed that was covered with Egyptian cotton, and he let out a tired moan.

He was not looking forward to going back to school. Recently, not only did Draco feel worthless, but he also felt lonely. Lonely… The Malfoy Heir feels lonely… Crabbe and Goyle would be there of course, but they were terrible company. They didn't get most of his witty jokes, and they only laughed because it was expected of them. They barely spoke, spent most of their time eating, burdened Draco with their homework, and they both snored so loudly that Draco sometimes feared that the Giant Squid would wake up and kill them all. I bet Weasley doesn't feel lonely, considering that he's always surrounded by my friends. He doesn't even deserve them… A small voice in the back of his head told him that neither did he, and so he dug his face into his soft pillow. When am I going to stop feeling so… miserable?

---

Ronald Weasley's POV

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (Greengrass Manor – Late Afternoon)

Today had been a pretty good day so far. Ron had traveled to Diagon Alley with Lord Greengrass, and they had finished up some important errands. Firstly, Ron had finally paid Lord Greengrass back for his shopping spree. Secondly, Ron had found his vault filled with so many Galleons that he had nearly fainted. Ron was now officially the wealthiest Weasley in living memory, courtesy of the French Minister. Thirdly, Ron had signed the contract that made Marty his official House-Elf. The moment he had paid and signed the dotted line, he had felt an odd surge of power. And then, he could sense Marty out in the World. Not precisely where, just that he was alive somewhere. It was a really odd feeling, but it also made Ron feel like he would never be alone again.

And now lastly, Ron was preparing to go back to The Burrow and tell his parents about his brain damage. He was most certainly not looking forward to that conversation, and it didn't help that Ron would be giving them all gifts beforehand. First they'd feel really happy and excited, and then he'd rip that away by telling them that he was suffering from Chronic Stress and brain damage. Maybe I should give them gifts after telling them the truth. But Merlin, that's even worse… 'Hi, I have brain damage. Here's a nice necklace for you mother." What the fuck?

"Ready to go?" Mary asked with an encouraging smile, and Ron tried his best to return it. He was currently burdened with his shopping bags, and the girls' sad looks at seeing him leave.

"Stop giving me those looks, I'll be coming back with Lord and Lady Greengrass" Ron assured them. At least I hope so, I really don't want to stay at home after I tell them everything. Merlin, it'll be too awkward.

"Do you have a vial with you?" Daphne asked, and Ron nodded as he rolled his eyes. "If you decide to stay with your family, I'll bring your trunk with me to Platform 93/4 tomorrow."

"Thanks, Daph" Ron smiled, and then he heard the fireplace roar to life.

"Let's go" Lord Greengrass said, and then he walked through the green flames. He was followed closely by his wife, and after one last look at the girls, Ron too walked through the green flames. The moment he stepped through the fireplace of The Burrow, he was hit with the familiar scent of his home. He could already hear his siblings upstairs, his mother cooking in the kitchen, and he figured that his father was in his shed with his Muggle things. "Come" Lord Greengrass said he walked towards the kitchen, and Ron followed him after taking in one last deep breath.

"You!" was the first thing that Ron heard his mother screech, and it was aimed right at Lord Greengrass. "Where is my…" his mother started, but she stopped when she saw Ron step into the kitchen with his arms covered with shopping bags. "Ron!"

"Um… hi" Ron managed with a weak smile, but his eyes suddenly widened as his mother charged him. And before he knew it, he was in a crushing hug that cracked his back loudly.

"You're alright!" Molly Weasley laughed with relief as she crushed her son to death. Ron couldn't return the hug even if he wanted to, his hands were currently full of gifts. Most of the bags containing clothes for Luna and Ginny.

"I'm fine…" Ron wheezed, and his mother slowly eased her hug.

"I've been dying from worry ever since I read that Daily Prophet story about your win" his mother told him, her voice slightly cracked.

"I'm fine, I promise" Ron reassured her. Molly let go of her son in order to look at his eyes, but she gasped in horror and stepped back when she saw his damaged eyes. "I'm fine, I swear it. It's just taking some time to heal, that's all." This hardly did anything to help her horrified expression, and so Ron looked to Lord Greengrass for help.

"There is blood pooled in his eyes, but it will eventually be cleaned out" Lord Greengrass assured Molly, but his words made her gasp again. Wow…

"What my husband means is that Ron will not suffer any lasting damage" Mary frowned at her husband.

"This is all your fault!" Molly suddenly bellowed at Lord Greengrass, and Ron fought the urge to roll his eyes. I fucking knew that this is how she was going to react. She'll just blame Lord Greengrass, and overlook the fact that it was my choice to compete. "Look at what you did to my boy!"

"I chose to compete, it's not his fault" Ron quickly jumped to Lord Greengrass defense, but he was shushed by Mary.

"Take your wife, and leave my home!" Molly yelled as she stuck her finger in Lord Greengrass' face.

"I will, but first we need to talk" Lord Greengrass responded in a calm manner. "In my letter, I asked you to bring together…"

"I know what you asked me to do" Molly hissed. "They'll be here by five, until then… Leave!" Lord Greengrass stared at Molly, and she glared at him in return. Her reaction angered Ron greatly, Lord Greengrass had been nothing but good to him. He didn't deserve to be treated like this, especially after everything that they just went through. Especially after everything that I put them through for my own reasons, reasons that they can't even understand.

"My wife and I will return at five then" Lord Greengrass said in an apologetic tone.

"Mummy! I heard shouting" came Ginny's voice, followed by quick footsteps. Ron immediately forgot his anger, and his eyes went straight for the stairs. Ginny hopped into view, and she froze at the sight of everyone in the kitchen. Ron just stared at her as she stood there, her eyes widened in a cute sort of way. He dropped his bags as his heart skipped a beat, and then he ran up and embraced her tightly.

"Finally!" Ron laughed as he lifted her up off her feet, and he squeezed her to himself as closely as he could. She was a bit shocked at the sudden body contact, which was something that she was still trying to get used to again. But as this was Ronnie, she quickly moved past it and hugged him back as hard as she could.

"You're back" she laughed, her voice strained from him crushing her.

"I missed you so much, Gin" Ron chuckled as he felt his mind relax completely. The adults watched quietly, none of them particularly keen on ruining the moment.

"Ron, your hug is starting to hurt" Ginny whispered from over his right shoulder, and Ron eased his hold on her considerably.

"I'm sorry, I've just missed you so much" Ron said gently, and he felt her relax in his arms. Ron closed his eyes and smiled in content, this horror-show of a year was finally behind him. At that, he heard a loud hoot and felt something heavy land on his left shoulder. "Hello, Helios" Ron chuckled, and his faithful Eagle-Owl head-butted the left side of his jaw lovingly. Ginny finally pulled away from him, only to gasp in horror at the sight of his eyes.

"Merlin…" Ginny muttered, her fear apparent as she recoiled away from him.

"Ginny, it's just temporary" Ron quickly assured her with a smile, and he ignored the hurt he felt at seeing her recoil from him. "It's because of the Veelas, but I'm healing slowly. My eyes will be fixed by the end of the first week back at Hogwarts." Ginny's eyes shot towards their mother, and then back to Ron.

"Did it hurt?" Ginny asked timidly.

"Yes" Ron replied slowly. "But I overcame the pain and won, that's what matters." Ginny's face twisted slightly at that, and he knew that she was about to start arguing with him about something. But before she could, Ron heard his brothers come down the stairs.

"Ron" Percy smiled widely, the twins coming down behind him. All three boys stopped dead in their tracks, and their eyes widened when they saw his.

"Relax, I'm fine" Ron assured everyone, his voice laced with a slightly annoyed undertone. "The blood vessels in my eyes exploded, or something… I don't really understand that medical jargon." His brothers blinked at him, while Ginny's face paled. I just made this worse, didn't I? "I'm going to be fine, so please stop giving me those looks."

"Oh, we're just in awe of you little brother" Fred suddenly smirked, though his smirk faltered a bit.

"Our little famous Weasley" George quickly joined in, his smile barely visible.

"Can we be the first ones to get your autograph?" Fred joked.

"Or have you already started handing some out?" George added. Their attempt to lighten the mood didn't really work, but Ron appreciated it quite a lot.

"I suppose that I can spare a few seconds to sign my name on your foreheads" Ron shrugged, a soft smile coming onto his face. The twins smiled properly at that, and then they moved past Percy and hugged Ron from both sides. Helios hooted angrily as he flew over to Ginny, clearly annoyed at being separated from Ron.

"You scared the piss out of us" Fred whispered.

"It's all we've been able to think about over the last few days" George whispered as well.

"Sorry" Ron whispered as he did his best to relax. It dawned on him that he used to love getting these rare hugs from the twins, but now… Now he had to force himself to relax. "But I'm fine, I promise." The twins let him go at that, both of them giving him sad smiles.

"We're sorry" the both said together. "For everything that's happened…"

"Me too" Ron responded.

"Forgive and forget?" they asked.

"Forgive and forget" Ron agreed, and the twins smiled widely. Ron then looked over to Percy, and they both smiled at each other. Percy walked over and hugged Ron tightly as the twins moved out of the way, and Ron had an easier time hugging Percy back.

"Welcome home, Ron" Percy hummed, and Ron buried his face into Percy's chest.

"Thanks" Ron smiled widely.

"I'll get dad" Fred said, and then he rushed out of the house. Ron let go of Percy, and he turned to smile at Ginny again. She looks healthy, and Helios seems right at home with her. I need to keep a closer eye on her from now on.

"What's with all the bags?" Ginny asked him, her eyes shooting towards them. Ron grinned at the greedy glint in her eyes, Ginny always loved getting presents.

"I bought gifts for everyone" Ron told her, and he could see her trying to physically stop her excitement. Her face however gave her away as she grinned with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Ron, you didn't have to do that" Percy put his hand Ron right shoulder.

"But it's good that you did" George added quickly. "Think of it as repayment for worrying us so much." I suppose they can work as a bribe of sorts, didn't really think of it like that.

"George" came their mother's scolding voice, and George smiled sheepishly.

"We'll be on our way then" Lord Greengrass interjected, he already felt like he was intruding enough.

"No, don't go" Ron said before he could think it through. "You can just wait for thirty minutes, can't you?" Ron saw his mother tense at his request, and he felt irritated by her desire to throw the Greengrasses out of her home. I can understand that she's upset, but they aren't the ones at fault. It was my choice to compete.

"Ron, we will come back shortly" Mary told him, a certain kind of finality to her voice. "Spend some time with your family." Ron opened his mouth to argue, but the intense look from Lord Greengrass halted his tongue.

"We will come back at five" Lord Greengrass told Molly Weasley, but she kept her eyes fixed on Ron. Lord and Lady Greengrass both made their way out of the room, and Ron followed after them.

"At least wait to hear what father has to say" Ron urged.

"Ron, don't overstep your bounds" Lord Greengrass sighed. "This is your parents' home, their word here is final. Just… Just be patient, and give your family their gifts. We'll be back before you know it." Ron frowned at that, and he looked to Mary for help, but she just gave him a soft smile.

"Behave, please" Mary instructed. And just like that, both Greengrasses flooed back home. Ron ground his teeth at the fireplace as he turned and cracked his neck, and then he marched back into the kitchen.

"Why did you do that?" Ron demanded, and his mother looked at him with a guilty look.

"Ron, don't talk to her like that" Percy sighed, he didn't want another fight breaking out.

"You're blaming them for something that I did" Ron told his mother as he ignored his siblings shuffling in their spots. "They wanted me to pull out, they even begged me to do it. I'm the one who refused to stop competing, blame me."

"Ron?" came his father's voice as the front door swung open, and Ron turned to look at his father. Arthur Weasley came to a halt when he saw Ron's terrifying eyes, and that's when he remembered what he had read in the Daily Prophet.

"Your eyes…" his father muttered as the blood drained from his face.

"They'll heal in time, father" Ron quickly assured him, he wasn't done questioning his mother's rude behavior towards his mentor. "The Potion they used to heal my eyes is working slowly, I'm going to be fine." His father nodded at that, and a small smile graced his face. But then he noticed the tension in the room, and so he looked to his guilty looking wife.

"Molly?" Arthur asked as he stepped into the kitchen, Fred following him inside slowly.

"Mother kicked Lord and Lady Greengrass out of the house" Ron frowned deeply. "She's blaming them for something that I did." Arthur exhaled a long, tired breath as he looked at his wife.

"Molly, why did you do that?" Arthur asked tiredly. "Greengrass mentioned that he had important news for us, and I've been waiting to hear it…"

"He'll be back at five" Molly replied, a tinge of defiance showing through. "I couldn't look at him, Arthur… Not after what we read in the Daily Prophet…"

"Again, my fault" Ron reiterated. "Not his… He did his best to pull me out, but I refused to listen."

"Children, go up to your rooms" Arthur ordered, and Ron's siblings just looked around the room with gloomy looks. But one by one, they all made their way up the stairs. Ron felt a pang of guilt for starting a fight, but then again, it was his mother who started it. Ginny was the last one up the stairs, and just as she was about to disappear from sight, Helios flew off of her shoulder and perched himself on Ron's.

"Helios, keep Ginny company" Ron ordered, but his Eagle-Owl hooted defiantly and head-butted his left jaw again. "Do as I say, now" Ron ordered with a firmer voice, and Helios hooted and flew off. The room was heavy with tension, and Ron decided that he wasn't going to break it. After a few long seconds, it was his father who finally broke the silence.

"Son, tell me what happened at the Junior League Tournament" his father requested, an almost sad expression on his face. "I've read the Prophet, and I read Greengrass' letter… But I want to hear it from you." Ron nodded, and then he took a seat. Arthur took a seat in front of his son, while his wife just watched Ron from where she was standing.

"Most of what you've read is true" Ron started, and Arthur leaned forward. "I resisted them, the Veelas that is, but it wasn't easy… It took a lot out of me, and it hurt. It hurt so much that I could barely think, or do much else."

"Why didn't you just stop?" Arthur asked with a concerned look. "Ron, you could've done some serious harm to yourself… Can't you understand why we're so worried?"

"I can, but it was my choice" Ron replied. "And so being rude to Lord and Lady Greengrass is not fair, nor honorable. They did nothing but support me, and watch over me."

"They should've pulled you out if they really cared" Molly implored suddenly. "You were in pain, and if they were even a little responsible, they'd have pulled you out immediately. You are just a boy, Ron! And if you were in half as much pain as I think you were, any responsible adult would've put an end to it!" Ron was struck silent by her words, until a raging inferno was lit in his stomach. She's learnt nothing! She'd pull the same shite as the Slytherin eviction, wouldn't she?

"So you'd just pull me out if you were there?" Ron asked in a terribly calm voice, and his father sighed as he realized where Ron was going with this. "You'd rip the choice from my hands if you didn't agree with what I was doing?"

"Yes, I would" Molly replied firmly. "You're my son, and if you were hurting yourself for some silly trophy, then I'd pull you out in a heartbeat. That man should've…"

"Done what?" Ron snapped. "Yanked me away from my seat? Because that was the only way that I was going to quit. All he did was respect my decision and stand by me, regardless of how worried or scared he was. That's what an adult who cares about your opinion does!"

"How dare you insinuate that I don't care about you, Ronald Bilius Weasley?!" his mother yelled, her face contorting because of the legendary Prewett anger. Ron shot out of his seat, and it went barreling behind him. Arthur put his hands on his face, he couldn't take this any longer.

"How can I not insinuate it when it's true most of the time?!" Ron yelled back. "All you've ever done is ignore me, or berate me! When have you ever done anything but treat me like some second hand possession?!" He could see the tears welling up in her eyes, but right now he just didn't care. All he could think about was the hundreds of times he had felt rejected, or just plain ignored in this house. "All you've ever done is make me feel seventh best… Everyone gets new clothes, new beds, new toys, new wands… While I get the hand-me-downs… Tell me, when did you ever spare that a thought? When have you ever put me first?!"

"Ron, please…" his father started, but Ron turned his wrath towards him. And then there's him!

"And you!" Ron yelled, effectively silencing his father. "You've caused me more headaches than anyone in my entire life! What gives you the right to rip me away from my friends, from the people that I love?! Who gave you that right?!"

"I was doing what I thought was best for you…" his father replied as he averted his gaze. "I know that it was wrong, but you're my son… I couldn't look past…" he trailed off.

"Look past what?" Ron seethed. "Your own prejudices? How are you any different from the people you supposedly call bigots if you blame my friends for the actions of their parents? Tell me that! Tell me how it's their fault for being born into a Family that has different views than our own?!" Arthur looked down at his shaking hands, he had no answer to that. "While you schemed behind my back, my friends did their best to pull me out of my anger and hurt! While you plotted to ruin everything that I've worked so hard for, every single other adult in my life did their best to help me! EVEN SEVERUS SNAPE SHOWED ME MORE COMPASSION AND UNDERSTANDING THAN YOU DID!"

"Please, son…" Arthur begged. "Please stop…" Molly quickly moved to her husband's side and held him comfortingly, and when his father released a meek sob, Ron felt the full weight of what he had just done to them. It caught him off guard, his own bitterness towards everyone around him. So he just stared at them, his own parents, trying to hold back their tears. And in that moment, Ron realized that he was probably the worst human being to ever walk the earth. He could feel his heart throbbing in his throat, his hands started trembling, his knees began to buckle, and his vision began to blur from tears of shame.

"You are an ill-made, spiteful little creature! Full of rage, greed, and low cunning" the Entity's words echoed through Ron's mind. It was right… I'm a piece of shite… Before he could fall over, Ron took a shaky step back towards the wall and slid down onto the ground. I'm supposed to protect them, not break their hearts… Not cut them down with cruel words… What am I doing? Ron's heart clenched painfully, and a sense of hopelessness began to engulf him. He knew what was coming, another panic attack… But he didn't even bother trying to grab his vial of Calming Draught, he deserved to suffer. The Entity was right about me, it was right about everything… The Cycles keep failing because I'm the one they depend on…

"Ronnie" came his mother's worried voice, but it was distorted and distant. Ron's gasped for air, but his tightening throat wouldn't let any oxygen in.

"Son? Son?!" came his father's voice, and Ron felt himself being shaken lightly.

"I can't breathe…" Ron gasped, and then he heaved. I'm going to throw up. Ron heaved again, and he felt tears run down his face. I'm going to fail again, aren't I? They're going to die because of me, aren't they? Fuck… FUCK!

"What's wrong with him?!" his mother shrieked, making Ron's ears ring. "Arthur, there's blood coming out of his eyes!"

"The Potion… for my e… eyes…" Ron wheezed out an explanation, his heart clenching painfully with each beat. I can't take this… I need my potion!

"Molly, get a healer!" his father yelled, and Ron heard loud footsteps coming from the stairs. Bloody fuck!

"Don't…" Ron heaved again. "It's a… I'm having… a panic attack… I need my Po… Potion…" Ron shoved his trembling hand into his robe pocket, and he pulled out the small vial of Calming Draught. But it slipped out of his hands and fell to the ground, though fortunately it didn't shatter. "Potion…" Ron rasped as his head throbbed painfully from the lack of oxygen.

"What's wrong with him? Why is he having a panic attack?" came Percy's terrified voice, and Ron managed to make out that he was the only sibling in the kitchen.

"Son, here" came his father's voice, and Ron felt a vial being put against his lips. Ron drank the Potion down as if his life depended on it, which it currently felt like it did.

"Percy, don't let anyone else come down" his mother ordered, and Ron heard Percy run back upstairs.

"Just breathe, son" his father said as he rubbed Ron's back, and Ron slowly began feeling dull. The Potion is working, thank Merlin. Ron took in deep breaths as his airways began to loosen, and he realized that his father was holding him in a protective hug. Silence hung in the air for almost a minute as Ron regained his composure, while both of his parents struggled against their shock.

"Ronnie…" his mother whimpered, and he looked to see her holding his hands. She was crying, and although it hurt Ron to see her like this, he was slowly losing his interest in everything around him.

"I'm okay" Ron assured her, his eyelids feeling heavy. "Just tired now…"

"Ron, how did you know that it was a panic attack?" his father asked softly. "Why did you have that Potion in your pocket?"

"I've had one before" Ron replied, and both his parents went wide-eyed. "I nearly had one in Paris, but I had my Potion to calm myself down in time. I'm sorry… I'm sorry for saying those things, I was being incredibly cruel and unfair…"

"Ronnie, it's okay" his mother squeezed his hands, but the look on her face told a different story. "Let me get something to clean your face with" she said as she got up and ran for her dishtowels.

"Did my eyes bleed again?" Ron asked in a dull tone, and he felt his father hold him more tightly. "It's the Potion they used to heal my eyes, it's cleaning the pooled blood out slowly." Arthur blinked at his son, but he understood that Ron was effectively gone at this point.

"Here" his mother said as she sat down in front of him, and then she started cleaning his face gently.

"Why aren't you just using Magic?" Ron asked. It would certainly save us all time, and save your dishtowels.

"Please just stay still" his mother said, her voice cracking. "Just let me clean you…"

---

Pandora Lovegood's POV

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (The Rookery – Nearly Five 'o'clock)

"Hurry up, Luna" Pandora called out to her daughter, and she heard Luna's little feet pitter-pattering from upstairs.

"I'm coming" Luna called as she ran down the stairs, then she came into Pandora's view. The first thing that Pandora spotted was Luna wearing a wreath made of garlic on her head. Xeno…

"Love, remember what we said about wearing that sort of apparel in public?" Pandora smiled down at her daughter, and Luna smiled widely.

"But what if we see a vampire?" Luna asked innocently, and Pandora couldn't help but release a small chuckle. She's just like her father.

"Love, garlic does nothing to vampires" Pandora hummed as she took the wreath off of Luna's head. "That's all just make believe, and besides, we're going to The Burrow. Mrs. Weasley would never let a vampire into her home, you know that right?"

"Oh, I guess you're right mummy" Luna nodded with a pleasant smile, and Pandora pinched her left cheek softly.

"Good girl, you're so clever" Pandora cooed, and just as predicted, Luna blushed and giggled.

"I'm here, sorry…" came Xeno's ragged breath as he burst through the front door. "I had to get some fresh garlic from the gardens…" Pandora nearly sighed in defeat, but she managed to just hold it back.

"Daddy, we won't run into any vampires" Luna told her father, and the eccentric man blinked at her. "We're going to The Burrow, and Mrs. Weasley wouldn't let vampires into her home now would she?" Xenophilius was about to argue that, but Pandora shot him a warning glare that hitched his voice. You'd better put that Garlic down, or I swear to Merlin… Xeno smiled sheepishly at his wife and daughter, and then he put the garlic on a nearby table.

"You're right Luna, I was just being a little silly" Xeno smiled at Luna, and Luna looked up to Pandora for approval. She missed her father quickly stuff some garlic into his pockets, and Pandora had to bite her tongue in order to not laugh at her husband's antics.

"Come Luna, take my hand" Pandora said as she moved towards the fireplace. "The Burrow" Pandora called as she flicked some Floo-Powder into the fire, and Luna gripped her right hand as the fire blazed green. Pandora then moved through the fire with her daughter in tow, and they both stepped into Weasley Living Room. Luna stumbled a little, but Pandora made sure that her daughter didn't fall over. As they cleared the entryway, Xenophilius stepped through the roaring flames.

"Something's not right in this house" Xenophilius said as he sniffed the air, and Pandora blinked at him. She had learned long ago that her husband had an odd type of instinct when it came to such matters, so she took him quite seriously. "Come" Xeno said firmly as he moved towards the kitchen, and Pandora moved behind her husband with their daughter in tow. She immediately noticed Ron sitting on the table, and her heart leaped into her throat.

"Ron, you're here" Pandora smiled widely, and she felt her daughter let go of her hand in order to race over to him. He's safe, and he's home. Ron stood up and faced them, a cloudy look on his face. Luna hugged him tightly, and he patted her back softly. He's not hugging her back? Something's definitely wrong here.

"Ah, you're here" came Molly's voice, and Pandora finally noticed both Arthur and Molly standing by the sink. They looked… distraught.

"Is everything alright?" Xeno asked slowly, and both Weasley parents nodded with sad smiles. They're horrible liars. Did they have another fight with their son? Ron, what's happening to you?

"Luna, you can let go of me now" Ron told her, and that made Pandora's eyes nearly pop out of her head. Luna let him go slowly, and then she gasped in horror.

"Mummy, Ron's a vampire!" Luna shrieked as she ran over to hide behind her mother, and Pandora analyzed Ron's lack of reaction. His eyes made her breathing become jagged, and she felt Xeno tense considerably. Ron's brilliant blue eyes were surrounded in a sea of crimson, and he seemed to be looking through the Lovegood Family rather than at them.

"He isn't a vampire" Molly quickly assured them as she put her arm around Ron. "His eyes were damaged by the Veelas' assault."

"Damaged?" Pandora asked, and then she suddenly heard the sound of fire blazing to life from the Living Room.

"The pup's here" came Sirius' voice, and then both he and Remus burst into the kitchen. "KID!" Sirius bellowed excitedly as he raced over and hugged Ron tightly. "You're alright, you tough little bastard!"

"SIRIUS!" Molly shrieked at him, while Pandora just stared at Ron's lack of reaction. What's wrong with him? She then felt Remus rush past her, and he hugged Ron as soon as Sirius let him go.

"Hello, Harry" Luna said suddenly, and Pandora looked behind her to see Harry walk into the room with a soft smile. The boy's emerald green eyes were fixed on Ron, Remus, and Sirius being reunited, and Pandora couldn't help but detect a note of dejectedness and relief emanate from Harry at the same time. Children… Was I that insecure at their age?

"Hi, Luna" Harry greeted her back with a wider smile.

"What's wrong with his eyes?" Sirius gasped suddenly, and Pandora looked back to see Remus looking into Ron's eyes with his hands on the boy's cheeks.

"There's blood pooled in them" Ron shrugged casually, and every single person in the room took in a sharp breath. "They gave me a Potion to heal my eyes, but it's working slowly. I won't have any lasting damage, but for the time being, I have to settle with looking like a 'vampire'." Ron then smiled in a way that looked extremely forced, and Pandora couldn't take it anymore. This isn't Ron! There's no life in this boy, he's just… here.

"Ron, you're acting weird" Luna said immediately.

"He's on a…" Arthur started, but he stopped immediately. "Love, please take Luna and Harry upstairs."

"Come along you two, I just dropped a bundle of food upstairs for the others" Molly smiled at them as she moved towards the stairs. "Everyone is in Percy's room, follow me."

"But I want to see Ron" Luna frowned slightly.

"Sweetheart, do as Mrs. Weasley says" Xeno said firmly, and then he gave his daughter a smile. "Please…" Luna nodded, and both she and Harry began following Mrs. Weasley upstairs. Harry shot inquisitive looks at Ron as he made his way up, but Ron just cocked his eyebrow at Harry. Once Molly had disappeared with the children, Arthur broke the silence.

"We can talk now, there's a Silencing Charm on the stairs" Arthur told them.

"I wish you put that there before I had my panic attack" Ron sighed, and then he moved over and sat back down. "They probably heard me going insane…"

"Panic attack?!" Sirius all but yelled, his eyes searching Arthur's for answers. Pandora just stared at Ron, her heart beating as hard as it could. Panic attack… Acute Stress Disorder, isn't that what he was diagnosed with when he was younger? Is he still dealing with that?

"He's on a Calming Draught" Arthur told them, his face contorting a little. "But yes… We got into an argument, and he broke down…"

"I didn't break down" Ron frowned slightly.

"An argument?" Remus asked, and Pandora moved further into the room. They're still fighting about what Arthur tried to do.

"Just some family business" Arthur replied dismissively as he put the kettle on. "Please, take a seat. Greengrass should be here any minute now, and then we can get started." The adults nodded, and they began taking their seats. Pandora moved to sit beside Ron, but Sirius took one of the chairs as he put his arm around Ron.

"Pandora, you can take mine" Remus said understandingly, and Pandora flashed him a grateful smile. As Pandora sat down on Ron's other side, Remus took a seat directly in front of Ron and beside Xeno. Remus let out a grunt as he sat down, and Pandora finally noticed how pale he was. There was a full moon six days ago, and he's still recovering.

"Remus, are you alright?" Ron asked with a dull tone.

"I'm fine cub, don't worry about me" Remus smiled kindly, and Ron cocked an eyebrow.

"Are you recovering from your transformation?" Ron asked, and the whole room died down. Arthur dropped a mug as he turned to face the table, a panicked look on his face. Pandora, Sirius, and Xeno were just wide-eyed and shocked beyond words. And Remus… Remus looked like he had been sentenced to death.

"Wha… what?" Remus stammered.

"Your Werewolf transformation? Are you still recovering?" Ron asked again. How does he know? Who could've told him?! Pandora looked to Remus with slight panic, and the horrorstricken look on his face made Pandora's heart clench. "I read that it takes a heavy toll on your body, and that you should rest for about a week after. You should take better care of yourself."

"Ron, who told you about Remus?" Sirius asked quickly, his panic evident.

"No one told me" Ron shrugged. "I just see things that others don't, and I've known for a while." An odd sort of smile made its way onto Ron's face, a type of smile that hinted that Ron held all the cards. If Pandora wasn't so terrified on Remus' behalf, she'd probably feel a little proud of Ron's keen perception.

"Ron… I'm not like… like the stories you've read… or heard…" Remus struggled, his fear palpable.

"I don't care about those stories" Ron replied with a slightly confused look. "I just want to know if you're alright, Remus." Ron's words silenced the room again, and Pandora could literally hear her own heartbeat.

"You're not… scared?" Pandora asked slowly.

"Why would I be?" Ron asked as he gave her a confused glance. "Remus has been nothing but good to me, and he's a part of my family. I have no reason to fear him." Ron may not have been in the mindset to realize what his words meant, but every other adult was left awestruck. They were all lost for words, especially Remus who was now just staring down at his clenched hands. "Dad, maybe you should pour Remus some tea first. He looks pale, and sickly. Plus my Potion has already eased my nerves, so I doubt that tea is going to do much for me."

"Of… of course…" Arthur replied, his eyes still fixed on Ron. And then, he smiled widely and turned around to pour the tea. Both Pandora and Sirius couldn't hold back anymore, and they hugged Ron tightly as they sandwiched him between each other.

"What are you doing?" Ron asked in a deadpan voice. "Pandora, your hair is going in my mouth…"

"Sorry…" Pandora released a choked up laugh, but she didn't let go. Don't ever change, you're just perfect as you are now.

"Than… Thank you, Ron" Remus choked, and Pandora let go of Ron to look at Remus. Their Cursed friend was still staring down at his hands, but she could see the tears running down his face. The sight made her own eyes water, especially after Xeno put a comforting hand on Remus' shoulder. "Thank you…"

"Um… You're welcome" Ron replied slowly. "Remus, are you sure you're alright?"

"I am…" Remus released a strained laugh.

"Pup, Remus is just… really happy, that's all" Sirius beamed at Ron as he ruffled Ron's well-made hair.

"Sirius, it took me ten minutes to get my hair like this" Ron frowned as he tried to avoid Sirius' hand.

"Sorry, kid" Sirius laughed. "You still look incredibly handsome, doesn't he Pandora?"

"He does" Pandora smiled widely.

"Remus?" came Molly's voice from the stairs. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you after" Pandora smiled at Molly, and Molly nodded slowly. You should be so proud of him, he's one of a kind.

---

Saturday 4th April, 1993 (The Burrow – Past Five 'o'clock)

"Do I really have to be here?" Ron asked. "I'm tired…"

"Ron, this is important" Sebastian Greengrass sighed, the man wasn't happy to learn that Ron had suffered another panic attack. "We talked about this, remember?" Pandora wasn't an impatient person, but she had to admit that she just wanted to get this started already. Ever since Sebastian had sent that letter, every adult in this room had been speculating about its contents. And the fact that every adult in Ron's personal life was here at once only worked to worry Pandora even more, she knew that this couldn't be good news. She had seen too many signs already that pointed to something bad, as had the other adults.

"Can we please just get started, I've been constantly thinking about this ever since you sent that letter" Sirius admitted. Every adult, including Mary Greengrass, was currently sitting on the dining table, and it was a tight fit. Sebastian stood at the head of the table, and the file in his hand was making Pandora sweat from worry.

"There's no easy way to say this, so just bear with me" Sebastian said after he drew in a sharp breath, his eyes fixed on Ron. "After the first day of the Tournament, Ron collapsed… I took him home, and I called in a Healer friend of mine. He used a new type of spell that I'm unfamiliar with, and he produced several images of Ron's brain."

"His brain?" Arthur asked.

"Yes, his brain" Sebastian nodded, and then he took out a photo from the folder and slid it across the table. Every eye was glued to it, but none of them really understood it. "That is a picture of Ron's brain when it's in a stable condition." Pandora eyed the brain, and something inside her twisted. She didn't understand the picture, but the fact that they were having this conversation was scaring her. Her mind was trying to jump to conclusions that made her shudder from fear.

"What do you mean by 'stable condition', Sebastian?" Remus asked.

"This picture shows his brain in an unstable condition" Sebastian said as he produced another picture that none of them understood. This picture was mostly just white and blurred, except for a few black spots that were consistent with the previous picture. "As for your question, the human brain can become inflamed from stress or harsh ordeals. Ron's brain was severely inflamed while he fought to resist the Veelas' allures, and therefore his body collapsed on the first and last day of the Tournament."

"They did this to him?" Xeno asked with an angry frown, something that Pandora barely ever saw.

"Their allures did, yes" Mary Greengrass replied.

"Why did you let him compete, Greengrass?" Sirius snarled.

"I chose to compete, don't put that on him" Ron sighed, and everyone looked to Ron. "Why are you blaming him for my choices? Do you have any idea how worried and scared he was? Or the rest of them? No, you don't. I was selfish, and obsessed with winning. Blame me… Just stop pointing fingers at him." No one replied to that, there was just too much to process right now.

"Why? Why do this to yourself?" Molly begged, her eyes were welling up with tears again.

"Because I can't lose" Ron replied monotonously. "I can't keep coming in second place anymore. Oh, and they did try to pull me out. I ran away from their home in order to compete." Pandora was lost for words again, as were the other adults. Her mind couldn't help but draw parallels from Ron's younger days. He had hurt himself before, and all for the sake of being noticed. This was wildly different, but it was still the same.

"Sebastian, keep going" Mary instructed, and he nodded.

"His brain is in a stable condition now, but there is something that you all need to know" Sebastian said in a foreboding tone. "Do you see those black spots in the pictures, they're consistent in both images. That… That is brain damage…" Everyone reacted differently to that. Some of them drew in shocked breath, Molly released a meek cry, but Pandora… Pandora just sat there, her head swimming from Sebastian's words. Brain damage… Brain damage… It was like her world had just ended, and she had no idea on how to react. And then, her heart tightened almost as if someone had grabbed it. No, no, no, no… NO!

"Brain damage…" Sirius snarled, his fist clenching and slamming into the table. "Tell me you're lying, Greengrass… Tell me you're fucking lying right now!"

"Sirius…" Remus muttered, he had gone even paler than before. His happiness from being accepted by Ron for who he was completely gone at the moment, it was no doubt replaced by the pain that they were all in now. Pain… and denial.

"This isn't happening…" Pandora muttered to herself, her head spinning. Molly's crying wasn't helping her, and she was beginning to feel queasy.

"How do we fix this? How did it happen?" Xeno asked, a dead-serious look on his face. "Is there any treatment for this kind of damage?"

"It's permanent" Sebastian replied, and that was the last straw for Pandora. She broke down crying, but she did her best to hide her face from Ron.

"No…" Pandora repeated to herself. "No please…" She felt a woman touch her shoulder comfortingly, but it did little to stop her pain.

"It isn't terminal, and we can limit this damage" Mary told them all as she hugged Pandora, a complete stranger, comfortingly. "That's what's important right now, stopping this damage from spreading further."

"How did this happen to him?" Arthur demanded, his voice raw. "Did those Veelas do this?!"

"No…" Sebastian took in a deep breath. "This damage was caused by a severely traumatic event in his life. The attack from the Dark Lord." Even Pandora looked up at that, her pain momentarily stopping from her fear of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. "Yes, I know about the attack. I told the Healer Dumbledore's version of events, but the truth is that this was caused by You-Know-Who's assault."

"Merlin…" Arthur muttered, and then he ran towards the sink and threw up. Xeno was up on his feet in a heartbeat, and he was rubbing Arthur's back not a second later. Molly was just hysterical at this point, and Remus was doing his best to comfort her while dealing with his own heartache. Pandora, despite trying to resist, shot a terrified look towards Ron. He was just sitting there, completely uninterested by his surroundings or the fact that Sirius was holding onto him for dear life. His eyes were fixed on the pictures, and he looked to be in deep thought. That's also when Pandora realized that Mary Greengrass was standing beside her, her arm around Pandora's shoulders.

"There's more…" Sebastian said weakly, and Pandora blinked at seeing a man like him having trouble speaking. "Ron was diagnosed to be suffering from Severe Chronic Stress."

"Chronic Stress?" Pandora managed, a fresh batch of tears rolling down her face. "He was diagnosed… diagnosed with an Acute Stress Disorder when he was younger…" Sebastian looked taken aback by that, he clearly had no idea about that. "What's Chronic Stress?"

"Chronic Stress is the response to emotional pressure suffered for a prolonged period of time in which an individual perceives that they have little or no control over their lives" Sebastian read from the file, and no one understood what he meant.

"What does it mean for him?" Sirius grit out, he was failing keep his emotions in check. "What is Chronic Stress doing to him?"

"The Healer told us that it's partly the reason behind his… odd behavior at times" Mary told them, and all eyes focused on her. "The symptoms of Chronic Stress are irrational behavior, mood swings, severe anxiety, general unhappiness, angry outbursts, and a feeling of loneliness and isolation. Our daughter helped confirm most of these, his friends have all noticed similar patterns with him. Daphne told us…"

"There's no point in telling them everything about me" Ron cut her off, his gaze moving from the pictures to Mary.

"Ron, we discussed this" Sebastian implored. "Remember? There is a difference between pity, and caring. You said that you'd tell the full truth." Pity? Pandora just looked at Ron with overwhelming sympathy, he didn't deserve this. Of all the people in the world, he deserves this the least. Ron gave Sebastian a meek nod, and he turned his gaze back to the pictures.

"Daphne told us that Ron is easily angered at school, but he bottles it all up" Mary said slowly, her eyes fixed on Ron and her arm around Pandora. "He disappears into the castle for hours on end, sometimes he doesn't eat for an entire day, becomes upset and saddened without noticeable cause, and that he has trouble expressing himself. His friends do their best to keep their eyes on him, and to keep him happy, but sometimes it's too hard for them. Blaise and Theo even helped him through his first panic attack, but just barely."

"They do that for him?" Molly croaked, her eyes red and puffy. A part of Pandora wanted to find them all, and hug them to death. It eased her heart to know that Ron wasn't completely alone at school.

"They do, but helping him is beyond them" Mary replied. "Ron needs professional help, or his stress will make his brain damage worse."

"Then he gets help" Sirius said firmly as he squeezed Ron against his chest, something that Ron barely even registered. "Where do we start?"

"Dumbledore already took care of that" Sebastian replied, and everyone was stunned by his words. "He saw Ron's behavior, and it made him concerned about his wellbeing. He asked Ron to start seeing Poppy Pomfrey, a qualified Mind-Healer, and Ron has agreed to start seeing her at school. She will help him privately, and she'll teach him how to handle his stress properly."

"What do we do?" Arthur asked, his breathing shallow from vomiting.

"Limit his stress in any way possible" Sebastian told them. "Ron needs to have structure in his life right now, something that he can focus on and accomplish. The things that are happening outside of his control are the things that are causing him to stress so much. And Ron has promised me that he will learn to relax more, my daughter will be sending me regular updates on his school life. Updates that I'll share with all of you."

"What about his studies and work?" Xeno asked. "Are they causing him stress as well?"

"Yes, they are" Sebastian admitted, he knew that he was putting his partnership with Ron on the line now. But getting Ron help was far more important. "His need to be the best is a major contributing factor to his high level of stress, a need which's origins I can't place." I can… He still hasn't changed from his childhood, he still hurts himself just to prove that he's brilliant too. The thought made her sniffle and let out a soft sob, she should've seen this coming. "With the proper help, and from our support, Ron can get through this and live a long and happy life. But from now on, his mental health has to be everyone's priority."

"Agreed" Sirius and Remus said together.

"Agreed" they all managed to repeat. Pandora looked over to see Ron staring at her, and then he gave her an apologetic smile. Pandora moved forward and yanked him into her bosom, and she nearly squeezed the life out of him as she cried into his hair.

---

Ronald Weasley's POV

Sunday 5th April, 1993 (The Burrow – Breakfast)

He had ended up falling asleep last night while the adults were cuddling him and agonizing over his diagnosis, and he had woken up fully dressed on his unconformable bed feeling rather confused. But it was hardly his fault that Pandora's bosom was so comfy. He had spent a few minutes recollecting his thoughts and memories of the previous day, and then he had made his way downstairs. It was around seven in the morning, and all of his family members were already awake. The room had gone dead silent when he entered, but his mother had fixed that by making a fuss about him looking 'gaunt and unfed'.

Harry had left with Sirius and Remus last night, Luna had stayed behind and slept in Ginny's room while her parents went back to the Rookery, and Lord and Lady Greengrass had also returned home. Ron decided to hand out his presents that were still where he had left them, mostly just to ease the tension in the room. His siblings had heard his screaming match with their parents, but instead of being angry, they were mostly just scared for him. They could tell that something bad had happened to him, and they were no doubt irritated about the fact that no one was telling them anything.

Luna and Ginny had accepted their gifts rather happily, Ginny especially. His red-haired little sister had dragged off his blonde little sister upstairs to try on their new clothes immediately after thanking Ron with a kiss on the cheek. Percy had also accepted his new Caran D'ache Luxury Pen with a wide smile and a 'thank you hug'. When he had handed the twins their new Muggle joke items, the twins had grinned widely and run off to tamper with them without even thanking Ron. He didn't really care though, that's just how they were. When something caught their attention, it caught all of it and everything else fell away. His parents however, felt differently as they both grit their teeth at the stairs.

Ron had then handed his father his new Muggle camera, and then spent the next ten minutes explaining how it worked just like the clerk at the shop had told him. His father was more than grateful, and he had hugged Ron harder than ever before. Although that pleased Ron, it also annoyed him because he knew that it was coming from worry rather than a positive feeling. After that, Ron had finally given his mother her new gold ruby necklace. She had, of course, teared up and nearly crushed him to death. But at least she hadn't asked him how much it cost him. She had simply accepted her new gift with a happy, and tearful, expression. Ron had then handed her the gifts for Charlie, Bill, Xeno, and Pandora in the hopes that she would pass them along, which she agreed to do as soon as possible. He had kept Sirius and Remus' gift to himself, he wanted to 'surprise' them at Platform 93/4 today.

---

Sunday 5th April, 1993 (Platform 93/4 – Ten Minutes before Departure)

"Don't I look amazing in this?" Ginny laughed happily as she showed Ron her outfit for the tenth time. She was wearing a white t-shirt, skinny blue jeans, black boots, and a thin black leather jacket. She looked unrecognizable in such Muggle clothes, but they did suit her. I'm just glad that she's coming back to Hogwarts, she needs to get out there and start living again. Plus, I'm going to refer her to Pomfrey.

"Yes, Ginny" Ron smiled as they walked towards Sirius and Remus, who were accompanied by Harry. "You look stunning."

"Thanks" Ginny giggled, her expensive new clothes boosting her confidence. "It's Harry…" Ginny muttered as she saw the Boy-Who-Lived, her cheeks going red. Ron's eyes darting back and forth between the two, and he felt his temper flare. Is she still crushing on him? Why? He's clearly not all that powerful, and those tales about him were just hippogriff shite.

"We should greet him, don't you think?" Luna piped in, she too was unrecognizable in her new Muggle clothes. Unlike Ginny, Luna was wearing a bright yellow sundress with long brown boots and black leggings. And to cover her upper body, she was wearing a big puffy coat. She looked… as odd as ever. "C'mon Ginny, let's go say hi" Luna said as she all but dragged Ginny behind her. What the fuck, Luna? Ron decided to part from his brothers and parents, and he followed after the girls.

"Kid!" Sirius grinned widely at the sight of Ron and his sisters. "Remus and I were looking for you. How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine" Ron shrugged, and he didn't miss Harry and the girls looking at him inquisitively. Please stop, it's none of your concern. It's bad enough that so many people already know, I don't need you lot to start 'caring' for me too.

"Hi, Harry" Ginny suddenly greeted, her cheeks rosy and a soft smile on her face. Wow, really?

"Oh, hello" Harry smiled at her, and then he looked at her clothes and went wide-eyed. "Wow, nice clothes. You look really good in them, Ginny." Ginny went crimson, Sirius grinned proudly, Remus smiled sagely, Luna smiled at Ginny, and Ron nearly attacked Harry. But instead of doing that, he just stared at Harry with his terrifying eyes. Harry noticed him staring immediately, and his discomfort became rather visible. "I'm going to hop onto the train… I'll write to you both." Harry then hugged Remus and Sirius, and he shrank away from Ron's lingering gaze.

"Ron, what are you doing?" Ginny frowned at him, her voice haughty.

"Nothing" Ron replied as he stared at Harry climbing onto the train. Does he want me to break his fucking legs? If so, there are easier ways to convince me to do that than to hit on my sister.

"That was really rude, Harry was just being nice" Ginny bit out, and Ron turned his glare to her.

"Go find mum and dad, and don't leave their sight" Ron ordered, his gaze cutting right through her. She was about to argue, but Luna took her hand and pulled her away.

"Come on Ginny, I want to see my parents too" Luna said as she dragged Ginny away.

"Well… that was awkward" Sirius chuckled, and even Remus let out a soft laugh. "Kid, did you really have to stare down poor Harry like that?"

"Did he really have to hit on my sister like that?" Ron shot back, a slight frown on his face.

"It was just a compliment, cub" Remus smiled at Ron.

"And let my Godson spread his wings a little" Sirius laughed. "Not everyone can be a lady-killer like us, pup."

"Us? I'm no lady-killer…" Ron admitted. And if I was, a certain Lady would kill me.

"Really?" Sirius hummed, and Remus shot him a warning look. Here we go… Banter-time.

"Sirius, get your mind out of the gutter" Remus frowned slightly. "Ron, please ignore this idiot."

"Remember that letter you sent us back during Christmas?" Sirius asked as he wiggled his eyebrows at Ron, something that made Ron blush. Damnit! "You little hound-dog you…"

"Where is your trunk, Ron?" Remus asked with a tired sigh, when would Sirius grow up?

"Daphne is bringing it, I left it back at Greengrass Manor" Ron replied.

"When do I get to meet the young Lady Greengrass?" Sirius asked, his grin showing all of his pearly whites.

"Don't grin so widely, you look like you have eighty teeth" Ron frowned, and Sirius guffawed at Ron's blush.

"And not two brain cells to rub together" Remus added.

"Oi, what the fuck?" Sirius looked to Remus with a betrayed look. Ron shook his head, and he noticed that people were boarding the train.

"Here" Ron said as he handed them their 'gift'. "I got this for you two when I was in Paris."

"Ron, you didn't have to get us a gift" Remus smiled kindly at Ron while Sirius took the book and read the cover.

"He didn't" Sirius laughed, and then he handed Remus the book. "You little shite!" Ron let out a laugh at Sirius' reaction.

"You little shite, indeed" Remus chuckled. "I think I'll start reading this as soon as possible. I do have a man-child to take care of while Harry is away."

"What the fuck, Remus?" Sirius glared at Remus, while Remus and Ron both laughed at 'Lord' Black. "You just turn on me when the kid is around, is that it?"

"I do like him more" Remus shrugged.

"Well, fuck the both of you then" Sirius gave them both the bird.

"Oh no… We hurt his feelings" Ron pouted, and Remus sniggered. The train honked loudly, and Ron turned to look at everyone saying their goodbyes and boarding the train. "Well, gents… I must say my goodbyes" Ron smiled at them.

"Take care, kid" Sirius stepped forward and hugged him tightly. "Just please take care of yourself, that's all I'll ask." Ron hugged him back just as tightly.

"I will do my best" Ron responded. They broke their hug, and then Ron hugged Remus.

"Take care, Ron" Remus squeezed him tightly. I should address what I said to him yesterday, just so he knows that it wasn't the Potion talking.

"I meant what I said yesterday, Remus" Ron told him. "You're family, and your Curse will never change that." Remus squeezed him more tightly at that, and Ron smiled to himself. They broke their hugs, and Ron shot them both a smile. "I'm going to go quickly find mum and dad, and hopefully Pandora and Xeno. Don't kill each other while I'm at Hogwarts."

"No promises" they both smiled, and Ron jogged over to where he thought he saw his parents. He missed the sad looks both men were giving him, but perhaps that was for the best.

"There you are" his mother fussed when she saw him. "Where did you run off to, Ron?"

"Sirius and Remus" Ron told her, and then he looked around. His father, Xeno, and Pandora were smiling at him, and he could feel their worry emanating from them. My siblings have already boarded the train. "Well, I'd better go" Ron told them, and his mother nodded. Should I hug her? I'm still… No, just do it. Have to move past this for the future, my job is to protect them. Ron stepped forward and gave his mother a hug, something that surprised her momentarily before she nearly crushed his rib-cage. Mistakes were made, Entity… Mistakes were made.

"Please be safe, and don't stress too much" his mother choked, she was tearing up again.

"I'll be fine, I promise" Ron said as he broke the hug. "Quick hugs, people. I don't plan to get left behind." They all chuckled softly at that, it was good to see that he still had his sense of humor. One by one they each hugged him, and they all told him to write to them.

"Don't forget that we love you" Pandora smiled sadly. "And please see Pomfrey as much as you can."

"I will" Ron chuckled as he hopped onto the closest train entrance.

"Make sure that you eat properly, son!" his father waved. "And don't forget to enjoy yourself!" Ron waved back at them, and he could see their concern as they waved back frantically. Ron kept waving until the Hogwarts Express turned the corner, and he lost sight of them. Ron entered the carriage properly, and he noticed that he was in the Hufflepuff carriage. Damn, I need to go through the Gryffindor carriage to get to my friends. I just hope Daphne brought my trunk onto the train for me, and I should thank her for that. Helios will probably make it to Hogwarts by tonight or tomorrow morning.

Ron began making his way through the Hufflepuff carriage, and he immediately felt their eyes linger on him. Their looks were followed by hushed whispers and comments of awe, and Ron did his best to ignore them. But there was no denying that he liked this feeling, like he was someone extremely important. Is this how Harry feels all the time? Then why does he not embrace it?

"Hi, Ron" came a familiar voice as Ron was passing a compartment, and he turned around to see Justin Finch-Fletchley stick his head out of the compartment. The boy was instantly alarmed by Ron's eyes, something that made Ron smile mischievously.

"Hello, Justin" Ron greeted back in a polite manner. "And relax, my eyes…"

"They bled, didn't they?" Justin asked quickly, and Ron blinked. "It's been all over the news. They said that you did the impossible, but it hurt you a lot!" Why the fuck does he sound so pleased about it?

"They did indeed bleed, and it did hurt a lot" Ron admitted, and Justin mouthed the word 'Wow'.

"Susan's been talking about you non-stop" Justin told him, and Ron narrowed his eyes as he remembered his year-mates from Hufflepuff.

"Susan Bones?" Ron asked, and Justin nodded.

"Susan, come say hello" Justin said to someone inside his compartment, and Ron heard muffled talking. "What? He's actually a great guy, despite being in Slytherin." What the fuck? Ron then heard some movement, and Susan Bones stepped out of the compartment as she shot Justin a glare.

"Hi" she smiled weakly, her eyes fixed on his. Ron noted that she wore her hair in a long plait down her back, and that she was rather pretty. Not nearly half as pretty as Daphne, but still really pretty. But then again, Daphne is the prettiest girl in the class not counting the Patil twins. Or maybe Lavender on a really good day.

"Hello" Ron greeted back as he held his gloved hand out for a Pure-Blood greeting. She looked at his hand, and then she slowly put her left one in his gloved one. "Weasley, Ronald Weasley" Ron introduced himself politely as he kissed her knuckles and gave her a short bow.

"Sus… Susan Bones…" she blushed, and Ron grinned inwardly. Sirius was right, I'm a lady-killer! No! Stop it… Daphne would be hurt if you start acting like that.

"See, he's really polite and nothing like Malfoy" Justin grinned.

"Thank Merlin for that" Ron joked, earning a chuckle from both Hufflepuffs. "Justin, are you still interested in keeping our study group together?"

"I don't see why not" Justin replied with a smile, and Ron turned his smile to Susan Bones.

"It's an open invitation, please feel free to join us" Ron told her, and she nodded fervently. Ron let go of her hand at that, and she fiddled with it with her other hand. "Now please excuse me, but I really ought to find my friends. It was nice to properly meet you, Susan."

"You too… Ron" Susan smiled a little more widely.

"Take care, mate" Justin beamed as Susan re-entered the compartment, and Ron gave him a parting nod. Ron then turned around and started making his way towards the Slytherin carriage. The whispers followed him, and he fought the urge to smile. Sure, people already knew his name and achievements, but now he was almost as famous as Harry. Okay, probably not… But still, it feels nice to know that my hard-work paid off. Ron made his way into the Gryffindor carriage, and he immediately spotted the Golden Trio walking back to their carriage from the Slytherin carriage. What the…? Oh, they were probably looking for me. Ron made his way towards them, and they spotted him rather quickly.

"Ron!" Hermione beamed, and he smiled back at her. "You're alright!" she exclaimed as she ran up and hugged him. Um… Alright then.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Ron asked, and she pulled back with a frown.

"Because you bled from every orifice, genius" she stated haughtily.

"Hold on a second" Ron said quickly. "It was just my nose, eyes, and mouth…"

"That's what I just said" Hermione put her hands on her hips.

"No, you said every orifice" Ron stated slowly, and she blinked at him.

"He means that you implied that he bled from his… other openings" Neville jumped in, and then he smiled at Ron. "You alright, mate?" Neville asked as Hermione went wide-eyed from figuring out what Ron had meant.

"Getting better" Ron shrugged. "Wait, you're not scared of my eyes?"

"I warned them beforehand" Harry replied. "I didn't want them to be caught off-guard."

"You just ruined a great prank, you know that right?" Ron rolled his eyes and grinned.

"This isn't funny, you could've died Ron" Hermione scolded in her haughty tone, and both Gryffindor boys rolled their eyes as well. "You were careless, and incredibly foolish."

"But I won" Ron smirked, and Hermione frowned deeply.

"Winning isn't as important as your life" Hermione retorted. It is for me.

"Hermione, give him a break" Harry sighed. "He pulled off something amazing, let him have that."

"Thank you, Harry" Ron smiled at him. But if you hit on my sister again, I'll pull your arms off.

"Did you get my letter?" Neville asked nervously, and Ron nodded.

"Yeah, I got it in Paris" Ron replied. "Sorry for not replying, but I was barely holding it all together. And yes, I'd love to join Lady Longbottom and you for dinner in the Holidays." Neville smiled extra widely when Ron said 'Lady Longbottom', and Ron figured that he was imagining things.

"Excellent, Gran will be so pleased to hear that" Neville beamed. "I'll let her know as soon as possible. By the way, Greengrass was looking for you. She was… mildly annoyed." Oh shite, what did I do this time?

"Mildly?" Hermione scoffed. "She was incredibly rude, as was Davis."

"What did they say?" Ron sighed.

"Davis told us to sod off" Harry shrugged. "While Greengrass just told us that even if she knew where you were, she wouldn't tell us. I thought that we'd at least get along a little better after the whole… Salazar business." Why would you? We had a common goal, and now we don't. Oh, and you stole all the credit for our hard-work.

"They're just looking out for me, that's all" Ron smiled. "Don't let it bother you."

"So, Greengrass' father is your mentor? Right?" Hermione asked, her tone coming out as rather deliberate. Ron looked over to the Gryffindor boys, and they were looking at him with some sort of expectation. What the hell is this?

"Yes, he is" Ron replied slowly.

"You spent the Break with her and Mr. Greengrass…" Hermione started, but Ron cut her off.

"Lord" Ron corrected immediately, and Hermione blinked in surprise. "It's Lord Greengrass."

"Oh…" Hermione muttered, a dejected look marring her features. Even Harry seemed to dislike what Ron had just said, but it was Neville's reaction that confused Ron the most. Neville looked almost… smug.

"Lord Greengrass, Head of the Ancient and Noble house of Greengrass" Neville stated. "Right?"

"Yeah…" Ron nodded slowly. "You're all being weird…"

"What's weird is that you call someone 'my Lord'…" Hermione muttered under her breath, but unfortunately for her, Ron caught that.

"It's out of respect" Ron told her in a blunt tone. They were friends, but he refused to let her insult his mentor in any way. "And believe me, he's earned my respect a thousand times over."

"We'll let you meet up with your friends" Harry said suddenly as he managed a weak smile. Hermione moved past Ron, she was clearly irritated by something.

"What? What did I say?" Ron asked, and Neville put a firm hand on his right shoulder.

"Nothing mate, you stuck by your way of thinking" Neville smiled. "It's important to respect our customs, no matter how old they are." What the fuck? Neville then followed after Harry and Hermione, and he shot Ron another smile as he entered their compartment. What a bunch of weirdos… What in the actual fuck was that about? Ron shook his head clear, and then he made his way towards the Slytherin carriage. Once he was inside, he peaked through all the windows in an attempt to find his friends. He got wide-eyed looks, smiles, hushed whispers, and even a few waves. He returned them out of politeness, but he knew that his house-mates were probably planning to use him in some way.

"Finally!" Ron exclaimed as he entered the right compartment, and his friends immediately looked to him.

"Where were you?" Daphne asked immediately, and Ron grinned sheepishly.

"I jumped onto the Hufflepuff carriage, and made my way from there" Ron shrugged, and then he looked for an open spot. There was only one, and it was in between Daphne and the window. I won't even pretend that that's a coincident. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Ron walked over and sat down in 'his' spot. "How was everyone's Break?"

"Really?" Theo chuckled. "Fuck our Break, tell us how you did it!"

"Did what?" Ron smirked.

"How did you become such a massive twat?" Theo asked, and Ron frowned as his friends laughed at his expense.

"I'm going to take up Harry on his open offer to join their compartment" Ron started to stand, but Daphne quickly pulled him back down.

"C'mon Ron, we're dying to hear how you did it" Pansy pleaded, a massive smile on her face. "Daphne won't tell us, so you have to. Also, your eyes are really frightening…"

"Yeah, sorry about that" Ron chuckled.

"Did the Veelas do that to you?" Blaise asked.

"Sort of, but I sort of did it to myself" Ron admitted, and that earned him confused looks.

"Um… Is that a riddle?" Millie asked.

"Resisting them took a great deal of effort, and concentration" Ron replied, and he shuddered as he remembered the pain that he was in.

"Did it hurt?" Tracey asked quickly. "I read that it hurt you a lot, and that you were all but passed out by the end of each day."

"It did hurt…" Ron nodded.

"It was horrible" Daphne sighed. "I've never seen something so… so cruel. He was barely able to see, and he couldn't even stand by the end of each day."

"Merlin…" Theo muttered as he gazed at Ron with awe. "You're a bloody mad-man, you know that right?"

"Ron, you could've died" Millie frowned, her voice laced with worry. "Please don't do that again… Even my parents were shocked to read about what happened to you during the finals, and Pansy and I…" she trailed off. Great, now I feel like a bastard.

"Why did you bleed like that?" Blaise asked, his voice was more curious than concerned.

"I suffered from a… um…" Ron tried to remember the word.

"He suffered from a Subconjunctival hemorrhage" Daphne told them, and Ron nodded.

"That sounds bad" Tracey went pale. "That sounds really bad…"

"It means that the blood vessels in my eyes burst, and the blood pooled in my eyes" Ron told them, and he saw them all go pale. Pansy in particular. "That's why my eyes are like this, and no, it's not permanent. They gave me a Potion that's healing me slowly."

"How? How did you resist so much?" Mille asked. "Ron, that's not even… human." You have no clue how right you are, Millie.

"You are human, right?" Theo asked quickly.

"Yes, I'm human" Ron sighed. "I just refused to give up…"

"So stubborn" Daphne frowned. "It was a horror show for my family, seeing Ron put himself through that over and over again." Ron gave her an apologetic smile, and that weakened her frown considerably.

"Wait, you explained why your eyes bled" Blaise blinked. "Why did you bleed from your nose and mouth?"

"High blood pressure was the reason for my nose bleed" Ron replied. "As for my mouth… I bit the inside of my mouth open…"

"Why?" Pansy asked, her skin a soft shade of green.

"To keep my focus on anything but the allures" Ron smiled weakly. His friends went dead quiet at that, and Ron wasn't sure how he felt about their stares. Their looks were a mix of horror, awe, concern, and a hint of confusion.

"You're a damn monster" Tracey broke the silence, and Ron chuckled.

"Maybe…" Ron shrugged as he relaxed into his seat.

"Not maybe Ron… You're certifiably insane" Tracey muttered as she stared at him with a slightly gaping mouth.

"Probably…" Ron sighed as he looked out of the window. I certainly need professional help.

"So…" Daphne said softly. "How was everyone else's break?"

---

AUTHOR'S NOTE: And it's finished! Sorry again for the delay, but life is crazy like that. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know there was a lot of angst in this one, but I saw no way around it. Ron has sort of started rebuilding his relationship with his parents again, especially after he got all of his anger at them out. But it will take time, and therapy, for him to fully move on.

Now, the Hermione POV... All I will say is that she is growing up too, and despite what most FF's on this website tend to show, Hermione is not a perfect character. If anything, she's the most stubborn of the Trio. Remember third year? When she went behind Ron and Harry's back just to get her way, or how she refused to admit that her cat may have killed Scabbers despite suspecting it to be true, or how she acted with the elves later on in the story? Or how she just expected Ron to pluck up the courage to ask her out, and yet she did nothing to make a move on him first. She has a very black-and-white view of the world, and I won't change her core character for the sake of this story. Not just on a whim, character development has to take time. You can't change overnight. No one gets the 'perfect person' treatment in this story, Mary Sues are not my forte. And no, I don't hate her character. I love all the characters because they are my childhood, so I want to do right by them. Even if it sometimes means making them annoying or stubborn or vexing. Hell, the protagonist of this story can very frustrating.

Rant over, and now some hints: Ron goes to Pomfrey, and he isn't as keen on it as she wants him to be. Pansy and Millie raise a certain concern about Ron to Daphne. Ron and Draco talk (Angst is coming). Time will pass by faster, and Ron will chose his electives for third year. Second year comes to a close, and the House-Cup Ceremony takes place. (I wonder who will win?)

See you on Wednesday!