Autumn 1991

Ronald Weasley

Ron hesitated just before the entrance to the Slytherin common room, a small knot gnawing at the pit of his stomach. His robe pockets were heavy with a few of the galleons that Sal had offered him, he had elected not to take them all. He was too worried he would somehow lose them or, worse, they would be stolen. He had left the box in Sal's possession which probably would have sent the founder spiralling into another lecture if Ron had been trying to leave them behind forever. He had agreed to accept them after all, but the decision still lingered in his mind.

Ron had decided that the best thing to do with the galleons was to use them for the benefit of others. He would donate fifteen to St. Mungo's, which he knew was quite a lot, but he figured that if anyone deserved the funds it was them. After all, they had saved his life when he had tumbled from his broom. That had to have cost them something and Ron knew his parents took healthy advantage of the free healthcare that St. Mungo's provided. It seemed best to give them to a good cause, that way, he justified, he would help the most people with the least amount of commitment.

On the other hand, he had set aside two galleons for his own spending for the year. He might have hated himself for that, only he knew that he really wouldn't be spending the money on himself but rather on those around him. He had handed Michael Corner, one of the first year Ravenclaws, one of his Galleons in exchange for a large number of Liquorice Wands. It was a bad deal, Ron knew, but it was hard to get sweets unless you sent away for them and Ron thought Percy would question where he got the Galleons, which he really had no explanation for. He had already decided that when he gave his friends the sweets, a gift for not letting him be alone, he would tell them that Charlie had lent him the money. If he had used Hermes, Percy might have brought it up to Charlie which would have made for an uncomfortable conversation that Ron wasn't looking to , I did lie, but only because the memory of one of the Hogwarts founders gave me a small shook his head, they would think he was again.

Ron stepped into the Slytherin common room, trying to leave behind the weight of his thoughts and instead focusing on the physical weight of the bag in his hand. He spotted Blaise sitting alone in a secluded corner and made his way towards him. He dropped into the chair beside him and dropped the bag on the table between them with a soft thud.

Blaise looked up from his Herbology textbook, glanced at Ron and then the bag. "This is new."

"It's a gift," Ron said a little timidly. "Candy, to share with Daphne and Tracy. Like a thanks, for you know… trying to look out for me."

Blaise's eyes widened slightly. "I didn't do it for thanks."

"I know," Ron shrugged, "but I still appreciate it. I mean, I think without you I'd still be eating alone at the end of the table. Or maybe, hardly eating."

"I thought you didn't have any money? I mean I appreciate this, Ron. But shouldn't you keep what you have?"

Ron felt his cheeks turn slightly rosy. "Charlie lent me some money while I'm at Hogwarts. It's not a big deal, he makes enough as a dragon tamer."

Blaise gave him a suspicious look but seemed to relent as he bent the corner on one of the pages of the textbook and gently set it Merlin.

"I'll buy you a few rounds," Blaise said, picking one of the wands out of the bag and inspecting it in the glow of the torchlight. "Once we can go to Hogsmeade."

Ron nodded, although he honestly hoped Blaise would forget. The last thing he wanted was for his friends to buy him anything because they thought he was poor. He would have rathered if they bought him nothing at all.

Blaise took a bite and leaned back into his chair. Ron mimicked his movements and pulled free another wand, bringing it to his mouth and tearing off the end before he too leaned backwards. They sat in a small silence for a moment, just long enough for Ron to catch sight of Tracy and then Daphne exiting the girl's section of the dormitory.

It didn't take long for Tracey to notice Ron and Blaise, offering them a warm smile from across the room before leading Daphne over to their corner.

"What's this?" Tracey asked. She took one of the free chairs and pointed at Blaise's textbook.

"Homework," Blaise replied coolly which made Tracy's smile slightly brighter.

"Homework? On a weekend?"

Daphne gave her a small glare and folded her arms across their chest. "Some people actually do their work, Trace."

Tracey rolled her eyes. "I do work, just not on the weekend."

"You can sit, if you want." Ron offered gently which earned a glare from Daphne.

"I don't need your permission, Weasley," she said sharply but took the last chair anyway.

"Any news? On Malfoy?" Blaise asked.

"I haven't seen much of him," Daphne answered. "He's been trying to find someone new to harass, or so I think. Someone told me he was hanging around the kitchens, looking for a Hufflepuff maybe."

"Or Crabbe got hungry," Tracey said quickly. She too earned a small glare.

"Or that," Daphne said begrudgingly.

"I haven't heard anything from Theo either," Ron said. "I mean not since the other day. He's usually asleep by the time we get to our room."

"Well, hopefully Nott doesn't disappoint. As much as he is… the worst. It's better to have him against Malfoy."

"Nott won't join him," Blaise said, causing a flicker of eyes to him. "Their personalities don't match well. They'll always compete for leadership."

Daphne narrowed her eyes slightly. "Maybe."

Ron reached out and grabbed the bag of liquorice wands extending it out towards the two girls. "A gift," he said simply.

"Woah, thanks!" Tracey reached her hand in and took four pieces.

Daphne looked at the bag and then up at Ron. "I'm alright."

Tracey gave her a strange look. "Daphne, you usually love candy."

Daphne gave a short nod. "Yes, but I don't want to owe anything to Weasley. Even a gift. it's not a good idea to accept something that you won't repay."

Ron's eyes widened slightly, her words sounding vaguely familiar.

"You won't owe me anything," he said. "It's more of a payment for our alliance. For not leaving me alone in this house. I mean, I'd still have Blaise, but I'm glad to have other people I can talk to."

"Regardless of the reason, I don't think it's proper to accept."

Ron frowned. "Is it because I'm poor?"

Tracey stopped chewing and the smile dropped from her face. Daphne's face remained masked and unreadable while Blaise just shook his head slightly.

"It's not," she answered. "I'm not trying to insult you."

"But you won't accept a gift?"

She pursed her lips slightly. "No, but if you're so serious about it then I'd accept a wager."

Blaise leaned forward slightly. "What kind?" he asked.

"How about this, Weasley and I play a match of wizarding chess. If he loses, I'll take my share of the candy. If he wins, I'll give him ten Galleons."

What!? That much!?

"Ten!?" Ron blurted. "I can't take ten galleons."

Blaise gave him a hesitant look. "She is a Greengrass."

"So just because her family's wealthy I should feel comfortable taking her money?"

Tracey snorted. "You have to win the game first."

"One galleon," Daphne said. "If that works better for you, Weasley."

Ron frowned. It would kind of defeat the point of offering the gift in the first place. But, then again, he had seen Blaise and Theo make a number of bets and it wasn't even Halloween yet. Perhaps, that's just how Slytherins were. Or, maybe just how Hogwarts was in general.

"Okay," he relented. "Just a single galleon." Besides, Ron reasoned to himself, he could donate sixteen to St. Mungo's instead. It wasn't like it was a selfish bet.

Daphne offered him a thin smile, "Of course."

Tracey grabbed one of the nearby boards and placed it on the table that had previously held the bag of liquorice wands. The two armies were glad to see some use, all of the pieces doing their best to try and convince their player that they had good strategies all the while they bickered about which colour was better. Apparently, that particular board had more black wins than white but the white pieces still insisted they were the best team. Ron found it all to be rather annoying, but Tracey and Blaise seemed to be enjoying it greatly.

Ron let his hand hover over the board as he made the opening move. While he still felt a little uncomfortable with the wager, it felt good to play chess again. The last time he had played was with Charlie shortly after he had come home. Ron had beaten him severely and the game got old fairly quickly. Ron moved to e4 much to the dismay of his pawns.

Daphne played to counter him, her movements so precise that it seemed as if the game was nothing more than a passing distraction.

Soon, Ron found himself gaining ground and slowly but surely wrestling control over the middle of the board. It made him frown slightly, the play seeming to be too easy. He scrunched his nose as he ordered his knight forward to seize a bishop.

Daphne made her next move idly, as if she didn't care that the move might expose her Queen. Ron noticed that Blaise shot her a curious look, seeming to question her playing. Ron frowned even harder.

What's she doing?He thought. The game should have been harder.

"Don't get too confident, Weasley," Tracey said from the sidelines. Yet, it already seemed to be too late. Ron had taken a considerable material lead.

It took only a few more snatches before he had her Queen and then a check before finally a checkmate.

"It seems I've lost," Daphne said a little amusedly. She didn't seem at all surprised. Ron blinked.

"Did you throw the game?" Ron asked. He still couldn't believe that it had gone so well.

She offered him a smirk, reached into her pocket and handed him a single galleon. "Yes," she said simply. "But it was mostly a lesson."

"A lesson? You let me win money from you."

She shrugged. "Sometimes losing is a good thing. After all, now Tracey and Zabini can split my portion of the candy. And I don't feel like I owe you anything."

Ron glanced down at the galleon in his hand feeling slightly unsettled.

The moment passed when Blaise offered the rest of his share to Tracey too, which made the brown-haired girl smile brightly once again.

Ron didn't have a hard time figuring out what Daphne really meant about losing being a good thing. He immediately wished that she had won, so he didn't have to take the galleon. It was something he was sure he'd keep in mind.

Ron slipped the coin into his pocket and leaned back into the chair. He exhaled softly in mild contentment as he listened to Tracey retell the history of wizarding candy.