A day in the life of Ron Weasley. A very particular day.
RON XXIII
His stomach grumbled as he scratched his head. On this early morning of the second Friday after Christmas holidays, when he should be taking his breakfast, Ron was stuck into a classroom with six other Prefects by Dolores Umbridge, forced to fill the evaluation of his peers.
This was one of the novelties with the modified Educational Decrees. Since they returned from Christmas, not only did they learn that now, this Umbridge could modify detentions given by both Prefects and teachers, she would also evaluate Prefects. On top of all that, she was forcing staff members and Prefects to fill monthly reports on the performance of their peers. This meant that Ron had to evaluate all other Prefects by yesterday. When arriving in the Great Hall this morning, he and a few other Prefects who had not completed their evaluations yet (or who never intended to complete them, like Ron) were ordered by Umbridge to fill them this morning before classes could begin. This meant that they were forced to skip breakfast.
Ron was cursing with every ounce of his mind against this woman. They were in fifth year. Between his lessons and homework in preparation for the O.W.L.s, Quidditch practices and other Prefect duties, he didn't have time to fill forms. No one time had time for this… except Hermione. He didn't know the names of half the other Prefects. How could he evaluate them. And for those he knew, he didn't like having to report them. For the evaluation had obviously been developed for this purpose: for Prefects to report on each other. And Ron hated to denounce other students. Even for idiots like Malfoy, he hated reporting them to professors. He preferred giving them detentions himself, with his new authority as Prefects.
It had felt so good to give a detention to Goyle. Ron felt brilliant when he did it. All that was thanks to Hermione. Once, while she complained about how Umbridge modified detentions given by teachers, Ron had realized that Umbridge never modified those given by Prefects. From what Ron remembered, the educational decree only concerned sanctions given by professors. Ron had not discussed it with anybody. But when he finally had an opportunity to detain Goyle before the holidays he seized it, and he didn't hesitate to point out there was nothing Umbridge could do about it.
It had felt so good. Ron had been a hero for an hour or two. Even Fred and George congratulated him. Only Hermione seemed worried, telling him he would regret crossing Umbridge eventually. And like always, she was right.
Now, some people blamed Ron for the amendments to the decrees that increased Umbridge's authority over Prefects. Ron even felt that teachers blamed him for the additional evaluations Umbridge imposed them. And now Umbridge was ruining his breakfast.
Ron scratched his head harder. He had to evaluate all other Prefects, but he didn't know some of them. He looked at the clock. The first lesson of the day was about to begin, and he couldn't arrive late. He looked at his copy. He had filled evaluations for all Pefects he knew. Hermione's was full of positive comments, while Malfoy's and Parkinson's were filled with details on how they abused their position. He had done everything he could. He quickly wrote Nothing to signal on the evaluations of remaining Prefects and stood up, giving her form to Umbridge who was waiting in front of the classroom.
"Done."
He put the parchment on her desk and headed for the exit. He was eager to not be late for Potions.
"Wait, Mr Weasley," the woman said with her sweet, unsufferable voice.
Ron had just seized the handle of the door. It was locked. Sighing internally, he turned towards Umbridge who was smiling while looking at his copy. She headed to him.
"I am afraid you haven't filled the evaluation of your peers completely, Mr Weasley. The sections about ten of your fellow Prefects are empty."
"It's because I have nothing to say about them," Ron explained, trying his best not to lose his patience with Umbridge. For once, he tried to follow Hermione's advice.
"I highly doubt it. You work with all Prefects, Mr Weasley. Even if their behaviour is above reproach in your opinion, there is something to say. You must provide examples of their good behaviour."
"I don't even know some of them."
Umbridge's wicked smile only grew. "I believe you underestimate yourself, Mr Weasley. The brother of Percy Weasley would know all his peers."
The mention of Percy almost made Ron burst. No one in his family liked being compared to him. But this wasn't the end of his ordeal, for Umbridge turned to the two other Prefects still present in the classroom.
"You must complete the evaluation of your peers in all seriousness. This is vital to ensure that the body of Prefects is up to the highest standards. And to ensure this is the case, you will all only leave this classroom once everyone's evaluation is complete and respective of standards."
Ron cursed under his breath. He would never be in time for Potions. He didn't dare to imagine what Snape would do when he would show up late. The two other Prefects were not happy either.
"Mrs Umbridge, I have a lesson in Defence Against the Dark Arts beginning in a few minutes," one complained.
"Then I suggest you diligently complete your evaluations, and I encourage your peers to complete them as quickly as possible."
Ron had to refrain himself from shouting what he thought of her at this woman. But sometimes, the voices of reason, mostly that of Hermione, managed to keep him away from further trouble. Such was the case now.
Still, Ron had to complete all sections Umbridge deemed incomplete. Ron struggled to find something to say about the remaining Prefects. In the meantime, the two other students had completed their evaluations, which Umbridge judged satisfactory. If she had allowed them to leave, they would only have been a few minutes late for their lessons. But per Umbridge's decision, they needed to wait for Ron to finish. They were nearly twenty minutes late after he finally gave back his copy … only for Umbridge to willingly take all her time in reviewing it. Both Ron and his two fellow Prefects were impatient to leave. Then Ron watched in horror as Umbridge wrote notes all over his copy. After a few minutes, she gave it back to him.
"Bring the corrections I instructed," she ordered.
"Mrs Umbridge, could we leave?" one of the other Prefects pleaded. "We're very late. We will have trouble with our teachers."
"I am sure that they will understand you are not responsible for this lateness. And if you have trouble with them, come and see me. I will take that into consideration when evaluating your teachers. In the meantime, Mr Weasley, I encourage you to apply yourself. You wouldn't want to make your colleagues even more late than necessary."
Ron groaned, but so low that he thought Umbridge didn't notice.
As Ron sat down to review his evaluation once again, he felt the hostility of the two other students against him. They viewed him as the responsible one for them being stuck here. Any thoughts of finishing the review quickly dissipated when he fell upon the first suggested corrections, those about Hermione's evaluation. Umbridge literally called it too positive and asked him to also indicate negative points in Hermione's performance. How could she expect that when Hermione was the embodiment of everything a Prefect should be?
And that wasn't all. She also judged his evaluations of the Slytherins biased and too negative. As a result, Ron was forced into putting good words about Malfoy and Parkinson. He wasn't sure what the worst was. Writing negatively about Hermione or writing positively about Malfoy and his girlfriend. In both cases, these were lies that made him want to vomit.
As a result, they were all an hour late for their first lesson when Ron was finally done and Umbridge gave the three of them leave to go, under her satisfied gaze and reproachful looks of the other Prefects towards Ron.
As expected, Snape was very displeased when Ron arrived late in his dungeons. He removed twenty points from Gryffindor when he arrived, in addition to giving Ron a detention for this evening. Ron tried to explain why he was late, only for Snape to take a further five points from Gryffindor. Finally, under Hermione's insistent gaze, Ron didn't press the matter and sat down next to Harry.
"You will not have more time to prepare your elixir because you were late, Weasley," Snape warned. "And I will not be lenient when examining your results. So you better get to work no talking with your comrades, or else you will get a zero, like the comrades in question."
Ron pressed his lips in fury. He went to prepare the elixir they had to make today, a substance he never heard about. He didn't even try to ask for help. He knew no one would. He considered asking Harry. After all, Snape always vanished his potion, no matter it was good or not. At the same time, he only needed one glance to see how tired and pale Harry looked. His Occlumency lessons with Snape were truly taking their toll. Ron decided he wouldn't give Snape additional reasons to make his best friend's life miserable.
Ron didn't even have time to follow half the instructions Snape wrote on the blackboard. As always, Hermione's potion was perfect. Harry's was not, but it was way better than Ron's. Despite this, it was Harry who got a zero and a vanished potion. The only thing Ron got the same as his friend was when Snape gave them additional homework to explain why they failed at preparing the elixir.
"It's really unfair!" Ron snapped when they were out of the classroom.
"How did you arrive so late?" Hermione asked.
"That Umbridge woman forced me to write and rewrite that stupid peer evaluation over and over again."
"I told you, Ron. You should have completed it before yesterday. The instructions we received were very clear."
"And how did you want me to do that? We're barely two weeks back from the holidays and homework has already buried us. On top of that, I've got Quidditch that resumed, Prefect duties… And you would like me to fill stupid evaluations?"
"Stupid or not," Hermione said, with her characteristic tone of giving lessons, "we had to do them. We cannot give Umbridge reasons to make our lives more difficult."
"Does she need reasons to do it?" Harry asked.
"All I'm saying is that Ron could have avoided all those problems if he had completed this evaluation in time," Hermione said with exasperation.
"What do you want to hear, Hermione?" Ron asked, tired of being lectured rather than supported. "That I am responsible for everything that's happening to me? That unlike Harry, I can avoid Snape and Umbridge behaving like morons with me?"
Hermione didn't dare to answer. In fact, no one said a word as they made it to their next lesson. However, they soon had to part ways. Ron had Divination, unlike Hermione and Harry. Before they went separate ways though, Hermione grabbed Ron by the arm.
"Wait, Ron. You received this during breakfast. I think… I believe this is from Percy."
She said that on a much kinder tone. If she hoped to make Ron feel better this way, she was wrong. The mere mention of Percy made his mood even darker.
"You can throw it in the fire as far as I'm concerned," Ron told her, turning his back on her and the letter she showed him, leaving for another lesson he despised.
Umbridge, Snape and Trelawney, all in this order. This made for quite a nightmarish morning.
They were still deep into dream interpretation. Ron teamed with Neville, who was just as miserable with this. The only good point, if you could call it this way, was that Trelawney's main target of ominous omens today was neither Ron or Neville, but Parvati. That girl had been Trelawney's main target for their third year. The mad teacher relaxed last year, but since December she was back at targeting Parvati specifically with dreaded predictions. And since Parvati was one of the few to believe everything Trelawney said, that made her almost as miserable as Ron was right now. He remembered that Hermione was exasperated by Parvati's behaviour before the holidays. Ron could understand her. At least, he didn't have to share a dormitory with a girl who panicked because a crazy woman predicted her death on a daily basis.
But what made the Divination lesson even worse was the presence of Dolores Umbridge. She now attended all lessons of Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. She was clearly set on firing someone. Ron hoped it would be Trelawney and not Hagrid. The news that he was on probation had scandalized and terrified both him and all his friends.
Ron rushed out of the Divination classroom as soon as the bell rang. He wanted to be as far as possible, as quickly as possible, from Umbridge and Trelawney.
He was reunited with Harry and Hermione for lunch. Not far from them, he spotted a rare sight in Lavender and Parvati working on a piece of parchment during break. Ginny, lucky to not go through her O.W.L.s, talked happily with her friends. As for Harry, he looked particularly tired. Hermione smiled to Ron when he arrived at the Gryffindor table. Maybe she smiled too much. Ron sat down and engulfed several sandwiches very quickly. Eating was a good way to feel better.
"Ron," Hermione said next to him. He turned towards her, an egg sandwich still in his mouth. However, Hermione didn't seem to bother for once. She looked… embarrassed. "I didn't burn the letter."
She produced the letter, and upon realizing she was talking about Percy's letter, Ron's mood dropped once again.
"Look, Ron," she said, "I know you are angry at him, that you find him stupid. And I do agree with you. But before you burn it, why don't you read it? There's no harm in reading what he wrote."
Aside from worsening his emotional state, Ron guessed.
"At best, Ron, you will get to hate Percy even more," Harry pointed out.
That was a better argument. Ron didn't get why Hermione looked angry at Harry. She should have come up with such an argument first.
Ron sighed. "Okay. Give it to me." He seized it from Hermione's hands, but before he could open it, he quickly hid it in his pocket as two voices he knew too well had approached in his back and sat down next to him.
"Our Headless Hat really has more success than even I expected," Fred said.
"You mean you expected it wouldn't work," George countered.
"I just thought it wasn't… enough."
"Some people like to buy our products more when they are legal. Isn't it true, Hermione?" George asked her.
"As long as your products do not violate the rules, there's nothing I can do against them," Hermione replied. "But be careful. As Prefect, if you violate the rules, I must…"
"We know, we know," Fred said. "But tell me. What's the harm with our Headless Hats?"
"None. And make sure it stays this way," she warned them.
Ron, like always, stayed away from the discussion. He had enough problems with that. He wouldn't add Fred and George to the list.
Ron didn't get the chance to read Percy's letter during Charms class. Hermione was the main responsible. She said he wouldn't get better if he didn't practice his charms. Not to mention the risk of Flitwick catching him. She reminded him that he didn't want another detention, as if Ron needed being reminded of this again.
Like it usually happened, Harry and Hermione were both better than him with the spell they learned today. Despite his tired state, Harry still managed to be better than Ron. He remembered that discussion before the year began, when he heard Harry's mother and the others discuss that Harry was supposed to be Prefect. He understood them. And especially after what happened early this morning, Ron was beginning to think they were not only right, but that he would have been better off without this badge. Yes, he got his new Cleansweep, and he got to sanction Goyle with the greatest pleasure, but the additional work, responsibilities and problems it brought… For every minute of enjoyment Ron got from his badge, he got days of exasperation, boredom and trouble. He was no longer jealous of Harry being the first choice for Prefect. Dumbledore effectively offered his best friend great service by sparing him the badge.
Ron finally got a chance to read Percy's letter during the pause between Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts. He asked Harry and Hermione to leave him alone while he read it, so he found an isolated alcove to read it while pacing.
Dear Ron,
I take the freedom of writing to you again in such dire times. I beg you to heed my words as this is a matter of survival for you, and I am risking my own position and career to help you.
During the holidays, I was informed by the Minister of a rather uneasy event that involved you in Hogwarts. You must know that you technically broke no rule, law or regulation by giving a detention to Gregory Goyle in December. Unfortunately, Ron, I am afraid you made a grave mistake by telling Mrs Dolores Umbridge, Hogwarts' High Inquisitor chosen by the Minister himself, that she had no authority to alter disciplinary sanctions you gave.
Ron, I was being very serious in my last letter when I told you to cooperate with Dolores Umbridge. What you did could have been of little consequence if you had taken a more respectful tone, and if you had severed your relation with Harry Potter as I suggested. Even if you didn't, you could have avoided the worst consequences, but ever since the massive escape from Azkaban you certainly heard about in the newspapers, the atmosphere at the Ministry is very different. The Minister and all his employees, myself included, are working day and night to stabilize the situation and catch those criminals, but in this context, such signals of disloyalty towards the Ministry are very poorly viewed, at best.
I beg you to not misinterpret what I just wrote, Ron. I am not blaming you or giving you lessons. But the truth is that with the amended Educational Decree Number Twenty-five, the Ministry is planning to clean the body of Prefects in Hogwarts. And after your minor altercation with Mrs Umbridge in December, they are seriously considering depriving you of the badge you worked so hard to obtain.
I am taking great risks by writing to you about this, Ron. I might lose my job if this letter was discovered. I know that my relations with our parents, and with you, Ginny, Fred, George, Charlie and Bill as well, have deteriorated. And to my shame, I admit that I hold some responsibility in this state of affairs. By leaving home, I didn't only leave our parents, who I still love despite disapproving their conduct. I also left my brothers and sister, who I deeply love. (I even surprise myself to miss Fred and George's pranks from time to time.) I didn't even visit our father when he nearly died, and this is probably what I regret the most. You have no idea how relieved I was when I was told he would survive. I don't know if you're aware, but our mother wrote to me when he was in St. Mungo's. I almost left my apartment on the spot to visit him when I read her words. I didn't because I was afraid.
I admit it, Ron. I am afraid of the stigma I would have experienced if my colleagues learned that I had gone to see my father. I regret my behaviour, and if it was to do all over again, I would act very differently.
But today, it is for you and our whole family that I am afraid. I still deeply care about you all despite our disagreements. And now is the time for me to put them on the side and behave like a Weasley.
You must fully cooperate with Dolores Umbridge. And you must also sever all ties with Harry Potter. When I say all ties, I also mean you must sever ties with people who are close to him. This is your only chance to keep your position of Prefect and to not ruin your future. I say it again, Ron, like I told you back in September, you do not want to be tarred with the same brush as this boy. I realize today that I may have been too harsh in the way I recommended you sever all ties with Harry, and I also realize how suggesting that you sever all ties not only with him but with everybody who is associated to any extent with him, must seem unacceptable and cruel. Especially since today, I realize that Harry might believe everything he says.
Don't take me wrong, Ron. You-Know-Who is not back. He's been dead for nearly fifteen years. The Minister knows it, I know it, and you know it as well. Everyone knows it. With the recent massive evasion from Azkaban, some might be considering Harry's story, but we cannot let fear and panic cloud our judgment and good sense. Rationally speaking, it is impossible that You-Know-Who could be alive. And when there is absolutely no proof of his return, the only logical conclusion is that Harry is not telling the truth. I now think that he truly believes that You-Know-Who has returned, but that this is a consequence of what he went through on June 24. He must have witnessed Cedric Diggory's death and his mind, unable to process it, added to his personal history with the man who murdered his father, created the illusion that this man was back from the dead. In this case, Harry needs help. Unfortunately, some people have used his troubled state to spread lies and destabilize the society and out ministry. I understand you would like to help your friend, Ron, but in such a context, there is nothing we can do for Harry, and we can only look for our best interests. Staying close to Harry would only bring us down.
You may have the impression that remaining friends with Harry and his inner circle is a good idea given recent events, but I must emphasize again that this is not the case. Cooler heads are already prevailing against the conspiracy theories circulating around Azkaban's evasion, and Dumbledore's days not only at Hogwarts, but also in public life, are more numbered than ever. More and more of his allies are getting caught and arrested every day, including Bartemius Crouch Senior who had to leave the country to avoid being arrested, after he stole classified documents from the Ministry.
I know there is also another reason, aside from personal friendship and wrong standing perception that Dumbledore remains influential, that may explain that you remained close to Harry. After all, his inner circle includes Susan Bones, the niece of Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. You may believe that turning your back on Harry could compromise your future because of that, Ron, but the truth couldn't be farther from this.
I shouldn't tell you this, Ron, but since Azkaban's massive evasion, Amelia Bones has lost the support of the Minister. You may already have noticed it if you carefully read the newspapers. She was responsible for managing the prison and failed to prevent this massive escape. Amelia Bones' influence is waning, and her days at the Ministry are numbered. It is only a matter of time. This is why I advise you to sever ties with anyone near Harry. Any link of any sort with him is not only detrimental to you, but also dangerous.
Again, I realize the gravity of what I'm suggesting you do. I wouldn't suggest it if it wasn't a matter of survival. I tried to talk about it with our father a few days ago at the Ministry, but he rudely turned me down. I was hoping he would at least accept to listen after he almost died, but I regret to say his opinions and those of our mother concerning their ties with the likes of Dumbledore have not changed. As such, it pains me to do so, Ron, but I advise you to sever ties with our parents as well.
I realize this is probably the most difficult thing to ask from you, and I understand if you initially feel furious at me for even suggesting it. But I hope that once you take time to think about it, you will realize this is your only chance to not remain an outcast for the rest of your life. I am ready to welcome you in my apartment in London if you wish, Ron. And I also extend this invitation to Ginny, Fred and George. I give you my permission to give them this letter so they can read it, to know that I remain their brother and that I care about them.
Again, I hate myself for suggesting to tear our family further apart. But the truth is that our family was torn apart when our parents chose loyalty to Dumbledore over the best interests of their children.
I hope you will consider my offer seriously, Ron. I regret you didn't follow my advice the last time, but this is not too late. Again, I can only repeat my advice. Stay away from Harry and his friends, cooperate with Dolores Umbridge and Ministry's authorities, and don't cause any trouble. On my side, I will do my utmost to ensure your future and the future of Ginny and all our brothers.
I wish you luck,
Your brother,
Percy
The more he read the letter, the more Ron wanted to vomit on it then throw it into the fire. However, he didn't have time since Defence Against the Dark Arts was about to begin. He literally ran, not paying attention to anybody on his way. He finally arrived barely a minute after the bell rang.
"You're late, Mr Weasley," Harry's mother said as he took place far behind the classroom.
"I know," Ron rudely retorted as he sat down.
Ron regretted his words right away. Percy's letter, which was even worse than the preceding one, almost made him sick, and turned him into such a foul mood that he forgot for an instant who he was talking to. He was used to seeing Harry's mother outside school for years. In that moment, he had forgotten that she wasn't only the mother of his best friend, but also a teacher of this school.
"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr Weasley," their professor announced. Ron kept his anger for himself as he knew it would be futile to argue. He already had a detention. He didn't want to add another.
The sound of furious writing on the other side of the classroom revealed that Umbridge was watching the lesson as well. Ron avoided her gaze and tried to focus the best he could on the lesson at hand.
Defence Against the Dark Arts was usually a pretty enjoyable subject. Lily Evans didn't manage to make it as enjoyable as Lupin once did, but she was pretty good at challenging Flitwick's lessons. But today, Ron could find substantial relief there either. Umbridge's harassment, Snape's detention, Percy's letter… He simply was fed up with this day and wanted it to be over. Plus, he couldn't talk about Percy's letter to Harry and Hermione during practical exercises. Unlike in Charms, they threw spells on each other, so talking was no option.
Ron didn't know whether he would be relieved when the bell rang to announce the end of the lesson. On one side, it meant dinner, but also the detention with Snape that would follow. On top of that, as he just left the classroom with Harry and Hermione, Umbridge called him.
"Mr Weasley, a word, please."
After reading Percy's letter, Ron was of a mind to ignore her, but he decided against it, as he supposed this woman would follow him until he accepted to talk to her.
"I'll join you in the Great Hall," he told his friends before reluctantly heading towards the High Inquisitor.
"Be careful, Ron," Hermione whispered to him.
He approached Umbridge, feeling a mixture of dread and rebellion against this woman who made this day a true hell. Without her, he wouldn't have been late for Potions, he wouldn't have received a detention, and he wouldn't have lost ten points from Harry's own mother.
"You should adopt a more positive attitude, Weasley. This isn't good when Prefects look angry or sad."
Ron wanted to snap, but instead he said nothing. He remained silent. So Umbridge went on.
"I reviewed your evaluation of your peers, Mr Weasley." She took the piece of parchment from her things. Ron groaned inside. What would she want him to modify this time? "It is satisfying." He was taken aback by those words. "However, there are still a few things that would need to be improved. It would please me very much if you could get a last look at your evaluation."
Ron's surprise evaporated right away. Again? Didn't he write and rewrite this damn evaluation enough?
"No."
If Umbridge was unhappy about what he said, she didn't show it. She kept smiling. "No?" she asked.
"No," Ron repeated. "You can take my badge if you want, but either you live with this evaluation I wrote or you'll have none."
He stared at her, defying to order him again to rewrite this piece of parchment. Instead, she put back Ron's evaluation in her bag, still smiling. "I see. This is your choice. I thank you, Mr Weasley."
And on that, she walked away. Relieved to be rid of that woman, Ron headed towards the Great Hall. At midway in the corridor though, he met Harry and Hermione, but also Susan, Hannah and Ernie who were waiting for him.
"Did Umbridge cause you more problems, Ron?" Ernie asked.
"What do you think?" Ron groaned, not expecting an answer.
"One of the Prefects you spent the morning with told me what happened. I'm sorry."
"Well, no need to apologize. You're not the one who got me a detention with Snape on a Friday evening."
All others seemed to sympathize with him on this as they all headed together towards the Great Hall. "You shouldn't have given that detention to Goyle, Ron," Hannah said. "It only got you into trouble."
"Please, Hannah, I already have Hermione to remind me of this. Don't start as well."
Hannah looked offended.
"That's not what she meant, Ron," Hermione said. "Goyle deserved that detention. Only, we regret that Umbridge is getting at you for this."
This made him feel a little better. "I regret to be Prefect more each passing day," he commented.
"Don't say that, Ron," Ernie said. "Being Prefect is a great opportunity. And an honor. There are people who would kill for that."
"Aside from Percy, I doubt so," Ron retorted.
"I have to agree with Ron about that, Ernie," Hannah said, lifting Ron's mood slightly again.
"Speaking of Percy…" Hermione began, but her voice trailed off.
"No need to talk about this now," Harry said. He looked maybe as tired as Ron felt.
"Isn't Percy your brother, Ron?" Hannah asked. "The one who was Head Boy? Who's working for the Minister now?"
For a girl Ron used to date, she wasn't very sure of the identity of his brothers. "If you want me to feel better, Hannah, don't mention the name of that dumb moron."
Ron had said it on an exasperated, but also a tired tone. As a result, Hannah didn't look as insulted as before. She even looked sorry. Ron wished she had been more like this back when she was his girlfriend. Still, the mention of Percy made him remember that he still had his damn letter in his pockets. He was about to take it out and tear it in pieces to throw it into one of the fireplaces in the Great Hall as they approached it, when he noticed Harry and Susan holding hands. More precisely, he realized the letter wasn't only about him.
"Hey, Susan," Ron asked, "how is your aunt?"
Susan looked surprised by the question. "Working a lot, since the massive evasion from Azkaban. Why?"
Ron threw the crumpled letter in her direction. She caught it despite the surprise. "Read this. Believe me, after you're done, you will despise Percy as much as I despise him."
They had just entered the Great Hall. Ron let the Hufflepuffs leave for their table, Harry's girlfriend smoothing Percy's letter to read it.
"Is that too much to ask you what Percy was saying in his letter?" Hermione carefully asked as the three of them sat down.
No, it wasn't too much to ask. Ron spent the next fifteen minutes complaining and saying all the negative things about his dumb brother while he summarized the content of his letter. Fred and George were nearby. After a moment, they joined Ron in adding their own commentary about Percy. Even Parvati and Lavender, who were sitting next to them, took an interest in their exchange and looked disgusted by what Ron's brother wrote.
"He is really the greatest idiot in the universe," Ron concluded.
"You only realized it today?" George asked, barely with a point of humour.
"Wait until we write about this to our parents," Fred said. "When Dad and Mom hear…"
"No, don't," Hermione warned them. And she gave the best reason in the world before anyone could protest. "Your mother is already crying every time she hears Percy's name. Imagine how it will be if you tell her about this letter?"
None of the three Weasleys dared to object. Despite finding their mother's behaviour silly, none of them wanted to cause her further pain. It was like that in the Weasley family. Their children could complain about their parents and find some of their habits stupid, but they loved them. For a mere moment, Ron found a common point between all of them and Percy, and the thought he could be like him to some extent almost gave him an envy to give back his dinner, despite the fact he barely touched his plate so far, as he had been too occupied ranting against his estranged brother.
Right at this moment, Susan showed up at their table.
"Harry, I won't study this evening," she said. "And I think you better not work either. You look terrible."
"She's right," Ron confirmed as he finally swallowed some of his roast beef.
"Thank you both," Harry said, though he didn't seem to blame them. "Anyway, I don't think I could have worked."
"But we've got tons of homework," Hermione opposed. "Even if you work a little, only an hour tonight, this will free your time…"
"Hermione, give them a break," Ron protested between two bites. "If we exhaust ourselves early in the semester, we won't have any energy left in June when our O.W.L.s actually take place. It's not because I have detention with Snape that Harry must be forced to work as well."
This shut Hermione up. The rest of dinner went quite smoothly. Ron's only regret was that he had to leave early because of the very kind of detention he hated the most. And also that while his friends were planning to skate the still iced Black Lake, he had to prepare for an ordeal with Snape.
"Do you want me to make his life miserable?" Ron laconically asked Harry before he left.
"I don't think that you getting more detention will make me feel better when Snape probes my min… my potion skills," Harry corrected, as they were surrounded by people who were not aware of his Occlumency lessons.
Later, when Ron arrived in Snape's dungeons, he was in for another bad surprise that would definitely not make Harry feel better.
"Before you begin cleaning, Weasley," the Potions teacher said, "I must inform you that the High Inquisitor decided to add one more evening of detention to my initial ruling. I expect you in this office tomorrow at the same hour."
Ron refrained from cursing aloud. Didn't Umbridge get to ruin his day more than enough? Apparently not, for Ron spent the entire evening cleaning by hands what looked like all the jars and pots of the school, and without the use of magic. They were so dusty and dirty that he had to change rags every minute. And no matter his efforts, recipients remained dirty.
When he finally left the dungeons, Ron felt he had a good idea how Harry felt after a lesson in Ancient Runes. His hands were completely finished. He rubbed them all the way up to the Gryffindor Tower in the hope to remove the pain. He was so focused on the feelings in his fingers that he almost crashed into Professor Sprout who was coming the other way as he climbed the stairs in the Entrance Hall. It was already so late that he suspected most people would be in bed. Indeed, the common room was empty when he arrived, safe for a few overzealous fifth and seventh-year people who studied hard, even late on a Friday night, in the middle of January, for either their O.W.L.s or N.E.W.T.s. There was also Parvati, who Ron was surprised to see still up at this hour, until he noticed she was reading an edition of Witch Weekly. This was no surprise. The surprise came when she called him as he began climbing the stairs to the boys' dormitory.
"Ron, how did your detention with Snape go?"
Ron sighed and turned to face her with a pretty self-explaining expression. "What do you think?"
Even Parvati seemed to realize how her question was stupid. "Sorry. I… I hope… I mean, it must have been terrible. At least, you don't have regular remedial potions classes like Harry does."
Ron sighed once more. "I have another detention tomorrow."
Parvati looked surprised. "But… I believed you only had tonight. That's what you told us during dinner."
Technically, he didn't tell Parvati. She and Lavender listened to the discussion without being invited. "Umbridge."
Parvati's showed confusion for a moment, which was followed by outrage when the dawn of realization crept into her eyes. "That woman! She's really horrible!"
"You don't need to tell me," Ron agreed.
"Padma told me how she rounded up you and the others. Have you seen how she treats Professor Trelawney?"
Did she really need to ask the question? He saw Umbridge in each and every Divination lessons like Parvati did.
"I'm really afraid that Trelawney might break up. And Hagrid? I may not like his lessons much, but he doesn't deserve being treated like this. She's almost as horrible with him."
It was a surprise to hear her taking Hagrid's defence. Parvati never liked him… though she was present at Buckbeak's funerals when Ron thought about it.
"I surprised that horrible woman mocking his hippogriff's death the other day. She even wiped mud from her shoes on his grave before she left."
Now Ron better understood why Parvati found Umbridge horrible even with Hagrid.
"And Mrs Evans… She never misses an opportunity to question her. And she is a very good teacher. My mother told me that Umbridge brought another report against her to the Governors. I'm no longer sure whether this is the third or the fourth. And this cow of Pansy Parkinson spends her time telling her lies about our best teachers. I surprised her whispering to Umbridge one day that Flitwick eyed her weirdly. It's completely garbage!"
It was somewhat good to hear someone rant about Umbridge after she ruined Ron's day, but he felt like he needed a good night's sleep.
"Excuse me, Parvati," he said, "but I need to go."
He made to turn on his heels, but he was stopped as he was about to resume climbing the stairs.
"Ron, can you verify Harry is in the dormitory?"
Ron stopped in his track and turned to Parvati. "What?"
"Just… make sure he is there."
Ron wasn't really sure how to react. "That's… all?"
"Yes. Just verify that he's still up there."
This was the most surprising thing to happen tonight, and one of the weirdest things Ron was ever asked. Why was Parvati asking him to check whether Harry was there? Wild theories ran rampant in his mind for an instant, before he realized this was probably something stupid, like a bet Parvati made with Lavender about the hour at which Harry fell asleep.
Ron shrugged and continued his way up.
"Tell me if he's not there!" Parvati shot as he headed up.
Ron would have sworn that he heard concern in Parvati's voice. Was something wrong with him? Or else the world was wrong, for he imagined that within the same day, both his own former girlfriend and Harry's were concerned about them.
When Ron walked into the dormitory, everyone was sleeping. It was really late, and everyone was tired by the week. Ron was too. He changed into his pyjamas and made for the washroom to brush his teeth. He nearly had his hand on the door when he heard a swearing in the dormitory.
He immediately turned away to see Harry, his head buried in his pillow, muffling grunts. Ron had enough experience to know what this was about. He silently rushed to Harry's side to not wake up the others and watched him writhing with obvious pain.
"Harry," he whispered, "what's happening?" A horrible thought crossed his mind. "Is it my father?"
Ron feared the worst after last time.
Harry turned on himself to look at Ron in the darkness. He was holding his forehead with both his hands. He pointed towards the washroom. Ron understood what he meant. They both walked in and closed the door behind, giving them some privacy so Neville, Seamus and Dean wouldn't hear them.
"So, what is it?" Ron pressed.
"I don't know," Harry replied, still rubbing his forehead. "It's like the last time, when the Death Eaters escape Azkaban. Only… He's not happy this time. He's angry."
Harry was panting. "Angry?"
"Yes… He's angry… Very angry…"
Harry said the last two words very low, as if he was thinking about what it could mean.
"Well, if he's angry…" Ron began, "maybe something is going wrong for him. Maybe… I don't know… But if something is going wrong for You-Know-Who… That should be good news, isn't it?"
"I don't know… His anger… I don't recall him feeling like this before… Ever before…"
Ron wished Harry could have confirmed they had nothing to worry about this time. But he supposed he couldn't demand his friend to know precisely why Voldemort felt something.
"I think…" Harry said, removing his hands from his forehead, "I'll go in the common room for a moment." He rubbed his scar again. "I don't want Seamus to see me like this."
Ron could understand that. "Yeah, you're right. Anyway, it's empty at this hour. No one will notice you." Harry nodded.
"Thank you, Ron."
Harry left the washroom, rubbing at his scar once more. He had not only closed the door of the washroom, but Ron had also heard the door to the dormitory closing by the time he remembered who was in the dormitory. He sighed. It was too late to stop Harry now. He would probably come back if he saw that Parvati was around. Ron brushed his teeth.
Harry wasn't back when he went to bed. Parvati had probably gone to sleep after Ron climbed the stairs. He wouldn't imagine Harry staying in the common room in the middle of the night with Parvati lurking around.
Slipping under his covers, Ron found himself thinking about Hannah. It was strange to think about her, but he did. Maybe it was because she seemed to worry today when Umbridge was on his back. He hadn't been in particularly good terms with her since their breakup. After that, he tried his best to avoid her. And then, June happened, Voldemort returned, Percy left the house, the whole family moved to Grimmauld Place, Harry was attacked by Dementors and trialed, and between the worries and the cleaning and trying to find out what Order members tried to do, he didn't have much time to think about the girl he dated. Then the school year began, he was made Prefect, he joined Gryffindor's Quidditch team, and between Prefects duties, trainings, matches, homework, lessons, school, Umbridge, and all the news concerning Voldemort, in addition to his father almost dying, Ron didn't have much time to think about it either.
But in this moment, as Ron felt tired and wanted to sleep, wondering why Voldemort was so angry that Harry would feel it, his mind wandered to the fact that he didn't see another girl since his brief thing with Hannah… since Voldemort returned. He simply had no time to think about dating another girl. Considering how his first relationship ended, he wasn't very willing to devote energy to a second one, not with everything going on in his life and in the world. He failed to understand how Harry could find time with Susan. Or how Hermione could find time to write to Krum.
The thought made him angry. He should have enjoyed last year better, before the entire world went crazy. It should have been a wonderful year. Between the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament, he should have loved it. Instead, he lost it to despising Harry during an entire month, spent the Yule Ball in his corner while both Harry and Hermione found someone, and went through such a short-lived relationship that he couldn't remember anything positive or significant about it.
And yet, there had been good moments with Hannah. Now that he thought about it, the time he dated Hannah had probably be the best of his fourth year. Well, not really. The truth was that Ron had not really dated Hannah because he actually wanted to date her. He did it because Harry and Hermione both had someone. Harry was even in his second relationship after his brief time with Parvati during the previous summer. Ron wanted to experience that as well. He didn't want to be left behind again. So he began seeing a girl who was quite pretty, kind, that he liked, and who seemed interested in him. The real best time, in fact, had been the two months before the champions of the tournament were selected, before all this madness of Voldemort's return actually started.
Ron sighed in his sleepy state. Things were never normal in Hogwarts, but this year, the one he was currently going through, was a living hell. Being prefect was no fun at all, contrary to what he initially thought. O.W.L.s took more than half his days. And Quidditch… He played so poorly during the first game…
This year was really going bad. While falling asleep, his mind drifted to thinking that maybe he should try to see another girl. After all, what was the worst that could happen? Another failure? With his recent experiences in all domains, one more wouldn't be that bad. The only question was, did he really have time to have a girlfriend?
And why was he thinking about this while falling asleep after one of the worst days at Hogwarts since he arrived over four years ago?
As you may guess, this day was particular in the sense that it ended up being a pretty miserable day for Ron. But it was also particular for another reason, which will be revealed in the next two chapters. Ron may not have realized it, but something very significant happened during that day. Something significant for the rest of the story.
Remain tuned for the next upload. It will come soon.
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Next chapter: Parvati