Winter 1991

Ronald Weasley

At the far end of the hedge maze, where the tall plants gave way to a neatly trimmed lawn, Ron stood with a small frown across his lips. The expanse was alive with the movement of witches and wizards, sequence dresses and black robes all mixing together in pools of contrasting colour. Groups gathered together as large as twenty and sent blissful laughter coursing through the evening air. Ron couldn't help but feel his stomach twist uncomfortably.

The tiny hairs on his arms stood on their ends as he raked his eyes across the crowds searching the unfamiliar faces for one in particular.

"I'm sure he will be here," Tracey said mildly. "I mean it's not like Italy's unsafe."

You have no bit the inside of his cheek. He thought of Blaise with a bruised face and broken nose. After all, he swallowed, the boy had spent the entirety of Christmas with a murderer.

"You should see a mind healer," Tracey teased. "Always so worried about something."

Ron's eyes shifted to hers for just a moment before looking back to the crowd. "I don't need a mind healer," he mumbled. Although, he wasn't entirely certain. "You know the rumours."

"Yeah, but they're just rumours. There's no way they can all be true. She would have been arrested by now."

"And there's no way a troll should have gotten into Hogwarts," Ron countered.

Tracey stared at him for a moment before bursting into a small fit of giggles. "You know, Ron, I'm glad you were sorted into Slytherin."

"Huh?"

"Yeah, we probably wouldn't have been friends if you were a Gryffindor or something. And well, I'm glad we are friends. It's nice… that you worry about everyone. You know, like Hermione and now Blaise."

Ron bit his lip. He wasn't trying to be nice and once again he felt that awkward feeling in his chest, the same one that always sprung up when Astoria called him a hero. He wanted to be a hero, but he wasn't sure that he was one.

"Thanks," he said gently. "I'm glad to be friends with all of you too."

"But mostly me, right?" Tracey teased. "I won't tell Blaise or even Astoria if you admit it. Daphne could know, she would pout about it."

"I don't think she'd pout, she'd probably bloody smack me."

"Maybe, but she's not actually all that bad. I think you know that."

Ron nodded, out of all of his friends Daphne was often the hardest to gauge while Tracy and Blaise were more often the easiest.

"Well," Tracey shrugged, "until next autumn. I mean Daphne might have a lot on her hands with Astoria. The Greengrass princess will quickly discover that she isn't so royal at school."

"Oh my sister too," Ron smiled. "They're both going to be so bloody mental. I mean, can you imagine Astoria digging through a pot in herbology? Merlin, I would pay to see that class."

Tracy snorted. "I'd pay for that too. And what about your sister? Is she the same way?"

"Absolutely not," Ron shook his head. "She's mentally the other way, grown up with all brothers. She's less girly than you are."

Tracey gave him a questioning stare. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Er—"

"I'm just kidding," Tracey laughed. "I know I'm not very girly. When Daphne first met me she probably thought it was some sort of goblin. I mean, if you think I'm bad now you should have seen me when I was younger. This is after years of Greengrass influence."

"Years… How long have you been friends with Daphne? I guess, I never really thought to ask."

"Four, and she's really my first friend. Probably my best friend too. Sorry about that."

Ron shrugged, if he had to pick which of his friends was his best one he probably wouldn't have picked Tracey either. Not that they didn't enjoy each other's company. In fact, Ron really wasn't sure who his best friend was. When he first got on the train to Hogwarts he thought he had really lucked out when he met Harry, he was sure they were going to be best friends. But… Ron had gone to Slytherin and Harry hadn't. And so, Ron shared most of his thoughts with Blaise, or at least the ones which weren't filled with anxious little secrets. But he wasn't sure if that really made the best I even have a best friend with all of the secrets?

"Speaking of friendship," Tracy took a deep long breath. "There's been something I've been meaning to tell you."

"Oh god, we're not going to try to convince me to date Daphne are you?" Ron groaned. "No offence, but I think I'd rather eat some dirt."

"Huh? Why would I ask that?"

"Oh… erm… it was just something Astoria was saying…"

Tracey giggled again. "Oh gosh, I think Daphne introducing you to her sister or I guess bringing you here to the manor was her greatest mistake. I wasn't going to say anything like that at all. You really need to stop listening to the princess, I mean do you know who Pinocchio is?"

"Uh, is he in our house?"

Tracey burst out into another fit of laughter. "No! He's a little wooden boy, it's a muggle thing. Every time he tells a lie his nose grows longer. Astoria's a lot like that. Half of what she says is just trifles."

His nose grows longer?Ron nose would be a mile long.

"But anyway," Tracey continued. "I, uh, noticed you looking at something when we went to Diagon Alley the other day. Something that wasn't the pins."

Ron just stared at her in confusion as Tracy reached into her pocket and revealed a small Silver box.

"I know you don't have the money for this—"

"And you don't either," Ron interrupted, staring at her with widened eyes. "Everything in that shop was ridiculously priced!"

He looked at the small box and swallowed thickly. Guilt filled his chest once again as he thought about how Tracey had decided for some reason to buy him yet another present. He would make a note to himself to give her something especially good next year, or at the very least find some way to convince his friends that he didn't need any gifts; preferably both.

"It's not that bad actually, my parents are doing pretty well in the Muggle world. My father likes to buy little bits of muggle companies. It makes us some extra money."

Buying bits of muggle companies?Ron wondered if his father knew anything about that. It would be a good way for his parents to be a bit better off… or… he stared at Tracey and tilted his head slightly. He would have to ask her about it in more detail later. Maybe Salazar's gold would go further than he thought.

"Anyway," Tracey held out the box. "I wanted to get you something because I know what your brothers said about Hallowe'en and I know Astoria keeps talking about it and it seems like all everyone ever does is talk about it. So maybe, it's my turn to talk about it too."

Ron took the box gently from her fingers. "I don't know what you mean…"

"What I'm trying to say is that your brothers are wrong. And I know I just said Astoria is full of trifles but sometimes she's right as well. I do think what you did was heroic, and honestly Ron, it makes me feel… well… safe. You taught us how to kind of perform the disarming charm, and you saved a bloody girl's life. You even made Theo grumble about it."

Theo grumbled about me saving Hermione's life? That fuck! That's it! If he says anything else I'm going to punch him just like Malfoy!

"So… just open the box."

Ron looked her in the eyes for just a second before he lifted the top of the box away from the bottom. Sitting perfectly inside was the wand holster he had seen in Diagon Alley, the buckles seemed to shimmer even brighter than they had before.

"I… wow."

"I'm a half-blood. Sometimes I worry about being in Slytherin even with all of you. Some of the things that some of our housemates say… they aren't very nice." Tracey looked far more serious than Ron had ever seen her before. "And I appreciate that you're my friend. And, I know you'd stand up for me if you had to just like you did with Hermione. I think Theo is a lot of fun but I can tell my blood status upsets him but it didn't upset you. It hasn't come up at all. You have no idea how that makes me feel Ron when everyone else seems to care. Everyone except for you and Daphne. So, I wanted to get you something."

"Merlin, Tracey, this is too much. You really feel that way?"

She nodded, "I shouldn't, but I do. And… it's kind of a selfish gift if I'm being honest. I mean, it's for you, but it's also a little for me. In more than one way. It's a thank you for how you've been treating me but also I think having a good wand holster is good for both of us. I mean, who else is going to save me from a troll?"

Ron swallowed thickly he hoped he would never have to save anyone from anything ever again. A part of him even hoped that Hogwarts was safe and that all of his worrying about Charlie was completely unnecessary. Still, Sal's voice reminded him gently that someone had to have let the troll into the castle. He looked at Tracey and let out a shallow breath, he would kill as many trolls as it took to keep his friends safe.

He took the holster out of the box and rolled up his right sleeve, positioning it into place and sliding his wand along his forearm. It felt strange and wonderful all at once, the leather foreign against his skin but his wand gave him a source of constant warmth. He looked up at Tracey and smiled before pulling his sleeve back down.

"Who's calling you names?" Ron asked. He tried to make his voice sound gentle but he knew it wasn't.

- SS -

In the middle of the field and at the centre of the party a large pyre dominating pyre had been constructed. It was a mountain of stacked logs and planks that crackled in the heat of a jewel-like purple flame that burned warm but not as hot as it should. Ron had never seen anything like it before, which was, he admitted, almost his entire experience at Greengrass Manor. It felt almost surreal and if Ron hadn't spent so much time combing over his dreams he might have found the line between what was real and what wasn't a little fuzzy. After all, the purple flames illuminated the crowds in an unearthly hue.

It held his attention for a moment longer, but movement near one of the small tables that had been set up by the house elves broke his stare. Blaise Zabini leaned there against one, his sharp features softened in the flickering light. Relief swept over Ron like a wave, and he didn't waste another second before heading in his friend's direction.

Blaise looked up as Ron approached, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He straightened slightly, setting down a delicate glass he'd been toying with. Ron studied his friend's face cautiously, half expecting bloody gashes and scars. Thankfully, Blaise looked almost the same as the last time Ron had seen him aside from his hair having been trimmed a tad shorter.

"Doing well?" Blaise asked smoothly, his voice carrying its usual calm curiosity.

"Am I doing well?" Ron opened his mouth and then shut it right… I am kind of a mess."Er, yeah I think so. I haven't really heard anything from my family, but I did get a christmas gift."

Blaise nodded. "Sounds like things are good then, I mean, no one's been shouting in your face or writing mean letters."

Well, sometimes Astoria almost shouts.

"Speaking of," Ron shook his head. "How have you been… you know… in Italy…"

"You mean with my mother?" Blaise asked, one eyebrow rising slightly.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, was it alright?"

Blaise's smile shifted into a thin line. "Honestly, Ron, it's not as bad as I made it seem. I mean, it's bad… I… she's seeing someone new. But she's never done anything to me."

"Seeing someone new, you mean?" Ron asked. He felt his heart thump faster in his chest.

"Yeah," Blaise nodded. "It's quite a process. He'll be around for a while; A few months to a year."

"Fuck. You mean she's going to kill him?"

"I don't know for sure, I never do. She's always so good with them, makes them seem like they're really in love. You know? Then I get a letter inviting me to a funeral for some bloke I hardly know."

Ron frowned deeply, a small amount of heat rising in his chest. He tried not to show it on his face, afraid that Blaise might not understand why he would be upset. After all, it wasn't his mother, was it? But, Ron found he didn't care. He was miffed anyway, how could one woman murder so many people and nobody could do anything about it? It wasn't even a well-kept secret from what Ron could gather, even the twins seemed to know something about world is so fucked up.

"What's it been like here, at Greengrass Manor? It's pretty impressive here in the garden. I mean, it's not Italy, but for Britain, it's really nice," Blaise asked. His hand picked up the glass again from the small table.

"Oh…" Ron did his best to keep his voice steady to hide the thoughts that lurked in his in one night? First Tracey being bullied and now Blaise's mother murdering more people? Merlin."I mean, it's been okay. It's nice here, more relaxing than Hogwarts."

Blaise sniffed. "You mean relaxing as in not having your family around?"

No, relaxing as in not having to worry about some troll whisperer."Yes."

Blaise nodded. "Do you think things will ever get better? You know, between you and your brothers."

"Maybe," Ron shrugged. "I'm just not sure I'm going to forgive them. I mean, not at first anyway. Maybe if they really properly apologise. But they're just… twats."

"What about Tracey and Daphne, have they been alright over the break? I haven't seen either of them yet. I really just got here, long enough to get some pumpkin juice before running into you. Thankfully, my mother wasn't invited."

If she had, I might have been tempted to explode her…

"Yeah, it's been good. But… uh… Blaise… Daphne's father asked me not to teach anyone to use any powerful spells. He says it's too dangerous, and I think I agree. I taught Daphne and Tracey, kind of, to do the disarming charm. I could teach you too if you want, but I think the exploding charm might be a bit too much."

Blaise narrowed his eyes uncharacteristically before letting out a single laugh. "It's alright, I mean, I want to be a great wizard Ron but not everyone can learn at the same pace."

"You're not angry?"

Blaise shrugged. "How could I be? You cast the spell once and then ended up in the infirmary for ages. If I were you I'd never want to cast it again. But, I'll still take you up on your offer of learning the disarming charm. Maybe once we get back to Hogwarts? It seems a little rude to do it right now."

Ron smiled at his friend. "Thank you, I was worried you'd be mad. I mean, you're the one who really wanted to learn anyway. The others just kind of joined in."

"What can I say? I'm full of good ideas. Speaking of, have you met Daphne's sister? She's supposed to be coming to Hogwarts next year right, what's she like? Is she going to be a problem? Full of bad ideas like Theo?"

Ron nodded shortly. "Astoria, her name's Astoria. And, uh, she's different alright. A bit loony if you ask me, but in a posh sort of way. Keeps calling me a bloody hero and stuff like that. And she likes to think of herself as a Princess."

"Ah, alright," Blaise nodded. "I think I get what you mean, a bit of a brat?"

Ron nodded, although he didn't want to come out and say the world plainly. The word felt wrong to him almost as if it had been kind of tainted by his experience at Hogwarts. Malfoy was a brat, but Astoria? Ron just thought of her as Daphne's sister… and embarrassingly, he couldn't help but associate her with princesses given how often she mentioned it.

"Yeah, but overall it's been a good time. She's fun to have around even if Daphne doesn't like it. She seems like a good sister, Daphne I mean, I think she sees Astoria in the same way I see Ginny," Ron added.

"Yeah… I've told you before, but I always wished I had siblings." Blaise shook his head. "Seems better than being so alone all of the time."

"You're not alone, I mean, you have me and Daphne and Tracey and probably even Theo. Although you probably don't want him."

"Yeah, but that's not really what I meant. I mean, I just spent Christmas almost entirely by myself. My mother invited me to come to Italy which is actually a demand if you didn't know, and then she hardly spends any time with me. It just sucks. Like I said, it wasn't bad, just a little lonely. I would have much preferred to stay here with the three of you. Even with Daphne's bratty sister."

"I would have rathered that too," Ron admitted. "Girls are… weird."

Blaise laughed again. "Definitely."

"Oh, there's something else I have for you. I really appreciated the gift you sent me, and I thought I'd get something for all of you as sort of a thank you. I know I didn't get you anything for Christmas, and well this is better than nothing," Ron said, shrugging. Blaise stared at him questioningly.

Ron reached into his pocket and revealed the small box of pins, the rows interrupted by three missing holes. "I've already given one to Tracey, Daphne, and Astoria," Ron explained, "So three have already been taken." He lifted the lid of the box and held them out for Blaise to examine.

"You shouldn't have gotten this for us," Blaise said mildly. "Too expensive."

Ron just shrugged and pushed the box closer towards him. With a sigh, Blaise reached down and plucked out one of the pins. The one he had chosen was on the larger side with a star-shaped gem embedded into the rattle of the snake. He inspected it in the glow of the purple light before pinning it to the collar of his robes, which Ron had noticed were rather expensive looking.

"And what about you?" Blaise asked. "We each get one and you don't?"

Ron shrugged. "I was going to let everyone else pick first, good thing to do isn't it?"

Blaise rolled his eyes. "And end up with the worst one? That's a terrible plan. I mean, how many people are going to give these out to? Not as special if everyone's wearing one."

"So you think I should choose one?"

"Yeah, or I'm going to take mine off, and I think that's a little rude. Don't you?"

Ron chuffed quickly and shook his head before looking down at the pins himself. Stupidly, he had never considered which one he would choose if given the chance. He opted for one of the larger ones like Blaise had done, choosing a rattlesnake that was coiled in a tight circle with a green gem in the middle. He too inspected it in the light before pinning it to his chest.

Blaise nodded at him, seemingly pleased. "Thanks, Ron."

Ron shrugged. "It's just a pin."

"I mean for not making me feel so alone."

- SS -

Ron stood with Blaise, Tracey, Daphne, and Astoria around the large pyre along with all of the other witches and wizards who had attended the party including Daphne's parents. The sky was dark as midnight approached, the stars having grown somewhat dull and lifeless under the effects of the purple light.

One of the wizards pointed his wand into the air and a large golden Roman numeral for five appeared in the sky, a second later switching to four, then three, two, and finally one.

The crowd erupted in joyous cheer and all around Ron wizards lifted their wands into the air spraying a rainbow of multicoloured sparks. The purple fyre rushed upwards towards the sky reaching impossibly high, possibly hundreds of meters. Ron watched in amazement, his eyes wide and filled with light. The entire sky seemed to glow purple for a moment, clouds vanishing and the stars sparkling more than they had ever done so before. The purple changed to a shade of white so that the entire grounds lit up as if it was the middle of the day and not night, a wave of heat washing over the crowd.

swallowed.