Happier with you- Charlie Weasley

HBP 11

Before Rory knew it, it was March and there was no change in the weather except that it became windy as well as wet. A lot of the student were walking around looking quite glum because of their next trip into Hogsmeade being cancelled. Katie Bell still hadn't returned to the school and was currently still in St. Mungo's.

It was on Ron's birthday that he was rushed to the hospital wing by Harry after being poisoned. Luckily Harry had known to give him a bezoar quickly.

"all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?" Fred said from beside Rory, his arm around her shoulder as she leaned into him. It was evening; the hospital wing was quiet, the windows curtained, the lamps lit. Ron's was the only occupied bed. Harry, Hermione, and Ginny were sitting around him; they had spent all day waiting outside the double doors, trying to see inside whenever somebody went in or out. Madam Pomfrey had only let them enter at eight o'clock. Fred and George had arrived at ten past.

"This isn't how we imagined handing over our present," George said grimly, putting down a large wrapped gift on Ron's bedside cabinet and sitting beside Ginny.

"Yeah, when we pictured the scene, he was conscious," Fred said. "There we were in Hogsmeade, waiting to surprise him" George said.

"You were in Hogsmeade?" Ginny asked, looking up.

"We were thinking of buying Zonko's," Fred said gloomily. "A Hogsmeade branch, you know, but a fat lot of good it'll do us if you lot aren't allowed out at weekends to buy our stuff anymore. But never mind that now." He drew up a chair beside Harry and looked at Ron's pale face. "How exactly did it happen, Harry?" Harry retold the story he had already recounted, it felt like a hundred times to Dumbledore, to McGonagall, to Madam Pomfrey and Rory when he arrived in the hospital wing, to Hermione, and to Ginny.

"and then I got the bezoar down his throat and his breathing eased up a bit, Slughorn ran for help, McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey turned up, and they brought Ron up here. They reckon he'll be all right. Madam Pomfrey says he'll have to stay here a week or so keep taking essence of rue"

"Blimey, it was lucky you thought of a bezoar," George said in a low voice.

"Lucky there was one in the room," Harry said. Hermione gave an almost inaudible sniff.

"Do Mum and Dad know?" Fred asked Ginny.

"They've already seen him, they arrived an hour ago they're in Dumbledore's office now, but they'll be back soon." There was a pause while they all watched Ron mumble a little in his sleep.

"So the poison was in the drink?" Fred said quietly.

"Yes," Harry said at once. "Slughorn poured it out"

"Would he have been able to slip something into Ron's glass without you seeing?"

"Probably," Harry said, "but why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?"

"No idea," Fred said, frowning. "You don't think he could have mixed up the glasses by mistake? Meaning to get you?"

"Why would Slughorn want to poison Harry?" Ginny asked.

"I dunno," Fred said, "but there must be loads of people who'd like to poison Harry, mustn't there? 'The Chosen One' and all that?"

"So you think Slughorn's a Death Eater?" Ginny said.

"Anything's possible," Fred said darkly.

"He could be under the Imperius Curse," George said.

"Or he could be innocent," Ginny said. "The poison could have been in the bottle, in which case it was probably meant for Slughorn himself."