Harry Potter and the Prince of Slytherin

Chapter 6: Ron's Day

CHAPTER 6: Ron's Day

Just after nine o'clock, Harry and Percy returned to the Burrow. Harry had made a point of introducing Percy to Artemus Podmore, and the two actually compared a few "war stories" during their brief conversation, Artie having been a prefect himself during his Hogwarts days. When they passed through the Floo, Molly was there to greet them both with a late night snack. Ron was also reading on the couch, but almost immediately, he slammed his book closed and stalked up the stairs. Harry sighed and decided it was finally time for him to do something about Ron's hostility.

A bit later, Harry knocked softly on Ron's door.

"Who is it?" Ron asked.

"It's Harry. Can I come in for a second?"

There was a long pause before Ron finally opened the door. "What do you want?"

"Just to talk. I come in peace, I promise."

Ron didn't say anything. Instead, he left the door open as he went to lie down on his bed. Harry came in and looked around, closing the door behind him. He'd been joking with Snape about a room decorated in Gryffindor colors and Chudley posters, but apparently his words had been prophetic as they described Ron's room to a T. Harry sat down in a chair next to the door while Ron just stared up at the ceiling over his bed.

"Ron, I know you're ... not happy that I've been staying here. Honestly, it wasn't my preferred option either. Not that your family isn't wonderful. They are, and I'm honestly a bit jealous of you for having them. But I didn't have any other options, and I'm here for the rest of the week, so I'd really like for us to at least try to get along instead of feeling like you're mad at me for breathing too loudly or something. Now, have I actually done anything to you for you to dislike me as much as you do? Or is it still just that I'm in Slytherin? Because, you know, we did all team up to fight Voldemort just last month. I think that ought to earn me at least a little credit, don't you?"

Ron closed his eyes and was silent for a few seconds before he spoke. "We didn't fight ... You-Know-Who."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"We didn't. You fought him, and then Jim fought him and drove him off. In the meantime, Zabini and Nott freed the rest of us from our bonds, Neville nearly killed himself taking down the flame trap, Hermione was the one who figured out how Neville could take down the flame trap, and I ... stood around like a great useless lump. My best friend was fighting You-Know-Who, and I ran like a coward."

"Ron, you ran like a sensible person. I was trying to get Jim to follow your lead and run up the stairs when Voldemort blasted us. We were all First Years. None of us should have been trying to fight Quirrell, let alone Voldemort. You can't blame yourself for not fighting against a much more powerful enemy when the Boy-Who-Lived only beat him through some weird Dark-Lord-Slaying power that he doesn't even understand himself. And anyway, if that's what you're upset about, why are you taking it out on me?"

"Because you're the one flashing all your galleons with summer tutoring that my family couldn't afford in a million years!" Ron said hotly.

"Ah! Well, I am sorry about that. No, wait a minute! I'm not sorry at all! I spent ten years being treated like a house elf by a family of Muggles so awful that they make Draco Malfoy look like a Hufflepuff prefect! I'm not going to apologize to you or anyone else for finding out at the age of eleven that I'm not a penniless orphan but instead a trust fund baby who'd been abandoned by neglectful parents! Particularly not when I'm using that money to better myself instead of blowing it on Quidditch brooms and chocolate frogs!"