Dawn Rivera

Elf Tails

"So, all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?" says Fred.

It is evening; the hospital wing is quiet, the windows curtained, the lanterns lit. Ron's is the only occupied bed. Harry, Danny, Hermione, Ginny, Misty and I are sitting around him; we spent all day waiting outside the double doors, trying to see inside whenever somebody goes in or out. Madam Pomfrey has only just let us enter at eight o'clock. Fred and George arrived at ten past. Earlier today, I told Zacharias what I did. He was upset, but to my surprise he understood, said he just wants me to be happy, but told me he would never stop fighting for me. This, if possible, probably makes me feel worse. I think I'd prefer him to be angry.

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

"Yeah, when we pictured the scene, he was conscious," says Fred.

"There we were in Hogsmeade, waiting to surprise him - " says George.

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

"We were thinking of buying Zonko's," says Fred gloomily. "A Hogsmeade branch, you know, but a fat lot of good it'll do us if you lot are going allowed out at weekends to buy our stuff any more...but never mind that now."

He draws up a chair between Harry and Danny and looks at Ron's pale face.

"How exactly did it happen, Harry and Danny?"

Harry and Danny retell the story they have already recounted to Dumbledore, to McGonagall, to Madam Pomfrey, to Hermione and I and to Ginny and Misty.

"...and then we 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," Harry says. "They reckon he'll be all right. Madam Pomfrey says he'll have to stay here a week or so...keep talking Essence of Rue..."

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

"Lucky there was one in the room," says Danny.

Hermione gives an almost inaudible sniff. We have both been exceptionally quiet all day. Having hurtled, white-faced up to Harry and Danny outside the hospital wing and demanded to know what happened, we have taken almost no part in Harry, Danny, Ginny and Misty's obsessive discussion about how Ron was poisoned, but merely stood beside them, Hermione clench-jawed and frightened-looking, until at last we were allowed in to see him.

"Do Mum and Dad know?" Fred asks Ginny and Misty.

"They've already seen him, they arrived an hour ago - they're in Dumbledore's office now, but they'll be back soon..." Misty says.

There is a pause while we all watch Ron mumble a little in his sleep.

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

"Yes," says Harry. "Slughorn poured it out - "

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

"Probably," says Danny, "but why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?"

"No idea," says Fred, frowning. "You dog thunk he could have mixed up the glasses by mistake? Meaning to get Harry?"

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

"I dunno," says Fred, "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?" says Misty.

"Any thing's possible," says Fred darkly.

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