Always the Sidekick

Chapter 14

"Happy Birthday," the Gryffindor Common Room sang. Ron wasn't in a celebratory mood. Sure seventeen was a huge milestone, especially in the wizard world. But he didn't feel any different.

Ron looked at the orange levitating cake. Someone had bewitched it so the Chudly Cannon's players were chasing each other across the frosting. It was a nice gesture, Ron thought.

He had returned recently from a weekend home. It was Bill's funeral. It was one of the saddest things Ron had ever seen, but, to his bewilderment, he couldn't feel sad. He wanted to. He saw his mother sobbing uncontrollably into her husband. Charlie had his arm around his new girlfriend, the Muggle waitress from the pub they were at over the summer. Fleur Delacour looked lost. She had tears silently flowing down her cheeks, and Ron so badly wanted to go to her and comfort her, but he couldn't bring himself to move. He just stared at the ground.

The funeral was a traditional Wizard funeral. They took the Wizard's robes and placed them on an altar where a spell was placed on them. It was an ancient belief that by placing a spell on the robes it would protect the wizard in the afterlife. Then the body of the wizard was burned and placed in a special urn that was kept in a tomb owned by the family.

Just a day before the funeral there was a knock on the door at the Burrow. Ron and Ginny had come home for the weekend, a practice that was becoming all too common in Ron's opinion. Molly walked to the door, her face stained with tears. She had assumed it was another wizarding family offering their sympathies and help. But when she opened the door she saw a bespeckled red haired boy looking back at her.

"Hullo, Mum," he said sadly. Before any more words could be spoken Molly pulled Percy into a bone-crushing hug. She'd lost enough sons. Finally one had come back.

"Make a wish," Ginny said to Ron. He looked at the cake and closed his eyes. I wish this whole year could start over. No, I wish these past two years could start over, he thought. He opened his eyes and sealed the wish. He knew the moment he made it, however, that it wasn't going to come true.

~~~*~~~

"So you're of age now," Mina said. They were walking hand in hand on the Hogwarts grounds. The weather was unusually warm for this time in March.

Ron smiled at her. "Yeah, but it's not like it really matters much does it?" He loved times like these. He seemed to be able to get lost in another world when he was with Mina.

"Well, it will this summer. You can hex your brothers," she said, then stopped and looked at him. "I'm sorry, I forgot." She was sincere about it.

"It's okay, really." Ron replied. He shook his head and they started walking again.

"You sure? You don't look okay?" Mina's violet eyes scanned his face.

"I don't know what's wrong with me. Sometimes I feel like I'm losing my mind." He felt more comfortable telling Mina this than anyone else. In fact, since he left St. Mungos, he felt more comfortable around Mina than anyone else. He relished in the afternoons they got to spend together.

"I'm sure you aren't losing your mind," Mina sympathized. "You've been through so much in the past few months. It doesn't seem right." She gave a crooked smile and leaned into him.

~~*~~

There wasn't much on Ron's mind when he opened the door to his dormitory that night after dinner. But as soon as he entered his mind became flooded became flooded.

Harry was sitting on his bed, his hand intertwined in some delicate female hands. Ron closed his eyes and started to close the door. The last thing he wanted to see was Harry and his sister in a private moment. But it wasn't his sister whose hand was clasped in Harry's.

"Hermione," he said breathlessly.

Hermione looked at him, concern and pain in her eyes. "Ron," she started to say.

Ron just stood there. He wasn't sure what he should feel, but he knew this confirmed his worst fear. But why would this matter? He was with Mina.

He glanced at their hands and then back at Hermione, who suddenly seemed to realize it could be seen as more then just a friendly gesture. She let go of Harry's hand. And started to walk toward him. He felt nothing but anger toward her. He turned to leave.

"Don't," Hermione begged. "We've been so worried, Ron." Her voice was soft and gentle. "You haven't been yourself since coming back from St. Mungos."

He eyed her. Then snarled, "I wouldn't expect you to care. I would just hope you wouldn't move on to Harry. He's got enough to be getting on with."

"No," Hermione's eyes got big. "Harry is my friend. How can you even think there would ever be anything more?" Ron didn't say anything. Why was he being so inconsiderate to her? He couldn't tell. What he wanted was the old days. When the three of them sat in the Common Room studying together. Or in Hogsmeade buying sweets in Honeydukes. It all seemed different now.

Hermione opened her mouth once more to speak, but nothing came out. She turned on her heel and was gone a minute later.

"Ron, mate, she really needs to talk to you." Harry said, noticing the longing look in his eyes when she left the room

"It looks like she really needed to talk to you. Should I just go to the library to study?" The words spilled out of his mouth like he had no control over them.

Harry gave Ron a disgusted look. If the tables were turned, Ron would probably be doing the same to Harry. But it didn't matter. Ron had a girlfriend. And it wasn't Hermione.

Without saying another word Harry left the dormitory. Ron made sure he was down the stairs before he closed the door and slammed his book down on his nightstand. It wasn't that long ago that it was Ron's hand in hers. His lips on hers. He closed his eyes and tried to picture it. He drifted into sleep.

~~*~~

"Apparition is not something to be taken lightly," Professor McGonagall looked sternly at Ron. "As your head of house, it is my duty to teach you how to do this. However, you certainly do not have to get your Apparition license. It can be dangerous."

Ron tried to pay attention. His mind kept going back to the night before. He'd met Mina in the Muggle Studies classroom. They hadn't said much before Mina moved in and started kissing him. It was innocent and playful at first. But it grew into something deeper.

It seemed Mina had an idea where she wanted this to go. She moved her hands inside Ron's robes and he gasped as her fingers met his bare skin. He started to pull away.

"It's okay," she said into his lips.

He gave in and let her take control over him. He wasn't occupied with the fact she seemed to know what she was doing, or that she seemed to be in a hurry, like she wanted this to be over with. All Ron, a seventeen-year-old boy knew, was that she was making him feel more intense pleasure then he could ever imagine.

"Oh my God," Harry said later in their dormitory. Ron came back looking pale and nervous. Obviously Harry caught on. He asked Ron what happened and Ron told him. "What was it like?" Harry asked, a smirk creeping to his face.

"It was awkward," Ron said truthfully. He didn't say anymore. He didn't tell Harry that after it was all over they had just lain there uncomfortably. He didn't tell him that when he walked her back to her Common Room and said, "I'll come by tomorrow," that he was thinking he never really wanted to see her again.

Harry looked at him for a moment then sighed and closed his bed curtains. Ron sat up in his bed thinking about everything that happened with Mina. It was well after three in the morning when he fell asleep, his dreams filled with cold laughs of joy.

"Weasley? Are you paying attention?" McGonagall asked sternly.

Ron came out of his memory and looked blankly at McGonagall. "Yes, Ma'am." He said softly.

"This is important. If you do it wrong you could end up with body parts all over the world."

"Yes, Ma'am. Sorry," Ron said again. He really did want to know this. It would make his life much easier. Especially over the summer. Maybe he could Apparate to see Mina.

"It seems simple. All you have to do is think of the location or the place you wish to appear, but it's not so easy. You must be clear of all thought." Professor McGonagall closed her eyes and a moment later a crack told Ron she had gone. Seconds later she re appeared. "Like so. Now, you can practice only under my supervision and you may only practice in specified areas in the castle. Here is the map of the areas you can Apparate. Notice they are all abandoned classrooms and I will know if you do this unauthorized, Weasley. There are spells in those rooms to let me know if anyone has Apparated. Now, pick a room."

Ron looked over the map. He noticed that the Muggle Studies classroom was on the list. Maybe he should choose that room. Maybe it would help him feel more comfortable with what happened with Mina last night.

He noticed that this map was quite like the Marauder's Map. It had dots to show if people were in rooms, but the dots didn't tell who the people were. There were no secret passages like those on the Marauder's Map either. Perhaps this is where the Marauders got the idea.

"The Muggle Studies classroom," he said quietly. He felt odd saying it, like now McGonagall would know what he and Mina had done.

"All right then," she nodded toward the parchment. "Now, clear your mind and think only of the Muggle Studies classroom."

It was silent in the room. Ron couldn't even hear breathing. He found it hard to clear his mind, but after a moment he thought only of the classroom he was in last night. And before he could realize exactly what happened he felt his feel leave the ground and a moment later they touched ground again.

He opened his eyes and looked around the room. It was dark and smelled like burning rubber. His mind went back to last night. To Mina. To her fingers running down his spine. Her hands on him. Her face in concentration. He felt himself becoming embarrassed by the whole situation. Even more so when he heard a crack and Professor McGonagall was beside him.

"Very good Weasley," she said. "Can you go back to the Transfiguration classroom now?"

Ron cleared his mind again and a moment later he was back in McGonagall's classroom.

"So, how did it go?" Harry asked as Ron entered the Common Room. Hermione sat across from him, her eyes never leaving her parchment. Had Harry told her about him and Mina?

"It wasn't bad. I think it'll be something I can do," Ron said. He looked at Hermione. She still didn't look up. "You all right, Hermione?"

"Hmm," she said, still not looking at him. "I'm fine." Her voice was higher than normal. Ron's eyes shot to Harry. Harry swallowed and looked puzzled.

"I think I'll head up to bed then," Ron said. This time Hermione did look up.

"Have you heard from Mina today?" She asked.

This stopped Ron in his tracks. Hermione hadn't brought Mina up in months. "Not really. She's been busy with studies too you know." Why did he feel defensive? He didn't have to justify anything to Hermione. Mina was his girlfriend. But something in Hermione's brown eyes made his chest hitch.

"She found me after dinner. Just after you left for your Apparition lesson. Said she wanted to talk to you about last night. Gave me this," Hermione shoved a piece of parchment into his hand.

"What does it say?" He asked, then realized that was a stupid question.

"How would I know? I didn't read it," she said with a snarl. Then she picked up her books and left the Common Room.

"Did you tell her?" Ron was staring at the stairs to the girls' dormitory where Hermione had just left.

"I didn't mate. But she guesses something happened. I wasn't going to lie to her. She asked if you two had," Harry blushed a bit, "you know, done anything more then kissing and stuff."

"And you told her?" Ron shouted.

"I'm not going to lie to her, Ron. I don't want to put more of a strain on our friendship then is already there." Harry couldn't look at him. His eyes concentrated on Ron's feet.

"Well, thanks a lot, Harry. I guess I shouldn't have told you at all, should I?" And Ron stalked off up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.

The last two months of school were the hardest ones in Ron's life. After that night in the Common Room, Hermione hadn't talked to him. He was still angry at Harry but couldn't ignore him so easily. They were partners in every class and in Quidditch. And he had to admit that he missed their adventures together. But it seemed like when he was with Mina none of that mattered. It seemed like when he was with her his mind was hers.

Mina and Ron had spent as much time together as possible in the last two months of school. Ron didn't care about the glares he got from Hermione or the questioning expressions he got from Harry or his sister. He loved being with Mina. He loved spending time with her. He loved every part of her. But something inside him told him he couldn't love her.

Ron and Mina entered the Prefects bathroom on the night before they were to leave school. Her hand was wrapped gently in his. "So, I take the Apparition test next week in Hogsmeade. After that I can Apparate to your uncle's house whenever you want me to." He smiled at her, but was unable to finish his thought when her mouth was on his. Her hands moved over his body, searching for something. And she found it. Ron gasped into her mouth and then led her to the floor of the bathroom.

It was taking them several minutes to get robes off, and then hands roamed over underclothes. It wasn't until someone shrieked and a door slammed that Ron was able to gain his thoughts back. He turned his head and saw bushy brown hair just before the door shut. Hermione? What was she doing in the boys' Prefects bathroom? Ron sat up.

"What is it?" Mina asked.

She could be so daft sometimes, Ron thought. How did she ever make it into Ravenclaw? "I'm not sure this is the best idea," Ron said.

"Don't worry, they won't come back," Mina's hand was on his chest, creeping lower.

Ron stood up. "No, I think maybe we shouldn't do this. At least not tonight." He looked at her. She looked furious. "We'll have all summer, Mina." He tried to make his voice sound normal. He wanted to talk to Hermione. He wanted to explain to her what she'd seen. But what would he say? Yeah, we were about to do it, but since you walked in we aren't now? That wouldn't make her feel any better, Ron thought. He looked at Mina again. She still sat on the floor, her robes in a pile next to her.

"Get dressed, I'll walk you back to your dormitory," Ron said. He was a little annoyed that she wasn't seeing eye to eye on this. If it was her friend that had just walked in on them she wouldn't still be on the floor. But, he thought, she doesn't have any other friends.

She gathered her robes, threw Ron his, and they left the bathroom not touching. Not talking. Not feeling anything.

~~~*~~~

"What were you doing?" Ron shouted at Hermione when he saw her sitting in the Common Room. She jumped up, like she wanted to run to her dormitory.

"I heard noises, I thought someone was in trouble." She sounded embarrassed.

"So you just walk into the boys Prefect bathroom?"

"I knocked, several times. But nobody answered. And then I heard..." she stopped, looking even more embarrassed. "Then I heard moaning," she whispered.

Ron turned scarlet. She had knocked? Ron hadn't heard. But then he was a bit distracted. He didn't say anything else. Hermione had tears forming in her eyes and turned. This time she did go up to her dormitory. And Ron didn't stop her.

The train ride back to London the next day was different from any one Ron had ever taken. Harry, Ginny and Hermione were in a compartment in the back of the train with Neville and Luna. Ron started out in that compartment with them, but when Mina came looking for him and Luna wouldn't stop giving her nasty glances, Ron decided they needed to leave. However, there were no more empty compartments. Ron and Mina stood in an opening at the front of the train. They didn't speak, at least not about anything important. And they didn't touch. It was the longest two hours of Ron's life. When he finally saw Kings Cross station come into view he breathed an audible sigh of relief.

"We should get our things," he said. She smiled slightly and turned, following Ron back to the compartment where everyone else sat.

"I think it's fishy," Harry said, then broke off when Ron came in. He knew they were talking about him. He took a seat at by the door and next to Ginny and pulled Mina down on his lap. The rest of the ride was silent, awkward. Hermione wouldn't look at anyone. Ginny would occasionally lean into him, but it seemed to be an accident. Harry would sometimes peek out of the corner of his eye at Ron but never made eye contact, and he turned away immediately if he thought Ron noticed. Ron was glad when the train finally stopped and they started shuffling out. He was alone in the compartment with Mina.

"Have you got your things?" He asked, just then realizing she hadn't stopped in another compartment to get her things.

"They're up front. I'll get them on the way out," she said quietly.

Ron gently helped her off his lap and stood up. He grabbed his trunk and reached for the doorknob.

Mina stopped him. Her violet eyes seemed to be hiding something.

"Ron, I think that this summer we shouldn't restrict ourselves on simply being with each other."

Ron wasn't sure he understood. "What?" He asked, feeling stupid.

"I think that if, you know, you find someone else you fancy over the summer you should go out with her. You know. But just for the summer." She seemed nervous.

"Oh," Ron said. He wasn't sure how to take this. Was she telling him she was seeing someone else? Or that she wanted him to see someone else? Did Hermione have anything to do with this? "Yeah, okay." She was looking at him concerned.

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Yeah. Sure. Sounds fine." It didn't, but he didn't want to tell her that. The idea of someone else being with Mina made his blood boil.

She leaned in and captured his lips in a fierce kiss, then left the train. Ron stood alone in the compartment and watched her meet Luna's father and Luna just inside the barrier. His heart ached.

END OF PART II

Coming soon....Part III Unfogging the Present