The Reckoning

Ron Weasley sat at his office desk with a quill in his right hand, poised over the blank piece of a parchment. He stared out the window longingly. It was one of those rare, perfect summer days: not too hot, sun shining, the sky a brilliant, nearly opalescent blue, a few cheerful, puffy clouds dotting the horizon.

It was two days since returning home from the office. Two whole days, that had felt like two months. If he'd known this was how it was going to be, being with Lavender Brown, he would have stayed at the office forever.

Because Ron was a virtual prisoner in the family house. He and his youngest daughter Mandy had not been able to venture ten feet outside the house since returning home. His Wife, her mother had snapped, when they'd both protested loudly at not being able to play Quidditch. Lavender had them confined to the house, and the only time they were allowed outside was to help de-gnome the garden.

Ron thought about Hermione and scowled. She is a wizard that is now considered by most, to be the wisest, most powerful wizard alive. Indeed, she is mentioned in the same breath as the only wizard the Dark Lord Voldemort had ever feared... Dumbledore. But now Ron felt nothing but powerful resentment for Hermione.

He'd had once dreamed of taking her hand and walking down the aisle a gleaming silver wedding band on their adjoining hands. He'd dreamed of his ex-girlfriend, Hermione Granger. Many times. More often than not she was in some state of undress; more often than not they were having sex, or about to have sex, or entwined in one another after just having had sex.

Ron shuddered. No matter how justified he'd felt, he couldn't quite get over the fact that he'd let her go... and now he was unhappy. But it was all too late. She had found someone new and he had a family. Worst of all he had been having dreams... almost every night he had been participating in horrible things.

'Bugger,' he muttered, and he tore his eyes away from the beckoning blue sky and looked down at his journal. He had to focus. None of the dreams he'd had so far seemed to be remotely significant-at least in terms of being helpful to anyone. But he'd dreamed of something last night, and when he woke up he knew it was important.

He'd dreamed he was a death eater again. Only this time, he'd dreamed he was standing in a crowd of dark wizards surrounding a small figure leaning over a broken body... the body of someone...

Who that someone was, Ron had no idea, but whoever it was, was a man. He was relatively young-no more than twenty-five perhaps. The man's face...Ron couldn't really picture the man's face, but his eyes...they were green. Ron couldn't remember. Maybe there was a figure crying over his body... but that was all.

'Focus,' he said aloud, and he returned to his letter and read over the entry, trying to remember if he'd missed something. Then another thing occurred to Ron. How, in his first year, when they'd gone after the Philosopher's Stone, he'd taken up the position of knight on that giant chessboard. Wasn't he ment to be more in this life... He slammed the diary shut, and stood up abruptly from the desk. If he didn't get outside soon-and not just to de-gnome the bloody garden-he'd go stark raving mad.

It didn't make sense. None of it made sense. He hadn't realized it at the time, but in hindsight, some of his dreams had indeed come true in real life. But since that night Order meeting room, Ron couldn't imagine, excepting that git "Percy Jackson". He'd much rather have her back in his life. He knew hoped she could be. He'd only been Hermione's first... and second and third time. He'd wanted to be with her like that since the day they first kissed, on the boys' staircase in Gryffindor tower-perhaps even before that. He often wondered why he'd broken it off with Hermione, Lavender was great but he loved Hermione, and more than wanting her, he wanted her to want him. He knew it was selfish. It had taken no small amount of self-control on his part, when he found out about her lover, he'd been a gentleman. But Hermione loved him and he knew even with Lavender she would come around.

He couldn't wait to have Hermione all wrapped up around him and fitting up against him so perfectly like she did. He smiled, without thinking. He tended to do that, when he thought about her.

She was the same girl he'd always known: bossy, stubborn, fussy, brilliant, driven, loyal, protective, nurturing, maddening. But she wasn't anyone else's. She was his girl. She drove him crazy, the way she looked when she had her nose buried in a book and her expression was serious as her eyes danced over the words on the page, and the way her cheeks flushed when she was embarrassed, or angry, or after they'd kissed long and hard. There were things she said, and did, and a certain way she smiled, that was just for him, and it made him go weak in the knees and set his heart pounding.

Two days away from her, and he could hardly stand it.

For Ron to be stuck inside, tired and cranky and sexually frustrated. It wasn't right! Hermione was out there with that guy... doing Merlin knows what. Ron rubbed his tired eyes and stood up, just as a knock sounded on his door.

'Come in,' he called.

'Hey,' said a female voice behind him, as his door creaked open.

It was Ginny.

'Hey,' said Ron, not bothering to hide his sullen tone.

'Lavender said she couldn't find you last night,' Ginny said, looking disgruntled.

'What are you talking about,' Ron said then a glazed look crossed his eyes. 'Don't worry about it, Gin, Auro business.'

'Ron whats wrong? You haven't been your self lately. The other night at the order... and..' she began but he interrupted her shortly.

He held up his hand. 'Sorry.' He didn't mean it, and he looked at his younger sister. She was dressed, her long hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She looked healthy as always.

Ginny couldn't help studying him, she wished he would confess about how he really felt. But she knew he wouldn't.

'Ginny, quit studying me,' said Ron, putting his hand under his chin. 'I'm fine, okay?'

'Was I that obvious?' said Ginny, looking down at her feet, distressed.

'Trust me, little sis,' said Ron, and his lips curled into an affectionate smile. 'Subtlety is not in your vocabulary.'

Ginny pursed her lips; she looked as though she was trying to keep from biting Ron's head off. 'Ok,' she said firmly, after taking a deep breath.

'Okay,' said Ron, nodding. He turned and headed for his tiny closet, to pull out something to wear for the day's wedding; he thought Ginny would leave, but after a moment of rifling through an unkempt pile of clothes on the closet shelf, he felt her gaze on his back.

'What?' he said, turning to face her.

'Ron...' she began. She'd been trying to get him to talk to her, even for a few minutes, about everything. But he always pushed her away. "Ron, I couldn't help seeing how you attacked Per..."

'I don't want to talk about it, Gin!' he yelled. 'I'm dealing with it.'

'Okay,' Ginny said again, at once. And the subject died.

'See you downstairs,' said Ginny, and she left the room.

Ron sighed and began to dress, and his stomach rumbled. At least his appetite was still normal, meaning that it was huge. Lavender could be a right taskmaster about chores, but she did feed her family well.

Four hours later at the wedding

Ron looked down miserably at his shoes. Only a few hours ago he was moping about being stuck in the house. Now the only thing he could think of was 'Hermione was with him' Harry was being helpful watching the surroundings, keeping a eye out for any death eaters. Unaware of the weight on his conscientiousness.

Pulling out his wand he sent a stunning spell at his best friend for eleven years. He needed the wonder boy out of the way, if they were going to do this right.