invisible string! → ron weasley

vii. the lies of the daily prophet

"He could have been lying—" Seamus tried, but she didn't even let him finish his thought.

"He wasn't," she snapped, her eyes narrowing, the fire growing. "He told me Voldemort was looking for spies in Hogwarts, and that if I assisted, then I could earn my own Dark Mark." She shuddered at the thought, and Seamus and Dean's eyes widened in unison. All of Seamus' anger was gone, at least temporarily. Kates was on the verge of tears, and her voice shook more than it had before, and not just with anger alone. "I told him I didn't want one, and you know what he said? He said that my decision would put me in danger. Explain that away any way you want, but it sounded like a threat to me." She paused and abruptly stood, throwing her bag over her shoulder. "Now did I see Voldemort personally? No, but I believe Harry, and Dumbledore, and I believe that the blood purists I'm forced to call family wouldn't celebrate unless there was cause."

"Kates—" tried Seamus, his voice much softer now. He and Dean both stood, but the gesture was in vain. Kates shook her head and rushed off without another word.

She kept her head down and walked at a brisk pace; Kates wasn't too prideful, but she still didn't want people to see her like that. Perhaps it was because she had her head down that, as she turned a corner, she crashed right into someone.

"I'm so sorry," she said hurriedly.

"Kates?" She had planned on leaving, but the sound of Ron's voice kept her there. Of course it had to be someone she knew, and of course out of all the people she knew it had to be Ron. She quickly wiped her eyes and met his gaze, offering a rather unconvincing smile.

"Ron, hey. Where, er, where are Harry and Hermione?"

"I expect Harry's off sulking somewhere, and Hermione's doing Prefect things, just like I'm supposed to be," he explained quickly, and she could tell her attempt at distracting him hadn't worked. "Are you all right?" The amount of genuine concern in his eyes brought up a strange but not entirely unwelcome feeling in her stomach, but she ignored it. She let her fake smile fall.

"I just had a row with Seamus," she admitted, for she could not in good conscience lie to him. He cared too much for her to give him anything but the truth. "I asked if he really believed all that stuff the Prophet's been saying, and he said he did. It's my own fault I'm so worked up, really. I told him why I left home so early this summer, every detail. I reckon I made him feel bad, but he had to know that this isn't just some hoax crafted by Harry and Dumbledore." She had been rambling, and she knew it. She would have apologized, but Ron's expression alone told her he didn't mind.

"Seamus is a right foul git," muttered Ron, shaking his head. He might have said more had Kates not spoken first.

"It's not his fault," she began sadly. "He believes what his mother tells him and doesn't want to think of her being wrong."

"You're being too nice to him," said Ron, though he now wore the faintest of fond smiles. "He doesn't deserve it."

"Oh trust me, I know," she said with a small, hollow laugh. "But he's one of my best friends, I can't give up on him. He'll come around sooner or later." And this time as she gave him a smile, it was a genuine (albeit small) one. The pair stood close, closer than Kates had thought until that very moment.

"Well, I'm glad you're all right," he said, his voice softer than before. When she replied, she matched his volume.

"Thank you, for caring."

"Of course." His words were now just above a whisper, and the pair stood like that a moment longer before the sound of rapid footsteps could be heard coming their way. They each took a step back from one another just as Dean rounded the corner, slowing to a stop once he saw them. Ron's face was bright red, and Kates' cheeks felt hot.

"Ron," he said, brows furrowed in mild surprise. "All right?"

"All right," he replied with a shrug. "You?"

"All right." They looked at each other a moment, then Ron excused himself and went back to patrolling the corridors. Dean turned to Kates.

"How's Seamus?" she asked before he could say a thing, and he shrugged.

"Honestly? I dunno. After you left, he said he hadn't meant to upset you. I, er, I snapped at him." He guiltily rubbed the back of his neck. "I told him that he's being a wanker and I left him there."

"You didn't have to—"

"I know," he said quickly, but his tone was even and decisive. "I know I didn't have to, but I wanted to. In time he'll see we're right, I reckon even sooner after what you told us. Er...I'm sorry, by the way. You shouldn't have had to deal with that. At home, I mean."

"Yeah, well, I'll be all right once people start taking this thing seriously." And with that the two friends went off, walking at a deliberate pace toward their next class and chatting as they went.

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