Ron glared moodily down at the stone floor of the headmasters office. While all around the large circular room, dozens of odd silvery objects whirred while emitting little puffs of smoke. The portraits of past headmasters and headmistresses stared at the occupants of the room, some looking quite annoyed, others disapproving, and one even amused. Ron pointedly ignored Dumbledore who was sitting behind a large claw footed desk, his blue and silver hat sitting precariously atop his head. Ron had been standing still for the past fifteen minutes while his head of house spoke angrily to the headmaster. Snape and Barty interjecting every once in awhile. Umbridge however had been so quite that Ron had forgotten she was in the room. Ron stopped listening several minutes ago, his angry consuming all of his focus.
'This is all those slimy Slytherins faults.' Ron fumed silently, his hands clenching and unclenching subconsciously. Ron began to listen once more when he heard Dumbledore address him.
"What?" Ron asked without thinking. His brown eyes going wide when he realized he had just been caught not listening.
"Mr Weasley!" McGonagall barked. "Were you even listening?" Ron flinched when he saw the fury burning in his head of houses' eyes.
"Of course he wasn't," Snape sneered silkily. Ron had to bite his tongue to keep from speaking. Snape turned to the headmaster, his fathomless eyes glinting. Ron gulped, he knew that nothing good ever came from that look. "Mr. Weasley has been a problem since he arrived at this school, Albus. He is always stepping over the line, disrupting class and causing fights. He has sent students to the hospital wing on more than one occasion, every time aided by his," Snape paused, his lips pulling back to show off his teeth, "friends." Snape's eyes roamed over the three Gryffindors with disgust. Ron's fingernails dug into his palms. "These three boys should be expelled."
"What?" Ron, Dean and Seamus yelled simultaneously.
"That isn't fair!" Seamus exclaimed, his skin paling drastically.
"This is all the Slytherins fault!" Ron roared, his face redder than his hair. "They should be the ones who are expelled!"
"Silence!" McGonagall yelled. "You three boys are in enough trouble." The three Gryffindors fell silent. "Do not speak." She enunciated every word. Ron didn't even realize that he had been yelling so loud that he was now panting in order to catch his breath. "Albus," McGonagall said stiffly, "I agree with Severus that drastic action must be taken." Ron opened his mouth to speak but stopped when McGonagall raised her hand and looked at him sharply. Ron spun his head around to look at Dumbledore who looked much older than normal, and who was watching McGonagall, his hands steepled. "However expulsion at this point wouldn't solve the problem." Ron audibly released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. McGonagall turned sharp eyes to him. "Don't think that you aren't in trouble Mr. Weasley. You, along with Mr. Finnigan and Mr. Thomas have disappointed me more than any student ever has, and I taught the Marauders." Ron barely noticed Snape's lip quirk into a smirk for the smallest moment.
"What do you suggest then Minerva?" Snape asked quietly.
"I suggest that these three boys lose two hundred house points each and spend the rest of the school year in detention," McGonagall said, her tone hard. Ron felt his jaw drop open.
"That's it?" Snape demanded, his face looking as though it was carved from stone.
"I think that is fair," Dumbledore interjected. Ron looked at the headmaster and immediately wanted to crawl into a tiny ball. Disappointment was radiating off of the headmaster in waves.
"That's not-" Ron began. He saw Dean and Seamus both vigorously shaking their heads and he clamped his mouth shut.
"Very well," Snape spoke quietly. His tone colder than Ron had ever heard it. The Gryffindor refused to look in the Potion masters direction.
"I will also be writing to your parents to inform them of the situation," Dumbledore continued. Ron felt his stomach drop and he closed his eyes, his mother was going to kill him. He wanted to beg the headmaster not to write to his parents but he knew that no amount of begging would change the headmasters mind.
"Hem, hem," Ron's head snapped up and he turned towards where the annoying sound came from. Umbridge stepped forward, a twisted smile on her face as she adjusted her sickening pink cardigan. "If I may headmaster?" Ron grimaced as she spoke. "I don't think that is enough of a punishment in this circumstance. From what I've heard a situation like this one has happened before and the consequences were the same. Am I correct?"
"Yes," Snape answered. Ron didn't have to look at the Potions professor to see the smirk on his face.
"No, no, that just won't do," Umbridge spoke, an odd giggling sort of sound leaving her throat. Ron didn't notice that his nails dug even further into his skin. "If the punishment doesn't help these boys to see that what they are doing is wrong, the punishment needs to change. Not only should these three boys receive detention for the remainder of this school year. They should also lose five hundred points each, not two hundred." Ron choked on air. "It does not matter that we aren't even a week into the school year. A fifteen hundred point loss from their house might make them see that their actions have consequences. However, they should also be banned from Hogsmeade for the entire school year. As well as not being able to attend any quidditch game this school year." Ron could see Seamus gaping at Umbridge from the corner of his eye, and he knew he was doing the same. He loved quidditch, and he would make the Slytherins suffer if they got him banned from the games. "And, each of these boys should have to write a note of apology to the students that they attacked."
"No way!" Ron yelled. He had been waiting since his first year to be allowed to go to Hogsmeade. Umbridge's smile grew and Ron got an ominous feeling.
"Mr. Weasley doesn't even seem to be capable of keeping his temper," Umbridge shook her head condescendingly.
"I think Dolores' idea would be appropriate," Snape said with an inclination of his head.
'Greasy git.' Ron thought hatefully.
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Dumbledore sighed and closed his blue eyes. He had not been happy to hear about the events that had transpired between many of the third years. He knew that the three Gryffindors deserved to be punished, but he also thought there was more to the story. He highly doubted that the Slytherins hadn't done something to the Gryffindors prior to the incident. He knew that Harrison, Draco, and their friends weren't as innocent as everyone else thought they were. He got the same feeling around Harrison Riddle as he had gotten around a young Tom Riddle. He knew there was something that the boy was hiding but he didn't know what. However he knew that if he didn't severely punish the three Gryffindors that Dolores Umbridge would report so to the Minister of Magic.
Dumbledore hadn't wanted Dolores at the school but Lucius Malfoy had convinced the Board of Governors that it was best for the students. And with Cornelius Fudge backing the idea it was inevitable. He had never liked the woman, she was a racist pureblood bigot. He also knew that Lucius had a hidden agenda for why he wanted her at the school. However, Dumbledore had been too busy to give it much thought. Voldemort's death eaters were getting more and more violent and the Order of the Phoenix had recently taken heavy losses. To make matters worse the Board of Governors made him hire Barty Crouch Jr, someone he knew was a death eater. Of course, no one in the ministry would believe that Barty Crouch Jr worked for Voldemort. Dumbledore knew though, and he had told Snape to keep an eye on him. He was only thankful that he knew he could trust Remus. That was where the good news ended, Sirius Black had escaped and that made Dumbledore very worried. No one had ever escaped from Azkaban before, and he didn't know if Sirius had been reunited with Voldemort or not. According to Snape he hadn't, but that didn't mean he hadn't.
Dumbledore opened his eyes and observed the three Gryffindors in front of him. If he didn't go along with Dolores' ideas than he knew Lucius would go to the minister and the Daily Prophet. He had too much to worry about, including Nymphadora, a member of the Order who had recently gone missing. He didn't want to be so severe but he didn't appear to have a choice.
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"Very well." Ron took a step back as though he had been slapped, he hadn't thought Dumbledore would agree to all of that. "Misters Weasley, Finnigan and Thomas, please have your letters of apology written and delivered to all of those involved in todays altercation by Saturday morning." Ron was too busy trying to process everything that had happened to see Umbridge's triumphant smirk, or the look Snape and Barty exchanged.
'I'll make the Slytherins pay.' Ron thought as he looked at his two equally angry best friends. 'I'll make them pay when they least expect it.'