"That's... that's ridiculous! I was with..."
"Yeah, Hermione, we all know that by now. I should have guessed when you'd rather sit there doing nothing than play some chess, but..."
"We were practicing Occlumency! We explained it to you, but you didn't want to try it!" shouted Harry.
"And after Moody decided to take you guys on you don't even bother to hang around any more. Shows how much you care if you'd make some excuse to talk to Loony than help me with my homework..." Ron was venting without regard for what Harry was trying to say to him. Harry, still trying to placate his friend, was interrupted by Hermione.
"Silencio!" The silencing spell instantly shut Ron up, and Hermione stared daggers into his eyes. "Now you listen here, you stupid little git, you were the one who decided not to practice Occlumency with us and you were the one who decided not to train with Moody. You abandoned us, and now you're complaining that I'm not writing your essays for you like I used to? You have no idea what friendship is, do you, you jealous prat? Harry would have gladly spotted you some money if you asked nicely, he would have helped you try to get your name into the cup like he helped the twins if he knew how, and he'd still be your friend if you trusted him at all. But you didn't, and both Neville and Luna are being far better friends than you are." Without bothering to remove the silencing spell from Ron, she grabbed Harry by the arm, and said, "Come on, Harry. I don't think I can stop with one spell if he's in my face any longer."
The rest of the day wasn't much better- unfortunately for them, they had potions and transfiguration, and in both classes they were seated right beside Ron. Harry spent most of it trying to make amends with Ron, but Hermione pulled him back each time. At the end of the day, they asked for a completely private room from the Room of Requirement.
"We can't spend our lives fixing his mistakes for him, Harry," she said with a determined look. "Let him figure it out himself for once."
"Hermione... maybe he can have a second chance..." Harry hated seeing her so distressed and angry.
"I am giving him a second chance, Harry. If he comes and apologizes himself, then I'd be willing to forgive him. If he doesn't, though, I'm not holding his hand and guiding him. I'm not going to... I mean, I can't... um... I need to confess something," said Hermione, looking down at her shoes.
"You haven't done anything wrong, have you?"
"I just need you to listen to my perspective."
"On what? Ron? Um... alright." They both sat down, while Harry watched Hermione expectantly.
"You remember how we first became friends?" Hermione asked quietly.
"How could I forget? We fought off the troll when you were in the bathroom..." Harry grinned.
"But you remember why I was there in the first place?"
"Err... you were crying... because Ron insulted you..."
"I've always had my doubts about him, Harry. He's a lot nicer when you're around, but do you have any idea what he says behind your back?"
"Behind my back? He would never..."
"He used to brag about being friends with you, the one and only Harry Potter. He's held on to you because he wants to be rich and famous, too. I guess after three years of our 'adventures' he's starting to realize that being your friend isn't a free ticket to fame and fortune."
"He does that? I just don't see him using me like..." Harry had never seen this side of Ron... well, not until recently at least.
"He's used me, Harry. You have no idea what it's like. Do you know what it's like to have him practically demand that I help him with his homework, no matter how busy I am? He acted like it was his right to have me fix up his horrid essays, and then he has the audacity to complain when I tell him to get his work done before the last minute."
Harry stayed silent. He knew that Ron went to Hermione for homework help far more often than he did, and Ron was certainly a procrastinator. He had never known how hard it was on Hermione. He was confused by what Hermione was explaining to him. He didn't want to lose Ron because the little redhead on the train was the first friend he'd made, but he was starting to realize that perhaps he was just clinging on to Ron out of some kind of sentimental value.
"Why would he blow up now?" Harry asked, shaking his head. "He's certainly gained a lot of fame from what we've done together..."
"Harry, he's never really been known outside these walls as anything more than Harry Potter's friend. Nobody knew about the philosopher's stone in first year except us and a few staff members sworn to secrecy. In second year everyone knew you had saved Ginny's life, not Ron. And in third year, he got a little glory when everyone thought Sirius attacked him, but that's it. And at the end of the year you how he was telling the story to everyone who was in earshot, but that just made him better-known among the students at best."
"But how's this any different? We both know that odd things just keep happening to me all the time."
"Because this time you'll be famous outside of Hogwarts! You'll be making the papers! And not just the Daily Prophet, either, Harry. There's reporters from around Europe to cover this event. You were famous as the Boy-Who-Lived in Britain, but for the rest of the world you were little more than a storybook character. Now you'll be an actual international celebrity. Ron hasn't got a chance of sharing that glory with you."
Harry sighed. "I've told him that I never wanted this fame..."
"But he does," Hermione said. "I guess he figures that you should just hand it over to him, somehow, but you haven't. But you don't remember the details of the past three loops we did with the original beacon, do you?"
"What? No, those memories are practically gone. I can't remember anything except what we specifically sent back to ourselves with occlumency. Do you remember something about Ron?"
"No, it's just a feeling... but I'm pretty sure that he did this every time. And I don't think he ever tried apologizing, either. This is probably his fourth chance and we just don't remember it."
For the remainder of the week, Ron remained distant, spending his time with other people. He especially seemed to be trying to make friends with the Hufflepuffs, who were rightfully angry that Harry was stealing some of Cedric's thunder. Hermione made sure that Harry didn't cave and try to make up with Ron, as she made it abundantly clear that Ron was the one who was wrong, so he would have to be the one to make it up to them. Unfortunately, he didn't make any indication all week that he was even thinking about it.
On the Friday of the wand weighing, Harry was with Hermione in their Runes class when a tournament official knocked on the door. Although she didn't make a habit of reading tabloids, she did know exactly what kinds of 'reporters' worked for them and found a few sample articles for Harry. Thankfully, Harry was already somewhat familiar with the concept of paparazzi, having cleaned and sorted his aunt Petunia's stacks of The Daily Mail every week in his childhood. He never really understood the reason why people wanted to know exactly what some famous person was wearing while suntanning on a beach halfway around the world. Hermione had to remind him that this time, he was that famous person.
Right before he left, Hermione kept giving him last-minute tips. "Don't bother answering any question you're not comfortable with. In fact, just say 'no comment' to all their questions if you feel like it. Just stand and smile, don't try anything dramatic. Most of all, stay calm and keep your temper in check! Every one of them is probably trying to get a rise out of you so they'll have something scandalous to write about."
.
.
.
🎉The novel is available in PDF, visit us in our Ko-Fi store🎉
🎉ko-fi.com/madarasama125🎉