The Sunrise of My Heart

"He's been poisoned," Ginny said.
Those words were all it took. Grabbing tightly to her hand, I began running. She looked a little relieved that we were moving more quickly now, but her face was still filled with worry for her brother. Poisoned? Who would ever poison Ron? Not even most of the Slytherins here were asshole or stupid enough to try something like that. And it wasn't like he exactly went out of his way to piss them off. Sure, they might not like him, but they wouldn't poison him. Who the hell had poisoned my ginger??
When we got to the Hospital Wing, Harry was pacing anxiously outside the doors, agitatedly running his hands through his hair in a very James-esque fashion. "Harry," I said somewhat breathlessly. "What happened??"
He explained to us how Ron had taken love potion on accident, so Harry had taken him to Slughorn to get him fixed up. And when he had given Ron a pick-me-up of mead that he had been saving, there had been poison in it. Harry, thankfully, had thought to grab a bezoar from Slughorn's stocks and shove it down Ron's throat.
Ginny was very pale, and her hands were trembling, but she was standing tall and keeping on a brave face. Those Weasleys. Always fighting through their fear. They were truly admirable. I only hoped Ron could fight through whatever poison he had consumed. And Madame Pomfrey wasn't letting us in to see Ron. It was infuriating.
"One of us has to get in there," I said, opening the door a crack to peek in at Ron.
"Yeah, but how?" Ginny asked, leaning in behind me.
"I could hex one of you. Nothing too bad, just a really bloody nose or something."
"No, she'd fix that up in an instant and send us back out again," Harry said glumly.
"I've got an idea," I said. They both turned to look at me with hopeful faces. "Okay, I'm still emotionally distraught right?"
"Aren't you always?" Harry asked.
"Bite me, Malfoy," I snapped, because that was the kind of thing Draco would have said too. "The point is that if I have a nervous breakdown over my dear friend being frightfully wounded so soon after my mom dieing, I bet I can get in there and not get kicked out."
"It could work," Ginny said with a nod.
"And, I have this little spell I can do so I can send you guys messages and keep you updated. If you have any questions, just ask them to the mouse. He'll bring them to me and so forth. Like an owl, see? It'll make sense when I send the first update."
"Excellent. Just do it quickly," Harry said. "I want to know how he is."
Ginny nodded her agreement, looking at me with such large eyes.
I took a deep breath. "God, this is gonna be humiliating. But I have to make a scene or she won't think it's that big of a deal." Since Madame Pomfrey didn't yet know I was waiting around outside the Hospital Wing doors, I could pretend I had only just found out about Ron.
"Ready?" Harry asked.
I nodded, and then began yelling hysterically. "What do you mean, Ron's been poisoned?? Is he okay? I need to see him and make sure he's okay! I can't stand someone else not being okay! Not right now!" I forced myself to cry, wracking sobs shaking my whole body. "Please, just get out of my way so I can make sure he's okay. Everyone I care about is being injured and hurt. I can't stand it!"
"Riley, you can't go in there yet!" Harry said loudly.
"No! Get out of my way!" I could hear footsteps coming to the door, so I fell to my knees and clutched Harry's hands desperately. I even made myself hyperventilate just a little.
"What's going on here?" madame Pomfrey demanded, opening the doors and glaring at us.
"It's Riley," Ginny said, sounding worried. "She went totally bonkers when she heard about Ron. She's freaking out about another person close to her being attacked."
Madame Pomfrey gave me a sympathetic look and wrapped her arms around my shoulders, pulling me to my feet. "Come on, dear. I've got a tonic for you that'll calm you down, just like it did when you heard the news about your mum." She gave Harry and Ginny warning looks, making sure they didn't try to follow her in, and gently walked me to an empty bed. It wasn't close enough to Ron's, though. So I broke free from her grasp and ran to his bed. "Ron!" I gasped out, landing on my knees at his bedside and clutching his limp hand. "Ron, please wake up," I sobbed.
"Riley, you have to get into your own bed and let Ron recover. I'll let you stay in the bed next to his, but you have to promise not to bother him. All right?"
I sniffled and nodded tearfully, getting up and climbing into the bed closest to his. "All right, Madame Pomfrey. Thank you," I said weakly.
"Poor thing, losing your mum and then having a friend poisoned so soon afterwards. It's no wonder you're in bad shape right now. I'll just go and get that tonic for you." She walked off into her office to get it, so I took that opportunity to summon my little blue mouse and let harry and Ginny know that Ron was currently unconscious, but he didn't look too worse for wear, all things considered.
"Ron could be doing better, but situation does not seem critical," I said to the mouse. "Go tell Harry and Ginny." It scampered away to deliver my message, and I slipped my wand beneath my pillows for quick access should I need it.
"Here, dear," Madame Pomfrey said when she came back from her office, bottle of tonic in hand. "You look a bit better. Feeling calmer now you know he's not on his deathbed?"
I nodded, looking up at her with watery eyes. "A bit. But I still feel like my nerves have been electrocuted."
"It's to be expected. You've been dealing with a lot of stress lately. Come on, drink up so you can rest awhile." She handed me a capfull of the tonic, and I tipped it back into my mouth, pretending to swallow it. She smiled and set the bottle down on my bedside table before heading back to her office. "The professors will be coming in and out to check on Mr Weasley here, so you can take a second capfull if you think it's necessary to sleep."
I smiled and shook my head, closing my eyes drowsily and laying back against my pillows. She smiled at me one last time and left. Relieved, I turned and spit the tonic into a plant sitting by my bed. Then I used the aguamenti charm to rinse out my mouth. I did not intend to sleep while I was on guard duty.
"Hey, Ron," I said softly, "I know you're unconscious and probably can't hear me, but I hope you'll be okay. You look like you'll be fine. You're a Weasley, after all. And Weasleys survive. They fight. So now would be a good time to have a lot of family pride. I know sometimes you're embarrassed about your family not having money or status, but your family is one of the greatest families I've ever met in all my lives. Be proud to be one of them. Be strong like the rest of them. Make it through this."
It was probably just my imagination, but I thought I saw just the slightest smile on his lips. Just a twitch, really. But still, it gave me hope that he had heard me through his stupor and was holding on. I had faith in Madame Pomfrey's abilities, of course, but he just looked so frail in that hospital bed. It made me worry.
The hours passed slowly with me pretending to sleep anytime Madame Pomfrey or a professor would enter the room, and sending updates to Harry and Ginny to tell them what was being said about Ron's condition.
"What is Miss Carson doing in here?" Professor McGonagall asked when she came in and saw me laying in the bed next to Ron's.
"Nervous breakdown," Madame Pomfrey said sympathetically. "Poor thing couldn't handle the stress of hearing about Ron's condition so soon after losing her mother."
"A very good friend," Dumbledore said, "being so concerned about Mr Weasley here." I thought I noted a hint of humor in his voice. Could it be that he knew I was faking? I opened one eye just a slit to see if he was looking at me, and sure enough, I saw him give me a little wink. Bless that genius man.
Finally, around 8:00 p.m. Harry, Ginny, and Hermione (who had showed up sometime after I faked my hysterics) were allowed in to see Ron. Not ten minutes after, Fred and George were there.
"So, all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?" Fred asked, staring down at his brother.
"This isn't how we imagined handing over our present," George added grimly, setting down the large wrapped gift on Ron's bedside table. My present was also sitting there. Harry and Ginny had been kind enough to retrieve it for me since I had dropped it during my little performance in the hallway.
"Yeah, when we pictured the scene, he was conscious," Fred said.
"There we were in Hogsmeade, waiting to surprise him--" George started.
"You were in Hogsmeade?" Ginny interrupted.
"We were thinking of buying Zonko's. A Hogsmeade branch, you know, but a fat lot of good it'll do us if you lot aren't allowed out at weekends to buy our stuff anymore.... But never mind that now," Fred stated.
Fred and George asked Harry exactly how Ron had been poisoned, and Harry recounted the tale again. I was sure he was getting tired of it. He'd already told me and Ginny, then Hermione, then Madame Pomfrey, and then all of the professors as well. Plus he had probably told Ron's parents too. Still, Harry told them exactly what had happened.
"Do Mum and Dad know?" Fred asked Ginny.
"They've already seen him, they arrived an hour ago. They're in Dumbledore's office now, but they'll be back soon."
"So the poison was in the drink?" Fred asked quietly.
"Yes," Harry said, sounding completely sure of it. "Slughorn poured it out--"
"Would he have been able to slip something into Ron's glass without you seeing?"
"Probably," Harry admitted. "But why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?"
"No idea," Fred answered with a frown. "You don't think he could have mixed up the glasses by mistake? Meaning to get you?"
"Why would Slughorn want to poison Harry?" asked Ginny.
"I dunno," Fred answered, "but there must be loads of people who'd like to poison Harry, mustn't there? 'The Chosen One' and all that?"
"So you think Slughorn's a Death Eater?" said Ginny.
"Anything's possible," Fred responded darkly.
"He could be under the Imperious Curse," George suggested.
"Or he could be innocent," Ginny answered. "The poison could have been in the bottle, in which case it was probably meant for Slughorn himself."
"Who'd want to kill Slughorn?"
"There are a few people he's ticked off in his past," I said. "And besides, whether it was meant for him or not, he was definitely not the poisoner. He doesn't have it in him to do such actions. Why do you think he collects witches and wizards he thinks will be great, instead of just doing great things himself? He doesn't like to be a man of action. And he's not evil. He didn't poison Ron."
"Dumbledore reckons Voldemort wanted Slughorn on his side," said Harry with a slight nod. "Slughorn was in hiding for a year before he came to Hogwarts. And... And maybe Voldemort wants him out of the way, maybe he thinks he could be valuable to Dumbledore."
"but you said Slughorn had been planning to give that bottle to Dumbledore for Christmas," Ginny pointed out. "So the poisoner could have just as easily been have been after Dumbledore."
Hermione, who had remained silent during the entire time she was here, finally spoke up. "Then the poisoner didn't know Slughorn very well. Anyone who knew Slughorn would have known there was a good chance he'd keep something that tasty for himself."
"Er-my-nee," came a soft croak, startling us all. We all grew silent, watching Ron to see if he would do or say anything else. But after a few more incoherent mutterings, he grew silent again (minus his snoring). I frowned, trying to decipher what he had tried to say. It sounded like "hurt my knee," but I had a feeling it wasn't that. I glanced at Hermione from the corner of my eye, wondering if it had been her name he'd started to say.
Suddenly, the doors flew open and Hagrid strode in, complete with his giant crossbow and muddy footprints. We all jumped at first when the doors banged open, but relaxed again when we saw it was just the local friendly giant.
"Bin in the forest all day! Aragog's worse, I bin readin' to him. Didn't get up ter dinner till just now, an' then Professor Sprout told me abou' Ron! How is he?"
"Not bad," Harry answered. "They say he'll be okay."
They talked about how lucky Ron was to be alive, and who would ever want to kill him, and if his attack was connected to Katie Bell's. I listened silently, chewing absently on my bottom lip while I let my thoughts wander. Could the poison and the cursed necklace have been sent by...? No, not possible. I would not believe he was capable of such evils.
"You must be concentrating pretty hard there," George said to me, giving me a small smile. The others were still discussing who the potential attacker could be.
"Why do you say that?"
"You chew on your lip when you're trying to think."
I smiled softly at his attention to detail. There was a reason I had dated him so soon after my relationship with Draco ended. He was pretty much the perfect boyfriend. But don't worry, I'm not gonna spark that up again. Too much hassle. "I was just trying to think of who the poisoner's victim was supposed to be. I think it's pretty clear it wasn't Ron, so was it Slughorn, Dumbledore, or Harry?"
Once again, the doors opened, this time with Mr and Mrs Weasley quickly walking towards Ron's bed. Mrs Weasley grabbed Harry and pulled him into the world's tightest hug. "Dumbledore's told us how you saved him with the bezoar," she said with a sob. "Oh, Harry, what can we say? You saved Ginny... you saved Arthur... now you've saved Ron..."
"Don't be... I didn't..." Harry muttered, clearly feeling awkward.
"Half our family does seem to owe you their lives, now I stop to think about it," Mr Weasley said. "Well, all I can say is that it was a lucky day for the Weasleys when Ron decided to sit in your compartment on the Hogwarts Express, Harry."
Soon after this, Madame Pomfrey came out to remind everyone that only six visitors were allowed around Ron's bed, and since all of the visitors were there for him and not me (seeing as there wasn't actually anything wrong with me), two people had to clear off. Harry and Hermione opted to leave, and Hagrid followed them. This left the teary-eyed Weasley family, and me. Little bit awkward.
George, apparently noticing that I'd prefer to leave them all be, reached over and squeezed my hand in a friendly gesture. "So, why exactly are you in the Hospital Wing? You look fine to me." he asked.
I glanced up to make sure Madame Pomfrey wasn't within earshot. "Well, they wouldn't let us in for a long time. I just wanted to check on Ron, make sure he was okay, and that he wouldn't be alone if he happened to wake up. One of us had to go in and keep tabs on things. So I faked a mental breakdown."
The got the attention of Ron's parents and Fred too. "You faked a mental breakdown?" Mrs Weasley asked in shock.
"So instead of telling you to quit being crazy and to just bugger off, you got allowed in here?"
"Well, my mom... Beginning of January, my mom was killed... Not exactly grounds for a stable mental state. So, I pretended to completely freak out over Ron, sobbing, screaming, completely hysterical. She assumed I was just under too much emotional strain and let me in so I could rest. And that way, I could watch over Ron until the others were allowed in." There was an awkward silence at my words because no one wanted to be the first to speak after hearing about my dead mother.
But then, before I knew what was happening, Mrs Weasley had pulled me into a tight hug. "Thank you. You kept an eye on him all day long?"
"Harry, Hermione, and Ginny were worried. They needed someone on the inside to make sure he really was okay. And I had to be sure too. He's really important to me, like a favorite cousin or something."
"Our son truly is blessed with some wonderful friends," Mr Weasley said.
"Yeah, well, when you've been around as long as I have, you know how to pick the good ones. Usually. And Harry and I picked a great one in Ron. It just so happens that we're pretty awesome too."
"So what did you do the whole time you were watching him?" Fred asked.
"I talked to him when no one else was in the room. I don't know if he could hear me, but there was nothing else to do so I talked anyways."
"What did you talk about?" George asked.
"How he's a Weasley, and Weasleys are fighters and survivors, so he would make it out of this okay."
There was another awkward pause as all of the Weasleys in the room, minus Ron, stared at me silently. Most of them had light blushes around their cheeks and ears. Then, a teary-eyed Mrs Weasley hugged me again, much tighter this time.
"You really are a wonderful girl, Riley," she said. "Watching over our boy while he was alone, encouraging him to pull through, and praising our family all at the same time. We hardly deserve it."
"Of course you do. Your whole family is wonderful."
"Some of us more than others, though, right?" George asked with a wink, effectively adding humor to the atmosphere. Which it really needed.
"Yeah, she thinks I'm more wonderful than you, obviously. Git," Fred told George.
Trust those two to always make things funny. My goofy twins.