Basilisk

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters or places etc. I am just borrowing them and fully intend to return them to their rightful owner… eventually. Song lyrics are from the Jon Bon Jovi song ‘All about lovin’ you’

Chapter Two: Irrational thoughts lead to bad decisions

“Well, there’s just three more shows and then the tours over, which also means you guys get a three month vacation, before you’re needed in the studio to lay down the tracks for your next album,” Ron yawned as the bands manager, Carl Tomlinson, told them of their schedule. “Tomorrow nights show is in Devon, you do have the night off, but I would appreciate it if you don’t get to drunk.”

Ron yawned again. It was 9.30am, a time that he considered to be far too early to be awake, especially when you had only gone to bed a mere 5 hours earlier. Luckily, he wasn’t the only one; both Seamus and Draco looked shattered. Ron looked at Harry, the boy had had the same amount of sleep as that rest of them, but still, some how, managed to look beautiful.

Ron quickly averted his eyes. He had to stop having these thoughts about Harry; the green-eyed singer was his best friend. However, lately Ron had been thinking of him in ways that were much more than just friendly. Ron had always known that Harry was good looking, but ever since Harry had mentioned that he was in love with someone, Ron had been noticing him more and more.

“…that’s all then guys enjoy you night off,” Carl finally finished talking and left the living compartment of the Basilisk tour bus.

“Did anyone listen to a word of that?” Draco said, looking around at his three band mates.

“I heard him say, have a good night off,” Seamus replied, causing Draco to roll his eyes.

“What a stupid time to call a meeting,” said Harry, as he yawned and stretched his hands above his head. Ron watched as the muscles on Harry’s chest became visible beneath the thin shirt he was wearing. Moving his eyes upwards, Ron gazed at the soft looking flesh of Harry’s neck, which became more exposed as Harry tilted his head back slightly as he stretched. Ron imagined running his tongue over the exposed flesh of Harry’s neck, tracing a path to the other boy’s earlobe. With a groan, Harry let his arms flop back down beside him, the action pulling Ron back into the room.

“So, is everyone still coming to The Burrow for dinner tonight? My mum’s expecting us,” Ron said, hoping the other guys hadn’t noticed his flushed face, or the fact that his pants had become tight around the groin area.

“Of course we’re coming. We wouldn’t miss your mum’s cooking for the world,” Draco replied to Ron. The band sat talking for another couple of minutes, before all deciding to head back to their beds.

~@~

It was three o’clock in the afternoon before Ron finally crawled out of bed, for the second time that day. Looking out of the tour bus window, he realised that they were now in Devon, Ron’s home town. He was looking forward to seeing his mum and some of the other members of the Weasley family. The band had been touring for the last two and a half months, so it had been a long time since Ron had last seen them.

Shuffling towards his dresser, Ron noticed a piece of paper lying on the floor near Harry’s empty bed. He plucked the paper up off the floor. Glancing over it he realised they were song lyrics, so he decided he would read them.

Looking at the pages of my life
Faded memories of me and you
Mistakes you know I’ve made a few
I took some shots and fell from time to time
Baby, you were there to pull me through
We’ve been around that block a time or two
I’m gonna lay it on the line
Ask me how we’ve come this far
The answer’s written in my eyes

[chorus:]
Every time I look at you, baby, I see something new
That takes me higher than before and makes me want you more
I don’t wanna sleep tonight, dreamin’s just a waste of time
When I look at what my life’s been comin’ to
I’m all about lovin’ you

I’ve lived, I’ve loved, I’ve lost, I’ve paid some dues, baby
We’ve been to hell and back again
Through it all you’re always my best friend
For all the words I didn’t say and all the things I didn’t do
Tonight I’m gonna find a way

[chorus:]
Every time I look at you, baby, I see something new
That takes me higher than before and makes me want you more
I don’t wanna sleep tonight, dreamin’s just a waste of time
When I look at what my life’s been comin’ to
I’m all about lovin’ you

You can take this world away
You’re everything I am
Just read the lines upon my face
I’m all about lovin’ you

[guitar solo]

[chorus:]
Every time I look at you, baby, I see something new
That takes me higher than before and makes me want you more
I don’t wanna sleep tonight, dreamin’s just a waste of time
When I look at what my life’s been comin’ to
I’m all about lovin’ you
All about lovin’ you

Ron stood, dumbstruck, staring at the lyrics, which were clearly written in Harry’s handwriting. He was gaping at the line, ’through it all you’re always my best friend’. He couldn’t…no, Harry couldn’t possibly… but it fitted. The more Ron stared at the words, the more everything made sense. All the blocks were starting to fall into place, the person was close to Harry, but didn’t love him the way he wanted them too. Ron couldn’t believe he hadn’t realised it before, no wonder Harry had gotten so angry with him. It had been staring him in the face the whole time; Harry loved Hermione. He felt his heart ache, both for himself and for Harry. For himself because he was staring to fall for Harry and for Harry because, he could relate to the pain of unrequited love.

He dropped the lyrics, watching as they floated towards the floor, landing silently by his feet. For a few moments, he just stood there gazing at the paper, unable to bring himself to move. He had known that Harry was in love with someone else, but now that he knew who it was, it hurt. Ron hadn’t admitted to himself yet that he loved Harry, but deep down he knew he did. The other boy was constantly on his mind, when he wasn’t with Harry, he was certainly thinking about him. Ron could feel his heart beating loudly in his chest, which was heaving due to the large amounts of air he was inhaling. He felt like crying, but the tears wouldn’t come. He felt like screaming, but he couldn’t move to open his mouth.

After what felt like an eternity had passed, Ron turned, climbed back into bed, and pulled the covers up over his head. He led, curled into a ball on his side, trying desperately not to think of anything, but his mind was against him. Thoughts of Harry floated around in his head, memories from their time at Hogwarts, the day they had started the band, the look on Harry’s face as they had signed the record deal, then he thought of the first time they had met on the Hogwarts Express. Eventually, Ron drifted off into a light sleep, a pool of tears beside him on the pillow.

~@~

Seamus had awoken Ron at half past five, giving him half an hour to get ready for the dinner at his parents house. Ron had been looking forward to the dinner earlier, now however, he would have rather stayed in bed. He was not looking forward to seeing Harry or Hermione for that matter. What would he say to them? He knew this wasn’t Hermione’s fault, as far as Ron was aware, she didn’t even know that Harry was in love with her. He knew this and yet, he still felt annoyed at her. Why did she get Harry’s love when he didn’t?

After quickly changing into a pair of faded blue jeans, a dark blue t-shirt sporting the bands name and a black zip-up hooded jacket, Ron met Hermione and the other three band members in the living compartment. Without saying a word he Apparated to the front door of The Burrow, the rest of his friends appearing beside him a few seconds later. Mrs Weasley greeted them all with a bone-crushing hug, then proceeded to scold them all for being to thin, telling them she had plenty of food cooking and there was enough for each of them to have seconds. She was mainly looking at Draco when commenting on eating seconds, she had always thought that boy was to thin.

Mrs Weasley returned to the kitchen, leaving the five youngsters in the living room. Ron gazed into the fire watching as the flames gently danced, while the others discussed what they planned to do during their vacation. Ron tuned out the voices of the other people in the room, instead concentrating on the soft crackling the fire was making. He knew they would soon realise something was wrong with him, he just hoped that they would have the sense to realise he wanted to be left alone and not bother him about it.

It wasn’t long before Mr Weasley joined them in the living room, having just returned home from work. Ginny arrived soon after, and she and Hermione quickly began catching up on gossip. The last to arrive were Fred and George, who claimed they were late because of a customer placing a very large order from their shop, Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes.

Just as Fred and George sat down, Mrs Weasley called, “Dinner’s ready,” from the kitchen. Ron heard both boys sigh in unison before standing again and following the others into the kitchen. Ron was the last to enter the kitchen and took a seat around the corner from his mother and next to Draco. Everyone one chatting amongst themselves, Seamus was talking to Mr Weasley, Draco to Fred and George, and Harry was deep in conversation with Ginny and Hermione. Ron felt a mix of sadness and jealousy well up inside him as he watched Harry laugh at something Hermione had said. He couldn’t take much more of this; he didn’t want to feel this way towards his two best friends.

“Ron, dear, is everything alright? You’re being awfully quiet,” his mother asked. She had a worried look upon her face, one that only a mother could have.

“What? Oh, yes mum, everything’s fine,” Ron replied, plastering a smile onto his face and hoping she would believe his lie. She gave him a sceptical look, but didn’t question him further. Ron was grateful for this, he loved his mother, but he really didn’t need her sympathy right now.

Ron went back to watching Harry talk to Ginny and Hermione. He didn’t want to sit there watching Harry, but he just couldn’t tear his eyes away. After a few minutes, Harry must have felt Ron’s stare, as the brown-haired boy looked up and caught Ron’s gaze. Ron immediately felt himself go red and quickly averted his eyes. He needed to get his mind off Harry; he really didn’t want his friendship with him affected by this. Maybe if he got himself a boyfriend, or even just laid, he’d be able to get over Harry.

As if she had been reading his mind, Mrs Weasley said, “So, have you not met any nice young men yet, Ronald?”

“No, mum, I haven’t,” he sighed.

“Such a shame, I thought you would have brought someone home to meet us by now. Come to think of though, one of your dad’s colleagues at work, his son has just come out, I bet you two would be perfect for each other,” replied Mrs Weasley.

Ron sighed again, he should have known this was coming; his mother was always trying to set him up with someone or other. In the past he had simply turned down the offer, claiming he was to busy. Now, however, he wasn’t to sure. Maybe he should let him mum set him up. He had nothing to lose and it may even help him get over Harry, he thought.

“What’s he called?” Ron asked. Mrs Weasley’s face lit up.

“Hunter Cannonbolt,” she said, adopting a big smile that went up to her eyes. Seeing his mum smile like that and knowing he caused it made Ron perk up a little.

“We finish the tour next week and then we have three months off, so I may as well let you set me up. Then if he’s awful, I can blame you,” Ron replied, with a teasing smile. His mother rolled her eyes at his utter lack of faith in her.

“Well, I’ll get in touch with him and give you a ring on that silly contraption you bought me,” she said.

Ron was about to reply with a sarcastic comment, but quickly held it back when he remembered his promise to Harry. Instead, he merely nodded at her.

All of a sudden, he felt someone’s eyes on him. Looking around the table, he noticed Harry’s head snap to another direction. Had Harry been looking at him?

The rest of the night went rather quickly. Ron spent the rest of dinner telling his mum about the places he had been to over the past few months and she told him about what the rest of his siblings were up to. Before leaving, Ron handed his mother an envelope containing tickets and back stage passes to the gig the next night. Ron knew that the band’s music wasn’t anything that his mother and father would usually listen to, but being the proud parents they were, they would happily sit through two and a half hours of torture, just to see their son doing something he loved. He hugged both his parents’ goodbye and, when the other four had finished saying their goodbyes, Apparated back to the tour bus.

~@~

The next day flew by, mainly because Ron spent the whole time sleeping, until he had to be up to get ready for the gig.

The show went well, except lately Harry had stopped giving Ron his dazzling smile when they finished their set. Things had become very hostile between Ron and Harry. In the week since Harry had told Ron about his love for someone, Ron had realised he was in love with his best friend, and said best friend had been giving him the cold shoulder, all because Ron hadn’t been able to guess right away who it was Harry loved.

Ron’s parents had come to the show, along with Fred, George and Ginny. The small Weasley clan had stood out somewhat, due to their strange dress sense. They had tried to dress as Muggles, but looked out of place in their bright colours. Ron had spent a bit more time with his family after the show, but had excused himself rather early, claiming that he was tired.

~@~

It was the 1p.m. on the day of the final show, when Ron was abruptly awoke by the piercing ring of his mobile phone. He blindly felt around his mini bedside cabinet, until he encountered the phone shaped object.

Without checking who was calling, Ron flipped open his phone and mumbled, “Hello.”

“RON, DEAR, IT’S MUM. CAN YOU HEAR ME?” Ron pull the phone away from his ear with a groan.

Replacing the mobile to his ear, he said, “Yes, mum, I can hear you. There really is no need to shout.”

“Sorry, Ronald, but I never know with these things if you can actually hear me on the other end,” she had lowered her voice, however, was still speaking in a louder than average tone.

“Anyway, dear, I got in touch with that boy, Hunter, I told you about, remember?” Mrs Weasley continued.

“Yes, mum, I remember,” he replied, as a yawn escaped from his lips.

“Good, well, you’re meeting him at a restaurant on Diagon Alley, called Laverne de Montmorency, at 6 o’clock next Saturday,” she said.

Ron sighed, he wasn’t sure if he actually still wanted to go on a blind date. He had been feeling depressed about Harry when he had agreed to the date; therefore, he had not been in the right state of mind to make such a decision.

“Mum, I’m nor sur…” click. Ron rolled his eyes, as the tone signalling the line had been cut began to blare out. Ron shut his cell phone and waited for it to ring again. This happened every time his mother called him and Ron was used to the scene by now.

*Ring, ring… Ring, ring*

Ron answered the phone, holding it a little away from his ear, he said, “Hi, mum.”

“CAN YOU HEAR ME, DEAR?” Mrs Weasley shouted.

“Yes, mum,” he replied, placing the hand set back at his ear.

“So, is 6 o’clock on Saturday okay for you, Ronald?” Mrs Weasley asked, in her slightly louder than average voice.

Ron sighed. He really wasn’t in the mood to have an argument with his mother and she would, undoubtedly, argue and lecture to him until he gave in and went on the date. He decided he would save her the bother, “Yes, mum, that times fine. Urm, how will I know who he is?”

“Well, you have a reservation, just ask the waiter and he’ll show you to the table and be sure to look nice, Ron. Don’t forget to brush your teeth and polish your shoes before you go,” his mum replied. Ron only half listened to the women ramble on for a few minutes before interrupting.

“Sorry, mum, I have to go rehearse. I’ll see you soon, okay? Love you, bye,” he said.
“Okay, bye dear. Love you too,” she replied, before Ron snapped his phone shut and collapsed back in his bed.

Ron stared over at Harry’s unmade bed, across the small alleyway of the tiny bus compartment. Harry always seemed to be up before Ron these days. The desire to just take the couple of steps to the other side of the room and climb into Harry’s bed was getting stronger, as Ron stared at the crumpled sheets. Harry may not be in the bed but at least it would smell of the dark-haired boy.

Just as Ron thought his desire was going to win out, the compartment door opened and Harry walked in. Harry hadn’t spoken to Ron properly for over a week and Ron hated the atmosphere that appeared whenever they were in the same room together. He wanted everything to go back to the way it was before.

“You’re awake early, aren’t you? It’s only 1.15,” Harry said, a small smirk on his lips. Ron looked up at Harry. The atmosphere was still tense but at least Harry was talking to him.

“Mum called,” Ron said, he wasn’t exactly sure what he should say to Harry. He hadn’t yet told Harry, that he knew that it was Hermione that he was in love with. He didn’t want to tell Harry either, he didn’t think he could say it out load.

“Is everything okay?” Harry asked. Ron watched as Harry bent over the bed to straighten out the sheets and immediately felt his cock stir at the million and one irrational thoughts that fleeted through his mind.

Ron coughed, clearing his throat, as he shifted his position to try to hide his growing bulge. “She was just confirming the time and day for that blind date she set me up on,” he said, hoping his voice didn’t sound too husky. Harry stopped making his bed and turned to face Ron.

“Oh,” he replied, his face suddenly taking on a sullen expression. Ron frowned, what was that all about?

“I hope that goes well for you,” Harry said, his voice sounding tiny. “I’ve got to…” Harry pointed to the door, before quickly making his exist.

Ron sat up in bed, staring at the door Harry had left through. That was weird, he thought. Harry had seemed almost upset that Ron was going out on a date. Maybe it was just because Harry was feeling down about Hermione not loving him back. Ron didn’t take his eyes off the door for a long while; he wanted Harry to come back, if only to just talk to him. He had missed Harry over the past week and a half; he wasn’t ready to loose his best friend, even if it meant he had to feel his heart ache every time he saw Harry.


TBC…

A/N: The name of the restaurant is from the famous witches and wizards cards, number 63. The witch or wizard (not sure if they are male or female) was the inventor of many love potions.