Hogwarts heirs

Chapter Five

For the second time in two days, Ron found himself in the Hospital Wing sitting by another person who was unconscious. This time though, instead of Hermione, the person was his sister, Ginny. He reached forward and grabbed her hand, rubbing his thumb lightly over her pale skin. He stared into her peaceful face, feeling a great weight settling into his chest.

Ginny was breathing softly at the moment. Her bright, long red hair contrasted sharply against her milky white skin and the starch white of the sheets. Her freckles stood out clearly on her skin. Her bright brown eyes were closed and Ron wished desperately that she would wake up. He had been told by a few people that had been in the corridor with her when she collapsed what had happened. Many of them were in the Gryffindor Common Room when Hermione had collapsed so the similarities between the two had not gone unnoticed.

Ginny had apparently been walking down to the Great Hall with a group of her fifth year friends when she had suddenly gone rigid and very pale. Before her friends could react, she had fallen to the floor, screaming and clutching her head like Hermione had done. A yellow light had surrounded her until finally vanishing and revealing an unconscious Ginny. One girl had noticed something that Ron found to be very odd; the image of a badger had briefly shown above Ginny before disappearing.

At first Ron had been confused but he quickly realized what the badger had meant. Ginny was the Heir to Helga Hufflepuff. He was in absolute disbelief at this. First Hermione, one of his greatest friends, had turned out to be the Heir of Rowena Ravenclaw, and now, his own sister was the Heir to Helga Hufflepuff. This was almost too much for Ron to comprehend and he didn't know whether to be slightly happy, filled with rage, or ready to cry.

The happiness came from the fact that his own sister was so powerful and obviously a great witch. She had been chosen by Helga Hufflepuff and was meant for great things. She was to join the other three Heirs in the hopes to stop Voldemort forever.

The rage came from the fact that Professor Dumbledore had kept this great secret for so long. He had hidden away so much information and only told them when the changes began to take place. Ron found this to be very unfair to the four who would be the Heirs. They had a right to know that they had been chosen even before they were born. What right had Dumbledore to keep their destiny hidden from them?

The sadness and the want to cry was stronger within Ron and was so for many more reasons. First of all, now he knew that someone very close to him, more likely than not someone in his family, was dead. The one Ginny loved most dearly had now been taken from her, how else would her powers be suddenly showing? Ron didn't even want to think about who it might be. He was thankful now that it wasn't him. Though he did know Ginny loved him, there had been a breach in their closeness ever since Ron had found friendship in Harry and Hermione. He had shoved Ginny to the side and they were only within the past year becoming closer. He was willing to die for Ginny but he needed to live for others as well, he needed to be here to help in the War.

The other thing that had Ron very sad at the moment, was the realization that he was not one of the Heirs now. Though he knew fully well that being one of the Heirs was extremely dangerous and would involve tedious training and the eventual meeting with Voldemort, the desire to be one of those chosen was deep within him. For another time in his life, Ron was again pushed to the back. He knew he was being childish in feeling this way but he couldn't help it, he was jealous. He wanted to be an Heir. He wanted to be one of those to save the world and who was looked upon by the rest of the wizarding world in awe. He wanted a little bit of the glory. He wanted to prove his skills as a wizard.

Ron sighed and felt a small tear run down his cheek. He felt completely useless. He had never done anything to prove himself alone. He was always Harry Potter's sidekick. Sure, he had helped a lot with many adventures and was recognized by a few but Harry had always been the one to receive most of the praise. For once in his life, Ron wanted something to be his. He wanted something to be remembered by. He wanted people to hear the name Ronald Weasley and say something instead of, "Oh yeah, Harry Potter's friend, right?"