InsaneJournal

Who: Ron and Harry
When: Friday, April 9, after their class finishes at 3pm before the Ravenclaw practice.
Where: Quiddtich pitch, mostly.
What: Some boy time. They talk about life after school, whether they really want to be aurors, the women in their lives, and quidditch. There's a manly hug!
Rating: PG? Ron swears a teensy bit. He gets it from Lav.
Status: Finished!



Harry swung his broom up to rest against his shoulder as he and Ron made their way slowly toward the pitch. It was a great day to fly, with just a few puffy white clouds in the sky and only a hint of a breeze, and Harry figured Ron might need a good fly, just the two of them. Especially after the whole mess with Hermione before Easter. They'd already had a bit of a talk about it on Monday morning before they headed off to catch the train back to school, although Harry couldn't blame Ron for not being very talkative on the subject. He didn't press and he didn't argue when the subject was changed to easier topics, like whether or not Mrs. Weasley liked Lavender.

Now they were alone together again, and Harry had to wonder whether Ron would bring up Hermione this time or if they'd talk about other things. ...Hopefully Ron wouldn't mention how much extra time Harry had been spending with his sister lately. Harry was very much not ready to share with Ron what had happened Easter night.

"Anything in particular you want to work on?" Harry asked, nodding toward the pitch and glancing over at Ron. "Or are we just flying?"

"Let's just fly for now," Ron said as they walked down towards the pitch.

It was a nice day, and they had a bit of time before the Ravenclaw match, and Ron kind of wanted to just... not think for a little while. He didn't suppose he had the concentration to get in any decent training as keeper. At least one of his best mates was still talking to him, and that's more what Ron was in the mood to focus on than quidditch at the moment. He decided to put everything else out of his mind and just enjoy a bit of easy flying with Harry. Sounded like a pretty damn good way to spend the afternoon, so far as Ron was concerned.

They reached the pitch and Ron didn't hesitate to kick off. Harry could catch up, he knew. The day Ron learned to outfly Harry Potter was probably the same day Ron learned how to out fight George, Bill, and Charlie at the same time. Ron was pretty tall and in decent shape, but he'd long since accepted the fact that he was the youngest boy and his brothers would always be able to work together to squash him. Once he was done his auror training, he bet it'd be a different story, though.

"What do you reckon it'll be like when we get into auror training after school?" Ron asked when Harry drew level with him. Ron said 'when', because he didn't know what he'd do if he didn't get in. They'd already offered him a spot. They wouldn't change their minds just because Ron had gone back to Hogwards to finish his NEWTs, Ron didn't think. Unless he tanked his tests, of course.

Harry followed Ron's lead when they reached the pitch, mounting his broom and taking off after his friend. "...Don't rightly know," he replied, chewing the inside of his cheek and shrugging. "I reckon it'll be a bit like being here, only with different courses, yeah? Stealth and all that." Harry went quiet for a moment, gazing off across the pitch to try and wrangle together all the thoughts fluttering around in his head.

"...You're definitely going into training, then?" he finally asked. "You aren't just... sick of fighting?"

Ron considered those words. Sick of fighting. He'd never really thought about it before, but as soon as he paused even just for a moment to consider it, he realized he'd never been more sick of anything in his life than he was of fighting. He just wanted to be happy and he thought he would probably be okay with it if he never had to fight about anything ever again, personal or professional or otherwise.

"I am. But I mean. What else am I going to do? I'm not as brill as you on a broom. You'll probably get a hundred offers from a hundred teams the second you graduate. I haven't... I haven't got any other skills, you know?" Ron said, shrugging.

"That's rubbish," Harry told him bluntly. "Total rubbish. You could do anything." He sort of understood where Ron was coming from, of course. He had a handful of successful older brothers, and Harry knew he'd never felt like he was as good as any of them, but that was bollocks. "...You've kept me alive about a dozen different times. Maybe you ought to be a body guard. And you're a bloody brilliant chess player and you're always helping me draw out plays for Quidditch. You could work with some sort of logistics or strategy or something, yeah?"

Ron smiled a bit at Harry, but it was a sardonic smile, almost sarcastic and definitely self-deprecating. "I told Lav if I don't get in, I'll become a baker, since Mum taught me to cook and all."

Though he wasn't at all serious, there was a tiny, little, niggling part of Ron that kind of enjoyed baking. It was simple. It was easy. Plus, everyone liked food. Ron thought it might not be half bad, but it was pointless to consider. His brothers would laugh him out of the family if he said he wanted to bake for a living. It sounded stupid even to Ron, but it had been there in his head ever since he'd joked about it. Now, he put things like 'quidditch strategist' or 'play maker' or 'coach' in there too; they were all pipe dreams he couldn't imagine ever seeing the light of day.

"That'd be brilliant," Harry insisted. "Hell, with as much as the Dursleys made me cook for them, we could probably start a restaurant together." And now that the thought was in Harry's head, it was kind of an amazing one. Maybe a little cafe that served breakfast all day long; it was Harry's favorite meal to cook, and there were plenty of pastries that went along with breakfast. Scones, muffins, croissants... And there was the distinct lack of fighting in the restaurant business. There'd be competition, of course, but no threat of death or injury, other than a burn from the stove.

"...We should think about it," he said, completely serious.

"Wh... what?" Ron asked, and his eyes were wide as he looked at Harry. "Come on, are you taking the piss?"

It didn't seem possible that Harry might be serious, so Ron was sure Harry was just waiting to have a laugh at his expense. Of course, the more he thought about it, the more it sounded like a great idea. Greater than great, actually. Ron flew in a bit of a loop as he thought about it. It didn't seem like Harry was joking. Maybe he meant it. Maybe they'd open a restaurant and say sod the Ministry and leave them to clean up their own damn mess for once.

"I'm entirely serious," Harry replied, mirroring Ron's loop, just letting him think about it for a minute before speaking again. "...It's not like we have to make any sort of decision now. I mean, we still have school to get through and the NEWTs, and we'd have to do some research and learn how to actually, you know, run a business. ...But I really do mean it, Ron. We could do this. If you want to."

Ron pondered it, though he was momentarily distracted by the ease with which Harry kept up with him. He smiled and teased, "You sure you don't want to go pro?" After a brief pause, though, his face broke into a wide grin and he said, "If you mean it, though, that might be... I mean, it'd be brill, wouldn't it? Just you and me. I never would've thought of it, but I think it'd be wicked. A restaurant... I mean, at least that's less poufy than a bakery."

Harry snorted and shook his head. "I'll leave the professional flying to Ginny," he replied. He'd thought about playing professionally back in first year, maybe, but the game was about having fun to him, not about making a living. Cooking, though... He'd been doing that for as long as he could remember. And if they went through with this, he'd finally be getting paid for it.

"'Course I mean it," he told Ron, straightening up a little on his broomstick. "Wouldn't have said anything if I didn't."

Ron nodded slowly, then grinned at Harry. "It's kind of funny, you know. I mean, if we do this, we'll have strung ourselves out over a bunch of NEWT classes we didn't even need."

It wasn't really a funny thought. Ron, who had never really given a shit about classes before, was stressing himself out about doing well so he woudn't shut any doors for himself, but classes and homework were his biggest annoyances right now. They got in the way most of the things he wanted to do, and he was only doing them and working so hard on them because he thought he had no choice. He thought being an auror was the right thing. But now, he actually felt excited about what Harry had just suggested, and if they were actually going to do it, Ron thought he'd drop any class he could.

"Might as well still finish them, you know?" Harry said, shrugging. "Got this far. And if we finish, at least we have a back-up plan if the whole... bakery-cafe-restaurant doesn't work? Or if we get bored with it or whatever. You know? Just in case."

And then there was logic. Harry was right. It was better to keep as many options available as possible. Anyway, there were only a couple months of classes left. Ron could tough it out. Having another option did take a bit of the pressure off, though.

"Yeah, I reckon you're right. But I think we should give it a go, though," Ron said, drifting a little closer to Harry as they continued to talk. "The restaurant thing. Or café or bakery or whatever it is. Poufy or not."

It was more than just what it would be. It was something Ron and Harry could do together. Sure, the auror thing would've been together, but it wasn't the same, really. This was something they really work on together. Something they could create together. It would be a project that was completely unrelated to the sodding war that had taken his brother and so many others. It would be good, Ron thought.

"Let's do it," Harry said. He gave Ron a smile and held out his hand to shake on it. It was worth it even to just look into it. If they could actually pull it off... It'd be brilliant to work with Ron like this. Build something from the ground up, just the two of them. It'd be all theirs.

Ron nodded his agreement and shook Harry's hand, feeling really good about the future in that moment. He sat back on his broom, hanging on with one hand and letting his legs swing free. When he let go of Harry's hand, he ran the hand through his hair and tilted his face up to the sun.

"So. Lav and I looked at a couple of places last weekend, but she wants to wait until I've met her parents before we settle on anything. Guess I'll be at the Burrow for a bit after school. You will be too, right?" Ron asked, then his expression turned a bit sly. "Though, so will Gin. She'll probably keep you distracted most the summer, I reckon."

The blush climbed up Harry's cheeks before he could stop it, and he carefully avoided looking at Ron, just in case he could tell what had happened on Easter just from his eyes. "Yeah, well," he said awkwardly, clearing his throat. "...I'll be splitting my time between Andromeda and Teddy and the Burrow, yeah. And then, um. Then I think I'm getting a flat in Hogsmeade. You know. Until Gin's done with school."

"Hogsmeade? So you can be close to Gin, right?" Ron asked, squinting at the sun a bit as he did another loop, this time dipping down and then soaring back up again. At the very beginning, he'd been okay with the fact that it was Gin and Harry. At least Ron knew Harry was a good bloke; the best, really. Once it had gotten a little realer for Ron, it had been hard for him to adjust to seeing them snog and stuff. But Ron was pretty happy with Lav, and he loved her, and if Harry loved his sister and they seemed happy, then at least he could try to be supportive. "That's good of you, mate. It'll be hard for her with us all leaving."

Harry rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, shrugging. "...I want to be with her, you know?" he said simply. He didn't know if he could stand to live somewhere further away from her than Hogsmeade. "She... I really love her." He'd never cared for anyone the way he did for Ginny.

Ron looked at Harry for a sec, then said, "I'm glad, mate."

It wasn't much, maybe, but it was sincere. And it was a lot for Ron to be glad that his best mate was in love with his little sister. He knew what sorts of other feelings came along with love. He didn't really want to think about it, but he was in a good enough mood that it didn't really matter at the moment. He could just be happy for them and he didn't have to think about it enough to complicate it.

Harry gave Ron a small smile and nodded. "...That really means a lot," he said quietly. "I just... I'm in love with her. I want to spend as much of my life with her as she'll let me. And I'm just... really glad to have your support." It meant a hell of a lot to him that Ron could not only accept it but actually be glad for them, especially with everything that had been happening lately. But Harry supposed it had something to do with how happy Ron was with Lavender, and he was glad for his friend too.

"So things with Lavender are still great, yeah?" he asked, trying to steer the conversation away from himself so he didn't accidentally let anything slip that would get him killed.

Ron nodded, effectively distracted from the subject of Harry and Ginny if only because he didn't often get the opportunity to talk about Lavender with anyone, and then offered Harry a bit of a sheepish, smitten smile. His expression turned amused as he remembered his and Lav's row last night, and their making up after, and then admitted to Harry, "We got in a bit of a fight last night, but it turns out she wants to have a dozen of my ginger babies, so it worked out all right."

"Well, with that mop on your head, it's rather a given that you'll only have little gingers running around," Harry teased with a grin. "Fights happen sometimes, yeah. But I'm glad you've made up. And I'm really happy for you. Lavender's a brilliant girl."

"She is. She really is. And it wasn't... a fight like, you know, like me and Hermione fight. It was the sort of fight like I didn't have to wonder if she still gave a shit or..." Ron paused, and immediately regretted mentioning Hermione. "Never mind that. I just mean. Like, it feels like a permanent sort of thing, you know? Lav and I. It feels right. I'm scared shitless to meet her parents after school's out, but. But when I do I think I might ask her dad if I can--" Ron stopped then, feeling like a prat for saying anything. He looked at Harry self-consciously, wondering if Harry thought he was crazy or stupid or something, but Ron knew it was real. He felt it. He swallowed hard and then finished his sentence. "Marry her."

Harry froze, just staring at Ron for a moment before letting out all the air in his lungs with a 'whoosh'. "...Wow," he said quietly. "That... Wow." Married. Harry knew it was serious between them, of course he did, and it wasn't like he hadn't given any thought to what it'd be like to marry Ginny, but to actually be seriously thinking about it...

His heart twisted suddenly in his chest and he had to look away from Ron, blinking furiously as his eyes started to burn. This was really it. They weren't kids anymore. Not that they'd had much chance to be kids in the first place, but... They were talking about starting a business together, after they finished school, and Ron wanted to get married.

Harry coughed to clear his throat, pushing away the outright display of emotions before giving Ron a little smile. "...I'll be your best man, yeah?"

"'Course," Ron said, nerves giving way to a smile now. He'd half expected to hear Harry tell him he was insane or too young or that he and Lav had hardly been together long enough to be thinking about that, and Ron had half had a response ready in case he did, but he hadn't. He flew closer to Harry and punched him lightly in the shoulder, because Ron wasn't really the sort to go in for a hug even if he thought they could both use it, and that was really the only affection he knew how to show Harry. "Who else would I pick? You'll always be my best mate, Harry. But it's... it's wild, innit? Thinking about stuff like this? Who'd have thought, you know?"

"Not me," Harry replied, shaking his head with a little smirk. "...Never thought I'd live to see someone actually want to put up with you for the rest of their life." There. It was best to play it off with a joke, right? Right. Joking about it would stop things from getting over emotional. ...But Harry still wanted to grab Ron in a hug. They'd been best friends since they were eleven, and now they were about to go out into the real world, and Ron wanted to get married and...

"Sod it," Harry mumbled to himself, turning his broom around so he and Ron were facing in opposite directions and he could get a better angle when he leaned over to pull Ron into a tight, brief hug.

Ron let out a laugh when he realized Harry's 'sod it' was preamble to a hug, and after a brief moment of surprise, he managed to pat Harry on the back before he pulled away. He smirked at Harry after and teased, "Sap. And trust me. Lavender more than puts up with me. If you know what I mean."

The words were accompanied by a roguish quirk of Ron's eyebrows, but the attempt at a leer failed a bit when his cheeks tinted pink. Ron was nineteen, thinking about marriage, and joking about babies, but referencing sex, even to his his best mate, still made him blush. Lavender was going a long way to helping him be more confident in himself, though, and when he brushed a hand back through his thick, still un-trimmed hair, there was no real trace of embarrassment in his actions. He certainly didn't look at what he and Lav did with any sort of shame. It was bloody brilliant, so far as he was concerned.

Harry's cheeks burned a bit when he caught the meaning of Ron's words, letting out a little bark of laughter and shaking his head. "Right. I'm sure she does." He scrubbed a hand through his own hair, wondering, for a moment, if it'd be this easy to joke with Ron about sex when he found out - if he found out - that he'd... done things with Ginny. It wouldn't change their relationship that much, right? Ron wouldn't really kill him. They were best mates, after all. Being best mates had to trump killing him over having sex with his little sister. ...Right?

Ron couldn't help but laugh along with Harry, amused at Harry's blush even if Ron had worn one of his own as he'd said it. He just reached out and punched Harry fondly in the arm again, then took off towards the goal posts a few feet away, weaving in and out. He clearly considered the subject closed, since obviously Harry had no similar conquests to joke about. Obviously, and his mind wandered a bit as he manouevred himself around the goal posts.

"Hey, if you ever want someone to come with you, like, help to pick out a flat in Hogsmeade, let me know, yeah? It's good to have someone with you, like. Lav thought of a hundred things I didn't when we looked," Ron commented.

Harry flew lazily after Ron toward the posts, taking the time to push away the color in his cheeks. He wasn't going to think about what would happen if Ron found out, because he wasn't going to find out. So that was that.

He grinned a little at the offer to help him flat-shop, nodding. "That'd be brill. You could both come, yeah? I was going to ask Ginny if she wanted to help me look around a bit during the next Hogsmeade visit. You and Lav could come with us, and then we could stop in at the Three Broomsticks for a pint?" He'd also planned on meeting up with Hermione at some point, but he didn't need to bring that up now.


"Sounds a whole lot like a double date with my sister, is what it sounds like to me," Ron said, but he was smiling. He figured he was doing all right with it, considering how protective he was of Ginny. And he reckoned a lot of that was because Harry did indeed know just how Ron was with his little sister, so Harry was smart enough to keep displays of affection to a minimum in front of him, which Ron appreciated. "Suppose it'd be all right though."

"Not a double date," Harry insisted, returning the smile. "Just two best mates checking out flats and getting drinks with their girlfriends, one of which just happens to be one best mate's sister. Not a date of any kind." He'd even keep the affection with Ginny to a minimum while Ron was there, even though it was rather difficult to keep his hands off of her after Easter.

"C'mon. Let's grab a Quaffle and run a few drills before the Ravenclaw team comes out and kicks us out for their practice," he suggested, nodding toward the storage shed.

"Yeah, sure," Ron said agreeably, in response to both Harry's protest and his suggestion. It was better that it wasn't a double date, for one, and he knew he needed all the practice he could get, for two. Besides, Harry was about the only person Ron didn't worry about looking like a git in front of when it came to quidditch drills and things, and Ron really wanted to play better in their next games.

"And don't you go easy on me, either," Ron added as he took position in front of the centre hoop. "I want to win this weekend, yeah?"