Meet Me At The Black Lake ; Ron Weasley

chapter 9

   TW: there will be talk of self-harm in this chapter

   Sometimes Willow has off days.  She wakes up and she can't feel anything.  Her mind is clouded and she can't pull herself out of bed to go through her daily tasks.  On these days, Willow doesn't feel hunger.  She doesn't feel happy, sad or confused.  She just feels tired.

   Monday is one of those days.  Her alarm rings at 8:00am like usual, and she hits the snooze button.  She observes as the other girls around her slowly wake up and get ready, then leave for breakfast at nine.  Willow has no intention of moving. 

   Willow's father had people in high places.  After Isabella's murder, he had talked to professor Mcgonagall, arranging that Willow could miss class any day she felt unwell as her trauma has affected her greatly.  Most students would use this to an advantage, but Willow never did.  She felt like it was using her sister's death to get out of class.

   "Willow?" she was pulled out of her slumber by a faint voice.

   Willow opened her eyes, and saw Hermione in front of her, concerned. The clock read 3:00pm.

   "Where were you today? Classes are over," Hermione asked.

   "I didn't feel well," Willow replied, not wanting to get into this right now. She was tired.

   "Are you alright? What's so bad that you had to miss class?" Hermione was getting more concerned by the minute. Madam Pomfrey was able to cure almost every muggle illness in minutes.

   "I'm fine," Willow said sternly.

   "Okay," Hermione said, and left the room.

* * *

   Willow decided to eat dinner. Even if she wasn't hungry, she knew her body needed food. She made her way down the stairs and met her friends in the great hall.

   "Willow!" Ron said, smiling. Willow flashed a small smile back, although it was the last thing she felt like doing.

   She walked over and took a seat, scooping some potatoes and a bit of salad onto her plate. The group could sense something was off. They didn't question her.

   "Want to go hang out in the common room?" Ron asked once everyone was done eating.

   "I think I'm just going to go back up to my dorm and relax," Willow replied. She was tired.

   "Alright, see you tomorrow then," Ron said, defeated. The other three left and Willow dragged herself down to the dungeons.

* * *

   It's 11:47pm on a Friday when Willow hears shuffling outside of her dorm. She pulls herself out of bed and wanders over to peer out the door. She sees Ron making a fool of himself trying to signal to her from outside of the dorms, since he can't go in. His face lights up at the sight of her. Willow rolls her eyes, even though she can feel her heart glowing.

   "What on earth are you doing?" Willow whispers, making her way over to Ron.

   "Hey," Ron says quietly, reaching over to tuck one of Willow's loose curls behind her ear.

   "Hey," she replies and leans in to fit her lips against Ron's.

   Willow feels good.

   "Grab a coat, let's go out."

* * *

   Ron and Willow went down to the black lake. It was getting warmer outside, so even though it was late, the two were comfortable in just coats. Ron lay down, staring up at the stars. Willow lay her head on his chest. Comfortable silence stretched in the air.