Chapter Twelve: Part Two
Bad Luck Rising

Ron looked at the note.

He read it.

Again.

Turned the page over, frantically.

Frowning.

Swallowing the lump in his throat.

Heart pounding in his chest.

Panic.

"HERMIONE!" He yelled, running up the stairs. He started knocking on the bathroom door until he felt the little metal lock click and the door opened.
"What?" Hermione asked, looking very sleepy.
He handed her the note, and she read it. "What... what is it?" she asked looking back up at him.
"I don't know," he replied, grabbing her hand and rushing down the stairs. He handed Hermione her coat and together they walked to the Burrow.

Molly was pacing from the kitchen to the front door, tissue balled up in her fist, worry set in stone on her face.
"Mum, what it is?" Ron asked, walking over to her.
"It's... oh it's your father," she said, tearing up. "He's just... rushed to.. Mungo's."
"What happened?"
Molly tried to compose herself, but failed. She sat on the arm chair and sobbed hard.

A small group of people entered the lounge room from the kitchen. Hermione and Ron looked up to see Harry, Ginny, George and Bill.
"Will somebody please tell me what happened?" Ron asked, frantically and starting to get frustrated.
"Dad just collapsed about two hours ago. Some healers came to see if they could treat him here but they couldn't so they apparated him to Mungo's," Harry explained.
Ron shook his head. What did they mean collapsed? "Just... collapsed? What from? What is wrong with him?"
Harry shrugged, "We haven't heard anything. We were waiting for you to get here before we went to Mungo's to ask about what happened."
At that very moment, an owl, beautiful and official looking, swooped in through the window. It perched on the coffee table, holding out its leg. Harry stepped forward to get the letter, and pulled some coins out of his pocket.

"The family of Mr. Weasley,

I am writing to let you know the patient is critical but stable, he is currently situated on the Third Floor after having been injected with a muscle paralyser by an unknown plant. The healers of this floor have removed the plant venom and the said patient is now being observed for complications of the venom.
You may visit, however we ask that you limit visitors to two at a time due to the patients critical condition.

Sincerely,
Head Healer, Bongo Houston"

There was a mixture of alarm and relaxation within the room. Harry, Ron and Hermione were relaxing at the news, however Molly, Ginny and George, who were there at the time, were more alarmed.
"Come on, mother, I'll take you to see him," Bill said. Everyone nodded their approval. They watched as they departed to Mungo's through the Floo network.
Ron sighed out loud, rubbing his face. He slumped down in the chair and felt the exhaustion run over him. Why was so much happening? The past two years had put a lot of stress on him. Dealing with Hermione's illness frightened him but he put on a brave face. Now, facing his father's health. He had no idea what kind of plant would have a muscle paralysing venom. Or what long-term effects the venom would actually have on his father.

Meanwhile, Hermione had snuck upstairs to the bathroom. She still felt high with panic as she thought about not seeing James for an entire month. She didn't feel this anxiety when the blood tests were moved to fortnightly, either. Frustrated, she stood up again and went downstairs to join the others. They were just sitting around waiting for Molly and Bill to return. She sat next to Ron and fell asleep on his shoulder.


Hours later, after the occupants in the lounge had all fallen asleep where they sat, Molly and Bill returned from the fire place. Molly was still sobbing, and even Bill looked like he was about to crack. They didn't attempt to keep quiet, not registering that everyone was sleeping right near them, which woke Ron and Harry.
"Mum, how is he?" Ron whispered.
"Oh, Ron. He's..." Molly couldn't get the words out.
"Not good, Ron. His body is still not recovering. They aren't sure if the venom was extracted quick enough, and they aren't entirely sure when it happened either so they aren't sure of how much damage the venom actually did. He's not breathing by himself, they've had to put charms on his body. And he isn't waking either."
Ron stood up quickly, unable to sit under the weight of everything normal being pulled from underneath him. He walked out the door and continued walking until he was right near the long grass. What had happened, why was he going through all of this? He felt like the tablets James gave him had stopped working. The woman of his life was sick, and now his father was sick. He was facing the unknown. Hermione - well, he had no idea if she would remain cancer-free. No idea whether the cancer would just appear again. No idea whether his father would open his eyes again. He sank to the ground, full of despair.