A/N: Enjoy the second and last chapter.

Chapter 2: Being Harry Potter

"What!? Are you joking right now?"

Ron just knew he was being fooled. It must have been some kind of stupid joke, supposed to make him forgive Harry. But when he looked at Harry now, or at least, the person he thought was Harry, his blond hair almost seemed natural on him. And he did seem older now.

"No Ron, this is not some kind of joke. I suggest that we should go to Headmaster Dumbledore to set things straight. Like I said, he is the one who thought this plan up."

"I didn't believe it either, Ron. But then 'Harry' told me about his real identity. He called himself 'Proudfoot'. Supposedly he is an auror, assigned on duty to protect you. To be sure, I checked his story, and to convince, he even told me his training, quite detailed. I'm positive this is Proudfoot."

"That is correct. I am Proudfoot, auror of the DMLE. A little over 4 yours ago, my task began to protect Harry Potter in Hogwarts itself. Dumbledore was aware that he wouldn't be there to protect you all the time, so he called in a favor from the auror department."

The confused look on Ron's face told Hermione and Proudfoot that he had trouble processing this new information.

"I…eh…wha…are…What?" was all that came out of his mouth.

"I get it, it's a lot to process, but I suggest we go to Headmaster Dumbledore for the full story. And I suggest we do so now, because curfew is coming closer."

Taking Ron's silence as confirming, Proudfoot dragged him out of the Common Room, towards the Headmaster's office.

When they reached the gargoyle guarding the entrance to the office, Proudfoot spoke the password "Ice Mice", to which the gargoyle responded by spiraling the staircase upwards. Proudfoot pushed Ron on one of the stairs, then stepped on one close behind him. They only had to climb a few more when the staircase came to a halt to reach the office. Proudfoot knocked on the door.

"Come in."

When Dumbledore saw who entered, a smile crept on his face.

"Ah, auror Proudfoot, and Mr. Potter, welcome. I suppose you told Mr. Potter some parts already, auror Proudfoot?"

"Yes. I told him the basics of your plan, and my identity of course."

"Are you sure this isn't some kind of joke?" Ron seemed to have gained his speech back. "I c-can't be Harry P-potter, right?"

Dumbledore sighed.

"Allow me to explain. After your parents, the Potters I mean, were killed, I thought it would be best if you were to be raised in a wizard family where you wouldn't be spoiled, so you wouldn't turn out to be a spoiled, famous brat. I selected the Weasleys, because they were a loving family, and they would be able to teach you the most important parts of life without having much money. And you turned into a fine young man, I must say. They raised you like their own son, and, knowing Mrs. Weasley, you will always be a son to her. When you were nearing the age to go to Hogwarts, I had to go into my plan a little further. People would expect Harry Potter to show up, after all. So I called in a favor from the DMLE, to have them lend me an auror to pose as Harry Potter." Dumbledore gestured at Proudfoot.

"I was ordered to befriend you, so I could be by your side every day to guard you, but also to hold the projection of Harry Potter." Proudfoot continued.

"B-but what about all our adventures? The troll in first year? The Philosopher's Stone? The Chamber of Secrets? The night we met Sirius Black?"

"I used some of these events to test you, to see how you would react in certain situations, as example the troll, or me sneaking out to Hogsmeade during third year." Proudfoot explained.

"Other events," Dumbledore went on, "like the Stone and Chamber, were situations were auror Proudfoot felt the need to save the school. His hero complex is one of the factors which got him through the auror training with excellent remarks. And I remember him as quite the troublemaker when he went to school." Dumbledore said with a smirk.

"And finally, the Sirius Black situation, well, we were kind of dragged into that one, weren't we?"

"Moving on, all of your family knew about this. All your brothers and your sister, and of course your parents. You can contact your family members at home after we finish our conversation, if you would like to do so."

"For the rest of the year, I suppose it would be best if we were to trade places. I would disguise myself as Ron Weasley, while you take your true identity as Harry Potter. We will do this to avoid confusion in the school. At the end of the year, we will be reviewing if I am needed for the next few years." Proudfoot concluded.

"But what about the Triwizard Tournament? Didn't you enter?"

"As said before, I didn't enter Harry Potter. Someone else did. That was a huge disadvantage being Harry Potter. People want you dead, because of what happened to You-Know-Who."

"Very well, I would imagine you would want to talk to the Weasleys. Allow me to Floo call them."

After an emotional talk to the Weasley parents, Ron, or rather Harry, turned around to see that Proudfoot looked just like him, or rather, Ron Weasley. Dumbledore then waved his wand, and now he looked just like Harry Potter, or rather, himself. (A/N: Sorry for the confusion.)

"I would suggest you use the next few days to adjust to your new life, Mr. Potter. I would also advise you to have a talk with those who used to be your siblings. I would like to say goodnight now, as curfew will be effective in a few minutes. Sleep well."

And that's what Harry did. The next few days he spent to adjust to his new life. The only ones who knew were the Weasley siblings, Ron/Proudfoot, and Hermione. Dumbledore had promised to fill in the teacher when it would deem absolutely necessary.

A few days later, on Monday evening, Ron/Proudfoot asked Harry how his new life was.

"It's all right, I guess. I mean, it's quite hard to accept that everyone is against me now, with all those badges and stuff. It almost seems as if they hate me. And Snape fixating on me also isn't the best part. But at least I have a lot of money now, so I ordered some tickets for a Chudley Cannons Quidditch Match in the Christmas Break. I was amazed they even play Quidditch so close to Christmas. It's also great to own a Firebolt now. I've used nearly all my free time flying around."

"That's great. And is it hard to respond to the right name in class?"

"I got used to it a lot quicker than I thought I would. It's kinda strange, but at the same time, it's not."

"Have you thought about the First Task yet? What are you planning on doing?"

Harry's face lit up with an enthusiastic smile.

"I've been living towards the First Task for days. I mean, it is so cool to compete with my hero, Krum. And if I win, I will get a lot of money and eternal glory."

"Right. On the First Task by the way, Hagrid wanted to see you. He asked if you could come to his cabin tonight, right after curfew. And he said you should bring your Invisibility Cloak."

"Alright, I will see him then. Did he say why?"

"It had something to do with the first task, he said. Is it okay if I tag along?"

"Sure, why not?"

That evening, they were walking in the Forbidden Forest, underneath the Cloak, with Hagrid and madam Maxine in the open next to them. Then they saw the dragons. Maxine decided to go closer, and Hagrid, who was clearly in love, went after her.

"D-d-dragons? W-we have to b-battle d-dragons?"

And with that, Harry fainted, falling from underneath the Cloak. Ron/Proudfoot quickly pulled him underneath again, and dragged him back to the castle.

The next morning, Harry was frightened.

"We have to battle dragons? Why? That is too dangerous for students!"

"They did say no-one was allowed under the age of 17, and even then, they didn't say it was safe for the competitors." Ron/Proudfoot argued.

"How did you manage being Harry Potter all these years? A few days was even more than enough for me. Please, do it for me, cover for me."

"You are already on the brink of despair? After only a few days? I told you that Harry Potter's life wasn't easy. But you only saw the money and the fame. And you want me to be Harry Potter again, so I will be in danger and you will be in the shadow again?"

"Y-yes, please."

"Are you sure you want to life in the shadow of your brothers and your best friend again?"

"YES! Now please, I want to be Ron again. I don't want to die battling dragons, in a contest I didn't even enter, while everyone hates me." Harry nearly begged.

"This is what I expected."

"What?"

"I already thought you hadn't seen the disadvantages of being Harry Potter, and that you wouldn't have been able to bear them. That's why Professor Dumbledore and I devised a plan. I posed as an auror guarding the real Harry Potter, and we let you believe that you were me."

"I'm not Harry Potter?"

"No, you are Ron Weasley, as you always were. Hermione and I figured we would teach you a lesson, and after we contacted Professor Dumbledore and your family, they all agreed."

And with a simple wave of his wand, Ron/Proudfoot turned into Harry Potter, and Harry turned back into Ron Weasley.

"Understand me, I needed you, while the whole school hated me and I was forced into a deadly contest. I needed my best friend."

Ron was flabbergasted. "I-I-I'm sorry. I was way out of line. I should never have doubted you. I will never doubt you again. Please forgive me."

And Ron kept his promise. He became Harry's best friend again, and never wavered from his side. Later, people would refer to him as the most loyal person they had ever met.

A/N: Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it.

I may have rounded it up a bit too quickly, but I didn't want a chapter twice as big as the other one, and I also didn't want to write another chapter.

I hoped you enjoyed it, review if you want more, leave suggestions if you want, and I hope I will see you in my next story.