Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter nor do make money.

Warning: This chapter is VERY dark.

If there was one thing thing Ron hated about being back at Hogwarts for his supposed 'seventh year' it was the rounds that the collective 'eighth years', which is what they called themselves, were to do in support of the younger prefects.

When he had decided to return to Hogwarts with many of his other classmates, Ron had been ecstatic about not having prefect duties but that hadn't lasted much past the welcoming feast. Instead as he and the other eighth years were being shown what would be their collective dorm, Headmistress McGonagall informed them that they would all share patrol duties to assist the younger students. Each eighth year would have to patrol in addition to the prefect patrols every two weeks.

And tonight was his lucky night as he was stuck patrolling the grounds with two fifth year Hufflepuffs.

Life couldn't get much better than this, he kept telling himself as he moved through the corridors with two Hufflepuffs who couldn't for the life of them shut the hell up. They insisted on carrying on about the upcoming Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw Quidditch match. He was about at his wits' end when they came to the final place they needed to check: the astronomy tower.

It had become an unwritten rule at some point during the school year, that the eighth years would be responsible for the astronomy tower as they were the oldest students and most able to deal with sixth and seventh year students who like to frequent it for 'alone time' with their significant others. Especially since time and time again, those incidents were the ones that the fifth and sixth years had the hardest trouble handling.

"Just wait here," Ron muttered to the Hufflepuffs as he started up the stairs, checking each room briefly before moving on. He enjoyed the peace and quiet he was finally getting by being away from the chatty fifth years.

He was about to head up the stairs when a movement caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. Stopping where he was, he turned his head to look but didn't see anything. Waiting patiently, he kept his eyes trained on the room, just below the roof, hoping whoever was hiding there would slip up and reveal themselves. Normally, he wouldn't have waited, but he just found himself hoping it would be a Slytherin that he caught; he was itching to remove some points and straddle the students with detention out of irritation for having to do these stupid rounds with fifth year Hufflepuffs to begin with.

After several minutes, Ron just shook his head with a sigh and was about to continue up the stairs when he saw movement again. This time, when he turned his head, he could see a pale hand with dark spots on it fall out of the darkness into the moonlight that was cascading through one on the small windows in the classroom.

Before he could register what he was looking at, a distant moan filled his ears as dread coursed through his body. Cold rushed through his body as it registered something was really wrong.

Rushing towards the hand, he cast a quick Lumos before falling to his knees. There hidden in the darkness was the Slytherin Ice Princess: beaten, bruised, bloody and broken.

Ron fought back the urge to vomit, as her body lay bruised and battered in front of him; her face not much better. Her school uniform ripped to shreds and blood smeared on her exposed skin. He could see cuts up and down her thighs, stomach and arms. His hands and eyes went to her face looking for any signs that she was still alive. The gurgle of blood coming from her lips sent chills down his spine as he realized just how bad of shape she was in. He just hoped he found her in time.

Tearing off his cloak, he wrapped it around her battered body to shield it as he took her to the hospital wing. Ron lifted her up and rose to his feet in one motion. He noticed how limp she was in his arms which sent another wave of nausea through is body. Pinning her to his body as much as he could, he took off down the astronomy tower stairs. All the while he whispered for her to hold on; tell her he was taking her to get help.

He didn't stop to say anything to the Hufflepuffs when he re-entered the corridor outside of the astronomy tower. Their eyes grew wide as they took in Ron holding the battered body of another student wrapped in his cloak, but he didn't break a stride as he continued to the hospital area. He heard them take off saying something about getting the headmistress but he didn't pay them much mind. His sole concern was to get Pansy to Madame Pomfrey as soon as possible.

Ron kicked in the door to the hospital wing hard. Sending the door slamming into the wall, waking all who were spending the night there as evidenced by the sudden increase in mumbles and wide eyes as they watched him enter with someone in his arms who was deathly quiet.

"What is the meaning of this?" he heard Madame Pomfrey yell as he brought Pansy towards the back of the hospital wing and setting her down on an empty bed. Ron wanted to say something but he was breathing so hard from the run, he was barely able to catch his breath, let alone speak.

It didn't matter as he wouldn't have had a chance to respond regardless before Madame Pomfrey's gasp said it all as she rushed to Pansy.

"What happened?" she struggled to get out as she started to work. The light in the infirmary made it all the more evident how badly hurt Pansy was. Bruises and cuts were covering more of her body than he had even thought earlier.

"I don't know," he gasped taking a seat on the bed next to Pansy. "I was doing rounds and I found her in the astronomy tower."

"Grab me some of those screens," she ordered. "And set them around the bed."

"Yes ma'am," he responded, standing up to do just as she ordered. His eyes never leaving Pansy's still form as Madame Pomfrey started to fuss about her patient. Ron hated how silent she was; he'd give almost anything at the moment to hear Pansy snap at him about how poor his family was.

After he had done as Madame Pomfrey had requested, he took a seat back on the bed to wait. He didn't feel like he could leave just yet and not only because he knew the headmistress was on her way but because he wouldn't get any sleep until he knew Pansy was okay.

The rustling of dressing gowns filled his ears, as Headmistress McGonagall came quickly around the screens that Ron had set up.

Her hands flying over her mouth, she gasped at the sight before her, "What happened?"

"Mr. Weasley found her in the astronomy tower and brought her here," Madame Pomfrey responded starting to remove Ron's robe to inspect Pansy further. "Mr. Weasley, why don't you step out for a moment?"

It took a minute for it to register with Ron exactly what Madame Pomfrey asked. Shaking off the haze, he muttered, "Yes ma'am" before moving behind the screen.

"Did you see anything Mr. Weasley?" Of course McGonagall had to follow him.

"No ma'am," he responded. "I found her in the room beneath the roof. When I saw her, I didn't think to look and just got her down here as fast as I could."

"You did the right thing," McGonagall's voice soothing as she patted him on the shoulder. "Why don't you go ahead to bed and I'll let you know how she is in the morning?"

"Is she going to be okay?" he whispered, looking at McGonagall's worried brown eyes. He didn't need an answer because he could see it in her face. Pansy probably wasn't going to make it through the night. Hanging his head, he muttered, "I understand."

Turning around he slowly made his way towards the eighth year dorms. He hoped that everyone was in bed or studying or otherwise occupied by time he got there because he didn't want to talk about what had happened. He especially didn't want to talk about what he had seen. Not now and probably not ever.

He just wished someone had told him, he was covered in Pansy's blood as he entered the common area. Hermione's shriek rang through the common room as she ran towards him, causing everyone to turn their head. He watched as jaws from both males and females alike fell at the sight of his appearance.

"Ron, what happened?" she screeched starting to examine his arms, looking for cuts. "Are you okay? Did something attack..."

"I'm fine," he sighed, trying to push her away so he could get out of the common room with all those eyes staring at him. "I just want to shower and go to bed."

Grabbing his arm, she asked, "But you are covered in blood? Were you in a fight? But how could you be, you had rounds..."

"Hermione. It's not mine," he snapped, pulling his arm free. "Now please just let me go to bed."

"But..." she started before Harry cut her off whispering in her ear, "Let him go Hermione."

Sighing, Ron turned and entered the room that the Gryffindor boys shared. It was empty save Neville, who just looked at him with wide eyes but didn't say a word as Ron laid back on his bed and tried to get the image of Pansy broken out of his mind.