Chapter 9: I Believe I Can Fly
In his first week, Ron had gotten more orders than he ever could have imagined. At first, they were mostly pissed-off Gryffindors trying to trip him up. Like Lee Jordan who gave him a cauldron that looked like swiss cheese or Seamus Finnigan who gave a pair of boots with the soles burnt off.
But after Ron started returning the items in near-mint condition, the orders quickly came in. Mostly for small things: badly broken quills or chipped ink pots; but there were larger orders too: a pewter cauldron here, some lopsided scales there.
As time ticked on, Ron made some good money, though typically only from lower years. Third years and above could just go to Hogsmeade to buy new things, so they didn't really need his services.
Of course, Ron's business further put him at odds with Draco, who'd mock him for 'being too poor to take weekends off'. He quipped back that without daddy, Draco couldn't earn a galleon even if he sold his body on the streets. That usually shut him up.
In fact, his entrepreneurial nature made more friends than enemies in Slytherin. After all, only a minority of Slytherins came from rich, do-nothing families like Draco did. Most of them descended from business-wizards and shopkeepers. As such, they praised Ron's ability to turn a profit at a young age.
Moreover, they were more than willing to advertise for a cut of the profits. With that, Ron quickly saw the advantages of being in the house of the ambitious. By Thursday, he'd filled seventeen orders and made just under a galleon. Using a couple hundred points, he'd levelled his mending charm to Green LV4 to fill orders quicker. This had inadvertently bumped Charms up to high White, further improving his talents in it.
He'd also used around 100 points to make some progress in his other skills.
{Herbology (Low White)}
[White: Dittany (LV2 0/20), Asphodel Root (LV2 2/20)
{Charms (High White)}
[Green: Mending Charm (LV4 66/400)]
[White: Levitating Charm (LV5 2/50), Unlocking Charm (LV3 26/30)]
{Other}
[Green: Broom Flying (LV2 48/200)]
[White: Leg-Locker Curse (LV3 2/30), Cure for Boils (LV3 0/30), Match to Needle (LV3 0/30)]
[Points: 420]
His improved skills included the topic of today's lesson, flying.
Honestly, if he could, Ron would want to skip this lesson. He already had Green LV2 flying, and he didn't plan on trying for the Quidditch team in first year. Maybe he'd try out in second year, just to piss off Draco while riding around on his daddy's Nimbus 2001s.
Unfortunately, it was a mandatory lesson, so Ron needed to come. Arriving at the lesson site, he found a couple dozen brooms laid out on the ground, as the Gryffindors and Slytherins occupied opposite sides of a field.
Ron stood on the Slytherin side, finding a place near one of the better-looking brooms.
Madam Hooch arrived exactly as the lesson began, riding on a sleek broom. The students all looked at her with awe as she descended with flawless control, before levelling her yellow eyes on them.
"Well, what are you waiting for then? Everyone, next to a broom!" She begun sharply.
There was quite a scramble as people struggled to get a good broom. Ron was already prepared, standing next to his broom vigilantly.
"Now, stick your right hand over your broom… and say UP!" Madam Hooch instructed, demonstrating the result as her broom zipped up into her hand.
"Up!" Ron began immediately.
Unsurprisingly, it only took a single attempt for his broom to zip up into his hand. He'd been practicing a little in the Room of Hidden Things on the old brooms there. He wasn't the only one though.
Draco and Harry also showed a sharp broom control talent, getting their brooms to comply with a single command. Others took a few attempts, but most got it in under a minute. Then, there was Hermione and Neville.
Ron nearly burst out laughing as Hermione furiously adjusted her posture, as if her broom was snubbing her because of her slight slouch. She tried saying 'up' in Madam Hooch's exact accent, but it still failed, with the broom only rolling around.
Neville was even more hopeless, as his broom ignored him entirely. Finally, he picked it up manually when Madam Hooch had her back turned.
After summoning brooms was complete, Madam Hooch showed everyone how to mount their brooms. She had corrections for everyone, including Ron, but he was still among the better students. In his mind, Ron saw his flying skill slowly tick up as he listened to her explanations.
Finally, it was time for a short flight, just up and down. When Madam Hooch explained what they were to do, Ron could see the colour draining from Neville's face. He shut his eyes tightly as he kicked off the ground.
Ron reached for his wand in his pocket, knowing what was about to happen. Neville began rising up into the air, first a couple feet like Madam Hooch wanted. Then further and further.
"What're you doing up there! Get down!" Madam Hooch called out.
Startled by this sudden voice, Neville tried to oblige her request. In a way, he did 'get down'. Only he wasn't riding his broom. Seeing him falling off the side of his broomstick, Ron reacted immediately, whipping out his wand.
"Wingardium Leviosa."
It worked… to an extent. Neville's robes started to levitate, negating some of his momentum. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to fully support his weight, and he still fell hard on his wrist.
"Out of the way!" Madam Hooch pushed her way over. Grabbing Neville by the wrist, she sighed out. "Thank Merlin, it's only sprained! I said lightly push off, lightly! You're lucky this isn't worse. A fall from that height… Who was the one who cast that spell?"
Ron raised his hand. Surprise flashed in Hooch's eyes as she saw his Slytherin robes matched with his red-hair and freckles.
"So, you're the Weasley in Slytherin? I've had three of your brothers on the pitch, some of the finest fliers I've ever seen. With reflexes like that, it won't be long until you join them. Three Points to Slytherin." Madam Hooch praised, before escorting Neville to the Hospital wing.
"I say Weasley, if you weren't poor, I'd think you were bribing half the teachers." Blaise said with a grin.
The Gryffindors were displeased, but not overly so. After all, Ron had gotten the points for helping one of them. Meanwhile, Draco stepped out to where Neville landed, finding a foggy white ball. Most people didn't notice, but Harry's keen eye spotted him.
"That isn't yours Malfoy. Hand it over." He called out.
"You know what Potter, I ought to leave it somewhere Longbottom can find it…" Draco said, zooming into the air. "How about the roof?"
Ron sat back and watched the famous canon scene with a smile. If he'd wanted to, he could have retrieved the Remembrall himself, preventing Harry's Seeker talent from being discovered, but taking Quidditch from Harry felt mean.
It all happened like he remembered it. The throw, the dive, the catch. Then McGonagall arrived and took him away. Soon after, news began to spread as the entire school learned that Harry was made youngest Seeker of the century. There wasn't a person in the Great Hall who wasn't talking about it now.
"Hmph! So what if he caught some ruddy old glass ball? Anyone could do it with a little effort." Blaise complained. "I still reckon we'll win in the end. Our team's got the best brooms in Hogwarts, and everyone knows that's what matters."
Ron shrugged, somewhat agreeing with Blaise on the matter. While Harry was a talented Seeker, Quidditch was a pay-to-win game, especially at higher levels. If not for his Nimbus 2000 and later his Firebolt, talent alone would be useless for Harry. And Blaise wasn't the only one who was upset.
"It's absolutely ridiculous! He's broken the rules, yet Professor McGonagall's rewarding him for it." A furious Hermione blustered.
She was followed quickly by Neville who was already healed up from his earlier.
"I dunno, I heard it was a really steep dive. He'll probably make a great Seeker." Neville responded. "Oh and err, thanks for earlier Ron."
The duo sat opposite him, noticing Blaise as he noticed them. Disdain rose in Blaise's eyes, but Ron interjected.
"Hermione, Neville, this is Blaise Zabini, a housemate of mine. Blaise, these are my friends, Hermione and Neville."
He made sure to emphasize the word 'friend', something that didn't go unnoticed by Blaise. He snorted disdainfully but didn't protest. Ron figured that was as good as he would get for now. Fortunately, Hermione and Neville made no big issue of it.
Instead, they chatted about business, with Hermione bringing Ron several orders. He had promised her that if she provided enough orders to make up 10 galleons, he would reveal his secret Mending hack. As such, she'd been eager at work to get them for him.
Neville also provided several orders, all for himself, as he had somehow broken his quill, his ink-pot, his cauldron and his back-up cauldron in only a week. Ron almost felt guilty as he fleeced the clumsy blond out of 8 sickles. Maybe he should study a reinforcement spell… At least that way, Neville's school supplies would last the week.
As they continued chatting, even Blaise joined the conversation. At first, he tried to brag about his skills, being just under Ron in most classes. Unfortunately, Hermione had him beat in just about everything, ticking off the smug half-blood. He then bragged about the many businesses his mum inherited from her five husbands. Real estate, Floo farming, Candy shops, Quidditch teams, even the Weird Sisters. Ron made a mental note, figuring they might be useful when he expanded from repair to other industries.
Eventually, Blaise seemed to get over his cockiness, chatting with Hermione with a sense of decency. He found himself astonished at how skilled she was, a competitive fire burning in his eyes.
This was something Ron wanted to see. No business venture could be propped up by one man alone. The smarter and more capable his friends were, the more money he'd make. And for him, money was power.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone