The King raised his sword high. With a valiant, swift motion he stabbed the Knight in his chest. The Knight crumbled at his feet, never to rise again.

Ron starred at the chessboard as his last piece fell to his brother. He smiled and slapped Ron on his shoulder. “Good game,” said Charlie as he got up to help his mother.

Ron flashed him a halfhearted smile before clearing the pieces. Scabbers pushed the chess remnants over to his owner to help.

He paused as he came to the Knight. It was his favorite piece to play with, even when he wasn’t playing chess. Ron would often pretend that he was a Knight who was on some mission to save the world. He’d often looked at the chessboard from the Knight’s point of view, whenever he planned his next move.

Ron could see the many scars the Knight took in an effort to bring him victory. Scabbers placed his little paw on his master’s hand, as if to console him.

“Well, it looks like he’s done for. I doubt Mom will get me another game just to get me another Knight,” Ron gave a depressing sigh that ruffled the hairs of his pet. “I may have to stop playing, just so they won’t look so beaten up.”

Ron put the last pieces away and took it and Scabbers up for bed. Ron placed his little friend in his shoebox bed before turning out the lights to sleep.

Morning came.

Ron could smell his mother cooking from his room. He looked over his bed to see that Scabbers had already left to see what she had made. So he got himself dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast.

Charlie saw his little brother coming . He gotten the chessboard ready for him to play. “Come now! One more round before we eat?”

“I don’t know, I’m pretty hungry…”

“It can wait. And besides, it’s good to fight on an empty stomach. It keeps you ambitious.” Charlie playfully slapped his brother on his head.

Ron shrugged his shoulders as he set up his men. One by one, he pulled them out and placed them on the board. He felt his soul spiraling into depression as he looked at each of his battle worn warriors. As he looked at the board and reached back into the bag, he could feel his heart sink even more.

The Knight was the last piece left.

Ron took a deep breath as he prepared to look at his favorite piece. Yet as he reached in, he noticed something very different.

To his great surprise, the Knight was brand new!

Scabbers jumped into Ron’s lap and stood up on his hind legs. “Wow, Scabbers, look!” he whispered to it. The little rat placed his small paw on Ron’s finger as he looked into his master’s beaming smile.

Although the rat had never spoken to Ron, he could sense that it was just as happy as he was.