Because of Katie
A/N-Hey all. This is going to be my new multi-chaptered story. It's all about Leanne, and it's going to start right after Katie was cursed by the necklace. It's going to be mainly my headcanon, but I really hope you enjoy. The first few chapters will be for the multi-chaptered contest, and then after that they will probably get less frequent. The prompt for this round was someone carrying a book or books.
"I don't know," I replied emotionlessly as the millionth person came up to me. Brown hair, blue eyes-I didn't recognize the boy. I wouldn't be able to point him out in a crowd of people if you asked me to. We had never spoken before. How did he know my name? No idea. How did he know who I was? No idea. How did he know about Katie? Well, that, maybe I had an inkling of an idea for. The boy's blue eyes looked disappointed, but he continued on his way down the hall, my actions completely not affecting the rest of his day. But they affected mine.
"I swear to Merlin," Hannah Abbott groaned from next to me in the hallway, "If one more person comes up to us and asks us what happened with Katie yesterday, I'm going to slap them into the next century." "Hannah," Susan chastised from the other side of me. They had both decided that they needed to be my "bodyguards" for the day. I had laughed when they suggested it this morning, reassuring them that I didn't need bodyguards. But I was actually really glad that they had, because people were coming up to me every five seconds and asking me about what happened yesterday. That boy hadn't been the first person to come up to me today and ask me what happened yesterday. And he certainly wasn't going to be the last.
"Susan," Hannah replied, mockingly.
"Don't mind her," Susan said to me, completely ignoring Hannah, "She's usually not as grumpy, she just didn't get much sleep last night." Because we were talking to you. I heard the unsaid words almost as loudly and clearly as I did the real ones. But I was still grateful that she hadn't said them.
"Some things are best left unsaid. Sometimes, it's just better to fade away into the background." I really hated it when she said things like that.
"But what about standing up for yourself? What about making a difference?"
"What about staying alive?"
"Leanne!" Susan shrieked. I dropped all of my books in surprise, "Merlin, I'm so sorry!" she said and bent down to help me pick them up. I was on my hands and knees crawling around, looking for my various books and quills that had scattered.
"Hannah!" I yelled. She looked up from me from across the hallway, where she too was crawling on her hands and knees, "Have you seen my Transfiguration textbook? We have that now!" she shook her head.
"Looking for this?" someone asked from behind me. I whirled around in surprise.
"Oh…hi Michael," Michael Corner was standing behind me, holding up my Transfiguration textbook up to me. His best friend Terry Boot was standing beside him.
"And here," Terry said, "I think this is your quill."
"Yeah…thanks," I said, taking the textbook and quill that the boys gave me and put them away in my bag.
"No problem," Terry said.
"So," Michael asked, "Is it true?"
"Is what true?" I asked, confused, because for half a second I had no clue what he was talking about. Terry, of course thought I was being silly, a cover which I gratefully took.
"You know," Terry said, and then his voice dropped to a whisper, "About Katie." I froze. Luckily for me, Susan came to my defense.
"Do you really think she wants to talk about this right now?" she asked, "Imagine if this were you. Would you want people pestering you all the time about it?"
"No," Terry said, staring down at the ground. Michael didn't say anything, just looked at me with his too blue eyes, daring for me to say something. Almost like he wanted to say something. What? I don't know.
"C'mon," Susan said grabbing my arm, "Let's get you to class." She started dragging me down the hall.
"Wait up," Hannah called, darting in between people to catch up to us.
"The nerve," Susan exclaimed, "Of him to ask about Katie! Of all things! I swear to Merlin, that that was one of the most inconsiderate things I have ever seen in my whole entire life! Dear Merlin…" she went on, rambling like that for the whole entire way to the Transfiguration room.
"What happened?" Hannah asked while we were "listening" to Susan's ranting.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"What were you thinking about that made you zone out like that?" she asked.
"I didn't zone out," I exclaimed.
"Your face was as white as a sheet and you had this distant look in your eye," she said.
"Oh that…I was just thinking about Katie," I lied, surprised at how easily the words came out. Hannah stared at me for a moment, and then nodded slowly.
"Look Leanne, I know we're not really good friends or anything, but if you ever need to talk, I'd listen," she said.
"Thanks, but there's nothing really," I lied again, "But I'll be sure to remember that if something ever does come up."
"…and honestly, who does he think he is? I mean, of all things to ask you about, that would be the last thing he could ask you, the worst thing he could ask you…are you guys even listening?" Susan asked, exasperated, when she we were in the middle of a conversation.
"Yeah," Hannah said, "Worst things to say and all that rubbish." But Susan didn't hear her, because she was already ranting again about how her friends don't listen to her.
"Does she do this often?" I questioned.
"Don't even get me started," Hannah said tiredly, "Just you wait until the topic of Ernie comes up." She said, only mouthed the word "Ernie", and then her glance darted quickly to Susan, but she was too busy ranting to hear.
"She just says whatever she thinks?" I asked.
"She's just that kind of girl," Hannah joked, and then said, "It's just how she gets her feelings out. She doesn't mean half the things she says."
"Oh," I said and we entered the Transfiguration classroom and took our seat. Across the room, I spied Michael and Terry talking in hushed tones. When I saw Michael, I wondered what he had been about to say earlier. And why he didn't say it.
"Some things are better left unsaid."