AN: This is my submission for the QLFC Little League Round 2(4) as Beater 2 for Gryffindor. My emotion was grief and my chosen prompts were 1. (style) First person POV and 14. (quote) 'Never to suffer would never to have been blessed' - Edgar Allen Poe
TWO THINGS
My father taught me two things in life; the first was comedy and the second was that everyone will inevitably face great tragedy. Obviously my father, the owner of the biggest chain of joke shops in the Wizarding world, is no stranger to fun and laughter. But on each anniversary of that fateful day in May, he reminds us of the darkest moment of his life. He described it as pain and suffering as he had never experienced before; the kind of emotional turmoil that only a Bogart could embody. It was a worse than death.
For years I heard the story, to the point where I could recite it by heart as my father retold it each year. I imagined how difficult it must have been for him to wake up each morning knowing his greatest fear had come true. Even as a child I hoped to never endure that same adversity. And I honestly never believed I would until earlier this afternoon.
It was a Tuesday much like any other and coincidentally the beginning of the end of my life. James had us on the Quidditch pitch for hours running drills in preparation for our big match against Ravenclaw. They had beaten us ever since he made the team and he was determined to get revenge now that he had been made captain.
By the time I made it back to the Gryffindor common room, my legs ached from gripping the side of my broom and I craved a warm bath with extra bubbles and pinch of rejuvenating salts. I longed for the moment when my head would hit my pillow and I curled up under the scarlet and gold sheets for a well-deserved night's sleep. That is, until I encountered the most gruesome image of my life, in my favourite common room chair, no less!
The tufted velvet chair where I had spent endless nights studying for my examinations now housed my boyfriend Scorpius Malfoy viciously attacking another girl with his lips. Quidditch pads hit the ground as my mouth dropped open in shock. Then, as his hand released her bushy brown hair, she turned her head and revealed herself as my own flesh and blood, Rose Weasley. In my sixteen years on this planet, I never once imagined something so morbid as the deaths of any of my cousins but today I learned my cousin Rose's days were numbered and that she would soon die at my hands. But not before I got in a good cry.
And that's how I ended up crying into my scarlet pillowcase still in my trainers. A pool of tears collected underneath my cheek, smearing my dark eye makeup until waxy black stains coated my fingers and I looked like Albus after a misguided attempt to help Hagrid handle some Blast-Ended Skrewts. But the mascara stains were the least of my problems as I drifted into melancholic daze.
"Rox?" there was a knock on the door.
It was futile. I wouldn't answer.
"Come on Rox," I heard a figure moving through the room, edging closer to my four-poster bed.
The fabric curtain was pulled back a little and I saw my cousin Lucy peek her head in. Usually I found her empathy comforting, but at thirteen, how could she even begin to understand what I was going through? Her only relationship was with a stuffed dragon named Puff, and it ended when she accidentally left him at Honeydukes during a trip to Hogsmeade.
But Lucy would not back down. She pushed my legs aside, curling me further into the foetal position, and plopped down next to me, kneading circles into my back with the palm of her hand. As much as I wanted her to leave, I did appreciate her putting some extra work to alleviate the knots in my shoulders. I mentally reminded myself to see Madam Pomfrey for a relaxation potion and then nudged my cousin.
"A little higher?" I pleaded.
"Oh!" Lucy teased, flexing her fingers. "She talks!"
"Back to massaging," I growled, "or you can leave."
"So demanding!" she chuckled as she returned to the task at hand.
I was drifting off to sleep as she worked on the rest of my tense muscles but my relaxing distraction came to a quick halt when the fabric curtains of my four-poster bed were suddenly thrust open.
"Merlin!" I groaned when I saw Molly's outline standing in the shadows. The hand on her hip reminded me of my aunt Audrey and her peculiar way of digging her fist into her hips whenever she was upset.
"I knew I'd find you in here," she pouted. "You missed dinner."
"I'll never eat again," I retorted, and even I could admit I came across a tad melodramatic. But this was my first heartbreak and most certainly, my last.
"Cut her a break," Lucy rolled her eyes. "She saw her boyfriend making out with her cousin. It's kind of a lot to take in."
"Does anyone here practice discretion?" I scoffed.
"I already know," Molly explained. "Rose has been telling anyone who will listen. She's looking for you everywhere."
"Everywhere?" I chuckled. "Did anyone suggest she try my dormitory room?"
"I think it's safe to say she didn't get that far," Molly replied. Then she squished herself in between myself and Lucy. "Now move over."
"Who invited you?" I said before jokingly kicking her.
"I just came to cheer you up," she said as if it was the most obvious explanation in the world.
"Cheering up usually involves a pep talk or snacks of some kind," I told her. "I'll accept Chocolate Frogs."
Molly stared off absentmindedly for a bit whilst Lucy and I exchanged a look of confusion. When I finally nudged my older cousin she seemed to come back to reality, but not before delivering a cryptic message.
"Never to suffer would never to have been blessed," she breathed.
"What?" I asked, collapsing into a fit of laughter.
Lucy and I clutched our stomachs, trying to regain our composure after Molly's outburst.
"Where did you hear that?" Lucy cackled.
"I thought it was a good pep talk," she shrugged. "I found it in one of those books Aunt Hermione always gives us for Christmas."
"Yeah," I bit my lip, "I'm not so interested in Aunt Hermione and her side of the family right now."
"Oh," Molly gasped. "Oh yeah."
"You really stepped in it," Lucy giggled. I couldn't help myself. I was giggling too.
"See!" Molly pointed. "You're laughing! You'll get over this in no time."
"I sure will," I smiled, "but Scorpius better prepare himself because when I'm done with him, I'll..."
"Watch it," Molly interrupted. "Lucy doesn't really need to be exposed to that just yet."
"Fine," I groaned. "Let's just say, he'll have trouble riding a broomstick for a few weeks."
With that, the three of us erupted into yet another fit of giggles and even though I hated to admit it, the laughter made me feel better. Of the two things my father taught me, the most important is that all misery can be cured with humour.