Katie Bell trudged through the portrait hole and into the common room, unceremoniously dumping her books and bag onto a seated Alicia Spinnet's lap, all the while feeling completely and utterly jilted and rejected. She collapsed in the vacant seat on the couch, made for her by a confused George Weasley, and let out an angry harumph.

"Katie Kates, something tells me you aren't your usual chipper self," George remarked as he snickered at the thought of Katie ever being described as 'chipper'.

"Excellent observation George," Fred countered from his seat next to the Gryffindor fireplace. "Tell me, how did you arrive at this monumental conclusion?"

"I don't want to talk about it," said Katie weakly. She knew that if she told them, she would never hear the end of it. What had in fact happened was that her boyfriend of two months, Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain Roger Davies, had abruptly dumped her for that pig-faced tosser Arianna Detch, the nauseatingly beautiful Ravenclaw prefect. To make matters worse, Katie had found the two viciously snogging in the back of the library.

Katie had been combing the shelves for a book she needed for her Transfiguration essay. Not that any book in the world could help her pass that class. She was pondering the idea of whether the need to turn a teacup into a toadstool would ever present itself during her lifetime when she heard muffled voices from the next aisle. Katie craned her neck to try to see over the ancient bookshelf, but to no avail. She was simply too short. Peering around the row of shelves, she saw her boyfriend and that vile Detch girl getting quite cozy in the Herbology section. She had angrily confronted the pair, bellowing something along the lines of "YOU FILTHY SLUG!"

Roger simply scoffed and waved his hand in her general direction, answering the bimbo's question of "who is that?" with a simple yet unfailingly stinging, "oh, some girl I used to date." Until this exact point in time Katie was not aware of the fact that she and Roger 'used to date,' she was under the distinct impression that they were 'still dating.' Apparently not.

For the first time in her life, Katie Bell had found herself lost for words. She did not hex Davies into oblivion, or reduce him to a pathetic pile of jelly with her quick-witted insults. She did none of the many brilliant things that later popped into her head as she mulled over the events of the evening. Instead, she slowly backed away, gathered her things, and exited the library, her feeling of worthlessness increasing with each step up the marble staircase.

"Katie, what's wrong pumpkin?" Alicia was motherly by nature, a trait that Katie often found annoying. Tonight was no exception.

"I'm fine mom. Just let it alone, ok?" Unfortunately, this answer guaranteed that neither Alicia nor any of her other friends would give her a moments rest until they knew exactly what was going on.

"Katie, I think we all know how this is going to end," Fred commented from his chair. "Just tell us now instead of sitting there sulking like a wet cat."

"Hmm, Fred, why don't we try to guess what happened?" My money is that they ran out of Pumpkin Pasties at dinner. When will they learn that our Katie Kates eats like a hippogriff?" George ducked at the throw pillow fired at his head.

"Exellent guess, George, but we know how seriously Katie takes her food. Is it another detention with Snape, then? You two spend so much time together it's a wonder you aren't going steady." It was Fred's turn for an evasive maneuver, this time in the form of Katie's fist whizzing by his right ear. "No need to get touchy, Katie, you know I would never steal him from you. But how does Roger feel about this? Is that slick git upset to share you?"

At this all the color drained from Katie's face, and she sat down quickly. "Katie?" Fred nervously sat down next to her in George's abandoned seat. "Katie what happened to you? Are you ok?"

Katie could no longer suppress her feelings. The mixed rage and sorrow erupted like a volcano from her tiny frame in the form of sobs. "H-he B-roke U-upp with ME!" her voice hitching on each word. She buried her head in her hands and leaned on a stunned Fred, who had clearly not understood a word of her incoherent blubbering.

"Katie, what?" he asked again, wrapping his long arm around her shoulder.

"The wanker was cheating on me," Katie explained into Fred's now damp jumper. At this, Fred tensed up.

"He did WHAT?" he said leaping to his feet with a murderous glint in his eye. "That two-faced sack of dung!" he began pacing madly, "He is not going to get away with this, that slimy little cockroach, no one hurts my best mate like that. Where is he?" he asked a now recovering Katie.

"Oh no you don't. I am not letting you get kicked out just because I got chucked by some prat." Katie got up and tried to calm down her best friend. "It's not worth it."

"Katie what exactly happened?" Alicia tried to calm the group down. Katie quickly replayed the events of the library, feeling quite upset again upon finishing.

As her friends did their best to comfort her, Katie couldn't help but feel that this was somehow her fault. What exactly was so wrong with her that Roger couldn't stand to be around her anymore? Was she really that horrible? The voice of reason inside her head admonished her ridiculous behavior. Of course there is nothing wrong with you, its that bloody troll's fault for not seeing how amazing you are. Katie tried to take comfort in that fact, but Roger's rejection still stung. "Thanks guys," she mumbled to the group that was fervently trying to cheer her up. "I think I'll head up to bed, good night."

"Katie," Fred looked concerned and upset, but the last thing Katie wanted right now was for him to see her cry. She was too tough for that.

"It's fine, Fred, I'll see you tomorrow." With that she slowly climbed the stairs to her dormitory, with none of the usual bounce in her step.