Disclaimer: all characters, places etc., are the property of J.K. Rowling.
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Chapter Four: Green-Eyed Monster
After Albus's abrupt departure from the common room, Portia's mood dropped significantly. She shot Scorpius a withering look, linked arms with Poppy and stalked towards the girl's dormitory, snapping at Louisa to stay where she was. Once she and Poppy were safely cloistered in the empty fifth year dormitory, Portia let loose.
"It's not working," she said through gritted teeth, glaring at her best friend. "You said that all I had to do was flirt with him and pretend that I was interested in his family. Well, when I brought up his family connections he got mad at me, and when I tried to flirt with him, he left. What the hell, Poppy?"
Poppy shrugged. "What did you expect?" she drawled. "I'm not exactly the romance guru. I just told you what I thought would work."
"So why didn't it?" Portia snapped.
"Maybe he's gay," Poppy suggested wickedly, flinching back as Portia hissed at her. "Or maybe he likes another girl."
"Who, though?" Portia demanded.
"Genevieve Thomas has a crush on him," Poppy said, beginning to look bored. "You know, that little Ravenclaw girl with the curly hair. She's been throwing herself at him all year, and I overheard her begging Rose Weasley to put in a good word for her."
Portia's eyes flashed. She knew who Genevieve Thomas was, alright. She liked her well enough, but if Genevieve liked Albus in that way, then that was all about to change. Portia had liked Albus for too long to lose him to some uppity, pompous Ravenclaw.
Not many people knew about it, but Portia had liked Albus way back in first year. She hadn't known at the time, of course – she'd only been a little kid. But there'd been something there, something small that grew and blossomed over the years, until she reached the point of no return. Portia was in love with Albus Potter, and she'd always assumed that he felt the same. Except it was becoming increasingly evident that Albus either didn't know how she felt or didn't care.
She wasn't sure which would be more painful.
"What can I do?" she asked desperately, sinking onto her bed. "What can I do to make him like me?"
"You can't make him like you," Poppy said, rolling her eyes. "Free will and all that crap. But you can certainly do something to catch his attention."
Portia stared at her best friend impatiently. "Well?"
"First of all, fix that bird's nest you call a hairdo," Poppy said distastefully, running her eyes over Portia's blonde mane. "Go short. Make a statement."
Portia fingered her long blonde locks. They were her pride and joy – they were a part of her, really. She'd always had long blonde hair, just like she'd always had big brown eyes and a smile that looked more like a smirk. Was she really willing to cut it off for a boy?
And then she thought of Albus's messy dark hair and his mesmerizing green eyes and her mind was made up.
She nodded. "What else?"
"Lose some weight," Poppy said flatly, ignoring the hurt look in Portia's eyes. "You're starting to put on a few and love handles are not attractive."
"Fine. And then?"
"Show him what he's missing," Poppy instructed. "In other words, make him jealous. Pick some dimwit who you can control, and then make him your boyfriend. If you're lucky, Albus will get mad at seeing you with another guy, crack under the pressure and then beg you to take him to the Halloween Ball."
"And if that doesn't work?"
Poppy shrugged again. "Like I said," she said irritably, "I'm not a romance guru. If that doesn't work, you're on your own." She turned on her heel and exited the dormitory, flipping Portia off as she left.
Portia rolled her eyes and lay down on her bed, mulling Poppy's words over in her head. The other girl was harsh, and she could be cruel, but maybe she had a point. Portia was too ordinary – there were a hundred other girls who looked just like her at Hogwarts. And it wasn't as if she had any special talents to make her stand out from the crowd. If she wanted Albus to notice her, she had to make a change.
She would start with the hair, she decided. Flora Vaisey in sixth year was handy with a pair of scissors – Portia would ask her when she returned to the common room. As for the weight loss, she probably could stand to lose a few pounds. She would avoid fried food at breakfast and switch her evening pumpkin juice to an evening water. She could handle that.
And as for the dimwit boyfriend... well, there were plenty of Slytherin boys who would kill to have Portia Farley hanging off their arm.
Portia smirked. Phase one of her plan to ensnare Albus Potter was about to begin.
Since the Charms Club excuse he'd given Portia meant that he had to avoid the common room for the next hour or so, Albus decided to visit Rose and see how things had gone with Scorpius. He could have interrogated Scorpius, of course, but he wanted to avoid the topic of Rose for the time being. After all, Scorpius had already sensed that something was going on – they were going to have to be more careful from now on.
He found her in the library, bent over an Ancient Runes essay. She looked up, frazzled, as he approached.
"Whatever it is, I don't have time," she said quickly, before he could speak. "Professor Babbling assigned us sixteen inches by Monday and I've barely got three inches and I don't know what else to write, so I don't want to know about your Quidditch practice or your Charms Club or the million girls lining up to ask you to the Ball–"
"Rosie," Albus interrupted, putting his hand over her mouth. "Calm down. I just wanted to ask how it went with Scorpius this afternoon."
Her eyes lit up. "Oh," she said, smiling. "In that case, have a seat."
Albus rolled his eyes. "Alright, Juliet," he teased. "Go ahead. Gush to your heart's content."
And she did. Rose went on at length about the brief conversation she and Scorpius had had, going into great detail about how his eyes had lit up when he smiled and his hand had been so soft when he took the Chocolate Frogs from her. Albus zoned out a little, smiling and nodding at appropriate points, but really wondering what Scorpius was doing and what Flood had planned for Quidditch practice the next day.
"... and then he asked me to sit with him in Charms," Rose finished, beaming at him. "So? What do you think? Do you think he likes me?"
"What?" Albus said, blinking. "Oh. Uh. I guess, Rosie. I don't know."
"Did he say anything about me?" she asked eagerly, leaning forwards, her Ancient Runes essay forgotten. "After lunch? Because I thought he looked like he really liked me when I gave him those Chocolate Frogs."
Privately, Albus thought that the smile had more to do with his favourite chocolate than his favourite girl, but he didn't say anything. He shrugged, beginning to feel a little irritated with Rose.
"Me and Scorpius don't really talk about girls," he said shortly.
"You don't?" Rose said, crestfallen.
"No," Albus replied, looking at his watch. "We should go to dinner. Coming?" He stood, offering her his arm, hoping that the subject of his best friend would be forgotten until another day. To his relief, Rose nodded, gathered up her things and followed him out of the library.
They walked to the Great Hall in silence, and upon their arrival found that the enchanted ceiling was still covered in dark storm clouds. Albus and Rose parted ways, he heading for the Slytherin table while she joined her fellow Ravenclaws. Albus slid into a seat between Scorpius and Jeffrey Shunpike, noting with interest and relief that Portia was mysteriously absent.
"How was Charms Club?" Scorpius said under his breath, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"Fantastic," Albus replied breezily. "I learned a more effective way to perform the Silencing Charm. Mind if I try it out on you?"
Scorpius nudged him playfully in the side and helped himself to a large plate of mashed potatoes. Albus followed suit, loading his plate with potatoes, beef and vegetables. His stomach growled at the sight of the rich food and he licked his lips in anticipation. He studiously avoided Rose's gaze, though he could feel her eyes boring into him from across the room. He knew what she wanted – she wanted him to talk her up to Scorpius. Well, he wasn't going to do it. Not so blatantly, anyway. He'd agreed to help Rose, he hadn't agreed to do everything for her.
Halfway through dinner, he heard a few of the third year Slytherin girls whispering amongst themselves. Normally he didn't bother with their gossip, but this time, he heard something that piqued his interest. He turned to one of the third years, a stout, pug-faced girl named Gemma Anderson.
"Excuse me," he said in the most charming voice he could muster. "I couldn't help but overhear... what was that you said about Portia Farley?"
Gemma's eyes widened, like she couldn't believe the great Albus Potter was actually speaking to her. "Well," she gushed, leaning forward, "she cut her hair off. All of it. And Louisa Aldridge said it's for a guy."
"Thank you," Albus smiled, but it was forced. His stomach was starting to churn. If Portia had cut her hair off for a boy – and he assumed that boy was him – then she must be serious about him. Portia's hair was like her baby.
"Wow," Scorpius said, winking at Albus. "Should I start preparing my best man's speech?"
"Shut it, Malfoy," Albus muttered. "It's not funny."
"So you don't like her?" Scorpius said, pushing his carrots around his plate. "I mean, not even a little?" He looked uncertain. Albus rolled his eyes.
"Scorpius," he said clearly. "I would rather chew my own leg off than go out with Portia Farley. Happy?"
Scorpius grinned. "Nah," he said, taking a swig of pumpkin juice. "I was hoping she'd take you off my hands."
Alright, things should start moving a bit faster from the next chapter on, so I hope someone sticks around to read it. Please please please leave me a review if you have the time. I really would love the feedback. After all, I need to know if I'm good at this, right? :P
Oh god. I need help *hangs head in shame*