A/N: Here's chapter 9, quicker than I expected! I'm working on this a lot faster and a lot more now that a) I have time and b) I know where it's going to go. Thank you to the people who reviewed my last chapter, but expect a lot of interesting things to happen with Noah and Melanie. He's definitely my favorite character to write at the moment!
Enjoy!
Anomaly
Chapter 9
At seven in the morning, Melanie found herself rushing to Remedial Defense Against the Dark Arts. Panting heavily, she barely had time to pull her red and gold tie tightly around her neck and yank her socks up to their fullest height. With less than five hours of sleep as fuel, she could barely make it through the hallway to her tutoring class. As she stumbled into the classroom, Professor Nesbaum snapped, "I don't suppose there's a good reason for you being late, Miss Daniels?"
She winced, thinking about what had happened late the night before.
FLASHBACK
"What the hell was that?" she cried, shoving Noah off her.
"You kissed me back," he replied, grinning broadly.
"Yes, I did. You're bloody hot, Noah. Any girl in her right mind would kiss you back. But you were NOT invited to kiss me!"
"So you think I'm attractive?" said Noah, running his hands through his hair.
"That's not the point. You were totally out of line. Just two hours ago you were complaining that Professor Scroll rejected you—"
"I just told you I was talking about you!" he interrupted.
"When did I ever reject you?" She threw her hands up in the air exasperatedly.
"Like, when you, like, I dunno…you didn't care to get to know me after the Killer party."
"That's pathetic, Noah."
"Oh, so first you think I'm attractive, then you think I'm pathetic?"
"It's possible to think both, yes. And I do."
"I don't understand you, Melanie."
"Good," she said vehemently. "I don't plan on you ever knowing me enough to understand me."
"Melanie, come on. I took a chance. Why can't you give me one?" he pleaded.
"That wasn't a chance, Noah. I know what you are. I know what kind of guy you are. You've done that to plenty of other girls who just swoon into your arms. That wasn't a chance you were taking. It was a sure thing. At least it was, in your eyes." She glared at him, making him quail in fear. "You won't play me."
"I wasn't planning on playing you," he protested.
"It doesn't matter." She shook her head. "I'm my own person. I don't want to go out with any guys."
And with that, she left him standing there and forced her exhausted legs up the stairs to the girls' dormitory."
END FLASHBACK
Melanie bit her lip and shook her head. "No, Professor. Nothing."
"Then I suppose we can get on with the lesson?" he barked.
"Yes, sir," she said, nodding and pulling out her wand.
Later at breakfast, Melanie could barely lift her fork to put eggs in her mouth. Rose and Al watched her warily.
"Are you all right, Melanie?" asked Al.
"I'm fine!" she snapped.
"Whoa," muttered Rose. "Touchy, much?"
"I'm. Not. Touchy," she said loudly. The Royal Group seventh years entered with a bang. Literally. Firecrackers exploded in the Great Hall ceiling as they walked in, Fred with his giddy smile, Xander with a softer one, Molly Weasley, someone Melanie hadn't gotten to speak to, and Noah, with a stony, hard expression.
"What happened to him?" wondered Rose, staring at Noah.
"I don't know," Melanie answered through gritted teeth. She would not feel guilty. Noah had taken advantage of her. She had sworn to herself when she had seen him making flirty comments towards the Queen Miss Priss Ashley that she'd never get involved with this boy. Hot, cocky boys had always been her weakness, and at Hogwarts, she planned to change that.
"I have never seen Noah without a smile," said Al, looking wholly shocked.
Whispers were beginning to erupt throughout the Hall. Melanie could practically feel the rumor vibe spreading through each person's blood as they began to theorize. Myra settled into the seat next to Melanie.
"He's been like that since morning," she murmured to her. "Do you think any of the stuff about last night was actually true?"
"What, that he's actually into Professor Scroll?" Melanie scoffed. "Yeah. Right. And I'm into Professor Nesbaum."
"You're into Professor Nesbaum!" cried James loudly in mock outrage. "No wonder you rejected me!" She shot him a spiteful glare as more whispers fluttered all through the Great Hall.
"She just seems to reject all the guys, doesn't she?" drawled Noah dryly.
"I'm going to go to class now," said Melanie loudly, ignoring Noah. Casting her eyes down, she stood up, gathered her books, and stalked out of the Great Hall without looking back.
"But…but we don't have class for another hour!" Al called after her, thoroughly confused.
Melanie heard footsteps behind her and whirled around yelling, "I don't want to talk to you, Noah—oh."
Before her stood a smirking Myra. "Do you have something to say to me? Or Noah?"
With a frown, Melanie turned away and continued walking. "Neither."
"Oh, come on," she complained, yanking Melanie's arm back. "What happened there? The guys are all idiots, so they didn't notice the obvious hostility."
Surrendering, Melanie sighed and leaned back against the wall, covering her face with her hands. "Noah kissed me last night," she mumbled.
"WHAT?"
"Shh! Do you want the school to start whispering about this?" Melanie hissed.
"Sorry. But seriously, what?"
"Noah kissed me. Like, he came down around two in the morning, said he was talking about me and not Professor Scroll, and he kissed me!"
"What did you do?" asked Myra, wide-eyed.
"I rejected him, obviously," Melanie scoffed shortly. "Why would say yes to him?"
"Did you kiss him back?"
"Of course I did. Have you seen him? A boy like that throws himself at you, you don't pull away without having a little taste."
Myra giggled. "The taste wasn't worth the whole dish?" she teased.
"It absolutely was not," said Melanie firmly. "I'm not getting involved with guys like that. Ever."
"The girls were right," noted Myra with a grin.
"What? What girls?"
"Noah was definitely your conquest."
"He was not!" cried Melanie, slightly offended.
"Melanie, no girl has ever made Noah act like this. Ever. In his whole seven years at Hogwarts. There has never been a girl who made him angry like that," she explained.
"I don't care," said Melanie stubbornly. "It's not gonna happen. He's got a better chance with Professor Scroll than he's got with me."
Myra laughed. "I do hope that's not true."
"Seriously?" Melanie asked skeptically. "You think I'm gonna actually say yes to Noah?"
"Melanie, you're looking for something casual right?"
She nodded.
"Noah's all about that! You can just date for a bit, he's going to leave Hogwarts anyway, and then you break up! No big deal. No need to get all feelingsy."
"Yeah...don't give me relationship advice until you've worked out your own feelings for James."
Myra frowned. "James? What are you talking about?"
With a grin, Melanie shrugged. "You tell the Miss Prisses they don't know who you're into, but you know the truth is that you like James. A lot. It was pretty obvious last night—"
"I had alcohol in my system," she snarled. "You must've just seen something that wasn't there."
"Oh, stop it. James is your weakness, Myra. Just give in to it. You're going to Hogsmeade with him this weekend, aren't you?"
Myra fell silent and turned slightly pink.
"I thought so," she chuckled.
"We're going as friends," Myra insisted. "Because that's what we are. Friends. Don't make it more than it is."
"Is that what you tell yourself whenever you get all those butterflies?" Melanie teased.
Before Myra could retort, Rose and Al turned the corner and came upon them.
"There you are!" cried Rose. "Why'd you run off like that?"
"Noah kissed her," said Myra giddily.
"MYRA!"
"He WHAT?" shouted Al.
"He kissed you?" repeated Rose, shocked.
"Yes, but I rejected him," Melanie responded dismissively. "Myra, you suck."
Happily, Myra smiled and did a mini dance. "I know you love me."
As they headed back towards Gryffindor Tower, Rose and Al remained in a complete state of shock. "He kissed you?" they kept saying, one after another, sometimes together.
"Why'd you reject him?" asked Rose wonderingly. "Who would ever reject Noah Prewett?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" replied Melanie, amused. "He's not the only attractive boy in the world, you know."
"Yes, but…but he's Noah," she said longingly. "He's, like, one of the only people in our group who isn't related to us!"
"That's what makes him desirable?" Melanie could barely contain her laughter. "The fact that he doesn't share your blood?"
"Well, he probably is related to us from a distance," Al pointed out.
"Yeah, but all the pureblood families are interrelated. It doesn't count when the distance is so huge like it is with Noah." Rose waved the comment away flippantly.
"How is he related to you?" asked Melanie.
"Well our grandma Weasley was a Prewett before she was married, and Noah's grandfather is like her grandma's fourth cousin's son or something."
"Yeah, Rose is right. That doesn't count. So you want him, huh, Rose?"
"What?" cried Rose, her voice jumping a few octaves. "What's that mean? I don't want anything."
"Sure," teased Melanie, elbowing her lightly. "Noah is one of the most attractive boys at Hogwarts."
Slightly panicked, Rose shook her head frantically. "No. No. He's much too old. It'd be weird. And gross. Stop it. Ew."
Melanie laughed and said, "Okay, relax. Nothing's gonna happen between me and him anyway."
"Well, nothing serious, anyway," said Al.
"What do you mean by that?" Melanie responded sharply.
Putting his hands up in defense, Al shrugged. "I don't know. Noah's always been the casual type. I can tell that you are, too. So maybe you'll just, I dunno, hook up a little and then call it off."
"I would not shag Noah Prewett!" Melanie snarled. "Watch what you're implying."
"He didn't imply it, he pretty much said it outright," said Rose, entertained.
"Shut up, Rose."
"Shut up, Rose."
"I only meant you'd just date him casually, Melanie," Al explained nervously. "I didn't mean to offend you."
Melanie sighed. She didn't enjoy this talk of dating or relationships, casual or serious. Talk of the heart always made her think of her father's death, which was constantly and cruelly eating away at hers. "Whatever. You didn't offend me. I don't really wanna talk about Noah anymore."
"All right. We can just get on with classes, then," suggested Rose.
"We've got Winter Ball decorations tonight," Al reminded them. "A lot of people are volunteering, and you're the center of gossip right now, Melanie."
Realizing this to be absolutely and unfortunately true, Melanie groaned. "Dammit."
Finally, they arrived at the Gryffindor Common Room and headed into their dorms to gather their things for class.
All day, Melanie had been so lost in her thoughts about the kiss that she was barely paying attention to anything or anyone. She strolled into Charms, absolutely not paying attention to anything that was going on, and settled into a seat next to Mason George, the fourth year Ravenclaw.
"So you kissed Noah?" he whispered.
Startled, she turned to him. "What?"
Mason shrugged. "It's been everywhere," he said.
"That bastard," she growled, planning on severely torturing and killing Noah. Granted, she knew about zero hexes, but she figured she'd just do it the Muggle way. Knives and corkscrews could do it.
"Oh, I'm pretty sure Noah didn't say anything," Mason said confidently.
"And why would you say that?"
"Because, despite his huge success with girls, Noah's never been one to kiss and tell," replied Mason.
"Really?" Melanie was intrigued. She would have never guessed that about Noah. He seemed like a boast-your-conquest kind of guy.
"Also, judging by his face earlier today, you rejected him," said Mason with a grin.
"So?" she snapped.
"So, Noah would never tell anyone that he was humiliated like that. The new girl rejects the hottest guy at Hogwarts? It's like inviting people to make fun of him. His whole reputation would be ruined."
"How would it be ruined?" asked Melanie.
"Because basically, it would get around that Noah could only get girls from Hogwarts. Girls who haven't really been out in the world and seen other guys besides the ones they live with," Mason explained. "You've seen other guys all your life, and you're not interested in the hottest guy here? That only proves that he's not as hot as he's made out to be."
"Oh." That made sense. She felt smug; Mason had just shown her a new power she had. "So if I do choose someone here," she said coyly, "will he be the most revered person in the school?"
"Oh yes," said Mason, nodding vigorously. "Your opinion is the most valued one in the Hogwarts gossip chain."
She grinned widely, but her smile was wiped off her face when Mason asked, "Where's your Charms assignment?"
Oh hell. With all the chaos that had intruded her brain all day, she'd forgotten her Charms assignment in her dormitory. Loudly, she let out a groan.
Mason chuckled knowingly. "You forgot it."
"Yes," she grumbled.
"Don't worry," he said soothingly. "Professor Snell will let you turn it in later."
"Ugh, I better go ask her." Dread filled her as she approached Professor Snell at the front of the room. Unfortunately, no one could ever predict the Charms teacher's behavior—it all depended on her mood, which was often very drastically changing.
"Er, Professor?" Melanie began tentatively.
Professor Snell turned to her with a bright smile. "Yes, Miss Daniels?"
For a moment, Melanie was relieved. "See, I forgot my Charms assignment in my dorm, so do you think it'd be okay if I could just run up there and bring it back quickly?"
Professor Snell's smile disappeared. "What?"
"Er," squeaked Melanie.
"How do you forget a Charms assignment when you come to Charms class?" she barked.
"I-I'm sorry," Melanie murmured.
"Fine. Just go get it." Turning away, Professor Snell pulled out her wand to begin class.
"Er—"
"NOW!"
Without another word, Melanie hurried out of the classroom and ran all the way back to Gryffindor Tower. Breathlessly, she let the portrait door close behind her and ran up to her dormitory. Clutching her charms paper in her hand, she was almost out of the common room when—
"Melanie?"
She turned to face the person she most didn't want to see.
"Noah." Melanie set her jaw.
His expression was just as stony. "What are you doing here?"
She crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm a Gryffindor, Noah. I live here."
"Don't you have class?" he asked, confused.
With a sigh, she replied, "Yes. But that's my business."
"Oh. Oh, I see," he said crossly. "When you said you didn't want me to know you, you meant it really literally."
"Yes. I did," she snapped. Why couldn't he just accept that she wasn't ready to date anyone? Why couldn't he just let it go?
"What are you afraid of?" Noah challenged her.
"Afraid?" she repeated, outraged.
"Yeah. What is it that scares you about trying something with me?"
"I'm not scared, Noah," she said defensively.
"Yeah. Sure you're not." He shrugged and turned away.
"I'm not scared!" she shouted.
"Uh-huh. I heard you."
"I'm NOT!" She hurled her body at him, toppling over on top of the sofa, and wrestled him down so she could sit on him and kiss him wildly.
When they finally came up for air, he said breathlessly, "Bloody wow."
"Shut up," she muttered, and went back for more. After several minutes of nonstop snogging, Melanie fell off the sofa onto the rug in front of the fireplace.
Chuckling, Noah offered her a hand. "You all right?"
Gasping heavily, she didn't take it. "No. No I'm not. I-I've got to go. I've got to go." She struggled to her feet, grabbed the several sheets of crumpled parchment that was her Charms paper, and scampered out of the room, leaving Noah with his mouth hanging open.
Luckily for Melanie, Professor Snell had been in a much better mood when she had returned to class, and accepted her essay warmly. Melanie would never understand that woman. After Charms, she, Rose, and Al headed back to Gryffindor Tower. When they entered, Melanie was relieved to find it packed.
"What is going on?" she said.
"Looks like everyone's just on break from class, coincidentally," said Al. "Weird."
"Yeah, it looks like everyone from Gryffindor is here," Rose commented.
"Wait," said Al warily, leading them to the center of the room. There sat Lucy Weasley, a second year, sobbing and shaking as she clutched her hands to her ears.
"What the hell happened?" Melanie whispered, alarmed. "Isn't that Molly's sister?"
"Everyone, just calm down!" Fred was shouting, raising his hands up to mute the crowd. Melanie pushed her way to the front with Rose and Al and approached Myra.
"What's going on?" she asked her. "What happened to Lucy?"
Angry, Myra shrugged. "We don't know. She's just been totally hysterical. She came into the common room like this, crying and screaming and covering her ears like that. Molly and Fred have been trying to get through to her."
Melanie's brow furrowed. She noticed Lily Potter crying silently in the corner, looking frightened out of her wits. Nobody else seemed to see her, so Melanie made her way over to her.
"Hi, there," she said gently, sitting down next to her. "You worried about Lucy?"
Lily cast her a dirty look. "I'm not five. You don't need to talk to me like that."
Cringing, Melanie said, "Sorry. I'm just—bad at dealing with scared people. Not great in a crisis, y'know?"
With a sniffle, Lily nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm just, just yeah, scared about Lucy."
"Well, your family is like, one of the coolest I've ever seen. They'll make sure she's okay. Why haven't they taken her to the Hospital Wing?" she asked.
Lily answered, "Fred said something about not wanted to touch her. She came and sat on the sofa like that and hasn't even moved since. They're afraid if they touch her, they'll trigger something. James and Xander are over there trying to work out a safety spell. They're the smartest Gryffindors in the school."
"Oh bloody hell," cried Eden Bones, throwing herself on the sofa. "Shut up about not touching her! The poor girl is going to go into some serious state of shock, or hysteria, or-or something." Very gingerly, Eden attempted to take Lucy into her arms, but was thrown back against the wall and crumpled, unmoving.
Melanie jumped to her feet. Almost everyone in the room pulled out their wands as a precaution.
"Eden!" shouted Xander, moving to go to the back of the room, but James grabbed his arm to stop him.
"Xander, we're almost there. Come on, you can't waste time. We don't know if the curse is getting stronger," said James seriously.
"Maybe we should just-just put a Stunner on her!" cried Molly desperately. Rose and Al hurried over to her to clutch her shaking hands.
"Calm down, Molly. James will do this," Al reassured her, looking panicked.
"She's only twelve!" Molly said, her voice breaking. "Just a second year."
"I know," said Rose, rubbing her hand.
"I've got it!" shouted James, and without further ado, rushed over to the sofa and whispered a spell. Instantly, Lucy fell silent and stopped shaking, but she still held her hands to her ears frantically and looked terrified.
"All right," murmured Fred. "Myra, get the nurse."
Nearly ten minutes passed before Myra returned with an anxious Madam Pomfrey and a trembling Madam Daisy, a student doctor sort of nurse, behind her.
"Let me see, let me see," said Madam Pomfrey. "Oh dear. Daisy, you may go. This is…not for soft eyes."
On any other occasion, Madam Daisy would have protested, insisting on the value of learning being more important, but one look at Lucy Weasley's small, petrified face sent her away. She tended to the unconscious Eden instead.
"Miss Weasley? Lucy, dear, can you hear me?" asked Madam Pomfrey gently. She reached a hand forward.
"You might not want to touch her," interjected Fred. "She sent Eden flying into that wall."
"Don't be silly," she tutted. "I already know what curse this is. You've tamed it. I can touch her now."
"We did it?" whispered James in awe.
"Yes, Mr. Potter, you did. But I advise you not to attempt such a dangerous spell again. You should have come straight to me." She looked up at him reproachfully.
"Sorry, Madam Pomfrey."
"All right," she said, standing up. With a quick wave of her wand, she put Lucy out like a light. "It'll be better to leave her unconscious for this. The curse is very painful and frightening. I'll have the countercurse potion brewed in two days."
"Two days?" protested Molly. "Why will it take so long?"
"I'm sorry, Miss Weasley." She sounded truly regretful. "Someone will need to be with her at all times. I would like for there to be a family member around, but Daisy is there in case nobody can make it."
"Please," scoffed Rose. "Half of us here are family."
"And the rest are close enough," added Myra.
"That is true." Madam Pomfrey looked around at the whole of Gryffindor House that had gathered to support Lucy Weasley. "While the potion brews, we will need to feed her painkilling potions on a regular basis. She will be unable to communicate with us, and unable to understand us. It's like she's in a bad dream. Nothing is going to make sense to her."
"Bloody hell," said Al shakily.
"Agreed," murmured Rose.
"Right, well, I shall need about three people who are strong with spells. For each girl," she added, glancing over at Eden.
"Will Eden be okay?" asked Xander hoarsely.
"She'll be fine," said Madam Daisy enthusiastically. "It'll just take some Renervating potions to wake her up, and then some healing potions to get the stuff out of her system. Should be no problem!"
Madam Pomfrey sighed exasperatedly. She would never really get used to Madam Daisy's constant gusto. Gathering up a few of the family members, she led them out of the common room towards the Hospital Wing.
A few people from the Royal Group remained, including Melanie, Albus, Rose, and Fred.
"You know that Spook did this, don't you?" hissed Fred.
Al and Rose nodded gravely.
"We're gonna get him, Fred," said Rose.
"Yeah, he's not gonna get away," said Al.
"We are coming for you, Spook," muttered Fred, partially to himself. His tone sent shivers through Melanie's spine, and, for a moment, she feared for the gangster boy. Then, she thought back to Lucy's terrified face, and her fear was gone.
A/N: Sooo stuff with Noah and Melanie is still at a standstill. And what's with Myra and James? We also have the return of Spook! Will there be a open fight in the next chapter? I cannot confirm that but what I can tell you to expect is a LOT of Miss Priss action, along with Hogsmeade weekend (which will be quite eventful) and a secret is revealed.
Keep reading and keep reviewing!
~Maya
