The following lazy Thursday afternoon, I found myself lounging underneath a tree in the courtyard with my latest conquest, Tristan Gwinnett, much to the chagrin of my mates and, most notably, Wood.

While it is sometimes said that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, or at least that's what Mum tries to tell me, there was no single person in the wizarding world who could deny the attractiveness of Mr Gwinnett. His hair was a mop of golden-brown curls that complimented his light olive-toned skin quite well. His eyes were a striking hazel that even the most heartless Slytherin female could get lost in. He had a smile to rival Professor Lockhart's, and, best of all, he didn't look awkwardly lanky like so many of his peers did. All in all, Tristan Gwinnett was a very pleasant specimen to behold.

At that moment, Tristan was poking the ground with a twig while staring into his DADA book. A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth, and I was about to say something when a shadow blocked out the sun. I looked up, already glaring at who I thought it would be.

"Gwinnett," Wood barked, ignoring my glare.

Tristan looked up to meet Wood's gaze, "Yeah, mate?"

"You didn't show up to study with us."

"Oh," Tristan glanced at me. I shrugged, and he scrunched up his face. "What time was that again?"

Wood's lips pursed. "We started an hour ago."

"Right, I'll just come with you now, then." Tristan stood, holding his book under his arm and nonchalantly tossing the small twig. "I'll see you tomorrow, Rue."

I smiled up at him. "Sure thing!"

Wood scoffed. I shifted my gaze to him, "What's got your knickers in such a twist, Macduff? Can't handle being stood up by your date?"

I felt an evil smirk coming on. If only I could look in a mirror to see that Slytherin-esque smirk, I'm sure it would've been the triumphant smirk to end all smirks.

He shot me a particularly dark look, a warning of sorts, before turning on his heel and leading the way to the Gryffindor tower. Tristan gave a small wave and an apologetic shrug before hurrying to catch up with my enemy.

I huffed and crossed my arms over my chest, leaning back against the tree trunk once more. For the past few days, I had made it my own personal, super secret mission to ensnare Tristan Gwinnett. The idea itself had popped into my head, quite brilliantly, in the kitchens that past Sunday. As it were, Tristan was everything Wood was not: charming, relaxed, easy to get on with, and, best of all, he didn't haunt my dreams.

Since deciding that I would go after Tristan, my dreams of Wood literally sucking my face off ceased. It was a wonderful feeling being able to look forward to going to sleep again, let me tell you. Rose, thank Merlin, had also kept to herself about the information I had shared with her, minding herself whenever Fiona and Carrie were around. Though, in classes with Wood, she would not hesitate to mouth some rather obscene things or make rather interesting hand gestures to me from across the room.

Operation: T Gwinn, as I so lovingly called it, was in full swing. I got to have a bit of fun, spending extra time outside of classes with a really great bloke. From what I could tell, he wasn't just playing along or fronting or anything, which is always a good inclination that one might have a decent chance with a member of the male population.

Eventually, maybe a few weeks from now, I'd be sitting pretty with a nice Gryffindor boyfriend who didn't infuriate me, or force me to go to Hogsmeade, or glare at me, or, erm, whatever else that bloody Scot happened to do. And, if nothing else, Operation: T Gwinn, at the very least, managed to distract my completely barmy subconscious.

I had just been freed from the Potions dungeons, after being berated by Professor Snape, and was on my way out to the grounds. I was meeting with Fiona for a debriefing on how things were going with Diggory, not that I particularly cared since I had my own boy to worry about.

I was about to break out in a run when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around, prepared to tell off whoever was getting in my way, when I noticed it was Tristan. I smiled.

"Hey," he breathed.

"Hello."

An awkward silence ensued.

"Is there, uh," I cleared my throat, "something I could help you with?"

"Oh, um, yeah. Actually, Rue, I was wondering if you were going to Hogsmeade with anyone?"

Dear, sweet Merlin, why did you have to be so cruel?

"Well, I'mkindofgoingwithWood." I gushed, hoping that if I said it fast enough, we could go on pretending it never happened.

"Er, what?"

I bit my lip. Shit. "I'm kind of going with Wood," I said slowly, injecting loathing into every word. I looked at my feet, avoiding Tristan's gaze.

"Oh, right... Why?"

I perked up. He wasn't giving up on me yet!

"He's forcing me. I'm kind of his slave for a day."

He nodded, looking as though something had clicked in his mind. "I'm sorry. That doesn't sound fun."

I shrugged in what I hoped was a pathetic manner.

"Hey, listen, I have bagsies on the next Hogsmeade trip then, yeah?"

I slapped on a dazzling Rue smile, nodding, "Yeah, that'd be brilliant."

He smiled, "Well, I'll see you later then! I'll warn Oliver not to be too cruel to you." With a wink, he was off.

I sighed dreamily, holding my Potions book to my chest as I stared after him. The shrill call of my name brought me back to reality. I turned to see Fiona sitting under our usual tree and frantically waving her arms, looking like a madwoman. I studied her for a moment before starting off down the hill.

Saturday morning. A Hogsmeade day. But this wasn't one of those that could be measured by the usual standards. No, this one was on a different scale entirely: the Could It Get Much Worse Than This? Scale.

I stood in front of the mirror in my dormitory, awkwardly tugging at the hem of my jumper. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair for the twentieth time since breakfast.

"Rue, would you relax?" Carrie asked from her bed as she worked on a braid.

"Yeah, Rue," Fiona called from the loo, "it's not like he's going to be disappointed with you. He fancies you!"

I groaned and turned to my bed, falling backwards on it and closing my eyes. I'd been running over every possible scenario since Thursday night, none of them ending well for either party involved. I had begged the girls to tell him I was deathly ill and couldn't leave my bed, but they refused. If nothing good came out of this date, they claimed, it would at least build character.

Build character. Pfft. I have enough character to go around the school several times over. But no, I just had to suck it up and go on this bloody date with that bloody Scot. Perfect.

"Alright, Sleeping Beauty, time to get up." I opened my eyes, looking directly into Rose's face. She had no concept of personal space whatsoever. She stepped back as I got off the bed and adjusted my clothing one last time.

"I will escort you to your doom," she smiled. I rolled my eyes and followed her.

Rose talked the entire way down to the main doors. For the most part, I tuned her out, particularly after she had started telling me that I should always use protection. Since when did favour-date equal shagging?

We reached the bottom of the staircase and Rose gently squeezed my hand, getting my attention. I stopped.

"Yeah?"

"You weren't listening to me at all, were you?"

"Nope," I said, keeping my gaze fixed in front of me. I could see him, trying to look cool and casual in a black jumper and trousers. I huffed before taking a confident step forward.

"Morning, Wood," I managed, approaching him.

"Morning."

Rose was reduced to sputters of laughter. I raised an eyebrow at her before turning to look expectantly up at Macduff.

"Shall we?"

"Yeah, I suppose," I sighed, leaving Rose standing in the corridor laughing hysterically.

It wasn't until Wood and I were inside the carriage that I understood what she was laughing at: Morning wood. I needed a new mate.

And there it is, lovelies! I actually updated twice within 48 hours! Unheard of! As you all know, I own nothing that you recognize from J.K. Rowling's amazing work. That which you don't belongs to moi. Before I get another update out, I am going to go back and rewrite the first chapter because I just don't like it. So it might be a few days before you see a new chapter up. Anyway, as a special way to show my love and affection for you dear readers, I will be personally responding to your reviews. That "reward" is basically me begging for REVIEWS. They make me happy. In fact, they are my sole source of nutrition. Yours.