Year 4: Friends and Foes

Chapter 39: May 2017

With the arrival of May, Dominique's time was quickly running out. And though she was done procrastinating, she found that she had very limited opportunities to talk to Adrian. She could never find him around the castle, probably because he was constantly down at the Quidditch pitch training, and whenever she tried catching him there, he was always with Caitlin Bell. Dominique definitely wasn't going to flirt with Adrian in front of another girl. Especially given what Victoire had revealed about her.

Then one day, Dominique was studying alone in the library, and to her delight, Adrian walked in and took a seat not too far away and took out his books, apparently also studying. And best of all, he was alone.

Dominique didn't hesitate. Her mind had been made up for a long while, and she immediately switched gears, letting all thoughts of her potions notes fall to the wayside and started pulling up the dozens of conversation topics she'd prepared for just such an occasion.

As she approached, she took a mental note of everything she could. Adrian had a textbook out entitled Advanced Transfiguration, so she assumed that that was what he was studying. She tried to recall what sixth years learned in transfiguration, but came up blank. Victoire wasn't taking the course, and Dominique really had no other knowledge to draw upon.

She shook her head.

Talking about school would be a terrible first impression. She needed their conversation to be memorable, and a conversation about transfiguration would be incredibly forgettable. She had to talk about the things that Adrian was interested in, like Quidditch. Dominique sighed. She was in for a boring conversation.

"Hey," she said, taking a seat in the chair next to Adrian without waiting for an offer. "How's it going?"

"Erm… good," Adrian replied, looking a little confused. Dominique brushed it off.

"So how about that Quidditch game?" she asked, referencing the most recent one they'd had between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. "Real nail biter, hmm?"

Dominique honestly had no idea how the Hufflepuff/Ravenclaw game had gone. Since Adrian hadn't been playing, she hadn't bothered to watch it.

"Not really," Adrian frowned. "Ravenclaw won by a pretty large margin."

"Right," Dominique nodded, as if she'd known that all along. "But I mean, think of what that means for Gryffindor."

Dominique had no idea whether this was an appropriate comment, but decided she'd spoken well when Adrian nodded.

"Yeah, Gryffindor will really have to step their game up in the game against Slytherin," he agreed. "Just winning won't cut it with the lead Ravenclaw has points-wise."

Dominique nodded, as if she had a clue what he was talking about.

"But you can do it," she said, steering the conversation towards Adrian, a topic she was much more comfortable discussing. "I know you won't let any of those goals through the hoops."

"Well I'm certainly going to try not to," Adrian laughed. "But I won't make any promises."

"No need," Dominique replied. "I've seen you play. You're way better than those Slytherin chasers."

Dominique had to pride herself on her ability to maintain her side of a Quidditch conversation for so long. But she knew they couldn't linger on the topic too much longer lest she get caught in her ignorance on the finer points of the game.

"Anyway," Dominique continued. "Enough about that. What else do you do for fun?"

"For fun?" Adrian asked. He thought about it for a moment. "Well I train a lot. Not just quidditch, though I spend a lot of time on the pitch. I like to go for runs as well though, keep my legs in shape as well as the rest of me."

Dominique nodded. Adrian was most definitely in shape. She thought about saying so, but decided it would be a tad too forward. Maybe if this was a date, but that had yet to be arranged.

"And besides that, I don't know," Adrian shrugged. "I have my classes, spend time with my friends, all the usual stuff."

Dominique nodded. "I like to read," she volunteered. She didn't just need to listen to Adrian talk, but also needed him to learn a bit about her. How else would he ever remember her.

"Oh yeah?" Adrian nodded. "What sort of stuff?"

This was good. Adrian was starting to ask her questions, which meant he was engaged in their conversation now.

"Mostly romance," Dominique replied honestly. "I'm a sucker for a good love story."

Adrian nodded. "I read Quidditch magazines sometimes," he declared. "Not all that often though, I don't have the patience it takes to read. I prefer to be active."

Dominique nodded. "I get that," she said, even though she didn't. Dominique absolutely loved curling up on a rainy afternoon with a good book and a cup of tea.

"Sorry, but I don't think you told me your name," Adrian frowned, his eyes un-focusing, as if he was trying to recall it.

"Dominique," Dominique replied with a smile. "Dominique Weasley."

"Oh! You're Victoire's sister, right?" he asked. Dominique could practically see the light go on in his head.

Dominique sighed. "Yeah, that's right," she agreed. She wished he hadn't made that particular connection. Or that she'd simply left out her last name. Associated with Victoire, she would always be seen as the younger sister. If would be a lot harder to convince him to go out with his classmate's little sister than just some generic fourth year.

"Yeah, she speaks very highly of you," Adrian said.

"Oh?" Dominique asked, pleasantly surprised.

Adrian nodded. "Yeah, I wish I liked my sister that much."

"Your sister?" Dominique prompted.

"Yeah, Holly. I think she'd in your year, actually," Adrian replied.

Dominique nodded, keeping a smile on her face while inside she mentally cursed. Why had she let the conversation drift so far from topic? Even worse than being compared to Victoire, now Dominique was being compared to Holly, Adrian's little sister. He would never want to go out with his little sister's roommate!

Dominique had to salvage what was left of the encounter.

"Ever play gobstones?" she asked. Maybe she could convince him to join her for a game sometime. It wasn't officially a date, but it could be a good segue into one.

Unfortunately, before he could answer, Cameron and Caitlin both walked into the library and his attention immediately turned to them.

"Hey man!" Cameron said, giving Adrian a fist bump as he swung his bag from his shoulder and dropped it on the floor. "Don't tell me you started without us!"

"Neither of you is talking transfiguration this year," Adrian replied. "Besides, I didn't get very far either."

"Well put away that conjuring nonsense," Caitlin declared, taking a seat on Adrian's other side, "because I made some epic flashcards for charms and we are going to dominate that exam."

"Alright," Adrian said, slamming his transfiguration textbook shut in favor of charms.

"Uh, sorry, but who's this?" Cameron frowned, noticing Dominique for the first time.

Dominique immediately stood, realizing that her presence was no longer productive.

"Sorry," she muttered. "I was just leaving. I'll see you around, alright Adrian?"

"Yeah sure," Adrian shrugged.

Dominique started to walk away, and from behind, he could hear him answering Cameron's question.

"I don't know man, some friend of my sister's I guess. She just came over and started talking to me, what was I supposed to do?"

Dominique sighed. It wasn't the reaction she was hoping for, but it was a start at least. If she didn't want a month before trying to talk to him again, he'd remember her, and hopefully if she continued to build their connection, he'd start seeing her as a friend and potential girlfriend, rather than a random fourth year.

Dominique returned to the common room then, since the library had become off limits for the remainder of the afternoon, and took a seat in an empty armchair. She didn't particularly feel like studying at the moment – she was only in her fourth year, it wasn't like she was sitting her O.W.L.s, she could slack off a bit if she wanted to. She took out the book she was currently reading and found the spot she'd left off, letting herself drift into the world the author had created and forget about the one she lived in.

She had only been reading for about twenty minutes when she became aware of someone taking a seat in the armchair next to hers. She glanced over and saw that it was Brooke, so she marked her place and put her book down to say hi.

"Hey Domi," Brooke returned the greeting. "How's it going?"

"Fine," Dominique replied. "Haven't seen you around much lately."

In fact, ever since returning from the Easter holidays, Dominique had found herself spending more time with Miles than previously, and a lot less time with Brooke. She'd have chalked it up to quidditch practice – the final game of the season was just over a month away after all – but that didn't make sense with Miles' behaviour.

"Yeah," Brooke said. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," Dominique shrugged, unperturbed. They were still best friends, regardless, and Dominique understood that Brooke had other people to spend time with – namely Tom – without Dominique. "But we should try to hang out more. You wanna study together tomorrow?"

"Actually, I already have plans to study with Tom," Brooke said, a little guiltily. "But maybe the next day?"

"Sure, whatever," Dominique replied. "No big deal."

Brooke was silent for a moment and Dominique looked at her friend questioningly. "Is everything okay?" she asked, becoming worried.

"I just… there's something I need to tell you," Brooke admitted, her hands playing with the edge of her robes nervously. "And I don't know how you're going to take it."

"Take what?" Dominique frowned. What could Brooke possibly have to tell her that would make her so visibly anxious?

"Well that's what I'm trying to figure out how to tell you," Brooke replied.

"Just tell me," Dominique said, a mixture of curiosity and concern. "Whatever it is, just say it. It can't be that bad."

"It's not bad," Brooke assured her. "But… well I just don't think you'll like it."

"What won't I like?" Dominique frowned.

"Well that's not it," Brooke backtracked. "It's not about whether you'll like it, it's just that I don't think you'll understand."

"Brooke, you've got to stop beating around the bush like this," Dominique insisted. "Just tell me and be done with it."

"Maybe I shouldn't've brought it up at all," Brooke said, changing her mind. "Forget I said anything."

"I don't think so," Dominique insisted. "You can't just spring something like that on me and then refuse to tell me what it is. Now you have to tell me what's going on."

"But it's not – it'll just create more problems," Brooke insisted.

"It's already creating problems with you not telling me," Dominique declared. "Could it possibly be worse than having me badger you forever? And I will find out eventually, so you might as well be the one to tell me."

"You're right," Brooke sighed, realizing that Dominique had a point. "Alright, I'll tell you, but you have to promise to keep an open mind."

"I promise," Dominique assured her. She had to admit, with all the buildup, she was a little nervous about what Brooke was going to say.

"Alright, here I go," Brooke said, taking a deep breath. "I… I'm dating someone."

"Wait, what?" Dominique cried in surprise. This was not even close to the thousands of possible things she'd thought Brooke was going to say. "For how long?"

"A few weeks," Brooke admitted.

"Seriously?" Dominique frowned. "And you waited this long to tell me? How did I not notice before?"

It all made sense now. Why Brooke hadn't been spending as much time with Dominique as before, why she'd always been off elsewhere, but most definitely not at quidditch practice. Dominique tried to think if she'd seen Brooke hanging around with anyone new recently, but she couldn't think of who it might be.

"Alright, so who's the lucky guy?" Dominique asked eagerly. She was excited to meet him, spend some time around both him and Brooke. Maybe once she and Adrian started dating, the four of them could go on double dates.

Brooke hesitated. "Well… that's the tricky part," she said.

Dominique remembered the reluctance Brooke had had about telling her and reigned in her thoughts. There was something else, something more… something Dominique wouldn't like.

"It's Tom," Brooke announced.

For just a moment, it was like time stopped. Everything around Dominique froze, and it was like she had somehow come out of time. She desperately tried to understand Brooke's words, but she couldn't. She convinced herself that she must have heard wrong, and asked Brooke to repeat herself.

"No you heard right," Brooke said uncomfortably. "I'm dating Tom."

"Tom Kelley," Dominique repeated, for clarification. "Tom Kelley, my former friend, who said awful things about me and who to this day thinks I'm a terrible person."

Brooke shifted awkwardly. "Look I know you have your issues with him, but he's really not a terrible guy – "

"You heard the things he said about me!" Dominique exclaimed. "You were there! He was so mean to me Brooke. Meaner than Summer or even Quinn has ever been to me."

"He said some things he regrets," Brooke allowed. "So did you – "

"You're my best friend, Brooke," Dominique said, her voice getting quieter, but no less upset. "My best friend."

"I know, and you're mine – "

"How could you do this to me?" she asked sadly.

Brooke shook her head. "It's not something I'm doing to you," she insisted. "It has nothing to do with you. It just sort of happened."

"How could it have nothing to do with me?" Dominique demanded. "Did you not once factor me into this when you decided to date him? Did you not once consider how I would feel?"

"Of course I did," Brooke said. "But it's not about you. It's about me and Tom and how we feel about each other."

"So what you're saying is that Tom is more important to you than I am," Dominique surmised.

"No, that's not – "

"Well obviously it's true," Dominique interrupted. "Or else you wouldn't have picked him over me."

"I'm not trying to pick anyone!" Brooke cried. "I still want to be friends with you – "

"And how's that supposed to work?" Dominique demanded, tears pooling in her eyes. "How are we supposed to stay friends when he's your number one priority?"

"No one ever said anything about him being my priority – "

"Oh don't kid yourself," Dominique scoffed. "You may not see it now, but that's how it'll end up. The longer you date, the closer you'll become, and the more you and I will drift apart. He'll poison your mind, make you see me in a different light."

"If you think I'd let that happen – "

"I'm not saying it would be intentional," Dominique insisted. "It's just how it works in relationships."

"You've always been okay with the fact that I spend time with him," Brooke reminded her. "You've never tried to make me choose sides before."

"And I'm not asking you to choose sides now either," Dominique insisted. "I don't have a problem if you want to be friends with the guy – not that I understand that. But dating him is a whole different thing. And it is taking sides. It's taking his side."

"But I don't see it that way," Brooke practically yelled. "Why can't you just try to understand?"

"I am trying!" Dominique cried.

"No you're not," Brooke retorted. "From the minute I said his name, you've been judgmental and negative. Why can't you be happy for me?"

"With anyone else I would be," Dominique assured her. "Couldn't you just date someone else?"

"I don't want to date someone else!" Brooke replied. "I want to date Tom."

"Even after everything that he and I have been through. Even after everything he's said?" Dominique just couldn't wrap her head around it.

Brooke closed her eyes and then opened them, as if trying to clear her head. "He's not a bad guy," she said, almost at a whisper.

Dominique sighed. "I guess there's nothing I can say that will change your mind?"

Brooke shook her head.

Dominique nodded. "Well alright then," she said, with a sense of finality in her voice. "Then I guess we're done here." Dominique picked her book back up and opened it to where she'd left off before the conversation with Brooke.

"So we're alright?" Brooke asked, unsure.

Dominique didn't close her book to answer, didn't even look up from the page.

"You can live your life however you want," she replied, voice devoid of emotion. "Obviously it's none of my business anymore."

Brooke tried to protest. She insisted that it was still Dominique's business, that she was still her best friend, but Dominique ignored her. She just stared at her page, pretending to read her book until Brooke gave up and left.

As soon as she was gone, Dominique dropped the book into her lap and released the tears that she'd been trying to hard to hold back. It wasn't fair. First, she'd lost one of her good friends – or at least someone she'd thought was a friend, because it had turned out that he wasn't a friend at all. Now she was losing her best friend.

Was it her? Was there something altogether unlikeable about her that made people want to stop being friends with her? Dominique wasn't sure. Maybe she would ask Miles, but then again, she wasn't sure she wanted to hear the answer.

Wiping her tears away, Dominique determined that she wasn't going to dwell on this. If Brooke could do something like this – if she could fall for someone who'd been so rude and so mean to her best friend – then clearly the two of them had never really been best friends. Dominique saw it now. If Brooke was really her best friend, she'd have unfriended Tom the minute he'd started spewing his nasty comments. She wouldn't have spent the whole year going between he two of them. Now Dominique knew why Brooke couldn't let go of Tom. She just couldn't figure out why she'd hung on to Dominique for so long.

Taking a deep breath, Dominique tried to re-immerse herself into her book. The fictional world was so much friendlier than the real world, and Dominique was sick and tired of the real world for the moment. At least the characters in her books would never desert her. They'd be around as long as Dominique wanted them to be.