When The Stars Go Blue
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, or Harry Potter. All recognisable characters, content, or locations belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.
Author's Note: Beth's 'original song' is Remedy, by Adele.
Chapter Thirteen:
Beth decides to perform her original song the next day, in their Glee Club meeting. There's an idle thought that she should, perhaps, leave it to a more private setting, but she's already volunteered for a performance, and she's not about to back out now. Instead, she takes Brad's usual place at the piano, spreads the music sheets out before her, and reminds herself that Neville needs to hear what she has to say. Perhaps now more than ever.
With a tremulous exhale, she begins her piano accompaniment, and then begins to sing
"I remember all of the things that
I thought I wanted to be
So desperate to find a way out of my world
And finally breathe
Right before my eyes, I saw
My heart, it came to life
This aint easy, it's not meant to be;
Every story has it's scars…
"When the pain cuts you deep
And the night keeps you from sleeping
Just look and you will see
I will be, I will be your remedy
When the world seems so cruel
And your heart makes you feel like a fool
I promise you will see
That I will be, I will be your remedy…"
She finishes the song to a round of applause, and fields the questions that follow with a patience she's not known for. Rachel is most impressed, though the others are generous with their compliments, too.
"You are quite the songwriter," Mr Schuester offers, "Is that what you want to do in the future?"
"I've not thought about it, actually," Beth admits. She knows, already, that her future lies in politics and familial duty, and thus, she's not allowed herself to consider anything else. Moreover, the last five years of her life have been spent with a metaphorical noose around her neck, and most of the time, Beth had been half convinced that she'd not live to see her age of majority.
It's hard to believe, sometimes, that she's finally free from the path set to her by fate.
"It's something to consider, perhaps," Mr Schuester says, "I think you could do well."
"Thank you," she smiles, "That's kind of you to say."
The conversation falls flat, inevitably, and Beth settles herself in the empty space beside Neville. He takes her hand in his, squeezes it lightly, and presses a lingering kiss to her knuckles. His gaze his tender, his smile more so, and Beth sighs a breath of relief. He understands, without words, what she can't say in conversation, and Beth loves him for it.
"That was amazing," Neville tells her, "You wrote that for me?"
"I did," she confirms, "You're always here for me. I just wanted you to know that I'm here for you, too."
Neville's grin his humoured, but as he presses his forehead to her own, his gaze turns earnest, "I already knew that, love."
"Ugh, gag me," Santana interjects.
"I would, happily, if it meant I didn't have to hear the shit that spews out of your mouth, Lopez."
The Latina cheerleader drops into the seat in front of them, scoffs at them both, and proceeds to mutter insults about the original Glee Club members under her breath. As she does, Mr Schuester rambles about his pregnant wife, and Beth's mood is shot to hell.
She huffs impatiently, shifts in her seat, and glances around. Kurt's tuned out Mr Schuester, instead occupied with that month's edition of 'Vogue' while, beside him, Mercedes, on her phone, trawls the internet in want of more information about the latest Beyonce/Jay-Z drama.
The other members, too, are occupied by different things, and thus, Beth has no qualms about withdrawing a rubix cube from her bag.
"You're hopeless," Neville says, long-suffering. Beth has had the puzzle for years, and she's never managed to solve it.
Hermione, in contrast, had been able to in eight minutes flat.
Beth, when she'd first witnessed it, had not been surprised.
"I will solve this," she insists, and Neville's smile is indulgent.
"Of course you will, love."
-!- -#-
The afternoon passes, and eventually, Beth and Neville make it home.
She is surprised, then, when Neville retrieves his car keys, and excuses himself to run some errands.
"I'll be home in three hours, tops," he assures, and leaves before Beth can ask about what on Earth would keep him busy for so long. She tries not to dwell on it, and instead keeps herself occupied with the stack of homework that never seems to end. She is curious though, and thus glances at the clock far more frequently than she cares to admit.
Eventually, he returns, and Beth meets him at the door.
He has two (very familiar) pet carriers in hand, and Beth stares, lost for words.
"Surprise?" Neville offers. Hedwig barks a greeting, and Crookshanks yowls to be released from his cage, and there's a lump of emotion in her throat that keeps Beth silent. She hugs her fiancé for all he is worth, though, and then descends upon Hedwig's cage with tears on her cheeks.
"A good surprise?" Neville queries. He releases Crookshanks at the front door, and the orange tabby/kneazle shoots off to explore the bungalow.
"Gods, Bear, the best," Beth answers, doting on her feathered companion. Hedwig's been in the American Ministry of Magic's quarantine department since June, and Beth hadn't expected to see her for months yet. The sight of her - and Crookshanks, too - has made Beth's day.
Neville smiles, and his gaze is tender. "I'm glad."
Beth smiles in kind, presses a lingering kiss to Neville's lips, and tells him, "I love you. Maybe I don't say it enough, but I do."
"I know," Neville assures, "I love you too. I just want you to be happy."
Beth nods, swallows hard, and replies, "I know. Thank you."
The gesture, done singularly for Beth's happiness, is humbling, and it leaves Beth quiet and introspective all evening. Neville leaves her to her thoughts, and while Beth dotes on Crookshanks and Hedwig, she considers her actions since her arrival in Ohio.
She isn't pleased by the person she's become.
-!- -#-
Chapter Fourteen:
The week that follows is rather hectic. Beth spends much of it in a daze, but around her, Mr Schuester questions his career, Quinn makes manipulation an art form, and the rest of the Glee Club suffers for it.
Dakota Stanley, by the way, is a wanker, and Beth is just grateful she and Neville had agreed not to donate to the cause. It had been mostly selfish on their parts - they didn't want the team to depend on their financial support - but also, Neville had been optimistic that the carwash fundraiser would facilitate a team bonding opportunity.
He'd been mistaken, unsurprisingly, though Beth hadn't had the heart to burst his bubble beforehand.
It's been a fortnight since that particular debacle, at least, and Mr Schuester's found his way back to them, more resolved than ever. He brings with him Puck, Matt Rutherford, and Mike Chang, which brings their member total to 14, which, in turn, sends Coach Sylvester into an apoplexy.
Inevitably, Quinn, Santana, Brittany, and Beth are run ragged, and most nights, Beth is asleep before nine o'clock, aching and exhausted.
On one particular morning in November, Beth finds Quinn hunched over herself on a bench in the locker room, breathing through her mouth, her face tinged a discomforting shade of green. There is a moment where Beth hesitates to involve herself, but she's decided to make an effort to be a better, less spiteful, person, and thus she firms her resolve, deposits her unopened box of tampons in her duffel bag, and approaches the conniving blonde.
"Do you need anything, Quinn? Water? Aspirin? A bucket, maybe?"
"I'm fine," Quinn answers, but she swallows convulsively, and Beth doesn't bother to pretend she believes her.
"Maybe you should pass on training today?" Beth suggests, "I don't think anyone would appreciate you spewing on them."
Despite herself, Quinn laughs, concedes the point with a reluctant nod, and sits up slowly. "I might just go home. I've been feeling off all week."
"Maybe go see your doctor, too?"
Quinn shakes her head. "I've probably just been working too hard, you know?"
Beth shrugs, unable to offer an answer either way. All she knows is that she's never been made nauseous by exhaustion, regardless of the circumstances. "Get some rest, at least."
"I will," Quinn assures, gathers up her things, and departs before anyone can stop her.
Beth doesn't think much on the encounter afterwards, and instead proceeds with her day. Her back aches, she's bloated and cramping, and all of her muscles are strained from that morning's training session. It's a particularly bad cycle, and essentially, she feels like hell.
Alas, she has a project due that day, so her bed - and a day of self-pity - is out of her reach. A shame, really, but such is life, she supposes.
During lunch, Neville supplies her with a banana, a bag of M-'n'-M's, and a thermos of tea. She's not got much of an appetite, but she demolishes all three with enthusiasm, sighs a breath of relief, and makes an impulse decision.
"I'm going to go sit with Rachel," she declares, receives a nod of acknowledgement and a kiss to her temple from Neville for the effort, and laughs when he sends her off with a swat to the backside.
In fact, Rachel is seated with the other original members of Glee, but while the others chatter around her, the brunette is lost in thought. Beth drops into the empty space beside her, offers the others a brief smile, and flicks Rachel in the arm.
"Is there something on your mind, Broadway?"
"It's nothing important," Rachel answers, offers Beth her 'stage smile', and proceeds to stare blankly at the rabbit food she's brought from home. Beth is pretty sure she's not even realised what's in front of her, never mind actually eaten it.
"I've learned not to pry into other peoples' business, but you've been like this for weeks. I know we've not known each other long, but you can talk to me, you know?"
Rachel offers her a smile that isn't so forced, nods her acknowledgement, and eats her salad. Beth decides its progress, and doesn't pry further. For now. Instead, she idly watches the cafeteria around her, and - inexplicably - longs for the archaic grandeur of Hogwarts' Great Hall.
She loves and hates that school, and she doesn't think she's ever missed a place so much in her life.
"Slumming it with the natives, Cankles?"
It's Santana, unsurprisingly, and Beth rolls her eyes heavenward. In the last few weeks, she's made an effort to not antagonise the other girl, though the Latina's made it rather difficult. They've clashed like oil and water from day one, pointed barbs and undisguised resentment beneath a vernier of forced civility, and Beth is tired of it.
Hell, she's just tired in general.
"Why, are you interested in joining us, Lopez?"?"
"Not fucking likely," Santana scoffs, "Thought I'd just give you this."
She deposits a Big Gulp - cherry flavoured - in front of Beth, and struts away with a malicious smirk on her face. Beth glares at the blatant warning, and at least where Santana is concerned, she throws her resolve out the window.
That hag will eat humble pie, if it's the last thing Beth ever does.
"What's the deal with you two?" Mercedes wonders.
Beth shrugs, clueless, and replies, "No idea."
"What are you going to do?" Artie queries.
"I'm going to hit her where it hurts, of course," Beth answers, rises to her feet, and returns to Neville's side. She stews in her thoughts, creates a plan, and smirks to herself.
Santana Lopez won't know what hit her.
After all, Beth was James Potter's daughter, and the Marauders' legacy was in her blood.
-!- -#-
Chapter Fifteen:
It's easy to procure the supplies she needs, and also to implement her plan. Thus, by lunch the next day, Santana's experiencing the perils of slow-acting itching powder in uncomfortable places, and others have begun to notice. It helps that Beth, as a part of her plan, has used carefully chosen remarks about personal hygiene and STI's to turn people's attention to it, and it isn't long before Santana's humiliation is complete.
It's awful, it's malicious and mean and probably worse than the proverbial crime, but it gets Santana off her back, and that's all Beth cares about.
Besides, Santana could use a scare. Her sexual appetite - much like Puck's - is ridiculous, and unabashedly dangerous. Beth is content to abide by her 'live and let live' policy, but there are things the witch can't ignore, and unhealthy sexual behaviour is one such issue.
Not that Beth would ever confront Santana about it, but perhaps the prank - hopefully the last of its kind - would teach her more than one lesson during the day.
At the end of the day, Beth offers the Latina a lime green slushie, a sneer on her face. "Moral of the story, Lopez: I don't take threats kindly."
She strolls into the choir room, unsurprised to find Neville and Puck in animated conversation with Mike and Matt. Finn sits with them, though he seems to be on the fringes of whatever their conversation is about, and if the expression on his face is anything to go by, he doesn't like it in the slightest.
The thing is, Mike, Matt, Puck and Neville are mates, and Finn has spent so much of his time trying to please everyone that he has, inevitably, neglected a lot of other friendships in the process.
Beth supposes she feels bad for the bloke, but in truth, he's brought it upon himself, and she isn't about to help him fix what he's broken. For one, it is none of her business, and for another, she doesn't like Finn Hudson, at all.
"Hullo," Neville greets her, curls an arm around her waist, and tugs her between his legs. She cards a hand through his hair, presses a kiss to his waiting lips, and echoes the greeting. "Where did you go?"
"I just had an errand to run," Beth answers vaguely. Behind her, Santana enters the choir room, positively steaming, and Beth turns, expression impassive. Neville tugs her onto his lap, Puck tells them to get a room, and Beth graces him with the middle finger. The others laugh.
"What's her problem?" Neville asks, voice a whisper against her ear. His stubble brushes against the sensitive skin at her neck, she shivers in his arms, and Beth can almost sense his smirk.
"She can't take what she dishes out," Beth answers snidely, studies her fingernails, and elaborates, "I may or may not have gone Marauder on her arse."
"Good," Neville says, and he is surprisingly pleased. Beth arches her eyebrows, and Neville shrugs. "She has no respect for other peoples' boundaries whatsoever. What self-respecting girl tries to seduce someone who is blatantly not interested? Or available, for that matter?"
In theory, such a question could apply to Rachel, too, but it really can't. Finn is interested, pin-balling between Quinn and Rachel, insensitively playing them both, and Neville is - well - not. He apparently dislikes Santana as much as Beth does, in fact.
Beth is irrationally pleased by that revelation, though she has no reason to be. She has had no doubt of Neville's fidelity. In the past, it has, in fact, often been the only thing she could trust, and an arrogant brat isn't going to succeed in shaking her faith.
Beth slumps against Neville's chest, tilts her head against his shoulder, and answers, "I just wanted her off my back."
Neville absently roams his hands over her ribs. "I kind of wish I could have helped."
"Maybe another time," Beth answers, noncommittal. She has no plans to prank anyone - it is, generally speaking, not in her nature - but she's not going to discard the possibility, either.
Before Neville's roaming hands could reach inappropriate (for public consumption) places, Mr Schuester arrives, and her fiancé lifts Beth from his lap, to settle her beside him, and sits back to tune out the show.
"Alright," Mr Schuester begins, "We need to start preparing for invitationals. Does anyone have any ideas of what we should perform?"
"We?" Beth echoes, voice a whisper. The sound carries though, and on Neville's other side, Puck smirks his amusement. Beth, of course, doesn't see it, though Mr Schuester does.
"Do you have any ideas, Puck?"
"Nada, Mr Schue," Puck answers, "Pretty sure Berry does, though."
Rachel, indeed, has her hand raised, and a chagrined Mr Schue calls on her. Beth mutters derisive things under her breath, directed towards Mr Schuesters absolute unprofessionalism. Thus, the meeting passes, with Rachel's ideas shot down, with Mr Schuester entirely noncommittal, and with Beth entirely unimpressed.
"He's a twat," Beth declares, her arm linked through Rachel's. Schuester's left for locations unknown, and the rest of the team shuffles out of the choir room before them. Among them, a bewildered Finn follows a thoughtful Quinn, and Beth idly wonders if she's about to miss a lover's quarrel.
"I wouldn't have said it so crudely, but I'm inclined to agree with you," Rachel says primly, "'Cabaret' is increasingly more appealing."
'Cabaret' is that year's school musical, run by Coach Sylvester and Mr Riarson.
Beth is fairly certain she's heard rumours the latter is a pedophile, but Rachel's ambition knows no bounds, and musicals are the shorter girl's bread and butter. Thus, if it's something Rachel really wants, Beth doubts she'd be able to talk her out of it. She's not even sure she would want to. Most of the other members of glee treat Rachel like crap, after all, and no one deserves that.
"Glee would suck without you," she says, Rachel smiles softly, and they leave the choir room. Neville and Puck are just outside the door, and Finn is down the hall. He looks poleaxed. "What's his problem?"
"No fuckin' idea," Puck answers, "He was talking to Quinn, then she said something, and he's been like that ever since."
"You should go talk to him," Rachel advises, and the rest of them stare at her. She shrugs. "He is your friend, isn't he?"
"Hudson's my boy," Puck agrees, "But weren't you all over him like, an hour ago? Figured you want to go to town with the comforting."
Rachel screws up her face, nods slowly, and admits, "I've made an effort to distance myself to Finn in recent weeks. After some consideration, it occurred to me that his behaviour is entirely unaccepptable. I don't deserve that, and neither does Quinn."
Beth squeezes Rachel's arm, inexplicably proud. "Good for you, Rach."
"Aiight," Puck acknowledges, shoulders his duffel bag, and bids them a wave. "Later, fuckers."
They walk away before they can watch the conversation, and instead retreat to the parking lot. Conversation is light, about movies and music and preferred hot drinks, and elsewhere, Noah Puckerman thanks God that, six weeks ago, he'd had the decency to say 'no'.
-!- -#-
Chapter Sixteen:
When Rachel quits the Glee Club because Tina gets the invitational solo, Beth is honest when she tells her friend that she's being a brat. Rachel doesn't want to hear it, of course, and she says a lot of things that can't be unsaid, and Beth doesn't talk to her for days. She spends time with Neville instead, and gets to know Artie and Tina, and makes a definite effort to remain civil with Santana. She jams with Puck, too, works on her class projects, and a fortnight passes.
In that time, Kurt joins the football team, Puck starts to commit himself to his academics, and Mr Schuester welcomes April Rhodes into the club.
She learns of Quinn's pregnancy from Neville, who learns it from Puck, and they brainstorm ideas of how to help her.
"We're assuming she'll even want our help," Neville says. Stevie Nicks filters from their stereo, and Beth concedes that Neville has a point.
"It doesn't hurt to plan," she answers, "Just in case."
"Why are you doing this?" Neville wonders.
"Because it's the right thing to do."
Neville concedes the point with a reluctant nod, and the brainstorming continues.
-!- -#-
It's exceedingly entertaining to watch Neville perform the 'Single Ladies' dance in the football game that Friday, and Beth is even more pleased to learn that Coach Sylvester had had the foresight to film it. The woman plans to sell it on DVD to the student body at 10 dollars a piece, and Beth takes the initiative to buy two. It will go online, no doubt, but before then, Beth will milk the hilarity for all it is worth.
"Hey there, Beyonce," she greets Neville after the game. The team is buoyant after their win, and there's a party at Brittany's place they've been invited to, but as she wraps herself up in her boyfriend's arms, the party isn't what's on either of their minds.
"You're hysterical," Neville deadpans, bows his head, and kisses her with a hunger that Beth eagerly reciprocates. His hands sweep her back, run over her waist and cup her bum, and Beth idly wonders if their absence from the party would be noticed.
"Dudes!" Puck exclaims, throws his arms over their shoulders, and shoves them apart with a shameless smirk on his face, "If I can't ditch this shindig to get laid, neither can you."
"Fuck you," Neville genuinely pouts, and despite herself, Beth laughs at him.
"You wish you had a piece of this, man," Puck answers.
They approach the tunnel to the locker rooms, and Beth separates to head towards the girls'. It's already crowded by her fellow cheerleaders, but Beth doesn't linger to talk. She showers quickly, dresses in a camisole and jeans, and throws on her coat as she heads out the door. Then she leans against the wall across from the locker room doors, and there she waits.
-!- -#-
The party turns out to be the New Directions only, and even the original members are present. They seem kind of gobsmacked by that fact, but as Beth drops into a seat beside Rachel, she doesn't call them out on it. In truth, she's surprised by it, too.
They're not unwelcome though.
"How did you like the game?" Beth asks idly. Mike and Matt are in the midst of a DDR competition, and at the coffee table, Neville and Puck are throwing back tequila shots like they're going out of style.
"I thought the 'Single Ladies' choreography was a rather splendid contribution to the game," Rachel answers.
"You would," Beth laughs affectionately, slings an arm over her friends shoulders, and hums to herself. Neville catches her eyes, smiles, and throws back another shot.
Beth can only laugh.
"You two are really good together," Rachel says, "I hope that, one day, I'll find someone who loves me as much as Neville loves you."
Beth smiles fondly, and answers, "I think that someone is a lot closer than you'd think."
It's only a suspicion, really, but sometimes, she catches Puck watching Rachel, his expression entirely unguarded. She's never asked him about it - she probably never will - but she thinks they'd be good together. They don't put up with each other's crap, but they also understand each other in ways no one else really can. It goes beyond their shared heritage, beyond their shared history, and maybe that's exactly what they both need.
Then again, what does she know?
"Alright, everyone, it's 'Never Have I ever' time!" Brittany declares. She stumbles into the room with two full bottles of Vodka in hand and Santana on her heels. The Latina holds a handful of plastic shot glasses, and a bottle of lemonade under her arm (for Quinn).
upon sight of them, Neville and Puck cheer enthusiastically.
It's probably the sight of more alcohol, Beth surmises, and laughs to herself. It's going to be a ridiculous night.
"This should be entertaining," Kurt quips. He, Quinn, and Rachel are the only three to have abstained from the alcohol, but Beth doubts he and Rachel's sobriety will last.
They gather around the coffee table, but it's a tight squeeze. Even with Quinn in Finn's lap, Beth in Neville's, and Rachel in Puck's, they're all a little too close for comfort.
Brittany fills the glasses and hands them out cheerfully, and declares, "Well, since I poured, I guess I'll go first. Never have I ever been skinny dipping."
Mike, Matt, Santana and Puck drink, as do Beth and Neville. The most interesting is Rachel, however, who drinks with a red face and an averted gaze.
She doesn't tell the story.
"What about you two?" Brittany queries, "Do you want to share?"
"Not much to share, really," Beth shrugs, "It was the night between our birthdays summer before last, and we couldn't sleep. I was staying at his house, and the place has a lake out the back. It was something fun to do."
As she tells the story, Beth resigns herself to being obliterated that night. It's fortunate she and Neville have been invited to crash at Brittany's, because she has a feeling she and Neville are both going to get utterly smashed before too long.
Next to Brittany, Kurt provides the obvious 'Never Have I Ever'.
"Never have I ever had sex."
Things take a turn, however, when neither Finn or Quinn drink.
Santana asks what's on all of their minds. "What the fuck?"