Magnolia's POV:
I adjusted my tie, before pulling my hair into a messy bun at the top of my head. I pat along my cheeks, trying to wake myself up more. Our dorm seemed to grow as we moved through each year.
The girls and I still had our two spare beds in our room, since every dorm always had five and we only occupied three. Though the space seemed to get a bit bigger between our beds.
Juniper dumped the contents of her bag on a spare bed as she manically searched behind me through the contents. I could hear the clattering of different things clunking against each other.
"What are you looking for?" Roxy questioned, noticing her panicked searching.
"I've lost something, " June muttered, digging through a cluster of extra quills and sweets, she lifted a small gold lion head-shaped pin, "Found it!"
"It's for Lee, I thought he'd like it and I didn't get a chance on the train but I think we're meeting up after supper so I'm gonna give it to him then," Juniper blushed, showing off the small but intricate pin.
"He'll love it," I reassured, pressing out the last of the wrinkles in my uniform.
Roxy laid on her bed, propped on her elbow watching as Juniper and I finished getting ready, "You guys almost ready? I'm starving and I need breakfast," Roxy groaned.
This was as good as it was gonna get, I told myself. I tugged Roxy's arm, signaling that we could leave. Juniper was close in tow, with the little lion pin tucked protectively in her robe pocket.
"Now that Demi's not here, should I expect to be seeing more of you near the Gryffindor common room after hours?" I teased.
Lee made Juniper all blushy and act out of character, it was strange. Maybe it was her just gaining more of her own personality now that Demi was gone. However, this was a very different June than I was familiar with and I liked her. I could see that glow that my mum had around Elliot, beaming off of June every time he's mentioned.
Juniper shrugged with a furious blush. She linked her arm around mine, leaning closer as Roxy talked beside us about her plan for quidditch this year.
"I am really sorry for telling Fred about your kiss with James, sometimes I think the part in my brain that stops you from saying things you shouldn't doesn't work," June gave a sympathetic look, "And it tends to get me in trouble sometimes. I wasn't thinking it was going to make things worse,"
"It'll be okay, it's not that serious anyway," I shrugged, "Fred and I talked about it."
I'd managed to dodge another kiss on the cheek from Fred as we got up to the school. We all walked together like we always had, taking in the school in a new light. I hugged George in a brief but tight squeeze, turning to Fred. We sat beside each other, the rest of the train ride, ignoring the elephant in the room. The cloaked figures, I learned were called Dementors, had chilled my entire body and scared me more than any Boggart could've. At least they were something I could kind of handle alone. These Dementors made my stomach feel uneasy and my skin was always so cold.
Fred's arm remained hooked around me, holding me close. I'd almost wanted to go back to the times we'd loop our arms between the three of us but George had taken off ahead as soon as the train stopped. Claiming he had to find some as soon as possible.
As Fred bent down towards my cheek I had made a point of ducking under Fred's arm, splitting away to my common room. Even if I wanted to feel that fluttering feeling just a little more, I couldn't erase the anxiety about losing my best friend. I almost wished I was petrified again so I could just skip past this little bubble of fluttering, even if it was starting to feel heavier than a bubble inside.
"I really think Lee is gonna love your gift. I'm glad he's making you happy," I reassured June, resting my head along her shoulder.
"He does, and I don't know if he's my boyfriend yet or anything, but I am happy when I'm with him," She smiled, tucking a loose curl behind her ear.
I couldn't help but notice the scent of soil coming from her robes, that was her marker. She always smelled fresh, like the earth. Juniper had a deepness to her scent, it was so distinctive for her. Her clothes had started to lose Demi's scent. Her uniform was a hand-me-down and had her sister's perfume weaved through each thread, passing it down to June with the fragrance still attached.
I liked the intimacy of associating people with their scents. It was the easiest way for me to remember them. I could still place 's rich perfume anywhere. And Elliot's cologne had been pressed into my uniform shirt when he nearly packed it for Europe along with his dress shirts. Mum was still sweet and citrusy, Willow smelled like flowers and tobacco, while James smelled sort of like paint and freshly done laundry. The smell brought familiarity and was sometimes the closest thing to hugging your relatives, their scent filling around you.
"I'm glad you two listen so well, I'll have to go over it again when I talk to Cedric and Liam," Roxy groaned, sitting down beside Liam.
Liam was a stalky, boy who was friends with Cedric. He had dark brown shaggy hair, had bronzed skin, and a hazel tone to his irises. He was quite a bit shorter than the Twins. He was a beater on the Hufflepuff team and might have been in the same year as Fred and George or above a year like Cedric. He was polite enough to me but truthfully spoke quite crudely most of the time. I'd helped him study a few times when I had studied with Cedric but we'd never spoken about much else. He was cute but that was about the last thing he had going for him, otherwise, he was kind of obnoxious. He wasn't as charming as Cedric or Ernie even.
"Oi Maggie, I dig the new modifications," Liam grinned as I sat across from him.
I gave him a nod, changing my attention to the other tables in front of me. Fred and George's boisterous laughter could be heard echoing from the walls. The Hufflepuff table couldn't have been further away.
"You look really good, I don't know what you're doing but it's working really well," Liam spoke again, I think this was his attempt at a compliment but it felt sticky almost. He smirked, looking me up and down.
His words left an unpleasant feeling on my skin, I forced a smile nodding before I picked at the plate in front of me.
My appetite had started to go away with Liam's poorly attempted compliments. My gaze trailed off across the room again, Fred stood up from the Gryffindor table making a big deal about something again. The rest of the table erupts out in laughter at his antics.
I swear Fred could show excitement for almost anything. His laugh caught the attention of so many people as he put on a show for the world to see. He was a character to the public but he was holding his real ambition to himself. I always caught him scribbling in notebooks alongside George as they whispered between each other. Like they were always making plans for the future.
They'd never let me see anything but I tried to let them both know they'd be successful at whatever it was. It was an entirely different look from their usual scheming. These plans seemed like business propositions but I was going to wait until they'd decide to tell me before I'd ask any questions.
"Have you ever thought about what you'd like to do when we're done with school?" Roxy asked as she scanned over her schedule for the day.
Quite honestly I was still trying to make sure I could follow my lesson clear enough let alone think of a career for the future. It's just hit me that I've actually got to start considering those things for picking classes moving forward. I had no clue what I was supposed to do without my O.W.L.S.
I sometimes wish just slightly that I was sorted into a different house. I'd learned more about each house as the years went on, and something about the confidence Gryffindor's exuded was something I craved. I wasn't taken seriously because of the gold interior of my robes and that was bullshit. I was capable just as much as anyone else was. Even if I aced each of my regular classes I was a mediocre witch at best, I had liked my classes but there was no promise that I'd be good at them.
"Not really," I admit, glancing down at my plate, "I'm not really sure at all," I mumbled.
"I'll probably work in the floral shop with Mum for a bit or maybe find a job with Magical creatures or something, haven't entirely decided," Juniper answered, saving me from further questioning, "Why do you ask?"
"My mum said something about cracking down on my studies this term and not letting quidditch get it in the way or whatever," Roxy rolled her eyes, "I had to start thinking logically about my future,"
It seemed like though her mum didn't care what house she was in, all the other things she was involved in mattered. Made a lot of sense why she always left in a hurry. Roxy picked at her plate.
"I'm sure you're going to be fine, we'll make a plan that we study together every Saturday, even if it's just for a little while. That way we can both get a plan started?" I suggested.
Roxy nodded weakly, "We can give it a shot,"
••••••
Getting back into the groove of things came so much easier than I thought it was going to. Within less than a month I was feeling great about my marks, even Professor Snape was impressed by my progress, even if he kept it to himself, I still noticed his smirk when my potions came out perfectly. Divination was still one of my favorite classes and Professor McGonagall said I was bouncing back very impressively with my transfigurations.
I was on cloud 9 in the academic category. Juniper and I had been able to move on from the slip-up, returning to our cheerful, goofy selves. Roxy was practicing with the quidditch team pretty often, slipping in our study date every Saturday so far, to fill me in on everything she couldn't do daily with her quidditch practices filling her other time along the way. Things were almost great.
Even Liam's pestering couldn't knock me down. He'd been waiting for me in the common room with an offer to walk me to classes almost every day. Then, proceeded to try walking me anyway when I told him that I was alright walking alone, lucky enough for me he was kind of scared of Roxy, so when she usually came around he'd disappear with Ernie or Cedric.
I just couldn't get the nagging out of my head. Since we got back, I had struck myself into such a routine, I had barely been able to make time for the twins. Not that George was bothered, he and Fred had nearly identical schedules aside from maybe two classes, one that George and I were nearby so we saw much more of each other. While Fred hadn't said much of anything to me since we got back. Which felt odd enough, but it felt like we'd never been at the same place at the same time just missing the other.
The avoidance wasn't intentional at first, I'd just got so busy, then my mind started reeling about Fred. Being alone, just us two could end very poorly with my current impulse control, but I missed my best friend. I could've totally screwed everything up for myself just by dodging his goodbye. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't the one who made the first move. The last time it got me in trouble and now I'd wrecked it for myself differently.
I searched my entire trunk for the tiny scrap of parchment they had enchanted but it was gone. I must've forgotten in the third-year dorms down the hall, but I couldn't go and look for it now, the girls would think I'm crazy. I just wish I had it to at least write to them. It was better than nothing. But I was fresh out of luck and couldn't find it anywhere.
I was lucky enough to walk with George to at least one class. It gave me the chance to tease him about the cause of his quick departure when we arrived. He had been tiptoeing a little more recently, outside of the usual pranks and planning that he and Fred did. Though, it did allow him to do the same to me like he always did when he suspected I had a crush.
"So how long are you going to be avoiding him?" George nudged my shoulder.
He had a free period next, he said I was on his way to meet up with his secret friend. He so graciously insisted on walking with me to my next class. George was secretive about who his friend was at that, too.
"I'm not avoiding anyone," I shrugged. I wasn't avoiding anyone on purpose but, I knew who he meant but I wasn't about to have this talk with George of all people, "Maybe that bludger did hit your head at practice," I teased in an attempt to change the subject.
I had gone down to watch Roxy at practice last week, as the Gryffindor team had been leaving their locker room from their practice. Lee was chortling about George nearly being knocked from his broom by a bludger heading straight for his head, while he was distracted by someone on the team that Lee refused to disclose.
"I'll play along then," George shook his head with a cheeky smirk, "If you were to be avoiding someone, hypothetically that is, how long would you avoid them for?" He quipped back with a smirk.
"I guess, hypothetically, if I was avoiding someone it'd depend on why I was avoiding them in the first place," I replied with another shrug, trying to pick up my pace and escape his questions, but he caught my arm linking it with his, "It's all about circumstance, Georgie,"
Dammit, I cursed to myself, falling in tow with George again unable to make my getaway. He grinned, catching me in my escape.
"Let's just say this is a boy you might like," George proposed.
I laughed pulling away, "Ha! That's where you're wrong, George, there aren't any boys that I like right now," I stuck my tongue out. Another lie.
"I've seen that face enough times to know when you've got a crush," George rolled his eyes, "I know it's my bro-" He was glancing behind me, his grin dropped and his mouth fell open a bit before he quickly closed his lips.
"Why's everyone doing that lately?" I questioned as I started to turn around. It was like all the best stuff happened when my back was turned. "What am I missing?" I went to turn, but George shook his head.
George's face scrunched up, and he grabbed my shoulders, guiding me away. "No!" He fumbled out.
"What are you doing, my class is that way?" I asked, giving him a look of confusion. I tried shrugging out of his arm but he tightened his pull.
"We're going to take a scenic route today, thought it'd be a good way to clear your head a bit," He fumbled out, looping his arm around me, "You're clearly just stressed, no crush. What am I even saying?" He was nervous about whatever he was keeping me from seeing. George began to turn me back the way we came, acting as if that section of the hall was off-limits now.
I tried to crane my neck around George's arm to get a look at what he was trying to prevent me from seeing. There Fred stood standing beside Katie Bell wearing a cheeky smile as she blushed at every word he spoke to her, fiddling with a piece of hair as she giggled. I knew what it looked like when Fred was flirting, it was obvious. I knew the butterflies would screw me over again. I turned facing ahead. Just pretend you didn't see anything, I told myself.
"I think I'd much rather take the scenic route from now on," I told George leaning into his frame more, "You were right, it's just stress from being back, no crush."
George nodded, hugging me closer. Both twins had been able to comfort me pretty well. It was nice to know even if I could never get past my feelings, I'd still have George, even if it was hard seeing how much they looked alike. His arm tucked me into his side as we started on our long trek to my class.
Maybe I could blame my shift in mood on the Dementors now patrolling the grounds. Ignore the fact I could feel my stomach sinking with each passing second. Guess this was what rejection felt like. That same crushing feeling I'd felt only once before came back in full force.
We hadn't even been back long enough for it to make sense, and it just seemed like maybe he might be… I was being dumb. He only told me to keep my plans open for Hogsmeade to waste my time as usual. I was gonna wind up in some sort of trouble for going along.
I was losing touch with my independence. Letting a silly little crush, and flutter make me feel like I was losing a piece of myself. I was late to class losing ten house points for us, and pissing Snape off again after getting in his good graces again. This is why they call them crushes because they sort of crush you up.
••••••
Magnolia did what she was best at, using schoolwork as her way to avoid Fred. Academics had never been the main focal point for either of the twins, which meant the library was always a safe zone from Fred.
Magnolia sat beside Roxy, her head shoved in a Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook that went into great detail on the unforgivable curses. Magnolia's quill scratched against parchment while she took notes.
At least Professor Lupin was like a breath of fresh air after breathing in the same stale overused air that the rest of the world had already siphoned through for the last few years. The class was beginning to make sense to her why people found interest in the subject.
"Have you given any thought to when you'll be seeing Fred again?" Roxy questioned, picking at her fingernail, Magnolia had dragged her to the library every Saturday since they got back, "It's just that you guys didn't do anything for your birthday even and it was your fifteenth. I thought that'd kind of be a sort of cool one,"
Roxy was growing bored of the same routine. Magnolia had figured this would've been the first year with a real party but the day came and passed. That in itself excited Roxy. However, she worried for her friend but she knew what Magnolia had been doing. Since finding Katie and Fred canoodling, Magnolia not only pushed herself into studies even deeper but had also changed her entire routine, cutting Fred completely.
Juniper had even filled so much of her free time with Lee, it seemed Magnolia lost time with her too. But Magnolia was anxious to see either of them together again, so she'd stretched her days out longer in an attempt to avoid Katie and Fred. Magnolia only wanted to see them once. Anything more would just make her more upset.
"I've got a lot of other things to worry about right now, he'll just get me in trouble anyway so what's the point?" Magnolia groaned, closing her book.
"It just seems like you might miss him, but maybe I'm just looking too deep into it." Roxy shrugged, "It's okay if you need more time. He's your best friend."
Internally, though, worried for Magnolia's feelings, the five galleons that were burning a hole in George's pocket were also teasing Roxy.
"I feel like I'm just a girlfriend placeholder, why should I wait around?" Magnolia replied, resting her chin in her hand.
"At least try to talk to him before the first Hogsmeade trip, who knows, it might not even be anything serious. You know how girls can be with them," She added in a weak attempt at consoling Magnolia, " Girls just kind of throw themselves at them, you remember what Demi said about their older brother Charlie? He was too cute for his own damn good. Clearly, the twins have struck the same kind of looks. Besides he told you to keep the day open,"
The dark-haired girl nodded, tucking her things away in her bag, "I think I'm going to take a walk for a while, get some fresh air, I'm a little-studied out for now," Magnolia sighed, "You don't have to stop studying because of me. I know you've got a couple more essays to write, I'll catch up with you later for dinner,"
Roxy agreed, returning to her book, giving Magnolia the space she wanted. Roxy was a lot like Magnolia in that when it came to the routine she thrived, and especially when there was no one around to disturb her plans. Absolute control was the quickest way to Roxy's heart. Though Roxy had other plans in mind when Magnolia left.
"You're such an idiot," Magnolia muttered to herself as she walked towards the courtyard.
She heard a snicker from beside her, Magnolia turned to see Helena and Sam tucked around each other, "I could've told you that," Helena smirked.
Magnolia did her best to ignore them pushing past. The thought of those two snogging made her stomach churn, as she couldn't move past the fact they looked relatively similar. She shuddered a little before she turned around the corner.
For a moment she wished she was still dealing with the James issues. At least her heart was being played on the court. Magnolia wasn't the jealous type, so how come every time she saw Katie she wanted nothing more than to slap the grin right from her lips. Even if Fred hadn't been the one to cause her smile, it began to make Magnolia feel sick. Watching Katie giggle at Fred's very word through each meal, made it nearly unbearable.
The meals overall at Hogwarts weren't as exciting anymore, they were beginning to feel like the same take-out places Magnolia and her mother would order from. Sort of special but it ends up being the same every time. That's how everything felt right now, she thought.
Meanwhile:
Roxy waited behind, pretending to read the pages in front of her until she was sure she'd seen Magnolia leave. Making a b-line for the door, she went the opposite way from the library. Roxy searched for the younger of the Weasley Twins with intent. Fred had earned a place at the top of Roxy's shit-list, which was a much harder task than one would think. George had lied as she was concerned, this so-called plan Fred had in motion was awful. Now both were fighting for the top spot.
Roxy found George perched up beside Lee and Fred as they were laughing lightly about something one of them had said. She gripped his shirt collar tugging him behind her. Lee and Fred shared a look of confusion watching the tall, blonde tug him. George light choked against his shirt collar as the blonde girl pulled him along. He had only seen Roxy upset like this once before and that was after she broke her wrist and had to miss a quidditch game, she had steam coming from both ears. This was almost worse, but the verdict was still out.
"What did I do?" He whined as she shoved him against the brick.
Roxy gave no regard to George whatsoever, he was just as much of a candidate for her shit-list as his twin brother.
"You've got more info on what Fred's plan is than I do, and that's not fair, so spill. Plus I think you have something to do with this whole Katie thing!" Roxy accused.
George lifted his hands in surrender, "I had no clue about Katie, I told him to turn on the charm or Maggie would play hard to get. I didn't think he would take it literally. He must think that I meant to charm other girls,"
Roxy sighed, dropping her hands to her sides, finally releasing her grip on his shirt, "Well what now? She's all hurt. Even five galleons and the satisfaction of winning, can't make me not guilty for how she's feeling,"
"I tried to talk to him about Katie but Lee wasn't lying when he said we don't have deep talks about our feelings," George explained as he readjusted his shirt, "He wouldn't budge,"
"You're his twin, George? How do you not know?" Roxy groaned, his placement was slipping higher.
He shrugged in weak defeat, "All he said was that they were friends. Wish I could tell you more. But here we are. I've added quite a bit of extra walking lately in my daily life, trying to make sure Maggie doesn't see them. There's only so much I can really do,"
"You can tell your brother to get his head from his arse or I'll do it for him?!" Roxy threatened, "Maggie and he are friends too and I don't see him whispering bullshit in her ear right now,"
"Okay, crazy!" George scoffed, trying to almost tiptoe around Roxy, "I'll be sure to get right on that, perhaps you could use a drink to relax. Godric you're angry,"
Roxy sighed, backing away so he could actually leave now, "Just do something so I don't have to watch her sulk around, it's killing me inside," She admitted, "She's just so quiet all the time and it's much worse than last time. She doesn't some other stupid to distract, and there's only so much a book can do."
Seeing Magnolia torn up about Fred without saying as much was hard. Roxy wanted to console her friend but couldn't overstep by assuming that's what made her upset. She had seemed happy all the time aside from the mention of Fred. It was out of the ordinary to not see them as connected as they could be. Roxy feels like she should've put money on them. Things had been so good and everything fell so quickly.
"I'll try to talk to him, but I'm not sure what good any of it'll do," George shrugged, turning back towards the distraction Roxy had pulled him from.
"If they're not talking by the first trip to Hogsmeade, I call for a re-discussion on the terms of our bet," Roxy called out, her competitive spirit returning.
George blew a comedic kiss, "Whatever you say, Darling," He winked, "I've got it taken care of, trust me!"
"Godric, they're both so insufferable," Roxy muttered under her breath.
••••••
Magnolia's POV:
"You'll never believe what Fred said, it was so funny!" I heard Katie's giggling voice carry throughout the potion's classroom. "He's hilarious, ugh! I can't get enough," She laughed.
She leaned over her cauldron, careless for how her hair fell. She could go being knocked down a peg or two. I hated the way I felt when I heard her say his name or even so much as talk about him at all. I still hadn't cooked up enough courage to get over myself and just talk to Fred. Katie seemed to be around more and more often, just like Angelina had. Though Katie was far more forward than Angelina had. I could believe how easily replaceable I had been, and I didn't even seem to notice because I was too occupied with myself.
"She's so loud," I muttered, cutting at the ginger root in front of me, "Like shut up already,"
I could feel my teeth clench as I watched her flip her long hair back over her shoulder again throwing her head back in laughter. I didn't think I was ugly, I thought for a teenager I was confident enough in myself. But then I saw Katie with Fred, lacing her fingers in his hair and giggling at his jokes. I missed being able to say goodnight to Fred before going to bed. Roxy had been right, I missed him and I hated it.
"Oh we get it, Fred's funny," I sneered down at the root at my hands, "He's fucking funny looking and stupid," I muttered bitterly to myself.
"Gotta problem there, Maggie? You've nearly chopped the end of your finger off twice," June asked, pausing my hands from cutting anything else, "And I can hear everything you're saying,"
I looked over to her and Roxy, giving me mixed looks of concern and amused.
"Someone's been bitten by the little green monster," Roxy laughed in a teasing tone, earning a confused look from Juniper. "Envy? The little green monster, called Envy." She quickly added clarifying.
June shook her head, even more confused, "Never heard of it."
"She's saying I'm jealous of Katie," I explained the phrase, "Which I'm not." I defended myself glaring at Roxy before glancing across the room at the girl aforementioned. Her fucking laugh was like pained screeching at this point.
Juniper snorts, "I could've told you that, yes you are."
I dropped my knife, glaring at the girls, "You're both deluded, what would I need to be jealous of?"
"Katie stealing Fred away before you get a chance," Juniper leans over whispering.
I swat her away, annoyed, "Shut up!" I warned her, "You've got such a big mouth sometimes," I groaned through grit teeth.
Juniper backed away wearing a grin, "We can pretend then," She chuckled.
"Do you think they've kissed?" Roxy turned to Juniper arching a brow.
"Hmm, it's possible. What do you think?" Juniper questioned back.
Roxy glanced over her shoulder at Katie, "Most likely, we could always ask." She suggested.
I knew what they were doing. I wasn't going to fall for it, Juniper knew well enough that I had liked Fred. While I had deflected the question from Roxy even though she was well aware.
"I see what you're doing and I'm not falling for it," I huffed, "Figured you would want to focus more on your classwork since your mum is breathing down your neck, Rox."
Roxy rolled her eyes, "You're just avoiding the subject because you don't want to think about it,"
I scoffed, she could read me so easily. Here I thought I'd hidden it well enough, "I'm confused not jealous,"
"Confused on what?" Juniper questioned.
"Perhaps confused about what happens when you waste my time," Professor Snape's voice came from behind me.
God, I hope he didn't hear any of that. A professor being subjected to listening to the woes of teenage hormones, I felt bad for him.
"Talking about boys is a useless hobby, just when I thought you'd gotten a grip on your studies," He added, turning his attention away again.
Roxy and Juniper muttered out an apology returning to their potions. I was frozen in embarrassment as I felt Katie look up at me, sending a dainty wave in my direction. I didn't know if the gesture was friendly or not, but my cheeks were red hot and I had been called out in class.
I forced my attention down. She probably heard everything. I was mortified, I hated when everyone stared at me. I was thankful when I wasn't able to finish my potion and got to abandon it for the day. I couldn't get my head back into the right headspace after the call-out, I kept thinking about if Katie had heard and that Snape had heard me blubbering about one of the Weasley twins, I could mark my potions career done.
As I tried to pick my pace up to skip from class before I could get stopped by Roxy or June. I skipped around the corner running into someone. I fell to the ground, catching my knee on the stone floor and cutting it open.
"Shit! That hurt," I cursed, picking myself back up before it could be worse, "Bloody Hell," I groaned, moving my finger down to catch a little of the blood.
A hand came down in offering, I looked up and was met with Liam's concerned hazel eyes, "Do you need help here? I can help you get to the infirmary, get you all fixed up." He offered.
I looked down and the cut was bigger than I thought initially. Not that I wanted his help but I kind of needed it right now, "I know you're not a fan, but that looks pretty rough." Liam pointed out.
I begrudgingly nodded, "I guess, I might need your help," I mumbled.
Liam gave me a quick nod, ducking under my arm, letting my arm hook around his shoulder, limping my way to the infirmary, his hand on my waist holding me up. I could feel his bicep tighten around my waist, easily compensating for my weight leaning into him.
I don't know how I managed to even catch it on the ground that badly, there had to be some jagged rock on the ground or something. With Liam's help, I made it to the infirmary, where Madame Pomfrey met me with a sympathetic smile.
Once Liam helped me up onto a bed, he left with a quick nod and an awkward wave to Madame Pomfrey. She leaned over inspecting the cut before she started cleaning it up, it wasn't anything too serious, a little blood that needed cleaned up. She said as long as I stayed still while she did her repair spell I wouldn't have a scar.
"Merlin! You didn't say it would hurt," I flinched as she bit back a small smirk. She waved her wand over my knee, mumbling an incantation she had known by heart at this point numbing the pain away.
"Good as new, you best to be getting to your next class. I'll give you a note," She said before walking away to her desk.
I wasn't really in the mood to take the long way to transfigurations but if I wanted to avoid catching sight of Katie and Fred, I was going to have to. I'd be even later than I already was at this point. I had to think of an excuse to get out of class quickly. Professor McGonagall can't get upset if I'm not in class because of illness, she'd have to accept my tardiness. I can't help that the thought of Katie and her hands all over Fred made my stomach twist.
"Madame Pomfrey, can I stay a little longer, my stomach kind of hurts," I let out a fake groan in discomfort.
Madame Pomfrey places a hand to my forehead, "You don't feel warm, but I'll go get some pepper-up potion," She muttered half aloud. The thought of swallowing the hot, thick, nasty liquid made my stomach actually turn but I was committed now.
I was determined to stick it out now. She came back with the pepper-up potion, giving me a look that said, this is your time to puss out. Not that she'd actually say that to me, but the message was quite clear.
I had made it this far, I tip the bottle back holding back my taste buds, and trying to focus my thoughts on anything but how thick this substance was. I swallowed the last gulp, holding my breath for a moment as the heat took over. Shaking my head, I stuffed my face in my hands.
"You'll be okay in a few minutes, then you'll have to go back to class," Madame Pomfrey set a glass of water on the table beside me, before moving along to the next ill student.
I didn't know how long I had until I'd be forced out of the infirmary so I attempted to stretch my leg out on the bed and wait for my stomach to settle not from any real bug but my own jealousy and stubbornness. I just had to figure how to stretch this out until the end of class, then I could hide away until dinner. I'd be safe here and I could just avoid the truth a little longer, while I tried to patch up my heart.
A/N: The next chapters are going to be Magnolia POV heavy, but I kinda like the meanwhile pods. Roxy and George are scheming now. There's a lot to see behind the scenes. I kinda wanna show a little into Fred's head too so we'll see how this goes. 3