The closer that the second task got, the more excited the Hogwarts students grew.
It was now towards the end of January which meant two things. Firstly, the students had finally settled into the new term and the post-holidays depression was beginning to disappear. Secondly, and most importantly, the second task of the Triwizard Tournament was now only a little over a month away. Students were becoming thrilled but restless. With no more Hogsmeade visits until after the second task it was now the topic that all the students would excitably chatter about.
With all the students growing livelier due to the upcoming task the Hogwarts prefects now had their work cut out for them. They were even busier than the lead up to the first task, as the students now knew the dangerous caliber of what to expect. Many different rules had been broken by many different students who had been caught by the prefects. A few illegal bets on the upcoming task had been busted. A few lovers still going strong after the Yule Ball had been caught together in compromising positions. A few rumours about possible sabotage had been investigated, debunked and in a few cases action had been taken.
The prefects had a lot more responsibility to the school this year compared to past years, and made the previous year's patrols look like a mere walk in the park. It was rumoured that the Head Boy and Girl – Paul Greene and Kelly Winters were running on two hours sleep per night. They acted so frantic and erratic most students didn't doubt the validity behind the rumour.
But even regular prefects were finding it hard to balance their academic commitments, their prefect duties and attempting a social life on top of this. Victoria Hartwell included.
"How do I know you're not trying to prank me?" Vicki pouted towards her boyfriend as he led her through the castle one evening, his hands on each of her sides as he carefully maneuvered her around the corridors.
"When have I ever pranked you?" Fred asked her earnestly, even though he knew exactly what was coming.
"Hmm, where do I start? In first year when you made me fall into my cauldron and my hair went blue. In third year you and George locked the entire Charms class into a room and set off dungbombs, trapping us. In fourth year-" Vicki explained as she launched into naming the extensive list of pranks her boyfriend had pulled on her, but his laughing cut her off.
"Yes, yes. We could be here naming my practical jokes until the Bicorns come home. But I must say I forgot about the dungbomb Charms incident of 1991. George and I only did it because there was a relief teacher that day. Would have never done that to poor old Flitwick." Fred grinned.
Vicki only saw his grin as she opened her eyes for a split second to see her boyfriend's face.
He had approached Vicki in the Great Hall moments earlier and asked her to accompany him. She followed him willingly even though he had asked her to keep her eyes closed. The past couple of weeks had been horrible for her. Instead of doing weekly patrols, Kelly and Paul had put all their prefects on daily patrols. With patrols and increased sixth year schoolwork she had very little time recently to spend with Fred. The time she did spend with him outside of class was usually spent doing homework together.
Aside from a quick snog here and there Vicki and Fred had not been able to spend proper time together as a couple. Which is why Fred organised something for them both tonight.
"You can open your eyes. We're here." Fred announced and Vicki let her eyes flutter open.
She grinned at what she saw in front of her. Fred had taken her into the Hogwarts kitchens. But unlike every other time they occupied the cookery it wasn't just to pop in to grab a meal to go. Tonight the main event was to spend time within the kitchens.
A small table had been set up in the corner out of the way of the house elves who were running around to prepare dinner for the rest of the students. A modest navy blue table cloth had been smoothed upon the table, with an unlit candle positioned to the side of the table.
"I would love to make a joke about this, I really would. But this is really incredibly sweet and I don't want to ruin your confidence as I'm guessing this is something you've put a lot of thought into, and I don't want to take away from that and stop-" Vicki started to explain nervously but was cut off by a chuckle from Fred.
"Vicki. Just shut up and enjoy it." Fred laughed as he gave his girlfriend a lazy kiss on the side of her head before sitting down and lighting the candle with his wand.
Vicki sent him a smile as she took a seat at the table but then frowned as she realised something that Fred didn't do.
"You didn't hold the seat out for me. Rude." She teased with a laugh to show she was joking. Fred realised this but he was going to continue on with the teasing.
"Nope, no way. You're more than capable of pulling your own chair out to take a seat." Fred responded.
Vicki smiled to Fred. She absolutely loved their exchanges and the fact they could tease and prod each other in jest. She felt the most comfortable around him, even more so than when she was with Cedric or Stephanie. She wouldn't give this relationship up for the world.
"That's alright. I'm going to write to your mum and tell her all about this." Vicki teased as she stuck out her tongue for added effect.
Fred was silent as he studied his girlfriend's face. It was an odd comment for her to make and he wasn't sure whether she was serious or not. She made goofy faces at him as he read her expression. She knew exactly what he was doing. He smiled as he lost his train of thought and suddenly didn't care whether Vicki's ridiculous threat was real or not.
It had sunk in a while ago but every now and again he would have a sudden and random realisation that he managed to get the girl he had been yearning for. The girl who the previous year he watched from afar yet could never approach. The girl who was the only thing in the world who could take away his confidence and make him nervous. The one who made his palms sweat and his heart skip a beat. The girl he could never seem to argue with, or be angry towards. She was the girl he was well and truly in love with.
Before he could go deeper in his thoughts he was bought back to reality by Vicki speaking up.
"I actually have been writing to your mum. I was just waiting for the perfect time to bring it up and make a funny comment," Vicki mentioned but continued to explain when Fred sent her a quizzical look "Don't get weird about it. I just wrote to her to thank her for the sweater she knitted me for Christmas. I sent her some of the polaroids I took of all of us at Christmas"
"You sent her photos from that muggle camera you have? Photos that don't move? Blimey, I bet dad went mental over those." Fred remarked just as two elves scurried over and placed two plates of food on the table. They squeaked as they bowed and then departed as quickly as they came over.
"She did mention that your father was very fascinated by them and spent hours looking at them. She also mentioned they're now on display somewhere in your house. Now excuse me if I seem anti-social but I'm going to be quiet for five minutes whilst I inhale this meal. I did homework during lunch today, these nightly prefect patrols are killing me." Vicki quickly blabbed on before she ungracefully picked up her fork and began shovelling food into her mouth.
"Heyyyyy." George Weasley teased his brother as he took a seat next to him in the common room later that night.
Fred had gotten back to the common room very early that night. Straight after dinner Vicki needed to depart as she had her nightly prefect patrol shift. She was in better spirits about it as apparently she was scheduled to walk the corridors with Cedric that night. It irritated Fred as he felt uneasy about the two wandering around dark corridors together late at night.
Instead he focused his thoughts on Vicki and divulged into the feelings of gratefulness he experienced earlier in the night. He had the time to explore into his feelings deeper and realise something he had never realised before. He was keen to share his findings with his brother even though he knew it could potentially lead to ridicule.
Therefore he waited in the common room for George to return. When Fred spent time with Vicki, George and Lee would normally go find an adventure of their own and then come back to the common room to brag and tease Fred that he missed out to go spend time with a girl instead. Fred normally would shut them up by reminding them he had a girlfriend and they didn't.
"Where's Lee?" Fred spoke up without greeting his twin as he looked around the room.
"With Ron and Harry. I don't think he could bear hearing you once again brag about the fact you have a girlfriend. Why?" George smirk as he bumped Fred's shoulder playfully.
"Because I need to talk to you. About having a girlfriend. I've realised something tonight," Fred began and quickly cut George off before he could even make a teasing remark "I'm pretty sure she definitely feels the same way about me. I think she loves me."
George broke out into a huge smile as he felt ecstatic for his brother. Now was not the time for witty remarks. Now was the time to lend him the listening ear Fred desperately needed and hopefully at the end it would be time for a celebration.
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure? I mean, it would take an awful lot for that poor girl to love you." George teased loudly, but made sure to keep his smile on his face to show his twin that he was joking.
"I-I think so. You see I've been replaying in my head my previous interactions with Vicki, from before this year. Mainly from what she was like when she was with Davies-" Fred began to explain, but George cut him off harshly.
"-You shouldn't. You're much better than that pretty boy schmuck. Vicki picked you, mate. She wants you, not Davies." George quickly stated sympathetically
"I know," Fred agreed quickly with no sadness evident in his voice "The thing is, she does things for me she would never have even considered for Davies when she was with him. This Bagman thing? Wouldn't have done it in a million years for him. She's not a rule breaker for anyone but me."
Fred then began to launch into all of the anecdotes to refresh George's mind of their previous dealings with Vicki Hartwell before she was properly in their lives as a friend or a lover.
October 31, 1993
"The teachers and I need to conduct a thorough search of the castle. I'm afraid that for your own safety, you will have to spend the night here." Dumbledore began to explain to the school.
The excited whispering from all of the students stopped as they all quietened hastily to hear what Dumbledore had to say.
Sirius Black had not just been spotted in the castle, but had attacked the Fat Lady portrait at the end of the corridor outside of Gryffindor Tower. This had happened after she had refused him access into the tower. The Gryffindors had been moved straight away, but not too long after the Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and Slytherins joined them in the Great Hall for the night. The teachers had been tight lipped about the events as they were scrambling around the castle, leaving the Gryffindors to fill in the blanks to the other students. Until now.
"I want the prefects to stand guard over the entrances to the hall and I am leaving the Head Boy and Girl in charge." Dumbledore finished loudly before turning to Percy and Penelope to give them specific instructions.
"Great. If Percy Weasley's ego wasn't big enough before, put him in charge after a crisis and watch him become more bloody big-headed." Vicki scoffed quietly to her boyfriend who was standing next to her.
"Well, he is Head Boy. It's kind of part of the job to be put in charge after a major event when the teachers need to all go investigate. Dumbledore couldn't really put anyone but Percy and Penelope in charge…" Roger logically pointed out and began wincing at the end, knowing how Vicki would react.
"But still! He's going to be unbearable for tonight, then he's going to be unbearable for weeks as he boasts to everyone about tonight and how well he handled looking over the student body. Let's just guess and say he'll be ten times more unbearable until the end of the year-" Vicki ranted, but just as she was finishing she was cut off by Roger planting a big kiss on her lips to quieten her down.
"Then let's sneak off. We'll be safe just outside the entrance. We'll see Black if he comes this way well and truly before he reaches us. Then we can be heroes and sound the alarm. What do you say?" Roger asked cheekily as he placed an affectionate peck on Vicki's shoulder.
Vicki sent her boyfriend a guilty smile as she studied his pleading face. She was absolutely crazy for Roger. His dark eyes and strong jaw still made butterflies erupt in her stomach. But there was one thing that far outweighed her growing love for her boyfriend. Her future aspirations.
"Sorry, can't. Plenty of time for snogging another time. I don't know about you but I really would like to become Head Girl in two years' time. We'll never be considered for Head Boy and Head Girl if we get caught snogging during a crisis." Vicki responded.
Roger pouted towards his girlfriend as he felt dejected due to her turning down his offer. Before he could argue or try to guilt trip them, a bossy voice barked at them.
"Break it up you two. No canoodling on my watch. Hartwell, you're to be stationed near the windows in the far right. You never know if Black could enter or exit through those windows. Davies we need your brawn near the entrance to the Entrance Hall, for obvious reasons." Percy pompously stated as he marched towards the younger prefect couple.
"Yes, Weasley." Vicki said in a faux sickly-sweet voice, batting her eyelashes until Percy left with her boyfriend in tow.
Vicki may not have wanted to break any rules in order to keep her squeaky clean record, but her interaction with Percy left a sour taste in her mouth. As there was no 'don't-make-rude-hand-gestures to the Head Boy' rule (as far as she was aware) she couldn't help herself. Without thinking she stuck up her middle finger to Percy's turned back.
As soon as she realised she could have gotten in trouble she quickly lowered her finger and anxiously looked around the sea of students to see if anyone had seen her gesture. No one of importance saw her rude gesture but out of the corner of her eye she noticed one of the Weasley twins looking her way. Vicki felt like a deer in headlights as she sent a guilty grin towards the twin. She wasn't sure which twin it was as she wasn't able to tell the two apart, but she was nervous she would feel the wrath of the infamous Weasley twins after insulting their older brother.
To her relief the twin sent her a huge smile and a wink. Unknown to Vicki both twins absolutely loved to see their pretentious older brother be put in his place. Also unknown to Vicki, or anyone else in the school, this twin in particular also had a very small crush on her.
November 6, 1993
"You must be glad to be in here rather than out there." Madam Pomfrey said to Vicki as she nodded her head towards the large window to the side of the Hospital Wing.
Vicki cast her eyes to the view. A ferocious thunderstorm was happening outside. The rain and storm clouds were so thick it was impossible to see past a few metres outside the window, but the loud thunder and the sky lighting up every few minutes served as an adequate indicator of how bad the storm was.
"Yep. Definitely prefer to be in here right now." Vicki grinned.
Vicki was volunteering in the Hospital Wing this year. She was very passionate about the healing profession and wanted to get some hands-on experience during her school years to be prepared after she finished school in just under three years. Madam Pomfrey rarely took on apprentices as she didn't trust students (or anyone else for that matter) to provide adequate care for her patients. But after Vicki had been caught performing simple healing spells on her fellow students Madam Pomfrey relented and let Vicki do volunteering shifts to stop her from performing these duties outside of her watch. It was far safer to have Vicki under her watch than providing sloppy care outside of the Hospital Wing.
Madam Pomfrey also saw a lot of potential in Vicki and wanted to help her succeed in her future career.
"Well I'm glad you're here. Somebody always gets hurt in Quiddich during these weather conditions." Madam Pomfrey stated before muttering under her breath about her disapproval that the match wasn't cancelled.
Even though the weather conditions were woeful, it appeared the entire school was currently attendinh the match between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. When Vicki was making her way up to the Hospital Wing the corridors seemed empty. Everybody seemed to be taking special care to not end up sick or injured as for the first time Vicki had ever seen, there was not one patient in the hospital wing needing care. Instead Vicki and Madam Pomfrey were making idle chit chat as they cleaned instruments and re-filled potions bottles to be ready to go when patients did come in.
Madam Pomfrey was in the middle of lecturing Vicki about what subjects to take after O.W.L. year ('Herbology is mandatory for healing but between you and me practical experience goes a long way, plus the ministry offer make-up subjects for a few selected students who couldn't complete certain ones at N.E.W.T. level') when there was a loud commotion.
Both females in the Hospital Wing rose to their feet as Dumbledore came rushing in with a stretcher floating in front of him. Madam Pomfrey gasped as she saw the bloodied body on the stretcher as Dumbledore slowly lowered the stretcher onto a bed. Vicki craned her neck to see who the person was, it took a few moments to see through the mud and blood but the broken glasses and Gryffindor robes gave it away that it was Potter.
"I-is he dead?" Madam Pomfrey stuttered as she was too horrified to ask anything else.
To Vicki's surprise she saw Dumbledore send a twinkling smile towards Madam Pomfrey, but his eyes met hers for a few moments.
"No, he is not. He had a nasty fall but I was able to slow him down before he hit the ground. I'm sure Potter is in very capable hands here." Dumbledore stated.
Both Madam Pomfrey and Vicki waited for further instruction from Dumbledore but didn't receive any as Dumbledore slowly shuffled out of the Hospital Wing. Under any normal circumstance Vicki would find it humourous to be given a difficult task so casually, with absolutely no direction from Dumbledore. But this was serious. A boy's life was hanging in the balance.
"Hartwell, out. Potter needs a lot of healing potions and spells. I can't be distracted." Madam Pomfrey briskly stated to Vicki as she began to push the young student out of the Hospital Wing.
"I know I'm not qualified to heal, but there has to be something I can do! Can I fetch you anything whilst you do your work? Potions? Bandages?" Vicki asked enthusiastically as she dug her feet into the ground to slow Madam Pomfrey pushing her out.
"You can guard the entrance and keep out the snoopers. The only people I'll allow in is the Gryffindor team as I'm sure they're frightened beyond belief, oh and Potter's two friends Granger and Weasley." Madam Pomfrey stated as she managed to finally get Vicki out of the door.
"What if someone comes who is sick or injured?" Vicki asked her mentor.
Madam Pomfrey pondered for a second before quickly responding.
"Then you can be a triage healer and put them to a bed. But no healing," Madam Pomfrey said sternly with a finger pointed at Vicki "Do you understand?"
"Yes Madam Pomfrey." Vicki briskly responded and received no response as the school matron ran back into the Hospital Wing to begin to heal Harry.
Vicki stationed herself out the front of the hospital wing and then waited. She did notice a few rubberneck students who slowly walked past and tried to glance in on their tippy toes, who were given a cool 'keeeeep walkin' from Vicki.
Eventually two breathless students appeared in front of her. Vicki had seen the girl around and knew she was friends with Potter but never knew her name. The boy was distinguishable based on his red hair – he was a Weasley. Which would have made the girl Granger.
"I don't care what Madam Pomfrey says. Our best mate is in there. We're going in!" The youngest Weasley boy demanded to Vicki once he landed in front of her, earning a 'Ron!' from Hermione.
"She said you, Granger, and the other six of Harry's closest friends are all welcome in there according to Madam Pomfrey. So you probably should care." Vicki sheepishly grinned.
"Six of Harry's closest friends? Madam Pomfrey knows who Harry's six best friends are?" Ron asked in amazement as he clearly lost track of the current situation for a moment.
"Ron, she clearly means the rest of the team. Let's go see if Harry is okay." Hermione hissed as she sent Vicki a small smile before bossily pulling Ron into the Hospital Wing by his robes.
Vicki waited a few moments to see if she could hear shocked gasps, or if Weasley and Granger would be kicked out by Madam Pomfrey. When neither occurred Vicki let out a sigh of relief. Clearly Potter was going to be okay.
Not too long after Granger and Weasley had scampered in, three other females had appeared at the entrance to the Hospital Wing. Vicki knew they were on the Gryffindor team – Alicia Spinnet, Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell. No words were exchanged as the three girls seemed too worried to speak up, so Vicki only gave them a head nod to indicate they were welcome to go in.
"Hey there good looking. What time is knock off time? I'm guessing you got kicked out so Madam Pomfrey could focus on Potter?" Vicki heard a confident voice come from her right. She had been so focused on the three Gryffindor girls approach on her left she didn't realise Roger was coming from the other way.
"You'd be correct. I'm not sure when I'm done. I might go back in soon and see if I'm needed or if I'm dismissed. I-I think Potter is going to be okay, in case you were wondering. What even happened? Dumbledore came in with a stretcher, but that's all I know." Vicki responded, talking fastly. She knew Roger was at the match and would have witnessed the events leading up to Potter's injury.
"Dementors stormed the Quiddich pitch and it somehow made Potter fall off his broom," Roger gossiped but then bought his head to hers and spoke lowly "Do you reckon you could go in and take a peak to see if Potter will be out for the rest of the season?"
Vicki looked at her boyfriend with her mouth open. She was in complete shock at his request. She knew she wasn't the poster girl for all things good, but she still couldn't believe where his priorities were lying. Vicki was also outraged that he was using her volunteer work for inside information.
"You want me to spy on the Gryffindor Quiddich Team to see if Potter will fly again this season? You gotta be kidding me!" Vicki shouted at Roger, taking a step back from him in disgust.
"N-no. Just kidding." Roger sheepishly smiled as he looked around and saw passing students glance over at Vicki's outburst.
"Then I'll see you at dinner, yes?" Vicki asked sternly as she crossed her arms and glared at her boyfriend. On the inside this was killing her – she was crazy for Roger and this was their first real disagreement. She hated being mad at him, but the trainee healer in her was coming out. Potter wasn't her patient but she empathised with Madam Pomfrey. There was no way she could let her feelings for Roger let her do the wrong thing and jeopardise her future aspirations.
"Sure. Bye beautiful." Roger awkwardly stated as he gave Vicki a quick peck on the lips before turning and briskly walking in the opposite direction.
Vicki had been so pre-occupied with Roger she didn't notice two students standing in front of her wanting to gain entrance to the Hospital Wing. She gulped a little as nerves began to rise in her. The two students wanting to enter were the Weasley twins. She knew if they heard Roger's request both her and Roger would be their next pranking target for the next month, perhaps even the next year.
"Did you hear that exchange I had with Roger?" Vicki asked them both nervously. She wanted to appear strong and not show weakness, but by the end of her question she was a quivering mess.
"Yes." They both said in unison with big grins on both their faces.
"Okay. What do I need to do to not let you ruin both our lives?" Vicki winced.
"You don't need to do anything." One of them (Unknown to Vicki this was George) nonchalantly shrugged.
"You did the right thing and denied Davies. Your pretty boy boyfriend on the other hand. Well. You might want to advise him to sleep with one eye open for a while." The second twin winked to Vicki sounding wicked with his words.
At this point in time Fred's feelings towards Vicki was only a small crush. He was not obsessed… yet. He still found himself going red whenever she was in his proximity and liked to stare at her when she wasn't looking. Therefore even though it was just a small infatuation he felt horrible to see how nervous she was in his presence.
"I repeat. What do you want from me to ensure that you leave Roger alone, or at least not prank him above others? What can I do to buy your silence?" Vicki asked the twins, her voice still wavering as she tried to appear strong in her negotiations.
"I don't know. What do we want Fred?" George cheekily asked his twin, wanting Fred to lead.
Fred gulped. If it were almost anyone else he'd love to string out this conversation and make the person squirm – especially if it was a girl from another house who had disrespected his friend and star seeker for his team. But it was Vicki Hartwell, his crush. He wasn't capable of cruelly dragging her along for a prank. Even if her boyfriend was a twat.
"You know George, I don't know. How about you owe us, Hartwell. One day, someday, we'll call on that favour." Fred responded and gave a swift wink towards Vicki to calm her down.
"Really? You mean it? You won't tell anyone how much of an arse Roger just was?" Vicki asked the twins sounding surprised.
George seemed to mirror Vicki's shock as he didn't say anything but turned to shoot a look to his twin brother. It was rare for George to be confused and caught off guard by Fred's actions, and Fred letting Hartwell and Davies off the hook was certainly one of those rare times.
"To be honest all we really care about is seeing Harry and finding out if he's going to be okay, no offense Hartwell. So we'll let you off the hook just this once, but you owe us." Fred responded.
"It can be at any place, any time. One day we'll call on you, and you'll have to do as we say." George added on quickly, finding a bit of solace in that he was able to tease Hartwell at least a little.
"Sure thing. But once you call on that favour, we're even. Now go see Potter. If he doesn't need cheering up because he's ill, he might need cheering up after suffering such a harsh defeat from Hufflepuff." Vicki smiled as she nodded her head towards the entrance to the hospital wing.
George narrowed his eyes at Vicki's comment. He certainly didn't appreciate it – his entire team were feeling sore from the unfair defeat narrowly snatched from them due to dementors storming the field against Dumbledore's wishes. Therefore an ill-thought out attempt at comedy by a girl from a different house outside his friendship circle was certainly inappropriate. George expected Fred to blow up at her insensitive words.
Fred felt differently. Perhaps if anyone else in the school had said what Vicki had said, he would not forgive. But it was her. He didn't know her well and barely interacted with her. But he had today learned she had a certain power over him even though there was no way she could know she did. She had an inability to make him mad at her.
"Nice one Hartwell. Too bad you'll be eating those words when Gryffindor win the Quiddich Cup. It's still possible – and we'll bury Ravenclaw." Fred smiled lightly before he bounded into the Hospital Wing.
So yeah...there were flashbacks. I normally don't do the whole flashback thing and it's a bit out of place in a story that hasn't used them before, I know. I have basically put them in to try and motivate me into updating again to try and get me back into this story so I can finish it. There's one more flashback coming in the next chapter but then I won't be doing any more. It was just to get a small feel of the little interaction Vicki and Fred had before this school year, and a glimpse of the past relationship Vicki had with Roger, and how different it was to the one she now has with Fred.
Which brings me onto my next point. Sorry I haven't been updating, both this one and the spin off story. I actually have a few chapters of the spin off written that I'll post soon, I'm just currently re-editing that story to fix up some grammar errors (and plot holes I created). As for this one - I'm baaaaack!
