Auhtor's Note: Thanks to all my beautiful reviewers! I'm glad you luff meh story! I luff it too! -hugs and squeezes it possessively like a Sean Biggerstaff plushie- Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that the title will come into works probably within the next few chapters. I didn't call it that for nothing! Oh, and FYI: I'm grounded, so the updates will be erratic, if any ( I will update once I get un-grounded, I can garuntee it ). Check out my other stories if you will, and also check out my Favorites list and click on the author- Pyro Symptoms Unleashed...her story is well worth the read! Cheers and have a good day!
Disclaimer: Yadda Yadda, it's all in the previous chapters so you know the drill!
You're So Tactless
Chapter 4: The Trouble with Wood
As if yesterday wasn't a real scream, it seemed that things could only get worse.
"I hate Potions!" I said loudly, slamming my books on the table.
Sitting in the Great Hall provided two very important things. Food, and noise.
"Damn! Damn! Damn!"
"Katie!" George said, pretending ( and failing miserably I might add ) to look and sound shocked.
"Why? Why me?" I said feebly, gazing off into space.
"Don't forget us. We've got ol' grease ball just the same as you." Fred said darkly, entering the Great Hall flanked by Angelina and Lee.
"Who's got what after that?" Alicia said, running up behind them.
"Well, I've got Divination." Angelina said miserably.
"We've got Muggle Studies." the Twins and I chorused.
"And I've got History of Magic." Lee muttered gloomily.
"Oh, so that means I'm with you Lee, I've got Binns too." Alicia said, studying her schedule.
We ate our breakfast in silence, and didn't talk much, too depressed at the thought of boring classes ahead of us. The only person who could make metters even worse than they already were arrived and plopped down next to me.
Peering through his horn-rimmed glasses, I watched him try to sneak a sideways glance at my schedule. Impatient and prone to snapping, I pushed it at him, wordlessly inviting him to brag ( and gloat ) about his performances when he was in my year.
"Oh, Muggle Studies!" he exclaimed, "I took this as an extra curricular course, and thrived in it's genius and intelligent point of view from a wizard's eye. You know, living with my father made this course very easy because I already knew some things about Muggles to begin with, but to see it from a whole other perspective-"
"How about this perspective? You talking to Katie hinders my chance at talking to her, as well as her chance of not getting her ears talked off before her classes begin." A voice said from somewhere behind me.
I turned in my seat to glance at Oliver, who was calmly smiling at Percy, who in turn was glaring coldly at Oliver.
"Ol-Oliver!" I exclaimed weakly.
What had come over him? Usually he was oblivious to other people's doings, but this year he was uncharacteristically concerned for people's well being. This was not the Oliver I had known.
Well, then again, you're only just starting to get to know him, so maybe there's something you don't know. A little voice in my brain reasoned.
I agreed with it, thinking better than to start arguing with myself I public where I could only confirm suspicions about my sanity.
"Well, it seems I am currently unwelcome here, so I'll just go find, um, Penelope." Percy sneered.
I bit my tongue. People were changing, and I didn't like it! I liked it when Oliver and Percy were both friends with Penelope, and I liked it when Oliver was in a good disposition. Seeing Percy sneer like that made my insides turn cold, and at that moment I wanted to grab my broom and beat the bejabbers out of him. The only thing that stopped me from doing that was Fred tugging on my robe.
"Calm down Lioness." he said, patting my shoulder once I turned back to my food.
Oliver sat down in Percy's vacated seat, and began to eat furiously, with such speed as I have only seen one person accomplish- myself, with an impending doom date....I mean due date.
I looked up just in time to watch Draco Malfoy have what looked like a swooning fit, but was really an impression of Harry Potter fainting.
"That stupid git." I heard George say calmly.
"Don't worry about it Harry, he was a right pain in our arse that night. He was scared to death and came running into our compartment." Fred said bracingly.
"Nearly wet himself." I nodded, laughing along with the Twins.
Just as soon as they arrived, Ron, Hermione and Harry left the Great Hall, heading for the North Tower.
"That night was horrible." I heard Oliver murmur.
"You okay?" I asked worriedly, reaching for the sausages and nearly missing. ( Due to a pair of chocolate eyes gazing at a plate despairingly. It was heartbreaking. )
"Yeah." he said shaking his head 'yes.'
"Alright, well I'm off to Potions." I said, gather up my things and stuffing a last minute muffin into my mouth.
I caught up with Lee and Alicia, as the Twins and Angelina lagged behind, talking over the Daily Prophet.
"I'll bet Snape has cooked up something really evil, like a ten scroll essay or something." Lee muttered darkly, kicking at a piece of pebble.
"Yeah, he's really sadistic." Alicis agreed vehemently.
"I wish we could skive off and go hang out in the library." I said, hefting my books and placing them on the other hip to balance them.
My bag was heavy enough what with my thick textbooks and multiple jars of potion ingredients. I felt something very unpleasant in my shoe, and it was really getting on my nerves. I began to limp, and finally got really fed up with the piercingly sensation I felt. I hopped up and down on one foot, trying in vain to readjust my shoe, when I teetered backwards.
"AUGH!" I yelped, falling onto George.
"Alright there, Bell?" he said, grinning.
"Shut up." I muttered, picking up my books and hitting him with my bag.
He laughed and hurried up to Lee, obviously keen on informing him of my latest blunder. What a rude bugger.
"Shit." I hissed, stopping outside of the Potions room to bend down and fix whatever was wrong with my foot.
I took it off, and found a splinter sticking out of my toe. It hurt like hell, and I was too scared to pull it out myself. That's not something a Quidditch player should worry about, I told myself angrily. So, I pushed aside my childish fret, and yanked it out, putting my shoe back on afterwards.
I straightened up and brushed off my robes, pleased with myself, and beaming at my tiny accomplishment. I felt a hand brush over my back, and grab my arm only to drag me around the corner and out of everyone's sight.
"Oliver!" I breathed, my jaw dropping to my waist at the sight of my temporary captor.
"Listen, about breakfast, I want to talk about it. I- I'm not okay. Can we meet somewhere soon?" Oliver said hurriedly, casting a glance over his shoulder.
"S-sure." I said dazedly, giddy under the pressure of his intense gaze.
"Great." He released me and ran off in the other direction, sprinting to get to his class.
Still in a daze, the reasons for being so still unknown to myself, I rounded the corner and ran headlong into Professor Axel-Grease-For-Cologne-And-Hair-Gel.
"Late for class. That's detention Bell, get inside." he said coldly, scrutinizing my every move as I picked up my things and dived into his classroom, plopping down next to Alicia.
"As all of you undoubtedly know-" Snape began sarcastically, addressing the Gryffindors rather than the smug-looking Slytherins.
"And so, that is how an electrical socket works!" Professor Autumn exclaimed, her frazzled appearance lighting up along with the illusion lamp.
She had carefully crafted a picture illusion to take us step by step through the process of plugging in a lamp cord to make it light. She got a few pattered applauses, and a few oohs and aahs. I myself was quite intrigued. Fred and Geroge looked rather bored, which was understandable because of how nutty their father was.
I had only met Mr. Arthur Weasley twice in my whole time of knowing the Twins, and I had been slightly disturbed, but as I got to know him a little better, my first impression changed for the better. He wasn't as scary as I thought, just a little eccentric. ( Of course, when someone was bombarding you at age eleven with questions about a felly tone, how would you react? )
Just minutes later, the bell rang, and we gathered up our things and headed back to Gryffindor Tower for break. Relieved at a real chance to breath and relax, I sank down into a cushy armchair by the fire, Angelina sat down at my feet, and propped open her Divination book.
"I'm not waiting until tomorrow to do it!" she said, writing furiously.
"What do you have to do?" I asked, rubbing my temples as Fred and George played Gobstones with Percy, purposefully charming the stones to erratically squirt foul-smelling liquid at Percy for no good reason, even if he was winning.
"That's it!" he yelled, storming up the staircase to the boys dormitories.
Lee, clutching his sides, rolled around on the floor, laughing like there was no tomorrow. I admit, it was pretty funny to watch Percy make the liquid on his face literally emit steam, ( which inevitably fogged up his glasses and caused him to trip when he stood up ) and the way his ear turn blood red was a riot.
That's what annoys me about guys! When they blush, their ears go red. You'd think they'd flush just like us girls. But noooo! Their cheeks don't ever turn a different color unless someone backhands them!
Angelina's many obscene grumbling comments met my ears, causing me to break out of my musings.
"Need help?" I asked, leaning over to the right side of the armchair.
She sat on the floor, chucking wadded up parchment into the fire, smirking in satisfaction as each one caused the fire to spark ominously.
"Yeah, help me think of ten ways to die horribly." she said, dipping her quill in ink.
"You could always shag Snape and Filch at the same time." I suggested.
Obviously having overheard us, Alicia also made an observation. "Yeah, you lots of syrup and strawberries."
Casting disgusted glances in her direction, Angelina and I doubled over in laughter, which dissipated after five minutes.
"That- that was so- so wrong on so many levels." I gasped, wiping a tear from my eye.
Angelina just shook her head, and wrote down what was undoubtedly a bunch of garbage that would make Trelawney somehow satisfied with it's gruesome subtleties.
I sighed and spotted Oliver sitting alone in the corner, much like I had seen Hermione Granger many times before. He was completely immersed in his worn copy of Quidditch Through the Ages- yes, again.
I got up and walked over there, sitting down in front of him.
"So Oliver, you wanted to talk?" I ventured quietly, in some way frightened at the prospect of finding out what was wrong with him.
He looked up. "Yeah, thanks for remembering."
End Chapter
P.S.- Today is Tom Felton's ( Draco Malfoy in the movies ) birthday, Sept. 22! He's 17! ( He turns 17 the day after my sister, who's b-day is the 21 of Sept. )