Chapter Nine

"Hey, Chris," Marcus said happily when he finished writing the word 'faggot' in Oliver's journal/diary-thing.

"What were you two writing?" she asked suspiciously.

"I don't know, what were we?" Oliver wondered with a smirk.

"You two are the most immature adults I've ever known."

"Adults?" Marcus shrieked. He held a hand over his chest. "We are not adults!" Oliver shook his head.

"Tsk, tsk tsk. Just when you thought you knew someone." Christina laughed and made an attempt to grab the journal out of Marcus' hands.

"Come on, let me read it," she pleaded. Marcus stood up and shook his finger back and forth with a raised eyebrow. "You guys are so mean."

"We're mean? You're the one that called us adults!" Oliver exclaimed. "Harry, are me and Marcus adults?" Harry, who had just walked into the room to get something for Quidditch, glanced at the three of them.

"You, no. Marcus, yes, seeing as he's actually slept with someone."

"That's right, virgins rule," Oliver said with a smile. "Get what you need, Harry. I'll be over at the pitch in a couple minutes." Harry grabbed broom polisher and left Oliver's office. Marcus looked at Oliver, confused.

"Didn't you do Clearwater?" Oliver made a face.

"What the hell? Ugh, no, I never did anyone! I didn't even date Penelope!"

"You don't exactly have to date them, you know..."

"I don't do one-night stands, Flint."

"Be quiiiieeeettt!" Christina groaned with hands over her ears. Oliver and Marcus laughed.

"Wanna go to Hogsmeade today?" Marcus asked Oliver and Christina.

"We can't, there's no Hogsmeade trip scheduled," Christina said. Marcus raised an eyebrow and glanced at Oliver, who looked at Christina with a smirk.

"That's what you think. Follow me. Oi, FRED, GEORGE!"

"Gred and Forge, at your service," George said as the twins stepped into the room. They saluted Oliver, Marcus and Christina.

"I thought I was Gred," Fred said.

"No, I'm Gred... do you want to be Gred?"

"Forge sounds better. I'll be Forge. What did you need, Wood?"

"I forgot where the passage to Hogsmeade was. Can you lead us? You can head back to work if you want."

"Oh, but you'd like that, wouldn't you? No Weasley twins around to pester you? No Weasley twins around to cause problems? No Weasley twins to blow things up? No Weasley twins to-"

"George, shut the hell up," Marcus said. "Why wouldn't we want you two to leave?"

"This is where we leave you," Fred said while bowing. "G'day."

"Just go," Oliver said with a smile. "See you when, Christmas?"

"Of course. At our house as always," George said as they went into their joke shop.

"AND BRING CHRIS!" Fred called after them.

"Oh, fine, don't bring Marcus. No one cares about me." Oliver slapped Marcus upside the head and walked into Malkin's Robes.

"Try something on, Chris. I want you looking good for the dance. Speaking of the dance, Marcus, who are you going with?"

"What's-Her-Name... Padma Patil, I think her name is?"

"She has a twin, don't she?" Oliver asked.

"I think so. Gryffindor."

"Yeah... they're hot."

"Eh, they're alright. They look too 'good-girl' for me," Marcus said.

"But Padma's in Ravenclaw..."

"Shut up already," Christina said as she picked out a red dress. "How's this?"

"Try it on," Oliver said and pushed her into the changing rooms. She came back out five minutes later. Oliver turned around and so did Marcus.

"Wow," Oliver said. He nudged Marcus. Christina laughed at the expression on Marcus' face. His jaw was dropped and his eyes wide. Oliver pushed Marcus' jaw up and looked at Christina one more time. "It looks great, Chris. Please excuse Marcus." Christina laughed once more and went back into the change room to change back into her casual clothes.

"She looked HOT!" Marcus finally said when Christina was out of sight. Oliver nodded his head.

"You could have said something, though, instead of just gawking at her."

"Wood, are you absolutely, one hundred percent sure that you're straight? I mean, come on!"

"Yeah, Flint, I'm sure. I didn't say she looked bad, mate."

"And then there's the whole 'mate' thing..."

"Ron says mate, British people say mate..."

"But you're not British, mate. You're bloody Scottish."

"Same thing. You almost done, Chris?"

"I'm trying on a new dress. If you didn't notice, I went out and picked another one," Christina called back and came out. She was wearing a pink dress that faded into baby blue down the end (hehe my sister's prom dress).

"Two words. Holy. Shit," Oliver said. Marcus gave out a nervous chuckle that strangely turned into a cough. "Chris, quickly, change back before Marcus rapes you."

"Ew!" Christina shrieked and ran back into the changing room.

"You scared her off," Marcus whined. Oliver slapped him upside the head.

"No thinking impure thoughts about students. We're professors."

"Oh? Then what are you, if you think about that?" Oliver shot Marcus a look and Christina came out of the changing rooms.

"Okay, so which dress? Red one or pink one?"

"Red," Marcus said.

"Pink," Oliver said.

"Alright, I'll go with the pink one, since Oliver's my date," Christina decided and put the red dress back on the rack. Marcus scowled at Oliver and crossed his arms.

"I think Patil's wearing some purple dress," he groaned. "She wants us to be matching."

"So? Me and Chris are going to be matching. I'm going to wear a pink jacket. Not that kind of pink, though..." Oliver said, pointing at Christina's dress. "More reddish-pink."

"Magenta," Christina supplied as she reached into her purse for twenty two galleons, sixteen sickles and fourteen knuts. "Shit, I didn't bring my money."

"Here," Oliver said and dug into his pockets for the money. He paid for the dress.

"You didn't have to do that, I could have came back for it," Christina said.

"Yeah, you could have, but you have two guys here that are more than willing to pay," Oliver replied with a smile. Marcus raised an eyebrow.

"No, TWO guys? I'm not paying for your bloody girl's dress."

"Typical Slytherin," Oliver snorted. "Not the teeniest bit gentleman-like."

"Oh, we are," Marcus said with a mysterious smirk. "Just not where guys bring guys."

"Sick, Marcus. Sick."

November 1st

Dear Diary,

Could I be falling for a professor? I mean, Oliver is a nice guy but he's five years older than me. He paid for my dress today and was definetely checking me out at Madame Malkin's Robes. I know I just got out of a relationship with Blaise... but Oliver was always there for me. I've only known him for two months and it feels as if I've known him half my life...

Christina.