Disclaimer: I no own Harry Potter.
Author's Note:
2018 IS HEREEEEEEEE.
I'm not excited or ready for it. Where the hell did 2017 even go? So much has happened last year and it's unbelievable at how fast it's gone by.
Also. THIS CHAPTER IS SO HELLA LATEEEEE. I am ashamed. Work has me scheduled practically six days a week, which is annoying because I'm not allowed to hit overtime at my job despite my being 20 and am more than willing to work my life away just to have money to pay my bills, so my hours are so meticulously placed that I practically know what I'm working before the schedule is even done.
Closing sucks, kids. I don't recommend it even though that's where all the hours are. Working also sucks, but unfortunately that's required.
For some reason, this chapter did not want to be written. I pulled it up many times a day for the past three weeks and stared at it for hours. It was a challenge and this chapter is by far the hardest one I've written so far.
Not much to report other than that, so let's get this baby rolling! Enjoy!
No Promises.
Chapter E.L.E.V.E.N.
_"Preconceptions"_
"In the battlefield, the nice guys always die first. I don't want to see it happen." -Unknown
Somewhere in the distance, the faint laughter of a child reached my ears. It sounded vaguely familiar, but this was a dream because no way would I be back in this spot so soon again and without my sister at my side. This place was special to us. I'd feel like I betrayed her if I came here without her.
I smiled at nothing and closed my eyes.
It was like a dream come true. Warm water—so very unlike the cold weather that has been plaguing us for the past month—splashed against my bare feet, droplets clinging to the skin of my calves before trailing down into the sand. The sun was pleasant against my skin as I experimentally wiggled my toes, digging them into the white sand beneath them and giggled at the silky feeling it brought.
I'd missed the feeling of sand and the lake water.
A breeze ruffled the edges of the ordinary white dress I was suddenly wearing and pulled through auburn strands, the loose curls whipping against the backs of my arms. Despite knowing I didn't own such a plain dress and that my hair wasn't pulled back, the weirdness of those two things didn't really affect me. It felt like such an unnecessary thing to be concerned about when I felt more content than I had ever felt since school started back up.
The lake seemed to stretch on for miles. I could only barely catch the faint outlines of trees on the horizon on the other side. Sunlight made the water sparkle like white gems were just sitting there at the surface, waiting for groping hands to attempt to grab them. There were no boats out on the water, which I thought was kind of strange, but not something I overly cared about. Those noisy boats ruined the peaceful atmosphere that the lake gave off.
This lake brought back many memories of days long gone and of family that have long since died and floated up into the sky to be with the other angels. One in particular of when Mom's side of the family came to visit. And boy did she have a large family. I'd never met so many cousins and aunts and uncles in one day. All of whom seemed to know Hailey and I on a personal level. It was strange, but not unwelcome.
I took a deep breath in, reveling in the plant-like smell that blanketed the air. It smelt like the trees that surrounded my home and the candles that Mom liked to light through all of our rooms. It smelt like home.
I miss home.
Hogwarts was home, but it wasn't where my parents or Hailey were as cheesy as that sounded. They wouldn't ever be able to go there with all the enchantments that surrounded the castle. Not unless I counteracted them or Headmaster Dumbledore allowed them to enter, which I had no doubt would ever happen in the near future. It would cause such an uproar in the Wizarding Community and he certainly didn't need that added on to his already long list of people to worry about.
I was far more closer to my parents and sister than my friends if that wasn't painfully obvious by now. Terra was quickly getting up to that point, though, with how often we're together. Maybe I'll take her here one day. To this special, special place. I could only hope that she would love it just as much as my family and I did.
My eyes opened.
But something felt different here. It felt like it was disturbed. Invaded. No, not invaded. Like something was unsettled. It was a hard feeling to explain. Looking left and right, nothing seemed to be out of place. Everything looked the same like it always did. Nothing seemed out of place to my searching gaze. But I couldn't shake the feeling of unease that filled me.
Something definitely wasn't right. Like I wasn't seeing a bigger picture.
Look around again. Something commanded. I mindlessly obeyed, searching for I didn't know what, but nothing stood out to my eyes. The water wasn't moving weirdly save for the random ripples of fish caressing the surface, no strange noises, no raised voices or cries of distress. It was so peaceful here. Perhaps I was just being paranoid.
No you're not. You're just missing it.
What was I missing?
I only barely caught the flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye. My head snapped towards the well-worn path that led into the forest, eyes wide. Whatever had been there was gone, but I knew I had seen it. It definitely wasn't any animal I had ever seen before.
A passing wind disturbed the decaying leaves that lay along the path, flinging them into the lake and causing distinct ripples to disturb the otherwise smooth surface. When had the water gotten so still?
There's something in there.
Go, go, go. Go in there. Don't wait.
What was in there? What would I find if I walked in? Would it attack me? A feeling inside told me that it wouldn't and that it was important. But how could I know that? My head tilted unconsciously as I scrutinized the forest.
This felt so familiar...
What is this feeling?
Only one way to find out.
I took a step forward.
"Hayden." My foot stuttered mid-step, freezing at the two voices that called out my name. Oh my God. What were they doing here? I couldn't escape them in reality, so now they were taking it a step forward and invading my dreams?
Oh, please no. I'm not ready yet. Don't make me confront these feelings yet. I'M NOT READY. I tried to take another step, determined to ignore the two that were slowly taking up more and more of my thoughts. It became easier to move the farther I got away from them, my steps quickening until the feel of grass tickled the soles of my feet and the path was a mere ten feet away.
A hand grabbed mine and another wrapped around my bicep, stopping me in my tracks completely. "Hayden." God, why did they have to sound like that? Like they were genuinely heartbroken that I was ignoring them. This was my dream, damn it. Why were they controlling me here in the one place where I was supposed to be in charge?
Just leave me alone. Please. Don't do this here.
My eyes clenched shut as my heart beat rapidly in my chest. I couldn't even turn my head to look at them. "Please let go."
Not to my surprise, I was ignored. I shivered when a cold breath blew across my ear. Mint. "Just wait," Fred whispered.
George gave my arm a light tug, not really pulling me backwards, but to gain my attention. "We want to talk," He insisted.
"I'm busy right now," Was my excuse. But really, was finding that shadow more important than the Weasley Twins? My heart obviously screamed its objection and told me that it was okay to remain here and just bask in the two dominating presences I had grown used to over the past couple months. My mind, on the other hand, wanted to do the opposite.
I was never good at listening to what my heart was saying.
I pointedly jerked my arm in George's grip. "Let go."
"No." I blinked, surprised at the sudden firmness in his voice. It was strange to be on receiving end of that tone. He had only ever directed it at Ron and now it was directed to me.
I turned my head just enough to see red hair out of my peripherals. I wasn't even looking at his face and my heart was speeding up more so than it already was. Why was this happening? "Let go, George," I demanded, feeling anger beginning to boil in my stomach. It was strange how worked up I was getting. It normally took more than being denied a request to make me feel like this.
"No." I was starting to hate that word. Fred squeezed my hand, gaining a quarter of my attention, but the rest remained on George, whose grip had not only tightened around my arm, but was also inching closer to me. He wasn't even trying to be discreet!
"Don't make me hurt you," I threatened, fury leaking into my voice.
"You won't," George said confidently.
"Is that a challenge?" I hissed, glaring at him out of the corner of my eye. Blue eyes stood out beneath his red, red hair, dark and stormy and just a cloud of emotions that I had never before seen him direct at me before. He wasn't angry...but he wasn't calm either. An awkward in between. Would Fred's eyes be the same if I looked at him?
"I know you won't."
"You don't know me as well as you think you do if you believe that." That hurt to say almost as bad as the language I had spewed at Pansy.
"Hayden," Fred warned. I ignored him, more focused on his brother. George, who was normally the more passive and non-aggressive Twin, was practically picking a fight with me. He had it coming if he thought I was just going to sit here and take it.
"I'm not Pansy." I stiffened at her name, memories of sharp nails and shouts and petty insults standing out sharply. I hated the reminder. "I'm not giving you a reason to attack me."
Hot anger warmed my whole body at that point. "You will if you don't release me!" I snapped, giving my arm a sharp yank and practically screeched in anger when it did nothing to get myself out of his hold. "I'm not kidding anymore, George! Let go!"
I nearly started crying from frustration when his arms wrapped around my shoulders from behind, his embrace strong and warm and so like George that I would never compare it to anyone else's. Tears began to cloud my vision and I couldn't stop them from falling down my cheeks. Why couldn't he take a hint? His chin rested on my shoulder and goosebumps rose along the skin of my neck as he breathed against it.
Don't let them distract you! YOU NEED TO FOLLOW THE PATH.
"Please stay," George pleaded quietly.
"I need to go." I ached to wipe the tears off my face, but my arms wouldn't even come close with his own restricting my movement. I wanted to leave so bad. I had to escape these two.
"You don't." Fred's face was suddenly right there and blue eyes bore into my watery ones. His breath blew gently across my lips and face and my stomach gave a pleasant lurch. This, I suddenly realized as something in my mind slid into place like a missing puzzle piece, was what I wanted as his hands reached up to cradle my face in his gentle hands, his fingers covering the tear tracks and wiping away the ones that continued to fall.
IGNORE HIM.
I couldn't.
"Stay right here," Fred breathed, leaning closer and closer as my heart beat faster and faster. It was getting harder to breath, but I couldn't muster up the courage to care. It was okay to not breath so long as he kept coming closer and closer to my lips. "Stay with us, Hayden. Right here." I only barely realized George's arms tightening around me, holding me and doing nothing as Fred's lips came so tantalizingly close to mine before—
I gave a violent start, a choked scream crawling up my throat before I smothered it with my hand. I bolted up into a sitting position, breathing heavily into my hands as I stared wide-eyed at the red of my blankets. I could still feel them. Both of them. The heat of George's chest pressed against my back and the warmth of his arms around me, the strength of tense muscles keeping me in place. Fred's hands on my face and his lips dangerously close to touching mine, his smell surrounding me whole and leaving me with nothing else but him.
I tried to hold my breath to see if I woke the others from their slumber, but I heard only the deep even breaths of the other girls in the room and it did nothing to reassure me. My breaths continued to come out unevenly from between my fingers. Thankful that I had the thought of pulling my curtains shut at least, I gave a shaky breath and pulled my hands up to cover my eyes.
Merlin no...
My heart continued to beat the unbearably fast rhythm just like in the dream.
I was not going to dwell on the dream that kept me from going back to sleep. Maybe on a later date, but not today. Today was a semi-important day. So in my typical fashion, I pushed the dream to the very back of my mind to be forgotten until later and took a morning away from the Twins to collect myself. To make it more convincing, I hunted Terra down the second I decided it was early enough to leave the Tower.
I had barely claimed a seat with Terra at breakfast and grabbed a single pancake from a platter when there was the most unholy sounding shriek of surprise and anger echoing throughout the entire Hall. Everyone froze in their seats, including the teachers at the Head Table. Eyes looked around, extremely confused as to where the scream came from. Only I seemed to realize that it had come from the Entrance Hall.
"PEEVES, I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU."
"Can't kill what's already dead, doggy-looking girl!"
Peeves was seriously the best. I owed him and his charming nicknames so much.
Terra immediately turned to me, somehow suspecting that what was happening was my fault. "What did you do?" She demanded, pausing to watch Professors Snape and McGonagall rush past us. "I know you had something to do with this. Spill."
I snorted around a mouthful of pancake, swallowing before smiling slackly. "It's Halloween," I said simply. It was all that I was going to offer and it seemed to be enough because Terra's eyes widened in realization and her head whipped around to look at the ensuring commotion. I nearly lost control of my giggles when the culprit stomped into view.
There was Pansy, tall and hardly proud-looking, drenched in what I assumed to be a whole bottle of ink. It covered a good portion of her, though the lot of it was on top of her head and dripping down her snarling face. Peeves was floating just out of reach, cackling and dripping the last of the bottle on Pansy as she tried fruitfully to catch the Poltergeist.
A few feet away, Davies and Bulstrode were wiping their hands on their robes, apparently not exempt from the original target. Peeves was definitely earning points with me today. It helped that he was more than willing to take the blame for me despite his fear of retribution from Slytherin's House Ghost, the Bloody Baron. He was making a great sacrifice.
"I WANT THAT DAMN THING GONE. HE IS ALWAYS TARGETING ME."
"Language, Miss. Parkinson!" McGonagall snapped sternly.
"Who cares about my language?!" Pansy screeched furiously, her voice reaching some high pitches that made me cringe. Any higher and she'd make our ears bleed. Black ink fell from the ends of her hair as it whipped every which way, staining the floor with black spots. Filch was going to have a work out later. "Look what he did to me, Professor! I am covered in whatever this shit is!"
Peeves chuckled maliciously. "Peevsie wishes the mean dog-girl luck in getting that off." Wicked eyes gleamed at her and he purred, "Hope you like scrubbing your skin off, girly!" He nose-dived straight into the ground, cackling as he went.
"I swear to Merlin—"
"That will do, Miss. Parkinson," Snape said silkily, tone holding no room for anymore back talk from the fuming girl. With his arms crossed loosely and back straight as a pole, he loomed over Pansy, who held her tongue and merely alternated glaring at her Head of House and Peeves. "Go back to your dorm and get cleaned up before classes start."
"What if I can't get this stuff off, sir?!" Pansy exclaimed in disbelief, looking at her Head like he was telling her to go ride a Hippogriff. "You expect me to just waltz around like this?!"
Even from my spot at the Ravenclaw table, I could see the dangerous flash in Snape's eyes and knew he could care less about how us girls looked in his class. Not even his House was spared from such a weak excuse. "I am sure Madam Pomfrey will have some Stain Removal solutions for you if it fails to come off," He said slowly and Pansy cringed at the pitch in his voice. "Now get going, Miss. Parkinson. If I hear you are even a minute late to your Herbology class, you will be serving detention with me for a week cleaning the bottoms of cauldrons."
Many a Gryffindor had suffered from such a punishment and they all had come back with stiff backs and hands sore from scrubbing. It was welcome change to see a Slytherin be threatened with the same punishment.
"He's acting pretty out of character today," Terra commented. I glanced at her, curious. "Professor Snape, I mean. I didn't know he had it in him to give one of his own a detention he normally reserves for the other Houses."
"There's only so much Pansy a person can tolerate," I said dryly. "Even Professor Snape has his limits with his House and their stupidity sometimes."
"Your Gryffindor stereotypes are showing, Hayden."
As if she had heard my name and was drawn to the sound, Pansy's dark eyes cut through the stares of the other students and met my own head on. I arched an eyebrow and waved my fingers in a taunting wave, smiling just a tiny bit mockingly to send her a hint. Confusion was quickly replaced by realization and pure unadulterated anger was visible on her face. I half expected her to come at me with that sort of expression, but she spun on her heel and stomped her way to the dungeons to try and get clean.
A satisfied smirk graced my lips.
"That expression says it all," Terra said, sitting correctly as the Great Hall was filled with chatter again. "I suppose you're pleased with yourself?"
"Something like that," I admitted. "It's only breakfast, after all. We still have a whole day to get through before I'm completely pleased with myself."
"You've planned an entire day of pranking?" Terra breathed, barely reigning in her surprise. "Hayden, what exactly are you up to?"
My smirk turned practically feral. "Karma, of course," I purred, relishing the shock on her face. "Pansy isn't my only target, don't get me wrong, but what Peeves did to her is mild compared to what the other Slytherins will be facing as the day goes on."
With the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin match in two days, both Houses were tense with one another. Since last week, taunts and spells had been thrown in the halls from both parties and Madam Pomfrey was starting to expect at least two casualties a day at this point because of spells gone wrong.
Even Snape and McGonagall were getting snappish and breathing down their respective team's backs during classes. The relationship between the teachers got worse when Snape booked the Quidditch field as often as he could, which made Angelina froth at the mouth with being unable to practice as much as she would like.
I figured that everyone could use a day to laugh instead of worrying whether they're gonna be the next ones to get hit by a stray spell in the hallway.
And to also get back at certain people.
A cold chill went down my leg. A bell jingled merrily. "Did Peevsie do good, Haydie?" Peeves asked from under the table, his tinkling hat passing through my leg. Terra's knees connected with the underside of the table as she jumped a foot in air and cursed loudly. A couple heads turned our way, but quickly decided they didn't want to meet the blond's scathing glare.
"Warn me next time, will you?!" She snarled, rubbing her knees from under the table.
I ignored her, instead giving Peeves a secret smile. "You did very well," I praised and was rewarded with a baring of his unnaturally straight teeth. "You chose a very good time to get her."
Peeves gave a proud bow before disappearing with a pop.
"It's unbelievable how much control you have over him," Terra grumbled, stabbing her pancakes with more force than necessary.
"It's very little," I admitted to her, amused. "I just know what to say to him."
There was no reasoning with Peeves when it came to handing out orders. He wasn't like the other peaceful ghosts that haunted the school. His very existence was made for mischief and he lived up to that calling well. No one could force Peeves into doing something he didn't want to do, with the exceptions being the Bloody Baron and the Headmaster. But he could be conned into doing something for someone if they knew what to say.
"You're obviously very good at that," Terra said shrewdly. "Keep that up and Peeves will swear what remains of his soul to you."
That was a rather scary thought and not one that I was going to entertain.
"Pardon me, Professor Snape, but are you really going to let that go so easily?" Terra and I practically jumped in our seats from the falsely sweet voice coming from behind us. A glance over our shoulders showed Umbridge standing right there, hands clasped in front of her and smiling her fake ass smile.
Snape arched a slow eyebrow as he and Professor McGonagall stopped their trip back to the Head table. "I fail to see what it was that I let go so easily."
"Peeves will not leave without a fight, Dolores," Professor McGonagall said, looking like this was an old conversation that was being opened up again. Her glasses flashed as she raised her chin. "He does not fear us teachers and he does not fear the Ministry. None of the students have been physically harmed by him, so there is little that can be done."
The look on Umbridge's face was incredibly sour as McGonagall marched past her with Snape right on her heel, billowing robes and all. Seems like she hadn't completely gotten over the prank Peeves pulled on her the first day of classes.
I blinked when a spelled paper airplane landed beside my plate, the wings crinkled like the owner had screwed up and tried to redo it. I carefully unfolded it, wary of Umbridge as she was still lingering nearby and read the short message inside. I smiled just slightly.
Terra leaned over my shoulder curiously, eyes scanning the words before her brow scrunched in confusion. "Who's that from?"
"No one you would know," I said evasively, folding the note and slipping it into my pocket.
You didn't have to get back at her, but it's appreciated by me and more of the first years than you might think.
-EP
It was hard to decide if giving Peeves all those ink bottles was a good idea. He was having way too much fun with them. Other than manipulating the suits of armor and making them clock unsuspecting Slytherins in the head, he was growing fond of emptying the ink on their heads as well.
Maybe I should rethink that strategy next time.
Terra snorted as she watched Montague shout when Peeves dumped an ink bottle on his head, the older boy angry enough to throw a book at the Poltergeist, which sailed through him harmlessly. The crowd around Montague parted like the Red Sea as he cursed the ghost terrorizing him. I hadn't given Peeves exact instructions on who he should be targeting, but I had strongly suggested leaving anyone under fourth year in Slytherin alone.
So far, he was thankfully taking my advice.
The girl who clung to Elliot was smirking at her upperclassman's misfortune from her place against the wall by the Transfiguration classroom. She noticed my stare and sent me a polite nod.
This was getting a bit too strange. I had the approval of first year Slytherins.
"That's almost all the boys on the Slytherin Quidditch team," Terra pointed out as we passed Montague being subjected to Professor McGonagall's angry lecture on his language. Really, she should just expect that from anyone fifth year and above. She shouldn't be so surprised by our language anymore.
"Except for one," I said, blond hair and grey eyes flashing in my mind.
Terra gave a feral grin. "I want to be there when he goes after Malfoy."
Unfortunately for Terra, I had already given Peeves very strict instructions to not go after the young Malfoy. While the idea of seeing black ink staining his pale hair and face was amusing, that wasn't what I had planned for him. I had something bigger in mind than having ink dumped on his head by the resident terror.
For the most part, everything was ready. There was only one small complication and that came in the form of the House Elves.
Convincing Dobby and Letty was easy. I had mentioned Harry was in on the prank and Dobby was hooked completely. Letty practically worshipped everything I said, much to my utter embarrassment and horror, so she was easy to convince. It was mainly the others that I had difficulties with as they vehemently objected my requests without coming off as disobeying me. It took all of ten minutes for me to realize that they thought I intended to cause harm to the students and I was quick to correct that misunderstanding.
Their help was essential and couldn't be easily replaced.
While still unsure, they agreed to help with me reassuring them twenty different times that the prank wasn't harmful in any way, shape, or form and that it was just meant to get everyone to laugh. Well, the Slytherins wouldn't be laughing, but the Elves didn't need to know that.
"Don't worry, you won't miss it," I assured her. We both thankfully had a break between classes right now, but we couldn't spend it listlessly. The Library was our destination. We had a lot of work to keep up with.
Terra hummed, pleased. "How is that spell coming along?" She asked.
"Which one?"
"The Shielding Spell, mainly. You've got the Summoning Charm down pretty well, so I'm not overly concerned about it."
I shrugged as we took a shortcut to the Library. "It's coming along," I said. "It's not very strong against spells like Reducto, but it's stable at least."
Hermione was more than happy to meet up with me in between classes to help me practice when I asked her. I felt like she was having too much fun casting spells at me for all the trouble and sass I give her, but she was a great teacher. She offered many pointers that proved to be very useful. We quickly found out, though, that the Reductor Curse was a bit too much against a beginner. My leg was still stiff from landing awkwardly on it.
Terra nodded. "That just comes with practice." She tilted her head, a habit that I had picked up after spending so much time with her. "We should convince Potter to hold a lesson on that spell. It'll come in handy in the future."
"I'm pretty sure he's already ahead of you on that one," I laughed, remembering the intrigued expression he'd worn when Terra had first explained the spell to me. "We might be having a lesson before the Christmas holidays if he can squeeze it in."
"It'd be nice if we could practice more than once a week," Terra grumbled, shifting her shoulder to adjust her bag strap. "We'd get so much more done."
"Quidditch takes priority and you know it." I smiled when she rolled her eyes in exasperation. "It's important to them, Terra. If Angelina suddenly stopped pressing for practices at the field, McGonagall and Umbridge would get suspicious and we don't need that kind of scrutiny."
"I know," She sighed. "It's just frustrating. I already know a good portion of what we've already learned, so I'm just anxious to start something new."
"You could just practice ahead. Nothing's stopping you."
"I know, but it's different doing it in a group compared to by yourself."
"You just like seeing Ron get thrashed by Hermione," I teased.
Terra sneered slightly, though compared to a few months ago, there was hardly any malice in it. "Those definitely are the highlights of the lessons." Her next words had me stiffening and coming to a complete stop. "So when are you going to bring in that cute little Slytherin you've been meeting?" She stopped a couple steps later after realizing I wasn't beside her anymore. She arched an eyebrow at my shocked face. "Was I not supposed to know?"
The hallway was blissfully empty, but the Library was just around the corner and whispers from inside were only just barely reaching my ears. My voice was soft, disbelieving. "How did you figure that out?" I asked softly, unable to believe that she had found out. We had been so careful. What had given us away?
"You're not the only one who hides in the Library on the weekends," Was her simple answer. She crossed her arms. "I overheard you talking and imagine my surprise at seeing a short Slytherin kid asking you easy Potions questions that any fool would know."
"Don't talk about him like that," I defended sharply before I could stop myself. "Everyone learns at a different pace and you—" I stopped at the smirk on her face. I was hit with the urge to put my face through a wall because it felt like I had just given her all the information she needed.
"I'm not gonna judge you, Hayden," Terra said slowly, reading the look on my face. Brown eyes pierced mine with their sincerity and I felt stupid for doubting her and imagining only the worse. "What you do with your time is not my business, but I will admit I'm curious as to why you talk to him." She grinned teasingly. "I thought Gryffindors didn't get along with Slytherins no matter what."
I sighed and ran an aggravated hand through my hair, walking closer and stopping in front of her. I had really wanted this to remain on the down low, even from Terra, but she wouldn't accept some half-assed answer. "I helped him one day and he's latched onto me like a leech," I explained, summing up our whole relationship as loosely as I could. My eyes lowered sadly. "He's not like the others, Terra. He's just..."
He's so sweet and innocent and pure and I just want to protect him. Would she even understand how I felt about it? It's so hard to describe my feelings for the kid.
"I get it, I get it," Terra sighed, waving away my words as I struggled to explain my thoughts. "You don't need to go into details. I was just teasing you." She flicked her hair back over a slender shoulder. "No, but really. When are you going to bring him to lessons?"
I shrugged helplessly. "I want to bring him, but I'm just worried how he'll be received. He's a sweet kid and I'd hate to see him look so dejected when he's chased out because of his House."
"Talk to Harry," Terra suggested bluntly, looking at me like I was stupid.
I wish it was that easy.
"I've been trying to," I snapped, slightly irritated. She wasn't being very helpful in the advice category. "He's been trapped in practice with Angelina after classes and his nose has been glued to Ron's and Hermione's asses for the past week. I haven't been able to catch him alone."
How Harry could stand to constantly be surrounded by people was beyond me. I could only tolerate human contact for a certain amount of time and when that time was up, I was gone like a shadow to get the space I needed. I'd never seen Harry without Ron or Hermione or even both of them for more than thirty minutes at a time. I wondered if the Headmaster had said something to him about wandering off alone. With what happened last year, it would make sense.
"Then ask for a moment of his wonderful presence after dinner," She said, exasperated. "Blimey, Hayden, it's not hard to ask someone for a private moment. It's not like you're trying to shag him into next Sunday or anything."
Memories of lips descending towards mine and beautiful blue eyes watching me so very intensely had my face flaring up like a beacon. I mentally groaned. Why did she have to say it like that?
"How are you feeling?"
"I'm doing fine. The new medication the doctors have me on make me sleepy, but that's about it."
"That's good. You need the sleep. You're looking a bit peaky."
"Really? Peaky? That's the best word you could think of?"
"I was trying to make a joke, but I guess I failed in that category, huh?"
"Dreadfully. Have you made any friends at school yet? You haven't said anything about it lately."
A pause. "Not really. Not anyone that I can think of, at least."
"Oh...I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry. I'm not sorry at all."
Dinner quickly rolled around and I was practically jumping out of my skin as I made my way down to the Great Hall after my last class. I was so ready to get this ball rolling.
Gosh, Hailey would be so proud of me for this particular prank.
Mom would definitely not be, though. She'd probably kill me if I got caught and she got a letter from McGonagall about what I had done. I shuddered to think of her reaction. I'd be a dead man walking.
It'd be in my best interest if I didn't get caught, I decided. Which meant not acting too suspicious. I could do that. Maybe. Hopefully. I made the split second decision to sit near the Twins just in case.
I hadn't really seen much of the Twins today as they couldn't normally walk me to class since they were getting more and more popular with their Skiving Snackboxes, but I wasn't overly concerned. It gave me more time to compose myself before I saw them again. For the most part, I was calm enough to be around them without thinking about the dream and fainting on the spot.
That would be so damn embarrassing if I just fainted for no reason. They'd never let me live it down.
I took a deep breath, holding a hand over my heart and willing it to slow down. It's okay. There's no need to start freaking out now. It was just a dream. Just a dream.
I wish it was reality...
The Twins automatically scooted themselves apart upon seeing me, both sporting identical grins that had me smiling fondly. They were ridiculous. "We were just about to go hunt you down," Fred announced. "You were taking so long, we thought you had forgotten it was dinner time."
"Don't sound so disappointed about the loss of a hunt," I deadpanned, hiding my amusement. "You already know where I like to hide most of the time anyway."
"The Library or your dorm," George ticked off. Fred rolled his eyes at the know-it-all tone his brother was using.
"Good guesses," I praised mockingly, indulging him and patting his arm. His grin seemed to get brighter and he practically vibrated in his seat with happiness. I tried not to overthink why that was.
I perked up when the food appeared before us, barely suppressing the evil grin that wanted to show on my face and latched my attention to the Slytherin table. Lee, who sat across from me, noticed the intensity of my stare and turned to look at what I was looking at. "What's that look for?" He asked.
"Just wait," I whispered, nudging the Twins, who were more focused on their food than anything else. They blinked in confusion at me before following my gaze.
Daphne Greengrass was the unfortunate one who picked up a bottle of ketchup first. I nearly choked on laughter when she gave it a small shake, muffling the snorts with my hand. A manicured finger flicked the top open and immediately, her shrieks of surprise filled the Hall just like Pansy's had this morning. As if causing a chain reaction, all up and down the Slytherin table were shouts and complaints as fountains upon fountains of ketchup bombs went off, squirting many unsuspecting faces and once clean uniforms.
I gave my wand a subtle flick from under the table. Every single bottle gave a rattle before shooting into the air, the tips flicking open and raining more of the spelled condiments down on the Slytherin table. Umbridge gave a girly shriek when she was attacked as well, swatting at a bottle that had taken a likening to her.
"Oh, I hope we're here to see her eat that crème in front of her!" I gushed, giggling alongside my House and the other Houses. Elliot was practically beside himself with laughter, face red as Pansy was sprayed in the face with a particularly vindictive ketchup bottle and Malfoy was suddenly a redhead instead of a blond.
Lee ducked under a rogue bottle, face splitting with his grin. "Is it one of ours?!"
"It's the canary crème you guys invented!" I laughed. Umbridge seemed to be the only one struggling with the rain of ketchup as it continued to coat her mercilessly. The other teachers made half-hearted attempts to help their fellow colleague, though Dumbledore was the only one whose wand was in his hand. He had appearances to keep up after all.
I jumped when one of the bombs squirted across my front, laughing as I grabbed it out of mid air and pointed the rest at Lee. He was quick to get to his feet and, eyes glinting evilly, shouted at the top of his lungs, "FOOD FIGHT!"
There were many things that went right during the chaos of a prank gone slightly off course. One was that someone had wonderful aim and managed to hit Umbridge in the face with a decent-sized pastry. Another was that none of us got in trouble, not even when Umbridge demanded someone to claim responsibility.
The most important one, though, was that Fred and George could not stop laughing throughout the whole catastrophe and were still smiling when they gave me a rib crushing hug each before bidding me goodnight.
That was definitely the most important one.
Author's Note:
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WEEE. Jesus God this is late. This chapter really did not want to be shown. I'm not overly confident about it and I hate that there's not much Twin x Hayden action this time around, but hopefully that shit will change. I am the author after all.
HAHAHAHA. Yeah no. I swear this thing has a mind of its own sometimes.
Lots of hearts and appreciation to:
LunaSunWolfTigress15: You're so SWEET, OH MY GOODNESS. I am so happy that you like my story so much! It means the absolute WORLD to me that you like it! *Hearts*
Feelings, you say? HAHAHAHA. Hayden's a stubborn one; she won't admit those feelings if she has anything to say about it. *Laughs*
Guest: I CANNOT EXPRESS HOW MUCH I LAUGHED WHEN I READ YOUR REVIEW. I WAS CRYING LAUGHING SO HARD AND I COULD NOT STOP. YOU LITERALLY MADE MY DAY. xD
ElementalGirl1: I'm literally the world's biggest cockblock. *Laughs awkwardly* One of my best friends read this and she got so mad at me for leaving it where I did that she shouted that at me in the middle of Wal-Mart.
She about got left there and I wouldn't have felt bad.
veronicamusica: Welcome back! I hope your break was FANTASTIC! I'm sorry about the lack of updates. :(
EviColt: MA'AM, YOU'VE BEEN BUSY.
Goodness, your reviews gave me such motivation when I saw them after work. It was such a joy to read them and I can't thank you enough for your kind words and criticism (especially the proof reading stuff. I AM AWFUL AT THAT HAHAHAHAHAHA.)
SHIP ALL THREE! My goodness, my friend was going batshit about it and basically demanded that I just make it a three way relationship and I MUST SAY. THE IDEA IS GROWING ON ME, DAMN IT.
Guest: THANK YOU. *Hearts*
Azurai Wolf: Awwww! Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like Hayden as a character and Elliot! Ughhhhhhh. That little boy makes me wish he were real. Gosh he's growing on me like a leech.
YOU'RE DEFINITELY NOT WRONG. I can relate to that. xD That ending KILLED me, I swear. It was so painful for me to cut it off right there. *Cries pitifully*
tanithlipsky: Thank you! I hope it continues to please you as it goes on! *Hearts*
End of Responses!
Question from Chapter 9: I honestly cannot pick the better one, though I'm leaning towards Snape. But I'm biased cause I'm a Slytherin and Dumbledore is slowly losing points with me the more I notice his actions in the movies and the books.
Question for this Chapter: If you love Pottermore as much as I do, what House do you belong to?
Thank you so much for reading this guys! The goal this time is to have another chapter done by Sunday and I'm really gonna try! It'll be a bit difficult since I'm meeting my sister for the first time in seventeen years on Sunday, but I'll do my best!
Your reviews definitely helped me get past the stump I hit with this chapter! Any reviews given are loved and cherished and seen! *Lots of Hearts*
Thanks for reading, you guys! :)
~OQ