Giddy Brew

Chapter 22: Ironclad Rules For Witches

A/N: is going to eff with my indentation, I know it. They always do. Anyway, this is just kind of filler chapter, I promise the next one will be better. I have to go back and read Giddy Brew. Anyways, this one is dedicated to Fish- life's a bitch, so is your person you're upset about (I won't say who, for discretion) and I love you muchly. Now, R+R or I'll withhold more chapters. And you know what happens to Jondy when she stops writing. She goes insane and starts watching Disney channel reruns. Nobody wants that to happen.

Professor Esquiline looked kindly at Casey, "Do you understand? We're not quite sure of her motives, but I can assure you that your friends were under the Imperius curse. They had no control over their actions."

Softly, Casey wondered, "You're positive?"

"Yes."

He had felt guilty when he told Bobby he wanted nothing to do with him. The blonde boy's words had gotten to him. Yes, he'd been stupid not to ask Prue what had happened. Yes, he'd been stupid to be so cruel. Yet he'd been so hurt, after all the pain he'd gone through, and after all the promises Prue had made, how she could have done that to him.

Casey didn't remember anything from the time Steffie offered him the firewhisky to now, here, lying in a hospital bed with Professor Esquiline explaining how simply atrocious he'd acted. Guilt crept over him in waves. Bobby had been right. Neither he nor Prue had betrayed him.

"You know," Professor Esquiline said, "Your friends, Mr. Stone and Ms. Gelliston were here earlier. The nurse has said you can check out. You're free to go talk to them. Perhaps, apologize?"

"Thank you Professor," Casey jumped out of the hospital bed and ran through the corridor. He'd hurt his two best friends. How could he? He didn't even listen to them.

Bobby was in the common room, teaching a first year some practical potions. When he saw Casey he looked up at his friend with a grin, "Hey there. You must be feeling better."

"More like I fell off a broom, actually. My head's pounding," Casey replied with a small smile.

"Eh, it happens mate."

"I suppose so. Look, I'm…sorry."

"I know," Bobby said jovially, "Actually, I don't blame you for not believing me originally. I know how hard you worked to get Prue."

For a second the blonde's face darkened. He didn't know how to tell Casey.

"Man, Prue," Casey groaned, "I don't even know how to apologize to her."

"Just say it from the heart. You'll figure it out," Bobby gave him a weak smile.

"Yeah…I'm not sure if that'll work. Do you know where she is?"

"Uh, last I saw she was in the courtyard with Serendipity. They were hassling some fourth years for cash."

Casey smirked, "That's horrible."

"You just wish you'd thought of it first."

"Naturally," saying a farewell to Bobby, Casey went in the direction of the courtyard. He passed his brothers on the way, and attempted to apologize, but they were having none of it.

In the courtyard, the redhead spotted Prue and Serendipity dangling their legs over the high wall that looked out over the lake. Both girls had scarves wrapped tightly around their necks and slight smiles on their lips.

"Oy, Prudence."

"Don't call me that," Prue laughed from the top of the wall. Then she turned around, and the smile dropped off her lips, "Casey! You're okay?"

Her voice was uncertain. Serendipity hopped off the wall and looked back and forth between the two, "I'm gonna go find Elanore. We have that…uh…thing to do."

Watching Serendipity scamper away, Casey clambered up the wall to join Prue.

"You uh, changed your hair again," he told her, quietly. He knew perfectly well that those extensions were magically charmed to stay in. It had to be incredibly painful to pull them out.

"Yeah…"

"Look," Casey took a deep breath, "I should have told you, I should have let you explain. I don't know why I ever doubted you."

Prue stayed silent, staring out over the horizon.

"I…after everything we've been through together…Prue, I was just so jealous. You've no idea how painful it was," Casey said desperately.

"I imagine it was something like watching you and Steffie snog in the Great Hall a few days ago."

"I…yes. About Steffie…she believed me, she told me that I wasn't crazy, that JJ had seen you as well, and…I was so stupid. I believed her."

"Stupid bint," Prue mused.

"I agree with you one hundred percent," Casey nodded, "I'm so sorry."

"Yes, well. I forgive you, I guess."

Prue flashed him a brilliant smile, "Just don't ever do it again."

Casey slung an arm around her, "Would I ever?"

He was confused when he felt Prue stiffen beneath him. He was even more confused when he leaned over and tried to kiss her and she smacked him hard, on the head.

"Casey! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Kissing my girlfriend?"

"I am not your girlfriend. You broke up with me, remember?"

"Oh yeah…fine, Prue, will you go out with me?"

"No."

"See, all set- wait, what?"

"I said no. You can't treat me like you have and then expect me to jump for joy when you want me back."

"But…"

"Hey, did they tell you what happened when you were under that spell?"

Guiltily, Casey said, "Yeah, some of it. I don't remember anything at all."

"Do you remember saying that no one would want me?"

"Uh…no," Professor Esquiline hadn't mentioned that part.

"Well you did. Cerulean told you it wasn't true, but you outed him dating…well dating someone," shoot, that explained why his brothers hated him, "And then Bobby said he'd date me."

Casey couldn't say he was surprised that Bobby would say that. He'd been acting like quite an arse, and somebody had to put him in his place. Good thing Bobby was there. Still, he didn't quite get where Prue was going with this.
"After you…well, you know. After you collapsed, Bobby told me that you'd been spelled, and I wasn't obligated to stay with him."

Good guy, Bobby.

"I told him I wanted to."

The redhead felt like he'd been slapped, "What?"

"Look…Bobby tried to defend me against you. You didn't listen. When you were spelled and when you weren't. I forgive you as a friend. But I loved you Casey. You threw that away as if it were trash. I can't be with you," Prue hopped off the wall, "By the way. Here."

Casey took it back. Bobby was a horrible, conniving bastard, and the redhead hated that he couldn't actually go and tell him so. It made sense. It made perfect sense. Bobby had done the noble thing, and in the end, this wasn't his fault. It wasn't even Prue's fault, for not wanting to be with him. Merlin, Casey didn't want to be with himself anymore. Still, all that didn't make her rejection hurt any less.

She handed him a platinum colored key, inset with a large fire opal and several smaller stones; his Christmas present to her, "You never did show me what this was for. I don't want to know anymore. I've got to go help Serendipity with that thing. See you around."

Casey watched the spot where her platinum blonde head had been long after the girl herself was gone.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh," Prue threw her arms around Serendipity, burying her head in the other girl's shoulder.

"Did you two make up? Did you snog?" Serendipity gushed, mistaking Prue's 'oh my gosh' to be a good sign.

"No. I mean, we made up, but we're not snogging. Ever again," Prue said firmly, lifting her head, she continued, "I'm with Bobby."

"What? And you didn't tell me?" Serendipity demanded and slapped the blonde on the head.

"I'm sorry. I just didn't know how to say it."

"So…you don't want to be with Casey?"

Prue bit her lip hard, drawing blood, "I- he's didn't trust me, Sere. He said he loved me, but he didn't trust me."

Trying to lighten the mood a little, Serendipity said, "I wouldn't trust you either. You're a devious little fox."

The blonde half chuckled, "Shush, you."

"Hey, by the way, you going to Hogsmeade this weekend?"

"Of course. Bobby and I are kind of making it our first official date," Prue blushed.

"Ah. Mind if I tag along? Elanore's going to play personal shopper to Perseus."

"I hadn't thought he was gay," mused Prue.

"He's picking out something for Deianeira stupid."

Prue made a face, "Ouch. I would discourage Elanore from going."

"What, why?"

"You can't tell anyone, but I heard from Dana that Dei thinks…well, she claims she's been going at it with Dante Young on the side."

Serendipity gasped, "No! Kiddy and Dante are attatched at the hip, aren't they? He wouldn't be out of Kiddy's sight long enough to do anything with Deianeira."

"I never said I believed it. Neither did Dana. But Dei believes it, and she doesn't think things are going so well with Perseus. She plans on breaking it off with him."

"We have to tell Elanore. She'll find a way to fix it. Smarty britches that she is," Serendipity mocked.

"I s'pose so," Prue agreed, "We can tell her later."

"You never said if I could tag along. I know its your first date and all, but I promise I won't interrupt any mushy snog-ideal moments. Pretty please with sprinkles and caramel? Polaris and the band are going to walk with us then ditch for practice at the live house."

"By the good graces of Rowena Ravenclaw, would you? I'm absolutely terrified of spending time alone with him," Prue latched onto Serendipity's arm, "Please?"

"You don't want to spend time with your boyfriend? Yeah, that's not weird at all," Serendipity said skeptically.

"I want to. I just don't want to spend time with him, you know, alone."

"Still not making any sense. At all."

"I just don't know if I'm ready to kiss him yet…I sound like a trashy romance novel. Kill me. Now," Prue groaned.

"Bang bang, you're dead," Serendipity pointed her index finger, thumb cocked and a wry smile on her face.

The crisp, cold air felt good against their faces compared to the stuffy castle. Still, they wrapped their scarves tighter around their necks, knowing they'd feel the true chill set in soon enough. Perseus was chatting amiably with Elanore. The dark haired girl had Joshua's arm slung around her neck, but he was looking rather miffed that her real attentions were focused on Perseus. The Hogsmeade present finding date had turned into a consolation gathering for Perseus, who had been dumped by Deianeira before Prue and Serendipity were even able to warn Elanore. By now they'd all heard the rumors that she was involved with Dante Young, but everybody knew he was in to deep with Kiddy Bolton for that to be true.

Polaris and Serendipity had wound each others' arms around their waists, and looked nauseatingly cute. Or so thought Prue and Bobby, who were timidly holding hands and keeping a certain amount of distance between each other. On the other side of Polaris and Serendipity, Orpheus Vaughn and Noah Weslen were keeping pace. Every once in a while they would sing lines from one of the songs for the concert next month. It seemed Dark Symphony hadn't performed live since Halloween, and all three boys were eager to do so.

Casey had opted out of the trip, preferring to stay home and mope- er, practice, with his brothers, who were reluctantly speaking to him. Frank and Sylvester had been obtained to keep the redhead some consolatory comfort. Naturally Fortune and Quant were off doing what they did best. What exactly that was, no one knew.

Serendipity and Polaris grudgingly parted among the midwinter chill near the fork in the road that lead to the main streets or to the back roads. Orpheus, Prue, Noah, and Bobby obligingly made kissy kiss noises at the embarrassed couple. Joshua, Perseus, and Elanore all pretended they didn't know the immature brats they were accompanying and sneakily wandered away from the group. When the Dark Symphony members were gone and the Kingston group were nowhere to be found, Bobby looked expectantly at Prue and Serendipity.

"Where would you lovely ladies like to go? I was lucky to end up with not just one gorgeous date, but two," Bobby grinned mischievously.

"You're overdoing it," Serendipity told the blonde boy, the turned to Prue with a blush and said, "Keep him. I like him much better than Casey."

Prue elbowed her friend in the stomach, making sure to hit the bruise Serendipity had gotten in Quidditch practice. Prue hadn't really meant to hit the bludger at her friend, but once it was in play, it wasn't like she had time to stop it. Plus the rather painful bruise was turning out to be particularly useful.

Serendipity grimaced, slender hands going to clutch her stomach, "Ah, wherever you'd like to take us, Bobby baby."

Nonchalantly, Bobby said, "Sure. How about the Three Broomsticks. Heavens know I could use butterbeer. Is that okay with you two?"

"Great," Serendipity choked out, still holding her abdomen and glaring daggars at Prue.

"Super," the blonde girl chirped, smiling sweetly at them both.

Once they got settled at the busy pub, the girls warmed their hands with pumkin juice while Bobby slowly nursed a butterbeer. He looked at Serendipity quizzically, "All of a sudden I've just got the feeling I'm forgetting something."

"You know, I've had the same feeling all day. It's been nagging the devil out of me all day. But I can't think I'm worried about homework. Are there any hols in January?"

"Not around now," Bobby pondered the question, "I really can't grasp what it is."

Changing the subject, Prue turned to Bobby and said, "Have you made any progress on those forest hags yet? Sometimes I think you're the only one who remembers them."

Bobby leaned back in his chair, "I haven't found anything more in the library. I did learn that the rash of disappearances that occurred back then were all muggle born kids, but I had figured that out earlier. Now I just have solid proof."

"The reason no one else seems to care is because no one else is interested. It's a silly passage in the common room. Hogwarts has hundreds of secret passages. Who cares what their history is?" drawled Serendipity.

"None taken," Bobby grinned lazily, "I know I'm the only one who really has an interest anymore. I just can't keep the subject off my mind for long. I find it terribly intriguing. I guess I watched too many mystery shows on the telly when I was younger."

"Don't let her discourage you," Prue announced, "I think it's fascinating."

Bobby reddened and lowered his eyes, "Ah, you don't have to say that just cause we're-"

"I'm saying it because I mean it," Prue said proudly.

Serendipity glanced back and forth between her two friends and realized this might be one of those snogging opportunities she'd promised not to interrupt, "I've got to…to use the loo."

"Thanks for sharing," Prue made a face. She knew perfectly well she was the one who usually made those sorts of comments.

"I'm trying to give you some alone time," Serendipity hissed.

"Bobby sat a little straighter once Serendipity had left, "Prue, you know you don't have to feel obligated to kiss me. I know that's what you're thinking."

"You don't want to?" Prue demanded, sounding irritated.

"That's not what I meant.," he said defensively, trying to avoid being hit, "I just wanted you to know I'm not going to pressure you."

"That's sweet," Prue took a deep breath. Steeling herself, she leaned over and pecked Bobby chastely on the lips. When she pulled back, Bobby's eyes were a bit dazed, if not glazed over. She giggled and whispered huskily, "But just so you know, I don't mind being pressured."

With that said, Bobby wound an arm around her shoulders and pulled her body closer to his. She could feel her heart racing, or maybe it was his. She couldn't tale. Her palms were sweaty and for a second she contemplated pulling away. Steady, she told herself, you started this. Prue licked her lips nervously before Bobby's mouth covered hers. When their tongues wound together, Bobby felt like he was in heaven. For him, there were fireworks and supernovas. For Prue, it was damn close enough.

What felt like hours later, a voice interrupted, first with a polite 'ahem', then with a perverted cat call. Prue, who had dreamily been thinking that the kiss had been nice, and she deserved nice things lately broke off and glared at Serendipity.

The redhead shrugged, "I got bored in the bathroom. There's only so much a girl can do in there for half an hour."

She emphasized the last part.

Together, Bobby, Prue, and Serendipity had a fabulous day. They got all the free samples Honeyduke's had to offer, spent over two hours in Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, the local joke shop, and even persuaded Bobby to go into a boutique with them. In return, he dragged them to the shrieking shack, which both girls were slightly terrified of. When they returned from Hogsmeade, all the girls wanted was to collapse into bed. It was close to midnight, and they were exhausted. The first thing they saw when they climbed into the common room was Casey waiting in the common room, a large box in his lap, a smaller one just barely clutched in his hand. He was snoring softly, his face childlike in the firelight. With a mischievous look on his face, Bobby snuck up to his friend and put his lips close to the red head's ear, "BOO!"

"Whoa," Casey leapt out of the chair, startled into standing, "Man, what the heck did you do that for?"

"Figured the chairs weren't the comfiest place to sleep," Bobby shrugged, grinning, "What's in the boxes?"

Prue was already sneaking up to the dorm rooms as he answered.

Casey looked at the boxes in his hands, confused, then said, "Hmm? Oh, PRUE!"

Jumping, Prue scrambled back down the stairs, "What do you want?"

With a big smile, Casey announced, "I haven't seen you all day, so I didn't get to say it yet. Happy

Birthday!"

Fin. Chapter 22