A/N: Omg you guys! I can't BELIEVE how many reviews I got. Thank you all so much! Keep it up please! Okay, this time my excuse is that my internet shut down for days. And really and truly, it's actually true. So on to the awards: a special thanks to Banoffee for reviewing twice, and also a special thanks to sarcastic spastic, Annimouse, EmO-pEaNuT-bUtTeR-cUp, shadow929, LilJester, lucid-03-days, freaker1605, CatherineMcq, swimchick1614, and MotherCrumpet.
October 6th
"Bye!" I give Alicia and then Angelina a hug each before heading to Muggle Studies. It's the class I've been dreading all day- the one no one else has with me, if you don't count Lee. Normally we sit together, but for some reason- maybe because he thinks I hate him? - I don't think that's going to be happening any time soon.
I walk into the musty old classroom. It smells. Our teacher, Professor Jervois, reminds me a lot of Mr Weasley. They are both obsessed with muggle things, but I think Mr Weasley is even keener than Jervois. Which is actually scary, if you think about it.
Fred and George don't take this class because their dad already knows practically everything about it, and they have to spend the whole summer listening to him. Alicia is a muggle-born, so she doesn't even need to take it. Ange's mum is a pureblood, but her dad is a muggleborn, so even though the muggles in her family are like three generations ago, she still knows a thing or two.
Unfortunately, while my dad is a pureblood, my mum is a half-and-half because her father was a pureblood and her mother was muggle. So I suppose I'm a pureblood, although one would never know. My mum insists that me and my three brothers be 'educated' about the 'muggle world' and so we have been to every muggle museum there ever was. Well, only the ones in England. And it's not so fun looking at a replica of an old pair of shiny red shoes, let me tell you. I have nothing against muggles, don't get me wrong.
It's not like I look down my nose or anything at them- apart from old Mrs Crevasse next door who is always accusing me of throwing things at her mangy cat- but seriously. (Why do they need a yellow brick road? What's wrong with normal grey? Or even purple. Yeah, retro munchkins!) So that's why my mum insisted I take it. I also took it because I knew Lee was taking it, and so we could struggle through the class together. (Well, that and the only other option was Arithmancy. God, I hate numbers. They are just so WEIRD.)
And Lee's a pureblood, so he took it. Mostly because Alicia keeps talking about all these muggle things, like cars and movies and he's the only one who has no clue what she's going on about.
I look around the class. I am not a snob, but because I have at least one friend in all my classes, I have never really bothered hanging around with anyone else apart from our group. Which really sucks now that Lee and I aren't talking. I am really going to have to make more of an effort to be nice to others. Most people just look at me like I'm mentally deranged or something. They're just jealous because of my… uh, people skills. Yeah.
But whatever. Most of the class is already here, but there are still a fair few desks empty. I go over and sit at one on the far side of the class, next to an old grotty window. I can still SEE the greasy finger marks from students that went here twenty years ago.
Ouch. I just banged my knee on the desk and there was a fricking bolt in the side. I think I'm bleeding. Oh my god I'm going to die of blood loss. Not that it will be such a tragic event, the way my life is going lately.
Just as I was thinking about how I would break the news to my poor, weary mother, Lee walks in the door. He doesn't even look for me- just walks in and sits next to some slut from Ravenclaw. And the slut from Ravenclaw is sitting two rows in front of me and one row over.
What's her name again? I know it's strange. Like a plant or something. Tree… Rainbow… Sunny… Oh, that's it! Stormie McNamara. Jeez, I can almost feel sorry for her. Imagine having parents cruel enough to name you Stormie, then actually expect you to go along with it.
Anyway. Stormie McNamara is the biggest bitch in Ravenclaw, possibly the whole year. (Not the whole school, this kid named Draco Malfoy takes care of that). She is constantly surrounded by her cronies, these two idiots who I can't remember the names of. I mean, how did they even get IN to Ravenclaw, anyway? I could have made it in there, if I was just a bit smarter…
Oh well. Gryffindor rocks! Apart from the minor fact we haven't won the Quidditch cup for years and the House cup for like three. But those are minor details.
Her uniform is about four sizes too small for her, so she's practically bursting out of it. If I didn't know better, I'd say she's poor and disadvantaged. Her father works for the Ministry in the Department of Accidental Magic, and he's like the head of it or something. I heard someone say once he makes almost as much as the Minister himself. They could have been exaggerating, but still. That is a FREAKING LOT.
She wears about ten layers of make-up each day, including bright red lipstick (I'm sorry, but that should just be OUTLAWED) and spark-ly blue eye shadow. Her foundation is so dark it looks like she's gone and stuck only her head in a tanning studio (I actually had no idea what a tanning studio was, until Alicia made a comment about her one day).
She has unnatural blonde hair (I think it's been bleached) and unnatural blue eyes. Alicia said she wears contacts, but I think contacts are only for when you're as blind as a bat. Of course I didn't say that out loud, because Alicia wears reading glasses. Still, I call her four eyes and now she's so used to it she even responds to it. I've trained her. She's a good little puppy.
Oh God. She's got her arm around his, and is busy fluttering her oh-so-fake eyelashes at him. And he actually seems like he's ENJOYING himself. If we were friends at the moment I would go up and pull her head out of his arse. But I'll just sit back and enjoy the show. See if you're getting any help now, mister.
Who am I kidding? I'm not enjoying this- it's torture! And what makes it worse is the fact that I'm sitting next to a greasy window all by myself like a loser. I wish someone would come sit next to me, and walk past Lee so he could see I get on okay without him. At this stage I'd even be willing for Lachlan Turris to come over, and everyone knows he is the world's BIGGEST jerk, on account of how he picks his nose and then wipes it on the table, so when you put your arm up it attaches itself to your sleeve and then when you go to itch it, the gooby touches your finger and then you forget so you bite your nails and it turns out all you're really doing is eating Lachlan Turris' boogie.
Okay. So maybe I'm not quite THAT desperate. But pretty close. Someone had better- oh, hello! Oh my God. Cedric Diggory has chosen to come and sit next to me. CEDRIC DIGGORY. So I don't even like him- I'm still allowed to be awed in his presence, no? Whatever. I remember in third year, when Alicia had this MASSIVE crush on him, but it turned out he was so nice that she just totally got over him, just like that. Which was good, because every time George saw him, he tried to punch his daylights out.
"Is this seat taken?" Cedric asks, turning to smile at me. Unfortunately, my heart does not flutter, I do not feel faint and I don't get butterflies in my stomach the way most girls would if he had just randomly gone and sat next to them.
"No!" I blurt out, relieved that somebody- anybody- had chosen to take me out of my misery because I was a loner. "No one's sitting here!"
It occurs to me that I might sound a bit desperate. Ah- to hell with it. He probably didn't even notice.
"Thanks." He sits down in the chair gracefully- nothing like Lee would. He'd pull out a chair noisily, then thump down in it loud enough for the entire class to look over to see whose cat he's killing.
He looks like he's about to say something, but then Professor Jervois comes in and starts going on about '' or something. She's saying how it's going to be in our O.W.L. While she's droning on, I look around the class listlessly. Most students have their full attention on her, but some are looking around the class like me. Some are just staring out windows or at nothing.
I can still see the Ravenclaw bitch's head. Her 'ah-bright-light' hair is resting on his shoulder. Grrr. And I am NOT jealous, just because Lee can find someone who fawns over him like a lost chicken. I mean, I would be SEVERELY annoyed if that was happening to Fred or George. After all, they are destined to be with two of my other best friends- Angelina and Alicia. I could not have some skank try and throw themselves at the poor, unsuspecting Weasleys, could I?
Yeah. At that precise moment, Lee turns around and our eyes come into contact. He tries to remain impassive, but because I am the higher life form (and maybe the fact I've known him for, oh, five years) I am going to beat him at this staring game. Out-staring Lee has always been a piece of cake, except for that one time last year when George put a freezing jinx on him and made me and Lee see who could out stare each other. Lee won by a mile, seeing as how he couldn't blink and all.
It was around five minutes after we had been going at it that Cedric finally got my attention. "Uh, Katie?" he asks.
I try to ignore the fact that he has three heads, and that they're doing the foxtrot. "Yeah, Cedric?"
"Pro-" he begins, but I cut him off.
"How do you know my name?" I demand. Maybe he's like some sort of obsessive compulsive stalker. Cool.
He blinks confusedly. "Uh, maybe 'cause you're on the Gryffindor Quidditch team?" he says, like I'm a little slower than average or something.
"Oh." I say. "Right."
"How do you know mine?" Cedric returns.
"Duh. 'Cause my best friend Alicia had a massive crush on you in third year, but then 'cause you were so nice she totally got over you which was good because George kept trying to strangle you every time you came anywhere near us." I finish brightly. Then I clap a hand over my mouth. Maybe I shouldn't have told him that Alicia had a MASSIVE crush on him. Just a crush would have been sufficient.
"Really?" Cedric seems to find this extremely interesting. I, on the other hand, am bored. It's so two years ago.
"Yeah," I reply, my attention now placed on the bimbo and her target. It's so fake! She's practically drooling over him. It's sickening to watch, actually.
"So, Katie," Cedric says conversationally.
"What?" I ask, still putting the evil eye on Windy-girl over there.
"Do you want to go for a walk around the lake after class?" Cedric asks smoothly.
I stop staring at the two lovebirds (after resisting the urge to shout, "Get a room!") and pause to look at Cedric, my jaw hanging open. "Huh?" I reply unintelligently.
This is the reason why I am never going to ever get a boyfriend. I will die alone, wallowing in my misery with seven dogs (I hate cats) and four budgies. Because every time a boy asks me out, it takes me like five minutes to comprehend the fact that they asked ME and not the girl (or boy) sitting to the left of me.
"Do you want to go for a walk around the lake after class?" Cedric repeats, ever composed and relaxed.
Just then something catches my eye. Lee has turned around and is eavesdropping on our conversation. Humph. Didn't his mummy ever tell him it's rude to listen to grown up's conversations? "Alright, Cedric," I say, conscious of the fact that Lee is doing the squinty-eye thing on me. It's not going to work, Lee. Because, unlike SOME PEOPLE, Cedric actually WAITS for a response before running away like the coward I so-know-you-are.
"Cool," Cedric says, gathering his books up as the bell rings. "Are you ready to go now?"
"Yeah," I reply dismally. Because Alicia's right- Cedric IS too nice. I mean, he's all right for a little while, but when you have to spend like, more than ten minutes with him, it gets kind of annoying. But I know Lee's still staring at the back of my head, so I nod and follow him (Cedric, not Lee) out of the classroom.
A/N: So I forgot. Is Cedric Diggory the same age as the twins and all them? 'Cos I know Katie's not REALLY the same age as Angelina, Alicia, Fred, George and Lee. But I made her in this story. Oh well. Again, in this story Cedric can be the same age. And I was thinking of putting the author note in chapter one at the bottom, because I think it's turning people of the story… whoops… what do you think?