A/N: Hello again :) It's been awhile since my last update! So sorry, but it's the weekend once more so I am now entering updating mode ;)
Thank you for reading!
"Rise and shine, buttercup!" Marlene yelled enthusiastically as she pulled the curtains to Rachel's bed aside, letting all of the light in the dormitory stream in.
Rachel turned to the opposite side of her bed resentfully and mumbled into her pillow, "Fuck you, I was sleeping."
"Yeah, about that," Marlene started. "I understand it's Sunday and all, but you slept four hours longer than you did Friday."
Rachel rolled on her back and groaned. Her eyes opened slowly and she saw Marlene looming over her, already looking picture perfect. "It doesn't feel four hours longer," she grumbled.
"Well, you didn't sleep in your own bed Friday night," Marlene pointed out smugly.
Rachel glared at her. "This whole subject area is off limits. I regret everything."
"You regret it even though it was a good snog?" Marlene asked smartly.
"I never said it was a good snog," Rachel retorted quickly.
"You never said it was bad either."
"Oh, fuck off already," said Rachel as she rolled out of bed on the opposite side Marlene was on. "I'm pretending it never happened, so it never happened."
"But it did," Marlene sing-songed.
"Not if," Rachel began, "I say it didn't and Irene runs through that door right now and brings 'enlightening' news. One has already happened. As for the second—"
And that was when the door burst open and Irene ran in excitedly.
Marlene really disliked Rachel's cockiness sometimes.
And her foolproof ability to be right.
"Oh. My God!" Irene exclaimed. She ran and hugged the first person in sight. Unfortunately, Rachel was in the line of fire. She almost fell to the floor in her tired daze. "You won't guess the amazing news!"
Rachel managed to wrench her off. She stumbled back a bit and grabbed onto a bedpost before falling over. "No, I won't. So why don't you tell me?" she breathed out quickly.
"Sirius is back to snogging!" she squealed. "Since around Wednesday, he hadn't really snogged anyone at all, but now he's back," she added cheerfully.
Yeah, since Wednesday and until Friday, when he attacked me with snowballs and gave me the snog of my life, Rachel wanted to say.
Instead, she said, "And how exactly do you know this?"
"Because Gertrude Miller just snogged him!" she exclaimed. "She just told me!"
Rachel held back a grimace. Honestly, these girls were imbeciles.
But deep down, she felt a pang of hurt. He had chased after her and shamelessly teased her and now he just moved onto whatever slag was waiting in line before. It was as if that evening in Hogsmeade meant nothing.
It did mean nothing, Rachel sternly reminded herself. She would not go down the 'Black Alley', even if it were the last thing she did.
Rachel grabbed her clothes off of her dresser and turned to Irene with a smile, "Congrats to Gertrude. She seems to be his favourite."
Rachel walked away and went into the washroom. She locked the door and splashed some cold water on her face. Rachel looked in the mirror. Dark circles were surrounding her copper eyes and her short, light brown hair had knots and split ends in random parts.
This was making her far too exhausted.
Rachel sat down heavily at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall to eat her breakfast. She rested her head in her hand and clumsily ate her cereal. She tried at least to get the soggy corn flakes into her mouth and not spill them onto her lap in her tired daze.
Lily sat down and smiled softly. "Morning, grumps," she greeted. "How's life?"
Rachel only grunted in response. Lily gave her a look that said 'how ladylike'.
Marlene snuck up behind Rachel and proceeded to sit next to her, saying, "Don't worry about her, Lils, she's just deprived of her sleep, as always."
"It's starting to worry me," Lily muttered into her waffles.
"No need to be worried," Rachel managed to get out through a mouthful of cornflakes.
Lily grimaced. "Beautiful."
Charms went by surprisingly smoothly and Herbology was a chance for Rachel to catch up on her sleep. Transfiguration went as usual: Rachel was constantly bugged by Potter and Black and had McGonagall keeping a close eye on her (as she had since third year when Rachel made a water goblet explode). History of Magic was another chance to catch up on sleep.
And then came Potions.
Double-block Potions. There went Rachel's good day.
It wasn't so much that Rachel hated Potions. She felt fairly neutral to the class and the only reason she had worked her butt off last year to just barely scrape an E in the subject was so she could have Slughorn as a teacher. As much as she annoyed the professor, she always enjoyed the lessons he taught.
But she was absolutely rubbish at Potions.
She arrived in the classroom and all the desks and tables were pushed up against the walls and people were filing in and crowding at the front of the classroom where Slughorn stood behind a table. The table held a few cauldrons and vials.
"Ah, welcome everybody to Sixth Year Potions!" he greeted as people slowly trickled in.
Rachel wove her way to the front next to Lily, Mary MacDonald, and Alice Perth. Mary was a petite, even shorter than Rachel (who was quite short), girl with light blonde hair and blue eyes that glazed over whenever she spaced out. She was a muggle-born, so she always got the worst of the Slytherins. It was the reason Rachel kept close to the girl.
Alice was the ideal golden girl, right up there next to Lily. She had O's in all of her classes and was a top notch Chaser. On top of all that, she spent her summers volunteering at St. Mungo's and in the Ministry. It was no surprise when she had started dating the Head Boy, Frank Longbottom.
Rachel leaned towards Lily and asked, "What are we doing today?"
Lily's nose twitched ever so slightly as she tried to keep a look of displeasure off of her face. "Amortentia," she replied. "Should be a short class though."
Oh no. Love potions.
Honestly, it was like fate was purposely being cliché. This wasn't funny. It was just plain ridiculous. Amortentia and snogging Sirius Black, all in the time length of three days. It was like she was getting all the tough breaks.
"Ah, we must have everyone here by now, yes?" Slughorn asked.
James and Sirius happened to stumble in at that moment. Even Remus, who was standing beside Rachel, let out a sigh and shook his head. He must have been quite used to it by then.
Lily, however, felt more strongly towards the situation.
"How did those two dolts pass Potions?" Lily hissed.
"Brilliant question, Lily," Remus whispered. "I've asked myself that everyday since the news was let out."
Remus was honestly the only decent Marauder, in Rachel's opinion anyway.
"Now that we finally have everyone here," Slughorn said pointedly, "let us begin."
He removed the lid to a cauldron and asked, "Can anyone tell me what this is? Oh, yes, Lily?"
"That is Amortentia, the most powerful love potion in the world," Lily began. "It can cause powerful infatuation and obsession in the drinker and it smells different to everyone, according to what smells they find most comforting or alluring."
"Don't need a love potion for that," James said cockily. Lily rolled her eyes.
"And what do you smell, Lily?" Slughorn asked, deterring from the subject. He had a proud smile on his face. Lily had always been his star student.
Lily's cheeks tinted red slightly as she leaned forward to take a sniff. She closed her eyes as she said, "I smell… muffins, like my mother made them, the seaside, rain, and…" she frowned, "worn leather?"
"Hmm, odd," Slughorn pondered. "All right then, everyone line up! You'll all get a turn to smell the Amortentia and then split off into partners to make some Herbicide. Only top notch!"
Rachel was in no rush to line up. She patiently waited her turn and contemplated life as an unemployed teenager with magical abilities. If the rest of the year was going to be like the past few days, she might as well give up now.
Mary who was standing behind her gave her a little push when it was her turn to smell the love potion. Rachel walked forward, trying not to stumble or do anything terribly embarrassing, and sniffed the potion.
It smelled like the barbeque her dad made in the summer, her mother's shampoo, and… the smell of dust after rain.
Petrichor. Why petrichor?
Just as she was about to leave, she caught a whiff of something else. It was a strong, tangy smell and it burned her nose the more she stuck around the surprisingly comforting scent. She shook off the sensation and walked away as quickly as she could.
Merlin, she really needed some sleep.
Is it just me or are these chapters getting shorter… I'm so terribly sorry if they are D: I'll make it up to you tomorrow... or midnight? :)
-I really am exploding with the Doctor Who references. Spot the one in this chapter?
-I hope Rachel and Sirius are living up to expectations.. :|
-Not getting bored, are we?
-Grammar?
Amelia xx
