I Won't Give Up: Chapter 5
"Andromeda will you pass me the book that's under your bag, there? Andy?"
Ted leaned forward and tapped Andromeda on the arm.
She snapped up her head as her thoughts were interrupted. She glanced at Ted with a look of surprise before handing him the book he'd requested.
"Don't call me that," she muttered.
"What?"
"Andy. Don't call me Andy," she repeated. "Only my friends call me that."
"Okay..." Ted went back to his notes before pausing and then asking, "What were you thinking about?"
"Hogsmeade," Andromeda replied without looking up.
"You regretting not going?"
"Yeah."
"Well you know we could always head over now and ditch the essay for the rest of the day," he suggested.
She looked at him.
"We?"
"Or you. I've got it from here. I mean, we're almost done." Ted had not even realized that he was speaking as if they'd go together. He had just gotten so used to spending the last week with Andromeda in the library that he'd almost felt as if they were becoming friends. Almost.
"No, no," She said. "It's fine."
They sat in an awkward silence, which Ted had gotten used to.
"Thanks for the offer, though," she added.
"Oh," he said, a little surprised. "Yeah. No problem."
After another few minuets of silence Andromeda pushed her paper over to him.
"How's this for the conclusion?"
Ted read it over.
"That's really good, actually."
"So... We're finished?"
"I guess."
More silence.
"Well," Andromeda stood abruptly. "Um, I'll turn it in then."
She rolled up the parchment.
"Yeah, sure." Ted pushed his chair back and stood up. "It was, uh, nice working with you," he added.
Andromeda hesitated.
"You too."
In order to avoid even more awkward silence, she hastily packed up her stuff and turned to leave.
"See ya around," she said and then after a moment of realization she added, "Or, um, not, actually."
She pulled her bag over her shoulder and quickly walked out of the library without stopping to see the look on Ted's face.
"Andromeda?"
"Hmm?"
"Are you even listening to me?"
"Oh, yeah!"
Athena gave Andromeda a suspecting look.
"You know, you've been doing that lately," she said.
"Doing what?"
"Zoning out on me. Getting completely lost in thought. What are you even thinking about?"
"School work," Andromeda lied. "I think Slughorn must hate everybody with all the homework he is giving us."
"Oh I know! He's really pissing me off with all the remedies we're doing..."
But Andromeda couldn't hear her anymore. She was thinking again. She hadn't completely lied when she had said she was thinking about school work. She did not know why but her thoughts kept drifting to the essay she had turned in for Binns' class yestarday. What was so special about a stupid paper?
'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'
{6 Days Later}
"Come on guys! Let's do something fun. I am so bored," Holding out the O sound on "so," Andromeda complained to her best friends.
"Like what?" Serena asked, not looking up from her homework.
"I dunno. Let's go back to Hogsmeade. Take some pictures, do something, you know, memorable."
Athena sat down next to Andromeda on a couch in the Slytherin common room.
"Memorable?"
"Yeah. These are supposed to be the best years of our lives, or so they say. We should take so many pictures that we don't forget a thing."
"Oh, trust me," Serena said under her breath. "I don't need any pictures to remember these years."
Andromeda's face fell.
"Well, I'm bored," she said again.
"You," Athena suggested, "Can go to Hogsmeade."
"Yeah, don't let us stop you," Serena finally looked up.
"Well," Andromeda thought for a second. "Okay. I think I will."
She got up off the couch, grabbed her cloak and scarf, and set out for the Wizarding village.
Andromeda was walking along the path that ran through Hogsmeade Village. It was slippery because of all the boots that had packed down the snow on top of it.
She sipped a warmed Butterbeer and continued to watch the snow falling onto thatched roofs and pine trees.
It was nice to have some time to herself and to her thoughts but Andromeda would rather Serena and Athena be there with her.
She pulled her green and silver scarf tighter around her neck as a gust of wind blew in. She shivered.
Andromeda looked up when she heard a particularly loud group of students coming out of the Three Broomsticks.
With a pang, she regretted her friend's absence, once more.
The small crowd began making their way in her direction.
There was a Gryffindor, with glasses and red hair peaking out of under his hat, two Ravenclaw girls both with light blonde hair, a few other students, and, with a jolt, she realized Ted Tonks was among them.
'So what?' She said to herself.
Things were going to go back to how they were, with the two of them. They were going to go back to not acknowledging each other's existence.
And that's just what she did.
When the group passed her, she completely ignored them and pretended to busy herself with the Honeydukes bag in her hand and ducked into the pub.
"Is that my sister?" Bellatrix asked her friends.
"The one with the scarf covering half her face?" Ares Carrow leaned back in his seat to get a better look. "Yeah I think so."
"Well she's all by herself. Hey Andy!" She called.
Andromeda looked up, smile, and walked over to their table.
She pulled the scarf off of her pink face.
"Hi Bella," she panted.
"Wanna sit down?" Bellatrix offered.
Her friends all moved to make a space for Andromeda next to her.
"Thanks."
"Sure thing."
Rodolphus Lestrange leaned forward.
"So why are you out all by yourself?" He asked.
"Because my friends," she replied. "Are all being lame and sitting by the fire in the common room. Which probably wasn't a bad idea."
"And who are they, again?" Ares asked.
"You're sister," she said, nodding to Evan Rosier. "And Athena Nott."
"Oh, Nott," He said looking into his Butterbeer.
"What?"
"Nothing," Bellatrix said.
"Oh, come on. Someone tell me."
"Alright," she said. "It's just... They seem to hesitant to pick a side."
"You've lost me," Andromeda said, confused.
"Well..."
Everyone leaned in as Bellatrix spoke. They obviously enjoyed the topic at hand and did not want anyone else to hear.
"It's becoming apparent that a revolution is rising with the Dark Lord gathering followers and all..."
"Oh." Andromeda had heard a lot of hushed whispers about this "Dark Lord" even from her parents over Christmas break.
She had been walking down stairs to have some tea by the fire when she passed her father's study and over heard her parents talking in quiet, stressed tones.
"There is obviously something stirring and if we don't pick a side before it begins–"
"But did you hear what his followers brand themselves with?" Andromeda had always thought her mother to be a stern, strong woman and was surprised to hear her voice shake.
"It's just to prove that they are dedicated." Cygnus reassured his wife. "Besides, although his methods can be a little crude, his views are not far from ours."
She, at the time, had no idea what her parents we're talking about but had decided to not dwell in what she'd heard.
Andromeda was not sure, yet, if she liked this "Dark Lord" or not but she was afraid of what her family was getting themselves into.
But Bellatrix carried on as if she had not heard her.
"And I'm sure there's nothing wrong with your friend, but her family needs to decide if they're with us, or against us."
Everyone at the table was nodding in agreement. Except Andromeda.
"Us?"
"I'm being hypothetical," Bellatrix said.
But Andromeda wasn't convinced.