Disclaimer: This story's characters and certain concepts are all owned by J.K. Rowling. There is no money being profited by this story.
Author's note: Hey, guys. It's another chapter and yet another long, boring author's note. So, without further delay; let's get the boring started. First off, I'd like to apologize(like all the other times) for procrastinating(as usual) and publishing after…about a month now? Yeah. Oh and I just needed to clarify from the previous chapter since I know it wasn't that clear(sorry)…The notes Rose writes about Ryan Williams are "Never-Actually-Sent" notes and she's simply messing around in class. Other than that, I read your reviews and they, honestly, made me fangirl; so stay awesome, mate. I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Friday, November 25th, Early.
It's nothing wrong. Or weird. Or anything. I simply deserve to know why that utter scumbag of a human is staying with us. What tables of reality have turned? What evil have I possibly committed to account for such a crap life? Sod it, I'm getting to the bottom of this nonsense. I really am.
James. He's the answer to this spiral of mess. He would know. He must know.
Not one person really knows the true size of this castle until they have to look for the prattiest cousins of all time all over the flipping place.
I mean, seriously, whoever built this castle was obviously not conscious of how difficult it is to find someone here. It's impossible, to be honest. Such as, imagine yourself right here, hunting down one prat of a cousin in all of these doorways on all of these floors, since your best friend just had to mention things that needed to be forgotten. And, by things that needed to be forgotten, I seriously mean this-is-torture-why-doesn't-this-crap-get-out-of-m y-head sort of things.
And so here I am, searching for him. For the past half hour. Yes. Classrooms, The quidditch pitch, Floors, Great Hall…you name it…I have dug through them all to hunt him down. But yet not a single clue of the twat.
Practically speaking, this day revolves very heavily around irony. Ah…the daring existence of irony strikes you most unexpectedly…sort of like the time when Fred blurted out of nowhere that he was going to finally be responsible and focus on his N.E.W.T.S (that never really worked out, of course).
And what is ever so ironic, you ask? Well, to sum it up, basically how whenever I least want to see the bloke (which is almost always), he's there lingering by my side, annoying the living HELL out of me. But, when I actually need him…He's gone. Disappeared. Vanished. And any other synonym you can find to describe it. Not even Nearly Headless Nick knows where the bloke is. And those two are practically the best of mates.
I think the hour for me to just give up has arrived.
It seriously has.
I mean I'm almost on my knees right now. Seriously. I haven't gotten this much exercise in ages.
And it's, honestly, not just Rose Weasley being Rose Weasley (and I quote, "You're utterly impatient, Rose" by no other than Laura) because NEWS FLIPPING FLASH EVERYBODY: I'M ON THE THIRD FLOOR FOR THE FOURTH. SODDING. TIME.
Even the most persistent human being on the planet would be right about calling quits right now.
Merlin. I just officially declare this to be the end of my James hunt. Since sauntering through the corridors, my eyes scanning through the faces of basically anybody in any corner that exists hasn't really been working out at all...
But, hey look on the bright side (Dom says I should think more positively, so...no matter how crap this situation is, let's try to); at least the corridors are near to empty; because of breakfast and so finding James is easier-
Drrrrrrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!
The Clock Tower is viciously evil. Can it not see the extreme struggle I'm going through right now? Hmph. Clock Tower's these days. They don't know anything, do they?
And, so, as an automatic response, the sound of footsteps and chattering voices gets louder and louder as I, turning around to face the spiral stairwell, spot the first couple of faces climbing up the steps under the bright light shining through the windows. I watch them, cursing my fate, knowing the chances of finding James are now less than ever, with him heading to class somewhere between hundreds of faces surrounding him.
" 'Cuse me" I hear a dark haired bloke say, while I stand right in front of the top of the stairs, blocking pretty much everyone's way. I step away, of course, and then realize that I have only five minutes to get to class.
Ugh.
I skipped breakfast for this. And, there aren't a whole lot of things that I, Rose Weasley (a.k.a. girl completely and totally in love with food) would consider doing in place of waffles. Indeed. Waffles. The best invention mankind has ever brought to life.
And, now I'm going to class with an annoying, rumbling stomach and my legs pretty much giving up on me. Why, isn't that just wonderful! (Note the sarcasm)
Why did Laura have to mention it?! Why did my brain have to keep thinking about it?! And why on earth did my legs have to oblige?!
First my treacherous mouth, then my treacherous eyes, and then lastly my treacherous LEGS?!
One simple conclusion to this all: My body is an ungrateful prat, very, very prone to betrayal.
Ugh.
Everything seems so dull and meaningless right now.
And, with my utter existential crisis roaming freely in the pit of my stomach, I scurry through the third floor (or at least try to, with all those people coming from all directions) evaluating the situation:
#1: I can always find James later, right? It's not the end of the world. I have to calm the hell down.
#2: And, it's not like James knows the answers to my questions anyhow.
#3: I don't see why I'm sodding worrying about this in the first place, really...James would probably not tell me anything even if he did know(pricks are everywhere, of course).
So, I shouldn't worry about this.
Indeed.
I mean, there's nothing to worry about is there?
Besides, I have an honest right as a human being to know why the prat that's been bullying me since FIRST YEAR is, strangely enough, staying over at my place. I really do. And, if James, the cousin of mine who seemingly knows about everything happening behind closed doors, can't answer my questions, then so be it.
Friday, November 25th, Slightly later, Defense.
Alright.
So maybe the last plan to stop worrying about finding James didn't really work exactly.
Or, you know, at all.
Ugh.
So, there I am in the hallway, right? Just minding my own business, reconciling myself to the fact that I didn't need answers to my questions, after all. And, if I did need answers, James would certainly not be the one giving them, judging by my minimal chances of actually running into the bloke and also because he is my older, annoying cousin who can bugger about with me any time he wishes. Anyone with older, annoying cousins can definitely relate.
So, while I was sort of failing to move swiftly through the packed hallway, I noticed something. Well, someone, to be exact. Someone with a distinctly gravity-defying floppy mop of hair. And, I could've waited till lunch or till dinner or any other time, I know. I really do know. But, I just didn't want all that walking I'd done this morning to go down the drain. I just needed to talk to the bloke and that was final. No one was stopping me.
Not even a shirtless Ryan Williams was going to deter me.
Indeed.
Tuning out the bloke behind me who happened to be talking about his hatred for waffles(Fool. He's obviously as clueless as they come) and pretty much all the chattering going on around me, I dramatically, and I'm talking slow motion effects of course, parted gaps between people, brushing them away with my bare hands(All. That. Strength.). Murmuring silent apologies the whole time, of course.
Well, there he was.
My prime target. Leaning casually, hands in his pants' pockets, by the brick wall along with a tall, brunette beside him.
I didn't have time to question who the girl was, or how retarded I looked when I ran; I just went on with it.
"JAMES! JAMES POTTER!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, gasping for air after all that slow-motion (or so I thought) running, stepping closer to the pair who were frozen by now. As I gasped for air, I noticed James' head flip around, with the most exasperated look I have ever seen in ages.
"Err…Can I borrow him for a while?" I half-smiled at the girl beside him, who nodded her head shyly and gave me a polite grin. Hmm…whoever she is, I like her. I turned back to see the look of pure denial on James' face. Nevertheless, he sighed and then said, "Wait for me?" to the girl who nodded her head again and blinked her really pretty honey-coloured eyes.
Glory!
He grabbed my wrist and pulled me as far away from the girl, into a deserted corner, against a pillar. He crossed his arms and then huffed, "Do you have any idea how long it took me to talk to that girl?!"
I shrugged and then smiled, "Well…knowing that you had 'bout seven girlfriends last year...Around three days?"
He shook his head and murmured, "Never mind"
Whoa.
Someone's a bit grumpy.
"Look, I'm sorry. I just need to talk to you." I said in one of those Calm-yourself-down-mate tones. "…I'll try to make this as quick as possible" I explained. He took a deep breath and raised his eyebrows, expecting me to get to the point already.
I had no idea how I should've asked the question in the first place. But, then again, as embarrassing as it was, James was waiting and he was already pissed off…so…I cleared my throat and just right about said it with all the will power that was inside me (which was near to zero).
It came out as a sort of mumbling and James just squinted his eyes and said, "Err…who?"
"Malfoy. The annoying prick in Slytherin. He's been to your house for about ten times now, mate. I think you should probably know who he is. Anyway…what is up with the whole winter holidays thing? Surely, Dad wouldn't allow such a thing. To be honest, I'm pretty sure he doesn't want ANYTHING to do with the Malfoys," I cleared my throat, realizing how quickly I had gained confidence. "I mean, why the flipping hell is this happening…AND TO ME, OF ALL PEOPLE"
"Relax. It's not the end of the world, Rose" he breathed, waving his hand up and down casually.
Ugh.
"Well, for you it isn't…BUT FOR ME-"
"Alright. Alright. No need to blow a fuse over it…"
"…So?"
"So what?"
"Why is he…you know..."
"I thought your mum sent you a letter."
"She did. But, she didn't explain well enough. Or at all, to be exact."
"Well, it isn't anything very important or interesting…"
"Spit it out, James."
"Well", he ruffled his hair and sighed tiredly. "They wanted him and Al to get closer. Mend their friendship and all. You know."
For a second, I thought I'd lost the ability to process rational since this made absolutely no sense whatsoever. Because, if I'm not mistaken…HOW CAN THEY GET CLOSER WHEN AL ISN'T EVEN GOING TO BE AT MY HOUSE?! WHAT. IS. .
"Huh?" I asked, dumbfounded. It was clear to me that this made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
"They wanted Al and Malfoy to get close again," he repeated slowly, as if it were the most obvious matter on the planet.
"How? Al isn't even coming over these holidays…is he?"
"Well, my parents are travelling…So…"
"Wait…what?"
"So, it's basically voila and everything falls according to their plan"
"Their…uh…what? James, I understand not a thing that's comin' out of your mouth"
"Well, that's because you're oblivious."
"Shut up!"
"Sensitive as well…"
I opened my mouth to backfire a comeback at him before the weirdest feeling struck me, "…Hold on…This feels really déjà vu…like I've had this conversation before…"
He chuckled, "Further proving my point"
I smacked him hard on the arm and he, grinning, shook his head and continued, "Well, anyway…Malfoy's parents aren't home, right? Travelling too, I think" I nodded my head, the words twisting every strand of patience I had (Why did they need to travel…WHY DID EVERYONE WANT TO JUST SUDDENLY TRAVEL. WHAT THE HELL.)
"Well then…" he went on slowly. "Both parents are travelling, right?" I nodded my head again. "And so, me, Lily, and Al would have to stay over at your place, am I right?" I nodded my head yet again. "And, my parents noticed Al's been acting a bit mopey ever since Malfoy and him had a row, right?" Err…what? Al? Acting mopey? Oh well. I nodded my head slowly this time. "So...if Al gets to stay over at your place and Malfoy does too, they get to spend more time with each other and…also…"
The ideas all just assembled into one, only to light a single bulb within me. "Become…friends again?!" I completed, clearly very shocked, my mouth dropped open. James smiled, "Precisely."
I thought it over for a second.
"WHY?! I mean…Why must this happen to me?! I have way more things to be worrying about…" I said abruptly, remembering other events related to a certain Mudfloy. James seemed a bit shaken by it but, shrugged, nevertheless.
A long pause passed away of just me getting through with it and James waiting for me to get through with it, "I mean…I never knew our parents were actually planning these kinds of things…" I said, with a slight bit of worry. "What else are they discussing behind closed doors?" Both of us cringed and he replied, "Well, I think it wasn't planned, or at least I hope so…" he began. "I think it was just a perfect coincidence waiting to happen more or less"
Friday, November 25th, Later, Still Defense.
A perfect coincidence waiting to happen, eh?
WELL NOW I OFFICIALLY HATE COINCEDENCES. UGH.
Friday, November 25th, Even later, Still Still Defense.
When does this class bloody end?!
Besides, I think writing in my diary is not safe at this moment, I feel like I'm being…watched (freakishly enough…Since nobody does that. Or even should do that).
"And, I think Miss Weasley's is a perfect example"
Ohshitohshitohshitohshit…
I zoned out!
Friday, November 25th, Later, Lunch.
I noticed how abruptly my last entry finished off there…So I'll continue at where I left it…
All eyes were watching me while my quill dropped guiltily out of my hand, onto my table top.
I found Henry beside me gawking at me while I remained frozen, suffering from a storm of panic within me.
MUST. ERASE. ALL. EVIDENCE.
I quickly glanced down at my desk and desperately searched for something, grabbing whatever I could find, 'twas my parchment roll I think, and smacked it (very loudly, to be precise) on top of my diary.
Like that wasn't suspicious enough (Damn it, Rose. Do at least one thing right).
Well now…it is safe to assume that Travis was just going to get my diary and give me detention…I AM SO SCREWED. Could I be more obvious?!(Damn it).
Merlin.
Alright, Rose. All that needs to be done is relaxing. Breathe and just pretend that you have an idea of what's going on.
"Err…yes, Professor?" I asked nervously, forcing a horrid smile. Apparently, it worked. Nobody seemed to realize that I was utterly zoned out (Yes! For once, my completely bad acting skills didn't fail me!). "Your essay" he said, leaning his back on the chalkboard.
"Err…my essay?" I repeated slowly.
He narrowed his eyes, not in the angry sort of way, but more like he was amused somehow and pushed back the frame of his moon glasses, "Yes. It was…very good" he explained. "Best in your group, actually…No one was able to identify the true, subtle factors about the vampire bat. Everyone but you decided to focus more on the clearer perspectives…such as its origins and appearances and so on…but in this class, and I want everyone to listen to this, I don't want you all to simply state concrete facts. That can be done by simply looking through your books and copying what they say. I desire a deeper insight to these facts. And, that is exactly what Ms. Weasley did here. Very well done" he reported matter of factly while I remained frozen in my seat, questioning his words (or possible sanity).
Before I came to realize it, my mouth was almost reaching the ground.
Wait…I did well? Me. Yes. Rose flipping Weasley? Did well….?
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!
"Oh and Ms. Weasley?" I heard Travis say, while he pushed back his glasses. My head snapped up from the celebratory jig inside my head that I was secretly doing, only to listen to him comment amusingly, with a slight crooked smile, "Next time you decide to not pay attention…make sure the professor's brain is not the size of a pea, please."
Immediate giggles rose from all over the crowd and, then the bell rang.
Friday, November 25th, Even even later, Dinner.
GOD. I HATE TEENAGERS SO MUCH. UGH.
They spread rumours overnight and roll their eyes at you and don't give a damn about a single thing and…and…think they're all that when they're really not. Ugh.
Do you believe it?!
Alright. So, I'm just there, clearly, minding my own business, talking to Mary Anne (she's just this awesome girl who I happen to have all my classes with since first year) about how crap I was at Transfiguration when she told me she already KNEW about the Malfoy-being-my-tutor-and-staying-over-my-place business.
"WHAT?!"
"Mate, everyone knows."
"HOW?!"
"Well, I found out from Marcia who found out from Felix who found out from Jodie who found out from Lizzie who found out from William who found out from Jane who found out from Anne who found out from Peter who found out from Maxon who found out from Kiera who found out from your cousin Dominique."
Well, I never knew there was some probable non-human being who could say all that in a single breath. But, I guess I was mistaken.
"…Err…what…"
And, then, she began with a long story about the basis of how gossip travels and what not where I think I zoned out and noticed from the corner of my eye a glimpse of Hugo simply strolling down the aisle between our table and the Hufflepuff's, when he came close enough to where I had taken my seat on the bench, I just tugged on his gown and he stopped, noticeably halting Mary Anne's gossip rant.
He turned around, but only to shoot me one of his death stares, which didn't have any affect whatsoever on me (Silly Hugo. You can't harm me with those glares. I've been immune to them since…let's just say…Ever).
"What d'you want?!" he said sharply.
Ugh.
Rebellious, are we?
I've been thinking, lately. You know, how it's very clear when your little brothers are trying to act like they're above everything in the world and that your existence, as an OLDER (and therefore, in need of a slight bit of respect) sibling, is almost worthless. I find it quite annoying, to be honest.
"Did Mum send you any letters recently?" I asked, trying my best to be gentle enough (That would give me at least a few chances of the twat actually responding).
I would've never even bothered asking him since I knew he wouldn't tell me even if she did. Send him a letter, that is. But, the thought of EVERYONE knowing about a matter that only I hadn't a single clue of was just depressing.
I mean, what else are they hiding from me?
Am I not really a red-head?
Or, maybe I was adopted…?
Wh- What if...they've already read my diary AND KNOW HOW I FANCIED TEDDY WHEN I WAS ELEVEN (Merlin, I was eleven. Besides, he's NOT my cousin by blood. So, it wasn't really a, Oh-My-God-This-Is-The-Sign-Of-The-Apocalypse sort of deal).
Hey, I don't know, okay? You can't blame me for questioning these kinds of things because if any sane person was in my situation, he'd say that things were very, very fishy. And, that there was certainly something very wrong going on. I mean, even if James did explain things to me, I just can't believe it.
"Mind your own business" he snapped and then snatched away the end of the gown, which I was tugging on, and continued walking.
…I hate teenagers. I hate teenagers. I HATE THEM SO MUCH.
Friday, November 25th, Very late, Girls Dormitory.
Rumour Variety:
Darius, the prime victim of my clay pot, is my arch nemesis: 32.
The Pot Flier,a spell which only I have mastered,along with the rest of my Transfiguration skills, simply casts itself occasionally, when I'm angry or sad, meaning my magic is uncontrollable and not even God knows what lies ahead of my career in arranging for utter destruction: 28.
I have obtained my weird Transfiguration skills, including the pot flier, from my mate, The Devil: 27.
Malfoy is "tutoring" me since he's worried about this alliance with The Devil: 20.
Aha! But, Malfoy is actually simply tutoring me because Professor Doris forced him to, since she too, is worried about my alliance with The Devil: 15.
I am a complete failure in life: 1(Madeline).
No I'm not: 3(Laura, Dom, and Mary Anne).
Have no idea why they're laughing and talking about me, but they're doing it anyway: The rest of Hogwarts.
Friday, November 25th, Later than you can ever imagine, Girls Dormitory.
Things to do:
1. FIND HERBOLOGY TEXTBOOK, WOMAN. THIS IS THE THIRD BLOODY WEEK YOU'RE WITHOUT IT. MERLIN, ROSE.
2. I think I made this list basically only to remind myself of the herbology situation. So, we're all good for now.
3. Oh and I almost forgot, collect your cloak from the Laundry before the house-elves begin to think you've abandoned it.
Saturday, November 26th, Early, Girls Dormitory.
I'm completely and utterly in for it. Everything about this situation is just the lead equation to utmost disaster. I can simply tell.
It's Saturday. Monday's the second Herbology class I have without my textbook.
I suggest you study, Rose.
Neville's words rung vigorously in my head before I covered my face with my hands, shutting my eyes. The memory of him looking at me with a bit of hope in his eyes, you know that sort of look someone gives you when they actually believe in you? Yeah. That image just sort of repeated itself in my head while I just utterly cursed life itself.
Study…Ha. STUDY?! HOW CAN YOU STUDY, ROSE, IF YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR BLOODY BOOK?! CAN'T YOU THINK BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING?! MERLIN.
Then, my hands dropped down tiredly, and my glance shifted towards a sleeping Laura, whose head lay flat on a page of a thick book, both her arms dangling from above her side table, her back bent down from her tall wooden stool.
Is it just me or does everyone look their most adorable when they're sleeping?
"…psst…Laura…Laura…"
I shook her gently by her shoulder. She muttered something next to incoherent, and then turned her head away to the other side to ignore me.
So, I shook her harder, and harder, until it seemed like the woman was being electrocuted. And her response, you ask? A single, light groan.
Ugh.
"Laura…Laura…" I repeated, louder and louder each time. And, then, finally came out a sharp and louder than ever, "LAURA!"
"NO, DON'T DO IT, ARTHUR!" She shouted out of flipping nowhere, before her head snapped up quickly, only to find a confused (like very confused) me standing by her.
Then, it of course all clicked and I realized that she was referring to Love Interest #1 of the main character in her precious Love is in the air books.
Ah…That Arthur.
I chuckled and then said, "I figure you were reading that book again before you went to sleep…"
She rubbed her eyes at first and then yawned, her arms stretching out to a I-believe-I-can-fly sort of pose, when she finally remembered what I had said, raising her eyebrows, "…Why? Did I say something?"
I grinned and said, "No. Nothing at all…" I stared at her for a second, at her red, droopy eyes, and noted, "You look like a flipping zombie…"
"Thank you, Captain Obvious. I just woke up" She rebounded with a smirk.
A pause went by before I suddenly said, "Hey, have you seen my textbook? Herbology Textbook."
"You lost it AGAIN?! What is this, the millionth time, woman?" She said. I opened my mouth to argue back but knew it was true. So, I waited for her as she gave it an actual thought when she finally shook her head and said, "It must be around here somewhere..."
"Exactly. Somewhere."
Saturday, November 26th, A bit later, Still Girls Dormitory.
No clue whatsoever.
And, by no-clue-whatsoever, I literally mean no clue whatsoever. It's a lost case. Not even Sherlock Holmes would be able to sniff my textbook out. Especially if it's in the Girls Dormitory.
Have you any idea what the insides of the Girls' Dormitory looks like?
Okay, let me illustrate:
Possibly the most noticeable thing, are the clothes. Yes. Clothes. Every where. From socks to gowns to bras to God-knows-what. One time I drowned on my way to Charms. No lie.
I mention the clothes? Probably.
the mornings. O' great Merlin. Girls everywhere (No shit, Rose, it's the GIRLS dormitory) jabbing on pounds of makeup, searching for books(that's me) or for clothes, and complaining. About everything. Since that's what we do. Or at least that's what I do in the mornings. Hmm.
, so I'm pretty sure by now it's been made crystal clear that finding something that you lost in the Girls Dormitory is long gone.
, more importantly-
"Rose? What, in the name of all that is magical, are you doing?" I heard behind me. Automatically, my head turned to see a half-smiling Helen towering over me. I cleared my throat and quickly said, "Um…nothing" (No one shall know how epically disastrous this morning is) while I stood up from my crouched position from the table to face her.
"Nothing at all" I said, but with the least bit of suaveness which I expected the answer to be in my head.
"Lemme guess" she smiled knowingly. "You lost your Charms textbook?"
Damn. I must be as transparent as Madeline when she's with Malfoy.
Ugh.
Even thinking about it makes me cringe.
"I'll have you know that it was my Herbology textbook this time" I said, with the only amount of dignity I had left within me. The statement probably had to be the most hilarious thing on the planet, since Helen just burst out laughing, holding her stomach hard.
."Wh…Wh…WHAT IS IT?! DON'T LAUGH AT ME!" I complained and it made her laugh even more.
Honestly…am I that amusing? I mean, first everyone at Hogwarts with my Transfiguration skills and then my best mate. Good grief.
"Merlin. I know you so well, don't I?" she said proudly.
"Well, you did have the past five years to do so" I answered matter-of-factly.
Indeed. Helen was one of my first friends at Hogwarts, being my roommate along with Laura.
Laura, me, and her, together were the maddest trio in the school. Except, she'd been incredibly busy with quidditch lately, something about Doris training them harder than Hitler with the Nazis and look how that ended up, mate. Hmph.
"Want help looking for it?" she asked. "Sure" I said tiredly.
Oh well, at least with a bit of help, the image of my funeral coming near after Neville sees the horrid answers on my test, could disappear for a while. Notice how I said, 'for a while'. Unless, we somehow magically find my book in the midst of this mess, I rather think that image would become reality.
And, so, around half an hour passed of simple looking around and running up and down the staircase; sometimes one of us was searching in The Common Room while the other questioned random girls if they'd seen a textbook sitting about back at the Dorms or something.
In conclusion, we decided to take a break.
Elle crossed her legs on her bed across the room and asked energetically, "So…is it true?"
I glanced at her, raising my eyebrows from my trustworthy stool, "What d'you mean?"
"Mate, don't pull my leg here. I may have been under Doris' grip for the past week, but my ears haven't gone anywhere." She said, like she had the knowledge of the world secured in her hand. "I've heard everything."
"Elle, I can only speak English. Not code language," I replied honestly.
She rolled her eyes and went on to say as if it were not rocket science. "Student. You're Malfoy's student now, no? Along with being his future housemate?"
The words sent a chill down my spine.
Student. Malfoy's student. Future housemate.
I don't like the sound of that. At all.
I cringed and then answered uncomfortably, "When'd you find out?"
She rolled her eyes again, "Two days ago" then, her tone became much more sharp and serious, shaking me since she's never like that. "Why didn't you tell me?!"
"I...I…I'm sorry" I began. "It's just that things…are weird right now…and I don't understand them to begin with. The rumors…The situation, itself…Laura only found out because she was there when my clay pot betrayed me and so, she asked me instantly what Doris needed from me when I came back. Whereas, you were skipping class."
That got her smiling again, "Yeah. I'm on a roll, you see?"
I chuckled, "Helen the delinquent?"
She pretended to give it an actual thought by rubbing her chin and then said indifferently, "Guess that title would do."
Both of us broke into laughter before her smile vanished once again and she noted, "It's just that my schedule is weird this year", she paused. "And, quidditch has gotten rougher."
"But, the entire last week, Elle... I even forgot to mention you existed in my diary since I didn't even know if you did anymore," I answered seriously.
She scratched her head and opened her mouth to say something but then decided to not. I stared at her for a simple second and then looked down at my lap in the silence, "…You always came past curfew to the dorms…and woke up earlier too…We never got a chance to even see you the whole week"
She glanced a meaningful look at me, "I'm sorry…I just…That was only last week, I'm back now."
I stared at her for a moment and then shook my head, "Nah, I'm sorry. I'm just gettin' really nosy these days, aren't I?"
"No, you're not!" she said quickly. "…Things…are…" she thought about it for a second and then completed. "…Complicated."
"I understand," I replied. "…But, in all seriousness, Elle, I've never seen you like this," I smiled.
"Like what?"
"You know, all serious and 'I'm sorry' and the 'I didn't mean to'…," I chuckled. She shot a glare at me, "Bugger off!" That made me laugh even more.
"Honestly, stop!"
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
What an awesome mate I am.
But, then, suddenly there was a knock on the door.
Hmm…wonder who that might be.
Laura?
"Hold on" I said, while I got up from my stool and strolled casually towards the door, only to open it with a loud and long creak that made our ears bleed.
Oh. It was Selia.
"Hey, Selia" I said pleasantly.
She twiddled and swirled around the strands of her blonde curly hair, looking like there was something going on. She hurried through the conversation, breathlessly saying, "There's…a…there's an announcement downstairs! Fifth-years only!"
Err…announcement?
Hogwarts. If I had to trade my brain at the Get-Free-Brains shop, I would. Since you, at times, are off your rocker with the randomness, mate. Like, really.
I opened my mouth to ask all the questions that were on the tip of my tongue but she was gone before I had a single chance.
Damn and fiddlesticks.
I turned to look at Elle with the exact same confused expression I had.
Oh well. I'm not on this ship alone.
"…What are we supposed to do?" she asked, with a bit of worry yet excitement.
"How am I supposed to know?!" I snapped.
"You are smarter than I am. Think, woman." She answered, waving her hand up and down, with remotely any difference in her usual attitude.
Ugh.
I rolled my eyes. "Why is everyone off their rocker today? I am not smarter than you." I began, attempting to clear my best mate's foggy vision of something I like to call, the truth. "Second of all" I paused. "I think…we should just head to the Common Room...that's the only place 'downstairs' could refer to , right? And see what all the fuss is about."
"Right" she answered immediately.
The door creaked open yet again. "'Ello" It was Laura. She had a towel around her neck and her hair was wet, she was also dressed into her everyday-Laura-clothes, and by that I mean, a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. "What'd I miss?"
"A lot" I answered and then Helen began explaining everything, eventually we all just ended up walking down the stairwell.
This was unusual.
It wasn't everyday when you'd experience someone knock on your door and tell you there was something weird going on. The Dormitories are a dramatic place, don't get me wrong, especially since it's the girls, but things haven't ever gotten this spicy.
I mean, there was once when June Lister's hair caught on fire after her sister, who had gotten into a fight with her, had cast a spell on it.
Oh and there was this other time, where ahem Barbie Lydia threw a tantrum…on me…and decided to…pull my hair…ahem back in second year when she was just as mature as she is now…
But, honestly, nothing has been this interesting.
At least, for me.
Because, honestly, I wouldn't recall having my hair pulled out by Madeline an…interesting experience, thank you.
And, so, the expectations for this announcement or whatever were high. If it wasn't something like, "You are all expelled from Hogwarts" then, it wouldn't outrun all the other events. Or, maybe to the contrary something like, "We have decided you are all god-gifted geniuses, and so, we will have you graduate tomorrow at once…without taking your N.E.W.T.S. or your O.W.L.S. or anything since you're that special…"
Rose, I don't think it's everyone else who's off their rocker.
I'm pretty sure it's you.
Since, there is no way in hell that that would ever happen.
But, you know, it isn't forbidden to fantasize about announcements such as that, once in a while.
Not the getting-expelled-out-of-nowhere one, of course. I'm not that off my rocker.
Whilst we plodded down the stairs, I could hear the voices growing and growing, louder and louder, as if chatterboxes were all carefully aligned together in The Common Room all of a sudden.
When we finally reached the bottom, I saw an entire crowd of both girls and boys, all from Gryffindor (Thank you, Captain Obvious…It is the GRYFFINDOR tower we're in), some in their pajamas, others already dressed, yet they all had one thing in common: All were fifth-years. That loved to gossip. Like a lot.
Everyone happened to be asking questions. It wasn't something only I was clueless about, which was a relief, judging by how many things I've been clueless about lately…
Anyway, while Laura, Elle, and I remained crushed between our classmates in the back of the room, against a tapestry of a woman with a moustache(How wonderful that experience was), a dark-haired bloke from in front of me randomly turned around and asked(more like shouted, to overcome the sound of the chattering), "Rose, right?" He paused. "Is it true that you hate Darius Black more than life itself?"
…
REST IN PEACE: Rose Weasley (2006-2022)
Before the casket and the flowers for my tragic funeral could be placed in the cemetery, a resounding voice broke the noise into a synchronized silence. The dark-haired bloke's head flipped around to see what was happening.
Whereas, I couldn't really see anything, since I have forever been shadowed by the curse of-the-back. I can never, ever be in the front in big crowds like these because of my affectionate yet creepy stalker, karma. But, my ears were still there. And, I was certain that that voice belonged to no other than Doris. Indeed. The professor that detested me. Well, at least I'm not in the front to experience her glaring at me. Especially with what happened last time in her class. Hurray! Curse of the back, you haven't failed me after all!
"I apologize for the abrupt call and the interruption of whatever you were all doing, but I have an important announcement to make. This will be short. But, I wish you all pay attention since knowing this can only be of assistance to you." A few murmurs rose from across the room. "These words apply to only you fifth years.
Any moment now, any moment now…You are all graduating early from Hogwarts since you're amazing, awesome students.
…Why isn't she saying it already? SAY IT. SAY IT. SAY IT.
Ugh.
I edged up and down, trying to get a glimpse of her, which I did, in the front of the room with her arms crossed and the same indifferent expression she always carried.
"This is the first time we're doing this" she paused with a bit of concern in her voice. "But, we're an educational department for one of the finest Wizarding schools in the world. We have a sense of obligation towards improvement and progress."
Err…what? Progress? For what?
FOR HAVING GOD GIFTED FIFTH-YEARS THAT WOULD GRADUATE EARLY FROM HOGWARTS, THAT IS. RIGHT?
"Hence, we have all concluded to reforming our O.W.L.S. preparation for students. Professors, including me, have noticed how much pressure we have been exerting on you while advancing into the curriculum. Noticeably, many grades have dropped"
THANK MERLIN. THE PROFESSORS HAVE BRAINS. THEY FINALLY REALIZE IT. GOOD HEAVENS. CANCEL MY FUNERAL. DO IT NOW!
"We don't want your learning the syllabus itself to suffer because of O.W.L.S. and we understand that this sort of examination is new for you. We completely understand. Trust me." She sighed and took a deep breath. "Hence, you're being the first to try our new program for the preparation of O.W.L.S."
There was an immediate increase of whispering going about the crowd. As for me, I felt relieved more than anything. Anything involving helping us with O.W.L.S. is much appreciated by me. I'll take that choice any time, to be honest. I glanced towards Laura and Elle, who were smiling uncontrollably at me.
"Quiet down, please!" her demanding voice echoed through the room and the whispering came to an instant stop. "Thank you" she said. "Now, I know you're excited and confused. So, allow me to explain, please." She paused yet again.
"You'll be assigned a partner from any house. This selection is done by only us and cannot be changed unless there is some sort of emergency. Along with this partner, you shall work depending on the times you have arranged together, on a booklet. This booklet contains all the necessary information on the syllabus for each subject you'll be tested on for your O.W.L.S. I suggest you don't lose these booklets as we will not be handing out any extras."
"They are yours and only yours to be responsible for. After a week, you will submit your booklets to the head of your house, in this case, that'll be me. You will be graded on how well you've worked on your booklet and then it will be given back to you. This shall carry on till the rest of the year where you'll submit a survey telling us about your experience so we can know if this program was a success or not and if we should continue it next year. You'll receive a letter by this Friday about details, suggestions, the booklet itself, and the name of your partner. Questions?"
There were none.
Except, there were surely tons at the back of everyone's mind.
Sunday, November 27th, Breakfast.
My mind was reeling.
It wasn't for the exact same reason as everyone else, but, indeed, because I STILL HAVEN'T FOUND MY TEXTBOOK. I AM DOOMED FOR TOMORROW. I AM UTTERLY AND TOTALLY DOOMED.
Countdown till doom: Approximately 29 hours.
Sunday, November 27th, Common Room, Late.
I don't understand.
I just don't.
This is beyond the knowledge of perhaps any species that has lived in this solar system.
Since, the only logical explanation is that there is a vortex. Indeed. A vortex that is the key to a separate dimension which is the home to utterly evil goblins and elves, who disliked this planet and moved to this separate dimension. They sit down every day and discuss their plots against mankind to rule the world with an iron fist…by creeping into dormitories at night and stealing fifteen year old girls' textbooks.
ONLY LOGICAL EXPLANATION, I TELL YOU. ONLY LOGICAL EXPLANATION.
Countdown till doom: 12 hours.
Sunday, November 27th, Girls Dormitory, Way past anybody's curfew.
Hush. Not one person can make a sound. I am staying up late. Very, very late.
To detect any hint of an evil goblin or elf around here, lurking suspiciously in the corners, crawling into our rooms, and snatching away our rightfully belonging textbooks for their malicious schemes of world domination.
On the other hand, don't think I can't read your mind. I am sane, thank you. And, not in need of therapy sessions. How rude.
Countdown till doom: 8 hours.
Monday, November 28th, Girls Dormitory, early.
When one wakes up at the crack of morning, it is not foreign knowledge that there is something incredibly wrong, especially for a Rose Weasley who hates mornings. What? We haven't ever gotten along really well. Mornings and I, that is. Not my cup of tea, thank you.
And so, this shall be my end.
I am now a Rose Weasley who never encountered any signs of evil goblins or elves since they already knew of her investigation beforehand (only explanation). Who is at the brink of failure. Like her crappiness level which was over 900000000000000000000000, to be exact, in Transfiguration last class hadn't been enough, life has decided to prove it through Herbology as well. Perfect.
Ugh. Double damn and fiddlesticks.
Side note 1: Goblins and elves have betrayed me by not showing up, I swear. They're just laughing about it right now since their joke on me was so hilarious.
Countdown till doom: 5 hours.
Monday, November 28th, Breakfast, A bit later.
"Err…Rose?" I heard from beside me.
Hush, human. I must prepare for doom.
"Why are you staring at your watch like that?"
"It's not working" I murmured, not glancing up.
Laura peered down at my wrist and noted, "Yes, it is"
"No, it isn't"
"Yes, it is"
"NO, IT IS NOT"
"…Rose…" she paused. "D'you want some water…? I have the jug on this side with me, you know…so…"
I breathed, "No, I don't."
"…Okay…whatever you say…"
"Indeed"
"Err…Elle….I think Rose has publically announced that she's as mad as they come…"
"Great. It wasn't just me"
"Ssshh, guys. I'm trying to focus here with my watch, can't you all see?"
"Pssst…Elle…enjoy it while you can…"
"SSSSSSSHHHHHH"
Countdown till doom: 3 hours.
Monday, November 28th, Arithmacy.
It is now exactly 7:30.
Merlin, I'm so nervous. My palms have NEVER been this sweaty before. Like ever before. And, neither have the butterflies in my stomach flew around this much before. Curse you, butterflies!
Ugh.
I mean, not even staring at Ryan is helping right now. And, when you know staring at the cracking, gorgeous, fifth year, sitting right in front of you, is not helping. Then, either you have mental issues (pssh…like I have those…ahem ahem) or you're just lost in the eye of a hurricane of DOOM. Doom and failure. Ah…nothing like such a mixture.
Oh God why.
"D'you have a quill?"
OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD.
I must have bumped my head in a wall on my way here since there is no way RYAN WILLIAMS just turned around and asked me for a quill. WhatdoIwhatdoIdoWhatdoIdo…too much confusion…no time to write…
FLIRT WITH HIM, ROSE. THIS IS YOUR ONE AND ONLY CHANCE.
Why, of course. But, I have something even more than that to give to you, my dear, if you know what I mean…wink wink.
Come on, do it! FLIRT. FLIRT. FLIRT.
"…Err…Yeah…here you go…"
I hate myself so much.
MOUTH: I HATE YOU SO MUCH FOR FLIRTING AT WRONG TIMES AND THEN NOT FLIRTING AT ALL WHEN NEEDED. UGH.
"Cheers" And, there goes my one and only chance. And, also my one and only quill.
TRIPLE DAMN AND FIDDLESTICKS.
Countdown till doom: An hour.
Monday, November 28th, Herbology, a.k.a. DOOM.
I don't understand why I don't accept reality. I just don't. After, being stalked by continuous loads of karma for the past fifteen years, it would be quite understandable that I accept my future as a cat lady, after I, you know, fail this test, not become an auror, and therefore not get a job, or get married to Ryan and have four children.
Nope. None of that. I'm simply going to end up sitting in a rusty, old rocking chair in one of those smelly, small houses somewhere, surrounded by thousands and thousands of cats. Indeed.
You know, I might as well start getting some cats as means of preparation.
It was only five minutes before I'd be getting my test displayed in front of me, while I sat now, frozen, on my bench, in front of loads of green everywhere…pots of plants and even more plants...simply textbookless.
And, some may even ask why didn't I simply borrow a textbook from the library? Well, as my karma likes to shine brightly above my head and make itself the most noticeable, there weren't any. Since, there was already someone who just had to lose his textbook as well and take the book enriched with precious information I NEED for this test, far away from my reach. And as far as textbooks are concerned, Elle's were long gone by the second week of school. Whereas, Laura doesn't even have the textbook we have now since she's so advanced at Herbology and hence, was given an entirely different textbook, corresponding to the level of a seventh-year student.
And so, by all means, my karma was fully armed with the arsenal that willed to defeat any chances I had to pass this test.
Damn and fiddlesticks? You know…Not even 'Damn and Fiddlesticks' is quite enough to express how utter load of crap this is.
"Alright, settle down, everyone!" I glanced towards the front of the classroom where, indeed, Neville stood with a parchment roll secured in one hand. "Let's take attendance"
He started off with several names, while I remained in my seat, in shame, not willing to even look at the man, my face flat on the table…the weird peppermint-like scent of the plants in front of me, catching my nose.
"Err…Rose?" I heard beside me.
"Let me die here, please" was all that escaped from my throat, with the most muffled, un-ladylike sound.
"Mate, cheer up. You're smart as hell. You'll figure it out"
"Elle, you need a vision of reality" I answered lifelessly.
"Weasley, Rose" my head snapped up, and I noted (more like whimpered), "Present"
Ugh. Though, it'd be much better if I was present to face my doom in a casket…buried 10 feet under the ground. Indeed. That'd be MUCH better.
Monday, November 28th, Later, Lunch.
Well, I don't know what to say. Either a sense of relief that I faced my doom and fought it well towards its end, or a sense of worry that it would come back to haunt me when I see my grade on that God for saken test.
But, honestly, right now, I just do not want to give a honeybadger. And, simply, because:
a) In two days, I have TUTORING with the bloke I detest.
b) I have tutoring with the twat that bullied me for the past five years of my life.
c) Uh…tutoring.
d) Did I mention the tutoring?
Tuesday, November 29th, Early, Girls Dormitory.
An insight on the mad insides of Rose Weasley's Brain:
My dream from last night.
Elle, Laura, and I were in the middle of the Forbidden forest, sitting on one of those tiny round, tea tables, having no other than tea (Captain Obvious strikes yet again) along with some crumpets. With those nice expensive, fancy cups. Indeed. Right in the middle of the forest. Having tea. And, yes, that makes, total, absolute sense. Why, us ladies, have the complete right to have tea whenever we want and wherever we want. Hmph. Oh and did I mention that we were wearing one of those long, heavy, and silky dresses from the Victorian era? Probably. Anyway, so while, I take a long sip from my warm, soothing tea, noticeably, my pinkie finger sticking out, I said with a very neat, posh accent(which I don't really have…or at least I think so…), "Is not this cup of tea much refreshing, my dear ladies? Mudfloy, my butler, invested such great effort in making it after I asked him to" And, then there were murmurs of consent by my two mates.
As if the impression of the old ages wasn't clear enough, there was a loud, continuous clippity-clopping of a horse in the distance, nearing our tea table. Finally, the image of a man dressed in a metal-made battle suit, straddling on top of a horse, appeared. He came to a halt when he was close enough and then sat in the only, remaining chair. He sipped the cup of tea which was already there before him on the table, smiling. But, then suddenly he froze and opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out, and he fell dramatically to the grass beside him.
Laura let out a frantic cry and exclaimed, also in a neat, posh accent, "Arthur!" and then she dropped on her knees next to him and began tearing her eyes out. I sat down next to her and made an attempt to console her, but then she yelled out, "IT WAS YOU! YOU POISONED MY ARTHUR!"
And, then, I, back with my normal accent, asked, "Wait, you're dating Matthew, aren't you? Then, are you cheating on him?! Tsk Tsk" And, then Elle crept up from behind and stabbed me on my back with a pocketknife, as I let out a cry of pain, dying. The end.
Tuesday, November 29th, Later, Library.
Oneiromancy is a scientific term for the arts of Dream-Telling in Divination that involve the analysis of dreams. It has been a tradition since a long time ago, to utilize dreams to predict future happenings, at which there'd be dream interpreters hired for their unique skills, to do so. Nowadays, there are only few dream interpreters as times have, obviously, modernized along with the fact that it is most challenging to do the job.
But, with much effort, the process of dream-telling can be summarized into a couple of steps. The first of these steps is-
Ugh.
Why do I even bother with Divination?
All these books have the littlest amount of information. I'm probably going to get a T on this essay, in all honesty. Merlin, I'm so tired. Of everything right now. You know, when all the embarrassing moments in your life just replay in your head and then you remember how much of a failure you are. Yeah. I'm having, what I call, a cringe-attack. Indeed. I keep lingering onto these thoughts from the past and they just don't go away, like that time with Al-
"Hope you're this focused tomorrow."
I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of the familiar, whispering voice in my ear, which sent chills down my spine. The words strangled me as if they wanted an immediate response for some reason while I just sat there, frozen, gazing at the thick textbook on my lap. I couldn't stand to turn to look at him, so I felt my face go red while I snapped, "What're you doing here?"
Malfoy.
I shut my eyes as I heard him take footsteps towards the chair across from me on the round table.
Oh great. Just what I needed in the midst of all these rumours.
Grinding my teeth together, I opened my eyes again and noticed him laid back on his chair, his arms crossed, and a broad grin on his face.
Ugh.
"What?" I flashed a mean glare at him.
"Oh nothing. Nothing at al,l" he answered, still with that grin.
He loves torturing me, doesn't he? Prick.
I continued glaring at him for a split second before I realized something. It didn't matter at all. If the twat wanted to make fun of me, then so be it. Like I give a honey badger. Anyway, that's what tossers like him want in the first place, to get a response from you when they're annoying the living hell out of you. So, I'm going to ignore him. Let's see how he likes that.
Psychology. I know it.
And, so, I, with a sly smile on my face, looked down at the large, thick page of the textbook in my lap (which it was murdering by the way, with all that weight) and pretended to read the small letters written across the page.
"You know, Weasley. I've been thinking…" He began after a while of complete silence. I continued staring at my textbook. Oh look, I'm suddenly obsessed with with dream-interpreters. "For someone who sure likes ignoring me," WHAT'S THAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU. I'M TOO BUSY OBSESSING OVER DREAM-INTERPRETERS. "You always end up talking to me one way or another."
"NO, I DO NOT!"
And, then my jaw dropped as he began smiling.
Malfoy: 1 Rose: 0
Twat. I hate him so much.
I rolled my eyes and let out a huff to let him know how much he was pissing me off. That just got him smiling even more. "Anyway, you didn't look like you were having such a good time in Herbology earlier"
"Well, of course I wasn't" I snapped. This was the only way. I needed to be icy cold. If I wasn't, then things…would go the direction they were going lately. And, I don't want that. At all. "My textbook completely betrayed me and so I hadn't studied at all."
He chuckled childishly, "I didn't know textbooks could betray people."
"Then, you have a lot to learn," I answered, and then remembered how I was supposed to be mean to him. Clearing my throat (very loudly, to be precise), I quickly said, "What're you doing here, anyway? Don't you have better people to bum around with?" My cheeks were warm. Like lava warm. Blegh. Red-head problems. What can we do?
"Well…" he began with much amusement in his voice. "Luke had homework, so he stayed back at the Dorms, Dan had people to mess around with, and well...Lia's not feeling alright today for some reason."
Lia.
"Who's Lia?" I asked, clearly, confused.
"Oh right. That'd be Lydia." He answered with a pleasant-ish tone that made me sick to the stomach.
I rolled my eyes and mumbled, "Of course." Ugh. Who calls Barbie Lydia Lia? Double ugh.
He raised his eyebrows and sighed, "Anyway, about the tutoring…"
IS IT CANCELLED? PLEASE TELL ME IT'S CANCELLED.
"How 'bout after dinner? Around 7:30? " he asked.
Sigh. Maybe I was just asking for way too much.
"Yeah, sure" I replied lifelessly.
"You don't sound too happy about it," he said, sounding like he was slightly disappointed.
OF COURSE I DON'T, YOU MORON.
Mate, I would be melting down about the tutoring right now on the floor if I didn't have Herbology to keep me distracted, to be quite honest. So, thank my traitorous textbook.
I just shrugged and a pause passed. "There are just things…" I said slowly, twiddling my fingers. "That I don't understand at times."
"Like…?" he asked, sounding like he was actually interested.
"Well, with all that's going on…and…," I said. "Forget it…you wouldn't understand."
Too much crap and not any words to explain. First world problems.
"Try me," he answered with a smirk, with a weird sort of flirty tone.
No, thank you.
"I said you wouldn't understand!" I said, raising my volume to about…let's just say…A LOT.
"How the hell do you know?!" he backfired, with a tiny grin.
Alright. He wants a fight. I can deal with that. IT'S ON, MUDFLOY.
"Well, since you're…you." I answered, gesturing towards all of him with my finger.
"I think we've established that, Captain Obvious."
"Have we, have we, really?"
"Yes. Yes, we have. But, more importantly, Weasley," he paused with the widest of grins across his face. "You do realize we have Divination next, don't you?"
That's when my heart sunk deep, deep, deep down the Atlantic Ocean. My whole body was petrified while I muttered, "No…No…Crap...," My gaze flickered down at my unfinished essay, cursing life, itself.
I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm dead. Did I mention how I'm dead? Indeed. I'm just living meat for now, people. Oh, Merlin. I could just see the dreadful image of Mum and Dad, dressed in black, mourning over their daughter's gravestone. Hugo probably not even there. And, a Malfoy lurking suspiciously behind a tree, belting out a loud, psychopathic, evil laugh. This is, for once, my end.
"MUDFLOY, THIS IS ALL YOUR BLOODY FAULT! I HATE YOU SO MUCH UGH. GOD. I WISH YOU COULD JUST-"
Under normal circumstances, I'd lean over across the table and strangle the living hell out of him, yet the only issue in that was that there was no time. And, not enough strength within me.
"MS. WEASLEY. MR. MALFOY. DO YOU EVEN REALIZE THAT THIS IS A LIBRARY?! OUT, OUT, OUT!"
My gaze flickered back to Malfoy as I glared daggers at him while he stood up from his chair and gathered his things.
Hmph.
He didn't feel sorry at all, does he? For what he'd done? Of course not. It's Mudfloy, Rose. Why did I expect him to be nice when he's clearly not?!
I gathered my things too, of course, while Madame Pince leaned by the shelf in front, watching us.
Eventually, I ended up following him to the entrance of the library.
What?! I needed to get out of that place and finish my essay in the little amount of time I had and that was the only exit! Just to clarify any wait-Rose-is-a-stalker sort of doubts. Which I am in some cases. Only with a certain Williams, though. Depending on how you see it.
Anyway, while we headed out of the library and were about to depart our separate ways into the corridor, with me urging myself to quench the need to strangle him and him just probably enjoying every last bit of it(P.R.A.T.) he managed to scoff one last time with a wide grin on his face, "Good luck in Divination, Weasley. Oh and don't go tripping over any stairs, will you?"
And, then, before I could wring his neck, he turned around, his rucksack dangling by his shoulder, and strolled down the corridor. In the distance, I noticed him ruffle his messy hair (which always annoys the LIVING HELL out of me).
I let out a very un-ladylike sort of grunt and then clenching my fists, I shouted after him, "YOU CAN'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO, SCAMPIOUS! AND, HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF A COMB?!"
Indeed. Let it be known that I am the protégé of the Incredible Hulk.
If my ears weren't fooling me, I believe I heard a set of giggles echo into the deserted corridor, perhaps from him, while he disappeared down the doorway as I was left alone, watching him.
Wednesday, November 30th, Breakfast.
There were no waffles today. As a solution, I might as well write a five feet long letter to the cooking staff while I, you know, devour my NON-EXISTENT waffles.
Bloody hell.
This is a violation of Rose Weasley's rights, okay? I can simply not survive without waffles. I need it as much as drug lords need marijuana, to be honest.
Whoa. I'm coming up with the strangest of similes today…must be because I have fried eggs on my plate and NOT waffles.
Wednesday, November 30th, Ancient Runes
I wonder what tutoring's like.
Not that I'm looking forward to it, that is.
Since, knowing me, it wouldn't be five minutes into the lesson before a loud BOOM would go off somewhere in the library, causing Madame Pince to mumble swear words which she thinks we can't hear and us getting kicked out of the library.
Long live karma forever and ever!
Wednesday, November 30th, Dinner.
"Elle, do you think the creature's alive?"
"It seems to be breathing…but, we should approach it cautiously…"
"…While we attack it with a dangerous set of…"
"TICKLES!"
My whole back was impacted with fingers while I let out a pair of inevitable giggles, trying my best to secure my gloomy atmosphere before my completely insane mates could steal it.
My head snapped up from the table and I edged back on the bench, leaning on Dom, I think, who sat next to me, trying to fight their attacks by pushing them by my hands, as I cried out whilst laughing and breathing heavily like a retard, "No…PLEASE….NO…AHAHAHAHAHAHA…"
They continued for a while. But, only a while. "Operation has been successful," they noted, with smiles of consent across their faces as they released me with their hold.
"Feel better now?" this came from Elle.
I didn't reply.
"Yeah, you are" answered Laura. Well, I didn't really say I was but…okay. "Hey, there's no way tutoring can be that bad…cheer up, mate."
Should I? Should I, really? Just cheer up for once and not give a honey badger? About Malfoy, Al, Madeline and her stuck up mates…or just anyone? And continue living my life like I used to?
You know what, for once, that sounds like a plan.
Wednesday, November 30th, Too happy to remember where I am.
THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE. I'VE NEVER BEEN THIS HAPPY BEFORE. LIKE EVER.
DESPITE ALL THE TOTAL LOAD OF CRAP GOING ON, EVERYTHING IS SIMPLY ACE. LIKE VERY, VERY ACE.
And, what, you ask, could've set Rose Weasley off her rocker? What? What could it be?
Indeed. That is quite the interesting question.
But, there are only few things that cause Rose Weasley to go absolutely nuts (more nuts than she already is, that is):
- Dealing with an irritating Mudfloy.
- Dealing with an irritating James.
- Dealing with an irritating Hugo.
- And, let us, not forget dealing with an irritating and useless life, shall we?
But, in all seriousness, there is only one thing that can make me go as mad as they come. And, that is, two simple words…which hold much more significance than their weight: Ryan. Williams.
Indeed. And, what could the most gorgeous, intelligent human being to ever live on this planet have to do with useless, dreadful, failure-in-life me? You ask quite the interesting questions, you know that? Anyway, even I don't know that one. But, I can't help but be grateful about it.
Alright, beginning with the story: (ignore my crap writing skills, please)
So, as I felt refreshed and like there was a whole new Rose Weasley walking down the corridors with an entirely different ideology that consisted of nothing but 'I-don't-give-a-fudge-about-anything', I was headed to the library.
Well, but I had to go downstairs since I was on the fourth floor(I had to look for the parchment roll I forgot in Charms class after dinner) and the library was obviously on the third floor, north of the castle, all the way on the other side, so I needed to use the stairs.
And, so, while I simply strolled down the doorways with a bunch of people crowding them, I decided to use the other handy-dandy stairwell to get to the library so that there'd be less people crowding me, you know, since I am…ahem…utterly impatient.
Anyway, so I take a left (I think) and headed towards the emptier corridors (notice how I remember EVERY single detail) where after much walking, there was my trustworthy stairwell waiting for me on my right.
And, so, it was a perfectly normal moment, and I knew nothing interesting was probably going to happen.
To that, the present me says: YOU WERE WRONG THERE, ROSE. LIKE VERY, VERY WRONG.
Nevertheless, as I trudged down the steps since my legs were wobbly from all that walking, the most traumatic of events that could possibly occur to a Rose Weasley, especially with her bad history with staircases, happened in reality.
A second felt like a year, really, as my left foot got tangled up with my other one, causing me to try to find my balance as I… was about to slip…down…a deserted stairwell…probably, on my way to breaking quite a few…IMPORTANT bones. Or, worse, at the brink of my death. This time was really legitimate. I was seriously, actually considering the funeral image in my head-you know, the one with my parents-mourning-for-me-in-front-of-my-grave? Exactly. My mind could only reel through that image as I sealed my eyes shut, not willing to see the disastrous event come alive.
But, that's when it happened.
WHEN MY SAVIOR FOUND ME AND CARRIED ME TO WAFFLE-LAND WHERE WE LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER.
Ahem. Where was I, again?
Oh right. The falling. Anyway, so, instead of tumbling down the concrete steps as I had imagined, my body hit something hard while I felt a pair of strong arms wrap themselves around me.
"Whoa." I heard. "Rose, are you alright?!"
My eyes opened…
ONLY TO SEE A PAIR OF NICE BLUE EYES FULL OF CONCERN LOOKING UP AT ME.
RYAN WILLIAMS' EYES. YES. RYAN. FLIPPING. WILLIAMS.
STANDING RIGHT THERE.
And, he had called me Rose! Wasn't that completely brilliant?! You know, as an addition to his already existent awesomeness.
And my traitorous mouth could've said all the flirty things in the world, from the classic, 'I am now' to the 'I would be if we did this more often, you know' …Indeed. All the flirtatious, sexy things I could've said to spice matters up…but no…nothing even near to any of that was what I actually said.
So, you wanna know what came out of my mouth instead? Huh? Huh? HUH? "Well, I did just have a near-death experience…so...you decide, mate"
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. ROSE. YOU TOTAL. COMPLETE. IDIOT.
He's gonna hate you now. He's gonna walk away right about now, thinking, Well, to hell with you. I mean, he just SAVED YOUR LIFE. Is that how you repay him?! Especially Ryan Williams?! RYAN. WILLIAMS. You can't talk to perfect human beings like him that way! It's common bloody sense which I wish you had, Rose. Merlin.
Besides, you don't want to go calling him mate. He's supposed to be MORE than that. And, I don't mean mega mates. I mean…well you know what I mean.
But, instead of walking away…do you know what he did?
He was—laughing!
Indeed.
You know, with a set of the most ADORABLE chuckles on the planet, I mean.
And, let's not forget that while my cheeks went lava red, he was still holding on tightly to me…but, then, before he could reply…HE LET GO. And, I began a desperate attempt to hide my cheeks. I really did.
"Yeah, I guess I shouldn't be expecting an 'I'm okay', really" he answered, a tone of sincerity in his voice.
"…Err…yeah…I'm just…really sorry…" I sighed, shaking my head, searching for the proper words in my head with mixed up thoughts. "I just…wasn't paying much attention…" I finished wearily.
I looked up…only to see one of his brilliant smiles across his face, "Not to worry…I'm actually glad I ran into you…"
WHAT...WHAT…WHAT….
DID YOU HEAR THAT?! DID YOU FLIPPING HEAR THAT?!
…Glad I ran into you…
OH GOD YES.
"…Since I needed to return your quill," he completed matter-of-factly, reaching inside his pocket, and pulling out the quill he had borrowed from me earlier, holding it up in front of his face.
Well, I was expecting a because of my overwhelming love for you but hey, quills are nice. Or evil. You know, since they just RUINED A GIRL'S INNOCENT DREAM OF LOVE.
I, trying my best to hide the disappointment in my voice, said, "Oh…" and then quickly added to not let him realize how dissatisfied I was. "I...err….thanks..." I grabbed it, tremblingly, from his hand, my fingers brushing against his palm…and my cheeks possibly changing a shade ten times redder than before. UGH.
"You…can…keep it if you like" I said awkwardly…wow, Rose…nice dazzling him with your bloody charms. Ugh. Traitorous mouth. "Nah, that's fine" he replied, flashing me again with one of his brilliant, shining smiles.
Merlin, Ryan, how perfect can one be?!
And, then, my heart sunk. Literally sunk. When, he turned around, his hand sliding down the railing, and him stepping down the stairs.
NOOOOOOOOOOOO…DON'T ABANDON ME. I'M SORRY THAT MY MOUTH IS SO TRAITOROUS AND-
But, then, his head flipped around after he had taken a few steps, and he looking at me by the corner of his eye, said energetically, "You coming?"
The words struck me like never before…coming…wait, so…he wants me to tag along?! Tag along…with RYAN WILLIAMS?!
Well, you know what; you can count me out...OVER MY DEAD BODY.
I wasn't able to answer normally because of my, of course, traitorous mouth, and instead came out a high-pitched, loud squeak. Yes. I know. I never want to open my mouth ever again. Like ever. And, then he began grinning like crazy, "I'll take that as a yes…"
My stomach began to flutter to the extent where I began wondering if that was the condition of my stomach…then what about my cheeks?! Oh Merlin.
Nevertheless, I followed him as he went down the stairs, while I built a protective barrier against further treachery from my mouth. I'd had enough. And, so when the barrier was strong enough, I asked, with a bit of normality this time, "Where're we going?"
I looked down at him as he reached the bottom of the stairwell and turned around only to face me coming down as well, "Well, anywhere where you don't fall again..." Bloody hell. That must've caused the whole of my blood supply to go up to my face. Since it was probably that red, wasn't it? Stupid blood. As if, I'm not red enough.
Anyway, reaching the bottom, and standing right next to him, I said tiredly "Yeah…staircases and I don't necessarily get along…"
I couldn't stand looking at him, judging by how red I probably was, so I simply heard him say knowingly, "Yeah, I remember first year when you-"
"Yeah, not my finest moment" I interrupted, laughing. I noticed him nod his lightly while he said, "I can imagine"
We, both, carried on walking down the empty corridor ahead of us, side by side…and I just tried my best to be normal. I really did. But, I am Rose Weasley. And, I do have something I like to call karma.
I tried looking away only to stare at the classrooms we passed, or maybe the ceiling, as a long silence passed, with me praying for something to break it. Anything. All that was heard was our footsteps, and the occasional sound of my hand brushing against my gown.
Ignoring the Niagara Falls of sweat going on with my palms, I slowly said, "…So…err…are you excited about the whole O.W.L.S. reformation thing?"
Oh God. Please let this start a nice conversation where he ends up confessing his mighty love for me eventually.
"Don't know what to really think about it" he answered, without much consideration. And, then yet another pause. Oh Merlin, please, if anything, just help this conversation flow. I beg of you.
"Well, I, for once, think it'd be nice to have the teachers stop lecturing us about 'O.W.L.S. this' and 'O.W.L.S. that'. It's very tiring, y'know?" I said, my heart jumping around a million beats. At this rate, I'd come off as nothing more than a girl who's just matesy with him and doesn't really want to do anything beyond matesy with him. Which I obviously do. Oh God. Sometimes I wish I had better slag skills…like maybe Barbie Lydia. I mean, how the bloody hell does one flirt?!
"Oh yeah, that is very annoying" he replied with a sigh. "I wonder who my partner is"
Partner? Oh right…partners…that crap. Well, as long as I don't get Mudfloy or Douche Daniel or maybe Al (now that'd be AWKWARD), but most of all Madeline…I don't really care. It can be Henry, for all I care, the bloke who keeps drooling creepily over Laura every single Defense class there possibly is.
Wait…it'd be COMPLETELY BRILL IF IT'S-
"I..." This is your chance, Rose. Flirt. Flirt. Flirt. Someone like you would do. COME ON. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. "…Don't really care. Whoever I get is fine, really"
UGH. ROSE, WHAT IS YOUR BLOODY PROBLEM. GOD.
But, then it happened. And, he literally (well not literally, but you know what I mean) just shut off all of my bloody supply to no other place but my face. "It'd be nice if it's someone intelligent and cool…" he paused and then flashed me a broad grin. "Maybe someone like you"
OH. MY. FLIPPING. GOD. HE DID NOT JUST SAY THAT.
HE LOVES ME. THAT'S IT. HE OBVIOUSLY LOVES ME.
A pause passed of me just trying not to cry of all that happiness. And then suddenly, I heard him say, glancing at the watch on his wrist. "Oh crap, I have to go…"
Go…Have to go…Watch…Time…
"7:30! OH FU-…"
He was shaken by my abrupt shouting, and almost ahem swearing (let's just hope he didn't notice that) but it was necessary. I felt sick to the stomach. Like almost as if I was about to throw up any amount of dinner I had had. I had stopped midway into the corridor while I frantically asked, "Time…What time is it..?"
He was caught off guard but nevertheless looked down at his wrist and noted, "…Err…7:50"
My heart sank.
"…Wait, but why…is everything alright?" he asked worriedly.
"Yeah…it's just that I have tutoring…well, and I'm late…like, very, very…late" I answered urgently, rubbing my forehead with my hand.
"Tutoring…you?" he said disbelievingly.
That made me smile a little and I said, "Yeah…" But, then, I realized that I had to go. I couldn't stay. Even though, I was tempted to SO flipping much.
Sigh.
"…Well, then, see you later!" I said before turning around and running off into the corridor, leaving him standing behind alone there, watching me.
Wednesday, November 30th, Later, Library
HE DITCHED ME. DO YOU BELIEVE IT?! HE'S NOT HERE. WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?!
I'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR THE PAST TWENTY MINUTES OVER HERE, BACK AND FORTH, AND THERE'S NO SIGN WHATSOEVER OF HIM. I ASKED MADAME PINCE—EVERYONE I RAN INTO...BUT HE'S NOT HERE.
HE ABANDONED ME. SCORPIUS MALFOY ABANDONED OUR TUTORING.
Wednesday, November 30th, Common Room, The Latest it can possibly get.
I haven't been this angry ever in my life before.
I mean, who the flipping hell does he think he is?!
Merlin.
And, you know what? When I dragged myself with the little amount of patience I had left within me to Gryffindor Tower, and simply threw myself on a couch since I had no energy whatsoever to head upstairs to my dorm,I noticed Elle coming over (telling me Laura was out with her boyfriend). She sat on the armchair across me, asking me what happened. But when I told her, she wasn't surprised. At all.
"Rose, you have to think about this…he didn't ditch you. You ditched him"
"No, I didn't!" I argued back. "…Okay…Fine…maybe, I did. But, can't the bloke wait for a little while?!" I surrendered. What? I was far too tired for any arguments.
"That's not it," she shook her head and then sighed.
"Then, what is?" I snapped. "Was it because I got him kicked out of the library earlier?! Well, that just sounds absurd. He's the one who was at fault, and besides, he didn't seem viciously angry about it too. Actually, he had the nerve to continue harassing me when we got out"
"No, it's none of that…" she answered calmly. "He wasn't there in the library…for another reason"
"Another reason?" I repeated, confused. "Well, what else did I bloody do to the bloke?!"
She sighed. "I'll let you find out yourself, Rose"
"Hey…wait, where are you going?!"
Thursday, November 31st, History of Magic.
Maybe I was wrong.
Yeah, I know. It sounds ridiculous when I say it, but I thought about it the entire night yesterday.
I think…I don't have the right to be angry at him...I mean, I was twenty minutes late and if our roles were switched, I would've probably done the same thing he did since I'm so impatient. Besides, I can't expect the bloke to not have other things to do…I mean he's Malfoy, possibly the most popular Slytherin at Hogwarts.
I can't expect all of his life to center around…well, tutoring. That's just bizarre.
Thursday, November 31st, Later, Transfiguration.
Sigh. I'm going to apologize.
Does it seem like a bad idea? Does it?
Oh crap, there he is. Must avoid eye contact. Must avoid eye contact. Must avoid eye contact.
Oh look! I suddenly adore the ceiling! Yay!
Alright. Doris isn't looking my way. I think this is it. Crap. I've never done this before. With Mudfloy, that is.
Look, I'm sorry I was late yesterday.
No, that doesn't sound right.
Are you angry at me?
No. That just seems way too straight forward.
I'm sorry.
Way too vague.
Forgive me?
UGH. NONE OF THESE ARE WORKING.
And, so, after scratching off at least ten apologies, I finally gave up and wrote:
I was late yesterday, I know…and I'm sorry.
Okay, that seems alright. Doris isn't looking either. Fine, let's crumple this into a bal quietly…and BAM!
It has hit the target in the second row now (he changed seats! It's easier to throw stuff at him now! Thank heavens!).
Wait…why isn't he opening it?! It fell perfectly in front of him on his table (I know, I have such brilliant skills. I should just try out for Chaser).
Okay…
Let's try another one…
R: I'm sorry…Can you just reply, please?
R:Why aren't you replying?
R: Are you even reading these?
R: WHY DO YOU KEEP IGNORING ME?!
R: Malfoy…are you serious? So, you're just gonna ignore me, huh?
R: SCORPIUS BLOODY MALFOY, STOP IGNORING ME AND GET SOME FLIPPING PARCHMENT AND REPLY.
R: You happy now? The bell's gonna ring in 5 minutes…d'you think you've accomplished a lot by ignoring me?! Ha. Well, you haven't.
R: Fine. Whatever. Ignore me. I don't care.
R: …Just to let you know, I should be the one pissed at you. Not the other way around.
R: You know what? I take everything back. I'm not sorry. I'M NOT BLOODY SORRY AT ALL.
R: UGH. YOU'RE NOT GONNA REPLY AT ALL, ARE YOU?! I SAID I'M SORRY, WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT?!
Thursday, November 31st, Later, Library.
The Goblin Rebellions were a series of rebellions in which the goblin population revolted against the Wizarding World for suffering heavy prejudice and discrimination by wizards and witches. They were the most dominant during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
The first rebellion took place in 1612 in Hogsmeade Villa-
I broke my quill.
YES. THAT SAME QUILL RYAN WILLIAMS TOUCHED.
I'm so sad right now. Stupid Mudfloy. He's been haunting my mind all day and causing me to release loud grunts at random moments here in the library, making people turn their heads and stare strangely at me.
He's also caused me to write applying so much force on my poor-Ryan-touched quill that it broke.
He'd pay. He'd pay for all he's done. I promise.
"Hey, Rose" I heard.
Oh, it's Dom and Lucy. Sigh.
"Hey" I answered lifelessly.
"What's wrong this time?" Lucy asked tiredly while she and Dom pulled out the two chairs across me and took a seat.
"Nothing" I replied. "Just Mal-"
"Oh wait!" Dom suddenly blurted out all enthusiastically. "I heard there was this thing going on with the fifth years…what was it called again…"
"O.W.L.S. reformation" I completed for her.
"Right!" she answered. "Well..."
"Well what?" I asked.
"Who d'you wanna be with?" This came from Lucy who was, noticeably, not wearing that much make up today (well, that's new).
"It doesn't really matter for me" I replied, shrugging.
"Of course it does!" Lucy squealed. I rolled my eyes, "It, honestly, doesn't"
Dom raised her eyebrows, "So..Any crushes?"
I went bright red, "No"
"Yes" they said at the same time, stretching out the e, and thenfalling back in giggles.
Friday, December 1st, Girls Dorm.
This morning was very restless.
I woke to the sound of squealing girls from a nearby dorm as I was instantly reminded that we were getting our letter with instructions and further details for the O.W.L.S. reformation thing, and more importantly, for all the girls, that is, the names of their partners.
After taking a shower and what not, I met up with Elle and Laura back in the Common Room. We talked but not for long. I was far too tired to do anything. Noticeably, I'm far too tired to even complain. Which is…for me, at least, the strangest of things.
Anyway, by the time we got back upstairs, we bumped into a pack of girls who claimed that they had gotten their letters already.
I glanced at Elle who had a sly smile on her face and so, when we reached our dorms; there they were. Our owls waiting patiently. Muna, sitting on my desk, since she knows me so well.
Oh well, letter…shmletter…let's see if you're any special…
Dear Ms. Weasley,
This letter has been written to you with the sole purpose of informing further details about the O.W.L.S. new preparation program, a copy of this letter, has also been sent to your parents and therefore, they are also informed of this news.
Here are some of the basic rules:
1. You may not change partners. Whoever is assigned to you, will remain to be your partner for the rest of the term unless there is a case of emergency. These include: Your partner has a contagious disease, you have a contagious disease, your partner has extreme anger management issues, you have extreme anger management issues, and the list carries on.
2. You may not do all the work or let all the work be done for you. We, teachers, have a proper system and we can, surely, recognize who did what.
3. You may not hand in your booklet after the deadline of one week. All booklets must be handed in, even if there was no work completed, by the end of the week for a grade to be given to you and that is final and cannot be changed.
4. You may not lose your booklet. We do not have extras and even if we did, they would not be given to you as we're training your abilities to be responsible for the future.
5. All work must be completed by the end of the year where you'd be given a final grade on your group work and individual work. If not all work is completed, then your grade would be an automatic T.
We hope you enjoy this experience and learn from it, and that working in a group could enhance your qualities as a student and even a human being, and, nevertheless, assist you during your future O.W.L.S. examinations.
Your booklet is attached to the letter of your partner, no need to worry about it.
Finally, the partner we have selected by comparing abilities, strengths, weaknesses, and several attributes, for you is: 16 years old, Ravenclaw: Williams, Ryan.
Good luck and enjoy,
Doris, Martha,
Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor House.
I AM THE LUCKIEST GIRL TO WALK THIS PLANET. OH MY GOD. OH MY GOD. I CAN'T BREATHE. I HONESTLY CAN'T BREATHE. HELP. MAYDAY. MAYDAY. CALL AN AMBULANCE. ROSE WEASLEY'S HEART HAS JUMPED OUT.
Author's Ending Note: How'd you like it? I'm sorry if there was such a strong love triangle thing going on this chapter, but I can assure you that there'd be conflicts than that. The charcter Elle was inspired by my friend Ellen(she's literally fangirling right now and asking me to say she's awesome to you guys...**ahem ahem** she's not.) Anyway, shout out to my beta (y'know who you are :) And...yeah. Sorry, I procrastinated and published aftera month but err...let's hope I don't procrastinate anymore(Like that'll ever happen).
Thanks and I wouldn't mind a review :)
-Hazel.