This is 7 Not 6
For a while after Christmas it seemed like everything was returning to normal in the school, there had been no attacks and people had stopped referring to Harry and Rose as the heir of Slytherin. In fact nothing out of the ordinary happened until February well other than the fact that Ginny had shrunk back into her former self not wanting to speak to Harry or Rose. She rarely spoke to Capella and they shared many classes together.
To Rose February was just another month since she had never been in love. Valentine's day meant nothing to her so when she woke up on the 14th Rose was surprised to see a card on her bedside table. Rose had never received a valentine and opened it slowly, unsure if she was being pranked.
The card was a beautiful yet simple card. When Rose opened it she saw very neat handwriting, It looked somewhat familiar but she could not place it. It was a simple message that read. "I wanted to send this to let you know how much I care for you. Your secret admirer" While still unsure she was being pranked Rose couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed but happy.
It was at that moment Daphne woke up and smiled over at Rose.
"Ohh who is sending you Valentine's Rose?"
"I have no idea they sent it in secret." Rose replied as she grabbed her wash bag and headed for the bathroom.
When she came out Capella was waiting for her.
"You take so long in the shower come on, I am hungry."
"Right, right. If you do my hair I will be done quicker" Rose commented cheekily.
Capella laughed and drew her wand.
"The things I do for you" She commented laughing.
It wasn't too much longer before the girls left for the great hall and upon arriving Rose couldn't believe her eyes. The hall was decorated in lavish pink. Hearts and flowered confetti was falling all over the place painting the floor in a pink papery mess before another charm cleaned it up after a short amount of time meaning that the floor was always covered but not enough to hinder movement.
For Rose it was all a bit much but several other girls seemed to be enjoying the exuberance of the event. This was not the extent of the surprise apparently, Professor Lockhart had hired hundreds of dwarfs to apparently sing and deliver valentines.
During breakfast Capella was sitting really close to Rose. For a moment Rose toyed with the idea Capella had left the valentine but she wasn't sure. After thinking about it Rose decided that she liked the idea. Once she realised this Rose decided to order a Card for Capella.
"Sorry Capella I just realised I forgot my notebook for potions, I am going to grab it see you later okay" With that Rose fled from the room leaving Capella a little confused. Once in her bedroom Rose took out a piece of parchment and requested a nice card from a store in Hogsmeade that some of her housemates had mentioned getting valentines from. Adding a few coins to a pouch Rose woke her faithful Timbur who was sleeping on her four poster supports.
After sending off the owl Rose ran to her first class for the day. Classes that day were utter chaos. Dwarves would burst into classrooms, ignoring requests they leave, would burst into song and dance, showering petals as they handed out cards.
Several teachers had given up on teaching their lessons and were simply watching over the students and wishing for the day to end. Several students were wishing the day would end too. One of those students was Harry who was feeling incredibly embarrassed when a dwarf knocked him to his feet and sat on him to sing a valentine. Rose had not seen Harry since and hoped he wasn't too embarrassed.
Despite Malfoys claims that Harry had not liked Ginny's card, Rose was sure the sentiment was well received; it was just the way it was done that Harry had a problem with.
In the great hall that evening meals were disturbed just as lessons had been. Dwarves were still bursting into the hall singing but also owls were dropping off presents and cards. Capella who had seated herself next to Rose again was surprised to see one of the said owls land in front of her and hold it's leg out.
Rose felt a little embarrassed being sat next to Capella when the card arrived but was excited to see how she would react. Capella took the card from the owl and Rose watched as the younger girl started to blush and look around to see if anyone was paying close attention.
Capella looked at Rose wondering if she had sent the card but was unsure if Rose would do that. Capella read the card smiling to herself as she looked at the card.
As the day ended Rose was happy to head to bed and leave the day's madness behind her. Just as Rose was getting undressed Capella came in.
"Can I sleep with you?"
Rose smiled and continued to change before pulling Capella into the bed and drawing the curtains. Looking at the card on her bedside table Rose looked to Capella.
"That's from you right? I thought I recognised the writing"
Capella, feeling unusually embarrassed, scooted closer to Rose before looking up at her.
"Yeah I sent it. D..Did you send mine?"
"Mhm I did, I wanted you to know how much I care for you." This made Capella smile happily and throw her arms around Rose who returned the hug. Nothing more was said that night and the two girls fell asleep hugging each other.
Well that was how it was supposed to be but both the girls were woken by Rose's mirror vibrating and Harry calling for Rose. feeling a little irked about being woke up rose grabbed her mirror.
"What is it with you calling me late at night?" Rose said a little grumpily.
"I have to tell you something… Is that Capella?" Harry asked, noticing another arm in Rose's bed.
"What was so important it couldn't wait? And yeah that's Capella." Rose said as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
"We need to find out who Tom Riddle is or was." Harry said in a hushed, excited voice.
"Why would we need to know that?" Rose asked, feeling a little more awake.
Harry proceeded to tell Rose about the Diary he had found and how he found out it could talk back to him. This information had Rose feeling pretty annoyed at Harry's recklessness but she listened as he told her everything.
"Sirius said that the person who was accused was set up. I saw in the diary this riddle setting up Hagrid so he was probably the heir and responsible for that girl's death."
Rose was now on high alert as she fully understood what was being told to her.
"We can tell Sirius tomorrow he may have heard the name before. Oh and Harry get rid of the book. Books shouldnt think for themself Harry."
Once Harry had let the mirror call end Rose snuggled back into Capella slipping her arms around the smaller girl's waist and falling back asleep.
The next morning Rose woke up with the smell of Coconut filling her nostrils. Rose for a moment could not place the smell but once she did she smiled and pinched the younger girls sides.
Capella tried to swat Rose's hand away but Rose continued to tease Capella. After a few moments she looked up at Rose.
"Let me sleep, I'm tired."
"As much as I like the sound of that we have classes today and you need to get up."
Capella resisted the urge to complain and started to wake up. Rose smiled watching Capella wake and wondered about the feelings she was currently feeling.
After breakfast had been consumed Rose went in search of Harry; she wanted to make sure he had gotten rid of the diary. She found Harry outside of the DADA classroom. After giving him a meaningful look Harry shook his head.
Once the Class had been let inside Harry turned to Rose.
"I tried a simple fire spell but the book didn't even singe. I didn't have time to try anything else yet but I am going to look into other ways later."
"You did the spell correctly right?" Rose joked.
"Of Course I did." Harry said not quite realising that Rose was joking.
"Harry I was just joking, I trust you did it right. Have you contacted Sirius yet?"
"I was thinking I would do it at lunch when we have some free time." Rose nodded her agreement and looked to the front of class shocked that they had not been told off for talking.
The conversation with Harry finished, Rose decided to open a DADA book she had asked Sirius to send so she could learn by herself. Without checking what she was reading Lockheart had complimented her desire to learn, making Harry laugh.
After the painfully long double DADA Rose and Harry made their way to an empty classroom so they could call Sirius. On the way Rose called Capella and told her to meet them knowing she would want to hear her Dads voice and be filled in on the situation.
Harry, who had seen Rose contact Capella, waited until she arrived in the room before calling Sirius. Upon entering Capella hugged both Harry and Rose smiling and waiting for the call to connect.
"What kind of trouble have you got into now?" Sirius asked jokingly.
"Oh you know just a book that can tell stories and resist and Incendo" Rose replied flippantly.
Sirius, who had been expecting a casual conversation, nearly fell off of his seat.
"I am sorry, what was that?"
"What my sister means is that I found a book. When I wrote in this book it replied to me. It told me about the chamber 50 years ago. It told me about Hagrid. When I tried to follow Rose's advice and get rid of the book I used Incendio on it but the book didn't get damaged a single bit.
"Harry, you still have this book right?" Sirius asked, all his playful demeanour gone and replaced with fear and dread.
As Sirius finished talking the door to the room slammed closed and the sound of footsteps could be heard. Capella was up quickly but by the time she got to the hallway it was empty.
"I have it in my dorm room. I didn't think carrying it round was a good idea." Harry said, looking at Capella as she returned.
"I didn't see who had been listening in." Capella announced.
"You need to check on the book" Sirius announced in a serious manner. Seeing that Sirius was unusually serious Harry took off to his dorm room. He could see Sirrius casting a charm in his mirror and all of a sudden he could see Rose and Sirius in his mirror.
"I have temporarily connected multiple mirrors this magic won't hold so you will need to be quick Harry" Sirius told them.
When Harry arrived in his dorm he knew right away the book was missing, the drawer he had left the book in was upside down on his bed.
"I'm sorry Sirius but the book is gone. It must have been a Gryfindor to get up here, who would steal it off me?"
"The person that was writing in it before you." Sirius said calmly.
"I don't know who that was." Harry announced.
"I need to speak to Dumbledore, you children go and get some food before it is too late and keep your eye out for the book.
It was at this point Capella went ghostly white.
"Harry please tell me that the book wasn't small and leathery, Black in colour"
"That sounds exactly like it, why?"
"Well It's just that Ginny is always writing in a black book and she has been distant since Christmas." Capella said quietly hoping that she was wrong.
"I wouldn't ask her or make her aware, you know. But try to find out if she has the book. If you confront her you may make her close up even further" Sirius instructed.
The three students left the room feeling a little helpless and unsure of how to move forward.
When they arrived at the great hall Rose could see Harry getting questioned by his friends about his sudden disappearance.
Capella was constantly watching Ginny over the next few weeks. It seemed like the girl was not eating properly, Capella wondered if she was sleeping properly since she always looked tired.
Despite paying attention to her, Capella did not see the diary once.
As the month of February drew to a close the school was starting to believe the attacks had come to an end. There had not been one in some time. Rose was more worried about her next quidditch match now that it was fast approaching, she really wanted to play but being a reserve it was unlikely.
It was a surprise then that on the day of the game one of the chasers suddenly fell ill, for seemingly no reason. Rose was a little suspicious about this and went to see Capella. Rose found her relaxing by the fire and pulled on her robe.
"Come with me. We need to talk. " Capella gave Rose a look of pure innocence and followed her.
"What do we need to talk about Rose?" She asked, still keeping up the appearance of innocence.
"What did you do to Pucey? He was fine this morning and now he is in the hospital wing. "
"I didn't do a thing Rose." Capella tried to assure but Rose was not believing it.
Rose smiled and looked at Capella before grinning. Deciding to thank Capella Rose leaned down and kissed Capella on the cheek, shocking her and making her blush.
"Rose!" Capella cried in surprise.
"You loved it" Rose said before leaving the room, Capella following.
Rose made her way over to the Quidditch pitch with her team happy to be playing. Malfoy seemed furious that Rose was going to be playing but with no other option he couldn't really do much.
With Rose on the team Slytherin's dirty tactics were once more reduced by a substantial amount. Despite the fact that the team were winning, their superior brooms were definitely helping but so too was the fact the Slytherin team was genuinely good when not giving away penalties for fouls.
Hufflepuff who had seen the game with Gryffindor had prepared for Slytherins raise in skill and less underhanded tactics were still struggling to combat their strength on the field.
The game was a good two hours of fierce play. Despite Rose hating that Malfoy caught the snitch she was happy that they had won and were now in the lead for the cup. For the first time Hufflepuff left the game feeling like it was a good match and a fair fight.
That night Slytherin celebrated their victory as a single house not one divided. The Slytherin party was quite a loud affair. It was a little strange watching pure blood wizards letting their hair down and having fun. One person who did not partake in the fun and games was Daphne who did not believe acting in such a manner was appropriate for a noble lady.
It was still early in the night when Rose bailed from the party wanting to lay down and relax in her bed. She was not too surprised to see Capella sneaking in and getting into Rose's bed.
"Hey I wanted to know. Why did you kiss me?"
"I don't know, It just felt right." Rose said, hugging Capella close.
"Did it bother you?"
"Nope. It didn't. It was just a surprise." The two seemed to think no more words were needed and just layed together wanting to be in the other's company.
As March turned to April with no unsettling events happening the castle was once again calm. Capella and Rose couldn't help but feel frustrated at not being able to locate the black book. They had even toyed with the idea someone had managed to destroy it though when Rose mentioned this to Sirius he seemed to think that the person behind this was just buying time.
The morning of April the first Rose and Capella, because she was sitting next to Rose , got a surprise invitation to Fred and George's birthday. They were apparently going to sneak out and have a party by the lake. Apparently the twins had a way of getting people in Gryffindor down to the lake without getting caught.
Harry had decided to lend Rose the cloak so she would be able to make it too. The cloak had been brought up a few times in conversation between Harry and Rose. Harry seemed to think that the cloak should be shared by them both but Rose felt this was impractical since they didn't share a house and insisted Harry keep the cloak with him. After promising to lend it to Rose whenever she wanted he agreed.
At eight thirty pm Rose and Capella huddled together under the cloak and made their way toward the lake. It was a little eerie walking around the lake when you couldn't be seen. The twins had decided that the far end would have the least chance oof being seen from the castle and when the two girls arrived near the designated spot they realised how right they had been. The lights that were blazing in the clearing couldn't be seen on the way down.
What surprised Rose the most was that there were plates upon plates of food sitting on tables along with pumpkin juice and another drink that Rose assumed was Butter beer though she had yet to try it.
As the two girls were taking in the party that had already started they were shocked when one of the Weasley twins plucked the cloak off them. Looking up shocked Rose stammered out "how?"
"The tricks of the trade young ones" one of the twins said.
"Of Course you're not ready for them yet." The other said.
Capella was suddenly reminded of the map her father had made. Could they have found it? Looking around she saw no parchment and decided they must have another way.
"Enjoy the party girls." One of the twins said.
"We should mingle" The other announced and with that the two left.
Rose was surprised to see Ginny hiding in a corner of the party. It was clear that she did not want to be seen so Rose put the cloak back on and snuck over to her.
"I am going to speak to Ginny, go mingle, I will come find you." Rose told Capella as she left.
Rose watched Capella move over to Harry and hug him before approaching Ginny. Being careful not to scare her, Rose announced her presence before removing the cloak.
"Ginny I haven't been able to see you in a long time"
"I am sorry I have just been busy with my studies. I can't seem to keep up with my workload."
"I have been worried about you." Rose moved closer to Ginny hoping no one would see them there since Ginny was clearly trying to hide.
"I didn't mean to make you worry, I'm fine really."
"You say that Ginny but you're hiding here. Can I keep you company?"
Ginny looked conflicted by the request but in the end nodded her head and looked at Rose.
"I have an odd request." Ginny said after a few moments of silence making Rose look at her and smile.
"What is it Ginny?"
"I haven't been sleeping well. Can I use your lap here where no one will see? Like Capella does?" Rose looked taken aback by the request and felt a little embarrassed by her asking. For a moment Rose wondered why she didn't feel embarrassed when it was Capella.
Rose, deciding to be nice, sat on the floor and pulled Ginny down with her. Blushing dark red Ginny moved into Rose and led on her. Rose could feel the awkwardness and blushed before stroking Ginny's hair like Capella liked.
Despite holding Ginny like she held Capella this felt different and Rose couldn't help but think about how Capella fitted better in her arms. This wasn't bad in any way but it was different.
Before Rose knew it Ginny was asleep in her arms. Rose smiled looking down at her and couldn't help but realise how cute Ginny was she wondered if this was the type of girl her brother would fall for.
The party was in full swing and Rose couldn't help but look over wistfully but she knew that Ginny needed this. Capella, who had noticed Rose's absence, had separated from the party and headed over to Rose, a plate of food in one hand and a butterbeer in the other.
"I see Ginny finally took my spot" Capella said when she arrived.
"You can have it back once she is well rested. I think she really needed this. Thanks for the food, I'm actually pretty hungry." Capella, seeing that Rose's hands were full, started feeding Rose food from the party.
A half hour later Ginny woke up and seeing Capella she blushed hard and left Rose's lap.
"I'm sorry, do you want her lap?" Ginny asked.
"You are fine to lay there Ginny. It was good to see you sleeping. Looked like you needed it."
Ginny smiled and shook her head.
"I should show my face at the party or Fred and George will worry." Without waiting for a reply Ginny disappeared into the party leaving Rose and Capella alone.
Now they were alone. Capella looked at Rose nervously.
"Downside to a party out here there are no toilets" Capella giggled.
"Plenty of privacy in the bushes though if you are desperate" Rose replied struggling to hide her laughter.
"I will hold it. Come on, your absence from the party has been noticed too."
The two girls returned to the party which was now in full swing. They enjoyed dancing, eating and playing games with the others in attendance. As the sun finished setting and the night set in, Professor Dumbledore came out and sent everyone to bed.
A special release for christmas 2022