Good Girl || George Weasley

27

When I wake up, I remember what today is, and a wave of nausea rolls over me so hard that I practically jump out of bed and run to the bathroom.

Once I'm sure that I'm not going to puke, I take a quick shower, changing into the outfit that I was given for today: a pair of tight, pocketless black pants, along with a long-sleeved blue and black shirt, our school crest on the front, and my last name on the back. I tie my hair up, sticking my wand through it for now, and take a deep breath as I study myself in the mirror.

You saw what you're going to be up against, I tell myself, you made up with George, things are going to be fine. Show them what you're made of. Show them you deserve to be a Champion.

With my heart feeling like it's going to pound of my chest, I make my way to Roger's room, knocking on the door, but one of his roommates answers, telling me that he left already, which is weird for Roger.

I decide not to question it, so I head down to breakfast by myself, not sure that I'm going to be able to manage to eat anything. The stares that I keep getting aren't helping, either, but I keep my chin up and try not to think too much about the fact that everyone's relying on me to win for Hogwarts.

For a split second, I forget about all of my stress as I lay eyes on the Gryffindor table, where I spot Fred, George, Lee, and Roger, who are all grinning widely at me, wearing matching blue shirts, the same color as Ravenclaw's house colors, and the same color as what's on my shirt.

"You guys-" I start to say as I approach, but Fred waves his hands at me as he and the others scramble up from the table.

"Look at this," he says, still grinning widely, and as they turn around, I see that they all have letters on their backs, so that when they stand in a line, their shirts spell CLEARWATER.

At least, that's the intention. Lee moves into the wrong place, so they're actually spelling CLEARTERWA, which Fred notices. He grabs Lee by the shoulders and pushes him towards the end, trying to get him to switch places with Roger, who's sporting the TER part of my name.

"You're on the end, dumbarse," Fred teases, before looking back at me.

I catch George's eye and grin at him. My heart flutters as he smiles back.

Man, did I miss that.

"You like?" Lee asks, "It was George's idea. Roger made them, though. Fred and I just supervised to make sure he didn't fuck up."

I laugh, shaking my head at them. I picked a good group of friends, didn't I?

"I do like. You guys are the best. Just make sure you stand in the right order in the stadium so that you don't look like idiots," I tease them, and Fred looks pointedly at Lee, who flips him off.

"Mr. Jordan," a voice says, and we all turn to see McGonagall approaching, but she has a small smile on her face. "Watch your hand gestures, or I'll have to give you detention next time, understood?" She looks at the boys's shirts, smiling still, before looking at me. "Good luck today, Miss Clearwater."

"Thank you, Professor," I say, my stomach turning again.

Once she walks away, towards the teachers' table, we all sit down again, the boys digging into the food. I grab a piece of toast, nibbling on the corner for a moment as Lee and Fred bicker back and forth before setting it down on my plate.

"You should eat," George says, quietly, from my right. I look over at him, to see him already looking at me, and my heart flutters again. I've got it way too bad for this boy, even if I shouldn't.

"I know," I say, because I do, but my appetite's just not here right now, "I'm just so nervous. What if I completely fuck up?"

"You won't. And even if you do, it's okay. You've got two other Tasks to get your footing, right?" he says, still keeping his voice down as his eyes search my face, "But you're one of the quickest thinkers I know. There's a reason you were picked as Quidditch Captain. You know how to make calls in stressful situations better than anyone. Just use that same mindset."