After making it to your room, you tried to calm yourself down as best as you could. You just couldn't believe it. You have known Roger for years. He's never acted like this before.
It was already 2 am by the time you calmed down and processed everything. There was no use in even attempting to sleep. Instead, you took a long hot shower and cleaned your entire room, which took a while considering you were in a great amount of pain from earlier.
Once the sun began to rise, around 7 am, you quickly threw Fred's jumper on and changed out of your pink sleep shorts into grey sweatpants (that you took from Fred). You grabbed a book to read and slipped on your slippers before going up to the astronomy tower.
You breathed in the crisp morning air as you sat behind the railing and let your feet hang over the edge. You wrapped your hands around the cool metal railing and rested your chin on top of your hands.
Your eyes were fixed on the beautiful colors of the sky when an owl suddenly swooped down in front of your face. You clutched your chest and let out a sigh as it landed next to you.
"Scared the hell out of me," you grumbled as if the animal had any clue as to what you said.
You scrunched your eyebrows as you took the note from the owl's beak, wondering who it could be from. You looked down and smiled as the owl flew off. You immediately recognized Fred's sloppy handwriting.
You swung your legs up and twisted yourself around, leaning your back against the railing as you quickly unfolded the note.
"Good morning, love."
Your heart swelled.
You knew he surely wasn't awake yet meaning he must have written the note last night and instructed the owl to deliver it at a time he knew you'd be awake.
You smiled at the note one last time before folding it in half and tucking it safely between a random page of your book.
You found a warmer and more comfortable corner of the tower to sit in. You were able to read about half of the first page in your book before your mind began to wander.
You couldn't help but imagine how Fred would react once you told him what Roger did. You thought for a moment about not telling him but you knew you had to. You couldn't keep something like this from him especially if Roger is dangerous.
You pushed the thoughts away and continued reading.
~~~
You managed to read a few chapters before hearing a fair amount of noise in the corridor below, meaning people were heading down to breakfast.
You didn't even bother going back to your room to change. You simply joined the crowd of people and headed to the Great Hall.
Your eyes quickly scanned the room as you walked in. There was no sign of Roger. Your eyes landed on Fred.
When just moments ago you were excited to see him, the fear was now back. You pushed it away and made your way to the table.
From afar you could see that Hermione was in a mood and she seemed to be arguing with Fred.
"You look absolutely stunning this morning," Lee joked.
You gave him a little twirl before throwing your book on the table and sitting beside Fred.
"Doesn't she," Fred said in awe, immediately placing his hand on your thigh.
"What are you lot fighting about this early in the morning?" you asked Hermione as you turned to look at Fred.
Your stomach flipped seeing the wide-eyed grin on Fred's face. His smile was so infectious.
"'Mione here is on about our testers form," you heard George say although you weren't paying attention.
Your eyes were focused on Fred's lips. They were puffy just as they always were in the morning. His lips formed into a half-smile and your eyes quickly darted up to meet his.
"Morning, love," he cooed, placing a kiss on your cheek. "You get my note?"
"Good morning, Freddie. I did, I loved it."
You smiled radiantly at him and inched closer until your thigh was toughing his. You could tell that last night put him in a good mood. You've noticed that the two of you always seem clingier after having sex.
"I don't mind you two engaging in such acts," Hermione scoffed, "... but I would advise you not to place marks so obvious like that."
"Thanks for the tip, mum... I'll try and remember for next time," you replied sarcastically.
"Fred better," George said under his breath which made Lee burst into laughter.
"What ya mean?" you said through a mouth full of food.
Hermione leaned over the table slightly and ran her pointer finger across the marks on your neck.
"Fred!" you groaned. You didn't realize Fred gave you hickeys. You could hear Ron and Harry holding back their laughter and you gave them a side-eye which shut them up immediately. "What if he sees it," you whispered.
'He' meaning your father.
Fred's eyes went wide. "Shit- Sorry, I- It was a heat of the moment thing- I wasn't thinking." His face grew red and you let out a small laugh, knowing that he was scared of your father.
"It's fine," you huffed, still laughing slightly. "You just better hope I can find a way to hide it," you said, shoving a strip of bacon in your mouth.
Everyone at the table ate in silence for a moment before Fred cleared his throat.
"So, I was thinking we could go down to the pitch today. We could play our own game of quidditch."
"Ooo, yes! Okay, teams?" Lee said excitedly.
You weren't very interested in quidditch at the moment so you tuned them out. You stabbed at a potato on your plate and desperately tried to keep your eyes open. Fred squeezed your thigh and you snapped out of it, realizing that he was trying to talk to you.
"Huh?"
"Teams... For our quidditch game?" Lee said.
"Oh, sorry." You shook your head as if trying to shake your tiredness away.
"Hey, you alright?" Fred asked. His eyebrows narrowed and his eyes darted between yours as if he was trying to pick through your brain and figure out what was wrong.
"I'm fine– just didn't sleep well," you lied and took a sip of pumpkin juice from Fred's goblet.
"Do you wanna skip quidditch? We can do it another day," he said quickly.
"No, no– I'll be alright– What position am I playing?"
Truthfully you felt horrible. Your entire body felt sore from last night. That on top of getting zero sleep and still feeling anxious about what happened with Roger... All you wanted to do after breakfast was sleep.
"Y/n, you're a chaser if that's alright," Lee said.
You turned your head towards Lee and saw Roger limp into the Great Hall. You quickly jumped up from the bench, feeling panicked. You watched as Roger sat down at the Ravenclaw table and scowl at you.
"Y/n? What's wrong?" Fred asked quickly.
Your mind flashed to last night. The feeling of Roger's hot breath on your cheek. His body pressed against yours.
"Y/n, what's wrong?" you heard Fred say.
You couldn't breathe. It felt as though all of the air was stolen from your lungs. You panicked and ran towards the doors.
"Y/n!" Fred called out.
You made it just outside the doors when Fred grabbed your hand and pulled you towards him. You gasped at his touch which allowed you to finally take a breath.
"What's wrong?" he asked quickly. His eyes were filled with worry.
"Roger," was all you managed to say.
His face immediately filled with rage. "Are you still worried about what he did at dinner? Or-" he paused and took a breath in as if he knew what the answer was going to be. "... Or did he do something after you got back from the library?" he asked as calmly as he could.
You took a shaky breath. You didn't even need to answer. You could tell he already knew.
"I'm gonna kill him!" he growled.
"Fred! Please don't!" You tugged on his arm as he turned to go back into the Great Hall. He huffed and turned back towards you. "You are going to make it worse," you cried.
"What happened?"
Two Slytherin girls scowled at you and Fred as they walked out of the Great Hall.
"Not here," you pleaded as you watched them walk down the corridor.
"Fine." He grabbed your hand and guided you towards the courtyard. "Alright, tell me," he demanded as he threw open the doors.
You shivered as the cool morning air hit your skin. The few people that were scattered around the courtyard all turned their heads towards the two of you. Your face grew red from embarrassment as you lead Fred to an empty corner.
You took a deep breath as you leaned against the brick wall. The scene played out in your head again and tears sprang to your eyes.
"I was so scared," you whispered.
Fred's eyes softened. He grabbed your hand and pulled you into his chest. He threw his arms around your back and you let go of the breath you had been holding in. You instantly felt safe and warm in his arms.
"After I got back to the common room, Roger was waiting for me."
He tightened his grip on you as if at any moment you were going to slip away and never come back. You felt his heart rate increase... Or was that yours?
"He- erm-" you paused to take a shaky breath, "... he pushed me against a bookshelf and screamed at me. He-"
Fred didn't need to hear anymore. He quickly turned around and ran back into the castle. You followed behind as close as you could.
"No! Fred don't! I got away! He didn't hurt me!"
It didn't matter how much you yelled. Fred was blinded with rage. He doesn't get mad much but when someone messes with the people he loves, absolutely nothing can stop him from fighting back.
You now entered the Great Hall.
"Fred stop! You're just going to get yourself in trouble!"
You pulled on his arm, trying to hold him back, but he simply dragged you along with him.
"GEORGE! LEE!" you yelled out, desperately trying to get someone's attention.
Everyone at the table was all too busy eating to notice anything. Suddenly every eye in the room was on you.
"Help!"
Lee, George, Harry, and Ron quickly shot up and ran toward you. Luckily they grabbed Fred just in time.
"STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM HER! I KNOW WHAT YOU DID! STAY AWAY FROM HER!" he yelled as the four boys dragged him out of the room.
Everyone in the Great Hall, including Roger, looked around in shock.
You followed anxiously behind as Fred was dragged up to Gryffindor Tower.
"What the hell happened?!" George asked once you all were in the common room.
"You are not going back to Ravenclaw Tower," Fred fumed, completely ignoring George.
"I sort of have to... my room is in Ravenclaw tower."
"You'll stay with me," he said quickly. "In George and I's room."
"Fred- you know I can't- the school rules-"
"I don't give a DAMN about the school rules," he snapped.
You sighed and sunk into an armchair by the unlit fireplace.
"Is anyone going to tell us what the bloody hell is going on?!" Lee said, looking between you and Fred.
"It's Roger," you sighed. "After I got to Ravenclaw Tower last night he was waiting for me in the common room... he- erm- pushed me up against a bookshelf and sorta screamed at me."
"Sorta?" everyone said in sync.
"Did he hurt you?" Harry asked quickly.
"No, I hurt him actually... kicked his shin to get away."
Harry, George, Lee, and Ron all broke out into proud smiles. Fred on the other hand was now pacing in front of the fireplace.
"We should go talk to Dumbledore," Fred said suddenly.
"Oh yeah, and what is he going to do about petty teenage drama?" you scoffed.
"He's already removed Roger as head boy," Ron replied.
"Serves him right," George said angrily.
"Then we'll go talk to-" Fred began.
Everyone (except Lee) quickly snapped their heads towards Fred and he instantly stopped talking. Everyone knew he was going to suggest talking to your father. The only problem was that Lee didn't know who your father was and you wanted it to stay that way.
"Fred. Come on, mate." Lee placed his hand on Fred's shoulder which he quickly shrugged off. "Let's just go play quidditch."
"May help you feel better," George added.
"What would help me feel better is knowing that Davies can't hurt my girlfriend anymore!"
You jumped slightly at his sudden outburst which he seemed to notice. His shoulders dropped and he took a deep breath.
"Fine... Let's go play quidditch."
~~~
Quidditch didn't help at all.
Throughout the game, Fred was hovering only a few feet from the ground and hitting bludgers away from the stadium as you all actually played the game. After about 2 hours Lee decided to call the game.
Ron and Ginny were both keepers. Their determination to be better than the other caused us to get nowhere with the game... they blocked almost every quaffle that tried to go through the hoops.
Fred had been the first one to land. He tore his gloves off and angrily stormed off to the changing room.
You couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty for his anger.
Everyone changed out of their equipment and slowly made their way out of the changing room, leaving you and Fred alone. The two of you sat in silence as you changed back into your clothes.
You looked over at him and your heart ached. He was sat on a bench across the room with his back to you.
"I'm sorry." You were holding back tears and it came out as a whisper.
"For what?" he said calmly as he ripped off his shin guards.
"I- It's just- you were so happy this morning and now you're angry."
Tears stung your eyes. You wiped them away quickly and turned your face as Fred stood up. He unexpectedly placed his hand on your shoulder. You looked up and his expression immediately softened.
"Oh, love," he said softly.
He pulled you up and wrapped his arms around your back. You sank into his chest and let out a whimper. "I'm not mad... I'm just frustrated," he said as he pulled away and plopped down on the bench. You froze in the place you stood, pouting as he pulled away. "I'm your boyfriend yet I can't even protect you." His voice broke.
"Stop it!" you choked.
You didn't want him to feel this way. It wasn't his fault.
You sat beside him and grabbed his hand. He looked towards you and your heart broke. It looked as though he was going to cry at any moment.
"There was nothing you could have done," you assured him.
"If I hadn't made that stupid bet with you-" He shot up from the bench and grabbed his beaters bat. He tossed it in the bin and stared at the wall for a moment. "I would've taken you to my dorm," he continued. "You wouldn't have even gone to Ravenclaw Tower last night."
"There is no sense in thinking about the 'what ifs'- It happened- And the important thing is that he didn't hurt me."
"But you're scared, you shouldn't have to feel scared at school."
"It's not a new feeling," you said sadly. It was the truth. You've been scared almost all your life. "Plus this is Hogwarts," you chuckled. "We are surrounded by a bloody forest full of Godric knows-"
His shoulders dropped and he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I still think we should-"
"Go talk to my father," you sighed, finishing the sentence for him as you tied the laces of your shoes.
"I don't understand why you don't want to tell him."
"He's already got so much to deal with right now. We can handle this on our own... Just look at Harry, Ron, and Hermione... They've had to deal with Malfoy for years. Plus look at what my father did to the Malfoys!"
He stared at you for a moment as he thought it through. "Alright, fine," he sighed. "But if it gets worse we will be going to him... Or Dumbledore."
You agreed and quickly put the shin and arm guards you borrowed from Angelina back in her locker before turning back to Fred.
"I need to grab some things from my dorm if I'm going to be staying with you."
"Alright," he smiled.
His mood seemed to have lifted. You threw his sweater back on your body before you walked to the castle, hand in hand, and up to Ravenclaw Tower.
Fred stayed at the foot of the stairs to the girls' dorms. He wanted to climb the slide the stairs would have inevitably turned into if he even attempted it, but you assured him you would be safe going to your dorm alone.
You quickly packed away your school books in your bookbag and your clothes in your trunk. You also packed a few makeup items and hair accessories.
You walked down the steps to the common room, trunk in hand, just in time to see Roger swing his fist at Fred. Fred managed to move out of the way just in time and push Roger back.
"Stop!" you shrieked.
Your trunk clattered to the floor and you rushed to get in the middle of them, struggling through the crowd that had formed to cheer them on.
Roger's eyes instantly went to your trunk. All the items had spilled out when it hit the floor.
"Where you going?" he asked. His voice was filled with worry and confusion.
You looked at him for a moment with a mixture of shock and anger on your face. "You need to sort whatever the HELL is going on with you, Davies," you fumed, ignoring his question.
You dragged Fred away and he helped you put your things back in your trunk.
Once in Fred and George's room, you dumped your bookbag on the floor and quietly sat on the window seat as Fred made room for your clothes in his dresser.
"You're mad at me, aren't you?" Fred sighed as he sat next to you on the bench.
"No."
"I can tell when you are lying-"
"Fred I'm not mad at you," you said as you turned your face to look at him. "It's just-" you looked back out the window and wondered what to say. "Roger was so different when we wrote last summer."
"People change," he said sadly.
You knew he was thinking of Percy. You placed your hand on top of his knee to which he gave you an appreciative smile.
"Thanks for the drawer," you said, changing the topic.
~~~~
It was now Monday morning, your first day of classes.
"Morning." Fred's arms were wrapped tightly around you.
"Morning, Freddie," you smiled up at him.
"Morning, George," George mocked.
You threw the red curtains open and rolled your eyes at him.
"Good morning, George," you snickered as you threw your legs over the side of the bed.
"I thought you didn't mind y/n staying in our dorm," Fred sighed, propping himself up on his elbow to look over at George.
"I don't mind... just messing with you two," he snickered before walking into the bathroom and closing the door.
You stretched your arms out and laid back on Fred's chest.
"You slept through the night," he beamed as he ran his hand through your hair.
"I still have the dreams though... I guess I've just gotten used to them," you said, shrugging your shoulders.
George walked out of the bathroom a moment later, dressed in his robes. Without saying a word he grabbed his things and quickly left the room.
You scrunched your eyebrows and looked up at Fred.
"Been acting like this since last year," he said as if he could read your mind.
"We should follow him one day and see where he sneaks off to," you giggled as you got up and walked into the bathroom, being joined a moment later by Fred.
You both took a quick shower and dressed in your uniforms before going down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
You were handed your schedule upon entering the Great Hall. You and Fred read over them as you made your way to the table that Hermione, George, and Lee were sat at.
Your classes for the day are double Defense Against the Dark Arts, Care of Magical Creatures, and double Potions.
"Jeez it's 8 am and she's already cross," Fred whispered which made you laugh. From afar you both could tell that Hermione was arguing with George and Lee.
"Good morning," you smiled as you sat down.
"Y/n, will you please tell your boyfriend that he and George absolutely cannot advertise for testers on the Gryffindor notice board," Hermione huffed.
You shot your hands up and shook your head. "Hey I may be dating one of them but that doesn't mean I can control what they do," you laughed.
Fred and George exchanged a look and let out a laugh.
Hermione buried her face in her hands for a moment before lifting her head and looking between the twins. "No offense, but I can't wait till you two graduate."
This made the twins laugh even harder.
"Suprised they even came back this year," Lee snorted.
"We seriously debated it," George said as he took a few strips of bacon from the center of the table. Fred elbowed George in the side and he let out a small yelp. "Jeez sorry- I mean we weren't considering it at all," he said unconvincingly.
You knew they both hated school but you never thought they would consider not coming back once of age.
"I didn't want to leave you here alone," Fred quickly explained as he turned towards you.
"This is the worst Monday I've ever seen!" Ron whined he and Harry hurried towards the table.
You were sort of glad they walked in at this moment. You honestly didn't want to hear Fred's explanation.
"Look at today!" Ron groaned as he threw his timetable towards you. You caught it in mid-air and quickly scanned it.
He had History of Magic, double Potions, Divination, and Double Defense Against the Dark Arts.
"You can have a bit of Nosebleed Nougat cheap if you like," Fred said to Ron as he rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a Nougat.
"Oh yeah? And try having double Defense Against the Dark Arts be your first class of the day," you said, rolling your eyes.
"Cheers," Ron said, ignoring you, as he took the Nougat and sat down beside Harry. "Wait- why's it cheap?" he asked suspiciously as he turned the Nougat over and scanned it with his eyes as if it were dangerous.
"Cause you'll keep bleeding till you shrivel up, we haven't got an antidote yet," George said.
"I- I think I'll just take the lessons," Ron said as he pocketed his schedule and threw the Nougat towards George.
"I wonder what it's gonna be like," Lee said worriedly. "Class- with Umbridge."
"Horrible," you said plainly as you bit a corner of your toast.
~~~
You and Fred walked into Defense Against the Dark Arts class hand in hand. Professor Umbridge was stood squarely at the front of the room. You saw her eyes dart down to you and Fred's intertwined hands and she pursed her lips.
You quickly let go of his hand, not wanting to get on her bad side quite yet. Fred pulled a chair out for you and you sat down. The rest of the class slowly filed in and took their seats.
"Well, good morning!" she said after a moment.
Only a few people responded with a mumbled "Good morning."
"Tut, tut" Professor Umbridge said. "That won't do, now, will it? I should like you, please, to reply 'Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge.' One more time, please. Good morning, class!"
"Good morning, Professor Umbridge," you chanted along with the class.
"There, now," Professor Umbridge said sweetly. "That wasn't too difficult, was it?" At this, you turned to Fred and you both exchanged an eye roll. "Wands away and quills out, please."
Many students exchanged gloomy looks; the order 'wands away' meant this was going to be a boring class.
You shoved your wand back inside your bag and pulled out your quill, ink, and parchment. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, took out her own wand, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:
Defense Against the Dark Arts A Return to Basic Principles
You read the board and furrowed your eyebrows.
"We are bloody 7th years," you whispered to Fred.
"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?" Professor Umbridge stated as she turned to face the class.
She wasn't entirely wrong but you still felt annoyed at her statement. You thought about all the previous DATDA professors. Lupin was the only good professor DATDA has ever had.
"The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your last year," Professor Umbridge continued. "You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centered, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."
She tapped the blackboard with her wand again; the first message vanished and was replaced by:
Course aims:
1. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.
2. Learning to recognize situations in which defensive magic can legally be used.
3. Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use.
For a few moments the room quiet beyond the sound of scratching quills on parchment and Fred silently muttering "christ, should've gone with George's idea- Stuck doing this bull shit-" to which you couldn't help but laugh. When everyone had copied down the three course aims Professor Umbridge said, "Has everybody got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"
There was a dull murmur throughout the class.
"I think we'll try that again." Professor Umbridge said. "When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply 'Yes
"Y/n Stevens- there's nothing in this book about using defensive spells."
There was a small silence among the class that was soon filled with the sound of book pages being flipped.
"Using defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Stevens. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"
"Maybe not during class but-"
"We're not going to use magic?" Fred interrupted.
"Student's raise their hand when they wish to speak in my class, Mr. -"
"Fred Weasley," he said, raising his hand in the air.
"The whole point of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to be taught defensive spells," you continued. "Do you just expect us to be prepared for what's going on in the real world?"
"This is school, Miss Stevens, not the real world," she said softly.
"And we are 7th years who are about to be in the real world," you shot back. "How are we going to be ready for what's waiting-"
"There is nothing waiting out there, Miss Stevens."
At the start of year feast, you weren't quite sure how you felt about Professor Umbridge. You were now sure that you hated her.
"Oh yeah?" You said challengingly. You felt your anger reaching the boiling point.
"Y/n, don't," Fred whispered.
"Who do you imagine want's to attack children like yourself?" Professor Umbridge asked in a fake calm voice as she made her way over to stand in front of your table.
"Lord Voldemort."
The entire class gasped and a few let out a small scream, Professor Umbridge on the other hand didn't even flinch. She stood staring at you with a horrible satisfied expression on her face.
"Ten points from Ravenclaw, Miss Stevens."
The classroom was silent. Everyone seemed to be holding in their breaths as they stared at either you or Umbridge.
"You have been told that a certain Dark wizard had returned-" Professor Umbridge said as she slowly made her way back towards the front of the room.
"He has!" You said angrily. You gripped the edge of the table angrily.
"You have already lost your House ten points! Do not make matters worse for yourself!" Professor Umbridge said suddenly without looking at you. She took a deep breath in and regained her fake calmness. "As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark Wizard is at large once again. This is a lie."
"It is NOT a lie!" you yelled, jumping up from your seat. "Harry Potter saw him, he fought him!"
"Detention, Miss Stevens!" Professor Umbridge triumphed. "Tonight, 5 o'clock. My office."
You sunk into your chair angrily.
"I repeat, this is a lie. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means, come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about reborn Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page 5, 'Basics for Beginners.'"
Umbridge sat down behind her desk as everyone but you flipped their books to page 5.
Your mind flashed with the memory of Cedric lying on the ground. Tears sprung to your eyes but you quickly pushed them away.
Fred seemed to sense you were going to make matters worse for yourself.
"Y/n, please don't."
You ignored him and stood up.
"So, how do you reckon Cedric Diggory died?" you asked Umbridge, your voice shaking. It pained you to even say his name.
There was a collective intake of breath. One student even started collecting his things as if he were going to leave the class. You looked over and saw that it was Ernie Macmillan. Cedrics best friend.
"Cedric Diggory's death was a tragic accident," she said coldly.
"It was murder," you said and with that Ernie left the room. Umbridge simply watched him leave without saying a word and turned back you to. "Voldemort killed him, and you know it," you continued.
"Leave my class!" Professor Umbridge shouted suddenly. She blinked and seemed to regain her calmness once again. She turned to her desk, scribbled something on a piece of parchment, and brought it to you. "Take this to Professor Flitwick for me, dear."
You took the note from her hands and angrily grabbed your bag from the floor. You eyed Fred and he gave you a small smile.
"Why do you always pick fights with teachers on the first day" he mouthed.
You broke out in a wide grin and rolled your eyes as you threw your bag over your shoulder.
You walked out of the room, making sure to slam the door on your way out. You looked around at the quiet and empty corridor before looking down at the note.
"Y/n Stevens needs a talking to about disrupting class. - Professor Umbridge."
You snickered at the note. You grabbed your wand from your bag and held the parchment in the palm of your hand.
"Incendio."
You watched as the parchment burst into flames.
"Y/n?" you turned to see that it was Ernie Macmillan.
"Ernie," you said, feeling caught off guard. Tears were streaming down his face.
He turned away for a moment as if checking the corridor was empty and he wiped his face with his sleeve.
"I'm sorry-"
"I believe you," he said quickly. "About V- Voldemort."
You didn't know what to say. You gave him a sad smile and placed your hand on his arm. Something suddenly brushed against your ankle. From Ernie's gasp, you knew he felt it too. You looked down and watched as Ms. Norris ran down the corridor.
"We better get out of here before-"
"Get to class!" a stern voice said suddenly.
You grabbed Ernie's wrist and started running aimlessly through the castle. Your feet took you to the One-Eyed Witch passageway.
You turned to Ernie and gave him a mischievous smile.
"Fancy a trip to Hogsmeade?"
"I could go for a butterbeer," he smiled.
And with that, the two of you slipped into the tunnel and made the long walk to the Honeydukes cellar.
"It's locked," Ernie sighed as he attempted to push open the trapdoor.
"We can do magic outside of school now," you snickered.
Although it was dark in the tunnel you could tell his cheeks burned red.
"Sometimes I forget we're not kids anymore," he said with a hint of sadness in his voice. "Alohomora."
You lifted the hatch slightly to check that the coast was clear (which it was). You closed the hatch and checked the time on your watch.
"If we stay for about an hour and get back quickly we'll just make class after lunch."
"Sounds good to me," he smiled.
You both threw off your robes and attempted to make your appearances more casual before climbing out of the hatch and entering the dusty cellar. You and Ernie clambered around the boxes of sweets on the stairs and slipped onto the shop floor once the coast was clear.
"We'll go Hog's Head... They don't give a damn who you are or what class you're skipping as long as you buy a drink," you said as the two of you walked along the dirt road after leaving Honeydukes.
There were only three people in the bar including Gary (the ruffian-looking, yet very kind, bartender) and his pet goat.
One guy was passed out drunk in the corner of the room and another was holding a mug, liquid splashing everywhere, as he stroked the goat's fur.
"Hey Gary! Where's Abe?" you said, looking around for him.
"Off today," he said in his normal gruff voice.
You nodded as you rummaged through your pockets for money. "Can I get two butterbeers please," you said, placing 4 sickles on the counter.
He served them in two dusty mugs as Ernie chose a table in a quiet corner, lit only by a small dusty window.
You thanked Gary and carefully carried the overfilled mugs to the table. You sat and quietly sipped your butterbeer for a moment, looking around the room, reminiscing on all the times you, Fred, George, and Lee spent in here.
Once in third year you snuck out by yourself, stole Gary's goat, and brought him the whole way back to Hogwarts. Once you had shoved him through the passageway he ran all around the castle until Filtch eventually caught him 4 hours later. George, Lee, and Fred were so impressed that they let you plan the rest of your pranks for that year.
"So they really don't tell the school that you come here?" Ernie spoke, breaking you from your thoughts.
"Nope," you replied. "The twins, Lee, and I started sneaking out to come here in third year... Funny thing is the owner is Dumbledore's brother." You laughed but Ernie looked around as if someone from the school was going to barge in and take the two of you away.
"As I said earlier, no one here cares what class you're skipping as long as you buy a drink... which we've done," you said, raising your glass towards him. He raised his mug and you tinked them together before taking a sip.
It was quiet between the two of you again.
"We don't have to–" you began.
"May help... to talk about it," he shrugged as he lifted the mug to his lips and took a sip.
You hadn't talked about– or even thought about– Cedric all summer. You looked around awkwardly, wondering who was supposed to speak first.
"Cedric and I," Ernie spoke. "Well, we–" he cleared his throat. You smiled and nodded reassuringly at him. There was another second of silence as Ernie took a breath of relief. "I don't really know what we were. Last year we sort of got... close– well closer I guess– we've been friends since second year."
He took another sip of his butterbeer and sighed. "We made all these plans for our life... Ced wanted to visit America– Wanted me to come with."
"America," you smiled, wondering what it would be like.
"Talked about it non-stop," he smiled and looked off into the distance for a moment. "What about you? You and Cedric I mean."
You took a sip of butterbeer and set the mug back on the table. Your stomach turned and you no longer wanted the sickly sweet drink.
"Cedric and I were best mates first year." You twisted your bracelet as you spoke. "After second year we just sort of drifted apart. He found new friends and I did too... I always thought about him though. Sometimes I would see him in the halls," tears sprung to your eyes, "he'd be alone." You turned your face away and wiped your tears; not wanting Ernie to see you cry. "We only started becoming friends again after the first task."
"Ced talked about you a lot," he said solemnly.
You looked up in disbelief. "He– he did?"
"Mhm," he smiled. "I didn't know who the bloody hell he was talking about for a while before I finally asked one day... Kept calling you Mandrake."
Your chest tightened.
"We should probably head back," you said quickly, choking on the lump in your throat.
Without waiting for Ernie you stood up and scrambled out the door. Once outside, you took a few steps and put your hands on your knees in attempt to catch your breath.
"I didn't mean to upset you," Ernie said from behind you.
You whipped your head around and looked up at him. Your knees dropped to the ground and you watched as he knelt in front of you.
"I miss him. I miss him so much that it hurts," you cried.
"Me too," he whispered and placed his right hand on your shoulder.
Tears streamed down both your faces. At this moment you realized that you didn't have to hide your feelings from Ernie. You knew you could talk to him.
"Walking around the halls feels wrong. It's all wrong," he cried, knowing how you felt.
"Over the summer I started having these dreams–" you began.
You suddenly realized you were crying in the streets of Hogsmeade when you shouldn't be there in the first place. You quickly wiped your tears, looked around to see only one other person was around, and you stood up.
"I'm sorry," you said quickly as you stood up.
"Y/n, you don't need to be sorry," he said as he stood up. "You can talk to me about it... If– if you want."
If I'm being honest it's nice to have someone to talk to about everything."
You smiled as more tears threatened to form in your eyes.
"No, no, it's fine," you assured him. You looked down at your watch again. "We really should get going," you said worriedly.
You quickly walked back to Honeydukes and made your way to the cellar. Once in the tunnel, you and you and Ernie threw your robes back on and made your way back down the long tunnel.
"I've been thinking," Ernie spoke, his voice echoing off the walls. "After school, I think I'm gonna go to America... visit the places Ced wanted to go." You heard the smile in his voice and you smiled back. "Dumbledore talked about honoring his memory... I think this is it."
"He would love that," you beamed. "Cedric, I mean."
Ernie laughed and a peaceful silence fell upon the tunnel for the rest of the walk back.
Once you were back at the One-Eyed Witch passageway, you and Ernie both picked up your bookbags that you had left on the ground.
"Dissendium," you whispered and the Witch's hump lifted. You peered around and saw that the corridor was empty.
You climbed out and nervously bit at your lip as you looked down at your watch.
"Class starts in two minutes," you said as Ernie clambered out.
You and Ernie both quickly ran down the corridor towards your respective classes, yours being Potions.
"Thanks for the butterbeer!" you heard Ernie yell which was followed by his laughter echoing off the walls.
You smiled to yourself as you entered the Potions classroom and sat on the stool next to Fred. You shrugged the bag off your shoulder and looked down at your watch. You made it just in time.
Your father walked over and set a slip of parchment down in front of you.
"Detention?!" you sputtered, still trying to catch your breath from running to class.
"Another one?" Fred snickered. "Hey, where did you go? I didn't see you at lunch."
You looked up at your father to make sure he wasn't listening. "Ernie Macmillan and I went to Hogsmeade. We both just needed to get away... Talked about Cedric for a bit," you said, smiling sadly.
He placed his hand on your thigh and gave you a small smile. "I'm glad you talked to someone... "Hey, how is old Abe?"
"Wasn't there... It was Gary," you snickered. "Some drunk dude was petting his goat."
Fred snorted and clapped his hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing. Your father, of course, had heard and scolded him. You and Fred sat and listened quietly throughout the rest of the lesson.
~~~
"Are you sure you don't want me to save you some food?" Fred asked as you got ready to go down to detention.
"It's fine... i'll just go visit Mernie later," you said, assuring him that you would eat at some point although you knew you wouldn't have time.
"Alright," he smiled. "Tell her I say hello."
"I will," you smiled back before leaving Gryffindor tower.
You entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts room and looked around, remembering all the times you ran around this room when you were younger.
"Y/n! What are you doing here!"
Feeling startled, you turned to see Harry standing in the doorway of Umbridge's office. There was a sense of urgency in his voice.
"I-" you began.
"Ah, Miss Stevens, come in," Professor Umbridge's voice called from inside the office.
You walked past Harry and looked back at his worried expression as the door closed.
"Good evening, Miss Stevens."
You looked around the room and scowled. Everything was a disgusting shade of pink.
"Evening," you said stiffly.
"Sit down," she said, pointing towards a small table in the corner of the room.
The moment you sat down a blank piece of parchment paper appeared on the desk.
"You are going to be doing some lines for me, Miss Stevens."
Lines no longer seemed a punishment at this point as you were so used to doing them. Going on six years with the twins and Lee brought you a LOT of detentions. You were sure you could do lines in your sleep.
You sighed and went to grab your quill from your bag. "How many?"
"No, not with your quill. You're going to be using a rather special one of mine. Here you are."
She handed you a long, thin black quill with a sharp point.
"I want you to write 'I must not tell lies'" she said softly.
"How many times?" you asked blankly.
"Oh, as long as it takes for the message to sink in," Umbridge said softly. "Off you go."
She moved over to her desk, sat down, and started going through a stack of parchment. You looked around and realized she hadn't given you any ink.
"Ink?" you said plainly.
"Hmm?" she said, looking up confused.
"You haven't given me any ink."
"Oh, you won't need ink," Umbridge said. You swore you heard a slight laugh in her voice. She turned back to the papers.
You lifted the quill to the paper, although you were confused about not needing ink, and wrote: I must not tell lies.
You let out a shriek of pain and dropped the quill. The words appeared on the parchment in red ink. You looked wide-eyed at your left hand. The words disappeared from the paper and appeared on your hand, cut into your skin. Tears stung your eyes from the pain. The words suddenly healed over, leaving your hand slightly red and the words smooth as if etched into your skin forever.
You looked up at Umbridge and saw her smug smile.
"Yes?"
"N-nothing," you said quietly.
You now knew why Harry seemed so worried. You looked back at the parchment, placed the quill upon it once more, and wrote 'I must not tell lies.' You felt the searing pain on the back of your hand once more. The words, once again, had been cut into your skin and healed over a second later.
Thirty-five times. You wrote the words thirty-five times before Umbridge had you stop.
After about the twentieth time the words did not disappear from your hand. They appeared as a red scab that got worse the more you wrote.
"Come here," she said.
You wiped your tears, set the quill down, and walked to her desk.
"Hand," she said.
You held your hand out and she took it in her own. She ran her finger across the scab and you winced at the pain.
She smiled at the sight. "It seems I've made an impression. You may go."
Without hesitation, you turned around, grabbed your bag, and sprinted from the room.
Your feet took you to the Astronomy Tower. You climbed the stairs as tears streamed down your face. Your hand hurt like hell.
Once at the top you could see that someone was sat at the edge but couldn't make out who it was. You wiped the tears from your face and now realized it was Fred. You quickly pulled at the cuffs of your sweater to hide your hand.
"Freddie, what are you doing up here?"
You honestly weren't sure why you said this. It wasn't a surprise to you that he was here. He always was.
His head snapped around and he let out a sigh when he realized it was just you.
"Just needed to clear my head."
You sat next to him and dangled your feet off the edge. You rested your chin on the cold metal bar and closed your eyes, taking everything in.
"This year sucks." Your voice broke slightly which caused Fred to turn his face towards you.
He inched closer and you leaned your head on his shoulder. You looked up and stared at the half-crescent moon, letting out a shaky breath.
He placed his hand on your knee and rubbed it gently. "I know you're upset about what George said at breakfast, it's just-" he paused, taking a breath, "... I know school is your thing but George and I-" he paused again as if not knowing what to say.
"I know," you replied quickly. "... and I'm not upset about what George said. I know I give you two a lot of grief about your owls but I want– I need – you to know that I truly am proud of all you and George have done. I mean you two built a whole bloody business for yourselves."
He smiled brightly at you. "Speaking of the business– we've been looking in the paper almost every day for properties. We've found one we like... just have to close on it."
You pulled away slightly and you looked at him with an expression that was something in between shock and excitement. "Freddie! That's amazing!"
"We're hoping to have it by Christmas... have it renovated before we leave school."
"That's amazing!" you repeated. You were slightly in shock and didn't know what else to say. You squeezed his face and pulled him into a quick kiss. He smiled into it and you couldn't help but smile too.
"George and I will be running the shop and you can go to school for Astronomy... just like you've always wanted."
You narrowed your eyebrows and let out a slight laugh of disbelief.
"What?" he said quickly as if he was scared he had said something wrong.
"I just- I didn't think you knew I want to go to school for Astronomy," you smiled.
"Believe it or not I do listen to what you say ya know," he grinned and bumped your shoulder with his.
"I know that," you giggled. "I just– I guess I didn't expect anyone to remember small details like that about me."
"Small?" he said with his eyebrows furrowed, seemingly sad that you thought that way.
You shrugged your shoulders and looked up at the night sky.
Out the corner of your eye, you watched as Fred turn his body towards you, sitting crisscrossed. He parted his lips for a moment as if he were going to say something but then pressed them back together.
"I know that one of your favorite flowers is dandelions and you hate when people call them a weed."
"Freddie," you giggled.
"No, just listen."
You threw your legs up and sat crisscrossed, just like him, your knees touching his.
"Your favorite planet is Neptune." He said Neptune slowly and watched you for guidance in pronouncing it right to which you nodded your head ecstatically. "You don't have one favorite book because you feel bad for all the other books in the world that could possibly be your 'favorite'."
You laughed at this.
"See I know small things about you... Although I don't think they are small things because they are what I lo–"
You rolled your eyes at him and pulled him into a deep kiss.
"Love most about you," he finished breathlessly.
"Fine," you giggled. "I guess they aren't small things... but I doubt I'll even get into the school I want to go to," you sighed.
"They would be stupid to not accept you," he scoffed.
The two of you sat in silence, watching the stars, for a few moments when Fred spoke again.
"Y/n."
"Hmm."
"I've just realized something."
"What?"
"I don't know your birthday..."
You've never told anyone your birthday.
"How is it we've known each other this long and you've never told me your birthday?"
You cleared your throat nervously and threw your legs over the edge, sitting away from Fred.
"Not really that important- the moon is beautiful tonight–"
Fred let out a boisterous laugh. "Hang on! You are not trying to change the subject right now–"
You sighed and suddenly remembered you have detention with your father. You checked your watch and realized it was already 11:30.
"Shit," you mumbled, standing up.
As you stood, Fred grabbed your left hand. You winced in pain and he quickly stood.
"Y/n, wha–"
"I have to go."
"No." He grabbed your right hand to stop you from leaving. "Y/n." He tried to look you in the eye but you looked around everywhere but at him. He went to grab your left hand and you pulled it away. "Y/n!" he said insistently.
You bit the inside of your lip as you held your left hand out to him.
"'I must not tell lies?'... It was that bitch Umbridge wasn't it?"
"Well, technically I did it to myself..."
"What?!"
"She gave me some sort of quill–"
"We are going to Dumbledore about this."
"No! I am going to speak to my dad right now, Fred... It's not a big deal."
You weren't actually going to tell your father. You knew how he would be. Once you put ointment on it, you were sure it would go away rather quickly.
"Not a big deal?! Y/n... she hurt you."
You looked down at your watch. It was now 11:33.
"I really have to go," you said inching towards the stairs.
"I'm coming with," he stated.
"No– Fred, I'll tell him... I promise."
You cursed under your breath. You've never broken a promise.
He sighed. "Alright... I've got something in our room that will help heal your hand."
"I'll see you in our room," you said, turning to go down the stairs. You smiled to yourself at Fred referring to his dorm as "our room."
"What's the password?" he asked, making sure you knew it.
"Baubles," you called out as you walked down the stairs.
You entered your father's office and walked over to the door that leads to his living quarters. You knocked and there was no answer.
You entered anyways and immediately dropped your bag on the floor, rubbing your shoulder from the pain the heavy books caused you.
You looked around the room. There was no sign of your father. As you crossed the room the light shined over an item on the nightstand. Your curiosity got the better of you. You walked over and saw that it was a pocket watch... one you've never seen before. Just as you were about to pick it up your father entered the room.
"Why did you leave class earlier today?"
You quickly turned around, clutching your chest. "Christ! Scared me half to death," you sighed.
He was wearing night robes instead of his normal black teaching robes and his hair was pulled back. Like this, he was no longer a professor. He was simply your father.
"How do you know I left?" you huffed as you sat on the arm of a chair in the corner of the room and sunk onto the cushion. You crossed your ankles and hugged your knees to your chest, making sure to keep the cuff of your sleeve covering your left hand.
"Y/n," he grumbled tiredly.
"Got kicked out," you whispered.
He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he sat down on his bed.
"Got a detention too."
"The first day of school and you landed yourself a detention?" your father said angrily.
"Well technically two– you gave me one– father she is horrible!" you added at his eye roll.
"Why must you pick fights with teachers on the first day?"
The corner of your mouth crept into a smile. "Fred said the same thing."
"Last year it was Alastor Moody-"
"Barty Crouch," you corrected.
"You know what I mean."
"I don't mean to," you said quietly, resting your chin on your knees. "It's not my fault you gave me your anger issues," you scoffed.
"That doesn't excuse the fact that you ran off to Hogsmeade," he sneered.
"And how exactly do you know that I went to Hogsmeade?"
He gave you a side-eye for a moment before picking up the pocket watch you had noticed earlier. "After the London stunt you and Fred pulled, Ms. Weasley made me this... It tells me where you are at all times."
"There goes sneaking off," you mumbled to yourself. "Wait... does it tell you where I am in the castle?" you asked trying to hide your panic.
"Not in the castle... just when you leave the castle grounds. "
You let out a silent sigh of relief. You didn't need him knowing you were staying in Gryffindor Tower.
It was quiet for a moment. You lifted your head and turned to face him. "Lee thinks you and Sprout are secretly dating," you snickered.
"He what?!"
You snorted and burst out laughing. You knew this would lighten up the mood. "Do I have a detention or can I go to bed?" you asked as you swung your legs around and now sat in the chair properly.
"You may go... And tell Mr. Jordan that I am not dating Professor Sprout."
You laughed as you got up from the chair and walked over to hug him.
"Already told him... don't think he believes me though," you snickered. "Goodnight, dad."
"Goodnight, bug."