❝ you've got about as much
experience as a twelve year old ! ❞
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"FOR WEEKS YOU CARRY AROUND this book, practically sleep with it, and yet you have no desire to find out who the half-blood prince is?" hermione asked incredulously, as the four friends trudged through the snow.
"i didn't say i wasn't curious, and i don't sleep with it!" harry protested.
"i wouldn't be surprised if you did, to be honest." maeve shrugged, in agreement with hermione.
"it's true! i like a nice chat before i go to bed." ron stepped in with a nod. "now all you do is read that bloody book! it's like being with hermione."
"well, i was curious." hermione said, ignoring ron's remarks. "so i went to the library— and i couldn't find a reference anywhere to 'the half blood prince'."
"well there you go, that settles it, then." harry clasped his hands together, but stopped when he saw professor slughorn walking into the direction of the three broomsticks. "does anyone fancy a butterbeer?"
they loosened their scarves as they walked through the doors of the pub, the warmth from the fireplace hitting them almost immediately. there was a moderate hum of voices and laughter and harry led them over to a table that was just visible from the bar. "over here."
"something to drink?" a man asked.
"four butterbeers and some ginger in mine, please." hermione nodded politely, removing her jacket and sitting down next to maeve, opposite harry and ron.
"—i'll pay." maeve shook her head.
"no it's fine, i'll pay—" hermione argued.
"let me—"
"—oh, bloody hell." the red-headed boy interrupted with a roll of his eyes, tucking in his chair behind him.
"what's wrong with you?" maeve asked, putting her jacket around the back of her seat.
"slick git." ron mumbled, nodding towards ginny and an unknown fifth-year, who were talking quite closely in a booth in the corner. he was whispering into her ear, and she was giggling— their hands interlocked beneath the table.
"honestly, ronald, they're only holding hands." hermione sighed.
maeve cleared her throat, nodding back over to the couple again, who were now kissing.
"and snogging..."
"i'd like to leave." ron said defiantly, just as the waiter returned and handed them their butterbeers.
"you can't be serious?"
"that happens to be my sister!" he grunted, and there was the scrape of chair legs as he made his way towards their booth— maeve face-palming as he did so. "oi!" he called out, stomping towards them.
"what?" ginny frowned, after she and the boy broke apart.
"i don't want to find my own sister snogging people in public!"
"this was a deserted, private booth in the corner until you came butting in!"
the boy looked embarrassed, and shifted on his footing. "er... come on, ginny. let's go back to the common room."
"you go!" ginny snapped angrily. "i want a word with my dear brother!"
the boy then left, trudging through the pub with his hands in his pockets— still a bright shade of scarlet.
"right." the red-headed girl crossed her arms defiantly, glaring at ron. "let's get this straight once and for all. it is none of your business who i go out with, or what i do with them, ron—"
"yeah it is!" he interrupted, just as angrily. "d'you think that i want people saying my sister's a—"
"—a what?" shouted ginny, looking scandalised. "a what, exactly?"
"he doesn't mean anything, ginny—" harry butt in wearily, stepping between them.
"oh, yes he does! just because he's never snogged anyone in his whole life, just because the best kiss he's ever had is from our aunt muriel—"
"shut your mouth!" ron bellowed, turning a dark shade of red.
"no, i will not!" she yelled back. "i've seen you with fleur, hoping she'll kiss you on the cheek every time you see her, it's pathetic! if you went out and got a bit of snogging done yourself, you wouldn't mind so much that everybody else does it!"
"you don't know what you're talking about! just because i don't do it in public!"
ginny screamed with mock laughter. "been kissing pigwidgeon, have you? or have you got a picture of aunt muriel stashed under your pillow?"
"you—" ron whipped out his wand.
"harry's snogged cho chang! hermione's snogged viktor krum, maeve's snogged clover depraysie! and maeve and hermione have snogged each other, too!"
maeve and hermione were also red in the face after this, and spared each other a quick glance after realising that no doubt the whole of the three broomsticks was listening to this brother versus sister shouting match— it was impossible not to.
"it's only you that acts like it's something disgusting, ron! and that's because you've got about as much experience as a twelve year-old!" ginny grabbed her bag and slammed a galleon on the table to pay for her butterbeer, before storming off and disappearing through the door into the snow storm outside.
"alright, guys—" maeve awkwardly addressed the on-lookers. "drama's over now.. you can.. continue with whatever you were doing.."
"harry, my boy!" professor slughorn approached the table— he must have realised they were there from the commotion. he shook his free hand with the brunette boy's— his other hand grasping a pint.
"sir, wonderful to see you!" harry greeted happily. "what brings you here?"
"oh, the three broomsticks and i go way back, further than i could care to admit!" slughorn chuckled. "i can remember when it was only one broomstick!—" he accidentally spilled some of his drink onto the table, half of it sloshing onto hermione's lap.
hermione grimaced as maeve helped her to clean it up, grabbing a few napkins, before remembering the wiping spell professor flitwick had taught them. "tergeo." she waved her wand, briefly glaring at the clumsy professor— although, he wasn't paying much attention to them.
"listen, my boy, in the old days, i used to throw together the occasional supper party. for the select student or two. would you be game?"
"i'd consider it an honour sir!" harry nodded happily.
"and you'll be welcome too, miss granger, miss foster."
"we'd be delighted, sir." hermione put down her glass with a small nod.
"splendid! look for my owl!" he flashed them all a crooked smile and turned to walk away back towards the bar. "good to see you, wallenby." he said to ron.
maeve almost choked on her butterbeer throughout her amused snickers, and ron scowled at her. "shut up." he rolled his eyes, before turning to harry. "what in merlin's name are you playing at?"
"dumbledore's asked me to get to know him." the brunette boy shrugged.
"get to know him?" ron repeated incredulously.
"i don't know. it must be important. if it wasn't, dumbledore wouldn't ask."
hermione finished her glass of butterbeer, but unbeknownst to her, the foam from the surface had stayed on her top lip.
"you've got a bit of—" ron pointed to her lip, and hermione's cheeks went pink with embarrassment and she turned away to wipe it away— checking to see if maeve had noticed.
maeve did, but she knew hermione was mortified, so she pretended she hadn't— placing her hand on her thigh instead.
"I WARNED HER! i warned her not to touch it!" leanne screamed shrilly at katie's frail body that was sprawled across the frozen slush.
harry, ron, hermione and maeve looked up to see the two girls just a few feet away from them, and they hurried towards them through the sleet as leanne's screams grew louder.
suddenly, katie rose into the air, her arms outstretched, as though she was a dummy being pulled by an invisible string.
the five of them stood in shock, shaking in fear as katie shrieked loudly, her hair waving around in the cold winter air.
she then landed with a thud, back into the snow, her head writhing around as if she was having a seizure.
"get back! get back, all of ye!" hagrid yelled over the raging wind, moving towards katie. he scooped her up into his arms, before turning to harry, who was moving to investigate the package. "don't touch that! only the wrappings!" he bent down to move the brown sheet, revealing a strange-looking necklace.
when they got back to hogwarts, katie had been rushed to the hospital wing, and the rest of them sent to professor mcgonnagall's office for a brief investigation.
"you're sure katie did not have this in her possession when she entered the three broomsticks?" the gryffindor head asked leanne, who was still shaken up.
the sleet splattered windows were rattling in their frames. "it's like i said," leanne began. "she left to go to the loo, and when she came back, she had the package. she said it was important that she deliver it."
"did she say to whom?"
". . . to professor dumbledore."
"very well. thank you, leanne, you may go.." mcgonnagall breathed in. she turned to harry, ron, hermione and maeve. "why is it that when something happens, it is always you fiv—" she hesitated, thinking of levi. "you four.."
"believe me professor, i've been asking myself the same question for six years." ron mumbled.
professor snape raised the necklace with his wand, examining it carefully.
"oh, severus, what do you think?"
"i think that miss bell is lucky to be alive." snape said.
"she was cursed, wasn't she?" harry asked. "i know katie, off the quidditch pitch she wouldn't hurt a fly. if she was delivering that to professor dumbledore, she wasn't doing it knowingly."
"yes, she was cursed." mcgonnagall nodded.
"it was malfoy." harry added matter-of-factly, making the others' eyes widen.
"that is a very serious accusation, potter."
"indeed." professor snape agreed. "your evidence?"
"i just know."
"you just. . . know?" snape repeated mockingly. "you astonish with your gifts, potter. gifts that mere mortals can only dream of possessing. . . how grand it must be to be the chosen one..."
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lara speaks i changed ginny and dean to ginny and some random boy because we love deamus <3