It was dinner time when Rosie was beginning to figure out a way to approach Greer.
She really wondered if she needed more time to get it all planned out, wanting to choose her words wisely, along with giving Gavin the chance to speak to his twin. One thing Gavin understood better than anyone else was the way Greer was unpredictable at times, which was why Rosie had to be careful, especially if the subject was about Adam.
Over at the Slytherin table, while Gavin kept his head down and his mouth full of food, her eyes went to Adam, who was lifting his cup, staring at anywhere but Greer, who seemed to be enjoying herself as she laughed alongside some Slytherin girls that Rosie did not recognize. By the looks of it, Greer looked unfazed by everything else around her. This wasn't a surprise to Rosie, knowing how Greer could avoid any problems just by simply focusing her attention on other things, where Adam was more of the type to talk things out.
They were complete opposites, but maybe that was why they worked so well together.
Once dinner was over, Rosie hesitated to stand up from her seat. Her nerves began to start up with her hands getting a bit shaky, which she was hoping wouldn't happen.
Maybe I should take Adam's suggestion and not get involved, she thought.
No. She had to talk to Greer. This was not just about Adam. This was also about the questions she had been thinking about asking, and Greer was the one she trusted to give her the answers she wanted.
When she finally gathered up the courage to stand up, she focused on Greer's blonde hair, watching it bounce as she strolled out of the Great Hall with the other Slytherins. As she tried to keep up without bumping into other students in the corridor, Greer was heading down an empty corridor. Rosie made her way out of the crowd and followed her friend. At this point, she decided to tread lightly long enough to relax before she made her approach. So far, she didn't feel any less anxious.
But when she turned the corner, the echoes of everyone else died down and she realized that she was completely alone. Confused, she looked around for Greer, but she was nowhere to be found. Rosie sighed in defeat, spinning on her heel towards the way she came. But before she started walking in that direction, she let out a gasp, almost falling backwards.
"Greer," she breathed out, exhaling in relief. "You scared me."
The blonde girl snorted. "Yes, that was obvious." She was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face. "Just like it was obvious that you were following me the moment you left the Great Hall."
Rosie's face was already turning red in embarrassment as she nodded her head. "Yeah, I've never been good at being discreet."
"Again, very obvious," she stated, pushing her body off the wall. "Now, the question is, why were you following me so indiscreetly?"
The Gryffindor slowly made her way towards Greer, trying to not look so nervous. "I wanted to talk to you, that's all."
"About my argument with Adam this morning?" the blonde asked, raising her eyebrows.
She just about froze in place, her heart beating faster now. "How did you--"
"Oh, Rosie, you should know by now that nothing gets by me." There was a pause, then she continued. "Gavin also tried to talk to me about him as well, so I figured you'd do the same. I'm also going to assume that Adam most likely said something to you about it."
"He did," she admitted. "I told him I'd try and--"
"--talk some sense into me?" Greer finished. "Yeah, it's not like I haven't heard that before." She rolled her eyes, approaching Rosie. "I think we both know that I'll just hear the same things from you that my lovely twin brother attempted to drill in my head."
Rosie nodded her head. "Right. Well, you don't have anything to worry about, according to Adam."
Greer scoffed in response. "He keeps saying that."
"You don't seem convinced by his words."
The blonde girl merely shrugged. "Or maybe I just like to mess with him."
Rosie dropped her mouth. "Greer--"
"Relax, I'm just joking!" she laughed, playfully shoving her friend. "I just need some space, and I'm sure Adam does as well. We'll be over it tomorrow, don't worry." Once she waved off the conversation, huffing a sigh. "Anyway, is that all you wanted to corner me about?"
Okay, this is it. No turning back now. "Actually, I wanted to ask you about something else." Rosie paused as her nervousness was increasing, but she did her best to not show it. "I wanted to ask you about...well...about your lifestyle."
"My lifestyle?" Greer raised her eyebrows.
"Yeah, you know, being a part of..." she trailed off, losing her ability to finish the sentence.
The blonde let out a giggle. "I think I know what you're referring to, Rosie," she assured her. "What do you want to know?"
To her surprise, Rosie widened her eyes and continued on. "I mean, I'm just curious about--"
"--joining?" Greer cut her off.
Furrowing her brows, Rosie gave her a confused look. "What?"
"Oh, bloody hell," she muttered, huffing a sigh and motioning Rosie to walk with her. "Rosie, there's some things you need to be aware of before you even get that idea in your head. Most of these things concern you."
"Me?" she asked, puzzled at where she was going with this.
"Yes, you. Everything about the way we live isn't easy. Adam, Gav, and I have a lot on our plates now, and it's a lot of pressure." Greer eyed her friend, pursing her lips. "Which is why I don't think you have it in you to be like us."
Rosie was still confused. "Like you?"
"Like Death Eaters."
Rosie, unsure how Greer came to that assumption, went along with it, anyway, starting to think this really was a bad idea. "I mean, I could always surprise you," she stated, though it didn't sound convincing.
Greer snorted. "You tolerate all of the Muggle-borns and blood traitors in Gryffindor House. That's not very surprising to me."
She felt her blood boil at Greer's comment. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"It means you're too kind towards those that are supposed to be beneath us," Greer retorted. "I've seen the way you get all friendly with Longbottom, of all people."
"I'm just being nice," Rosie protested. Neville was a nice person. There was no point in being mean to him, especially since he was always so nice to her.
"But Death Eaters aren't nice." Greer paused, taking a deep breath. "There's a reputation they have to uphold, and if you can't even throw the occasional glare towards the Mudbloods--" Rosie couldn't help but wince at the word. "See? The way you reacted to me saying that word already says enough about you. Until you're ready to commit to this like the rest of us, I'd take a good look at yourself and figure out who you are and what you want before you get any more ideas in your head."
Rosie dropped her mouth open, mustering up some words to respond with. "But--"
"Look, don't take it so hard, yeah? As your best friend, I want to be honest with you." Greer then huffed a sigh. "I think we should be getting back to our dorms."
"Right," she merely said, keeping her head down, trying to not look so offended and hurt by Greer's words.
"Hey." Greer lifted Rosie's chin up so that she was facing her. "You know I care about you and I'm just trying to look out for you, right?"
Rosie nodded her head, giving her a small smile. "Yeah, I know."
Greer returned the favor with a smile of her own. "Good. I'll see you tomorrow, then." With that, she dropped her hand and spun on her heel, strolling down the corridor without looking back.
Rosie went at her own pace as she let Greer's words sink into her mind. As unexpected as this conversation went, Rosie was glad it happened the way it did, because maybe she needed to hear what Greer had to say to know exactly what kind of person she truly was, even if it was all over a misunderstanding. Her words sparked something inside her, letting a new and better motive take over. She just hoped it was enough to go her way and have a decent outcome. Otherwise, she would have nothing to fall back on, and in these uncertain times, the last thing Rosie wanted was to be alone.
A/N: Well, sorry for the long wait.
So things are slowly beginning to pick up, as well as we're seeing more of what Greer is actually like, especially with Rosie (thoughts on that?) and it'll get more interesting from here on out.
Anyway, comment, vote, more soon!
-A