[Edited: 01/09/2016 - happy back to Hogwarts day!]
"It is a complete secret, so, naturally the whole school knows."
My mouth dropped open in shock. Dom came and stood beside me, and he mouth opened aswell, only hers disclosed a string of French profanities, too rude to repeat.
"Shit... who have you told?"
"You, James, Al and Fred – unintentionally, I might add, my parents - and look how well that went – Uncle Harry and Auntie Ginny, Malfoy and Hugh. Oh, and Teddy. I think that's everyone?" Replying to her took my mind off the fact that my life was now, irrevocably, absolutely, totally well and truly over.
"Well Teddy, your parents and Uncle Harry and Auntie Ginny can easily be ruled out, considering they're all in London right now. Personally, I think Hugo's a bit nice - "
I snorted, although I agreed that he wasn't the type to viciously backstab his own sister, especially since I hadn't done anything wrong in ages.
" - and Al wouldn't do anything like that. I can promise you it wasn't me which leaves..."
"James and Fred," I said grimly. "Speak of the devil."
Dom turned to see them standing a little way behind us, staring at the poster in shock. I knew they came in a pair, but I didn't realise that they were so joined at the hip. "I don't think it was them," she said, jerking her thumb at two of them. "They're good actors, but if it was their plan, they'd be behind the stall collecting money. They're very honest."
I hadn't even got that far down the poster. I scanned it quickly to discover that it also said it was one Knut per guess and guesses were unlimited. There were check sheets, on which you put your name and ticked off who you thought the father was. They were charmed in such a way that you could only tick one thing before paying more, to maximise income, obviously. It was ingenious, I couldn't lie, but it was also the bitchiest thing anyone had ever done to me, and I was disgusted.
Dom gritted her teeth on seeing these, although I was more interested in whom I'd supposedly slept with.
I picked up one of the sheets.
James Potter
Theodore Lupin
Frank Mclaggen
Angus Thomas
Scorpius Malfoy
Jack Finnigan
Albus Potter
Lorcan Scamander
Matthew Adams
Isaac Creevey
It was almost flattering that this anonymous bitch thought I had a chance with Jack Finnigan, aka the hottest boy in seventh year, and for that matter Teddy, who I'd probably always have a little crush on. I wasn't stupid though; they could only know the truth. Malfoy's name wasn't on there by accident.
Dom's eyes were practically slits when I looked back at her.
"Dom, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fantastic," she replied distractedly. I could almost hear her brain whirring. "I need to go and speak to someone."
"Er, alright. I mean, I'm going to have to break it to Malfoy at some point. I'm starving though - I want breakfast first."
"Yeah, fine, whatever."
We went down to breakfast in silence. I was furious but also horribly embarrassed. Dom was basically radiating anger. And then, in a morning that clearly wasn't already full of glorious ups, came another real highlight.
James and Al received identical red letters, just as the hall was truly beginning to fill. They weren't the loving brotherly type, but the looks they gave each other then, identical panicked expressions, shared more than they normally did with words. I felt sorry for them, I really did. Auntie Ginny was terrifying; if faced with a howler from her, I'd probably be wetting myself.
Lots of kids legged it when they got howlers from home, but James was staring at it easily, in the seconds he had before it erupted, the ghost of a grin on his face (although there was definitely fear in his eyes). He was enjoying all the attention, I could tell, and it would only serve as a reminder of how cool he'd been to have this idea. Al, on the other hand, looked reasonably sick over at the Slytherin table, the colour having flooded from his face. I caught his eye, and he smiled grimly.
Time seemed to have slowed down, as the whole student population began to silence.
And then the screaming started. I hadn't heard Auntie Ginny so angry since James 'accidentally' shaved Al's head with magic the summer before he started Hogwarts. He'd been in plenty of shit since then, but he hadn't had a properly reckless idea in years, which was the only reason that he'd made it through his education.
"JAMES POTTER," Auntie Ginny screeched, and I realised that she hadn't sent individual punishments; she'd sent the same twice, which only magnified her voice throughout the hall; it was deafening. She must be furious. Lily had sunk into her seat, further down the table from us, blushing as red as her hair. "A FLYING CAR. WHATEVER POSSESSED YOU TO STEAL YOUR GRANDFATHER'S CAR, AND FLY TO SCHOOL. IS THE TRAIN NOT GOOD ENOUGH? I'M SURPRISED THE CAR STAYED IN THE AIR WITH YOUR EGO FILLING IT. WHATEVER PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL PUNISHES YOU WITH IS ENTIRELY DESERVED, AND I CAN ASSURE YOU THEY'LL BE HELL TO PAY AT HOME ASWELL.
"AND DRIVING INTO THE GREAT HALL, JAMES. HAVE YOU NO RESPECT? YOU COULDN'T EVEN PARK IT QUIETLY ROUND THE SIDE OF THE SCHOOL AND SNEAK INTO YOUR DORMITORY, WITHOUT CAUSING TROUBLE? I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU.
"AND ALBUS, I'M FINDING IT VERY DIFFICULT TO COMPREHEND WHY YOU AGREED TO THIS STUPID, STUPID IDEA. OBVIOUSLY THERE'S NOT MUCH MORE WE CAN SAY TO YOUR BROTHER; HE CLEARLY DOESN'T HAVE TOO MANY BRAIN CELLS – " I sniggered, accidentally spitting out half my pumpkin juice. I loved it when Auntie Ginny accepted that her eldest son was truly a moron. " – BUT YOU'RE FAR MORE SENSIBLE, ALBUS. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN EXPELLED, OR EVEN KILLED. DIDN'T YOU THINK ABOUT ANY OF THE CONSEQUENCES? YOU'RE LUCKY TO STILL BE AT SCHOOL RIGHT NOW. I HOPE YOU'RE FEELING INCREDIBLY BAD ABOUT THIS, SON."
Al did look terrible. I was busy feeling sorry for him, until the letter turned on me and I remembered that as my godparents, Harry and Ginny were legally allowed to say whatever they wanted to me aswell, and seeing as my parents weren't trying too hard to look after Hugh and I right now, it probably was Auntie Ginny's job to yell at me. I hoped she'd remember that shock could force me into an early labour.
Maybe not at two and a half months pregnant.
Oh, I was in for it.
"ROSE WEASLEY. I CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY A SENSIBLE, CLEVER GIRL LIKE YOU WOULD FOLLOW A PLAN OF JAMES' LIKE THAT. YOUR PARENTS ARE VERY DISAPPOINTED – "
Don't try and guilt trip me Ginny, my parents aren't even speaking.
" – AND YOU'LL BE IN A LOT OF TROUBLE WHEN YOU GET HOME. I'M SO EMBARRASSED TO CALL YOU BOYS MY SONS RIGHT NOW. HAE A GOOD TERM."
The howlers exploded, and I dropped my toast, realising that my hands were shaking a little. She hadn't come down nearly as hard on me as the boys, but I was embarrassed, and people were already staring at me after this morning's events. And when she put it like that, I just felt bad. Even James looked a little subdued now, but I could swear that McGonagall was smirking a little.
"Potter, Weasley," she called, and eleven heads turned. "Sorry, I mean, the Potter boys and Rose." I blushed even deeper, so my face was now, in fact, redder than my hair. "Your fathers received a similar letter after they pulled a stunt like that. I think you've been embarrassed enough. I'm happy to cut all your detentions to three weeks."
James grinned. "Nice one, Professor."
"I'll miss you boys," she said genuinely, with a smile. "Hogwarts has had troublemaker duos since before I can remember. You're not the first, and I hope you won't be the last."
Fred high-fived James proudly, and the chattering started up again.
I finished my breakfast in silence, a dangerous combination of embarrassed and furious, which would be unwise for anyone to cross, then I hung around on a convenient window seat, waiting for Malfoy to finish his. I noted with little interest that the car had been removed from the Hall, and there was no visible damage, which was something I hadn't checked when we exited the car last night. He came out of the Great Hall alone, and I literally kidnapped him. I grabbed the neck of his robes and pulled him towards me.
"Malfoy, have you got a minute?"
"What the hell, Weasley?"
"Listen, this is really important. The whole of Gryffindor – and I suppose the whole school by now – knows I'm... you know –"
His face darkened. "That you're..."
"Pregnant," I hissed. "Yes." Somehow it felt important to own it around him.
"Shut up!" he exclaimed immediately, glancing round with a panicked expression. He grabbed my arm. "In here."
I didn't have time to protest – or to protest to myself that I'd literally just done the same thing to him – before I realised that he'd pulled us both into a tiny broom cupboard and slammed the door shut. I wanted to complain, but I realised the words came far easier when I couldn't see his face.
"Right," he began coolly. "What the fuck's going on?"
"Yeah, ok," I started, staring diligently at what I hoped was the wall. "I came downstairs this morning, and there's this gigantic poster in the middle of the common room – like where they put up notices when teachers are ill –"
"Weasley, I don't give a shit about its position! Cut to the chase!"
"Sorry. Yeah, there's this huge poster of my baby scan, and, like, a list of names of who I might have slept with..."
" – and?" he whispered dangerously.
"Well, I mean you don't come out of it too well," I replied. "And the person who put up the poster is making money out of people's best bets."
There was a sudden slamming noise above my ear and I jumped violently.
"Fuck. You couldn't keep it a secret could you?!"
"I didn't tell anyone, Malfoy!" I yelled. "You know what, this has been absolutely shit for me. I hadn't even told most of my family – until this morning. You're just on a list of about ten people, and one of them's Jack Finnegan, so if I'm honest, I hope he wins. On the other hand, it's my name right in the middle of that poster, and I didn't get to tell anyone myself."
Malfoy ignored this. "My father will slaughter me if this gets back to him."
"Well shit," I replied sarcastically. "Neither of my parents are talking to me. You said you were out. It doesn't have to be your problem. That's fine, if that's what you want. But you don't get it both ways."
He sighed loudly, and I felt his breath on my forehead. He was quite a bit taller than me. "Maybe it is my problem."
"Don't you get it, Malfoy? There is no 'maybe'! When did I get to say 'maybe'? You're in, or you're out, yeah?"
"Alright, Weasley, I get it! I know – I know this isn't fair on you, and I know I'm handling it really badly, but I don't know what to do!"
"Don't you find yourself in this position often?" I sneered.
"Yeah, good one," he replied sarcastically. "Listen – I'm sorry! I just – Maybe this'll..."
Something brushed down the side of my face. I flinched involuntarily, assuming it was a spider. A moment later, Malfoy's lips were pressed against mine gently. I realised it had been his hand on my cheek. His was a proper flirt.
I started to kiss him back, but then the extent of the situation hit me, and I was unexpectedly overwhelmed with emotion. My eyes filled with tears and they started to spill over onto my cheeks.
Malfoy pulled away in alarm. "Merlin's pants Weasley, are you – are you crying?" He lit his wand, and I finally became aware of how close we really were in the tiny space. I sat down heavily on a crate. "Can't say that was the desired effect."
"Listen, Malfoy," I began in a wobbly voice, sort of ignoring his joke. "This has been so horrible. No one gets it. All my cousins are sympathetic, but I can tell they think I've made a mistake. I mean, I definitely think I've made a mistake but – this is sort of preceding me. I'm just a stupid, pregnant seventeen-year-old now. And I thought – wrongly – that at least you'd be able to sympathise with that. Like, you were kissing me then and I thought – you know what, I don't know what I thought. I'm jealous that you can just decide to walk away from this, but I thought you'd at least be able to understand how it felt. But you don't, because you're already out, and it hasn't consumed your entire reputation, and it's not your whole life." I wiped at my eye with the back of my hand, regretting the makeup I'd thought it would be a great idea to waste time on this morning.
Malfoy looked really uncomfortable now. He also sat down, on an upturned bucket, at stared past me into the dim corner of the cupboard. "I wasn't thinking properly," he began. "I mean, I still –"
I cut across him. "Don't bother. I can't do this anymore."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, every time I update you, you just dither and complain and piss about. You haven't got an answer, and I don't think I want you to sound off on me as you try to work one out – there's too much at stake. Go and bitch about it to someone else. I don't want to be angry every time I talk to you – you're Al's friend. And I guess we got on well enough to sleep together. I mean, what I'm saying is, there might even be a friendship worth saving in here somewhere. So I'm giving you an ultimatum, ok? You've got two weeks. If you're out... I don't know, just owl me or something. If you're in – well, I guess we'd better start practising some civil conversation some time. I'm off now. I'd advise you hang around for a few minutes."
"Weasley, don't be stupid –"
I rounded on him. "I know you're not a child – I know you can make your own decisions. But this isn't just your decision to make, and I won't have you fucking everything up with all this uncertainty, alright? It's just not fair."
He closed his eyes. "I know. God, trust me, I know."
"So you should understand that I'm leaving you to it until you've got a permanent conclusion."
He sighed loudly. "Yeah. I guess so. I'm really sorry."
I shrugged. "Prove it."
With that, I shoved the door open with my shoulder and stalked out of the broom cupboard, far too wound up for Potions.
I found myself in the Owlery, fairly unsure about how I'd got there. I was staring out of the window absent-mindedly at the grounds. They were so beautiful. There was a fairly thick layer of snow covering everything I could see. Unconsciously I pulled my robes tighter around me. I didn't want Malfoy, or the person that was exploiting my mistake, or anyone to ruin my first day back after Christmas. I only had one more of these left - and I was sentimental as fuck. Everything that meant anything meant something to me, even the smell of owl poo. I ran a hand through my unruly hair (the cold seemed to have been an invitation for some of it to stick up), and shook myself out of my misery. I was going to go back downstairs, sort out the mess of makeup around my eyes and sit in the common room, enjoying a rare free period without homework, until Potions at ten.