Hey guys, so I'm back! My tests went alright and I found a day where I had minimal homework so I managed to write this! Before you read this chapter, I do want to mention an amazing person, son-of-a-snitch, who made a beautiful cover for Rose Petals which is posted in their cover arts book! I really recommend you go check it out because I love it!
This book does have a new cover, however, and it is one that I actually made! It's not the best but I'm really proud of it and I wanted to show it off to you guys :) And the girl on the cover is a slightly older version of what I imagine Belle to be...
Now, onto the chapter!
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Belle, Lily, and Eileen walked arm in arm down the halls of Hogwarts, laughing and letting off steam. Christmas break was in exactly one week, meaning final exams and crammed studying occupied their afternoons. They had just spent the last four hours studying harshly for their potions exam and Belle's mind was fried. It was hard to believe she still had three other classes she needed to study for that Saturday. Lily had finally begun to hyperventilate when they had decided they needed a walk outside the stuffy common room.
"Honestly Lily, you can't expect me to believe that!"
"It's true, I promise!" Lily giggled, letting go of their arms and spinning to one of the columns facing the courtyard. "Professor Slughorn told me—"
"I don't want to hear it again!" Eileen covered her ears.
"I think it's sweet..." Lily giggled, "Who would've ever thought-"
Lily cut herself off as a group of people revealed themselves at the end of the corridor. They were all eerily quiet, talking in hushed voices and casting glances over their shoulders every once and a while. It was a group of Slytherins, among them some familiar faces, but there seemed to be younger and older members trailing around as well. Lily frowned when she noticed Snape near the back of the group. He was talking to Aris LeFou, someone Belle had surprisingly never talked to. Belle caught her friend's gaze and tugged on her arm, pulling the three of them into the courtyard and away from the group.
"He's becoming more distant..." Lily sighed. She had lost her pep almost immediately, all signs of laughter gone from her concerned face.
"Wasn't he always?" Eileen frowned.
Lily had been complaining about Snape's lack of openness to Lily for months now, but it seemed as if it had gotten worse recently.
"He hasn't spoken three words to me this week—I swear, it's like we're not even friends!"
"Snape is going towards the wrong path, Lily, it's not your fault."
"Yea," Belle agreed, "I heard he joined them."
"Them?" Lily frowned. She assumed it was another wizarding world thing, something she never really knew about due to her going back to the Muggle World every summer.
"The one's who want to follow You-Know-Who," Eileen whispered, glancing over her shoulder, "There's been rumors of a group planning to join him after Hogwarts."
"Really?" She gasped.
The two girls nodded.
"My grandmum says that everyone who's pure-blooded is being hunted down to join."
To say Belle was nervous was an understatement. Her family had been strictly pure-blooded for centuries, and if You-Know-Who was to come to anyone, it would be her family. Lily glared at the floor, seemingly deep in thought. Belle and Eileen shared a glance, not sure of how Lily was interpreting this new information.
"You don't...You don't think...Severus would join, would he?"
There was a moment of silence in which none of the girls knew what to say. None of them really understood what was happening with the Death Eaters and none really knew where it would lead, but the most they could do was hope for the best.
"I mean—there's a chance that he won't. He's not pure-blood, right?"
Lily nodded.
"Then he might not join. But he is in Slytherin and—"
Belle cut in, "Just because someone is Slytherin does not mean they are evil, Eileen."
Eileen glanced at her, baffled by her sudden outburst.
"What's changed your mind about them?" Lily raised a brow, "Since now you've despised Slytherin just as much as everyone else in our house."
"N-nothing, it's—nothing," Belle stuttered, crinkling her nose. She couldn't help but think of how kind Gaston had been, did he really deserve her animosity?
Eileen shook her head as the three entered the castle again. The snow had begun to seep through their clothing and they were all growing increasingly uncomfortable, so they decided to go back to the dorms. On their way back, they ran into Sirius, Remus, and Rose, who all walked in a tense silence.
"Hey guys!" Belle grinned, falling into step next to Sirius who threw an arm around her shoulders. They had become much closer the past few weeks and had taken a liking to always being around one another. Their friends constantly complained about their public kissed and the puppy-dog eyes they would share but everyone could tell that they were happy. "Where's James?"
"He's with Burgus," Remus smiled softly, but Belle could tell it didn't reach his eyes.
"Burgus? Why?" Eileen frowned.
"Training—Burgus wants him to be captain next year."
"Swell for him, then," Sirius huffed, moving his arm down to Belle's waist. She nudged him, shaking her head at his obvious jealousy. Sirius was just as into Qudditch as James and yet James got all the attention and fame for it.
As Sirius, Eileen, and Rose drifted into a conversation, Belle turned her eyes to Remus who was still intensely frowning at the floor. He was oddly quiet as they walked as well, more so than he normally was. She could tell something happened, but just what happened was still a mystery to her.
"You alright, Rem?"
He glanced up, a look of panic in his eyes before they faded back to a nervous neutral.
"Of course, you?"
"I'm alright, yea..." She trailed off. Not even a minute later did he return his stare to the floor.
"If you ever need to talk, I'm here, remember?"
He nodded sheepishly, but cut the conversation there as they had reached the portrait.
"Nobs," Rose giggled, speaking aloud the strange password for the common room that week.
"What an odd word that is..." Belle grinned, and the group all murmured in agreement. How good it felt to be happy.
— — — — — —
Belle sat alone in the library, trying her best to focus on the work at hand. She had a long Potions essay that was due tomorrow that she had yet to study for and she was driving herself mad trying to make it perfect. End of the term essays were worth a quarter of her grade and she'd be dammed if she didn't get an O.
She scribbled the next line of jumbled words onto her parchment that already had two holes in it. She didn't get to finish the sentence, however, as the tip of her quill snapped into two, leaving a scratchy broken point. She let out a frustrated huff, pushing her books away and leaning her head onto the table below.
"Need this?"
She peeled her head from her arms, spotting a familiar yet strangely uncomfortable face. It took her a second to realize who she was speaking to was not her old friend but his Slytherin twin brother.
"Rylen," She greeted, narrowing her eyes at the boy before her. He'd never talked to her before, not even when her and Aiden had been regularly hanging out, so why now? "Rylen Roulle."
"That's my name—don't wear it out." He winked, taking the seat across from her. She leaned back into her chair, trying to distance herself as much as possible from him.
"Did you need something?"
"Actually, I think you needed something," She raised an eyebrow, her eyes traveling to the quill in his outstretched hand.
"Thanks..." She gingerly took the quill.
"You're Belle Roux, right? You're friends with my brother?"
"Mhmm."
"He talks about you all the time, you know. I think he has a bit of a crush."
Belle narrowed her eyes for what seemed liked the hundredth time in that moment. She and Aiden hadn't talked this whole school year, why would he have a crush on her?
"What's your deal, Roulle?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, why are you here? Did someone put you up to something?"
"Can't I just offer a pretty girl a spare quill?"
"No."
He laughed, shaking his head as he ran a hand through his hair. In all honesty, just like Aiden, Rylen had a dorky kind of attractiveness to him.
"Fine—you caught me. I wanted to see who this Belle Roux was that everyones been talking about lately."
Belle rolled her eyes. "Well now that we've met, you can go. I have to finish this." She motioned towards her paper. Aiden scoffed, shaking his head in a tantalizing manner.
"Why so hostile? What have I ever done to you?"
Belle faltered, not really thinking about why she was being so rude. Rylen had never spoken to her before, and he wasn't one of the Slytherins that always messed with the Mauraders, nor had she seen him ever openly be cruel to someone. She thought about agreeing with him, but her pride didn't let her and she ended up blurting out the first thing she could think of.
"You hang out with Snape, and I don't trust Snape."
"That's like saying you don't trust Aiden because he's my brother, right?"
Belle glared at the boy who had managed to twist her words. She didn't like being outwitted, especially by someone who she had never spoken to.
"Listen, I don't know why your talking to me, but if you and your little Slytherin cronies are planning something, then you might as well forget it. I'll always have my friends to help me, and you do not want the Marauders to be mad at you- trust me."
Rylen stared at her for a moment, scanning her face for any sign of a break in her valiant facade. He nodded slowly, scratching the back of his neck. The corners of his mouth pulled up as he stood, walking around to her side and bending down to whisper in her ear.
"We aren't planning anything, I was just being nice. Maybe you should learn to be nicer to other people, because when you find out, you're gonna need some new friends."
"Find out?" She scoffed, "Find out what?"
"Why don't you ask your loyal Gryffindors? Maybe they've been keeping more from you than you think..."