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OVER THE COURSE OF the next few days, Albany discovered, to her disappointment, that Viola had been more than accurate in her predictions. She was getting asked to the ball left, right and centre, and it was becoming more and more difficult to turn each person away. She knew well that her anxiety over getting a date for the ball was incredibly stupid, given the number of people lining up to go with her, and so felt increasingly guilty with each rejection — but something didn't sit right with going with people she barely knew. She wouldn't be comfortable with them.
"So Fred asked Angelina," George was saying. "Naturally, she said yes."
He was walking Albany to Charms class, given he had a free period. She was looking forward to being done for the day; next week was all exams, so she had an extra week of holidays to enjoy. All that stood in her way was one final Charms class before the weekend.
"I knew it!" Albany exclaimed, and gave a triumphant fist-pump. "I was wondering how long it would take him. The two of them have been eye-fucking each other for weeks now!"
George chuckled, watching the shorter girl skip ahead with an extra bounce in her step. "You seem excited."
Albany whirled around, grinning at him. "I am! I'm really happy for them."
George raised an eyebrow good-naturedly. "They're not going out, just going to the ball," he clarified.
"Not yet!" Albany sang cheerfully. "Only a matter of time til they do."
"You think so?"
"I know so. Because I'll kill them if they don't," she said seriously. "It's so painfully obvious that they like each other."
George grinned. "I actually hadn't noticed until you brought it up that time."
Albany stuck her tongue out at him. "I thought you were the observant twin?"
"I am!" George argued, folding his arms defensively. "I was just... distracted."
"Oh? With what?" Albany teased, poking him.
She swore she saw his ears reddening. "Nevermind," he said nonchalantly, waving away the notion. "Anyway—"
"Hey Albany!" interrupted an unfamiliar voice, and Albany frowned immediately as she turned to face the approaching fourth-year.
"Do I know you?" she asked, her cheerful energy slowly fading.
The sheepish curly-haired Hufflepuff had clasped his hands together nervously. "Um, no? But — Wayne's my name, Wayne Hopkins — um, I was wondering if you'd maybe want to go to the ball—"
"No," Albany said, though bit her cheek at the crestfallen expression that crossed the younger's face.
"Why?" he asked, pitifully sad.
Albany sighed. "Because I said no, and you should respect that. Obviously."
"Right. Uh, sorry."
Albany exchanged a tired glance with George as the Hufflepuff awkwardly ran off again.
"Looks exhausting," George sympathised, rubbing her shoulder as they continued walking again. "How many people is that now?"
"Lost count," Albany sighed. "The whole dragon stunt impressed a lot of people, apparently."
"I'll say," George agreed, raising his eyebrows.
Albany groaned. "I had to tell one kid I already had a date so he'd bugger off. Then he just kept pestering me about who it was. I was tempted to jinx him. Surely Minnie wouldn't mind me helping her clean up a few more rooms on that list, right?" She laughed lightly.
George shrugged, smiling down at her as they approached her classroom. Professor Flitwick stood at the door, awaiting his students. "Probably not, though I'm sure she would rather you volunteer than do so via more detention."
Albany grinned in amusement. "Yeah, probably."
George scratched at the back of his head, looking a little nervous as they stopped outside the classroom. "Hey, Albany—"
But Albany's eyes were twinkling with mischief as she glanced between her professor and the redhead. "Hey, George," she countered, and stood on her tip-toes to whisper into his ear, "bet you won't ask Flitwick to the ball."
George's face had gone warm as her breath tickled his ear, but he glanced between the girl and the short professor, sizing it up. He was hardly going to back down from a dare, after all. "How much?"
Albany pondered for a moment. "Five Galleons," she decided.
He grinned, shaking her hand. "You're on."
Albany grinned to herself, standing back as George straightened up and fixed his robes. He approached the remarkably short professor with a cheesy smirk, leaning against the wall beside him.
"Mr Weasley," Flitwick greeted the redhead, suspicion heavy in his squeaky voice.
"Mr Flitwick," George returned with a nod, earning him a raised eyebrow. "Listen, you're a lovely little man, I'll keep it honest with you. And I've heard that your dance moves are unmatched — so what d'you say, huh? Me? You?" He mimicked the sway of a ballroom dance with his arms, grinning broadly.
Flitwick folded his arms, though seemed rather amused by the offer as he gazed up at the boy, shaking his head. "While I'm flattered, Mr Weasley, I would dare say you're a little tall for my tastes—"
"George Weasley!"
George and Albany were surprised by the angry cry, though upon spotting its source, Albany had to hold back her laughter. Fred was marching up the corridor with a comically furious expression on his face, an accusatory finger pointed at his twin.
"How could you do this to me?" he cried, bringing his hand over his heart. "You know how I feel!"
"You're just jealous I got here first!" George retorted, struggling to keep his expression angry as his good-humoured grin broke through.
Albany laughed heartily at the antics of the two, shaking her head in amusement as Flitwick attempted to appease them both. Even the small professor had to stifle his laughter as he stood between their argument, which had attracted a decent group of giggling onlookers. Among them were numerous students from Albany's class, peering out the door of the classroom curiously. Albany bit her cheek, smile falling as she spotted Faith in their ranks.
The dark-haired girl had stepped out of the Charms classroom with a few other students, though apparently not to watch the Weasley twins argue. Instead, her eyes were focused on Graham Montague beside her. Her mouth was moving as she spoke to him, too quiet to hear from where Albany stood, and one of her hands had grasped at the boy's robes. Unfortunately for Faith, Graham was paying her zero attention.
In fact, he was staring at Albany.
Albany blinked in surprise as she met the Slytherin's gaze, frown deepening while his smirk only grew. He pulled his arm out of Faith's grip and swaggered over, small eyes gleaming.
"Bronwen," he greeted her politely, shooting her a charismatic smile.
"Montague," Albany mumbled, glancing over his shoulder to the twins. They hadn't noticed her predicament, still fighting over who had the right to bring Flitwick to the ball.
"Listen, I'm gonna cut to the chase because I don't know how much time we have," Graham continued in his deep voice, glancing momentarily to the distraction the twins had made. "I think you're an amazing girl, and you need an amazing date for the ball. I could be that guy for you."
Albany folded her arms, frowning at him. "No, actually, I'm good."
Graham rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure you are." He dismissed her with a wave. "Look, this dance is a big deal. You can't show up with just anyone."
"Which is precisely why I'm turning you down," Albany snapped.
Graham's nostrils flared and he drew himself up to his full height. "I know you've said no to at least a dozen guys by now," he growled lowly. "What's the fucking issue? You bent or something?"
Albany glared daggers up at him, determined not to let him intimidate her. "The issue is it's none of your business and you won't fucking leave me alone."
Graham glowered at her. "Who you plan on showing up with then? Hardly alone... but maybe you are. Thinking you're so much better than the rest of us."
"Fuck. Off," Albany spat.
"Yeah, whatever, you're a waste of fucking time anyway," Graham snarled, curling his lip as he turned away and stormed back inside the classroom.
Faith watched him go, jaw tensing as he pushed past her. Her icy gaze snapped to Albany, resentment flaring in her eyes stronger than Albany had ever seen it, before she whipped around, fists clenched, and marched back into class.
"Alright, boys, that's plenty enough," Flitwick was saying, eyes twinkling good-naturedly as he managed to separate the identical Gryffindors. "I have a class to teach, if you'll excuse me."
Fred high-fived his brother, grinning broadly as they finally dropped the act. "Nice one, George, that was brilliant!"
George beamed at him, before turning to Albany, face alight with glee. "It was Albany's idea," he explained cheerfully, winking at the girl, and she managed a small smile in return as he approached. "By the way, I'll be waiting on my money."
Albany rolled her eyes in amusement. "I'll get it, don't you worry. You did ask him, fair and square."
George smiled at her. "Only joking, Al. You don't actually have to pay me, the fun was worth the effort."
Albany blinked at him. "It's okay, really, I said I would—"
"Miss Bronwen," Flitwick called, raising an eyebrow at the girl. "You're rarely on time to my class; I suggest the one time you are, you don't negate your efforts by talking outside."
Albany felt her cheeks blush with embarrassment, though Flitwick didn't seem too irritated with her. "Yes, sorry Professor." She turned to Fred and George, shrugging her shoulders. "Better go. I'll see you after class?"
"You know it," George assured her with a grin.
"See you later, Allie-gator," Fred teased, and she groaned at the pun.
"In a while, Ferdinand."
"Oh come on!"
Charms class dragged on far longer than usual as Albany took her seat, which was unfortunately still next to Faith. Her former best friend was in a sour mood unlike any Albany had ever seen before. In fact, the moment Albany spoke up to answer a question Flitwick had asked, Faith shot up out of her seat and stormed from the roon without another word. Flitwick had glanced curiously at Albany, but the girl had shrugged in response; she didn't know why Faith was all steamed up, and frankly, she didn't care.
More concerning was when an hour later the rest of the class was finally dismissed, neither Fred nor George were waiting for her outside. She didn't expect them to prioritise her over everything else, though the further she wandered through the halls without finding them, the more confused she became.
Naturally, she was approached by several more students, who she disregarded abruptly, eager to find the twins. Even Rita Skeeter managed to track her down in a quiet corridor of the school, still keen on getting the full scoop on the first task, but Albany shut her down immediately. She was pretty sure that Skeeter had been banned from the school grounds anyway, so however she was getting in, Albany wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of another interview.
And then of course, whenever she had a spare moment, came the ghosts. This time, apparently, to hassle her about getting a date to the ball. She wasn't sure of its relevance while she was searching for her friends, but Merlin and Arthur seemed to think it important, which meant that getting them to leave her alone about it would be challenging.
"Admit it," Arthur was saying, arms folded as he stared knowingly at Albany. "You want to go with the Weasel boy."
"Weasley," Albany corrected him.
"Weasley, whatever," Arthur grumbled, before clearing his throat. "Look, I can't tell them apart, but I know it's one of them. Just ask him—"
"No," Albany retorted, turning on him with a glare. "Are you crazy? I'm not doing that."
"Why not?" Merlin asked.
Albany rolled her eyes, because the answer should have been obvious to them. "Because," she iterated, "if he really wanted to go with me, he'd ask me first. What if he says no? I'd die."
"Well, that's a very stubborn perspective," Merlin remarked, and shrunk back at the fierce glare she unleashed on him. "Just saying. Who says the boys have to do the asking?"
Albany grunted in response, holding her books tighter to her chest.
"But you do admit it," Arthur said, a rather smug smile crossing his square features. "You like one of them."
Albany snapped her gaze in his direction. "I never said that."
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Come on, Albany, it's not something to be ashamed of—"
Albany fired a pencil straight through him, eyes blazing.
"Hey, that's extremely rude to do to a ghost," the blond chided her, sniffing indignantly. "But it's really not embarrassing, I'm serious. You're only young once, might as well enjoy it—"
"Drop it," Albany growled.
"—lighten up, get a boyfriend.... Though that said, I'd want to approve of him first—"
"I said drop it!" Albany snapped. "I will throw another pencil."
"Stop bullying Arthur," Merlin sighed, a hint of amusement on his tone. She rolled her eyes. "He's just trying to make a point."
"Well, he can keep his nose out of my personal business," Albany argued, fists clenched at her sides as she marched ahead. "He doesn't need to make a point."
Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Need I remind you that we're still on a quest to find your soulmate?"
Albany stopped in her tracks, pointing an accusatory finger at the ghost. "You said that was on pause."
"I meant we'll stop actively looking," Merlin clarified, holding his hands up defensively. "But if he — or she, or they — just waltz into your life, we can't ignore it."
Albany groaned. "Was that a ballroom pun?"
Merlin blinked in bemusement. "I mean, it wasn't intended like that."
She was spending too much time around the Weasley twins. "George isn't my soulmate, anyway."
"Aha! A name!" Arthur exclaimed triumphantly.
She glared at him. "You still can't tell them apart."
"True," he admitted, frowning.
Albany sighed, rubbing at her eyes before she continued walking. "Look, I don't like either of them. I just... would rather go to the ball with someone I'm comfortable with."
"Okay," Merlin said, "so just ask him."
She groaned. "Just ask him — as if it were that easy!"
"Isn't it?" Merlin asked curiously. "What's stopping you?"
"I don't know, maybe the fact that I'll make an absolute fool of myself." Albany gestured vaguely with her hands in a tired effort to convey this. She continued, before either ghost could protest this. "Look, I just... I can't. Now go, I'll talk to you later."
Merlin and Arthur exchanged glances, before they murmured their goodbyes and made their leave. She had spotted one of the twins leaving the Great Hall, and as she hurried over, smiling, identified him as Fred.
"There you are!" she said cheerfully, though her face fell at the boy's concerned expression. "You okay?"
"Oh, hey Allie," Fred greeted her with a vague acknowledgement, glancing around the entrance hall in bemusement. "You haven't seen George, have you?"
"No...." Albany's eyes knitted together in concern. "Why? Is he okay?"
Fred glanced at her worriedly. "Well, no, actually — he's missing."
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❃ a/n:
this book is now longer than harry potter and the philosopher's stone that is literally insane??!! how did i write a book that long???!!!! that is actually so crazy djsldjsksk
hope you're all enjoying ♡ big things coming i hope ;)
- A x