𝐋𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 ;𝐑.𝐖𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐲

"I regret my life choices."

chapter dedication to SlytherinSilverRose :))
thank you for the read for read! go check out her harry potter books, i've only read one but it's amazing <33
congratulations on the completion of "Fixing Old Traditions" !!!

•••

Harry and Ron continued to fume at Hermione for the rest of the holidays, and by then even strong-willed Rachelle had given up and on making them talk. Instead she spent her time with Hermione in the library and Hagrid's when the boys were in the common room, sometimes visiting her father for hours at a time.

When lessons started, much to Rachelle's dismay, her friends were still not talking, and she was getting tired of it. She quite liked hanging out with the boys, even if she would never admit it to their faces. They had a sense of humor which Hermione did not possess.

Trelawney's lessons were miserable as always, she wasted no time in informing Harry that he had the shortest life lines she had ever seen. She also acted like she knew some deep secret of Rachelle's, for she kept giving the poor girl pitying looks much to the Lupin girl's displeasure.

She lost count of the number of times she scowled at her professor behind her shawl infested back.

At the end of DADA, Rachelle and Hermione were sitting at a bench nearby the classroom while Hermione repacked her bag, and Rachelle studied a undetectable extension charm for her bag.

"Still looks ill, doesn't he?' said Ron, as they walked down the corridor, heading to dinner. 'What d'you reckon's the matter with him?'
There was a loud and impatient 'tuh' from behind them. It was Hermione.

'And what are you tutting at us for?' said Ron irritably.
'Nothing,' said Hermione in a lofty voice, heaving her bag back over her shoulder.
'Yes, you were,' said Ron. 'I said I wonder what's wrong with Lupin, and you –'
'Well, isn't it obvious?' said Hermione, with a look of maddening superiority.

Rachelle's eyebrows drew together.

'If you don't want to tell us, don't,' snapped Ron.
'Fine,' said Hermione haughtily, and she marched off.
'She doesn't know,' said Ron, staring resentfully after Hermione. 'She's just trying to get us to talk to her again."

"Shit." Rachelle mumbled and rushed off back into the DADA classroom, Harry and Ron watching her curiously.

Rachelle burst into her fathers office and checked that no one else other than her father was in the room before speaking.
"Hermione's on to you."

•••

Harry and Ron came into the common room with the Firebolt, and it was passed around for ten minutes until Harry regained ownership of it and walked up to Hermione and Rachelle, both of whom were studying.

"I regret my life choices." Rachelle grumbled as she flips through her Divination textbook, searching for nonexistent answers.

Harry and Ron appeared and both girls looked up at last.

"I got it back,' said Harry, grinning at Hermione and holding up the Firebolt.
'See, Hermione? There wasn't anything wrong with it!' said Ron.

'Well – there might have been!' said Hermione. 'I mean, at least you know now that it's safe!'
'Yeah, I suppose so,' said Harry. 'I'd better put it upstairs –'
'I'll take it!' said Ron eagerly. 'I've got to give Scabbers his Rat Tonic."
He took the Firebolt, and, holding it as if it were made of glass, carried it away up the boys' staircase.
'Can I sit down, then?' Harry asked Hermione.
'I suppose so,' said Hermione, moving a great stack of parchment off a chair.

Harry looked around at the cluttered table, at the long Arithmancy essay on which the ink was still glistening, at the even longer Muggle Studies essay ('Explain why Muggles Need Electricity') and at the Rune translation Hermione was now poring over.
'How are you getting through all this stuff?' Harry asked her.

'Oh, well – you know – working hard,' said Hermione. Close to, Harry saw that she looked almost as tired as Lupin. Rachelle however, aside from her disgruntled expression, seemed perfectly fine.

'Why don't you just drop a couple of subjects?' Harry asked, watching her lifting books as she searched for her Rune dictionary.
'I couldn't do that!' said Hermione, looking scandalised.
'Arithmancy looks terrible,' said Harry, picking up a very complicated-looking number chart.
'Oh, no, it's wonderful!' said Hermione earnestly. 'It's my favourite subject! It's –"

"This, is definitely not my favorite." Rachelle mumbled, shoving the Divination textbook away. "Why in the world did I choose this stupid subject." She says angrily, throwing up her hands. "Honestly, it's useless."

Hermione nodded her agreement, still overturning the table in search of her book.

Harry never got to find out exactly what Hermione found so interesting about Athrimancy, because at that precise moment, a strangled yell echoed down the boys' staircase. The whole common room fell silent, staring, petrified, at the entrance. There came hurried footsteps, growing louder and louder – and then, Ron came leaping into view, dragging with him a bedsheet.

'LOOK!' he bellowed, striding over to Hermione's table. 'LOOK!' he yelled, shaking the sheets in her face.
'Ron, what –?'
'SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!'
Hermione was leaning away from Ron, looking utterly bewildered. Harry and Rachelle looked down at the sheet Ron was holding. There was something red on it. Something that looked horribly like –
'BLOOD!' Ron yelled into the stunned silence. 'HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?'
'N-no,' said Hermione, in a trembling voice.
Ron threw something down onto Hermione's Rune translation. Hermione, Rachelle and Harry leant forward. Lying on top of the weird, spiky shapes were several long, ginger cat hairs.

"Well, shit." Rachelle said in a hushed voice.

•••

a/n: IM SORRY ITS SO SHORT ;-;
the next chapter is a quidditch match so it seemed appropriate to do it in the next chapter and honestly, i'm just proud i forced myself to do this. it could've been worse.

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love you guys <3
-cheyenne