Sore Loser

An Explosive Meeting

You had decided earlier that you had to go to the library at 10:00PM. This could be the answer to all of your problems. You just need to figure out who has been writing those two notes to you. You still have a feeling it might be Roger, because how else would he know what that note said?

You have been reading for a while, and Marietta and Cho are still up, which makes you a bit nervous. If they notice you leave for the common room and don't come back for a while, they might rat you out. Or, at least, Marietta will. You know that Cho is still your friend on the inside, you just need to figure out how to get that to show. She needs to take to your side again.

Knowing that those two girls just love the I'm-Just-Gonna-Ignore-You game, you take the risk and get up, plopping your book on your twin bed and just straight walking out of the dorm room. You watch them out of the corner of your eyes as you do, and notice immediately that they quiet their voices to a murmur, and then they just stop speaking all at once.

Oh. The Common Room. You've forgotten that the Ravenclaw Common Room is almost always full of students. People who are finishing last minute homework, or people studying. Or reading. Or writing. Or anything, really. However, luckily for you, there is only one person in the common room, Charlie Chambers. (Quick A/N: In the books, they don't give this "Chambers" character a first name, so I gave him Charlie. Yes, I know that there is a Charlie Weasley as well, but let's face it, Charlie is a common name. I will also make up looks for him, as well. Anyway, carry on with your reading.)

He doesn't notice you're even there, that is until you step on the bottom stair of the staircase to the girls' dorms. It screeches quietly, but it seems loud because of the silence in the room. Charlie turns his head and smiles when he sees you. His dark blonde hair is cut a bit long, with it ending just above his shoulders. It's also very messy, almost as messy as Harry Potter's. He has dark blue eyes and freckles over his pale skin. Charlie stands to greet you, and he's tall, so the top your head would probably only go up to his chest.

"(L/N)." He says simply, looking down on you.

"Chambers." You automatically talk back.

"Why are you down here so late?" He questions. Wow, you never realized how tall he was when you two were playing quidditch together.

"I could ask you the same question." You respond smoothly.

"Homework. But I just finished. Alright, your turn." Charlie crosses his arms, unamused. You stay quiet, not really sure what to say. Obviously not the truth. Even if he isn't the most behaved Ravenclaw, he is definitely great friends with Roger. You haven't got a single quill or piece of parchment with you, so homework is out of the question.

"Go on then." He says louder, which snaps you out of your thoughts.

"Marietta and Cho won't stop talking, and it annoys the hell out of me." You say, hopefully convincing enough. He nods, sympathy subtly decorating his face. It's funny how no one thinks you deserve this hate from Marietta, but no one's actually doing anything about it.

"Alright, good night." He leaves, going into the boys' dorms. Okay, simple. All you have to do is leave...

This is going to be harder than you thought.

All of the possible problems flood into your brain. What if on the way back to the common room, you can't solve the riddle? What if you never make it back to the common room in the first place? What if your secret admirer is a Slytherin? Ugh, that would be absolutely terrible. Your imagination is running wild.

What if it really is Roger writing these notes, and he's just testing you? Maybe that's why Charlie was in the common room, to somehow signal him that you are coming? And at this moment, you wish you weren't so curious so you could turn back around. However, you reach out and open the door, stepping out into the empty corridor and letting it close softly behind you.

The hall is dark, and not a single sound reaches your ears beside your own breathing. You look left and right, knowing exactly which route would be quickest to get to the library. The first step is the most difficult, but once you take it, your feet move on their own accord. This is the same travelling path you take every time you go to the library, so you've had this memorized since first year.

It's 9:59 according to the clock on the wall of the library. You peek inside the library, not seeing anyone, or anything, out of the ordinary. There is some dust lingering on the shelves and in the air, but not a single thing is out of place. You jump when you hear a voice.

"(Y/N/N)? Don't you know you're not supposed to be out past curfew?" That voice. One that you've heard so many times before. The one that gives you butterflies. Fred Weasley.

You turn to see not only him, but also George. Could they ever be apart? "Yeah, and I know you're not one for rules." You sigh. You are trying not to be too hopeful. It can't be Fred. Oh, and how terrible would it be if George was the one who liked you. Imagine dating your crush's twin, knowing that he wasn't the one to like you. You couldn't say yes. Suddenly, your mood changes from hopeful to damp, and you take a deep breath.

"What are you here for?" You ask, although you doubt that they would tell you. You'll probably have to figure that out on your own.

"You'll see in the next minute or so." George answers, smirking slightly. Typical.

"And you? Most Ravenclaws prefer staying safe at night." Fred says, teasing you in return. But can you trust him? Even if he found out what you were here for, would his reaction be the same as when you had accepted Roger's date proposal? So many questions, it's almost getting boring. Almost.

"I...-" You pause and in that moment, the ground shakes and some loud noises erupt from across the corridor. Filch's office to be exact. Bright colors spring from that room, and fireworks make sparks fly, changing the tone of the room. The darkness is penetrated by the loud and sharp display. Your feet start to move. Get back to the Common Room.

But you're stopped. Someone's got a hold of your arms.

You take a look around and notice that George is running one way, the smirk from earlier still plastered on his face. You try to break free but Fred isn't letting go. The route you have to take to get back is being cut off by the fireworks, and soon Filch will be out.

"Fred! Let go! I have to go!" You whisper-yell, desperately trying to run. "We're going to get into trouble!" You look at him and see that he's completely calm.

"No, we won't." Fred laughs quietly. His grip loosens and he pulls you one way, the one opposite of where George went. A frustrated yell comes from Filch's room and he rushes out the door, holding a broom. You don't want to speak in case he hears you, but you know the still-booming explosions will mask the sound.

"Fred, what about-?" You look worriedly to where George had been.

"George? He'll be fine!" You glance at him and see that he's smiling brightly. How is he loving this? He's having so much fun and you don't know why. By now you are running too, not looking back anymore. Your (h/c) hair whips around your face and you feel like did when you were on the Quidditch pitch a week ago. Exhileration and nerves. But then, you're yanked through a door way, and then everything is quiet except for deep breaths of exhaustion.

Your eyes are closed, but you can hear Fred talk to you quietly. "It was me. Don't hate me." He whispers and laughs softly. It takes a second for you to realize what he is talking about.

"It was you." You breathe. It's obviously quieted down quite a bit outside, but you can't help but stay silent. You feel him nod and open your eyes. He's holding you tightly, so he can keep you from running. You're both sitting against the wall next to the door that he pulled you through seconds earlier. It's mostly dark in this room, but you can barely make out that it's an abandoned classroom. All chairs and desks are pushed to the edges of the room, along the walls.

"(Y/N), I just want to-" He tries to speak, but you cut him off.

"Stop. I hate you right now." You say, not sure yourself if you're being serious or joking. He seems to not know either, but he stays silent. You are seriously upset at him. He caused all of this drama, but yet, you are so happy it's him and not some weird creep. Despite telling him to stop talking, you have to ask him about everything. "So you wrote those notes?" He doesn't say anything.

"You can talk now, Fred." You sigh, exasperatedly.

"Yeah." He answers quickly. You both are silent, and you take a second to think about those fireworks, him running with you and yanking you into this empty classroom. Where even was George? Why in the middle of the night? You have so many questions, and you feel his hand on yours. This makes you blush. Thank goodness it's so dark in here.

"I'm not even sure what just happened." You say taking a deep breath again.

"I know, care for me to explain? Or do you still hate me?" He asks, that joking tone still in his voice. Okay, good; that means he's not mad at you for being mad at him, if that makes any sense.

"Please." You answer. And with that, he launches into a bizarre explanation. He speaks so easily about what happened that it seems almost rehearsed.

"So, I guess I've sort of started liking you." He starts and swallows. Well, duh. "So I thought it would be a good idea to make it a huge thing. Remember after the Quidditch game when we- George and I- ran into the Great Hall? We were cheering and laughing and then Filch pulled us out to give us detention." You nodded, the memory playing in your head. But what did that have to do with anything?

"We planted those fireworks that just went off one whole week ago. We set them to explode five minutes ago. And that parchment we showed you where only Gryffindors could read it?" You nod again. "We made a Ravenclaw version too. Madam Rosmerta was a Gryffindor in her years at Hogwarts. We gave her a note to give you a butterbeer, but it was anonymous. That way, you couldn't see what was written on the note. However, the part for you was written with the Ravenclaw ink. So, Rosmerta couldn't see what I wrote to you." You gasp.

"That's why it was so sloppy!" You say, a bit louder than a whisper. "You couldn't see what you were writing." You point out. He agrees with your statement. "That's why Roger could see the note too. He's a Ravenclaw. That's how he knew the poem." You mutter.

"What?!" You can hear his anger. "How do you know he knew the poem?" You blush from embarrassment, realizing Roger had tricked you into going out with him. What a prat.

"He recited part of it to me and said that he had written that note." You admit, and Fred's hand tightens on your hand. "I can't believe he would lie to me just to go on a date with me." You think out loud.

Fred shakes his head. "I can understand why..." You don't ask what he means, but then you watch as his eyes widen, as if he's forgotten something. "Here, want some candy? It's a new one George and I have been working on." You raise an eyebrow. That's awfully random.

"Why should I take it?" You ask, not fully trusting him.

"It's not gonna hurt you." Fred promises. From what you can see in the dark, his body language is proving that it won't hurt at all, but still. He's had a lot of practice lying in the past, so what you say next shows him you are quite doubtful.

"Really?"

"Would I go through all of this trouble to kill you?"

"Well, no. But-"

"(Y/N), I'll eat one to show you." Fred kind of sounds a bit annoyed, but not at you. He removed one hand from the hug he had you in and reached into his pocket, pulling out a purple sweet. He tossed it into his mouth, and after a bit of chewing, he made an overexaggerated swallow. You roll your eyes as he sticks his tongue out to show that he did, in fact, swallow it.

"Fine." You put out your hand and he reaches into his pocket, pulling out another identical candy. However, this time, the label sticks out and you read it swiftly before he even notices it.

Sleeping Sweets You put the candy in your mouth and stick it under your tongue, sure that he did the same. Why is he tricking you to fall asleep? Talk about untrustworthy. You give a true yawn, and close your eyes, hoping you're fooling him. If he thinks you've fallen asleep, then his plan could still be going strong. You want to see, or at least hear, everything that's happening. You loosen your grip on him and let your head rest against his shoulder, as if you had passed out. Minutes pass, or it feels like it. He pulls a strand of your hair, and you guess it's to make sure you're asleep. Then, a couple more minutes pass and you hear the wriggle of a doorknob and some light floods into the room.

  "What took you so long?" Fred whispers, and you can easily hear his twin respond.

 "Better late than early. Better late than never."

"Okay, I think it worked pretty smoothly."

"Yeah, by the looks of it, you knocked her out." George says, and you imagine that he is gazing at you.

"It wasn't easy. She was pretty sceptical." Fred replies. You feel yourself being lifted into the air. He's carrying you bridal style. Great.

"How'd you convince her?" George asks, and you hear and feel them walking although you can't tell which way. What if they get caught? If they are seen carrying you, they could get into a lot of trouble. It looks really bad, from what you're imagining.

"I had a candy that we hadn't put the sleeping charm on yet. I ate that to show her it wasn't dangerous."

"Nice." Even as they talk about it, you can feel the candy under your tongue, kind of melting a bit. It tastes a bit of strawberry. It's got a sweet taste to it, but not too sweet. You have to resist the urge to swallow it whole.

"I think we can pass this whole thing off as a dream." Fred tells him, and then pauses. "Also, thanks a lot, mate. You didn't have to help me out with this." He says. You can practically tell that George is smiling by the way he says this next sentence.

"Oh. I only did this because now you owe me." George teases, probably joking.

"Not because we're twins? Wow."

"Nope." They both laugh quietly.

"Well, I can help you charm Katie. By the time I'm done helping you, she'll beg for you to marry her." Fred said. It takes all of your strength not to squeal or smile. Does this mean that George likes Katie?

"I'd like to ask out Katie myself, thank you very much." George says. They finally arrive at where they were planning to, apparently. You hear a quiet squeak, like the chairs at the library. The Library.

"Okay, George. I think we can pass this off as a dream to (Y/N) if we just pretend it never happened."

"Agreed." You feel yourself being put down in a chair and your head is resting on your arms, which are on the table. It's like you'd fallen asleep at the library. You hear a book being slid off of a shelf and put on the table next to you. Wow, they're pretty clever, those two. You can't believe that they're staging you like this.

"You wanna kiss (Y/N/N) goodnight then?" George asks teasingly.

"I'm sure that that can wait." Fred says in return, and they both begin to chat as they walk away. Well, now what? You're not gonna risk being caught in the morning sleeping in the library. You have to go back to the common room.

The candy is liquid now on your tongue and you mistakenly swallow a tiny bit. Such a small bit of the candy contains a lot of that sleeping charm, and you already find yourself falling asleep. But, out of sheer will, you stand up and contain the rest of the candy in your mouth while you stumble until you get to the common room. Please don't be a difficult riddle, you plead as you stop. The door begins to speak it's riddle.

"What am I?" That's it? You can hardly think, let alone answer. Your eyelids begin to droop, and your legs begin to weaken with sleep.

"A question." You answer with the obvious, and thankfully it opens. You run inside, or at least try to. Your legs aren't working very well. You manage to get onto the couch before swallowing the rest of the liquidized candy. Them, all at once, you close your eyes and fall asleep for real.