Folie à Deux

Chapter 5: Why Won't The World Revolve Around Me?

Chapter 5: Why Won't The World Revolve Around Me or, I Hate To Turn Up Out Of The Blue Uninvited

Rating: M mainly for language, and I can't discount any funny business later on

Disclaimer: I work with only what the infallible J.K. Rowling has given me.

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"Trust our Rose to bag a guy like Christian Goldstein," Gen said around the sausage in her mouth as they sat in the Great Hall on Monday morning.

Rose hastily looked around the quickly filling room. "Could you keep your voice down? I don't need every person at Hogwarts knowing about Christian and me."

Al cleared his throat from beside her. "You might want to let him know that."

Rose raised her eyebrows in confusion and swivelled around to see Christian plonking himself down merrily beside her.

"Morning, Rose!" he said, leaning in to brush his lips against her cheek. "You don't mind if I join you?" He shifted his attention to Al and Gen; they shook their heads as he swung his legs over the bench.

"I heard about you making Captain, Albus," Christian said, helping himself to some toast. "Congratulations."

Al swallowed, and waved his hand noncommittally, but he was sitting up noticeably straighter. "Oh, you know, it's no big deal." He paused. "Rose was telling us about your um....choir."

Christian flushed slightly. "I hope she didn't bore you," he said, smiling bashfully. "I can get a little impassioned about it."

Rose, to whom this was already abundantly clear, almost choked on her scrambled eggs as she tried to hide her snort.

Christian patted her back. "Alright, Rose?"

She nodded, painfully. "Just...uh....wrong pipe."

Christian grinned jovially, humming as he continued to fill his plate. "Did you two enjoy Hogsmeade?" he asked, focusing on the other two. "Rose said you were on a date?"

Al began to cough loudly as Gen began furiously cutting up her sausage.

"Well, I mean, not that you two were on a date together," Christian amended, looking slightly concerned at the sudden kerfuffle. "That would be the day, huh?"

Gen pulled her lips up into a smile, while Al said nothing.

"It was fine," Gen said, once she realised that the table was still waiting on an answer. "I had a great time with...Ben."

"I thought he was Swedish?" Al said, and then winced.

Gen went back to looking at her eggs. "Oh, yeah, he is. He just has a complicated name, you know, one of those....complicated Swedish names. Ben something or other."

Christian chuckled. "I dated a Polish woman once," he said, thoughtfully. "I think her name might've been Natalia, or something. Though it was a while back," he said to Rose teasingly. "No need to be jealous."

Rose shook her head, smiling.

"Though I've never heard of a Swedish boy named Ben in our year," Christian said, peeking around behind him. "What House is he in?"

Gen, upon noticing the blue prefect's badge sewn onto Christian's robes, stifled a groan. "Uh...Ravenclaw."

"Huh," Christian said. "You'd think I would know him."