Alexandra Weasley: Book 6

16

"I know you don't really like me and you think I'm an idiot, but I would really like if if you could at least pretend to respect me in class."

"I do respect you." She said. He looked skeptic. "You think I don't know that you should've won the competition? I only won because you tripped a surprise booby trap. And I could only protect myself from the fire because I once happened on some whispering peppermint. And I know the garden mainly provided us with the same ingredients but it did also give us access to ingredients we've worked with in the past. It wasn't even a level playing field. So I won by chance and it should have been you. And I get that. You're more experienced and older and I do respect that."

"I-what?" He looked confused.

"And I get the revenge thing. I get that you want to get justice for your family. I respect that too. And you know what you're doing in class. So in a professional and sometimes personal capacity, I do respect you."

"So you don't think I'm an idiot?"

"I definitely think you're an idiot. Just an idiot that I can respect. I also respect that you're here to fight. I just think you're doing it wrong. You're willing to die to defeat him. That's how we unnecessarily lose good people. Because they have no will to live. They're willing to be martyrs and there are already way too many deaths for the cause."

"So, what do you suppose I should do?"

"Honour your family. But don't go into this willing to die. Fight to live. I'm not saying to be ready to betray everyone. Just have something to look forward to."

"A better world isn't enough?"

"No one's that altruistic. You need something personal."

"What do you look forward to?"

"Magical farm." She said with a small smile. "Is that all? I'll try to tone down my Alexness, as Hermione calls it. I'm just going through some personal stuff and I cope by being rude."

"I hope things get better." He said. "I also heard you're making felix felicis."

"I'm attempting it."

"I wish you the best of luck. And you won the competition fair and square. You adapted to your surroundings. I rushed in headlong and didn't take into account any surprise traps. You didn't win by default. Trophy's yours." He said earnestly. She smiled.

A few hours after the first quidditch match of the season, Alex heard someone approaching her and the unicorns, crying. She looked up in concern and saw Hermione appear amongst the trees.

"Hermione!" She shot up, worriedly. Hermione tried to quickly wipe away tears. "Hey, what's the matter? What did Ron do?"

"You were right." Hermione said. "About Ron. About me."

"What did my brother do?"

"Nothing he wasn't entitled to. Except... I don't know." Alex pulled Hermione down to sit beside her and put an arm around her shoulder. "I blame you. You and Cedric made it look so easy. You liked him, he liked you, you had cute dates in Hogsmeade and the forest and the vanishing room. You made it look easy."

"Are you forgetting the beginning? I didn't know he liked me. He didn't know I liked him. Then I went away to another country- another continent. And then I came back and it wasn't until a year later that he asked me out."

"Cedric was perfect." Hermione said.

"Then my grandfather ordered his death."

"Then that happened." Hermione agreed. "He was snogging Lavender. Just there. For everyone to see. And I know, technically, I'm just a friend and it shouldn't bother me but it bothers me and I was practicing my spell work and conjuring birds and he came in and she was giggling and then he acted like everything was normal and then I was going to leave but I saw her and I got angry and I sent the birds after him."