Phoenix|| A Harry Potter Love Story

28

It was Thursday, and Harry's second to last detention had just finished. The last one would be tomorrow. He was not his normal self.

Harry stumbled into the common room, worry and the lack of sleep, written all over his face in the form of near-black eye bags and eyes that looked like they had the life drained out of them. Rosie sat on the couch watching him as he stumbled through the portrait hole. 

She waited for him, from very early on. She had seen him go to his detention, without saying goodbye to her. Usually, he said bye to her, let her know where he was going because they were always together. How strange was it that things had changed so much in the span of four days. They used to be so close, what was happening? So, she waited for him. 

"Hey Harry," she said, standing up from where she was sitting. 

Harry looked a little surprised. He didn't know what she was doing up, waiting for him,  but he suppressed the emotion, "Hi- I'm just going to head to my dormitory." 

"Harry." 

"I can't right now, Rosie. Not tonight." 

He tried to walk away from her, but she put herself in front of him, stopping him, "Harry you can't do that. You've been all kinds of strange this week. You have been so distant, and I-I don't know what is going on. You aren't talking to me. You always talk to me. Talk to me." 

Harry avoided her gaze, he couldn't look at her, "Rosie, I just- I can't." 

"I don't care, okay, whatever it is. If you've decided you regret our... moment. I don't care about that Harry. I care about you Harry, just please talk to me. I am so worried about you, Harry. Is something happening." 

He brushed past her, and her hand grasped his wrist, which he flinched at. He tugged his arm out of her grasp, and walked a few steps out of her arm trajectory before turning around, "Rosie, let's just talk later, okay?" 

Rosie watched him go up to the stairs to his dorm, out of her sight. Rosie was left in the common room, with her feelings and thought so questioning why he had flinched at her grab. 

Later that night, as she lay awake on her bed, her three dormmates deep in sleep, all she thought of was Harry. As usual. But, this time, it wasn't in a good light. In her mind, she replayed the moment, again and again, wondering why he had flinched. And that was when she realized. His wrist. 

—
The following morning, after little sleep from Rosie, she walked down the stairs to see Harry talking to Ron in the common room. Rosie walked up to the pair, and Harry caught eyesight with her as she walked over. 

"Rosie, about last night, I didn't me-" He started, as she headed towards them. 

She walked right up to him, ignoring the words exiting his lips. She grabbed his hands and shoved the cuff of his sleeve up his arm. On his wrist, she saw four lines spelling out I must not tell lies. 

Harry's eyes widened as she looked at the lines on his wrist, and as she tilted her head up at him. He shoved his cuff back down, with his eyes darting from side-to-side, making sure no one saw. He grabbed her hand and led her around a corner. 

"Rose, I-" 

She was so shocked, she couldn't hear most of what he was saying. She just noticed the dried blood and his handwriting. It was his own handwriting. 

"How?" She asked, "what-"

"Umbridge," He said, "She did it. She makes you write words in a 'special' quill." 

Rosie felt anger form in her gut, "I swear to Merlin- Ugh that Umbridge! Why on Merlin's white Beard would she- I've got to talk to that woman, make her pay or something-"