Chapter 17
Two days had passed since Victoire and Teddy had left, two days since Rose's ultimatum to Alice, two days since Hugo and Louis had told their families they were together, two days since Wednesday, the last day for Alice to explain everything to Albus.
The day's classes had ended, the afternoon had passed, and Quidditch practice had just finished. Everyone was in the Great Hall having dinner.
They were all engaged in lively conversation, except for Alice, who had her head in the clouds and wasn't eating anything. She couldn't eat; her throat was tight, and her stomach was closed.
She grew tired of playing with her food and turning over in her mind what she was about to do. If she didn’t do it, Rose would, and everything would be worse if it came from Rose. It had to be her.
She abruptly stood up from the table, drawing the attention of all her cousins.
"Everything alright, Alice?" James asked as he lowered his glass of pumpkin juice.
"Yes, yes, everything’s fine," she lied. "If Rose or Lily ask about me, tell them you don’t know anything." The boys nodded, confused.
"You never existed," Fred joked, pretending to zip his lips shut.
"Thanks, guys." The boys returned to their conversation, and Alice nervously walked toward the Slytherin table.
As she walked, many began to follow her with their eyes, mostly the people at the table she was heading toward. She felt watched but ignored it.
Neither Scorpius nor Albus had noticed she was walking toward them. Alice reached Albus and Scorpius, who, to her misfortune, were sitting at the center of the table. She gently tapped Albus on the shoulder. He turned to see who had called him and froze when he saw it was Alice. Their gazes locked for a few seconds, and Albus forced himself to look away. He was doing everything he could to forget her, and looking into her eyes didn’t help.
"Albus, can we talk?" Alice asked timidly.
"No, Alice, we can’t. There’s nothing for us to talk about." Albus wanted more than anything to talk to her, but he wasn’t going to let her hurt him again.
"Albus, please, let me explain," Alice spoke as quietly as possible, not wanting to draw attention.
"Alice, you don’t have to explain anything. It’s already very clear to me that you hate me," Albus said coldly.
"Mate, I think it’s best if you let Alice speak." The day before, Alice had told Scorpius why she had treated Albus the way she had and asked him to help in case, as she suspected, Albus refused to listen to her.
"Please, Albus," Alice begged.
"Alright, I’ll listen to you."
"In private." Albus stood up without even looking at Alice and began to walk out of the Great Hall. Alice followed behind him. They arrived at the Astronomy Tower.
"What’s going on, Alice?" Albus asked sharply.
"Albus, I’m sorry. I never wanted to hurt you." Alice’s eyes were watery, and those words made Albus even angrier.
"IF YOUR INTENTION WASN’T TO HURT ME, YOU DID A VERY BAD JOB OF TRYING NOT TO," Albus shouted.
"Albus, I thought it was best for you," Alice tried to explain.
"AND WHO ARE YOU TO KNOW WHAT’S BEST FOR ME? DID YOU THINK THE BEST THING FOR ME WAS TO TELL ME YOU HATED ME? WHAT SENSE DOES THAT MAKE? AND WHY DO YOU WANT TO EXPLAIN IT NOW? WHAT’S THERE TO EXPLAIN?" Albus unleashed every question swirling in his head.
"If I don’t tell you, Rose will, and I’d rather be the one to tell you." Alice took a breath and added, "I’d prefer you didn’t know at all, but Rose didn’t give me a choice." Albus looked at her, confused.
"ALICE, GET TO THE POINT. WHAT’S GOING ON? WHAT POSSIBLE EXPLANATION COULD YOU HAVE?" Alice knew she deserved the way Albus was treating her, but it still hurt.
"Albus, I... I..." She stopped talking.
"I KNEW IT. YOU HAVE NOTHING TO SAY." Alice started getting angry. "Alice, you know what? I don’t want to hear it. I’m fine. I already know you hate me, there’s nothing more to explain." Albus began to walk away, and Alice finally snapped.
"ALBUS SEVERUS POTTER WEASLEY!" Alice shouted. Albus turned around, startled. Alice rarely yelled, but when she did, it was for something serious. "I DON’T HATE YOU, I DIDN’T HATE YOU, AND I NEVER WILL. I REALLY LOVE YOU, AND BECAUSE I LOVE YOU, I WANTED YOU TO HATE ME, TO DESPISE ME, SO THAT YOU WOULDN’T CARE ABOUT ME ANYMORE..." Alice yelled.
"Alice, what you’re saying makes no sense. Why push me away if you love me? I’m not falling for this again. There’s no way to explain it." Albus interrupted and began to walk away again.
"I HAVE CANCER, YOU IDIOT. I WANTED YOU TO HATE ME AND WISH ME DEAD SO THAT IF I DIE, YOU WON’T SUFFER, BECAUSE I LOVE YOU AND I DON’T WANT TO SEE YOU HURT." Alice shouted all at once. Albus stood still, processing the information, and after a few minutes, with tears in his eyes, he ran to hug Alice.
"Alice, I’m so sorry," Albus said, still holding her tightly.
"I’m sorry too, Albus," Alice said as tears rolled down her face as well.
They stayed in each other’s arms for a few minutes, as if their lives depended on it. After pulling apart, Albus was the first to speak.
"I could never hate you. Yelling all those things at you was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. I’m sorry," Albus said sincerely.
"I think Rose was right. Pushing people away doesn’t help. I’m sorry too; I thought it was for the best." Alice lowered her head, ashamed.
"Hey," Albus said, lifting Alice’s chin with his hand. "It’s alright, it’s over now." A few more tears escaped down Alice’s face.
"Albus, I'm so sorry," Alice repeated.
"Relax, you don’t need to apologize anymore. We’re even," Albus replied with a gentle smile.
Alice gave a small smile in return. "Al, do you think we could get back together?" she asked hesitantly.
"Is that even a question?" Alice smiled wider. "Of course, nothing would make me happier." Albus looked at her up and down, then added, "But please, don’t ever break up with me again."
"That’s not in my plans," Alice replied, making Albus smile as they both began walking back to the Great Hall, his arm draped around her.
"Alice, you’re not going through this alone."
"Thank you, Al," she whispered as they entered the Great Hall. Their entrance caught the attention of many curious students, as they had left fighting like cats and dogs but returned together, with red, puffy eyes. What had happened?
Alice insisted that Albus sit at the Gryffindor table. Let anyone come and tell him off if it was that big of a deal.
"I’m back," Alice announced as her stomach growled. "And now, I’m actually hungry." Everyone stared at her, confused.
"What changed, Alice?" someone asked.
"Some things got resolved," Alice said while sitting down next to Rose. She leaned in and whispered, "You were right." Rose just smiled.
"Come on, bro, sit down already. No one’s going to say anything," James encouraged Albus, who finally sat down next to Alice.
The rest of the dinner went by peacefully, with only a few curious glances from others. At one point, Rose asked Hermione if there was any rule against students from different houses sitting at each other’s tables. Since there wasn’t, she got up and sat next to Scorpius at the Slytherin table to keep him company.
At the end of the meal, Dumbledore stood and called for everyone’s attention.
"Good evening, students," he said, silencing the hall. "I have a few announcements. First, regarding the students we’ve received from the future. I want to let you know that the arrangements for their return to their time took less time than expected, and they will be leaving next Monday." Nobody reacted; everyone knew it was inevitable that they would return to their time. "Secondly, to bid farewell to our future guests, and thanks to an idea from the prefects, we will be hosting a farewell ball." The hall buzzed with whispers. "Quiet!" Dumbledore called, and everyone settled down. "The ball will take place on Sunday and will be a formal event, organized by the prefects." The excitement in the room grew. "That is all. You may go." The Great Hall began to empty, and Alice and Albus waited for Rose and Scorpius before leaving.
"I see you two made up," Scorpius said as he approached.
"Stating the obvious, as always," Albus replied.
"Guys, could you excuse us for a moment?" Rose pulled Alice aside.
"Did something happen, Rose?" Alice asked, concerned.
"Are you okay?" Rose asked, her eyes filled with worry. Alice nodded. "I’m sorry for pushing you so hard," Rose said, a bit embarrassed.
"It’s fine. You were right. It helped to say it." Alice noticed that Rose still seemed a bit down. "Rose, really, I should be thanking you. You helped me realize what I needed to do." Rose looked at her for a moment, then pulled her into a hug.
"Come on, let’s go back," Rose said as they returned to where Albus and Scorpius were waiting.
"How about we take a walk by the lake?" Scorpius suggested.
"Nice try, but by the time we’re back in our time, there won’t be a single spell you know that I don’t," Rose teased.
Scorpius rolled his eyes. "It was worth a shot. Don’t worry, redhead. One day, I’ll beat you."
"In your dreams," she laughed as Scorpius draped his arm over her shoulders.
"So, will you go to the ball with me, redhead?" Scorpius asked, knowing her answer.
"Of course," Rose replied casually.
"And you, Miss, would you do me the honor of attending the ball with me?" Albus asked Alice.
"Not fair! I was going to ask you," Alice mockingly complained. "But yes, I’d love to."
Rose and Alice accompanied the boys to their common room and then headed to theirs.
Alice went to her room and lay down, reflecting on the events of the past few days and what her life would be like when she returned to her own time. Everything would be different.
Rose, meanwhile, went to her room to practice a spell. She had seen Scorpius cast a spell she had never heard of, and since she couldn’t stand not knowing something that Scorpius did, she had been researching and practicing on her own. She was determined to master it. After a month of searching, she still hadn’t figured it out. That night, she had asked Scorpius about it, and he had sworn she wouldn’t be able to do the spell but had told her how to try anyway. Rose was determined to prove him wrong.
Now, in her room, she followed Scorpius’s instructions to the letter. But nothing worked. She knew Scorpius had explained it right because the instructions were far too detailed to have been made up on the spot.
After hours of trying and failing, she swallowed her pride and wrote to Scorpius for help.
"Hey, Scorp, you still awake?"
"Yeah, is something wrong?"
"I need your help."
"Who are you, and what have you done with Rose?"
"Shut up. Can you meet me in the Room of Requirement?"
"Sure, see you in five minutes."
Rose quickly fed Emma’s owl, grabbed her wand, and made her way to the Room of Requirement. By this time, the hallways were almost empty, with only forty minutes left until curfew.
When she arrived, Scorpius was already there.
"If you make fun of me, I swear you won’t leave this room alive," Rose warned.
"Understood," Scorpius said, raising his hands in peace.
"I can’t get the 'reverse Patronus' spell to work," Rose admitted. Scorpius chuckled. "Did you give me the wrong instructions?" she asked, sounding threatening.
"No, no, that’s the correct way to do it," he replied, defending himself.
"I don’t believe you. Try it yourself."
"Fine." Scorpius followed the exact steps he had given Rose, and instantly, she felt drained, as if she had been running for hours without rest. Scorpius stopped the spell, and Rose regained her strength.
"See?" he said. Rose was confused.
"What am I doing wrong, then?"
Scorpius laughed again. "Nothing, you’re not doing anything wrong."
"Then why doesn’t it work for me?" Rose asked, frustrated.
"This spell was created by my father. It only works for Malfoys," he explained.
Rose glared at him, murder in her eyes. "Why didn’t you tell me that from the start?"
"I wanted to have a little fun," Scorpius replied simply.
"Enjoy it while you can, because one day, I *will* be able to use that spell, and no one will save you then," Rose said menacingly. Scorpius smiled.
"Are you saying that one day, you’d marry me, Weasley?" Rose blushed.
"Maybe," she smiled.
"Then I look forward to the day you can cast this spell," Scorpius said with a grin. Rose laughed nervously.
"I’ll get my revenge, Malfoy, mark my words."
"I’m shaking," Scorpius mocked, pretending to tremble.
"Don’t make fun of me, Malfoy. I just spent the last two hours trying to cast a spell I was never going to be able to do."
"You would’ve done the same," Scorpius defended himself.
"Touché," Rose admitted with a chuckle.
"I love you, Granger-Weasley," Scorpius said softly.
"I love you too, Malfoy-Greengrass," Rose replied, and they shared a tender kiss.
They spent a few more minutes together before realizing it was almost curfew and decided to head back. They had just ten minutes left before they’d be caught wandering the halls.