[open] fresh air

[rjvi]

Rastus laid out a blanket by the black lake and sat down on it. It was the night of the dance. He wasn’t going to go because the girl that he wanted was a Gryffindor. Plus, she was still obsessed with Scorpius and would probably never want him. He planned on living his life alone. He couldn’t compete with Malfoy, especially when it came down to someone that was supporting the gang. He was going to stay out here for the night, alone, thinking about the gang and the hold it had on his sister and Athena. They were the two most important girls in his life and he wanted them out of the gang. It didn’t matter what their family wanted. It mattered only what they wanted.

He was actually considering asking Shay to move in with him. He had a small flat in Lyme Regis. It had two bedrooms, so it would be comfortable for two people. Rastus will even give her the bigger room, the master bedroom. He could afford having her live with him until she got a place of her own. He decided that the next time he saw her, he would ask. He just needed to get her from their father. Who knows, she may not even like the gang. She may only be in it because it’s what he wants. Once she was away from him, she could live a happy life, one that she wanted.

Rastus took his shoes and socks off, stood up, and went closer to the lake where he sat down with his feet in the water. The chilly water felt good against his skin. Maybe he should go for a swim. He looked around and then stood up, took off his shirt and jumped into the water and floated around like a dead man. Rastus was getting bored out here alone. He wondered if any of his friends who weren’t going to the dance would come out here for a bit. Probably not. He was pretty sure that they all had a date, so he didn’t hold out much hope. Rastus may end up going to the dance later if he remained this way. He jumped back on the shore and wrapped the blanket back around him, so he could get warm.

[Freddie Weasley]

Fred hung out with his sister in the common room before the dance. She was going on and on about Patrick and going to the dance with him. He was glad that she had found a guy that she liked. He had never met Patrick, but he would like to. Fred wasn’t going to stand in her way. If she liked him, then he was going to allow the relationship to continue until she was no longer happy with him. You can’t stop people from dating anyone because then they will become rebellious and do what they pleased. They turned against a person and that wasn’t going to happen. Fred didn’t want his sister to hate him.

When she said that she had to go and get ready, he left the common room and wondered outside. It was nice to get fresh air. He did wish that he could go to the dance, but there was nobody to go with. He never asked Phoenix because he wasn’t sure if he was going and really, he didn’t want to go with anyone that wasn’t Chance. That was his boyfriend and the guy that he wanted to spend his life with. Why couldn’t Chance have been sorted into Hufflepuff or Gryffindor? Then they’d be able to go together. Well, there would always be more dances. Maybe the school will hold a Christmas bash in December. That should be fun.

As he walked by the lake, he spotted Rastus Nott sitting there, a blanket wrapped around him. He had flirted a few times with the man, though he knew that he wasn’t gay or bi for that matter. He was just cute. Why did so many hot guys have to be straight? Fred walked over to him and sat next to him. “Are you cold?” he asked curiously, though he knew that it was a stupid question. “Why aren’t you enjoying the dance? Don’t have a date either?” Fred lay back, staring at the sky. The stars were shining bright tonight. “We should throw our own little party out here. Invite everyone that didn’t get a date to the unity dance.” Fred glanced at Rastus to see what he thought about that. It wasn’t that bad of an idea. Too bad there was nobody else around.

[rjvi]

Thoughts of Athena seemed to a*sault him. She was probably at the dance, trying to get Scorpius to dance with her. Why couldn’t she see that he didn’t like her? That it was Rastus that she needed to be with? He was head over heels in love with her, despite the age difference. He pulled the blanket tighter around him, thinking that maybe he should go to the dance, pull Athena away from Malfoy and make her see that he wanted her and she should try for him. Rastus knew that he was invisible, at least to her. She was a gang supporter and he wasn’t. Even though his family wanted him to, he would never support them.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Fred Weasley’s voice. He and Fred were okay friends, though not the best ones. It could have something to do with the fact that Fred liked to flirt with him. Rastus always tolerated it, but always wondered why he always did that. He never flirted back or showed any interest in the guy at all. He had to wonder if he gave off some kind of a gay vibe. Maybe that was why Athena didn’t like him. Maybe she thought that he was gay. “Not really cold, just trying to dry off. I just went for a dip in the lake,” he answered Freddie’s question. “There was nobody that I wanted to go with. The girl I like is in Gryffindor.”

Holding a little party outside? That would be a good idea, but there’s nobody there. Most of those not going are probably sticking in their common rooms. He doubted if anybody else would show up. “Only if you can get people out here, but I think most of them are going to the dance and if not, they’re staying in their common rooms, but we can hang out here. There’s nothing better to do.” Rastus threw the blanket off of him and put his shirt back on, then his socks and shoes. “Rox going to the dance?”