▬▬▬▬

SITTING WITH HER FRIENDS IN THE Hospital Wing, Albany felt lighter than she had in a while. Between the pressure that Merlin and Arthur were putting on her, the distance growing between herself and Faith, and the unsettling encounter with Moody, she'd been feeling the effects of stress earlier in the year than she normally expected to. However, watching Fred and George have their beards removed as Lee snickered and she herself had to cough to hide her chuckles, she couldn't help the smile that creased her cheeks.

"Georgie, I must say, we look splendid as old men," Fred remarked pleasantly. "I look forward to growing up with you."

George snorted. "I don't," he retorted with a grin, and glanced to Lee and Albany, shaking his head. "The rest of my life with this git? I want a refund."

The two redheads were seated side by side on a hospital bed, rubbing a solution Madam Pomfrey had prepared into their faces. The white lather made an odd sizzling sound as it gradually dissolved their lengthy facial hair; two other students at the other side of the room were just finishing the removal of their own beards. Fred flicked a wad of the gel from his face onto George's for his twin's sarcastic comment.

"Oh please," Albany laughed, "you two would be lost without each other."

Lee chortled as he pulled his chair closer to the bed. "Gosh, I sure am enjoying being older without any consequences," he stated conversationally, and had to avoid another chunk of gel that was sent in his direction this time. He raised his eyebrows at Fred in the way a parent would at a misbehaving child. "That wasn't very mature of you, Fred Weasley."

"Piss off," Fred retorted with a good-natured laugh. "Like you'll ever mature."

"It is a pity it didn't work," George sighed, and had to rest his arms for a moment as he paused the massaging on his cheeks. "A thousand galleons." He sounded wistful.

"Yeah," Lee agreed, somewhat regretfully. "Waste of a good potion. We could have spent a productive morning actually making money."

Fred also put a halt on the rubbing of his beard, shaking out his wrists with a thoughtful expression. "I don't suppose anyone has any other suggestions on getting in?" he asked ruefully, glancing around at the other three. "We've still got a few hours."

"Don't look at me," laughed Lee, raising his hands in surrender. "I couldn't even come up with the idea of the Ageing Potion."

George had turned his gaze on Albany, arching an eyebrow in questioning at the girl. In silent response, she met his gaze with a threatening glare, though Fred had picked up on the interactions between them.

"You two are awful quiet," he noted smugly, and resumed dissolving his beard. "Anything you'd like to share?"

"No," Albany said, far too quickly.

Fred stared at her suspiciously, and then his hazel gaze darted to his twin. George caved almost immediately. "Albany's old enough to get in," he said quickly, and shot the girl an apologetic look as Fred's eyebrows rocketed into his long ginger fringe.

Albany groaned, throwing back her head to stare at the ceiling for a moment. She let a long breath pass through her lips before acknowledging the boys again, who were staring at her with newfound hope.

"Why the bloody hell didn't you say something earlier?" Lee questioned, apparently left astonished by the new information. "Would have saved us a lot of pointless effort."

"Merlin's pants, Allie, you're full of secrets," Fred said with a broad grin. There was hope blossoming in his bright eyes as he leaned forward to stare at her with newfound admiration, and she had to hide the disappointment she felt that George had told them. "So you'll do it, won't you? Put our names in?"

"Woah, hold on," Albany interrupted him frantically, trying to ignore the rising panic that was rearing its ugly face with the new pressure she was being subjected to. "Let's slow down a little bit-"

"Why not?" Lee chimed in. "It's totally worth a try! The Age Line definitely won't stop you, what else will?"

Albany shifted her weight in her chair, uncomfortable. She had let go of the concerns that had come with the twins entering the tournament the second they'd been expelled from the golden circle, and hadn't expected to be dealing with it again, let alone so soon. She wasn't sure why she was so against them risking it for a bit of money - she supposed it was more concern of what exactly they were risking that had her worried. George had said she'd make a good Gryffindor, but she disagreed. She wasn't brave or reckless; she was cautious and prioritised saving her own skin over a lot of things, and somehow, this priority had been extended to them as well. She decided it was because she didn't want to deal with the responsibility of knowing she had entered them if they got hurt or... worse. Unless it stemmed from her concerns for herself, had she any intentions of entering, because she was a fairly useless witch and knew a dangerous challenge was just an alternate way of defining certain death. Regardless of what it was - and it wasn't worry for them, because she certainly wasn't someone who could afford to get that attached to people, especially if there really was war brewing, as Merlin and Arthur insisted - she was not going to be a willing accomplice in their unrelenting plans to get themselves killed.

"Absolutely not," she spoke up eventually, and felt weary once again as she was met with three pairs of sorrowed gazes. "No way!" she repeated, trying to emphasise her negation. "I'm sorry, just... no."

Fred narrowed his eyes slightly at her. "When's your birthday?"

"August twenty-eighth, 1977," she recited, staring him dead in the eye.

"Oh, you're old," he chuckled, before nodding seriously. "Just making sure you're not lying."

"Why would I-" she cut herself off, realising it was useless. "Ugh, look, I'm not doing it."

"I'll literally have your children if you do this," Lee offered, looking very genuine, and Albany choked.

"Definitely not," she croaked, though had to focus hard on not laughing.

Lee looked stumped, before an idea lit up his face like a switch. "George will have your children-"

"Oi, don't I get a say in this?" George piped up, guilt lingering in his reddening expression.

Albany kept her composure with a characteristic eyeroll. "Still no," she maintained, and hoped her cheeks didn't look as pink as they felt. She didn't want any sort of children.

"Just hear us out," Fred pleaded, and clasped his soapy hands together. "It's for a good cause."

Albany scoffed. "What, your business?" she said sarcastically, though felt a pang of guilt at the flash of hurt that simultaneously crossed their faces. "Look, I'm sorry, but it's a no-can-do."

"Why?" George asked, and looked rather like a child as he pouted at her.

"Because," Albany argued, folding her arms. "It's dangerous, it's the real deal. This isn't just some... Quidditch match, or whatever."

"Oh, we're aware," Fred assured her with a grin. He began massaging the lather into his cheeks again; his beard had shortened considerably, though there was an unpleasant smell of burnt hair slowly filling the room.

"We have very carefully considered the risks involved," Lee added cheerfully.

"And we reckon the benefits far outweigh them," George finished with a smile. "So don't worry, it's our decision, not yours."

Albany pinched the bridge of her nose. "I just don't want to be directly responsible if-" she paused, swallowed, and skipped ahead to her next point. "I could get in serious trouble for putting in the names of underage students!"

"I doubt it," Fred assured her, though his excitement had been reined in somewhat.

"If you do, we'll take the blame," George suggested, and Lee and Fred nodded vigorously in agreement. "You can say we pranked you or something!"

She stared at him in deep concern and disbelief, not feeling assured in the slightest by the offer. "No, really, I can't," she insisted, desperation rising in her tone.

Desperation was rising within the twins, too, as they exchanged glances before nodding in quiet agreement. Albany was never sure how they communicated so effectively in such a manner, though was already dreading the outcome of their silent conversation as George slid off the edge of the bed and kneeled in front of her to unleash the most ruthless pair of puppy eyes she'd ever witnessed.

Fuck me, she thought bitterly, unable to tear her gaze away from the hazel depths. They glowed a golden colour in the sunlight that shone in through the window; of course the clouds had parted for this moment, she thought crossly. Flecks of bright green and deep warm brown alternated around the pupils. His eyes shone with a merciless mix of hope, pleading and playful mischief as he met her stare steadily; she was unravelled by those eyes and he knew this somehow, and was using it against her and she hated and loved it simultaneously. He stuck out his bottom lip in a childish pout, and Albany bit her own. Conflict was tearing at her insides, almost nauseating, and then a quiet but powerful voice in the back of her head told her sternly to lighten up and quit the drama and she sighed, deflated, giving in. Like Eve to the apple, she fell for the trap. George would make a decent Slytherin, she mused. Ironic.

The boys rejoiced as they witnessed her silent surrender, and quick as his wit, George was on his feet and the puppy eyes gone, replaced with elation.

"You are a star, Allie!" Fred cheered, applauding her with a friendly but strong pat on the back as he leapt from the hospital bed. She hoped he hadn't gotten too much lather on her clothes, wondering vaguely if the solution burned through cotton.

"Marry me," Lee said, staring at her in awe, and she laughed at the boy's antics, though felt hollow on the inside, and didn't reply. "She didn't say no!"

"But I won't be saying yes," she responded drily. The three jumped circles around her chair with utter glee, and she buried her face in her hands as the pit in her stomach reformed, wondering what she had done.

Though Albany was certain Madam Pomfrey would be less than impressed with the boys' early leave, they insisted on returning to the goblet straight away, before she could change her mind again. As much as she hated to admit it, they had a point; she desperately wanted to change her mind, but pride, guilt and a stubborn streak said otherwise. The Gryffindors marched her down the stairs with renewed enthusiasm, and they made a bit of a reckless jump at the end of one staircase as it began to move beneath them. Laughter echoed everywhere they went, as the twins' beards hadn't yet finished dissolving, and the redheads continued to massage the solution into their faces as they skipped down the corridors. Their excitement was heartwarming, but with each step Albany took, the wish that the ground would open up and swallow her whole grew a little more desperate.

It was just as the four students made their way into the entrance hall did she have the life frightened out of her, but in a slightly different way.

"What do you think you're doing?" Arthur asked her, voice stern. The ghost had his hands on his hips as he effortlessly kept pace with her, and she shot him a sideways glare after she had jumped out of her skin, unsure of what his problem was.

"What?" she hissed under her breath, casting a wary glance to Fred, George and Lee, but the trio were too caught up in their own excited chatter to notice.

"You're not actually going to enter them into the tournament," Arthur stated firmly, and held an air of disbelief to him as he regarded her with a severe gaze. "You're not allowed."

Albany scrunched up her face in indignance as she turned to shoot a fierce glare the blond's way. "Not allowed?" she echoed. "What are you, my mother?"

"He might as well be." Merlin teased as he appeared on her other side, before his expression, too, turned serious. "But, he does have a point."

Albany narrowed her eyes at the pair, an angry lump rising in her throat. Couldn't she make any decisions for herself anymore? "Where have you two even been?" she muttered bitterly. "You can't just show up out of the blue every time you feel the need to to make my life ten times harder."

Merlin looked slightly apologetic at that. "We've had... things to discuss," he said, carefully.

Albany rolled her eyes, unimpressed. "As you always do."

"We can explain later," Arthur told her, straightening up in the way he did when he was about to use his former position of authority to have his way. "What's important right now is that you don't put their names into that goblet."

Even though she didn't want to any more than Arthur did, she shot the man a spiteful glare. "Why shouldn't I?"

Fred had turned around from where the three boys were bouncing along ahead of her. "You good, Allie?" he called back, and she realised she'd fallen a little ways behind them. "Not planning on slipping away, were you?"

She sighed. "No," she called back, and frowned as he turned away again, picking up the pace.

"You can't just endanger other people's lives!" Arthur argued, as the boys' attention left her again.

"What happened to Mr I think it's a brilliant idea?" Albany asked, her voice dripping in sarcasm even as she whispered. "You were all for it like a week ago."

Arthur ran his tongue along his bottom teeth, evidently frustrated that his own words had been turned against him. "Because," he reiterated, "I was expressing personal interest then, and now there are other lives at stake-"

"So you admit it!" Albany said triumphantly, though reined back her outburst as she wound up on the receiving end of a few weird glances from passing students. "I wasn't being dramatic."

The former king pinched the bridge of his nose, exasperated and frustrated. Merlin took over from his companion, which Albany would have been grateful for if it wasn't to point out, "You don't want to enter them anyway, so why argue?"

She bit her cheek hard, eyebrows furrowing in irritation as she turned her gaze forward and marched ahead without a reply. Of course she didn't want to, but it wasn't exactly like she had a choice in the matter, as Fred, George and Lee ensured she was following them towards the goblet. The blue flames licked at the air, taunting her, teasing her. There were eyes on her this time, as the crowd acknowledged the twins' grand return with scattered laughter and then inquisitive stares. She didn't get a chance to say anything further to the ghosts with this many people now watching her, though didn't have much else to say to them, mind storming as she caught up to the three Gryffindors who stood at the edge of the Age Line. Her skin felt clammy under her clothes as she acknowledged the stares of the gathered students with an awkward glance upwards; most people had caught on that she was entering the twins' names for them, having witnessed the incident earlier, though one particularly stupid second-year muttered a little too loudly, "We can't have a Slytherin champion, are you kidding?"

Albany set her jaw, and returned her fiery gaze to the floor. A younger Gryffindor student with a camera around his neck approached her cheerfully with a piece of parchment and a self-inking quill; she took it without a word, mind spinning at increasing speeds. She was running out of options.

"Do you need help spelling my name?" George whispered, leaning in to her. His breath tickled her ear and she bit her cheek, glancing sideways to him almost nervously.

"J-O-R-G-E, right?" she managed the sarcastic reply, however quiet, and he laughed good-naturedly, nudging her forward.

She crossed the Age Line with baited breath, unsure of why it had her worried, though fortunately was not catapulted from the golden circle, nor growing facial hair. There were more eyes on her than she felt particularly comfortable with as she ripped the parchment in three, and after a moment of heated internal debate, she scratched the names onto the paper. She grit her teeth at the sound of Arthur's distinctive sigh, and glanced up at the Goblet of Fire, heart pounding in anticipation of what she was about to do.

"Is it a height problem?" Fred teased her from behind the circle, and some of the gathered students chortled.

She whipped around and shot him an overly sweet smile before turning back to the glorified cup, and slipped in the pieces of parchment from her tippy-toes. The fire sparked and hissed, turning a violent, angry red, and she felt her entire body tense; and then it gradually settled, and continued burning blue.

Casual applause broke out in the crowd, though nobody seemed quite as enthusiastic as Fred, George and Lee, who were hopping up and down and the spot, faces alight with joy as they shoved each other playfully. They attempted to get her to join their celebratory dance as she left the circle, releasing a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding, though she couldn't bring herself to match their energy.

Albany quietly excused herself from their celebrations, and might have grinned at their antics if guilt and regret weren't filling her faster than a tap on full blast. She wasn't sure if the adrenaline was wearing off or just beginning to work itself through her system, as anxious thoughts and the exhaustion of not sleeping all night hit her like a brick, the conflicting simultaneous need to sleep for a year and find an outlet for her nervous energy setting her nerves on fire. She found herself standing still but trembling like a leaf at the same time instead, as Merlin and Arthur hurriedly rejoined her, concern weighing down their faces. They knew what she had done.

"You'd think they'd already won it, the way they're acting," she remarked with weak laughter, voice wobbly as she glanced over at the three boys.

"Albany," Merlin addressed her softly, and she tensed at the tone that was too gentle. She wasn't delicate, she wasn't.... "You entered your name instead."

Albany felt blood in her mouth as she bit her cheek, and swallowed hard. "I know," she said quietly. "And it accepted it. Three times."