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𝓬𝓻𝓾𝓼𝓱𝓮𝓭 𝓾𝓹

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Just to clarify - it's not Sadie's fault!

It's not Sadie's fault that she always ends up day dreaming in the worst moments possible. It's not her fault that whilst Marianne was going over her Potions essay with her, she zoned out halfway through because she'd had the muggle song Saturday Night by Whigfield stuck in her head for the past six hours.

It's not her fault that mid Transfiguration lesson she'd let her mind wander and fell into a daze, unconsciously letting her eyes land on the Potter boy and having to quickly look away when he glanced at her puzzled, after feeling her burning gaze.

It's not her fault that she, for some odd reason, had become so attracted to bloody Harry Potter.

She found herself wondering what he was up to twenty-four seven, or, if she did see him, she'd be figuring out a plan to find a reason to come and talk to him. Sadie was beginning to cringe herself out - she felt like a stalker. She wasn't even sure what it was about him she liked so much... he was kind of fit, but he was also sweet. Whatever it was, it was taking over her daily life. Harry was probably getting creeped out, too, but luckily for her, he was about as observational as a rock, so he didn't really acknowledge the situation with the blonde Ravenclaw - as if there even was a situation from his point of view, which she knew there most likely was not.

Still, he gave her a friendly smile whenever she'd see him in the hallways, from now on - probably in return for having a part in helping him with the Gillyweed. There's a life lesson - being nosy and helping people even though they don't really want it apparently gets you friends!

Marianne and Chad took this opportunity to tease Sadie as much as they could. They were thoroughly enjoying the fact that she was the one of the group at the moment with a proper crush, and were making the most of it. They were like Sadie's parents, always wanting the ins and outs of everything, and trying to suggest things to do to try and make conversation. Sadie had to admit - she wasn't hating it. She was kind of excited too, you know! The girl was a hopeless romantic, and even anything close to a crush immediately brightened her mood everyday. The sun seemed to shine brighter and she looked at everything with heart eyes - even Filch's cat appeared to be more beautiful than she'd ever seen it before.

Although, standing in the Ravenclaw common room for half an hour with Marianne, as she waited for Chad to finish getting ready so they could go to Hogsmeade, was starting test how long she could stay in a gleeful mood for.

"Chad, get your fat ass down here, now!" Marianne called up the stairs to the boys dormitories.

"How loving!" a voice called back. "I won't be long, I promise, it's just I spilled ink on my jumper and I'm trying to get it off!"

"Can't you do it another time?!" Sadie called up to him. "I'm gettin' pins and needles, I've been here for so long!"

"Oh, isn't that a shame?" Chad called sarcastically.

"We're serious, Chad!" Marianne called. "You're doing our heads in! It'll be December before you get down here!"

"Alright, alright!" Chad said, emerging from the door. Sadie and Marianne sighed with relief. "Settle down, women,"

"Come on, I'm craving a Cauldron Cake and a Butterbeer," said Sadie, stuffing her hands inside the pockets of her denim shorts.

Winter had long since passed, and they were well into the sunny spring days, Sadie gladly saying goodbye to her stuffy, large coats and jumpers and bringing out her t-shirts and shorts. Yes, Sadie brought out shorts in spring. If the sun was shining, it was a shorts kind of day, no matter how warm it was - she loved the item of clothing that much, she was willing to make that sacrifice of tiny goosebumps on her legs if the weather was a bit nippy.

"I second that," said Marianne, and the three walked side by side through the halls and out of the castle.

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"Chad, I'm not spending six hours in Honeydukes just so you can stare at the shop assistant," said Sadie, as she followed her two best friends through the mint green door of the sweet shop, which was already packed with many, many Hogwarts students.

"But he's fit!" said Chad. "And Seamus is in here, so we're here for Marianne, too. Not just me,"

"Right - so when Marianne's off with Seamus, and you're drooling over the twenty-year old behind the counter, what will I be doing?"

"Hunting for Cauldron Cakes and hoping Potter turns up,"

"Ha, ha, very funny,"

"Plus, you can't complain, because you're the one making us walk an extra bloody mile to get to our common room, just so you can pass Potter and exchange a smile. Like, you don't even talk to him, you just smile. Come on, Sadie,"

Sadie let out a laugh, wearing a taken aback look.

"Alright, Chadders, you didn't need to go off on one that bad,"

The trio soon found Seamus with Dean in the corner next to the shop window, having bought a packet of Chocolate Frogs and a Fizzing Whizbee, both happily eating as they chatted, Seamus looking out for one particular girl.

"There y'are!" He broke into a smile at the sight of the red-head. "And Sadie n Chad, of course," he added, greeting her friends who had been following behind.

"Alright?" Dean grinned, as Seamus budged up for Marianne to sit next to him. "Sadie - you live in Derry, don't you? Everything okay back home with, you know..."

She nodded, knowing fully well where this was going.

Sadie's hometown was unfortunately greatly affected by the current ethno-nationalist conflict that was happening in Northern Ireland. It was more or so a muggle low-level war, wizards not really having anything to do with it for a while now, as many had previously fought for both sides, branding themselves as 'problem-solvers' but had been shut down by the Ministry soon after for interfering with what was seen as 'Muggle issues'.

However, since Sadie was a muggleborn, and her parents were left at home whilst she stayed at Hogwarts, she couldn't help but fill with worry when the news of a bomb or an attack in her area arose.

But, her parents knew their daughter well, and sent her a letter consistently so that she knew they were okay. Even if, after four years, they still found it odd writing a letter and giving it to an owl to fly off with in the daytime.

"Awful, isn't it?" said Sadie to Dean. "My folks are okay, though, they wrote to me a few days ago. Luckily, it was on the other side of the city,"

"Good," Dean nodded with a friendly smile, before pausing. "-About your parents I mean, not the bomb. I was wondering, I thought you'd said you lived in Derry, before,"

Sadie grinned at him, before she and Chad said a quick goodbye to the trio, and dashed off to one of the sweet aisles - though, not before Dean quickly followed because, in his own words, he doesn't want to third-wheel. Sadie couldn't blame him.

"Ooh!" she said happily. "They've got a deal on Cauldron Cakes, two boxes for one!"

"Someone's gonna be sick later on," Chad muttered to Dean who let out a chuckle.

Chad's attention diverted to the shop assistant who had just emerged from the cellar door of Honeydukes, carrying many boxes of different branded sweets and asking Ambrosius Flume where to put them. Sadie smirked.

"I'm telling you, Chad, you could see any tall boy with blonde hair and immediately you've got a crush on him,"

"It's called a type for your information, Vixen," he said. "Just like your type is Potter,"

Sadie gave Chad a whack on the arm, before her eyes flicked nervously to Dean, who raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, really?" He said with a smirk. "Harry?"

"Chad!" Sadie groaned - but Chad was still gazing over at the shop assistant now opening the boxes of sweets. She turned back to Dean. "You better not tell him. Or anyone, for that matter,"

"Hey! I never said I would!" he said defensively, holding his hands up. A teasing grin grew on his face. "Awe, Sadie and Harry- I can give him hints, if you want - perhaps put in a good word for you-"

"Dean!" sighed Sadie, her lips curving upwards.

"I'm just messing with you," he smiled. "D'you know what, that makes much more sense, now, thinking about it - you know, with the Yule Ball and everything,"

Sadie nodded. Fair enough.

"But he did get up and dance with you, so..." Dean wiggled his eyebrows. Sadie let out a laugh and playfully rolled his eyes.

"I don't think he had a choice, I forced him too. He didn't stay for long, either, because Ron and Hermione were fighting,"

"Oh, yeah," Dean nodded, before casually saying, "Hermione got pissed at Ron because he was being a bit of a dick to Maddie, apparently. I don't know why, I don't know the full story - that's just what Jake told me,"

"Oh," said Sadie, raising her eyebrows with wonder. "I thought he was annoyed at her for going with Krum to the Yule Ball,"

"Nah, I don't think so," said Dean.

Marianne and Seamus soon appeared from around the corner, and so Sadie was urged to hurry up and buy her Cauldron Cakes, and Chad to stop staring at the shop assistant, who somehow still hadn't noticed his burning gaze.

Seamus had come up with the idea that they all go to the Three Broomsticks, and so everyone agreed. He wouldn't shut up about it if they didn't - plus, Sadie was craving a Butterbeer...

...And she'd seen Harry enter a few moments before with his friends. Bloody hell, she is a stalker.

"I'll get them," Dean volunteered happily, once they'd found a cosy enough spot in the corner of the room. He headed off to the bar with everyone's money in hand.

"Have any of you done your History of Magic essay, yet?" Seamus asked. "Perhaps I can copy - you're all Ravenclaws, after all," he added with a teasing glance. Chad and Marianne sighed, and Sadie snorted.

"Hold on, Seamus, the essay is literally about, what, nearly thirty years ago when the Northern Ireland conflict started? Wizards were getting involved which pissed off the Ministry because they didn't want to be all caught up in it - this should be easy,"

"Yeah, only for you, though, because you live there." said Chad. "I can't tell apart my rebellions from my risings,"

"And who's fault is that?" Sadie said to him, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe if your lot had stopped invading us for five fucking minutes, we wouldn't have to write this essay,"

Seamus let out a laugh.

"Alright, calm down woman, I'm just saying," said Chad.

"I literally don't have a clue," said Marianne. "Like, zero knowledge at all - Ooh, Sadie, look over there," she added, her face brightening up. Sadie glanced to her left to see Harry Potter with his two friends, cheerfully chatting as they drank their own butterbeers.

She could feel her cheeks burning up, and so looked back towards her own friends - oddly surprised that Seamus was so unfazed. He noticed her suspicious look almost immediately.

"Oh, don't worry about trying to hide it, Marianne told me," he said casually. Sadie raised her eyebrows and turned to the red-head, who shrunk slightly in her seat.

"Are you having a laugh?" she said. "What happened to 'I'm the best secret keeper around' ?"

"I'm sorry," said Marianne, giving her a sheepish smile. "It kind of just came out-"

"To be fair, it was pretty obvious," Seamus nodded, defensively. "You went through all that effort just to dance with him at the Yule Ball,"

"He looked miserable, I wanted to cheer him up!"

"Yeah, by dancing with him,"

Sadie pouted for a second, before pulling out a cake from her bag and taking a large bite. Her face immediately brightened.

"You can't get better than a Cauldron Cake," she said, as Dean returned with their drinks.

The group had spent most of their time that day in the Three Broomsticks - Sadie not being able to help herself and glancing Harry's way every so often, constantly wearing a smile in case he ever was to look her way when she was talking to her own friends. Pathetic, she knows. But she can't help it, okay? Give her a break.

Her expression (if possible) warmed even more when she'd caught sight of him laughing loudly at something Ron had said. Dean gave her a knowing look and she pulled a face at him.

And then her gleeful expression faded slightly when she'd noticed Harry's gaze fixed on Cho Chang - a girl in the year above - entering the pub with her friends. This was even more frustrating, because Sadie absolutely loved Cho, and didn't have a bad word to say about her - she couldn't blame Harry for crushing on her.

That didn't mean it didn't hurt a little, though, when she saw his bright eyes focused on someone that wasn't her.

Sadie chose not to look Harry's way for the rest of the time she spent in the Three Broomsticks, and soon after, the group decided to head back to Hogwarts, for they still had many essays to write that were due soon.

Though, the lingering thought in Sadie's head caused her to zone out a little, because being all crushed up was either a blessing or a curse. She wasn't too sure which one, yet.

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A/N: Damn Sadie's kind of crushing hard bless her

I just thought I'd mention, there is now a code in the 'Introduction' and a link in my bio for a Spotify playlist for this book, if you fancied a listen!

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I should be updating this book more regularly now :) Let me know what you thought!

<3