chapter sevenﾠ✶ ﾠhangover.

IF LAYLA COULD DESCRIBE HER DAY IN ONE WORD IT WOULD BE PERFECT: the date, the company, and the kiss... Oh, that kiss.

⠀⠀She still could not assimilate that it had happened, even though she had spent months (and years) thinking about whether such a moment would be possible, as it was something she saw as unimaginable; to live it was a unique experience.

⠀⠀When she reached her room, she found Megan and Wayne already there waiting for her, trying to find out everything in detail.

⠀⠀"We want to know if there was tongue," the first one mentioned as she walked through the door. 

⠀⠀Needless to say, Layla was very nervous and blushing.

⠀⠀"He kissed you?!"

⠀⠀"Megan, relax," Wayne scoffed as he saw the blonde excited and jumping up and down in shock. "He kissed her, not you."

⠀⠀"Shut up!" She shouted, pointing her finger at him. "It's as if he'd done it... We should congratulate Lay and give her the talk!"

⠀⠀"I already know the talk!" Layla exclaimed, blushing. She was beginning to think it was a bad idea to tell them that Ron had kissed her.

⠀⠀It hadn't been very long, and it had felt very inexperienced on his part, which made her think it was his first kiss. But the less the merrier, right? For Layla, that kiss had been the best, feeling not just butterflies fluttering like before, but an entire zoo. She'd ended up with cheeks so flushed they could rival the redhead's hair, and she knew he'd enjoyed it as much as she had.

⠀⠀After that, Ron had left, telling her he would be back for the party. There was still half an hour to go and she was just changing so he wouldn't see her in the same clothes. She looked at the window, appreciating the view, at least it had stopped raining, so it felt cool in the room. She hoped her clothes were good, though she knew they were because otherwise Megan would do anything to make her look irresistible.

She didn't know how she would look at Ron now after the kiss. She felt sorry for him, and she was afraid he'd be distant: some men did that, she'd learned from her roommates' experiences over the past five years. Love was complicated, even though it was the best thing in the world for Layla.

⠀⠀"Damn it... By Helga! We lost her!"

⠀⠀The brunette turned her gaze to her friends after staring at the window for a couple of seconds. She raised an eyebrow, surprised at their sudden mood swings.

⠀⠀"You haven't lost me, I'm still here," she muttered amused as she finished changing her clothes. Megan smiled and made her sit on a stool in the middle of their beds, almost forcibly. "What now?"

⠀⠀"I have to do your make-up," the blonde explained as if it were the most normal thing in the world. She shook her head and got up from the bench.

⠀⠀"I don't want you to make me up, I'm fine, Meg."

⠀⠀The reality was that she was afraid of getting really bad and then ending up with her make-up smeared all over her face.

⠀⠀She didn't usually drink a lot of beer or alcohol at the badgers' parties in the past years, mostly because she sucked at it: a couple of drinks and she was already very drunk. So much so, that the first time she did it she ended up crying in the bathroom because that morning she had lost her quill and said she was a bad person for having wasted the opportunity given to her by her parents along with the fact that she would have another animal's feather taken away, perhaps making it suffer.

⠀⠀"B-But..."

⠀⠀"We want Ron to want her natural, don't we?" Wayne interrupted her slyly, approaching Layla and fixing her hair. "He has to see her like this, no more, no less."

⠀⠀Megan pouted and nodded, resigned, and went to lie down on her bed. The brunette looked at her curiously.

⠀⠀"Did you invite Fred?" She asked, coming over and sitting down next to her on the bed. The blonde hesitated before answering.

⠀⠀"I think he invited himself."

⠀⠀"Will you sleep here?" Wayne joked, pinching the girl in the ribs, causing her to groan and slap him.

⠀⠀"I don't know," she admitted with flushed cheeks. Layla couldn't help but laugh and her friend joined in. Megan gave them a dirty look, but ended up laughing with them.

⠀⠀Forty minutes later the fourth years and upwards were in the common room dancing with a magical device they always used for parties. A couple of them were drinking butterbeer that the Weasley twins had brought (they were let in for that reason as well) and others had even disappeared. 

⠀⠀Layla was in an armchair in the corner waiting for Ron to arrive, though she was dying of embarrassment at the same time.

⠀⠀While she was quietly sipping a butterbeer, George came over and sat down next to her as if they were lifelong friends.

⠀⠀"Is it true that you managed to convince Ron?" He asked, laughing, as he sipped at the gin in his glass.

⠀⠀"Yes," she blushed, not yet knowing why. "He said he would come."

⠀⠀"I'm sure he will," he reassured her, as if he knew she was nervous that he wouldn't go. Was she that obvious? "If he said yes, he will... Now I just want to see Hermione's face when she finds out he came."

⠀⠀"No one has to tell Mione. I know she's my friend, but it's the truth... She'd only punish Ron, if that's possible," she scoffed at her own comment, her laughter rubbing off on the red-haired boy.

⠀⠀"For once I agree with you, Layla," he wiggled his fingers amusedly, agreeing with her. "Ron's a basket case and I never thought I'd see him in love, honestly."

⠀⠀She couldn't help but blush at his comment. How could he admit so freely that his brother was in love with her? Although she knew the red-haired boy had feelings for her, she didn't feel that they had reached such an important point.

⠀⠀"I doubt he's in love with me, George," she scoffed, as if her own words didn't bother her, but they did.

⠀⠀Did a kiss mean being in love? From the experiences she knew, no. Maybe Ron just felt compelled to do it, or it was an impulse. Did Layla really want to keep believing that?

⠀⠀She really wanted to think that he did love her as something more.

⠀⠀"You're just as blind as Megan," the twin held out his gin, but she refused it. "Ron's got a crush on you and you can't take it in... And Megan can't see that she's already got what she wanted with Fred..."

⠀⠀"What did she get?" She asked curiously, settling into the armchair better and facing him. George hiccupped.

⠀⠀"To have him eating out of her hand. That's what she wanted, isn't it?"

⠀⠀She couldn't help thinking that Megan was doing the right thing, since the redhead was the one who had started that kind of 'game'. But maybe she had gone too far... or had she?

⠀⠀She had no doubt that her best friend was completely different from her, and her way of dealing with problems was the opposite of what she would do. She may have been tempted at first, but when she realised that he had played dirtier, she thought big.

⠀⠀"I don't know what to tell you, George," she replied thoughtfully.

⠀⠀"You mustn't say anything to me," he reassured her and gave her a sly smile, "because I know very well that he was to blame in the first place, so they are both to blame."

⠀⠀She wanted to say that it was mostly Fred's fault, because she couldn't help thinking that her best friend did it with good reason, unlike him, but she refrained.

⠀⠀"Your guest is here, Lay!" Shouted Justin Finch-Fletchley at the entrance to the common room, letting in Ron, whose face was red with embarrassment.

⠀⠀The Hufflepuff gave a dirty look at her partner, who laughed at that. She walked among the students, leaving George alone on the sofa and approaching her almost-boy. He looked uncomfortable among so many unfamiliar people, but she quickly took him by the hands and led him to the stairs so he wouldn't be so much in the middle.

⠀⠀Ron watched the badgers dance and drink, very surprised.

⠀⠀"I told you we could have fun," she muttered teasingly to the redhead, nudging him lightly.

⠀⠀"I didn't think that that much," he admitted sheepishly, accepting a drink from a senior boy, "let alone that those two would come," he referred to his brothers.

⠀⠀"Oh, they love parties," she laughed, "and they always come when there's one. They help out by bringing drinks, so they're very welcome."

⠀⠀"It was to be expected," he laughed with her.

⠀⠀"I know."

⠀⠀Layla really didn't want to always have to stay silent with Ron, but she didn't know what to say. Would that happen from now on, or would he try to make conversation? Even though she'd gotten used to talking to him a lot, she still had her shy, introverted personality. It often won out when she was with Ron, but they seemed to have an unofficial pact where when one didn't quite know what to say, the other would speak up to avoid an awkward silence; even so, Layla could almost confirm that their silences weren't usually that way, but rather necessary.

⠀⠀"I..."

⠀⠀"Lay..."

⠀⠀They both spoke at the same time. The girl blushed and prompted him to speak. She didn't really know what she was going to say, she just didn't want to keep quiet.

⠀⠀"I wanted to talk about earlier," muttered Ron, his cheeks red, as he discreetly looked around nervously, "and well..."

⠀⠀"Do you regret it?" Layla asked worriedly, biting her inner lip.

⠀⠀"No, in fact, quite the opposite," he confessed. "I like you."

⠀⠀Layla's heart began to beat very fast. 

⠀⠀Was she dreaming? Was it real?

⠀⠀She wanted to pinch herself to make sure she was still breathing, because she felt like her air had gone out of her. She didn't know what to say even though Ron was staring into her green eyes. Had Layla ever said she loved his blue eyes? She thought she had, because it was one of her favourite sights.

⠀⠀When she was a little girl, she used to read muggle books that talked about love. The Disney princesses and their films were the ones that kept the illusion of a child that that feeling existed, that it was the purest in the world and that it could fight against everything and everyone; mostly love fought the villains, an eternal rest or even a curse. She was infinitely grateful to her parents for being so good to her and teaching her many things about life, including movies and books.

⠀⠀In the library near her house they lent out books of all kinds, and she loved to go there every week for a different one; they were almost always about love. The lady who was in charge knew Layla from way back, so she would let her take extra books for a longer period of time on condition that she told her a summary of them. They say that when you talk about something you like, you do it with such passion that the other person is attracted to the same subject, and that was what happened to the woman in the library. When she found out about her birthday, she would give her new books on topics she knew were her favourites, so that she wouldn't always have to borrow them for a while.

⠀⠀Her big heart, patience and love for the world were qualities of a Hufflepuff, often making people of different houses and years envy her for seeming to be the 'badgeriest' person in the school. Layla was so modest that she never believed it, because she was ashamed of others seeing things she couldn't see in herself. Megan constantly said she envied her for being such a good person and Wayne for his huge heart and willingness to help everyone else without expecting anything in return.

⠀⠀Still on the subject of her moment with Ron, she remembered that when her butterfly died, she read some paragraphs that marked her and that she could still remember: they talked about how being in love and loving someone were not the same thing.

⠀⠀«To be in love is to want to own a part of the other person. It is the belief that this person is so wonderful that you want him or her to be a part of your life, a part of you. When you fall in love with a person, you feel an intense urge to consume that person in any way possible.

⠀⠀When you love someone you need him or her to be a part of your life in one way or another, not because you want to own a piece of that person, but because you want to give him or her a piece of yourself; to love someone is to consider that person worthy of owning a piece of you. It's not about ownership; it's about wanting the best for that person, which often means letting go of your love.»

⠀⠀Layla had never fully reasoned out the background to these two forms of love. If she had been asked how she felt about Ron at the end of fourth year, her answer would have been that she was in love, very much in love, even though she had never spoken to him. But now... she really felt that she loved him.

⠀⠀She didn't care if he didn't choose her in the end, if he decided to be with someone else because he felt more comfortable with her, or if his happiness was simply outside and not tied to her. She just wanted to see him happy.

⠀⠀"I like you too," she muttered under her breath, as her cheeks flushed pink and she avoided his intense gaze a little. It made her nervous, and she felt that if she looked at him she would end up kissing him, and she was still embarrassed.

⠀⠀"There's just something..." Ron began, blushing as well and looking down at his hands nervously, "that I'd like to know."

⠀⠀Something in Layla's mind clicked.

⠀⠀The thought of the letters passed. She doubted it, because he was clearly very clueless about everything, including the letters for two long years. Hermione had figured it out because she was very clever and if she had found out about Professor Lupin two years ago, it didn't surprise her that it would have been enough for her just to put the pieces together to know the truth. She doubted Harry knew, because Mione had barely even seen the letters, so Harry, being as clueless as his best friend, wouldn't have even realised he'd been receiving letters for two years.

⠀⠀She swallowed dryly, feeling her hands start to sweat, hoping he wouldn't take them.

⠀⠀"Anything, I'm willing to tell you the truth," Layla replied, smiling sideways. She chided herself almost instantly for that, as it would give him much more of an opening to ask her intimate questions, perhaps.

⠀⠀"It's about Malone..." She had to stifle a big sigh that threatened to come out of her mouth, and just nodded. "And well, I'm no expert with relationships... Having a girlfriend never was and never has been my thing, in fact."

⠀⠀"Yes...?" Her lip trembled, not knowing why.

⠀⠀"It's just that he's a very toxic guy from what Hermione told me," he blushed again, as if he was ashamed to tell her that he used to talk about her to his friends. "And it scares me to think that he made you do something you didn't want to..."

⠀⠀"Oh, Ron," she didn't quite know what to say, but smiled unconsciously. "No, it didn't happen. He was very toxic, yes, but in that sense, luckily, he never put any pressure on me... Thank you for your concern. Is there anything else, or was it just that?"

⠀⠀Something told her that no, that Ron still had many more doubts about her or the situation. As he'd said, he'd never been 'close' to the feeling of love, let alone a romantic relationship, so she understood why he felt hesitant about it. Layla had doubts too, as her relationship with Roger (not being at all what she had expected) had been too different from the princess stories she had read as a child. The complete opposite.

⠀⠀"Yes, that's all."

⠀⠀As if that had been a trigger to what was to turn out to be the rest of the night, Layla took Ron by the hand, ignoring the fact that it was sweaty, and dragged him towards the centre of the common room to try and get him to dance. You could tell he'd never tried, because his movements were sparse and robotic. Thanks to several drinks the twins gave his brother, he let loose and started dancing with her, who drank a lot even though she was going to wish she hadn't done it the next day.

⠀⠀Oh, Layla, where have you gone to.

WHEN SHE OPENED HER EYES WITH DIFFICULTY DUE TO THE STRONG RAYS OF LIGHT COMING INTO THE ROOM, she realised that she had done something she regretted very much.

⠀⠀She wished she knew where the hell she was, because despite the severe headache and dizziness she had, she knew she didn't know that place. It looked like a big bathroom, but one she had never had the pleasure of being in before. She got up carefully, holding on to a door, and walked out of the cubicle where she had woken up. She touched her head carefully, because she felt like it would explode at any moment. She cursed at that.

⠀⠀"Where on Earth am I, for Helga's sake?" She muttered, and instantly regretted it. Her mouth was so dry that it had bothered her to speak, and she coughed.

⠀⠀She covered her face with her hands as she stood just below a window, as the light was bothering her; she walked on, discovering that on the other side of the large bathroom Ron was also lying and sleeping. She couldn't help thinking that he looked very adorable, and carefully approached him to wake him up: maybe he did know what had happened in the night.

⠀⠀"Forgive me for this, Ron," she spoke to herself, thankfully finding her wand in her boot, and exclaimed: "Aguamenti!"

⠀⠀From her wand a stream of water shot towards the boy, and the moment it landed on his face his eyes snapped open and he sat up. He looked around, still disoriented, but when he noticed the brunette's presence, his eyes went straight to hers.

⠀⠀"What are we doing here?" Ron asked hoarsely, rubbing his head as well. He must have had a horrible hangover just like her.

⠀⠀"That's what I want to know too," she replied with a half-hearted laugh. She looked back to where she had woken up and realised it was on the opposite side of the bathroom.

⠀⠀"I can help you," said a squeaky little voice from one of the toilets.

⠀⠀Layla exchanged glances with Ron before helping him walk straight towards where the voice had been heard. She already had a suspicion of who it might be, and while she liked the idea that she could help them, she was afraid that she just wanted to play with them, because that's what she used to do.

⠀⠀"Is it Myrtle?" Asked the red-haired boy in a whisper. The Hufflepuff didn't answer.

⠀⠀Stepping carefully to avoid falling in (as there was water on the floor) they moved closer to the toilet and finally opened the door, revealing Moaning Myrtle, a ghost who lived at Hogwarts and mostly hung out in the toilets. Layla knew her because she had teased Megan about her dad when they were both in the girls' bathroom talking about it. Myrtle had very little tact with people and loved to make fun of other people's misfortunes because she was dead. Three years earlier Layla had known that she was dead from the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets.

⠀⠀"Did you see us?" Asked the brunette, staring at the ghost. She laughed.

⠀⠀"Oh, of course!" She replied in a thoughtful, mocking tone. "You both arrived here at about three or four o'clock in the morning...! Very drunk, indeed," she added, looking at them coquettishly.

⠀⠀"Then why was I on the other side of the bathroom?" Layla continued to ask as she saw how Ron couldn't bring himself to talk about how embarrassed he was; he had blushed all over.

⠀⠀"You were so drunk that he helped you throw up in the toilet, but he was drunk as well, so he walked away so he didn't throw up in the same place. I was here thinking about death..." she sighed, as if that would give her pleasure, "when suddenly you interrupted my beautiful thoughts with your laughter," she muttered now with a touch of annoyance, and gave them a dirty look. "But well, if you are glad to know: you did nothing to regret, only you both fell asleep in your places."

⠀⠀As if that was all, Myrtle floated away, leaving them both confused and embarrassed by what had apparently happened. She couldn't deny that she was glad to know that nothing bad had occurred, otherwise she would hate herself for life. She looked at Ron trying to figure out what he was thinking, but he was just as confused as she was.

⠀⠀"Do you know which bathroom this is?" Layla asked, taking another look at the place. She didn't know what time it was, but thanks to the light she could guess that it was already past noon.

⠀⠀"It's the prefects' bathroom," he replied, starting to walk over to the sink to wash his face. She mimicked his action, since after having vomited hours before she must have been stinking. "I guess I thought it was better to come here, since there's almost no access."

⠀⠀"That's better than going to a normal toilet," she tried to make fun of the situation, but as the minutes passed she felt very sorry. "Ron... I'm sorry I made you go to that party... I don't remember anything after we went dancing."

⠀⠀"Neither do I," the red-haired man turned to look at her and smiled, "and excuse me too. We don't really know whose idea it was for whatever happened last night, so there's no need to look for blame."

⠀⠀"Megan and Wayne will kill me when they find out that I woke up in the prefect's bathroom with you and don't remember anything from yesterday," lamented the brunette, still with a headache. "Do you think we should go to Poppy's to get something to cure this hangover?"

⠀⠀"I think it's for the best," he analysed the situation before replying and then shrugged, "but we'll give ourselves away... The twins have something for hangovers, they told me once."

⠀⠀"You're right," she nodded, and sheepishly took his arm to leave the perfect bathroom and look for Fred and George.

⠀⠀If Layla had been told the day before that she would kiss Ron on their Hogsmeade date, confess to him that she liked him, and end up drunk in a bath with him, she wouldn't believe it. Since the last —and only— time she'd done it hadn't turned out well. She hoped she hadn't cried like a little girl like she had on that occasion, but at least knowing that the redhead didn't remember anything either was comforting.

⠀⠀On the way to the Gryffindor common room, they discovered that very few students were in the corridors, and the few that were there paid them no attention at all. When they were almost there, Ron began to feel his trouser pockets in fright, and then looked at her in alarm.

⠀⠀"I don't have my wand!" He exclaimed, looking for it on the floor, though she didn't think he would find it there. "Merlin, my mother will kill me if I lose it."

⠀⠀Layla couldn't help but laugh when she remembered the Howler Ron's mum had sent him in second year for arriving at Hogwarts in a flying car with Harry.

⠀⠀"What a mess we are," concluded the brunette as she finished laughing, annoyed that the hangover was still playing tricks on her.

⠀⠀"Let's go meet the twins," the red-haired boy grumbled after saying that and took her by the arm to finally reach their destination.

⠀⠀Her mind was still not processing everything she had done in the last few hours, and she was very absent-minded in every possible way, making her still believe that it was all a dream and that she would wake up any minute in her bed without a hangover.

⠀⠀Ron said the password and ignored the looks the Fat Lady in the portrait gave Layla, passing them both and heading unabashedly to the twins' room, she supposed. She noticed how he avoided at all costs going and looking in the opposite direction, where the girls slept: surely he didn't want to have to run into Hermione, and at that point, neither did she.

⠀⠀Ignoring some curious looks from the Gryffindor boys, they reached the one with the twins' names on it and three other people, including Lee Jordan. The red-haired boy knocked desperately, and after receiving no answer, he opened the door, but not before telling the girl not to look out before he told her. She sensed that Ron didn't want her to see anything improper, which made her feel tender. A minute later he beckoned to her and she came in, finding George and Lee playing Wizard's Chess on the floor. A crazy thought of why Fred wasn't there gnawed at her, thinking he might be with Megan.

⠀⠀"So you," said George, rising from the floor and pointing mockingly at them, "got drunk and now you've come to our aid... Interesting."

⠀⠀"Come on, George, I'll take that," muttered Ron irritably, giving him a dirty look. His brother laughed, but nodded, not before threatening Lee not to move his pieces. He reached into a drawer and pulled out two small vials of a greenish liquid that was not at all appetising.

⠀⠀"I don't know if I want to drink that stuff," Layla said, starting to regret it. Maybe going with Poppy wasn't such a bad idea after all, or even having to wait for the hangover to wear off looked more appetising than that. George raised an eyebrow. "How do I know you're not going to poison us? My God, that looks awful."

⠀⠀"It stinks and smells terrible," Lee spoke for the first time since they arrived, laughing, "but it's worth it, believe me. That drink has saved our lives so that we can attend classes during the week when we used to end up drunk..."

⠀⠀"Too much information, Lee," the red-haired man cut him off, giving him a dirty look. The brunet shrugged and went to lie down on one of the beds. George walked over to them and handed them each a flask. "Drink up."

⠀⠀"I'll only do it if you do it," Ron muttered, glancing sideways at Layla, his gaze fixed on the vial in his brother's hand.

⠀⠀"I suppose it can't be any worse than the headache I have at the moment," she replied resignedly. She had gone over several options, and the only one that didn't involve ratting herself out to a teacher or someone older was to accept the redhead's foul-looking drink.

⠀⠀Ron hesitated, but when he saw Layla's determination he agreed, and they both drank the strange green liquid quickly. Almost as soon as she finished, she wanted to vomit: it tasted much worse than it looked; she could compare the flavour to a strange combination of beans of all flavours, but much more intense. She had to drink from the glass of water Lee offered her to keep from throwing it all up, even though she hadn't eaten anything yet, to swallow it. In that instant her guts echoed around the room, and she cursed, due to the mocking looks she got from the owners of the room.

⠀⠀"Your girlfriend's hungry, Ronnie," George pointed out the obvious, patting them both on the shoulders. The brunette blushed. "You'd better go to the kitchens and get some food."

⠀⠀"Sounds like a good idea," replied the boy next to her with pink cheeks. "Let's get something to eat, Lay."

⠀⠀She frowned.

⠀⠀"I thought we were going to look for your..."

⠀⠀"Our food," he interrupted her, giving her knowing looks. At first she didn't understand, but then she opened her mouth at the obvious: he didn't want his brother to know about his wand.

⠀⠀"I'm not surprised, really," George laughed again, "that after what you did last night you've lost your way."

⠀⠀"What happened last night?" Layla asked, turning to the redhead, raising an eyebrow. She supposed he might know more about the night, since neither she nor Ron did.

⠀⠀"Oh, well, how could I forget," he began, amused. They were dancing, and I joined in, because I've always been a bad third wheel,' he laughed, 'and they know it.... Well, then some boys from my year proposed a game of spell avoidance: one blindfolded person would cast harmless spells (aguamenti, lumos, etc.) and the person in front of them has to try to dodge it after spinning it ten times. About twenty minutes after it started it was her turn, and you, Ronnie, got to cast it on Layla, and she ended up getting completely wet...

⠀⠀"Oh, well, how could I forget," he began, amused. "You were dancing, I joined in because third wheeling has always been my thing," he laughed, "and you know it... Well, then some boys from my year proposed a game of spell avoidance: one blindfolded person would cast harmless spells —Aguamenti, Lumos and so on— and the person in front of them had to try to dodge it after spinning ten times. About twenty minutes after it started it was your turn, and you, Ronnie, got to cast on Layla, and she ended up getting completely wet..."

⠀⠀The Hufflepuff's brain switched off as she listened to George say that Ron had cast a spell on her, which meant he still had his wand at that point. She glanced sideways at him to see if he had picked up on the same thing and was thankful that he had.

⠀⠀"Me... with my wand?" The red-haired man asked cautiously. The twin looked at him as if he had asked in jest and nodded.

⠀⠀"Of course! How could you, then? Wow, Ron, you've had a lot to drink..."

⠀⠀"What happened after that?" Layla interrupted him.

⠀⠀George went on to tell them that at the end of the game they had both left with the excuse that they were going to the kitchens for dinner, and that they were never seen again. Again she shared glances with Ron and they left the room, leaving the twin with the word in his mouth, who shouted, "At least say goodbye, you rude people!"

⠀⠀Without speaking, they both pretended to be in no hurry as Professor Flitwick passed them. He waved at them and went on his way. Students watched them curiously, but no one said anything, so Layla walked as if there was no problem and forced Ron to do the same: his face gave him away completely, and it even looked as if they were going to make a joke. She was grateful that they hadn't run into Umbridge or any other prefect who could stop them and take away their points.

⠀⠀When they finally arrived, they noticed that the elves were making a meal, as it would soon be lunchtime. Dobby was the only one who approached them and greeted them as warmly as ever. He offered them something to eat, and they accepted. They sat down at one of the tables in the corner to wait for the elf.

⠀⠀"Do you think I should ask him what we did last night?" Said Ron, glancing sideways at Dobby, who was happily cooking, his hands, feet and head full of knitting.

⠀⠀"We must if you want to know where your wand is."

⠀⠀The boy nodded, so when the elf came to their side leaving them a couple of chops, he asked him if they had been in the kitchens that night.

⠀⠀"Of course, Dobby remembers clearly!" He exclaimed happily, watching as they both began to eat desperately. Layla was so hungry she was sure she would be asking for more. "Miss Layla had come here very... drunk, and hungry, and so was Mr. Weasley. Dobby offered them food and they both accepted, ate and left at about one in the morning."

⠀⠀One?, the brunette asked herself annoyed, remembering that according to Myrtle's story they had arrived at the prefect's bathroom at four or five o'clock. They still had three hours to spare.

⠀⠀"Did Ron have his wand in his hand, Dobby?" Layla said. "Do you remember?"

⠀⠀"Mr. Weasley had it, yes, Dobby remembers him putting it on the table when they started eating," the Elf's big blue eyes twinkled.

⠀⠀"When we left, did he have it?"

⠀⠀Dobby nodded with a smile.

⠀⠀"And... do you know where we went after that?" Ron asked curiously, chewing on his chop. "I m'an, did we zay wh're we were goin'?"

⠀⠀Layla realised that she really was in love because it had never bothered her when the red-haired boy talked with his mouth full. She sighed inwardly, trying to concentrate on what was important.

⠀⠀"Dobby remembers that they mentioned something about the greenhouses... but Dobby remembers no more."

⠀⠀She pursed her lips in annoyance. The boy next to her was no better, so when they finished eating, they got up and said goodbye to the elf, promising to return soon.

⠀⠀They left the kitchens with more doubts than when they entered, heading now towards the greenhouses. The disadvantage was that they would have to keep walking, and the advantage was that they were not so far from the kitchens. Neither of them said anything and they set about walking towards the place, making sure to check every time they turned down a corridor: they didn't want to run into Umbridge or McGonagall. She was surprised to see the door to greenhouse one open, as Professor Sprout was very cautious about that; the thought crossed her mind that maybe it was their fault at midnight.

⠀⠀They exchanged glances, then cautiously entered the place. Everything was in place: the table, chairs and plants.

⠀⠀"Look under the shelves... you might have dropped your wand," Layla ordered. Ron nodded and they both started looking from a different side.

⠀⠀The Hufflepuff, on the right side, approached the plants that were almost near the floor and moved them carefully to see if the redhead's wand could be seen there; to her bad luck she could see nothing, but she did not give up. She even climbed onto a chair to check the plants hanging from the ceiling.

⠀⠀"Look, Lay!" Ron exclaimed at the other end of the greenhouse. The brunette turned her head and watched as he pointed to a specific spot. Gathering her courage, she jumped out of her chair, falling a little badly on the floor, but nothing serious, and then headed towards the boy.

⠀⠀On the floor was a lens, which belonged to a telescope.

⠀⠀"Did we... go to the Astronomy Tower before?" Layla asked blankly, fed up with having to go somewhere else again, and much worse: on the other side of the castle, at the very top.

⠀⠀"I guess so," Ron replied dejectedly, sitting down in one of the chairs and leaning his head on the lap of the chair opposite him. She mimicked his action by just sitting down next to him, and leaning her head on his shoulder. "Do you want to go now, or do you want to rest for a bit?"

⠀⠀"Do you know what time it is?" She said absentmindedly, beginning to close her eyelids due to how sleepy she was. When she felt herself falling asleep, Ron answered her.

⠀⠀"Twenty-five past three."

⠀⠀"Oh, my goodness!" Layla exclaimed, jumping out of her chair and looking around worriedly. They were just about to be caught in there. VProfessor Sprout must be on her way over here... she always makes a visit at twenty past three on Sundays!"

⠀⠀Ron, still not understanding, looked at her in confusion.

⠀⠀"What does that m...?"

⠀⠀The sounds of footsteps outside the greenhouse interrupted the redhead's sentence, which he left hanging in the air. Her eyes widened as she heard a humming sound, coming from the Head of Badgers. Layla cursed again: she was beginning to think that that was not her day.

⠀⠀She grabbed Ron's arm tightly and pulled him into a corner, opening a trapdoor that was hidden in the floor. The Gryffindor stared at her blankly, but the brunette silenced him with her gaze, which shut him up.

⠀⠀She grabbed Ron's arm tightly and pulled him into a corner, opening a trapdoor that was hidden in the floor. The Gryffindor stared at her blankly, but the brunette silenced him with her gaze, which shut him up.

⠀⠀A year earlier Layla and Wayne had gone to greenhouse one to look for a plant that Neville had told them 'helped with pimples and zits', all because Megan had just gotten a big one on her forehead. She said, 'I can't walk around the school with this thing', so they, like best friends, snuck off to the place to get that blissful hormone-healing plant. That's when they found out that Professor Sprout made routine visits, because as they were finishing up, she arrived and they had to hide in the same place, one that they found by pure luck while they were looking for the plant.

⠀⠀Inside the trapdoor they could barely fit the two of them, especially as Ron was so tall. Their bodies were close together, in a way that, if they found them, they would think of many other things before the real reason. She couldn't help but feel hot, but it was the closeness of the two of them and the smallness of the place that didn't help the blush on her cheeks. The redhead also seemed a little uncomfortable with the situation, but he didn't show it, instead he pulled Layla closer to his chest so she wasn't stuck to the grimy wall.

⠀⠀She had never been very religious, but she prayed they wouldn't be found. She didn't want them to be punished and/or get points deducted, especially as he was a prefect.

⠀⠀After ten long, strange minutes, Professor Sprout came out of the greenhouse when she had made sure that everything was all right. The brunette had seen that Ron had brought with him the piece of the telescope they had seen on the floor, so there was nothing 'out of the ordinary'. Carefully they both climbed out of the trapdoor, sweaty and embarrassed, though they didn't say it out loud. Layla at least could be sure she was.

⠀⠀"Shall we go?"

⠀⠀The Hufflepuff sighed deeply. She hated to think that the only chance they had of finding the boy's holy wand was far away from there. She ended up nodding, as she grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him heavily out of the place. Her legs were beginning to ache and her feet were beginning to throb.

⠀⠀Resigned, she climbed all the stairs that led to the top floor of the castle, which despite being one of her favourites due to the beautiful views from there, she didn't need to see at the moment. Or well, she didn't really want to.

⠀⠀There were all sorts of thoughts running through her mind that she was sick of having to ignore. She knew that she didn't always have the privilege of spending an entire weekend with Ron Weasley, let alone having her second big binge with him; she really couldn't imagine at all how a day as noble and innocent as Saturday had turned into an endless search of the castle for Ron's wand alone. She understood at the same time that he couldn't afford a new one, but she knew that, if they didn't find it in the Astronomy Tower, she wouldn't be able to follow him on his great and interesting journey. She ached all over, and apart from the hangover (which had gone away since she drank that strange liquid George gave her), she couldn't stand her body.

⠀⠀I wished it would end soon.

⠀⠀It was almost four o'clock in the afternoon, and they hurried straight to the telescopes. Ron passed the piece to Layla.

⠀⠀"Find out where it goes... I'll look for my wand in the meantime."

⠀⠀She nodded, starting from the opposite end of the tower. She examined each telescope closely, making sure that the place where the piece was supposed to go had it, so that she could discard it and go to the next one. Professor Sinistra must have had a great love of telescopes, and she could tell by the number she had up there.

⠀⠀Layla placed the piece in a telescope right in the middle of everyone, where she had already reunited with Ron, having found no trace of his wand. They both sighed heavily before leaning against the railing, where they lay down with their legs dangling.

⠀⠀"We're a mess," the girl said, closing her eyes and feeling the cool breeze blowing through the tower. She heard Ron groan.

⠀⠀"And I didn't find my wand..."

⠀⠀"It's not the end of the world, Ron," she reprimanded him, taking his hand and giving it a firm squeeze, "we'll find it."

⠀⠀"I hope it will be before tomorrow, at least."

⠀⠀She wanted to say yes, but the truth was that she wasn't at all sure, and she didn't want to get his hopes up either. She remained silent, assuming he understood why she was no longer saying anything on the subject. His wand could suddenly appear, and she really hoped it would.

⠀⠀She didn't even realise when she had fallen asleep at the top of the Tower with Ron, let alone that someone had arrived and was looking at them mockingly. She felt her arm being gently moved, causing her to awaken with difficulty. As she opened her eyes and tried to adjust to reality, she wanted to scold the person who had woken her, but when she saw Harry Potter standing in front of her, she fell silent.

⠀⠀Couldn't she finish her day relatively normally?

⠀⠀She scowled at Ron, but he was far more embarrassed than she was at the moment. She was ashamed to note that Harry had seen her asleep in the Astronomy Tower, and much worse, with Ron by her side.

⠀⠀"I... you were missing for a long time," said Harry in a mocking tone. His best friend gave him a dirty look but didn't care, "and well, I saw you with the map. I've been looking for you all morning, Ron, and it didn't occur to me until Hermione mentioned that I should look on the map."

⠀⠀"Which map?" Layla asked curiously, realising she was the only one lost in the conversation.

⠀⠀"I'll explain later," replied the red-headed boy with a sideways grin, then looked back at his friend. "Harry, we've been looking for my wand all day... we don't know where the hell we were yesterday and..."

⠀⠀"But your wand's in the room, Ron," interrupted the dark-haired, raising an eyebrow. "You left it when it was almost two o'clock, you were coming from here and then you were going to the greenhouses, something like that."

⠀⠀Layla gritted her teeth in annoyance, and glared at Ron furiously. The boy began to blush even more.

⠀⠀"As a defence: I didn't think it was in my room... "He excused himself quickly. The brunette rolled her eyes.

⠀⠀"At least we've half figured out what the hell we did last night," she said in an uneasy voice, "that's progress."

⠀⠀"I doubt very much if you'll ever know," Harry looked at his watch, and stood up. "We should go, it's time for dinner."

⠀⠀"How much sleep did we get?" Ron asked the air, shaking his head and helping Layla up from the floor. She shrugged and just replied:

⠀⠀"I don't think we will be able to find out for the time being."

⠀⠀And she was right... What happens when drunk, stays in the funny moments they both did when they were drunk.

⠀⠀Oh, Layla, if only you had known what kind of weekend you were going to have, you probably would have been more careful. But there is no such thing, and now you have to live with the intrigue of that night.

⠀⠀That's what happens when you get drunk.