DOORWAYS || MARAUDERS ERA

ϟ60: RHEA IS JEALOUS OF THE RADIOϟ

"You did what?"

Rhea was glaring at Fred and George, aghast, whereas Ron was grinning appreciatively.

"That's a new low, even for you," Hermione said coldly. 

"Montague tried to take points from us," Fred shrugged, triumphant. "So we locked him in the cabinet. No harm done."

"No harm done?" Hermione repeated incredulously. "How will he get out?"

"What are you going to do, report us?" George asked coolly, and Hermione deflated, knowing that she would never snitch on them, especially with Umbridge around.

"Montague shouldn't have done that, it's not their fault," Ron defended.

"Ron!" Rhea cried out. "You can't be serious! He has no food in there, nor water—"

"He's a Slytherin!"

"Fred!"

Rhea turned to Harry for back up. "Come on, Harry, tell them it's wrong! This is just like the prank Sirius played on Snape, except they forced him in there!"

"Why are you always against us?" George sighed, "Even when we told you about Percy, you got mad!"

"Of course I did!" Rhea hissed. "Can you honestly blame Percy for being easily brainwashed? Do you ever recall appreciating Percy, even once? You lot insulted him just because he was a little too ambitious and the smartest one in the room! And the Ministry saw this as an opportunity to manipulate him into working for them by praising him relentlessly. Something you never did! I'm sorry, Fred, I honestly know why you're so angry with him—I am too—but it wouldn't hurt to look at all this from his point of view! He found himself getting the recognition he wanted with the Ministry, and he turned against us!"

"You're only saying that because he stopped Malfoy from bullying you," George said somewhat bitterly, remembering all those times Mrs Weasley had cried because of Percy.

"No," Rhea said quietly, turning on her heel and walking away. "I loathe what he did to you guys. To us. I'm not defending him. But he was the one who showed me how to stand up to bullies. To stop belittling myself. And that was the best thing he'd ever done for me. So yeah, when I remember him that way, he was just trying his best to reach his potential. And unfortunately, the Ministry corrupted him. Believe me when I say this: he will come back."

╔═══*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*═══╗

Rhea was avoiding the Gryffindor Common Room.

Specifically, she was avoiding James, Sirius, Peter and Marlene.
Who were forcing her to play Quidditch.

She'd rather land herself in detention with Filch than play that wretched sport.

And so she sneaked away from the common room when Lily thankfully caused a distraction by conjuring violent pumpkins that burst into awful songs and insulted every occupant of the room as a late Halloween joke, before winking discretely at Rhea so that she could escape.

Rhea had never seen James look more lovestruck.

And that's how she found herself roaming the corridors of Hogwarts in the chilly air, a warm Gryffindor scarf wrapped around her neck and a green jumper she had borrowed from Lily. James was convinced there was something going on between her and Rhea.

But Lily was highly shocked when James had stopped asking her out, positive that James had gotten over her. Rhea could tell that Lily was starting to panic because she was finally reciprocating James' feelings, but being the stubborn Gryffindor she was, she vehemently denied it when Rhea brought the topic up.