Abby and Lucy's "Confrontation"

[Abby Longbottom]

Late Feb/Early March, 2023
Hospital Wing, Hogwarts

Abby was a mess and anybody who knew the girl inside out could see it. Sure, she was still laughing at the lame jokes in the common room and secretly blowing a kiss to Lucy when they were all ready to go to bed, but how else was she supposed to act when nobody even knew what was wrong. Except Louis, and she'd avoided him like he was a deadly viper. And that Oberlin girl who's eyes she couldn't meet when they ran into one another on the way to the dormitories or the common room or in the Great Hall. It was like the whole wide world had come down upon her and was whispering, 'cheater,cheater' in her ear.

A part of her tried to convince herself that kissing wasn't cheating, that it was a moment of complete confusion and loss of inhibition. But she knew how stupid that sounded, even in her head. Lucy was her girlfriends. And girlfriends don't go around kissing other boys. Especially when you're in fourth year, where is kissing somebody else isn't entirely unforgivable and it is cheating. And when said boy is your girlfriend's cousin. But right now, for the first time in weeks, that wasn't her biggest problem.

It had only been a stupid rumor floating around, about how Lucy and Diana'd had some sort of confrontation. She wasn't entirely sure what was true. Anybody could've been saying anything, because this was school were rumors were always floating about. Some people said that they'd cursed each other, some said it was only verbal. Nobody could really tell because nobody had really been there. But catching Diana Grey's eyes across the hall and seeing the pure satisfaction, she'd immediately dropped the library books she'd been carrying and run down to the dungeons. Not finding Lucy there, she'd felt her heart stutter a bit before she ran up to the Hospital Wing, hoping she was there and yet wishing she wasn't.

"Lucy!" she exclaimed, startled, catching her breath and thanking her stars that she was a runner. "Oh thank Merlin," she said, dropping down on the seat beside her bed and taking her hand. "Do you know what everyone's been saying? I wasn't sure what condition I'd find you in!" she said.

[Lucy Weasley]

Lucy had been curled up on her side ever since her confrontation with Dianna and surprisingly quiet as she battled the headache threatening to come on. She hated Dianna Grey, hated her and she wanted nothing more than the girl to be dead. Yet her words - unnatural, freak, whore, slut, dyke, stupid, unloved, unwanted - wouldn't stop racing through her mind, wondering whether they were true or whether they were just spat at her to hurt her.

She heard her voice called exceptionally loudly and she rolled over, looking up at Abby and biting her lip as her hand was taken into the warm palm of the other girl's. "I didn't realise so many people knew," she murmured before shaking her head a little. "My... the fucking bitch... she stunned me and I must of whacked my head on the concrete or some shit because the next thing I knew, I was in the hospital wing and... but I'm glad you're here. It's nice. You being here and all, y'know? The Head Girl was here earlier but... yeah. I'm happy you're here."

[Abby Longbottom]

"I'm pretty sure nobody knows what really happened. You know how rumors are and you know how that little bitch is," she said, her voice turning cold and cutting as towards the end of her sentence. She was going to fucking kill Dianna Grey. Nobody messed with her best friend slash girlfriend and got away with it. "She probably did it to get some attention to herself," she said, shaking her head and giving Lucy a tight smile. "Bella Viena was here? What did she say?" she asked.

"I'm happy too, that you're okay," she mumbled, resting her head on her chin and not removing her hand from Lucy's. This wasn't as awkward as she'd expected it to be, given the fact that she hadn't been herself over the past few weeks but she supposed her mission had been accomplished if nobody questioned her about it. "Did they say when you can come back to the dorms?" she asked, curious and worried at the same time about just how hard Lucy had hit her head.

[Lucy Weasley]

"Yeah, well. I'm pretty sure they're going to expel or at least suspend her arse this time. She's attacked enough people... Viena saw her run away so there's legitimate proof that she was actually the one to do this to me," Lucy muttered darkly before she scooted over on the bed towards the wall and patted the space next to her. "Come the fuck up here already. This bed makes me feel too bloody small." She wasn't going to admit that truthfully she just wanted somebody whom she trusted close to her. "She just said that she's going to see that the bitch gets expelled for sure this time and that she wasn't letting her get away with it - that's all I heard before she was shooed out and I started having medicine poured down my throat."

She shrugged a little, not quite certain. "They said to give it a day or two... they just want to make sure I haven't given myself brain damage or some shit like that. I don't even know but because I got 'attacked', they've had to contact my family and apparently Molly's going to be here soon and my parents are coming tomorrow to check up on me. It's so sodding annoying though because I know, I just know that they're going to use this to be all like, 'Oh, Lucy, darling. This is just a testament of how incapable you are of looking after yourself'[/i] which is going to be as annoying as fuck."

[Abby Longbottom]

"Good! Then maybe I won't get suspended for attacking another student when I go an try to curse her to oblivion," she muttered, before turning to look at Lucy, who was making place for her. For a second she froze, guilt sliding down her throat like melting ice before she smiled at her and took off her shoes, pulling back the covers to climb in. The moment she was under them, she put her hand across Lucy's waist. "Maybe be because you are tiny," she responded, the smallest hint of laughter trailing into her voice. She wrinkled her nose at her next few words though. "Ew, medicine. Doesn't sound fun," she said.

"Oh, more than already you mean?" she joked, softly tapping her temple where it didn't look like she'd gotten hurt. Her brow furrowed though and she felt the hairs on her neck stand up. Family? Did that mean everybody was going to be coming? The school was already so full off the Weasleys, would they all drop by to visit. And what if Molly, her airhead (shh, you didn't hear her say it) sister blabbered about it in her common room and Louis landed here? Of course not, she calmed herself. Not happening. She tried to focus on Lucy's words instead. "I'm pretty sure they're going to be worried about you," she said. "I mean, you got attacked, how is that your fault?" she said.

[Lucy Weasley]

"Pretty sure they can still suspend you for that," Lucy told her, amusement inching into her voice a little. "Maybe leave it until the holidays when the school can't suspend you for attacking another student - that way you'll still be in school and I'll be able to hold your hand under the table every day without getting knocked out." She didn't seem to catch Abby freezing for a second - or if she did, she was too caught up in her own little world. She shifted closer towards Abby when she felt her warm hand rest on her waist - the heat so warm that she could feel it even through her school blouse. "Nah... it was alright. It was strawberry so... yeah. It wasn't too bad."

"Oh, ha-fucking-ha," she said with a roll of her eyes, reaching up to grab Abby's fingers as the girl tapped the side of her head and bringing it to her mouth instead, planting a kiss on the knuckles - a gesture increasingly worrying and romantic for Lucy. She looked at Abby bizarrely as the other girl was quiet for a moment and the other girl's eyebrows furrowed. "What's wrong? And yeah... maybe... well, some could technically justify the fact that I was attacked was because I'm a dyke or some shit like that."

[Abby Longbottom]

"As if I'm going to spend my holidays hunting Dianna Grey down. I've got better things to do. Maybe I'll come up to your place instead," she said, grinning as she laced her fingers with Lucy's. "Oh? Is that why she attacked you? Because of us?" she asked, her eyes widening. Leave it to Dianna to make their harmless relationship into a reason for attacking somebody. "That girl needs somebody to use a sledgehammer on her head to knock some sense in," she said. Her arms automatically tightened around Lucy as she kept talking, her head easily resting in the crook between her head and shoulder.

She smiled at the soft kiss, squeezing her fingers in response. It felt nice and she bit the inside of her cheek as she hummed in relief. She knew she had to tell Lucy soon enough and she didn't want to think about it. If there was a chance she might leave her after what she did, which she couldn't blame her for, then she wanted to enjoy this as much as she could. She dodged the question about what was wrong and clicked her tongue instead. "You need to stop listening to what your attacker tells you when they insult you. You know that's not true and I'm pretty sure your family isn't going to be very pleased either," she said.

[Lucy Weasley]

"Better things like me?" Lucy joked easily, squeezing her hand with a small grin. "Coming up to my place would be nice... though, beware, my parents will probably be shouting down the house again these holidays if they're home." She averted eyes, shrugging. "Well... I believe her exact words were because I'm a 'stupid, unwanted dyke who needs to be put in her place.' So basically, yeah. I think so. But whatever, she's just... pathetic, really."

She practically had to swallow back her retort and an eye-roll as Abby told her not to listen to Dianna. She knew that, logically, the girl was trying to hurt her... but she also knew that her words more than likely had a ring of truth to them as well - like most bullies words did. "My family... right." My family who loves me because they have to. "You're right. I'm just glad they got me instead of you."

[Abby Longbottom]

"Oh, well," she hesitated for a second. "Then you come to my place. I'm sure my parents would love to have you around!" she grinned, trying to cheer up the girl. She would never, ever show it or tell Lucy this but she felt kind of bad for her whenever her family life was brought into question. Her thoughts were interrupted by Lucy's narration of exactly what Dianna had said and once again, she felt a flash of anger go through her. "What the fuck is her problem?" she groaned, muttering obscenities under her breath. "She's the one who's a whore," she said.

She raised a brow, wondering what was going through Lucy's head at the moment. Abby knew that Lucy wouldn't take any of those words to heart, but if she herself had been in her place, she would've questioned those very same insults, looking for an echo of truth in them. She just hoped Lucy wouldn't do the same. "I'm serious. Anything she said is completely untrue, and who're you going to believe, her or me?" she asked. She scoffed, hiding her smile. "What's that supposed to mean, missy?" she asked.

Propping her head up on her palm, she stared at Lucy, who's red hair was kind of a mess now and who's skin looked a little paler than usual and she smiled softly, impulsively leaning in to press a soft kiss to her lips.

[Lucy Weasley]

"Your parents definitely do adore me," Lucy remarked, trying to keep any hint of sarcasm out of her voice because it was a blatant lie. In general, parents didn't like her at all. She was a 'bad influence' though at least Abby's parents were too polite to actually say so. She covered Abby's hand on her waist with her own as she saw a flash of anger come into her eyes. "She's just a dickhead is all... though I don't know why the hell she thinks she's better than me because she's really, really not."

As she noticed Abby raising an eyebrow at her, she was quick to clear her throat and smiled up at her again, not quite meaning it but thankful for her girlfriend actually listening to her problems. "You, I guess..." she murmured slowly before her smile became a little more genuine as she shrugged. "I'd rather be the one getting knocked out than you, obviously. And don't cool me missy - I'm not a cat."

She met Abby's eyes as the other girl rested her head on her palm and let Abby press a kiss against her lips, closing her eyes briefly. She was happy even though her head hurt - it felt like things had returned to normal, a feeling that she hadn't felt for at least a week after their date. It felt natural and she loved it. Not sure whether or not Abby was game enough to deepen the kiss, she found herself taking initiative and deepening it herself.

[Abby Longbottom]

Abby faltered for a second. She hadn't thought of it that way, of Lucy being glad in any way that she'd been cursed instead of Abby. It made her swallow and she felt like a weight was pressing down on her. She wasn't even sure if Lucy would just forgive her right away or hold it against her or what, but the question of the unknown was leaving her panicky. "Oh, thanks, I think..? But I don't want you seeing it that way," she said, shaking her head. Her brow furrowed again. "What? What does being called Missy have anything to do with being a cat?" she asked.

Abby felt her fingers curl into the hem of Lucy's shirt as she gasped into her mouth, glad that Lucy was deepening the kiss. She immediately responded, one hand going to play with her hair and the other curling around her waist. She let her tongue dart out to trace the outline of Lucy's and as Louis kissed her back with equal passion. It felt like her skin was on fire, and as if the kitchen was melting away and - wait, what?

The harsh smell of the hospital potions brought her eyes flying open, as she realized she'd mentally transported to Louis in the kitchens, to all those weeks ago. She immediately wrenched herself free from Lucy, sitting up, her hands flying to her neck where she could feel her pulse thrumming. Oh Merlin,, she thought. "I'm sorry," she gasped, pushing back the covers and scrambling for her shoes. "I can't do this. I'm sorry," she mumbled, pulling them on, half of her wanting to bolt, half of her wanting Lucy to demand an explanation.

[Lucy Weasley]

"It kind of has to be that way so I can see myself as the hero of this relationship," Lucy joked before she just shook her head, cringing. "You know... Missy like a cat? Lorcan named his cat Missy once upon a time. Apparently he thought it was normal - and I was stupid enough to believe him. Just ignore me, please, for Salazar's sake."

As Abby responded to her kiss just as passionately, she let her body arch into the other girl's, hand falling to rest on her waist as she made the leap of manoeuvring herself to straddle the other girl but just as she went to move, she found Abby tearing herself away from her and her hands were suddenly empty. She sat up, shocked as Abby started putting on her shoes and muttering apologies. She reached out quickly, grabbing Abby's hand. "Wait... Abby, what's wrong? Did I do something or...?"

A terrible feeling sunk in Lucy's stomach. What if Abby decided they were better suited as best friends instead of girlfriends? She knew, she knew that they made a pact beforehand to always be friends despite them going their separate ways romantically but after being attacked by Dianna Grey only this morning, she didn't think she could handle it. Not right now.

[Abby Longbottom]

The moment Lucy's fingers touched her hand, she felt her body freeze and she sat up straight, her laces still untied. Her words were a bit of a garble in her ear before she realized how her actions might've looked but she turned to her and shook her head, her mouth opening and closing a few times. "It's not you -", it's me?, she finished in her head, realizing how cliche and stupid that sounded. Besides, it wasn't like she was leaving Lucy. It was up to her to do that.

"There's just, something I did, which I shouldn't have done and now I feel like I'm lying to you while being with you because you don't know," she admitted, not ready to meet her eyes as she softly took Lucy's fingers, barely brushed her lips to them before putting her hand back on the bed, away from her. "And I don't think you'll want to be with me once you find out," she said.

The reality of just what she was saying made her cold from the inside. They'd agreed to be best friends forever no matter how their relationship turned out. If they broke up on the basis that they didn't want to be with girls, or each other anymore. But could they still be friends, knowing that Lucy might not be able to trust her again. She bit her lip from the inside.

[Lucy Weasley]

Lucy stared at Abby as she froze, her face paler than usual and she waited for an answer, stomach lurching as Abby began the oh-so cliched sentence of 'it's not you, it's me' - she thanked Merlin when she didn't finish it, though her stomach was still completely unsettled as Abby started speaking again.

She looked up at her girlfriend with soft eyes, waiting for Abby to stop being so goddamned mysterious already. She slid out of the bed on somewhat unsteady feet to drag a chair opposite her so they were eye-level. "Whatever you did... you can tell me. You know that, right?"

From what Abby was saying, it was bad. Really bad. And that's why Lucy's stomach lurched yet again and she bit her lip, wondering what on earth it could be. "I may be your girlfriend but... but I'm your best friend, first and foremost.

[Abby Longbottom]

Abby, feeling a little reassured, but not really, turned to her, crossing her legs slightly. "It was a few weeks ago, in the kitchens. I was there after hours, really hungry and I had nothing to do and I went down there to get some sandwiches and hot chocolate, and I didn't expect any prefect to show up, but Louis came in. And, we kind of grew closer over the winter and we got talking and we were sitting and talking and joking around and -" she hesitated, swallowing.

How exactly should she frame her sentences without making it sound like it was Louis' fault. It was hers; Louis didn't know she wasn't single, right? "Louis kissed me, and I kissed him back. I don't think he knew I wasn't single, but I didn't bother telling him and I wanted to and I kissed him too and Devyn - you know, Oberlin? - she walked in and I kind of ran away, but -" just say it, Abby, just say it "I don't think I wanted to stop, and I wouldn't have unless Oberlin had interrupted us," she said.

She felt her face flush dark, and something prick her at the back of her eyes as she stood up and crossed her arms and turned her back to Lucy, not ready to face the disappointment and hurt that would surely be there. Or the anger, although she'd take that over the other two any day.