- Just wanted to say thanks to everyone reading and voting on this, I see u guys :)) And I hope you like the way the story is turning out -

(Also, the song isn't me saying Y/N is a psycho. Just thought it was a vibe, ya know?)

*Y/N's POV*

I couldn't find my goddamn-fucking-satan's asshole-soggy-toilet-paper-mushy-banana-Jesus'-left-pube-bitch of a quill.

I sat on the thickly-carpeted floor, surrounded by my belongings, which I'd flung out of my leather satchel in search of my quill.

Now, you might be thinking, "Why is she so worked up? Surely a lost quill isn't enough reason to blaspheme about Jesus' left pubes."

You would be wrong in thinking that. And don't call me Shirley.

The stress of fifth year was finally getting to me. The professors were assigning twice as much homework as they had in the beginning of the year, and I'd heard the word 'N.E.W.T' so much my head practically rang with it. I was up until 1 am every night just finishing assignments, and the lovely combination of sleep deprivation and school anxiety had finally caused me to break down.

Which brings us to me, on the floor.

I shuffled frantically through random scraps of parchment and stray ink bottles. My hand settled on a ripped off corner on which a sketch was scribbled; I remembered being bored in history of magic and doodling it absentmindedly. It was a cat with two legs and...well, it looked like this but scratched in ink-

It really wasn't that funny. But I had gotten ~4 hours of sleep last night, and consequentially it was the most goddamn hilarious thing I'd ever seen in my life. I felt tears start forming in my eyes, and a chuckle bubbled up in my throat until I burst out laughing and fell down on the floor, rolling back and forth while screaming with laughter.

Several minutes later, Ron came into the common room to find me half laughing and half sobbing on the ground, surrounded by my books and papers. He rushed over and knelt down next to me.

"Y/n??" He grabbed my shoulder and shook it gently. "Are you...okay?"

I laughed and wiped my eyes, sitting up straight. "Not in the slightest, my good bitch. Not in the slightest." My face was sore from my maniacal grinning, and I put my hands to my cheeks to try and relax them.

"Why were you crying? Or laughing, I'm not entirely sure which."

I sighed and leaned against the back of a chair, letting my head roll back to hit the cushions.

"I got four hours of sleep again, and I found this." I handed him the cat drawing and watched his face as he tried unsuccessfully to suppress a grin.

"That's pretty funny," He admitted, "But not funny enough to make me cry. Which means you," He stood up and held out a hand to help me up. "You are not well."

I grabbed his hand and hoisted myself up. "I'm not sick."

"Maybe not physically," He came closer and lightly tapped my forehead with his forefinger, "But you are in here. Not saying you're schizophrenic, but you're stressed. And we're going to remedy that."

"Arghhh," I groaned and buried my head in my hands. "But how?"

"Finals are next week, yeah?" He asked. I nodded, adding, "Right before winter break."

"So, we study this entire week, we ace our finals, and then we take a much needed mental health break." He said it like it was so simple, as if he genuinely believed I wouldn't procrastinate until 12 and then half-ass all my homework. I went along with it, just to be nice.

"So, assuming I actually do well on the finals," I turned my head to look up at him, "What exactly would we be doing on this 'mental health break'?"

Ron rubbed the back of his neck and stuttered slightly.

"Well, I was thinking, erm, if you weren't doing anything of course, that um," I waited patiently, knowing he would get to it eventually. I rested a hand on his shoulder and nodded encouragingly.

"Um, some family friends of ours are away on a vacation in Belarus, and they have a mountaintop lodge that's unused right now. They said we could take it over break, and um, I was thinking about inviting some people to come stay in it? Just friends of course."

I smiled at him and drew him into a hug, resting my head on his chest. I needed comfort after my mental breakdown, but I also just enjoyed the feeling of his hard chest against me.

"I would love to, Ron. Who else would be going?" He grinned and the tips of his ears turned pink as he wrapped his arms around me securely before letting go.

"Mum and Dad aren't going cause they wanna have the house to themselves, and Percy is off doing some internship. So you, Harry, me, Hermione, Fred and George, and probably a couple other people we think of inviting," He said. He thought for a minute, and added, "Oh yeah, and Cedric. Dad wants us to hang out with him better, says it'll be "good for business"." He rolled his eyes.

I flushed slightly, thinking of the moment I'd shared with Cedric back in the Golden Grove. I'd gone back there at least two or three times a week since, and we usually met up. Sometimes we just sat and read in silence, but we also chatted about anything and everything that came to mind. He was always a gentleman, but I got the feeling that there was a rougher side of him underneath that perfect exterior just waiting to be released. And I was so intruiged by it.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

The entire next week, I studied my ass off. I felt like Hermione, I was so productive. Part of my newfound drive was the promise of the lodge over break. I found myself daydreaming of it during class, which meant I had to (sometimes literally) slap myself out of it.

I was fighting Dumb Bitch Disease like a pro.

It was the Friday before break, and it was my last class and last final: Potions. I was still sat next to Jack, and I gotta say, his company and quick wit made Snape bearable.

Kenna still didn't like me, but to be fair I didn't interact with her much. I tried to make small talk in the beginning, but she'd made it very clear that she didn't like how I took up all of Jack's attention.

Even now, she was glaring at me through her curly brown hair. It was slightly disconcerting, but I mean I've never done anything to her, so there wasn't much I could do.

I knew I wasn't getting on her nerves intentionally, but I still somehow felt guilty about it. I guess I just have an irrational need to please everyone. Ah well.

Class started up, and Snape began pacing back and forth, his ever-present black cloak surrounding him like a large tablecloth. (Bad comparison, but idc I'm leaving it in).

"Your final will be in two parts. One: The creation of a cure-all poison antidote. The second and most important part will be the testing of your antidote, so I suggest you focus particularly hard today."

I frowned and leaned over to Jack. "He wouldn't poison us, right?"

He smiled and replied, "I wouldn't put it past him. I mean, the man is wearing an emo tablecloth." I had to put a hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter.

"You doing anything over break?" I asked him to make small talk.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Nope. Probably just gonna go back home and avoid everyone there. I actually live in an orphanage, you see," He explained to me, "And I can honestly say there is no place I despise more. I would stay here, but Dumbledore won't let me. Says he wants me to 'make connections' or some shit." He shook his head and forced a smile, turning to me. "What about you?"

I felt bad, and I didn't want to say I was staying at a luxurious mountain lodge, because how bitchy would that sound? I wondered if Ron would be open to me inviting Jack...I'm sure I could persuade him. I didn't know how bad Jack's home situation was.

"Yeah, Ron actually invited me to come to his family friend's lodge over break." I hesitated, "Would you...wanna come?"

A grin lit up his face and he replied, "Yeah, I'd love to."

Back to Potions

As it turned out, none of us would be dying (sadly), as we would be given only a small dosage of poison; enough to make us sick, but not kill us. And Snape would have the correct antidote if ours ended up being unsuccessful.

Jack and I puzzled out the cryptic instructions while Kenna sat on Jack's right, looking bored and being completely unhelpful.

I squinted at a line of instructions. "Does that say 'add Centipede kidney' or am I tripping balls?"

Jack looked at it, "Nope, it asks for kidney all right. I honestly didn't known centipedes even had kidneys." I laughed and began prepping the ingredients for mixture. Suddenly, Kenna turned towards us and asked in an uncharacteristically bubbly voice, "Can I help?"

"Uh, yeah of course." I answered hesitantly. It seemed suspicious that she had only just become interested, but I let it slide. After all, second chances and all that, right?

I had Jack read out to me the measurements of each specific ingredient as I added them to the steaming cauldron. I was so focused on getting the ratios right that I didn't even notice Kenna slip something into the cauldron when I wasn't looking.

After 30 minutes, it was finally complete. I gave the pot a final stir and sat back in my chair, wiping my forehead. I gave Jack a tired high-five, and we waited for Snape to come over and test our antidote.

He walked up with a clipboard and flask full of the diluted poison, and motioned for us to pour our potion into a small cup.

"So which of you daring little weevils are we going to be testing this on today?" He sneered.

"Y/N said she'd do it!" Kenna piped up, grinning sweetly. I looked over at her, and caught a flash of something malicious behind her blue eyes.

I clenched my teeth and stared at the gently steaming liquid. I didn't know what Kenna's goal in making me drink it was, but I doubted it was friendly.

Jack frowned and inhaled as if he were about to say something, but I spoke before he had a chance. "I guess I'll be doing it then."

Snape first gave me a small dose of the poison (which tasted like ASS btw), and I quickly followed it with our antidote, trying to calm my shaking hands.

I wrinkled my nose as I tasted the counter-poison. The instructions had said it was supposed to taste chalky with a hint of strawberries, but I tasted something bitter and soapy beneath it. A flash of pure, unadulterated fear struck through me - the type of fear you get when you're hurtling down a giant hill at breakneck speeds and you know there's nothing you can do about it except wait until you hit the ground.

"I think..." I hesitated, and the room began to spin. "I'm not...okay...".

*Jack's POV*

"I'm not...okay...", Y/N said softly. I saw her eyes glaze over and I rushed forward right as she began to fall backwards, catching her and laying her on the ground. Her face began to lose its color and her breathing became shallow.

"Professor, the antidote!" I motioned to Snape, and he looked shocked, but moved forward and tipped a measure of his own counter-potion into her mouth. We watched for a several moments, the majority of the class rushing over to cluster around her.

"It should be taking effect by now, I don't understand." Snape sounded puzzled, but he snapped at a student to his right. "Madam Pomprefy, now."

He leaned forward and smelled her breath, then cursed. "Bitter almonds - the antidote was laced with nitrobenzene. The antidote didn't neutralize it because the chemicals have different bases."

I spun around to look at Kenna. She was the only other person at the table, and the only one who could have gotten close enough to the potion.

"You." I narrowed my eyes at her and she squeaked, cowering slightly.

"I didn't know this would happen, I just wanted to show you she's not as perfect as you think she is!" She insisted in her irritatingly high-pitched voice.

"I'll deal with you later," I growled. Right now, I had more pressing matters to deal with.

Snape waved his wand, and Y/N's body rose into the air horizontally. He set off on a brisk walk towards the hospital wing, her prone body drifting behind him. I know it was probably inappropriate at such a dire time, but I couldn't help but think about how the way her hair moved in the slight wind made her look like a dryad of Grecian times.

It wouldn't do for her to stay poisoned - my plans required her to be awake.

A/N: I'm trying to get better with updating and stuff, but yeah there you go. And if you were wondering, some of these events were based on personal experience - it's your guess if it's the mental breakdown or poison.

Vote and comment bb. Unless u don't want to. That's fine too.