SIX

WINTER MELTED INTO SPRING AND the year was nearly coming to an end. O.W.Ls were only a few weeks away and Rory was still determined to produce a Patronus for bonus points. All the while, she was learning how to balance her friends and Cedric. The twins still weren't fond of him, despite how many times Rory had made him sit at the Gryffindor table with her for breakfast or brought her to the common room to study with her. They were nice to him, but something seemed off.

So, they ended up spending a lot of their time in the Hufflepuff common room. Rory enjoyed it. The ambiance was peaceful and it was a lot quieter than the Gryffindor area. Also the boys' dormitory was a lot cleaner than Fred and George's room.

Cedric was being patient with Rory. He didn't mind that she wanted to ease into a relationship. They hung out as friends who were just a bit touchy with each other. Just friends.

Together they sat on Cedric's bed. They skipped lunch so it was just the two of them without the other Hufflepuff boys hanging around.

"You'll write to me this summer?" Cedric asked, grabbing a mustard colored pillow from his bed and hugging in.

Rory nodded, "Of course, Ced. As long as you write back."

"Do you think I'll be able to see you?" He asked.

Rory ran her fingers through his hair and smiled, "I don't know. I want to, I do. But I've told you about... and it might be really difficult."

Cedric sighed, "I understand. Your house is connected to the Floo Network, right? Maybe you could just come over one day when your mum is at work."

Rory nodded, "Yeah, alright. I'll see what I can do."

"I like it when you play with my hair," He said with a dopey smile.

"That's exactly why I do it." She smiled, giving him a kiss on the forehead. He smiled back and planted a kiss on her lips. She looked down shyly. "Listen, Cedric. I like you and — "

"Shh, Rory," he said softly, putting his hands on her shoulders, "Let's just be here, in the moment. Let's enjoy life before our O.W.Ls, and anything else that comes our way. Okay? I'm not asking you to call this something you don't want. I'm just asking you to be here with me, and for once not think of some future hypothetical. Please."

Rory nodded slowly and kissed him again. A bit deeper this time. Maybe Cedric was right. She was going to miss out on so much of her life if she didn't live in the moment. There was no use in giving power to imaginary things. She wouldn't be controlled by that.

"This is nice," He said, pulling her closer. Rory liked kissing. It was... fun. She expected it to be like a firework show inside of her, but it was more like standing up and cheering at the end of a show during curtain call. Still, a good feeling. She was attracted to Cedric, she really was, but every time his hands began to roam she got too giggly and uncomfortable and stopped it before they reached their destination. This time, she tried to not do that. He lightly pushed her so her back was now on the bed and he was on top of her. His hands went in her hair, then slowly brushed by her neck and then landed on her chest. They stayed there for a bit and after a few seconds, she felt as if he'd begun feeling more comfortable. For a second, she almost let it happen, it's not like it was uncomfortable. But, as she usually did, she got scared and couldn't do it anymore.

She quickly pulled away, "Wanna play Wizard Chess?" She blurted out, embarrassed. Immediately heat rushed to her face from regret. It wasn't her fault her mother's voice popped into her mind during any moment she was alone with Cedric. The woman was always very uptight about things like that and it almost made Rory terrified at the notion of it.

Cedric moved his hands away and quickly sat back up, "Y-Yeah. Yeah we can... we can do that. Sorry."

Rory got off his bed and waited for him to do the same so they could relocate to the common room. But he wasn't getting up.

"Cedric," She said, rocking back and forth on her heels, "Wizard Chess is in the common room."

"Oh! Yeah! Yeah. I've got to er..." He looked around a bit nervously, "I'm just gonna fix up my sheets, you can just... meet me down there. I'll only be a minute, promise." He began brushing the bed lightly and trying to get rid of any wrinkles.

Rory thought it was very strange, she thought boys were very strange. She didn't understand why he was being so weird but pushed it to the back of her mind and went to the common room.

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RORY CAME BACK TO THE GRYFFINDOR common room feeling strange. Cedric liked kissing Rory a lot and she wasn't sure why. He was always looking at her with droll practically coming out of his mouth with a dopey smile. Boys confused her more than Potions homework. She thought it would be weird to ask Cedric. Even weirder to ask her brother. So...

"George, Fred." Rory sighed sitting between them in the common room. "I need help with something completely embarrassing and I need you to promise me not to make fun of me and not to make me feel stupid and just be honest with me, okay?"

"Alright." They said in unison, nodding.

Rory took a deep breath, "Why do boys... why do they like to..." She awkwardly gestured around her body and groaned.

"I don't think I like where this is going," Fred sighed. "But I made a promise. I'm a man of my word. It's okay Rory, continue."

Rory took a deep inhale, "I'm just gonna give you guys a hypothetical. So say, hypothetically speaking, I'm in the Hufflepuff boy's dormitory. And I'm with ya know a boy... let's call him Cedric, for the sake of my story."

"Sure!" George nodded.

"Anyways, Cedric kisses me and I kiss him back... and then say perhaps it gets a little more intense and we're... we're what they call 'making out', hypothetically speaking. And then he... gets handsy..." She continued nervously.

"Oh!" Fred nodded slowly, probably not expecting to hear her story take that direction, "Well... what did you do, hypothetically?"

"I, hypothetically, stopped kissing him and thought that Wizard Chess would be more fulfilling, and he was all like 'Oh, I'm gonna stay back and fix the bed sheets!' so like what would that mean if this were a true story which it's not."

Fred and George exchanged a look and it looked like both of them were trying desperately not to laugh.

"Oh, Rory, so sweet and innocent." George smiled patting her knee, "Please never change."

Rory crossed her arms, "I'm serious! What am I supposed to do, hypothetically?"

"Well... this Cedric boy is attracted to girls, yes?" Fred asked. Rory nodded. "Okay, well. At a certain age... boys start to really like girls. And they start thinking about them all the time and looking at... magazines, or if they're lucky like this Cedric bloke, they get to be with a real one."

"This sounds pathetic," Rory said.

"It is." George said, "But it's human nature. So, Cedric was just being curious. It's one thing to see girls, but it's another thing to actually... ya know... be with one. He was probably just excited. It's the natural instinct for all humans, plus you're a pretty girl, Rory."

Rory became suddenly extremely uncomfortable. "I guess that explains why he always looks at me like that, in a hypothetical sense. That doesn't explain why he was being so weird, though."

Fred shrugged, "He probably felt upset he made you uncomfortable. That you weren't reciprocating."

"Reciprocating what?" Rory asked.

"The physical needs and wants of the human body, Rory. Does it not happen to girls too?" George asked.

A fourth joined the conversation, Angelina Johnson sat down in a velvet armchair, "Oh trust me, it happens to girls. Rory, you're telling me Cedric fucking Diggory grabbed your... and you... stopped to play Wizard Chess? Bloody hell Rory I don't even like him but if he came near to me with any of that I would just about combust."

"I mean, I never said I didn't like it. It was just a little much. Because I don't really know what's supposed to happen, after that ya know?" Rory said, so embarrassed she was past the point of no return and had nothing to lose.

"Just do whatever you're comfortable with, Ror." Fred said.

"Yeah, but... I'm not really knowledgeable of what my options are. Or what they would be if this scenario was real." She admitted.

George nodded, "But Cedric probably is, and if he's a gentleman. It won't be something you need to worry about. Hypothetically."

"The world is your oyster, Rory." Fred said, leaning close to her ear. "Don't be scared about these types of things. Everything comes naturally. Those goosebumps you feel when he kisses you, enjoy them." His voice was now almost a whisper, "Just loosen up, I know that's hard for you, but you've got to just be in the moment with this type of thing." Rory had formed those goosebumps off his voice alone. For a quick moment, she forgot where she was and wanted to lean over and kiss Fred (which was a completely absurd thought). She was beginning to realize what the twins were telling her about earlier when they said it was more of an instinct of humankind.

"Alright." Rory said, shaking herself out of whatever just happened. "I'm a bit upset that no one tells us about this kind of stuff. And especially girls, it's like it's wrong for us to talk about. I'm sure that's why I always get freaked out because I think I'm supposed to."

"That's our little advocate." Angelina joked. "It's true though, it's about time we stop being so hush hush about it. The less that people know, the more dangerous it can be."

"Yeah." Rory nodded and stood up, "Alright. Thanks guys. You've inspired me."

"Oh no," Fred mumbled.

Rory headed out of the portrait hole with the intent to meet Cedric in the Hufflepuff common room, but instead she saw Cedric standing outside the Gryffindor tower entrance.

"Cedric?" Rory said, very confused on why he was there.

"Rory... I just wanted to say how sorry I am about earlier. I was... I was being stupid and I wasn't thinking and I wasn't using my brain and I should've known you weren't going to be comfortable and I just got into it and — "

Rory shut him up in the nicest way possible and kissed him. She kissed him hard. She kissed away any doubt or any fear. She was still young, still innocent, but a little bit of making out wasn't such a big deal.

"Whoa." He smiled when she pulled away. "Well, so —"

"C'mon," she winked, "I know a place."

The place in question was a sunny spot near the Black Lake where the two could freely enjoy each other's company and maybe, if Cedric was lucky, he could let his hands roam wherever they pleased (as long as Rory was okay with it).