Weasley's the Name

Weasley's The Name: Fourth Year

Chapter 7- The Brave and The Stupid

The next day, which was Wednesday and three days before the ball, Jacob decided to finally confront his fears and ask Jocelyn to be his date.

The Gryffindors had Defense Against the Dark Arts first in the morning, and lucky enough for Jacob, Professor Potter had separated the Weasley twins and seated him next to Jocelyn. Why Professor Potter did this was an event from their second year...

~~~Two Years Ago~~~

"I'm only going to ask once. Who painted the Cornish Pixies?" Professor Potter growled, extremely annoyed. His hands were gripping his desk as he leaned over it, staring down the group of small students.

None of them dared to move.

The twins, who were sitting in the back, shared a quick terrified glance. They thought their uncle would find this rather...er...amusing. Jacob had been brave enough to sneak into the room the night before, and Anthony had searched the library for the charm. Now, their amazing plan seemed to

"Now," the Professor continued, "Because of their new color of a rather unattractive shade of hot pink, the pixies do not have that eagerness to cause mischief."

Professor Potter left the side of the pixies and stood in front of his desk, staring each of his second years straight in their eyes. His arms were crossed threateningly in front of his chest and his green eyes were flaring behind his glasses.

Harry hadn't been this angry with a class since Dylan Thomas and his best friend Michael Weasley (Charlie's oldest son) had decided to switch his wand with one of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes' fake ones while he was trying to attack his Boggart.

Those two suffered three weeks in detention; they had to scrub down Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"This was going to be the most exciting lesson of the semester," the Professor huffed. "But since no one is confessing, you're all going to write a five feet long essay on...how to explain the color blue to a blind person." Professor Potter huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

Whispers began to spread throughout the class as the Professor's eyes scanned the room for guilty faces. The Defense teacher was absolutely sure that it was one of the Gryffindors who had done the deed, because over the years, the other Houses still stared at him in awe, the Gryffindors were more relaxed and friendly with him.

He stopped at the twins' table, knowing that they were behind some of the more entertaining 'accidents' around the school. Jacob's eyes remained calm, but the furious blinking of Anthony's made Professor Potter smirk with success.

"Let me make this a little fairer...to the rest of you honest students. If the culprit, or, shall I say, culprits, (he watched as Anthony's face turned green) stay after class and confess...then you'll only have to write three feet. Agreed?"

The small students nodded, all still extremely scared of their angry teacher.

At the end of class (they had to read three chapters in silence), when they were sure that none of the other students saw them, Jacob and Anthony snuck back into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.

Professor Potter wasn't surprised and took forty points away from Gryffindor.

To the twins, they had gotten off easy.

~~~Present~~~

Jacob strolled into the classroom, giving high fives to his fellow Quidditch players, Brian and Bridget (who were the team's Beaters).

Jocelyn was already sitting in her seat, doodling on a scrap piece of parchment; twirling a strand of her jet-black hair around her finger. Jacob casually took his seat next to her, not bothering to say hello to her. Jocelyn looked up slightly and looked him over in quick glance that the redhead didn't notice.

The other students filed in, Anthony and Taylor hand in hand. Rigel Lupin and Brian Weasley ran in behind them, just as the bell sounded that class was in session.

After a few minutes, a murmur filled the classroom; where was Professor Potter?

Normally, he was in the class before any student arrived or he was ushering his late students through the doors.

Joseph Longbottom slid out of his chair and peeked out of the door, looking up and down the hallway.

"He's nowhere to be seen!" he exclaimed, rushing back to his seat. The other students whispered in excitement, for Professor Potter had never been absent.

Jocelyn looked up from her paper, interested in the current situation. Jacob sent her his million-galleon smile, and she just smiled back, although he did see a hint of a blush.

"How are you today, Miss. Grief?" he asked, pushing his seat closer to the desk.

Jocelyn pushed some of her hair behind her ear and looked at Jacob with a faint smile on her face.

"I'm doing well, Mr. Weasley, and yourself?"

It was common for the two to talk so formally to each other, like their own personal way of flirting...at least, that's how Jacob saw it as.

"I'm bloody brilliant," he exclaimed. "Getting ready for the match this Sunday. It's exciting, don't you think?"

"Very exciting indeed, I'll be out there cheering you on. You're amazing on the field," she said softly, biting her lip. Jacob's face reddened and he looked away towards his tangled fingers.

"Thanks," he said simply. Now or never...now or never... "Youhearabouttheball?" he said in one quick breath.

Jocelyn' eyes widened and she smiled again. She nodded, causing her hair to fall prettily in front of her face.

"Yes, I did. Are you going?" she asked, a blush growing on her cheeks. Jacob really hoped that Jocelyn did not notice the heat he felt on his face.

"I will...if I have a date," he said softly. "Do...do you have a date?"

Jocelyn sat up and put her hands on her lap. She stared at them for a while, and Jacob was extremely worried that she was thinking of a way to say 'no' to him.

"No...I don't."

"Will...would you want to go with me?" he whispered, barely audible.

Jocelyn' face blushed so deeply that Jacob thought that she might not be breathing. But, she nodded, and Jacob's heart began to beat again.

"Yes, I'll go with you."

"Really?" he asked stupidly.

Jocelyn said yes to him! Jocelyn, who was the prettiest girl in the year, actually blushed when he asked her on a date!

"Yes, really," Jocelyn giggled. "I was hoping you'd ask me, I turned down a lot of offers waiting for you." She smiled and tossed her hair over her shoulders.

"Like who...?" Jacob asked, but as soon as the words left his mouth, Professor Potter strolled in, a huge smile on his face.

"Good morning class, splendid day, isn't it?" he said cheerfully, very uncharacteristically.

The class nodded slowly, wary of their Professor's mood.

"I haven't had such a good day in a long time!" The Professor exclaimed, plopping into his seat with an exuberant amount of energy.

"He hasn't even had his coffee," Brian whispered to Rigel.

~~~

Professor Potter's smile didn't fade for the entire class. He actually discussed Dementors and laughed.

It didn't take the students long to realize that he was genuinely in the wrong state of mind, and something amazingly wonderful must have happened before class.

When the bell ran, Anthony, Jacob, and Brian stayed after to talk to their uncle, while Rigel and Taylor hid outside the door.

"What can I do for you, my boys?" Professor Potter said, sitting in his chair and swinging his legs onto his desk.

Jacob and Anthony shared a startled look, but Brian blurted out what was on everyone's mind,

"What's with the good mood Professor Potter?" he said quickly, raising his eyebrows at his uncle. Professor Potter laughed with an odd amount of spunk as he put his hands behind his head.

"Call me Uncle Harry! You are my nephews after all." The boys gasped and Harry looked at them strangely, "What?"

"We haven't called you 'Uncle Harry' in Hogwarts since we were first years!" Anthony exclaimed, clearly bewildered. Harry sat up, still smiling widely.

"Ah, you caught me." He sighed dramatically, looking a bit dreamy. "I found out about ten minutes before I came to class that you three are going to have a brand new Potter in the family." The smile he had on his face was replaced by a smile ten times that size.

"That's awesome!" Jacob shouted, clapping his uncle on the shoulder. Harry nodded furiously and put up a single finger.

"I haven't finished!" he said with a sly grin. "There is also going to be another Weasley!"

The three didn't know whether to be excited or terrified. They, of course, did not want another sibling.

"Oh please tell me the Bill and Fleur decided to finally give Juliet a sibling..." Anthony groaned, remembering quite suddenly that Emily something to tell him.

Harry laughed and stood up, putting his hand on Jacob's shoulder. The young Quidditch player's face paled.

"Sorry you two, you're going to an ickle brother or sister in about eight months," he said, his smile never flickering.

Anthony and Jacob groaned heavily as Brian breathed a sigh of relief. Harry began to push them towards the door, chuckling at their shocked faces.

Rigel and Taylor stared at the twins oddly as they left the room to walk down the hallway like zombies while Professor Potter and Brian laughed on hysterically.

~~~

On Friday, Anthony and Jacob finally sat down to listen to Emily in the common room. She was quite angry with her uncle for telling the twins the news before she did, and refused to talk to them all of Wednesday and Thursday.

"Mum wanted me to tell you two, that's why she sent me an owl," Emily explained, straightening out her skirt. "She's due in about eight months. I can't wait to have a little sister!"

"Sister?" Anthony and Jacob said at the same time. Emily looked very cross at their response, narrowing her eyes at them with in a very businesslike way.

"Yes, sister. There is no room for another boy in our house," she said shrewdly.

The young girl is said to remind her teachers of her mother a great deal, and the twins could now see why. Her way of dealing with facts was almost identical to Hermione's; she rattled them off like her name and address.

Taylor, who had been sitting on the floor across from the twins and reading a book that was lying on the table, looked up and nodded excitedly.

"I agree," she said, appearing to have heard the conversation. "Baby girls are so much cuter than baby boys." She winked at Anthony, who turned rather red.

"If it's a boy, we can have a makeshift Quidditch team!" Jacob said excitedly. "Mum doesn't let us play with Bludgers and we lose every Snitch we get so it would be fair!" He shoved Anthony in the shoulder, nodding with each idea that popped into his head.

The calmer twin cringed at the thought of having to play Quidditch, and scooted away from his brother.

"Maybe it would be better if she had a girl," Anthony said, avoiding Jacob's smack.

~~~

"I've always liked Elizabeth," Emily said, writing it down on a piece of paper. Taylor nodded happily and looked up to the ceiling in thought.

The redhead was sitting on the ground with her parchment and ink on the table. Taylor lied on her stomach across the couch, playing with her fingernails.

"Natalie Weasley," the blonde said, smiling mischievously. Emily's eyes lit up and she quickly scribbled the name down.

The twins had joined Brian and Rigel at the table on the other side of the common room, and they were all working on their Divination homework, except for Anthony.

"I actually enjoy this class," Rigel said quietly as he began to explain why Venus had such an affect on the moods of females. "I think I'm starting to see things in my crystal ball."

Jacob rolled his eyes, knowing that Rigel only liked the class because Professor Trewlaney was always predicting a wonderful future for him.

The redhead groaned as he reread his essay, scratching out the entire first paragraph. Anthony looked on feeling quite smug.

"Mum told you not to take that class," he said knowingly, tapping his quill on his Arthimancy book. Jacob glared at his twin, but then sighed and turned back to his paper.

"Yeah well, she also said you and Taylor weren't allowed to date until sixth year," he said so quietly that Anthony almost didn't hear him.

Unfortunately for Jacob, he did.

"What does that matter to you?" Anthony growled, causing the other boys at the table to look up, interested. "You're not going to tell her, are you?"

Jacob's eyes brightened; he hadn't even thought of the idea of telling his mother about Anthony and Taylor's relationship.

"If you keep bothering me, I just might," he threatened with a wink. "Chudlina does like me better, you know. I can always tell her not to accept letters from you..."

"That's not funny, Jacob," Anthony said loudly, slamming his quill down. "Mum'll have a fit, you know how serious she is about rules."

"Then why are you breaking them?" Jacob countered, throwing his quill to the table as well. "I would think, Mr. Good Twin, that you would know better."

A fire lit up in the eyes of Anthony, and the other two boys at the table shared a frightened glance. The boy looked literally enraged, and Jacob's face was beginning to heat up as well.

Brian and Rigel were wondering if they should cut in before someone exploded.

"Mr. Good Twin? If I wasn't here, you wouldn't be able to perform half the tricks you do, or have you forgotten all my research?" he spat, pushing his chair away from the table as if he needed to be far away from his twin.

"Are you saying that my magic isn't as good as yours?" Jacob shouted angrily, gripping the table with white knuckles.

Their voices were now much louder than normal, and many of the Gryffindors were watching with curious eyes. Brian and Rigel didn't dare move from the table, fearing that the movements would cause one of the twins to snap and attack.

"I didn't say that!" Anthony yelled, standing up and throwing his book, quill, and inkbottle into his bag. "What I'm saying is that maybe you're not the incredible guy you and everyone else thinks you are!"

Emily Weasley was completely frozen, her eyes wide with confusion. She wanted to get up and stop their fighting, but Taylor put a hand out; she watched with concerned eyes, trying to figure out the reason they were fighting.

Jacob's eyes went dark as a thick silence fell onto the common room. He stood up slowly, pointing his wand threateningly at his twin. Anthony wasted no time and flipped his wand seemingly out of nowhere, so that it was now ready to cast some spells.

The twins seemed to be at a duel, both standing tall and angry while Brian and Rigel were ready to hold one of the twins back if they began to fight.

"You're just so smart, aren't you Anthony?" Jacob said, his voice much lower than his brother's had been. The iciness of his voice sent chills throughout the room, careening down Anthony's back.

"Maybe you should've been in Ravenclaw, both of us would've been much happier if you were."

There were a few gasps released by some of the girls in the room; Emily covered her mouth to hold in her shriek, and Taylor was wishing to throw a hex or two at Jacob.

Anthony didn't know what hurt more, his headache from all the screaming or the fact that his brother admitted he didn't like having him around.

He knew that the entire common room was waiting for his response, but he had no idea what he could say to his brother that would hurt more than what he had just said to him.

Jacob smirked, knowing he had won the argument. He tapped his wand into the palm of his other hand, as if daring his brother to retaliate. Yes, the comment had been harsh, but the redhead believed that Anthony deserved it. The stupid git always thinks he's so much smarter than me, why should he get away with that?

"Fine," Anthony said finally, nodding and standing up straight. "Fine." He backed away, his entire body shaking as he turned to the stairs of the dorms.

Anthony paused slightly before he went up, staring at the first step, but he finally jolted up the stairs. Taylor popped out of her seat and rushed to catch him before he reached the boys' dormitory.

As soon as the two were out of sight, Brian and Rigel turned to Jacob, eyes wide in shock. Emily rushed over, her mouth moving madly but no words coming out. She looked ready to faint, and finally she was able to produce a couple of squeaks.

"I'm telling Mum!" she squealed.

"Don't you dare!" Jacob shouted without turning to look at her. He fell back into his chair without daring to take his gaze off of the wall. "Chudlina will bite your little fingers off if you try!"

Emily huffed loudly and smacked her brother hard on the back of the head before she stormed up the stairs. The other Gryffindors took this as a sign, and they too headed up to their dormitories.

Jacob, glad that he was finally alone, broke his gaze from the wall and he turned in his seat to stare at his brother's forgotten books.

Damn, that look on his face...no one should have to feel like that...

He put his elbows on the table, and then his head in his hands. He was breathing heavily, not exactly sure anymore why he said what he did; only knowing that his insides were deeply regretting it now.