Where The Sage Shrubs Grow,

Chapter 73

Sage's POV:
It's been a bit over a week since Fred and I broke up. I've been miserable. Things felt so unfinished, they way things had ended felt weird, like something wasn't quite right.

I had been crying everyday and the little confidence I had seemed to have gotten destroyed. Fred seems happy though so I guess I'm just an upset ex girlfriend. Walking through the halls on the way to the library, I saw Fred. He was talking to Lee, talking about me with Lee.

"Yeah no, she thought I liked her like that but we were just friends." Fred said
"But y'all were dating?" Lee responded
"Just cause I didn't want to hurt her."

I was fed up. Fed up with him, with Claudia, with the students who look at me weird in the halls, the students who started spreading rumors that I threatened Fred into our relationship. I stopped, turning around and storming up to Fred. We were going to have it out, right here, right now.

"How could you? You liar! What about all the times you kissed me first? What about your heartfelt confession after you had acted like a git? You didn't even have the decency to break up with me! You told me you wanted to stay with me forever, then you go off one night and decide that bitch was better than me! Now you're lying to everyone saying we were never actually dating? You came to me asking for your jumpers back because we didn't hang out! You cheated on me! I gave you everything I had! You disgust me Fredrick Gideon Weasley!"

Students had stopped to watch, of course this had created a scene. Fred looked at me in shock as if he hadn't expected his lies to catch up with him. I wanted someone to kill me. I wanted ti withdraw from Hogwarts and never be seen again.

"What's going on?" Claudia screeched running up to Fred
"My pet, are you ok?" She asked
She started inspecting Fred for some type of injury. Fred opened his mouth to fight back but I blocked out what he was saying when I noticed Claudia pouring something into a cup.

"It's not my fault you were-" He started
"Here my love, ignore her. Drink this." She said handing him the cup
He angrily downed the whole thing and stormed off with her following in his wake.

All day I couldn't stop thinking about how she had poured something into his cup and how he had mindlessly downed it all. I headed into the great hall for lunch, sitting down with Hallie and George.

"Are you ok?" Hallie asked placing a hand on mine "Everyone is talking about what happened." She whispered
"Yeah. It's just-" I paused
"What? Just what?" She asked
"When Claudia came over, she paired something into a cup and handed it to him and he drank it. I've just been wondering what was in the cup I guess."

"What?" George asked
"Yeah it was like a pinkish color." I commented
George stared at his plate with his brow furrowed before he stood up and rushed over to Fred. He aggressively grabbed Fred and ran out of the great hall.
"What was that?" I asked
Hallie shrugged as we looked at each other with concern.

Fred's POV:
"George let me go!" I shouted
"No! Not until you see madam Pomfrey." He continued dragging me to the hospital wing
Students were giving us strange looks as I tried thrashing my way out of George's grip.

"What is going on?" Madam Pomfrey questioned
She rushed over to us as I continued to struggle. George forced me to sit down on a bed as he whispered something to Madam Pomfrey. She rushed off looking obviously frantic at what George had told him.

She came back with a cup in her hand.
"Now, dear. I want you to drink this, all of it. You might feel lightheaded and that's ok. Let yourself pass out." She explained
Pass out? Why would I pass out? I reluctantly took the cup from her and downed the whole thing just as she instructed.

It tasted horrible. I made the worst grimacing face I had ever made in my life. Was George trying to poison me?
"How do you feel?" George asked
"I feel strange-" And I blacked out

I woke up lying in a bed in the hospital wing. My head felt like I'd been hit with a bludger and my heart ached. I moved to get up only to be held down by George
"How do you feel?" He asked
I stared at him for a moment before registering the events of the last week.

"George. Tell me, I've been dreaming for a long long time and I got knocked out at quidditch practice."
He looked at me with a sympathetic face and I fell back into the pillows letting out a frustrated groan.
"Ah! You're awake, no fever. Good good. Ok, when you're ready your brother can explain everything that's happened and you are free to go." Madam Pomfrey stated making her rounds

I looked at George for an explanation.
"So, um apparently Claudia drugged you at the party last Friday with a love potion. You kinda just avoided sage until it was clear you two were over. Claudia continued to drug you by bringing you a drink while you were still under the potions effects so you would drink it without question. You kind of spread rumors about Sage and now people kind of hate her again. You two had a fighting match and she noticed Claudia giving you something and she mentioned it to me and Hallie and that's when I put the pieces together and brought you here." George's lips were pressed into a thin line

I wanted to die. I remembered everything that had happened, how Sage looked like she had been crying everyday. The way I started rumors. How I had obviously smelled sage in the potion but assumed it was Claudia. How was I supposed to fix this?

"My love! Are you ok? Out of my way." Claudia shoved George out of the way as she sat down
I glared at her harshly, crossing my arms.
"I know you drugged me."
She stopped her fussing as the color drained from her face.
"Wh-what? Youre you're wrong, I didn't-"

"You did." I spoke over her
"Well I only did it to save you from that skank! She doesn't deserve you, she- she's damaged goods! None can lobe you as much as I do-" she frantically explained
"Get out. Don't ever talk to my brother, or sage, or me, or Hallie, or any of our other friends ever again." George ordered

Claudia ran out crying, actual tears this time. I knew now why my heart ached, I needed Sage.
"How do I fix this?" I groaned
"Well we cal start by finding Hallie before she finds you." George pulled me to my feet and we left

"Fred!" Hallie yelled
She was stomping up to us as George put himself between her and I. George explained everything to her and Hallie's rage grew only towards Claudia instead of me. Hallie told me how Sage had gone back to their dorm and how she was probably crying.

I decided to head there by myself, this was something I had to do alone. I knew she would be upset with me for a while, and that I would have to regain all the trust I had destroyed with her. I was prepared for it though, she was worth it.

Sure enough, I gently opened her dorm room door to see her curled up in her bed crying. My stomach knotted at the thought that it was my fault she was crying. I walked over to her bed sitting myself down on the edge of it. I wrapped my arms around her from behind and pulled her into my lap.

She moved to get off me and say something but I stopped her.
"Let it out." I whispered
That was it for her, she started sobbing on my shoulder as I held her. All I could think was how she didn't deserve to be crying like this.

Once she had stopped crying I explained everything that had happened while wiping her lingering tears off her reddened cheeks.
"Sage I-"
She cut me off, wrapping her arms around my neck and placing a gentle kiss to my lips.

"Just stay with me. We can talk about it tomorrow." She whispered
"Ok." I responded
I pulled back the blankets on her bed and we crawled under them. She curled up against my side as I played with one of her loose curls.

Pretty soon she had fallen asleep and I could feel myself dozing off. I had missed her so, I don't know how I could have thought anyone could replace her. She was perfect, and I was a mess.
"I do love you." I whispered pressing a kiss to the top of her head
I fell asleep with her in my arms that night, right where I belonged.