Ruth is the youngest of the Ash triplets. Born only three minutes after her sisters, Ruth has always been the odd one out.
She's been invisible all her life.
She's been stuck in the shadows of her sisters throughout her five years at Hogwarts. She...
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It was mid April before the sun decided to finally reveal itself to the inhabitants of Hogwarts. Bright rays of sunlight bounced off the many windows on the castle, and the Black Lake looked less black than ever. The Ash triplets were all sat in their dorm, desperately trying to study while the blinding sun warmed the floorboards beneath their feet.
"To hell with this," Katrina groaned, shutting her Transfiguration textbook closed. She stood from the desk-- that was hers to use since the dormmates had to take turns-- and threw herself onto her bed with her eyes glued to the window. "I can't study with this weather; it's not fair."
"It's like the sun is taunting us," Poppy added. She was seated on her own bed with a variety of different subject textbooks surrounding her. She straightened her spine that had been previously hunched and let out a small groan as she rolled her shoulders back. "It's like it knows we have exams coming up."
Ruth slid off her bed, completely worn out from the afternoon of studying. Teachers had decided to give their students the afternoon off to do their own work. It was working, however, as Ruth was actually starting to feel pretty prepared for her NEWTs, even in Herbology. Ruth pushed open the window, a warm breeze flowing into the room. "Classes for the younger students have just ended. Everyone's outside."
Katrina and Poppy dashed to the window, standing either side of Ruth. The three sisters gazed down at-- what looked like the entire school-- enjoying the first sunny day of the year, desperately wishing they were them.
"Screw it, let's go," Katrina breathed and moved away from the window. She pulled on her shoes and rolled her school skirt. "I'm not spending another second in this room."
"I second that," Poppy said. "We deserve a break. We've been here for three hours." She also got herself ready to leave. Ruth took another gaze out the window before joining her sisters. Once they were all ready, they left the dorm. The common room was empty when they arrived, except for Fred and George, who were whispering quietly in the far corner.
"Hey Weasleys!" Katrina called out, causing the whispering from the brothers to stop. "Take a break from your secret activities. We're going outside." She didn't wait for a reply and left the Gryffindor House, her sisters trailing after her.
Ruth took a deep breath in as soon as she stepped outside. The sun instantly warmed her exposed skin and made her covered skin grow uncomfortable. They walked down to the Black Lake, finding a free patch of grass and sitting down.
"The water looks so nice," Katrina commented. She leaned back on her elbows and threw her head back, closed eyes as the sun kissed her face. Ruth hummed in agreement, picking a blade of grass from beside her and feeling more grass tickling her thighs.
They were silent for a moment before Poppy pipped. "Let's go in then," she suggested. Ruth and Katrina shared a looked before adverting their eyes to their sister, who was gazing out at the still water. "Other students are."
"You're being serious?" Ruth asked. Poppy responded by pulling off her shoes. The tallest and most adventurist sister threw her knee-high socks and school jumper next to her shoes and grinned down at her sisters when she stood up.
"I'm being dead serious," Poppy pressed gleefully. "Come on!"
The cold water cooling down their skin did sound nice to Ruth and Katrina, so they copied their sister, adding their own particles of clothing to the pile. They dashed to the lake's edge, chuckling excitedly. The lake water lapped over their toes and Katrina let out a short squeal.
"It's colder than I thought!" she exclaimed. She had jumped away from the water, her arms wrapped around her waist.
"You barely got in Kat," Poppy giggled. "It'll be warmer further in."
"The sun is more focused on nearer the center," Ruth added. Katrina nodded and moved back into the lake. Both Ruth and Poppy had been right, it didn't take long for the water to go from icy cold to refreshingly cool.
"Going for a paddle, are we?" came a voice once the triplets were knee-deep into the lake. Ruth and Katrina turned to see the Weasley twins examining them while Poppy ventured further into the lake. Both brothers had their sleeves rolled to their elbows, most likely because of the heat.
"Yep, and so are you two," Katrina exclaimed, waving her hand at them. "Get in." Fred and George shared a look before pulled off their shoes and socks, and rolling up the ends of their school trousers.
They waded into the water, stopping when the water grazed their pants. Fred shared a look with his brother, and since they couldn't get any closer to the girls, they decided to attack from where they were. The sisters were attacked with water viscously, screaming loudly.
This lead to a full-on water fight-- girls against boys. Other students joined in, but Ruth was only focused on splashing Fred as much as possible.
Once their arms burned and their lungs empty, the fight slowly eased off. Ruth was soaked to the skin, and she knew her hair would be extremely frizzy once it dried. Fred caught her eye, his wet ginger hair falling into his eyes while he looked her up and down. Ruth glanced down at her chest to see that her white blouse had gone completely see-through from the water. She folded her arms across her body harshly, pouting at her boyfriend.
"Stop," she ordered forcefully. Fred only grinned and dashed towards her. Ruth turned around and tried to get away from him, but the water slowed down her already too-short legs and Fred's arms wrapped around her waist within seconds. Ruth let out a squeal when Fred blew a raspberry on her neck.
"Stop!" Ruth said again, but laughing this time. Fred didn't stop, only tickling her more all over until they collapsed into the lake water. Ruth stayed frozen for a moment as she was dunked beneath the water, Fred's arms still wrapped around her.
Ruth was pulled back to the surface, taking in deep breaths. She scolded Fred, who laughed loudly and shook his head, water spraying from his hair. He pulled Ruth towards him and kissed her firmly.
Ruth smiled as she kissed him back, her hands tugging gently at his sopping hair. She couldn't feel the cold water surrounding her thighs as Fred's body pressed against hers, spreading warmth through every bone in her body. She could tell that Fred felt it too, by the way he gripped onto her waist.
"Get a room!" Ruth heard Poppy yell from the shore. Ruth giggled against Fred, who's grip didn't falter.
"But preferably not one that your brother sleeps in too," George added, earning a laugh from both Katrina and Poppy.
