𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗻, cedric diggory

˗ˋ 58

CHAPTER FIFTY EIGHT
✧ 
-: sixth year :-

── IN WHICH SHE BEGINS

. . .

"What you cooking up this time, love?" Fred asked as he appeared besides Rosie in the common room. She was tucked away in one of the corners, far out of people's sight. 

Not one - but two cauldrons sat in front of her, and there was a variety of ingredients organised into piles, split apart by Rosie's wand. Her practically disintergrating potions book was propped up opposite her, and she was using a long rod to mix a rather purple potion, a prominent frown on her face.

She reached out with one hand and hit Fred behind the ear, not even looking up and using rhe outstretched arm to then add what looked to be part of a bean into one of the potions, leaning back slightly as it fizzled.

"Less of the nicknames Freddie." Rosie replied, and George slipped in opposite her, peering over her book. 

"There isn't even a recipe on this one?" He commented, looking down at the page which was instead covered in Rosie's usual tiny scrawl. "How can you even read this shit?" George met Rosie's clearly unimpressed eyes, shrugging.

"He has a point." Fred continued, balancing his chin on Rosie's shoulder, trying his very hardest to read whatever she had written. "Fuck-" He swore as Rosie violently jerked her shoulder and his head slipped off. "What was that for?" He hissed.

"Merlin you're not in a good mood - but I need to concentrate Freddie, so I can't have any distractions, sorry." Rosie quickly said, glancing in his direction only for a moment, flashing a smile before that frown returned as she peered over one of the two potions.

"You never actually answered his question." George said, two moments after silence had fallen over the three best friends.

"Hm?" Rosie didn't even look up this time, just sitting up slightly taller and picking up her wand, waving it twice over a cauldron. 

"What are you making?" Fred repeated, and Rosie stirred it a few more times, dropping a couple sprinkles of crushed something into the potion. It hissed and bubbled, and with a final stir, Rosie looked away from the potions.

"I'm making stuff for Cedric. Just general things to help him you know.. blood replenishing and  strengthening spells. General stuff.." Rosie shrugged, peering over one of the cauldrons as a popping noise came from one of them.

"Why have you got this then?" Fred asked, and Rosie looked over, confused. Her eyes widened as she saw the bag of certain ingredients in Fred's hand. George snatched it off of him and opened it, pulling out items and placing them on the table.

"Rue.. not yet powdered, eggshell, ashwinder egg, murtlap tentacle.. Why do you have these?" George asked, and Rosie shrugged, sure that if she would say anything then he would almost definitely figure it out.

But she didn't even need to say anything, as the cogs in George's brain whirred and slotted into place, churning together the exact idea that Rosie hoped he wouldn't think of. "Felix Felicis." He mumbled, and Rosie promptly picked her wand back up and pointed it at George. 

"You won't say anything more on the matter. Or else you won't be able to talk until next week." Rosie had never looked so serious, and George nodded instantly. 

"Rosie, that's illegal." Fred lowered his voice, watching as something flickered on the Kersey girl's face, but nothing changed, her jaw set. "We can't even use it for a low-stakes Quidditch match - if you get caught using it for this-"

"Well I'm not going to get caught. Besides, I'm mixing it with other potions, and I've already checked that nothing bad will come of it. In this situation, Felicis is essentially water." Rosie shrugged. 

"Except it's water that ensure's someone's success. I'm guessing Cedric doesn't know you're doing this?" George said.

"Nope. And he's not going to find out or I'll find away to make that age-line hex you encountered a little more permanent." Rosie threatened, then the serious look slipped away, replaced by one of concern. "Cedric told me what the third task would be, and I've had a bad feeling. It's not like I'm giving him more than a few drops, nothing that would seriously affect him."

"And he's not going to blow up or something when he takes it? None of these ingredients react against each other?" George looked skeptical as he looked at the Ashwinder egg, and the two other potions brewing - which definitely wouldn't be the liquid luck.

"All these lists -" Rosie pointed to her book. "They're all the ingredients I've ever worked with. They had properties, uses and reactions against certain ingredients. I've checked it at least three times - Cedric will not blow up."

"And you're confident you won't get caught?" Fred asked, raising an eyebrow as Rosie sealed the two cauldrons she was working from. 

"Think how many times you two have gotten caught. Now think of how many times I've gotten caught when you two got caught - or just in general." Rosie said, and in comparison, it was a much lesser number. "Exactly. Getting caught is not even at the bottom of the list of possibilities. Now talking of getting caught, reckon you two could help me get all this stuff up to one of the old bathrooms on the top floor? I have a key for it." 

And with that, the three best friends would pick up Rosie's focus of the next month and transport it up to the bathroom where she would spend hours perfecting it, amongst hours spent with Cedric practising spells for the big day.

Which was quickly approaching, now that she had a plan in place.

✧ 

a/n
so i forgot to mention
this last chapter because
i wanted that dramatic effect
but i'm ignoring the fact that
felix felicis takes six months
to brew it now only takes like three-four
weeks ok ty