Chapter 3

"I think Cedric's going to miss the train." Jill frowned as we entered an empty compartment, followed by Olive. "Maybe he's still in Italy?" Olive shrugged. Cedric had spent all Summer in Italy, and hadn't seen any of them since their first year.

"Can we join you in waiting for him?" Harper and Rowan interrupted from the door frame where they stood. "Sure." Sage smiled, scooting over to allow room. "He's not usually late, is he?" Rowan stared out the window as a couple of minutes passed. 

"No, he's not." Sage pouted. "I'm here! I'm here!" A tall figure gasped from the hallway, entering into our compartment, panting. "I forgot to change into my robes, so I had to do it just now in the bathrooms." Cedric explained. "Cedric!" Sage leapt up, pulling him into a hug.

"Wait.." Sage pulled away, looking up at the boy. "Are you taller than me now?" She gasped, Cedric had indeed grown over the summer, and he was now a few centimetres taller than Sage. "Woah, you have! Good job, mate." Laughed Rowan as Cedric blushed at the compliments.

"He's so handsome now.." Olive gushed, quietly. "He has grown quite a bit, I suppose." Said Jill. "No, I mean Harper." Olive rolled her eyes. "I mean, just look at him." She bit her lip, glancing over at Harper, who was talking to Cedric.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?" The candy trolley stopped in front of the doorway as everyone bought their lollies. "I got Dumbledore again." Cedric frowned. "I got Herpo the Foul, I already have him, want to swap?" Sage passed her card over, as they made an exchange in chocolate frog cards. 

"What are you doing?" Harper scoffed as they exited the train and headed over to the carriages, which would take them up to the school. "What?" Cedric turned to the boy as he pointed at Sage and Cedric's intertwined fingers. 

"You're holding hands." He laughed. "We always hold hands.." Cedric frowned. "I know, but we're twelve now, we're big now." He explained, as Cedric released Sage's hand. 

"What's up his ass." Jill scoffed as Sage wandered back to Olive and Jill. "Don't say that, that's a bad word." Olive gasped. "What, ass?" Jill chuckled. "It's only a word, Olive." She shrugged as they found a carriage.

"Now you sound like Harper, just because we're in second year now.." Olive frowned at Jill's new word. "Just because my vocabulary has a bigger variety than you, doesn't mean i'm Harper." She rolled her eyes. "What do you think, Sage?" Olive turned to Sage, who had been rather quiet since they'd left the train.

"Oh.. I dunno?" She shrugged. "Are you upset over what Harper said?" Asked Jill. "No, but Cedric didn't have to listen. I get if he's embarrassed, but now I'm worried that he's all changed since he got back from Italy." She sighed. 

"Don't worry, i'm sure he's fine, you'll see." The three of them turned around, looking back at Cedric's, Harper's and Rowan's carriage. "You're probably right." Sage nodded in agreement as they turned back around, now arriving at the school.

"You know, over Summer my parents were telling me about this boy, Harry Potter. Have you heard of him? Apparently he's going to be here next year." Jill rambled as they exited the carriages. "Who?" Asked Olive. 

"The baby who defeated You-know-who." Sage gasped. "He's coming to Hogwarts?" Her eyes widened. "Oh, him?" Said Olive. "Woah, that's cool, we'll get to meet him." Olive smiled as the three of them found their way into the Great Hall for dinner.

----

"I'm so excited for next year!" Sage went on as she unpacked her belongings. "We can choose our electives, and we can go to Hogsmeade!" She gasped. "I totally forgot about that!" Jill jumped up and down in excitement.

"And my parents said I can get a boyfriend when I turn fourteen. Well, we'll be fourteen next year!" Jill grinned. "When can you get a boyfriend, Olive. You're the boy obsessed one." Jill turned to Olive who had just exited the bathroom, her hair wet from the shower.

"I'm not boy obsessed." She frowned. "And anyway, my parents don't care when." She shrugged. "And you, Sage." Jill now turned to Sage, who had entered the bathroom. "Oh, I dunno. We've never really talked about it." She shrugged, closing the door behind her.

When Sage finished showering, she came out in her pyjamas to see Harper, Rowan and Cedric all in her dorm, chatting away with Jill and Olive. "Oh." She crossed the room, taking a seat beside Cedric. "What are we talking about?" She asked as Jill and Olive broke into giggles.

"What?" She smiled. "Rowan just-"

"Shhhh!" Rowan growled, but it was too late. "Rowan just said you were pretty!" Olive burst out, as Rowan grabbed a pillow to throw at her. "Ahh!" She screamed, ducking behind her bed, dodging the pillow. "I did not say that!" Rowan frowned. 

"Yes, you did." Harper teased as Rowans cheeks flushed pink, avoiding Sage's gaze. "Oh, that's okay." Sage smiled at the embarrassed boy. "I think Rowan's pretty too!" She beamed, as Harper fell to the floor with laughter. 

"She's so innocent!" He chuckled. "What?" Sage frowned, not understanding. "You don't call boys pretty." He told her. "Why not?" Sage went on. "Because you just don't." He shrugged, getting up off the ground. 

"Well that's dumb." She frowned. "If I want to call Rowan pretty, i'll call Rowan pretty." She huffed as Rowan buried his face into his hands. Now Sage felt embarrassed, it felt as though there was a joke everyone but her had understood.

She turned to Cedric, seeking help, but he refused to look at her. It was different, he didn't look amused.. He look angry, an emotion Sage didn't often see in him. A pang of sadness shot through her, she had angered him somehow. 

Sage felt upset, Cedric hadn't been his usual, kind-self since he'd come back from Italy, and she wondered if he didn't want to be best friends anymore. 

"Well, goodnight." Harper, Rowan and Cedric waved the three girls goodbye, exiting the room to return to their own dorm. "Oh my god, Rowan is totally crushing on Sage." Jill squealed as soon as the door had shut. 

"What?" Sage furrowed her brows, she was too tired and upset to fully grasp what was being said. "Well I'm really tired, goodnight guys." She smiled weakly before laying back in bed, ignoring her friends confused whispers of 'Is she upset,' and 'why is she going to bed so early.'

----

The next morning Sage got up extra early, she wanted to go and talk to Cedric, she wanted to fix whatever she had done wrong. She got dressed quietly and crept down into the main common-room, before realising her mistake. 

Cedric would still be asleep by now, and she didn't know where his dorm was. Sage dropped down into one of the sofa's, deciding on hoping he'd just appear at some point as she read through her Herbology textbook.

10 minutes had passed when Jill and Olive came downstairs to look for her. "Oh, you're here." Olive sat down in one of the couches. "You went to bed all sad, and then when we awoke, you weren't there. We got worried." Said Jill.

"Oh, I'm fine. I just want to talk to Cedric, but I don't know which dorm he's in." Sage sighed. "Why do you want to talk to Cedric?" Asked Jill. "I think he's angry with me." Sage pouted. "Why do you think he's angry?"

"I don't know, but he was quite distant all of yesterday." She explained. "Well I'm sure he'll be out soon. He always beats us to breakfast." Olive assured them as August climbed into Sage's lap, curling up into a ball.

"Oh look how cute he is." She smiled, stroking the top of the cats head as it purred. "Goodmorning." Harper entered the room, followed by Rowan, and then Cedric. "Oh, Cedric. May I speak with you?" Sage lifted the cat off her lap, and led Cedric out of the common room as they walked to the Great hall, alone.

"What's up?" Cedric asked when they got a bit further along. "Are you mad at me?" Sage asked. "Why would I be mad at you?" He frowned. "Of course i'm not mad at you, Sage." He finished. "But yesterday you barely talked to me, and then you let go of my hand and walked away." Sage began. "And then in my dorm last night you looked so angry, you wouldn't even look at me." She sighed.

"Sage, I'm not mad at you I promise, but we are older, no other best friends hold hands." He shrugged. "And I wasn't angry at you, I was just upset because I thought you were going to replace me with Rowan.." He looked away, clearly embarrassed.

"What, because I called him pretty?" Sage laughed. "Yes? I don't know." He mumbled. "Ced, I'm not going to replace you." She paused in the middle of the hallway, pulling Cedric into a hug. "I'm so glad you're not mad at me." She sighed. "Wait, we can hug, right? Or are we too old for that."

"Yes, we can hug." Cedric laughed as she pulled away, and they continued into the Great hall, taking their seats at the almost empty Hufflepuff table, and talking amongst themselves until the rest of their friends arrived.

"So you've made up, then?" Jill smiled, taking her seat beside Sage. "You told them?" Cedric turned to face Sage, who blushed scarlet. "Did I really, truly upset you?" He asked. "Yes, she was awfully mopey last night, went to bed early and everything." Olive giggled as Sage elbowed her in the side.

"Oh, Sage. I'm so sorry." Cedric pouted. "No, it's okay, we've already resolved it." She shrugged. "I didn't know i'd upset you.." Sage watched as Cedrics hands moved, and for a split-second, she was sure he was going to hug her.. But Cedric retreated almost immediately, his eyes glancing up at Harper, who was watching them.

"Don't worry about it, I wasn't that upset." She smiled, and everyone turned back to their meals, though Sage's mind still wandered back to a few moments prior. Cedric had, once again, refused to display his affections towards her because of Harper.

----

"So you've got a little sister, when is she coming to Hogwarts, or is she a squib?" Rowan asked Sage. "She's coming next year, and no, she's magical." Sage laughed. "We were quite lucky actually, seeing as she's adopted." Smiled Sage.

"Athena's adopted?" Asked Olive, who had never met Athena. "Yes, my parents adopted her when she was a baby, she's Vietnamese." Sage explained. 

"That's very kind of your parents." Said Rowan. "I've always wanted a younger sibling, but my parents think they're too old. I have suggested adopting, but they said that it was too difficult." He sighed. 

"Thank you, Rowan." Sage grinned. "Athena will love you." She nodded her head happily. "Athena was going to name me after one of her chickens." Cedric interrupted, his cheeks pink with jealousy at the attention Rowan was getting from Sage.

"Instead she named it after me, though." Jill added smugly. "Yeah, well.. She was going to, which is what counts." He huffed. "She also wants to name her future cat after you, Cedric." Sage giggled, leaving out the part where she had been the first one to ask to name her cat after him.

"Really?" Cedrics eyes lit up, feeling better now that Sage's attention was off Rowan. "You know what I think." Sage stood up, an idea coming to her. "You should all come to my house for the Christmas holidays." She grinned. 

"Ooh, yes! Olive can stay with Sage, and Harper and Rowan can stay with Cedric, they're neighbours." Jill leapt up with Sage. "I'm only a ten minute broom-ride away, so i'll live." Jill shrugged.

"Oh, yes I'd love that!" Olive beamed as Rowan and Harper nodded in agreement. "I'll ask my father." Cedric grinned, placing a set of parchment on the table as he began to write a letter to his father.

"Christmas is so far away." Sage pouted. "Halloween is next week!" Harper added. "I love Halloween at Hogwarts, remember how the hall was decorated last year?" Jill squealed, she was always very enthusiastic about Holidays. "It's a shame we don't get a halloween break." Olive frowned.

----