Year Two - HoneybarryCutiedoobles - Doki Doki Literature Club! (Visual Novel) [Archive of Our Own] (2024)

Chapter 1: Prologue- Yuri Goes Shopping

Chapter Text

POV: YURI.

I quickly ducked behind one of the many large, bulging barrels scattered at random points around the uneven brick road, bending my knees to ensure my entire body was completely concealed behind the circular wooden structure.

I then fought hard to control my breathing and calm my racing heart.

What was HE doing in THERE?! Did he see me?! D- did he recognize me?!

It took me every single ounce of self control to keep my body language neutral while the garbled, barely coherent voice of panic screamed in my head. I had to endure it. Had to keep projecting absolute, apathetic normality to the sparse crowd of strangers passing me by, as if crouching down behind this barrel was a totally premeditated and very intentional choice on my part.

Deep breaths, Yuri. I instructed myself, unclenching my jaw to exhale slowly. And pull yourself together, this is NOT the place for a panic attack!

I swallowed anxiously, forcing myself to go through my self-taught breathing exercises and bring my thoughts in order. It took me a few seconds, but I eventually managed to push the simmering hysteria far enough away from the surface to take stock of my situation.

Whether this was a sign of genuine self-improvement, or merely my fear of losing it here outweighing the concern of actually losing it, I wasn't sure. An optimist would probably go with the former, however unrealistic it might seem.

Okay. I thought, clenching my hands tightly to keep them from trembling like daffodils in a tornado. First thing's first. Check again to see if it really WAS him. You have a habit of jumping at shadows.

Grabbing the upper rim of the old barrel, I carefully hoisted myself upwards to sneak another confirming glance at the gloomy, rickety windows of the slightly tilted building across, its aged architecture making it appear as though the entire structure had been on the verge of collapse for the last forty years.

Despite this deceptive and somewhat hazardous façade however, it remained the single most well-kempt ad upstanding shop of the entire area by far, which admittedly spoke more to the quality of the alleyway itself.

Above the splintered black wood of its entrance door there was a worn-down sign announcing the name of the shop in thinly scrawled, barely legible letters:

BORGIN & BURKES

The most high-profile, infamous antique shop in all of Britain, owing its reputation in large part to the sheer amount of unusual, ancient and oftentimes dangerous magical objects they had on full display.

It was easily the most threatening, shadiest, and fascinating store I'd been to. The store I'd been just about to enter before he had given me pause.

In retrospect, I could have cursed my own stupidity for coming here this late in August. Of course Diagon Alley would be swarming with returning Hogwarts students looking to buy their new books, supplies and what have you for the upcoming start of term. That was all predictable enough. What I'd failed entirely to take into account though, was the possibility of coming across someone I actually recognized here, in Knockturn Alley of all places.

Seeing Draco Malfoy and whom I presumed to be his father calmly exiting the store had been anxiety-inducing enough but I'd managed to get over the initial shock relatively quickly. I'd never once interacted with the pale-faced, blonde boy during our past year at Hogwarts, and I doubted I ever would. I don't think I'd even have a clue about who he was if not for our shared friend, Monika Winther, (who thankfully didn't seem to be accompanying him right now) or the many heated mentions my parents made at dinner about Lucius Malfoy and his many efforts to reduce funding for their department of Muggle Relations.

All those things taken into consideration, it wasn't really that surprising to see Malfoy traversing the shady streets of Knockturn Alley, and certainly nothing that would paralyze me to this degree. I wasn't completely spineless.

What had been surprising was seeing the world-famous Harry Potter exit the very same store mere minutes after the Malfoys, haphazardly staggering out onto the streets all the while feverishly looking all around in every possible direction.

Mine included.

I re-examined the grimy street again, half praying this was simply a case of mistaken identity, but no. Though his face and robes had been obscured greatly by a thick layer of soot and ash, it did nothing to hide the perpetually unruly mess of jet-black hair on his head, which after attending school with him for an entire year had become almost as iconic as the lightning-shaped scar on his forehead.

There was no doubt about it. Harry Potter was standing just a few feet from me, appearing dazed and confused as he stared blankly around the street, completely out in the open at the center of everything.

As usual.

My breath hitched and I ducked down again, my head flooding over with dizzying catastrophe thoughts. I had no idea why Harry Potter was in a place like this, but I knew what always followed wherever he went: Attention.

Just by virtue of being in his near vicinity, I was risking exposing myself to the public eye. In mere moments he'd be coming towards my poor excuse for a hiding place, and before I'd have a chance to even blink, I'd be entangled in media coverage from all the press that was sure to arrive. My face would be sprawled along his on the front page of the Daily Prophet where my parents would see me directly opposing their orders to never enter Knockturn Alley, to which they'd pull me out of Hogwarts, snap my wand and leave me on the streets to fend for myself without any hope of ever rejoining Wizarding Society again!

You're being hysterical. Breathe.

…okay, so maybe it wasn't the most probable outcome, but fear had a funny way of throwing rational thought out the window and make even the most outlandish proposals seem somewhat plausible. I was doomed.

You're being paranoid! A voice of cold, logical reason finally decided to chime in and pull me out of my downward spiral like a cold glass of water thrown in my face. Quite disturbingly, it spoke with the exact same intonations and pitch as Natsuki's impatient growling. The Press doesn't record his every breath, he's not THAT famous! And why would he approach you? He doesn't even know who you are!

Exhaling again, I chanced another peek over the barrel, forcing myself to re-survey the situation. Hesitating slightly, I slowly raised an arm to feel around the black shawl draped over my head, reaffirming to myself that all of my vibrant, purple locks were still well and truly concealed beneath. It wasn't as if I'd been foolish enough to enter Knockturn Alley without taking steps to hide my most noticeable attribute.

Natsuki- no, I was right. I wasn't any closer to Harry Potter than I was to Malfoy, I'd never even talked to either of them! There was no reason to suspect he'd have even an inkling of my identity beyond 'that one stupid Ravenclaw girl who messed up in Potions that one time.'

Sheesh, took you long enough! The voice continued drawling exasperatedly. Look, he's already leaving. Just ignore him, go into Borgin's and buy the thing, you'll be fine!

Sure enough, Potter had begun stumbling in the opposite direction from me, leaving behind a faint trail of ash on the already mucky pavement with each step. It was only a matter of minutes before he'd round a corner and finally leave my field of view for good.

Emboldened by this pleasing turn of events, I stepped out from my hiding place at last and after a deep sigh of relief made my way toward Borgin's, fully content with forgetting any of this had ever even taken place.

Whatever business Potter had here was his concern, and I'd be all too happy avoiding looking into it. I myself had a very old and intriguing deck of blood-stained cards I'd saved up for all summer, and I refused to delay my purchase any longer! According to history, the deck's curse had already forced fifty muggles and at least one wizard to literally gamble their lives away!

Imagining how marvelous it'd look along the other pieces of my collection, I idly gave one last, passing glance towards the Potter boy and the oblivious way he was squinting at everything through the shattered glass of his utterly broken glasses…

…wait, what are you doing?

Stopping up again a mere three steps away from the shop's entrance, I made a subtle, appraising double-take in Potter's direction. Why was he covered in all that ash, anyway?

Doesn't matter, it's not your problem! Ignore him and move on already! Cursed cards, remember?!

But my curiosity had been peaked now, grabbing my attention as effectively as a brand new horror novel. Adding onto the ash, why were his glasses smashed like that? And why did he look like he'd just fallen straight down every single Hogwarts staircase? Had he been in a fight?

I supposed it wasn't out of the question. The rivalry between Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter last year had been so publicized, even I knew about it. If the two had encountered each other in a small enclosed space like Borgin and Burkes', the likelihood of a skirmish didn't seem that far fetched.

But when Malfoy and his father had left the store, there hadn't been so much as a wrinkle on his expensive, black robes, not a blonde hair out of place. From what I'd seen of Potter, he didn't strike me as the sort of person who'd take Malfoy's punishments without giving back at least twice as hard. And it still did nothing to explain the main mystery that'd bothered me from the very beginning.

Why was someone like Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, the one who'd allegedly repelled the Dark Lord himself, skulking around the single most disreputable dark magic slums in all of Britain? And why was he glancing around everywhere like that? If I didn't know any better, I'd say he looked just as perplexed by his surroundings as… as I was…

My eyes widened as an answer suddenly came to me. Surely he hadn't had… a Floo Powder accident?

It seemed almost too absurd to be true, but all the signs were there. The ash, the disorientation, the obvious misplacement… It all lined up perfectly with someone who'd stepped into a fireplace for the very first time and found themselves in a completely unexpected, new place. Thinking about it, Harry Potter had lived with Muggles his whole life, hadn't he?

Just like my friend, Sayori. I strongly doubted she even knew what Floo Powder was, which meant…There was every chance that he'd never tried it either! He wasn't here on any suspicious errand, he was just… lost.

My heart-rate increased slightly, pumping mild worry on his behalf into my bloodstream. In Knockturn Alley, the very last thing you'd ever want to be was 'lost.'

Already now, some of the skulking residents had started taking notice of his unsure movements, turning their heads in his direction, glinting eyes locking in on his clueless expression. He might as well have been carrying a large, white sign saying "OUTSIDER HERE- COME AND GET ME!"

Unless he got a grip on himself very soon, he wouldn't last long like this. Especially once they discovered who he really was. They would pounce on him like Grindylows smelling blood in the water, and eat him alive- literally speaking in some cases! I'd seen at least one hooded vampire creeping around these parts!

I bit my lip guiltily, contemplating my next action. Someone had to help him get back to Diagon Alley before he got cornered. In theory, I could do it. Get to him first, act like we were close friends who accidentally split up, and guide him on the right path. Theoretically, simple enough. In practice, though?

I shivered just considering it. Not only would I have to talkto the Harry Potter, I'd have to convince him he could trust me enough to help! And that wasn't even mentioning all the uncomfortable questions he'd surely have for me, like who I was, how I'd found him and most damning of all, what I was doing here.

Under no circ*mstances did I want to reveal those secrets with anyone, let alone him. I might as well send my personal diary directly to The Daily Prophet for publishing.

But I couldn't just let him roam around Knockturn Alley either.

I suppressed a groan of frustration, both at him for putting me in this impossible situation, and at myself for freezing up again like I always did!

Helping him was the right thing to do! It was the kind of thing any half-way decent person would act on without a second thought. If I was Sayori, I wouldn't even be hesitating!

But then again, if I was Sayori… I wouldn't even be here at all…

I shut my eyes momentarily, gritting my teeth.

…fine.

I begrudgingly opened my eyes again, clenched my fists and moved towards him with swift, firm steps.

I'd do the decent thing, bite the jinx and help him. Accept the possibility of all my secrets leaking to the public. Get shunted by society, and labeled a freak. It wasn't like I deserved any better.

Maybe I can spin it in a clever way. Hide my face, disguise my voice, something to make it harder for him to recognize me…

But if I tried that, he might panic and try even harder to run away, which would only rile up the crowd even more… No, probably not the right move. Maybe I'd figure something out at the last second. Maybe… it wouldn't be so bad…?

"Fiv' Sickles fer one measly slug repellant?! Tha's damn robbery, that is! I'll giv' two an' a knut, an' tha's that!"

A loud and scarily familiar gruff voice from behind pulled my attention from Potter, making me whirl around on the spot to spot the owner. My jaw nearly dropped in disbelief.

Standing just a few feet away from me was an absolutely enormous man, towering over one of the many small, greasy booths sprawled throughout the area, apparently haggling with the small, hooded owner. If his telltale size somehow hadn't been enough of a giveaway, the bushy black hair surrounding his face as well as the huge, brown moleskin coat draped over his fearsome shoulders confirmed his identity beyond a shadow of a doubt.

…How did I miss him?! I thought, stunned at the absurdity. Has Knockturn Alley just become a hotspot for all Hogwarts residents?!

Then, after recovering from the shock, my heart gave an elated leap as the beginning of a plan started forming in my head. I swiftly abandoned my goal to reach Harry Potter, and ran instead at the gigantic man.

"Mr. Hagrid!" I exclaimed breathlessly upon reaching him, having to raise my voice to get his attention from all the way down here. "Mr. Hagrid, Sir!"

This was better than I could have ever asked for. Another well known fact at Hogwarts, the Gamekeeper was always on exceedingly friendly terms with Harry Potter! If I just nudged him in the general direction of the lost boy, I wouldn't risk being outed to anyone!

Hagrid reacted to my outcry by turning sideways and tilting his massive head downwards with an almost glacial movement. Somewhere deep within his nest of coarse facial hair, I could just barely make out a pair of beetle-black eyes, squinting questioningly as he finally spotted me.

I stood my ground, doing my best to remind myself that this was a kind man who'd never hurt another person. It was still difficult to resist shivering with intimidation- Obviously I'd known Hagrid was large, but you never quite realized how large until finding yourself standing right before him.

"…who, me?" He asked, pointing at himself with a finger bigger than my entire head. Though his voice still carried its usual gruffness, it had softened considerably. "Can I help ye, little gir- hey, hang on a mo'. Don' I know yeh…?"

What little remained of my confidence ebbed away on the spot as my blood ran cold with realization. How had I managed to forget it?! The potion hadn't just affected my hair, but another part of my body as well. A part I was currently flashing directly up at Hagrid.

My eyes! They're purple!

Screaming internally at my thoughtlessness, I retracted my gaze from his, praying I could still salvage this somehow.

"P- Potter!" I croaked out hoarsely, pointing sideways just as the black-haired boy ahead was approached by what looked to be a nail-selling hag. "H- here! N- needs h- help!"

"…Harry?!" Hagrid stood up a little straighter, thankfully seeming to understand my fear-devolved caveman lingo. "Wha' the ruddy hell's he doin' here- hey! Where're yeh goin'…?!"

But I didn't wait for him to finish, choosing instead to run away as fast as I could as soon as I knew Hagrid had gotten the message. I weaved through an approaching crowd of black-hooded wizards (a very popular fashion choice around these points) before diving behind another conveniently-placed barrel.

After somewhat gathering my wits as well as my breath, I slowly peeked up again just to make absolutely sure I wasn't being followed. Hagrid was still standing frozen at the booth, looking very confused as he stared in the general direction I'd gone. He then glanced back at Potter who appeared to be quite unsuccessful in shaking off the hag.

Come on, Hagrid… I pleaded silently over my heart hammering from both the run and nerves. Choose the more pressing issue…

I then breathed out a deep sigh of relief when he finally shook his head and stomped the opposite way, bellowing out at the hag to get off Harry Potter.

I exhaled deeply, feeling as if an anvil had been lifted from my shoulder. I allowed myself a brief moment to gather myself before standing up again, and, with as calm a face as I could project at the moment, walked off.

That could have DEFINITELY gone better. I thought, cringing at the replaying events in my head as I finally reached one of the dark alleyways leading into the brighter, noisier Diagon Alley.

As I went along the narrow brick road, I removed and deposited my shawl in an inner pocket of my black robe, allowing my hair to flow freely down my back. Getting recognized around these parts wasn't quite as world-ending. I just hoped I wouldn't have a run-in with any of my friends now. At this moment, my social energy was drained to an all-time low.

I'd given up my plan to visit Borgin's. Maybe I'd give it another attempt in the winter holidays when the streets weren't so crowded, but it was simply way too risky right now. Three close calls in one afternoon were a bit much for my taste.

I shivered to myself at the thought of Hagrid, and hoped the situation had been too brief and hectic for him to have really recognized me from my unique eye coloration alone. He wasn't a real teacher at Hogwarts, so I didn't have to dread having him confront me in any classes. Maybe I could just get through this upcoming year without ever needing to interact with him a single time? He didn't strike me as the type to intentionally hold something over me, but there was no way to know for sure…

I shook my head dismissively and reached into my pocket, retracted the list of school supplies I'd been sent just a few days ago. Now that the cursed cards were no longer on the table for me, I might as well just go ahead and get started on the original task I'd used to justify this whole trip to my oblivious parents.

I folded out the parchment just as I fully entered the sun-kissed streets of Diagon Alley, juxtaposing the previous streets with its vibrant and excited chatter from all the returning students around me.

Just as I was about to read it however, my blood ran cold at hearing a loud, shrill voice of distress pass me by.

"Where is he, Arthur?! Where is he?!"

I meekly glanced up from my list to see a collection of people right in front of me, widely varied in age, size and gender but all sharing the same hair colour of bright, burning orange.

The speaker, a particularly pale, plumb woman was sending long searching looks all around the street, her face lined with wrinkles of deepest concern.

Feeling a very foreboding sense in the pit of my stomach, I slowly stepped backwards, concealing myself in the shadow cast beneath the parasoled roof of an ice cream stand. But though my heart pounded loudly in my chest, it wasn't nearly enough to deafen the continued raised voices of the family.

"I- I'm sure he must be somewhere close by, Molly dear. From what I heard, he didn't misspeak too critically. If I had to guess, he probably just ended up in a different shop…"

"I told you Dad, he's never used Floo Powder before!"

"Don't reckon people will be too pleased when they find out we just made the most famous wizard of our generation disappear. Good going, Mom!"

"Shut up, Fred!"

"I'm George!"

"Oh, how could we have let this happen?! What if he's stuck in some Muggle chimney?!"

"Now now Molly, only fireplaces belonging to wizards are connected to the Network! …mind you, it's possible he could have been dropped out in Knockturn Alley…"

"WHAT?!"

"Oh no! We'd better head in there right now and look, right Mom?!"

"You'll do no such thing, George!"

"I'm Fred!"

"Arthur…!"

"Right… Let's just calm down here, Molly. How about you take Ginny and check the remaining stores while me and the boys try asking around if anyone's seen Harry?"

"Fine… but under no circ*mstances are you to take them to Knockturn Alley!"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Molly sweetums… Let's meet up here again in a bit, okay?"

A painful twinge of guilt stabbed through my heart as the family split up and dispersed in their search. Hearing their conversation, it hadn't exactly been hard to deduce the cause for their apparent distress. Someone under their care, lost to a Floo Powder mishap. An anguished family, split apart and running themselves ragged in their desperate search to find him again.

And all of it was my fault.

No… I did the right thing! Hagrid was way better suited for the job! He'll get Potter back to them in no time!

I sighed. Logical as my justifications tried to be, the fact remained that Harry Potter would have been reunited with the family now if I'd just toughened up and led him back. Due to my cowardice and indecisiveness, people were suffering for longer than they strictly had to.

I grit my teeth, forcing myself to focus on the school supplies list, shaking along with my trembling hands.

There was nothing I could do about any of that now. It didn't make sense to keep beating myself up about it. Might as well just move on, and try to get something constructive done.

That wasn't going to stop me from actively regretting every action that'd led me to this point, but I digressed.

I appraised the mandated items on my list. I'd need updated spell books, new potion supplies… Probably a trip to Madam Malkin's as well. A frankly alarming growth spurt had caused my old school robes to dangle goofily above my angles. I prayed this was just a one-time development…

Then, as my eyes darted further downwards to the next few items, my guilt at abandoning Harry Potter was temporarily driven from my mind, replaced by severe embarrassment. It took everything I had just to suppress the groan of despair threatening to emerge from my throat as I realized the type of books I'd be required to purchase.

Oh, no. Not Lockhart…!

Chapter 2: Reunion!

Chapter Text

POV: MONIKA

I greedily gulped in deep breaths of refreshing evening air as I departed the bright scarlet carriage of the Hogwarts Express, and stepped out onto the dim, lantern-lit platform below. There was an excited bustling all around me as hundreds more chattering students did the same, pouring out from the train like buzzing bees from an upset nest, shoving and pushing each other in their hurry to leave the vehicle as quickly as possible.

I paid them no mind, focusing instead on savoring the cool autumn wind gently caressing my face and hair as I stretched my arms and legs, rejuvenating my body after the long trip inside an enclosed, cramped cabin. Not to say the seating hadn't been perfectly comfortable, but compared to being upright and outside again, it just wasn't a contest.

I glanced over the bobbing heads of swarming students, drinking in my surroundings from the humble, rustic appearance of Hogsmeade Station, to the breathtaking, towering silhouette of Hogwarts Castle in the distance. A smile crept across my face as I stared at the brightly lit windows visible even from this far away, silently enticing me with promises of comforting warmth, shelter and amazing food.

I'm here. I thought, giddily. At last, I'm home again!

"Ugh, finally some air! Monika, quit standing around like an idiot, you're blocking the way!"

I turned around at the high-pitched bark cutting sharply through the rest of the idle background chatter. I was met with the hard stare of a small girl lightly scowling up at me, both arms firmly crossed over her chest to project as much impatience and dissatisfaction as possible.

It was only then that I noticed the other students departing from the train cart scrambling somewhat to exit via the very sides of the door to avoid trampling the dumb brunette who'd selfishly decided to freeze up directly in front of the passageway- AKA, me.

"Oop, sorry everyone! Lost myself there for a sec, ahaha!" I apologized with a forlorn smile, quickly stepping aside and allowing the others to exit freely as I felt my cheeks flushing up. The girl who'd alerted me to my disposition shook her head in exasperation, the motion whipping about the short, twin pigtails of her bright and flashy pink hair.

"Well, that happened." Natsuki stated brusquely, joining my side a bit further along the platform to watch the other students depart. "What now?"

"Well…" I replied, pulling a small, golden pocket-watch from my inner pocket. "If I had to make an educated guess, I'd say it's only a matter of time before-"

"MONIKA!"

A loud, shrill shriek erupted from across the platform, and I glanced up to see a flash of red fabric steadily weaving its way through the sea of students, and straight toward us.

"…and, bingo." I smiled expectantly just as the owner of the red bow pushed herself through the last couple of students standing between us, and without hesitating for even a second leapt at me in a fierce, aggressive embrace that very nearly knocked us both over.

"N- nice to see you again too, Sayori!" I half-laughed, half-gasped in effort as the excited girl squeezed my ribs tightly, making me lose half my breath. Mercifully, she soon eased her hold and retracted herself to gaze at my face with those gigantic blue eyes of hers.

"Ohmygosh, look at you!" She exclaimed gushingly, raising a flat palm to her head and motioned it towards my chin to compare our heights. "You've grown so much!"

"So have you, silly!" I retorted with a chuckle.

Sayori then seemed to notice Natsuki's presence behind us, as her face suddenly lit up anew. She motioned forward and inhaled deeply, most likely gearing up for another loud exclamation.

"NATS-"

"Could you not cause a scene here?!" Natsuki hissed urgently, avoiding ensnarement by expertly ducking under Sayori's reaching arms. "Everyone's watching!"

"-TT,- I don't care!" Sayori casually dismissed the protest, making another, almost successful attempt to catch the pinkette in a hug. "I missed you guys so much! We haven't talked all summer, and- wait."

She ceased all movement, face scrunching up as she rapidly glanced between Natsuki and me.

"Where's Yuri?" She asked, with a hint of concern.

"Still onboard the train, if I know her right." Natsuki shrugged with a scoff, glancing towards the last sparse stragglers still exiting the crimson engine. "Probably stalling until everyone else leaves first."

"…why?" Sayori questioned.

"I don't know, it's just what she does." Natsuki shrugged again. "Maybe she just doesn't like getting caught in crowds."

"Can't fault her for that, I suppose…" I reasoned, stepping on my toes to scour the platform for any signs of our shy companion.

"But… what if we can't find her?" Sayori asked anxiously, echoing my movement.

"Don't worry. Somehow, I doubt we'll miss her…" I said, smirking to myself as I spotted a flash of purple hurriedly departing the cart at the very end of the train.

Gesturing for the girls to follow along, I lead us off in that direction, past the mass of older students who'd started gathering into groups and chatting excitedly amongst one another until finally seeing the solitary figure of a pale, slender girl standing by herself at the very edge of the platform. She was glancing around with an expression of mildly harrowed uncertainty while nervously running her fingers through a front strand of her long, flowing purple hair.

"Oi, Yuri! Over here!" Sayori called out ecstatically, waving her arms in mad greeting. The lavenderette flinched softly at the sudden exclamation before lifting her head towards our group.

I was pleased to see a frail smile replacing a good portion of the anxiety on her face as she recognized and approached us. It wasn't long before she too had been caught in another of Sayori's trademark, rib-squeezing hugs.

"G- greetings, everyone." Yuri muttered after Sayori relinquished her hold, tenderly rubbing her abused sides. "It's… nice, to see you again. Sayori. Monika. Natsuki."

She nodded her head lightly at each of us in turn in a gesture akin to a small bow. I had to bite my lip to keep from chuckling- I'd almost forgotten how formal she could be.

"Good to see you, Yuri!" I extended my arm to shake her hand. "Been a minute, hasn't it?"

"You've grown too!" Sayori gave a squeal of delight, pointing between us. "You're taller than Monika by like, three inches at least!"

"Uh, y- yes." Yuri's face flushed up, some of her initial anxiousness returning. "I… had to buy new robes… Is- is it really that noticeable…?"

"Yeah, and it's awesome!" Sayori reassured. "Don't worry though, we've all gone through it! Me, Moni, and-"

Her voice died in her throat when glancing sideways at Natsuki who'd more or less stayed the exact same height she'd been last year. If she'd grown, it couldn't have been more than half an inch at most.

"What?" Natsuki narrowed her eyes irritably at Sayori, as if daring her to finish the sentence. Sayori slowly retracted her pointing finger to awkwardly press it against her other index finger, looking flustered.

The lingering tension was cut mercifully short though, when a loud booming voice rang out from the opposite end of the platform.

"FIRS'-YEARS!" The voice was accompanied by the always-impressive sight of Hagrid, impossible for anyone to miss as he waved his large lantern about like a beacon in the dark. A small cacophony of gasps erupted from all the shortest students in the crowd as they got their first look at the abnormally large man. I couldn't really blame them- I'd reacted in much the same way last year.

"ALL FIRS'-YEARS, FOLLOW ME! OVER HERE, THIS WAY! FIRS'-YEARS!"

I looked on as a group of about thirty kids hesitantly began lining up and trudging towards the announcer, most of them bearing expressions of severe doubt and nervousness- all except for one particularly small boy who'd pulled out what looked to be a large, clunky camera which he proceeded to raise high above his head to blindly snap pictures at absolutely everything as he jittered forward.

"Oh, we'd better move!" Sayori exclaimed automatically, motioning to follow along- only to stop abruptly when I snagged hold of her collar, preventing her from taking another step.

"Not so fast, Vice President." I pointed out with a teasing, but patient smile as she glanced back at me with a clueless expression. "Did you forget you already passed first year?"

Her stare remained blank for a few seconds before she blinked thrice in a row, blushed, and erupted into a fit of embarrassed giggles.

"Wh- whoopsie!" She blurted out after regaining her breath, rubbing at the back of her head. "Uh- well, where are we supposed to go then?!"

"I'm not su- Yuri? You okay?" I frowned, only now noticing a stronger than usual look of trepidation on the taller girl's face as she stared in the direction of Hagrid and the first years departing.

"…huh?" Yuri recoiled, blinking distractedly. Her concerned expression quickly faded away, replaced by a deep flush. "O- oh yes, I'm f- fine… Uh- it appears as though most of the others are heading that way! Perhaps we'd be wise to follow?"

She gestured at a small collection of fifth and sixth-years heading towards a narrow, trampled mud pathway at a leisurely pace.

"…yeah, good idea!" I smiled back in acknowledgement, deciding to leave the matter alone for now. "Have to admit, I'm a bit curious myself. The books say the boat-ride is traditional for first-years, but it doesn't really mention how returning students get to the Castle."

"Whatever, let's just go already!" Natsuki shook her head impatiently, setting into a brisk walk towards the older students. "I'm freakin' starving!"

"Oh, same here!" Sayori nodded emphatically, hurrying to join Natsuki. "I forgot to bring my wizard money again, so I couldn't pay the lunch-lady at the Expre- hey, wait a minute!"

She suddenly turned around, staring each of us down with a scrunched up frown.

"How come we didn't sit together like last year?!" She exclaimed indignantly, placing her hands on her hips. "I haven't seen any of you since last summer, and then we don't even meet up at the train! Seriously, what's up with that?!"

I exhaled in mild amusem*nt at Sayori's expression. She was clearly trying sooo hard to look stern and cross with us, but it just came across as a light and slightly adorable pout.

"Natsuki and I were in the same Cabin, actually." I pointed out with a casual shrug. "It was really quite nice."

"Ugh, don't remind me…" Natsuki gave an over-exaggerated groan, as if our time together had been comparable to the most deplorable and horrendous of tortures.

"You're kidding!" Sayori's jaw dropped as she looked between us, positively scandalized. "Why wasn't I allowed with you?!"

"Who says you weren't?" I asked bemusedly. "Look, I ran into Natsuki completely by chance! She was struggling a bit with loading her luggage, so I helped her carry it into our cabin, and that's it. You just have to take whatever seats you can get on the Hogwarts Express, nothing more to it than that!"

"She practically forced me." Natsuki added dryly. "Wasn't like I could leave and risk her snooping through my stuff at that point, could I?"

"Oh right, I'm so sorry for selfishly offering you a hand like that!" I rolled my eyes. "Next time I'll make sure to just leave you to wrestle with your bags on your own, would that be all right?"

Natsuki didn't answer beyond a foul grimace in my direction, but I wasn't fooled by the act. I could practically see her invisible smirk hiding just underneath the surface. She'd never admit it of course, but I knew she secretly loved this banter dynamic just as much as I did.

"But what about you, Sayo?" I asked, shifting attention. "Did you end up sitting with someone really annoying or something like that?"

"Huh?" Her eyes widened in surprise, as if the whole concept of someone 'being annoying' was strange and foreign to her. "Oh no, not at all! I was with these really funny Gryffindors from fourth year, Fred, George and Lee!"

"Ugh, those clowns." Natsuki scoffed. "Did they give you any trouble? Do I need to knock some heads?"

I wasn't even sure if she was conscious of doing it, but regardless, hearing Natsuki defending Sayori this aggressively was more than a little bit cute- though naturally, I didn't voice my amusem*nt out loud. Mentioning the 'C-word' in such close proximity was a good way to get my own head firmly knocked.

"Oh, no no no, they were really lovely!" Sayori assured hurriedly. "They let me try lighting some of their funky self-starting fireworks, it was so much fun! But still, I wanted to be with you guuuys!"

"Well, if you'd like us to sit together we've got to plan out a proper schedule in advance!" I shook my head, chuckling. "The Express is hectic enough already, you can't expect us to just arrive early and know where to go without any forewarning!"

"How was I supposed to make a plan when I can't even contact you?!" Sayori protested indignantly. "You don't have phones, and Uncle Dan says I'm too young to take care of an owl!"

"I have a phone…" Yuri mumbled quietly. Immediately, Sayori's head snapped in her direction.

"You what?!"

"Uh- technically, it b- belongs to my parents…!" Yuri corrected herself, looking thrown off at the sudden increase of interest. "They… need one for when their Contact Muggles wants to get in touch…"

"I'm gonna need your number like, right freaking now!" Sayori said, voice intense and serious. "Does anyone have a pen and paper?!"

Before I had a chance to ask if a 'pen' was one of those odd ink-less metal quills I'd seen her use last year, Yuri had already reached into her robes to rummage in an inner pocket.

"Uh, I can do this…" She then said, pulling out and raising her wand. "Conmeditor Numero!"

A long sequence of seemingly random numbers made of bright golden light appeared out of nothing, floating softly in the air before us. With a gesture, Yuri beckoned Sayori to hold out an arm, and pull up her sleeve. With the lightest and gentlest of flicks, Yuri tapped at her bared wrist, to which the numbers reacted, drifting downwards to settle themselves directly on Sayori's exposed skin, losing their glow and taking on a texture more akin to black ink.

Sayori looked at the number sequence adorned on her arm in amazement, her eyes so wide I was sure they were gonna pop right out of her sockets if she tried opening them any further.

"Wow…" She breathed out, rubbing testily at her wrist. The numbers remained right where they were, without so much as a light smudge. "My first tattoo…!"

"It'll disappear on its own in about three days…" Yuri said awkwardly, pocketing her wand again. "That should give you plenty of time to copy it down somewhere more permanent."

She'll forget and have to ask for a new number by the end of the year. I thought, but held my tongue, not daring to ruin the moment.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!" Sayori exclaimed, catching Yuri in another hug.

"I'm confused." I admitted, furrowing my brows. "Do those numbers mean anything?"

"I think it's some sort of code Muggles use to search for each other on their 'telli-fone' machines." Natsuki said, thankfully carrying an equally mystified expression. "Pretty weird and complicated if you ask me…"

"Ehehe, that's kinda right…" Sayori giggled, rolling down her sleeve again. "With this number, I can basically call up Yuri and talk to her directly from my home whenever we're not at Hogwarts. And I'm gonna make sure to do that every single day next summer!"

"Uh-" Yuri looked alarmed. "M- maybe you c- could limit it t- to… every third day or so? M- my parents still need to use it f- for job purposes, after all."

"Hmm, maybe." Sayori hummed aloofly, checking her nails. "No promises, though."

I shook my head, still unsure if I really understood what they were going on about. Sayori's frequent mentions of the weird and bizarre devices Muggles had created in their attempts to function without magic never failed to leave me scratching my head.

I mean, talking to someone with some long and convoluted code instead of just lighting a fire, throwing in some powder and inserting your head into the flames?

How absurd.

"I'm sorry, Sayori." I said guiltily, deciding not to question the logic further. "I… should have sent letters over the summer. I didn't mean to neglect you."

"It's fine, don't sweat it!" Sayori brushed me off with a bright smile. "We're together again now, that's all that matters!"

"I'll definitely remember next summer!" I assured her, smiling back. "I've really missed talking to you all…"

"The feeling's not mutual!" Natsuki interjected gruffly, turning around to look at Sayori with a sour frown. "Monika was absolutely insufferable to sit with. I swear, she must'a used some kind of dark magic to make everyone in our cabin drone on and on about the most boring stuff imaginable!"

"By 'dark magic,' she means I 'engaged in polite and respectful conversations with my fellow students.'" I explained to the others with a wink. "But I suppose a concept like that must seem frightening and unnatural to someone like Natsuki."

"Har, har." Natsuki fake laughed. "I wish I could have sat with Yuri instead. At least she knows how to shut up every once in a while!"

"Uhm, th- thank you?" Yuri said unsurely, clearing her throat. "I was seated with some third-year students from my House. We didn't really talk much until Penelope Clearwater finished her duties and joined us. It was very… quiet."

"I envy you…" Natsuki muttered darkly.

"Clearwater, eh?" I smirked, and gave Yuri a suggestive glance. "Rubbing elbows with the Prefect elite, are we? Think you could coax her to reveal the password for their bathroom?"

"N- no, it's n- not like that at all!" Instead of rolling with what I'd thought to be a pretty obvious, harmless jest, Yuri surprised me with a downright shocked expression. "W- we b- barely talked, and I d- don't even know h- her that well!"

"Yuri, it's okay!" I raised my hands defensively, frowning at her outburst. "I was just, uh, making a joke?"

"…oh." She replied, deflating on the spot. "I- I'm sorry…"

"That's… all right?" I asked hesitantly, vaguely hoping for some sort of elaboration. None came.

"…awk-waaard…" Natsuki broke the lingering silence with an unhelpful whistle.

"Oh, I actually noticed something a bit strange on the way!" Sayori then piped up, seeming just as keen to move on as I was. "At one point I looked out the window, and I think I saw a blue car coming down from the sky!"

"A… car?" Yuri repeated with hesitant disbelief.

"Yeah!" Sayori nodded fervently. "It was flying in the air right next to us, then pulled up and disappeared behind the clouds again!"

"You sure you didn't just have a dream?" Natsuki asked.

"I didn't, honestly! And when I tried mentioning it to the twins, they got really pale for some reason. I think they might have known something about- Monika? What are you doing?"

"No no no, hold on, hang on, I know this one…" I shushed her, closing my eyes in concentration and snapped my fingers. "Car, car, carrr… it's just on the tip of my tongue… it's- it's those… metal boxes with- with wheels at the bottom, isn't it?"

"Exactly!" Sayori exclaimed encouragingly. "Well done, Monika!"

I proudly opened my eyes again, meeting her smile.

"Right, and these... cars…" I chewed on the word, noting how unnatural it sounded in my mouth. "I take it they… aren't supposed to fly, then?"

Natsuki snickered mockingly.

"Come on Monika, even I know tha- what the f*ck?!"

We'd reached the end of the pathway, opening up to a large, encompassing clearing of gravelly dirt surrounded by large oak trees. Presented in the middle of the field were about a hundred or so horseless stagecoaches, each one looking capable of fitting up to four students at a time. All were embroidered with the Hogwarts emblem, a stylized H surrounded by a lion, badger, eagle and serpent.

The students in front of us casually approached one of the coaches, still idly chatting amongst each other as they climbed aboard the dark, pristine and freshly polished carriage in a relaxed, flippant manner. Upon seating themselves inside the small cabin, the large wooden wheels set into motion by themselves, creaking and groaning the stagecoach along the bumpy road ahead.

"Oh, wow…" Sayori breathed out, jaw agape as she stared after the self-driving carriage. "You see that Monika? That's a bit like how a normal car works, only this is so much cooler!"

"Nifty." I smiled, and began approaching a coach near the front. "Guess we know how second-years and above are transported to the Castle now!"

"…Natsuki?" I heard Yuri's soft, concerned voice from behind. "Are- are you okay…?"

I stopped in my tracks, turning around to see Natsuki still standing at the end of the pathway without moving so much as a muscle. Her pink eyes were wide open and unblinking as she stared dead ahead at the black wagons with a face so pale it nearly glowed in the dim twilight.

"…those are the creepiest things I've ever seen!" She finally exclaimed, voice shaky as she pointed at the coaches. "Are we seriously supposed to ride those?!"

Furrowing my brows, I turned back around to re-appraise the coaches and see if I'd missed something. I supposed maybe it was a little eerie, but hardly enough to justify such a claim. Self-moving objects was nothing new, more akin to a commodity, really.

"You really think so?" I asked with an idle glance. It was especially weird to hear Natsuki of all people say this. I'd seen her walking right through Slytherin's house ghost, The Bloody Baron, without even batting an eye. Now here she was, scared of some wagons?

"Are they even safe to be around?!" Natsuki's frown deepened as she took a tentative step forwards, her eyes not leaving the carriages.

"Uhm… those other students didn't seem to be in any danger." Yuri reasoned, shooting a glance in my direction, silently communicating that she was just as confused as I was. "I… doubt Hogwarts would deliberately put us in harm's way."

"Yeah, come on, let's go!" Sayori said, excitedly skipping across the ground towards a carriage. "If we couldn't sit with each other on the train, then at least we'll be together here!"

Natsuki remained where she was, only flinching at Sayori's sudden movement. She stared after her in stunned disbelief, as though she'd never witnessed comparable bravery.

"Are you feeling well, Natsuki?" Yuri asked again.

"I'm fine!" The pinkette shook her head defensively, looking anything but. "Stuff like this just freaks me out, okay?!"

Maybe she'd had a traumatic experience with stagecoaches in the past and developed a very specific phobia as a result? That seemed maybe a bit far fetched, but hey. Who was I to judge?

"…would you like to hold my hand?" I offered, trying my best to come across as genuine and accommodating instead of condescending and rude. Judging from her offended expression, I didn't seem very successful in this task.

"Ugh, shut the hell up!" She scoffed, stomping past me and my out-stretched hand towards the stagecoach while making sure to give the front end as wide a berth as possible.

"Aaand she's back to normal." I shook my head, exchanged silent glances with Yuri and closed my open hand. We followed along and climbed aboard as well.

When we'd seated ourselves (me and Yuri besides each other, across from Nat and Sayori) the entire cart gave a small jolt of motion, trudging along the uneven, dirt road.

The atmosphere was a bit more awkward than I cared for, with Natsuki still staring out of the small window with a mixed look of revolted fascination. I could tell nobody seemed very inclined to comment out of fear she'd snap out again.

"So…" I eventually spoke up, unable to take the silence any more. "I suppose I'll try working my 'dark magic' again and ask how you've been this summer?"

"Sooo bored!" Sayori whimpered dramatically. "I mean, I guess it was nice to finally get back to my TV and watch cartoons again, but after everything that happened last year, all I could think about was coming back here! I couldn't even impress Uncle Dan with the spells I learned! It sucks that we're not allowed to do magic outside school!"

"Ahaha, sorry to hear that." I giggled sympathetically. "Uh- can you remind me what a 'tee-vee' is, again?"

"It's a sort of box with a glass screen, powered by electricity." Yuri explained, miming a square with her hands to illustrate the dimensions. "It rapidly displays images and sounds at the viewer to give the illusion of movement. Muggles often gather around it and watch for information and entertainment purposes."

"Ah, I see…" I nodded, struggling to imagine the appeal of such a device. Having my senses bombarded with flashing images and noises sounded nauseating.

"Well… yeah, that's technically what a TV is…" Sayori frowned reluctantly. "But they're so much cooler than Yuri makes it sound!"

"It sounds bloody annoying." Natsuki chimed in, still not averting her gaze from the window.

"It can be, sometimes…" Sayori concurred. "But most of the time it's really fun! I honestly think both you and Moni would love it!"

"I'll take your word for it…"

"How was your summer, Natsuki?" I addressed her, taking her input as a sign that it was okay to try and involve her in the discussion.

"Nothing worth reporting." She grunted, mercilessly shutting down my attempt.

"Right…" Not about to give up that easily, I tried a different angle. "So uhm, can I ask if you and Yuri are comfortable talking about… your hair?"

Natsuki gave a carefree shrug. Yuri sighed lightly, clearing her throat.

"I've… made my peace with it." She said, vaguely brushing a long strand of purple with her slender fingers. "Thanks to Natsuki, I've learned to accept this is just who I am now, and to not waste any more time regretting the event."

"I just gave you a small pep-talk, that's all." Natsuki groaned, rolling her eyes. "You don't need to credit me as if I did something noble."

"S- sorry." Yuri apologized. "B- but regardless, I still greatly appreciated the gesture."

"Whatever…" Natsuki muttered, and returned her attention to the window again.

"How did your parents react when they saw you?" I chanced asking the one question gnawing at my curiosity ever since the incident had first taken place.

"They… were a bit surprised at first, as one might expect." Yuri muttered reservedly. "But after I told them it was irreversible, they just quietly accepted it. Nowadays, they barely mention it."

"Well, that's good innit?" I smiled back, and received a vague nod. "What about you, Natsuki?"

"I'm still alive." Natsuki said shortly. "So, that's nice I guess."

She didn't elaborate further than that, and I could tell she was done answering questions.

Come to think of it, she'd been weirdly moody all evening. On the train she'd pretty much only replied in short grunts and snarky remarks that somehow seemed a whole lot more barbed than usual, and I didn't understand why. As far as I could tell, nobody had said anything that could've upset her- although, maybe I wasn't the best judge of that since apparently something as ordinary as a self-pulling stagecoach had been enough to disturb her. Perhaps she was just a whole lot more sensitive than I'd thought.

It couldn't be that she still harbored resentment for me, right? Hadn't we gotten past all our differences last year, or had that just been wishful thinking on my part? Or maybe nothing was wrong at all, and I was just overthinking a simple explanation, like her being tired after a long trip.

But then, how was I supposed to know when she refused to tell me anything?!

"I still think you look so cool!" Sayori declared, oblivious to any tension as she leaned in closer to Nat, dreamily inspecting her scalp. Then, she began taking deep, inhaling breaths through her nose.

"Oi!" Natsuki exclaimed indignantly, recoiling away from her seating partner. "Don't sniff my hair, that's weird!"

"But it smells delicious!" Came Sayori's earnest reply, tilting her body closer until Natsuki had to raise a flat, blocking palm just to keep her at bay. "Just like candy! What shampoo do you use?!"

"Uh-" Yuri began, watching the wrestling match unfolding before her with fretful interest. "W- when we inserted the items into our brews, the potion didn't just imbue us with their colour, but a- also their scent."

"Oh! So that's why I've been smelling lavender since we entered!" I exclaimed, glancing sideways at Yuri.

"Y- yes…" She said, face flushed. "It- it's not bothering you, is it…?"

"Not at all!" I assured her. "It's quite pleasant, actually."

"Oh my gosh, it just keeps sounding better and better!" Sayori said, hopefully. "Are you sure you still won't tell me how you made that potio-"

"No." Me, Yuri and Natsuki all spoke at the same time, making her sigh in disappointment.

"Okay, fine!" She groaned. "Don't change my hair, then. But could you maybe help me with another kind of potion?"

"…that really depends." I said, instantly cautious. "Is it for your homework?"

"No, no, no-" She shook her head fervently. "It's for this dream I had during the summer! Okay, hear me out here, guys- mermaids!"

"…Mermaids?" Yuri repeated hesitantly, and I could tell from her tone that she'd had the same, trepid thought as me.

"Yeah!" Sayori nodded energetically, as if that one word had explained everything perfectly. Then, realizing we'd need a bit more to go off, she inhaled deeply. "I want you to help me brew a potion that gives us big, long tails and makes us breathe underwater!"

A moment of silence followed in the wake of that. Then, Natsuki scoffed.

"No potion does that."

"Uhm-" Yuri hurriedly added upon seeing Sayori's subsequent crestfallen face. "…a- although a partial transfiguration could in theory supply us with tails... then, it's j- just a matter of finding something that can provide gills to our anatomy…"

"Really?!" Sayori exclaimed, excited again at once. "Oooh, I'd love that so much! Imagine the four of us, swimming in the Great Lake together as mermaids!"

"Oh yeah. Nothing like splashing around in murky water surrounded by Grindylows, a giant squid and Merlin knows what else…" Natsuki muttered sardonically.

"T- transfiguring living creatures is tremendously difficult…" Yuri tried reeling her suggestion back in. "E- especially humanoids… It's n- not as hard as actual Animagi, but we've barely even reached the gerbil stage in our lessons…"

Sayori ignored both of them, going on with her tangent.

"-I'd want my tail to have beautiful blue scales and turquoise fins! Monika should have a green one, and obviously Yuri and Natsuki's would be purple and pink-"

"Leave me out of this crazy fever dream." Natsuki scoffed again.

"I'm not really sure if the actual Merpeople of the Lake would be too thrilled to see us there…" I mused quietly, more to myself than anyone else.

Sayori appeared to have picked up on it, given the way her head snapped sideways toward me.

"The what of the WHAT?!"

"That's true…" Yuri confirmed with a dim nod, which in turn gained her Sayori's full, undivided attention. "The Hogwarts: A History book tells of a large, diverse cast of magical creatures residing within the Lake's depths, among which are the indigenous Merpeople."

"SHUT. UP!" Sayori hollered, getting truly riled up now as her very eyes seemed to sparkle with excitement. "But wait… why wouldn't they be thrilled to have us?"

"Look at it from their point of view." Natsuki suggested. "They're just mindin' their own business, and then suddenly these tourists come along with tails and gills they magicked on for fun. That'd be like, culturally insensitive to them. Or something, I don't know…"

"Oh… right…" Sayori said, the light in her eyes extinguishing.

While I took no pleasure in seeing my friend downtrodden, I couldn't help from feeling very grateful for Natsuki interjecting with her take before Sayori had gotten too carried away.

Peeking out the window, I could see we'd almost reached the Castle walls. I'd estimate we were only about ten minutes away.

"Uh, Pres- I mean, Monika." Yuri corrected herself, and I turned to look at her. "D- do you know when we'll s- start our meetings again?"

"As soon as possible!" I smiled back eagerly, reminded of how much I'd been looking forward to recommence the Literature Club. "Tomorrow, if it fits the schedule! Oh, and remember to be on the lookout for new members!"

Yuri stared blankly back at me before blinking.

"Oh… right." She said, her voice suddenly a lot less enthusiastic. "More members…"

"That's right, we've gotta expand! Sayori, when you see Cedric, ask him if he won't rethink our proposal!"

"Uh-" Sayori hesitated. "B- but CD said he didn't want to join-"

"I know he did, but I'm not giving up on him that easily!" I winked back. "A guy as handsome as him is exactly what we need to lure in even more people!"

"M- Monika!" Sayori blushed.

An exasperated groan could be heard across from us.

"Not this again… She already tried 'mentioning' the Club to the two idiots sitting with us." Natsuki informed sardonically. "Big shocker, they weren't interested in literature! Just give this 'recruitment' scheme a rest Monika, it's obvious we're the only ones nerdy enough to be in a Club all about reading and writing!"

"I disagree." I objected flatly, crossing my arms. "That first-year with the red hair in our cabin sure seemed to enjoy writing. I don't think I saw her quill leave that book even once on the whole trip!"

"She was obviously writing in her diary, not poem entries!" Natsuki retorted. "Probably recounting how scared she was about being in the same cabin as you!"

I recognized the obvious bait for what it was, and refused to take it.

"Fine, but just because she didn't want to join, doesn't mean nobody else will! I'm sure there'll be plenty of people at Hogwarts who'd be interested!"

"I don't want more people to join!" Natsuki exclaimed heatedly. "I think the four of us is good enough already! Doesn't that matter to you at all?!"

"I don't think…" I hesitated, trying to formulate a levelheaded, diplomatic response to her childish arguments. "…look, how about we just try and keep an open mind? I mean, surely you didn't expect to just stay in your comfort zone for all of time, right? Aren't you the least bit curious to see other people's writing styles?"

"No, I'm n- ugh!" She bellowed angrily, grasping at her head. "…fine, whatever! Ruin the good thing we have, but can you at least wait a month? I think me and Yuri would like to enjoy the only safe space we have in this school before you destroy it!"

"I- but- what?!" I sputtered, momentarily lost for words at such an outrageous statement. Here I was, trying to improve the great thing we had and get as many people in on it as possible, and for some reason she was spinning it as if I was the difficult one?! What the hell was her problem?!

Fair enough that she was a bit more sensitive than I'd have thought, but there were limits to how sensitive you could be before it became unreasonable. And halting all progress for an entire month just because you refused to accept more people was just about the most unreasonable thing I could imagine.

I glanced at the others for assistance, someone to help me make Natsuki see reason. All I found was Yuri silently hiding her face in her hair and Sayori glancing sympathetically between us all.

"Uh-" She then spoke up, making eye contact with me. "M- maybe it would be a good idea to just take it chill for a month, Moni? Get everyone nice and settled in before we make any big changes?"

I was about to argue back, unable to believe she was taking Natsuki's side.

There wasn't a single, rational reason to wait. In no reality could expanding our Club to include more voices be considered a bad thing. Why were they all being so f*cking immature?

But then, I noticed the pleading glint in her blue eyes, silently begging me to let it go for now.

Reluctantly, I suppressed a sigh.

"…all right." I relented with a shrug. "We'll… wait."

Natsuki didn't respond, merely nodding in grim acceptance as she leaned back in her seat again. Quietly, I tried convincing myself that maybe she'd be more agreeable at tomorrow's meeting. Surely she just needed a proper night's rest to realize this wasn't that big of a deal?

But then I recalled the similar argument we'd had at the end of last year when I'd originally pitched the idea to the group. From what I remembered, she hadn't been very keen on it then, either. And now here she was, after a whole summer to think it over, and her opinion seemed completely unchanged. What exactly was I supposed to do about that?

I'm still the Club President. I reminded myself. At the end of the day, my decision is final. Natsuki can either accept that, or leave.

It wasn't a thought I relished. Despite our clashes, I did like and appreciate her presence in my Club. I had no real desire to see her go.

But if she was going to insist on standing in the way of development like that, then she was ultimately a sacrifice I was willing to make.

For the greater good.

Sayori leaned sideways again to whisper something in Natsuki's ear. For a moment, I thought she was trying to calm her down again by saying something nice, doing that whole empathy thing she excelled at so much.

Then, Natsuki abruptly recoiled away from her, bearing a look of utter disgust.

"Ew, no!" She exclaimed shrilly. "What the hell, Sayori?!"

"Please, just a quick nibble!" Sayori pleaded, inching her face closer to Natsuki's with a hungry look in her eyes.

"NO! You can't eat my hair, that's so gross!" Natsuki adamantly protested, doing her best to push the steadily advancing girl away.

"Please, I just… want… a taste…!" Sayori said, lunging herself forward to try and take a bite of Natsuki's pigtails. "I'm… so… hungry!"

"Get offa me!"

Chapter 3: Nat and Yuri Meet New People

Chapter Text

POV: NATSUKI

Okay, Natsuki. This is it. Get ready.

I paid hardly any attention to the ongoing ceremony at the front of the Great Hall as Professor McGonagall's clear, firm voice announced the latest name to the surrounding crowd.

"Weasley, Ginny."

Light footsteps followed afterwards as who I presumed to be Ginny stepped forth to seat herself on the ever-esteemed stool.

I counted the seconds of silence that passed before the booming voice of what I knew to be the patchy old Sorting Hat echoed loudly throughout the extravagant room.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

With some difficulty, I managed to tune out the following cacophony of sound as the students by our table exploded into idiotic hooting and applause. I glanced up, not because I was particularly interested in the small girl with bright flaming hair trembling towards us, but to double-check if she really was the last one.

My heart pumped just a bit faster at seeing that the small crowd of first-years indeed had vanished entirely, all Sorted among the four giant longtables filling the hall.

I quickly returned all attention to the blank wooden surface before me, staring without blinking and readying my body to act within a moment's notice.

You can do this. You've prepared for this moment all summer.

My anticipation was briefly interrupted by a jolt of annoyance when I heard the headmaster of Hogwarts, Professor Dumbledore himself, clear his throat.

"Welcome, students!" He announced solemnly.

I'd forgotten all about the speech that followed in the wake of the Sorting.

No, no, don't be fooled! I reminded myself just before going off the deep end and cursing everyone working at the school. Remember last time- his real speech came AFTERWARDS, this is just a bad joke!

Sure enough, there was a clear and obvious flair of light-hearted mischief present within Professor Dumbledore voice when he next spoke.

"Longwinded monologues are crucial to understand rules and stipulations, but only through brevity do we gain true appreciation- especially when we're all too hungry to think clearly. Let's fix that, shall we?"

The crowd applauded. I kept watching the table, not daring to blink.

One moment, the surface of the table remained barren and empty. The next, a wide plate and goblet had appeared before me, followed swiftly by knife and fork. All around me, similar items materialized in front of everyone else.

In the time it took me to snatch the metal utensils into my hands, glorious dishes of elaborately stacked food had popped into existence across the entire table, and a heavenly waft of perfectly cooked meat and veggies spread throughout the room. My stomach churned over itself at the sight.

Here I go!

My hand moved on instinct, shooting forward like an automatic springboard to stab a knife through the largest duck drumstick in my immediate vicinity, and deposited it onto my plate. Wasting no time on celebrations, I quickly moved on to compete against every other reaching Gryffindor to ensure I got the best pickings of each dish.

It wasn't an easy task, by any means. I had to exert the greatest amount of self-restraint I could muster to not just empty a dish on to my plate and start stuffing my face with juicy, tender meat. Only the vague memory of the intense tummy-ache I got last year prevented me from gorging myself right here and now despite the urging growl of my stomach.

This was a strategy game. I had to control myself, and only pick a little bit of everything this time around, all the while keeping in mind to save room for dessert.

Truly, the hardest challenge Hogwarts has to offer.

But even though I followed my self-imposed rules to the letter, soon enough my plate still ended up resembling a sloppy mountain of various meats, sauces and potatoes. Unable to deny my watering mouth any longer, I finally ceased my gathering efforts and dug in while most of the people around me were still in the process of slowly passing around dishes. Like the f*cking casuals they were.

The food at Hogwarts was always good, but there was something special about the welcoming Feast that surpassed mere 'good' by quite a margin, and instead slipped directly into 'heavenly' territory. Maybe it had something to do with the two months I'd spent scavenging every single day just to get one measly meal to eat that made it taste so brilliant. Another reason I had to be careful about eating too much at once.

That was probably why the other students were being so blasé about the free banquet. I strongly doubted any of them had had to go hungry to bed a single day during the summer.

Lucky bastards.

But I didn't dwell on it too hard. In fact, by the time I'd raised the first piece of roast beef to my mouth and bit down, the entire Hall seemed to fade away from my awareness until all that remained was me, my seat and the food. My senses were overwhelmed as a combination of mashed potato, peas and meat blessed my tastebuds.

It was all I could do not to moan in pleasure like an idiot and embarrass myself in front of everyone. Was it just me, or had the food turned even more delicious since last year?! How was that even possible?!

The more I ate, the more things seemed to brighten up around me. As I grabbed hold of the enormous drumstick on my plate and started biting large chunks off it, I soon came to the realization that I really didn't have that many reasons to be so angry with anyone. I was back at Hogwarts, Lit Club meetings were gonna start again soon. I was far away from those creepy-ass horse thingies and of course his reach, and I was going to eat like a queen every single morning, afternoon and evening for an entire year.

I smirked to myself as I chewed down the duck, feeling a thin trail of grease trickling down my chin. Maybe this year wouldn't be so miserable after all!

And yet, as mad as it felt to describe this meal as anything less than perfection, there was something missing about it. Gulping down the three mouthfuls I'd just taken, I found that it needed just a little bit of something more to enhance the flavour. Something fluid, but not too watery. Viscous, was the right word.

Gravy. I realized dimly. It needs gravy!

I shook my head, reluctantly allowing the world back into my periphery as I scoured the table for porcelain pourers. I soon managed to locate it close to a bushy-haired brunette about two seats across from me, vaguely picking at her own, far more humble plate.

I swallowed the last bit of duck in my mouth, and cleared my throat.

"OI, GRANGER!" I hollered, appreciating how the girl flinched in alarm. "PASS US THE GRAVY, YEAH?!"

Conquering the initial shock, she turned her head in my direction, glaring me down with a look of thinly veiled disgust when she took notice of my stuffed plate. Amused by this reaction, I deliberately made sure to wipe off my mouth with my sleeve.

"I think you forgot the magic word there." She bit back tersely with an absolute glorious look of cringe.

I paused for about half a second to think up a response. Finding one, I quickly raised my rucksack and opened it.

This should be fun.

"Oh geez, I'm so sorry about that!" I exclaimed with practiced obliviousness, rummaging for my wand. "I mean, I guess I could cast the Summoning Charm, but I don't think we're supposed to learn that one before, like, fourth year or something?

"Are you completely incapable of saying anything without sarcasm, Belby?"

"Please, call me Natsuki!" I responded pleasantly, still fumbling for my wand. "So, like, I'm not exactly sure what'll happen when I try casting it, you should probably steer clear… Say, you know if it's pronounced 'ax-io' or 'acchi-o?´"

"Ugh, forget it!" Granger rolled her eyes with an impatient sigh before grabbing hold of the pourer's hilt and passing it along. "You're unbearable, you know that?"

"Thaaank you!" I drawled proudly, abandoning my wand bluff in favor of accepting the offering. Lifting the pourer over my plate, I turned its bottom, ensuring every single edible item was completely coated in a sticky layer of thick, gooey gravy. I glanced up to see Granger looking on with revolted fascination.

I grinned back at her, finding it hilarious. As if I gave a crap about what some fussy know-it-all thought about my eating habits.

"Hey, so, what's your plan this year?" I quickly added in a hushed voice. "Got anyone in particular on the hit-list?"

She frowned at me, confused.

"What?"

"Y'know, people to paralyze." I shrugged, innocently. "I mean, you nailed Neville Longbottom last year, so I'm assuming you'll be going after even more people this term. I just want to make sure I don't get tangled up in your crosshairs!"

Her expression quickly turned from vague annoyance to absolute horror. I savored the way her eyes shifted back and forth for any listeners. Now that I'd recovered a bit from the trip here, it was time to do what I did best- getting on people's nerves.

"Oh relax, Granger!" I eventually decided to take pity on her. "It's not like what you did is a secret, whole school already knows! They just don't care since you happened to win the House Cup in the process!"

Her face turned red with silent indignation, lips tightening to a thin line. I cackled softly. This was too easy.

"But back to your game plan this year." I went on. "You know me, of course I won't snitch when people start getting randomly attacked around the place. But I'd still love to know who you've got in mind. Do you take requests?"

Hermione Granger twisted her head back to her plate, resolutely ignoring me. Probably the best decision she'd made all evening.

Since she wasn't rising to the bait, and I was running low on jabs anyway, I let her be. Kind of boring, but eh. Whatever.

But just as I was about to commence my feeding frenzy again, I noticed something… off, about her. It took me a bit to put my finger on exactly what it was- her appearance was pretty much identical to last year. Same brown, bushy hair, same protruding front teeth, same fussy attitude. The only noticeable change being that she'd gotten a bit (infuriatingly) taller.

Then, it dawned on me. It wasn't anything about her that seemed weird, but the utter lack of the usual people sitting with her. Like me, she was… alone.

I scoured the lengths of the Gryffindor table, searching for any dark-haired nerds with stupid haircuts and freaky lightning bolt scars in their foreheads. Despite my best efforts, I found no one fitting the description.

I raised my drumstick again and took another bite of the now gravy-enhanced meat while pondering the matter. While I didn't really give a damn where Mr. Celebrity had gone for the night, it did give me an idea for an extra button to push. I couldn't just let such an opportunity pass.

I turned back to the Granger girl.

"Shooo…" I muttered casually through the mouthful of duck I hadn't bothered to fully swallow. "…how cohm your boyfriend isnht here?"

"…pardon?"

She glanced up at me with another annoyed scowl, checking if I was talking to her.

"Y'know, shkinny guy." I clarified with a shrug, and swallowed. "Messy hair, the 'Boy Who Lived,' youngest Seeker of the century, the one you snuck out with last year after assaulting Longbottom? I'm surprised you don't remember him, he's kinda a big deal."

"What are you even talking about?!" Granger demanded impatiently as her cheeks flushed red with anger and, unless I was very much mistaken, a degree of worry. "Harry's not my boyfriend!"

"Huh, breakup that bad?" I asked, taking nonchalant a sip of pumpkin juice from my goblet.

"He's never been my boyfriend?!"

"Say whaaat?" I smirked back, proud of myself. It'd been far too long since the last time I'd gotten on someone's case. It was nice to see I hadn't lost my touch during the summer. "Surely you didn't go for the Weasley instead? I mean, I'm sure he has his charms somewhere, buried deep, deep down, but to pick him over the famous Harry Potter?"

"Did you say Harry Potter?!"

A high-pitched squeak of a voice had suddenly erupted from behind me, alerting me to someone's presence. I turned around in my seat to take in the sneaking intruder when-

FLASH!

"Garh! What the-?!"

I let out a surprised yell as searing light consumed my vision, lingering in the air before me like a stubborn miniature sun. I tried blinking rapidly and rubbed at my eyes, but to no avail- the burning whiteness remained strong as ever, blinding me to the Hall at large.

"Whoops, sorry! Need to adjust the flash, people say it's too strong!" The shrill voice spoke again, still firmly locked in perpetual excitement. "But I heard you talking about Harry Potter! Do you know him?! Do you know where he is?! I've been dying to meet him ever since I got my Hogwarts letter! I'm hoping to get a signed picture from him, d'you think he'll do that for me?!"

"What…?" I shook my head, overwhelmed by the avalanche of questions relentlessly hurled at me. Finally, the void of white began fading away just enough for me to catch a brief glimpse of a boy even shorter than me, sporting an ear to ear grin and a large camera obscuring the upper half of his face before-

FLASH!

I cursed loudly as the boy clicked his camera and caused another spark of bright light to explode from the cone-shaped bulb he held separately, blinding me again.

"The hell is wrong with…?!" I exclaimed, furiously clawing at the air in a futile attempt to find and grab this optical abuser by the neck. "Who are you?!"

"I'm Colin! Colin Creevey!" The boy responded at the same cheery break-neck speed, seemingly oblivious to any wrongdoing. "I just got sorted into Gryffindor, I've heard that's Harry Potter's house but I can't find him anywhere! What's your name?! How come you have pink hair?! What's with the hairclip?! Are you Harry Potter's girlfriend?! Do you wanna be my friend?!"

More clicking from his camera accompanied his incessant questions, approaching my right side. Still unable to see anything but white, I tried lunging my arm out and felt my fingers hit something metallic- and cried out in shock at the shivering sensation of cold liquid splashing down my front, soaking my robes. If I had to make an educated guess, I'd say I'd just managed to tip over my goblet of pumpkin juice.

And still, the rapid clicking went on.

"Stop it! Stop taking pictures of me!" I howled, desperately feeling around for the rucksack containing my wand. First, I'd dry myself, wait for my vision to clear again and then make this twerp eat that f*cking camera raw!

"But I promised me dad I'd take all the pictures I could of this place!" Colin rejected my command, still entirely unperturbed. "He's a muggle see, and he really wants to know what the Wizarding World is like!"

"Aww Natsuki," Came an amused, derisive voice from across the table that made me instantly regret allowing her to use my first name.

Hoping to avoid the risk of yet another camera flash to the face, I turned around and was just barely able to make out Hermione Granger's sly smirk. "Have you made a new friend? Or is he already your boyfriend?"

"Don't hurt yourself, Granger." I sneered back, trying to squint away the lingering spots of light floating around my periphery. "Leave the comedy to the people with a sense of humor, yeah?!"

"Oh, I don't know about that." She retorted smugly. "From where I'm sitting, this looks pretty darn funny!"

"Ooh, your name is Natsuki?!" The menace known as Colin gasped eagerly, actually taking a seat right next to me. "That sounds foreign, are you foreign?! Is that why your hair's pink?! Can I call you Suki for short?!"

"Absolutely not!" I whipped around snarling, fully intending to lock my hands around his rodent-like throat and finally shut him up for good-

FLASH!

"Wow, you looked really great there, Suki!"

"I'LL f*ckING KILL YOU!" I screamed in pain as my retinas got burned for the third time in a row.

POV: YURI

"…hear what Travis said about Potter?"

"Travis is such a liar, there's no way he actually used a flying car…"

"But The Prophet said-"

"C'mon Terry, don't be daft! Do you really believe everything you read in the paper?"

"Uhm, e- excuse me-" I attempted, only to have my voice drowned out by more of the idle chatter surrounding our table.

"…have a real bad feeling about those Slytherins. I think they've got something up their sleeve this year!"

"Cho!"

"Did you see Flint's smile when he saw Wood? He looked like a kid on Christmas! I'd bet a hundred Galleons they've got some kind of secret Quidditch plan!"

"Who cares about Quidditch, Cho, tell me-"

"What do you reckon it is? It has to be something really big to make him think they've got a chance after Gryffindor demolished them last year-"

"Cho, Cho look at me! Did you, or did you not spend the summer with Cedric Diggory?!"

"…what? What's that got to do with anything-"

"Oh my gosh, you totally did! I need to tell Padma-"

"No! M- Marietta, wait, it- it wasn't like that-"

"C- could someone p- please pass the pota-" I tried again meekly when a girlish shriek of hysterical giggles erupted from the girls sitting just a bit further down from me. With a frustrated sigh that nobody heard, I lowered my head in defeat.

It seemed like every time I'd gather enough courage to ask for someone to pass me one of the many dishes strewn about the Ravenclaw table (all of them conveniently out of my reach), someone was at the ready to share some new, loud exclamation of gossip, rumors or activities they'd done during the summer. At this point it almost seemed like a deliberate, cooperative ploy to tune me out.

No, that's ridiculous. I grimaced at the idea. As if anyone would go through all that effort just to bother someone they probably didn't even knew existed.

This was so stupid. With such an abundance of delicious food at our disposal, there really shouldn't be any excuses for someone to go hungry to bed. And yet, my anxiety seemed to have vastly differing opinions on the matter.

As soon as I'd tell myself to just raise my voice and make myself be heard above the chatter, a kind of suffocating presence would be quick to follow, pointing out how rude it'd be to disrupt their conversation, call attention to my stutter and make me look like a fool in front of everyone. When I'd tell myself to just get up and procure the potato dish, it'd dissuade me by saying how much standing up would make me stand out. And I could go on- with every proposal I came up with to overcome my issue, there would be a thousand more counter-arguments at the ready detailing how it wouldn't work, go wrong or end in some sort of disaster.

I knew this wasn't logical. Of course I knew. It was irrational. Childish. Blowing everything out of proportion. This was the welcoming Feast, why would anyone here think twice about some girl like me asking for a dish? They probably all thought it was even weirder that I wasn't eating anything! I should quit stalling, stop fretting about unrealistic scenarios and solve this non-issue already!

I opened my mouth- and quickly closed it again once it became clear no sound was going to emerge in the foreseeable future.

The suffocating presence was increasing its hold on me, further injecting my body with its paralyzing venom. Despite knowing exactly how absurd I was being, I remained powerless to do anything about it.

Powerless. Disabled. Weak. Coward.

I closed my eyes in quiet resignation. Oh well. Wasn't like I really needed to eat dinner, anyway. I could easily wait until tomorrow where hopefully I'd have better luc-

"Yuri!" A chipper voice exclaimed from my side, surprising me right out of my stupor. "Hey, good to see you again!"

Heart lodged in my throat, I turned automatically to see an older girl with long, blonde and curvy hair looking down at me. She was carrying a plate of assorted half-eaten food items in her arms, just below a blue badge attached at her chest embroidered with a bright, shiny and authority-giving "P."

I recognized her immediately, having just spent a good portion of the train ride in her company. Penelope Clearwater was probably the closest thing I had to a 'friend' in my own House- which only meant I'd shared a little more than a few fleeting sentences with her during last year. If she hadn't just initiated, I wasn't even sure if I considered us close enough to a first name basis.

What's she doing?! What does she want?! Did I do something wrong?! Is she going to out me?!

I must have looked about as frightened as I felt, judging from the gentle, reassuring and mildly overbearing smile she flashed me.

"Don't worry, it's just me." She winked and seated herself at a vacant spot on the long bench next to me. Her tone was mostly casual, although I thought I could detect a layer of concern hidden beneath it. "Hope you don't mind, thought it might be nice to have some company?"

I very much did mind. Having dinner with this many people present was already anxiety-inducing enough, but to have someone join this spontaneously and expect to engage in some kind of dialogue? I just wanted to be left alone and 'eat' (metaphorically speaking, of course) in peace!

"N- no, of c- course not..." My mouth muttered back automatically, as I felt it contort into an insincere smile.

At that, Penelope's own smile seemed to drop slightly, and she leaned a bit closer to me.

"I saw you were having trouble breaking through all the noise." She lowered her voice confidentially. "Thought you might like some help?"

My eyes widened in alarm and embarrassment. She'd noticed my stupid dilemma. If she'd noticed, that probably meant she wasn't the only one. How many other Ravenclaws were laughing at me right now? It would have to be really obvious when a Prefect had decided to step forth to talk down to me!

"N- no, you don't have t- to do that…" I managed a faint reply, avoiding looking her in the eyes. "I'm j- just being… silly…"

"Yuri, it's completely understandable!" She chuckled kindly. "All these blokes are chatting up a storm! I think we had a much higher rate of new Ravenclaws this Sorting than usual, so there's no shame in feeling a bit lost in the crowd. Honestly, even I'm a bit overwhelmed!"

I didn't believe her. She was just lying in an attempt to relate to me and make the weird, overly sensitive problem girl in her House feel less like a complete outcast. I supposed it could be seen as a kind, noble gesture on the surface level- but that still didn't make it feel any less belittling. I couldn't imagine anyone else here would need Prefect assistance with something as stupid as this.

"Come on…" She gently pushed on. "I noticed you missed way too many meals last year. We wouldn't want your parents sending complaints to Hogwarts when they see how thin you're getting, would we?"

I suppressed a resigned sigh. That was definitely something they might actually do. As humiliating as it was to ask Penelope for help, the proposed alternative was much, much worse.

I nodded, slowly.

"All right!" Penelope exclaimed triumphantly. "What can I get ya? Lamb chops? Sausage? Shepherd's Pie?"

"U- uhm…" I hesitated, feeling the familiar warmth spreading across my cheeks again. "I- I'm a vegetarian, actually…"

"Oh, gotcha!" Penelope nodded back. "Hey, good for you! Suppose you'll want the potatoes then?"

I nodded again, almost ashamedly.

"OI, YOU!" I flinched again when Penelope's sudden outcry erupted, her voice as sharp and brutal as the crack of a whip. "PASS THE 'TATERS!"

Internally, I heavily debated putting my hood up to hide the embarrassment as the selected dish got passed from hand to hand like a connected chain until finally arriving before me. It got especially hard to resist this temptation when Penelope started barking out similar demands for peas, carrots and corn on the cob.

After a borderline fortress of bountiful vegetable-dishes had been assembled around me, I hurriedly began stacking spoonfuls onto my plate with shaking hands. After all that trouble at my expense, I was hardly going to refuse it.

Even so, it was difficult not to harbor feelings of resentment towards Penelope for coddling me like this. I wasn't even sure why. She'd been nothing but nice, and no matter which way you looked at it, her help had undeniably been a good deed. Getting annoyed at her made no logical sense.

"Tha- thank you." I opted for a quiet murmur of gratitude as I picked up a knife to slice the potatoes into more manageable sizes. I definitely wasn't going to lash out and air any of my own, barely understood grievances at her.

"Don't mention it!" She said, giving me a hearty clap on the shoulder. "So, how was your holiday? Did you travel anywhere?"

Oh no. I thought despairingly, my knife freezing up half-way through a potato. Not this, mercy please! Anything but casual small-talk!

I was saved the fate of having to respond when a vague, but insistent voice spoke up close by.

"I'd be careful with those potatoes, if I was you…"

I glanced up in mild alarm to see a girl directly across me, one of the new first years judging by her size. She had long, wavy dirty-blonde hair and bore a peculiar expression with her very large, protuberant blue eyes that seemed to be looking directly through me.

Uncomfortable with her unblinking stare, I adjusted in my seat.

"Uh, m- me?" I hesitantly asked and gestured at myself for clarification, my uncertainty legitimate. The girl's voice had been so airy and dream-like, it could've easily been mistaken for a stray thought she'd voiced aloud on accident if not for the "potato" buzzword.

"Yes…" She confirmed in an equally ethereal tone. "Studies have shown a noticeable uprising of dread-drip poison in normal, everyday potatoes. Strangely enough, only very few people have been talking about it…"

"W- what…?" I asked timidly and furrowed my brows, wholly unsure what to make of such an absurd statement.

The girl nodded solemnly, and leaned closer across the table. I noticed what looked to be her wand nesting behind her ear.

"It's a secret ploy by Cornelius Fudge himself to spread paranoia among us…" She breathed in a hushed voice. "Hundreds of potato-consuming witches and wizards are affected every single day!"

I examined her intense expression, trying to find some kind of tell. A wink, a curl of the lip, anything that might reveal the joke she had to be pulling on me. To my surprise however, she seemed one hundred percent serious in her conviction.

"Uh- b- but why would the Minister of M- Magic want to p- poison us like that…?"

The girl's already wide eyes opened even further as she shifted them to each side. She then leaned closer, practically laying on her stomach over the table now.

"Why, to make us turn a blind eye to his goblin-killing, of course!"

Suddenly grateful for Penelope's presence, I quickly turned to her for help. Thankfully, she already had an expression of mild amusem*nt at our back-and-forth which helped confirm the preceding conversation hadn't just been a fever dream-fueled hallucination.

"You just got Sorted here, didn't you?" She asked politely, receiving a nod in response. "Would you mind repeating your name?"

"I'm Luna." The girl replied, her voice reverting to its 'normal' dream-like tone, which was the exact same as the one from before, just with a bit less intensity. "Luna Lovegood."

"Nice to meet you, Luna." Penelope smiled back. "I'm Penelope. Say, can I ask if you have a source for these claims?"

"Yes, of course I do!" Luna nodded eagerly, reaching down to fish out a thin magazine from her rucksack. With a proud look, she held up the front page before us.

I blinked as I read the headline, my heart sinking more and more with each word.

THE QUIBBLER

"EXPOSED: MACABRE MINISTRY MUTINY MUTILATING MURPHIES!"
In this groundbreaking, exclusive issue, we interview anonymous eye-witnesses to hear their shocking testimonies to what REALLY goes on behind the closed barn-doors of Britain's farms! If you've ever consumed a potato only to feel an increased sense of panic afterwards, you DON'T want to miss this- we'll be taking you through all the undeniable evidence to answer HOW, WHY and WHEN it started happening- as well as showing WHAT you can do to prevent dread-drip poisoning! This, and much more, on page 4!

Accompanying the headline was a cartoonish drawing that looked like something ripped directly from Sayori's notebook, showcasing a bottle with a skull and two crossed bones tipping some kind of blue liquid onto a handful of huge, blotchy potatoes.

Rendered speechless by what I'd just read, I turned again to Penelope for assistance. I found her in the process of biting her own lip, struggling desperately to not laugh out loud.

"My dad has been working on this story for months." Luna said with a perfectly straight face. "It's his biggest Scoop of the year! The Ministry even contacted us and made him put a theory disclaimer in the issue- that means they're worried about it!"

"But that's complete nonsen-" I was about to blurt out when Penelope hurriedly interjected, speaking over me.

"SO, I take it your dad runs The Quibbler then?" She asked with practiced curiosity.

"Yes…" Luna said, vaguely squinting her enormous eyes at me, as if not entirely certain if she should be offended or not. "He's always breaking the most important stories to the public, but even though our paper is much more relevant and helpful, we don't get nearly as many readers as The Prophet. It's really unfortunate, but most people would much rather stay blind to the actual truth…"

"Well, Yuri and I definitely appreciate the warning!" Penelope chuckled kindly, making me cringe inwardly. I hated when people spoke for me. "That being said, though- surely the infection hasn't spread to every potato in the country, right?"

"No…" Luna relented with a shrug. "They don't have the budget for that. My dad puts it best in the actual article: 'not every potato, but any potato.' There is a simple way to check, though…"

She reached up to her ear, and grabbed her wand. Without further warning, she pointed it at my plate, and made a confident flicking motion.

"Dreadio Revelio!"

Nothing happened.

"Hmm…" She mused thoughtfully, depositing the wand back up behind her ear. "Okay, those should be safe enough... If they'd had the poison, they would have turned turquoise. But I'd still chew slowly and be wary of any unfounded aggressive feelings towards goblins when you eat."

Then, without further comment on the matter, Luna returned her attention to her plate of Haggis as if the preceding happenings had never taken place.

I blinked, dumbfounded. I still couldn't determine what exactly had just transpired, everything said from the moment this 'Luna Lovegood' had introduced herself felt like, to coin a term frequently used by Natsuki, a very elaborate fever dream of utter nonsense.

Is she even real…? I watched with sceptical fascination as the blonde girl quietly ate her dinner, seemingly oblivious to the world at large. I had immense difficulty believing someone could actually have a perception of reality this flawed.

Penelope brought me back to earth by placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Just go with it…" She whispered with a carefree shrug, and gestured to my plate. Suppressing a sigh, I obeyed her and recommenced cutting my meal into chunks, hoping I was finally free from any further interruptions.

"You okay?" But of course, Penelope had to dash my hopes by continuing her interrogation of my wellbeing.

"I'm fine." I nodded decisively, doing my best to conceal a blush of irritation and shame. I wasn't sure whether she was doing it intentionally or not, but I really wished she would stop sounding so condescending towards me. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." She replied warmly, going so far as to pat my back in an embarrassing display of pity. "And hey- if you ever find yourself in trouble, or an uncomfortable situation of any kind, please don't hesitate to find me. I promise I'll drop everything and help you out, okay?"

I felt sick to my stomach as I glanced sideways and saw the look of genuine empathy on her face. My blush doubled in intensity. She actually believed I was that delicate.

"O- okay." I croaked out meekly, squirming in my seat at the new low I'd reached. Was this really how pitiable I came across to everyone else? How could anyone even stand to be around me?

I made a silent, determined vow to myself to never, as long as I continued to breathe, take Penelope up on her offer. No matter what happened to me, there was no possible situation in my mind where doing something that pathetic could ever be justified.

I'd sooner die than take advantage of someone's kindness like that.

"This is good." Luna suddenly spoke aloud again, gesturing to her plate. It was impossible to tell if she was addressing me, Penelope, or indeed anyone in particular. "But I do hope there's pudding afterwards…"

Chapter 4: Monika Gets Cancelled

Chapter Text

POV: SAYORI

My feet fluttered lightly beneath me as I skipped across the stone brick floor, humming a silly little tune to myself the closer I got to my destination.

To my side, large paned windows painted a beautiful image of the lowering afternoon sun bathing the corridor in a deep, golden light that might entice even the most stubborn of meanies to pause for a second and appreciate the sight.

Not me though, no siree! I had somewhere far better and way more important to be right now than some dusty old corridor!

Despite the many taxing and exhausting classes I'd already been through, I couldn't have felt more energized for what came next. I'd been looking forward to it the whole day, heck, practically the wholesummer!I couldn't even begin to describe my excitement when Monika had waved me over this morning and confirmed we were on today- right before the Hall had filled up with the magnified voice of an angry woman from the Gryffindor table where someone had apparently opened up a shouting letter. That had been a bit awkward.

But never mind that.

Being back at Hogwarts was just as amazing as I remembered, though… maybe just abitmore confusing. Herbology had been fun enough, working with Gryffindor to re-pot some weird, ugly plant-babies that apparently screamed so loudly they could knock us out for hours. Luckily Natsuki had been there to save me when one of them had tried pulling off my protective ear-muffs.

Aside from that, you could definitelyfeelwe'd entered the second year. Classes were more complicated than ever before, and they'd already piled heaps and heaps of new homework on us. Homework that I hadn't even the foggiest idea how I was supposed to solve before the deadline next week. Listening to the teachers' instructions was super hard…

But that was okay, I'd probably figure something out in time! And even if I didn't, it wasn't the end of the world! I had Cedric, who was every bit as nice and sweet as he'd been to me last year, and, of course, I had the Literature Club!

Jeez, my stomach butterflies were making loop-de-loops just at the thought! The first ever Club meeting of the whole semester was just a few minutes away! Finally it'd just be me, Yuri, Nat and Moni, alone together just like old times, free to talk about anything and everything on our minds. The perfect palette cleanser after such a busy day of complicated, head-swirling magic!

I smiled as I rounded a corner to another hallway and saw the old, decrepit broom closet by the end, vividly remembering it as the one Moni and I had gotten veryintimatelyfamiliar with last year. At the time it'd been a pretty horrible and scary experience, but nowadays it just made a strong sensation of nostalgia flare up in my chest.

The place I cast my very first spell.I thought, recalling the moment warmly. Maybe I should try locking myself in there again, just for old time's sake.

Not right now though. I shook the thought from my head, and increased my pace to a casual run. Revisiting the broom closet would have to wait a bit now that I was so close to the classroom we used for our Club, so close to hanging out with my best friends in the whole wide world! I was almost there-

"And just where exactly areyougoing?"

I stopped my run abruptly, nearly crashing directly into one of the empty armor stands positioned near the wall. For a moment I thought the drawling, male voice had spoken to me, but I quickly realized it was coming from somewhere behind the corner where our Club was located.

"Oh, I just have a Club meeting to attend!"

Placing Monika's calm voice roughly around the same spot wasn't difficult at all. Steadying myself and moving as quietly as a mouse, I carefully snuck close to the turnaround point of the corridor, curious who she could be talking to. Slowly, I tilted my head sideways to peek around the corner.

I immediately caught a glimpse of our President, her back turned to the Clubroom door as she smiled cordially at whoever was confronting her. I craned my neck further, and nearly gasped aloud when I saw a tall, blonde boy who looked like he got roughly the same amount of sun as Yuri did, slowly coming into view approaching Monika.

I'd seen him around before, of course. He was that guy from Slytherin Monika had been friends with for a while, "Malgoy" or something like that. We'd never actually talked, despite sharing the same friend- due in large part to the two large, burly boys that usually followed him around like silent police guards.

On one hand, that didn't sound like a very good reason not to get to know one of your friend's friends. I was sure all three of them were super cool, I mean, they almost had to be if Monika liked them! On the other hand, however… theywerejust a bit menacing…

As if to demonstrate my point, the pale boy's sharp features stretched with a vaguely Dracula-like smirk.

"Club meeting?" He repeated, sounding amused as he glanced around. I managed to duck back around the wall just before his eyes found me. "On the first day back at school?"

"Y'know what they say, waste no time!" Came Monika's casual reply.

I remained exactly where I was, stuck in a dilemma. I knew it was rude to listen in on their conversation, but it'd be even ruder to interrupt them now. My head started filling up with the most distracting thoughts I could manage in a vain attempt to shut out their voices.

You're worthless. Everyone is better than you. Why are you even here? You should just quit now.

I frowned. Wellthatwas hardly any better, was it now?

"Who on Earth is crazy enough to run a Club this early in the year?" The boy asked incredulously. "Even the Quidditch teams are taking it easy until most people are settled in…"

"I am, as a matter of fact!" Monika replied, bright and proud. "You have the honor of speaking to its President!"

"Ah, I might have known…" Malgoy let out an overbearing chuckle. "What is it even about, anyway? Wait, no, don't tell me- knowing you, it's probably some sort of Debate Club, isn't it?"

"Come off it, I'm notthattwo-dimensional!" Monika giggled. "It's a Literature Club. We read, and share poems with each other, it's actually really fun."

"I suppose I'll take your word for that..." Malgoy sighed, audible disinterest seeping into his voice. "So, I take it this means you won't be applying for the Quidditch team after all…?"

"Ha! You wish!" Monika exclaimed sharply, her voice turning fiery and competitive. "I'mquiteable to focus on two things at once, thank you very much! First opportunity I get, I'll be talking to Flint about applying for the Seeker position!"

"Dear me…" The boy drawled mockingly. "Youreallylike making things more difficult on yourself, don't you?"

"What can I say? Having some extra challenges makes everything more exciting and fun!" Monika retorted confidently. "Hey, speaking of- why don'tyoujoin us?"

"Join you?" The boy repeated skeptically.

I furrowed my brows, conflicted. It wasn't that I had a big problem with having Malgoy in our Club at all. I mean, his attitude towards Monika didn't impress me either, but that wasn't my place to question. It was normal for long-time friends to be meanies to each other, just like me and M-

My body gave a reflexive shiver, and I quickly got my train of thought back on track.

No, what really bothered me was Monika so readily going back on the promise we'd made to Yuri and Nat about waiting for at least a month before recruiting. I knew she was opportunistic by nature, but it'd barely even been a day!

"Come ooon, Draco!" She went on, prodding him with encouragement. "Why not give it a go? It would be so fun to see what your writing style looks like!"

"You have an odd idea of 'fun.'"

"Hold on a second. That can't beintimidationI hear in your voice, can it?!" Monika jabbed teasingly, switching strategy. "Surely the mightyDraco Malfoyisn't afraid of having to read a few books, is he?"

Oh. Malfoy, notgoy. Got it.

"Who's eveninthis so-called 'Club' of yours, anyway?!" Draco sneered back, doing a very poor job at hiding how much Monika's light riffing was working on him.

"Just some friends of mine…" Monika replied vaguely. "I think you'd like them. There's this girl who's almost as stubborn as you!"

"-TT-"Malfoy clicked his tongue irritably, but then surprisingly seemed to relent. "I'll… think about it."

"Yay!"

"Not today, though." He denied hurriedly. "I have to talk to Flint about my recruitment."

"And you sayIwork fast!" Monika giggled lightly. "Well, good luck! Put in a good word for me, yeah?"

As Malfoy's footsteps faded away, I finally saw my opportunity to step out from the corner.

"Moni!" I made my voice extra cheery, as if I'd just arrived. Monika turned her head, smiling at me.

"Hullo, Sayori." She greeted back, and inserted a key into the classroom door. "How was your first day? Ready to get back into the groove?"

"You betcha!" I nodded, throwing my arms around her in a hug. Then, somewhat guiltily, I whispered in her ear. "I've, uh, already got some homework I need your help with, ehehe…"

To my relief, she just let out a reassuring laugh and clapped me on the shoulder.

"Not to worry, we'll have a look at it."

I smiled back and decided not to mention her early recruitment untilaftershe'd helped me. I was allowed to have some schemes of my own, too.

"So, I hope you didn't expect us to have poems ready this soon!" Came a familiar, highpitched voice from behind. I glanced up to see Natsuki was indeed slouching down the hall towards us, followed closely by Yuri.

"Not at all." Monika smiled patiently, meeting the pinkette's confrontational stare head on. "This'll be a meeting purely for re-introductory purposes, no poems required."

"Oh." Yuri muttered in a slightly disappointed voice as she discreetly put the piece of parchment she'd been holding, back into her pocket.

I squinted a bit as they got closer.

"Natsuki… what's up with your- your…?!"

While her hair remained just as gnarly and bubblegum-esque as ever, it now looked as though someone had taken a rake and ferociously dragged it across her scalp multiple times. Many strands of it were standing up at odd, conflicting directions, her front bangs were strewn unevenly sideways and only one of her ribboned pigtails stood intact.

"Oh, this?" She smirked back at me, seemingly unbothered and gestured up at the mangled nest. "I'm just trying something new. D'you like it?"

"Uh-" I hesitated, unsure how to best respond. "Y- yeah, it's… it's, uh-"

Then, I noticed her stifled chortling as Yuri shook her head in exasperation.

"Go on, tell her what you told me." The lavenderette instructed. Natsuki shrugged.

"All right, fine. I didn'tactuallydo this myself. That credit goes to ourbrilliantnew Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher!"

It was no exaggeration to say her voice was dripping with sarcasm. Monika tilted her head curiously.

"Professor Lockhart did your hair? What do you mean?"

"Well..." Natsuki began her tale. "Apparently his idea of showing us how to combat the 'dark arts' was by opening a cage of Cornish Pixies in class, show off an obviously fake spell, and then flee from the room while instructingusto clean up after him!"

"Oh." Monika's eyes widened as they darted upwards, inspecting the ruined hair with the new context in mind. "So I take it one of them got… stuck?"

"It took me 10 minutes to get it offa me." Natsuki nodded almost proudly. "By the way, did you know Cornish Pixie females turn from blue to pink to show the males when they're ready to mate? Cuz' I sure f*cking didn't!"

"Yikes." Monika winced. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Psh, not as sorry as the Pixie after I got my hands on it!" Nat brushed her off with a dark grin. "Trust me, that little turd regretted ever messing with me!"

"Are you… okay?" I asked, inspecting her face for bruises or scratches. I wasn't really sure what 'Cornish Pixies' even looked like, but if there was one thing I'd learned about the magical world, it was that most of its creatures were usually a lot more scary and dangerous than in the normal children books.

I'm gonna cry if it turns out unicorns are actually evil…

"Oh yeah, I'm peachy!" She assured me, still grinning. "Believe it or not, I got off lightly! You should see what those flying suckers did to Longbottom- I'm not even sure they've gotten him down from the chandelier yet!"

I felt myself grinning despite the circ*mstances. It was good to see Natsuki's mood had improved so much since yesterday.

She must've had plenty to eat since then…

"Well, thanks for the forewarning" Monika sighed deeply, but smiled as well. "Sounds like a complete circus. I'm guessing Lockhart's not in your books for 'teacher of the year' then?"

Natsuki made a sound halfway between a scoff and a laugh.

"Honestly? I'd say evenQuirrelwas better than this chump! At least that fraud had the decency to teach ussomethingabout vampires whenever he wasn't trying to steal a secret, life-giving stone from the school!Thisfraud doesn't even try to hide his incompetence!"

"Yeah, sounds about right." Monika nodded. "I kinda had a feeling something like this would happen when I heard he got the teaching position. I mean… it makes sense when you read his works, doesn't it?"

"Agreed." Yuri concurred. "Textbook narcissist."

"Wait." I cut in, blinking. "You don't like Gilderoy Lockhart's books? I've only readMagical Meso far but he seems so, well…magical!"

"Oh please, Sayori. Don't fall for that nonsense!" Natsuki facepalmed. "It's just romantic, self-insert fanfic bait for single witches going through a mid-life crisis! Probably ghost-written, too. I'd be surprised if that moron even knows how toread!"

"…oh." I looked down, feeling my cheeks redden. I'd honestly thought the book had been really good. It had action, drama, romance, and even more drama. Definitely much more exciting to read than my other schoolbooks, like theStandard Book of Spells, Grade 2!

Although… Maybe that was the point Natsuki was making.

"I'll say this for his books." Yuri admitted begrudgingly. "They are… factual. I've cross-checked the events that transpired in them with real newspaper articles and reliable sources, and it seems he really did banish all those monsters the way he said he did. It's just… the way they're written is so- so…

She struggled with finding a suitable word for a moment before Monika swooped to the rescue.

"Self-indulgent?" She suggested, to which Yuri nodded in agreement. Monika went on. "I know just what you mean. There's a lot of what I guess you'd call 'fan service' sprinkled throughout them about how 'amazing' and 'perfect' he is, which often distracts completely from the narrative."

"Heh, 'narrative.'" Natsuki snickered. "Good one!"

"I believe the most egregious example of this was withinGadding with Ghouls."Yuri said. "The narration spends almost ten pages describing how soft and flowing his hair was, while the actual banishment charm was included as a mere footnote."

"So, uh, how about we go inside?!" I suggested awkwardly, opening the door to our Clubroom. I was very eager to move on from this topic. The girls were of course allowed to have their smart and critical reasons to dislike our new teacher- it was just a bit embarrassing for me to hear. Ever since I'd laid my eyes on Professor Lockharts beautiful golden, curly locks I'd had this near indescribable urge to touch, comb and style it. I made a mental note to readGadding with Ghoulsas soon as possible for the section Yuri had described.

I know, that probably sounded really weird and vain of me, but try and understand- his hair wasso. Freaking. Pretty!Doubled with his charming full smile and deep blue eyes, he reminded me a bit of a fun, full-size plastic doll that I'd absolutelyloveto play dress-up with, just to see how he'd look in different outfits.

But no way was I going to admit thatnowthat I knew their true opinions. They'd just make fun of how much of a surface-level airhead I was. Well, I could probably tell Monika. She definitely wouldn't think any less of me. Possibly. Maybe just a little.

"Was the spell at least legitimate?" Monika asked Yuri as they stepped inside the room, unfortunately continuing their conversation.

"It was, I checked." Yuri confirmed, sighing. Expectedly, she'd already approached the kettle standing ready by the teacher's desk, and pulled out her wand. With a few graceful swishes and some low muttering, she'd soon filled it with fresh water and conjured up a bright flame beneath it. "It's certainly a strange set of writing priorities. No doubt he's a great wizard, he must be after all he's done. I'm just really not a fan of how he's decided to publicize his feats…"

"Nah, he's full of it." Natsuki declared brusquely, already making a beeline for the cupboard where she'd stored her manga collection over the summer. "I don't believe a single bloated word in any of his books!"

"But-" Yuri furrowed her brows vaguely. "There are first hand accounts of witnesses whoswear-"

"Oh, I'm sure there is." Natsuki dismissed readily. "Still don't buy it. He's just an arrogant jerk who's way too far up his own ass. Trust me, I don't knowhowhe's managed to fool everyone, but Iknowa liar when I see one."

She said this with the kind of finality that let us all know the subject was finished, which I was all too happy for. Finally settling on her manga of choice, Natsuki withdraw the volume from the cupboard's shelf, turned, and made eye contact with Yuri.

"So," She said with a wide, ecstatic smile. "Ya ready to start Volume 6, Yuri?"

"Well, that depends." Yuri met her gaze calmly, bending away from her tea-brewing to reach into her rucksack where she pulled out a heavy, thick book. "Areyouprepared to get started on the spiritual successor to Portrait of Markov?"

"Yeah sure, just lay it on me." Nat gave a dramatic sigh of defeat as she trudged back towards us. "I'vedefinitelymissed having nightmares about creepy experiments…"

There was a light 'ahuhuhu…' from Yuri as she chuckled softly.

I was pleased to see how easily the two had fallen back into the usual rhythm of the Club. It was obvious they enjoyed their time here almost as much as I did.

Then, before they'd properly exchanged reading material, Monika's lips split apart to form a wide, mischievous smirk.

"Well, at least it's not all disasters." She said in a light, casual voice. "From what I've heard around the place, Natsuki's already managed to snag up a newfriend~"

Natsuki froze abruptly and looked up at Monika. Her smile had disappeared.

"Wh- huh? What are you talking abou-"

But upon looking at Monika's glittering, emerald eyes, her expression quickly drooped into a scowl of recognition.

"No.Don't."She hissed warningly at the President.

Monika merely wiggled her eyebrows knowingly in response.

"How thef*ckdid you know?!" Natsuki asked, her cheeks turning a deep shade of embarrassed red. "Who told you?!"

"I have my sources…" Monika said, pretending to check her nails. She seemed completely undeterred by the smaller girl's threatening tone. "And if they're correct, he's barely even left your side since yesterday's feast! You two must have made quite the bond~"

"Oh my gosh, really?!" I exclaimed, my worry of ticking off Natsuki drowned out by wild excitement on her behalf. "Who is it?! When can I meet him?! Is he like, afriend-friend, or just a friend?! I totally ship it-"

"He'snotmy friend!" Natsuki protested profusely. "Colin's just an annoying little twerp with a stupid camera, I hardly even know the guy!"

"But apparently you're already on a first name basis…" Yuri pointed out, but flinched away again at the withering glare sent her way.

"Yes, it's very interesting indeed…" Monika blinked innocently. "I actually noticed him myself this morning, after you were done with Herbology. How come he follows you around everywhere you go, hm?"

"I literally have no f*cking clue!" Natsuki stomped, angrily. "The little idiot somehow got it in his head that we're 'the best of friends,' and now he won't leave me alone! He's even more annoying than Lockhart, all he does is talk about Harry Potter constantly and taking pictures of me! I got lucky when Scarhead passed by so I could slip away, otherwise he'd be right here with me!Stop laughing at me!"

With some difficulty, Monika managed to stifle her chortle.

"You should have brought him here, I'd love to meet him." She hummed teasingly. "Good job already finding a new candidate for the Club, Nat! I appreciate it."

"f*ck you."Natsuki stated blankly. "If ColinCreepyjoins,I leave."

"Uh-" Yuri cleared her throat. "If you dislike his presence so much, h- how come you haven't told him to stop bothering you? You usually don't have any issues speaking your mind to anyone…?"

"Because it's impossible to tell himanything whatsoeverwhen he talksnon-stop!"The pinkette moaned. "And whenever I try kicking, hitting or cursing him, he just blinds me with thatstupidcamera again and runs off! Istillhave spots drifting around my vision, he's a literal nightmare!"

I tried keeping a straight face, but this was just too funny. Natsuki, the scourge of every bully and meanie at Hogwarts,terrorizedby an eager first year? I couldn't help but laugh.

"It'snotfunny!" She turned on me, voice rising in pitch. "Ugh, can we just start reading already instead of talking aboutCreepyandSchlockhart?!"

"Aww, hear that?" Monika winked. "She's already got nicknames for them!"

"Watch it…" Natsuki growled.

I wasn't really worried by her vague threat, since I knew no one wasactuallyupset. It's hard to explain why exactly, but I'd always had this weird kind of "Meanie Sense" (a name Idefinitelyhadn't stolen after watching an episode of Spider-Man!) that made it very easy to tell the difference between harmless banter and genuine bullying.

This current clash between Nat and Moni was so light hearted and jovial, it hardly even registered on the scale in my head. Therefore, no reason for me to interject at all.

Monika however seemed to take it way more seriously than me as she suddenly wiped off her grin and turned back to Natsuki.

"For real though, you don't have to worry about Colin joining." She said, now speaking with a distinctively more sober, gentle and professional tone. Her trademark 'President' voice. "That's actually something I wanted to bring up with you all today, regarding the recruitment thing."

Oh.

I perked up, feeling the lightest of tingles from the Meanie Sense. This was a dangerous subject Monika was approaching.

"…what is it?" Natsuki raised an immediately suspicious eyebrow. Behind us, Yuri stood attentive as well, extinguishing the flame and tapped the kettle with her wand. It promptly rose in the air and tipped, pouring boiling water into a cup she'd already prepared with a tea leaflet.

Monika went on, beckoning for us all to sit down.

"I understand some of you have doubts, and even strong aversions to getting new members." She said, glancing at Yuri and Natsuki in turn. "As the four founding members of this Club, I want you to know your opinion on the matter is very important to me, and I want to do my best to ease any worries you may have about the topic. I've thought about this for a long time, and I believe I've found a compromise."

I studied Natsuki's face, noting her skeptical impression. Still, she remained silent and allowed Monika to continue speaking.

"If there's anyone at Hogwarts that you have agenuineproblem with, all you need to do is let me or Sayori know." She said, gesturing at me. "And then I promise you, they'llneverset foot in our Club."

Natsuki blinked in surprise.

"You'll… let us veto students?" She asked, frowning.

"Yes. Well, uh- within reason." Monika hurriedly backtracked. "You'll have to make a good, compelling case for why you think the person in question would be a disruptive presence here, like you just did with the Creevey boy."

"Hmph." Natsuki grunted with another frown, crossing her arms. "So I can't just say everyone in this entire school annoys me and leave it at that?"

"Yeah, no. Nice try." Monika smiled softly. "But what do you think? Are those acceptable terms?"

She asked Natsuki, but her eyes glanced sideways at me, seeking my approval. I wasn't sure how to respond exactly.

It was a good first step, respecting the others' boundaries and all that, but… I still didn't like how she'd already started with Malfoy. As if she was just asking us to be nice, but was gonna go ahead with the plan regardless if we agreed or not. It… felt kinda dishonest.

Maybe she'd been counting on us being immediately supportive, and it wasn't like I hated it or anything like that. It was just… a bit soon to decide something like this at the first meeting. I guess I just really wished she would have maybe talked to me about it first.

Deciding we were gonna have to discuss it later, I relented and nodded back at her.

"Ugh. I don't know." Natsuki shook her head with a conflicted frown. "I kinda just wanted some quiet reading time today. What happened to the free month you promised?"

"Nothing! Like I promised, there won't be any changes this month." Monika assured her patiently. "But that doesn't mean we can't make some preparations in the meantime. I mean, delaying progress doesn't help anyone, does it?"

Natsuki looked as though she disagreed heavily, but said nothing as Yuri seated herself beside her, with the steaming teacup and kettle she'd prepared following along, gently floating in the air behind her.

"I'm… uncertain as well." She admitted, raising a hand to gracefully pluck the porcelain cup from its levitating position and taking a thoughtful sip. "I don't wish to speak on Natsuki's behalf, but to me the daunting prospect is the idea of acquiring new members itself, not so much any specific students. I… don't know if I even have anyone in mind to be disallowed here."

"Really?No one?"Monika raised a jovial eyebrow. "Not even… Hermione Granger?"

Across from her, Natsuki snorted in barely contained laughter.

"W- what?" Yuri stammered and blinked, apparently perplexed. "W- why would I want to do that?"

"Duh, she's your competitor." Natsuki smirked, dishing out a playful elbow. "The two smartest students of our year are like, obligated to hate each other.

Yuri's face flushed up as she shook her head in exasperation.

"I'm sure I have no idea what either of you are talking about."

"I think you do." Monika smiled knowingly. "Don't think we haven't noticed your eyes twitching every time someone mentions her name. I mean, it's pretty obvious you have some kind of vendetta against her."

"Preposterous." Yuri took another sip of her tea, probably thinking this action would hide the way her left eyes gave a vaguely irritant twitch.

It didn't.

"She probably lies awake in bed at night, fantasizing about besting her in every class!" Natsuki snickered. "C'mon, Yuri. Just admit how much ya wanna prove to everyone that you're more intelligent!"

"D- don't be ridiculous." Yuri denied, her face flushing an even deeper crimson. "I have nothing but the deepest respect for H- Hermione Granger. She's obviously a very skilled, t- talented witch who's undeniably b- better than me at e- everything."

"Aw no Yuri, don't say that!" I hurriedly interjected, reaching out to place my hand on hers. "You're selling yourself short again!"

"Yeah," Natsuki nodded in surprisingly earnest agreement. "I'm in her House and trust me, you're smarter by a mile! Only thing she's better than you at is running her damn mouth!"

At that, the pinkette abruptly raised a stiff arm high into the air, sticking two front teeth past her lower lip.

"Teacher, teacher! Look at me!" She exclaimed, contorting her voice into an even higher pitch, mimicking a needy and annoying tone. With her hair in its current, bushier state, the impression was remarkably spot on. "I'm a huge nerd and I swallowed a textbook!"

Both Monika and even Yuri gave an unreserved laugh at Nat's antics. Itwasfunny, and I wanted nothing more than to join them, but… I couldn't help feeling a bit uncomfortable. Of course I knew they weren't doing it to be intentionally cruel, and my Sense wasn't even close to triggered, but still… This was kinda straying a bit into 'Meanie' territory.

"Ehehe, okay guys…" I gave a small chuckle, hoping to subtly steer us away from the topic of mocking Hermione. "M- maybe we shouldn't-"

But apparently my voice was much too low, seeing as Monika easily began speaking over it.

"Ahaha, oh man…" She shook her head chuckling, actually wiping tears from her eyes. "I have her in Potions and that issoaccurate! It's like, every single question her arm shoots up like some automatic springlock!"

"She's so desperate to show off!" Natsuki nodded along enthusiastically. "I'm like, sheesh, tone it down a notch!"

"Sometimes I just wanna turn around in my seat and say 'look, we get it already!" Monika went on. "You've read every single book in the library, good on you! You're still just aMudblood,all right?!'"

The change in atmosphere was so sudden, I almost got whiplash. I knew somethingbadhad happened before Monika even finished the sentence.

All sounds in the room died abruptly as Natsuki and Yuri's broad smiles vanished, replaced by expressions of shock and disbelief. And, just as the deafening silence settled around us like a suffocating blanket, my Meanie Sense began blaring at full volume.

"Am I right?!" Monika continued laughing at her own joke, completely oblivious to the tension that'd arisen. Slowly, Yuri and Natsuki's heads turned to glare in her direction.

…what's going on?!A tight knot at the very pit of my stomach was giving me the strangest sense of foreboding doom, like watching a train crash in slow motion. It was all so overwhelming I found I couldn't even speak.

Monika finally seemed to notice the obvious tone shift as her own smile began fading away. She looked between us all in turn, clearly bewildered by the reaction.

"…what?" She asked, frowning. "What's wrong?"

"Uhm- Monika…?" Somehow, the sound of Monika's voice had given me the strength I needed to talk again, although my words sounded like the dry croaking of a toad that'd been left in the desert for a week straight. "Wh- what's a 'Mudblo-'"

"I knew it." A low, biting growl interrupted me. "I f*ckingknewit."

I looked at Natsuki, still staring intently sideways without blinking, her face locked in a silent sneer that bared each of her teeth including the small, extra sharpened fang in the upper right corner. Her hands were on the table, each clenched into fists so tight, the knuckles had gone a pale white.

"…knew what?" Monika asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"You almost had me, y'know." Natsuki let out a quiet laugh completely devoid of humor, and slowly rose from her seat. "Youalmosthad me believe you. Man, I must be the most gullible f*ckingidiotat Hogwarts for falling for it!"

"Anything you'd like to share with the rest of the class, Natsuki?" Monika asked tersely, crossing her arms. "Or are you just gonna keep being intentionally vague?"

Rather than responding, Natsuki flung her hand up, reaching into her robes.

"WOW, WOW, WAIT!" I exclaimed, recognizing the movement. Waving my arms distractingly, I jumped out of my own seat and scrambled to step in between the two girls just in time for the pinkette to pull out her wand and point it directly at my stomach. "Hey, let's justcalmdown here, okay?!"

"Not a chance!" Natsuki snarled back, refusing to meet my eye or lower the wand. "She's just proved herself to be the Slytherin supremacist piece ofgarbageI always suspected!"

She stepped sideways, trying to get a better angle. I mirrored the movement, blocking her. Behind me, I could hear Monika getting to her feet as well.

"Thisagain?!"She asked, her voice conveying utter confusion. "What'd I do this time? I was just poking some harmless fun, same as you!"

Natsuki's left eye twitched in barely contained fury.

"…you really don't know, do you?" She said in a low, strained voice. "You're already so rotten to the core, youactuallythink what you just said was acceptable?!"

"What, 'Mudblood?'That'swhat's made you so upset?!" Monika exclaimed indignantly, and I glanced around to see her red face peeking over my shoulder. "Why the f- wait. You're not… are you…?"

"I'mhalf-blood,not that it f*cking matters!" Natsuki exploded, and tried to sidestep me again unsuccessfully. "'Specially to the likes ofyou!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Monika yelled back. "What's the issue here?! It'sliterallyjust what she is! You called her a nerd too, how is Mudblood any different?!"

Natsuki's eye twitched again.

"Sayori,move."She demanded through clenched teeth.

"Nuh-uh!" I shook my head defiantly. "I'm not gonna let you curse Monika! Please, can't we just talk this out-"

"NO!" She bellowed at the top of her lungs. "You can't defend her this f*cking time, Sayori! Not for this!"

I stood my ground and braced myself, probably looking much braver than I actually felt. I'd seen some of the things Nat had done with that wand of hers, and I knew I wouldn't stand a chance if she decided to actually use it on me.

But then, in a moment I never would've believed unless I'd seen it with my own eyes, Natsuki actually lowered her wand.

"I'm gonna be sick…" She muttered, looking disgusted. Stiffly, she snatched up her bag and unopened Manga from the table and stomped towards the exit.

"Nat-" I began, knowing full well the fire I was playing with by calling her back after narrowly avoiding her cursing my nose upside down or worse. "-please, don't just storm away again! We can still sort this out-"

"It'sjusta f*cking word!" Monika called from behind me, very unhelpfully. "Everyone uses it, get over yourself!"

Natsuki froze with her hand on the doorknob and snapped her head back towards us, messy pink hair whirling in every direction.

"Well, Monika." She said, grimacing in a vague parody of a smile. "Guess you don't have to wait a month to recruit new members after all! You must besooohappy you no longer have to 'delay' your precious f*cking progress!"

"Nat-" I yelled in a last ditch effort, but she'd already twisted the knob and stepped outside.

"Goodbye!" She announced, and slammed the door shut behind her.

Stunned silence was left in her wake. Hardly able to even believe what'd just happened, I turned around to see Monika shaking her head, seemingly at a loss for words as well.

But my attention was quickly pulled away from her by the sound of a zipper as the last remaining girl at the table rose from her seat, flinging the rucksack over her back without saying a word.

"…w- what are you doing, Yuri?" I asked hesitantly, fearing the answer.

"I think I will be taking this opportunity to leave as well." The lavenderette replied pleasantly, confirming my worst nightmares as she too headed towards the exit in a perfectly calm and dignified stride. "Thank you for having me, and I wish both of you good luck with the Club's future."

"Seriously?! You too?!" Monika found her heated voice again. "What, because I said a 'bad' word?! I might have expected Natsuki to throw a childish fit, but I'd hopedyouwould have been a bit more level headed!"

Yuri raised her head, meeting Monika's gaze head on. The look in her purple eyes was so hard and full of disdain that I had to flinch, and it wasn't even directed at me!

I watched in disbelief as Monika actually took a step backwards in shock.

"I hardly think it's 'level headed' to utter outdated, bigoted slurs, Monika." She said in an icy voice, completely different from her usual gentle stammer. "Let me be clear- If you wish to hold onto antiquated, hateful beliefs against minority groups, then that's your business and I won't stop you. But I want no part of it."

"I- I don't-" Monika sputtered lamely. Yuri moved on, opening the door before looking back one last time.

"Just a piece of advice- perhaps you'd like toeducateyourself on who the people in your social circle actuallyare."She said, directing a pointed look at… me? "Good afternoon and, good luck."

And with that, she too left the room.

I stared at the closed door, still struggling to understand what had just happened. In just a few seconds, two of my best friends in the whole world had stormed out of the Club, my entire world had collapsed, and I had no cluewhy.How was that even possible? Where was I even going to begin to fix it again?!

Fighting back the tears threatening to emerge, I turned towards Monika whose face betrayed the very same type of astonished shock I felt. But still, she had to have at leastsomeidea as to what had just happened.

"M- Monika… I asked, hearing my own voice cracking. "Wha- what does 'Mudblood' mean?"

It took her a few seconds to answer.

"It's- it's just a word for… for Muggleborns." She replied automatically without looking at me, voice monotone as she explained. "Y'know- those witches and wizards who pop up in a completely non-magical family? I- I've no idea why they reacted like that, my parents use the word all the time!"

"A… family without wizards?" I repeated dimly, feeling my insides tightening even harder.

"Yeah…" Monika confirmed with a vague nod. "Mudbloods are the reason Squibs exist, they somehow steal the magic fromrealwizards and give it to themselves. It's common knowledge where I'm from!"

"B- but Monika…" I said hesitantly, my lips quivering. I could already tell it wouldn't be much longer before I'd start crying, but it'd have to wait a little longer. This was more important."…I'mMuggleborn!"

Her eyes widened even further in shock, surprise, and unless I was completely mistaken,horror.She slowly turned her head, looking as if she'd just noticed me for the very first time.

"…what?" She said in a hushed, miniscule voice. "B- but I thought… you just lived with a Muggle uncle? W- weren't your parents… like us?"

"No, I- I don't think so?" I shook my head uncomfortably. The men from the Ministry hadn't said much about my mum and dad, and I could remember even less about them. But one thing they had made sure to tell me was both were 100% Muggles.

I'd never told anyone before, not because it was some deep secret I was trying to keep, but simply because no one had ever asked about it. I'd just thought it wasn't that big a deal.

Although clearly, judging from Monika's gaping expression, I'd been dead wrong.

"B- but- tha- that's…" She stammered, unable to communicate even a single sentence.

I looked away, not liking the weird way she wasstaringat me.

"D- did I steal my magic…?" I asked, glancing down at my hands.

She didn't answer, and I wasn't sure if it was because she couldn't, orwouldn't.It didn't really matter. I couldn't just stand around, waiting for her to find her voice again. I had to dosomething, now!

To think I'd been worried about something as stupid ashomeworkwhen I'd gone in here and now, our entire friendship was at risk!

"I'll… go find Nat and Yuri. Try and talk to them." I told Monika, having no idea what I was going to say. "W- wait here, okay?"

She still said nothing, and I didn't look back when I left the room. I was so close to my limit already. I only just barely managed to suppress my feelings enough not to burst out crying.

Chapter 5: Monika’s Amazing Winstreak

Chapter Text

POV: Monika.

"…now, I don't want to give you the wrong idea here. Naturally I didn't defeat the Wagga Wagga Werewolf just by smiling at it!"

The blonde man let out a hearty chuckle, shaking his head.

"But what am I doing telling you that?" He went on. "You look like a smart girl after all, so I'm sure you've already read all about the encounter in my book! You don't need me to go on about the highly complex hom*orphus charm I used to undo the creature's curse!"

No, I really don't. I thought impatiently, staring back up at that plastered, persistent grin that'd held me up for nearly ten minutes now. I kept silent however, knowing any response I gave would only encourage him to go on yet another longwinded spiel.

"Mm, yes. Now that was some adventure…" He nodded dreamily, reminiscing. "Y'know, I think it just might be extraordinary enough for a dramatic re-enactment someday! Perhaps that could be a fun assignment for a future Defence class…"

He promptly snapped a finger.

"Ah, but that's neither here, or there. Back to the point I was making- while a smile won't be enough to save you from a life-threatening situation singlehandedly, it certainly cannot hurt you either! And rest assured, since you have me here to keep a watchful eye over you lot, the idea of any life-threatening altercations occurring would be absurd regardless! So you see, Miss Winter, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever for a pretty girl like yourself to be sulking around Hogwarts like that!"

I had to manually remind myself to ease the pressure on my clenched fist, not even realizing how close I'd been to drawing blood with my fingernails. It was somewhat difficult to resist the urge to plant it right in the lecturing face above me and finally wipe off that smarmy smile.

Instead, I continued burying my anger and stretched my mouth into that sweet, innocent grin he so obviously wanted to see.

"Yes, Professor Lockhart." I forced my voice light and airy. "I'm so sorry, Professor Lockhart!"

"Although…" He added thoughtfully, still showing off each and every single one of his pristine, white teeth. "An argument could definitely be made that my smile played a key role in throwing off the Werewolf, delaying its reactions just enough for me to gain the upper hand! Not to say I didn't always have the advantage, but I digress. The importance of a smile simply cannot be overstated! In my humble opinion, it's a tool rivaling your wand in terms of usefulness, and as such you should never leave your bed without it!"

It took every iota of self-control I had to refrain from groaning aloud. This was becoming ridiculous, how longcould someone drone on about smiling?!

Mercifully, he finally seemed to relent from his lecture as he reached down to give the top of my head a few overbearing pats. I did my best to pass off my involuntary shiver at his touch as genuine enjoyment.

"Okay, okay, I should think you understand now." He said with another chuckle. "I won't keep you any l- oh, almost forgot!"

He reached into a pale pink pocket of his extravagant salmon-coloured silk robes, pulling out a small, black and white photograph which he handed towards me. I was disgusted when I looked down and saw an exact, grayscale replica of his face winking back at me with a prewritten, cursive signature in the bottom corner.

"There you are!" The real Lockhart announced in a voice booming with generosity as if he was Father Christmas himself. "Now, you truly have no remaining reasons to pout!

I accepted the signed picture with vaguely shaking fingers before looking back up, incredulous to find his make up-smeared, oblivious face looking down at me expectantly.

Oh, f*ck off! I thought.

"Thank you, Professor!" I said.

"Run along now, Miss Winter! We wouldn't want Mr. Filch to find you here this late, now would we?" He jovially clapped my back, once again causing an uncomfortable sense of revulsion to surge through my body. The moment he turned his back on me, I allowed my fake smile to fade.

…it's Win-THER, moron.

Moving with controlled footsteps down the corridor, I waited until I deemed us a far enough distance apart before glancing back down at his departing 'gift' in my hands.

I then proceeded to violently crumble the miniature Lockhart into a tight ball, and hurled it into a nearby bin. Having rid myself of that particular burden, I allowed myself a few seconds to relax my fuming mind, slumping up against the wall and let out a deep sigh.

What an absolute idiot! As if I didn't have enough worries to deal with already without some pompous prick bothering me just because I 'didn't smile hard enough,' like some overzealous Hall Manager! I suppose I should count myself lucky he didn't take any points from Slytherin in the process!

I hadn't had the highest of opinions regarding Gilderoy Lockhart before, but this sealed the deal for me. He was every bit the arrogant fraud Natsuki had warned us about, right up there among the likes of Filch, Mrs. Norris and Peeves in the 'entities at Hogwarts to avoid running int-'

My eyes burst open as a sudden jolt of pain in my gut shook me right out of my ranting train of thought.

It had been nothing more than an off-handed mention of her name in my mind, but apparently that was all it took to spark an unwanted flashback to the pinkette's sour face, glaring daggers at me.

"You really don't know, do you?" It was all I could do to suppress a light gasp when her furious voice filled my head. "You're already so rotten to the core, you actually think what you just said was acceptable?!"

I grit my teeth and screwed up my face, forcing the memory from my mind. Not an easy task by any means, but eventually I did manage to push it far enough away to at least be able to breathe properly again.

My relief was short-lived however, quickly replaced by more frustration.

What's the matter with me? Why is it happening? I never wanted damn mental landmines in my head, especially not for something as stupid as this! Go away!

But however much I tried to get rid of it, the unfounded feelings of guilt and hurt persisted stubbornly. I clenched my fists anew and sighed again.

Suffice it to say, I was not having a good first day.

Making the observation that today's meeting at the Literature Club had been 'upsetting' would be a gross understatement of the highest caliber. The event had dug its way into my brain and refused to let go, making it nigh impossible to focus on anything else.

But that wasn't even the most annoying part, oh no. Normally, mistakes and accidents never really bothered me too much, because I could always look back after the fact, find the thing that'd caused it, and then make sure whatever it was never happened again. Learn from it and move on, right?

But those rules didn't apply in this case. Even with all the time I'd already spent obsessively thinking back and analyzing every little detail, it still made no sense whatsoever!

One moment we'd all been having a grand old time. Catching up, discussing terms, making innocent, non-serious fun of ridiculous people. It'd been the exact same comfy and casual vibe we'd enjoyed last year. Heck, even Natsuki had been having fun!

And then, everything had broken apart as easily as running a hand through a spider's web, all because of one word. One measly, insignificant, f*cking word.

Sayori had been trying to convince the other girls to come back all evening, unsuccessfully if her head-shake at me during dinner had been any indication. I knew she wasn't about to give up that easily though, and would probably spend the next couple of weeks continuously badgering them.

But to tell the truth, I wasn't sure if I even wanted them to return! Not when they acted so absolutely childish!

Yeah, I was angry with them. I had every right to be, considering I had done nothing wrong!

Look, I'm not an unreasonable person. In fact, I'm very understanding, and also pretty damn accommodating! Natsuki had made it clear she didn't want to be called 'cute,' so I didn't call her cute. Yuri liked to have tea during our meetings, I gave her a damn kettle! You see? I was happy to provide the members of my Club anything that might add to their enjoyment.

But to flip their lid at this was not only an overblown reaction, it was just plain dumb! The person I'd 'insulted' wasn't even part of any of our friend groups, so why were they getting so uppity about it?!

All I'd done was make an off-handed mention in a closed environment among those I'd thought to be my friends, and they were acting as if I'd screamed The Dark Lord's name multiple times in public! If anything, I was the one who deserved an apology here!

Hermione Granger was a Mudblood. She just was, and that's not even an insult, it's an indisputable fact! Their fault for being so sensitive, not mine! It was a Literature Club, for crying out loud! Censoring normal, every-day words seemed pretty damn counter-intuitive if you ask me!

The image of Sayori's face flashed before my mind, displaying the tearful, hurt expression she'd worn when I'd explained what the word had meant. I quickly pushed it away like I'd done with Natsuki.

Stop that! I thought adamantly, and set into a brisk, determined walk through a door, down a carved marble staircase. You've wasted enough time on this nonsense already, stop letting it distract you and get your head in the f*cking game!

I nodded to myself as I reached the stone wall entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. The girls could get over themselves and 'forgive me,' or they could keep sulking in mock outrage. Either way, no skin off my back. This dumb guilt of mine was severely misplaced, and I owed them nothing.

"Meliority." I said quietly, prompting the hidden door inside the wall to slide open and reveal the large, vaguely green-lit room within.

Since it was still relatively early in the evening, most of the other Slytherins were still present, sitting around in chairs, discussing their day and complaining about all the homework they'd gotten already. I noted Crabbe and Goyle in particular, occupying the largest couch by the fireplace (which despite being large enough to accommodate four individuals, the two of them somehow made it look like a cramped space), both of them not saying a word, too busy stuffing their faces with salt pretzels from the infinitely refilling snack bowl on the table.

I quickly turned away from the pigs with a light shiver of nausea, and began searching for any other place to sit and tackle my homework. I really just wanted to collapse in my bed and sleep off my exhaustion, but I couldn't in good conscience snooze away without getting at least something productive done.

My attention was then caught by a loud, booming laughter from the far right of the room. I turned, feeling my heart beat just a little bit faster at seeing Marcus Flint in a large, green armchair right by one of the main windows to the dark Great Lake. Judging from the wide smile on his face, he'd just been told something funny by the people surrounding him, most of whom I recognized as his fellow Quidditch members.

I hesitated, caught in an inner conflict. On one hand, it was rare to see the usually stoic Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team in this good a mood, making it a prime opportunity for anyone wanting to make a good first impression. On the other, I wasn't completely sure if I was even capable of making a compelling sales pitch after everything else I'd been through today.

That's dumb! An impatient voice in my head told me. You've wanted this since you were 5 years old, get your ass over there and secure your position!

I took a deep breath, pushing any remaining doubt from my mind. The voice was right, I couldn't just allow my dream to be ruined because of some ridiculous Club drama. Natsuki and Yuri's silly, irrational behaviour shouldn't even be allowed to have an impact on my mental state!

And with that out of the way, I began taking firm, confident steps towards the team, forcing my face into a big, approachable smile.

This is my time to shine!

"E- excuse me?" I said upon reaching their hearing vicinity, ignoring the awkward silence that immediately settled over the group as everyone began staring in my direction. It was in that moment I suddenly realized how much older and bigger than me these guys were.

Keep it cool, Monika. Don't stutter, make eye contact. You're not a first year anymore.

"Uh- hullo!" I waved my hand in greeting, maintaining a level look at Marcus who'd slowly turned his head to fix me with a vaguely annoyed glare. His jovial smile from moments before had all but evaporated.

"Who the hell are you?" He asked gruffly, voice marred with impatience.

I swallowed a lump in my throat, trying my best not to be intimidated.

Marcus was easily the largest of the entire team, a burly sixth year at least double my size with short black hair laced thinly on top of his gaunt, almost rectangular head. His large eyebrows had furrowed in what I hoped to be a normal, appraising look of scepticism rather than a confrontational scowl, and even with our loosely worn Hogwarts robes, you could tell he was packing some serious muscles beneath as his thick, tree log-like arms literally strained against the fabric. A body brimming over with toughness and power, perfect for the Chaser position I knew he held.

"I'm Monika, Second Year!" I introduced myself, reciting all the times I'd practiced for this moment at home, in front of my mirror. I made a quiet thanks to whatever higher power there was that my voice didn't crack in the process, and reached out my arm to shake his hand. "Pleasure to finally make your acquaintance!"

He kept his intense stare on my eyes, refusing to even pass a glancing acknowledgement at my offered hand. After enduring two prolonged, painful seconds of this treatment, I finally relented and awkwardly lowered it again.

"What do you want?" He finally grunted indifferently.

"Well…" I began, refusing to be deterred. "…I just, uh, wanted to ask if it would be possible to apply for a spot on the Quidditch Team? You see, it's been… kinda a lifelong dream of mine to join, ahaha…"

He raised a thick, rough and damningly unimpressed eyebrow at me, continuing his harsh stare-down. His lower lip drooped slightly, revealing a row of incredibly crooked teeth that suggested his face had seen more than its fair share of Bludgers.

"And why the f*ck would I want you on my team?" He then asked in a sneering tone that managed to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

But before I even had a moment to recover and gather my wits again, another male voice began speaking in a calm and appeasing tone.

"I've actually known this one for a bit, Flint." One of the guys closest to the Lake window leaned forward in his seat, his face previously obscured by the low lighting. I had to blink in surprise when his sharp facial features and familiar vampire grin came into view. "I can vouch for her."

What is HE doing here?! I thought, absolutely mystified by Draco Malfoy's presence this close to the big leagues. He knew as well as I that nobody just sat with Flint unless he already considered you a close member of the Team. And there was no way he'd already gotten thatfar.

"You can?" Marcus furrowed both brows in visible confusion as he glanced sideways at Draco. Gaining an affirming nod, he returned his gaze to me once more, only this time surprising me with a much more nuanced and appraising look in his eyes. Not daring to speak and ruin… whatever this was, I let him stare uninterrupted.

"We've never had a girl on the team before, though…" He finally said, turning back to address Draco. "Aren't they like, really weak? Can she even hold a Quaffle?"

"I've faced off against her myself." Draco shrugged casually. "Believe it or not, she's actually somewhat decent at the game."

My confusion ebbed away on the spot, replaced with intense annoyance.

'Somewhat decent?!' I've beaten you every time we played, and you know it!

I sent a hard glare his way. Fair's fair, he was helping me right now, and I supposed I was grateful for that. But he was doing it in such a backhanded way that undersold the heck out of me, and I didn't understand why.

He merely returned my look with a vaguely amused, smug smile.

"Hm." Flint responded with a low grunt, clearly unconvinced. "She clean?"

"She's-" Draco began, but I'd had enough.

"She is right here and can answer any question herself, thank you!" My irritation gave me the courage I needed to speak over Draco's drawling voice. "The Winther family is a very old and respected one, with plenty of ties to the most influential witches and wizards known. Rest assured, I'm as Pureblood as they come!"

I wasn't really bothered that Flint questioned my heritage. Obviously he just wanted to maintain the quality of his team, nothing wrong about that. It was sensible.

"I hardly think it's 'level headed' to utter outdated, bigoted slurs, Monika…"

Once more, I pushed the rogue, intruding memory from my mind. What did Yuri know about this stuff, anyway? She was only one of the most intelligent students attending Hogwarts, why should I even listen to her?!

To my eternal annoyance, I noticed Marcus turn towards Draco yet again, as if to confirm my story. Only when receiving the nod did he look back at me.

"You got Quidditch Robes?" He asked with a reluctant sigh.

"Yes, just up the stairs by my bed-"

"Good." He said shortly, looking away again. "First training session's Saturday, meet us down in the changing room after breakfast. Don't be late."

I blinked in mild surprise.

"Wait, so- I… I'm on the Team, then?"

Marcus rolled his eyes.

"Obviously!" He groaned impatiently, waving me off. "Now quit bothering me!"

"R- right!" I hurriedly said, unsure about whether to thank him or not. I settled on a light bow of my head before rapidly darting away from the group.

I wasn't about to test Flint's patience further by lingering in his presence and ask for clarifications on the millions of questions I had for him. I wasn't stupid, I knew I'd only gotten the position from a frankly unbelievable stroke of luck- and far more importantly, I knew how easily I could lose it again at the snap of a finger. I'd accomplished my goal for now, yes, but I was far from secure.

It struck me that I should be overjoyed. I should be doing cartwheels in my mind, celebrating my victory, geeking out all over a letter and send it to Mum and Dad with Desdemona in the morning. I mean, I'd been dreaming of this day since the age of five!

And yet, I felt my mouth drooping into a dissatisfied frown. Despite my overwhelming triumph, I didn't feel like celebrating. In fact, I… didn't feel much of anything at all. Maybe it was the earlier scuffle with the Club that was tainting my mood, or… maybe it had something to do with the overwhelming sense that this had all gone a bit too easy.

Yes, Flint had been hard on me at first, but I hadn't been the one to win him over. I… I hadn't really done anything to prove I actually belonged on the Team yet. It had all been Draco.

Deeming myself far enough out of earshot, I looked behind one last time. The group at large was laughing again, as though they'd never even been interrupted in the first place. None of them were even glancing my way- except for one.

Draco's silver eyes glinted ominously, a wide smirk still painted across his face. The moment we made eye contact, he began to move his lips in an exaggerated fashion, mouthing a silent message meant for me.

"You're welcome!"

My frown deepened.

How the HELL did he gain this much status already?!

The question persisted with me throughout the entire week, until Saturday morning, where I found myself in the Quidditch changing room, preparing for the first training session of term.

Since I was the only girl on the team, Flint had deemed it unnecessary for us to use two separate rooms, deciding instead that it'd be far more practical to share as long as I just remained as far away from them as possible, left alone in a corner out of their sight.

I wasn't sure if that even made any sense, but I wasn't going to make myself any more difficult by putting question marks on the Captain's decisions. If this was what it took to be on the Quidditch teams, then sure, I could endure the musky stench of boy sweat while I stewed in my own, isolated thoughts.

In the days leading to this moment, Sayori had continued to provide running updates of her efforts to convince the two missing members to rejoin our shattered Club. She'd been… less than successful, to put it lightly. Even with her sugarcoating the statements to me as much as possible, Yuri and Natsuki apparently both "hated me with a fiery passion" now.

She hadn't given up on the endeavor though, and was still adamant she would get us all back to being friends again. However, each time she would repeat these assurances at me, she seemed to believe them a little bit less herself.

Neither of us were strangers to Club drama. We'd had our fair share of trouble keeping it all together last year too, but somehow that'd seemed so much more manageable than this time around.

And all throughout this, there'd been a huge, lingering Erumpent in the room which both of us had adamantly decided to ignore: why was she, a Mud- Muggleborn, continuing to associate with me?

It was like as long as we kept not acknowledging the issue, the longer we could go pretending it didn't exist. Even though we both knew it was the only question on the other's mind.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like I wanted her to stop talking to me. She was… she was still my best friend, but- but now…

But now… what? What changed?

I sighed as I finished strapping the rough material of my gloves over my wrists, telling myself for what felt like the millionth time to stop dwelling on this issue. My feelings on that particular matter were way too complicated to delve into right now. I had Quidditch training to focus on and a Captain to impress. The Club as I knew it was done, I just had to accept that and move on already.

There was a soft knock on the wall behind me.

"Are you decent yet, Monika?"

I whipped around wide-eyed, seeing Draco gliding around the corner, fully dressed in his emerald Quidditch robes with one hand raised to shield his eyes. The perpetual smirk that'd seemed to be an ever-present fixture across the lower half of his face throughout the week remained unchanged though.

"Yes." I muttered shortly, prompting him to remove the hand. His smirk widened to a downright punchable length.

And then there's THIS A-hole… I rolled my eyes, irritated at his pretend modesty.

"Flint sent me to get you." Draco elaborated. "He says we have to huddle together while he explains the strategy."

I nodded stiffly and got moving, eager to get this over with. Behind me, I heard him following along, leaning closer.

"And lighten up a bit, won't you?" He whispered in a low sneer of dissatisfaction. "You're on the Team now, just like you wanted. Honestly, would it kill you to smile?"

Would it kill YOU to shut the f*ck up?!

I shrugged and stretched my lips into a grimace that only in the loosest definition of the word could be recognized as a 'smile,' hoping this would be enough to stop him berating me every five seconds.

Lately, the relationship between my childhood friend and I had been a bit… strained, to put it mildly.

My annoyance with him slowly got sidelined the closer we got to the other end of the room where Marcus Flint and the four other members of the Team waited, each one staring at me in what appeared to be severe judgment. My nerves were starting to steadily rise once more.

I hadn't dared speaking so much as a word to Flint since the first day, fearing I'd mess something up and make him kick me off the team again before we even played. Deep down, I knew I would have to take a more proactive role at some point since a non-communicative Quidditch team was doomed to fail 95% of the time, but I still had immense trouble shaking off our first encounter.

He just… didn't seem to like me at all, for some reason.

An issue Draco clearly didn't share, going by his self-assured and even somewhat lazy stride. I still had no idea where he was getting all this confidence from.

"Finally…" Flint growled tersely the moment we arrived. "Sheesh, they really do take forever to get ready, don't they?"

There was a roar of laughter from the other members. I felt my cheeks heating up, partly due to embarrassment, partly to keep myself from pointing out the half-naked state of Adrian Pucey, another Chaser who still had yet to put on his trousers.

Right. Because I'm a girl. That's hilarious. I pursed my lips, staying silent as the last of the chuckling finally died down and Flint moved on to explain our strategy for today. I made sure to hang onto his every word. Just endure it. You got this. Do your best, and MAKE them appreciate your worth.

"…that's about it." Flint finished his remarkably short speech, dismissing us with a hand wave. "Get your brooms, and we'll see how the newbies play!"

The members casually scattered towards their lockers (Pucey hopping on one foot whilst struggling to get the other one down his remaining pant-leg) but I remained where I was, gathering courage to speak. There was still some vital information I lacked which the Captain hadn't made clear in the slightest.

"Uhm, sorry?" I said, making myself meet his eyes. Already I could make out his impatience with me. "N- not to be a bother or anything, but uh… you haven't really told me what role I'll have on the Team? Are we doing try-outs to determine which of us gets to play what, or-"

"You're Keeper." Flint simply said, turning his back to get his own broom.

I blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the blunt answer.

"Uhh…" I managed to recover fast enough. "Well, okay then. I- I mean, not to question your judgment or anything, but I really have the most experience playing Seeker, and I think you'll find my skills very satisfact-"

"Malfoy's Seeker." Flint cut me off with an equally blunt response.

"Draco?!" I blurted out before I could stop myself, utterly perplexed. "B- but… why?!"

Flashing images flipped rapidly through my mind in what I guessed to be a similar fashion to those 'tee-vee' devices Sayori kept mentioning, as I thought back to the countless Quidditch sessions I'd had in Draco's garden, competing with him to see who could catch the Snitch first. So far, he'd managed to beat me a grand total of zero times.

Marcus turned around to face me again, his eyebrow raised and scowl fierce.

"Are you questioning my decisions?" He asked in a dangerously quiet voice. I could feel the colour drain from my face.

"N- no, of course not!" I denied hurriedly. "I- I was just hoping to maybe make you r- reconsider? Y'see, me and Draco have p- played before, and-"

"Malfoy's Seeker, you're Keeper and that's final." Flint repeated intensely. "You can either accept that, or leave the Team. Now what'll it be?!"

"…Keeper." I nodded quickly, recognizing the ultimatum. "I can totally be Keeper, yup, mm-hm, no problem at all!"

"Good." Flint said, shaking his head in exasperation. "Then get your f*cking broom, we've waited long enough already!"

I obeyed his command without further argument, keeping my mouth shut all the way to my locker. To add further salt into my wound, Draco was already there.

I walked past him and kept my head low, doing my best to ignore him. Something that would prove incredibly difficult to do once he leaned over my shoulder to talk.

"Well?" He said, expectantly. "Aren't you going to thank me at all for getting you on the Team?"

I paused and suppressed a tired sigh, refusing to look directly at him.

"What?" He asked, amusedly. "What is it?"

"…why did you apply for Seeker?" I then asked quietly. "I told you I wanted that position."

I knew I was being petty and childish. I knew I had no right to complain, and that I should just be grateful I'd even gotten to this point. But none of this was going how I'd imagined it at all.

"-TT-" Draco scoffed. "You can't just think you'll have everything handed to you on a silver platter, Monika. Surely you must've expected some competition for the most desirable role in the game."

My fist clenched up, hard.

I WANTED competition for the Seeker role! Then, I'd have an ACTUAL chance at winning it!

"Did you improve dramatically since the last time we played?" I bit back. "Or do you still flinch away when a Snitch gets too close to your face?"

"You're in a mood today, aren't you?" He responded loftily. "Have to say, jealousy really doesn't suit you, Monika…"

How did you already become Seeker? And why is Flint so adamant you stay one? We haven't even had our first training session yet!

I kept my mouth shut, knowing any further attempts at arguing would only be met by more (not entirely unfounded) accusations of jealousy. Without another word I unclenched my hand, grabbed my locker's handle and pulled it open to reveal my broom.

The wood was a light birch colour, almost shining from the recent polish I'd given it the day before the train ride. Each one of its hairs had been individually brushed and collected with a bright, contrasting green ribbon, looking just as pristine and perfect as the day I'd bought it almost two years ago.

Despite the less-than-stellar conditions plaguing my current life, I couldn't help but smile a bit as my eyes drifted down to see the small model name engraved in white at the bottom of the shaft.

Zipper 8.

The broom was my pride and joy, my baby. Imported directly from an underrated shop in Germany, it was subjectively the best in the whole market, despite its obscurity. I doubted anyone around these parts had even heard about the brand.

See, while most people around my age would drool at the windows over the insane, overpriced racing brooms Britain had to offer like your Nimbuses or even the still in-production Firebolt, I'd browsed a bit on the wider, international market before finally coming across this absolute beauty.

I'd be the first to admit the Zippers weren't the fastest brooms, far from it. In a straight race, even the middle-ranged Cleansweep models would absolutely mop the floor with it, every single time. But what it lacked in speed, it made up for in sheer maneuverability.

Most people wrongfully assumed Quidditch was only about flying as fast as possible, when nothing could be further from the truth. As anyone who actually knew anything about the game would tell you, the ability to dodge, weave and stop in the air was just as, if not even more important than simply going fast, and no broom I'd seen had that aspect down more than the Zipper.

It was almost scary how precise it handled. It was like a literal, wooden hummingbird. With it, I could dive straight down in the air at a 90 degree angle only to freeze half an inch before colliding with the ground. Even the Snitches themselves seemed rather sluggish when you rode this thing and knew what you were doing.

Not that I was gonna be catching any Snitches with it on this Team, but still. At this point, I had to take any silver linings I could find.

But then, just as I raised my arm and reached out to grab hold of its marvelous shaft, Draco's voice interrupted the shining moment again like a solar eclipse.

"You won't be needing that."

My hand stopped inches away from the broom. Feeling uneasy, I turned to look at him.

"…what?" I asked, not liking the expression on his pale face one bit. I don't think I'd ever seen him this gleeful since last year when Harry Potter had lost Gryffindor over a hundred points in one night. "What do you mea…?

Then, I noticed the brooms he was carrying.

Brooms. Plural.

"Catch." He instructed, casually flinging one of the black brooms in my direction. Automatically my hand rose to catch it, and I found myself shocked at how incredibly light it was, like an actual feather. Not even the best brooms in the Quality Quidditch Supplies could boast this lack of weight.

With a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I flipped it over to read the engraved name. I had to do a double take.

Nimbus 2001.

I must have looked completely goofy when I glanced up again, given Draco's muffled snickering. Clutched in his left hand was another black broom, completely identical to the one in mine.

"I don't-" I tried, glancing between our two brooms in my struggle to comprehend what I was seeing. The new Nimbus series had just been unveiled back in August, not even a full month ago. The idea that Draco already had two of them when they were still at their most expensive was ludicrous! "How did-"

He just shrugged in mild amusem*nt at my reaction.

"Let's just say my father has been very helpful aiding my Team membership onto the team this year…"

My eyes widened in realization. Turning around, I craned my neck around the corner to see the rest of the team all carrying the same, oily black brooms.

Enraged indignation flooded my chest. I couldn't remember being this angry since the end of term last year when Professor Dumbledore had awarded the House Cup to Gryffindor. I looked down, disgusted with the object in my hand.

So this was how he'd secured the Seeker role. It all made sense now. It had nothing to do with his skills, he'd just… bribed the team!

I'd never thought anyone could stoop this low!

"No need to thank me…" He went on, speaking over my silence as he stepped forth to clap me condescendingly on the shoulder. "Honestly, I'm doing myself a favor here. I think I might fall off in embarrassment if I had to look at you buzzing around the pitch on that ridiculous 'zimmer-toy…'"

"No thanks." I finally spoke in a voice of forced calm, carefully placing the Nimbus on a bench.

It took a lot of effort to repress my anger enough to not slap Draco right across his stupid face with my newly freed hand.

"No?" Draco repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Thanks for the offer." I gave him a smile of fake politeness and turned back towards my locker. "But I'll just use my own broom. After all, it hasn't failed me yet!"

"Hm." He mused. "Are you quite sure that's wise?"

"I appreciate your concern for my wellbeing, but-"

"Oh no, it's not that. I just wonder how Flint's going to react." His aloof voice made me freeze on the spot again as I considered his words. "I mean, intentionally choosing an inferior broom when you've got an objectively better alternative on hand. One might start to wonder if you truly have the team's best interests at heart…"

I whipped around, glaring at that cold, slimy, despicable grin, tempted to draw my wand-

"OI!" Flint's brutal holler echoed loudly throughout the room. "WHAT'S THE HOLDUP OVER THERE?!"

The impatience in his voice broke me out of the trance. It was as if it was searching for even the smallest excuse to kick me off the team.

"Well?"

Draco met my eyes pointedly, gesturing at the benched broom. It was only then I made the crushing realization that this really wasn't an option I could afford taking.

I loved my Zipper. It fit my playstyle perfectly, and I knew I could accomplish amazing things with it. But even I had to admit, compared to a full team of Nimbus two-oh-ones… I'd absolutely be left behind.

This git had me wrapped entirely around his finger, and there was nothing I could do except follow along.

With a heavy heart, I stepped back from my locker and picked up the Nimbus again, feeling every principle in my body scream in protest as I lifted the wood. I kept my head firmly down, refusing to look at the smug expression Draco undoubtedly wore and made my way toward the others.

"Uh, Flint? Slight problem." I heard one of the Beaters mention worriedly upon my arrival. "Gryffindor's already out on the pitch. It looks like they've been training here all morning."

"They won't be for much longer." Flint chuckled darkly. "Our new Seeker got Snape to override their claim for the pitch. He's turning out to be quite the asset for our team."

As the others laughed mirthfully, I stared back at Draco in utter shock, as if only now seeing my friend for the first time. How unbelievably sh*tty was it to cut into another team's training like that?!

He calmly met my eyes, showing not even an ounce of regret.

"So…" He said with a smirk. "Are you ready to finally make your House proud?"

I suddenly thought back to Natsuki, and all the claims, insults and criticisms she'd made last year about Slytherin and its reputation. All the times she'd exclaimed how we were all corrupt, powerhungry and downright evil that I'd chalked up to her 'just being Natsuki,' without a second thought, refusing to entertain for even a second the idea that it might all be true.

"Yeah…" I replied with a soft, defeated sigh. "I suppose I am…"

Chapter 6: Monika’s Apology

Chapter Text

POV: MONIKA

"Uh- excuse me? Professor Binns?"

"…huh? Wh- what is it…? W- who's there…?"

The man floating before me gave a weak jolt, interrupting a snore as he slowly shuddered awake. I watched with some trepidation as the ancient man gradually opened his transparent white eyes, both of which betrayed utter confusion of his surroundings. I imagined it probably didn't help with the disorientation that a notable percentage of his hunched lower body was currently submerged within the wooden librarian desk he was supposed to be watching over.

As I waited for him to fully awaken, I found myself wondering how and why ghosts even needed sleep. It just seemed a bit odd for the memory of a departed individual to still be bound by the same limitations of us living, breathing people. Maybe he didn't actually need to, and was simply doing it out of habit.

I shook the thought from my head, deciding to mark it as a question for later.

Finally, the spectre adjusted his glasses (on that matter, did the afterlife have optometrists?) and managed to focus on me with some difficulty.

"Y- yes, Miss… Walker?" He asked hesitantly in the usual dry, unsure voice he always had when lecturing us in class.

I cringed inwardly, knowing already this was gonna be a painful interaction. I'd thought myself pretty lucky when I'd found out the actual librarian, Madam Pince, had gotten a cold and called on Binns to cover for her today. I wasn't sure how anyone could even concentrate in this place with that grumpy old bat breathing down their necks.

But, as I was quickly coming to realize, Professor Binns was proving to be just as undesirable to talk to for entirely different reasons. Rather than roaming around the area in an unyielding search for book-abusing students to punish, he seemed entirely complacent with treating this new job the same as when he taught History of Magic- doing the absolute barest minimum, with zero attempts at innovation.

"Winther, Sir." I corrected politely, trying my best to stay patient with him. It wasn't his fault that he was old. Or, well, dead. "Uhm, if it's easier, you can call me Monika. I just wanted to ask if you've seen either Natsuki or Yuri around here today?"

I knew I'd made a mistake in asking as soon as I saw his blank, clueless stare back at me.

"Na- Natsuki and You- Yourii?" He repeated unsurely, smacking his dry, wrinkled lips together at the foreign words in his mouth. "And… would these be, uhm, books you're looking to lend…?"

My spirits dropped another inch. It was obvious he hadn't a clue whom or what I was talking about.

I took a quick, deep breath, idly wondering why I'd thought asking him would be a good idea.

You didn't. I reminded myself. You just wanted another excuse to delay this. That's why it's taken an entire week to even come up here.

"No, they're, uh… f- friends of mine." I informed Binns, lying through my teeth. "I've been looking all over the Castle for them, and I've heard they can often be found reading in here!"

"Oh, I- I see…" Binns nodded vaguely, looking like he was on the brink of dozing off yet again. Apparently recognizing his current position, he slowly floated back out of the desk. "I- I'm not sure…"

"Natsuki's pretty short, like this." I said, helpfully raising a hand to my collarbone in order to display her height. I then lifted it a few inches above my head. "Yuri's a bit taller. They both have these really bright, unusual hair colours, pink and purple. You can't have missed them!"

Binns' clueless face suggested the exact opposite, which I supposed was fair enough. It would probably be pretty difficult to notice someone whilst fast asleep. On that note, could ghosts even see colours? I wasn't too certain, and it felt rude to ask.

You're procrastinating. Again.

"Uhm, y- y'know what, I'll just have a look around myself, yeah?" I stammered and backtracked, away from the ineffective substitute. "Thanks a million for your help!"

"Oh, yes… o- of course…" The Professor nodded automatically again, slowly blinking to himself as if not wholly sure our interaction had been real, or imaginary. "You… you're quite welcome, Monique…"

With an awkward wave, I finally turned a corner in between one of the many tall bookshelves scattered about, sparing the poor old ghost from having to pretend to do his job.

I sighed heavily and moved along the unintuitive, packed rows of labyrinthine shelves, glancing down the cramped spaces between each one as I intently searched for any bright flashes of pink and/or purple.

I wasn't the only one using their Sunday to peruse the library. Along the shelves I soon discovered half a dozen small pockets of students scattered at chairs, around tables, studying and just generally chatting in a very relaxed, cozy manner I knew would have never been dared if Pince had been present.

Upon arriving at an aisle near the 'Magical Plants' section, I even found one pudgy Neville Longbottom interestedly examining spines before noticing me, frightfully backing away straight into an unnoticed wall, and collapsing on the floor.

I grit my teeth impatiently and moved on as the downed boy scrambled to get back on his feet. If I knew the prejudices between our Houses well enough (and these day I was starting to get a pretty good idea of them) then chances were high he'd only be even more panicked if a Slytherin like me tried helping him back up.

Without wasting further time lamenting how frustrated this made me, I continued my search.

Come on… Where are they…? Sayori said they always read together in the library now that the Club's out of commission…

A part of me wished Sayori had gone with me as a bit of emotional support, but then again, her presence might've made everything even more uncomfortable considering the subject at hand. Maybe it was a good thing she was stuck in the Hospital Wing with an even worse cold than Pince- this felt like the sort of thing I had to do by myself.

I stopped briefly in front of a window, glancing outside at the grey, dreadful skies blasting the glass pane with intense wind and heavy raindrops.

They HAVE to be here, somewhere. Where else would they be in this weather?!

Even Flint had called off our training today after just one look at the Great Hall's enchanted ceiling. Expensive brooms or not, nobody wanted to get soiled.

And yet, as I focused a bit more on the varying shades of dull grey of the sky outside, I had to do a double take at discovering various tiny, red blobs zooming in the air directly over the nearby Quidditch pitch.

Gryffindor's… out there? I thought dimly, staring in disbelief at the faraway team. From what little I could make out past the rain, I was able to recognize the blobs' flying pattern as an actual, legit formation from the Quidditch Big Leagues, expertly replicated right there on our pitch.

What absolute troopers…

I caught myself experiencing a twinge of admiration at their sheer tenacity, as well as a notable desire to run out down there, ignore the rain and watch them play in person. It was never more than a fleeting feeling, however. Aside from it being yet another way for me to postpone this even further, the optics of a lone member from the opposing team going down to watch Gryffindor's training was highly suspicious, even to me.

Right, because I'm SUCH an established team player. That's definitely me. Totally.

With a light sigh, I tore myself away from the window and moved on, feeling no small amount of shame in my heart. I liked to think I would have been able to withstand and play in these weather conditions myself if need be, but without the rest of my supposed "team" to play with, there wasn't exactly much I could do to prove this claim.

I shook my head anew, angry at how easily I was allowing myself to become distracted from the task at hand. It was as though I was subconsciously searching for ways to put this off even longer.

I don't want to be here. I don't want to do this. My brow's kinda sweaty, maybe I've gotten a cold too! I should go to Madam Pomfrey just to be sure. Can't I do it next week, instead? Surely it can wait just a few more days…!

Exhaling, I turned to look down yet another purple and pink-less aisle, when-

"…not in the mood for this right now. Can't you give it a rest?"

A nearby female voice froze me in my tracks. Though it didn't belong to Natsuki, Yuri or Sayori, it was no less impactful.

Operating on pure instinct, I quickly dived between two unoccupied shelves, hiding myself from view as another, male voice spoke up.

"I just don't get it! What do you see in him? Please tell me it's not the hair!"

"Ron…"

"No, I'm serious Hermione! How can you still stand by him after all these screw-ups?! Literally, name one thing he's done right since he got here!"

Cautiously, I chanced a look around the corner, seeing the backs of two Gryffindor students a few feet away. My heart pounded just a little bit faster. Even if I hadn't just heard them clarify their names, I would have recognized them off their hair alone.

One of them a boy, tall for his age with unkempt hair so brightly orange he could only be a Weasley. The other a girl with thick, bushy brown hair who really didn't need any further introduction considering the circ*mstances.

Hermione Granger. The catalyst for everything going wrong for me lately- well, in a weird, indirect roundabout sort of way. Despite the long nights I'd spent awake lately by the thought of her and the impact she'd had on my life, it wasn't like I'd ever actually spoken to her.

The two of them were making their way toward the exit, continuing their argument with Hermione clutching a healthy stack of books under her arm, wholly oblivious to me staring from afar.

"Oh, come off it!" Hermione scoffed, sounding annoyed. "Small slip-ups happen to everyone from time to time, you can't honestly expect him to be a perfect wizard without any flaws!"

"Why not?" The Weasley scoffed. "That's how he portrays himself…"

…is that Harry Potter they're talking about? Aren't they supposed to be friends…? I caught myself idly pondering before noticing I was holding my breath.

Exhaling begrudgingly, I considered my next action. I hadn't counted on this happening at all, even though it seemed rather obvious in hindsight. A witch as clever as her, it only made sense to find her hanging around the library.

It was quite the inconvenience, honestly. When I'd walked in here, I'd only wanted to find my former Club members, not this. Not today. I wasn't at all ready to talk with her yet.

But I should. My fist clenched uncomfortably. After last Saturday, I owe her that much.

A relenting sigh shuddered past my lips. I was right, of course I was. Why did I keep putting these things off for as long as possible? It wasn't as if it got any easier the longer I waited. Quite the opposite, in fact.

I should have done it the very moment it happened. I'm such a coward.

Squeezing my eyes shut and ignoring all the primal instincts screaming how terrible an idea this was, I made my decision. Stepping out from my cover I began power-walking to the two Gryffindors, and, just to make absolutely sure I didn't suddenly get cold feet and abandoned the mission halfway through, I locked in the action by gently calling out to them.

"Uhm, G- Granger?!" I cringed at how croaky and hoarse my voice had gotten. "W- wait up!"

The two stopped abruptly, their conversation ending with an unfinished retort from Hermione as they turned in my direction. The moment they spotted me, I could feel what little remained of my courage wither away on the spot. Already their eyes were narrowing in obvious suspicion and mistrust as they recognized the green lining of my robes.

Can hardly blame them for that…

We stood like that for a few painful moments, neither of us saying anything. The words had died in my throat as I appreciated just how completely out of my depth I was, confronting her like this in a public library. I doubted I could have picked a set of circ*mstances any less ideal than these.

But then again, I struggled to imagine an alternate scenario where this would be any easier, so… I supposed this was as good as any.

"Yes?"

Hermione had broken the awkward silence in a brisk voice. I had to blink a few times to gather my wits again before contorting my face into what I hoped would come across as a kind, welcoming smile rather than some fake, Lockhart-esque embellishment.

I really just wanted this to go smoothly- despite how doubtful and unlikely that possibility seemed to be.

"Hi there!" I blurted out my attempt at a pleasant greeting, meeting her brown eyes. "I, uh- I don't think we've ever been formally introduced? I'm Monika, and of course everybody knows who you are, ahaha…"

Did that sound like a genuine laugh? Was it too high? Does she think I'm mocking her?!

"…and you're- Ron Weasley, wasn't it?" I went on, glancing over at the redhead. "I- I hope you're feeling better after… uhm, y'know…"

A brief image flashed before my eyes of the same boy, kneeling on the Quidditch pitch in full view of both our teams all the while puking up a cascade of large, wiggling, slimy slugs.

Judging from the grave expression and deepening crimson of his ears, I would guess he'd just experienced a very similar flashback.

…probably shouldn't have brought that up. Why did I even do that?!

Having no idea where else to go from here, I lifted a very stiff, automatic arm towards them, extending my hand.

"What do you want?" The Weasley boy growled, adamantly ignoring my gesture. I lowered my arm again, quietly deciding to just stop going for handshakes altogether. They never seemed to work out right.

"R- right, sorry, I'll get to the point." I nodded seriously, feeling my own face flush up. I turned back to face Hermione. "I- I should have done this much sooner, but… I just wanted to apologize for what happened at the Pitch last week. When Draco called you– uhm…"

I paused mid-sentence, unsure.

"…I'm not sure if I'm even allowed to repeat it?" I finished hesitantly. "The 'M-word,' I guess?"

"Why?" Hermione asked tersely, meeting my eyes with a hard glare. At this point I was sure they both recognized me as the sole girl on the Slytherin Quidditch team. Everything about her stance made me anxious she was going to punch me in the face at any moment. Mind, as far as I was concerned, she had every right to do just that. "What's it to you?"

I hesitated for about half a second, trying to work out the best approach. With one final damning deep breath, I forced myself to ignore all of the surrounding distractions, shutting off the library at large until all that remained was me, him, and her.

It didn't matter who else might be staring our way. I'd put this off for long enough already, and it needed to be said.

"Thing is…" I began, exhaling again. "…I've been… using the word myself, actually. Privately, in company, wherever. In fact, ever since I arrived at Hogwarts and learned where you came from, I've pretty much just thought of you as 'that… M-word girl,' really."

Hermione's steel-like gaze hardened into daggers. Next to her, Ron Weasley's scowl deepened in pure disgust. I wondered briefly if the unreliable state of his spello-taped wand (the one that'd backfired and caused the aforementioned slug curse) was the only thing keeping him from cursing me right here and now.

Gosh, I'm bad at this.

"Okay." Hermione managed to say after a short pause, her voice one of forced, icy calm. "Why tell me? What point are you trying to make?"

"Right." I nodded, just as keen to move on. "Two weeks ago, I mentioned you… like that… in front of my friends. Non-Slytherin friends, that is. And they- they got really upset with me. So much so they… don't want to be my friends a- anymore."

I had to take a second's pause from my explanation to gather my wits, forcing myself not to lose it in front of them. This was supposed to be an apology, not a self-pity party.

Ron and Hermione both stayed quiet, their expressions unreadable as they waited for me to continue.

"I- I could say I didn't know what the word actually meant." I went on. "My family, friends and pretty much everyone in my House casually use it all the time, so it would be an easy argument to make. But… it'd also be a lie. I mean, obviously I knew it was a derogatory term for Muggleborn witches and wizards. Maybe it'd be more accurate to say I didn't know about its history or the effect it has on people. I thought my friends were just being overly sensitive and freaking out over nothing until… until I heard Draco at the Pitch."

"You filthy little Mudblood!"

I suppressed a shudder. Though it'd already been over a week, his snarling voice still rang in my head, clear as it'd been on the day when he'd practically spat it in Hermione's face. Though obviously I was familiar with the word in question, I'd never heard it said with so much hate and contempt before.

It'd actually frightened me a little bit. I could remember just standing there with the rest of my team, shell-shocked and unable to do anything but stare as the scene played out before me. The outrage of the Gryffindors competing with the cheering hoots of my fellow Slytherins, celebrating Draco.

It was only then I'd realized my personal opinion on the word didn't matter. Based on those reactions, it was clear as day there was more to it than I'd thought.

"I… still don't really know the full background of the word, to be honest…"

I maintained eye contact with Hermione, and I wasn't sure if her fierce expression had lessened just a fraction, or if that was just wishful thinking on my part. It didn't really matter. All I knew was I needed to get all this stuff that'd been weighing on me off my chest, now.

"…but I'm starting to realize how severe it is to… people like you. I know ignorance doesn't excuse the things I've said behind your back, but I just wanted to apologize and tell you personally that I don't approve of what happened. I don't… I don't want to blindly hate the people around me. In fact, I- I'm considering leaving the Quidditch Team. Only joined because I love the game, but the way Draco's been acting, forcing us to use his brooms and everything else… it's not what I wanted at all."

I could feel the threatening signs of tears emerge from the corner of my eye, and tilted my head downwards, angry with myself. Ugh, why was I such a girl about this?! I wasn't the victim here, the people like Sayori and Hermione were! I had no right whatsoever to start bawling over how 'tough' and 'unfair' my life was.

Pull yourself together!

"I'm r- rambling again." I sniffled like the pathetic baby I was. "Sorry, d- didn't mean to waste your time. I understand if you hate me now, I've h- hated myself for a while now. I just wanted to let you know that I don't… I don't hate you. Maybe I did before, I'm not sure. But… n- not anymore. I'll leave you alone now…"

I turned on the spot, desperate to get as far away as possible, but before I could take so much as a single step-

"Monika, wait!"

Hermione's sharp voice stopped me in my tracks, freezing me in place more effectively than if she'd cast a full body-bind on me. Slowly, cautiously, I chanced looking back at her.

She was still frowning heavily, but her eyes… somehow their stare seemed less steely than before, more… conflicted. They were shifting around, looking all over my face as if searching for something. Insincerity, maybe?

"Okay, look. I… I appreciate you telling me this." She finally admitted in a hesitant, unsure voice. "But you really don't have to worry about me. One of the perks about growing up with Muggles is I never had to meet jerks like Malfoy calling me names before. I actually didn't even know what Mudblood meant before Ron explained it to me."

"…oh." I murmured stupidly. Idly, I recalled back to Sayori's similar, confused reaction and blushed awkwardly.

I'm an idiot.

"…I have a hard time telling with Slytherins." She continued with a deep sigh. "But from what I can see, you seem pretty genuine. And if that's really the case, well, I suppose I forgive you then."

"I don't." Ron added brutally, only to cry out in pain when Hermione bashed a sideways elbow at him.

"Oh shut it, this isn't about you!" She told him irritably.

I blinked slowly as if waking from a daze, barely able to believe what I was hearing.

"I- I don't- thank you!" I managed to sputter out in a barely coherent manner, overwhelmed with raw emotion as I quickly wiped my eyes with a sleeve. "I- I definitely don't deserve that, but-"

"Enough." Hermione cut me off impatiently. "Now, as for your other point, I don't really care that much about Quidditch. But do me a favor, and stay on the Team. Don't quit your dream because of someone like Malfoy, that weasel doesn't deserve the satisfaction. Take his money and fancy brooms and use them to your own advantage. Make people realize you're better than him by being better than him."

Flabbergasted at her advice, I managed a weak nod.

"…okay. I- I will." I stammered obediently, thinking it best not to argue with her command. After everything I'd done, it seemed only fair. "Thank you for… listening to me, I suppose."

There was no mistaking her expression this time around. Hermione's face softened entirely into a pleasant, forthcoming smile.

"No problem." She said warmly. "It's… nice to know there's at least one decent Slytherin at Hogwarts."

She then extended her own hand towards me.

With some hesitation, I reached out and shook it. Though the gesture itself was simple, it somehow seemed to make all the remaining tension around us vanish on the spot, enough to render me completely speechless.

"That being said…" Hermione relinquished her hold on my hand and shot me a teasing wink. "…I'll still be rooting for Harry to beat you in the upcoming match. No offense."

Despite my emotions resembling a heap of freshly squeezed, tattered lemon peels, I actually giggled. It was the first time I'd done so in the last two weeks, and the feeling was indescribable.

"None taken!" I assured her, feeling a small surge of my old fire returning. "But I'll be giving it my best to prevent that from happening!"

As much as a Keeper CAN do against a Seeker, anyway…

"You'd better." She said warningly. "If I see you taking it easy on him up there, I'll definitely start hating you!"

My giggling developed into full blown laughter, which she soon joined in on. Next to us, Ron Weasley was staring and shaking his head in silent befuddlement, as though witnessing a conversation taking place in a completely different language. When Hermione and I finally said our goodbyes (I had to resist the impulse to ask if she wanted to join the Literature Club- it just seemed like that'd be a bit much at the moment) he looked immensely relieved it was all over.

I waved and watched them walk off with butterflies fluttering in my stomach and a sense like several pounds had been lifted off my back. I exhaled deeply as the library gradually made its return to my focus once again, and felt a strong surge of pride and gratitude swell up within me for going through talking to her. All of a sudden, my problems didn't really seem quite so hopeless and insurmountable anymore.

If I could become friendly with Hermione Granger of all people, then of course I could accomplish the same with my Club members. As of this moment, there was no doubt in my mind that I could get everything right again!

Then, a mildly intrusive cough sounded as someone behind me cleared their throat.

"Well. That was certainly something."

Every drop of my newfound confidence ebbed away faster than if someone had cast an evaporation charm at me. I turned in a slow, mechanical motion to identify the source of the dry, unimpressed voice I'd just heard, feeling my residual smile drop and my eyes widening as I did so.

Standing right behind me with her back turned, idly inspecting the spines on a bookshelf marked 'HISTORY,' stood a tall, second year girl with long, flowing purple hair. As she casually pulled out a thick, dark green book I was granted a look at her face which was locked in a state of cold, emotionless neutrality.

"Y- Yuri?" I croaked out in shock, taken aback by her sudden presence. How long had she been standing there?!

"Monika." She replied calmly, without sparing me so much as a passing glance.

I swallowed, my prior anxiety at entering the library returning to me at full strength. My throat dry, I found myself at a loss for what to say.

It was only when Yuri, apparently satisfied with her book pull, turned around and motioned to walk away again that I regained some motor control.

"W- wait!" I called out as loud as I dared, wobbling after her whilst trying to keep my voice at a library-acceptable level. Not because I was scared of getting reprimanded by Binns (I honestly doubted he would even notice if everyone suddenly started an impromptu rock concert right in front of him) but more to avoid drawing the attention of the students studying around us. I was sure I'd embarrassed myself enough in here already. "Yuri, look, I'm so sorry-"

"I already heard everything you said to Hermione, Monika." Yuri spoke over me, stopping up mid-stride. "Saying it again would just be an exercise in repetition."

I had to stop as well, thrown off by her clinical tone. There was no anger, annoyance, or any sense of emotion to it whatsoever- it was just… blank.

She spun around to face me, and I was treated to the same intense stare she'd had when leaving the Club, the one that felt like she was staring straight into my soul and silently judged every action I'd ever taken in my life.

It was a far cry from the usual mild-mannered and stuttering demeanor I'd come to know from her, like a completely separate personality. I had no idea she could be this intimidating when she really wanted to. I actually found myself… genuinely scared.

"Now," She went on in the same dignified monotone. "Did you merely wish to spout off more useless excuses, or is there something you actually require from me?"

Though my instincts told me to retreat at once from this terrifying presence towering before me, I stood my ground determinedly. I had a job to do here, and by Merlin was I gonna do it. I owed as much to my friends.

"Yes." I responded earnestly, forcing myself to meet her deathly stare. "I… I need your help."

"Oh?" Beyond a light head tilt, Yuri had no discernable reaction to my statement.

"It makes no sense!" I said, finally voicing the biggest problem I'd had since the very beginning of this mess, out loud. "Now that I know Sayori is Muggleborn, I- I can't realistically believe what my parents have told me. There's no way someone like her would steal magic from another person. But, it's just… it's the only thing I've heard my entire life. It's hard to shake off."

"I can see how such pre-conceived notions could be difficult to let go." Yuri said, keeping her sculpted stone features neutral and uncommitted. She offered no further elaboration.

"I want to learn the truth." I urged. "I need to know the truth! But I don't have the first idea where to look for it! It's not like there's anyone at Slytherin who can help me find it!"

"Not likely, no." Yuri agreed simply.

"Please, Yuri." I pleaded, desperately. "You're the smartest person I know. If anyone can provide me with unbiased, factual info, it's you! I understand if you never want to see or talk to me again, but if you could just give me a nudge in the right direction. That's all I'll need from you."

At this, the lavenderette surprised me by closing her eyes and letting out a great, relenting sigh. I anxiously held my breath when she began speaking.

"I wasn't really angry when I heard you say the word." She admitted, her voice still neutral but much softer than before. "Just… disappointed. You're a very admirable, hard-working witch, Monika, and I've always been impressed with your abilities. You can do things that none of us could ever dream of. In many ways, you were the best of us."

"I… what?!" I blurted out in shock, having not expected the conversation to take this kind of turn at all. "No, I- I'm not better than any of y-"

"Stop that." Yuri silenced me at once with one sharp look. "Yes, we all have specific strengths we excel at, but we also have our major, glaring flaws. You may not have as much raw talent as Natsuki does, but you can actually talk to other people without getting into fights. And while Sayori's energy and social prowess is unparalleled and I love her dearly, she clearly has shortcomings in classes as well as recognizing personal boundaries. To put it in simple terms, you're a jack of all trades, while sharing none of our weaknesses."

I stared back blankly, having no idea if I should feel flattered or impressed at her analysis. I definitely didn't agree with the assessment, (how could she say 'I could talk to people without getting into fights' when this entire rift between us had been caused by something I'd said?!) but now didn't seem like the time to argue semantics. Instead, I decided to wait for Yuri to finish her point.

"That's why I thought it such a shame to hear such unfounded, hate-based belief coming from you." She explained, harshly. "It really lessened you a great deal in my mind."

"I… I understand." I muttered, feeling my cheeks flushing with shame. "I betrayed the trust you all put in me. I'm so sorry."

There was a pause that felt like it went on for much longer than it probably did. Then, just as I was starting to think this was all Yuri had to say to me and wanted me to go away again, I saw her… smile?

"Here." She said not unkindly, and handed me the green book she'd pulled from the shelf. Mute with stunned surprise, I lifted my arms weakly and took it, glancing down at the golden-lettered cover:

"Mistreatment of Muggles through the Millennia."
By Markus L. Parsley

"Why don't you have a seat?" Yuri called gently for my attention, and I looked up with wide eyes to see her offering a seat at a nearby empty table. "You can read the book here with me while I catch up on some homework. If you have trouble understanding anything, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Y- you'll actually help me?!" I gasped, unable to process this sudden mood twist. "J- just like that, after everything I did?!"

"Oh, Monika. I've wanted to help you ever since you said the word" She calmly explained. "But I needed you to want it first and seek it out on your own. Otherwise, I knew you wouldn't be receptive to any information that might contradict your pre-taught beliefs."

I blinked rapidly, still struggling to understand.

"Also, I'll admit watching you squirm was… very amusing." She went on with an uncharacteristically smug smirk.

"…I literally can't believe you!" I exclaimed breathlessly, equally outraged as I was over the moon in euphoric, celebratory relief. Tentatively I accepted the offered seat across from her, still anticipating some other shoe to drop. "You're actually… evil!"

"Mm…" Yuri hummed with a non-committed shrug. "I feel that's a matter of perspective. For instance, Natsuki told me I was being 'way too soft' on you."

"Wait. Natsuki's here?!" I whipped my head around, glancing in every direction to spot any flashes of pink. I'd almost gotten out of the chair before noticing Yuri's frown of denial.

"…you just missed her." She stated apologetically. "She snuck out the moment she noticed your presence. I'd reckon she's probably made it to the Gryffindor Common Room by now."

"Damn it…" I cursed softly, balling my hand into a disappointed fist.

"I'm afraid you'll have a much harder time convincing her to give you a second chance than me…" Yuri admitted. "To put it mildly, she's… a bit more upset with you than I was."

"Makes sense, I suppose…" I gave a sigh of my own to calm down again. Resolving things with Hermione, Yuri and Natsuki all in the span of one afternoon was admittedly a bit of a lofty goal. Though it still felt like a defeat, I had to tell myself to just take what I could get. "…can I ask how bad it is?"

"Well…" She hesitated slightly. "…put it like this. Normally when Natsuki dislikes someone she'll take every opportunity she gets to confront that individual head on, yell at them, challenge them and beat them in a duel or what-not. With you however, she's seemingly chosen to go out of her way to avoid you at all costs. I don't wish to speak on her behalf, but this refusal to even acknowledge your existence suggests to me that she probably… hates you more than anyone else at the moment."

"Oh, joy." I sighed, suddenly tired. "How wonderful. Can't wait for that reunion…"

"Indeed…" Yuri nodded darkly. "But I wouldn't despair too hard. What you're doing right now is a good first step in the right direction, and I'm proud of you for taking it. I would hazard to guess that with a little bit of time and luck, you'll be able to gain her forgiveness and become friends again."

"So, uhm…" I began, awkwardly tracing a finger along the cover of my new book. "A- are we friends again, then…?"

Afraid to even hope, I chanced a peek upwards only to find my fear completely misplaced. Stretched along her face, I saw a large, warm and beaming smile.

"Of course we are." She assured me with an inviting gesture towards the book in my lap. "Now, are you ready to begin?"

I felt the first genuine smile in two weeks emerge across my face as I opened the book.

"Let's." I agreed in a wobbly voice thick with emotion.

Chapter 7: Sayori’s Negotiations

Chapter Text

POV: SAYORI

"Wow, that's so cool! Even the drawings move! How do they even do that?!"

"Magic. Shut up."

"No- and the art is so weird, they don't look at all like normal comic books! Why's it all black and white?! Why're their eyes so detailed?!"

"It's not a comic book, it's manga! Go away."

"No- what's the difference, anyway? Oooh, I like that one, she's pretty! What's her name?!"

"Minori. Leave me alone."

"No- hey, d'you reckon Harry Potter likes comics…?!"

Moving at a pace so soft and discreet that I was sure I could easily be referred to as completely invisible, I gently peeked around the corner of the archway I was hiding behind one last time, just to make absolutely sure 'The Target' was still within range.

Immediately I spotted them, dead ahead at the end of the corridor on one of the many spacious window sills all around Hogwarts. I'd seen many students using these spots as makeshift benches all over the place- their low placement over the floor and their curvature made them an ideal place to sit when you just needed a bit of space with a great view to study by yourself- or, as was the case here, with a partner!

I felt the lower half of my face twist itself into a pleased smirk as I took in the small pinkette from afar, sitting with her legs crossed and her back leaned up against the smooth glass behind her. A very jaded expression bordering on annoyance lined her elfish face as she glared determinedly down at the open, bright pink manga clutched in her fists.

Sitting right next to her was a boy so remarkably tiny that he made even Natsuki look tall in comparison. His short stubby legs dangled over the edge of the window sill, kicking against the stone wall below in ongoing, rhythm-less beats. He had scruffy, light brown hair and a face that exuded raw excitement as he craned his neck high as he could to peek over Natsuki's shoulder. A very large, rectangular and heavy-looking camera was resting on his tiny chest, strapped around his neck.

"-I love comic books, I have a ton of them at me dad's!" The boy continued unrelentingly. "Spider-Man, Ninja Turtles, X-Men- once, me and me brother even got to peek at a Punisher issue before dad noticed! You know Punisher?! He's this guy with a skull on his chest who shoots criminals so they die! Dennis had nightmares for a week straight afterwards, but I only had them for three days, it was awesome! I wonder if Harry Potter could read it!"

"Manga…" Natsuki growled exhaustedly, in a voice that suggested she'd repeated herself at least twenty times already. "…is not the same… as comic books!"

As the boy divulged into another rapid-fire stream of words asking why the two genres weren't the same, I retreated back into my hiding corner. My satisfied smirk however, remained right where it was.

Bingo. I thought. She's right where we want her.

I snapped my fingers soundlessly, forming my hands into make-believe guns that I aimed directly at the person next to me- giving her our carefully planned "go ahead" signal.

On the opposite side of the carved archway, Yuri swallowed nervously, for some reason looking anything but confident in our Master Plan. With a skeptical glance, she quietly mouthed the words "are you sure?" at me- or at least, that's what I thought she was trying to say. It wasn't like I was the best lip-reader in the world, but it made more sense than "ah, bonjour!"

Regardless, I flashed the go ahead signal again, a bit more firmly this time. This prompted a relenting sigh before she finally nodded and reached into both her pockets, pulling out a bright pink wrapped toffee from yesterday's Hallowe'en Feast in one hand, and a pale wand in the other.

My smile broadened as I watched Yuri lightly tapping the toffee with her wand, and near inaudibly muttered the words "Wingardium Leviosa."

The toffee rustled slightly before gracefully rising from Yuri's palm as if pulled upwards by an invisible string. As my heart began beating faster, I thought about how smart I'd been to have Yuri perform the spell- with how excited I was getting at seeing my Master Plan becoming reality, chances were high I would've flubbed it midway through.

I looked on with bated breath as Yuri swished and flicked her wand forwards, directing the floating candy through the archway and into the corridor, towards our target. It took all of my willpower to contain a giggle of anticipation and keep silent. This was it. We'd done the thing exactly right, and all we needed now was to wait for her to take notice.

However, she didn't. Someone else had beaten her to it.

"…wooow!" I heard the boy's awestruck gasp, interrupting his own completely unrelated tangent. I could easily imagine his amazed, wide-eyed stare at the toffee drifting ever closer towards them, and could practically see him feverishly tapping Natsuki's shoulder to get her attention. "Suki, Suki look! Up there!"

"Put down the camera, Colin." Natsuki commanded tiredly. "And stop calling me Suki!"

"But look!" Colin urged. "What is that?! Candy?!"

I then heard two faint sliding noises in tandem, informing me that both boy and girl had left the window sill, quickly followed by approaching footsteps.

Yes! I thought ecstatically. It's actually working!

There was a low rustle of crinkling paper being unwrapped, and then a brief pause.

"What is it?!" Colin's voice asked again.

"There's a note attached to it…" Natsuki mumbled softly. "Says 'follow for more,' but the 'for' is just the number four."

I flashed the finger-gun signal at Yuri again, who quickly dug up another wrapped candy, and repeated the spell. This time, she made it drift enticingly just in front of our archway.

Once again, it didn't take long before another ecstatic outcry could be heard from Colin.

"Look! Look, look, look! There's another one! That must be the 'more' the first one talked about!"

As the sound of footsteps came closer, I silently gestured a shaking thumb at Yuri, another signal we'd established previously. We both quickly dived out of sight behind two gigantic empty armor displays, as we waited for Natsuki to enter and grab this candy too. I hoped Yuri would remember the plan well enough without my guidance and keep the lures going all the way to the Literature Club.

But then, something unexpected happened.

"Colin, wait. Natsuki instructed sharply, and the approaching steps abruptly died before they'd even crossed the archway. Before I even had time to wonder what was going on, she spoke again in an overbearingly mocking tone.

"Just how dumb do you think I am, guys?!"

Carefully, I peeked over the marble stand of the armor display, seeing Yuri echoing my move across from me. Her purple eyes nestled between the metal feet of the armor were wide with panic as they glanced towards the archway.

I wanted to mouth words of comfort, reassuring her that Natsuki was bluffing and there wasn't any possible way she could have figured out our Master Plan. But then, Natsuki's commanding voice rang out again.

"Accio candies!"

Stunned in place, I watched as our remaining bait of a dozen or so wrapped Hallowe'en toffees rapidly darted out from Yuri's hiding spot, zooming through the air like pellets from a rainbow slingshot directly towards Natsuki's voice.

There was an overwhelming, deafening silence for a bit where my brain worked overtime in trying to come to terms with what'd just happened. I never got that far however, before a long shadow was cast into the corridor as Natsuki willingly entered, carrying with her an open purple rucksack overflowing with our candy, and an exceptionallysmug grin.

"Seriously, Yuri?" The pinkette snickered, looking directly at my armor stand. "That was your big play here?"

"It- it was S- Sayori's idea!" Yuri confessed at once in a shrill voice, standing up and revealing herself, eyes screaming out her guilt and shame. I groaned under my breath as I recognized our defeat and followed suit.

We were treated to one of the most condescending looks I'd ever seen on Natsuki as she looked us both over in turn, calmly unwrapping the first toffee Yuri had sent out.

"Thanks for the free candy!" She bowed sarcastically, throwing it high into the air and caught it effortlessly with her mouth. "Been looking for excuses to practice my Summoning Charm!"

I gave a hesitant smile, trying my hardest to make it look like this had been our plan all along. If we wanted any hope of succeeding with our mission, keeping her in a good mood was vital.

"Uh- no prob, Nat!" I shrugged casually. "Glad we could help!"

"Wow, hey guys!" Came a familiar squeaky noise as Colin waddled up to Natsuki's side. "Who are you?! What are you doing here?! Was that your candy?! Your hair's purple! Can I take your picture?!"

"Uhm, I- I'd rather you n- not, if that's o- okay…" Yuri stammered shyly, idly brushing some hair in front of her blushing face as some kind of very ineffective camouflage.

The boy either didn't hear or simply didn't care about her lack of consent as he'd already raised the oversized camera to his face and aimed it straight at her face. She was saved however when Natsuki casually lunged a hand to the side, grabbed the lens' nozzle and firmly lowered the device again.

"Remember what we talked about, Colin." She warned, a light shadow of annoyance clouding her otherwise gleeful face. "Absolutely no pictures when you're around me!"

"But she's so tall and pretty!" The boy protested unabashedly, causing Yuri to flush up even further and redouble the efforts to conceal her face from view.

"I don't really care. You can take all the pictures you want of me, if you'd like!" I offered, immediately gaining Colin's full attention as he let out an excited, high-pitched squee of joy, zipped under Natsuki's arm to close the distance between us and wasted no further time in abusing his camera's trigger button.

Wanting to give him the best material to work with, I grinned as wide as I could and planted my hands on the back of my head and hips, trying to copy the poses I'd seen on women magazine covers at the shops.

"Anyway…" Natsuki said tersely, shaking her head in disapproval at the multitude of clicks and flashes I was receiving from the hyper-enthused first year. He must have lowered the brightness function a bit since the first day, as they weren't nearly as blinding as Natsuki had told us- though they did still sting my eyes a bit. "…were you guys seriously planning on luring me all the way back with a trail of floating candy? Do I look like Crabbe and Goyle to you?"

I blushed and pushed my fingers together, feeling awkward.

"Ehehehe… sorry." I giggled. "You're right, we shouldn't have done that. No more clever schemes from us."

"Right…" Natsuki scoffed, biting down on another caramel. "'Clever scheme.' Let's just call it that."

"Cards on the table, then." I moved on, serious now. "Would you please give the Club another ch-"

"No." Natsuki refused before I could even finish the question.

"Club? You guys have a Club?!" Colin piped up, momentarily ceasing snapping pics of me. "What's it about, comic books?! Can I joi-"

"No!" Natsuki repeated, a bit firmer this time.

"B- but…" I blinked, trying to recover. "W- why n-"

"Simple." Natsuki spoke over me again, and swallowed her mouthful. "Here, I'll spell it out for ya: Monika. f*cking. Sucks! Case closed, buh-bye, see ya again never!"

"Uhm…" Yuri began unsurely. "D- don't you think that's just a bit… narrow-minded?"

"Narrow-minded?!" Natsuki sputtered, snapping her head towards the taller girl, disbelief etched on her face. "She was the one who said Mud- I mean, that word! That's like, the textbook definition for narrow-mindedness!"

"But she apologized!" I argued. "To me, Yuri, and Hermione Granger!"

"Wow, good for her!" Natsuki said, unimpressed. "Still not buying it. She's just trying to save face after the fact, but it's all fake garbage."

"But… you haven't even heard it?" Yuri pointed out hesitantly. "You've run away every time she's tried approaching you."

"I know. And I'll keep doing so." She announced proudly. "Don't you guys get it? This isn't some tiny little 'oopsie-daisy' you slip up with and then erase again with a few dragon tears and saying 'sowwy!' You don't come back from this. She's done, and if we never speak to each other again, it'll be too f*cking soon!"

"Natsuki…" I groaned again, lightly exasperated. While I loved her just as much as any of my friends, it could get so frustrating when she got all stubborn like this!

"Don't 'Natsuki…' me!" She huffed, placing both hands on her hips.

"Can't you just hear her out?" I tried diplomatically. "You don't have to forgive her, you don't even have to say or do anything at all. Just listen to her for like, five minutes, tops?"

"No." Came her flat response. "I don't want to give her even the slightest opportunity to manipulate me again!"

"Manipulate you?" Yuri repeated, furrowing her brows. "What do you mean?"

"Don't act like you don't know!" Natsuki rolled her eyes impatiently. "It's all she ever does! She pretends to be this 'normal, regular schoolgirl' who's 'totally not evil at all!' but it's all lies! A façade she puts on to get into yer head and make you think that 'hey, maybe she's not so bad after all!' when really she's just like any other stinking Snake! And she's good at it, too! So good, she even had me fooled for a while! I'm not letting her do that to me again!"

"It… kind of sounds like you're scared you might forgive Monika if you heard out her apology…" Yuri suggested musingly, only to go pale and trail off after a deadly glare from Natsuki.

"I'm not scared of her." She drawled, voice dripping with venom. "I'm just… Ugh, look, it's like this: There're clear, defined lines that separates everyone on earth. The few good people like Neville Longbottom, Sayori, and mostly you, Yuri…"

"Pardon?" Yuri frowned, but was spoken over.

"…and then we have the bad people, the ones nobody should ever waste their time talking or listening to, because spoiler alert, they're f*cking bad!" Natsuki finished. "Now, can you guess which side Monika falls on? I'll give ya a hint- it's not the good!"

"That seems... remarkably simplified." Yuri commented with restrain.

"Thank you!" Natsuki smiled as though she'd received the highest of praise.

"All because she said one word?!" I snapped, interrupting a winky-face pose for Colin in order to fix her with a look. "Natsuki, that's stupid!"

"Is not!" She stood her ground defiantly, meeting my eyes head on. "Look, it's not just the word, but the mentality behind it! By saying it, she's basically announced her hatred for you, Colin, Granger and every other Muggleborn at Hogwarts!"

"Me?!" Colin exclaimed, glancing up from his camera with an impressed look. "Cool!"

"Not cool!" Natsuki corrected furiously. "Scram!"

The boy remained where he was, ignoring her command.

"Monika doesn't hate me." My voice was harder than I'd intended. "And I don't hate her, either."

"-TT-" Natsuki scoffed spitefully. "You should…"

"I just don't get it." I scratched my head, genuinely trying (and failing) to follow her logic. "You're so cross with her for saying the word, but you won't listen when she tries to say sorry. What do you even want her to do?"

"Nothing." She replied, harshly. "I don't care what she does, as long as she does it as far away from me as possible!"

"Since when did you become such a champion for Muggleborn rights, Natsuki?" Yuri asked curiously.

"I'm not." Nat denied. "I just know anyone using the M-word deserves having their arse kicked, simple as that. What I don't get is why you of all people would be so quick to forgive her!"

She pointed at me, almost accusingly.

"Me?" I clarified, confused. "Why would I have a problem? I didn't even know what Mudblood meant until recently!"

"What's a Mudblood?" Colin asked curiously. Nobody answered.

"Really?" Natsuki narrowed her eyes at me, suspiciously. "You're telling me you weren't even the least bit bothered?"

I paused briefly, considering her words.

A tale of Mopey Girls and Handsome Boys.

"…Sayori? You okay?"

The Mopey Girl flinched lightly in her seat before glancing up from her barely read copy of Gadding with Ghouls. She found a tall, brownhaired boy standing behind her, looking down with a look of mild worry on his handsome face

She swallowed a lump in her throat before lighting up into a big, bright smile that everyone would love.

"CD, hey!" She exclaimed cheerily. "Uh y- yeah, I'm fantastic, it's so great to finally be back! What about you, did you have a good summer?"

But the Handsome Boy didn't smile back, instead narrowing his brilliant grey eyes as he flickered between her and her book.

"Yeah, summer was fun…" He replied briefly, and sat down next to her on the yellow sofa. "Uh- by the way, you might have an easier time reading that if you turn it the right side up…"

Eyes widening in shocked realization, The Mopey Girl's head snapped back to look at the pages before her, only to discover all the letters were indeed upside down. With a face quickly going a bright, embarrassed red, she shakily flipped her book around, correcting the mistake.

"Ehehehe…" She let out a giggle that was just a bit too high-pitched. "Whoopsie, t- totally didn't notice! This is d- definitely easier, thanks Cedri-"

"Come on, Sayo." The Handsome Boy's voice was serious, but mercifully soft-spoken. Clearly he didn't want to make a big deal out of this which she did appreciate despite it all. "I can see something's up. It's your first day back at school, and you're sitting here pretending to read instead of bouncing around the place. Why don't you try and tell me what happened?"

Recognizing that she didn't really have any other options, The Mopey Girl let out a great, relenting sigh before speaking up.

"Do... do you know if it's possible for someone to steal all magic from another wizard?" She asked quietly.

The Handsome Boy's handsome brows furrowed, staining his beautiful chiseled features with an ugly frown. Why couldn't he just smile instead? She liked it better when he smiled…

"I… don't really know. Maybe?" He admitted unsurely. "It'd have to be some pretty powerful dark magic though."

The Mopey Girl didn't respond, merely glancing away from the boy to mope further. She knew her own frown would be way worse than his, and didn't want to gross him out with such an unattractive sight. That'd just be selfish…

"Why do you ask?" He inquired further after a tick.

For a moment she considered not telling him, to instead make up some story rather than telling the truth. But she quickly discarded the idea, knowing he would easily see through any of her lies just as he'd done with the upside down book.

"…do you know what a 'Mudblood' is?" She asked quietly, chancing another look up at him.

She wished she hadn't.

The Handsome Boy's eyes widened with shock, his face going a deathly pale as though he'd just witnessed some terrible crime. Staring intensely, he reached out to place a shaky hand on her shoulder in a move she wasn't sure was meant to calm HER, or HIM.

"Did someone call you that?!" He asked urgently. "Who?!"

"Uhm… j- just…" She stuttered, starting to get frightened. "just… some girl…?"

She didn't want to give up her name. Though the Handsome Boy normally got on quite well with the Pretty Girl, something told her he wouldn't be quite so forgiving in this case…

"A Slytherin?!" He clarified with a sneer.

She could only nod haphazardly. The Handsome Boy looked outraged, but not at all surprised.

"Okay," he uttered his next words in a voice of forced calm. "Here's what we're going to do. Tomorrow at breakfast, I want you to point them out to me. Then, I'll go have a talk with her in private-"

The muted anger in his tone made it clear he had no intention of talking to anyone. He suddenly paused as though something had just dawned on him.

"Wait…" He said slowly. "You… said a girl did this?

She nodded weakly.

"Uhm- okay then." He said, strangely forlorn. "I… probably shouldn't talk to her then- wait, I've got it! Chloé Ditty's Beater on our Quidditch team, she's pretty strong! I'm sure she'll be more than happy to have a word with this Snake if I ask her-"

"No!" The Mopey Girl protested, surprising The Handsome Boy as well as herself. "I don't want you or anyone else to 'talk,' or 'have words with,' or whatever to anyone at Slytherin because of me! Just… leave it alone!"

The Handsome Boy looked taken aback by the outburst, which only made her feel even worse. Why did she always have to make everyone so miserable just by being around them? Mopey Girl? More like Moodkiller.

"But Sayori…" He started again, shakily. "We- we can't just let them get away with saying these things. You have to report it to someo-"

"Is it true?" She asked quietly.

"…what?"

"Is it true?" She repeated, more firmly this time. "Did I really steal my magic from someone else?"

"I- no!" The Handsome Boy established adamantly. "Of course you didn't, that's ridiculous!"

She frowned, unconvinced.

"Then how come I'm a witch when nobody else in my family is?"

The gaping, flabbergasted expression on his face wasn't pleasant at all to look at, and she did feel guilty for continuing to dump this on him. But, the damage had already been done. She might as well go all out.

"…I- I don't know!" He finally sputtered helplessly. "It's just… a thing that happens sometimes! I- I'm not exactly an expert on it!

"So it could be true, then?" She clarified, emotionally empty.

"No! Absolutely not!" He said, and The Mopey Girl could hear the impatience and frustration growing inside him. She was probably starting to get on his nerves, annoying as she was. "C'mon, Sayo, how would you even pull something like that off?"

"Y- Yuri once told me young witches and wizards can do really powerful magic that even adults have trouble with." She explained, her voice quivering.

"I mean… I guess?" He replied unsurely, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. "I've never heard about anything on this scale before, though…"

"Maybe I did it when I was really small and nobody noticed." She suggested vaguely. "Stole the magic from an ACTUAL, Pureblood witch and kept it for myself…"

She could just picture the faceless child before her, living in the magical world but doomed to a miserable life where they'd never be able to cast a single spell. All because of her.

"Sayori, please, listen to yourself!" The Handsome Boy pleaded. "Even IF that was possible, which I highly doubt it is, you wouldn't have been able to steal magic without having magic yourself!"

She didn't reply. He sighed.

"Look, I'm a bonehead." He admitted. "Complete rocks-for-brains here. Someone once told me I had the IQ of a guacamole, and more often than not I think they might actually be right."

"What?!" The Mopey Girl exclaimed, scandalized. "No, that's not true, you're one of the smartest guys-"

"Ha!" He interrupted with a short bark of a laugh. "I'm really, really not. If Cho wasn't sweet enough to take pity on me and help me over the holidays, there's no way I would have even passed my second year. Point is, I'm a dummy. If you want the hard, scientific explanation for why kids from Muggle homes are sometimes born with magic while other Wizarding kids are born without it, she can do a much better job than I can."

She wasn't sure how to respond to that. So, she didn't.

"That being said, even I know Muggleborns like you aren't thieves." He said, kindly. "It's just a stupid, false fact spread around by jerks who're a lot dumber than me, if you can believe that!"

Gently, he positioned a finger on the chin of her downcast face and softly directed it up at his.

"Trust me, Sayori." He said gently. "You didn't steal your magic, and neither did anyone else at Hogwarts. Okay?"

The Handsome Boy had such a nice, sincere and convincing smile. The kind of smile you just wanted to trust and believe in, no matter what it might tell you. The Mopey Girl loved to watch it, and would do just about anything to keep it from disappearing again. A smile like that should be protected at all costs.

"…yes." She lied with a convincing one of her own. "You're right, Cedric."

"…nah, not really." I denied, shrugging casually. "Didn't get to me at all, honestly."

"Hmph." Natsuki scoffed back, crossing her arms. "Whatever. I'm not rejoining the Club or talking to her again, and that's final."

I groaned again in disappointment, but recognizing the stubborn finality in her voice. At this point we'd probably have better luck convincing Peeves the Poltergeist to write and share poems with us than we had at changing Natsuki's mind.

But I wasn't about to give up that easily and leave empty-handed. I'd planned to spend time with Natsuki today, and by golly, that's what I was going to do!

"…fine." I relented with a sigh. "But can we at least stay here with you, then?"

"Why?" Natsuki eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Have you arranged for her to suddenly come waltzing in and start spouting off so-called 'apologies' at me?"

"No…" I shook my head, regretfully. "Moni's just sitting all alone in the old Club, waiting for us to bring you. I should probably go tell her you won't be coming after all…"

"Nah, don't do that." The pinkette snickered. "Just let her stew in there for the rest of the day. It's what that bitch deserves!"

"Uh- right…" I awkwardly shifted on the spot, sending a quiet thought of apology towards Monika. "No, it's just that… we've really missed you, Nat. We used to be able to catch up at the meetings, but now-"

"Yeah, yeah sure! Whatever!" She sighed dismissively. "If it means you won't dump all these f*cking sob stories on me, by all means, stay! Maybe you'll be a decent distraction from this damn parasite!"

She grabbed her newly stacked candy bag and turned heel, venturing back towards the window sill she'd been sitting at before. As she did, Colin beamed at us.

"She means me!" Colin mouthed, pointing proudly at his own face. "I'm the parasite!"

I returned his smile, a little unsure what to make of this relationship, and followed Nat.

"Don't really know what you hope to get outta this." The girl shrugged as she climbed the sill again. "It's not like I make for very fun company or anything…"

"Rubbish! You're the funniest witch I know!" I brushed her off. "I just wanna know what you've been up to, how you've been doing, that kinda stuff. Wasn't the Hallowe'en party yesterday just fabulous?! All those pumpkins, and skeletons and-"

"Did you hear about what happened to Mr. Filch's cat?" Yuri suddenly interjected, bringing my rambling to a screeching halt.

"Well, duh. I don't live under a rock." Natsuki responded, with mild interest. "What a way to go. I mean, obviously I didn't like the damn furball, but to be killed and strung up for all to see… Eugh. Someone must've gotten a reeeal bad detention from him…"

"W- wait. Mrs. Norris's dead?!" I gasped, shocked. "I didn't get a good look myself, buh- but Cedric told me she was just sleeping?!"

"She's not dead." Yuri shook her head eagerly. "But she's not sleeping, either. She's been petrified."

"Huh, that a fact?" Natsuki raised an eyebrow. "Then what's all the damn fuss about? The Body-Bind spell only lasts for like an hour, and it's easy to undo. Frankly I'm surprised the cat doesn't get cursed more often."

"This wasn't the doing of some meager spell." Yuri denied again, her demeanor completely changing to one of odd excitement as she went on. "I got a close look at her myself, and heard what Professor Dumbledore told Mr. Filch. This was the work of very dark, very powerful sorcery!"

"Uhm, okay. D- does that mean she'll make it, or…?" I asked, feeling my body shivering. Talking about this was making me very uncomfortable, but Yuri and Natsuki seemed pretty invested in it so I just had to endure it. Maybe we could chat about something a little lighter afterwards, if I was lucky.

"Oh yes. Professor Sprout's already preparing a healing potion with the Mandrakes we re-potted earlier." Yuri nodded offhandedly.

I sighed in relief.

"A potion like that'll take some time to get ready though." Natsuki frowned. "The better part of a year, if I had to guess…"

My relief vanished on the spot, replaced with more dread.

"And all the while, the perpetrator remains unknown and at large…" Yuri said, almost gleefully. "A most fascinating turn of events…"

"Yeah, that's… certainly one way to describe it." Natsuki said, giving the taller girl a weird look. "Say, wasn't there something about a message left behind at the scene as well?"

"C- Cedric told us not to look and go straight to bed." I said mechanically, reluctantly remembering the end to yesterday's night. The large crowd of students gathered in the dim hallway, all of them whispering and gasping under their breaths as they craned their necks trying to get a better view of the scene in front.

The whole thing had reminded me of an event a few years ago, where there'd been some kind of car accident on the way home from kindergarten. Police cars and ambulances had been all around the scene, flashing bright lights at anyone passing by, which naturally gained the attention of one Tiny Sayori. I'd only managed to catch a brief glance at some men in vests carrying something (or someone) on a stretcher before who must've been Uncle Dan firmly told me to look away.

I'd been a good girl and buried my face in my hands at once, but at that point my imagination had already run wild, providing me with scary images of what it might've looked like which then supplied me with plenty of fuel for many weeks of nightmares.

"Yeah, didn't get a good look at it myself, either." Nat shrugged. "Too many people around at the time, and apparently Filch has been guarding the area ever since. No way to get close enough now."

"I did!" Colin Creevey suddenly exclaimed, making me jump. "Harry Potter was standing right next to it and I'd been looking for him all Hallowe'en, and then suddenly he was there so I got a picture!"

"But of course…" Natsuki drawled, as Colin bent to his knees, rummaged a big in his bag, and pulled out a large, laminated folder which seemed to contain some of the pictures he'd taken since arriving at Hogwarts.

It couldn't have been all of them, since the stack was less than three inches thick.

"Professor Lockhart convinced Professor Snape to let me develop some of my film in his dungeon, so now they move and everything!" He explained excitedly, and withdrew one square, almost shiny picture and waved it about. "I only realized what was going on at the wall behind Harry afterwards because for some reason the lens decided to focus on the cat instead of him! Wanna see?!"

His hand shot in my direction, offering me the image.

I swallowed voicelessly, not really sure if I should. Sure I was curious, but it was the same kind of curiosity I'd had in the car years ago, urging me to ignore Uncle Dan's instructions and look at the ambulances. The kind of curiosity I knew I'd regret afterwards.

Uncle Dan wasn't here right now, but I could still hear his warning voice, dissuading me from looking, telling me what a bad idea it was.

With a deep breath, I took the picture, and braced myself.

I was then thrown back in time to the night before, landing in the gloomy hallway outside the Great Hall which was now all lit up by the camera's flash. True to Colin's claims, there was a blurry, darkhaired silhouette at the forefront of the scene who must've been Harry Potter, though his features were so obscured and out-of-focus that he might as well have been faceless. The shape seemed to be trying its best to nudge out of the frame.

But right behind it, the background was captured in such sharp and excruciating detail that I could practically count each little strand of fur on the thin Mrs. Norris, pitifully suspended from a torch bracket by her tail with large, staring eyes.

Overcome with nausea and sympathy on the poor animal's behalf, I forced myself to look at the message painted on the cracked stone wall instead, even though that sight was hardly any more pleasant with its large, trickling red letters from a substance I firmly decided had to be Cranberry Juice;

THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.
ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.

"Cool, innit?!" Colin brought me back to the present with another eager grin. Determined not to let it show how much the image had disturbed me, I merely nodded silently and passed on the pic to let Natsuki have a look.

"Huh." She shrugged after a few seconds of looking, her voice betraying no emotion. "So that's the Chamber I've been hearing people yammering on about. Any of you guys know what the deal with that is?"

"N- no clue." I said, still working on bringing my own trembling voice under control. Why couldn't I be as cool as Nat?

"A- actually…" Yuri's muted voice was also trembling, but unlike me her struggle seemed to be centered on keeping her ever-growing excitement contained if the wide, disconcerting smile on her face was any indication. "If- if you want to know more about the Chamber of Secrets I have just the thing…"

She bent her knees to gently slide the loose rucksack (still identical to Nat's) down her shoulder, unzipped the opening, and proceeded to pull out a large, thick and old-looking library book. With barely controlled excitement, she flashed its reddish-brown cover at us, embroidered with a familiar emblem and bright, yellow text;

HOGWARTS: A HISTORY
By Bathilda Bagshot

"Understandably enough, this book has been in very high demand since yesterday's events…" Yuri explained, taking a seat next to Nat on the window sill and began paging through the yellowing pages. "In f- fact, I managed to pick up this very last copy just as Hermione Granger entered. She, uhm, didn't seem too pleased."

"Niiice!" Natsuki grinned back, sharing the triumph. "So that means Yuri- three, Hermion- one! She's never gonna get the lead at this rate!"

A frown briefly clouded Yuri's features as she paused mid-page turn.

"You're… keeping a tally between us?" She asked.

"You're not?" Natsuki retorted, looking genuinely befuddled.

Yuri blinked, hesitating.

"Wh- what is the one point she's scored over m-"

"Guys!" I interrupted, unable to contain my anticipation any further. "Chamber of Secrets, remember?"

"R- right, of course!" Yuri blushed, and recommenced her paging before landing at a small section point over halfway through the book, cleared her throat and started reading aloud:

"Ahem… 'Fanciful Fables and Ludicrous Legends: With an establishment as ancient as Hogwarts Castle, it is inevitable for certain myths and folk-tales to take hold in the common subconscious of the Wizarding population and fester. One such rumor has lingered around much longer than any other, so much so that even though it's been demonstrably proven a hoax on numerous occasions, many witches and wizards still casually bring it up to me at tea-time with the deceptively innocuous justification of "what if…?" Even by just mentioning this in a book entirely dedicated to real facts, I fear bringing even more credibility to such bloated fiction, but alas, as a historian I'd be remiss if I didn't chronicle the overwhelming impact this supposed "Chamber of Secrets" has had on-'"

"Sheesh, we get it already!" Natsuki scoffed impatiently. "Bloody hell, you'd think the story might come out of the book to bite us if we aren't careful enough! I've seen fewer disclaimers on the Acid Pops at Honeydukes!"

"Please, go on." I encouraged Yuri to continue, ignoring Nat's outburst.

"I'll just, uh… skip the rest of the intro." The lavenderette gave a nervous gulp and moved her finger further down the book's withered page. "Here we are… 'the legend goes as follows: It is said that when co-founder Salazar Slytherin parted ways with his three other companions, he didn't actually stop his teachings at Hogwarts. Rather, he constructed in secret a hidden underground Chamber somewhere beneath the Castle's foundation where he could continue his lecturing of those he deemed worthy enough to attend- the so-called "Pureblooded" wizards.'"

"What a piece of sh-" Natsuki commented, but interrupted herself suddenly to give me a strange look of alarm. "-you okay, Sayori?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, 'm fine!" I hurriedly assured after my body had given a small, involuntary flinch at the word 'Pureblooded.' "Keep going, don't mind me!"

"'Legend has it that only a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin himself would have the power required to re-open the Chamber and continue his legacy. And, to ensure nobody unworthy would take step within its halls, it is said that he put a monstrous creature of unimaginable power to guard the place, one that in due time would purge the entirety of Hogwarts Castle for those of "impure" descent.'" Yuri finished. "And from then on it's just the author making more disavowals to the story's validity and speculations about the gullible nature of modern Wizarding society."

There was a brief period of quiet where even Colin was silent before Natsuki finally broke the spell.

"So in short, Slytherin's been a twat right from the beginning." She concluded firmly, crossing her arms. "Colour me surprised!"

"So, uhm…" I hesitated lightly, worried I was gonna be seen as daft when I asked this. "…d'you guys think it actually happened? Could there be a Chamber of Secrets?"

"It is certainly a fantastical tale…" Yuri said, shrugging mysteriously. For some reason, she looked like she was enjoying herself immensely. "All we know for sure is that someone has used powerful dark magic far beyond what should be possible for any students at Hogwarts, and left behind a written confession about opening the Chamber. Though that hardly counts as solid evidence, I am of the opinion that all myths have at least some kind of basis in reality."

"I can see it being true." Natsuki said. "A super-duper extra secret club house for the Snakes to scuttle down and discriminate against other witches and wizards? I mean, they're easily evil enough to do it. And I bet I know who opened it, too!"

"Who?!" Colin gasped breathlessly, mouth agape.

Yuri too turned towards her, eyebrow raised.

"Surely you can't be referring to-"

"You bet your arse I am!" Natsuki exclaimed confidently. "C'mon, open your eyes! It's so obvious a frickin' baby could figure it out! Monika is the Heir of Slytherin!"

Another stunned silence followed in the wake of her words. Then, Yuri snorted with laughter.

"I'm serious!" Natsuki frowned in dismay at Yuri's reaction as her laugh slowly faded into muted clucking.

"Y- you don't think your judgment m- might be just a tiny bit clouded by recency bias, Natsuki?" She managed to ask with some difficulty.

"Am not!" Nat denied fervently. "Look, it makes sense! I've heard stuff about the Winthers, they're an old family! With how long ago this Salazar bloke lived, he could have easily been some great-great-great-great-grandfather or whatever! She decided to play things cool in her first year to get a feel for the place, and now she's letting loose by revealing her secret heritage! It all fits!"

"It 'fits' because you've sanded away all the complexities of the puzzle pieces." Yuri shook her head, still smiling. "I'm sorry Natsuki, but with an argument like that you could make just about anyone out to be Slytherin's Heir! Even, say, Harry Potter!"

"Well, that's just silly." Nat scoffed. "One of Potter's best mates is literally Muggleborn, so clearly he's not enough of a git to open it. Yet another trait Monika has in spades!"

"My point was you can't possibly prove someone's family ties this far back." Yuri calmly refuted. "Salazar Slytherin lived over a thousand years ago. Historians aren't certain if he even had any descendants to speak of."

"So what you're saying is, there's a chance…?" Natsuki suggested with a smug, cat-like grin. Yuri gave a reluctant sigh.

"Sure, all right. Monika could be the Heir." She shrugged rather aggressively, voice filled to the brim with sarcasm. "And you know what, why stop there? Let's just say that I am the however-many-greats granddaughter of Rowena Ravenclaw, just as you're a descendant of Godric Gryffindor and Sayori shares a secret heritage with Helga Hufflepuff. After all, we're obviously at the center of everything, and the entire Wizarding World revolves solely around the four of us!"

"Yeah, could be." Natsuki shrugged, willfully ignoring Yuri's exaggerated tone. "Though, personally I'd prefer we didn't share the spotlight with Monika."

Their bickering went on like that for a while, and I caught stray words like "obtuse" and "know-it-all" before getting kinda bored and tuning them out. I supposed I should be happy they'd managed to fall into their old habits again so effortlessly, but I couldn't help feeling it was a darn shame they weren't doing so in our actual Club.

With my 'Master Plan' squashed by Natsuki's effortless genius, and her continued insistence on not giving second chances, I just wasn't sure what else I could even do. It'd been so nice when Madam Pomfrey had finally discharged me and I'd learned Monika and Yuri had made up all on their own, but… it just wasn't the same without Natsuki there too.

I had to rack my brain and figure out something to change her mind. Maybe if we tried luring her with something even more delicious than Hallowe'en toffees? Only trouble was finding any food at Hogwarts she couldn't already get in spades from all the feasts.

But even if we did manage to get them in the same room together, what then? What was to stop Natsuki from just outright cursing Monika, or turning heel and running away? How was I supposed to just make them sit down and talk, work out their issues and get back to the way things were before all this 'Mudblood' rubbish?

Was it even possible to get back to a point before that?

I found myself hating that word, not because it offended or insulted me or anything like that, but because it'd decided to throw such a huge wrench in the relationships I'd spent so long building up last year. What had it done that for?! Such a flippin' meanie word!

While Yuri and Natsuki continued their back-and-forth argument about who the best candidates for the Slytherin Heir were, (with Natsuki now suggesting a large-scale, three-way conspiracy between Monika, Snape and Gilderoy Lockhart) I found my gaze slowly drifting elsewhere, idly searching the hallway for some kind of magic multi-tool fixing gadget to all my problems.

Although I couldn't find a tool like that, I did spot something else. A vague glinting coming from somewhere within Yuri's opened bag, like a glass surface reflecting light from the late afternoon sun. And curiously enough, I thought I noticed… movement, as well? It was subtle and impossible to make out if it hadn't been for the light calling attention to it, but the harder I looked, the more I thought I could make out the motions of something quick, scuttling and… alive inside the purple rucksack.

With slow footsteps as if moving through a dream, I approached the bag, hypnotized with curiosity. It didn't even occur to me that I was snooping around my friend's personal things as I got down on my knees and stuck a hand inside its depths. Surely Yuri wouldn't mind if I just had a quick look, right? She'd opened the bag herself, that was practically an open invitation for any of us to have a peek at… was it a kitten she had inside? I thought I'd seen something hairy. If that was the case, then she was like, required by law to show it to me. Mrs. Norris excepted, no cat in my presence would go un-petted if I had a say in the matter!

But it wasn't the soft, delightful fur of a purring hat I felt my hand closing around. Instead, I felt the hard and smooth surface of glass against my fingers, like a soda bottle- only much larger and thicker.

A jar? My thoughts suggested vaguely as I slowly raised the object from the bag. Does Yuri carry around special marmalade for her breakfast toast…?

But there wasn't any jam contained within the jar. In fact, as I lifted it higher and noticed the tiny, pinprick-sized holes stabbed into the plastic lid, I thought it was completely empty.

Until the hairy creature inside lunged forwards, ramming its whole, eight-legged body directly towards my face!

It definitely wasn't a kitten.

From here on, things got a little bit confusing. I could distinctly remember three things happening very, very quickly, almost simultaneously in fact, but since everything melted together into a whirling blur of events, I couldn't know for sure in which order they actually happened in. I mean, I could guess where they fit into the timeline based on context clues, but it might not be 100% accurate.

Here's what I do know; there was a loud, penetrating shriek flooding the hallway, deafening everything else just as my arms moved on pure instinct, violently hurling the jar as far away as possible.

From somewhere far away, barely audible over the overwhelming screaming I'd heard Yuri's warning voice, exclaiming "Sayori, no, careful with that…!" just half a second too late.

And lastly, I recall the determined look in Natsuki's eyes, not even blinking as she drew her wand, and bellowed "Wingardium Leviosa!" while the jar was still airborne- a place it would remain, frozen half a meter above the solid stone floor that I had no doubt would have otherwise shattered the jar into a thousand pieces and freed the thing hiding inside it.

The "thing" of course being the massive, dinner plate-sized spider, feverishly clawing on the clear, floating glass with its long front legs while baring its needle-sharp pincers at us. As though it was still trying to leap onto my face and bite me.

The high-pitched scream of panic continued ringing in my ears right until I sensed Natsuki walking up from behind me, still (thankfully) maintaining her levitation charm on the jar, and planting a firm hand over my gaping mouth.

"Sayori, please." She whispered in my ear, not unkindly, but without much warmth either. "Would you kindly shut up?"

The scream which had apparently belonged to me was muffled greatly before eventually dying off, leaving each of us free to stare in absolute silence at the contained horror suspended in the air.

Right until Colin bravely stepped forward, quietly raised his camera and clicked it at least ten times in the span of three seconds and then got even closer to the jar to find a better angle.

Natsuki flicked her wand once in silence, making the jar gracefully descend and land on the floor with less noise than a feather.

Still without saying a word, Colin laid down flat on his stomach right in front of the thick container and recommenced snapping pictures of the creature inside, not even flinching when it started lunging threateningly towards him.

"Okay." Natsuki finally said, her voice one of strained calm as she begrudgingly pulled her hand off my mouth. I was very tempted to start screaming again- I felt I hadn't even scratched the surface in expressing my fear yet- but somehow, I managed to swallow it. "Yuri, I'm not going to lie. Even for you, this is freaky."

Though the pinkette was addressing the girl still sat on the windowsill with the history book in her lap, none of her attention left the spider for even a second.

A resigned sigh could be heard behind us as Yuri closed the book and got to her feet again.

"I… can explain."

"Yeah, I sure f*cking hope you can!" Natsuki exclaimed shrilly. "Why the HELL are you carrying live, giant spiders with you?!"

"Hey, what's an 'Aragog?!'" Colin's squeaky voice suddenly piped up before Yuri had a chance to reply. We all looked at him.

"…Ara- what?" Natsuki asked.

"The spider!" Colin clarified, gesturing at the jar like someone who wanted their uncle to look at something really interesting on TV. "It keeps mentioning 'Aragog' over and over!"

"What are you babbling about now?" Natsuki groaned reluctantly and walked closer, bending down to inspect the spider closer with a revolted expression. It wasn't long before her face went deathly pale. "…the hell?!"

"W- what is it?" I asked cautiously, only for her to wave me over to join them. I hesitated somewhat before finally accepting that it probably wasn't breaking loose from the jar anytime soon, and joined them.

After Natsuki motioned for me to get closer and listen, I nearly gasped again.

Very faintly, I could hear just the lightest of noises coming from within the jar itself. At first, it just seemed like faint, muffled clicking in sync with the spider's vibrating front fangs, but the more I strained my ears, the more I thought I could make out what sounded like actual words intertwined with the clicking!

"Humans… release me! Need to… escape…! Don't want… Aragog… as enemy…!"

Ever since I'd first arrived at Hogwarts and crazy, incredible things became the norm, I kept thinking nothing would surprise me anymore. And yet, the place seemed determined to prove me wrong every single day.

"Uhm." I said, looking over at Yuri for some kinda confirmation that I wasn't going crazy. "The s- spider is. It's talking."

"Yes." Yuri confirmed, nodding gently. "It is."

I nodded back, feeling some relief for her clarification.

All right then. This is actually happening. The spider is talking. Sure, okay, why not.

"Cool." I croaked.

"Super cool!" Colin emphasized breathlessly.

"Explain." Natsuki growled impatiently, staring daggers at Yuri. "Where did you find this thing, why are you carrying it around with you, and how is it speaking?!"

With another sigh, Yuri carefully picked up the jar while ignoring the spider's fruitless efforts to bite her hands, and placed it gingerly on the windowsill we'd all just left behind.

"I found it last night." She finally said. "I noticed a long line of other house spiders all appearing to flee from the location of Mr. Filch's cat and the message on the wall. I'm sure I don't need to explain why this specimen stood out to me among them."

I swallowed a lump in my throat as I once again took in the absurd size of the jet-black critter.

"I was going to release it outside later today." Yuri went on. "After I'd finished helping Sayori with… this. I just wanted to have a chance to examine it a bit closer, first."

"But… why?" I asked, unable to contain myself. I absolutely understood why Yuri would have taken notice of the enormous spider- what I didn't get however, was why instead of running away screaming and call out for the immediate evacuation and possible air-strike of Hogwarts like I would have done, she'd chosen to not only capture it, but actually carry it around in her own bag like it was nothing more than an interesting trinket.

"Uhm, well…" She hesitated slightly, not meeting my eyes. "It's just… sort of fascinating, don't you think?"

"No, it's f*cking weird." Natsuki declared, shaking her head in exasperation. Yuri blushed heavily. "But we're all ignoring the big deal here. Why the hell does it talk? Spiders don't talk!"

I breathed out a small sigh at that, relieved that talking spiders wasn't another one of those things in the wizard world that everyone else found completely normal. I wasn't sure if I would have been able to handle that…

"Uhm, well, certain species do." Yuri countered meekly, flushing every ounce of my relief out with the bathwater. "Although they are exceptionally rare. I've been trying to find more information in the library, and I believe I've identified this one. Acromantula."

"Gesundheit." Natsuki commented dryly.

"It's what their species are called." Yuri scoffed. "They're a highly intelligent, highly venomous species of arachnid, known only to the Wizarding World."

"V- v- v- venomous?!" I sputtered, suddenly even more anxious of the jar's inhabitant. "L- like, killing people venom?!"

"Indeed." Yuri replied casually. "Once they reach adulthood, they could easily be quite deadly to humans."

Quickly, I darted around Colin's tiny frame for safety. "There're giant, deadly spiders roaming around Hogwarts?! Yuck!"

"So is this the thing that attacked Norris then?" Natsuki eyed up the spider again, inspecting it in a whole new light. "Did you seriously catch the monster of Slytherin's Heir in a damn cookie jar?!"

"No." Yuri shook her head. "Acromantula don't petrify their prey, and even if they did, this one is far too small to attack anything larger than a rat. Their venom only really becomes potent once they reach cat-size."

That was probably meant to be calming and reassuring. It didn't quite have that effect.

"It's going to get bigger than that?!" Natsuki screeched with an outraged glare.

"Why, of course." Yuri nodded calmly, as though she wasn't explaining anything more alarming than the colour of the sky outside. "From what I've read, this is barely more than a hatchling. In some reported instances, they have been shown to reach sizes even greater than fully grown cattle. Amazing, is it not?"

Still speechless, Colin raised his camera again with eyes so wide open they looked close to popping out of his head.

"I think I'm gonna be sick…" Natsuki said, and I sympathized greatly with the vaguely greenish tinge spreading across her cheeks. "Please, just… put it away. Now."

Yuri obliged, and deposited both the jar and book back into her bag, zipping it securely shut. But even with the monster spider out of sight, I still had immense trouble getting rid of the tingling sensation on my arms and legs, like hundreds of tiny invisible creepy crawlies holding a dance party all over my body.

I shivered at the idea. My brain could be really cruel sometimes…

"I heard it mention the Forbidden Forest to me numerous times, along with this 'Aragog.'" Yuri went on, her breathless tone like that of someone who'd been dying to tell someone all of this for weeks, but hadn't found a way to bring it up naturally before now. "I have a theory that this one is just a Scout for a much larger colony residing in there!"

"Oh, joy." Natsuki drawled, not even making a vain attempt at hiding her disgust. "Thousands of giant spiders living just a stone's throw away from us all, and Yuri's started talking to them. How wonderful!"

"I wouldn't really call it 'talking,' personally." Yuri frowned lightly. "I've been trying to ask it questions, but it wouldn't really respond beyond muttering vague warnings and threats. It seems… startled, for some reason."

"Gee, I wonder why. Could it possibly be because a giant human kept it locked up in a big jar?" Natsuki raised an eyebrow.

"No, I don't think so…" Yuri denied the claim, ignoring the jab. "Although I haven't been able to learn much from it, it just didn't seem as frightened of me as it does… something else."

"Could-" I started quietly, having to lick my drying lips before trying again. "-could it be scared of… whatever the thing that attacked Mrs. Norris was?"

"That's similar to my own hypothesis." Yuri confirmed with a nod.

There was tense silence for a bit among the four of us, but I could tell we were all thinking the same thing.

What kind of creature could be terrifying giant spiders?

"…welp." Natsuki was the first to start speaking again. "I've gotten an idea for a new poem, so thanks for that, I guess. Other than that, I vote we never speak about this again."

She was clearly trying her best to sound off-handed and casual, but her chalk-white face and vaguely shaking voice told a far more honest story. I could hardly blame her, really.

Although Uncle Dan had once explained spiders were actually really cool and very important for eating all the annoying flies and mosquitoes of the world and I shouldn't be afraid of them, they were still far down on my list of favorite animals in the world. I had way too many harrowing memories from my old school of getting chased around the halls by the boys who'd dig up bugs to scare me, like M-

Oh my gosh, what is wrong with you?! I mentally screamed at my own train of thought after inevitably jolting on the spot. Stop thinking about HIM already!

I forced myself to disregard all the useless thoughts and get back on track.

"B- but don't you think this is terribly exciting?!" Yuri suddenly exclaimed, her face bright red and hopeful with genuine optimism as she looked at us. "This could be a big clue to discovering the truth about the Chamber of Secrets, I think I might be onto something big!"

I tried smiling back at her. Despite my unease and general queasiness at the Petrified cats, giant spiders and bloo- cranberry juice messages, I couldn't deny my love for mystery stories. I mean, I could never really solve them myself, but it was always really fun watching others put the clues together and be baffled at how smart and brilliant the detectives were.

Plus, I couldn't remember ever seeing Yuri this thrilled before. How could I not support that?

"Totally!" I exclaimed encouragingly. "Oh- I bet if we all put our heads together with Monika, we could easily solve this case!"

"Yeah!" Colin agreed, nodding along harder than a metalhead at a rock concert (Uncle Dan was a big fan.) "Let's ask Harry Potter too, I'm sure he could help!"

Natsuki on the other hand, didn't seem quite as enthused. She dryly looked between the three of us, eyes narrowing.

"Pass." She said devastatingly, and picked up her manga anew. "You guys have fun though."

"You're… not even the least bit curious about the Chamber?" Yuri tried prodding.

"Sure I am." Natsuki shrugged. "But not enough to investigate giant spiders and working with her, sorry."

I frowned, disappointed.

Worth a shot…

"By the way, a word of advice-" She then interjected suddenly. "I'd suggest keeping this 'investigation' of yours on the down-low. Don't yammer on about it to everyone."

"…why do you say this?" Yuri asked, frowning.

Natsuki gave her a long, weirdly serious stare which slowly became more and more uncomfortable until at last she spoke in a hard, accusatory voice:

"Because you opened the Chamber of Secrets, Yuri!"

Though my eyes widened in shock, it was nothing compared to Yuri's reaction. The lavenderette's face went deathly pale as her purple irises shrunk to tiny pinpricks in her eyes. She even seemed to jump a little.

"W- wha- N- no, I d- didn't-" She sputtered helplessly.

"Awfully interested in this Chamber, aren't you?" Natsuki continued brutally, pointing a finger at the taller girl. "Knowing the history, borrowing books about it, studying the lore. Why, you're practically an expert! And now you're even carrying around the monster that attacked Norris! I mean, could you make it any more obvious?!"

"B- but it couldn't- I t- told you- Acromantu- its venom d- doesn…!" Yuri attempted, but seemed unable to utter full sentences.

"Yeah, yeah, so you've said." Natsuki nodded, grimacing darkly. "But are we just supposed to believe that?! A monster is a monster, Yuri, and you're carrying more of them than like, ninety-nine percent of the students here, explain that! Or better yet- explain your family tree! Go on, who were your ancestors? Can you prove Slytherin wasn't part of it way back when?!"

"Y- y- you know I c- c- can't!" Yuri managed to stutter out, her voice desperate and shrill. I'd seen her close to this state only once before last year, when I'd found her shaking under a table from a panic attack. I reached out to hold her hand only to have her recoil away at my touch.

"Oh, well, isn't that convenient!" Natsuki went on. "I wonder how Filch will react when I tell everyone that you attacked his beloved c-"

"Natsuki!" I finally snapped, aghast at her behaviour. "What are you doing?!"

She quieted at last, looking at us. Yuri was trembling where she stood, looking close to crying.

I caught Colin standing a bit to the side, slowly lifting his camera- only to lower it again immediately when he met my eyes.

"…sorry 'bout that." Natsuki finally muttered, softly. "Went a little overboard there. Think you got the gist, anyway."

"What was that?!" I was appalled. "Why would you think Yuri of all people opened the Chamber?!"

"I don't." She denied. "Yuri's not a blood-fanatic Snake, obviously she didn't open any stupid chambers. But it sure sounded convincing, didn't it?"

I furrowed my brows, not understanding what she was getting at.

"Now imagine how much more intense that would've been with a full mob of the mindless, mouth-breathing idiots at Hogwarts, repeating those same arguments and foaming at the mouth for your head." She said, turning on Yuri again. "Is that what you want? Do you think you could convince a crowd like that of your innocence?"

"I- I…" Yuri hesitated anxiously, still shaking all over. I wanted so badly to give her a hug and comfort her, but I held back. Now seemed like a pretty bad time to try and touch her. Then, she lunged forward, grabbed her bag and turned on the spot with a low "…e- excuse me…"

She stomped off, rounded a corner and disappeared from sight.

I glared at Natsuki, as close to angry with her as I'd ever felt. I could accept her being furious with Moni, holding grudges, calling her names, whatever. I didn't agree with her, but with all I'd learned about the Mudblood word these past weeks, I supposed she was somewhat justified.

But Yuri though? She was totally innocent in this! What right did Natsuki have to take her anger and frustration out on one of the sweetest, gentlest girls at Hogwarts?!

"Good thing she picked the correct bag this time…" Natsuki muttered with a light shiver.

"What did you do that for?!" I demanded, just barely suppressing the urge to yell at her.

Natsuki returned my stare with a grim expression before replying quietly.

"I… needed to show her how dangerous it can be to poke your nose in this kinda crap."

"…huh?" I asked, still none the wiser.

"You saw how Yuri was acting just now. Giddy like a kid at Christmas when a cat was Petrified. Behaviour like that's going to raise some eyebrows around these parts!"

"So?" I scoffed. "Who cares what people think?! She just… has a special interest, that doesn't make her evil!

"And normally I'd agree with that, one hundred percent." Nat nodded fervently before elaborating. "But we're still reeling, Sayori. It's only been twelve years since The War ended, and it wasn't that long ago when evil witches and wizards where hiding all around us, ready to strike at any moment. People are understandably a wee bit sensitive on the topic of dark magic!"

I didn't know how to respond to that. I was still so ignorant when it came to historical events in the Wizarding World (which wasn't helped at all by Professor Binns' classes,) but I thought I could vaguely remember something about a very scary bloke with a name starting with a "V," who'd somehow been defeated when he'd tried to kill Harry Potter as a baby.

I miiight've been skimming a bit on some details there, but it was honestly so hard to keep track of it all. I knew you weren't supposed to say V-man's name out loud in public which didn't make it any easier to remember, funnily enough!

Natsuki let out a heavy sigh before continuing.

"I absolutely hate it when idiots make fun or judge me for the stuff I like, but I've learned to roll with it." She went on, gesturing at her open manga as she hoisted herself back onto the windowsill. "Also, I curse anyone dumb enough to try. But this is Yuri we're talking about. The same girl who planned to leave Hogwarts after a few morons started pointing fingers at our hair. You saw how she nearly just cracked after a taste of what she could expect if she started showing her baby monster around school…"

I was thrown off a bit when I saw her glancing off in the direction the taller girl had gone, and noticed her hard and rough expression softened into what looked like… genuine concern?

"…you still didn't have to be such a meanie about it though!" I argued weakly. "You really upset her just now!"

"She'll get over it. It wouldn't have been nearly as effective if I'd gone easy on her." She disagreed with a shrug. "Trust me, if people actually started suspecting she had something to do with the Chamber, it would have been so much worse. She literally wouldn't last a day here."

I swallowed, reluctantly aware that Natsuki was not only making sense, but an actual good point as well. I wasn't going to admit that though.

"Don't get me wrong, obviously I want Monika or whoever opened this Chamber caught." Natsuki went on. "But not by Yuri. She needs to leave this sort of stuff to those who can handle the pressure."

"Like whom?" I asked, a bit surprised with how much calmer my voice had become.

"Who else?" She said, cringing. "Harry Potter of course."

Colin's already bulging eyes doubled in size, and he gulped in a massive breath of air.

"Did you say Harry P-"

"ZIP IT!" Natsuki hissed through clenched teeth, her face turning red and livid in the blink of an eye. Colin's voice died abruptly and he awkwardly peered down again to fidget with his camera settings. Once she'd made sure he'd been silenced, she went on in a more level, albeit terse tone.

"If past events are any indication, chances are Potter and his pals are already knee deep in this, so no reason for anyone else to get involved and risk their neck. Before the end of the year, I'm willing to bet he'll make an outrageously stupid attempt to solve it, co*ck it up, lose 'alotta House points then stew in shame for a bit before trying again, accidentally succeed, and everyone'll love him again. Oh, and naturally make a big spectacle of it as usual."

"But you can't know that'll happen for certain!" I tried.

"Oh, but I do." Natsuki stated adamantly, and I could hear the finality in her voice. "I know people, and they never, ever change."

My heart went heavy with disappointment. I had the feeling she wasn't just referring to Harry Potter anymore.

With Yuri gone and Natsuki burying her face in the manga again, I knew our pseudo-meeting had all but concluded. There wasn't really much else I could do here right now besides going back to Monika still waiting in our old Club for us to bring Nat. By now, I was sure she'd already guessed there weren't going to be any breakthroughs today.

And yet, I remained where I was. I wasn't sure if I could describe the feeling properly, but it was a bit like the urge I got when I visited a sweets shop only to find they were out of the candy I really liked, so I ended up buying another brand I didn't like as much just because I'd gone there.I needed to get at least something out of this meet-up with Nat before I left again, however unlikely that seemed with every passing second.

Might as well give it a go.

I cleared my throat.

"So, uh Nat… I'm sure you already know about the Quidditch match this Saturday, right? Gryffindor VS Slytherin?"

She gave a short grunt of acknowledgement, devoid of any enthusiasm. That wasn't unexpected for Natsuki, whom I knew was proud to announce her utter indifference to the sport.

"Well…" I struggled a bit finding the right way to say this, before deciding to just go ahead. "It's Monika's first match, and- and I'd like you to watch it!"

Natsuki jolted upright, her pink eyes blazing with indignant fury. Her mouth opened wide, and would probably have gone on to spout out heaps and heaps of bloody protests if I hadn't spoken first.

"You don't have to talk to her, root for her, or even interact with her in any way whatsoever."I clarified hurriedly. "Just… please watch her play? I'm not asking for more. It would just really mean a lot to me if you would do that."

She stared at me for five eternal seconds without saying a word. It took every ounce of my courage to meet her eyes head on without blinking.

She owes me after what she just did to Yuri. I justified the demand in my head. However good her intentions were, she needs to at the very least give me this!

Then, finally, Natsuki slowly pulled away to glare down at her manga again, still without saying a word. She did, however, give another vague grunt.

I turned abruptly and walked away before she had a chance to clarify the response. My heart was pounding, my hands were clammy and I could feel a shortness of breath in my chest. Despite this, I couldn't suppress a light, triumphant smirk.

The grunt had been identical in every way to the one that'd come before. An unfeeling sound of complete passiveness that could in no way whatsoever be interpreted as agreement.

But, it hadn't been a 'no,' either.

I'll take it!

Chapter 8: Monika Plays Quidditch

Chapter Text

POV: MONIKA.

"Aw'right lads, lissen up!"

Flint's booming voice bellowed throughout the changing room, calling for our attention.

"A boring-ass leader might tell ya 'good luck out there! Give yer all, and just try yer best!' or some inspirational crap like that!"

A wide, mocking grin spread across his rectangular head, flashing a row of crooked, tombstone-like teeth.

"But the truth is, we don't even need to try our best!" He thundered on, raising a triumphant arm clutching a pristine, tar-black broomstick. "With these babies, we could fall asleep in the air and probably stillbeat those Mudbloods!"

I flinched where I stood, only partly due to the loud hooting suddenly erupting around me as my fellow teammates cheered. It was strange how a word I'd so often heard and even used myself nearly all my life was now making me react this way after just a few weeks of 're-education' in the library with Yuri and Sayori.

Not that it should have been surprising to me. I struggled to remember even one training session we've had where someone hadn't casually dropped the word to belittle our opponents.

Why am I here again? I found myself wondering silently. It was far from the first time I'd felt like a total outsider on the team.

"So yeah!" Flint anti-climactically finished his 'pep-talk' with an lazy shrug. "Only thing left to say? Try to not slaughter 'em too hard out there. Hooch might give 'em points outta sheer pity!"

There was another round of deafening applause from the team. I looked down at my sleek, dark Quidditch boots, trying to resist an unbearable urge to speak my mind. I knew no good would come of it. I knew no one here was interested in anything I had to say. I knew I'd be gambling my very spot on the team.

"Harry Potter's still a considerable threat…" I quietly told my shoes after the room had simmered down enough to make my voice audible. "We shouldn't be underestimating him."

The total silence left in the wake of my words was all-consuming. I was painfully aware that everyone in the room was staring at me now, though I refused to look back at any of them. I wondered briefly if Flint was going to yell at me for daring to suggest Gryffindor's players were anything else than complete trash.

It wouldn't be the first time.

"Oh, dear." Rather than Flint's thunderous roaring, it was a sly, drawling voice that finally broke the tension. "Don't tell me even Monika's caught the Potter-craze now? What a tragedy."

I broke off my downwards stare in order to scowl in Draco's direction, just as an exaggerated squeal of delight emerged from the dark-haired girl leaning up next to him on a bench. I still didn't know what business Pansy Parkinson had in our changing rooms considering she wasn't even a player, but it wasn't hard to figure out why she'd been allowed in.

The more her obvious fake laughter at Draco's quip continued assaulting my ears, the harder I felt my fists clenching up. Man, how satisfying would it be to plant one right in her stupid, brown-nosing face?

"His broom is still the fastest on their team, and his flying isn't half bad either." I settled on saying instead, injecting as much venom as I could muster into my voice. "I'm sure I don't need to remind anyone that if he catches the Snitch before you, Draco, we'll lose the match. Nimbus 2001, or not."

Pansy stopped her obnoxious laughter in order to fix me with a foul glare, which I readily returned in kind. My old friend had just started opening his mouth to retort when Flint's angry bear growl cut in.

"Enough." He sneered and approached me with bouldering steps. As my head only reached to the middle of his massive chest, he had to tilt his face at a down angle to properly look at me.

I suppressed a nervous gulp. Now I'd done it.

"This is your final warning to get off Malfoy's arse." He stated plainly, crossing his giant log arms. "It's starting to get really f*cking annoying to listen to."

"…yes, Captain." I muttered quietly, bowing my reddening head. I was willing to bet I looked more pathetic than ever before, cowering before Flint like this, but it wasn't like I had any better or dignified alternatives.

"Remember, you have the easiest job of everyone out there." He continued. "So don't lecture us on how to play!"

Don't remind me. With these brooms, there's a chance Gryffindor won't even get their hands on the Quaffle at all…

"Yes, Captain." I said automatically, doing my best to ignore the muted snickering around the room at my expense. "Sorry, Captain."

Seemingly satisfied, Flint stomped away from me again. I breathed a sigh of relief and, because I apparently hated myself, tilted my head sideways to catch a glimpse of Pansy jeering my way, her expression unbearably smug.

Then, a bit quieter this time as if he'd just had an afterthought, Flint spoke again.

"You are gonna catch the Snitch before Potter though, right?"

"Obviously." Draco's scoff was impatient and overbearing, as if the question itself was so ridiculous he couldn't believe it had even been asked.

"Good." Flint nodded shortly and surveyed his team with one last glare that felt like an unspoken, threatening reminder of what he'd do to us if we failed him today. I couldn't help but notice his gaze lingering on me just a second longer than anyone else. "Now let's show those weaklings what happens when you step to Slytherin!"

"Yeah!" Cheered the crowd and lined up behind him. Swallowing a sigh, I grabbed my broom and joined at the very end, behind Draco just as Pansy leaned in close to whisper something in his ear. When she retracted her head, she looked mirthfully at me before bursting into a fit of giggles and sprinting out of the room.

I raised an eyebrow as I glanced after her, before shaking my head. I still had no idea what that girl's deal was, but I'd long since given up asking. It was high time I got my head in the game.

We stepped outside the Changing Room, onto the Pitch. The weather was about what you could expect this far into November- dreary, grey and judging by those clouds in the sky, with a high chance of rain. Not terribly cold though, and certainly nothing I couldn't deal with.

The stadium surrounding us was filled to the brim with eager students, all blended together into one giant mass buzzing with excitement for the game. I could remember it wasn't that long ago I'd been one of them, sitting on the elevated benches with Sayori, explaining the rules of the game to her all the while wishing it was me out on the field.

I should have been ecstatic, over the moon. How many times had I fantasized about being here, side by side with my team in tune to the roaring cheers of the crowd, finally part of a real tournament with real players and real rewards? This was everything I'd ever wanted!

So why did it all feel so… hollow?

I shouldn't be here. I don't deserve this.

We trudged along the soggy grass, getting closer to the Gryffindor team and Madam Hooch who were meeting us at the halfway point. I could hear the roaring cheers behind me, as the Slytherin section of the stadium voiced their support, which admittedly did help raise my confidence a smidge. Too bad it was almost completely drowned out by all the booing jeers from literally every other direction.

It would seem all of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff had banded together in their support for Gryffindor. Again.

What a surprise.

I watched passively from afar as Madam Hooch instructed Flint to shake hands with the Gryffindor team Captain, Oliver Wood, who very nearly managed not to pull a face as his fingers were crushed. I wondered a bit whether I would pull something like that if I ever became Captain. It just didn't seem very necessary or sportsmanlike to injure the opposing team like that just before the match started, but… I mean, everyone did it. Would I really have the spirit to break off such a Quidditch tradition staple?

My speculation ended abruptly when a depressing realization brought me crashing down to reality. It didn't matter if I would play childish pranks on my opponent, since I wouldn't even be Captain in the first place. No, that position would in all likelihood go to Draco, since he'd already proven you didn't need actual skills to succeed- just a dad with deep enough pockets.

And though I was still unsure if I would intentionally squeeze a competitor's fingers just for the hell of it, I did know one thing for absolute certain: I wouldn't ever stoop to that kind of level.

Madam Hooch called out for us to mount our brooms and get ready. I did so, grabbing the sleek, shiny shaft of my Nimbus 2001 with both hands. It still felt so awkward flying this thing that'd been carved and mass-produced to as broad of a market as possible when I preferred having my things made to fit me, specifically. There weren't a whole lot of customizable features on a Nimbus, and even if there were, I was sure Flint would have insisted we all used the exact same to ensure nobody would bring down the rest of the team.

It was fast, I'd give it that. Fast enough for a bloke to circle the entire pitch before you could count to twenty. But it was sorely lacking in the personality department.

Man, I miss my Zipper…

Then Madam Hooch blew her whistle, magically enhanced to make its high-pitched bleeting heard all around the stadium. Around me, the members of both teams immediately took to the sky, kicking themselves off from the ground like whizzing red and green firework rockets.

The match had started.

Sparing one final look of sympathy at some of the Gryffindor stragglers whose slower brooms took a bit longer to start up and get moving, I eventually threw my head back, distributed all my weight evenly along the shaft as both my feet left the ground…

…and felt my mouth split into a wide grin as I suddenly recalled the reason I hadn't left the team.

Oh, right. I LOVE this game!

All of my pent-up frustration swiftly left my body as I soared upwards and felt the wind against my face, caressing me, grabbing hold of my ponytail and billowing it behind me like a long, light brown streamer.

I found that I couldn't quite remember what I'd been so upset about just a few moments before. The estrangement I felt with my friends and my House, the way I'd caused the Literature Club to collapse, Natsuki's refusal to even acknowledge me, and all this new business with the Chamber of Secrets- those were all concerns exclusive to the ground and the people on it, quite literally beneath me now.

So what if my team didn't respect me? Who cared if I had to use a broom I didn't fully agree with? I was airborne again, in my element, and about to play the greatest game ever invented. That's all that mattered, and I was all there for it! Time to get started!

My newfound joy lasted for maybe all of five seconds before I reached the thirty feet-point and was met with the three metal goal-hoops connected to the tall rods erected from the ground.

My spirit crumbled away like a dry leaf when I came down from my high and remembered the far extent of my role in this game; drifting between these loathsome things all match long and prevent anything from passing through them.

Fun, fun, fun…

"AND THE MATCH HAS BEGUN!" The magically magnified voice of Gryffindor's Lee Jordan hollered across the entire stadium. The apparent enthusiasm that Hogwarts' resident commentator held for the game at hand was in such stark contrast to my own that it managed to momentarily throw me off. "LOOKING AT THE LINEUPS, WE OF COURSE HAVE WOOD'S TEAM OF THE OLD HANDPICKED FAVORITES WHO MORE THAN PROVED THEIR WORTH DURING LAST YEAR'S MATCHES! ALWAYS NICE TO SEE ANGELINA JOHNSON ON THE FIELD, THOUGH IT WOULD BE EVEN NICER TO SEE HER FINALLY AGREE TO GO ON A DATE WITH ME…!"

As the crowd cheered, I watched the fiercest and tallest of the Gryffindor Chasers smile coyly whilst making a very rude hand gesture in the direction of the commentator booth. Undeterred by the brutal rejection, Jordan went on.

"AND THEN ON THE OPPOSING TEAM WE HAVE TWO VERY INTERESTING NEW CHOICES WITH THE SECOND-YEARS DRACO MALFOY AND MONIKA WINTHER! THAT'S RIGHT FOLKS, LOOKS LIKE AN ACTUAL GIRL FINALLY MADE IT ONTO THE SLYTHERIN QUIDDITCH TEAM! FLINT MUST'VE REALIZED HOW CLOSE WE'RE GETTING TO THE 21ST CENTURY, GOOD ON HIM!"

I scoffed lightly at the jab, equal parts annoyed and amused at the same time. While it could be a bit grinding at times to listen to Lee's commentary tracks with the obvious biases he rarely even tried to hide (especially when his own House was playing) I couldn't fly here and pretend it wasn't satisfying to hear my name announced to a crowd like this.

Then, when every player had gotten into position, Hooch blew her whistle again and launched a large, red ball far into the sky.

"AND THE QUAFFLE IS IN THE AIR, WITH FLINT AND JOHNSON BOTH GOING FOR IT- BLIMEY, WHAT A FAST CAPTURE FROM FLINT- HE'S ZOOMING TOWARDS THE GOALPOSTS WITH WOOD AT THE READ- UGH, REALLY?!"

Even I had to wince at Flint's uncontested score. Oliver Wood hadn't stood a chance against our Captain's rush tactic, he might as well have been moving in slow motion. In fact, that did seem to be the case for almost every single one of the red-clad players as none of them could do anything to stop Adrian Pucey from bursting ahead and snatch up the Quaffle again after it'd passed through the ring. Only an expertly aimed Bludger from one of the Weasley twins prevented Pucey from just rounding right back and scoring another goal- although even the speed of the black metal ball seemed disturbingly slow-paced compared to his Nimbus 2001.

The Slytherin crowd gave a roaring cheer which was reciprocated from all my team members- except me. I could only watch with a light frown of dismay as the Gryffindors tried in vain to catch up to Pucey who outsped them all with little effort and passed the ball to Flint who'd already lined up for another rush.

This match was already proving to be exactly as unfair as I'd thought it'd be. What about it was worth celebrating?

I felt small droplets gently pattering against my face as it started to rain. As if the weather itself wanted to reflect my increasingly dour mood.

Since it didn't look like my team would be in need of my services in the immediate future, I let my gaze wander from the brutal massacre before me and onto the crowd beneath instead. The sight was no less disheartening.

Seeing things from this high up really put things into perspective. I'd already known the two other Houses had joined forces with Gryffindor, but it was only upon peering down at the overwhelming sea of red and gold across all but one of the massive podiums that I got a true sense of scale for just how few supporters we really had. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw as one, all clad in the same scarlet scarves, hats and robes, all of them groaning in loud disappointment as Lee announced we'd scored yet another goal before it'd even been five minutes.

It strongly reminded me of something Natsuki had said to me offhandedly last year, a bit I'd initially dismissed as just a lighthearted jab, but now seemed to ring devastatingly real and true.

"That's the great thing about playing against the most HATED House at Hogwarts, right? Everyone else is automatically on our side in these events!"

She'd been right, hadn't she? Everyone really did hate us. And after all the horrible things I'd read about in Yuri's history book, the frankly sickening actions taken against Muggles and their children for generations… well, we'd certainly earned their scorn.

My insides tightened uncomfortably at the thought of Natsuki. How was I ever going to regain her friendship? What could I possibly do to make things right with her again?

But my spiraling thoughts were sent for a loop when I suddenly caught something unexpected in the crowds below. It was so small I almost missed it completely in my sweeping glance, just an odd little thing that kinda stuck out in my periphery, but all the years I'd spent playing as Seeker hadn't been completely wasted. I did a double take and focused in on the spot that was now glaring out at me like a sore thumb.

There, a bit off to the side of the Hufflepuff podium, almost completely buried stood a single, solitary green flag, waving defiantly among all the red. I blinked in disbelief before squinting against the mildly intensifying downpour of rain, concentrating hard on making out whoever was going against the grain.

It didn't take long for me to spot her. Because of course it was her, I should have seen this coming a mile away. How could it possibly have been anyone else?

Even from this distance I could see Sayori's bright, blue eyes beaming at me as she feverishly waved her Slytherin-adorned flag back and forth, completely oblivious to all the weird looks she was attracting from the rest of the surrounding crowd. I could see from the way her mouth was moving that she was yelling and hooting something at the top of her lungs which was lost to the crowd, but the sentiment rang clear as crystal- she was supporting me.

And that wasn't all. As my heart bumped harder in my chest I spotted another girl right next to Sayori, sitting absolutely still in her seat which should have made her harder for me to spot if it hadn't been for the easily recognizable mane of purple hair going down her head. While Yuri didn't seem quite as comfortable with the intense crowd as the Vice President, she was still exerting enough effort to look up in my direction with a hesitant, but nevertheless encouraging smile.

It was a small gesture on the surface, but one that warmed my heart completely. I knew how Yuri felt about Quidditch (a viewpoint I'd never be able to understand) so the fact that she'd somehow been convinced to show up to a match meant about a thousand times more to me than it otherwise would have. After all the things I'd put them through, everything I'd said, and they'd still found it within themselves to go all the way up here just to see me play!

A hopeful, but dumb part of me searched the seats around them for just the faintest hint of pink as well, but of course, without any such luck.

That really shouldn't have come as much of a surprise- if she for some reason had shown up despite hating the game and me, she most certainly wouldn't be caught dead under Sayori's flag, and I definitely wouldn't be able to find her anywhere else. Even with hair as vibrant as hers, spotting someone that small in this crowd would be next to impossible.

I should have expected it, but it still managed to hurt. Especially as I noticed the conspicuously empty seat on Yuri's side that seemed to almost emphasize her absence.

But all that didn't detract much from how genuinely wonderful it was to see Sayori and Yuri side by side, keenly watching even though my role in the game was as minimal and boring as this. I waved at them gratefully and, as a show of my appreciation, tilted my body backwards to do a loop-de-loop in the air.

"Playing it up for the crowd, are we?"

Draco's dry voice pulled me back to reality like a bucket of ice water thrown in my face. And in this weather, that was saying something.

I reluctantly turned to see him gently steering his Nimbus besides me, a self-satisfied smirk on his face which seemed wholly unbothered by the water streaming down it.

It was a very unwelcome sight.

"Don't you have a Snitch to find?" My voice was blunt, but the question was genuine. He really had no business being here, except to-

"Oh, Monika…" He tutted admonishingly, confirming my suspicion with a lofty chuckle. "You really wanted to be the Seeker, didn't you?"

I didn't respond, knowing anything I'd say would be dismissed as more petty jealousy.

But of course. Can't get through one match without gloating, can you?

"Ah, I really should have seen this coming…" He sighed dramatically and came dangerously close to being within punching distance. "You always had a hard time accepting defeat."

"That's funny, how would you know?" I retorted, turning my broom away to cover the far left ring. Not because it was in any danger of being targeted, I just wanted to get away from him. "Not like you've ever managed to beat me at anything."

"Don't be so sour, it's not a good look for you." He had the gall to chastise me as he drifted ever closer, tsk'ing at me. "It's such a shame you've never seemed to understand this about the school. I've tried explaining it to you since day one, but apparently it bears repeating. Hogwarts is about status and respect, nothing else. And there's nothing more respected than being Seeker. So you see, I had to get the position!"

I didn't reply, too afraid I was going to spit into his face or something equally impulsive if I opened my mouth. Was this really the same Draco I'd known and played with since we were kids? What had changed him? He'd always been patronizing, sure, but I couldn't remember him ever being this much of a prick.

I had to suppress a shudder as a terrifying thought struck me.

Maybe I only see him this way because my friends have pointed out the behaviour to me, it suggested. Maybe I just didn't notice because I was a prick myself.

"Come on, Monika." He continued nagging, finally flying right in front of my face to force me to look at him. "Can't you just be happy on my behalf?"

I looked into his cold, silver eyes, the brows above them raised smarmily. It was such a transparent and hollow expression that told me everything I needed to know about his true intentions.

He didn't care if I gave him my blessing or not. The only reason he'd flown over here was to humiliate me even further.

No way was I going to give him that satisfaction.

"Hey, so long as you catch the Snitch before Potter and win us the match, I'll be happy as anyone!" I shrugged casually. "And you pretty much have to now, don't you? I mean, if he managed to beat you because you were too busy gloating to a Keeper like me, it'd look reaaally bad, wouldn't it?"

His relaxed smile flickered for a fraction of a second before reappearing again full force.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." He returned my shrug. "In case you haven't noticed already, it would seem Potter is a bit… pre-occupied, this match."

He dived away, finally leaving me with one last mirthful cackle. Frowning at this cryptic message, I began searching the rain-filled skies around me for the Gryffindor Seeker, not keen on being left out of whatever it was Draco found so funny.

It wasn't hard to find him- as usual, The Boy Who Lived was making quite a spectacle of himself. What was difficult was figuring out just what exactly was going on around him.

While most Seekers usually flew solo away from everyone else to better do their job, it would seem Potter was going for an entirely different strategy. Wherever he went, both of the red-haired Gryffindor Beaters followed, attached closely to each of his sides like extra sticky Flobberworms.

My frown deepened in utter confusion. While this certainly made Potter the most protected member of either team, I couldn't imagine how being surrounded like that made locating the Snitch any easier for him, not to mention the extra exposure this put on the rest of Gryffindor.

But as I kept watching the bizarre display, I soon realized this so-called strategy wasn't being done to gain some advantage, but rather out of pure necessity as a medium-sized, black metal ball hurtled itself right towards Potter's head. A mighty WACK from the Beater on the right sent it on its way for about two seconds before the ball changed course in mid-air, and swirled back around to chase the trio.

No, not the trio- just Potter. I blinked in disbelief as I watched the exact same event repeat itself, the ball charging directly at Harry, getting knocked back by the left Beater this time, only to swivel around and relentlessly restart its pursuit.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Bludgers weren't supposed to target one player on the field, they were equal opportunity annoyances. For evidence I only had to point to the approaching Chaser, Angelina Johnson, who'd somehow managed to gain the Quaffle but had to forfeit her attempt at landing a goal in favor of dodging the second metal ball which whizzed up from directly below us, and then went after me.

I dodged it effortlessly, and it began chasing Adrian Pucey instead, but Potter wasn't quite so lucky. His Bludger was relentless, seemingly hell bent on not only knocking him off his broom, but maybe even take his head off too. Only thanks to the constant, feverish support from the Beaters did it remain unsuccessful in its endeavor.

It was all so weird and unheard of, I almost didn't catch Lee Jordan's announcement (his voice having gone a flat and depressed monotone) that we'd now managed to score six times in total. Who cared what was going on with the game when a rogue Bludger was actively trying to kill one of the players?!

Did someone tamper with the balls before the game started? Is that even possible?

I continued staring transfixed at the hypnotic display, before Madam Hooch's whistle sounded over the stadium, announcing a time-out. I found myself shocked it wasn't called much sooner in these conditions.

I leaned on my broom, directing it to float downwards along with everyone else. A brief glance over my shoulder showed me the problematic ball being detained in a conjured up metal cage, but it was clear it hadn't been pacified willingly- even now, it was hammering against the bars that stood between it and Harry Potter's head.

"What the hell is going on with that Bludger?!" The question blurted from my lips the moment my feet made contact with the damp ground among the rest of my team.

"Who cares?!" Flint bellowed loudly to uproarious laughter. "It's making us win!"

'Who cares,' indeed. I pursed my lips, realizing I was probably the only person in this group even remotely concerned with the mysterious Bludger. I really should have guessed as much sooner.

Uncomfortably, I turned around just in time to see Draco landing a few feet away. Like the rest of our team, his dripping face was positively beaming with a look of pure, unfiltered glee as he glared at the Gryffindors who had huddled together to discuss their options.

"Interesting match, wouldn't you say?" He drawled at me, giving a sly wink before joining our group in their mocking laughter. I looked after him, speechless.

His expression was so callous and without pity, that I couldn't help myself from finding it just a bit suspicious.

Surely he didn't…? I struggled to even complete the thought. I liked to think I knew Draco well enough to say for certain that he would never break the Quidditch rules. That bewitching a Bludger to target his rival was just too petty, even for him.

But recently, Draco had proved willing to do a lot of things I never would have thought of him. In fact, the only thing that really kept him in the clear was the sheer skill this stunt would have required. He would have had to not only break the sealing charm of the vault the balls were stored, but cast a highly complex tracking spell on one of the Bludgers as well. Magic like that just seemed way beyond what my childhood friend was capable of.

That admittedly wasn't a very reassuring thought. You knew someone had a serious problem when the question turned from 'would he' to 'could he?' Still, for better or worse, it was the best alibi I could come up with.

I was appalled when the announcement came that Gryffindor was ready to continue the match, and all payers should return to their positions. It seemed completely absurd to allow a game to go on under these unsafe and frankly even life-threatening circ*mstances.

And I knew Madam Hooch fully agreed with me from the grim nod she gave when I snuck away from my team and voiced my concerns to her.

"My hands are tied." She sniffed in obvious dissatisfaction, aiming a thin-mouthed glare at the Bludger that was now being released from confinement. "According to the rules, matches cannot be called off until a Player is fully incapacitated by Bludger injury. Technically, it hasn't harmed Potter or anyone else yet."

She did give her word that she'd be keeping a close eye on it and would interfere the second it crossed a line, but I couldn't see how that was supposed to be reassuring when she had to wait for it to actually hit Potter first. It was the first time in my life where I thought the Quidditch rules were being somewhat unreasonable.

I shivered. The very idea of that was downright blasphemous.

And, as if the very universe itself thought the day needed just a bit more tension and misery, thunder was starting to rumble in the distance.

For about a quarter of a second I considered quitting the game in protest, but the thought of what Flint would do if I forfeited kept me from doing so. Between the two of them, I think I would have preferred the Bludger going after me.

Still, let it be known I was a very far cry from happy as I mounted my broom, flew up and resumed goalkeeping. For whatever my personal feelings on anything were worth anymore…

The match continued, and believe it or not, Gryffindor was actually stepping up to the challenge! Both of their Beaters were keeping away from Harry now to help their team, and you could definitely tell the improvement that had on their performance. They actually managed to block some of Flint's rushes now, and even got their hands on the Quaffle long enough to try scoring at me a few times.

But still… the speed-gap between our brooms was ultimately way too high to make a difference, and I only had to exert the absolute minimum effort to foil their attempts. I tried my best to look apologetic as I crushed Alicia Spinnet's hopes and dreams three times in a row, but for some reason she didn't look very understanding.

Whenever the Quaffle wasn't in our court, I caught my attention drifting towards Potter and the fascinating maneuvers he was pulling in the air. Now that the Beaters had left him, he had to rely solely on his own skills to avoid the Bludger that kept speeding after him while searching for the Snitch at the same time, and honestly… he was pulling it off!

The boy was zig-zagging around the air, spinning his broom in spectacular dives that stopped just a hair-pin away from the ground, always managing to pull away whenever the Bludger got too close for comfort. I could tell his escapes were getting narrower and increasingly desperate, but that didn't make them any less impressive to watch.

I could remember last year and the doubts I had when I heard he'd landed Seeker position. At such a young age, I'd genuinely thought it'd just been a publicity stunt to get a famous name on their team, with no regard for talent. But looking at him now, it was so clear he deserved the spot. He was doing things on that broom that even I would have trouble pulling off. Almost like he was born to play Quidditch.

How on earth did he get that good when he was raised by Muggles? I wondered as I watched him avoid certain doom again, baiting the Bludger to almost hit one of our guys by diving under him. It was such a well played move, I couldn't even be mad at him for it.

Blimey, I'd love to play against him in a FAIR match…

I shook my head, reminding myself which team I was on again. If Flint knew Legilimency, (Merlin forbid) I was sure he wouldn't appreciate such thoughts of admiration from me. Well, to be honest, he probably wouldn't appreciate any thoughts that didn't extend to "Me, Keeper! Me protect goals! Me keep faaar out of strong boys' way!"

"OH WOW. LOOK AT THAT. ANGELINA GOT THE QUAFFLE AGAIN." Came Lee Jordan's unenthused voice. "SHE PASSES TO ALICIA. ALICIA AVOIDS PUCEY, PASSES BACK TO ANGELINA. MAYBE THEY'LL BE ABLE TO SCORE THIS TIME…?"

His rhetorical question came out more as a depressed prayer than anything else, and I had to raise a skeptical eyebrow as I watched the two girls fly towards me at a horrendously slow pace, continually passing the big red ball between each other as they stared ahead at me, as if hoping to 'psyche me out,' somehow.

I supposed they deserved respect for staying determined in this farce of a Quidditch match but at the same time it was hard not to feel an awful sense of second-hand embarrassment at the attempt. I hoped they wouldn't hate me too much when I'd inevitably have to shut them down…

As they came closer, so too did Potter. Entering my air-space a few feet below me, he was closely followed by his eternal companion, the faulty Bludger. As I kept tabs on the approaching Chasers, I made sure to include him in my periphery, just to make sure I wouldn't be caught in the crossfire and fumble when it counted.

No matter how trivial a task it seemed to keep Gryffindor from scoring, I knew I couldn't get complacent. If I slipped up even the slightest bit in this match, Flint would be first to let me know.

Not to mention that Hermione would hate me if I took it easy on them… I remembered her mock threat idly, and smirked weakly in the pouring rain.

Below me, Potter was spinning around madly, taking advantage of the Bludger's inflexible maneuverability when it came to sudden turns. The ball blundered about ten feet off course, giving the Seeker a few seconds to breathe and recover. As the Bludger slowed to a crawl in order to shift directions, it almost looked like it'd been made dizzy by Potter's impromptu pirouette.

"Training for the ballet, Potter?!"

The sound of Draco's loudmouthed jeer distracted me just enough to look around and find him floating still in the air just a few meters away, his eyes fixed with malice on Potter's misfortunes.

I would have scoffed and maybe rolled my eyes at this- Draco's immature grudge against Potter was just getting sad to watch at this point- but instead, my jaw dropped open and I had to do an actual double-take.

At first, I thought it was nothing more than a trick of the light, perhaps some very reflective raindrop, but there was no mistaking it. A small, round and glinting object, out in the open, fully exposed as it zipped around on its tiny silver wings- the golden Snitch.

And it was just a hand's reach away from Draco's pale face.

I couldn't believe how close it was to him. If he so much as slicked his wet, oily hair back, I was sure his knuckles would scrape against its golden bottom. It was practically begging to be caught!

And yet Draco remained completely oblivious, too busy making faces at Harry f*cking Potter to notice the thing capable of winning us the match right next to him!

Speaking of Potter, even he was staring in stunned befuddlement at the scene. Having clearly noticed the Snitch as well, he remained frozen in the air, probably trying like me to work out how anyone could possibly be this daft!

My body boiled hot with frustration like molten lava, and for a moment I was tempted to just up and abandon my role, dive down and catch the Snitch myself. Maybe that would finally convince Flint of how much better I would be as Seeker!

But no, that probably wouldn't work. There almost had to be some kind of rule against other people catching the Snitch, and while the look I imagined on Draco's face when I humiliated him was damn near irresistible, it just wasn't worth the risk of letting Gryffindor get a penalty. I would have to settle on the next best thing and shout something like "oi, idiot! look up!" at him instead.

But before I could even draw my breath, something happened that I'm confident threw every one of us for a loop. Even though Potter had only been distracted for maybe three seconds at most, it was long enough for the Bludger to make a harrowing comeback, hurtled itself back around and smashed directly against his arm.

A horrified gasp escaped my lips the same time as the Seeker cried out and crumbled on his broom. I wasn't completely sure if the sickening crack I'd heard on impact had been imaginary or not, but there was no ambiguity about the unnaturally bent, broken arm now dangling limply from his side.

All thoughts of helping Draco catch the Snitch evaporated as Potter started to plummet and spiral out of control. Unless someone went after him, he'd surely die! It would be absolute insanity to continue playing in his condition without immediate medical attention! I prepared myself to dive after him-

-and then I noticed the Gryffindor chasers having gotten dangerously close to my rings, their confident expressions suggesting they hadn't noticed their Seeker had been downed. Flint were coming up behind Angelina Johnson and tackled her a moment too late as she threw the Quaffle at her lifeline, Alicia Spinnet who caught it and continued onwards, and would undoubtedly score unless someone stopped her.

Just before he went down with Angelina, Flint scowled a wordless threat at me which could not be misinterpreted.

Conflicted, I debated inwardly for a split second before coming to a decision. I pulled my broom up again to face Alicia.

No. I realized, my pounding heart deafening everything around me. My role isn't to save Potter.

He'd be fine, I assured myself. Madam Hooch had promised to take care of him. I had a job to do now. Defend the rings, no matter what.

I narrowed my eyes, analyzing the oncoming Alicia's body language. The way she was swaying, darting between the left and right rings, so obviously trying to juke me out. Only I could tell from the way her eyes never left the middle ring which one she was really going for.

I remained stationary, preparing to burst upwards and block her throw at a moment's notice. She didn't stand a chance of course, her speed was still nothing compared to mine- something I wasn't happy about at all- but, though the conditions might've been wildly unfair, I still wasn't going to give any less than my all. Letting them score out of pity would be an insult not only to my own team, but them as well.

Alicia primed her body, gearing her arm up to throw. I rose gradually, ready to intercept it- and blinked in utter confusion when she proceeded to completely drop the ball both literally and figuratively. She'd blundered her shot, letting the Quaffle go off at such an off course, downwards angle that it almost seemed like she was deliberately trying to avoid any of the rings.

I stared at her, questioningly. Now, everyone was entitled to have bad throws sometimes. It sucked majorly, but those things happened to even the best of us. Even my heroine, Kursten Blijk of the German National Quidditch Team had messed up spectacularly on certain occasions, and that was okay. Naturally, I would never dream of mocking Alicia or holding this moment against her.

What was throwing me off about this particular bad throw though, was how pleased she looked with herself, looking back at me with a large, ear to ear grin. I felt as though I was missing something obvious, as though the shot she'd made had been completely intentional…

I whirled my neck as far back as I could, an uncomfortable sense of foreboding taking hold of me as I looked around, praying I was wrong. My stomach dropped the moment I spotted Gryffindor's third Chaser, Katie Bell, who'd somehow managed to lurk into my space without me noticing, on the opposite side of the rings. She was sporting a wide grin of her own as she effortlessly caught the Quaffle from Alicia.

They… double-juked me?!

The revelation was like ice in my veins. I looked on dumb-founded as Katie lined herself up with the totally unprotected ring on my left. The one I had absolutely no chance of reaching in time.

Here's the thing about the Nimbus Series. Despite my nagging about them, they really are tremendous brooms. Lighter than feathers, extra-ordinarily comfortable and with a greater speed than anything currently on the market- just a well-rounded, solid racing broom.

However, when it comes to precise maneuverability they can be a tad… disappointing. Usually, that doesn't matter at all since their sheer travel speed more than makes up for any lackluster turning ability, but in this particular situation, I probably couldn't have asked for a worse broom to have.

I could easily circle the entire pitch five times before Katie's Shooting Star could complete the first lap, but this wasn't a question of outracing her. She was already there, beneath me, in a direction I wasn't even facing. To make it down there, I'd have to turn myself around, descend, and get in front of the ring, something the Nimbus just wasn't designed for. It'd take five, maybe even six whole seconds, and it seemed she was going to score in less than two.

The irony didn't escape me that if I'd been allowed to use my own Zipper, this wouldn't even be a problem. I'd be able to zip down there in the blink of an eye and intercept her while upside down and both hands tied behind my back. But that wasn't the case here. I'd fallen for their trap hook, line and sinker, helpless to do anything but watch from up here as they scored below. There was just no way I could possibly get down in there in time, unless- unless…!

…I had an idea.

It wasn't a good idea. In fact, it was quite terrible. Very possibly the worst idea I'd ever had in my entire life. I'd go so far as to say that any self-respecting Quidditch player who found themselves having an idea like this should immediately sign off and take a break until their mental health had been properly re-evaluated. It was that bad.

But I didn't have time to take a break right now, or evaluate my psyche, or anything at all. All I had was an insane, dangerous and all around awful idea which only had a billionth chance of actually working, and even that was a generous estimate.

Katie was raising her hand with the Quaffle in slow motion. In less than a moment, she'd score Gryffindor's first goal. I was officially out of time to consider my options any further. It was now, or never.

I turned back to look at Alicia one last time, as if silently pleading for her to prevent me from going through with it. If she'd said "no," or even just shaken her head in disapproval, I probably would have come to my senses again, accept they'd outsmarted me and cut my losses.

Naturally, she did no such thing. Why would she? She wasn't psychic, and couldn't possibly have known what I was about to attempt, or that she was the last barrier holding me back. She was still smiling about her imminent victory.

I gave her the most defiant look I could muster right before purging my mind of every logical, rational and self-preserving thought until all that remained was wild, primal instinct- only with that frame of mind did my next action seem a little less monumentally stupid.

Then, I jumped off my broom.

I managed to catch a brief glimpse at Alicia's face as I pushed myself off the only thing keeping me suspended over thirty feet in the air. She wasn't smiling anymore. Then, she disappeared from view and mind as I dropped like a rock towards the grassy pitch below.

I ignored the wind rushing against my hair and face as I fell, focusing on accomplishing the three, very specific things that I'd have to do very, very fast with needlepoint precision for this to have any chance of success. If I failed any of these steps, I'd not only let my entire team down, but less importantly probably wake up in the Hospital Wing with all my bones broken, or, well, die. So, y'know. No pressure.

Step one, use the momentum to turn around and see where I'm going.

Maneuvering my body around while wearing heavy, rain-soaked Quidditch robes was about as simple and easy as it sounded, but I somehow managed it. I was now directly facing the left metal ring rapidly coming towards me as I fell.

Step two, grab onto it and DON'T LET GO!

Knowing I only had one shot at this, I feverishly grasped outwards with both hands the moment the top of the metal ring came within reach. Its smooth surface eluded my left hand's outstretched fingers and for one, paralyzing nano-second I feared the worst. But then, my right hand closed tightly around the cold, wet metal. I wanted to cry out in a mixture of triumph and excruciating pain as my fall abruptly ended and my arm nearly ripped from its socket. But there wasn't time to recover from the shock- I still had yet to do the third, and most crucial step of them all.

Step three, DON'T LET KATIE SCORE!

My eyes were watering from the strain on my arm not to mention the hammering rain, and my vision was nothing but a blurry mess of fuzzy shapes. But there, among all those shapes at the very bottom, I could just about make out the dimensions of a round, red object hurtling itself closer.

With the very last strain of effort I had in me, I managed to aim a weak kick towards it. I couldn't see if I hit it or not, but I felt a momentary heavy impact against my toes, followed by the sight of the red thing shrinking away and disappear from sight again.

I hit the ball… with my foot? Ahaha… I thought deliriously. "Foot-ball…" What a crazy concept, ahaha…

I'd done it. My crazy idea had actually worked- unless of course this was all just a fantasy I was having after my body had hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Maybe I was dead, and I'd gone to the great Quidditch match in the afterlife… Funny, I'd never imagined arriving here would be this painful…

As my vision gradually returned, I was just about able to make out Katie Bell, flying before me on her broom. As the details returned I could see her face, paler than death, staring at me with an expression frozen in sheer horror. I returned the look, hoping I appeared more dignified than I felt. Eventually, she retreated and floated away.

"Yeah, you better run…" I muttered feebly as I dangled helplessly within the ring, immensely thankful for the high-quality material of my gloves. Without them, I probably wouldn't have been able to hold on to the wet and slippery metal as well as I did.

"HOLY SMOKES!" Lee Jordan's voice was bellowing in my ears, ecstatically. "I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE IN MY LIFE! WHAT AN AMAZING SAVE!"

I smiled to myself and basked in the praise, raising my other hand to secure my position a little better. It was so rare to hear any Gryffindor even acknowledge Slytherin's achievements, and when it came from Jordan especially, you knew it had to be something really impressive.

Yeah, I suppose it was, wasn't it? I thought, proudly. I doubt any other Keeper has done what I just did in the entire history of Hogwarts! I'm really that good!

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO TELL Y'ALL, FOLKS!" Jordan's gushing continued. "ONE ARM BROKEN, AND HE STILL MANAGED TO CATCH IT! IF THAT'S NOT THE SIGN OF A BORN SEEKER, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THEN I DUNNO WHAT IS!"

My pride ebbed away on the spot as I realized what, and whom, Jordan was actually talking about.

…oh. I thought slowly, smile vanishing. Potter caught the Snitch. We lost the match.

Then, as that sunk in, a great rage overcame even the pain in my arms.

DRACO LOST TO A BLOKE WITH A BROKEN f*ckING ARM?!

When I figured out how I was gonna get down from here, I was going to kill that idiot!

Moving along the wide curve of the ring, (very carefully, might I add!) I eventually managed to reach the thick pole below and wrap my legs around it. On the whole it went relatively painlessly, with only a few minor slip-ups that might've caused me to fall to my certain doom.

On the way, I noticed my passenger-less Nimbus 2001 just a few meters beneath me, slowly and peacefully descending to the ground.

I resisted the temptation to just push myself off the goalpost, catch the broomstick and land a whole lot more gracefully. I probably could have done it, but… one death-defying stunt was probably enough for today, wasn't it?

So, I settled on sliding down the wet pole instead, wrapping my arms, knees and boots around it as tight as I could. For some extra motivation, I imagined doing the same to Draco Malfoy's neck.

I'd barely made contact with the muddy grass when I heard the shrill cry behind me.

"MONIKA! OH MY GOSH, ARE YOU OKAY?!"

I turned, catching the brief glance of a bright red bow bobbing rapidly towards me, and next thing I knew, a pair of strong, desperate arms had captured me in the tightest hug I'd ever had. Dazed, I barely comprehended the sweet, round face burying itself in my shoulder.

"I- I'm fine, S- Sayori…" I half chuckled, half choked, struggling to keep myself upright. It was only now that I realized how exhausted I was, every single muscle of my body being intensely sore. I imagined the moment I sat down next, I'd probably pass out on the spot and sleep for a week straight. "Just… had to go a little off-script there, ahaha…"

"Don't you ever do something like that again!" The girl commanded, somehow tightening her embrace. Her voice was shaking, and if I didn't know better, I'd almost say she was cross with me for some reason.

From over the Vice President's shoulder, I could see another, taller girl approaching hurriedly. There seemed to be some kind of invisible barrier over her head, as the pouring raindrops that came too close to her were repelled off to the sides where they then trickled down around her to the ground, keeping her pristine purple hair safe and dry.

"That was a very bold move, Monika." She said solemnly the moment she got close enough to be heard over the rain.

"Thanks, Yuri!" I smiled gratefully back at her. At least my friends had seen what I'd done. "Yeah, I suppose it was, wasn't it?"

But to my bewilderment, she didn't return my smile.

"That wasn't a compliment." She shook her head sternly.

"Huh?" I raised an eyebrow before attempting to escape from the iron hold I was in. "Sayori, please- I can't breathe!"

She reluctantly let go, and I was treated to the sight of her blue eyes, unusually wide and fearful as they stared at me. What was the matter here?

"If I've understood the flawed rules of this game correctly-" Yuri elaborated. "-then jumping off your broom to protect one ring seems like an incredibly high risk for a comparatively low reward. Am I correct in this assessment?"

"Well…" I began awkwardly, not sure how to respond.

"You could have died!" Sayori exclaimed in a hushed voice. "And all just to prevent Gryffindor from scoring once?! Why?!"

"I- I dunno..." I shrugged, unsurely. "I guess I just… like to give my all in games. It's always been like that. If I see an opportunity to win, I take it. No matter what."

I frowned then, noticing the Gryffindor team standing off to the side, basking in the cheers of the crowd.

Oh right. I remembered. I need to murder Draco!

"Not that it mattered anyway, since we f*cking lost!" I spat bitterly.

"It's o- okay Moni," Sayori assured me with a sniffle, looking close to crying. Maybe she'd already started with her tears mixing with the rain. "D- don't be upset, please! You're still the b- best player to us!"

Yuri's expression softened considerably as she pulled out her wand, muttered something and immediately the rain ceased around me and Sayori. I glanced up to see the sideways repelling effect in the water above our heads, like an invisible umbrella.

"I hope you won't take our criticisms in the wrong way." She said with a small smile, and gestured for us to walk closer to the podiums nearby. "It was a truly impressive performance, we were just a bit… concerned. When you were hanging up there, Sayori squeezed my hand so hard I nearly broke a bone!"

A guttural, pained groan ebbed out from the nearby crowd of Gryffindors. It was only now that Harry Potter was visible, lying flat on the ground in their midst, clutching his arm.

Yuri cringed visibly.

"Oh, uh… I'm sorry, that was a- poor turn of phrase."

"You were really that worried?" I asked Sayori with a frown. She blushed up a storm.

"Ehehe… m- maybe just a little…" She gave a weak giggle. "It looked… really dangerous."

I suppressed a sigh, and then smiled reassuringly. It wouldn't do to have my best friend going around the place, so anxious over something I'd done. I would have to downplay it for her sake.

"Look, I'm very sorry for upsetting you both." I said "But I promise I wasn't ever in any real danger. I knew exactly what I was doing the whole time, and-"

Before I could finish, a brief but incredibly bright light flashed before my eyes, followed closely by a tremendously loud CRASH right behind us. As my sight adjusted, I instinctively threw my head back and peered towards the top of the goalpost I'd been dangling from just minutes before. I was shocked to see a huge cascade of sparks showering from a glowing, orange spot on the ring where the lightning had struck.

I stared wide-eyed at the pole for a few seconds, lost for words. When I looked back at my friends again, they seemed equally speechless, though their silent glares were anything but.

Okaaay… bit awkward.

Finally, I cleared my dry throat.

"Uhm… w- we should probably get to cover…" I suggested meekly, searching my surroundings for any excuse to leave. "…oh look, my team is landing! I should go, see you guys later at the Club, all right?!"

Without waiting for their stern replies, I grabbed my broom and set into a medium-paced sprint away from them, towards the boys in soaked green robes identical to mine who indeed had gathered in a small group far away from the Gryffindor victors. My water repelling shield deteriorated more and more the further I got from Yuri until it vanished entirely and exposed me to the heavy rain again.

Flint's loud voice reached me before I'd even made it within fifteen feet of my teammates, screaming his lungs out and sounding angrier than I'd ever heard him before. I winced, preemptively.

"-RIGHT BESIDE YOUR HEAD, IT WAS! HOW THE HELL COULD YOU MISS IT?! WHEN I SAID WE COULD BE ASLEEP UP THERE, I DIDN'T ACTUALLY MEAN YOU SHOULD CLOSE YOUR EYES!"

I froze on the spot before I made it all the way over, caught off guard. When I heard we'd lost the match I'd wanted to kill Draco with my bare hands, but upon taking in the scene before me, it looked like Flint was way ahead of me. For once, the Captain's yells weren't directed at me, but at Draco, who stood red-faced and silent whilst staring back at the aggressor. It was hard to decide which one of them looked the most livid.

"WE HAD EVERY ADVANTAGE!" Flint kept going, prodding a thick, provocative finger straight into Draco's chest. He didn't react beyond an unstable eye twitch. "WE WERE FASTER THAN THEM, THEIR SEEKER WAS TARGETED BY A BLUDGER, HELL, THEY DIDN'T EVEN SCORE A SINGLE TIME THANKS TO WINTHER!"

I had to literally pinch myself at the off-handed comment. Marcus Flint… was praising me?! Surely this had to be a dream, right? I'd missed the goal after all, fallen all the way down and slipped into a coma. Yeah, that had to be it. This scenario seemed less probable than Natsuki sending me a heartfelt card for Valentine's Day. It was the only explanation that made any sense.

Except this had to be the most realistic dream I ever had then, since I could clearly feel the sharp pain as I dug my nails into my flesh.

"YOU KNOW WHAT SHE DID? SHE JUMPED OFF HER BROOM TO DEFEND OUR RING! YOU WERE OUTPLAYED BY A f*ckING GIRL!" Flint spat, and then proceeded to make it even more weird and surreal by adding; "HELL, I SHOULD JUST DEMOTE YOU ON THE SPOT AND MAKE HER THE SEEKER FROM NOW ON!"

Now, I've never been the type of girl to find glee in other people's misfortune. Pointing fingers and laughing at someone being punished, even if they wholeheartedly deserved it, had never really appealed to me, personally. Stuff like that seemed much more up the alley of someone like Crabbe, Goyle and, well, Draco.

But in that moment, I couldn't deny the feeling of satisfaction swelling up inside my chest. Was this it? Was I finally getting recognized for my skills and given the position I was actually owed?! I didn't even care if I was dreaming now, since this was better than any reality I thought possible!

But the furious glint in Draco's eyes quickly brought me back to reality. I knew at once Flint had pushed him too far.

"You do that, and the Nimbuses are gone." He sneered back at the sixth year. Though the blonde boy was much shorter and his voice couldn't hope to reach the boom of the Captain's shouts, his low and venomous tone somehow managed to be just as intimidating. "Don't threaten me, Flint. You know my father and what he could do to you."

Flint looked like he'd just been slapped with the full force of the Hogwarts Express, and was the first to blink as Draco turned on the spot.

"Never forget," He hissed tauntingly over his shoulder. "You might be the 'Captain,' but I own this team!"

The boy then stormed off, almost colliding with me on the way.

"Draco…?" I began softly, although not entirely sure why- I suppose it just didn't sit right with me to let him walk away in that state of mind without at least trying to reach out and resolve things. Yeah, I was upset with him for a great many things, but I wasn't some monster. I could tell when my childhood friend was hurting badly.

I regretted my action almost immediately when he turned on me.

"WHAT?!" He snapped, glaring at me with hatred flaring in his eyes. "WHAT IS IT?!"

I couldn't help myself from taking a step back in alarm. The look on his face… it was downright unhinged. His teeth were bared in an animalistic snarl, like someone who might tear out the throat of anyone who dared to stand in his way.

It was the first time in my life I'd ever been proper frightened of Draco Malfoy. He was completely unrecognizable from the goofy little kid I'd once known who'd loved competing with me and having pillow-fights at our sleepovers. And I realized then it'd been a very, very long time since I'd last seen that kid.

This… wasn't the same person. It was someone else entirely- some arrogant, spiteful stranger who didn't have a care for anyone in his life, except himself.

Someone I'd never want to have in the Literature Club.

Any words of comfort I might've had died long before they even reached my throat. The moment soon passed, and the stranger continued angrily stomping across the wet Pitch towards the changing rooms. I could only stare blankly after him, wondering when exactly I'd lost my oldest friend.

"Winther."

I turned abruptly at the gruff voice, and saw Flint now approaching me. Rather than displaying the annoyance and impatience he usually reserved for me, he seemed strangely mellow and forlorn.

"…yes?" I asked, unsurely. It was weird seeing him so hesitant and awkward. He even seemed too embarrassed to meet my eyes.

I'd never, in my wildest dreams thought 'oddly adorable' would have been a good descriptor for Marcus Flint of all people, but… here we were.

"…you did… good, out there." He reluctantly told my boots with a pained expression. It looked like he would've preferred taking twelve Bludgers to the face. "We… I… underestimated you, and I'm- sorry, about that."

I stared at him blankly, tempted to pinch myself again. This really wasn't lending much credence to the 'not a dream' theory.

"It's… okay?" I replied, not knowing what else to say.

"But… you're gonna have to stay Keeper." He crossed his arms, and a bit of the old brashness returned to his voice. "Not because you're not fit to be Seeker, believe me. With that stunt, you're easily one of the most dedicated players we've ever had on the team."

"Th- thank you, Sir!" I stammered out, feeling a beaming smile emerge on my face. As weird as it was hearing this, I couldn't deny how good it felt.

"If I could, I'd kick that little Malfoy sh*t off the team like that." He snapped his fingers. "Maybe have my boys beat his ass too, for good measure. Dude's a right prick, he is. But we just… can't lose these brooms."

I probably would've been miffed at that under normal circ*mstances. Valuing ill-gotten brooms over good players like me was a rather big pet-peeve, after all.

But right now, in this moment… I was just happy hearing Flint talking to me like a normal person, without hostility. Like I'd finally earned his respect.

Gosh, this day has just been a never-ending emotional hippogriff ride, hasn't it?

"I- I understand." I nodded. "No problem. And, uh- you can call me Monika, if- if you want."

"Aw'right, Monika." His face eased up into what seemed like a relieved smile as he clapped my shoulder approvingly. "I'm Marcus. Welcome to the team, good to have you."

The moment lasted for maybe a second, and then he snapped right back into his old Captain persona, hollering for the rest of the team to hit the showers. As we marched, I looked up ahead to see Draco and Pansy Parkinson, who'd come running down from the Slytherin podium with a green umbrella in hand to approach him, clearly unaware of the foul mood he was in.

The boy pushed her away the moment she reached him, roughly. With a girlish yelp, she dropped the umbrella and landed on her bottom in an extra muddy puddle which was promptly added to my expanding list of 'moments I'd feel way too guilty laughing at, but were still objectively hilarious.'

Chapter 9: Not Her Fault

Chapter Text

POV: NATSUKI.

Tock… tock… tock…

The heavy ticking of the large grandfather clock in the corner mixed in well with the soft pops and crackles from thick, partly consumed logs in the fireplace next to my armchair. It had a strange kinda rhythm to it, like a natural, idle musical beat- or maybe I was just desperate for any kind of noise to distract from those insufferable Gryffindor partygoers, celebrating their stupid victory in that stupid game and setting off their stupid fireworks.

I cringed inwardly as those Weasley clown twins renewed their monkey-like hooting. I would have left the Common Room and retreated to my bed long ago if I hadn't needed the snug warmth to recharge after enduring the cold, wet misery of today's weather. As it were, I didn't even have the energy to yell at those buffoons to quiet down.

Instead, I just replenished my quill with a brief dip in my ink bottle, placed its tip back on the surface of the yellowish parchment before me, and continued jotting down the main uses of fruity fungal fangs for my Herbology essay. All the while doing my very best to ignore the tireless rambles taking place on the sofa opposite from me.

A hard thing to do, considering the speaker had deliberately been addressingmefor the past twenty minutes.

"…so cool, wasn't it?! Don't you think Harry Potter was justincredible?!"Colin Creevey rocked back and forth in his seat excitedly, (seriously, whenwasn'tthis kidexcited about something?) recounting today's match for what felt like the fiftieth time in a row. "The way he kept dodging that Bludger in the air… he was like, zip! Whiz! Shoosh! I mean, you saw him, right Suki?!"

"No, because I wasn'tthere."I lied exhaustedly, unsure why I even bothered responding. It should have been obvious by now that anything I said would fall on deaf ears when the kid was this riled up.

Maybe I just wanted to make absolutely sure my story stayed nice and consistent until even I would start believing it. After all, it would be very awkward if people started getting a clue of where I'dactuallyspent the afternoon.

I supposed I should be grateful that the Gryffindors were so occupied celebrating their Quidditch victory that nobody had even noticed me sneaking out of the boy's dormitories after returning the Invisibility Cloak I'd "borrowed" from Harry Potter's trunk to see the match.

Yeah, yeah, I know. I shouldn't take other people's stuff without permission, stealing is bad and whatever, how would I feel if someone stole my Manga, et cetera, et cetera. But this had been a proper emergency! After all, I couldn't very well have shown up to watch a matchMonikawas playing in and risk being seen, now could I?!

Wasn't like Scarhead had told me specifically I wasn't allowed to use it (granted, we hadn't really spoken at all since the night I'd caught them sneaking out last year, but still) and it wasn't likehe'dneeded it while he'd been up in the sky, getting manhandled by Bludgers. I'd made sure to dry it with a heat spell afterward and placed it right back where I'd found it at the bottom of his trunk. He wasn't even going to notice it'd been gone for a few hours. I hadn't done anything wrong, and if I had, it washisfault for showing me the damn thing!

…

For what it was worth, I wouldn't do it again. Being invisible had been just a bit too much of a power trip. There were so many things I could do with a Cloak like that, so many problems I could just sidestep completely- especially at home, withhim.The moment I'd pulled it off, I knew I had topromisenever to put it on again or the temptation to keep it would be way too strong to resist.

Whatever else people said about me, Ialwayskept my promises.

"Which Quidditch team is your favourite, Suki?!" Colin asked, and then, after less than half a second; "Which one do you think is Harry Potter's favourite?! Do y'reckon he'll get to play professionally after Hogwarts? Oooh, I hope me dad'll buy tickets for his first match! I can't believe I'm actually going to the same school as him!"

I can't believe you still haven't shut up…

Wearily, I glanced up from my homework, searching around the common room for someone,anyonewho might be better suited at taking care of hyperactive toddlers who'd clearly had way too much sugar before bed.

But I knew it was in vain. Though the room was chock full of people eager to sing Potter-Boy's praises that he could go and annoy, the kid would eventually always find his way back to me for some reason. No matter what I did, I never could shake him off.

The only other person he seemed to have imprinted on more than me was Potter himself, but unfortunately, that option wasn't exactly available right now. Why the Weasleys thought throwing a party for their "star player" when he was stuck overnight in the Hospital Wing, was beyond me.

In my half-hearted search, I found the only other person in a more secluded spot than us, sitting in a nearby corner. It was the same first-year I'd been sat with on the Hogwarts Express ride with Monika, another Weasley going by her flaming red hair. Contrary to me, she didn't seem the least bit bothered by Colin's eternal chippering, far too busy scribbling in a black book on her lap to pay attention to anything around her. In fact, wasn't that the exact same book she'd had on the train, too? I hadn't seen her look up from it all evening, and I think she'd been here way before me.

What is she writing anyway, a damn novel?I wondered briefly but shrugged it off. Whatever she was doing, it was obvious she wouldn't be of much help to me.

I'm stuck with a boy.I thought, miserably.A boy obsessed with Quidditch, AND Harry Potter. This must be what Hell is like.

Okay, so technically I wasn't exactlystuck,per se. I could retreat upstairs whenever I wanted and finish the essay where even Colin wouldn't be able to follow, due to the special 'anti-boy' counter jinxes the girls' dormitories had been blessed with. Of course I knew that, but that wasn't the point. This armchair wasmyspot, and nobody, especiallythistwerp, was going to decide when I left it. If I was going to leave, it'd be whenIwanted to and not a second sooner!

The small boy seemed to take that as a challenge.

"…he was like WHOOSH," Colin had started recapping today's matchyet again,mimicking a fast dive with his hand while making crude sound effects with his lips. "And that Malfoy guy went all 'AAAH,' and then he caught it! Harry Potter caught the Snitch with a broken arm! Oh my gosh, he's like, thebestQuidditch player I've ever seen!"

I'd point out that since Colin was Muggleborn, (I'd basically memorized his entire family tree at this point, despite my best efforts) there was a good chance Potter was theonlyQuidditch player he'd ever seen, but I kept silent. Responding would only encourage the blabbering.

I did find it kinda funny that he hadn't mentioned Monika's stunt with the goal-hoop even once, despite it being just as crazy as anything Potter had done. Her biggest accomplishment of the entire match, and nobody had even been looking. I'd have to mention that to her at the Club tomorrow, should be good for a lau-

…oh.My train of thought stopped abruptly as I suddenly remembered one key flaw in that plan.That's right. I'm not talking to her anymore.

There was a brief, but sharp sting in my gut that I decided to ignore because it didn't make any sense at all. When she'd been dangling from that ring earlier I'd been anxious to see herfall, andnotbecause I was worried about her! Idefinitelydidn't miss seeing that slimy blood-fanatic's face, or hearing her voice when she praised one of my poems! Cutting Monika out of my life had been the best decision ever! Good riddance is what I said!

"Hey, Suki…" Colin brought me back with an inquiry. "…d'ya think I should apply for the Quidditch team?"

I glared at him.

"Sure,Colin," I said, imagining the peace and quiet there'd be around the place ifhewas the one hit by a Bludger. "What agreatidea, go for it!"

As always, my sarcasm went right over his head which lit up into a bright, beaming smile at my 'support.'

Ugh.I fumed, cursing him, and everyone else within 500 miles.

Whycouldn't this kid just take a hint? What defect in his brain made him believe we were such great chums? We weren't! I didn'tdofriends! I never had, never would!

Yeah, I'd enjoyed Sayori and Yuri's company well enoughI suppose,and sure, sometimes I caught myself looking forward to today's meeting out of sheer habit. That didn't mean anything, though! The whole Club had just been a vaguely 'fun' way to spend my free time a Hogwarts, but nothing deeper than that. Because at the end of the day, all it'd really been was a waste of my damn time!

Monika revealing hertruenature had been a blessing in disguise, really. That little 'betrayal' had finally helped me realize just how overrated friendships actually were, and how much better off I'd be without it.

Of course, if Yuri and Sayori kept insisting on staying in touch, I wouldn't shoo them away like some arsehole. They hadn't done anything wrong, after all. But I wasdonegetting emotionally attached to anyone ever again. I knew better now- it was only a matter of time before they would get bored and leave me behind again. Everyone did, eventually. And that was okay! It was reassuring to know where we all stood.

Without the Literature Club to distract me, I was free to focus on the things that actually mattered in life- getting my education, leaving the country, setting up shop in America, and never looking back again.

My original game plan, simply put. I couldn't believe I'd actually lost sight of it, but it was good to be back on track again. No dependency on others, no compassion, no bullsh*t. Just me, andonlyme, against the rest of the world.

Bring it on.

Tock… tock… tock…

"…do you think he'll be okay?"

"Huh?" I glanced up from my essay, caught off guard by the sudden and uncharacteristically low-energy question.

Colin looked back at me, with what looked like genuine concern.

"The thing Professor Lockhart did to Harry Potter after the match…" He clarified with a shudder. "I can't stop thinking about it. It looked so… scary. Do you think it'll get back to normal?"

"I dunno. Hard to say." I shrugged. "Losing all bones in your arm doesn't really happen to a whole lot of people, even at Hogwarts."

I recalled the brief glimpse I'd caught of the boneless limb dangling and bending in unnatural ways like an overgrown sausage. I could definitely see how something like that could be traumatizing to some people.

Lockhart was such a joke, one that'd long outstayed its welcome. If I fathomed how he still had the job after casting a spell that somehow made a broken arm seem better in comparison. And that wasn't even going into the classes he 'taught,' if you could even call it that. Between all the pop quizzes and re-enactments of his own books he was making us do, the subject should be renamed 'DramaAgainst the Dark Arts.'

"But… Madam Pomfrey'll be able to help him, right?" Colin insisted, looking hopeful. "I heard she can cure anything!"

"She can't cureeverything."I corrected, maybe just a tad bitterly as I blew a few strands of bubblegum-pink hair out of my eyes.

He didn't look very reassured by that, which I supposed was understandable enough.

"I wish she would have let me visit him in the Hospital Wing." Colin lamented with a whimper and reached into his pocket. "I would have given him these…"

He pulled out a stalk of sorts, connected to which were a bunch of bright purple, round fruits I guessed he'd nicked from a bowl at tonight's feast.

"Oh yeah, definitely." I scoffed dryly. "Some grapes areobviouslygoing to help re-grow his bones again. How shall he ever cope without them?"

"I like grapes." He answered simply, naturally not getting my sarcasm as he plucked a lone fruit off the stalk, popped it in his mouth, and chewed miserably. "Me mum used to always get me one when I got scared or hurt. 'Bravery Grapes,' she'd call 'em."

I shook my head and returned my attention to the essay again, hoping this was the last useless thing the boy had to say to me.

I was a bit 'Creeveyed" out for tonight, to put it mildly.

Thankfully, the next minutes went by without any major interruptions. The party seemed to be quieting down somewhat at last. Finally, I had the peace I needed to put the finishing touches on my essay, until at last-

"Yes!" I exclaimed triumphantly, smiling as I brought my quill down to jot a concluding period on the parchment. At last, it was alldone.

"Mm, you fimished? Cahn I see?!" Colin munched interestedly through a mouthful of grapes. Rather than wait for a response, he'd already shot a hand across the table and knocked it against the open ink bottle on the way.

I could only watch in despair as the black bottle tilted forward and fell, spilling its contents all over the parchment I'd spent the last three hours working on. It all happened so quickly, there was no way I could stop it. One moment, I'd had a finished essay. The next, I had a worthless, soaked, all-blackrag.

"Uh… whoops." I heard the perpetrator's faded comment, his voice muted as if coming from underwater. The after-image of my smile faded when I slowly looked up at Colin's despicable rat face, smiling apologetically back at me.

"S- sorry 'bout that!" He stammered with a nervous laugh as if that meant anything. What did I care if he was sorry or not? Would a 'sorry' remove all the wasted ink? Would a 'sorry' rewrite my essay? My fists clenched up as I stared back at him, furious.

He awkwardly plucked a particularly ripe fruit from his bunch and handed it to me.

"…d'ya wanna grape?" He asked pathetically, expression hopeful as he swallowed.

I only gave his peace offering the briefest of sparing glances before returning my full attention to him, inwardly debating whether to pull out my wand and come up with a suitable curse, or just start beating him to a pulp right here and now. That dumb camera around his neck wouldn't be enough to save him this time. The twerp was going down,tonight!

Somehow, I managed to restrain myself. Not because I was calming down mind you, far the opposite. Just that, none of my options seemedcloseto punishing enough for a kid like him, who'd not only ruined a full evening's work but had done his very best to make medespisehim since the very first day of school. Therehadto be something else I could do to him. Something that would make his suffering all the more appropriately devastating than whatever I could do with my fists or wand.

After a second's consideration, I had it. A trulyevilidea that would finally give him the comeuppance he deserved. And the best part, it wouldn't even require me to go through any effort of my own.

"It's fine, Colin. Really!" I said, forcing out an exaggerated smile, and accepted his grape. "Accidents happen, no harm done!"

He blinked in response, apparently surprised at my reaction. I casually popped the grape in my mouth and felt its juices explode, though I barely paid attention to the taste. My focus was all on Colin, determined to sell the idea that I wasn't upset.

It looked like he bought it, judging from the uncertain smile growing across his lips.

Good.

"Mmh, you know," I started again in pretend thoughtfulness. "I think youshoulddo it, actually."

"Huh?" Colin furrowed his brows vaguely, confused. "Do what?"

"Why, go see Harry Potter, dummy!" Maybe my giggle was overplaying it a bit, but whatever. "Grapes contain a lot of nutrients, don't they? He'll definitely need those after his bones grow back! You'd be doing him a great favor!"

"I would?!"

Of course not, you blithering idiot.

"Sure! Harry Potter loves the stuff, he says so all the time. 'I'm the Boy Who Lived, and I demand more grapes!' It's practically his catchphrase at this point."

"I never knew that!"

Colin's eyes were filled with child-like wonder, readily drinking up every lie I fed him, no matter how ludicrous they were. It was almost too easy.

"I'm sure if you went to the Hospital Wing right now and gave him those, he'd be so pleased with ya." I winked suggestively. "So pleased, I reckon he'd even pose for any picture you want!"

Though Colin's face was beaming like a tree on Christmas, I noticed just the tiniest hint of doubt entering his eyes as well. He was fully on board with what I was saying, but it looked like he still harbored a certain trepidation that prevented him from going through with it.

"But… aren't we supposed to stay in our rooms at night?" He squeaked worriedly. "Professor McGonagall said no one's allowed to roam the Halls after curfew. I just- can't I just wait till tomorrow to give him the grapes?"

"Come on, Colin…" I dismissed his concerns with an overbearing wave. "Rules are for losers! So long as you don't get caught, they don't even matter!"

The tiny boy glanced nervously in the portrait hole's direction, looking scared but tempted. I decided he needed one more push.

"Y'know, Harry Potter constantly snuck out at night last year," I mentioned casually, checking my nails. "I saw him do it three nights straight in a row. Nobody could stop him."

Bingo. At the mention of his idol, Colin's massive eyes glinted brilliantly.

"Really?! He did that?! How did he not get caught?!"

"Oh, it's not that hard to do." I shrugged, deliberately not mentioning the Invisibility Cloak. "And it's about ten times easier now that Filch's cat is out of the picture."

The Caretaker also knew just about every secret passageway in the castle, was deceptively fast, always showed up wherever you least wanted him to seemingly without ever sleeping, and was a hundred times more hell-bent on punishing rule breakers these days, but I didn't see the need to inform Colin of any of this.

"Oh." I could see the realization slowly dawning on him. "Uhm- but why don't you go out then?"

I sighed dramatically. "I would, but I've got so much homework. And also… oh, it's so embarrassing to admit but fine. I'm just too scared of the dark! One time I was walking around in my own thoughts when suddenly the Grey Lady came waltzing right through a wall, so I screamed and got caught. Gosh, I'm such a girl! But a brave boy like you? Easy!"

"You're not weak!" Colin objected at once. "And don't worry, I'm not gonna tellanyonethat you're afraid of the dark! If you come with me, Ipromiseto protect you!"

His voice was so earnest and genuine that I almost got second thoughts about this scheme- until I remembered that because of him, I had to spend the rest of the night rewriting my entire bloody Fungi essay.

He's a brat. A nuisance. An idiot!

"Thanks, but no thanks." I declined politely. "If Potter sees me with you, he's just gonna think I put you up to this. I guarantee he'll be much more impressed if he thinks you did all of this by yourself!"

I knew I'd convinced him then. With a confident smirk, the kid abruptly leaped to his feet from the sofa.

"Okay, I- I'll do it!" He announced with a muted giggle, pocketing the grapes. "Thanks, Suki, I'll tell him you said hi!"

"Attaboy!" I smiled back innocently and watched as he started towards the portrait hole, using an argument that'd broken out between the Weasley twins and their older Prefect brother (whose robes were smoking mildly after a firework that'd either gone off course or been aimed perfectly) as cover. He was so tiny, that nobody except me even noticed him crawling through the tunnel or slipping out to the Hall outside.

I smirked to myself, knowing full well he'd be caught well before he ever reached the Hospital Wing. I treated myself with fantasies about all the delicious punishments Filch would rain down on the kid- sure to be a thousand times more cruel and creative than whatever I could come up with.

The idea of Colin suspended in chains by his ankles or being forced to go through the Forbidden Forest was so pleasing, I almost didn't even mind the extra homework ahead.

Almost.

With a deep sigh, I pulled out my wand to magic away the damage from my parchment. Unfortunately, there was no way to distinguish between the spilled ink and the legitimate writing beneath it, effectively giving me a completely blank space to work with.

S'gonna be a looong night.

But as I dipped my pen in the now upright ink bottle anew, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. Snapping my head sideways, I noticed the girl in the corner no longer obsessively writing with her nose buried in the black book, but instead peering over the dark cover's rim, her deep brown eyes intense and unblinking. Staring directly atme.

Silent. Unyielding.Judging.

I scowled back at her, feeling vaguely guilty and nervous- not that I'd ever admit it out loud, of course.

"What?!" I demanded, raising my voice. "Got something to say?! Spill it, then!"

I knew the Ginger could have ruined my scheme completely and thrown it back in my face just by telling the Prefect what I'd done. Would probably be even easier for her, considering they were related. But instead, she merely kept silent and averted her gaze back to her book.

I scoffed.

Yeah, that's right. Go back to your book. This has nothing to do with you, mind your own bloody beeswax!

Stupid coward. The hell didshecare if Creevey got caught? What, did she somehow think she wasbetterthan me?! She'd sat by and watched everything happen without saying a word, which meant she wasjust asguilty!

I returned my attention to the parchment in front of me, still fuming as I rewrote the intro. Yeah, Gryffindor would lose a few points when Colin got busted, big deal! It'd be good for the kid to experience the rest of our House hating him for a bit when they caught wind of it, just like his hero had last year.

Maybe it'd even humble him a bit. Teach him not to be so damn hyper all the time, and see that Harry Potter wasn't the holy deity he'd built up in his mind. Probably just wishful thinking on my part but hey, a girl could dream.

But if he'd just take away one thing from the ordeal, more than anything else, I hoped it'd be this: we were not, had never been, and never would be,friends.As long as we got that clear, I really couldn't care less about what happened to that little twerp!

I pulled my eyes away from the portrait hole for the last time (I hadn't even realized I'd been staring at it) and focused on my unwritten parchment- for real, this time. The heavy sounds of the grandfather clock's ticking were soon accompanied by furious scratching as I once again jotted down the common usages and other interesting facts about the fruity fungal fangs.

Tock… Tock… Tock…

After a few minutes, the party eventually died down completely after the Prefect had confiscated the fireworks. Not seeing any purpose to keep staying up if they couldn't make a lotta noise doing it, everyone just kinda went to bed and finally left the rest of the room in silence again.

A silence that was then broken when the redhead in the corner suddenly closed her book shut with a loudsnap!

The motion was so unexpected and abrupt that I was momentarily pulled out of my writing streak, looking up as she got to her feet.

At first, I figured she was just tucking in for the night- it was getting pretty late, after all- but as she began making her way across the floor with rather stiff, staggering movements, it soon became apparent that she was ignoring the stairs to girls' dormitories in favor of the tunnel exit Colin had vacated through just a bit earlier.

I frowned, getting more uncomfortable the longer I watched her, now bending forward with the book firmly clutched under an armpit.

"…Oi!" I was unable to hold myself back when the girl started crawling in. "The hell d'you think you're going?!"

She barely even paused at my voice, continuing her trek. The only indication that she'd even heard me came in the form of a weak response, so bleary it sounded like she was talking in her sleep.

"Need to find him..."

"What?! Are you insane?!" I got up from my armchair, placing both hands on my hips at the lunacy. "Don't! You're just gonna get caught too!"

If she heard me, she didn't show it. Wordlessly she crawled onwards, pushing open the portrait entrance, and slipped out into the hall.

Leaving me on my own.

My jaw dropped open as I struggled to wrap my head around what'd happened. Had she justignoredme?! What was wrong with everyone in this bloody school?!

I felt like history was repeating itself in front of me. This was like, theexactsame thing that'd happened last year with the fake baby dragon incident last year, stupid first years sneaking out at night to go on dumb adventures! I'd thought it'd just been Potter's trio (and poor Neville) who'd been exceptional idiots, but apparently not!

I turned on the spot with a loud scoff to announce my disapproval and stomped back to my seat. Whatever. If those moronswanted to lose a hundred points so badly, they could have it! Wasn't like I cared either way! They weren't my friends, (I didn'thavefriends) so it wasn't my problem!

And it definitely wasn'tmyfault!

POV: COLIN

Click, FLASH!

Brilliant white light lit up the hallway, and for about half a second, I was able to make out every detail of the stone road ahead before everything went pitch black again.

I lowered Dad's camera from my grinning face, blinking the bright spots out of my eyes. Man, Hogwarts was even cooler at night!

Now that I'd gotten a look at where everything was, I could move around freely again without having to feel my way around the place and bang my legs against empty armor stands or benches. My knees were already starting to go numb!

Usually, the hallways were lit up with awesome floating candles, but it seemed someone had been blowing them all out before I came. Probably Peeves, he always did funny stuff like that. One time in Astronomy, he'd popped in and dropped an actual scorpion down my blouse because I was the only Scorpio- hilarious!

That was okay, though. This trip was so totally worth the bruises when I was about to see Harry Potter himself! Well, if I could find the way to the Hospital Wing, of course. I thought I'd been on the right path before, but then I snapped another pic and realized I'd somehow arrived right in front of the Girls' bathrooms!

But I was like, ninety-eight percent surethiswas the right way now. Well, maybe ninety-five. It was a bit hard to find anything in this place when the castle stairs suddenly decided to move on their own and lead to a whole other place than before, and all the darkness sure didn't make things any easier!

It's a good thing Suki didn't come with me.I thought, rounding another corner and grabbing the camera again.She'd have hated all this darkness!

Not like I was that big on it, myself. The usually cozy castle was like a completely different beast at night. Every looming shadow looked like clawed hands reaching for me, every creak sounded as though a mad cannibal was sneaking closer. The hairs on the back of my neck were standing straighter than uncooked spaghetti and my skin was spotty with goosebumps.

I'm scared out of my wits!I thought, resisting a strong urge to giggle.

But it was all right, really! Even though I'd forgotten to bring my wand for light, I had the next best thing with me!

Click, FLASH!

Dad's camera flash bathed the new hallway in sharp light again, including a portrait of some old blokes in wigs sleeping soundly at their desks, as well as a staircase by the far end.

The portrait blokes grunted in protest and began demanding to know who'd dared disturb their rest, but I ignored them. While everything had gone dark again, I could still see the afterimage of those stairs thatdefinitelyled to the Hospital Wing this time! I was ninety, no, eighty, no,seventy-fivepercent sure this time! Unless they'd moved again, but I didn't think they had.

Only one way to find out, though!

I walked on without paying much mind to the portrait's grumpy complaints about student harassment and how they were gonna tell Mr. Filch. They kinda reminded me of Suki and how she would yell at me, using words my dad only said when he thought Dennis and I weren't listening.

I smiled so hard it almost hurt my face. Just thinking about Suki made roaming around these dark halls much easier. I was so lucky to have her as my best friend here- by far the coolest person I'd met at Hogwarts, besides Harry Potter and Professor Lockhart of course (they were famous enough to be in thepaper!)

I'd ask Harry to sign a picture for her too after giving him the grapes. She deserved one after all she'd done for me here!

Without her, I probably would've been too nervous to ever even approach those guys. It was only thanks to Suki inspiring me with her fearless bravery that I was now able to talk to everyone at Hogwarts without any problems! Heck, I wouldn't evenbeout here now if she hadn't encouraged me!

So even though I was tired and terrified of all the darkness and scary noises, I wasn't gonna turn back. She was counting on me to go through with this, and I couldn't disappoint someone that awesome and funny and pretty and cute!

I'd definitely invite her home with me for the winter holidays when I got back. I'd show her dad's picture collection and introduce her to Dennis who'd absolutely love her. Ooh, and then I could visit her, next! A girl like Suki wasboundto have a totally cool family! I wonder if they all had the same hair as her…?

I couldn't help it this time. The thought of her father (whom I pictured in my mind as a big strong adult likemydad, but with a thick, pink handlebar moustache above his lips) was way too funny! By the time I managed to stifle my mouth with a hand, the choked snicker was already echoing against the walls of the deserted hallway.

Whoops.

I froze on the first stair step, listening for sounds like wheezing breaths or gleeful hooting, or any sign that someone or something might've heard and were on their way to get me.

I wasn't reallythatconcerned about it. Getting caught was just another experience to check off my list, and I bet the pictures I could get of Mr. Filch or Peeves chasing me would look splendid! Although getting Harry Potter those grapes was still my main goal here- I just liked looking at the bright side of things.

At first, there were no sounds besides the usual creaking and groaning that was expected of an old castle at night, and I started to think nobody had heard me laugh.

Well, that's a relief. Suki did say Mr. Filch wasn't as good without his ca-

Then, I heard it. A weird, sort of sliding noise behind me, which definitely didn't sound like any caretakers or poltergeists I'd seen at Hogwarts. I didn't have a clue what it could possibly be- the closest way I could describe it was something getting dragged across the floor, like a rubbish bag too heavy for me and Dennis to lift to the bin outside. Only, there were no footsteps accompanying it, so it had to somehow be dragging itself.

And it sounded way bigger and heavier than any rubbish bag I'd seen.

I turned around and squinted. I thought I could maybe see some of the shadows shifting, but it was impossible to tell for sure in this darkness.

My heart beat faster and I felt like laughing again. Not because it was funny or anything, that was just something I did when I got really scared. I could remember when I was little and hating when dad played peek-a-boo with me, but since I always giggled, he would keep doing it.

Maybe that's why people kept saying I was weird. I never could figure out how to react like I was "supposed to," whatever that meant.

The sliding noise was getting louder, but now I could hear a weird kind of hissing sound too like the gas valve on a stove turned to maximum- only way creepier.

I then realized that no, the sounds weren't getting any louder. The thing making it was just gettingcloser.

Dad had always told me and Dennis not to be afraid of the dark, and that there were no such things as monsters. Although after those men had come with the letter from Hogwarts and explained my little brother and I were Wizards and magic was real, he'd kinda stopped doing that.

The hissing was so loud now. I opened my mouth, and tried saying something like "Hullo?" or "Help me!" but the only sounds coming out were a few hoarse clucks, like a chicken.

Oh wow, I'm too scared to even talk now! Cool!

I mean, it was pretty bad, but still- Ialwaystalked. If something was spooky enough to make me shut up, then that was automatically pretty impressive. Terrifying, butsorad as well!

But what am I supposed to do though?Thinking was hard when the hissing was so loud.How do I get less scared?

I suppose there were always the Bravery Grapes. Maybe having a fruit or two would help me think a little better. I mean, eating was always nice.

But by the time I pulled out the bunch, my hands were so shaky and covered in sweat that they immediately lost their grip and dropped them on the stair steps beneath my feet.

Poop!

I chuckled miserably. Those had been for Harry Potter, now I had to pick them all up again and I couldn't even see where they'd landed and the hissing had gottensoloud now! What was I gonna do?!

If only I could see-

The answer suddenly came to me, loud as the chime of a church bell. The camera, of course! How could I have forgotten?!

I closed my trembling hands around the metal box hanging around my neck and raised it to peek through the viewfinder. Closing one eye and directing a finger to the trigger, I aimed it at where the scary sounds were coming from. Everything was as dark as ever, but now that I had Dad's camera shielding my face, they seemed a little less spooky. Like a video game!

All right, Colin.I tried to calm down, adjusting the settings, and turning the flash to maximum.This is just like any other picture you've taken. There's nothing to be scared about. Just be brave like Suki would be.

Click.I pressed the trigger with a final giggle.

FLASH!

As sharp, blinding light filled up the hallway, I could already tell this wouldn't be the best picture I'd taken. I did get a brief glimpse of…somethingbefore everything went dark again, but since I hadn't been able to see what I was pointing the lens at, everything in the viewfinder ended up out of focus, washed out, and completely obscured.

Whatever it was, it was big. Like, really,reallybig, right in front of me. And by that I mean I could have probably touched it if I'd reached out an arm. From what I could tell, it was covered in green… what was that even, scales? I wasn't sure. And there'd been these super weird, yellow thingies as well, flaring in the light.

…no, not yellow. Not really. They'd been more like… man, I don't even know what. Thinking about it, I'd never even seen a colour like that before in my life.

The more I thought about what they'd looked like, the more my head hurt. Badly. I was starting to get the feeling I really hadn't been supposed to see those things. They'd just been…wrong.

A loudBANG!erupted, and for a second I thought it was my head literally bursting at the thought of those round, yellow-but-not-yellow things. Then, when a sudden hotness scolded my fingertips and a smell of burnt plastic started flooding my nose, I realized the mini-explosion hadn't come from my head, but the camera!

When I tried lowering it to see what'd happened, (Dad wouldnotbe pleased if I'd broken his favorite camera) I discovered my arms wouldn't budge. Not because I was paralyzed with fear or anything like that- though I probablyshould'vebeen very afraid of whatever was in front of me- but more like... they'd turned to stone, somehow? I couldn't even feel the camera's heat against my fingers anymore. In fact, I couldn't feelanythingat all!

And it wasn't just my arms. When I finally decided to just run away, I found my legs had gotten stuck too. My neck, head, and the rest of my body became all hard like my blood was getting replaced with cement. I couldn't even blink!

Man, am I glad Suki didn't come with me.I thought dimly. Even my thoughts seemed slower than usual now.Gosh, I really hope dad's camera isn't bro-

POV: NATSUKI

Tock… tock… tock…

I glanced at the grandfather clock, half-expecting the portrait hole to swing open and reveal Professor McGonagall furiously dragging the first years inside by the ears.

Of course, no such thing happened. The Common Room remained just as empty and deserted as the last five or so times I'd checked.

It'd been about fifty-five minutes since Colin had left now, forty since the Weasley girl had followed suit, and there were still no signs of either's return.

Huh.I thought, mildly surprised.Maybe it really IS that easy to traverse the castle at night.

I shook my head, forcing my attention back to my half-finished rewrite again. What did I care how long they were taking? I had far more important things to worry about than two idiot kids getting lost in the halls!

Tock… tock… tock…

Man, was it just me or was the clock getting louder and louder with each passing minute?

Having finished my essay in record time (it hadn't been that hard- I'd written it once already, after all) I put down my quill, folded my work into a roll, and began the preparations to seal it. As I waited for my candle to melt the wax, I chanced another, totally innocent and casual peek at the time.

A quarter to one. Almost two hours since Colin had made his way outta here.

My throat tightened uncomfortably, but I ignored it. At this point, Filch had probably already caught them and was busy wheezing every punishment he could think of before settling on one. Yeah, that was it. Any moment now they'd come crawling through the entrance like miserable drowned mice who'd been chewed up and spit out again. That'd serve them right!

I dripped red wax onto my scroll, stamped it hard with my student insignia, and loaded it into my bag.

I was just about to zip it shut again but hesitated.

It's late.I thought, rationally.I should really go to bed now.

It's the weekend, though.Came the other, more tempting argument.Besides, you know how much you wanna say 'I told you so' when they get back!

My dilemma went back and forth like that for a bit before I finally gave a sigh, reached into my unclosed bag again, and pulled out some fresh, blank parchment.

Might as well check off a bit of the Charms report while I wait…

It couldn't be much longer now.

Tock… tock… t-

"Silencio!"

The grandfather clock's incessant ticks ended abruptly, and I pocketed my wand again with some difficulty- my hand was trembling. But I was ignoring that.

The wood in the fireplace had been reduced to a few smoldering embers which dimmed the lights in the common room and made it hard to see what you were writing. Not that I cared, since I'd stopped doing homework a long while ago.

My focus was reserved purely for the clock now, glaring intently at the aggravating instrument with my full, undivided attention. The dead silence I'd bestowed on it hardly provided any solace as I watched the minutes snail by.

Three hours. Threegoddamnhours!

What thehellwas taking so long?! Even if they'd both made it to Potter with an entire three-course meal and dessert, there was absolutely no reason why they still hadn't returned. It just didn't make any sense!

Reluctantly, I thought back to that night last week, on Hallowe'en. How Filch had reacted when he'd found Potter and the rest of the trio right where his cat was hanging. The look of madness and rage on his face at the time was impossible to overstate.

He said he'd actually KILL Potter.I shivered involuntarily.Could he… WOULD he…?

I shook off the unfinished thought. I really needed to get a hold of myself now, this was a freakingschool!Of course, we weren't in any kind of life danger!

…right?

Any second now.I kept up my one-sided staring contest with the closed entrance, only occasionally looking away to check the time on the muted clock.They'll be here aaany second now!

Seconds stretched on to another twenty minutes or so before something finally happened. I jolted to my feet at once when the portrait hole finally swung open and a small, pale-faced girl with scarlet hair stumbled inside.

"Merlin's beard!" I swore loudly to mask a sigh of relief. "What were youdoingout there?! Didya fall asleep on the stairs or something?!"

The girl backed away from me with a startled gasp. I didn't care and went on with my barrage.

"Talk to me!" I insisted, angrily. Where did she get off, keeping me awake all this time and then ignoring me when she got back?! That wasn't just insensitive, it was freakin' rude! "How long did Filch keep ya? Did he beat you up, call yer parents? How much detention did you ge- wait a minute."

I temporarily stopped my interrogation to properly take in her appearance. Her usually straight hair was mangy and disheveled whereas her eyes were large and fearful, locked in a downward stare and refusing to meet mine. Her body was shivering, and she was clutching the black book tightly against her chest as if her life depended on it.

But none of that bothered me nearly as much as my next realization. I'd gotten so worked out about her return that I'd completely failed to notice she'd come backalone.

"…hey, where is he?" I asked quietly, my voice strangely hollow.

This got the girl's attention, albeit briefly. Blinking, her pupils flickered up at mine before retreating to the floor again.

"…who?" She finally squeaked, voice high-pitched.

Her confusion broke me out of the stupor, annoying me. Was she playing dumb or something?!

"Who do you think?!" I growled impatiently. "Colin Creevey, o'course! Y'know, the little maniac with a camera and a Potter crush! The kidyouwent out to find?!"

She seemed to jump ever so slightly at the mention of his name, but beyond that, my words might as well have been in Russian. Her eyes had started to shift back and forth in their sockets like a mad pendulum, and I actually found myself growing a bit concerned.

"…whathappened?"I asked,tryingto be patient when really I just wanted to scream in her face. "Were you even caught?"

"I d- don't… think so?" She bit her lip uncertainly.

"You don'tthinkso?!" I repeated, incredulous. "What does that even mean?! You were there! If anyone knows, it'syou!"

"I don't…" She shook her head, trembling. "I don't re- I should really go to bed now. E- excuse me…"

And before I even had time to say "Are you kidding me right now?!" she'd quickly ducked out of reach, slipped up the stairs behind me, and disappeared into the first-year girls' dormitories.

I stared blankly at the closed door left in her wake, speechless. Finally, I managed to open my mouth and speak one word that perfectly encapsulated the entire interaction:

"What."

I debated stomping right up there after her anddemanda clear answer, or else. But something told me doing that wouldn't accomplish anything besides possibly disturbing and waking up the entire House, and then I'd havethatwhole headache to deal with.

And while I would have a shouting match with the incompetent Gryffindor Prefects, Colin might use the chaos to slip inside into his bed unnoticed. And I'd be damned if I let the twerp get offthateasily!

A quick glance at the clock informed me it was half past two in the morning, but I didn't feel tired in the slightest as I plopped down in the armchair again, crossed my arms, and got comfortable staring daggers into the portrait hole. If Colin thought he could wait until I'd dozed off to sneak inside, he'd have another thing coming. I could stay up for as long as I had to!

And if- WHEN he gets back, he'll get what's coming to him.I thought, scowling appropriately.I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind and make him WISH he never came back here!

I had no idea why he hadn't come back already. I didn't know what'd happened with the girl, or why she'd acted like that. And it didn't really matter, at the end of the day.

Because whatever the case might be, I knew one thing for absolute certain:

It wasn'tmyfault.

Fifteen minutes passed.

He's only making it worse for himself…My scowl deepened.

And another.

I rubbed some stray crust out of my eyes. Keeping them open in this darkness was starting to become really bothersome, but I could handle it fine.

And another still.

I saw something moving around the fireplace on tiny bare feet. It was too small to be Colin, and its eyes and ears too large to be human. When it noticed I was awake and staring at it, it vanished on the spot with a startlingcrack!

Clutching my chest after the shock, I sat up a little straighter and thanked the stars nobody had been around to hear me gasp.

Stupid house-elf.

I shook my head and continued watching the entrance.

After thirty additional minutes, I'd had enough. Swinging my legs, I rose from the armchair and got to my feet which were a bit more wobbly than I'd have liked, and started making my way toward the portrait hole.

Yup, that's right. If nobody else was going tobotherto look for him,I'd be forced to do it my damn self.

To be completely honest, it was a little daunting. I'd taken special care to avoid breaking any Hogwarts rules before, and the only times I lost us any points were when I deliberately chose to talk back to the faculty-neveranything of this magnitude.

When they found me, it was pretty much guaranteed they'd send an owl home, tellinghimwhat I'd done. Then I'd be in real trouble.

But screw the rules, screw the points, and most importantly, screwhim!None of that mattered right now.

It'd been over four bloody hours. Someonehadto do something, and I guess that someone was gonna be me.

Merlin save us all.

I scampered through the tunnel, grunting and grumbling all the way until finally I reached the end, pushed open the Fat Lady's frame, climbed out into the forbidden hallway-

-and found my path blocked by an emerald green nightgown towering before me.

Oh. Oh, no. No, no, no…!

Stunned, and with my heart quickly sinking to the very pit of my stomach, I tilted my face up to stare at the spectacled, elder face of Professor McGonagall, who managed to lookexceptionallyterrifying for someone wearing fluffy slippers.

Her lips were so tightly pressed together, they could have been a line drawn with an ultra-thin precision quill, and she was looking directly down atmewith eyes narrowed behind the wire-rimmed glasses.

"You aren't supposed to be out of bed this late, Miss Belby." She said finally, in a deceptively calm and level voice. I wasn't fooled, though. I could tellexactlyhow much trouble I was in by just looking at her eyes.

I'm dead. Dead. Dead girl be I. Rest in peace, me. I'm so f*cking dead.

I allowed myself a moment to swallow my panic and consider what limited options I had. This teacher was strict, harsh, and no-nonsense, but she didn't go out of her way to be a dick like Filch and Snape. Maybe, just maybe, there was still some hope left for me.

"I- I'm sorry, Professor." I stammered feebly, somehow managing not to collapse in the process. "I know I s- shouldn't have, and you shouldtotallytake all the points you want from me, b- but…!"

Though she might not be actively cruel, Professor McGonagalldefinitelywasn't one to tolerate disrespect, and the tight bun at the back of her head might as well be a lie detector with the way she always seemed to know when someone was fibbing. If I wanted any hope of getting out of this, I would need to be a hundred percent honest with her.

"…I was just t- trying to find C- Colin Creevey!" I blurted out. "It's been almost five hours since I saw him leave, and I didn't want to get him into trouble by telling the Prefects!"

Okay, so maybe just eighty-five percent honest then. Surely I could get away with a few white lies, just to make me stand in a better light. Not like that changed the outcome much, right?

It's not my fault.

I braced myself for her response, preparing for the worst. But then, she did something I never would have expected. Instead of berating me for my foolishness, she simply sighed and removed her glasses to wipe them clean in her skirt.

And then things turned even nuttier when she next spoke in a much gentler, somewhat muddled voice.

"I… I see. Of course, your concern is… most admirable." She put her glasses back on. "I will not be taking any points awaythistime, but I must implore you to never try and traverse these halls at night again- for your own safety. Is that understood?"

"I- yes, Professor!" I nodded feverishly, hardly able to believe my luck. What was going on here? Did Professor McGonagall turn all soft and sentimental at night, like a reverse werewolf?! "Th- thank you!"

McGonagall just nodded and turned to address the portrait of the Fat Lady who'd been quietly watching our whole exchange with a similar expression of disbelief.

"Wattlebird." She recited the password, and the frame swung open again.

"Move along now, Miss Belby. Try to get some sleep." She gestured for me to crawl back inside. "I'll need to have a word with the Prefects."

"R- right, 'course-" I said right away and was just about to obey- then hesitated. "…but, uh- what about Colin? Did you catch him?"

I hadn't thought it possible for her lips to tighten up even more than they already had, but clearly, I'd been dead wrong. At that point, I definitely should have just counted whatever blessings allowed me to get through this unpunished and crawled into bed like a good little girl instead of testing this insane streak of luck.

But I needed to know.

"Please, Professor." I didn't want to sound like I was pleading with her, but I reminded myself to be honest. "I'm just… well… kinda worried about him, and- and I don't think I'll be able to sleep if I don't know!"

I regretted asking the moment I saw the sadness in the teacher's usually stern eyes reflected back at me.

A clawed hand clenched my guts as I remembered the picture of Mrs. Norris' lifeless body dangling from the torch. Suddenly, I wanted to remain ignorant of Colin's fate for the rest of my life.

Whatever happened, it's not my fault. I didn't force him to go out. It's not my fault. He left on his own accord. It's not my fault. He could have just said no. It's not my fault!

"Yes, I… I suppose there's no use keeping quiet about it." McGonagall said, taking off her glasses again. "You'll all find out soon enough anyway…"

Her eyes had become all watery, but that couldn't be right. McGonagall was one of the toughest nails at Hogwarts, shecouldn'tcry! She wasn't allowed to! Maybe I was dreaming? Yeah, that was it. For sure. Definitely!

It's not my fault!McGonagall was saying something, but I couldn't hear her over the screaming voice in my head.It's not my fault, it's not my fault, it's not my fault, IT'S NOT. MY. FAULT!