28

Unfortunately, I wasn't drunk enough to forget.

I still remembered the scent of fire whisky and rain lingering in my nose as his teeth scraped along my neck. I still remembered the way his lips against my skin made me want more rather than less.

I remembered the way he felt so close to me and the way I wanted those sharp teeth of his against my skin again as soon as they weren't anymore.

I wish I would've forgotten the way my body reacted to his touch so naturally, like he was the first to ever touch me and like he was supposed to be the last.

But I didn't.

And now, I was painfully reminded of all those things whenever I accidentally caught a glimpse of him. It was the third time this morning, now; my eyes diverted with an aggravated sigh as they fell back on McGonagall talking about conjuring spells in the front of the class.

My head thudding as it rested in the palm of my hand, my elbow lazily propped onto the desk I was sat at, a sigh escaped Pansy's lips as she went to rest her head — forehead first — on the table.

There wasn't a single Slytherin who didn't wear a frown on their face, the rest of their facial features distorted in mild pain and eyes squinting or shut completely — we didn't get away with the sunglasses on the bridge of most noses before the lesson began. As soon as McGonagall entered the room, they transfigured into a see-through monocle.

Half of the class groaned, then, cursing under their breath and distorting their face in disdain towards the Professor wearing a smug smile on her face.

Malfoy was one of the few — if not the only — Slytherin who didn't make a sound, seeing as he wasn't wearing anything to shade his eyes with in the first place. Whether that was because he thought he was above it or just genuinely didn't need to, I wasn't sure.

That was the first time my eyes fell on him after last night. And I had diverted them with a similarly annoyed sigh.

"Miss Hayes."

My eyes widened slightly, back straightening and my arm, previously holding my head, lowering as I noticed my name escaping McGonagall's mouth. I blinked the blur before my eyes away, the thudding in my head suddenly irrelevant.

"Professor?" The words weren't supposed to sound like they did when they slipped past my lips. Though, I seemed to have adapted the slight condescension in my voice whenever I spoke to most people into my normal tone now.

I halted in tapping the tip of my quill against the wooden desk when her eyes narrowed at my response. I swallowed thickly, and she continued speaking.

"Miss Hayes—" She repeated sterner. —"Seeing as you don't find it necessary to pay proper attention to this class or me, why don't you show us before we end today's lesson."

My eyes darted through the room, a slight furrow in my brows when I noticed most pairs of eyes on me. Mine lingered on Granger in the front, head turned over her shoulder to look at me, her nose slightly scrunched up and a mildly annoyed look on her face as her hand previously in the air lowered.

Her eyes flickered over to Pansy next to me, lingering as her brows knitting together a little tighter before the entirety of her expression relaxed, and she diverted her gaze, head shaking lightly.

Potter and Weasley's expressions — the two sitting in the row in front of me — were similar to Malfoy's, of all people. The blonde a mildly amused expression on his face and his brow quirking when my eyes fell on him for the fourth time today.

"Hayes."

My head shot back towards McGonagall. "Butterfly-conjuring, please."

She fixed the way her small-framed glasses sat on the tip of her nose, gaze falling over the spectacles rather than through them.

Images of the Beauxbatons students gracefully entering the Great hall two years ago flooded my mind as soon as the words left her mouth. Beautiful, blue butterflies accompanying them.

And, fortunately, I remembered digging through Hogwarts library just that evening, giving in after Gwen pestered me for hours to teach her the charm. Of course, she wouldn't be able to master it either way.

Though, she enjoyed watching those same butterflies escape my own wand just as much.

Papilio.

A small smile found itself on my lips, grabbing my wand from the edge of the desk to raise it just slightly. Head tilting, mirroring the swish-movement I saw in that book, the words left my mouth in a whisper. "Papilio."

My eyes batted open to look at the professor, that same smile still on my lips as she scrutinised the blue butterflies fluttering around the room.

My eyes followed the one briefly resting on Pansy's head, flying past Blaise's field of vision, the latter's gaze following it now before it lingered in front of Malfoy's own face— coming to a rest right on the tip of his nose.

Blue wings flapping lightly, Malfoy scrunched his nose up at the touch, stormy eyes steadily on the calm animal resting on him.

"Very well." My head snapped into the professor's direction once more; Malfoy no longer in my field of vision.

McGonagall got rid of the few butterflies still flapping their wings with a gentle flick of her wrist. Eyes darting over to the blonde once more to find a small, genuine smile on his lips before the animal disappeared without a sound. "Five points to Slytherin house, miss Hayes," She noted, giving me a courtesy nod.

Her eyes roamed the classroom swiftly, and her words made me sit up straighter in my chair, a proud smile on my lips at the sound of low groans from both Potter and Weasley in front of me.

"You're dismissed."

—————

"Okay— and what's this one?"

Gwen looked up at me a little helplessly, her finger drawing circles around a particularly tricky constellation on the star chart in front of her.

My eyes trailed after the path of her finger. In the minute it took for me to figure it out myself — after all, it's been three years since I've last analysed a star chart — my little sister groaned in frustration, head falling back as another aggravated sigh left her lips.

"This is useless— Sinistra isn't going to pass me either way," She huffed.

"Well, with that attitude, she won't—" I muttered back, eyes still on the chart as I shook my head lightly. My own finger tapped against the star, gaze flickering over to see her not even watching me anymore. "Look," I said, a little louder, and my voice caught her attention. "What constellation is this?"

A short silence laid between us, the gears in her head turning before she questioned, rather than exclaimed, "the Herdsman?"

I nodded. "More conviction next time—" I huffed in amusement. —"But yes. The Herdsman."

She watched me carefully, waiting for me to go on. "Now, you're looking at the brightest star in the Herdsman constellation—?" My eyes darted from the star chart over to Gwen, her hands buried in her red hair and glasses sitting on top of her head as my finger tapped against the chart impatiently.

A sigh escaped my lips at the defeated expression on her face. "It's Arcturus," I clarified after a few more seconds of silence between us. "Say— why aren't you doing this with Erin?"

"They don't know have to do it."

"Who has to do it?"

"Just me."

My brows furrowed lightly, though a singular, humourless laugh escaped my lips nonetheless. Shaking my head in disbelief, I muttered to myself, "That's bloody audacious—"

"Yeah, you tell me," Gwen scoffed, taking the glasses off her head and instead placing one temple tip in between her lips.

"I will talk to Sinistra if you want me to—" The words left my mouth with a shrug, my eyes previously on her diverting to roam the common room, spotting my friends on the sofa in front of the fireplace. Pansy was missing.

My eyes snapped back onto Gwen when she harshly interrupted me with a "Heavens, no—" as she rolled her eyes. "That's just embarrassing."

I replied with a half-hearted huff, rather than any words and a comfortable silence laid between us; the only noise the surrounding chatter in the common room, the fire crackling in its place and the water of the black lake behind the large windows.

"Anna—?"

My head turned in her direction, shaking it lightly to snap myself out of my thoughts. I hummed in recognition of her words, and she went on. "Is it true what they say?"

I picked my head up at the words, quirking a brow as I threw her an interested look. "What is it they say, Gwen?"

She fidgeted with the quill in her hand, eyes avoiding mine. "About mother—" She muttered under her breath, clearly not sure how to approach this topic of conversation.

I didn't really know, either.

"That she'll rot in that place forever—"

"—Gwen."

"That she deserves worse—"

"Gwen."

She swallowed thickly, blue eyes finally landing on me again. "Of course that's not true," I quickly corrected, head tilted slightly as the words left my mouth. "Who's saying stuff like that?"

My nose scrunched up at the prospect of anyone daring to speak about her like she was some kind of monster that deserved bad things to happen to her for serving a greater purpose. I was proud of her.

Christena Hayes was no monster. And I'd make sure to help finish what she started.

"Oh, Merlin knows anymore—no one interesting enough to remember," She huffed, shaking her head to snap herself out of it. "Stupid anyways— are you going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

Gwen had always been fond of changing the topic rather than facing the one she was uncomfortable with. In this particular case, though, I hardly minded.

"Are you?"

"'Course," She shrugged.

This would've been the first Hogsmeade weekend I actually attended. And I couldn't deny, I've missed sitting huddled together in a booth with my friends, a butterbeer in hand and a faint foam moustache decorating our upper lips.

Though, unfortunately, I had to also think about how it would be the perfect, and maybe the only, opportunity to get that music box out of Gwen's dorm without her noticing — now that I knew she would be in Hogsmeade.

And so, I declined her question. "'Don't think so." 

A/N: Hi besties I'm kinda proud of this chapter even though it's more of a filler idk lol

Just quickly clarifying that they both left after the last chapter and nothing else happened djkbhvgc i feel like it might not have been clear idk

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

See you, <3