ON HOLD - Caramel [G.W.]

nineteen.

It was the last Hogsmeade weekend before Valentine's day and the shops were jam packed with students vying to get gifts for their significant others. Orion was in a bit of a haze, the full moon only two days behind him was adding to the stress of the shopping day.

"No, c'mon just give me your list and go wait for me in Three Broomsticks. You can pay me back in butterbeer." Cedric raised his eyebrows at Orion's dazed state.

He shook his head fervently. "No, no I'm fine. I've just gotta wait for all the third years to get out of Zonko's." Orion sighed and pushed his hands through his hair.

The third years always seemed to flock to Zonko's. Having never been to Hogsmeade before this year, it made sense for them to be interested in it; it was a pleasant assault to the senses. Orion definitely should've seen it coming, the streets were flooded with third years, but it's normally hard to distinguish between who's who. Unless that who is Harry Potter.

The glare as he passed was expected, the hissing of 'traitor' through his teeth was not. It made Orion stop dead in his tracks, his expression blank but his hands balled into fists at his sides. 'Traitor' had always been a word thrown around in disgust about his dad. How could anyone believe Sirius Black would do something like that to the Potters? To his best friend James Potter who had been there for him since the get go. James was probably screaming at Harry from the afterlife.

"Orion.." Cedric started slowly, raising a hand to put it on his shoulder but stopping short.

"I'm fine." he said suddenly. "Let's go to Florian's, it's gonna be a while." Orion forced a tight lipped smile.

Cedric knew better than to ask or further talk about what happened. This close to the moon (before or after) Orion was easily tipped into the scale of 'full blown rage' when upset. So he just let him cool off - quite literally - with some ice cream. Even though it was a bit moronic with the chilly spring air and snow still blanketing the ground. Bloody Scottish highlands.

"Oh Helga- Okay Rion, I get you're angry, yeah? But please stop biting your ice cream you're freaking me out." Cedric had his eyebrows furrowed a bit as he watched his best friend practically devour his ice cream.

Orion almost choked on his frozen desert with how suddenly he laughed, doubling over and somehow not dropping his ice cream. He sighed and shook his head a bit, that finally getting a genuine smile out of him. He would never tell Cedric, but he only bit his ice cream to get a rise out of him because he knew he hated it. To make a point, Orion raised his eyebrows and made eye contact with Cedric as he bit into his ice cream.

"I cannot believe I'm friends with you." Cedric sighed dramatically and started walking towards the now clearing out Zonko's.

Orion laughed and shook his head, jogging to catch up. "Shut up you love me and you know it~" he cooed as he bumped shoulders with Cedric.

"Oh shut up.." he mumbled, though he smiled slightly and his cheeks tinged a bit more pink. If Orion noticed he would tell him it was the cold.

They were in Zonko's much longer than they needed to be. It was always hard not to spend the entire day in the joke shop, curiosities draw the eye and even further entertain the mind. Orion came for two things for George but left with three, the third less of a joke and more of a childish profession of love. They'd already said the words aloud, but Orion was always more of a 'love is something you do, not something you say with words' type of person.

He knew he got it from his fathers, he didn't mind. He'd always preferred sitting up in bed hearing stories of their school days when he'd had a nightmare to the 'I love you's at bedtime. Never had something with so much truth felt so empty, so hollow. He knew they meant it, he also knew they said it then because that was what you were meant to do. You were meant to tell your child you loved them before they fell asleep in case they didn't wake up to hear it again.