XI. Bad Side of the Moon

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N O V E M B E R 1 9 7 6

.・。.・゜✭・.・✧・゜・。.

IT WAS NEARING time for dinner when Clara had finally come back into the castle from the greenhouses. Admittedly, she didn't have much of an appetite though. So, rather than joining the other students in the Great Hall, she's decided to return to the Gryffindor common room and hopefully enjoy some peace and quiet. She was much too stressed to even think about bangers and mash. There was quite literally too much on her plate already.

She still had a Defense Against the Dark Arts assignment to complete as well as putting the final touches on her essay on Summoning Charms for Professor McGonagall. Not to mention the sudden revelation that she'd formed a crush. No. A... fondness for a boy whom she had been avoiding for nearly four years at this point. That alone was occupying much more space in her mind than she found ideal.

The sun had nearly set as she gazed out the windows on her way up to Gryffindor tower and Clara frowned at the thought of it being so dark so early in the day. The silver light of that night's full moon swirled with the orange light of the torches adorning every hall in the castle as she climbed the winding stairs. Evenings like this were what made her miss summer so dearly. Despite the depressing thoughts in her mind about the imminent sadness that winter would bring – curse the cruel gods who gave her a December birthday, honestly – all she wanted to do in that moment was change out of her robes and into something more comfortable.

Clara assumed everyone would be down in the Great Hall for dinner, so hopefully she would be able to lay claim on her favourite plush armchair next to the fireplace to do her coursework before any other student could take it for themself. But as she trudged up the staircase, she wondered if she even had enough brain power left to remember the password to the common room to begin with. Luckily, it seemed like that wouldn't be an issue as the Fat Lady's portrait swung open the second she approached it. A group of three rowdy boys all but ran Clara over as they exited the common room in a rush.

"Oi! Look where you're going, you bunch of gits."

"Sorry, sis, got places to be!" James said hurriedly, brushing past his sister.

"Why aren't you down at dinner?" she called after him.

"Why aren't you?" the final boy to exit the portrait hole replied pointedly.

Clara rolled her eyes at Sirius, "I'm going to study. You three are clearly up to something." she paused as she looked over Sirius' shoulder, expecting to see Remus towering over him. Narrowing her eyes when he was nowhere to be seen, she returned her attention to the dark haired boy, "With one of you missing that only makes it all the more suspicious."

"Doesn't it get exhausting being in everyone's business all the time?" Sirius muttered impatiently.

Clara's lips parted, ready to object, but nothing came out. She was sure if she hadn't been in the greenhouse all afternoon trying to understand anything about how to keep a Sneezewort satisfied enough to live to see the next day, she would have enough brain power to say something smart in return. But her mind was completely blank.

A satisfied smirk grew on Sirius's face at her sudden silence, "Anything else you'd like to ask, Potter? Or are you finished interrogating us?"

"Yes, actually. Where is the tall one?"

"He's fine, Padfoot let's go." James called after him.

Clara flicked her head towards her brother, "I didn't ask how he was, I asked where he was. Are you three up to something?"

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