The Everlasting Love

A most wonderful thing has happened today, Briar

Monday, Sept 2

Briar Potter was not having a good day. She was tired and cranky due to not having gotten much sleep the previous night. On top of that, her friends were bugging the hell out of her and for no good reason at all. Considering the summer she had had, you'd thought she'd get some slack, but oh, no, she was the blasted Girl Who Lived, who cared if she was happy or not, as long as she was around to do her 'duty'.

Snorting with contempt, Briar looked out over the hall, trying to distract herself from her dark mood. She really couldn't afford to lose her temper at the moment, and the way Hermione was harping on her when she wasn't scolding Ron for his eating habits, it was all she could do not to blow up at her. Merlin and his beard, but when had Hermione turned into a nagging, scolding, not to mention disapproving, mother? The way she was treating them you'd think they were three years old. Glancing at the witch, Briar found herself pitying any children Hermione might ever have; she had a feeling that they would not have an easy childhood.

Not wanting to go there, Briar swiftly turned her attention elsewhere. A movement caught her eye, and Briar watched with amusement, and some curiosity, as Draco Malfoy, the bane of her existence, strolled up and down the tables in the Great Hall. Intrigued, she watched as the blond moved past the Hufflepuff table. Was that a look of relief on his face? What in the world was the boy up to?

A swift glance to the sides told Briar that neither of her friends had spotted Malfoy's odd behavior yet, which was a bit strange, especially considering how closely Ron usually kept tabs on Malfoy. Shrugging her shoulders, Briar went back to watch as the blond more slowly made his way up and down the Ravenclaw table. It almost looked as if he were looking for something, but what?

Briar all but forgot about his bad mood, too intrigued by this new mystery. Then Malfoy turned towards the Gryffindor table. Bracing herself, Briar waited for the disparaging comments that always flew through the air when the two of them got near each other. But, as their eyes locked, Briar felt a strange feeling in her chest, and she was startled by the look of longing and yearning in warm silvery eyes, and Briar found herself wishing she could ease the pain she saw in them.

That thought brought her up short. Since when did she care about Draco bloody Malfoy? Opening her mouth, Briar was about to demand to know what was going on, but something held her back. She wasn't sure what was going on, but somehow she just knew that this was not the place, nor the time, to demand answers.

Deciding to go with her instincts, after all, they seldom led her astray, Briar shrugged, closed her mouth and turned away from Malfoy, picking up her teacup in an attempt to distract herself from the boy.

"Briar! Are you even listening to me? We need to buckle down and start studying early this year. No more slacking off and absolutely no more 'adventures'. It is vital that we put all our energy and efforts into our school work; the N.E.W.T.s is only a year away and there is a lot of material to learn and review before then."

Biting back a sigh, Briar couldn't keep a flash of annoyance from appearing on her face. She bloody well knew how important the N.E.W.T.s were. She bloody well knew how little time there was left; Hermione had after all only been harping about them since their third year. But, bloody hell, they hadn't even gotten their schedules yet.

Absent-mindedly, Briar watched as Draco turned around and left the hall, wishing she could do the same. Instead, she sighed and mumbled, "Yes, Hermione, I know," knowing from experience that it didn't pay to ignore her when she acted like this, since that would only prolong the lectures, giving her more things to lecture her about.

When McGonagall started to hand out their schedules, Briar could have kissed her, since that very nicely derailed Hermione from her obsession with their N.E.W.T.s, redirecting her attention to the classes they would be having that day.