sixty

3K 186 24
                                    

"y/n! theo!" serena tuts and the pair of you jolt awake, your heads hitting against eachother.

"ouch." he grunts and you let out a groan.

"don't fall asleep whilst i'm complaining about not being in egypt!" serena cries.

"why would you want to spend christmas in egypt anyways? i don't suppose it snows much there-" theo mumbles, rubbing his head.

"she doesn't celebrate christmas, theo." you say.

"so we go to egypt for two weeks and have a blast with extended family and ex-nobles who'd rather have us stay on this wet little island." she grins.

"i don't really celebrate christmas either to be fair." blaise says. "i mean, my mum's never home and i spend the day opening a few presents whilst the butler watches me."

"sad." you say, trying not to think about what your christmas' were like.

"not very festive." says shafiq.

"yeah, christmas was only good if we were invited to the winter solstice gala."

your eyes snap to theo's. "the wha-"

"the winter- it's a gala thingy we do. a noble family holds it each year and then wizards and witches come together for it."

"it's very nice." serena insists. "the last time we held it, i must have been like- seven?"

"yeah, draco's lot have had it for a few years in a row. we've done it twice." theodore tells you.

"never." blaise admits. "mum and i are always invited, though."

"we all stopped going with our parents at like 9- ish, though huh?" theo laughs. "i guess that's when we started to wander off and cause trouble- me, you and draco-"

blaise clears his throat.

you look between them.

"i uh-" serena starts, tentatively. "i went last year. i still have the dress i wore."

"i've never heard of this before." you say, cautiously. your eyes take a quick scan of the room.

you can't find your father.

you hadn't heard about such an event in the books before. never once was it mentioned and such new information was throwing you off.

you didn't like it.

you didn't like being unaware.

"i don't suppose we'll be going this year." blaise mumbles, picking at fluff on his cardigan. "what with us all being here-"

"why didn't you go to germany, theo?" serena asks, leaning forward.

"my dad said that something would be happening soon, probably some work thing- an old friend would be returning and so the nott's would have to be around for it.."

"mum said something similar." blaise agrees. "but then again, i'd already told her that i wanted to stay here for the holidays."

"doesn't explain why malfoys not staying here, then." serena sighs. "vincent and greg probably would have tagged along."

"as they do." you say. "draco's okay sometimes, i think."

she tilts her head at something behind you and blaise, sitting beside her, lets out a scoff before resting his head down on the table.

you and theo swivel around on the bench seats at the long slytherin table to watch draco head off to potions early, crabbe and goyle scrambling with his books behind him.

a hufflepuff boy accidentally bumps into him, apologises profusely before being shoved to the side.

"move, moron!" draco grunts, his two minions snickering behind him.

you frown and turn back.

"sometimes." you repeat.

"potions, then." serena waves a hand and her book closes. you can't help but be mesmerised. "don't want to be late to your father's lesson."

"no." you shake your head. "i won't hear the end of that one."

"come on, blaise." theo flicks the top of zabini's head and the four of you struggle off to class past corridors that soon become crowded with students as the bell rings.

you make it in and head to your table. today's a practical, your father informs the class, and so you'll all be in groups of 3.

you pair up with blaise and theo whilst serena joins daphne and pansy. harry, ron and hermione grin at you as they catch you sticking your tounge out at snape behind his back.

as theo and blaise head off to grab some eye of newt, you glance up to see ron waving you over to the spare cauldron counter.

you smile, take a quick look at your friends and head over once your satisfied that they are busy.

"yeah?" you say, lowering your head next to his.

"fred and george got into 3 weeks worth of detentions." ron tells you.

your mouth splits open into a wide grin. "what did they-"

"it's sick! they enchanted snowballs to follow and hit the back of quirrels head."

you laugh. "no way."

"yes! your dad figured out it was them, though. some weird spell tracking tricks." the red head glares at your father.

you look over at him, his head bowed as his attention is towards the papers sat in front of him- no doubt, the essays he had set for the night before and was currently in the midst of marking.

he looked confused.

he was probably marking neville's.

"do you really think- that your dad... wants the stone?" ron asks you.

you turn to him.

"i don't know." you shrug. "i'm not even sure if i'd want it myself. i just know that it's not right, whatever happened to harry, and it's all very suspicious with the troll and the sneaking around and trying to get past fluffy..."

ron holds your hand.

"whatever happens, you're our friend. you're the good snape."

you feel a pain in your chest.

you can only nod.

very quickly, you pull away and head back to your seat- highly aware that you might be caught conversing with a gryffindor again.

theo and blaise have made considerable progress in your absence and you assume its down to blaise's natural ability for potion making. he seems to enjoy it, not dissimilarly to the way your father does.

the class reaches a point in the potion making where you're all just standing around waiting for the solutions to perfect whilst they simmer.

you stare into the pool of purple, watching your eyes in the reflection tinted violet and observing the bubbles and ripples in it.

theo and blaise continue to speak about the gala.

you continue to feel uneasy about it.

that's when draco speaks up.

home (reader at hogwarts)Where stories live. Discover now