Different

duels

Claire woke up with a gasp, her chest heaving and sweat pooling down her face. Her heart was beating so fast that she thought it was going to burst out of her chest, making her stumble to the bathroom and throw up the contents of her stomach before laying down on the cold marble floor. 

"Claire?"

Daphne Greengrass was sleepily rubbing her eyes as she stood in the door of the bathroom, both girls wincing when she turned on the light, shutting the door so that no one else was woken up.

"Are you okay?" Daphne asked. 

"I-I had a nightmare," Claire admitted, her voice shaky. She could feel the wind blowing through her hair as if she was still falling and her stomach was cramping as if she had actually overdosed. 

"You have a lot of those," Daphne noted as she put cool water on a washcloth, handing it to Claire who gratefully nodded and put it on her forehead, closing her eyes at the comfort.

"I-I'm sorry if I've woken you up," Claire apologized. "I'm trying to do better."

"I have them too," Daphne said sadly. "Mostly of my mother. I don't know why she ever had kids if she obviously doesn't want them."

Claire didn't know how to respond and she looked over to see that Daphne didn't even look upset.

"I don't know why my uncle took me in if he didn't want me either," Claire said, slowly sitting up and leaning against the wall, still feeling too weak to stand up. She had looked older in her dream, which scared her. What was in her future?

"Isn't that crazy?" Daphne asked as she sat down across from Claire. "You'd think they'd know better. That's why I like women. No worry of having kids who I won't like."

"That would make it a lot easier for me," Claire said, trying to hide her surprise at Daphne's proclamation. The wizard world was farther behind the muggle world in many ways, especially the Purebloods.

"I've never told anyone that," Daphne admitted, her voice small as she messed with her fingers. "I guess I just hoped...you're just really pretty."

Claire tried not to look shocked, but she didn't do a good job. Daphne's face was a bright red, and Claire felt sorry for the girl. They had barely ever talked, which made the conversation much more of a surprise. 

"Thank you," Claire said awkwardly. "But I-I like boys. Unfortunately."

"So sad," Daphne sighed, her whole demeanor changing as she put the trademark Pureblood smirk on her face. "I'm too good for you anyways."

Claire let out a small laugh, knowing that Daphne was just joking. Claire was glad for the distraction, especially since her hip was stinging even though there wasn't a single mark on her skin.

"You can't tell anyone," Daphne said, suddenly serious. "My mom already hates me enough as it is. Astoria is the only one who knows. Pansy and Millicent can't even know."

"I promise," Claire assured the girl. "I'm pretty good at keeping secrets. I don't have anyone to tell them to anyways."

"You have Draco," Daphne joked.

"If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go to sleep now," Claire said. Daphne let out a laugh at how the girl avoided the topic. 

"I usually don't sleep anyways, so if you have another nightmare, I'm here," Daphne offered. Claire nodded and just gave the girl a grateful smile. It was then that Claire noticed that Daphne had dark circles under her eyes, but they were usually covered with makeup. Daphne slipped out of the bathroom and let Claire brush her teeth.