I Lived - Fred Weasley

Midnight

"It's not true, is it?" Harry asks Celeste as he and Ron walk with her to breakfast one morning.

The messy-haired boy is referring to Draco Malfoy's tall tales of the many adventures he's had while riding his broomstick back home, most ending with him narrowly escaping muggle helicopters.

The third year laughs. "'Course not! The most adventurous thing that boy's ever done on a broom is hit one of the trees on the grounds of Malfoy Manor!"

Harry and Ron look at each other and smirk before laughing.

The blonde girl might've felt bad for her brother, embarrassing him the way she is, but she can feel a couple cuts on her back that are still healing. She received those when Draco had told their father about a prank she had pulled with the Weasley twins.

And so, she continues telling the boys embarrassing stories about Draco until they reach the Great Hall and sit down at Gryffindor's table. With everything he's put her through, it's the least she can do.

She sits down in between Fred and George, who had left the common room with Lee earlier this morning.

Normally, she walks down with them, but she had a nightmare last night and slept in. The boys don't know about her nightmares, Celeste asked the girls not to tell them. So, on the mornings after some particularly bad nights, Angelina, Katie, or Alicia simply tell the boys that Celeste had felt sick the night before and needs to sleep in.

"Feeling better?" Fred asks.

"Loads," the girl smiles and begins to fill her plate with pastries.

"That's the sixth time you've felt sick since term began, are you sure you're okay?" Lee asks, concerned for his friend.

"My parents don't keep sweets in the manor," Celeste easily explains. "I've been gorging myself on them since I've been back at school."

This isn't entirely a lie. Her parents keep sweets in the house, they just don't let her have any. Sweets are reserved for Draco, the child who's not a disappointment. So, since being back at Hogwarts, she has been eating a lot of sweets. Just not to the point of feeling sick.

"Merlin, woman, your family needs to keep better food around," George comments.

She laughs and the four fall into easy conversation.

After a while, the mail comes and Celeste watches as her family's eagle owl swoops in and delivers a package of sweets to Draco. She curses internally, hoping none of the boys notice him as he gloatingly opens it at the Slytherin table. In her eagerness to hide her nightmares, she had momentarily forgotten that Draco gets a package of sweets from their parents every week.

Celeste, of course, gets nothing. Her parents don't acknowledge her existence if they don't have to. The only letter she gets a year is one right before Christmas holiday, instructing her to come home.

Neville Longbottom, a boy Celeste takes extra care to be nice to (considering what her aunt did to his parents), receives a glass ball filled with smoke.

"It's a Remembrall!" he explains, telling the other first years about the gift.

The blonde is too focused on her brother, who has just stood up with his goons (Crabbe and Goyle) and is walking towards the Gryffindor table, to pay attention to the rest of what Neville is saying.

Before she can react, Draco snatches the Remembrall out of Neville's hands. Harry and Ron jump to their feet, looking ready to fight the boy. Celeste also stands up, ready to intervene if necessary.

But Professor McGonagall, who can sense trouble from a mile away, beats her to it. "What's going on?"

"Malfoy's got my Remembrall, Professor."