The Beast Within

Hogsmeade

The smells and colours were overwhelming. I approached one shelf. There were too many sweets to count. I read a few of the labels. Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Fudge Flies, Pepper Imps, Toothflossing Stringmints. So many choices. The door opened and a few more students entered. It would get busy really quickly. We chose some sweets, bought them and left just in time. A sea of students stepped into the shop behind us. I had bought some more chocolate frogs, a mice pop and some of Honeydukes' Best Chocolate. We crossed the street and walked into Zonko's. Zonko's was a popular haunt for students as it was full of jokes and tricks. The moment we stepped into the shop, the sounds of students chatting and laughing filled our ears. We squeezed past a group of 7th years and examined the different pranks and jokes. There were all sorts of mischievous magical items. There were Nose-Biting Teacups, Frog Spawn Soap, Sugar quills. Just like Honeydukes, it had anything you could ever imagine. We bought some Dungbombs and some Hiccough Sweets. I couldn't wait to prank someone. As we left, I turned Remus, Brendon, Ava and Sam.
"So where are we gonna go next? The Three Broomsticks?" I asked.
"Might as well." Ava said, shrugging.
"What about the Shrieking Shack? It's haunted!" Sam exclaimed. Me, Remus and Ava glanced at each other.
"Sure." I said. "You don't really believe that do you?" I added.
"I've heard about it. The locals have heard howls coming from the Shrieking Shack. There's no other explanation!" He squealed.
"What about... Werewolves!?" Brendon laughed. Ava and Remus glanced at me again. Sam raised his eyebrows.
"Really? Werewolves? Are you serious?" He said shaking his head in disbelief. "Honestly, some people." He muttered. We laughed. 

We trudged to the Shrieking Shack where Sam kept blabbering on about ghosts. Eventually, he got bored and we walked to the Three Broomsticks. It was cosy and warm inside. We chose a table by the fire to warm ourselves up. Brendon got up and went to order. We sat calmly by the raging fire, chatting. It was very relaxing, listening to the crackling fire and the quiet murmur of the other customers. He came back carrying two tankards of butter beer which he handed to Ava and Sam.
"Hey why don't you serve your little sister first?" I chuckled as he ran back to get the others.
"Cause your my little sister." He replied, bringing his and Remus' back, purposefully leaving mine till last. I shook my head.
"You know, I really do hate you sometimes." I said, grinning. We drunk our butterbeer, talking to each other and joking.
"By the way, Professor Bones told me that I'm this year's Hufflepuff Team Captain." Brendon announced.
"Cool." I said.
"That means we'll be having try-outs tomorrow instead of practice. That means that you'll have to compete against others to stay seeker. I'm not giving you special treatment either." He added.
"Seriously?"
"Yup."
"I think Slytherin's also doing try-outs, they've got a new captain, so if you get in, prepare for new people with new tactics." He said. The door swung open, crashing onto the wall beside it. A tall raven haired boy with cold, grey eyes strolled in as though he owned the place.
"Speak of the devil. Jason Avery, everybody, new captain of the Slytherin team."
"Merlin's beard! Is he related to the death eater, Avery? The one who was sent to Azkaban after the Battle of Hogwarts?"
"Yup. Claims to be against his family's old ways but everybody knows his family still has those beliefs. His family is also very close with the Plaines. They share their beliefs but the Averys are more followers of them than friends." He explained. We watched as he sat down. Alexa walked in behind him and went to order drinks.
"Alexa." I growled, standing up. Ava grabbed my jumper and pulled me back down.
"Hates muggles, especially muggle-borns; has a wealthy, powerful family who follows Voldemorts beliefs years after his death; basically has every bad characteristic there is; Alexa Plaine, everybody!" He cried.
"Shut up!" I hissed. We drank the rest of our butterbeer and left as soon as possible so as to avoid conflict. When we got out, it was beginning to get dark. There was a group of students. We ran towards them. They were calling the register. We got there just in time. They read out our names. Alexa and Jason pushed some Gryffindors out of the way to get into the group. Once the register had been called, we walked back to the carriages.

It was getting really cold so Remus and I huddled together for warmth. He rested his head on mine, wrapping his arm around me. I buried my face in his chest. I could sense Brendon was watching, but I didn't care. We fell asleep. When we arrived back at Hogwarts, Ava shook us to wake us up. We climbed out of the carriage and walked back. I held onto Remus' hand. Looking up, I gazed at him. His hair had changed to a cold blue, his eyes were grey, but still the freckles stayed. That was one of the things I loved about him. Even though he saw them as imperfections, he never got rid of them. I smiled and squeezed his hand. He kissed the top of my head and squeezed my hand back. We got back to the common room and went up to our dorms. I got changed and took the locket and ring off. The ring had turned a pink colour again. I smiled and put them on the side next to my bed along with my wand. I fell onto my bed and gazed at the ceiling, slowly drifting off to sleep.