laconic • t.nott ✓

09 ➺ feast of dementors

「 FEAST OF DEMENTORS 」

ON THE MORNING OF THE Hogsmeade weekend, Theo overturned his trunk and let all of its contents fall onto his bed. Kicking aside a stray sneakoscope, he rummaged through the pile of clothes, feeling his frustration grow by the second. He was clad now in nothing but a pair of jeans and a shirt. He needed something warm for the weather outside, but none of his clothes seemed good for the occasion. So far in his seventh year of Hogwarts, he hasn't paid much attention to his clothes but now that he was going to Hogsmeade, he didn't want to wear anything at random.

"What the fuck have you done, Theo?"

It was Blaise. He looked over and saw him as he entered the dormitory. He wore a long, dark green travelling cloak, black boots, and a pair of gloves. It was a simple attire but it looked stunning on him. Of course, thought Theo grudgingly, Blaise looked good in anything. He, on the other hand, needed to decide on his clothes at least a month earlier to hope to look even a little bit decent.

"You're still not dressed."

"I know," he said through gritted teeth. "I can't find anything to wear."

Blaise arched an eyebrow. "Really? All these clothes and you don't know what to wear?"

He groaned and flopped down on the bed, above the clothes that were strewn around. Blaise looked through the pile for a moment before extracting a decently clean looking jumper from its midst. "Here," he said and tossed it at Theo. "Wear this. And you can borrow one of my cloaks."

As Theo miserably put the jumper on, Blaise went over to his own trunk and pulled a cloak similar to the one he was wearing, except it was a deep red colour. He admired it silently when Blaise handed it over to him, examining the tiny stitched patterns along its edges. It was light, elegant, and clearly very expensive. Everything Blaise owned was glamorous, and when Theo swung the cloak around himself and tied it around his neck, he automatically felt much better about his appearance.

Blaise reached toward him and pulled the hood over his head. "Perfect," he said with a satisfied smile. "It suits you."

Theo looked away and clumsily pulled out his socks from the pile. "Why don't you wait in the common room while I get ready?"

Blaise agreed and left.

He pulled on his socks and began to brush his hair with his fingers. A large mirror stood at one end of the room and Theo went over, examining himself through the glass. His hair was a mess on his head - he didn't remember the last time he had brushed it with a hairbrush. He had lately just been relying on his fingers to bring it to shape. As he grabbed a brush and began to attack his hair, he saw Draco enter the room, looking miserable.

"You're not going?" he asked as the latter dived into his bed and disappeared under the sheets. He peered out when he heard the question and groaned.

"No."

"Really?" Theo set aside the hairbrush and went to Draco's bed. "I thought you'd take the opportunity to go out with Astoria."

"That's what I was planning to do," said Draco in a small voice. "I asked her if she wanted to go with me, but apparently her sister has already 'booked' her to go with her. What are the odds that Daphne did that just so I could not take Astoria with me?"

Theo made a mental note to talk to Daphne later. But for now, he just patted Draco on the shoulder and went to the common room where Blaise sat waiting for him.

At the Entrance Hall, several students stood huddled together, all waiting to go to Hogsmeade. The Carrows were at the front, shouting obscenities at the students as though talking to a group of criminals who have tried to escape their prison. They instructed the students to behave themselves and not to stray too far from Hogsmeade if they didn't wish a painful death to fall upon them. They reminded that the dementors would be all around Hogsmeade and any wrongdoer would be fed to them without hesitation.