Secrets & Slytherins

Chapter 23: Burn

"Shit," Grace grumbled, knocking over a vial of an infusion of wormwood. Someone as clumsy as her had no business taking Advanced Potion-Making. The students in this class were supposed to be above average...or at least in control of their own arms.

"Last I checked, shit wasn't one of the ingredients used to make The Draught of Living Death," called Noah with a grin. He glanced at his potions partner, Draco Malfoy, a blond boy who couldn't seem to stop the small smirk that tugged on his lips as he stirred his potion.

"Very funny, Dolohov," Grace replied, cleaning up her counter-space before adding powdered root of asphodel to the cauldron placed in front of her and her partner, Lavender Brown. Grace glanced at the bushy-haired girl, who seemed to be staring off into the distance in a daydream. It was certain that their potion would not be successful the second Professor Slughorn had paired the two of them together.

Grace propped her head up with her hand, letting her chin rest on it as she stirred her potion slowly, her mind drifting away with each circular motion she made. Every so often, she would flicker her eyes up to Noah, trying to read his thoughts. She wondered how he was doing. They never talked much anymore, not that it was his fault, though. Grace was the one that told Noah he wouldn't be able to gain her trust back. Noah had quickly found a new girl to bother himself with.

The idea of Rachel Avery getting to be with Noah made the Gryffindor feel sick, but Grace hadn't the slightest clue why. She was with Ryan again, right? At least, that was what Ryan had convinced her. He hadn't been treating her too badly, either. There's no one else that will love you like I do, he had said. Just like before, you have no choice but to be with me.

Ryan was right. There really was no one else that would love her. She was far too broken and tarnished and complicated to be desired by anyone other than the boy that had been the cause of all those things. At least Ryan knew what he would be signing up for. The Slytherin was good at one thing for sure— getting inside of Grace's head.

Tap.

"Miss Parker," Professor Slughorn's voice echoed over her shoulder. Grace drew her attention back to the potion, which was somehow a bright pink color. She turned to look at Lavender to see if her fellow Gryffindor found their ruined Draught of Living Death as funny as she did, but the girl was gone. In fact, practically everyone in the classroom had left, except for a few straggling students that were lazily putting away ingredients and flasks, including Noah and Draco.

"Caught you in a daydream, didn't I?" Slughorn continued. He peered into the cauldron and his eyes widened. "Never in my days of teaching have I seen The Draught of Living Death go so wrong that it turned pink." Grace expected him to be frowning, but instead he had a rather large smile on his face.

"I only wish it could really be that color. It would make it much more cheerful, right?" Slughorn chuckled. "Well, dear, you'll just have to try again next class. Off you go."

Grace flashed him a small smile and quickly cleaned up the space she had been working at. She traveled over to the cabinet to return her ingredients, careful not to drop any. Noah's voice caught her attention, only he wasn't speaking to her. She gently peered over her shoulder, spotting Draco and Noah about to walk out the door.

"Is it supposed to burn?" Noah asked Draco in a hushed voice. The two Slytherin boys left before Grace could hear the answer.

If Noah was talking about whatever STD he managed to catch from Rachel, then yes, it was most definitely supposed to burn, Grace thought.

She closed the cabinet doors, slung her bag over her shoulder, and trudged out of the classroom.