Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or Harry Potter, though it'd be cool if I did.

Chapter 1:

Christmas

"It's Christmas," Rey said.

Ben looked at her and smirks. "Oh shit, it speaks." He takes another drag of his cigarette, his second of the hour. The smoke rises into the still air of the night, dissipating with a gust of wind.

"Who does this kind of shit on Christmas?" Rey yelled. She looked up at the cursed mistletoe dangling above their heads, staring down mockingly at them.

"The Weasley's probably," Ben muttered, tossing the wasted butt of his cigarette onto the floor. "They're your brew."

Rey turned and smacked Ben on his arm. "Can you at least pretend to be hurt?"

"Ow."

Rey cursed underneath her breath again. "If it was Hugo, I'll kill him. I swear, I will end his life." It had to be Hugo. He was the only one who had bragged to her about working at his dad's shop. Everyone assumed Rose was the only one to inherit their mother's intelligence, but Hugo inherited it as well and with the mischievousness that never seemed to escape the men of the Weasley clan.

Ben shrugged again. He reached into the pocket of his leather jacket and took out his pack of cigarettes, tapping on the end, popping out a single cigarette. He lifted it out with a finger and pointed it to her. "You want?"

Rey scoffed. "No, of course not! And do you need to smoke a third one? Isn't two enough? It's been only an hour!"

Ben looked at her wide-eyed. "An hour? Only an hour? I thought it was a lifetime already. No wonder I want to blow my goddamn brains out." He retrieved the wand from his back pocket and pressed it to the end of his cigarette. A faint trail of smoke emerged from the end. Any thought Rey had given of kissing him had flown out the window.

Rey looked up at Ben, taking a moment when he was looking away to study his features. She hated herself for doing it, but it was hard not to admire the boy when given the opportunity. When he was first year, he had short hair fashioned into an unfashionable bowl cut. His ears were a tad too big, his nose a bit too long, and his lips comically large. But the thing that she noticed the most were his eyes. She didn't notice them at first, they were just brown. But they were intense. Some people wore their emotions on their sleeves, on their face, Ben wore them in his eyes. She should know, she had been on the receiving end of his searing glare countless times.

If she could applaud puberty, she would. It had done a splendid job on Ben. He had grown into his ears, nose, and lips, transforming from an awkward looking prepubescent boy into someone well on their way to adulthood. She wished that puberty would do the same with her. She still seemed boyish in comparison to the other fifth years girls. She had given up on her bust size increasing, but she prayed that puberty would shave the baby fat from her face and her waist.

"Where were you heading anyways? Before we got stuck in this damn trap," Ben asked, flicking the spent cigarette aside.

"You probably shouldn't litter like that," Rey said. "Filch will have your head for that, you know."

Ben scoffed. "Filch would be out of breath trying to catch me. Tell me, are you Gryffindor's having your own Christmas party? Don't answer that. I know you are. I helped supply the booze after all."

Rey quirked an eyebrow. "Of course, that's where James got the fire whiskey. He said he had made an Unbreakable Vow with his supplier," she said. "Wait, did you…"

"No, of course not. I like profit, not conducting illegal acts," Ben said, looking offended.

"Well, supplying underage kids with booze is considered an illegal act in England," Rey muttered.

Ben shrugged nonchalantly. She hated how broad his shoulders were. "Then don't drink it. It's good stuff though."

"How much did James pay for it?" Rey asked.

"That information is confidential. Unbreakable Vow and all," Ben said, smirking down at her. "I hope you can understand." Then, he winked at her. The bastard had winked at her.

"You do realize I'm a prefect, right? I can take you to McGonagall right now," Rey said, a touch of heat coloring her tone.

"Really? Well, by all means," Ben said, holding his hands out towards her. "Cuff me and take me in, Officer Kenobi." He smiled at her again, that same infuriating smile. She had seen that smile before, it was the same one the Puddlemere United's seeker, Han Solo, wore whenever he caught the snitch. It suited Ben.

"Not going to arrest me, Officer Kenobi? Man, I was hoping you'd conjure up a pair of cuffs to latch around my wrists," Ben said a moment later, returning his hands to his side. He flashed her another smile before leaning into her ear. "I bet you've had the fantasy before though."

"Keep it in your pants, Solo," Rey muttered, suddenly aware of the flush in her face. "What about you? Doesn't the famous Ben Solo have somewhere to be?"

"The Hufflepuff's are throwing a party in their common room," Ben said, combing his hand through his hair. "I heard it was going to be pretty extravagant. I would know, I helped plan it."

"Why would they let a Slytherin plan their party?" Rey asked. "I'm sure they got party planners of their own."

Ben shrugged again and began picking at his fingernails. "They invited us and I offered to plan it for them. They provided the food and I provided the booze. Albus is even DJing."

"Is that why Albus isn't coming to our party? His entire family is there," Rey muttered.

"Yeah, but he seems them every day and probably will over the entire vacation," Ben said. "He's bored of them and you Gryffindor's. The same party, the same people, the same drama. Can you blame him for wanting to go to another party?"

"We, Gryffindor's, are anything but boring!" Rey spun around and gave Ben a shove. He took a step back, but stopped in air, propped up by the invisible wall of the magical box they had been forced into. "We have won the House Cup back to back, you know!"

Ben raised his hands in mock defeat. "Wow, the House Cup! I'm so sorry, Supreme Leader of the Wizarding World! 'We follow the rules and we get rewarded!'"

"You're just salty your house hasn't won it," Rey spat, her tone hot and venomous.

"Yeah, I'm fucking incensed. Gosh darn it, what will I do without the House Cup on my resume? I hope Potter doesn't hold it against me when I apply," Ben said with a sneer.

Rey laughed. "Yeah because Potter would allow a Slytherin into the Auror program. Get real, Solo. You snakes are just snakes."

Ben sighed and scratched the back of his head. "You lot never learn, do you?"

Rey's teeth clenched into a snarl. "Learn what, Solo? Going to give me another lesson about my impure bloodline?" The memory from their first year on the lake sprang to mind. The way he looked at her, enraged, practically foaming at the mouth.

Ben's eye widened. "That was once and I apologized for it."

"Right because I can forget the look in your eyes when you called me a mudblood? You meant it and I know you think it every time you lay eyes on me," Rey spat, punctuating each word with a poke in his chest.

Ben's hand shot out, grasping Rey's wrist. He jerked her forward and stared her in the eyes. There was a primal look to his eyes, feral with anger. "Shut up, Rey," he whispered, saying her name with the same inflection as if he had said Voldemort's name. "You Gryffindor spout this and that about blood acceptance, but you think that every Slytherin discriminates against you because of your parentage. What to know something?"

"What?" Rey's voice came out as a squeak.

"I don't care about your fucking parentage. You're smart, strong with magic. We don't like you because you're a bloody prude and pain in our ass," Ben said. "You Gryffindor's cling to the past. Voldemort's reign ended over twenty years ago. Do you honestly believe that Hogwarts is the same place since him? Do you think none of us have changed?

"You and your brew are always so damn self-righteous, it's no wonder we don't invite you to our parties. It's no wonder why Albus and Armitage hate spending time with their clan of weasels. Listen carefully to the words you and your House say next time when they're around. Snakes this and snakes that."

Rey tore her hand from Ben's grip, rubbing the ache from her skin. "Shut up, Solo," She muttered meekly. "You're wrong. He loves his family…And us."

"He loves his family. He's a good person like that," Ben said, combing his hand through his hair again. "Me? I'm not so forgiving. You lot seem to think that nothing has changed. Did you know before, they didn't have computers in the library? Technology didn't seem to work on the grounds. Now it does. Imagine a world without computers! The internet?" He reached into his pocket and withdrew his Galaxy S8. "Without phones? Reddit? Instagram? Twitter?"

"What does your phone have anything to do with this?" Rey asked.

"The world has changed. Hogwarts has changed," Ben said, pocketing his phone. "If Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff have let bygones be bygones, why shouldn't Gryffindor? Let the past die."

Rey opened her mouth to respond, but found that she had nothing to say. Instead she asked, "If you couldn't stand being near me, why not just give me a quick peck on the lips and go to your party?"

Ben scoffed. "Why didn't you?"

"Because you're too tall," Rey muttered.

"Because I don't force myself onto unwilling participants," Ben said all too quickly, but she did not miss his eyes flickering to her lips for a fraction of a second.

"You could've been at your party by now," Rey said. "Things should be dying down soon at the Common Room." She pictured all the redheaded devils, drunk and singing whatever popular song was playing on Spotify at the moment. She wished she could be there, in the warmth of her Common Room, drinking some damn good booze and having fun with her family before they left her alone at Hogwarts.

Ben glanced at his watch and scoffed. "What party ends at ten? I just had to be at the Hufflepuff common room to make sure that everything is set up. Ravenclaws get oddly heated when everything isn't perfect."

"Ben! Where you at, Benny boy?" a voice echoed through the hall. Rey recognized the whiny voice.

"Arm! Arm, I'm over here," Ben yelled. "By the staircase!"

A moment later, Armitage and Albus showed up around the corner. Both of them were dressed in casual wear in a similar, grunge-y style as Ben, but neither looked as natural garbed in black as Ben did.

"Kenobi? Didn't expect her," Armitage said. "No wonder you weren't there to inspect everything. Carmichael was about to throw a fit when the party planner didn't show up." Armitage bore a surprising resemblance to Rose's uncle, Bill Weasley, minus the gnarly scar marring his features.

"Could have just kissed her, Benny. You know you want to," Albus said, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Just…just get us out of this, Al," Rey sputtered, hiding her blush in her scarf. She did not welcome the picture of Ben's lips invading her thought space. She imagined she would have enjoyed it, but she didn't want to give the boy anymore ammunition.

"This is my brother's work," Armitage muttered as he inspected the mistletoe. "It's well done, I must say. My uncle would be damn proud." He pulled out his wand and casted a spell that Rey could not hear. The mistletoe began sputtering, leaking grey smoke from its mouth before falling limply into Armitage's hand.

"Should be good now," Armitage said, pocketing the mistletoe. He offered Rey and smile. "I'm sure you Gryffindor's are having a great time."

Ben scoffed, taking a cautionary step. "I doubt it. Let's get going, boys. We have a reputation to uphold." He turned to Rey and waved. "See you later, Kenobi. This was…something."

Rey watched as Ben, Armitage, and Albus turned towards the Hufflepuff common room before calling out, "Al!"

All three boys turned with an inquisitive look at Rey. "I just want to talk to Al for a moment," Rey said barely above a whisper.

Al looked to both Ben and Armitage and shrugged. "Go ahead. Tell Carmichael I'll be right behind you."

"Be quick," Armitage said. "Won't be a party without DJ Severus, now would it?"

Al's face colored at the mention of his DJ name. "Shut up, General Hux," he said.

General Hux?

Armitage raised his arms in surrender. "Testy, testy. We'll see you there. Be quick or I'm calling dibs on Gwen."

"You wouldn't dare, Arm," Albus said, nostrils flaring.

"Try me," Armitage said before grabbing Ben by the elbow and taking off, the click of their boots ringing through the empty halls. Before long, they had been encapsulated by the darkness.

Al turned to Rey, scratching the back of his neck. He looked like Harry Potter, she noted, but she knew he knew it. Everyone knew it. She wondered if the legendary Harry Potter had the same mischievous streak that his children inherited.

"What is it, Rey? I got a thing," Albus said, determinedly not looking at her.

"Um," Rey stammered. "How come you didn't tell us why you weren't going to make it?"

Albus blinked and quirked his eyebrow at her. "I told James. I assumed he told you guys."

Rey shook her head. "He told us you had to study for your OWL's or something. I didn't press because he didn't seem very happy talking about it."

Albus shrugged. "Yeah, he was a bit upset that I chose my thing over your guy's party. It's just…I see you guys all the time and most of the Gryffindor look at me like I've backstabbed them or something. I don't even know any of them. It's just a weird vibe."

"Really? I never noticed," Rey said. "I guess Solo was right."

That caught Albus's attention. "The fuck did Benny boy say this time? He talks too much for his own good, you know. I'm going to have to dedicate a song to him later. Something dumb that I know he hates like Gucci Gang or something."

"Gucci Gang?" Rey asked. She knew of the brand, Gucci, but had never heard of a song, Gucci Gang.

"Never mind that," Albus said. "What did Ben say?"

"That you don't like hanging out with us," Rey answered. "That you and Armitage take offense when we talk about the other Slytherins."

Albus shook his head. "Nah, it's not that. It's just weird since you guys are all Gryffindor's. The only two in other houses are me and Arm. If it helps, we talk about you guys too. Nothing too mean, but we still do," Albus said, offering her a smile. "Look, my dad has talked to Arm and I about being sorted into Slytherin and that it doesn't really mean anything outside of Hogwarts. They don't ask us what house we belonged to when we apply for jobs or what have you. No one really cares about it anymore. That was a thing of the past. Could you imagine if any of my uncles or Aunt Ginny were sorted into a house other than Gryffindor?"

Rey shook her head and chuckled. "I guess it would have been pretty bad."

"Yeah, but now? It's not so bad. Arm and I will take our digs, it doesn't really bother us," Albus said, clapping Rey on the shoulder.

Rey smiled, relieved. "Right, thanks for talking to me."

"No problem. Any time I can talk to a pretty girl, I'm game," Albus said with another smile.

"Shouldn't you be getting back to Malfoy before Arm does something?" Rey asked.

"Shit, you're right," Albus muttered. "But I'm not after Scorpius. Word around the block is that he's into Rose. But you didn't hear that from me. Say you heard it from Arm. I want to see that idiot get bitched at by his sister."

Albus turned around, probably to see whether or not Ben and Armitage were still in sight. They weren't. "Alright, I'll be going now. DJ Severus got a set to play and a few idiots to call out," Albus said.

"Good night," Rey said before adding, "and be responsible."

"Eh, we try," Albus said before taking off leaving Rey alone with her thoughts.