A/N: Hey guys! I hope you all had a lovely Easter and for those who don't celebrate Easter, a lovely couple of days off :) Here is my story for Round 2 of the QLFFC and I am Beater 2 for the Appleby Arrows as plenty of you would know by know. My two prompts were Immobulus (word) and holding (word) and I had to write about an inter-house friendship.
Reviews would be welcomed lovelies! Enjoy xx
I could already tell that it was going to be a long lesson. Despite Defence Against the Dark Arts being my favourite subject, Professor Umbridge has done the unthinkable and turned me against it. Honest to Merlin, I don't know why we're even here if we're doing first year stuff. I stare at the moving cartoons in the book in front of me and feel like pulling my hair out.
"Ali, what are you doing?"
I look up at Umbridge, drawing my eyebrows together in confusion.
"What?" I ask.
"Why aren't you looking at the board?" she asks me.
"Because I know this stuff and I'm board," I answer, not really afraid of what she'll do.
The rest of the class laughs and nods in agreement. I never though Gryffindor and Slytherin's would be agreeing on something. As far as I can tell, we were lucky and got some of the niceish fourth year Slytherin's. The hand that's holding her wand shakes with anger and I smirk to myself.
"Right. That's enough!" Her voice raises to un ungodly pitch, making my ears ring as soon as she cuts off the sound. "I will be partnering you up and you shall do theory work for the next two hours! Any pair who doesn't get it done and handed in at the end of the lesson has a detention. Go to page 689 in your text book. Now."
She stars to read out pairs and I realise she's doing Slytherin/Gryffindor pairs. I hope I don't end up with a douchebag but the chances of that occurring are about 2%.
"Ali Mint and James Fletcher. Over here."
I curse under my breath and grab my stuff, look at my friend Lila and go to sit at the desk she pointed to. James smirks at his friends and runs a hand through his shaggy hair. I roll my eyes as he pulls the seat out for me.
"Hey Al," he smirks.
"Hi James, don't call me that. Only my friends call me 'Al.'" I emphasise on the word friends.
"Awww, aren't I one of your friends?" he pouts.
I shake my head and dip my quill into ink and start writing down the answers to the question. There are somewhat forty to be done in the next two hours.
"But I wanna be one of your friends," he says and I can't tell if he's being dead serious or joking. I look over to him but he won't look up from his parchment so I can't read his eyes.
"Then work for it."
We work in silence for the next twenty minutes until I break it. I don't want to, but I honestly can't think of the answer for the question.
"James?" I ask.
He looks up at me and his face is saying 'yes?'
"What did you get for fifteen?" I ask.
"I was literally about to ask you that because I've spent that last three minutes trying to come up with an answer and I didn't want to ask you because I thought you might think I was stupid," he says.
"I wouldn't think that," I say.
We peer over the text book that's in the middle of us and I flip to page 500 where it covers Dementors. We both scan through the chapter and nothing comes up about the answer. We look at each other puzzled.
"We didn't cover this," I whisper.
"I know," he whispers back, flipping through the text book. "There's not even a reference in here."
We both agree to write 'No reference in the book, so we can't answer the question' and leave it there. An hour later, we've finished the questions but don't want to say anything because most likely she'll just give us more work. I decide to scribble all over the text book, drawing things on the cartoons, who just glare at me from inside the book.
The end of the lesson draws to the end and she warns us that the person we're sitting next to will be our partner for the whole term.
* * * * *
I'm walking up to the Gryffindor Tower alone, way after dinner. I was hungry and went to visit the elves to get some food. Dobby served me some warm roast lamb with peas, stuffing and roasted potatoes topped with gravy. And not the gross type. The one that my mum made. It made me feel a little homesick surprisingly, which reminds me that I should probably write to home and see how everything's going.
I still can't believe that non of my friends wanted to come. They were all too lazy to come - I even asked Hermione and she was too swamped with revising for some test she had. Hermione's like my older sister, which is really actually quite good. I go to her for homework advice, she comes to me for boy advice.
It's a healthy relationship.
"Al!"
I jump as someone calls my name from the dark of the corridor. I peer into the darkness and out steps James. I'm not gonna lie, I'm surprised.
"What are you doing here?" I ask, my heart pounding in my chest from the scare.
"Thought I'd catch you. I wanted to see if you've decided to be my friend yet?" he smirks, leaning against the wall.
"Well…" I say, turning it over in my mind. "I guess I have to be seeing as we're going to be working together for the next month and a half."
He smirks at me and honestly I want to wipe it off his face. Suddenly, I hear a chuckle and someone say 'love birds' and then I'm soaking wet. I look up and see Peeves hovering above us and a bucket dangling from his hand. I just realise he's dumped me in water.
"PEEVES!" I scream and whip out my wand.
I chase after him down the hallway, calling 'Immobulus!' but to no affect. It hits him, but doesn't do anything. I give up, panting and hear footsteps clattering after me. I turn around and James is there, doubled over and shaking and it takes me a sec to realise that he's laughing.
"Why doesn't 'immobulus' work on ghosts?" I ask, annoyed and slightly embarrassed.
"Because they're ghosts!" James exclaims, still laughing.
"Well, I'm glad I could amuse you," I say bitterly, "anyway, I best be going now."
"I'll let you go, but are we friends?" he asks, dead serious.
I smile and nod my head.
"Why not."
A/N: I HOPE Y'ALL LIKED IT! Anyway, please let me know down below - you know what to do ;)
Claudia xx