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A/N: For the International Wizarding School Championship Round Three. School: Durmstrang. Theme: Veritaserum. Year: 4. Main Prompt: Drizzling – Rain (Weather)

Word Count: 2648

The wind howls loudly; it's high-pitched shriek able to be heard even from inside the library. Summer has just left, it's warm weather gone in exchange for an autumn breeze. All it does is rain now, a constant drizzle falling from the sky. The air is starting to become crisper. The ground is becoming damper. Autumn is everywhere, it's the first thing that anyone notices.

I look away from the window and return my focus back onto the paper that sits in front of me. 'Techniques of Healing in Seventeenth-Century Spain'. A sigh escapes my lips, my heart dropping as I imagine what a bore this is going to be to read.

For what feels like the millionth time I begin to dream about what life would be like had I chosen another career path, maybe even something I actually liked. I could own a bookstore, raise some sheep, write some stories; whatever it was, it didn't really matter, just as long as it wasn't this.

The worst thing about it though was that I had spent my whole life thinking that becoming a healer would make me feel great. I had thought that it would make me feel like I was changing the world or making society a better place. I thought it would make me feel like a good person. But right now, all I could feel was a desperate desire to make a change; a change that I wasn't sure I could actually, physically make.

I close my eyes and rest my head against the table, enjoying the way the cold metal feels against my hot forehead. It's been a long year; a year filled with too many unwanted twists and turns and too many expectations.

Right now, it doesn't seem worth it. There doesn't seem to be a reason for my actions, a meaning behind my decisions. It just seems like I'm making it all up on the spot, no thought behind anything that I do.

Because somedays, I can't even find the energy to wake up and leave the house. Somedays, every bone in my body craves sleep and rest, so much so I never want to wake up again. Other days though, I can't fall asleep. Other days, all my mind can do is focus on everything that's going wrong, everything that isn't perfect.

But then again, what exactly did I expect? This is the place where the smartest people come to learn and study. This is the place where pressure and expectations thrive, the place where everyone is in competition with their peers without even signing up or agreeing to it. You have to be the best, there's no ifs and buts about it.

Because eventually, people's lives are going to be resting in our hands. We are going to be responsible for someone's livelihood, someone's wellbeing. Without the pressure and the expectations, we might end up doing something irreversible, something we might regret for the rest of our lives.

So I suck it up. I ignore the nagging worries that are always just stuck at the back of my mind, waiting for me to fall victim and become someone I'm not. I ignore the urge to curl up into a ball and cry, the longing feeling that always rests in my bones to just shut my eyes for a moment, and perhaps never open them again. I ignore it all and push on, not for a moment thinking about the long-term and what's going to happen after.

I just keep going because I know that eventually, this is going to be the thing that saves me. Eventually, I'm going to look back at this moment and think about how great of an experience this was. I'm going to think about how this experience shaped me into a better person or how it made me grow as a human being. Because this is going to be my saving grace, this is going to be a way of compensating for my past sins and atoning for my wrongdoings. I need a second chance. So, even though I'm not sure that this is all going to work out or that I'll be sane by the end of this, I know I have to keep going. It

It's the least I can do.

I fiddle my pen as I listen to my lecturer, not really paying attention as he continues to drone on and on. He reminds me of Mr Binns, his voice just as monotonous and hard to listen to, especially when it comes to the longer lessons.

I can still remember those classes vividly; after all, they were the most boring thing that I ever attended in school. I always used to fall asleep, my mind just unable to follow along and pay attention for the whole time. I ended up making Theodore take all of my notes for me just so I could pass the class. And even though he always complained about doing it and never let me forget about it, he never did stop.

The doors swing open, a loud bang sound echoing around the large theatre. And at the same time, everyone stops and turns to check who it is, even the lecturer doing the same.

As I go to look, there's a specific image that's stuck in my mind about who it's going to be. It's probably an overtired student; one that has massive bags under their eyes and old food stuck to their sweater. They'll be embarrassed, both about being late and for banging the doors. Everyone will sigh, the lecturer will be disappointed, but it won't take long for people to forget about it.

So when I see Pansy Parkinson, the most hated witch in all of England and one of my closest friends from school, just standing there with a massive grin planted on her face, I can't believe it.

Because from the last I heard, she shouldn't even be here. According to Theodore - who had heard from Daphne, a credible source -, she should be in Senegal studying wand law. She should be drinking bissap or something just as nice all while ignoring her family's owls and old responsibilities.

She shouldn't be standing across the room from me, watching the drama unfold as everyone else realises just who she is and everything they've been told about her. She shouldn't be here, but yet here she is.

She doesn't look any different since the last time I saw her, her face is just as round as it was before and she is just as put it together. Her eyes are still coloured the same oak brown, and her smile looks just as mean. And as she walks towards me with a mischievous glint in her eye and a massive smirk on her face, it almost feels like nothing's changed.

She's still Pansy, and I'm still Blaise, and for the first time in a while, it seems like that's all that matters.

"Hey," she says while sitting down in the seat beside me, "have you missed me?"

I smile. "When did you even get back?"

"Only about a week ago." She says shrugging.

"Wait, really? Where have you been staying? And what about your parents? Do know you're back yet?"

She smiles knowingly before shaking her head. "Deep breaths Zabini, I'll tell you everything later. Besides, you should be paying attention to this lecture before you end up failing. Especially since Nott isn't here to help anymore."

I roll my eyes but listen to her anyways, even though I didn't really care all that much. Because the only thing that I really did care about was the fact that Pansy was back, and that she was finally by my side once again.

Once the class finishes, and it's just me and Pansy left in the room while she waits for me to finish packing up, I start to realise what a surprise this really is. I mean, the last time I saw her was about five years ago, back when she was only a housewife, and I was living off my mother's money. And a lot's changed since then, or at least it has for me.

Back then, I was a loser. I was an entitled bachelor who thought that all of my problems were someone else's fault and that in every situation I was the victim. And from what I remember, Pansy was kind of the same.

She was one of the most hated people in the country, with all of wizarding kind witness to everything that she had ever done wrong or every mistake that she had ever made. But instead, of growing from it, instead of learning from her mistakes, she just became angrier. She wasn't answering my owls, paying attention in our conversations or even engaging with anyone else expect her soon to be husband, Marcus Flint.

So, needless to say, the last time I saw her wasn't great. It was filled with snark and insult and unnecessary rudeness. Now though, everything feels different. Everything is just a lot lighter, a lot nicer to deal with. I just hope it stays this way, that this time everything will turn out a lot better.

"You done yet?" She asks, with her arms crossed and her feet tapping a frantic tune.

"Yeah, yeah." I say while picking up my backpack and chucking it over my back. "It's nice to see you haven't lost your impatience since the last time I saw you."

"Whatever Zabini. Let's hurry up and get outside before it becomes too cold."

We head out the doors, with me leading the way as we walk towards the courtyard. It's right outside the centre, in a place where not everyone would think to look. It's wooden chairs and table set are always collecting dust from never being used, and the grass is in desperate need of a cut.

I can still remember the day I found it, the day this place really became my own. It was a hot day, the type where the sun shines just a little bit too bright, and a light breeze only makes it hotter. We had just had a class beforehand, and afterwards, I wasn't feeling that great. It was the type of class that was just a little bit too much to handle all at once. And when the class was over, I knew I needed to leave and have some time alone. So, I just kept running and running, until finally, I found this place. A place where no one else was, and no one else knew about. I've been coming back ever since.

We walk outside, the rain trickling from the sky as we sit down. The seat is damp, but we ignore it, instead paying attention to just how beautiful our surroundings actually are. The trees are swaying in the wind with their leaves coloured a beautiful bright brown that makes my heart sing. The birds are singing too with its tune quite possibly the sweetest sound that I've ever heard.

"It's nice here, I can see why you like it so much."

I nod and smile wistfully, off in my own little world filled with my own little thoughts. But then I think of something, something that I don't really want to think about. But it's something I know I have to ask her anyways.

"What happened Pansy? Why did you leave?"

She sighs, her eyes closing for a moment before she begins to speak.

"Because I had to, I guess. And because I didn't know what else to do. I didn't want to marry Marcus, and everyone knew that, but they were making me do it anyway. So, when I was given the opportunity, I just ran. I ran, and I didn't look back."

"But why Senegal of all places?"

"Dakar is the capital for learning wand law, it's like the best place to be. So as soon as I arrived, I enrolled at the closest university, got a job at a local grocery and started renting an apartment."

"Damn, that's a lot."

"Yeah, I know. What's with you though? What's been happening since the last time saw you?"

I shrug. "Not a lot honestly. Mainly just healer training, I guess. "

"C'mon, there has to be more to it than just that. What about a relationship or a job?"

I shake my head. "Nope, haven't had the time really." I pause, wondering whether this is even an appropriate question to ask. "Have you?"

She blushes, the red spreading across her cheeks like wildfire.

I gasp. "Merlin, you actually have! Who are they then?"

"His name is Fallou, he was my tutor back when I was at uni."

"How long have you guys been together?"

"About three years now, I think." She stops for a second, biting her lip just like she used to when we were kids. "We even have a child together."

I stop for a second, my heart thumping loudly against my chest as I start to comprehend the words that just came out of her mouth.

A child? Really? To me, that seems so unordinary, so unexpected. I mean, it's not like we're too young to be having children, at least by society's standards. But still, it just seems odd.

Because the Pansy I knew, the Pansy I loved, wasn't the mothering type. That's not an insult, just the truth. Pansy Parkinson was not the type of woman who was born to be a mother, she just wasn't. So, hearing these words come out of her mouth, is kind of hard to believe. Especially, when you don't want it to be true.

"What do you mean a child?" I say, my mind still spinning.

She shrugs and shakes her head, a small smile spreading across her face.

"A child Blaise. What I mean is a child."

She takes out a picture from her coat pocket and hands it to me. There's three people in it, all of them smiling and grinning at the camera with the happiest faces that I've ever seen.

Pansy's in it, her face bright with happiness as she sits down beside her partner, a baby in their lap. She looks nice too, with her long black hair braided in a way I've never seen her do before. Her partner could not look more different than her if he tried, his joy coming across more naturally than hers. His skin is a deep brown, one that is only a little bit darker than my own. His curly hair is long and his glasses are square-shaped. They suit one another. Then there's the baby, with dark skin to match her father's but eyes that match her mother's. She looks beautiful, more beautiful than anything else I've ever seen.

"Her name's Adaline. Adaline Olivia Parkison-Diop."

I nod, a small smile appearing on my face as I graze my hand over the picture. It's hard to see how far she's come or how much she's grown. She has everything she's ever wanted, everything she's ever dreamed about. And for some reason that hurts. Because not only does she have everything that she's ever wanted, she has everything I've ever wanted too. And I never thought she'd reach there before me.

Moments pass with neither of us speaking, both of us not knowing what to say. I look up at the sky, watching as the rain that was once a constant drizzle, just disappear in front of my eyes. It just stops. And in its place comes the sun, with its hot rays and bright skies. I just smile.

"When can I meet her?"