Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter related.

Willow Wilson had a spring in her step today. It was the first day of classes in her fifth year at Hogwarts, and she was heading to the first Potions lesson of the year. Excitement swelled inside her, but not for whatever love she might posses for potions. It was a love for something else entirely.

Early that morning, as she sat at the Ravenclaw table, the news reached them that that fifth year Ravenclaw's were to take Potions with Slytherin. Everyone around her had groaned in displeasure while she had half-heartedly moaned with them while on the inside she was glowing. For two years now she had been nursing a crush on Slytherin boy Bartemius Crouch Jr. He was very handsome and decently nice considering he was a Slytherin. He accidently ran into her once in the hallway and he had actually said sorry, unlike how the rest of his house would have done. Maybe this year he would properly notice her. That's all she wanted. Was that too much to ask?

She was one of the first in the Potions classroom, and she immediately took a seat at the front of the class. Not that she particularly liked sitting at the front of the room but she knew from the other classes she had taken with the Slytherins that Barty liked to sit at the front. One thing she had noticed about him from the many hours she put to trying not to let anyone notice her staring at him, that he loved attention and strived to be noticed.

It wasn't soon after she arrived that the rest of the class began to file in. She tried not to anxiously look around herself even though it was in vein. She knew very well that the Slytherins kept to themselves and so did the Ravenclaw's… at least in classes where the two were mixed. Two Ravenclaw girls took the other front desk next to her and she tried not to let her indiffrent exspression falter.

Barty was one of the last to enter the room with Bellatrix, his other half as it was often said, at his elbow. They were the biggest unofficial couple in the school. They were almost always together and everyone wondered when they would make if official and start dating. Although every day this news didn't begin circuling the school gave Willow a days more worth of hope.

Bellatrix quickened her walk and came to the desk where the two Ravenclaw girls had taken residence and she put a hand on each of their shoulders. Willow didn't hear what she said to them but whatever it was made the two girls collect there things quickly and move to the back of the room. Bella cackled while looking to Barty for approval of her naughty deed. He paused beside Willow for a moment appraising Bella's handiwork before taking up a seat next to her. He was only a hands reach away but he seemed eternally out of her grasp.

She flipped open her textbook and pretended to study its pages while hiding her sever disappointment. She almost didn't notice the seat next to her being taken up by her best friend Faith.

"Bonjour!" Faith said making Willow jump.

"Wow, you scared me."

"Concentrating hard on your studies?"

"Hardly…"

"Boy troubles?" She asked looking past her to the next table. Faith was the only one she had told about her liking of Barty. "Maybe it's time to move on. You're polar opposites, it would never work, I keep telling you. Désastre."

"Why do you have to keep speaking in French? Last night when I asked you what classes we had today you told me completely in French."

"I forget I'm doing it. You know I'm French and we speak all in French at home."

"Why did your parents move to England if your always speaking French?"

"You know full well because of my fathers job at the ministry."

"Well, that shouldn't interfere with you being able to tell time. You are late, again. You are always late."

"No, I am right on time. Voyez." She said motioning towards the door as Professor Slughorn came waddling in.

"Good morning everyone, Good morning Adder, Good morning. You have all been in my class before and are used to how things go, but this year I am switching things up. You usually work as individuals but this year you will be working with a partner and you will both be receiving the same grade, finals excluded."

The entire room broke out in excited chatter, and Willow turned to Faith and they both smiled and nodded, silently agreeing to be partners.

"Quiet everyone, quiet…" Slughorn said and the chatter eventually died out. "Now I've taken the liberty of choosing your partners for you." The entire room let out a loud groan in unison. "Now it won't be that bad, I've thought long and hard while choosing your partners. Think of it as an experience, to broaden your horizons."

Everyone continued to scoff and whisper to each other. "Now, the partners are Bellatrix and Bernard." Bellatrix whom a moment before was ready to argue until sunset took one look at her well fit Slytherin partner and nodded approvingly in silent agreement.

"Clover and Emily." The two Ravenclaw girls who had been told to move earlier giggled with glee at the back of the classroom.

"Trevor and Faith." Faith sneered in disgust as she glanced to the table on the other side of there's. Trevor was also a Ravenclaw and was Faith's little stalker. He had asked her out five times since there first year and she had happily declined each time. Now he looked very pleased and winked at her while he licked his lips provocatively. Faith stuck a finger in her mouth and pretended to vomit into her caldron while Slughorn was pairing a Ravenclaw boy and Slytherin girl who was twice his size.

"Barty and…" Slughorn paused as he tried to remember who he had paired him with. Willow was about to jump him when he finally said, "ah, yes, Barty and Willow." She swore her heart stopped beating for a moment.

When it had started again she looked over at him and he was looking at her properly for the first time. Then Bellatrix let out her unmistakable cackle, and Barty's expression changed from shock to immense displeasure. He turned to Bella and said something quietly that wiped the smirk from her face.

Willow tried hard not to smile to herself but she was positively glowing on the inside, like someone had swapped her blood for liquid gold. Things were finally going her way, how could this not go well.

Faith leaned over to her and whispered, "looks like I was wrong, your luck is changing."