"Ugh, I can't believe him," hissed Loreli Stormwood as she and Celeste took their seats at the Slytherin table for dinner. "Typical bloody Malfoy. I just feel bad for that Ravenclaw girl, you know."

"It's funny, for the past two years she hasn't stopped talking about Luna Lovegood. I don't understand how a crush as developed as that can just disappear,"

Loreli rolled her eyes in response, piling her plate with burgers and chips. She was one of Celeste's only other female friends in Slytherin, and the pair had quickly bonded in the first year, over having ex-deatheater parents and an ambition to prove themselves better than their family name.

"You haven't seen Milly around, have you?" Celeste said through a mouthful of spinach, scanning the table for her roommate.

"She's gone." Blaise's voice interrupted. Celeste's eyes snapped to his.

"Gone?"

Zabini rummaged around in his pockets, finally producing a news paper clipping, and pushing it towards the two girls. The headline read:

"MURDER OF BULSTRODE FAMILY, AURORS STILL LOOKING FOR EVIDENCE."

"Millicent's now only living relative is her great-aunt May, who lives in Paris, France... so she's enrolling at Beauxbatons. Madame Maxime flew her out to the school after D.A.D.A this morning." Blaise said gruffly, eyes dropping to his plate of spaghetti.

"Do you think it was You-Know-Who?" Loreli said, her voice barely a whisper. Blaise slowly lifted his dark, coffee-brown eyes to meet hers.

"I'm certain of it." He said softly, dropping his fork in his hardly-touched pasta and proceeding to exit the great hall.

Loreli, whom Celeste had never known to blush in her whole life, had now developed a pink-ish tinge to her cheeks. It was understandable. After all, Blaise could be rather intense at times, and he did tend to have this effect on people quite often.

Celeste's eyes slid over to where Malfoy was sat, and he had apparently managed to get Poppy to sit there with him too. As she watched, he leant over to softly whisper something in Poppy's ear, resulting in a soft giggle escaping her lips. Celeste seethed, looking away before Draco noticed that he had received her attention.

She instead let her eyes wander to Harry. She'd been meaning to speak with him all day - tomorrow he was competing in his first trial, and he'd found out from Hagrid that he would be battling a dragon. Celeste knew he must be feeling stressed - why, what sane person wouldn't be? - and desperately wanted to console her friend. She jumped in surprise when they suddenly made eye contact.

"Meet me after?" he mouthed. Celeste nodded discreetly in response, watching as he turned to engage in conversation with Katie Bell, a fellow member of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.

"Please don't tell me you're still friend's with the Potter Posse." Loreli groaned as she ate her final chip, before pushing her plate away and stretching her arms out above her head. "You're worth more than Gryffindor's, Cel."

"I've always been friends with Harry - and what about Emma? She's not Slytherin, she's friends with Harry and Hermione. She's bloody well dating Cormac McLaggen, the most Gryffindor-ish Gryffindor you can find. Are you saying we shouldn't be friends with her?"

"No," Stormwood muttered, gathering her things to head back to the dormitories. "You coming?"

"In a bit. You go on ahead... I, um, want to talk to Snape about who's moving into my room now that Millicent is gone."

Celeste watched as her friend caught up with Malfoy, Blaise and Poppy, the four of them exiting the great hall together. She felt a twang of jealousy attack her chest - it was as though Poppy was replacing her entirely, which was a silly thought to have, as Poppy was the loveliest and most thoughtful person she had ever met. How was she even to know of Celeste's potential feelings for Draco? All she'd ever done was complain about him in Warwick's presence.

"Ready, then?" Harry smiled down at Celeste, who was surprised to see that the great hall was now almost entirely empty.

"Yes. Library?"

"Sure."

The pair walked in comfortable silence to the Hogwarts library. Everything always felt so natural with Harry, so perfect. She could never imagine Harry putting her through the rubbish that Malfoy managed to on a daily basis. The only issue was her parents. Harry would never be safe if he were with Celeste. The dark lord was rising again; everyone could sense it... and when he did, the loyalty of Celeste's parents would be unwavering. They'd use their daughter's relationship with Harry to their advantage - which was why it was better that they remained just friends. Harry would be much better off without a "baby deatheater", as he called them, in his life.

Of course, Harry himself knew nothing of the darker aspect to Celeste's parentage. He knew only that they were a nice, friendly couple who lived next to his aunt and uncle, and that he was frequently left with them whenever the Dursley's had plans. He'd never expected any different, for he always saw the best in people - a quality that Celeste was certain would amount to his downfall.

"What is it, Harry?" She asked softly as the pair each took a seat by the window in the Hogwarts library.

"Well, you know, the first trial is tomorrow, and I have no idea what I'm doing. How the bloody hell do I fight a dragon?" Harry said exasperatedly.

"Ah. Well, that's a tricky one," Celeste said. "Is Ron still not talking to you?"

"No, he still thinks I put my name in that effing goblet." Harry rolled his eyes, raking a hand through his jet-black hair in a distressed manor. "How can he honestly think I'd want this?"

"I don't know," Celeste responded apologetically. "Have you spoken to any teachers or-"

"Of course I have," Harry interrupted, rolling his eyes. "Hagrid refused to tell me anything else, though. Thought I had an unfair enough advantage as it is."

"Well, you do have an advantage. You know what's coming." Celeste said, reaching out to hold Harry's hand. He stared out into the night. "I believe in you, Harry. It'll all be alright, you wait and see."

Celeste barely slept that night - all she could do was worry about Harry... worry about who had put his name in that Goblet... wonder how he would fare in his trial the following day. She had almost forgotten about Draco Malfoy and his game completely when she got a knock on her bedroom door.

"Celeste?" A voice called. She opened the door hesitantly.

"Oh, Loreli. What is it?"

"I thought you knew - Snape says I'm sharing the room with you now."

.~

The Great Hall was eerily silent at breakfast the next day, some faces grim, some excited. Celeste had managed to seat herself beside Harry at the Gryffindor table, and the pair were accompanied by Hermione, Emma, Luna, Poppy, Neville and Cormac. Harry was barely touching his bacon sandwich.

"You need to eat something, Harry," Celeste spoke softly, gently nudging Harry's ribcage.

"I'm not hungry,"

"She's right, Harry. You won't be able to battle a pixie, let alone a dragon, on an empty stomach."

"I said I'm not hungry, Hermione."

Hermione sighed and shoved a spoonful of blueberries-and-yoghurt into her mouth. Emma gave her a reassuring look, and Cormac continued stuffing his face with toast, scrambled egg and sausage.

The tension between Poppy and Celeste was inexplicably obvious. The pair had not spoken in days, and Celeste had moved from her usual seat beside her in Ancient Runes to one next to Justin Finch-Fletchely. Celeste hoped she would get to potions in time that afternoon, so as to ensnare the seat beside Draco before Poppy would have the chance to do so herself.

Neville seemed a bit put out also. Harry had told Celeste that during the train journey to Hogwarts at the start of that year, Neville had confided in him of his feelings for Warwick. It was only natural that Neville looked so blue. Luna, oddly enough, had appeared to have stopped talking to Poppy completely, which must have been extremely awkward, especially as the pair shared a room.

"Champions, Mr. Barty Crouch wishes to see you all in the Champions Tent immediately. Please, follow me," Professor Dumbledore called, standing in front of the large, wooden doors. Reluctantly, Harry got to his feet, and walked toward Albus at a steady pace.

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Emma said once Harry was out of earshot. "Didn't you two say he hasn't got a plan?" Hermione and Celeste shook their heads in response.

"Draco thinks he won't last five minutes, but I think Harry will do great. He's always managed to escape dangerous situations before, and I'm sure he will again today." Poppy contributed.

Celeste's blood felt as though it had turned to ice when she'd mentioned his name. "Excuse me," she said abruptly, practically running from the great hall.

She was vaguely aware of someone following after her, but she ran faster - to where, she did not know. She just needed to get away, away from Poppy, away from Malfoy. It was all so toxic, so difficult -

- and then she found herself running straight into a dishevelled Draco Malfoy, who was flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.

"Oh, did your Potter send you to turn me into a ferret again, Starborne?" Draco rolled his eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"Have you seen Warwick? I have something I want to give her." He smirked.

"No, I was looking for her myself," Celeste lied through her teeth, and smiled sweetly. "Wanted to check our plans were still on for Hogsmeade this weekend."

"Don't be pathetic, Starborne," Malfoy scoffed. "You and I both know you haven't spoken in weeks." He grabbed the neckline of her robes and pulled her close, so his lips grazed her ears when he spoke his next few words: "Give it up," he hissed.

"Celeste! There you are!" Ron yelled, bending over from lack of breath. Celeste pulled away from Malfoy aggressively, with a cold glare.

"Ron, what are you doing?" She said as the trio skulked away.

"I saw you running from the great hall. Did McLaggen say something? I swear to god, I'll deck him."

"No, Ron, it wasn't him. Forget it. Let's go to the stands, shall we?"

"Alright, sure," Ron smiled, his eyebrows disappearing underneath his red and gold woolly hat. Celeste laughed, and the pair linked arms.

The Tournament organisers really had picked a cold day for this trial. The ice situation had only just been resolved by Hagrid and his magical Fire-Ants, and a fine frost lined the air. Celeste quickly regretted not bringing her hat and mittens with her to the stadium.

Celeste was somewhat glad that it had been Ron to come after her and not one of the others. Ron wasn't the type to ask questions that she didn't want to answer, and things were never intense between them. He was definitely one of her most valued friends, and she couldn't face any of the others after the Great Hall incident...

The tournament went pretty slowly. Each time that a new dragon was brought into the small arena, Ron would swiftly identify it, telling Celeste some obscure fact about them that he had learned from his brother Charlie in Romania. Celeste herself was sick with worry, and by the time Harry finally emerged from the tent, she was surprised that she still possessed enough sanity to listen to Ron's drabble. Even he went silent when the canon was shot.

Nobody expected it when Harry summoned his broomstick - and nobody expected it when the dragon broke free of her chains.

As the Dragon chased after Harry, headed in the direction of the castle, Celeste found herself vomiting off the barrier, hearing the disgusted yelp's of some first years below that had probably been splashed. He could die. Harry could be dead right now, and she could do nothing but sit in this arena and wait.

It felt as though hours had passed when Harry finally returned, alone, to the arena, collected his golden egg, and ended his trial.

"I understand now," Ron said in awe, as he and Celeste snuck into the Gryffindor common room for Harry's after party. The Fat Lady had given her a disgusted look, but once Ron had promised to listen to her entire rendition of some obscure opera, she gladly obliged. Upon entering, Celeste wondered idly just how many students had made that exact same promised.

The Gryffindor common room was an ocean of red, yellow, green and blue, as friends of Harry's from each house smothered him with congratulatory comments.

"Understand what?" Celeste said, accepting the chocolate frog that Neville handed her with a wide smile of thanks.

"That Harry would have to be bloody off his rocker to put his name in that Goblet."

"Well, you should talk to him, then!" She exclaimed, pushing Ron in Harry's direction. "He's missed you a lot."

Celeste smiled at the prospect of the pair rekindling their friendship as she placed herself between Loreli and Emma on the sofa. Loreli's usually straight, dark brown hair had been curled and pinned up in a graceful ponytail, while Emma had opted for a beautiful french-plait.

"Where's Cormac?" Celeste asked, taking another bite out of her chocolate frog.

"He said something about asking Harry if there were any places in the Quidditch team," she said, sipping her mug of butterbeer and looking into the fireplace. "Are you okay? We haven't seen you since breakfast, and Poppy says you weren't in potions."

"Yeah, um, didn't feel up to it. Felt a bit sick and stuff. Probably food poisoning."

"Perhaps you should go and see Madame Pomfrey," Tara smirked into her tea.

"Okay, alright, I have a thing going on with Malfoy and he's trying to make me jealous, there you go, but can we please just not talk about it right now? Who knows where he's lurking."

"I do hope you ladies aren't talking about me," Speak of the devil. "Poppy and I just wanted to speak to you all briefly. She thought it would be the wisest option." Celeste noticed his arm tighten around her waist.

"We've - We've made it official. I'm not asking for your, um, approval or anything, I just, I thought you should hear it from us instead of from rumours you don't know to be true. I'm happy. I hope you're also happy for me."

Loreli's eyes were fixed on Draco throughout the entire speech. Sly little bastard... she knew just what he was up to.

"That's great," Emma offered a bleak smile. "That's, um, really lovely."

"Yeah... congratulations." Loreli faked a smile in Poppy's direction.

"...Celeste?" Poppy said uncertainly, after an awkward pause.

"Brilliant," She said, smiling at the couple warmly. "I'm so happy for you both. You make a lovely couple."

A look of relief flooded over Poppy's face as she mouthed an inaudible "thank you" to her friend. Celeste smiled bleakly in response as the pair walked away hand in hand, imagining all the ways in which she could offer Draco a most painful death.

"There's my favourite g-girl!" Harry hiccupped, perching himself upon Starborne's lap. He appeared to have drunken one too many glasses of firewhiskey.

Loreli rolled her eyes. "I'm going to the library. Emma?"

"Sure thing. See you later, Celeste. Harry,"

"Goodbye!" Harry shouted cheerfully, resulting in a few cranky grumbles from Loreli.

Harry had knotted his tie around his head in a Rambo-like fashion, and was sporting a few love-bites on his neck already, no doubt from that Ravenclaw bitch Cho Chang. His green eyes sparkled like enchanted forests in the warm light of the fire, and he looked the happiest he had in weeks. Positioned in his lap was the golden egg he had acquired in the tournament.

"You make me confused." Harry said, finally.

"Confused?"

"You just, sometimes you look at me and it's like, woah, and I love you like a best-friend and stuff, but then I see you with Malfoy, or Ron, or Neville, or Justin, and I get so angry...I don't know what's wrong with me, I just know, I know I need to do this..."

In less than a second, Harry had cleared the space between them, cupping her face with his hand. His eyelids fluttered before finally closing, his thick, dark lashes tickling his reddened cheeks. Before she knew it, they were kissing.

Everything was silent.

It was as though nothing existed but them, not Draco, not Cho, not Ginny. Harry was real, and with each kiss he made her feel alive, like she was more than just a sad story.

He made her feel as though she mattered.