Chapter IV: Golden Snitch Knickers
It was a beautiful Wednesday afternoon, and Alex was sitting out on the bench in front of the Black Lake. The sky was of a forget-me-not blue, and gentle clouds hung in the way. The sun was shining brightly above them, almost a contrast to what she was feeling. She was sitting on the bench because her friends were closer to the lake, and she wanted to draw. Sketching was really the only thing that took her mind off of... well, life, and it worked like a charm. So there she was, sitting and almost acting like a normal teenage girl in her sixth year of Hogwarts. If only Alex could ever be normal.
Draco was enjoying the sun with the girls and Terrence. It was a beautiful afternoon and classes were over, and since they didn't have Quidditch practice, it seemed stupid to waste a beautiful day like this. He was standing closer to the Lake, skipping rocks into the water. It was soothing.
Chloe and Terrence sat cross-legged on the soft grass with their backs to one another, leaning on each other. She kept waving her wand at tree branches so that individual leaves would slowly fall towards the ground, but not before Chloe would transfigure them into birds or simply turn them into wisps of smoke. "So," she finally spoke, almost sheepishly breaking their comfortable silence. "How do you like that new professor, Whitburn?" she asked, nudging Terrence behind her with her elbow.
"Ow!" he exclaimed, rubbing his side. "She's an old toad, that's all," he replied simply.
"You can't tell me that hurt," Chloe laughed.
Terrence ignored her and flicked his wand at Draco, causing his pants to fall down.
He was perfectly content minding his own business, when suddenly his pants fell down. "Hey!! What the bloody hell?" he asked, hastily pulling up his pants as some younger girls walked by, giggling. "Chloe!"
When she drew, Alex went into a world all of her own, and didn't even notice that her friends had started talking. She was busy drawing a portrait of a boy... or, well, she thought that's what she was doing. She never really knew until she was done.
"What?!" Chloe shrieked. "It wasn't me! Although I did rather like the golden snitch drawers... did Mummy buy those for you, Drakey-poo?" she drawled between fits of laughter.
Terrence collapsed onto the ground, grabbing his sides and laughing so hard he was practically in tears.
Alex still didn't notice anything, and kept drawing.
He grumbled something incoherently, and, after hoisting his pants back up, went over and sulked on the bench next to Alex. He didn't mind that she would completely ignore him the entire time -- in fact, he almost preferred it that way.
"Aw, I was only joking, Draco! No hard feelings," Chloe shouted after him, looking upset that he had walked away.
"Ah, let him sulk, not our fault he's got a broomstick shoved up his arse," Terrence sighed. "He said he'd get that checked out, too."
"Xandy, come sit in the sun!" Chloe whined. "No wonder you're so pale! Come sunbathe with me!" she pressed, pulling away from Terrence and laying flat on her back, closing her eyes.
She shook her head. "Did she seriously just ask me to come sit in the sun with her?" she asked, quirking her brow at Draco.
"Well, it wouldn't kill you to get a bit of a tan," he said with a smirk, studying her over.
"I'm drawing," she said flatly.
"So come draw over here! You're not a vampire, you haven't any excuses! Get over here, missy!" Chloe demanded, waving her wand, causing Alex to be pulled to her feet.
She rolled her eyes and ended up going and laying down near the lake, sprawling out on her stomach and continuing to draw. Now she was just paranoid that people would be looking over her shoulder, but... at least her art hadn't gotten dark. Yet...
Chloe stole a glance at Alex's sketchbook, then closed her eyes again. "It doesn't really have the same effect if you hide your face from the sun."
After a few minutes of silence, Terrence suddenly cleared his throat. "Erm-- Chlo?"
Chloe felt a shadow obstructing her sunlight. She opened her eyes slowly and squinted up at a tall, blonde Hufflepuff towering over her.
"Well, I'm out here, aren't I?" asked Alex, before having a momentary panic attack when she looked over. Not so much because it was Zacharias, but because the setting was familiar. The difference? Well... there were quite a few.
"Thought I might find you here, Chloe," remarked Zacharias Smith, smirking at her.
Chloe took her time getting to her feet, straightening out her clothing and brushing grass off of her as she rose. When she was at Zacharias's height, her eyes narrowed. "I'm sure it was too much for your tiny mind to register, so I'll tell you one more time. If you think you have any right to talk to me outside of that bloody classroom, then perhaps you need a Bludger to the head. Which I can arrange," she spat. "Now, get out of my sight or I'll give you another bloody nose."
Terrence had swiftly gotten to his feet and stood behind Chloe, backing her up.
He held his hands up in the surrender position. "Honestly," he remarked. "I just thought you would be out here. I think we got off to the wrong foot in class. I don't see what the big deal is."
Chloe glanced around a bit nervously, searching for Draco. He was lying down on the bench that Alex had left. She felt that he would have a way of explaining why she couldn't mix with the likes of Zacharias Smith. "Don't give me that apologetic bullshit, Smith. Just stay the fuck away from me," she responded coolly, her eyes fixed on Draco.
"Swearing isn't flattering, Ackerman. Just thought you'd like to know," he responded, also glancing over. "What, is he your body guard or something?"
Chloe's cheeks flushed a brilliant pink as she tore her eyes away from Draco. "I don't give a rat's-- arse-- what you think about my swearing."
Terrence seemed to have given up on the bickering pair and laid down on the grass again, next to Alex.
He shrugged. "Alright. Well," he said easily, already beginning to formulate plans in his head. "Just thought I'd come out to see how you were doing. I'll be leaving now." He started to walk away, smirking. He was definitely attracted to Chloe Ackerman.
Chloe looked flabbergasted. "Well-- just-- you leave, you prick! Get out of here!" she shouted after him, refusing to give a Hufflepuff the last word. She felt a spot of guilt for placing someone beneath her but remembered the words of her father: most Slytherins were superior.
"I already was. By the way, you look cute when you're flustered!" he shouted after her before getting out of ear-shot. Zacharias Smith was always the last to have the last word.
Chloe whined frustratedly before throwing herself back down onto the grass. "I hate him," she hissed to no one in particular.
Terrence was now sitting up and giving Zacharias a death glare for complimenting Chloe like that. However, he caught himself and stopped before she noticed him.
"Good. We shouldn't meddle with people like that," Draco finally remarked, sitting up slightly and resting on his elbows. Of course, he'd seen and heard the whole thing. However, he refused to deal with something that wasn't necessary.
"Oh, nice of you to join us, Draco." Chloe was now rubbing her temples, eyes closed again.
"I had no need to intervene," he said easily. "Nothing happened."
"Nothing's happened... yet. I'm gonna have to really kick his ass soon, I let him off easy last time," Chloe said, making a fist and hoping she looked menacing. After all, she had sort of obtained a reputation for being dainty and feminine.
He just laughed. "Whatever, Chlo. I'll be around when some real damage has been done... don't worry," he responded, casting a glance over at Alex, who seemed to be oblivious to what had just occurred. That girl and her art...
"But you'll only be around after the damage has been done already. Just like you, always bloody late with everything..." she began, but she now followed Draco's gaze over to Alex. "Okay, just what the bloody hell is it that you're doing?!" she practically shouted at her.
"She's drawing a boy," Terrence said nonchalantly, before Alex could even answer.
He rolled his eyes. "There's no need for me yet," he responded.
"I don't know what I'm drawing," said Alex in frustration. The boy had turned into more of a demon-like figure, who had some similarities to her father. She had no idea she'd missed an entire scene.
"You're crazy. I've decided both of you belong in St. Mungo's," Chloe said calmly, gesturing towards Draco. "Terrence is still alright for now."
Terrence grinned at this and threw his arms in the air victoriously.
"Whatever," she grumbled. She wouldn't have been surprised if she ended up in St. Mungo's.... She shook her head. It wouldn't be her first trip. "Listen, I'm going inside. The sun is hurting my eyes."
"Oh, lighten up a bit, Allie," he said with a grin.
"We could go fly around the Pitch for a while," suggested Chloe, trying to think of ways to entertain themselves.
"Or I could skip the Quidditch part and take a Bludger to the face instead," Terrence responded.
He laughed. "You're just bitter because I took your spot on the team, mate."
"You guys can do whatever you want," she replied, standing up and stretching. Her drawing bothered her... more than her others did. "I'll see you at dinner."
"Don't be stupid, I'm not bitter," Terrence mumbled, although his face had tightened and he had blushed a bit.
"Okay," Chloe sighed, "I suppose we'll see you at dinner."
She nodded and started heading back to the castle, closing her sketchbook and pocketing her graphite.
He sighed as well and just watched her leave. "I'm worried about her..."
"She's been isolating herself more and more these days," Chloe said matter-of-factly. She was used to seeing her best friend like this. "You two are the only blokes she talks to, but she barely talks to any other girls, either. I think Mr. Carter has been getting worse with her."
Terrence formed fists with his hands. "That bloody git, how dare he push his own daughter around like that?"
He shrugged. "He can do whatever he wants," he said sadly. "He holds just as much power as my father does..."
She kept walking back, glancing around occasionally to make sure no one else was around.
Cedric Diggory spotted Alex from across the field and started jogging in her direction to catch up with her. When he reached her side, he tapped her shoulder so that she would realize he was there. "Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"
She spazzed out and dropped her sketchbook, having it fall open. "Don't do that," she hissed, bending down to pick up the sketchbook.
Cedric bent down at the same time as her, reached for the notebook first and handed it to her. "Sorry," he said quietly, a shade of pink rising in his cheeks.
"It's okay," she mumbled, moving to close it and put it away.
Cedric extended the sketchbook towards her, but not before glancing at the drawing it was open to. "What's this--"
"Nothing," she said quickly, closing it and stuffing it away. "Listen, I can't really be here right now..."
"I just wanted to ask you," he interrupted, something clearly bothering him, "why on earth you punched me on Monday."
She ran a hand through her hair and averted eye contact. "My hand slipped."
"Well, congratulations, that's the poorest excuse I've ever heard. Now really," Cedric said earnestly, "why did you punch me? I don't think I deserved it... did I? If I did then I'll leave you alone, I promise," he added glumly.
Alex sighed heavily. She wasn't used to being vulnerable - thus she refused to show any vulnerability, and finally looked up at him with her dull blue eyes. "Look," she said, "I wasn't always like this. It's just a reflex, okay?"
"I still haven't heard a good reason why I had to explain to Madam Pomfrey that a girl had done the damage to my face..." he added in an almost sing-song voice.
"Why does it even matter? I'm sorry if I hurt your pride," she said thickly.
Cedric just laughed. "You mostly hurt my nose. I'll tell you what-- I'll let it slide this time, just because I'm in a giving mood. Next time, though, you might not win me back this easily." He ruffled his hair and flashed a smile, waiting for her to protest.
"How generous of you," she replied, rolling her eyes and starting to walk back inside. Truthfully, though, she was glad she didn't have another bruise to add to her collection... She pulled out her sketchbook again, staring at her latest drawing.
Cedric followed close behind her, glancing over her shoulder. "You know," he started, pausing to gather his thoughts. "That's really rather well-drawn."
She tried not to flip. "Thanks," she said through gritted teeth.
"Well, I'm headed to the library... actually, that's a lie, Hufflepuffs don't really do the library. I'm just headed back to my dormitory. I'm glad we sorted-- this-- out, though," he stated a bit awkwardly.
"If you'd like to call it that, sure. See you around," she replied before walking to her own common room. She knew very well that she wouldn't be seeing him around. Glancing back down at the page, she looked at the demonboy who controlled her life.
"Well, I'm headed to the library... actually, that's a lie, Hufflepuffs don't really do the library. I'm just headed back to my dormitory. I'm glad we sorted-- this-- out, though," he stated a bit awkwardly.
"If you'd like to call it that, sure. See you around," she replied before walking to her own common room. She knew very well that she wouldn't be seeing him around. Glancing back down at the page, she looked at the demonboy who controlled her life.
