A/N - I'm experimenting with a slightly new style of writing for this (one of the reasons it's a little longer than usual - actually, it's longer than quite a few of my one-shots - I got a little carried away) so I'd love it if people could tell me what they think.
Zacharias Smith was many things. He was a jerk, he was arrogant and he was selfish. It wasn't surprising that many people were baffled as to how he made it into Hufflepuff. He was lazy, judgemental, and cruel. He just didn't work with the 'nice', 'pushover', 'soft' stereotype of the black and yellow house.
The placement of Justin Finch-Fletchley was easier explained. He was, when he wanted to be, one of the most hardworking people in the school and for all of his faults, once you had his loyalty it would take a lot for him to withdraw it. He had traits from the other houses too: he was a firm believer in chivalry and had been all his life; he was highly intelligent (a combination of hard work and a natural talent that probably could have rivalled Hermione Granger had circumstances been different), and he was determined. Despite his work ethic he was also a firm believer in efficiency, he lacked ambition but should he set his mind to something then that something would happen by any means necessary.
Of course, there were others in the Hufflepuff house. The increasingly pompous Ernie Macmillan was one; whiny Wayne Hopkins was another. Even when Hufflepuffs did get a moment in the limelight it was rarely Finch-Fletchley or Smith.
Except of course when it came to Quidditch, because for all that people might deny it, Zacharias Smith was one hell of a chaser. Maybe not the greatest captain ever, or the most gracious loser, but a damn fine chaser. Not league level by any means (professional sport was best left to the likes of Flint and Wood, both long ago graduated) but more than exceptional enough for a school team. Smith had earned his recognition in the school.
That wasn't to say Finch-Fletchley wasn't much appreciated. Indeed, many of the younger students close to worshiped him; even despite the fact that the older (and cooler) members of the Hogwarts populace generally overlooked him. Nevertheless, when the entire third year and below view you as some sort of superhero a few snobbish upperclassmen are easily over looked - especially when you know you're better than they are anyway. It wasn't as if he was glory seeking either. The only thing it had taken to start his fan-base was for Justin to attempt to mediate a minor argument between two Second years, something he saw as the most natural action in the world. Upon reaching a peaceful agreement, both boys had graced the older teen with their total respect. This sort of thing happened all too regularly for Justin Finch-Fletchley. Harry Potter may be the-boy-who-lived and The Chosen One to the general public but to the lower years of Hogwarts the true hero was Justin Finch-Fletchley, defender of first years, stopper of arguments and finder of missing belongings. Not to mention very good at helping with homework.
In case you haven't figured it out yet - the two teens had two very different social circles. Zacharias was very much the gorgeous and cool but unpopular jerk to all those except his closest friends. Justin was the classic 'boy next door': cute, charming and friendly but relatively unknown.
It was the male equivalent of chick-flick cliché just waiting to happen.
Surprisingly it never did...
... Until seventh year.
This, of course, made it all the more delightfully cinematic.
I wish that I could say that, other than the beginning, the story of these particular teens did not follow the plot of a million and six teen movies.
Unfortunately, and most irritatingly for those involved, it did. At least in part.
The did not walk into each other one day, stare into each others' eyes and say 'do I know you?'
After all, they had shared a room since they were eleven, they might utterly ignore each other most of the time but they weren't stupid enough not to recognise each other.
They also, to defy the pattern that so often occurs in these situations, had not suffered any drastic physical or mental changes that made them more appealing to others over the course of the summer. If they had done that you'd hope that they would have noticed sooner, after all, they'd been back at Hogwarts and sharing a dorm for almost a week before this particular encounter occurred.
They didn't even manage to run into each other. Instead the incident happened after Zacharias knocked over a particularly small second year and Justin stopped to help the kid back to his feet. Justin then turned and told Smith to watch where he was going. Smith responded by telling Justin to mind his own business. They both then continued on their ways.
They did think however. About trivial things like the way that Zacharias managed to look to impossibly haughty and was flawlessly put together even in the mornings and how Justin had, at some point between third year and sixth, morphed from the slightly odd and girly looking member of their dorm into somebody who was in fact quite attractive. Both felt an almost unnoticed twinge of jealousy towards the others' girlfriend.
This of course was overlooking the fact that neither of them had girlfriends but we must assume, for the sake of sensibleness, that this was down to ignorance rather than insanity.
Exceeding ignorance really as it was very common knowledge that nobody in the school was willing to approach Zacharias with any sort of crush or admiration for fear of being ripped (verbally and emotionally) to shreds. It was also fairly public the Justin had turned down almost every single date request he'd ever gotten on the grounds that he didn't feel comfortable dating anybody more than three years younger than him - these, somewhat embarrassing, requests were one of the few downsides to looking out for the younger years.
AS you can see, following the encounter, life went on. For several hours actually before Padma Patil stepped on a snail. That particular life was tragically cut short.
However, I am not telling a story about a snail - this time.
I am telling the story of Justin Finch-Fletchley and Zacharias Smith. Although I'll be straight with you here is regards to the fact that in the weeks following this event nothing exceptional happened other than a few similar and equally easily overlooked incidents. That's why, as far as you need to know, our story continues a few days before Halloween.
The date in itself is not very significant. Wizards do not celebrate Halloween in the same way Muggles do. There were no costumes, masquerades, or even trick or treating when the night itself arrived at Hogwarts. The feast was exceptional though. What we have been waiting for occurred prior to all this though. On the twenty-seventh to be precise.
It was, as they say, a day like any other. The sky was overcast and most sensible people had declined to leave their dormitories without a jumper.
One of the less sensible people happened to be Sophie Richards. She was a second year Ravenclaw and although she was very academic, she was a little lacking in common sense. She was a nice child but somewhat sickly and in desperate need of some warmth as she made her was across the grounds from her morning walk. One must remember that Hogwarts' grounds are very big and so the distance the poor girl needed to cover would take her a good length of time.
I am afraid I am forced to leave you in the dark as to what Justin Finch-Fletchley's intentions were as he walked the grounds on that dull morning. Perhaps he had been to meet with someone, he could have simply felt the urge for a stroll, or even have been out looking for younger students to aid. It is possible we shall never know.
What we do know is that Justin Finch-Fletchley, upon seeing the shivering girl, made the noble decision to shed his sweater and offer it to the Ravenclaw as protection for the remained of her journey. Sophie Richards may have been foolish about such matters but even she would not make the mistake of turning down such help.
Justin, revealing a dim streak of his own, continued his journey – now jumper free.
Ten minutes later, it was he who was shivering. Coincidentally, ten minutes later was also the time that Zacharias Smith decided it was time to stop his personal Quidditch practise. More intriguingly still, at that moment in time Justin just so happened to be passing the Quidditch pitch.
I wonder if any of those who are experienced in the field of cliché are willing to make a prediction of what occurred next.
Regardless, the incident did occur and the two teens, as is traditional, collided roughly, sending the larger down on top of the smaller. In this particular instance, Zacharias landed on top, although the gap between the duo was little more than an inch in height and both were fairly slim.
There was a moment of tense awkwardness before Smith pushed himself to his feet. He did not attempt to help Finch-Fletchley.
"Idiot," muttered the blond, "And you're presumptuous to nag others about watching where they walk."
Justin wasn't at all offended by the remark as he regained his footing, "My apologies," he said softly, "I hadn't seen you."
Smith rolled his eyes just as the wind changed to blow quite sharply towards them. Fortunately for him his face did not become stuck.
Justin, however, was less lucky and the sudden change of the breeze caused him to shiver quite violently. Smith raised his eyebrows. He was quite good at it – he managed to make it look cool.
"Cold?" he asked which was bit of a ridiculous question considering he already knew the answer. It might have been excusable had he said it with concern but he didn't – he honestly seemed to need to be informed.
Justin, equally shamefully, shook his head. It is strange how even somebody from a house famed for its honesty would lie so instinctively under certain circumstances.
Apparently, Smith was not as oblivious as he seemed however.
"Yes you are," he snorted, "A galleon says you're freezing to death right about now."
"It's only October," Justin protested, "Perhaps if it was winter that bet would do more good to your wallet."
Smith smirked, "Oh well. What, may I ask, is one such as yourself doing wandering the grounds at this hour anyway?"
Justin glanced at his watch - it had, unfortunately, stopped. However he'd left the castle at around seven thirty and had been walking for less than half an hour which made it, by his logic, a perfectly reasonable hour to be walking around. Smith's question was a bit unusual anyway when you considered that it was really none of his business.
Justin shrugged and shivered again. Smith responded by raising a single eyebrow. Justin was a little bit impressed - he'd never mastered that particular trick.
"I think you are cold," Smith commented, "What possessed you to go out without a jumper anyway?"
"I didn't," Justin replied hotly, "I just loaned mine out. Sophie Richards didn't have one on her and she's only a second year - it wouldn't be right to let her get sick."
Smith snorted, "But its okay for you?"
"I have a better immune system than her," Justin protested, "I won't get sick."
"Still stupid," Smith muttered, "Giving your stuff to some Ravenclaw brat."
"There's nothing wrong with helping people," Justin said.
To be honest this whole conversation is a little redundant. Both of them were very set in their opinions and neither was presenting a strong argument if they were sincerely attempting to convince the other. They were just talking for the sake of it.
"I thought you might say that," Zacharias said, "Defending innocent little children - it matches what I know about you."
Justin, being only human and utterly untrained in Legimency, was perplexed, "What you know about me?"
The look in Zacharias Smith's eyes was almost predatory as he turned on Justin, "Yes, what I know about you. You're interesting you know Justin Finch-Fletchley. I've shared a dorm with you for nearly seven years but I still don't think I know the half of you. I don't think anybody does. You talk to Macmillan sometimes, or Abbot, or Bones, but you never seem to have any friends. Back at the DA, you had nobody to walk in with, nobody to work with, and nobody you got distracted or off task with. You're the same in classes, always alone and working away like you don't even see the rest of us. You do though - you know every single person in the school by name. All the stupid little firsties - you know their hopes, their dreams, their favourite colours, you know everything they want you too. You'll be a friend to anybody who asks for it. You're not popular though, you aren't cool, you just let people drop you the moment you stop being useful to them. Why do you do it? What do you gain? Why?"
Zacharias had been walking as he ranted, backing Justin up against the stadium wall. The blond looked demented. There was a fire in his eyes that made Justin's nerve endings tingle.
"I don't. It's not like that. I help them out because I want too. I'm good with people like that. Being nice without being invasive..."
"So you're skill is in solving other people's problems without getting too close?"
"I-I wouldn't phrase it like that..."
Justin's baffled protests fell on deaf ears. Zacharias had summed the situation up in one accurate, if unnecessarily blunt, statement. Justin scowled, "I don't see what your problem is. It's not harming you."
"Who solves your problems?" Zacharias asked, suddenly backing away.
"Huh? What problems?"
Smith laughed. It was quite possible that by this point he had completely lost his mind. This was not a character from a teen romance movie - this was a real, sincere and slightly agitated person.
"What problems?" he said, "Any problems. I've been watching you help people for weeks and I don't see anybody helping you. Who's listening what you just want to talk about nonsense? Who takes the time to talk to you when you're feeling down? Who gives you their homework to copy and carries your stuff and lends you spare ink? Who takes you up to the hospital wing when you're feeling sick? Who makes sure you're eating well and sleeping properly? Who reassures you when you're feeling stressed? Who lends you a sweater when you're shivering because you haven't got your own?"
There was silence. Zacharias Smith had raised a lot of valid points.
Justin stammered incoherently, searching for an answer, "I, well, it's not really, I, you see..."
"Nobody does do they?" Smith said, already knowing the answer.
Justin glowered, "It's none of your business. You might be cool but you're not exactly the king of popular yourself! Who are you to mock me for the amount of friends I have?"
His reaction was somewhat presumptuous. There had been little, if any, mockery in Smith's words. Then again, Zacharias should have known better than to be ambiguous - the 'Chamber of Secrets' incident ought to have showed them all the dangers of failing to explain one's actions or words thoroughly. Anyway, Justin's point in regards to Zacharias' place to judge was valid.
Justin span (a little melodramatically) on his heel, which would have caused his robes to billow impressively had he actually been wearing any over his (white, button down, fitted and very expensive) shirt and (black, impeccably neat, fitted and very expensive) trousers.
He would have stormed away across the laws, seething and resentful that Smith had not only noticed those details of his life but also had the nerve to call him out on them. He would have let the spark in his chest, that demanded respect and equality and thanks for his efforts, glow, at least for a few hours, thinking about how fast things would fall apart without people like him who gave without asking for anything back. By the end of the day though the spark would fade back into almost nothing, he would carry on as he always did and apologise to Smith for his lapse in temper.
He didn't manage to do any of that however, because Smith seized his wrist and refused to let go. Justin winced, partially because he didn't want to continue the conversation and partially because Smith had a painfully strong grip.
"How is it," Smith said, "That you are given all the same information as me, in the same context, but yet the conclusions you draw from it manage to be so starkly different?"
This is another example of the dreaded ambiguous statement. It would have been far quicker for Smith to simply say what he meant and a clear and concise manner but that would have been far too easy. Instead, - for the sake of cliché - he was beating around the proverbial bush.
"What are you talking about?"
Justin, at least, was intelligent enough to realise that some clear explaining was in order. Smith was unfortunately not at all famed for his cooperation.
He instead grabbed Justin by the collar, slamming him back against the stadium wall and kissing him fiercely.
Justin was momentarily stunned. Zacharias couldn't have done a better job of mystifying him if the blond had hit him with a confounding charm.
After a moment, Justin jerked his head away - looking Smith directly in the eyes.
"Wh-what are you... why?"
Smith smirked; their faces were only inches apart.
"You looked cold."
"What?!"
Zacharias pressed closer into Justin, "You looked cold. I don't have a sweater but I wanted to warm you up. I wasn't mocking you, I was making you an offer. To be the person who helps you carry your books and talks to you and notices you and does all of the things that you must want but never seem to ask for."
"W-why?" Justin, voice was shaking ever so slightly, confusion dominating his face.
"Why not? It's not as if I can stop looking at you and thinking about you. When I see you, it's like you're a freaking magnet or something. I want to be that person, the one you don't have, who knows you as you and not just as the 'guy who's very helpful'. I want to be the one you get distracted with and laugh with and I want to be the one who's jokes you laugh at and who you congratulate when Hufflepuff thrash people at Quidditch. I want you," Smith's tone was as intense as the words he said with it. His whole expression was terrifyingly sincere.
Justin wordlessly pressed his lips back against the blond's.
So there they were, making out romantically against the side of the Quidditch pitch - clichéd much?
A/N - I've just realised - this is now the longest fic I have ever written, both in regards to chapters and word count. :)
