Charlie didn't leave her room except for the two meals Moira forced her to the next day; she was getting enough drama from her roommates alone. Moira was in a tizzy from the building drama, pulling her to breakfast despite Charlie's loud complaining and threats on her life. She had pulled her hair into a bun at the nape of her neck, throwing on an overly large sweater and tights with her flats before trudging up to the Great Hall. She kept her nose in her textbook, barely listening to the conversation around her as she ate her cereal. Everything was irritating to her, the tension from the prior night still sitting under her skin. As soon as Malfoy walked into the hall she stood, grabbing some fruit and disappearing back down to the dungeons with not even a look as she passed him.
Lunch she was forced up again and did the same routine, except this time Malfoy was there when she arrived. The two shared a glance or two, neither of them seeming to know what to do with the situation. Anxiety that he had found out was picking at the back of her brain, so she was watching him carefully. Blaise glared at her when he sat down, so nagging him about it was out of the question. So instead, she trusted Moira to find out information for her. She was much more adept at the art of working the gossip train than Charlie. By dinner she had become paranoid, and Moira couldn't budge her. Loosing herself in the cheesy romance of a novel she had brought from home she finally shifted her spot from the loneliness of her room to the now empty common room, curling up by the fire.
Her stomach growled as she heard a clatter of students coming into the dungeon after dinner to lounge in their dorms and common room, moving Charlie from her spot as she walked the dungeon halls to the kitchen to see if the elves would give her some food. Still reading as she walked she made her way on muscle memory. Pounding feet behind her caused her to look up, smiling a bit as two sets of red hair ran by her on either side with a quick "Sorry."
"Tell Josie I said hello." She called behind her, turning to watch the Weasley twins stumble to a stop and turn to look at her in confusion. Charlie gave a short wave before turning back to her book and continuing on her way to the kitchen. The house elves were kind as usual, letting her have her pick of the leftovers and clearing her a place to sit while she ate. She stayed out of their way, watching them work to clean the kitchen spotless as she had her meal. She placed her own dish on top of the large stack, thanking them before walking back to her room with her nose in her book. No one in the common room bothered her despite it being full; she hoped she was in the clear. She believed she was, until she was walking the hall to her dorm and a grating voice called after her.
"When are you ever going to learn?"
Charlie stopped, closing her book with a snap and turning to look at the girl leaning out of her doorway twirling her curls. Seraphina looked her over with distaste, scoffing at Charlie's attire before smiling with self-satisfaction. "You're such a slob; it's ridiculous that you're crazy enough to think this will work."
"What are you going on about?" She knew where this was going. It wasn't going to end well, and she was going to make sure of it. She needed a good chance to throw all her pent up emotion at someone. Her tension was getting too much for her and Charlie needed to let it out in some way, and Seraphina was just the person who deserved it. Seraphina stepped into the hall, one of her 5th year friends poking her head around the door to watch.
"Your infatuation with Malfoy, it's pathetic. Do you really think a boy with a pedigree like that would stoop as low as you? A common pureblood, father an out-of-work auror and mother a secretary? Please, you're not good enough to shine his shoes." Charlie stared at her with a raised brow, watching the older girl get lost in her taunting. "And the mess of an act you call flirting? No wonder you haven't gotten a boyfriend, it's absolutely pathetic. You act like a child." Seraphina fell to cackling at herself, her friend laughing with her.
"Are you done yet?"
Charlie's question hung in the air, Seraphina narrowing her eyes. "What's pathetic is your blind belief in rumors, living your life on the words and gossip of other people is a waste and you should be ashamed of yourself. You waste all talent or intelligence you may have on this shit, on listening to talk to pass it around and taunt those involved." Seraphina went to respond but Charlie cut her off, stalking forward towards her with a sneer. "You're a waste of a mind and a mouth. So what if people say I like Malfoy? What if I did? You chased my cousin's tail last year, a boy younger than you, and he dumped you Seraphina. Because you are the one who acts like a child, you believe that bloodline and gossip can further your life, and with a mind like that you'll most likely fall into a pathetic marriage with a pureblood man with too much money and too much time. He'll cheat on you with the women you gossip with. You'll end up alone, sad and drunk off your million galleon wine wishing you would have made something of yourself."
Seraphina looked like she was going to explode, glaring at Charlie with enough force to kill. Movement down the hall drew Charlie's eye to see Parkinson peeking around her door, watching with wide eyes as Charlie tore the elder Slytherin to shreds with her words. Flipping her hair from her eyes, Charlie dropped her book to her side, planting her other hand on her hip and smiling with new found confidence. She knew what she was going to do, as reckless as it was; she was done not taking chances. Moira could talk all she wanted. Charlie would take the hands on approach.
"Besides, if what I'm doing is being seen as flirting." She glanced at Parkinson, her mouth twitching into a grin as she locked eyes with the girl. "At least he's flirting back." Charlie turned on her heel as Parkinson's eyes went wide, Seraphina huffing loudly and slamming her door. As much as Charlie stood by her mantra to always do what is best, no one ever said what was best wasn't cruel. If Slytherin house wanted action, she was going to give it to them.
In the best outcome, it would benefit her in the end after all.
Monday brought new life, Charlie showering the night before and having Moira work product through her hair and braid it down her back in French braids. When she woke she ruffled them to messy perfection before she tied the ends with black ribbon and pulled her bangs from where they had been tucked so they fell in curls around her face. A skirt with a rolled waistband left skin on her thighs peeking from over top of the black stockings that came over her knees, the edge lined with black lace. Her robes hung open to the cool autumn air, shirt not buttoned to the top and her tie hanging loosely near the peeking skin of her collar bone.
Her shiny black flats clicked on the floor as she walked in stride with her friends to breakfast. They moved as a group, a group of misfit Slytherins, Moira and Charlie leading the way in matching ox blood lipstick. Charlie led the line to their spots at breakfast, the group parting to walk in almost in time around the end of the table as they conquered both sides. Letting her shadowed eyes look over the gossipers that eyed her as she past, heavy lashed hid the echo of apprehension and fear in her as she looked down her nose at them. They want to talk, let them talk. She knew she was someone worth talking about.
Avon caught her eye as she past, quirking a brow at her as he looked her over and broke out into a grin. Morgan and Lilona took their place on the inside row, Charlie and Moira slinging their legs over the bench with their backs to the wall in unison before sitting down. Despite her lack of knowledge as to Charlie's plans, Moira was feeding off her friend's new confidence with delight. As she poured her juice a note slid into the edge of her plate, her eyes looking down the table to catch Avon's dark gaze. He only smiled back, falling into talking with his friends. Looking down at it, she saw the slanted curve of his writing on the front.
"Be obvious."
Glancing at him again, he shot his gaze down the table for Charlie to follow. Her eyes landed on Malfoy, talking excitedly with his friends over something. Smiling to herself, she plated her food before picking up the note and holding it in front of her chest as she unfolded it. Moira leaned over to read it, and Charlie leaned away to keep her from it as she pulled it to her chest and out of the way of soulful but prying eyes. "Excuse you; I don't pry into your private written matters." Charlie laughed, Moira rolling her eyes before going back to drinking her tea.
She looked over the top of the note as she read, smirking behind the paper as she caught Malfoy looking towards her with a scowl. Parkinson had noticed as well and was laying her hands on his arm, leaning in to him to get his attention. Charlie ignored them for now, curious as to what Avon could possibly be pulling her into. She was sure it was much more for his personal agenda than hers. She almost had to tilt the paper to read his massively slanted writing, blowing her hair out of her eyes as she read.
"As amusing as Saturday night was, this could be much more entertaining for the both of us. I have a person of my own I'm trying to lure in. We work well together Camson, and so we should do just that. I'll help you in seducing your poor choice in men if you'll help me with my own. I'm not going to tell you who it is, you don't need to know. If you agree then refold the parchment and put it inside your robes, if not, crumble it and toss it into your bag. I'll do the planning and work, you just react off me.
I hope you choose wisely, you're a smart kid."
Charlie couldn't help but roll her eyes. Avon was so full of himself, but he was smart. He was a snake of a person, as clique as that was for her to say of him, but he was as sly and cunning as the next Slytherin. Even more so because he knew what he wanted, and he knew how to get exactly what he wanted when he wanted it. Perhaps he was a good ally to have on this after all, and even if Charlie refused he may very well just use the chance to make her life hell with his knowledge. If they were what you would call friends, their relationship was an odd one. Not to mention in his favor.
Folding the parchment with crisp edges she tucked it into her robes, smiling down the table at Avon with a raise of her brow before going back to her meal. A few minutes later, some of the students had cleared out and she had fallen into a conversation about their homework. Charlie felt someone slide in next to her. Blaise, who had been ignoring Charlie completely, glared at Avon as he moved over to make room but didn't dare say anything to him. Avon seemed to intimidate most people without even trying, maybe due to his dark good looks, maybe his reputation. Any reason was a good one in Charlies opinion, she knew she was lucky to be in his list of favorite people and even luckier to have been placed there in her second year.
"This weekend was fun." He grinned, his back turned to Malfoy as he leaned into the table. Charlie pushed away her finished meal, her eyes flicking down the table to see if they had caught attention past Avon's shoulder. Her lips twitched when she noticed him looking over the back of the elder boy's head, his brow furrowed. "It was interesting to say the least." She replied, smiling at whatever game Avon now was playing with her as a second. He cast a glance down the end of the table he faced; Charlie didn't care to follow his gaze but noted that it didn't go far.
Moving to lean into her ear, Avon's breath blew over her neck as he spoke. "I left dinner last night early to study, you not showing up is a happy coincidence. If we do this right they'll get jealous, but they won't think we're together. That would ruin what the outcome of this is going to be." "I'm going to assume you're not only taking that route for my gain, based on your phrasing." Charlie muttered back, her eyes down cast to the table as she listened. "Of course, sounds like a plan." He returned to his normal volume as he pulled back, standing and turning to face her smoothly. "See you later." He nodded a farewell, smirking to himself as he walked away from the table and out the door.
As she turned back she caught Malfoy staring at her, Parkinson glaring over his shoulder as he leaned down the table to mutter something Blaise. She didn't look long, Bleddyn mouthing a question punctuated with a curse from the other end of the table at her catching her attention. She only shrugged, standing with her friends and walking to their first class of the morning.