CHAPTER 12
A Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook is open to the chapter of a war between vampires and werewolves, and is laying out in front of me. After I left the Great Hall with Tatiana, Kira, and Giselle, they decided that Kira follow through with helping me with my homework, so we headed to the library. Although, now that I'm here, I have to admit that I'm not getting much done. Tatiana is actually very distracting, and it's really annoying Kira.
"Tatiana," she says firmly. "Aiden isn't going to get any work done if you keep flirting with him while I'm trying to explain something. Could you please hold off on that for a bit longer? He needs to get this done."
Tatiana sighs and pouts, crossing her arms like a child who has just been told that she can't have a certain toy she's been wanting. Giselle rests an elbow on the table, placing her jaw in her palm while arching an eyebrow at Kira.
"Come off it, K," she says lightly. "Tia's only keeping him keeping him interested. Homework is rather boring."
Kira narrows her eyebrows at them before rolling her eyes. "Please, Tatiana, just while he's doing his homework—leave Aiden alone." Tatiana flashes big puppy-dog eyes at me, silently begging me to tell her otherwise. I smile.
"Kira's right. I need to do my homework. But don't worry, we'll spend time together," I promise. Her face glows with excitement as she squeals, grabbing the sides of both of my face before planting a long, tender kiss on my lips. My eyes widen before slowly closing, moving my lips against hers. Bloody hell the kiss is amazing. I almost take back what I say earlier, only because I want to spend my free time like this with Tatiana, but Kira clears her throat, interrupting us. I reluctantly part from her, and Tatiana's hands drop to my thigh, squeezing it gently. My heart pounds with ecstasy.
"We'll spend loads of time together," she whispers seductively, her face inches from mine. "I'll give you the password to the Slytherin common room so you can meet me in my room."
"Tatiana," Kira scolds.
"Fine. Then give me the password to the Gryffindor common room and I'll meet you there."
"You should really leave," Kira advises her. "You're distracting him again. You wanted me to tutor him, but I can't if you're here. This is all turning out to be a waste of time—my time," she adds with annoyance.
"Alright, alright," Tatiana sighs. "Giselle and I will head back to the courtyard. She's probably hoping we could see Zabini." She arches an eyebrow at the second Slytherin blonde, and Giselle returns her look with a coy grin, her eyes narrowing. "Meet us there when you're done."
Finally, she and Giselle stand, and, with a peck on the cheek from her, the two girls leave the library. My eyes linger on Tatiana's model form, watching as her hips sway, and noticing how her long slender legs are mostly revealed, thanks the short length of her skirt. Apparently Tatiana doesn't adhere to the dress code, as instead of the expected loafers the other girls wear, she conforms to heels or boots. I wonder if she's ever been punished for not following the dress code, and if so, why she still resorts to her saucy appearance. Considering McGonagall's type of woman, I wouldn't expect her to let Tatiana wear inappropriate shoes or display so much skin because, in addition to her rolled-up skirts, she also likes to leave the first couple of buttons of her button-down shirts undone with a loose Slythern tie around her neck.
Don't get me wrong; the look is absolutely sexy and I love it on her, but I do question the authority over her. How does she get away with dressing like that?
Kira sighs from my other side and I turn back to her. Her dark eyes fall back to the pages we were originally looking at and she combs a lock of pin-point straight black hair behind her ear.
"Okay. As I was saying about the war," she says, and then continues her explanation. I'm supposed to be writing a two-page essay on the war, which isn't too bad, compared to what I get for my sixth year homework. And, as Kira continues to tutor me, I find that she's really intelligent and is very good at explaining things, so I am grateful for that. Pretty soon, I'll have this essay finished and then I can meet Tatiana as often as I like.
I've just started writing on my second piece of parchment when Kira suddenly speaks up, her voice straining to keep in a monotonous tone, but I can hear the curiosity.
"Do you truly like Tatiana?" she asks. I give her a strange look. What kind of question is that? Of course I like her. She's saucy and outgoing. What's not to like? Not to mention that she also likes me too.
Besides, what business is it of hers anyway if I truly like Tatiana or not? Maybe she thinks she can ask me a stupid question like that because she's Tatiana's friend—which I am still struggling to figure out why. Kira sticks out like a sore thumb when with Tatiana and Giselle, and not just with her appearance. She's quiet and reclusive, completely opposite of the two other girls. I wonder if Tatiana only lets her tag along with them because she's smart and can help them with homework, but that still doesn't solve the mystery of why Kira sticks around with them too. She doesn't look like the type of girl to fall into peer pressure, and she doesn't fawn over Tatiana, begging her to let her hang out with them. Kira remains a very curious person to me.
I roll my eyes, shaking my head. "What's it to you?" I snap. Kira glares.
"You're right. What is it to me? I can't believe I even bothered," she mutters. My eyebrows knit together. Now I'm really curious. Maybe I should just answer her anyway.
"Yeah, I truly like her," I say. "Why wouldn't I? What kind of question is that anyway?"
Kira stares at me, her glare slowly lifting as her face is suddenly a mask of concern. My eyebrows narrow further. What's wrong with her? Or maybe it's something I've said, although I don't find anything wrong with my response. It was an honest response. Yes, I truly like Tatiana, and really—what kind of question is that anyway?
"It's nothing. I was just wondering," she says softly. She then glances at my parchment, noticing my barely written paragraph. "You should hurry up if you want to go to the courtyard."
I stare at her. She's acting awfully suspicious and I want to pry it out of her, but I have a feeling that I might lose this battle. I get the feeling that Kira isn't someone I want to argue with. After all, she's a skilled witch—she might pull a nasty curse on me, and I'd rather keep my face arranged the way it is.
Sighing, I pick up my quill and dip it in my ink bottle, continuing to write the rest of my paragraph. I've gotten used to writing with quills now. At first they were really difficult, and my handwriting was sloppier than it was with a pen. Now my script is somewhat decent, but I guess the most important part is that I have better control over the foreign writing utensil.
I dread going back to the Gryffindor common room, still slightly worried about how I will be treated when I approach Rowena and the others. Can I help it, though? I mean, this entire ordeal—is it really all my fault? I was meant to choose a side, and I chose it. To me it seemed right—I got an amazing new girlfriend out of it—but at the same time, I probably lost a whole load of people's respect. Although, Rowena has been really annoying. If she wasn't so annoying then perhaps I wouldn't have ditched them for the Slytherin girls.
I give the Fat Lady portrait the password and she opens up the way through the portrait hole. When I enter the common room, I immediately find the Potters, Weasleys, and Duncan. Rowena is probably there somewhere, but the boys are crowded around their usual table, so I can't really see anybody else but them.
I walk up to them, forcing a smile and mulling over an explanation. If they don't like it, then bollocks on them.
James is the first one to notice me walking towards them, and his laughing face is immediately replaced with a look of disgust. Soon, the others turn their heads, Hugo immediately frowning when his eyes land on me. Albus just shrugs and shakes his head, turning back to the table. Duncan's eyes are narrowed, his lips pursed, and though he's not glaring at me, I can read the hatred on his face for not sticking up to the Slytherin girls against their remarks about his close friend.
At this point, I don't even think my explanation is even good enough to try. Without stopping, I go up to my dorm and flop onto my bed, throwing a fist into my pillow with anger.
"Damn it, Bursty," I shout. "All of them are gits. It's not my fault Rowena can't stick up for herself! Why do I have to do it?" I glance over at the water tank and watch as my warty toad bloats, croaking a couple of times before falling silent. I sigh and stuff my face into my pillow. To help me get my mind off of my ex-friends, I decide to think about Tatiana and that kiss she gave me in the library. As it turned out, I didn't finish my essay in time, so I wasn't able to visit her in the courtyard. All I can think back on is that kiss. I can even imagine her lips still on mine, warm and plump and soft.
Suddenly, the sound of someone entering the dorm pulls me from my thoughts and I jolt upright. My eyes land on the firm gaze of Duncan. I narrow my eyes and look away.
"What are you doing here?" I ask stubbornly.
"Did you forget that this is my bedroom too?" asks Duncan sarcastically. "Anyway, I wanted to talk about what happened in the Great Hall today."
"I don't need to talk about that. It's clear what you guys think of me now," I mutter.
"We're upset that you decided to side with the wrong people," he explains. My upper lip twitches in disgust. Tatiana isn't a wrong person. She's the absolutely right one.
"I did what I thought was right," I say. "I had a choice, and I made one."
"Well, you see, that's just it; to us, you didn't make the right one."
"I don't think that's for you to decide," I snap. "Who are you to tell me whether I make the right decisions or not?" Honestly, I thought Duncan was actually a nice guy. I guess not.
"We're your friends, Aiden, and what you did, well, it didn't just hurt Rowena, but it hurt all of us in a way. We felt betrayed," he says. My eyebrows slowly arch. "Rowena's the one suffering most, right now. She really didn't mean any harm—she was just looking out for you. She knows just as well as we do that Tatiana Higgs and her crew aren't the best people to hang around."
"And why's that? Because she's in a different House? Because she's ten times prettier than Rowena?" I snap. "Rowena needs to keep her nose out of my business. I'm tired of her trying to make decisions for me. I'm bloody old enough to make my own decisions."
"Look," Duncan says firmly. "Do what you want. I just wanted to tell you that we can forgive you, but only if you can apologize to Rowena for allowing Tatiana to lash out on her like that. You made no effort to stop her."
"Why do I have to make the effort? None of you said anything either!"
"That conversation was all about you, Cooper, don't you get it?" Duncan's tone becomes more frustrated and impatient. "They were fighting over you. What business did any of us have to jump into that conversation?"
"Right then, so what business do you have being mad at me?" I shoot back.
"Rowena's our friend, that's why."
"That's not a good enough excuse." I glare. "Rowena needs to learn to toughen up. If she hates Tatiana so much, then she needs to learn to fight her own battles against her, and that means telling her off just as much as Tatiana tells Rowena off. I'm not going to volunteer to be her bodyguard. You can do that if she's so special to you, but she's not that special to me. I barely know her, and all that I do know is that she's extraordinarily annoying. Besides, why would I want to stand up to Tatiana anyway? I like her." Duncan glares back at me in disbelief. "She's sexy and she likes me too."
"So, that's all you care about? How pretty a girl looks?" Duncan asks with disgust. "You know what? Fine. Don't apologize for being a bloody idiot in the Great Hall, but good luck gaining friends. And good luck getting on the Quidditch team now. Whether you're good at flying or not, James does choose favorites, and if you're not on his good list, then you can say goodbye to the team."
Duncan turns on his heel and walks back to the door before he suddenly stops. He turns his head over his shoulder, disappointed eyes leering at me.
"Have you really fallen under Higgs' spell?" Duncan asks in disbelief. "Do you really think she's a good person?"
"What kind of question is that?" I snap, taken aback. What is it with people asking me about my feelings for Tatiana? How the hell is it any of their business?
"It's too bad, really," he sighs. "I was actually growing fond of you. I thought you would be smarter than to only chase after girls who flash you a pretty smile."
"You don't know Tatiana at all," I seethe. Duncan faces me and tilts his head back, laughing humorlessly.
"I don't know Tatiana at all? Are you forgetting that I've been going to the same school as her for the past five years?" He shakes his head and narrows his eyes. "I'll tell you one thing, Aiden. I know Tatiana too well, and I can assure you that she is not someone you want to affiliate yourself with. There is a reason why Rowena so passionately hates her."
"You mean other than her being prettier than her?" I snort.
"I'm serious, Cooper," Duncan snaps. "Tatiana isn't a good person. She's downright cruel … a real 'mean girl.'"
"Well, obviously you don't know her the way I do," I defend, rolling my eyes.
"Did you not just witnessing the rude outbreak in the Hall during lunch today? You don't realize how cruel she really is because you're blinded by her beauty, and that is truly pathetic."
"So, what are you saying? That I should stop hanging around her, because that won't be as easy as you think it is," I say.
"Why shouldn't it be? Just stop following her around like a lost puppy," Duncan suggests, but he doesn't know what I really mean, that I'm actually her boyfriend. And, sure, boyfriends are supposed to stand up for their girlfriends, aren't they? However, as Duncan continues to tell me what kind of person Tatiana really is, my mind is thrust into a whirlwind of confusion. I think about that afternoon in the Great Hall, the kiss in the library, Kira's weird questioning, and Duncan's comments now. I don't know what to do now and I squeeze my eyes shut, running my fingers through my hair. Too much drama … I'm really hating it. Because, on top of finding out I'm a love child and a fluent speaker in a supposedly-extinct language, my new girlfriend happens to not pass with my friends. This is all ridiculous.
"It's … complicated," I say.
"No, it's not," Duncan assures sternly.
"Yes, it is!" I shout. "Because she's my new girlfriend!"
Duncan's eyes are wide and his jaw drops. I can tell he's not only surprised but disappointed as well. This is obviously not okay with him.
"Well," he finally says. "That is a problem."
"I like her, though," I say. "She's not who you say she is." Duncan shakes his head and turns his back to me. The conversation is over. I know it.
"If you want to trust me on anything," Duncan says with a sigh before grasping the doorknob, "then trust me on this. She is not the person you say she is. I promise you."
He walks out the door after that and an empty pit forms in my stomach. Great. Just great. What the bloody hell was I supposed to do now with myself, or with Tatiana? Would I leave her because of Duncan's warning, or would I ignore it and continue my merry way with her and her kisses? The saying did go ignorance is bliss, but would it really be?
I fall on my back, my head sinking in my pillow, arms flailed out and hanging off of the sides of my bed. I'd sleep on this, hopefully coming up with a decision in the morning. The subject is too tiring.
I truly hate high school.
