A/N: Apologies for the delay. Also, if any of your poor souls have yet to heal from the treachery that "GOT Season 8" inflicted on us, "Reign" ought to heal it, because it did mine :)
All new Follows and Faves: Thank you for all your support, you motivate me to keep at it :)
Arctech: Thank you for reading my story and leaving a review! It made my day :')
Chapter 26: Shackles of Love
Unedited...
A week after the devastating loss against the Ravenclaws, most of the school (except Thomas Walker and McGonagall, of course) had recovered from the shock and almost immediately geared up for the next most awaited match of the year: Slytherin vs Hufflepuff...
Usually, it went without saying that the Slytherins and the Gryffindors were the school's indelible rivals, but the year of 1975 had established a new, EVEN bigger rivalry between two of the most unlikely Houses to ever lock horns: the Snakes... and the Puffs. The whole prospect of this ever happening was almost laughable to say the very least, which was exactly why this impending match managed to excite every living soul in the castle, including the Bloody Baron (although he is technically dead). And without exceptions, the atmosphere in the Common Rooms of all Houses was so electric and so high with excitement that students made it a tradition to brave the cold and assemble in the Quidditch pitch everyday between six and eight o'clock in the morning to watch the two teams practice and scream out nonsense instructions, before heading back in for breakfast.
And it so happened that on a glorious Wednesday morning, Isabella, Lily and Claiborne found themselves heading to the Quidditch pitch once again (a feat that Isabella had accomplished after a bloody, bloody battle) alongside Edgar, Lance, Frank, Viktor, Samuel and Kingsley with plates and plates of toast in their hands.
"You know, I'll never understand what this obsession about a stupid game is!" rasped Lily crossly.
Several gasps resounded around her.
"What—!" choked Edgar.
"She did not just—" stuttered Lance.
"Heavens above...!" Frank squeaked weakly.
"No, she doesn't mean it!" Isabella said quickly, horror-struck at Lily's callousness. "Lily, you're embarrassing me!" she added severely through gritted teeth.
Lily snorted. "What? How the bloody hell am I embarrassing you, Iz?" she chuckled, stuffing her mouth with toast.
"Because, you're best friends with a Quidditch player yourself, THAT'S WHY?" hissed Isabella, exchanging glances with a hysterical Claiborne.
"That STILL doesn't justify us freezing ourselves to death to watch a bunch of... clods... PRACTICING!" Lily shot back triumphantly.
Samuel Willows rolled his eyes. "I think she thinks that ought to offend us," he snorted.
"Actually, no! I am merely here to point out the foolishness (and the enormity of it all) that you lot would even consider wasting precious time watching uncoordinated maneuvers and losing your heads every time the Keeper accidentally lets the Quaffle in through the hoops—"
"—That is the whole point of having a Keeper—!" Kingsley Robins exclaimed horrified.
"—while they could be studying instead!" Lily trilled, avoiding everyone's eye as she did.
"Merlin's beard, is she actually saying these words?" Frank snorted, sniggering uncontrollably now.
"Unfortunately," Claiborne muttered back while Isabella cursed herself for bringing Lily along.
"Glad to know there's someone even more hard core than us Claws!" he chuckled, as the group took their place in the Ravenclaw stands which was closest to the hoops that the Hufflepuffs were using today. Practice had already begun and Isabella's senses instantly went on full alert mode, her eyes zeroing in on the Hufflepuff Chasers and discerning their circling strategy, while the boys screamed silly around her.
"Dear god, let these fools actually have a game plan in place!" exclaimed Isabella, horrified at how chaotic their flying was, just in time to catch Lucius's hearty wink. Isabella narrowed her eyes playfully at him making him grin cheekily before zooming out of view once again. Ever since the two teams had started practicing for their imminent match, it had become customary for Isabella and Lucius to meet up post practice and meticulously go over his attack strategies, with Isabella critiquing his his technique and helping him perfect it—something she was starting to regret greatly now.
"NO! LEFT! TURN LEFT, you IDIOT!" Lance bellowed, even as Vernon turned right and got obliterated by a Bludger. "Merlin's beard, and this is the HOUSE TEAM?!" he roared, holding his head in panic.
"Blimey, am I glad I am not a Puff!" chortled Viktor Jigger only to get stabbed with death glares from the rest.
Isabella resignedly sank back into her chair next to Claiborne and scornfully watched Lily commit the sin of poring over her Charms textbook while a battle of brooms raged on in front of her.
"I don't even know why I try!" she shrugged helplessly in Claiborne's direction, making her grin apologetically.
"She's still here, though, isn't she?" asked Claiborne, smiling wisely, much to her annoyance.
"And that's supposed to mean she's being supportive?!" Isabella hissed back angrily. "Quidditch is the ONE passion of my life that I want to share with you two, and I can't even get her to pretend to be interested?"
"I can hear you, Williams," hummed Lily from her left.
"Don't care, Evans," Isabella shot back coldly, inviting a very confused frown on Claiborne's face.
"What's got your slacks in a swivel?" muttered Claiborne even as the boys groaned around them, drowning her voice.
Isabella didn't say anything and mutely watched Pollux Emberpike expertly diving down and scoring while avoiding the Bludger. "Nothing."
Claiborne rolled her eyes. "Fortunately, I speak your language and I know 'nothing' NEVER actually means nothing," she said, smiling slightly.
Isabella sighed. "Oh, I dunno, Clay... It's just, well... Lily's been driving me nuts of late and I'm THIS close to snapping back at her!" she hissed back. "I mean, she doesn't even realise how condescending she sounds every time she brushes me off. She doesn't realise how awful I feel every time she calls my passions 'worthless hobbies', like studying ought to be man's single most important priority ever!" she hissed through clenched teeth. "Look, I'm not thick, I KNOW she doesn't say that to hurt me or anything, hell, she might actually think she's being uber funny with her wisecracks, not realising how mad it actually makes me!"
Claiborne opened her mouth unsurely.
"Well, yes, she can be difficult sometimes, I know—"
"—Difficult? She practically smothers me with her stupid study schedules, schedules I didn't even ASK for! Clay, it's maddening to know that I have no control over my own bloody life!"
The stands erupted once again, with the students screaming profanities at the Hufflepuff team.
"Izzy, that's not fair, she's only trying to help—"
"—Help that I didn't ask for! And even if I were to turn a blind eye to her micro-managing, the least she could do is not complain and rain on moments like these, but NO! She HAS to make me look like a deranged headless dog, doesn't she?"
"Will you calm down?" whispered Claiborne, silencing her. "Izzy, you must talk to her about these things..."
"I'm not telling her anything!"
"Why not?"
"Because..." Isabella hesitated, her eyes trained on the game in front of her but her mind elsewhere, "I don't want to hurt her," she said at last. "She's my best friend and I feel awful that I even feel all this."
Claiborne didn't say anything and simply watched her from the side.
"It's not right to harbour these emotions within oneself, Izzy," she said quietly. "She's your best friend and deserves to know what you think of her even if they are not particularly pleasant..."
"Clay, don't start..." said Isabella exasperatedly.
"You know I'm never wrong about these things!" said Claiborne sternly.
"You know I hate confrontations—!"
"You think you're protecting her from possible hurt now, but she will eventually learn about it, and trust me, it will hurt her more THEN than now!"
Isabella smacked her hand over her face. She should never have brought her friends along today.
"I'm heading back inside!" she said stiffly and jumped up to her feet.
"Wait! Izzy...!" groaned Claiborne.
Lily's head snapped up.
"What? We're leaving already?" she asked, looking surprised. "But we just got here."
"Yeah, well, we all know Hufflepuff's doomed anyway," Isabella said gloomily, edging towards the stairs. "Didn't see the point," she said, waving Lance and Frank goodbye.
"Ah! Would you look at that? My best friend FINALLY coming to her senses!" exclaimed Lily in fake-awe. "I must say, I always knew a rational side to you existed! And if I don't say it often, just know that I'm mighty proud of you, Williams!" she giggled sarcastically and raced down the stairs, completely oblivious to the mounting rage within Isabella.
"She. Means. Well!" Claiborne hissed stiffly in Isabella's ear, pushing her along by her shoulders.
...
In all honesty, Isabella wasn't even sure why she was experiencing such extreme mood swings of late. Every little thing infuriated her and she couldn't, for the life of her, put a finger on exactly why she was always so cross. Perhaps the Quidditch loss did far-reaching damage to her morale than she realised.
The only possible silver lining during these grim times that gave her solace, perhaps, was the extremely successful prank that the girls had played on the Slytherins a week ago. Because, never before did Hogwarts witness such tame reception from the bunch EVER! The boys, especially, were terrified out of their wits to say anything even slightly out of line because, aside of experiencing the effects of the curse laid upon them, the students feared getting detention from a disgruntled McGonagall for babbling gibberish during class even more.
What was more surprising was that even the Ravenclaws, who were for the most part cold and distant with the rest of the school, seemed greatly impressed with the feat too. It had taken Isabella completely by surprise when that morning, Brock Bletchley, a fellow fifth-year and the school's official Commentator, himself walked up to the girls before Ancient Runes and thanked them for helping rid the corridors of imprecations even if it was for just a week. However, half way through their conversation, Isabella started to suspect if Brock really had only used this as an excuse to look at Claiborne from up close...
"Hmmm... Was I imagining it or was Brock thanking Clay a bit more, just now?" Lily asked slyly as they took their usual seats right in the front of the class.
"Well, our Clay is a beauty, I wouldn't be surprised if he really was," replied Isabella, watching Claiborne's ears turn a brilliant shade of red.
"And I don't care enough to notice if he did," Claiborne replied, trying to sound as unconcerned as possible.
Lily's eyes fell on Isabella almost at once.
"And I've always wondered why," Lily said quietly, dipping her quill into her ink pot. "How does one with such mesmerising golden locks and large doe eyes NOT find themselves in throes of love, eh?" she said, wiggling her eyebrows teasingly. "Does someone else already have your attention...?" she added casually, grinning widely. Isabella pretended to read through her scriptures and hoped to seem as unstirred by this conversation as possible.
Claiborne's eyebrows disappeared into her hair. "What are you suggesting, Evans?" she asked breathily even as Professor Bathsheba Babbling bustled into the class, her glasses hanging precariously on the bridge of her nose.
"Morning, class!" she said briskly, slamming her books on the table, and getting everyone's attention at once. As per usual, she wasted no time and got down to business at once. "Okay, everyone, turn to page one hundred and ninety four!" she barked, busily pointing her wand at a mound of sand inside a large glass case and unearthing a spectacular golden tablet from within it. The usual scuffle of activity followed that order as students pulled out their parchments and quills and textbooks. "We will continue to study ancient Egyptian magic today. I want you to scour through runes and symbols mentioned in this lesson and correctly match them with the symbols inscribed in this tablet here. Whoever unlocks this spell today will receive fifty House points as reward, so chop chop!" she said, clapping her hands animatedly. "And QUIETLY!" she added.
Not a second after Babbling had sank into her chair, Lily resumed their conversation as if they hadn't been interrupted at all. "Come now, Clay. Do you really want me to spell it out for you?" she whispered, sporting a very tongue-in-cheek expression making Isabella's jaw drop to the floor; she tried gesturing to Lily to cut it out only to get royally ignored!
"Okay, hold your horklumps, there, Lily, if you think I've already fallen for someone's charms, you are grossly mistaken!" she said, chuckling lightly. "Besides, I wouldn't dare...!"
"Well, why not?" Lily pressed, ignoring Isabella's wild glares.
"Well, I can't to being with..." Claiborne shrugged matter-of-factly. "I come from a Pureblood family, have you forgotten?" she asked.
Lily's eyebrows knotted together. "What does have to do with anything?" she asked.
Claiborne actually stopped everything and looked up with an expression of complete disbelief, and suddenly turning serious. "Everything!" she said, still looking wildly taken aback that Lily and Isabella didn't understand what she was getting at. "It's very complicated, Lily, we live in a time where if you're unable to prove your loyalty to wizardkind, you end up dead! Besides, I most definitely need to hold up my virtue or I risk losing my mum to a heart attack!" she said, returning to her textbook and scanning the symbols, looking unusually disgruntled. "Girls like me don't have the same luxury of falling in love as do others, you know?"
"What do you mean?" asked Isabella.
"You heard me," said Claiborne.
"Wh... Er, okay, but I thought the Bletchleys belonged to the Sacred Twenty Eight, didn't they? They're as pureblooded as they can get. You still can't—"
"—No... Izzy, I can't," she said, looking far too agitated that necessary, almost as if she didn't want to want to be having this conversation. A moment later, she put her quill down and looked up with solemn grace, her features etched with great angst. "I told you, we don't have that kind of freedom. Our lives and marriages are decided in our infancy itself, Izzy. Alliances are formed with families based on whether they'd uphold my own family's reputation or not. Oh, and also how much gold each family would be amassing because of our union... It's what we're told over and over again growing up until it's ingrained in our brains for eternity. I wouldn't dare do something even remotely stupid," she said.
"Well, I know that, but that's hardly it in your case...!" Isabella started with a scoff, but froze when she saw the look on Claiborne's face. "Clay, please tell me that's not the same in your case..." whispered Isabella anxiously.
Claiborne remained oddly quiet, hardly daring to meet either of them in the eye. "I most certainly can't," she mumbled at last, leaving a dumbstruck Lily and Isabella in her wake.
A shocked silence followed that statement, plunging them into a world of dread.
"So... You..." started Isabella, realisation dawning on her at last. "Y-You're already... engaged? To someone?" she asked, even as a slow sense of horror descended upon her.
Claiborne froze, holding an unreadable expression in her face.
"Are you?" asked an equally mortified Lily.
Claiborne let out a long sigh and looked up, as if she had prepared for this day all her life. "Alright... You two need to listen to me very carefully now," she spoke slowly, turning to face them fully now. "I know how this looks... But, please know that I never meant to keep anything from you, you two mean the world to me..."
"Oh my god, Clay, why aren't you DENYING it?" hissed Isabella, her hand racing to her mouth. "You can't possibly be... You'd never keep something like this from us, ever!" exclaimed Isabella, foolish enough to hope this was the truth, but when Claiborne's face fell, Isabella's whole world seemed to come crashing in on her.
"Izzy, I..." Claiborne started, but fell silent knowing the damage had been done. And as if ready to take the bull by its horn, she straightened up and bravely faced them. "To answer your question, yes, I am engaged to be married the minute I pass out of Hogwarts. I was going to tell you towards the end of seventh-year so that I wouldn't seem like such a hopeless old hag from the fifteen-hundreds," she added bitterly.
A shockwave ripped through them. And for a long time, Lily and Isabella didn't say anything, taking a moment to wrap their heads around this new piece of information, information that had been concealed from them for five long years.
"Well, er..." Lily started, still seething in disbelief. "Who... Who are you engaged to, Clay?" she finally asked.
Claiborne shrugged lifelessly. "Dylar Borgin."
"And he is...?" Isabella started.
"Yes, he's seventeen years older than me."
Isabella's gaze hardened, her head exploding with rage. "And you didn't think to tell us about it."
"Izzy, please..."
"No, GO TO HELL, Clay!" Isabella hissed indignantly and turned her face away even as her eyes filled up with angry tears.
-O-
The next few days were some of Isabella's worst at Hogwarts. The closest she had ever come to feeling this way had been in her second year, when Sirius, along with James and Peter, had played a mean prank on her which resulted in her hair catching fire. And it didn't help that she had been extremely plump back then, because deny as she may, the Slytherins weren't lying when they said she looked like a big white ball of fire, screaming on top of her voice until McGonagall found her and rescued her. But Lily and Claiborne had been by her side back then.
Currently, she was not talking to Claiborne anymore, forcing her to sit separately with Alice and Mary during meals and classes, sparking even the boys' curiosities. Remus, especially, had tried asking Isabella more than once about this, only to get a nonchalant shrug from her, confirming his theory that the girls indeed had gotten into a quarrel. As for Lily, well, Isabella and had resorted to using mere monosyllables for responses (much to her bewilderment) and the fact that Lily wasn't even aware as to why she was being subjected to such cruelty from her killed her even more.
She desperately needed her friends back, but with Lily continuing to be a complete arse and Claiborne emerging a traitor in every sense of the word, had finally driven her up the wall! She was not ready to forgive either of them just yet and no amount of being called a 'big egotistical baby' by Remus was going to make her change her mind.
"So, what plans for your birthday?" asked Isabella, as she and Remus braved the forbidding chill that ripped through the grounds.
"Well, I was going to invite the bunch of you to a private butterbeer party in our dorms, but seeing as you don't see eye-to-eye with either of your friends anymore, I..."
"No! Don't you dare guilt-trip me into talking to her, Lupin!" Isabella said stiffly, even as James, Sirius, Peter and a whole bunch of Gryffindor seventh-years ran past them, idiotically waving the Gryffindor banners in the air for a Hufflepuff vs Slytherin match.
Isabella raised an amused eyebrow in their direction. "Do I want to know?" she asked, stifling a smirk and watching Sirius go berserk with excitement.
Remus shook his head exasperatedly. "I think I heard James say something about exerting the Gryffindor dominance 'oxymoronically' at the wrong match..."
"I think it's time you taught him what 'oxymoron' really means, don't you think?" she snorted, making him break into a grin.
"Anyway," Remus started, going back to her matter with Claiborne, "Clay wanted me to tell you that she's very sorry... For whatever it was that she did, I still don't know!" he added quickly, seeing Isabella open her mouth to retort.
"And she couldn't tell me this herself?" she spat out furiously.
"Well, in her defense, you haven't been a bed of roses lately, too, have you?" he asked.
Isabella raised an eyebrow. "Whose side are you on?" she asked indignantly.
"Nobody's! I just want the two of you to go back to talking to each other, that's all! And frankly," he said, pausing to look at her, "I know for a fact that you mean more to her than even Lily..."
Isabella gasped. "You did not just say that," she said, half-chiding, half-smiling.
"My point is, you are like two peas in a pod, and no fight ought to last more than a few hours. Come on, you don't need me to tell you this!"
Isabella didn't know what to say, as a warmth spread through her. She simply smiled up at him. "You really like her, don't you?" she finally asked.
Remus simply shrugged and the two of them started towards the pitch once more, a slight colour rising up his face. "Well, I like you too...!" he started, hesitantly. "You're both my friends," he added, making her roll her eyes long and wide.
"The whole world knows Clay, you and Pete are like a gang, Remus, please!" she scoffed.
"Well, that... May be... Mildly accurate," he started, but when she gave him an exhausted side glance, he decided to drop the act. "Alright, fine, yes, I like her a lot. She's kind and wise and cares so deeply for others and is hardly ever wrong about anything, it's hard for one not to like," he said, choosing his words very carefully. "She's one of my closest friends... In fact, the only girl I ever got this close to in all my life," he smiled, sounding as noncommittal as possible.
The two of them entered the boisterous Quidditch pitch alongside an army of Hufflepuff supporters from across Houses. The sudden deafening noise that slammed into her the minute she stepped in sent an excited tickle up her spine. This was the first time in a long time that she was here at the stands as a spectator and the spectacle that reached her eyes took her breath away! Because nearly three-quarters of the stands looked like they had been painted in yellow and black, as students from every House sported the resident colours of Hufflepuff, clearly letting the world know who their favourite was today—all except the lone scarlet and gold banners that Sirius and his friends was dementedly waving from the Gryffindor stands.
"Oh my god, THIS IS AMAZING!" she squealed, making Remus grin widely. "I've missed simply being able to watch a Quidditch match!" she cried, jumping up and down in excitement.
"Let's find the boys, then!" he said. Leading her by the hand, Remus dragged her towards their own tent, where nearly every seat had already been occupied by their House-mates—all except Lily and Claiborne and Thomas, who Isabella suspected was still wallowing in sorrow all alone in their tower. The two of them joined their exuberant House mates who seemed to have gone berserk, screaming insults and waving rude slogans at the Slytherin players, determined to avenge their tragic loss mere weeks ago.
The match, as usual, was peppered with gore and bloodshed so much so that it got hard to continue watching it objectively anymore. And as much as she hated to admit it, Slytherin did have style and Lucius was doing a FANTASTIC job as Chaser, allowing them to dominate the game from the very beginning! With every passing minute, the match steadily sank towards a point of no return with the scoreboard reading 140:40 favouring Slytherin. And no amount of verbal abuse that the loyal Gryffindors and the Ravenclaws were throwing at the Snakes was salvaging the game in any way. Perhaps, the only exciting part of the match unfolded in the last ten minutes when there was a MAD chase for the Snitch by the Seekers from the two Houses, wherein, the pair had ascended so far into sky, they looked like mere specs in the vast expanse. The crowd watched on with bated breath, not even caring about the Quaffle jumping in and out of hoops on the side. When the final whistle blew, no one knew exactly who had caught the Snitch until the scoreboard updated itself: 290:60.
The groan that followed that was the loudest, most deafening noise she had ever heard on this pitch till date. It almost felt like the world had ended, when the Slytherins roared with victory, showering the pitch with green confetti!
"The colour of doom," Sirius whispered dramatically, his voice damaged beyond repair from all the screaming he had indulged in for the last two hours.
"I know, I want to KILL myself too!" bawled Isabella, and before the words had even left her lips, she noticed a green blur racing straight towards her at top speed. "Wh... Merlin's beard, Lucius!" she squealed delightedly, as he grew bigger and bigger in size. Laughing heartily, she raced down the steps to meet him. "You were BRILLIANT!" she screamed as she reached the ledge, but before she could even find her footing, he had raced towards her on his broom and flung his arms around her, pulling her into the biggest hugs ever!
"Lucius, what are you doing, YOU'RE IN ENEMY GROUNDS!" she cried, laughing uncontrollably even as the Gryffindor tent erupted in protest.
But it was as if none of them even existed for him, as he wound his arms tighter around her, one she was more than happy to return. "We won! We won!" he mumbled against her shoulder, still holding her, and still mounted on his broom.
"I know, you had me in tears!" she squealed back.
"I could never have done it without you," she heard him whisper in her ear, ignoring the avalanche of slurs and insults that the Gryffindors were belting out at him. With her hands still wrapped around his neck, she pulled back and beamed into his face. "You were fantastic!" she said sincerely, making him break into the biggest smiles she had ever seen on him. "Let's go," he said.
"WHERE?!" she asked.
"Victory lap, of course!" he guffawed and before she could even protest, he had spun her around, wrapped his hand around her waist and hoisted her effortlessly on to his broom, ignoring her blood cries.
"Lucius, you've gone completely MENTAL!" she screamed, but swinging her legs on to the broom all the same.
"GO SNAKES!" he screamed manically from behind her, before enveloping her with his hands to hold the broom and shooting up into the sky like a bullet, making her double up with laughter all over again. The cold wind billowing in her ears, put her at ease at once. And for the first time ever, she realised just HOW GOOD Lucius actually was at flying, directing his broom to do exactly how he intended, almost as if the wood was an extension of his fingers. The wind caught in her hair, making it rage behind her.
"Woooooo!" he screamed again, as they ascended further up into the sky, making her slide into him. "Lucius, CAREFUL!" she screamed, unable to stop grinning even for a second.
"GO SLYTHERINNN!" he shrieked again, wrapping one hand around her and using the other to grip his broom, before diving down without warning, making her heart jump into her mouth. "LUCIUS, NOOOO!" she screamed, holding on to his arm for dear life, but Lucius merely chuckled teasingly, plunging them into a near vertical dive now. Isabella was screaming on top her of her voice now, eyes tightly shut and fingers digging into his flesh. A second later, however, she felt them slowing down as he elegantly tugged at the broom, making it straighten up. Isabella opened her eyes and found them about twenty feet away from the ground now. Still circling about the pitch, Lucius casually swerved the broom around, his left hand still wrapped securely around her waist. Isabella looked up and found nearly half the stands had emptied now, as students dejectedly made their way back into the castle—all except the Slytherins, who were still chanting and singing, basking in their victory.
"GO MALFOY!" someone yelled from the stands, making them both break into grins. Lucius paused to wave at his friends cheering him on from the Slytherin tent. Isabella did not fail to notice the questionable glances she was receiving the female population.
The pair of them went around the pitch two more times along with the other players, crying and screaming in happiness, and hi-fiving students as they went, and Isabella hadn't been able to stop the grin plastered across her face.
When the pair finally hit solid ground, Isabella turned back to look at his happy face, grinning down at her contently. "What are you smiling at, I'm still heart-broken!" she howled dramatically, swinging her legs off the broom and facing him with her hands on her hips. "How're the lot of you good at everything, it's maddening!" she said, overcome with admiration and annoyance, but Lucius didn't say anything and continued to stare at her, as if trying to memorise her face.
"Well, would an invite to our victory party tonight help heal your heart?" he asked innocently, smirking lazily up at her.
Isabella gawked disbelievingly. "After what we pulled a week ago, NO thanks!" she grinned, feeling a sudden heat rise up her neck. Because she was suddenly very aware of his eyes clawing on to hers, and it felt like he was teasing her a great deal. "Anyway, erm..." she said, snapping her eyes away from him and ignoring the uneasy squirming in her gut. "Well, er... Congratulations, again!" she grinned, shaking her head distractedly. "See you again at lunch... then?" she asked, surveying him through raised eyebrows.
"Mm-hmm," she heard him say, his eyes still bearing a ghost of a tease. "Can't wait," he added quietly, trying not to look too eager.
"Lucius, what? What's with the... Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, battling the butterflies that had currently gone wild in her stomach now. For someone who was the epitome of passive nonchalance, it was astounding just how expressive Lucius could get when the occasion called for it, enough to leave one a blushing, blubbering mess.
"What? What do you mean?" he exclaimed, smickering in blatant fake-innocence. "Why? Is it setting you off in some way?" he demanded with a raised an eyebrow, sporting an arrogant smirk.
"What? No!" she said, suppressing the urge to groan. "You just... I... " but she noticed Lucius's triumphant grin at finally having succeeded at provoking her. "Stop it!" she muttered, grinning uncontrollably. "Lucius, your... This... Fake flirting? It won't work on me!" she declared, smiling and leveling her face with his.
"Oh, it won't?" he challenged at once, inching closer at once, licking his lips teasingly.
"Yes!" she asserted semi-confidently, and pushed him away for emphasis. "I'm not triggered, neither will I ever fall for your... mean tricks!"
Lucius fake-gasped at once. "Can't say that didn't hurt!" he sniggered, fully enjoying himself, no doubt. "Well, on the bright side, though..." he paused to push a strand of hair behind her ear, "I do like me a challenge," his eyes glinted mischievously.
Isabella rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right," she scoffed. "All of Hogwarts knows your lofty standards in girls, Lue, please!" she said, making him howl in laughter. "Is that so?" Lucius wheezed, wiping away his laugh tears. "Well, it's tragic that you too think so low of me," he pouted, dismounting his broom.
"Yeah, unfortunately I only speak the truth."
"Yeah, and I'm devastated. Like... Tear-my-heart-open-stab-me-in-the-eye level bad, you know?"
"Awww," Isabella cooed, feigning pity. "And since I only speak the truth, I'm compelled to tell you that you deserve it," she replied sheepishly, and paused for a bit before the two of them broke down laughing all over again.
Lucius snorted, fondly regarding her for a second, even as a bunch of red and gold banners disappearing out the entrance caught his eye. "Alright, go on, then," he drawled, stretching his arm out to hug her goodbye. "The bunch of tosspots might be missing you," he said, giving her a big squeeze and a quick peck on the cheek.
Isabella noticed her friends bounding out of the stands too and grinned. "You know, unlike popular belief, the bunch of them don't always... have their faces shoved up their own backsides?" Isabella said sincerely, prompting a rather surprised yet exaggerated nod from Lucius. "Ah, really? Yeah, see, now I didn't know that," he said.
"Exactly," Isabella nodded. "Thought you ought to know."
"Are you trying to get me to like them?" he smirked.
"Maybe," she beamed.
Lucius rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Yeah, never happening, but guess what? I will keep that in mind!" he said, chuckling lazily as she broke away from his embrace and backed towards the entrance.
"You've no idea what's waiting for me back in my Common Room!" she said, narrowing her eyes at him and walking backwards. "I'm going to be roasted alive!" she grinned.
Lucius guffawed. "Happy to help!" he called back cheekily, making her stomach jolt uncomfortably once again.
With a final wave, she hurried outside to join the students trudging back up the stony path, dejected beyond words. Isabella found her mousy-haired friend chatting with Martin Benkley just a few feet away and called out to him, making him turn around.
"Izzy?" Remus said, looking surprised. "Well, look who's returned to us mortal imbeciles," he teased even as she caught up with him.
"Not you too, Remus!" she groaned, getting in step with him. "We're just good friends."
"Yeah, that much was pretty clear," he guffawed sarcastically, making her give him the side stare.
"Stop it!" Isabella said, giving him a sideways shove, making him double up with laughter.
"He is a wicked flyer, though," Remus admitted, still grinning.
"Isn't he?" she beamed with pride. "Anyway, we never got the chance to speak privately ever since our... 'adventure' in Neverland," she said, giving him a knowing look.
He nodded immediately. "Oh, yes! I've been meaning to speak with you as well, Iz. Okay, look, you have nothing to worry about, alright? Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey are aware of my condition and the pair keep a VERY close eye on me, so I won't be of any danger to you or anyone whatsoever..."
"What? No!" Isabella cut him quickly, feeling an instant pang of guilt. "No, that was not what I meant to say at all, Remus! I... I just wanted to say how proud I am of you for... well, being so brave and so kind in spite of everything you go through... month after month..." she said, flushing red in embarrassment. "And well... I just wanted to tell you that, you're a dear friend to me too and you can count on me for anything at all that you'd need. Any help, and I'll be there," she said, beaming up at him.
A surprised smile cut across his features. "Why, thank you, Izzy," he said, gratefulness washing over his face. "I might actually hold you to it, you know," he said, grinning sincerely. "That reminds me, I haven't yet told Clay about it, yet..." Isabella's stomach fell at once. "I don't know if I'll ever have the courage to tell her," he mumbled incoherently. "Funnily enough, she's the one person who thinks she knows me in and out, when she doesn't know the FIRST thing about who I really am," he said, his voice dripping with guilt.
Isabella sighed. "Relax, we shall work this out together, okay?" she said.
"Yes, please..."
.
Isabella had not been wrong about her theory that she was going to get roasted alive by her House-mates, because the second she entered her Common Room a collective 'Boo!' exploded right in her face, as if she had gone behind their backs and consorted with the devil himself! She tried to reason with one and all, but the more she spoke, the louder the Boo's got, making it impossible to get her point across.
"You make it look like I have made it my life's mission to personally train the Slytherin team and see them win all the matches JUST to poop on your feelings! HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN I'M A GRYFFINDOR TOO, YOU PEA-BRAINED, BLOOD-SUCKING BUNCH OF ANKLE-BITERS?!" she was screaming at a bunch of tiny second-years, who had relentlessly kept their Boo's going for the entirety of her monologue! "Merlin's beard, help me, Sirius!" she finally wailed, only to find him scowling petulantly at her from his corner.
"I'd rather watch you die, TRAITOR!" he yelled, and James nodded vehemently from the side.
"Godric, have mercy," she whispered to herself and sank into a couch near the window. A sudden pang of sadness crashed into her as she realised she couldn't even run to her friends for comfort.
It took several days for the taunts to finally die away, and she could peacefully sit and eat at her own House table during meals. It took slightly longer for Sirius to forgive her, but when he finally did, she had nearly crashed into his arms in gratitude. All the while, she and Claiborne continued to not speak to each other, in fact Claiborne had started avoiding running into her even by accident in their dorm, by waking up and much earlier than the rest and returning to bed well after everyone had fallen asleep, and finding refuge with Alice and Mary during classes and meals. It killed her to see her this way, but Isabella's ego wouldn't let her break the silence at the same time.
It got most awkward especially on Remus's birthday, when the whole gang gathered about in the boys' dorm for a tiny party of butterbeer and a game of Exploding Snap, and the two of them refused to interact with each other. Franks started asking questions, which spiraled out of control when Edgar and James jumped on the bandwagon and the whole night became about their fight rather than be about Remus.
It was easier with Lily, however, because the two of them were spending every waking hour mostly studying or exchanging notes, sparing very little time to actually talk. It was clear that things were fast getting out of hand and desperately needed to be fixed and soon!
-O-
~oO 2 weeks later...
The corridors were nearly empty as most students had already headed down for dinner, making her footsteps echo in the darkness. Isabella was returning from Transfiguration with a favour from McGonagall to return the wooden buckets she had used to demonstrate their transfiguration into heaps of mushrooms, back in their respective cupboards. Slinging her bag over her right shoulder, she hurried down the winding staircases with the heavy buckets under her tow and reached the first floor landing just above the Great Hall.
"Well, this one must be it," she muttered to herself when she neared the broom cupboard marked '12'. "And in you go," she whispered breathlessly, balancing the buckets on one hand and yanking the door open with the other.
A shrill scream shot up in the air, making her drop the buckets in fright just in time to catch a pair of startled eyes staring back at her.
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" shrieked Isabella slamming her eyes and the door shut and backing away from the cupboard, nearly toppling over the lolling buckets scattered on the floor.
"Merlin's beard, IZZY!" came a boy's voice, followed by the noise of a door being wrenched open.
"No, I didn't see anything! Just please leave me alone!" screamed Isabella, her eyes still tightly shut.
"Whoa, it's okay, it's just me!" she heard Sirius chuckling uncontrollably.
"OF COURSE, it's only you!" Isabella bellowed, still not daring to open her eyes. "Do you not have anything productive to do ever?!"
The sounds of him grinning his head off made her really want to punch him in the face now. "I was just blowing some steam off!" he guffawed. "And cut it out already!" he said, grabbing hold of her hand.
"No! First tell me if you're decent!" she said irritably.
"I am!"
She opened her eyes to find him hurriedly buttoning up his shirt over his sweaty shoulders. "Unbelievable, Sirius!" she chided. "This is the SECOND time this has happened this year!"
"I know, how does it keep happening only with YOU?!" he asked, laughing for full measure now. But when he saw her glaring at him with her hands on her hips, he quickly shut up. "Okay, okay, I know, I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting company!" he pleaded, still stifling his smirk.
"Well, why don't have the sense to avoid the most frequented corridors at least?!"
"Your brain doesn't work like that in the heat of the moment!" he guffawed, breaking down laughing all over again, bringing a smile to her a face too.
"Honestly, Sirius," she said, grinning slightly herself. "Who's in there anyway?" she finally asked, pointing at the cupboard.
"Oh, er... No one, just... some older bird," Sirius said, still catching his breath. "Just... Don't be upset, alright?"
"Upset? Why would I be upset?" Isabella asked incredulously. "And why are you still out here with me, get back in there!" she scolded, gesturing in the cupboard's direction.
Sirius blinked wildly. "What?"
"W-You heard me! Don't leave the poor girl hanging, Sirius! It's mighty rude!"
He paused instantly, looking fully taken aback at her words. "Huh? What are you saying...?" he asked slowly, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Look, I know you're all just a bunch of skanks looking to steal a snog or two every now and then, but Merlin, have mercy on her feelings, Sirius!" Isabella said, smirking uncontrollably now.
Oddly, Sirius's stance didn't have the same urgency as did Isabella's. Instead, he merely frowned, seemingly frozen in place. "Wha—Are... Are you... You're not... You're not upset about running into me... like that?" he asked, a shockwave rippling through his core.
It was now Isabella's turn to be fully taken aback by his question. "What? No! Why would I be?"
"You actually want me to go back in there?" he repeated, his eyes hardening this time.
"Of course!" she shrugged innocently.
"And finish what I started?" he pressed on.
"Yes! And please make sure the buckets make it inside the cupboard when you leave, I don't want McGonagall taking any more points from us," she said, swinging her bag over her shoulder once again. "Besides, you still haven't told me who you're with!" she added with a twinkle in her eye, but Sirius seemed to have permanently frozen on the spot.
"Actually it doesn't matter, the moment's passed," he said, shaking himself awake just as the broom cupboard bolted open and out ran the curly-haired Eudora Bearfist, bearing great betrayal and reproach in her eyes for Sirius.
"Good Godric, a sixth-year from OUR House?!" Isabella exclaimed, smacking him hard on the side even as Eudora hurtled out of sight. "Scandalous!" she added, with a dramatic shake of her head, except he looked entirely unimpressed. "Impostor... What've you done with my best friend?" he asked, frowning rather solemnly, while walking towards the cupboard once more, but never taking his eyes off her.
"I'm right here, Black."
"No. The Williams I know would flip and dig a hole of sorrow where she'd hide herself and cry to sleep every night after running in on me and my lady friend like that," he said, grimly. "Oh, and I almost forgot to add, she wouldn't talk to me for several weeks at least, because of the trauma she experienced!"
Isabella raised an brow at his tone. She didn't like his tone one bit. "And the Black I know wouldn't dream of deserting his lady friends in the middle of a make-out session, what's your point?" Isabella retorted watching him pick up the buckets and stack them neatly inside the broom cupboard. Grabbing his bag and cloak from inside, he slammed the door shut with more force than required.
"This," he said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "That I didn't know it would hurt this much to realise you've actually moved on..."