The Slytherin Common Room is packed from wall to wall. Students from a variety of houses and class levels are in attendance.

I'm nervous knowing that this surprise party was meant for me. It felt brilliant to have everyone's attention on me in recognition of making the Slytherin quidditch team, yet I'm anxious as all hell.

I have loads of social anxiety and I wasn't used to having so many people wanting to speak to me at once. My brain tended to backfire when I was in these situations, and I'd end up doing something bland like commenting on the bloody weather or something.

The infamous Harry Potter: the socially awkward Boy Who Lived. That sounded fitting.

A spot light appears from the ceiling temporarily blinding me.

"Ladies and gentleman!"

I shield the blaring light with my hand as I glance over to Ginny who's using her wand as a microphone. It doesn't take long to notice she's wearing my favorite blouse of hers; the burgundy halter top that hugs her torso in all of the right places.

"I'm proud to present Hogwarts' FIRST-YEAR SLYTHERIN SEEKER!" She motions her body toward me as if she were showcasing a brand-new car on The Price is Right.

Everyone erupts in cheer as I awkwardly raise my hand briefly. I peer across the extensive room spotting Malfoy in the corner with Crabbe and Goyle. He neglects to pay attention to the announcement in a trance-like state, staring into nothingness.

"Ginny, wait." The glaring light lowers as I grab her wrist pulling us to the side.

She crosses her arms with her head cocked to the side. "Uhh, yeah?"

"I'm unsure whether we should be having this party.." I nervously chuckle running a hand through my bangs. "I'm not sure if I'm even still on the team. Snape said-"

"Oh, Snape is such a grouch sometimes," she cuts me off with the flick of her wrist. "Sure, he's the Head of Slytherin. But Marcus over there is the Slytherin team captain." She points in his direction as I give another awkward half-wave to the coach I hadn't met prior to this evening.

"And I am the team captain that saw your potential," she adds. "We have more leverage than that tired old git."

"Well, the thing about Snape.." I uncomfortably rub the back of my neck. ".. him and I don't get along very well.. I uh- kind of spat in his face earlier today."

Ginny bursts into a giggling fit. Her eyes flash with excitement swaying her shoulders from side to side as she bites the tip of her finger. "That's rather sexy of you, Potter."

I roll my eyes with a smirk. "Ginny, I'm serious!"

"You seriously worry too much. So long as Dumbledore didn't tell you, or Marcus, or me otherwise; you're Slytherin's bloody seeker, and we're bloody keeping it that way, alright?" She purses her lips shifting through her purse. "You need to loosen up. I've got just the thing."

Pulling a mini vial from her bag, she unplugs the cork and hands it over. The potion is a golden color with a fizzy texture that releases a trail of smoke. I use my thumb to push the rolled-up sticker against the surface.

It reads: Felix Felicis

"What is this?"

"Would you stop asking questions and just trust me for once?"

I give into peer pressure and toss the cork to the side as she opens one for herself. She intertwines our arms as we toss back the carbonated liquid at the same time. It tastes like blueberries and mint.

The colors around us dramatically brighten to full capacity. A wave of euphoria crashes over me and I'm growing antsy. I feel the need to talk, and I can't wipe the uncontrolled smile from my face.

I'm led to a corner of the room where Ginny introduces me to Marcus and the men and women of my team. Unlike most unwelcoming Slytherins, my teammates make me feel right at home.

I'm confident, talkative, friendlier than usual and I'm certain that the potion was accountable for the anxiety-free euphoric altercation to my mood.

I'm suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to find Malfoy. It was hard to ignore the fact that he hadn't participated in our teammates' cheers and I was curious as to why he wasn't celebrating with us. And for some reason I yearned for him to join in on the fun.

I hurriedly tell Ginny that I'd go grab us a couple of drinks as she continues to mingle with the Gryffindor team.

I find Malfoy seated on the same couch with his head lazily tilted to the side. His eyes are glazed over and he ignores a girl from Slytherin, I think her name is Pansy, who sits on his lap toying with his hair.

Crabbe and Goyle are beside them hovered around a poor bloke from Hufflepuff who's passed out drunk. They're in the process of creating a disastrous masterpiece on his face; using their wands to draw the ink. His closed eyelids have fake eyes drawn on them, along with an extremely veiny dick on his forehead.

Malfoy's minions foolishly hide their wands behind their backs once I approach them.

"Oi- Thing 1 and Thing 2," I address them with raised brows. They look up to me in trepidation. "Fuck.. off." They promptly scurry off with their tail between their legs.

I take a seat next to Malfoy setting the beers on the table next to us. "Hi," I cheerfully greet the girl. She looks down her nose at me. "I'm Harry; Harry Potter. Pansy, was it?"

"Pleasure," she says slowly. She hesitantly extends an arm toward me and I hastily shake her hand.

Malfoy's eyebrows instantly furrow once his eyes land on me. "Can't you see that I'm busy, Potter?" His arm snakes around Pansy's waist pulling her closer. "Did you come here to accuse me of more rubbish?"

I grab both cups of beer and offer him the one initially intended for Ginny as a peace offering. He accepts the offer placing the rim against his lips.

"Alright there, mate?" I ignore his hostility. I was in too good of a bloody mood to be affected by the daggers his eyes were currently throwing my way. "I'm still heated for what you did.. but-"

"Don't flatter yourself," he mutters closing his eyes as he speaks. "I have far greater things to worry about than your bloody tantrums."

I had only known the bloke for a couple of weeks now, but it wasn't hard to recognize that something had been eating him alive lately. Whatever he was referring to was not just some extraneous drunken rant.

"Father always said that I would follow in his footsteps," Malfoy mumbles, his posture naturally sinking further into the couch. "A direct representation to our family name.." His eyes slowly open and he shamelessly glares at Pansy; the daggers now being thrown her way. Clearly he didn't wish for her to be present while discussing the invasive topic.

The bird from Slytherin scowls at his expression of outright annoyance. She finally takes the hint, gets off his lap and walks to the other side of the room.

"Well.. whatever you're going through.." I pat him on the shoulder. "Just know that I'm here for you. Even though we butt heads often, I really care for you."

"Why are you grinning at me like that?" he sneers straightening in his seat.

"I don't know," I answer in full honesty. "I think that attractive redhead from Gryffindor drugged me."

Malfoy's chin wrinkles as he thoughtfully tilts his head to the side. "Never accept potions from alluring women, Potter. Rookie move."

With a rushed head nod I take the beer from his hand. "Think I'm gonna go find her. Enjoy the party."

I draw in a huge breath standing to my feet. I make my way to Ginny but I'm stopped by one of the beaters on my team. He leads us into a cheer in recognition of myself. And for some reason, I still don't feel an ounce of anxiety even while having everyone outright gawking at me.

I watch the Slytherin take out his wand as he circles it over a bowl of neon-green spiked punch. A portion of the glowing liquid emerges from the juice and morphs into the shape of a snitch. It darts around the room mirroring the actions of a real one.

With one swish of his wrist, the liquid snitch escalates toward me.

The room erupts in cheer. "Harry! Harry!"

I chuckle as I fearlessly hop on top of one of the tables and angle my head to the side. I jump from the surface and open wide as I catch the jello textured, lime flavored snitch in my mouth.

Everyone screams in celebration. I laugh, feeling my cheeks burn, as I hold a hand over my lips so none of the content spills out.

I much preferred this delicious snitch over the tedious real life one.

"That was brilliant!" Ron shouts making his way through the crowd. Hermione is by his side in a visual standoff with Pansy who was boldly back in Malfoy's lap.

"Ron! Hermione!" I holler bringing them both in for a hug. "It's fantastic to see you!"

"You seem.. different." Hermione squares my shoulders with her hands. "Don't think I've seen you smile this much since you conjured a rampant spider on Snape."

"Don't remind me," Ron mutters with a shiver.

"Guess I'm just in a good mood."

Was I really acting that noticeably different?

Before they have the time to question me further I wander away from my mates on a determined mission to find Ginny.

Everyone continues to mingle and dance as I weave through the crowd. I smile at everyone I pass, occasionally doing a quick jig when the moment hit me right.

It was the first time I felt as though I belonged and not simply forced. I earned my spot here. Not just as a Slytherin, or on the quidditch team, but as a student at Hogwarts University.

I randomly bump into a bloke trying to dance with Ginny. She appears thoroughly disinterested. Her hazel-brown eyes brighten as they set upon me. Using me as a ploy, she detaches herself from the anonymous Ravenclaw.

"There you are!" she shouts over the music with a grin. As she jumps into my arms, I spill most of my beer from the unexpected body weight I'm now carrying. "See! I told you I could brighten you up," she adds with a wink.

"Ginny, what the bloody hell did you give me?" I still have a smile plastered on my face, yet I'm growing uneasy. Chugging down an unidentified potion from a fourth-year without any explanation of its contents wasn't my wisest choice.

Rookie move as Malfoy so eloquently pointed out.

"Liquid luck, of course." She answers the question as if I should have already known this or something.

Bloody hell, I barely knew anything about potions. If she didn't remember correctly, I don't particularly have a liking for the professor who teaches it. So why would I have any interest in the subject?

"And you couldn't have given this to me during the quidditch tryouts?" I plead.

"Now that would be cheating. Besides, seems like you didn't need it anyway."

I shrug my shoulders with a smirk and nod in agreement. She turns her back to me and sways to the beat. I straighten my shaky hands and grasp onto either side of her hips.

The normal Harry would panic and mess up my chances considering I have two left feet and I tend to get stuck in my own head. But the 'liquid luck' Harry seemed to think and act differently.

The bass rattles my chest as I twirl Ginny in between my arms causing her to giggle. I grab both of her hands as we go into a bit of a dancing battle. She does the 'disco', pointing her finger to her hip and then up in to the air as I do some uncoordinated jig that makes her laugh once more.

My awkwardness tended to amuse the alluring redhead and I decided to take advantage of that.

My pace slows down as I feel a sudden wave of exhaustion. She looks at me in concern as I glide both sweaty palms across my face. I leave her side unannounced and guide myself to the side of the dance floor to catch my breath.

I imagine myself as a cartoon character; my heart ejecting in and out of my chest.

Feeling another influx of claustrophobia, I bolt for the patio door. The door swings open as my face is blasted with subarctic wind. I can instantly breathe better as goosebumps inundate the surface of my exposed skin.

"What're you doing out here silly?" Ginny wraps her arms around my neck from behind lightly pulling me backward. I turn to her, holding her in my arms with a straight face.

"I think I'm dying," I state matter-of-factly. There clearly was a downside to this brilliant potion and it was quickly approaching.

Ginny bursts into heavy laughter at my expense as my skittish eyes try to focus on her face.

"I'm glad you find this all bloody hilarious."

"Just enjoy the ride," she purrs.

"So I'm supposed to be lucky, am I?" A cunning smirk crosses my lips. "I know something that can test that." I daringly pull her in closer, tightly wrapping her in my arms.

Her enormous sparkling eyes glimpse up at mine as I inch my face closer. The grin on her face begins to dissipate as her lips near mine. My lower body quivers pushing up against her.

I lace my fingers through her silky-smooth burgundy hair, gaining a steady grip before I go in for the kill. Once her soft lips meet mine every ounce of paranoia instantly leaves my body. There's an overwhelming rush as I'm hit with another blissful wave of euphoria. Ginny's fingers dig into the sides of my hips as she deepens the kiss.

"I told yeh!" Hagrid's heavy voice suddenly rattles the Common Room from inside. "No more parties yeh lil scoundrels!"

"Oh no," Ginny whines covering her mouth. "Bad luck; the potion must be wearing off. If Dumbledore finds out I threw the party I'll get detention for months.."

"Get yourself out of here," I confidently insist. "I'll handle Hagrid, he's my friend."

"Are you sure?" Her eyes dart between myself and the batch of students fleeing inside.

"Hagrid will be brilliant. I've got a really good feeling about this."

Ginny coyly smiles as her fingertips graze my cheek. She plants a quick kiss directly next to my lips and walks back inside with her head held high.

30 Minutes Later

"Yeh sure do have a pep in yer step there, Harry." Hagrid points out the obvious as I expeditiously tidy every surface in the barren Common Room.

I halt in place turning to him. "Remind me to never blindly consume a potion from a beautiful girl again, would you?"

"Err, no promises there," he replies with a chuckle. "Been there, done that."

I lightly cringe at the thought as I watch him crack open a fresh bottle of vodka. Luckily at this celebration, there was plenty left to go around for the notorious party crasher.

"Say, Harry?"

"Yeah?" I peer up at him with the dumb smile that had revisited my face.

"I wanted teh apologize for havin' teh tell Dumbledore-"

"No, Hagrid, don't!" I beg. "You can't tell him about the party. Ginny was just trying to make me feel welcome and-"

"Who?" he asks scratching his frizzy beard.

"Never mind." I shove my foot in my mouth. "Hold on.. tell Dumbledore about what exactly?"

"Bout yer eye o'course! After yer accident he asked 'bout it.. and I said; I saw yer eye at the muggle quidditch game over the summer, I did!"

"Say that again?" My eyes narrow connecting the dots. "You told Dumbledore and Snape about my eye?"

"Well, no. You can blame Madam Pomfrey at the hospital wing for that!"

"So.. Malfoy had nothing to do with it.." Another wave of overturned pleasure pummels me.

"Malfoy?" Hagrid belches, placing a big hand over his belly. He helps himself to a plastic goblet, dunking it in the punch bowl before bringing it to his lips. "Malfoy don't know nothin' 'bout yer eye.. Least that's what he told Professor Snape.."

I collapse on one of the couches letting out an elongated, guilt ridden groan. I pinch the bridge of my nose while lightly rocking back and forth.

"Yeh alright there, Harry? I think that potion did yeh in good."

"I think so too." I stand to my feet buttoning my jacket. "Hagrid, I really must get going."

"Well, where yeh goin'?!"

"I owe someone anapology."