"It's been a very, very long time...but it's hard to forget eyes like that."
"Your way of thinking is narrow-minded and seriously outdated."
"What were you thinking? Attacking a teacher like that! If you had injured Moody even the Malfoy's reach wouldn't be able to keep you here! Is that what you want!"
"You're so beautiful is all. I'd give anything to look like you. I mean, I'm pretty and all but your body...I just...WHERE DID IT EVEN COME FROM? I'VE BEEN YOUR FRIEND SINCE WE WERE FETUSES! HOW DID I NOT REALISE THAT YOU SUDDENLY HAVE BOOBS? AND HIPS AND JUST- EVERYTHING? I SWEAR THOSE WEREN'T THERE YESTERDAY!"
"Look, Malfoy, projecting your issues onto me isn't going to make your daddy love you."
"You are not worth the effort of an insult."
"I get it. Krum is awesome. You don't have to get everyone else wet as well. Bloody hell, you weren't even this bad at the cup."
"I feel the weight of it myself. I just ask you to be particularly vigilant going forward, my dear. This death may be a warning of worse things yet to come. Death has always bred more death."
"I punched a window."
"Val. The next time anyone touches you like that again, you have my express permission to put them six foot under."
"Ah, Miss Valentine Lestrange, so good of you to finally bless us with your presence."
"You really think Leah could pick between men and women? I've seen her take three days to choose a pair of socks to wear and you think she can make that kind of decision? Haven't you been paying attention?"
"Yeah, well, maybe my aesthetic is screaming!"
"Okay, so I know it's not a big deal but Hasani was totally eyeballing Liam for the last hour."
"Your parents were quite interesting people, you know. And those eyes of yours. A Lestrange trademark to be proud of. A symbol of your lineage."
"I believe you both should, as the youth of today say, lighten up."
"Voldemort's back. Cedric. He asked me to bring his body back. I couldn't leave him, not there."
"The only thing impressive about you is your bounds of endless arrogance."
"Well. Aren't we the life of the party?"
"Careful now, professor. Look at me like that and I might just spill all my frivolous hopes and dreams."
Two hours, maybe three at most. Valentine could tell that was how long she'd been asleep for. Leah was in the bed next to her as usual, snoring lightly. It was almost like nothing had changed. But that was wrong. Everything had changed.
Valentine rolled over onto her stomach and pressed her face into the velvet-embossed pillow.
Three days ago, Barty Crouch Jr died. The Minister had brought in a Dementor to take Crouch back to hell, but upon seeing the escaped prisoner, the dark creature swooped in and made quick work of him using the Dementor's Kiss. Fudge had simply shrugged this off. He saw Crouch as nothing but a criminal to be disposed of. He couldn't accept that Crouch was also a vital witness. He had interacted directly with Voldemort, who knew how much information was locked away in his twisted mind? The smart thing to do would have been attempting to extract the information while they had the chance. But now that chance was gone.
Fudge didn't believe what Harry had seen, he didn't even believe that Cedric had been murdered by Voldemort himself. He was more focused and acting as though everything was simply an accident. That was what he had labelled Cedric's death as. A mishap. A oversight. It made Valentine's blood boil to think of it. Just like that, what had happened to an innocent boy meant nothing.
Having had seen someone die herself, Valentine wondered how Harry felt. He'd been excused from classes since the third task and so she'd seen fairly little of him. It was the very least Dumbledore could grant him after what he saw.
Dumbledore had relayed to herself and Snape that when Harry and Cedric touched the cup, they'd been transported to an unfamiliar graveyard. Peter Pettigrew had been there and had been the one to truly kill Cedric, although it was on the orders of Voldemort. Voldemort was apparently not as he was before, even when restored to his full power. Lucius had been there as well, Harry had said. As well as the parents of Crabbe and Goyle, William Lovat, Gordon Highcourt and a man that answered to Parkinson. Not that any of this mattered when the Ministry refused to accept Harry's claims.
She could have felt like the world was falling apart but she did not. Rather, something was building. Evolving. She felt as though things were just beginning.
--Pretending To Live--
It was the last day of the school year and it was unlike any day last Valentine had experienced. The house tables were gone. In their places were rows of benches stretching to the back of the hall. The staff table was gone as well, the teachers seated with the students from all three schools. Above them, the ceiling was bare except for the flags bearing the single letter 'H'. This year there would be no House Cup.
Dumbledore sat in his chair at the head of the room, appearing to be deep within a solemn thought. He had yet to speak and when he did, he would be the first to since everyone took their seats.
Although the hall was full, not a sound could be heard, as if everyone was holding their breath.
Blaze and Leah were on Valentine's left, with Draco, Liam and Philips on her right. She glanced down at Leah's lap beside her where Blaze was holding her hands tightly. She noticed that Draco had seen the same and they exchanged glances, silent and unreadable to anyone other than themselves.
She felt like they'd been here before and then remembered that they had. It had only been a year since they'd lost Olivia but it somehow felt like it was both a lifetime and a week ago. Valentine could still hear her soft voice and her nervous laughter. She could still see her polite smile and green eyes. She could still see the desperation and pain and blood. She knew she would never forget it and hoped Cedric would linger in all their minds for just as long.
When Dumbledore finally spoke, his grave voice filled every crevice of the Great Hall.
"Today we acknowledge a really terrible loss." He stood from his chair. He was the very centre of everyone's attention at that moment. They were looking to him as people had for years. But as wise as he might have been, Valentine knew that he couldn't fix this. "Cedric Diggory was as you all know, exceptionally hard-working, intricately fair-minded and most importantly a fierce, fierce friend. I think therefore you have the right to know exactly how he died. You see, Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort."
Valentine watched Blaze's hand tighten ever further around Leah's from the corner of her eye and Draco's intake of breath beside her. Even they listened, even they believed. She let her knee fall to the side to gently knock against Draco, almost as if it had been an accident.
"The Ministry of Magic does not wish me to tell you this. But not to do so would be an insult to his memory." Dumbledore continued. "Now the pain we all feel at this dreadful loss will remind me, remind us that while we may come from different places and speak in different tongues, our hearts beat as one. In light of recent events, the bonds of friendship we have made this year will be more important than ever. Remember that and Cedric Diggory will not have died in vain. And we'll celebrate a boy who was kind and honest and brave and true right to the very end."
--Pretending To Live--
Snape had held her back after Potions, the last class of her fourth year, to tell her that the cure was complete. It would be ready for her to take by tonight.
Valentine wouldn't have been ashamed to admit the wave of relief that had washed over her. He'd done it like she knew he would. Jerk, ass, bastard though Snape might have been, he was a mompotions genius. She wasn't going to die.
As she waited for her friends to head off to bed, she was calm, utterly and totally so. Almost surprising herself, she felt no need to rush. Things would be alright. She wasn't going to die.
Leah took the longest, of course. Valentine brushed out her hair and then threatened her stuffed animals one by one until Leah finally conceded and tucked herself in. Then all Valentine had to wait some more. Waiting for Leah to fall asleep was almost like second nature to her now. She'd done it so often that it was like muscle memory.
Leah tended to start out on her stomach but as she drifted off she would turn on to her side, kicking a few stuffed animals off the side of the bed. If Leah didn't get up to apologise and set them somewhere they wouldn't fall from, she'd be asleep in a matter of minutes.
It took a while longer than usual for Leah to fall asleep tonight. Valentine thought it might have had something to do with everything that had happened. Even though Leah could seem like a thoughtless person some- well, most of the time, Valentine knew better. She was easily the kind of person to get stuck in her own head.
Once Leah had truly fallen asleep, Valentine got up out of bed, got dressed and slipped away without a sound.
Since the third task, the halls had been strangely quiet throughout the day. Not dead quiet as if the place had been abandoned but quite all the same like everyone was whispering whenever they spoke. No one felt like causing a commotion. Not even Valentine's friends. But at night? The halls were quiet but they had always been that way after dark.
As she arrived at the Headmaster's office, the door swung open as if greeting her.
"Evening all." She sighed and made a beeline for her chair.
"You look like hell." said Snape.
"And you look pretty as ever, Professor." Valentine gave him a tight, bitter smile.
This amount of silence since the third task seemed even longer for her when she was plagued with daily nosebleeds and a near-constant headache. She was so ready for this to be over and thus she said so.
"I am so ready for this to be over. My pain tolerance is decent but this whole thing has been ridiculous."
Snape made a noise that sounded suspiciously like conniving laughter.
Valentine narrowed her eyes at him.
"What's so funny, chuckles?"
When Snape didn't answer, she looked over at Dumbledore who stared back with eyes glistening with sympathy.
"I'm not going to like this, am I?"
"The...extraction process is likely to be very painful." Dumbledore admitted.
"Extract?ion?" Valentine tried not to grimace at the use of the word.
"The potion will kill the parasite, there is no doubt about that." said Snape. "But it won't remove the actual, physical being."
"Hmm. That doesn't sound good." Valentine mumbled. "No chance it'll naturally and harmlessly be absorbed into my body?"
"Given how very little we know about this parasite, that would be unwise." said Dumbledore. "We have no way of telling what will happen after it's dead. Perhaps if it was naturally absorbed it would make you ill or worse."
"Ah. So, it definitely shouldn't be left in there then."
"Unless you'd enjoy septic shock." Snape scoffed.
"Well, I'm sure that's as fun as it sounds but I think I'm going to go with the likely very painful removal." Valentine sucked in a deep breath. "How exactly are we doing this?"
Snape walked over to the desk and pushed a bottle along its smooth surface towards her. The clear bottle allowed a view of the black liquid inside.
"That looks like the last thing someone sees before they die." Valentine frowned.
"Well, then." said Snape, pulling it back towards himself.
I'm not ready to die.
"Wait." said Valentine with a growl. "Give it to me. I didn't get bitten by a senior citizen just to die anyway."
"Will you ever get over that?" Snape muttered in irritation, sliding the potion back towards her.
"Probably not." She rubbed at her forearm.
She grabbed the bottle and removed the glass stopper. Immediately she was bombarded with a heavy, horrific smell.
"It smells as good as it looks." said Valentine. She glanced at Dumbledore and Snape. Both were watching her closely. "Well, it's life or death I suppose."
She raised the bottle to her lips and tilted her head back, prepared for possibly the foulest favourite imaginable. However, she was surprised to find it had no taste at all. It was thick and had a strange texture but other than that, it no flavour let alone a foul one.
She swallowed it and stared down at the now empty bottle.
Snape took it from her.
"The effects should be almost immediate." He said.
"How will we know it's worked?" She asked, wiping her mouth on her sleeve.
Dumbledore and Snape exchanged glances.
Oh, boy.
"What is it, now?" She groaned, slumping in her chair. "Am I going to turn purple or something?"
"With so limited information on this particular affliction, there is a certain amount of...guesswork involved." Dumbledore spoke carefully.
"Excuse me?" Valentine bristled. "Guesswork? This isn't a history exam. This is my life."
"And so far you've survived twice as long as any other with the same condition." Dumbledore added. "The progress Severus has made in the last two years is more than anyone has achieved in the last two hundred."
"And that's fantastic, but I need to know whether I die here tonight trying to get this thing out of my head in a likely extremely painful manner or I die three weeks from now in an extremely painful manner, that I'm sure is going to shock the hell out of my friends."
Dumbledore sighed and nodded. He leaned across the desk and spoke softly.
"My dear, there is a possibility that if the cure hasn't exterminated the parasite, then it may kill you during the extraction process."
"...So, either I take a chance to live or die regardless. I've got to be honest, that's not much of a choice."
"And yet it's one you still must make." said Snape.
"You know, I really hate it when you're right." She sighed and steeled herself. "Okay, let's do this."
Dumbledore stood from his desk and moved to stand before her.
"We will have to restrain you." He said. "For your own safety, of course. High pain tolerance or not, your basic human instincts aren't going to agree with this."
Snape flicked his wand towards her and a rope twisted its way around her chest and torso, holding her back against the chair. They pulled tight so that they bit into her skin. She attempted to sit forward and couldn't move an inch.
"You may feel the need to faint." Dumbledore added. "I wouldn't fight it.'
Valentine nodded and sucked in a deep breath, readying herself for what, as far as she knew, could be the worst pain of her life. Perhaps even worse than the bite.
She felt her hands tremble and tightened them on the arms of the chair until her knuckles were white. She planted her feet against the floor.
Was she afraid of the pain? No. Not particularly. Was it because she might not be coming back from this? Because tonight when she watched each of her friends go off to bed be the last she ever sees them all? Likely. She didn't think too much about it.
Dumbledore surprised her when he touched her forehead gently. He brushed away the hair that fell over the pale pink scar on her temple and kissed her brow.
No one told her that everything would be okay. No one told her she'd be fine. Because no one knew how this night would end.
What about Harry? That was her first thought.
I still have a job to do. I need to be here, there is too much at stake especially now that Voldemort has returned. I can't leave things like this. I need to see how it ends. If this is it for me, what will happen?
I know that some people will grieve for me. They'll have to lose a friend all over again. Draco will be left alone with his father's influence with no one to truly protect him. Leah, who has only just healed from Olivia's loss will close herself back off from the world. Blaze will watch Leah fall apart all over again, knowing he can't fix things. Liam will try his best to keep them all together and maybe it'll work, but he can't carry it all on his own.
And Narcissa. Poor Narcissa who loves me despite everything. Who has raised me as her own, even when Lucius wanted nothing to do with me. She didn't do everything that she should have, she didn't protect Draco from the things that hurt him the most, but she does love us. If anything, she loves us.
They're all stronger then they might realise. Growing up in our world, they have to be. And maybe, they'll be better off without me. Maybe they'll find another way to live, maybe they'll find lives they could never have with my dark cloud looming over them.
And Harry. Have I really ever helped him? I'm there. Always there, lurking in the shadows, watching, waiting. But how much have I really ever done for him? I closed that door on the third floor all that time ago. I stopped Lupin that night in the Forbidden Forest. Is that really all? Out of all the dangers that Harry has faced, is that really all he's ever needed from me? Maybe like my friends, I'm not necessary.
I don't want to die, but maybe I don't need to live. If I can't at least be useful to someone, if I can't use this mind of mine to help, then why am I even here?
"My dear?" Dumbledore touched her shoulder lightly, brows furrowed in concern.
"Yes?" Valentine blinked.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes. But first...I have a request."
"Anything."
"If I don't make it, tell my friends I love them. And Narcissa as well. It might be a while before you can tell them anything, but when you can...please just make sure that they know they're important to me."
"Of course." Dumbledore nodded, wearing the ghost of a smile. "They will know."
Then Valentine looked over at Snape with a sardonic smirk tilting her lips.
"And tell Lucius that I hope he dies a cold and lonely death."
Snape didn't smile or laugh at that. Not like she'd been expecting as much. His black eyes bored into her electric gaze, utterly unreadable.
"Severus." Dumbledore gestured to him and Snape reached down and held Valentine's hair back with one hand.
"Took you long enough, eh Professor?" Valentine couldn't stop the very real grin that grew on her lips. "I've been waiting for you to do this since Leah and Blaze caused that scene in the study hall. Not exactly prompt, are you?"
He still didn't speak.
"Well, whatever. I just hope I get to see more of that." Her smile faded somewhat.
Valentine looked back over to Dumbledore and gave a single nod. He gripped the side of her head firmly and pressed the tip of his wand to her scar. Almost immediately she felt as if flames were spreading down the entire side of her face. They burnt so hotly that it felt almost cold.
The pain turned to hot white agony as it filled her skull and her mind. She bit down on her lip but only succeeded to stay quiet for a moment before she let out an ear-piercing scream. It streaked down her neck and back like someone continuously slicing a knife through her flesh and bone. Her legs spasmed and kicked out uselessly. In this world, nothing else existed. It was just her and the pain.
Her vision blurred to red then white. Her chest constricted against the ropes as her lungs fought for air. She couldn't even hear her own screams anymore. All sounds had been replaced by a high pitched ringing.
She couldn't feel Dumbledore's touch or Snape's grip on her hair. Valentine could feel the darkness swarming her. She struggled and pushed against it. She didn't want to lose her thoughts, who she was but she couldn't think about anything but the pain.
The dark was calling to her, inviting her to rest in a place with no pain or heartache. She panicked. She refused to go into the dark alone. She pushed and pushed with every last part of her being. She needed someone to remind her who she was. She needed someone there to keep her thoughts alive.
Like a sudden strike of lightning, she remembered that Snape only had one hand holding back her hair and immediately flung out one of her own to grab him. The ropes around her upper arms lessened her range of motion but she didn't care.
Through the agony, she could just barely feel his robes. Her hand was shaking against his form, searching in the dark. She felt a warmth that wasn't the burning hell in her head. It surrounded her hand.
His hand.
Valentine gripped it back tightly, holding on and putting all her focus into it. She felt his fingers squeeze hers and tried to squeeze back but the darkness was seeping back in, ever-present through the pain. Through the shooting and stabbing and burning. Only this time she didn't run from the darkness, she let it wash over her.
She wouldn't be going into the darkness alone. She'd have someone to remind her of who she was. She wasn't going to lose herself.
Her mind faded to black.
Then, after a time she couldn't measure, light flashed across her eyelids.
Arg...my head hurts...
...it feels like I've been thrown off a building...or a tower...
...or had a magical parasite ripped out of my head...
...what?
The world came flooding back to her. She heard the murmuring of conversation around the edges of her consciousness but she couldn't make out any words. She focused on those sounds, dragging her way up to the surface until she could hear two distinct voices.
"...breathing?" One voice asked.
"Yes. She's still here." Another wandered.
"She had best be grateful." The first voice said with a deep growl.
"I am certain she is. Whether she decides to tell you she is such, is an entirely different matter."
"Her arrogance knows no bounds."
Snape...?
Dumbledore...?
Valentine tried to peel open her eyes, light crashing down on her. She let out a pained groaned, squeezing her eyes shut again.
"Miss Lestrange." Dumbledore was at her side, his voice so close. "My dear, can you hear me?"
Valentine forced her eyes open again, squinting weakly. She looked up at Dumbledore and then over at Snape and back over to Dumbledore.
"He's always such a jerk..." She muttered. "I mean, honestly. I could have died and he was just having a grand old time slandering my name."
Dumbledore blinked twice and then gave a hearty laugh.
"Well, clearly she's fine." Snape huffed.
Valentine looked around Dumbledore's study. She was still in the chair. Ropes removed. The pain in her head had drifted into a dull ache. She went to stand and the moment she put weight on her feet, her legs crumbled.
"It might not be intelligent to try and stand so quickly." Dumbledore advised.
Valentine gave a loud groan of annoyance. She slapped a hand against her thigh as if trying to wake it up.
"Hey." She glared down at her legs. "I'm not dead yet. We've got places to be."
"Would you like to see it?" asked Dumbledore.
"See what?" Valentines frowned.
"The parasite." Snape said dryly.
Dumbledore held out a small glass sphere before her. It was half the size of an apple, hollow and empty. She glanced up at him.
"Look closely." He told her.
She leaned forward and peered into it. At first, she saw nothing, then she spotted it. It was tiny. Smaller than a fingernail. It was grey and clearly consisted of a soft, fleshy matter.
"That was in my head?" Valentine grimaced and touched a hand to her temple.
"It was." said Dumbledore.
"So, the potion killed it then?"
"It would appear so. Severus has now created the only known cure for this particular affliction."
"What do we do with it? The parasite, I mean. The potion could help anyone unlucky enough to come into contact with it." said Valentine, then thought about it and sighed. "But I suppose that would be hard to prove without proof."
"I will keep somewhere until a time when all this can come to light." Dumbledore moved back around his desk and sat in his chair.
Valentine looked back down at her legs. She braced her hands against the chair's arm and hauled herself shakily to her feet.
"Miss Lestrange-"
"I'm fine." Valentine cut Dumbledore off, focusing on keeping her balance and her legs strong. "Well, I am now anyway."
Valentine turned and took several unsteady steps towards the door then she paused but didn't look back.
"I should thank you. The both of you. I'd still be on my way to an early grave otherwise."
"There is no need to thank us, my dear." said Dumbledore.
"He does not speak for the both of us." Snape scoffed.
Valentine laughed, still facing away from the two of them.
"Thank you for this. Really. I'd hate to leave a job unfinished."
--Pretending To Live--
Valentine watched her friends from the sidelines. Everyone was here to see the students of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang off and they were in the thick of the crowd. The courtyard was packed from wall to wall and it was the most sound Valentine had heard from the students in days.
Leah and Blaze were standing with the Durmstrang boys, laughing at something Daniel and Steffan seemed to be arguing about. Liam and Philips weren't far off, speaking to Georgi and saying their goodbyes. She could even spot Anna, Chloe and Meriton in the crowd talking to a Beauxbatons girl. Draco however, was kissing the cheek of Camille Lefevre, his Yule Ball date.
That year had been absolutely and irrevocably insane. The World Cup, the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Voldemort's return, Cedric's death and of course, the parasite.
Valentine's fingers floated up to her temple. It was odd to think that such a little thing had come so close to killing her.
But that's over now. I don't have to worry about nosebleeds and headaches which is quite convenient considering there are far more pressing matters to deal with at the moment. Now, I can put my full attention on Harry again.
Harry was in the crowd as well, along with Ron and Hermione. Hermione, in particular, was smiling bashfully as Krum whispered something in her ear and handed her a folded piece of parchment.
"Valentine?" A voice to her right spoke.
She turned to see Dimo and the other boys, standing there together just as they had not long ago.
"What is it now?" She groaned.
"I know you got sick of us." Dimo chuckled lightly. "But we couldn't leave without saying goodbye...and apologizing once more."
"I never would have thought that Nayden would go after you again." said Daniel.
"Yeah, he's insane." said Steffan. "You think he would have learnt the first time."
"Well, clearly he did not." Valentine pursed her lips.
"No, he didn't." Dimo nodded. "That's why we needed to apologise again. We all feel ashamed to have ever called him a friend."
"And that's stretching it, calling him a friend," Georgi said as he joined the others. "Believe me, he won't be welcomed home with open arms."
"That's for sure." Daniel scoffed.
"We should thank you again as well." said Dimo. "For putting Nayden back in his place. I'm honestly rather surprised that he lives to regret any of this."
"Hmm, let's just say that I wasn't in full form that night." Valentine hummed. "If it had been any other time, you'd be carting him home in a shoebox."
The boys laughed at that.
"I don't doubt it." Georgi grinned. "I'm glad we got to meet you, Valentine."
"If you're ever in our neck of the woods, you're welcome at any of our tables." Dimo added. "We'd be glad to have you."
"I'm sure you would." Valentine tossed a curl over one shoulder. "You should get going now."
"She's right." said Steffan, gesturing to the other Durmstrang's waiting in the court for them.
"It would appear so." Dimo sighed. "Well, then Valentine, this is goodbye."
"It will be when you leave."
The boys laughed again.
"I'm sure we will be feeling your wit all the way home." Georgi clapped Dimo on the shoulder. "You heard the lady, let's get going."
--Pretending To Live--
Valentine stared out the window of the Hogwarts Express, watching the green hills rolling by. Another school year was over and it was back to Malfoy Manor.
She could hear Leah and Blaze bickering and Draco teasing Liam about Philips, but she wasn't really listening. She was thinking about how this had come close to being her last ride on the Hogwarts Express.
I probably would have been at Malfoy Manor when I died. If the other victims died long painful deaths, I'm sure I would have as well. There'd likely be lots of screaming and confusion. Draco would panic. Narcissa would snap into action. Healers would be called and then find that they can do nothing to help me. The Lovat's would be contacted not soon after. Leah and Draco would lose another friend. Who knows when Liam and Blaze would finally get the news. That could have been my reality if it wasn't for Snape.
She'd been given a second chance at life, she was glaringly aware of that. If she was anyone else, she'd be on the train to die.
"Val, what do you think?" asked Draco.
"Hmm?" Valentine didn't turn to look at him.
"About Liam getting with Philips."
"Why should I care?" Valentine shrugged.
From the corner of her eye, she noticed a flicker of pain cross Liam's face from where he sat across from her, but it was gone as soon as she saw it.
"That's stupid!" exclaimed Blaze, still mid-argument with Leah.
"Is not!"
"You're saying that if you had one day left to live you would get yourself turned into a rabbit? How, in any universe, is that not stupid?"
"But it's not! Bunnies are cute and fluffy and their ears twitch and stuff. Why wouldn't I want to be a rabbit?"
"Well, they eat their own crap for one thing."
"So? You can't win it all, Blaze. The ears are worth it."
"That is literally the grossest thing you have ever said, never come near me again."
"Well, what would you do then?" Leah pouted.
"I'd run butt naked across the Ministry foyer." Blaze replied without a speck of shame.
Leah stared at him.
"You want to streak in front of a bunch of people and I'm stupid for wanting to be a rabbit?"
"...okay, so it sounds kind of weird when you say it like that-"
"It was always weird, Blaze." said Draco. "Who knew you were an exhibitionist?"
"What's an exhibitionist?" asked Leah, honestly curious.
"Gah! Nothing!" Blaze hushed her.
"No really, what is it?"
"Nothing you need to know."
"What?" Draco snickered. "Concerned she'll think you're a creep and drop your ass? Don't worry. I don't think she has standards."
"What would you do then, Mr Malfoy?" Blaze narrowed his eyes into a glare.
"Hmm...probably...destroy everything Potter has ever loved."
"You really need to have one day to live to do that? We could just make a weekend of it, you know."
"What about you, Val?" asked Liam rather abruptly.
"What?" She frowned at him.
"What would you do if you only had one day left to live?"
Valentine rolled her eyes and cast her gaze back out the window.
"Whatever the hell I wanted."