It was the last week of October, the day of Halloween. Victorie was walking along the first floor corridor, although with some difficulty. She was trying to get past the flurry of excited students, some wearing spooky masks.
She had her hand in her pocket, with a firm grip around her wand. With every Zonko's product known to man having been unleashed, causing a thick shimmery fog to have encompassed the hallway, she found that it was best to keep her wits about her. She even caught sight of some of her uncles' products, the effects of which she knew all too well. Safe to say — she thought it best to blend into the crowd.
Normally Victorie would jump at an opportunity to join in the mischief, but this year she felt somewhat displaced from the whole ordeal. Besides, mischief was a joy best shared with someone, and right now she wasn't entirely sure with whom to share it.
So far two of the teachers' offices had been jinxed. Or so the rumours said. But the school day had only just finished, and they still had a couple of hours before the big Halloween feast was to take place in the Great Hall, an activity that usually sufficed to distract the more mischievous students for at least a few hours, before the real night of horrors began.
Although Victorie's night of horrors was scheduled for the coming day, when the students' Halloween party was going to take place.
See, the feast was more of a show for the teachers rather than an exciting event. What everyone really looked forward to was having an opportunity to properly fraternise with the other houses at the party. Which usually resulted in watching a few Ravenclaws get way too excited and go really crazy; some meaningless dispute to erupt between a Gryffindor and a Slytherin; and every once in a while a Hufflepuff student might end up snogging someone you wouldn't think.
But not all Hogwarts parties were the same, and the roles could just as easily switch, it all depended on the forecast on that particular day.
Up until yesterday, Victorie didn't even believe herself to be going this year. In fact, the party had somehow escaped her considerations up until that point.
Now that she found herself having agreed to attend however, she was determined to make the best of it. What she hoped to avoid was a repetition of what had happened the last time she had been in a social setting.
But her shoes had now dried, and when she arrived at the doorstep of the library, having successfully dodged every Dungbomb and Whiz-bang she'd encountered on her way, she flattened her skirt and defiantly pushed the heavy door open.
It was like stepping into a ghost town. When the door closed behind her, she wondered for a second if she had gone deaf. It wasn't that the library was empty, more so that it was successfully shielded off from the antics outside. She suspected that it had something to do with the fierce Madam Pince, who just then greeted her as she walked in, sitting serenely at her desk as though this was any other day of the school year.
Victorie began to search the aisles for any sign of Teddy, but found only groups of scared looking students hiding out in between the bookshelves.
It was only when she made it all the way into the back of the hall, passing some particularly frightened looking boys who must have been only in their first year, that she saw him sitting at a table opposite them. She felt sorry for the young boys, but knew from personal experience that they would get used to it.
She pushed the thought aside and approached Teddy, who smiled warmly at her upon her arrival.
"Is it bad out there?" He asked, looking her up and down.
A hand of hers self-consciously went for her hair, which she suspected was probably looking more voluminous than usual.
His hair was still black to match his Hogwarts robes, which he had yet to change out of, an unusual occurrence on his part. Hidden behind the warmth he exuded was a slight apprehensiveness, also untypical for the boy in question.
Teddy stood and placed his hands on her shoulders, guiding her to sit down at the table where he had just been sat. She tried to get comfortable in her seat, but it was not an easy endeavour.
Teddy remained unseated, and she sensed that something was about to happen. It worried her. The already eerie panic-room vibe the library was putting out that day didn't make matters better. She flattened her skirt once more.
"Okay Victorie." Teddy dug his teeth into his lower lip keenly, emanating some mostly contained anticipation. "We both know how it went the last time you were thrown into a social setting that you felt unsure of."
Victorie nodded along in agreement — she wasn't about to argue that.
"While most of that was not your fault..."
She nodded again, more dramatically this time and out of gratitude that he was on her side.
He went on, "I think you'll still agree with me when I say: you might not have made the best impression on the people at this school."
"Evidently not." Victorie whispered to herself, thinking back to how coolly Ethan had addressed her last Sunday.
"That's what I'm here to help you with!" He threw one enthusiastic finger in the air and continued, "Today will be a crash course in how to get through a basic conversation, which I know is a big problem area for you..."
Teddy turned his gaze downward, and she knew that he was trying to hide his amusement.
She felt that this little presentation of his had at this point turned into a chance to poke fun at her. But despite this she couldn't help but laugh along with him. It wasn't like she was blind to the fact that having a crash course in social interaction for a person with no neurodivergence was a little silly, to say the least.
"Go on." She insisted with some forged annoyance, but only after they had both let all their giggles out.
He composed himself with a deep and blissful sigh. He then turned to face the group of scared looking first years from before who were sitting a stone's throw away from them.
Victorie frowned, she wasn't aware that they'd had an audience.
One of them stood after being signalled by Teddy and cautiously walked over to the two of them.
"...And you'll be practising with some volunteers I have gathered." He further explained, motioning at the youngling. "This is Michael from Hufflepuff house."
The boy waved enthusiastically at Victorie.
"Oh, my..." Was all Victorie could evict out of her wavering jaw, feeling more than a little sceptical of his plan.
She spared a thought as to whether these were people Teddy had in fact gathered, or whether they were people who had gathered around him. Upon inspection of the boy –he was treading in his place looking unsure of what his next move was supposed to be– she felt a little sorry for him.
"Hi Michael, I'm Victorie." She said. But before Michael had a chance to reply, Teddy stepped in.
"Woah! Don't start just yet." He held his hand up in warning. "I'm supposed to be overseeing, okay?"
He guided Michael to sit down at the chair opposite Victorie.
"There's a reason I asked strangers to volunteer, and not Roxanne for example. You need a fresh template to practise on, someone who has no preconceived notions of who you are." Once again he gestured at the Ravenclaw boy, as though introducing him as his 'lovely assistant'.
Teddy finally went to sit down on the bench next to Victorie and faced her. The proximity successfully captured her attention.
"This is a chance at a fresh start in a space where there is no pressure." He said sympathetically. "And I'll be here to help make sure you don't screw up too badly." He smiled playfully at her, and she nodded.
Teddy sat back, taking the position of the judge. "Although don't expect me to go easy on you." He quickly added.
Victorie rolled her eyes and adjusted her robe. She faced Michael. With the strange boy looking quizzically at her and Teddy overseeing the both of them, she felt a little too much like the centre of attention. Still, she let the feeling slide and cooperatively awaited instructions.
"Let's try it now. Give me what you've got: start a conversation with Michael here." He challenged.
"Okay..." Victorie insecurely began. She pursed her lips, feeling like she had been thrown to the wolves. Then she thought of the perfect way to get back at Teddy for it. "So..." She sat forward, placing one modest hand on top of the table that separated her and Michael. "...What's your take on House-elf enslavement?" She finished with a sadistic smile.
Teddy groaned and interrupted, "No. That won't do."
Victorie suddenly felt a lot more content with her situation, having known full well that her instructor wouldn't approve of her chosen topic. But it was cute when he got frustrated, and the newfound delight she'd discovered in irking Teddy was definitely going to make this otherwise humiliating experience a lot more manageable.
He scratched his head and came with the suggestion: "Okay... um, how about something lighter? How are you? For example."
After one side-eyed glance at Michael, she leaned closer to Teddy and whispered with some wit in her tone, "But what if I don't actually care about how they are?"
Taking the mickey out of her whole situation was the only way she could think to get through this charade with her pride still in possession.
Catching on to her frivolity, he leaned in toward her ear and whispered back, "You'll be fine as long as you don't open with that."
As he drew back, Victorie discerned a minor lip twitch of his. She saw it as a victory.
Michael had long given up on following along. He had fished out a deck of Chocolate Frog Cards from his pocket. Deeply focused, he counted each one. Only when Victorie readied herself for her second attempt did he disregard the cards and look at her disinterestedly.
She opened her mouth, but something in her spared her tongue. Her shoulders sank and she pleaded at Teddy. Michael returned to his cards.
"How are you is a question people ask, but don't actually care about the answer." She reasoned.
This time her argument took on a more sincere note. It was a question she'd grappled with multiple times recently, and she found that it just didn't sit right with her.
But Teddy just gave a shrug and explained, "That's okay. You don't always have to be genuine."
... (!) ...
The words detonated like a powder keg in her mind and she stared at Teddy. She was about to argue, but decided to let him dig deeper down his rabbit hole and let him off with only a squint of her eyes.
He looked at her flatly. "You can lie, a lot." He continued.
Victorie raised her eyebrows. "Can I cite you on that?" She joked.
"Yes, you can." He answered with conviction.
The earnestness he displayed set off a weighted silence between the three. Michael had disregarded his cards, and his eyes were darting between the two of them.
Teddy threw his legs up to rest on a nearby chair. "In fact it might be one of the most important pieces of advice I can give you."
He didn't seem to be joking, and Victorie deliberated whether she should voice her inner grievance with his opinion, or if it was perhaps better to just let the subject slide.
Before she could make a decision, Teddy noticed that he had struck a nerve, and decided to explain himself further. "I don't mean that you should completely disregard your morals, but you have an idea in your head that it's always morally reprehensible, and it's not."
He went on, "There's nothing reprehensible about pretending to care what someone had for lunch, let's say."
"Sure, but we should at least strive to be genuine. There's more honour in that." She looked searchingly at him. "Don't you care about honour?"
Teddy seemed a bit lost for a second as he stared at her. As if forgetting about the unfolding conversation.
"I'm not talking about deceiving people with long winded and elaborate lies." He finally started. "You don't lie in ways you think will hurt someone. You lie to make someone happy, which if done properly should benefit both parties."
"If you keep labouring under the idea that you can't ask someone how they are unless you are fully interested in their answer, it's only going to hold you back. You need to get over it if you want to become more sociable."
Victorie stared at him, but Teddy didn't wait around for her to process what he'd said. He addressed Michael next, "Michael, I thank you for your time." Who in turn shook his head at the two of them, put his Chocolate Frog Cards back in his pocket and went back to the table he had originally emerged from.
Another boy at the table stood, and Teddy waved him over impatiently.
"Why did he have to leave?" Victorie argued. But Teddy paused to look at her, and she could tell that it wasn't a good pause.
"You need a fresh start." He finally said, unloading his judgement on her with one simple gaze.
Victorie crossed her arms. Her brows were basically glued to her hairline at that point after Teddy had baffled her for what was looking like the 30th time that day.
Still, the chance to get back at him approached them slowly, looking like his attention span had already been blown away by the wind and giving her a glimpse of hope that there were cracks yet to be had at the expense of Teddy's efforts at helping her.
As the next boy sat Teddy said scathingly, "Okay Victorie, at least pretend like you want to talk this time."
She could see though, there was still an ounce of amusement behind his drained exterior.
Victorie snorted. "I don't see how backhanded comments like that are going to help me give a good first impression." She motioned at the boy in front of her, who she had yet to be properly introduced to. "I'm Victorie by the way." She added in passing.
The boy cleared his throat and glanced at Teddy briefly. "I'm Tristan." He replied. The game had officially begun.
Instantly Teddy's interest peaked. He dislodged his feet from the chair they were resting on, sat up straight and leaned forward. He looked between his two puppets, and landed on her.
"Okay, now Victorie, think of it this way: social interaction is at its core just different combinations of asking questions and relaying information." He clapped his hands together as though all of this was simple, when in fact, none of it felt simple to her.
"How do I know what to ask?"
"Well, it can either be about what you are interested to know..." He paused to gauge a reaction in her, but when he got nothing he continued with less enthusiasm and an apathetic hand gesture, "...or it can be whatever you feel naturally comes next."
Ask questions. But also relay information.
Victorie reiterated the words in her mind. She pondered for a second what she felt interested to know. Her eyes fell beyond Tristan, at the group of boys at the table behind him. She placed her two elbows on the table and spoke thus, "So, how did Teddy here recruit you and your friends, eh?"
Without so much as moving an inch Teddy immediately commanded between tightly wound lips, "Don't answer that Tristan." Drilling his eyes into the poor boy.
Knowing full well that she had struck gold, Victorie said innocently, "I think by the social contract, he is bound to relay the information."
Tristan silently watched Teddy, trying to work out if the girl's words were true.
"Don't say anything Tristan." Teddy repeated.
Victorie smiled sweetly. "Actually, since I asked a question, next in the order of operations would be for Tristan to answer it."
"He won't answer that question." He argued, still eyeing Tristan threateningly, who in turn seemed quite tense in his chair.
"Actually, by the rules of the social game he is bound. He's entered a conversational contract that cannot be broken." Victorie leaned forward, she too drilled her eyes at Tristan. She began speaking with a monotonous voice, as though reciting an incantation, "By the power of the divine... by the essence of the bond..."
Tristan's eyes went wide in horror. So Victorie continued louder, "By my obedience to the Goddess..."
Teddy began to object, but it served no purpose.
"Accept this sacrifice..."
The boy had already left his chair, rushing back to his friends.
"I don't even know what I'm saying anymore." Victorie chuckled contently.
She sat back and admired Teddy's now tastefully dishevelled hair. She had to be given some credit for it, had it not been for her he would never have run his hands through it in frustration so many times.
"Next!" Teddy resorted to shouting, and another willing (although that could be debated at this point) candidate stood and bravely marched up to the chair.
Teddy was now glaring at Victorie, no longer with so much as a suggestion of amusement. But she didn't care. She was annoyed at him. Why, however, she couldn't formulate just yet.
"I'm Seamous, but most people call me Shane." The next boy said and outstretched his hand before sitting down.
"Can you at least try to take this seriously now?" Teddy shot at Victorie simultaneously. She ignored the latter and shook the boy's hand.
"Sorry about Teddy, he doesn't know how to make a good impression... I'm Victorie." She replied with a cheerful note.
"Why don't you tell Shane something about yourself, Victorie?" Teddy suggested between gritted teeth.
She pretended that Teddy wasn't there, but followed the instructions wilfully, "The first thing you should know about me is that I'm a very curious person." She began, voice thinly veiling a conspiracy. "What I'm mostly interested in at the moment... is the reason why, in Merlin's name, you agreed to do this?"
Shane immediately jumped into the story with a clueless eagerness before Teddy could jump the gun, "So, Mr. Lupin said he would give me a signed record for free and-"
Teddy let out another groan and Victorie stopped the young boy in his story.
"Ooh, is that so?" She looked at Teddy, who had now buried his face in his hands, faded black nail varnish on display. "Well, I'm sure Andromeda would be delighted to know you've now resorted to selling your autographs for personal favours."
She clapped her hands together in a small celebration of her success. "Do you also sell activities?" She queried. "An evening with Teddy Lupin..." She spitballed, "I'm sure many would be delighted to pay up for that. Wouldn't you, Shane?"
Shane rubbed his arm. "Actually, to be perfectly honest I didn't really know who you were. But my brother is a big fan, and I promised him-"
Teddy abruptly stood and Victorie gave a gasp of delight. "Okay Shane, I don't think we're going to need you anymore." He said.
Shane looked puzzled. "I hope I still get my-"
"Yes!" Teddy touched the bridge of his nose and cringed. "Yes, you will all be reimbursed. We'll be in touch. Just go!"
Shane rose and sauntered away. Another boy from the table stood, but Teddy shook his head at him, so he sat back down. With a big sigh, Teddy did the same.
"How do you think that went?" He asked Victorie with a grim expression.
But his question only served to ignite something in her, and she broke into laughter. Still, she almost didn't dare look at him. She knew that she had managed to really get on his nerves.
When she finally looked she caught a hint of something bubbling in him too, but he managed to stifle it down. After a few seconds Victorie had successfully stifled hers too, and she grinned at him, pleading for him to not take it all so seriously.
She presented her opinion with a voice still weak from laughing, "I think I did quite well."
Teddy's brows shot up. "You think?" He tucked his lower lip in and stared at her blankly, daring her to cement her opinion. "Shall we ask them for reviews?" He gestured at the troop, now engaged in lively conversation not five meters away.
She snorted again. But what she thought would diffuse the tension only riled him up further.
"If I knew you didn't actually want my help I wouldn't have gone through all this trouble." He spat.
"If I knew you were going to humiliate me in front of strangers I wouldn't have asked for your help at all." She retorted, suddenly feeling her anger.
He settled on staring at her. She stared back, but behind the scenes the sentiment dawned on her as much as it did on him.
"Yeah!" She nodded in agreement with herself. "You bring this... test on me out of nowhere, without asking me if I'm on board with it, or even so much as alerting me beforehand."
With one half assed gesture Teddy flatted his unruly hair. "I didn't think it would prove such an impossible task to get you to have simple conversations with people." He explained defensively.
"It's not simple! And I find it patronising that you should suggest otherwise." Victorie said and stood abruptly. "The fact we are arguing right now is proof enough that nothing about human interaction... is simple."
She flung her bag around her shoulder and turned to him one last time. "Let me know when you want to stop pretending that it is, so that we can begin practising for real." She finished before rushing out of the library, back to the war zone.
Later that same Friday evening, Victorie was hurrying down the many stairs toward the Great Hall. She'd spent the remainder of the time before the event laying in her bed and shooting disappearing arrows at the ceiling with her wand.
Letting her frustrations out had proven a time consuming task, and she was now running late. Thankfully the corridors were deserted, and all the rebellious students had been driven to the Great Hall for the evening's events.
Victorie flew down the stairs of the sixth floor like a Hinkypunk, leaving a trace of dust behind her as she went. But as she turned a corner someone collided with her on her way.
"Jamie." She assessed aloud while attempting to regain her balance. "Where did you come from?"
He steadied her and concurrently himself, before taking a step back and motioning behind him. There was an envelope in his hand, but Victorie was for the moment more interested in what he was motioning at. Her eyes focused on the wall behind him where a portrait was shutting.
"I was just at the...'' He stopped himself abruptly and looked away.
"I see." Said Victorie curtly and continued walking. Unfortunately the two of them were heading the same way, so they reluctantly fell into step with one another.
After a much desired although painfully uncomfortable silence, Jamie decided himself brave enough to break it. "It appears I may have... complained about you to people a little too much, and I may have tainted their judgement of you slightly."
"Slightly?" She repeated.
Jamie considered his word use for a second, then shrugged and continued to the rhythm of her rolling eyes, "I hope you understand that those complaints were made when I was still angry with you."
The unexpected past tense had her slowing down for a second, almost to a standstill. She looked at Jamie, feeling like something else was about to burst out of him.
"I'm sorry." He proclaimed with his hands gesturing to indicate his sincerity.
Victorie kept walking. She was determined to ignore his bid for reconciliation. Until she noted that the envelope, still in one of his hands, was pink. The animated little red hearts on it made it impossible to ignore, popping every second that passed. That and the fact that envelopes of the kind now gave her traumatic flashbacks.
"A love letter?" She asked.
"For Teddy." He replied.
"You're not into him as well as everyone else now, are you?" She half-joked.
But when Jamie took his sweet time responding she began to really believe it.
Her mouth fell open. "Really? You too? Doesn't he have enough admirers?"
Jamie sighed loudly and rolled his eyes. "I'm not in love with him, okay?" He looked at her and smirked. "I sure shocked you though."
"Yeah well, I guess I assumed you still had your eye on me." She looked at the floor as she paced forward.
Jamie straightened himself in his step. "Don't flatter yourself." He joked with a crooked smile.
She smiled for the first time during the conversation. "So you're one of his owls too then?"
Jamie sighed loudly and gave her a dark look. She further noted that the envelope he carried had already been opened, and gave a small snort. "You've read through it?"
"I had to check for potential death threats, obviously." He looked at her as though she was thick or something.
Victorie shook her head with a smile. "And your verdict?" She motioned with her head at the envelope, feeling like she had an inkling of what she was in for.
Jamie turned his attention to the letter as well and shifted it in his hand. "The structure is flawed. The rhymes are predictable."
As Jamie listed his qualms, Victorie continued to smile. Soon after, he joined in. They smiled at each other knowingly when she suddenly had a realisation.
What struck her was the way he treated this inconsequential letter to his friend. It dawned on her that Jamie really cared for Teddy. It wasn't just that he was starstruck by him or that he admired him. He actually liked him as a friend.
It went quiet between them and Victoire had a moment to reflect.
Despite how their friendship had in fact unfolded, the idea that even Jamie wasn't into her anymore made her feel oddly disappointed, and she caught herself wondering if he was lying.
People weren't exactly lining up to befriend her, or heck, even have a brief chat with her. So having someone fancy her, even if the feelings weren't mutual, didn't seem so bad anymore — the way it had done back when it was first revealed to her.
She felt a sudden urge to be with Teddy. Feeling that she should hold on to the one person who she still somehow hadn't repelled yet.
But when they entered the Great Hall the pair both took note of the fact that Delilah and Teddy were sitting next to each other at the Gryffindor table. They were in between some hushed giggles as McGonagall was giving a speech before the feast was to begin.
Neither of them seemed to notice Jamie and Victorie sneaking in late and taking their seats next to each other at the table a little further down.
"But enough chit chat. I'm sure you all must be hungry after this afternoon's activities..." McGonagall searched the crowd, but most students didn't seem to want to meet her gaze just then. "Let the feast begin!" She finished with raised hands.
To everyone's delight, the plates and goblets filled with food and juice. All the students gave gleeful gasps.
Jamie and Victorie exchanged a look of excitement. It felt good to share in the joy of festivity after so many months of cold shoulders between them. Having even the slightest hint of a connection with him again was overwhelmingly nice. It was safe and familiar. She hadn't even realised, between all the disappointment she'd felt at him, how much she'd missed him.
She felt a desire to blow on the small spark she now saw, but she wasn't sure how to start, and an awkward silence ended up falling between them. Usually if there was an awkward silence, Jamie would inevitably fill it, but nothing had been usual between them in an unusual amount of time.
Ask questions. Relay information.
After a deep breath she bit the bullet, "So how've you been?"
Jamie held his plate and loaded it with potato mash, but stopped at her question to look at her properly for the first time that evening. Victorie was just about to get worried that she had said something wrong when Jamie returned to his plating like normal.
"Oh you know, can't complain..." He began. But his movements slowed down and his shoulders slacked along with the plate he was holding. "Honestly, I've been feeling pretty bad. I've missed you."
"Even though I'm the cold hearted witch who doesn't care about anyone but herself?" She questioned, slapping on a considerate amount of mashed potato onto her own plate as well.
Jamie looked around to make sure no one around them had taken note of her little outburst. "Yes. That's what I've been feeling bad about." He whispered while grabbing some mashed potato with his fork. "I realise I've kind of turned everyone against you."
Midway to his mouth he ended up lowering his fork, and put his face in his hand instead. "I'm sorry."
Victorie smiled as she loaded more food onto her plate. Satisfied that her old friend felt like he rightfully should. But most of what she felt wasn't vengeful, just regret that things had turned out the way they had.
"It's not entirely your fault. I haven't put as much energy into making friends here as I should have." She replied. Jamie eyed her from the comfort of his hand and she smiled sheepishly in response. "Our friendship was comfortable, so I never sought anything beyond it."
"It's whatever." Jamie established. He put the fork in his mouth finally and chewed, throwing one arm around her briefly as a gesture of reconciliation.
After that the night took a turn for the better. By the time they had finished their dinner, and the empty plates were transformed into pumpkins for each student to carve, Victorie and Jamie had rekindled their usual playful jargon.
The two acknowledged the fact that Delilah and Teddy were sharing a pumpkin. Currently Delilah was laughing profusely at Teddy's technique as he cut into the pumpkin, showing quite clearly that he had never done this before. He, in turn, playfully tried to push her away and the two shared a laugh.
Jamie promptly turned to Victorie with a mischievous look. They shared a wordless exchange where they agreed that the pair seemed to be having way too much fun, and a plot was formed.
Victorie readied her wand subtly under the table. Jamie stifled a giggle and followed suit. The exact details of what was about to occur had not been settled. Still she wasn't too worried. Their tricks had a tendency to fall into place with each other.
And too right, Victorie began waving her wand. The magic spurted out of it. She imagined it looked like glitter as it flew over toward Teddy's pumpkin and caused it to vomit a cascade of pumpkin insides right into his face.
The boy let out a loud gasp, turned sideways and began spitting out the pulp. Victorie felt a rush of accomplishment, but there was no time to celebrate yet.
Next it was Jamie's turn. He gratuitously flicked his wand and the two immediately turned back to their own pumpkins, assuming their mastered poker faces.
They watched from their peripheries as the enchanted pumpkin came to life once more, spewing its seeds at Delilah and Teddy all the same, while the two impotently tried to shield themselves.
After what Victorie had endured at today's class in social sciences, it felt good to get proper revenge. But any outward delight would have to be stifled down. It would seem suspicious.
Jamie and she would have plenty of time to laugh about it in the corridor later that evening.
Instead Victorie pretended like nothing had just happened. She stabbed a hole in her own gourd, carefully beginning the process of sawing out the makings of an eye.
She caught a glimpse of Roxanne. She was sitting almost right across from Victorie but with her Hufflepuff friend at their table.
Roxanne had a small gourd of her own, but she wasn't paying much attention to it at the moment. She looked straight at Victorie with a small smile on her face. Victorie knew what that smile meant and she gave Jamie a quick once-over and held a covert thumb up toward her. Roxanne smiled wider and gave her one back.
The rest of the event seemed all the more blissful after that. After Teddy and Delilah had dried off they continued their work gallantly, albeit with some less enthusiasm.
It proved enough to satisfy Jamie and Victorie, who didn't take much note of them after that, and instead continued to engage in their usual humorous sardonicism for the rest of the night.
They laughed mirthfully about it in the corridor later and all the way back to their common room. Upon parting, they shared a hearty high five as reward for their brilliance, and fell asleep soundly in their own beds.
A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews! They make me very happy :)
Published: 11 March 2022