Hey gang!
Hope you're enjoying the story still and thank you for all of you who have continued to read this far. My book would be nothing without you.
I love this chapter, if I was in the Harry Potter books I'd want nothing more than to be invited to the Slug Club. I think it'd be so cool!
Chapter 13
- The Slug Club -
Arkie watched as her boyfriend dipped his spoon into the glass bowl of ice cream in front of him. He looked absolutely exhausted after his transformation the night before. Dark circles hung underneath his eyes and his complexion was as usual pale and pasty. Yet he had still dressed up for the dinner party and looked quite dashing in the navy blue suit he had borrowed from Leonard.
His hair which had a golden tinge from the candle light was neat and his green eyes flicked between each person at the table. The chosen members of the so-called 'Slug Club' were Teddy, Harry, Hermione, Neville, Cormac, Belby, Flora and Hestia Carrow and Ginny Weasley, who had yet to show up. She had remembered getting her invitation only that morning.
She'd been happy to accept and felt more comfortable when she'd found out that Teddy had also been invited. The dinner had gone quite quickly and now they were on to desert. Slughorn was watching each and every one of the students, like he was looking through the shelves in a library, trying to decide which book to read first.
"So tell me, Cormac," he said, turning to the slender, good looking boy who had been watching Hermione in a way that'd made her uncomfortable. "Do you see anything of your uncle Tiberius these days?"
Cormac looked happy to respond and proudly straightened in his seat. "Yes, sir, in fact I'm meant to go hunting with him and the Minister of Magic over the holidays."
"Oh, well, be sure to give them both my best." Slughorn looked impressed and Arkie suddenly felt out of place among that students. But Teddy had noticed her uncomfortable expression and squeezed her hand , which she had been resting on the table, understandingly. It helped and she smiled warmly at him, reminded that he too would be feeling out of place.
The silent moment between the half Werewolf and the herbology extraordinaire had caught Slughorn's attention and he looked curiously at their entwined hands.
"And what about your uncle, Belby?" He asked a boy who was rudely stuffing his face with the desert. Slughorn turned to the rest of the group. "For those of you who don't know, Marcus' uncle invented the Wolfsbane Potion." Arkie continued to hold Teddy's hand as Slughorn's eyes flicked up to him. "Did you know that, Teddy?"
She shook his head slightly. "No, sir, I didn't." His hand had tightened slightly but Arkie just rubbed her thumb on his palm soothingly. "I don't really need them so..." Slughorn leaned forward in his seat.
"Really? You don't need them at all?"
"No, I'm in complete control during full moons." His forced to look only at the Professor instead of the other staring students. Arkie's soft rubs on his palm helped him relax and he wished he could share that relaxation with Harry who was looking as stiff as a pencil in his seat.
"Well, I guess that'd be the upside to your peculiar DNA." Slughorn said, completely invested by the conversation. "Do you know if there are others like you, Teddy?"
It been a question Teddy had tried to solve many years ago, before he even went to Hogwarts. Luckily, he'd been able to find a solid answer. "Not on record no. Maybe there was some like me once, but if so we don't know about them."
"Extraordinary! So you're practically the only of your kind?"
Teddy had never thought of himself as anything but human, sure he accepted his Werewolf heritage, and was quite proud of it, but he was still human. However, Slughorn's words, although he knew he didn't intend to, made him feel as though he wasn't even considered a Werewolf... but something different.
He could feel Arkie's hand going to his leg and he glanced at her. She smiled reassuringly at him and gave the slightest of nods. She looked beautiful in her peach dress, her long chestnut hair hanging loosely on her shoulders, it'd grown over the holidays, though she had told him she planned on cutting it. Her ears were wound in golden chain earrings and her nails were painted a shiny bronze.
"I guess so." He put on a genuine smile, looking back at the Potions Master. "Doctors told me I was some sort of 'medical mystery'." Slughorn looked as if he was about to fall off his seat from leaning foreword so much.
"Extraordinary..." He breathed and Teddy tried turning his attention to something else.
"The desert's amazing by the way."
"Oh, yes. Good cook them house elves..." He said, his mind sounding elsewhere. "You a big ice cream fan like Belby here." He laughed. Teddy smiled, twirling his spoon around in his hand.
"Yes, but I'm more of an custard eclair fan actually."
"Oh, I love those things. Used to get them all the time in Paris. Anyway, how's your duelling been going, Teddy?"
Arkie took her hand off Teddy's lap, sensing he no longer needed her comfort and was perfectly keen on answering. "Good, I actually got into the Ravenclaw dueling team."
"Impressive, impressive. Make sure you tell me if you're selected for the inter-school competition." He turned back to Belby. "Anyway, Belby, is your uncle working on anything new?"
"I don't know." He replied, his mouth full and chocolate ice cream covering his lips as he continued to dig into his desert while speaking. "He and my dad don't get along." Slughorn looked particularly disappointed while Belby helped himself to another colossal spoonful of ice cream. Teddy also took a small scoop of his own desert.
"Probably cause my dad says potions are rubbish." Now Slughorn looked even more deflated. "Says the only potion worth having is a stiff one at the end of the day." it was hard to understand Belby as he continued to speak with his mouthful.
"And what about you, Ms. Granger," Slughorn once again turned in his seat. "What exactly does your family do in the Muggle world?"
She put down her spoon, her face flushing red. "My parents are dentists." Everyone looked at her, mostly in confusion. "They attend to people's teeth." She explained.
Slughorn once again leaned forward. "Fascinating. And is that considered a dangerous profession?" He asked hopefully.
"No." Hermione said and Harry showed signs of laughter beside her. She smiled. "Although, one boy, Robby Fenwich, did bite my father once. He needed ten stitches."
No one seemed to get the joke but Teddy smiled brightly. The door suddenly opened and Ginny walked in. Her eyes were red and puffy, most likely from crying.
"Ah, Ms. Weasley. Come in, come in."
She ducked her head slightly, heading towards her seat. "Sorry, I'm not usually late."
"No matter, you're just in time for dessert. That is if Belby has left you any." Slughorn let out a breathy laugh, but Teddy looked up at Ginny in concern. He'd heard about her and Dean's recent fights from other Gryffindors. Ginny pulled out a seat and at the same time Harry stood up. The two shared and awkward moment before they both sat down.
The rest of dinner party went smoothly, with Slughorn trying to get to know each and everyone one of his new possession. He asked Teddy questions about his marks and chosen career paths, as well as his background and occasionally the odd question of his part lycanthropy. Teddy happily answered but occasionally tried to politely avoid his questions as much as possible.
Soon everyone was preparing to leave. Arkie, Harry and Hermione were talking to each others in the corner but as Teddy went to join him Slughorn patted him on the shoulder. "I must say, my boy, I didn't make a mistake in inviting you. I'm keen to see your duelling skills too."
"Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me." He said truthfully.
"Work hard enough and you might even find yourself on the shelf."
Teddy titled his head. "Sorry, sir?"
"Over here." He whispered, pulling him towards the back of the room when no one was watching. He led him to a long shelf covered in moving picture frames. Harry recognised Lily Evans, Harry's mother, in one of them and smiled. "All students of mine, each one of grew up to become a somebody."
"A somebody?"
"Yes, someone everyone would recognise in the streets. Each year I select a few promising students, invite them to a dinner party, like tonight's and get to know them. Then I listen to my gut."
Teddy grinned. "What does it usually tell you?"
Slughorn beamed, scruffing Teddy's hair in a fatherly way, though Teddy wasn't quite sure if he liked it. "I tells me who will most likely achieve greatness. And it's barely ever wrong." He looked back at the shelf, sighing contently. "You've given me that gut feeling tonight, Teddy."
"Thank you, sir."
"No thank you, my boy. but just between you and me, most of your classmates are unlikely to make the shelf."
Teddy pushed down the slight feeling of annoyance, as Arkie was one of those fellow students. But he didn't need the Professor's opinion to know she was going to do great things once she graduated. Soon all the students were saying goodbye and heading back to their dorms.
"I'll see you tomorrow then?" Arkie said as they walked up the stairs and stopped on the floor of the Hufflepuff common room.
"Yeah. Will you be coming to the Gryffindor vs Slytherin Quidditch match tomorrow."
She gave him an incredulous look. "Of course, I wouldn't miss your friend's first game. How's Ron feeling by the way?"
"I think he's ready, I just hope that he knows it."