Dominique never did see Jack return that night, but when she had woken the following morning, his bed looked to have been slept in. He'd apparently gotten in late and left first thing. She didn't know how he had the work ethic to constantly be on the go despite being so worn down; then again, had that not been exactly what Sabatino had said to her? That she lacked the drive and the commitment to put in the extra work? Perhaps if she did, she'd be a nine as well.
Even without Jack around, the previous evening hadn't been a total bust. She'd somehow found herself visiting the common area and sitting with Erin, Michael, and Ellibit. With Zara off in the same meetings Jack was presumably attending, Erin seemed as put-out as Dominique had without their usual go-tos around. Michael had suggested they play cards, which turned into a two hour tournament of sorts that—much to her surprise—had been rather fun.
The night ended when Erin said she had plans to visit her Slytherin friend in C Dorm, though she did invite everyone else along. Michael and Ellibit decided to go, but Dominique declined. She would never admit it to them, but given the now slim chance that she could still make it into the Premier Match—even as an alternate—she wanted to perform to the best of her abilities in her final matches the following day. If that meant calling it an early night and behaving herself, then so be it.
She'd also discovered—upon waking and going about her morning routine the following day— that Annabelle had been startlingly correct when she'd claimed the rankings changed everything. The atmosphere had definitely shifted in A Dorm; one couldn't walk through the corridors, or common area, or the toilets, without hearing people asking the now constant question: "What did you get?"
Factions had started to break off; people with higher scores were grouping together and talking about their meetings with important people and match-ups scheduled for the day. People with mid-range scores were either talking about how they deserved to be higher or how they couldn't believe they'd done so well. The low scores didn't talk much about anything, which made them easy to pick out.
Dominique's day had been very similar to the day before—only she now played in two matches instead of four. These were full matches; not the hour long trials. She understood going forward that these matches could go for minutes or hours—depending on how the Snitch fell—though she'd had a feeling they were constructed in order to test endurance and longevity.
She'd caught her morning Snitch and played well against the girl from Durmstrang that she'd been in practices with, but in the afternoon, she'd faced Valentina Ricci. She was the highest ranked Seeker in camp, and it showed when she quickly beat her after getting a lucky break when the Snitch appeared within yards of her. It had come up near her. She'd caught it easily, dealing Dominique her only loss of the Trials.
She was disappointed since she knew a good showing would have boded well for her for the Premier match, but she tried to remind herself that her chances had already been slim. Both of the invitation Seekers had ranked higher and were the obvious choices; not to mention, she was still tied with Giggleswick for any possible alternate positions. She'd beaten him in a head to head, so it was possible that she was the front runner, but she'd learned over the years she could never count out Griffin Giggleswick.
He'd recovered from his previous day's injuries and apparently returned with a vengeance today—reportedly crushing his first match in an impressive showing before then also coming within inches of beating Jere, the invitation, in shootout. His showmanship was fresher in people's minds, whereas both of her performances had been basic. It was hard to say what would happen. By day's end, she was either finished with her Trials experience or waiting for the news that they would ask her to participate the following day.
She wasn't sure how people even knew if they were playing in the Premier match. She assumed it had something to do with all those meeting the elites kept taking; that they were probably widdling them down to their final numbers at that moment. The fact that she hadn't heard anything was probably more telling than she wanted to believe, but as she sat in her dorm room the evening before the final match, she still held out hope.
Jack was probably in one of those meetings; sitting there listening to it all. Zara, too. Were they being chosen? Or passed over for one of the other high ranking individuals? Perhaps they were getting an alternate spot? She really should have asked Durrin and Annabelle about the process when she'd seen them at dinner earlier, but they seemed to be done talking Quidditch. Instead, they were trying to entice her back over to C Dorm for one last hurrah.
She'd almost said yes once she started to realize that her chances at being picked as an alternate were dwindling with each passing minute, but she'd ultimately told them she wasn't interested.
"This isn't about Stu, is it?" Annabelle had asked as they finished their meal. "You're not trying to avoid him, are you?"
"Should I be?" Dominique asked.
"No," Annabelle said while Durrin shook his head. "I know it was a one time thing, but—" She looked at Durrin, "Durrin got the impression that—"
"I just don't think it'd take a lot of convincing to make it a two night thing if she was interested," he said. "But she's not. She fancies someone else."
Annabelle stared at him. "How do you know that?"
"Because I told him," Dominique said. "Remember how you were supposed to help me keep my mouth shut? Be my bodyguard? Keep people away from me when I was word-vomiting my deep, dark secrets that night?"
Annabelle looked a little red in the face. "That sounds like something I would have said. Shit, I'm such a fuck up. I'm sorry." Beside her. Durrin's expression didn't look the least bit surprised by her lack of follow through on something she'd promised.
Dominique had gone back to the dorm after that. She'd passed Erin, Ellibit, and Michael playing cards in the common area, but they'd been sitting with Giggleswick and Baileymoore this time. She was immediately put off by them being there and—while she may have been able to get past the the other three—there was nothing about this place that was going to make her spend her free time with Giggleswick. Erin had spotted her and attempted to flag her over, but Dominique did nothing more than nod and head straight to her room.
She was hoping Jack would turn up. She hadn't even seen him since the day before and she'd been hoping they could have their first real chat since finding out their rankings. That was apparently nothing more than wishful thinking since she sat there for ages, flipping through an old copy of Quidditch Weekly without a sign of him. She began to grow so bored that she actually considered going to check if Giggleswick had gone and whether she could go and play cards. As luck would have it though, a distraction appeared in the form of rapid fire knocking on her door.
A wide-eyed Ellibit and a rather amused looking Erin were standing there once she'd opened it. Ellibit didn't wait to be invited in; instead she crossed the threshold before rounding onto her with a rather loud. "You had sex with Stuart Reynolds?!"
Dominique blinked a few times before turning her tired gaze onto Erin. In turn, she shrugged in a bored manner. "Oh, please. News like that doesn't stay secret."
"Is it true?!" Ellibit asked. "Did you actually?"
"I mean, I did. But how did this even come up? Why are you two talking about me?"
"Because you had sex with Stuart Reynolds!" Ellibit yelled, as if this was an acceptable answer.
"Everyone was talking about some of the wilder things they'd heard while here," Erin said. "And since you've clearly got one of the better stories, it came out." She shrugged again. "Don't act as if you wouldn't have said something if it were someone else."
Even though that was probably true, she wasn't going to admit that. She took a deep breath before realizing that Erin had said 'everyone'. "Wait, who else did you tell?"
"The usual lot," Erin said. "Her. Mike. The Ravenclaws."
Ellibit made a gesture to raise her hand for some odd reason, as if they were sitting in class. "Can I ask you a question?"
"No," Dominique said before looking back over at Erin. "So," she closed her eyes tightly, "the Ravenclaws know?"
"Yes?" Erin said, sounding completely unfazed. "But who cares? Think of it this way. It's a good thing Giggles found out."
Dominique continued to keep her eyes shut, fighting the urge to tell Erin that she'd probably just said the stupidest things she'd ever heard. The idea of Giggleswick knowing anything about her sex life actually repulsed her. It was bad enough when she'd been with Henry and he'd probably heard things from him. "How the fuck do you figure that?"
"Who's Giggleswick best mate in the whole wide world? Who deserves to have it thrown in his face that you not only went and got some while you were here, but you shagged one of the most fit boys to have gone to Hogwarts in the last few years?"
She opened her eyes at that. That was an interesting point. If Giggleswick knew, Henry would know. Henry would have to hear that she had sex with someone he not only knew through school and Quidditch, but also that someone was Stuart Reynolds. This was potentially an interesting development; she didn't hate this idea. She only wished she could somehow see his face when it happened.
"Out with the old and in with the new," Erin continued. "And that's how you win a breakup." She glanced around the room. "Why are you hiding away in here anyway? Come out and sit with us."
"I'd rather have my bones regrown than spend my free time with Giggleswick."
Ellibit said, "He left," right as Erin added. "Gone off somewhere. Probably out for the night. He and Baileymoore were saying earlier that they met these girls and need to see them again and blah, blah, blah. I stopped listening because Baileymoore is the worst storyteller in the history of history."
"You two aren't going out tonight?" Dominiques asked.
They both shook their heads, though Ellibit spoke. "Mike's got some Firewhiskey, so we're staying in. Might as well have some fun since none of us are playing tomorrow."
"Yes, come and get fucked with us," Erin said. "If you don't want Firewhiskey, Zara was given a bottle of champagne and it's sitting in our room. We can go kill that while we ride out the last night in this bloody place."
Dominique looked away, though her thoughts immediately went to Giggleswick. He must be fairly convinced he wasn't being chosen as an alternate tomorrow if he was going out to meet girls. But if he wasn't picked, then she would have to be the one chosen. She wondered if the final roster had been set by now? It was nearly seven o'clock; it should have been. Wouldn't she have heard something? Why was she even holding onto hope for an alternate spot that was ultimately completely insignificant?
"Come on," Erin goaded.
"I can have one glass," she said slowly. One glass until she knew for sure.
Erin seemed pleased to hear it as she led the way out of the room and out into the corridor. She'd immediately turned right toward her room, while Ellibit turned left and said she'd join them in a minute. Dominique was the last out, though as she shut the door, she noticed two people passing Ellibit in the corridor and heading in their direction. It was Vanessa and Chloe, though Vanessa was already making eye contact with her and smiling in a friendly way. Chloe didn't react one way or the other.
"You coming, Weasley?" asked Erin, who was standing one door down and holding it open as if waiting for her to join her. She didn't respond since the French girls were drawing nearer; Vanessa now several steps ahead of her friend.
"Hi," said Vanessa, her smile friendly but awkward. "Dominique, right?"
She nodded, feeling as if they'd been introduced plenty now, so the questioning of it all was getting old. Her gaze drifted over to Chloe for several seconds—long enough that it made her look away—before looking back at Vanessa.
"Hi," Vanessa repeated. She seemed a little nervous. "I was coming by to…" She pointed to Dominique's room. "Is Jack around?"
"No, he's at a meeting. He's been busy lately."
Vanessa nodded in an absent sort of way, her eyes now on Dominique's door. "Right. I'd heard he received a great ranking." She paused for a long moment. "I was hoping to run into him. Congratulate him, I suppose."
"I'll tell him you stopped by," Dominique offered, already knowing full well she wouldn't. This entire thing was over and done with after tomorrow and she really didn't see the point in carrying it on. Perhaps Vanessa wanted a pen pal, but it was probably better to simply nip this in the bud. If Jack cared, he could go take care of this on his own; she didn't want any part of it.
Vanessa nodded, seeming a little disappointed. "Right. Thanks." She took a step to leave, but then stopped and looked back at Dominique. "Did he mention to you anything about...I don't know, something I did? Because I felt things were going well, but then I haven't heard from him."
She didn't really know what to say to that, but forced herself to simply be nice, "He's been really busy. I've barely seen him."
"He didn't say anything?"
A part of her wanted to really tell this poor girl to get a clue, but she really did seem very sweet. It wasn't her fault her friend was rubbish and had made things awkward. She should probably know the truth, but Dominique wasn't about to ruin a friendship that she had no investment in. It was none of her business and it really should stay that way.
But at the same time...
"Nope, hasn't said a thing," she said, putting on a tone of concern. "But you know, he was terribly embarrassed when I walked in on you two that night doing...you know. Maybe it was awkward for him. Hard to say." She looked directly in her eyes then. "I really am very sorry about that. I probably completely killed the mood."
Vanessa's brow furrowed in confusion. And while Dominique made a point not to look at Chloe, she very clearly fidgeted behind her friend.
"Sorry? Walked in on?"
"That was me, obviously," she continued. "The one who opened the door while you and Jack were busy—" She made an up and down gesture with her closed fist, very clearly indicating a blowjob. She laughed in a very put-on way, "Terribly embarrassing."
Chloe tugged on Vanessa's sleeve. "We should—?" but Vanessa pulled her arm away and was still staring at Dominique. "I'd had too much to drink that night. I went straight to bed. That wasn't me."
It was Dominique's turn to turn on her confused face, though hers was testing the range of her acting abilities. "But it was the night of that party. Who else could it have been?" She let her face fall in an over the top sort of way. "Oh, no. Maybe I shouldn't have said…? I mean, I just assumed…?"
Vanessa's face was cold now. She started nodding, though it was clear that was more of a tic than her actually agreeing with anything. "Right. Ok. Well, thanks." She turned and immediately brushed past her without another word, walking by Erin who was still standing in her doorway watching the entire scene. Chloe immediately went to follow after her, though Dominique side stepped her to block her path.
"Oh, wait," she said as her previously fake tone vanished entirely. "It's you I owe an apology to. Pretty shitty to get walked in on. Sorry about that."
Chloe stared at her. She didn't seem to know what to do or say.
"You're a rubbish friend," she continued, looking her straight in the eye. "But that's not my business. Here's hoping she figures that out for her own sake." With that, she stepped out of her way, allowing her to pass. Chloe dawdled for a second, but immediately walked off quickly and without a word, trailing after Vanessa.
Dominique turned and briefly watched her go before looking back at Erin, who was watching the whole display with great interest. "What was that about?"
She shrugged, not feeling as if the story was even worth retelling. "Nothing," she said, right as Ellibit had returned at that moment with a very large cup of Firewhiskey. Both Erin and Dominique stared at her, their expressions begging to ask what that was for.
"I don't like champagne," she said.
Inside of her room, Erin had pulled out a large magnum sized bottle of champagne that had been charmed to remain chilled. Zara had acquired it from one of her many new friends she'd made around here, and she and Erin had been planning on drinking it on their last night. Seeing as Zara was now off in meetings and being important, Erin seemed to believe that meant she'd forfeited her right to drink it.
"We can't take it home," Erin said, having found two cups and now generously pouring she and Dominique some. "She'd understand. She'd do the same thing."
Ellibit and Dominique took spots on Zara's unmade bed while Erin hopped onto her own and crossed her legs comfortably and began to drink. The chit-chat was idle at first—mostly about school, seventh-year expectations, people they knew, their impressions of camp. Ellibit apparently thought the Trials turned out exactly as expected, whereas it was clear Erin and Dominique were both disappointed in themselves. By the time they'd all drained their first drinks, the conversation grew a little more amusing now that Erin insisted on asking more personal questions.
"So, has Mike been your first...everything?"
Ellibit nodded. "First boyfriend, first kiss, first...everything."
"Fuck, that's boring," Erin muttered, now pouring her second cup. "What if you marry him? You'll never know what it's like to be with anyone else."
She smiled. "I'm ok with that. I love him."
Erin and Dominique exchanged looks of shared horror at the idea, but a part of Dominique respected that sort of commitment. She could never, ever imagine having only ever been with one person—which she could say now that she'd been with two—but if that was Ellibit's bag, then good for her.
"When did you two have sex the first time?" Erin asked her.
"Summer between fourth and fifth year. We waited a year and a half." She smiled. "It was lovely."
"I bet," Erin said, keeping her sarcasm mostly in check. "You two ever done it anywhere interesting?"
Ellbit shrugged. "We usually just go to his room."
"I'm a little jealous of people who live in the same house because it's that easy for you," Dominique muttered, now balancing her empty cup on the palm of her hand in an attempt to keep it from toppling. "When you mess around with someone in another house, you're forced to get creative."
"Such as?" Erin asked.
"Mostly the Quidditch arena," she said, still intensely watching her cup so that she didn't drop it. "The tunnels. Once in the bleachers, though that was awful and I don't recommend it. Never on the pitch, I've been asked that. I'd wait until after Ravenclaw's practices and he'd hang back. The equipment room was where we did it the first time. My first time."
Erin made a face. "You lost it to Davies? Seriously?"
"Did you know me to date around much before him? Who else would it have been?"
She seemed to acknowledge that was a fair point. "What did you see in him?"
She shrugged, moving the cup from her palm. Erin took the opportunity to stand and grab it and refill it then. She was about to protest—claim she'd only planned on one glass—but it was already too late. She was handing a full cup back to her.
"I know people like to shit on Davies, but he's not bad looking," Ellibit offered. "He could be obnoxious, but he was always nice to me. He and Mike were always friendly. I don't know, the way you all talk about him it's as if he's an undateable freak, but I never thought so."
"He's a wanker," Erin said, taking a long swig of her champagne. "Fuck him. I'll never see the appeal." She looked at Dominique. "I remember being really disappointed the day I heard you two were fucking around. I was convinced you were the only person who hated him more than I did."
"I don't know what to tell you." She sighed. "You're both right. He is an arsehole, no question, but he had his moments."
"At least you can move on now," Erin said, "And from what I've been told—"
The door opened just then, and although Dominique wanted to hear the end of that sentence, Zara's sudden presence had changed the entire mood of the room. She was standing there, looking as if she'd been out on the pitch all day. Her eyes immediately landed on the bottle of champagne before they flicked over to Erin.
"You're back early!" Erin said, smiling happily. "I thought you'd be out again all night doing your meetings."
Zara continued to stare at her, not looking amused, but also looking too tired to make a big deal out of it. "There better be some left for me."
"Plenty," Erin said, holding it up. "I'll get you some—"
"I'm going to take a shower first," she said, waving her off. "But seriously, save me some or I'll curse you all. I'm in no mood." She looked over at Dominique and Ellibit, smiling a bit. "Look at this little ladies' gathering. Could you have ever pictured this at school?"
There was a general murmur of agreement. Outside of Quidditch and the occasional classroom assignment where they may have been paired up, Dominique never associated with any of these people socially. This place had done something Hogwarts never could—make her enjoy the company of people she'd previously ignored at best, and actively disliked at worst.
"How'd you do today?" Erin asked as Zara was now stumbling through her bag for a change of clothes.
"Not good enough," she said, pulling out a shirt. "I didn't make the final match, not even as an alternate. They chose six starters and four alternates. I was apparently twelve. That's why I'm done early. I talked to a few representatives today, but left as soon as the final match meeting started. Obviously, it didn't apply to me."
"Rubbish," Ellibit said while Erin's face turned sympathetic. "But at least you got that close. I was probably three-hundredth."
"They chose alternates too, then?" Dominique asked, watching as Zara pulled the rest of her clothes out. "Did you happen to see what happened with the Seekers?"
Zara turned to look at her. She didn't have to say anything for Dominique to know that the news she had wasn't something she wanted to hear. It was written all over her face. "I thought maybe you'd already heard. Giggles got the alternate spot. He was going into the meeting as I was leaving."
Dominique stared at her. How in the…? What in the…? How was it even possible that Giggleswick got it over her? That didn't make any sense. She'd beaten him head to head. Sure, he'd apparently had a great showing today, but he'd played like shit yesterday—even he admitted to it. She'd played fantastic yesterday and caught just as many Snitches as he had today. How did he get it?
"The heads of each position got to choose," Zara said, now standing there holding her clothes. "I guess yours picked him."
The room was quiet; all eyes on her. She was still attempting to make any sense of this. "I don't see how. Lynch was really keen on me. Both times I worked with him, I did great. I know my stats were better than Giggleswick's. I beat him when we played."
"I don't know what to tell you," Zara said. "Although, I don't think the one up there when they made the alternate announcement was called Lynch. His name was something else. I remember him from the World Cup. The Italian one. The one that missed the Snitch—"
Her face immediately fell. "Sabatino?"
"Yeah, that's the one. I assumed he was the head of your position."
She couldn't be sure why she let it happen, but suddenly—and without much warning—Dominique let out a groan so loud that it completely startled everyone else in the room. Zara had jumped back, but was now taking a pillow off the end of her bed and thrusting it into Dominique's hand. She took it and screamed into it. This went on for a good thirty seconds.
"That fucker!" she finally yelled once she dropped the pillow. "That fucker!"
"Ok, let's calm down," Erin said. "Look, it's not as though Giggleswick's even going to play."
"Right," Zara agreed. "He's an alternate Seeker. The two starters will probably play every minute of that match and he'll never see a second on his broom. You know how rare it is that a Seeker gets replaced. Be happy that you don't have to go and get ready and sit on the bench the whole time."
"It's not as if scouts are going to be sitting there praising his bench sitting skills," Ellibit offered.
"That fucker," Dominique kept repeating.
Zara was snapping her fingers at Erin now, gesturing to the champagne. "Get her something to drink."
"I just did," she said, pointing to the cup in her hands. Zara reached over and pushed the cup toward her, urging her to drink it.
Dominique stared at it for a moment, realizing now that she obviously had nothing better to do tomorrow. Why the hell not? She took three very large gulps.
"Ok, well, I'll be back in a few," Zara said awkwardly, heading toward the door. "Again, you better save me some." She glanced back at Dominique, who was trying to glare a whole through the bottom of her cup. "Not sure you'd consider this good or bad news given your current mood, but Jack's starting tomorrow."
She blinked as if returning to reality; Jack's name had immediately snapped her back into the room. Ellibit and Erin were both now making comments about how that was terrific for him, though Dominique could only manage a slow sounding, "Is he?"
Zara nodded. "He was the third choice out of four Beaters."
She took an extremely deep breath. She was truly so happy for him and his hard work; he absolutely deserved it, but she was also too aggravated right now to do anything more than sit there mustering a forced smile while everyone stared at her. Zara didn't wait around a moment longer and left to shower after that; Erin and Ellibit sat in an awkward silence exchanging looks between themselves as they sipped their drinks.
"It's not fair," Dominique finally said. "All because some dickhead doesn't like me."
"Again," Ellibit said, "Giggleswick probably won't even see any playing time."
"It's not about the playing time, it's about getting chosen," she said. "I know I'm better than him."
"And I'm better than Zara," Erin said unapologetically, "but I played like shit while I was here, so…" She raised her cup as if to salute her. "Fuck it all. It doesn't matter now. Best I can do is kill it this season and try again next year."
"I didn't play like shit though," Dominique muttered. "I practiced like shit for one day, but I played well."
"Look, I understand you're upset," Erin continued, "but if you're going to sit here and sulk all night because you didn't get some bloody alternate spot that no one even fucking cares about anyway, then I can't deal with you."
Dominique looked over at her. She was this close to standing and walking out of the room. How easy it would be to go back to her room and properly sulk for awhile—and then do it all over again when Jack inevitably returned with the good news that he'd be playing in the Premier match tomorrow. But she didn't. Erin was right. It didn't matter now. Her being upset about this literally changed nothing. She pulled her cup up to her lips and gulped half of it down.
"Let's talk about something else," Ellibit offered, glancing at Dominique. "I still have questions about Stuart Reynolds."
Of course she did. Dominique sighed, fully prepared to unload every possible answer to every possible question Ellibit could have asked. "He was just as good as you'd want him to be. The sex was fantastic. His penis was average and he knows how to use it. He's a very good kisser. Right to business. No weird kinks or third nipples or anything out of the ordinary." She turned to her. "Does that cover it?"
Ellibit blushed a little, immediately returning to her drink, only to realize there was nothing left. She said something about going to get more and excused herself out into the corridor. After she'd gone, Dominique and Erin sat around making forced small talk until a damp looking Zara returned with a towel around her head. Erin's expression begged the question that her shower had been awfully quick.
"I don't trust you to not drink up my champagne," she said, taking a cup that Erin had already poured for her. As she sat, she asked, "So what are we talking about? Still on about the stupid alternate thing?"
"No, we've thankfully moved on," Erin said, throwing Dominique a look before glancing back at Zara. "I feel as if I haven't seen you in ages."
"The last two days have been a blur," Zara said as Dominique felt her insides and face suddenly warming the more champagne she drank. "I'm honestly happy to be done with it. Happy to be done talking to people. Now I can relax and enjoy what little time is left." She turned to look at Erin. "Are we going out tonight? Did you go out last night?"
Erin shook her head. "I'm tired of going out, so I'm staying in and getting pissed here. But I did go out last night."
"Where? With who?" Zara looked over at Dominique, who simply shook her head as if to say it wasn't her.
"The Hufflepuffs and I went over to C Dorm, but we split up pretty quickly," Erin said, now pouring her third large glass of champagne. "I went and hung out with Felicity."
Zara groaned. "Of course you did. I leave you alone for one fucking night and you go crawling back—"
"We only got high," she snapped. "I didn't do anything else! I was good."
Zara made a noise of annoyance.
"Don't start. You're no better with Reggie."
Dominique's curiosity was now suddenly piqued. She wasn't surprised they knew Felicity—because they seemed to know everyone—but she was also surprised they were friendly enough to hang out. "You know Felicity?"
Both Erin and Zara made identical, obvious expressions. It was the sort of thing only two people who'd spent ages together as friends could pull off as effortlessly as they did. "Yes?"
"She was only our Keeper for years," Zara added. "And, obviously, Erin's ex."
"Oh," Dominique said, feeling both a bit dumb for not putting together the pieces that they were all Slytherins and they all played Quidditch, but also surprised by the ex thing. She hadn't known that. The champagne was slowing her down.
"Anyway," Erin said as if moving things along, "She mentioned you smoked with her the other night. Apparently, you got the good stuff. Something laced with—I think it was veritaserum?"
"Sounds interesting," Zara said, casually sipping from her cup. "But I'd be afraid to mess with that stuff. Wouldn't you be talking shit?" She gave Dominique a look. "Not that you don't anyway."
She said nothing, but Erin laughed and said, "Apparently, that's exactly what you do. You talk a lot of shit and spill a lot of secrets."
Dominique stared at her. That comment had been specific. She was playing at something.
"Anything good?" Zara asked. "Weasley got anything to hide?"
"I did hear something," she said. "Seems our suspicions have been confirmed. She does fancy Ians."
Fuuuuuck. Dominique let her eyes travel to the ceiling as she drained the rest of her second glass. Well, there it was. If these two knew, then everyone would know. Jack would probably know—if he didn't already.
"That's what Felicity said, at least," Erin added, now directly speaking to Zara. "But Weasley hasn't worked things out yet because it's apparently complicated."
Zara shrugged, seemingly unimpressed by the reveal. Perhaps she was hoping for a love child or a penchant for group sex, but instead she only got a crush. "I don't think too many would be shocked to hear that." She looked at Dominique. "Why's it complicated?"
"It just is," she muttered, her eyes on the ceiling.
"I think you two would be good together," Zara offered, which wasn't a comment Dominique had anticipated. "You're really hard to put up with, but he does it better than most."
She lowered her head to glare at her. Why was she even sitting here with them?
"I only mean he seems to get you," Zara said. "I'm being honest when I say I think you two would be good together. It's a strange balancing act, but—" She looked at Erin, "I think it would work."
"It's not the worst couple I've ever heard."
"Plus," Zara said, "if he goes on to be a professional Quidditch player, you should get in now before everyone starts hearing about it and starts throwing themselves at him. I mean, he's cute, he's nice, he could potentially be successful."
Dominique made a face which made Erin laugh and immediately say, "I have a feeling Weasley's got her own pro-plans and they don't include hitching her wagon to Ians'." She watched her for a minute. "You know that now he's attracted the attention of the right people, they're going to be at all of your matches, right? Every time Gryffindor plays they'll be there. You need to step it up and win back some of the points you lost here."
"Yeah, we've talked about that," Dominique said. "I intend to take advantage of that. They'll be at Slytherin's too." Her gaze traveled over to Zara.
"Which is why this one," Zara gestured to Erin, "has a chance to redeem herself." She looked over at her. "I don't know what got into her here, but she was nowhere near as good as she can be."
Erin started absently playing with a loose thread in her bedsheet, but she said nothing.
"Either way, we've all got to make next season count," Zara said, finishing her glass and letting out a small burp. "Shit. It's seventh-year already."
"I wish we didn't have exams so we could properly enjoy it," Erin said.
"I think it'll be fantastic even with exams," Zara said as Erin grabbed the bottle and then awkwardly attempted to pour more into Dominique's cup from just out of reach; it forced Dominique to lean forward to help her out. "There's the Camp Out night, all the club events, we can now go to Hogsmeade every weekend—not just the scheduled ones."
"Do you even really give a shit about going to Hogsmeade anymore?" Erin asked. "It's gotten so boring."
"I might enjoy it a lot more if I'm not standing in endless queues behind third and fourth-years who swarm the place like bloody locusts," Zara said. "I'm merely saying, I feel as if seventh-year will be fun."
There was a knock at the door just then, which caused Zara to hop up and check to see who was there. Dominique couldn't see since, once the door swung open, it obstructed her view, but Zara seemed pleasantly surprised given her cheerful reaction. "Done for the day, then?"
"Finally, yeah," came Jack's voice, which caused something in Dominique's chest to jump. She forced herself to stay put in her seat, not wanting to seem too excited and draw funny looks from the Slytherin girls who were now full of information she wished they didn't know. She instead played it cool, as if pretending to not know who was standing there.
"Bet I know who you're looking for," Zara said in a tone Dominique immediately hated. "She's in here. Come in."
Jack stepped inside and, just as when Zara had arrived, he looked exhausted. Dominique found herself smiling at the sight of him, despite knowing that it was the opposite of playing it cool. He threw a quick smile around the room before it landed on her. "Hey. Ellibit said you were down here."
"Where'd she go?" Erin asked, looking at the spot Ellibit had vacated earlier. "I'd forgotten she'd left."
"She's out with Mike in the common area," he said, running a hand through his very much in need of a shower—but yet, also oddly sexy—hair. "They're hitting the Firewhiskey hard. But it seems—" He picked up their half drunk bottle of champagne and examined it before setting it back down, "you three are as well."
"Not like we have anything to do tomorrow," Zara muttered. "Unlike some people…"
"Perhaps you should have a glass," Dominique said. "I hear congratulations are in order."
He mustered a small grin before letting a heavy sigh escape from him. "I never get to tell my own news."
"Well, it does travel fast," Zara said in an overly enthusiastic manner, as if drawing attention away from the fact that it was she who'd told everyone. She held up the bottle. "You want some?"
He shook his head. "I'm not much of a fan, but thanks. Plus, I need to shower, so I'm going to go do that." He looked over to Dominique. "I was just wondering what you were up to."
Both Erin and Zara were watching her with amused looks on their faces as they sipped their drinks. She chose to purposely look away from them and instead focus on Jack. "Come find me when you're done."
"Will do," he said, throwing a polite smile around the room again before lazily walking out the door. The room was awkwardly silent once the door snapped shut.
"Is it just me or is she blushing?"
"She sure as hell was smiling."
"If I am," Dominique said, holding up her cup, "it's because of this, not him."
Erin ignored her. "I mean, he's got to know, Weasley. He's not an idiot. That wasn't exactly a subtle reaction. You literally lit up like a bloody lantern when he walked in."
"No," she snapped. "He doesn't know. He wouldn't even consider it, and that's the way I like it. If anything, he thinks I'm drunk and acting silly. Which isn't entirely untrue because this stuff is starting to hit me." She blinked a few times. "I should probably stop."
"I say you keep going," Erin said. "And get properly wasted. Tell him all about how you feel. I always enjoy a nice drunk confession."
Zara swatted her. "Stop trying to get people into trouble." She looked back at Dominique. "While I do think you should say something, I don't agree with the whole drunk confession. Especially when he's as sober as he is. Nothing good will come from that. And also, he's probably got a lot on his mind right now with that match tomorrow and all that pressure. He doesn't need this tonight."
"Thank you," Dominique said, throwing Erin a look. "At least one of you has some sense."
"Oh, I've got sense," Erin said, "But I'm also a wee bit drunk, so…" She smiled and held up her cup. "I'm looking to be entertained."