A/n: Here we get the aftermath of Gryffindor's big win against Slytherin!

Coraline

I wait by the entrance to the Gryffindor common room, nervous quivers taking a hold on me. I'm going to a party. A real, alcohol-drinking, dancing-with-a-lampshade-on-your-head party.

I've got nutty. I'm a Ravenclaw. We don't do things like this.

'Password dearie?' The Fat Lady asks with a hiccup. Our Ravenclaw knocker would never endulge in spirits, not even if we'd won the title of greatest house in the whole Wizarding world, let alone a measley quidditch game. He's far too grumpy for that.

'Um, I don't know the password.' I tell her honestly. 'I'm here for the quidditch party.'

'Our boys played well, didn't they?' She giggles. 'I love seeing them all in their uniforms.'

'Yeah.' I say, agreeing uncomfortably. Fred looks rather dashing. 'May I go in?'

'Certainly!' The portrait swings open without any further hesitation.

The party is already in full swing – fourth years drunk off their first drink, seventh years snogging on all available surfaces, and first years clustering at the stairwells watching their superiors go wild.

Marvel catches my eye immediately, clothed in only a fashionable scarlet sheet. He's chatting up a girl, but when he sees me he gives her a wink and breaks off mid-sentence. He stumbles over, already rather intoxicated, and gold dust shimmers on his skin as the lights pass over him.

'Looks like your lips are pure felix felicis!' He exclaims, brandishing his wand in my face. I wince, expecting the worst. 'Tada! Now you'll fit in better.'

'I didn't kiss Tate.' I remind him, staring down at my now bright gold sweater and maroon jeans.

'Three out of seven isn't bad. You gave Lysander the strength to score that goal, and Fred the power to beat Malfoy back with bludgers.' Marvel says, putting his arm around me and passing me his drink. 'It's just firewhiskey.'

'Firewhiskey! I'll have a butterbeer.'

'But that's not even alcoholic.' He whines.

'How does Head Girl not tattle on you for this?' I ask as he steers me through their common room.

'She's on rounds tonight. She'll shut us down at one when she get back. But until then we're free to party and celebrate our victory!'

As soon as he says the last the room erupts in cheers.

'Coraline!' Julien booms, appearing at my other side wearing a similar sheet dress to Marvel's. 'There's miss lucky lips'

'Don't you have rounds with Rose tonight?' I ask as he gets gold dust on my skin. I try to rub it off but it becomes quite stuck.

'Rosie gave me the night off to party with her cousins.'

'Does she know that her younger brother is here, drinking and being molested?'

We pass Hugo Weasley on a sofa being thoroughly snogged.

'Let the kid have some fun, Grumpy McRavenclaw.'

'Do you think that the Ravenclaw knocker ever gets lonely?'

'What?' And at that moment Fred decides to show up. 'You sure are an interesting girl, Coraline.'

'Thanks.' I mutter, staring at my shoes.

'No, thank you! That was some luck you gave us.' He taps his cheek where a set of gold lips are painted. He passes me a butterbeer and nods in the direction of the Scamanders. We migrate to the twins, whose cheeks are also decorated with gold lips.

'Hey Coraline.' They chorus, raising their glasses.

'Coraline?' A rather drunk seventh year stumbles by. He leans around Marvel to get a look at me, eyes drifting inappropriately. 'You're the one with the gold lips. A lucky kiss for me, maybe?'

'Oi, they're for quidditch only.' Marvel gives him a shove and he stumbles off, forgetting me.

'Thanks all.' I say with a roll of my eyes. 'You're really getting my name out there.'

'My wand work probably isn't helping.' Marvel points to my lips.

'You're turned them gold, haven't you.' I narrow my eyes at him.

The boys nod.

'Do any of you know how to change them back?'

They shake their heads.

I sigh and take a sip of my drink. 'Rose'll deal with it in the morning.'

'That's right. But now it's time to celebrate our victory!'

Ida

'How are you?' I ask, taking a seat in the chair next to Damon's cot.

'Sore, but that's to be expected.' He says with a grin. 'Could you be a doll and pour me some water?'

I do as he asks, passing him the glass and leaning back. 'Has everyone else been in to see you?'

'Everyone but Posy.' Damon smiles, stretching and placing his arms behind his head. 'I'd say we're doing a fine job with this false relationship, I think she's getting the hint.'

'That's good. I can only put up this cheesy happy act for so long.' I tell him, stealing a scoop of pudding from his meal tray. 'I don't know how people in relationships manage.'

'It's a bother, trust me. Don't get involved unless you think he's the one – and even then don't.'

'What am I supposed to do then? Adopt kneazles and become a crazy old woman?'

He shrugs. 'I don't have all of the answers, I just have experience. Quick, run your fingers through my hair.'

I sigh, patting his sweaty head as he looks up at me with owl eyes.

'Ton looked like he was awake. Don't want him running around telling everyone that we aren't eally-ray ating-day.' Damon whispers, watching his teammate across the hospital wing. When the other boy stops moving and breathes heavily we relax. The nurse goes over to check on him.

'What happened to him?' I can't recall him getting bludgered during the game.

'Weasley hit him with his beater bat, foul play but Wood didn't see, too distracted by the seekers.' Damon scowls. 'Bloody Gryffindors. 'Potter and Scamander were in here earlier too, but they pleaded the case that they felt fine and Bones let them go. Merlin knows that all they wanted to do was party. I don't mind staying overnight, I don't really want to go back to the dorms. No one is in a good mood after our loss – Captain looked like he was going to Avada himself.'

'What did Malfoy say?' I ask, perking up. 'When you went to talk to him about Rose.'

'He was in a really bad mood, throwing his gear around and yelling. He kept going on about how he stuck out his neck for her, replaced Nott because of her, trusted her with his secrets, then she turned around and joined forces with James Potter. Scorp had really gone nutty, started thinking up conspiracies. Thought she was in cahoots – and that's a direct quote – with the Hufflepuffs as well as the Gryffindors. I managed to calm his down.' Damon says, rubbing his temples. 'Then he said that women weren't to be trusted. And I kind of… agreed with him.'

'What!?' I screech, only to be shushed by Nurse Bones. 'You're the nutter!'

'I think it helped!' He defends himself. 'He was really quiet for a bit, just thinking. Then I explained to him that women and quidditch don't mix. He took it rather well.'

'I told you to fix things – not to turn Malfoy off dating my best friend!'

'This is my idea of fixed!'

'So you're the one to blame when he's a complete and utter arse and Rose comes to me crying.'

'I never told him what to do, his actions are all his own. I just need a sane quidditch captain who can help me win this season. Who knows, she may not be the patron saint everyone thinks she is.'

'You're an idiot.' I seethe. 'And an arse. And a Slytherin. Do you even have feelings?'

'You'll understand. Maybe after quidditch they'll work things out, but for now it just makes sense to have them at the best of their abilities, playing their own games.'

'If women and quidditch don't mix, then what are we?'

He smirks at me. 'We're different. We don't exist.'

I stand abruptly, metal chair clattering on the floor. I pull his pillow from under his head and smack him with it as hard as I can.

'Ida!'

'Don't talk to me.' I jab my wand in his face, sparks erupting from the end of it. 'You'll get your girlfriend back when you deal with the mess you've made.'

I storm out of the hospital wing, my mind whirling. I need to get back to Ravenclaw towers. I need to be with sensible, rational people. I need to sit down with the team and figure out how what to do. I need to explain the whole situation to Rose.

Oh bloody hell.

Rose is going to be heart broken.

Rose

I appear to be the only one out tonight. That's no surprise, with the Gryffindor party at full swing I don't expect to run into anyone. A glance at my watch reveals that it's nearly one in the morning, the end of my rounds. Five more minutes and I'll be able to return to my dorm, snuggle up in my bed and think through everything that has happened this week.

The only way to explain it would be the simple word 'whirlwind'. The snooping, the fighting, the surprises – and not to mention that whole 'friends' battle between James, Scorpius and myself. I still can't comprehend how that came about. I wish I could take back every word I said. I wish Scorpius would hear me out. I wish he would understand that I would never reveal his secrets to James and that I care about him more than as a friend.

But things didn't work out quite like that. And now I don't know where I stand with him. He was cold and distant when I saw him before the match this morning. Albus was sympathetic at least, hopefully he can help me get back into Scorpius's good graces. Ida had Damon go after him, but she hasn't had time to speak with him about their talk. At this point I can only wait.

I take a turn up the astronomy tower stairs, an infamous place for busting snogging couples. I expect not to find anyone, but it'll take five minutes to do a proper search and that's all the time I have left.

My sneakers don't make a sound on the stone steps and I shine my prefects badge with my cloak, just in case I need to wave it in a randy fourth year's face. I will admit, I love having power, even if only minimal. It makes me feel as though I'm helping Hogwarts out, Sheriff of the Shadows, catching pranksters in the act, stopping bad broomstick cupboard decisions.

I ease open the door to the tower without it squeaking (it's an art that Julien and I mastered over the past year of rounds). Julien isn't with me tonight, preferring to spend it celebrating with his house. I let him go, knowing how happy the Gryffindors were that they'd won. Someone needs to remind them that they still need to beat two more teams before the finals.

I pace around the lower level in silence, wand out for protection. After discovering nothing the floorboards of the second level creak above me and I grin, ready to lay down the law. It'll make me feel better after the week I've had. I take to the stairs, stepping on the sides of the boards, near the nails, to avoid alerting my prey of my presence.

Two figures kiss in the darkness on the other side of the platform, she pressed up against one of the columns and he holding her like there's nothing left in the world. It's endearing, until the clouds break above us, illuminating the scene, and my wand arm drops in astonishment.

I recognise the boy. I've spent a long month obsessing over him, watching the back of his head in potions, studying his lean build as he stretches over his essays, admiring his passion for the people he cares for.

I don't think I make his list anymore.

She notices me first, as he drops his lips to her neck and she looks over his shoulder. She shows no embarrassment, only a hint of smugness and rebellion. A Slytherin who knows she's done something deplorable. She drops her leg from his waist and steps out of the kiss towards me, arms crossed over her chest. He turns and finally notices me, but I can't read him anymore.

My face heats with all sorts of emotions, mostly hurt and shame.

'I-it's past curfew.' I stutter out eventually. 'You o-ought to be in your dorms.'

Separately!

I turn and run down the stairs, not taking any pleasure in the moment and wanting to be out of there in an instant.

Scorpius doesn't call me back.

A/n: Oh no! But we all know that Scorpius is just being a prat because of his loss and what James is insinuating... right? Or is there something more at play here?