A/N: Next chapter! This one's more about the growing relationship between Aimee and Daphne. Warning for hints of sexual assault.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Aimee didn't bring up their conversation, not wanting to talk about it, so Jaime didn't press. Instead, they avoided the topic altogether and went back to their usual rhythm. In the afternoon, during her free period between Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts, Aimee Myrine would meet Daphne Greengrass in the library. They could read in silence comfortably with one another, but sometimes they would pass little notes to each other. Some were as simple as How's your book? Yet others prompted stirring questions: what frightens you most? Their silent conversations and secret smiles could bounce back and forth between their books.
One snowy Thursday, Aimee and Daphne were sitting at their normal table when Aimee stole a glance at the Slytherin girl. She was particularly invested in her book, so the Ravenclaw read the title: To Kill A Mockingbird.
Daphne Greengrass, the Slytherin girl whose family was one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, whose parents taught her about pureblood supremacy… She was reading not only an American novel, but a Muggle-authored American novel?
Aimee could only gape in shock. "You're reading that?" she whispered.
Daphne, upon realizing she had seen the cover, flushed. "Sorry—" She couldn't think of another excuse. "No, I'm not sorry. It's a bloody fantastic book!"
As the librarian, Madame Pince, gave her a deadly glare, Aimee burst into laughter, and Daphne followed suit. Needless to say, they were both told to leave the library and "study" somewhere else. Taking their knapsacks, they walked together, cackling uncontrollably. Eventually, Aimee jerked her head at her friend. "Come on," she said. "I've got the perfect place to go."
So they ran through the corridor like they were first years, dodging other students and ghosts until they reached a painting of a young woman dressed in a beautiful wedding gown. Daphne tapped the painting with her wand. "Thedrali," she said, and the painting opened as though it was Gryffindor common room. Daphne vanished behind the portrait. "Come on, you tortoise!" Aimee rushed after her. Almost immediately, Aimee and Daphne entered a small balcony, lined with dark metal railings and vines.
"Where are we?" she asked. She watched Daphne's blonde hair danced behind her in chorus with the wind.
Daphne smiled. "I used to come up here whenever school or life got too tough." She sighed. "It's a lovely spot."
Aimee and Daphne sat down together on a little wooden bench, relishing the view and the time alone together.
They rarely visited the library anymore; often, they would sit on that bench and talk. Sometimes, they spent their evenings together, rushing to their secret spot after dinner so they could spend time together. Once, Daphne arrived late, almost a half hour after their usual meeting. When she arrived, settling onto the bench, she asked, "Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah, go for it," Aimee replied.
The blonde girl frowned at the horizon for a moment. "Do you ever… Do you ever feel like you don't belong?"
Aimee spun sideways to face her, sitting cross-legged beside her on the bench. "What happened?"
She shrugged, staring at her hands.
"Daphne," she said, "I know you. Tell me what happened."
Aimee began to notice little things about her, like how she twisted her Greengrass family ring around her finger until it left a red mark on her skin, or how her hair was slightly more disheveled than usual. Daphne's usually crisp white blouse was wrinkled in the front, as though someone had grabbed it in a hurry, and her Slytherin green tie was unkempt, yanked away from her throat. Aimee, finally realizing that her friend was distressed, grabbed her hands. "What is it?" Aimee asked. Gently, she pried her hands away from each other and grasped them in hers. "Daphne, please." She ignored the hot blood pulsing in her ears.
When Daphne looked back up, her eyes glimmered with the rhythmic throb of an ocean wave. She bit her lip. "You know I broke up with…my boyfriend, back in September?" Aimee nodded. "I…" Daphne bit her lip. "Teddy… He was part of my friend group, you know, of Slytherins? And he… The break up wasn't easy. We haven't been on speaking terms since, and he just started—"
Aimee was legitimately scared. Daphne was a surespoken Slytherin, and she'd never imagined a day where this confident girl would be so unnerved by something that she couldn't communicate clearly.
Daphne was crying now, and Aimee felt her brown skin warm. She leaned forward and hugged her friend, their shoulders meeting. She rubbed Daphne's back slowly, in concurrent circles, sensing the vibrations of each shaky breath calm at her own touch. When she finally stopped crying, Daphne put her face in her hands and explained everything.
Theodore Nott and Daphne Greengrass had been engaged since they were four per a decision made by the Greengrass and the Nott families to continue the pureblood family line, but the two hadn't officially dated on their own terms until their fourth year. They'd gone on several dates, and Daphne loved spending time with him. He was funny, smart, handsome… But Daphne only ever held hands with him. Holding hands with Teddy was nice. Safe. She loved Teddy. She was enamoured with him. But for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to take it any farther.
The summer before fourth year, she and Teddy saw a lot more of each other. Once, on a date to the park, they spent hours laughing and talking and holding hands. They even laid on the grass together, side by side, like a couple in an American movie without a care in the world.
Eventually, it grew dark, and Daphne reminded him she had to get home before nightfall. "I have to go," she said, and he grabbed her arm.
"Come on," he encouraged, his voice charming and sweet.
She laughed nervously and shook her head. "My parents are waiting for me," she replied. She didn't understand why her heart was pounding so loudly inside of her chest. "It's getting dark, and I have to—"
"Just stay for a little while longer," he whined; his hand was still around her wrist.
Daphne hated it when he did this; she felt like a horrible girlfriend and a liar whenever he begged her to stay. Was that what it was called? A girlfriend? She'd never really thought about it before, and she didn't want to think about it now. This is what she wanted, right? Teddy was...perfect. She shut herself up and moved to stand again. "I have to go—"
"Just a few more minutes," he pleaded, and he wouldn't let go. His fingers were tight around her arm.
The words rushed from her mouth as her heartbeat quickened and her stomach churned. "Sorry, sorry," she blurted out, but his hand was still there. "Have to—my mom, see, she said—I-I have to go."
Finally, he seemed to understand. "I'll walk you back," he said.
For some reason, she didn't want him to. She couldn't comprehend the racket inside of her chest, and she didn't know why her palms were slick with sweat. Was she...afraid? There was no reason to be; she was in the middle of a park where trees were scarce, and she was easily spotted form the street. She was being stupid. She was being stupid...again. She was—
He'd called her name twice then. Daphne blinked. "What?"
Teddy repeated his question: something about meeting again. She told him she'd have to check her calendar, but she wished he had never asked in the first place. Whenever he talked, she couldn't stop the question from ringing in her head, cracking the shield behind her eyes. This is what she wanted, right?
They reached the final block together, and she began to slide her hand out of his; it was routine. However, he held fast. "Bye," she said, attempting to let go again.
"Bye," he answered.
He pulled her closer.
She pulled away.
He pulled her back. It's always like this, thought Daphne. This tug-of-war. Back and forth and back and forth until I feel sick to my stomach.
She thought he was trying to hug her, at first, but she soon realized that their faces were headed straight for one another, and she tugged away again. "Bye," she repeated, and then her heart belonged to the cold; it was beating so wetly and loudly that she thought he could hear it, too.
"Wait," said Teddy, and he tried again, still refusing to let go of her until she gave him what he wanted. What he deserved.
Her stomach felt like it was being strangled. Daphne twisted her arm out of his grip and jumped back, walking across the street without looking back at him. She could still feel the ghost of his fingers grasping her forearm, squeezing tighter to keep her from leaving him. Her wrist… It hurt a little, and she tried to rub the ache and her shame away. She couldn't stop thinking about it; he had wanted to kiss her. And she...didn't kiss him back. She didn't want to.
She didn't understand. There must have been something wrong with her. It was all she'd ever wanted, right? It had confused her before, but never like this. She tried never to think about it for too long.
Teddy stopped talking to her. Daphne tried to contact him—over family dinners, via owl, anything to say she was sorry and she didn't mean to...whatever happened—but he didn't respond.
When they arrived at school again in September, she discovered why. In her dormitory, she found vulgar, lewd notes among her things. Teddy, angry that she had rejected him, had spread horrible rumors about her, claiming that she had cheated on him with multiple other partners and that she would do anything for a few bucks. Her friends, shocked by her supposed sexual exploits, eventually turned their backs on her.
Daphne ran her fingers through her hair, smoothing it down as if trying to calm herself. She rubbed the back of her neck: once, twice, three times… Her nails left welts in her smooth skin.
Aimee had never seen Daphne like this. Honestly, the Ravenclaw was scared for her friend.
Finally, Daphne spoke again, but it was different. Darker. "This morning, I got some owls from some boys… Propositioning me." She squeezed her eyes shut. "I didn't respond… I-I burned them, but they—" Her voice broke. "They found me in the hallway."
Aimee's vision went red.
"I don't—I didn't—They pinned me against the wall, th-they touched me, talking about what Teddy had told them about me, and I—" She was crying again. "I just stood there, frozen. I was so scared." She wiped her sleeve across her face. "Eventually, they left, but…" She gripped the back of her neck so tightly Aimee feared it would break and closed her eyes again.
"Daphne…" Aimee whispered finally. "I'm so sorry that happened to you. They… They're gonna pay for what they did to you, okay? We can tell Dumble—"
"No!" Daphne's voice became an inhuman screech.
Aimee stared at her in shock.
"Not. Dumbledore. No." Daphne stood up, wringing her hands. "You can't tell anyone, okay? I just needed to tell someone."
"Daph, we can get them expelled, we can—"
"No, Aimee, you don't—" She shook her head furiously. "You don't understand. They're kids from good families. The Sacred Twenty-Eight. Hogwarts wouldn't expel them if they murdered someone. And besides…" Daphne stilled, stopping at the railing and gazing over the Black Lake. "It's my fault."
Aimee stood and moved to her friend's side. "No." When Daphne didn't respond, she repeated herself, louder. "No. None of this was your fault."
The blonde girl's hair swished gently as she shook her head. "If I hadn't turned Teddy down… If I had told someone about the letters…" Her last protest was quieter, almost too quiet to hear. "If I had fought back…"
"No! Daph, listen." Aimee touched Daphne's arm, and she flinched, shrinking in on herself. "It is your right as a human being on this Earth to be able to control who can touch you and who can't. If you didn't want to kiss Teddy, then no one should force you to. Ever. You shouldn't feel obligated to kiss him back, even if you were friends. He doesn't get awarded a kiss or sex or whatever just because you were dating. You should trust someone physically when you're ready, and that's it." Daphne looked at Aimee. Her face was wet with tears. "And just because you didn't fight back doesn't mean those boys touching you was justified at all. Consent is consent, Daph, and you didn't give it to them, so they broke the law by touching you." Aimee could tell her friend was still on the fence about her claims, so she continued. "Would you blame someone who was under the Imperius curse?"
"Of course not."
"What about under a spell or a love potion?"
"No, no, but—"
"It's the same thing. If you didn't tell them it was okay, then they had no right to do it."
Daphne slumped onto the bench, so Aimee kneeled in front of her. "It's not your fault, Daphne. None of this is your fault." For the final time that day, Daphne burst into tears, sobbing into her hands, curling inward on herself. "Can I hug you?" Aimee asked softly.
Daphne gasped out a yes, and Aimee gathered her friend into her arms, whispering, "It's okay, it's okay," into her ear. Daphne curled her hands around Aimee's shoulders, pressing her face into the gentle curve of her neck and crying. That night, Aimee Myrine put Daphne Greengrass back together, piece by piece. And, more importantly, Daphne fell in love.
A/N: I'll write more when I can, but I've gotta figure out where the story's going. Thanks for all your support, everyone!
Challenges used:
Fanfiction Writing Month: November [2295]
Are You Crazy Enough To Do It Challenge - #146 (color) Slytherin green
If You Dare Challenge - #186 (Shrink)
Original Character Boot Camp - #3 (throat), Aimee Myrine
The Golden Snitch - Through The Universe - #36 (Circumpolar Star) - (word) always
The Golden Snitch - Jurassic Fever - # 8 (Dilophosaurus) - Write about a character who has been given an unfair reputation.
The Golden Snitch - Ollivander's Wand Shop - Garrick Ollivander - Hornbeam - Write about an important moment for your OTP.
Hogwarts - The Library - Tales of Beedle the Bard by Beedle the Bard - Write 500 words of your multichap.
Writing Club - Lizzy's Loft - #5 (Jessica Kellgren-Fozard) - Write femslash.