Chapitre 42 :

Neville Longbottom was hiding in his secret space : an abandoned classroom that he reconfigured into an indoor garden. He was a shy lanky boy and had enough awareness to admit that he was a social disaster. He fumbled with his words, never had the courage to speak out and talked so softly that he was ignored more often than not.

Which made the Yule Ball a very peculiar kind of Hell for him.

Everyone was happy, panicked and otherwise colluding in gigantic mess of teenage drama that frankly scared him out of his socks. Never mind getting a date for the Ball, he had no intention of even buying himself neither suits nor robes. He would not waste his money when it could be used for a way better purpose ! Like plants. Plants were cool. They didn't argue. They didn't judge. They actually liked him. One day he would grow himself a plant waifu and marry her. That was his dream.

He sighed in wonder above his cuppa.

This garden was the only place where he could be at home. Even the Gryffindor Common Room and the Greenhouses didn't incite in him this warm feeling of belonging. It was only there, sitting on the ground in the middle of his potted plants with a good cup of tea, that he could be himself. Nobody to argue or belittle him. Nobody to judge him or ignore him. It was perfect.

But perfection didn't last.

The door to the Garden Palace was kicked open without warning, a stranger dashing into the room before quickly closing it behind them. It was Delacour, one of the Tournament's Champions.

Fleur just needed to hide from the way too numerous hordes of suitors ailing her. She didn't expect to suddenly discover a tiny Amazon rainforest in a random abandoned classroom. She looked up at the giant man-eating flowers, the snake-like vines coiling around the large and tall trees, took a deep breath of the warm humid air full of green sents...

"Well, shit." She deadpanned in surprise. "Looks like its real !"

"Eek !" Answered a voice coming from the depths of the tropical jungle.

Curious, Fleur walked toward a rich thicket in the middle of the forest. There, in a cute and cozy little clearing, sat a quivering Gryffindor boy holding a cup of tea with trembling hands.

"Erh- ! Ehm- ! H-hello... ?" Tried the poor panicky boy.

It was love at first sight.

For the young woman who loved cuteness above all, it was like meeting this predestined person who'd make her Heart go « Aww~ » no matter what. She didn't forget about her puppy/kitten/smolbean of course. Harry was a sweetheart and she would give her all to protect him. But here was this adorable innocent bunny/hamster/sunflower, and she always had been so fond of bunnies ! With their lop ears and tiny twitching pink noses... So cute... Especially this one. She couldn't help but want to cuddle him and pat his head and boop him and- !

"Can I invite you to the ball ?" She blurted out abruptly.

The little sunflower opened wide his clear brown eyes, staring at her like she came from another planet. It made her a bit insecure. She tucked a strand of blond hair behind her ear even as she fidgeted.

"To the- To the ball... ? Me... !?" Freaked out the boy.

Fleur nodded, a slight blush adorning her face.

"You don't even know me !" He rebuked again.

"Oh, right ! I'm Fleur by the way. What's your name ?"

"I- I'm Neville."

And as the Beauxbatôns' Champion looked at him with her bright blue eyes, Neville fell in deep. It wasn't his fault though : she was like a waterlily growing in a crystal pond and she was named after his favorite thing in Life. Fleur... He could only accept to be her date. And if it meant that he would have to spend his money on a suit, at least it was for a pretty flower.

Snape lived a life empty of vice and it was killing him. Who cared about the Yule Ball ? His existence itself had no more meaning. His only joy had been drinking Vodka and bullying Potter, and now he could do neither. He tried to bully other students of course, but it only left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He hadn't always been such an asshole. When he just started teaching, he gave it his all : free advices, safety measures, encouragements, supplementary lessons for those who needed it... He had been, he dared to say, a good teacher. But at that time, he still had a reprieve outside of the job, something that made everything worth it... Yes, at that time he was a Death Eater.

It wasn't a glorious resume nowadays, but he really had a good time when he was working for the Dark Lord. Brewing complex potions to his heart content, experimenting with rare ingredients as much as he wanted... He never really took part in the group « expeditions » -as the sole potioneer he was far too important to waste time on the field like a common thug- but he worked hard and was greatly rewarded for it. He had fond memories of these years...

But one day, everything went to Hell. He put his Lily in danger by jokingly repeating the random ramblings of a drunkard to the Dark Lord -« Prophecy » his pale white ass! That wench Trelawney couldn't divine her way out of her own flask of Cherry Brandy, much less the Future!- . Of course, Severus was no one's fool, he had at once understood that the Dark Side was a sinking ship when its leader took his joke too far and started targeting Lily. He had therefore taken precautions to ensure his survival, spying on his former safe place for Dumbledore by pretending to spy on Dumbledore for the Dork Lord. It worked well for a few months. Until Lily died and the Dork Lord disappeared. Nobody knew what had happened that night, and the only thing left of it was a Potter spawn. That's when and why he started drinking -to cope- and bullying his students -in preparation for the spawn's schooling-.

And now, he had nothing left. The Devil had taken everything from him. Even his beloved pettiness did nothing for him anymore. Snape could only watch the train wreck that was Hogwart from afar, a mere shadow of his former self.

AN : Last chapter FOR NOW. I need to write more to upload, so it mights take a while.