"I wanted to tell you as soon as possible, I know you won't take it badly."
"No, I guess it just surprises me, I didn't know we were that bad"
"We're not, I'm the problem, it must be that one of my pureblood ancestors gave me the madness, you know, it skips generations, maybe, in the end, I'll be like great-aunt Muriel." The brunette boy laughed.
"But I suppose you still want to go to the ball, you told me that you want to break up with me, but you didn't say anything about the ball."
"I still want to go with you, if you want, we can pretend to be a couple for another week after the ball so your friends won't bother you or something."
" Why would they do that? We are Hufflepuffs, not Slytherins. Seriously, no, the most honest is the most polite. We can go to the ball together, but we don't have to pretend."
Lily almost melted with cuteness. Thomas was a good boy.
"I just want to know something."
" What?"
" Because like I said, I thought we were doing well.
"I... I like someone else."
"Someone else?" His smile widened. "Lily that sounds very suspicious, is he Professor Malfoy or someone weird like that..." and then he saw her face all red and knew that what he had said had hit the mark. "Ohh shit Lily... now I've made a not-very-pretty mental image. Since when do you go sleep together?"
" We haven't. You were my boyfriend, remember? until a moment ago. But we are certainly valuing it. "He shrugged and continued to drink his pumpkin juice. They were in a garden, away from everyone. They liked being there. It was relaxing.
" Lily, sooner or later someone is going to find out. If I realized it, others will too. Then it's going to be a disaster with your parents."
" I know... but if they love me they will have to live with it and accept it."
" You speak as if it's going to last."
She looked at him... yes, she was being stupid, believing in those silly girls' tales, about prince charming who will love you forever, but what could she do?
o-o-o-o-o
On Friday Lily found her brother reading in a corner of the great hall.
"Where is Scorpius?" She asked him making him jump on his sit, it was Friday and Scorpius didn't train on Friday.
" With Michelle."
" He's an idiot, he might as well take advantage of the fact that you Slytherins share rooms for two to give each other love, you know? That's the least astute thing I've ever heard from a young man in a green tie."
Albus looked at her in disbelief but with a smile on his face.
" I only have two questions. What do you know about giving other people love, dwarf? And in what sick mind does the image of Scorpius groping me fit?"
"As if you don't want it."
"That doesn't mean it's going to happen."
" Will you spend Christmas with us?"
" Only after the 25th. Nice people have to spend the holidays with their family. Then... we'll go see apartments."
"Aren't you going to live with James at Grimmauld Place?"
" Would you?"
" I prefer to take the chimney every day. Thank you. So...you will apply for Auror." He narrowed his eyes and looked at her for several seconds.
" No. I don't know, yet."
"Ohh...Well, you'll think of something." Said the redhead before getting up. "I have to go, service, you know."
"Okay..." He looked up at the enchanted ceiling to deduce the time of daylight. "I have to go with Hagrid, Scorpius and I have service too."
The siblings said goodbye and Lily headed for the dungeons, when she entered her teacher was already in the middle of something.
" Hi, what's all of this?" She asked looking at all the ingredients.
"Many idiots broke something this month and the Bone Growing Potion has run out...You should learn this one...your great-grandfather created it."
" My great-grandfather?" She asked completely surprised. The professor looked at her.
" God, if my father would listen to you... we bought the patent almost half a century ago from your grandfather. This is what leaves being raised by blood traitors. " He said placing an unknown paste in a substance, probably distilled water, dissolving and then, through the complicated tempered glass tubing of the laboratory equipment, it passed to a condenser that sent the filtered substance to a #10 cauldron.
" Ohhh close your death-eater mouth and tell me how to do it." She said with a voice of false anger and very arrogant to speak like that to a teacher, but the blond didn't care and gave her a kiss and then offered her his place and began to explain to her where he was in the potion process and what she should do to continuation.
As Draco had started it earlier had already gone a long way so after adding five more ingredients they had to wait three hours for it to reduce and get that slimy look.
" So we don't have anything to do for another three hours, how curious." Lily said with an incredulous smile on her lips. "Yesterday you said that we should begin to behave naturally, and that we couldn't go further."
"Well, after the ball we can spend the weekend catching up, I didn't want to stress you out having to make these complicated potions before the big day. You must go with your best face." He said with great sarcasm pointing to the chair behind his desk, a transformation spell that turned the chair into a low chair, it looked like a mattress with a lot of padding. Lily tried not to blush but she still took her teacher's hand to lead her to the torture room.
She had spent the whole week on that chair. Although they didn't go beyond kissing and caressing, just remembering how hard and big the teacher was while they rubbed each other made her want to cover her face in shame. She didn't know if it was because Thomas and Daniel were fifteen years old and he was an adult, or if Draco was still huge by adult standards, Draco was already traumatized enough about her being smaller when they stood next to each other. She didn't want to think about what face he would make when he realized that she was also too small for him in precisely the subject he avoided.
They had already talked about it and she made it very clear that she was not a virgin, that she had already been with two boys before, and that he didn't have to worry but Draco was still very reluctant, that spoke well of him, he didn't want to go too far, but she felt frustrated because she wanted to experiment.
With Daniel, the thing had been rather uncomfortable and even painful every time they did it (which were only three times) but she supposed it was also because Daniel was also a newbie and with Thomas, although it was very natural she didn't feel what the girls were supossed to feel either. Older people described it as an orgasm, she couldn't even have one by herself because when the room was finally empty, right before she had it, she would stop, it was automatic, when she felt like she was losing control her brain would trigger an alarm and she would stop, it was horrible. She was anxious and frustrated and hot and she almost wanted to kill Draco when he stopped "for her own good".
She then began the kissing and though she couldn't claim him, she wanted to rip the skin off him when he said they should stop. Happened multiple times, they would get turned on and then try to cool down. She would make him pay when she got the chance. She thought. But then she realized the sacrifices he was making, it must hurt down there.
o-o-o-o-o
On Saturday afternoon she spent her time getting ready with her friends, they sent their three owls to Nelly's house so that Mr. Graham could send them some boxes of professional makeup.
They were huge and the biggest one had to be carried by two of the owls.
Nelly showed off combing Marleene's hair, defining her curls, quite large and natural, which looked very beautiful with her light brown tone and her makeup was quite dark, smoky eye she called it while she outlined her eyes due to her Indian features but the rest of her makeup was very natural, in addition, she straightened her thick head of black hair, letting it fall like a shiny waterfall. When Lily's turn came, they didn't quite know what to do, her dress was white and it had a touch between the Roman empire and heavenly angel, when she put it on she looked like a nymph. It was tight where it should be and loose where it should. It seemed to have been made just for her. Every time someone said this she blushed because she remembered the look on Draco's face that time.
They decided to let it fall naturally and as an ornament only a couple of braids on the sides that prevented the rest of her hair from getting out of control. In her opinion, she looked like a little girl, but Marleene told her that she didn't look little, so her hairstyle tried to counteract the effects that her generous body could generate on the boys.
She only smiled because she knew it was true, her body was small but well-formed, very round, with each and every one of her curves in place. The three of them went down to the common room ready at eight o'clock at night, some had already left for the Great Hall but there were still many people, especially girls who were waiting for their dates to pick them up.
They left the tower saying goodbye to the fat lady who was in a very good mood, the holidays made her happy, and there were her dates.
Alastor Evans, a sixth-year Ravenclaw, a beater for his quidditch team who got along very well with Thomas, who was the reason they had met. He was Marleene's date and he was very handsome in his midnight blue robe. They were in stark contrast because Marleene was wearing a bright orange dress.
Andros Quebec was a fifth-grade Slytherin that they hardly knew because he wasn't from Daniel's little group and he was known to that group of disastrous boys, but he was another Quidditch player, in the position of chaser, sometimes he went a lot with Alastor and Thomas but above all he went with the group of Gina Quebec, his twin sister with a dominant personality, she was also a chaser and her real name was Ginos but no one called her that.
Thomas looked cute, in an off-white robe and his genuine smile. Everyone already knew that they weren't a couple, but since they were still friends there wasn't much difference, they saw each other as much as before, and good humor and honest and intelligent conversations were not lacking either.
Walking into the great hall they were surprised, the decoration was done by the head of Gryffindor so everything had a muggle-friendly touch and there were a lot of muggle Halloween decorations. Fake spider webs, bats, skeletons, white sheet-like ghosts. It was very cute and funny.
She was willing to enjoy everything and after two hours she caught sight of Draco dressed in a cerulean blue robe trimmed with silver, he was chatting animatedly with a seventh-year girl by the snack table.
A pureblood Slytherin named Clarissa Blackqueen whose father was in jail but who kept her fortune because her older brother, who had remained neutral in the war, switched all businesses to his name before their father was caught.
The girl gave herself the freedom to smack him on the arm with her open palm as if he had said something very funny, as if they were friends or something. She couldn't help but frown. Thomas hugged her.
" Don't let it show so much." He told her and then offered her a fruit punch. She looked at the punch, looked at Thomas, and finally at her teacher.
And shit. She wasn't going to let that bitch flirt with the man who belonged to her, but why were they together? Clarissa was going to assist to the ball with her boyfriend. Where was Terrence?
She smiled at Thomas and in front of her friends she said that she was going to get a tray of sandwiches, that dancing so much had made her hungry, the others went to find a place to sit. She, beautiful, ethereal, and elegant, approached like a whole nymph to the snack table, even a small draft helped her with the theatrical effect of her arrival. More dazzling than ever. Draco, who was telling a joke, kept silent, and Clarissa turned to look at her.
"Merlin, what a beautiful dress, Potter." Said the girl, who was wearing an elaborate grape-colored dress and a headdress of roses and butterflies of the same color.
"Yours is beautiful too." She took a tray. "Any idea how the sandwiches are?"
"The best are those with cheese and ham." Said her teacher.
" I ardently disagree." Clarissa used an old-fashioned word of her own, just like the ones Draco used. "For the quality, I must say that the biscuits with pork liver pate are much better."
" Not so much if you compare them with those of the Zabini's party."
" Mr. Zabini brings his sausages from Rome, it would not be fair to judge both foods with the same criteria."
" Ohh wow, I guess I'll take both. And your partner Blackqueen?" She asked disinterestedly and the girl made an annoyed face.
" The very stupid Leo got into a fight this afternoon and they put a stinging spell on him, pustules and pus have come out. Pomfrey said that he would be cured by Monday afternoon." The redhead looked at her impressed and sad.
" Ohhh I'm sorry, if it happened this morning, you sure didn't have time to find a new partner."
" Yes, but I had already bought the dress, I had to wear it."
" I see, well, I have to go, good night." Lily finished serving herself and went to her table.
" AND?"Thomas asked under the music, her friends were still dancing but they had left glasses of punch in their respective places.
" Leonard Terrence got hurt in a fight this morning."
"Ohhh, well, frankly I was surprised at how polite you were, I was afraid you were going to rip Blackqueen's head off."
" Of course not, I just wanted to impose myself, but then I realized that they were joking like 'We are rich purebloods and that's why we get along well'. It would have made me look bad, like I was vulgar or something. Besides, I can't afford to be so obvious with so many people here."
A couple more hours passed and everyone was already very tired and both Thomas and Alastor had to retire, and the girls couldn't stand their heels anymore so they began to say goodbye. Right at the door the potions professor approached the Gryffindors and their companions with a somewhat worried expression.
"Excuse me, Miss Potter. Have you seen Scorpius?"
She looked up at him, his silver eyes holding something hidden beneath that surely feigned concern. It was too obvious to be true, Slytherins never looked concerned, if they let people see it, it was fake. Her brother was the same.
" No. Is something wrong?"
" No, nothing. Thank you." Again that feigned concern...
"Do you want me to help you look for him?"
"I don't want to bother you, continue."
" It doesn't bother me, besides the boys have already gone, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw have a friendly match tomorrow. See you guys in a bit." Lily told her friends and she began to walk with the teacher in the opposite direction to the bedrooms.
" I'm almost sure that my little lizard has slipped off with that Michelle." Ahhh there was the truth.
"So it's all been a lie."
" Yes, I had to wait for Quebec to leave so she wouldn't discover me, Slytherins have cunning eyes."
"Then what exactly do you want?"
" I was thinking that I missed you today, I wanted to give you a couple of goodnight kisses." He said as they approached one of the edges of the school to hide from the curious glances, but when he was about to kiss her she put her finger on his lips avoiding him. The professor frowned at her and then looked at her seriously.
" Don't be confused, it's not that I don't want to kiss you, but I'm not going to do anything with you unless you agree to my request. I'm sick of you always leaving me halfway. So I won't let you touch me again unless you mean it.
" Lily... we already talked about this."
" And you made a decision without consulting me, so if there's no one to look for, I'm leaving." She turned and was completely ready to go but when she felt the tug on her wrist she couldn't help but jump inside her for joy. "Are you going to reconsider your position?" She asked.
" Miss Potter, you have just signed a sentence, I will not let you escape. Now if you allow me." And using some strength he turned her to be trapped in his arms, then lift her up and allow her to tangle with her legs to his hips to kiss her. "We'd better get out of here." He said after a while with agitated breathing.
