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CHAPTER ELEVEN;
[ THE GLOW OF A VICTIM ]
IT WAS OFFICIALLY HALLOWEEN, MUCH TO ARDEN MANGJUHL'S GREAT LIKING. It had been a day that both herself and her brother had very much been looking forward to; as she recalled, Halloween had always been a time of stupendous joy amongst their prior group of friends. Despite their outrageous costumes that were often ridiculed by their teachers, the holiday was most enjoyable, for it had always been the crucial component behind the abundance of toothaches they all received once the night had ended. Although Halloween at Hogwarts would be a drastic change from their conventional ways of celebration, Arden had truly taken her brother's words to heart about attempting to part from her isolation and toxic want of remaining in the past. She did want to be happy, yes, and she had accepted over the many days from their birthday that there was a way of being so without residing at Kanaloa.
In regards to acceptance, there was one thing on the very planet that Arden had not begun to grow accustom to. In fact, she absolutely, positively would never, ever accept this one very thing. And that was the result of Fred and George's idiotic experimental goo that turned hair into one's favorite color.
It very much explained the variation of colored hair that seemed to appear in subtle, almost discrete individuals as the weeks passed on. Although Arden may have been one of the very first, she has not inevitably been the last. What separated her unfortunate experience, though, was that Arden could not, for the love of god, get the silver out of her fucking hair.
Arden made a distasteful expression as she stood in front of the bathroom mirror. It was currently Sunday morning, the buzzing of her teenage peers no longer present in the white tiled bathroom. A majority had already taken off to breakfast, hoping to catch the first appearance of the Halloween treats that the house elves often cooked up for the meals so many students desperately awaited for within the month of October. Although Arden had never before tasted the sweet glory of pumpkin cookies that her acquaintances had spoken about, she much more cared for attempting to rid her hair of the ghastly silver that the ginger twins had violated her beautiful hair with.
She had tried absolutely everything. From homemade potions to mailing her muggle mother for possible mundane recipes, nothing had managed to provide aid to her complication. The silver remained as prominent as ever, even as she stood before the mirror and began to rub an orange paste upon the strands that sprouted from her scalp. Madam Pomfrey had created the mixture, promising no results but perhaps a lighter shade of silver. One that did no signal her presence every time she walked into the Great Hall.
"This smells like Sunny's underwear," Arden grumbled to herself, smacking on another large clump of the thick remedy. She smoothed it upon her hair as she looked at the clock; they would be leaving for Hogsmeade in approximately forty minutes. She had promised her brother that she would tag along with him and the rest of his friends, seeing as though they knew Hogsmeade like the back of their hand. Jason had promised the best tour in the world, meanwhile, Cedric had assured Arden that he would be the first to accompany her at the bookstore towards the end of the village. He had pointed out that he had remembered her love of reading and enjoyment of warm beverages when diving into unknown literature. It made Arden feel, well, happy–yes. It made her feel happy that he had remembered such a thing. Perhaps that was why she was shoving orange muck into her hair as quickly as possible.
Once she finished, Arden began to hastily change into her going-out clothing. She rid herself of her embroidered pajamas and wiggled her way into jeans, a knit grey sweater, and warm boots. She was planning on spelling her hair dry after rinsing off the mixture and then rushing down to the first floor to meet her galling brother and his equally as galling friend group.
"Well, let's see if it worked this time." Arden said with a a sigh. She dipped her head down towards the sink and turned on the faucet. As she placed her hair within the stream of cold water, she shut her eyes and began to slowly rub out the orange paste. The water partially cascaded upon her face, dripping down her lids and catching between her lashes as she bid her mouth open to breathe. She was direly hoping that the color would wash out, but her hope did not seem to become fulfilled when she stood up to her full height and looked within the mirror.
Arden let out a suppressed scream of annoyance, one that did not leave her sealed lips as she slammed her hands upon the marble counter with anguish. Fred and George's name left her tongue like curses as she ringed her hair of the water and crinkled her nose with frustration. The silver remained as prominent as ever, unlike the other victims of the twin's prank where their outrageous colors had washed out within a matter of days, hours, or even minutes. She didn't understand! It made Arden upset, but at this point in time, she was more focused on getting to the Great Hall on time. She would leave her hair color for another day.
On the bright side, though, Arden had discovered the day following her birthday (hair wrenching experience!) that she had made the Quidditch team. A delight that rendered her to both tears of joy and screams of delight. Of course, though, her news had been followed by a joke about her hair—that of which would now be easily distinguishable amongst the field.
Shaking her head of the memory, Arden quickly spelled her hair dry and straight. She tucked it into a beanie that matched her scarf before then swiping the container that Madam Pomfrey gave her into the trash. She could feel her frustration begin to enhance with each passing second, and as she looked in the mirror once again, Arden could have sworn that she saw a flicker of orange appear within her darkened eyes. She ignored it, though, and proceeded to leave the restroom, turning off the lights on her way out.
Hogwarts truly was festive, Arden learnt as she made her way down the many stairs. The stairs were golden, but laced with colored decorations that ranged from the color purple to the once beloved shade of silver. Tinsel could be found hanging from arch ways, alongside cobwebs that bore enlarged spiders for the official Halloween effect. More often than not, Arden found herself ducking to escape flying ghosts and an occasional floating pumpkin that managed to head straight towards her. It was a surprise that she even managed to reach the Great Hall without ending up with pumpkin seeds stuck in her clothes.
"Finally!" Her brother Sunny cried. Arden rolled her eyes as she found them sitting upon the Slytherin table (actually sitting upon it, her brother was dangling off the edge of the table). "I swear to Merlin that you take fifty years to get dressed. I don't see why, you still look sorta ugly."
Arden did not register the insult directed her way. Instead, she quirked her brow. "Merlin? Since when did you start saying that?"
Jason interrupted her by sliding into the spot next to her, placing his hand on his hip as he peered down at Arden with an excited gaze. "You are going to love Hogsmeade, its absolutely fun. Zonko's is by far the best place to go. If you ever want to prank someone, get the supplies from there." At this, Arden thought of Fred and George with a sneer.
"How fun," she exclaimed with sarcasm. "It gives my brother the capacity to harm me emotionally and physically by the means of cheap jokeshop pranks."
Sunny let out a laugh at this before standing. With his jacket in hands, he grabbed ahold of Arden's hand and began to move from the table. "Let's go, maybe we'll be the first ones there." He proposed, a large smile plastered across his face as they made their way out of the hall.
It seemed as if though everyone else had the same idea, for Arden found herself being hurled into the center of a stampede of students. She made sure to keep ahold of her brother as they began to move throughout the castle and towards the cross bridge. Luckily, because of how quickly they pushed through their peers, Arden found herself stating her name to Flich to pass through within a matter of minutes.
When they arrived at Hogsmeade after a quite lengthy ride, Arden found herself pulling her sweater closer to her body as a light breeze began to sweep through the air when the door opened. All around her, students she knew and didn't know began to grow giddy and excited as they were allowed off. She could hear Rowan and Jason whispering to each other behind her and her brother, soft words quickly leaving their chapped lips, accompanied by soft giggles and an exhalation of air every now and then. They seemed thrilled, more thrilled than she had ever seen the two of them before. Seeing as though Rowan was often angry and Jason had a knack for being more prone to stress than the rest, the two of them giggling behind Arden was quite a phenomenon.
"C'mon!" Sunny grinned, gripping Arden's hand tightly. He pulled her out of the train, but then came to a quick pause once he noticed that her face mimicked her lack of comfort in the cold. "Are you sure you don't need my jacket? I can lend it to you." He said, slowly beginning to shrug off the thick, blue material, revealing his tanned skin.
Arden shook her head furiously, grasping ahold of his jacket and pulling it back upon his shoulders. "Are you demented?" she raved, her lips curled into a frown. "You're only wearing a shirt underneath!"
"But you're cold," Sunny retorted, crinkling his nose as they moved through the already fallen snow. "Maybe we can stop by one of those clothing shops—"
Arden shook her head as she looped her arm through his, "Just some coffee would be good." She interrupted, rolling her eyes. "Trust me, Sunny, I'm alright. Now hurry up, you're taking up the entire path." She joked as triangular shaped buildings came into sight.
Hogsmeade, as she could easily make out, was a picturesque little village of cottages and shops. In the near distance, she spotted a multitude of enchanted candles hanging within trees—thin coats of snow crestfallen over the branches. It looked welcoming, almost home-like as the entire group of students found themselves scattering about into the many shops.
Arden smiled as she looked at Sunny. His sun kissed skin seemed to be glowing underneath the orange toned candles. Although it was only eleven in the morning, the clouds had darkened the sky and almost completely diminished the amount of sunlight that leaked onto the grounds. It was beautiful; the slippery cobblestone beneath their feet, the cottages that leaking yellow light from within the shops—clothing with odd patterns could be seen, expensive broomsticks, and aged wizards and witches laughing were found behind the windows they walked by. And the way her brother looked under candlelight—was absolutely breathtaking. She could only imagine how the village appeared at night, and how thankful she was for agreeing to attend with her brother.
"So," Sunny clapped his hands together, turning to look at Rowan, Thea, and Jason. "Where to first?"
Jason pursed his lips and tapped his finger against his temple. "Fancy Gladrags Wizardwear. Been needing some socks lately—Dean always mentioned last year that they sell quite wacky ones."
Arden raised her brows before nodding her head. She was running out of clothes to wear, or at least winter clothing. In Australia, she never had to worry about anything but melting, hot weather. "Agreed," she said, rubbing her hands together. "I could go for some new sweaters."
"Gladrags Wizardwear it is!" Sunny grinned. He then began to peer at the many signs in attempt to locate the shop before sheepishly looking at Thea. "Mind leading the way?"
The girl chuckled lightly, her book bag slung around her shoulder and bouncing as she made way in front of the twins. "Follow me," she sighed with a smile.
When they first entered the shop, Arden could smell the wave of what she could only describe as cranberry scented candles and a hint of brand new clothing. It was something that she had never smelt before, but it wasn't grotesque either. In fact, in reminded her somewhat of how her mother's book shop smelt. A smile flooded her face as they streamed through the door, her smile only intensifying when a plump old man wobbled out from behind the counter with ruby red cheeks and a multitude of freckles.
"Hello!" The man boasted, his voice thick, yet sweet. "How may I help you today?"
Arden immediately flickered her gaze towards Sunny. As she did so, she noticed that his friends had mimicked her exact same motions. Sunny chuckled at this and showed no ounce of hesitation to respond to the overwhelmingly kind man. "We actually are here for some socks—I heard some are pretty out there, mind showing?"
It seemed as if though the man had never before been addressed with such warmth, for his smile seemed to widen (if that was even possible!) and his eyes seemed to gleam as he gestured towards the back of the shop. "Oh, yes, of course! We just had the latest imported from Ireland. The young folks seem to really like these plaid-printed ones, if you'll follow me, I can show you!"
"Oh believe me, sir, Jason is far from young." Rowan joked as they began to follow the plump man towards the end of the shop. Arden suppressed a great laugh as she elbowed Sunny with amusement.
"Maybe we can find you some sweaters." He said as they traveled deeper within the shop. It was organized, extremely organized. There were tables piled with folded shirts, pants, and socks—the shelves pushed against the wall neatly placed with shoes that seemed polished beyond end. In some corners, too, racks held jewelry and hair pieces, the tags reading prices that were either plausible or completely out of the water.
"Arden! Reckon this looks snazzy on me?"
Arden turned on her heel at this, only to find that her brother had looped his head through the space between a wooden hanger and an outrageously sparkly, green dress that was layered with thousands of sequins and lace. Arden slapped her hand over her mouth and stifled a snort as he wiggled his eyebrows at her, feet now dipped into ruby heels and hands layered with jewelry.
"Oh, Sunny, you're the prettiest girl I know." Arden cooed, pinching at his cheeks. Her brother lurched away and stuck his tongue out at her before attempting to yank off the green gown.
Much to his displeasure, it wasn't budging, leaving Arden to pull Sunny's big, dummy head out from underneath the hanger. Sometimes, she wondered how she was related to him.
"These are quite cute," Arden mumbled as she pulled two sweaters out from within a pile. One was grey, the other a dark crimson red. "Hey, don't you need one?"
Sunny made way to her side, peering over her head with keen eyes as he examined the clothing. Then, he slowly picked one up. "We could twin?" He suggested.
Arden nodded, a light grin appearing upon her face. "Agreed. Oh, look—these are quite nice too!"
Much to their awareness, Arden, her brother, and his friends spent a solid hour within the shop. They had ended up leaving with around five bags, those of which contained socks for Jason, spelled glasses for Thea, scarves for Rowan, and sweaters for the twins. Arden was quite satisfied with how the trip was playing out so far; she could see why people spoke so fondly of Hogsmeade. And she hadn't even seen the half of it!
Next up was Honeydukes. Arden could already taste the many sweets upon her tongue as they entered the bustling shop. Everywhere she looked, students were pushing past one another and shoving hands into buckets and shelves of candy. The air was thick with the scent of honey, the room ablaze with orange and yellow light—it was quite beautiful, really, all the color that seemed to magnify within the cottage's walls.
"You have just got to try Pepper Imps!" Jason exclaimed, shoving three pieces of red colored candy into Sunny's palms. "They make you breathe fire."
"Oh that is such bullshit." Sunny rolled his eyes as he unwrapped the sweet. He popped it into his mouth with ease, and Arden found herself waiting for the exclamation of disappointment that would spout from her brother's lips.
But then, slowly, she watched as his face broke out into a shade of crimson. And as he opened his mouth, Arden watched a cascade of flames pour out from his lips—she lurched away and shielded her eyes as Jason hollered and clapped his hands. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"
It took a good forty minutes for the five of them to manage to break away from the shop. It was quite perplexing, how much money they had managed to spend within a span of two hours. Arden could only imagine how much would be gone after they visited Zonko's Joke Shop.
Immediately as they walked through the threshold, though, Arden felt her entire body run cold as she spotted two very familiar boys with flaming red hair eyeing a shelf full of Dungbombs. Her stomach churned, and Arden could feel her fingers curl into tight fists as she came to an abrupt halt—her eyes glued to the boy's towering frames. She could feel her anger began to rise again, the same anger she felt the day they tossed sticky goo onto her hair. Frustration ran through her, she wanted to—
Arden's thoughts vanquished as she felt a hand land upon her shoulder. She jumped upwards, a shriek escaping her lips as she smacked the hand away and whirled towards the culprit. Standing behind her was her brother. Sunny wore a concerned expression, his eyes flickering back and forth between herself and the Weasley twins. "You alright there, Silver?"
Arden audibly growled at this, her hands reaching up to lightly graze her brightly shaded locks of hair. "Don't call me that anymore," she insisted, turning her attention to the shelf of Nosebiting-Teacups sitting before her. "I don't like it."
Sunny quirked his brows, leaning against the shelf and facing her direction. "Oh really?" He exasperated, "I couldn't tell. Was there something that was supposed to indicate that?"
She rolled her eyes and began to walk away from him. She was going to do her very best to avoid the twins, well, the Weasley twins and her own. "You're absolutely annoying." Arden proclaimed, huffing as she folded her arms across her chest. "If you could please stop bothering me, that'd be greatly appreciated."
"Oh but dear sister, it's my job to annoy you. I mean, that's why I'm here, aren't I?" Sunny inquired with a snarky smirk. If she could, Arden would've smacked the grin right off his damn face, but then again, she didn't want to be reliable for any of the damages that would come to Zonko's if he ended up knocking down a few shelves. "Look at this, it's a love potion. Maybe you could put it in the Weasley twins' drinks." He proposed with wiggling brows.
Arden felt her face fall slack. "Love potions should be illegal, they're date rape drugs." She told him monotonously before advancing onto the next shelf of pastries.
For awhile, Arden forgot that the twins were still wandering within the shop. More often than not she was occupied with trying new products and making sure her brother didn't knock over anything with his fat fingers. Of course, though, avoiding the Weasley twins was practically impossible. Arden could say that she knew so from the personal experience of being their designated target for two weeks straight—they simply did not leave people alone.
Arden felt a light tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she assumed it had been her brother asking for more money, but as her heel came to a halt and she faced the person responsible for interrupting her inspection of Zonko's exploding slugs, Arden found herself face to face with a rainbow lollipop the size of her head.
"Fancy a lollipop?" She watched with large eyes as the lollipop moved away from her, revealing the freckled faces that belong to the spontaneous Fred and George Weasley. "It talks—look!"
Arden watched with surprise and newfound irritation as Fred pressed something on the back of the sweet. Within a matter of two seconds, Arden was forced to watch a mouth appear upon the surface of the swirled lollipop. "A sincere apology from the Weasley twin's for turning your hair silver! We're sorry!" The mouth said with a voice that was far too high pitched for Arden's liking. She sent a look their way, one that reflected the building anger that began to form within the pit of her stomach as they crowded her personal space.
"I don't accept." Arden gritted through her teeth. She pushed past the twins, making sure that her shoulders crashed against their own as she attempted to make her way out of the store. She could hear their footsteps following her, making Arden scramble to locate the front door.
"C'mon, Arden—we didn't mean for you to get so upset over it!" George called out from behind.
Arden paused and turned towards the brothers. They skidded to a halt, looking surprised by her response of actually listening to what they were saying. "What do you mean that you didn't expect for me to get upset over it?" She hissed, crossing her arms. "You turned my hair silver! I was having a great birthday too, until you idiots decided to ruin it—I can't even get the color out!" Arden shouted with her arms waving about, adding visual representation to the anger she felt.
Fred and George's eyes visibly widened, but only slightly. Arden could spot the look exchanged between them both before their shoulders sagged and they dropped the lollipops to their sides. "Sincerely, Arden," George began, his voice laced with a sincere tone that she had never once heard before, "We didn't mean to upset you."
Fred nodded, "It wasn't intended for just you."
Arden's brows furrowed. "Then please go ahead and explain why my hair is the only one that hasn't changed back!" She fumed, flickering her eyes towards the window. She could see her brother waiting for her, his hands waving up and down as if he were telling her to calm down.
George began to rock back and forth on his heels. "Well, the ingredients we used involve a few spells—"
"—the hair changes to the wearer's favorite color—"
"—and it doesn't come off until the person starts liking it." George said, a light grin appearing upon his face. Arden could sense the caution behind their words, as if they were waiting for her to begin yelling again.
Arden, though, was more focused on the words that had just fallen from their lips. "You're serious?" She exhaled, temporarily closing her eyes and pressing a hand to her temple. The solution seemed simple, far too simple but also as ridiculous as Arden could ever imagine. She pursed her lips, feeling a new form of irritation fill her. Not towards the twins, but towards herself for not thinking of such a thing. "All I have to do is like it?"
"Yup." The twin's said in sync.
"It shouldn't be that hard," Fred added, "Silver does look good on you. You could've just started putting black ribbons in your hair like you used to."
Arden crinkled her nose in distaste, ignoring Fred's statement. "That's it? No potion or anything?" Fred and George shook their heads. Sighing, Arden's arms fell to her sides. "If this doesn't work—"
"It will," Fred interrupted. He sent her a smile, one that made Arden feel a bit more assured, surprisingly. "And if it means anything, happy late birthday." The ginger added. He extended out his hand, a golden and violet box sitting upon his palm. It was a chocolate frog, one of Arden's newfound favorite sweets. She looked at it doubtfully. I promise I didn't poison it." Fred said with a teasing grin.
She found herself chuckling lightly and taking ahold of the box. Arden no longer felt as angry as before, knowing that there was a solution to her hair. "Thanks, Fred."
"Hey, Arden, you coming?" She heard Jason call from afar. Arden glanced over her shoulder to find that the boy was holding her bag of candy and a cup of coffee in his hand. She looked back at the twins and gave a curt nod, one that she hoped would suggest that although she wasn't as upset as before, they still were not on good terms. Then again, though, they never really were.
"Merlin, it keeps getting colder and colder." Jason mumbled out, a light mist falling from his lips. He took a quick swing of his warm drink before handing it to Arden. "You should try it—it's coffee. Tastes like they added some pumpkin in it too."
She willingly took it and pressed her mouth to the edge, taking a small gulp of the drink. The warm liquid made Arden feel a bit less cold. "That tastes really good actually." She replied before handing it back to him, "I'm assuming we're going to the pub now."
Jason nodded, "Yeah, Rowan's getting a bit hungry. They have good food there at The Three Broomsticks."
"Well, I could go for some butterbeer right about now." Arden mused, wiping her forehead of sweat.
The walk to The Three Broomsticks wasn't very long. In fact, it took around seven minutes—but Arden could credit the extra two to Sunny slipping on the ice and scratching his palms. It hadn't snowed in days, but the effects of the last light fall were still present. She could only wonder what it'd be like in December.
The Three Broomsticks seemed to stay true to its description. It was small, but cozy. Despite the many tables and bar stools filled with laughing wizards and witches, Arden could say that she did not feel at all trapped within the pub's walls.
They chose a spot towards the back of the cottage, a table that could seat six. She found herself being squeezed between Jason and her brother, the two boys making the windy air streaming through the cracked open windows almost distinguishable.
"I'll grab us drinks," Rowan proposed, standing to her feet. Thea followed, allowing Jason to switch sides momentarily.
"Whoever is playing the piano in here is bloody good." He said, peering around the pub and inn for any sight of the musician. When he could not, Jason shrugged and began to tap his fingers against the table. "I'm excited for the feast. The Halloween preparations always taste better than the usual."
"I'm excited for the extended curfew." Sunny interjected. He placed his chin in his palm, a glazed look appearing across his face. "I'm meeting a girl."
Arden groaned. "Oh god, Sunny. Who's the poor girl?"
"She's a Hufflepuff." He replied, blinking slowly. "She has the prettiest eyes." He swooned
Jason quirked his brows at Arden, causing her to roll her eyes. "You're horrible at anything involving girls. You're too irrational."
"Mhm," he mumbled. Arden chuckled and stood to her feet, "I'm going to the bar. Maybe they'll have a menu or something." She told them before beginning to walk away. Her hands, which were shoved casually into her brother's jacket, curled into the material as her eyes fell upon the many people around her. A majority were old, she noticed, and perhaps even retired. The coins they held within their hands seemed endless and their lack of undereye bags reckoned that they were past ever working again. She wished she could say the same.
"Can I get the house soup, please?" Arden asked the woman bartending. She pulled out her money, waiting for a price.
"That'll be three sickles, honey." The short woman told her with a sickly sweet smile. Arden handed her the coins, then stuffing the bag back into her pocket. "It'll be out in just a second."
"Thank you." Arden replied before beginning to step away from the counter. The sound of the piano Jason had mentioned earlier had grown audibly louder, Arden realized, as she had neared the bar. Looking around, she attempted to spot where it was coming from exactly. It wasn't until her eyes landed upon a boy with curly brown hair sitting down atop a rusted chair did Arden's eyes begin to widen. A smile filled her face, and she found herself pulling out more sickles, the coins clanking within her hands.
As she neared the chestnut colored piano, Arden hovered her hand over the wine glass that sat at the base of the instrument. Turning her palm over, she let the coins tumble amongst the rest—the clanking of metal against metal like music to her ears. "Mind a request?" Arden asked softly.
Cedric Diggory's fingers came to an abrupt halt as she placed her hand upon the piano. The boy, who's cheeks mimicked wine and who's head bore a mess of curls atop his head, looked at Arden with bewilderment—the brewing smile Cedric held only grew when she rested her elbows upon the top of the piano and placed her chin within her palms. "I didn't know you'd be here this time of day." He responded softly, raising his hand to sweep a lingering curl from his vision.
"Thank the heavens that I was or else I wouldn't have discovered that the dashing Cedric Diggory has a secret talent." Arden wiggled her brows at him. He shook his head, his face only growing redder as she drummed her fingers against the base. "How long have you been playing?"
Cedric let out a sigh, she could smell a light scent of butterbeer escape his lips, "Since I was eight." He replied, his finger lightly pressing against one of the many keys. "You going to make fun of me now?"
Arden pursed her lips and tilted her head, "I think I would have by now if those were my intentions." She told him before standing to her full height. "It sounds nice, by the way, how you play."
Cedric grinned at this, looking rather flattered by Arden's attempt at a compliment. "Anything you want to hear?"
Arden shook her head, "Nothing in particular, just anything you've got in mind."
The boy nodded before cracking his fingers and exhaling softly. Then, with Arden watching keenly, he began to play a song that she did not know. What she did know, though, was that she felt a wave of ease overcome her as she watched the boy lightly hum to himself as he played, the song the epitome of beauty and grace in Arden's mind.
Arden did not know how much time passed from the time they arrived at the Three Broomsticks to the moment Cedric suggested they go to the local book store. What she did know, though, was that she had already gone through three butterbeers and two bowls of soup—that and her brother and his friends had deserted her ten minutes after she said "one more song" whilst sitting next to Cedric, their sides pressed against one another as laughter escaped their mouths every so often:
Now, though, Arden found herself enjoying the late afternoon in the local bookshop. Sitting in front of her was Cedric, his messy curls falling before his forehead, eyes sturdily set on a paperback Muggle book; his sweater, that of which was a warm yellow, revealed his protruding collarbones and lightly freckled skin. It was a sight that made Arden feel nostalgic. She certainly wasn't attracted to the boy, no, Arden knew what it was like to develop a crush and the feeling in her stomach certainly was not so. It was more recognizable as ease, how remarkably calm she felt sitting across from him, surrounded by the smell of coffee and worn literature.
"I think the coffee made me gain five pounds." Cedric soon commented. He set down his book and slid slightly down his chair, hand settled upon his stomach. He sent Arden a confused look when she merely rolled her eyes. "What?"
"You barely drank half of it, Diggory." Arden replied as her eyes remained trained upon the words before her. She attempted to register the sentence she was reading, but it seemed as if though no amount of times she did so would make it any clearer, for her center of focus inevitably became Cedric himself. "Gotta save room for the feast."
He shook his head, "I'll throw up if I eat any more." He exaggerated before taking another sip of the now moderate beverage. "What time is it?"
Arden glanced at the clock across the store. "One more hour 'till the feast." She replied before setting aside her book. "If we're lucky, we'll get the first carriage heading back. You know how stingy the seventh years are."
Cedric chucked, "When I'm a seventh year, I'm hoping I'll be the exact opposite." He said with a light grin. "I'm planning on being Head Boy."
Arden raised her brows, "High standards, but I'm sure you'll get the position. Although, I think you should worry about making it through our sixth year first." She added, leaning back against her seat. The mahogany chair was slick and polished, causing Arden to slowly begin to slide down the fancy wood. Her eyes roamed the bookstore, catching notice of how there were only a few select students roaming the various shelves. Only a few feet away sat Marcus Flint, Oliver Wood lingering nearby—his hazel eyes flickering back and forth between the book in his hand and the Slytherin Quidditch player. Arden could sense bad blood between them, but also a hint of what she would say was light aspiration.
"Words of spoken truth," Cedric claimed, tapping the highlighter he had brought along against the table. "It seems to be getting windy out, do you want to go already?"
Arden nodded, her eyes flickering towards the window nearby. Slowly standing, she began to pull on her scarf which she had placed aside. "Sure—race you to the carriages?" Arden suggested, a smirk rising upon her face.
Cedric smirked right back at her. "Oh you bet." He replied before quickly snatching his belongings and darting for the door.
Arden let out a huff of surprise at this before quickly following suit. She hollered a thank you at the saleswoman as she followed Cedric's dashing frame. Arden could spot his bobbing head and flowing scarf growing closer as she quickened her speed, attempting to lessen the space between them. It wasn't until they were only steps away from the carriages did Arden manage to surpass the brunette, slamming her hand against the door to indicate that she had arrived first. "Hah!" Arden panted, out of breath and prideful. "Gosh, you're so slow, Diggory."
Cedric looked at her with disbelief. "I teach you how to play Quidditch and you repay me by calling me slow?" He remarked. "Absolutely insane—"
Cedric's voice was interrupted as the carriage they stood before opened. Arden lurched away in surprise, only to feel her face fall momentarily when she found herself staring at Fred and George. She could not escape them. "Hey, are you two gonna stop rocking the bloody carriage and get in or should we leave you two for the next?" One of them asked, looking by all means amused.
Cedric, unlike herself, seemed delighted to see the two gingers. A smile stretched across his face once more as he took ahold of Fred's outstretched hand. "Hey, mate," he grinned, being lifted into the compartment. "Wasn't expecting you two to already be here."
"Ah well, that's the thing Diggory—"
"—we're always around. You just aren't paying enough attention." Fred said before poking his head out the door again. He was staring straight at Arden, a smug look written across his face. "Nice hair, where'd you dye it? Been meaning to get mine done, too."
"Oh bugger off," Arden huffed before taking ahold of the edge of the carriage in attempt to lift herself up, but no avail did she manage to make way inside.
"Need a hand?"
Fred extended his hand out towards Arden, his abnormally long fingers encased in gloves. From what she could make out within the few seconds of his hand hovering before her was that the gloves he wore had been personally knitted. They were pretty, she suddenly decided, and found herself taking his offered hand without hesitation.
Fred pulled her into the carriage before shutting the door. With a huff, Arden found herself sitting down on a cushioned seat in front of Cedric. His legs were extended, matching George's, who sat next to him wearing a rather outrageously colored sweater that Arden had not seen on him at Zonko's.
She then pulled off her mittens and beanie, pushing away her hair from her face. "It's like a damn stove in here." Arden mumbled incoherently, slumping into the seat before resting her head against the wall.
"It's spelled to stay warm." George replied, seeming to have understood Arden's inaudible comment. "The carriages become ovens during the winter. In December though, it feels like summer was cranked up a notch."
"Delightful." Arden thought to herself. It would be a twenty minute ride to the castle. She could only hope that she wouldn't fling herself out by will half way there.
Soon enough, Arden found herself falling victim to the loud conversation occurring between the twins and Cedric. It was over the recent Quidditch tryouts and who they assumed would most likely make the team (well, not Cedric, they had just elected him as the new Captain and Seeker of Hufflepuff, therefore preventing him from disclosing any information about possible Quidditch sequences and possible recruits). Fred had begun to rave on and on about one of the newest people to hopefully join the team. A brunette by the name of Vivian who seemed to possess the skill of a brilliant Keeper. Meanwhile, George couldn't help but complain about Oliver Wood—their brilliant captain who had been running them into the ground ever since school started.
Arden, meanwhile, remained silent. The conversation was the upmost of entertaining, yes, but the carriage seemed to be on fire. She was more focused on not sweating through her clothing rather than contributing to the conversation.
"What about you, Silver?"
Arden hadn't registered the insulting nickname. "Hmm?"
"How confident are you in getting that Beater position?" George inquired, leaning forward in his seat—face laced with amusement.
"I'm positive she's well assured." Cedric interjected. "Did you see her tryouts? Nailed ever second, I bloody swear on it."
"Bet she didn't even break a sweat, did ya, Silver?" Fred chuckled, elbowing her. She sent him a look of disinterest before peering out the window.
"Are we almost there?" She asked quizzically, "Ten more seconds and I'm toast."
George leaned towards Fred. "Does she mean that literally or figuratively?"
Fred leaned even closer. "Do you know what figuratively means?"
Arden rolled her eyes and shook her head, a soft chuckle leaving her lips just as the carriage came to halt. "Oh, thank the heavens." Arden mused before standing to her feet and pushing open the door. A breeze that felt beyond the temperature of frozen slapped her in the face, but she continued to trudge away from the toaster oven. She could hear the grunts of the boys following, their outrageously loud stomps like ringing in Arden's ears as she heaved her way towards the double door entrance that glowed within the afternoon light.
"Jeez, Silver, do we smell bad or something?" One of the twins suddenly asked. They both appeared by her side, Cedric on the other end—smiles scrawled across their lips.
"Actually, yes." She replied as she entered. "The feast should've started by now."
"Almost," Cedric corrected her, pulling off his mittens. "It should be another thirty minutes. Gives me time to change out of these rags."
"Please do, you look like my great grandmother." Arden snickered before turning towards the Great Hall. "I'll see you later?"
"'Course." He saluted at her before then waving to the twins.
"And what are we? Invisible?" Fred called out as Arden began to walk away from them.
She smiled. "Figuratively? No. Literally? Yes."
With that, Arden found herself departing from the twins.
The Great Hall was the most decorated Arden had ever seen it before. Much to her great surprise, she found herself ogling at the hundreds upon hundreds of candle-filled pumpkins and a cloud of glittering live bats. Upon the glorious site were orange streamers laced with gold, swimming about the stormy ceiling as if they were watersnakes dancing amongst the weeds. It wasn't until the food appeared did Arden reckon that this was the best Halloween feast she had ever attended—and she had attended plenty of feasts in her teenage years.
Sunny seemed to be the winner of the who-can-stuff-the-most-food-in-their-mouth competition. It was a great sight, especially the result that came with the evening entertainment of the Hogwarts ghosts popping out of walls and tables. He had almost vomited twice, but managed to keep himself contained as they left the Great Hall with full tummies.
It wasn't until then that they began to notice that many of the students were frantically fleeing the stairs, bustling conversations leaving their lips as they scattered about the first floor—they were all Slytherins, rushing towards their common room in the dungeons.
"What's going on?" Arden wondered aloud. She turned to Sunny, confused as ever, until they found Jason rushing towards them with a bewildered expression. He had left mid-feast. "What is it?"
"Sirius Black!" Jason shouted. His eyes were wide, the name leaving his lips without containment or hesitation. "He slashed the Gryffindor portrait in front of the common entrance—they're saying Sirius Black is in the castle!"
Arden felt her blood run cold. She took ahold of Sunny's hand, their fingers intertwining as they came to steady halt. "What's Dumbledore saying?" Rowan asked with confusion, her arms crossed and a disgruntled expression evident on her face. "He's in the castle? Are you sure? I mean—"
"They want everyone to report to their Head Professor." He managed out, eyes crinkled with permanent surprise. "In the common room—make a count of all the students, see if anyone's missing."
Arden began to naw on her bottom lip, teeth piercing into the tender skin tinted with cranberry sauce. "We have to go then—" she mumbled, beginning to tug on her brother's hand.
He pulled back. "I'm Slytherin," Sunny reminded her. Arden felt her heart plummet. "Look, we'll be fine, alright? I'm sure they'll get all the students together."
"But—"
"Try not to get yourself in trouble." Sunny said with a light smile before kissing her head and taking ahold of Rowan's hand.
"I'll watch over her." Jason promised, taking ahold of Arden's arm like her brother had with Rowan. "Promise."
Sunny merely laughed. "I don't think that's necessary."
With that, they departed.
Jason made sure Thea returned to her common room safely before tugging Arden towards the Ravenclaw Tower. It wasn't until they reached the top did they find out that every single student would be reporting to the Great Hall. It was there that they discovered they would be sleeping on the floor they had recently dined upon—in purple sleeping bags, may she add. It was a sight that made Arden completely bewildered, how quickly the dining hall had transformed into sleeping quarters. There was fear in her stomach, a fear that made the situation regarding Sirius Black much more realistic than she had expected.
Never before had something—someone—so far away suddenly become an apparent threat in Arden's life. She supposed, within those seconds that the candles were extinguished, that it would not be the last time she ever felt such a feeling again.
.
.
[PUBLISHED: 11/25/17]
[WORD COUNT: 7503]
sorry for the extremely late update, but i hope you all had a lovely thanksgiving (if you celebrate) and good luck to anyone going back to school this coming week!
—celeste xx