the hat | 𝐬.𝐛

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟱𝟬 || To Return

Eventually, Emery spent a week at home before actually returning back to Hogwarts.

Artemis had asked Dumbledore to let her stay a bit longer, so they could spend more time together as a family.

Several days later, Artemis finally agreed to let Emery go back to school because his wife convinced him that Emery was missing out on her education.

Another thing that occurred in the Wizarding World, was the fact that the press and The Daily Prophet were flooded with news that 'The World's Best Seeker' was finally back after missing for six years.

It was the talk of the time, and wherever Artemis went, he was attacked by cameras and reporters. 

Emery too, was undergoing something similar. Due to the return of her father, she had somehow become a bit more popular amongst the students, and wherever she went they'd bombard her with questions left, right and center.

She was lucky she always had the Marauders by her side, who had taken to hexing any student who bothered her too much.

Along with this, came Cecilia's excitement, who demanded that Emery tell her everything from the beginning. 

Somehow, nobody knows how it happened, but the Marauders were constantly hanging around Cecilia and Emery, and their bonds of friendship grew stronger.

Cecilia was also publicly going out with Rabastan Lestrange, and it disgusted Emery to the maximum whenever she walked in on them kissing.

Emery had also become more attached to her pet duck, Marco, who had gotten slightly bigger, and his color had changed to a lighter yellow.

Marco had developed quite the character. He had gotten old enough to walk, and Emery constantly had to keep him contained so he wouldn't run away and get lost. He had become much noisier too. Whenever Emery would keep him in his box, or give him food late, he'd quack the castle down. He was the most adorable little thing.

He would also follow Emery wherever she went.

Once she was in transfiguration, and suddenly a loud quacking noise came from outside the door. When Professor McGonagall opened the door, Marco ran in and settled besides Emery's desk, who then picked him up and put him in her lap.

He wouldn't sleep without her too. She would go to her bed at night, and pick Marco up, then cuddle him to sleep. It was quite the spectacle.

Emery and Sirius had grown closer than ever, and they spent long amounts of time alone either in the owlery, or in the library catching up on school work, working extremely hard.

Amongst her time spent with Sirius, Emery's feelings for him grew stronger. She could no longer speak to him without stuttering, and she would edge away from him whenever he'd come close to her, or touched her in an unfamiliar way.

She would often stare at him, taking in every detail of his face, and character. She noticed every little thing about him, how he furrowed his brow when thinking, how he ate sunflower seeds whenever he was bored, and how he'd stick his tongue out whenever he was writing.

Her heart would beat whenever he smirked at her, and she'd blush shyly and look away. She was completely new to all these feelings, and had no idea how to manage them.

Sirius, on the other hand, had become a lot more confident with Emery. While she was shy and scared, he was patient with her, and tried to set his feelings of love aside to make her comfortable. It pained him extremely to realize that his feelings were unrequited.

Still, his love for her burned stronger than ever with each passing day.

Due to this new development, Sirius had ended up talking to his mates about fancying Emery, making James demand twenty galleons at once. When Remus asked Sirius exactly when he began having feelings, Sirius replied with, 'Probably when I gave her the duck, or something.'

This made James give Remus double the amount of galleons.

Remus smirked, having won another bet.

The Death Eater's activities had also decreased by a number. No more were they a risk to Hogwarts, seeing as Dumbledore had put up hundreds of protection wards and safety charms. Along with that, he tightened the security by placing mountain trolls at every corner, and every night, teachers were told to keep watch.

Naturally, that made it difficult to sneak around at night.

But that didn't stop Sirius and Emery, seeing as they met up in the room of requirement almost every day, either to study, or just to hang out.

This time, was no different from the rest.

The night was warm and clear, and as usual, Sirius and Emery were in the room of requirement, which was conjured up into a cozy room, with a fireplace, armchairs and a few small tables.

Sirius was hunched over his parchment, writing at top speed, trying to complete his charms essay about the 'aguamenti' charm, something they had been working on for the past week. 

Emery was sprawled on an armchair, her head on the armrest, her feet dangling over the other armrest.

Sirius finished the last words, then looked at Emery, who was trying to read a book upside down.

"Emery," he called.

She looked up from her book. "Hmm?" 

"I was thinking of something," he voiced. "And I wanted to ask what you think," he continued. 

Emery sat up straight, closing her book and placing it a side.

"Go on," she hummed. "I'm listening."

"I think we've both worked too much these past weeks," he started. "What do you say in playing a massive prank to make up for it?"

The corner of Emery's lips turned up slowly.

"That's.." she began. "That's a great idea."

"Really?"

"Yeah," she grinned.

 She stood up, clearing all the books and study materials. "Let's plan," she told him, taking out a roll of parchment and a quill.

"Alright," she said. turning to face him. "What do you have in mind?"

a/n: this story is almost coming to an end. thank you guys for sticking with me. we have about 10-15 chapters left, along with an epilogue.

i hope you've enjoyed it so far, and please let me know all your thoughts on this. I really love getting feedback on my writing.

love, elsie.