Call Me Pretty

Chapter Two | Not Yourself

Chapter Two

Not Yourself

 

    There was a slight chill in the air as the seventh years filed into their last class of the week; the first week of school was just a mere hour from being finished. Dominique always sat in the exact centre of the classroom, Felicity or Ben sitting beside her; and for the first time in her life, Dominique Weasley had fallen asleep during a lesson.

“Ms. Weasley, kindly leave la la land behind and join the lesson once more, please.” Professor Pynon said, narrowing her suspiciously long eyebrows. Irene Pynon was the Muggle studies teacher, looked oddly like a heron and adored Dominique Weasley because she was the only student who had never fallen asleep in her class.

Raising her head slowly, Dominique blushed scarlet and nodded “My apologies Professor, it wont happen again.”

“Six years, Ms. Weasley-I had hope.” With that, Professor Pynon turned back to the board, blinking back tears-if Dominique Weasley could fall asleep in her class, then she must truly be a boring teacher.

~*~*~*~

            Outside the Muggle Studies class room, Dominique was hitting her head repeatedly against the stone wall as Felicity sniggered beside her.

“I can’t-believe-I fell-asleep.” She said between head hits, grimacing in pain from either her recent embarrassment or pain.

“Neither can I,” laughed Felicity “And I think you broke poor old Irene’s heart by doing so.”

“Don’t tell me that!” wailed Dominique “I like Professor Pynon; I don’t want to hurt her!”

“Well, besides that…are you okay, Dom?” asked Felicity, brown eyes wide “I mean…you’re looking very pale and thin…you don’t look like you.”

A silent thrill rushed through Dominique-Felicity thought she looked thin. Never in her life had someone referred to Dom as thin; it felt good and refreshing and satisfying. If someone life Felicity, who had the type of body that was just a perfect balance between flesh and bones, thought she was thin, than Dominique must be doing something right.

“Of course I look like me,” she said and stopped hitting her head; the two friends started to walk back to the common room together, cutting through a secret passage or two.

“Are you okay, though?”

“Of course I’m okay, I’m just stressed.” Dominique brushed it off, slung her arm through her friends and tugged her through the portrait hole “Now c’mon, let’s see if Ben will play charades with us.”

Still worried, Felicity nodded and followed Dominique through the portrait hole, wondering why her friend was lying to her.

            Leaves spiralled down from the trees in a complicated, kaleidoscope dance, covering the ground in a carpet of red, yellow and brown. Dominique, Felicity and Ben walked through the leaves, kicking them up into the air and occasionally twirling (Ben refused at first, but Dominique convinced him otherwise) and slowly making their way to HogsmeadeVillage.