Agreements With Mr Rich Boy | ✓

15 | Snape, Who?

WE FOLLOWED MS EVERTON, now appearing less triggered by being completely disregarded. It couldn't be such an usual feat, surely— what with the amount of pretentious, superior bastards littering these halls.

She led us out of the main building and down a side path, not so different from the one I had used to get to the village, though this one was far more pristine. Perfectly trimmed, circular bushes lined the path a metre or so more than my arm span apart. Despite it being September, there were no rogue leaves scattered along the path, nor any hint of dampness. Yet, those in their red bottomed shoes still found something to complain about.

This lighting makes me look sickly.

How will I get my stuff from my room to here?

I've had no coffee this morning and I think I may faint.

Tragic.

"I want to go riding!" Some platinum blonde whined, probably named Arabella or some other extra name. She glanced longingly at the stables not too far away, but far enough to not be hit with the stench of horse poo, something I was definitely glad of.

"Miles, look," I muttered, nodding my head towards where a pair of horses, one a chestnut brown and another a pure white, were being led into their area. "We should definitely add that to the list of places to explore."

We'd already made an agreement, of sorts, to scour every nook and cranny of the place after lessons. Whether we'd find secret passages and tunnels was improbable, but the amount of books and films we'd watched had fuelled our fantasies and was now clouding all logic.

"Horses?" Miles said, aloud. "Fuck no. You seen how fucking strong they are? I'm not about to be kicked in the throat by some nine hundred kilo animal. Fuck that."

"Language, Mr Reynard," our most 'gracious' of leaders chided.

I lowered my voice. "It could be fun?"

A girl with the sharpest, most defined cheekbones I'd ever seen stopped completely and turned to us, encouraging her entourage to follow suit. "Oh, Toots, you wouldn't manage ten minutes with an animal like that. You'd break your neck and wouldn't be able to keep coming here."

"That wouldn't be such bad luck for us, though," yet another nameless boy said.

They cackled loudly together. As they turned round, Miles and I gave them the finger.

"We are definitely going," I said.

"Are you crazy? That pillock is right. We would die, literally."

"There might be fit boys..." I tried to tempt him.

"Fine, let's do it."

***

We'd each been directed to our respected rooms, more like amphitheatres. It seemed each subject was worthy of a lecture hall twice as lavish as any other I'd seen before with red, plush seats each embellished with gold patterns.

The professor, a slightly greasy looking man with a map of wrinkles carved into the skin of his forehead, introduced himself, curtly, as Mr Jawl. His hair was dark and slicked down to the point it appeared greasy.Those around me seemed to twitch every time he'd sweep those black eyes over us, feeling like he could reach beneath our own eyes and unravel all of our secrets. I found myself reacting in a similar way.