𝗩𝗜𝗢𝗟𝗜𝗡 𝗞𝗜𝗦𝗦𝗘𝗦, oliver wood

── 𝘁𝘄𝗼. curious propositions

Perhaps the loss was a blessing in disguise. She had enough on her plate this year as it was, she didn't need a boyfriend added on top of that. Indeed, she had far more important priorities, and she knew that she would get by just fine without him.

Still, that didn't mean a little bit of revenge, to make him regret his decision just a little bit, would be nice.

"Okay", Willa announced as she slid into her seat at the Hufflepuff table, "So here's the plan."

Elodie's eyebrows furrowed with confusion, "The plan?"

"To get back at Aspen, obviously", the blonde girl spoke as if it were blatantly obvious, "Get with the program, El - there's no way in hell we're letting him get away with this."

"Is that what you were doing over there for so long?", Beckett questioned, "Cooking up schemes."

"No, don't be absurd", Willa rolled her eyes, "I was flirting, obviously. New year, new foundations to be put in place."

"You know, you could find a relationship so easily if you just choose somebody and settled down", Harper sighed, "I wish I had as many options as you do."

"Oh please, you must know that's the entire point - I don't want to be tied down. I have far more self empowerment this way - they can't use me if I'm the one using them. And it's so much more fun", she grinned, "Besides, you'd have options too if you didn't hold everybody to the standards of the boys in those cheesy books of yours."

"If I have to lower my standards for somebody then they aren't worth the time of day", was all Harper responded, before allowing her gaze to fall back into her book.

"So", Margot questioned, leaning across the table with a glint in her eye, "Who's the unfortunate fellow this week, Will?"

"Micah Fenrin", she responded, making sure to over-enunciate every word so that she got her point across.

"Are you insane?", Elodie gasped, "He's a notorious heartbreaker, you're just asking for trouble."

"Exactly! Final year, gotta aim high", Willa smirked, "May the best heartbreaker win."

The five Hufflepuffs all laughed to themselves then, and Elodie shook her head in disapproval, "You're ridiculous."

Willa had always been ridiculous, but the others didn't mind much. They were rather a ridiculous bunch, actually, especially for a bunch of Hufflepuffs, but that was what made them so unique. Harper had her books, and her rose-tinted view of the world, and Margot had her painful realism, combined with her fighting spirit that made her so difficult to tame when she sensed some kind of injustice. Willa was nothing but a short fuse and a cocky but insatiable attitude, but she was a diamond, and from her you could never quite expect anything less.

"So, girlie", Willa interrupted Elodie from her observations, "how are you feeling - really?"

"Fine", Elodie lied, though all four of her friends' eyebrows raised dubiously in her direction, "Really, I'm fine. I didn't have time for a boyfriend this year anyway - with Head Girl duties, and NEWTs to study for, I just don't have the free space to be wasting time fooling around with some guy. Plus, now that I think about it, he doesn't have any kind of passion for anything, or any focus. I want somebody with drive, somebody with ambition and sophistication. Aspen Prescott wasn't worthy of my time anyway."