WHITE FLAG ▹ potter

009. scared of me

She glanced suspiciously at Potter.

How the hell did he know that?

"Snap!" Ronald suddenly exclaimed, barely a second after Lilium and Potter each drew another.

Apparently, the rules of the game didn't agree. A burst of smoke popped from the cards of Welsh Greens, and then Ronald's face was completely covered in grey soot. Potter and Lilium both froze, leaning backward to avoid getting the same treatment.

"No, they were both Welsh Greens!" Ronald shouted, rubbing at his nose that was once again covered in dirt.

"Of course, Ron," Potter replied placatingly, a small smirk on his face.

Lilium bit hard into her bottom lip to keep from laughing.

"They were, I swear!" He whined, rubbing at the soot to clean it — but inevitably only making it worse.

Lilium bit even harder into her lip while Potter covered his mouth with his hand. But when Ronald glared fiercely at them, they just couldn't help it anymore. Their shoulders pressed as they wheezed, holding onto their aching stomachs. Potter had tricked her into playing this game, tricked her into having a good time, and tricked her into laughing. The thought made her blush stupidly.

For a moment, Lilium thought that maybe Potter belonged in Slytherin too.

ϟ

"Student out of bed! Student out of the castle!"

If Severus heard Filch say that one more time...

He was already furious, the corners of his vision tinging red. Whatever imbecilic little brat had the brilliant notion to go traipsing round the castle at all hours was going to suffer. He'd make sure of it. He had a headache brewing, and he felt it pounding against the backs of his eyelids. He felt sleep—deprived enough as it was, with his dreams and Lilium's and the genuine stress he'd been under due to Potter, the little b—stard. And now he had to deal with this.

All the Heads of House had gathered at the arch, as was necessary whenever some idiot child was attempting to leave the grounds. Now they had to wait for Albus bloody Dumbledore to join them, as if they didn't have some dunderhead currently absconding.

Pomona spoke up as soon as he appeared, "Who is it, Headmaster?"

Severus nearly rolled his eyes. Obviously a Gryffindor. It had to be a bloody Gryffindor. He had (almost) never been more unhappy to be right.

Because then Albus looked straight at him and said, "I'm afraid it's young Lilium; she's gone into the Forbidden Forest."

Severus found himself running.

He knew the others were behind him, but he didn't give a sh—t. He was going to find her, he was going to make certain not a single hair on her head had been harmed, and then he was going to wring her little neck. What did she think she was doing? Foolish child, purposefully causing trouble, willfully disobeying the rules. Those Gryffindors b—stards had a terrible influence on her.

Severus couldn't even feel the frigid air against his face when he swept past the arch and began down the steep steps. His boots threatened to slip in the mildew on the stone, but he pushed himself faster. He tore down the hillside past Hagrid's hut and broke through the treeline of the Forbidden Forest. Not for the first time, he cursed Albus Dumbledore and his blasted rules against Apparition on school grounds.

Bloody demented old men and their bloody demented values that made it impossible to do anything—

Led by Severus, the professors travelled deeper and deeper into the Forest, 'til the path became almost impossible to follow because the trees were so thick. The stream was somewhere close by, but he couldn't hear the running water over the wild beat of his heart.