𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥

See you later

Daniel was having a good day. Maybe it was because it had just begun, or the thought of the great meal waiting for him, but he had woken up in a good mood.

He enjoyed Hogwarts' morning routine, especially having breakfast in the Great Hall: at home, Daniel wasn't allowed to eat as well or as much. Moreover, he got to eat in company, which he enjoyed.

His parents had never valued routine, and that, when he was home for the summer, often resulted in many lonely meals scattered throughout the day in no particular order. Sometimes, he joked about food being the one thing he loved about school; however, it wasn't that far from the truth.

In that good mood, he mindlessly sat at the Ravenclaw table beside Eleanor and Amanda. Lately, those two seemed to be conjoined at the hip: he always saw them together, and it was rare to see one without the other, if not when they were in class. He wondered what they had to talk so much about, but he had figured that it was some girl thing he didn't understand.

"Hey," he greeted them with a smile, and with a swift flick of his wand, he conjured his usual pear juice.

"Hey! Guess what," Eleanor replied with a mouth full of pancake, "Another detention!"

Daniel sighed. "They should give you some kind of punch card."

"Whatever. It's not like it matters in the grand scheme of things," El stated with a grin.

"Ah, so we are feeling all philosophical today, huh," he commented with an ironic smirk. El's only answer was an eye roll. Amanda, on the other hand, didn't look as carefree: when Daniel tried to smile at her, her eyes were firmly planted on her piece of cake. She looked hesitant. "Lighten up," El giggled. Daniel didn't smile back and shook his head, only giving her a reproaching glare as an answer.

While it was true that Daniel had participated in some questionable activities with her, in the past, he wasn't keen on her latest deeds. He wasn't the type to back away from silly challenges, but something didn't convince him. They had been friends since their first day of school - two years prior - and, during that time, he had gotten to know her well enough to suspect that something was going on with her. For that reason, her new friendship with Amanda slightly worried him. Regardless of what the Sorting Hat had said about Amanda's "specious" and "cunning" nature, he found her sweet, and a way more pleasant company than El.

He decided not to fuel the fire and quickly changed the subject: "So, when are we going to Hogsmeade?"

"I'm not really in a Hogsmeade mood," Eleanor pouted, "I don't know. Maybe some other time."

"That's alright," Daniel shrugged, "Amanda?"

Eleanor raised her brows, but she didn't say anything. Daniel knew that she loathed to feel dismissed.

Amanda wavered a moment and glanced in Eleanor's direction, but when she didn't find a reaction, she smiled. "Saturday?"

"The specious Ravenclaw and... well, I. Name a more iconic duo," Daniel joked, "What cake is that? Looks good!"

"Strawberry cake," she replied, "Do you want it?"

"Don't worry, I'll conjure some."

Eleanor didn't seem fazed by Daniel's indirect jab at her. On the contrary, she looked like she had lost interest in the conversation altogether: she was caressing her shoulder bag's strap, apparently lost in thought, and looking elsewhere.

He was about to say something else - probably another dig at her - but El just got up suddenly and said: "Gotta go. See you later," ending their small talk. Amanda and he both waved, but she didn't look back.

Daniel wasn't sure if he'd been too mean, but he'd provoked her on purpose: since El had ditched him like he was nothing, he didn't mind much being nasty. Maybe it was childish, but he felt resentful, and her leaving the conversation like that irritated him more. It's not like he lacked friends: he was on the Quidditch team and was good friends with several players, especially Leon Hudson, whom he had met through El; the problem was that he felt abandoned by his dearest friend... and it sucked.

Daniel decided to break the ice: "Anyways, what do you have in the program for today, miss cunning Ravenclaw?"

"Oh, I... uhm... Potions, Herbology, and... Arithmancy, I think."

"You think?"

"I enjoy extreme sports, I guess. The famous Arithmancy adrenaline rush, you know," she replied with an ironic smile. She was friendlier than he thought, and, it turned out, very easy to talk to. The girl was unexpectedly clever and witty, and suddenly, Daniel began to see why El kept her around, but not only that: she had made him curious, and he'd be looking forward to the upcoming Saturday.

"So, where are you from?"

"Why?"

"Just trying to steal your identity, no big deal," he sighed, "I'm nosy."

Amanda seemed weirdly reticent to talk about herself, and Daniel was about to drop it when she said: "I'm from London. And you?"

"A city girl, that's nice. I'm way more boring," he replied with a wink, "I'm from Hastings. Meh."

"Oh, I've never been-"

"Don't. Spare yourself. Escape while you can!"

Amanda giggled and took a bite of her cake. Mindlessly watching her eat, Daniel realized that he hadn't conjured his food, yet. Weird. The chat went on pleasantly, until about 7:50 a.m., and when they stood up, they both had a smile on their face.

"Have a good day, then."

"You too, Miss specious."