Toujours Pur | Euphemia Black

Chapter 10 | Halloween

It wasn't like he was talking directly to her, he practically ignored her 90% of the time and took to giving her dark, untrusting looks and to making disparaging comments under his breath about her surname whenever she was around.

It did slightly upset her at times but she told herself to just deal with it - not everyone could like you.

"He's a fool for being horrid to you," Minerva said to Euphemia one morning in late October as they were walking across the windy courtyard on their way to Transfiguration, clutching their books to their chests.

Euphemia shrugged, scraping her foot along the flagstones, scooping up some leaves with her shoes, "Maybe he has a point," she replied.

The Black Family were, after all, well known for being pure blood supremacists and to have prejudiced opinions that they could sometimes take too far and her family would also often use violence to get their point across.

Not the best family to be associated with when you were a genuinely lovely person like Mia.

"Nonsense," Minnie scoffed, kicking some leaves back at Euphemia as she had accidentally covered Minerva's left foot in a few leaves when she had scuffled in them before.

The courtyard was busy yet again and, out of the corner of her eye, Mia could see Druella with her wand in some Ravenclaw guy's face as she threatened him, proving Euphemia's point.

This was the sort of stuff that made Euphemia ashamed to be a Black, that violence and also the prejudiced opinions that just didn't make any sense whatsoever to Mia.

She gulped, tucking a strand of her windswept hair behind her ear as she hurried onwards, bowing her head and Minerva had to run to catch up with her, shouting for her to wait.

"Look, I know that can't be the best thing for you to see right now but-" Minnie started but was soon cut off by Mia, who turned to her with furious tears shining in her eyes, which alarmed Minerva massively.

"You're not the one who gets associated with them, Min. You're not the one who has to be scooped into the same category as them every single day! Forgive me for being a little bit upset!" she practically snapped before crumpling again and apologising, to which Minerva only replied by embracing her tightly.

Minnie honestly had no idea why Charlus' opinion affected her so much but it was now obvious that it wasn't a small deal to Mia, it had obviously been eating her up inside but the poor girl had just bottled it all up and not told anyone for fear of being laughed at.

"It's okay," Minnie whispered in her best friend's ear and Euphemia pulled away eventually, smiling a little waveringly at Minnie before she started to walk again in the direction of the classroom.

The pair were almost there when some boys rushed through the middle of them, succeeding in toppling Euphemia over to one side as they pelted down to the entrance that was swarming with students as a hive might with bees.

"Woah! Sorry about tha-" the guy who had knocked Mia over reached out to steady her and Euphemia looked into the eyes and her heart sunk immediately. For who else would it be than Charlus bloody Potter?

Upon seeing who it was he knocked over, Charlus let go of Mia with a scowl, as if she was something dirty that he couldn't touch, "Watch where you're going, Black," he spat venomously, his mood changing completely which only led Minerva to whack him over the head harshly.

"Piss off, leave Mia alone, you git," she scolded him and he simply held his hands up innocently and sauntered off after Alastor, who had watched the entire situation awkwardly.