bruises - james potter

seven

However soon after, his face scrunched up and he spat the bean out, it was half chewed, a bite mark right through the middle. The dark-haired boy began to wipe his tongue on the yellow and red scarf around his neck, trying to rid the taste of the bean from his mouth.

"What flavour was it?" Cassie asked between laughs, giggling at her brothers actions.

"Dog food."

•••

Cassie and Nova giggled as they sat in the corner of the library, ignoring the stares and glares they got from the other students around them. Cassie was finishing the Transfiguration homework that McGonagall has given her, the final seven questions being written on a new piece of parchment.

Nova was sitting opposite her, no homework to do but being their for the emotional support that Cassiopeia needed every time she did homework.

"McGonagall is going to hate me." Nova said, as she is giggled at the drawing that Cassie had drawn in the side of her work.

"She told me to stop you, not encourage you."

Nova then let out a snort as Cassie added some horns to the drawing on her parchment.

They two were silent for a few seconds, before they both burst out into laughter, and they didn't stop until a small cough made them both stop.

They both looked up simultaneously to see Evan Rosier standing in front of them, a small smirk on his face.

"Hey Black, Goyle." He said, nodding at the two as he said their names, Cassiopeia raised her eyebrow as she looked at the boy, confused on why he was there.

"Can we help you?" She asked, pulling a face as the boy pulled a chair out from under the table and sat down besides Nova, who was staring at the older boy with dreamy eyes and slightly pink cheeks.

Cassie rolled her eyes at her friend as she turned to look at the boy once again.

"Can we help you?" Cassie repeated, raising her eyebrow again at the older boy. He smiled, looking down at Cassie, his eyes shining slightly in the light.

"You, me Hogsmeade next week." Cassie pulled a face of disgust, looking at the boy.

"I have standards." Cassie replied with a shrug of her shoulders, picking her quill up and going to write again. Rosier let out a scoff as he looked down at the girl, his eyes now reduced to slits.

"And now you can go." She finished with a wave of her hand, not giving the boy a second glance, however she did hear him mutter.

"You're going to regret this Black." As he stood up and left, Cassie then turned to look at Nova who had a large frown on her face.

"Sorry, Nova." Cassie muttered, placing her hand on the other girls arm. Nova only shook her head and looked up at the girl, a forced smile on her face.

•••

Cassie and Nova were sitting in the great hall, the hundreds of candles lit above their heads as the morning sunlight shon into the room through the large windows. Halloween was approaching rather quickly, and nearly everyone was exited for the decorations that were going to decorate the hall on the day of the Halloween.

It was currently breakfast time and the two girls had been up all the previous night as it was once again a full moon.

However it was slightly awkward because Nova had been slightly off with Cassie ever since Evan Rosier had asked her out. No matter how many times Cassiopeia had said she didn't want the boy, Nova could help but admit that it hurt her.

However she also knew it wasn't Cassie's fault, and she couldn't let a crush get in the way of her friendship.

Most people in the hall were awaiting the mail, seeing as it was a Saturday, and soon, all of the owls flew in through the open windows, some landing in front of their owners and asking for treats while others just dropped off letters, packages and left. Nova rolled her eyes as she revived a package from her mum, the smell of the woman's perfume already filling their noses before the blonde even opened the envelope.

Cassie began to eat her cereal again before a large owl landed in front of her, a red letter tied around its leg. The dark-haired girls eyes widened at the sight of the letter, and she wasn't the only one who saw it. Nova frowned at her best fried looking at the letter, the red writing almost impossible to read against the letters envelope.

"Blacks got a howler!" Someone down the table yelled, bringing everyone in the hall, even the teachers to look at her.

"Mind your own business." Cassie snapped at them, causing some of the people sitting near her to recoil slightly, however no-one else moved, all watching the girl in anticipation, waiting for her to open the letter.

Cassiopeia caught Sirius gaze who had his eyebrows furrowed at the girl in anger, however it wasn't because of her, but because of their parents. Regulus, who was sitting further down the table had his eyes wide as he looked at his sister, he hadn't told their parents anything about what she had been doing, so who had?

Cassie let out a shaky breath as she slipped her finger under the wax seal on the back of the letter, her hands shaking as it opened and turned into a mouth and her mother's screeching filled the room.

"CASSIOPEIA ESTELLA BLACK!

You cannot believe how disappointed we were when we found out that you had gotten so many detentions without even being in school for a short while!

So you definitely cannot believe how disappointed we were when we found out that you have been hanging around with those blood-traitors!"

At the mention of this Cassie rolled her eyes, no matter how scared she was, she would never judge people by their blood. She grew up listening to her parents say that, and she never wanted to be like them, so no matter what she never said those words.

"We thought that you were better than that, we thought that you knew better than that, obviously we were wrong. You and your father will be having a serious talk when you get home for Christmas break, a very serious talk!

He is extremely disappointed in you, both of us are! How are you think that you could get away with it-,"

The letter ended abruptly, confusing everyone around them, however for Cassie, she knew why. She wiped the single tear that had fallen down her face and picked up the ashes from the letter that had been dropped in front of her, she knew everyone was still watching her, she knew that if she showed any weakness, everyone would see. So she mustered up the most courage she could and yelled.

"Alright you lot, get back to your knitting."

•••