Lillies and Nightshades

Hogsmeade pt. 2

Harry snorted and patted his back. "It's not my fault you have poor taste, Draco." The black haired boy cocked a smirk at the Malfoy heir, who sputtered in disbelief. Marcus shook his head, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking at them with an amused expression.

"You both have poor taste." He said as he rocked back and forth on his heels.

Harry snorted and ran a hand through his hair. "Apparently, it would seem we do," He paused, smirking at the older boy. "For example, we're friends with you."

Draco laughed loudly, looping his arm around Harry's shoulders as he jeered at Marcus. The older boy just rolled his eyes and cuffed him on the back of the head.

"You're a bunch of prats." He muttered, not at all serious. He followed them as they made their way to the apothecary. Only occasionally, would Hadrian feel a pair of eyes looking at the back of his head. It made him smirk.

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"Alright, we've got the acorn, the violets, agrimony, the Spanish Bugloss, and barberry. What else do we need?" Draco asked, peering into the basket at the ingredients his friend was holding. Harry scrunched his nose and pulled out the list his mother sent them.

"Let's see... aniseed and crushed appleseed, yew ash, callamint oil, fumitory, elder flower, juniper, and figwort." He replied, marking down what they already had.

"How come you need that many ingredients, Hadrian?" a familiar voice sounded behind them. The sable haired boy grinned cheekily and turned around.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite pompous bookworm!" He greeted, laughing when Hermione slapped his shoulder, an annoyed expression on her face.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite manipulative ponce!" She mocked, shuffling a small stack of books in her arms to gesture at him rudely. The curly haired witch blew a piece of her tawny hair out of her face, as she met the three Slytherin's stares head on with a satirical stare of her own.

Marcus grinned and went in to give her a one armed hug and a hand with her things. Draco grabbed the list out of Harry's hands and went off to get the rest of the ingredients, giving Hermione quick kisses to the cheeks in greeting.

Harry grinned and spoke, "To answer your question, Mione, we're doing a two part ritual on Samhain. One half is to cleanse our minds, bodies, and spirits of all negative magics, and the other half is to help strengthen the doorway to the dead and to celebrate them." Hermione nodded as an intrigued look crossed her face.

"Good choices, you may want to think about adding some pearl moss to attract good spirits." She commented, nose wrinkled in thought.

"But not needed for this ritual, the amount of protection sigils his mother is having us carve is extensive." Marcus replied, plucking the basket out of Hadrian's hands. "I don't think the Dark Lord himself could break through them."

Hermione had a dreamy look in her eyes. "What I wouldn't give to meet her in person..." She sighed airily as she drifted off into her own daydream. Harry chuckled and clapped her on the shoulder.

"Would you like to? Meet her that is?" He asked, grinning when she nodded her head vigorously. "We have to go see her before returning to Hogwarts, if you want to join?"

"'If I want to join?' Of course, I want to join!" She huffed and elbowed him in the ribs lightly. Rolling her eyes, Hermione snorted at the smug look gracing Hadrian's face.

"Right!" Harry started, before looking around for Draco. Spotting the flaxen haired boy, he waved at him, and called out, "Draco! Let's get going!"

The Malfoy heir stuck his nose up in the air and grabbed one last thing off of a shelf, before he turned around and walked back over to them briskly, trying to avoid contact with the bustling crowd in the shop with them. Dumping the items into the basket, he smoothed his hands over his robes and hair, stating:

"There are far too many unsavory people in here."

Harry nodded in faux sympathy. "It's almost as if there was a big holiday coming up soon." Draco slapped him upside the head. "Ow! That hurt, you twat!"

"Good." The flaxen haired boy replied. "Now you know my pain having to walk through that crowd." He shivered in disgust.

Marcus shook his head, amused, and patted Draco on the shoulder as he moved past them to the counter to pay for their goodies. "It's not that bad, Malfoy."

Hermione chuckled lightly and watched him. "Not much for words that one."

"Not really, but he is a good friend." Harry agreed, his green eyes narrowing inquisitive as his interest in the older boy flared up again. He was just too intriguing to him. Hermione glanced at Hadrian and hid a smirk at the look in his eyes; looking over his head, she met Draco's eyes and he nodded in an unspoken agreement.

Hadrian was infatuated with Marcus and didn't even know it.