A/N: Did not have time to edit this btw, I'll do it after school!
Thalia
Breakfast the next morning was quiet. Almost everyone was hungover, so no one was making a huge effort to chat. I hadn't seen Ace yet and wanted to keep it that way for a little longer.
Unfortunately, the universe wasn't quite listening to my hopes. Halfway through our quiet breakfast, Ace and Liam entered the Great Hall. Liam sat down next to a tired Anna while I heard Ace walk towards me. I made no effort to look up and acknowledge him.
"Hey," he said quietly, sliding into the seat next to me. I didn't respond. "I wanted to apologize for what I said last night."
"It's fine," I muttered, stabbing a piece of egg with my fork. I still didn't look up to acknowledge him.
"Thalia," he said quiet enough that only the two of us could hear. I reluctantly looked up to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry."
"Ok," I shrugged, before turning back down to my food. He didn't press on which I was thankful for.
We ate our quiet breakfast and made some small-talk, though most of us weren't in any mode to talk. As far as I knew, Ace and I were the only ones who knew about our small fight which was definitely good.
Of course I would forgive him- there was no point in staying mad. He had been right for the most part. I had been stupid last night. I hadn't drank since Roman's death and I needed a release of sorts. If anything, drinking was better than the alternative option, but it had still been unwise.
What I hated, however, were the words he used. They weren't just meaningless adjectives. He hadn't meant to say them aloud, of course, but deep down he meant them. They all did.
Delicate.
Weak.
Fragile.
They were all thinking it.
Even if it was true, it hurt to hear aloud.
So I could forgive him for being concerned about me, but it would take me awhile to forget those words.
"Any plans for today?" Liam asked while grabbing a piece of toast.
"Sleep," Anna groaned.
"Now you're thinking like me," Liam smirked and took a bite of his toast.
I cracked a small smile and continued eating.
We did just as Anna suggested for the rest of the morning. I didn't have the energy to do much else, so I was happy with the way we spent the morning.
In the afternoon, we decided to go to Hogsmeade for a warm, hangover-curing meal. The seven of us walked down to the village on the brisk day. It was nearing mid-late fall now, past the point where the trees were pretty and more when they were dried up, crunching on the ground. Nonetheless, Hogsmeade remained the picture perfect town as always.
We walked into the Three Broomsticks and got a table, Liam ordering us all waters. I felt Ace staring at me, but continued to ignore him for now.
"So," Liam said, drumming his fingers on the table, "Any notable highlights from last night?" Practically everyone groaned at this but remained interested.
"Joe puked twice," Augie said, "And snogged-"
"Mate," Joe elbowed him.
"What?" Anna's eyes lit up. "Joe, who did you snog?"
We all looked at him and he merely smirked.
"I never kiss and tell," he winked.
We all looked at Augie.
"Ingrid," Augie smirked, and Joe rolled his eyes.
"The Ravenclaw?" Liam asked.
"She's pretty," Anna said.
"And bloody smart," Augie added. "We talked in Dark Arts once, and I've never felt so stupid."
"Speaking of," Anna groaned. "Who's done the paper?"
They continued to chat about Ingrid and school while Ace remained quiet.
I sighed before turning to him.
"Have you done the paper?" I asked.
Ace looked surprised at my attempt at conversation, but recovered quickly.
"Yes, but bloody hell mine is awful," he smirked and I laughed.
"I can read it for you if you'd like," I offered.
"Really? Sure that would be great," he gave me a grateful smile.
That was all it took. An attempt to accept his apology without actually having to say it.
We then both engaged in the larger conversation as if nothing had happened. His words still remained in the back of my head, but I ignored them for the most part.
We ordered our food- mostly hearty soups and hot dishes. I had been so preoccupied that I hadn't realized how hungover I was.
We ate and talked for the rest of the late afternoon before heading back to the castle. I proof-read Ace's essay. And then Liam's. And then Anna's. Hazel conquered Joe and Augie's. By dinner, the side of my hand was covered in ink.
After dinner, we hung out in the common room with a few other Slytherins. Most people, however, went to bed early due to the previous night's events.
I lay awake as usual.
And then, around one in the morning I walked down to the common room again. The nightly routine was so much of a habit now, I didn't even have to process it.
"I have a question," Regulus said as soon as I entered the dark room.
"Shoot."
"Hope against hope. What does that mean?" The light reflected from the fire made his grey eyes appear almost green. I walked over to my new "usual" seat across from him.
"Depends, what's the context?" I asked him.
"Shakespeare does a shit job of getting us to hope against hope." He quoted me. "You wrote it next to the death scene."
"It's referring to the reader," I explained. "When a reader 'hopes against hope', they're willing against the inevitable. We know that Romeo and Juliet die, it's in the prologue. Shakespeare wants his readers to hope that they don't. Or in other words hope against the inevitable happening."
"And he does a bad job of that, why?" Regulus asked curiously.
"Because we aren't attached to them," I said simply. "Did you cry at the ending?"
"No," he scoffed.
"Exactly," I cracked a smile. "You weren't attached to the characters. To be honest, we don't really care if they die or not because they weren't all that likable in the first place."
"Two horny teens who just want to fuck," Regulus quoted my note, amusement playing in his eyes.
"Exactly," I smirked. "So besides that, what did you think of it?" He'd obviously finished the book if he had read the death scene.
"I didn't like it," he said.
"Yeah, neither did I."
"Have you finished mine?" He asked.
"No. But it does do an excellent job of putting me to sleep," I said and he rolled his eyes. "Hold on," I said. I stood up from my seat and walked up to my dormitory. Once in the quiet room, I silently opened my drawer and pulled out 1984. I then descended the stairs once more and walked over to him.
"Here's your next one," I handed Regulus the book.
"1984?" He questioned, reading the title skeptically.
"It's another muggle novel," I shrugged.
"Are you trying to bore me to death, Lark?" He raised his eyebrows but took the book from my hands.
"No, I'll save that for a better time," I smirked. "I felt bad about giving you Shakespeare, so instead I'm giving you something I actually like."
"You felt bad?" He asked skeptically.
I looked at him for a moment before sighing.
"Ok not exactly," I cracked a small smile, "I suppose I'm a pretty stubborn person, and unfortunately you insulting my taste in books has stuck with me, and now I'm determined to get you to like a muggle book to prove you wrong."
He stared at me with an amused expression.
"And you actually think I'll like this?" He finally spoke.
"No. I know you will." He gave me a doubtful look. "Let's make a bet on it then. You don't like it, and I'll give you a galleon. You do, you give me one."
He stared at me again.
"Deal."
"And no lying," I pointed with a small smile.
"C'mon Lark, we're Slytherins, do you actually think we'd lie?" He asked sarcastically, and I rolled my eyes. I walked back to my seat and opened his book up.
Regulus was already in his own world, reading my book. I turned my attention back down to his. I hadn't told him, but I actually didn't mind it.