You go on a dinner date with the Ravenclaw boy from before, and it goes about as well as you'd hoped it to.
~~~
The next day dawned far before you were ready. You'd stayed out way too late with Draco, and you weren't ready to go find some poor bloke to become "friends" with.
You felt awful about using someone, despite the fact that you'd done exactly the same thing to Harry Potter just a year before.
However, you supposed, you'd stayed friends with the Gryffindor. And, you realized then, you also hadn't done it to hide from Voldemort.
The Carrows were still running Defense Against the Dark Arts. You had moved to the back of the classroom in the hopes that they'd be unable to see you and draw the conclusion that you had withdrawn.
As it turned out, so had Gordon. The Ravenclaw you'd been forced to Cruciate slid into the seat next to you, giving you a smile that was far brighter than the moods of most of the students at Hogwarts since the term had started.
The two of you worked closely together that class, exchanging whispers that somehow went unnoticed by Alecto and Amycus.
You never thought that class ended quickly enough, and today was no exception. You heard the Carrows call back four students as you gathered your things as quickly as possible, and you cringed as you ran out of the room, hoping you wouldn't see those classmates chained to the wall in the Great Hall at dinner.
"Hey, Ravena," Gordon called after you as you headed down the hallway. "Wait up!"
You turned around as he caught up to you, waiting for what he had to say.
"I was wondering if you'd want to—get dinner together tonight?" he asked. "I really like you."
He blushed a deep red after he blurted out the last sentence, and you had a feeling he hadn't meant to let that out so quickly.
"Sure," you said with a smile, realizing that perhaps finding someone to keep your cover was going to be easier than you'd originally thought. "I'll meet you at six?"
He nodded eagerly, seeming surprised that you'd said yes. "I—it's a date, is that okay?"
You chuckled a little. "Yes, that's okay. I didn't think it wasn't a date, don't worry."
His smile grew even bigger, if that was even possible. "Great!" he said loudly, garnering the looks of a few students passing by. "I'll see you at six!"
He turned and ran away, and you couldn't help but smile at how eager the Ravenclaw boy was. You felt almost the same, you did like Gordon's company. You just didn't know how you were going to have to break the news to him about who you really were—when that time inevitably came.
The rest of your classes were worlds easier than Defense Against the Dark Arts. Granted, they weren't easier because of the coursework, but because you didn't have to worry nearly as much about ending up chained to the wall in the Great Hall for hours on end, forced to stand against the wall for what felt like an endless amount of time as students filed in and out of the hall for dinner, trying not to look at you, but failing miserably.
You hurried back to your dorm room after your last class. It was 4:40, you had nearly exactly an hour and a half before you had to meet Gordon for dinner.
You sighed as you entered your room again, which caught Juniper's attention. She was sat at her desk as you entered, and she perked up a bit as you came into the room.
"Trouble in paradise?" she asked with a small smile. You gave her a confused look, and she clarified. "You sighed as you came in, is something up?"
"No, I'm okay," you replied hurriedly. "I just don't know what I'm going to wear to my dinner date this evening."
"Ooh, a dinner date!" said Juniper excitedly, hopping up from her desk immediately. "Who are you going with?"
"Gordon Buckling, he's a sixth-year Ravenclaw," you said, and Juniper nodded. Whether it was a nod of approval, you weren't quite sure.
"He's a character, alright," said Juniper, the corners of her mouth turning up in a smile. "He had the biggest crush on one of my friends, Marin, in second year, but she turned him down. The poor kid was devastated."
You felt your face get hot as you remembered the event. You couldn't believe you'd forgotten about it—and about Gordon.
"Ah, it was four years ago, though, I'd be surprised if Marin even still remembers it. She's dating someone in her own House now," Juniper said dismissively, running a hand through her bright red hair as she did so. "That isn't the point. What are you going to wear??"
You shrugged then. "I don't know, that was why I came back up to the room," you responded. "I figured either I'd find something or you could help me pick something out."
Juniper clapped excitedly. "Ooh, please let me help you!"
You smiled brightly at your roommate, feeling your heart sink as the knowledge that she had no idea who you really were popped back into your head. You felt like you were betraying your best friend; you only hoped she'd be able to forgive you once the truth inevitably came out in the end.
You pulled open your wardrobe, standing and staring at the vast array of colors. "This is a date, right?" Juniper asked as she pulled out a couple of more casual tops. "Like, the two of you clarified that before now?"
"Yeah," you breathed as she pulled a couple of pairs of jeans out of your drawers. "He used very specific wording when he asked me to do this."
Juniper chuckled, then turned back to you. "Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow. "You sound more like you're headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts than to a date."
You shook your head, trying to rid yourself of your self-deprecating thoughts of how you were lying to Juniper at the same time. "No, of course I do!" you said, trying to force yourself to sound more enthusiastic. "I'm just nervous, and today's been tiring. I don't want to screw this whole thing up."
Juniper nodded. "I get that," she said reassuringly. "It's a shame you had to transfer in this year," she admitted as she paired a couple of outfits together for you to choose from. "Our old headmaster got murdered, You-Know-Who is said to be back and gaining power, the school is pretty much being run by Death Eaters...I hope this whole thing isn't ruining your experience of Hogwarts."
You shrugged. "I've been alright so far," you said. "I'm just glad I have a friend like you to get through it with."
Juniper smiled, her eyes getting glossy. "I appreciate that," she said earnestly. "You remind me a lot of y/n, actually. She would've had more attitude though, I think. Not that you not having attitude is an issue. Y/N was just...so unafraid to speak her mind, you know? When she was dating Draco, that was part of why they fought so much, because she was constantly calling him out on his shit."
You chuckled. "She sounds like a feisty one."
Juniper nodded, and you could see the tears gathering in her eyes. "Yeah," she breathed, her voice shaky. "She was a fighter."
You couldn't handle Juniper's sadness anymore, so you turned to your bed, where Juniper had laid two different outfits out for you. One was a pretty blue blouse paired with white jeans, and the other was a deep green sweater, paired with light blue jeans.
You looked over your options, wanting to pick the blue one, but things hadn't gone well with Cedric when you'd worn blue to the Quidditch match. You picked up the green sweater and the jeans Juniper had put with them. "I like this one best," you decided, putting the sweater over yourself to see what it would look like against your skin.
"I think the green does fit your skin tone a little better," Juniper said, her voice a little steadier than it had been. "He'll love it."
You hurried to get dressed and do your hair, your conversation with Juniper having taken longer than you'd originally expected.
You ended up having to let Juniper fix your hair, and she used her wand to magically turn it from a frumpy mess into a silky head of ringlets, shining just right in the light as you turned your head back and forth.
"You're a lifesaver," you said as you grabbed your things to head down to the Great Hall. "I owe you one!"
You hurried down the stairs, but luckily you arrived to the Great Hall at precisely six o' clock. Gordon stood there waiting for you, and you met him just outside.
He wasted no time when you stopped in front of him, nearly breathless from running up the stairs. He took your hand, pressing a chaste kiss to the back of it, and led you inside the hall.
You sat at the Ravenclaw table, which you supposed was a good thing, considering you'd seen Blaise at the Slytherin table. And where Blaise was, Draco was almost always just a few feet away.
"How was your day?" Gordon asked. The poor boy clearly didn't know how to start a conversation.
You chuckled as your plate filled with food. "No offense, Gordon, but I hate small talk. Ask me something deeper than that, something a little darker."
To his credit, if Gordon was intimidated by your challenge, he didn't let it show. He sat in thought for a couple moments, then took a breath and leaned forward. "What's the worst choice you've ever made?"
You were almost floored. You'd only been asked that once before, in second year during a late-night game of Truth or Dare.
You considered your answer this time. The first thought you had was taking the Dark Mark, but you couldn't very well tell Gordon that.
"Honestly, it was probably staying with a boy I dated my third year after he cheated on me," you said after a few moments of thought. "I could've moved on a lot faster, and instead I stayed with him and he cheated again."
Gordon nodded, his expression solemn. "Yeah," he breathed. "Getting cheated on sucks."
You nodded. You felt bad for making up your answer since Gordon had apparently actually been cheated on, but Gordon decided to change the subject before you could think about it for too long.
"Okay then, what's the best choice you've ever made?"
You pretended to think for a moment. You already had a basic-bitch answer, but you wanted to seem like you did other things with your life.
"Coming to Hogwarts," you said finally. "I know I didn't really have a choice in the matter, but I'm glad I kept an open mind. I really like the friends I've made so far—and—" you took a breath before continuing, "I really like you, too."
Gordon lit up at your statement, and he reached out a hand to take yours. "I really like you too, Ravena," he said, his smile big and bright. You tried to return it, hoping it didn't look as forced as it felt.
You and Gordon talked throughout the rest of dinner, the conversation getting a bit lighter after your discussion over the first two questions.
As you exited the Great hall, Gordon turned back to you. "I'd walk you back to the dungeons, but I'm already late for a study group in Ravenclaw Tower," he said hurriedly, his face turning pink as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm sorry—I didn't set the time for it, I—"
"Gordon, it's okay," you breathed. You were more relieved that he couldn't walk you back, but you weren't about to say that out loud.
His eyes softened as he realized you weren't angry, and his easygoing smile returned.
"Okay, cool," he said quickly. "We should do this again, though, I really enjoyed spending time with you!"
You nodded then, trying to appear as if you were as excited as he was. "That sounds like a great idea," you said. "We can make plans after class on Monday."
He nodded in approval. "Sounds good. See you later, Ravena."
He turned around to head away, and you breathed a sigh of relief that it was over as you headed back down to the dungeons, beelining for Draco's room once you made it back to the Common Room.
Your self-proclaimed Slytherin Prince was waiting for you on his bed when you walked into the room, and his body visibly relaxed as you entered and shut the door behind you. He hopped up off of the bed immediately, coming over to you as you set your bag back down.
"She'll assume I sneaked into Gordon's room instead of coming back," you said, referring to Juniper. He nodded, still not saying a word as he reached around you to lock his door before wrapping his arms tightly around you.
"Gods," he breathed finally as you wrapped your arms around him in return. "That fucking sucked, watching you in the Great Hall with fucking Gordon. You were right, I wanted nothing more than to kick his stupid, crooked teeth in."
You exhaled heavily into his chest instead of verbally responding, instead choosing to soak in the attention Draco was giving you. You hadn't been able to receive anything like this for what felt like forever, and you didn't want to gloat over hearing him admit you were right for the first time since you'd gotten together.
But then he pulled away and took your hand to lead him to the bed, although you didn't argue.
You didn't want to think about Gordon for the rest of your life, but you knew that wasn't going to be feasible. You were going to have to see him in class literally the next day, so all you could hope for was forgetting him while you were in Draco's arms.
So when your white-haired Slytherin boy raised his wand to bring back your real appearance and his hands slipped up under your shirt, you put the Ravenclaw boy into a vault in the back of your mind and shut it tight.