asteria grey circa 1972
♢
November 1, 1972
1:30 pm
Unfortunately for Asteria, the Gryffindor Common Room was packed as her and Lily stepped in. Pomfrey had managed to easily heal the various cuts littering her arms, none of them being deep enough to cause any harm - she had simply massaged them with some dittany and bandaged them - but her hair was a different story. The Mediwitch had recently run out of the Hair-Growth potion - Slughorn would need to brew more, so until then, Asteria would be bald. She would have to come back in the morning, and drink the potion under Pomfrey's supervision to ensure that her hair wouldn't reach Rapunzel length.
"Nice hair, Little Lion!" Frank Longbottom called out from the corner of the common room, and Asteria stuck her tongue out at him. Subconsciously, she ran the tips of her fingers against the smooth scalp of her head. Once again, the anger and contempt she held for Mulciber burned brighter than anything ever had.
"Did you really break Avery's nose?" one of the Quidditch team's Chasers, Nico Bell, called out, regarding the blonde girl with a quizzical look.
"Maybe, maybe not," she said in response, before leaning over to Lily and whispering, "Blimey, news travels fast here."
"We heard Mulciber looked like a thousand bees attacked him," Ian Jordan, who was sitting with Bell, added, "By the looks of you, I'd say it's deserved. I'd kill a bastard if he got rid of my hair."
Asteria snorted, "Took everything in me not to."
From the corner of her eye, she could see the Marauders burst into laughter as they stared at her. Her eyes zeroed in on them, and she stalked over to them as she crossed her arms. "What are you all laughing at?"
They immediately sobered up, but both Peter and James still had an echo of a smile on their face. "N-nothing!" Peter exclaimed, but he couldn't help himself and both him and James started cackling again. "Can I - can I touch your head - it just looks so smooth."
Asteria glared at Peter. "I expected that of James, or Sirius, but not you," she shook her head, looking at him in exaggerated sorrow. "I thought what we had was special, Pete. Now you go ahead and betray me like this - truly, I'm hurt."
She held the sorrowful look for a few more moments, before both her and Peter dissolved into laughter. The four second years gathered around them stared at them in confusion, wondering what on earth was happening - usually, James and Sirius would be the ones acting out a Shakespeare play.
Peter stood up before immediately going down on his knees, clasping his hands before him, "My dearest Ria, her Holy Baldness, please forgive me."
Asteria stroked her chin for a moment, dramatically looking at Lily before turning back to Peter. Finally, she nodded, taking his hand and pulling him up to his feet. "All is forgiven, my loyal servant." She smiled, but her eyes narrowed as she walked up to him and whispered right into his ear, "Never ask to touch my smooth head again."
She backed away, going to stand by Lily, who was staring at her, blinking in confusion - the redhead's expression was matched by the remainder of the boys.
"Why pay to go see a play when you're friends with these bastards?" Remus said with a laugh, and Lily joined him as well. Though she felt a bit out of her element, Remus's presence seemed to quell her nerves a bit.
"So you won't let Pete touch your head... will you let me?" James finally piped up hopefully, but once again, Asteria sent him a scathing glare.
"Everyone stop asking to touch my head!" she yelled, her voice echoing throughout the entire Gryffindor Common Room. It fell silent for a moment, before everyone burst into laughter, and the poor blonde's face turned the colour of Lily's hair. "I hate you all." Grabbing Lily's hand, she began to stalk off in the direction of the girls' dormitory. Lily waved goodbye to Remus, graciously ignoring the other boys before following after Asteria with a small laugh. She was exhausted, and they hadn't even had lunch yet.
Of course, when they entered the dormitory, Marlene was still in there - sleeping. Mary and Dorcas had most likely gone for a walk around the lake, taking in the last few remnants of good weather before the harsh Scottish weather arrived. Asteria and Lily smirked at each other before they crept over to Marlene - making sure to remain completely silent. Asteria grabbed one of her quills from off her bedside table, while Lily grabbed a couple Pumpkin Pasties that Marlene had no doubt been munching on before bed and gently placed them in the sleeping girl's hand. Both of them bit their tongues to keep from laughing, before Asteria leaned over and tickled the spot right underneath Marlene's nose.
Nothing happened. They had clearly forgotten how deep of a sleeper Marlene was.
Asteria tickled her nose again, and finally she gave them the reaction they were looking for.
Subconsciously, she reached up and tried to itch her nose - only to be greeted with a face full of Pumpkin Pasties.
And yet, she didn't wake up. Instead, Marlene's mouth opened as the sweet fell down into her mouth, and she began to... chew... in her sleep.
"What the hell," Asteria deadpanned, staring at the girl who was eating in her sleep.
"You know, I feel like we should've expected this," Lily said, perching beside Marlene. "I kinda want to wake her up, but I feel bad-"
Asteria didn't wait for Lily to finish before she jumped onto Marlene. "WAKE UP!" she screeched, and Marlene's hand came up to collide with Asteria's head.
A large handprint was evident on Asteria's bald head.
Asteria's scream was finally enough to wake up Marlene.
"WHY IS DR EVIL IN MY BED-?!" Marlene yelled, her eyes unfocused, before she frowned and blinked a few times. "Why is - Erm, Asteria, why are you bald?"
"It's a new style choice," Asteria responded, before narrowing her eyes, "Who the bloody hell is Dr Evil?"
Marlene reddened. "Don't - don't worry about it," she offered her a sheepish smile, but Lily was holding back giggles behind her.
Asteria shook her head, once again subconsciously running her hand along her head. It was becoming increasingly more off-putting.
"You too bond over Dr Evil, I'm going to get lunch," she huffed, crossing her arms as she walked out in all her bald glory.
"Will someone explain to me why Asteria's bald?" Marlene turned to Lily, who was the only other person there.
Lily shrugged. "It's a long story."
♢
November 1, 1972
1:45 pm
Lunch was a rather interesting affair. Whispers, from all houses, followed Asteria as she took her spot beside Remus. Wearing a wig had occurred to her, but her hubris had stopped her - this was the result of a duel, one that she had won. A peek at the Slytherin table had shown Avery and Mulciber to still be missing, and she couldn't help a proud smile from tilting the corner of her lip up.
"You really sent two Slytherins to Hospital Wing, and came out without a scratch," Remus said, shaking his head, "Well, apart from your erm, lack of hair and the bandages - but you seem fine. What'd they do?"
Asteria took the praise in stride, but Avery's words still echoed in her head. "Called us cowards, called Lily the m-word. Were arses to Mags. Couldn't let that just pass, could I?"
"Again, remind me to never get on your bad side," James said, and Peter nodded in agreement.
Sirius remained silent, watching Asteria with a peculiar look on his face. They all seemed to be waiting for him to say something, as Sirius was rarely one to remain silent when Slytherins were involved; and yet, his eyes had a faraway look to them, and if one focused hard enough, they could see him glancing over at the Slytherin table - to where his brother was sitting.
But before he could say anything, an owl with inky black feathers appeared, carrying an emerald letter so dark it looked black in its claws. Asteria's breath hitched - the owl dropped the letter before her then promptly flew away, not waiting for a response. James and Peter had returned to their conversation, Sirius was still staring off, so Remus was the only one who watched Asteria open the letter with horror clearly evident on her face.
"They work fast," she muttered to herself, but Remus heard.
Her eyes skimmed over the words, and as she did so, the horrified look turned into something much worse, much deeper - pure, unsullied fear. Without saying another word, Asteria shoved the letter into her robes and ran out of the Great Hall.
It was only at that that Sirius snapped out of whatever daze he'd been stuck in. He looked at Remus with furrowed brows. "Where'd she go?"
"Don't ask me," Remus answered, but his concern matched Sirius's. "She got some letter and immediately ran off - oh, shite, it was her parents wasn't it?"
Remus's mind worked quickly. He gathered the books he had spread out on the table and stood up, but Sirius was quicker. He bit his lip hesitantly, before shrugging at Remus. "I'll, erm, I can go talk to her."
Though Remus was uncertain, he remembered what he, Lily and Asteria had talked about at the lake only a few weeks ago. Despite Remus's efforts, he could never understand what went on behind the closed doors of Grey Manor. Sirius could.
"Go on, then."
Sirius nodded, before running out.
And of course, James and Peter were none the wiser.
He found her curled up against the wall, safely concealed behind a crook. Her knees were drawn up to her chest, face hidden - and though it was clear she was experiencing some emotional turmoil, Sirius couldn't help but bark out a laugh at her bald head. Startled, Asteria looked up, wiping her tears away to make sure he couldn't see them - but of course, he did. He immediately stopped laughing, before tentatively walking over and taking a seat beside her. The letter was crumpled on the floor, but he could make out a few words: "regret it... christmas break... disgrace..."
He stayed silent for a moment, before his hand slowly creeped over to the letter. "Can I?" he asked quietly, waiting for Asteria's response. She nodded.
Asteria Phaedra Grey,
It has come to our knowledge that you have received not one, but two detentions in the two months you have been at Hogwarts. Are you not ashamed of yourself? We have raised you to be better than this. Attacking the Avery boy, hexing the Mulciber boy - you are an absolute disgrace to our name. You are older now, you must know what is acceptable and unacceptable. We had hoped you had grown out of this ridiculous phase you are in, but evidently that is not the case. You will regret your behaviour when you come back for Christmas Break.
You will apologise to Mulciber & Avery immediately. And if you misbehave, if we get any more letters -- your life will only worsen.
Perseus Grey
He inhaled sharply, and Asteria was suddenly glad it was him out here with her and not Remus or Lily or anyone else. To them, it would seem like an ordinary letter from a disappointed parent; the words you will regret your behaviour would suggest a light smack on the hands, but Asteria knew what it really meant. Sirius knew what it really meant.
Asteria was getting older, and her punishments would exacerbate accordingly. She was absolutely, wholly terrified of going home. But she had no choice. Her parents would drag her back to Grey Manor against her will.
"Asteria..." Sirius started, but his voice trailed off as he realised he had no clue what to say.
They were only twelve, why did they have to worry about going home?
They were only twelve, why did they have to fear their parents?
They were only twelve.
"It's fine," Asteria said softly, taking a shaky breath. "I just, erm, I'm just gonna stay out of trouble. Out of sight out of mind, yeah?"
"You shouldn't have to," he said, "you're just having a little bit of fun-"
"Yeah, fun," Asteria scoffed, shaking her head. She brought her knees closer to her chest. "Fun isn't worth this. Fun isn't worth my parents - Merlin, I don't even know what they'll do. You saw what they said - I'm older now - and if it's getting worse - they already -"
Her words came out in phrases, nothing making sense as her mind raced faster than her mouth could even move.
"I-" once again, the boy found himself at a loss for words. With a resolved look on his face that seemed to say "get over yourself, Sirius" he leaned forward and embraced Asteria. She stiffened up at first, not used to physical contact with him - before leaning her head on his shoulder and closing her eyes, focusing on her breathing. They sat there for what seemed like hours, just him holding her while she tried her best not to cry or think about Christmas. There was just over a month left - a month of safety, of solace, of happiness.
Finally, he broke the silence, pursing his lips as he thought of the right thing to say. "I'm right here, Ria. None of us are going anywhere. I - I'm not going anywhere."
Asteria looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Look at you, being all nice," she tried to joke, before remembering the so-called mission she'd had in mind. "The same goes for you. You've been acting weird for the past two months. I can tell - I know something more happened over the summer that you're not telling anyone." She looked pointedly at his other shoulder, as if to prove her point.
His face suddenly hardened, all traces of whatever kindness he had exhibited moments earlier disappearing. "I've got no idea what you're talking about," and yet, as Sirius spoke, he subconsciously shrugged his shoulder and grimaced; though it had been two months, his shoulder still seemed rather sore.
"You've been avoiding me - don't even try to deny it - I won't stop till you talk."
"There's nothing to talk about," he said, standing up with an annoyed look on his face. "Keep your nose out of other people's business."
"I would, except you're not just other people - you're my friend, Sirius," the letter momentarily forgotten, Asteria stood up and faced him. She crossed her arms resolvedly, not budging. "So, tell me-"
"Bugger off, you're just trying to change the subject so you don't have to talk," Sirius snapped, narrowing his eyes, "You always listen to other people, and yet when someone tries to talk to you about your own issues, you never do! It's a bit hypocritical, really."
"That's not true-"
"Really? I'm out here because you started crying because of a letter from your parents, and somehow you've managed to switch this over to me-"
"Well maybe it's 'cause I don't wanna talk about it! Maybe because if I don't think about it, it's not real-"
"See, hypocrite!" Sirius threw his hands up in the air. "Have you ever considered that other people do the same thing? You're all about talking, talking, talking, but sometimes people don't want to talk, Asteria! Sometimes people just want to forget about their shite home lives when they're in the one place they feel safe."
"Stop calling me a hypocrite!" Asteria said hotly, but before she could continue, Sirius cut her off-
"If you'd stop being one, maybe I would."
"Well, so-orry that I care about you, then!" she shot back, stepping closer and narrowing her eyes. "Sorry if I don't want my friends to suffer in silence - sorry I've suffered alone my entire life and I don't want anyone to ever experience that - because it's not fun, Sirius! It sucks so much and I wish I had someone there and I just - I want to be there for people and it's not bloody fair that you're getting mad at me when I just wanted to help."
"Oh come on, stop acting like you're the only person that's ever felt alone. News flash, so did I! So has every other pureblood kid, but you don't see the rest of us being bloody annoying and forcing people to talk about stuff they really don't want to! I don't want to talk about my shit, especially not to you!"
Asteria, for once in her life, was struck silent. She gaped at him, a look of pure hurt bubbling up in her eyes as her eyebrows slowly furrowed. Maybe he was right - maybe, despite her good intentions, she was going about it the wrong way. She'd considered dropping the subject, just for a second, and then he said that last sentence. Her mouth remained open, no words to describe the confusion she was feeling.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked softly, tilting her head, but with fire in her eyes.
For a moment, she caught a glimpse of regret flit across Sirius's eyes, but it was quickly gone, replaced by a stone expression.
Both had failed in their original missions - Sirius, to calm Asteria down and make her forget about her parents, and Asteria, who planned to confront Sirius about everything she hadn't had the chance to since the train. His strange behaviour their first night back, which only got stranger as the months went by. His incredibly hot and cold moods; one moment he'd be completely fine, before he got that same faraway look in his eyes again and disappeared into his own world for hours.
In truth, she didn't even know what they were fighting about. But the way he had begun to yell at her had caused her heart to jolt and tears to well up in her eyes unwillingly; loud noises, particularly yelling, had begun to garner an unpleasant reaction from Asteria.
Sirius's glare suddenly lessened as he looked over her. "Nothing," he finally said, before he grinned teasingly. "It's very hard to take you seriously with a bald head."
Asteria's blood began to boil. She gaped at him, mouth opening and closing with no words coming out. Here they were, trying to have a serious conversation - and of course he had to make a joke out of it. Of course Sirius Black could never take anything she - or anyone else - said seriously.
She clenched her jaw. "Don't ever talk to me again, you git," were the last words she said before she promptly stomped away, stuffing the crumpled letter into her pockets - to burn later, surely.
Sirius watched her walk away, before turning around to kick the wall as soon as she disappeared. His parents were a sore spot; every time they were brought up, something seemed to possess him - turning him into the worst possible version of himself, saying things he didn't even mean. He could see where Asteria was coming from, but something about her caring rubbed him the wrong way.
He was too afraid to let her find out the truth.
What if she became disgusted by him? What if she hated him?
He kicked the wall again.
♢
November 4, 1972
9:00 am
"I should be out there," Asteria kept repeating as she got dressed, throwing on her typical Quidditch fan attire. Fortunately, Slughorn had managed to brew the Hair-Growth Potion and her hair was finally back to normal. She spent an extra five minutes in front of the mirror, running her fingers through her hair as she revelled in the feeling of it being back. "The things I would do to beat a Bludger right now."
Marlene widened her eyes at those words, slowly creeping over to where Asteria kept her collection of bats and standing before them as a human shield.
"You'll make it on the team next year, I know you will," Lily reassured her, but Asteria continued to frown. She was still peeved off from her row with Sirius only a few days ago, and her friends could tell something much more recent than the summer was bothering her - she hadn't celebrated Sirius's birthday with the boys yesterday, and had been avoiding seeing them as a group as of late (Remus, of course, was the exception; him, Lily, and Asteria still spent hours at a time in the library working on homework or reading). Given her history with Sirius, they could all tell her nasty mood had something to do with him.
"I'm afraid for Hogwarts if she doesn't," Mary laughed, but she stopped moments after upon seeing the unimpressed look on Asteria's face.
"I have no doubt that you'll be our beater next year, Asteria," Dorcas chimed in, combing her hair as she watched the chaos unveil before her. She was always the more silent one, constantly with Marlene, but offered her own input every now and then.
"Thanks," Asteria said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. She sighed and threw on her hat and scarf, before turning to face the rest of her friends. "Are you ready? I want to make sure we get good seats."
The girls all nodded, following Asteria - though Lily tried to guide them to the Great Hall for breakfast, Asteria insisted they could always eat later. It was too early in the morning to argue, so Lily simply agreed. Besides, a part of her could tell Asteria was much more eager to get to the stands than usual.
The reason became clear when Sirius arrived with Remus and Peter. Asteria made sure to stand as far as she could from the dark-haired boy, surrounding herself with the girls (after casting an apologetic look in Remus's direction). Mary stood to her left, Marlene to her right, while Lily and Dorcas looked on at the field half-interested. They would spend the majority of the match talking amongst themselves, only cheering when Gryffindor scored.
Ian Jordan was the commentator once again, and he began with a loud whoop! into his wand that almost caused McGonagall to kick him out.
A loud whistle from Hooch declared the game officially begun.
"Welcome to the first Quidditch game of the season!" Jordan started, and the stands erupted into cheers, Asteria among the loudest. From beside her, she could hear Sirius cheering as well, and so she screamed louder, wanting nothing more than to one-up him.
"Anddd the Quaffle is thrown into the air - Grey immediately grabs it, flying towards Weasley - who blocks it just barely with his foot - the Quaffle is grabbed by new Chaser James Potter-"
At that, the Gryffindor stands where the second years stood burst into loud cheers - Asteria and Sirius cheering loudest of all, each trying to outdo the other and glaring at each other as they did so.
"Potter makes his way across the field - look at the way he avoided that Bludger! Suck it, Montague - sorry McGonagall - and he's getting in position, he shoots - BOOO! Slytherin Keeper Carrow blocks the shot - yes, okay, I'll try to be impartial - and the Quaffle is back in Slytherin's hands, Flint is making his way back to the goals - ugh, Slytherin scores. 10-0."
Asteria's mood was slightly lifted by Jordan's narration, his blatant bias towards the Gryffindors evident. Her house pride soared, and she watched with clenched fists and wide eyes every time the Quaffle was stolen, or Wood made an excellent save with his little bat. His ankle seemed to have healed marvellously, and he snuck in a little wave to her every time he got close enough to the stands. Asteria beamed at the positive attention - while the rest of the girls, save for Dorcas, stared at her with wide eyes.
"The things I'd do to be in your position," Marlene whispered under her breath after Wood sent a genuine, heart throbbing smile in Asteria's direction.
Asteria gently smacked Marlene's shoulder. "Oh, shut up."
"No no, she's right," Mary joined in, staring at the Beater with dreamy eyes. "He's gorgeous. Why don't they make boys like that in our year?"
"He's too old!" Asteria protested, scrunching up her nose.
"I like 'em old," Marlene joked - but Asteria wasn't even sure it was a joke.
The game seemed to drag on for hours, both teams equally matched in skill. Asteria's voice soon became hoarse, and she had to rely on clapping whenever James made a fantastic score.
And then the Slytherin Seeker, a seventh year by the name of Oryx Selwyn, dove to the ground. Macmillan plunged down after him, her hands wrapped tight around her broomstick - it was a race to see who could catch the Snitch first, and no one could tell who was winning. Not even Jordan.
"Selwyn seems to have spotted the Snitch, he's closely followed by Macmillan - oh? Oh shite, look at that manoeuvre! You all know where my loyalties lie - Gryffindor, obviously - but that was the grooviest thing - OH MY MERLIN, HE'S GOT THE SNITCH! When the fuck did he get it - right, sorry McGonagall. Damn, I guess Slytherin wins: 270-110. Go Slytherin."
The race for the Snitch had ended as quickly as it had started. Fiona Macmillan could be seen standing on the field, broom in hand, the most perplexed look on her face. She had been tricked - Selwyn had faked seeing the Snitch, dived for it, then pulled his broom back up at the last minute to catch the Snitch, which had been mere metres behind Macmillan. Asteria couldn't imagine the frustration that the girl was no doubt experiencing.
"You know, it was Potter who scored the most," Marlene remarked as they dejectedly descended the stands and made their way back to the castle. Typically, Asteria would've waited for James to get out of the changing rooms; but, staying behind meant having to wait in the same vicinity as Sirius, so Asteria decided she'd wish James a great game back in the common room.
"I think he was the only reason we didn't lose that bad," Mary added.
"They didn't make him Chaser for no reason," Asteria grinned, proud of her friend for making the team despite her lack thereof.
"Oh, Merlin, his head's gonna double in size when he hears this," Asteria heard Lily whisper to Dorcas behind her, and the two girls erupted into giggles. Although Asteria was close to admonishing Lily for saying so, part of her knew her friend was right - James really wouldn't shut up about being the Chaser who'd scored the most.
The five girls slowly made their way back up to the common room, slowed down by laughter and reminiscing of the best parts of the match. Even Lily and Dorcas, who were rather disinterested in the whole game, joined in. At some point, Asteria and Marlene found themselves reenacting the Snitch being caught - Asteria was Selwyn while Marlene was Macmillan - both getting completely immersed in the role to the point of diving to the ground. Mary, Lily, and Dorcas broke out into laughter, particularly when Marlene miscalculated how far she was and ended up landing right on top of Asteria.
"Gerroff!" Asteria yelled, trying to push Marlene off of her, but she was interrupted by Mary yelling-
"Group hug!" and crash landing on top of Marlene. Soon enough, the five girls were stacked on top of each other, with Asteria being at the bottom. One wrong move, and the girls would find themselves rolling down the hill; they tried to keep their squirming to a minimum, not wanting to roll around in the mud that had resulted after the previous day's rain.
"What in the absolute hell am I looking at?" a voice dragged all five girls' attention away from each other and to the stranger, who turned out to be none other than Remus.
"Remus!" Lily exclaimed, from her spot way on top. She'd gotten lucky, unlike Asteria, who was stuck on the bottom.
"Can't - breathe -" Asteria managed to mumble out, and Remus squatted down so he could try to spot her through the amalgamation of bodies.
"Lils, I think Ria's suffocating," Remus remarked with a chuckle, and Lily rolled her eyes before finally, finally getting off. The rest of the girls followed, and Asteria was finally able to take a big long breath in.
"I hate you," the blonde girl said to Mary, who only smiled innocently. Then she turned to Remus. "Where're the rest of 'em?"
Remus shrugged. "Still down on the pitch. Apparently Pete found a way to break into the kitchens; they were discussing a way to sneak down there and steal some snacks to celebrate James's first game. I figured I'd catch up with you."
"Break into the kitchens?" Asteria's eyebrows raised in surprise. "They'll have to show me how, at some point. I can't keep relying on chocolate frogs as my midnight snacks."
"Please, as if you could ever get sick of them," Marlene winked. "I hear you unwrapping at least five every night - at this point, I fall asleep to the crinkling."
"Shut up," Asteria stuck out her tongue, before leading the way to the castle. "Ergh, I've got dirt all over me - Mary, this is all your fault."
"Oh don't act like that wasn't fun," Mary said.
"I couldn't breathe," Asteria responded, and the five of them burst out into laughter. "Yeah, yeah, laugh at my pain. Whatever."
"Merlin, Gryffindor's full of drama queens," Dorcas observed. "As if I don't get enough from Marls."
"I am not that dramatic!" Marlene defended herself, and her company froze to give her the same exact pointed look. "You're all so mean to me - What did I ever do to you? Do you want me to drop dead - oh, alright, I hear it now."
Asteria had forgotten how much she loved spending time with her girls. Since her return to Hogwarts, she'd mostly seen people in groups of two or three; either Remus and Lily, or the boys altogether, but never her girls only. Granted, Remus was there too - but at this point he was an honorary member of them, just like she was an honorary member of the Marauders (or at least, she considered herself one). It was hard to dislike the boy. He had much too pure of a heart, and could genuinely get along with anyone. Even the Slytherins refused to mess with him, or maybe that was because they knew either James or Asteria would go after anyone who hurt their friends. It paid off, being known throughout the entire school for her short temper and fierce loyalty.
They mingled around the common room for a bit, before James appeared with Peter and Sirius in tow. Each one had their arms laden with food, dropping them dramatically onto one of the coffee tables with a loud exhale. Asteria sent a glare in Sirius's direction, and he sent one in hers. The girls noticed and formed a makeshift human barrier between the two, making sure to keep them on opposite sides of each other the whole time.
But it seemed that even being in the same region as each other was enough to aggravate them. Almost simultaneously, Asteria and Sirius stood up and marched up to their dormitories, but not before exchanging heated looks and throwing a muffin - it was Sirius who'd thrown the muffin, of course.
"You're so bloody immature!" Asteria exclaimed from the bottom of the stairs.
"I'm the one who's immature?" Sirius yelled back, narrowing his eyes.
"You threw a bloody muffin at me?!"
"Yeah, well, you're the one who's been sending me dirty looks since I walked in! With food, might I add, one might think you'd be thankful!"
Marlene leaned over to Mary, who was sitting right next to her. "I feel like I'm watching a soap opera."
"Oh, I am so sorry your Royal bloody Highness!" Asteria threw her hands up in frustration. "Maybe if you apologised for being an arsehole you wouldn't have to bribe me with food!"
"I've got nothing to apologise for! If anything, you should be the one," Sirius snapped back. Asteria's nostrils flared.
"Really? And what do I have to be sorry for?"
"For-"
Asteria cut him off, "That's right, nothing! I don't wanna see your stupid face until you say sorry!" and with that, she stomped up the stairs. Sirius let out a string of mumbling under his breath before retreating to his own dormitory - the sound of two doors slamming was synchronous.
"Damn, who needs a telly when you have those two?" Remus shook his head.
"Does anyone even know what they're fighting about?" Lily asked, furrowing her brows in concern.
Everyone shrugged in sync.
"Eh, they'll get over it in a week," Peter said, completely unbothered as he shoved a scone into his mouth.
✧･ﾟ*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
a/n: our first couple fight!! so cute <3
also guys im struggling w making a cover so if someone wants to make one for me pls go ahead (im begging) (guys pls)
OK ENJOY!