After charms class, Esme slowly gathered her things, yawning.
She was tired. While she did sleep for most of the night, she spent most hours on the sofa and that wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep.
She was the last one to leave the classroom. She made sure she had everything and then threw the bag over her shoulder.
As she turned to walk down the corridor, she stopped.
George was leaning against the wall, waiting for her but when his eyes landed on her, he pushed himself off the wall and closer to her.
"Don't you have class?" Esme asked, pulling her hair out of the ponytail.
It was still a mess. She hadn't brushed it today so she just used her fingers while she waited for George to say something.
"I— I'd like to talk to you." He said. "If you have time."
"Well, I've got Defence Against the Dark Arts right now. I—"
Esme stopped talking when she saw her dad.
He entered through one end of the corridor, walking in one of his suits. He looked like he came here on his way to work.
"Dad?"
David looked towards the sound of his daughter, at the same time as George looked back.
"Hi sweetheart." David offered his daughter a smile.
"What are you doing? Where're you going?"
David reached the two teenagers, and he stopped walking for a quick chat with his daughter.
"I need to have a chat with Professor Umbridge." He said. "It'll be quick and then I'm off to work."
"Umbridge?" Esme asked. "What? Why?"
David let out a sigh and then shook his head. "Don't worry about that. What class are you heading to now?"
"Well, Defence Against the Dark Arts, but I'll take it she's going to be late?"
David shook his head.
"Wouldn't count on it. It won't take long." He pulled his daughter into a hug. "I'll come see you before I leave."
Esme didn't answer. She just nodded and then David turned towards George.
"It was nice seeing you, George."
"You too, Mr Night." George nodded and David smiled before he continued his way down the corridor, leaving towards the DADA classroom.
"Es?" George asked, trying to catch Esme's attention, but she tried figuring out what her dad wanted to talk to her teacher about. "About that talk? Could we..."
"What?" She looked at him. "Oh. Right... right. Can it wait? I really need to get to class. I don't want Umbridge to get mad. I can't do that right now."
"Es—"
But Esme has already made her way down the hallway, following after her father. She didn't want him to know she was following him.
David wouldn't tell his daughter the truth if she asked for it. He wouldn't tell her what he had to talk to Umbridge about.
He disappeared into the classroom and after a moment, Esme walked in.
Her dad wasn't in the room, but she could hear voices coming from Umbridge's office.
Esme snuck closer and carefully made her way up the stairs before leaning against the wall outside of the office, listening to the faint voices.
"She's sixteen years old. They are all kids, Dolores! What kind of sick person would enjoy torturing kids?!"
"Oh, David. I don't enjoy it, but it has to be done. I will have order at this school!"
"And Esme was preventing that?" David's voice was full of disbelief. "You stay away from my daughter. Don't punish her for the rejection you faced all of those years ago."
Umbridge laughed.
"This is about your daughter and her habit of misbehaving—"
"You made her friends watch! If Esme hadn't walked out of there, they would've been forced to watch her be tortured! Go near her and her friends again, and I will make your life miserable."
"How are you going to manage that? I—"
"You may be close to the minister, but I have many strings to pull and if you hurt one hair on my daughter's head, I will pull as many strings as I can. You won't like the result. Good day, Dolores."
Esme's eyes widened when she realised her dad was about to leave the office, and she didn't get to move before the door swung open.
David stepped out and his eyes landed on his daughter who stood there with wide eyes.
He didn't react. He shut the door and then took a step towards his daughter.
"Esme—"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I mean— I did but I was curious and—
She stopped talking and took a deep breath, then threw her arms around her father and hugged him.
David wrapped his arms around his daughter, hugging her back as tight as he could.
"Thank you." Esme whispered. She appreciated that he was here. She appreciated that he threatened Umbridge on her behalf.
"Let's go outside for a minute." David said, leading his daughter out of the classroom and onto the staircase. "You have Defence Against the Dark Arts now?"
Esme nodded.
"Alright. Try and stay out of her way, okay? And if she does find a way to give you detention, and if she hurts you, you write me and I will let hell loose on that woman."
Esme looked down at the floor, wanting to ask about the woman her dad was seeing.
"Are you sure you haven't regretted coming back here?" David asked, trying to catch his daughter's gaze. "We can do homeschooling, Es."
Esme shook her head.
"I want to be here. I want to finish school."
"You've got a year left. That's a long time."
"I know." Esme breathed. "But— I've got my friends for now and then— then I don't know."
David let out a sigh as he looked at the stairs where students were starting to walk up to get to class.
"You should join your classmates. You can't be late for class." He told Esme who looked up again.
He pulled his daughter in for a hug.
"I'll see you for Easter. Remember to write me if she hurts you. In the meantime, I'm going to file a complaint against her and hope someone looks into her."
"They probably won't." Esme scoffed. "The Ministry hired her. They're the reason she's here."
"I know." David nodded, placing his hands on his hips. "Now, get to class and I'll try getting her kicked out of Hogwarts."
Esme nodded and hugged her dad goodbye before he made his way down the stairs.
At the same time, Esme stepped towards the door, stopping when she heard her name being called.
She turned and smiled when she saw Elliott jog up the last few steps, pulling the door open.
He held it for her and Esme thanked him quietly before stepping in.
"Did you have a nice Christmas?" He asked as he walked next to her, deciding to slide into the seat next to the one that Esme sat in.
"I mean... it was alright." Esme shrugged. "You?"
Elliott nodded, a quiet him leaving his mouth, but he didn't say anything else about Christmas.
"So... you and Weasley." Elliott said and Esme's eyes widened slightly as she turned her head and looked at him.
"What?"
"Are you a thing?" He asked. "You and George?"
"Why are you asking me that?"
Elliott shrugged.
"I'm curious."
Esme scoffed.
"Well, we're not."