"My hair sucks!"
"Your hair is as beautiful as always, Layla."
"Liar!"
"I'm not lying! You look great!"
"Urgh!" Layla groaned loudly, burying her face inside her palms in frustration. "Out of all the days my Sleekeazy's hair potion could run out, it chose tonight to run out!"
"What's so special about tonight anyway?" Diana asked, rolling onto her stomach as she was laying in bed with her Charms book in hand. "It's just another Slugclub party. He invites the same people every Christmas. You've met them all already. You don't have to go if you don't want to."
Layla, however, didn't reply. What Diana didn't know was that it wasn't about the famous witches and wizards Layla was going to see tonight. It was about someone else; a blonde Gryffindor girl whom she had asked to the party as a friend.
"I can't go looking like this." Layla grudgingly pointed at her reflection in the mirror. "I absolutely can't."
Diana rolled her eyes and let out a sigh before closing her book and jumping off the bed, making her way toward the dormitory's door.
"Where are you going?" Layla asked with a frown, trailing her with her eyes.
"I'm going to shut your overdramatic arse up. Just wait here," Diana said, leaving the dorm and closing the door behind her.
She made a run out of the dungeons and up the Gryffindor tower, finally reaching the portrait of the Fat Lady in a panting mess. Not even her many years of Quidditch practice and exercising had prepared her for running this long distance in such a short time.
"Are you okay?" the Fat Lady raised an eyebrow at her.
"H — ello. I — want — talk to — Remus," Diana tried to say between her heavy breaths, with her hands resting on her knees and her cheeks flushed.
"Well, you can't go inside. Slytherins aren't allowed in," the Fat Lady said firmly.
"Can't you — can't you just visit another portrait inside the common room and then yell out Remus's name? I want to ask him for something. Please?"
"Fine." The Fat Lady rolled her eyes before disappearing out of her portrait. It took at least three minutes until she reappeared once again, and moments later her portrait door swung open.
Diana's expression brightened up the moment she saw Remus walking outside into the corridor.
"Hey." He smiled at her sweetly, chuckling when he saw her wheezed up hair and red cheeks. "Was there a running marathon I didn't know about?"
Diana grinned. "Believe it or not, I just came here to ask if James had any of his father's Sleekeazy's hair potion."
Remus laughed. He hadn't known what to expect from Diana's surprising visit, but this certainly was the last thing that could come to his mind.
"I'm not sure if he has any. Have you seen what James's hair looks like? There's no way that potion has ever touched his head," he said with a playful grin. "But I can still ask him if you want. His mum usually sneaks one bottle into his trunk every year in hopes that he would come to his senses and use it."
"He never does though, does it?"
"No, never." He chuckled again. "I'll go ask him now. I'll be back in a minute."
By the time Remus returned from inside the common room with the potion's bottle in his hand, Diana had finally managed to catch her breath. The bottle definitely looked unopened and untouched, obvious that James had not once used it in his life.
"There you go," said Remus, handing it to her. "What's so urgent about this, anyway?"
"Layla is freaking out because tonight's Slughorn's Christmas party and she just realized that she's run out of her hair potion," Diana explained.
"Oh..." A frown suddenly appeared on Remus's forehead and his face crumbled. It seemed as though a haunting thought had dawned on his mind.
"Everything okay?" Diana asked with concern.
"Yeah — everything's fine."
"Are you sure?"
Remus at last let out a breath, closing his eyes for a moment to gather his thoughts. "Can we — can we talk?"
Diana hesitantly gave a nod, her head filling up with worry, mind racing with all the possible things he could want to talk about. Although she had a good guess as to what it was, and she already dreaded it.
"Sure," she finally managed to say, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I'll walk you to the dungeons. We can go for a stroll around the grounds after you give Layla the potion," Remus suggested, and Diana said nothing in return to neither object nor agree to it.
In the odd silence of the castle, Remus and Diana walked side by side down the Gryffindor tower, not a single word exchanged between them until they reached the wall which was the entrance to the Slytherin common room.
"I'll give this to Layla and be back soon," Diana told him, the potion's bottle held in her hand. "I don't think it's safe for you to stay here all alone, though. With the Slytherins and all... Why don't you go out of the dungeons and wait for me in the entrance hall?"
Remus gave a determined shake of his head. "Don't worry about me, darling. I can take care of myself."
Diana didn't know which it was — the way he had called her 'darling', or the grave certainty in his voice that he could defend himself against the many vicious Slytherins who knew the Dark Arts — but she suddenly felt her stomach clenching.
"Right." She cleared her throat. "I'll be back soon."
As fast as she could, Diana ran up to the girls' dormitory after entering her common room, opening the door to their shared room. She found Layla pacing around in the dorm, already having her make up and dress on.
The moment Layla turned around and saw the bottle of Sleekeazy's hair potion in Diana's hand, her eyes widened. "How did you — oh, never mind! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You're my hero, Diana Greengrass!" She quickly ran forward and grabbed it from her.
Diana laughed lightly. "Glad I could be any help."
She turned around to leave, but Layla stopped her as she said, "Where are you going?"
Diana pursed her lips together, hesitating at the door. "Remus is waiting for me outside the common room."
The excitement in Layla's eyes slowly faded away. It was obvious she wanted to say something but was biting her tongue.
Diana sighed. "What's on your mind, Layla? Out with it."
"Well — it's just that —" Layla looked around the dorm cautiously, even though none of their other roommates where there. She then continued more quietly, "what about Rosier?"
"What about Rosier?" Diana retorted in a stubborn tone, even though she knew exactly what Layla was trying to say. She just didn't want to bring herself to accept the reality yet. She couldn't.
"Diana, sweetie, I love you, but —"
"I love you too. Can I go now?" Diana said in a playful manner, trying to get away before she could face this conversation. But Layla's stern gaze held her on the spot.
"You're engaged, Diana. To Evan Rosier," said Layla, walking toward her slowly and placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I know you love Remus, but —"
"Love? Who said I loved Remus? We don't — he doesn't either — we're just boyfriend and girlfriend," Diana quickly tried to say, her cheeks turning red.
Layla rolled her eyes. "Fine. Then I know you really like Remus, which is why I think the fact that you're still with him isn't a good idea. Rosier gave you until Christmas break to end things with Remus. And tomorrow we're all leaving Hogwarts and returning home for Christmas. Rosier threatened Remus's life, Diana."
"I know that, okay!?" Diana snapped at her, pulling back. "I know what is expected of me! I know I have to marry Evan as soon as I graduate this year! I know I have to break up with Remus! But I can't! Okay? I can't! I lo —" Diana stopped herself, shaking her head. She went on more calmly. "He means too much to me, Layla. And I can't face reality just yet. I just... can't."
Layla remained quiet, watching her friend with sympathy in her eyes, but she knew there was nothing she could tell Diana to make her feel better. Nothing could be said to possibly wash her problems away.
Diana managed to force a little smile at last. "Have fun at the party tonight. I'll see you later." With that, she left the dorm, her mind racing.