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"Cedric, I think we should talk."
The Hufflepuff boy, who was sat in the library with a friend of his, turned his head and Cassiopeia watched as his pupils shrank in fear.
"Cassie! Yes, of course. Where do you want to go?" he asked, and the girl resisted the urge to snap at him for his awkwardness.
"Oh, we can just find a quiet spot in here. It won't be a long conversation." she shrugged, before spinning on her heel and walking throughout the library.
The footsteps that followed hers could be heard almost instantly from behind her, slowing slightly as they neared the fourteen-year-old girl.
Cassiopeia, upon reaching a quiet area of the library, turned on her heel to face the Hufflepuff, her expression unreadable.
"Cass, I just- I'm so, so sorry. I know I put you on the spot, and now it's evident that you don't feel the same, it was... I dunno, a build up of emotions pouring out, I guess? Again, I'm really so-" the boy started stammering the moment his eyes met the Slytherins.
"It's fine, Cedric. I mean, it's a learning curve, isn't it? You'll grow from this, as will I. Just wanted to clear the air." she said calmly.
"Yes! Of course, clear the air. We need to do that. I don't want to, you know, not be friends with you, but I understand that you need time. I don't mind waiting for our walks to start again." Cedric spoke at a rapid pace, and Cassiopeia had to listen closely to understand what he was saying.
"I think you also need time, Ced. I don't want to go back to being friends with you if you're not over me. You need space just as much as I do."
Of course, the Malfoy couldn't care less for his presence in her life and would likely be happier without it. However, he was still a well-liked, respectable figure. It wouldn't be wise to build up resentment with one of the most affluent students at Hogwarts.
"Yeah, you're right. You're always right, Cassie, it's honestly quite impressive." the boy beamed at her and, for the first time in the conversation, Cassiopeia managed to smile back at him.
Nodding slightly, Cassiopeia went to walk off, however she could feel the Diggory boys amber eyes burning into the back of her skull, and therefore turned around to meet his gaze.
"I'll see you later, then?" she asked, beaming.
Blinking, Cedric managed to say "Later is good.".
And with that, the Slytherin girl had left the library, and her voice could be heard not a moment later, greeting a classmate. Cedric basked in the noise, for her knew he'd now only hear it in classrooms and corridors.
'Oh well. Maybe in the next life.'
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"Will your brother try out for the team next year, Cass?"
Sat on her leather throne by the roaring fireplace, the Slytherin Princess looked up from her book - 'Ulysses' - at the rather nervous boy who was towering over her.
By all accounts, she should've laughed.
"May I ask why, Higgs?" the girl probed.
"Well, it's just that, you know, I'll be leaving in July, and I've seen him flying in his classes. He's good." the boy shrugged, sitting on the nearby sofa.
Considering the fact that they have had their final Quidditch match, where Gryffindor unfortunately took the house cup, she could understand the boys paranoia.
Cassiopeia thought for a moment, sitting up in her chair and closing her book. "He is good. And I adore my brother, but I'm not sure if he'd compete well against Potter."
"Why not?" Higgs, ever the intellect, blinked.
"Draco has it out for the Potter boy, and I fear that if he were put on the team, his blind hatred would cost us the snitch on valuable occasions. Gryffindor have always been our primary competition, whether we like it or not. Maybe if he's able to see past it, I'll encourage him, but it's hard to say how he'd behave." Cassiopeia monologued.
"Right. Yeah, I can see that. And most people like Potter, so he gets a morale boost." Higgs nodded, sitting back.
The nearly eighteen-year-old boy sat in silence as the fourteen-year-old opposite him crossed her legs and thought to herself for a moment.
"I'll invite him along to our next practice. Not to play, but to watch. It might inspire him to play for the spot, rather in spite of Potter." she said wisely, and Higgs nodded.
"Yeah, sure, sounds good. Evening, Cassiopeia." the Quidditch Captain sat up, patting his teammate on the shoulder before strolling off to his dormitory.
"Evening, Higgs."
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"Stop pacing, Harry! I can hardly focus on what I'm doing!"
The bushy-haired, buck toothed Gryffindor who exclaimed this in frustration made eye contact with her friend, who stared at her for a moment before continuing to pace.
"Calm down, it's due in two weeks!" the ginger boy next to her proclaimed, rolling his eyes at the girls theatricality.
"Yeah, so you should get it out the way and hand it in early, and we have our exams in a month! You know, wouldn't hurt to have a good reputation with your professors, Ronald." Hermione huffed, not noticing how her scarred friend was getting more stressed by his friends bickering.
"Who says I don't have a good reputation?" he barked back, ignoring the looks that the other students in the library were giving the first-years.
"Well, if by good reputation you mean riding your brother's coattails..." Hermione started, and Ron's jaw dropped, but before he could retort, his best friend swivelled towards them, the frustration on his face evident.
"Can you two stop for at least five minutes?" he exclaimed.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, Harry, I know you're stressed, but the Defence Against the Dark Arts exam is in-"
"I'm not thinking about those. Why does my scar keep hurting? And that dog thing - Fluffy - is still upstairs. Surely, that has to be linked in some way." he said, and Hermione and Ron exchanged worried glances.
"You should really go to Madam Pomfrey, mate." Ron sighed.
"It's not an illness thing. I know that. It's just the scar." Harry said dully, before sitting down besides his two friends.
The trio sat in silence for a moment, even Hermione Granger being at a complete loss. This silence was broken, however, when a certain Slytherin girl appeared out of thin air and stood before them, a large book underneath her right arm.
"Afternoon, you three. You look rather... stressed." she said, before taking the seat next to Harry.
"It's just exam stress." Ron said quickly, too quickly. The Malfoy cocked an eyebrow.
"Really? Well, I suppose that sort of stuff is all expressed in different ways. Are you sure there's nothing else that's bothering you?" the girl asked, faux-concern laced in her speech.
Harry looked at Hermione, who shrugged passively and simply tried to avoid eye contact with the older girl, thinking back to their discussion several weeks ago. Ron, who was slightly more wary of the girl, didn't do anything at all. For the first time that day, he looked down at his work and began to write.
"Would you want to maybe walk and talk, Harry?" Cassiopeia suggested, and the boy nodded, gathering his stuff before leaving with the blonde girl.
"You still don't trust her? Not even after I had that conversation with her?" Hermione asked.
Ron shrugged. "The Malfoy's have a bad reputation, and for good reason. I just... I'm not sure."
"Still? You'll come around, Ronald, I'm sure of it."
"...Yeah, maybe."
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