♫ feels like we only go backwards
- imaginary future
"i got my hopes up again, oh no, not again,
feels like we only go backwards, darling..."
✧
When Cedric found out about Cho's condition the next morning, Priscilla could tell right away. Even though he was hungover, in between making sure she was eating well and feeling okay, he didn't say hello to Cilla and even sent her a few cold looks across the Great Hall. Nitara sat on the other side of Cho, feeling awkward and small.
Priscilla's heart sank when she realized how upset it had made him. She had thought she was doing the right thing when she lied to him at the party, but now it was clear that it was anything but.
It was starting to feel like it did with her Ilvermorny friends all over again.
Priscilla was stuck sitting next to Draco at the Slytherin table the next morning, where he acted even cockier than usual now that he landed a date to the Yule Ball. Pansy kept trying to figure out why he was so happy, hungry for gossip, but he refused her advances, stating simply she'd have to wait and see. Priscilla was absolutely grateful for it. She thanked Merlin that Draco agreed to keep their date to the Yule Ball a secret until Christmas day.
Her mind kept going back to Fred, but why should he care in the first place? They weren't together or official in any sense. They were on the same page, or at least that's what she kept telling herself. She tried to push down the wave of guilt with some more breakfast food, but not even her favourite, potatoes, were helping her nerves.
She had to keep her eyes trained on her plate when the twins entered the hall. She was so scared she or Draco would give themselves away. The twins were cheering along with the rest of the party-goers, clearly not caring much about the detention they were likely both forced with.
"Pathetic," Draco mused. "Right, Priscilla?"
"Yeah," she said half-assed.
"We could throw a waaaaay better party," Blaise announced, puffing his chest. Pansy nodded, liking the idea.
Priscilla exchanged a glance with Adrian and Cassius, who were looking a little green at the idea of another party. The fire whiskey didn't leave them feeling all that great this morning.
How would they know? They weren't even there, Priscilla thought, biting back a retort out loud.
"What about booze?" Crabbe asked.
"Easy, you and Goyle go in the kitchens and wring those stupid little elves by the neck until they give you some," Draco laughed.
Cilla almost broke then. She started to cough as if she had choked on her orange juice when she heard Draco's comment. Thank Merlin Hermione wasn't in earshot, or Draco would've had hell to pay.
She looked over at the Hufflepuff table over her glass, and Nitara was wearing a very similar expression to her own. Miserable.
It was about time she tell Nini about her plan.
✧
Priscilla spent her day studying alone in the library, in no mood for any human interaction. She had a practical coming up for Defence Against the Dark Arts and a decent stack of parchment to do for Transfiguration. Luckily, no one approached her where she sat in the back corner of the library as she worked through lunch.
Later that evening, she realized another reason why she was in such a sour mood that day.
American Thanksgiving was tomorrow, and there was still no word from her parents.
At Ilvermorny, Thanksgiving was an event as big as Christmas, if not bigger. The food would practically overflow the tables at their feast, and a play would always be performed at the end of the festivities with the real history of the holiday, including its magical details, which was always her favourite part.
Nitara noticed how down Priscilla was at the dinner table that night with a frown. She leaned across the table and linked Cilla's pinkie finger with hers.
"I know how hard tomorrow must be for you, Cilla. How about we cheer you up a bit, yeah? Any targets this evening? Malfoy, maybe?" she asked.
Cilla shook her head. "I have bigger plans for that asshole," she looked over at the Gryffindor table to see poor Neville hold back tears. "Maybe we can cheer Neville up a bit," she suggested.
Nitara nodded, smiling fondly in agreement. "Sounds perfect."
They walked over to the wall behind the Gryffindor table, trying their best to go undetected. Sir Nicholas gave them a quizzical look but carried on with his business anyway.
Neville was sitting next to Hermione, Harry, Ron, and two boys named Seamus and Dean while trying not to cry into the plant in his hands. Hermione was going on about the previous night's events with the boys. She was scolding the group for going, while also complaining about the taste of gin that still hasn't left her mouth.
"Oh shut it, Hermione, you looked like you were having a bloody fantastic time with Krum," Ron spat, which prompted her to yell at him about his antics with the Beauxbaton's girls. It was true, he was just as guilty as her.
Nitara took her wand out of her pocket and signalled Cilla that she was ready. Upon seeing the signal, Cilla conjured the herbivicus charm with a flick of her wrist. Neville nearly leapt out of his seat upon seeing his plant share the soil with something new, sprouting up slowly. A bud formed, and as it began to open, Nitara waved her wand, conjuring a piece of chocolate inside the bud as it bloomed into a beautiful pink flower.
It wasn't much of a prank, but it made Neville lighten up considerably. He wiped the tears from his eyes and looked around with a smile. When he saw Nitara and Priscilla looking at him, he picked up the chocolate and smiled gratefully with an awkward little wave.
"He's too sweet for his own good," Nitara joked.
Priscilla nodded with a smile.
Fred had watched the entire thing happen from where he sat, resting his chin on his hand with a dreamy expression on his face.
"We've lost him, folks," George joked, waving his hands in front of his brother's eyes, who didn't budge a bit. Angelina and Lee laughed at the scene.
✧
On Thanksgiving day, Priscilla sat in her Defence Against the Dark Arts class, trying to think of ways to get out of the Slytherin common room party that night. Her practical had gone well, and she was waiting for the other students to wrap theirs up before the class was through.
Earlier that day, Cedric hadn't sat next to her in Charms. The guilt she felt had carried her sour mood throughout the day. She honestly wasn't sure she had much to give thanks for this year.
If there was a class that she excelled at more than the others, however, it was Defence Against the Dark Arts. Moody actually encouraged her use of wandless magic, making it quite easy for her to produce spells in class without having to fumble around with her wand. He seemed quite fascinated with her abilities, always asking her to demonstrate without her wand for the class whenever he taught something new. She tried not to let it get to her head too much, but it did feel great to be praised like that.
Suddenly, the doors of the classroom opened, making Moody pause the practical in progress. McGonagall walked in the room with a smile on her face. "Professor Moody, might I borrow Ms. Roberts?"
Moody shrugged with a grunt and continued on with the practical. Priscilla stood up and scrambled to grab her things.
Once the Professor led her into the hallway, Priscilla broke the silence. "Teach, I haven't done anything... recently. Have you asked Peeves? He's been looking suspicious lately. I have nothing to do with those slugs -"
"What slugs?" McGonagall said, whipping her head around.
Priscilla blinked at her professor in surprise. "If it's not about the slugs then... why are we out here?"
McGonagall gave her a knowing look before continuing down the hall towards the Headmaster's office. Once they reached the stairwell, Priscilla stood on the bottom step and she was brought up towards Dumbledore's office. Before disappearing to the top, she bid McGonagall goodbye with a small defeated wave.
Great, now what? she thought to herself. Maybe it was news about her parents. Maybe it actually was about the slug! Or maybe she was expelled, and this would all be like one big dream.
Once she stepped into the Headmaster's Office, her eyes went wide.
Nitara, Fred, George, Ginny, Harry, Ron, Neville, Adrian, Cassius, and even Cedric and Cho were standing around a large table with a huge decadent turkey on it, with stuffing, cranberry sauce, and all the fixings. Dumbledore was there too, smiling at her fondly.
"We thought we'd bring Thanksgiving to you," Nitara said with a smile and a loyal glint in her eyes.
George laughed. "Brilliant, we made Cilly cry."
"Shut up, George," Ginny snapped.
✧
♫ ob-la-di, ob-la-da
- the beatles
"la-la, how the life goes on..."
✧
Priscilla hastened to wipe away her tears, trying to make sense of the scene before her. "How did you? What? And Cedric? I thought -"
"I convinced him to come," Cho interrupted. She smiled at Priscilla as she wrapped her arm around his. "I knew he'd give himself a hard time for missing yer Thanksgiving." It was the first time Cho had ever shown her a true kindness. Perhaps getting publicly wasted in the forbidden forest humbled her a bit.
Priscilla tried to ignore how quickly Harry's smile faded at the sight.
"It's true, and about the other night," he turned around to look at Dumbledore for a moment, who gave him a knowing look. "I forgive you. I know you meant well... besides, it's hard to stay mad at you."
"Thanks, Ceddie, I'm sorry it happened in the first place," she said, relieved. "Fred, George, Neville, I thought you had detention?" Cilla asked.
Fred smiled and pulled out a chair at the head of the table for her. "That's why we're eating early, love."
"On a bit of a time crunch, though," George joked, pointing at a fake watch.
"Can we eat?" Ron asked aloud on que, his hand on his stomach as it rumbled. Ginny smacked him in the arm for being rude, making Cilla laugh. She walked over to her seat and sat down.
"I can't wait to try American food!" Cassius exclaimed, Adrian nodding excitedly beside him. He reached for the turkey-shaped gravy boat and looked at it curiously.
"Did you guys cook this?" Cilla asked, looking at the feast in front of her with awe.
Nitara shook her head. "No, we decorated the office, though! The house-elves did the cooking. That's why... Hermione isn't here."
Dumbledore walked across his office to the door, waving goodbye as he headed to the stairs. "Professor? You're not joining us?" Harry asked.
He shook his head with a smile. "From what I understand, Thanksgiving is a meal best spent with loved ones. Please, enjoy your meal."
✧
Once everyone was seated and comfortable at the table, Priscilla cut the steaming turkey with a wave of her hand and showed everyone her "perfect plate" of Thanksgiving food. Turkey and mashed potatoes with gravy, lots and lots of stuffing, cauliflower bake, cranberry sauce, and veggies. Following in her lead, everyone else began to load up... Ron perhaps a little too much. His plate was practically overflowing.
"This is bloody fantastic!" Ron exclaimed with a mouth full of food, resembling a chipmunk. "You think Mum can make this back home?"
Ginny looked at him with disgust and threw a napkin in his face. "If you're lucky, you pig."
Nitara, unfortunately, couldn't try any of the turkey as she was raised vegetarian, but thoroughly enjoyed everything else that was meat-free.
Fred and George reminded Cilla of toddlers as they tried to make a mash potato volcano, using their wands to make the gravy erupt out of it. She could only imagine how many times their mother had to tell them not to play with their food growing up. Fred put a little too much oomf into his spell, causing a big splotch of gravy and potatoes to go right into Neville's face, making everyone, including Neville laugh. With a gentle hand, Ginny wiped his cheek of the gravy with her napkin, making Neville blush.
Priscilla talked about Ilvermorny's Thanksgiving feast and how it was her favourite time of the year. She talked about the plays they used to put on, and the hike up and down the mountain they would do as a school. "The Tribes had the strongest magic in the Americas because of their connection and respect to the lands and waters," Cilla explained. "They never used wands and practiced magic solely with their hands and bodies, and that's how we learned magic at Ilvermorny," she wiggled her fingers, referencing her affinity for wandless magic.
"If thats true and there's even more food at your old school," Cassius said in between bites, "we outta be transferring there, Adrian."
"Right you are, Cass," Adrian nodded, cranberry sauce running down his chin.
Cho giggled at the sight, covering her mouth with her hand so no food would come out, making Nitara and Cedric laugh at her reaction.
"Warming up to Cho, are we?" Priscilla whispered, teasing Nitara.
She smacked Cilla's arm playfully. "Oi, don't you judge. She's gotten better since the Acid Pops incident, you'll see. Oh, by the way, I got into the Ravenclaw common room the other night, solved a riddle and everything on my own."
"WHAT?!"
The table went silent, making Nitara and Priscilla laugh until their stomachs hurt.
"So Harry, Cedric, have you figured out your riddles for the next task yet?" Neville asked innocently.
Cedric shook his head. "It's been driving me mad. Any luck for you, Potter?"
"No, but I'll let you know once I do," Harry assured shyly.
By the time all the food was gone, and the pumpkin pie had come and gone, everybody was overcome with stuffed bellies and food comas. As everyone continued to chatter around the table, Priscilla watched all her friends with a smile. She realized now more than ever that Hogwarts was where she was meant to be. Her friends at Ilvermorny would've never gone through the trouble to do something for her like this, and it made her feel really special.
Her smile faltered a bit when she remembered her parents. She wished they could meet everyone and that things could be better between them, or that she could at least hear from them soon.
Fred noticed and reached his hand across the table to hold it in hers. "Thinking about your parents?"
Priscilla nodded with a sad smile and a deep breath.
"Oh, Cilla," Nitara sighed, giving her friend a big hug from where she sat beside her.
"We're really sorry about your parents, Priscilla," Harry said solemnly. The mood at the table became sombre as Cilla tried not to cry.
"Thank you, guys. And thank you for all of this," she replied.
"Plenty to be thankful for now, ehhhh?" George said with a wink and a smile, making her laugh.
"There's one more thing," Fred said. He let go of her hand to bend under the table. He popped up with a quirky expression and placed a wrapped present on top of the table.
"Do you give presents at American Thanksgiving?" Ginny asked innocently.
"No," Priscilla laughed, blinking away stray tears. She stood up and made her way to stand beside Fred to open it. He put a supportive arm around her, which felt like it was burning into her side.
She still had to tell him about Draco and the Yule Ball.
She prayed her poker face was good enough as she unwrapped the present and opened the box.
It was a new red muggle radio. What made this one stand out, however, was that everyone (including Hermione, despite her absence) signed it in gold sharpie.
"You guys... I love it!" Priscilla exclaimed.
Nitara looked like she was going to cry tears of joy at the sight of her friend so happy. Neville gave her a supportive pat on the head, but his eyes went wide when she started to sob dramatically and held his hand on the top of her head, her other hand on her heart. "I'm so, glad!" she choked out, making everyone laugh. "You've been so, so upset these past few days, Cilla. I LOVE YOU!"
"Let's dance!" Adrian announced, grabbing Cass by the hand and beginning to tango dramatically around Dumbledore's office.
"Yeah, turn up that muggle music!" Cass called out as he dipped Adrian in his arms.
♫ super freak
- rick james
(I know this looks ridiculous, but this is how I imagine Cedric dances)
After fiddling with the dials a little bit, Priscilla found the perfect song for that evening. She cranked it up all the way, laughing and running to join her Slytherin boys as a third tango partner. They whipped and dipped her with ease, laughing as they went.
"I love this song!" Nitara practically screamed, grabbing Neville by the arm and hauling him to join them despite his awkward fumbling.
Soon, everyone was dancing and laughing in Dumbledore's office. Food comas were completely forgotten and the energy was through the roof.
Nitara was dancing with Cho, the two holding hands and spinning in circles, laughing. Priscilla was teaching Cedric some American moves from back home, and they both laughed at how ridiculous they looked. Cedric had a way with dancing, that's for sure. He was so awkward in the way he moved but unlike Harry... Cedric owned it.
Poor Harry had two left feet, but it didn't bother him at all. All the stress from the Tournament seemed to wash away as he got down to Rick James.
Ginny was bobbing her head to the beat near the door with a cup of apple cider in her hand. She turned around when she heard the stone entryway open up to show Hermione poking her head out. "Hermione!" she called, grabbing the girl and pulling her into the dance circle.
"I don't condone the slave labour that went into your meal," Hermione announced dramatically with dignity, but she cracked a grin. "But I heard the music from the hallway and couldn't resist."
Everyone cheered as she loosened up and joined the group. Ron gave her a tight hug that would put his mother's hugs to shame, making her laugh and swat him away. Before she could wiggle out of his arms, Harry grabbed on, followed by Ginny, the twins, and soon enough everyone was squishing her in a hug.
"You sure you don't want a small, teenie weenie slice of pumpkin pie, Granger?" Cassius egged.
"Will it get me out of here?!" Hermione called, making everyone laugh and let go.
Even though Priscilla's parents never left the back of her mind, and she was still worrying over telling Fred about her plan with Draco... but she had to admit.
This night was near perfect.