~ROAC~ (incomplete)

"I'll be there for you
'Cause you're there for me too."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"-and that is why our very own James Potter is banned from ever entering the owlery again by Dumbledore's own orders."

Lily and Marlene laughed heartily at the story as Bell detailed an incident from last spring that had to do with Potter, three owls, a letter, and a certain misspoken spell. She noticed with slight intrigue that Lily's cheeks were a little flushed in contrast to Marlene's normal complexion. Could it be that the thought of James Potter was finally getting Lily to blush? Bell could hardly wait to figure this out, but her investigation would have to wait- Sirius was waiting for her in the library, the door to which the trio was swiftly approaching. She bid her friends goodbye, adding as they passed a pair of Ravenclaw first years, their scarves reminding her of something, "Oh, and if you see Pandora, let me know if she wants help with her latest spell. She mentioned something about not having the Latin right yesterday in the hall."

Marlene nodded in confirmation, silently agreeing to relay this offer if Pandora should cross their path on their way to catch the carriages to Hogsmeade or in the town itself. Usually, Bell would never have missed the first Hogsmeade trip of the year, but today's weather was disagreeable and Sirius had agreed, so instead of holding their discussion in the Three Broomsticks as they'd originally intended, they'd agreed to meet in the library at their friend group's usual table. Bell had her finally-completed list tucked into her robe's thin inner pocket, curled in a slender tube around her wand for safekeeping. She'd managed to keep most of her goals as open as possible so she could share them with Sirius, but there were a few she wanted to keep to herself. Surely, this wouldn't be an issue, as she was fairly sure he'd have a few secret objectives for himself as well.

"If it isn't the Mudblood harlot who refuses to wear a skirt."

Bell sighed as she turned around. Halfway across the library, she'd noticed a few shadowy figures congregating by a shelf to her left with oddly-low lighting, but she hadn't recognized them and so ignored them. Turns out, it was Bellatrix Black, Lucius Malfoy, and the latter's two cronies, Crabbe and Goyle. Their first names remained a mystery to not only Bell but most of the school body and it had become a running joke among her friend group that calling someone a Crabbe or a Goyle was synonymous with being a "complete bloody moron" as James so fluently put it.

"I see you're still growing your hair out Malfoy. Is it meant to look so greasy? I'm afraid you look like you're wearing a rather soggy blonde mop."

Malfoy clenched his hands on the handle of his cane- a new addition to his usual pompous ensemble, one that made Bell wonder why he would think a seventeen-year-old carrying a walking stick everywhere would be considered posh and fashionable as opposed to injured in the back -and opened his mouth to fire back some ridiculous insult about her heritage, but Bellatrix narrowed her eyes and stopped him with a laugh that would have sent shivers down Bell's spine had she felt even the slightest fear at the Slytherin girl's presence.

"If only you'd been a Slytherin and a pureblood, Roac, you and I would have gotten on just fine. We even share a name. It's a pity you're a lowly Mudblood Gryffindor. Tut tut." Coming from pretty much anyone other than a Slytherin with questionable mental stability, the last two words would have been amusing or teasing, but in the case of Bellatrix, it was a chilling phrase. Bell felt the urge to spit at her feet with disdain, but she held back, telling herself that she would be no better than them if she fell to their taunts.

So instead, Bell rolled her eyes and turned on her heel to slip away, and right behind her stood Sirius, unintentionally blocking her exit out of the narrow aisle. His expression was a mixture of suspicion and hostility, one that Bell had only ever seen him direct at his cousin and the other malicious Slytherins, and he reached for her, wrapping an arm around her waist as he said to Bellatrix in a steely tone, "The only pitiful person I see here, Bellatrix, is the girl with the ratty pom-pom for hair. Might want to fetch yourself a mirror, darling cousin, before a robin mistakes you for a nest."