chapter 8 : courtyard shenanigans
"The wind screams warnings quietly, and Eve ignores them easily, focusing instead on Narcissa's playful smile, on the essay she's finishing for Barry, on the leaves crunching in Regulus' fists."
OCTOBER COMES QUICKLY, AND EVE SPENDS it only with her new friends. James had yet to apologize, instead choosing to glare at her in the corridors, and the rest of his friends follow his lead. Sirius shoots her betrayed looks often, like she has done something personal to him - Eve doesn't understand. He left home because of his mother, not because of his brother and cousins.
Lily, seemingly, has started to almost tolerate James. She sits a bit closer to him during mealtimes, and in one big instance, partnered up with him in Transfiguration, much to his obvious delight. By her side, Mary is constantly rolling her eyes, and Marlene and Dorcas seemed to have abandoned ship - although they don't risk talking to Eve, they don't talk to the Marauders group either.
Her classes seem to go by in a blur. Eve turns in her homework consistently - only missing it once, in Potions, after James 'accidentally' somehow spilled his full cauldron onto her parchment from ten feet away - and goes on prefect rounds at night. It's still a bit awkward with Colton, especially since he won't tell her what blackmail her brother has on him, but she lets it slide for the most part.
She has more important things, now. Like her friends.
Today, they're gathered on one of the picnic tables in the courtyard. Bellatrix, Lucius, and Rodo are all still in classes, but the rest of them are gathered around in the chilly weather. Leaves, slowly turning orange and crunchy, fall in waves to the ground, and Regulus crushed them with gentle fingers so they make little noises against the marble.
The wind screams warnings quietly, though, and Eve ignores them easily, focusing instead on Narcissa's playful smile, on the essay she's finishing for Barry, on the leaves crunching in Regulus' fists.
"I'm going to fail!" Barry exclaimed dramatically as Eve crossed out another wrong answer and rewrote it. "I'm going to fail DADA, and then I'll be expelled, and then my dad is going to kick me out of the family, and then I'll have to live on the streets and forced to sell my body for soup!"
Eve snickered. "Soup?"
Narcissa nodded earnestly, hair tickling Eve's neck. "It's Barry's obsession. So bland, too."
Barry made an offended face as Narcissa wrinkled her nose.
"You aren't going to fail, Barry," Eve assured him, and carefully hid the way she crossed out another wrong answer. "Really, you're just not great at theory."
"Exactly," Narcissa agreed, "You're really great at the practical portion, and that's all that really matters, right?"
"Yeah, Bear," Regulus spoke up, grinning wickedly, "You're great at the wand work."
Narcissa groaned, "Boys," at the same time Regulus and Barry exploded into hysterical laughter, banging their hands on the table.
Eve set down the quill gently and nudged Narcissa, who sat up at once. The boys still had their heads down, giggling, and Eve ducked down off her bench and picked up an armful of orange leaves. She gestured for Narcissa to do the same, and she did.
"One," Eve mouthed, getting behind Regulus, and Narcissa went behind Barry, "Two..."
They both grinned at each other-
"THREE!" Narcissa yelled, and they threw the leaves on their respective person, laughing themselves when both boys stopped laughing in shock.
Regulus scrambled off his seat, black hair covered in orange, and Barry followed after only a moment; the duo picked up their own armful of leaves.
Eve shrieked and ran, ignoring the stitch in her side, and picked up leaves on her way, throwing them behind her wildly.
"EVE!" Regulus spluttered, and Eve glanced behind her, bursting into laughter when she saw how he had several leaves stuck to his tongue and eyelashes.
He threw his own pile on her as she sprinted, and they obscured her vision; she collapsed into giggles on the ground, laughing harder as Regulus flopped down next to her, his tongue still covered in leaf bits.
"You're insane," he said, but he was laughing all the same. "Absolutely mental, Evie."
Eve felt something inside her warm at the nickname, and gave him a real, soft smile, forgetting for a moment how hard she had been laughing.
"You love it," she teased, winking, and he laughed, picking up a handful of leaves and throwing them on her again. She cackled and threw some right back on him.
"Mental, Evie," he repeated, and Eve let herself be.
hello my loves!
I apologize for the long wait and the relatively short chapter. This is a filler chapter and just something to show some normal and no drama.
Cheers, and stay safe during this time,
angel
(comments and reviews are welcome and appreciated!)