The Burning of the White Wisteria

CHAPTER 13: THE FAMILY THAT COUNTS

I almost cried when I woke up in my own bed for the first time in a month. The pillow under my head felt like it was crafted by an angel, my neck finally free from any sort of discomfort. I groaned as I rolled around in my bed, hiding my face into my pillow to hide from the rising sun.

"Oh, Alexa, that is you." I glanced up to see Ivy Dovetail standing behind me, already dressed in her uniform and almost on her way out. Her honey-blonde hair was partly pulled back into two pigtails, the rest of it curled and falling to her mid-back. She had two pieces pulled out to either side of her face that framed her face well. She stared at me with her bright hazel eyes, a smile on her face. She wore bright makeup as she usually did, her eyes covered in a shiny pink eyeshadow and her lips in peach-coloured lip gloss. "I thought I saw you in your bed. I take it that Mara and you have made up then?"

"We have," I mumbled, still half asleep while trying to be polite at the same time.

"Oh, finally," Ivy sighed, "she made a bloody mess of the place while you were gone. Please don't leave again."

I laughed and sat up in my bed, facing her, "I won't. Next time, Mara gets kicked out, not me."

Mara groaned, flipping me off as she rolled onto her other side.

Ivy laughed. "I've spent a few nights in the Ravenclaw dorm myself. Their beds are dreadful."

"Oh?" I asked, surprised to hear her say that. "Do you have friends in Ravenclaw?"

"Not really," Ivy shook her head, her hair bouncing around as she did so, "I dated Hudson Quilt for a few months, remember?"

"Right," I remembered, "whatever happened to you two?"

Ivy shrugged. "He was boring."

"That's what you get for dating a Ravenclaw." Mara got up from her bed, yawning with her brown hair with it an utter mess on her head. "They scream boring and mediocre to me."

"Even Luci?" I asked.

"I'm not even going to answer that. I've got to piss."

Mara stumbled her way into the bathroom, dragging her feet. Ivy giggled at her, shaking her head slightly. "Anyways, I've got to run, but I'm happy to have you back, Alexa."

"Thanks."

Ivy gave me a final nod before exiting the room.

I collapsed onto the bed once more, considering just skipping classes altogether to finally catch up on some sleep but changed my mind when I thought about seeing Sirius at breakfast. After all, I promised him that we'd see each other every day, I can't start off whatever we have with a lie.

That being said, I rolled out of bed, stretching and popping my limbs as I stood up. I let out a hearty sigh as I walked into the bathroom, finding Mara at the sink brushing her teeth. I followed her lead, asking her to move as I put my pink toothbrush underneath the sink.

Mara hummed a song to herself, happily getting ready. I glanced at the makeup she was putting on, wondering if she was going to meet Abraxas. It was still weird for me to think about them dating-- Salazar forbid anything else-- but I knew I'd have to take the bullet and keep quiet. Mara pulled out her wand and casted a transfiguration spell on her hair, turning it from a messy pile of hair into beautifully styled loose curls.

"Your hair has grown out," I finally commented on the matter, happy that I could now. "It looks nice."

Mara smiled and played with one of her dark curls as if she was proud of it. "Yeah," she started, "I don't look like a Hufflepuff anymore, do I? I should have never let Luci convince me to cut it in the first place!"