𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕷𝖎𝖋𝖊 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝕷𝖎𝖊𝖘 𝖔𝖋 𝖁𝖊𝖓𝖚𝖘 𝕻𝖔𝖙𝖙𝖊𝖗

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɴɪɴᴇ - ꜰɪꜰᴛʏ ꜱʜᴀᴅᴇꜱ ᴏꜰ ʀᴇᴅ

{"TRIGGER WARNING THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS WILL CONTAIN MENTIONS OF SEXUAL ABUSE AND OVERALL CREEPY, CRINGEY PERVYNESS. PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION. THERE WILL BE A SYMBOL (####) BEFORE ANY MAJOR TRIGGERING STUFF" warns Amy}

"I'm talking about earlier. I went into Myrtle's bathroom just before I came in here and there was Ron and his sidekicks, including Ginny, trying to decide how to slip you a love potio-"

"Why didn't you confiscate them then?" Fleur asked, "You're a prefect you know?" Hands wrapped around Venus' body protectively.

"They didn't have the potions with them in the bathroom," said Hermione scornfully, "They were just discussing tactics. I think he's hoping to get back at you for what went down before the Ball."

"But that wasn't my fault," mumbled Venus into the crook of Fleur's neck, who was still not trying to think about everything that went down with Mel, despite the fact the fact that she kept cropping up in her dreams in ways that made her devoutly thankful that Fleur, Hermione, Fred and George make sure to keep Mel away from her.

"Well, just be careful what you drink, because Ron looks like he is looking out for murder." said Hermione grimly.

Hermione and Fleur watched Venus with daunted expressions of concern as she pulled herself out of Fleur's grip and hitched up the long roll of parchment on which she was writing her Arithmancy essay and continued to scratch away with her quill.

"Well let's watch him try!" Venus declared, as she looked back down upon her essay.

"I don't go around putting potions in people's drinks...or pretending too either, which is just as bad... So please just watch out for any unusual behavior and from now on don't drink anything that's given to you apart from us."

"Yeah, yeah, well, never mind that," said Venus quickly. "Ron's not going to poison me that easily, especially with all you lot around, right? His tricks are getting old and he will soon be caught and reprehended, if not by Dumblewhore, then by Minnie or Dad" Venus had only told a select few that Sevy was her father, for she did not want to be more recognised than she already was.

"Come on, we all know that Dumblewhore doesn't give a flying fuck about anyone apart from himself." demanded Fleur. Hermione, Fred, George, Cedric and Venus had filled her in on what Dumblewhore was really like underneath that annoying long, white beard and fake twinkle behind those stupid glasses.

"Easy for you to say, you don't have to live with him. Every. Single. Fucking. Day. For seven years." muttered Venus, as she looked up from her abandoned essay and suggled back into Fleur's arms, Fleur placing a chaste kiss on the top of Venus' head, allowing the small Hufflepuff to cuddle into her.

Hermione and Fleur stopped dead; Venus had heard it too. Somebody was coming through the entrance to the common room.

"Hi, Venus!" said Cedric as he walked over to the trio, sitting on one of the couches and pulling a now giggling Hermione into his lap.

Hermione gave them a "I-am-so-lucky" look over her shoulder.

Fleur reciprocated Cedric's actions and pulled a cuddling Venus into her lap so she could play with her hair.

Chloe came into the common room, a dazed look on her face as she walked across to Venus and Fleur.

"U-um, Mel, told me to give these to you as an apology." said Chloe, thrusting a box into his hands. "Chocolate Cauldrons, they've got firewhiskey in them... I should get going." With that, Chloe was off and up to the dormitory.

"Oh — right — thanks a lot." said Venus, her voice tailing away feebly.

However good things never seemed to last when it came to Venus. Every good thing seemed to crash and burn, collapse down into flames that laid below. A tear slid down her cheek as everything seemed to come back to her in endless tidal waves of horror. The times where the darkness of the past couple weeks would break out of their constraints to haunt her, suffocate her, swallow her whole.