Fatal Attraction | D.M. (Soft Rewrite)

Chapter Fifty-Five - Charmed

Millicent groaned into her first mouthful of cake. The lemon sherbet batter fizzled on her tongue, while the sweet frosting made her tastebuds sing. 'This one, it has to be!'

'Mill, we've got nine other cakes to try!'

'So?' Millicent scowled at Tracey for misunderstanding. 'We'll try all of them but I promise you - this'll be the winner.'

'Cocky.'

'Very,' she jeered. Twisting Tracey's words into an innuendo and poking out her tongue for good measure.

'I thought you said Flint was too preoccupied with quidditch?' Daphne stated blankly. Her eyes lost to the view outside the window, as a golden head of hair bobbed closer.

'He is. But we make time,' Millicent explained cooly. Skewering a forkful of red velvet cake, instead of admitting more to the girls.

'It's nice but dry.'

'What?' Daphne turned back, looking shocked.

'She's talking about the cake,' Tracey assured her, before noticing a familiar face out the window. 'Is that Aurelius?'

'Yeah...I hope you don't mind...?'

'The more, the merrier,' Tracey chirped, while Millicent rolled her eyes because that meant sacrificing some cake. Although she couldn't maintain a frown, while watching Daphne rush to her feet and leap to meet Aurelius half-way.

From the bell chiming over the entrance, once he pushed the door open - there was a split-second where everyone inside could hear the racket of riotous students, dawdling outside Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. Impatiently queuing for a seat, with their noses pressed to every windowpane. And their mouths-watering over the display of raspberry choux buns and coffee flavoured mille-feuille. But is was no use, as every customer was busy gorging on sweet-treats or too full to consider making the walk back to Hogwarts.

Aurelius shuffled through a haphazard arrangement of tables and chairs, while removing the thick mustard scarf, lassoed around his neck.

'Hi,' he politely called to the girls, before focusing on Daphne. Whose side he stayed by, through every round of cake-tasting. Only adding his opinion when the girls asked, or when he was particularly invested. Like the forth severing, which included a slice of dark chocolate cake that he implored them to take out of the running because it was too rich for anyones palette.

'So, it's settled?'

'I think so,' Millicent sighed, clutching her bloated stomach. 'You were right. Lemon, it is.'

'D'you think she'll like it?'

'Of course she'll bloody like it!' Was Millicent's curt response, as she narrowed her beady eyes on Daphne. 'Nobody wants carrot cake-'

'-I do!'

'Great, I'll be sure to remember that for March,' Millicent snapped, before softening her tone, 'but in the meantime, we have to think about Ophelia.'

'What date is her birthday?' Aurelius asked, while brushing traces of powdered sugar from his lap.

'The eighth - the eighth of December.'

'Oh,' Daphne gasped, dreamily. Her mind latching onto another tangent, as she devoured more leftover crumbs of carrot cake. 'I forgot she was a Sagittarius... I should get her something with tanzanite...'

'You're so thoughtful,' Aurelius murmured, with a smile that blossomed and spread the dimples on his cheeks. 'We could ask Trelawney where to look.'