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chapter eight:
happy halloween
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CAPELLA COLLAPSED BACK onto one of the annoyingly comfortable chairs in the Gryffindor common room and let out a sigh. She closed her eyes and allowed the overly loud music to drown out her thoughts and instead focused on the boisterous shouting coming at her from all angles.
The past week had felt like the longest few days of her life and frankly this was the last place she wanted to be on a Saturday evening. It had taken weeks of relentless nagging and (eventually) begging from Sirius until, in a moment of weakness, she had given up and agreed to make an appearance at his Halloween Party.
He had practically skipped up to her the minute she had arrived to the common room and his shocked look that swiftly turned into a large grin was enough to make her glad that she had decided to show up. Of course that moment was quickly ruined by himself and James drunkenly explaining their 'couples costume' - bludger and a beaters bat - to her in extreme detail. She was, however, glad to see her twin brother enjoying himself in such a carefree manner.
"Didn't think a snake like you would be caught dead in Gryffindor territory" a teasing voice pulled her from her thoughts and she looked up to be greeted by a grinning Alice Fortesque.
"Well what can I say. I was looking for a change of scenery" Capella offered a small smile towards the seemingly elated Gryffindor as she settled into the seat beside her, "What's up with you?"
"What do you mean?" Alice responded, a smile still stretching her face even as her eyebrows drew together in confusion.
"I mean this," Capella raised an eyebrow and gestured towards her face. Alice paused for a moment before tilting her head back in laughter
"You mean the fact that I'm smiling?" She managed to get out through chuckles
"Yes" Capella stated dryly, leaving back on her chair once more "It's unnatural"
"Only you would call being happy 'unnatural'" Alice huffed out in exasperation "And if you must know I have a good reason for being so-"
"Disgustingly positive?" Capella cut her off causing Alice to roll her eyes.
"I was going to say that I have a good reason for being so pleased but now I'm just not going to tell you" Alice crossed her arms over her chest, a small smile playing on her lips.
"Oh, no" Capella said, her voice dripping in sarcasm "However will I cope"
"Anyway..." Alice trailed off searching for the right words "You've been... distant lately. Has something happened?"
"Regulus" Capella spat out his name as if it was poisonous and Alice's eyes widened in shock. For as long as she had known Capella she had never spoken a bad word about her younger brother.
"What did he do?" Alice asked, sitting up in her chair abruptly "Do I need to step in? Beat someone up?"
Capella finally allowed herself to properly smile at her best friends words "As amusing as that would be I would definitely like to deal with him myself"
"Yes ma'am" Alice replied in a false professional tone and gave a mock salute which pulled a laugh out of Capella. The brief moment of calm didn't last however as Alice's expression quickly sobered once more.
"I didn't think Nott would want you coming to a Gryffindor party?" Alice questioned, cautiously and Capella sighed in response. Alice was full of questions tonight and there would be no getting out of them.
"What he doesn't know won't kill him" Capella replied carefully and Alice shook her head at her feigned indifference.
"I know you told me you didn't want to talk about any of this" Alice started and Capella glanced up warily at her words "And I totally get it. I just want to make sure that you are safe. The way Nott was speaking to you in potions wasn't all that nice."
"Don't worry, alright?" Capella spoke quietly as she tried to appear relaxed "We were just having a little argument. It was my fault to be honest."
Alice gave her friend a look that screamed disbelief and Capella had to turn away to avoid breaking and telling Alice all of her worries. She couldn't put that on the Gryffindor. Not when she had been so happy recently.
"Enough about me" Capella sat up in her chair and properly looked at Alice for the first time that evening "Tell me why you are so happy tonight. Does it have something to do with Frank?"
And even though Alice recognised the poor attempt at changing the subject, she also noticed the pleading look behind her best friend's eyes and so she decided to launch into a tale of the wonderful date Frank had prepared for their anniversary.
The two friends sat there for much of the evening as the party raged around them and in that moment they allowed themselves to forget about the pressures of life and instead focus on each other.
Capella didn't know how long these simple moments of joy would last, but she was willing to do anything to hold on to them for as long as she could.
———— NOTES ————
Hi! Sorry it's been a while! This chapter is not my favourite but I'm just getting back into writing after taking a break (it's a lot harder than I thought)
Thank you so much for reading and I am so glad that so many of you are enjoying my book! It makes me so happy!!
I have so many plans for this book and I am so excited to see all of your reactions and hear all of your thoughts. Thank you for sticking with this!
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