Heiress - HP/Marvel

15

Bella whispered quietly to Solaris as she and the other Slytherins made their way to the Great Hall. The multicoloured snake was curled around her neck, which had forced Blaise to remove his arm from her shoulders. Hadrien may or may not have bribed the snake with the promise of a juicy rat; a second might've been offered if she bit Blaise's finger by 'accident'.

"Good morning Nev." Bella greeted warmly upon seeing the Hufflepuff waiting at the Slytherin table. The golden-blond smiled brightly at her, "Good morning, Bella. Gran sent me a new herbology book, wanna see it?"

Bella nodded as she sat beside him, "Of course."

He beamed and dug into his magically expanded satchel for the book. It was a light green-coloured tome with gold lettering titled: "Herbology and Apothecary: Guide to Magical Plants in Potions". Bella's eyes glittered curiously, a look Hadrien recognized instantly. She always got that look when she found something interesting, usually, it came hand in hand with Magical Creatures, but she was also passionate about herbology and potions, so he shouldn't be surprised.

Neville flipped open the book, "Turns out Belladonna flowers are very useful in potions." he began, quickly pulling Bella into a deep conversation. 

Daphne shook her head fondly, as she sat across from Neville. Pansy and Tracey joined her as Blaise and Theo fought over who would sit beside Bella.

Unfortunately, the two were beaten when a tall redhead plopped down beside her, his twin settling beside Neville. Hadrien sat beside Daphne, an amused and slightly smug smirk playing on his lips as he watched Blaise and Theo grudgingly take their seats.

"Good morning-" "How are-" "Our favourite snakes and badger today?" the twins chimed.

Bella and Neville withdrew from their debate about Songbells and Moon Blossoms. The former looked to the twin on her right, "Morning, Fred-" she leaned forward to smile at his twin- "Morning George. We're doing good today." she answered. Neville nodded in agreement as he placed a pressed flower bookmark into the tome and tucked it back into his satchel.

"Gryffindor's playing the Claws tomorrow, are you guys gonna come watch?" Fred asked, throwing an arm around Bella's shoulders, "We'll need all the luck we can get with Potter on the team now."

Pansy huffed, "I heard about that, how'd it happen?"

George rolled his eyes, "Apparently he impressed McGonagall with his expert flying."

"'Course we're certain it was because of his little 'Saviour' status and a lot of convincing from Potter Senior and Dumbledore." Fred added, sighing dramatically as he draped himself over the demigoddess, George mirroring his actions on Neville, "Any change Gryffindor had at getting the cup from Slytherin is long gone now."

Bella patted his head, which was on her shoulder, sympathetically. The scene received a few sour looks from four Slytherin boys and amusing ones from the girls. Neville, blushing brightly, pet a pouting George's hair.

"Sorry, but I hope this distracts him enough to keep him away from me," Bella said, looking a bit guilty as she picked up a piece of toast to nibble on.

The twins sat up. "No, that's fair. Potter's a right prat." they chimed in sync.

Tracey hummed, "We should put that on a shirt."

Blaise snorted, "That'd only inflate the git's ego. Any attention seems to be good attention to him."

"That's because he's about as bright as a troll." Theo retorted, Pansy giggled, "Just as skilled as one too."

Feeling a bit better, Bella smiled leaning against Neville. They continued to talk until breakfast was finished and it was time to go to their classes. Fred and George split off for DADA as the Slytherins and Neville headed for Potions. Bella restarted her conversation with the timid Puff about herbology as they walked hand-in-hand to the dungeons.

"So the other boys are a problem when they're near Bella, but Neville holding her hand isn't?" Daphne inquired, raising an expectant brow at Hadrien.

The older Serrure-Prince smirked knowingly, "Neville has a thing for one of his housemates."

Pansy perked up. She loved any and all gossip, her and Blaise both could get the entire castle to do just what they wanted with a few well-worded rumours. Hadrien admired the skill but wasn't about to give Pansy fuel unless it was beneficial for him. So, he expertly ignored Pansy's puppy eyes and picked up his pace until he was walking alongside his sister. She flashed him a smile before looking back at Neville, who was rambling excitedly about a plant he wanted to see.

Soon they were arriving at their Potions class. Their group could all be found in one area at the front, split up in pairs. Neville and Bella stuck together with Pansy dragging Blaise to the table behind them. Theo and Draco settled at a table beside one where Pansy and Blaise were seated, while Daphne and Tracy sat behind them. Hadrien sat beside Bella, but when Severus entered the room and class began, he was still without a partner.

It seemed none of the other Hufflepuffs was as brave as Neville was, and the Slytherins were all partnered up. He felt a slight pang in his chest, he hadn't felt this way since he was left at the orphanage.

As if sensing his train of thought, Bella paused mid-sentence and sat up sharply before turning to her brother. Neville, a bit startled, watched the ravenette as she tugged on her brother's sleeve. The blond was startled to see his friend looking so... sad. Hadrien was usually always smirking or teasing, Neville knew half of it was a mask, but he hadn't been prepared for his hunch to be confirmed so soon.

Confused as to what triggered this change in attitude, he looked around, his soft green eyes falling on his housemates who eyed the Slytherins warily and the empty seat beside Hadrien. He frowned, then looked to Professor Snape. He raised a hand, catching the man's attention.

"Yes, Mr Longbottom?" rang Severus' smooth drawl.

Neville suddenly shy, stammered, "Um... H-Hadrien doesn't have a partner... Could he work with Bella a-and me?"

Severus glanced around the room, noting the hesitance the Puffs had towards his snakes. He then looked to the only badger that didn't seem afraid and, with a slight twitch of his lips, nodded, "I don't see why not."

Neville grinned, "Thanks, Professor!" He then turned to the twins, "Hadrien, scooch a little closer so you can see what's going on, ok?"

Hadrien, smiling a bit easier now, nodded and the three of them adjusted so they fit at the table comfortably. Once that was taken care of, Severus launched into the lesson plan for the day, writing the instructions on the chalkboard as he spoke.

It was the smoothest Potions class any of the Slytherins had ever experienced. If Gryffindor and Ravenclaw classes went even half as smoothly, then hopefully it would be enough to keep the new dynamic up. It would also prove that forcing two houses that hated each other to interact would only fuel the rivalry.

Hopefully, after a while, the rivalry will simmer down.