A Hogwarts Love Story

Succulents and Care-Bear Pajamas

Hestia yawned, rubbing sleep from her eyes as she shoved her short blonde locks behind her ears. She was still getting used to the bob. A new look for a new job. Well not just a job. The Job. The job to end all jobs. She was the new Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As of two weeks ago, and gods-all-mighty she was drained. This was the first Saturday she'd had to sleep in, papers had been graded, tutoring had been administered, rowdy Slytherin students, namely her younger sister Arcadia and her best friend Calista Tran, had been thoroughly scolded. There was nothing on the menu today except getting to sleep in until a decent 9am, wearing fuzzy Muggle socks, drinking a keg of hot black coffee and digging deep into a recent book about a group of wizards that had been on a spree of transfiguring animals from zoos and selling them on the black market. Mixing crime with her favorite subject of magic, she'd been at the top of the waiting list for months and finally had time to read the whole account. 

If she was the smiling sort she'd be grinning, really the perfect day in all accounts. Now it was time for a steaming mug of coffee and she could hide in the teacher's wing tower sitting area perched at the very top of the castle. It had some of the best views in the entire castle and the most comfy leather couch Hestia had ever sat on.

Yawning again, Hestia strode out of her bedroom in her usual fast manner, gliding along on her long willowy legs. Her large minty eyes widening to the size of saucers as she tried to backpedal from what was in front of her. 

"Hess! It looks like we're neighbors now," That smile. That fucking smile. And that puffed up perfectly styled at nine in the morning on a Saturday hair. All attention focused solely on her, who in her stupified state had managed to close the door behind herself and ended up trapped between solid oak and her better looking than ever childhood crush. Just fuck. 

Here she was with her hair in a tangled mess, ruffled from sleep, roaming around the teacher's hall in baggy carebear pajama bottoms Sun-Mae had insisted on buying her so they could match, rainbow fluffy socks and his...

NO. NO. NO this cannot be happening. This literally cannot be happening! It couldn't, she must have been dreaming. A nightmare really. A horrid horrid nightmare. 

He was going to notice, he had to notice. There was no way he could not notice!

She found herself without the ability to speak as if someone had jinxed her tongue to the roof of her mouth and she was physically incapable of the idea of language. 

He waited, looking amused as fuck as she unsuccessfully tried to think of what to say.

"Hess? Still not a morning person?" his tone friendly and joking. He looked her up and down a moment making some sort of assessment she'd pay gallions to understand. "I like your socks."

She stumbled. He liked her socks? Did he not recognize the sweater? His sweater? Thank Hecate and anyone else out there listening.

"Yes... Sun-Mae took me to the Muggle thrift shop, it was an adventure." She couldn't push on a smile no matter how hard she tried.

"Yes, Yes I did, and still you didn't get rid of that sweater," Sun-Mae's voice was like shattering china. Had she been hiding behind Neville's back this entire freaking time? Of course she had, who else would show him to his new room. The one right across from hers apparently. 

"Oh?" Neville re-evaluated the sweater again, his eyes dragging along the carefully tended fabric, it was ancient now, but well taken care of, the teal material still bright against her pale skin.

Hestia swallowed, thinking of a million things she'd do to get back at her best friend later. 

"Oh wow," no she didn't like those words, she didn't like those words coming from his round kissable lips. "Is that-" he put his box down, the cardboard rattling and the succulent perched on top dipping for a moment as he did so.