Touched

Tale of Corvus and Anne - Chapter Six

SEVENTH YEAR

Corvus POV

Corvus eyed him from across the classroom. Somehow, at all times, his robes looked like they'd been run washed by Frip, his fathers 100 year old house elf, and then thrown under a thestral for some good luck. Not that they were dirty, but they were wrinkled, and his tie hung loosely from his collar. Corvus' was tight, and he loosened it absently.

Somehow, his expression was always looked interested and like he'd rather be elsewhere at the same time. His eyebrows were very expressive, they shot up when he heard something useful from the Professor, and then he'd go back to mindlessly turning the pages of his textbook. Occasionally, the Hufflepuff girl standing next to him would say something and he'd give her a crooked smile.

Corvus felt a familiar fuzziness climb up his chest and then felt it drop when someone said his name.

"Corvus," Thomas hissed. "We need to finish this potion. Can you stop staring at her?"

"At who?" Corvus asked. He looked towards Thomas' exasperated expression.

"Lana, obviously," Thomas sighed, gesturing to the Hufflepuff girl. "You've been staring at her all bloody morning. We've got things to do! I'm not going to become a potions master if you're gonna mess it up for me. Our exams are soon!"

"Yes," Corvus nodded. He felt a little helpless. The boy across the classroom seemed to have little interest in his potion. Instead, his brown curls were leaning down towards the book he was reading. Long, nimble fingers turned the page every now and then and he adjusted his round glasses on his nose. Corvus ran a hand through his own hair - very smooth and slicked back. Not a curl in sight. And while his eyes were a bright green, the boy's were a very deep brown, so brown they were almost black. His pale face held no blemishes, unlike Corvus' few moles, and he had a thin scar stretching from his hairline to below his eye and halfway down his cheek. Corvus always wondered how he'd gotten it.

"Pay attention Corvus or I swear-"

"Fine," Corvus rolled his eyes and turned back to their potion, which was spewing a greenish hue. "It doesn't look good."

"Course it bloody doesn't," he swore angrily. "No one's been paying attention to it."

"Including you?"

"Shut up."

Professor Sharpe had just started with the next lecture when there was a loud bang from someone's cauldron.

"Aleksander!" He exclaimed. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," the boy across the classroom said. "I didn't even touch it." His polish accent danced lightly on his tongue. Corvus shivered in it.

"I trust you won't touch that cauldron again while I'm speaking?"

When Sharpe turned around again, Lana put her hand on Aleksander's arm, and Corvus cringed and turned around, trying to ignore the stupid pit of sadness that grew there. He shouldn't be feeling this way. He should be looking at Lana, like Thomas expected. Shouldn't he?

———

Anne POV

Anne was sitting at the dining table in Ominis and Imelda's kitchen poring over her herbology notes when Corvus burst through the door at eight o clock that night. Anne didn't think he'd be coming home for the weekend, she didn't expect him to be here. Apparently, neither did Imelda or Ominis, because they both came rushing from the living room to see who company was.

"Corvus?" Imelda stretched her arms out for an embrace. "What are you doing here?" Corvus gave her a half hearted hug, and without even looking at Anne or acknowledging she was at his house, he left for his bedroom and shut the door.

"I half expect heavy metal music to come from his room now," Ominis joked, and then his face went to being concerned. "Did anyone catch what the problem was there?"

"I don't know," Anne said, and Ominis put his cane against the wall and leant against it while he listened to Imelda's worries.

"Oh dear," she said, heading towards the kettle to boil it. She always seemed to make peppermint tea when things were stressful. Anne had already had two tonight after her herbology breakdowns. Plants were surprisingly hard, and not at all her forte. She figured she should go to Corvus and ask what was wrong, but she'd leave that for now. He was a big boy. They were almost eighteen now. Whatever it was, he could talk to her if he needed to.

"Making tea again?" Ominis nodded towards the sound of the kettle. "She doesn't stop does she?" he directed to Anne, and ran a hand over her head. Anne smiled. Ominis walked towards where Imelda was standing, narrowly missing the edge of the bench and Imelda let out a breath as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Should I go ask what's wrong?" Anne asked, standing up from her work.

"If you don't mind, dove," Imelda nodded. "I'm sure he'd tell you straight away. Anne shrugged, wondering if that was true. Over the years, there wasn't much that he wouldn't tell her, but she still knew there'd be things he wanted to keep to himself.

Anne knocked on the door and waited what felt like years for a response. A small 'come in,' sounded, and she did just that.

"Corvie," she started, and then she saw his face. "Corvus? What's wrong?" he had been crying, she could see it in his red rimmed eyes and his stained cheeks.

"Close the door," he said. "I don't want mum or dad to walk in." Anne closed the door and Corvus sighed and pulled the pillow over his face. His hair was messed up, and he rubbed his eyes with his hands; individually so the pillow didn't lift.

Anne shook her head. The dramatics of this boy. "What's going on?"

"I don't know."

"Why are you upset?"

"I don't know."

"Do you want to talk to Ominis and Imelda about it?"

"No."

"I could ask your Uncle Seb to talk to you. He gives good advice."

"No."

Anne sighed. "Is it school?"

"Maybe."

"Is it because everyone is teasing you about Lana?"

Corvus groaned loudly under the pillow. "You heard that too?"

"Everyone did. They said you were staring at her for like an hour straight in potions yesterday."

"Merlin."

"You could ask her ou-"

"Don't say that."

"Okay."

Corvus sighed again and sat up. He crossed his long legs and he barely fit across his single bed. Anne watched him contemplate what he was going to say.

"Say I did like Lana. What would you do?"

"What would I do if I were you?" Anne asked, and Corvus nodded. "I'd tell her. Life's too short to give any shits."

Corvus' eyes widened like he hadn't expected her to swear. "What, like send her an owl?"

"I'd just tell her."

"Okay," Corvus nodded. "I'll think about it."

————

Aleksander POV

Before Aleksander Nowak arrived at Hogwarts when he was 11, he lived in an all boys orphanage. He did not receive that much education, and that's why he thought he loved to read so much.

Aleks was sorted into Gryffindor, which he supposed, was not surprising. The life he'd been brought up in was sure to provide one with some bravery or some courage.

He didn't do too well at Hogwarts, grades wise. He tried his hardest and believed he was booksmart, and the grades told him that, too. He'd do great in things where he had to read or write - he'd taught other kids in the orphanage how to do it. He just couldn't do anything practical.

And so when his potion exploded in class yesterday, well, he'd hoped it wouldn't bring any attention to himself.

But one boy, the boy, had been watching.