The House of Emerald Serpents | Theodore Nott

4- The Discovery

  TW: Brief mentions of eating disorders and body image 

 It was Friday night and several Slytherins were buzzing about the party in the Slytherins new home. The whole group had invited several people and told Elaine she could invite whoever. Elaine invited no one seeing as she had no close friends, but she honestly was not bent out of shape about it. 

Pansy and Daphne were getting ready in pansy's room while Elaine finished fixing her hair in her room. She wanted to look nice, she wanted to potentially make friends. 

 Elaine walked out and locked her room behind her, planning on keeping a close eye on her room tonight. The boys were getting the music ready, and they all looked over at her. 

"You look good McCracken" Blaise says out loud.

"Thanks Blaise, it's not too showy, is it?" Elaine asks referring to her slightly exposed stomach and cleavage.

"No, you're good" Malfoy chimes.

"You got the alcohol?" Blaise asks Draco.

"Course, make sure you put your valuables away people! Party starts in 5!" Draco yells through the house. 

Soon enough the girls run out of Pansy's room and pull Elaine to the drink table and pour them matching cocktails. Elaine was jealous of the two girls, she wished she could've looked like them. Both gorgeous and confident in their owns ways. 

Elaine thought that she was decent looking, she did look like her mother, who was famously beautiful. Rose McCracken was a model for several years and Elaine had been compared to her often. However, seeing the way the two girls in front of her it made her think of what her mother used to say. 

Elaine's mother always picked Elaine's appearance apart. In the early years at Hogwarts Elaine had gone through her awkward stage and of course her mother had things to say. 

"Don't eat too much at the feasts darling, you're getting a little big."

or

"Don't eat today, your father is having guests, there will be a big dinner."  

Elaine noticed how her mother barely ate a proper meal, Elaine had brought it up once in second year and her mother said, "Beauty is pain darling." 

Elaine thought about her mother's past words often, but she tried her best to forget all of that now. She shook her head, almost to shake out the thoughts and took a sip of her drink.

With in the next 20 minutes their living room is completely full being mostly filled with Slytherin students but there's a few Ravenclaw mixed in as well. Blaise stumbled his way over to the three girls, drink in hand. 

"Bloody hell Parkinson, you look so fucking hot." 

Pansy blushes slightly at the compliment but doesn't move to say anything. Blaise didn't care, he just throws his arm around her. Blaise looked Elaine up and down as well, just like he did earlier.

"Elaine," he starts, "Do you have a boyfriend?" 

Elaine wanted to run away from the conversation. Her love life was not a topic she loved discussing, especially when it had basically been nonexistent.  Elaine had dated one person in her whole eighteen years of living.

His name was Benjamin Harris, he was a Hufflepuff a year older than her. He was really sweet, and he had asked her out when she was in her fourth year, they attended the Yule ball together. They were only together for about three months, but Elaine had snagged her first kiss from him, and then several kisses after that.