Being a Greengrass after all should sound pretty serene.
But being a part of "the Emeralds" should not, especially when hearts become entangled with the infamous Regulus Black.
Goodness, lawfulness, or evilness. Which path will they tread in the ti...
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January 26th, 1978
The moment Avery and Regulus stepped through the wide mahogany doors of Professor Slughorn's party, a wave of golden light and rich scents—roasted chestnuts, spiced cider, something suspiciously like crystallized pineapple—washed over them.
The room had been transfigured into something out of a Victorian fantasy: velvet drapes floating as if caught in an eternal breeze, a harp strumming itself in the corner, and floating lanterns drifting lazily overhead. Overdressed students and underdressed professors mingled with varying levels of discomfort.
Avery barely had time to take it all in before Slughorn's voice boomed from the back. "Regulus, my boy! And Avery, looking positively radiant! Come in, come in!"
Regulus gave his usual polished smile, the one that said I'm flattered but mildly horrified, and leaned toward Avery. "Take a shot every time he says 'my boy' and I'll be carrying you out of here."
They drifted into the crowd. Together, they were almost annoyingly good at this. Avery had always been capable of charming people when she wanted to. Regulus had practically been trained for it since birth. Between the two of them, they could survive hours of small talk without giving anyone enough information to actually know them.
They moved through conversations with practiced ease—Regulus offering polite nods and carefully chosen responses, Avery smiling sweetly while occasionally saying something that left people unsure whether she was joking.
"So," she murmured, eyeing a table full of weirdly glowing hors d'oeuvres, "what's the plan? Be dazzling? Steal all the sweets? Start a duel?"
Regulus picked up a crystal goblet of pumpkin fizz. "I was considering slipping powdered Peruvian Darkness into Slughorn's punch."
Avery nodded thoughtfully. "Tempting."
"But exhausting."
"Agreed. Let's stick with charming and threatening."
He nodded, taking a sip from his cup. "Our default setting."
They drifted from conversation to conversation, offering just enough engagement to satisfy Slughorn's expectations without becoming trapped. A seventh-year Ravenclaw attempted to recruit Regulus into a discussion about Wizengamot reform. Avery cheerfully derailed it by asking how many flobberworms it would take to successfully form a labor union. The boy spent three minutes trying to answer before realizing she wasn't serious.
Time blurred after that. One minute they were standing shoulder-to-shoulder beside an enchanted fondue fountain, quietly mocking Slughorn's choice of party decorations. The next, a flood of students had swept between them like a tide.
Avery found herself nudged backward by a cluster of Hufflepuffs while a group of older Slytherins closed around Regulus. She rolled her eyes and took a step to follow before stopping abruptly. A small group had gathered around him now, laughing at something he'd said. And standing nearest was a girl Avery vaguely recognized. Seventh-year, a very pretty Slytherin.
