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 27th, 1978
The light was cruel.
Avery groaned before her eyes even opened. Her mouth was dry, her head pounding like she'd tried to duel gravity and lost. She shifted under her covers, blanket tangled around her legs, and forced her eyes open to the unforgiving strip of morning light cutting across the dormitory ceiling.
She was in her bed. Thank Merlin.
Everything hurt in its own specific way. Her head. Her stomach. Even her pride, though that was more of a dull ache, somewhere under the memory of green silk and fairy lights and—
She sat up too fast. Regulus.
The kiss.
"—Oh," she said out loud, immediately regretting the movement, pressing both hands to her temples as though she could physically hold the memory in place and stop it from spreading. It did not help. She let out a slow breath through her teeth and stared at nothing in particular for a long moment, willing the world to rearrange itself into something less disastrous.
What was going to happen now?
Someone, Pandora most likely, had left a glass of water and a hangover potion on her nightstand. And beside it, tucked neatly beneath the base of her lamp, was a scrap of folded parchment. With dread, she reached for it.
You were heavy. Drink the potion.
We'll talk when your head stops trying to fall off.
—R.
Avery stared at the note for a long time. Then let herself fall back against the pillow.
"Kill me now," she whispered to the ceiling.
✧˖°.☾
The potion worked—eventually. Though Avery still felt like her brain was made of fog and regret, at least the nausea had subsided by the time she made it down to breakfast. Her hair was in a braid she barely remembered doing.
The Great Hall was already half-full, the enchanted ceiling grey and overcast, reflecting the bleak state of her soul. As she slipped onto the Emeralds' usual bench at the Slytherin table, she immediately regretted coming down at all.
Dorcas sat opposite her, buttering a crumpet with surgical precision. Pandora hummed softly beside Avery, halfway through a dreamy monologue about a book she’d stayed up too late reading. Barty lounged at an angle that suggested bones were optional, watching everyone and nothing at once.
Avery nodded at appropriate intervals, though none of Pandora’s words were actually reaching her. Regulus finally approached the group and took the seat across from her. She didn't look up at all, suddenly finding the texture of the blueberry on her toast very interesting.
