Emerson Wilmore was an exemplary Ravenclaw student, known for her unwavering dedication to academics and an unyielding moral compass. However, things took a twisted and deviated turn in her life after her boyfriend, Cedric Diggory, was murdered by L...
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The Slytherin common room was quieter than usual. Most students were either studying in the library or pretending to, but Emerson and Enzo claimed one of the couches near the fireplace, sprawled across it like they had nowhere else to be. Neither spoke for a while. Mattheo was somewhere in the castle, patrolling for the Carrows as they demanded while Theo and Olivia were helping Ariel with her Charms essay in the library.
Enzo had one leg slung over the armrest, lazily tossing a Chocolate Frog box into the air and catching it. Emerson sat cross-legged beside him, a stack of parchment abandoned on the low table.
"It's weird, isn't it?" Emerson thought aloud, breaking the silence. "Our last year at Hogwarts... And this is what it's come to."
Enzo caught the box midair and turned his head toward her, his dark hair falling into his eyes. "Yeah. I always thought Seventh Year would feel... I don't know. Important. Like we'd be thinking about our futures, not just—,"
"Surviving?" Emerson finished for him, a humourless smile tugging at her lips.
He huffed a quiet laugh. "Exactly."
For a while, neither of them said anything. The flames flickered, reflecting in the green glass of the lamps, and Enzo stared into them like he could see another world in the firelight. "Do you ever think about how much has changed?" He asked suddenly. "Like, back in our fourth or year, the worst thing Mattheo, Theo and I to worry about was Snape catching us sneaking out after curfew when we were getting high or drinking. Now..." He gestured vaguely around the room. "Now we have Death Eaters teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts and Muggle Studies."
Emerson lifted her gaze from the floor, smiling faintly. "I think about it every day," She admitted. "Though I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing anymore."
Enzo gave a dry laugh. "Yeah. Used to be, I couldn't wait to get out of this place. Thought I'd leave behind the essays, the detentions, all of it. But now..." He exhaled slowly, looking around at the common room. "Now I just feel like we're leaving behind the last normal thing we ever had."
Emerson nodded, a pang of sadness twisting in her chest. "I miss when we were lounging out in the sun and there was nothing to worry about," She murmured. "Now it's—,"
"—the Carrows torturing students for sneezing too loud," Enzo finished for her, his voice tinged with bitterness.
"Exactly. It makes me think about how we'll remember this place. What will we even tell people? That we spent our Seventh-Year walking on eggshells, pretending not to see what was happening around us?"
Enzo's expression darkened. "Yeah. And pretending not to care too much, so we don't get dragged into it too. I hate it. I hate how small it feels now. Hogwarts used to be—,"
"Home," Emerson continued softly.
He glanced at her, his expression softening. "Yeah. Home. Until they ruined it."
