Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Sage Laurent gives a name to her bird on Hallowe'en morning. The stupid thing's hopping around before the fire, trying to get close enough to peck at the smouldering wood, and Sage keeps having to pick him up and place him beside her.
"That's a really dumb thing to do," she tells him. He crows at her and hops up onto her thigh, making sure to really dig his talons in so she knows he's a bit pissed off with her. "Coño," she curses, giving it hate-eyes.
"Oh, did you name it?" Hermione places herself down on the floor beside Sage.
"Name him what?"
"Didn't you just call him Conner?" She asks, frowning a little. Sage would do anything to rid that face of any sad look, so she answers:
"Yeah. Conner."
Conner's such a stupid fucking name for a bird, she thinks. Who names a glorious carrion bird Conner?
But she's too far up Hermione's arse to go back on her words, so she clucks her tongue and tests out the name. The bird doesn't seem to pleased but, then again, it's just a fucking bird. It's her bird. So, Conner it is.
"Anyway," Hermione carries on, as if Sage hasn't just spent a good three minutes contemplating life and how stupid the name Conner is. "I was wondering if you were heading down to Hogsmeade today."
Sage immediately thinks the girl is asking her out. Then she remembers Hermione isn't: a) into her, and b) into girls in general. So she shakes her head.
"Ripley's going with her boyfriend, or at least I think he's her boyfriend. Stevie's going with some of her Slytherin friends. I don't think they really like me and I don't really like them, so, it'd be a bit weird for me to tag along. I was just going to hang around with Dad, to be honest."
Hermione seems to pause, then says, "Well, you know you're always welcome to come with Ron and I."
Sage smiles, then frowns. "What about Harry?"
"Oh, his aunt and uncle didn't sign his form. Shame, really, but I suppose it's safer this way."
It clicks in Sage's head. "Yeah, he was telling me that some loons reckon Sirius Black is out to get him. Mental, right?"
Hermione laughs breathlessly. "Yeah. Mental. Well, I've got to run. Maybe I'll see you today?"
"Maybe," Sage echoes. Hermione looks like she's going to say something else, but then must decide otherwise because she just stands and trots over to Harry and Ron. Sage winks at her when she looks back, Hermione seems to get a bit embarrassed and hurries the boys out of the room.
Sage smacks her head on the carpet, then lolls it to one side to look at the newly-named Conner the Crow. "Why am I useless?"
