Harry Potter One Shots (Vol. I)

Not Quite Shakespeare (Graham Montague)

This one was requested by Cecook100 who requested a one shot for a side character I've been wanting to write for but struggled to come up with an idea. I don't know why, but I really like writing for lesser known side characters, even if those one shots don't get as much love as the one shots for the most popular characters. Anyway, I hope I did your request justice ~ 

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With curfew ticking ever closer, I wanted nothing more than to get back to the common room. The sooner I got back to the common room, the sooner I could head right to my bed to continue reading my book in privacy. At least that way, I could draw my curtains around my bed so I didn't have to listen to the teasing coming from my friends that sat around me. As if on cue, Rachael reached out to rap her knuckle against the battered hardcover of my book.

"How are you reading this again?" she asked, and without needing to look at her, I knew she was already rolling her eyes.

"What's the issue Uso?" I asked, peeking at her from over the top.

"Romeo and Juliet?" she asked incredulously, shaking her head. "You read it last week. And the week before that. And the week before that –"

"So what?" I asked defensively, drawing the book once more towards me.

"The cover is practically falling off." Rachael lowered her voice when Sanaa shot her an irritated look. "At least get another copy."

"Hey!" I defended, "There's nothing wrong with my book – it's just a well-loved copy."

With a scoff, Rachael went to say something. Only, she closed her mouth when Sanaa shot her yet another look. Together, Rachael and I fell into a smart silence because we knew exactly what would happen if we angered Sanaa and stopped her from doing her work.

"Why are you even bickering when we need to finish this essay?" Sanaa grumbled under her breath, pointing the feathered end of her quill between us. "Honestly Uso, at least Capulet got her essay finished and can waste her time rereading whatever book she wants."

"Exactly," I chimed, repressing the urge to stick my tongue out at Rachael before turning back to my book. "At least Jett has my back."

Sanaa rolled her eyes, focusing on her work once more. Rachael shot one more look towards Sanaa before setting her quill down resolutely. Making sure that she wasn't going to interrupt Sanaa during her work, she shuffled towards me in her chair. Knowing that I wasn't going to get to the end of the scene at least – I marked my place in the book and set it aside.

"The only reason you read it so often is because of the name of the character," she teased, doing absolutely anything to put off having to finish the essay.

"Well it's not often you find someone with my name," I rolled my eyes. I knew, despite all her teasing Rachael meant well and didn't mean any harm. In fact, she'd been the one to gift me another copy of the play that I'd promised to begin using when this one wore itself thin.

"Of course," Sanaa began, finally reaching the end of her essay if the triumphant way she rolled her shoulders was any indication, "there's a Montague out there as well."

"Not that he's much of a Romeo," Rachael scoffed, thinking to the Slytherin Chaser. Knowing they would pick up on any sign of a reaction, I carefully steeled myself; by this point, I'd had enough practice. "Especially not towards muggle-borns."

Rolling my lips into my mouth as if to physically keep myself from speaking out, I picked up my book once more. Leaving them to their grumblings about the Slytherin who I knew they'd never spoken to, I leaned back in my chair to lose myself once more in the story. However, maybe this was my issue? Maybe if I'd said something to them, these conversations – talks about his character – would have stopped. Maybe it was my fault that I was unwilling to verbalise my disagreement because I knew to verbalise it would be the first step to confessing to everything.