An Anthology of Stories

Never Been Unhappy

Harry Potter One Shot, inspired by everlovingdeer

The Great Hall never fails to be noisy at breakfast time. The Ravenclaw table was not an exception to this rule. In fact, it was probably the noisiest table of them all; the amount of students leaving their homework to the last minute probably outnumbered the other 3 houses combined. We, as a house, might value learning, but that doesn't mean we enjoy the homework that comes with it. I've lost count the amount of times that myself and my dorm mates have crammed in the last few sentences of essay's whilst eating breakfast.

For once, my dorm mates and I had actually got all of our work finished for today's lessons, and were enjoying the stress-free breakfast time. I was warming my hands on my mug of tea, in preparation for my Herbology class, when the Great Hall slowly fell silent. I looked up from my brew and saw Dean Pucey, of all people, easily strolling between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables. The seventh year Slytherin looked completely oblivious to the thousands of pairs of eyes on him. He stopped behind Chelsea and grinned at me.

"Morning Abbott," he said cheerfully.

"Morning Pucey," I replied more cautiously, looking at him with a careful expression.

"Would you allow me to walk you to Herbology?"

I openly frowned at him, "we don't share Herbology, Pucey," I stated bluntly, "haven't done since fifth year."

"So?" he shrugged, smiling at me with a charming smile, "can't a man walk a pretty girl to her first lesson of the day?" I narrowed my eyes at him, not doing anything to hide the confusion I was feeling. Pucey took my silence as consent, "I'll let you finish your breakfast. See you by the Entrance Hall when you're done."

He didn't let me make even a sound in refusal as he turned sharply on his heel and strolled away just as easily as he did before. It didn't take long for the whispers to fill the Hall at his behaviour; my friends being part of it. I could only sit in my seat a little taken aback. I had known Pucey for as long as we had been at Hogwarts, but I wouldn't have considered us close enough to warrant him openly coming up to me in the Great Hall and offer to walk me to my lesson.

"Any ideas on what that was about, Caitlin?" Francesca questioned, nudging me in the side with her elbow.

"Pfft, beats me," I replied, eyeing Pucey as he disappeared from the Hall.

"Have you ever spoken to him?"

"We shared a desk in Charms last year, but we rarely spoke to each other unless we had to," I told her, thinking hard for an explanation to his behaviour. My eyes travelled around the room as I thought and it was only when I saw Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black, that I realised what this was probably be about. "Wait, I think I do know what this might be. Father was talking to Mother about betrothals over Christmas break."

"Betrothals?" Samantha repeated in surprise, "I can't believe this is still a thing in with Wizarding community!"

"It's tradition," I shrugged, patting her arm, "Father said he had pure-blood father's lining up around the house to try and get their son married off to me. Maybe he's accepted the Pucey offer."

"You're seriously going to go through with it?" Samantha asked in disgust.

"I've never thought my marriage would happen any other way. My family, and many other pure-blood families, have been working this way for centuries. Mother and Father are very happy," I explained to her.

Samantha went to say something else, probably about how this society is an oppressive patriarchy, but Francesca stopped her. Sam had long had an issue with the betrothal system in the Wizarding world, and never failed to comment on it when she could. She was a muggle-born after all, and had a totally different view on marriage. She couldn't understand how easily we just accepted the person who had been chosen for us.