adiaphoron | d.m

EIGHT

➸  START OF SOMETHING NEW

CECILIA'S HAND FUMBLED WITH the letter she currently held in her hand, unsure who it was from and unable to open it with an audience present. She was sitting in the Great Hall, trying to eat her breakfast amidst the chaos of students receiving their morning letters from the owls. Her gaze was fixed on her plate, her appetite long since gone. With a sigh, she shoved the letter into the bottom of her bag.

Just then, Zabini muttered under his breath, his face twisted in disgust. "Potter really can't help himself," he said, his tone dripping with disdain. "How did he do it?"

Crabbe and Goyle chimed in with their own agreement, their faces mirroring Zabini's disapproval. Cecilia kept her silence, observing the group's reactions with interest. But one person stood out - Malfoy, usually quick to join in on any insults hurled at Potter, remained quiet, his expression inscrutable.

Peyton's voice dripped with venom as he spoke up, "Typical Potter, it was probably that filthy mudblood who did it for him." She glanced over at Malfoy, expecting some sign of agreement or solidarity, but instead, Malfoy's face remained a mask of indifference.

Cecilia's eyes sparkled with amusement, and she let out a snort of laughter.

Peyton's face turned bright red with embarrassment and annoyance. "What's funny?" she demanded, her voice rising.

Cecilia grinned at her. "You're shaming someone for their blood status, attempting to talk from a pure- blood's view, when you're a half-blood yourself," she said, her voice still shaking with laughter. She took a bite of her food, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "It's just weird, that's all."

Peyton looked like she'd been punched in the gut. She opened her mouth to retort, but nothing came out. Malfoy, who had been watching the exchange with interest, raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his chair, a hint of a smile on his face.

Peyton's face reddened, and she glared at Cecilia, but the blonde witch didn't seem to care. She took another bite of her food, her gaze drifting around the table as if daring anyone to disagree.

Soft snickers and murmurs of agreement could be heard from some of the other students, and Malfoy's eyes never left Cecilia's face, his interest piqued by the subtle undercurrents between them. He seemed to be studying her reaction, his expression inscrutable.

"And to get your facts straight, Potter didn't cheat his way into the tournament," Cecilia said, her tone dripping with disdain. "He actually didn't want anything to do with it."

Her gaze dropped. We didn't want anything to do with it.

Peyton's eyes flashed with indignation. "Now you're defending Potter?" she asked, her voice laced with disdain. "Really, that's low of you."

Tracey made some disapproving noises, but Peyton continued to speak over her. "What, we were all thinking it!" she declared, her gaze sweeping the table.

Some of the students murmured in disagreement, but Cecilia raised her hand to silence them. "Potter and I - we're in the same predicament," she said, her voice steady and calm. "So when someone says something about Potter, I take it as they're talking about me too." Her eyes locked onto Peyton's, her gaze unyielding. "So no, I wasn't defending Potter - I was defending myself."

The group fell silent, the only sound the soft hum of conversation from those who were trying to stay out of the way of the growing tension. Malfoy watched the exchange with interest, his eyes flicking between Cecilia and Peyton as he sipped his tea.

The group's emotions erupted into a storm of confusion and disgust, with Cecilia's words stirring up a storm of reaction. As the tension mounted, she tried to calm herself by exhaling deeply, attempting to quell the simmering anger that threatened to boil over.