The Burning of the White Wisteria

CHAPTER 5: HEATHER IRONWOOD IS A VAMPIRE

"What the hell happened to you?"

I plopped down onto the seat in the Great Hall. I was beyond exhausted and my entire body was covered in painful scratches and cuts. I had sprained my ankle in the end, according to Madam Pomfrey, and bloody hell did it hurt like a bitch.

"Long story." I took a bite of my muffin, happy to finally have some food in my unbelievably empty stomach.

Mara took a long sip of her drink, looking me over with sharp eyes. "Guess the party yesterday went hard then."

I stopped. "What?"

"How was it by the way?"

"You..." I blinked, putting my muffin on the plate, "you didn't go?"

Mara snorted, "well obviously not. I would've been with you all night. I had to help your brother study again."

"Mara," I said, eyes wide, "I didn't go either."

Mara's eyes widened as she dropped her fork. "W-What? Why the hell not?!"

"I..." What was I supposed to tell her? It's not like I could expose Remus' secret. I swallowed harshly, eyes meeting the table as I tried to come up with something to say. "Well, you're not exactly innocent either."

Mara bit her tongue. We were both in the wrong, there's no denying it.

She glanced towards the Ravenclaw table, looking for Luci with concern etched all over her olive face. "I don't see her anywhere. You?"

I looked with her. I didn't see any signs of her. "No."

Mara shot up and grabbed my arm. I winced as her hand irritated the cuts on my arm, biting my cheek to keep myself from crying out. We stopped in front of the group of Ravenclaws we knew Luci was friends with. They continued to chat animatedly amongst themselves as we watched for a couple of moments, looking for Luci.

"Um," one of them started, having finally noticed us. "Can we help you?"

"Where's Luci?" They all exchanged looks, not saying anything, at least not out loud. Mara slammed her hands on the table, starting the bunch with the loud sound that emerged. "Lucilla? Lucilla Jade? Merlin, I thought you were supposed to be the smart ones."

"S-She didn't leave her room this morning..." A Ravenclaw girl said, her eyes shifty and attached to her robe. "W-We tried to get her to but she wouldn't leave."

"What?" I asked, peering behind Mara's angry form. "Why?"

They exchanged looks again, apprehensive. Mara slammed her hands down again. "Answer her."

"Well, I don't know..."

"If I had to guess it would be because of last night!"

The group erupted into a fit of laughter, giggling at a joke that Mara and I couldn't have possibly understood. Fury began to rumble in my chest at the action.

They're supposed to be her friends.

Regardless, I knew something had happened last night; something that had become the source of their infinite entertainment and... Mara and I weren't there to protect her.

Mara stood up, hands clenched at her sides as she seemingly realized the same thing I did. "What happened?" She asked, her already dark brown eyes darkening.

One of the people further down the table snickered and said: "nothing she didn't deserve."

Now there was more than the group laughing. The entire fucking table was laughing.