treating her well (james)

[Deleted]

Fall Semester, 2022 (I think)

Being pulled out of school when you are 16 was not an enjoyable time. It wasn't like she was pulled out because of a great family emergency, a grandparent dying or a cousin in need. No, she was pulled out of school because her parents wanted to quote "protect" Ariadne from the rumors that she was the one killing people around Hogwarts. Andy had no idea who the real killer was, but she knew it wasn't her sister. If any of the Lestrange girls were to become a murderer, it would be Andy herself before Ari. Ari was good at heart, Andy could tell, even if they weren't that close.

The sisters closeness and ability to open up to each other had ebbed and flowed throughout their years together. As a younger girl Andy always resented her older sister for being so perfect. Andy picked up picked up the violin as her classical music of choice, and often regretted not perfecting her skill the way Ari had perfected all of hers.

Still, when they were at home this time everything seemed different. Andy could hear her parents yelling at her sister in other rooms, she could hear Ari's screams occasionally, not knowing exactly what was happening behind closed doors. Andy had heard a rumor and seen evidence that Ari and her housemate James Potter were in a relationship. Maybe it had something to do him. With James Potter, of all people. Harry Potter's son, a Gryffindor like her and her 'brilliant ingenious never-did-anything-wrong' in her parents' eyes sister.

Andy wasn't sure what to think about this. She didn't know James well. She didn't have any opinion of him as a person. He was just this guy her sister was apparently seeing. Andy and Jude had broken up for maybe the second time this semester and Andy was sure they'd be back together again the next time one of them felt lonely enough to crawl into the other ones arms. Dating, what a joke. Andy wondered if she'd ever find someone who was kind, gentle and maybe a little bit generous. She wondered what it would be like dating someone like... Jamie, or someone like Phil. Phil Longbottom was one of her and Jude's closest friends, one of the sweetest people she knew. She wondered what it would be like to date someone like him.

But that didn't matter. What mattered right now was the fact that she had walked into the common room a day after returning to Hogwarts and there was only one person sitting in there, James Potter himself. The very boy she had just been thinking about. She followed an urge to clear her throat just to make her presence known, in case he was engrossed in something entirely personal. Though, if he was doing something personal maybe he shouldn't have been in the common room, it was called common for a reason.

She took a seat in an empty lounge chair by the fire not too far from where James was sitting. After a few moments she finally decided to speak first, which was very unlike her. "Hi James," she said. Pulling a book out of her bag to look busy.

james sirius potter

[james sirius potter]

can you hear the silence?

can you see the dark?

Fall 2022
@lestrange

James stared at the fire, almost mesmerized by the flames as they grew and jumped. It was strange that the Common Room was so empty and quiet, but it wasn’t considering recent events. As long as James stared at the fire, he didn’t picture the dead boy from the Train in September, the memories that had been dragged back to the surface now that a second student had been killed. And older one—a Ravenclaw. The thought left a sinking feeling in his chest, and the thought of Ravenclaw left one near his heart. It had been some time since Ariadne and her sister had been pulled out of school, the rumors growing as fast as the flames in the fireplace, and James hadn’t heard from her.

His first instinct had been to write a letter, but then he stopped himself as he wondered what a letter from a Potter might look like arriving at the Lestrange house—assuming that’s where she was, but she hadn’t even written him. James didn’t notice anyone enter the common room, too lost in his head as he thought through how a chat in the courtyard and walking her to class had turned into James becoming completely smitten with the young woman. She was shy, quiet—but funny and kind. Not to mention incredibly intelligent. But he heard movement and then his name.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he looked over to see who had addressed him. ”Hey…Andy.” And he paused, blinking a few times—likely looking like a deer caught in headlights. ”Andy—you’re back. Is Ariadne back too?” She hadn’t sent word or any kind of message. And the Owls always found their mark at Hogwarts. Shifting, he leaned forward, knees on his elbows, and he tossed whatever textbook he’d opened aside. Granted—James hadn’t cared if people knew he was seeing Ariadne Lestrange, but she had leaned on the side of privacy which he hadn’t minded doing. Then again, if Andy didn’t know, he wasn’t helping himself by acting as he did. Despite both being in Gryffindor, James was hardly close to the younger Lestrange, who was in Albus’ year, but people knew their housemates.

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[Deleted]

At first James said hello casually, but then he seemed to catch up. She wanted to roll her eyes at his question, but she didn't. Almost, but no. "Yeah, but probably locked in the dorm by now," she stated the obvious, but she didn't want him running out in the middle of the night. People had been murdered lately around here, after all. "We got in late, she's probably tired," she also noted. She tried to sound... sympathetic? Or something? But she was so bad at that. She wished Phil was here to maybe... help her not sound so stupid, or give James some kind of manly understanding.

She wasn't sure what to say next, but she stayed put, book open in her lap but she wasn't reading it. Her eyes flickered between the fire and James Potter. Should she tell him what happened at home? No, that wasn't her place, was it? But the poor thing seemed so... attached to Ari. The thought of making him wait until tomorrow... yikes.

james sirius potter

[james sirius potter]

can you hear the silence?

can you see the dark?

Fall 2022
@lestrange

”Oh. Right.” Really, James wasn’t sure what to say. Did she not want to see him? James felt a little deflated, which was uncanny considering how his confidence typically provided a good enough shield for things to not phase him so much. Really, he just wanted to know if she was alright. The rumors had gotten intense and had only gotten worse when she’d mysteriously left, but James never doubted his initial conclusion that there was no way she was involved with such heinous acts. Had people tried to talk him out of it? Of course, they did. Imagine how big a fire would get if a Potter supported such rumors.

James cleared his throat, realizing now that he’d just about jumped out of his chair with questions. But it was late, maybe she was tired. He would leave her be if that’s what she wanted, but it didn’t make James any less fidgety. ”Erm—I just wanted to see if she was okay…” James trailed off, sitting back into his seat rather than looking like he was about to pounce. ”I hadn’t heard from her.” It had been such a drastic change going from the amount of time they were spending together to hearing nothing. James missed her, which was only compounded by that innate need he felt to continue to protect her from people who had nothing better to do than just sit around and gossip. Harry—his father had made sure his children knew about his own experience on the other end of that. It wasn’t pretty.

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