always got by on my own

The Great Hall had gone deathly silent after what had happened with the Goblet of Fire. Calum found himself staring after Harry Potter and the professors as they retreated away from the large crowd, but he looked to his fellow Hufflepuffs - Abigail Abott and Mirna Benn, who were each a year below himself. “Can you believe it?” he asked quietly in shock, not wanting to speak too loudly to avoid attracting attention from anybody else - especially from the Slytherin table, certain Lavender Davis would take any chance she could to bully him. It amused him, occasionally, that a girl who was younger to him went through the trouble of trying to pick on him, and he indulged it, usually, because she was stunning. But, there were times her words got under his skin, of course, and he tried not to show it too often. He peered over at the Slytherin table with the thought, noticing Lavender, but he then spotted Ashton behind him, at the Ravenclaw table. “Oi, Ashton,” he called quietly, “Any clue how he did it?” Harry was their friend, of course, and surely he would have told them about it if he’d done it himself, but Calum was at a loss in understanding what was going on.

Mirna watched quietly, shifting in her seat as she chewed on her lip. How had Harry managed to get his name into the Cup? Or had somebody else done it? The Triwizard Tournament was apparently dangerous - the Ministry had been very, very specific about that, it was the whole reason they’d decided not to allow anybody under seventeen to participate. Surely, Harry wouldn’t have put his own name in the Cup or had somebody do it, not with all the danger he was always in already. “Harry wouldn’t have done it,” she whispered to Calum when she heard his words, nudging him a little roughly before she looked to Abigail with concern. “He’s going to be in quite a bit of trouble, don’t you think?” she asked softly, “Do you think they’ll force him not to participate? Surely they wouldn’t allow him to, right?” She hoped they would do the right thing, for Harry’s sake - it wasn’t fair that Harry kept getting dragged into such huge messes. But, hearing a loud laugh break out across the Great Hall, she turned to the source - the Slytherin table, and she frowned when she spotted Luke and his friends, certain they were having a ball with this.

With the silence that engulfed the Great Hall, the loud laugh that erupted from the Slytherin table caught quite a bit of attention - the culprit being Michael Clifford, who, after several long moments of silence, hadn’t been able to hold in his amusement, and he clapped as if applauding the entire thing, when really, he was just annoyed with the situation. “You’ve got to be kidding me!” he called loudly, shaking his head with a scoff. “Harry Potter? That’s who’ll be representing Hogwarts? I’ll place my bet on Cedric, thank you very much. Or, better yet, on Krum!” He smirked, then, leaning forward in his seat, his elbows on the table as he propped his hands up, clasping them together, and rested his chin atop them. “Perhaps dear old Potter’s luck will finally run out, eh?” He grinned over to Luke, Lavender, and Dareia, then, arching a brow. “What do you say? Maybe he’ll be dead by the end of the first trial.” He smirked with the thought before peering over at Abigail, watching her for a moment. He bullied her quite often, loving how she reacted to him, loving how he got her riled up but, most of all, loving her, and he grinned as he called out, “Oi, Abigail! How long do you think that brat will last?”

Dareia rolled her eyes as she listened to Michael and she shoved him playfully. “Quiet, Michael, you’re embarrassing yourself,” she teased easily, “Why waste time placing bets on them at all? It’s just a stupid game - all under the guise of a fun little sport.” She knew there was more to the Triwizard Tournament, of course, but it didn’t matter. People died in these tournaments all the time, there was no point wasting time with being excited about the prospect of any of it. Looking to Lavender, she offered an amused look, arching a brow. “I think we’ll have far better things to do with our time than to fall into Michael’s little trap, don’t you?” And, as if to prove her point, her gaze went to Ashton, the Ravenclaw, because she knew she’d have more fun bullying the handsome boy than she would bothering with keeping up with anything that had to do with the Tournament. There wasn’t a reason to indulge in the game, there wasn’t anybody worth watching in the Tournament, in her opinion, so she figured she might as well find her entertainment elsewhere.

When The Great Hall, usually prominent with the noise of fellow studnets, had fallen into an uncomfortable silence, Ashton swore he could drop a pin and it would echo. The Goblet of Fire, revealing the champions for this year's Triwizard Tournament, had thrown out the names of Viktor Krum, Fleur Delacour, Cedric Diggory, and Harry Potter - and of course, it was the latter that drew attention, and caused everyone to wait with baited breath to see what would happen next. Finally pulling his gaze from the blue hue that surrounded the cup, Ashton's eyes first, as if on instinct, fell to the Slytherin table. He knew he shouldn't of, but the first person he had sought out was Dareia Silver, a gorgeous Slytherin who seemed determined to hate him, but he could never hate her in return - in fact, it was quite the opposite. She was in the year below his, and from the moment Ashton saw her for the first time, he was sure he fell head over heels even more each day. When Calum Hood brought Ashton out of his thoughts though, Ashton's eyes flickered to his friend. "No idea, mate!" Ashton called back quietly, shrugging. "Luck?" And that was the best explanation that Ashton could offer, Dumbledore had enchanted the Cup himself to ensure underage wizards couldn't place their name forward for participation. "It's weird." But hearing the obnoxious Michael Clifford, a friend of Dareia's, laughter, Ashton rolled his eyes, moving over to the Hufflepuff table when students waited in anticipation. "Surely they won't allow him to compete." He murmured to reassure Mirna, shifting in his seat slightly as he felt someone's eyes burning into him. He was sure that person was Dareia.

Lavender's eyes followed Harry Potter as he was led away by Minerva McGonagall and Albus Dumbledore, and for a moment, she was unsure of how to react. The Great Hall was already tense, the air heavy with anticipation of what was going to happen next, but when Michael, a close friend of Lavender's, burst into laughter, Lavender chuckled with amusement, ridding herself of any thoughts of concern, no matter how small they were. Harry Potter deserved what was coming. "Michael, quiet." The brunette scolded jokingly, fixing her green and silver tie with pride. "Honestly, what has gotten into you?" She teased, shaking her head as she tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear. Certainly, she was excited to see how Golden Child Potter could weasel his way out of this one, everyone knew that the Triwizard Tournament was dangerous, even for the bravest of wizards. "Krum?" Lavender laughed, looking to Michael. "He's thick, Mikey! You know what, how about we just throw Calum Hood in there with Potter and Diggory? At least then we can get rid of three pretentious fools in one swipe. Imagine!" And with the mention of the particularly handsome Calum Hood - a boy that Lavender had fallen in love with, despite her best efforts not to, Lavender looked to the Hufflepuff table, where the golden skinned boy with eyes the colour of molasses sat with his friends. "Oi, Hood!" She called with a smirk. "You definitely should give it a go, you know! Drag Irwin there with you."

Luke Hemmings would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised when Harry Potter's name had left the Cup. Sure, the boy had always been the chosen one, and he annoyed Luke to no end, but even with the fact that Harry was underage, this was a stupid decision, even for him. Giving a quick glance to the Hufflepuff table, where Mirna Benn sat with her friends, Luke studied the girl for a long moment, wondering what was going through her mind as she spoke to her friends, looking concerned. He knew she was a good friend of Harry's, and the girl was too kind to ever be cruel, a huge contrast to Luke's own personality. Maybe that's why they'd never be able to be together, like Luke sometimes hoped. Pushing the thought away, Luke dropped his gaze when Mirna looked to them. When Michael had broken the silence though, Luke laughed, unable to stop himself with Michael's outburst. "Cedric's just as bad!" Luke shoved Michael with a smirk. "He did awful in end of year exams last year. More brawn than brain in that one." Luke smirked, looking to Mirna then with a cocky glance, one that she could see. "Oi, Mirna!" And as much as Luke loved the girl, he enjoyed her attention as well, and this often prompted him to bully her relentlessly. "What do you think of all this, ey? Who's gonna die first? I think Lavender's right, maybe Irwin and Hood should join in, just for the fun of getting rid of your deceiving kind!"

Abigail found the silence almost painful, and when Harry was taken away to speak with the Professors, she looked to Calum and Mirna, two of her closest friends, moving over as Ashton joined them from the Ravenclaw table. "I can't quite believe it." She murmured in return, looking to Mirna, Calum and Ashton. "Harry couldn't of done it. Dumbledore put an age restriction around it personally, you saw what happened to Fred and George when they tried to cross it." She pointed out, placing a hand on Mirna's arm to reassure her of their friend's safety. "And Harry's underage, for goodness sake, they wouldn't let him participate..." Abigail frowned then, tightening her ponytail. "Would they?" Hearing laughter from the Slytherin table though, Abbie rolled her eyes, and Michael Clifford, as handsome as he was, was too difficult to ignore when he behaved like such a fool. "Michael, he'd certainly last longer than you, in every sense of the word!" Abigail shot back easily, not needing to put much thought into her rebuttal. Looking back to her friends, Abigail sighed. "If Harry has to go through with this, at least he's got us, Ron, and Hermione to help him figure things out."

Dareia offered an amused look at her friends, listening to them talk about the outcome of the Goblet of Fire. Hearing Lavender, Luke, and Michael talking about throwing Ashton into the tournament as well, though, she felt a fear rush through her that she wasn’t familiar with - bloody hell, Dareia rarely ever felt fear, except when it came to the possibility that Luke and Michael and the rest of the Slytherins might learn of her and Lavender’s true blood status. The thought of Ashton ever truly getting hurt or killed, though, was not a thought she wanted to entertain. Since she knew she couldn’t go against her friends’ opinions, though, she forced a small grin. “Oi, you lot, we all know Irwin would die of fright with the mere thought of being in the Tournament, far before the Tournament itself could kill him!” she shot back with a smirk before she peered towards Ashton, who’d joined his friends at the Hufflepuff table. “Isn’t that right, Irwin?” she called out, arching a brow before she grinned at her friends, “Poor lad would have probably cried himself to sleep tonight if his name had come out of that Goblet.”

Calum peered between his friends silently, hopeful that they could come up with some sort of explanation for what had gotten Harry into the situation he was now facing. “I’m not sure if him being underage would really matter,” he admitted as he chewed on his lip, “I think, if your name comes out, you have to participate, whether you put it in or not. I think it’s part of the reason they emphasize how dangerous it is, and why they put the age restriction in the first place.” But, there was no way Harry could have put his name into the Goblet himself, so the chances of their friend having to be forced to participate when he hadn’t purposely tried to get involved did worry Calum, especially since Harry was younger than them, and he’d faced enough torment through his life so far. He made a face, though. “Sorry, guys, I know I’m not really helping the situation.” He shifted a bit, though he felt a frown tug at his lips when he heard Lavender and, peering over at her, his heart twisted painfully with the sight of her. He’d loved the girl since he first laid eyes on her, but he knew she wanted nothing to do with him aside from to throw out cruelty. “Perhaps Clifford or Hemmings should have been thrown in instead!” he shot back easily, “Maybe, then, you lose a bit of that bravado you show when you’re around them. Trying to impress them, are you?”

Mirna chewed on her lip anxiously, ducking her head in thought as she processed what her friends were saying. None of it boded well for Harry, and she shifted uncomfortably with the thought. “Right, you’re absolutely right, Abigail,” she murmured quietly, because all they really could do was try to help Harry out as much as they could if he really did end up stuck having to go through the Tournament. When she heard Luke’s voice from the Slytherin table, though, she sank a bit in her seat, trying not to acknowledge him, but she frowned gently, peering over at him and hating the way the cocky expression he wore sent a wave of something she didn’t want to admit to feeling rush through her. “Shut up, Hemmings,” she told him in response, clenching her jaw slightly as she watched him. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. If you want rid of us so badly, grow a pair and do it yourselves rather than waiting for an outside influence to do the job for you.”

Michael grinned towards his friends, his grin stretching across his face in a way that was almost painful. “Just because they’re daft doesn’t mean they can’t win!” he pointed out, “Maybe all they’d need is all that brawn and the right spells, who knows? And who cares, so long as it’s not Potter who wins?” Shrugging with the thought, he leaned forward in his seat, his arms resting on the table, though he peered over at Abigail when he heard her retort, a broad grin spreading itself across his face, because he loved having her attention on him. Hell, he loved [i[her, and he could at least admit that much to himself, even if he never dared to speak the words aloud. “Is that what you think?” he called back, arching a brow as he examined the gorgeous girl, “My, it’s nice to know you at least think about how long I would last at all.” He smirked teasingly, but shrugging slightly. “I wouldn’t put too much faith in that, though. You can only get lucky so many times and I’m betting Potter’s luck will run out any moment now. Hopefully, he’ll end up taking the rest of you lot down with him - it would save the rest of us the trouble!”

Ashton rolled his eyes as he heard Dareia's words, and he could admit that he was torn between feeling hurt and feeling amused at the total show of cockiness. It was, admittedly, endearing to Ashton, the way Dareia behaved. He found the girl so attractive, and Ashton wished he knew her on the level that Michael, Luke, and Lavender did, to see if there was more to her than she allowed the world to see. Knowing that his wish was nothing but idle thinking, Ashton snorted with laughter with Dareia's words. "Oi, Dareia! I'll go when Hemmings and Clifford go! They're all talk and no action, everyone knows it! Your whole house are nothing but cowards, at least Harry has twice the courage you snakes do!" And although Ashton hated retaliating to the beautiful girl, he couldn't help but to indulge her, avoiding the questions he'd get from his friends if he didn't stand his ground. But, he found it attractive when the pure blood fought back, and it was a little entertaining to him, admittedly. A girl in the year below him, taking time out of her day to belittle him. It was adorable. Biting his lip with the thought, Ashton took a sip of pumpkin juice, glancing to Dareia once more, studying her for a long moment before being pulled back to reality with Calum's words, frowning in concern.

Lavender scoffed as she heard Calum Hood's words, and standing from her seat, the petite brunette approached the Hufflepuff boy, grabbing the hair at the back of his neck, tugging his head backwards as she crouched down a little bit. "Hood, do you know why I put on so much bravado?" She spoke quietly, dangerously close to his ear. "For myself. Cause I'm just that damn good. You sound a bit jealous, Hood. I still think you'd rather die than complete any of those challenges - at least Michael and Luke wouldn't back down." And being this close to Calum was almost intoxicating, she'd been so hopelessly in love with him for as long as she could remember, but she'd never been so close. Shoving his head forward with her hand, Lavender straightened up once more and fixed her green and silver tie with pride, returning to the Slytherin table and sitting a little closer to Dareia this time, trying to upkeep her confident exterior as she looked to Calum once more, eyes darkened with anger and longing for the one boy she could never call her own.

Luke's smirk grew as Mirna retaliated with words that admittedly stung within his chest. He hated the fact that he had to remain so cruel, and he absolutely despised the fact that Mirna would always see him as a low life bully. Pushing his disappointment to the back of his mind as it began to physically weigh him down, Luke laughed with Mirna's words, although the laugh was convincing, there was no humour behind it. "Make me shut up, Mirna, I dare you!" Luke challenged, biting his lip as he saw Mirna's jaw clench, finding it so bloody attractive that he nearly couldn't think straight. "Sweet Mirna, I wish I could get rid of you and your disgusting kind," Luke threw a glare to Ashton Irwin and Calum Hood, but wolf whistled as Lavender took her seat, teasing the girl and Calum. "But I'd rather let someone else get the Dementor's Kiss - the less blood on my hands darling, the better!" He called back, although he wished to God that he could be a little bit nicer, to allow Mirna to see that he was worth her time. Frowning with the thought, Luke ducked his head so Mirna wouldn't see, poking at his food with a fork. Hearing Michael's words though, Luke smirked and looked to his best friend. "Hopefully Cedric and Potter go down together. Two little pigs gone, four more to go." He looked to the group sat by the Hufflepuff table.

Abigail smiled weakly in response to Mirna. "We just need to have faith that Harry knows what he's doing. He's done worst things than this - he went up agains tthe Dark Lord and he won, as a baby!" Abigail smiled at her friends. "He's got this, and he'll do us proud. I just know it." But hearing Michael Clifford's response, Abigail rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up, Michael!" She fought back, her cheeks heating up a little. "For one, you wouldn't last a second, in any aspect of your life, and two, I don't know a single woman who would touch you with a ten foot barge pole! Anyone who would want to get their hands on a fool like you is a fool themselves!" And Abigail knew she was belittling herself, but nobody else had to know. She'd been in love with the Slytherin bad boy for so long that she had grown accustomed to her feelings. "If you want us to go down, do it yourself, you lazy bastard!"

Clearing her throat with elegance, Professor McGonagall stood at the head table of the Great Hall. "That's enough, from both houses." She spoke confidently, aware she had every students' attention. "You may all return to your dormitories quietly."

Dareia shot a glare over at Ashton as she listened to him. “I don’t know why you lot think we’re cowards,” she said easily, “You say it as though you’ve ever done anything brave in your life - you’re a joke, Irwin. Nothing more.” She let her words hang in the air, a smirk on her features as she hoped the words cut deep, even though a part buried deeply within herself wished that she never had to hurt the boy she found herself attracted to in too many ways. But, this was the safest option. Settling her gaze back to her friends, she rolled her eyes as she heard McGonagall’s announcement and she stood up. “Happily,” she muttered easily, “C’mon, you lot, I’m bored and we’re wasting our time here.”

Calum gave a surprised noise when he felt Lavender tugging at his hair and he arched a brow as he watched her. “Putting yourself in quite the compromising position there, Lavender,” he said easily, offering a smirk as he eyed her, “If I didn’t know better, I’d think this is a turn on for you, love. But, maybe that’s the truth and that’s why you put on this bravado - because you know that you’d be easy to read otherwise.” And, having her so close, he could take in her scent and be overwhelmed by her presence, but he tried to stay focused despite that he felt like diving deep into every emotion the girl evoked from him. “Clifford and Hemmings are the biggest cowards out there. And I think you know it.” He smirked slightly, watching her, arching a brow, watching her walk away. “But that little game was fun, maybe we can have more fun later!” he called to her before standing when McGonagall excused them, looking over to his friends. “Let’s get outta here.”

Mirna rolled her eyes as she listened to Luke prattle on and on. “Oh, you never shut up, do you?” she asked, looking over at him, “Must really love to hear yourself speak - guess it’s no surprise. The only thing that Slytherins love are themselves, so hearing yourself talk so much must get you all hot and bothered.” Hearing him continue to talk, though, a frown formed on her features, and she found herself wondering if Luke truly did want her dead, if maybe some day, he’d be the one to kill her, even. The thought hurt more than she cared to admit. “Too scared to kill me yourself, Hemmings?” Arching a brow, she looked over at him. “You make me sick.” Settling her gaze back on her friends, she nodded when she heard Calum, and she stood up to head out first.

Michael felt a proud smirk form on his features when he heard Abigail fighting back, enjoying how she fought back, how she didn’t just sit back and take whatever he threw at her. “Oh, sweetheart, I know plenty of women who would enjoy touching me and being touched by me,” he taunted easily, mostly curious to if she would react to his words in any significant way. “And I can guarantee that I can last far longer than a second. I can go all night, love. Seems like you might want to find out, considering all your innuendos there.” And, he wanted her to want him, he truly did, more than he could ever dare to say, but all he could really do right now was taunt her, tease her, try to get under her skin in any way that he could manage to. Lifting his shoulders in a shrug, he stood up with his friends. “That was fun, Abigail, let’s do it again some time. Maybe next time we can do it without clothes.” His smirk broadening, he led his friends out.

Ashton could feel Dareia's glare easily, and he was certain if she was going to continue with such an intense gaze, it would burn a hole in his uniform - he'd never wanted to make Dareia hate him, but it seemed to be the way things went at school: Slytherins were a family within their own right, and nobody else who wasn't pure or idolised their ideologies were seen as unworthy. Frowning with the thought, Ashton caught Dareia's words in the wind, and he frowned, standing to his feet as his friends did. "Look at yourself and your scaly little family, Dareia." Ashton warned monotonously, clearly hurt by Dareia's words; and as fond as he was of the girl, as much as she made his heart pound against his ribcage with excitement, he couldn't bring himself to break the mould and show everyone that an irrelevant little Ravenclaw could fall hopelessly in love with a Slytherin. "And this is why nobody likes you lot." Ashton frowned, pushing past the Slytherins as he was the first of his friends to leave the Great Hall. Exhaling in relief as his friends caught up with him, Ashton slung his arm around Mirna's shoulders protectively.

Lavender couldn't admit to herself that Calum's words had had an affect on her, and she found herself wanting to be in more compromising positions with Calum, maybe in much better circumstances. Just the sight of his smirk had driven her wild, and he hadn't been wrong when he'd called it all a turn on. Shifting with the thought, Lavender looked to her cousin and her friends, grateful that they were there to keep her grounded, and she'd laughed with Michael's words to Abigail, trying to keep her cruel composure, knowing she had to prove Calum wrong. "I hate this school." Lavender frowned, running a hand through her dark hair, standing to her feet as the old hag McGonagall spoke, rolling her eyes. "I'm so sick of mudbloods and half bloods thinking that they're the chosen ones, must of been hanging around Harry Potter for far too long." She spoke loudly, ensuring that Calum Hood heard, not caring who she hurt. Pushing past Calum as she followed her friends out, Lavender shoved Ashton out of the way harshly. "Harry bloody Potter, a champion. Can you imagine?!"

Luke would of drawn his wand right there if McGonagall hadn't been watching, and although he wouldn't of used it, he certainly would of shown Mirna not to doubt him. The horrible reality of it all was that Luke deserved everything the beauty threw at him, because he had never done anything nice for anyone outside of his little clique. Rolling his eyes, Luke felt a sharp ache in his chest when Mirna told him that he made her sick, and he knew that he would never gain her affection, gain her heart - she already held his so incredibly tightly. "Yeah?" Luke murmured as she walked past. "And your kind makes me sick. Guess we're even there." Luke spoke with an icy chill, standing to his feet and following Michael, Lavender and Dareia, shoulders tense. "With any luck, the Dark Lord will come for Potter, and the rest of you." But Luke swore, if anyone dared to hurt Mirna, he would kill them without hesitation, and although just that thought frightened him, he knew she was worth the trouble, because nobody else could make Luke Hemmings feel that way. Clenching his jaw, Luke followed his friends, ducking his head, allowing his curls to fall into his face; ashamed and too tired to correct himself. His pride could wait.

Abigail listened to McGonagall contently, having nothing but respect for the Gryffindor head of house, and as she focused on the woman's words, she'd found it easier to ignore Michael, not reacting to his words - although she wouldn't mind to be touched by him, and she couldn't help but allow her thoughts to wonder, and the thought of the impurity, the lust, caused a shudder to run down her spine in the most wonderful way. Biting her lip, Abigail shook her head and stood to her feet, following Mirna's lead, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Rolling her eyes with his words, Abigail scowled at him. "You wish, Clifford." She murmured, ducking her head, wrapping an arm around Calum as he stood. "God, I hate them." She huffed, stepping out of the Great Hall, fellow students buzzing about the excitement that Harry Potter would compete as a champion in the Triwizard Tournament. "Why must Slytherins act like they own the whole bloody castle?" Abigail seethed, looking to her friends, exhaling. "What do you lot think of all of this?" Abigail let go of Calum, looking to Ashton with a worried gaze.

Dareia peered over at Ashton when she heard his words, just in time to see him sling his arm over Mirna’s shoulders, and she scowled, ignoring the pang of jealousy that ran through her veins, that clenched at her heart. “I never wanted anybody to like me, anyway,” she said simply, “Especially people like you - pathetic and full of hypocrisy.” Turning, she joined with her friends, bitter and annoyed, almost seething at this point, her hands clenched into fists at her sides, almost white-knuckled. She hated that Ashton, of all people, could get under her skin so easily, could make her feel things as pathetic as jealousy, when she knew she was better than that.

Calum made a face when Lavender pushed past him, and he found himself staring after her, not wanting to admit to how easily she attracted his attention, how desperately he wanted her to be his. It made him wish that things were different, that things were easier; it made him wish that she didn’t hate him as much as she did, because he could never bring himself to hate her, not when he loved her as much as he did. Shaking his head, he sighed, looking to his friends. “This whole thing is just frustrating,” he muttered, frowning to himself, though he tried to force his thoughts elsewhere. “At least we get to look forward to the Tournament. Harry should be just fine, knowing him.”

Mirna felt her jaw clench as she heard Luke’s words, and she didn’t want to admit to the pain that shot through her heart with Luke so openly implying that he wanted her dead, gone. She hated it, hated that Luke could affect her in such ways, and she so, so wished that he didn’t mean as much to her as he did, especially when he certainly didn’t deserve it and clearly didn’t want it. “Maybe you should just grow a pair and do the job yourself,” she shot back simply, though she joined at Ashton’s side, trying to calm down when she felt Ashton’s arm around her, and she leaned into him, trying to relax, trying to force her tension away.

Michael could only smirk in response to Abigail’s words as he stood up to join his friends. “Oh, love, you can’t even imagine what I wish,” he said easily, leaving his words in the air, certain they could come off as malevolent if she wanted to take them that way, though he meant them in a far more tempting way than he cared to admit. Regardless, he joined at his friends’ sides, stuffing his hands into his pockets, listening to Lavender. “Are you so surprised?” he asked, scoffing quietly and rolling his eyes a bit, “The fool has everything handed to him. It’s ridiculous. A lucky moron.” He shook his head as they walked, frowning to himself. “The whole world bows down to him without hesitation.”

Ashton tried, so damn hard, to not let Dareia or her words get under his skin, because she should of been the last person on earth he buckled to, and yet, it was so easy to become hurt by her words, because she was possibly the only person Ashton wanted - he wanted to feel her skin beneath his finger tips and feel her petal soft lips against his, and he knew that although that was so incredibly forbidden between rival houses and blood status, Ashton wanted the one thing he could never have. "I hate it here sometimes," Ashton sighed, pulling Mirna closer. At least his friends were safe. But hearing Calum's words, thoughts of the Tournament quickly pushed away the thoughts of Dareia. "Yeah, it's definitely something nobody could of predicted - did you see the look on Dumbledore's face?" Ashton asked.

Abigail had heard Michael's words - of course she had - but she vowed to herself that she wouldn't let him get to her, not now, not ever, and focusing on the conversation that was happening among her friends, Abigail exhaled, walking beside Calum easily, happy to have her friends at her side. "We can't let them get to us like this, especially when they know that Harry could die during all of this. There's an age restriction for a reason," Abigail ran her hands through her dark hair, looking far ahead in the direction of the dungeons, hoping to catch one last glimpse of Michael Clifford. "Yeah, Dumbledore looked furious." Abigail nodded. "I wonder if he'll let Harry compete or not."

Luke looked over his shoulder when he heard Mirna's words, blue eyes clouded with fury that was unjust and cruel, unprovoked and definitely not the real version of him that he so desperately wanted Mirna to see; so he could prove that he wasn't as bad as he seemed. Opening his mouth to say something, Luke quickly stopped himself when he saw Ashton's arm around Mirna's shoulders, and he exhaled. "I can't believe this." Luke complained to his friends, stuffing his clenched fists into the pockets of his robes. "Of course it had to be Potter." Luke nodded along with Lavender, letting his jealousy take him. "And his perfect little mudblood friends. I hope he goes down in flames." Luke said loud enough for Mirna to hear, before speeding up to get to the dungeons, his robe following him in a manner that was almost dramatic.

Lavender, once she was away from Calum Hood, exhaled heavily, shaking her head with frustration, anger, hurt... all she wanted was Calum, and yet he was so far out of reach, and Lavender was convinced that even fate kept them apart. Listening to her friends, Lavender nodded along, staying close to Dareia with the words of cruelty towards those who weren't pureblooded - because her own blood wasn't pure, either. "Well, Potter will learn his lesson the hard way, putting his name into the Goblet like that." Lavender reassured, looking over her shoulder to Calum once more, before stepping through the dungeon doors. "And if that lesson is death, then so bloody be it."