The rumors and gossip were more than usual these days. Because of Sirius getting banished at such a young age. Some of the students had managed to get their hands on tabloids that were circulating all among the houses now. The tabloids presented crazy theories about why he got banished, since the Blacks did not want to discuss this matter. Some magazines portrayed Sirius as a hero, for breaking off the shackles and having the courage to get away at such a young age, proving himself worthy of the House that had been decided for him. Other tabloids did not exactly say good things about him. Posing him as an ungrateful son, a fool for leaving all the fortune behind. There was a mix of opinions between the student body.

But nevertheless, the gossips were still high. Sirius was coping with it in his own way— pretending to be indifferent to everything, ignoring all the stares and whispers that he had to experience wherever he went. Ivy had felt relieved when she had seen him fine and smiling on the first day back at Hogwarts, but she couldn't bring herself to go ask him how he really was. She should have. Because she considered him a friend foremost. But she believed something had changed in the way she viewed him. She didn't know what it was yet, but she knew something was different about everything now.

And Sirius wasn't the only one she had started to view differently now. The other Black brother could be enlisted as well. The fact that she had caught him in such an intimate moment, at such a vulnerable point. She really was starting to see him in a new light now. And she had been thinking a lot about him too. Whatever she had heard, whatever she had witnessed at the Black manor that day, it really made her wonder about his life. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows like she thought she knew. But then again, she wondered, how much did she actually know of him?

All she knew about him could be listed in a few points. Rich, annoying, good at Potions, likes Quidditch.. This was pretty much it. She had just assumed that he had a great life at home.

She hadn't encountered him by now and she was somewhat grateful for that. It would turn very awkward, she was sure of it. So it was better off not seeing him at all. She had just been the wrong person at the wrong time. She shouldn't have been there at that moment, she didn't fit in it.

But only fate knew of how things take place.

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Ivy packed her Potions book in her satchel, getting up with the rest of the students to leave. She nudged Alexi who sat by her side, head buried in a book placed under the desk. Lexi looked up in surprise, then noticed the class had ended already. "See, I appreciate your love for reading but at least put the book down during class." Ivy said. Alexis grinned back at the blonde sheepishly. "You can give me the notes right?" Ivy sighed and nodded, not in the mood for giving any lectures. There were hardly any that affected Lexi anyways. Both roommates were about to leave the Potions classroom when Professor Slughorn called Ivy out.

"Miss Binns, could you spare me a moment before you head to your next class?" he asked her. Ivy nodded, and motioned Alexis to go on.

"Yes Professor?" she asked him. What could he possibly want to talk to her about?

"Miss Binns you must know about my Slug Club from the previous years I suppose?" the professor asked her with a smile. Ivy nodded at the mention of the social club the Potions master arranged with a bunch of his hand picked students from the years. "Well, I was hoping you could join us at a small gathering after dinner this Thursday? Nothing big, just desserts and discussions with some of the talented students. What do you say? Could you favour me by joining?"

Ivy was taken aback at the offer. She was not exceptionally great at Potions or anything, she hadn't really expected the Professor to ever invite her to the club. "I—I'd be honoured to Professor!" she exclaimed, hiding away her excitement. "I'm not extraordinary at Potions but I appreciate that you considered me."

"Well, your dueling skills are very admirable. Quite the show you put on before Christmas. I really enjoyed it!" Professor Slughorn mentioned the incident casually as he laughed, but Ivy flushed red with embarrassment. "Alright then, I'm hoping you will favour me by joining." Ivy nodded with a smile, thanking the Professor and left the room. She was going to the Slugclub!

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All the classes ended for the day and Ivy wanted nothing more than to plop on her bed and sleep. Somehow, it was even harder to start studying again after a break. She entered her dorm, slumping down on her bed face first. "Someone's tired," Maria commented, combing her hair. Ivy just groaned in response. "Where's Paige?" "Quidditch practice." Alexis answered.

"By the way, why did Slughorn stop you earlier? What did he want to talk about?" Lexi asked casually, eyes on her book. Ivy sat up straight, still feeling drained from the hectic day. "He invited me to the Slug Club. They're holding a party in a few days."

"That's so great!!" Maria exclaimed excitedly. "You always wanted to be part of the club, didn't you? I'm really happy for you!" Ivy smiled warmly at the brunette. Sometimes she wondered how she ended up in Ravenclaw. Maria definitely was a lost hufflepuff. Always so kind and friendly, good natured and caring. Always the one to put her friends and family before her. Taking care of them all like the mom of the group.

"I still think it's a useless hyped up club." Alexis wrinkled her nose. "Slughorn just wants to make connections for himself. Everyone knows of the favours he gets from the former students of the club. Everyone at great positions, sending him gifts and stuff. He's basically just doing this for his own benefit. I still don't think he truly appreciates your talents."

Ivy shrugged. "Well, we'll see about that then."

"Also," Alexis started, sitting up straight. "Speaking of parties, is there anything you forgot to tell us about yours?" she emphasized on parties as a mischievous grin made way to her lips. Maria also smiled, sitting besides Lexi as if she knew what they were going to talk about.

"What do you mean?" Ivy asked, taking off her robe to hang it. "I think there's something about the Yule ball that you perhaps forgot to tell us about."

Ivy's hand stopped mid-air. Her heart skipped a beat. Did they know about what she had seen? How could they know? She hadn't told a single soul!

"I don't think so," she answered, slowly sitting back, pretending that she didn't know what they were talking about. "You sure you told us everything?'' Lexi raised her brow Brows as if she had something on Ivy. "Mmhm.." Ivy hummed back, although feeling scared. "Something involving Regulus perhaps?" Alexis pestered on, Maria also looking at Ivy excitedly. Ivy felt her soul almost leave her body. It was impossible! How did they know? Had anyone seen her that day?

"I- I don't know what you're talking about," Ivy's voice shook a little as she tried to maintain her shield. "I think you know exactly what I'm talking about," Alexis threw something at Ivy, a tabloid. The Hogwarts Hours. A guy named Xenophilius Lovegood ran it as an unofficial magazine for Hogwarts, filled with gossip and tea about the school and its students.

But what the concerning part was, that right on the front cover was a very huge picture of Ivy from the Yule ball. Ivy and Regulus to be more exact. A picture of them both during the ball dance with a big header that said "Enemies turned lovers?"

Ivy didn't know whether to take a breath of relief that the girls were talking about the unfortunate ball dance that she shared with Regulus or to gasp at the horrendous magazine. She had completely forgotten about the dance at all.

"What the hell is this?!" Ivy said in horror. "Congrats you guys made front cover," Alexis said excitedly. "This is the only magazine that's focusing on you both and not Sirius." Maria chipped in.

"I'm kind of hurt that you didn't tell us about this very important detail, but I just wanted to tell you that it's okay and we'll support you no matter what." Alexis said in a serious tone. "Yes, one hundred percent." Maria added in. "And you need to be true to yourself too. Accept your feelings."

Ivy looked at the girls with wide eyes. "What the hell are you guys talking about?! Support me in what? And who took this picture!?" Ivy swore she was going to teach Lovegood a very good lesson for sharing horrendous lies like these in his tabloid.

"Well there were a lot of Hogwarts students at the party. A lot of people saw you both. You should really read inside there's a 4 page article on you both," Alexis turned the pages.

Ivy scanned the article, her eyes falling on phrases like 'undeniable chemistry', 'fated lovers' and 'straight out of a good fanfiction'

Ivy's eyes widened more and more with every thing she laid eyes on. Eventually she threw the tabloid away.

"Burn it." She said in a cold voice. "What?" Alexis asked, maybe having misheard. She sure was having a great time reading the article. "Burn this thing and every other copy you see of it!" Ivy looked ready to kill.

"Why, why, what's wrong?" Maria asked with concern. "Ivy there's literally no shame in anything. Everyone knows and there are people who are really supportive and happy of this!"

"Of what?!" Ivy said aloud in agony. "Of you and Regulus liking each other of course," Alexis stated it as if she was ordering cheesecake. "You were hiding it from us because you're embarrassed, right? Of having fallen for the person you planned to murder in a new way every single night. It's alright, no need to be ashamed Ivy. Most of us suspected you both to end up together anyways," Ivy's mouth opened with shock. "You make the perfect enemies to lovers plot, I'm so excited!"

Ivy stood there in shock trying to process the words and Maria stepped forward to envelope the girl in a hug. "It's okay, everyone already knows."

"You guys are... crazy. You guys have gone bonkers. I am going bonkers!" Ivy started with a horrified expression on her face as she left the room, too speechless to even explain what had happened.

That night the dormitory room was full of laughter when she explained everything to the three girls with a flushed face, flushed from embarrassment or anger, Ivy didn't know. Never in a million years could she ever think like this about him.

"I honestly would have believed it was a fake picture rather than believing it," Paige said. "If I hadn't seen it with my own two eyes."

And Ivy took turns throwing pillows at everyone because the girls wouldn't stop making remarks on how perfect they looked in the picture.

Later in the night, when the girls slowly slipped away to slumber, Ivy took Alexis' copy of the tabloid out, reading everything mentioned in the article scoffing at it. At the lies Lovegood had brewed. "He is so dead tomorrow," Ivy gritted her teeth. Then proceeded to stare at their picture on the front cover.

...Sure, well she could understand why everyone was thinking about those sorts of things. The picture indeed was... something. Whoever the photographer was, had picked a very perfect time for the picture. Ivy's gown raised with one hand, flowing around them, the other hand in Regulus'. They both even seemed to be staring at each other. And the worst thing was probably their matching colours.

Ivy tossed the magazine away before she could get any more funny thoughts in her head, then pulled the covers over her head. "I'll take my time tearing it strip by strip and burning it tomorrow," she thought before angrily going to sleep.

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Thursday arrived in no time and Ivy hurried back in her room after dinner to get ready for her first Slug club gathering. With a bit of a help from the girls, she managed to find a warm sweater and pants that looked presentable enough for a semi-formal party. She didn't know what to do with her hair so she just left them as they were, falling over her shoulders. The curls for Christmas had long returned back to their original straightened state. With that Ivy was off to Slughorn's office.

She knocked and entered the room, the Professor giving her a warm greeting. Fairly roomy, his office included a fireplace with two large sofas surrounding it, a round dinner table big enough to sit ten people where the students were currently seated. Ivy felt a little self conscious upon seeing all the eyes on her, then moved towards the free chair right across from Slughorn. As she sat down, her gaze fell on Regulus who sat beside the Professor.

It was the first time she was seeing him after Christmas but she should've expected it. Regulus was undoubtedly a top student at Potions, better than her, she'll admit. She looked at him, and he looked back at her, both keeping emotionless faces. Then with no warning, the front cover of the tabloid popped up in Ivy's mind. Ivy felt her face heat up as she quickly averted her gaze, mentally blaming the girls for showing it to her and saying crazy things.

They waited just a while more for other students to arrive and then Slughorn made necessary introductions.

There was a set of twins invited, Corton and Cara Fahey, both gryffindors who were in 6th year with Ivy. She had seen them around during double classes. Imani Coleman, who was a black girl in her last year, also a Gryffindor Ivy had noticed during one of the Quidditch matches. She looked the most mature out of everyone present on the table. Lately there was Timothee Loski from 5th year.

Slughorn waved his wand and seven bowls levitated from the shelf and were placed neatly in front of everyone. The bowls contained three giant scoops of eerily colourless ice cream, two round pieces of chocolate placed neatly on them.

"The ice cream will not melt so we can take our time eating and talking," Slughorn gave them all an excited smile. "Desert and discussions is one of my favorite gatherings to hold."

"But the best part is that you can choose whatever flavor you want. Just point your wand at it and it'll transform into the flavor you want to eat. I let my students choose flavors of their own liking."

Ivy didn't know why she felt so amused on hearing that. She really loved magic when it involved food. Like when the food appears and disappears in the Grandhall, and the jugs and plates that keep refilling no matter how much you eat. She happily pointed her wand at the bowl, thinking of her favorite Clotted Cream Ice cream. She had been craving it for quite a while now.

The scoops in her bowl transformed into the ice cream of her desire. Though she couldn't identify much by colour— since it was still white— the texture surely looked perfect.

The bowls on the rest of the table started changing too, some into strawberry, some chocolate. Slughorn's changed into butterscotch. Ivy glanced at Regulus' bowl only to be surprised to find his ice cream identical to hers. Did he like clotted cream too?

Everyone started eating their desert, Slughorn engaging them all in a conversation that mainly revolved around their interests and future plans.

"Do try the chocolate," Slughorn said in between. "Some kind student here happened to leave me these as a Christmas present before the break. They are really delicious. But they didn't leave a name so I could thank them," Slughorn said with a disappointed tone.

Upon hearing that, Ivy's eyes shot straight up at Regulus', only to find him looking at her as well, with the same surprise in them. These were the chocolates with a sleeping potion he had left at Slughorn's office door for their detention. They both shared a knowing glance, Ivy not missing to give him a disapproving look. If these really were the same chocolates, this party was going to sleep very soon. Thankfully, Ivy hadn't bitten into them yet.

Slughorn continued on with the conversations, too invested in what Imani's parents did. He was quite fascinated by muggles. Ivy ate her ice cream quietly, occasionally answering but steered clear of the chocolate, Regulus doing the same. But within 15 minutes or so, Ivy could slowly notice the sleeping potion taking effect on the students. Corton was the first one to yawn, the others followed soon after seeing him. Ivy could notice Imani who was sitting up straight, trying to stay alert, as she stifled a yawn.

"Why aren't you eating the chocolate Mr. Black?" Slughorn asked casually. Then looked around in the other bowls too. "And you too Miss. Binns? It's really delicious." the professor took another bite of his own. Then looked at Regulus expectantly. "I'm saving the best for the last, Professor." he answered. Slughorn chuckled. "Just like me. I like this guy!" then gave Regulus a strong pat on the back.

Then he turned his attention back to the Ravenclaw. "And what about you, Miss Binns?" Ivy was caught off guard. "Uh..my um.. My dentist told me not to," she quickly made up whatever excuse came first to her mind.

"Dentist?" Slughorn asked curiously, taking a big bite of his butterscotch. "Is that another muggle thing?" Ivy nodded. "Yes, Professor," "Do tell me more about it!" Slughorn insisted. Regulus, upon the diverted attention, slowly picked out the chocolate chunks from his bowl and hid them away.

"It's like a doctor," Ivy explained, grateful that the topic had been changed from chocolate. "But for your teeth." "Interesting, do you know about them too, Miss Coleman?" Imani's head snapped up upon hearing her name. Her alert posture was slowly losing composure. On Ivy's right, Corton yawned more than ever, slowly trying to rest his face on the table. "And this dentist.. forbids you from eating chocolate?" Slughorn inquired, confused.

"Yes, and other sweet things that might harm your teeth." Ivy answered. "Well, that's kind of absurd. I think this dentist is just fooling you muggles," Slughorn shook his head. "I've been eating sweets my whole life, and my teeth are perfect." Ivy nodded slowly, not knowing what to respond. "Must.. be in your genes Professor. You're totally immune."

"Still, I'd like you to try this chocolate. Surely, once wouldn't hurt?" Slughorn looked at her expectantly. Ivy gulped at the pressure. Corton was now fully sleeping with his head propped on his arm at the table. Cara looked sleepy too, as if not really understanding what was going on. And Ivy was sure she just heard Timothee snore. Regulus and her were the only ones awake. "I really shouldn't, Professor," Ivy said, nervously motioning her hands in no. "I've never seen anyone refuse chocolate before. I insist. You really won't regret it, Miss Binns."