Across the potions classroom, I couldn't ignore Draco and Blaise laughing amongst themselves. It was an obnoxious type of laughter that could only equate to smugness or having gotten away with something, which was unfortunately exactly what happened.

Much to my chagrin, Malfoy was actually being truthful about what would happen when I took him to Dumbledore.

The Headmaster kindly thanked me for reporting Draco's insubordination, but stated that these were issues to be dealt with privately, in the group. He allegedly hadn't broken any real rules or violated any guidelines that prefects were required to follow. As such, Draco was let off with simply a warning and being told to do better.

It made me sick to my stomach that someone like Malfoy could get away with anything he wanted just because his father bought his position as prefect, especially since he didn't even want to be a prefect, seemingly. It was a recipe for disaster; he could flaunt his prefect power whenever he wanted without consequence. Considering he had no care for his job anyway, and everyone in the group was sick of his antics, I'd have to double my prefect efforts as his assigned partner.

I had voiced these concerns to Daphne, but she was sat with Tracey at another table. Theo took the liberty of keeping me company.

"Here," he plopped two Advanced Potions books down on the desk, sitting down at the empty chair on my left. "Picked this up for you."

"Thanks, Theo. Saved me the trouble," I grinned and picked the worse of the two; he could have the newer one.

I flipped through the pages quickly, feeling the slight breeze of the papers passing by on my fingers. The book itself was quite beaten up, but there was something comforting about its datedness.

"How do you feel about Slughorn this year? Seems like an alright bloke," he turned in his seat to face me.

I shrugged. "He's a family friend... supposedly knew my grandfather pretty well. I've met him at a few family functions. He's a bit of the airy, socialite type but nothing wrong with him."

Slughorn typically would come to ballroom events or large gatherings put on by my family when they first moved to the UK, but nothing overly personal. They had met Slughorn when he came to Italy many years ago, and my grandfather and him had a decent friendship whenever one was visiting the other's country. Since he passed away a few years ago, I haven't seen much of the professor except at large events.

We moved to the UK when I was just a child, so I don't remember or even know an extensive amount about him, but I didn't have anything necessarily poor to say about Slughorn.

Theo nodded. "Yeah, I'd say so. Thinking about the Slug Club at all? He's mentioned it a few times."

"It's by invitation, Theo," I let out a dry laugh.

"Even so, I have no doubt the both of us will get accepted," he gave me a playful grin.

"Right," I returned his sly smirk. "If I'm invited I think it would be disrespectful not to go, even if I don't particularly want to. If you're there it'll be a... little more tolerable, at least."

"Just a little?"

"Barely manageable."

He placed a hand over his heart in a mocking way of feigning pain which earned a genuine laugh from me.

"Ouch, that hurts, y/n," he joked back. "Careful with your words, they cut me deep."

"Glad to know you care for me so much that I make an impact," I sarcastically jested.

He snorted and looked down, chuckling to himself. "You're coming to Hogsmeade this Saturday, aren't you?"

I shook my head. "Unlikely I'll get a chance. We're barely a few weeks into the schoolyear and I'm already drowning in assignments."

"Glad I didn't sign up for that Advanced History of Magic class, like you. Advanced Potions is bad enough as it is... anyhow, you should definitely come along. I'm sure you can manage your work," he encouraged.

Theo and I had always been decent, if not, good friends actually. I quite enjoyed spending time with him privately, it was just in larger group settings that we didn't see eye-to-eye. His ego instantly inflated when he was around Blaise or Draco, especially.

He was still good company to keep in private settings, however. We had our fair share of rather fun experiences together. Unfortunately, most of my time had been wasted on making up for Draco's lack of participation in prefect things or my many classes I was taking this final year.

I hummed in response. "I'll definitely consider it. If not, then some other time for sure."

"I'll take you up on that. And if by some measure you can't slip away, I'll make sure to drop off something at your dorm room," he smiled.

After some more light banter, class finally started. When I said that Slughorn was airy, I definitely meant it. It seemed like most of class he would rather make conversation or chat about social topics than actually brew potions. Not that I was complaining, but it just meant more work to do independently when I'd rather learn it in class than outside.

Slughorn had just spent a few minutes at our table discussing intercountry magical social events, which I could tell he enjoyed all too much. Theo had jokingly mocked the professor behind his back when he wasn't looking, a few times. Soon enough, he made his way onto the next table, chatting up Draco and Blaise instead. Surely they'd have something to discuss.

"Are you going out for anything on the quidditch team?" Theo asked while pouring some ingredients into our shared cauldron.

"Definitely not," I chuckled, handing him the next part. "I can't fly a broom to save my life... they'd need Madam Pomfrey on standby if that happened. What about yourself?"

"Maybe, but I'm not so sure. I've done quidditch for three years now, I'm getting a bit tired of the sport, or at least being a chaser anyway. If I did, I'd want to be seeker."

Seeker. I'd gone to dozens of quidditch games, to watch Cedric play as seeker. I know it could be incredibly dangerous if not done properly, and Theo just didn't seem like he had the capabilities. Not that I would tell him that, but he had unknowingly struck a cord in my heart by mentioning that.

"I've heard it's a tough position, if you do," I advised, my mood suddenly becoming less sociable and more reserved at the thought of him playing against Cedric, who would likely play again for Hufflepuff. I refocused my attention back to the potion to distract myself.

"From Malfoy, you mean?" He looked up at me from the potion. "Didn't think you two were quite at the level of your relationship to... chat about those things," a small smirk formed on his lips. "Unless you're more advanced than I thought?"

I shook my head vigorously. "Merlin, no, Theo! Don't you remember Cedric is seeker, too?"

A hint of red crept up his neck in what seemed to be an embarrassed blush.

"You're right, sorry about that. I'd almost forgotten that you two were together for so long, what with things being so different now. You know, while we're on the topic, how are you... feeling about everything?" He asked, somewhat cautiously. His eyebrows furrowed and he leaned his forearms on the edge of the table, looking to be genuinely concerned.

"Since when have you taken such an interest in my personal life?" My gaze shot daggers, with my short patience being tested.

He was taken aback and held his hands up defensively. It made me suddenly regret lashing out at him when he was just being concerned for my wellbeing.

"Calm down, y/n, you act like we aren't friends. Friends are allowed to be curious about the other's life without some ulterior motive," he defended himself, but maintaining a calm voice.

I inhaled deeply, allowing myself to relax a bit. I needed to stop these sudden outbursts if I wanted to keep a level head, especially in class. I could save these theatrics for someone who earned them.

"You're right... sorry about that, Theo. You didn't deserve that. And since you're asking, it hasn't been that easy. I mean, I'm sure you could tell by my outburst here," I forced a dry laugh, trying to alleviate some tension. "I'll manage, but I haven't been comfortable getting used to the idea."

He nodded, seemingly in a sort of acceptance of my apology.

"I'm just saying, y/n, he may be my friend, but you are, too. It shouldn't stop you from confiding in me when you need to discuss something. If you need anything, you can come to me. Don't be shy, my door is always open for you."

I looked up at him with a warmer expression, appreciating his offer. After all, he was simply being a decent human and I had no reason to snap at him like that. I inched my way closer to him and wrapped my arms around his waist in a loose hug. "Thanks, Nott. You always know what to say."

Being quite a bit taller than me, he secured his arms around my shoulders and whispered a muffled "you're welcome" into my hair, seeing as his chin fell at the top of my head.

We stayed like this for but a fleeting moment, before I heard the voice of Professor Slughorn interrupting us, waltzing over from Draco and Blaise's table. He had his arms up in the air like there was some scandalous commotion.

"Miss Vitelli! Mr. Nott! Please, save your... interactions for outside of class," his jolly character made its way over to us. "For that, you'd better hope that your potion is finished, and in perfect working condition."

I obviously hugged him in a merely platonic way, but I understood how it could be interpreted, especially in the classroom. I doubt he would have reacted the same, had Slughorn knew the subject matter.

As Slughorn approached our potion for testing, Theo and I pulled away from each other, but I glanced at him through the corner of my peripheral and saw a playful smirk. To my surprise, I had the same expression.

He leaned down and whispered, "If he's like this now, imagine ol' Sluggy at one of his own parties."

———

That afternoon after classes, Theo and I had been basically inseparable. It felt really nice to be able to air out my frustrations to him about the marriage, and it was comforting talking about it with someone who I knew was trustworthy. Even if I wasn't the one who told him about it, I still was taking the opportunities given to me.

We'd spent most of the afternoon at the Black Lake, while the weather is still nice, but later in the evening it was dinner time and we were forced to leave. He escorted me to the Great Hall and, to my surprise, sat down next to me at the end of the table, away from our other housemates.

Slowly but surely, the rest of our respective groups piled in. No doubt they would interrupt our privacy, which I have to admit, I was quite liking just spending time with him.

Theo was whispering something humorous in my ear that made me burst out in deep laughter when my eyes landed on Daphne walking in. She gave me a look of surprise and sat across from me. "Evening, y/n," she greeted, somewhat hesitant about the new seating arrangement.

"Might need glasses, Greengrass. I'm here too," Theo joked. "I'm only kidding. Nice to see you."

"Right, you too, Nott," she mused. "You two seem awfully cozy today?"

I shook my head, letting out a chuckle. "Not quite, Daph. We've just been catching up. Haven't seen each other all summer, after all."

Something about her looked unconvinced, which means I knew I'd have to do some explaining later. Before she could say anything else, heavy stomping over to our seats interrupted our trio.

"Nott, where were you? I went by our dorm looking for you and you were nowhere to be found," the icy eyes of Draco were seething red at his friend.

Theo finished the bite of food he had in his mouth and cleared his throat. "Calm down, mate. What did you need me for?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "We were supposed to meet at the quidditch pitch, remember? Practice for the tryouts?"

Theo's eyes widened; clearly, he had forgotten. "Sorry about that, Draco. Can we do some other day? I was a bit... caught up."

"Caught up doing what?" Draco asked, sitting down next to Daphne.

"What are you doing?" Theo dismissively asked, motioning to Draco who was putting food on his plate.

"Am I not allowed to eat during meal times?"

"That's not what I me—" Theo cut himself off, scoffing. "Let's go somewhere else and discuss this, Draco."

"No. Here is just fine." Draco deadpanned, looking completely bored with Theo. He took a swig of pumpkin juice.

"Then I suggest you drop your attitude," Theo lowered his voice. "We're in the company of ladies, you know."

Draco exchanged a look from me to Daphne, then back to me again.

"Trust me, they won't cause any trouble."

I rolled my eyes in annoyance. At least, everyone in this group was aware of our arrangement; I didn't need to necessarily hide anything. It was simply irritating that he went out of his way to make me miserable just because he could.

Draco turned his attention back to Theo. "Now, what was more important than us practicing for quidditch? Which, mind you, you were the one who requested we practice today."

"I had more pressing matters to attend to," Theo replied, ambiguously.

The subtle mystery in his answer resulted in a small smile to take form on my face. Not only was he avoiding giving away that it was me who he spent his time with, likely to prevent Draco's behavior towards me worsening, but he considered me more important than his original plans. I took precedence over them.

It was nice knowing that he genuinely cared about me and wanted to make time to hear out my problems if I needed it. I haven't felt wanted like that, in a long time.

"Fine, be that way," Draco huffed. "No doubt you were sneaking out with some sixth year to satisfy your desires, anyway."

Theo scoffed. "You're the only one who still resorts to that, Draco."

This, however, piqued my interest.

I tried not being too obvious about my attention, but Theo had essentially confessed to Draco seeing other girls.

I looked up to see Draco's reaction. His eyes were focused on his plate in front of him, clearly avoiding what Theo had just said. I couldn't quite figure what emotions were eating him up. It certainly wasn't shame, but perhaps embarrassment. Some sort of discontent that Theo had said that.

I suddenly was forced to consider the possibility, and a likely one at that, Draco was probably unfaithful to me. I supposed that's a silly way to word it, as that would imply some sort of actual relationship or reciprocation of feelings.

Neither of which I had.

However, it made me ponder the possibilities of this arrangement. For all I care, which is virtually nothing, Draco can be with other girls. Take them on dates, woo them, engage in whichever activities they are drawn to, as innocent or sinful as they please.

That also meant I could be with other boys, potentially.

What sense was there in that I had to remain faithful to this arrangement, or have any respect for it, if he wouldn't do the same?

I hadn't considered this possibility until now, and I still wasn't quite sure I even wanted to indulge. Something still felt... morally wrong about it.

I'd always dreamed about being married to the man that I was completely in love with, and in doing so, of course remaining faithful to him because there'd be nobody else that I'd ever want besides him.

However, seeing as this wasn't the case for me, I realized that I'd probably feel little guilt, if any, about any extramarital relationships. Especially if he was doing the same, or worse.

Regardless, that didn't change the fact that I was still sitting at a table, across from my husband. Neither of us wearing our rings, or even having the slightest suggestion of dedication to this arrangement, but nonetheless, he was in fact, my spouse.

I decided I wouldn't indulge any other desires until I'd figured out how I want to deal with this marriage, if at all.

Many seconds, possibly even minutes had gone by, but finally, Draco piped up after staying silent for so long. I didn't think I'd live to see the day where Draco didn't have a witty response to quip back at someone immediately, but I'd finally seen what he's like after heavy consideration.

Even then, all he could muster up was a meek, "You don't know what you're talking about."