typical friday
Dean scans the room. It’s a typical Friday in Gryffindor Tower. Their first of third year, so maybe a bit more calm than usual.
Ron is complaining about Hermione - as usual, everyone grins because they aren’t stupid, everyone can see it. Harry is pacing about, saying something about how pretty Cho Chang is. Neville is lying down, face smooshed in a pillow, muttering “oh no” for about the fiftieth time.
But not Seamus.
Seamus is above all that, Dean knows this. Seamus is with Dean, sitting on his bed, sticking out his tongue in concentration while he tries to figure out what move to make next in Wizard’s Chess. There’s a small crease in his forehead.
Of course Dean notices all of this, it’s his best friend. Best friends notice everything about each other. Like how remarkably interesting the other's voice is. Or how their hair looks better when it's freshly dried. Or how amazing the smile on their face is.
“Dean? Dean, mate? Thomas, you twat, make your move.” Seamus interrupted Dean’s thoughts.
Dean laughed, a little too loudly - but his friends are 13 year old boys, of course they didn’t notice - and quickly made a random move in the game.
"Knight to D4." Dean said.
This brought a wide smile to Seamus’ face, and Dean groaned as he realised he was in checkmate. He can’t complain, though. He still gets to hang out with his best friend.
Of course, sooner rather than later Harry decides to force everyone to talk about crushes. More specifically about girls, which meant having to hear Harry go on long rants about Cho Chang and then hear Ron furiously deny having feelings for Hermione. This was becoming more and more common, Dean had noticed, since after summer break. Personally he didn't get it. Sure, some girls were nice, but generally he would much prefer to hang out with his mates.
Harry flops down on his bed. “Mate, you don’t understand. She’s gorgeous.” He raves.
Dean just rolls his eyes.
“She’s also a year older than us. And she’s not that pretty.” He chimes in, knowing Harry was wrong.
Harry dismisses him and continues to rave about Cho’s beauty. Dean just shakes his head and looks over at Seamus, who is suddenly very interested in packing up his chess set.
— ⭒⭑🟊⭑⭒ —
The next day, they had their very first class with their new professor. Professor R.J. Lupin, the new Defence Against The Dark Arts professor.
From a glance, he was fairly readable. He seemed alright, Dean supposed. His cardigans and almost silver hair certainly made him look a bit older than he probably was, but that doesn’t matter. He was alright anyway.
Dean’s first impression was proved almost entirely right by the first class and made Dean respect him a thousand times more.
He had introduced them to Boggarts. He hadn't danced around the topic like other professors did before a practical, he didn't try to safeguard them - real dark wizards don't give you safeguards - he just let them handle it. Letting students be treated like adults and think like adults instead of demeaning them and dismissing them as just kids had helped Dean; he hated being treated like a child. Dean could think of one particularly long nosed and greasy haired professor that does the exact opposite of Lupin.
Lupin was a damn good teacher. He was nice, easygoing, and he played music. His classroom was lively and he seemed approachable, like you could grab a butterbeer with him. He had given Parvati a chocolate for doing very well, same with Neville. Dean was incredibly disappointed that he didn't get a chance to face the Boggart, but he wasn't sure if that was because of a missed learning opportunity or a missed chocolate opportunity.
After the class, Dean decided to stay back. He had a few questions about the homework and books, and talking to the new professor couldn’t be too bad. He lingered for a while before going up to Professor Lupin.
“Uh, Sir? I just had a few questions about the pronunciation of certain spells and the different books we’ll need for this year.” He states, curiously.
The professor looks up at him from the desk with a kind smile, the lines around his lips curling upwards with it.
“Ah, yes, of course. You’d be Mr Thomas, yes? Dean, I believe?” He asks calmly.
Dean nods.
“Yes, that’s me. I was just wondering if we're going to need any of our books from last year? I only ask because my mum spent lots on them and if we don't need them I might as well sell them for a few galleons."
"Hm. Well, Dean, I think as long as you kept most of your notes on the important stuff, you'll be all set and you can sell the books." The professor replies with a kind smile.
"Alright, thank you sir. And er, about the homework, I didn't get a go at the Boggart thing so I don't know what to write about." Dean continued.
"Ah, I see. Well, you could write your essay on one of the other students' boggarts and what you observed, does that sound alright?" Lupin answered.
Dean nods quickly, feeling more pleased with this new professor by the second.
After the interaction, Dean decided Lupin is most definitely his new favourite teacher and anyone who says otherwise will be hexed. He’s understanding, and funny, too.
Dean wants to ask more about other things, maybe about the new dementors or about the recent Azkaban escape. But he soon realises that’s a topic for another day and wishes the professor goodbye.
“Good evening, Dean. My door is always open.” Lupin replies, still smiling.
— ⭒⭑🟊⭑⭒ —
Dean enters the Great Hall for dinner, and sits with his friends, Seamus Finnigan and Neville Longbottom.
He feels lighter when he sees the two, Neville being focussed on some plant and Seamus drinking some water and eating.
He slides onto the seat next to Seamus, smiling at his best friend slightly before piling some food onto a plate. The boys start discussing classes.
“Professor Lupin is great.” Dean insists, while Seamus is more focussed on the Care Of Magical Creatures lesson the other day.
“Did you see how bloody terrified Malfoy was? It was hilarious, seriously, mate.” Seamus says, grinning.
Dean rolls his eyes with a small smile. He had to admit, the whole class was quite interesting. And there was something about the way Seamus spoke that made everything he said a bit funnier, Dean had always thought so. The Irish have an alright accent but it would always belong to Seamus Finnigan in his mind.
Dean willingly listens to Seamus talk about his classes, rolling his eyes or letting out a laugh every now and then. Out of the corner of his eye he sees Neville writing notes about the plant.
He spots something else, too, and internally groans. It’s Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Now, Dean has absolutely no issue with any of these people. They’re his friends, not as much as Neville or Seamus, but still his friends. Their only issue is that Harry’s so lovesick for Cho that it’s all he talks about, and Hermione and Ron bicker non-stop. Sometimes it was exhausting. Dean’s not complaining, not yet, and he can appreciate a good looking girl when he sees one. But it all seems pointless. He’d much rather play Wizard’s Chess with Seamus.
He and Neville had never been ones for conversation about this stuff, not even at the start of this term when Ron and Harry started always going on about it. Seamus would talk about it, but he’d keep it quite vague and roll his eyes if someone asked about his crush, telling them to bugger off.
Dean mutters under his breath “here we go again” and Seamus immediately laughs loudly.
When Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville ask what’s funny Seamus just replies with “nothing”. But Dean knows.
Hermione and Ron soon start to argue.
“Don’t be dense, Ron! My cat isn’t trying to eat your rat, Crookshanks would never!” she exclaims. Dean and Seamus give each other a knowing glance.
“Yes he bloody is! Scabbers never did anything to ‘im and yet he still wants to rip his bloody guts out!” Ron snaps back. He seemed very angry but Dean cannot imagine why. Dean has a very strong hatred for Scabbers ever since he crawled on him in the middle of the night.
Dean hates rats.
Neville speaks up in a quiet but passionate voice. “Did you know that some plants can be used as weapons in battle, cause they have predatory instincts? Like, Venomous Tentacu-”
“Mate, sorry, but I really don’t care about your plants when my pet RAT is being EATEN!” Ron interrupts, and Neville looks down disappointedly. Dean patted his shoulder comfortingly.
“Don’t worry, Nev. I like your plants.” He says, while Seamus resists a laugh.
He doesn’t remember when Seamus’ laugh began to make him feel so happy.
He just smiles kindly at Neville while Ron and Hermione keep arguing. He knew Neville was one person he could count on to always stay the same. No stupid romance nonsense from him. Seamus, on the other hand, was someone Dean was worried about. How long until he becomes obsessed with the subject, too? How long until he loses his best friend to someone else?
Nevermind all that, Dean thought, he doesn’t have to think about that yet.
And as if right on cue, Harry lets out a sigh of adoration and thus the cycle starts.
“Merlin she’s so beautiful.” He whispers.
“Consider this - no.” Ron says with an eyeroll. Dean can’t blame him in the slightest.
“Yes, she is! Her accent is so amazing….” Harry replies. Dean knows its no use and so starts studying the plant with Neville.“...and whenever I’m around her, I get this strange, fluttery feeling in my stomach. Like I feel really really nervous but also happy and excited.” Harry continues.
That statement confuses Dean. How is that any different to how Dean feels around Seamus? Is Harry certain he actually likes this girl, or is he confusing platonic feelings for romance? Dean would feel bad if that’s the case. He’s glad he’s got his best friend to give him that feeling instead of some fourth year Ravenclaw, though.
Seamus then speaks up. “Harry, mate, she’s really not that good looking. In fact, I think we struck out at this school. None of the girls are attractive in the slightest.” He says, glancing at Hermione and adding, “No offence, of course.”
Hermione just shakes her head, murmuring about how stupid some people were.
Seamus' response intrigues Dean more. So Seamus also wasn't interested in any of this yet. Good to know. But was it just because of the girls at Hogwarts? Was there a possibility Seamus still might get it bad for some muggle girl back home? Dean still can't stand the thought of his best friend being gone.
Harry interrupts Dean's thoughts - this seems to happen a lot - and immediately starts defending Cho. “No, Seamus, she’s amazing! She really is. Dean, back me up here, will you?!”
Dean snorts, and he and Seamus speak the exact same words. “As if, mate.” Dean’s words are said with a hint of amusement and a snort whereas Seamus’ are said with a twinge of annoyance with Harry. Seamus was always one to get worked up and angry. A firecracker.
Dean just gives Seamus a look. It’s a stern, almost authoritative look. The kind you would give a child trying to sneakily grab a biscuit from the fridge. Dean uses it on Seamus a lot, whether it’s after a failed spell turned explosion, or after Seamus has been a bit too harsh about something, Dean’s always there to rein him back in, calm him down, and shut him up. He huffs and rolls his eyes but relents under Dean’s gaze.
“Whatever.” Seamus mumbles, but shuts up nonetheless.
Dean nods, satisfied.
That’s what best friends are for, he supposed. Caring for each other more than anyone else, which to Dean means getting Seamus to shut up when it’s necessary.
...
Which is a lot.