part 6
It was midnight by the time the two of them left Umbridge’s office, hands bleeding so severely the Celio watched with a grim smile as Harry wrapped his in his scarf.
“Hope she dies.” Celio said gravely to fill the silence.
Harry, surprised by the sudden voice, jumped. Then he broke out laughing. “Yeah, same. She’s just… foul.”
“Amen to that.” Celio huffed. He let his hand drip blood all over the floor with no remorse. Maybe someone would pick up on it. “Has that bright girl figured out anything for you yet?”
“What do you mean?”
“Like, to heal it. Anything on that front?”
“No, but I suppose she might have found something by the time I get back to the common room.” Harry’s eyebrows furrowed. “Why don’t you come with? Just in case she has.”
Those bright emerald eyes turned on him, and the blonde determinedly did not meet that intense gaze as his heart raced in his chest. He pretended to mull it over before shaking his head and coming to a stop at the corridor where they parted ways.
“Thanks, but I don’t want another detention for being in the Gryffindor tower.”
“She’s not gonna know.” Harry pressed. “C’mon. Just this once.”
Celio raised his eyebrows at him, speaking quietly. “No one in Gryffindor is going to take kindly to a Slytherin being there, Harry. I appreciate the offer, really, but I’m not going to make anyone uncomfortable.”
Realisation seemed to flicker over Harry’s face, and a wall seemed to rise between them.
“Right. I forgot you were Slytherin.” He said flatly. “Never mind, then.”
And he turned on his heel and stalked off. Celio flinched as he turned out of his vision and felt his heart pang with hurt. He found himself hating the school rivalry with a newfound passion as he walked off, blood leaving a trail behind him.
–
The next night, Harry pointedly did not look at him before, during and after their tortuous detention together. Celio sighed and resigned himself to never achieving some kind of friendly relationship with Harry Potter but still found himself viciously hating his house and the school’s stupid tradition. How many times would he need to prove to him that he wasn’t a threat or a traitor? That he could be trusted?
He walked awkwardly a few steps behind Harry so as to not set him off or be seen by those intense eyes, but his attempt at making him more comfortable went to nothing as the shorter boy whipped around.
“Why are you following me?” He demanded, seemingly forgetting that there was only one way to the dungeons from Umbridge’s office.
“Well, I’m not meaning to. It's just -”
“Trying to spy on me so you can run off and tell everything to Malfoy? Tell everything to that Dark Lord of yours?”
Celio flinched. Horribly. He stared at Harry for a moment before taking a big breath as his hand seared with pain.
“So that’s how you think of me.” He said breathlessly.
Harry looked confused for just a moment before his face set in a hard line. “Well I’m not wrong, am I? All you-”
“You’re wrong.” Celio said firmly. “I wouldn’t know how to prove that to you, but I don’t follow He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The rest of my family is in Hufflepuff, you know. I just got placed in Slytherin because the hat said he wanted to switch up my family line.”
Harry stared at him. Silence reigned around them, crushing and thick.
“This is the only way to the dungeons, too.” Celio said quietly, clutching his dripping hand. “Sorry.”
The black haired boy looked stricken for some reason. Celio stood there, determined to not let it end until Harry wasn’t angry with him.
“Any other issues with me I can disprove?” He asked somewhat sarcastically.
“You’re not friends with Malfoy, you don’t follow Voldemort - Then what are you in Slytherin for?”
Celio rolled his eyes. “Why would I know? I got placed in it, and that was that. I couldn’t fight for a change - the stupid hat had been lifted off my head by then.”
He watched Harry turn this new information over in his head. His eyes seemed to lighten almost, before he sighed and looked away.
“Right.” He muttered.
“Does this mean you’re not suspicious of me anymore?” Celio asked, walking a little closer. Watching the shorter boy’s face light up red at the proximity was very entertaining. “Not angry or anything?”
“Shove off.” Harry pushed him away lightly, but his words had no bite. “You seem alright, I guess.”
“Yipee.” Celio said with a grin.
—
The next two weeks progressed well for Celio. He caught up on all his homework, he hadn’t broken his wand, he didn’t have any more detentions with Umbridge and he was friends with Harry Potter. That was all he had wanted all year, and he achieved it all in the first half of fifth year!
The next Hogsmeade day was finally announced, and Celio excitedly counted his money to find out if he had enough money to restock on chocolate frogs. He had just made it to breakfast when Harry approached him looking almost nervous.
“Celio.” He greeted as he stopped in front of him.
“Harry.” The smile came to him easily.
“Hey, uh, you know Hogsmeade is coming up.” Harry said awkwardly, eyes looking at anything except Celio’s own. The taller boy’s heart soared - was he about to be asked on a date?
Well, maybe not. Harry probably wasn’t into boys.
“And Hermione is making me set up this group where we can study DADA properly and I wanted to know if you’d come.”
A long sigh threatened Celio’s lungs. Instead he smiled again. “Of course. When, where?”
“Hog’s head,” Celio pulled a face. “Once we get there. It won’t be long. Half an hour, maybe.”
“Alrighty. Did it really have to be Hog’s Head?” Celio asked with a grimace. “It’s grimy in there.”
Harry just shrugged. “So you’ll come?”
“Sure. Won’t miss it for the world.” He nodded. Harry lit up with a grin.
“Good on you, mate. See you there.”
He walked off with a little wave. Celio waved back, but once Harry had turned away he let his face fall. He was really fooling himself with this boy, wasn’t he?