Chapter 4
Mary opened the door, letting the sounds from the party in the room, gesturing for Lily to come outside with her.
Honestly, she had no idea what she’d done wrong. One second, they were having a great time, dancing and laughing and drinking, and now…
Well, Mary didn’t know what made Lily’s mood change so drastically.
Lily followed her out the door, practically fuming, but still looking breathtakingly beautiful in her dress.
“Okay, are you going to explain why you’re so fucking angry at me, or am I meant to just magically know?” Mary asked, a bit fed up, because she just didn’t get Lily at the moment.
“I don’t know, Mary, you’re a fucking witch so, who knows?” Lily said.
“Lily, c’mon.” Mary said, trying to be as gentle as she could. “Why did you leave?”
“Well, it certainly didn’t look like I was needed at the moment.” Lily scoffed, unwilling to get off her high horse.
“What are you talking about?” Mary asked, completely clueless.
“Mhm, let me think… Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you were absolutely ignoring me, too busy snogging some random bloke!” Lily said, crossing her arms, which admittedly distracted Mary a bit, who took a moment to look at the necklace she’d lended her and… Well, you can imagine.
“Seriously?” Mary said, coming to her senses. “It wasn’t going anywhere, Lily, it was just a bit of fun!” She defended herself. Honestly, she didn’t even remember his name.
“Wasn’t that fun to me.” Lily murmured, rolling her eyes.
“Okay. I get it.” Mary sighed. “You had no reason to stay there while… While I was kissing someone, I get that, but I just don’t understand why you’re being so…” She stopped, trying not to let her anger get the best of her. She just didn’t think it had to be such a big deal.
“Bitchy?” Lily completed, her tone ice-cold. “That’s what you were gonna say, right? I’m being such a bitch about it. Stuck-up little prefect Lily, thinks she’s so much better than everyone else, right? But, in reality, she’s just a bitch who doesn’t let anyone have fun, right? Right, Mary? That’s what everyone else thinks, so why should you be any different?” Lily lashed out, practically shouting, furious tears falling down her cheeks, smearing her mascara.
“That’s not fair, Lily. I would never say that.” Mary said firmly, feeling hurt that Lily would even think that she was like that.
“Maybe not, but you think it.”
“No, I don’t. And whoever says or thinks that is a bloody idiot, so don’t listen to them.” Mary assured, taking Lily by the shoulders as if to emphasise her tone.
Lily pushed her hands away, and Mary had to fight not to let her eyes tear up. Lily had never done that before. She’d never pushed Mary away. She’d done it with Marlene, with James, with all their other friends, but never to Mary.
“I just…” Mary started, struggling to get her words out without breaking down. “Why did it bother you so much?”
“It just did, okay?” Lily said, rubbing her eyes to make the tears go away, ruining her makeup further.
“But-”
“Mary, I really don’t want to talk to you right now. Please.” Lily pleaded, sniffling as she went down the stairs, leaving Mary alone in so many ways.
Mary and Lily had been best friends since first year. They had had petty fights, the type that twelve-year-olds are expected to have, holding grudges that would last for a total of two hours.
But this… This felt more serious, and Mary had no idea how to fix it, because she had no idea how she broke it in the first place.
Sighing, she opened her dorm’s door, finding Dorcas and Pandora sitting side by side, talking in hushed voices.
“Hey,” Mary greeted, “are you feeling any better?” She asked, trying to be comforting, but her heart wasn’t in it.
“Yeah, thanks.” Dorcas smiled politely. “Are you?” She asked, examining Mary closely.
“What? Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” Mary said, but she was sure they didn’t buy it for one second, and neither did Pandora.
“Alright, get in here.” Pandora ordered, offering Mary a spot between her and Dorcas.
Pandora rubbed her back, drawing circles in a soothing way, and it took Mary an embarrassingly short amount of time to break down, feeling hot tears run through her cheeks.
It was honestly quite ridiculous, crying and being comforted by two people who she’d barely talked to, one of which was her friend’s enemy.
“Er… What happened?” Dorcas asked. “If you want to tell us, that is. Obviously.” They quickly added.
“I have no fucking clue.” Mary confessed. “Something bad.”
“So, are you mad at Lily?” Dorcas asked. “Because, if you wanna get back at her, we could probably hex her bedsheets or something.” She offered. “I’m pretty good at that.”
“No,” Mary chuckled.
“Well, it’s a shame, ‘cause I bet it’ll look really suspicious if I only do it on Marlene’s bed.” Dorcas smiled.
Mary laughed, shaking her head amusedly.
“So…” Pandora started. “You and Lily are pretty close, then?”
“Yeah. She’s my best friend.” Mary said, and smiled despite the situation they were currently in. Lily was her best friend, fight or not. She wouldn’t get rid of Mary that easily.
“Listen, this is meant to be a fun night, Mary.” Dorcas said. “I’m already feeling much better, so why don’t we go back down, drink half the supplies of alcohol, and forget all about our problems?” They proposed.
“Okay.” Mary agreed, though Pandora and Dorcas practically had to drag her downstairs.
The two of them tried their best to cheer Mary up, but it was a lost cause.
She danced, and drank, and laughed, but it just didn’t feel right. Nothing felt right, because she wasn’t doing it with Lily.
But Pandora and Dorcas were trying for her, so she really wanted to try for them, too.
After years of practice, the mask Mary put on for other people fit her like a glove, most people wouldn’t notice it (Lily would, and she had, on multiple occasions, but Mary refused to think about that).
Sometimes, the mask blended a bit with herself, making it easier to pretend, but harder to come back afterwards.
***
When they got tired of dancing, the three of them refreshed their drinks and leaned back against a wall, and Mary could almost laugh at the stupidity of the situation.
Her, hanging around with the one person Marlene wouldn’t shut up about (Mary still didn’t believe they hated each other, but she was a romantic at heart) and one of said person’s best friends.
Hanging around with them, while sulking about Lily. Hilarious.
They were silent, drinking and watching, watching and drinking.
“Ugh, now she’s hanging out with Marlene. As if I didn’t have enough reason to not like her.” Dorcas said, looking somewhere close to the record player.
Mary followed the direction of their eyes, her gaze falling onto Marlene, who was having a conversation with James and… Oh. Lily.
Lily, with her smeared makeup, looking just as gorgeous as she’d had when she’d just finished putting it on.
Lily, who was tapping her index finger against the top of her cup nervously.
Lily, who had been screaming at her just minutes ago, the words still ringing in Mary’s ears, settling down in her heart, in her bones, in her chest.
“Er… Dorcas, you do know I’m also friends with Marlene, right?” Mary smiled lightly, trying her best to ignore the overflowing tide of feelings drowning her at the moment.
“I’m choosing to ignore that for the time being, because you’re sad.” They proclaimed. “Plus, you’re not actively proving that you are, so I can just pretend it’s not real, y’know?” She shrugged.
“Right, like, “ojos que no ven, corazón que no siente” and all that.” Mary said.
“What?” Dorcas and Pandora said at the same time, clearly not having understood what Mary said.
She sighed. “It’s like “out of sight, out of mind”, but in Spanish it’s kind of different. Makes more sense, or maybe I’m just more used to hearing it like that.”
“Wait, you can speak Spanish?” Pandora asked, surprised.
“Yeah.” Mary shrugged. “It’s my mother tongue.”
“Cool.” The girl answered.
“Anyways, you shouldn’t let your limited interaction with Lily determine how you see her.” She said, turning to Dorcas. “She’s one of the best people I know, you just caught her on a bad night, I guess. I’m sure you’d be hating me right now if Lily was the one who came into the room crying and all that.”
“Probably.” Dorcas agreed. “But she didn’t, so now you’re stuck with us, MacDonald.” She smiled.
“Right.” Mary said. “Hey, by the way, did you happen to get an invitation for Sluggy’s little cult?” She asked, hoping to get some information to give to Marlene.
Double agent kind of shit.
Dorcas cackled, apparently finding the question hilarious. “Yeah, I did.” They said. “Though, you really didn’t need to ask, that Pettigrew kid already made sure to ask, even if he probably won’t remember it by morning. Pity you didn’t get it, though, you seem like an acceptable person, even if you submit yourself to the torture that is Marlene on a daily basis.” She said, but it was clearly light-hearted, with no real heat to their words.
“I guess you made sure to offer an eye for an eye with Pete, huh?” Mary said, only mildly surprised that Dorcas knew she hadn’t been invited. She supposed Peter, in his one moment of lucidity, managed to remember exactly who in their group had gotten the letter.
“Obviously.” Dorcas winked. “And, since I’m feeling extra-generous with you tonight, I’m gonna tell you that Pandora here, as well as Regulus, also got their letters. Do what you will with that information.”
Marlene probably wouldn’t be too pleased, but Mary supposed it really shouldn’t be much of a surprise to her, and Sirius would be even worse.
“Speaking of Regulus,” Pandora said, “let’s go find him.”
“Yeah, he’s such a miserable sod that I’m sure he’ll make you feel better about yourself in no time.” Dorcas joked, smiling.
“Er… I’m not sure that’s the best idea.” Mary said, unsure. “I think he’d have more of a problem with my affiliations than you do, Dorcas.”
If Regulus was even half as stubborn as Sirius was, he’d certainly want nothing to do with one of his friends, and Mary was sure Sirius wouldn’t want her to hang out with his baby brother, either.
But since when did Mary care what others thought? She could hang out with whoever she wanted to without having to think about what the repercussions would be.
“I’m sure we could find a way to persuade him.” Dorcas said. “Plus, he’s probably so drunk by now that maybe he won’t even notice you.”
“Alright.” Mary caved. “Let’s go, then.”
As it turns out, Regulus was, in fact, very drunk.
When they found him, standing close to Evan and Barty on the dance floor, he was barely able to stay upright, eyes glassy, and an easy smile on his lips.
“Hey, Reg!” Pandora greeted, smiling at him as she took his drink out of his hand. “You okay?”
“Never been better.” He grinned, slurring his words.
He looked down to his now empty hands, looking for the glass Pandora had already hidden behind her. He opened his mouth, confused, but Dorcas spoke before he could.
“Anyways, this is Mary, from the carriage.” They said, pointing to her as she waved awkwardly.
“Right…” Regulus squinted at her. “Didn’t you date Sirius or something?”
“Ugh, don’t remind me.” Mary said.
Her and Sirius had dated for three months at the start of fourth year, but it clearly didn’t work out. He may be an awesome friend, but his boyfriend abilities left a lot to be desired.
Mary supposed she hadn’t been the best girlfriend, either, but one of her sisters told her she should start having boyfriends at that age, and Mary took it to heart, making it her goal to date someone as soon as possible. Sirius was just the first one who asked (probably to further ignore his growing feelings for Remus).
In any case, her bond with Sirius had become greater after their little experiment, so Mary supposed it wasn’t that bad.
“I, er…” Mary started. “I didn’t think you were gonna come.”
“Well, Barty, Evan, and Pandora are always up for a party, and you convinced Dorcas to come so she could annoy Marlene more or whatever, so I didn’t have much choice.” Regulus shrugged, buttoning and unbuttoning a button in his shirt, just to have something to do with his hands.
At the mention of her friend, Mary turned to where Marlene was standing. Her and Lily were standing in a corner, talking in hushed voices.
Mary thought, for a moment, that maybe Lily was complaining about her to Marlene, but she quickly discarded that idea. Lily wasn’t the kind of person to do that, at least to Mary.
A few metres next to them were Remus and James. The latter one was quite entranced by Regulus, staring intently at him while Remus rolled his eyes, exasperated.
“Wasn’t there another reason you came, Reggie?” Dorcas winked.
“What?” Regulus frowned, confused. “Oh, yeah! Maybe I’ll get Barty to snog me.” Regulus mused.
“Wait, you like Barty?” Mary asked, feeling so out of her depth at the moment. She was used to knowing everything in her group, even contributing with new, hot gossip she’d heard in one of her classes, but she didn’t really hear much about Slytherins, much less if they were a year younger.
“No!” Regulus laughed, as if the mere thought that he could ever fancy Barty was unfathomable. Before Mary could ask another question, still disoriented, he continued. “I just like bothering people. Especially them.” He said, though Mary couldn’t be sure who or what he was talking about.
“Evan gave him the idea that he could kiss someone while his brother and Potter were there, making both of them angry or… whatever, and you know how the Blacks are with revenge.” Pandora leaned in to whisper into Mary’s ear, giving her a bit of context.
“Petty.” Mary summarised.
“So petty.” Pandora agreed.
“Well, I’m always up for a bit of drama, so carry on.” She told Regulus, who winked at her, unbuttoning his shirt halfway before going to find Barty in the sea of people.
“Well,” Dorcas sighed, “this is going to be a disaster.” They declared.
“I’m sure of it.” Mary said. “And, on that note, I’m gonna go hang out with Remus, because ain’t no way he’s gonna be able to handle both Sirius and James when shit hits the fan.” She saluted them, turned away, and then turned back to them again. “And, er… Thank you. For… you know. Everything, basically.” She smiled.
“I could tell you the same thing, MacDonald.” Dorcas said.
“And I hope you and Lily figure things out.” Pandora added, smiling encouragingly.
And who would’ve thought that those two people could make Mary feel so much better about… everything, really, when she barely even knew them.
***
It took Mary six long strides to join Remus and James, trying her best to ignore Lily and Marlene still talking, secluded from anyone else.
“Were you talking with Regulus and his friends just now?” James asked incredulously, his eyes darting from said boy and back to Mary.
“Yeah?” Mary wasn’t sure what he expected her to tell him, honestly.
“Why?” Remus questioned.
Mary didn’t really have a simple answer to that, and she didn’t want to get into all that just happened, so she just shrugged.
“In any case, I found out that Dorcas, Regulus, and Pandora are all in Slughorn’s club.” She said, just to give a bit of an excuse.
Plus, James was sure to regret all the life decisions that led to him not getting a letter, because it meant a wasted opportunity to be close to Regulus.
“Are you serious?” He said, sounding absolutely devastated. “Man, I should’ve sucked up to old Sluggy a bit more. If only I’d known.” He sighed dramatically.
“Well, I reckon I should probably go tell Marlene, right?” Mary said in a thinly veiled attempt to gather some information about what the hell she was doing with Lily. “In fact, I’m gonna go over there right now and-”
“Yeah… Not a good idea, Mary.” Remus stopped her, holding her wrist lightly. “I think they’re discussing something important, best not to bother them.” He smiled.
“Ugh, fine!” Mary gave up, rolling her eyes. Since when did her two best friends keep secrets from her?
“By the way, do you know if Lily’s alright?” James asked, a frown on his face. “She looks a bit… dishevelled.”
Mary supposed they’d have to find out sooner or later, so…
“Yeah, me and Lily got into a bit of a fight.”
“What?” James exclaimed, feeling quite… betrayed? “But you and Lily are like… Like the blueprint for friendships! You guys are always a united front, y’know.”
“Yes, I do know that, James.” Mary said, irritated. “But thank you, for reminding me of that, when we’re currently not such a united front, after all. Really, thank you.” She smiled bitterly.
Honestly, having someone talk about how fucking good your relationship with someone usually is when you’re currently not even speaking to them isn’t the best feeling, and Mary was having a very long night.
“Okay, sorry. Sorry.” James said, holding his hands up. “I’m sure you’re both going through it, and I’m probably not helping.” He smiled apologetically.
“S’alright.” Mary shrugged, because it wasn’t James she was mad at.
Hell, it wasn’t even Lily she was mad at, because that girl had enough anger to account for the both of them, apparently. Mary was just… tired.
She stole one last glance at Lily and Marlene before dragging Remus to the drinks table, making him hold three cups in his hands (though he had drunk half of them when she finished, giving her more work) while she filled another two with alcohol, determined to make the night at least a bit more bearable.
***
Marlene was on her fifth cup of an absolutely atrocious mixture of vodka, coke, and some kind of tropical juice, talking with James, when Lily appeared in front of her, with black cheeks and humid eyes.
“Lily, are you-” Marlene started, worrying about her friend’s wellbeing, because it was clear that she wasn’t having the best time at the moment.
“Yes, yes, I’m quite fine, Marlene.” Lily waved a hand dismissively, though Marlene could see right through her. She obviously wasn’t fine but, if Lily wished to ignore it, Marlene would gladly follow her lead, because she’d never been the best at comfort, really. “Now, I really need to talk to you. Alone.” She added, seeing as Marlene wasn’t making a move.
“Er… Alright, let’s… Let’s go over there.” Marlene said, uneasily, pointing at a mostly empty corner of the room. “James, Remus, I suppose we’ll be right back.” She said, waving at them while Lily grabbed her arm and brought her to that secluded space.
Lily was now shifting, balancing her weight on one foot or the other, her decisiveness having vanished, by the looks of it.
After a few moments of excruciating silence, in which Marlene waited for Lily to give her some sort of explanation, the blonde girl finally spoke up. “So,” Marlene said, “are you going to tell me what was so urgent and secret, and why you look like a fucking raccoon?” She demanded.
“I… Mary and I had a bit of a row.” She said, looking at the ground. “But, either way, that’s not why I came to talk to you.” Lily assured, though she followed it up with a questioning “Well…” that clearly didn’t give her much credibility.
“Okay, what is the thing that only I can assist you with?” Marlene asked.
“Well, I certainly couldn’t go to any of the boys, and Mary probably wouldn’t understand, or…” Lily started, losing herself in her thoughts as she talked.
“So, what’s so special about me, then?” Marlene asked, curious as to why Lily thought only she had the answers to whatever question she was working up the courage to ask.
“Er… You’re a lesbian.” She said bluntly.
Okay. Maybe it was something only Marlene, out of their group of friends, could help with. She honestly hadn’t seen that one coming.
“Right.” Marlene nodded, still trying to find out what Lily’s intentions were, but she now had more of an idea, at least. “So, your question, exactly, is…?” She prompted, waiting for Lily to respond.
“Um… I guess, like, how did you know?” Lily answered, her voice barely a whisper, and Marlene had to be listening very carefully to make out what she’d said over the loud music.
She smiled fondly at Lily, who was probably panicking internally right at that very moment, and she must’ve been doing so for a while before she came to Marlene, because one thing about Lily was that she always, always thought about something over and over again before bringing it to someone else’s attention.
“Well, it was in second year, I think, right after the Christmas holidays. I mean, there had certainly been signs over the years, but that was when it finally clicked, you know?” Marlene asked, though, if Lily was asking her about it, it was pretty clear that she didn’t know, which was the whole problem.
“What made you realise?” Lily asked, staring at her intently.
Marlene thought back on it. “I, er… I always thought that you were meant to choose who you fancied, because I’d never had it happen to me organically, so I just picked a random bloke to like. Nobody told me that’s not how it works. But, anyways, when I got back to Hogwarts after the holidays, I just… noticed someone, I guess. A girl. She was a year older than me, but she always smiled at me when we passed each other, and I suddenly figured out what everyone was talking about when they talked about their boy crushes. I finally got it, and… well, the rest is history, really.” Marlene smiled.
Marlene remembered the sheer fucking euphoria she felt when she finally realised why her tummy fluttered whenever that girl looked at her, and she’d asked some of the Gryffindor girls if that was what they felt when they looked at who they liked.
After getting positive responses, Marlene had no doubt in her mind. It took her a bit of time to get used to, but she got comfortable with her sexuality quite quickly, and it hadn’t been long until she’d had her first kiss (first real kiss anyways, because she and James kissed in first year, just to be able to say that they had kissed someone, but it didn’t really count to Marlene), probably due to her outgoing nature, because she knew not that many people had such an early start, and that was absolutely fine.
“Who was she?” Lily questioned. “The girl you fancied.”
“Alice Fortescue.” Marlene said.
“Really?” Lily grinned, getting some of her energy back. “Alice was your gay awakening?”
“Absolutely she was, Evans, and I wear that badge with pride.” Marlene said, smiling at her. “So, did that little story clear anything up for ya?” She asked.
“Yes.”
“Wanna talk about it?” Marlene offered.
“Nope.” Lily responded, and Marlene could almost hear the gears turning in her head. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go panic, I mean, reflexionate in my bed.”
“Have fun!” Marlene teased, shouting a bit as Lily started going up the stairs.
As for Marlene, she went back to her original spot, with James and Remus, and now Mary, who had joined them sometime when Marlene was busy helping Lily on her self-discovery journey, or whatever you want to call it.
“Where’s Lily?” Mary asked eagerly, her tone sharp, though Marlene was almost certain she’d been watching and knew exactly where Lily was, though she wanted to know why.
“Went to the dorm. Said she was tired.” Marlene lied. She wasn’t about to expose Lily, even if these people were her friends. She’d tell everyone whatever she was trying to figure out at the moment on her own terms, and on her own time. Marlene would never deny anyone that.
Mary clearly didn’t buy it, but she didn’t question it. “‘She tell you ‘bout our little… disagreement?” She asked, trying to remain unbothered.
“Just mentioned it briefly. Didn’t wanna get into it, I think.” Marlene responded. This time it was the truth. And maybe she’d be able to find out more from Mary, and if it had anything to do with the conversation she’d just had. Mary remained silent. “So… What was it about?” She asked nonchalantly.
“Honestly, it was just so fucking stupid.” Mary said, and Marlene noticed that she had a full cup of alcohol stacked on top of an empty one, and she was holding another overflowing drink on her other hand. “Like, just because I snog one guy for like, three seconds, she thinks I’m like, neglecting her, or something, and then she just… Well, she got so angry, but I think it’s an accumulation of things, really, and I get it, I get her, but… I just want her to not be angry at me.” She ranted, her voice practically breaking by the last sentence, and Marlene suddenly understood.
She understood why Lily acted the way she did with Mary, at least partly, and she also understood what the breaking point for Lily was that made her talk to Marlene.
“It’s alright, Mary.” Marlene consoled her, hugging her friend as Mary tried so hard to stop crying, mumbling something about ruining Marlene’s shirt, but Marlene honestly couldn’t give a shit. If her friend was feeling bad, she could ruin as many shirts as her heart desired, honestly.
Lily was having a hard time, there was no denying it, but so was Mary. When someone has a relationship such as the one those two have, even small fights can trigger a tornado of emotions.
Marlene would have to intervene, but not tonight. Tonight was for mourning and drowning their sorrows in alcohol and fruity aftertastes.
Speaking of, Marlene took Mary’s fullest cup and downed it, mostly to prevent her from drinking more than her body could handle, but also because Marlene wanted to get plastered, too, even if her future self would be regretting her decision.
When Mary had finally calmed down significantly, her and Marlene leaned back against a wall, watching the panorama.
Marlene scanned the room, her eyes pausing as she saw Dorcas talking and, occasionally, dancing with none other than Regulus Black, who Marlene was sure already had James’ eyes on him.
A sudden wave of an unpleasant feeling took over Marlene, and she suddenly wanted to sprint over to them and… Well, she didn’t really know, or understand, what she wanted, she just knew she wanted to do something.
At that moment, Sirius and Peter appeared, but Marlene barely managed to rip her eyes away from Dorcas for a few seconds to greet them distractedly.
Dorcas, who looked… Marlene almost puked at her own thoughts, disgusted. She looked good (more than good, but Marlene wasn’t ready to be that honest, even inside her mind).
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sirius quickly settle down next to Remus, while Peter stood next to her.
“Hey, Pete,” she started, “are Dorcas and Regulus dating, or something?” She asked, as calmly as she could, though she practically spat the word.
Peter laughed, a full-on belly laugh, before answering. “Marlene, I thought your gay radar was better than this!” He accused, feigning offence. “Regulus is gay, at least I’m pretty sure he is, and Dorcas is a lesbian, which they just confirmed to me a few hours ago, actually.” He informed, smiling proudly at himself for knowing so much. The alcohol still had an effect on him, it seemed.
“Oh.” Marlene said simply, because she wasn’t sure what else to say.
So.
Dorcas was a lesbian. Which meant they liked girls, and non-binary people. Okay.
That was… unexpected. Let’s go with that.
Dorcas was a lesbian, and that really shouldn’t be affecting Marlene the way it was.
She observed them again, watching as she twirled and laughed and danced and…
Well, Marlene could see how, to someone who didn’t know how insufferable Dorcas was as a person, they could look… appealing. Attractive (and pretty. Don’t forget pretty, a voice inside Marlene’s head said, a voice that was silenced with force).
So maybe Dorcas was pretty to the casual observer, who only saw the shallow surface, so what? They were still the obnoxious, self-righteous idiot in Marlene’s potions class, who she was determined to beat, and it wasn’t Marlene’s fault that eyes couldn’t see that deep.
“You know, Marlene, for someone who reiterates time and time again that you hate Dorcas so much, you sure seem quite opposed to the idea of them dating someone.” Mary commented, smirking. “I wonder why that could be…” She said, sarcastically.
“Seriously, Mary, what is your obsession with me and Dorcas?” Marlene said, exasperated. “Can’t you just accept that we simply don’t like each other?”
“I don’t think I can, actually, but thanks for the suggestion, Marls.” Mary smiled, and Marlene just sighed. She knew a lost battle when she saw one. “Plus, you should probably start liking each other, because she also got an invitation for the Slug Club, but I’m sure you could’ve probably guessed.” She added, and that got Marlene’s attention.
Of course, she’d already pretty much assumed that Dorcas would get in as well, because their class performance was practically the same, not to mention the fact that she was a Slytherin and, as head of that house, Slughorn never really did much to debunk the speculations that he played favourites.
Still, it was nice to be sure. It was just another opportunity to prove her worth, to prove that she was better than them, while rubbing it in Dorcas’ face.
She looked back to where her rival was standing just seconds ago, but she was nowhere to be seen. In their place stood Barty, whispering something in Regulus’ ear, and Marlene didn’t even need to turn to James to know he was staring at them with a frown on his face.
She did see Sirius, standing with a similar expression on his features, looking ready to snap Barty’s neck for standing too close to his brother.
“I can’t believe they’re actually gonna do it.” Mary whispered to herself, though Marlene couldn’t help but overhear.
“Do what?” She asked, confused, but Mary didn’t have time to respond before it became obvious what she was talking about.
In front of them, on the dance floor, Regulus said something that they couldn’t hear, and then took Barty’s chin in his hand and brought him closer, crashing their lips together.
It only lasted a few seconds, that open-mouthed kiss, but it was enough to earn a reaction from basically everyone in the room.
Stares, whoops and surprised gasps filled the space, but Marlene immediately turned to look at Sirius.
He was practically fuming, though Marlene didn’t quite get it. At his age, Sirius had certainly done worse than kissing, and he and Regulus weren’t on the best terms at the moment, so why should it matter what he did with his own life? Of course, maybe it was just that Marlene didn’t understand brotherly bonds, given that she was an only child.
“Oh, I’m gonna kill them both!” Sirius said, but Remus held his wrist tightly before he could do something he’d regret. Sirius seemed a bit distracted by the touch, but it didn’t take long for him to come back to his senses, glaring at Barty and Regulus, who were now dancing with the rest of their friends as if nothing had happened.
James, on the other hand, looked at Barty with an undeniably jealous expression on his face, stealing glances at Regulus every now and again, as if to check that he was still there.
Regulus’ hair was a bit messy, which was unusual for him, and his shirt was rumpled, only the last button done. His lips were plump and his cheeks rosy, and Marlene could see why James had noticed him, but her eyes went back to Dorcas against her will, looking at her dance with a blond lad whose name sounded like Lily’s last name, but Marlene couldn’t quite remember it in her drunken state.
In a moment of bravery, Regulus turned to look at James, who already had his eyes on him, and winked before turning back to his mates, leaving James quite flustered (which Marlene obviously had to tease him about).
At least there wasn’t a possibility that Dorcas would pull something like what Regulus had done with the guy they were currently dancing with because, according to Peter, who seemed quite sure of himself, she didn’t like men at all.
Honestly, Marlene thought, that was her only redeeming quality.
“Wait!” Marlene said, turning to Mary, a lightbulb seeming to have lit up in her head. “You knew about this?” She asked, gesturing at Regulus’ direction.
“Not really, it was just something they were kind of joking about.” Mary shrugged, sipping from her cup.
“When did you talk to Regulus?” James wondered, apparently having heard them and introducing himself into the conversation.
“It doesn’t matter, really, I was just hanging out with Pandora and Dorcas, and they-”
“What the hell were you doing with Dorcas?” Marlene accused.
“Just… Well, they were…” Mary started, unsure. Her face lit up, as if she’d just had the best idea ever. “I was trying to get you your information, Marlene! You know, about the club…” She said, feeling proud of herself for coming up with a decent excuse, but Marlene didn’t buy it.
She was about to say as much when James intervened again. “So, what did they say?” He demanded. “Are they, like… going out?” He grimaced, as if the mere thought made him sick.
“Don’t worry, Potter, it was nothing like that.” Mary assured. “He just wanted to give Sirius a heart attack, which I think he’s managed quite well, actually.”
“Just Sirius?” Marlene asked, remembering the wink. It certainly seemed like Regulus wasn’t that fond of James, either, and his little stunt had been a bit to shut him up, too.
“That’s what he said.” Mary said, glaring at her as if she wanted to tell her to shut up while James was there, because she didn’t wanna make him sad.
James was normally a pretty bright and happy person, always there to be a shoulder to cry on when his friends needed him, but Marlene thought he ought to let other people do the same to him, instead of bottling everything up for the sake of others’ happiness.
Mary clearly didn’t want to be the last straw for him, or add onto his misery, and Marlene got it.
“Hey, at least you know he likes blokes.” Marlene said in an attempt to cheer James up.
“And you can always convince Sirius to help you terrorise Barty, I’m sure he’d be just fine with it.” Mary added, smiling slightly.
“Ugh. What kind of name is Barty, anyways?” James complained, sending daggers to him with his eyes.
“James. They’re just friends, alright? Regulus doesn’t like him, and he doesn’t like Regulus.” Mary told him. “You just have to find a way to make him look at you, instead of the opposite. We’ll help you, even, if you want.” She smiled.
“Okay.” James nodded. “But, now, let’s go get the refills we all desperately need.” He grinned, taking them to the drinks table.
And, really, how could Marlene ever say no to that?