six; POTTER AND LUPIN

"I hate you so much."

Sutton glanced up from her novel as Phoenix collapsed onto the couch with a huff.

"Why now?" She inquired, frowning in distaste as he threw his legs over her lap.

"You replaced me as your partner in crime." He sighed dramatically, his eyes comically wide as he gazed at her sadly as she snickered and turned her attention back to her book

"If you're caught again anytime soon, you'll be in detention until we graduate." She pointed out.

Phoenix sighed miserably, "Yeah, I know."

"I get it." She told him, "And as soon as I come up with something that I know for sure won't get anyone caught, I'll let you know."

It wasn't much, but it seemed to lift her friend's spirits.

"What do you mean you aren't coming?" Lyra demanded to know while the three were sitting at breakfast the next morning.

Sutton shrugged.

"I just don't feel like going to Hogsmeade." She replied before she bit into her toast.

Phoenix nudged the dark-haired girl.

"Come on, Lee, we'll have heaps of fun without her." He exclaimed with a smile that made Lyra glare at him before she shoved him.

"Stop calling me Lee." She ordered, only to receive a massive grin in return.

Sutton shook her head at them as she swallowed the last of her toast.

"I'm going to finish the last of my homework and then send a letter to my Mum." She told her friend, "You guys have fun today though."

Lyra reluctantly nodded as they watched Sutton get up from where she had been sitting.

She flashed them a smile before turning on her heel and walking away.

✦❀✦

Sutton gently kissed her owl's feathers as she tied the letter to its leg.

"Sutton."

The brunette glanced over her shoulder to see Harry Potter staring at her, his eyes rather surprised at the sight of her.

"Potter." She greeted civilly.

"What are you doing here?" He questioned.

Sutton rose an eyebrow in amusement.

"This is the owlery." She responded, "Clearly, I'm pole dancing."

The Boy Who Lived flushed in embarrassment.

"No, I just m-meant why aren't you in Hogsmeade." He stammered out as he had thought everyone went on Hogsmeade weekends.

"Oh, I know." She replied with a grin, "I just didn't feel like going."

"Oh."

Once she noticed the sad look on his face, she smiled at him when she remembered how Malfoy was gloating about the fact 'Saint Potter' wasn't allowed to attend the village because his relatives didn't sign the permission slip.

"You're honestly not missing out on much in Hogsmeade." She told him the hopes of lifting up his spirits, "It's a bit of a bore."

It seemed to work as he smiled a little.

She had nothing against him, other than the fact that Draco Malfoy never ceased to stop talking about him while in the Common Room and it had reached the point where she'd like to throw a chair at the Malfoy Heir.

She turned back to her owl.

"Take this to Mum, okay Athena." She whispered.

Athena blinked her dark purple eyes at the young witch before she was spreading her wings and soaring out of the window.

When she turned back, she noticed the boy stroking the feathers of a white owl.

"So, you're the one who owns that gorgeous owl." She mused, causing the teenager to smile proudly at his owl.

"Her name is Hedwig." He told her.

"My Mum wanted to name Athena that." She told him as they both walked out of the owlery together.

"You didn't want to?" Harry questioned, albeit a little warily as though she were about to start acting like Malfoy.

"I'm obsessed with Greek Mythology and my owl doesn't look like a Hedwig at all." She replied with a shrug, "Besides, I adore the irony in naming an owl, Athena."

Harry opened his mouth to speak just as a voice interrupted their conversation.

"Harry? Ezra?"

The two stopped walking and turned to see Professor Lupin staring at them from around the classroom door.

"What are you doing?" He asked them, "Where are Ron and Hermione? And Lyra and Phoenix?"

"Hogsmeade," Harry replied in a failed attempt at being casual.

"Probably off snogging somewhere," Sutton responded with a shrug causing Lupin's lip to twitch upward, "Though, they claim to hate one another."

The Defence professor stared at the two for a moment before speaking.

"Why don't you both come in? I've just acquired a Grindylow for my next lesson with the third years." He told them.

"A what?" Harry asked as he and Sutton followed the teacher into his office.

"A water demon," Sutton answered as her eyes locked on the tank in the corner of the room where a green creature resided, pressed up against the glass as it pulled faces at the three of them.

"Correct," Lupin replied with a smile.

"Nasty little buggers, they are." Sutton explained, the trio very unaware of just how much this information would benefit Harry in the next year, "Extremely strong but the trick is to break their grip on you as their fingers are long but very brittle so they're especially easy to break."

"That answer would absolutely earn you points in class." Lupin announced, "Despite the part about them being, ah, nasty little buggers."

Sutton smirked at him as the man began glancing around the room for something.

"Cup of tea?" He asked them, "I was just thinking of making one."

"All right," Harry answered awkwardly.

"No, thank you." Sutton responded with a polite smile, "I loathe the stuff."

Lupin stared at the brunette for a moment as if deep in thought before he shook his head and tapped the kettle with his wand which caused Sutton to snicker when Harry jumped as a blast of steam came from the sprout.

"Take a seat." He told them as he took the lid off of a rather dusty tin, "I've only got teabags, I'm afraid...but I daresay you've had enough of tea leaves?"

"How did you know about that?" Harry asked curiously accepting the cup of tea from the professor.

"Professor McGonagall told me." He answered his mouth curving into a tiny smile, "Are you sure that you don't want anything instead of tea, Ezra?"

"So, you actually gossip in the teacher's lounge." Sutton commented with a grin, "Good to know, and I'm fine, Professor, thank you."

Lupin smiled at her statement.

"You're not worried, are you?" He asked Harry.

"No." He answered and Sutton scoffed a laugh.

"Trelawney is ridiculous, Potter." She exclaimed, "Don't worry about her, I sure didn't."

"You took her class?" He asked curiously.

Sutton nodded.

"Third year. If any of her predictions were true then, by my estimate, I'd have died thirteen times by now, had three children, been married twice, and have already killed my first husband." She told him, causing him to laugh weakly.

Lupin rose an eyebrow at the girl.

"So, I might have exaggerated the first husband murder part." She amended, after seeing the man's look, "But, that's where her predictions were headed. I dropped the class and took up Ancient Runes. It's much more interesting."

Her professor chuckled lightly before turning back to Harry, which caused Sutton to tune out as it looked as though he had wanted to ask the professor something personal.

She only turned her attention back to the conversation when she noticed her Head of House entering the office, holding a smoking goblet. He stopped at the sight of Sutton and Harry, his eyes narrowing at the latter while eyeing the member of his house with a hint of curiosity.

"Ah, Severus." Lupin smiled, "Thanks so much. Could you leave it here on the desk for me?"

As the Head of Slytherin placed the goblet down, he glanced between the three.

Lupin smiled up at the man pleasantly.

"I was just showing Harry and Ezra my Grindylow," Lupin told him as he gestured to the tank.

"Fascinating." He replied, not letting his eyes wander. "You should drink that directly, Lupin."

"Yes, yes. I will."

"I made an entire cauldronful if you need more." Snape drawled.

"I should probably take some again tomorrow evening. Thanks very much, Severus." Lupin said to the Head of Slytherin in what Sutton perceived as more than just gratitude.

"Not at all." Snape said as he backed out of the office, but not before tilting his head at his student, "Miss Sutton."

"Professor Snape." She replied respectfully before he disappeared.

As the door closed, Sutton's gaze shifted to the goblet that was emitting smoke that was a faint blue colour and she studied the smoke thoughtfully, trying to remember which potion it was from the various textbooks she had about her favourite subject.

She barely heard Harry imply that her Head of House was trying to poison their new professor as she stared at the goblet, but she honestly would not be surprised if that were the case, though her Head of House was a Slytherin and wouldn't be stupid enough to murder a man so obviously and in front of witnesses at that.

"Well, Harry, Ezra." The brunette looked up at her Professor as she was addressed, "I'd better get back to work. I'll see you at the feast later."

Sutton nodded her head as she stood from her chair.

"Thanks for the chat, sir." She muttered quietly as she rushed out of the office.

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thanks for reading!

~r