The next two weeks breezed by in a flurry of homework assignments, meetings for the Hufflepost, tuition with Malfoy and prefect duties twice a week that had more and more frequently resulted in Eleanor and Reggie being paired up together for reasons she couldn't explain.

"So have you heard about the meeting some of the fifth year Gryffindors were organising in Hogsmeade this weekend?" Reggie asked Eleanor as they set off on their route for the night, patrolling the halls for any adventurous students.

"Cyn did mention something that Hermione had told her about when they met up to discuss S.P.E.W, but I don't know what it's about."

"Well from what I gathered it's supposed to be some sort of Defence class that actually teaches something instead of that rubbish Umbridge has been making everyone write. You should definitely go and afterwards we could get lunch from the Three Broomsticks?"

"Sure sounds great, I'll make sure to let Cyn know when I get back to the dorms. She never can turn down food."

"Oh-yeah Cyn. Right." Reggie flushes for a second before falling into silence, only speaking again to say goodnight to Eleanor at the end of their patrol.

Making her way as silently as possible through the common room Eleanor pauses by Cynthia who is asleep huddled over her latest story for the Hufflepost. Knowing better than to wake her she grabs a blanket from the nearest couch and tucks her in, moving the ink bottle out of the way should she shift in her sleep.

"He just lacks basic manners," Eleanor says to Cynthia as they discuss Friday nights tuition during the walk down to Hogsmeade.

"Oh come on now he isn't that bad, don't you remember Moody last year? He proved to us that Malfoy, though not a good person, makes for an excellent pet ferret. And you can hardly expect a ferret to have manners, can you?"

"I dunno, my cousin had a ferret once and he could've shown Malfoy a thing or two about manners." Susan says, joining in on their conversation.

A snort escapes from Cynthia as she bursts into a fit of laughter, prompting both Eleanor and Susan to join in all the way up to the door of the Hogs Head inn where a group of students are making their way inside.

"Have you ever been here?" Cynthia asks, sobering up and handing some coins over to one of the red haired Weasley twins while the other hands out dusty bottles of butter beer to everyone.

"Hmm, you know funny enough it's not really my scene," Eleanor says, eyeing some of the more suspect clientele skulking around the bar.

Taking a seat with Susan they look towards Harry and Hermione who are clearly leading this meeting, Eleanor spotting Reggie with some of his friends across the room.

"Oh yeah Cyn we're going to lunch with your brother afterwards."

"Um. Why the fuck would he take us to lunch?"

"I don't know, he asked me while we were doing Prefect duties Wednesday night."

"And you said yes?"

"Well yeah, and I told him I'd let you know but I forgot until just now."

"Wait. What exactly did he say when he 'asked us to lunch'?"

"We were talking about the meeting today and he said I should go and then he said after we could go and have lunch at the Three Broomsticks."

"And so you just inferred by we he was including me?"

"Of course, why on earth would he want to go to lunch with just me? It's not like I'm his sister nor are we particularly close friends."

"No, he's just a guy that you know and who happens to be single and you happen to be single and it was so not an invitation for me you idiot."

"Aww I thought he and that other 7th year prefect were a thing, did she dump him?"

Cynthia, clearly exasperated, hits her head down onto the table in front of them and beside her Susan sighs and leans closer to Eleanor.

"It is a small wonder how you are supposed to be getting into an advanced class such as alchemy and yet you can't even figure out that the guy was asking you out."

"No he- oh. Oh my god. Oh my fricken god, he asked me out? He asked me out! And I, ohmygod I said I'd bring Cyn. What is wrong with me?"

"Apparently a lot," Susan says just as the conversation dies down in the room as everyone focuses on Hermione at the front of the room.

"Er- hi," Hermione begins, her voice a pitch higher from all the eyes staring at her now, "well you know why you're here. Harry here, well I mean I had the idea that it would be good if people who wanted to study Defence Against the Dark Arts, and I mean really study it took matters into our own hands. Not just in theory, but doing real spells."

Someone from the group interrupts her, "You want to pass your Defence Against the Dark Arts O.W.L too though I bet."

"Of course, but more than that I want to be properly trained because... well because Lord Voldemort is back."

Despite themselves all three jump at the name of the dark wizard that had caused so much grief for everyone already. Around them others were also affected by Hermione's words, some people spilling their butterbeer down the front of their clothes.

Zacharias Smith, another Hufflepuff from their year that they weren't particularly fond of, is the first to respond, "Where's the proof you-know-who's back?"

"Dumbledore believes it," Hermione begins.

"You mean Dumbledore believes him," he continues, nodding at Harry.

"What makes me say you-know-who's back?" Harry says, "I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn't believe him, you won't believe me, and I'm not wasting an afternoon trying to convince anyone."

Everyone was holding their breath as they watched this exchange unfold.

"All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by you-know-who. He didn't tell us how he got murdered, I think we'd all like to know."

"If you've come to hear about Cedric's death I can't help you, so if that's what you're here for you might as well clear out."

No one moves but beside Eleanor Cynthia, her face stricken from the mention of her friend hisses at Zacharias to shut up.

"Is it true," Susan asks, "that you can produce a patronus. A fully corporeal patronus?"

"Yes," Harry says, the business with Zacharias pushed aside.

Several other students bring up the philosophers stone and the second year when Harry killed a basilisk, each one causing Harry to come up with a stuttered reason why it wasn't as simple as they're making it out to be.

Despite a few more unwelcome inputs from Zacharias who Eleanor threatens to deduct points from no matter his house if he didn't shut up, they eventually agree that everyone wants lessons from Harry and then the great debacle begins in ensuring the meeting won't clash with Quidditch.

After it is decided to meet once a week and that they'll be informed when the first one is Hermione produces a quill and parchment for everyone to sign, some more hesitantly than others though Cynthia and Eleanor have no issue with it.

After the meeting, as everyone makes their way out of the inn Cynthia approaches Hermione to discuss writing about the meetings in the Hufflepost using the concealment charm.

"Don't worry," Susan reassures Eleanor as they head to the door, having agreed that Eleanor should go to lunch alone and that Susan would wait for Cynthia at Honeydukes. "Just explain that you didn't understand what he was asking at first and you'll be fine. And don't freak out that he's Cynthia's brother either, she has no problem with this, remember?"

With Susan's calming words of encouragement following her down the street Eleanor finds Reggie talking with a friend outside of the Three Broomsticks and hesitates for only a second before approaching.

"So, we were meeting up for lunch," she says when she reaches him.

He says goodbye to his friend first and then turns to look at Eleanor, "I thought you were bringing my sister too?"

"Yeah. Sorry about that," she flushes, looking down to her feet, "I uh- I think I misinterpreted what you meant when you said you wanted to get lunch."

"I probably could have made myself a little clearer I guess," he laughs, holding open the door for Eleanor to enter ahead of him.

They find a table tucked away in a corner of the room and Eleanor takes a seat as Reggie gets drinks for them while they decide what to eat.

"I guess I just wasn't aware you thought of me as anything other than your sister's friend." Eleanor says when he sits opposite, two butterbeers in hand.

"I didn't at first, but then last summer you came to visit and all of a sudden all I could think was how cute you looked when you smiled or laughed."

She blushes violently at this revelation, unsure and awkward at how to respond to such a compliment.

They eat their meal together in companionable silence, breaking it every now and then to ask one another a question or discuss the goings on at Hogwarts.

"That first night when we had the prefect's duties together I couldn't believe my eyes. I hadn't really seen you on the carriage trip up and then suddenly you were there all, handsome and - god I'm babbling," Eleanor stops herself as they walk together back up to Hogwarts. Lunch had been wonderful and she couldn't wait to get back to the dorm and gush about how nice and thoughtful Reggie was to Susan and Cynthia.

"I like when you babble, you get this faraway look in your eye as if you're lost in your own imagination. It's sweet." Says Reggie, "I should probably leave you here, I promised a friend I'd study with him in the library when I got back from Hogsmeade. Did you uh- did you want to do this again sometime? Go on a date that is, it doesn't have to be lunch or-"

"I'd love to," Eleanor interrupts with a laugh.

They say goodbye and then she watches as he makes his way up to the library, a warm happiness spreading across her cheeks with the promise of a second date in the future.

"How was lunch?" Susan asks when Eleanor slips into the common room, plopping down beside her in front of the fireplace.

"It was nice, he's really sweet and he said he wanted to do something together again soon."

Curling up beneath a blanket Cynthia walks in and joins them not long after, her Puffskein Ludlow perched on her shoulder and several mugs of hot chocolate in her hand.

"Are you glad you didn't bring me along now?"

"Yes, thank you Cynthia." Eleanor smiles, taking one of the mugs and settling down for an evening of gossip and games by the fire.