tw: mentions of sexual harassment

"CLORFAN AND I ARE SPLITTING," Cass declared as soon as Malka entered their room. 

"Oh...and why is that?" Malka kicked off her heels after a pause. They rolled onto their sides, and Malka cast a quick charm to scoot them under her bed. She sat down in her chair (which was not stolen from the Gryffindor Common Room!)

Cass froze where she stood by her bed, momentarily distracted from placing her red and gold robes over the bedpost. She sighed, and wrung her hands, which were studded with small, delicate multicolored rings.

"Well- I can't date someone who stands up in the Great Hall and declares things to everyone. Cindy and Alecto told me he was a public embarrassment, they really don't like him anymore after that," Cass said with great watery eyes, shoving some loose corsets into her top drawer.

"But do you not like him after that? I thought you liked grand gestures," Malka said, her eyebrows sky high. When the two were in that phase of verging on dating, Clorfan had decorated a whole Christmas tree with her favorite raspberry sugar drops and sent it to their dorm room. 

"Well- I dunno. I can't date someone like that though, it'll make everyone laugh. Besides, he was always too clingy, anyway," Cass mumbled with a bite to her words.

Malka didn't say anything for a moment. Yes, she thought Clorfan was an idiot. And maybe, just about this, Cass was being a bit of an idiot too. It was true that Malka had heavily judged Cass when she chose Clorfan Greengrass as her stepping stool to advance among the pureblood students, but now those two genuinely had something going. 

"Cass. I want you to be happy. I know you're embarrassed after what happened, but the decision on whether to break up with Clorfan is yours alone," Malka said, enunciating each word slowly. Teenagers' feelings were complicated.

"I know, I know. I'll think about it," Cass said, chewing on her bottom lip, gently smoothing out wrinkles on the cape attachment to her robe.

"I'll support whatever you decide?" Malka supplied.

"I know that too," Cass said after a gentle pause, looking up at Malka and smiling. "Thanks, Mal. Now let's get you ready for Sluggie's party,"

The two girls got ready together, sitting down on Malka's bed as Cass did the latter girl's makeup. Though Cassana was a pureblood, she was never invited to the Slug Club due to her family's more obscure status, as well as their somewhat known recent fall from grace. She never did quite well in Potions, either, so she never piqued Slughorn's attention enough. Meanwhile, Malka was probably the best at Potions in his class, just behind Regulus Black. Potions, Arithmancy, and Astronomy were her best subjects.

Cass's dress was a gorgeous maroon color, with silver accents and flared sleeves. It flowed loose down from the waist, but was snug against Malka's skin on the top half. It was silk, and very comfortable to sit in. Malka parted her hair into two top sections, deciding to leave the bottom loose and flowy. She braided the top half first, doing French braids down each side while Cass added little charms and fairies around it.

As a child, Melite Rowle would spend hours braiding Malka's hair, and as Malka got older, she would reciprocate the gesture on her mother. Malka hadn't cut her hair since her mother died, and it was beginning to hit her waist. She needed a trim before her split ends got too severe and made her ends look like straw in a chicken coop.

"So, you're sure you're going stag?" Cass asked, trying her very best to keep the drops of longing away from her tone.

"Yes," Malka said, rolling her eyes at her. 

"Hmm. I think you still should've gone with Mister Black," Cass said, screwing up her face in disappointment.

"The one with a foot-long list of ex-lovers, or the one you almost decapitated on Thursday?"

Cass smacked Malka's knee. "You know which one,"

Malka laughed lightly. "I barely know him, Cass. All I know that his family are Dark wizards and that he's good at Seeking and Potions,"

And I know he's a no-good arsehole, worthy of nothing but the bottom of my shoe.

"Well, you could've gone with him to find out more," Cass protested. "I saw you working together on the Potion on Tuesday," 

"Stop it, casanova," Malka flicked Cass's hand from where she was dabbing blush onto Malka's lips.

"I'm just saying. You haven't been involved with anyone since Dirk Cresswell, and we know how that ended. Regulus Black might not be as handsome as his brother, but he's quite the eye candy," Cass mused, rubbing pomade into Malka's eyebrows.

"If you say so," Malka rolled her eyes. She had indeed been 'involved' with Mister Cresswell in her fourth year, though the whole stint barely lasted two months. They were friends first, verging on best friends, until Dirk confessed that he had had romantic intentions the whole time. To which Malka, not wanting to lose their friendship, acquiesced. So then began their new awkward phase of talking and not yet doing anything, until one day at Zonko's Joke Shop, caught in the excitement of the day, Dirk had eagerly shown her a trick wand, and, as a joke, used it as a toy to smack her in a place no girl should ever be touched without permission. It never felt like a joke to Malka, though, and it still made her sad every once in a while, as she imagined what could've been if anything had gone differently.

"All done," Cass said, just as Malka finished her hair. "Now it's time for you, to head over before you're late, and talk to Mister Black!"

-

Dinner was awkward as always. Slughorn always seemed to favor beef and beans, Malka's least favorite meat and her least favorite food in general. So she poked around her plate as she often did. 

Contrary to how it looked, Cass's dress was quite comfortable to eat in. But the scene was especially tense, since, as Slughorn grouped alike members of his club together, Malka was sandwiched between a stiff Regulus Black and a depressed Clorfan Greengrass among the Slytherins that were decent at Potions. 

Slughorn was currently on a rant to Evan Rosier about his father's Ministry policies, and Malka sent a silent thank you to whomever was up there, that she was not one of Slughorn's favorites. She was barely even in the Slug Club, and ever since that first invite Slughorn definitely forgot about her. But every so often came the call of—

"Miss Arslan," Sluggie called from the end of the table, a jolly smile on his face. "I heard the news of your father's new book, it seems quite popular in the East,"

All the faces turned towards Malka.

Malka's throat instinctively closed up. "I was...unaware it was so popular," she said, her words coming out strangled. In reality, she hadn't even known her runaway father published a new book. The last time she'd seen him had been when she was but a bairn, and he'd taken one glance at her before deciding to fuck off forever.

"Oh. Well, some of my connections in Asia have been commenting on it. He truly is a gift to the alchemic world," Slughorn chuckled, and Malka's face burned.

She felt Regulus's eyes bore into her, and she thought forebodingly of what did at the Hospital Wing, and how she knew that he craved more information about her, to see where her skills came from and who her pureblood parent was. And she knew that he knew it was her mother. For Eastern wizards and witches did not use the blood system, but used quantitative measures of magical strength instead.

Malka mumbled a half thank-you, causing Slughorn to turn his attention to Clorfan.

"Oh! Mister Greengrass, how is your sister?"

"Um-" Clorfan looked quite pale, Malka noticed. She knew why. "She's good, she just had a girl. It was an easy birth, she and her husband are recovering in the manor,"

"Ah, how wonderful," Slughorn's rotund belly juggled as he laughed. "Everyone- Mister Greengrass's sister, Lady Yaxley, just had a child. Ah, she was quite talented, that one. A dab hand at Transfiguration, I believe?"

"Yes, sir, she is an Animagus,"

"Yes, yes. A dolphin. Quite rare it is, to have a sea-dwelling Animagus form," Slughorn chuckled again, before turning his attention to the other person sitting next to Malka. 

"Mister Black! It is a shame your brother is not present," he said, and Malka saw the change in Regulus's frame, like if he was a loose puppet, and invisible strings pulled him taut. His lips thinned into a line, and his eyes narrowed. 

"Yes, my brother has quite the schedule," Regulus replied stiffly, staring sullenly at his plate.

"Oh. Well, that's too bad. It's his sixth year, now, isn't it? What kind of career does he want to pursue?" Slughorn pressed.

"You'll have to ask him yourself, sir," Regulus gritted out.

"Very well, very well," Slughorn remained oblivious to the tension. "And as for yourself, Young Master Black?"

"The Ministry has caught my eye," Regulus blandly said after a pause, as he clinked his fork around his plate. Though Malka could tell he didn't mean it, by the lack of emotion in his tone. His vacant bluish silver eyes stared straight through the table, and Malka thought maybe he was the most disinterested, not she.

"Ah, following in your father's footsteps, I see!" Slughorn laughed again, and then, to her horror, he turned his eyes on Malka once more. "Miss Arslan, is becoming an alchemist something in your future?"

"Um- I," Malka said, shooting a quick glance at Regulus. "I haven't quite explored that idea yet,"

Malka peered into Slughorn's mind, and saw the disappointment there. He chortled for a bit, then sighed shortly, swishing his glass of goblin-made wine in one hand.

"Oh, well, you might want to start soon," Slughorn said, lifting his glass. "Career meetings for fifth years will be held before the holidays,"

Malka nodded, not wanting to let something else bug her. But Potions, Arithmancy, and Astronomy. Those were the three subjects she was best at, and also the three fields most closely related to the field of Alchemy (as well as Transfiguration). Malka would probably be good at Alchemy if she took the course next year, but the thought of drawing another connection between her and her father made her sick to her stomach.

Slughorn turned away from their section to a few alumni on the opposite end of the table, and Malka could breathe a little easier. 

"-Are you well?" came the quietest murmur, and if Malka had not sensed the question floating around in his head, she might not have registered it. 

She turned sharply to Regulus Black, a spark of annoyance on the tip of her tongue. Before she remembered where she was, and it wouldn't do for her to be seen so familiar as to argue with someone like him.

"I am. You?" she bit out reluctantly,

"I do wish for dinner to end," Regulus muttered, straightening the silk napkin on his thighs.

Malka gave him a soft sort of expression, before reaching over and taking a bite of her steak. For even if she now disliked Regulus Black, she could distinguish an olive branch. Perhaps she wasn't so alone in her misery after all.