Every year, without fail, she would sit at her chosen spot in the Great Hall, eating porridge with her regular dash of sugar, cream and blueberries, a goblet full of either some tea or hot cocoa. Every year without a single change, she would complete that task during her birthday no matter what. Her birthday was a day Winnie Bulstrode often picked to ignore, not many people knew the date of her birthday, only those who paid attention to her during the mornings of the fourteenth of February. ( due to the very fact that her birthday also fell on the holiday of love, not many people paid attention. ) But to those few who did pay attention to her, you would catch her minding her own very sweet business when the Bulstrode family owl swooped down in front of her.

A white box, wrapped with green emerald ribbon to form a delicate bow on the top, would be tied to his leg. You would see her sigh, perhaps even roll her hazel eyes if she was in a particular mood, but she would scratch the owl on the top of his head all the same, would take the box and lay gently in front of her. Before she would pull a small, heart shaped pink cookie with tiny daisies decorated on to it with white icing. You would catch her lip twist into the slightest sliver of a smile before she offered the rest of the cookies to those around her. Which was usually taken by Ron Weasley, Harry Potter, Dean Thomas and then one saved for Cordelia Flint.

It was a part of her morning routine that she never faltered from, always composed and done with a measure of practice of normality over the years that she didn't even think second of it when the box arrived. Despite the fact she knew it was from her parents, who spent every other day of the year hating her very being, the day she was born was a sign of truce, no matter how small or cliche the cookies may be, it was taken with kindness all the same.

Until the day of her sixteenth birthday.

A bowl of porridge with blueberries, a dash of sugar and cream still sat in front of her. With her half dranken goblet of hot cocoa, she sat right in between Hermione and Ginny Weasley. When the owls swooped into the Great Hall, she had instantly moved her bowl away from her, acting second nature and preparing herself for a box of cookies she didn't even truly enjoy. They were always too dry and the icing was always far too bitter, but she accepted them with a hidden swell of comfort in her heart every year without fail.

But nothing came for her that year, instead, the Bulstrode family owl flew over to the Slytherin table. Landing a small white box, wrapped in shiny, emerald ribbon right in front of Millie Bulstrode. Winnie watched, feeling her heart twist and shatter like a million shards of glass as Millie pulled a heart shaped cookie, her lips twisting into a wide smile, eyes turning to look at her sister as she took a bite out of the cookie just for pure spite. If it wasn't for the two tables separating them, Winnie would have reached over and throttled her sister until she choked on the cookie, but atlas, Winnie simply grinded her teeth in her mouth and tore her eyes away.

She truly wasn't expecting anything from her parents, she figured burning her name off the tapestry was a sure sign that gifts were out for now on. And yet, her fingers tapped emptily on the void of space in front of her, itching and scratching in denial. She was suspecting this, so really there was no reason for her heart to feel as if it was being torn apart by giants in her chest right now. Her tongue floated across the surface of her bottom teeth, breathing in heavily through her nose she chanced a glance at the Slytherin table once more. Millie was now sharing the cookies among the table, and just as Winnie looked, she saw her sister hold the box towards Theo, who halted his hand halfway after Cordelia whispered in his ear.

Watching the interaction, Winnies eyebrows furrowed down on her forehead. She watched as her cousin threw Millie a dark look, her nose in the air and blue eyes narrowed into heated slits. It didn't take much for Winnie to know that Cordelia realized her parents had sent Millie her birthday cookies purely out of spite. Millie, however, didn't seem to be paying any attention to Cordelia, instead her eyes were glued to Theo like a hawk. Watching as he placed his hand back down beside him on the table, his head shaking before his eyes lifted up from his plate of food. From where he sat, he was facing Winnie, who was still watching the interaction like a deer caught in headlights. And then, his eyes caught onto her own, the brunette jumped, startled to see the wisk of dull green, his lips pulled into a frown just as she snapped her attention away.

Truth was, Winnie hasn't spoken to the brunet male since their little scene in his dorm room three nights prior. Homework and DA lessons had kept her well enough busy, not that the male was openly trying to grasp her attention. It seemed neither one of them knew how to progress from there, it was as if time was stuck moving in slow motion, while they were stuck in that one moment of time, never knowing how to move or what exactly to say. It didn't help Winnie in the slightest that the memory of the Slytherin was what helped made her wand bursts in slivers of mist when she practiced patronuses, she quickly shut that idea down, her face flushed in crimson and snapping at anyone who questioned what she picked.

Drifting back to the conversations around her, feeling both her throat clog and her cheeks warm with heat, she watched as Hermione scrambled up from her spot, letter in hand as she insisted that Harry must meet her at the Three Broomsticks around midday. Harry, whose mouth was full of eggs simply nodding, though his eyes narrowed at the blonde in confusion. Just as Winnie was about to voice what she could only assume was Harry's question, Hermione turned to her.

"And you," Hermione started, a finger directing itself to Winnie who blinked in surprise, watching as the brunette continued to shove things into her bag. "You are to be at the Three Broomsticks at two thirty, no later and no earlier, just be there at that time." Winnies eyebrows jumped up her face, lips opening to question why exactly she had to be there for that time, only for Hermione to be half way out of the Great Hall before she could even utter a sound. Winnie slumped in her seat, lips pulling into a frown as she looked back at Harry, Ron and Ginny.

"What was that about?" She questioned, picking up her goblet and allowing the heat to warm the palms of her hands as Ron shrugged from across her. The two had made up the night prior, but only after he let her win two games of Wizards Chess and have two of his Chocolate Frogs.

"Well, it's your birthday isn't it?" Ginny questioned from beside her, glancing at her through light brown eyes, her hands moving to tie her copper tinted straight hair into a ponytail at the top of her skull. Winnie nodded through a gulp of her drnk, causing the redhead to flash her a knowing smile. "I suspect it has something to do with that, wouldn't you say?" Winnie let out a loud groan, her head falling forward to rest against the wooden table as she squeezed her eyes shut. There was nothing more that she didn't want to do than give attention to her birthday, really, the only thing she was looking forward to was her and Cordelia's annual sleepover they usually did each year

"Can I just hide away somewhere in the castle and pretend I forgot?" The brunette questioned, lifting her head up and instead folding her arms on top of the table, resting her chin on her arms as the three snorted around her. Harry and Ron shared an overly amused glance, while Ginny patted her gently on her head.

"Sure you can sweetie, it'll be your funeral though. Don't worry I'll come visit and sob dramatically," Ginny teased, chuckling softly as Winnie rolled her eyes, blowing out air from between her lips. She truly did not wish to go, she had planned to avoid the Hogsmeade weekend altogether, but she figured if Hermione could plan out something for her, she at least owed it to her to show up.

"Are you guys going to go?" Winnie questioned, tapping her finger over the golden arches of her goblet, the heat from her drink melting into the pad of her finger. Ron grumbled from his spot in front of her, causing her eyes to glance upwards, watching as the redhead gulped back the contents of his pumpkin juice.

"We can't come into Hogsmeade at all, Angelina wants a full day's training. Like it's going to help, we're the worst team I've ever seen. You should see Sloper and Kirke, they're pathetic, even worse than I am." Ron grumbled, stabbing his plate of eggs harshly just as Ginny stood up from her seat, mouthing the word dramatic to Winnie, causing the blonde to bite back a small laugh in order to save Ron's feelings. "I dunno why Angelina won't just let me resign."

"It's because you're good when you're in form, that's why." Harry spoke bitterly, his lips twisted into a fine line, Winnie had a small inkling that Harry was far from feeling sympathetic towards his friend, especially since he was unable to play all year due to Umbridge and her hell fire. Winnie, however, could feel the slightest bit horrid for Ron, remembering the song that was made by the Slytherins purely for taking the piss out of him.

"Mind if I come watch before I have to head down to Hogsmeade?" Winnie questioned Ron as the trio stood, walking through the lines of tables and towards the Great Hall. The redhead sent her a raised eyebrow, before nodding his head and telling her she could either way. Knowing that it was raining outside currently, she decided to head towards the Common Rooms to grab a raincoat before heading out. Harry and her separated from Ron from there, their feet tapping against the concrete as the raven haired boy let out a sigh.

"I don't get why he thinks to complain so much when I can't even play," Harry grumbled, kicking the sole of his shoe into the concrete of a step as they walked up the stairs, nearing the Great Lady portrait. Winnie withheld the urge to roll her eyes and tell him he was acting like a child, instead, she figured it would be better to keep her tongue glued to her mouth. Harry had the tendency to explode like an exploding snap, and she'd rather not have to deal with that right now.

"You wanna come?" She offered after shoving her arms through the thin material of her ebony raincoat. The fabric covered the knitted material of her Weasley sweater she had chosen to wear that day, dark jeans clinging to her skin and flaring out at the bottoms around her ankles. She slipped her Gryffindor scarf over her neck as she watched Harry sit down on one of the chairs in the common room, his fingers toying with a thread that fell loose from his grey and blue flannel.

"No go on, I'll probably go visit Hagrid. I'll see you at Hogsmeade later," he replied idly, watching the fire flicking in his glasses. The blonde's hand paused on the door, brass melting into her gloved hand as she frowned. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, considering for a moment if she should stay and perhaps try and cheer him up. But her hand itches near the top of her bag, where a book she had kept hidden away from everyone burned a hole in her leather bag. Thinking better on it ( and perhaps rather selfishly ) she sighed and nodded her head.

"Alright, I'll see you down there Harry." She smiled, nodding another goodbye before slipping down through the portrait hole and into the castle hallways. Her stomach turned, wringing her hands together; she silently hoped that Harry did in fact go visit Hagrid or at least ran into someone. She felt rather poorly for leaving him alone, but at the same time, she needed somewhere to disappear off to where she knew nobody would bother her. Sitting in the pouring rain in the middle of the quidditch stands was a better place for her than any.

Maybe he would find Cordelia somewhere, smirking, the female pushed open the doors that lead her to the quidditch pitch. She knew her cousin and Harry had feelings for each other, really, they didn't try to hide it very well either. The scene with Harry's patronus was enough of a sign, especially considering her cousin blushed like a cherry anytime Harry was around, or even the mention of his name popped up. Winnie thought it was rather cute if she were to be frank with herself, after Zacharias Winnie knew her cousin was left feeling nothing but a hole in her bleeding heart.

But then Harry Potter appeared in their life like an anchor.

Winnie Buldstrode thought Harry would be rather good for Cordelia, sometimes her cousin took on more than she could handle, and try as she might, Winnie often seemed to fail to be the bridge that held her above the terminals of her life.

Wind brushed past her skin like knives scraping against a plate, sending chills down her spine as she trailed up the steps of the quidditch stands. The Gryffindor team were already soaring high above the grounds; she could spot both Weasley siblings rather easily from where she sat, their hair flashing like flames against the hollowness of the darkened sky. The female watched silently as Ron swirled from his spot near the quidditch post, watching him nearly miss a bulger that came soaring at him. The blonde flinched as the heavy, brown ball smacked into the redheadès chest, causing him to sway on his broom through the drizzling rain.

Winnie definitely didn't regret not trying out for the team, she'd rather not have bruises everywhere on her body thank you very much!

Securing her scarf up over her chin and nose, she laid her leather bag next to her on the stand. The hood of her raincoat stayed glued to her head due to a charm, which allowed the rain to not dampen the wavy strands of her locks. She had chosen to wear a black, cotton headband that day, blocking wayward strands of hair from falling in front of her face, a choice she was incredibly grateful for as another gust of wind kissed her cheeks. With gloved fingers, she pulled out the dark chestnut leather book she had spent hours looking at just the day before, questions seeping from her bones, yet she forced herself to try and finish the stack of homework she had let pile up for far too long. With one hand, she waved her elm wood wand over the cover of the book, repelling away any raindrops so the book stayed dry.

Her fingers flipped through the wilted pages, eyes narrowed and brows grimacing down across the surface of her forehead. Her body stayed angled downwards over the book that rested securely on her lap, fingers tapping against the cover as she flipped through each page, until she finally landed upon the page she left off on. Winnie had told herself to ignore such questions about Theo's mother and aunt, that she should be focused on her flaring magic instead, and yet; she found herself unable to stop, a new obsession eating away at her.

Shifting slightly on the stand, she glued her feet back on the wood, hugging the warmth of her coat closer to her body before finally diving into the contents of the text below her.

March 29th, 1981

The worst has happened. I knew it, I knew it. I knew it.

Charlotte Nott would not be stupid enough to trust the Dark Lord, I knew it! I knew it. I knew it. She is dead and now we are alone, she promised. She promised. She promised.

What am I to do? What am I going to do?

Winnie's lips pressed into a line, reading the frantic, ink splotches of the entry over again. Her eyes glowing in on the date like a trance, things were falling apart rather quickly. Cassandra's words were no longer an elegant cursive, but now a scratchy mess of panic. Licking her lips, the female skipped to the next page, only for her heart to lodge like a boulder in her chest at the date.

October 31st, 1981.

He is dead, killed by a baby. I would be lying if I didn't find this hilarious, my husband, however, did not. Now I wear bruises and tremors across my body, and yet I don't regret laughing! How hilarious is that?

The only part of it all that I regret laughing for is the deaths of the Potters. The baby is now an orphan, and yet I'll have to pay my respects to the child when I grow older, oh wait. I won't! This is all too much, I can barely conceal my laughter any longer.

A shiver ran down the course of her spine as she sucked on her teeth, eyes floating upwards through the rain, watching the redheaded Weasley's move through the air. There was a coldness seeping into her bones, Winnie doubted very much that it was due to the harsher winds of the day, her fingers smoothed down the yellowed pages with a deep routed sigh. Thoughts trickling after her friend who she left all alone in the common room, never more than at this moment did she wish his parents had survived.

March 14th,1984

I have neglected this book for too long. But I seem to not be able to remember why I began to have this. Theo is such a beautiful boy, but I'm afraid he is terrified of his father, and I suppose he has all the right to be.

I am growing weaker, there is no hope for me here. I lay awake at night and remember Charlotte's words, I can feel myself forgetting simple things and yet I try to hold on.

I spit up blood once a day now, my mouth tastes like copper no matter what I do, hands shake so furiously that I can no longer drink my coffee. It is sad that it's what I miss the most, coffee, what a selfish thing. I've been trying to tell my son to be kind, to be better than his father, but he is only four and I fear I am pushing him too far.

But I have less than a year left, and all I feel is fear and anger. He will be alone. Alone. Alone. Alone.

Winnie's frown deepened as she closed the book, laying it flat against her lap as she sucked in a deep breath. Her mind trickled to Theo now, with his blocked emotions and clear distaste for his father, his mothers fear was clear in these written papers. Panic and scratched writings, Winnie could practically feel the urgency of her words, alone. Alone. Alone.

The blonde closed her eyes, inclining her head downwards as she imagined the worse. No more than at this moment did she wish she never had this gift, with her shaking fingers and ability to ooze in people's emotions like a sponge.

Cassandra Nott's words only confirmed what she already knew, this was not a blessing, but a curse.

༺♥༻

        The bell above her rang with a small chiming twinkle above her head, she had left the Quidditch stands only to allow her feet to carry her all the way down to the Three Broomsticks. A black umbrella rested against her shoulder, blocking out any rain droplets that still reigned down from the darkened sky. She had Cassandra's book stuffed into her bag, willing herself to forget the printed words just for one day. She would go insane if she didn't, she was sure about that.

Rita Skeeter had surged past her just as her boot hit the inside of the building, the ladies shoulder harshly brushing past her causing Winnie to lightly stumble. The blonde screwed her nose up, wrinkling at the slight odour that followed after the woman, Winnie brushed her arm off with her gloved hand before closing her umbrella, her eyes filtering around the room, searching for Hermione and Harry just as another set of people popped into her vision.

Her heart did a double take at the sight of Theo sitting with Cordelia, a white bag sat next to his leg, while his mouth was opened in the middle of a laugh. His hand slowly lifted a glass of butterbeer to his lips, shaking his head that fell down with damp strands, water sticking to the tips. Winnie bristled, feeling her face flushed once she noticed she had been watching his lips as he took a sip out of his glass, she turned to move towards Harry and Hermione, but before her feet could move a step further into the pub, Cordelia's voice called out to her. The blonde squeezed her eyes shut, muttering a curse under her breath before she turned slowly on her heel to face them.

"Cordelia, hi," Winnie smiled, placing the best fake smile on her face as she could, her fingers slowly working its way to take off her gloves. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk to either of them, really, Cordelia was probably her favourite person to talk to and well Theo ... Theo was starting to become pretty close to that. ( she would never admit that openly ) But it was purely the fact that ever since their kiss three nights ago, anytime Winnie saw Theo, her cheeks would light on fire like a burning furnace. "Theo," Winnie greeted, turning her attention to the brunet who choked slightly on his butterbeer, Winnie's fell open as he sputtered, smacking himself on the chest.

"Winnie," he smiled weakly, his voice croaking as he wiped at his face. Winnies lips turned into a small smile, a chuckle leaving her lips which caused the boy's eyes to flash an emerald green, twinkling with light. His emotions poured into her like a faucet, and while everyone else's emotions made her tremble, a calmness settled over her like a blanket. She walked the rest of the way towards their table, her hands moving to pull down the hood of her jacket, as she pulled a smile onto her features, their eyes meeting for a split of a second. And just like that, for no reason in particular, she no longer felt the awkwardness that floated around her shoulders.

"Why are you here?" Cordelia questioned, eyeing the two with a small grin on her face as she caught the attention of Winnie once again. Who sighed and looked around the building agan, finally spotting Hermione sitting with Harry, and apparently Luna Lovegood right behind the stairs.

"Well, Hermione sorta demanded me to be here by two thirty," Winnie shrugged, clicking her fingers against the wooden table as she looked back at Cordelia, wrinkling her nose slightly. "I was half tempted to hide away, but I don't fancy dying anytime soon." She joked, glancing back at Hermione who was leaning up in her seat, once she spotted Winnie she waved, smiling. The chocolate brown brunette placed a smile on her face, waving back before looking back at Cordelia and letting her smile fall from her face. "Oh would you save me, I might just die." the girl frowned, watching as Cordelia rolled her eyes, glancing over at Theo who snorted as he took a sip from his butterbeer.

"Oh yes, Merlin, help us if you have to spend an hour socializing," Cordelia drawled, teasing the blonde slightly as Winnies mouth fell open in a faux gasp. Her elbow resting on the table from where she had pulled up a seat to sit for a moment before gusting up enough energy to go over to the rest of her lions ( and raven. )

"Oi! Do I need to remind you of your thirteenth birthday?" Winnie warned, her eyes flashing as a slow grin made its way across her pale features. Watching as Cordelia's face blinked, eyeing her closely before reconzigation flashed across her face.

"Wait, wait, what's the story behind Cordelia's thirteenth birthday?" Theo piped in, causing the cousin's attention to drift towards him. Winnies face twisted into a wide smile, her eyes flashing to Cordelia who was breathing out a heavy sigh between her lips, waving her hand in front of her face as she picked up her glass of butterbeer.

"Go on then, tell him. You're gonna tell him anyway," the girl grumbled rolling her eyes despite the fact her eyes tilted up into a small hint of amusement. Her lips pulling against the rim of her butterbeer as Winnie grinned, turning her attention to Theo who was watching her intently, awaiting for her to speak.

"Right so, we used to have this ghoul in our Manor. He was always banging around and groaning, it was kinda annoying sometimes but anyway," she paused as her fingers fixed the black cotton of the headband on her head. "One year we had all of our family over for her birthday, and Miss Antisocial decided she wanted to eat the full bag of seventy sugar quills and not talk to anyone. So, she somehow - I still don't know how," her eyes drifted to Cordelia as she was speaking, the brunette simply shrugging her shoulders as she grinned. "But she somehow convinced the ghoul to take her place in her bedroom so Cordelia could store herself away in the attic and eat in peace. Well, we figured it out, obviously, and we found her eventually. At that point she ate herself sick to the pointing of vomiting and well..." Winnie trailed off, a smile twisting across her face as Cordelia rolled her eyes.

"In my defence, our crazy uncle was there and I was not about to listen to him ramble on about the next girl he decided to shag," the two cousins shared a look, both grimacing at the thought of their uncle, Elliot Buldstrode who Winnie was sure carried five hundreds diseases with him.

"Is that why you never eat Sugar Quills?" Theo inquired as he rested his elbows against the table, glancing over at Cordelia with an raised eyebrow. A small smirk filtered across his as Cordelia's eyes widened, a finger being pointed towards him.

"Yes, and don't you dare try and trick me into eating one," she warned as the male stuck his hands in the air, leaning back in his chair. As Cordelia turned to glance at the clock that hung over the bar, Theo sent her a secret wink, causing the blonde to snort. "Blimey! I'm late, I gotta go." Cordelia suddenly spoke quickly, chugging back the rest of her drink and causing Winnie to glance up at her with squinting eyes.

"Where are you going?" Winnie questioned, pushing herself up from her seat as Theo sat up, picking up the umbrella from where it rested against the side of the chair. She watched as Cordelia tugged on her coat, pulling her hair out from underneath her coat.

"She got a letter from Lockhart this morning, got a meeting with one now," Theo explained, shrugging as he wrapped his Slytherin scarf around his neck. Winnie blinked, furrowing her eyebrows and looking over at Cordelia, was it Gildrory? She was quite sure he was still half out of his wits in St.Mungos still, doubting he'd be mindful enough to write a letter. The mention of Lockart caused Winnie's shoulder to tense ever so slightly, the idea of Cordelia having any relationship with the guy who lied his way through the wizarding world was still something to get used to.

"I'll explain tonight okay? Meet me at the Room of Requirement," the girl breathed, collecting her things before quickly shoving a purple wrapped gift towards Winnie. "Happy Birthday," Cordelia smiled, squeezing Winnies wrist gently before bolting out of the Three Broomsticks. Winnie watched after her retreating figure until the bell chimed once more, the door swinging shut behind her. The brunette glanced down at the gift in her hand, just as Theos hand came out to wrap around the crook of her arm.

"Hey, uh," he paused, green eyes flashing juniper as she watched him chew on the inside of his cheek. Sugar burst in her mouth as he held onto her arm, eyes darting around, with a slight gasp she realized that he was embarrassed. Explaining the feeling in her mouth as she swallowed thickly. "Can I walk you back to the castle? When you like, go back, that is, I mean ... you can say no, it's not really that big of a deal. Well I mean-" She watched, her feet glued to the wet floor as he tripped over his words, a sharp difference between his usual confidence. This time, his eyes kept glancing down to his feet and around the room, avoiding her gaze at all cost. The sight caused her lips to twist into a small smile, lifting her free hand, she placed it on top of his that rested against the crook of her elbow, causing his eyes to snap to her own.

"Only if you promise to slip so I can play knight in shining armour," she teased, squeezing his fingers before allowing her hand to drift back to her side, his own hand falling from her elbow. His shoulders relaxed, a small chuckle leaving the surface of his tongue as green eyes rolled.

"You'll have to catch me, if I break something I'll bring you to the Ministry," he joked, causing her lips to pull open as a small laugh left them. She nodded her head in agreement, watching him leave out the door with his white bag in his hand. Sighing, she shook her head, fighting back the small grin that filtered across her features before she turned towards where Hermione sat, awaiting her arrival.

"Sorry, Cordelia saw me and wanted to talk for a bit," Winnie apologized as she slid into the table next to Luna. Her hands placed the wrapped present on the table, before she shrugged off her raincoat, leaving her in the Weasley sweater. Her hands shoving her hair over her shoulders before angling her body towards the middle of the table.

"Oh it's okay, we dont mind," Hermione commented as she shoved a full glass of Butterbeer towards Winnie. "I ordered that for you earlier, it's still warm due to a charm." She added as Winnie picked up the glass between her hands, thanking the bushy haired brunette.

"You kissed that Nott boy didn't you?" Luna commed airly, her fingers trailing the edge of her glass as Winnie sputtered, choking on her drink which fell down her throat far too quickly. The female laid her class down on the table, heaving in gasps of air as Hermione and Harry's faces both flushed across the table. Though Harry stared at her wide eyes while Hermione hid a small grin behind her glass. "Oh dear, I only asked because you both have Crumple Horned Snorkacks flying around you," Luna observed, lightly tapping Winnie on the back who sucked in a sharp breath. Her eyes stinging as she wiped at the bottom of her eyes.

"A Crumple Horned what?" Winnie heaved, blinking away her tears as she glanced over at the golden blonde girl who was twirling a piece of her necklace that seemed to be made of acorns and blue thread.

"Oh yes, they often fly around people who have some type of an attraction together. By the way they were flying furiously around the each of you it suggest that you kissed, unless of course you guys ha-"

"Has anyone seen Umbridge's hair?" Winnie cut her off, her face crimson as she cleared her throat, shifting uncomfortably in her chair while Luna blinked unfazed.

"Umbridge's hair?" Hermione questioned slowly, blinking her deep chocolate eyes at Winnie who nodded furiously, sending a glare to Harry who was smirking at her from his spot leaning back against his chair.

"Uh yes! It's quite barney isn't it? Really, erm ..." she paused, tracing her tongue against her teeth as she wrapped her fingers against her glass. "Oh honestly I don't know, I just wanted to change the subject," Winnie sighed, slumping in her seat as Harry and Hermione started laughing lightly in their own seats, soon enough the blonde started joining in. And before she knew it, she was on her fifth butterbeer and listening to Hermione retell a story of how her father had to get stitches one time because one of his patients bit him. Every little piece of her that once did not want to be there, melted away with the snow, and for once in her life, she silently admitted to herself that she may just have friends.

༺♥༻

      The rain had slowed to a comforting drizzle by the time the group made their way out of the Three Broomsticks, the sky crashing in a complicated series of oranges and pinks. The sun had started to sprout out from the time she had entered the building, now it was slowly setting behind the treelines. Her arm was linked in Lunas, listening to the younger girl explain about her fathers magazine the Quibbler, which was soon to be coming out with an interview from Harry composed by Rita Skeeter. ( which explained why the woman had ran into her earlier that evening. )

Winnie twisted her umbrella in her hands, about to open it just as she noticed Theo standing over across the street. Kicking up a wift of dead grass with his foot, the female's stomach looped, suddenly remembering that she agreed for him to walk her back. Perhaps it was due to the five butterbeers she had swimming through her system, her feet carrying her quickly over towards him after waving goodbye to her friends.

"Hi!" She greeted, lips pulling into a smile as she shifted the bag on her shoulder, which now held Cordelia's gift. She had remembered it half way through her third drink, causing her to open it and see a new light blue compact, on front was a small letter written in Cordelia's handwriting. The brunette had fixed their broken compacts with new ones, now leaving them with a way to connect with each other when apart once again. The male blinked in surprise at her sudden approach, his eyes filtering over her face before his lips twisted into a smile.

"Hi, ready to go?" Theo questioned, standing up from his side of leaning against the building. His hair whisked in front of her forehead in waved strands, obscuring his eyebrows as he stood over her. "First, I believe it's your birthday, so here," holding out something towards her, it was only then did she notice the white box in his hands. The box was a wide rectangle, wrapped in sky blue ribbon and tied in a neat, little bow. The girl furrowed her eyebrows, watching as he glanced away, but not before she noticed the dull green of his eyes. Making her come to the slow realization that she felt nothing but a dull silence. Frowning slightly, she reached out for the box.

Holding it her own, she balanced the bottom of the box against the palm of her hand, untying the ribbon between her fingers. Theo continued to glance around, standing tall like a statue, letting the ribbon fall, she slowly lifted the box. As soon as the cover was completely off a gasp left her lips, her eyes widening as she glanced up at Theo who was watching her intently.

"Theo I-" she paused, looking down again at the inside of the box. The contents were nine vanilla heart shaped cookies, all covered rather messily in pink frosting with instead of white daisies, there's small white stars. The outer edges of some of the cookies were slightly a deep brown, and the shapes were rather lumpy and bumpy than straight hearts. But to Winnie Buldstrode they were absolutely perfect in every way. "When did you-" she paused, looking up at him as he stared down at her with a gust of dull evergreen, watching her every move like a hawk. His lips titled into a small smile, clearing his throat, before speaking.

"Cor mentioned how Millicent got your birthday cookies and well ... I just think someone like you deserves a birthday gift, no matter how badly shaped or burny they may be," he chuckled, causing her to laugh as she smiled wider. Quickle, placing the cover back on the cookies to make sure they don't spill, she reached up, wrapping her arms around the back of his neck. Her face trailing into the crook of his neck as she squeezed her eyes shut, allowing the smell of his cologne and laundry detergent to fill her senses. After a moment, his own arms wrapped around the small of her back, holding her close as she stayed standing up on the tips of her feet.

Winnie slowly pulled away, pressing a small kiss against the corner of his mouth. Her eyes fluttered opening, meeting a storm of hazy eyes staring into her eyes, before they flickered just slightly, pouring into her own body. For a moment, she was rendered speechless by the storms that raged beneath his eyes. A story of his own making, a thousand words being spilled out from beneath his eyes and pouring into her own as if he was the artist and she was the muse of his creation.

"Thank you Theo," she whispered, her arms still wrapped around his shoulders as her chest breathed in time with his own. The boy swallowed thickly, his hand moving up to tuck a hair behind her ear, fixing the strap of her headband that fell sideways against her head. Her eyes filtered to his lips, remembering the taste of mint and coffee that swirled from his tongue, her tongue darted out across her bottom lip to insist, causing his eye to follow the movement. Feeling the pit of her stomach pull blissfully, she cleared her throat, stepping away as she tightened her hold on the box of cookies.

"Shall we head back, M'lady?" For his credit, despite the air that ticked with tension, he quickly recovered, holding out the crook of his arm towards her with a tiny uptilt of her smile. Winnie smiled, shifting the box into her other hand before tucking her hand into the crook of his arm. The sweet bliss of emotions that came from in a fleeting moment whisked away now, replaced by a silent prodding.

"We shall," she replied, titling her chin upwards as he grinned. They slowly walked through the grounds of Hogsmeade. Their feet crunching down on parts of melting snow and soaked gravel, rain slowly fell like feathers around them, dampening the tips of their hair and shoulder, and yet neither one felt a single touch of the cold. They walked in silence for the better part, neither one feeling the urge or need to break the silence they existed in with each other, simply enjoying each other's presence, at least until they reached the gates to Hogwarts.

"Listen, sorry if I overstepped the other night, when we know, uh well kissed." Theo spoke awkwardly, his words clear and free despite the prodding feeling in her gut that made her believe he was anything but. The female felt her fingers dig into the fabric of his cloak, her eyes glancing over at him seeing his head staring straight forward.

"You didn't, those things ... well they happen, it's not that big of a deal," she reassured, though as soon as the words left her mouth she felt herself recoil in on herself. She squeezed her eyes shut, allowing him to guide her through the grounds to the castle. "Er I mean ... that's not what I meant, I mean we're like-"

"We're friends, or at least somewhat. I said I would help you right?" He cut her off quickly, causing her eyes to flash towards him quickly. They were nearing the edge to the doors now, the sun casting golden hues over his face, eyelashes curled and shadowing down over the apples of his cheeks. His eyes trailed to her, lips pulling into a small smile as she felt her heart thumple downwards. Friends.

"Right, friends," her lips tilted into a false smile despite herself, hand gripping the surface of the box tighter. Friends, friends. There was one time when she hated that word, and only recently she found herself actually seeing people as her friends without running the other way as quickly as she could, but she never imagined Theo Nott as her friend. To be fair, she never imagined him as anything but her enemy that she would forever hate for life, but it was clear that hate had melted away into something else.

But friends?

The idea of that created a screaming storm into her heart, causing her chest to breathe in deeply. Of course, they were friends, what else would they be? She had told herself for ages that he would be nothing to her, that he ought to be as insignificant as childish affairs, and yet he kissed her, he kissed her and now he wants to call them friends? Well she certainly didn't go around kissing all her other friends.

Bloody Theo Fucking Nott.

"Well, goodnight, hope you enjoy my horribly burnt cookies," Theo joked as they entered the Great Hall, his arm sinking away from her own as she nodded, placing a false smile against her lips. She shifted her bag against her shoulder, holding the white box between her hands as she tapped her foot against the concrete floor.

"Oh yes, I'll be sure to give you a rating, pal." She grinned, watching as Theo paused his hand movements of untying his scarf. "Anyway, goodnight bud." She waved with her hand, before turning on her heel heading towards the Room of Requirement where she suspected Cordelia would be by now. Her fingers gripped the edges of the box, blue ribbon digging into her fingernails as her feet clicked against the stone.

Logically, Winnie Buldstrode knew that she could be completely unreasonable at times, and probably completely mental if she were to be honest. But there were also times in her life where she strongly believed that she was completely being sane while everyone else around her was simply not getting the picture, they were the ones who were insane, not her at all. Which is exactly why as soon as she entered the Room of Requirement, she had started.

"Friends! Friends! Do I look like a friend to you?" Winnie yelped, laying down the box of cookies that had showed up in front of her, she idly noticed the table was already full of popcorn and several different flavours of crisps. But right now, her attention was far away from food. "That's completely barbaric! Friend, ugh as if! He thinks he can just... and then just, ugh!" The girl screamed in frustration, gritting her teeth together as she tugged off her scarf roughly, laying it down on a table and shrugging off her coat in the process. "Oh I'll show him friend, I'll be the best bloody friend he ever had! Bloody fucking idiot, oh I swear - oh! Give me that," she paused, just now noticing a bottle of Firewhiskey sitting on the same table she laid the box of cookies on. She reached forward, grasping the bottle of dark, auburn liquid. Twisting the top off, she lifted the bottle to her lips, chugging back a huge gulp. Lifting the bottle from her lips, she squeezed her eyes shut as her body shuddered. The bitter liquid burned down the surface of her throat as she wrinkled up her nose. "I'll never get used to that. Merlin, what are you wearing?"

Winnie had only just noticed Cordelia standing by the set of sleeping bags on the floor. The brunette had her hair falling in soft ringlets down over her shoulders, on her head sat a bright blue birthday hat, with a streamer in between her lips that Winnie knew made noise once you blew air into it.

"Well I do have a matching hat for you, but I feel like we need to unpack whatever that was first," Cordelia grimaced, walking closer and holding out another purple birthday hat as Winnies lips titled into a sad smile. Her fingers reached out to take the hat from her cousin's hands, swiping her headband off her head before placing the hat on top of her head. Ignoring the fact that the tiny white string dug into the skin under her neck, reaching over, she side hugged her cousin.

"Thank you for this," she hummed, letting go of her cousin's shoulders before walking over towards the lump of pillows and blankets. She huffed, falling onto her bottom, before she kicked off her shoes, leaving it out beside the blankets before planting her feet in front of her. Her elbows rested on her knees, as she reached up and grabbed a dark juniper green blanket that was thrown on the couch behind them. Waiting for Cordelia to sit down, she threw the blankets over their legs as she frowned. "Do you think I overreacted?" She questioned after a moment, leaning her back against the bottom of the couch as she stretched her legs out under the blanket. Turning her head over to look at Cordelia who paused, glancing up at her with a grimace.

"Well I mean..." Cordelia trailed off as the brunette rolled her eyes, crossing her arms across her chest before worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. Winnie could already feel Cordelia's answer before she even spoke it, the bidding discomfort that came from her cousin was a clear enough answer. They were quiet for a few moments, the sound of Cordelia taking a drink from the Firewhiskey stilled through the room as Winnie's mind drifted to Theo. Really, perhaps she shouldn't be so angry about that. He did tell her that he was determined to become her best friend, which was a real fat chance to ever happen, but he said he would try all the same.

But did friends kiss their friends? Winnie couldn't say she would ever try to kiss Harry ( mostly because he was Cordelia's in her mind, ) but she wouldn't ever imagine kissing Ron. Nor would she think of kissing Hermione or Ginny, Theo on the other hand ... The blonde let out a loud groan, holding out her hand for the Firewhiskey.

"I think you can be over dramatic," Cordelia started as Winnie took a long gulp from the bottle, her eyes squeezing shut as she swallowed the butter liquid. Letting it burn down her throat and create a fire in the pit of her stomach, "but, that doesn't mean your feelings have to be belittled, what happened?"

Winnie breathed heavily through her nose, laying the bottle down on the blanket, Cordelia's hand coming out to make sure it didn't fall as Winnie threw the blanket off her legs, walking swiftly over towards the table that was lined with food.

"It's completely rubbish, that's what it is," she rambled again as she took the box of the cookies Theo gave her. She may be in an inner terminal with him, but that doesn't mean she's just simply going to ignore the fact that he gave her a very sweet present ( one that definitely didn't make her heart skip a beat. ) "He said we were friends! Cordelia, friends! Which I suppose we are but like, I don't know I'm just accepting Harry, Hermione, Ron and all of them as my friends, and now him? Him?" She paused walking back over towards the makeshift sleeping situation with the box of cookies, a bag of chocolate frogs and crisps in her arms. "Friends after he, after we ..." she trailed off again, taking a bite from the least burned heart shaped cookie.

Instantly the overwhelming taste of salt exploded on her tongue, her eyes blinking slowly as she chewed the vanilla cookie. Feeling herself sputter slightly at the salt that trickled through the food, almost as if he had mixed up salt with the sugar ... Winnie suspected Theo most likely did.

"I know you kissed Theo," Cordelia admitted as she reached over to pick up a cookie for herself. Winnie, being too momentarily stunned as she choked on a piece of food once again that day, was too late to tell Cordelia about the taste of the cookies. The brunette gagged, reaching for the box and spitting the contents of her chewed piece into the box. Winnie dropped her own cookie into the box, smacking her hand onto her chest as she once again heaved, eyes stinging furiously. "That's bloody awful, what in Salazar did he do? Mix salt with sugar?" Cordelia spat, reaching forward for the bottle of Firewhiskey and taking a chug of that, only for her to begin coughing and covering her mouth with her hand. "That made it worse! That made it worse!" She cried, squeezing her eyes shut as Winnie ( who managed to catch her breath at that point ) trickled off into laughter. Her back leaning against the couch with her hands wiping at her face that still spread tears over her face. After a moment, Cordelia started laughing too, causing them both to gasp for breath in between fits of laughter.

"Well I know one thing he shouldn't be after school," Winnie breathed, wiping her face a second time as she reached over and closed the cover of the box before laying it on the floor next to her. Her fingers traced the rim of the box, as her smile slowly faded to a frown, her heart burning as she leaned her head back against the edge of the coach seat. She suspected the five butterbeer and gulps of Firewhiskey was catching up to her, for every emotion swam to the top of her heart like an overflowing vase. "It was a rather nice gift I guess," she mumbled, frowning as she sighed heavily, balling her hands into fist and chugging back another gulp of Firewhiskey, wiping at her mouth before looking over at Cordelia. "So you know, for the record, I was going to tell you but I figured I should probably talk to him before telling you." She mumbled, grumblin in under her breath as she toyed with the zipper of the sleeping bag she was sitting on.

"Oh come on, cheer up. It's your birthday, boys aren't the end of the world," Cordelia frowned, standing up and taking hold of Winnie's arm, tugging her up as the blonde quickly covered the top of the Firewhiskey.

"What are you doin?" Winnie questioned quickly as the brunette led her out to the middle of the room, where she watched as Cordelia closed her eyes, her hand still holding onto her wrist. A moment later, a wide, tall object appeared to their left. It was composed of a small black record on top of it, a stick reached out, hovering over the record. Winnie glanced over at Cordelia, seeing the girl smile as she walked over towards it.

"So I asked for something to play music, because you," Cordelia paused, pointing a finger at her as Winnie stuck out her tongue. "Need some cheering up. I love my best friend, but he's a real wanker, and so are you, but it's your birthday so I'll allow it." She grinned, earning a faux gasp from Winnie who reached over and lightly swotted Cordelia on her shoulder. The brunette picked up the tiny stick, laying it down on the record, causing the familiar beat of a Weird Sisters song.

"You're so lame," Winnie commented, rolling her eyes as her cousin tugged her out into the middle of the room again.

"And you're boring," Cordelia fired back, despite the smile that filtered across her face. The blonde''s lips fell open in an 'O' shape, before she grinned and raced forward to grasp a pillow from the makeshift bed. Cordelia, who was dancing to the music, didn't notice Winnie coming towards her with a pillow strapped in both of her fingers. With a quick swift of her hands, she hit Cordelia in the side of her shoulder with the pillow. Causing the girl to let out a surprise yelp, Winnie kept her fingers tight around the surface of her pillow, as she backed away slowly. "Oh it's on," Cordelia grinned, running for her own pillow as Winnie screamed, running away from Cordelia who came at with a pillow.

Eventually, Winnie stumbled over her feet, causing her to slow down and give Cordelia enough time to hit her squarely in the back of the head with her pillow. The female curled in on herself slightly, before she willed around and swotted her pillow towards Cordelia's middle. The brunette, however, was too fast for she swirled her body to the side leaving Winnie swishing at nothing but air. After that, the two girls drifted into a game of chasing each other around the room, hitting each other with pillows and laughing as if they were little kids again. Music swirled around their ears, bursting from the record near the middle of the room.

After several rounds of running around the room as quickly as they could, jumping and hitting each other with their pillows, the two girls fell back down against their sleeping bags. Winnie's head fell back against the side of the couch again as she breathed in heavily, shifting from a cramp in the side of her hip. Just as she opened her mouth, a loud popping noise with white sparks filtered to the room, causing both girls to jump up, grasping their wands in their hands and aiming it towards the middle of the room where the burning record player now sat. The magic in the school frying the electricity playing through the music. Giggling, Winnie waved her wand, making the record disappear, sparks and all vanishing in thin air.

She leaned back against her pillow, laying her wand against the floor beside her shoes and the cookie box, watching as Cordelia stood up to grab the box of Exploding Snap from the table before walking back over towards her. Winnie smiled, sitting up and tying her hair back with the blue ribbon from her present from Theo, flicking her ponytail over her shoulder. "Thank you," Winnie spoke softly, setting up her cards for the game as she wrapped a blanket over her shoulders, holding it close to her body as Cordelia glanced up at her, raising an eyebrow. "For making me feel better you weirdo," the girl grinned, looking up at her cousin who rolled her cerulean eyes, grinning as she shifted, sitting cross legged across from her.

The two girls drifted into a series of playing random games, and stuffing their faces with the junk food Cordelia had brought into the room. Until they both laid in under each of their sleeping bags, the room glowing in darkness all beside the small blue flame of light Winnie had conjured to hover about their heads. Winnie rested her head against her elbow, staring at the flickering flames as she shifted against her pillow. They had changed their robes into sleeping wear during some point between the second game and after eating far too crisps.

"Hey Lia?" Winnie whispered through the darkness, after a moment she heard the shifting of Cordelia's sleeping bag. Glancing up, she watched as Cordelia turned to face her, her hands reaching up to alter her pillow before finally relaxing and looking at Winnie. "What happened with Lockhart?"

"Well, I had to meet with his sister, Eleanor," Cordelia spoke, fiddling with the zipper of her sleeping bag as she looked at Winnie. "It was a mess in the beginning. Apparently Max has a cousin, her son, who hates my guts."

"Why do you think that?" Winnie questioned quietly, flipping her pillow over to the cold side, before resting her cheek against it, eyes staring at Cordelia who sighed.

"He kept going on about how dangerous it would be to associate with me and my family, that because he's a squib it's all he can do to protect himself. And then he just... left." Cordelia muttered, her nose wrinkling in a way that almost made Winnie snort.

"He's a squib?" Winnie's mouth fell open in shock, as the term 'squib' was often not spoken in the world of pure-blooded wizards, especially in their family. "But... your family isn't dangerous. I mean, yeah, Uncle Carleton is a Death Eater, and Marcus is too—"

"Okay, I get it," Cordelia interrupted, and the brunette fell silent with an apologetic smile. Suddenly feeling awful for even mentioning it, it wasn't exactly as if she could talk about her family ... or what used to be. "But there's been all sorts of rumours about my dad and the family throughout the years, and that's what he's focusing on. It hurts, but I don't know him, and he doesn't know me, so there's no point in worrying."

"He sounds like an arse," Winnie grimaced, shifting in her sleeping bag. "I don't like him."

"You wouldn't. It's funny, though, because you know he's related to Madam Puddifoot?" Cordelia let out a laugh, and Winnie snorted in surprise.

"Are you serious?" Winnie fell into giggles, making Cordelia laugh even more at the sound of it. "Well, that's ironic."

"Tell me about it," she said, and then she let out a sigh. "After that, Eleanor apologized. She gave me this diamond bracelet that Lockhart gave to my mum when they graduated, and it's beautiful. And then she gave me some pictures of them when they were young, and that was perfectly fine. It made up for Jeremy being rude, you know?"

"Did you bring the photos?" Winnie asked, propping herself up on her elbow as she watched her cousin with curious eyes.

"No, they're back in my dorm," She answered, frowning slightly. "I'll show them to you eventually. It's odd, though, because now I'm realizing how much Max could have avoided if my mum had allowed Lockhart to be in his life. Eleanor said he didn't know." The lighter brunette was quiet for a moment, her lip slipping between her teeth as she pinched her eyebrows down against her forehead. Winnie's body stiffened slightly as her own emotions started to mix with her cousins, skin prickling with a shiver of uneasiness making her stomach turn and for her eyes to narrow slightly at Cordelia. "She uhm ... gave me a letter Max left to me, apparently he went to them when he was younger," Cordelia admitted quietly, pulling at a loose thread of a blanket that was thrown over her. Winnie, who shifted uncomfortably from Cordelia's bidding emotions, felt her lips pull in a frown. She yearned to question her cousin further, but a hold that tied itself around her tongue halted her from doing so. Instead, she sighed, glaring down at her fingers as she curled them into fist, feeling them twitch slightly.

"That's good though, you'll have something from him." Winnie replied, a sad smile bracing her lips. "And for Lockhart, he seems like a perfectly nice man. Aside from, you know, stealing people's accomplishments and being a narcissistic arse, obviously."

Cordelia snorted in response. "Yeah, yeah. Well, I can't dwell on it," She said, her voice slightly sad. "It's not the end of the world. I can't change the past."

"Well, at least you have me to rely on," Winnie smiled at her, reaching out to hold Cordelia's hand, and she took it gladly. The blonde squeezed and Winnie squeezed back, and everything seemed to fall into place. "I love you, Lia."

"I love you too, Winnie," she replied, and as Winnie smiled, her head resting against her pillow. Eventually the two lapped into silence, both drifting off into a hesitant sleep with their worries vanishing into the air.

Winnie swallowed, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as she stared up at the dying flames. Reaching up she rubbed at her eye, blinking furiously through the spots that clicked on through her vision. She shifted, her mind drifting to a certain brunet boy with his forever changing eye colour. Her lips titled into a slow smile at the memory of sea green, it was a storm of wild greens and flickers of bronze wrapped around a ebony pupil, a storm of emotions all aware for her to see and discover as she wished for. She sighed, blowing out air from her lips as she shifted onto her back.

There was a time when she swore she would never look at Theo as anything other than a hateful taste of a person, and yet, she had kissed him without a sliver of regret. He had called her his friend, and it was something that shouldn't cause her heart to twist as painfully as it, nor should it have made her act as completely numpty as it did.

There were friends in the long run, friends talking as if they were lovers. Friends who were afraid of loving each other, even if she just didn't seem to realize that just yet.

"You know, Theo's kinda amazing," she spoke to the night air, not really sure if Cordelia was awake or not. "I think maybe he might be one of the best people I know," and with one last glance at the flickering blue flame, she turned onto her side, whether or not she realized Cordelia Flint was awake or not was left to the unknown for her.

At least until the ticking bomb exploded in front of her.