Lacey Locke

The world was simple; predator or prey, hunter or hunted, or some other flowery metaphor that Lacey could think of. Here, at Hogwarts, she had control. So very much in control. There were the occasional mumbles of slut or tramp, but Lacey still didn't flinch. No, she would instead smile and watch as the horror dawned on the person that she had overheard them.

Let her make something abundantly clear—Lacey Locke was a bitch. There was no denying it, she was anything but weak. That's what often nagged her, everyone had the biased opinion that Hufflepuffs were always kind or weak-willed. Lacey controlled the halls, she controlled the people.

Weak? Ha, a mere mockery if anything else.

Lacey loved making other people's lives a living hell, especially if it was up to her benefit. Taking out a tube of lipstick, she applied dark raspberry colour onto her two-toned lips, walking down the hallway. Lacey ignored the professors that said this wasn't a beauty school. Fuck them.

"Corvinne," Lacey called out to the dark-haired girl at the end of the corridor. Corvinne Elmwood was chatting to Cerise Lavoie, a girl who Lacey wasn't quite sure how to bond with. Rivals upon rivals, enemies upon enemies, she thought, and frenemies at best. "Didn't see you on the train."

Corvinne tsked, rolling her eyes. "Ugh, I had to share a compartment with James Potter and his whole Gryffindor menagerie. This year, Hogwarts is jammed packed."

Lacey smiled coyly, tracing her fingers up on Corvinne's bare arm. "How's Sirius?"

"Still an arsehole, so he's fine. Why do you care?" Cerise replied quickly, if not coldly. Jealous Cerise Lavoie was a rather fascinating thing that Lacey toyed with frequently. A game of cat-and-mouse, she wanted to say. This is even pathetic for you, Cerise.

"Tell him I said hi," Lacey smirked, letting out a bored sigh. Cerise's cheeks went as red as her cherry lips, and Lacey would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy the look of envy on her face. Sitting on the windowsill, she ran her perfectly manufactured hands through her blond hair. "Aren't you in the house with that other Ravenclaw girl?" She snapped her fingers, pretending to remember. Lacey wasn't forgetful, but loved to put on an act like how Corvinne would be overly dramatic.

"You're going to have to specify."

"Magdalena Flynn."

"Seems like you have no problem remembering her name."

The tension in the air was high. "Let's go to the Gryffindor Common Room to say hello to the boys," Corvinne spoke up, looping her arm through Cerise's. "It was nice seeing you again, Lacey—"

"Uh-uh, I want an answer," Lacey said, feigning innocence. "Didn't you hear? Little Maggie Flynn cursed her crushes with love potions!" She let out a tiny gasp, covering her mouth with her hand. "Sure, it's no Amortentia, but the scandal! Ah, I'm positive little Maggie told you all about it. Just a word even."

"Well, Lena didn't say anything," Cerise pointed out. Boring, boring Cerise Lavoie. Never adding fuel to Lacey's fire, but always there to add gasoline to others'. Ugh, so unrefined. So fickle.

"Okay, we're going to the Gryffindor Common Room. Good evening, Lacey!" Corvinne yanked on Cerise's arm, dragging her away. Lacey was sure that they were bad-mouthing her as soon as they went up the stairs, but she could have cared less. Let those girls have their opinions, Lacey had everything she already needed.

⋆｡°✩⋆⟡ ݁ 𝜗𝜚 ˚⟡⋆✩°｡⋆

Peter Pettigrew

"Now, now, it wasn't our fault that the Great Hall almost burned down," James reasoned with one of the caretakers at Hogwarts. James had wanted to test a new spell he had learned for an upcoming prank, except it accidentally exploded one of the nearby candles. "I don't understand why we have detention."

"By Merlin's Beard, you're stuck here and that's that," the old janitor spat out, shoving the Marauders into the detention room. It was a dusty room, which only worsened Peter's allergies and caused him to sneeze repeatedly. The janitor handed the four of them dusters, growling. "Get to work alongside the other girl," he barked.

The other girl? Peter turned around, spotting the girl who shared the Hogwarts Express compartment with them. She had been as quiet as the Hufflepuff girl, staring out the window. She sat silently at the desk, a duster in her hand too.

"It's only us?" Remus asked, pushing up his glasses.

"It's the first day of school, classes haven't even started yet," the man deadpanned, "why the hell would anyone else be in detention other than you troublemaking punks?"

"Why am I here?" the girl asked suddenly, finally uttering a word.

"I don't give a shit, dollface, so shut your potty mouth and sit pretty."

Her eyes narrowed, glancing at the janitor up and down. "Recently, your wife must have divorced you; the unkempt hair, the sudden weight loss, and the dent of where a wedding ring should be. You spend your nights depressed and hollow," she blurted. Peter's eyebrows flew up whilst James and Sirius shrieked with laughter.

The janitor was rather embarrassed, his eyes blazing with rage and his face going red. James and Sirius couldn't stop crackling, and Peter had to admit he was stifling a giggle. The girl, seemingly encouraged by their reaction, also added, "I sense some level of sexual frustration—"

"One hour and then you can get the hell out," the janitor drawled, shutting the door behind him. Locked, as per usual. Once he was gone, Peter burst into the laughter he was holding. Between gasps for air and sneezes, he felt manic.

"How did you know all of that?" Remus exclaimed, fascinated. He peered curiously at the girl, his need for learning more and more growing. James liked to tease Remus, calling him a bookworm. "Every little detail!"

"Just figured it out, I guess," the girl replied.

"That was hilarious, ah, a truly golden moment," Sirius mused, tossing the duster away. No use, Peter supposed. Looks like we're going to try and escape. "Alright, let's get to work. There is no way we're staying in Detention for an hour. Key?"

"Door's locked and the key's with the caretaker," Remus reported.

"We've got our wands with us," James said.

"The room's enchanted so students can't escape, it's a new addition," the girl answered, sitting on top of the desk. Her legs dangled as she surveyed the four boys. Peter flinched as her gaze landed on him last, like it was a sort of test.

James rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry, who are you again and why should we care?"

Peter nudged him. "Don't be rude."

"Calypso Starling. Ravenclaw. Fifth year, same year as you."

"Starling?" Sirius questioned, puzzled. He leaned back on his chair, raking his fingers through his hair. "Where have I heard that name before...?" He trailed off in a deep thought.

"Ah, yes, you're the dull girl in the back of the class."

"Jamie, that isn't very kind," Remus said, smacking the back of the boy's head. Often, it felt like Remus was the parent of the group despite all of the Marauders being the same age. What were the Marauders? Their secret pranking group with the four of them—Prongs, Padfoot, Moony, and Wormtail. Why do I have to be called Wormtail? You've got all the good names, Peter had complained.

"There's windows," Calypso pointed out and Peter drew his attention to the windows, displaying Hogwarts' courtyard through the thin glass panels. It was late evening, the moon had already appeared. Absently, Peter glanced back at Remus. Secret, he reminded himself.

Peter inspected the windows. "They're cheap. Frail, if you must."

"So let's smash some windows!" Sirius exclaimed, aiming his wand at the panels.

"Bloody hell, are you lot dumb?" Remus jabbed Sirius in the ribcage and lowered his wand. "We don't want to get on Headmaster Dumbledore's radar?"

Now, that was a dire consequence.

"Or," Calypso said, hopping off the desk and walking up to the window, "just open it?" Peter hadn't realized the window was slightly ajar, letting Calypso push it open, leaving a gap of space to escape. "Really, it doesn't take an elaborate plan to escape. It's straightforward."

Sirius snorted. "God, she's just like Cerise."

"Don't degrade my work." Calypso ducked, climbing through the window, moving carefully until she stood outside. Simple, just like that? Peter thought, seeing the irony. She clasped her hands, nodding towards the boys. "Your turn."

"For fuck's sake..." James muttered under his breath. The Marauders climbed out of the window, though Peter landed on the grass on his butt. In the cold breeze, he shivered and tugged the cuffs of his sweater under his robes. "Good, we're finally out of that bloody hellhole."

Remus rolled his eyes. "We were in there for less than ten minutes, Jamie."

"You!" the cranky janitor screamed from the door that led outside to the Courtyard. Shit! They all took off towards the other exit as the janitor chased them with his mop. Back inside the school, they ran down the halls to escape. The dinner would be finished by then, the corridors would be jam-packed shortly.

"Take a left," Calypso directed. Peter wasn't sure why, but they listened to her. They hurried up the stairwell, they were heading to the Astronomy Tower. But that's off-limits for students, he'll catch us in no time! Peter thought. Calypso suddenly came up with a key, unlocking the gate that patrolled the stairs to the Tower. "He'll never find us here," she wheezed, out of breath.

"He's going to complain to Filch, ugh," Remus muttered, rubbing the back of his neck as they arrived in the Astronomy Tower. They dropped to the floor of the Tower, all quite tired from the run and adrenaline. Suddenly, Remus sat up and glanced at Calypso. "Wait, why do you have access to the Astronomy Tower? Professor Sinstra wouldn't let me do extra credit here."

"He's a nerd," James supplied.

Calypso pocketed the silver rusty key. "Professor Sinstra allows me to come here sometimes since I'm the top student in Astronomy. She used to know my mother, Starlings and all. It's a long story."

Sirius jerked up, snapping his fingers, an excited expression on his face. "Yes, now I've got it! You come from the Starling ancestry, I've heard of you before. My mum mentioned the Starling curse before since it started with the pureblood woman, Callisto Starling."

"I'm sorry, a curse?" James gaped at Calypso. "You're cursed?"

"Inherited curse, it's not contagious or anything," she answered defensively, crossing her arms. Her upper lip twitched as she said, "Yes, it all started with Callisto, my ancestor. She was cursed by the founder of the Slytherin house." She pursued her lips. "Did you expect anything else?" she asked Sirius, unamused.

"I thought the Starling Curse was a myth that my mum told me to keep me on my toes," Sirius replied, unfazed.

That almost sounded like an insult. "Well, it's very much real."

Remus cocked his head. "What's your curse?" Unknown to Calypso, Remus Lupin was a werewolf, he was bitten when he was younger. No one really knew, but Peter knew the way that Remus felt like he was the odd one out. Perhaps he was related to Calypso.

"It's... complicated. It's a generational curse that passes onto each Starling woman, my life is just reduced to nothing. Everything is tragedy, misery, and pain, really." Calypso blinked, sitting cross-legged on the floor. "It's like bad luck, if you want to put it in that way, every turn in my life is the wrong one. It's only downhill from here, I guess."

Sirius stared at her. "No Starling survives past eighteen, correct?"

"Now, that is a myth, but there's some truth. It depends, but they always survive to produce an heir, another Starling to endure the curse. But yes, most Starlings don't live past forty." Calypso glanced around, blinking again before standing up. "I don't think any of you are listening." She sounded rather frustrated, almost like she wasn't understanding why she couldn't convey her feelings properly.

"We are," Sirius reassured. He sat on the floor criss-cross like an eager child waiting to hear another bedtime story. Peter felt a bit bad for Calypso considering they were listening to her like her life was a myth. But it was reality for her. "Then what?"

"You just die. Well, you live a terrible life before meeting a sad death," she said flatly.

"Oh."

"Well, this has been fun, let's get the hell out now." James hauled himself to his feet, ruffling up his brown hair. As he descended down the staircase, Remus and Sirius followed. Peter glanced back at Calypso, his hand on the iron-wrought stair railings.

"They're a handful, but they mean well most of the time."

"They seem like a bunch of silly goofs," she replied curtly.

Peter gave her a strained smile. "They do, don't they? Good night."

⋆｡°✩⋆⟡ ݁ 𝜗𝜚 ˚⟡⋆✩°｡⋆

Serena Torres

"Damnnit, Severus!" Lily slapped down a burnt card on the table. Snape had a Mona Lisa sort of smile as he held the cards closer to his chest when Lily tried to peek. Serena watched from afar, eyeing the only Gryffindor in the Slytherin Common Room. Thursday sat down next to Serena, peering over her shoulder.

"Are they playing Exploding Snap? I want to join them," Thursday said as Serena rolled her eyes. He wasn't bothered by Lily or Snape very much, and Serena wasn't sure why she was. Something was off-putting about Snape, it irked her a lot. There were pureblood extremist ideals circulating around Slytherin lately, and most of them were Snape's buddies.

No one forgot that he called Lily a mudblood last year, though Serena was surprised their friendship still held. Snape tapped the card with his wand. Promptly, it exploded, causing sparks to fly up in the air. Lily stifled a laugh as specks of ash landed on his nose.

"It's none of our business, Torres." Thursday and Serena got up, wandering away from the Common Room, leaving Lily and Snape with their game of Exploding Snap. "I heard that Desiré left us some chocolate frogs. I think they're up in her trunk, hold on." Of course, Thursday Klingerstown, the greedy guts for sweets and lollies. Can't blame him. "Oh, yes, have you seen Seraphina? I need to holler at her for forgetting to return my coins."

Serena shrugged. "It's Seraphina, don't trust her with your coin. She probably pocketed it." It wasn't the first time that Thursday was too friendly and naive for Seraphine's antics. Personally, Serena wouldn't exactly trust someone who had Moonlight for a last name or was a bully. That girl was almost as bad as Lacey Locke, if not on equal footing. "Check the girls' washroom, she's probably pestering Moaning Myrtle again with the other Slytherin girls."

Thursday snorted. "Are you sure it's not the other way around?" He saw some of his friends, saying goodbye to Serena before joining them. Serena wasn't sure how he kept up with all those people. After some scouting, Serena spotted Regulus reading a book on the staircase that led up to their dorms. Before he noticed her and could leave, she slid over next to him, noting the book he was reading. "Hearing Secret Harmonies, really? A new copy too, did your mum get it for you?"

He shut the book and stood up, about to leave. "You're not even going to read me the synopsis?" she asked hopefully. Regulus blinked blankly before stalking off up the stairs. Serena huffed—he hadn't even spoken a single word to her! He really had changed, hadn't he? It was unfortunate that they drifted apart, Serena wasn't sure why exactly, but she was worried that all the Death Eater talk had gone to his head.

Did He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named already had his clutches on Regulus Black?

A/N: Since not all the options are done, understandably so since cast was just released today, I will assume some of these opinions. For clarity, there is suspicion that Regulus and Snape are Death Eaters, not confirmed and could just be rumours for now. ASAP, I would like the general opinions and opinion on love interests to be done.