Closed Everybody Wants to Rule the World

[Celia Vuong]

Celia hated a lot of things about the first night back — the train ride, the start of the year feast, the unpacking — but this moment, the crossing of the castle threshold, was the worst of them all. On the train, she could at least lock the compartment door and pretend to herself that she was on a normal train headed for a normal destination. But the illusion broke when she was staring at a giant anachronistic castle. Every time Celia walked through those doors, she couldn't help but feel as if she were being swallowed up by a tomb.

Nobody else seemed to mind that they were about to spend the next four months in a suffocating castle, sealed off from the rest of the world. All around her, people were reuniting with their friends, and Celia knew she should probably do the same, but she was busy trying to mentally prepare herself for the coming semester. She tried to remind herself of everything she had to look forward to. As usual, the list was very short, but it did have one new addition this year: her prefect badge. She was finally a prefect and she would be able to take points and use the private common room and —

"You've got to be kidding me." Celia had stopped dead in her tracks. Someone behind her grumbled as they were forced to move around her, but she ignored them. Instead, her gaze was locked onto the person who she would be sharing that private common room with, the person who would also be able to take points, the person who wore a matching badge pinned to their chest. "You?" she said, giving Ivelisse an incredulous look. "You're the other prefect?"

 

[Ivelisse Burleigh]

Ivelisse had never been completely sure how she felt about heading back to school for another year. She knew there were students who felt like it was the best time of their lives but she never quite seemed to be able to agree. It was fine, sure. But that was about it. Not great, not grand. Just.. fine. Which was nothing like what she had expected it to be when she first stepped foot on the castle grounds during her first year. She had expected everything to be wonderful, like she was going to rule the castle. She would be a star quidditch player, become a prefect and have the best reputation. Like everyone would want to be friends with her. Except they didn't and it turned out she didn't specifically care. She had friends, albeit a few of them. She was seeker on the house team and now had a prefect badge to add to that. Things were going pretty much according to plan and yet she still felt like something was missing. She just had to figure out what that was. Or not.

For now though, there were more pressing matters at hand. Like making sure everybody noticed the shiny new badge pinned to her robes while trying to casually glance around at the students passing her, hoping against all odds that the other badge had gone to someone who wasn't a complete nightmare. And that's when a voice rang out and she noticed. Hopes: shattered. Ive was about to retaliate when she realized Celia wasn't even going to try and hide how displeased she was by her having been named prefect as well. So instead of retaliating she bit her tongue and made sure to keep a straight face, cocking her head a little as she looked at the other girl. "Ooh, I'm sorry." She responded, pouting for a second in an act of fake remorse. "Did you actually think you had been chosen over me?"

 

[Celia Vuong]

Celia's eyes narrowed at Ivelisse's tone. It dismayed her to know that she couldn't take points for disrespect — not unless she wanted Ivelisse to take points from her in turn. "I would've expected Atlas to be chosen over you," she spat. Although Celia hadn't actually known whether Professor Castillo would give her the badge over Ivelisse, she had certainly believed that she was more deserving. There was nothing remarkable about Ivelisse. So what if she got good grades? Anyone with half a brain could get good grades at Hogwarts. Ivelisse wasn't a leader, and she wasn't popular. The only thing she had going for her were a few lucky snitch catches, but even then, she was still only the second-best seeker on the team.

"Let me guess, your dad called in a favor." The words had come mostly out of a desire to hurt Ivelisse, but as Celia spoke them, she realized their truth. It might not have been as blatant as Professor Burleigh asking Professor Castillo to give the badge to his daughter. But all the little conversations and interactions between the two of them at staff meetings, during mealtimes, in the hallways — it all added up. If you liked your coworker, wouldn't you also think positively of their kid? There was no telling what kinds of advantages Ivelisse had had thanks to her dad's position at the school and his connections. "Don't tell me you actually think you earned it."

 

[Ivelisse Burleigh]

Ivelisse rolled her eyes at Celia's response. After five years of being around the other girl she had very well learned that every word that came out of the other girl's mouth in regards to her was venomous. There was no room in Celia's world for anyone but Celia. That much she had learned. "If it bothers you so much maybe you should go and have a chat with Professor Castillo." She responded with a shrug. In all honesty, that had been one of the first thoughts that had popped into her head when she had noticed the prefect badge pinned on Celia's clothes. Yet having a discussion with her head of house about why he had somehow rewarded the most terrible girl in their year with such responsibility didn't seem like the right way to start off her year. Although she was sure Celia would have no hesitation knocking down professor Castillo's door to discuss the matter. Which clearly showed the difference between them.

When Celia mentioned her father Ive huffed in disbelief. She had known there was a chance someone was going to bring something like that up sooner or later and yet for some reason she hadn't expected that moment to be now. She knew Celia was terrible, but she hadn't known the other girl was really that insecure. If she had thought for any moment that she deserved the badge she was wearing than there was no reason for her to be so bothered by them both wearing it. Nor for bringing her father into the situation. "I know I've earned it. My dad had nothing to do with this." Ive spat back. "And if you stopped behaving like an insecure eleven year old maybe there's a very, very slim chance people could actually believe you've earned it to. Although I highly doubt it."

 

[Celia Vuong]

Celia scoffed though she was a little irritated by Ivelisse's suggestion. They both knew there was no use in complaining to the man who had made the decision in the first place. Plus, there was nothing to be gained from being seen as impertinent. "Anyone who saw fit to give you a prefect badge clearly can't be reasoned with," she said, her voice dripping with disdain. Celia did genuinely wonder how Ivelisse had gotten the badge over Rhys, but she knew she would never get an answer from Castillo, not least because the professor probably had a grudge against her.

At the suggestion that she might be insecure, Celia's eyebrows shot up, and she could barely hold back a triumphant smile. It was such an odd accusation that she couldn't help thinking she had struck a nerve and that Ivelisse might be projecting. "Insecure?" she repeated with a laugh. "What could I possibly be insecure about?" Whether she deserved the badge had never been a question in Celia's mind; the question had always been whether Professor Castillo would do the right thing and give it to her. "My accomplishments speak for themselves." Under normal circumstances, Celia never would have been so brazenly arrogant, but she didn't particularly care if Ivelisse thought her conceited. She probably already thought a lot worse of her. "At least I know for a fact that I didn't get it because of my parents." That was something Ivelisse would never be able to say. "I mean, what are the chances that both of Professor Burleigh's daughters would make prefect?" Celia supposed she could understand why Ana Sofia would be named prefect given that she was a club leader. But Ivelisse? She was about as charismatic as a vomited slug.