I'm His ... Girlfriend?

[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna was on the middle of her semester in Hogwarts and she could pretty much say that she was enjoying her time in Hogwarts. Aside from that was she had managed to convince beg Liam to come with her in exploring the whole castle. Of course, it had been pretty hard to do, but then again, in the end, she had finally managed to get him to agree. Though, she still had problems with everything, it was good to be relaxed for now with some time spent with her favorite cousin. She still had to think about how she was going to continue on hiding her identity as a Nightray. It was quite hard to do she had to admit but she was managing nevertheless. She had assured that it was only the professors and a couple of people that knew her connection to the Pureblood family. Aside from that, she had to make sure that Liam, Armin or Rivaille had no idea about her keeping her being a Nightray a secret. They would surely be furious once they knew. Even if it was the elders' wish to her keep the connection to the family a secret. Now, she truly was a dark secret of a Pureblood family.

Arianna decided that it was finally time for them to go. She had begged Liam for him to wait outside of her common room and she was sure that he wouldn't be all too happy if she was late. And so, dressing up quickly and taking one last glance at her reflection, she finally headed down the common room and out of the common room. She took a deep breath and headed for the place where she and Liam were to meet. It was rare for Liam to be able to agree to spend time with her and she hoped that they'd be able to enjoy this. Even if she was feeling a little bit lightheaded and hot. Ria decided that it was not all that important. Besides, she hadn't had an illness in the past few days, so what was a little fever right? She was sure she'd be able to handle this alone and she was quite determined to not let Liam know about this. After all, she was convinced that she could handle this alone. Well, at least she hoped she could. She just had to believe after all and she'd be fine right? The Gryffindor sighed inaudibly as she caught sight of her cousin, punctual as usual in the meeting place and she flashed a smile to try and hide the headache she quite had for today.

 

[Liam Nightray]

It was already the third week of classes. For the other students, time might seem to move so fast, but for Liam Nightray, it was being too slow. He wanted to leave the castle as soon as possible. Being inside the school ground makes his head ache, and on top of that, the school was just too full of stupid fleas he wanted dead. He didn't want to see those people again. They were just making his already horrible stay at the castle even more horrible. He was already on his sixth year, yes, and he only got a couple of months before he graduates, but he surely wish that time would fly so fast that he'd finally be able to leave the cursed place. He used not to care so much about the castle, in fact,he rather liked some of the places there, like the library and the dungeons for example. But ever since that happening on his fifth year, he grew to hate even his own room. He would have not returned to the school if not for his grandparents. While not one to particularly care about the rules, he knew that disobeying them would do him no good. Though he hated to admit it, he still need them. No matter how much he hated them, he had to live with that hate and just do what they wanted.

The sixteen year old slytherin closed his eyes as he leaned against the wall on the seventh floor corridor. He rarely if ever, wanders around this part of the castle. This was the are of those stupid Gryffindors and when he hears that name, only one person comes to mind; that stupid obnoxious flea. He didn't want to see that flea again for should he see him, Liam was sure that no one would be able to stop him from killing the said guy. The Slytherin tapped his foot incessantly on the floor as he waited for his cousin. It wasn't like she was late, but even so, he was growing a little irritated. He was mad at her but he was more annoyed at himself for actually giving up to her wishes. He shouldn't have agreed to accompany her on exploring around the castle. Sure, she was a transfer student, but she had her younger brother with her. They were even on the same house, which he was sure wouldn't sit well with their grandparents, but still, she should have asked the younger Nightray instead. Eyebrows furrowed in annoyance, he crossed his arms in front of her chest. It didn't take that long before he heard footsteps coming in his directions. He wouldn't have opened his eyes if it was someone else but he knew that sound anywhere. He had grown accustomed to the sound of his cousin's footsteps that he knew that it was her who was approaching him. He opened his eyes and lazily pushed himself off the wall, scratching the back of his head and yawning as he gave his cousin a bored look. She better make this whole tour quick or she'd never hear the end of it from him.​

 

[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna had always been thinking of ways to hide her identity as a Nightray. The last time she met someone, she had just not said her full name, but that won't always work with everyone. She needed some kind of name to get by with whenever someone would ask her about her last name. After all, someone would be bound to notice that she would refrain from saying her surname. That was going to go from bad to worse. And so, she also tried her best to not gain any attention from the other Nightrays unless she really needed company. Ria didn't need the elders to direct their fury to the other Nightrays just because they were spending too much time with an outcast secret such as her. And so, she rarely spent time with Aaren, whom barely remembers her, Rivaille whom doesn't really spend much time with her from the start and Ariadne who doesn't know her at all. Armin was a little harder to keep at bay thanks to his unpredictable attitude and Liam was someone that Arianna frequently liked to turn to when she needed someone to be there for her.

Arianna beamed a smile at her cousin as he gave her a bored look. She didn't mind at all, since she just begged him to come with her after all. And yet again, they simply cannot say that she had to be down because her chaperon was. All she wanted was a tour of the castle and Armin being a first year too wouldn't be of much help should she get lost within the confines of the garden and the castle. The girl stifled a giggle before pulling Liam with her through his sleeves towards her. "Come on now, Yam-Yam. Don't be so stingy, she finally told her cousin with a smile as she pulled him with her. This was going to be a long day but she hoped that she'd be able to have fun and know the castle better with Liam with her.

 

[Liam Nightray]

Liam was not the type to regret his actions. He wasn't the type to sit around and dwell on what had already happened. He lived on the present, not in the past, nor in the future. He preferred not to think about things too much and just go around doing what he pleased. Yet, right now, he seriously regretted agreeing to his cousin's request. He should have declined and told her that he had other important matters to attend to, like sleeping. He wanted to sleep and just lock himself up in his room. At least, no one would bother him. He had had too much of this school already, and he was hating it even more by the minute. He didn't want to spend another second near the Gryffindors' common room too. He was not in the mood to deal with any unnecessary trouble right now and he surely was not in the mood to face that stupid hero wannabe. He yawned again, not making any effort to hide his boredom. The bored look, however, was soon replaced with an irritated one as he began to be dragged to Merlin knows where by his cousin.

Eyebrows curled in annoyance, he pulled his hand away from his cousin's grasp. He had a serious distaste for any unnecessary human contact, a distaste that he shared with his sister and his cousins. Arianna should know better than to touch him. It was fine if he was the one who initiated the contact, but being touched by others was another matter. He hated it. He put his hands on his pockets and walked without sparing his cousin a glance. He was taller than she was and his legs were longer, thus, it didn't take long for him to be a few steps ahead of her. He really wanted this day to be over so he could just return to his room and sleep. But alas, he had already agreed to her and besides, though he was greatly irritated, Arianna was still his cousin. Though they haven't seen each other for years, and though he had changed a lot, Arianna was still the only person that he would really consider as a friend, no matter how stupid and ridiculous it sounded. Sighing rather loudly, he stopped on his tracks, letting her catch up to him. "Now what do you want? Hurry up, I have no time to spare," he told her flatly, yawning once again, before he continued walking. He really had no idea what they should do and where they should go. It was Ria's idea to have a tour of the castle, not his. Never mind not being a good tour guide or a good cousin, he had never been one to worry about such trivial things after all.​

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[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna wasn't sure on whether she should remain positive about all of this that's going on. She was usually optimistic. Well, she was optimistic when they were children though now she did not know where she stood. After all, she had changed a lot since she had been to America and perhaps no one still knew about this. Well, perhaps it was better if they didn't know about it. Besides, she wasn't even sure if there was anything to remain positive about. Arianna was a huge secret of her family, she has to keep her own full name a secret, her brothers were not that close to her, her relatives didn't know her and Liam was being a total jerk and she didn't even know why. Aside from that she was feeling very lightheaded. Quidditch practice was a bit hard after all and classes were tedious as well, and she was pretty sure that it was already taking its toll on her health.

"Well, the only places I know are the Common Room, the Great Hall, the three towers, History, Charms, Herbology and the Pitch," she said as she walked behind him as she rubbed her temples in pain, hoping that she could keep the headache away at least just while Liam was with her. She had the feeling that he wouldn't give a d@mn if she were sick right now but she hoped that wouldn't be true. "I was kind of hoping that you would show me the rest of the places I need to know?" the Gryffindor said with a quiet sigh. There was no use in trying to lift Liam's mood and she didn't know why. Perhaps this was the real Liam now? Severely cold and harsh? She hoped that at least for a bit of time she would see the Slytherin she knew as a child. He was the only one that reminded her of who she was before after all. He was the one who was keeping her going despite the treatment of the rest of the Nightrays. Despite the pain she was feeling.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai was now once again the busybody she had been in the past year. It was only the start of the semester and that was when most of the work was being dumped. Quidditch try-outs and practice were frequent and being the team captain she always had to be present especially since she at the very least needed to help in training the younger members of the team, particularly the first and second years. Aside from quidditch, prefect duties were also up and about as she would most of the time patrol the corridors along with Taylor and most of the time it would lead to subtle quarrels though they would most of the time try to keep it to a minimum considering that they both didn't want to lose their badges. Then there was also Heta Omega and her rising problems with Heath. The Hufflepuff could only sigh as she was running through the corridors.

One of the professors had asked her to bring some files to the seventh floor corridors of the castle and after she had it brought, another had asked her to send some books back to the library. Out of haste, Ai had been running through the corridors a stack of hardbound books in her arms and blocking most of her vision. She didn't see it as much of a problem though considering that at this time of the day, the corridors were empty, especially within the seventh floor since it was only Gryffindors whom were residing there and lurking about. Though, after only turning a corner, Ai realized that she was wrong in assuming that the corridors were empty for she had bumped into another person and because of the sudden impact and the Hufflepuff's clumsiness kicking in, she tripped upon her own feet. Thus, two students out of the three that were present and books were a heap on the floor in mere moments. It was not long before Ai tried to get the books out of their entangled bodies and noticed that it was another girl she had bumped into. "I am so, so sorry!" she apologized as she tried to get up from and attempted to get the girl to stand as well from their compromised position.

 

[Liam Nightray]

Liam was aware that he was being completely mean to his cousin, but he decided that he was too irritated to care. He did favor Ria among his cousins, after all, their pasts were pretty much the same. They were of the same age too and though his memory of his childhood was not that clear, he did know that they were at least, in good terms when they were kids. Unlike the other members of the Nightray family, Arianna was tolerable. He could usually spend his time on her company, but right now, he couldn't help but be annoyed at the said girl, but even more, at himself. He was being weak, and he hated it. He sighed once again for the nth time that day, mentally taking note of the places that the girl had been. "Then we don't have to go to those places anymore, do we?" It was a rhetorical question and he was not really expecting an answer. He really had no intention to go to those said places anymore, doing so would just waste his energy. They were having this tour to help Ria familiarize herself with the castle. She had been to those places already, there was no need to go there anymore. "Where do you want to go?" he asked flatly. He was in no mood to think anymore. If Ria wanted to have a tour, then he shall give her a tour. But it had to be quick as his head was beginning to ache again.

The sixth year Slytherin pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to get rid of the throbbing pain in his head. He really need his precious sleep but he couldn't just leave too. He had already given Ria his word and as a Nightray, he had always been taught to uphold his promises, unless the situation calls for him to abandon them. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of those situations. His pace began to quicken and soon, there was already a considerable distance between him and his cousin. He need not look around to see whether she was still following him and he could still her footsteps echoing throughout the hall. Just as he was about to turn the corner, however, he noticed that his shoelaces where loose. Irritated, he knelt down and began to fix them. He was too focused on fixing his shoelaces to notice what was happening around him. It was only when he heard a crash did he raised his head to see the source of the commotion. He stood up, and to his annoyance, there,trying to help his cousin stand up, was the person that could potentially make his already bad day worse. It wasn't the hero wannabe, but still, he really didn't like to see this girl too. Eyebrows curling again in irritation, the slytherin approached the two and grabbed his cousin's arm, pulling her up and dragging her away from the stupid puff. He didn't make any move to acknowledge the hufflepuff's presence, instead, his eyes were on his cousin, an irritated look present on his face. "Why do you have to be so clumsy? Look at where you're going. Have I not told you that this place is full of stupid fleas that will bump into you no matter how big the space is?" He then let go of the Gryffindor's hand, beginning to walk again without sparing the hufflepuff a single glance.​

 

[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna was really feeling sick though she didn't want to pay any attention to it, after all, it was rare that she got Liam to agree to her to roam around the castle just so she could be familiar with the place. She had little sense of direction after all and it would be very hard for her should she explore the castle by herself and get lost in the midst of it. She might not be able to make it to the common room if it so happened. Though, the Slytherin constantly being mean to her right now was not exactly helping in calming her ever growing headache. She could feel herself developing a fever that she was sure was from overworking herself again and fatigue. She sighed inwardly at her frail body for it was the complete opposite of her spirit whom wished for freedom and adventure. "Yes," she answered softly already losing the proper state of mind to determine that it was a rhetorical question. The Gryffindor thought for a moment about where she wanted to go and finally decided upon an answer. "I planned on taking Ancient Runes, but I'm not really sure where it is. And the library too," she replied as she tried to voice out a small amount of delight to hide the uneasiness her health had been giving her since she had gotten out of the common room.

Arianna just continued on walking and whilst she was looking around the various portraits upon the wall, she had not noticed that someone was approaching her from behind at a very fast rate and in no time at all, Ria's head was met with books and the Gryffindor could only gasp at the sudden shock and pain as her body came in contact with the floor and some parts of her head and back were hit by the books. She coughed in pain and managed to hear another voice apologizing as she was being pulled up to stand by said person. Arianna was surprised though when Liam had suddenly made a move to help her stand from the position she was previously in though he seemed to be harsher towards the other girl than towards her and it made Ria wonder on why was that. "It's fine, don't worry. And I'm sorry about him, he's not normally like that," Arianna said as she picked up two of the books and proceeded to carry them. She found it quite heavy and she was having quite the difficulty in carrying them thanks to her frail body and she was quite amazed that the girl was carrying more than three of them. "I'll carry these two until you have to separate, okay?" the Gryffindor said with a smile despite her head throbbing more than before as she willed herself to remain fine just until the tour with Liam ends. She hoped she'd be able to endure the dizzying feeling she was having as she followed her cousin as he walked.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai felt like a complete idiot. Of course there would be at least one person lurking about the corridors! It was the middle of the semester for Merlin's sake! Well, not exactly the middle but still they were at a time when there were tons of students up and about at the castle and she should have at least thought of looking at where she was going! Now, here she was helping a girl stand because of her own clumsiness. The Hufflepuff really hoped that the girl was fine. After all, she had been carrying a stack of six hardbound books, all of which had fallen upon the petite girl in front of her. Ai thought she was beautiful and bubbly too, though she had least expected whom she was with. Liam Nightray. Frankly, the prefect was surprised for in the midst of her helping the said girl, Liam had suddenly barged in and helped the girl. Liam is helping someone?! Ai thought in a frenzy as that was just too hard to believe even if he did help her once in the dungeons. But that was a different case! Who is this girl and what is she to Liam?! the prefect wondered as she resumed in picking up the books.

Ai still couldn't help but flinch at Liam's words though. He still hadn't changed and still preferred to name her as a nothing more than a flea and a pest. As the prefect picked up the fourth book though, she noticed that the two heaviest books were missing and when she looked up, it was the redheaded girl whom was carrying it. "No, it's okay. He is normally like that," the prefect mumbled unconsciously and coherent enough for the other girl to hear. She stood up as she held on to the four books whilst she watched the other girl carrying the two heaviest books. "You sure about that?" the Puff asked as she followed the other girl whom was already following Liam. Ai's curiosity just couldn't help but be peaked at what she had just witnessed a few moments ago and though she had just met this girl she couldn't help but wonder what her relationship to Liam might be. And aside from that, Ai had never seen the girl before though it seemed like they were close in age. "I'm Ai by the way. Hufflepuff. If you don't mind me asking, what is your relationship with Liam Nightray?" the prefect asked bravely. There was no use in going around in circles anyway. It would be much, much easier to get straight to the point. Besides, Liam seemed intent on ignoring her so there was no use in asking him so it might have been more productive if she were to just ask the girl instead, right?

 

[Liam Nightray]

Liam wasn't an optimist, he wasn't one to hope for things to get better. He wasn't like his younger cousins nor his younger sister. He wasn't one to look at the brighter side of things. That being said, he did wish for this day not to get worse that it already was. He was already in the brink of losing his already nonexistent patience and he was already ready to explode at his cousin. He could usually tolerate the girl, but at the moment, he wanted nothing to do with her. He just wanted to return to his room for Merlin's sake! He just wanted to sleep and rest. But no, there he was, giving his cousin a tour around the castle which he was slowly starting to despise. To make things even worse, he encountered one of the people that he wanted to see the least. The stupid puff. At least she wasn't with the hero wannabe nor with that overly obnoxious boy from the dungeon. But that was beside the point, just the mere presence of the said girl, just the mere sound of her voice, was enough to make his blood boil in annoyance. He pinched the bridge of his nose again, as if such gesture would get rid of his still worsening headache.

He was a few steps ahead of the two, and to his irritation, his cousin didn't seem to get the hint that he wanted nothing to do with the stupid puff. Wasn't it obvious that he hated the girl? Ria and him had known each other for years, the girl should know that he wasn't one to enjoy other people's company. He wasn't an introvert nor was he shy, he just hated socializing in general. Or really, he hated people in general. Yet, there was his cousin, talking in a seemingly friendly matter with the said stupid puff. He could have just walked away and left them alone. At least, he didn't have to give his cousin a tour anymore, the flea could do that for him. But then again, he couldn't just leave Ria alone with the hufflepuff. The girl's stupidity was contagious, and while his cousin was a little stupid too, he didn't really want it to get worse. And thus, against his better judgment, he turned around, walking back to where the two was. He then gave his cousin a stern look and grabbed the books that she was carrying. The girl was already too fragile and sickly, and while he wasn't the protective kind, he wasn't even one to care about his sister, he thinks that it was really stupid of his cousin to do these things for the girl. She would just hurt herself! The books were pretty heavy after all. "I'm giving you a tour, ain't I? If you prefer to hang around with this stupid flea, then so be it. I'm leaving," he told her flatly, his words were cold but his face showed no emotion at all, it was only when he looked at the other girl that the glare returned. "Stop being a burden to other people," he then placed the books on top of the books that she was carrying. He unconsciously reached out to pinch the bridge of his nose again. Seriously, the girl was giving him more headache.​

 

[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna couldn't help but shift her stance as she held the books in her arms. They were only two and yet she was having a lot of trouble in carrying them as she maintained her pace, walking behind Liam and almost right beside the girl. The Gryffindor had been getting her headache and was slowly feeling a little nauseous but decided to push the thought of it to the back of her mind. Thoughts of not feeling well were quickly forgotten as she heard the girl mumble her disagreement to her words. "I think you're mistaken. Yam-Yam... I mean, Liam, is not normally like that. He's just a bit grumpy today," Ria claimed with a small smile at the girl that clearly said she was not taking no for an answer. Besides, she couldn't very well stand to know that someone thought of her cousin as some grumpy old guy that was a ticking bomb! And though she knew that Liam was quite the unsociable one, she would still be in his defense like he had been at hers.

Arianna tried to hide her discomfort as her headache never ceased to stop growing. It had been bothering her greatly as she knew that in a matter of hours, a fever was coming and that was probably because of overworking herself in Quidditch practice and all her classes, which she had barely kept up with. She grunted softly in discomfort as she shifted the weight of the books in her arms and looked at the girl whom was worrying about her, "Yes, it's fine, they're light as a feather," she replied as she smiled while in her head she said, A really, really heavy feather. The pureblood listened as the girl introduced herself as someone from Hufflepuff and she merely nodded her head and introduced herself in return. "Arianna, Gryffindor. I just transferred," Ria said as she smiled at the girl whilst continuing her walk, right behind Liam. Though her smile instantly dropped as soon as a dreaded question had arise. "R-relationship? Uhhhmmm," she bit her lip thinking of an answer and after a matter of seconds, she had managed to come up with an answer, though she knew she would regret it sooner or later. "H-he's my fiance. So technically, I'm his," Ria whispered to the girl named Ai, though she knew for sure that Liam would have been hearing her words. She dreaded though the next word that passed through her lips. "Girlfriend," she said as she bit her lip, hoping that Liam wouldn't react yet.

Arianna was taken by surprise though as Liam had suddenly faced her took the books from her arms, instantly giving her relief from the weight of the books. She rubbed her arms to take away the soreness that was temporarily there. She wasn't used to lifting heavy stuff after all. Her eyes widened though at the thought that Liam was quite frustrated at her for she had partially ignored him while he was giving her a tour. "Don't leave me! I'll get lost," Ria said while pouting and once again resuming to a child-like behavior she only mostly showed to Liam, "I'm sorry, Yam-Yam!" the Pureblood whined and was taken by surprised when he acted harshly towards the girl named Ai. In a matter of seconds, she was standing beside him and just couldn't help but ask only for him to hear, "Yam-Yam, do you know her? She looks nice," she said as she took a quick glance at the Hufflepuff before returning her questioning gaze to her Slytherin cousin.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai was quite surprised that the girl was defending Liam and in her mind, she couldn't help but think on who was crazy enough to get involved with the Slytherin and not be utterly hated with every fiber of his being. It was certainly a new sight for the Hufflepuff that Liam had practically helped the girl in front of her and now said girl was defending her like t was one of the most normal things in the world. A bit grumpy is too much of an understatement, Ai thought to herself as the girl spoke in the Slytherin's defense and if only for the girl's sake, she decided not to answer even though she knew that it wasn't simply the day that was making Liam so grumpy. It was her presence itself and she had noticed that quite sometime ago. She chose to stay in silence though she was quite worried about the girl as she carried the heaviest books but as the petite redhead claimed that the books weighed nothing, she merely nodded. "If you say so," she said though watching the girl in case she needed assistance. Ai smiled though as she walked alongside the girl as the redhead introduced herself. "It's nice to meet you Arianna," the Hufflepuff beamed at the Gryffindor though she had to admit that she was more than normally curious about the Gryffindor and the Slytherin's relationship.

Though expecting a relationship between the two, Ai had not been ready for the answer she was given and just before Liam had turned around, the Hufflepuff was already voicing out her shock. "Fiance?! Y-you're engaged -," the Hufflepuff looked at the Gryffindor like she had grown another head as she turned her gaze to Liam in utter disbelief, "- to him?!" It was just too surprising for Ai and though in the corner of her eye and she could somehow hear Liam addressing the girl and not letting her carry the books, she still couldn't believe the information she had been made to digest. As soon as Liam had told her to not be a burden, the words that came out of her mouth was different from the ones anyone would expect. "S-she's you're girlfriend?!" she asked him and wanted to know his opinion cause it was really confusing her to death and somehow, she didn't want to believe it. Liam has a girlfriend. No, he's already engaged! she thought to herself though the idea of it just can't sink in and just when she was about to bombard the girl with questions from confusion, she had heard her call Liam by another name. "Yam-Yam?!" she asked in disbelief though trying to stifle a laugh knowing that a guy such as the Slytherin was called in a cute nickname by his girlfriend. Though, no matter how hard she tried, the idea of him getting a girlfriend was just not sitting well with the Hufflepuff.

 

[Rivaille Nightray]

-wrong account-

 

[Liam Nightray]

Liam was aware the the two were talking about him and it annoyed him so. Usually, he wouldn't care about how people sees him. He wasn't the type to let others' opinion affect. He usually would just ignore them unless they were already stepping on his pride. After all, he had always been proud. But most of the time, he wouldn't waste his time on such stupid things, but today was not one of those times. He was irritated that his cousin and the stupid puff seemed to get along. It wasn't that he was jealous for Merlin forbids, he was never jealous. Jealousy was a petty emotion that only simple minded people feels. He just hated the fact that despite him not wanting to see the puff and him just wanting the day to be over, there she was, talking with his cousin as if they had been acquaintances for a long time. Ria was stupid. She's too naive. She should have known better that to associate herself with the puff. The hufflepuff will only cause her more troubles, and while he believed that he didn't care, Ria being associated with the puff would most likely mean that the probably of them crossing paths would be higher than what was necessary. It was already too much that he had to attend classes and share the same room with the hufflepuff. If he had to spend a second more than what was required, he might lose all the already thin patience that he had when it comes to the girl and really kill her, be it that he graduates or not. The girl was causing him more headache and it was driving him mad. He was already messed up as he was, whether he accepts it or not.

The Slytherin took a deep breath and massaged his temples once again. He was going to be mature about this now. He was already sixteen for Merlin's sake! He wasn't a kid who could just throw his tantrums to get what he wanted. And while he was extremely quick to irritation, he would try to be mature and deal with this mess like the adult that he was trying to be. But alas, all those efforts of trying to act mature was quickly thrown out of the window when his sharp ears heard what his cousin had said. Fiance? Seriously? What was the gryffindor thinking? Was the school environment too much for her that he had already lose her mind? Was she spending too much time with their aunt that she had gone crazy too? Perhaps she had befriended that hero wannabe that she had been imagining stupid things too. It was outrageous! Seriously ridiculous. If he had been another person, he would have probably laughed and talk about how stupid his cousin's answer was. But no, he was Liam Nightray, and laughing was one of the things that he never does.

He gave his cousin an incredulous look, as if daring her to repeat what she had said, and as if she did hear his thoughts, she did repeat it again, further emphasizing that they were somehow involved in a relationship. Sure, they were related, but not in that way. They were cousins! Maybe the gyrffindor had hit her head somewhere when she bumped to the stupid puff. He made a gesture of reaching out for her head to check for any injury. He wasn't fond of physical contacts but it was a different case when it was him who was initiating it, besides, he had to check if the girl had gone insane because of the fall from earlier. Having a crazy aunt and a quirky sister was already enough, he couldn't handle another mental case. What made matters worse, however, was the hufflepuff's reaction. The girl looked really stupid, and honestly, to him, it looked like she was about to faint. Was the idea of his having a fiance really hard to believe? While he really couldn't picture himself in a relationship, he was quite insulted that the hufflepuff thinks that it was impossible for him to get himself a girlfriend. He would've corrected the false information given by his cousin, but he was already too insulted to do that. Fine, if the puff thinks that that is the relationship between him and Ria, then so be it. He had no responsibility to explain himself nor did he have the obligation to correct his cousin. It wasn't like it would do him any harm. He didn't care about rumors anyway. And so, he chose to remain silent and instead of answering the hufflepuff, he grabbed his cousin's hand and proceeded to drag her away from the still disbelieving girl. "I don't have any time to spare. Let's leave," he told his cousin sharply, starting to walk away again but was stopped when he notice the hufflepuff trying hard not to laugh. While he had been insulted by her thinking that it was impossible for him to ever be in a relationship, he was even more ticked that she was laughing at him. He had never been this humiliated in his entire life. He'd really kill her. Then his cousin had to add more fuel to the fire and ask if he knew the girl. Was the gryffindor really this stupid? He did know that she was quite slow when it comes to some things, he had probably underestimated her stupidity. He looked at her so fast that it was a surprise that he had not hurt his neck. His sharp eyes were round in surprise before it narrowed again in irritation. The day couldn't get any worse, could it? "Nice? No. She looked stupid. And unlike you, I don't waste my time trying to know useless fleas. Have your eyes checked," he told his cousin, as if the girl that they were talking about were not mere feet away from them. He pinched the bridge of his nose again. It was not working, the headache was getting worse. "And how many times do I have to tell you not to call me that childish name Ria? Stop or I'll leave," he threatened, his grip on her arms tightening a bit before he released her and took another step away. How many times had he walked away this day? He badly needed to have a rest.​

 

[Arianna Zhefarovich]

Arianna knew that Liam reacting to her words was evident, though she least expected the way he reacted. Normally, people would be quick to deny such false information, yet her cousin made no move nor spoke any word to clear out the information she had given out to the Hufflepuff. In fact, all he did was call out to her to come near him, which she hesitantly did so. Ria barely contained the giggle she was holding back as her dear cousin tried to check her for injuries. Of course he would think that she was crazy or hit her head on something. Well, she wasn't entirely crazy. She was just having a bit of a heavy headache and a fever that has been getting worse thanks to her fatigue. Well, that and she was quite the desperate one to hide her being a part of the Nightray family. It would be a crazy riot should the elders find out after all, and Liam would be furious should he know about the deal as well. Besides, the elders didn't mention how specific she should be when hiding her connection to the Nightray family, so being Liam's pretend fiance should get her into too much trouble, right?

Ria didn't dare protest when Liam had grabbed her hand and pulled her to leave. She practically didn't care if he wanted to drag her back to England while walking. She was getting a little lightheaded after all as he pulled her and suddenly stopped in his tracks. Well, it was obvious that he was very, very irritated by the Hufflepuff that could not believe that they were in a relationship. She knew not if it was because they had a resemblance or if it was merely because it was the Slytherin involved. She made no move though to question her cousin's actions thanks to the headache she was currently feeling. In fact, she merely nodded at Liam's harsh words about her opinion of the Hufflepuff being nice. Seriously, if she was trying to make it seem like she was completely fine and healthy, she was not doing a very good job at it. "Fine, I'm sorry," she grumbled as he scolded her about calling him by his old nickname again. Well, she really had not much of a control over it since she was more used to calling him that. He whimpered though as he held her arm a bit too tightly that expected which she knew would leave a bruise on her sensitive skin. As soon as they started walking though, as they were descending down a flight of stairs, two steps from the bottom, she least expected for everything to go completely black.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai knew that she should have just kept her mouth shut even if she was having quite the hard time believing that Liam had managed to get himself a girlfriend. But she really found it hard to believe. How could she not? He was the grumpiest person she had met and she had known him for three years and opinion of him still hasn't changed! Alright, maybe it has changed a bit. At first he was all mean and deadly but now she found him just plain grumpy. But that still didn't change the fact that she had completely no idea on why he was so irritated at her. No, he wasn't irritated at her. The Slytherin despised her with every fiber of his being, that much she knew. Well, if Liam hated Jeremiah, she was pretty certain that his hatred for her was ten times that of his hatred for the Gryffindor boy and she wasn't quite sure on why that is.

Through barely controlled laughter, she managed to continue on with carrying the books as she walked right behind Liam and Arianna. She wasn't really following them or anything. It just so happened that they were walking in the same direction. Her thoughts were practically swirling in her mind about how the Slytherin was treating the Gryffindor. She had to wonder if they were really a couple and she just had to remember Heath. But, she knew that their relationship wasn't really going well and it was all her fault she was sure. With a sigh, she continued to walk, the heavy books still in her arms. It was after a few minutes that she least expected what had occurred. The Gryffindor girl was slowing down in her pace of walking down the flight of stairs and suddenly, she fell. Ai gasped as Arianna fell, thankfully only two steps from the bottom. She ran down the rest of the steps, carefully with the books in her arms to quickly check on the unconscious girl, hoping that she'd be alright.

 

[Liam Nightray]

Was the idea of him ever getting himself a girl too hard to believe? While Liam didn't really care about others' opinions about him, somehow, the hufflepuff's reaction to this new found information, or rumor, or lie, he didn't even know how to call it, had affected him to extreme levels. He didn't like being looked down upon. Not by anyone, and especially not by the stupid puff. He didn't even know whom he hated more, the hero wannabee or the queen of stupidity who was currently sharing the same space as he did. Maybe it was indeed the latter, for it was the puff's fault that he had encountered the Lion anyway. Yes. He was sure that the puff was the root of all the troubles that he had encountered since he had attended the school. He had been a pretty irritable kid for as long as he could remember, but it was only when he had met her did he start to get murderous thoughts twenty four hours a day, seven times a week. It was all that stupid flea's fault. He really ought to kill her.

The Slytherin continued walking, not bothering to pay his cousin and the hufflepuff any attention. In fact, he was dead set on ignoring the hufflepuff, but it seemed that wherever they go, she follows. He didn't know whether it was on purpose and he was already in the brink of snapping and yelling at her. And then there was his cousin too. Arianne was being terribly stupid too. In fact, he wouldn't be walking these halls if she didn't force him to give her this stupid tour around the castle. He would have been lying on his bed doing anything he wanted. Not trying to get himself rid of his headache and ignoring the girl with them. And it was her fault for raising that fiancee issue too. His cousin must have gotten really crazy indeed.

The sixteen year old increased his pace, not wanting to even hear the hufflepuff's steps echo behind him. He didn't even bother to wait for his cousin, didn't even bother to see how she was doing, that is, until he heard a noise which oddly sounded like something hitting the floor. He quickly turned around, and to his surprise, though it wasn't evident with the way that his lips had tightened, he saw his cousin lying unconscious on the floor just below the flight of stairs that he had descended from. He knew that his cousin was sickly and frail. That's why he wasn't pleased when he learned that she'd attend the school. He didn't like it at all, for he knew that she was bound to put herself in situations that would threaten her life. And just like most of the times, he was right. He quickly approached his cousin even before the hufflpuff did, pushing the puff along the way. "Don't touch her you flea!," he didn't mean for it to come out as a yell, but somehow, it did. He tried to pull his cousin up, trying to drag her with him. He even slapped her lightly to wake her up, but it was of no use. With some difficulties, he had managed to lift his cousin up into a fireman carry. His posture was pretty awkward, after all, he hadn't really tried to carry someone before. ​

 

[Ai Nightray]

Honestly, Ai did not know what to do when she first saw Arianna fall unconscious to the ground. She had inwardly panicked as she tried to quickly descend the flight of stairs when she had seen the fallen girl and to tell the truth, it was not that easy considering that she was quite the klutz and she had a mountain of books in her arms. She thanked the heavens when she found a way to balance them so that they wouldn't fall out. The puff was quite worried about the petite redhead though they had only met but she wasn't all that sure if she could do anything to help since she did not know what was wrong. After all, the first thing she needed to know if she was to help the girl was find out why the heck did she faint and Ai didn't really have the slightest idea. After all, she just couldn't blatantly make an out of this world wild guess considering that she only a knew a few facts about the girl named Arianna. For example, she knew the girl's house and year, that she was somehow Liam Nightray's girlfriend slash fiancee and the girl plays Quidditch. The Hufflepuff team hadn't really gone against Gryffindor yet but Ai was pretty sure that she had seen the girl in the Lions' quidditch practice and during the games as well. Deciding that those thoughts were not of use for now, she threw them to the back of her mind as she hurried to the unconscious girl's side.

When Ai got there though and was about to put aside the books in order to help Arianna, Liam was quick to yell at her and push her out of his way. And this action of the Slytherin had resulted to the Puff losing her balance, effectively making her land on her behind, the books sprawled on her small form. Ai couldn't help but glare lightly at the Slytherin at this. She was only trying to help and then Liam just goes and calls her a flea and knocks her out of the way. Seriously, though she knew she had her tendencies of being stupid, she was also a human and quite capable of helping people out and she grunted in frustration of the Slytherin and worry for the Gryffindor. The Hufflepuff quickly scrambled to get up and gather the books to her arms once more and she had just enough time to see the awkward position the boy had managed to get him and his girlfriend into, though she did not say a word nor reacted about this. Arianna's condition was more important after all. She followed the Slytherin in his pace and she just couldn't shut her mouth. "How is she? What happened?" she asked and though she knew that Liam would just ignore her, well, he would face her stubborn side cause she really wanted to know how Arianna was currently doing and if the Slytherin had any idea on what had happened to her.

 

[Liam Nightray]

Liam wasn't athletic, and he wasn't as physically strong as he believed himself to be. Arianna wasn't that heavy, and if it was any other boy who would lift her up, that person would have little difficulty in doing it. But not him. The heaviest thing that he had to lift before carrying this girl was his own bag. In his sixteen years of existence, he never had the need to do any hard labor. And thus, it was no surprise that carrying his own cousin proved to be too difficult for him. The girl was slump over his shoulder, with her head bouncing on his back as he began to make their way down to the infirmary. His shoulder was starting to ache too and he was having difficulty trying to maintain his balance. Other sane people would have carried the girl bridal style, but if he did the same thing, then he was sure that they'd be both falling down the stairs too. With one hand supporting the girl's back to prevent her from sliding off his shoulder and the other hand holding the rails; he focused all his attention to the steps that he had to take. He had to focus or he might give in to exhaustion which would only lead to the girl, and worse him, suffering more serious injuries. But even focusing was becoming difficult for him. After all, how could he focus when the girl that he despised the most kept on following him and talking to him?

He tried to ignore the stupid puff, glared at her as he tried to quicken his pace. But she was too stubborn and it was quickly getting on his nerves. Soon, he could not longer ignore her presence and against better judgment, he turned around too quickly with the intention to yell at the girl and tell her to kill herself and leave them alone. But his own lack of physical strength and the awkward posture made it impossible for him to turn around as gracefully as he had intended. He lost his balance and he soon found himself on the floor, with his cousin above him. Enraged, he quickly pushed his cousin off him, with as much care as he could muster considering how little he cared for other people, and stood up to march towards the puff. "Get lost! Leave us alone you stupid trash!" he shouted, unable to control his voice anymore. His eyes were hard and cold with anger. He then walking towards his cousin again and attempted to lift her up again, but it was more difficult this time around as he had injured his elbow during the fall.​

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[Ai Nightray]

Ai wasn't that stupid. She knew that Liam hated the idea that she was currently following him to the infirmary. But what could she do? She was really worried about Arianna after all and that couldn't be changed easily, though she wasn't much help with the books she had in her arms. And it was certainly a good thing that she had passed by some of the acquaintances she had made and she had asked them a favor to bring the books to the library. While it was great that she could now follow the Slytherin easily, she couldn't help but think that it was absolutely idiotic of her to follow them. After all, Liam could take care of his girlfriend just fine, could he? Well, at least that was what she hoped, but seeing the extremely awkward position the two were in she just couldn't help but worry over them extremely. The image of Liam falling over or Arianna falling from the Slytherin's grasp just wouldn't leave her mind causing her to continue following the duo which seemed to be a very bad idea considering the anger and hatred the Slytherin had against her which she clearly had no idea where it was coming from. She continued following the two, intent on being silent, though couldn't help but bring up questions of worry once in a while, and like she should have expected, Liam just snapped. Like always.

And this time, the Slytherin snapping didn't scare her like always, instead, it just irritated the Hufflepuff to no end. Normally, she would be cowering in fear or maybe at least give in to what he says, but now, a vein popped causing her to glare at Liam a bit. Well, Ai wouldn't have acted as such if Arianna wasn't dropped and pushed off not as carefully as she had thought he would treat his own girlfriend. After all, she pretty much didn't appreciate somebody hurting her acquaintances or her friends and the Gryffindor was such a nice girl too. "Stupid, idiotic, ugly, heartless, grumpy, old Slytherin," she grumbled out loud as she quickly went to Arianna's side and slung the girl's arm around her shoulder and gently supported the most of the girl's weight away from the Slytherin. It was fairly easy for the Hufflepuff to do so considering that she was still in top shape with her karate. "Leave you alone?! And what?! Let your girlfriend fall face flat on the floor again?! The girl would have been better carrying you than the other way around," Ai told the Slytherin as she easily balanced the girl's weight as she led the two towards the infirmary, obviously irritated and would not take no for an answer.

 

[Dante Vittori]

Dante was spending time with his friend, Raziel, who he was trying not to see any differently. He was still the Raziel he had always known. In fact, he had known him as a werewolf - not that he actually knew, but that wasn't the point. Really, nothing at changed, except Dante was now more knowledgeable about werewolves since he took the time to read up about it so he would not be taken by surprise like he had when Raziel first told him. He looked beside him to make sure Raziel was still walking beside him, and continued their descent of the stairs. Dante remained silent, the only noise being made by his shoes, and the gentle ruffling in his pockets because of the sweets that were in there. Now he had a stash of his own that he could share with his fellow Ravenclaw. However, right now he was leading Raziel toward the kitchens. This week, Dante had not seen his companion ingest enough meat, and he knew that werewolves needed more meat. He could not have Raziel dying, since that would be completely unacceptable. It would simply make his life harder and cause Raziel to not have a life.

They had walked a far distance in their usual silence, before the Italian paused. He looked at Raziel to see if he too could hear something. He nodded his head to the side, seeking to follow the noise to its source, before finding the most peculiar scene he had ever found. There were three students, a male and two females. One was... passed out? Two were screaming - it was all too much for his ears, and he assumed Raziel felt the same. He stared at the scene before him expressionlessly, before looking at Raziel expectantly. He was older, so he should be doing something. Dante had no idea what to do, in fact, he was perfectly comfortable with just continuing to walk, but he would differ to Raziel's opinion in this situation. He looked at the way they could go to reach the kitchens, and nodded his head to the scene, letting Raziel know that it was all his choice. These people were obviously idiots, and he wanted to know whether they would leave the idiots to their quarrel, or attempt to observe them like the animals they were behaving as.
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[Raziel Kim]

It was weird. Rarely did Raziel thought that something was weird, but the way that Dante was treating him from the moment that he had learned of his condition was definitely odd. While he knew that Dante was very much like him, he had honestly half expected the boy to avoid him the way a normal people would. But then, Dante wasn't normal. Or at least, he wasn't like most of the people he had seen. He didn't talk, and he didn't pry. And that was why they were friends, for Raziel was comfortable being around the boy. But this, this was odd. but nevertheless, he decided not to say anything, not that he would talk, but he decided that this weird behaviour, which he doubted that the younger knew himself, was not bad.

They were currently on their way down to the kitchens. Dante had probably noticed that he wasn't eating enough meat. Werewolves needed more meat, but Raziel didn't really like it. They were bacteria laden and he didn't want to get sick. But alas, as a werewolf, he feels this constant craving for it. He didn't like it, but he knew that there was no avoiding it. If only werewolves ingest sweets than meat, then being one would be much easier. He followed the younger silently. Silence surrounded them once more, until this magical silence that they were both trying to preserved was broken by a sudden yelling of someone he couldn't recognize. The shift of volume was too sudden and it was too much for his poor ears who were too accustomed to softer noises if not complete silence. He looked at his companion and saw that he heard it too. He stopped on his tracks as he followed the boy's gaze. If Dante's behavior seemed odd to him, the scene that he saw was even more peculiar. There were three students, two were arguing and one was unconscious. He had briefly thought that the two had attacked the girl that they were dragging, but they were still arguing and shouting, which hurts his ears. How could they continue doing that? He could barely open his mouth to talk yet these two were shouting. He wanted to leave the scene to save his and his friend's ears. If they stayed even longer than they were doing, they might become permanently deaf with all this noise. But before he could get the chance to turn around, he saw the shouting girl's face. She was familiar. Not because he had seen her in his classes, for he had already seen the yelling boy too. But her face was familiar in a way that he couldn't understand why. And so, instead of saving their poor ears and continuing down to their destination, he stood there, silently staring at the scene before him, caught up in his thoughts of why the girl was familiar and how big the two's lungs were for them to be able to keep on shouting and yelling at each other.​

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[Liam Nightray]

If the hufflepuff thought that he wasn't able to hear her insult him, then she thought wrong. Liam even doubted that she didn't want him to hear those words. The girl's insults echoed in his ears. He wasn't stupid, he wasn't idiotic, and he was definitely not ugly. While not vain, he certainly didn't appreciate the girl belittling his looks. He wasn't as hideous as she made him out to be, thank you. And he wasn't heartless too, at least, not literally. He was quite sure that his heart was still beating on its place. Grumpy, perhaps yes, but it was all her fault and the stupid school, and his stupid cousin. And he wasn't old either! They were of the same age for Merlin's sake. His ears ring as he continued to hear those words over and over again and by the time that he realized it, he was already pulling his cousin away from the girl again. He was certainly not being gentle to his cousin, but that thought was too far off his mind at the moment. For he was extremely irritated at the hufflepuff. Irritated wasn't even the word that could describe what he was feeling at the moment, it was something more than that, and he only wished to make the girl stop talking permanently.

"Mind your own business and leave us alone. Can't you understand even such a simple instruction?" He yelled, completely unable to tone down his voice. The girl was getting on his nerves and he was on the verge of snapping. If he was physically violent, he might have pushed her down the stairs already for acting like such an idiot. But she was stupid, so he should have expected that already. He pulled at his cousin again, dragging her away from the puff, which he was sure would have hurt the Gryffindor. He would have to apologize later, if he was capable of doing such thing. But at the moment, he just wanted to take his cousin away from the puff. He tried to walk past the girl only to stop when he noticed two students watching them. He was already irritated as he was and the knowledge that they were being watched angered him even more. He glared at the two, they weren't doing anything and they weren't trying to stop them unlike this stupid gryffindor he knew, but still, people should mind their own business instead of poking their nose to other people's.​

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[Ai Nightray]

Somehow, Ai couldn't help but grin knowing that the train of insults had hit a vein or an artery or the heart or whatever the Slytherin had within his body. It was quite evident after all, and she really had no intention to whisper or to hide her insults from him. More than two whole years had passed and while she had only stood up to Liam once causing her to get violent, she figured it wouldn't hurt to stand up to him again. Besides, she couldn't help but snap at him and feel proud because it was obvious that he was irritated by it all especially since he had resorted to yelling at her and while it wasn't all that surprising to her anymore, it was slightly different because this time it held no restraint. "Oh, I understand it. I just don't follow it, idiot," Ai looked at him with a deadpan look as if telling him that he couldn't even understand something so simple as well. And how could she not understand his instruction when he was digging it into her very being? The Hufflepuff certainly wasn't pleased either that Liam brought out her bad side again. Seriously, it had been five years of peace and this guy snaps at her for no reason and then its over.

"You're the one who's being stupid to let Arianna fall on the floor and can't even bring her to the infirmary so shouldn't YOU leave US alone," Ai just couldn't resist telling him off. Besides, it was rare that her bad side came out and she wouldn't pass this rare chance as well. Besides, it might be a week or so before she gets rid of this again. While, she should have thought that she might not be able to hold Arianna up alone, she figured that she deal with it when she crossed the bridge. "You just might kill her next after all since that's what you're so good at," Ai rolled her eyes as she spoke sarcastically at the Slytherin before her gaze caught sight of two Ravenclaws it seems. She wouldn't have minded if they were talking to each other normally or they were just passing by, but no. They were staring at them and she couldn't help but be irritated by it. "What the heck are you looking at?" she glared at the two with much irritation as she continued to drag an unconscious Arianna with her. Seriously, if something worse comes up, she would force this Gryffindor awake, nice or not.

 

[Dante Vittori]

Dante stood beside Raziel, closer than usual - admittedly, however it was certainly called for. He did not trust these people, but Raziel had decided that they should stay, so he respected the older Ravenclaw's decision and observed in silence. Why did they have the Gryffindor anyway? He looked back at the trio curiously, and kept his hands in his pockets so he could keep account of his sweets. The Slytherin boy continued with his very loud yelling. It was like they were all part-banshee, if that were at all possible. He felt like he was going to die just by listening to them. He doubted he and Raziel combined could not rival the amount of noise just one of those two were making. The Slytherin looked in his and Raziel's direction, and Dante held his glare with an impassive, yet firm, stare. He was not one to ever back down, especially when he found someone to be an inconvenience. Such as right now. This Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were all inconveniencing he and Raziel. They had important things to do, and now those things were being delayed.

Soon, the Hufflepuff was addressing he and Raziel. Unlike the Slytherin, she responded verbally. Typical. At least the Slytherin simply glare, she just amplified her voice in his direction. As she spoke, Dante decided hat she had to say held no relevance to his whatsoever, and decided to have a sweet. He unwrapped a sweet and popped one in his mouth, before offering one to Raziel. He was aware that Raziel probably had his own sweets, but this was in an attempt to make up for the sweets of Raziel's he had eaten. He finally looked back at the Hufflepuff once she had finished, and he looked at her blankly. What had she been going on about? The Ravenclaw had been attempting to drown them both out for the sake of his ears. It then dawned on him what she had ask, and his response was a smile, virtually none-existent frown, which did not look that much different from his normal, apathetic facial expression. It was obvious what they were staring at. He was staring at this spectacle right in front on him, and only wished for it to stop so he could carry on with his day.
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