v. WHO'S A HUFFLEPUFF?
( chapter five )

     Cal stumbled back from tryouts, not even aware of where he was stumbling to, exactly. His brain was somewhere else, somewhere outside of Hogwarts. It was on holiday, Cal decided, giggling at the thought.

     He hugged Remus.

He hugged Remus.

     His arms had encircled his waist and he'd made skin-to-skin contact. He had felt the steady rise and fall of his chest, felt the warmth of his flesh. Felt the utter pleasure of being so close to the person who had held all of his love and affection for two long, arduous years. It was like fireworks were set off all across his body. He was on fire.

     He could feel it coursing through his bloodstream. The wild, frenzied flames overcoming his nervous-system and plying deep into the marrow of his bones. It was a wonderful feeling, unlike anything he had ever felt before.

     Cal finally got what all those romance stories had gone on about before. At first, he thought it was all a silly little crush, something that would fade with time. A product of new, teenage hormones. But no. His feelings had only amplified with time, each new wave of affection crashing down on the other with renewed vigour and amorous zest. Cal first felt it on the train, when he had crashed into Remus, his body knocking into Remus'. That was only a fraction of what Cal was feeling after the hug. He knew Remus. He knew his favourite food and the names of his parents and his habit of playing with things when he was bored or stressed. He was privy to all of those things because he was a part of Remus' life.

     And that only made it better.

     Cal, too busy relaying that hug again and again and again, missed the sound of incoming footsteps. He collided headfirst with the other person and they both fell to the floor, the person's books falling to the floor in a loud mess.

     He scrambled up to help, apologies dripping from his lips like a broken tap, his mouth running a mile a minute. As he picked one of the books up and looked at it's cover, he noticed a name stitched neatly into the bottom right corner.

R.A.B

     "Reg?"

     Cal's head snapped up to see his friend. All at once, he felt the gravity of Reg's absence from his life, its weight bearing down on him like an old crone. He could feel its hands clamping down on his shoulders, its breath chilling his neck. Cal met those familiar grey eyes, and they were glacial in a way they had never been before.

     It made him take a small step back, and as his foot met the floor, wrongness crawled his leg like poison ivy. Reg didn't seem to care, or even notice, and carried on picking up his things. Cal stood there, feeling stupid, his mouth agape, until Reg walked towards him and held out a hand.

     It took him a moment to register the reason why—he wanted the two books Cal had gotten ahold of before he knew whose things they were.

     Stubbornly, Cal tightened his grip on the books, and brought them closer to his chest. Despite the impenetrable coldness of Reg's mask, Cal could see his jaw working. The sight made something bitter curl up inside of him. He wasn't the only one affected by this.

     Cal breathed in.

     "Why are you avoiding me?" He said, his voice breaking the layer of silence that had befallen them. Reg didn't look like he wanted any part in this conversation. Though considering how one-sided it had been so far, he may as well have not been there at all. "I don't know what I did, but if I did anything to upset you then I'm sorry."

     He received nothing but a sharp glare. There was something lurking behind that cold anger, however, something he'd seen once...

     Cal's eyes widened. "Is this about—?"

     "No!" Said Reg. He was shaking his head, long curls bouncing around his pretty face. Reg had always been quite pretty. "It's not about that."

     "Oh," said Cal, both happy to hear that and frustrated it wasn't the answer. "Well, then. I still don't know why you're not talking to me."

     Reg appeared to be debating with himself. The vein along his neck bulged and his right hand flexed. He was like a predator, deciding if Cal would be his next meal or not. It made Cal's stomach churn in familiarity.

     "It's complicated," said Reg.

     "That's not a real answer," said Cal.

     "Do I look like I care?" No, as a matter of fact, he did not. "Now give my books back to me."

     "I don't think I will. I've always wanted to see what all the fuss was about..." He read one of the titles "...The Goblin Wars of the 3rd Century."

     "Borrow your own copy if you want to read it is badly," he said, nonchalant. Reg's index finger tapped against his thigh. "But both of those books are under my name. So I'd highly appreciate it if you gave them back to me."

     "Fine."

     Reg smirked.

     "But, you need to give me an actual answer. Or I'll drop these from the Astronomy Tower and you can explain to Pince how her precious library book ended up in the Black Lake."

     Reg's smirk died on his lips. And like a phoenix from the ashes, a snarl grew to replace it.

     "You really aren't going to let this go, are you?" He spat.

     Cal shrugged, the picture of calm. He tried not to remember that Reg knew him almost as well as he, himself, did.

     "Nope," he said, popping the 'p'. "So, what'll it be, Reg—the truth or the Black Lake?"

     Reg was as stiff as a statue; his head tilted high enough so that he could look down at Cal from over his long, aquiline nose, his hand positioned to take out his wand. There was energy cackling behind his eyes. He looked like a deadly storm.

     "When will you learn to mind your own business, Caleb?"

     Cal's right fell back. His fingers were itching to grab his wand.

     "I don't know, Regulus. When will you learn to stop being an arse?"

     Reg raised his right eyebrow.

     "Probably never."

     Cal huffed. "There's your answer."

     "I'm done with this conversation," he said to no one in particular. Before Cal could ask him what he meant, Reg's wand was pointed in his direction. Cal tensed, his hand falling to his pocket. His fingers had slipped around the smooth wood of his wand when the books in his arms flew out of them.

     Cal watched, indignant, as they came to rest neatly on the small pile already in Reg's possession.

     "That's not fair!" He squawked.

     "Neither is threatening me to tell you about something that's none of your concern."

     "Um, in case you didn't notice, Regulus, we're friends. That makes it my business."

     "I suppose we aren't friends anymore, then."

     And with that, he pivoted on the spot and walked down the corridor, his robes flapping behind him like the wings of a bat.

     Cal tried not to hex him.

"Remind me why we're going to Hogsmeade, again?" Said Evan, picking out a leaf that had fallen into his gelled hair.

     Cal and Carmen took a second to laugh before he answered.

     "Because Remus invited us to the Hallowe'en party Gryffindor's hosting after the banquet."

     "You mean he invited you. You're just bringing us along because you don't want to be left stranded in the lion's den."

     "Not true!" He received varying levels of dead-pan. Pouting, he crossed his arms. "Damn, how did you figure me out?"

     Carmen and Evan laughed, and while Cal could tell Adonis was trying to hide it, the corner of his mouth was quirked up into an annoyingly handsome smirk. Cal could feel their amusement—at his expense, of course—in the crisp Autumn air.

     "No, I'm serious!" He insisted. "I've lost my touch!"

     "You didn't have a touch in the first place," said Carmen, her laugher having settled into a light chuckle.

     "Shut up, you trolls! You guys never used to be able to tell what I was plotting. And now, I'm so transparent I may as well be glass. It's depressing. I should be kicked out of Slytherin House for my un-Slytherinly behaviour."

     Cal's shoulders dropped in faux-hurt and he stared at the leaf-laden path. The four of them were walking to Hogsmeade to buy costumes for the party. Wizards didn't usually dress up for Hallowe'en, and Cal was sure that there wouldn't be anything very exciting in the shop, but he didn't care much about that he was going to buy. The reason he was going in first place was because he was going to see Remus outside of a library setting. And not just any old Remus, a drunk Remus.

     Cal couldn't imagine what the bloke would be like inebriated. Angry? Sad? Happy? Cal hoped Remus was a happy drunk. He was always so melancholic during their sessions. Cal wasn't so narcissistic as to believe that he was the cause of Remus' sadness—it obviously ran much deeper, its age-old roots stifling some hidden part of Remus' mind. Cal hoped that one day he would be important enough to know what that it was. He wanted every part of Remus; the good, the bad. He would never stop accepting whatever Remus was willing to give him, because all of it was important.

     Adonis placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "Chin up, Cal. You're still the quintessential Slytherin."

     Cal perked up.

     "You really think so, Adonis?"

     He nodded, smiling. Cal returned it, and just as he was about to say something, his friends all guffawed. Carmen was holding herself up against Evan, who wasn't doing much better than she was, stumbling every few steps as he tried to support their combined weight. Behind him, Cal could hear the Adonis' low, lilting laugh.

     "You're guys are horrible to me. I should just go to Hufflepuff, at least they're known for their kindness."

     "You might actually fit in there! They're known for their lack of brains too!"

     "Shove off! I'm going back to the castle."

     He hadn't taken more than three steps before Carmen catapulted herself at him. When she made contact, he almost fell over.

     "Oh no, you don't. You're the one who dragged us out this far, you're staying. And if there's one thing I'm getting out of all this, it's alcohol."

     "You're such an alcoholic," said Cal.

     "Obviously. What else is there to do at this fucking school?"

     "Fuck," chimed in Evan.

     Carmen took a moment to consider him. Eventually, she nodded.

     "You know what, Evan? I agree with you for once."

     The trek didn't take much longer, and soon enough, they arrived at Hogsmeade. Its large, m-shaped rooftops sticking out among the surrounding forest, the cobblestone streets littered with orange and red leaves. Wizards and witches bustled around, and students giggled as they came in and out from various shops. Madam Puddifoot's was one such shop. Cal tried not to look at it.

     "Oi, Cal!" Said Carmen, right on time. "Isn't Madam Puddifoot's where you took Lisa Tuttlemore on your first and only date?"

     Cal aimed a glare at her. He felt the almost overwhelming urge to flip her the bird, but on account of Adonis, who probably didn't even know what it meant—which would incur a long explanation about why it's rude, just like it did with Carmen and Evan—he resisted.

     "I thought we were done harassing me!"

     "We're never done harassing you—you make it too easy," said Evan, smirking at him.

     That time, Cal did flip him the bird. Adonis and his ignorance of muggle gestures be damned. Evan only smirked even harder.

     "I hate to interrupt this little lovers' quarrel," said Adonis, "but I swore we came here with an actual purpose."

     "As much of a wet blanket as ever, Parkinson," hissed Evan, his mood clearly ruined.

      Adonis said nothing, although his silence was more telling than words would have ever been. Before it could turn into anything, Carmen cut between the two of them, slipping her hand around the crease of Adonis' elbow. He directed his attention to her, remarking about her eyes.

     Rolling his eyes at the two, Cal stepped closer to Evan, who only inclined his head in his direction. Cal took that as an affirmation and bumped their shoulders together in a show of togetherness.

     "Look, Evan," whispered Cal. "I know you don't like Adonis, but please try and behave. He's Carmen's boyfriend now, so we should try to make him feel as welcomed as possible. It won't do anyone any good if you two keep butting heads all the time."

     "Funny you say that," said Evan, as he navigated them into a corner of the town centre. Privacy, Cal figured.

     "What?"

     "You do know his family's prejudiced against Muggleborns, right?"

     Cal shrugged his shoulders, feeling the orange—he was feeling festive—jumper he had worn today bundling up around his neck uncomfortably.

     "Yeah, of course I do."

     "And you don't care?"

     "No," said Cal, matter-of-factly. "Your family's prejudiced against Muggleborns, same as Carmen's, and I don't hold it against either of you. He hasn't given me any reason to believe he subscribes to the same ideas, or that he believes them as strongly. It'd be unfair of me to judge Adonis for the same thing. I mean, hell, my Dad used to be prejudiced before he met my Mum through one of his Halfblood friends. And look at how they turned out! Everyone's capable of change, Evan. Just like you."

     "What do you mean 'just like me'?"

     "Don't think I don't remember how much of an arse you used to be. You always used to brag about blood purity—it was really annoying. But you changed. We're best friends now, mate. And to be honest, I think you were just parroting what your parents said to you. You always go on about how pushy they are."

     It was silent for a moment. Evan was focused on their feet, his hair falling into his face. Cal looked past him, and at the various people standing around the town square. He tried to spot Carmen and Adonis, but he couldn't find hide-or-hair of them. They must have gone into one of the shops, Cal thought, a memory of Carmen saying she needed to purchase something else on their trip. He allowed his eyes to fall back on Evan, who was watching him in the way one might observe a particularly cute animal.

     "You know what?" He said suddenly, breaking the small, peaceful bubble they had fallen into.

     Cal shook his head. A stray blond curl fell in front of his face, and he tried to blow it away. Evan, chuckling, pushed it back and away from his line of vision.

     "You really should have been in Hufflepuff," he commented, his eyes—usually so penetrating—soft.

     Cal just rolled his eyes again, shoving Evan.

     "You always say that, but I swear to God you're just messing with me!"

     "Only you would take offence to being called a Hufflepuff."

Cal blew out a stream of air, frustrated.

     "As if! I called you one back in forth year and you cracked the shits, you hypocrite!"

     "Now I take offence to that. And I don't like it because it isn't true! You were just going on about unfairness!"

     "Uh huh, okay."

~

heyyo. i know this isn't a four thousand word monster like the last few have been, but this chapter just took a lot out of me for some reason. i started it like, two weeks ago but only started writing it again last sunday. i wanted to add more, and i may come back and add in some more if i think it's missing anything when i look over it, but i just wanted to give u guys something after almost a month of not updating. for that i apologise—the mind of an author is fickle at best, and dead at worst.

regardless, i hope u liked this chapter! we got to see a bit more of cal and co., and i got to add some more dialogue in for adonis! sadly, no remus, but he's gonna feature heavily next chapter so💅

i hope ur all doing well in these troubling times. stay healthy, drink some water, go for a walk if u can, eat a pear!! ur organs will thank u for it later i promise