"Merlin's beard, Peter, what happened in there? We could hear the yelling out here!"
Ron's voice hit me the second I stepped out of the hospital wing, followed closely by Hermione's furrowed brows and Harry's quiet stare. The three of them met me like a wall of concern.
I waved a hand lazily. "It's nothing. Malfoy being dramatic again."
Harry crossed his arms. "You know winding him up only makes things worse, right?"
I raised an eyebrow, a slow grin spreading across my face. "Coming from you, that's rich."
Even Hermione chuckled. "He's got a point."
"I'm just saying—he deserves it."
We walked through the corridor without a clear destination, conversation meandering like our steps. The castle was beginning to settle down, candles flickering in their sconces, and the scent of dinner drifting from the Great Hall.
Ron was the first to break the silence. "It's just… not great timing, is it? Hagrid's first lesson and all."
Hermione nodded. "Do you think they'll sack him?"
"They better not," Ron muttered as we stepped into the Great Hall.
My gaze instinctively lifted to the staff table. Hagrid's seat was empty.
I followed the trio toward the Gryffindor table, ready to join them—until I spotted Silvy waving me over from the Slytherin side. She patted the empty seat next to her with a small smile.
"Sorry, guys," I said with an apologetic glance. "Figure I should actually spend time with the people I live with."
Harry nodded. Hermione gave a small wave.
Ron, however, just frowned.
I turned away, walking toward Silvy. I wasn't far when Ron's voice carried across the space.
"I'm just saying, there's not a single witch or wizard who went bad that wasn't in Slytherin."
My steps faltered.
"Ron! That's enough," Hermione snapped. "That's Harry's brother."
I didn't hear the rest.
I kept walking.
Silvy's eyes followed me as I reached the bench, her smile soft but inquisitive.
"You alright?" she asked.
"Yeah," I lied, forcing a grin. "Starving."
I tried to focus on the food, the flickering candles, the chattering around us. Anything but Ron's words.
Across the table, Crabbe and Goyle were loudly recounting Malfoy's "heroism" to a captive audience.
"-And then the beast lunged! But Draco didn't flinch—stood there like a statue!"
"Merlin's knickers," Silvy muttered. "They keep this up and they'll vanish into his robes."
Later that night, the dungeons were dim and quiet. Silvy and I slumped onto the black leather sofas near the fire, plates cleared, bellies full, minds slower.
"What are the other common rooms like?" I asked.
"No idea. But word is Ravenclaw's got the best view—it's up in one of the towers."
She stretched her legs out. "Of course, as a Slytherin, I'm legally obligated to say ours is the best."
I laughed.
"You're not big on house pride, are you?"
"Are you kidding? I scream louder than anyone during Quidditch," she said proudly. "But we've got to give credit where it's due. Slytherins don't exactly hand that out easily."
She nodded toward a group on the other side of the room. "You can see it in them. Constantly trying to prove something. Pretending to be pure stone when we're all cracked somewhere."
I studied her, appreciating how effortlessly she spoke her mind. Not many Slytherins did.
Her hair caught the firelight—one side a deep black, the other a striking silver.
"You dye that?" I asked, pointing.
She smirked. "Nah. My mum had silver hair, my dad black. One in a million, apparently."
"Really?"
"Not even a little," she laughed. "Dyed it last spring. But you believed it."
"Maybe I should've been in Hufflepuff," I muttered.
Before she could tease me further, Malfoy appeared on the edge of my vision.
He walked past slowly, arm in a sling, eyeing us.
"You're awfully loud," he sneered. "Could hear your cackling halfway down the corridor."
"You could've just kept walking," I replied with a smirk.
"Next time, I will."
Without waiting for more, he disappeared through the boys' dormitory door.
"You enjoy that way too much," Silvy said, chuckling.
I dropped my grin.
"Anyway," I said, nodding at her hair, "I like it. The color. It suits you."
She looked away, pink rising in her cheeks. "Well… thanks, Potter."