Chapter 17: The Lonely Hearts Club (Patreon)

Iris Potter had always known she was a selfish person. Such had been ingrained in her during her childhood with the Durlseys, selfish because no matter what the Durlseys did for her, it was never enough.

She had at least come to terms with the way the Durlseys behaved was not right, at least on an intellectual level. Those lingering thoughts remained in her mind, though, as she contemplated Ares' sleeping face, drawn lines across it, pale cheeks, the boy looking strangely tired in his sleep as his head gently rested on her lap.

They had been studying in a shadowed corner of the common room, though Ares seemed to be focused on material that distinctly did not match their schoolwork. At some point, she had felt him slump into her, collapsing like his strings were cut.

She hadn’t so much as flinched, ignoring the rush of heat through her; she had gently guided Ares's head to her lap, letting her hands softly feather through his locks of black hair.

Soft breaths gusted from her best friend's lips that drew her own attention in a way that no best friend's lips were supposed to.

This, she knew, was her selfishness at hand because she was unable to tear her eyes away from Ares’s face, his lips, imagining what they would taste like, what they would feel like against her own.

The feelings stirred through her; how disgusting that she would take advantage of him, how inappropriate to think such thoughts in the mostly empty common room, how slowly yet surely her heart and mind contorted to not see the wrongness.

He had done so much for her. Surely there had to be something beyond friendship? Even if it wasn’t love, certainly what he felt for her would be enough for her to take what she needed?

Love.

She wasn’t sure if it was an emotion she was capable of, not the girl from the cupboard, not the girl who had been beaten till she couldn’t move. Yet she was sure that if she could feel love, the only one to whom she would give that part of herself was Ares because the first emotion he had made her feel was even more important.

Safe.

His eyes storm clouds of fury as he sliced the arm off a troll before executing it, with a deliberate jab of his wand.

Blocking the torture curse with his body for her, stepping forward into a flash of red.

He had said he was willing to die for her, and as much as the thought made her feel sick just imagining it, at the same time, it ignited a heat right below her stomach, because he was hers and by his own admission, he was willing to give everything to her.

Would it be so wrong to take a bit more?

A stolen press of lips, for him to look at her as she looked at him, to ask him to be the Father of children she desperately wanted?

It was greedy, uncontrovertibly so; she even knew, perhaps intellectually, she had no right to ask for more, but she found the more he gave, the more she wanted, the dark pit that had been inside of her as long as she had known, yawning desperately, absorbing everything he gave her.

She tried to check herself, to not be too much, to not ask for more, yet even as she had those thoughts, they didn’t stop her fingers from gently trailing his jaw, stroking gently against his cheeks, a light bristle of stubble present on them indicating the ever-present marching on of time as he moved further towards adulthood.

“What time is it?” murmured words left Ares’s lips, and Iris paused only for a moment in her gentle stroking as she realized that Ares was awake.

Iris glanced around the common room, reduced to a couple of quite late-night gatherings of huddled couples, along with a glance out the window, which showed the dark majesty of the night.

“It’s not so late yet,” she murmured, her fingers gently trailing further down his jaw to rest on his neck, tracing his skin a couple times.

“Hmmm,” Ares hummed, his eyes remaining closed, “I should work a bit more, I think I’m close to the cure for the Greengrass thing.”

Iris ignored how her gut clenched uncomfortably as she shook her head, “Tomorrow, Ares, you need to rest; you’ve been so tired recently.”

Ares released a huff of amused warm air, though he did not stir, his eyes remaining closed. “I can take a break when the cure’s done, maybe,” he replied.

Iris pouted, though she knew Ares couldn’t see her expression, her fingers trailing down to gently trace his collarbone, “It’ll still be there tomorrow, Ares, you can just rest,” she murmured.

Ares shifted for a moment, his body seemingly attempting to stir to wakefulness before the full weight of his head once again settled back in her lap, seemingly once again fully asleep.

Without thought, a soft smile traced Iris’s lips as she regarded her best friend’s sleeping face, for once not contorted in a false expression, genuinely relaxed, seemingly into gentle dreams.

Iris’s eyes flicked over to the table where her wand rested, and her lips narrowed as she reached out her hand toward her wand, a small grin appearing on her face as her wand snapped cleanly into her hand.

And it had only taken a couple of weeks of instruction from Ares.

Frowning, she twirled her wand, and a fluffy, cloudy grey blanket was summoned from the floor, swaddling them in its warmth even as it ensured they were covered all except their faces.

Iris let her head fall back, her eyes closed in peaceful, warm bliss.

“Comfortable?” A soft, dulcet question had Iris opening her eyes some time later, and she looked up to see a frowning Fleur who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow, a small but amused smile twisting up on her face as their eyes met.

If it had been anyone else, even Hermione, Iris was sure her cheeks would have flared in complete embarrassment, but as it was, she had spent too long in Fleur’s company, acerbic humor included, so all she could do was respond with her own raised eyebrow.

“Isn’t it obvious?” she replied, shaking her head at the other girl with a small smile.

Fleur blinked, looking caught off guard, before she grinned back slightly, crossing her arms in front of her chest, pushing her breasts up slightly, though Iris wasn’t sure if it was intentional, “He does serve as a somewhat functional stuffed animal, doesn’t he, even if he is a boorish Englishman.”

Iris’s gut twisted as she regarded her friend. There was nothing particularly wrong with what Fleur had said, except for the fact that her smile wasn’t quite reaching her gorgeous blue eyes.

“I thought we agreed he was far too pretty for that descriptor,” Iris shook her head, grinning at Fleur, before she cocked her head to the side, “Do you have personal experience with his stuffed animal services?” she asked, purposely keeping her tone light even as her stomach tumbled a bit, unsure of how to feel with whatever her answer was.

Fleur, visibly grimaced, though somehow the expression looked unnatural on her face, and she shook her head, “Like art boys are best appreciated at a distance and with appropriate glass for protection.”

Iris regarded her friend, and a moment of clarity flared through her, looking at Fleur, this should feel no different from Malfoy and her annoying insistence on bothering Ares, but it was different, and she didn’t know why.

“You’re jealous,” the words felt strange coming out of her mouth, but Iris had spent far too long alongside the worst emotions of humanity not to recognize them in her friend.

Fleur’s blue eyes shot open, and her mouth dropped, and she began rapidly shaking her head.

“Non, non, it could not be further from the truth, I mean, he is so much younger than me, not to mention he purposely chooses to infuriate me at every turn, and of course it is not as if he has expressed any interest, you do not see him drooling-“

Iris raised a hand as Fleur came to a stuttering halt, raising an index finger to make a point, “Take it from a girl that is maybe the leading authority for not wanting to be in love with this man, none of those things you said were disqualifiers.”

Fleur took in a sharp intake of breath as she looked at Iris, “You do not want him?” she asked, looking absolutely befuddled.

Iris rolled her eyes, wondering if this was how Hermione felt when she was misunderstood after saying something intelligent, feeling a strong degree of sympathy for her friend, “I didn’t say that, I just said that it would probably be better if I didn’t, doesn’t mean that it’s true, I just have enough rationality to know I shouldn’t.”

Fleur gave her a long look, her face blank for a moment, before she took a couple of steps forward, sliding onto the end of the couch gently so as to not disturb Ares, she looked at Iris for a long moment before she shook her head, “You are my friend Iris, a good one,” she visibly hesitated, “I do not wish to take him from you.”

Iris gave the other girl a soft smile, “You say it like it would be so easy,” she smiled, amused at Fleur.

Fleur’s expression contorted into something complicated, “Perhaps it would not be,” she nodded her head in thought, “He es frustratingly strong of mind.”

“Do you wish for him to drool?” Iris asked, even more amused, even as she found it strange how her negative feelings regarding Malfoy did not resurface.

Fleur snorted and then flicked her hair back in a faux haughty move, “’e should be so lucky,” and an amused look contorted her lips as she regarded Iris.

Iris shook her head at her friend, “So you’re going to join the lonely hearts club with me?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at Fleur.

Fleur frowned, “I was not aware there was a club; there are others?”

Right, Muggle culture, of course, someone raised fully magical would not know.

Still, Fleur did raise a good point, “God, I hope not.” Iris shook her head, “This is already complicated enough with the two of us.”

“Ermionie doesn’t have feelings for him?” Fleur cocked her head to the side.

Iris shook her head, “No, she promised me she didn’t, at least, beyond finding him physically attractive, which she did admit to, she apparently finds him too ‘boneheaded’” Iris made air quotations with her fingers.

Fleur frowned at her, “I’m not sure that’s a disqualifier either.”

Iris hummed, giving her friend an amused smile, before shaking her curtain of ebony hair, “Either way, we seem to have enough of a problem even with just us.”

Fleur stiffened, glaring at her, “I will not take him from you,” she was now glaring at Iris, and Iris could hear the soft undercurrent of desperation of a girl who had those words before and not been believed.

“I don’t think you would,” Iris smiled softly at her friend, “You’re not like that.”

An almost overwhelming wave of relief seemed to flush through Fleur, and she relaxed a bit as she struggled with words for a moment, “Thank you,” she mumbled quietly.

There was a moment of slightly more comfortable silence before Fleur spoke again, “I told Ares it would be for the best if he dated one of us,” she said quietly, “I’ve seen how these girls stare at him, it makes me angry.”

“Does it make you angry how I look at him?” Iris asked, looking at Fleur curiously, even as her hands threaded with Ares' hair.

Fleur chuckled, a dry-sounding thing, “No more angry than he makes me normally, at least with you, I know that you’ll treat him well.”

Iris chuckled along with Fleur, the sound of their laughter sounding odd to her ears.

Iris regarded her friend, wondering if the statement was true. Even if her statements were true, it was easy to say those words right now, but if they both got tangled in these feelings, she didn’t know what Fleur would do.

She didn’t know what she would do.

Still, part of Fleur’s phrasing bothered Iris, “You care how he will be treated that much?”

Fleur frowned at her, “In my experience, it is our romantic partners who have an inordinate effect on us. I do not wish to see Ares taken advantage of by someone who will use and discard him.”

“So it’s alright if we use and keep him?” Iris replied cocking her head at Fleur curiously, amusement curling her lips at Fleur’s words.

Fleur and Iris looked at each other for a long moment before they both burst into quiet giggles, attempting to restrain their voices so as not to wake up Ares.

They laughed, the tension broken as they smiled brightly, almost carefree, at each other until their giggles turned to silence, and they remained looking at each other, no longer laughing.

Fleur’s cheeks flushed, and her eyes flicked away from Iris for a long moment. Finally, softly, she said, “Would it be so wrong? If he was happy with us, what difference would it make?”

Iris looked at Fleur for a long moment, realizing as she looked at Fleur that there was a mirror in them she hadn’t seen before, a part of herself in the other girl.

“Your Father,” Iris said quietly, “He hurt you, didn’t he?”

Fleur regarded her with a long look, her blue eyes darkening as she looked at Iris, “You are more like me than I gave credit,” she murmured quietly before shaking her head, “It makes it worse,” she sighed, shaking her head, “I value our friendship too much to tread over you.”

“It’s unfortunate,” Iris acknowledged, dipping her head to the side, “I want to root for you finding someone, but the words would feel disingenuous, wouldn’t they, from either of our lips.”

Fleur sighed, shaking her head, giving the other girl a sad smile, “That they would, if it brings you comfort, know that I am resolved for him to never love me, despite whatever my feelings may say otherwise, I do not wish to trap him, I do not wish for his eyes to grow cold with disdain as he looks at me day after day to the point he no longer loves me, once he realizes exactly what I am.”

Iris frowned softly at Fleur, “You would set him free?”

Fleur frowned, looking down at her lap, “I wish to do both,” she murmured quietly, “I wish to set him free of me, knowing what I want to do to him, yet at the same time I would wish to put him in a golden cage so the only notes he sings are for my ears and my ears alone.”

Iris found herself examining Fleur’s soft frown, attempting to piece together what she knew of this Fleur into this other version of Fleur, “You don’t want him to love you?” she asked quietly.

Fleur looked up with blue eyes shimmering, “I don’t, it’s easier this way, isn’t it? If I love him and he doesn’t love me, then there is no chance of him stopping loving me, there is no ability for me to lose him, or to wake up one day to a monster.”

“He’s not a monster,” Iris frowned at Fleur.

Fleur shook her head, small tears beginning to trickle out of her eyes, “All men start out as innocent babes, incapable of cruelty, just because a man is not now evil does not mean he won’t be.”

“Ares wouldn’t,” Iris frowned at Fleur, “He’ll always protect what he loves.”

“And when he no longer loves me?” Fleur cocked her head to the side, a sad smile turning her face down, “I will always love him, I can’t imagine a worse fate than to see someone you love become a monster and to still love them all the same.”

Iris released a shaky breath as she looked at Fleur, and a small voice spoke in her mind, a voice that sounded a lot like Ares, ‘If I die protecting you, I can’t think of a life better lived.’

“Ares wouldn’t,” Iris repeated and shook her head, “When you give something to him, he always returns it, no matter if it hurts him, no matter if he might die, if you give your love to Ares, he’ll return it because that’s what he does.”

Fleur released a breath before she reached out a hand, hovering for a moment over Ares' leg, before settling it down onto his calf, running down its length.

“You truly believe that,” Fleur said musingly, stroking along Ares’s calf, “How is your faith so strong?”

Iris chuckled, shaking her head, “That’s the terror of it, it’s not through faith in him, I’ve seen him save my life twice, that’s seeing not faith.”

Fleur cocked her head to the side, looking at Iris, truly examining her, before a sad but bemused smile curved her lips, “I suppose that would be harder to shake, maybe Ares will save my life too, hmmm?” an amused smile twisted Fleur’s lips, not believing, yet the way she said it reminded Iris of herself the moment before she had reached out to Ares on the day they had arrived at Hogwarts.

Unsure, but perhaps willing to take one more chance, rather than spend a lifetime in a personal abyss.

-

Luna Lovegood did not consider herself particularly good with people of any sort, often unaware of the inner thoughts or even expressed thoughts of others as they talked so easily among themselves.

Thus, she did not know what to make of Antares Black; his decision to profess himself as her friend was rather strange, all things considered, yet the light around him had seemed to indicate he was being earnest.

Whether she could trust his words as such, her vision failed her in that respect, yet her vision had been awfully spotty lately, since less than a year ago, what had been certain was no longer.

Which, on one hand, was somewhat good news; she was no longer fated to die to some snake-like creature this year, which could only be good news.

Now the actual details of such were what made her curious, given that she knew she was going to die since her mother’s ill-fated experiment when she was eight, she had been well prepared for the event, as well as a teenager could prepare to die, at least.

Had Ginny changed her mind? Was it even still Ginny?

Still, now that she had more time, she found the best use for it in wandering the now snowy grounds of Hogwarts, keeping to her own company for the present moment.

She would have been content to wander for some time if she had not spotted the huddled group of blue scarved girls heading her way, and she found her lips turning downward.

Luna turned a bit, attempting to go the long way around the lake, but the group split into two, walking on opposite sides of the lake.

Luna grimaced before stopping to sit underneath the shade of a tree, knowing already the futility of escape at this point, there was no point in hastening it by going towards one of the groups.

They were getting closer and closer, and Luna found herself gripping her hand tightly, trying to find any kind of comfort. Her vision flickered for the briefest of moments as she saw a flickering of familiar violet light off to the side, coming around a tree, and she found her eyes locked onto it in shock.

It was a humanoid figure of magic light who seemed to notice her attention, before very slowly, he raised a single index finger to his lips, and though she couldn’t see his face, she was confident he had the damnable smile she had told him she didn’t like.

Though looking at her approaching tormentors, Luna realized that perhaps there was a use for pretty boys with fake smiles as long as when they spoke those words weren’t fake.

She found herself relaxing against the tree trunk, a smile, a real one, curving up her face.

The Ravenclaw girls came to a stop in front of her, the lead one a pretty Asian girl speaking up first, Cho Chang, the seeker of Ravenclaw, “I didn’t expect Loony Lovegood to be all the way out here, isn’t it too cold for your little creature friends?” She grinned brightly, a saccharine sweet smile at Luna.

Instinct told Luna now was the time to dissociate, to avoid, before she felt a warm hand come to rest on her shoulder.

“You’d be surprised what’s out and about today,” Luna smiled sweetly at the girl, “Is there something you needed my help with, you didn’t perhaps all fail at solving the riddle?”

Cho blinked, seemingly taken aback, not used to this kind of pushback from Luna.

Luna herself was surprised; it wasn’t that these weren’t words she had wanted to say before, but always she had known that words would only make things worse.

Except right now, she knew she had a proclaimed ‘dark lord’ standing right next to her, and she could see the magic flaring through his body like a storm.

“Not like you’d be of help, Loony,” one of the Ravenclaw girls chuckled, “the bats in your belfry aren’t exactly top-notch.”

Another laugh echoed from the group of girls before a freckled-faced, reddish blonde-haired girl let loose with another line, “Like Mother like daughter, huh? No wonder she got herself-“ her words evidently continued, demonstrated by her moving mouth, but suddenly no noise came from it.

The Ravenclaw girls looked at their friend, confused, before startling backward as the air itself peeled apart, and there stood Antares Black, his dark hair hanging around his head like a curtain, his cloudy grey eyes now darkened to a thick storm as he stood casually leaning back against the tree Luna was sitting underneath.

“I’m sorry,” Antares murmured softly in dulcet tones, “I must have misheard. You weren’t going to say anything about Luna’s Mother except an apology for her loss, were you, Edgecombe?”

Edgecomb opened her mouth, shaking her head as if she was in denial about what was unclear, as she continued attempting to say something.

Antares raised an eyebrow, “I don’t believe that was an acceptable apology,” he glanced back at the rest of the girls, “Would any of you like to make the attempt? I assure you, an apology is a simpler solution than the alternative.”

Cho attempted to say something before blinking in surprise as no words left her mouth, and she clapped a hand to her mouth.

One of the other girls snarled and drew her wand and slashed through the air at Antares, mouthing what Luna guessed to be a curse, only for predictably nothing to happen.

Antares sighed, shaking his head, “Really, a whole group of Ravenclaw students and not one of you knows how to silently cast?” he raised an eyebrow, his arms crossed casually in front of his chest.

Faces were beginning to pale as some of the students seemed to realize what he was saying.

Antares's wand appeared in his hand, and he pointed at the ground beneath Luna and then twirled the wood in his grip. Luna found herself elevated into the air on a comfortable wooden bench, positioned underneath the shade of the tree.

Antares cocked his head, smiling at the faces of the Ravenclaw students, which were paling further as they seemed to realize just what it meant that the only ones who could currently cast magic was standing in front of them with a half smirk on his face, and the blonde girl they had been intent on bullying was now sitting on a transfigured bench watching on in interest.

They were beginning to creep backward before Antares shot a look to the back of the group, his half smile ever present on his face. “Class hasn’t been dismissed yet,” he chided gently, shaking his head in bemusement. “I thought Ravenclaws were good students,” he gestured at Luna, smiling pleasantly. “The Professor decides when class ends.”

Luna took a deep breath, feeling a strange sensation as the girls looked at her fearfully, these same girls who had tormented her for all these months, at her mercy.

She could see the way their eyes had shifted, now desperately begging as they looked at her, silently asking for a reprieve they had never granted her.

She didn’t like it; the magic pouring off the girls was tainted by fear, and all the other unpleasant emotions these girls were feeling.

Looking at them, it was suddenly so clear that they were all so ugly and disgusting.

She waved her hand, “I don’t really have time to educate today, I’m sure remedial lessons can be implemented if this wasn’t taught well enough.” The words felt strange on her tongue. Luna Lovegood did not typically threaten, but this felt, well, nice for lack of a better word.

Though she wasn’t sure her mother would’ve approved.

She found herself drooping slightly, looking at her feet, fiddling with the hem of her robe for a moment, as the Ravenclaw girls fled in earnest.

“Are you all right?” Her vision of her shoes was obscured as Ares kneeled down in front of her, looking at her with now placid grey eyes, observing her closely.

“I’m fine,” Luna shook her head, before her lips pursed as she looked Ares in the eye, “Why did you do that?” she asked.

Ares looked taken aback for a moment, before he rolled his shoulders, somewhat awkwardly, “I wasn’t about to let them pick on a friend of mine.”

Luna hummed softly, peering at the boy and into the haze of his magic, “So that’s why you interfered this time?” She cocked her head to the side, curiously looking at the boy, “because we’re friends now.”

Ares visibly grimaced, “I didn’t actually know before,” he released a small breath, “But that’s not really a good excuse, is it?”

Luna blinked, examining the boy’s magic for a long moment. He was once again telling the truth, but it was all so strange, “Does it get heavy?” she asked, noting his tired, wan face, how he wasn’t even attempting to smile.

“Heavy?” A small smile split Ares’s lips, “What’s heavy?” he replied curiously.

Luna shrugged her shoulders, “My mom always told me that protecting others was hard, looking out for their interests above your own, taking their burdens as yours.”

Ares frowned for a moment, looking surprisingly thoughtful, before he shook his head, his curtain of black hair swinging with the movement, “No, it’s not heavy at all,” he reached out a hand offering it to Luna, “Let’s eat, huh?”

Luna contemplated the boy’s hand, noting the faintest traces of magic lingering upon it; he’d had contact with something remarkably poisonous recently.

Reaching her own hand out, she let him encompass it in his own comparatively large grip.

“Okay,” she smiled faintly.

-

Daphne Greengrass was a woman of calculation in her own estimation; she was always aware of how much was required of her, so she made sure to always offer that amount, not less, not more.

Thus, she knew that as Ares stood across from her in this empty classroom, she knew that the price for this particular expenditure was one that was far above what she could afford.

Ares reached into his robes and pulled out a tightly sealed wooden box, and offered it wordlessly to Daphne, and with somewhat hesitant hands, she took it.

“What is this?” she asked, cocking her head to the side as she narrowed her eyes at the boy.

“A supply of pills of my own formulation,” Ares grinned a tired sort of smile, gesturing for her to open the box.

Daphne did so to reveal a pile of black capsules.

Ares reached out and grabbed one, holding it for her inspection, “I don’t really have a name for it,” he admitted, “but if you take one, the substance within will leach harmful magic from the body.”

Daphne couldn’t help but look at the boy in shock; it had barely been a month, how had he done this?

“You’ve tested it?”

Ares nodded, and then, with a small smile on his face, he popped the pill into his mouth and swallowed. As Daphne looked at him in shock, he shrugged, “I didn’t really have any other test subjects,” he admitted in an amused manner.

Daphne looked down at the pills, “And they work?” she said quietly.

Ares nodded his head again, “Yes, of course they do, I’m admittedly unsure of how many it will take for you and your sister to be completely cured, but I have a significant supply so I will simply closely monitor the situation.”

Daphne nodded her head along before she stopped her eyes widening, “You knew I was also cursed?” she murmured quietly.

Ares gave her a sympathetic smile, “I could tell, yes, you’ll each need to take one pill a week, I’d keep track of that. I want to emphasize that taking more will not cure you quicker. This pill leaches the curse from your system over time. It is specifically designed to act slowly so as not to shock the system.”

Daphne nodded her head along with the information she was being provided, still struck dumb by this sudden solution for her family, seemingly accomplished in no more than a month’s time.

“Do you have any questions?” Ares asked, crossing his arms casually, his infuriating smile once again on his face.

Daphne hesitated for a moment, not for a lack of questions but afraid to voice the one that mattered most, “What will this cost me?” she asked.

Ares' face scrunched, and he frowned at her, “Cost? We agreed this was your favor,” he looked confused as he regarded her.

Daphne slowly shook her head as much as she didn’t want to, “We both know that favor wasn’t real, not like this, you’ve given my family something that can’t be repaid.”

Ares blinked, looking bewildered, before sighing, and his frown deepened as he looked down at her, “I don’t need a reason to help someone,” he said quietly.

Daphne growled, her typical frustration with the boy beginning to subsume her, “You can’t give so much value so easily; there must be an exchange, that is a wizarding relationship.”

Ares raised an eyebrow at her before shaking his head, “Then you’ll decide the value,” he said simply, “As far as I’m concerned, we’re perfectly even.”

He turned and walked away without a backward glance, raising a hand in casual farewell before he left the classroom.

Leaving Daphne by herself, holding the cure for her entire family’s ailment, without another word.

-

Neville Longbottom took deep breaths, wincing as the icy cold air strained his lungs, as he doggedly made his way across the snow-covered ground of Hogwarts.

Sent on his mission to retrieve his friend for Samhain and its feast, he couldn’t quite reason why he had been the one made to suffer the cold outside, other than the simple fact it was a curse laid upon his gender.

In the distance, in the midst of the first snow of the year that drifted lazily across his vision, sat his objective, looking remarkably unbothered by the cold around him, leaning back against a tree as he looked out over the Black Lake.

Neville waved his hand at the boy, who seemed to have already spotted him, as he waved back.

For a little while, Neville struggled onward till he came to the base of the tree, realizing that Ares was covered in snow, unmelted on his skin somehow, an amused smile on the boy’s face as he regarded Neville himself.

“Ares, why the bloody hell are you out here?” Neville spat at the boy, full body shivers going through him as he glared down at his friend.

“Training,” Ares replied, amusedly, before his wand flicked out of somewhere and pointed at Neville, and suddenly Neville felt much warmer, his shivering slowly beginning to cease, the snow on him beginning to melt and then rapidly disappear as he dried out.

Somewhat mollified but still a little pissed, “I don’t think it took all day to train that spell,” Neville remarked reproachfully to the other boy.

“I already knew that one,” Ares shook his head, displacing the snow a bit atop his head, “That’s not the spell I’m using,” he remarked with a grin that didn’t seem to quite fit his face, raising a snow-covered eyebrow at Neville.

“Fine,” Neville grunted, “I’ll bite what has the Master Wizard done?”

Ares grinned, a strained thing, and held out an open, naked palm to Neville, “Feel my skin,” he goaded the other boy.

Neville frowned before he pulled off a glove and jabbed his finger into his friend’s palm, before yelping as he pulled his palm back, “Merlin’s saggy left buttock, you’re burning Ares!”

Ares nodded agreeably, “I’ve flushed fire magic through my system,” he grinned, but by his twinkling eyes, Neville knew that wasn’t just it.

Neville glanced at his snow-covered friend again before the obvious question came to his lips, “How come the snow isn’t melting, Ares?” he said dryly.

“Ah,” Ares nodded his head, “That would be the actual spell I’m using. Please cast a jinx or curse at me,” he grinned wider.

Neville’s eyes widened before he decided that, internally, whatever happened would be Ares's fault, and he would be relieved of responsibility.

His wand lashed out, casting a leg-locking jinx, his magic traversing the length of his Father’s wand with complete ease that he still wasn’t quite used to.

The spell shot out before it lashed across Ares’s face before disappearing in a violet flash.

Neville’s jaw dropped, “You’re immune to magic?” he asked incredulously.

Ares sighed, and his smile dropped to something a bit more thoughtful, still not natural as he shook his head, “Not quite, I’ve cheated a little bit,” he opened his still closed palm, revealing a small black pill that was glowing a faint violet, “This little guy when channeled with vorpal magic, instantly destroys any harmful spell headed towards me.”

“That’s amazing, Ares,” Neville shook his head, struggling for a moment with the niggling thought about how much less capable he was than his friend.

Ares shook his head, frowning, “It’s still very limited, it only works on jinxes, curses, and dark magic, neutral spells are unaffected, it also requires strong magic control, costs a decent amount of magic to channel through the pill, and-“

The pill crumbled in his palm, fading away, and Ares sighed, shaking his head, “Can only absorb so much magic before it dissolves, so it’s time-limited as well.”

“That’s still impressive, Ares,” Neville frowned at his friend.

“Mmm,” Ares hummed, not in disbelief but not in agreement, “It’s a bulletproof vest at best, certainly it wouldn’t stand up to an overpowering dark magic.”

Neville was silent for a moment as he realized what his friend was saying.

“You mean an unforgivable?” Neville said quietly, his gut twisting in a way he really wished it wouldn’t, “But those spells are, by definition, unable to be blocked by magical shielding.”

“Mmm,” Ares nodded, “The final issue is, of course, this substance is completely incapable of absolute destruction; it leaves magic intact, unlike one of its components.” he sighed, shaking his head, and Neville saw his friend suddenly look more tired than he had ever seen him.

“I don’t understand Ares,” Neville said, “What do you need to destroy?” he asked.

Ares shook his head, seemingly struggling with words for a moment, “My new theory, which will likely be proved with more thorough analysis, is that this substance is incapable of destroying life; anything that has a life of its own is immune because of another substance I used,” he replied, though he didn’t really respond to Neville’s question.

Neville frowned down at his friend. He hadn’t seen Ares like this ever; his friend was always almost mockingly cheerful, unaffected by the trials and tribulations thrown his way.

Right now, he looked defeated.

Neville wanted to ask questions; what exactly Ares was trying to kill was one of them, certainly, but looking at his defeated friend, he didn’t think it was now the time.

“Budge over, mate, I’m still cold,” Neville grunted, settling by his friend’s side, pressed against him, before slowly he slung an arm around his friend’s back, wrapping him in a half hug, even as he felt the heat his friend was generating slowly began to chase away the last of his chill.

Ares stiffened for a moment before he relaxed a bit and leaned forward, drawing his knees up to his chest.

“I failed Nev,” he said, quietly shaking his head, “I really thought I had this solved, but the thing I needed this most for,” he snorted dryly, but there was no humor in his voice, “It’s bloody fucking useless in that regard.”

Neville frowned at his friend as he began to pick through the right words before he realized that he didn’t have them.

So he went straight from the heart.

“You know, Ares, before you took pity on me and started teaching me, I thought I was bloody useless, mate.”

Ares turned to look, his grey eyes widening in surprise, before a frown emerged on his face, “You weren’t useless, mate, you just needed some confidence. All that talent you’re exhibiting now, it’s all you, I didn’t do a damn thing.”

Neville scowled at his friend, “Bullshit, don’t demean it, Ares, you’re the best friend I have, you looked out for me when everyone ignored me.”

Ares shook his head, “People hated me, Nev. We became friends because you didn’t care who my dad was when everyone else did.”

“And now people in the school love you,” Neville pointed out, shaking his head, “You’re the most gifted student I think any of us have ever seen. You use magic like it’s simply another limb. You’re a Black.”

“I don’t care about the name Nev,” Ares shook his head, “you know that.”

“It bloody means something,” Neville scowled at his friend, “Family means something,” he said, rubbing his friend’s back softly.

Ares visibly winced, “I don’t mean it like that, Nev,” he sighed and shook his head, “It’s great I have a dad, he’s the best, but the name,” he shrugged, “It’s just another name, whether people love me because of it, I really couldn’t care less.”

Neville sighed, shaking his head, realizing they had diverted, “Look mate, whatever you needed this for, I doubt this was the only way, if it’s that important to you-“ Neville paused looking meaningfully at Ares till his friend turned his gaze to him, “You’ll solve it some other way, I don’t think I’ve ever met as incredible a wizard as you mate.”

Ares shook his head, “Being gifted at magic doesn’t make you a great wizard, mate,” he replied softly.

Neville smiled fully at his friend, “I know, mate, it’s not your magic that makes you great, it’s being the guy who looked at another hurting, lonely teen and made the decision to be his friend, no matter what anyone had to say.”

Ares eyes widened, and he looked surprised, his mouth opening slightly, before his lips turned into a soft smile and he shook his head, “Thanks, Nev.”

“Anything for you mate,” Neville smiled and then ruffled Ares's hair, causing the other boy to laugh, attempting to pull away, but Neville didn’t let it go so easily, swinging an arm around his friend’s head, locking it in place before he began to drill down into his head in a hard noogie.

He got one good rotation before he found himself launched into the air in a flash of violet, landing in the snow a couple of feet away, with a soft thud. Neville’s eyes met Ares as the other boy stared at him challengingly.

“This means war,” Ares declared with slow, deliberate words before gesturing at a pile of snow that began to rapidly form into snowballs in the air.

Neville sighed and shook his head, already beginning to roll to the side, “Bugger,” he spat out.

-

Amusement warred with frustration as Hermione stood with her arms crossed and foot idly tapping in front of her best friends; they were both soaked and literally steaming in the entrance hall as the other students made paths around them to the Halloween feast.

While Neville looked somewhat embarrassed, his cheeks red, Ares looked completely unrepentant, with a broad smile across his face, which had the first tinges of realness that Hermione had seen in her friend in a while.

Finally, her eyes settled on Ares and raised an eyebrow at the teen, “Really?” she said, doing her best to prevent her lips from twitching upward, not wanting to let her own amusement diffuse her words.

Ares shrugged, “It was a dispute that had to be settled, a matter of honor.”

Hermione turned to Neville, who grinned broadly, shrugging his shoulders, “As he says, there were no other options.”

Hermione raised an eyebrow as she turned back to Ares, “And why are you still soaked?” she said dryly.

Ares and Neville glanced at each other before they looked back at her, “Battle wounds,” they said in unison.

A snort ripped through the air, and for a moment, Hermione worried she had broken before she realized it was the dark-haired girl next to her covering her mouth as she tried to hide behind her dark, wavy hair.

Hermione found herself taken aback. Throughout the day, Iris had been rather withdrawn, not talking to anyone; she had let it go, considering the day, but for her amusement to be drawn out now…

Hermione realized that maybe she couldn’t punish the boys as she wished.

Ares blinked, looking at the girl in surprise, seemingly taken aback, before a small but real smile curled his lips, “I gained these wounds in your defense, my lady; it wounds me for you to treat them so lightly.”

An undignified snort escaped Iris’s lips before she shook her head, seemingly regaining herself, looking at Ares with emerald eyes that Hermione could swear glowed.

“You say you gained them in my defense?” she asked, her voice somehow prim as she raised an elegant eyebrow at him.

Fleur, next to Hermione, sighed, a deep gusty breath, and Hermione noted that her eyes were fixed oddly on Ares.

“Would I lie?” Ares asked, grinning broadly.

Iris nodded her head. “Of course you would,” she grinned back, and then took several steps forward, slowly drawing near like a cat prowling closer to its prey before she was just in front of Ares, smiling up at him.

“Would I lie to you?” Ares asked, his grin fading slightly.

Iris hummed softly before she suddenly stood up on her tiptoes, circling her arms around Ares' neck, pressing a soft, gentle kiss to his cheek. The motion was sudden, but she stayed there for a long moment as the eyes of various students were drawn to them, even as they attempted not to look visibly.

Iris drew back slowly, settling fully onto her feet, smiling softly up at Ares, “Only in my best interest.”

She reached down and then drew his fingers into hers for a moment, tangling them in not quite holding hands but distinctly not separate, before she turned to the rest of the stunned group, “Are we eating or not?”

Hermione glanced at Ares, who looked completely surprised for once, his eyes wide, then back to Iris, who was smiling, unlike she had all day, looking entirely content, to Neville, who had a small smile on his face as he shook his head.

To Fleur, who had a beatific smile on her face, even as Hermione saw her blue eyes darken in an emotion she couldn’t name.

Hermione rapidly calculated every probability in the matter of a second. Reaching her conclusion, she clapped her hands together, “Let’s!”