She'd nearly decided not to show up to the club meeting on Tuesday. The exhaustion was a convincing deterrent, though it was a spectre she was growing accustomed to shadowing her. It lived in the pervasive anxiety that seemed fit to linger as a backdrop to everything she did. Hovering, but not quite enough to debilitate and excuse her from the promises she kept, the responsibilities required of her, the deadlines that she had to meet.

So with troublesome intrusive thoughts strolling beside her, she went to make good on the promise she’d made to Hermione.

On arrival, she was greeted with… quite a lot more people than expected. A patchwork collection of roughly thirty students, all hailing from different Houses, were in attendance, some faces familiar but most not. Surprisingly, she was not the only Slytherin representation, though that wasn't saying much… Ann Rochford stood tall amidst her gaggle of followers, imperious.

A polite tap on her shoulder prompted her to clear out from the doorway. As she was moving away, a familiar voice stopped her.

"Oh! Cleo!"

It was Jodie, standing at an angle to offset the weight of several large textbooks in her bag and wearing a large pink barrette to hold her bangs out of her eyes. "It's been a while!" she greeted, beaming.

“Jodie,” Cleo quietly replied, forcing a smile of her own. Though, matching her energy seemed rather impossible. “Didn’t know you’d be here.”

"Oh, yeah," the third year lilted, lips tightening as her eyes drifted about the room. "Lance invited me."

She’d never heard that name before. “Lance?”

"He's my…" Her eyelashes fluttered momentarily, a nervous tick. "Friend. Haven't I told you about him?"

“Afraid I haven’t had the pleasure,” Cleo admitted. “It’s not your fault. I’ve been pretty swamped. Has Potions gotten any better for you?”

The girl pulled a face momentarily before schooling her features. "Well, you know, I've still got a lot to learn."

“What section are you at?”

"Sensitive ingredients," she mentioned, depositing her bag on the ground with a relieved sigh. "We're handling fire seeds tomorrow."

“Oh, fun. Lessons that make Snape extra cantankerous. You must be excited,” Cleo teased.

Jodie expelled a mirthless laugh. "I'm just glad Snape isn't teaching any Remedial Potions this year, or I'd be the crowned fool of Slytherin."

Cleo’s head shook. “You’re being too hard on yourself.”

The girl’s gaze swept across the room, as if she were searching for someone. Or, perhaps, verifying that nobody important was around. Her hands went to her hair, smoothing it down absentmindedly. “Do you think Rhys is going to be here?”

“I don't know,” Cleo replied. “But it wouldn’t surprise me.”

"His girlfriend is here," she commented, going for a neutral tone and failing.

“Who?”

"Ann Rochford," Jodie supplied. "She's only a fifth year, but she's friends with loads of older students."

Cleo squinted. “Rhys is going out with her?”

The girl canted her head. "Yeah-- didn't you see her wailing over him in the Entrance Hall at the demonstration?"

“I did, but...” Cleo twisted her lips. “Didn’t really think a guy like Rhys would, y’know--”

Distracted, Jodie sighed, “Yeah… it’s--” Her eyes fixed on a point across the room. “Oh! There’s Lance and Erica!” She scooped up her bag again in a rush, her hastened departure completed with a well meaning but clumsy, “Nice talking to you, Cleo!”

Her voice petered out into a soft, “You too,” underpinned by a small smile. It was nice, in an odd way, seeing that. Nostalgic. She could remember being that carefree. Vivacious. Unburdened.

Her eyes fell into a heavy squint at the floor, insides clenching with guilt. Unburdened? Where had that come from…?

She watched the number of occupants in the room grow to forty as a group of Ravenclaws shuffled in but, inexplicably, the noise level increased tenfold. Everyone about her was talking loudly, laughing, practicing spells, enjoying their company… even if the groups themselves seemed to be carefully sectioned off.

And Cleo couldn’t help but feel the most sectioned off of all.

By the time Hermione arrived in the room, only a few minutes before seven, the sound levels had grown to full cacophony; the girl nearly dropped her mountain of papers, started as she was. Behind her trailed Harry, hands shoved in his pockets, and a few other Gryffindors Cleo had class with, but she couldn't remember their names.

Hermione tried to approach the podium directly, but was frequently hindered by misplaced students obstructing the way. When she finally arrived at her destination, she already looked tired but, after checking a quick Tempus, she tried to address the gathered students: “All right, I think it’s time to…”

No response. Cleo seemed to be the only one paying enough attention to notice her.

“Um, it’s-- it’s seven o’clock--”

Hermione seemed to be having a hard time wrangling the crowd. The echoing room shifted her voice about, diluting it midair; no one paid her any mind.

Suddenly, Ann’s high-pitched voice lifted above the other students, “Settle down, everyone! We’re starting!” A hush radiated out from her circle of friends and spread to the group at large as they all took their seats.

"Right, ehm, thanks," Hermione murmured, clutching a book to her chest for security. "So, um. Welcome. This is the first meeting. For-- for the Equal Academic Representation in Wizarding Institutions Group--"

Just as she'd managed to rattle that off, a Gryffindor from the crowd shouted, "Hear, hear!" A low rumble of laughter rippled through the gathered students.

Hermione took in an unsteady breath; the interruption could either bolster her resolve, or further derail her momentum. Judging by her next words, it had been the latter.

"Okay." Awkward, she shifted under the weight of their gazes. "The ehm… the… Well, see, the ah, reason I've brought you here--"

"I think we all know the purpose of the club," Ann cut in, amused. "It's in the title, isn't it?"

"Well-- yes, but--"

"Then let's talk action, right?" the girl continued, talking over Hermione as her protest fizzled out. Several other students were nodding, eager.

Hermione collected herself minutely, replying, "Yes, I-- yes of course. I was just getting to that--"

"Oh! I know!" Ann exclaimed, clapping her hands together with enthusiasm. "Let's hear some ideas from everyone, and we can all decide together what our first plan of action will be!"

Harry spoke, then, from his place in the front row. “Why don’t you let her speak instead of taking over, then?”

The girl tossed her brunette ponytail over her shoulder, leveling Harry an offended look. "What are you talking about? I'm only trying to help out." At that, she pinned her gaze on Hermione. "I mean, you were going to ask for ideas from everyone, weren't you?"

The Gryffindor shifted her weight, face as red as her house crest. "That um, I mean yes, of course I'd like to hear input, but I also--"

"Well that's settled, then," Ann concluded with a note of finality. "It’s not ‘taking over’ if I’m simply carrying out the original plan. Now, let's hear some ideas, hm? I have a few myself, but I think everyone should be able to share."

As if he'd been awaiting just such an opening, a Hufflepuff boy stepped forward out of the circle of students. "Hello all," he greeted the gathering, his posh accent only semi-familiar to Cleo. "My name is Justin Finch-Fletchley, for those of you with whom I've yet to make acquaintance."

A rumble of half-hearted acknowledgements and cleared throats passed through the audience. Cleo saw one of the other Hufflepuffs roll their eyes at the boy. He continued: “I am glad to see such a range of Houses represented in this gathering, and I for one think it's high time we all worked together in harmony to make Hogwarts a better place."

There was no response from the group, but Ann filled in the silence. "Very good, yes! That's what we like to hear, though of course that wasn't really an idea, but-- admirable enthusiasm!" Justin gingerly returned to his place as the girl ushered him away with a small, dismissive motion.

"Anyone else?" the girl asked, hands clasped behind her back.

A hand waved frantically in the air and Cleo quickly discerned that it belonged to the ever-bubbly Megan. "I just want to say that I am so excited to be here! This group is amazing!" she enthused. "I have so many fun ideas for activities!"

Ann's gaze had been expectant throughout, but she then prompted, "And those would be…?"

"Oh! Well, I think everyone else can probably think of something better," Megan qualified, playing with the ends of a tassel hanging from her school bag. "But it would be lovely if we could do really fun things together! Like painting a club banner, or making sweets, or-- or snowball fights--! "

A Ravenclaw boy picked up her enthusiasm. "What if instead of a banner, it was graffiti? We're making demands of this school, aren't we? We should use art as a form of protest."

Several students began talking at once in response.

"Is that really going to--?"

"-- not everyone is good at--"

"-- don't think there's enough--"

"Vandalising the school isn't going to help anyone," Hermione found her voice to cut in, expression incredulous.

"It's not vandalism," Ann defended the boy. "It's sending a message. 'Proving we won't be ignored', as Rhys would say."

A Gryffindor girl with red hair spoke up. "Yeah, we 'won't be ignored', all right. We'll be in detention the rest of our lives!"

"Ginny is right," Hermione agreed. "It's important that we stay above-board--"

"When has 'above-board' ever gotten anyone anywhere?" Ann dismissed, waving a hand for good measure. "We'll take it into advisement, um…"

"Eddie Carmichael," the boy supplied, a prideful tilt to his chin.

"A pleasure," Ann intoned alongside a slow blink. Cleo's swift glance at Hermione showed that her eyes were directed at the ground, mouth closed in a thin line.

“We could have a dance,” one of the younger Gryffindor girls said, blushing. “You know, like the Yule Ball. Some of us were too young to go before…”

Another girl, Hufflepuff that time, said, “I was thinking it might be nice to have an all-girls Quidditch match. The sport is so dominated by men--”

“-- a culture festival, maybe? My dad is from Belgium and--”

“-- should take out an ad in the Daily Prophet! It will look really favorable on--”

“-- selling sweets, we did that once to raise money to fix up my uncle’s shop--”

“-- House-themed ice sculptures would look lovely out on the grounds--”

A parade of ideas streamed from the gathered assembly at a pace nearly impossible for Cleo to keep up with. One after the other, students of all ages raised their voices to contribute. It might have been hopeful and inspiring, if the mood were not so peculiar; despite all the enthusiasm of the group, Cleo felt the distinct sting of imbalanced power. Hermione was the one who, by rights, should have been in charge, but she remained at the podium, saying very little. Standing tall and poised at the front, commanding the spotlight, was Ann, who took each comment with a slight smile and a cue for the next.

After most of the students had had their say, one voice rose up from the center of the crowd following a short delay. "Hi, um, I had a thought," a Ravenclaw boy mentioned. "Since we've got quite a fair bit of people gathered, we could put on a play. To, you know, raise awareness."

Ann did her due diligence and expressed the same amount of support for this as she had all the ideas previous. Clasping her hands together in front of her, she replied, "That's a marvelous idea--!"

"Raise awareness for what?" This challenge was issued by an olive-skinned girl from the same House, her tone plainly irritated, but even keeled. "What has absolutely any of this got to do with equality?"

The influence this had on the room was palpable; several people nodded along in agreement, while others looked worried, abashed, or disgruntled. The boy who had spoken before looked surprised. "Padma-- I didn’t mean-- Well, there's all sorts of plays about underdogs rising above their--"

"I'm not an underdog," the girl shot back. "I'm just tired of bigoted Slytherins mistreating anyone they deem 'inferior'!"

"Now, now," Ann's voice wedged itself into their argument. "Let's not resort to pointing fingers, hm? We don't all associate with degenerates, you understand--"

“Hold on, Ann,” Cleo stepped in, finally. “Let her talk.”

Padma scowled. "This isn't about pointing figures, it's about how some of you--" Her narrowed gaze lingered on the Slytherins in the room. "-- have really disgusting attitudes that a handful of detentions aren't going to fix!"

"There's always going to be some left-wrist wizards in any House," Ann was quick to stress, her voice smooth, if a little frosty. "But, of course, this club is all about--”

“-- not downplaying the concerns of others,” Cleo finished for her, feeling her hackles rise for the first time. "She's right to speak up if she's been experiencing bullying. Let her talk about it."

“And you shouldn't use wizardisms when you're addressing the room,” Hermione put in, seeming to find some confidence in Ann’s brief silence. “It’s inaccessible to Muggleborns.”

Ann's expression was a touch sour, but a Slytherin girl who looked close to Jodie's age spoke up. "This is a club. We're here to think of ideas, not listen to everyone's problems."

“You think I’m some kind of nag?” Padma objected, heated. “There’s a huge problem with bullying in this school, and how else will it change unless I say something? What else am I supposed to do? Stay silent?”

"No one is saying that," Ann relented, hands raised primly at her elbows in surrender. "Mafalda, we need to be more considerate. Everyone here is welcome to share their thoughts."

Padma's lips twisted. "Easy for you to say, when you're the one monopolizing the conversation--"

Justin interjected, "Let us remain civilized with each other--"

"Civilized?" Padma balked. "Do you know how often my sister and I have had to put up with--"

"Well you're not going to get anywhere if you just come out the gate with accusations--"

"She's bullied me! They've--" Padma's arms swept to encompass the whole of Ann's group, "constantly harassed my friends! And you want me to just be fine with that?"

"Not fine, just, not as hostile--!"

"You put yourself in my place! What would you do if--"

Many of the surrounding students looked deeply uncomfortable, but others were reacting more strongly to the tense atmosphere.

Another Ravenclaw boy tried to act as an intermediary. "Let's not fight; we should be working together--"

"Yes, definitely, Terry!" Megan agreed, now wringing her hands. "We're all here to help each other, right?"

Padma talked right over top of them both. “How in the world am I supposed to think that when you won't even listen to me about what her and her group have put some of us through?”

Ginny barged in, arms crossed. "Just the other day, one of Padma's friends was sent a scarf from her family, and the five of them kept making snide comments about it until she cried!” Her gaze was pointed toward Ann and her group, who could only manage to look scandalized at being singled out.

“It was only a joke…” Jane Atwater feebly excused, shuffling in place in the midst of Ann's circle of friends.

“Oh, some bloody joke!” Padma scoffed.

Another young Slytherin piped up again with a haughty, “No one can help that you’re way too sensitive.”

Padma’s eyes widened, furious. “Come again?”

“Lance! Don't talk like that!” That was Jodie, rising from her seat. “Words can be hurtful! That doesn’t mean she’s sensitive!”

Ginny’s voice was accusatory as she glared at Hermione. “Why are these people even allowed to be here?”

“Maybe if your friend calmed down,” a girl named Fay cut in, “and explained the situation like a normal human being--”

Padma’s breath hitched before she clenched her fists. “Excuse me?!”

A girl next to Fay placed a hand on her arm. “Fay-- Please. You’re not helping--”

Jodie was growing angry as well. “How else is she meant to react? I’d be really upset too if I saw my bullies show up at a club that's supposed to be against inequality!”

Both Ginny and Padma made a noise that expressed both their frustration and relief. “Thank you!” Padma belted. “At least someone gets it!”

Terry looked exhausted as he crossed his arms. “Well, what do you want us to do? Kick them out?”

“Yes!” Ginny and Padma exclaimed, simultaneous.

“Hold on!” Ann whined. “That’s not fair. You can’t just kick us out over a joke! One random girl throws a fit and suddenly me and my friends are no longer welcome?”

“Why should you be?” Ginny questioned, red in the face. “Especially when you make the entire school inhospitable for everyone? Why are you even here?”

“I haven’t done anything! Now you’re just hurling baseless accusations at me!” Ann complained. Her eyes, widened and exaggeratedly morose, besought the help of the others. “How is that fair?”

“It’s not,” Lance grumbled, scowling.

“Do any of you know who my boyfriend is?” Ann continued. “I’ve been with him! On the picket line! That should prove, above all, that I’m here in solidarity!”

“Oh so just because your precious boyfriend is an activist, you’re suddenly not a bully?” Padma accused.

Ginny looked toward Hermione again. “Hermione, I thought you were our friend. You can’t seriously let these Slytherins--”

“Oh we’re just Slytherins now, are we?” Lance was up in arms, practically barreling toward Padma with a raised finger in accusation. “So you whine because someone was mean to you but then turn around and discriminate against us based on House--”

“Will you stop?!” Jodie shouted to her housemate. "You sound like an idiot!"

Ginny swooped in, aggressively shoving herself in the boy’s face. “Back up, arsehole. Now!”

“Oh what’s that?” he balked with disgust, gesturing toward Ginny attempt at intimidation. “Just because I’m Slytherin, you think I’m going to attack your stupid friend?”

“This is why people hate us!” Jodie shouted at him. “Because you act like this! Because you treat people like this!”

“I haven’t done anything!” the boy objected. “I haven’t treated her like anything! But she’s swanning around, saying there has to be a full ban on this club for Slytherins! I bet if we said, none of her type allowed, everyone would be in uproar--”

“My type?” Padma growled.

“This is exactly why Slytherins shouldn’t be allowed,” Ginny seethed.

Fay popped up again, “There’s a Slytherin defending you, genius!”

Ginny practically rounded on her. “You know what I mean! Obviously if they’re not complete arseholes like this lot here, then they can stay!”

“I’m an arsehole, am I?” Lance bristled. “You’re the one who started this whole mess! You’re the one with a problem! Why don’t you leave?”

“Because this club is meant for people like me!” Padma argued. “For people like Hermione! Why the hell should we be kicked out just because you’re uncomfortable being called out for your horrible behavior?”

He stepped up to Padma again, chest out. “My horrible behavior, huh?”

All of a sudden, Harry burst out of his seat, placing himself in between Lance and the girl. “Back off.”

“If you can’t debate without hostility, then maybe you shouldn’t involve yourself in matters like these,” Ann suggested. “This is no way to achieve House unity.”

“I don’t want to be unified with you if it means excusing how you treat people,” Ginny averred in a tone so cold Cleo felt the room chill.

Padma’s tone grew urgent, her plea directed squarely at Hermione. “Are you planning to do anything about this?”

A quick glance at the girl revealed a picture of helplessness: her wide eyes, her face drained entirely of color, and her knuckles white as she gripped the scroll in her hands hard enough to strangle it. Hardly allowing her room to breathe, Padma shouted, "You going to say anything at all?!"

She was met with silence as Hermione stood frozen in place.

Padma scoffed. "Of course not." She pushed past her housemates, shoving Harry out of her way with enough force to destabilize him momentarily. Then, she leveled her gaze at Hermione's withered form. "Thanks for the support, Granger.”

Her angry gaze encompassed the entire room before she barged out, the sound of her stomping clamoring hurriedly down the hall.

There was a heavy pause following her departure. Nobody dared to move or make a sound, as if the slightest disturbance might nullify the fragile peace brokered in the silence.

A small boy closer in age to Thea raised a shaky hand. Ann was the one to prompt him. "Yes?"

"Um." He swallowed, nervous. "May I please go to the bathroom?"

The girl folded her arms, sighing in exasperation. "Yes."

The child scuttled away, disappearing with the muted haste of a mouse. The atmosphere was only slightly less unbearable for the interruption. In the midst of it, Ann's voice arose once more. "Everyone… now that the disruption is over--"

"Disruption?! Seriously?" Ginny erupted. "Piss off, Rochford!"

She, similarly, stormed out the door. Ann, on the other hand, was quite composed, taking in a steadying breath before commenting, "What I was going to say was-- I asked for ideas from everyone because my idea was to combine a bunch of them together into one big event for the whole school."

The group remained quiet, still recovering from the horrible awkwardness that still lingered about the space. Ann sighed, frowning as she admitted in a pitiable tone, "I just… thought it would be fun.”

Megan, evidently, took this bait. “I think that’s a really fun idea. Right, everyone?”

The reaction from the room was lukewarm, with no one showing much support one way or the other. Somehow, Ann took this in stride.

“And if that girl had let me speak, I would gladly have given her the opportunity to be a part of the event, leading the effort to teach everyone more about cultural sensitivity…”

With the din gone, Cleo felt more inclined to speak. Sitting up in her chair, she leveled Ann with a scowl. “Stop.”

Her answering tone was sharp. “What?”

With Ann staring back, the idea of getting into it with her seemed… pointless. Arguing the fact she’d antagonized the girl into leaving was going to get her, and the meeting itself, nowhere. Nevermind the fact that picking a fight with a fifteen year old felt so…

Pursing her lips, Cleo pointedly turned her attention to Hermione, who hadn’t budged one inch from where she stood, glum eyes trained to the ground. “What do you think, Hermione?”

As all eyes turned to the girl, Cleo nearly regretted drawing their attention. Hermione looked about ready to sick up; she was clinging to the podium as if it would keep her afloat. “Um…” she breathed, the sound shallow, as if the air was too thin. “I’m… We--” She filled her lungs, holding it before letting out in a whoosh: “We’ll meet at the same time next week.”

Releasing her stance, she turned quickly away, fumbling with her stack of papers as the room filled with murmurs and disgruntled chatter. As the students around her prepared to leave, Cleo looked at them in bewilderment; were they honestly ready to just leave it at that?

Well, maybe they were. The migrating crowd appeared to want nothing more than to scatter and leave behind what had been an awkward, unexpected experience. Perhaps wondering if something like this was even worth the bother.

And Cleo hadn’t exactly made that better, had she? Especially not to Hermione, bamboozled like that. What else was she meant to say, other than what would give her the quickest means of escape?

Shit.

The girl was still attempting to gather her things when Cleo spotted her. She needed to apologize.

Cleo hurried to approach her, but before she could get close enough, Harry beat her to it.

"Hey, you alright?" he broached, his voice so careful it almost sounded patronizing.

Even from a distance, Cleo could hear how strained the girl's voice was. "Yes. Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

Harry's brow was furrowed with concern. He lowered his voice to say something, and it prompted an immediate, caustic reaction from Hermione.

"It certainly wouldn't be the first time." Her arms jerkily scooped up her bag.

"Hermione, please…"

"I just need to be alone right now," she told him. "I'll talk to you later."

She was gone moments later.

Cleo’s arrival felt rather untimely in that moment. She considered walking away altogether, until she noticed Harry’s eyes catch hers. No escaping it after that, she supposed. Though she couldn’t shake the feeling of being caught in a place she shouldn’t have been.

“Happy to see you out of the infirmary,” she addressed him once she was close enough, trying for a neutral, safe ground.

There was an unsettled edge to his acknowledgement, a stiffness to his neck as he nodded. “Yeah, I uh… heal up quick.”

“Guess the rest was just what you needed, then?”

Harry pressed his lips together; she felt certain he’d meant to smile, but it seemed to have arrived half-baked on his face. “I don’t think any amount of rest could have prepared me for…” He gestured vaguely toward the center of the room.

“Oh.” Cleo blew out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “Yeah. This could have gone better.”

The boy folded his arms, frowning. “Understatement of the century.”

She smiled at him, albeit quite sadly. “I wanted to apologize to her, actually.”

“What for?”

“I only wanted Ann to stop bulldozing her,” she admitted. “But I didn’t realize putting the attention on Hermione would make her feel pressured.”

Harry’s gaze traveled to the door. “Padma was right. Don’t think anything is going to get done until the Slytherins are gone.”

Her answering sigh was exhausted; she wasn’t going to quibble with him about nuance. “Maybe so.”

At that, he seemed to remember who he was talking to. “I, ehm… I didn’t mean you.”

“It doesn’t matter,” she tried to smooth over, diplomatic. “I’m not going to fight you on it.”

However, this put Harry even further ill-at-ease; he cleared his throat, not looking at her directly. “Anyway-- I just wish there was something I could do... not that Hermione really wants my help right now.”

“She does,” she softly disagreed. “I think she’s just incredibly overwhelmed. This meeting meant a lot to her and considering how it just went--”

“Yeah, I know,” he commented, a weariness suffusing his tone. “It’s just-- The three of us had a row, and now she’s hardly talking to me or Ron.”

“Can I ask what you fought about?” Cleo attempted, wary. After a moment, however, she nervously tacked on: “It’s alright if not.”

His deliberation lasted only a few seconds before he said, "I don't really want to talk about it. It's just… It's all a bit of a mess, is what I mean."

“I see.”

If he picked up on her careful tone, he didn't let on. "Anyway, er… We still meeting up on Thursday? I'll have the Blood Replenishing Potion memorized by then."

“Ah… yeah. I might be a little late because I have a thing in the morning with Snape but… I’ll be there.”

His lips were closed tight when he smiled. “Well. Sorry, er, I’ve got Quidditch -- I’m late already, but I wanted to be here for… you know.”

The abrupt way he’d mentioned that left her stomach feeling tied up in knots. “No, don’t want to keep you. Sorry. Have fun.”

With a brief wave, he murmured, "See you later."

And when Harry turned his back, she felt a rush of heat blister against her eyelids, so sudden and unexpected that she ducked her head away to hide them.