Union of Two Houses

Laurel went off to hunt and roam for a bit to clear her head. Butterflies were in her stomach as it set in that Alec knew about her secret. It was exciting yet scary that he knew but she trusted he wouldn't say a word to anyone. After she returned she huffed before curling up beside him. "You need to leave before morning. I uh....dont transform back into my clothing..." She said shyly as her jead laid in Alec's lap.

Alec relaxed as he waited for Laurel to return to him. Time passed and he was just about to doze off from sheer boredom when she returned. He looked at her and stretched, tucking his snake companion back into his shirt. The snake translated for her as she spoke and he nodded his head. "Sure. I'll leave before morning but until then, I'm here to stay." He gently stroked her head.

Laurel sighed at his calming strokes on her head. Laurel couldn't help but nap a little bit in hos lap but she woke up just as the sun was rising. She nudged Alec with her large snout to wake him up. "Its time to go..." She told him as she begun to pick out clothing for the day with her large snout.

Alec eventually nodded off, completely relaxed. It felt nice to get closer to Laurel, especially after spending so much time apart. Although he had humiliated with the potion incident, it had still brought them back together. He didn't fully regret doing it. He just regretted that she got humiliated. He woke up as she nudged him and yawned, rubbing his eyes. "Time to go already?" He got up and stretched before looking at her. "Okay. I'll see you later." He then started to leave the Shrieking Shack to head back.

As time went on, it was already breakfast at the great hall. Honey Goldwood, a hufflepuff 4th year, was looking around for her friend and partner in Divination. Laurel hasn't been seen at the Ravenclaw table. Honey got up and beamed her usual smile and bouncy walk as she walked over to Stuart at the Gryffindor table which Laurel sat with them after eating. "Good morning! I was wondering, do any of you know where Laurel is? She was supposed to meet me this morning to compare notes for divination." Honey asked as the group sneered as Stuart was smirking at Alec and back to Laurel's ditzy friend. Still annoyed at Alec for ruining his moment.

"Not the slightest idea but Drayson should know...since he was in love with her." He snickered as Honey looked quite confused. She knew Laurel was into Stuart so it was shocking to her. "The Slytherin? Oh are they dating?" She was curious as Stuart's friends were giggling as they made fun of her. "Yeah go ask him!" Stuart smirked as Honey nodded as she bounced over to the Slytherin house. "Hi Alec... I was wondering if you've seen Laurel i figured you would since you two are so close!" Honey giggled like a bubble of sunshine. "How long have you two been together? It must be recent since she never told me she was seeing someone!" Honey beamed as the Gryffindor table howled with laughter.

After Alec had returned to the castle, he had stopped by the dorms to get a little rest before getting up and getting dressed. He figured he would see Laurel at some point. He headed to the great hall for breakfast and sat down beside a blond Slytherin who was sitting by himself. "Good morning, Matt." The blond, Matthew, looked up and smiled at Alec. "Good morning, Alec. Did you sleep well?" Like Alec, he was an outcast amongst the Slytherin. It was only because he was a Muggleborn.

"Nah. I slept like shit but I'll be okay." He began to eat but paused when he noticed Stuart looking at him. He didn't like the way Stuart was looking at him but instead of rising to the bait, he decided to ignore him. However, he was surprised when Honey walked up to them. He stared at her curiously, not used to people just walking up to him like that. "Uh, no. I haven't seen her." He then paused, his eyes widening at her question.

"Ah, we're not....uh..." He then noticed the Gryffindor's howling with laughter and it didn't take long for him to connect the dots. He glared at Stuart, quite pissed off by what he had done but turned back to Honey, trying not to glare at her. "We're not dating. We're just friends." He looked like he was about to get up and give Stuart a piece of his mind, but Matt placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.

"It's not worth it, Alec. Just let it go." He then looked at Honey, smiling charmingly at her. "Are you friends with Laurel?" He asked, curious.

"Ohhh well maybe Stuart's mistaken. I'll have to tell him later..." Honey said totally oblivious that Stuart made a fool of her. "Oh well, I'll ask Tessa later. Sorry for the misinformation." She giggled and then looked to Matt with a grin. "Mhm! Since second year, Laurel wanted to impress Professor Snape with her assignment so she asked if i had fresh herbs and a rare plant for the potion to make it more potent. She got high marks on her project and we've been friends since then." She giggled as she bounced on her heels.

Alec scoffed at that, looking at Honey. "It wasn't his mistake. He lied to you. He's a git." He glanced in the direction of Stuart, sending him another glare before looking down at his food to continue eating. Matt nodded, gesturing for her to sit down if she wanted to. Matt was pretty nice and Alec looked up to him to a point. He didn't let the cruel words of the other Slytherins bother him.

"I've never had the chance to talk with her but she seems nice," Matt said, glancing over at Alec. He could tell that his friend was pissed off because of Stuart. Which meant Alec was dying to give Stuart a piece of his mind. He hoped that Alec wouldn't pick a fight.

"Laurel is as sweet as butterbeer!" Honey giggled as she took a seat next to Matt. "I have you in my dark arts class don't i? Isn't Lockheart insufferable? He has no idea what he is doing!" She giggled as Honey secretly wanted to be an Auror but her parents would never allow it. She was expected to become a herbologist which she didn't mind but it wasnt her passion.

"Yes, we're in the same class." He paused for a moment before nodding his head. "Yes, I don't know what the Headmaster was thinking when he hired that man. I've read his book and something just seems off. There's no way he did all that stuff." Matt had noticed Honey in his class but had never tried to talk to her. Alec was just about the only person he talked to voluntarily.

"Oh its such a relief someone feels the same way!" Honey giggled as a little rat companion snuck out from under her honey locks and sniffed the air. "Oh hello Rosie!" She giggled and pulled a piece of bread out for her rat to nibble on. "I found her abandoned in a rosebush." She giggled. "Anyway, i couldn't finish the book. I had to put it down because the stories seem too good to be true. The one time I prefer Snape to teach us Dark arts instead." She said as people were heading out of the hall for class. "Well it was nice meeting you both!" She giggled before getting up to leave.

Matt smiled, chuckling softly but then froze as he spotted the rat. He was afraid of all rodents since he had a bad experience with them as a child. He forced himself to look away from her and nodded. "She's cute." He then glanced around, realizing it was time to leave. He nudged Alec who was just finishing eating. "Time to go." He then turned to look at Honey. "It was nice talking to you as well."

After a week, Laurel was back in school and she kind of looked like hell. She even had a match with Gryffindor in a few days which she wasn't prepared for. After hearing that Potter was officially replacing Stuart, she was far less confident in her condition right now. She could hardly focus on her broom as she practiced with her snitch to chase it. A couple of times she almost crashed into the stand. She shook her head as Honey suddenly was cheering Laurel on. Tessa was standing beside Honey with concern for her friend. "She looks awful...." Tessa says in a worrisome tone as Honey keeps trying to boost Laurel's morale. "Doesn't mean we cant cheer her on!" Honey nudged Tessa who went along and cheered for Laurel. Laurel panted on her broom but she wasnt giving up on practice as she flew higher and higher until her eyes closef and she let go of her broom and begun to fall from the sky.

Alec normally didn't attend the Quidditch games even though it was something he was interested in. However, this time, Matt had finally managed to talk him into attending one. He sat beside the blond Slytherin, his green eyes pinned on Laurel. He didn't want to show it, but he was worried about her. She didn't look like she was doing so well. Potter was really good, too.

As she began to fall, he stood up and felt like his world was crashing around him. "She's falling!" He swore and started to leave, wanting to go down there and try to save her but Matt stopped him. "Wait. They won't let her hit the ground, I don't think. Maybe she'll snap out of it."

Something fluttered by Laurel's ear as she snatched it in mid air and her broom while free falling into the sky. Laurel's parents were watching with horror but the sighed with relief that she was able to regain control for a moment. Laurel then crashed into the ground and somersaulted onto the grass woth a grunt as she then looked at her hand clutching the snitch as people cheered. She sighed and laid back into the grass for a moment of peace.

Alec still wanted to go down there and try to catch her, even though he knew he wouldn't make it in time. He hated feeling so helpless but knew that he couldn't always protect her. As she landed, he realized that she had caught the snitch. He fell back onto his seat and sighed, trying to calm himself. Matt gently patted his shoulder. "Come on, let's go wait for her." Alec nodded and got up.

Laurel's house was cheering and celebrating with Laurel whom looked slightly rejuvenated from the adrenaline rush. She giggled and laughed as Jack and Danielle Ellesmere ran up to join their brilliant daughter. Jack snatched Laurel up abd swung her about as she giggled. "Thats my girl! You scared us half to death but you did it! So proud of you my dear!" He rejoiced as Laurel giggled. "Dad put me down!" She laughed as he did so.

Laurel noticed Alec and Matt and waved to them. " Mom, Dad, this is Alec Drayson and his friend Matt." Laurel introduced them but Jack stiffened at the Slytherin boys. He knew Lysander Srayson rather wellband had suspicions of him but never had proof he did something wrong. "Well its a pleasure to meet you both." Danielle answered as Jack snapped out of it. "Yes...a pleasure indeed..." He said as he studied Alec.

As Alec and Matt approached, the younger Slytherin noticed that Laurel's parents were there. He paused for a moment, before approaching. He didn't miss the way Jack stiffened at the sight of him or the way he seemed to be eyeing him suspiciously. Alec wasn't dumb. It was because of his father that Jack was suspicious of him.

"Hello. It's nice to meet you as well." He then turned to look at Laurel, moving a little closer to her. "Are you okay? I almost had a heart attack when I saw you fall. I can't believe you caught the snitch on your way down." Matt seemed unaware of the slight tension between Jack and Alec. "He wanted to rush down as soon as you started flying." Alec blushed at that, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was worried."

"I'd be a liar if i didn't admit i was worried too. I must have over practiced a bit. At least i looked daring and cool right?" She giggled and noticed her dad staring at Alec closely. Tessa ran into Laurel with a hug while Honey was skipping excitedly over to join the group hug. "You scared the wits out of me! Dont do it again!" Tessa giggled as her and Honey let go. "Laurel a word..." Jack said as Laurel nodded as she walked over with her father for privacy. "Laurie, i don't think its a good idea for you to be hanging around Drayson. His father is very suspicious and i cant prove anything yet but he may be a deatheater." Jack said as Laurel was taken aback by this and looked to Alec. "So? Why does his father's crimes define Alec? He did nothing wrong. His friend over there is Muggle born." Laurel said as she pouted at her dad. "I dont trust him Laurel." He sighed but Laurel glared and shook her head. "I'm sorry you feel that way." She said as she stormed off and away from everyone. She couldn't help crying as she made it back to the castle.

Alec stared at her for a moment before cracking a smile. "I guess, but you still gave me a heart attack. Don't do that again, okay?" He then paused as the girls approached them. Matt waved shyly at them, his gaze focused on Honey. He honestly had kind of a crush on her. She was so warm and bubbly, like a little ray of sunshine. Plus she was super cute.

Alec watched as Laurel and her dad went off to talk about something and couldn't help but frown. Why did he have a feeling that her father was trying to warn her away from him? He started to look away but then noticed her run off. Immediately, he was running after her. "Laurel, wait!" He caught up to her eventually and grabbed her by the arm and was shocked to see her crying. "What's wrong?"

Laurel turned to him and wiped her tears. She was silent for a moment and knew that this would be the only time they were alone completely. "Dad thinks i should stay away from you. You wanna know why?" There was a long pause as she crossed her arms. "He thinks your father is a deatheater....tell me its not true....?" She really hoped she was wrong but everything made sense about his father nd why he couldn't stand him.

Alec was right. Her father had been warning her away from him. Would she abandon him? No, probably not. Laurel was stubborn and she wouldn't abandon a friend like that. He felt guilty for doubting her for even a moment. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, averting his gaze to the ground. "I'm not going to lie to you. My father is indeed a Death Eater. My mother, however, isn't. I'm not one, either. But my father, he's a pureblood. He's set in the ways."

He lifted his gaze and looked at her. "I never said anything. I don't agree with his beliefs or what he does, but he's my father. I don't know if I could ever tell anyone with authority the truth. I won't ask you to keep this secret and I understand if you want to tell your father. My dad got himself into this mess."

Laurel's eyes begun to leak as he admitted the worst. "What happens when he finds out about me?" Laurel asked as she stared at him. "I know you like me... I like you too. Ever since we met on the train... He'll never accept me and he'll want you to join them as well..." She backed away from him as her heart was breaking. "If he knows im a werewolf... It'll be worse for me." Laurel turned from him to keep walking.

"I don't know. Probably nothing good." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair again in frustration, hating this situation. He knew that she was scared. "He already wants me to join but I haven't really given him a chance to actually ask me. Of course, he's not too happy with me right now because I'm not taking my studies seriously." He watched as she backed away from him and a look of hurt showed on his face.

He walked after her and grabbed her by the arm again, forcing her to stop. "Maybe you should tell your dad. If my father is in prison, he can't hurt anyone, especially not you. Laurel, I don't want to lose you. Not again."