𝙘𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨-𝙧.𝙖.𝙗

𝟮𝟱-𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀

JAMES SENDS JO A HOWLER.

It is the first thing to set her off that day- the crisp, white envelope landing neatly in front of her at breakfast. Heavy dread sets in as Jo realizes exactly what it is, eyes wide in horror and spoon clattering against her bowl of porridge. From her right, Alice lets out a soft, gentle, "Oh no."

Dorcas straightens out her shoulders, bracing herself. And then, without being touched, it erupts.

"JOSEPHINE POTTER! HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME THAT YOU'RE CAPTAIN? HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO YOUR POOR BROTHER? I BET YOU TOLD YOUR LITTLE BOYFRIEND BEFORE YOU TOLD ME! I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE PROUD AND MORE FURIOUS AT ONCE! YOU BETTER BELIEVE I'LL BE SNEAKING IN TO WATCH YOUR FIRST MATCH! AND SIRIUS SAYS HI."

And as the letter falls to the table, ripping itself into tiny, little pieces, a wave of silence washes over the Great Hall, all eyes on Jo. In that moment, with her face flushed a furious red and hands balled into fists, she thinks that she's going to kill her brother. The rumblings of distant conversation resume after a moment, but Jo sits still, hands clenched in fits as she stares shreds down at the shreds of the letter.

Her day does not get better from there.

She storms down the corridors towards Herbology, books held tightly against her chest as Hestia and Emmeline work to keep up with her furious pace. "Honestly, it wasn't that bad," Hestia says lightly from Jo's left they pass a group of third year Ravenclaws who giggle at the sight of Jo. "It could've been a lot worse. Remember when Vance got a howler from her mum fourth year for stealing her nice pair of knickers?"

Emmeline rolls her eyes. "Thank you, Hestia, for bringing up such a fond memory."

"Hey, anything to make Jo feel better," Hestia says, and then tilts her head towards Jo, "You know you're quite scary when you're angry."

"So I've been told," Jo grumbles, mostly to herself. And she figures it's really nothing to be so annoyed over but there is something so irritating to her about the whole ordeal. What she really wants is to be done with classes and in the library with Regulus, because, for some inexplicable reason, Jo feels that he is the only one who can ease her nerves.

I bet you told your little boyfriend before you told me. Jo's going to kill him.

"Everyone'll forget by tomorrow anyways," Emmeline says, but it does nothing to lessen Jo's irritation. "Though in all honesty, you probably shouldn't have told Remus before you told him. Amateur move, Jo, really."

Jo bites down on her tongue so harshly she can almost taste blood. She doesn't even know where to start with that one.

And as they round the corner, footsteps harsh and heavy against the floor, Jo catches sight of an all too familiar blonde with a sickly smile and a raised eyebrow, leaned up against the wall. She rolls her eyes at the sight of him, keeps her head down and picks up her pace. Jo tells herself that she's not running from him, because she's not a coward, but that she's just avoiding any confrontation because, if she's being honest with herself, she doesn't think she can bear being around him without putting a nasty curse on him.

So she grinds her teeth as she ignores the way he pushes off the wall, how he takes long strides as he walks behind her. She grinds down on her teeth and she tightens her grip on her books, and she takes deep, heavy breaths but still, every step he takes makes her eye twitch.

"Oi, Jo!" he calls, and Jo does everything in her power to ignore him, to pretend he is nothing but dust behind her.

Emmeline grimaces at the sound of her voice, glancing over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of him. "What does he want?" she questions Jo, sounding almost disgusted, and Jo doesn't blame her.