Briar sat with her roommates on the train back to Hogwarts. The three of them talked about their summers while Briar mostly just listened and commented on some of the fun things they did occasionally. The four girls were all on good terms once again after everything that happened with Malfoy last year, and Briar was grateful for that. She wanted her dorm to be a space where she could relax, not one of tension and furious glances.

After some point in the conversation, Pansy gingerly began, "So we're getting our third hint tomorrow."

Daphne whispered conspiratorially, "I heard that we'll find out how many years apart we are from our soulmates."

Millicent whispered, "So, it's if we're the same age as our soulmate?"

Daphne nodded and turned to Pansy with a sly smile. Pansy realized, "What if my soulmate is an older boy? Oh, that'd be hot."

Briar just blinked and stared out the window to watch the moving scene. For the first time, she was actually curious to see what she got as well. Everything had changed after her conversation with her father, and she couldn't look at any of this stuff the same way again.

She shivered at the thought of having to marry Malfoy. She hoped her soulmate was someone else that her father would approve of, so that she could avoid that horrible fate. Or better yet, maybe she could completely avoid marriage altogether. That seemed like the best option.

The other three girls began to curiously glance at Briar, but she didn't meet their eyes and just continued watching the thick forests whip past them. She was grateful for each moment that their train kept drifting on towards Hogwarts. Each was one step closer to a future she was terrified of, and a mile farther from the worst person Briar had ever known.

-

The four roommates all sauntered into the Great Hall the next morning, all of them smugly smiling when younger Slytherins at their table stared at them with eyes wide in awe. They were fifth years now, and younger students had started to truly look up to them at this point.

When the four of them plopped into their usual seats, Briar noticed a pair of first year boys who were staring at them with jaws dropped and wide eyes. One loudly whispered to the other, "They're so pretty."

The four girls all met made eye contact and sent one another pleased smiles. They all were thinking the same thing: yes, we truly are.

After the girls had all settled and had started to chatter amongst each other, a third year murmured, "Since when did Millicent get hot?"

Millicent's cheeks twinged pink. She had gained a lot of confidence over the summer and really grew into herself, losing some weight as well. She felt beautiful now, but Briar thought she had always been beautiful. Millicent just needed some time to figure that out.

Briar leaned across the table and teased, "If your hint says you have a 2 year gap, I'm betting on that kid."

The brunette just slapped Briar's hand, but her flattered smile was hard to miss. She hissed, "Oh, shut up, Davies."

Briar sat back with a smile. She admired the long Slytherin banners that honored her house with a small smile. She felt her fellow students' excitement to be back at Hogwarts. Pansy noticed Briar's smile and felt happy for her roommate. A smile was not something she often saw on the moody girl, but it was a welcomed adjustment. Pansy noticed that Briar actually had quite a pretty smile. She hoped she would see more of those smiles in the future.

Malfoy stepped up to the table with Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, and Theo in tow, and the smile immediately dropped off Briar's face. Her stomach felt as though it was full of ice as her father's words reverberated around in her mind.

She was about to bolt from the room because of the wave of nausea that was rising in her throat, but Dumbledore stepped up to address the students in that moment. He announced, "Hello, students! I trust that all of you had a restful break and are ready to get right back into your studies. For my third years, today is the day you'll receive your first hint about your soulmate."

Dumbledore continued to address the third years about this while Briar just stared at a place behind him. She could feel Malfoy's hard glare on her seconds later, so she whipped her head to stare back at him. The two of them both fiercely glared at one another, but this was interrupted when the owls flew into the Great Hall, dropping letters onto plates in a flurry of activity.

Briar delicately picked up the letter and opened it. She tugged out the note inside and unfolded it with an empty gaze on the page.

Her soulmate was in the same year as her. All of the Slytherins slowly looked up, and Briar noticed the jerky way Malfoy refolded his letter and shoved it into his bag.

Malfoy ended up standing up without eating at all and leaving the Great Hall. Pansy murmured to Blaise, "You should go check on him."

Blaise rolled his eyes and groaned, "Why can't Briar go or something?"

Briar narrowed her eyes at him while Daphne leaned across the table to hiss, "Need we remind you of what happened last year?"

"Exactly! Malfoy will hex anyone else who tries to check on him, but the git's afraid of Briar, so he won't curse her," Blaise argued.

Briar rolled her eyes and scoffed, "I wouldn't be too sure about that."

Goyle grimaced and pleaded, "Come on, Briar. Will you?"

"No."

Millicent whispered, "What if something's really wrong?"

"I don't care."

Crabbe whined, "But he'll be in a bad mood the rest of the day."

Theo groaned, "Good God. I cannot survive another day of that boy's moodiness."

Briar shot them all withering glares and snapped, "It's not happening, so leave me alone."

It was silent for a few moments until Pansy compromised, "We'll all pay for your butterbeer on the next trip to Hogsmeade."

Between bites of eggs, Briar considered this. The others stared at her hopefully for the duration of her silence. She finally slammed her fork down and groaned, "Fine, but only if you all buy me new sketchpads that day."

They all nodded their heads in agreement.

Briar blew air through her lips angrily before she pushed away from the table and slung her bag over her shoulder. She started to walk away but whirled back towards the table to hiss, "If he curses me, I'm not talking to any of you anymore."

Blaise slowly smirked and taunted, "Eh, you'll come back to us. You always do."

Daphne and Pansy tried not to laugh at Blaise's gibe, yet they failed to contain their amused smiles.

Briar rolled her eyes before wordlessly leaving the Great Hall. She figured he was probably right, but what was she supposed to do? They were her roommates and housemates. It would be hard to avoid them forever.

She slipped from the Great Hall, just as Dumbledore was introducing a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who was covered in head-to-toe in a sickening amount of pink. Briar was grateful to be escaping when she heard the shrill voice of the woman ring out in the room, addressing the student body.

Briar found Malfoy by himself, just staring blankly at the wall. She slowly approached him, her footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. His eyes snapped to look at her, but when he saw the bored expression on her face, he figured that she wasn't coming to attack him again. He scowled and demanded, "What do you want?"

She pursed her lips and explained, "They voted me to come check on you."

"You?! Why would they send you? I can't stand you," Malfoy questioned with clenched fists and a heavy frown.

Briar shrugged and grunted, "I don't know."

Malfoy rolled his eyes and looked back down at his hands. As a heavy silence fell over the two of them, Malfoy finally sighed, "I got a 1. My soulmate isn't in our year."

Briar blinked and wondered, "Are there Muggle-born Slytherins in the year above or below us?"

"No... I just hope they aren't a Gryffindor," Malfoy spat, feeling disgusted at the possibility. He couldn't imagine ever being with someone from the house that prided foolish bravery and poor impulse control. Everything about Malfoy's future was controlled, precise, and planned, and the Gryffindor way went against everything he had ever known.

Briar's conversation with her father came back into focus at Malfoy's snide remark and look of disgust, and she felt like she was going to be sick again. Malfoy noticed Briar's sudden loss of color, and the two of them stared at one another uncertainly. Briar could tell that Lucius had mentioned their parents' plans for them too, and a thick tension filled the space between them.

Briar murmured, "I'm going to go."

Malfoy nodded without saying anything, so Briar just backed away. Her eyes were vacant as she walked towards her first class. No one tried to check in on her that day, despite the faraway look in her eyes, and she figured that likely no one even noticed, except for the plants that drooped heavily in herbology that day.

Briar didn't see Neville's round eyes and slight frown casted her way when he saw how the plant were reacting to her. She ended up leaving class early without telling anyone where she was going, and the shy Gryffindor boy watched her go with a heavy gaze.

———