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rarepair_shortsTitle: Of Warning Signals
Character Pairing: Zacharias/Marietta
Prompt: maladroit
Rating: PG
Word Count: 758
Summary: "Mari, what's wrong?" Cho asks, feeling a genuine concern for her friend.
Author's Notes: The fifth of the series.
Link to Prompt Table: http://briony-tallis.livejournal.com/77461.html
Cho butters her toast and looks to her left, where Marietta sits sullenly, her food untouched and gleaming on her plate. "Mari, what's wrong?" Cho asks, feeling a genuine concern for her friend. It was awfully kind of Marietta to accompany Cho to DA meetings, despite her misgivings about the group. Cho appreciates it greatly, though she knows she probably doesn't show it very well. There's just so much to do and think about this year. Quidditch, homework, DA practice, and, mostly, boys.
"Nothing's wrong," Marietta says, though she does not look at Cho. Instead, her eyes flicker towards something behind her. Cho follows her gaze, but doesn't see anything, just a table filled with Hufflepuffs. "I'm just not very hungry this morning. Perhaps I've got the flu."
Cho bites her lower lip nervously, her eyes searching Marietta's form for some sign of what might be bothering her. Cho's having a lot of trouble herself lately, with her weak heart misbehaving every time she lays eyes on one Harry Potter. She's supposed to be mourning Cedric, and she very much is, but Harry is so kind and brave, and he knows things that nobody else knows. He knows Cedric's final moments.
But Marietta doesn't care for Harry, and she doesn't know anything at all of Cedric, and so it's obvious that her problems don't relate to Cho at all. "It's all right, you know," Cho says, laying her hand upon Marietta's arm. "You don't have to protect me. I share my troubles with you; you're free to share anything with me."
Marietta looks at Cho with something like surprise in her eyes, some hesitating sort of fear. Cho looks back with earnest longing, longing for shared comfort between friends. Cho only wants Mari to be happy.
"There is something," Marietta says slowly, her hand shaking as she lays it upon Cho's. "But you couldn't possibly understand."
"Well, it's worth a try," Cho says with a smile. "We're best friends, aren't we? How could I not understand?"
Marietta opens her mouth to speak, and they are immediately interrupted by the slamming of a rather large textbook upon the table, a loud thump that startles both girls into little gasping shrieks. Their hands come apart. Cho looks up to see a frighteningly angry Zacharias Smith standing over them, with his arms folded over his chest. "That was very rude," she admonishes him.
"I was only returning a book." He has no eyes for Cho; he watches Marietta carefully. "Thanks for the help," he says, and his voice is cruel and twisted.
"You really ought to be more careful," Cho says loudly, confused and angry by his obvious cold shoulder towards her.
"I'm not the one who needs to be careful," Zacharias replies, and Marietta glares back at him, her face beginning to flush.
"I'm perfectly cautious," Marietta says, "in everything I do."
Zacharias looks, finally, at Cho, who raises her eyebrows at him questioningly. "I suppose I'll see you in our next meeting," he drawls, glaring at the both of them before stalking away.
"Ooh, he's terrible," Cho says once he is gone, shoving the book closer to Marietta. "I can't imagine why you'd lend him your books."
Marietta stares down at said book and shrugs her shoulders. "Neither can I."
"What does he mean about being careful, anyway?" Cho demands, watching Zacharias return to his own table, not noticing how Marietta's fists clench and her face flushes a deeper shade of red.
"That's just his own awkward warning signal," Marietta mutters in response, sliding the textbook off the table and clutching it to her chest. She doesn't know where the book really came from; she'll probably have to ask Zacharias later. Which is incredibly irritating, as she's been planning on avoiding him for the rest of her life. She supposes they're both being rather awkward at the moment, though she would never do something so humiliating as this, some maladroit effort to prevent a confession. Zacharias Smith is still a mystery to her in many ways, despite his seeming to know Marietta's every corner.
"Warning signal? Whatever for?" Cho asks. Innocent Cho, who hates Zacharias for being rude to Harry, who thinks Marietta is suffering some simple school problem that can be solved by talking it out with a friend.
"Nothing," Marietta says, shaking her head and forcing a smile upon her face. "I have no idea at all."
Smith's little stunt does work, though, as awkward as it was; Cho doesn't ask Mari again what's wrong with her.
Character Pairing: Zacharias/Marietta
Prompt: maladroit
Rating: PG
Word Count: 758
Summary: "Mari, what's wrong?" Cho asks, feeling a genuine concern for her friend.
Author's Notes: The fifth of the series.
Link to Prompt Table: http://briony-tallis.livejournal.com/77461.html
Cho butters her toast and looks to her left, where Marietta sits sullenly, her food untouched and gleaming on her plate. "Mari, what's wrong?" Cho asks, feeling a genuine concern for her friend. It was awfully kind of Marietta to accompany Cho to DA meetings, despite her misgivings about the group. Cho appreciates it greatly, though she knows she probably doesn't show it very well. There's just so much to do and think about this year. Quidditch, homework, DA practice, and, mostly, boys.
"Nothing's wrong," Marietta says, though she does not look at Cho. Instead, her eyes flicker towards something behind her. Cho follows her gaze, but doesn't see anything, just a table filled with Hufflepuffs. "I'm just not very hungry this morning. Perhaps I've got the flu."
Cho bites her lower lip nervously, her eyes searching Marietta's form for some sign of what might be bothering her. Cho's having a lot of trouble herself lately, with her weak heart misbehaving every time she lays eyes on one Harry Potter. She's supposed to be mourning Cedric, and she very much is, but Harry is so kind and brave, and he knows things that nobody else knows. He knows Cedric's final moments.
But Marietta doesn't care for Harry, and she doesn't know anything at all of Cedric, and so it's obvious that her problems don't relate to Cho at all. "It's all right, you know," Cho says, laying her hand upon Marietta's arm. "You don't have to protect me. I share my troubles with you; you're free to share anything with me."
Marietta looks at Cho with something like surprise in her eyes, some hesitating sort of fear. Cho looks back with earnest longing, longing for shared comfort between friends. Cho only wants Mari to be happy.
"There is something," Marietta says slowly, her hand shaking as she lays it upon Cho's. "But you couldn't possibly understand."
"Well, it's worth a try," Cho says with a smile. "We're best friends, aren't we? How could I not understand?"
Marietta opens her mouth to speak, and they are immediately interrupted by the slamming of a rather large textbook upon the table, a loud thump that startles both girls into little gasping shrieks. Their hands come apart. Cho looks up to see a frighteningly angry Zacharias Smith standing over them, with his arms folded over his chest. "That was very rude," she admonishes him.
"I was only returning a book." He has no eyes for Cho; he watches Marietta carefully. "Thanks for the help," he says, and his voice is cruel and twisted.
"You really ought to be more careful," Cho says loudly, confused and angry by his obvious cold shoulder towards her.
"I'm not the one who needs to be careful," Zacharias replies, and Marietta glares back at him, her face beginning to flush.
"I'm perfectly cautious," Marietta says, "in everything I do."
Zacharias looks, finally, at Cho, who raises her eyebrows at him questioningly. "I suppose I'll see you in our next meeting," he drawls, glaring at the both of them before stalking away.
"Ooh, he's terrible," Cho says once he is gone, shoving the book closer to Marietta. "I can't imagine why you'd lend him your books."
Marietta stares down at said book and shrugs her shoulders. "Neither can I."
"What does he mean about being careful, anyway?" Cho demands, watching Zacharias return to his own table, not noticing how Marietta's fists clench and her face flushes a deeper shade of red.
"That's just his own awkward warning signal," Marietta mutters in response, sliding the textbook off the table and clutching it to her chest. She doesn't know where the book really came from; she'll probably have to ask Zacharias later. Which is incredibly irritating, as she's been planning on avoiding him for the rest of her life. She supposes they're both being rather awkward at the moment, though she would never do something so humiliating as this, some maladroit effort to prevent a confession. Zacharias Smith is still a mystery to her in many ways, despite his seeming to know Marietta's every corner.
"Warning signal? Whatever for?" Cho asks. Innocent Cho, who hates Zacharias for being rude to Harry, who thinks Marietta is suffering some simple school problem that can be solved by talking it out with a friend.
"Nothing," Marietta says, shaking her head and forcing a smile upon her face. "I have no idea at all."
Smith's little stunt does work, though, as awkward as it was; Cho doesn't ask Mari again what's wrong with her.
no subject
Date: 2011-09-13 01:02 pm (UTC)Great job!
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Date: 2011-09-14 01:57 pm (UTC)