Chapter 43: Valentine's Day

Following their shared time in the hospital wing, the relationship between Nolan Von Draugr and Eve Stock improved significantly. Eve had become rather attached to Nolan. While she might not have been as mature as Cho Chang, who had understood the concept of romantic affection by the age of ten, Eve was certain that the safest place in the world was by Nolan's side. He never looked down on her or treated her coldly. As a result, Nolan spent most of his time with Eve, which greatly displeased Miss Chang. Even when Nolan was "dating" Cho, the ever-present shadow of the little silver-haired tagalong trailed behind them. Soon, February 14th—Valentine's Day—arrived. That morning, the younger Slytherins gathered in the common room, speculating about how much chocolate Nolan might receive. "It's definitely not going to be much!" Malcolm Baddock declared with confidence. "I admit Von Draugr's grades are impressive, and he's quite the maverick, but he's a half-blood. I'm convinced most witches still prefer pureblood wizards. It promises them a life of luxury if they marry into wealth." "Shut up, Malcolm," Miles Bletchley retorted bluntly. "I don't know if girls care about pureblood status, but I do know they definitely don't like you. You're nothing but a pants-wetting braggart whose only friend is Alicia's pet turtle." "That's rubbish! I just happen to like turtles, so I occasionally feed it!" Malcolm's face turned crimson with rage. He vehemently denied that his toad-like demeanor had sparked a friendship with the turtle. Another pureblood Slytherin, Montague, attempted to mediate. "Alright, alright, calm down, you two. Nolan will probably get a fair amount of chocolate. I've heard the Hufflepuff girls are smitten with him lately because he taught every single one of them how to cast Wingardium Leviosa during Charms class. And then there's that Ravenclaw... you all know who I mean. As for Gryffindor, maybe Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell are fans too. After all, Nolan was outstanding in Defense Against the Dark Arts." Miles snickered. "Those Weasley twins thought Spinnet's chocolate was meant for them and nearly fought over it. Total idiots. Oh, Merlin, I'd better go wake Nolan!" The Slytherins wished Miles luck; everyone knew that waking Nolan was one of the most grueling "classes" at Hogwarts. "Is Nolan not awake yet?" A soft, delicate voice interrupted the boys' banter. They turned to see who had spoken and were momentarily taken aback. Eve Stock had clearly put considerable effort into her appearance today. She had tied her silver hair into two adorable pigtails, her bangs trimmed playfully to frame her face. The sight of her caused Malcolm's expression to darken instantly. However, he refrained from directing his ire at Eve. Everyone knew Nolan was her protector, and the combat prowess Nolan had displayed while saving her last time was enough to make Malcolm think twice before provoking her. "Good morning, Eve," Montague greeted her with a warm smile. He had never been particularly concerned about the pureblood versus half-blood debate. "I see you're hiding a package behind your back. That's chocolate for Nolan, isn't it? Perhaps we'll be lucky enough to get a taste?" "It's not chocolate..." Eve's face turned bright red. Malcolm sneered. "Oh, stop pretending. If it's not chocolate, what is it then?" "It really isn't chocolate," Eve mumbled timidly. "I know Nolan doesn't like chocolate. I thought he might not enjoy sweet things, so I baked cookies for him instead." Eve had clearly put a lot of thought into her gift. Unfortunately, she didn't realize that Nolan wasn't fond of cookies either. About ten minutes later, Miles returned, dripping with sweat. He had finally accomplished his mission, dragging a half-asleep Nolan—still clutching his pillow and blanket—into the common room. "This won't do..." Montague sighed, trying to pry Nolan's hands off the blanket. "Why can't he just let go?" "He sleeps like a pig..." Malcolm Baddock muttered as he and Miles Bletchley struggled to carry Nolan. With the small group of Slytherins in tow, they finally left the common room, heading en masse toward the Great Hall. The Great Hall was festively decorated for Valentine's Day, adorned with heart-shaped streamers and plenty of mistletoe. A few older couples were passionately kissing under the mistletoe, prompting envious murmurs from the younger Slytherins, who watched from the sidelines with wide-eyed fascination. "What are you little rascals gawking at?" the girl in one of the couples snapped, clearly embarrassed. "Get into the hall and eat your feast—this isn't for you to see!" "So stingy..." Miles grumbled under his breath. "One day, we'll have girlfriends of our own." The older girl chuckled. "I don't doubt that, Bletchley. But I do wonder—when you're always hanging around with Nolan, will any girl choose you over him?" Miles scowled. "So annoying!" But Miles' mood soured even further when they entered the hall and he saw the pile of gifts accumulating at Nolan's spot on the table. In contrast, Miles didn't have a single gift in front of him. Malcolm, meanwhile, was gleefully boasting about how fellow pureblood Laura Cook had given him chocolate. His smugness was short-lived, however, when he discovered that Laura had also gifted Nolan a box—one that was much more extravagant than his. "Why does Nolan get white chocolate truffles, while I only get chocolate chips? Are you betraying purebloods, too?!" he demanded, pestering Laura with his endless complaints. "Oh, Malcolm is such a nightmare..." Montague groaned, covering his face in exasperation. "The pureblood supremacist? He's an idiot," Cho Chang remarked with a smirk, appearing at the Slytherin table seemingly out of nowhere. By now, however, her presence there had become a familiar sight. "Even girls who believe in that nonsense wouldn't fall for him. I'd stake my wand on it." "Hmph, as expected, Nolan got a lot of gifts," Cho muttered, eyeing the growing collection. "Let's see—this one's from Alicia, that one's from Laura, and this one's from Angela... Merlin save us, the only one in Ravenclaw who didn't give him a Valentine's gift is Marietta." She frowned, glancing between the still-sleeping Nolan, slumped over the table, and the sulking Miles. "Why's he still asleep?" "Same as always!" Miles replied irritably. Cho nodded knowingly. "Got it. He's been playing a new game again, hasn't he? I hope I can keep up with him this time." She pulled out a brick-like gaming console, showing it off to the group with pride. "I'm starting to understand why Nolan loves these so much. That little yellow mouse really is adorable!" ~~~---------------------- Patreon Advance Chapters: patreon .com / HPdreame