☞ 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟒𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫, 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟔

"Good morning, Moon." I smiled, sitting down at the Ravenclaw table. Luna had her nose buried in the latest edition of the quibbler, her funky bright pink glasses perched at the end of her nose. I had no trouble finding a seat beside Luna, despite being late to breakfast, as people tend to keep away from the starry-eyed girl. Ravenclaws are typically the type to judge a book by its cover, not all of course, but typically speaking they do, especially when it comes to precious yet peculiar girls, such as Luna Lovegood.

"Good morning!" Luna smiled, looking at me for a moment before her eyes returned to her book. Some scowled at the sight of you, a Slytherin sat at their table, how dare I? I rolled my eyes at the group, scowling back which only made them cower in fear. Pathetic, I've never done anything to them, in fact, this is the first time I've seen their faces around school and yet they chose to fear me. "Are the nargles bothering you?" Luna's soft voice drew my attention away from the older group of Ravens back to her. "You seem quite upset." She added, as though being upset had a direct correlation to nargles. I laughed, shaking my head.

"No, I'm alright, little Moon." I smiled fondly at the girl, picking out bits of food to pile onto my plate. "Did you and my friend Blaise get along?" I asked, not having the chance to ask the girl about her brief encounter with the boy who seemed infatuated by her.

Luna's eyes light up as she looked at me over the pages of her father's paper. Although she tried to hide behind the bright prints, I could just about see the pink that dusted her cheeks as she looked away bashfully. "Yes, he seemed rather sweet." I smiled at the girl, only responding with a nod. "He has nice arms." She added, going back to her reading with a bright smile. I chuckled at her comment, deciding to focus on my food then try and figure out why Blaise's arms was the thing that she decided to bring up. We ate in silence, my mind focusing in and out of near and passing mumbles from strangers' conversations. Luna then put her paper down, looking at me with a soft smile. "What are your plans for today?" She asked.

"I'm not exactly sure. All I know is I woke up and Mattheo was in my face telling me to 'cancel any plans' and that he's 'stealing me for the day.' Not that I had anything to do today anyway." I chuckled, rolling my eyes with a smile at the memory. Luna giggled, packing away her things. "What do you have planned?" I asked, standing up with her.

"Oh, nothing much. I need to find my shoes. I suspect the nargles are afoot once again..." She sighed, looking around as we walked through the halls. Confused, I glanced down at the floor, noticing that Luna was walking around with nothing but white socks with little strawberries on them. I panicked, taking my shoes off, the poor girl will lose her toes having no shoes in this harsh weather.

"Take my shoes, Luna, please, and I'll help you look for your shoes. Merlin, I'll even get the boys looking with us." I held out my shoes, they were nothing special, just a pair of converses in my favourite colour. Hermione had gotten them for Christmas two years ago, she claims they are a beloved pair of shoes by muggles, which I accepted with great honour to be given such a special gift that means a lot to muggles.

"Someone called?" A smooth voice called from behind us, making me smile. I look down the hall and my eyes lock on Mattheo, who is dressed in dark navy blue jeans, a black belt, a white dress shirt and a thick leather jacket. Once he was close enough, he pressed a delicate kiss onto my forehead, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Hello, darling." He muttered, smiling down at me.

"Why are neither of you wearing shoes?" Draco grimaced, looking at Luna and me with slight disgust and pure confusion. Draco wore a simple dark green jumper with black trousers. I rolled my eyes at the blond as Luna innocently explained that the nargles took her shoes again and I gave her mine. It wasn't the Nargles, it was the horrid girls she shares a room with who thinks it's funny to take Luna's things. I should talk to Cho about this again, she and I managed to have the bullying under control last year, but it seems like they've begun their old tricks again. "Nargles? What in Merlin's name are you on about?" Draco frowned, looking at Luna as if she had two heads.

"Hey! That's no way to talk to your cousin, Malfoy." I pointed at him, agitated by his attitude towards the girl. Confused, it was my turn to be looked at with two heads. Theo was the first to break the silence, asking me if I needed to lie down because what I said seemed absurd. If you really think about it, it's not absurd, Luna and Draco are both purebloods and we all know how closely related all purebloods are, and they both have the whitest hair seen on planet Earth. "Didn't you know? Luna's mother, Pandora, her maiden name is Malfoy." I explained, seemingly blowing their minds. Draco's jaw went slack as he looked between Luna and I. Mattheo and Theo also was very shocked, but looking between the two I think it began to make sense in their mind. Blaise seemed very thrilled and even amused by this revelation.

"Isn't that wonderful." Luna smiled, turning back and forth in her place, her hands resting behind her back. "I've always wanted a cousin." She beamed, looking at Draco, who was still shocked. I looked at Draco too, glaring at him to respond to the overjoyed girl, and to respond with something nice.

"Me too." He laughed, fixing his posture. What shocked me was that his smile was genuine, and his grey eyes, usually plastered with a dull expression, seemed just that little bit brighter. "How did you know about this, Y/n, and Lovegood and I didn't?" He questioned, still smiling in disbelief at this sudden revelation. I just shrugged, not revealing my secrets.

"Call me Luna." The girl smiled at the boy, who nodded slyly in response. Draco offered her the same courtesy, telling the blonde girl to refer to him by his first name. "Very well, Draco. I'll have to stop by while you are all eating so we can get to know each other if that's something you'd like?" Luna asked, a dreamy smile crossing her face. Draco nodded again, not saying much. Luna also nodded, before swiftly turning around with a skip in her step.

"Luna!" I called out, surprised by her sudden movements. "Put on the shoes." I demanded, my eyes furrowing at the girl as I pointed at my shoes that had been long forgotten about. She tried to protest, but the stern look on my face told her my answer. She gratefully smiled, putting on the shoes and standing to walk away again. "Wait, Luna!" I laughed after her. "I'll help you find your belongings."

Luna shook her head. "Nonsense, didn't you say Riddle was planning on stealing you?" She smiled, which made Blaise, Draco and Theo laugh like a flock of fwoopers as Mattheo's cheeks flushed. "Because of that, I cannot accept your help." She added, not paying attention to the group.

"Forget Mattheo, you are far more important." I said, taking her hands in mine. She simply shook her head, the soft smile forever carved into her pale cheeks never falling. I sighed, accepting defeat, until an idea popped into my head. "Blaise! Here." I yelled, breaking the laughter as he looked at me with confused eyes. "Please help Luna look for her things." I smiled at the boy who eagerly nodded. I could see Luna opening her mouth from the corner of my eye, so I placed my finger over her mouth. "Ah, ah, ah. Little moon, if I cannot help you then one of my minions shall." I winked at the pair before walking away back to Mattheo, Theo and Draco.

"It's wonderful to see you again, Blaise." Luna muttered, her voice fading as we walked away from the pair. Blaise laughed, his feet shuffling against the ground.

"It's wonderful to see you again too, Luna." He replied as they rounded the corner. I beamed, screaming internally over how cute they were together. I felt an arm slip around my waist. I looked up to see Mattheo, smiling at me.

"I'm assuming this is where you both will disappear?" Theo remarked, a smirk on his face. "Have fun, don't do anything I would do. Oh and, Mattheo, wear a condom." He winked, sending himself and Draco into hysterics. Mattheo swung for his shoulder, hitting him right in the joint, that didn't stop the pair from laughing at his expense though.

"Yeah, whatever, Nott. At least I have a girl, you're too busy drooling at Granger to even think about making a move." Mattheo snapped back, making Draco laugh harder to the point where the blond struggled to breathe. 'Ooooo' I softly chuckled, looking between the pair who were playfully glaring at each other. Their gazes were intense, the pair not wanting to back down to the other.

"Merlin, get a room you pair." I laughed, taking Mattheo's hand in mine. "We should get going though before I lose my feet to frostbite." I mentioned, looking down at feet I could barely feel, they were only covered by my thin cotton socks. Mattheo shook his head before I was swept off my feet and into his arms. I screamed, startling our friends and some people around.

"You can't be walking with no shoes, darling." He smirked, looking at my flushed face. He began to carry me bridal style down the corridor. I looked over his shoulder, seeing Theo and Draco laughing at us, so I flipped them off. Looking forward again I take notice as people in the corridors begin to point and whisper.  I tried to protest, feeling embarrassed by all the negative attention. Noticing this, Mattheo huffed, his tongue clicking against the roof of his mouth. "What do you think you're looking at?" He glared at the group of Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, who were quick to flee the scene noticing Mattheo's glare. I gratefully sighed, leaning closer to the boy in contempt. My peace was interrupted when Mattheo began to run, the sudden chaotic moment made me scream with shock and joy. It was safe to say I did not trust this boy to not drop me, whether that be accidental or on purpose.

We almost reached the common room, down in the heart of Hogwart's dungeon when suddenly a voice appeared as we turned the corner. "Put my daughter down, Mr Riddle." I gasped as Mattheo nearly dropped me to the floor. I was right, he would drop me. My father looked between us, his eyes filled with confusion and mild disgust. "Why are you walking around the school with no shoes, Y/n? And why is this one carrying you." He slowly spoke, pointing at Mattheo but his eyes remained looking at me.

"I have no shoes because I gave them to Luna, those girls stole all her shoes again. And Mattheo didn't want me to walk on the freezing stone floor back to the common room to get more shoes so he offered to carry me." I explained in a breath, feeling rather embarrassed to be caught by my father of all people. He simply nodded, glancing back at Mattheo.

"Very well. I'll have a word with Professor Flitwick about Miss Lovegood." My father nodded, a ghost of a smile haunting his lips, however that quickly faded as his eyes landed on Mattheo once again. "A word, Mr Riddle, if you don't mind." He gave the boy beside me an insincere smile and walked down the corridor we came from without another word, his black cloak dramatically whipping behind him. Mattheo and I looked at each other, shrugging as he reluctantly left to follow after him. I couldn't hear a word that was spoken between them, I just saw my father's angry face, him cornering Mattheo up against the wall, and Mattheo's scared face. My father left, continuing the way Mattheo and I came from as the boy in question slowly walked back.

"I never thought I'd be threatened, with that level of detail, by anyone especially Professor Snape in my life... yet here we are." Mattheo breathlessly chuckled, his fingers running through his hair as he cautiously glanced back. Confused I asked him what my father had said. "Don't worry about that, but I think word has gotten out about our date the other day, darling." He smiled, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. I flushed, groaning with embarrassment. Before I knew it, Mattheo was glancing around, making sure my father had left before he picked me up again, running down the hall towards the common room, laughing all the way.

Soon enough we were heading to Hogsmeade, new shoes on my feet. "This way." Mattheo muttered, pulling me down a street I wasn't familiar with. We were both bundled up, my arm was wrapped around his, as we both walked closely together through the quaint wizarding village. Snow began to pelt us in the face as we were no longer shielded by the tall 11th-century buildings. Before I could ask where we were heading, we found ourselves standing outside of a small jewellery shop. "Shall we head inside?" Mattheo grinned, opening the door for me. I sent him a confused glance but headed into the shop anyway, wanting to escape the cold.

Inside the shop, the smell of summer flowers welcomed me with a soft heat that made my skin tingle. Many wooden cases with glass windows littered the small room, with a small counter that had a short and stubby wizard behind it. "Welcome, welcome. Mr Riddle, I assume?" The man waddled over, reaching out to shake Mattheo's hand. The boy beside me nodded, greeting the man with a smile and shaking his hand. "And is this the girl? Oh, aren't you absolutely stunning! What is your name young one?" The man spoke turning to me, reaching his hand out.

"I'm Y/n Snape, a pleasure to meet you." I smiled, taking his hand in my mind. I noticed his hands were covered in a dull yet shiny powder, I'm assuming from the metals he works with. He then invited us to look around, explaining that Mattheo had booked the shop for an hour so we would be interrupted. The man, Lloyd Barnmun, had been collecting high-end jewellery from all across the wizarding world since he left Hogwarts, naming some of the most expensive brands and most sought-after jewellers known to the wizarding kind.

My jaw dropped the moment Barnmun left, returning to his work. I looked at Mattheo, who chuckled at my expression. "Why are we here?" I muttered as he guided us further into the shop.

"Isn't it obvious? You're here to choose a gift for yourself." Mattheo smiled, stopping to look at a case of necklaces. Each piece of jewellery was as beautiful as the last, from small diamond-encrusted necklaces to big colourful pendants displaying a big jewel. I couldn't accept this, these were too expensive! This boy is mad. "I can see the doubt in your eyes. Please, Y/n, let me get you a little something." Mattheo looked hopeful at me as I shook my head.

"This is much more than a little something. A little something would be a bag of sweets at Honeydukes. I cannot accept this." I pursed my lips, finally looking away from the necklaces to look at Mattheo, who was now frowning.

He then proceeded to say, "Tough. I want to get my girl a gift, and since it's the first of many gifts you'll be receiving, I will not cheap out." He muttered, harshly pulling me closer to him by my waist. "Let's try that again, darling." He spoke, muttering into my ear, sending a wave of electricity down my spine. "Let me spoil you." I couldn't speak for my mouth felt very dry, I simply nodded, which made the boy smirk. "Good girl." He breathed, placing a kiss on my forehead. "Now, let's look around."

Forty minutes had passed, which consisted of me trying to choose smaller items such as pendants or broaches, to which Mattheo rolled his eyes and dragged me towards the earrings, rings, necklaces and finally bracelets. There I found the most beautiful bracelet, the metal being the same as all my other jewellery being weaved into a small chain, and the gemstones encrusting the item were emerald, diamonds and the third being my favourite colour stone. My heart thumped locking into the items. I didn't have to say anything, Mattheo's eyes looked at me with such care and he knew I found the thing.

"Mr Barnum? I think we found the one." Mattheo muttered, his eyes hooded as he looked between my eyes and my lips. I blushed, looking away and back towards the bracelet. Soon the shopkeeper came around, helping me try on the bracelet... it was perfect. I beamed at Mattheo, who seemed equally as happy as me.

"Please, let me get you something!" I smiled, looking up at Mattheo, who rolled his eyes. We were now heading back to the castle, after heading to the Three Broomsticks for some warm butter beer, and the local bakery for some sweet pastries and desserts, which Mattheo paid for.

"No." He smiled, pulling me into his warmth. "Just accept the gifts, my love." He chimed, laughing as I huffed. It didn't feel right, to have someone spend so much time and money on me without expecting anything in return. I decided, I would return the favour.

Our peaceful walk back to the castle was disrupted when a loud, piercing scream was heard from up ahead. Scared, Mattheo stopped in his tracks, holding onto me with a look of dread in his eyes. I managed to escape his hood as he called after me, running towards the girl who was now being thrown about ten feet in the air. My eyes landed on a scared Hermione, Ron and Harry. I called after them, quickly reaching their side as we stared hopelessly up at the possessed girl.

"I told her not to touch it. I don't know where it came from. She just appeared with it after going to the bathroom!" A Gryffindor girl I was unfamiliar with cried, looking at the girl who I would presume was her friend. She was then slammed onto the ground, followed by Hagrid who was yelling at us to stay away from her.

Harry leant down, looking at a rather strange necklace that had been wrapped in brown paper. "Don't touch that, Harry. Only the packaging." Hagrid warned the raven-haired boy, before scooping the girl into his arms and running to the castle in the snow, the Gryffindor girl chasing after him.

"Are you okay?" Mattheo asked me, appearing from behind. Ron, Hermione and Harry jumped at his voice, but they eased when they saw who it was. I nodded, about to speak when someone spoke up.

"How convenient! Katie gets cursed and you show up out of nowhere!" Harry's face turns red with anger, pointing at Mattheo as he yells. Mattheo's face darkened, his hand holding mine firmly as he glared at the Gryffindor.

"Out of nowhere? I've been with Y/n all day if you must know, Potter. And while you four idiots ran straight into the face of danger I went and got Hagrid!" Mattheo fumed, spitting at the boy as he looked at him with pure hatred and disgust. Everyone looked at me, as I nodded, confirming that Mattheo had indeed spent the day with me.

Harry huffed, not saying another word as he angrily walked away. Ron and Hermione sent us apologetic smiles as they followed the moody boy. My brows furrowed as I watched the group disappear in the snow. "That was strange." I breathed, looking at Mattheo who had an emotionless face plastered on, his jaw tight.