FICLET SERIES: Lessons (Pairing: Michael Corner and Daphne Greengrass)
Title: Lessons
Character Pairing: Michael Corner and Daphne Greengrass
Prompt: Set Thirteen: iii. elusive
Rating: T for strong language and sexual situations in future ficlets
Word Count: 993 words.
Summary: 13 ficlets, in which Michael Corner learns that you can't judge a book by its cover and Daphne Greengrass learns to trust.
Author's Notes: T for strong language and for non-explicit sexual situations in later chapters. This is a more canon-compliant take from me on Daphne Greengrass and Michael Corner. It'll explore just how these two crazy kids could actually fall in love with each other.
Link to Prompt Table: Table
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iii. elusive
“I hate Vector!” Michael huffs as he walks with Anthony towards the Great Hall. “A bloody D on a fucking prognostication chart.” He turns around and yells at the classroom they just vacated. “When she doesn’t even know what’s going to happen in the future!”
Anthony merely rolls his eyes at his friend. “Exactly how much time did you put into this assignment?”
Michael balls up the parchment and shoves it deep into his bookbag, muttering something that sounds an awful lot like, “ . . . a couple of hours maybe.” He needs to remember not bring up stuff like grades and how much effort he puts into his work around Anthony, because he will always kick Michael’s arse ten different ways to Sunday in their lessons.
Anthony had, of course, managed an Excellent-Plus on the same assignment.
He hears a very loud snort behind him, and both boys turn around-
It is Daphne Greengrass, whom Vector singled out, as well as Hermione Granger, as the only two students who managed to make “Oustandings” on their pre-term assignments.
“I have no idea how I’m going to top this,” she flicks at her scroll in an exaggeratedly humble tone. “And it only took me a week to perfect it!”
Michael narrows his eyes at her and pursed his lips together. “Some of us have a life during the holidays, and we’re too busy to worry about five hundred years into the future . . . when we’re not even gonna be here in five hundred years!”
“And some of us now have an 'O' under our belts. If I didn’t do charts for two weeks, I could still finish out the month with an 'Acceptable' average!” She nods her head, gesturing to the blazon on his robes. “Perhaps I should’ve been in Ravenclaw, hm?” She cocks her eyebrow at him in an impossibly cocky and arrogant way, and he can feel his temperature rising.
"Perhaps, if you were in Ravenclaw, you would actually have friends and you wouldn’t sit all by yourself at meals!”
She stops. He stops too, because he can’t believe he just said that. But worse, it’s her face that nearly causes his stomach to plummet and fall out of his body.
Daphne pales, but her mouth sets in a firm line and her brow creases dangerously. Despite all the hardness in her face, though, Michael can see her eyes getting more and more watery.
“P-perhaps, i-if you . . . sh-shit!” Her hand flies up and covers her mouth and Michael shuts his eyes as he hears a sob escape from her. She runs away from the boys and Michael turns, his eyes following her down the hall.
Anthony opens his mouth - and Michael holds up a hand to stop him.
“I don’t want to hear about what an awful person I am. I - know.”
“I can’t believe you just made me feel sorry for a Slytherin, Mike.”
He sighs and glances over at his friend. “I’ll fix this.”
~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~
He looks around for her at dinner and once he finds her, he doesn’t stop watching her.
True, Michael thinks, it’s a bit stalkerish, but he’s got to find a way to make this . . . this . . .
Whatever this is inside of him go away.
When Daphne gets up to leave the Great Hall, he bolts off of his bench and runs to catch up with her graceless steps.
“Daphne!”
Michael shocks himself that he doesn’t use her last name. Daphne turns, just as shocked that he used her proper first name.
He feels a pang of guilt course through him; her eyes are really blood shot. He can barely look at her, so he bows his head for a moment.
“I, uh . . . I’m-”
“Just spit it out, all right?”
Michael can hear the muffled and moist sound in her voice and it’s making him feel worse.
“I’m sorry for what I said to you earlier.” He looks back up at the girl and his heart gives a little skip. Daphne’s face softens.
She shoulders her bookbag more for a little more support. “Well, I’m glad.” She speaks in clipped tones but her voice is as soft as her expression.
“Er, oh-okay?”
“You were rude to me, y’know.”
“Yeah. That’s why I apologized.”
“‘S’not my fault you suck so badly at Arithmancy.”
“Sweet Merlin!” Michael grunts. “I apologized to you because I felt awful for what I said to you, and you ‘re insulting me now-”
He pauses. She grits her teeth and scrunches her face. She bites her lower lip too and she keeps fidgeting.
“S-sorry,” she says quietly. “I tend to take things too far sometimes.” Daphne looks back up at him, and he can feel that anger that had been increasing inside of him slowly simmer back down. She chuckles a little, but it’s a sad sound.
“It’s okay.” He extends his hand to her. “Truce?”
She never takes her eyes off of his face. She nods and takes his hand. “Truce.”
Michael hopes that she somehow didn’t feel the shock he did when her hand touched his.
She lets go and walks away, but stops walking and turns back around to face him.
“Do you want help?”
“Help?”
She rolls her eyes, but her lips press together, trying to stifle a small smile. “With Arithmancy. I’m . . . er, good at it. But I-I know your friend’s really good at it too, so . . . nevermind-”
“No, no. Feel free to try to teach me some of that shite.” He chuckles. “Tony’s tried but it’s kinda hard learning stuff from your friends.”
“Okay,” she nods. “Are you free tomorrow?”
He nods in response. “Free period after lunch.”
“Library?”
“Fine by me.”
“Well,” she nods one more time. “Tomorrow then.”
And he watches her leave with an odd feeling that he can’t quite pin down.
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Character Pairing: Michael Corner and Daphne Greengrass
Prompt: Set Thirteen: iii. elusive
Rating: T for strong language and sexual situations in future ficlets
Word Count: 993 words.
Summary: 13 ficlets, in which Michael Corner learns that you can't judge a book by its cover and Daphne Greengrass learns to trust.
Author's Notes: T for strong language and for non-explicit sexual situations in later chapters. This is a more canon-compliant take from me on Daphne Greengrass and Michael Corner. It'll explore just how these two crazy kids could actually fall in love with each other.
Link to Prompt Table: Table
---------------------------------------
iii. elusive
“I hate Vector!” Michael huffs as he walks with Anthony towards the Great Hall. “A bloody D on a fucking prognostication chart.” He turns around and yells at the classroom they just vacated. “When she doesn’t even know what’s going to happen in the future!”
Anthony merely rolls his eyes at his friend. “Exactly how much time did you put into this assignment?”
Michael balls up the parchment and shoves it deep into his bookbag, muttering something that sounds an awful lot like, “ . . . a couple of hours maybe.” He needs to remember not bring up stuff like grades and how much effort he puts into his work around Anthony, because he will always kick Michael’s arse ten different ways to Sunday in their lessons.
Anthony had, of course, managed an Excellent-Plus on the same assignment.
He hears a very loud snort behind him, and both boys turn around-
It is Daphne Greengrass, whom Vector singled out, as well as Hermione Granger, as the only two students who managed to make “Oustandings” on their pre-term assignments.
“I have no idea how I’m going to top this,” she flicks at her scroll in an exaggeratedly humble tone. “And it only took me a week to perfect it!”
Michael narrows his eyes at her and pursed his lips together. “Some of us have a life during the holidays, and we’re too busy to worry about five hundred years into the future . . . when we’re not even gonna be here in five hundred years!”
“And some of us now have an 'O' under our belts. If I didn’t do charts for two weeks, I could still finish out the month with an 'Acceptable' average!” She nods her head, gesturing to the blazon on his robes. “Perhaps I should’ve been in Ravenclaw, hm?” She cocks her eyebrow at him in an impossibly cocky and arrogant way, and he can feel his temperature rising.
"Perhaps, if you were in Ravenclaw, you would actually have friends and you wouldn’t sit all by yourself at meals!”
She stops. He stops too, because he can’t believe he just said that. But worse, it’s her face that nearly causes his stomach to plummet and fall out of his body.
Daphne pales, but her mouth sets in a firm line and her brow creases dangerously. Despite all the hardness in her face, though, Michael can see her eyes getting more and more watery.
“P-perhaps, i-if you . . . sh-shit!” Her hand flies up and covers her mouth and Michael shuts his eyes as he hears a sob escape from her. She runs away from the boys and Michael turns, his eyes following her down the hall.
Anthony opens his mouth - and Michael holds up a hand to stop him.
“I don’t want to hear about what an awful person I am. I - know.”
“I can’t believe you just made me feel sorry for a Slytherin, Mike.”
He sighs and glances over at his friend. “I’ll fix this.”
~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~
He looks around for her at dinner and once he finds her, he doesn’t stop watching her.
True, Michael thinks, it’s a bit stalkerish, but he’s got to find a way to make this . . . this . . .
Whatever this is inside of him go away.
When Daphne gets up to leave the Great Hall, he bolts off of his bench and runs to catch up with her graceless steps.
“Daphne!”
Michael shocks himself that he doesn’t use her last name. Daphne turns, just as shocked that he used her proper first name.
He feels a pang of guilt course through him; her eyes are really blood shot. He can barely look at her, so he bows his head for a moment.
“I, uh . . . I’m-”
“Just spit it out, all right?”
Michael can hear the muffled and moist sound in her voice and it’s making him feel worse.
“I’m sorry for what I said to you earlier.” He looks back up at the girl and his heart gives a little skip. Daphne’s face softens.
She shoulders her bookbag more for a little more support. “Well, I’m glad.” She speaks in clipped tones but her voice is as soft as her expression.
“Er, oh-okay?”
“You were rude to me, y’know.”
“Yeah. That’s why I apologized.”
“‘S’not my fault you suck so badly at Arithmancy.”
“Sweet Merlin!” Michael grunts. “I apologized to you because I felt awful for what I said to you, and you ‘re insulting me now-”
He pauses. She grits her teeth and scrunches her face. She bites her lower lip too and she keeps fidgeting.
“S-sorry,” she says quietly. “I tend to take things too far sometimes.” Daphne looks back up at him, and he can feel that anger that had been increasing inside of him slowly simmer back down. She chuckles a little, but it’s a sad sound.
“It’s okay.” He extends his hand to her. “Truce?”
She never takes her eyes off of his face. She nods and takes his hand. “Truce.”
Michael hopes that she somehow didn’t feel the shock he did when her hand touched his.
She lets go and walks away, but stops walking and turns back around to face him.
“Do you want help?”
“Help?”
She rolls her eyes, but her lips press together, trying to stifle a small smile. “With Arithmancy. I’m . . . er, good at it. But I-I know your friend’s really good at it too, so . . . nevermind-”
“No, no. Feel free to try to teach me some of that shite.” He chuckles. “Tony’s tried but it’s kinda hard learning stuff from your friends.”
“Okay,” she nods. “Are you free tomorrow?”
He nods in response. “Free period after lunch.”
“Library?”
“Fine by me.”
“Well,” she nods one more time. “Tomorrow then.”
And he watches her leave with an odd feeling that he can’t quite pin down.
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