Teen Wolf at Hogwarts

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***

Late at night, with her feet up in a chair by the fireplace, Lydia took her favourite sketchbook and drew a picture that came to mind.

It depicted an autumn day. The girl, leading a large Labrador on a leash, walked through the park. Autumn leaves were circling, falling under her feet. The last rays of sunlight were playing in the girl's golden hair, making it some wrong, magical colour.

Sighing, Lydia rubbed her eyes. It was nearly one o'clock in the morning, and sleep was not in one eye. The whole tower must be asleep by now. The ringing, impenetrable silence of the red-and-gold living room was proof of that. With a glance at the fire, Lydia slammed the album shut.

It was already the third week of September. It was getting colder by the day, and she was no longer wearing a shirt, but rather a warm knitted jumper under her robe.

Lydia stood up from her chair and was about to head for the bedroom when the portrait doorway opened and three silhouettes emerged. Not wanting to be seen, Martin, clutching the album to her chest, stepped into the part of the living room where it was particularly dark and where neither the moonlight nor the glow of the fire could reach her.

- Stiles, please be quiet! - whispered a voice.

- Oh, come on, it was fun! - replied a second voice. The owner of that voice seemed to be laughing.

- Maybe, but it's better not to do it again,' the first voice said again.

- Okay, guys, let's get some sleep. We have transfiguration one tomorrow. I don't think McGonagall's going to turn a blind eye to our third tardy in a row,' said a third voice, a girl's voice. - said a third voice, a girl's voice. Whoa. A girl's voice?!

- Yeah, Mal, you're right. We should go. Good night,' the second voice said again.

The two silhouettes walked past Lydia towards the stairs to the boys' bedrooms. The third, after waiting for their footsteps to fade, went to the window and jumped on the sill.

After standing for a few more seconds, Lydia dared to speak.

- Malia? - Martin asked cautiously.

The girl turned round jerkily, peering into the darkness. Martin took a step forward, stepping out of the darkness and into the slightly diffusing moonlight. Malia breathed a sigh of relief.

- Oh, Lydia, it's you,' Tate swung her legs off the windowsill and looked at her classmate with interest. - Why aren't you in the bedroom? - She asked, frowning.

- I couldn't sleep,' Lydia said. - And why are you here so late? - The girl decided to pretend as if she had just come down to the living room.

- To be honest, I just got here,' Malia continued after a moment's hesitation. - Lydia, tell me, can I trust you? - Malia looked her companion straight in the eye.

Lydia was embarrassed and confused. She hadn't counted on an evening of revelation with anyone. Especially since these few weeks were clearly not enough time to start building a strong friendship with anyone. It was simply... unwise.

Still, she nodded. Something in Tate's gaze kept her from answering in the negative.

- 'Me and the boys go out and explore Hogwarts every night,' Malia said simply. Lydia exhaled in relief at first, expecting much more frightening information, and then, scrolling through her thoughts, frowned, raising her gaze to her fellow student.

- Every night? - Martin asked dumbfounded.

- Absolutely every night. We have found so much, you can not even imagine! - exclaimed the girl.

- So that's why you're almost always late,' Lydia shook her head with a sneer.

- Exactly,' the girl nodded, smiling contentedly. - Do you want to come with us tomorrow? - Tate asked suddenly.

Lydia blinked in surprise. How could a pureblooded lady wander around the castle at night? No. Of course not. But then why the urge to agree? To break the rules for once in her life, to forget about her family's reputation and her own family name, so pure that sometimes it was disgusting. To do something that really interested me, not what status and purity of blood obliged me to do. Just... become like everyone else?

- Well? - Smiling, Malia stretched out, tilting her head to the side.

Tate looked at Lydia so warmly that she exhaled silently in surprise. Why does she want Lydia to be with them? Is she just bored in the company of boys and wants a new companion? Well no, nonsense. It couldn't be boring with those two whirlwinds, especially with the quickest one, named Stiles. But then what? It's not like they were socialising much.

Deciding that now it was possible to put her sense of tact and her aristocratic upbringing aside, the girl asked:

- Why do you ask? We haven't really become friends,' Lydia asked, genuinely perplexed.

- Well, I just thought it might be quite interesting to you,' Tate shrugged. - What's wrong with a man offering his company to someone?

Martin blinked in surprise. 'That's it? Just like that?

Lydia shrugged indefinitely, realising that Malia was absolutely right.

- You still haven't answered me,' Malia reminded her.

- Yes?' Lydia looked at her friend confusedly. - Um, well... No. I'm sorry,' she said, lowering her gaze as if she were addressing the scarlet carpet beneath her feet rather than the person she was talking to. Something inside her tugged. Something inside her that kept her from nodding, from answering positively, from letting herself go.

Martin felt like a real coward, but she couldn't agree to that. All these principles had been nurtured in her too long and too carefully to be shattered so easily and quickly. Perhaps sometime later...

- Whatever you want,' Tate shrugged, pulling the redhead out of her musings. - Just remember that you can change your mind at any time.

Martin nodded confusedly. This girl was so simple and open! Lydia could probably never be like that.

With a yawn, Malia jumped down from the windowsill and said:

- Shall we go to bed? Or we'll really sleep through everything tomorrow. They'll forgive you, but they won't forgive me,' Malia chuckled and stared at Martin expectantly.

- Let's go,' Lydia nodded. Suddenly it seemed to her that the world had become more colourful and everything even played differently. Banal, even. Her chest let go, and the tugging feeling was replaced by warmth and peace. Something had just changed dramatically, and Martin, looking again at the flighty, unruly girl in front of her, suddenly smiled broadly, even to herself.

Taking Tate under her arm, Martin headed for the stairs.

After changing into their pyjamas and settling into their beds, the girls did not drape the beds with canopies as usual. Glancing first at Allison sleeping and smiling in her sleep, and then at Malia looking out the window at the moon, Lydia realised that she seemed to have found her real... friends in such an incomprehensible way. Yes, that's right. Girlfriends. The kind who would come to the rescue in any situation and, in their spare time, try to pull her into adventures akin to travelling around a sleeping Hogwarts.

- Malia? - Martin called softly.

- Yes?' Malia turned on her side, facing the girl.

- Thank you.

Malia didn't ask any questions. She realised why the 'thank you' had been said. For the feeling of warmth and support that Tate herself now felt.

- Good night, Leeds.

- Night, Mal.

Both girls fell asleep that night with slight smiles on their faces.