The Slytherin didn't sound sorry in the slightest.
"I see," Dumbledore said, after a moment's pause.
"I thought you should know," Blake said. "In case it changes anything."
Dumbledore looked at him for a moment with the expression Blake had come to recognise over the years - the old man was looking at him slightly more carefully than the conversation seemed to require.
"It doesn't change anything," Dumbledore said finally. "Thank you for telling me."
Blake stood to leave.
"Blake," Dumbledore said, as he reached the door. "The Order's protection on your home - I want you to know, regardless of anything else, that isn't going anywhere."
Blake looked back at him, holding back a sigh.
"Thank you, Professor," he said. He meant it, more than he wanted to.
/
Harry caught him in the corridor on the way back.
"Blake," he said, nervously, falling into step beside him. "I owe you an apology."
"You don't-"
"I do," Harry said quickly. "What I said about you last year - I was angry, and I was wrong, and I knew it even when I said it." He paused. "I know you wouldn't do that."
Blake looked at him, meeting his gaze.
"I appreciate that."
Harry nodded. A pause.
"We're alright?" Harry said.
"We're alright," Blake said, smiling.
Harry's shoulders came down slightly.
"Good," he said quietly.
"By the way," Blake began, removing any awkwardness. "Have you had any lessons with the Toad yet?"
Any trace of awkwardness or hesitation from Harry immediately vanished as he launched into a tirade about Umbridge, and Blake found himself laughing. In truth, he'd missed his friends.
But there were still concerns with Harry.
If it comes down to it, Blake thought grimly, Harry's choosing Dumbledore over me.
/
He found her two days later, coming out of Herbology.
He'd done his homework on Susan Bones - not extensively, but enough. Hufflepuff, fifth year, one of the cleverer people in their year, somewhat popular, and pretty too. She's a Prefect, huh?
Her life's probably one of the easier ones in Hogwarts.
"Blake Renshaw," she said, in a tone that made it seem like she had expected it.
"Susan Bones," he replied with a polite smile. "Got a minute?"
She looked around the corridor discreetly. "Sure. I'll see you in the place where you met with my aunt in 5 minutes."
He was there in 4 minutes, arriving just before her.
"Is there anything urgent?" she asked.
"Not really," he replied. "I wanted to let Madam Bones know that everything went pretty much as we planned."
"I'll let her know," the girl replied. "We should probably establish how to go about communicating with each other, if this is going to work properly."
Blake shrugged. "I don't think it's that big of a deal, to be honest. Let's just say we meet twice a week on specific days at specific times for updates. Monday and Thursday, 6pm?"
"Should work," she said, frowning slightly. "But what about if it's urgent?"
"We can figure out a way to make it seem like we know each other and we have good reasons."
"Such as?"
Blake thought for a moment.
"You know about the thing that I do on the side?"
Susan smirked slightly.
"You're making it sound like you're selling Potions on the black market. You mean the homework thing?"
Blake felt slightly miffed but he nodded.
"We'll pretend you're a customer. Dumbledore probably knows about it already, so it's bound to be the least suspicious thing, and then we can just pretend to be friends after a while."
"People would struggle to believe that though," she replied. "I don't have any grades below an E, why would I need it when I've never needed it before?"
"What career are you looking to go into?"
"Why's that of any concern?" she asked defensively.
"Fine then," Blake said, rolling his eyes slightly, "of the OWLs or NEWTs that you would need for your career, what's the one that you're the worst at?"
Susan's face reddened slightly.
"Probably Potions."
"You want to be an Auror?"
"What- how-?"
"Too embarrassed to admit you want to follow in your aunt's footsteps?" he said, smirking slightly.
"Lucky guess," she told him. "You just heard Potions and guessed because I didn't want to say, and my aunt!"
"Well, yeah?"
"Whatever."
"Ok, then? Either way, I'll just do Potions for you, and that'll be our reason."
"I'm not paying you a-"
"It'll be free!" Blake interrupted her. "Merlin, just relax!"
"Oh. Okay, then," she said, slightly embarrassed.
"Well, if that's everything," Blake said, getting up, "I'm meeting someone here in about 5 minutes."
"Ah, right," Susan said, getting the hint and standing to leave. "Bye then."
Blake waved as she opened the door.
"Oh-" Susan said in surprise. Standing on the other side was Daphne. Ah, sh*t.
"Oh," she repeated. "I'm not- it-"
Daphne just nodded and gave a small, polite smile to her, before stepping into the room. Susan, seeming very unsure of that to do, chose to just leave after a second of hesitation.
Blake was silent as Daphne unpacked her things, watching her carefully. It doesn't matter anyway, he thought. Me and Daphne aren't together, we're just friends. She wouldn't care either way.
"I didn't know you were friends with Susan Bones," she said suddenly.
"I'm not. She's just the messenger between me and Amelia Bones, remember?"
Daphne just hummed as she began mixing some Potions, and Blake got up to help her.
"Is-"
"She's pretty," Daphne interrupted him.
F*ck's sake.
/
A couple of days later, Blake was coming back from the library at half past eight, alone, when 3 figures stepped out into the corridor in front of him.
"Can't say I haven't been expecting this," Blake said coolly.
Malfoy had Crabbe and Goyle with him - up close, it seemed Malfoy and Crabbe looked like they'd both fully recovered from St Mungo's, which was a mild disappointment. Malfoy wore a shiny Prefect badge on his robes. I wonder who the Prefects are for Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, he thought idly.
"Renshaw," Malfoy said.
"Malfoy," he said.
"You put my father in Azkaban."
"I did," Blake agreed.
Malfoy scowled deeply.
"You'll pay for that."
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