Gideon Drake and the Fire Within (Harry Potter Sequel/Spinoff)

Chapter Thirty-Two: Game On

Gideon went to bed without a word to Dorian or the other boys that evening. Filled with guilt, and dread for the next day, he had a rough night's sleep. When the morning arrived, he didn't feel as though he had slept at all.

As he rose for breakfast, Gideon could feel his panic rising to the surface. He sat on the edge of his bed looking out of the murky window, focused on his breathing, and practiced being calm and stony-faced. He knew that if he couldn't do that convincingly; he was never going to get away with lying about the lounge fire.

Gideon took one last deep breath and silently followed the boys up to the Great Hall. He steeled himself as they reached the stairs to the Entrance Hall and told himself over and over, you can do this! As they passed through the door at the top of the stairs, Gideon's veneer almost cracked when an unexpected voice interrupted his thoughts.

'Gideon?' it said quietly.

Gideon turned to find Ruby Williams; her arms folded over her book bag while leaning against the wall behind the door.

'Ruby?' he asked, pulling away from the group as they went in for breakfast. 'Is everything okay?'

'Oh, yes, I'm fine,' she muttered. 'A-are you okay, Gideon?'

Gideon didn't know how to answer that right now, so he answered in a way he thought Ruby would appreciate, with a mumble and an ambiguous head nod, then followed up by asking, 'Why? Were you waiting for me?'

In a typical Ruby fashion, she responded in much the same way, which in spite of his mood, Gideon couldn't help smiling about.

'Breakfast?' he suggested.

'Uhm,' she replied simply.

It occurred to Gideon that the odd, quiet girl was a calming influence. Gideon noticed the Student Lounge doors were closed as they passed and hoped Ruby would still want to be friends after the morning's revelations. As they reached the Great Hall and prepared to head their respective tables, Ruby stopped in her tracks.

'If you ever want to talk...' she proposed.

A little surprised by the shy girl's bold gesture, Gideon smiled and nodded in reply before they separated. As he sat down at the table, Gideon didn't feel like eating but he forced himself to take a piece of toast, convinced a prop might help make his act more believable.

Much of the room was already engaged in whispered conversations, and a few dirty looks were being shot in Gideon's direction. They couldn't hurt him, though, not with the imaginary force field he was projecting in his mind's eye.

Professor Dandridge soon rose from her seat, much to the surprise of most students. A talk from the headmistress wasn't standard breakfast routine, especially not two days running. Gideon was expecting it, of course, and tried to feign a look of mild confusion.

'Good morning,' she said. 'I'm disappointed to have to report that after being open for such a short period, the new Student Lounge was subject to arson last night.'

Gideon concentrated all his energy on watching the headmistress and tried to ignore the movement in his peripheral vision. However, the faces of those closest to him were undeniable. Gio was staring at him with disgust, Eoin looked baffled, and Dorian appeared hurt.

The sound of whispers filled the room, but after the previous day's events, nobody tested the headmistress's patience by saying anything audible. Still, Gideon felt sure that many people would have relished the opportunity to call him out.

'Thankfully,' Professor Dandridge continued, bringing a halt to the whispering, 'the fire was extinguished before too much damage was done. However, the lounge will be closed indefinitely while our investigation continues. I remind you all that if you have anything to report concerning these fires, please relay it to your Head of House at the first opportunity.'