✰𝑀𝑜𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑠𝑡✰ H. Potter

𝙿𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚘𝚙𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚎- 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 23

                 ☞︎︎︎𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒓 𝑸𝒖𝒊𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒍☜︎︎︎

Two pairs of feet slowly stepped down the stone steps, leaving drops of blood trailing behind them like paint on a canvas.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The sound filled the girls ears. All her senses were tainted with fear, the taste bitter on her tongue. Waves of dark hair trailed behind her, cascading down her back soaked in sweat. Outside the stone walls of the castle, the night sky watched in apprehension. Time mocked the two students, the night getting longer and longer. Hestia felt like she had been awake for days despite it only being a few hours. But as they walked down the red painted stone steps, she couldn't feel her exhaustion.

Harry's hand grasped hers, pulling the girl out of her own dangerous head. He shot his friend a small smile.

Harry wanted to pretend that he was annoyed with Hestia for following him, but he was immensely grateful for the girls stubbornness. Without it, he would have had to face his parents murderer alone.

Alone. A word that the boy had sadly become well acquainted with.

Though that had changed ever since he came to Hogwarts. Ever since he met Hestia.

The two reached the final set of stairs, breathing deeply. Harry let out a hiss of pain, moving his hand into his scar again. Hestia knew what that meant. It was a warning. Not that the pair needed one,they were aware of the dangers that they were to face. Just then, Hestia's eyes landed on a figure stood in the middle of the room, staring deeply into a large mirror as if it were the most fascinating object in the world.

"You." Harry breathed, staring in disbelief at the man before them.

The Professor turned around with a cold face, drained of happiness and life.

"N...No. No it can't be. Snape. He w.. Was." Harry stuttered.

"Yes, he does seem the type. Doesn't he? Next to him, who would suspect the s s stuttering P..Professor Quirrel."

Hestia felt her heart drop. All along, they had been too focused on Snape to see the person right in front of them. Though, the situation did arise more questions in the girl. Since when did everything get so messed up? Both Hestia and Harry were so confident in their theory before then.

"But that day, in the Quidditch match. Snape tried to kill me." The boy said it as a statement, though it was beginning to sound like a question. He was doubting everything.

Maybe things aren't like they seem at all.

"Mmm, no dear boy. I tried to kill you. And trust me, if Snape's cloak hadn't caught fire and broken my eye contact, I would have succeeded." The words rolled off of the man's tongue so easily, as if they had merely been talking about the weather. "Even with Snape muttering his little counter curse."

"Snape was, trying to save him?" Hestia whispered aloud.

"I knew he was a danger to me right from the off. Especially after Halloween." Quirrel looked between the two, annoyance and disgust plastered on his face.

"Then you let the troll in." Hestia exclaimed.

"Very good, girl. Yes. Snape, unfortunately wasn't fooled. When everyone went running about the dungeon, he went up to the third floor to have me off. He, of course, never trusted me again."

Harry felt his scar heat up, the searing pain back once again as Quirrel turned around to stare at the mystery mirror.

"Never left me alone again. But he doesn't understand. I'm never alone."