Good & Evil {3} | d.m. | ong.

seventeen

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Seeing The Impossible

"What if evil doesn't really exist? What if evil is something dreamed up by man, and there is nothing to struggle against except our own limitations? The constant battle between our will, our desires, and our choices?"

As the days passed, on a day when there were no lessons, Liv and her Gryffindor friends found themselves walking down a path towards Hagrid's. But as they did, Liv knew someone was lurking behind. It wasn't Sirius Black. It wasn't Peter Whiteford. It wasn't any other boy that was obsessed with Liv. It was- "Tell me why Malfoy is following us?" Harry whispered to Liv, who was trying to distract herself from the thought. 

"He's my bodyguard," Liv muttered in annoyance. 

"He's your what?!" Harry muttered. 

"Professor McGonagall doesn't think I'm safe anymore, so she's forcing Draco to follow me around like I'm a bloody Princess in Distress," Liv whispered as she glanced back at Draco, who was at least a hundred feet away from her. "Don't know why he's actually following her orders. She's not even the head of our house." 

"I hate to say this because I can't actually believe it, but maybe he's worried," Harry whispered but Liv scoffed. 

"The only thing he's worried about is his ego," Liv whispered back and Harry smiled. 

"Glad we are on the same page," he whispered. But the twins had found themselves looking in the direction of Ron and Hermione, seeing as how the two were arguing. Again. 

"I find it astonishing that someone who prides herself on being so logical can be in such denial," Ron said. 

"Harry. Will you explain to your friend Ronald that he has absolutely no proof whatsoever that Liv and I's sweet and unassuming cats are his shabby, decidedly decrepit rat," Hermione said. 

"Harry was there! He'll tell you how it was. Go on, Harry, tell her," Ron said. 

"Can you please shut up about your bloody rat?!" Liv snapped. 

"You wouldn't have that same attitude if it was your rat!" Ron snapped. 

"We don't care about your stupid rat! We don't care about your stupid cat!" Harry snapped but Liv eyed him, thinking it was quite rude of him to assume what she thought. Yes, she didn't care for Scrabbers, but Hermione was her friend, and she cared about her cat. Just how Hermione cared for hers. "We've got a few other things on my mind right now!" 

"Really? Wasn't you who had to roll under the bed last night to avoid getting cut to ribbons! A person could die being your friend, Harry!" Ron snapped. But he stopped, wishing he could take it back. He saw the look in Liv's eyes, seeing the annoyed hurt, all because of a rat. Liv then pushed Ron harshly before she continued on the path and Hermione followed her. 

"I really wish you didn't say that," Harry muttered to his friend. 

"Yeah me too," Ron muttered back.



Moments later, approaching the Black Lake, Liv saw Hagrid, who wore a gigantic, hairy brown suit, and perhaps the world's ugliest yellow and orange tie. He stood knee-deep in the shallows of the Black Lake, skimming rocks as big as flagstones across the water's shiny gloss. As he turned, the four caught a brief sight of his eyes, red with tears, but then he looked away.

Liv glanced back for a moment, to see that Draco had still kept his distance, but when he saw that she had met Hagrid -- he froze. He finally had ditched his orders from the Professor, and left Liv, heading back towards the castle. She slightly smiled to herself, but what she didn't know was that he knew what happened with Hagrid -- he was the reason he was crying. "How'd it go, Hagrid?" Hermione suddenly asked, causing Liv to bring her attention back to her friends.