Cindy Potter: Book One (Harry Potter Fanfiction)

Chapter 21

"The things we lose have a way of coming back to us in the end, even if it's not in the way we expect." - Luna Lovegood

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"Cindy-"

"No."

"Please listen to me. It's not a good idea to go back again. They'll find you."

I sighed. I hardly ever heard Luna being serious. I admit I was overrun with curiosity ever since that night with the strange mirror. I felt a strange desire to go back and stare at that little girl, because she seemed so familiar to me. I couldn't quite explain why. "Luna, I won't get caught. It's just-I'll be fine, alright?"

"Sometimes I think it's the wrackspurts controlling you." Back to normal.

"You wanna come too?"

"I don't think so, Cindy. I have a load of homework tonight and I'm going to write home." She turned to leave. "Oh, and Cindy? Please be careful." I nodded in reassurance.

~~~~

I turned to leave the great hall when somebody suddenly dragged me into an isolated corridor. I turned and saw Draco Malfoy. My eyes widened as I prepared to run. He held up his hands in defense and grimaced. "As much as I want to, I'm not here to hurt you today. Professor Snape has asked me to bring you to his quarters." He turned and started walking to the dungeons. I followed a safe distance behind. "Will you hurry up?! I don't have all day!" I started to run towards father's office with him chasing behind me. Since I wasn't really watching where I was going, I slammed into the door and it fell open. Father looked up from his work in surprise. "S-sir, I brought Cindy here." He huffed, out of breath.

"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy, please close the door behind you." He turned and left. Then father turned to me. "Come here." I walked over slowly, wincing because I had fallen on my rib the other day and slammed into a door just now. "Sit down." I sat, waiting for him to speak. He studied me with a frown. After awhile I couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Yes, Father?"

"You know," He paused. "I heard some very interesting news the other day. Someone had broken into the restricted section the other night and I felt like they escaped down the corridor to the moving staircases."

I gulped. "So?"

"I revisited the corridor the next day and I found this on the ground. " he held out my brooch, a Lily flower. I immediately grabbed it.

"Oh, I must've dropped that the other day!" I gasped.

"You mean when you broke into the restricted section?" His eyes narrowed.

Well technically we didn't 'break' in. "No father, of course not! I meant that I've been going there a lot during the holidays so I must've dropped it." I improvised.

"Why?"

This was the only shot I had. "There's a mirror there. It seems magical. I-"

"Stay away from it." He said.

"B-but-"

"Did you not hear me? Stay away from it and don't talk back to me." He glared.

"Yes Sir." I sighed. I would find a way.

He stared at me for awhile before finally speaking again. "You know, Mr Filch recalls that he heard something heavy fall that night."

"...So?" I stammered.

"Lift up your vest."

"W-what?" I squealed in a high pitched tone.

"You're obviously in pain, the way you're breathing and holding your torso makes it obvious. Now let me see."

I gasped. I didn't even realize, but I couldn't let father see, or else he would put one and one together. Father sighed and walked around. I started to stand but gasped in pain. He held my hands away and lifted my vest up. There was a giant purple spot on my ribs. "I um slammed against the door when I was running." He raised an eyebrow.

"Be careful next time." He gingerly pressed on it. My eyes immediately welled up with tears.

"Ow." I whined.

He replaced my vest. "I'm rather sure it's broken. Go see Madam Pomfrey." I nodded. I said goodbye and left. I had a feeling he didn't completely believe me though.

~~~~
Madam Pomfrey fixed my rib. She said it was just a small crack and I would be better with some rest. I declined her offer to stay in the hospital wing and headed back to the common room. As I headed in, I could see Fred and George joking with some of the first years. I glanced at Harry, he appeared to be deep in thought. I guess we both think alike. I walked over to stand beside him. I leaned down and whispered. "I'm gonna go do my transfiguration essay, call me when it's time." He nodded at me absentmindedly. I headed up to the girls dormitory. After what seemed like hours, I had only completed half of the essay and I still had so much to do. I groaned and held my head in my hands. Suddenly I saw Hedwig flying towards me. I knew Harry had sent her. I grabbed my green winter cloak and headed down to the common room. We headed to that room in silence. As soon as we arrived, Harry pulled the cloak off us and say down in front of the mirror. Sitting down beside him I glanced at the edge of the mirror: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi. What did that mean? I stared at the mirror and once more, I saw that little girl I felt a special connection to. I wanted to meet her, to have a connection with her but I didn't know why, was she even real. As I dwelled in my thoughts I wasn't sure how much time had gone by already.

"Back again?" I spun around. Professor Dumbledore was standing there. I stood up immediately.

"P-professor, we can explain."

He ignored me. "I see that the two of you, like so many before you have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised.

"I didn't know it was called that, Sir." Harry said.

"I trust by now you realize what it does."

"Well, it showed us our parents, and Ron saw himself as head boy and Quidditch captain." I didn't bother correcting him.

"Let me give you a clue, the happiest man in the world would look in this mirror and see himself, exactly as he is. "So it show us what we want? Whatever we want." Wait. Then what about what I saw?

"Yes, and no." He paused." It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest
And most desperate desire of of our hearts." I thought about it. Wouldn't my deepest desire be a peaceful world or my parents alive? "Now you have never known your family so you see them standing beside you." Did he know what I saw too? If he didn't, then why did he only refer to Harry when he said that? Luckily Harry didn't notice. "But remember this, the both of you. This mirror gives neither knowledge, or truth. Men have wasted away in front of it, even gone mad." I shivered involuntarily. "That is why, tomorrow it will be moved to a new home and I advise you two not to go looking for it again. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live."

"Wait, Professor. May I ask what you see?" I said.

"I see myself holding a pair of thick, woolen socks. Harry stared at him weirdly. " Every Christmas I ask for them but people insist on buying me books." He said in a joking tone. I could tell he wasn't being completely honest, but I didn't question him. After all, I was hiding something too.

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I wanna thank everyone so much for reading. This is unedited so feel free to point out any mistakes. I hope you enjoy it~

-lily