| HIDDEN IN SECRETS |

chapter thirty-four

DAHLIA'S DIARY

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It wasn't just one diary; there were three of them. Some entries were long and some were short. Verena had checked the date of the first entry to the last, figuring out that Dahlia had been writing from August 14, 1976, to February 24, 1979. Using quick maths, Verena assumed she had died around the age of nineteen.

Verena was very immersed in her Aunt Dahlia's story. She read every one of her worries, happy memories, crushes, and deepest secrets. Through her entries, Verena felt like she had someone to connect to, even if everything was written in words.

Verena was so interested that when the term started, she was completely out of focus. Her teachers had to constantly bring her back into the lesson and Professor Snape had to confiscate the journal a few times.

Verena's friends weren't pleased either. All her friends noticed how she had her nose stuck in the diary for ages. Roger Davies, the Quidditch captain, would even get irritated during the practices when she would lose focus. At their last practice before their game against Slytherin, he had pulled her aside to talk to her.

"Verena, as much as I love that you seem to be gaining knowledge from this book, you need to focus," Roger said, stern, but Verena was still reading.

Roger rolled his eyes and snapped in front of her face, finally getting her attention. She apologized quickly, putting the journal into her locker.

"Sorry, what were you saying?"

"Get your head in the game, Verena," Roger said. "Cho is currently injured and as much as I love our reserve, I have my doubts. I need you focused on tomorrow's game if we're to win this year's Quidditch Cup."

"Right, sorry," Verena apologized, grabbing her broom.

"What were you reading anyway?" he asked.

"Oh, just some family history," Verena replied.

Unfortunately for the Ravenclaw team, Slytherin had defeated them (narrowly). They had scored many points, but after Draco caught the Snitch, Slytherin was up by twenty points.

As much as Verena loved the sport and wished they won the Quidditch Cup, she was more interested in her aunt's life. Verena caught up to the present date, starting to read entries written in February of 1977, and things were getting more interesting.

One weekend, Verena was in the Quidditch stands as the Gryffindor team practised. Roger had sent her there to scope out the speed of Potter's Firebolt – an anonymous gift he had gotten for Christmas. For half an hour, she watched, and then she started reading the day's entry.

Verena hadn't even realized that the practice had ended until someone tapped her on the shoulder. She looked up, her eyes falling on the green-eyed boy.

"Potter," she greeted. "Great broom you've got. I still think Cho can kick your arse."

"Yeah, I heard she healed a week ago," Potter responded and found that she was barely listening to him. "What's that you're always reading? Hasn't Professor McGonagall taken that from you, like, twelve times since term began?"

"It's my aunt's journal," Verena replied. "And I promise it's not secretly cursed."

Potter chuckled, looking over her shoulder to read it. Verena didn't mind sharing it with him. After all, he knew about her Sight and family history.

"Wait, did I read that right?" Potter asked, pulling it closer to him. "It says Remus here. Isn't that Professor Lupin's name?"

"Aunt Dahlia and him were friends apparently," Verena explained. "I wish I knew her. She's humorous and smart, and she has ambitions...