Rescuing Dragons

The Mirror of Erised

 Raven frowned as she stared into the mirror.

"Whadaya see?" Charlie said anxiously.

"I see a lot of people and nothing is clear. I recognize Lyra, as well as my father, mother, and Draco. This isn't helpful at all!"

Charlie was quiet for a moment. "Maybe your heart's desire is a family," he said gently.

Raven had a hard time speaking. "Well I...suppose that's true but I need to find my father's notes." She closed her eyes, cleared her mind, and focused on how much she wanted to continue the work of her father. When she opened them, there was finally a clear image. All around her reflection, hands began to appear. They kept appearing until there were fourteen of them. It looked like a classroom of students, all with the answer to a question, except they had no arms, no faces, just hands. Then the hands changed into black bat-like wings and flew away. Raven stepped away from the mirror and described what she saw.

"Think they're telling you to stop?"

"I don't think so," Raven said. "It was definitely symbolic. I have no idea what the number fourteen means. Perhaps Marco would know."

Charlie frowned at Marco's name. "You said you like goin' to the top of Ravenclaw Tower to watch the sun go down. Want to go there while we think about this?"

She readily agreed. The students would arrive in just a few days. This might be the last chance to have it to themselves. They climbed to the top of the tower and stood right inside the parapet. Chit flew to the edge to take in the scenery. The grounds were deserted except for a few thestrals near the edge of the forest. In the distance, the tops of the trees were golden with the setting sun and a few owls had begun their nightly hunt. The sky began to change from blue to areas of pink and purple.

Charlie was standing right behind Raven, slightly to one side. He smelled of Scots pine and kindling wood. His breath on the side of her neck made her shiver. She had an impulse to lean back against him and had barely done so when she felt his arms encircle her waist. Sometimes she felt sorry for Muggles since they had no magical abilities but the best magic was available to everyone. She turned slowly to face him. His intense blue eyes looked into her pale green ones for a second, then they melted together in a kiss that made her mind swirl like the clouds on the horizon. There was a rush of wings, and Chit landed on her shoulder. "Caw!" the the bird shrieked. They jumped apart with a soft laugh. Chit liked Charlie but that didn't stop her from being jealous.

"It's okay, Chit," Raven whispered. "You and I will always be together." She looked back at Charlie and touched his cheek. "What spell have you cast on me, Charlie Weasley?" He caught up her hand and kissed it. They stared at each other a few more seconds until Chit fluttered her wings again. It was past the crow's bedtime and she was out of patience. Reluctantly, they made their way down the staircase until they were right outside Raven's chambers.

"See you at breakfast," Charlie said with a smile. And with one last look, they went off to dream.

________

The next morning, Raven woke up early and went down to the Great Hall, but Charlie wasn't there yet. Marco began waving his arms when he saw her. Raven remembered she needed to ask him about the symbolism of the number fourteen. Marco was positively beaming when he realized she was coming to sit with him. Hardwin was sitting next to Gizem as usual. He seemed to be having a serious discussion with her. At least she doesn't look frightened, Raven thought. "Hi Marco, mind if I join you?" Raven said. "I wanted to ask you about something."

"Please, feel free!" Marco said enthusiastically. "I hope this means you've forgiven me for my impertinent comment yesterday."

Raven wondered how she could question Marco without giving away the reason. Chit hadn't given her the impression she could trust him. She carefully placed a poached egg and a croissant on her plate while she considered the right words.