Tempus | Harry Potter |

NINETEEN

The Many Arguments

The walk back to the Gryffindor common room wasn't as hopeful as Raya thought.

Everywhere she turned someone was whispering about her, pointing to her, and being afraid to make eye contact.

It didn't help when she had to now pass Cedric and his group of friends. Keeping her head down, she took a deep breath and walked as quickly as she could.

"Yeah, yeah, hey I'll catch up with you guys later," she could hear Cedric's voice behind her. "Raya, Raya!" She heard him yell out, her heart stopped, what could he want?

Turning around slowly, Cedric was now approaching her. She didn't make eye contact, instead, she kept staring down at the floor. "Yes?" she asked in a faint voice.

"Is it true?" He whispered, "You, you screamed?" Raya raised her head back up at his question, as his tone of voice almost seemed concerned.

"Yeah, what are you going to lecture me about that?" She said in a mocking tone, only Cedric's face stayed serious. "How?! You haven't had an episode since you were eleven, ever since then you were able to control it."

Raya scrunched her face, "Episode?" "Your screaming episodes?" Cedric asked sounding almost concerned. "Oh, oh yeah, uhm. I don't know I guess I couldn't help it, what does it matter to you?"

"You're kidding, right? Everyone in the school is talking about it, they're calling you a freak and are asking me now if I can do that too."

Raya couldn't help but smile in amusement, "Oh I see, this isn't about you caring for me, you're worried about your reputation. Well, I'm so sorry that people are concerned for you and think of you as the boy with a freak of a sister, but I don't care."

Cedric opened his mouth, but no words came out. "Well, if that's all you were going to say, which I'm guessing it is, I'll be going then."

As she continued to walk, she could have sworn she heard a faint whisper, "I do, I do care."

⚡️⚡️

"Password?" "Shit," "That is certainly not the password young lady!"

"Snickerdoodle," said Ron as he stood next to her. "Oh Ron, thanks, I guess I forgot the password." She chuckled, but he only half smiled and proceeded to climb into the portrait hole.

Following behind, Raya could tell something was bothering him. "Hey, is everything okay?" He stopped walking, which led her to bump into his back.

Turning around, he looked down at her, which a look that seemed to speak, 'I'm waiting.'

"Is everything okay?" "I don't know you tell me?" Ron said with a cold tone, "I don't know, I'm not good with guessing games." She returned with the same cold tone.

He sighed, "What was that back there? I'm not talking about the creepy white bald man with no nose, that was creepy, but you, you screamed in a way I've never heard someone scream, you shattered things when you screamed, what was that."

"Oh, that," "Yeah that," he mocked. "You know you can tell me things, right? You can trust me?"

"I do trust you!" "That's what I like to think, but I was left in the dark about that, what else don't I know about? Don't think I don't know that something is up, I mean you're even talking to Draco even after you swore you would never talk to him again!"

"What does Draco have to do with anything!?" "Because you guys broke up and you were pretty upset!" Her jaw dropped, "Draco and I dated?"

Ron narrowed his eyes, "See! There you go, pretending you don't know things, I don't know what's going on, but I thought at least you would be able to tell me, I'm your best friend. I can help."

"Ron," her voice croaked, "It's just, it's just all so complicated," he let out a chuckle as he shook his head. "Forget it," he said as he began to walk away, "Wait, Ron no!" "If you don't want to tell me, that's fine, but I don't want to be friends with someone who can't even trust their best friend."

Tears were now forming in her eyes, as she saw him walk away. It took the sound of other students walking into the portrait hole for her to finally leave, only it seemed she couldn't catch a break.

"Ah, I was waiting to see when you would show up, I see you had a little fight with your only friend, what a shame," Hermione said with a smile on her face, as she was sitting by one of the tables against the wall.

"So, it appears you're a siren," "How, how did you figure it out?" Raya asked as she wiped her hands underneath her eyes.

"Oh please, anyone who would take a second to read Magical Creatures Volume Two, would have it figured out, though I must admit, it did take me a while."

"So, what, are you going to tell everyone now?" "No," Raya was surprised at hearing this. "Don't think it's because I care about you."

She smiled, "Now why would I ever think that," she said as she walked past her.

"Ron's right though," Raya froze at hearing this, "Something is definitely off about you, you're different, and I don't like that."

Raya sighed, "Yeah well that makes two of us."

⚡️⚡️

Stepping into her dorm, the last person Raya expected to see was standing in the middle of the room.

"How did you even get here?" Raya asks in shock, as Harry was standing with a smug look.

"Hermione found her way," Harry sounded almost bored as he spoke, "So what, are you bunking with us now?"

She reached for her bed, leaning back against one of the bed polls. "I need to talk to you," "What about?"

His face almost went blank, he didn't expect her to answer so quickly. "This morning, the thing that took form from the boggart, what was it."

Her eyes refuse to meet his, "It was nothing, just from a nightmare I once had," she said with a slight stutter.

Harry let out a fake chuckle, "A nightmare that you had? So your biggest nightmare is of me dying?" He walked closer to her.

"No-" "-Than what was that then?" His voice was loud that it made her jump, "Don't think I don't know that the whole act back in Dumbledore's office was fake, why was Voldemort the topic of conversation, and why was my dad talking about it?"

Her gaze dropped, "You, you know about Voldemort?"

Harry let out another fake chuckle, "Everyone knows about Voldemort, the most powerful dark wizard of our time, who died one night out of nowhere." He sounded almost confused about why he had to tell her this.

"And you don't know why he uh...died?" "No one does! What the hell does that have to do with anything we're talking about."

Raya shrugged, "I don't know, you're the one who started talking about him," Harry rolled his eyes, "Stop playing dumb with me Diggory and just answer my question."

"And what is your question exactly?" Harry clenched his fists in rage but walked backward as he tried to calm himself down.

"You know something, and I want to know what it is." He said in a faint voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about," "Don't play dumb with me!" He raised his voice, "I'm not!" She yelled out, "I don't know what you think I know, but I know nothing," she walked toward him, and begin pushing him to the door.

"If you want to talk to me, come up to me like a normal person, don't just sneak into my dorm and act like I'll tell you everything." Harry's body was now outside the door, he had a smug look at him.

"So, there is something you know," Raya smiled, "You know what? There is, I know that you're a piece of shit," soon the smug smile disappeared from him as the door was now being slammed onto his face.