Little Brave Hearts || Neville Longbottom

CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

Maykha sat on one of the window seats in the castle. She stormed out of the classroom after her boggart appeared in front of her, not being able to take in the gasps and whispers she could hear from her classmates.

To say she was confused would be an understatement in describing what she felt the moment she laid her eyes on her boggart, who took her own shape. But the weird thing about it was it did not have a distinct face. She only knew it was her by the way its hair curled to the length of its waist like hers, and its height and figure were the exact replica of her own. And as if she was looking at a mirror, the boggart looked straight into her eyes. It brought shiver down her spines even as she tried to recall its appearance.

Having herself to fear brought an unpleasant feeling in her stomach. With the secret about her family still unknown, it made her question who she really was. It was like all those years that she spent as Maykha Polaris Iglehart were nothing but a lie, a made up identity, and she felt like she was losing herself with nothing to put her to place, not even her name. She felt like a stranger inside her own body.

Perhaps, it was what she feared the most more than any monster or ghost.

Sighing, she wanted to cuss herself for her poor school performance as of the late. Not only did she skip her first class of the year, she even stormed out of another class. It was as if storming out of an overwhelming situation was becoming a bad habit of hers lately.

She bitterly chuckled at that thought.

"You seem to be in good mood compared to earlier, Miss Iglehart."

Maykha raised her head and saw Professor Lupin standing in front of her. She immediately sprung up on her feet and gave the man an apologetic look.

"I-I'm really sorry, professor. I...I did not mean to walk out of your class like that. Not when everyone was having fun," she said, looking down at her feet.

"You have absolutely nothing to be afraid of. May I?" The professor asked, pointing at the space where she sitted.

With a nod, the two sat next to each other.

"I could only wonder, Miss Iglehart, what's going on inside your head for you to have such fear," Professor Lupin said with a soft voice, until he reached something from his inner pocket and she saw him holding an opened bar of chocolate. "Want some?"

She smiled and nodded, "I would never say no to chocolates."

As she brought the chocolate inside her mouth, she immediately tasted a familiar sweetness that brought peace and comfort within her. Just as what it felt like being with the presence of her professor. His presence made her feel as if she was safe to tell him anything without the fear of being judged or looked down upon.

Still, she felt nervous as she twindled with her thumb, thinking that it would be her first time talking about her burdens that she did not disclose even with her friends.

"Say, professor, have you ever been afraid of something you have no control of? Like, I don't know...yourself?"

Her professor smiled at her, and nodded, "I have. And it might not be very reassuring to hear this from a grown up, but I still have that very same fear even up to this day."

"And what do you do about it?"

"I surrounded myself with trustworthy friends, and I fight. Every single day, I fight, Miss Iglehart. Now you tell me, why are you asking this? I came here to listen to you and not the other way around," Professor Lupin said in a playful tone.

The way her professor confessed that he still have something he was scared of brought Maykha a sense of comfort. Perhaps, it was how the man was so comfortable with letting her know his vulnerability that made her think that she can trust this man with hers.