STARLIT SUPERNOVA. h. potter

vi. A Haunting Past

starlit supernova
❛ vi. a haunting past ❜

━━━━━ MADAM POMFREY INSISTED on keeping Nova in the hospital wing for the rest of the weekend. No matter how much Nova pleaded, Madam Pomfrey wasn't taking any pity. She was stuck in there until Monday.

               Not-so-lucky her. Nova wanted to scream when she heard the news. She couldn't put up the three drilling pairs of eyes on her that whole time. Hermione and Ron visited Harry the whole time, only ever leaving at night. And they stared. Blatantly. Without any shame. It got so bad Nova was nearly in tears.

               Ernie had started to storm over to them once, but Hannah and Justin pulled him back before anything could transpire. Despite wanting to confront them herself, Nova was thankful for Hannah and Justin. Ernie wouldn't have stopped them from staring, he would've only made himself an "enemy" of the three Gryffindors all over again.

               Hannah, Justin, and Ernie visited daily, intent on cheering her up. And it worked, for the most part. Hannah would tell Nova about the stuff going on in their dorm room with Susan Bones and Megan Jones. Ernie and Justin told her about Zacharias Smith and how he got his head stuck inside a flower pot (it was a long — albeit hilarious — story). Emile showed up with a book he thought she might enjoy, despite knowing Nova's aversion to reading. Cedric and some of the Hufflepuff team stopped by, too, there to talk happily about winning the Quidditch game. Only Nova and Cedric looked bummed at the topic. Neither of them wanted to talk about it.

               "I'm just saying," Nova said, stomping her way toward the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom that Monday. "If Snape is teaching, I'm taking a sharp nosedive off the Astronomy Tower."

               Justin and Hannah rolled their eyes, but Ernie nodded along as if he agreed with Nova. She swung the door open, and looked inside with her eyes narrowed. She searched the dark classroom, letting out a sigh of relief when she spotted Professor Lupin.

               "Guys," she said, pulling Ernie inside, "he's here!"

               "Thank, Merlin ..." muttered the blond, walking to his seat.

               Professor Lupin was back at work. It certainly looked as though he had been ill. His old robes were hanging more loosely on him and there were dark shadows beneath his eyes; nevertheless, he smiled at the class as they took their seats, and they burst at once into an explosion of complaints about Snape's behavior while Lupin had been ill.

               "It's not fair, he was only filling in, why should he give us homework?" Susan Bones complained, showing her hands, which were covered in black ink.

               "We don't know anything about werewolves," Padma Patil said furiously. "Two rolls of parchment, Professor!"

               "Did you tell Professor Snape we haven't covered them yet?" Lupin asked, frowning slightly.

               The babble broke out again:

               "We tried," Nova started, "but he just wouldn't listen -"

               "— two rolls of parchment!"

               Professor Lupin smiled at the look of indignation on every face. "Don't worry. I'll speak to Professor Snape. You don't have to do the essay."

               "Oh, thank God." Nova sunk in her seat. "I haven't even started it."

               They had a very enjoyable lesson. Professor Lupin had brought along a glass box containing a hinkypunk, a little one-legged creature who looked as though he were made of wisps of smoke, rather frail and harmless looking.