"𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙜𝙤𝙣𝙮"
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IN WHICH ~ Jupiter Cassiopeia Lestrange thought she could escape her family's dark legacy at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but in her second year, Tom Riddle's diar...
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"Never trust your tongue while your heart is bitter, hush until you heal."
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Jupiter sat with Hermione and Ron outside the pub, hugging her knees, her breath curling into the cold night air. Snowflakes gathered on her lashes, but she didn't bother to blink them away. The thought of what Harry was saying to Fudge gnawed at her insides. It hurt more than she wanted to admit—that he hadn't let her go with him.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" Hermione asked, breaking the silence.
Jupiter shrugged but said nothing. Her fingers tightened around the sleeves of her jumper, pulling them over her knuckles. She hated being left behind. Hated the waiting.
Suddenly, the pub door banged open with a gust of wind, and faint, hurried footprints appeared in the snow, trailing down the street.
"There he is!" Ron hissed, leaping to his feet.
The three scrambled off the bench and followed the trail without question, their boots crunching over fresh snow. As they rounded a corner, they nearly collided with a group of carolers Harry had shoved aside in his rush.
"Sorry!" Hermione called over her shoulder as they sprinted past.
The footprints led them through narrow alleys and along frosted cobblestone streets until, at last, they came to an abrupt end by a low stone wall.
"Harry?" Jupiter called softly, slowing her steps. A faint, muffled sob reached her ears. She exchanged a glance with Hermione, and they cautiously rounded the wall. There, huddled against a jagged rock, was Harry—his hands buried in his hair, shoulders shaking.
"Harry..." Hermione's voice was gentle as she knelt beside him. She reached out and pulled the cloak away, revealing his pale, tear-streaked face.
His green eyes, usually so bright, were puffy and red. "He was their friend," Harry whispered, his voice breaking. "And he betrayed them."
The words fell heavily into the silence. His fists clenched in his lap as more tears escaped. "He was their friend!" he cried, the anguish in his voice cutting through the still night.
Jupiter hovered nearby, shifting uneasily. The raw pain in Harry's words twisted something deep inside her, but another thought burned in the back of her mind—something she couldn't ignore.
"What did they say about me?" she asked hesitantly, her voice low with guilt. "Fudge said my name, didn't he?"
Harry sniffed, his breath uneven as he lifted his gaze to hers. For a moment, he seemed to wrestle with himself, guilt flickering in his eyes.
