Moon Dust | Mattheo Riddle

Chapter 34: Breathless

"Alohomora," Nova tried, pointing her wand up at the door. It didn't open. The brunette sighed under her breath and moved to try again but Regina stopped her, placing a hand on her forehead.

"Snape must have spelled it, to keep students out while it was locked," she muttered, turning around with a grunt and slamming her hands on the desk, making the ingredients scatter.

Behind her Nova placed her wand in the pocket of her robes and placed her hand on the door handle, leaning in closer as if to test it out, before trying to force it open. Regina let out a breathy snort. "It's blackthorn wood, it won't open."

"It will... just needs a little push." The Hufflepuff let out a stammered breath, clicking her fingers together and then placing them flat against the wood, pushing with more determination.

"Nova," Regina sighed, turning around to watch as the brunette shoved her shoulder into the door. She widened her eyes when the wood shifted a little on the spot. Although it was not enough to open it completely.

"Yell at me," Nova asked, turning around and pressing her back against the door, pushing with the back of her hands.

Regina raised a brow. "Huh?"

"Insult me, or Harry or someone. Tell me something that will make me mad."

"I don't think it's possible to make you mad, you're too puppy-like."

Nova frowned, jutting out her bottom lip in response and Regina raised a hand toward her with a snort. "Point proven. Why do you want to get mad in the first place?"

"It'll help... if you make me angry, then maybe I could break the door down. You said you knew about my ahh—condition."

"Oh," Regina mused, creasing her brows. Nova's expression dropped a little at that, and she stepped away from the door. "I wouldn't hurt you, it's not to lose control or something like that, it's just, that anger makes you stronger. It's like the pull of the moon, I feel the most connected to it when it's full, but I get those same tingles when I'm angry or stressed too."

"Tingles?" Regina said, piquing a brow. Nova shrugged, giggling at her own choice of words before pulling her sleeves down over her arms.

"Best way to describe it."

Regina hummed, glancing around the dark room. The shelves were stacked with jars and glass vials of all different shapes and sizes, some fitted with animal bones and gooey textures. It was sort of creepy actually, especially when the light hit them. The one bulb at the top of the room was spinning now, rumbling from the pressure that had been forced at the door.
"Well, this is pretty stressful for me, is being locked in a room not enough stress for you?"

Again, Nova shrugged, peeking behind her shoulder at the door again as she placed a finger to her chin. "I'm locked in a room every full moon, if anything I'm used to it."

"Okay... well," Regina breathed, blinking at that statement before rubbing at the space between her eyes and wandering toward the desk again.

"Either way, I really doubt I could make you angry enough to break it down on your own, no offence. It's just, that door is pretty strong, you'll still need some sort of loosener around the locks to crack it open," she said, peering down at the desk and picking through the scattered ingredients with an unenthusiastic expression. "We could try to brew a potion for it, but that could take hours."

Nova rested against the door, thinking it over for a second, while tapping her hand against the metal handle. "What if we softened it, the texture of the metal in the locks, into some sort of liquid. Do you think that would work?"