"You are an Alinac....that means you have power, ambition and the capacity to change the world. But a name is only a name, Leila, unless you make it something."
Two young rivals are headed into a war they know will change them forever. The question...
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Meredith and Leila laughed, cuddling closer for warmth as they watched the sun rise over the black lake. Despite not getting much sleep the previous night, they both woke up early to uphold their yearly tradition. The early autumn sun shone down on the waters, scattering its ethereal glow across the horizon.
"I'll never get tired of this view" Meredith sighed, resting her head on Leila's shoulder. Leila hummed in agreement, devouring the landscape with her eyes - allowing a snapshot to commit itself to her memory. It was nice to steal away moments like this in her brain. They often acted like a barricade against the loneliness that crept in.
Each year, without fail, the girls would find themselves here the morning of September 2nd. It was their spot, their sanctuary and their good luck charm to follow them into the incoming school year. While youth and innocence still clouded their minds, they promised to make one wish each year. Something to hold onto. Something to stand by. No matter what.
"So, what's your wish this year Mer?" Leila whispered, closing her eyes as the sun bathed her face in warmth. She imagined it dancing with her magic, brightening it, giving it more power than ever imaginable and smiled.
"I wish for this is the year I finally get McKinnon to talk to me or not talk for that matter, just... look, glance, acknowledge....perhaps" Meredith chuckled slightly as Leila rolling her eyes. The girl had been obsessed with the Gryffindor half-blood for months now. Leila didn't know why her best friend was so determined to sell herself short. In her opinion, despite the McKinnons being a respectable family, they were too liberal, too willing and too weak.
"Well I wish...I hope that this year doesn't change us." Leila said. As the words floated out her mouth and touched the cold autumn air she instantly regretted them. Meredith pulled away lifting her head and looking at her. Her brown eyes were swollen with pity and something akin to fear.
"Nothing will change this, Leila." Meredith responded, in a quiet voice, reaching her hand up to gently tap her finger against Leila's temple. "What's going through that cunning little mind of yours?"
"I don't know, I just have a feeling....so that's my wish" Leila shrugged off the growing uncomfortable feeling in her stomach, putting her hand out with her pinky raised. It was the truth. It felt like all she knew these days was that she knew nothing. She couldn't explain her emotions, her suspicions, the nagging in feeling in the back of her mind. She just didn't know.
"Then I take back my wish, McKinnon can wait." Meredith smiled devilishly, raising her own pinkie. "I wish we stay friends, forever."
The girls linked their fingers, resting their foreheads together, before submerging their joined hand in the water. The icy bite of the lake overwhelmed them, but they held strong, cementing their wishes into the universe. It wouldn't be real. It wouldn't mean anything... if they didn't sacrifice a little bit of comfort for it.
