Seers Secret ✧ James Potter

~Chapter 67~

Alina is ignoring James, and she has no problem admitting it—to herself, at least.

After all, it's only natural to ignore him after what happened yesterday. They kissed, and now she's pretending it meant nothing.

So far, she's doing a decent job.

They haven't exchanged a single word all morning, though that's largely because James has been caught up in a Quidditch match. Convenient for her.

Alina sighs softly as she sinks into her seat for the class right before lunch. She's not planning on going to lunch either—not with the Marauders around.

The chair beside her scrapes back, and Peter slides into the seat, squinting at the board to read the day's lesson.

She ignores him too, flipping open her textbook to the assigned page.

"Are you alright?" Peter asks, his voice low with concern.

"I'm fine," Alina replies coolly, her tone as sharp as the chill that lingers in the air.

Peter gives her a nervous smile, but says nothing more, focusing his attention forward.

Alina shoves down the flicker of guilt. She shoves everything down, locking her emotions away in a box, deep in her mind. It's better this way—her mental walls are strong, and that's how it has to be.

Class passes in a blur, just reading a few pages and answering questions—simple, mindless work. When the professor finally dismisses them, Alina packs her things in record time.

Peter, still beside her, doesn't say anything else. But even if he had, she wouldn't have listened. Without so much as a glance, she walks out of the classroom, blending into the flow of students heading to lunch.

But she goes the opposite way. The long way.

Her mind replays the moment from yesterday: her and James, kissing. A spark she hadn't expected, hadn't wanted—but it was there.

What's wrong with her? It wasn't even a real kiss. It lasted barely a few seconds. That's nothing.

She tells herself it doesn't matter. Because it can't. Even if, deep down, a part of her wishes it did.

Her nails dig into her palms as she walks, her footsteps echoing off the stone walls.

Eventually, she reaches the courtyard doors and pushes them open with a sigh. A cold breeze hits her, sharp and biting, but she welcomes it. The chill keeps her awake, keeps her thoughts in check.

The courtyard is mostly empty. She walks over to one of the benches and sits down, her exhaustion settling in like a heavy weight.

She's so tired—of everything. Of pretending, of pushing people away, of feeling things she doesn't want to feel.

But this is the only way she knows how to survive.

She didn't have time to really think about it, not with everything else occupying her mind. But the lack of sleep is catching up to her.

Maybe it has something to do with the necklace. It doesn't bother her too much on its own, but the mystery of how it ended up with her gnaws at the back of her mind. Someone has to have put it there.

Right?

Then again, the castle is magic. Everyone knows that. The Room of Requirement is proof enough—a room that gives you exactly what you need, hidden away unless summoned. She rarely uses it, but its existence is undeniable.

So could the castle have given her the necklace?

But why?

Too many questions, and no answers in sight.

Her thoughts are interrupted by movement in the corner of her vision—a large black dog. Of course.

For fuck's sake.

The dog bounds over, tail wagging as if it has no care in the world. Alina crosses her arms, glaring down at the animal—or rather, Sirius.

She recognizes those eyes instantly. Gray, mischievous, too much like Regulus's. But this isn't the time for family comparisons.

The dog looks up at her with what can only be described as a smirk. If dogs could smirk, this one would be smug about it.

"I know it's you, Sirius," Alina says, voice flat, her glare unwavering.

The dog freezes, eyes widening comically in what could almost pass for panic.

"You're an idiot," she continues, her tone matter-of-fact. "I've known for years."

The dog takes a step back, paws crunching in the grass, clearly caught off guard.

Alina raises an eyebrow. "Run along now, Sirius," she adds with a slight wave of her hand, dismissing him.

For a moment, the dog hesitates, eyes still locked on hers, before finally retreating, taking careful steps backward before turning to leave.

As the black figure disappears from sight, Alina lets out an exasperated sigh, though she can't help but smirk. The thought of Sirius panicking, if only for a second, is oddly satisfying.