The Twin and Harry Potter

The Dueling Club

At breakfast the next morning, Vanessa notes that Harry is not at the table. He must still be in the infirmary. She should check in on him, see if he's okay. Since his friends are here eating breakfast so maybe she'll be able to see him without them around.

She also notices the urgent whispers being shared between Harry's two friends. They're abruptly get up from their table and scamper out of the Great Hall. They're either going to see Harry or slink off to that one bathroom.

That bathroom. Vanessa had tried sneaking into there one day, Gryffindor was in class and Slytherin had a free period. Moaning Myrtle had been in there wailing in one of the stalls. As the door creaked closed behind Vanessa's quiet steps, there was a lull in the crying. Myrtle popped her head through the stall and locked her eyes on her.

"What are you doing here?" Myrtle had wailed through sniffles. "Come to mock me like everyone always does? Or just come to ignore me like the others?"

"I must have stepped into the wrong restroom." Vanessa glanced around the bathroom. She couldn't see or smell anything out of place. "What others do you mean?" Maybe Myrtle could be helpful.

"Of course you did, no one ever want to come to visit me!" Myrtle started crying again. "Those three Gryffindors just come here and ignore me, let me cry all alone in my stall. Never a care for poor Myrtle!" Her wailing cries loudly echoed in the room as she floated back into her stall. Vanessa knew that asking her about Harry would raise suspicion.

She moved to other unoccupied stalls and looked in. One she found an empty cauldron sitting on a toilet seat. Some easily accessible potion ingredients were in their respective containers piled into the cauldron. A quick glance at the already accumulated ingredients told her nothing about what sort of potion they'd be brewing. They are probably planning on stealing some ingredients for whatever it is, and whatever it is cannot be for anything good.

She finishes her food as the two Gryffindors depart and stands, interrupting Draco's umpteenth rant about the game the day before.

"I'm going to check on my brother." She states firmly, in a way to let him know he is not invited to tag along. She'd rather not deal with any antagonizing behavior at the moment. Only his eyes betray the slightest bit of offense to her lack of want for his company.

"Oh, let me walk you." Daphne stands. "I have to head that direction anyway." She links her arm with Vanessa's before she's even given a response.

"That's fine, I wasn't finished with breakfast anyways." Draco shrugs and picks his rant up where he left off.

Daphne leads Vanessa out of the Great Hall, chattering about the latest gossip she read in Witch Weekly.

"... they say she just up and ran off with a muggle! Can you believe it?" She exclaims as they walk into the infirmary. The room is filled with the bright light from outside. Madam Pomfrey pops out from an area sectioned off with high curtains. The same ones Harry had changed behind just yesterday.

"Hello, dears." She looks between the two of them. "Miss Potter, I've already sent your brother away."

"Oh. Alright then, s'pose I made the trip for no reason then." She sighs inwardly. Maybe she should have come before breakfast like she initially planned. Maybe she'll catch him later and ask how he's doing. Madam Pomfrey nods and goes to her desk.

Vanessa turns and starts out with Daphne. Just as they start moving Daphne gasps and grips Vanessa's arm. Daphne's eyes are locked towards where Madam Pomfrey has been moments ago. Vanessa glances over and let's put a small gasp of her own. The curtains are open just enough for them to see the bed. The small Gryffindor first year, the one she had gotten cross with yesterday, is lying there. His entire body looks stiff and his arms are held out in front of his body as if he were holding something when frozen solid. If Vanessa had to guess, she'd say it was his camera. She'd never seen anything like it. It's as if someone had made a hyper realistic statue of him.