Bound by secrets

Chapter 23

I woke up with a start, my heart pounding in my chest. The remnants of the dream were still clinging to me, vivid yet fragmented. I couldn't make sense of it. My mother—someone I hadn't seen in years, someone I thought was either dead or lost in some unreachable place—was there, but it felt more like a warning than a reunion. She wasn't speaking directly, but there were cryptic signs, images, flashes of places and symbols I couldn't fully understand.

I sat up in bed, still tangled in the sheets, my breath heavy as I tried to piece together the dream. The sensation of magic was lingering on my skin, like a thread pulling at me, almost urging me to pay attention. But it was hard to grasp. Could it really be her? Was it possible she was trying to reach me? And why now?

Rubbing my eyes, I glanced over at Draco still peacefully sleeping beside me. I didn't want to wake him. Whatever this was, it felt too vague to explain. And to be honest, I wasn't even sure I could explain it properly to myself.

Slipping out of bed quietly, I padded over to the window and looked out at the foggy morning, my thoughts swirling with confusion. The dream felt important, but it also felt like a puzzle—one I wasn't sure how to solve. What if she was in danger? What if she was warning me about something? I shook my head, trying to focus, but the details of the dream were slipping away the more I thought about them.

By the time Draco stirred, I had made up my mind not to say anything. Not yet, at least.

"Morning," Draco murmured, his voice thick with sleep as he stretched and sat up, running a hand through his hair. "You alright? You look like you've been up for hours."

I forced a smile, trying to shake off the lingering unease. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just had a weird dream, that's all."

He raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced, but let it slide. "Come on then. We're meeting the others in the common room, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded, heading toward the bathroom to splash some water on my face, hoping the cold would help ground me. It didn't, but I wasn't ready to share what had been going on in my mind. Not yet.

When we eventually made our way down to the common room, the usual chatter greeted us. Pansy, Blaise, Nora, Theo, and Lucas were already there, scattered across the couches and armchairs, looking far too relaxed considering the chaos that seemed to surround our lives lately.

"Finally," Pansy teased as Draco and I walked in. "Thought you two would never emerge from the depths of wherever you disappear to."

I rolled my eyes, giving her a playful shove as I sat down beside her. "It's not always a mystery, you know."

"Sure it isn't," Lucas chimed in, grinning from where he was sprawled out next to Pansy. "You two always look like you've been up to no good."

I laughed along with them, but my mind kept drifting back to the dream. I felt like something was just out of reach, like there was a key to unlocking the meaning, but I couldn't quite grab it. I didn't want to burden them with my confusion, not when we already had so much to deal with. Arlo, my father, the looming threat over everything. What was one more mystery on top of it all?

"Alright, what's the plan for today?" Theo asked, steering the conversation toward something practical. "We've got a bit of time before we need to deal with...well, you know."

Everyone glanced around, the unspoken tension filling the room. We had plans, a mission even, but today—today was supposed to be a breather. Or as much of one as we could get.

I leaned back, staying quiet, not wanting to reveal how distracted I was. My mind kept replaying the fragments of the dream, my mother's face, the way her eyes seemed to be pleading with me, showing me something I couldn't quite see. I couldn't shake the feeling that whatever this was, it was only the beginning.