The Light

Chapter 54- The Lines

And maybe they should have cherished those moments more dearly.

The ones where Remus and Hermione lay tangled within one another, legs and souls entwined.

The ones where Sirius laughed loudly, jumping and dancing after a prank had gone flawlessly, and his euphoria poured from him like a beacon of light that lit up the whole world.

The ones where Marlene and Dorcas held piggyback races with Peter and Mary on the way to Transfiguration, betting everything they had in their pockets, which usually wasn't a lot but the throwaway victory tasted sweet anyway.

The ones where Lily shoved pie in James' face when he dared to bring up the fact that he had gotten a higher mark on his essay. Only for him to rub his cheek on her, smothering the whipped cream between them as she squealed and tried to get away.

Maybe they should have cherished these moments, breathed a little slower, appreciated the thrum of their life a little more... Because suddenly it got very dark very quickly and these moments, the little ones, were hard to come by... And even harder to remember.

*

"If I may have your attention," Dumbledore announced, clearing his throat. His voice boomed around the Great Hall, echoing off the alcoves and high beams of the ceiling, cutting through the din of the morning like a knife of silence.

Every set of eyes relocated to look at him. He bowed his head.

"I tell you this now so that the alarm may pass your notice when your numbers drop. You may have already realised that a few are missing today. Some parents have made the decision that their children are safer at home in these dark times and whilst I can understand the distraction it may cause, I implore you to remain calm and concentrate on your studies."

His face fell solemn then, and his wrinkles looked deeper and more profound than ever. He said gravely, "This is all happening in light of the recent attacks. As you remember, the Minister has asked me to read out the names of the fallen, if only to commemorate their efforts to making the wizarding world a better place."

A hush broke out over the sea of students, twisting and writhing.

"Recent attacks?" Hermione whispered, turning to James with an incredulous frown marring her face.

James looked pale. He was holding Lily's hand tightly. "Nine Unspeakables were found hanging from the prophecy room in the Department of Mysteries. They'd been..." He swallowed. "Mutilated."

Hermione stared at him. "Attacks." Her voice shook. "Plural."

James stared at her, and his throat bobbed. He looked torn, as though he had been hoping she wouldn't ask that, because once he said it aloud, it all became horribly and terrifyingly real. Nevertheless, he uttered, "A Muggle family was tortured into insanity and fourteen Muggleborns are missing. A group of the Ministry's top Aurors were sent to a Death Eater raid and they never returned."

Bile rose in her throat, and tears pricked her eyes. Hermione forced herself to drag her eyes away from him, and she redirected them haltingly onto Dumbledore.

There was only one question on her mind, burning and choking her. It was there, everywhere, threatening to block everything in her body because it was blunt and terrifying: what was this world coming to?

"If you will be silent."

Nobody dared to move, or even breathe too loudly. The school just sat, drowning in their silence, because that was all they could really do lest they surrender to the thudding of their own hearts.