✔️ 𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐓&𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 → 𝑓. 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑙𝑒𝑦

58 | I O R

•••
flying like a cannon ball
falling to the earth,
heavy as a feather when
you hit the dirt.
•••

   Harry and Lynnea found her in the library. Of course Hermione had seen something like that before, Lynnea wondered why she hadn't thought about asking her in first step.

   "It's a rune", she said, letting a heavy old book fall on the table. Madame Pince threw her a burning glare. "The rune of the snake, to be exact." Lynnea looked at her rather confused and she sighed. "See, it's the rune that stands for the constant war of opposing forces. Fire and water, darkness and light, good and evil. Duplicity. Dual nature."

   "Is that ... bad?", Harry asked, cocking an eyebrow.

   "I don't know, it could be a warning", Hermione replied. "Ior - that's the rune - can state the equilibrium of your soul." Lynnea snorted. "It could also be a warning, that one of your the forces inside you is threatening to outgrow."

   "Always heard of someone waking up with a rune-scar on their skin?", Lynnea asked, staring at her friend, who's eyes were fixed on the book.

   Hermione looked up and fixed Lynnea's face with her eyes instead. "I could look it up for you, if you want", she finally said.

   "That would be great, Hermione!", Lynnea sighed.

   "But I am the same opinion as Harry", she said, and Harry beamed triumphantly, a big fat told you so look on his face. "You should tell Dumbledore."

   "Yeah, and I'll tell you the same as I already told him", Lynnea responded, rolling her eyes at her brother. "No. Harry can tell him. But I guess, Dumbledore would not care at all. So if you'd find something about it, I'll be damn grateful."

   "I'll let you know." Hermione smiled at Lynnea encouraging, and the redhead mirrored the gesture, before she excused herself and left the library, leaving Hermione and Harry behind, well aware that they'd be busy discussing Lynnea's stubbornness to not tell the headmaster.

•••

   "I got him!", Harry whispered eagerly in his sister's ear, after he placed himself next to her. Snape had taken ten points from Gryffindor for Harry being late, and Harry was panting.

   "You got who?", she muttered back, trying not to move my lips.

   "Malfoy!", Harry mumbled back. "The girls you noticed were Crabbe and Goyle! Polyjuice Potion", he added, after seeing Lynnea's dazzled face. "He stole it in our first lesson with Slughorn. And I found out, where he vanishes every day! The seventh floor, Lynn!"

    "The Room of Requirement!", Lynnea breathed. "Of course!"

   "But Potter seems to have a lot to say on the subject", said Snape, pointing suddenly at the back of the room, his black eyes fixed on Harry. "Let us ask Potter how we would tell the difference between an Inferius and a ghost."

The whole class looked around at Harry. "Er - well - ghosts are transparent -", he said.

"Oh, very good," interrupted Snape, his lip curling. "Yes, it in easy to see that nearly six years of magical education have not been wasted on you, Potter. Ghosts are transparent."

   Pansy Parkinson let out a high-pitched giggle. Several other people were smirking. Harry took a deep breath and continued calmly, though Lynnea could feel his insides were boiling. "Yeah, ghosts are transparent, but Inferi are dead bodies, aren't they? So they'd be solid  -"

   "A five-year-old could have told us as much", sneered Snape. "The Inferius is a corpse that has been reanimated by a dark wizard's spells. It is not alive, it is merely used like a puppet to do the wizard's bidding. A ghost, as I trust that you are all aware by now, is the imprint of a departed soul left upon the earth ... and of course, as Potter so wisely tells us, transparent. "

   "Well, what Harry said is the most useful if we're trying to tell them apart!", said Ron. "When we come face-to-face with one down a dark alley, we're going to be having a look to see if it's solid, aren't we, we're not going to be asking, 'Excuse me, are you the imprint of a departed soul?'"

   There was a ripple of laughter, instantly quelled by the look Snape gave the class.

"Another ten points from Gryffindor", said Snape. "I would expect nothing more sophisticated from you, Ronald Weasley, the boy so solid he cannot Apparate half an inch across a room."

   "Don't", Lynnea whispered, grabbing Harry's arm, who had already opened his mouth, and now closed it.

   Snape looked at the girl with a strange expression, his black eyes locking with her green ones, before he turned around, saying: "Now open on page two hundred and thirteen and read about the Cruciatus Curse."

•••

    Lynnea was too young to take the Apparition test, that was today at Hogsmeade. So she, Harry, Draco and Ernie McMillan from Hufflepuff were the only ones to join Potions Class this afternoon. After the lesson was over, she glued herself on Draco's soles.

   "What do you want, Potter?", he spat, without looking at her, without stopping.

   "Draco, I'm worrying about you", Lynnea sighed, catching up with him. "You look horrible ..."

   "Yeah, of course you do", he sarcastically spat. "Guess your brother is sending you, isn't he? I know he's keen on what I'm doing. So tell him it's none of his fucking business!"

   "He doesn't send me", she growled. "I really am worrying, you are just a shadow of yourself and I wish I could help you."

   He froze on spot, finally staring down at her. For a second she could read the desperation in his eyes, before his gaze hardened again. "Leave me alone, Potter!", he snapped. "You have no - NO - idea!" 

   "So tell me!", Lynnea hissed. "Why will you try so hard to be the lost boy? I already told you, I'd be there for you. You don't have to fight this alone."

   "You can't", he said in a low voice and his walls seemed to crumble. "It's too dangerous. And now leave me alone, Lynnea."

   "But -"

   "Just leave!", he snapped and walked away, leaving the girl standing in the hallway all on her own.