Black Magic: Nico visits Hogwarts

18: Nico

I wasn't sure what time it was when I woke. There was a strange absence of clocks in the Gryffindor common room, which almost took me back to the Lotus Casino. Indeed, Hogwarts did seem to exude that same feel of a place without time, a different reality. There was something about the wizarding world that felt like being in a fairytale, going to school in an ancient castle, wearing dress robes and casting spells with incantations was almost entirely surreal, even for me. The constant danger and adrenaline of being a Demigod was enough of a contrast to the slow paced  wizarding education, not to mention that we didn't reject the outside world in the same way the wizards seemed to. Though it put me on edge, my demigod senses often sending my ADHD haywire, I actually somewhat enjoyed it.

I watched the fire spit it's embers, something I rarely had the chance to do. It took me a while, but I realised that somehow the short sleep had been dreamless. I couldn't remember a time when that had been the case. There was something, sent by the gods to keep me on my toes, keep me guessing. Even in the quiet of the early hours, alone in a strange castle in the middle of nowhere, hated by the one person I was there for, I felt a sense of calm and relaxation I never had before.

Feeling around in the pocket of my robe, I pulled out the class timetable I had been assigned. Truth be told, I was more nervous about failing school than about failing my father's mission. Fighting was a natural instinct, education not so much. Sitting still in lessons had never been my strong point, and Hogwarts seemed to exude the same aura as the school I had attended before the Lotus Casino. That being said, as I looked over the classes I was taking, there was a rather pleasant absence of mathematics and sciences - subjects I never wanted to understand. Potions on the other hand, did seem intruiging. There was no indication of who else I would be in lessons with. I hoped that I wouldn't be too far from Harry, given I had no choice but to protect him, but I also hoped I might be with Neville. No one had ever been as attentive, as kind to me as he. As much as I needed a friend, it felt as if he did too. He was so intent on helping me, making me feel as if I belonged. Honourable and brave at the very least.

Ultimately, curiosity got the better of me. Perhaps it was the ADHD, though more likely boredom given the calm of my evening, but regardless of what it was I decided to take a walk. I knew I shouldn't, having listened to prefects on the way up, but I'd never been one to be particularly law abiding. Besides, as master of the shadows, I figured I could shadow travel away should I be caught. Ensuring I had my wand in hand, I crept out, taking a glance behind to ensure no one saw as I slipped out of the common room through the tiniest crack in the portrait I could manage.

Lumos.

The corridor ahead of me lit up, the wooden paneling of the walls illuminated with the soft golden glow of wand light. My footsteps echoed down the cold stone floor, bouncing off the high arches of the ceiling seemingly endlessly. The maze of hallways seemed to extend for miles, and every turn seemed to lead into another journey to nowhere. I could feel the eyes of the portraits that lined the walls bear into my back as they eyed one and other, passing between their frames to gossip and speculate.

Finally, I found the huge staircase we had ascended after the feast. The grand, grey steps descended down into  darkness, I assumed all the way down to the dungeons. I pointed my wand over the banister, but the bottom remained pitch black. For a moment I considered turning back, I hadn't yet been caught, and I wasn't sure it was worth the risk. The portrait opposite me raised her eyebrows in disapproval, but I took it as a dare to continue and I stepped on to the stairs, walking past with all of the confidence and pomposity I could muster. She glared as I flounced past.

Moonlight managed to wriggle in through the fine cracks in the shutters of the huge gothic windows that lined the back wall. I kept my feet as light as possible, slipping past the first floor and on to the second flight, my limbs pumping with adrenaline now.

There was a crack. I spun around, desperately trying to locate the source. The sturdy stone stairs suddenly felt a whole lot less stable. Retreating into the darkest shadow I could find, I grabbed the banister. Slowly but surely, the stairs began to move. I stayed where I was, gripping my wand tightly as the configuration changed. It seemed to go on forever, the stairs swinging past each other, eradicating the old puzzle of how I would return to the Gryffindor common room, and providing a new, entirely different maze for me to lose myself in.

The stairs stopped moving with another loud crack. I stayed where I was, the sound of my heart pounding from the surprise filling my ears. I glanced around with caution, darning not to move until I was sure there was no chance they would move again. I quickly abandoned my plans to explore the lower levels of the castle, instead deciding the best course of action was to get back in my bed as quickly as possible, to not be caught and to not face the consequences. Besides, if the stairs moved again I feared I wouldn't make it back until the sun came up.

I extinguished the light on my wand, plunging the staircase into complete darkness. Of course, as the son of Hades I could see perfectly well, but the castle would never have been as beautiful in the monotone of the night. I prepared to sink into the shadows, visualising my bed in the far corner of the boys dormitory, under the smooth walnut arch of the window frame.

A hand gripped tightly onto my shoulder.