𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐑

the one with the locket

“On the first day,
Man created God.”

•

I DECIDED TO write everything down, as instructions. To remember every detail of where the Horcruxes are, and every detail of what's going to happen to them when Harry, Ron and Hermione are out there, was a dangerous task. I thought I better start writing them before it's too late.

It was Saturday. Harry had gone for his private lessons with Dumbledore. I had nothing better to do, having done with my papers. I tiptoed out if the room, careful not to disturb everyone sleeping, and left the Gryffindor Dormitory. It was after hours, but with Dumbledore back, and us on the verge of war, I doubted me being out of bed after hours was going to be a deep concern.

I didnt need light; I had the floor plan of Hogwarts memorized at heart. But when I reached a certain secret room, I wasn't expecting a door to already exist there. Someone was in the Room of Requirements.

Draco Malfoy.

I swiftly entered, closing the door behind me. Draco was inside as I muttered protective enchantments to hide the room once again. He turned to face me, his face illimitable by metallic light emanating from some crystal orbs around the place.

"You have to be more careful," I said, entering as his head whipped towards me, startled. "Someone could catch you doing something sinful," I said walking towards him.

"What-"

"Am I doing here?" I asked, leaning down and taking a bite out of the apple in his hands. "I came here for some quiet. But you're here already."

"Skylar," he said, flustered. "You should go."

I looked at him, his perfect blond hair a little messy now. Fuck, he had sex hair. "Is this the cabinet?"

Draco looked a little startled, but nodded anyway. "Voldemort," he said- I liked the way he spat his name- "wants me to fix it. That's my task. My debt, as he likes to say it."

"I thought you'd not get a debt since your father is still home, and wasn't involved in the loss of the Prophecy," I questioned.

"I'm in debt because I helped you all against them," he said. "He wants me to prove to him where my loyalties lie."

I nodded. "Are you afraid?"

This seemed to knock something out of him. He staggered a bit in front of the cabinet and leaned against a table behind him.

"I am afraid," he said. "I'm terrified. Voldemort is a terrorist. He feeds on fear. He's not even human now, with so many fragments of his soul. And more scarily so,he doesn't look like a human."

"Yeah," I said airily. "He does have a startling lack of nose."

Draco sniggered instantly. "Yeah. But that's not what I meant. He's ghostly pale. And his eyes are red. He . . . He is ruthless, Skylar," he said. "He killed this man in front of me, I'm not sure who, or why, but he told Dolohov to kill the spare. Human life has no value for him."

"He doesn't, Draco. I'm aware of it."

"I'm terrified of him," Draco pinched his nose and grimaced. "Some day, when I'm not paying attention, he might look into my mind, see what I think and kill me without thinking."

"Let's hope it never comes to that," I said.

"But I'm more angry than scared, Skylar," he said. His eyes were burning with something I had never seen before. "I hope you won't take it wrongly, I have nothing against Dark Magic. It's just stupid to deny the usage and existence of a whole wide branch of magic just for the sake of being morally correct," he was speaking really fast now. "There's no laws, no good or bad or just in War, Skylar. And I'm telling you, war is coming. Something danger, scathing. We have to see the world through him for us to understand what lies in store for us."