Aletheia

Admitting to Remus that she was still in love with Sirius was something Aletheia had never planned on doing. After saying it allowed, there was nothing Aletheia could do to stop thinking about it. About him. 

She was in love with everything about him. She was in love with his hair and his eyes. She was in love with the way he laughed and the things he said. She was in love with the way he wore his clothes and the way he didn't always button up his shirt when he was running late. She was in love with the way he held his wand and the way he cast spells. She was in love with the way he treated her sister with love and respect, despite despising every other Slytherin at Hogwarts. She was in love with the way he defended her and her sister. 

There was not a single thing she disliked about him. 

Except maybe the influence he had one Atalanta. 

He was Atalanta's best friend after Aletheia, which meant he held the most influence over her. He was constantly getting her into trouble, whether or not he did it on purpose. 

Still, every chance Aletheia got to talk to Sirius was a miracle. Sometimes, she hardly knew how to speak to him. When he asked her for studying help later that day, Aletheia couldn't help but agree to help him. 

She got to their meeting place 5 minutes early. This place, a small corner of a small, hidden garden, was entirely Aletheia and Sirius'. Neither had ever brought anyone else there. They had both told Atalanta that it existed, but they never brought her there. It belonged to them and only them. Sitting there alone for the few minutes before Sirius arrived, Aletheia couldn't help but imagine her and Sirius being together and coming to this spot as more than friends. 

She shook the thoughts away quickly. There was no way she could be thinking about that when Sirius actually arrived. What if he was a Legilimens and could read her mind? It was a silly fear but it was an ever-present fear, especially when she was thinking about Sirius. 

A few seconds later, Sirius came marching into their spot. Aletheia scrambled around with her potions notebook and textbook, praying that nothing she had open could hint to him that she had a crush on him. It was unlikely, but she just had to be sure. 

"Theia!" 

Aletheia smiled at Sirius and waved, suddenly unsure how to react around him. 

"What, I don't get a hug?" He asked, arms open wide. Aletheia laughed and crossed her arms. 

"I saw you not 30 minutes ago. You couldn't have missed me that badly." Aletheia rolled her eyes mockingly. Sirius dropped his arms and shrugged. He sat across from her. 

"You're right, I guess. I didn't miss you that much." Aletheia's heart dropped so far she didn't see the mocking in his face. "Just kidding, I did." 

Sirius pulled her toward him and hugged her close to his chest, pretending to cry. 

"Oh, shove off, Sirius," Aletheia laughed, pushing away from him. "Stop being melodramatic, we need to study." 

Sirius sighed and nodded, pinching his eyebrows together. 

"You're right. We need to focus. I have a Potions exam next class and I need to know everything on it." 

"You know I'm not just going to give you the answers, right Sirius?" 

"Yeah, of course. You're not Ata." Aletheia wasn't sure how she felt about that comment. "You actually help me learn things. She's just...distracting." 

Aletheia really didn't know how to feel about that one. 

"Alright, enough about my sister. Let's focus. I want you to pass this test." 

Aletheia spent the next 30 minutes helping Sirius remember all the things that he had forgotten over the summer. Sirius had trouble focusing, especially when they were doing things he really didn't want to be doing, so Aletheia had spent a long time trying to figure out ways to help him stay focused while they were studying. 

"Alright. Alright, I think I got it," Sirius said, staring at the drawing Aletheia had made in the dirt. 

"Great! I think we covered everything." 

Aletheia had barely managed to finish her sentence before Sirius tackled her in a hug. She laughed a little awkwardly and he squeezed her tighter. A large bell rang overhead. He stood quickly and grabbed his bag.

"Thank you so much, Theia! If there is anything I can do for you, let me know!" Sirius yelled behind him as he ran away from her toward his next class. "I love you!" 

Aletheia's cheeks heated up. 'I love you' was not something she had never heard from Sirius. Their group of friends wasn't ever afraid to say 'I love you' to one another. Aletheia just hoped that someday Sirius would be saying it to her and it wouldn't be platonically. 

With a heavy sigh, Aletheia piled her things away and headed toward her class. 

Atalanta

She huffed as she dropped her bag on the ground, falling into one of the seats. 

"Ah, Miss Phileo, welcome," said Professor Flitwick. "Are you ready to serve your sentence?" 

"You make it sound like you're sending me to Azkaban," Atalanta said with the roll of her eyes. 

"You keep on the track you're on now and we might be." 

"You're going to send me to Azkaban for giving a girl antlers? Last I heard, there were only three curses that landed you in Azkaban and anteoculatia wasn't one of them." 

"What do you want to do when you leave here, Miss Phileo?" Flitwick asked, standing near her desk. Atalanta sighed and fidgeted. 

"What does it matter? What is my detention?

"Just answer the question. What do you want to do?" 

Atalanta set her jaw and tapped her foot on the floor. 

"I don't know." 

"Alright, so what do you like to do?" 

"I don't know." 

"Well, I know that you like pulling pranks. Why not open a joke shop like Zonko's?" 

"And spend my day locked away in doors? No thank you." 

"Alright, so you need an outside job. A lot of people want to become Auror's. Do you want to do that?" 

"I don't know. It sounds like a lot of work." 

"You do have to work to survive, Miss Phileo." 

"Not if I'm in Azkaban." 

Flitwick sighed. 

"This year is OWLs, Miss Phileo. There are certain things you need to take into consideration to do certain jobs. If you don't pass-"

"I have all O's, don't I?" 

"Yes, you do." 

"So what's the big deal?"

"You're a Slytherin, aren't you?"

"No, Professor Flitwick, I just walk around wearing green all day because it brings out my eyes." 

"The Sorting Hat put you in Slytherin for a reason, for your ambition. So what are your ambitions? What do you aspire to be? Where do you see yourself in 10 years?" 

Atalanta froze, lost somewhere in her mind. 

There was a distant desire, somewhere deep in her mind. She had voiced her desire once, long ago, and her father laughed at her. Never again had she spoken aloud what it was she wanted to do with her life. 

Atalanta shook her head. 

"What?" Flitwick asked. "What is that thing you thought of?" 

"It's stupid," Atalanta muttered. 

"Nothing is stupid. Just tell me." 

"I want..." Atalanta cleared her throat. "I want to help kids." 

Flitwick nodded his head. 

"Like a nanny or a school teacher? I could-"

"Not a teacher. I want to protect kids who are hurt by their families. Muggle kids. Magic kids. Whoever." 

Flitwick paused, staring at Atalanta unblinkingly. 

"See?" Atalanta's laugh was bitter. She grabbed her bag roughly and began to stand. "You think it's stupid." 

"No, Atalanta, I don't think it's stupid. Why do you want to do that?" He asked. Atalanta watched him carefully. She pushed into his mind, searching to see if he was making fun of her. He was looking at her in wonder, not mockery. He was curious about her. 

Atalanta sighed again and slid back into her seat, setting her bag down. 

"I had a muggle friend when I was younger. She was abused by her family and no one did anything about it." 

"Did she tell you not to tell anyone when you found out?" 

"No, she...she never actually told me. I figured it out." 

"What happened to her?" 

"Her father hit her too hard once. She smacked her head on the ground. She's been in a coma ever since," Atalanta said, her voice quiet. She coughed through the stiffness in her throat. "Anyway, I want to protect kids like her from being hurt again. And I want to help muggles and wizards and witches alike. I know there's no practice for it, so there's no point." 

"You could be a private investigator. You'd need a muggle license and you'd probably have to pull a few strings in the Ministry, but you could do it," Flitwick said. Atalanta's eyes brightened. 

"You really think so?" 

"I do. You're a very bright girl, Atalanta. I wouldn't want you wasting those talents being a cashier at Zonko's or a barmaid at The Leaky Cauldron." 

Atalanta fought back a smile. 

"Thank you, Professor." She paused. "So, about detention-"

"Don't worry about it. You've had a long day. Get to your dorm quickly and go to sleep. Rest up for tomorrow." 

Atalanta nodded and smiled. She didn't waste any more time with words and hurried out of the Charms classroom. 

On her way to the Slytherin Common Room, Atalanta ran into Remus Lupin, who was doing his Prefect rounds around the school. 

"You know, Lupin, I'm pretty sure you don't have to go around paroosing for trouble," Atalanta said, walking up behind him. 

"You're right, Phileo. Trouble always seems to walk right up to me as if we were old friends," Remus replied with a grin. "What's up, Ata? How was detention with Flitwick?" 

Atalanta stepped into line beside Remus and the two began to walk toward her Common Room. 

"Oh, it was fine. I didn't have to do anything too grueling," she said with a fake sigh and eye roll. 

"Detention with Flitwick is always the most enjoyable. He mostly just talks to you about life and then sends you back early," Remus said, laughing to himself. Atalanta's heart deflated. So, Flitwick talked to everyone like the way he talked to her. She wasn't special, just another student he was trying to convince to fall in line. "What did he talk to you about?" 

"Oh, just life after Hogwarts." 

"What did you say you wanted to do?" 

"You know me. Join Voldemort's army and-"

"Ata!" Remus hissed. "You can't just say stuff like that. Someone could think you're serious." 

"I'm not Sirius, I'm Atalanta." 

"Ata, I am being serious." 

Atalanta watched Remus' face closely. It wasn't the time to joke and it wasn't an appropriate subject to joke about either. She knew it, but she couldn't help herself. Still, the disappointment in Remus' face was enough to make her repent. 

"You're right, Remus. I'm sorry. I guess I'm a little on edge. You know I don't like talking about the future," she said, looking at her scuffed up shoes. Remus nodded. 

"I know, Ata. You just gotta promise to be more careful, especially now." 

"Joking about a war makes the fact that we're going to war a lot easier," she said. 

"It does. I just don't want you to get in trouble. I..." Remus paused and cleared his throat. "I care about you, Atalanta. I couldn't stand it if you got hurt because someone heard you say something you shouldn't have." 

"Thanks, Remus. I thought Aletheia was the only worry-wort in my life, but I guess I've got you too to watch out for me." Atalanta smiled up at Remus. "Anyway, I should be getting to bed. Who knows what kinds of things my other professors have planned for me tomorrow. I need sleep." 

Remus laughed. They stopped in front of the Slytherin Common Room. Atalanta sighed, looking at the snake that guarded the entrance. 

"Hey," Remus hummed, putting his arm around Atalanta's shoulders and pulling her into a hug. "Be careful in there, alright? Don't go picking fights tonight." 

Atalanta laughed. 

"No problem, Lupin. I'm too tired tonight. I'll pick some fights tomorrow." 

"Sounds good. Sleep well, Phileo." 

"You, too." 

"Love you." 

"Love ya." 

Remus turned and walked away, leaving Atalanta to face her House alone. 

Atalanta was the first one in her dorm that night. The other four girls were out somewhere, doing something, probably with Alexis Flint. Atalanta crawled into bed and tried not to think about any of the things that went wrong that day. She didn't want to imagine what kind of things that the girls in her dorm would be thinking about her that night. 

She closed her eyes and prayed she would fall asleep before the others returned. Her prayers were not answered. 

"Look who's back early," Cordelia Goldbelt sneered happily, flinging herself onto the bed. 

"Already? Didn't she have detention for-"

"Poppy! Shut up!" Cordelia hissed to Poppy Earnborn. 

"Sorry, Cord." 

"You don't want Lexi to hear you talking about what happened today."

"You're right, Cord. I'm sorry." 

The two continued to bicker until Alexis and her right-hand woman entered the room. Alexis slid into bed silently. Stephanie Hucken wished the other two girls a good night and snapped her fingers, all the lights fading. 

Their words weren't as bad as they had been in the past, but it had never been the things that they said to her that made it near impossible for Atalanta to sleep. The more tired she got, the easier it was to slip into someone's mind. She often heard Stephanie comparing herself to Alexis, wishing that she could be her. She heard Cordelia mull over the last fight she had with her mother. She heard Poppy call herself stupid a hundred times over. She knew that the sniffles that Poppy tried to attest were allergies were actually from hours of crying. 

Hearing these girls degrade and hate themselves every night was bad enough. But what kept her awake was Alexis. What kept her awake was the utter silence coming from Alexis.

As if she was never thinking anything at all. 

***

Whoop-dee-doo! I have successfully finished another chapter. It's only been a million years. I am going to try writing more from Aletheia's point of view because I love Atalanta so much it's hard not to write in her perspective, but Aletheia really deserves just as much love. 

Thank you all for reading this chapter and all the other two chapters before! Please don't forget to vote and comment! 

Happy Turkey Day to all my American friends! Have a great day to everyone else! I love all!

finite incantatem