❛ chapter nine ⎜ secrets ❜

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐅𝐄𝐖 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊𝐒 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐘 𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐋𝐘.

Every once in a while, I'd catch Harry staring at me in the middle class, only for him to quickly look away when our eyes locked. And then sometimes thoughts would strike me at random. Ron pulling me away to talk; my conversation with Monica and Charlie (that one came up more often); that morning when I had talked to Kiera, the thoughts of the ashes that had consumed me for an hour; and then my least favorite: when the dreams came back.

All I could remember was a plea, a scream, a flash of green, a blur of silver, and then a burst of flames as everything exploded. That's when it all went black. Thankfully they'd subsided in the last few months, but not always.

I rolled over in bed, rubbing my eyes. My covers were more tangled than Monica's hair after a game of Quidditch, but despite the early morning chill I was sweating.

Not again, I thought grumpily, closing my eyes. Bad idea. Uncle Paul's face swam before my eyes, the expression of horror he had worn just before his death permanently etched in my brain.

"Stay here, Elise! Stay safe and don't make a sound!" I could still hear his harsh whispers, cut off as the closet door shut. I opened my eyes as quickly as I could.

At least it's getting easier, I thought miserably, looking out the window. At least I feel more real. Not much, but a little. The clock to my right read 6:31, and the sun was just starting to peak up past the horizon, fighting to shine against the dark clouds that were gathering.

It's funny that the most beautiful sunsets and sunrises happen when the sky is sprinkled with clouds. The prettiest light comes from darkness attempting to swallow it. It's ironic, isn't it?

Maybe that means I'll glow a little brighter, I thought grimly. Then I chuckled. That sounds so cheesy, oh my gosh.

"Come on Sylvia," Kiera sighed, "it's just a mouse."

Sylvia's expression didn't change. "Exactly. It's a mouse."

"And the sooner you vanish it the sooner it'll disappear," I coached, gesturing to the mouse with my wand. Kiera frowned.

"Don't wave your wand around like that, Elise. You'll set something on fire."

I rolled my eyes. "Yes Mom."

Kiera rolled her eyes, then turned her attention on Sylvia, who still had her arms crossed.

"Sylvia, if you don't do the bloody spell in the next ten seconds, I'm telling Lavender that you were the one who ate the last chocolate in the box she got," Kiera said impatiently, her kind smile gone.

Sylvia gaped at her as if she had three heads. "You wouldn't."

"Are you two done yet?" I demanded.

Sylvia gave Kiera a glare. "Evanesco!"

The mouse didn't disappear.

"I'm rubbish at this," Sylvia moaned, running a hand over her face. "You don't have to do this, I'm never going to get it."

"Enough with your whining!" Kiera said, grabbing the mouse by its tail and dragging it in front of her. "It takes determination and concentration! It's. Not. Hard." With each word, she jabbed the mouse, making it squeak pathetically. "Evanesco!"

Sylvia and I gaped at Kiera, watching the mouse disappear in her grip.

"Kiera?" I whispered, slightly terrified. Kiera looked up, her face startled, as if waking from a trance.

She sighed. "I'm sorry. Do we have any more mice?"

"No." I shook my head. "Sylvia?"

She was still glaring at Kiera.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Kiera said defensively. "I didn't mean to explode."

"Let's take a break from this," I interrupted before Sylvia could finish opening her mouth. I grinned nervously. "I think we all need to cool down."

"Great idea," Sylvia ground out, looking as if she could shoot daggers out of her eyes. "What should we do?"

"Let's work on our essay for Professor Binns!" I said brightly, pulling out a piece of parchment and a quill.

"Nooo," Sylvia groaned.

"Yes!" Kiera said cheerfully.

Sylvia harrumphed, but she didn't argue. She began digging around in her bag. "Have either of you seen my copy of A History Of Magic?"

I groaned. "Again? Sylvia that's the third time you've lost your copy!"

Sylvia pulled herself out of her bag, her face flushed. "I'm sorry Miss Perfect, not all of us are neat-freaks!"

"Let's go down to the library," Kiera suggested, already on her feet. "They'll have an extra copy."

"Why are you two always so eager to do homework?" Sylvia grouched. "Not you as much, Elise, but still. Why in the world would you want to do something that takes away from time to do actually useful things?"

Five minutes later, as we entered the library, she was still going.

"-and when you want to draw, Elise, isn't it awful?"

"Are you done yet?" Kiera asked impatiently.

I sighed. When will they ever stop bickering? I thought, half amused, half exasperated. My smile quickly faded. "I'll catch up to you guys in a second."

They barely noticed as I slunk across the room, moving towards the fop of orange-red curls that stuck up above the other students studying.

He was writing on a piece of paper, the same piece of paper I had seen him scribbling on when I walked into the common room after detention. The same piece of paper he had quickly hidden from me.

I slipped behind a bookshelf, attempting to peer past the dictionaries that obstructed my view. All I could make out was fancy letters at the top of the page, and the word SYLVIA scribbled next to it. My eyes almost bulged out of my head.

What is Jaimie doing with Sylvia? I asked myself, straining to get a better view. New luck. If I wanted to see what was happening, I was going to have to be more direct.

"Whatcha doing?" I asked my ex, pulling up beside him. Jaimie shot a look over his shoulder, quickly covering up his paper. Too late.

I'd seen the words I needed to.

"Dear Sylvia," it read,
even when times are troubled and days count down,
i'm still entranced by your eyes, their fervent brown

The rest had been covered by his arm. I felt my heart plunge to my stomach.

"Writing," he said, turning over the papers. His voice turned teasing. "Can't let you see, otherwise you'd have a cheat sheet for your seventh year."

I smiled, the motions feeling fake. I was getting so, so good at faking happiness, even when my stomach was sinking and my breaths coming quicker and my legs quivering. "Of course. I just wanted to say hi."

"Well, hi then," Jaimie laughed. We stood awkwardly for a minute before I gestured to where Kiera and Sylvia had headed off.

"I should go."

He nodded. "Thanks for coming to see me."

I took off as fast as I could without seeming suspicious, my insides turning. This day had turned from bad to worse.

Maybe it wasn't right for me to be bitter about my ex having a crush on my friend, but I couldn't stop the sinking feeling in my stomach. 

Why is Jaimie suddenly entranced by Sylvia? I asked myself. He's never liked her before. Always said she was meddling and annoying. So why is he writing love poem to her? And why do I feel like this? Ugh.

"Elise? Sylvia? Kiera?" asked a voice, pulling me out of the book I had started once my essay was done. I looked up to see Hermione, her bushy hair wild and her eyes bright as they flitted back and forth. "Can I join you guys?"

I exchanged glances with my friends, all of us started.

"Sure," Kiera said, motioning to the chair at the next table. Hermione drew it up, casting furtive glances around us. "What's going on?"

Hermione gazed at us, her dark eyes wide. "Can I trust you guys?"

I scoffed. "Hermione, what kind of question is that? Of course you can."

She shook her head. "No, I mean seriously. I need to know that you can keep a secret." I saw Sylvia shift out of the corner of my eye.

"Of course," Kiera said confidently. Sylvia and I echoed.

Hermione visibly relaxed. "Good. Now, are you finding Professor Umbridge's teaching satisfactory?"

I looked at her as if she'd grown a second head. "Hermione, are you out of your mind?"

"Shhh," Sylvia hissed, eyeing Madam Pince who looked up from her desk at the end of the row of books.

"Of course we aren't!" I hissed. "Professor Umbridge is awful."

"Yes, I agree." Hermione exhaled.

I exchanged glances with Kiera yet again. "What's going on?"

"We aren't learning anything. At all. That class with her teaching it is a waste of time. Ha- well, actually, I came up with the idea to start our own sort of Defense Against the Dark Arts class, because that hag isn't going to teach us anything useful. We need to prepare ourselves."

Kiera tilted her head, her eyes lighting up. "How would that work? Where would we do it? Is it even-"

"Kiera, please slow down," Hermione sighed. "I don't have all the details yet, Harry has only just agreed."

"Harry?" I asked, my eyes narrowing. I saw Sylvia grin out of the corner of my eyes. It took all my restraint not to elbow her in the side.

Hermione looked startled. "Why of course, he'd be teaching."

I inhaled sharply. "Harry. Teaching. Have you gone mad?"

"He's gotten the highest marks in Defense Against the Dark Arts," Sylvia pointed out, barely suppressing a grin. She was enjoying this. "It makes sense."

"Last I checked he was barely keeping up with his homework."

"How do you know that?" Sylvia asked. She leaned closer. "Have you too been hanging out together."

I felt my cheeks flush. "Sylvia! I've talked with Ronald, alright. Keep your nose out of my business, okay?"

"He does have a lot to teach us," Hermione continued. "He's survived V-Voldemort after all." I winced at the name, Sylvia jumped, banging her knee against the table, and Kiera knocked her books onto the floor. "Oh for goodness sake you three! He's out there and you know it! You're going to have to call him by his name eventually."

"When do these 'classes' start?" Kiera asked.

Hermione shifted in her seat. "They don't not yet. That's the reason I came over here, actually. We're having a sort of introduction meeting during the next Hogsmeade meeting. To invite people who are interested to talk it over."

"And if everyone agrees we'll start a sort of class that teaches us how to defend ourselves?" Kiera asked intently, pushing away a piece of her dark, wavy hair that had fallen into her face.

Hermione nodded. "We need to take our learning into our own hands."

"And Harry will be teaching?" Sylvia said. Hermione nodded again.

I looked at Kiera and Sylvia, the same thoughts going through our minds.

I turned back to Hermione. "I'm in."

"Me too." Keira flashed me a smile, looking happier than I'd seen her all day.

"Me three."

"I'd be open to joining if you want more members," said a familiar voice behind me.

I whirled around to see Liliana standing there, one hand over my heart. "You scared me."

"Well?" she asked, looking at Hermione. "Can I join in?"

Hermione's smile widened. "The more the merrier."

The four of us sat in silence for a minute, savoring the taste of victory. If only we had known how things would turn out, our smiles would have turned to dust and our straight posture to ash. If only we had known exactly what would come of the carefully laid plans and seemingly perfect ideas. Some good things, of course, but a lot more chaos than peace. And chaos was the last thing I needed.

𝔸𝕌𝕋ℍ𝕆ℝ𝕊 ℕ𝕆𝕋𝔼

Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed that chapter. As soon as DA starts, Harry and Elise will be seeing a LOT more of each other, and I already have a ton of stuff planned for them!! 

Also, I'm in the process of (attempting) to weave in a few subplots, so we'll see how that goes!!

Please tell me what you think, and I hope you enjoyed!!