Authors note: I do not own the song Show You that is used in this chapter :)
Over the next few weeks, Alice saw the boy more and more and each time she saw him she learned something new. His name was Will and he was a muggle-born. He didn't like milk with his cereal and he was dreadful at potions. She didn't ask him these things of course, she just overheard them. Obviously. She freaked out when she realised that she would look for his face at breakfast every morning and spent the next week avoiding him entirely. Which promptly ended when she saw him holding hands with Lanie. How could she avoid her best friend's boyfriend? She thought to herself one afternoon. As Lanie droned on and on about how sweet, gentlemanly and goofy he was, and that she had been dating the wrong type of boys her entire teenage life, and that all girls should be dating boys like him. For some reason or another, this really stirred certain things in the pit of Alice's stomach she had never felt before. All she knew was these things weren't good.
Alice didn't think of herself as perfect, because she wasn't she had a small dint in the side of her nose where she had scratched off a chicken pox mark and it had left a mark there permanently, and the only way her hair looked nice was if she cut it at her collar bone and plaited a tiny bit hanging down next to her jaw. Sometimes she put feathers in the plait when she was at home, the one time she had done so at Hogwarts her friends laughed and though she was joking so she went with it and promptly removed the feather. Her makeup was subtle (too much and she would have an allergic reaction) but she put enough to cover her blotchy forehead which she was incredibly self-conscious about. She had had enough with her appearance and carefully wrapped the ornate mirror in her favourite sweater and placed it back in her trunk. Although she had little makeup, she still made the effort to look her absolute best, and not because she wanted to impress boys like most people thought. She did it for herself, because she wanted to feel comfortable in her own skin, and if that skin had a little extra help, there was no problem with that. Alice sighed to herself and looked over at Lanie who was doodling in her potions book. A tiny elaborate circular pattern with crisscrossing lines and overlapping lines creating what looked to be a mess on the page, but when Alice looked closer, she realised that in the centre, the lines had formed Lanie's name. When Lanie finished she tore out the page and stuck it to the wall above her bed with her other artwork.
Alice lay back onto her bed and started to think about how almost all her friends were in relationships. Astor's was hardly substantial, Alice guessed the boy had about three more days, judging by how Astor was constantly complaining about being bored. Hillary was constantly seen kissing her girlfriend Marissa from Hufflepuff, those two had been together since first year, there wasn't a doubt in everyone's mind that they would be together forever, Hyuna claimed she didn't need a boyfriend, nor had she time for one as she was always busy with her prefect duties or doing her homework. Not having a boyfriend didn't bother Alice, not in the slightest, but she definitely felt like a 3rd wheel whenever she was around one of the three couples, so she spent most of her time with Hyuna. Who to be blatantly truthful, wasn't very interesting. Her life was entirely focused on school, and as such all she talked about was that. Unfortunately Hyuna was very talkative, and often talked without stopping for long periods of time, only long enough for someone to acknowledge they were still listening or to agree with her before she launched back into her spiel. As such, Alice learned to just zone out so she could think to herself, and whenever there was a pause in Hyuna's speech she would simply say "yes" or "you're absolutely right". One thing that Alice couldn't get enough of though was Hyuna's singing voice. It was like soft kisses gently touching Alice's skin and it gave her goosebumps. Sometimes she wished Hyuna would sing more than talk, but that was unlikely. Hyuna wasn't one of those girls who were overly modest about their voice. She knew she was good, she just didn't throw it in people's faces all the time.
It was one morning that Alice and Hyuna were sitting next to the black lake laughing and having a rare conversation not involving school. Alice brought up singing and how she had never heard her sing a ballad.
"I don't think I've ever tried." She replied, looking towards a group of first years fooling around on the newly built wharf. She thought for a moment and began to sing:
When the music flows in my ears
I think of you every day
Your breath and voice
Can be drawn out in my head
If I add you to my life
It's like a perfect melody to a song
There's nothing like it in the world
I want your love
Let me show you
I love you, love you
I will always be a shadow by your side
I gain strength and you gain strength
Your voice lingers in my ear
Let me show you
I love you, love you
Even after time passes, it's only you
Words that fill up my mouth
I do – all of my heart
Show you, all my love
Let me show you
Love you so much
Because you're here
It's the reason I live
I love you, I see you
Working on your body
I'm all healed
You always break my senses
Without you, I'm someone who walks on ice
Let me show you
Love you so much
Because you're here
It's the reason I live
If I add you to to my life
It's like a perfect melody to a song
There's nothing like it in the world
I want your love
Let me show you
I love you, love you
I will always be a shadow by your side
I gain strength and you gain strength
Your voice lingers in my ear
Let me show you
I love you, love you
Even after time passes, it's only you
Words that fill up my mouth
I do – all of my heart
Show you, all my love
More than anyone in the world
It's only you for me
Even if I die, you can't be replaced
I wish you could protect me at night
And be by my side when I wake up in the morning
Let me show you
I love you, love you
I will always be a shadow by your side
I gain strength and you gain strength
Your voice lingers in my ear
Let me show you
I love you, love you
Even after time passes, it's only you
Words that fill up my mouth
I do – all of my heart
Show you, all my love
(The song has been translated into English for your convenience :) )
Within the first few lines of the song Alice recognised it as Girl's Days' Show You. People stopped to listen to her sing, some so captivated they couldn't move. Even a few merpeople popped up from the lake to listen. Hyuna's eyes widened at this but she didn't stop. At the end of the song people and clapped and cheered and the mermaids nodded silently before sinking back into the deep. The first years at the dock continued until one girl screamed as she fell into the water, people laughed until she didn't come up. Across the other side of the lake there was a splash as the giant squid leaped into the air and dived back down, speeding towards the girl. It would make it if only she would come up for air, but she didn't. Some students ran off screaming something about getting Madam Pomfrey just in case. Everyone waited with their breath caught in their throats. But she didn't come up.
Eventually the squid pulled her onto shore and Alice recognised her as the girl with the multi coloured hair in first year. Her hair was stuck to her skull, and blood trickled from two gashes on her forehead and cheek. McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey came rushing down from the school. Madam Pomfrey saw the situation and bowed her head, looking solemnly at the seaweed tangled around her ankles. Hyuna had tears streaming down her face and her hands were wildly pulling on her hair. After that she focused entirely on studying and prefect duties, leaving no time for anything else. Nothing got past her and Alice once heard third years complaining about it in the corridors one morning.
"She's only doing it to protect you, you know." She said to them.
"We don't need a baby sitter." They replied with an arrogant snort and walked off. Alice sighed and continued walking to breakfast by herself.