Chapter 4: Trepide Haec Lapsus

The weeks leading up to school grew shorter until only one week of summer vacation was left. Karista, after her encounter with Snape, had not left her room at all, not even for food. Yet she realized that it was the end of summer vacation and that school was upon her, for one morning she woke up, took a shower and left Gryffindor tower for the first time in three weeks. Her legs were slightly wobbly at first mainly because she hadn't traveled long distances in a while and also because her clothing was hanging loosely on her body and she had to keep hold of them so that she wouldn't trip. It was still early in the morning, and Karista was hoping no one would see her. But she was wrong.

As she entered the Great Hall, more than a dozen heads turned in her direction. She knew how she must've looked: pale, scrawny, tired and tear-stained. But she merely lifted her chin slightly and wobbled over to the table that sat in the middle of the room. She was careful to sit far away from the probing eyes and started shoving food onto her plate.

"Miss Flannigan. I do believe it has been a long time since we've seen you," came Dumbledore's voice from the head of the table. Karista's head snapped up with a painful crack. She could see Harry's hurt expression, Snape with his knowing yet reproving smirk. She nodded slightly before returning her attention back to her scrambled eggs. She was interrupted once again by a small clatter, the stomping of feet and the sound of the chair in front of Karista being pulled away from the table. She glanced up and saw Harry, a forced smile on his face and his hands clutching the back of the chair with white knuckles.

"Hi Karista."

She didn't pay attention; instead, she returned to eating her eggs.

"You are going to listen to me, you know that don't you?"

"No, actually I don't," Karista mumbled, glancing up as Petrey, her owl, came fluttering in with a Daily Prophet clutched in its beak. She patted the owl gingerly on its head and sent him off on his way.

"Karista," Harry said, his voice strained. "I don't know what happened in New York and I will probably never understand it, but whatever happened, its not worth shunting everyone aside just so you can go and wallow in self-pity—"

"You know, Harry? You have no idea what happened in New York and I really don't care about telling you. So let me 'wallow in my self-pity' for a while longer, okay?"

With her eyes narrowed, the Daily Prophet spread out on the table in front of her and a fork clutched meticulously between her fingers, Karista resumed eating. Harry looked slightly abashed by her brusqueness, yet shook it off rather quickly and walked away.

***

School began in the same fashion as years previous, yet one thing weighed heavily on Harry's mind. This was his last year at Hogwarts, the school that had rescued him from an almost certain muggle lifestyle that was at this point both degrading and boring. Harry knew that this year would be difficult, mainly because Dumbledore had conferred with him about starting Auror training, which he thought would be very wise.

"After all, Harry, Defense Against the Dark Arts is your strongest subject by far," Dumbledore had said to him after requesting Harry come to his office. "I think you should have no problems."

His training was due to begin the second week after school started, which would give him a substantial adjustment into the school year. Now all he had to worry about was Voldemort and the NEWT's. But there was something at the back of his mind that he found difficult although tempting to ignore. Karista. She was shutting him out of her life for reasons unbeknownst to him. Harry now knew that Karista wasn't mad at him, yet she still refused to speak to anyone at all. She didn't even continue to have 'Parseltongue' conversations with Callidus, her pet snake. It seemed that she left that job to Harry.

"Callidus, you must know what is happening to Karista…better yet, why she is so irked lately," Harry hissed, after a rather strenuous second day back at school. He was sitting in the Common Room going over a list of new Quidditch recruits while stroking Callidus' head.

"I'm telling you Harry…If say anything to you about her 'situation', I am almost certain that she won't be feeding me anytime soon," Callidus replied with a small shake of his head. He hadn't proven himself to be a gold mine of valuable information.

"But you know what is going on, right?"

Callidus rolled his eyes and coiled up on the arm of the chair Harry was sitting in. Harry glared at the tiny garden snake for a moment before re-reading the list in front of him. The Gryffindor Quidditch tryouts, surprisingly not cancelled due to the recent situation, were due to take place the third week into term and Harry was anxious to get a head start.

He quickly sat up in the chair before the fire as the portrait hole swung open. Hermione, the Head Girl, and Ron entered arm in arm, gibbering happily over something.

"Hey Harry! You're still pouring over the lists?"

Ron plopped down onto the footstool in front of Harry while Hermione sat in a chair next to them both.

"Yeah…trying to get a head start before I get too swamped with work."

Ron nodded his head before turning towards Hermione and engaging her in a quiet conversation. But at that moment, Karista entered the common room from the girl's dormitories, carrying a bundle of scarlet robes in her arms. From the looks of them, they were Quidditch robes. She careened through the chairs, her blonde hair billowing out behind her. She looked on the verge of tears yet seemed to be controlling herself quite well. Karista stopped in front of Harry's chair, taking a deep breath, before setting the lump on the footstool beside Ron. They were Quidditch robes.

"Karista, why are you giving these to me?" Harry asked, unable to hide the confusion in his voice.

"Because I won't be needing them this year."

Harry's jaw dropped open, making him look suspiciously like a wide-mouthed tree frog. Ron and Hermione simply looked astonished by her actions.

"What, do you intend to play starkers or something?" Harry asked, a small and nervous chuckled escaping.

"No, Harry. I'm not playing Quidditch anymore," she said, almost hesitantly. Harry's surprise only grew.

"Why?"

She merely shrugged before turning on her heel and heading back towards the dormitory. Hermione was the first one to break to looming silence.

"She has been acting really strange…I wonder why."

"Has she said anything to anyone about it?" Ron asked, fiddling with the sleeve of his shirt.

"Nope," Harry said quietly, standing up from his armchair and stretching. "Not me…I wonder what it could be?"

***

Disclamer: JKR owns the people and Places, I own Karista, Julia, Amaia, Vanessa, Callidus, Raquel and the Enidons, some chick named Jolene and the dream…

Author's note: It has become increasingly harder to write book seven even though the last 5 chapters of it have been written out. Please bare with me! I am working on it…even though my computer crashed, taking all my files (including stories) with it…

Coming Next: What exactly Is bugging Karista? What does Lily have to say about the Harry-animagi?

Will Raquel and Karista make up? Does Severus Snape keep up his offer?

All coming too soon…

Chapter 4/20(?)

Trepide Haec Lapsus- In confusion, she falls