CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Hide-and-Seek

Harry noticed that Mystyk's been avoiding him since that weekend at Hogsmeade and his scar burned. She even stopped seeing him outside the castle for their nightly get together. When he tried talking to her telepathically she shuts him out. Her thoughts are closed to him and there's no other way he could get through to her. He suppose he could try approaching her during mealtime at the Great Hall, but she always makes sure that she is surrounded by at least a few Slytherin girls so talking to her in person is out.

"I want to know what is wrong with her." Harry hissed as he made his way to his next class with Ron on one side and Hermione on the other. "She's been avoiding me for days now and I don't know what I did wrong!"

"Maybe she's just got lots on her mind." Hermione said.

"Nah, she's just avoiding Harry because she's already showing her true Slytherin side." Ron implied.

"C'mon Ron, be optimistic!" Hermione scolded then turned back to Harry, "Have you tried talking to her telepathically?"

"Yes. And she still won't answer me back!" Harry rasped irately, clenching his fist tightly.

"Well there's only one way for you to find out what's wrong with her, Harry." Hermione mused.

Harry frowned and glanced beside him at his friend, "And what's that?"

"Corner her, of course. Since she doesn't have any classes with any of the students yet, where do you think she often frequents to study?"

~*~

Harry took Hermione's advice and went to search for Mystyk in the library during lunch. Sure enough she was right. Mystyk was isolated from everybody else on her favourite corner of the library surrounded with books. She was writing something on a piece of parchment. It must be an essay she had to give to Dumbledore.

He quietly crept up behind her, careful not to make a sound as to alert her of his presence. He even blanked out his mind so that she won't be able to read his thoughts, alerting her that he was about to approach her and have a long overdue conversation with her regarding her distancing herself from him all of a sudden.

"So, care to tell me why you've been avoiding me for the last few days?" Harry surprised a deeply-engrossed Mystyk, sending her quill to jump from her hand.

Mystyk picked up her quill with a shaky hand. Taking a deep breath and looked over her shoulder and tried to glare at Harry, but she was still too shaken up to see him--let alone be around him in private--to actually glare him down.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be eating your lunch?" she asked irately, fixing the piece of parchment before her and dipped her quill in the ink blot.

"I should be. But I decided to skip it." he replied and pulled the chair beside her, placing his books on the table and watch Mystyk concentrate on whatever it is she is writing. "Care to enlighten me as to why you have been avoiding me? What have I done to you? Did I do something wrong? I did bring you some butterbeer from Hogsmeade the weekend we were last there, but when I got back you didn't show up that night for our nightly meeting. So you can't be mad at me for that since it was you who ditched me!" he couldn't help his voice from increasing, and he received quite a few 'Shh' from everyone in the library.

Mystyk cast an alarmed look around, smiling apologetically at those who were glaring at their table. She turned back to a hot-tempered Harry seated beside her and let out an exasperated sigh, "I haven't been feeling well lately, Harry. I should've sent you an owl to let you know that I won't be able to meet with you that night, but I didn't and I apologize for that." she explained.

Harry's anger soon ebbed after hearing she wasn't feeling well.

"Are you alright? Have you gone to the hospital wing?"

"I'm fine now. I thought I was just coming down with a bad case of flu, but I'm fine." she assured him.

"Good." he let out a relieved sigh, "So we'll meet again tonight?" he asked hopefully. No matter how angry he is over her, he missed having her around. He missed her company so much that he has been tempted numerous times to yank her away from the group of nosy Slytherin girls she often surround herself with.

"Not tonight, Harry." she answered, gathering her belongings scattered about on the table and fixed them up. Piling each book she have on top of each other and pushed her chair away and stood up. "Not every, Harry, I'm sorry." she added before walking out of the library.

Harry tried to follow her, but he decided against it. She's hiding something from him. But what? She won't talk to him, unlike before when she could easily tell him anything and everything that's been bothering her. What happened that changed that camaraderie they have?