I stuffed the letter into the recesses of my bag and regarded Aurelie Malfoy, who was talking quietly with Hugo. She seemed so ... normal.
What secrets do you hold, Aurelie Malfoy? What do you know about Astoria that we don't?
Chapter 7: The Hat, the Book, and the Blood
The first class that morning was Double Charms with the Hufflepuffs. I didn't get a chance to speak to Aurelie because Carla grabbed my elbow and dragged me out of the Great Hall as soon as I was done reading Dad's letter.
Her explanation for this was that she was excited to learn the Summoning Charm. Classic Carla.
"Why don't you summon the rest of my food, that would really impress Flitwick," was my response as I trailed her down the Charms corridor.
Very few people had arrived before us, and I sat down with Carla, next to some Hufflepuffs that I barely recognized, pulling a quill and some parchment out of my bag.
"Why couldn't we have waited for Hugo and Maddie again?"
"Cheer up Lil, it's only a bit of breakfast."
Maddie arrived a few minutes later and I continued to make faces at my parchment until Hugo scooted into the seat behind us just as class began.
"Mr. Weasley, please make more of an effort to get to class early in the future, let's not make this as much of a habit as it was last year. And the year before. And your first year, as I seem to remember." said Professor Flitwick. I peeked behind me and Hugo had sunk lower in his chair.
As Flitwick began to lecture on the properties of the Summoning Charm, I turned to Carla.
"This was worth not getting to finish breakfast, eh?"
She huffed, "I thought we were going to learn the actual charm today!"
"You know he never starts us on anything without four books of assigned reading."
The Hufflepuff boy next to Carla shushed us loudly.
After Charms, I left Carla, Hugo and Maddie to wander the corridor in search of Albus or Aurelie, both of whom I needed information from. After about fifteen minutes of searching fruitlessly, I decided to give up and stepped into an empty classroom near to Gryffindor Tower to pass time until my next class.
The Sorting Hat was placed on the desk in the middle of the room. Without thinking, I crossed the room, sat on the desk, and lowered the Sorting Hat over my head.
Hi. It's me again.
I felt a familiar tingle at the back of my head as the hat began to speak into my mind.
Lily Luna Potter. To what do I owe the pleasure?
I frowned. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in Headmistress McGonagall's office?
We are all supposed to be somewhere at some time, I suppose. But I believe there's another question you wish to ask me.
I took a deep breath as I prepared the question that had been bothering me since my first year at Hogwarts.
Do you think that I would have done better in Slytherin?
You're not happy with your house? You were delighted when I decided you had more aptitude for Gryffindor.
Yes, it's just - I feel so ordinary. I don't feel like a Gryffindor, I'm not really brave or daring. I'm unremarkable and boring. Maybe if I were in Slytherin I'd feel pushed a bit more. You told me that there was a possibility that I would follow either of my brothers when you Sorted me.
The hat chuckled, a deep rumbling sound.
And I decided that you were meant to follow James, not Albus, because you were afraid that you wouldn't be able to cope in Slytherin as you didn't believe that you had your brother's talent. You agreed with me. Gryffindor House suited your needs then. I put you where you needed to be.
But it doesn't suit my needs now!
Where I Sort you doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. Your father would have done well in Slytherin and so would you. Teddy Lupin would have done well in Gryffindor, and the Scamander twins would have done well in Hufflepuff.
Of course it matters!
Not really. I have known cowardly Gryffindors, naive Slytherins, unintelligent Ravenclaws and lazy Hufflepuffs. Yet, they were not unfit for their House. The House does not make the witch or wizard, Lily Potter. Who you become is your choice.
I frowned, lifting my hands up to remove the sentient headpiece.
I know that's not what you want to hear. Young people always want an easy solution.
Then what is the solution?
If you want to become a Slytherin, become a Slytherin. If you want to become a Gryffindor, become a Gryffindor. The solution may not be easy, but it is certainly simple.
I took the hat off of my head, setting it back down on the desk.
"That wasn't circular at all, was it?"
The hat's 'mouth' twisted into a wry smile.
"Thanks, I guess."
I glanced up at the clock and realized, to my horror, that Herbology was beginning in five minutes. Professor Longbottom might be one of the cooler professors, but he certainly wouldn't appreciate me turning up late.
After a long day of classes and discussions with contrary magical objects, I was glad to climb inside the portrait hole and sit down by the fire to assess the week's assigned work with Carla, Hugo, and Maddie. As I predicted, Flitwick had assigned us a few books' worth of readings to work through before we began learning the Summoning Charm. We had a three-foot essay on the properties and growth patterns of Shrivelfigs due in Herbology next Wednesday, and Magellan had assigned all of the class but Imogen Zabini and Carla an essay on the proper preparation of Calming Draught. Last, but not least, we had to practice the Color Change Charm for Transfiguration tomorrow.
Needless to say, I was glad that there was only one more day left in the week.
"Magellan's such an arse for assigning you an essay too, Lil. Your potion was nearly perfect," Hugo pointed out as he began to take notes for his essay in an untidy scrawl, "Unlike mine. I didn't manage to even get it yellow the second time around."
I sighed, flipping my Potions textbook over to the right page and noting down the exact weight of crocodile heart to be added. Nisha rubbed herself against my leg, purring contently as her tail swished from side to side.
"Nearly perfect's not quite good enough for Magellan."
Hugo frowned in the direction of Nate, Seb, Jasmine, and Annabel, who were playing a lively game of Exploding Snap a few feet away from us. "At least some people are having fun tonight."
Rose, who had just returned from her rounds, sunk down into an armchair, her prefect's badge glimmering in the firelight. "Oh, cheer up, Hu. As long as you start studying early for your O.W.L.'s, this year won't be that stressful and I'm sure you'll have plenty of free time to play cards."
"No, I won't," Hugo muttered as he bent even further over his essay.
Maddie yawned and stretched. "I'm unbelievably tired. I think I could literally curl up on this rug and go to sleep."
I echoed her sentiments. The chatter in the common room, while still loud, was soothing and I felt strangely drowsy. I held a lock of hair in front of my face and thought about attempting to cast the Color Change Charm on it. Probably not a good idea.
Instead, I pulled a black Sharpie out of my bag and concentrated on changing it to a vivid shade of yellow.
The marker instead exploded with an impressive pop, attracting the attention of several onlookers.
"Nothing to see here, just an idiot!" I called.
Rose pointed her wand at the stain on the rug and Scourgify-ed it.
Clearly I was too tired to function. I mumbled goodnight to my friends and cousins, and headed up the stairs to the fourth-year girls dormitory, tiptoe-ing to avoid Persephone, Bella, Isobel, and Edith.
Not that they would have even bothered me about Albus at this point; they were still too angry over the Quidditch tryouts.
After taking a shower and brushing my teeth (timing this to avoid Persephone took serious stealth, as I hadn't learned how to cast a Disillusionment Charm yet), I crawled into my sweet, beautiful, cosy, amazing bed. Nisha was curled up at the foot of my bed, and the purring lulled me to sleep seconds after my head touched the pillow.
Something woke me out of the well-earned sleep I'd been enjoying in the early hours of the morning. I tried to go back to sleep, but my efforts proved to be utterly futile. I gave up on trying and poked my head out of the covers.
"Carla!" I whispered. She was, to my great envy, fast asleep in the bed next to me. So was Nisha.
Blood of Peverell.
"What!" I sat up straight. The voice, like that of the Sorting Hat, spoke directly into my mind, but this one felt distinctly unfamiliar and left a metallic sensation pressing on the back of my head. My mouth tasted metallic too, as if it were full of blood.
For some reason, I didn't find this odd.
Blood of Peverell. Come to me.
I had to obey the voice. I didn't know why, but I threw the covers aside and got out of bed, swinging one leg then the other to meet the ground without even thinking about it. I followed the source of the sound to Carla's mysterious library book.
Blood of Peverell. Open my pages and learn the truth.
I felt the metallic pressure again, invading my mind and flooding my senses with a feeling of lightning and silver, and I felt as if I were staring deep into violet eyes.
I smelled the scent of lightning striking air and earth.
I reached for the heavy clasp, but my fingers were too sluggish and disobedient to undo it.
You will know the truth, and the truth will-
"Lily!"
It was Maddie. She was sitting up in bed, holding her lit wand and frowning. "Do you realize how early it is? What are you doing with Carla's book?"
"Nothing!" Maddie's voice snapped me out of the trance, and I realized I was cradling the large tome to my chest. For some reason, I felt a compulsion not to tell her about the speaking book and put it back down where I found it.
The metallic taste faded.
I got back in the bed, but did not attempt to go back to sleep, although I wanted to. Maddie shook her head and dove back under the covers.
Carla was still sleeping as deeply as ever.
Who are you? I tried to think at the book.
A friend.
That's not an answer!
Sleep, Blood of Peverell. The answers will come later.
I laid back against the pillows. My eyelids felt heavy as the same metallic pressure dragged them down, and it pulled me into darkness.
That morning, I accosted Albus again, before breakfast this time and outside of the Great Hall.
"You have to tell me what's going on with the book, Al."
He shrugged, "I told you Lil, it's just a library book that Carla wanted."
Albus began to walk off but I grabbed the sleeve of his robes before he could. He made a sound of annoyance but allowed me to pull him back.
"Did it speak to you too, Al?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Speak to me? Are you sure you're not having halluncinations, Lil?"
"No, I am most definitely not. The book kept calling me Blood of Peverell, for some bizarre reason, got into my head, told me it was a friend, and made me go to sleep! Plus, it has such a creepy dark energy!" I threw up my hands in frustration, "But if you think I'm making it all up, that's fine too! Whatever!"
A strange expression came over his face.
"I believe you, Lil." Al sighed. "I feel something too. A compulsion. I was compelled to find it, compelled to mention it to Carla, I was compelled to ask Madam Pince for it, and compelled to not tell you about it. I think the book wanted to make a first impression on you without my interference."
"So, why didn't you tell me when I asked you the first time!"
"Well, one, we had an audience, and two, the compulsion only lifted when you told me about your encounter with it!"
"Should we tell Dad? It might be dangerous."
Albus shook his head. "No, he's already busy and stressed as it is. We can't tell Teddy or Mum either, they'll just tell Dad. Let's tell James. I'll ask to borrow the book back from Carla."
He turned to leave.
"What time?"
Al shrugged. "About eight? I've got to help Magellan make another batch of Wolfsbane after Potions."
When Albus and I walked over to James' office, we were met with a gaggle of second-year or third-year girls giggling outside. They looked a bit afraid when they saw Al and ran off somewhere.
"My two favorite people!" James exclaimed loudly as Albus and I entered his office after class, "Merlin, I am so bored!"
Albus and I both checked to make sure that Aslan was sleeping.
"You said that last time, James."
"But I am bored. Terribly. I've just finished grading the third-years' Transfiguration essays and look at me. I'm a complete wreck!"
James tugged at his hair for added dramatic effect. He did actually look more tired than usual.
Albus and I eyed the only other chair, then looked at each other.
Sensing the impending scuffle, James conjured another chair nonverbally with a little swish-flick thing.
"Show-off," muttered Albus as he sank into his seat.
"How's the new spell going?" I asked.
"Not bad," said James, chuckling. "I managed to singe one of my precious eyebrows. See, I'm hideous!"
"You've always been hideous, James," said Albus, laughing too.
James rolled his eyes, scooted closer to the desk and propped his head up on his hands.
"But you two aren't here just to entertain little old me. 'Fess up."
Albus and I looked at each other, and then he heaved the heavy book onto the desk with a sense of finality. James raised his non-singed eyebrow.
"A book?" He sounded unimpressed.
"I think you know it's not just a book, if my theory is right," said Albus. He had told me on the way to James' office that he had a theory about the book and why it caused him and I to react strangely, but he refused to tell me, to my great frustration.
James sighed. "A very musty, old, creepy book about some boring magical history from the Restricted section of the library. So?"
He jumped.
"Did you two hear that?! It just-"
"Spoke," I nodded. "Albus and I heard it too, but Maddie and Carla just think it's a regular book."
"So, should we follow the instructions and open it?"
I looked at Albus again. "What do you think, given that you're the one who has the theory?"
He shrugged, "Nothing weird happened to Carla while she was reading it, so I don't see why it should have any ill effect on us. Anyway, I'm sure the three of us can deal with a book."
"Alright then." James reached towards the book. In the same instant that his fingers brushed the thick cover, my book bag began to vibrate wildly, and so did the book.
"Whoa, how are you getting cell service in here?"
I pulled the bag into my lap. "I don't think it's my phone."
In fact, after dumping the contents of my bag on James's desk, I discovered that it was the Marauder's Map. Albus shook his head as I produced the trembling piece of parchment.
"I can't believe you gave it to Lily and not me!"
"I let you borrow the Invisibility Cloak all the time! Besides, you already know most of the secret passages in Hogwarts by memory."
"Hey, stop arguing and look!"
Albus tapped his wand to the map, muttering "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Instantly, an unfamiliar handwriting inked itself across the page, this time in violet, "New Secret Passageway Discovered."
I looked at James. "Has it ever done that before?"
He shook his head. "Nope. At least not when I had it."
The violet ink faded and the map instead showed the second floor. An arrow appeared, in the same purple script, with a circle around what looked to be a girls' bathroom.
"Location of Entryway Discovered. Waiting for instructions on how to enter. Proceed to entrance for more guidance."
James picked up the book and stood, tucking his wand into the back pocket of his jeans.
"Well, I'm game if you guys are."
"Nothing we can't handle," said Albus, standing up too.
"Famous last words," I muttered, replacing the contents of my bag and stowing it under James's desk. "I am so going to regret this."
James grinned.
"C'mon Lil. It'll be just like old times. You, me, and Al avoiding Filch and the prefects and getting up to all sorts of mischief."
I sighed as we left the office and James locked the door behind us.
"Right. Just like old times, wandering around the corridors after hours with the Transfiguration TA."
"Professionalism be damned, it's Friday night. Where's your sense of adventure?"
PS: Where do you think the new secret passage leads? It might be easy to guess given the clue of where the entrance is, but the location will be revealed in the next chapter.
Also, I really, really hate to be that person, but I just kinda feel like I'm shouting into the void a bit. It would be super super nice if you're reading this and you enjoyed it (or didn't) you leave a review (maybe?).
Anyway.
Thank you for reading and Chapter 8 will be up at the usual time! The plot is about to thicken...
