Chapter Thirteen Algiz and the Blank Rune
"Do you want me to come with you?" Elizabeth asked outside the green house. She and Hanna had made some headway in the documentation of their Mimblus Mimbletonia where as Neville had managed to gain a second layer of green slime and Seamus had to rewrite the assignment from Neville's notes as he had used it as a shield.
"I'm only going to the hospital wing," Seamus shook his head, watching Neville trotting off towards the castle to swap his grubby robes before lunch just a moment before turning to Elizabeth and adding with a smirk. "I'm sure I can manage to find it by meself."
Elizabeth nodded as they parted at the castle. So apparently Seamus had noticed that she had employed their friends to keep an eye on him.
She hurried up to her dorm and swapped some books in her bag then went back down to the common room only to hurry up the boys staircase to exchange some of Seamus's books for him. He had double Defense Against the Dark Arts after lunch. Because she had received an Outstanding OWL for that particular class, Elizabeth had a spare period after lunch and Defense practical with Seamus afterward.
She met up with him just outside the hospital wing as he was on his way down the stairs.
"That has to be the most disgusting stuff in the world," Seamus remarked with a small involuntary shudder, reaching for his book bag.
"Lunch then?" Elizabeth suggested brightly, relinquishing his bag and shouldering her own.
"Definitely. Anything to get that taste out of me mouth."
They walked down the vacant stairs, Elizabeth playfully poking fun at Seamus's over excitable plant in Herbology and Seamus halfheartedly defending himself and pushing all the blame on Neville. They emerged into the Entrance Hall to find many students on their way to lunch.
Elizabeth did not notice immediately, but after taking note of Seamus's newly ridged posture, looked at the students they were passing. Almost every person in the Hall was staring at Seamus and the person beside him or her immediately noticeably nudged those who weren't and promptly pointed, quite openly.
Seamus looked awkwardly at the people around him as he picked his way through the crowd, he was not used to attention, especially that sort. He walked closer to Elizabeth and took her hand, walking close to her shoulder. She squeezed his hand back.
"That is really annoying," Seamus said, sitting very close to Elizabeth at the Gyffindor table. She noted that he was angled towards her so completely that he was almost turned to face her on the bench.
I'm sure they'll stop eventually," She reassured, looking around the hall to see that several students had their heads bent together, looking at the pair then quickly away when they saw her eyes on them.
"I sure as hell hope so," Seamus sighed, lifting some pasta onto her plate before serving himself. She saw him subconsciously pull his robe sleeves lower over his wrists as he reached for the pumpkin juice.
May passed quickly and as Elizabeth had predicted, much of the staring had ceased. Seamus began catching up in his classes immediately as he borrowed notes from Elizabeth, Dean, Neville and Hermione. He studied in the library or his dorm at every spare moment he had. His catch up period was shortened considerably with the help of Hermione as she spent more time than usual with the pair. She confided in Elizabeth that she had gotten into an argument with Ron and knew from past experience that it was better to avoid Ron and Harry until the disagreement was forgotten.
By the time their professors had begun seriously impressing upon them the importance of reviewing for exams, Seamus was completely caught up.
During the busy time of helping Seamus and then getting ready for exams, Elizabeth had almost completely forgotten about Professor Trelawney's grave warning. As May ended and exam reviewing became cramming, Elizabeth found herself musing over the tea leaves and what on earth could feel worse than believing that Seamus was lost.
The weekend before the start of exams, as many Gryffindors hurried about the common room to or from study groups, Elizabeth sat in silence beside Seamus on a couch directly in front of the fireplace. They had decided that any studying done on the last two days prior to the exams would constitute as cramming so therefore decided to leave their notes and books in their respective dorms. As Seamus sat staring into the ever merrily crackling fire, Elizabeth's mind wandered to her tealeaves. She had continued with Parvati and Lavender to their early morning tea with the Professor and since that day, both the other girls had expected to see more in Elizabeth's cup, but their obsession appeared to cloud their ability to foresee anything, as; with each session, they yielded no results.
She was now lost in the thought of her year forecast based on the position of the rune cards she'd laid out the previous Thursday in Divination, she was particularly interested in the Blank Rune being beside Algiz in January. She was running through all possible meanings of the particular rune, when Parvati and Lavender approached the pair.
"Hi Seamus, hey Elizabeth," Parvati said, sitting in the armchair next to them. Lavender smiled a greeting and sat on the chair's armrest and turned to Elizabeth with a serious expression.
"Hey," Elizabeth said in a soft voice, looking up at her friends. Seamus nodded, his eyes flickering away from the flames only a moment.
"Elizabeth, me and Lavender were thinking about your tealeaves and your forecast and we were wondering if you had been thinking about what Professor Trelawney had said." Parvati said this quite bluntly; obviously something was on her mind. That grabbed Elizabeth's attention.
"What prediction?" Seamus asked, looking up intently from the fire.
"You haven't told him?" Lavender demanded incredulously.
"I haven't given it much thought…" Elizabeth trailed off.
"What prediction?" Seamus repeated, looking at Elizabeth with surprising interest. He turned to the others when she didn't answer immediately.
"Professor Trelawney foresaw something bad happening to Elizabeth next year." Lavender answered, leaning in and looking pointedly at Seamus.
"She thinks it has to do with you," Parvati said to Seamus, she then turned to Elizabeth. "I still think it's about you. But you still should have told him."
"I forgot-" Elizabeth began but was cut off by Seamus.
"What made you two disagree?" He demanded, sitting up straight and looking between the two.
"Well… Parvati hesitated, looking at Elizabeth. "When we we've been looking at Elizabeth's tealeaves lately we've been keeping notes of what we see."
"Parvati thinks that on Friday she saw a volcano." Lavender explained quickly as Elizabeth's eyes slid from Parvati to her.
"That suggests an impending emotional eruption." Elizabeth mumbled for Seamus's benefit.
"But you think…?" Seamus urged leaning forward slightly, his back moving away from the couch slightly, Elizabeth looked at him. He never showed interest in Divination before aside from joking about it with Dean.
"Well Lavender thinks it was a triangle." Parvati answered.
"Which means good Karma, god knows you could use it." Lavender said. "Which is why I think the warning was about you, cause Elizabeth wouldn't really be getting good Karma if something bad is going to happen to her."
"But I also saw a snake in the cup." Parvati pointed out. "It means an enemy is near by. So I think whatever is going to happen next year has to do with someone in the school. But Lavender thinks it's a broken necklace." At that both Elizabeth and Parvati looked at Lavender. Elizabeth was shocked while Parvati wore an unhappy look.
"What does a broken necklace have to do with me?" Seamus demanded, looking at Lavender.
"Danger in love." Lavender answered. "Which really would be involving you."
"Is that all?" Seamus asked, sinking back into the couch moving inconspicuously closer to Elizabeth.
"Well I saw a flag as well." Lavender said, looking to Parvati with questioning eyes. "And Parvati saw a… raised finger?"
"A raised finger, that's a warning." Elizabeth translated again. "And a flag, that's… danger?"
"Impending danger, yeah." Parvati agreed. "That could go either way we figure. But that's probably what the Professor saw, don't you think."
Elizabeth nodded her head and looked briefly at Seamus who had returned his gaze to the fire.
"Well I think we should go back, look at the rune cards again." Parvati said after looking at Seamus too. "Lavender, maybe you can get Professor Trelawney to show you that black mirror scrying…"
As quickly as the two had arrived they'd gone, discussing the difference between black and silver mirror scrying. Elizabeth hadn't even had time to share her thought of Algiz and the Blank rune with them.
"Are you scared?" Seamus asked in a low voice. Elizabeth looked up at him and saw that though his face was turned towards the fire, he was actually watching her from the corner of his eyes.
"Should I be?" Elizabeth countered.
Not prepared for this answer, Seamus turned to her. "I think so."
"Then I'm terrified." Elizabeth answered honestly.
"Why?"
"Because you're almost as skeptical as Hermione, if you're worried then it can't be good."
"What are you going to do?" Seamus asked, his voice was soft and he slid down on the couch so he was at eye level with Elizabeth. His eyes searched hers', darting from one eye to the other.
"Not let it take over my life and hope it, whatever it is, doesn't happen." She answered, folding her hands in her lap. "Maybe I'll take the Professor's advice and watch who I am around.
Seamus looked down at her hands for a long moment before hesitantly reaching out and taking one of her hands in his. "I'll try not to let anything happen." He squeezed her hand, "I don't want anything to happen to you."
Elizabeth smiled weakly at his obvious urge to protect her but inwardly cringed as dread gripped her stomach with such force that she was certain she would be physically ill from it. She tried to comfort herself with the thought that nothing too horrible could happen to her within the school as long as the professors were there. Surely it could have nothing to do with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, after-all, Professor Dumbledore was there and he was the one person the Dark Lord was afraid of, He would hardly dare send his cronies into the school now.