Chapter 13: Back to Hogwarts
Meissa breathes slowly through her nose, her face stony as she moved slowly down the step, hissing when she has to jump the last distance from the train steps.
She had waited until everyone else was gone to make the journey out from the compartment to the stations outside. She wasn't afraid of missing the carriages back to the castle, her cousin knew that she was still hurting pretty badly and even though they weren't supposed to show weaknesses in public they both knew that she was an exception to the rule.
Relieved to finally be on the station she pushes her hair back from her face and limps over to the last remaining carriage. The effort to keep her face blank was nearly futile despite the fact that the fracture in her leg had healed, though the muscle around her leg was weakened and more than a bit sore.
Her arm was in better shape in comparison to her leg since she was able to let it rest - though she was eternally grateful for the fact that her dominant arm hadn't been injured in anyway.
She couldn't imagine not being able to use her wand for however long it took for her to not cringe in pain.
Although it could've been a perfect opportunity to practice wandless magic or even training herself to use her right arm as efficiently as her left now that she thinks about it.
"Meissa!" she hears her cousin call for her sharply, prompting her to look up sharply at the carriage where she saw him waving for her next to the sole remaining carriage. She rolls her eyes at his antics and hurries up a bit more, climbing into the carriage with a cringe.
The weather was making her leg hurt like mad and she made a note to herself to find something to dull the ache until her leg gets stronger. But in no time they were at the front gates and Meissa needed to climb back down and make her way across the grounds.
"How badly were you hurt?" Draco asks worriedly as he kept pace with his cousin. He hadn't thought she'd still be hurting after a week.
"It could've been worse," she remarks drily - she had no doubt about it anyway even if she couldn't remember one second of it.
"Will you be okay?"
"Sooner or later," she answers, wrapping an arm around his shoulders to give him a quick before she leaves his side to head to the dormitories.
Draco, having mentioned joining his friends for a quick bite, stared after her. He couldn't shake the thought that she seemed to have lost some weight - again.
Down the stairs, in the dungeons, Meissa was limping towards the dormitory when Daphne came into view with a book in hand. At the sight of each other they both stilled.
Meissa because she still intended to hide her lingering injuries from people if she could help it while the blonde had stopped because she hadn't thought there be another Slytherin roaming the dungeons so soon after returning from the winter break.
Daphne narrows her eyes suspiciously at Meissa - unsure of what she had seen.
Had she really seen her limping?
"Daphne," the Black heiress greets. She doesn't make an effort to move or get closer to her friend. Hopeful that the blonde would continue walking to wherever she was headed in the first place.
"Meissa," the blonde returns easily, "How was your break?"
"As well as it could have been," she replies - subconsciously pressing a hand to her arm where there was still a lingering pain in her muscles. "Yours?"
"I thought it was okay."
Daphne definitely thought that something was wrong with Meissa. She couldn't remember a time when Meissa would stay so still without shuffling around. The Black heiress was normally so full of life that the current sight of her worried the blonde.
"Meissa, what's wrong?"
"Does something have to be wrong?"
Daphne gives her a peeved look - she did not want to be talked into circles as the girl was prone to doing. "Meissa, what happened?"
Meissa sighs and decides that she wouldn't be able to get Daphne to drop it. She didn't want to expend the energy to try and convince Daphne to leave it and she wasn't quite looking forward to the thought of another argument/feud with the blonde.
"Long story short," she mutters as she walks closer - limp was more like it. "I got messed up pretty bad over the break. My leg and arm still hurts a bit."
Daphne was shocked by the very visible limp in her friend's stride and when she heard 'arm' she immediately looked for any signs of injury - quickly seeing the way Meissa made an effort to not move her right arm.
"Meissa, what happened to you?" Daphne asks worriedly, her hands moving nervously over the girl's shoulders and arms, unsure of where to put them without hurting the other girl.
"That's part of the long story," the Black heiress remarks in a fairly bland tone.
"You'll tell me, right?"
"I'm not sure I can," Meissa confesses. "I don't really… well, I know the reason why but I can't actually remember the event itself."
"That's not good," Daphne mutters worriedly. "You must have hit your head pretty badly for you to block out the memories…"
"Or it could be like that time when I…" she trails off - they had stopped talking with each other shortly afterwards over a fight blown out of proportion.
Daphne frowns a she recalled the day Meissa got into a fight but couldn't actually remember the fight itself or the events surrounding it.
"Do you remember what led to it?"
"I…" Meissa was going to answer yes when she realizes that she doesn't truly know. She knew the why - Draco getting hurt - the who - Lucius - but she couldn't remember when it happened or how Lucius found out. She suspect that her cousin was unconscious until after she was freed by his mother.
"I think I should answer with a 'not really'," she finally answers the question.
"Not really?"
"I don't know how else you want me to phrase it," Meissa shrugs her shoulders as she thinks. "I know the reason why it happened or at least I think I do. But I don't know how it happened or why."
"You just contradicted yourself there."
"I know, but this isn't a simple matter. So just leave it alone, please?"
Daphne frowns worriedly at her friend - she knew that she was headed to the Malfoy estates when she left. So did her injuries happen there at Draco's house or did it happen when she finally got away from the Malfoys to slip home?
"Promise to let me know if you get hurt next time?" she tries instead of pushing the issue further.
"You ask for a lot of promises," Meissa grouses but she nods her head in consent anyway.
"I worry a lot about you," Daphne replies simply.
"Such is the world."
The girls look at each other before turning to look at the entrance to the dormitory. "Nobilis Veneficus," Meissa intones, the bricks scrapping against each other to form the entrance.
"Noble Wizard," Daphne translates, "Who thought of that one?"
"Somehow I wouldn't be surprised if it was Flint or one of the inbred idiots," Meissa insults, uncaring that there were ears in the room. Daphne saw that it was a second year and judging from the glare aimed at them now she could only reckon that the witch was a cousin of the insulted 'idiot'.
"Meissa, you're going to make an enemy of your own house at this rate," Daphne scolds lightly.
The Black heiress arches an eyebrow at the blonde - seemingly saying 'do you see me caring?'
Daphne sighs - looks like she'll have to keep an eye out for the both of them.
~MJB~
Meissa was sitting by the lakeside later that day, enjoying the breeze as she fiddles with her wand. She was thinking about the gaps in her memories - she had no idea why it was happening. She doesn't even know if it'll hurt her in the long run.
She didn't know how long she had spent sitting there by the lake side when she senses someone approaching. But she didn't sense any malicious intent so she stayed still until they sat down beside her with a content sigh.
"Ello Hermione," she greets, having recognized that sigh.
"Hello Meissa," Hermione returns warmly. The heiress glances at her when she feels a hand on her elbow, "Thank you."
"What for?"
"My books, silly." Hermione smiles at her.
"Oh," Meissa smiles shyly. "You're welcome." Meissa pulls on her hair idly, her face almost carefully blank. "Thank you, for my books too."
"You didn't have them?" Hermione asks, her voice indicating she was relieved.
"No. I really liked the one about muggle mythologies."
"Have you been to the muggle world?"
Meissa tilts her head and peers at the other girl. "No."
"Would you, one day, go into the muggle world with me?"
"Why?"
"… Would it be bad of me to say that I hope that one day I can introduce you to my parents?"
Meissa looks thoughtfully at the quiet Gryffindor before she offers a half smile. "I have a suggestion." Hermione arches an eyebrow at her. "This summer, I'll go with you to your parents' place for a week or two. We do what muggles do or whatever you do and we spend the rest at my place."
Both eyebrows were arched now.
"What are we going to do at your place?"
Meissa grins at her. "Did you forget that we can practice at my place?" she teases.
"Oh!" Hermione exclaims and got a mischievous smirk from the other girl. She rolls her eyes and slaps her shoulder with a mock glare.
"Abuse! Abuse!" Meissa cackles, smiling widely at the Gryffindor.
Hermione rolls her eyes fondly at the Slytherin and before long they settled into a quiet companionable silence.
"Meissa?"
"Mm?"
"How did you find out about Flamel?"
"Oh. I invented a spell that would search for terms in the actual books themselves," Meissa dismisses casually.
"What?! That could've been dangerous!"
"Yeah I know. I was attacked by an avalanche of books the first time I tried to make a spell." She flinches when she realizes that she had slipped something.
"An avalanche of books?!" Hermione all but screeched.
Meissa palms her face in disbelief - she should've kept that to herself.
"I've already gotten a lecture about it from my aunt," she interrupts before the Gryffindor could say anything to lecture her.
"What you did… it could've been really dangerous," Hermione whispers, her hand squeezing Meissa's elbow.
"I know and I'm sorry," Meissa tries to reassure her. "But I found out about Flamel, isn't that a good thing?"
Hermione frowns and Meissa grimaces - she might have to spend a bit groveling to get on the Gryffindor's better side again.
"Don't do that again and I'll forgive you."
Meissa arches an eyebrow at her before nodding her head. "Okay."
"So, the Philosopher's stone," Hermione mutters thoughtfully. "You're absolutely positive?"
"Yes. He's the only Nicolas Flamel in the last seven hundred years."
"The only?"
"Didn't I mention that he's over six hundred years old?"
"You weren't kidding when you said it grants immortality," Hermione remarks.
"At a price." Meissa yawns, trying to remember the information that didn't pertain to the creation of the stone. "I think I read that the stone is a key ingredient in the potion that would allow the drinker to live longer than they normally would."
"So they would be reliant on the stone to maintain their immortality?"
"In essence, yes. I wouldn't actually know."
Hermione frowns. "So whoever want the stone would be interested in any of its' abilities, right?"
"Possibility."
"What should we do?"
Meissa thinks this over, wondering about the defenses that could be involved.
"I don't think there is much we can do right now," she finally confesses. "Have you told the boys?"
"Not yet, I thought it was better if I didn't tell them in a letter."
Meissa nods her head. "Don't mention you got it from me, okay?"
"But why?"
"They don't trust me - I don't expect them to," Meissa gives her a patient look when Hermione makes to protest. "The only reason why I've taken an interest is because you asked."
"This isn't going to make them like you, Meissa."
The Black heiress grins at the other girl. "Again, I don't care. I'm in this for you. Not them."
Hermione smiles and hugs her. "Thank you."
~MJB~
With the winter break over with things were quick to settle back to normal.
The Gryffindors trained just about every single day or so it seemed. Harry was frequently exhausted by the time Meissa sees him trudging back into the castle to head up to the Gryffindor common room. And the rain, along with the brisk spring air, was likely making Harry miserable.
Meissa pitied the boy but suspected that the Slytherin team was training just as hard as the Gryffindors if not more - the team Captain, Marcus Flint was constantly roaring at everyone and he suspected even his own house for spying for the enemies. Even though the Slytherin Quidditch team won its match against Ravenclaw he was still paranoid and anxious to make up for the embarrassing loss to the Gryffindors - though it seemed like he intended to sabotage them by taking the days the Gryffindors schedule for.
Then again his enhanced state of paranoia was highly understandable when a person considers the fact that he had ate something just a few days after the winter break was over. Only to sprout a tail worthy of a lizard, feathers of a bird of some kind, claws of a badger, and a weak looking mane of hair accompanied by whiskers.
The sight of him sprouting the features of the four founders' animals was the top topic for weeks afterwards. Not even the Weasley twins - when questioned by their head of house and the headmaster - claimed this feat as their own.
It was the dread of many in the school that there was a third - not counting Peeves - prankster lurking in the school.
Especially since this particular prankster remained anonymous in the entirety of the school. Well, anonymous to all except for one.
Daphne was the only one who knew the reasons behind the 'pranks' and she sincerely hoped that Meissa never become like the Weasley twins. For some reason she could picture the two sides going at 'war' with each other - pranks escalating until something breaks. And she suspects that Meissa would never back down from a challenge.
In any case the two Slytherins were sitting outside enjoying the sun - despite the cold air. They only had a few precious minutes before DADA with their rather smelly professor and they wanted to get in as much fresh air as possible before entering his classroom. Meissa found it hard to believe that it was the last week of February - a measly two months since the end of the holidays.
Despite basking in the warm sun they were waiting for Hermione - Meissa had gotten a message from the Gryffindor saying that she had finally told the boys and was going to meet them before DADA.
"Hermione, I don't see why we have to tell them!" Ron was questioning in a very angry voice - his face as bright red as his hair. Meissa glances at her friend and mimed his next words in perfect timing. "They're Slytherins!"
Daphne was taken by surprise by her perfect timing that she burst out laughing while the raven haired girl smiles innocently at the suspicious boys.
"Ronald Weasley, she's my friend! I trust her and I trust her judgment!" Hermione snipes at the redheaded boy while Harry looked torn between the two of them.
Meissa could hardly fault him for being unsure of how to react to a fight between the two of them. But somehow she suspects that he'll continue being stuck between the two friends and knew that whatever he does now will define him in her eyes forever more.
"Before we devolve into petty arguments," Meissa speaks up with a lazy drawl, "Where, as Hermione puts it, is the big fire?"
"Oh! We just found out about Flamel!" Hermione declares while Meissa was sharing a very brief look with Daphne - the three of them were in on the big secret and were just putting on a show for the boys.
"So who is he?" Daphne asks, leading the conversation where it needed to go.
"He's the only known creator of the Philosopher's stone," Harry pipes up - sounding like he had it hammered into his head.
Meissa had no doubt that Hermione had actually gone into a long talk about it and the properties of the stone. It seemed like a thing she would do if they had no idea what it is.
"That's a dangerous item," Meissa remarks quietly, expressing her concern about the stone being hidden in Hogwarts.
"No way," Ron protests, disagreeing instantly. "You could do anything with it!"
"Oh?" Meissa drawls, her voice expressing her opinion that whatever he comes up with it's likely to be very idiotic. "Pray tell."
"You could make transmit metal to gold, genuine gold!" Ron exclaim. "You could buy a Quidditch team if you wanted to!"
"Or," Meissa interrupt before he could go any further, "You could be a morally bad person and live forever - killing and maiming people for the sheer entertainment." Ron's jaw drops immediately at what he said. "Nicolas Flamel is over 600 years old and we're fortunate that he had no aspiration to be a Dark Lord."
Daphne looked worriedly at her friend - she had noticed that she tends to see the darker side of a lot of things. It was like she naturally sees the darker aspects of people.
Harry and Hermione were frowning thoughtfully at Meissa - like what she had said had surprised them.
"She has a point," Daphne speaks up. "In the wrong hands the stone could be dangerous."
"Even if it wasn't," Meissa chips in, "the Headmaster's defenses are dangerous."
"Which means that he expects that someone dangerous is after the item," Hermione gasps as she realizes exactly what they're saying." But if that's -," she tries to disagree but found that she couldn't.
"What?" the boys asked in union.
"The Headmaster has placed all of Hogwarts in danger by hiding the Philosopher's stone here," Meissa answers bluntly. "My guess is that he truly believes that no one can gain access to the stone with the defenses he had placed."
"Unless," Ron starts, his tone immediately putting Meissa on edge, "the person was involved in the defenses."
Hermione looks warily between the two sides - sensing that Ron is perhaps a few words from causing a war.
"Who, pray tell, do you believe would be involved?" Meissa questions - her tone somehow familiar to the two other girls with her. Even the arch of her eyebrow was familiar to them.
"Snape of course!"
Daphne scowls at the redhead. "Professor Snape," she starts hotly, stressing heavily on his title, "would not do something like that!"
Meissa nodded her head in agreement. She was getting tired of having to defend Snape to the hotheaded boy and was grateful that someone else was there to defend him too. If he doesn't shut up about the matter he was going to find himself looking like a freak of nature for a few weeks - and that's a promise.
Hermione looked at the Slytherins and decide that she needed to step in before things escalated - again. "How many people would know about the stone in the first place?" she asks quickly before Ron's growing anger about the Slytherins blew a fuse.
"It can't be many," Harry remarks.
"Probably only those involved in the creation of the defenses and Flamel - the creator of the stone," Meissa comment drily, rubbing her wrist distractedly.
"Is there any possibility of us guessing how many?" Daphne inquires.
Meissa was still rubbing her wrist, thinking. She vaguely remembered her thoughts on the matter on the way from Hogwarts.
"Meissa?" she hears someone ask. Her head jerks up as she snaps out of her thoughts.
"Yes?"
"What do you have on your mind?"
Meissa glances at Daphne, thinking for a moment.
"I was thinking about the fact that Dumbledore seems like a type to put an emphasis on magical numbers," Meissa answers simply. "We already know that Hagrid was involved in the defense - the first line of defense. Fluffy the Cerberus is defense number one and I'm willing to bet seven galleons that there are six more lines of defenses." (1)
"You're that sure about this?"
"Yes," Meissa nods. "I don't know who else would be involved. But I have no doubt in my mind that Dumbledore would've added his own defense."
"So that's two possibilities we have."
"Technically it would be three," Hermione chirps in and the Slytherins arched an eyebrow at her. "Anyone who knows of the stone would be involved, right?"
Meissa nods her head slowly as she followed Hermione's apparent line of thought. It was the same line of thought she had followed before. Anyone involved in the defense could be a potential suspect.
"Yes, but I know that Professor Snape isn't the one who trying to get the stone," Meissa defends vehemently.
"I'm not trying to accuse him of anything," the Gryffindor reassure the raven-haired girl though the snort from Ron had Meissa on her feet faster than a sneeze. She had his shirt bunched in his shirt and robes with her blackthorn solid wand hovering dangerously close to Ron's face, angry sparks of magic erupting from the tip.
"Do you have something to say to me!" she nearly snarled as his face paled in light of the current situation. She vehemently ignored the hands tugging on her clothes. "Because I swear to Hades himself! That if you don't stop with your snark I will GLADLY give you over to my cousin!"
"Meissa!"
"EXPELLIARMUS!"
Meissa's wand flew freely from her grasp and, wandless for the time being, she shoves the redhead away from her from a disgusted snort.
"Don't touch him again," Harry stepped up to her, his eyes dark and thunderous.
"Or what, Potter."
"Or you can forget about our deal."
Meissa let a loud jarring cackle loose, everyone present jumping in shock at the suddenness of it.
"Poor little Potter," she sneered. "Our little deal is for your benefit. Not mine!"
She whirls around and storms away, just in time for the bell for DADA alerting them that they have class to go to.
~MJB~
Translations/Notes:
1) 7 Galleons - $70 roughly
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