Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.K Rowling.

A/N: As you can see on the POV, the chapter will be a quite different from usual. I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 44: Liquid Luck

-Tracey-

"He's ugly, that's why," I said with a roll of my eyes.

Parvati, Hannah and I were seated in the library around a circular table. We were supposed to finish a transfiguration essay for McGonagall together. However, as was often the case when the three of us got together, we got sidetracked.

Parvati folded her arms at my statement. "He is not that ugly," she said. "He just needs to get a better haircut–"

"And a nose transplant," I added. "Seriously, his nose is longer than the fucking Eiffel Tower."

Parvati leaned back in her chair and glared at me mildly.

"I'm sorry Parvati, but I'm with Tracey on this one. Mr. Long-nose can't be saved, not even by you," Hannah said.

Parvati muttered something under her breath. I could imagine roughly what.

"Anyways," I said. "Have you seen that Weasley -the female version- has started dating Dean Thomas?"

Hannah raised her eyebrows. "Really? Do you know which stage?"

"At least stage four," I said. "Pansy saw them making out after dinner on Wednesday."

Parvati scoffed. "Stage four?" she said, incredulous. "The two of you are lucky you don't share the same house as them, I can tell you, those two are at least stage six."

Hannah leaned forwards, lowering their voice. "Have you seen them?"

Parvati sighed. "No, but–"

"Then we can't know for sure," Hannah said sadly. "They're are a good couple, I guess. . . I think he could do better though."

Me and Parvati shared a look. "Oh?" I said. "Like who?"

Hannah rolled her eyes. "Stop it, I don't fancy him. He's just. . . kind of good looking whereas she is just. . ." Hannah held her hands up, trying to illustrate something.

"Unsophisticated?" I guessed.

"Unsophisticated," Hannah repeated. "That's it." She leaned in even closer, and so did we. "I heard a rumour about her last week." Hannah sent a glance over her shoulder. "She doesn't even have a deodorant!" she whispered in a hiss. "Can you imagine?"

I nodded slowly. "I just thought she smelled bad because she was always running around doing some sport, but I guess that fits too."

Hannah shook her head sadly. "It's a shame, if she just took a little care of herself. . ."

Parvati raised her eyebrows. "Is that so? Yet she is the one kissing Dean Thomas in the corridors, where you can only imagine yourself doing so."

Hannah glared at Parvati. "I don't like him," she emphasised. "Weasley can have him, for all I care."

Hannah and I shared a look and smiled smugly. "Of course," I said to Hannah, winking at her.

"Why are the two of you so weird?" she wondered aloud. "Last week, you thought I fancied fucking Corner, and now it's Thomas?" She took a small mirror out of her bag and inspected her makeup, pretending to be upset with us.

"Anyways, we need to get that essay done," I said slowly, picking the thing back up. I wondered if it would be possible to visit Daphne and get help.

I shrugged and scribbled a few lines at the parchment, not quite knowing what they meant. But reading them, it sounded like someone smart had written them, that must mean something, right?

-()-

Party in the fourth classroom to the right on the third floor's corridor by the huge statue of a beetle. It was one of those things which only happened once a year.

I inspected my dress closely, in my periphery, I saw Pansy doing the same with hers.

Sending a glance over my shoulder to make sure she didn't see me, I took the bottle of Felix Felicis out of my drawer and put it in one of the pockets. I didn't know why I did it, there wasn't anything I desperately sought at the moment.

Apart from happiness, of course; but I'd gone to this party previous years, and I knew I was unlikely to find it there.

I nodded in satisfaction. My hair was styled exactly as I liked it, the makeup was perfect, the boys wouldn't even realise that I was wearing it, but they would think I was pretty, definitely. And the green dress fit me perfectly, revealing a little more than I knew my parents approved of. But I didn't have a sibling to rat me out. So yay me.

Pansy sent me a questioning glance. "You ready?"

"Looking good, Pansy," I said. "I'm sure he won't be able to take his eyes off you."

Pansy bit her lips and looked herself up and down in the mirror. "You think so? You don't think I had a little too much eyeliner?"

"Nah, you're beautiful, Pansy." I smiled at her, confident. "Everyone would have their eyes glued to you, if I wasn't there."

She rolled her eyes. "Humble as usual, I see."

"Of course, humility is my expertise."

Together we snuck out of the Slytherin common room, both of us wearing our regular house robes over our dresses. People would raise their eyebrows –and they did– at our hair, but no one would follow or ask us. Because boys stuttered like infants and blushed crimson while talking to us, and girls glared at us with jealousy.

The party was a secret to most people. Only people who were in our group of friends were invited. Which could also be translated to: only people who were fucking hot were invited.

This was the party for the fun students, not those who hid themselves in the library all day or did nothing but play quidditch. No, these people were fun.

But most importantly, these people were good looking, otherwise I never attended this party. Though I had recently started to wonder if that really mattered.

Me and Pansy shared a look just before we reached the third floor. We giggled in excitement. I could feel Pansy's perfume in the air, just like I could feel my own.

"Ready?" I asked, a smile on my lips. The music was bursting through the closed door, the only sign that the usually abandoned classroom wasn't as abandoned as everyone thought.

"Definitely," Pansy said confidently.

I pushed the door open, allowing Pansy inside. The music washed over us in a heavy wave, I smiled wider.

The two of us approached the group of Hannah, Parvati and Lavender who were standing next to a table with drinks, whispering among themselves. "Hello!" they squealed when we approached and everyone hugged each other with smiles.

"I love your hair," Lavender said to me. "You'll have to give me the brand of your magical mirror."

I smiled. "Of course, but then you'll have to borrow me some of your lipstick. It's so sexy."

"Thank you," Lavender said. I leaned in a little closer to her. "Anyone in particular?"

Lavender glanced at the group of boys who were sitting on a couch on the other end of the room, seemingly engrossed in a highly sophisticated discussion, based on their body language.

"Zabini? Selwyn?" I guessed.

Lavender shook her head. "No offence, but they're Slytherins."

I winked at her. "A secret romance is so hot, don't you think?"

Lavender bit her lips, glancing at Selwyn a little too obviously, because he looked up to see us staring at him. We turned our heads immediately, giggling to each other.

"Tracey!" Hannah said. I turned around and rejoined the rest of the group. "Yes?"

"We need your help," she said and gestured for us to huddle together. The five of us leaned in close, so that no one would be able to hear us. "Pansy is thinking about doing the deed, what do you think?"

Pansy's gaze was glued to the ground, a faint tinge of pink slipping through her make up.

"It's not too soon," I said matter of factly. I held my finger up warningly. "But Pansy." She looked up at me. "You've put in a lot of work on him, don't throw it all away now."

Pansy chewed her lip. "He'll agree if I ask him, I'm sure."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course he will, he's been looking at you like you're a fucking magnet all evening, the things is, you want him to come to you. Not the other way around."

Pansy nodded slowly. "You're right."

"I am right," I said. "Boys are simple creatures, you just have to become hot enough, then they won't be able to stay away. They're like flies around flames."

Hannah snorted. "Well said, she's right Pansy, don't go throw yourself all over him yet, okay? Make a hint or two and let him initiate."

Pansy looked into my eyes hesitantly. "Okay," she said. She swallowed nervously. "What if he doesn't do anything."

I smiled at Pansy, giving her a wink. "Well, then you know you've dodged a real bullet not sleeping with him, because I can tell you, he'd be crazy if he didn't want to."

Pansy raised her eyebrows. "Only you are hotter, is that it?"

I shrugged. "I'll make sure to stay in the shadows tonight, then the rest of you will have a chance."

I could see all of them roll their eyes at once. "Humble as always," they muttered in unison.

It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Whatever," I sent a glance behind my back. As we had been speaking, more guests from the seventh and fifth year had arrived. Most of them, I didn't know that well, but that could be changed. "Pansy you've got this," I said with a confident nod in her direction. "I'd bet all of my galleons on him begging you by the end of the night."

Pansy shook her head. "You don't have any galleons, you spent them all on perfume last week."

"It's the intent that matters," I reminded her. I turned to Lavender. "And Lavender, if I haven't seen you talking to him by the end of the night, I'll go and talk to him myself, then you can kiss him goodbye."

Lavender stuck her tongue out. "We'll see who kisses who."

I excused myself from the rest and went over to the table with drinks. A couple of Hufflepuff were standing there, talking about something.

"Howdy," I said, and tipped my non-existent hat. "Where've ya'll got the best brandy?"

The right one, a blonde guy with blue eyes, blinked rapidly. "I. . . uhhh. . ."

"There," his friend said and pointed at the cups by the end of the table. "It's not Barry's Brandy, but it'll make due."

I took a cup and sipped slowly. "It'll get the job done," I said. "As long as I don't have to pee before I puke, I'm happy."

The left one looked at me oddly, the right one was seemingly still in his stupor, looking at me. I flicked my hair and smiled at them. "So what are your names?" I asked, taking another sip.

"Mason," the left one said and elbowed his friend.

"I. . . I am Hjalmar," the right one said, running a hand through his hair nervously.

"Cheers." I arched a brow at them. "You're seventh years, I guess?"

"Yup," the left one said with a smile. "Not even a year left at this school."

I smiled at him; I could almost see Mason's confidence growing under my attention. "What'll you do then? Guard drink tables at ministry galas?"

He chuckled weakly. "Something like that, I was hoping to get a job at the department for magical games and sports."

I nodded. "Huh, well, if you ever do, or when you do," I winked at him. "Make sure to send me a couple of tickets to the games of the Harpies, they serve the best fish'n'chips there."

He smiled at me, revealing a set of slightly crooked teeth. "I'll make sure to do that, miss?"

"Davis," I said with a small curtsy. "Tracey Davis."

"Pleasure to meet you."

I nodded and downed the last of the contents. "Well, it was nice talking to y'all, but now, I'll have to go and annoy someone else, see ya around!" I walked away from them, a small smile on my lips. Even though he was behind me, I knew that Mason was staring at me as I walked away. As soon as I was out of hearing distance, he would turn to his mate and burst in excitement over the fact that he talked to me, a pretty girl.

I spotted Lavender at the other end of the room, speaking to Selwyn. I gave myself an internal high-five. I should get an award for the best match maker or something. A couple of words to Lavender and a relationship was born, I was really too good at it.

"Hello there," I heard someone call out from my right. A guy with a pink bowtie was leaning against the wall, observing everyone walk by. Until I walked by, that is.

I stopped and looked at him. "What's up?" I said casually. "Someone like you shouldn't be wasted hiding at the edge of the room, that bowtie is magical."

The boy stared at his feet. "You think so?"

I nodded. "Yes! Just go out there, talk to people." I leaned in and whispered in his ear, "you see that girl there, with the pink dress?" I pointed to Hannah who was talking to some younger girl. "She loves pink, I'm sure she'd love to talk to you, purely based on the bowtie."

The boy glanced into my eyes, just for him to look at his shoes again. "You really think so?"

"I know so," I said confidently. I patted him on the back, savouring how he tensed up nervously as I touched him. "Let me tell you a secret. . ."

"Conor," he said. "I'm Conor."

"Pleasure. Well, let me tell you a secret, Conor." I looked around us, trying to make it seem as if no one was supposed to hear what we were saying. "Do you know what girls like the most?"

Conor opened his mouth dumbly, then shut it and shook his head.

"Well, I do, because. . . well, you know," I gestured to myself.

"You're a girl," he surmised.

"Exactly!" I paused and smiled at him shyly. "You see, the thing girls like the most is a guy with confidence. If someone walks up to them and starts a conversation, we'll see them in a better light, just because of that. You know, we girls like to feel seen, you could have decided to talk to anyone in this room, but you chose me, therefore you made me feel special."

Conor nodded slowly, my words seemingly slipping through.

"So go and talk to her, she's a nice girl, and as I said, she'll love your bowtie." I winked at him. "If you're lucky enough, she might show you how much she loves it, if you know what I mean."

Conor swallowed, his eyes alert. "I do," he said. I detected a hint of excitement in his voice. "Thank you," he said. "I don't even know your name, but thank you."

I shrugged, smiling at him. "We can keep it that way, because you won't need to talk to me after tonight, yeah?"

For the first time, he smiled, a hint of confidence in it. "You're right," he said. "Because I'll have a girlfriend."

"That's the spirit!" I said and pushed him from the wall towards Hannah. He took a couple of hesitant steps, before he squared his shoulder and strided over.

I observed him as he walked up, and spoke to Hannah. Even from a distance, I could see Hannah looking at the bowtie. Then she giggled at something Conor said, and I turned away, facing another part of the party.

"Who could have guessed, Tracey Davis, a wallflower." someone drawled from behind me.

"I'm surprised you're still here, Blaise. You're usually either unconscious from alcohol or unconscious from exhaustion by this time."

He shrugged and handed me a cup. I accepted it, taking a long sip.

"I've heard that the party is at its best after one, I wanted to see if that's true."

I rolled my eyes. "It's the best if you want to see people snogging everywhere," I said dryly.

"Perfect," he said. "Perhaps I can get out of here with blackmail material, for once. Not the other way around."

I gave him a pointed look. "You won't have any on me, I can assure you, if that is what you're looking for."

He tilted his head to look at me. "Nah," he said. He paused for a moment. "I invited Draco today, actually, I just stayed up to see if he would come."

I raised my eyebrows. "Draco? You invited Draco?" I shook my head, incredulous. "You might as well invite fucking Snape then, Blaise. Did you actually think he'd show up?"

Blaise shrugged. "I thought it could do him good, meeting some other girls. . ."

"It would do him good," I said. "But Draco is more obsessed with Daphne than the oaf is with beasts."

"That's an understatement," Blaise muttered. "He'd probably kill someone for her, if she asked for it."

"And I wouldn't be surprised if she asked for it," I said, feeling a little cold over Blaise's laugh at my joke, which wasn't really a joke.

"This is incredible, don't you think?" he said and gestured out over the crowd. "Some of these people were basically fighting a war a couple of months ago, but now they're here, drinking and flirting."

I nodded, and drank the rest of the contents of my cup. "The power of alcohol," I said with a grimace. "May our stores never run out."

Blaise clinked his cup against mine. "I'm afraid you're out too late, I heard that Ottoman downed an entire bottle of Walter's Whiskey."

I sighed, smiling. "I hope he has a great week in the hospital wing, puking more than an anorexic food addict."

Blaise snorted. "Ah yes, I totally know what that is." He clapped his hands together. "Anyways," he said. "I think I deserve to go and talk to some pretty girls now, I've done my quota of ugly ones."

"Thank you Blaise, I'll make sure that all of these supposedly 'pretty' girls know exactly what they're getting into." I smiled smugly. "I'm sure they'd all be very interested in the 'cupcake incident'."

Blaise rolled his eyes. "Okay, okay. You're so beautiful, Tracey. Is that what you want to hear?"

I shrugged. "It only means something when it comes from someone who's hot," I said, smiling at him sweetly.

He shook his head, walking off to his next victim who would have to stand his presence.

I took the bottle out of my pocket and ran my fingers over it. I still didn't know how I won it. I won –against Daphne, and Draco, and Granger, and, most of all, against Potter.

Fittingly enough for the price, I was sure I won because of a stroke of luck.

I looked around, searching for anyone to talk to, anyone who was good looking, or looked interesting.

Yet I found one, every person who, like me, looked around the room, just looked away in nervousness as soon as I met their eyes.

I stroked my fingers over the bottle.

Pansy was talking to her boy. Hannah was sitting snuggled up next to Conor. Lavender was kissing Selwyn, poorly concealed behind a curtain.

Could this be the key to get that too?

I shook my head. Who was I kidding?

If I wanted to, I could chat up someone to kiss or snog or cuddle with, but I had done that before. What was the point of doing it again?

Could this potion be the key to make it different this time?

Perhaps I wouldn't just wake up the next morning with a hangover, regretting how I had kissed someone purely because I had nothing to do. Flirting and teasing with boys was fun, but I'd had my share of that fun. I wanted something new, someone different.

In half a second, I took the stop out and downed the entire bottle. I waited for a second. I waited for a minute, for anything to happen. Yet nothing changed, my vision didn't change, no handsome man walked up to me, I didn't even feel lighter or anything.

Could Slughorn have failed with his potion?

I shook my head and left the party, my head hanging low. Somehow, the evening had gone from okay to miserable. All because I'd expected the potion to do something great.

I was certain it would make me happy, but it didn't.

Guess I wasn't so lucky after all.

I reached the staircase, was just about to walk down, return to the common room, when Peeves came swooping down.

How is this supposed to be lucky!? I screamed internally, rushing up the staircases to escape the crazed poltergeist.

I darted inside a corridor and ran along it, I could hear the Poltergeist coming ever closer. Then, I turned around a corner and the sounds of him disappeared.

I stopped in my tracks and listened after him, panting slightly, cursing how I could feel how my hair had slipped out of the styling.

I clenched my hand into a fist and slammed it into the wall, wincing in pain.

How the fuck was any of this supposed to be lucky?

Slughorn brewed the potion incorrectly, I realised. He'd done it wrong. I was going to kill him. The how was irrelevant, but I thought I understood Daphne's rage at Potter there.

I laughed madly. All of the anticipation for this potion, and it turned out to be nothing.

Shaking my head, I turned away from the wall, intent on returning to my common room.

I froze in my step. On the other side of the corridor, a shining silver door appeared. A door which I had never seen before, a door which I was certain wasn't there a minute prior.

I walked up hesitantly, my eyes wide in admiration when it swung open soundlessly. The inside was a small room, a purple torch lighting it up. I stepped inside and followed the tunnel filled with similar purple torches.

At the end of the short corridor, there was a large, circular room. There were several more doors around, each of them closed.

In a purple armchair, there was a girl sitting, just a few years older than me.

She could have attended the party, I decided as I looked at her, and she looked at me.

Her blonde hair and flawless skin would have made most boys fight for her attention, but her eyes, her purple eyes, was what would make her stand out.

"Who the fuck are you?" I whispered, not knowing why I whispered.

"I am a help to those in need," the girl said. "The school thought that you were one in need of help, thus it led you here, to me."

"The school can think?" I wondered, eyebrows raised.

The girl frowned. "Yes. . . kind of." The girl's eyes drilled into mine. "What do you need help with?"

I blinked. "What kind of help are we talking about here? Homework?"

The girl smiled thinly. "Sure, if you feel that is what you need.

I licked my lips. "What are you?" I asked.

The girl smiled, as if she found my question amusing. "I'm Hogwarts' tool to help the students, not more, not less."

"I've never heard of you," I said.

The girl didn't answer, she only looked at me expectantly.

"How many people have you helped?"

The girl froze for a second. "Very few, you won't find anyone else who've been led here."

I arched my brow. "What is that supposed to mean? Am I some kind of special case?"

The girl smiled. "Yes, you're special because you get to talk to me. Now, what do you need help with?"

"And people call me arrogant," I muttered under my breath. "What do I need help with?" I repeated, louder. "I don't know, I want to be happy, I guess?"

The girl looked at me emotionlessly, her purple irises screamed exasperation. "We can work with that," she said, seemingly unimpressed by my request. "First off, what will make you happy?"

I gave her a deadpan look. "I don't fucking know, if I knew that, I wouldn't be wandering the halls in the middle of the night while there was a party going on."

The girl held her hands up. "Okay, I get you. But there must be something you see and think: wow, that'd be great."

I shrugged. "I mean, yeah. But I doubt you have a clone of the guy from 'Karate Kid' stashed away somewhere."

The girl sighed. She whispered something under her breath. I got the impression she was used to dealing with issues which were a little less. . . trivial.

"As far as I know, I don't," the girl said. "But perhaps I can have that arranged for you."

I opened my mouth and closed it. "I have so many questions," I said. "But I think I'll have to decline. I've heard that clones require a lot of maintenance," I said dryly.

The girl shrugged. "Not really."

I shook my head. "Are you happy?" I wondered. "Perhaps I am the one who should help you?"

The girl smiled, and for the first time, I felt that she felt genuine joy. "I am very happy, thank you. But no, I fear I am supposed to help you."

I nodded slowly. "I get it, I'd be happy too, if I had eyes like yours. I like the outfit, by the way," I said and gestured to her clothes. "I love how they match your eyes. . . and the armchairs. . . and the torches."

The girl smiled. "Thank you, but please, just let me help you with this so you can be on your way."

"Okay then," I said. "Tell me how to be happy," I said.

The girl nodded, her eyes staring inside the purple fire in the fireplace. "I'll tell you a story about a girl," she said. "A long, long time ago, a girl named Rachel was born."

The girl paused for a moment. "Her parents were peasants, both of them working the field day in and day out. They raised Rachel just like everyone else raised their daughters back then, Rachel was going to be married away one day, and help her husband with everything he needed, but she didn't mind. Because that was what she thought her purpose in life was. . ." The girl trailed off and stared into the purple fire absently. "Then, one day, when Rachel had just turned six, she came back with ten baskets full of carrots, when she'd only gone out with two. A miracle and the parents thanked god for the gifts." The girl smiled sadly. "But just a couple of weeks later, when both parents saw Rachel's cloth mend itself right in front of their eyes, they realised that Rachel was the source of everything extraordinary." She swallowed. "The parents were afraid, not so much of Rachel as what would happen if she was found. They thought she would burn because she had the devil in her. So what did they do? The father built a room in extension to their humble house, and they locked her inside it, only letting her out late in the evening and early in the morning." The last sentence held a hint of steel to it. "They gave Rachel only one thing in there, materials and tools to sew."

"Wow," I said. "That's horrible."

The girl bit her lips. "I know it seems that way to you, but Rachel didn't mind. She developed a great passion for making clothes, she became incredibly good at it. So good, that when she left childhood home, she would sew clothes for herself and her friends."

I smiled. "That's sweet, but the imprisonment is still pretty fucked up. . ."

"Yes," the girl conceded. "It was a misguided attempt to protect their daughter. . . but perhaps it was worth it, in the end."

I raised my eyebrows. "What? How many years did she spend there?"

The girl held her hand up. "I'm getting there, don't worry. Anyways, after a couple of months, Rachel realised that she didn't have to sew the clothes herself, she could just let the magic do it for her. So suddenly, she had so much time and nothing to do. Nothing to do except think and play with magic." The girl smiled warmly into the fire, I thought there was a wet glance over her purple eyes. "For years, Rachel did nothing but testing the limit to her abilities, and every time she tried to take a step further –do something more difficult– she succeeded with it. Rachel learned more in an hour than a Hogwarts student learns in one year now. She would work all day, locked inside her room, then, just before she went to sleep, she would imagine what to do the next day."

"Did Rachel ever think about escaping?"

The girl shook her head. "No, that's the thing, she thought of and succeeded with thousands of things with her magic, but undoing the lock on her room was never something she thought of."

"That's sad," I said solemnly. "It must have been lonely for her."

The girl nodded silently. "Yes, which is why, one day, just before she fell asleep, Rachel was struck by an idea. She was around sixteen years old then, better at magic then than most people would ever become in their adult lives. She got this idea, and this conviction about what would make her happy." The girl sighed, content. "Rachel needed a friend, she realised. She needed someone who was exactly like her, someone who was clever, magical, but most importantly, creative. She wanted someone who she could explore the unknown galaxies of magic with, someone to do things with, things greater than anyone would ever do again."

"Was that when she left?"

The girl shook her head. "No, you see, Rachel learned to look inside her parents' minds. In them, she saw how people were around her, she knew that no one she would meet out in the world would fit her bill. Therefore, she set out to create her own friend." The girl smiled sadly. "It was the first thing she attempted which didn't succeed the next day, or the next. Not even the next month or the next year, but she kept on trying, because she was certain that she would be happy when she managed to do it."

"That's dedication," I said dryly, but a little bit in awe at the determination of this Rachel.

The girl hummed. "Rachel continued to work every day, every waking hour to reach her goal. That is, until her parents unlocked her door and let her out, asking her to leave the home. She had recently turned nineteen, and her parents set her loose upon the world. They felt guilty for locking her inside and felt that she deserved to be let free. So Rachel left them, went travelling the world."

The girl folded her hands neatly in her laps. "Rachel continued to work and work and work on her goal, she made progress but very little. Every day, she felt more miserable, and she was smart enough to realise that she was going to get more miserable before she got happier."

The girl sighed, and for the first time since starting her story, she looked up at me. "Then, one day, out of pure chance, she meets another wizard. . ." The girl smiled at me. "And when she wakes up one morning, she realises that she is happy with him. She realises that she reached exactly what she sought, just not in the way she thought she would."

"Did they bang?" I wondered.

The girl opened her mouth and closed it. I thought I could see a small hint of pink on her cheeks. "Yes," the girl whispered. "They did."

I nodded, a smug smile on my lips. "Was that what made Rachel happy? Was he that good?"

The girl looked at me, unimpressed. "They loved each other and loved to spend time together, in various ways, not just one."

I rolled my eyes. "Good for you,"

The girl narrowed her eyes, but ignored my comment.

"The man didn't possess the same sense of creativity and cleverness that the girl had. She wanted to continue to explore the universe of magic, whereas he wanted to settle down, have a family. Despite their differences, Rachel was so happy, the happiest she would ever be."

The girl gave me a pointed look. "My point is that happiness isn't like memorising a textbook. You don't work hard to achieve happiness, you don't memorise things or learn a skill to be happy. Rachel thought she would spend her next few years in misery, but out of nowhere, the man appeared, and she was happy. You need to let the happiness come to you, not the other way around. You don't know what will make you happy, the last thing you expect to make you happy, could be the thing to make you happy."

I nodded slowly. "So to be happy, you want me to do nothing?"

The girl shook her head, a small, sweet smile on her lips. "No, I want you to keep faith. Every time you're sad, every time you're angry at the world, I want you to keep faith that happiness will come to you. It could come in a minute, it could come in five months, it could come in two years, but it will come, I promise you. But if you lose that faith, if you tell yourself that you'll never be happy again, I fear you will make that true."

I chuckled. "You're right," I said. "Somehow, I think you're right." I smiled at the girl sitting in front of me. "You're pretty good at this," I said. "Helping people."

The girl shrugged. "I'm adequate," she said. "I would be a better help learning a spell or something."

"I'd damn well like to see how good you are at that if that help will be better than this help," I said.

The girl nodded. "Thank you, but no. You've had your dose of help from me, you won't see me ever again."

I frowned. "I can't return here?"

She shook her head. "Throughout the whole existence of this castle, very few have been permitted by the castle to see me. You will walk out of here, and never see the door again." The girl smiled at me. "And also, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about me."

I nodded. "Of course, you've helped me with this, it's the least I could do."

The girl smiled confidently. "Good, just a small warning. The castle doesn't want me to be found, and it will do everything in its power it make sure I'm not."

I frowned, a hint of concern. "What does that mean? Will the castle kill me?"

She smiled at me sweetly. "It doesn't matter right, because the castle will never have to intervene, am I right?"

"You're right," I said. I stood up and approached the tunnel I had entered through. "Just one thing," I said to the girl.

She raised her eyebrows. "Yes?"

"Did you live happily ever after, with him?"

The girl glared at me. "No, and perhaps that can be a lesson too. One day, Rachel woke up after a wonderful evening with the man."

"Where they. . . you know?" I wondered, excited.

The girl didn't answer, but she didn't need to. "She was so happy, as always, and got up to continue her research, exploring magic." The girl smiled sadly, staring into the fire absently. "It wasn't until noon she realised that the man wasn't home. It wasn't until three days later she realised he wouldn't return. It wasn't until a month later she found his letter."

I smiled sympathetically. "I'm so sorry, what did it say?"

The girl shrugged. "That's private. Rachel never told anyone. You see, happiness and sadness are two sides of the same coin. Both of them can rush upon you when you expect it the least. You can live a life, happy, and then out of nowhere, something will happen, and that happiness is shattered."

"That's. . . sad," I said, feeling more than a little sympathy for the girl in front of me.

"Perhaps, but if I think rationally about it, it was a good thing. It motivated Rachel to work harder than ever, and she did things with magic which no one had done before, and that no one would ever do again. She wouldn't want anyone else to live her life, but she acknowledges that because of the way she lived her life, huge leaps were made in the world of magic."

The girl smiled, but it was full of bitterness.

"But what it really tells you is that you need to savour every single day, every single minute, every single second you're happy, because it could be the last second you are just that."

There was silence for a couple of moments, only me and the girl looking at each other. I smiled at her. "Thank you," I said. "It was a really good story, I think."

The girl nodded, her purple eyes observing me. "You're welcome, now, leave."

And I did just that. Walking back, it was as if I was seeing the corridors in a new light. I looked at them and saw possibilities, but more importantly, I wondered if I would pass these corridors again, truly happy. My steps felt lighter than feathers.

I heard a couple of footsteps echo from the corridor ahead. From around the corner came Potter, a satisfied smile on his lips. When he saw me, he frowned and approached.

"Hello, Davis," he said. He looked at my outfit. "You're dressed very casually for a normal Wednesday night," he said dryly.

I rolled my eyes. "Some people don't just hide away from the world with books, you know. Some people actually spend time around other people. It must sound foreign to you, but it exists."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh really? That's ironic, coming from you, a friend of Daphne." He narrowed his eyes at me, a smug smile on his face. "If I go into that room of hers, will I find her dressed up like you?" he wondered

I snorted at the idea. "Nope."

He shrugged. "Well, that's a shame. . . Anyways, have a good night or whatever."

"Thank you, I hope you have an awful evening," I said honestly.

"Great, thank you too," he said and walked away down the corridor.

As I reached the staircase, I sent a glance towards the entrance to the dungeons, but it felt wrong going there. It felt like giving up.

Instead, I returned to the third floor. If I never gave myself the opportunity to be happy, I would never be happy, I reminded myself. What did I know, perhaps this day was the day when I became happy? I would never know if I never tried.

I smiled confidently at myself, a smile I knew very few boys could resist.

I may have been the one to drink a bottle of liquid luck, but it was a boy who was going to wake up the next day feeling very lucky.

A/N: I'd be happy if you left a comment with your thoughts! Also, there might be a little chapter appearing a little earlier than usual...

Cheers!