Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Vanishing
The room of lost things… Standing just past the door, I stared at things upon things stacked upon things. A sight always to marvel at no matter how many times you've seen it. Looking at things lost across the years… decades… maybe even a century, given Hogwarts' age; really makes the mind wonder. What could be in this room? What could be found? Maybe whimsy or power. Something historic or something new. Maybe we'd stumble upon a keepsake or something we desperately wanted to destroy. But not today!
"Adrian", I started out slowly; thinking about how I wanted to phrase this. The boy in question stood by my side with the door shut behind us; looking at the stacks upon stacks of miscellaneous objects with an impossible-to-read face. "When you think of Valentine's dates, is the first thing that pops in your mind really Horcrux hunting?" Because that was concerning.
"We're not going to look for the diadem", Adrian assured. His lips were doing that half-lifted thing Adrian does when he's excited but doesn't want to broadcast it. Holding out his hand, Adrian waited for me to take it. Only speaking once our palms were touching and our fingers were curling around the back of each other's hands. "There's something I want to show you".
Well, good luck finding it, I thought as Adrian led us further into the room. We passed a tower of trunks consisting of various sizes and colors. We passed stacks of books. Some in English and others in languages I didn't recognize. Passed furniture, light fixtures, owl cages, and hat boxes. We passed a lot of stuff until Adrian halted in front of a cabinet.
The ornate details on the cabinet's doors were hard to mistake. It helped that in all the previous trips we'd taken to this place, some time was always spent studying this very cabinet. "You know, since this is the room of lost things, it's kind of impressive… maybe even suspicious that we've been able to find this cabinet every time".
Adrian hummed to express he heard me. "Over break, Father and I went to Borgin and Burkes". He shared; letting go of my hand. "We found its match". While furniture shopping has never interested me before, in either of my lives, I found myself tuning in to Adrian's every word. He moved so we could look at each other and the cabinet at the same time. Meaning, that if the cabinet had been a person, it would've been included in this conversation. "I managed to haggle with Borgin to get a reasonable price. Father and I have been working fixing it in his workshop every minute we could steel". An accomplishment to be sure. Especially with everything that occurred over break. "And when we returned to Hogwarts, I've been using my spare time to fix the cabinet in here". Also an accomplishment. Mostly because Adrian didn't have spare time. Between classes, quidditch practice, prefect duties, me, and now YUP obligations; Adrian was stretched pretty thin. "It wasn't difficult. Not after working on the first one".
"This is wonderful", I praised. My eyes were fixed on the detailed cabinet. But even then, I didn't miss the pleased expression softening Adrian's features. "Now we have an emergency exit if we need it". Not to mention help at our fingertips if Hogwarts needed it. "But what if someone finds this cabinet and makes an unplanned trip to your parents' house? I doubt either of them would welcome strangers wandering their home". Especially considering the times ahead.
But I should've known. Adrian had that sorted too. "We added a few things", he explained; pointing to detail made out of sterling right under the handle that hadn't been there before. "A Pucey original, Alohomora proofed lock; top of the line". The lock Adrian was referring to was sizeable but still managed to be unobtrusive to the eyes. Though, even from where I was standing, I could make out the Pucey family seal stamped into the metal. Thanks to the insistence of the Flint's and the Pucey's, the burrow now had similar locks and other Pucey security products in every corner of the house. "Only its key can unlock it. And if someone tries to blast it off, the cabinet will be damaged in the process".
Shaking my head a little, I stepped forward and brushed my fingers over the wood of the cabinet. "I don't know what to say, Adrian". Except, I did know what to say. I just couldn't find the right words to express the sentiment I was feeling. "If similar things happen as they did in those books then controlling the cabinet means the death eaters won't be able to use it to attack the school the year after we graduate". This also meant that Bill may not end up with scars running down the length of his face or a growing appetite for meat prepared rare. "And if the battle of Hogwarts does occur, we'll have more ways to get students out". Not the mention, if students end up taking refuge in the room of requirement like they did in the Deathly Hallows, we'd also have a way to help them. Maybe even smuggle some muggleborns to safety.
Adrian stood tall with his best posture on full display. "Those aren't the cabinets only benefits", he said; gesturing for me to step aside.
"Oh?" I asked, intrigued as Adrian took my place and pulled a small sterling key from his robe pocket.
"The cabinet probably won't stay in my house", Adrian said as he used the key for its intended purpose. Pocketing it once more, he rested his hand on the cabinet's handle; really making me bask in anticipation. "But since it is there, Mother helped me arrange a few things". Opening the cabinet door revealed only two things; a checkered patterned quilt folded on top of a wicker picnic basket. "Happy Valentine's day", Adrian said with alluring eyes. Yeah, this is definitely better than Horcrux hunting.
It took some time to find a free space in the room of lost things big enough to spread out the quilt. Some boxes may have been broken down in the process. But it was all worth it in the name of romance. The picnic basket was packed to the nines. "Your mother really went all out", I commented; watching as Adrian pull out containers of jam tarts, charcuterie, cherries, and chocolate-covered strawberries. There were even two individually portioned bottles of Otter's fizzy orange juice.
Adrian agreed with a nod of his head. "She was more disappointed than I was when I told her I couldn't take you anywhere for Valentine's Day. 'No young lady in a committed relationship deserves that', she said". Adrian didn't bother to try to mimic his mum's voice. But just the fact he was quoting her was enough to make me smile. The last things Adrian pulled from the basket were a crystal, flower-shaped candle holder that looked more decorative than useful and one vibrant red votive candle. "Honestly", Adrian complained with a fond eye roll as I busted a gut laughing.
"I love your mum", I said between gasps of laughter. Pulling out my wand, I waited for Adrian to set the candle in the crystal holder and place it in the center of the quilt as our centerpiece. Tapping the edge of the candle, I flicked my wrist and watched as a small flame popped into existence around the wick. Calming down, I took a deep breath of air. "I think it's cinnamon-scented".
Adrian didn't find that as interesting as I did. "Nonverbal magic?" He asked as I put away my wand. "When did you learn that?"
"Flitwick", I answered as Adrian passed me a bottle of fizzy orange juice. "Last year when I was acting as his teacher's aide, he taught me a few extra things for me to practice for when he was lecturing or when the first years were doing bookwork. He didn't want me to be bored".
Unstopping the bottle, I took a sip of the juice; my mouth tingling as the carbonated liquid made its way down. Carbonated drinks weren't something we had often in the wizarding world. So, when we did, they were always a treat.
Adrian raised a poised eyebrow. "And nonverbal magic was one of those things?" He asked; popping cheese on a cracker into his mouth. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that sounded like disbelief.
"It's not that impressive". I commented; setting down my drink and ready to try a strawberry. "All I did was learn how to light a candle. I thought incendio would be a little overkill for the situation".
Picking up a strawberry by its leaves, I nearly missed the appreciative upturn of Adrian's lips. The first bite ended with sweet and ripe strawberry juice gushing to the far corners of my mouth as the chocolate melted and coated my tongue. "Where did your mum even find strawberries? They're not in season".
Smirking, Adrian grabbed a strawberry for himself. "She has her ways".
As our picnic continued, we spent more time talking than eating. I let Adrian rehash old quidditch games longer than I would have with most people. Childhood stories from both lifetimes were shared. He seemed practically amused by my tales about a household favorite game the Weasley's liked to call 'The Scary Christmas Doll'.
One Christmas when I was three or four Great Aunt Muriel gifted me this old porcelain doll whose paint job was wearing away, one of her eyes was cracked, and it was wearing this red and green dress. Needless to say, it wasn't a doll I took much interest in. Seriously, if haunted objects existed, this doll would have been one of them. Fred, George, and all my older brothers agreed with me. But that didn't stop them from figuring out how to make the doll fun. The game started with Bill hiding the doll in Charlie's underwear drawer for him to find. And it took off from there. We spent weeks, months even, eagerly waiting for one of our siblings to find the ruddy thing; provoking a jump or a gasp of fear. Though, equally so, we also dreaded being the poor soul who found the doll. Even if finding it meant we got to hide it. Eventually, the creepy doll just disappeared. Never to be seen again. It may or may not have something to do with Dad growing tired of coming across it under his pillow. As if it were waiting for him.
Adrian had his own stories revolving around dolls. Mostly about all the ways Hestia and Flora would try to twist his arm to get him to play dolls with them. "They had so many", he shared with a disgusted shake of his head. "They took up half of their playroom. And all the accessories and furniture they had for the dolls". He shuddered. "Hestia and Flora had backstories for each one and detailed relationships between them It was nightmarish".
After we packed up the food and centerpiece, we lay sprawled out on the quilt. My head rested on Adrian's stomach and he played with my hair, being mindful of the phoenix feather, as we stumbled into more hopeful conversations. Breaching topics we hadn't allowed ourselves to mention to the other before. What our dream houses looked like. Did we want pets? I was somewhat surprised to learn that Adrian was rather fond of cats. I, myself, preferred owls and always will. Did we picture ourselves with children in the future? It goes without saying that Adrian had thought about these questions more often than I did.
We must have spent hours in the room of lost things getting lost in each other. But we didn't care. Half the school was in Hogsmeade. Given what day it was, Percy was probably with Flint. The golden trio was busy trying to console Hagrid after the ugly fate of Buckbeak was declared. And Wood was torturing Fred and George with some unplanned beater training. No one was looking for us and there was nowhere we needed to be.
When we tired of sitting, Adrian indulged me as we dug through different trunks, boxes, and wardrobes. At one point, we had a crazy hat contest. The person who wore the most astonishing hat they could find won. Naturally, being inclined to silliness, the winner was me. A perfect excuse to wear a fascinator decked out with peacock feathers and rhinestones. Adrian's pork pie hat never stood a chance.
Through aimlessly wandering, we came across one of those skeletons teachers use to explain human anatomy. Looking at this skeleton, I saw a golden opportunity. And Adrian, since it was just the two of us, didn't put up a fight before joining in. Together, we searched and searched for the perfect garment. Occasionally, we'd hold up what we found for the other to see. The fur coat was vetoed. Adrian found a wizarding robe that we pegged to be from somewhere in the 1800s. But it was passed over because we felt it wasn't that different from some of the robes you can see in the modern day. The disco suit I found was a contender. But in the end, we settled on making the skeleton look like a 1920's flapper with a long string of beads and all.
Standing back to take in our masterpiece, Adrian wrapped an arm around my waist and I leaned into his side. "The things you get me to do", he muttered as he placed an affectionate kiss on my temple; brushing my hairline with his nose. But he didn't sound all that bothered by our latest activity.
Turning so we could be front to front, I raised up on my tiptoes; becoming eye level as much as I could. "It needs a headpiece", I announced with a smile; pecking him on the lips before scurrying away to find just that.
"You could just give it your hat", Adrian called after me as I found myself elbow deep in a trunk filled with old hats, shoes, and cloaks.
"Not going to happen", I called back. Picking up a few shoes and tossing them to the floor to make it easier to search through the trunk. "I'm keeping this hat. This hat and I were a match meant to be".
Snorting to disguise a snicker, Adrian retorted. "That hat looks like something Longbottom's grandmother would wear".
Pausing in my search, I straightened up just enough to look over my shoulder and glared challengingly at my boyfriend. "It does not". Although… it kind of did. "In fact, I think I'll wear it to the next YUP meeting", I teased, turning back to my digging. "Or maybe I'll save it for Easter". In the midst of all the leather and fabric, my right hand came across something cold and metallic. Curious to see what it was, I started to pull it free.
"If you do, I'm sure you and Lady Longbottom will have lots to talk about come Easter", Adrian teased right back. But I didn't offer any retorts. "Holly?" Adrian inquired as my shoulders tensed and my hands started to shake.
Wit Beyond Measure Is Man's Greatest Treasure
"What did you find?" Adrian asked; the sound of the soles of his shoes hitting stone echoed his words.
Startled and still processing, I turned away from the trunk; holding in my trembling hand, an object that felt heavier than it should be. Adrian stopped a few feet in front of me. He studied the discolored circlet of metal in my grasp before his eyes widened and he raised his head to meet my shocked expression. "How… Is that?"
"The one time we weren't looking for it is when we found it", I related; feeling both frustrated and…. Still processing.
"Are you sure it's the correct one? That it's Ravenclaw's diadem?" Adrian pressed taking another step forward. But not a big one. I didn't blame him. I didn't want to be near this thing either.
"It has Ravenclaw's saying etched into it", I said; nodding in affirmation. "You know, the one most quoted in Hogwarts, a History. And…" I paused to focus on the pit of dread forming in my gut. "And it doesn't feel right. My magic is… it feels dark".
At those words, whatever hesitation Adrian was feeling vanished. He took one more step before yanking the diadem away from me. He began to frown as he weighed the diadem in his hand. "Just the like the locket", he commented more to himself than me. His fingers fisted around it, as if afraid he'd lose it, before returning his eyes to me. "I don't have the steak knife with me", he stated. Meaning we couldn't destroy the diadem here and now. Well, at least I can be certain Horcrux hunting really hadn't been included in his plan for today's date.
Leaving the room of lost things, the light in the hallways had changed. The brightly lit hours were past and now the light shining through the windows contained hues of an orange glow. We really had been in there for hours. "I'll fetch the knife from my dorm", Adrian planned as we headed for the staircases. "We'll finish it in Sirius' classroom. Will you be alright with it alone?" He was referring to the picnic basket I was holding. After discovering what we hadn't intended to find, we realized the diadem couldn't be carried in our pockets. So, before we left, Adrian returned the quilt and unneatened food to the vanishing cabinet for his mother to collect later, locked up, and we used the empty basket for the diadem.
"I will have to be", I said as we exited the corridor for the stairs. We hadn't encountered anyone else. However, that wasn't surprising. Given the time of day, third-years and up were probably still making their way back from Hogsmeade. While the younger years were probably enjoying the last few minutes of having the common rooms to themselves. "I had to keep watch of the diary for months". Not counting the length of time where Fred, George, and I lost it. "A few minutes is bearable".
Adrian nodded as we started our descent. The closer we got to the ground floor the more students we started to encounter. Most passed us by without a care. But some were startled at the sight of us. Their hands flinched to their mouths as they started to whisper. Like we weren't expected to be here. Confused, I raised my hand to my head. I wasn't still wearing that hat, right?" But when all I felt was hair, I grew nervous. What was going on?
The whispering encounters increased as we continued. Adrian and I kept glancing at each other as I wracked my brains trying to think of a cause for all this. Other than the bet with Ron, I hadn't pulled any pranks lately. Too busy with YUP to cause mayhem. So, what could it be?
On the second-floor landing, we ran into Fred and George. Both were red-faced and panting with their wands drawn and George with the Marauder's map clutched in his right hand. The map's presence told me this meet-up wasn't an accident. "Where were you?" Fred demanded to know as he and George lunged at me with their arms outstretched. Forcing me to be the middle of a Weasley sandwich.
"I was with Adrian", I said as I tentatively hugged them back; picnic basket and all. "We were in the room of requirement". They smelled a little sweaty and their grip on me was telling of something awful occurring. But what?
Some of the tension he was holding slipped out of George. "The room that's unplottable", he breathed out in slight relief.
Without breaking our sandwich, Fred started explaining, "When everyone started returning from Hogsmeade early and we couldn't find you on the map-" He cut himself off and tightened his grip on me.
"Why?" Adrian asked; reminding everyone he was here. "What happened at Hogsmeade?"
Upon hearing Adrian's question, Fred and George pulled away from me to include Adrian in the conversation. However, they didn't let go. "In Hogsmeade, there's been a sighting", George continued; really holding Adrian and me to the edges of our seats. Metaphorically speaking.
"A few students reported a man who looked like Lockhart but only with brown hair" Fred added. I flinched at the sound of his name. "They said he was lurking outside Honeydukes and Zonko's and that girly teashop couples visit".
George squeezed my shoulder as if affirming to himself that I was indeed standing within reach of him. "They said he was watching all the students who left and entered those places like he was… like…"
"He was looking for someone", I finished for my brother; eyes flashing in Adrian's direction. Rage was building behind Adrian's eyes as he forced himself to take deep closed-mouth breaths; making his whole persona feel like a coiled snake preparing to strike.
"There's more", Fred reluctantly said. Merlin, please don't say Quirrell and Pettigrew were seen too. "Eventually, the shop owners and their employees shoed him off. Threatened him that they already reported him to the aurors and they'd be there any minute. From what we heard; Lockhart didn't stick around". Well… that's good. Why did Fred not want to share that? "But when the aurors did arrive they found-" Fred paused and glanced down to the floor; his eyes narrowing like he was angry with himself.
"They found a message graffitied on a wall behind one of the shops", George continued where Fred could not. "Some of this might be gossip, but they said it looked like it was written in blood. They said someone had written 'I will find her'".
I dropped the picnic basket. Though Fred and George didn't seem to notice. Luckily, Adrian still possessed enough senses to retrieve it. "When we heard that and couldn't find you-" Fred said; talking fast. But I was struggling to hear him. It felt like he was trying to talk to me while my head was underwater. A cold chill washed down my spine. "No one could find you or have seen you in hours", Fred kept talking. His grip on me was becoming painful. But, given where my mind currently is, I didn't mind.
"Lupin found us on the pitch practicing with Wood. After he flagged us down, he demanded to know where you were. We'd never seen him act like that before", George explained. "We knew something was wrong, so we followed him back to the school".
My breath started to catch in my throat and it soon became the most important thing I could focus on. Adrian appeared to be in a similar state. "McGonagall was standing in the entrance halls with some aurors. She has all the ghosts in the school searching for you"
"Filch was certain no one snuck passed him when he was seeing students off to the village. But we thought…" George trailed off. He didn't need to finish his sentence for me to understand. I knew where the secret passages were. If Adrian and I truly had wanted to visit Hogsmeade for Valentine's Day, we could have… We could have crossed paths with Lockhart.