Chapter 16 : Rainy summer
"It's depressing." Arcturus commented sadly while peering out at the weather from the window of the Gryffindor common room.
Indeed, unlike the radiant weather that the students could have expected in the middle of June, they were having rain, a grey sky and unseasonably cool temperatures. They were far away from the magnificent sunshine that they got during the exam session that had just ended. They were now on holidays but can you call it "holidays" when you have to spend your time confined in a gloomy castle ? They just wanted to lounge on the grass or swim in the Black Lake before having to return home, but it was impossible with the icy rain that would make them catch a cold.
However, this situation wasn't Akira's main concern as she was now preoccupied with her last outing to Hogsmeade where she had to meet Rookwood. Because the latter had instructions to transmit to her and remaining in the unknown until then wasn't really reassuring. Fortunately for her, Arcturus was there to take her mind off things with his constant complaints about the bad weather.
"What do we do today ?" He asked after turning on his chair to look at Akira who was sitting in an armchair while absently looking out from the same window. "I asked Professor Dust how Muggle kids were spending their free time in the summer and he told me about flying kites. He picked up an old one that he found in a tree and he wants to know if it flies. We could give it a try."
"In this weather ?" Akira replied while pointing outside where gusts of wind were sweeping the rain against the window.
"We can test it inside, for example in the Great Hall which has a high ceiling. It also reproduces the wind that is blowing at the moment so we would have no problem making it fly." Arcturus said while starting to show a big smile as he got up from his chair enthusiastically at this idea.
Having nothing better to do, Akira followed him. Once they found Dust who was trying desperately to close the door of the cupboard in which he was storing his course material until next year – mainly Muggle objects including a whole bicycle - they recovered the kite in question.
But it wasn't easy to make it take off since the wind was blowing at the ceiling of the Great Hall, not at the ground level. Akira nevertheless found a solution by bewitching the kite with a "Wingardium Leviosa" to make it levitate until it reached the ceiling. Once at this height, it began to fly on its own to the delight of Arcturus who was holding the rope. His happiness was however short-lived as a bolt of lightning suddenly struck it, transforming it into a huge blaze that crashed onto the Professors' table which was fortunately deserted since it wasn't time to eat yet. Luckily, there was still a pumpkin juice jug from breakfast on it, so Akira quickly grabbed it before throwing its content on the burning kite.
The juice extinguished the kite in an instant, letting behind only a fuming wet mess that Arcturus approached to check the damage.
"It's ruined." He said with a grimace while picking up a charred piece which disintegrated in his hand.
"Indeed. But that's not a surprise since kites aren't made in a material able to survive lightning strikes." Akira pointed out.
Their attention then turned to the table on which there was now a deep burn mark.
"Oops, do you think that the Professors will see it ?" Arcturus worriedly asked while trying to scratch away the burned wood.
"No, a dark hole on a light brown table, who would see it ? But I suggest that we get out of here before someone comes to spot the damage." Akira said while grabbing his arm to drag him out of the room.
Apart from this small incident which had only caused furniture damage - and an investigation by the Professors who had noticed the burn during lunch - the days turned out to be rather gloomy like the weather. The only one that was filled with events was the last Saturday of June. Indeed, it was the last one that the students were spending at school since they were returning home the next day via the Hogwarts Express.
This meant that any unfinished business had to take place that day, starting with the handing of the exam grades during breakfast. Akira was nervous to receive them, watching with apprehension McGonagall going towards each student sitting at the Gryffindor table. However, she was able to breathe a sigh of relief when she got hers and noticed that she had the average everywhere, even in Arithmancy which was becoming harder with years.
Akira wasn't going to repeat her year after all, but she wasn't as happy as she had expected since she still had the idea of not setting a foot at Hogwarts again. On the contrary, Arcturus exploded with joy at this news.
"I knew that you were going to succeed !" He half-shouted excitedly while finally helping himself to some scrambled eggs after being too tense to eat anything. "Ultimately, it's a beautiful day despite the lousy weather."
"Yeah, yeah. Just hurry up and eat so that we can get to Hogsmeade between two downpours." Akira recommended mostly to make him keep quiet.
Because a trip to the village was awaiting the students from the third year, occupying their day before the end-of-year Feast and the announcement of the House Cup winner. It wasn't necessary to tell who won the Quidditch Cup since everybody already knew that Gryffindor did after the last match of the season. This victory had allowed Ana to forgive Akira for her erratic behaviour during the last Gryffindor match but they didn't speak much to each other either.
It was a good thing since Akira had already enough to do with Arcturus who had his mouth always opened, disturbing her when she was trying to think about how her meeting with Rookwood would go. It was therefore with apprehension that she stopped in front of the Hog's Head Inn in the company of her noisy friend who had taken his plate of scrambled eggs with him to finish eating them not in a hurry.
"Remind me why we're here again ?" Arcturus asked her after swallowing his mouthful. "Because just seeing that severed head on that bloody cloth is taking away my appetite..."
"In that case, just go eat a little further away. I'll see you in five minutes." Akira assured him.
Without waiting for a response as Arcturus' mouth was again full of eggs, she gathered up her courage and entered the gloomy inn while her friend was staying outside. She immediately spotted Rookwood occupying his usual dark corner and after ensuring that the bartender was minding his own business without paying attention to her, she approached the latter's table.
"I followed your instructions and stopped investigating on Dumbledore." Akira announced to Rookwood in a low voice while scanning discreetly the surroundings to make sure no one was listening. "And you, what exactly do you have to tell me ?"
"Just that you mustn't go home for the holidays." Rookwood advised her out of the blue while getting up from his chair under Akira's surprised gaze. "Go to the Leaky Cauldron instead, and wait there for someone to come get you."
"To do what ?" Akira dared to ask. "Because I've tasks waiting for me at home. I've already been at your disposal since the Christmas holidays, I can't dedicate two months of my free time to your organization on top of that."
"Shut up and do as you're told." Rookwood said in a threatening tone. "You don't really have the choice. You still work for us so until further notice, you comply with our demands."
"And what exactly do these requirements consist of ?" Akira asked him while crossing her arms angrily. "I would probably be more inclined to help if I know what you want from me."
"You'll know soon enough. In the meantime, go to the Leaky Cauldron." Rookwood repeated before hurrying towards the exit of the inn.
Akira wanted to let her frustration explode but she held back as the bartender was staring at her insistently out of the corner of his eye. She instead stormed out of the place to find Arcturus who hadn't moved an inch and was still eating his cold eggs.
"Everything's fine ? You seem upset." The latter pointed out while tilting his plate so much that what was left on it ended up on the cobblestones.
"Not at all." Akira lied dryly while watching Rookwood slipping through the crowd now that he no longer had anything to do in Hogsmeade.
"Good, because I heard that at Honeydukes they were giving away for a low price Pepper Imps that had a defect. If we hurry, we can fill our pockets with them for tomorrow's train trip !" He announced with excitement.
Being a fan of magical candies and also wanting to not overthink about Rookwood's request, Akira found his proposition tempting and they both headed towards the store which was full of customers thanks to this discount and the bad weather. They stayed there as long as possible, having a look at all the candies, and left only when they got their pockets full thanks to Akira who paid for the whole supply that Arcturus couldn't afford with the few Knuts he had. They then took a tour of the other shops until the evening arrived and with it, the end-of-year Feast.
The Great Hall had been decorated with Slytherin colours, which slightly surprised Akira who hadn't kept track of the number of points for each house throughout the school year. However, this didn't matter to her as she was more concerned with what she would do during her summer holidays.
Last year, she wanted to take part in the Second Great Ninja War to prove what she was worth as a ninja, which resulted in the death of her two comrades. And this year, she was following the orders of the most feared dark wizard of all time. Life could be unfair and unpredictable. For her at least, as Arcturus was devouring with the same delight year after year the food which had been prepared especially for the Feast.
Akira would have liked to share the carefree spirit of her classmates, and look forward to going home to rest before impatiently awaiting the return to Hogwarts for a new school year. But it was a chance that she didn't have. However, she didn't let it show, putting on a brave face until it was time to go to bed.
Even the next day where returning to London via the Hogwarts Express was taking place, she made an effort to keep a neutral expression while playing to all the games that Arcturus was offering to pass time. They were both seating in an empty compartment thanks to Akira who had such a strange behaviour during the year – her last outburst during the Gryffindor Quidditch match was still in everyone's head - that other students were now avoiding her. At least, it allowed the two friends to spread their stock of candies everywhere, making it easier to pick the one they wanted.
"Will you answer my letters if I write to you during the holidays ?" Arcturus asked her while putting away his wizard chess after letting Akira win every single game.
Indeed, as the train was slowly coming to a stop at King's Cross Station it would be the only way that he would have to communicate with her during these two months.
"If I have time." Akira replied while shrugging her shoulders since she didn't know what her summer would be like.
"Reassure me on one point, you'll come back to Hogwarts for the first day of school, right ? Because not knowing why you didn't manage to be there on the first of September was a real nightmare. I won't stand to go through this again." Arcturus advised her while displaying a particularly worried look and dropping several chess pieces on the floor of their compartment.
"Of course I'll come." Akira lied as she wasn't so sure herself.
"You promise ? Then, everything's fine." Arcturus replied with relief while picking up the pieces which he stuffed as best as he could into his already full suitcase.
He had difficulty closing it and a slight braking of the train made him let it go completely. Being still open, the contents of the suitcase would have spread everywhere if it wasn't for Akira who narrowly caught it mid-air. She took the opportunity to use her ninja strength to seal the suitcase before an other incident happened, and she handed it to Arcturus.
"You see ? What would I do without you." The latter said happily while taking his suitcase back as the students were already rushing into the wagon hallway to leave the train which had come to a stop. "And I'll need my best friend to go through the fifth year which is the hardest of all according to older students, except maybe for the seventh one. You can't abandon me after successfully passed already four years."
"I won't." Akira sighed with annoyance at his emotional blackmail while they were both following their classmates outside once they picked up all their candies. "You don't need to lecture me. Instead, you should watch where you're putting your feet."
"What ?" Arcturus asked while turning around to look at her.
He should have listened to her advice as he began to stumble down the stairs leading to the platform after missing the first step. Once again, Akira saved the day by grabbing him by the back of his T-shirt before he fell flat on the hard floor.
"I must be less distracted. That's my good resolution for next year." Arcturus commented once he was on safety on the platform. "Anyway, see you in two months. I still have to find Sirius and Regulus before they get too far away in the middle of this crowd."
"Regulus ?" Akira repeated after never having heard of that name.
"My other little brother. He started school this year and was sorted into Slytherin but with all the things that happened to you – and the fact that he's ashamed of me – I haven't introduced him to you yet. This will have to be remedied next year."
"Sure." Akira replied while realizing that she had been so focused on her own problems that she had skipped a good part of the life at Hogwarts.
But unless she managed to get a "normal" school year with only school issues, she doubted to be able to focus on other things. She wished a good summer to Arcturus who went looking for his brothers and she took the direction of the exit of King's Cross Station with the intent to reach the Leaky Cauldron which wasn't far away. Once there, she would have to wait for instructions given by a dangerous group hunted by the Ministry of Magic instead of going back to her native village. Nothing very pleasing.
"At least, I'm saving myself several hours of flying back to Konoha." She thought to cheer herself up as being completely alone and stuck with missions to do for Voldemort were annoying.
She made her way through the families who were so happy to see their children again after months of absence. Seeing this, Akira couldn't help but think about Tatsuno and Matsuo who would also have been there to welcome her back. They had been the only ones in Konoha to eagerly awaiting her return and now, she had no one left. This observation brought a tear to her eyes as she began to sniffle. Before someone could see her in that state, she sped up and crossed the barrier leading to the muggle side of the train station. But before she could get out of that place, she was accosted by the last person she would have imagined.
"No one came to wait for you this time ?" Narcissa asked her in a neutral tone after stopping in front of her.
"So what ? Why does it matter to you all of a sudden ?" Akira snapped at this hurtful question.
"It's just that… I thought to see the boy who came last year." She admitted half-heartedly while scanning the crowd around them.
"Are you talking about Matsuo ?" Akira asked her after remembering the declaration of love that the latter had made to Narcissa at the same place before she brutally rejected him. "He's dead. That must be a relief for you, isn't it ? That way, he won't embarrass you in front of your snobbish Slytherin friends anymore."
Then without waiting, Akira turned on her heels and left under the shocked gaze of Narcissa who hadn't expected this news. Akira never mentioned this death to her classmates, but right now she broke down because Matsuo didn't deserve to be heartbroken, especially before dying a few weeks later.
Hello dear readers,
Finally, Akira's fourth year is over and what an eventful year ! It didn't look like the previous ones, being less school focused and more adventurous. That's the reason why I'm a bit late in the publications since I normally should have published this end-of-the-year chapter at the end of June.
Anyway, I still have two chapters left to write about Akira's summer and spoiler alert, it won't look like the previous holidays. I wonder why Rookwood advised her to stay in London. Perhaps it's to give her an other spy mission. Or it's for something darker since Voldemort is rising and needs a few hands to do the dirty work. But I'm sure it won't be fun, making Akira reconsidered why she accepted to work for him in the first place. However, it's too late now to step back, she'll have to go through the next chapter that I'll publish at the end of the month.