Darker Shadows (A Harry Potter Fan Fiction)

Chapter 1- Absolutely Terrified (Ava)

Chapter 1 (Ava)

I stared at the Daily Prophet in my hands and read the headline again.

SIRIUS BLACK KILLED IN THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC

My grip on the newspaper tightened and I creased the paper. I’d read the article so many times, yet I still couldn’t quite believe what had happened.

I put the newspaper down on my bed and picked up the letter I usually kept underneath my pillow. It was the last letter Sirius had ever sent to me. I’d been so wrapped up in my own problems at the time I hadn’t even bothered to write back. Now I wished desperately that I had just done it, even if it was only a short one.

I closed my eyes and whispered,

“Sirius, I am so sorry. I am so sorry for not staying in contact with you when I should have. And now, when I need you the most, you’re not here.”

I wiped my wet cheeks and opened my eyes. I knew Sirius couldn’t hear me, but I had so many things I wanted to say to him, even if I couldn’t. Saying it out loud made me feel like I was getting it all out, but not very much.

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and stuffed the Daily Prophet and my letter underneath my pillow. After a minute, I realised whoever had been walking up the stairs wasn’t coming to talk to me.

I stood up, wiped my eyes again and walked out of my room and into Draco’s. He turned around, his eyes wide. The moment he realised it was me, he stared at the floor,

“Don’t you ever knock, Potter?”

I clenched my fists,

“Don’t call me Potter.”

“Why not? Ashamed to be a part of the Potter family?”

I shook my head,

“No, it just reminds me- never mind.”

Draco looked up,

“Is there a reason you stormed in here without warning?”

I gulped,

“I just wanted to ask where you’ve been all day, that’s all.”

He avoided eye contact,

“I just went shopping with my mother. Have you got a problem with that? Probably not, you’re too wrapped up with your own-”

I cut him off,

“Shut up, Draco! Will you just stop being an idiot and actually be my friend for a moment? I have needed someone to talk to for the whole of the summer holidays, and you’ve hardly been here. I can’t even send a letter to Eleanor because she’s-”

Draco grabbed my arm,

“Lower your voice, will you?”

He closed his door and sat down on his bed. I sat next to him and stayed silent. He looked at me and put his hand on my arm,

“I know Eleanor’s gone into hiding, but you mustn’t talk about it where my mother can hear. Eleanor didn’t want to become a Death Eater, and now she’s run away with Zach, her mother is worried sick about her. You probably thought I was going to snitch on her, but I was friends with her as well.”

I snorted,

“You have a funny way of showing it.”

He ignored my comment and continued speaking softly,

“I wasn’t sure if you wanted to talk to anyone, Ava. When you get upset, you hide yourself away. You don’t tell anyone about it and then you suddenly snap and let it all out at once. I didn’t realise you wanted someone to talk to.”

I looked down at my lap. I knew he was right; I just didn’t want to admit it.

“This is going to be hard for both of us, Ava. We just need to stick with and help each other. Then maybe we’ll find it easier to… do what we have to do.”

I squeezed his hand and smiled at him sadly,

“Neither of us has to face this alone.”

He nodded and didn’t let go of my hand. We sat in silence on his bed together, probably both feeling the same thing.

Absolutely terrified.

*                    *                    *

When I sat down at the table, Draco’s mother looked up at me and managed a small smile. It looked very strained, and I could see from the lines underneath her eyes that she was worried.

Draco was sitting opposite me, and he’d already started eating in silence. Even though the weather was hot, I observed he was wearing a long sleeved t-shirt. I knew the reason somewhere in my head, but I was choosing to ignore it completely.

Narcissa cleared her throat,

“Back to school tomorrow then.”

My thoughts flickered to my first day at Hogwarts the year before. I winced and focused on my dinner.

A house-elf named Sapphire stepped towards me,

“Miss. Potter? Would you like anything?”

I glanced down at her big, blue eyes and shook my head,

“No thank you, Sapphire.”

She nodded and stepped away.

None of us said a word for the rest of the meal. Narcissa excused herself the moment she finished, and Draco gave me an awkward look before leaving the dining room as well.

I started to pick up the plates, but Sapphire shook her head,

“You can go and sit down now, Miss. Potter. I’ll take care of this.”

I smiled,

“Don’t worry about it. I want something to do.”

I took the dishes to the kitchen and started to run some hot water.

Sapphire stood completely still and watched me in wonder. I picked up a tea-towel and passed it to her,

“You can help, if you like?”
She jumped at the chance, and we soon had a system of washing and drying up the dishes. As I reached over for the saucepan, Sapphire cleared her throat quietly,

“Miss. Potter?”

I glanced over at her,

“You can call me Ava, you know.”

She looked down at the floor,

“Well, okay, Ava Potter. You see, the thing is- I hope you don’t mind me saying this, and you can punish me in any way if this seems inappropriate- I’ve noticed you crying in your room. I sometimes nearly go into your room to change your sheets or pick something up, and I notice you crying- without meaning to of course. I just wondered- is there a reason?”

I put the dishcloth down and pulled a chair over from the side. I made sure the door was shut before sighing,

“I’ve been stupid. Everyone I care about is gone, and there’s nothing I can do to get them back. I’ve got myself into big trouble. I’ve agreed to do something that I don’t think I can do. But, if I don’t do it, someone will die. Someone I care about a lot.”

Sapphire reached her hand out and placed it on top of mine,

“Who is it who you care about so much, if you don’t mind me asking?”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath,

“Fred.”

His name tumbled out of my mouth into the empty silence of the room. It sounded so wrong. I hadn’t said it since before the summer holidays.

The image of Fred’s smiling face filled my mind, and my eyes welled up with tears.

I reached out and wrapped my arms around Sapphire’s small frame. She patted my arm as I sobbed into the dirty pillowcase she wore everyday.

After a while, she sent me to bed and said she’d finish the washing up. I didn’t protest.