The Chaser's Heart

Year 4: Year's End

'Nora,' Rowan hissed the following morning when I'd barely opened my eyes.

'Mmm?' I groaned and squeezed my eyes shut again at the bright sunlight.

'The Headmaster wants to see you.'

'What?' I exclaimed, rubbing my eyes furiously and struggling to sit up properly. 'Dumbledore wants to see me?'

'Yes!' She said, sounding anxious. She was wringing her hands as she stood over my bed. 'Straightaway!'

Damn it. I ought to have known by now that nothing that happened at Hogwarts got past Dumbledore. He knew. That was the only reason he would summon me first thing in the morning after breaking into the Forest Vault.

'Well, let me get dressed!' I jumped out of bed and began rummaging around in my trunk at the foot of my bed for clean robes. 'How do you know he's looking for me?'

'He told me,' she answered. 'Just ten minutes ago, at breakfast. I told him you were still sleeping but he asked me to wake you.'

I pulled on my robes as quickly as I could and hurried out the door of the dormitory and flew up the stairs to the common room. One thing I'd learned was that if I was already in trouble and doomed for punishment anyway, it didn't help my case to keep teachers, or headmasters, waiting.

'Want me to come with you?' Rowan was hot on my heels, but her tone did not sound convincing.

'No, Rowan,' I assured her. 'You had nothing to do with this.' This time, but I didn't say that bit out loud. 'I can handle this.'

Rowan nodded slowly and we parted ways in the corridor outside of the common room.

'I'll... er... I'll meet you in the library?' She said hesitantly.

'Yeah, alright,' I told her.

Finals. I hadn't completely forgotten about our final exams in the midst of the Cursed Vaults. It was impossible to forget that the fifth-years were due to write their OWLs in just a week's time with Skye moaning about it every chance she got. Plus, she was distracting me from my own studies for more training and lectures on why the OWLs wouldn't matter if she trained enough. After all, the British and Irish Quidditch League didn't care how many OWLs you got, only if you could stay on a broomstick and score goals.

Before I was ready for it, I was in front of the griffin that guarded Dumbledore's office. I knew there was a password, but I had no idea what it could possibly be. I'd never come here unaccompanied by a teacher before.

'Er...' I muttered, debating on whether or not I should just leave and wait until a teach dragged me here themselves. 'It's Nora Knight here, I think Professor Dumbledore wanted to see me?'

Nothing happened. I sighed. This was pointless.

'Er... Eleonora Knight?' I tried again. I decided I really just wanted to get this over with. 'Eleonora Charlotte Knight, maybe? I think I'm here because I broke into a Cursed Vault last night?'

That did it. The griffin stepped aside, revealing a set of stone steps. I felt my heart pick up speed and walked gingerly over to them, climbing them much slower than I'd climbed the steps to the common room only five minutes earlier.

There was a heavy door at the top of the small, spiral staircase. I reached out to knock, but it swung open before my fist made contact.

'Ah, Miss Knight,' Dumbledore's deep, ever-calm voice called from inside.

Another deep breath. Why was I more frightened of the Headmaster's office than I was the Cursed Vaults?

I'd been here before... on multiple occasions. The walls were lined with books and portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses, there were various table covered in strange, spindly instruments that looked far too fragile for my liking, and Professor Dumbledore himself was seated behind his large, wooden desk, an elaborate green quill in hand that he put down at my arrival.