Rainbows (A Hogwarts Mystery Story)

Chapter 19

"So, my understanding is that you're being targeted by...R?"

A plate of biscuits sat in front of me on McGonagall's desk, courtesy of her ensuring that I got comfortable before talking about anything serious. With a gracious nod, I took a cookie with my frozen fingers, worried that I would drop it on the ground before it reached my mouth--I quickly blew some hot air on my hands before taking a small bite, the taste of ginger flooding over my tongue.

"It's not the first time," I said, my voice suddenly hoarse. "This happened since second year."

I began to tell her the whole story. Of course, she probably heard most of it through rumours, but I forged on with how R wrote the threatening notes for Ben in second year, up to the note that was currently in my pocket. I fished out the parchment and laid it on her desk as I spoke, and when I was done, she picked up the note and read it quietly to herself.

"I must say...this is rather serious," she simply remarked. "Given the current circumstances...well, heightening security in the school would not be as effective as projected. The only thing we can do is extricate the threat that's jeopardizing our students' safety."

"Do you mean inviting someone who could capture Greyback and send him back to prison, or dealing with the Dementors head-on?" I asked, taking another bite out of the biscuit still in my hand.

Professor McGonagall simply pulled out a piece of parchment and a tall, dark green quill, laying them on top of her desk.

"I will write to a werewolf expert working with the Ministry of Magic," she told me then. "I am sure he would try his best to eliminate the danger upon us. In the meanwhile, I strongly suggest that you stay with your friends. Do not travel anywhere alone, and do not do anything dangerous."

By anything dangerous, she probably meant do not search for the Cursed Vaults and endanger the student population further, but I dismissed the uneasy feeling within me and nodded.

"Would Professor Dumbledore be made aware of this?" I finally inquired.

Professor McGonagall glanced at me in such a way that made my insides squirm again.

"Yes, Miss Lin. I will let him know of the tragedy and the threats," she responded gently. "One could only hope that after all that's happened, he'd be able to settle down and ensure everyone's safety..."

I simply nodded as I finished the biscuit, thanked Professor McGonagall, and left the classroom, hightailing towards the greenhouses. Certainly Professor Sprout would be more forgiving of tardiness, but I was far too engrossed in my thoughts to care about the time ticking away.

Chiara and I once agreed on one thing--there would be a silver lining somewhere in the storm. There would always be something to look forward to when all the bad stuff is over. But judging from where this was going, I had no idea how to see the sun again. The mere thought of being able to laugh and smile again...could that still be a possibility? What if what we were doing wasn't enough?

How rare would happiness be?

---

Several days passed since the death of the Slytherin prefect, and everyone seemed to have moved on. Soft murmurs of whispered conversations in the corridors soon resumed--gossip and other things I didn't pay much attention to. I couldn't, anyway. With the stakes raising higher than ever, my friends stuck by me to make sure that I wouldn't end up dead. Then again, I was sure they were doing so under McGonagall's orders. The entire time, they'd glance at each other in unease, too, and I knew that they're watching each other's backs too.

To most peoples' disappointment, the Hogsmeade trip scheduled for Valentine's Day was cancelled.

"Seriously?" I heard a younger Ravenclaw girl, Kathleen, complain to her friend as I walked in with Rowan to dinner following our History of Magic class. "All because of one death, and suddenly no one  can wander outside the school?"