They smiled again and nodded. Reminding themselves that he was right, they swam towards the palace. It was time to tell their chieftess the truth about Medusa Ivy Stone.
Flashback to a week ago: continued.
Galatea arrived at the gates of the palace with their hands trembling and their throat constricted. They smiled and nodded at the two guards who kept watch by the gates. They wore sculpted breastplates and fearsome helmets of bronze, and their spears were heavier than the common ones everyone carried.
Galatea was unfazed by their frightening appearance. They'd known both of them since they were born, and they'd grown up playing together in the seaweed. They'd even trained together when they were teenagers.
All the selkies in their colony, and in most cold water colonies, were very militaristic at their core. Every able citizen was expected to train as a warrior, and they were all fearsome fighters. The Chieftess never demanded they continue to serve as one, only that they be trained and remain ready. Galatea agreed with the system; anyone who wanted to pursue other interests was encouraged to do so, but the necessary training was crucial. Open water mermaids could run and escape if the need arose. Their colony had nowhere to go, as they knew too well.
Most days the appearance of the guards wouldn't have interfered with Galateas train of thought, but as they swam through the courtyard and through the entryway, they found themselves seeing everything through a new lens: how Ivy might react.
Even this daunting thought fled from their mind as they swam into the main hall where their Chieftess sat. They continued through the massive room hesitantly.
At the front of the room, the counsellors of the colony were gathered speaking to the Chieftess. Galatea waited silently a little while away from the group, waiting for them to finish. When they did, they all bowed to each other and began to break apart, many of them smiling and nodding at Galatea when they left.
Soon it was only them and the Chieftess in the hall, who extended her hand warmly towards them as an invitation to approach. Finishing the stretch of the room, Galatea took her hand and bowed their head.
"Why have you come here so late Galatea? Could it be the same reason why you have had worry clouding your face these past months?" As soon as she started talking, Galatea began to feel ease spreading through their body.
Their Chieftess spoke in a kind, calming voice that rose and fell softly in her words, like a gentle tide lapping the shores. Galatea took in a deep breath and began. They told her of seeing Ivy and feeling her power from afar, of knowing she was not like the other students, and of observing her from afar. They continued on: realizing she was a siren from her singing, their first discussion through the glass, and finally their meeting that morning.
They had been looking at the floor of the hall the entire time, but as they finished they looked into their Chieftess' eyes. Much to their relief, they held no anger, resentment or fear, only concern.
After a moment, she spoke. "Oh my child, what a burden you have had to bear." Galatea looked back at the floor with a slight frown. They felt guilty, her first reaction was kindness when they had hidden something from her.
She reached down and softly grabbed their chin, making them look at her. "Do not hide your eyes in shame, for I am not angry. I wish for you, and everyone in this colony to feel as though they can trust me, but I could never punish actions taken out of empathy, care and regard for another's safety, as I suspect yours were."
Galatea smiled, reassured and relieved. They hesitantly went to speak. "Chieftess," at this their leader raised her eyebrows and smiled at them. Galatea smiled. "Tiamat, I apologize, but you know it's strange that you wish to be called by your name and not your title."
Tiamat laughed merrily, "My title would have me placed above my people, and the moment a leader believe themselves to be something more than their people, they cease to serve them how they ought. But enough of that, what did you wish to say to me?"
"There are two things: the first is that I feel I must explain why I was hesitant to reveal this information. I fear for the young girl. She is kind, intelligent and joyous. I fear that knowing her fate will rip those things from her. The second is that she wishes to come to visit the colony."
Tiamat waited for a moment of silence before responding. "Of course, she may come to the colony, it would be an honour to have her. As for the first question, I understand your concern. Her arrival means that the darkness connected to her prophecy will also rise, and the first thing evil destroys is innocence. I do not know when the prophecy will come to pass, it could be when she is old, or in a matter of years. I believe that, because of this, we must tell her. She has a right to know, and I believe it will be better if we are honest with her sooner rather than later. That way, even when innocence is taken, trust will not be. She will need as many people behind her as possible. I would rather she find them here, where she will be loved, than elsewhere where they may be seduced by her power."
Galatea frowned but nodded. They didn't like it, but the truth was seldom what they wished it was. "Will you tell the humans about her? Will you tell Dumbledore?" Much to their surprise, Tiamat threw her head back slightly and let out a mirthful laugh.
"No my child, no human shall know but the ones she herself wishes to tell, least of all Dumbledore." At Galatea's confused expression she elaborated. "He is wise, for a wizard, and his plans are ultimately for good. I respect him for these qualities, but I do not trust him wholly as a leader nor an ally.
He is a chess player. He confides in none and he moves his players around at will, sacrificing them at times for what he calls 'the greater good' - a flimsy term for his own victory against his opponents. He runs from his mistakes to avoid accountability and loss of power.
To expose who and what the girl is, would be to forfeit her to his game, and I will not allow that to happen to her. It was our colony that foretold her coming, and that gives me the authority to protect her. From this point hereafter, she is one of us, and will be protected as such."
Relief was washing over Galatea in waves as they absorbed their Chieftess' words. Magorian had been right; they hadn't even disclosed Ivy's name yet and she was already accepted into the colony. The tension they'd been holding in their body since the start of the school year slowly melted away.
They'd often felt alone because of their past and consequent upbringing, and although they'd improved, they still had to remind themselves sometimes that they weren't really alone. Their colony was a family, every one of them, and they'd never face anything alone that they didn't want to.
Galatea couldn't be happier to be bringing Ivy into that, and when they finally left Tiamat to swim home, they were nearly bursting with excitement at getting to tell her the news.
Back to the present:
Galatea couldn't seem to stop pacing frantically. They'd been thrilled to tell Ivy she was welcome to visit the colony all week, but now that the moment had actually come, the old knots from before their conversation with Tiamat were returning with a vengeance.
They looked up and saw Ivy sitting cross-legged in front of the window, waiting patiently. There was nothing to be done for it, they had to go talk to her. Closing their eyes, they gathered their courage by recalling Tiamat's words.
Ivy brightened when Galatea appeared in front of the window, and she immediately launched into a bubbly greeting. "Galatea! I'm so happy to see you! It's been such a week, the only thing getting me through parts of it was the prospect of seeing you and hearing if I could come or not. Can I? What did the Chieftess say? Wait, no, sorry I'm being rude, first, how have you been?"
Galatea grinned at her. Ivy was like a megaphone for her emotions; they seeped off her and washed over whoever she was with. You couldn't help but be happy when she was. "Hello, little siren. I am sorry that you have had a long week, I hope that things take a turn for the better. I have spoken to my chieftess, you are welcome to our colony freely. We must wait, however, until after you have finished your exams. There are preparations we must attend to, to ensure the preservation of your secrecy, amongst other things."
Ivy had been smiling ecstatically as Galatea was speaking, but it slipped slightly at the last part. Exams weren't for another month and two weeks. She shook off the mild dip of disappointment. She had been welcomed to come any time; a little patience wouldn't kill her.
She clapped her hands together happily, making Galatea laugh. "Galatea, thank you so much. Thank you for inviting me, and asking for permission for me to come. I cannot put into words how excited I am." She was effusing but she couldn't stop. No witch or wizard was allowed to visit their colony. Not even Dumbledore.
The pair chattered excitedly about their plans for the visit for a while before Galatea said her goodbyes, wanting to let Ivy go to bed. The witch watched as her friend swam away, her heart buoyant with joy. She hummed a tune happily and went to turn around to go to her dorm, but stopped when she locked eyes with a pair of chocolaty brown ones.
They stared at each other in soft silence for a moment before Theo cleared his throat. "Hey, Ives. Pardon the intrusion but what the fuck did I just walk in on?" Ivy smiled nervously at him.
"Hey, Theo! Fancy seeing you here. Just out of curiosity, how long have you been here?" He narrowed his eyes at her, "Long enough Stone. Now I'll repeat my question: what the fuck did I just walk in on?"
Ivy grimaced and sighed. "Yeah, fair enough. Fancy talking about it in the kitchens? I'm feeling a lot less secure about the privacy of this room right now." He nodded at her, and they walked silently to the kitchens together.
Collapsing onto the armchairs in front of the fire in the kitchens, Theo leaned forward on his arms and looked at her expectantly. Ivy sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Right. Well, I suppose it's good that I've already explained my, fishy, situation to you." He smirked at her comment but didn't interrupt.
"There's not really much to say. My mum taught me mermish as soon as I was speaking English, and I picked it up pretty easily due to my genetic predisposition. Early in the semester, I caught that mermaid you just saw, Galatea is their name by the way, and they seemed to be watching me. I couldn't seem to find the opportunity to talk to them for a while, till one night, I did. Sort of like you've witnessed, I just approached the glass and introduced myself.
"They're absolutely lovely. This was only my third time talking to them," Theo shot her a confused look, "I met up with them before lunch the day Draco and I had detention." She clarified, "Anyways, they know that I'm a siren and all that mess. Not that I'm a parseltongue though, you're the only one who got the privilege of a full secret dump in one sitting."
She chuckled nervously and stopped talking. She didn't really know what else to say, she didn't want to tell him that was visiting the colony before she gauged his reaction. He leaned back with his eyebrows raised for a moment. "Give me a minute Ivy, I need a blood sugar boost to help me process this."
She laughed and stayed seated by the fire as Theo stood up and walked off, returning a minute later with a full plate of cookies and two cups of tea. He absentmindedly handed her a cup and extended the plate to her as he took a seat, and she grabbed her tea in one hand, with two cookies in the other. He set down the plate, then turned and looked at her. "Has anyone ever told you that being your friend is the wildest thing? It's bloody brilliant, but it feels a bit like a fever dream at points."
Ivy snorted at this and beamed at him while he continued. "Honestly, it's undeniably shocking, but that's absolutely wicked. You would befriend a damn selkie wouldn't you." He leaned back and laughed. He grabbed a cookie and bit into it, signalling to Ivy that she could speak without interrupting him.
"Well since you've taken that bit of news so well, here's another piece for you! I'm invited to visit the colony!" Theo choked on his cookie and Ivy reached over to thump his back for a minute. When he stopped spluttering he looked at her in shock.
"Ivy, nobody goes to their colony. I heard somebody tried to once and the Great Squid picked him up and flung him back out onto land." Ivy cracked up at the mental image, but seeing Theo's concerned face she smiled and patted his arm.
"I'd be barmy to try and break-in, but I'm not. Im being welcomed in. Besides, I'm a siren, and that changes everything. Our people are very connected." She decided against telling him that sirens were a bit like royalty. She could practically hear Blaise and him cracking jokes about it for years to follow, and she wasn't going to walk freely into that trap.
"Absolutely mental." He muttered, "You best tell me all about it, you jammy bastard." Ivy laughed again then smiled at him. "Well if everything goes according to plan, we can talk about it all summer. I think it's likely we'll know for sure by tomorrow."
At the mention of the topic, all discussions of selkies, sirens and colonies were abandoned, and they chattered away for hours about all the things they'd do, and Ivy talked all about her castle while he listened happily.
She could tell from the bags under his eyes and the redness on the brims that he had been in the common room because he couldn't sleep, and now she watched him laugh and talk with her with mingled feelings of happiness and sadness.
She was relieved she could distract him, but she knew that the preservation of the lingering hollowness in the back of his eyes depended entirely upon the response she received from Athemar. The sadness, she knew, would take longer to erase. If anything, the difficulties with his relationship with his mother made it harder for him to recover from losing her.
Once she was sure that he was going to be alright for the rest of the night, she helped him out of his seat and they walked back to the Slytherin dorm together. At one point, they encountered Ms Norris, who hissed fiercely at them. Shrieking maniacally with loud laughter they dashed as fast as they could back to the entryway together. They only laughed harder as they heard Filch shouting angrily a few turns away from them.
Theo whispered the password to the wall and grabbed Ivy's arm, pulling her into the common room just in the nick of time, as she saw the toe of Filch's shoe appearing around the corner while she disappeared through the wall. Knowing full well that he couldn't find them in there, they collapsed against the wall, laughing so hard their stomachs and ribcages hurt.
Once she regained her breath she sighed happily. "Well, at least there's no three-headed dogs this time." She grinned wickedly at Theo, who groaned and help up his hand. "I don't even want to know."
Laughing again, she said goodbye to Theo and they both split off to the dorms to catch whatever few hours of sleep they could before they would have to wake up for breakfast. Ivy knew that she would be falling asleep in all her classes the next day, but it was worth it. Theo had stayed with her so many times when she was a wreck, even staying up through the whole night taking care of her. It felt like the least she could do.
Her positive mood was gone by the next morning when her watch sent an uncomfortable wave of icy magic through her body for the third time. It wasn't helped by Pansy throwing a pillow roughly at her face on the way to her shower. "Up you get, darling, if you miss any more classes Flitwick will have your head, favourite student or not, and Sir Nicholas would be absolutely furious that someone else was admitted to the headless hunt instead of him. You'd never hear the end of it."
Ivy glared at her once she removed her pillow. "You know, casual flattery and ghost threats won't make me forget that you just assaulted me." Pansy just smiled angelically and walked to the bathroom, calling out behind her as she went: "Oh but you're just so pretty, I couldn't help it!"
Ivy chuckled despite herself and sat up, stretching out her stiff limbs. She leaned over and kissed Stheno on the top of her head, making the snake open her eyes and hiss softly. Ivy swung her legs out of bed, stretching again, then set off to the bathroom to wash her face.
"Hurry your arse up," she called out to Pansy as she walked in.
"I literally just got in, mate, let me have peace." the girl called back and Ivy smiled.
Once Pansy was finished with her shower, Ivy stepped in, grinning wickedly at her friend. "Whoopsies, I forgot to wake up Selina. Guess you best do it."
"I take back every nice thing I've ever said about you Stone. You're horrid and I hate you." Pansy groaned bitterly.
"Oh, Pansy! Don't say it, I honestly forgot! See, you're just so pretty, I couldn't help it!" Ivy called out behind the girl as she turned on the water. A couple of seconds later the water turned ice cold, making her shriek. She heard Pansy cackle evilly from outside the shower, before she walked out of the bathroom, letting the water resume its previous temperature.
Ivy could hear Pansy softly talking in the next room. "Selina? Sel, you've got to get up." There was a pause before her voice came back slightly louder. "Selina dear you've really got to-" she was cut off by the sound of a loud smack, followed by many more and Pansy's raised to a shout, "OW! STOP IT!"
Ivy was laughing so hard she had to brace herself on the wall when Pansy ran back into the bathroom, followed by a loud, "I'll kill you, Parkinson!" from the bedroom.
"We've been given a proper psychopath for a roommate Ivy, she had a shoe. Hidden in her bed. Just to use on whoever woke her up. A whole shoe. She was cuddling it." Ivy was struggling to regain her breath, but at that comment, she was set off again. Still clutching her stomach a minute later, she called out from the shower to Pansy. "I'd say I won this morning's round."
The water shot out cold again, but this time it was Selina who initiated the attack as she walked into the bathroom grumbling angrily. Once she had recovered from the shock, Ivy protested loudly to her blonde friend, who was washing her face by the sinks. "Why me Sel? I'm not the one who woke you up!"
"I'm sure you did something to deserve it, Stone." Her friend snapped back, making Pansy cackle with laughter. Ivy stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in her robe, before pouting at Selina.
She kept her remarks to herself after a warning glare from the bright blue eyes in the mirror; Ivy might have the largest reputation around the school, but she'd rather fight three ogres with a toothpick than tussle with Selina after she'd just woken up.
She walked over to the sinks as Selina went to take her own shower. Looking in the mirror she sighed, the bags under her eyes were dark and heavy. She always looked like she'd been recently deceased when she lost sleep, and she'd been losing a lot lately. She walked out into the bedroom, quickly making coffees for her, Pansy and Selina, sending up a silent thanks for Draco as she took the first sip of the warm drink. If he hadn't gotten her that set, there would've been a murder in their dorm by now.
Walking back into the bathroom, she handed Pansy hers and set Selinas on the counter by her sink. "I look horrid." She groaned, glancing in the mirror again.
Pansy shot her a sympathetic look. "Here, I always do this when I get bags under my eyes." She took her spoon off of her saucer and rinsed it in her sink, before tapping it with her wand and muttering a cold spell. Ivy eyed her suspiciously as she raised it and pressed it under her eye, but she quickly sighed happily, enjoying the feeling of the cold metal on her tired under-eyes.
Pansy smiled knowingly at her as she pulled back, letting Ivy hold the spoon up herself. With a dry smile and a wink, she turned back to the mirror and said, "Not everything my mum taught me was worthless." Ivy smiled at her sympathetically.
Selina stepped out of the shower behind them and smiled brightly at the pair as she tied the ribbon on her own robe. Picking up on the mood in the room she pouted, "Why is it that I always miss the morning heart-to-hearts?" making Ivy and Pansy laugh. They may be learning spells and potions every day, but the magic of a shower in changing Selina's mood was beyond anyone's grasp.
"Maybe if you didn't hide shoes in your bed to assault the loving friend who tries to make sure you get breakfast, we would wait to have our daily trauma session until you're here." Said Pansy with a smirk, making Selina wrinkle up her nose and stick out her tongue at them.
They chuckled at her, and she spotted the coffee by her sink, squealing excitedly and bounding over to it. She seized it in both hands and took a long, loving sip. "Salazar that's good. Remind me that I owe you a kiss, Ivy, for remembering the cream and sugar, and I owe Draco one for giving you that bloody amazing gift." Ivy laughed before Selina continued, turning to the mirror and smiling at her slyly. "Although maybe you ought to pass on that kiss for me,"
Pansy high-fived Selina as Ivy choked on her coffee and turned bright red. "Are you mental?" What in Merlin's name are you on about?" She grew even more bewildered as her friends shared identical eye rolls and sighs.
"I may be mental, but you, my dear, are clueless." Ivy sputtered at Selina, who turned from her and started preparing to brush her teeth in the mirror, still smiling wickedly.
Escaping from the bathroom, Ivy ran down the stairs to the closet and picked up a uniform from her wrack, still pink in the cheeks. She didn't know what they were getting at but it made her chest feel funny.
She slipped on her jewellery and black heeled shoes before picking up Ivy and Selina's clothes and heading back up the stairs. She handed them off to her two friends, who were chattering and laughing as they finished getting ready. They both thanked her with wide grins and Ivy went back out into the bedroom, organizing her bag for the day in her free time and letting Stheno wind her way around her neck.
Pansy, Selina and Ivy all made their way down to the common room, raising their eyebrows in unison when they saw the sight in front of them. Theo was laughing hysterically on the arm of a sofa, and Draco and Blaise were wrestling on the ground. To Ivy's mild surprise, Draco actually seemed to be winning, as he had just put his friend into a headlock.
He caught Ivy's gaze and quickly sprang up, dusting himself off and flashing her a cocky smile. Pansy and Selina snickered next to her and Ivy felt herself growing warm again. Whatever had gotten into them that morning, she wished they would rid themselves of it immediately.
Blaise pulled himself off the ground and shot over to Ivy, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and planting a kiss on the side of her head. He leaned down and whispered to her, "Theo mentioned your late-night rendevous to me, but don't you think for a minute you're getting away without spilling the details." Ivy laughed. She had suspected that Theo would immediately tell Blaise, and she looked over at the sandy-haired boy, who grinned and winked at her.
Draco watched the exchange with a stormy look replacing his previously smug one. He'd overheard Blaise mentioning Theo and a rendevous, and then Theo had winked at Ivy? Surely it wasn't what he thought - didn't Blaise and Theo have something going on? As he looked back at Ivy, who was smiling and laughing at something someone had said, his stomach twisted.
What if he was wrong? Blimey, did Theo like Ivy? Did Ivy like Theo back? Salazar, they were going to be living together now. His stomach was twisting tighter and tighter as his thoughts spiralled. His attention was called back to the present by Ivy, who had reached out and gently grabbed his hand, concern etched over her features.
"You alright there Malfoy? You seemed like you had some intense thoughts swirling around your head." Her voice was light, but the worry laced into it made his heart lurch.
He smiled at her, "I'm lovely Stone, just peckish. Shall we set off?" She smiled at him, and his heart lurched again; why on earth did that keep happening all of the sudden? He slung his arm around her shoulders, unsubtly pushing Blaise's off in the process as they began to walk out the room.
Blaise just grinned and winked at him before falling into step next to Theo, who was also smirking like the cat who caught the cream. Looking at their devilish faces, then down at Ivy's happy one, who was chattering away to Pansy and Selina, Draco's insides stilled.
Salazar help him; he liked Ivy.
For her part, Ivy was completely unaware of the turmoil inside Draco as they walked together to the hall. She was discussing the very important decision of whether she should stay using her shampoo, conditioner and body wash, which smelled like whatever she wanted them to smell like that day, or if she should pivot to the new magical line that had been released. The new ones produced a perfectly curated smell for each user and then held that scent permanently, instead of changing like the other.
She was so wholly invested in the heated conversation of the pros and cons of each type, that she didn't even notice anything out of the norm when Draco sat next to her in the Great Hall, shooting her constant looks. Unfortunately for the blonde boy, this advantage was lost the moment she settled on buying the new sort, then reverting to her old ones if she didn't like the scent it chose.
His steel-grey eyes were suddenly met with a pair of swirling sky-blue and sea-foam ones that were filled with curiosity. "Alright, Draco? Have I got something on my face?"
He shook his head quickly and desperately wracked his brain for a convincing excuse as to why he'd been staring at her, but to his great relief, he was spared the effort by the arrival of the post. Ivy, Theo and Blaise glanced eagerly at the owls who were dropping letters to their students, their eyes widening in nerves and anticipation when one dropped in front of Ivy.
"It's from my father." She confirmed breathily, glancing up at Theo, who looked as though he were about to burst with nerves.
"I love you, Ivy, but if you don't open that letter right now I will take it from you and do it myself." Ivy quickly ripped open the letter at Theo's threat and pulled it out, her eyes scanning the words rapidly before she dropped it and squealed loudly.
She launched herself at Theo from across the table, ignoring the food that she bumped into on the way in her glee. His eyes were shining with joy and anticipation when she pulled back, but it was Blaise who let out an exasperated: "Look, that's lovely and all, very sweet and wholesome, but what does the letter say?" Ivy chuckled and sat back down, picking the letter and reading it to the whole group.
Dear Ivy,
I have written to Mr Nott about your proposal. His response was prompt and very cordial. He will let Theo reside with us, as he believes that he will benefit from the advantage of having a motherly figure in his life. Rather surprisingly, he has surrendered all decisions and responsibilities regarding his son to me, under the request that Theodore attends certain events and commitments at his behest. I can only assume that this decision is in light of the grief he is experiencing in light of the loss of his wife, and your mother and I agree that the arrangement is perfectly suitable for us. You may, of course, attend any of these events with Theodore. Your mother - or I, if the situation permits - will accompany you in your travels and attendance.
Please share the news with Mr Theodore Nott, and confirm that he deems the change of circumstance and relations acceptable.
I hope that you are in good health,
Your father, Athermar Stone.
For the second time, Ivy felt her heart swell at her father's kindness, conveyed through his stiff, awkward cadence. What might have previously been seen as distant, now felt endearing and sweet.
She looked up to see Theo's eyes shining with a thin layer of tears, and she watched as Blaise noticed, folding him into a tight hug. They both stayed in that position, with their heads buried in each other's shoulders, as Pansy, Selina and Draco let out whoops and shouts of excited congratulations.
Ivy felt breathless. What had begun as a far-reached, desperate attempt was now a reality. Her head was light as Draco pulled her into a tight side-hug, and she rested her head on his shoulder, stuck in a delighted daze.
"I think you just saved him, Ives," Draco whispered softly to her, squeezing her shoulder with the arm that was wrapped around her back.
She smiled, but shook her head slightly, not taking her eyes off of the boy who had grown to be like a brother to her, and who was now exactly that in all senses but biological. "Actually, I think my dad did, which is something I'll be heavily processing later."
Draco laughed, then looked down fondly at Ivy, who was still resting her head on his shoulder. "True, but don't downplay your role, Stone. You thought of it and put it into action. And you've been saving him all year just by being there."
Ivy smiled a little wider, and a look of complete peace and happiness bathed her features in a beautiful glow.
Draco sighed a little as he looked down at her. He was in a whole world of trouble with this girl. He'd only realised he liked her fifteen minutes prior, and it was already being followed by the epiphany that he'd liked her since he met her on the train.
He had absolutely no idea what to do next, so for the moment, he let himself enjoy her head resting on his shoulder, the genuine smile on her face, and his best friend feeling happier than he'd been in a great many years.