Word Count: 2,511.
Warnings: None.
Making my way into the dining room, my fingers rubbing against the raised bump on my skin, I spotted Folley struggling to carry something. It was a platter of food that looked to be larger than the House Elf was.
"Merlin, Folley," I started, taking the food from her. "Why aren't you using your magic?" I asked her.
She was panting. "Mistress Carrow said that servants must carry the food in for their Masters."
I rolled my eyes at the woman's behavior. "And I suppose Lucius didn't disagree."
Folley quickly shook her head. "He claimed that it was a splendid idea and sent me to get the food."
I sighed. "I'll bring it in. You go and do whatever else it is you need to do," I told the House Elf.
"But Mistress Black –"
"I'll bring it in," I softened my voice. "He won't punish you for it, I won't let him."
Folley nodded hesitantly but quickly hurried back to the kitchen to attend to the rest of her tasks.
I took a deep breath before stepping through the dining room doors. The table went silent as I moved up it, placing the platter of food down in front of Mattheo's mother. I passed her an indifferent look.
"Have you got your family serving food now Lucius?" Adaline asked, taking a small sip of her wine as I turned away.
"Oh, he wishes," I replied before Lucius could. "I was just helping out Folley. She was struggling with the plates."
Lucius was sat at the head of the table, Narcissa to his left and Draco to the left of her. Adaline had seated herself at the other end of the table, Mattheo seated to her left. I settled myself beside my cousin.
"Folley?" Mattheo's mother questioned.
"The House Elf," Narcissa replied.
"Ah, those creatures."
The two women shared a firm look, each taking up their glass and sipping on it. An overbearing tension fell over the room as neither surrendered.
"We were just speaking of the coming school year," Lucius started, trying to pull his wife's gaze from the woman.
"Yes," Adaline agreed, turning to look at the man. "And how our Lord will bring great changes to the Ministry from within."
My hand froze, the fork halfway between my plate and my mouth. I put it down, picking up the drink that had been laid out in front of me.
"Yes." Lucius cleared his throat. "There will be great changes."
The room fell into a tense silence after Mr. Malfoy's comment. I didn't eat any of my food, picking at it with the points of my fork. It didn't look as appealing as it had been in Folley's arms.
Adaline was the only one who didn't seen tense in the stuffy room. She delicately cut her food, taking a sip of her drink after each bite.
"She scares me," Draco whispered in my ear.
I kept my gaze on the woman as I answered. "She's self-centered. There's a difference." I looked to my cousin.
"Don't piss her off," he told me sternly. "It's not my father you're dealing with this time. She can rip your head off without any repercussions."
"I'll try, but it's hard with people like her. From what I've learned she is a wicked human being. I would be wrong to let her away with it."
Draco sighed. "Getting involved with her, and Mattheo for that matter, is a sure way of getting He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named on your ass."
"He already is on my ass." Draco didn't answer this time, instead turning back to his plate.
"So, Lyra," Adaline broke the silence. I turned my head slowly, giving her my best smile. I watched Mattheo's hand tense around his fork.
"Ms. Carrow."
"How are your grades?" she asked.
My eyes widened at her question. "I don't think that's any of your –" Draco kicked my leg under the table. I jolted, giving the boy a hard glare which he returned enthusiastically.
Taking a deep breath, I turned back to the woman. "I had a little speed bump last year due to... problems, but they've always been above average."
"She's amazing at Potions," Mattheo's spoke up nervously. His mother acknowledged him with a nod.
"Are you going to be a teacher Lyra?" she asked.
I shook my head. "I don't know yet."
"You could try being an Auror," Adaline told me. "If your Defence Against the Dark Arts skills are good enough, you could make a powerful ally in the Ministry."
I grit my teeth, swallowing. Voldemort was already on my case. Why not stir the bucket a little?
"Someone told me that once. A Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher I had. He told me that I would make an amazing Auror."
"Oh," – she took a sip of her wine – "and what happened to him? I would think that he would be very wise."
"Mr. Crouch? Oh, well," I paused, picking up my glass. "I killed him."
An audible choke was heard from across the table and I watched Mattheo go red as he spluttered his drink. He began to cough, hitting his chest lightly.
Draco's head had turned quickly, his eyes widened. He stared at me in disbelief as I sipped on my drink lightly.
Lucius had risen a brow at my response and Narcissa was gripping the table as though she was about to pass out.
Adaline had simply smiled, matching my movements and taking a drink of her wine. Her reaction made my skin crawl. "I was told that Mr. Crouch killed himself," she told me.
"In the end, he did, yes." I turned to face her fully. "But I contributed greatly. You see, I gave him the weapon he needed."
"And what weapon was that?"
"Me."
ᵜᵜᵜᵜᵜ
"What the fuck was that?" Draco asked me as we rushed into my bedroom. Mattheo followed, shutting the door behind us.
Dinner had ended promptly after Adaline and mine's conversation, each of us dispersing to our activities. The two boys had followed me to my room.
"I don't know," I told them, running a hand through my hair. "It just came out."
"That didn't just come out. You knew exactly what you were going to say the minute my mother brought up the subject," Mattheo spoke up, stepping towards me.
"I just," I began, trying to find the right words. "I wanted to throw it in her face. That I had done something better than be part of a prophecy." My blood started to boil.
"Why?"
"I don't know!"
Anger coursed through my veins, my mind easily becoming consumed by the emotion. The Obscurus tried its daring escape again.
Pain shot through my head and I brought a hand up to hold the bridge of my nose as it began to bleed.
"Is it?" Mattheo asked.
I nodded. "Yeah."
"That's two times in the past hour Lyra."
"Two what in the past hour?" Draco asked. His face was clearly confused. "Nose bleeds. That's hardly something to worry about."
"This is the first time it's happened more than once a week Riddle," I managed, ignoring the ring on my hand and going straight to dig my nails into my palms. I managed to push the anger back into its prison. The pain released.
"What the fuck is going on?" Draco asked again, looking between the two of us.
Mattheo looked at me with a questioning glance. He let out a huff, gesturing towards me.
I swallowed, turning to the blonde. "I killed Crouch. In the maze."
Draco's eyes widened. "Your wand wasn't used. They checked it."
"My wand didn't kill him. I did."
Malfoy shook his head. "I don't get it. Your not strong enough to strangle the man."
"I'm an Obscurus," I explained.
"We don't know if we're right about that," Riddle tried.
"Yes, we do," I felt my anger begin to grow again and promptly took a deep breath the calm myself. "To put it lightly, there's too much suppressed magic in my body and when I lose control of it, I lose control of everything."
"Well how do we fix it so that it doesn't happen again?" my cousin asked.
I shared a look with Riddle. "There's no cure. Only a certain outcome."
"Which is?" Draco was now frantically looking between us.
"Death," Mattheo answered for me.
Malfoy was taken aback, staring at me in horror. "What?"
"Most Obscurius' die before they are old enough to go to school and any that live longer than that don't seem to make it past 18 without the power completely consuming them and there's only been recorded case. In the early 1900s," Mattheo explained. He knew more than I did. He clearly wasn't lying when he told me he had looked into it.
I rubbed at my nose, trying to wipe away the now drying blood. Mattheo handed me a handkerchief. I thanked him quickly, holding it up to my nose.
"Draco!" Lucius' voice echoed through the Manor. We all jumped. Instinctively, my cousin quickly made for the door.
I rushed forward, grasping his arms tightly. "You can't tell anyone. Ms. Carrow surely already know if Voldemort does, but your mother would have a heart attack if she found out and your father well, he's your father," I begged him.
Draco nodded slowly. "What about Theo? Does he know? Does Harry know?"
I shook my head. "No one does. No one but Mattheo, my dad, Moony and now you. Voldemort surely knowns but I don't think the bastard knows the extent of it."
"Draco!" Lucius Malfoy's voice was louder this time.
"I won't tell them, but we're not finished. We'll figure this out," he told me softly.
I tried a smile. "Yeah." Draco quickly left the room.
"What the fuck was that Lyra?" Mattheo asked once the door had closed. "With my mother."
I sighed. "I told you, it just happened. I wanted to throw it in her face." I turned to him.
"That you killed someone. That's not something to flaunt Black," Mattheo explained.
"I know."
"She's dangerous. Especially now that my father is back."
"How are you doing with that?" I changed the subject, seating myself down on the bed.
"Don't change the subject," he told me.
"I'm not. I'm just passing the spotlight."
Riddle sighed, sitting down beside me. "It's weird," he started. "I've been told stories about him my entire life. Of how powerful he was and how strong. How we shared our determined natures. How I would be just like him. I got used to it, but now he's actually real. He's not a story anymore."
I thought of how I had felt when my dad escaped Azkaban. "I know how that feels."
Mattheo scoffed a laugh. "I've only met him twice and I already hate the man. I want him to go back to whatever Hell he came from."
I nodded. "That would solve a lot of problems."
Riddle sighed. "I am worried about you. With the headaches and the nosebleeds." He turned to face me fully.
I shook my head. "I know. It's been fine at home. I might get one once a week, but I never left the house. I was safe there, but here..." I trailed off. "The further from safety I get, the harder it gets."
"Harder?" Mattheo questions.
"Harder to keep pushing it down. My emotions seem to be ten times stronger. When I'm angry, I am fucking furious and when I'm sad, you'd think someone died. There are times that I just want to let it go. Let it consume me, but more often than not, I wish for that bloody necklace."
"That thing was bad for you," Mattheo's tone turned stern.
"It is the worst possible thing for me right now, but it kept me from feeling, or at least being aware of my feelings. I can't help but want to go back to that. Blissful unawareness."
"You know you can't. Not now. Not ever."
"I know."
Mattheo laughed suddenly. "This year isn't going to be any easier, is it?" he asked.
I shook my head. "No. I think Third Year is going to be known as our Golden Age."
"I think so," he paused, turning to the window. It was dark outside. "Can we go back to then? To the top of that Astronomy Tower, looking at the ever-judging stars."
"There's no use going back to yesterday because –"
"I was a different person then," Mattheo finished my sentence. "Alice in Wonderland."
I perked a brow. "That's a muggle book."
"Don't tell my mother. I told her than the author was a wizard. I'm still not completely convinced he wasn't."
"There are a lot of things I would like to say to your mother. That she's a retched human being for one."
Riddle nodded slowly. "You're the second person to tell me that."
"And rightly so," I replied through a yawn. "Sorry," I apologized.
"You need sleep if you want to be on the top of your game tomorrow." Mattheo rose from the bed.
I nodded. "But I'm too tired to get changed."
"Then don't. You've got spare clothes for tomorrow I assumed."
"I do."
"Well then." He moved towards me, taking the handkerchief from my hand and wiping away the rest of the blood from my face. He made sure not to touch his skin against mine.
"How sweet," Barty told me, approaching my side to whisper in my ear. "He's a little puppy dog, isn't he?"
Mattheo moved away from my, making for the door. I followed his movements. "Goodnight Lyra."
A sudden tightness began to riddle its way into my chest, wrapping around my hear and causing it to clench. Crouch was nowhere in sight, but I felt as though I could feel his breath on my neck. I didn't want to be left alone in this room.
"Riddle," I called out to him, my voice cracking.
The boy turned. "Yes Lyra?"
"Can you stay?" I asked him. "Usually I don't mind being alone in this house, but with the situation –"
"Of course," Riddle cut me off. "I'm here as long as you need me."
"I've got a feeling that I'm always going to need you Mattheo Riddle."
"Well then," – he sat himself beside me – "I guess you're stuck with me."
"How adorable." It was another voice this time. One I thought had left. Estrella approached the two of us, her face older than it had been last year. She smiled cruelly. "You should keep a tight leash on him sweetheart. He may not be around forever."
I turned away from her, focusing my gaze on Riddle who was looking at me with a gentle expression. I smiled at him.
"You can't ignore me," Estrella told me, but I didn't turn.
"You can't ignore us," Barty added. "You're stuck with us."
"I'm stuck with you," I replied, and I wasn't sure whether I was talking to the brown-eyed boy in front of me or the voices in my head.