Word Count: 3,238
Warnings: None.
Lyra Black's POV
"So what was wrong with Blaise?" I asked Draco, approaching his side as we made our way through Hogwart's corridors.
"He wouldn't tell me," Malfoy answered, pushing through a group of students.
"Well, did he say anything?"
Draco shook his head. "He claimed that it was just a walk of shame."
"That's bullshit. I've seen Zabini's walk of shame, that was something else."
Malfoy sighed. "Well then maybe you'll have better luck than me. He's still in the dorm room."
I nodded, giving Draco a gently nudge on the shoulder. I had barely taken a couple of steps towards the dungeon when Harry came running towards the two of us.
"Black!" he called, stopping both Draco and I in our tracks.
"Potter. What's up?" I asked.
"Sirius wrote back. He's fine," Harry informed me.
I let out an audible sigh of relief. He was okay. Everything was okay.
"Thank Merlin," I spoke. "well, if he isn't gathering his evil forces, what happened?"
"He said that he went to get something while Lupin was out. Something about Christmas presents. Some reporter with a floating quill spotted him in the bookshop." Harry gave me a knowing look.
I scoffed a laugh. "Why does that sound familiar?" I asked sarcastically.
"That's the bitch of a reporter that talked shit about Potter last year, isn't she?" Draco asked, approaching the two of us.
The Slytherin nodded to Harry in greeting as he joined us, to which Potter returned calmly. They were being civil with each other. That was a start.
"Rita Skeeter," I breathed.
Harry nodded at me before taking two letters from his robes. "These were ats the Owlery for the two of you," he explained, handing us a letter each.
Before looking at the letter, I noticed a red blotch on the boy's skin. Pulling his hand towards me, I pulled his sleeve back, my eyes widening at his skin.
On his hands were the words 'I must not tell lies.' The letters looked as though they had been carved into the boy's skin with a knife and the skin around the opening was irritated and rough. I looked up to the Gryffindor.
"What the fuck is this?" I asked him, gaining Draco's attention, who had been looking at the front of his letter. His eyes landed on the hand I was holding, and his jaw tensed.
"Detention with Umbridge. I suggest not pissing her off," Harry advised, pulling his hand back.
"That's physical abuse. She can't do that." I turned to Draco who shook his head gently in agreement.
"Well, she's doing it. Don't get on her bad side Lyra."
I scoffed. "I have pissed her off plenty this year. I should have already gotten an abundance of detention's from her."
Harry's gaze turned confused. "Then why haven't you?" he asked.
"I don't know, but that's not the point. This is illegal. She can't do this. Have you told Dumbledore about it?" I replied with another question.
Potter shook his head. "I can't find him."
I perked a brow, looking at the small bit of red that was visible under Harry's sleeve. This was barbaric.
"That's a little odd, don't you think?" Draco added, returning Harry's confused gaze. The boy only nodded in response.
A flurry of students pushed passed us and Harry turned his wrist over to look at the time. His expression told me that it was time to get to class. His next words confirmed this.
"I better get going. We've got Charms."
I nodded, looking to Draco who was now staring at the side of Harry's head. "We have class together so the two of you can go ahead. I'll catch up."
Both Malfoy and Potter nodded at me before giving each other a nervous glance. Harry looked to me. "Where are you going?" he asked.
"Me and Professor Umbridge need to have a word about how to treat students," I explained, pointing to the Gryffindor's hand.
Harry held it protectively, not bothering to argue with my statement. He nodded, turning to Draco and giving him a small smile before heading down the corridor.
"I don't know who sent it," Draco told me quickly before following Potter through the school.
I watched his figure fade from view, confused. The letter was still in my hand, and I turned my head to look at the front of it.
The name on the front was mine, Lyra Black, but I didn't recognise the handwriting. That was what Malfoy was talking about.
"Well, are you going to open it? The suspense is killing me," Barty approached me, looking over my shoulder at the white envelope.
I sighed. "I thought I had gotten rid of you," I complained, starting my way towards the DADA classroom. "I missed your constant badgering." My tone was sarcastic.
The man laughed lightly, following me. "I thought that I would give you a break from your mother's whining," he explained.
"And why would your disappearing help with that?" I asked him, acting interested in his words.
"Well," Crouch started, clearly not taking the hint. He turned around so that he was now walking backwards down the hall, his face still looking at me. "Don't tell Ella this," he paused, "but she doesn't like going anywhere without me. She gets scared." Her voice was a whisper.
"I do not get scared," Estrella joined the conversation, approaching my other side. She looked at Crouch in disgust. "I do perfectly well on my own."
"Well then why are you only here when I am?" Barty asked as we turned a corner.
The two of them walked ahead of me as they began bickering.
"Because it is only when you are here that my daughter needs advice," my mother argued.
"Why, because I'm giving her good advice?" the Death Eater asked.
Nott scoffed. "Because your advice is utter bullshit," she explained.
Crouch gasped, offended. "Estrella Nott cursing? Now that is something new."
I rolled my eyes at them, pushing past their bodies and approaching the DADA classroom. "If you're going to argue, can you do it out of earshot please? I don't want to listen to your whining."
I didn't bother knocking on the woman's door before entering. Crouch and Estrella followed, seemingly having ignored my input and continuing to bicker. I ignored them, making for the spiral staircase.
Before entering the teacher's office, I stopped suddenly at the sound of voices behind the door. Instead of pushing in, I put my ear up against it, listening in.
Umbridge's high pitched squeal of a voice was the first thing I heard. She was arguing with someone.
"She is an utter menace," the Professor complained. "I have held off on punishing the girl because you have told me not to, but this is getting out of hand. She is purposely trying to get on my nerves."
The other voice replied. A deep voice, clearly male. "And you're going to have to keep putting up with her menace because that is what you have been told to do. Your job," he told her sternly.
"My job is to bring a civil environment. Not to be a little spy for this man I have never even met!"
There was a loud crash, causing me to jump. Umbridge gasped. "How dare you?" her shaking voice asked.
"Your job is to follow orders!" the man boomed. "You decided to join our side of the war. What your motives for that were, I couldn't care less, but you are a part of it now and you will do as your told. Do not intervene with the girl. Those are your only orders," the man paused, and I heard footsteps move across the wooden floor of the room inside.
"And I suggest that you follow them," he seethed, quieter than his last words. No matter the seemingly softness of his voice, it was clear that it wasn't a request. It was threat.
There was no reply to his threat. Not from Umbridge. There was a large gust of wind behind the door before silence fell in the room.
Stepping back from the door, I bit my lip in thought. Who was she talking to? Who was she talking about?
"I wonder who she was talking to," Barty asked, sitting on the railings behind me, swinging his legs. "And who that were talking about?"
I opened my mouth to question how he had known what was going through my head but quickly stopped when I realised how he knew. He was in my head.
"It sounded serious," I replied instead, turning to face the man.
"Maybe you should just leave then," my mother suggested, making her way up the stairs.
"I have to talk to her about Harry," I told my mother.
"Yes Estrella, she needs to stand up for the Chosen One," Crouch told her.
Ella's jaw tensed, shaking her head. The woman turned to me, ignoring the Death Eater on the railing.
"Oh, is little Ella ignoring me?" he asked in a mocking tone. "Did I make little Ella upset?"
Before another words could be spoke, Ella pushed her hand outwards, hitting the man in the chest. He fell from the top of the staircase, hitting the ground with a loud thud.
I rushed to the railing, leaning over to stare at Barty Crouch Jr on the ground. I gasped loudly. He was laying on the ground, arms, propping himself up.
"What the fuck Ella?" he asked.
"You were being an asshole," she explained to him calmly, leaning herself against the railing and bringing her hand up to her face to look at her nails.
I sighed, remembering that this wasn't real and slumped against the marble.
"So you decided to push me off the balcony?" He rose to his feet, brushing himself off. "You could have killed me."
My mother laughed. "That would make my life a lot easier," she told him. "If you were still alive."
Crouch made his way up the stairs, stomping his feet against the steps. "It doesn't matter of I'm alive or not. That doesn't mean you didn't hurt my feelings," he complained, face changing in a sad smile at his looked up at her innocently.
Estrella rolled her eyes at him. "When are you going to understand Crouch?" she asked him, leaning closer the man. "Your manipulation doesn't work on me. It never did."
I let out a frustrated sigh, turning from the two of them. I was insane. I was going insane. hearing voices was one thing, but the two voices in my head conversing with each other? Pushing each other off balconies? I didn't know what the signs of insanity were, but this had to be one.
"Ms Black?" a high-pitched voice asked from behind me.
I turned to find Professor Umbridge stood in the doorway of her office, her hand wrung together over her stomach. She looked surprised to see me.
I shook my head, watching both my mother and Crouch fade from view before turning to the teacher.
"I wanted to talk to you Professor Umbridge. Do you have a moment?" I tried to be as polite as I could.
The woman looked shocked at my words, nodding quickly. "Of course. I strive to help students."
"Yes," I told her sarcastically. "That is your only job. You must be good at it."
The woman looked confused as I entered, taking in the room. It was very... pink. The walls were pink. The ceiling was pink. The lights were pink and there were plates hung on the walls, each with a different cat on them. the only think in the room that was the same colour was the wooden floor.
"Please, take a seat Ms. Black. Would you like some tea?" she asked, taking a seat in her chair.
I nodded, taking a seat opposite her. My eyes landed on a row of quills. At the tip of the quill wasn't the remnants of old ink, but instead, it looked red. Like blood.
I looked up to the teacher, giving her a fake smile. "I would love some."
She nodded, flickering her wand briskly and settling into her chair as the tea made itself in the air.
"Now, what can I help you with?" she asked sweetly.
"I just wanted to talk to you about Harry," I tried to keep my voice calm. A small teacup landed in front of me. I placed my hands around it.
"That troublesome child?" she asked. "Well, what is there to say about him?"
Taking a sip of my tea, I looked at her through the steam. "I noticed that he had a wound on his hand after your detention the other night," I started.
The woman nodded. "Yes. He was writing lines," she told me.
"On his hand?" I asked, placing the tea down.
I scanned the wall behind her, watching each cat turn to look at me. I turned away quickly, looking back to the woman in front of me.
"It is his punishment for telling lies."
"You and I both know that they weren't lies," I told.
The woman sighed. "Ms. Black, I would really appreciate it if you didn't feed into that nonsense. You seem like a good student."
"I am a good student, and although Harry may be troublesome at times, he doesn't lie."
"And how would you know that?" The woman picked up her tea, taking a large sip, avoiding my gaze.
Now was the time to see whether the assumption I had made was right. "Well, you see Professor Umbridge, I have met Voldemort."
She choked on her drink, the teacup hitting the table with force. Her eyes widened as she watched me take a sip of my tea.
The woman seemed to be struggling for words. "Ms. Black, I have a lot of... homework to correct... if you wouldn't mind letting me..." she gulped, "finish."
"Of course," I replied, rising from my seat. She rose with me.
"Oh that was such a bland telling off, don't you think?" Crouch asked, approaching one side of the teacher.
"I don't think she should have come in here at all," my mother replied, appearing on the woman's other side.
"She's pissed about what she did to Harry, she should be louder."
"Shouting never solves anything."
"It solves our arguments."
"Our arguments are different."
"How so?"
My hand slammed on the desk, quieting the two voices, causing them to vanish into the air. Umbridge looked shocked at my outburst, moving back slightly.
I looked up at her. "Look Professor," I told her. "Do your unorthodox methods on students, but if I find out that you have intentionally hurt someone I care about, we're going to have a problem."
The teacher's expression turned shocked. "How dare –"
"How dare I what?" I asked her. "Speak to you like that." I stood straight. "You haven't punished me yet and I doubt you ever will."
The woman didn't answer my words, instead she simply said. "Is that all Ms. Black?"
I nodded, passing her a small smile. "I believe so."
Turning away from the woman, I made for the door. I stopped short, turning back to the woman. "The next time you're having an argument, I suggest silencing the room." I knocked on the open door. "These walls are thin."
Umbridge swallowed, nodding at me, her hands wringing together across her stomach.
I quickly left the room, descending down the staircase and exiting the class.
"See? She went with my advice," Barty spoke behind me as I hurried down the corridor.
"She didn't shout," Estrella argued.
"Threatening is as good as shouting darling."
I rolled my eyes at the two of them, pushing thoughts of their voices from my mind. I was late for Charms.
ᵜᵜᵜᵜᵜ
"High Inquisitor? What the fuck is that?" Theo asked, staring at the new plaque on the wall.
"Why are we talking about a High Inquisitor?" I asked, approaching him.
Stood in a large circle was Theo, Pansy and Nika. They were saying up at the new addition to the wall.
"Apparently Umbridge is the new High – whatever the fuck that word is," Nika explained.
I turned to her before looking up at the plaque. "We're screwed. That's what it means."
Pansy sighed. "Oh no."
"Do you know what it means?" Nika asked her girlfriend.
Pansy shook her head. "No, but if Lyra says we're screwed then we're screwed."
"The High Inquisitor has the same power as the Headmaster."
Theo turned to me. "You're kidding."
I shook my head. "Not kidding. The Ministry must have increased her standing in the school."
"And has her interviewing the teacher's," Draco told us, approaching the four of us through a crowd of students.
"Interviewing teachers?" Nika asked. "Oh, I can't wait to see her with McGonagall. That'll be something else."
"Alright, alright, time for Potion's," Theo told us, pulling Pansy by the sleeve towards the dungeons.
"I better get going too," Nika told us. "Muggle studies."
Pansy nodded, being pulled away by the eager Slytherin. Nika blew her a kiss before turning to me. Putting two fingers to the side of her head, the Gryffindor saluted me. I returned the gesture.
"Have you heard from Riddle?" Draco asked me once Nika had left. The other two were a couple of paces ahead of us.
"Not since last night," I told him, remembering the talk we had had. "Why?"
"Read this," Draco explained, handing me a letter.
I opened it, scanning my eyes over the words. It was written in the same handwriting as the envelope that currently sat in my robe pocket.
Dear Mr. Malfoy,
I would like to invite you to social event at your home of Malfoy Manor this weekend. It will be an overnight event and you will be given accommodation.
This will be a meeting regarding the prospect of your future, and we would like to see you there.
Please RSVP as soon as you possibly can. We are looking forward to seeing you there.
Sincerely,
Adaline Carrow.
"The prospect of your future?" Draco asked, quoting the letter. "That has to be about the Death Eater's. Did you open yours?"
I quickly took the unopened letter from my robed, opening it quickly. The basis of the letter was the same. An invitation to this social event at Malfoy Manor, but there was one line at the end that wasn't on Draco's.
I would like to inform you that not only would it be nice to see you there, but that it is expected for you to make an appearance.
Sincerely,
Ms. Carrow.
I scoffed. "The same thing," I told the boy beside me. "What the fuck is this?" I asked.
Draco shook his head. "Not all of the Death Eaters have met He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named yet. I assumed that this is a gathering so that he can see exactly how strong his forces are."
"Well then why do we need to be there?" I asked.
Malfoy shrugged his shoulders. "They want me there because my father wants me to join them, and they want you there because.... Well, I think he just wants to show you off."
I bit my cheek. "Asshole," I muttered.
"We have to go, right?" he asked as we approached the Potion's classroom.
I nodded, stopping outside it for a moment. "I don't think we have a choice."