The library was grand and beautiful, just like you would expect in a castle. Still, it didn't compare to Abbey library of St. Gall in Switzerland or was as big as the Bodleian library of Oxford. But what those libraries didn't have were books flying across the room, shelving themselves and floating down on the large desk in the middle of the library were McGonagall was sitting at. When the librarian saw them walk in, she gave short nod and walked out the room, closing the door behind her.
When the door closed with a thump that echoed across the empty library, Minerva looked up from her book. "Ah, Leah. How do you feel?" She asked, standing up as they reached the desk.
"I feel better, thank you."
"Did you eat?"
"Yes, George made me." She shot a playful glare his way.
"You had us quite worried there. Are you sure you can handle this today?"
"Yes. It was just a lot to take in. Madam Pomfrey gave me another bottle of that calming potion."
Minerva observed her for a bit before pulling out a chair. When the three of them were seated, George next to Minerva and Leah and Fred across from them, Minerva pushed several stacks to each of them, hesitating at the chair were Fred sat.
"He can help. I'll just place the right book in front of him and he can flip through it himself."
Minerva and George looked at the book Leah placed in front of him and saw it flip open with ease.
"Alright. Mr. Weasley, we have the books about ghosts. Leah, you have the few we have about psychics or the supernatural, like you call it and linked magic and Mr. Weasley-" she looked in Fred's direction. "You have the ones on scars. Just write down everything you think could be related."
Fred looked at Leah as she pulled out her notebook and a pen. "Just tell me when you find something." She grinned at Fred, who gave her a lopsided smile.
And then they began, they started reading book after book. The only sound in the library was the turning of pages or the writing on paper. After every book she read she placed it on the ground. Two stacks formed, one where there was useful information in, and the other stack was completely useless. Sadly, the latter was way higher than the first.
Leah stomach just started to rumble when a crack echoed in the silent library. She looked up from her book, startled. A creature had appeared next to Minerva. It had thin arms and legs and was not even a meter tall with large floppy ears and bulging eyes, wearing a dark green dress.
"Headmistress McGonagall. We have lunch prepared for you and your guests. Do you want me to deliver it here?"
"Yes, Ollie. You can send it here." The creature named Ollie, bowed deep before disappearing with the same crack, that echoed in the library once again. Before she had the chance to ask about it, food appeared on their table, spread between the books that were still lying on the table. The table was covered with sandwiches, pastries and pumpkin juice. She glanced around the table and saw George eagerly take two sandwiches before she turned to Minerva.
"What just happened?" She had a hard time not to curse in front of the older witch. "What was that?"
"That was a house elf." Minerva said calmly taking a pastry from the plate in front of her. "They work here in the kitchens and keep the castle clean. They have magic of their own, so that's why it looked like the food appeared out of nowhere."
"A house elf?" She repeated softly, in disbelief. She glanced over to the ghost next to her, who looked longing at the food in front of him. "Are you okay?"
"Hm?" He looked away from the food to her. "Yeah, just wish we found something already."
"I know. But we still have a lot more books to go through." She gave him a half-hearted smile.
"Whoop-di-do." He said sarcastically, making her chuckle. She looked back at the food and grabbed herself a sandwich and a goblet of pumpkin juice. They ate in silence for a while, happy to take a break from researching. Then Fred whispered something in her ear, just as she was about to swallow her pumpkin juice, making her choke. George and Minerva looked at her in surprise.
"No! I'm not going to tell him that." She looked at him, laughing.
"Come on just tell him." Fred whined.
"No. Is that what you think about when you are bored?"
"What does he want you to say?" George asked grinning, looking from her to the empty spot next to her. Minerva was looking intrigued at the one-sided conversation as she saw Fred's aura change colours.
"Nothing worth repeating, believe me." She huffed. "I don't know what you two talked about before but..." She turned back to a pouting Fred. "And since I'm your middleman, you're out of luck." She grinned, biting her bottom lip.
"You sure?" He asked and tried to reach for her pen. He put his index finger on it and let it roll to him. Every eye in the room was focused on the pen as it rolled across the table. Fred closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he tried to pick up the pen but failing. Leah scooted her chair closer to him and whispered.
"Try again."
Fred looked at her, his heart starting to stammer in his chest. Without taking his eyes of her he picked up the pen. He smiled as Leah looked down at his hand for a second, a broad smile appearing on her face before looking back up.
"Do you think you can write?"
"One way to find out!" George said eagerly instead, tossing a piece of parchment their way. Leah tore her gaze away from Fred to take the parchment and placed it in front of him. Minerva was cataloging everything that was happening in her mind, to go over it later. Fred finally let his gaze wonder away from Leah as he looked down at the piece of parchment. He thought of Leah as he focused all his energy on the pen. And then he wrote, first her name, then George's. Three gasps were heard in the empty library as George and Minerva saw the pen move on its own. The twins smile getting wider by the second, while Leah and Minerva looked on with a small but shocked smile.
"Don't you dare write it down!" Leah warned with a chuckle. Fred grinned at her before he looked back down to his pen. Leah quickly stole the pen out of his hand, an evil smile on her face. "I don't think you're strong enough to take it from me."
"Maybe not now, but you wait." Fred teased. Leah bit her lip as her gaze drifted to his eyes once more. They were drawn out their gaze by Minerva, who cleared her throat.
"We still have a lot of books to go through." Minerva said, already picking up a book. George grinned knowingly at Leah before diving back in his book.
"Let's get to it then." Leah took a new book from the stack and flipped it open. Fred popped his lips before he started to read his book again.
Three hours later Minerva gasped as she dropped her book. "I think I found something."
The others all quickly looked up from their books and leaned in as she read aloud from the book.
" The most common ghosts are ones that leave an imprint of the of a , and as such, a type of . These spirits were either afraid of or had some extraordinarily strong connection to the locations they haunt.
Ghosts were unable to have much physical influence. They were visible and appeared as a greyish-silver apparition of their former selves. They can pass through solid objects without damaging themselves or the material, but create disturbances in , and air. The temperature dropped in the immediate vicinity of a ghost. Their presence could also turn flames blue. " She looked up from the book to the others.
"This is what you learn in school, and this is the type of ghosts we know of, but we already established that Fred isn't like these ones here but here is where it gets interesting." She started to read the text from the book again, Leah sitting on the edge of her seat, listening intently.
" However, there is another type of ghost. They only appear to the one they are linked to, one with magic in their blood. They don't look or cause the same disturbances as earlier described. They look exactly like the person they were before their demise. For example: they walk, don't float. They aren't greyish silver; they can move things when they concentrate and if they would walk through solid objects, they will experience cluster headaches. One of the more prominent things is: they can experience human physical complaints.
" That's Fred described to a t." Leah said excitingly. "Does it say anything else?"
"As long as the link is there, the ghost will be too. Depending on the sort of link to two share, there is a possibility to bring him or her back to the land of the living."
" There is a chance to bring him back?" George chocked out as Minerva lowered the book. "How?"
"It doesn't say. We need to find more information on their link, their scar." Minerva said closing the book. "Then we'll know if it is possible to bring him back."
Leah looked back at the stunned ghost next to her. "Did you find anything out?"
"No, nothing that links ghosts and scars together."
"And did you find anything, Leah?" Minerva asked.
"No." She groaned. "I don't think I will find anything out in these. I think I need to go to my grandparents' house to find out more or see what Sybil can tell us." She sighed pushing her books away. "Minerva... is there a way, a test to see if I really have magic in me?"
"I assume there would be. I will have to discuss this with our old headmaster."
"Dumbledore?" The twins asked surprised.
"Yes, there is a portrait of him in my office."
"You're going to talk to a portrait?" Leah asked baffled.
"You have a lot to learn about this world, Leah." The headmistress smiled softly. "I think we should call it a night. The students are bound to come back from Hogsmeade." She rose from her seat and with a wave of her wand the books flew back to their rightful place. "I'll look into the link you two share and talk it over with Albus. I owl you as soon as I know more."
"Thank you for your help, Minerva." Leah smiled as she stood up and stretched.
"You are a very exceptional young woman, Leah. I never met a muggle who fit in here so well." Minerva said as they walked out the library.
"Maybe she isn't a muggle." George said, frowning as they walked through the corridor.
"A squib? No, I'm 100% sure she isn't a squib."
"No, not a -"
"What's a squib?" Leah asked confused.
"A squib is someone born into a magical family but doesn't have magic in them. But since no one in your family is a witch or wizard..."
"I don't think she's a squib either but like Trelawny said, there is magic in her family, old magic. Maybe..."
"She's a witch." Fred continued, pondering. Leah looked up to Fred, unsure.
"You think I'm a witch?"
"They may have a point. If Sybil is right and if it's very old magic... It could be that it's dormant, pushed down for centuries. If we find out what kind of magic it is, it is possible that it skips generations."
Leah again found her heart stammering loud in her chest as the buzzing in her ears returned. Fred immediately saw her change and stopped in front of her.
"Leah, breathe. Take the vial."
"Leah?" She heard George ask in the far distance. Leah looked up at those piercing blue eyes, the ones she got so used to seeing and breathed in. She grabbed the vial from her bag and downed it in one, not taking her eyes of Fred.
"Feel better?"
"Yes, thanks Fred." She smiled up at him. "I'm okay." She said to the other worried faces as they stopped with her, a few meters away from McGonagall's office.
"You better get some sleep; you had a long day." Minerva said concerned. "Lemon drops."
The gargoyle suddenly turned, and the staircase appeared. Minerva asked George to keep this a between the four of them, at least until they know more. But Leah wasn't really paying attention at what was happening, still trying to calm her breath as the calming draught slowed her heartbeat.
"Come on, let's go home." Fred smiled at her, making her stomach flip. Home.