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𝖗𝖎𝖓
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25 September 1942
Elena found herself once again in the cave, the same three silhouettes in front of her. She knew all too well what was about to happen, yet she stood there helplessly, bound to relive her worst nightmare.
"Dennis come here. I want to show you something," The boy lit up a fire in the middle of the cave, without using anything.
"What are you some kind of freak? How- How did you do that?" Dennis screamed.
"There is no need to fuss about it Dennis. I was just providing us with some light."
"Why would we need light? The sun hasn't set yet," said Elena.
"When we're done here it won't be daytime anymore," said the boy. Elena wanted to run for the exit but it was blocked by the boy who now turned his attention to Amy. "What a nice scarf you have, so conveniently placed around your neck for me to do this."
With a flick of his wrist he made Amy's scarf strangle her. A few seconds later Amy was on her knees begging the boy to stop while trying to breathe. It didn't take long for her to pass out. Dennis got up and ran towards the boy, pinning him to the wall. "You... You are a monster! You deserve to die!
"Dennis calm down. She's not dead," Elena said after checking for Amy's pulse. Dennis was surely trying to get himself killed.
"I'd listen to Elena. We wouldn't want anything terrible happening to one of you, now would we?
Elena woke up trying to catch her breath. This time she wasn't crying, she felt wrecked. Absolutely drained of energy. She looked around, everyone was still asleep and the time read 3:15. She didn't want to risk going back asleep, she did not want to relive what followed that day in the cave. After so many years of trying to bury this memory, why now? Why was it coming to the surface every other night, each time getting closer to the part she feared the most?
She tried to lay down, but she could feel her eyelids get heavier and she was scared she'd fall asleep. She got up and went to the common room in the hopes of distracting herself from the nightmare that wouldn't let her go. The common room was empty except for a few people studying and Abraxas, who sat by himself, his head in his hands looking at the piece of paper in front of him.
"Trouble sleeping?" Elena asked as she sat down next to him.
Abraxas moved to hide the paper but then changed his mind, explaining to Elena, "It's my parents. Apparently your mother is trying to reach out to them, and to you."
"Why does it matter?" Elena shrugged, she couldn't care less about a mother she never knew.
"She is putting all of us in danger." Abraxas sighed, "We don't know what Grindelwald is capable of nor how he would react to one of his most loyal followers turning on him."
"We can't do anything about it right now," Elena tried to comfort him. "I understand you're worried about Orion... Let's make a deal. Whatever happens that may endanger her we will tell each other. That way we can have all the information we need."
"I'm not worried about Orion. She will be safe as long as she doesn't know anything." said Abraxas. "I'm worried about you. Do you think I don't see how you've been suffering for the past few weeks? You come into the common room almost every night around this time."
"You don't have to worry about me," said Elena. She couldn't tell him what really was happening, but it was nice to know people cared about what happened to her.
After a few seconds of silence, Abraxas changed the subject. "My father says the letter your mother sent is a trap, that it isn't real."
"Do you believe him?"
"I don't know what to believe." He took a deep breath, "Something is happening and I fear by the time we learn what it is, it will be too late."
•❅────✧❅✦❅✧────❅•
27 September 1942
Elena had spent the past week avoiding Tom Riddle. She was well aware of his intentions that night in the forest, and she did not like being played like that. She was glad she hadn't really hurt Yaxley though, as his behaviour turned out to be a con all along. What did Tom want to achieve through this meeting? She feared she knew the answer. He was trying to remember and Elena needed to make sure she made it impossible for him.
She wandered aimlessly in the corridors. Her and Orion were supposed to go to Hogsmeade today but she had cancelled last minute, mumbling something about needing to see Slughorn. She made sure to stay away from the common room and the library, both places she could run into Tom. She had gathered her parchments and made her way to the gardens to do her homework, but the rain had ruined her plans. She heard steps quicken behind her and someone started walking with her.
"Hey," it was Rin. He had his coat on and was carrying an empty bag. "How are you?"
"As good as I can be," Elena sighed. "What are you up to?"
"Oh, I was getting ready to go to Hogsmeade," he gave her a charming smile, "but my friends stood me up."
"That makes two of us."
"We can go together," he took the parchments from her hands and put them in his bag. "Let's go, I'll make sure they don't get wet."
Even though she didn't really want to go out into the rain, Elena felt that she needed to go with him as a thank you for saving her at the orphanage. Also, he hadn't really given her a choice. Whatever the case may be, they were now on the way to Hogsmeade, talking about school and teachers. Elena took this chance to relax and let go of the nightmares that had been following her. She explained the potion she was making and Rin offered her help. They decided to look over her work over butterbeer and soon they were in the crowded streets of Hogsmeade.
Elena noticed a group of young men gathered in front of the Three Broomsticks, shouting slogans about the muggle war. She watched them carefully, they handed people brochures and talked about how wizards could use this opportunity to finally dominate the muggles. A heated argument broke out between one of them and a man at around his forties. "Should we go somewhere else? This place looks a little crowded."
"It's alright, I know them," said Rin, raising his hand to get the attention of the group. "Hey! Kingsley, quit it for the day! Some of us want to have a peaceful drink."
A redheaded boy stepped forward with a wide grin on his face, slapping Rin's back. "Look who decided to show up! Clara's been asking about you, when are you coming home?" Rin knit his brows and motioned towards Elena. Kingsley's expression changed and he nodded. "Boys, let's go." They all followed him away from the pub and disappeared into a nearby alleyway.
Elena gave Rin a questioning look and walked into the pub. She spoke again after ordering their drinks. "Who were they?"
Rin smiled to himself and answered, "My family."
"What do you mean your family? Why do you live in the orphanage then?"
"They're not my real family." The waiter brought their butterbeers. He took a sip and continued, "I grew up with them, on the streets." Elena stared puzzled at him. He gave her a small smile, "Don't worry, Clara is my sister."
"I wasn't worrying," Elena shrugged and looked away. She had assumed Rin was a good person, then why did he align himself with people who supported the war?
"Are you going to ask about it?"
"What?"
"Grindelwald," he had said this name so casually that Elena almost didn't shiver. "Aren't you going to ask why they're rallying for him?"
"I try to distance myself from the politics of the wizarding world," said Elena. She saw the slightest bit of disappointment in Rin's eyes. "Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to imply anything."
"We all have something in common. Kingsley, me, the others..." Rin lowered his head. "Every muggle family that adopted us either mistreated or abused us. If they knew about our powers it was worse. We finally found where we belong. We discovered a way to freedom."
Elena held her breath. She could relate to what he was saying, but Grindelwald scared her, and not for the same reasons as everyone else. He had created a wound in her mind that would never be healed. Yet, she could not deny that her interest grew as Rin continued talking.
"It's not about power, or about mastering dark magic. All we want is to live equally amongst muggles. The tides are shifting around the world, we need to be able to float above them," Rin leaned forward, "I heard the muggle war is getting out of hand. They're discriminating amongst each other and killing in mass. Imagine what they would do if they knew wizards existed. We should act now, or the light of freedom will be forever lost. The wizard kind will be confined to the shadows."
"Have you met him?" Elena asked in a tone in stark contrast to that of Rin, which was filled with excitement. "Grindelwald, I mean."
"No... He doesn't have time for schoolboys like us. All we can do is try to spread his message." Elena shifted in her seat. He realised her discomfort. "I'm sorry if this is too much at once. Normally I don't mention these things on the first day."
"It's okay," Elena gave him a forced smile, "I would've asked about it anyways." Her eyes found his bag and she decided to change the subject, "Should we start on the potion draft? It's going to take us a while to come up with something new."
•❅────✧❅✦❅✧────❅•
When Elena returned to the common room, it was already past sundown. She realised her parchments were still in Rin's bag but it was too late to get them back. Orion jumped from her seat and ran to her, with a teasing smile on her face, "Are you returning from your date? How did it go?"
"Oh, come on," Elena rolled her eyes. It wasn't a date, was it? "We worked on your stupid potion."
"Ouch," Orion feigned heartache. "No one calls my potion stupid. Did you make any progress though?"
"Not really," Elena was now walking towards their room, "He suggested making a healing potion. It made sense, but I don't know if it will work on dead tissue."
"There is only one way to see. When you're ready I can brew you a batch."
"Thank you." Elena sighed, "I'm so tired."
Orion pulled at Elena's arm like a little child, "Come on! There must be more you talked about!"
"What? That was it!" Elena did not want to mention his involvement with Grindelwald. For some reason, she didn't want Orion to immediately dislike Rin. "It should be you who's talking! How's little Timothy doing?"
"Please, never call him that ever again." Orion looked disgusted. "Nott and I are working on a different potion, which by the way, does not mean we're not on a date!"
Elena grabbed a pillow and hit Orion on the head, prompting them both to laugh, "Will you please shut up about it!"