Christmas Break ended as quickly as it had begun. Ophelia had gotten back into her routine at home; baking with Ginger, sitting out in the snow-covered fields as she read, and spending every waking moment with Remus. Three weeks seemed like a lot before, it was funny how now it seemed like nothing at all.
She had been there for December's full moon, and took care of him the day after. They rang in the New Year, 1992, with butterbeer, treacle tarts and chocolate; and after that, time seemed to fly by. Time was a funny thing. When you were enjoying it, it went faster. And when you weren't, it went as slow as possible.
Soon, much to their dismay, the day to venture back to Hogwarts arrived. After long, slightly teary goodbyes; the family parted ways again, Ginger and Remus waving as the Hogwarts Express pulled out of King's Cross Station.
The train arrived back at Hogwarts later than expected. Luckily, the girls had eaten far too many sweets from the trolley witch on the duration of the train ride; so they were content to go to their common rooms without dinner. After catching up with Ron and Harry, who seemed to have a quiet but enjoyable Christmas, they went to to their dormitories in attempt to get some much needed sleep.
And it wasn't until Ophelia had just got comfortable, just fluffed her pillow to the correct fluffiness, and was perfectly warm and content under her duvet; did she hear what sounded like a stone hitting the wall outside their dormitory. She groaned, pulling her pillow over her head, but when the noise didn't stop; and only increased; she threw her slippers on her feet, grabbed her wand, and pulled a jumper over her dressing gown and opened the door to the dormitory.
She had missed being hit by a Berite Bott's Bean by a mere inch.
She walked to the edge of the stairs to see Harry, in striped pyjama bottoms and his blue Weasley Jumper, throwing beans at the wall of the girls staircase. He stopped when he saw her standing there. She almost laughed; seeing him throwing stones at the wall like a prince in a novel throwing stones at a girl's window; except he was throwing beans, and it was because there was a charm on the staircase that made boys unable to climb them, and somehow that made it all the more humorus.
It was too late for humour though.
'What do you want?' Ophelia hissed, crossing her arms.
'Come down here.' He hissed back, just loud enough for only her to hear.
Ophelia sighed, as she closed the door to their dormitory and reluctantly went down the stairs. She put her hands on her hips when she stood in front of Harry. 'I need to show you something.' Harry whispered.
She groaned. 'Harry it's late.' She said, rubbing her eyes with her hand. Whatever he was up to, would not take a small amount of time.
'It's important, Ophelia. You know I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important.' It sounded as if he was almost pleading, or begging, really. She stared at him, eyes narrowed for another moment, before she sighed. Harry was sensible. He wouldn't ask if he didn't need her.
'Alright, what is it?'
'I can't tell you. Not here. Get under this.' He said, wrapping a cloak around the both of them as he pulled her forward by her wrist.
'What? Why?' She asked, confused, as he pulled it over their heads.
'It's an invisibility cloak. Someone gave it to me for Christmas. It was apparently my Dad's.' Harry shrugged, turning to her whilst still under the cloak as Ophelia murmured 'Lumos' and they had light.
'Invisibilty cloak? Those are so rare. Are you sure?' Ophelia asked, not totally convinced.
'Positive. Ron and I have already used it.' Harry nodded.
Ophelia just shrugged as Harry led them both out of the portrait hole, and hurriedly down a corridor. 'We aren't going to see the dog are we?' Ophelia groaned. 'I'm all for dogs, you might even consider me a dog person, but I do not fancy another visit with Fluffy.' She said, and Harry groaned, as he continued to pull her arm and rush down the empty, dark corridor.
'No we're not going to see Fluffy, now just follow me and stop asking questions.' He hissed. If it was anybody else, she wouldn't have been so quick to comply; for she didn't like being told what to do. But it was Harry--so she went along with it.
He finally led them to a room she had never seen before, and inside she saw a grand mirror. It was gold, and oddly shaped, with words etched into it she couldn't quite make out; they were clearly in a different language or some sort of ancient runes. Only until they were in this room, did he remove the cloak from the both of them and he took a couple steps away so they weren't squashed together anymore.
'A mirror.' She said, turning to him. 'You brought me here to see a mirror?'
'Listen, it's not just any mirror, and Ron won't take me seriously, Hermione would never be caught out of bed, and honestly I don't have any other friends to bring.' He pleaded. 'I see...I see my parents when I look into it. And Ron says he can see some sort of Quidditch cup and all that rubbish, but I can see my parents. My dead parents, Ophelia.'
Ophelia blinked at him. 'Excuse me?'
'I thought it showed the future or something, but that can't be possible, can it? I mean there's no way to bring back the dead, is there?' Harry asked her anxiously. Ophelia shook her head. There wasn't. 'Well, anyway, look into it. What do you see?' He asked, pushing her in front of it.
She gasped. She saw herself, as she usually did when glancing into a mirror, but she also saw her Dad and Ginger. And on her right, was her other Dad. Sirius Black. She even had to reach out beside her to make sure they weren't next to her.
'What? What do you see?' Harry asked, the moment the gasp left her mouth.
'I...' She struggled to form the words. 'My...my parents...'
'Your Dad? And your Mum?' Harry asked.
Ophelia could barley comprehend his words on top of trying to process what she saw in her reflection. 'I...yeah, something like that. My Mum.' She nodded, gulping.
'So, it could be the future then? Your parents aren't dead!' Harry said, almost excitedly, as if he thought there was any possible way to get his back.
'I...' Ophelia's eyes opened wider in realization when she started to stare at the two men in the mirror more observantly. Remus Lupin did not have scars, not on his face, not on his arms; and his honey eyes were not tinged with sadness. The three of them were laughing, smiling; pure happiness and bliss. This mirror didn't show the future, it couldn't. But if she was right, it showed her deepest desire.
A scarless, both emotionally and physcially, Remus Lupin. What she desired the most was for her father to have not gone through all that he has. She wished he wasn't a werewolf, that he wasn't hurt and that he didn't have the scars to remind him of it everyday; and she wished he hadn't been left alone. That he hadn't been broken the way he was.
Her hearts deepest desire was for all of his trauma to be erased. Her hearts deepest desire was for him, and her and Ginger, to have the family they deserved but never got.
Her heart sunk, and she sighed.
'It's not the future.' She whispered to Harry.
'What do you mean?'
'It's not the future, Harry. It's your desires.' She responded.
Harry looked confused now. 'But you have your parents...'
'I have my Dad. My...Mum, left me, remember?' Ophelia asked. Harry just nodded, feeling terrible he had forgotten.
'You're positive it's not the future?' He asked quietly, after a while.
Ophelia nodded sadly. 'I'm...I'm positive.'
Neither spoke for a very long time.
'You know, Dumbledore caught me here the other day. That's why I brought you tonight.' Harry told her. 'He's planning to move it. Says it's dangerous. he told me it showed your desires, and that people can get carried away. I didn't believe him. Didn't want to believe him. I wanted it so badly to be real.' Harry said quietly.
Ophelia turned to look at him, but his gaze was fixated on the stone floor, looking as if it was taking everything in him to not break down in front of her.
'That's understandable.' She replied, looking back into the mirror at the family before her.
'It is probably for the best, though. He said it doesn't do us any good to dwell on dreams...and forget to live.' Harry recited.
'Probably for the best.' She repeated, not totally convinced herself. Deep down she knew Dumbledore was right. Spending too much time thinking about another life, about things impossible or so far out of reach; was dangerous. It probably drove witches and wizards mad.
'But it's nice, isn't it?' Harry asked, turning to her. 'Just for a bit, to pretend it's real?'
'Yeah.' Ophelia sighed, turning to look back into the mirror at Sirius, and her Dad and Ginger. Happier versions of themselves. 'Yeah, it is nice.' She sighed.
'Do you reckon Ron really saw the Quidditch Cup?' Harry asked, after a while.
'Probably.' Ophelia nodded. 'It's different for everybody, and Ron hasn't lost anybody.'
Harry sighed. 'Yeah.'
'I'm sorry it isn't real, Harry. I wanted it to be...for you.' Ophelia said quietly.
'I wanted it to be too.' Harry sighed. 'For you too.' He added.
Ophelia nodded.
'It's not fair, is it? If some people looked into this mirror...they'd be able to see something that was possible, you know? Like Ron...he could get what he really desires.'
'Usually our desires have to be far out of reach though.' She added. 'It wouldn't be a desire if it was easy to achieve.'
Harry nodded, as he sat down in front of the mirror.
'What are you-'
'It's going to be gone soon. The mirror. I just want to stay here a bit longer.' He replied. 'You can take the cloak, go back to your dormitory. I'll make my way back eventually. I don't mind.' He added, still staring into the mirror before him.
Ophelia's expression softened, before she knelt down to sit next to him. 'I'll stay.'
'You must be tired-'
'I'm staying.' She smiled, and Harry nodded.
For the rest of the night they sat, just two kids, both tainted with the harshness of the world, peering into the mirror, both of them seeing entirely different reflections gazing back at them.