Through Her Eyes

Chapter 48

"And where have you been?"

The two students barely stepped into the dining hall when Mr. Malfoy glowered at them from his seat. He was eating breakfast with his wife and two people were missing.

"That was fast," Ophelia mumbled, following Lucius to the table. The blond was so stiff that he looked petrified.

"I'm sorry, father. It was my fault." Lucius apologized. Ophelia glanced at Mr. Malfoy and swiftly checked if he knew where they have been. It didn't seem so.

"I needed to grab something from home. It was real quick." She interfered seeing how Lucius might give them out.

The blond turned to her with a confused and frustrated look but she didn't let him speak.

"I-"

"He came with me since he is babysitting me. I'm sure you can understand, sir." Her tone was definite and firm and Malfoy could not go against it even if he would have liked to.

"Very well but do not make a habit of it. Lucius, we'll discuss this later."

"Yes, father."

Content with herself and the recent events, Ophelia sat down next to the blond and waited for the house elf to enter and place the food for them. It was the same one Mrs. Malfoy screamed at and since she was in such a good mood, the witch smiled at the house elf.

"Thank you, Mildred,"

The house elf stopped and almost spilled the milk over Ophelia's lap but the girl grabbed it in time. Watching her leave, the rest of the table turned towards her with an exasperated sigh.

"I told you,they like to be enslaved." Lucius mumbled from the side.

The rest of the day continued rather silently for Ophelia. She took a shower, changed her clothes and went into the library. There were a lot of books about magic and law and history of the wizarding world. Walking around, she noticed a book with a familiar name: The Tales of Beedle the Bard.

It looked to be in a better condition than the one she got for Christmas, maybe a more recent edition. She skimmed through the pages of the book, chuckling to herself at the few pictures. One of them was called Babbity Rabbity and her Cackling Stump. Dipping into it, Ophelia found it quite interesting compared to the funny title.

Selfish King wants to do magic and if he doesn't,then nobody should either. A muggle tries to help but in the end, he also seeks help from a real witch, Babbity. When in danger, the woman turns into a rabbit and smartly turns the situation around.

"She turns into a rabbit, huh?"

That was very familiar, reminding her of her earlier years at Hogwarts when her housemates were talking about animagi. Back then Remus said he'd prefer a small form,which now made sense.

Next, Ophelia read the story that seemed to imply a lot more: The Tale of the Three Brothers. From the beginning to the end, she was absorbed by the subject.

When Lucius entered the library, he found her sitting comfortably near the window, reading about animagi from what he noticed. In the middle of the pile of books was the collection of childish stories.

"Are you planning on becoming an animagus?" Lucius asked with sarcasm.

"No. But I want to know how I can recognize one. It seems that when in animal form, you can talk to other animals and other animagi. Besides, you choose the form and it can come in handy at times."

"Saving a house elf, for example?" Lucius asked sarcastically but she nodded nontheless.

"What did your father say? He scolded you?"