ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴ ᴏʀ ʜᴇʟʟ ⟶ ɢinny ᴡeasley

xvi

"So, who are you going to the Ball with?"

It was the third time Jude had heard those words that day. Everyone seemed excited about the idea: drink, food, live music, a night to break the rules, definitely. Everyone except Jude, obviously. It wasn't an idea that particularly appealed to her, but she could come to understand why others did want to enjoy it; however, she wouldn't be one of the attendees, something supernatural had to happen for Jude Travers to attend the Yule Ball that year.

The girl remembered with annoyance how the mysterious woman who interrupted her awakenings had pronounced exactly those words. Jude had seen her sitting on the desk where she usually did her homework, and she blurted out that she must already know: she didn't want to go. It wasn't a matter of not having someone to go with —because she knew Draco and Blaise would be crazy to come with her— nor about not having a dress for the occasion —Narcissa could get it in no time at all— but rather, directly, she preferred not to go.

"Why not?" The woman had asked with a small smile, as if hiding something behind it. "That way you'll have a reason to see Riley without hiding, won't you?"

Jude remembered sighing. Yes, it was probably the only way they could speak in public, without having to hide or claim that they were dealing with problems from the sessions. It wasn't that anyone had ever caught them having a conversation, but Jude knew it would be weird to both the other teachers and the rest of the student body for someone like Jude to talk to someone like the young Riley, so they had excuses in their heads in case some curious asked.

It was also true that while part of her would rather their meetings didn't have to be in a sneaky room, she knew that nothing could come of her strange relationship with Riley. It wasn't that she wasn't comfortable with her or that she didn't enjoy her presence, but something inside her warned her that she could never be with Riley as the young squib would like. Still, she had fun with the girl, and while she probably shouldn't have started anything with her, she had seen her as an escape route on more than one occasion.

"I'm not going, and that's final. Why are all of you so obsessed with me going?"

"Maybe it's because we worry about you. It could be a great evening for you to have a good time, to live freely for a couple hours."

"Yeah, well, stop worrying about me. It's said it can cause wrinkles."

The second time had been after eating that same day. Jude was working that afternoon, starting at four o'clock, so she hung around Riley's room for a while, making sure no one was in the hallways before she went into her room. The girl greeted her with a smile, probably thinking it seemed like they hadn't seen each other for too long, and Jude thought she was probably right.

Since the incident with Ginny, Jude had practically locked herself in her room, coming out to eat when she was hungry and to attend classes, which were unfortunately mandatory. She had focused on trying to find out the meaning of that prophecy, because although she didn't know its content and the people who appeared there, she sensed that it had special importance in her life, so she decided to follow her instinct and spent afternoons and nights without shutting an eye trying to find some other clue to help her move forward.

Of course, Riley didn't know about this. Jude had claimed to be very busy with the Quidditch practice —which she still didn't attend— the homework that the teachers gave —which at least wasn't a lie— and the obligations of studying for the final exams of that grade. Because Jude hadn't expressed her desire to leave the castle when she passed them, but anyone who knew her a little could imagine it.

"Good to see you. You've been MIA these past few days," Riley smiled and went back to her chores.

"I'm sorry, I've been busy," Jude excused herself with a sigh, and found herself thinking about how easily she could converse with Riley, when she normally didn't speak more than two words to a normal person. She glanced at the young teacher, who nodded as if it wasn't a problem, and Jude couldn't help but think of Ginny's words that afternoon that seemed so far away now. "Besides, what happened the other day..."