ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴅʀᴀᴛᴛᴇᴅ ʟɪʟᴀ ʜᴏʟᴍᴇꜱ || ᴅʀᴀᴄᴏ ᴍᴀʟꜰᴏʏ x ᴏᴄ || ʏᴇᴀʀꜱ 1-3

failed rescue

a/n short-ish chapter. more Gryffindor bonding <33

Many hours later, I was in the girls dormitories furiously working on trying to connect the dots. I had my mind maps out in front of me, perusing the mythology book.

"Wow, you're really invested in this," Parvati observed. She was the only one awake of the other Gryffindor girls, Hermione only having gone to sleep after her homework was finished. I knew for a fact she had Ravenclaws doing her homework. What was she even awake for? I looked at her shrewdly.

"Well yes, you would be too if you were in perpetual danger."

She scoffed and flushed, trying to mask embarrassment with defensiveness. "I'm not saying I wouldn't help. It's just the teachers have got it under control, I would think." Her expression softened. "But I get it. Every day that goes by with whatever or whoever is behind this running loose I get more and more worried."

I too softened my scorn. "It's okay. I guess I'm just not the type to sit by and let things happen. I'm sure Dumbledore's working on it, but it's not enough for me if I'm not helping too."

I picked up the mythology book, leafing through it. I idly glanced at a few of the chapters that Malfoy had indicated. However, I realized suddenly that Malfoy had circled the heading above the Gorgons. On the following page, he circled a short passage so aggressively that the words around it were hardly legible.

"While the Gorgons slept, Perseus attacked, using Athena's polished shield to view the reflection of Medusa's awful face and avoid her petrifying gaze while he beheaded her with a harpe, an adamantine sword."

I stared, re-reading it. Parvati made a face.

"Whoever did that to a library book deserves jail time," she expressed. I would have laughed, had the situation not been so serious. Suddenly, I procured a quill and began to scribble furiously into my mind map.

Don't look into it's eyes, I wrote. USE MIRROR.

"Um," Parvati glanced at me warily. "You don't reckon Slytherin's monster is Medusa, do you?"

"Slytherin's monster can Petrify people," I said. "Most likely through eye contact. Meaning, if we protect ourselves with mirrors, we're not likely to fall victim to it."

Parvati seemed surprised. "You're so sure."

I pursed my lips. She was right. I had a lot of faith in Malfoy, and that trust had become unstable a long time ago. For all I knew, he could be the Heir.

I sighed. "I'm not, actually. But it's the best lead we have, and—"

"I smell blood . . ."

I dropped my quill, my heart racing. Parvati looked at me strangely.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"There's about to be another attack," I said, feeling my skin prickle. "That, I am sure of."

Parvati stared in disbelief. "How could you know that?"

"I—" I hesitated. "I hear a voice, whenever it happens. I heard it last time, with Ms. Norris."

And in the dream with Anne, but Parvati didn't have to know that.

Her eyes widened. "What are you going to do?"

I bit my lip so hard I could taste blood. "I don't know."

Suddenly, Parvati stood and began to rifle through her bag. I watched her anxiously until she suddenly produced two makeup mirrors.