Pretty Little Witches

Chapter 4 - Up Close and Personal

I navigated through the familiar corridors towards the dimly lit dungeons, shivering from the lack of heat, even though it was still halfway through autumn. All I could hear was the clicking of our school shoes against the stone floor, the silence buzzing in my ears.
I didn't like it, why wasn't Erica talking about something by now? Giggling at something she might have thought in her head, tugging at my sleeves so that I slowed down, so she could whisper something funny into my ear which usually had a dirty twist to it; then sprinting off until I eventually understood her innuendo. Even a small nudge was usually slotted in before any of our shared lessons.
I turned around to look at her, making her stumble a bit as I side stepped right in front of her. She noticed my staring and looked up, eyes heavy and a small, forced smile on her lips. Her left arm gripped her ring- binder tightly, making it cave in slightly from the force. Her shoulders slumped, her satchel hanging limply from her shoulder.
"Are you okay? Was it the croissant you ate this morning?"
Erica merely shrugged and walked on towards our classroom, nodding at Cass when she appeared around the corner. Cass was struggling with her cauldron, which was full of books, scrolls and quills. Her Gryffindor house scarf hanging off her neck and brushing the floor. She glanced up and caught sight of Erica, returning the greeting. A look of concern and curiosity arose on her face and she shuffled her arms to get better grip.
'The sealed letter from before must be the reason why she's so distraught. She was happy and chirpy before, smiling and joking with me before that bird-like thing flew above us. But then, what would the letter have said to make her so upset?' I mused as I got up off the floor and slung my multi-coloured backpack onto my shoulder, sighing at my failed attempt to somehow make Erica feel better.
I ran to catch up with them without looking who might be coming in the other direction, my brain frying over the fact that, for once, I couldn't cheer up a friend. My head was facing the floor in a state of confusion when I felt myself hit something solid and hard, and probably about 8 inches taller.
"Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going" I mumbled, trying to stalk past the person. I honestly didn't feel like trying to make small talk with whomever and my only thought at that moment, was to get to lessons.
I saw panic flash through Erica's eyes, having spun around when she heard me talking to the person I bumped into. I felt myself studying her quizzically, wondering why her mood had changed so quickly and why bumping into someone was such a crime, when I felt iron-grip hands clamp onto my shoulders.
"Shit" muttered Erica, turning her face away from me and suddenly taking an interest to a torch on the slimy dungeon walls. Scuffing at the rotten, stone slabs of the floor and reverting to her habit of scratching her arm when things got too awkward for her. Cass's face taken on shock as she slowly crept into the classroom to avoid what was going to happen next.
"Better look where you're going, Meadowreach," taunted a voice from behind me, a veiled bitterness to his voice "Don't want to hurt yourself, now do you?"
I turned my head slowly over my shoulder and found myself staring at a pair of narrowed, steel-grey eyes, belonging to Scorpius Malfoy. A sneer was plastered on his face, his eyes looking at me derogatively.
His obstreperous companions were chortling in the background, making rude gestures to some 1st Years, who were trying to get to their class; causing them to scuttle away in fear. But, before I could think twice about who was standing in front of me and what I should do next, I found myself replying to him.
"Sorry about that Malfoy. I thought I had... hit the wall... but it was just... you?" I said in a flustered tone, in a decrepit attempt to sound like my usual bubbly self; which resulted in him tightening his grip on me. I winced slightly at the increased pain.
Out of the corner of my eye, through a miraculous thing called Peripheral vision, I noticed Professor Slughorn ambling into my Potions class. This year I really had to impress Slughorn and make sure I get the highest possible OWL grade for Potions, so being late to class was not an option. I tried to brush off Scorpius's hands as casually as possible, which realistically would have been trying to remove each gouging finger off of my shoulders; with trembling hands.
Before I could reach up and attempt to remove his hands, Malfoy released my shoulders and crossed around to face me. But, before I could walk away from his smug face, he leant fowards and whispered in my ear.
"Better not get in my way again Mudblood or you might have to pay for the consequences. Now you better run along." he hissed. I felt a cold shiver trickle down my spine as he straightened up and laughed coldly as he swaggered into the Potions class; his little pet dogs scuttling after him, lapping at his feet.
I stood frozen, my body unable to move from shock. My hands shook slightly, clamped tightly to the sides of my body; like rope to stop me falling apart and crumbling to the floor. Then I realised that it was practically nothing compared to other things that people had said or done before.
I let out a shuddery sigh of relief and brushed myself down. 'Can't walk into class looking like I've just been hassled by the most terrifying person in the year' I chimed, as I gradually tried to forget what had just happened.
After composing myself, I walked into the classroom. I muttered an apology to the professor as I hurried to a half empty table, where Cass was already seated. She seemed to have lost the previous look of panic and it was replaced with determination and hope. "Maybe this year, the fates will be kind to her and not violently sever her life string" I thought, a smile forming on my face as I took a seat next to a rust-coloured haired girl, who had a splash of freckles across her nose and cheeks. Rose Weasley.
A few pieces of hair fell below her shoulder in tight waves around her forehead and the rest of her hair in a messy bun in the middle of her head. Her murky blue eyes shone with the need to learn but with a sense of calmness and fun as well. An amused smile pulled at her lips and her pointy but slightly round nose twitching, resisting the urge to itch so she can carry on writing down her notes.
"Rosey Posey how was your summer?" I asked as I plopped myself next to her and started to examine her new quills and ink bottles, trying to occupy my brain with different thoughts. Cass was carefully laying out her parchment, quills and ink wells. Arranging them neatly to occupy the time before Professor Slughorn started the lesson.
"It was fine. My dad was trying to make me practice the whole time but mum was against it. She wanted invite some of my muggle friends, so it would be a tad bit difficult to explain, me flying around on a broom, holding a bat, attacking him with the bludger. And Hugo was such a pain and all he did was play his new 3DS and rant about how much I spend on books and how stupid it was that I read in summer and that I don't appreciate the muggle culture enough. He only says that because he likes video games and that's pretty much it. Sometimes I cannot actually believe that I am related to him." rambled Rose as she prepared a fresh roll of a parchment and snatched back her new quill from my fidgeting hands and dipped it into a ink well of swirling, crimson liquid.
"Ahem, children settle down. Right, welcome back to Hogwarts for 5th year Potions! If you didn't already know, which I'm sure you do, I am Professor Slughorn" he yelled as he waved his arms frantically to get the twittering class to settle down. "We also seem to have a new pupil in our class this year. I'd like to welcome Cassandra Villan, who we would've all seen at the Great Hall. So please make her feel welcome."
Suddenly it became dead silent as heads of boys and girls all started to scan around the classroom, searching for an unfamiliar face. I looked for Erica, who was seated opposite Scorpius. She was fiddling with her quill, her body caving towards the table, her eyes filled with concern and anxiety.
"Yes, we must all be very kind to Cassandra. Let's give her a little surprise." jeered Malfoy, as he messily tore a page from his new Potions textbook and elegantly scrawled a message onto it. He then picked up his hawthorn wand and tapped the paper, folding it into a perfect crane. He scooped it up and released it, fluttering gracefully and spiralling in the air, before dive bombing towards our table.
I pulled my slightly worn wand out of my robe pocket and hid it discreetly beneath the scourged table edge. I pointed my wand towards the advancing crane and whispered. "Incendio!" The crane combusted into an emerald flame, smouldering paper confetti littering the floor.
Malfoy immediately searched for the source of the infiltration and trained his eyes on me. I victoriously stuffed my wand back into my robes and rolled out the parchment on my now slightly smoking desk, busying myself so I would avoid eye contact with Scorpius.
"Right so class, today we will be covering a topic which is most definitely in your OWLS, so make sure you don't slag off today!" said Slughorn whilst ushering the pupils to approach the front of the classroom.
Two small, dented cauldrons were placed upon the worktable, each containing a liquid. The first had a golden sheen on the top and little droplets of the potion skipping over the surface, like a dolphin jumping over the sea.
The other was a clear, bubbling potion with an intoxicating smell wafting from it, pulling me into an embrace of musk, apple pies, fresh pages in a book and buttered sweetcorn. I crept forwards, stretching my prying fingers towards the broiling solution in the rusty pot.
Then suddenly there was a huge smack echoing across the room from the other side, distracting me from the mesmerised trance that the potion seemed to put me under. I peered through the crowd of black cotton and a blur of green and red stripes, to find Erica, who had slammed her hand to her head, covering her eyes and nose. She peeled her hand away from her face and blushed furiously before slinking away towards the back of the crowd.
A few girls in the class seemed to be in a charmed stupor, sighing deeply as they attempted to claw at the air around them while others were flushed and trying to ignore a particular overpowering sense.
"Now, can anyone tell me what potion is contained within this cauldron?" enquired Professor Slughorn, motioning towards the water-like potion.
I immediately raised my hand, jubilant that potions was my forte. I had always had a fascination for it as a kid. Putting flour, food colouring, mud and other random things around my home into a pan to stir and admire as a concoction that I had produced. as it bubbled and stuck to the bottom of the pan.
And so, when I arrived at Hogwarts and found out that there was indeed such a thing as potion making, I decided to focus on it more than any other subject; sometimes not dedicating enough time to other subjects. Unsurprisingly, my grades started to plummet. Eventually I sorted myself out, with the help of Saph and Erica, managing to bring my grades up, whilst keeping my passion for Potions in check.
"It's Amortentia, sir. Could I explain the effect- well, it's an extremely powerful love potion and many of the girls in our year want it to use it for their crushes," I stated, turning my head to face Cass and quirked my eyebrows, causing a blush to creep up her face as she glared at me; as if she were saying I'm going to murder you. "If one were to consume it, they will fall head over heels in love with the person who forced fed them it."
"Er... well your answer was correct in different context. But yes, Amortentia is indeed a powerful love potion. Even a wizard like myself would not be able to avoid the effects of it," Said Slughorn, whilst looking at me in a diminutive way. "Unfortunately, we won't be covering those potions as they are for NEWTs. However, I thought I'd try and bribe you today into taking Potions for NEWTs. That is if you get higher than E though, but I believe you all have the potential."
"Well Eliza certainly seems to know a lot about love potions. She must have had lots of experience using them, but I guess they never work" squealed a few Slytherin girls who were crowded around Scorpius and his friend Zion Zambini, who had his arm draped over a plastic- looking girl, giggling and flirting with the pair.
I chuckled at their remark. 'I think they must be referring to themselves, since they're throwing themselves at the Slytherin sewer rats.'
"Now today I will get everyone to partner up with each other as this potion is quite advanced for someone to brew by themselves. Now there's no need to worry about who you will be going with as I have made a list and partnered you up myself!" said Professor Slughorn enthusiastically, blissfully ignoring the chorus of annoyed groans from the class. "Oh and they will be your partner for the rest of the academic year, so please be nice to each other. I don't want any hair pulling or exploding of the potions between your partners!"
Slughorn produced a list of the names of all the kids in the class. He then tapped it with his wand, the names rearranging themselves and ending up in two columns. He then read the names off the list and people started to reluctantly shuffle over to their designated partners.
"Majorie Nott and Nellia Flint, Gregory Creevey and Amelia Harisson, Erica Havenard and Zion Zambini, Eliza Meadowreach and Rose Weasley and last but not least Cassandra Villain and Scorpius Malfoy," announced Slughorn, oblivious to the frustrated sighs and scowls rumbling in the classroom. Scorpius' face broke out into a sly grin, slumping back in his chair, flinging his arm over the girl's chair next to his and crossing his legs at the ankles.
I glanced at Cass, who seemed to have snapped her new quill. Her ink blotched hands were clenched and resting on the table. Her face... She looked pissed. Her eyes were narrowed at Scorpius as if to say 'you mess with me today and I will punch you in the face.'
I leant forwards, partially sprawling myself across the table and tapped her shoulder. She whipped around, looking slightly taken aback and surprised that I had managed to get across the table without mauling myself. I pushed myself onto my hands, struggling a bit, and flashed an incredibly false and flashy smile and trying to imitate Malfoy and produced an exaggerated smirk, whilst scrunching my eyebrows together and jutting out my bottom lip.
Cass burst out laughing, making people stare at us and give us weird looks. But I really couldn't care, because I had at least redeemed myself from what had happened earlier. I finally rolled off sideways and carefully placed my feet on the floor, curtsying as a finale, whilst Cass was wiping at her eyes; still chuckling softly.
Rose had joined in with the hysteric giggling and was trying to hold it in as she carried on scribbling away. She seem unfazed that I had crawled across the table and had managed to knock over one of her ink wells, which was now dripping a bit of ink from the half open lid. She looked up and noticed the overturned pot, picking it up and placing it upright before immediately returning back to her parchment. I tried to peer over her slumped figure to read what was written, but it was scrawled all in a foreign language and her handwriting cursive, making it impossible to know what it was about and what she had actually written.
I turned to Professor Slughorn, who was busying himself with a tissue paper-trimmed box of crystallised pineapples, whilst overlooking some of the pupils who had already started to get their equipment ready. I felt my mouth water as I imagined what the crystallised pineapples might taste like. I missed the muggle sweets that my mother used to buy for me and the crinkling of the pale blue, striped bag that she would hand to me; a smile upon her face and her eyes shining with happiness and love.
Professor Slughorn looked up, caster sugar stuck on his wispy moustache. A look of surprise appeared on his face but changed to a cheerful smile, delighted that one of his students wanted to try one of his treats.
"Would you like one?"
I gingerly reached out, a little embarrassed to be caught in an almost drooling state, and plucked out a crystallised pineapple from the box. I plopped it into my mouth, whilst I skipped back to my table. It was sweet and tangy but slightly fizzy, like popping candy. Almost a chewy, pineapple-y version of Rhubarb and Custard.
Cass seemed to have gone to a different table, attempting to set up her cauldron whilst Malfoy propped himself against the desk; picking at an old burn on the worktable. She reached up to massage her temples, as if she had a throbbing headache. She looked at Malfoy irritably as she violently slammed a textbook on the table, only earning a snicker then a pompous smirk in return.
"Now that you're all in partners, I would like to set today's task. Polyjuice Potion, a potion which grants the ability to change one's appearance but it will take quite a while, so it will be a project for a few weeks. Good luck as it is quite difficult, but I'm sure some of you will find it quite easy" said Slughorn, winking at Malfoy.
I felt envy and petty resentment bubble up inside me. I started to rub my fingers with my thumb, as if I was trying to pull off the skin. "Why am I wasting my time on Malfoy?" I thought and realised that maybe I was becoming childish on the inside as well as the outside.
I reached up and pulled my hair tie out, letting the top layer of my hair fall onto the nape of my neck. I started to fiddle with the worn out, ivy-green string, slowly calming myself down and providing a source of distraction. I glanced over to Rose who was still scribbling down something in an unknown language.
"Rose, you know we're meant to start now?"
"What? Oh yes... no I heard him. I already practised making this with my mum way too many times. So, I can probably hand you the ingredients and mush some stuff up. How about that?" Suggested Rose whilst rolling up her work and stuffing it into a little, Aztec looking and beaded pouch hanging from her neck. I stared at it in wonder, stopping my inner craving to reach out and feel it.
"You can finally have your time to shine too!" she whispered dramatically, gesturing at Malfoy, "and I don't really think Cassie will let that take all the credit."
I beamed. Rose was clever but kind and empathetic to all the rubbish that I ever talked about. I guess she got the best of both parents. I never found myself in awe of her because of her parents. I try to ignore that fact when I was younger.
But, in 2nd year, she brought me back to their apartment in London and I met her parents. I couldn't help but feel like I was in the presence of a celebrity and not my friend's parents. My brain had melt out of my ears and I couldn't make a coherent sentence without stuttering when they talked to me. Rose was giggling the whole time and her brother flicking at the back of my ears, making it a whole lot more difficult.
Until her mum had admitted sheepishly that she had once fawned over a celebrity, who became her professor and turned out to be a complete poser, assuring me that I was reacting like any normal person and that she probably had been worse than me. After that we were laughing and joking and I left their home feeling warm and as if a hundred Sugared Butterfly Wings were launching themselves into the walls of my stomach.
As Rose occupied herself, looking for the appropriate ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion. I pushed back the wooden pew and stood up, skirting around the edge of the table to set up my cauldron and light a flame to boil the water. I picked up my spotless, silver cutting knife, brushing the sharp end with a fingertip. I settled it in between my fingers and began to twiddle it, eventually making the blade spin around until it became a shiny blur. Suddenly I felt a sharp pain on my finger, as I dropped the knife and watched as crimson liquid dribbled from a deep slit.
"Vulnera Sanentur," I mumbled, watching as the skin knit itself back together, over the cut. I flexed my healed hand. The miracles magic could do. I wished that I could have used magic as a kid, when I sliced my shin open, the result of falling off my bike. I had been cycling through a dense forest, thick roots sticking out the moist earth and cherishing the rustling of the autumnal leaves, swirling around my bike wheel. Whilst distracted by a lone squirrel, scuttling up a tree branch, I hit a tree root at an awkward angle; launching myself off the bike and sprawling across the brown mouldy pile of rotting leaves. I had bawled my eyes out, the blood trickling down my knee and dull grey stones, jutting out from skin.
And now, a pinkish, speckled scar had traced itself down my shin, white freckles dotted around my knee from pieces of flint which had lodged themselves under my skin. I was lucky to not have broken something vital like my collarbone, but I still have a permanent reminder left behind. I guess every person needs a flaw, physically or mentally.
Rose came bustling back to our table, holding a large jar of Lacewing Flies. According to a random textbook, which Slughorn had placed in a pile on his desk before the lesson, Lacewing Flies have to be brewed for 21 days. So that's probably a few weeks of writing essays and long, rambling lectures on 'A Cure for Boils' and 'Herbicide Potions'.
"Oh he's back now." She said bitterly, fixing her eyes towards Cassandra's and Malfoy's table. "When I went to get the flies, he looked seriously dodgy. He was on the opposite side of the store room, staring at the antidotes section, whilst everyone was collecting their stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if he was trying to protect himself from someone, it's like he's begging someone shove a Cornish Pixie up his arse every time he speaks." She mumbled, unnecessarily crushing some flies under the butt of her cutting knife.
I twisted my body to face Malfoy, using my chair as a support. He was leisurely crushing a pile of flies and elbowing Cass to get to the cauldron, dumping the pile of shredded wings into the frothing liquid. He didn't seemed too fazed about people poisoning him.
I sighed as I retied my hair into a little bun and checked the cauldron temperature, whilst measuring out 3 cups of Lacewing Flies. I waved my hand over the cauldron to keep them warm, the draft in the room mingling with heat of the cauldron. The Hogwarts castle has no heating system apart from the fire places and the occasional sweaty, body heated room. So, any opportunity to keep warm in the late autumn weather was cherished.
"My, Cassandra! You only have a Pewter Cauldron? I would've thought, your parents being Death Eaters, that you'd be able to at least afford something a little better than that." Said Malfoy, raising his voice a little to catch the attention of the class. The Slytherin girls, who were hanging around Malfoy earlier, were glaring at her; stares dripping with hate and envy, oblivious to the fact that they were cousins.
"Oh I'm so sorry Scorpius! At least I don't go running to my daddy when a girl beats me at Quidditch"
People tried to hold back their surprised gasps and started to whisper among themselves, stealing glances at the bitter pair, the occasional held- back giggle resounding through the room.
I looked at Cassandra in fascination. Never had I seen so much ire and pride in a person before.
I saw venom spit like a bonfire in Malfoy's eyes. Raging and unruly. His fingers digging into the desk, shoulders hunched, arms tense. He released one hand from the desk and hovered it over the silver cutting knife, hesitating and shaking.
Suddenly he retraced his hands from the desk and folded them behind his back, taking one large stride towards Cass. He leant slightly towards her, craning his neck to whisper something to her; trying to conceal a belittling sneer. He pulled away and started to measure out some Lacewing Flies, humming a famous wizard song, a smirk still plastered on his face.
I turned away before anything could unravel between the two, and I returned to preparing the Lacewing Flies for stewing. I tilted the cups of flies and dropped them into the bubbling water, the sound of bitter arguing ringing in the background.
I glanced at Rose's pouch, suddenly becoming distracted and I ended up starting at it. I was completely flabbergasted. It was so pretty but it was probably the most efficient and intricate thing I had ever seen in my life. Rose noticed my staring and smiled happily, removing it from her neck and placing it tenderly in my hands, occasionally looking up from her parchment to find me examining it carefully.
"It was my mum's. She used it when she was in the war. She thought I might not want to use it but I thought that it was too beautiful to waste" She said, looking at the pouch with intrigue, her voice soft with admiration.
I turned it over in my hands, tracing the brightly coloured but faded, sewn patterns. The string to tie the pouch had fallen out, leaving two small holes on both sides. On the bottom left corner, the material was fraying and pieces of string hung off limply, the tight weaving starting to unravel itself. I carefully opened the top to find a black abyss and I noticed the occasional quill or sweet wrapper in the darkness. I decided to experiment and slowly placed my hand into the bag, until my shoulder was poking out from the top. I removed my arm and quietly shuffled around to Rose and placed the pouch in front of her, earning myself an acknowledging nod and a smile.
Suddenly I heard an ear splitting bang from the other side of the room. I whipped my head around to find a fuming Cassandra and a snorting Malfoy, who was clutching his stomach and staggering away from a smoking cauldron. Black fumes pouring out of it and settling like mist, in the classroom.
I walked over to the knocked over potion, pulling up my jumper to cover my nose and mouth, eyes watering slightly. But my curiosity got the better of me as I examined the glowing black sludge pouring out of the cracks. I saw a few shiny, flaming wings of flies but a lumpy, sand-stone like item caught my attention. I deftly removed it from the slime and levitated it onto the table. It was still smouldering and small chunks had been blown out of it. It was a bezoar, it had to be.
Nothing else could've make something explode and still be in an almost pristine state. Malfoy was still snorting and had made his way to Erica's table, chatting with Zion and motioning towards the soot mess of the explosion. Cassandra had taken my seat by Rose. She was resting her head on the table, her arms blanketing her head, as if she were trying to block out Malfoy's cackles. I assured myself that Cassandra didn't seem daft enough to put the bezoar in, so who else?
I felt adrenaline coursing through my body, my ideas became sillier and rasher by the second. I knew I had to do this, my body switching to defensive mode whenever I saw something get too out of hand with my friends.
"Professor Slughorn, I was wondering if I could swap with Cassandra, partners wise," I blurted out, suddenly realising that it was a terrible idea. Professor Slughorn had spun around and was looking at me strangely, his face breaking out into an intrigued grin. I looked back at Cassandra, whom had raised her head from the table, her eyes were slightly pink but her face was swimming with confused delight. 'I have to do this for her. It's the least I can do to help her and how bad can it be...?'
"And why is it that you want to swap, Miss Meadowreach?"
"Well, we agreed that maybe it would be a lot easier for her to work with someone in her house, since she's new, and then she won't have trouble with the projects, whilst I would have already had past experience, sir.
"Interesting. Well I don't see why not. I will stew the Flies for you and Mr. Malfoy and the following lesson you two will start working together. As for you, Cassandra, I will find a replacement for your damaged cauldron, until then, I wouldn't think you'll have to use it for anything else."
~~~~
"Now students, I want you all to leave your cauldrons as they are and I would like you all to write about why it is essential to prepare certain ingredients in a specific way to complete Polyjuice potion accurately and don't forget to add Fluxweed picking on the New Moon to your calendar, if do you have one. That is all for today. You are all dismissed"
The sound of benches being scraped across the floor filled the room as people started to pack away their quills and ink wells, chatting with each other about their next lesson on their new schedule. Cass seemed to have perk up towards the end and had decided to approach me, trying to hide her delight and bashfulness by putting on a straight face. Her stance a little awkward as she held her satchel in her arms.
"Eliza, I just wanted to say... thanks and um... I really appreciate what you did" she said, fiddling with the strap of her bag, looking downwards.
I smiled and patted her on the shoulder, earning myself a grateful look and a wide grin. I pulled her into a hug, squeezing a little too tightly, making her choke a bit. I released her and slung my backpack on, nodding my head towards the door.
We walked out together, parting ways as I turned down the corridor to go towards the Defence against the Dark Arts room, when I abruptly felt my shoulder being shoved forcefully to the nearby wall, grazing the skin underneath my collar. I had squeezed my eyes shut from reflex, waiting for the impact.
But it didn't come.
The person was putting all their weight on me, leaning in so close I could smell musk, grass and a hint of lemon. Their chest squeezing my shoulders and their knees brushing against mine own. I had heard their hands slamming into the brick wall above my head, trapping me inside their overly personal cage. They removed a hand from the bricks and tugged at my hair, tilting my head sideways, their breath tickling my ear.
"I told you not to interfere. You better watch out from now on, Meadowreach. I really didn't want to have to mar a pretty face like yours" Purred a venomous voice. I cowered into the wall and began to open my eyes, when the weight was hastily lifted from my shoulders. All I could see was lemon blond haired boy stalking away from me, a dark green, cotton material hanging from his hand, and my hair loose again.