Chereads / Darker Than Gray / Chapter 10 - Chapter 10

Chapter 10 - Chapter 10

His quill scribbled on the parchment, tracing the collection of the same symbols repeatedly.

Ancient Runes was an interesting subject. The fact that it was so versatile and was one of the primary components of most magical rituals made Harry want to master the art the best he could. He knew he would need to undertake rituals in the future. There was no way he could ever hope to bridge the massive gap between himself and Voldemort without the aid of the esoteric arts.

Even then, he was not sure whether he could truly overcome the dark wizard. Harry had adopted a simple philosophy – assume Voldemort was more powerful than he thought he was, and prepare accordingly. Rituals might not enable him to gain a significant advantage over Voldemort himself, but they would surely go a long way in evening out any shortcomings he had.

However, it didn't mean he was studying Runes only for their future use. The aid he could garner from the subject aside, he was truly enjoying the subject, particularly after what he had read in Slytherin's tome.

The tome was a treasure trove of knowledge, and Harry had read the first hundred pages of the four-hundred-page book in the last two days. Salazar had this habit of combining imparting knowledge with storytelling, and he had used the tome to add a few intriguing points about his life alongside the spells he had created. Harry noted, to his disappointment, that most of the spells created by Slytherin that he had read in those first hundred pages had either become commonplace in the modern time or had been expanded upon by witches and wizards who had come after him. He hoped the remaining pages contained a few obscure spells which he could add to his repertoire.

Although he had not read it up so far, the tome also contained mentions of several rituals. He had been leafing through the tome when he had chanced upon a section detailing the procedures of one which at first glance Harry found very welcoming. He resolved to read further on them when he got back to Hogwarts.

What he had read so far also did give him insight into the mind of the ancient wizard. To think that the founder was so misjudged by the entire wizarding populace brought a bad taste in his mouth.

Contrary to what people believed, Salazar Slytherin was neither a pureblood supremacist, nor was he a dark wizard. Instead, he was a practical man. A visionary who could recognize the problems the magical folk would face in the future before the others could even think that something might be wrong.

The man had predicted that witches and wizards would be in danger from the muggles whose religious teachings and the fear of the unknown would drive them toward committing the grievous sin of killing any magical person they could find. He believed that the existence of magic should be kept a secret from the muggles. However, not many shared his skepticism or opinions, with a few calling him a radical and openly balking at his proposal of separating magical children from their parents in infancy. They couldn't imagine doing something so heinous.

Cracks slowly started to appear in the relationship between Salazar and the other three founders until the former couldn't take it anymore. Salazar had summarized his thoughts succinctly in the tome.

'I fear we have reached the point of no return. I hoped we could reach an accord, but now I realize it was a foolish endeavor on my part. I had hoped that Godric's thoughts would align with my own; that he would understand why separation was necessary. However, even he fell prey to the preposterous belief that somehow the wizarding kind and the non-wizarding kind could coexist.

One day they will realize that I was right. When the muggles start persecuting those with magical blood, they will realize their folly. They will have to conceal the existence of magic from the muggles. And when they do that, I hope they remember that there was someone who warned them, but they refused to listen.'

Salazar Slytherin had predicted the witch hunts. He had predicted the trials. However, no one listened to him. Not until the hunts began in earnest. However, by then, it was too late. The wizarding folk had no choice but to go into hiding.

Although the founder left Hogwarts for good, he left something behind – insurance that would come to Hogwarts' aid when the muggles eventually waged war on the magical folk and invaded the sacred castle. So far, he had not read Salazar explicitly mentioning the full details, but he did disclose that he had constructed the Chamber of Secrets and housed his trustworthy creature therein to purge the school of any inbound invaders. The creature could only be commanded by either him or someone who shared his blood, Harry noted keenly as he read the tome.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on the perspective, no one attacked Hogwarts as the other three founders realized what their estranged friend had said was right. Although they could not find it in themselves to separate parents from their children, they did ensure that the magical world was hidden from the muggle world.

However, numerous witches and wizards perished before the separation was complete.

Harry found the entire tale fascinating, even though he read it all from Salazar's point of view. The man had expressed his desire to return several times. However, he refrained from acting upon it.

Harry could somewhat agree with the man. But there was one point he fervently disagreed with, even though he understood the man's reasons.

Salazar had lumped the muggleborn students with the muggles, and he believed that the muggleborns would lead to the fall of Hogwarts. According to the man, when push came to shove, the muggleborns would always choose the muggles over their wizarding brethren. Thus, it was better if they restricted muggleborns from attending Hogwarts altogether.

Harry had no idea what the muggleborns would choose if it came down to it, but restricting them from joining Hogwarts was not something he could wholeheartedly agree with. Perhaps that was where the notion of the man being a blood supremacist stemmed from. People had forgotten all the important, meaningful points he had made and isolated one, which became the only trait the man was known by to this day.

The Chamber of Secrets also intrigued him, and he could not help but wonder where it was and what the creature Salazar had housed within it was. Perhaps Salazar had mentioned it in this tome and he could find it one day. However, he would not go for it unprepared. The past year had taught him the perils of overestimating himself and rushing in. He didn't know if the creature was even alive. It had been over a thousand years since the incident, but age did not matter for magical creatures, many of which were known to live for thousands of years, or even in perpetuity. Knowing the purpose for which the creature was housed at Hogwarts, Harry could easily guess that it was something very dangerous, and it was in his best interests to exercise caution.

-Break-

Harry sighed as he walked through the wall and entered Diagon Alley. Of all the days, his friends had decided to finish the final bit of their school shopping on what turned out to be the busiest day possible.

"Harry, over here!" Susan's shout prompted him to look over, and he nodded at the redhead waving her hand. Hannah and Neville were already with her.

"We really have to do this today? Look at the crowd," he sighed as he looked over.

"Oh come on already, we've only got the books left. We'd be done in no time," Hannah waved her hand dismissively as she walked toward Flourish and Blotts. The other two nodded and followed her. Harry sighed. He didn't have any other choice either.

"What the hell!?" Hannah shouted as they stared at the massive queue outside the bookstore that stretched up across half the street and comprised mainly of witches, all of whom looked to be in their late thirties or more. "What's going on here?"

"Gilderoy Lockhart's new book's releasing, didn't you hear? His autobiography, no less!" A middle-aged witch gushed as she beamed at Hannah, who looked taken aback at the closeness and quickly jumped back. "Oh, sorry dear, I didn't mean to startle you. It's just I'm so excited!"

"Uh… yeah, I can see that," Hannah said, visibly disturbed. "So he's in there? That's what this is all about?"

The woman nodded emphatically. "You're here for his autograph too, aren't you dears? Sadly you'll have to get in line as well."

Suddenly, the queue moved and the woman hurriedly rushed forward before they could even speak anything.

"Who's this Lockhart guy?" Harry asked Susan in confusion, who looked at him and sighed.

"A famous author. He's written many books about his adventures. Women sitting on their bums all day having nothing to do with their lives fawn over him. I've no idea why," she huffed.

"Not to mention he's frequently on Teen Witch Weekly's cover," Hannah chimed in.

Harry and Neville gave her incredulous stares.

"Yeah, I have a subscription, so what? Stop judging me," she muttered as Susan shook her head.

"Come on, we'll grab our books and leave quickly," she prompted. To their immense fortune, they were granted entry ahead of those in the queue since they were not there to meet Lockhart. Immediately, they went over to the section which housed their course materials. While the Hufflepuffs busied themselves with the shelves for second-year students, Harry walked over to the fifth and sixth-year ones and started to pull the requisite books out.

He frowned when he looked at the Defense texts. Surprisingly, there were seven in total, and all were written by none other than Lockhart. Shrugging, he grabbed them all. It seemed their new Defense professor was either a huge Lockhart fanatic or found something truly informational in those books.

He met his friends in the middle and saw, to his surprise, that they had those seven Lockhart books as well.

"What are you doing with all of Lockhart's books?"

"What do you mean?" Susan asked with a frown before she looked at the books he had with him. "You too? How come we have the same books?"

Harry shrugged and they walked over to the counter to pay for their books when suddenly a firm hand grabbed Harry by the shoulder.

Immediately, Harry shrugged the arm off and abruptly turned around, his wand pointed forward at the surprised man who looked at the tip before giving a jovial laugh. Harry belatedly noticed the absolute silence in the shop as numerous middle-aged women either stared at him in shock or glared.

"Oho, brilliant reaction time, dear boy! You'll make a damn fine auror!" The man chortled with a wide grin. Harry remained silent, recognizing him as none other than Gilderoy Lockhart. The man was wearing flamboyant blue robes and had definitely done something to his hair, making it wave so much. There was no way normal hair behaved like that.

The man looked absolutely ridiculous, and Harry had a hard time believing that this fellow had been on numerous adventures or was even capable enough that he'd written so many books and inspired their new Defense professor to even prescribe them for what looked like all seven years.

Lockhart turned around and beamed at the gathered crowd. Harry and his friends grimaced at the audible sighs the women let out. Most of them were married, for fuck's sake!

"Well, I was going to announce this in a few weeks but this seems as good a time as any," he announced, smiling widely. The woman sighed once again as he flashed his teeth. "Starting the first of September, I shall be taking a brief hiatus from my regular occupation of fighting banshees, vampires, werewolves, yeti and the ilk. I shall instead embark on a new endeavor – a noble cause that would see me nurture the future generation and possibly cultivate a new Gilderoy Lockhart. That is right, ladies and gentlemen. The esteemed headmaster of Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore himself has asked me to bestow my highly sought after expertise as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!"

A resounding applause ensued as cameras flashed, blinding Harry and his friends who stood there in shock.

-Break-

As soon as the camera flashes ended, Harry and his friends paid for their books and escaped the bookstore. Lockhart had made to stop them but they expertly ignored his calls, acting as if they couldn't hear him over the noise of his hysterical female crowd.

Harry spotted a few middle-aged men standing outside the bookstore, glaring inside, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yeah, I won't be happy if my girlfriend of wife acted like those women either," Neville muttered as they walked into the street.

"Did you see those idiots sighing!?" Hannah exclaimed. "What a bunch of losers."

"Forget about them. We'll have to tolerate his antics for the entire year!" Susan remarked, and they couldn't help but grimace.

"Come on, there's nothing we can do about it. I need to buy an owl. Made a mistake not getting one last year," Harry prompted and they crossed the street where Eeylops Owl Emporium was situated.

Large bird cages filled the racks and the cacophony of bird noises greeted them when they entered.

"Which kind would you like, Harry?" Hannah asked, looking around. Harry shrugged.

"Don't have any preference," he replied. The blonde nodded and they started to look around.

Immediately, Harry's eyes fell on a beautiful snowy white owl perched on a branch. Unlike the others, this owl was not in a cage.

"That one's beautiful," the soft voice of Susan beside him made him nod.

"Excuse me, we'd like to buy that owl," he pointed out the owl to the shopkeeper, who looked over and grimaced.

"Well, if you can call her down and get her to go with you," the man shrugged. Harry frowned and exchanged a look with Susan, who furrowed her brows. He looked up at the owl and caught her eyes.

The owl stared at him keenly. However, she made no move to get down. After two minutes of intense staring, Harry had had enough and decided to try something else.

His eyes flashed a shade of intense emerald. However, instead of obeying his command as he had expected, the owl squawked in indignation. Harry frowned at her glare. This one was special.

"You can always get another one," Susan interjected with a frown since the owl didn't seem to budge in the slightest. She was surprised when Harry shook his head.

"I want this one."

Susan sighed.

"Stubborn prat," she whispered to herself and looked up as Harry locked eyes with the owl once again. The owl looked to be staring intently at him as well. Susan had a weird thought that the two were talking to each other somehow before she shook her head in amusement. As if something like that was possible.

However, she was surprised when the owl suddenly glided down and perched herself on Harry's outstretched arm, looking at him keenly with those large amber eyes.

"I'll call you Hedwig," she heard Harry say with a warm smile as the owl hooted softly. Smiling, he turned to look at her, and she had no idea why her breath hitched as she looked at his face. He looked… different somehow.

Blinking, she smiled back. "Nice."

-Break-

Hannah frowned at the look on her best friend's face as she came back with Harry who was holding the beautiful owl's cage in his hand. She noted, amused, that the owl had made herself home on his other shoulder.

"What's up with you?" She asked Susan in a whisper as they walked out of the shop. However, before her friend could reply, a loud commotion on the opposite side of the street made them look ahead.

"Go get him, dad!" A familiar voice shouted in encouragement.

The quartet look on in surprise as a red-haired man lunged forward, socking a blonde-haired one in the face amidst intense cheering from who they now identified as the Weasley Twins and Ron Weasley. A red-haired woman seemed to be trying her best to separate the two while a man who they recognized as an employee of Flourish and Blotts bemoaned the damage their brawl had done.

Eventually, the brawl came to a stop when none other than Hagrid grabbed both men by the back of their robes and pulled them away, chiding them for their behavior.

The blonde shrugged off the large man's hand with a sneer on his bleeding face, and only then did Harry see none other than Draco Malfoy standing beside the man, glaring at the Weasleys.

"Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley," Neville muttered.

"What's the deal with those two families anyway? Their sons always keep fighting, and now look at their fathers," Harry remarked.

"The Weasleys and the Malfoys have hated each other for years. Something must've happened in the past," Susan remarked.

They looked on as Lucius Malfoy sneered at Arthur Weasley and pulled out the books a red-haired girl was holding in a cauldron. He muttered something and going by the glares on the Weasleys' faces, it was certainly not something very flattering. The blonde smirked before shoving the books back into the cauldron the red-haired girl was holding.

"Come on, what they do is none of our business," Harry prompted as he walked forward. His friends followed quickly behind.

-Break-

The morning of September the first found Harry Potter walking between Platforms 9 and 10 of King's Cross Station with his trunk in front of him. His lovely owl Hedwig was inside her cage atop said trunk, looking around.

The weeks leading up to his departure to Hogwarts were filled with getting familiar with the fifth-year material in his core subjects and finishing the third-year coursework for Runes. Third-year runework was only to introduce them to the subject and familiarize them with the basics so that they could at least draw up a working runic sequence. Hence, it was not very complicated and he had already started up on the fourth-year coursework a couple of days ago. Starting the fourth year, things picked up pace and level as well. Harry wondered whether he should approach Professor Babbling for her expertise before he decided to ponder upon it later.

During these weeks, he had also read the Defense books that had been prescribed for all seven years, and there was only one conclusion he could reach: Lockhart was a fucking fraud.

The books were nothing more than embellished tales to stroke the man's ego, and the timeline was so inconsistent that Harry was honestly shocked that no one had ever pointed it out.

It also clued him into what the man's true game was – making hundreds of Hogwarts students buy all his books – five galleons each and thirty-five galleons in total – and rack up thousands. Nothing else.

Harry had to wonder what Dumbledore was thinking. There was no way he didn't know Lockhart was a fraud.

It would be another year without any quality instruction in Defense. After the utter waste of time that Quirrell's classes were, Harry had hoped that there would be a capable professor the next year. That did not look likely now.

Harry was absentmindedly walking toward the entrance to Platform nine-and-three-quarters, so he was surprised when instead of phasing through, his trunk hit a solid wall of bricks. Frowning, he looked ahead and pushed forward once again. The trunk didn't go through.

"What the hell…" he muttered to himself and rubbed his palm over the brick wall, slapping it a couple of times. It was solid.

"Harry?" A female voice came from behind him, and he turned around to see Susan looking at him with a frown. "What are you doing?"

"I can't pass through," he replied with a shrug. Susan came forward and touched the barrier, frowning when she found it a solid brick wall too.

"What is this? Did someone close the entryway?"

Harry shrugged. "What are you doing here all alone? Doesn't Madam Bones come with you?"

"Auntie had to go to the ministry early today," she replied, frowning as she looked at the entrance. Harry nodded.

"Well, what do we do now then?"

Susan looked thoughtful for a moment. "We could floo over to Hogsmeade."

"Or we could fly?" Harry suggested with a grin, tapping his wrapped broom. Susan's eyes widened.

"Are you mad?" She hissed. "There's no way we could fly to Hogwarts without being seen by hundreds of muggles. Not to mention I don't have a broom either."

Harry conceded. Although they could easily ride on his broom together and hide under his cloak, he didn't bring it up. The cloak could easily resize itself, but it was still something he had kept a secret from his friends. Over the past year, he had gotten close to them, and he felt like he could trust them with some of his secrets. He had decided that he would bring it up when he felt it was time.

Also, he didn't think they would fit on the broom without being… too close. He flushed slightly at the thought and couldn't help but glance at his friend discreetly. She had indeed… developed even more than she'd already been.

Harry cleared his throat and looked at her.

"We'd have to go all the way to the Leaky Cauldron for the floo. How about the Knight Bus?"

Susan looked thoughtful for a moment before she nodded slowly.

"Well… I've never been on the Knight Bus before," Susan began hesitatingly. "I've heard it's quite an experience."

Harry chuckled. "Well, no time like the present then."

"Okay, let's take the Knight Bus then," Susan sighed and gave a small nod.

Together, they walked out of King's Cross and entered the alley nearby. Harry held his wand up and a large, blue triple-decker bus appeared in front of them with an enormous bang. The door opened with a clatter, and Harry was surprised when none of the muggles even seemed to look over at the loud sounds.

A bored voice greeted them. "Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. My name is Stan Shunpike and I will be your conductor this morning. Now get in already!"

Harry helped Susan inside before climbing in as Stan brought their trunks inside the bus.

"Well, whereabouts are ya headin'?"

"Hogsmeade," Harry replied.

"Gotcha. Sit tight, ya hear me? Take her away, Ern!"

"Ooh yeah! Take it away, Ernie! Fasten your seatbelts, clench your buttocks! It's going to be a bumpy ride!" They saw a shrunken head hanging at the front shout out loud in an unfamiliar accent, cackling.

The bus immediately rocketed forward and Susan collided with Harry, a surprised squeak escaping her lips. Harry grunted as he went tumbling and his back hit oddly a bed behind him. Susan came crashing on top of him and his hands immediately went around her, holding her by her sides. Wide-eyed, the pair stared at each other, her hands over his chest and their faces almost touching before the redhead quickly pushed off him, blushing profusely. Harry was faring no better, having been blessed with all of her pressed against him.

"S-sorry," she whispered, looking anywhere but at him.

"I-it's alright," he stammered. Merlin, he didn't think he'd ever be able to look at her without thinking about how much he had felt.

"Hogsmeade, innit? That'd be sixteen sickles for ya two, lad," Stan said as he held two tickets out. Harry, still lying on the bed, looked up and pointedly ignored the knowing smirk the man directed at him. Handing him the required sickles over, he pocketed the tickets. The bus vanished once again, and Harry turned to look at Susan who was still flushed.

"I agree," he said in an effort to stave off the awkwardness, smiling when she turned to look at him. "It's indeed an experience."

Susan couldn't help herself. She giggled. Her giggling soon turned into laughs when Harry joined in as well.

"It is, isn't it?" She asked breathlessly once she calmed down. Harry nodded with a chuckle as they lay side by side, staring upward at the massive chandelier hanging from the roof of the bus.

"This world… it's really something," he muttered. "I'd have never imagined things like this existed."

Susan smiled and took his hand, squeezing softly. Harry turned his head to look at her.

"Well, you're here now. Better get ready to see even more fantastical things," she whispered, giving his hand another squeeze before pulling her hand away.

Sighing with a small smile, Harry turned to look up once again as Susan kept staring at his peaceful visage. Her face flushed when she recalled what had happened a few moments ago, and she couldn't help but close her eyes, reminiscing the moment once again. She still remembered his touch, his wide-eyed look, and his hot breath that caressed her face when they were staring at each other for that solitary second. That serene smile on his face, when he was staring at Hedwig back in the owl shop, remained at the forefront of her mind until she felt someone gently shake her by her upper arm. She opened her eyes to see Harry sitting on the bed and smiling down at her.

"We're here."

Surprised, Susan got up and looked outside the window to see the village of Hogsmeade.

"Mind your step while leaving," Stan said as Harry hauled their trunks out of the bus and she joined him.

The door closed and the Knight Bus vanished with a loud bang as Harry and Susan looked around at the setting sun.

"Well, we have a few hours until the Express arrives at the station. Any idea what to do until then?" Harry asked, looking around at the various shops. Susan grinned excitedly and grabbed his hand before dragging him forward.

-Break-

A few hours later, Harry and Susan were sitting on one of the benches on the platform of Hogsmeade Station awaiting the Hogwarts Express. They had already visited almost all the stores. Although they were allowed to visit Hogsmeade from the third year onward, Susan was oddly excited to be able to explore the village a year in advance. Harry didn't see what the big fuss about it was though. She could easily come here anytime when school was out if she liked to roam around the village so much.

The village was also rather underwhelming in his opinion. Sure, there were some nice sweets in Honeydukes and the Butterbeer they had tasted in The Three Broomsticks was also good, but Harry failed to see what else the village boasted of that excited the students so much. Perhaps it was because of a change in scenery or the fact that it was like freedom from remaining confined in the castle for the better part of the year.

The less he thought about the gawking villagers and other patrons scattered around the village, the better it was.

"Try this one," she said as she handed him another candy, and Harry gave her a skeptical look. Susan simply smiled. Sighing, Harry popped it in his mouth, rolling the candy around his mouth and nodding absently. Susan clicked her tongue in exasperation.

"It's a good one, isn't it?" She asked with a sigh as Harry smirked. Her luck was truly rotten today. Five candies, and she had already tasted vomit, wax, and dog food while Harry's first one was a tangy orange followed by peanut butter.

"Peppermint," he replied with a nod as Susan cursed under her breath.

Before she could complain, however, the loud whistle of Hogwarts Express echoed around and they saw the train rushing in at a fast pace. Immediately, they walked over and stood to the side, waiting for Neville and Hannah.

The students started to disembark and they didn't have to wait for long as their friends spotted them quickly. Neville smiled as they came over while Hannah looked surprised before she gave Susan a teasing grin. The redhead flushed and shook her head discreetly, making the blonde pout in disappointment.

"Where were you two?" Neville asked as he reached them. Harry clapped him on the back before giving Hannah a friendly hug.

"The platform entrance locked up on us, so we took the Knight Bus and got here a few hours ago," Susan answered. Immediately, Hannah looked at her friend with widened eyes, who gave her another warning look and shook her head.

"We'll talk later," Hannah whispered in Susan's ear as she hugged her. The redhead sighed and nodded.

"Come on, let's get going then," Harry prompted and they started walking toward the set of carriages that would take them to Hogwarts.

Once they reached an empty carriage, Harry paused to stare at the creature in fascination. Instead of normal horses, their carriages were pulled by what looked like horses but with wings. The creature was entirely fleshless, its pitch-black coat clinging to its skeleton, of which every bone was visible. Its head was reptilian, and its pupilless eyes were pitch white, almost unseeing but staring keenly nonetheless. Large, leathery wings sprouted from each side – as black as its coat and looking as though they ought to belong to massive bats. Standing still and quiet in the dusk, the creature looked sinister and Harry had no idea why these creatures were supposed to pull the carriages.

"Harry?" Susan's voice pulled him out of his reverie, and he looked at her. She was staring at his outstretched arm with a frown. "What are you doing?"

Harry shook his head with a smile as he pulled his hand back. "Nothing, just looking at this creature. It looks mysterious… eerie even."

"What are you talking about?" Hannah asked with a frown. Beside her, Neville looked at Harry questioningly.

"Exactly. What creature?" Susan asked.

Harry looked at his friends as if they had grown second heads.

"What do you mean? These horse-like creatures that are pulling the carriages," Harry replied, looking around at the advancing carriages being pulled by the same creatures.

"Huh? Nothing's pulling the carriages," Hannah replied, looking around at the carriages being pulled by nothing.

"Yeah, I can't see any creatures either. You okay, mate?" Neville asked in concern.

Before Harry could reply, a soft female voice cut in.

"Are you four coming or do you intend to make us wait even more?"

They turned to look at two girls of their age clad in Slytherin robes staring at them. The one who had spoken had honey-blonde hair and the deepest shade of sapphire eyes they had ever seen. Beside her stood a brunette with hazel eyes.

"Uh yeah, we are," Neville replied. The girls nodded and boarded the carriages before Harry and his friends followed suit. Once they were settled in, the creature started trotting forward.

"I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Susan, and these are my friends Hannah, Harry, and Neville. Nice to meet you two."

The brunette looked at them with a grin as they smiled, or in Harry's case, gave a small nod. "Hey Susan. I'm Tracey and this one here is my best friend, Daphne. Nice to meet you all as well."

Unlike Tracey, Daphne simply nodded. Harry looked at the blonde sitting right opposite him with interest. The girl turned her head to look at the front of the carriage for a few seconds as Harry looked at her. Finally, her eyes came back to rest on Harry, who raised a questioning eyebrow.

"You can see them too?" She asked softly. Surprised, Harry gave a small nod.

"What do you mean? Some creature is really pulling the carriages?" Susan asked in surprise. Daphne nodded gently.

"They are called Thestrals. They can only be seen by those who have seen death," Daphne intoned, looking at Harry, whose eyes widened slightly. Daphne gave him an understanding nod.

Neville, Susan, and Hannah stared at the blonde with wide eyes before looking at Harry, who was staring at Daphne.

"You can see them too?" Harry asked curiously, staring at the girl sitting right opposite him nearest to the front where the ominous creature was pulling the carriage.

Daphne looked Harry in the eyes and nodded as her friend squeezed her hand.

"I see. My condolences," he replied, having already gathered from her demeanor that it was someone close to her. Daphne nodded, not saying anything.

The entire carriage ride passed in absolute silence as the sorrowful atmosphere made even the exuberant pair of Hannah and Tracey sit quietly. Soon, the carriage came to a stop and they started disembarking. Once they all got down and turned to walk toward the castle, Daphne stopped when she felt someone hold her arm.

Surprised, she turned around and came face to face with Harry who was staring at her.

"If you'd like to talk about it, I'm here to listen."

Surprised, Daphne gave him a nod. Harry released her hand and they turned back toward the castle. Susan frowned slightly before she gave Harry a small smile when he looked at her. Together, they started to walk toward the castle, leaving the mysterious creatures behind.

TBC.

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