Orphic » Sirius Black

Chapter 24 - Liabilities

"Juniper."

She walked adrift through the castle grounds, with her eyes almost closed. She could see shapes, colours and lights, but not specific figures. She was giddy.

"Juniper."

The rebounding voice grew nearer. She looked down and glanced at the dewy grass brushing her feet, now out of the school grounds, now in the Forbidden Forest. The air was damp and moldy.

When she looked up, a dark figure appeared in between the darkness. The man was backwards, mimicking the shape of the trees all around. Restlessness crept up her spine and began sinking her to the ground, the echo of the man taking over the woods.

"Juniper." Mars turned around, and smiled at her. "I was expecting you."

Juniper could see it all clear now. Mars walked towards her and sat down on his ankles. She was having trouble breathing.

"My little June."

Juniper woke up, startled, and pressed her hands on her chest to try to slow down her heart rate. Drizzle hit the window of Juniper's nook as she hid herself under the covers, her heart still pounding hard against her chest. She had a hard time trying to convince herself that it had been just a dream.

But what if it wasn't? Dreams were one of the many branches of Divination, she knew. And even if she didn't often consider Divination as magic itself, it was taught for a reason. It had to have a meaning, but she couldn't seek help. What was she going to say? She couldn't reveal the whole thing at once.

The feeling of constant pressure from the dream remained with her for the rest of the night. As she didn't dare to close her eyes anymore nor try to sleep again, she decided to think and take into consideration different sorts of possibilities.

The first possible outcome was that Mars was, in fact, waiting for her out of the castle. And if he wasn't already, he eventually would. If she were in his shoes, the most intelligent strategy would be to surround the target and wait for it to come out. The only issue was that she was the target.

She considered the Forbidden Forest as his hiding place, as it was big enough to take in every horrendous thing she could imagine. But there was also Hogsmeade, which also seemed likely.

Yet it was all too literal. Surreal, even. The only way Mars could have infiltrated himself in the castle was by possessing a student or with Polyjuice Potion, but that possibility was just crazy. If she didn't keep some of her sanity, she'd end up doubting everyone around her. Still, Juniper did not underestimate her odds.

She had spent most of the night twirling around the sheets, and when she finally found a comfortable position to fall asleep in, Ophelia's alarm clock went off. Grunting, she rubbed her eyes a bit harsher than she should have, and went to the bathroom before anyone else could.

Enormous dark bags hung under her eyes when she checked herself in the mirror. She pulled them down with her fingers and sighed tiredly. She looked knackered.

Recalling the events of a couple of nights ago, Juniper flashed out of the room and searched for Uma's magazine, hoping she could find something helpful. She came upon a spell that helped get rid of the dark bags, and performed it neatly. When she turned the page, she encountered a section full of smiling mouths and winking eyes with the beauty spell samples Ophelia, Uma, and her were checking that night. Without further ado, she casted them on herself, along with a very defined eyeliner.

The next glimpse of her reflection wasn't that bad. She smiled and checked her lips. It did suit her.

Her decision to attempt doing little braids at both sides of her head came up immediately as she touched her hair. They weren't at all perfect—loose strands of hair fell messily from the sides, and the braids themselves barely touched her shoulders—, but it did not matter. She loved braiding her hair.