Chapter Thirty-Six: Colm’s Secret
Days passed just about as quickly as Mr. Burke’s elderly frame inching across the grounds of Alsemore. Every morning, Lottie would steal a hopeful glance at Hermione, who would only grimace in return. Before Lottie knew it, the stormy, damp September had transformed into an irritable October. Still, there was no sign from Mr. Burke; Lottie imagined him limping to every possible Malfoy hideout, monocle quivering threateningly.
Before she knew it, it was Halloween and the prefects had donned their festive bat masks. The feast did seem a bit meager this year, though it was still enough food for everyone to have their share. “I was just saying,” Lottie explained to Andrea through a mouthful of chicken, “that I don’t think it’s fair that we don’t know what’s going on. I mean”I’m the one who found the diary.”
“There isn’t anything going on; that’s the problem,” Andrea said. “I doubt Mr. Burke will even find him. Besides, we’re lucky they let us know this much to begin with. Do you know how many seventh years leave here without being nearly as involved as we are?”
“We’re just persistent. That’s all,” Lottie joked. “Uh oh.” She frowned. Over at the Maelioric table, Colm smirked at them over a mountain of mashed potatoes. “I can smell trouble brewing.”
“What?” Andrea looked up. “Oh. You know, the more you argue with him, the more you encourage him. If you ignore him, he won’t bother you as much.”
“Worth a try,” Lottie said with a shrug. After a beat, she pretended to be laughing animatedly at a joke Andrea told. “It’s not working,” she said through gritted teeth. Colm was still staring at them like a fox waiting to pounce.
“Well it hasn’t been long enough,” Andrea hissed back, determinately staring at the head table. “Just give it time.”
“No, it’s making it worse. Look, he’s coming over here”oh Merlin.” Lottie stared up at Colm, who towered over her with his hands on his hips. “You know, if you don’t mind, I’d like it if you stopped walking,” she said mockingly. “My bowl is shaking with every step you take.”
“Rough night, I see,” Colm retorted. “I was just coming over to tell you to stop staring at me.”
“Staring at you?” Lottie repeated. “I’m sorry. I just looked up and you were staring at me.”
“Why would I stare at you?”
“Lottie, stop it. You’re encouraging him,” Andrea whispered. “If you stop, he’ll go away.”
“Yeah, Rowe, listen to your friend.”
“You know, Palmyitor is going to notice you’re over here,” Lottie growled. “She’s going to give you detention if you don’t leave.”
“Oh boohoo detention.” Colm sneered. “You’ve been getting plenty of detentions yourself, I hear. But you know what I think?” He leaned in so that his dirty blond hair almost touched Lottie’s forehead. “I think you’re just lonely. You’ve got no friends and you want company. It’s pathetic.”
“I have so got friends.” Lottie got to her feet. “More than you, especially, you pig.”
Colm straightened up, the corner of his lip curling threateningly. “Get away from me,” he hissed, “you Mudblood.”
“Oh, you did not just say that.” Lottie’s words reverberated in the tension between them and got lost somewhere in between. “That’s it.” Furiously, she grabbed him by the arm and dragged him down the Palmyitor table. Lottie could hear students whispering, but to her they sounded like jeers. Swiftly, she pulled the door open and pushed Colm through.
“Look, Scrivener,” she hissed. The door slammed shut. “I may be Muggle-born, but I’m ten times stronger than you’ll ever be. I’ve got powers that you can only dream of. I could read and manipulate your simple mind and you wouldn’t even know what happened to you. I’ve got lots of friends”you only wish that you could have a friend as good as Andrea, but you don’t because you’re a fat, spoiled, asshole who has to make fun of other people to feel okay about himself.”
“Is that what you think of me?” Colm boomed.
Lottie took a step back. Twice her girth and a head taller, he dwarfed her in comparison. “Spoiled? You think so? I’m spoiled? I was pampered when I hid from Death Eaters in my parent’s basement for months at a time? I’m sure compared to your tragedy at the camp, that was just a farce.”
Lottie took another step back. She could feel the rage that had been compressed for years spilling out of him.
“You think your parents pretending you don’t exist is being spoiled?”
Lottie stared at her shoes. “N-no,” she muttered. “Are your parents Death Eaters?”
“That’s what the Dark Lord thinks,” Colm said bitterly. “They’re working for us”for Alsemore. But if You-Know-Who had found out about me, I would’ve been sent to Hogwarts. My parents had already promised Maelioric that I’d join our side, so I had to hide every time Death Eaters came over. They”they were suspicious. They had a feeling I was there.”
Freezing guilt slid down her throat and landed heavily in her stomach like an ice cube. “I”I”” She didn’t know what to say. Before she had to do anything, the door clicked open and Hermione’s head poked out.
“What is going on here?” she asked. “I saw you, Rowe, storm out and you’ve been gone for almost five minutes.”
“S-sorry, Professor,” Lottie said. She could see Colm staring at her out of the corner of her eye. “We were just”talking.”
“Well, come in and join the feast,” Hermione said. “The pudding’s almost gone.”
“Come on,” Lottie said gently. “Let’s go, Colm.”
He looked up, a smile creeping across his face. Keeping his distance, he followed Lottie and Hermione into the Great Hall. Lottie sat down silently at the Palmyitor table in her empty spot.
“What happened?” Andrea asked. “What did you do to him?”
“I’ll tell you later.” Lottie began picking absent-mindedly at her fudge.
“I mean, I saw you take him outside,” Andrea went on, “and it got all quiet. And about three minutes later Her”er”Stainthorpe went out to see what was going on.”
“I’ll tell you later,” Lottie repeated. “Okay? I really don’t feel like talking about it right now.”
“Oh. Okay.” Andrea examined at her own dessert silently for a few minutes. The clinking of cutlery grated Lottie’s mind as she silently recounted her previous conversation. Colm had always seemed so arrogant, but now she could see how scared and lonely he really was; she almost felt bad for him. “You know,” Andrea said suddenly, “that was a really foul name Scrivener called you.”
Lottie shrugged.
“Especially since Muggle-borns are doing the majority of the fighting. We’re the ones giving our lives to save him from his own kind.”
“But we’re all people in the end, aren’t we?” Lottie stood up, letting her fork fall to the table with a clatter. “I’m tired,” she said. “I’m going to the common room.”
Lottie took her time heading down the staircase. Every step seemed to be a struggle against the earth. She was just at the Palmyitor clock, when a voice behind her called, “Hey, wait up!”
Lottie turned. Andrea stood with crossed arms before her. “What is going on?” she demanded. “Did Scrivener attack you or something?”
Lottie shook her head and clambered through the clock.
“Hey, don’t run away from me.”
Lottie grunted and descended the stairs to the dormitory, pulled off her boots and climbed the stairs back to the common room. “Okay,” Andrea said, huddled on a stool in the corner. “I’ve played the surly silent game with you; now you have to tell me what happened.”
The common room had a few occupants. Three first years sat on the cold, hardwood floor in front of the fire. A crack of thunder brought Lottie to her senses. She leaned against the wall in the corner. “You can’t tell anyone,” she said seriously. Andrea nodded.
Voices were drawing closer. The feast must have just let out. “When I took Colm outside to yell at him,” Lottie whispered, “he told me about his childhood and you know”I mean”we both know there’s no way he was raised in the camps.”
People began trickling through the clock. “Well he told me how his parents are spies. I guess they’re Purebloods and went to Hogwarts, so the Dark Lord knew about them and they were recruited young. But apparently”” Lottie leaned in closer as people began filling up the empty space “”the Death Eaters never officially found out about him, but they had their suspicions. So they’d come and scope it out. Colm had to hide”for months sometimes, he said”while they searched the house. Apparently, his family had agreed to let him come here.”
“Wow,” Andrea breathed.
“Blimey.”
Lottie spun around. Edgar Payne sat behind her, scratching his chin.
“Edgar,” Lottie hissed. “Were you just eavesdropping? That was private.”
“Well I am a spy, aren’t I?” He grinned, but his smile vanished when he saw the look on Lottie’s face.
“I’m telling you, Payne,” she growled, “don’t tell that to anyone.”
“Or what, you’ll curse me again?” Neither Lottie nor Andrea laughed with him. “No, no, I understand,” he said. “I won’t repeat it.”
“Good.” Lottie waved her wand menacingly. “Or else.”
It was Edgar’s turn not to join in as Lottie chuckled. She waited until he was out of earshot before turning to Andrea and saying, “I don’t trust him.”
“Oh please. Who is he going to tell?” Andrea asked. “Besides, I don’t think it’s a big deal if people know.”
“Maybe not to you,” Lottie said. “But Colm seemed pretty upset about it. Look”I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Up for a game of Gobstones?”
The next morning, A trail of whispers scuttled over the chipped tabletop, between the goblets of orange juice, under the curves of the flatware. Lottie raised her eyebrows significantly, but Andrea shook her head. “It’s always like this,” she said calmly. “You’re just being paranoid. Relax.”
Lottie shrugged. “I don’t know,” she mumbled as she piled hash browns onto her plate. “I sure hope you’re right.”
All through Charms, Lottie couldn’t concentrate. She shifted her weight back and forth through Hermione’s lecture. Defense Against the Dark Arts was even worse. She purposefully sat next to Edgar in this class, but every time she glanced over at him, he was unusually busy taking notes.
Once lunch began, Lottie stared at the Maelioric table anxiously. Colm was nowhere to be found. The whispers were much more noticeable now; they ran up and down all three House tables and crept in on her. They quite reminded Lottie of the game she would play as a child, when she would whisper a secret down a line and see how it would change by the end.
“I’m really glad I can trust you.”
Lottie looked up. Colm’s bulky form stood before her, his face contorted into silent rage. He spun around without another word and headed toward the door.
“Colm”wait.” Lottie’s flatware hit the table with a clatter. The whispers rose in volume as she followed him out of the Hall. He began toward the stairs. “Colm!” Lottie ran to catch up with him. Her hand brushed his arm and he spun around. “Don’t say anything,” Lottie said before he could open his mouth. “Because I know what it’s going to be and I know I deserve it. But please believe me when I tell you that I didn’t spread it.”
“If you didn’t tell anyone, then how did everyone find out? I’ve had people asking me about it all day”people who have never talked to me before.”
“Well”I did tell Andrea,” Lottie confessed. “But only because””
“I thought we had a deal””
“We never did! I never agreed to anything. You just started spilling your heart out to me and I didn’t know what to do.”
“So that’s what you think?” Colm spat. “I thought that was an agreement to stop fighting. I thought we were””
“Going to start being friends?” Lottie sneered. “I would never be friends with you.” Her stomach flipped over. Guilt grew exponentially inside of her. “Well, you thought wrong, you selfish ass.” Without another word, Lottie stormed back to the Great Hall and flopped down next to Andrea.
“What happened this time?” Andrea asked without looking up from her meal.
“He thinks I spread the rumor!” Lottie said. “That cow. I didn’t tell anyone but you”oh I could kill Edgar Payne.”
“Be careful about saying things like that.” Andrea looked up from her plate. “Because we all know you actually could.”
Lottie groaned and sank onto her elbows, staring at the scratched Palmyitor tabletop. “This will all die down soon,” she said to herself. “There’s no way they’re going to gossip about it for this long. I mean”how interesting is he?”
Colm Scrivener was, apparently, interesting enough to be the topic of hushed conversations for weeks. Every time his name was mentioned, Lottie grated her teeth and bit down on her tongue to prevent herself from saying anything. Edgar Payne had become uncharacteristically quiet in classes and managed to avoid Lottie in the common room every night.
In the last days of November, the castle became so cold that students took to conjuring fire and keeping it in jars hidden in their pockets. In the early days of December, Hermione called her and Andrea into her office.
Leaning against her desk was a man about Hermione’s age. His hair was completely silver, matching his perfectly grey eyes. It seemed that every detail of his fine robes were decorated with some kind of snake. He seemed to shimmer green. Lottie guessed he would have been quite handsome if he didn’t look as though somebody were trying to convince him to eat food that they had picked off the floor.
“Lottie, Andrea, this is Draco Malfoy,” Hermione said, beaming.
“Don’t get too excited, kids,” Malfoy sneered with crossed arms. “I don’t know why Granger called me here”I didn’t even know you were still alive,” he added. “But sure enough old Burke showed up at my door, telling me that you wanted to meet me.”
Hermione beamed. “You can’t pretend you’re not relieved, Draco,” she said cheerfully.
“Au contraire, Mudblood.”
Lottie stood up immediately and drew her wand. “Say that one more time,” she growled.
Malfoy laughed, his cackles high and sharp. “What, are you a Mudblood too?” he sneered.
“Well us Mudbloods are fighting the war for you and keeping you safe,” Lottie said.
“It’s okay, Lottie,” Hermione said with a smug glance at Malfoy. “I’m quite used to it”and he is not going to change his vocabulary any time soon.”
“Right you are, Granger.”
“Wait, I thought he was on our side,” Andrea said. Lottie could hear the insult burning under her words.
“I am,” Draco said casually. “I had no chance. If the Death Eaters knew I were alive, they would kill me immediately.”
“Oh, so you’re being selfish,” Lottie hissed. “I understand now.”
Malfoy shut his eyes for a moment and heaved a sigh. “You don’t know what it was like,” he said slowly, “having the Dark Lord taking revenge on my family. Dumbledore offered us protection. My mother and I hid with the Order, but my father wouldn’t come alone. When the Dark Lord attacked Potter, I went along with the Order members. I had given my word, after all, to Dumbledore.”
He grimaced. “My father killed my mother. Called her a filthy Blood Traitor. He turned to me, but I Disapperated just before his curse hit me. He still thinks he killed me.”
“Wow,” Hermione whispered. “I didn’t know that, Draco. I’m sorry.”
“It’s no problem,” Malfoy said hurriedly, reassuming his slick persona. “The woman was getting old anyway. She just would have”have”” he put a hand to his forehead and muttered, “held me back.”
Hermione rose and put a hand gingerly on his shoulder. “Draco,” she said softly, “it’s okay. You don’t need to pretend anymore. There aren’t many of us left. We need to stick together.”
“I don’t need anybody.”
“We’ve all lost people,” Hermione said. Draco turned around and stared out the window at the darkening sky. “Neville lost his entire family and his only friends. How do you think I felt when”when I lost Ron?”
Lottie could feel a lump in her throat. She had thought wizards had everything. She never realized that they had suffered just as much as the Muggles.
“The only thing we can focus on now,” Hermione said, “is ending this. It will end, Draco. But we need some information first.”
Malfoy turned around, silver eyebrows arched. “Is that what this is all about?” he asked. His eyes were bloodshot.
“Well”partly,” Hermione confessed. “I’m also trying to find as many of us as I can. We need to stick together, you know.”
“What do you want to know?” Malfoy asked.
“Do you know about Voldemort’s Horcruxes?” Hermione asked shortly.
“Don’t”say”his”name,” Draco said through gritted teeth. “And”what? Hor””
“”Horcruxes, yes.” Hermione nodded.
“No, I don’t.”
“Well.” Hermione began explaining. The entire story took nearly ten minutes to get through. As she listed the potential Horcruxes, Lottie sank into a sitting position against the wall.
“I cannot tell you the location of any of those items,” Draco said, still leaning casually against the wall. “Though I would bet my wand that your suspicions about his snake are correct. My father”my”my father told me that the Dark Lord had instructed him to protect the snake at any means necessarily”with his life, if he had to.”
Hermione leaned back into her chair. “So”the snake,” she said, tapping her fingernails against the desk. “It should be easy enough to find.”
“I would think so,” Draco agreed. “The thing hardly ever leaves his side. If you can find the Dark Lord, you will find the snake.” He paused, glancing around the room. “It’s been a long day”fist dealing with Burke and then Naesa Palmyitor. She has not changed one bit since Hogwarts, let me tell you.”
“You knew Palmyitor?” Lottie asked, her interest sparked once again.
“Oh yes. She is only a few years older than me”and was a member of my House. I think I will retire to my room now.” He cleared his throat and swept his robes up in a flurry of green fabric. “I will see you tomorrow, Granger.” He nodded coldly toward Hermione and left the office.
Once the door clicked shut, Andrea muttered, “What a character.”
Numbly, Lottie nodded in agreement.
“Well that was quite a night, wasn’t it?” Hermione said suddenly. “Sorry to rush you two out, but it’ll be after hours soon. Hope that was interesting for you.” The door shut.
Lottie blinked and stared at Hermione’s door. “Well she sure herded us out fast,” she said.
“Well I bet you don’t know how emotional that is for her,” Andrea said, on their way back to the common room. “I mean”if all of your friends died, something like this would certainly bring back memories.”
“I guess.” Lottie climbed through the Palmyitor clock into the crowded common room. “Payne!”
“What?” Andrea asked.
“Hold on.” Lottie ran after the sliver of a robe that had just whipped around the corner to the stairs for the boys’ dormitories. She grabbed the hem of Edgar’s sleeve and held on with an iron grip against his struggles for freedom. “Oh, no,” she growled. “You’re not going anywhere until you explain this.”
Edgar sighed and stopped struggling. Her turned to face her, hanging his head. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I never meant for it to spread like this. I was just so mad about that Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson that I told Devin. I mean”he’s my best mate. But some third years overheard me and”well you can see how it spread.”
“You told Devin?” Lottie roared. “I wouldn’t trust him to make my bed.”
“Hey,” Edgar growled, reaching his hand into his robe. Lottie knew he held the handle of his wand. “I said he is my best friend. Don’t you dare talk about him like that””
“And you”” Lottie’s voice reached a threateningly low level “”I couldn’t trust you to just keep your mouth shut. No wonder you two are friends.”
Edgar drew his wand in an instant. Its tip quivered so close to Lottie’s throat that she could feel power surging off of it. But Lottie was too quick for him. She already had her own wand, pointed right at the pit of his stomach. Without flinching she said, “You know what I can do, Payne. I’m perfectly willing to show you again.”
The pair maintained eye contact for a full minute. Lottie didn’t blink. A part of her secretly hoped he would try something”just so she could show him that she was not afraid to curse him into oblivion. Edgar looked away first. He glanced at the floor and lowered his wand slowly, though he didn’t put it back into his pocket.
“Okay, look, I’m really sorry,” he said. “I don’t know how it got to be like this. I had no idea people would be that interested in Scrivener. I mean”” Edgar laughed nervously, still eying Lottie’s wand pointed at him “”who cares about the fat lump?”
“It’s important to him,” Lottie said fiercely. “He never meant for anyone to know, and now everyone does.”
“I can’t believe you actually care about him,” Edgar said. “His parents are in with the Dark Lord. Who cares what””
“His parents are spying for us. It’s different.”
Edgar stared at her. “He’s a pureblood. We can’t trust him.”
“Who cares?” Lottie shouted. She just wanted to scream, curse him and kick him in the shins all at once. “Isn’t that kind of thinking what we’re fighting against? Merlin, Payne, you are stupid.” Lottie tightened the grip on her wand and inched closer to him. “If you don’t get out of my way right now and”don’t you dare point that thing at me”Expelliarmus!”
Edgar’s wand went flying in the opposite direction. His eyes widened as Lottie inched closer to him with her wand up. “Listen to me”no listen to me.” She grabbed his arm, which had been subtly reaching toward his wand on the ground. “You broke a promise to me and”and Colm never even did anything to you!”
“I told you, Rowe,” Edgar said, the desperation in his voice rising, “I just told Devin. I honestly didn’t mean for anyone else to find out.” His dark eyes moved from her face to her wand and back again. “Don’t curse me”please”after what happened last time”I really am sorry, Rowe.”
Lottie scowled and lowered her wand. She turned away from him and started to descend the stairs to the girl’s dormitory.
“Er”Rowe?”
Lottie spun around and glanced at Edgar, who stood nervously at the top of the stairs. “Yes?”
Edgar glanced at her wand again. “Do you”do you forgive me?”
With a frown stretching across her face, Lottie surveyed him. She glanced at his wand, which still lay abandoned halfway down the stairs, and back at him. “Fine,” she said, turning around and walking back into the common room. “Whatever.”
Halfway to Infinity by Eponine
Chapter Notes: Thanks, as always, to TheBird for working on this chapter with me!
This chapter is dedicated to my boss, who actually cracks me up with everything he says.