I Will Follow You Into the Dark

Svetlanna looks at herself in the mirror, trying to gather enough courage to walk out of her room and search for Alik as she had planned just seconds before. It amazed her how such a strong whim of confidence and positivity could fly from the windows within just a wink of time. One moment she was sure she could find the tall Russian boy and give him a solid answer, yet the next she was shaking her head and looking down into the sink, not sure of anything. Her body, her mind, and her heart were all battling with each other on what to do next; her heart told her to find Alik and tell him yes, her mind told her that Alik had already changed his mind, and her body wanted nothing more than to unleash the content of the small dinner she had the night before. As if making a point, Svetlanna’s stomach pulled and a gagging noise echoed from her throat.

At that point in time, her hands were already shaking and the petty room surrounding her spun as if she were on a never ending merry-go-round. She sunk to the ground with her back to the door and placed her head steadily between her knees and hugged her body close to her angled legs. Svetlanna’s slim body shook for what felt like hours before calming down and allowing the young girl to take in deep breaths to stop her racing heart. Moisture rolled down her cheeks slowly, staining her light brown t-shirt and causing small dark dots to form over the thin fabric. The tight denim of her jeans hugged her hips solidly while they blue article of clothing loosened out as it reached further down her leg, ending just before it covered the white sneakers she had been wearing.

A knock sounded at the door, signaling to Svetlanna that someone else was waiting for their turn in the personalized bathroom. Lethargically, she rose from the cold tile, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and walked from the bathroom to allow her roommate a chance in the bathroom. Looking around, Svetlanna noticed that everyone else had left the room and it was just her. It eased her worries a bit to know that no one was in the room to hear her minor panic attack as they had the last time. The attacks ranged from minor to major in Svetlanna’s case, but they were quite common because of her nature and the constant battles she had with herself.

Medication was tested when it first begun, but Svetlanna’s mother didn’t like how ‘dead’ her daughter looked while she tried the muggle pills.

She walked slowly from the room and down the stairs toward the common room while wiping her sweating palms over her jeans. Waiting for her at the end of the stairs was a washed out looking Harry Potter with his glasses barely hanging on the bridge of his nose and his hair tasseled more so than ever before.

“You look as if you’ve seen the dead,” Svetlanna muddled with a soft smile and kind eyes.

Harry looked up at his friend and couldn’t help but admire her soft beauty as the sun shined through a window behind her. Her hair hung loosely over her shoulders and her cheeks held feint hints of pink that were only visible when Harry squinted his eyes. Her tight brown shirt showed how she was growing out, for her hips were more curved and her chest stood out more so than it did the year before. However, these features didn’t stand out to Harry as her eyes did. On several occasions, Harry had met Yulia and those brief meetings were enough for Harry to be able to compare the eyes of the mother and daughter. Svetlanna’s eyes held hints of light brown and hazel, as her father’s did, but the kindness and purity behind her constant, quiet gaze was able to captivate the most depraved of people.

“I was just waiting up for you,” Harry explained after clearing his throat and standing to hover over his friend, “Although, reality is a bit of a blur at the moment.”

“Was it that bad?” Svetlanna questioned, taking a step forward to walk toward the portrait. Upon watching Harry’s short nod, Svetlanna’s dimpled smile widened and she shook her head, “As time goes on, I’m sure it’ll get easier. It really is for the best because those against you aren’t going to stop just after seeing you in pain.” –She looked back and penetrated Harry’s gaze with hers- “They want you dead, Harry.”

The two walked out of the castle and toward a small area just behind the castle where Svetlanna went regularly with Ron just to clear her mind and talk. Not many students knew or even worried about the area because it was out of the sun and in a pretty secluded area. As the reached their destination, Svetlanna looked around for any signs of Alik because she both feared and looked forward to running into him and giving him his sought out answer.

Harry laughed when he saw Svetlanna’s eyes searching. It didn’t take Hermione to understand that Svetlanna liked Alik. Harry knew very well that his friend wanted to be with the Durmstrang boy. He licked over his lips briefly before asking, “Are you going to Hogsmeade with him tomorrow?”

Svetlanna blushed at the question and nodded her head, “I have yet to have spoken to him in a little more than a week. I’ve seen him, yes, but can’t bring myself to face him alone just yet. Hopefully, if he’s able to catch me by tomorrow I will agree to go with him, but I doubt it highly because Maxime tends to show up whenever I’m anywhere close to speaking to Alik.”

“Maxime?” Harry questioned with a slight tilt of his head

“Oh, he’s just a Beauxbaton boy who I befriended just a few weeks ago,” Svetlanna explained while pulling out her wand, “but enough about me and my personal life. I doubt you’ll be quizzed on who walks in and out of my life while a Death Eater is chasing you.”

Harry nodded and pulled out his wand as well.

“Now, the first rule with playing with fire is that you have to know how to put it out,” Svetlanna explained while whispering a small spell that caused fire to ignite and consume a tiny pile of leaves that were gathered a few feet away from her and Harry, “this spell works best with small fires, but we have to work our way up, oui?”

Harry watched as a medium ball of water formed at the end of Svetlanna’s wand after she had muttered the word ‘Aquamenti’. Her eyes focused on keeping the water stable and tamed, but her body showed nothing but a casual stance as if she had been talking to a group of friends. Harry watched as her wand controlled where the water went and the orb landed quickly over the burning pile.

“Did you see how I did that Harry?” Svetlanna asked, looking over at her friend with a light smile, “control is the key when you’re fighting with elements. Now, it’s your turn.”

“A-aquamentri,” Harry stumbled while pointing his want at the small bit of fire that remained. Instead of a perfect orb like Svetlanna’s, spurts of water burst from the end of his wand like water from a broke faucet. His cheeks heated up and his fingers shout to the bridge of his glasses.

Svetlanna smiled and walked over to Harry, “It’s ok, I doubt anyone would really get it on the first try unless they’re geniuses.”

Two hours passed before Svetlanna and Harry were walking back toward the school entrance. In that time, Svetlanna had managed to teach Harry several small spells including one to guard the body from burning in a fire and one to summon water from the lake in order to handle the bigger fire cases. The two were sweating a bit from the heat of the fire, but other than that they looked as if they were just hanging out as only friends would.

Out of nowhere, Harry elbowed Svetlanna’s arm gently and nodded toward the other end of the corridor when she took notice. When Svetlanna locked eyes with a determined looking Alik walking hurriedly in her direction; his uniform’s robe tail seemed to chase after him as if it weren’t connected and his eyes shined with nothing but pure glory.

“I’ll see you in a bit,” Harry muttered while walking off, leaving Svetlanna in an empty corridor with Alik just six steps away.

Svetlanna blushed and started fumbling with her locks of hair as Alik drew closer.

“Where have you been?” Alik questioned, his eyes burning with curiosity and a slight hint of irritation, “I’ve been searching the whole castle for you today and I have not seen you all week. Have I scared you off with my question of us being together?”

“No, no it’s not that,” Svetlanna whispered, avoiding his gaze for she feared he’d be able to see the depths of her soul with his blue orbs of fire, “I’ve just been busy with my studies and helping Harry with preparation for the first task. My time really doesn’t belong to me at the moment, much less any of my other friends.”

“Is that why you have not been with that boy with red hair?”

Svetlanna paused at the mention of one of the Weasley’s but she wasn’t so sure which. None of the Weasley boys, safe for the eldest ones, really paid much attention to Svetlanna these days. It was as if Ginny was the only one who gave a damn about Svetlanna now that Harry was in the tournament and Alik was around.

“Which one are you talking about: The twins or Ron?” Svetlanna questioned, now able to look into Alik’s eye and fish for answers.

“Ron, the one without a twin,” Alik answered in a rushed tone, “I have a meeting with my Headmaster in five minutes so I have to make my questions quick. Will you be able to answer tonight?”

Svetlanna nodded, but was confused as to what he was going to ask.

“Are you able to go to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow as we planned last week?”

Svetlanna blushed and bit the inside of her cheek while nodding her head shyly.

Alik smiled and hugged her tightly before pulling away and looking down into her eyes as he held onto her shoulders gently, “We can meet at noon, yes?”

“Uh huh,” Svetlanna managed to get out, “where?”

“I’ll meet you by the gates if that is ok?”

Svetlanna nodded once more before Alik took her hand and placed his lips upon it, “Vy dyeĭstvitelʹno yavlyayut•sya velikolepnym angel.” (You truly are a magnificent angel) When he pulled away, he nodded at Svetlanna with a small smile and headed toward the hall he had just walked from. Svetlanna watched as he walked away with red dictating her cheeks and her fingers tapping against her upper thigh gingerly.

She realized then that all the worry earlier was over absolutely nothing.