Underwater Calls

When night came, she snuck out the Common room, becoming invisible in her mind. No one questioned her as she left; no one paid attention. She walked amongst the shadows, cautious and sly. The curfew was tighter now – wandering students weren’t taking lightly anymore. Hogwarts was tightening its security, but Laura knew every entrance and exit as well as the Weasley twins. As she walked out the gates that led to the back of the castle, she strolled towards the Great Lake. It shone magnificently, the surface pitch black and glistening like black diamonds. She saw the world reflect on it, and pulled off her school robe, dropping it on the grass. Unbuttoning her shirt, she let it slowly drop, the goose bumps disappearing after a second or so as her skin made truce with the air. Pulling off her shoes and socks, she let the black trousers drop to the floor as she stood there in her midnight blue underwear. Reaching up, she pulled the band out of her hair, letting the mass of it drop out of the bun it was in, cascading down her shoulders and her back. Looking ever so gently behind her, she smiled.
“Suppressed by all my childish fears…” She sang softly, stepping up to the edge of the lake. Looking at her reflection, she knew it was familiar to her. She couldn’t remember where she had heard it, but it was familiar, as if remembering forgotten lyrics. Just like a few weeks back, when it had occurred before.
“And if you have to leave, I wish you would just leave,” she uttered under her breath, before diving into the lake soundlessly.
Swimming had been a passion she had taught herself when she was just a baby. She remembered paddling, and then she remembered crawling and then swimming underneath the water, in the little pond behind her house. And now, she swam like a dream in the black water, floating under the sleeping water. The merpeople were asleep under their forte, and the squids and beautiful fishes were nowhere near here. She swam deeper, watching a forbidden and exotic world revolve around her, the darkness overwhelmed by the glow of the homes built underneath. She touched the water flowers, blooming with beauty and boldness, and let her body be washed by the calm and wonderfully cold water. She was utterly alone – that is, under the water.
As she resurface, her hair slicked behind her back and her face glowing with anticipation, she saw Malfoy, standing next to her clothes and watching her with such intensity, she was amazed her skin wasn’t radiating with it.
She had known, the moment she had made herself invisible against the walls of Hogwarts, that he had been following her, waiting for her to wound her way through the secret exits and find her way to the Great Lake.
She smiled ever so slightly as she looked into his eyes, knowing that she had purposefully lured him. She drifted with the water, tilting her head back and exposing her long, graceful neck.
“Well, look who it is. What are you doing out here after curfew, Mr. Malfoy?” She asked her voice soft and carrying. He smirked slightly at her, but she saw the glazed gleam in his eyes. She felt delirious with the knowledge of knowing she had such an effect on him. Felt powerful to know she could cause that after so many years of being neglected by him.
“Same could be said for you, Ms. Moon. Even more so, as Im the one standing here, dry and presentable, while you’re floating in the water with your underwear.”
She smiled at him, and decided that enough was enough. Pushing her arms through the water, she swam to the edge and stood as he watched her.
“Come on over, Malfoy. You might as well put time to use – you’re out here now, so why not risk it all?” she teased, resting her elbow on the soft, luscious grass and beckoning him over with a finger. He scoffed, tilting his head to the side and watching her with carefully blank eyes.
But she knew that temptation was something Malfoy could not resist.
“Im not willing to jump into a Lake at such a ridiculous hour. Nor do I feel the need to risk it all for a measly swim – I am, after all, able to access the Prefect’s Bathroom,” he said, dusting off imaginary fluff from his robes. But the indifference didn’t discourage Laura – it only made her more determined to see that he joined her in a world that was so free.
“Oh, I never took you for a scared little ferret. I guess I was wrong. But make sure you go back secretly Malfoy – after all, being a good boy and that, you need that kind of warning,” she said, turning back and swimming lazily in a circle. When she carelessly turned her head back, he stood there, his face set like a stone and his eyes holding a daring viciousness in them. Her pulse jumped as she watched him, before turning back.
“You might think this is funny, Moon, but I don’t think it’s wise to mess with me. I do not have the time or inclination for foolishness, and Im far from a good boy,” he snarled, running a hand through his ice blonde hair. Swimming ever so slightly towards him, she lifted herself in the water before dropping back down.
“If you’re not a good boy, I suggest you get in here and show me.”