In a large dark room where only a few candles dimly lit the place, there was a large table in the center where several people were gathered, talking.
At the end of the table sat a man of about 34 years of age with a sharp gaze and very handsome features. He undoubtedly exuded an aura of greatness, and his eloquent speech seemed to captivate the audience, who nodded seriously.
The one who appeared to be the leader saw a small figure out of the corner of his eye. As he turned his head with a dangerous aura toward the intruder, he remained motionless. There was a girl with black hair, but the faint light created a contrast with her hair, making the ends look brown. Her light chocolate-colored eyes stared at him. She looked thin and was dressed in gray clothes that he recognized perfectly.
She seemed to notice his surprised look and smiled at him with the sweetness and innocence that only a nine-year-old girl can have.
— Anna? — He called out, doubtful and shocked to see this, like a simple illusion, but for that man, it was a bad premonition, and his suspicions were confirmed when someone entered, agitated.
— My lord... — The man said, taking a deep breath to fill his lungs with oxygen. The handsome man looked at him sharply, urging him to speak quickly, for interrupting him. — My lord, it's your sister... she... — The man's expression was complicated but left much to be said. When he turned his gaze to the small figure, she had disappeared, and it was as if for a moment his heart had stopped beating...
Anna opened her eyes abruptly and sat quietly on her bed as her gaze fixed on the orange sky, a beautiful sight for her. She hugged her legs as she thought about the strange dream she had. She had to admit that this guy was handsome, but he felt so familiar.
OZ, who had been waiting for hours for her to wake up, hooted to make his presence known.
— I've kept you waiting a long time, OZ. — The owl went over to her and caressed her hand with his head as if to say, Look, I've been good and waited, reward me...
For her part, she laughed at how clever he had become in such a short time to earn treats. She gave him more than before for being good at his job, and he hooted happily and left.
Anna read the note her brother had sent her. It was a few simple, very clear words.
Wait until I come back to go there, and don't you dare go alone, Anna Lyra...
Just by saying her full name, she knew he was giving her an order and warning her not to go until he returned. She had no intention of visiting that place for now, so she would continue to improve what she had learned because she was terrible at magic, and sometimes the spell would backfire on her.
— Why can't I be like those protagonists who come with a golden finger? — She complained about her misfortune, the only good thing is that she can do psychokinesis better than she expected — Oh, sorry for ignoring you, golden touch — She said, remembering about seeing the future, but on second thought, she felt cheated. Every time she used that ability, she felt slight pricks in her head, but if she overused it...
Well, even for her, a chicken who fears pain, she didn't want to find out anymore. The last time she did it, she felt like her head was going to split in two, and her body was like a block of ice, and she suffered like that for three days until she recovered. Tom thought she had become seriously ill, well, considering the scare she gave her brother, so she didn't try it again unless it was necessary…
All in all, this golden finger was a double-edged sword.
Now that she remembered that, she felt a slight headache and was very sleepy. Most likely, her body was demanding rest after working hard without relaxing, but her stomach, which had skipped lunch, growled in protest for food. With slow, lazy movements, she got out of bed. On the way, she would be able to check if her brother's room was as she had said.
Now more awake, she walked to the room, which was empty as if no one lived there. Now happier, she went down to the dining room where everyone was gathered, waiting for dinner. Because of her attempted murder, the children stopped talking and moved away from her, afraid of provoking her. Inside, she just snorted at this action; they had brought it on themselves by bothering her so much.
— Enjoy your meal, — Smiled Refugio maternally as she passed by, leaving her dinner and continuing with the rest.
— Thank you! — She happily lifted her spoon to take her first bite. At another table, two people watched closely as the rice was about to enter her mouth, but Anna dropped her spoon and turned to look behind her when a swift shadow collided with her chest, causing her to fall away with a crash.
— ANNA! — The first to rush to her aid was Refugio, who went to her side when she saw her lying motionless on the floor. Everyone was silent and surprised; some were happy about what had happened. — Answer me, Anna! — She held her in her arms, frightened.
— Cough... cough... I'm fine — She replied softly, her body aching — I'm going to rest — Gathering her strength, she got up and left, and the whole room began to murmur about what had happened.
— Did you see that? — Asked a brown-haired girl, her black eyes darkening as she watched the figure disappear from view.
— I didn't see it, it was too fast to notice, — He said with a hint of relief in his eyes, but his expression was serious.
— She got away this time, otherwise... — She looked at Anna's plate of food on the floor — Anyway, she has to die — She said with a voice full of murderous intent.
— And if it's not her...
— It is! — She raised his voice, but attracted attention, so she lowered her tone. — I recognize those eyes wherever I go...
.
Elsewhere, a man of about 21 was lying on the floor, his body drained of strength; that horrible feeling that a part of his being had been torn from him was awful and heartbreaking.
— What are you doing lying there, you useless piece of trash?! — A potbellied, bald man hit the young man mercilessly. — The customers will be here soon, and you're here taking a break. — It was as if the man didn't see a human being but an animal he was exhibiting for his circus show.
The man owned a magic circus that traveled from city to city to make money, but even though he made money at the expense of his employees, he treated them badly. The young man got up as best he could, his deathly pale face hidden by the dim lights inside the tent.
— Everyone get ready to do better, or you know what will happen, — He warned the others who were there, all of whom were of a different species as seen by the human eye, but to the magicians, they were half-blood mixed with other races or animals with human consciousness.
— Are you okay? — Asked a girl with Asian features, concerned because a dark mist had just come out of his body and left at high speed, leaving him too weak to stand.
— It's nothing, — He replied, but his expression betrayed him as he was pensive about what had happened. In a moment, he felt as if something was calling him, and out of nowhere, his Obscurus fought to escape from his body, and although he struggled, part of his power was gone.
He had to investigate that. The last time that happened was years ago when it got out of control...
.
Tom, who was in the Great Hall, was dining peacefully. The voices weren't that loud, but you could hear the occasional conversation or laughter in the various Houses. Of course, in Slytherin, everyone ate elegantly and quietly. If they spoke, they did so so softly that it was difficult to make out what they were saying. For his part, he said nothing as a strange feeling settled in his chest, but he ignored it and took his glass of freshly squeezed orange juice; he had to admit that the house elves were efficient at their work.
When he lifted his glass, it broke out of nowhere, spilling the juice onto his food. The Slytherin table watched him in silence as this happened, but for Tom, that discomfort in his chest only increased like a bad omen.
— I'll leave first, — He said, getting up as if nothing had happened and hurrying off to the Slytherin dungeons to go to his room. That uneasiness was bothering him, and the best thing to do was to take a bath to see if he felt a little better, and maybe some sleep would help.
When he arrived, he took a cold bath, which cleared his mind. When he got out, he didn't forget to write a letter to his sister and went to sleep, so that if his sister replied, the noise from OZ would wake him up. He fell asleep quickly, attributing it to his exhaustion from these stressful days he had been having, trying to be the best at everything and calculating every step so that the image he was working so hard to build would not collapse.
Abraxas, who arrived later, noticed the curtains drawn around Riddle's bed, so he didn't think much of it and went to take a bath, then read for a while and went to sleep.
In the middle of the night, Tom, who was asleep, began to frown and move uncomfortably in bed, sweat soaking his bed, his magic manifesting itself strongly and dangerously around him. Malfoy, faced with this heavy magic, woke up and saw how the things in the room were in the air; Tom's sleeping curtains were in the air, allowing him to see that he was in a fetal position.
— TOM! TOM! — He shouted his name, causing him to open his eyes, screaming.
— ANNA!!
The floating objects fell, creating the sound of breaking things. Tom was sweating, and his eyes were bloodshot. He clenched his fist so tightly that he hurt himself, but he didn't care because his mind was still in that dream, which was so realistic that he could still feel the sensation in every pore of his body.
— Are you okay, Tom? — Abraxas asked, seeing his companion's twisted expression.
He didn't answer, but instead checked the time with his wand, which indicated that it was 1 a.m. Anna was most likely asleep, so he had no choice but to write to her in the morning. Frustrated, he went to take a bath, but the scene repeated itself over and over in his mind, so much so that rage bubbled up in his chest like an erupting volcano.
He couldn't sleep for the rest of the night because of the dream, so to ward off those bad dreams, he started reading a book on dark magic that Abraxas had lent him.
Soon dawn arrived without him even noticing, and he wasn't interested in that, but in writing to his sister and asking about her well-being. He may have been paranoid to be upset by a dream, but he still wanted to make sure she was okay.
When he called OZ, he returned with the letter from the night before, which did not reassure him, but perhaps she was still asleep and had not noticed the letter, so he sent it again, along with the new letter, and went to get ready for the start of classes.
.
OZ entered through Anna's window and hooted to let her know he was there with a letter, but the person sleeping in the bed did not move...
The owl stayed there for several hours, but the person in the bed did not move an inch since his arrival. Lunchtime came, and with it, someone knocked on the door, but even with the insistent knocking, Anna did not move…
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