Lindsay Corner is painting pictures in the sky. (cornerstone) wrote in thesocieties, @ 2010-03-22 14:25:00 |
|
|||
Lindsay couldn't get away from James fast enough. As soon as he'd dismissed her, she'd scrambled away and was halfway down the dungeon hallway before she remembered the book she'd left in the classroom. But no way was she going back. He could still be there, and if he figured out that the Veritaserum was still in her system (she was certain it was), he'd probably make her stay until he was sure it had run its course. Or, worse, he'd talk to her and more nonsense would slip out of her mouth. No, it would be better to find Al. There was hardly a secret she didn't trust him with, and she was supposed to meet him, anyway. She ran her fingers through her hair as she walked, hastily trying to rake out the curls. It was unfortunate enough that Al would be seeing her in dress robes. He didn't also need to see that she'd done her hair or make up (if lip gloss and mascara counted). She glanced down at her wrists and cursed herself for removing the hair ties, and then tried to wipe the lip gloss off with the back of her hand. She slowed her pace as she approached the entranceway to Slytherin. Often, she had a hard time remembering where it was exactly, but fortunately there was someone exiting just as she approached. "Hey," she called. "Can you get Albus Potter for me?" Without a word, the kid, who must have been a first or second year, disappeared back into the Slytherin common room, and Lindsay could only assume it was to get Al. So, she turned and examined her reflection in a nearby coat or armor while she waited. Albus exited Slytherin a couple minutes later. He held the door open for the kid who fetched him before he slipped out himself, giving Lindsay a slight smile and evaluating the corridor to see if anyone else was nearby. He was uncertain why she looked different, or whether he should have known why she looked different, but he gamely ventured, "Hi. Thanks for the break. I've been drowning in Transfiguration homework." "That's what you get for taking that subject," she teased as they started walking. "I was with your brother." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, and she mentally berated herself for letting it happen. Certainly the veritaserum's effects would fade away, and she hoped that would be soon."Not by choice. I don't associate with him by choice. I need a break too. And my mind cleansed." Shut up, Lindsay she told herself, and she took a deep breath. She remembered the promise she'd just made not to tell Al about the Society, and she willed herself to think of something else. "You wouldn't happen to have any alcohol, would you?" He looked at his feet as they walked, and when she mentioned being with James, he furrowed his brow. As far as he knew, Gryffindor Quidditch practice wasn't scheduled for today, and as far as he could tell, that was the one connection James and Lindsay shared, other than Al himself. "Sorry," he said, making a show of checking his pockets. "No alcohol on me. Or in my room, either. Sorry. But I understand. James can definitely drive a person to drink." She laughed. "You can say that again. I'm glad you're not like him, Al." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and then her gaze fell to his hands. It would be easy to grab a hold of one, and she considered it for a moment. But she imagined his reaction and refrained. "I'm glad you're my best friend." "I'm glad I'm both of those things too," he said, a tinge of caution edging into his words. The alcohol comment had set off some brain waves, and he considered this. She wasn't acting like she was under the influence, but her words seemed a little different. As if they were rounder, or lighter but fuller. He felt a little irritated at possibility that she and James had possibly been drinking together, but dismissed that as obviously impossible and untrue. It still annoyed him, though. "Not to keep the conversation on our least favourite person who's not Voldemort, but why were you with James? I didn't think you had Quidditch practice right now." Was Al jealous? She couldn't tell. "It wasn't quidditch practice. He was interviewing--no, interrogating--me. Please don't mention it to him," she added the last part quickly. "I promised not to tell, but there was veritaserum. It's hard to lie right now." She frowned. "Not that I usually lie to you. I don't." "Okay. I won't mention it." He rubbed the side of his hand against his forehead and tried to process what she told him. "Did James give you the veritaserum?" His mind flashed back to Lily's claim of being "hased" by James. Maybe he shouldn't have dismissed that so easily. "Yes, in tea that burnt my throat. It's weird. I don't think I like it. My head feels fuzzy, and I keep saying things that I think. I don't mean to. You could hex my mouth shut." Albus stopped in his tracks and looked her over, feeling both anxious and horrified. "This is really serious. Are you okay? I can take you to the hospital wing." And then another thread of the conversation whipped around and hit him. Being angry at James was familiar territory for Al, who could never quite get the hang of giving his brother the benefit of the doubt, but this was pretty terrible, by any standard. "What did he want to know that he couldn't just ask you?" "It was just an interview. And, no, you can't. I'm fine. I would get in so much trouble. I only burnt my throat because I drank it so fast. It's fading anyway, I can tell. I'm okay, don't worry." She couldn't help but smiling a little when she noted concern on his face. "I promise," she added, just as she leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. She tried to tell herself that was the veritaserum, too, but even she knew the potion wasn't imperius. It took bewildered Al a moment to react, and when he did, he stepped back firmly. "Okay," he said slowly, drawing out the last syllable as he tried to wrap his mind around this entire conversation--and her actions. A little part of him might have even longed for the predictability of his Transfiguration homework. "If you're fine, then what are you -- why did you -- were there other drugs in that tea?" Albus hadn't run away and Lindsay took that as a positive sign, even if he hadn't reacted the way she'd often imagined. "No, I don't know, but I don't think so." She ran her fingers through her hair again as she talked, pulling her hair up into a ponytail, only to let her hair fall again because she still didn't have anything to fasten it with. "I just... wanted to. It's not the first time I've wanted to." For a brief moment, she could feel the hazy dream-like feeling slipping, and she closed her eyes and focused hard, trying to take back control of her thoughts again. There was too much she shouldn't tell Al. "I just..." But maybe she did want to tell him. Opening her eyes, she looked at him and continued, not sure if she or the veritaserum was speaking. "I wanted a new secret, one that James can't touch, because he's not here right now. I can't have him be the person that knows the most about me. It has to be you. I just--I probably don't make any sense. Can we sit down somewhere?" No, she wasn't making much sense and he didn't understand at all, but Al felt as if he were awfully close to the truth anyway. His anxiety increased tenfold as a result. He was worried about her, but he didn't even know how to comprehend what was going on. "Um. Yeah. Let's--" He walked, too quickly, to the nearest classroom, confirmed its emptiness, and then pulled the door open. "Do you want to wait until the veritaserum wears off?" "Yeah, that would probably be wise," she said, taking a seat on a bench in the back of the classroom. She lay [laid?] her head on the table and looked up at him, her eyes apologetic and sad. "Do you mind waiting? I'm sorry." He remained standing for a little too long before he remembered they had come here to sit down. "No. I don't mind," he said carefully, sitting down nearby. "I don't want you pressured into saying anything you don't want to say. It's not that I don't want to hear any, um, truths." Which was mostly true. It wasn't that he didn't want to hear that she wanted a secret with him, or that she wanted him to know more about her than James did. He just didn't know what to do with that information. "Wait," she said, sitting upright. Then, reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small vial. "I have an antidote. Should I take it?" She didn't wait for his answer before unscrewing the cap and downing the liquid. "Do you think it's too late? Ask me a question. I'll lie." Although, she wasn't sure that was necessary. She could already feel her mind unfogging. Now he was more puzzled than ever. If she had the antidote, why didn't she use that for whatever James was interrogating her about? He scratched at his temple--at least now, if the antidote worked, she'd possibly make more sense--and settled on asking a question both bland and mundane. "What house do you belong to?" She grinned. "Slytherin. That's where we met." It felt nice to have control and not to be fighting with herself for the right words. Looking over at him, she knew she owed him an explanation. So much for her promise not to tell Al. "I'm being tapped for one of the secret societies. I probably shouldn't tell you which." Al had smiled at the Slytherin remark, but he only just caught his face from falling at her next comment. After employing his amazing powers of observation at the past two Circle of the Heliopath gatherings, he had deduced she wasn't tapped by the Circle with him. But he hadn't figured she'd be tapped by the other society--though, clearly, he should have at least guessed that. Why wouldn't one of the societies want her? And suddenly, he felt a little left out. He kept the smile on his face as best as he could. "Wow. Congratulations. So that's why you..." He gestured vaguely at his mouth, then realized what he was doing and quickly mimed drinking something instead. "That's why James gave you veritaserum?" Nodding, she said, "Please don't tell anyone, especially him, that I told you. I don't like keeping secrets from you. I wish you were with me, though." She fidgeted with the empty vial. "I told them I didn't want to be in it without you." "Oh." Feeling slightly like a failure of a friend for having not thought of saying the same thing--although, to be fair, he hadn't been given the opportunity to protest Lindsay's absence from the Circle--Al shrugged a little, tried to play it cool. "That's...that's really great of you to say. And to think. And it'd be really great if we could be in a secret society together. But I hope you wouldn't not be in it just because they didn't ask me to join, too." "I'm still joining," she said quickly, not wanting him to think she was pathetic. "I'm just scared of having a secret part of my life. That's why I--" She looked down at the vial. "--nevermind, I'm probably over thinking things and worrying about nothing." "Okay." He stared down at his shoes again. He couldn't understand it, exactly, but he could sense the undue weight of secrets. "Right. I don't know. Having secrets might be okay, sometimes." "It's better when they're our secrets." "You can tell me about your society, and I can keep it a secret, and the fact that I know, that'll be our secret." He mentally replayed that sentence. "I think that made sense. It can be like I'm secretly a member of your secret society, so secret that none of the other members know it. Secret member of a secret society." "I like that. I'll probably need to complain about James, anyway. They paired me with him. I'll probably get kicked out, anyway, after I murder him. What were they thinking, me and James?" Al just shook his head. "They probably did it as a form of hazing." He lifted his eyebrows. "And you know, this makes Lily right. James is 'hasing.'" Her eyes widened in disbelief. "What? No, you think I'm being hazed? Or, 'hased' rather? You're a secret member now, so you can't tell. I'll even 'hase' you, if you want." "Forced interaction with James? Definitely 'hasing.' Trust me, I should know." He nodded, but held up a hand. "I won't tell. As much as I like the idea of sending Professor Bloxam after James, that's not my place." "That would be rather amusing," she said, smiling. "Thanks, Al. I'm sorry I kissed you." He shrugged again, not sure what the correct response was. Part of him had dismissed that whole...thing as her being distressed. "It's okay. You weren't completely yourself." "But I was." Her voice was quiet. "And we don't have to talk about this. But I was myself." "Oh." Al ran a hand along the edge of the table. "I mean, yeah. You were. If you were under veritaserum, you were probably more yourself than ever. Um." That probably didn't help him uncoil his confusion. "It's okay." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and said, "Yeah, probably. Have you ever had veritaserum?" "No," he said, shaking his head. "Was it weird? I mean, you sounded kinda weird. Just a little." "Completely weird. It was like..." She paused, trying to gather her thoughts. "..being drunk, but different. I lost all inhibition for what I said. If I thought it, it was out my mouth. I think it was wearing off by the time I saw you, but... With James, oh godric, I told him he was hot. I don't think I can go to quidditch practice on Monday." He shuddered slightly. Maybe he should ask Michaela whether or not veritaserum would be involved in his own tap process, so that he could procure some antidote, too. It would be a certain recipe for disaster, saying anything and everything he thought. But wait--the last part of what she said caught up with him, and he paled. "You told James he was attractive? Do you know what that'll do to his ego?" And did she really think that? Albus wasn't sure he wanted to know. "Of course I know what it'll do to his already overinflated ego. It's not as if I could stop myself," she protested. "And technically I said he wasn't not hot, which is different. I think. And I can't very well go tell him it was a lie now, though I would if I didn't think he'd laugh in my face. Of course, he said some pretty stupid things, too. Called you smart once. But that's not one of the stupid things. I'm sorry, I'm rambling. Again. It's just nice to have someone to tell this to." "Right. I'm sure you're...even. Even? Yeah, even." This was pretty disturbing, all in all, even more so than her initial weirdness and the kiss on his cheek. Okay, maybe not more than the latter, but still. "Are you going to have to drink more veritaserum again later?" "Why, are you going to avoid me if I do?" She smiled, just a little. "No, I don't think so. I don't think I can do that again. Next year, if they give me a partner, I'm taking an antidote." The answer was "maybe" but he wasn't going to say that, and besides, he wasn't scared of the truth, per se; he was scared of not knowing how to react to whatever the truth was or wasn't. "Why didn't you take the antidote this time?" he asked, curious. "Did I already ask you that?" "Because it didn't seem very brave to take the easy way, and I didn't think I'd be able to fake a truthful conversation with him." She shrugged. "And maybe I was curious. Would you have done it?" "I absolutely would have taken the antidote. I probably would have overdosed on the antidote, even. Why give up the upperhand?" No hesitation, no questions. He considered the possibility that her concern for bravery and his concern for the upperhand might have explained their house differences. "I don't know. Maybe I might not have. It's hard to tell what I would do, if I were in your shoes." "Well, if you ever need to make the antidote, I'll stand guard while you break into Professor Bobbin's office and steal the ingredients. Though, I think I'd like to see you without the antidote. Maybe." Pausing, she considered his reasoning, and it made sense, especially for Al. "You don't have to have the upperhand with me, do you?" "Oh." Al's jaw dropped. "We had a conversation about breaking into his office, and about veritaserum, didn't we? I forgot. I would have still helped you, even if you didn't want to tell me then what it was about." He was almost equally surprised by her question. "No upperhand here. We're quite balanced in general." Except for how she told him that she was in a secret society and he had avoided confessing the same to her. That was a bit of an imbalance of knowledge, but he brushed it aside. "Do you think we're balanced?" "It's okay. I know you would, but my cousin helped me. We didn't even have to steal the ingredients. I'd say he could help you if you ever need it, but he'd probably really wonder what you and I get up to. And, I don't know." Did she think they were balanced? She didn't know, not really. She certainly felt more vulnerable now, but that was her fault. "I don't think we're imbalanced, maybe just a little tilty once in awhile." "Tilty's probably normal," he said slowly. "But I don't try to have the upperhand with you, I swear." He mimed crossing his heart. "At least I don't think I do. Because you're my friend, and I wouldn't want that." His face flushed now, he might as well have been under veritaserum, given the awkwardness and the embarrassment that accompanied that statement of truth. Al's answer made her want to hug him, or kiss his cheek again, maybe. "That's true. You're right," she said after a moment. "I shouldn't have even asked. I'm just feeling foolish still, that's all. But you're my best friend, so you're right." "Okay." He wasn't sure of it, but moving on felt like the safest direction. "So, other than the whole James thing, are you excited about your secret society?" "I think so, yeah. There's a pool and supposedly the society is really good at helping people with their careers. I'm not really worried about the future yet, but I figure I will be next year. Do you think you would've liked to have been tapped?" "You'll have to keep me informed of what I'm missing, and then I'll be able to say if I would've liked to have been a part of this society of yours," Al said rather carefully. It was true enough: he didn't know enough about Wand & Quill, or about his own Circle, yet to know if he would've liked things to have been different. And so he shrugged yet again. "It might've been fun. Or it might've been a disaster." "Okay. I still wish you were in it with me, and I'm glad I found you after my interview," she said, feeling more calm than she had moments before. She hesitated and then added, "I love you, Al." His gaze fell again, and he suppressed a wince of uncomfortableness. He probably didn't deserve that, given that he was withholding information and that he didn't actually say anything that great, other than when he called her his friend. "Thanks?" he said, not managing to keep the question mark out of his voice, despite his desire to act normal. If Al had responded in kind, she might've had to ask him if he'd been the one drugged, so it didn't bother her any when he didn't. "I think we should go outside and enjoy the weather," she said, picking up the vial and tossing it at the garbage bin. It missed. "Dang it. So, how about it? Walk with me? And, hey, when's the next meteorological event that's a must see?" Feeling a little relieved, he smiled at this and stood up. "Sure. Let's go. The Lyrid meteor shower isn't for another month, and it's not the best or brightest, but it'll do." He searched his head for the correct dates. "April 21, April 22, around midnight between those two days, that's when we should go see it, at its peak." Following his lead, she stood up as well and started heading towards the door. "Then consider it a date. April 21, midnight." |