Chapter 55: 5-2

Christmas had arrived. This year again, I received a warm sweater from Mrs. Weasley and a new addition to Hagrid's whittled figures. Hermione stayed at Hogwarts, so we planned to exchange cards later, and from Draco, I received a pair of earrings. Apparently, the jewels possess a magic that makes them shine on their own in the moonlight. By the way, last year's gift from him was a green satin hair ornament. It wasn't a design meant for everyday use, so it has firmly become the master of my jewelry box. (Lavender, who couldn't stand seeing me so messy, had given me the jewelry box as a hand-me-down.)

Unfortunately, these earrings also seem destined for the jewelry box. I have no habit of dressing up, so I have absolutely no use for them.

Should I be happy about this? I mean, I genuinely think they are beautiful, but... could this be a spiteful hint at my lack of femininity? That spiteful jerk.

"Merry Christmas, Maria."

"Merry Christmas, Hermione."

I couldn't help but smile wryly at Hermione, whose bedhead was just as explosive as Harry's. The fact that I immediately grabbed a hairbrush for her might mean her attempts at giving me a "lady-like education" have been at least a little successful. As for me, I just consider it practice for spoiling Lily, whenever I finally get to meet her.

"Here, a Christmas card for you."

"Thanks. Here's one from me, then."

"I'm so glad... You know, even your handwriting is somewhat masculine. It's very brisk."

"You think so?"

"It looks exactly like the handwriting of an exhausted civil servant who does nothing but fill out paperwork."

"...Hahaha."

Sharp as always.

Going down to the common room with Crookshanks, who had a tinsel ribbon tied around his neck, the excited voices of the boys reached us even in the empty room. Tilting her head, Hermione opened the door to the boys' dormitory without a second thought. Even though I'm a girl now too, I used to get so flustered back in the day by Hermione walking in so naturally like that.

"What are you smiling at?"

When Ron saw Crookshanks, he grimaced but seemed to swallow his urge to complain upon confirming the cat was securely in my arms. Crookshanks, however, kept his yellow eyes locked entirely on Scabbers.

"Maria, Merry Christmas! Look at this!"

Harry, who had been acting awkward around me for the past few days, completely forgot about the tension and held up a broom with a massive grin.

—It was a Firebolt.

My heart leaped, just as I expected it would. That gloss, that shape, the perfect tail twigs. I could practically feel the ride right now. Even without words, he must have known I was just as thrilled. With the exception of Hermione, we were all gathered around the broom, wrapped in absolute awe.

"Wait, this is strange. This is—I mean, it's something incredibly expensive, isn't it?"

"Incredible doesn't even cover it! It's an international standard broom!"

"And they gave it to Harry? Who?"

"No idea."

"Was there a card?"

"No."

"Not even a note?"

"Nothing."

Hermione looked as if she couldn't believe it.

Yes, Hermione is right. I know it too. But—to the boys right now, her correctness is going to cut like a knife.

"We need to talk to someone about this."

"About what?"

"About that broom! We have to report it to Professor McGonagall."

"Oh, yeah, right. We'll tell her we got such a fantastic broom."

"No! To have it checked! To see if it has a jinx on it, or if it's a trap—"

"What are you talking about?"

Hermione and Ron were heating up. Meanwhile, Harry was looking at me with incredibly quiet eyes.

"Because it's weird! It's so obviously a trap! That broom—Sirius Black sent it!"

It was Harry who stopped Ron from lunging at Hermione in a fit of sudden rage.

"—What do you think, Maria?"

"Eh..."

"I want to hear your opinion."

Harry was strangely calm.

"...I agree too. With Hermione."

"Maria...!"

"Because, think about it. Even if we hide it here, the moment Harry takes the Firebolt to Quidditch practice, McGonagall will undoubtedly suspect the exact same thing Hermione did. Having it confiscated then would be too late. If we have it checked now, the broom will be returned to your hands much sooner."

"It might not come back!"

"It will. —Absolutely."

Ron looked ready to explode his frustration at me as well, but he suddenly glanced at Harry and swallowed his anger. —Harry's face was so expressionless it was almost cold.

"If Maria says so, then I guess that's it."

"Harry."

"Got it. We'll do exactly that."

Harry wasn't looking at me anymore. Gripping the Firebolt, he walked down to the common room.

Once again, we were left behind in the wake of his anger.

"...Um, Maria? Harry has a lot on his mind, too. It's definitely not like he hates you now or anything, I swear."

"Maria, I think so too. It's just—well—brother and sister dynamics are difficult. Right, Ron?"

"Y-Yeah, exactly! Just look at me and Ginny. She doesn't think of me as an older brother at all."

"...I'm the older sister, you know."

Somehow giving my usual reply to my best friends who were trying so hard to comfort me, I retreated to my dormitory. Holding the communication parchment, and the 'Box'—

"Siblings are this difficult, huh."

The freezing corridor chilled me from my toes up.

I found myself inexplicably wanting to see him—the man whose robes are always steeped in the scent of potions.

We argued fiercely over the management of the Horcrux. Draco absolutely refused to compromise. Even though he had nearly died because of a Horcrux, he didn't want to let it go—or rather, his argument was that he absolutely didn't want it kept with me.

I felt the exact same way. If anything, as the one who had actually caused casualties, my feelings on the matter were probably much stronger than his. And yet—

"I still think this compromise is a bad idea."

Inside the Room of Requirement, specifically configured so that only Draco and I could enter, we were racking our brains in front of the ominous diadem. A third location, neither with me nor with him—that was the solution we two unyielding people had somehow squeezed out.

But even the Room of Requirement isn't absolute. Bitter memories of the Dumbledore's Army era crossed my mind. ...Though the culprit of that betrayal is sitting right next to me. Even if the room was opened under the condition of 'only me and Draco'—I wonder just how much we can trust it.

However, if I hold onto it, there's a dangerous chance it could affect Harry. If Draco holds onto it, there's a dangerous possibility that Voldemort (or more accurately, a servant or victim possessed by Voldemort) might inadvertently show up at Draco's home. Therefore, storing it safely at Hogwarts was the safest conclusion we could reach. There are also the protective wards placed over Hogwarts Castle itself.

As for Draco's suggestion of Gringotts... well, we've already proven that we could break into it.

"I suppose it can't be helped. —Here, Draco."

I handed the 'Box' I had brought to Draco. Harry got the Firebolt—and I had begged Sirius for a 'Secret Box specifically for powerful sealing'. I figured we shouldn't rely solely on Draco's magic to seal the Horcrux, but rather be thorough by starting with the container itself.

Draco gazed at it deeply, then handed it back to me with an exasperated look.

"The box itself is practically a weapon at this point. Is the Black fortune bottomless?"

"Considering he can afford to buy a Firebolt and 'this' even after having his assets confiscated, it probably is bottomless."

Even I sighed. Sirius had always been a total rich boy at heart when it came to his sense of money, even in the past.

Sinking into a sofa to my liking—since it's a room for both of us, the interior design is an amalgamation of our tastes—I stared at the beautifully decorated secret box that would never open unless the mechanism was solved. According to the instructions, it was impervious to fire and water, the space inside was completely isolated the moment the lid shut, and it could withstand any impact. What in the world do billionaires use something like this to store?

"I want to just destroy it right now."

Gripping a Basilisk fang, Draco muttered hatefully.

A Basilisk fang—yes, incredibly, even in that extremely chaotic situation down in the Chamber of Secrets, Draco had shrewdly managed to harvest Basilisk fangs. Talk about turning a bad situation to your advantage. And two of them, no less. Two, so we could each have one. Perfect. He was so meticulously prepared that I was actually a little put off.

"Not yet. One might not be a problem, but—no, it's definitely a no. We can't take that risk yet. That guy will notice if we destroy too many Horcruxes. The optimal solution is to gather all of them except Nagini and destroy them all at once at the very last minute. ...Though that's just an ideal."

I tried placing the fang and the diadem inside the box. The moment I closed the lid, the box became just a box. It looked like nothing more than a pretty decorative chest. Draco looked surprised too; it must be an impressive camouflage to deceive even Draco's curse-sensitive eyes.

To finish, Draco applied a sealing charm to the exterior of the box and hid it in a black cabinet—which was Draco's taste in furniture. That concludes the handling of the Horcrux. ...I really hope we can safely keep it until the end this time.

"We'll have to come check on it occasionally."

"To the extent that we don't raise suspicion. Especially from Dumbledore."

Just as he sat down in his preferred reclining chair, I let out an "Ah."

"Speaking of which, Professor Snape probed my mind."

"Huh?"

"He comforted me the other day, but..."

"...And?"

"Well, I knew it was coming, but he essentially checked to see if I can make prophecies. It was probably—or rather, definitely—on Dumbledore's orders."

"............"

"Draco?"

Draco immediately used the entirety of his chair to lean back and cover his face with both hands. It's a reclining chair, there's no point if you don't actually lean back in it.

"......And what did you do?"

"I kept my mind closed through Occlumency the whole time, of course. Want to test it?"

"...No, I'm good."

He let out a long, heavy sigh. You don't have to use your whole body and soul to show how exasperated you are.

Dumbledore will eventually figure out my true identity anyway. Even if he hasn't pieced together the 'Harry Potter' part yet, he might have already included a 'second time around' scenario as one of his theories. That's exactly why he had Professor Snape probe me to see if I possessed the Sight.

...It's fine. Even if he finds out, Dumbledore and I have the same ultimate goal. I—I just want to pick up and save as many of the people that man didn't reach out his hand to save as I possibly can.

"Well, let's head out soon. I know it's comfortable in here, but the Christmas feast is waiting."

"Are you going with Harry?"

I looked away in a glaringly obvious manner. ...He asks even though he already knows the answer. What a jerk.

"Make up with him soon. It's bad if you can't stay by Harry's side, isn't it?"

"I know that better than anyone. ...Fighting with myself, it's almost laughable."

Draco didn't laugh.