章 300: Reunion
Eventually, the Head Girl dropped in to introduce herself (her name was Patricia something from Ravenclaw, Oleandra quickly forgot her name) and Cedric Diggory then finally finished explaining the prefects' tasks, before giving them the passwords to their respective common rooms.
"Well, you don't have to stay here," he said before leaving. "You're free to go out and patrol."
Following his advice, the Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors then left the compartment one after the other; no one was especially eager to stay around Draco for too long. Oleandra was about to follow them out, when Draco's voice rang out from behind her.
"You have no idea how lucky you are," he said coldly. "I have no clue how you did it, but you somehow survived an encounter with the Dark Lord. If you knew what's good for you, you'd give up on the Blood Traitors and the Mudbloods; they're already as good as dead."
Oleandra paused, then slowly slid the glass-panelled door closed before turning to face him.
"Why Draco, if I didn't know any better, I'd almost have thought you actually cared about my well-being," she said sarcastically. "Voldemort failed to kill me the first two times I faced him, so what makes you think he'd succeed the third time?"
Draco recoiled upon hearing her say the forbidden name.
"You're mad if you think that means anything!" Draco shouted. "You just got lucky! The stories my father told me about the Dark Lord would make you—"
Oleandra scoffed and made as if to leave, before turning around once again, having just remembered a certain key detail. One that had led to a series of unfortunate circumstances…
If the Dusk Elf hadn't attacked her right before she had touched the Portkey, her Lethifold would have survived. Then, Oleandra would have rightfully won the Triwizard Cup without needlessly getting injured. She would still have ended up touching the Portkey and been teleported to Voldemort, but with Cloak alive, she could just have flown away or tanked an Avada Kedavra; the Lethifold was a living being, after all.
It was all Draco's fault; he had been the one to return to Nidavellir without telling any of the others of their group; he had brought the Elf bitch back to Earth through his carelessness.
"You're forbidden to access the Room of Come and Go," Oleandra said dully. "Do you remember how I expressly forbid any one of us from returning to Nidavellir without permission? And guess what you did? Not only did you go behind my back, but you also brought back a Dusk-Elf with you; one who very nearly got me killed!"
"You? You're forbidding me from using the Room of Requirements?" Draco laughed incredulously. "What right do you have to prevent me from going wherever the hell I want?"
"By right of might," said Oleandra mildly. "If you go anywhere near the Gate, I'll beat you up."
Draco reached for his wand, but Oleandra only laughed.
"Well, come on and have a go at me if you think you're hard enough," she said, her eyes glinting dangerously. "But make sure you don't miss, or else…"
For a fraction of a second, Draco Malfoy could have sworn that the light in the compartment had dimmed; even the sun outside seemed to have lost its shine. For a moment, there was a strange sigil he had never seen before shining on Oleandra's brow, but then it was gone. He shuddered, cold sweat running down his back.
"It's not worth the effort," he finally managed to say, sheathing his wand. "But you'll regret this, Greengrass— mark my words."
Oleandra didn't bother responding— she knew he didn't have the guts to make good of his threat by himself. Upon leaving the prefects' carriage, she found Ron and Hermione waiting for her.
"What did the git want?" Ron asked curiously.
"Just the usual threats," said Oleandra loosely. "Give me a moment, I'll go fetch my sisters and Tracey, and then we can all go listen to Harry's story. I'm curious to learn what happened that night after I fell unconscious."
Oleandra had more pressing concerns than hearing the latest news on Voldemort; the Dusk Elf girl was still out there, in the wilderness. To make matters worse, Oleandra had lost track of her pouch, which contained the Elf's heart.
The Dusk Elf had murdered Hannah Abott and masqueraded as her for an entire year. Oleandra had barely known the Hufflepuff girl, but she wasn't about to let the Elf get away with this— mostly because she wouldn't be able to sleep soundly with a crazed, knife-wielding, face-stealing Elf woman on the loose.
She needed the heart back, as insurance…
But that was a matter for the future; even this momentous task seemed somehow secondary compared to the prospect of having to face her family and friends in the coming minute.
And so, Oleandra, Hermione and Ron walked down the corridor, trying to find which compartment held Oleandra's family. She dreaded looking through the glass-panelled doors, somehow expecting her sisters to be behind each one, until at last…
There they were: Daphne, Astoria… and Tracey. Daphne looked the same as she always did, Astoria seemed to have gone through a growth spurt just like Oleandra, and Tracey was looking melancholically at the Daily Prophet.
Oleandra's heart thudded loudly in her chest as she raised her fist to knock on the door. And then she just decided to barge inside and be done with it, already— she couldn't take it any more!
The three girls inside the compartment looked up at her as one. Astoria and Tracey froze in shock and disbelief, but Daphne's eyes instantly grew wide in recognition; the two of them might not look as identical as they once did, but there was a special kind of bond between identical twins, and she instantly knew that the girl in front of her was the real deal.
"Oleandra…?" she whispered. "But… how? You were dead— I held your body— we buried you… When…?"
"I got better," said Oleandra, flashing her a weak grin. "I came to about a week or two ago…"
"It really is you," Daphne said, wiping a tear from her cheek, before rising to her feet. "Somehow, I always knew it… The Killing Curse's not supposed to leave a mark, but you had that lightning bolt scar on your chest… Only you would be making stupid jokes at a time like this…"
Expecting Daphne to rush in for a hug, Oleandra spread her arms wide, but instead of receiving one, Daphne started battering Oleandra's ribs with her small fists. And for the record, it hurt.
"Ow!" Oleandra cried. "What's the matter with you?"
"What's the matter with me? What's the matter with you?" Daphne cried hysterically. "You revived two weeks ago, and you let us think you were still dead? What is wrong with you? Where were you?"
"I had a vision!" Oleandra said defensively. "I'll explain more later— but there was something I needed to do— please believe me…"
"I'm just relieved you're okay," said Tracey, tears of happiness streaming down her face.
"I… I believe you," Astoria sniffed.
And they all gathered for a group hug, wrapping around Daphne, who was now punching Oleandra in the liver repeatedly.
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