Originally posted by: ArushiKotecha
This is literature po*nography to me. Quite literally!
The more I read, the more I want.You totally know how to make people beg for more :PAnd now you'll make me suffer until the next chapter :'(But I shall wait as patiently as I can :D
Originally posted by: LoveToDream
I am so sorry, but I am in no state to write Angst right now :/
And believe me, this WILL be Angst.
That is the reason why I took up writing Of Mosq, cuz I needed some humour :O
After the exams, I shall surely start it up again :D
Thankyou for reading :*
Chapter 3: Fate (Part 1)
A/N: This chapter has gotten really long, so I have decided to split it into two. Apologies for the delay, my muse is just as moody as I am! And I hope this update covers up for it all? Enjoy!
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Aconite (n. aconitum apellus) is a perennial herbaceous plant causing delirium when its leaves are ingested and used by Seers (human and beast) over the centuries with Belladonna in ointments that prolong the opening of the Inner Eye.
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Hunched on his bed, the deep red curtains separating him from his snoring dorm mates, Harry peered down at the book on his lap with a narrow beam of light emanating from his wand tip. He had, typically, postponed writing the Potions essay, and now he was blearily glaring at his blank parchment hoping that words might just pop into it. Trying to fumble through his homework wasn't routine, but he was sure Professor Slughorn wouldn't exactly mind. Maybe.
Where is Hermione when you need her?
Shoving aside the confusion and the unexplainable, nagging guilt at not being there for a friend"especially when he knew what she had been going through since Ron started dating Lavender"he tried to concentrate on the assignment on Golpalott's Third Law.
"Right, so Golpa-what's-his-face had a Law," he whispered to himself, quoting verbatim from Advanced Potion Making, "stating that the antidote for a blended poison cannot simply be created by finding the antidotes to each separate poison in the blended whole and mixing them together, but by finding a single antidote for the poisonous medley."
He paused for a moment, a comically befuddled expression blooming across his face. "Merlin's beard, what does that miserable, old, gargoyle want? To confuse the bejeesus out of us?!" Sighing, he read and re-read the stupid thing before his eyes caught onto familiar scribbling on the page margin.
"Bleeding Bowtruckles! 'Mixed-up poisons can't have a mixed-up antidote'"that is all what this means? Oh Circe, this is pathetic."
Muttering sullenly under his breath about 'Aconite's blithering antidote' and 'can't even write three foot on bezoars', Harry pushed aside his bedside curtains to tiptoe around the central stove and on to the bed opposite him. "Neville...," he whispered.
No answer. Of course.
Prodding the figure buried under the covers with his wand, he hissed, "Neville, you dozy, wake up!"
"Huh, what...where...how!" Neville sprung up agitatedly, his sleep-addled eyes shooting across the room. Finally he looked up, noting Harry's sheepish grimace before relaxing back onto the headboard.
"Harry! What...why are you up so late?"
"I need your help, mate."
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"You are not welcome here, human."
Theodore Nott froze, his brisk pace coming to an abrupt halt, as the gruff voice reached out from the darkness behind him. A triumphant smirk played along his lips.
"Is that so, Ronan?" he drawled.
Slowly, Theo turned on his spot, his eyes tracing the faint silhouette hidden in the bushes. The squelch of wet leaves under his feet jarred the quiet severity of the Forest, successfully rousing the figure from their hesitance and caution. His smirk widened, glee coursing through him at this small victory, as a dark figure stepped out from the shadows. He'd found those half-breeds, and nothing could stop him from finishing his task. He would do it, if not for family, but for the one person who had been there for him, always.
"You have no business here, human. Leave now, before Magorian or Bane find you."
His head snapped towards the source of the strange, lilting voice, absently registering that there were two of them while he was alone.
No matter, no matter. I'm the one with the wand, after all.
Refusing to answer to that subtle threat, Theo stood his ground and watched as two Centaurs stood before him, pale moonlight glistening off of the beads of water on their torso and hair. Towering over him, their hooves stomping on the Forest ground threateningly, they had a physical advantage. He recognised the one with the flowing red hair cascading down his body, and those forlorn green eyes, as Ronan. He, however, failed to identify the other one"clearly a female if that unbound bosom was to be the judge"and frustration made him grit his teeth. He couldn't afford to be uninformed. Information meant leverage, an advantage, which could be the difference between life and death in this time of war. The female had pale features, in contrast with her dark, ebony hair, rumpled and dirty due to years of wandering in the wild. Her tawny eyes shone against the reflecting light, her alert and unwavering gaze fixed warily on him.
Half-human, half-animal"the filthy creatures are despicable, disgusting!
"You know why I am here," he said, keeping the other Centaur in his peripheral vision, "and I won't leave without what I want, savage."
A sudden movement caused him to whip out his wand, aiming it at the manky female's heart without further thought. He glared up at her, not intimidated by the arrow aimed at him. He'd had to suffer through worse in his childhood. Much worse than a puny bow and arrow.
"Nephele, stand back."
Immediately the minger"Nephele"relaxed and retreated to stand behind her red-headed peer. Theo dropped his hand, clutching at the wand guardedly; the warm crackle of his magic was reassuring to him.
"If he dares to talk to you in that manner," she spat, "then I can't be held accountable for my actions."
"My apologies," Theo quipped, "but can we get past the chit chat?"
"I cannot help you, human. I shall not. What you suggest is dangerous, improbable." Ronan sighed dolefully, before continuing, "Star gazing is a familial art, with members of the herd watching the skies together for signs of disruption, change. We do not indulge in it for self-obsessed Dark wizards who need to flatter themselves, fan their ego, every once in a while."
"And, we have already lost one of our own to the humans." Nephele was fierce in her response, unwilling to bend, whereas Ronan seemed resigned. She was angry, traces of it lingering in her bright eyes. Theo looked on, intrigued. "Firenze will always be a source of constant misery."
"Nephele!"
"It is the truth I speak, Ronan!"
"The Herd does not mention his name"Magorian's instructions are clear, Nephele. We shan't speak of him tonight either!"
Theo observed, his quick eyes noting the tension rippling between the two beasts and unravelling it within the vaults of his mind. It seemed like the Centaurs had some dissension in the ranks, didn't they? He could use that information to his benefit. Feeling chuffed, he said, "Well, fancy that! Professor Firenze is bloody brilliant"or so I've heard. Seems terribly chummy with some of the students, though."
Apparently, he's said the wrong thing. The fem"Nephele had her blazing eyes trained on him now, disgust and loathing radiating off of her. His cagey side discreetly noted her fingers tightening around the crude bow, while his reckless alter egoshot her a conceited smirk. He just couldn't help but rile her up.
Playing with fire there, Nott? She could easily snap you in two.
Scoffing at his thoughts, Theo shook his head at the duo in front of him. He should've known this was going to happen. How could he expect cooperation from this herd of dunderheaded dreamers? Life was just spiffing, sometimes.
This is going to be a long night, isn't it?
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Severus Snape was feeling particularly perturbed at that inopportune moment. His daily rounds around the Castle were a tiresome chore, wherein encountering wandering students - from Houses not his own, of course - were the only highlights. Yet, he hadn't come across Potter even once, his robes weren't billowing behind him as per his usual taste, and his collar seemed suffocating and tight. What a waste of his time.
He needed alcohol, preferably some Ogden's.
Rounding the corner past the Entrance Hall and down the dungeons, Snape decided to visit the foolish young Malfoy boy whose responsibility had been thrust upon him, much like that of a certain green-eyed Gryffindor.
Pretentious prats, the lot of them.
Unable"and unwilling"to eradicate the House rivalry instilled in him since his school days, Snape sneered at the bare stone wall that was the entrance to the Slytherin Common room before spitting out the password, 'Anguis'. Stepping inside, he barked at one of Draco's lackeys - Crabbe, Goyle, too similar to differentiate, in his opinion - to summon the blonde Slytherin immediately. He added in a scowl, for good measure. It did the trick, as both the dimwits scurried off of the plush green settee and into their dormitories. Minutes later, Snape found the thickheads approaching him with apprehension and fear brewing in their eyes.
"P-pro-professor S-snape sir-r," stuttered the taller of the duo, "Dr-draco is n-not in""
"Quiet," he warned the blubbering boneheads, "Draco, I believe, is...indisposed at the moment? Ah, a nod would be perfectly sufficient, not too taxing for you lot." Snape glared down at them, his earlier irritation creeping into his already darkened mood. The boy was already in trouble, and Snape did not need additional problems from the blonde's Housemates. He knew his students, and in Slytherin, walls often did have ears. Draco's absence need not be publicised.
"P-professor Sn-snape sir, may I a-ask what you n-needed to talk ab""
"You may not." With a haughty look and a swish of his robes, Snape left the Common room, leaving behind two quivering Slytherins scratching their heads.
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Draco felt confused; utterly and undeniably frazzled. He couldn't, for the life of him, understand what was happening. He'd never felt like this before; never felt this sense of absolute recklessness and this disdain for the rules and shackles in his life. He, quite surprisingly, wanted to rebel. For some peace of mind, for some freedom. For himself.
This wasn't the first time he'd snogged a girl, no siree. Yet, kissing Hermione Granger was a whole new experience in itself.
He wasn't unaware, even in this moment of heightened pleasure, of how wrong this was. They were polar opposites"she was a girl full of light and happiness, while he was a boy struggling with darkness and despair; she was a Gryffindor with unshakeable morals, he was a Slytherin adept at choosing the easy way out; she was everything good in this world, while he wasn't. By Salazar, she was a Muggle-born and he was a Pureblood! Poles apart not just fundamentally but also socially. They just weren't meant to be.
Nothing, however, mattered at that moment as he felt her lips against his, so warm, so urgent. Nothing could denythese delicious tingles running up his arms, or this strange euphoria slowly spreading through his shivering frame. Despite the wrongness of their circumstances, this felt right. Being with her...felt right.
Shocked by the impromptu revelation, Draco stilled. A quiet groan from Hermione in response left him helpless against the ache in his heart, the quiver in his limbs, for a seemingly endless moment. The effect this slight bint had on him was shocking, causing him to grasp at her shoulders gently and nudge her away. He looked down at her, his eyes wandering over her face desperately.
He wanted...h-he needed to understand.
Stepping away slowly, with a trembling hand raking through his messy hair, Draco looked at Hermione as awareness seeped into her slowly. Dread clouded his mind as he saw her eyes widen, his gut clenching at the thought that she might regret their kiss. And then he shook his head, asking himself why it mattered so much. Why was her reaction so important? And since when had he turned into a sissy?
"D-draco...?"
"Don't call me that!" he snapped.
Looking up, he immediately regretted lashing out, as he saw Hermione carefully mask the hurt, a guarded faade he'd come to hate replacing the desire in her eyes. Sighing, he turned away. He just didn't know what to do. He needed to...he just...
He couldn't let her call him by his name. He couldn't. He might just kiss her again, and that would not help. Certainly not.
Turning back to face her, Draco whispered, "Herm-Granger. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I-I...look I'm just as confused as you-"
"Malfoy. I don't need an explanation for what ha-happened. Clearly, it meant nothing."
Flinching, Draco strode towards her, taking hold of her arms almost frantically. How could she...what? What?
"What?" he forced out. "What do you mean? This meant nothing?"
He was met with a stony silence that set his teeth on edge. Shaking her agitatedly, Draco repeated, "What do you mean, Hermione?!"
"The kiss was a mistake."
For a moment, it seemed like the world was crashing down around him. A cold sweat broke out against his forehead, as disbelief blinded him. For a moment, he couldn't breathe.
But surely, that was impossible? This uptight little Gryffindor meant nothing. The kiss really did mean nothing.
Surely, his heart wasn't breaking. Surely not?
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Turning away from the Centaurs, shadows of the dark Forest creeping along his face, Theo took a deep breath. He was wasting precious time by squabbling with the fools, and he couldn't afford that. He had to do this. It was the least he could do for his friend.
"Enough." Theo ordered. He reached into his pocket to touch the cool crystal vial, pondering on the next course of action. Shedding his pretence he turned to address the red-headed Centaur, his face blank and emotionless.
"Enough of the pissing around, Ronan. I have a deal for you and your Herd."
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A/N: So, Aconite really is an herb mentioned in the series. After some research, all I did was Potter-fy [that should be a word] some of its characteristics. It's, mostly, legit!
Golpalott's Law is one I found on Harry Potter Wiki [I LOVE that site] and isn't made up. Check it out, if interested.
Reviews shall be appreciated immensely, so don't be a miser! Thank you for reading :D
Originally posted by: Priya_nv
Oh Godric, I loved reading your FF 👍🏼.
By Salazar, waiting for your next update .
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