“A boggart is a non-living, shape-shifting creature. Can anyone tell me what this creature does?” Lupin asked the class. Hermione's hand shot up, while everyone else shrunk down. “Miss Granger.”
“A boggart takes the form of their observer's biggest fear!”
“Correct!” Lupin explained how fascinatingly they resembled living things but were not living themselves. Sounds like me. Dazai couldn't help but compare himself to a boggart. Looking like a living breathing human, but never being one.
“What's got you so interested in class today?” Blaise asked Dazai.
“Huh?”
“Normally you sleep.”
“I think boggarts are quite interesting. I wonder what my fear would be.”
“Do you think it would work on you?”
“Not sure.”
“In this dresser, I captured a boggart.” The class gasped. “But don't worry. There is a spell that will keep it from getting to you.”
Some yawned, some leaned in closer.
“What is the spell you ask?” Lupin continued. “Well I'll just show you.”
Lupin walked in front of the dresser and used a spell to open it. What came out was.. crystal balls? Dazai stared at them. They're floating, if it were night I'd think it was the moon.
“Riddikulus!” Dazai felt the spell before he saw it. The crystal balls turned into regular bouncy balls and were going in a bunch of different directions. The class laughed and the boggart was forced back into the dresser.
“Now that you've seen it, it's your turn to practice.” Lupin said. “Mr. Longbottom. You're up! Everyone else get in a line!”
“I think that the boggart won't even be able to become anything.” Dazai said to Blaise.
“Why is that?”
“Magic has a hard time with me.”
“Well yes, but magic can still affect you right?” Blaise asked. “Like how you could still see in the mirror of erised.”
“Right…” Dazai nodded. “I am fearless though!”
“I guess we'll see.” Blaise said, knowing Dazai was at least scared of one thing. Dogs.
“I guess so.” Dazai wasn't scared of things, but if he was it would be of Mori's ugly face.
-
While the line was becoming shorter, Dazai was getting more anxious. What if the boggart exposed his ability? Blaise didn't seem to be having much of a problem, staring blankly ahead. If he was nervous he didn't show it.
“Alright Mr. Zabini, your turn!” Lupin sounded tired, of course dealing with terrified kids had to be tiresome.
Blaise walked closer and the dresser opened. What walked out wasn't anything Dazai thought he would see. It was himself. The class gasped. The boy that was always sticking with the demon student was afraid of him.
No. It wasn't Dazai he was afraid of. As the boggart got closer to Blaise, Dazai finally noticed the state his mimic was in. Boggart Dazai had a fake smile, his eyes blank, one Dazai wore often, but his whole body was covered in injuries, not unlike the scars he had covered. The wounds were bleeding badly, he was on the verge of death even. It kept asking Blaise what was wrong, over and over.
Blaise couldn't move, he couldn't cast a spell. In the back of his mind, he knew it wasn't real, but he couldn't hurt Dazai with a spell. Spells always hurt Dazai. Lupin was about to step in, but Dazai held his hand up.
“Blaise.” Dazai called to him, his hand slid to hold Blaise's wand hand. He moved Blaise's hand to point at his other self. “Look at me. It's okay. I'm okay, he's not real. You can use the spell.”
Blaise nodded and Dazai let go, backing away.
“Riddikulus!” Blaise let out. The boggart became a different version of Dazai. He was… dancing? I'm not that bad of a dancer! Dazai thought to himself. The class laughed and so did Blaise who breathed a sigh of relief.
“Good job, Mr. Zabini.” Lupin acknowledged. “Now, Mr. Dazai. I understand you're sensitive to magic, so if this spell is too hard for you, I can step in when you say. That being said, good luck!”
Dazai turned to the dresser. It slowly creaked open and Dazai held his breath. The class leaned in, anticipating what the demon student's fear would be. For a moment, nothing happened. Nothing came out of the dresser and there was silence.
Suddenly there was a loud sound like a gunshot and out came a man with red hair. Who's that? Blaise thought.
“Odasaku…” Dazai whispered.
“Don't call me Odasaku.” A distorted voice came out. Something was wrong with the boggart, it kept twitching like it couldn't keep its form together. Dazai flinched at the words.
The boggarts made a growling sound and switched into a… book? Everyone stared in confusion, but Dazai knew better. The book that wrote their stories, that if he didn't have it he would have no control over his life. Dazai still made no move.
The boggart started changing form again, it was like a blob, changing and shaping itself. Barely anyone could keep up with its changing form, it changed from Mori holding a scalpel and a dress, to his father with his dogs, to the mirror of erised without his reflection, to an injured Blaise angrily looking at him, to the gang all shaming him. With each change the boggart became more confused and angry. It couldn't take form.
Dazai saw everything it became, while Blaise could just keep up.
“Dazai…” He called.
Dazai paid no one any attention, just staring at the boggart that was still attempting to take shape. Then, it turned into himself. Dazai stepped towards it, trembling slightly, and suddenly the boggart fell backwards, once again becoming a mixture of Dazai's fears. It crawled away like it was in pain, switching between forms uncontrollably, then just like that the dresser closed.
Everyone watched in shock. Did he just scare the boggart away without a spell? They were all too busy staring at the door to realize that Dazai was breathing heavily. Blaise looked a second too late because Dazai fell to his knees, his nose bleeding, and passed out.
“Dazai!” Blaise shouted, getting up from his seat and running to him. Dazai was still shaking when he made it to him to hold him in his arms. From what, Blaise didn't know, but right then he didn't care.
“Take him to the nurse's office, Someone else run and tell Professor Snape!” Lupin demanded, checking Dazai's heartbeat. “His heart is still beating. That's good.”
Blaise lifted Dazai up in his arms and hurried out to the infirmary. Please be alright.
-
While Blaise sat in the infirmary, he contemplated what he had seen to be Dazai's fear. The mirror of erised was empty, is that what he saw that day? He couldn't understand anything else, the dogs with some old man, another man with a dress and a scalpel, then another man holding Dazai at gunpoint. Even the book, he couldn't understand. Why would Dazai be afraid of books when he reads so much?
And him being hurt? That made his heart warm. Dazai did care about him and everyone in the gang.
If the boggart didn't take shape, Blaise would have understood that, but it did take shape. Not only that but it took a bunch of different shapes and hid away from Dazai. Dazai saw himself as well. Why would he… who am I kidding? Nothing to do with Dazai makes sense.
“Mr. Zabini.” Snape called. “Dazai is in better condition now.”