Chapter 7
“Are you sure-“ Hermione fell dead silent as her friend nodded, face running with all kinds of fluids as they struggled to breathe. “Oh god… Alyssa I’m sorry. But he didn’t, right? He didn’t do anything?”
“It’s very likely he was trying to gaslight them. Make them paranoid that something could happen and continue with the story he had concocted until he actually could end up assaulting them and they wouldn’t even believe themselves.” Remus’ voice was gentle, but there was still clear tension in it. A rage restrained only so that he didn’t accidentally upset Alyssa any more than they already had been. It had only been a few days since the detention, and Alyssa had been completely excused from attending all classes for the following week to process the situation. “But it’s going to be okay. He’s not going to hurt you-“
“He hues a 'ailow?”
“I’m sorry Kid?”
“He- Used- the- Halo.” Alyssa gasped, burying their face into the man’s chest once again as terrified sobs over took them. “Only- thing- That- Hurts- Like- That.”
“Deep breaths Alyssa.”
“Mind my ignorance, but isn’t the Halo your symbol?”
“I can still gain power from it, but not too unlike the misunderstanding of the Pentagram, there is a misunderstanding; if somewhat deliberate, of what the halo means when it’s blue, or other colors. Blue and red are generally the same, I actually have started to claiming and working on a slightly altered blue one to shift towards.”
Alyssa forced themselves to calm down, but Hermione could tell that she had managed what she wanted. Of course, she could have looked through the books Alyssa had collected on the Order, and of what the could thought she was meant to be, but as Alyssa went off on explaining the different meanings of the halos; in far more detail than required for the situation. She had; at least momentarily, forgotten that she was having a panic attack.
“Silver is the one they used to keep me in control.” Alyssa wiped their eyes and let out a cold chuckle. “Kind of ironic eh, that in a sense he used silver to try and control us both. Can probably still see the mark.”
No one moved to stop the enby as they removed their shirt, but everyone respectfully adverted their eyes from their chest. Or as much as they could.
Remus has started at the small of Alissa’s back; where there were a few feint silver tinted rings remaining, but his eyes didn’t miss the large scar that traced from just above them up their back into a massive acid burn on their right shoulder. It was much older than the scar; which had only happened just under one year prior, but it still looked painful. The entirety of their shoulder had been eaten at; leaving it bright pink where the acid had dug deeper into muscle, as had the entirety of their shoulder blade.
That had lead, curious and concerned eye to the front of Alyssa’s body. First to the small cut that went diagonally though the right side of their lip, then the perpendicular scar that ran across their neck; Hermione genuinely wondering if it had hit a carotid with the path it took, over the right collar bone to their arm pit.
Hermione followed Remus’s eyes back up; the man still wanting to avoid upsetting the trust that the enby was showing ‘family’, to the mysterious lightning esc scar that they had no recollection of even acquiring.
Alyssa; picking up on what the Alpha was doing, held out the arm revealing a wound even Hermione hadn’t seen before. A long, deep line, from their elbow to their wrist. It didn’t look self-inflicted, but it still caused Hermione’s heart to stop, and Remus to tear up.
“It’s old. It’s from… I… Know what happened, I just… Can’t think about it. I… Continuously blocked a lot of my memories from that place, so you’ll have to forgive me for not elaborating.”
As Remus’s eyes went to the burn on their stomach they sighed and smiled. “And that’s not tech nicely a burn any more. It’s more or a birth mark. It’s from when… I went to say Alyssa but I’m also Alyssa. But my proper last form, kinda split their soul and auto combusted.”
As Remus smiled Alyssa shucked, yawning into the back of their hand. “Thanks for distracting me Mione. And I’m sorry for hiding the line from ya, I just like keeping it glamoured.”
“I get it.” Hermione whispered, gently hugging their squish. “Now let’s get you to bed. While you’re excused from classed you still have homework that need to be completed.”
Remus let out a small chuckle and excused himself from the thruple’s room, allowing Draco and Hermione to fuss over Alyssa for the night.
“I heard something in the wall.”
Blinking awake Alyssa let out a small groan, rubbing their eyes as they checked the time. “Harry?”
“I heard a voice, when I was coming to check in on you. I was just catching the others; you know George, Fred, Percy because he heard me come in and wanted to know if you were okay. He even wrote me a hall pass for if I was caught-“ Harry held up the small slip with a smile, though it didn’t last that long. “Anyways, as I was heading back towards the base I heard someone talking, but their was no one there. So I cast detect creatures, and there was something deep within the walls.”
“Harry, respectfully I think it’s best that only one of us has nigh schizophrenic seeming episodes. So like… I would appreciate if you carried the fucked-up shit quota for the year.”
“You don’t believe me?”
“Oh I absolutely do. It’s just one in the morning and I had a… Not quite meltdown because I very much was in control. But… I guess a well needed cry is a good explanation. My two squishes had to leave because I run like a furnace when I get into a deep sleep and need charmed cool blankets to not overheat and make myself sick.” Alyssa deadpanned. “So. It’s not that I don’t believe you, I just do not have the mental complicity to make that shit my problem right yet. So how about we say this. You, Nevil and Hermione can worry about that mystery, me and Draco can worry about Mytle’s death, and then they inevitable turn out to be the same thing we can share notes.”
Harry looked like he wanted to argue for a moment before letting out a heavy sigh.
“Yeah, no your right. Only one of us can have the mental capacity to deal with the really fucked upside of things.” Harry nodded. “Wasn’t the Other World unusually quiet when I was chosen to fill Alice’s role?”
Despite themselves, Alyssa chuckled. “Yeah. But hey, at least the universe gets that this is the kid of siblings we are. We balance each other out when the other stumbles onto some massively fucked conspiracy.”
“Next year. I promise next year is going to be normal.”
“You can’t promise that, but I appreciate the thought.” Alyssa smiled. “Now I’m going to get back to sleep, but I will give you this. You have a language that none of us can speak. And Hermione is a Lore Master Wizard. Maybe she can help you in one way or another. Just remind her that she can mix spells.”
“Right. Not sure-“
“Harry. Respectfully, fuck off.”
“Right, right. What tea do you want in the morning?”
“Whatever Tetch suggests. Not go.” Smiling Harry gently hugged his ‘sibling’ before heading off. Singing softly Alyssa smiled to themselves, checking the charms on their blanket before drifting off to sleep.