Catch The Snitch

There was something about the sound of the wind, the way that it swept through the landscape providing the still night with a natural orchestral accompaniment. You only had to close your eyes to hear it, the rustle of the wind through the trees, the soft splash of waves breaking against the shore. Nature surrounded the castle, the rolling fields and thick woodlands laid out in a patchwork around the structure. It was honestly like something out of a fairytale, some storybook, picturesque, the dark night sky settling over the castle like a satin cloak.

Wrapping it in a cocoon of stillness. But beneath that, cutting through it all there was the song, the sounds of nature melding together.

Hogwarts was so different from London, from the city she’d grown up in, a metropolis that never seemed to sleep. No matter the time of the day or night someone would be outside, the sound of habitation, or cars and voices the never-ending story of the city and bustled with life. The castle was different, set in the middle of the countryside the closest life was Hogsmeade, tucked away out of the grounds. It was like being transported to another world, one far away from the world she knew, and Grace loved it. It was like the world she knew was kept at bay, all the pressure and the expectations, thoughts that wouldn’t leave her alone seemed to slink away under the cover of silence. As if they were unwilling to break that cocoon of silence that was wrapped around the grounds.

The boathouse might have been the last place that one expected to find a student but that was exactly why she was here. Even the castle had its share of nightlife, the Janitor doing his rounds, the ghosts and portraits always watching. It was impossible to really be alone with your thoughts, but things were a little different here. No portraits lined the walls, no ghosts drifted past, why would they? There was nothing here, nothing to see or do. Just the stillness of the night and the sounds of nature drifting in through the windows.

Well, that and a young Ravenclaw who stood, eyes closed as she swayed slightly from side to side, moving in time with the sounds of nature around them. It was her chance to drop her mask, run away from what everyone else thought, what they expected her to be. For a moment she let herself sink into the sound before she brought her violin up to her shoulder, the hairs running over the strings as the sound of the instrument seemed to flow out of the door, merge with the sound of the wind, a haunting refrain carried across the waters of the lake.

On the surface, Thaddeus Egerton had everything that anyone could ask for: a privileged background, parents who spent quality time with him and his younger siblings, and loads of friends in school. But the truth was a lot more nuanced than that. Not to say that he had it rough – that would have been an outright lie – but while his life had been extremely comfortable, he had always felt a sense of emptiness inside that he was never able to fill. His parents cared little about his desires, and were far more interested in moulding him into the son they wanted: a worthy heir to their business empire and the eventual patriarch of the Egerton family. And his so-called ‘friends’ were but eventual business partners and associates, and their friendships felt hollow and transactional in nature.

Forced to don a mask almost every waking hour of his life, the teenager had always sought ways to escape from his stifling life. Chilling out at the Common Room was completely out of the question, so he often snuck off by himself to various corners of Hogwarts where he could finally shed his mask and relax. Tonight he had chosen to visit the boathouse. He hadn’t been there in a while, and for some reason he missed seeing the calm waters glistening under the moonlight. Surreptitiously checking if he had his ocarina in his pocket (nobody knew he owned one, much less knew how to play it), he slipped out of the Common Room unseen and headed out of the castle.

It was a long walk, but his footsteps were light and his pace brisk. Before long he found himself nearing his destination as he moved deeper and deeper into the embrace of nature. The sounds of the night rang out, and in particular the birdsong stuck out to him. It was hard for it not to; song thrushes were incredibly loud for their size, and the repeating musical phrases of their songs were particularly distinctive.

Right then, another song filled the air – the melodious sound of a violin. He froze in his tracks, not wanting his presence to startle the violinist and interrupt the beautiful music. Besides, the violinist was probably here to unwind as well, and he saw no reason to disturb them for the duration of the song at the very least. Only when the song drew to a close did he finally reveal himself. “I do beg your pardon for the intrusion,” he began courteously as he stepped forward, “but I thought it would be immensely rude of me to not offer my compliments after hearing such a splendid performance.”

As he approached the violinist, he recognised her as Grace Concord, a fellow scion of an illustrious pure-blood clan. He had heard much about the Concord family from his parents and their associates, but he had rarely crossed paths with Grace and knew little about her. In light of her background and how she was playing the violin alone at the boathouse, he guessed that she had came here for the same reason as he did. “I’m Thaddeus,” he said with a warm smile as he extended his hand. He had deliberately chosen to omit his family name as well, not wanting it to colour the way she viewed him. “Pleased to make your acquaintance.”

There was a moment right after the music stopped where the world was utterly still, where you found yourself caught between one moment and the next. It was the closest to calm, to perfection that the girl had ever felt. It felt like for that moment you were at peace, you were one with the universe. It was the eye in the storm that life had become, where the world settled and held its breath.

It wasn’t a moment that Grace was expecting to hear a voice, any voice.

It had been drilled into her from her earliest memory, to never show weakness to anyone, not even family. Her father would have been very disappointed in Grace’s reaction.

She squeaked.

It wasn’t loud, though her reaction spoke volumes as she almost jumped out of her skin, feet actually leaving the floor for a moment as she span around in shock, dark hair flaring out behind her like a cloak as her gaze settled on the boy who was standing in the door. It only lasted a moment, that shock and surprise that was writ on her face, dark eyes widening. Just long enough for her feet to touch the ground, for her eyes to focus on the figure, to recognize him.

It was impossible not to recognize Thaddeus Egerton, even if she hadn’t grown up in the same circles as him, and heard the Edgerton name from her parents and siblings. He cut a swathe through the school, everyone in their year had heard of him at the least though this was the first time Grace had actually met the boy. This wasn’t exactly the way she wanted to meet him for the first time, to meet anyone.

One hand rose, holding up a single finger in a wait just a second gesture as Grace looked down for a moment, the bow wavering in the air. The girl’s other hand coming up to rest on her chest as she sucked in a deep calming breath and let it out, feeling that shock start to drain away, though the memory of her undignified squeak was going to haunt her for at least the rest of the day. It was just the break she needed to get herself mostly under control as she finally turned to face Thaddeus, eyes lifting to meet his as a slight hand settled in his.

“Grace, nice to meet you too. Though, I have to admit I thought you were one of the ghosts who’d managed to hunt me down, they sometimes do if they’re bored and hear something they don’t recognize. I didn’t think anyone at the castle actually remembered this place existed most of the time.”

An echoing smile touched her lips, curling up the corners of her mouth as she inclined her head, a playful light dancing through her eyes. Taking a step back Grace cast a hand out around the room as she took a step back, taking in the boats bobbing at their moorings and the crates that seemed eponymous with any dock.

“What brings you to my little corner of the castle? Except you know, sneaking up on poor distracted students and almost giving them a heart attack.”

Thaddeus had thought that his footsteps would have alerted the violinist to his presence prior to him speaking, but evidently that was not the case. Clearly caught off guard by the unexpected disturbance, the violinist squeaked in surprise, and that in turn made him jump. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” he swiftly apologised.

To his immense relief – and her credit – the violinist recovered gracefully from the rude shock and introduced herself, even remarking that she had initially thought he was a ghost. “I didn’t think anyone, including the ghosts, think about this place much,” he replied. “Except the two of us, of course.”

He chuckled at her lighthearted jibe at him for startling her, and noted her diction with slight amusement as she asked what had brought him to the boathouse. Her little corner of the castle? Another one of his secret spots wasn’t that much of a secret anymore, but for once he didn’t mind that. She had probably came here for the same reason as he did. “It’s nice and quiet here, and the view is beautiful,” he answered vaguely as his fingers closed around the ocarina in his pocket. Thus far he had never told anyone that he often snuck off by himself to play the ocarina as a way to release the pent-up pressure of having to be the perfect son to his parents and escape momentarily from the life that was decided upon by others for him. Normally he would have chosen to keep it a secret, but perhaps due to how he had stumbled upon Grace’s secret by accident, he felt compelled to reciprocate in some way or another to make up for it.

His mind thus made up, he continued. “But more importantly, it’s far enough such that any sounds from the boathouse never reaches the castle.” His words were oddly specific, and he had an inkling that Grace might have been able to figure out the answer by now. “I’ve never mentioned this to anyone before… but I’ve been learning to play this.” With that, he shyly took out his ocarina, somewhat embarrassed by how simple and humble it was as compared to Grace’s violin. It was an English pendant ocarina made of light green ceramic that he had bought from a random shop selling all manners of trinkets and knick-knacks, and despite costing next to nothing it was among his most treasured possessions.

“It really is, isn’t it. I’ll sometimes sneak down here in the evening and sit here reading for a while…well ok mostly staring at it. The light around here isn’t exactly conducive to reading or any detail work most of the time, I’d call it….atmospheric.”

Dark eyes flicked to the side, watching as the light peeking through the windows played out a dapped pattern across the wooden floors and the pier. It was a far cry from the stone and upholstery of the castle itself, the rooms they spent so much time in. It almost felt like it was a whole different world, like one of the paintings she’d seen around the house growing up. It was idyllic, that was what had drawn the girl here in the first place, the quiet and acoustics were a nice bonus but she’d wanted a space where no-one would find her, no-one would disturb her.

A place to let the mask drop.

And that’s what it had been all this time, a refuge from the castle, a place to collect her thoughts and to relax. Though, apparently, she hadn’t been the only person who’d thought of that. The presence of the other student was enough proof of that, although she found she didn’t really mind. There was something about the way that he present to ocarina that was so different from the Thaddeus that she’d heard about, that she’d seen around school. He normally seemed so put together and composed, but there was more to him than it appeared. A mask like hers that he’d discarded, if just for a moment to allow her a glimpse of the uncertainty beneath, an uncertainty that neither of them could afford to let anyone else see. Not family, nor friends but…he’d made the effort to open up and show a genuine part of himself, so how could she do anything less?

Careful fingers placed the violin down to the side before she looked up, her gaze settling on the ocarina clasped in his hands, a curious light dancing in her eyes. She’d read about the instruments in books before but she’d never actually had an opportunity to hear one in person. It wasn’t the kind of instrument her father acknowledged, take the kids to an orchestra or piano recital, sure. Ocarina or acapella, she wasn’t even sure he knew the words. Only, she found she wanted to, the boathouse might have been a refuge from the rest of the castle but...it was big enough for two people to let down their guard and share a secret.

“You know, I’ve never actually heard one before. I mean if you don’t mind…I’d love to hear it.”

“Very much so,” Thaddeus agreed when Grace noted that the lighting conditions here was more atmospheric and thus unfavourable for reading. “I mostly come here to relax anyway.” Each of his ‘secret spots’ served a different purpose, and most of the cosy spots to curl up with a good book after dark were all inside the castle, where lighting wasn’t an issue. Nothing was stopping him from using some kind of light-creating spell here to circumvent the lack of natural light, of course, but it would be such a shame to ruin the natural beauty of the boathouse and its surroundings with bright light. Not to mention how it was a greater sin to bury his face in a book and ignore the breathtaking view.

When he decided to show Grace his ocarina, he already knew that there was a chance that she would ask him to play a song on it. Still, when that moment came, he found himself a little unprepared to do so in the presence of a proper musician like her, and there was no way for him to graciously back out at this stage. “Really? Well…” be began, stalling a little for time to work up his courage. “As long as you don’t mind me embarrassing myself after your splendid performance earlier.”

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Thaddeus raised the ocarina to his lips, with his thumbs, forefingers and middle fingers covering the six holes of the instrument that gave it a modest range of slightly over an octave. As a novice, that was more than enough for him, even without the sharp and flat notes that he still wasn’t that familiar with. He lifted his right middle finger from the hole in preparation for the first note, and a clear, slightly mournful tone issued from the ocarina as he began to play the distinctive opening line of “Scarborough Fair”. He kept his rendition fairly safe and straightforward, with only some simple embellishments here and there. Before long, he came to the end of the first verse and stopped there. “That’s about it,” he said, slightly abashed by how simple his performance was, but at the same time he was secretly pleased that he hadn’t made any errors in front of Grace. “The rest of the song’s just a repeat of the same melody. Although normally when I’m here alone, I’d keep playing it over and over again.”

Grace had listened to some of the greatest orchestras across the globe, the greatest musicians and conductors who somehow made the music come to life. Turned notes on a page into a living, breathing creature that would wrap around you and elevate your senses, transporting you to a whole new world. However, right now, in this place, the ethereal cavern she wouldn’t have traded any of them for those unsure ocarina notes that filled the boathouse. There was something about them, the pure natural sound that seemed to fit the scene perfectly. The brunette had closed her eyes while Thaddeus played, slim fingers twitching in time to the notes, tracing out a rising and falling pattern in the air as her head swayed from side to side in time to the music.

It wasn’t until the last notes had faded, swallowed up into the silence of the night that she finally opened her eyes. Not speaking for a moment until the last note had faded into the darkness. Dark eyes caught the boy’s gaze as a small smile turned up the corner of her lips.

“I have no idea what you were worried about, that was great. Perfect, for this place, nothing could have been better. I promise, it was great. Besides…I cheated a little. A solo violin always has this slightly haunting sound, in fact I’m pretty sure that I managed to convince at least one person that the boathouse was haunted.”

The last was whispered almost conspiratorially. She wasn’t entirely sure about that, but there had been an incident with a dropped scarf and footsteps in the dust of the path leading back up to the castle. It might have been just coincidence, but she liked to think that somewhere in the castle someone was speaking of the haunted boathouse in hushed tones. She knew that it probably someone being kind and choosing not to disturb her while she was playing but…it made for a better story her way.

Dark eyes flicked to the side to check on her violin, the girl’s gaze sliding past it to spot the bag she’d thrown crumpled into a corner as she turned, kneeling next to it for a moment as her fingers tugged at the buckle for a moment.

“I know haunting a boathouse can be hard work, it’s not much but I snuck some snacks out of the great hall earlier.”

A bottle of water and a bundled up piece of cloth containing some….liberated cake and snacks she’d snuck away during lunch were held up like they were the greatest treasure ever discovered.

“Do you wanna join me?”

From time to time, Thaddeus looked up from his ocarina – he wasn’t yet confident enough to play without visually checking his fingering occasionally – and saw that Grace had closed her eyes, immersed in the music as her hands tracing out every rise and fall of the notes. When he had finished with his ‘performance’ (it felt presumptuous of him to use that word) she smiled and complimented him. “You’re too kind,” he replied, pleasantly surprised that she had enjoyed his rendition of the song. “I wouldn’t say that you were cheating though. It takes a lot of practice and skill to coax the right timbre out of a violin, even more so if you’ve managed to convince at least one person that the boathouse is haunted.”

Was it though? Thaddeus didn’t know; he hadn’t encountered anything out of the ordinary when he was here, and the only 'evidence' he had came across were unsubstantiated rumours he had overheard. “Perhaps a bit more than a mere handful,” he mused, before adding with a grin. “I for one am not keen at all on dispelling those rumours.”

It seemed that the evening had more surprises in store for him, for out of the blue Grace retrieved a bag that he hadn’t noticed was in a nearby corner. Producing some cakes and snacks that she had smuggled out from the Great Hall, she extended an invitation for him to join her in partaking in the snacks. “I’d love to,” he said, gracefully accepting the offer. While the food wasn’t anything particularly fancy, the stroke of serendipity that led to them being here at the boathouse and enjoying the snacks together made the occasion feel special. “Please, after you,” he said, letting Grace select what she wanted first.

A light breeze picked up, rippling the pristine surface of the lake and causing the reflected moonlight to flicker and dance. “Haunted or not, the boathouse is an excellent place to escape to, isn’t it?” Thaddeus said with a relaxed smile. Under most circumstances, he would never have let his mask slip in front of anyone else. But there was nothing he needed to hide from a fellow escapist. “I’ve been visiting this place for quite a while now,” he continued, “and I must say I’m surprised we haven’t bumped into each other here earlier.”

“You know what? You’re right, it’d be a real shame if anyone managed to stumble across the truth”

The brunette let a bright smile spread across her face, curling up the corners of her lips as she tilted her head to the side. Maybe she should look into ways to play into the rumour, something like ghostly lights drifting through the windows or shifting shadows. The only problem with that, well knowing the students at Hogwarts, at least one of them would get the bright idea of finding the ghost haunting the boathouse as a sort of challenge. She would if she heard about a mysterious haunted room. Perhaps, on second thoughts, it would be better to avoid drawing any more attention to the sanctuary than she had to.

“Perhaps it would be better to…let people forget that this place ever existed, I think most people like to forget they were the little kids who got dropped off on their first night at the castle. We just stop thinking about this place, so makes for a nice little getaway at the castle.”

A grin touched the girls lips as she reached up, a slim hand brushing back a lock of errant har from her face, tucking it behind her ear as her gaze fell on the treasures revealed by the folded back napkin. Her lips pursed thoughtfully as she reached out the claim a piece of cake, one of her hands cupped beneath her mouth to catch the crumbs as she took a bite.

“It always feels like the school’s so huge, I mean it’s a castle after all but…it does seem to lack places to be alone, or you know to relax. Everywhere you go seems to be filled with people so…it’s hard to just be you know.”

The brunette leaned back, eyes drifting over to the lake visible through the gate of the boathouse, the ripples of the lake distorting the reflection as she took another bite of her cake before glancing over at Thaddeus with a smile.

“I love coming here just to unwind and not worry, you’re right it’s weird we haven’t run onto one another before but…It’s nice to have a little company, someone who gets it. I guess it’s not always best to be alone.”

Thaddeus’ grin broadened as Grace concurred and said that it would be a shame if anyone stumbled upon the truth behind the allegedly haunted boathouse. And as she spoke of how it would be better if people forgot about the boathouse, his smile turned wistful as he was reminded of the first time he had arrived at Hogwarts by boat. “I still remember that night very well though,” he remarked with a hint of longing in his voice. “We were younger and so much more innocent back then. Anyway, I suppose that’s the reason why I’ve never forgotten about this place even after all these years.”

After Grace had claimed a piece of cake, Thaddeus took one for himself as well. Though the cake had already been served during lunchtime earlier that day, he relished it all the same, appreciating it not for its taste but for the company he had.

Grace’s words about how difficult it was to find a private space in Hogwarts castle where one could be themselves struck a chord in him. “It is,” he agreed, highly aware of his reputation as a popular student surrounded by ‘friends’. The truth could not be further from that; it was just a game of charades, one that he had to keep playing even though he was tired of it. “It’s stifling having to constantly live up to all the hopes and expectations of those around us.” As he said those words, a tiny pang of guilt hit him for complaining about what was essentially a First World problem, one that many would be happy to have instead of the more serious troubles that plagued them.

Dismissing that thought, he nodded as Grace said that it was nice to have a little company. “It’s ironic how our response to feeling lonely in a crowd was to seek out a private place to be alone, isn’t it?” he asked with a chuckle and shook his head at the absurdity of the situation. “All this while I thought I was the only one who felt this way. I must say it’s immensely comforting to know that I’m not alone. Nor are you.”

It was different talking to somebody who understood how she felt, the masks that they wore and the pressure that rested on their shoulders. It was difficult to express why she felt that way, why it was so important to her, it was something that had always existed in her. Something her family had taught her at an early age, was that any sign of uncontrolled emotion was a weakness that could be used against her, would be used against her. Grace could remember the first time she’d confided in her sister only for her to turn around and use it against her. It had been such a small thing, a little secret that she thought she could trust her with, a harsh lesson for a young girl.

]“Even those not around us.”

For a moment the girl fell silent, fingers idly grasping at the fabric of her skirt, rubbing it between her fingers as she stared out at the water, the white crests of the waves catching the dim light. On top of the dark water they almost looked like something ethereal, something out of a fairytale, pixies trails dancing across the dark background.

]“I don’t think I was ever that innocent, not when we were coming here. It didn’t hit me, that I was actually coming to Hogwarts, what it meant until I was sitting in one of the boats on the lake. I remember a wave splashing over the edge of the boat, wetting my socks. I was about to complain then we turned the corner and saw the castle. I was really here. It felt like freedom. Like I’d finally stepped out of the shadow of my family like I could finally breathe.”

A shoe scuffed at the dirt as her hands squeezed the fabric caught between her fingers. A few moments of silence before a wry smile touched her lips, dark eyes finally lifting to look over at Thaddeus.

]“For a while at least.”

She leaned her head back, resting against the wall of the boathouse as she took a deep breath, finally pulling her hand away from her skirt to twist it through a strand of loose hair falling by her face.

“It’s nice to know we’re not the only ones caught up between a rock and a hard place, lying to the world. I never thought about it but you know you’re right, I do come here to feel less alone, spending time with me, myself and I. Well, present company accepted, I don’t know if anyone’s told you but you make quite a nice surprise.”

“Even those not around us.”

Thaddeus too fell silent as he ruminated over Grace’s words. Ever since he started studying at Hogwarts, he was away from home most of the time, but he could still feel the pressure from his parents’ expectations of him every day. And they were just the tip of the iceberg. There were his father’s employees who depended on him to support their families, and in time to come they would in turn depend on him when he eventually took over his father’s business empire. And then there were the patients who needed the potions and medicines that their apothecaries brewed and sold; he would need to be responsible for their health and wellness. The list went on and on. “Very true,” he agreed simply.

The feeling of freedom that Grace was describing was familiar to Thaddeus; he nodded as a wistful smile spread across his lips at the memory. “I felt the same way too. A pity the sense of freedom didn’t last long.” His wake-up call came quickly in the form of ‘friends’ who were eager to be seen with him. He knew who they were: the sons and daughters of his father’s friends – no, associates. And in turn there were a number of students whom his parents encouraged him to ‘befriend’. “Before I knew it, my life was back to what it had been before, albeit in a different environment.”

For that reason, Thaddeus had chosen to sneak off from time to time to a private space where they could get away from… well, everything. Though it changed nothing about his circumstances, knowing that he had a kindred spirit in Grace made things more bearable. And it was heartening to learn that his company was accepted, and that he made ‘quite a nice surprise’. He had always fancied himself as someone friendly and helpful, but having his presence appreciated in such a situation was different. “That would be a first,” he admitted humbly, though his smile suggested that he was secretly quite pleased to hear Grace’s opinion of him. “Thank you for opening your heart to me. That’s also a first – I’ve never had a heart-to-heart talk with anybody before.”

“Is this your only ‘secret spot’?” he asked, seemingly out of the blue. “I mean… there are a few other places I go to when I need some time alone. If you'd like, I’d be glad to show them to you.”

It was a good memory, even if it only lasted for a night.

It had been a night of freedom, a night of potential and wonder, where the future stretched out before her free of the chains of family and expectation. It was a dream that had creaked under the weight of a letter that had arrived the next morning. That had shattered when she went home to face her father’s displeasure. There was no way he could have known, she certainly hadn’t had the chance to write to her family yet, but he knew as always. The only reason that it hadn’t been a howler was that her family didn’t react like that, never showed that kind of anger and emotion in public, instead the cold words had cut worse than any angry words could have.

The girl’s eyes closed for a moment taking a deep breath, the movement causing her hair to bounce on her shoulders for a moment before her dark eyes opened, settling on Thaddeus’. “It would have been nice if freedom lasted a little longer.” She’d never felt like anyone at Hogwarts really got that, the sense of freedom’s wings clipped before they’d had a chance to spread. “I think this is the first time I’ve ever had one of these heart-to-hearts too. I…didn’t think that anyone else would understand…thank you.”

A soft sight slipped past the girl’s lips, her head tilting up to stare at the moon through the open boathouse door for a moment, the pale light reflected in her dark eyes. It was nice, to just enjoy the companionships for a moment before she rolled her head to the side, catching Thaddeus’ eyes before shaking her head. “I’ve never really gone looking, no-one else was ever here before. If you’re ok sharing them then I’d love to see them…though maybe we take more of a picnic than some crushed up cake for that?”