Witching Hour

Despite the fact that Celeste knew the corridors of Hogwarts intimately, ever twist and turn that she could walk them blindfolded, patrolling at night put her on edge. The ghouls and ghosts didn't help of course, Peeves was his usual annoying self and even the new caretaker had made her jump out of her skin when she turned the same corner as he at the same time and nearly collided.

It was unfortunately one of those nights. Looking at her watch on which the minute hand was a comet making it's way across a starry night sky, she saw it was approaching midnight. Only an hour to go then she's be free to return to the safety of her room. Not that Hogwarts wasn't safe of course, it was her imagination in overdrive which made it spooky. She berated herself as she walked out of the castle and across the same lawn in front of Astronomy Tower.

Memories had sullied the beauty of this part of the grounds. She couldn't help but remember on a night just like this one, running from her domatory after hearing the most ridiculous thing, that Professor Dumbledore had fallen from the tallest tower. The news spread like wildfire and when she had arrived here it was overcrowded with students wishing the rumour not to be true.

Celeste shook off the thoughts as a chilly autumnal breeze swept across the open space. Her bright eyes quickly scanned the surrounding area, finding it quite uneventful, Celeste decided to check the Astronomy Tower. It would kill time she surmised and from the top she could see over the grounds. It was a beautiful night after all.

It didn't take long to climb the stone, spiral staircase however it soon became apparent that not all was as it should be. Entering the large, circular level, she quickly made out a dark silhoutte of a man in the moonlight. He seemed to be leaning over, inspecting the grounds as she had planned to do. Hogwarts was the safetest place in the UK, he couldn't be an intruder but then again Celeste's years at Hogwarts were plagued with break ins and take overs. The enchartments which protected the castle were strong and almost impentreble but as history had showed, not completely infallible.

Quickly grabbing her wand from the inside of her long, dark cloak, Celeste pointed it in the direction of the unknown figure. "Show yourself." She stated in a clear, confident voice.

The black, starry night sky was expansive as it was beautiful. It as a sight that Charles enjoyed looking at during his time as a student and now as a teacher he had free reign over his whereabouts. He could enjoy this view whenever he liked. Smiling, Charles allowed his imagination to soar. Images darted in and out of his thought process. Famous historical dates, past wars and goblin rebellions all flittered in and out as he watched the clouds above him move with the wind.

Charles was almost lost in his own imagination when light poured out from the Castle beneath him. The sudden burst of light snapped him out of his reverie, forcing him to look down to the ground below. His interest was piqued. His first thought was that someone had broken into the grounds, but he pushed it out of his head quickly. There was no way someone could break into these grounds, the school was too well protected and if someone had attempted to gain entry when they were not welcome the teaching staff would have been made well aware. He could only guess that it was a student out of bed after hours or another teacher.

Leaning over the ornate wooden railing he attempted to get a closer look. If it was a student he needed to be down there in a flash to catch them in the act, if he didn’t then, somehow, the student would be able to worm their way out of punishment. He watched the figure hover by the door before rushing back inside. It was plain to Charles that it was no student. If it was, it was really stupid to be out of bed this late just to be outside to rush back in.

Shaking his head he was no interested in ensuring that there were no students out of bed. As he moved around the edge of the circular top of the tower he periodically leant over the railing. Rustlings of the wind sent his nerves over the top. One large gust of wind blew a number of leaves that in the corner of his eyes looked like a moving shadow. Quickly he bent over the edge of the tower to get a better look. A few seconds passed, he kept himself over the railing but had to grip tightly when he heard the voice behind him.

Charles slowly reached into his jacket and grasped the end of his wand. Timing needed to be perfect for the next few seconds to be in his favour. Spinning on his heel he brandished his wand in the direction of the voice he had just heard, expecting to see an intruder, but he breathed a sigh of relief. The light from the wall torch cast a gloomy shadow of Celeste’s face, but he made it out easily enough. “It’s me Celeste, Charles,” he said moving forward into the light. “You almost gave me a heart attack.”

Releasing the breath she didn’t realise she had been holding, Celeste let her wand drop and placed it back within her robes. “Charles, I apologise, I wasn’t expecting anyone up here.”

Gathering her robes around her for it was much chillier at the top of the tower, Celeste walked toward where the other professor stood in front of the railing. The view of the grounds was especially spectacular tonight. In the distance the bright moon reflected off the Great Lake giving the water a sparkling diamond illusion while the Forbidden Forest was shrouded in darkness with only the occasional squawk, roar or howl to remind her what lay beneath the dark blanket.

“Lovely night isn’t it?” She commented as she leaned against the railing as Charles had just done. “Thought I’d finish my night duty up here, Peeves was starting to get on my nerves. What brings you up here tonight?”

Professor Tetherwood was a man who intrigued her, having sacrificed the best years of his life to teach at Hogwarts, he was certainly intelligent enough to warrant the position but left her wondering what brought him here in the bubble which was professorship away from the rest of the wizarding world. At his age she was running around cleaning up after magical accidents while raising her daughter by herself, it was hard at times but life affirming. Perhaps alone up here she would be able to delve deeper if the conversation led to it.

As he lowered his wand he relaxed his tense posture; his shoulders relaxed and his weight shifted onto his heels from the anxious position on the balls of his feet. Charles kept his eyes on Celeste’s light blue eyes that were so piercing and pure he feared that if he gazed upon them for too long he would be lost in them. She was incredibly beautiful and despite he knew that she was part-Veela but as he looked at her he saw past the obviously good looks he knew that she was more than her skin deep attributes.

He gazed on Celeste for a few more seconds until he snapped himself out of the daze. Blinking quickly he turned away from Celeste to look out across the grounds. “Yes, it is very beautiful night,” he replied noticing the calm, shimmering lake in the distance. The moonlight was strong tonight and the affect it produced on the water took Charles’ breath away. He had never seen the moon and the lake like this before. He wondered if the magical and mystical grounds of Hogwarts would ever stop amazing him.

As Celeste continue he alternated his attention between her voice and the lake, both equally important to his current stream of thought, but when Peeves was mentioned he snapped his head sideways to Celeste and stifled a laugh, “He woke me up, the terror,” Charles said with a laugh. “I was just drifting off to sleep when I heard him in my classroom throwing the new Hogwarts: A History textbooks at the walls. I couldn’t sleep after that. Once I’m up, I’m up for hours.”

A gust of wind blew through the tower cutting deep into Charles. He had never been one for cold, windy weather and right now he could do with a hot cup of tea. Easily distracted his mind was now on one thing only; returning to his study to put his feet up by the fire with a cup of tea. Clutching his arms to his body to prevent himself from shivering he turned to Celeste. The thought now drove all others out of his mind, “Fancy a cup of tea?”

The nights this far up north were chilly even in the summer months, it was something the Londoner found difficult to get used to at first for the muggle created smog over the capital kept it mild for most of the year. Holding the royal blue cloak tightly around her, Celeste smiled and nodded, “you read my mind.”

The idea of sitting in front of a roaring fire was an inviting one. She’d been on night watch for hours and it was her least favourite activity on her job description especially when she was due to teach in the morning. It was rare to find wayward students these days, back when Celeste was a student there was always some sort of scheme to get into the boy’s dorm or stealing supplies from the kitchens for late night binges.

Celeste led the way down the spiral staircase which seemed even colder with its stone walls. “Where were you thinking of going?” She asked.