Chapter 9: The Wordless Witch
The silver spell shot straight at Lyra, but she dodged it with a simple sidestep.
"What?" The Dark Wizard froze, staring at Lyra in astonishment. He hadn't expected his spell to be dodged by a girl who looked barely in her teens.
But when his eyes landed on Lyra's pointed ears and silver hair, he frowned immediately. "A damned Veela!"
He instinctively attributed her stunning reaction to some sort of bloodline ability, a trait of a "magical creature."
"Then again, this is even better... A Veela is worth far more than a little witch!" he said, raising his wand once more. "Stupefy!"
The red spell surged toward her, and Lyra instinctively ducked low.
As the spell flew harmlessly over her head, she let out a soft sigh of relief.
Good... I haven't forgotten the skills I learned at Durmstrang...
Durmstrang's graduation requirements had included an incredibly harsh dueling examination. As one of the few students to ever graduate early, Lyra's greatest strength was wizarding duels.
Because she was short and exceptionally agile, combined with her mastery of non-verbal spells, Lyra had won the school's internal dueling championship two years in a row.
Furthermore, being unpopular with her classmates, she had frequently been the target of spells and pranks during her daily life at school.
As a result, dodging spells had become an instinctive reflex for her.
"You...!" The Dark Wizard pressed his lips together, realizing this was more trouble than he'd bargained for.
He didn't have time to waste on this. If the Ministry found him, a trip to Azkaban was guaranteed...
So, he tightened his grip on his wand and abruptly pointed it at Luna.
"Don't move!" he yelled. "Or your friend's life is forfeit!"
Crap...
Lyra's face paled, her lips pressing into a thin line. She couldn't fight back without a wand. If she couldn't even dodge...
She glanced at Luna, feeling a pang of embarrassment. She had come to save her, but now she'd gotten herself trapped as well.
Suddenly, she noticed Luna's eyes. The petrified girl was staring intently at her own sleeve.
"Hands flat against your sides! Walk over here, slowly!" the man shouted. "Don't think I don't know Veela can cast wandless magic!"
It seemed he hadn't realized Lyra wasn't a pure-blooded Veela.
"Any funny business, and I'll use the Killing Curse on her immediately!" he threatened, gesturing at Luna.
Lyra took a deep breath. Her face beneath the tattered hood was deathly pale, but her eyes were surprisingly calm. She carefully met Luna's gaze for a second, then bit her lip and began to walk in small, slow steps toward the Dark Wizard.
Watching the pale girl with her twitching, pointed ears, a triumphant grin spread across the man's face.
He knew plenty of people paid top Galleons for Veela... He couldn't believe his luck. He excitedly rubbed his wand, completely oblivious to the silent exchange that had passed between Lyra and Luna.
As Lyra walked slowly, she brushed past Luna. Their sleeves touched for just an instant. Lyra's hand tightened.
Her body moved in a blur, her right hand darting toward Luna's sleeve.
"What are you doing?!" The man instinctively flicked his wand. "Avada Kedavra!"
A sickly green curse spat from the tip of his wand, hurtling straight at Luna. But in a flash, the silver-haired figure stepped sideways, placing herself directly in front of the younger witch.
BAM!
The curse, like a striking viper, slammed viciously into Lyra's hand. Then, to the man's utter astonishment, the spell deflected off...
"Wh... what?" He stared in shock at Lyra's hand. She was now gripping a short, brown wand.
It was the wand Luna had hidden in her sleeve—the one she had just purchased.
"You damned witch!" the Dark Wizard cursed in a shocked rage, raising his wand high. "Avada—"
Before he could finish the word, a red bolt of magic, as thick as a wrist, had already shot from the tip of Lyra's wand.
A non-verbal spell—faster, stealthier, and far more lethal than an incantation.
THUD!
The Dark Wizard, struck by the Stunning Spell, was blasted backward like a Quaffle, smashing hard onto the ground of Knockturn Alley.
"Phew..." As the man collapsed, Lyra, who had been silent and seemingly calm, let out a long, shaky breath. Her pointed ears, which had been perked high with tension, slowly drooped.
Thank goodness I saw Luna's hint... and noticed the wand in her sleeve... Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
That was a bit too reckless... but I had to do it. Lyra didn't want to just stand by and watch her future student get kidnapped. Especially as one of Lord Grindelwald's followers, this kind of human trafficking was intolerable.
...Mm... you might say Lord Grindelwald also did plenty of illegal things, but that's not the same, right... Besides... Lyra never saw him do it, did she?
After comforting herself, Lyra turned her attention back to Luna and gave the wand a light flick.
With a flash of silver light, the Petrification Curse on Luna was lifted.
"A-Are... you okay...?" Lyra asked in a small voice.
"I'm fine." Luna looked as if nothing had happened at all. She wasn't panicked, as Lyra had expected, nor was she overcome with joy. Instead, she gave the man on the ground a calm glance, then turned her thoughtful gaze to Lyra. She seemed far more interested in Lyra than in the fight or her near-kidnapping.
"Can Veela use non-verbal spells?" she muttered to herself. "And also..."
As she spoke, she suddenly reached out and gave one of Lyra's pointed ears a gentle tug.
"Eek!" Lyra squeaked, stumbling back several steps as she clapped her hands over her ears.
"Are your ears sensitive?"
"M-hm... mm!" Lyra blushed, nodding as she pulled her hood back up, covering them. She hadn't realized her ears had been exposed this whole time, and she now felt deeply embarrassed.
"Oh... sorry." Luna bowed slightly. "You're the first Veela I've ever met... I was curious."
"Why were you covering your ears before?"
"Because... they're... they're weird..." Lyra said quietly. "Don't you think... they're... disgusting?"
"Disgusting?" For a rare moment, Luna looked taken aback. "But they're fascinating."
"F... fascinating?" Lyra had heard many insults at Durmstrang, but she had never once heard that word.
"Yes," Luna nodded seriously. "They're just like a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. They have a pointed horn, too."
A horn and an ear are completely different, though...
Even so, seeing that Luna wasn't repulsed by her ears, Lyra felt her heart lighten considerably. After all, the names she usually heard were "pointy-eared freak" or "triangle-ears"... It brought back bad memories of Durmstrang.
"Oh... I should also thank you," Luna said, as if just remembering. A smile touched her face. "Thank you for saving me."
"Ah... n-no need..." Lyra blushed, trying to say something, but she just stammered, unable to get the words out.
Luna just watched her with that same faint smile, and then she began to take off her necklace.
It was a necklace made of a Butterbeer cork.
"This is for you," Luna said, placing it in Lyra's hand.
"This is..."
"A necklace I made myself," Luna said, lowering her voice. "It helps keep away the Nargles."
Nargles? Lyra had absolutely no idea what those were... but a gift...
This was the first time she had ever received a gift.
Even if it was a very strange one...
"Th... thank you..." she said instinctively.
"Thank me?" Luna tilted her head slightly. "But didn't you save me, Miss Hamilton?"
"Ah... sorry, sorry..." Lyra shook her head, apologizing again.
"Hahaha," Luna laughed lightly. "You really are an interesting person, Miss Hamilton."
"Just like my father."
That... probably isn't a compliment, is it?