Open Deep Mysteries

[Zoe Westwick]

For all of the amazing, wonderful things she had done at Hogwarts, Zoe couldn't help but be disappointed by one aspect of her experiences. She had spent hours by the lake looking for merfolk, only to be disappointed time and time again. She had been lucky enough to see a real live centaur in her early years at Hogwarts, but other than Care of Magical Creatures class, her experience at Hogwarts had been otherwise disappointing when it came to the mysterious beasts and beings she longed to see more of. One last sojourn couldn't hurt though, and so after completing her last exam Zoe wandered down to the lake, staring out over its surface in longing. It stung, to know that its mysteries would always remain mysteries, and part of Zoe hoped she would return one day, as a researcher maybe, to study the secrets of Hogwarts' grounds. For now though, all there was to do was to stare out over the water, hoping for any sign of the secrets she knew were hiding underwater.

 

[The Golden Eel]

The lake was cold. The lake was always cold but the days were growing shorter and the sunlight weaker with it. The eel had taken to basking closer to the surface as the cold months themselves drew closer, content in its safety from its sheer size. Let its brethren wallow in the crevices and cracks of the lake bed, the eel craved the last remnants of sunshine. Movement near the shore caught its eye, the eel tilting its head and rolling its eyes in its sockets to observe. One of the land dwellers stood near the shore, no doubt enjoying the last rays of sun as the eel did. But if land dwellers were gathering, it was time of the eel to leave. It heaved itself upward, flinging its long body, tail splashing through the air for a few moments before it arced its body, diving below the water surface, golden body glinting in the winter-y sunshine before it joined the other eels below.

 

[Zoe Westwick]

As desperate as she was for any sign of the cryptozoological in her last days at Hogwarts, Zoe hadn't expected to actually see anything. So there was a frozen moment of disbelief as she watched the lake's crystal surface part, revealing something impossibly, incredibly huge. A... dragon? A monster? Zoe stared in shock, watching the creature in awe. An eel. As its body arced through the air, Zoe realised in horror that it was diving again. Already. Too soon! She barely realised she was moving before she was already in the lake, kicking her shoed feet clumsily as she tried her best to swim after the eel. She couldn't see something this magical and incredible and impossible once, and never again.

 

[Augustus Westwick]

It bothered Augsutus that he hadn't seen another glimpse of the creature he'd spotted in the lake. Now the school year was over, and he would have to go home. What if he never saw it again? The only person who had seen it along with him was Leia, and it seemed unlikely that she would back him up. He headed over to the lake for a last look, but was surprised to see something else instead. He recognized the girl as Theodore's girlfriend, and she was in the water. Alarmed, Augustus ran to the shore. "Uh, miss?" He cringed. "Zoe?" He called. "Are... are you alright?"