What a man fears, tells more about that person than their actions.
Fear is uncontrolled. It is untainted. It is one of the deepest and most pure emotions a living creature can possess. It is enough to overwhelm rational mind, reason and even love.
Some knew what their fears were, others remain unaware. Perhaps because they have never truly faced it.
Richard observed the wardrobe as it trembled. As if an wild animal was rampaging within.
"So, " Lupin addressed the crowd of students who were on alert after learning what was inside that closed door. "Can anyone tell me what a boggart looks like?"
"No one knows."
Hermione replied. Richard had to hold his hand from stabbing at the sound with his wand. This time skipping jargon was getting on his nerves.
"When did she get here?"
It appeared that Ron was just as surprised.
"Boggarts are shape shifters. They take the shape of whatever that frightens a person most. That's what makes them so terrif-"
"Terrifying, yes!" Professor Lupin concluded. "Five points to griffindor."
"The charm against a boggart is simple, because you see, what finishes off a Boggart is..laughter."
He waved his wand.
"Practice it with me now. Riddikulus!"
"Riddikulus!"
The entire class chorused.
"Perfect"
Lupin walked up to Neville.
" Now Neville, what do you think frightens you the most?"
He had to repeat the answer out loud because his voice never reached anyone. The second time though, everyone heard, and it made them all laugh.
"Professor Snape." Lupin looked thoughtful for a moment. Maybe questioning that man's credentials as a teacher for a second.
"And I believe that you live with your grandmother."
"Yes.but I don't want the Boggart to turn to her either."
"It won't ." Lupin reassured before leaning towards his ear to whisper something.
At the same time, Richard wondered, what would the boggart turn to, when he faced it?
Maybe the ROB? Or maybe someone he knows dead? Like Tonks? Or maybe it could be Issei, charging at him with the power of lust. He hoped it would be Issei. The humiliation he endured back then for the sake of the job, he wanted to pay it back a hundred times.
It won't do anything realistic, but something like that would be damn near therapeutic.
He returned his gaze towards the boggart.
It was Snape. The walk, the gaze the permanently scowling expression, everything looked just like him.
"Riddikulus"
The moment those sounds left Neville's lips, something wonderful happened. He had read it, seen it on the screen, but after meeting that intolerable bastard of a teacher, what he saw was like the chill pill he had forgotten to take years ago.
The black bat like cloak receded and turned to old lady clothes, a big hat appeared on his head with a stuffed bird on it while a large red hand bag appeared in his arm to complete the look.
He really wished Colin was here at the moment.
The entire class burst to laughter.
"Perfect, Parvati!"
A mummy
"Riddikulus"
The mummy fell, tangled in its own wrapping.
"Shemus"
A banshee screamed, but only for a second.
"Riddikulus"
It was fun. But Harry's turn was coming soon. And if Richard wanted to see what he was scared of, he had to step forward.
"Riddikulus"
The giant spider lost all its legs and rolled on the ground. And the moment Harry stepped forward, the music cut off.
Whoooooo
A dementor lunged at Harry. But Lupin was already there.
"Here!"
The dementor shifted again, into a cloudy sky with a full moon peaking through. Lupin wasn't shaken.
"Riddikulus." His incantation was lazy. And the moon turned to a deflating balloon before flying away. Right into Richard's face.
Woosshhh
Huh?
Richard was puzzled.
In front of him was a small box. Though box wouldn't describe it properly. It was a small stage, size of his television back in his first life, that floated at his eye level.
The curtains swing open, and the stage opened to reveal a very familiar background.
It was Hogwarts, painted on the background.
Animated music played from somewhere. And a narrator spoke.
"Another day starts in the greatest wizarding school of the world, Hogwarts. The story centers around the dark lord, whose name must not be named, the white lord, the only one who the dark lord feared. "
The curtains closed and opened to another set.
It was the great hall.
Dumbledor was drawn at the top table. The others were drawn as well. Truly well, almost to the quality of a picture.
It had several moving figures as well. Miniature people.
"You gotta beat the Slytherin in the house cup. You caught the snitch every time you played so it shouldn't be a problem."
It was Ron. The miniature Ron spoke as he remained seated. Next to him Hermione was reading a book, and Harry sat next to the mini himself and Neville.
The narrator spoke.
"As the young wizards spoke, another duo of mischevious young friends entered the conversation."
The mini him looked startled, but before he did anything, two more people showed up.
"Hey Harry."
"Hello Harry"
Fred and George.
"Why so down ?"
"Yeah, be jolly"
They weren't played by miniatures. Instead they were puppets, voiced by the same person.
The joints and the hinges moved awkwardly as they tried to imitate human motions.
"There's something different about you guys today.."
It was the miniature him.
"You noticed?"
"Its the new sweaters."
"Our mum made them for us."
"We got one for Ronnikins too."
They pulled out a maroon sweater. And chased Ron around. Jumping high leaps as the strings that connected them to the unseen controller hurried the motion.
"And so the morning passed peacefully. But peace never lasts."
The screen opened again, and this time the others were puppets too.
"Pottah!"
"Pottah!"
Two figures were yelling at puppet Harry. Harry who was on the broom with a snitch.
"And Malfoy with the bias of his house leader began Harrasing Harry. But luckily his friends were there to help him stay positive and face his challenges."
As the narrator spoke, the broom slowly lowered, and puppet Ron and puppet Hermione hugged the puppet Harry, all while the only miniature, himself looked confused.
"What is going on?"
He slowly backed away from the trio, towards puppet Snape.
"Professor, there's something wrong-"
"Pottah!"
"Pottah"
"Listen to me!"
"Pottah!!"
The two puppets continued.
"Why are they like this?" His mini self murmured . " Its like, sometimes they are just not there. And Why don't they hear that person speaking?"
The screen closed and a new play opened. Here Dumbledor was just a painted cutout, but he spoke.
"Points for Slytherin,points for Harry, points for friendship love and happiness."
Puppet people clapped and jumped. At the same time, mini him burst into the room.
"Headmaster, something is wrong. There's something going on. I went to the black lake and there's no water there. But it was still there. I tried to enter the left corridor but the doors are just painted on the walls. Someone is casting an illusion on this castle!"
He looked around desperately, only to find silence.
Then all the puppets opened their mouths together.
"THAT IS NOT ON THE SCRIPT."
They were slowly dragged forward by the strings.
"YOU NEED TO STICK TO THE SCRIPT, FOR THE PLAY TO GO ON"
The mini him looked up, and what ever he saw, made his body fall slack with his mouth open.
Thud
A spike pierced through his head, and nailed him to the ground. And threads slowly creapt from the top and wrapped themselves around his arms legs and jaw.
The nail pulled out of the ground,holding his bleeding self afloat as the strings manipulated the strings.
The miniature turned to him. It was alive. He could read the lips as they tried to form the words.
'Help'
But then the strings whipped them around.
The voice from above spoke while controlling his mouth.
"The play has a script. And puppets play the script."
"""Right?"""
Hundred puppets turned towards him with bleeding eyes.
That was enough.
"Riddikulus"
Fwooshh
The puppets slowly fell, first their heads then their hands, and then their strings. Then it all burst into shredded paper. And Richard laughed.
"haha..."
It was small at first. But it turned louder as he realized his fear. He was afraid that this book..no this world was fake. He was afraid that it might take him and turn him to a fake being too.
He was afraid of a freaking book.
"Hah ha hah ha haha"
He was afraid of what someone else wrote on a bundle of papers to entertain children. Wasn't that hilarious?
The world was fake to begin with. It was merely power shaped by imagination .
This whole world was merely a manifestation of the power that rightfully belonged to him.
He owned it.
And he was afraid of it.
"Heh. Funny."
"I wonder what Mr Cloverfield found so funny. Would you mind telling what is it that you fear the most in the world?"
Richard turned away from wardrobe as Lupin closed it after throwing the Boggart in. The entire class behind him were silent.
"Just some existential crisis, professor" Richard replied as he reholstered his wand. "Meeting my fears was really therapeutic. I should have done this ages ago."
"And how did you face it"
"That's because I remembered what made me have the have the melt down. Isn't it funny to worry about your entire existence just because you get the crazy idea while reading a children's book?"
Since it was never truly real, why should he worry about it in the first place?
..
.