The Summer Wind
You stare out the window of your compartment, watching the trees fly by in a green whirl. You give a sigh and think about your thoughts when you first sat here. You were much younger then. Seven years, to be exact. And butterflies fluttered through every crevice of your stomach. You looked around with shifty eyes. You sat alone for most of the trip, like you are now. You feel a sadness of leaving a place you had grown to call home. And you don't actually know why. Some of your worst nightmares were spent in those corridors and halls. Some you'd like to forget.
You remember when she first entered your compartment. You hadn't seen her in a while, and she looked more beautiful than ever. Her hair gave a small flutter as she waltzed in proudly and took the seat across from you. You remember her exact words as clearly as you see the scenery outside. Her voice was like the banter of angels. It was soft and caring. She had come to make sure you were all right. She was always looking out for you, she was always caring. Until she met him of course, you think, but you shake him from your mind.
Nine months later she returned to your compartment for the last quarter of the ride. Your mother took her home, as she did live close by. You waved to her and she told you she'd see you soon, which did happen. You saw her often during the summers. They were hot and sticky and occasionally there would be a cool breeze that fluttered through her hair making it dance all around her. She'd put up a foul face as she'd try to tame it down, but it seemed to never obey her. You'd laugh at her frustration with her hair. That had always been your favorite part of her, her wild hair that hung at her shoulders. It captivated you every time you looked at it. Its color; so bright, so wonderful, so captivating.
She sat with you again on the train ride to your second year. You laughed together, but she was soon pulled away by her other friends and you buried your nose in your book. During the year she talked to you less frequently than the previous year. You figured it was the more advance work during school. That always seemed to be your excuse for the next three years as your friendship seemed to diminish. You started making friends in your own house, and she in hers. You two fell apart during the year, and that killed you.
But the summer wind would always bring her back to you. It brought her back fuller than ever, better than you could have possibly imagined. You'd spend days at the lake together, licking ice cream cones and talking about life. You'd love just talking to her. It reminded you of the old days with her, back when things were less complicated. And that's how it was for years. That's how it went, and just as you began to accept having her only in the summer it all changed. She met him.
Its true that she had met him earlier, in your first year, but she could never stand him. You two would sit together and constantly make insults about him. You had some fond memories doing that. He had never been nice to you, he had always felt the need to pick on you and you had never done anything to him. She'd stand up for you in the middle of his wrath, and he'd listen to her and leave you alone, temporarily.
But that was when you really started to hate him. It was the summer after your fifth year. The wind whipped through her hair when she first mentioned it. She tried to tuck a lock of it behind her ear to keep it from blowing everywhere. She tried to say in casually but your mouth fell in shock when she said it. You tried convincing her of all the reasons why he was no good but she didn't listen. You didn't understand why the summer wind had been so cruel that summer and the next year tormented you with the sight of them laughing together.
It just didn't make sense to you. You had been there for her through everything. He didn't know the first thing about her, you were sure. Did he know that she only like two and a half cubes of sugar in her tea? Or that she only bit the nail on her left pinky finger? Or did he know that she had an incredible fear of heights? Or that she constantly cleared her throat when she was feeling uncomfortable? No, he didn't. He didn't know any of these things. You did. You had been the one there for her on those sleepless nights. You had been the one to comfort her when her cat died. You had been the one to tell off her sister when she was bothering her. What had he done?
The summer wind that summer before your seventh year was strange. It hardly blew at all, but when it did it was strong and forceful. It wasn't the same as it had been all those summer before. It wasn't quite what you were used to. But then you realized why. He was here. He was staying with her this summer. You felt enraged when you saw them in your spot by the lake. Your heart burned as he licked the ice cream off her nose. Your fists tightened as you watched them walk down the street hand in hand, the wind blowing her long hair in every direction. That was the summer wind you two had shared. He had no part in it.
This past year was filled with your hatred toward him for stealing her away from you and the anger you felt toward her for falling for him. And now as you sit alone in your compartment staring at the trees rustling in the wind, you realize that the summer wind is no longer. It is gone. It is now just wind that passes by. But now, there are no books to distract you from your feelings and no more spells to mask them. You are left with a blunt realization that the girl you had dreamed of for so long has been swept up by prince charming and not drifted off with you and the summer wind.
But the compartment door opens, and she walks in, smiling as her hair dances behind her, just like in your first year. You blink at her presence, trying to see if it is real. She smiles at you and tells you she has great news. You know that great news to her hardly means anything to you. Great news for you would be that she left him to run away with you, but somehow, from the smile on her face, you gather that's not what she's going to tell you.
She smiles excitedly at you and holds up her left hand. A glimmering ring sits upon her finger and she is telling you he proposed and that they will be married soon. Soon, every thought that ever lingered in your mind that she'd come back to you will now be lost in a dark abyss forever. You try to smile but end up feeling like you are going to vomit. You tell her congratulations and that you are happy for her. She tells you that you are invited to the wedding, but you tell her you think you will be out of time. She frowns but smiles and says she understands. She gives you one last smile as she stands up and moves toward the door.
As she opens it you shout out her name, almost urgently. She turns to look at you, and you realize for the first time, she is not the same eleven-year-old girl who was completely new to this strange world of magic. Now she is an accomplished witch who will soon marry an accomplished wizard. She asks why you stopped her and you open your mouth to tell her that you love her. You open your mouth to tell her you always have and to ask her to marry you instead. You open your mouth and nothing comes out except a meek congratulations.
The train pulls into the station and you step off. You head for the exit to enter into Kings Cross station but you stop and take one last look at the scarlet train that had fathered so many of your wonderful conversations with the girl whose hair captivated you body and soul. And as you stand back to admire the handy work that has been built by the founding fathers so long ago, she catches your eye and smiles the wind whipping through her hair like no tomorrow. Her smiles says something to you. You're not sure if it is her smile, the bustle from the crowd or the wind itself. But a voice lingers in your ear that says, "The summer wind will forever be ours." And with a blink she turns back to him erupting and buckling over with laughter.