'So I'll be on my way.' - Alex Clare, Too Close

I smile down at the pink and yellow pygmy puffs dancing around me. Their sweet music fills the moonlit air and I feel like floating. I sigh in contentment as my fairy wings open up from my back and I rise gently into the starry sky.

Then my wings catch on some branches and the wind is shaking me. I toss and turn as the branches pull me from side to side. A storm arrives and I am being thrown about. To top it all, there is music playing in the background. I listen hard.

And I feel like I am just too close to love you. Then with a final shove from a branch, my eyes snap open.

There is ice blond hair in my f ace as I wake up. My best friend stares at me with wide eyes then pulls back from shaking me awake. He flicks his wand to turn off the music, takes a deep breath, then screams "RIA, IT'S 10:30!"

I scowl, "So?" I turn over to go back to sleep, but realisation hits hard.

"SHIT!" I scramble out of bed to stare at him.

We've done it again. September the 1st, half an hour until the Hogwarts Express leaves for school for sixth year, and we haven't even started packing.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP SOONER?! YOU WAKE UP AT THE FUCKING CRACK OF DAWN EVERY DAMN DAY!"

"I WAS TESTING THAT NEW SLEEPING DRAUGHT I MADE YESTERDAY. I ONLY JUST FUCKING WOKE UP."

Did I mention we both swear like sailors? Sometimes it doesn't even make sense.

"THEN WHAT ARE YOU YELLING AT ME FOR? GO PACK!"

"ARGH!" he stalks out of the room.

25 minutes later and I'm dressed and have just about stuffed everything into my trunk.

"Where's my lucky hanky?" I hear Scor mutter from the room next door.

I ignore him and try sitting on my trunk to close it.

"WHERE THE HELL IS MY LUCKY HANKY?!" he shouts.

"I DON'T KNOW!" I yell back, "Did you leave it in your house?"

He appears in my door, scowling at me. "NO, AND I KNOW YOU KNOW WHERE IT IS, BITCH. GIVE IT TO ME."

I shove him out of my bedroom. "WE'VE GOT FIVE MINUTES SO HURRY THE FUCK UP. It's in your pocket by the way."

I smirk as he looks down to see his handkerchief hanging out of his shirt pocket. "Fuck you", he mutters angrily, then runs back to his bedroom.

I grab my broom and wand and levitate my trunk down the stairs. I can see Scorpius doing the same behind me.

I pause. Something's missing.

"Where's Affy?"

Scorpius turns pale and sprints out the front door, and into the neighbouring house, with me rushing after him.

His snowy owl, Aphrodite, is flying around the house, hooting angrily.

"GET HER IN THE CAGE, YOU EEJIT!" I yell.

"WHY CAN'T YOU DO IT?" he screams back. Affy may be gorgeous, but she's a moody bint and her bites hurt like hell.

"'COS SHE'S YOUR OWL!"

"YOU USE HER TOO!"

"JUST GET HER IN THE DAMN CAGE!"

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!"

There's a pause.

"Pretty sure that's animal abuse." I mutter, staring at the frozen owl on the floor. Scor shrugs and locks her into her cage.

We stand at the front door with luggage in hand, and I lock eyes with my best friend.

"Ready?" I ask.

He nods, and we spin into darkness as the clock strikes eleven.

We Apparate directly onto Platform 9 ¾. We push past wailing toddlers, bored older siblings, crying mums and waving dads, but we have eyes only for the scarlet train slowly leaving the station.

We sprint through the crowds of people as we do every year, and I turn back once to see that our trunks have automatically levitated onto the train. There's no going back now.

We draw level with the back of the train and Scorpius flings his broom and Affy's cage at me, and then reaches out, grabbing hold of the railing of the caboose and pulling himself onto the train caboose platform. He turns back and I shove the brooms and the cage into his arms. I'm slowing down, but the train's picking up speed, and I'm getting left behind.

"RIA, HURRY!" Scor screams. The platform is silent as everyone watches to see whether I'll make it or not.

I take a deep breath and I'm flat-out sprinting now. I see the end of the platform approaching, and I make a last-ditch attempt and leap towards the caboose railing as the platform disappears from beneath me.

Scor's cool hands grip my wrists and he pulls me onto the train caboose platform next to him.

We collapse against the train door, panting. He grins at me "That was close."

I grin back, "Couldn't disappoint our fans." I gesture to the fast-disappearing station platform, where many of the people are clapping and cheering for us.

And then we crack up, laughing and laughing, as we do every September 1st.