Stella sat behind the wheel of her car as she drove through suburbia. It had been a long time since she had been home to America; it felt good to be back. She smiled to herself, pleased that she still remembered her way around her home town. Trees passed by and the array of colors sped by as cars drove in the opposite direction.
Hermione was seated next to her and was slowly going through the radio stations trying to find something to listen to. Stella smiled, realizing that Hermione liked to occupy herself as much as possible when in a car with Stella.
Hermione sighed, "How long until we get there?" she asked, her eyes firmly set to the radio dial.
"Five minutes." Stella replied, cutting in front of a car, which slammed on their brakes and their horn. Stella stuck her hand out of the sunroof and waved, they gave her the finger.
"You are so crazy, I hate driving in America, and even worse, I hate riding in the car with you while you drive in America" Hermione said through clenched teeth.
"Yeah, well, someone has to do it, my parents are at work, and I have to be at training, I have a whole year to make up in one summer, well less, because we aren't here long." Stella was on her way to her physical training sessions, they were private, but she adored them; the activities she worked on ranged from kickboxing to yoga, from karate to biking. Stella had been in the program since she was ten, and had the highest ranks in just about everything. Her body was lithe from everything she did, and she was proud of it, she had built her body into a warriors' and she was ready for just about anything. She blamed this whole thing on the television programs she watched growing up, she wanted to beat up the bad guys, fight with them, show them that a girl could actually do something, so her parents had her enrolled in private lessons (for a hefty sum of course), but it was all worth it in the end.
She had never stopped working, not even when she left for Wizarding school, and then even to Hogwarts. She trained on her own, and then when she had started spending summers over in England with the Weasley's she had gone out on her own to find someone to help her keep her studies up.
Ron and Ginny had told her she was crazy and her skills were not going to help her in the final battle, it was about who had the most power in the end, they told her that countless times, and it would not deter her from what she wanted to do. Just like there was no way you could make Hermione stop reading and studying.
Stella finally arrived at her instructor's studio and turned off the car. She looked to Hermione who was looking at the building curiously.
"I'll be back in about an hour, try not to study too hard, lock all the doors, and keep your pepper spray handy." Hermione nodded and rolled her eyes, this was only the fourth time Stella had given her this speech.
"Don't work to hard in there." Hermione said back to her friend as she pulled out her new book on healing. Stella smirked at her and got out of the car.
She sauntered inside through the double doors and headed towards the locker rooms, they were empty when she arrived, and she listened intently to the other people working throughout the building.
Stella quickly changed into her yoga pants and a tank top and wandered out into the meditation area. This was her second meditation session since she had arrived back in the states this summer and was more than excited, she didn't get to meditate often, but when she did, she relished the time she had doing it.
Twenty minutes later she was off to spar with her instructor. Stella smiled as she walked into the room, the pervious lesson was leaving and she took this short time to pull her auburn hair up into a pony tail that rested high on her head.
Her instructor walked across the room, and they shared a brief conversation before they shook hands and began to spar. Her instructor never ceased to be amazed by her, she was always beyond the skill he expected her to be at, even though they only met a few times during the summer.
"You've improved dramatically I see." He said as he blocked a blow to the stomach and sent her to the floor.
"I've been practicing." She replied as she swung at his legs and stood.
"With whom? Have you found a sparing partner at boarding school?" He asked delivering a round house kick, which Stella effortlessly avoided.
"No one seems up to that task," she laughed, dancing around him and out of his way. "I mostly use punching bags and that sort of thing. I did have a potential partner once, we went one round and he opted out." She told him while throwing in a few jabs and punches, a couple actually hitting their mark.
"Maybe there will be someone this year, you never know." He said hopefully as he back away, deciding on a new attack.
Stella smiled, "maybe, we don't get that many transfers, and it's my last year anyway, I've managed just fine with out one." She said spinning away from him and delivering a round house kick to his stomach, which momentarily stunned him.
"That's one you think, you've gotten a little sloppy Stell." He retorted, recovering quickly.
"That's rich James, really rich." She said gleefully. She moved into attack once more when he knocked his legs out from under her. She fell hard on her back and groaned.
"You alright?" James asked looking down at her face, which she had contorted into a grimace.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Stella mumbled. "Please tell me that wasn't you trying to prove that I've gotten sloppy." James shook his head no and gave her his hand, she took it firmly in her own ad started to stand. Stella smiled at him and threw him down onto the mat as she jumped up and spun around, now she was the one staring down at him. She smirked, "don't lie James, you never were good at it." she said, watching him move to get up now.
"Tell that to my girlfriend." He said moving out of her way as he stood.
Stella stared at him blankly. "What are you trying to tell me?" James only shrugged and Stella rolled her eyes. "Oh come on James we've known each other for what? Seven years now? And you can't tell me if you're cheating on your girlfriend or not?" she asked as she walked over to the bench to get some water.
"It's more complicated than that Stell, you know that." James said following her. "It's complicated."
"How long have you known her?" Stella asked, checking her watch.
"A couple months, six, been together for four."
"And you're already cheating?" she asked incredulously, her hands on her hips
"Hey now." James said backing up and waving his hands. "I never said I was cheating, only lying, there's a difference. There is no other woman involved, just other people."
"Good people or bad?" she asked, changing her stance, her hands now crossed over her chest.
"They're good, trust me, completely good; she just wouldn't like them, that's all… she likes our together time, it's just too much for me, you know?"
"Not really, I tend to keep to myself, away from the whole boyfriend scene."
"That makes sense; you're young and have your whole life ahead of you." James said, stretching.
"Whoa, wait just a minute there JIMMY, you're only two years older than me that makes you what, 19, almost 20, if you aren't already." James cringed at being called Jimmy, but nodded reluctantly anyway. "So that means you still have your life ahead of you too buddy, you can still get out of the relationship. Tell her it's not working out or something, I don't know, wouldn't know, I'm not good with all of that relationship sort of thing, but you are, so you know, just go do what you have to do." Stella said, picking up a towel and throwing a towel around her shoulders. "Same time next week?" she asked cheerfully.
"Same as always." James said with a slight smile, they nodded to each other and Stella walked out of the room. James finally let his guard down, being around Stella was hard enough, but behaving like he used to was even harder.
He sighed heavily and sat down on the bench, removing his arm band as he did so. He grabbed a drink of water and stared at his left arm, the throbbing had yet to stop, and Stella's hits to it hadn't helped it any. The black tattoo stared ominously up at him, reminding him, taunting him. James rubbed it fiercely and replaced the arm band. Today was just another day, another day to pretend to be a normal wizard.