Disclaimer: Only the plot and the way in which the characters are manipulated are mine. Everything else belongs to other people in other places with different ideas. We all know who they are.
A New Age Comes: Frightening Beginnings
Chapter Two
By the time the summer between my second and third years arrived, I had done my best to forget what had happened the year before in Diagon Alley. Of course, that didn't work, and I knew that it wouldn't; to think otherwise would have been completely illogical. However, I thought of it as little as possible and I tried to convince myself that it was a dream. My twelve year old self still couldn't begin to comprehend what had happened. It became less like a puzzle when I thought of it, and that was the terrifying part. It was more intriguing in a way that I couldn't understand.
My attempts at ignoring the situation were brought to an abrupt halt during my third year. Draco Malfoy had been attacked by Buckbeak the Hippogriff and the blasted man was once again a prominent figure in my thoughts. The memory of whatever it was that occurred, and its accompanying feelings, came flooding back when I learned that Lucius Malfoy was pushing for Buckbeak's death. It vexed me to no end.
I remember being so upset that I was reminded once again of what happened. My then current isolation from Harry and Ron in combination with the Lucius Malfoy dilemma only served to escalate my frustration. I decided to help Hagrid build a defense for Buckbeak and threw myself into it. It helped me to forget just a bit.
I poured over law books for hours upon hours, at times I even made use of my Time Turner to do more research. I was determined to not let him win. In retrospect, it was the closest I ever came to engaging in a childish flirtation - childish flirtation being where a young boy pulls some unsuspecting girl's hair because he "likes" her or something to that effect. To this day, I am embarrassed to think on it. My only consolation is that he has never learned of my involvement in Buckbeak's case.
I was heartbroken when I learned that all my efforts went for naught. I cried for hours that night. It felt like he had won. Of course, I had no idea what he had won or why he had won anything at all.
However, this feeling only lasted until Buckbeak flew away from Hogwarts with Sirius Black upon his back. I was triumphantly, and quietly, smug after that. My feeling of having won allowed me to go back to my delusion for a time.
Unfortunately for me, my delusion only lasted until the Quidditch World Cup the summer between my third and fourth years at Hogwarts. It was there that I was most horribly reminded of him again. It was also there that I first saw his wife. It was such an odd thing.
For some reason, it hadn't occurred to me that he had a wife, though of course I knew that his son had a mother. I felt both idiotic and jealous. I tried so hard not to feel jealous, and, at the same time, I tried to understand why I felt that way. It was one of the most uncomfortable feelings I'd ever experienced. As a matter of fact, it still is.
The occurrences after the Cup match ended managed to distract me from this new twist. My desperation to maintain my delusion allowed me to grasp onto it. There were several months that followed where I was able to maintain it, and it was a most welcome reprieve. In fact, my fourth year passed with nearly no thought of the man. No, indeed, it wasn't until my fifth year that my delusion once again came to a screeching, ear piercing halt.
A/N: Hello again readers. I'm terribly sorry that I haven't been able to write before this. I apologize mostly to those whom I've told that I would most likely post this chapter in September. Real life has gotten in the way. I've been really busy. This is partly due to the fact that, at the end of August, I moved to the opposite side of the country. Very stressful event moving. Anyway, I'm afraid that I don't know when I'll next be updating, but I hope that it will be soon. As always, thank you to all those who have read, reviewed, subscribed, etc. It's welcome and appreciated. Until next time then.
