My internet's down tonight, so I decided to write. The rhyming in that sentence was not my intention. I like this story and want to move it along, anyway.
Enjoy reading!
Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I would be too busy rolling in money to ever write fanfiction.
Cassie's POV
Looking at herself in the mirror in her bedroom, Cassie couldn't help but be a little frightened. Tonight was the first night of Harry's Olcumency lessons. She was great at shielding her mind as well as reading others'. She just knew Harry would have a knack for it, too, with the right teaching.
There were so many memories that shouldn't be shared, though. Especially not with the young raven: her lessons at the academy, saving Severus, shouting at Sirius, helping Lily prepare to walk down the aisle, laughing with James, the dark silhouette of a man above her on her bed, that same man looking at her with nothing but love in his eyes…
Smiling through tears as she gazed upon a brand new life in her arms.
That last thought caused her to tear up momentarily. Her mind started to yell at her. Calm down! There's no changing the past! You have to get a grip on yourself!
She took a deep breath before heading out into the hallway. There was no sign that anything was wrong on her face by the time that she entered her classroom. Harry was already there. He must've heard her, because he looked up. His emerald eyes were bright. The woman felt a slight pang in her chest.
Lily. She had always wanted to be a mother. She was giddy for weeks after she learned that she was pregnant. Cassie was in her third month, so they were planning on raising their kids to be the best of friends. Both of their husbands were highly amused by the behavior of the two women.
The blond had to restrain herself from showing anger at the thought of the monster that took it all away. Those three were gone now because of him. All so that psychopath could ensure his power over the wizarding world.
Harry's POV
Harry smiled at the woman in front of him. She was wearing a sleek, soft brown dress that matched the color of her eyes, her pale skin had a certain glow to it, and her hair was up in a ponytail, as usual. He had to admit that she was pretty. He greeted her.
Professor Everpine just stared at him for a few seconds. She then smiled and said, "Good evening, Harry. Let's get started, shall we?" She conjured up two chaired that were facing each other in the front of the room and sat in one of them. Harry took the other. "How's life?" she asked.
"Excuse me?" he asked back.
"This is not simple magic here, Harry," she began to explain. "The mind in and of itself is one of the most complicated things known to man. A wizard can and has gone insane trying to perform any type of 'mind magic.' To prevent this, it's ideal to clear your head. The easiest way to do that is to talk out your problems, rant about frustrations, and admitting your fears to another. So, I'll ask again. How's life?" When all she got in response was a slightly confused looked, she tried again. "How about we started on what you think of the different people in your life, okay? And we'll both contribute to the conversation. Say your opinion, then I'll say mine."
The boy thought for a bit. "My best mate's Ron Weasely. He's the best bloke I've ever met, probably. He's loyal and brave. He's also great at wizard's chess. I've never been able to win against him. And I guess… that's all."
The professor nodded. "From what I both observed and heard so far, Mr. Weasely is a very plain boy. He slacks off in class and doesn't understand a lot of the material. That's not all that abnormal, but a problem arises in his behavior towards others. He's selfish and insecure more often than not, and he seems to take his frustrations out on whoever he finds to be the center of what he wants."
Harry wanted to defend his friend, but memories from last year stopped him. He decided to continue with the main topic.
"Hermione Granger's also my mate. She's really smart and loyal."
"And so polite!" the blonde added with a laugh.
-LINE BREAK-
Harry couldn't believe how much lighter he felt after talking to his professor. In the hour-long session, they talked about Cho, his parents, Remus, Ron, Hermione, and Dumbledore. He wanted to talk about Sirius, too, but he was still on the run. Even the morning after the session, he felt so light that he was sure he could fly without his Firebolt.
Professor Everpine had gotten a distant or angry look in her eyes a couple of times, but her opinions were never too harsh. She seemed like she wanted to say more about the headmaster, though. That kind of thing was rather surprising to Harry. Most people loved Dumbledore, but the woman seemed to have something against him.
(Flashback)
"Professor Dumbledore is the closest thing I have to a mentor," Harry said. Professor Everpine stiffened but nodded, so the raven continued. "He's always there for me and always knows what to say. I think he might be a Seer or something."
The blond smiled tightly and, in a strained voice, said, "The headmaster does seem like a capable man. He managed to make his way to the top and seems to like it there. He doesn't look like a bad person, right?"
Harry had a feeling that question shouldn't be answered.
(End Flashback)
"So, did you figure out anything about her, mate?" asked Ron as they sat down for breakfast. "Like when she became a Death Eater?"
"Ron!" Hermione said in annoyance. "No matter what happened, its Harry's choice to tell us or not."
She then turned to Harry. "Actually, I was in the library looking through old school books. Did you know Hogwarts has those? Like muggle yearbooks. Anyway, I found Professor Everpine in several pictures with your parents Harry."
"Really?" the raven haired boy asked as his eyes lit up. The brunette nodded and was about to say more when her eyes caught on something behind him.
Zabini was lazily walking to where they sat. "Potter," he said as he came to a stop.
"Zabini," Harry acknowledged.
The Slytherin's voice became slightly demanding as he said, "In the library. Third period is free for you correct?" The other boy nodded. "Don't be late." The Italian then walked away.
-LINE BREAK-
The library was eerily silent. Harry wasn't sure if that was cause by the way Pince was glaring at anything that made too much noise or his own dread. As he sat down at the table he saw the others at Justin smiled and Padma said hello. Zabini just shot him a disinterested glance.
"So," Padma began after a few awkward seconds, "We're supposed to name one good and one bad thing about each House. Which one do you want to start with?" She looked around the table.
Justin fidgeted in his chair a bit as he mumbled, "Well, Hufflepuffs are loyal."
Padma shook her head. "That's a trait of the House, yes, but I was thinking of maybe using the less talked about ones." Justin stammered.
Zabini spoke up next. "Puff's don't argue when they don't believe their situation is fair."
"That's exactly what I meant!" the girl shot Zabini a smile before writing his words down.
"We can't fit in sometimes," Justin said sadly. Nobody spoke as Padma wrote that down, too.
The Indian looked towards me and smiled teasingly, "Gryffindors are idiots," she said.
"Not true," Harry said louder than he meant to. After receiving a glare from the librarian, he whispered, "We're just brave enough to do what no one else will!"
The other boy snorted. "To the point where it's suicidal."
Those two things were what the group eventually agreed to write down. It was also decided that Ravenclaws were able to strategize in dangerous situations but were self-important. Slytherin was last and the hardest.
"I still say that Malfoy is the worst thing about that House," Harry argued.
Zabini, who insisted that, because we were going to spend a lot of time together, he be called Blaise, shook his head. "You don't know Draco that well. He's a good person."
"Who calls one of my best mates a Mudblood," the other boy deadpanned.
The Italian's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Oh, he was just… What's that American phrase? Pulling her pigtails."
Justin looked shocked. "You mean Malfoy likes Hermione?"
At Blaise's smirk, Padma giggled and said, "I knew it!"
TBC…
I know what direction I want to go with for this story, but getting there is hard work. Thinking up ideas is exhausting sometimes.
I like Cassie. She's one of the more normal characters that I've ever thought up. She's just a normal person. As normal as any witch can be, anyway.
Comment please. Suggestions are always welcomed.
