A/N: Hey, y'all. Soooo this pretty much hasn't been up due to computer complications. But I have a new one now so it's all better! So hopefully I'll be getting these out much faster, and it'll all be good. Woohoo! Review please!
Love's Worst Element
Chapter Three- A Change in Atmosphere
"Uh… Matt."
"Julie?"
"Kasiss."
"Why?"
"That's my… name… I'm not blond and idiotic."
"Alright, then Kay?"
"…Kasiss. Please."
"Alright, fine. Kasiss…"
"Thank you. Now, I wanted to talk to you because we need to talk. About us. We broke up. We can't be in a relationship."
"You're right…" Matt said.
"But we can still be friends?"
"Um, sure. It's not like we had officially gotten back together."
"Right. But I still kissed you, projected that I like you to your family, and cried on your shoulder until I fell asleep on you," I declared. Mrs. Weasley called Matt downstairs.
"I should go. I have to meet some friends in," Matt checked his watch, "Ten minutes. So, see ya." Matt left my room and I was left alone. I felt like crap. Matt was the nicest first boyfriend anyone could ever have; and though he was a bit touchy on certain subjects, like my cousin's wedding, I still felt as if I needed his ultimate stability.
But that was all behind me now. Not by very far, but it was behind enough. Just as I acted as if I still had a family, and I intended to do the exact same thing in this situation. Not pretend I still had a boyfriend-like figure, but pretend I didn't care if we had broken up.
I walked downstairs just in time to see an owl fly down to the kitchen window and start pecking. I opened it, and the bird hopped in, sticking out his leg. I untied the string and looked at the five letters. One was addressed to me, and the others to Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. I walked upstairs and knocked on the top door. It creaked open to reveal Hermione and Harry sitting on one bed, and Ron on the other.
"Hi. These letters came for you just now. By the way, has either of you seen Sammy?"
"Uh… I think she's in the garden…" Hermione said.
"Okay thanks. How about Ginny?" I asked.
"Same."
"Okey dokey!" With that, I walked out of the room and headed downstairs. The vegetable garden was to the left of the front door, and as Hermione had said, Sammy, Ginny, Fred, and George were there, giving her belly rubs in the moist soil. "Hey guys…" I said. Sammy got up quickly and ran to me. "Awww! Do you love me better? Huh? Yes you do!" I said, flopping her ears around. "Oh, Ginny, this is for you," I said, handing Ginny the letter. "C'mon girlie!" I said, taking Sammy inside. "Oh, wait. I've been meaning to ask you this. Why aren't you two going to Hogwarts? You couldn't have graduated by now, I'm sure."
"We dropped out."
"And opened our own joke shop."
"Well, that sounds exciting. And I would expect something like that from you two…" I replied. "Oh, one more thing. Do you guys have an owl?" I asked.
"We do… But he sucks. Harry has Hedwig, though. Ask him," Ginny said.
"Why?" the twins asked.
"I just wanted to write a letter to a friend, that's all," I said, continuing into the house. I wiped Sammy's feet on my shoes, so as she didn't drag mud all over the place, and proceeded to fill up her food and water dishes, allowing her to eat in my room.
I opened the letter, realizing that it was a Hogwarts letter, telling me all about this year. I laid it on my bed, sat down on the ground and played with Sammy for a half an hour. She settled down on my lap, whining a little, and pawing at my hand. I smiled, and started petting her.
Not long after, I found myself quietly crying on her, while she laid there. "I miss them so much…" I whispered. Sammy responded my looking at the door, and barking. "Oh, shush!" I said, getting up and wiping my eyes. I opened the door.
"Hello Kasiss," Hermione said. "Do you mind if I come in?"
"Oh, no. Come, come…" I said, taking a seat on my bed. Sammy jumped up and sat on my left, leaving room for Hermione to sit on my right. "So…"
"So?" she asked.
"So, what's the occasion?" I asked.
"No occasion. I just wanted to get to know you," she said.
"Oh. Well. What do you want to know? I'm like a walking autobiography," I said smiling.
"Just this and that…" she started, falling quiet for a moment. "So, why did you come to Hogwarts this year. Why not stay at your other school?"
I started nervously stroking Sammy's ears. "W-Well… I, uh… To tell you the truth, um…" I took a deep breath. "Okay. I barely know you. But I can tell you're a trustworthy person. Very much friend material, I'm pleased to say. I don't care if you tell the whole world what happened, but you have to make sure they don't mention it to me, or I'll go psychotic-suicidal-freak-o."
"Erm… Okay…" Hermione said.
I took a deep breath, explaining what had happened for the second time in forty-eight hours. "My birthday was the tenth. I'm sixteen now. I got up and did all that morning stuff. When I went downstairs for my party, it was quiet. I went in the kitchen, and I could see my brother David, and my dad…" I sucked in my lips. "They were…" I sighed. "They were d-" I sighed again. "They were dead." Hermione put her hands over her mouth. "Dumbledore was there, and he told me that Voldemort killed them, and that Hogwarts was what my parents wanted." I took a few deep breaths, fighting back tears. "And that's why I'm here."
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I never meant to- I didn't mean to pry…" Hermione said sadly, looking down at the floor.
"It's fine. As long as I don't talk about it anymore. I'm kinda just trying to forget about the whole thing. I don't want to act any differently than I need to. So whoever you tell, make sure at the end you tell them that we pretend nothing happened. Okay?"
"Of course…"
"So… friends?" I asked. Hermione smiled. "Ah! Yay! I have a friend!"
"And I have a girl to talk to other than Ginny and Luna…" she said. After a moment of silence, she stood up. "Well, I should go. I have to start studying for this coming year…" And with that, my newest friend left the room.
Harry's POV
It was a full week after Kasiss had arrived at the Burrow. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were in the boy's room. It had been silent for the longest time, seeing as Harry had just revealed something interesting to his best friends. "Harry, you should do something about the problem you think you have with her. Even though there isn't a problem…" Hermione said.
"There is a problem Hermione! She's always awkward around me!" Harry replied. "And I can't figure out why."
"Well, you didn't tell us that part of it. But Harry, you have to understand that she just lost her family. And she's known you for a week. You can't expect her to be friends with everyone," Hermione said. Her chocolate eyes were kind, and her words were the same. Harry hated how she was always right.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I get your point…" Harry sighed. "I'm going to bed…" he said a moment later.
"Me too. See you in the morning." Hermione left the room, followed by Harry. He walked into the bathroom, brushed his teeth, and changed into his pj bottoms and an almost fitted long sleeve shirt.
He walked back out to the hall, just standing at the door. He wasn't waiting for anything, nor was he avoiding something. Harry, actually, didn't know why he was standing by the door rather than going through it. All the could think about was what he said that could have offended Kasiss in any way. Potter… Harry thought. If you fall for her I'll kill me!
Just at that moment, a door opened down a few levels, and a second later Kasiss was walking by. Harry looked at her, following her every move. Her pale skin was contrasted with the black spaghetti strap shirt she was wearing, which enhanced her perfect figure.
Harry then noticed that her sparkling blue eyes were trained on him. He smiled a little after she looked away. Harry… Harry… HARRY FOR THE LOVE OF MERLIN WILL YOU STOP LOOKING AT HER! Harry told himself. But his mind did nothing to his trance. He looked at her even after she had closed the bathroom door. Harry let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding in. Damn she's pretty… A minute or two later, she was on her way back down.
"Night Harry," she said dreamily as she continued walking.
"Night," he replied quietly. Kasiss looked back at Harry and smiled, telling Harry that she had felt his stare.
"Somebody has a crush!" someone said sing-songilly.
"Who?" Harry asked, knowing full well the person meant him.
"Don't play dumb with us. We know you know we mean you." It was Fred and George. "We also know you fancy her," they mocked.
"I do not," Harry said. He wasn't exactly lying. He thought she was pretty, but that's no good reason to fancy someone.
"Come one, Harry!" Fred started.
"We won't tell her, we promise!" George finished.
"I am telling you! I don't like her!" Harry turned around and walked into his room, closing the door, telling the twins he didn't want to talk anymore.
Kasiss' POV
After hours of tossing and turning in bed, I found it difficult to think of sleep when Harry's electric green eyes were picturing so vibrantly in my mind. I wanted to run my fingers through his messy hair, playfully or otherwise.
But somehow my mind trailed off to my family. The warm, fuzzy feeling in my chest was replaced by a wet, dark feeling, and tears welled up in my eyes yet again. I heard soft rain fall on the window of my room. I cried softly, and cried myself to sleep.
It was dark, and there were traces of fog floating around. There were many dark figures standing around, and in the center of it all was another dark figure. With a pop a person wearing lighter clothes appeared. Next to her there was a shining dog. Immediately I knew the person was me, and the dog was Sammy. "I had a feeling you'd be here tonight…" the person in the center said.
"Well, of course you did. You seem to know everything else about me," I said tartly. Sammy barked.
"You brought a friend. How nice. So, you know what my plan is, don't you?" The person's face was pale, almost white, and his nose was merely two slits in his face. I recognized him vaguely, but the name didn't come.
"Yes, I do. And I'd like to tell you that it's never going to work."
"And why is that?"
"Because there is one major flaw. I'm not evil. And you can't change that." Sammy barked again. "Hush!"
"Oh, I can't, can I?" he asked.
"No. You can't. You can try, but you can't succeed. And the Imperious Curse doesn't work on me, or my friend," I said smugly.
"I knew that much already. What I didn't know was that I can't succeed in having you on my side. See, I've chosen not to use the Imperious Curse multiple times, finding there to be much more… torturous ways to get what I want. And what I want is you." Sammy barked again. The man looked evilly at her. "I don't seem to remember that when I dropped by your house on your sixteenth birthday." I realized who it was at that moment. It was Voldemort. Rage filled within me.
"She was in the back yard. It was her favorite place. She hasn't seen it in two years, no thanks to you," I said.
"It's fascinating how attached one can be to an animal, isn't it?"
"What are you getting at?" I asked suspiciously. Sammy barked again. "Hush!"
"You are destined to be on the dark side, and I will do what it takes to get you there. Which means-"
"You wouldn't dare…" I said darkly.
"I would," Voldemort said simply. I took in a deep breath, my eyes widening as I noticed that some of the Death Eaters chuckled. Hate filled my eyes, and I pursed my lips.
Slowly, my arm outreached. "Oh, no. I wouldn't brand you. No. You need something different. You're not like anyone else here. No." Voldemort pulled out his wand, and pointed it at my left forearm. A deep cut gashed through my skin. I tensed up, squinting my eyes, daring myself not to scream. "That should do it."
Almost immediately after saying that, figures apparated all around. The Death Eaters sprung into action, shooting spells at the people already shooting spells back. They were Order members, already here to save my life.
"Remember, Kasiss! You're on my side now!" Voldemort shouted. The air thickened, and when I looked around, many on the good side looked at me with wide eyes, but quickly went back to their dueling.
"R-Right…" I said, quickly running over to a Death Eater to start dueling against Molly Weasley, who looked nervous as hell.
"Avada Kedevra!" someone shouted. I looked around to see a flash of green light. Next thing I was staring at a lifeless body on the ground. She was blonde, and wore a fur coat.
My eyes faded out, and I woke up. Screaming.
