7

Sometimes in life there are just things that happen for ways so mysterious that even questioning it doesn't seem like the right thing to do. Sometimes you've just got to accept that they happen and hope for the best. And sometimes, no matter how odd the event, you'll just have to believe that it's happening and take what you can get. Something much like this was happening to Harry.

As the days went on, all Harry could think about was why things were starting to get even more unusual since Elle came into the picture. They we're friends now, and very close ones at that. Whenever they spent time together, they'd end up learning new things about each other. And they both knew this was a friendship that could've blossomed a long time ago, but talking about the hindrances were too tiresome to think about. Instead, they laughed about the similarities they shared that they never thought could exist between them.

Every night by some means, their talks would get intimate, and Harry would tell Elle about how he felt having no parents to raise him. He would let her in on how he secretly envied the bond the Weasley's had as a family, and even told her about how one day he wished he could have one just like that. Elle, in turn, would share her thoughts on the same matter, but never would she talk about her family. This left Harry curious, but he didn't dare force her into telling him. He knew that one day, if he earned her trust enough, she would open up to him. And fortunately for Harry, tonight was going to be a start.

They were sitting on one of the moving staircases, keeping care that their voices never exceeded the tone that could get them in trouble. It was way passed the hour for patrols, but that didn't stop them.

"I didn't grow up with my parents," said Elle softly. Harry looked at her, shocked, but said nothing and waited for her to continue. "I grew up with my Aunt, mother's side. They died when I was young. Too young to have any memories with them. So, I know just how you feel, Harry." She finally warmed up to using the first name basis. Harry nodded, looking away. He felt sorry for her, knowing exactly what she felt about the whole ordeal.

"It's weird though. I don't feel as bad about it as people think. They died before I could know anything about them, so I don't really know what the feeling of loss is like, you know? To lose something important to you even before knowing its worth, the feeling's all too strange to figure out. I guess it explains why I'm so kept to myself when it comes to building relationships. Excluding Draco, at least." Elle chuckled as she finished. But Harry could sense a sadness in her tone.

"You and Malfoy," Harry began carefully. "Did you, at one point, believe you would end up together?"

"Honestly? I don't know," Elle breathed out. "I never thought of the future with him. All I knew was what we had. That was all that mattered to me back then. And when I think about it now, it makes me feel so stupid for putting myself in such a position. Loving someone that… difficult. It's me I feel sorry for, though. Because even if I know it isn't so, I feel like I'm the one at a loss."

At this, Harry scoffed and shook his head. "Never. With him? He could lose a pebble and that would still be of more worth without him. So you shouldn't think that. Ever."

Elle smiled. It was the first time she's heard anything remotely sweet from anyone besides Draco Malfoy. Draco had easily been her first love, and now that it was over between them, she honestly still felt for him. But now, hearing this from Harry was something different. Something of a bliss she couldn't explain. Harry noticed her blushing and in turn felt a funny feeling in his stomach. He hadn't felt this way in a long time, and he liked it. It meant that he had finally begun to move on from Ginny, so he didn't dismiss the feeling. The both of them let the moment linger on.

"Thanks, Harry," said Elle, breaking the silence. "You've made it easier for me to get on." She put a gentle hand on his lap, assuring him of her gratification. Harry briefly lost his breath the second she touched him. Looking at it then at her, he forced a cool smile on. And when their eyes met, something inside of them lit up—like they've just seen the light to the end of a dark, winding tunnel. Something resembling the feeling of epiphany to a puzzling story had snapped instantly.

Inside, though she showed none of it, Elle's heart was pounding. It was a scary, but beautiful feeling and she didn't want it to end. Harry Potter was so much different from what she'd imagined him to be. He wasn't anything close to the things Draco had fed her. Harry was actually a brilliant being. Okay, so she has always found him charming, but the charm she saw was nothing compared to what she knew of him now. She liked him, she admitted to herself. Or was it even more than that? Elle pondered secretly.

Harry, on the other hand, had resolved in himself that everything he'd been feeling for the past couple of weeks—the confusion, the dilemma he couldn't figure out and why it bothered him so, all boiled down to a simple resolution: he was falling for her. Elle Matthews! The last girl on his mind just a few weeks ago. The one girl he pitied having to put up with Draco, and at some point even found her pathetic for it. This couldn't be real! But it was… He realized then how beautiful she really was. She was fair-skinned and had thin, almost pale colored lips that were actually thicker when she talked. She had a pair of subtle brown eyes that simply matched the way her bangs fell loosely by the side of hair face. And hanging lose just below her shoulders was her long, dark brown hair, easily mistaken as black, enclosing beautifully around her moon shaped face, giving her a quiet glow. Nothing extraordinary, Harry could admit, but undeniably beautiful. Harry liked what she made him feel.

And even if felt wonderful, they both knew they were falling into something very dangerous.