Disclaimer: I own nada of HP , JK Rowling is the author.
Chapter 9: I'd Do Anything For You
"Ah! This is so exciting! It's perfect because you and Harry are there too!" Lavender said, rummaging through her chest, throwing clothes left and right.
"Sometimes it's good to take a break and go somewhere other than Hogwarts, you know?" Victoria said, sticking a cigarette between her lips as she kneeled on a maroon ottoman by a cracked window.
Lavender rushed over towards Victoria, grabbing the object out of her mouth and walking away with it.
"Thanks Lav, but I didn't quite smoke it yet." Victoria said, relaxing against the wall.
"I won't let you go on your first date with Harry smelling like smoke." Lavender said, throwing the cigarette inside her bedside table. "I'm looking after you, now… what are you wearing?"
"Er… this?" Victoria ran her hands down her body. She was dressed in a plain black t-shirt, tucked into her jean shorts with fishnet tights underneath. "With those white sneakers over there."
"Vicki, you know I adore your interesting… edgy grunge style thing going on-"
"I'm not grunge?" Victoria said, looking down at her outfit.
"But I've been wanting to put you in some super girly clothes, and I think this is the perfect time for that!" Lavender said smiling ear to ear.
"You know how I feel about frilly dresses and pink…"
"I won't pick pink! Or frilly dresses! Trust me!" Lavender yelled out muffled as she stuck her head inside the wardrobe beside her bed. She came out a moment later holding a floral white and red top with a white skirt and belt. "Yea?"
"Definitely not."
"Okay, this one?" She took out a pastel coloured dress with stripes. Victoria cringed at the sight of it. "Hmm, okay… Oh! I know! Just try this on, I swear you'll look good in it!"
"Lav…"
"Just try it! It's not too girly, I swear!" Lavender said, handing Victoria the outfit pile.
She walked into the bathroom, shimmying into the jeans and throwing over the top. A few minutes later she came out, Lavender was sitting on the bed waiting; her eyes went round upon seeing her, she looked pleased with herself. "You look amazing!"
Victoria pulled on her shirt as she looked down at her outfit, approaching the body mirror to look at herself. Lavender had handed her high waisted jeans, and a simple gray fitted sweater she tucked in. The outfit accentuated her small frame, which she found quite appealing to see. "Okay, this isn't bad actually. I prefer this much more than the floral top." She said, turning to see her backside.
Lavender walked over and put an arm around her mate. "I did it again. Shall I do your hair now?"
"Nope!" Victoria said, dipping under her arm. "I'm going to just put it up anyways."
"Alright, alright. Let me get dressed then we can go." Lavender grabbed her clothes and disappeared into the bathroom.
Victoria took the opportunity to run to Lavender's bedside dresser and snag the smoke, kneeling back on the ottoman and cracking the window wider. She moved around uncomfortably on the ottoman. Victoria barely ever wore jeans, and here was a reason why- they were always so uncomfortable when sitting down or doing activities. They felt so restricting, while skirts, shorts and tights gave her legs more freedom. She took a puff of her cigarette, only getting to smoke barely half when she heard Lavender approach the door. Quickly she aired out the smoke while throwing the cigarette out the window. Lavender walked into the room just when Victoria had closed the window.
"Alright, what do you think?" Lavender said, giving a light twirl.
"You look… so fucking adorable." Victoria said raising her eyebrows. Lavender had on a dark purple skirt with black tights and a light pink sweater.
"Do you think Ron will like it?" She asked, biting her lip.
"He better, otherwise he's blind."
Lavender smiled, "Alright, let's go. They're probably waiting for us downstairs."
The two hurried down to the common room; Lavender more than Victoria, where they approached Harry and Ron lounging around on the couches.
Lavender ran up to Ron, smiling. "Sooo, you guys ready?"
"Yea, are you? We're the ones waiting." Ron said playfully.
"Alright, let's head out!"
The four walked on the trail between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, passing by a few other students who were on their way back from the small village. Lavender and Ron walked a bit ahead of Victoria and Harry.
"Sleep well last night?" Victoria said, tilting her body so she lightly bumped Harry in the shoulder.
"Yea, why do you ask?"
"Oh, I dunno… considering that 'nightmare' you had last time…"
"Well I did have a sort of nightmare last night… I dreamt the school year was over and I was back at my uncle's house. Oh yea, glad that was just a dream." Harry said relieved.
"You're ridiculous." She said laughing.
"How do you think I look?"
Victoria and Harry turned their attention to Lavender who was latched onto Ron's arm, looking up at him.
He looked down, his cheeks turning a blazing colour of red. "Erm… you look… very uhm… pretty." Ron said nervously, clearing his throat.
Harry turned to Victoria grinning; they both found the two quite amusing.
"How do I look?" Victoria said putting up a slow smile.
Harry smirked, as she felt his hand find its way in the back pocket of her high waisted jeans, pulling her closer to his side. "I think it'll be exceptionally harder to keep my eyes off you."
"Not so bad yourself, Potter." She said, looking up at him; but really stealing the excuse to scan her eyes over him- he was very good-looking.
"Yea? My hair isn't too messy?" He said, patting down the hairs on the back of his head.
"Nah, not messy enough." Victoria ran her fingers along his hair, roughing up what he had tried to fix. "I like how it normally is, gives you a messy bad boy vibe." She said narrowing her eyes suggestively.
"I'm a messy bad boy huh? Sounds like something out of Hermione's muggle teen-magazines." Harry said laughing.
"Oi, what're you two looking to do first?" Ron yelled out.
The two looked over at Ron and Lavender who had stopped some ways away. Victoria hadn't realized they'd been walking so slowly behind…
"Three Broomsticks?" Harry yelled out.
"Alright, Mate!"
The four headed over to the Three Broomsticks, a large and very famous wizarding pub that held its place in the center of Hogsmeade. They walked in, being greeted by loud conversation and a pub full of witches and wizards laughing, drinking, and walking about.
A young waitress approached them, "Afternoon guys! Four? Right this way!"
The four followed the waitress to a table in the corner; she cleared the empty drinks and cleaned the table top of spills. "Can I interest you four to some drinks? Our special today is Gillywater!"
"Uhm… Butterbeer?" Ron said, pointing at everybody around the table for confirmation. "Yea? Alright, four butterbeer's."
"Alright, I'll be right back." She said, showing her teeth through her smile before walking off.
"Man is it busy today." Victoria said looking around the pub.
"It's great being upperclassmen, because our schedules clear up immensely." Ron said, smiling.
"Technically it's time made for us to focus on O.W. L's and NEWTS." Harry pointed out. "For us though, it's clear." They laughed.
"Have you two thought on what you're going to do after O.W.L's?" Lavender asked the two boys.
Ron thought about it, "I'm not completely sure… I thought I'd figure that bit out after seeing if I actually pass any of them. Harry?"
"I mean… I thought of well… an Auror would be ideal." He said shrugging, as if it was obvious 'Harry Potter' would say such a thing; Victoria bit her lip, suppressing a grin.
"That's amazing because Victoria wants to be an Auror too!" Lavender said enthusiastically.
"Oh really?" Harry grinned down at her, his eyes full of awe.
Victoria ducked her head a bit bashfully, "Lavender wants to be a nurse!"
Ron raised his eyebrows at Lavender who was occupied with talking to the waitress who came back with their drinks. "Yea? Our friend is great at making healing potions, maybe she can-"
The table lifted up slightly as Harry and Victoria kicked him from underneath. "Shut up!" They both whispered.
"Right… sorry." Ron said, rubbing his legs.
Lavender placed the butterbeers on the table, smiling away the waitress. "Here you are, what were you saying Ron?"
"Uhm… you'd be an amazing nurse, Lav." He said grinning.
She smiled, raising a hand to his cheeks as she caressed the side of his face sweetly for a moment before taking a drink out of her cup.
"So…" Victoria said taking a drink of butterbeer. "How's your brothers shop going, Ron?"
"I'm not really sure… they barely talk about it to us, they act like it's some big secret, yet they tell everyone it's opening soon."
"Yea? I bet what they're making will be amazing. Their pranks are always brilliant."
"You know who else did great pranks back in the day? Harry's dad and Si-" The table lifted again and Ron immediately cut himself off and began to rub his knee.
Victoria looked over at Harry who was nonchalantly drinking his butterbeer, turning the other direction.
"Uhuh- Harry's dad and who?" Victoria asked, narrowing her eyes between the two.
"Ugh… Right… Harry's dad… who is James… and his friend… Si…r Nicholas…? Yea."
"Huh? Nearly Headless Nick? The ghost?" Victoria asked suspiciously.
"He prefers Sir Nicholas… I've made that mistake in my younger years." Ron said, before proceeding to drink awkwardly out of his cup.
"Right… want to dance Ron-Ron? I like this song!" Lavender said, tugging on his arm.
"Oh… I don't really dance-"
"C'mon!" Lavender pulled Ron out of his seat and the two vanished between the groups of wizards and started dancing near the record player.
Victoria looked over at Harry who was still taking that very long sip out of his cup, looking in the opposite direction. She pushed his arm as butterbeer spilled down his chin.
"Hey!" He yelled out, wiping his mouth.
"What'd you do that for?" She said, pressing her eyebrows together.
"Do what? You're the one who hit me."
"You're the one who hit Ron!"
"I did no such thing." He said, shifting his eyes away.
She put a hand under his chin, drifting his look back over to her. "Sir Nicholas, Harry?"
"Yea, my dad er… loved ghosts. Don't you think he's a nice guy? Always saying hello, and such…"
"What kind of pranks could a ghost really do?"
Harry gave her an obvious look, "Have you seen Peeves?"
"Alright, Potter. I'll give you this one." She said, finally giving in.
Victoria gave a lopsided frown, looking down as she played with her fingers in her lap. Harry reached his hand to her face, tucking a loose strand of hair that escaped her messy ponytail behind her ear. "You look beautiful."
"Stop that." Victoria said, giving a short-lived smile.
"Stop what?"
"Trying to make me smile when I'm mad at you."
"Is it working?" He said, raising his eyebrows at her.
She pouted, "It always works."
He leaned in, giving her a feather light kiss on the lips. Victoria smiled, drinking the rest of her butterbeer.
A little while later, the mood lifted; the group was buzzed. Lavender was growing tired, her laughs drowning out as she rested her head on Ron's shoulder who was also exhausted from all the dancing. Victoria rested her head on her hand, smiling at the two- they were pretty adorable together… not sure if it was the butterbeer talking, or if Lavender and Ron would really work out. A loud shriek played in her ears as Harry lifted himself up from his chair.
"I'm gonna pay the bill then we can head out." Harry said, shuffling through his pocket.
"Need anything, I can pitch in?" Victoria asked, though Harry just waved her off.
She turned her head, focusing on the back of Harry as he walked off towards the front to pay the bill. She smiled dreamily at him; till her eyes glazed over as if she'd forgotten she was looking at something… until she noticed someone approach Harry. She lifted her head… who was that? Narrowing her eyes, she tried to focus on the single witch among many… Long dark… maybe black hair, pale skin. Her cheeks turned red as she realized it was Cho Chang talking to Harry. She was wearing a dark blue lace dress that wrapped around her neck and definitely around her hips. Victoria could feel the jealousy, like a snake coiling around inside her stomach; she hated the feeling… Cho wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a momentary hug before nodding and walking off. Harry proceeded to pay the bill and walk back.
Victoria immediately looked away, rubbing her cheeks as she felt the temperature on them rise; then suddenly a warm hand rubbed against her back. "Ready?" Harry said holding a hand out for her.
She grabbed onto it, and they all exited the pub.
Harry and Victoria were once again, walking behind Lavender and Ron who were wearily walking side to side from the buzz and the sleep deprivation. Victoria shuffled her black shoes into the dirt as they began walking on the trail, her arms crossed against her chest as the wind began to pick up. The sun was setting, so the darkness crept along the terrain; they used their illuminating spells on their wands to guide their way through the lantern-less trail.
"Did you have a good time?" Harry asked, breaking the long silence.
"Hmm? Oh… yea, I did. Thank you." She said, barely making eye contact.
"Are you cold? Here." Harry shifted off his blue sweatshirt, placing it over her shoulders.
"Thanks, Harry." She said, managing a grin as she held the sweater tightly around her.
He looked down at her concerned, running his fingers through his untidy hair. "Is something wrong? Had I done something?"
"No, everything's alright." She spoke slowly, as the two walked languidly down the path, nearly losing Lavender and Ron up the trail. He put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
"Hey. Seriously, what's going on?" She looked up into his emerald green eyes. They flickered with concern.
She parted her lips, unsure what to say. She didn't want to seem like that girl who got jealous easily; she found those type of girls to be annoying… and she had no idea if whatever she found out about Cho even justified her feelings right now. She kicked her toes in the dirt, "My uh… my legs just hurt, is all."
"Oh? Why didn't you say so?"
Victoria looked up confused as Harry turned so his back was facing her. "Hop on." He said, grinning back at her.
"You sure?" She said, reluctant to jump on him.
"Please, McKinnon. You probably weight as much as a paperclip."
Victoria jumped on Harry's back as he hiked her up, holding her thighs tightly. "Rethinking this decision yet?" She said, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.
"Not at all. Like I said, paperclip." He chuckled. He couldn't see it, but she smiled; nearly beaming actually. She tilted her head so she was almost buried in his messy hair. She closed her eyes, as the aroma from his hair filled her with smells of rosemary mint. It was odd, how a simple smell calmed her immediately. She lifted her head, brushing her lips across his neck lightly, reaching towards his face to leave delicate kisses along his ear. He tightened his grip on her thighs as he continued on the trail, more slowly than before.
"Are you sure that's what you want to do, McKinnon?" He said impishly. She grinned, trailing her lips slowly and softly down his neck to his shoulder. Harry groaned quietly under his breath, bringing them off the trail as he set her down by a group of trees at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The sun was fully set, so it was almost, nearly impossible to see anything. Harry leaned in, placing his lips firmly on Victoria's, taking every last bit of air she could muster out of her lungs. They walked backwards, deeper in the forbidden forest, as she lost her fingers in his unruly dark hair, his hands examining the curves of her waist. She pressed her tongue against his, tasting the warm finish of the creamy caramel alcohol that had layered the inside of his mouth. Abruptly, her back pressed against the large body of the tree, their illuminated wands dropping just feet away from them on a bed of leafs as he pressed his lips against the sides of her neck; his hands traveling down to the front of her jeans, struggling to unbutton and unzip the front of them. She reached her hands down to mimic the motion and began fiddling with his belt as she felt the warmth of his touch explore underneath her shirt; a prickling sensation burning the surface of her skin as his fingers moved lightly over her stomach and underneath the wire of her bra. Her breath hitched, feeling the grin that was planted on his face while he kissed her. She quickly unzipped the front of his jeans, feeling his length as her knuckles brushed past pulling down the zipper. Suddenly everything just stopped, he placed his hands on her face, resting his forehead on hers. Her dark gray eyes met up with his, as they searched for their breaths; it was like a moment of confirmation, and she was all for it.
A slight crack sounded off in the distance, forcing the two to look over their illuminated wands. A moment went by and nothing happened, just complete darkness… stillness… quietness… then suddenly a loud snap that sounded too close for comfort. Harry immediately fixed his jeans, reaching down for his wand as he put an arm out to protect Victoria who was fiddling with her pants. "What… what was that?"
"Don't know, stay close to me." Harry said, holding her hand with his free one.
Another loud snapping of twigs was heard, and Victoria watched as Harry hovered his wand around him, searching for the sound. The two began to back up slowly, trying to escape whatever was out there, when suddenly, Victoria felt a light breath down her neck. She turned slowly, her eyes widened, she immediately jumped, screaming at the top of her lungs as Harry turned around illuminating whatever it was Victoria jumped from.
"HOLY SHIT WHAT IS THAT?" Victoria yelled, clutching her chest.
Harry rubbed the back of his head, walking closer to it with the light of his wand. "You… you can see that?" He asked, pointing up at the creature.
"Of course I can fucking see it, it's right fucking there! Can't you?" Victoria took a moment to regain whatever she lost during that moment of nearly dropping dead from having a surprise heart attack.
"Yes… I can…" Harry said, reaching up for the beast.
"DON'T TOUCH IT! It'll kill you!"
"No it won't! Look." Harry slowly reached over, placing his hand over the nose of the beast. "See?"
"Holy shit Harry, what do you know that I don't?"
Harry laughed, "These are Thestrals."
"Thestrals? Aren't those like… extremely dangerous beasts?"
"No, no. People only think that because they look quite scary… I guess they do- look they're only bones." Harry drew his light to the body of the Thestral. Its skin was tightly wrapped around its body, showing every curve of its bones, it's wings webbed and ripped and it's eyes a milky shade of blue. "I'm surprised you can see them though…"
"Seriously, Harry… You're the one with glasses here." She said, placing her hands on her hips as she watched him caress the nose of the beast.
"Do you know why you can see him though?" Harry asked.
"Because he's right there?"
Harry grinned, "No. Because you've seen death. People who have witnessed death, get to lay their eyes on these creatures."
Victoria stared blankly at Harry, "Really?"
"Yea…"
"How do you know all this?"
"Funny really… I noticed them in the beginning of the year… but it was Luna who actually taught me about them."
"My Luna? Holy fuck, I never knew… I mean I knew but I didn't know she saw…" Victoria ran her fingers through her hair, looking down at the dirt in shock.
"Can I ask… why can you see them?" Harry said gazing at her.
Victoria met his gaze, thinking about it for a moment; unsure if it really counted. "I uhm… Well… I guess… When I was a baby I must've saw... holy fuck... this is so fucked up..." She began to choke on her words, squatting down to compose herself as she tried to fight the tears that won the battle and ran down her face.
She watched Harry's feet approach her slowly; He helped her up, holding her tightly. She bit her lip, trying so hard to refrain from showing emotion, but Harry tried to get it out of her; he wanted her to feel comfortable sharing these kind of things with him. He rocked her slightly as she whimpered quietly. "Your mum?" He said, holding the back of her head to his shoulder.
"Yea…" She responded wobbly.
"I know…"
"It's stupid… because I don't even remember it… I was so young…"
"It's not stupid, Victoria."
"I barely remember what she looks like… all I have is a single picture. Everything else burned in the explosion…" She said muffled as she buried her face in his shirt.
"I know… it's okay… I know how you feel… I don't remember my parents either." Harry said, "I can only imagine from what I see in photographs… it kills me to hear what others say about them, because I have no recollection of any of it. I was too young."
"And it fucking sucks…" Victoria agreed, sniffling. "Sometimes I wish… I wish I could just… find my dad… find him and ask him about my mum. I know what Elise told me… how he is the reason my mum is dead, but who would do that to someone they love? Right?... I don't know…"
"Maybe you are right, Victoria. It's okay to think that way. If you think it's worth it, you should go searching for your dad…"
"Yea? I've thought about it… I've always wondered who he was… I mean, he's apart me of me too…"
"He is. And if you go looking, then I'll help you."
Victoria pulled away from him, looking into his green eyes as he cleared the tears from her cheeks. "You'd do that?"
"I'd do anything for you."
Victoria gave a lop-sided smile, clearing away the last of her tears as she squeezed Harry around the neck with her arms. "Thank you so much…"
XX
A/N: Thank you so much for the support! I hope you enjoy, let me know what you think!
