Chapter Fourteen: Dear Dmitry

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Tomorrow came too fast for George, who repeatedly asked me to give him more time to introduce him to Zoe. I agreed, of course, but I made a mental note to talk to her a little bit today so it wouldn't be so awkward. I was surprised that he didn't tell Fred, since they're twins and all, but I figured we were even now: a secret for a secret.

The Great Hall was filled with people; friends being reunited with others and students chatting over some pumpkin juice and bread. I left a little bit before Fred and George, in order to talk to Zoe. I spotted her almost immediately; her long blonde hair was tucked into a neat bun, and she wore her black robes. Zoe, being immensely popular, was surrounded by a large group of people.

"Hey Zoe," I said, standing awkward behind her.

"Adele! Hey, come sit down," she said, scooting over on the bench.

"Oh, er, I was just going to ask if you wanted to get together with George and I and study?" I blurted this out so fast my words were slurred and strung together.

Zoe, in her infinite kindness, merely smiled at me. I caught a glimpse of George in the distance, and knew that I needed to hurry it up before he saw me. I ducked down, meeting Zoe at eye-level as an attempt to hide from Fred and George.

"Yeah, I'd like to join you two. Will Fred be there as well?" She asked, trying too hard to be casual.

"Prolly not. He's not much into studying," I said.

"Oh, well I guess it's not for everyone. Anyway, I'd love to join you two. Merlin knows I need some studying!"

"Alright, well I'll let you know when we decide to get together. See you later," I said.

I had to walk twice as fast to our normal spot at the Gryffindor table. Fred and George arrived at the same time I did, and judging by the look on George's face, he didn't see me talking to Zoe.

"Good morning," I said in a clipped voice.

"Morning Adele," they both chimed back.

"Feels weird to start classes again? I'm completely unprepared for potions. Professor Snape assigned a massive amount of homework, and I haven't even started it!" I rambled on.

I could tell that they had already tuned me out because I mentioned there least two favorite things: Professor Snape and homework. But I kept talking, because I was nervous and because this was my role in our little trio: it was my job to talk about homework and schoolwork, because even though they tune me out, there is still a little piece of them that cares what I say. That little piece is what keeps me going.

"Adele," said Fred, hands cupping his head, "please stop!"

"Okay, okay. Just don't say I didn't warn you."

"Care of Magical Creatures today," said George, flashing me a smirk.

"That is the one thing that I do not want to go to," I said with a grimace.

"You know, you do great in all the other subjects, why not study Care of Magical Creatures? Merlin knows that you need some extra help in that area," snapped Fred.

I didn't bother dignifying his low-blow with a comment. Not because I found it all that insulting, but mostly because it was true. I made a mental note to myself to review that horrid monster textbook later tonight. We finished breakfast in a hurry, and headed off to Potions.

Professor Snape was in an especially grizzly mood today. Maybe I'm a bit biased, but when I admitted that I didn't finish my winter homework because of personal reasons, I wasn't expecting him to tell me that I would 'get nowhere with my lazy, carefree attitude'. Fred told me not to take it personally, but I couldn't help it.

I always felt special in that class because I was never insulted by him, but I guess things had changed.

"Honestly, Adele," said George as we walked down to Hagrid's hut, "it isn't that big of a deal. That's practically a compliment in Snape world."

"Maybe he's right," I said, feeling incredibly unsure of myself, "maybe I will get nowhere in life."

"Stop sulking and cheer up!" proclaimed Fred, who wrapped his arm around my shoulder.

My spirits lifted slightly, and I tried my very best to put the snide comment behind me and focus on the challenge at hand: Care of Magical Creatures. When we reached Hagrid's hut, we realized that Hagrid hadn't come out of his house yet. Students stood together in clumps, each of them bundled under layers of clothes and house-orientated scarves. Fred, George and I stood in a circle, each huddling together to get warm against the air that sliced through our clothing.

"Class 'as ben cancelled fer today!" bellowed Hagrid, who appeared to have tear-stained cheeks.

George and I exchanged looks of concern. Class is rarely ever cancelled, which caused everyone to get worried.

"I'm guessing that Buckbeak's trial didn't end well," said Fred under his breath.

George and I nodded, suddenly understanding Hagrid's foul mood and the reasoning behind cancelling class. We walked up the hill, back to the Great Hall. I tried my best to contain my joy about getting out of that class for the sake of Buckbeak and Hagrid, but I couldn't fight the skip in my step as we made our way inside.

"Now what?" asked Fred, looking around for something to do.

"We can play a little bit of Quidditch?" suggested George.

"Sounds good since I'm a bit rusty," replied Fred.

"Sorry boys, but I'm going to have to skip this lovely match and take care of something." I said, my mind trailing off.

"Alright then, we'll catch up with you at lunch," said George.

It took me a few minutes to walk to the owlery, but my mind was so preoccupied with writing the letter that it went by quickly. The idea of learning something new about my father was killing me in anticipation. I missed my father so much, and I was dying to know what Dmitry had to tell me. For some reason, I kept hoping that he would tell me that my father was still alive, and looking for me. That my father hadn't left me after all.

With shaking hands, I wrote on a crumpled piece of parchment:

Dear Dmitry,

I've been wanting to write you for some time now to talk to you about what you were telling me—or about to tell me—at my father's memorial service. I was the under the impression that it was really important. I know that telling me through a letter isn't ideal, but I really have some questions about my dad and you're the only one who has offered information about my dad.

Please write back.

Your friend,

Adele Moorbuck.

Author's Note: I am so, so, so terribly sorry about not updating in months. It turns out that college is a lot more time consuming than I would have guessed! Anyway, I'm back and I am so excited to continue my story with Adele. I have a lot of great things planned!

Some very exciting news: A few friends and I have started a new Harry Potter story called, "What Is and What Should Never Be". If you're interested, I'll have information linked in my profile. Please check it out!