Mia Cara,

I was unaware that you were such a cat lover. I shall endeavor to never talk badly about them again. Cats are lovely, really. I'm personally quite partial to pretty black kittens with wide blue eyes.

So Lucius has problems with pets but lets dozens of chickens- pardon, peacocks roam his gardens? Bah.

You are right about the Toad, she is going after muggleborn and halfblood students and for stupid reasons too. She's still keeping it 'contained' though.

Being the happy idiots they are, they'll probably learn the Patronus by the end of the year. Though if you are properly trained, it's not too difficult to cast. Everyone can get the mist, even if they don't have a strong enough memory to produce a corporeal one.

I'm actually already started on the procedure of becoming an animagus. I've been meditating since last May to discover and connect with my inner animal, while studying everything I could about its anatomy and characteristics. I'm ready to start with slowly transforming partially one part at a time.

I'm quite curious to know what kind of animal you would be. You'll probably be something incredibly beautiful and graceful, not to mention lethal.

Blaise

Dear Blaise,

I'm sorry I don't have much time to write, on top of my 'normal' studies I now have animagus tutoring, extra potions lessons and I'm helping the Care of Magical Creatures teacher taking care of a snake. Poor thing had been wounded by muggles and doesn't let humans near him. Thankfully I'm a parselmouth and he seems to trust me at least a little. Once he is all healed, the school has arranged for him to be taken to a magical reserve where he will be free and safe.

You are right the Patronus is not incredibly difficult, but I admit that I do not have a memory happy enough to cast a corporeal one. What about you?

As for my animagus form, we are still at the meditaion stage and I am not sure what it will turn out to be. I was able to see a shape coming near me though, the professor told me it was a very good sign.

Will you tell me about your form?

Alya

Mia Cara,

You work entirely too much for your own good. You seem like you enjoy taking care of that snake though you'll probably be sad to see him go when the time comes.

My form is that of a wolf, that much I can tell you. It's quite complicated to transform, even if one piece only. More than that, it's a strange feeling. But you slowly get used to it.

I know that the Blacks carry a strong methamorph genes, with one of your cousins being a methamorphomagus and another being an unregistered animagus. You will probably be a natural at it. It took me two weeks of meditation before seeing the shadow of my form.

Now, I normally wouldn't be this direct or, at the very least, I would do it in person but circumstances make this impossible at the moment.

Are you blatantly ignoring my flirting or are you just incredibly oblivious? I've been trying really hard to understand if you would be open to a possible courtship but you're making it awfully difficult for me. I just can't understand if you like me or not.

Because I find myself captivated by everything that is you.

Ever since the first time I saw you, I was mesmerized by your beauty and power. Getting to know the smart, strong and cunning woman inside only made my fascination grow. And then this summer. I was able to see the part of you that you keep hidden. The sweet and shy girl with the twinkling laugh, the one that secretly loves to cuddle and is afraid of swimming alone in the sea. The same girl who hides the pain behind a strong façade and has the biggest and most fragile heart I've ever seen. So ready to love but also so afraid to be broken.

If only you would give me the chance, I would treasure your heart with everything that I am.

I am aware that my innocent flirting usually gets me labeled as a womanizer. But I'm not like this. You know me and you know that I would never ever toy with a person's feelings. While I love my mother, I don't want to end up like her. I want to find love and keep it for all my life.

If I give myself to someone, I give it all.

I won't pressure you into a decision, much less into starting a relationship with me. I just ask for you to be sincere with me. If you don't see me like this, romantically, you just have to tell me and I will still be your friend, never pushing the boundaries.

If, by some miracle, you harbor some feelings for me, I would consider myself the luckiest man on heart and I would do anything to show you the depth of my emotions for you.

In the box there is something I hope will show you the seriousness of my words.

With love,

Blaise

Alya could barely breath as she read the letter… the love letter Blaise sent. She just couldn't believe it. It seemed almost too good to be true. Could it be possible that, that whispered word was not just her imagination?

Even though when she left she was still uncertain about her feelings, willing to admit her crush but still so confused about it all, in this small time away from him it was all different. Barely a month away from him and she missed him like crazy, it was like the distance made her hyper aware of what she felt. She knew the meaning of them now and what she wanted, now it was time to act on it.

Grabbing the small box attached to the envelope, she turned it all around in her hands, trying to calm her racing heart. Taking a deep breath, she wiped away the tears from her eyes.

When she pulled at the ribbon, the box popped open showing it contents.

Resting on the black velvet cushion was a rose bud. The blood red flower slowly bloomed and nestled in the middle of the silky petals was a gem. With shaking fingers she reached for it, pulling it out and revealing it to be a pendant. Surrounded by tiny pearls all around was a shining ruby, the little hook uniting the charm to the golden necklace was rose shaped with shimmering diamonds all over.

Alya gasped at the beauty of it, unbelieving that something so perfect was for her. With shaking hands she unfastened the clasp and reached behind to fasten the delicate golden chain around her neck.

The feeling of the stone resting against her chest was warm and comfortable, it was like it was always meant to be there and she had been missing until just then.

Quickly taking some parchment she willed her hands to steady and wrote her answer.

Dear Blaise,

Of all the things I thought you would write that was the last one, I admit.

Not because your feelings are not welcome but because I've been battling so hard against my own, I didn't want to delude myself there could be something for you too.

I admit that while you made an impression right away, it took me longer to develop feelings for you. Or maybe I'm just so unaccustomed to love that I didn't recognize it? I'm not sure.

You made it difficult to ignore my heart during this past summer, when all I wanted was listen to my head. It seems so silly now, all this doubts I had, when I couldn't understand if you were really flirting with me or if you were just you being you.

I guess that it was not me being oblivious, as much as us dancing around each other.

I wish you would have been able to tell me all those things in person. I would have probably blushed to the point of self combustion, but at least I would have been able to look at you while you did it. No one has ever said so beautiful words to me, no one had ever understood me to such level and no one has ever seen so deep inside me.

If you still need me to say it.. I feel the same way as you do.

You certainly don't need me to tell you that you are very attractive, you know it well enough and take full advantage of it. But when I learnt of the man behind the charm, I guess I was lost then. You say my heart is big but that's not the truth. I don't trust easily and prefer to keep it under lock and key. The way you took care of me this whole summer, comforting me with such gentleness, always trying to make me laugh and showing me things that would make me happy. You've saved me from becoming something I don't want to imagine.

That is the reason I trust you so much with my thoughts and my secrets.

Now I will trust you with my heart too.

Love,

Alya

p.s. I love the necklace, it is beautiful beyond words. I will always wear it. Thank you.

Blaise could feel his heart ready to burst in happiness. She loved him! And she wanted to be with him!
It was a good thing he was alone in an abandoned classroom or people would think he had gone insane, laughing loudly with a huge grin on his face.

Had he understood that his feeling were reciprocated from the start, he wouldn't have wasted all summer worrying about what to do. Now he had to wait an eternity until the holidays came again to finally get to kiss her luscious red lips. He groaned at the thought, cursing schools and everything that currently stood in between them.

He sighed thinking of the tantrum Draco would throw when he finally learned that he had courted his cousin/sister without his knowledge or permission. Oh well, he had no intention of telling him anything yet. He would deal with the blond when the time came.

Carefully folding back the letter and storing it in the safe pocket of his jacket, he went back to his animagus training, concentrating on turning his hands into wolf paws.

It's been some time since my last update but life kept me busy. Unfortunately I won't have much time this summer to write since we're getting a puppy and she will need a lot of time in the beginning.

I have a good portion of this fiction already written though, so if all goes well I'll be able to keep updating.

To make up for the long wait, I'll update the next chapter too!