Chapter 14: Should She?

I do not own Harry Potter

James walked through the hallway, his head boy badge attached to his robes as he patrolled.

His mind was buzzing with everything he needed to do, take notes, study, read, practice, and the list went on. He had found himself occupying his time even more than usual to get his mind off the hospital wing and who was inside it.

He had taken extra notes each day, extremely detailed, so that she wouldn't miss a thing, he had been going to all her classes, collecting her homework for her, and at nights when he returned to the Heads' dorm he felt alone. A fairly sized common room all to himself, plus his dorm next to her empty one, so logically he had gathered his stuff and gone to his old Gryffindor dorm, sleeping in his old bed, next to Fred and his other mates.

She had been out for almost a month, her state still the same, no improvement that he had been aware of.

He checked his watch that he had gotten for his seventeenth birthday and sigh. His shift was over. He walked back to the common room, preparing to do some homework.

The password flowed from his mouth and the portrait opened, the fat lady giving him a small smile.

The common room was almost empty, only a few people were there, sitting by the fire or doing their own work at the tables. Plopping his bag down on a chair, he let himself fall on the one next to it.

"Hey mate", someone sat in front of him, making his eyes lift from the parchment. Fred was smiling, looking cheerful.

"Hey", James responded.

"Guess what I found out", he said.

James raised an eyebrow allowing him to continue.

"Carver won't be able to play, they took his captain badge for what he did and he can't go to anymore games", he grinned.

James chuckled a little at his enthusiasm.

"Did he throw a fit?"

"Bloody hell yes! Well I didn't see it some Hufflepuffs who were close by told me"

"They sees happy, didn't they?", James asked again.

"'Course they did, Carver didn't just take revenge on you but he also sabotaged their team"

"Couldn't they just get a new seeker, a substitute I mean"

"They don't want to", Fred shook his head, "Not only their captain but the whole team"

"There's a reason their characterized by being do loyal", he smiled.

Silence fell upon them as Fred played with the sugar quill he had.

"Do you think she should though?", James asked suddenly.

"Should what?"

"Continue playing? I know it's selfish of me, but I don't feel like she should, I don't want her to get hurt again, not like this", he said, his eyes narrowed.

"I don't know mate, I think she should do what she wants"

"What if she gets hurt again though", he asked, feeling one again vulnerable.

"There are a ton of bloody ways you could get hurt not just by playing quidditch, and she can't stop doing all that, can she? And even if she is scared of playing again when she wakes up, I think we should encourage her to give it a shot"

James looked up his eyebrow furrowed.

"Why?"

"Well, it's better to conquer your fears isn't it? She can't live with a fear of riding in a broom forever", Fred said.

James though about it. Even if Fred was an immature hit sometimes, he had a wise side, something he wouldn't show to people unless he was close to them.

James nodded slowly.

"I guess you're right then mate"

"Course I am", he smirked.

James rolled his eyes and laughed, knowing that it was impossible to keep him in his wise side forever.

Another week passed and James found himself once again walking through the corridors. That time however he wasn't heading towards the common room, instead he made his way to the first floor and retraced the steps he had taken nearly every day. The doors to the Hospital Wing were unlocked. He pushed his way through them and with a fleeting smile at some second year who seemed to have grown bat ears, he headed towards Alice's bed.

He sat down on the chair that his butt was now so accustomed to and took her hand.

She still hadn't moved form her original position, not by herself anyway, there where times when Madame Pomfrey adjusted her saying something about pneumonia, a muggle disease, if she stayed in the same position for such a long time.

A lot of people had come to see her, all of the Weasleys and her parents and her mum's friends and a lot of their classmates.

The thing was that Madame Pomfrey didn't know when she would wake up, she said she had no way of knowing, she also didn't known what she would go through after she woke up. She had told her parents one evening that people in comas usually had trouble regaining speech, memory or the ability to move. James had been shocked to say the least, he had gone to the library and checked out as many books as he could, he spent time reading all about comas, and all the side effects and sure enough all those were listed, there were only rare cases where the patient would wake like nothing happened.

He looked down at her and sigh.

"Hey Alice, I'm back like I promised.", he sigh, "Look, I don't know if you can hear me, but I honestly don't care as long as you wake up soon, because as much fun as it is to talk by myself all day I would much rather hear your voice telling me off for being a git or just responding to what I say. Plus that second year over there is looking at me like I'm a lunatic", he whispers the last part, and let himself smile a little.

"I really do hope you wake soon, people miss you, I just found out that the Hufflepuffs don't want another seeker, they're waiting until you wake up. You're parents come along almost everyday, you're dad keeps on looking at the empty spot where you sit during class. I just want you to suddenly stand up and maybe tell us that this was a cleverly planned joke. Anyway, it's now December, and I know you love everything about winter so if that kinda motivates you to wake up then there you have it. As always I have all you're homework, I would do it for you but I know you wouldn't like that, I know that you like to do all your work, which I think is crazy because if someone offered to do my homework for me then I'd be all in for it, but I did take your notes, and don't worry they are neat and tidy."

He smiled at her.

"Quidditch is over until we get back from holidays, hopefully you'll wake up for christmas, it wouldn't be the same without you, but I'd stay here in the castle with you...It's been three weeks without you and I think Kim is going crazy having to handle us by herself. Oh! and Carver doesn't get to play or even watch quidditch anymore, thank Merlin"

He let himself stop talking and just held her hand.

"Your hand's starting to get warmer as days go by and I'm taking it as a good sign… I have charms in five so I guess I'll leave you to whatever it is you' do while in a coma…I love you Alice", he stood up and kissed her forehead lightly before walking out and making his way to the charms classroom.

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