Hermione, Ron and I had not been able to go back to school so Ginny informed us of what was going on. Fred and George's swamp had been removed by Flitwick but he had left a small portion yet because it was an example of a very good bit of magic. The twins had sent Ron a large basket of chocolate frogs two days after our arrival to the hospital wing, so we all supposed they were doing quite well with their joke shop.
Professor Umbridge, who had been rescued from the forest by Dumbledore, was in a bed opposite us staring up at the ceiling. She had not said a single word since her return to the castle, not that anyone minded. Firenze and Trelawney were both scheduled to teach Divination now that Dumbledore was back, because Firenze would never be able to return to the centaurs after what he had done.
"The whole subject's useless if you ask me…" Ron said, popping a chocolate frog into his mouth.
"How can you say that?" Hermione demanded. "After we've just found out about real prophecies?"
I glanced over at Harry. He had suddenly tensed up and his mouth was drooping into a frown. His eyes had regained that far off look they got when he was very deep in thought. He suddenly stood up and made his way out of the room.
"Where are you going?" I called after him.
"Hagrids," He replied. "He just got back and I promised I'd go see him and tell him how you guys are doing…"
He left the room in a hurry and sped down the hall. As the door slammed shut I turned around to the rest of my friends.
"Anyone here believe that?" I asked them.
"Not for a minute…" Ron said staring at the door, "But what are we gonna do? He wants to go…he goes…"
"Maybe talking about the prophecies upset him…" Hermione said thoughtfully.
"I don't know," I shrugged, "But I'm going to find out."
I hopped off the bed and pulled on my pink sneakers. Madame Promfrey had told me that morning that I was free to leave, but not to strain my leg. I tied the laces tightly and sped toward the door. My leg felt very weak and kind of wobbly and I soon had to stop running and start limping.
"What are you doing?" Hermione called after me.
"Something I should have done a long time ago." I answered, and closed the door behind me.
Ever since I had entered the hospital wing, all I could think about was Harry. The year was almost over, and we might go the whole summer without ever seeing each other. I knew things at home were going to be rough with my mother because of Sirius, so I needed to know. I needed to know if Harry felt the same way about me as I did about him. I needed to know if I was just wasting my time or if there was something real between us. I limped down the hall hoping that I could catch up with Harry before he met up with anyone else.
As I passed the large stone windows I saw my classmates outside, playing in the sun. I wished that life could go back to being the simple. I wished I could go back to being the arrogant, bitchy, self centered, care free person I was before I had come here. I didn't care about anyone but myself and everything I did was for entertainment purposes only. But now I had Harry, and Harry was everything.
I rounded the corner toward the large front doors and found myself face-to-face with Draco Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle.
"Well well well," He laughed. "Look who we have here."
"Out of my way boys I don't have the time or energy to deal with you three," I replied coolly, but they continued to block my path.
"You could have had everything Addie," Malfoy said quietly. "You could have had me, Malfoy manor, everything."
I raised one eyebrow, "You have a very warped view of the world Malfoy."
"The truth is Addie," Malfoy sighed. "I'm not going to give up on you. I will fight for you Addie, and if you would refrain from trying to stop me, I'm sure you would be very happy."
He stepped closer towards me, and I rolled my eyes.
"The truth is, Malfoy, I hate you. If you could please refrain from living, I'm sure everyone would be very happy."
I pushed my way passed him and limped towards the door.
"This isn't over Addie!" Malfoy called after me. "I will have you!"
"Yeah okay Malfoy!" I called back, pushing the large front doors open and giving him the one finger salute.
"Now back to finding Harry…" I mumbled.
I stepped out into the sunlight and looked around. It was hard to spot a tiny, black haired, bespectacled boy in the sea of Hogwarts students roaming about the grounds, but my ability to pick Harry out of a crowed had been fine tuned over the course of the year. I spotted him coming out of Hagrid's hut and sitting alone on a rock near the lake. I hobbled as fast as I could down toward the lake. As I passed some students stopped and whispered. Lee Jordan waved cheerfully at me and I muttered a greeting back. I was a girl on a mission, and nobody could distract me.
"Harry!" I called when I'd gotten within earshot of him.
He turned around, just a little bit, and smiled. "Hi Addie."
I plopped myself down on the rock next to him. The giant squid was floating lazily across the top of the lake, and the beginnings of summer hung in the air. Students from year one to year seven had all come outside to bask in the sunlight and make some of their final memories of the year. Harry shifted uncomfortably as I sat down next to him, and averted his eyes from my gaze.
"What are you thinking about?" I asked quietly.
"Take a wild guess…" He replied sullenly.
"Look, Harry, I know you're upset…and if you wanna talk about it…I'm here…but if you don't…"I trailed off. I was losing my nerve. How could I possibly tell Harry all the things I felt for him? How could I possibly make him understand?
He turned to look at me. A light breeze swept through his shaggy black hair, and he breathed in deeply.
"If there was anyone I could talk about Sirius with, it would be you Addie." His gaze was not averted now; he was looking directly at me.
I nervously put my hand on his. "I'm glad to hear that Harry, but Sirius isn't the reason I came to talk to you…"
"What else is there to talk about?" He asked. "All I can think about is Sirius…"
Could he really be this dumb? Was he still oblivious to the way I was looking at him, the way I had been looking at him for the past months?
"Harry Potter," I sighed, "you are possibly the dumbest boy I have ever met."
He whirled around to face me. "Well thanks Addie, I needed that."
"When I first met you Harry I thought you were the most self-pitying, annoying, jerk to ever walk on this earth," I began.
"Thanks…" He muttered.
I held up a hand to shush him. "No, let me finish. I really hated you Harry. I thought you were the worst. But now…now that I've gotten to know you…I don't hate you…not even one tiny bit. When I thought that Voldemort was gong to kill you, it was like he was going to kill me, Harry. When I first stepped into the Great Hall to be sorted I never once thought that over the course of the year I would fall in love, but I did Harry, I fell in love with you."
The next few seconds was the most excruciating few seconds of my life. Harry was looking at me with a strange, dreamy look in his eyes that I had never seen him with before. He slowly slid his hand across the boulder we were sitting on and grabbed mine.
"Addie, I've loved you from that first time you told me to shut up," He smiled. "You're the only person around who actually puts me in my place when I'm being a jerk. You never cared about who I was or what had been said about me in the Prophet because you had been in the same place as me. And even though sometimes you can be a self centered, egotistical—"
"Oh shut up Harry," I laughed, and embraced him in our very first kiss. It almost took me by surprise that it had happened. His arm slid across my lower back and my hand ruffled through his already untidy hair.
Everyone in the courtyard was staring at us when the kiss finally ended, but neither of us cared. Harry suddenly took both of my hands in his and whispered, "Before we go any farther with this…there's something I need to tell you."
"What?" I asked him. The urgency in his eyes told me it was important.
"The prophecy…the one about me…" He began, "Dumbledore told me last night…it foretold that either I will kill Voldemort or he will kill me, we both can't live together."
"S—so y—you're going to have to k—kill him?" I asked, tears flinging to my eyes.
How was Harry, a fifteen year old wizard, supposed to destroy the most powerful wizard in the world?
"Either that, or he will kill me," He replied solemnly.
We both sat in silence for a moment, trying to take in what was just said. This revelation affected everything. Harry would have to kill Voldemort, or be killed himself. I didn't think I could survive if Harry wasn't around. I didn't know what to do or say, I just sat, tears streaming down my face.
"Addie," He said. "I think we should wait."
"What?" I cried. "Wait for what Harry! Just because we aren't dating doesn't mean I'll care about you less! If you get hurt, whether we're dating or not, I'll still feel terrible!"
"I know," He replied. "But if Voldemort knows I have feelings for you, he might try to hurt you, and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I was responsible for your death. My parents' death was my fault, and Sirius', if you got added to that list; well…I don't know what I'd do…"
"Harry," I said quickly. "Listen to me, your parents death, Sirius's death, all those deaths are Voldemort's fault, not yours, don't blame yourself for what he has done."
"Addie, do you understand why I want to wait?" Harry said.
I looked down at my sneakers. Of course I understood why he wanted me to wait. If I was in his situation I would be asking him the same thing, but that didn't mean I was happy about it.
"Yes, Harry," I mumbled. "I understand."
Harry laughed. "Funny, I'm the first boy to ever turn down Addie White."
I jumped up, "You did not turn me down Harry I-don't-know-your-middle-name Potter! You put me on hold! There is a difference!"
"Whatever you say, Addie," He laughed, standing up and shaking his head, "Whatever you say…"
"You know what!" I cried with mock anger. "I don't need you. I'm going to go back to the castle. And don't you dare think about following me."
I scrambled off the boulder and made my way towards the front doors. "
"It's James!" Harry cried after me.
"What?" I raised an eyebrow.
"My middle name, it's James." He said.
"Oh…right…"
xxx
The last day of school came more quickly than expected. The whole school had heard of my little 'get together' with Harry in the courtyard, and though Ron and Hermione probably had very well developed opinions on the matter, they said nothing. It was well understood by everyone that we were not, in fact, dating though, of course, none of them knew why. My first ride on the Hogwarts express was rather uneventful, aside from hexing Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle as they tried to attack Harry in our compartment.
As the looming feeling of three months at home started to set in, I couldn't help but feel like I might have the most miserable summer of my life. My father, who I hadn't thought about for quite some time, was dead, and my mother was sure to be a wreck about it. Harry, the newly professed love of my life, could quite possibly die at the hands of the most powerful wizard on earth. I was officially on the Malfoy's hit list, and my self-healing leg had developed an ugly scar.
The food trolley stopped by and I filled my pockets with chocolate frogs, and Drooble's Best Blowing Gum. Harry, Ron, and I took turns playing wizard chess most of the way home, only to be interrupted by Hermione reading portions of The Prophet.
"Hey, Harry," Ron said nodding at a figure down the corridor.
Cho Chang was passing by our compartment with Marietta whose face had not yet recovered from Hermione's curse. She looked at Harry for a moment, then turned away angrily and stormed down the corridor.
"So I guess you two are over then huh?" Ron asked dumbly.
"Yeah," Harry laughed, shooting me a look, "We're done."
"Well I heard she's err…found someone new…" We all turned to face her.
"Who?" I asked. "And why didn't I hear about it first?"
"Michael Corner," Hermione told us.
"Ginny's Michael Corner?" We all turned to face Ginny, who looked down from the top of The Quibbler.
"Not my Michael Corner anymore, he got upset when Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw at Quidditch so I ditched him and he ran off to comfort Cho."
"He was ugly anyway…" I shrugged. "You can do better."
"Well I've chosen Dean Thomas, is he better?" Ginny asked.
"Oh my gosh, he is so better!" I squealed. I love other people's relationships.
"WHAT?" Ron cried, knocking over the chessboard.
"Ron," I sighed. "Don't be an idiot. Ginny's hot, there's nothing you can do about it."
Ron opened his mouth to speak, but said nothing.
The train slowed down and came to a halt at King's Cross. I had never thought I would ever hate coming home as much as I did. I didn't want to go home and spend the rest of my summer with my mother who would be a constant reminder as to what happened in the Department of Mysteries. I didn't want to have to go for months without seeing Harry or Ron or Hermione. I didn't want to go home.
We got off the train and I looked around. "So…where is everyone?" I asked.
"Through the barrier…" Ron said looking around for something.
We made our way toward a long line of students waiting at what seemed to be, and ordinary platform barrier.
"I don't see anyone," I said. "And why is everyone lined up at that wall?"
Harry suddenly burst out laughing.
"What?" I asked stubbornly.
"You've never gone through the barrier at platform nine and three quarters." At this revelation Ron, and Hermione both burst out laughing too.
"What the hell is Platform nine and three quarters?" I asked looking around. "And stop laughing at me!"
We were slowly approaching the front of the line, and I still had no idea what was going on.
"I'll go with you." Harry said, taking my hand.
"Go with me WHERE!" I yelled.
I turned to ask Ron and Hermione, but they were gone, and so was their luggage.
"What the f—"
"You're up!" A man in an official looking uniform said.
"Up to do what?" I asked again.
"Take my hand, close your eyes, and trust me," Harry said.
I did as I was told.
"If this is a joke Potter I swear I'll—"
Suddenly, he yanked me in the direction of the wall I kept expecting to hit it, but I never did.
"Open your eyes," He laughed.
I did, and looked around. A whole other side of the station had appeared. Also, Mad Eye Moody, My mother (dressed in black), Tonks, Lupin, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Fred, and…
Oh no… I thought. It's George.
Our eyes met and he smiled.
"A vision of loveliness," He said.
"Ah, the same old George Weasley I see…" I laughed. As I looked him up and down I noticed that he, and Fred, were wearing brand new Dragon hide jackets. "Well, the same George Weasley, with a much more expensive wardrobe."
"Business is booming," Fred said. "Thought we'd treat ourselves."
"That you did," I laughed.
Harry suddenly came up behind me and said. "Addie, I think your mom wants you over there."
I turned around to see my mother, talking animatedly with Professor Lupin, she obviously didn't care at all about leaving, but I noticed Harry shooting George suspicious looks.
Oh you've got to be kidding me… I thought.
"Good to see you again, Fred, George," I smiled.
"Always lovely to see you miss Addie," They said in unison, sweeping into a low bow.
I giggled and walked over toward Ginny and Hermione.
"Well, goodbye ladies," I said embracing them both in a hug.
"Promise you'll write?" Hermione asked.
"Are you kidding me? Things are going to be hell at home, you're lucky if I don't hop on a broomstick and fly up to your house tomorrow." I joked.
"That would be difficult considering you don't know where I live." Hermione replied.
"True…" I said.
"Well, you're welcome at the burrow anytime!" Ginny said. "Right mum?"
"Oh, yes, of course dear," Mrs. Weasley smiled. "Though I expect we'll be seeing you very soon."
I turned around and threw my arms around Ron. "You'd better write me Weasley."
"Well when you ask like that…" He smiled.
"I'll see you soon," I said, and with one last hug, turned to say the hardest goodbye of all.
"Harry!" I called, running up to him as he was walking away with three people who must have been his Aunt, Uncle, and Cousin.
All four of them turned around, but Harry was the only one who looked happy about the delay.
I rushed over to him and threw my arms around his neck. "If you don't write, I'll come get you."
"Is that a promise?" He muttered.
"Definitely," I smiled
"I'll write you two letters every day, how about that?" He asked.
"Only two?" I smiled.
"A boy only has so much parchment."
I hugged him one last time. "I'm gonna miss you, Potter…"
"I'll miss you too Addie."
I let go of him and struggled with the tears I could feel rising in my eyes. I looked over Harry's shoulder to see his Aunt and Uncle, staring at us impatiently, and his monster of a cousin, who was looking at me with increasing interest.
I smiled at them once and said. "Bye Harry…"
I turned on my heels and walked toward my mother, who was waiting impatiently to get me home. I never would have thought when I first walked up those Hogwarts steps, that a year like this one would await me. I never would have thought the first time I saw Harry sulking in the Great Hall, that I would love him. But then again, who would have?
