okay i delayed my othe story to get this chapter out to those reading a lifetime in a week dont worry i am already working on it. i will try to have it done as soon as possible. meanwhile this chapter is much shorter than the normal ones but it was still necessary to add it next chapter will be edwards pov enjoy!
Alex's P.O.V
"Hey." Hermione appeared through the dormitory door. "Your wand arrived."
Oh…how could I have forgotten it? It was like forgetting an arm.
"Right…" I mumbled.
"Are you sure you're not up to going to class?" She said timidly.
Given the state I had been in since yesterday when I left, she was afraid I might blow up on her like last night. Harry had told her to tell me to come down so he could see me, when she told me I screamed at her and told her I didn't want to be bothered.
"No, I like it here." Was my mumbled response.
I heard a sigh and retreating footsteps. After a while, I began to drift off to sleep. I awoke with a start and reminded myself that sleep allows for dreams…and dreams aren't good.
Dreams aren't always safe.
January and February passed with absolutely no incident. And if there was an incident it must not have been big enough for me to take notice.
"ALEXANDRA!" I jumped in reaction to the shout and looked around wildly. "Over here."
Harry gave me a stern look. "I called your name at least five times!"
"Uh…I wasn't paying attention…" I eyed my breakfast in distaste, my stomach churned at the sight of food.
"You never do." Ron grumbled. I blinked and ignored the comment.
"Was there something you wanted to tell me?"
"Yes: stop looking at that plate like its poison."
"Here…" I pushed it to Ron. "I'm full."
"You didn't eat anything." Hermione said through pursed lips.
"Right." With that I got up took my bag and left the Great Hall rather quickly.
"Where are they?" I vaguely wondered the same as Hermione. They were already late to breakfast; Ron would never be late to breakfast, especially on his birthday.
Wow…I actually remembered.
Something woke me up from my normal catatonic state. A sudden sense of panic that certainly did not belong to me settled in the bottom of my stomach.
Harry? I thought, wondering if he could hear me.
Please Ron don't die!
I was on my feet instantly. That boy had better not be joking…on second thought he better be.
Hermione watched me, taken aback. She wasn't the only one looking at me weirdly.
Where the hell are you! I mentally shouted.
Slughorns.
"Come!" I said to Hermione. Immediately I ran out of the great hall and towards the dungeons where Slughorns office was located. I could hear Hermione's footsteps behind me.
Forget the courtesy, I barged in there and found Harry holding an unconscious Ron. Slughorn stood at the side looking too stunned to notice our entrance.
"Ron!" Hermione said and hurried to his side.
Well, he was breathing and nobody was scrambling to get Madame Pomfrey so for the moment it was somewhat safe to remain calm.
"What happened?" Hermione cried.
I glanced at Slughorn, "Professor?"
He jumped and noticed me for the first time.
"Would you mind getting some help?"
Recognition set on his face. "Oh right, of course!" He hurried out of the office.
Hermione and I listened as Harry recounted the story.
"Do you realize how heavy the security in this place is?" I said when he finished, "It's almost impossible to sneak in something that's poisoned."
"Yes, but it is possible." He countered.
"Why would Slughorn have something like that on his hands?"
"It was meant for someone else he said." harry glanced at Ron.
Madame Pomfrey and McGonagall hurried into the room along with Slughorn and they carried away the still unconscious Ron.
They didn't let us in until much later. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had been told and they wasted no time in arriving. Fred and George also came.
Harry recounted the events so much, that I knew his words by heart now. When Mr. and Mrs. Weasley left to talk to Dumbledore, everyone began to voice their opinions. Hermione and I were the only ones quiet. She sat by Ron's side not taking her eyes off of him. The sight made me a bit uncomfortable. I settled next to a window and ignored everything else.
"Alex?"
I blinked and looked toward Fred.
"Huh?"
"What do you think?" He said with slight irritation.
"Uhm…I think…whatever Harry thinks…" I turned back to look out the window, but I couldn't help to hear their suddenly quiet voices.
"Does she not care at all for what's going on?" I don't think I'd ever had either of the Weasley twins mad at me…well, now I couldn't say the same.
"Give her a break she's going through a tough time." Ginny said.
"Edward?" One of them guessed. I bit my lip and sighed loudly. They immediately went quiet.
A moment later the doors of the hospital wing opened. I turned my head briefly and then turned back when I saw it was Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. As they thanked harry for saving Ron's life, I felt a hand snake around my shoulders.
"Cheer up." Said Fred.
"Yeah, he wasn't that good looking anyway." George joined in. I made a noise close to a chuckle.
"But if you want us to"
"We can take care of it" they glanced at each other mischievously.
"Alex?" I turned in response to Mrs. Weasley.
"How are you dear?" She approached me with a gentle smile.
"Uh, great?" She smiled and enveloped me in a hug.
"The Cullens are devastated." She whispered in my ear. "They say Edward-"
"Mrs. Weasley…I'm sorry for being rude but…I don't want to hear any of it."
"Oh…" I could tell she was slightly surprised at my carelessness. "Of course…I'm sorry."
"No, I am." She gave me another hug.
"Things will look up for you." she said with a final squeeze.
"Sure…" I nodded indifferently. "Uhm…I'm really sorry- about Ron- but at least he's well now."
"Oh, yes. He'll recover. If it hadn't been for Harry…" She shook her head.
"Yeah…that boy's a real hero." I smiled.
When I got into bed that night, instead of wondering why Dumbledore and Snape had had a discussion-as I'm positive Harry was wracking his brains for an answer- I wondered what Mrs. Weasley had been on the verge of telling me. I scolded and congratulated myself for cutting her off.
Just like every night, I wondered what was going on in Forks. And like every night, I grasped my necklace in a loose fist and held it tight to my chest. I would take whatever little part of him I could have and consider myself lucky for it.
The next day as I sat in the great hall, a handsome brown and white barn owl landed on the table. One leg had stepped into the bowl of cereal that I was considering eating.
"I guess that's a no…" I muttered to myself. I looked up in surprise when the owl stuck out his foot for me to take the letter tied around him.
Harry and Hermione looked up curiously.
There was only one person that would send me a letter right now. I eagerly untied the parchment. When I was done, the owl turned and stuck its beak into Harry's breakfast then it turned and went back the way it had come.
The roll of parchment was actually too heavy to just be one sheet. I unrolled it and saw several sheets come out.
"Looks like someone had a lot to tell you." Harry said eyeing the sheets.
"Uhu…" I looked at the letters and noticed there were different signatures in each. I searched for the one with Frankie's signature and began to read it.
Dear Alex,
Just because you left doesn't mean you're not allowed to write to me. How are you? I miss you here. I'll admit it is really odd coming to an empty house. Remember when you came here for the first time? I was really nervous you wouldn't like it here. I was remembering that right now, which is why I thought of writing to you. How are things over at Hogwarts? It must be odd staying there for so long when you spent all of last year here. So have you gotten lost in the tricky passageways?
I smiled a bit at that. I had gotten lost once or twice when I roamed around the castle without aim.
Things here have been very gray to tell you the truth. I see the Cullens regularly and we tend to visit Molly and Arthur a lot lately. I suppose they're all well in some sense, their vampires after all, but emotionally…well none are too well. When I mentioned that I was going to write to you they wasted no time in writing a note for you. Your departure was so sudden and there was so much they wanted to say. You'll find a total of six letters without counting mine. I hope they cheer you up because I don't think you're all that good right now. Take care and answer me soon I really miss you and want to hear from you. Love you kid.
Sincerely,
Frank.
I sighed and passed the letter to Harry because he looked like he really wanted to know.
Frankie was right, I could still write to him. It was the least I could do after he so willingly took me into his home. I decided I would write back to him tonight. I folded the other letters and stuffed them into my bag as I was going to be late for class.
"You guys coming?" I said looking at both Harry and Hermione.
"Yeah." They both said. Harry handed me the letter back and we made our way out.
I struggled to pay attention throughout all of my classes. All I did was wonder what time it was. Then in my defense against the dark arts class, a sudden thought struck me.
Doesn't time tend to go slow when you're waiting for something? These past two months had felt like five years each. So then, just what was I waiting for? Lately it seemed like I was living with no purpose, like I was just living for the sake of it. I wondered if this was the closest it felt to losing your soul.
Then I was pulled from my thoughts when Snape asked me a question I did not know. He enjoyed taking away ten points from Gryffindor for it. I couldn't bring myself to care when I was shot dirty looks from a few Gryffindors. Not even Snape made me mad anymore. That truly meant that I was seriously out of it…out of everything actually.
I walked up to the hospital wing with Harry and Hermione conversing at my side.
All the day I had been vaguely curious to read the letters of the Cullens. Did Edward write to me?
Frankie said there were six letters. I hadn't counted them, but I was sure he was right. I definitely know that Bella didn't write to me. And well, I don't think the rest of the Cullens really had any reason to not want to write to me. Unless they were upset that I left. Edward and Bella had the more reason to not want to write to me. Yet a small part of me couldn't help but hope that he did.
Madame Pomfrey allowed us to see him. He looked delighted when he caught sight of us.
"'Bout time you lot came. I don't fancy solitude you know."
We all settled into seats next to him and conversed. Well they did, I listened. Ron mostly complained about how he wanted to leave already and how it wasn't fair that he still got homework after he was poisoned.
"Well, he sounded like he was having the time of his life…" I mumbled when we made our way out. Hermione and Harry snickered.
That night as Harry and Hermione did their homework; I pulled out the letters and read them one by one. They all brought sad melancholic smiles to my face. When I finished each of them I sighed and rubbed my face.
I caused this family so much trouble; the least I could do was answer this for them. Besides I really wanted to talk to all of them. It probably wasn't a smart thing to do. Maybe I just needed a clean break, but writing to them made me feel an inch closer to him—it was impossible to let him go completely.
So I did what looked more right to my mind. I picked up my quill and began to write one long letter to them. I figured that Frankie would read it out loud to everyone.
"There's a game today?" I stared at Harry who was coming down the boys staircase, clad in his quidditch uniform.
"Yeah. If you knew what went around you, you would have probably have realized it sometime ago." He responded none too happily.
I instantly felt guilty. Now that I thought about it I did vaguely remember Harry being hounded by McLaggen about quidditch.
"I'm sorry." I made my way out the common room with him. Hermione had left early.
"You know what annoys me?" He stopped and turned to look at me. "He's not even dead and it was you who decided to come here. So I don't see why you're all going around and moping as if it were the end of the world."
Ouch, that hurt.
"Yeah well, of course you wouldn't understand any of what I'm going through right now since you're too obsessed about Malfoy to pay any attention to anything else!" I snapped and walked away. "Good luck to you." I said coldly.
Despite my anger I still walked to the grounds to the quidditch field that was slowly getting filled with eager students.
It had been a long time since I had seen a game.
I found Hermione and took the seat she had saved for me.
"You look in a bad mood." She commented turning with a brief look at me.
"Harry got mad because I forgot there was a game." I mumbled.
"He's just been in a bad mood because of McLaggen."
"Yeah, well I kinda did have it coming…"
"Why?"
"The way I've been acting since I came."
"That's not your fault." She said firmly.
"If you say so…" I sighed and looked out at the pitch. I wished I were still playing.
Hermione turned me around roughly. "You can't help being like this! It's none of your fault and it will get better with time."
Did I want it to get better?
No
"And it would help if you cut all contact with the Cullens. It isn't healthy for you." Her eyes wandered from my empty expression. "You should get rid of that thing too."
My hand flew to my neck and wrapped around the locket.
"Keep dreaming." Still holding the locket I turned back to the pitch were the players were arriving.
I observed as Harry walked forward and shook the Hufflepuff's captain hand.
My mind went to a rainy day about three years ago. It was so cold my face felt stiff and hot. Still, I stood in the quidditch field with the rest of the team, my teeth were chattering. Oliver wood stepped forward and so did the Hufflepuff captain.
I'd heard of Cedric before, but I really had never paid any attention to him. Well, I didn't really have a reason to do so. But seeing as this was the opposing seeker, I took the moment to observe him. Tall and lean with handsome chiseled features. His gray eyes were friendly, not a look that I usually encountered in a quidditch game. His fine brown hair was slightly messy. He caught me staring and smiled at me. I smiled back and slightly waved.
I blinked and noticed the game had begun, I realized that this was the first Hufflepuff vs. Gryffindor game I had been present at since I met Cedric. Of course by now he would have already have left the school. Still, I felt a small wave of melancholy.
The game was a disaster. That McLaggen was going to get a piece of my mind and my fist. I froze when the bludger hit Harry right in the back and he fell off his broom. A scream began to build in my throat and was halted when I saw the two beaters catch him.
I rushed down to the field as they set him down on the grass and a small crowd began to form. "Out of my way, move!" I roughly shoved people aside.
Harry lay unconscious on the grass. Teachers hurried over and he was carried off to the hospital wing. I decided I would deal with the scum later and I followed them to the hospital wing.
It wasn't anything big, just a cracked skull that was easily mended. Hermione and Ginny caught up with us a few minutes later.
"How did it look?" asked Ron. He made a poor attempt at disguising his delight that McLaggen had so brutally rained on the Gryffindors parade.
"Well, if I get past the fear, Harry actually looked pretty funny." Ginny said.
Hermione shot us a dirty look.
"He could have gotten really hurt!" She said eyeing the unconscious Harry.
"But he didn't, so lighten up Hermione." Ron said.
"Besides, now it's for sure that McLaggen will not be returning to the team. And he still hasn't had to deal with me."
"I'm pretty sure that the whole of Gryffindor house is giving him a hard time right now…" Hermione said. "Don't get yourself into trouble Alex."
We talked a bit more and then Ginny announced she was leaving.
Not long after that I caught Harry beginning to stir and groan.
"Well, hello beautiful." A tight smile was fixed in my face.
"Well, you sound happier…" He grumbled.
"I just feel sympathetic." More pathetic than sym actually, but I've been feeling like that for a while.
"Why? How badly did we lose?"
It occurred to me that I never did here the last score. I turned in question to the others.
"Are you sure you want to find out?" Ron warned.
Harry's expression answered that for him.
"Well mate, final score was three hundred. And it was twenty to sixty."
I let out a breath and grimaced.
"I will end him…" He muttered.
"Makes two of us…" I mumbled.
Madame Pomfrey went bustling around and pushing Harry back on is pillows. Harry argued when he was told he would have to stay here until Monday, but was quickly quieted down.
"Ginny was here to see you." I said casually. I leaned back on my chair and observed my brother as his expression brightened and went deep in thought. I think only Hermione and I noticed this.
After that, somehow we touched the topic of Harry's obsession with Malfoy and how it was probably getting a bit out of hand. Then Madame Pomfrey came in and kicked Hermione and me out.
Hermione and I walked throughout the corridors with only the sound of our echoing footsteps.
"Did you see that?" She said, bringing me out of my empty head. I looked around trying to see what she was talking about.
"No, I mean did you see Harry's face?"
"Oh!" My mouth formed a perfect 'o' and my eyes got big. "Uhm, when we mentioned Ginny?"
"Yeah, I reckon he likes her." She said smirking.
"Who would have thought, after Ginny secretly pined after him for so long."
"That's good, for the both of them."
"Harry went out with Cho right?" I said looking straight ahead, my eyebrows were furrowed.
"Just a date and it didn't end too well; they ended up arguing about something."
"What?"
"I don't know, he didn't exactly tell us."
"Hmm interesting…"
"What's really going on in your head?"
"Nothing goes on in my head anymore. And what does go on in there quickly disappears."
"Which makes me wonder how you're keeping up in your classes…?" Oh that Hermione.
"To tell you the truth…I don't know. All I know is that I haven't fallen behind and that's good."
"I suppose."
We worked together on our homework.
"Funny how neither Harry, Ron, nor I wasted any time on dropping Divination class." I commented.
"I thought it was rather funny. But I did feel awful when we dropped Hagrid's class…"
"I know…he wouldn't talk to us that first week."
"Oh and you didn't stick around for the worst. Only after Harry threatened to knock down his door did he talk to us."
I put my teeth together and pulled back a side of my lip as if to say "damn".
"Well," I dropped my quill on the table and stretched. "To tell you the truth, this is the most alert I've been in a long time and it's made me quite tired."
"Oh, well then I'll see you tomorrow."
"You're still going to work on it?"
"Oh, yeah, I got a bit more to go…" She said not sounding enthusiastic.
"Oh well, good luck to you." I waved and quickly made my way up.
I got into my cold bed and curled up to make myself warmer. The night was the hardest part—I always felt awfully lonely despite the fact that I shared the dormitory with four other girls.
It was some time after that I managed to fall asleep. The last thing I remember, was noticing how there were so many stars in the sky.
I woke up in the middle of the night due to a fitful sleep. I remember getting out of my bed barefoot. I quietly padded down the girls staircase and headed to the boys. Everyone was sound asleep as I entered Harry's dormitory. As quiet as a mouse, I moved to his bed and pulled out his trunk. No time was wasted as I pulled out his invisibility cloak and covered myself with the strange material.
Before I knew it, I was out of the common room and walking through the dark empty corridors. I wasn't sure of where I was going, but my feet seemed to know. As confused as I was when I stopped in front of a classroom, I still entered it. It was completely empty—there weren't even any desks.
This whole scene felt awfully familiar. Like déjà vu. At the far end of the classroom, I noticed a…mirror?
I slowly removed the cloak and let it pool at my feet. My walk was painfully slow, but I wasn't capable of going any faster. I stopped on my tracks when I was able to catch my reflection…?
"What happened to me?" I said to the empty room.
It was me but…different. I was suddenly eleven again.
The mirror of erised
What the bloody hell is going on?
Was I back in time or something?
Hesitantly I made my way closer to the mirror.
What is happening?
My reflection aged and became my fourteen year old self again. A figure was next to me—taller than me. As I got closer it became clearer.
Edward smiled at me with his arm around the waist of my reflection. My fingers trembled as they ran over my waist to see if he was next to me.
"What?" I whispered. Tears pooled in my eyes as I looked at my crying reflection. Edward turned to look at…at my reflection and he tenderly brushed away a tear that had fallen.
What hurt the most was that he wasn't even there. Just an illusion—I believe that having the knowledge that it was an illusion made it worse.
I sobbed and cried, but nevertheless sat on the cold floor and watched as Edward did the same. It could have been hours, I don't know, but it must have still been too early because the sun never came out. I could stare for an eternity at this mirror. I remembered Dumbledore mentioning that things like that had happened before.
Then he opened his mouth and mouthed something inaudible.
"What?" I whispered.
I faintly heard someone call my name at the same time he spoke again. It wasn't his voice I heard though. It was a female voice.
Then it got louder and everything got darker.
I was on my side when my eyes opened slowly. My mind was already aware that I had dreamed it all up.
"Alex get up, you're late!" Hermione said.
Her face came into view and turned preoccupied when she noticed my glower.
My mood was sour for the rest of the day. Especially when I realized it was Sunday and Hermione had just woken me up so we could go see Harry and Ron.
That night I was scared to sleep, yet I still wanted to have that dream again. I was horribly disappointed, for I had a dreamless night.
Truth be told I think that dream only served to mess me up further.
On Monday, Harry and I headed to Dumbledore's office.
"You've been cranky." He commented on our way there.
"Yes, I feel cranky."
"Why?"
"Never you mind. So what's this sudden interest in Ginny?" Anything to have the conversation steered off of me.
"What do you mean?" Nervousness doesn't help elusiveness dear brother.
"I mean that I noticed how you act when they talk about her or when you're around her."
"Oh, I didn't know you noticed things anymore. You're more of a vegetable nowadays." His tone was too mean to be teasing.
I worked to keep my flaring temper within me. "Whatever."
"Yes I like her. Are you happy?"
"No not really…why haven't you done anything about this?"
"It isn't any of your business!" he snapped. Well, if I had the right to be mad then so did he.
We stood outside Dumbledore's office.
"Act happy." He warned and then knocked the door.
I was more curious than happy throughout the meeting. Harry and I were thoroughly embarrassed when we heard Dumbledore's disappointment over our failure to get the memory from Slughorn.
If I'm being honest I had all but forgotten it. I had been too depressed to attempt anything and Harry had been too distracted as well.
"Hey Alex?" He said as we walked back to the dormitory.
"Yeah?"
"Don't you think you could get it?"
"I think he likes you more than me." Already I knew what he was talking about.
Really, Slughorn had mentioned that I looked a great deal like my mother, but said I was like my father. I think he said it because I was fairly acceptable in potions class whereas Harry was truly remarkable with that book of his.
Was Slughorn trying to say my dad had no especial talents for potions? Yeah, I think that's what he tried to tell me—also that he had seen better. It was very obvious he preferred Harry over me.
"No, I mean with that memory thing you can do?"
How could I have been so stupid! The thought had never occurred to me.
"I probably can, now that you mention it. I'll try. I'm not all that experienced with looking through people's heads. When I do, it's usually involuntary. It might be especially hard if Slughorn's trying so hard to forget that memory himself."
"Just try." He pleaded.
"Of course, but you have to try to get it out of him too."
"I know; I'll work on that." He promised.
We talked to Hermione and Ron about it. They both said we needed to focus on this instead of other less important things. We all turned to look at Harry then.
The days passed, each day bringing summer closer to us. I tried my hardest to get the memory, but it was proving difficult. It was one thing to just suddenly see a person's memory than actually search for it in their head. I found that it was better if I had eye contact, but every time Slughorn caught my concentrated stare he turned away.
So I settled for practicing on Harry for a while. He got annoyed sometimes because he said that while he worked, sudden, unexpected memories popped into his head. Clearly, that told me that the next step would be to look through his head without letting him see what I was looking at.
Often, Hermione would ask me why I was staring so intently at Harry. I would just blink and come up with something about how I thought he had something on his face or whatever.
As difficult as this was proving to be, I could see some of the improvement.
Then one day, over breakfast, we got a note from Hagrid. Aragog had finally died. Harry and Ron didn't seem to mind at all. They were all just really worried about Hagrid.
I was worried too and although that spider had attempted to feed us to his children, I was still in awe of that creature. It really was no secret that Hagrid and I loved such creatures, although I was reasonable and he wasn't.
That day Hermione and Ron had their apparition exams along with other students. So the potions class was just mostly empty. Slughorn let us do any potion we wished to do. I settled for a quick and easy potion that left me with plenty of time for the rest of the class. I sat back and observed Slughorn as he worked on some papers.
After a while I began seeing brief memories—nothing really spectacular. The memories were abruptly cut off when Slughorn turned his eyes on me and I looked down at my cauldron.
Just then, class ended. Feeling rather annoyed I packed my things a bit too forcefully.
I heard as Harry attempted to get Slughorn's attention. Slughorn was out of the classroom before Harry could even finish his sentence. I don't think he liked it when I snickered at him.
"So you were really concentrated today." He commented as we walked out.
"Yes, but I didn't pick up anything special. This is proving harder than I thought." I tightened my hold on my bag as it began to slide off my shoulder.
"It occurred to me that I should use some of that Felix potion I have."
"Why did you not think about that earlier?" How can he and I be so slow? "Do you realize that, if we had figured that out earlier, we would probably already have that memory? And then I wouldn't have to get constant headaches from so much concentration and useless memories!"
"It's always about you isn't it?" I blushed when I saw his steely gaze.
He was right though. Somehow I always ended making things about myself lately.
I was quiet throughout the rest of the day.
We all gathered around the boy's dormitory and watched as Harry took a gulp of Felix felicis. Even I could feel the exhilaration that coursed through my brother's veins.
Ron and Hermione panicked when Harry said that he was heading to Hagrid's. I didn't see how it connected, but trusted that his instincts would guide him.
And guide him they did. Throughout that night I felt as Harry's exhilaration lessened.
I sat in the common room with Hermione and Ron as we all waited for the arrival of Harry.
I got it! Alex I got it!
"What!" Hermione and Ron gave me funny looks.
Meet me at Dumbledore's office. Hurry!
"He got it!" I said to the other two.
"Really?"
"Yes, he's heading to Dumbledore's office right now. I'll see you guys later."
It was amazing that I didn't meet anyone along the way. I would have been given a long detention.
I gave the password to the gargoyle and went up two stairs at a time. I completely forgot to knock and instead barged into the office. Dumbledore and Harry stared at me.
"Uhm…" I could feel the warmth that flooded through my cheeks.
Instead of a reproach, Dumbledore asked me to close the door and join them quickly.
He was pleased none the less.
Good job! I told Harry.
Now, how a human being would dare to rip his soul into seven parts was beyond me.
I thought about Edward and his belief he had no soul. Well, to him, I have to say that if he had no soul he wouldn't be so good looking. The proof of that was Voldemort, who with one small piece of his soul, already looked like a devil.
How could he have done something so horrible? Wouldn't it hurt…a lot? It was obvious he was a sucker for pain.
I think Harry's shock matched my own when Dumbledore said he would take us when he found the next horcrux. After so many people told me I was too young or made me feel too defenseless, it was nice to finally hear a 'yes' for a change.
The next day I could sense Harry's delight when he was informed by Hermione that Ginny and Dean had broken up.
Once again days began to pass, blurring and mixing into each other, where I could no longer tell when one ended and the other began. I was vaguely aware of the school spirit lifting as the next quidditch game loomed over the horizon.
It was just another empty day, probably Monday…or Friday. I headed to the Great Hall alone. I had no idea where the others had gone. Then I felt an uncomfortable feeling inside of me. I quickly realized I was scared, but the feeling wasn't mine.
What's going on with Harry?
As If I had invoked him, Harry appeared from around the corner—a frantic look set deep in his green eyes. They widened when he saw me and he ran fast toward me.
"Take it!" He said breathless and urgent. He shoved a book at me.
"Harry what-"My words got stuck in my throat when I saw his wet and bloody robes. "Bloody-"
"Hide it!" He said. "Hurry!"
"What?" What did he do now?
"Hide the book, anywhere! Just hide it—where no one can find it." He began to push me away.
"Okay, okay!" I said annoyed. Wasting no time, he sprinted upstairs. Students turned to look at him bewildered.
Hide it? Where the hell am I supposed to hide it?
The Room of Requirement I mentally slapped myself on the forehead. Of course.
I ran up to the seventh floor that I had come to a lot in my last year.
I need to hide Harry's book…I don't know why, but I do.
Show me a place to hide this damned book.
I need to hide it where no one will find it.
When I stopped, I saw the door. I looked around to make sure no one was looking, but this corridor always seemed to be empty for a very odd reason of which I wasn't aware of.
I got in and almost forgot my purpose in here when I saw it.
It was huge! And it was almost completely full with all sorts of things. I couldn't help looking around as I walked. My oh my, this place had history.
Where could I hide this book and still remember where it was…wait; I have perfect memory. I'm going to remember every inch of this room no matter how much I try not to.
I shoved the book into a cupboard with a dead something in it.
Wait, what if Harry was the one that came to look for it?
This probably wasn't the only cupboard so I needed to make it stand out.
"Uhm…" I moved my hands in exasperation as I looked around. Then, I finally picked up a bust of someone really ugly and placed an old wig on it that sported a tiara.
Okay, now it's time for explanations.
I sprinted off to the common room where I waited for Harry. Forget eating right now, my stomach churned when I remembered the blood on Harry's robes. Just what trouble did he get himself into now?
"Do you realize you could have killed him?" I said my voice was almost low enough to be considered a whisper.
"Yes Alex." He said through gritted teeth. "I realize that."
Well it was good that he understood that. I refrained from scolding him, seeing as how if I were in his place I'd be seething. And besides, the scolding part was Hermione's job and she was mighty good at it. Ron defended Harry, but was bummed. Apparently, Harry had detention now and he wouldn't be assisting the next game. Now I was worried about the team's fate.
Not standing everyone's sour mood, I announced I was going to sleep. It was most likely a lie; sleep was hard to come across nowadays.
"Oh, Alex!" Good. So Harry wasn't mad at me after all.
"Huh?" I stopped with a foot on the stairs and turned to them.
"Would you mind?"
I looked around in question. "What?"
"Playing in my place."
My expression crumpled in indecision. "I don't know Harry…"
"You're the best Alex, please." He had gone through enough shit already, how could I say no to him?
"Alright…uhm when is it?"
He looked at me in a way that made me feel stupid.
"It's Saturday."
"Right…okay." I raced up the stairs and heard a distant chuckle.
What the hell did I just get myself into? I hadn't played in three damn years. I didn't even feel the excitement that usually accompanied me when a game was coming. Would I ever feel anything that's not emptiness again? Would I ever have feelings that are my own and not Harry's?
"How are you feeling?" Harry asked as I sat on the table next to him.
"I'm not." I said looking in disgust at the food filled table.
"Yeah, I suggest you don't eat."
"I wasn't planning to."
I looked up to see my brother's saddened face.
"Hey, if it helps, I don't wanna play this game as much as you don't want to go to detention."
He didn't crack a smile. "You'll be great. You always are."
I turned away and discreetly shook my head.
It was horrible to part with my brother. He looked extremely depressed at the situation. I guess we all felt that way.
As soon as I went into the air, I began to feel the panic. What the hell was I thinking? What if I lost? Damn.
The other seeker was Cho Chang. I don't think she really liked me much, though she didn't show any of that dislike.
Luna commentated for the game again. I looked for the snitch, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible. Now and then I looked at the score; so far we were doing really well.
"LOOK OUT!" I turned and moved out of the way just as a bludger passed right where my head had been.
"Careful!" Ginny said as she passed by.
I looked over to see what Cho was doing. She was looking around anxiously.
My god, when is this damned snitch going to show itself?
In a sudden turn of my head a brief flash of light came my way. I did a double take and sure enough I saw the snitch extremely close to Ron.
Cho was looking in a completely different direction. Trying to get her not to notice me I zoomed on my broom towards Ron. His eyes widened when he saw me come at him at full speed. The snitch fluttered over to the bottom of one of the hoops. I turned my broom so that I went lower and towards it. Then the next thing I see is Ron's foot slamming into my nose. Warm blood began to run down.
"I'm sorry Alex!" Ron said in alarm.
"It's fine!" I growled. I lost the snitch and my nose felt like it was broken.
I flew a good distance away from Ron and listened as Luna announced my nose incident.
To top things off Cho was now observing me. I looked down to look for it and then it passed right by my foot. I turned and sped off in pursuit of the snitch. Then Cho was right next to me. Pushing me away.
"Hey!" I pushed her back. The snitched turned sharply and I went along with it—effectively hitting Cho with the end of my broom and throwing her off track.
I was almost there; I extended my hand towards it. And then my fingers wrapped around it. At the same time I felt a crushing blow to my stomach and I began to fall. Thank god I hadn't been too high up. I landed on my back. For a few minutes I couldn't move or breathe at all. Stars clouded my vision.
Before I passed out I thought:
At least we won the game…
I groaned in discomfort and opened my eyes. I didn't even have to wonder where I was. This was like my second bedroom.
"There's our hero!" My eyes turned to see the whole team crowded around me.
"What hit me?" I groaned.
"A bludger…and Ron's foot." I saw Ron turn red.
"It's not a real game if the seeker doesn't receive any injuries right?" My voice was hoarse. The team chuckled. "Shouldn't you guys be partying? We won."
"Yeah, we just wanted to see you first."
"Well you saw me now go."
"Thanks Alex." Ginny said; she grasped my hand. "We would have lost if you hadn't agreed to play."
"If that's what you really think."
A few minutes later they all left and I was left alone. Perfect.
Madame Pomfrey informed me I had a broken nose, three broken ribs and a neck fracture I obtained when I fell. I think I set a new record.
She also said I would be good to go tomorrow which, considering all my injuries, was amazing.
About two hours later, I had a really pleasant surprise.
Harry and Ginny came in, both sporting huge grins and holding hands. I raised a questioning eyebrow and they just shrugged.
"Congratulations sister." Harry said sitting next to me and ruffling my mousy brown hair. "I heard you were spectacular!"
I began to say something, but was cut off by Ginny.
"She was amazing—you should have seen her! She was even better than you! And that's saying something."
We laughed at her. "Harry wouldn't have gotten a broken nose, broken ribs, and fractured neck. Which, I might add, is really bothersome. Nope, he doesn't go over two injuries per game."
I was happy for them. They were obviously really happy. After they left telling me they would see me tomorrow, I began thinking of Edward. My hand went to my neck and with horror I realized it wasn't there. I began to prepare myself for screams, a fit and crazy running around, but then I noticed that my necklace was there on the bedside table with a note.
I found it on the field. The clasp must have broken during the game, but I got it fixed. I know it's something you would kill for so here you go.
-Ginny
I sighed with relief and quickly put it around my neck. It didn't belong there, but I was sure as hell not going to return it.
I looked at Edwards's picture for hours and eventually some sleep came for me.
I probably would have gotten more sleep, but my neck and ribs ached.
Dear Alex,
Emmett gives you a high five for winning the game. It sounds like it was extremely good. We're all glad that you're recovering and at least the games are over, so that should keep you from getting hurt any further. Well things here haven't changed one bit so I won't bore you with repetitions. I would have never thought that Harry and Ginny would end up going out, but I suppose I'm happy for the two of them. How are you doing in school? Last time you told me it was hard to pay attention. Is it getting any better? Because really you can only keep your good marks for so long. So watch out for that. It should be anything but difficult for you. Fred and George keep asking about you so what do you think I should tell them? That you're alright? Or that you are suicidal (really hope it's the first)? Hang in there kid, the year is almost over. Answer as soon as possible and take care. The Cullens send all their love to you and hope that you are well. We all love you over here.
Sincerely,
Frank
It still amazed me how easy it was to talk to Frank. He was so lighthearted about everything. He was a very good friend and his letters brought me great comfort. I immediately began to write a response.
I snickered as I heard Ginny talk about Harry and something about a tattoo.
"What do you got there Al?" Said Ginny, straining her neck to see, although it was useless since she was sitting on the floor and I on a chair.
"Letter." I said not breaking my concentration.
I left to sleep many hours later. There was no one else in the common room left. As I sat in one of the armchairs, I looked at the room, inspecting every corner. Was this what I would be condemned to in the future? When every one of my friends had moved on from this life, would I be in a room just looking at every single item in it every corner, just for the simple fact that there was absolutely nothing to do? I wouldn't move forward—I would only be stuck and alone.
Well, that is if I survived whatever I had ahead of me with Voldemort.
With a sigh I got up and left to have an unwelcome sleep.
"Hey Alex!" I heard and saw Harry running towards me.
I turned back around to observe the lake and waited for him to arrive.
"Yeah?" I munched on the toast I had gotten from the kitchens.
"Dumbledore wants us." He said.
"Well," I stopped to take the last bite and threw the crust to the lake, something would eat it soon. "Then we shouldn't make him wait."
We both sprinted back to the castle.
"Do you know what it's about?" I was beginning to lose my breath.
"I think he might have found a horcrux." He panted. "Although I'm not enti-"
A there was a crash and a scream. Harry and I both stopped startled. We turned around the corner and saw Trelawney sprawled on the floor looking more comical than ever.
I half wished we hadn't stopped to help her up. I needed no more reasons to hate Snape.
I should have been mad when I heard it, but I was more numb than anything. Despite Harry's rage, I just couldn't bring myself to feel anything about it. Surely the anger would catch up with me later?
My heart raced with Harry's fury as he shouted at Dumbledore.
So much in my life would have changed if Snape hadn't told Voldemort, but the only thought that stood out in my dense mind…was that I wouldn't have met Edward had my life been any other way.
Was that good or bad?
How could he have become the center of my universe so fast? I felt weak and pathetic.
I needed to free myself of that hold he had me in. I needed to stop feeling so weak and pathetic and unable to look after myself.
There was fear inside me, but I still agreed to follow Dumbledore's every order. And with that, I set off with him and my brother.
maybe it's not much to you guys, but reviews are still very much welcome -airali
