No I still own nothing except this annoying laptop that I have been forced to use and the unrecognizable parts of this story.

I want to say a HUGE thank you to HadaGracia :) you rock girl! You made me soooooo happy with all your reviews! ;) Now on with more of the story!

Chapter Thirty-six

When You Follow Your Heart

It was the day after Christmas and they had moved from the moor to a thickly wooded forest. Harry and Ron had both gone out to look around. They'd been gone for most of the day. Taylor and Hermione had contented themselves with studying the Dark Magic books and discussing to great length some of the darkest of the spells in them.

Both Ron and Harry were really tired after their long trek that day and decided to take the last two shifts so that they could sleep longer. Hermione was going to take first watch, so Taylor stayed in the tent until she heard the soft snores from both boys before gathering her cloak and slipping silently out of the tent, her wand in hand. A flick of her wand and Hermione was frozen in place on the stool she had been sitting on.

"Sorry Hermione, but I thought that it would be better this way. If things should go wrong neither you nor the boys will be able to blame you. Don't worry, I'll lift the spell before I leave. I'm going to Greg Hunter's house. I'll be back before my watch starts. I hope you understand. I know I should have told you about my plans this afternoon but I thought you would have tried to talk me out of going or told Harry and Ron. I'll make sure I don't scare you when I get back. I hope you understand, and if I don't go now I'll lose my nerve. Bye Hermione, see you in a few hours." Taylor whispered as she stopped at the edge of their wards. Taking a deep breath, she released Hermione from the binding spell then stepped through the wards around their campsite, with the picture of the place nearest to the address Greg had given her firmly in her mind's eye. Turning on the spot, she apparated.

A second later Taylor landed in a less wooded area hundreds of miles from their current campsite, dropping into a crouch she quickly surveyed the area to make sure she was indeed alone. Assured that only the wildlife was watching her she quickly disguised herself and satisfied that she was unrecognizable as Taylor Porter, she headed out of the woods and into the nearby muggle village.

She knew that her brother was going to be furious when he found out that she had gone, and that this was incredibly dangerous and maybe the stupidest thing she had ever done, but she needed to go see the Head Boy again. She couldn't even explain to herself the strange urge that had driven her here. It was like a wild reckless desire to prove that he was indeed real and that he did like her.

In the village Taylor spotted a small pub and went in to see if she could get directions from someone. It was crowded and music pounded out the door as she opened it and slipped inside. Heading for the washrooms she quickly transfigured some toilet paper into several pounds, before heading for the bar.

"What can I get you?" the barkeeper asked as he stopped in front of her after putting a large mug of beer on the bar for the man beside her.

Taylor really didn't want to ask for a drink but decided that it would look weird if she didn't order something. "Just a coke please."

The barkeep lifted an eyebrow at her but went and got her the soft drink. When he brought it back and set it down she paid him with the transfigured toilet paper. Before he could turn to leave she asked, "I'm looking for a road by the name of Lindsaylands Road, is it anywhere near here?"

"Yeah, a couple of kilometers south of here, but there isn't much out there; just forest until you get to Biggar"

"Thanks," Taylor smiled and reached for her cola. The barkeep glanced at her once more then went on to his next customer. The soda was watered down, with most of the glass filled with ice cubes. Taylor felt less guilty of stealing as she thought about how the bar was ripping people off by overcharging for the few ounces of watered down soda that was in her glass. Watching carefully Taylor took note of everyone in the bar and was positive that they were all muggles.

She finished her drink and then left, quickly slipping down a side street and out of sight. It was going to take her quite awhile if she walked all the way but a large truck parked at the gas station across the street gave her an idea. Looking around carefully to make sure no one was watching she performed a disillusioning charm so that it would be difficult for anyone to see her and slipped across the street. A sign on the side of the truck read 'Biggar Trucking'. Taylor quickly hopped up onto the back and slipped under the canvas, as the driver got into the cab and started the engine. She knew she was taking a chance. The truck could be heading in the opposite direction, but it was a risk she was willing to take.

Five minutes later Taylor was surprised to see an opening in the trees and a house all lit up, as she peeked out the back of the truck. She knew she had found Hunter's Place! The truck didn't stop and Taylor realized that she was going to have to jump from the moving vehicle. It wasn't quite as bad as it could have been if she had been a muggle. A quick transfiguration spell made the ground into a large soft mattress. The only trouble was she didn't quite take into account the speed at which the truck was traveling and so she landed on the mattress but momentum carried her off the mattress and onto the hard road. She rolled quite a long way before finally coming to a stop in the gravel on the side of the road.

With a groan she rolled over as pain shot up her arm, but panic quickly overrode the pain as Taylor realized that she had dropped her wand. Scrambling to her feet she looked around desperately, spying the thin piece of wood lying in the road a few feet away. A second wave of panic rolled over her as she suddenly realized just how vulnerable of a position she was in, out on the open road in plain sight without her wand. Snatching up her wand, she made for the little cover the ditch provided, then looked around carefully. She knew that if Moody or Shacklebolt ever heard about her foolish stunt just now they would tear a strip off of her.

After a careful search of the area Taylor was relieved to find that she was extremely lucky and still all alone. Taking a deep breath she vanished the mattress from the road, and began to take a quick inventory of her injuries. Her face was scratched, she had a bad case of road rash on her right hand, and she decided that her left wrist was only sprained and not broken. All in all she decided that she was lucky, she could have been seen.

For a long moment Taylor thought about just apparating back to the campsite and forgetting about this foolishness, but then she decided that she had come this far and she might as well finish what she had set out to do and go to the Head Boy's house.

It didn't take long to vanish the dirt off of her clothes and remove the disguise that she had worn into the muggle bar, but she waited until she was just about to enter the wards around Hunter's Place before she took the disillusionment charm off. The cuts she could only partially heal and her sprained wrist was going to have to wait until she was back at camp.

Hunter's Place was a neat little two-story stone house surrounded by a carefully tended garden of shrubs, trees and flowerbeds. The brick walkway leading up to the house was swept clear of snow and the porch was lit up by a brass lamp that sparkled and seemed to reflect out over the snow.

At the door Taylor paused, she wasn't sure if she should just knock on the door or not. True she had been invited but not on this particular night. It was a dangerous time and an unannounced knock on the door might be met with hostility, or at the very least frighten those inside. Deciding that it would be better to startle them than to scare Greg's parents, she conjured her Patronus and sent it into the house announcing her presence.

It wasn't thirty seconds later that the door opened and there stood Greg, and another wizard, both with their wands drawn.

"I'm sorry for coming by so late. But you did invite me over Greg. Code word fuzzy pears." Taylor said nervously as she looked from one guarded face to the other.

"Taylor, is that really you? Ahh, hazel nuts." Greg exclaimed as a grin spread over his face. "Dad, it's ok. This is Taylor Porter."

The tall man beside Greg narrowed his eyes and looked carefully over the girl standing on his doorstep. "If you don't mind I'd like to make sure that you are not hiding anything on your person." And without waiting for an answer he waved his wand and a spell settled over Taylor like a cold burst of air, causing her to shiver.

"I'm sorry. I needed to be sure. I'm sure you understand. Please Miss Porter, come in." The elder Hunter said as his face warmed into a smile as he ushered the girl into the house shutting the door behind her.

"That's fine Mr. Hunter. I understand. I should have given you more warning but honestly I wasn't sure if I'd be able to make it or not." Taylor said as she looked down at her rather shabby appearance and noticed that there was still some dirt and snow on her cloak.

"Well I, for one, am really glad you came!" Greg said the happiness evident in his voice as he reached out to take the cloak from Taylor.

Taylor glanced up into Greg's handsome smiling face and a small smile pulled at her lips.

"Did you run into trouble coming here?" Mr. Hunter asked as a woman came into the entryway.

"Well, is it safe for the regular folk to come out of hiding now or what?" The woman asked, but she had a friendly smile on her face.

"No, nothing like that. I just had a little trouble finding your place is all." Taylor answered quietly, she didn't plan on telling Greg's parents what had happened on the way there, or Greg for that matter.

"Mum, I'd like to introduce you to Taylor Porter. Taylor this is my mum Veronica Hunter, and my dad Daniel," Greg grinned as he made the introductions.

"Mrs. Hunter. Mr. Hunter. It is very nice to meet you."

"It is very nice to meet you too. May I call you Taylor? Please call me Veronica. Mrs. Hunter is Dan's mother!" Greg's mother said warmly as she took Taylor's hand.

"Have you had your supper yet dear? We were just eating. You're welcome to join us."

Taylor's face turned red. She hadn't meant to intrude on their meal. "Yes Ma'am, I ahhh, didn't mean to interrupt your meal." Taylor stammered in her embarrassment.

"Oh you're not interrupting. Please come and join us." Mrs. Hunter said as she guided her down the hall to the kitchen, which was a large old-fashioned one with exposed wooden beams and dark oak cupboards. There was an electric stove, refrigerator, and even a microwave, but there was also a huge wood stove that was heating the large room and making it cozy.

"Greg reheat the food while I set a place for Taylor. It is so convenient to have wizards in the house!" Mrs. Hunter said with a laugh as she took down a place setting from the cupboard and set it at the table. "We are just having Christmas leftovers, I hope you don't mind Taylor."

"Oh no Ma'am! That will be fine." Taylor answered nervously as she sat in the chair Mrs. Hunter had shown her too. Greg grinned at her and gave her a wink as he performed warming spells on the many bowls of food sitting on the large table. He took the chair across from her as his father sat down at the head of the table.

"What would you like to drink dear? The water is hot if you would like a cup of hot chocolate or I could make you some tea if you prefer."

"Hot chocolate would be very nice, Mrs. Hunter, thank you." Taylor answered, and the older woman retrieved a cup from the cupboard and made the hot chocolate.

"Here you go dear, please help yourself. We have a very casual household here, so if you see anything on the table you want just make a long arm." Mrs. Hunter said as she sat down.

Taylor looked over at Greg, as she chewed nervously on her bottom lip. He smiled at her as he said, "How about some potatoes? My mum makes the best! Even better than at school," and he handed her a bowl of mashed potatoes.

"Thank you," Taylor said quietly as she spooned a helping of the mashed potatoes onto her plate. Things were easier after that. Greg and his parents seemed to understand her nervousness and strove to put her at ease. By the time Mrs. Hunter got up to serve dessert, Taylor was starting to relax and enjoy herself. The family had talked easily, including her into their conversations.

"I suppose Umbridge gave you a hard time at the Ministry during the census, did she?" Mr. Hunter asked while he ate his apple pie.

Taylor looked up at the wizard, a little startled by his question, and was suddenly unsure how to answer. She remembered that Greg had told her that his father worked at the Ministry. It wouldn't be wise to speak ill of one of his colleagues.

Greg though seemed to read her sudden unease, "You don't have to worry about what you say about that old hag in this house, Taylor. There is no love lost for Umbridge here!"

"She was no worse then she usually is. She really got to Hermione though." Taylor growled as memories from the census office came flooding back. A funny look passed over Mr. Hunter's face and Taylor remembered her little act of being upset as she left the Ministry. Thinking quickly she added "The old cow makes me so mad sometimes that…" Taylor let the sentence go unfinished.

"I have never met the woman but from what my husband and Greg have told me she shouldn't be allowed to work in a public office! Some of the things that she did while she was at Hogwarts were absolutely atrocious!" Mrs. Hunter said in an angry voice.

Taylor balled her left hand into a fist, making the thin white scar there stand out, and pain radiate from her swollen wrist. "Yeah, you probably don't know the half of it." Taylor growled in a low voice.

Taylor looked up and met Greg's eyes and could see them widen slightly by the anger that she knew was in her eyes. With an effort she forced the anger away and smiled. "She will never be on my Christmas card list, let's put it that way."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. I just happened to see you that day in the Ministry and you looked upset." Mr. Hunter said gently his face showing the concern that she had seen in Greg's so often.

"It's alright Mr. Hunter. I shouldn't let the ole toad get to me like that." Taylor replied with a smile.

"Why don't you kids go on into the living room while Dan and I clean up here. We'll join you in a little while." Mrs. Hunter said a few minutes later when they finished their desserts.

"Great idea Mum. Let's go Taylor before she puts us to work!" Greg said standing and waving at Taylor to join him.

"Thank you very much for supper Mrs. Hunter, it was very delicious!" Taylor was genuinely thankful. It had been a long time since she'd had a cooked meal like that. Not since she had left Hogwarts.

"Oh you are very welcome dear. Now you two run along." Mrs. Hunter said warmly and Greg grabbed Taylor's arm and guided her out of the kitchen to the spacious living room, with a toasty fire burning in the fireplace and a huge Christmas tree lit up in the corner.

Greg sat on a large leather sofa near the fire and Taylor sat down beside him.

"Ok, spill. What really happened to you?" Greg asked quietly as his blue eyes narrowed and took on a piercing quality. "I know something did. Your face is all scratched and so is your hand."

"I had some trouble finding your house, like I said earlier."

"Taylor, I know you. I also know what a partially healed wound looks like. You may have been able to fool my mother but not me or my dad." Greg said as he moved closer to Taylor his eyes never leaving hers.

"I just miscalculated a little is all. And I overshot my landing."

"You flew here?" Greg asked worriedly.

Taylor snorted, "No! I don't own a broom. And I wasn't about to borrow Harry's either. I hitched a ride and had to make an emergency exit."

"You jumped? From what? A Car?" Greg asked incredulously, again amazing Taylor with his quick intuition about her.

"It's not as bad as that. Don't worry I wasn't seen."

"Dear Merlin Taylor, you could have been killed! I didn't think you'd risk your life to come here!" Greg exclaimed, as he fought to keep his voice low. "Let me guess, Potter doesn't know you came."

Taylor looked away. This wizard was just way too perceptive.

"God Taylor, do you not know how dangerous it is to go off by yourself! What if… Merlin a thousand things could have happened to you!"

Taylor's temper started to rise, "You asked me here! How did you think I'd get here? You know I went away with Harry after school…"

"Yeah, I heard all about how you and Potter took off from Moody and Shacklebolt outside the Ministry!" Greg growled as he too started to get angry.

Taylor went to stand up from the sofa as her temper took over, but Greg's hand caught her left one and pain shot up her arm causing her to gasp.

Greg's eyes dropped to her hand and softened instantly when he saw how swollen her wrist was. "I'm sorry Taylor, what happened to your wrist?" He gently pushed her back onto the sofa and then pulled her sleeve up to get a better look, noting the heat as well as the bruising that was starting to appear there. "This is probably broken you know."

"No, just badly sprained I think, though I didn't think I should try healing it. I'm not that great at healing spells as you can see." Taylor pointed at her partially healed wounds.

"I'm no expert either but Dad is. He trained to be a healer before he started in the Department of Mysteries." Greg said with a gentle smile. "Here put this on it, until he comes in from the kitchen, it will help take the swelling down." Pulling his wand out of his pocket, he transfigured a coaster into an ice pack and laid it gently over her swollen wrist.

"Thanks," Taylor mumbled as the cold started to cool her heated skin.

They were quiet for a few seconds before Greg spoke again. "So Potter really doesn't know you came?" When Taylor shook her head he asked, "Do you think he will be mad?"

A vision of Harry, furious, flashed before her mind's eye and she grinned, "Oh yeah! He will be fit to be tied!"

Greg rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Not that I mind pissing off Potter, but it really was dangerous for you to go out by yourself. Maybe Dad and I should go with you when you leave to make sure you get home safely."

Taylor shook her head, "No I'll be fine going home. I can apparate right there. Besides next time I come, I'll be able to apparate right to your house no problem."

Greg's face split into a crooked grin, "So you think you will come over again, soon?"

Taylor grinned and rolled her eyes. They talked for a while about different things. Greg asked her about her detentions and said that he finally got all his memory back. He told her about telling his father about how well she was at dueling and about saving his butt in the fight. He also told her that he didn't believe a word about her using Dark Magic, but he was sure that the Slytherins were.

It was nearly forty minutes later when Greg's parents finally joined them in the living room, and Greg asked his father to look at Taylor's wrist.

Mr. Hunter drew his wand from inside his shirt and after waving it slowly over her wrist for a few seconds said, "It isn't broken, but it is badly sprained. I can heal it but it is going to be tender for a few days." He muttered quietly under his breath and Taylor could feel the swelling recede and the pain go away. He then waved his wand again and a bandage flew out of the tip and wrapped around her arm. "Leave that on for a couple of days. If, after that, it is still sore I suggest you go see a healer. I can finish healing your cuts too if you would like."

Taylor's face turned red, but she nodded. If she could keep Harry from seeing her bandaged wrist she would be better off, and with the cuts gone it would be even easier. It took only a few seconds for Greg's father to make the rest of her cuts go away completely. "Healing oneself is always a little trickier." He said as he finished and after inspecting his work he moved over to the love seat and sat down beside his wife.

They all talked for a while, the Hunters telling Taylor about themselves, and making her laugh with a few tales of the things Greg had done as a youngster.

Soon though Mr. Hunter glanced at his wife and then said in a serious tone, "Our son has told us that you are in the same year as he is at Hogwarts?" When Taylor nodded, he continued, "I'm afraid that something about that bothers me. When I checked you out with that spell when you arrived, I couldn't help but notice that you are still underage. Can you explain that to us, please?"

Taylor's jaw dropped. She had been using magic outside of Hogwarts since the summer and not been caught as an under-age witch. She'd even used it at the Ministry of Magic! "How…?" was all that she could ask as her mind whirled and fear rose up in her throat.

"The spell I used, we use it in the Department of Mysteries so we can be sure no one is leaving or bringing in anything that they shouldn't, and it detected your underage magic." Mr. Hunter spoke in a firm voice but not unkind.

Taylor shot a quick look at Greg and could see the confusion on his face. Swallowing Taylor said, "I ahh…" How was she going to explain this? Hogwarts, with its numerous wards wasn't supposed to allow anyone younger then eleven to start. Dumbledore had somehow fooled the wards, and the Ministry! Now here she was caught, by a Ministry official. Taking a deep breath Taylor tried to explain, staying as close to the truth as possible. "I was raised in Canada, by my Uncle. He died about a week before I got my letter. I was only ten at the time, but I had nowhere else to go so I came over to England. No one mentioned the fact that I was only ten, so I never thought about it. It never was a problem until it came time to get my apparation license…" Taylor's eyes widened. Shit! She had just admitted that she was apparating without a license! Could she dig herself a bigger hole?

Greg's father stared hard at her for a long time before he sighed, "I know about your past, or I should say I know the little about your past that there is to know." At Taylor's shocked look he explained. "I am very good friends with Mad-Eye Moody, and he asked me to look into your past for him some time ago. I didn't find much, and definitely nothing indicating that you are a year younger then you are supposed to be."

Taylor wished that she could get up and pace. She could always think better when her feet were moving. "Mr. Hunter, it is not my intention to try to deceive you, Mrs. Hunter or your son. I cannot tell you anymore… I'm sorry."

Mrs. Hunter spoke for the first time. "It wasn't our intention to make you uncomfortable. We were just worried by Dan's discovery. I trust my son's judgment in people, he has never been wrong about anyone. We were just concerned for you. These are dangerous times."

"I told Mum and Dad what you said to me in the Hufflepuff study, that day." Greg said quietly.

"No one hopes that the stories about Harry Potter being the Chosen One are true anymore then we do. I'm sure that you are very aware of the risks that you take by going with him to do what ever it is that he is doing. I was just very surprised to find that he took an underage witch with him. I assume he does know you are underage?" Mr. Hunter asked in his no nonsense voice.

"Oh Yeah, Harry knows. I really never left him with much choice but to take me. I have no family to hold me back." Taylor said, as emotion, sure and strong surged through her, "I will fight beside Harry until the end."

A/N Well there we go Taylor run off to see the Head Boy... I know this is very impulsive and might seem a little radical but I remember when I was a teenager doing some pretty strange things when it came to boys I liked... I even took off one night in a snow storm and drove 30km to see a guy about something rather trivial... so in that frame of mind maybe what Taylor did wasn't too unbelievable. I think of Taylor as being very impulsive... if she thinks of something she is likely to do it! And dum dum dum... now one of her secrets has been found out! Greg and his family know she is underage! :) Couldn't let Taylor's little adventure not have some repercussions! Mwhahahaha!

Want to say thank you for reading! and thank you if you alerted or favoured this story plus if you leave a review... well those just make me want to post more chapters!

Thanks to my wonderful bata barbc... you are awsome girl! Until next time, cytpotter.