Ayla curled up on the floor of the common room, hunched over her textbooks that were spread across the table, a sight that her friends were accustomed to seeing.
Tristan sat next to her, staring up at the ceiling. Hugo and Lily were on the armchairs across from her.
"C'mon, Ayla, let's go to Hogsmeade," Tristan pleaded, grabbing her hand lightly. She shook free from his grip and continued writing.
"No, I can't. I have too much studying to do," she murmured.
Tristan frowned, looking at her textbooks. "How are you taking all of these classes?" He asked, picking up her Ancient Runes book. She took it back from him absently, continuing to take notes.
"By studying a lot," she answered snippily, pulling her Arithmancy book forward.
"Can I copy that when you're done?" Tristan asked and Ayla nodded. He grinned in victory.
"Come on," Tristan begged after several more minutes. "We've been sitting here for hours. You told me we could go out today," he said, making a wide-eyed, pleading face.
"God, do you practice that look in the mirror?" She demanded, glancing up and he laughed.
"I'll tell you in Hogsmeade," he laughed, pulling her to her feet.
"Fine, but I'm taking my flash cards," she said, picking up the enormous stack and walking out of the common room. He blew out his breath, shaking his head and following her through the portrait hole.
"There's a party in Hogsmeade tonight," Tristan told her and Ayla groaned half-jokingly.
"I've had enough parties recently," she laughed.
"Come on, New Year's was three weeks ago!" He tried to persuade her and she reluctantly agreed.
"Where's the party?" She asked as they entered the village.
"You know the building where Dominic Maestro's was? The music place?" He asked and Ayla nodded. "Well, that shop closed and they turned the place into a sort of reception hall type thing. They have huge parties pretty much every weekend."
He held open the door and allowed a deafening amount of noise to reach their ears. Ayla winced slightly but entered, where the security guard in the front stamped their hands and let them through.
"This is pretty wild, huh?" Tristan shouted over the music and Ayla nodded. "Let's dance!"
Ayla agreed and followed him onto the dance floor, where Tristan laid his hands on her waist and stood behind her as they danced.
Several songs later, James danced excitedly over, holding two glasses in his hand. He joined in their dancing and handed Ayla one of the drinks.
"Hey!" She exclaimed in surprise. "I was wondering where you were at dinner!"
"Partying it up!" He yelled over the music, downing his drink in one enormous gulp. Albus appeared at his shoulder, grinning broadly.
"I should've known James would have dragged you along!" Ayla laughed and Albus smiled wider. Though Ayla couldn't see him, Albus noticed Tristan looking slightly annoyed at the sudden appearance of Albus and James. Ayla passed her drink to Albus, indicating that she didn't want it.
"Going sober?" James demanded, dancing in front of her. His tie was loosened so that the knot was about halfway down his chest and the top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing a light sheen of sweat on his skin.
"Something you should try," Ayla joked and James grinned, taking another swig of his newly refilled glass. Tristan tightened his hands on Ayla's hips as James turned around and continued dancing very close to her.
"Come on, Al, you should dance!" Ayla told him, grabbing his arm. He smiled reluctantly and joined them.
Ayla spun to face Tristan, her hands on his chest, and James turned to dance behind her. She finally took a sip of the drink that James kept offering her, then choked and handed it back to him.
"God, that's awful!" She croaked, wiping her mouth in disgust. James grinned and finished the liquid in the glass.
Tristan resumed his spot behind her, and James complied by moving back in front of her.
After another few songs, Ayla felt Tristan tapping roughly on her shoulder. She turned and saw that he looked rather irritated.
"I'm bailing," he told her, his voice straining to overpower the music. "Party's lame." He left and Ayla bit her lip, glancing at Albus and James. Albus shot her a questioning look and she shrugged helplessly, dashing after Tristan.
"Tristan!" She called, darting through the light cover of snow to catch up with him. "Tristan!" He finally stopped, his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets. "Where are you going?"
"You couldn't just spend time alone with me?" He demanded, rounding on her. "Those two just had to show up?"
"I didn't know they were going to be there, Tristan, I didn't even know where we were going! And they're my friends!"
"Friends," he repeated with a derisive snort. "Sure."
"What are you on about?" She demanded angrily and he shook his head.
"You dated one of them for—what, a year?—and the other one couldn't take his hands off you all night!"
"James?" Ayla demanded. "James is a player; he's like that with everyone! That has nothing to do with—"
"It has everything to do with it," Tristan snapped. "Have fun with the two perfect Potter boys." He stepped back, holding up his hands. "Whatever this was...it's over." With that, he set off toward the castle.
Albus burst out of the door of the club, looking around for Ayla. James was right at his heels, his shirt now entirely unbuttoned and his tie in his hand.
"Hey, what happened?" Albus asked, hurtling over to her.
"Oh, nothing," she said quietly, avoiding their eyes.
"Did he leave?" James asked, looking over Ayla's shoulder for Tristan.
"Yeah, he got pissed at me and went back to the castle," Ayla said and James and Albus exchanged a glance.
"It wasn't—because of us, was it?" James asked nervously, shifting from foot to foot.
Ayla smiled and shook her head untruthfully. "Nah, it was just a stupid fight."
"Alright, well, you want to come back in?" James asked, gesturing toward the door.
Ayla shook her head again. "No, you go. I'm just going to go back and study."
James nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Alright, I'll see you later, then."
He ducked back inside while Albus watched Ayla head back to the castle.
X.
Ayla continued studying in the common room once everyone else had gone to bed. James stumbled into the common room at around two in the morning, followed by Albus, who seemed to be making sure his brother got in safely.
"He's drunk again," Albus explained when he saw Ayla, dropping James into an armchair and sitting next to Ayla.
"He's okay, right?" Ayla asked quietly to Albus. "I mean, he's been drinking a lot."
"Oh, yeah, he's fine," Albus assured her. "He's just trying to have fun, I guess."
Ayla glanced at James, who was looking dazedly up at the ceiling as though he had never seen it before.
"So, everything okay between you and Tristan?" Albus asked, resting his elbows on his knees.
"I haven't talked to him since he left Hogsmeade, but it's fine. I should be focusing on studying, anyway," she said simply.
"What was going on between you?" He asked curiously. "I mean, were you dating or...?"
"We weren't official, like boyfriend and girlfriend or anything. We just went on a few dates and stuff." She looked down, fidgeting with her quill.
"We completely crashed your date, didn't we?" Albus asked. James was now sleeping on the armchair, a line of drool dripping onto his hand.
Ayla laughed. "No, don't worry about it. I didn't really want to go out tonight. I was glad you guys were there."
"But that's why he called it off?" Albus continued, looking slightly guilty.
"No—well, yeah—but don't worry about it, honestly," Ayla assured him.
Albus looked down, somewhere between hiding a smile and feeling guilty. "Well, I'm going to bed. I'll see you tomorrow." He headed to his dormitory and Ayla returned to her studying until she fell asleep over her textbooks.
X.
Ayla entered Arirthmancy and sat down anxiously at her usual table next to Tristan.
"Hey," she greeted him uncertainly. He stared out the window, not looking at her.
"You don't hate me?" He asked.
"Why would I?" Ayla wondered, confused.
"I don't know, just checking." He finally turned to her. "Look, I really like you Ayla. You're really cool, and you're funny, and you're really cute."
"But..." Ayla murmured for him, knowing what was coming.
"But, you were in love with Albus Potter for the longest time. And deny it as you might, that stuff doesn't just go away. Oh, and you might not know it, but...you and James...that's going to happen."
"But we're okay?" Ayla asked, biting her lip.
"You think I'm going to stop talking to you?" He laughed. "Are you kidding? I'd never pass an Arithmancy test again!"
Ayla grinned at him. "Thanks, Tristan."
"No problem, Ayla." He smiled at her. "I mean it."
X.
The following week was finals week for the half-year classes, and midterms week for the full-year elective subjects. Ayla felt that her finals were a breeze, and her midterms for Divination and Care of Magical Creatures were rather easy as well. But her midterms for Arithmancy and Ancient Runes were tougher, and she had spent the few days after finals—including her birthday—anxiously awaiting her results.
Ayla stood nervously in line with Lily, Hugo, Liam, James, Albus, and José to get their results. Brad was a few feet back in the line, studiously ignoring them.
"You go first," Lily said to Ayla as they reached the front, mostly just to end Ayla's obvious panic as quickly as possible. Professor Longbottom, head of Gryffindor house, rushed to reach her file, as he knew how worked up she got over test scores. She flung open her folder when she received it, and despite the fact that she always did brilliantly, she felt a rush of relief when she read her scores.
"Based on the fact that you're not having a conniption, I assume you got top marks?" James asked with a grin and Ayla nodded.
Tristan approached Ayla, holding his folder. "How'd you do in Arithmancy?" He asked.
"124 percent," she answered.
"B-but how?" He sputtered. "The bonus was, like, impossible!"
"It was the only exam I had with a bonus, so I had to get it right!" She exclaimed and he laughed. "What about you?"
"82 percent," he answered gleefully. "My highest mark on any of them! Thanks, Ayla."
"Any time. You've still got me for a whole other semester!"
He laughed. "Good thing, too. I need these grades."
Ayla grinned at him. "Oh—I've got to go," she said when she saw Lily beckoning for her to follow them out of the Great Hall. "See you later!" She called, dashing after her friends.
There was a party in the Gryffindor common room that night, celebrating the end of the first semester.
Ayla approached James about an hour into the party—and after several drinks—and pulled him aside, grinning at him. "Remember when you told me you had feelings for that one girl but you wouldn't tell me who?"
He gulped. Had she figured it out? "Y-yeah."
"Please tell me! I could set you up! If she's in Gryffindor, then right now would be perfect because everyone is in a good mood, and—"
But James cut across her by kissing her. Ayla pushed him back after a moment, confused.
"Are you trying to make her jealous?" She asked and James laughed, his hands still on either side of her face.
"I thought you were supposed to be the smart one," he joked and Ayla's eyes widened in surprise.
"Oh—me?" She realized and James gazed at her.
"Of course," he murmured, bending down once more and kissing her. Stunned, Ayla kissed him back, her hand resting on the back of his neck.
James knew that a few people were staring in surprise, but he did not care. In that moment, he didn't care what his brother would think about this. He didn't care what his friends would think about him kissing his brother's ex-girlfriend. Because he was standing in the common room kissing the only girl who had ever mattered to him so much. The first girl to change his heartbeat.
X.
Ayla was torn. As she laid on the couch with James, his arms around her, she wanted nothing more than to be in a relationship with him. She was flooded with happiness; with the feeling that this was right. But she could not silence her mind's voice that was telling her to feel guilty.
James is his brother, Ayla. His brother. With everything Albus did for you, you're really going to start dating his brother?
"I'll be right back," Ayla said abruptly, scrambling up. She realized a second too late that James had been about to lean in and kiss her.
"Is everything okay?" James asked, alarmed.
"Yeah, it wasn't-I'm not-I'll just be back, okay?" She said awkwardly, exiting the common room to look for Albus. She spotted him walking down the corridor toward the portrait hole. "Al!" She called and he looked up.
"Hey, what's up?" He asked as he reached her.
"I, um, I wanted to tell you something," she said, looking down. "James and I—"
"I know," he interrupted, a soft, sad smile on his face. "I saw you kiss."
"Al, I—" she began, taking a deep breath.
"Are you happy, Ayla?" Albus asked seriously.
Ayla blinked rapidly, tears welling up in her eyes as she saw how incredibly understanding he was being. "Yeah," she admitted, laughing once without humor. "Yeah, Al, I'm really happy."
"Then I'm not going to stand in the way of that," he said solemnly, taking her hand. "You two will be really good together," he told her with all the strength he could muster. "I know you will."
You let a really good guy go, Ayla, she thought to herself.
"You should get back to your man," Albus said, managing a feeble grin. "Thanks for coming to tell me, Ayla. I knew you would." He smiled and stepped around her, away from the common room and back down the steps.
X.
Several days later, in the middle of the night, James laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He felt his stomach rumbling and stood up, climbing out of bed and shivering as the chilly floor hit the bottoms of his feet.
"Anybody awake?" He asked somewhat loudly but none of his roommates even stirred. He sighed and exited the dormitory, stepping into the common room, heading for the portrait hole with the plan of sneaking down to the kitchens to get something to eat. "Oh—hey!" He said, startled, when he saw his brother sitting in the common room, lying on the couch.
Albus glanced over and said nothing.
"Er...hello, it's James, your brother," he said searchingly but Albus still showed no reaction. "Food?" He offered and Al shrugged, standing up.
"Why not?" Albus muttered, following his older brother out of the common room.
"Oh, so you know Ayla and I are a thing now," James said casually as they entered the kitchen after tickling the pair in the painting over the entrance.
Albus stared at him, gritting his teeth slightly, then turned away, nodding. "She told me," he said shortly.
"Look, Ayla, told me you were okay about it, so why are you treating me like something you scrape off your shoe?" James demanded angrily.
"Because, James, you could have had any girl in this school that you wanted!" Albus bellowed. "Why did it have to be Ayla? Why did it have to be the girl I fell in love with?"
"Has it ever occurred to you that I fell in love with her too?" James shouted hotly.
"Of course it has; we had this conversation, James!"
"Then why are you so mad at me but not at her?" James roared.
"Because you've betrayed me, James! Ayla deserves to find someone she's happy with—"
"Oh, and I don't?" James snapped furiously.
"You do, James, but not with Ayla! You knew I was in love with her and you just swooped in and decided to take her! If you want to know why I'm not angry with her, it's because she's not trying to take you away from me! But you are; you want nothing more than to tear apart anything I ever had with Ayla and have her all to yourself! Ayla's not trying to hurt me. You are," he finished, his voice breaking.
James stared at him for a moment, then grabbed a handful of the nearest food he could find—shredded cheese—and thrust it at Albus, who launched at him.
"You don't really love her!" Albus bellowed. "If you did, you would have told me that! You wouldn't have said that you two are 'a thing' now. If you can't respect her for who she is, then you don't deserve her!"
Furious, James cracked an egg over Albus's head, who grabbed a pitcher of water and poured it over James's head, then dumped a container of flour over it, which stuck to his wet skin and hair. James tackled Albus to the floor, grabbing a handful of leftover spaghetti and flung it at him. They both scrambled to the floor and hurtled to opposite sides of the kitchen. James stuck his fingers in a jar of jam and flicked an enormous clump at Albus, who promptly began spraying him with icing from a long tube. James leapt onto the counter in the middle of the kitchen, heaving a bottle of whiskey at him, which hit the stone wall and cracked, showering Albus in bits of glass and the amber liquid. Enraged, Albus jumped onto the counter as well, grabbing James's arms and wrestling him, his skin stinging from the small bits of glass. He grabbed a mixing bowl filled with custard and dumped it over James's head. James kicked Albus in the shins, causing him to double over in pain, and took the opportunity to crack more eggs over his brother's back.
Albus tackled his brother and the two of them crashed from the counter onto the hard ground with a loud thud that shook the pots and pans hanging from the ceiling.
James was about to lob another handful of spaghetti when he saw Albus slump exhaustedly against the wall.
"What are we doing?" Albus asked wearily, dropping his head into his hands. James blew out his breath, dropped the spaghetti, and slid over to sit with his brother. Albus sighed and looked solemnly at his older brother. "James, it's not that you're not good enough for her; I don't want you to think that that's what I meant. I just fell so deeply in love with her that it's hard to imagine her with anyone else, especially my brother." He took a deep breath before continuing. "We're never going to be the same, you know," he said quietly.
"Maybe I don't want to be the same," James returned. "Maybe I don't like being...that guy. The one who can get any girl he wants but can't hold on to any of them. And I think Ayla can change me," he said quietly.
"You're not her personal project, James," Albus told him. "She's not going out with you so that she can change you, she's going out with you because she likes you the way you are. I might not have a clue what went wrong between us, but that I do know."
"I just don't want to be that guy anymore, Al," James repeated.
"James, that guy is you. Only you get to be him. And the girl you claim you love...she likes that guy." He looked appraisingly at his brother. "I can't see why," he added jokingly, "but for some reason she does, so—"
James shoved him jokingly, smiling. "We should head back up to the common room," he said, standing up and extending a hand to Albus, who took it and pulled himself to his feet.
"We didn't actually get anything to eat," Albus realized, grabbing two cupcakes off a tray and handing one to James. "And we should probably clean up in here."
James waved his wand to clean up the kitchen and dug into his cupcake as they made their way up to the common room.
"What the hell happened to you two?" Ayla asked with a laugh. James and Albus jumped in surprise, but saw that Ayla was sitting with Lily in the common room.
"What're you two doing up?" James asked, sitting on the arm of Ayla's chair, inadvertently showering her in flour.
"I think we're more in the place to ask questions," Ayla giggled, looking between the two brothers. Lily nodded in agreement.
James laughed, shaking out his hair in Ayla's direction and spraying more flour on her. She squealed and moved away.
"We had a food fight," James said with a grin. "You know, it was like a throwback to when we were seven and eight years old."
Ayla laughed, looking at him and spinning him around. "Well, Al, you did a thorough job. He is covered."
Albus managed a laugh that faded as soon as he saw his brother kiss Ayla on the cheek.
"I'm going to go grab a shower," Albus laughed. "And throw away these clothes," he added as an afterthought, looking at his destroyed clothing. He headed off to his dormitory and Ayla looked down at herself.
"Ugh, James, you got flour all over me," she said, glancing in the mirror on the wall. "I should go shower too."
"Why don't you come in with me?" James suggested, struggling to keep a straight face. "Just, you know, to save water."
"Right," Ayla snorted. "Nice try."
James laughed and kissed her. "G'night, Ayla."
"Night," Ayla said, watching him as he left for his dormitory. Lily looked at her and raised her eyebrows. "What?" Ayla asked and Lily chuckled.
"Nothing at all," Lily said innocently and Ayla laughed.
She was happy. She was incredibly happy with James and incredibly happy with how Albus had handled it. Everything seemed to be going perfectly at Hogwarts. She should have known that wouldn't last.
X.
In mid-march, just days after Albus's birthday, Ayla sat in Defense Against the Dark Arts while Professor Asbaum paced in front of them.
"So far this semester, we have been practicing rather elementary skills," he declared matter-of-factly.
"Whose fault is that?" Liam grumbled, kicking his feet up onto his desk.
"Today we will be starting a new unit, and we will be learning a skill far more useful than anything you have been taught in this class prior to today. We will be studying the concepts of legilimency and occlumency."
The entire class stared at him as though he was speaking a foreign language but Ayla gasped. Lily gave her a questioning look that was instantly wiped away as Professor Asbaum began to explain.
"Of course, I will not be teaching you to use legilimency, but rather, I will be using legilimency and teaching you all occlumency. Occlumency involves blocking your thoughts from any intruders," he said briefly. "Any volunteers?" Everyone seemed to shrink slightly in their seats. "Mr. Cade. Perfect," he said, though Bradley had not raised his hand. He stood up from the seat that was two rows in front of Ayla, Liam, Lily, and Hugo, and stepped up to the front of the classroom anxiously.
Lily leaned over to Ayla. "My dad told me that one of his professors taught him occlumency when he was in his fifth year to keep him from being possessed. That doesn't seem like third-year stuff..."
"I think he's allowed to change the curriculum however he wants as long as he gets permission from McGonagall. He must think it's important," Ayla explained, but panic was creeping up on her. What if he chose her? He couldn't know everything that was in her head. She couldn't have him find out about her childhood. The only people that knew were her closest friends and she intended to keep it that way.
"The first time through, you will make no attempt at using Occlumency," Professor Asbuam told them. "You need to know what it feels like when Legilimency is used against you. Once you've experienced he feeling, you may attempt to use Occlumency is you can."
"I don't even know what Legilimency is..." Brad said warily, but Professor Asbaum ignored him. He was casting a spell that formed a sort of screen next to the pair. It was clearly not solid, as Professor Asbaum's wand was poking through it, but looked just like a projector screen.
"A visual aid to help you understand what I am doing," he explained, gesturing to the screen. Ayla's jaw dropped.
"He's letting every see what's in our minds," she said dully and Lily shot her a concerned look.
"Just make sure he doesn't call on you, Ayla, I'll go twice if I have to," Hugo whispered.
"Legilimens," Professor Asbaum said simply and images appeared on the screen.
Ayla looked away and Lily's eyes filled with tears as all of Brad's thoughts revolved around a variety of girls. Ayla laid her hand on Lily's arm, her face ashen and furious at the same time.
Most of the boys in the class were snickering, while some of the girls looked impressed and others disgusted. Professor Asbaum looked both amused and angry.
"We'll go around the room," Asbaum declared when Bradley was finished, and he gestured for the girl who had been sitting next to him to step forward.
"He is not allowed to do this," Ayla hissed to Lily, Liam, and Hugo. "He can't put our memories on display for everyone!"
Ayla hardly paid attention to her classmates' occlumency lessons; partly out of respect for their privacy and partly because she could not focus on anything through her panic.
"Miss Torres," Asbaum announced when it was her turn.
She stood shakily and walked to the front of the classroom. She had read extensively on Occlumency before she was at Hogwarts.
Close your mind, Ayla. It's not that hard. Just don't think about it. Don't think about it.
She looked him dead in the eyes as he performed the spell, and shoved every thought out of her mind that she could, determination pulsing through her veins, her head aching from fighting the spell away.
"Hmm..." Professor Asbaum said thoughtfully, pulling her back to reality. She saw that Lily, Hugo, and Liam were grinning and knew that she had succeeded. "I seem to recall telling you not to use Occlumency."
"Why not?" Ayla asked, somewhat rudely, hoping to distract him from his task of revealing her thoughts.
"Watch your tone," he snapped before explaining his reasoning. "You need to understand the feeling of Legilimency being used against you so that if it ever is used—"
"Then I'll know how to stop it," she interrupted. "Because as I just proved, I can use Occlumency."
"Are you teaching this class?" Professor Asbaum demanded.
"She might as well be!" Tristan bellowed from the back of the classroom. "At least she's shown us something useful."
"I will say this once again," he said slowly. "I am going to perform Legilimency, and you will not use Occlumency. If you do, the punishment will make whatever you don't want me to see feel like a picnic."
Ayla surrendered; she stepped forward and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she heard him mutter the incantation.
Memories of her father flashed through her head.
He was picking her up at Sunnydale after Natasha had called him about her. He ran onto the lawn, grabbed her by the neck and pulled back his fist in preparation. A boy ran past to go inside out of fear.
"You stay!" Her father roared. "All of you stay! Stay and watch!"
After a horrible scene played through her head and across the screen, the memory switched. She watched her own life as though it was a horrible movie.
Her father dragging her out to an alley behind an abandoned bar and leaving her there. Her father aiming to stab her in the neck and missing by inserting the knife into her shoulder. Her father, in each memory, destroying her childhood completely, scarring her physically and emotionally.
The class watched in horror, and more students looked away and buried their heads in their hands with each memory that played.
"Stop!" Ayla roared after she watched a particularly sickening instance of abuse. She shoved past Professor Asbaum and sprinted from the classroom, breaking into sobs as soon as she reached the hallway. She sprinted down the steps, not having any idea where she was going. As she reached the first floor, she saw Albus hurtling up the staircase across from her.
"Hey, what's wrong?" He demanded when he saw her crying. "Ayla, what happened?"
"They know, they know, everyone knows!" Ayla sobbed.
"They know what?" Albus asked frantically, pulling her down to sit beside him on the bottom step, his arms around her.
"Professor Asbaum so teaching us about Legilimency so he projected all of our thoughts onto this screen thing, and—and now the whole class knows about my father!"
"Wait, he showed your memories on a screen?" Albus repeated. "There's no way that's allowed!"
"I know," Ayla wailed. "But it doesn't make any difference now; they all know and now no one is ever going to see me the same."
"Hey, I see you the same," Albus told her, giving her shoulders a squeeze.
Ayla laughed once without humor, wiping her eyes. "Yeah, but you're...you."
Albus laughed as well. "Okay, I don't know what that means, but alright."
Ayla sniffled, her crying slowing down for a moment. "How did you know?" She asked.
Albus stood up and twisted around, pointing at the Marauder's map in his back pocket. Ayla laughed again, wiping her eyes once more.
"I was bored in class so I was looking at the map and I saw you run out of Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Tears streamed down Ayla's face again. Albus tightened his arm around her and asked a question that cost him an overwhelming amount of pain.
"Do you want me to go get James?"
Ayla shook her head. "I don't really talk to him about this stuff," she admitted.
"Why not?" Albus asked, surprised.
"I don't know," she murmured, looking down at her hands, which were twisting in her lap. "Maybe I'm too scared he'll run."
"I wouldn't let him run," Albus told her sincerely and she smiled sadly. "But don't you, like...need to talk to someone about it sometimes?" He asked, trying to wrap his head around it.
"I went nine years without telling anyone," Ayla said simply. "And, I mean, I can tell him some stuff, if I decide to, but just in general..." She shrugged. "I don't know if I want him to know truly how screwed up I am."
"You shouldn't be ashamed of it," Albus told her genuinely. "It wasn't your fault."
She shook her head and looked away. "People don't understand this stuff, Albus."
A first-year Gryffindor walked up to Ayla shyly. "Professor McGonagall wants to see you in her office," she informed her and bustled off quickly.
Ayla blew out all her breath and stood up. "How many detentions do you reckon I'll get for walking out on Asbaum's class?"
"If she's not an idiot, then none," Albus grumbled, earning a laugh from Ayla. "Good luck."
She set off up the stairs and up to the headmistress's office. McGonagall was waiting below her office to give the password to the strange elevator-like carrier to take them up to her office. Ayla waited awkwardly next to her in silence. McGonagall walked into her office silently, the only sound from her shoes clicking against the floor.
Just hold it together, Ayla, she told herself. Act like it's no big deal, and she won't either.
McGonagall sat down behind her desk, folding her hands and looking piercingly at Ayla. "Sit down, Miss Torres."
Ayla sat down, returning her gaze and refusing to let any emotions cloud her face or eyes.
"Miss Torres, many of your classmates have come and spoken to me about what happened today in Professor Asbaum's class."
Ayla's eyes flickered to meet hers and then she looked away again.
"Miss Torres, Professor Asbaum's actions, while rather unnecessary for your age group, was within the lines of legality as it pertains to curriculum planning. He requested permission to teach these concepts, and I granted it to him with no idea that he planned to broadcast the thoughts of each class member to the rest of their peers."
Ayla glanced at her. "Why are you telling me this?"
"W-well, I thought it would be clear, Miss Torres. I've been informed of what your mind revealed and I wanted to approach you about it."
"Here I am," Ayla said simply.
"Yes, here you are," McGonagall said, sounding slightly flustered. "Torres, had I known, I—"
"What?" Ayla asked, defeated. "What would you have done? It's too late, the damage is done, and he's already in prison."
"I meant, if I had known from when you were younger...I could have...seen to it that you were removed from the home, or..."
"It wasn't your job," Ayla said indifferently, but she was slightly concerned, hoping that McGonagall didn't truly feel guilty. "Now, what do you really want to know?" She asked as she noticed McGonagall was avoiding her gaze.
"Oh, yes, well..." She began, clearly impressed. "Miss Torres, I would like you to explain exactly what happened. See, at Hogwarts, we have somewhat of a file on each student in the school, and evidently, your record is missing quite a bit of information."
Ayla slid down slightly in the seat, sighing. She retold the story from the beginning, and in the very few times she had told this story, this was the first time that she showed no emotion whatsoever. McGonagall had tears in her eyes by the end and Ayla was forced to look away.
"Look, Professor, I'm fine," Ayla told her earnestly. "Really, I'm alright. It was a while ago, and I really just didn't want everyone to find out about this. I don't want you to feel sorry for me, or for anyone else to either. I just want to be treated, for once, like I'm normal. That's why I didn't really tell people."
"Did you tell anyone?" McGonagall asked, looking very upset. "I mean, is there anyone you can talk to about this?"
"Yes, I've told someone. And now everyone knows, so I'm pretty sure I can talk to anyone I pass in the hallway. Not that I will, but I could if I wanted." Ayla cleared her throat, sitting up, wanting suddenly to be freed of this conversation. "Are we done?" She asked in a polite voice.
"W—oh, yes, of course," McGonagall said absently, and Ayla stepped out of the door. As she closed it behind her, she heard McGonagall blow her nose into her white handkerchief.
She sighed and made her way back to the common room, where James was sitting on the couch with his roommates, talking loudly. He caught Ayla's eye and grinned, beckoning her over. Slightly out of what was going on, she walked over and sat next to James, plastering a smile on her face as he introduced her to each of his roommates. But she could not take her mind off of her worries about what had happened that day.
No one is ever going to treat you the same, she told herself. As soon as the news spreads to them, they'll be treating you like the broken girl again. Just when things were getting better...
X.
The next few weeks were somewhat of a daze; every day felt the same. Every day, Ayla walked down the hallway past stares of pity and judgment. When James saw someone staring at her, he was quick to scare them off; that was something Ayla was grateful for.
"You okay?" He asked one day toward the end of April, when they stopped in the hallway outside of her History of Magic classroom. Ayla was tucking the time turner back in her shirt from a few minutes before when she had used it. James sounded slightly wary, as he always did when he asked about her feelings; he cared enough to know but didn't want to see any tears that might be looming.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she assured him, smiling bracingly. "I just wish they'd get over it," she said, glancing at a pair of twin girls who were staring at her as they passed.
James whirled to face the girls. "What do you think you're looking at?" He demanded threateningly and they rushed away.
Ayla stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. "Thank you."
He smiled down at her. "You should get to class," he said, leaning against the wall. "Professor Binns will be pissed if you're late," he joked, the corners of his mouth twitching.
Ayla grinned, kissed him again, and entered the classroom.
April turned into May and the rain vanished into sun, and Ayla began to study vigorously for exams once again.
At the beginning of May, she sat in the common room with James, leaning back against him, his arms around her waist as she perched her Arithmancy textbook on her knees. James absently flicked the pages and she elbowed him playfully.
"Stop, I need to study!" She laughed and he tightened his arms around her and stood abruptly, spinning her around. She squealed. "Put me down, James!" She laughed loudly and he finally dropped her onto the couch, then flattened himself over her and kissed her.
"Uh, this is a public room, you guys," Hugo said from the armchair across from them. Ayla raised her eyebrows at James, trying not to laugh, until he stood up and sat back down beside her, then went right back to flipping the pages while she was reading.
Hugo left to go to bed after a few minutes, and James continued trying to distract Ayla from studying.
"Hey, where's José?" James asked a moment later, looking around. "He said earlier that he was going to meet us in the common room so we could help with his potions work."
Ayla frowned, looking at her watch. "Yeah, he should be out of detention by now..." She mused. José was still in detention because he had been caught stealing several more times, which was adding to the list of Ayla's concerns.
"What's with him recently?" James asked brusquely. "He's been getting in a ton of trouble. And not even in a funny way, it's not pranks or anything, it's actual crime."
"I don't know," Ayla said dejectedly. "I think now that he's just turned thirteen, he feels like he has more freedom or something."
Right on cue, José walked into the common room, extremely pale, with a sheen of sweat on his face. Ayla stood immediately.
"José, what happened?" She demanded, looking him over.
"Can we talk outside?" He asked and Ayla nodded, following him out of the portrait hole again.
"Need me to get you out of detention?" She joked, knowing that his reaction would determine how serious the situation was. He shook his head soberly and Ayla's stomach jolted.
"I have to meet with the entire staff tomorrow," he said quietly. "And the board of governors."
"Why?" Ayla demanded nervously, knowing the answer could not be good. "You didn't steal from your roommates again, did you?"
"N-no, I stole from..." He took a deep breath. "I broke into the Hog's Head to try and get some drinks."
Ayla felt her heart skip a beat and a sickening churn in her stomach; she felt unable to speak.
"They're going to expel me this time, aren't they?" José asked in a barely audible voice.
Ayla nodded sadly. "I think so, bud."
He sighed and threw himself down on the bottom step, looking around the castle. "It's been nice, this place," he said, forcing his voice to sound casual.
"Hey, you never know—" Ayla began, but he looked up at her and shook his head.
"Don't do it, please," he begged. "Don't get my hopes up again."
Those last six words were like a knife plunged right into Ayla's chest and she struggled to keep her footing.
"I have to go to McGonagall's again," he mumbled, standing up and shuffling away.
Ayla shakily entered the common room. James scrambled to his feet.
"Hey, what happened?" He asked eagerly.
"He, uh, he stole from The Hog's Head. You know, the pub. Or, he tried to, I guess."
"What?" James demanded, his jaw dropping. After a moment of shock, he looked quite angry. "Ayla, you can't associate yourself with people like that!" He exclaimed.
"People like what?" She asked challengingly, raising her eyebrows.
"He—he's a criminal, Ayla! You've got to cut him loose; he's going to get you into trouble one of these days!"
"James, José is like my brother. He's made a big mistake—several big mistakes—but we grew up together, I can't just—"
"Don't you get it, Ayla? What if the next time he steals, it's from you? Or worse, what if the next time he steals, he somehow drags you down with him when he gets caught?" James bellowed.
"You don't get it, James, but José has had a tough life! He's not a bad kid, he's just damaged. Everyone he's ever loved has found some way to hurt him! I am the only one who has never given up on him; I can't leave him too!" Ayla shouted back furiously.
"Why do you close your mind to what's happening?" He demanded, his voice shooting even higher in volume. "Don't you realize that nothing good can come out of this? Why don't you just let him go off on his own; he clearly thinks he doesn't need anyone else!"
"Because it's my fault, okay?" Ayla shouted furiously, but her voice broke. "If I had just...made sure he went home with a different couple, or maybe taken him in with me instead, then none of this ever would've happened! He wouldn't be rebelling because he'd be in a good home! I got his hopes up by putting him with an adoptive couple and then they kicked him out just like everyone else in his life!" She was crying now as she yelled, and James looked taken aback.
James's anger at the situation transformed into a different kind of anger. An anger that was more out of pity than anything else. Anger at Ayla.
"Why do you do this?" He demanded, but more wearily this time. "Why do you blame yourself for everything that happens? Look, Ayla, you're smart, and funny, and gorgeous, and you're amazing to spend time with, but...you think everything is your fault, and it's not. You shouldn't have such a guilty conscience, it's...I'm sorry to say it, but it's scaring me a little bit. He's not your responsibility; nothing that happens to him is your fault."
"I got his hopes up. And of all people, I know that should never happen." She looked up at him intently. "I have to speak at the hearing tomorrow."
He took her hand and pulled her down onto the couch with him. "Ayla, if what you're worried about is getting his hopes up...you can't do that. José looks up to you like a hero; if he sees you walk into the hearing tomorrow, he'll just think that everything is going to be fine. And there's nothing you can do to get him out of this."
"James, he needs this place. He needs Hogwarts. Being here...this is the first time he's ever let his guard down. And he's strong, but not strong enough to leave just yet. It's the only place he's ever been able to call home, and he can't say goodbye to that."
"Are we still talking about José?" James asked, nudging her. Ayla laughed in spite of herself and then looked down.
"Maybe that's what José and I have in common. Hogwarts is home for us; we don't have families to turn to. This is it for us; we don't have room to screw it up because we've got nowhere else to go." She looked back at James, straining to keep the tears from her eyes. "You don't get it, James, but he's lost too much already. I can't take away his home, too."
James sighed sadly and hugged her.
X.
Ayla flipped rapidly through the clothes in her closet, trying to decide what to wear to the hearing.
Lily yanked aside the curtains around her bed and looked at Ayla, rubbing her eyes. "What are you doing?" She asked thickly.
"Trying to decide what to wear to the hearing. See, if I dress up too much, I look like I'm trying too hard. But if I don't dress up enough, then I look like a slob and they don't take me seriously."
Lily rolled her eyes and chuckled, crawling out of bed and stretching, walking over to Ayla and taking the black skirt out of her hands. She tossed it on the bed and pulled a white chiffon sort off its hanger and passed it to Ayla, then draped a belt over Ayla's arm.
"There you go," she said groggily, lying back down in bed.
Ayla grinned nervously. "Thanks, Lil." She dressed quickly and did her hair and makeup, then set off through the common room and down to the detention chamber, where his hearing was taking place. The room looked somewhat like a circular auditorium, with seats around two-thirds of the circumference. There were seven long, curved rows of seats across that section, and a desk was placed at the front, where McGonagall sat. José was sitting off to the side of the room, and his eyes lit up when he saw Ayla walk in. Even McGonagall cast her somewhat of an approving look.
Ayla shot José a good-luck look as he made his way up to the podium in the center of the floor. His knuckled paled as he gripped the edges of the stand nervously.
As the hearing went on, Ayla realized that there was nothing she could say to help José's case, or to defend him in any way. All she could do was try to convince them that he needed to stay at Hogwarts. So when her name was called by McGonagall, she did exactly that.
"Since José arrived at Hogwarts, I've seen the way that he feels at home. I've seen how he's so much happier here than he could be anywhere else. If he was expelled from Hogwarts, his behavior would not improve. If anything, it would be worse because he wouldn't have anything to hold on to. I've known José for years and I might not know everything about him; I might not know why he does these things. But I do know that he'll learn from this mistake because this is the one place that he's truly belonged and you can't take that away from him. He needs to stay here; he needs this school and he needs his friends." She took a deep breath. "He's a troubled kid, just like me, and we've all made mistakes. José has been through more than most people can imagine, and he's damaged, and so am I. But he's not a bad person, and he deserves to be there. If you're expelling the kids who are troubled but are trying to get back on the right path, then I guess you'll have to expel me too. José and I grew up together; he's a brother to me, and I'd never leave him. So if he goes, I go." She nodded once in conclusion. "Thank you." She stepped away from the podium and sat next to José.
"Mr. Ballar, Miss Torres, please step outside while we come to our conclusion," McGonagall said formally.
Ayla exited the chamber with José, closing the door behind her. She was surprised to see that he had tears in his eyes.
"That," he began, managing a grin, "was the biggest risk anyone ever took for me." His grin faded into worry as he spoke.
Ayla tried to shrug casually. "I'm sticking by you, José, and if they expel you, I'm not coming back. We're like family, and like I said, this is our home. It's never truly home without your family."
The door opened on its own and Ayla saw McGonagall tucking her wand back into her robes as they entered.
"Mr. Ballar, please step up to the podium."
José obliged, and Ayla clasped her hands together, hoping with all her heart that he would not be expelled. She glanced toward the still-open door and saw that James was leaning against the doorframe, his hands in his pockets, grinning but looking anxious at the same time.
McGonagall cleared her throat and spoke. "Mr. Ballar, the faculty as well as the governors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry have come to the conclusion that you would benefit most from staying at Hogwarts under the discipline of our teachers. However, while we have the authority to decide whether or not you attend the school, we do not have the authority to dictate your legal punishment. Because you were both breaking and entering, committing theft, and because it was alcohol that you were stealing, you will be required to spend the summer in juvenile detention, but you can return to Hogwarts on September 1st like the rest of your classmates, and remain here until the end of the year."
Ayla beamed as she saw José's eyes water in relief.
"Faculty and governors, you are dismissed. Oh, and you as well, Miss Torres. Mr. Ballar, you may stay while we discuss the details of your legal sentence," McGonagall declared and Ayla dashed to the doorway and threw her arms around James.
When she pulled back, James gazed down at her. "You can say 'I told you so' if you want," he told her, grinning and she shook her head.
"I think I'll say thank you instead," she replied, smiling. "For talking to me yesterday. It wasn't easy to hear, but I needed it."
James smiled and kissed her. "You know, that was really cool what you did. I was standing at the door during your statement but I walked away for a minute while you guys had to wait outside because I didn't want to interrupt. But it was awesome that you took that risk for him. He's really lucky to have you."
Ayla beamed at him, sniffling slightly. "Thanks, James."
He put his arm around her and they walked back up to the Gryffindor common room.
X.
The rest of the month was spent studying frantically, until the first week of June when the students took their exams.
Ayla sat in her very last exam of the year, History of Magic. She set down her quill for a moment and stretched her aching hand. Liam glanced over and his eyes popped as he saw the length of her essay. She bit her lip nervously, shrugging helplessly and returning to her test. The bell rang at the end of the session and Ayla took a deep breath, handing in her test to the proctor.
As they left the classroom, Hugo turned to Ayla. "What did you do, write an entire textbook on Witch Hunts?"
Ayla laughed. "I didn't want to miss anything!" She said defensively, grinning. She saw James leaning against the wall opposite their classroom. He shrugged away from the stone, beaming.
"We're finally done!" He exclaimed, picking her up and spinning her around. "I'm thinking party time!"
"When are you not thinking party-time?" Ayla laughed, putting her arm around his waist as they walked.
"I'm so happy you're staying with us this summer," James said excitedly.
"It's so nice of you guys to let me stay," Ayla said graciously.
James grinned. "Mum and Dad love you, believe me, they miss you if you don't stay with us."
They arrived back at the common room, where James had already placed a keg in preparation. He sat down on the top of the keg, handing Ayla a cup as people lined up to get drinks.
"How were your exams?" Ayla asked James, perched on his right knee.
"They were alright," he said decently. "But let's not talk about school; I've forgotten everything already."
Ayla laughed, gazing into his brown eyes. She closed her eyes and kissed him slowly, her lips molding with his.
There was a loud throat-clearing from Hugo and they both pulled back. "Coming through, public common room..." He announced with a grin.
Ayla stood up from James's lap and they walked over to the couch, where James laid his arm around her shoulders.
"You want to go for a walk?" James suggested after about an hour of chatting.
"Yeah, sure," Ayla agreed, taking his hand and walking out of the common room with him.
They walked through the portrait hole and stepped out into the hallway. James kissed Ayla immediately, his hand running through her long dark hair.
Ayla heard footsteps after several enjoyable minutes, and she turned to see McGonagall walking up the corridor. She cursed and whirled around the Fat Lady, rattling off the password until the portrait swung open.
Ayla and James leapt through the portrait hole and back into the loud, crowded common room.
"McGonagall's coming!" James bellowed and everyone stopped dancing, threw their drinks out the window, and tried to look as though they had been sitting on the couch the entire time. James dove over to the keg and shoved it behind an armchair in a corner of the common room.
The portrait hole opened and McGonagall strode through, looking around at the students sitting calmly on the couches and armchairs.
"What is all this raucous?" She demanded harshly.
"Raucous, professor?" James repeated innocently.
"Yes, Potter, raucous!" She snapped, looking around for any sign of a party.
"Well, nothing going on here, as you can see," James said simply and her eyes narrowed.
"If I get another report of excessive noise..." She began threateningly, then left abruptly.
James snorted as the portrait swung shut.
"Well, party back on?" He suggested, standing up and pulling the keg back out from behind the armchair and sitting back down with Ayla after refilling his cup.
A boy walked into the common room, looking slightly shaken. "The test results are already done," he announced.
"Already?" Ayla demanded in shock, scrambling up. She darted for the door and sprinted down to the Great Hall to be the first in line in front of Professor Longbottom. James caught up to her as she burst through the doors.
Professor Longbottom handed Ayla her file, then handed James's to him.
"Wow, that's a lot of electives," James laughed. "I mean, I knew you were taking all of those, but I've never seen them all listed like that...yikes."
Ayla beamed at her marks, then looked over at James. "How did you do?" She asked and James flipped his folder shut.
"Not that great," he groaned, sitting down and running his hand over his face. He handed the folder to Ayla. He had gotten mostly in the 70-80 percent range, but his History of Magic score was extremely low.
"Hey, it's alright, James, it was a N.E.W.T. level class, and this was just a regular final, it's not like it was actually the N.E.W.T. exam. You don't have to take it next year if you don't want to," she said consolingly.
"I couldn't take it next year even if I wanted to; that grade is way too low," he said quietly.
"You want to be an Auror, don't you?" Ayla asked and James nodded. "Well, you don't need History of Magic to become an Auror! Look, you did well in Potions and Transfiguration and Charms, and you did amazingly in Defense Against the Dark Arts."
James grinned and followed her out of the Great Hall.
"I've never seen you get serious like that," Ayla noticed as they walked back up to the common room. James laughed.
"Don't get used to it."
"I should pack," Ayla said glumly as they stepped through the portrait hole. "I can't believe we have to leave tomorrow."
"I know," James agreed sadly. "Oh, but I have my apparition test tonight, if you want to come."
"Yeah, sure!" Ayla exclaimed. "Is it in Hogsmeade?" She asked as James entered her dormitory with her.
"Yeah, it's in an hour." James sat on her bed and Ayla rested her suitcase in front of him, then waved her wand, and all of her belongings flowed neatly into her suitcase. James reached out and caught her time turner, swinging the chain around his hand. "Cool," he commented. "We should go back in time and-" He cut himself off as Ayla snatched the time turner from his hand.
"Not a toy," she said playfully, grinning and draping it around her neck and tucking it below her shirt. He grinned and stretched out on her bed, leaning against the pillows and fiddling with the curtains.
A girl with dark hair tied up in a tight bun walked in suddenly and gasped, pointing at James. "YOU'RE a boy."
"That explains a lot," James said in mock surprise and Ayla snorted.
"It's alright, Jocelyn, he's in here with me," Ayla told her roommate with a smile.
"He's not SUPPOSED to be in here," Jocelyn continued bossily.
"He's allowed," Ayla said calmly. "If he wasn't, they would still have security that keeps boys out of the girls' dormitories."
The girl huffed and stalked out of the dormitory.
Ayla chucked and turned back to her trunk.
"Well, she seems like a bucketload of fun," James said sarcastically, smirking.
"That's Jocelyn. She means well, but she's a little too strict sometimes." She grinned at James. "My goal is to someday get her to let loose."
"Seriously, she must be a pain to live with," James realized, looking horrified.
"Well, sometimes she yells at us for wearing shirts that are too low-cut. She only wears turtlenecks, see, even in the summer." She held up a picture in a frame that featured Ayla, Lily, Jocelyn, and two girls James did not recognize. Four of them were laughing, wearing pajama shorts and tank tops, while Jocelyn was standing on the far left, arms folded, wearing a turtleneck over long pajama pants, a disapproving look plastered on her face. "That was taken the first night here this year."
James laughed and placed the picture back in Ayla's trunk and she fastened it shut.
Once Ayla had finished packing, the two of them headed to James's apparition test in Hogsmeade.
"Okay," the instructor said once James had gotten in line with everyone else, holding Ayla's hand anxiously. "There is an evaluator at the destination in which you will be Apparating to make sure that you did everything correctly. He will hand you a slip saying whether you Apparated correctly, and if you return to me perfectly as well, then you have passed. This is a pass/fail test. Failures can be the result of splinching, miscalculating your target, etcetera." He clearest his throat and called the first name on the list, "Abercrombie, Larry."
James shifted anxiously and Ayla turned to face him. "Hey, James, you'll do fine," she assured him. "I'm sure you'll get it right; don't worry."
He smiled. "You're right; I'm awesome," he joked, grinning, and Ayla laughed.
When the instructor reached "Potter, James," Ayla let go of his hand, gave him a swift kiss on the cheek, and stepped away.
James contorted his face in concentration and disappeared. Ayla waited eagerly until he reappeared and handed the slip in his hand to the instructor, who nodded at him, wrote something on the parchment, and shook his hand in congratulations.
Ayla ran over, beaming. "You did it!" She exclaimed when he held up the slip that read PASS.
He grinned and kissed her. "I'm free!" He declared, smiling broadly. "This summer, I can do magic whenever I want, and I can Apparate!"
Ayla laughed, looking up at him. "You can take me with you when you Apparate, right?" She asked hopefully, smiling.
"Of course," he chuckled, then picked her up suddenly, spinning around and earning a fit of giggles from her as he shifted her onto his back and trudged back up to the castle. "You want to come with me to pack?" He offered when they reached the common room, straightening to let her hop off his back. "Hopefully none of my roommates yell at you for being there."
Ayla giggled and followed him into his dormitory, greeting his roommates as she sat down at the foot of his bed, leaning back against his trunk that was placed on the mattress.
James began tossing unfolded t-shirts into the trunk and Ayla raised her eyebrows.
"Aren't you the one who was just talking about how excited you are to be able to do spells whenever you want? And we're still at Hogwarts, anyway!"
"Oh, right," James realized, waving his wand and sending his belongings into the trunk. It sealed itself and stood itself up next to the bed.
"I guess I should go to bed," Ayla said reluctantly. "Last night at Hogwarts."
"But then you get to come to the Potter house, which is just way better," James joked, grinning, and Ayla laughed.
"Night, James."
"G'night," he responded, kissing her until one of his roommates threw a pillow at him. James gazed after her as she left the dormitory, hair shimmering in the moonlight.
X.
As the group hopped off the Hogwarts express at King's Cross Station, they were welcomed by the warm summer sun shining down and making the red train look even brighter.
Harry and Ginny were waiting on the Platform, and they hurried forward when they saw their children. Ayla watched, smiling, as Harry and Ginny hugged each of their children.
"Well, we've heard the news," Ginny declared, gesturing between Ayla and James. James put his arm around Ayla, grinning, and Albus busied himself with the fastening on his trunk. Ginny greeted Ayla with a warm hug.
"Thank you for letting me stay with you again," Ayla said graciously.
"Oh, of course," Ginny assured her. "I've heard about your friend who was with you last summer. It's a shame; he seemed like such a nice boy."
Ayla smiled sadly. "He is. He's just gotten mixed up with some bad decisions."
Ginny smiled understandingly and turned to Lily. Ayla glanced at James and saw that he was admiring a girl across the Platform, smirking slightly. The girl, who was engaged in conversation with her friend, let glancing up and shooting flirtatious smiles at James.
A twinge of jealously crept up on Ayla and she brushed it away. It's probably one of his friends, she told herself. They probably just have classes together, no big deal.
The Potters and Ayla departed by Portkey and arrived at 12 Grimmauld Place. Ayla beamed as they entered. She walked with Lily up the steps to drop their bags off in Lily's room. Ayla sat down on the bed next to Lily's that had been conjured up for her stay.
Lily sat down on her own bed and the two girls sat in silence for a moment before Lily spoke.
"Some year, huh?"
Ayla laughed once. "Yeah, it was pretty crazy." She smiled at her best friend. "Normal is overrated, anyway."
X.
By the beginning of August, they had received so much rain that practicing Quidditch was made difficult through the downpour. Ayla walked down to the kitchen one morning in the first week of August, and saw a stack of letters on the windowsill that must have arrived overnight by owl. The envelopes were drenched, smearing the ink to incoherency. James walked in sleepily as she flipped through the envelopes.
"Mail?" He asked groggily, walking over and looking over her shoulder. He squinted at the names printed on the envelopes. "I think this one is for you," he said, handing her one of the envelopes.
Ayla opened the envelope and looked at the letter. James watched her, confused for a moment as to why Ayla looked angry, and then it dawned on him in a rush of panic.
"Oh, I think that must've been for me," he said hurriedly, trying to grab it from her hands but it was too late; she had already read it through.
"Why," she began quietly, "are you getting letters like that?"
"See, it's a long story-" he started lamely, holding the very flirtatious letter from a female classmate. Ayla turned to walk out of the house and he caught her arm. "Ayla, wait! I'm not sending them back, I just-"
She rounded on him, a skeptical expression on her face.
"Okay, I'll admit, before we left school, I flirted with her a bit but nothing ever happened, and-"
"Save it," she snapped. "This was a mistake."
Ayla broke free of his grip and darted out the door and into the pouring rain, her hair and clothes getting drenched. She ran until her feet were exhausted, at which point she threw herself down on the sidewalk and wrapped her arms around her knees, letting out a sob. She sat there for hours, until James popped into sight in front of her.
"Ayla! I've looked everywhere for you!" He cried and she stood up but refused to look at him. "Ayla, I'm sorry, I really am," he called over the loud downpour. "Look, I've never been the type of guy to have a serious girlfriend; I never pictured myself having a steady relationship with anyone. They just seem so gushy and stupid and confusing."
Ayla gave him a disgusted look, feeling a mix of fury and confusion as to why he was telling her any of this.
"But I want to be gushy, Ayla. I want to be gushy and stupid and confused, as long as it's with you."
"I don't know if—" she began but he cut across her.
"I don't know either. I don't know anything except that I want to be with you no matter what."
Ayla laughed once without humor, a laugh that brought tears to her eyes, as she looked at the ridiculousness of the situation. "You're...completely insane, you know that?"
He laughed and through all of the rain water splashed against his face, Ayla cold swear she saw a tear. "I know," he laughed.
"I mean, you just Apparated all through a muggle town looking for me!" She continued incredulously. "I mean, you could've been seen, and—"
"I did, I know!" He cried, laughing. "And I, uh, I might've stopped along the way to try to scare some people, you know, just for the fun of it."
Ayla shook her head, crying and laughing at the same time. "You're an idiot," she said and James grinned.
"Yeah, well, we already knew that." And he took her in his arms, his hand in her soaking wet hair, and kissed her.