My eyes flashed opened and my chest burned. I couldn't breathe. Why couldn't I breathe? There was a pounding on my chest. It was like my body was a drum, but unlike a drum-there was no music.

I tried to breathe, but something was stopping the air from coming through. My lungs felt like a thousand needles were impaling themselves over and over again. I wanted to cry out, to say anything, but I couldn't.

I've held my breath for what felt like minutes before. This was nothing like it. This was like having a gun held to your head. If you breathe - the gun goes off and you're heart stops beating.

Calloused hands tilted my head back and pinched my nose. In seconds warm lips were on my own. At least, I thought they were lips. I felt cold air pump into my lungs, forcing me to breathe. My chest still ached and tried to take in air but nothing worked.

"Come on, Beth." A voice said above me, and the mouth was on mine again. This time when I felt the air flood into my lungs it was like a switch had gone off and flood gates had opened. Water began to spill out of my mouth in spastic coughs. I gulped air and finally, there was nothing to stop it.

Harry's mouth left mine and his green eyes looked down on me with concern.

I was lying on the bathroom floor. My hair was spread out around me like a halo and I was soaked from head to toe. Harry leaned over me, His eyes were wide and filled with worry. "Beth!" He sighed, and relief flooded his features.

His hands, which had been cradling my head, grabbed a towel that had been hanging on the edge of the tub and draped it over me. Suddenly, my face went red and my eyes grew wide. I was naked, completely naked in front of Harry Potter. "Thanks," I murmured to him and looked away. Suddenly the bathroom tiles were remarkably interesting.

"Beth. What happened?" He pushed my hair back from out of my face and I felt my skin tingle.

I wasn't exactly sure what had happened if I was being honest. I remembered the voice of Carpenter in my head and the images of death but after that everything was blank. I didn't remember going under the water. "Carpenter. He was in my head. I don't…How is that possible?"

"You almost drowned, if you hadn't screamed -" He cut off, I didn't need to hear his words to know what he was thinking. If I hadn't screamed, I would have drowned. There would be no coming back from that, no matter how much I tried.

In just a few short days, I had almost died three times. I felt like I was running a marathon. At the finish line, there wasn't a gold medal and applause, instead, it was your life.

I wrapped the towel closer to my body. I was freezing. The warmth that had come from the bath moments ago had been leeched from my body and left me shivering.

Harry smiled warmly at me and helped me stand up from the cold tiled floor.

"Here." He handed me a plush robe that hung on the bathroom door. I quickly put the robe on, thankful for the modesty. "I'll take you to the Hospital Wing to make sure everything is okay."

I went to walk out of the room, but everything turned fuzzy and I almost fell back down again. "Woah, Beth," Harry said. He put a hand on my back for support.

I exhaled loudly and tried to focus. Everything was so jumbled. "I'm okay. I can stand on my own."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Are you sure?

I nodded, and we walked out of the small room. He turned back to me. His eyes seemed darker than before. "Get changed. I'll meet you outside."

He left the room, and I quickly dressed into a pair of jeans and a jumper. The whole time, I braced myself against the wall, so I wouldn't fall. When I walked out of the room, Harry was there waiting for me, just like he said?

We walked to the hospital wing in silence. Harry's hand was on my back. I was grateful for the support. I didn't want to collapse again in front of him. I had done that far too many times in the past few days.

My head was running a mile a minute. What had happened? Carpenter had been in my head-but how? If I had to be afraid every time, I would take a shower because he could enter my mind at will, I would go crazy. My life as I knew it seemed to be changed. There was no going back to the way that things were.

My mind drifted to Harry. The moment I left Hogwarts there would be a strange hole in my heart. Over the past few days, I had begun to lean on Harry for support both mentally and physically. He was a good friend.

But, I couldn't forget the feeling of his mouth on mine. He had saved me, just like he always did. But I couldn't help but want for it to mean more.

"You okay?" Harry said. I realized my face was flushed and might have looked like a drowned rat. "You look beautiful, don't worry." He chuckled, and I felt my face go even redder. It was like he could read me like a book. Where my emotions that easy to see? I always thought in the past that I was rather good at hiding my feelings.

Feelings? No…No…I didn't have feelings for Harry. I couldn't have a feeling for him. I had known him for a total of three days. It was ridiculous. I was not some stupid damsel of a book character who fell in love with someone without even knowing them. It was just the adrenaline. It was just because he saved me. It had to be. I refused to have feelings for anyone when so much was going on.

It was wrong to have feelings for him. Mark hadn't died that long ago. Even though he hadn't told me the truth about whom he was, there was still a part of me that ached to see and touch him. I hadn't dated him for long, but I still hurt whenever I thought about him. Hopefully, one day, I would be able to think about him and not be overcome with sadness. In the future, I would be able to remember all of the good times we had and not be weighted down by the tragedy.

We arrived at the hospital wing, and I was happy not to think about it. Madame Pomfrey greeted us with a slight glare. ''What on earth happened to you?" Her eyes scanned my drenched hair. "You just left this morning. What in Merlin's name could have happened?"

"Um…I almost drowned," I said, cringing.

"You almost drowned?" Her mouth was wide open and her hand had found themselves on her hips. You're worse than Harry. Should I have a hospital bed with your name on it as well?"

"Umm…No…" Harry chuckled. I guessed he had been on the receiving end of one of her lectures before. She was slightly terrifying went she wanted to be.

The woman rolled her eyes and pulled out her wand. She scanned me and nodded. "You'll be alright. All the water has left your lungs. You might feel dizzy for a couple of hours. You should get some food and have a good rest. If you still feel faint tomorrow let me know."

"Thank You, Madame Pomfrey." Harry said, "We'll go to the great hall now."

"Try no to die on your way there, Please." She said. I let out a giggle and smiled.

"I'll try not to ma'am," I responded. Harry and I walked out of the hospital wing and I hoped I wouldn't have to step back into that place for a long time.

I tripped and was about to tumble to the ground before Harry caught me. "Merlin's beard, You are such a klutz." He smirked. I felt myself redden under his gaze. "How have you managed to live this long?"

I started up at him and smiled, "I'm not sure."

His hands still lingered on my upper arms, "Maybe Madame Pomfrey was right. There should be a hospital bed with your name on it."

"I promise, before this week I've never been in so many life-threatening situations."

He chuckled, "I have a hard time believing that."

"I'll have you know Harry Potter, that before you came into my life, I was as ordinary as they come."

"You could never be ordinary, Beth." There was something in his eyes that I couldn't decipher but as soon as it was there it disappeared without a trace.

There was a cough and a group of girls briskly walked past us. "Sorry. Excuse me." One of them said. I looked at them, only to see Elaine walk past with a clenched face.

Crap, I realized. She was probably going to murder me for being even in the same room as Harry. I hoped she wouldn't try to speak to me later. There was already one raging psychopath trying to kill me, I wasn't sure I would be able to survive a second one.

We quickly separated. "Come one. Let's go in." Harry coughed, and we walked back in. The banter that had been between us moments before disappeared, replaced by a gaping silence.

We walked into the great hall and already students were at their respective tables digging into their food. The headmistress as well as Neville was already at the head table as well. Neville raised an eyebrow at my appearance and there was a glint in Mcgonagall's eyes, but she said nothing.

Just like magic, owls started flying all around with strange packages and envelopes in their claws. I just hoped one of the birds didn't poop on me. It had to be unsanitary to have that many birds flying around.

The headmistress grabbed a letter from a small and brown owl. She opened it and in moments her face paled. "Headmistress, What's wrong?" Harry asked. His face was blank, but I could see worry brimming through his eyes.

The headmistress sighed and pinched her nose. "Carpenter killed an entire town of muggles."

Not for the first time that day, I froze. It was like freezing water suddenly poured into my veins. Everything was cold, and I didn't dare breathe. I must have heard her wrong. That was the only explanation. I had seen their deaths in the tub, hadn't I? There was nothing I could have done to stop it. "What?" I whispered.

The eyes of all the teachers bored into me. I felt Harry grab my hand underneath the table. "Beth?" I shook my head and stood up quickly from the table. "That's impossible. It can't be real…" The teachers continued to stare at me. Each of them had a different degree of worry on their faces. "Excuse me."

I walked-almost ran out of the hall. I felt eyes follow me out of the room, but I ignored them. This wasn't right. I had seen it happen before my eyes. Carpenter had shown me their deaths and I couldn't do anything to stop it. Why would he show me that? What on earth was the point?

"Beth! What's wrong?" Harry's voice was behind me and I abruptly turned around to face him. For a moment my breath hitched and I felt my body hum like electricity. Over the past few days, Harry had done so much to help me. I shouldn't have been surprised to find that he had followed me out of the hall to see if I was okay.

There was a level of trust that we had built. Never in my life had I trusted someone as much as I did him. There was still so much that I had to learn about him. But, at the core of Harry Potter was a kind of empathy that few people in the world had.

I could trust him with what had happened. I didn't want to trust him. I wanted to close the doors and pretend that none of this happened. But, ignoring problems never made anything ever better. It was hard to admit, but if I was to make it out of this mess, I needed him. He was my life-line. "Harry…I saw it happen." I sighed.

His brows knit together firmly, locked in place, and he didn't move. "You what?"

How was I supposed to explain this? It couldn't be normal for people to get random dreams from strangers, even in the Wizarding world.

"When I was in the tub." I clarified, and sighed. "I heard voices… it was Carpenter, and he showed me their deaths. Why would he do that, Harry? Why is he in my head?" I was breathing hard now. Like I had been only an hour before in the tub. My chest grew heavy and it felt like I was about to collapse at any moment.

"It's okay. We'll figure it out."

"Why is this happening?" I cried out. I felt a single tear flow down my face. I was shaking like a rattle and I wasn't able to stop it.

Before I knew it, I had been in Harry's arms. My head nestled perfectly into his shoulder and his hand moved to cradle my head. I froze, let my arms dangle to the side. I hadn't been held like this, not by him, not by my mother-not since Mark. But the fear quickly faded and I let my arms wrap around his torso. "It's going to be okay." He whispered. His hand was in my hair and could have stayed like this forever. I felt safe in his arms. For a moment, all of my troubles disappeared.

"Are you okay to go back on? You need to eat." The connection was broken. Harry pulled away from a lightly smiled. I ached to feel safe again. His hand slid down to mine and with a smile he pulled me back into the great hall.

The great hall was silent as we walked in hand in hand. There were looks of confusion, most were wondering why I had left so abruptly. Others looked angry. They were probably girls who felt scorned over our sudden friendship.

We arrived at the head table, and Neville gave me a warm smile. No one mentioned my strange exit. I ate - thankfully in silence. All the while, Harry had yet to let go of my hand.

"Everything alright, Miss Ellison?" Her eyes flicked down to our intertwined hands with a slight smirk.

I blushed. "I'm alright." For the first time that day, I wasn't lying.

Neville spoke next, focused on the mashed potatoes in front of him. "If you want, Harry and I could take you into Hogsmeade tomorrow. We can go to the shops and get you some clothes and necessities."

"I have no money," I said.

"That's alright." The headmistress said, taking a sip from her goblet. "The school will gladly help pay for anything you may need."

I nodded, but something didn't seem right. How long was I going to be at this place? I had to go back to university eventually. It didn't seem possible to just suddenly put my whole life on pause. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but how long do you think I'll be here?"

The table was suddenly silent, and the teachers each gave each other a knowing look.

"Beth. As long as Carpenter is alive, you are in danger..." Harry squeezed my hand and looks me in the eyes. His voice was calm, but there was something hidden in it. "It may take weeks or months…Maybe even years to stop him."

"Oh…" There was nothing else to say.

So, this was my life now. For whom knows how long, I would be trapped in a school with people I didn't know. It wasn't awful of course. Everyone here had been extremely kind and supportive. But, it wasn't home. I wasn't with my mother. I had so many exciting plans for the future. I wanted to eventually go study abroad in America. But, just like that, the future disappeared before my eyes.

"What will I do?" I asked the table.

The headmistress furrowed her brows and put her goblet carefully down on the table. "What do you mean, Miss Ellison?"

"I was in school and was going to be a teacher. What will I do while I'm here?"

"Ahh, I had thought about that. If you like, we could offer you a teaching position here."

I laughed. I tried not to, but I couldn't help it. The idea of me, trying to teach a bunch of children magic was quite honestly ludicrous. "What on earth would I teach? I don't know magic."

"Muggle studies of course." She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the entire world.

"Oh…"

"Don't worry, Beth," Neville said. "We'll help you. You'll be fine."

"I'm not sure putting me in a class with a bunch of teenagers is a good idea. I'm only a few years older than them." My thoughts swam to Elaine, and I hoped I wouldn't have the misfortune to have her in a class. It would make things awkward and quite frankly unbearable.

"I keep forgetting how young you are," Harry said. I raised an eyebrow at him. I wasn't that much younger than him. But, I supposed when you had seen as much as he had, everyone seemed young. He was twenty-three and had already done so much. I had barely left my home. There was so much I didn't know about the world and so much I wanted to learn.

The headmistress smiled at me. "Everything will work out. And if you have any issues with the students, all of us will be here for you. The semester just started so, you'll be able to teach without the students missing out on much."

This was happening. I was going to teach a class at a mystical school filled with magical people. I was terrified. I had no idea what I was going. My schooling had only just ended, and I hadn't even gone to university yet. There was so much I didn't know. How could they expect me to do this? I was going to fail epically.

"Maybe you should go off to sleep. You look pale." Neville said, looking up from his plate.

I didn't want to sleep. There was a chance that when I closed my eyes, Carpenter would be there taunting me. If I saw him again - if I saw him murder again- I might never be able to wake up. Even if I didn't see Carpenter, my dreams would ultimately replay the past few days on repeat. I didn't want to dream of car crashes ever again.

I nodded to Neville. There was no way I would get any sleep but I wasn't about to tell him that. I finished my food in silence. Everything tasted like ash in my mouth and it took every ounce of willpower to shovel the food into my mouth.

Once I was done, Harry and I left dinner and made our way back to my room. Not for the first time that day, we fit into a comfortable silence. When we arrived at my door, I turned to him. "Harry. I'm not quite sure if I can do this. I need to go home. I need to see my mother."

"Beth, It will be okay, I promise. You won't be here for years. Just a few months. We'll stop Carpenter."

I regarded him. He was so confident. It was a type of confidence I had never seen until now. But what if he was wrong? There was a chance that if I depended on him, I might spend the rest of my days in fear at this castle. I might never get to feel safe with my parents again. I didn't want to devote the rest of my days looking over my shoulder. " How can you be so certain?

"I've confronted one of the darkest wizards of all time and won." His face was vacant and I pondered what all Harry lost during the war. "Clay Carpenter is nothing compared to him. He is a pest, who is hiding. The moment he shows himself he'll be finished."

For some reason the statement made me feel a little better. I would be safe as long as I was with Harry. "Thank you."

He frowned. "For what?"

"For everything. I would die several times by now if it wasn't for you."

He smiled at me and turned to leave me. " You don't ever have to thank me, for helping you. I'd do it in a heartbeat…" We were silent. I felt my body grow stiff and was suddenly very excited to go and sleep. "Good night, Bethany."

"Goodnight, Harry."

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is having an absolute fabulous day! I really hope you enjoy this chapter. It was alot of fun to write. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, take your time to review. It means a lot when i get to hear all of your feedback. I would greatly appreciate hearing anything you may have to say about this story.

What do you think is going to happen next?

Why on earth is Beth having dreams about Carpenter and what does he REALLY want from her?

Does Harry have feelings for Beth?

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Cutecutie