Forgotten Lover

by Artrastic23

Eleanor Brown has no memory of her father and her mother, uncle, and grandmother rarely speak of the man. One night she overhears her mother tell her grandmother that her father had an accident that may have erased both her and Eleanor from his memories. Will she ever meet her father? Will she be ok when she learns the full truth?

7. Chapter 7: Death

...Death...

I improve quite a bit by the end of the summer holidays. My understanding of the various instruments worldwide and the ones I own shocks Madeline and Olivia. I wake early on September 1st. I emerge from my room in a lovely lavender and lilac sundress and black kitten heels.

My hair falls down my back in soft manageable curls and with the exercise, vitamins, supplements, and diet my skin has an even brighter natural glow. Serenity is meowing loudly in complaint. I slip her a treat before putting her and my trunk in the car.

I search the platform for Draco and find him talking to Theo. I race over and hug him. "Ellie?!" he gasps and I nod. "Do I look so pretty that you don't recognize your own cousin?" I smile giddily. He takes a step back examining me. "I thought Blaise stopped by when the company was doing their examination." Draco mumbles. "I made him watch Eli and Reg. Then he got distracted by dad's motorbike and we went on a ride through the countryside." I smile.

"Motorbike?" Theo mumbles. "I don't think you understand. It's one of twelve in existence. The company only made twelve and her dad owns one." Blaise sighs as he walks over. "You got distracted. That's the long and short of it." Theo smirks. "It's a very badass bike!" Blaise huffs. "It's not a word for you to use." I mock.

Blaise gives me an approving look. "Do I look pretty?" I wonder. Blaise doesn't answer but focuses on the sky. "Hunh, Lisa said you would love this. I guess not. I should tell her she was wrong." I sigh sadly. Theo nudges Blaise. "You look nice Ellie." he mumbles then coughs and looks away.

"Yay! I'm going to go find Astoria." I wave and race off. I sneak up behind her and hug her. She squeals and hugs me back. "You look gorgeous Ellie!" she shrieks. "Oh, wow. Um, I was just going for pretty and cute but I guess that works too." I blush and look down. She sighs and pushes me towards the train.

I sit on my bed having already finished my homework. I grab my acoustic guitar and tune it. I strum it lightly just playing around but eventually begin to play songs. Astoria walks in then walks back out. I switch the acoustic for the electric and start jamming out. I play standing on my bed in different ballet poses for variety.

I'm completely balanced on one foot while my other is high in the air. My body is bent in half with my head nearly touching my pillows as I play Eye of the Tiger. She snaps a photo with a digital camera and races out of the room. I drop to my bed placing my guitar gingerly back in its case before racing after her.

I find her showing the camera to Draco and begin to walk back to my dorm but Blaise picks me up. "It's my little dancing rocker." he whispers examining my outfit. Leather pants with a chain belt, my new rocker boots, a black tank and a leather jacket. I squirm in his arms and he guides me over to where Draco is on the couch.

I turn and pout at Blaise but he's already sitting down his nose in an alchemy book. I nudge his foot with mine and he pulls me onto his lap. "I think the pictures look badass." he murmurs. I roll my eyes and rest my head on his shoulder reading with him. "Am I 'grounded'? I wonder as Draco sets the camera down. He nods and I sigh.

"I thought it was awesome." Theo chuckles. "Thanks!" I smile. "Don't encourage her. She knows she not supposed to use the electric guitar on the weekdays at school." Draco tuts. I stick my tongue out at him. "That's not what I meant Dray! The way she plays. You can tell just by listening she's well trained and very good at playing." Theo explains.

"I'm not so sure about that Theo. I only learned to play the song yesterday and I've only been playing guitars since the summer." I wave him off. Theo's jaw drops and I go back to the book Blaise is reading. "Wait a second. When did you get a guitar? How did you fit three guitars in your trunk?" Astoria wonders. "Magic." I tease.

True to his word Baise convinced Draco to have me train or at least exercise when the Slytherin team trains. I collapse into a seat after finishing my last lap. Draco flies behind me without my noticing and blows a whistle in my ear. I jump up and clutch my heart. "Go stretch and shower since you're done." he ruffles my hair and zooms off.

I mutter all the way down to the changing rooms. The warm water feels great on my skin. I don't know how long I stay there but there's knocking on the door when I come to. I cut the water off and wrap myself in a towel. I pad quickly over to the door and peek out. "Draco wants to know what's taking you so long..." Blaise trails off looking at me then turning around.

"For fucks sake Ellie! Don't come to the door like that." Blaise scolds his voice unnaturally uneven. "Did I do something wrong?" I ask myself. "Yes, Ellie, you did something wrong. Now go get dressed." Blaise orders. I pout and close the door changing quickly. Blaise is crouching with his hands on his face muttering quietly.

I walk over until he can see me in his peripheral. He stands up and waves me up to the school. I whine but he refuses to look at me. I start walking an obvious pout on my face. Draco takes one look at the two of us and gives me a look that says he's not helping. I tear apart a bagel and Astoria smirks. "What were you doing that Blaise is refusing to look at you?" she giggles.

I shrug and start to peel an orange. "I was showering, and I heard a knock on the door, so I wrapped myself in a towel and answered it. Then he threw a fit and now he won't look at me. He said I did something wrong but I don't know what I did wrong." I frown. Blaise shoots me an exasperated look and nudges Draco.

Draco and Theo are fighting back laughs. I groan and rest my head on the table. Draco and Theo excuse themselves from the table and stagger out of the hall. The sounds of laughter echo and faintly reach us back in the hall. "Blaise, what did I do wrong?" I put my hand on his arm.

He looks up at the Enchanted Ceiling and I climb onto his lap and place my hands on his face forcing him to look at me. "I sincerely have no idea what I did wrong. Can you just tell me?" I plead. "Yeah, tell her Blaise." Astoria and Pansy giggle. He goes to glare at them but I whine in complaint.

"Ellie, when answering a door... it's not necessarily the best idea to open it in only a towel." Blaise states seriously. Pansy and Astoria burst into another fit of laughter. "Not even if it's you or Draco at the door?" I ask. Blaise shakes his head. I frown and stuff an orange wedge into my mouth. "Did my appearance fluster you?" I ask tearfully.

"No, not necessarily." he hesitates. "This feels like last year. Just a bit." I huff. He raises an eyebrow. "When I fell asleep just outside. I heard you mumbling as you carried me down to the common room. 'You shouldn't let other guys 'attempt' to help you.' You were upset then and you're upset now." I pout. "I'm not upset Ellie." Blaise smiles taking an orange wedge.

"Your voice was uneven and you haven't looked at me properly since I opened the door." I tap his throat with my fingers. He ducks his head. "Where on earth did your cousin go?" he mutters. As if summoned, Draco and Theo walk back in their faces red and still snickering.

"Can we please talk about something else?" Blaise rolls his eyes. I frown at him. "How's Dahlia?" he asks suddenly. I tilt my head in confusion. "She's my cousin-in-law." he mumbles taking a sip of juice. I'm dumbfounded at first then I pinch his arm. "Why didn't you say anything?!" I hiss. "I didn't think it was a big deal. Besides, how else did you think are families got in contact. I told you last year one of the names on acceptance letter looked familiar." he yawns.

I pinch his cheeks while and spend the next ten minutes scolding him. He frowns as we walk up the stairs. "You could've been a little bit nicer Ellie." he mumbles. "You could have said something sooner." I reply. He stops walking and I look away. He pulls me into his arms laughing. "Wow, are you that upset about it? Dahlia didn't say anything? What would make you feel better Ellie?" he asks lifting my chin.

"A new flute with all the toys and fancy gadgets!" I smile hopefully. "Am I a money tree?" he laughs. "I don't know. You certainly are tall enough to be one." I swing his arms back and forth. He spins me around and nudges me in the direction of my class.

I'm studying with Astoria by the fire when the fifth years come back. Theo flops down beside us and starts doodling in our books. I frown and then smile innocently while tapping my wand on an ink bottle out of sight. Blaise sits down next to me and takes my wand hand. "Behave." he whispers then grabs Theo by the back of his shirt and drags him over to a table with Draco.

I wake early Saturday on the first Hogsmeade visit of the year. Blaise promised to take me out on a date and I'm so excited I can force myself to sleep any longer. I pad out into the common room and find Blaise on the couch by the fire. I walk over and wrap my arms around him.

He chuckles and I kiss his cheek. "I couldn't sleep. What about you? Why are you awake so early?" I whisper. "I've been pondering whether or not I should really get you that flute or not." he turns to me with a teasing smile. I frown and he pulls me over the couch and I rest my head on his chest.

"Mmh, comfy. How about we just stay here like this all day?" I whisper. Blaise sighs and I look at him. "You know you're still in hot water for the guitar playing and pouring ink on Theo, right?" he smiles. I pout and roll my eyes. A few days after Theo tried drawing on me and Astoria's books and papers he succeeded. As punishment we both poured our ink bottles out on him.

I look away and Blaise shifts us so I'm in his arms as we lie on our sides. I blink up at him and he kisses the top of my head. I feel relaxed even though I'm upset about getting in trouble. We lie there talking about this and that until everyone starts to wake. We sit up and I climb onto Blaise's lap and play with his hands.

"Don't you two have something else to do that doesn't involve being so UGH first thing in the morning?" Draco groans sitting on the floor. "You could get a girlfriend and stop being such a worry wart." I smile. Blaise pinches my side and I turn to him with a pout. "I am not a worry wart Ellie." Draco huffs. "Sure." I drag the word out and Astoria giggles.

"Then prove you aren't. It's the only way they'll stop teasing you." Theo yawns. "Yeah..." we smirk. Draco glares at all of us then covers his ears and closes his eyes. "Childish." I tsk. Blaise taps my waist. I turn and he nods to the girls' dorm. I get the hint and go get ready for our date.

I reemerge in jeans, sneakers, a plain t-shirt, and throw my hair up into a ponytail. Blaise smiles and holds out his hand. I take it and he leads me up to the courtyard. "Have you sincerely thought about getting me a flute?" I wonder as we walk down the path to Hogsmeade. He chuckles to himself shaking his head all the while.

"Should I ask Dahlia to ask Madeline or Olivia? I don't know much about instruments. You want a recorder, right? That's a type of flute, right?" he teases. "You want to get me a flute. A flute." I sound it out. He pinches my cheek and continues walking. I run after him and he holds my hand.

I wait patiently for Draco or Blaise to come get me in the music classroom. Lavender wrote home after hearing through her gossipers about me playing electric guitar in the middle of the night and my mum just so happened to be there when her parents got the letter. Mum had dad ground me and Draco and Blaise confiscated my instruments until further notice. Draco told me after I got back from my date with Blaise putting a damper on my good mood. I was so upset I ate his favorite sweets I'd picked up for him right then and there leaving him hurt and shocked.

I walk around the room waiting but my patience is running thin. I seat myself at the piano and begin to play. I wind up falling asleep after ten minutes. I'm still sleepy when I wake so everything's a bit distorted at first. I can barely make out the scene at the door but I hear familiar voices. Everything comes into focus and I realize Blaise, Draco, and Collin are having a heated discussion by in the doorway.

"Hold on a minute. What exactly happened and why are you so upset Blaise?" Draco asks stepping between Blaise and Collin. "I came up here to see if Ellie was done studying and this little Gryffindor brat had his hands on her and was about to kiss her all while she was asleep. This isn't the first time I've caught him acting suspicious around Ellie when she was sleeping either." Blaise starts off calm but gets angrier and angrier with every word.

I grab my bag silently trying not bring any attention to myself. Blaise and Draco look like they're going to kill Collin. I take this opportunity to clear my throat. "I'm done studying." I hurry over and grab Blaise's hand. "You two go on ahead." Draco speaks through gritted teeth. Before I can say or do anything Blaise leads me down the stairs.

He doesn't stop until we're well into the dungeons. Then he starts pacing back and forth. I watch him worriedly. I grab his hand and he stops his pacing. "Blaise look at me." I whisper. He sighs and closes his eyes. I wait quietly until he finally looks at me. "I'll be studying in the common room unless you, Astoria, Draco, Theo, or Pansy are with me, ok?" I murmur.

"Ellie, I..." I place a finger to his lips. "I don't want you to get in trouble. Please promise me you won't do anything reckless and get in trouble." I stare into his eyes. He groans and looks away. It's another five minutes before he agrees. "Come on. We should head back." Blaise sighs. When I don't start walking, he turns to me with a frown. I stand on tiptoe and kiss the corner of his mouth. "I'm dating you silly. You should've told me sooner. I wouldn't have put myself in any situation where he could take advantage of me while I was sleeping or tired." I poke his chest.

He pulls me to him with one arm and kisses the top of my head. "I know, but I didn't have enough proof. I wanted to wait and make sure I wasn't seeing things that weren't there or acting on impulse and then winding up wrong. I didn't want to act rashly and make you look bad or anything like that. You know what I mean." he sighs. And I do. I understand perfectly.

I'm in Blaise's lap when Draco finally makes it back to the common room. He flops onto the couch and runs his fingers through his hair. "That kid is a real piece of work... He's a complete and total arse if ever there was one." Draco sits up and points at me. I nod and he lays back down. Recently instead of telling me not to use or repeat a cuss word Draco and Blaise have begun pointing at me.

I play and fix the cuffs of Blaise's shirt while he fills Draco in on my study plans. Draco nods and agrees that it would be best if we went along with my plan. Blaise turns to me with a small smile. "What are you doing?" he mumbles. "Making you look pretty." I murmur rolling his sleeves up halfway. "I'm already pretty." Blaise scoffs but sits back as I alter his look. It's only when I go to unbutton the top button of his shirt that he and Draco intervene.

"What?! It'll look pretty for the photo." I pout. "No photo. No unbuttoning of my shirt. No rolled sleeves. Just sit here and behave." Blaise places my hands in my lap and I sit there pouting. Astoria sneaks back up to the dorm with the camera equally upset. I sit between Blaise and Draco at dinner.

Lavender comes over near the end of dinner. "So, Collin came back to the Gryffindor common room thoroughly terrified." she states. I look at Draco who seems very invested in his food. She taps the table in front of him. He nudges me and I nudge him back. He sighs and clears his throat before explaining everything to Lav. Theo, Pansy, and Astoria are thoroughly shocked when Draco's done. I stare at my hands in my lap.

Lavender is furious and taps the top of my head. "You were reckless again." she frowns. I keep my head down. "Again?" Blaise leans forward. "You have no idea how many times I'd come back after leaving her alone for a few minutes and she'd be standing there like a lost puppy while some guy chatted her up. I left to get a refill for my drink at the movies and when I came back these guys were sitting next her trying to get her to leave with them. And when they wouldn't leave her alone, she got fed up and punched them. Aunt Alexandra had to pay them off do they wouldn't press charges." Lav tuts.

I've begun to blush and everyone's eyes are on me. Blaise taps my knee and I look at him. "How many times has this happened Lavender?" Blaise wonders while looking at me. "I lost count after she turned eleven. The number is astronomical. Just be lucky she's never left the country. We'd never see her again." Lav tsks as she gets up.

Blaise drums his fingers on the table. "I'll be leaving the country this upcoming summer to learn more about instruments." I giggle nervously. Out of my peripheral I see Pansy and Astoria shaking their heads. "With my grandparents of course. Just for a few weeks. In America." I mumble. Blaise lifts my chin so I can see the unhappy look in his eyes. "Pardon. Did you say you're going to America for a few weeks with your grandparents?" he mutters.

"Oh, damn! Did I forget to mention that Olivia's coming too." I mumble. Blaise has yet to stop drumming his fingers on the table. "What can I do to make you feel comfortable with me going overseas for two weeks?" I ask trying desperately not to tear my eyes away from his gaze.

"Take me with you." Theo whispers mimicking Blaise's voice. I bite my lip to stop from laughing. Theo keeps going until Blaise glares at him. I grab Blaise's hand and he turns back to me. "I'll be fine for two weeks. I doubt they'll let me out of their sight." I promise. He still looks unsure. "I won't even take my motorbike since that also brings unwanted attention." I promise.

Draco chokes on his juice. Blaise finally relaxes and I pretend to wipe sweat from my brow. Blaise suddenly turns back to me. "Did you take the bike out for a ride after I left?" he wonders. "Whoa, is this your jealous side?" I tease. "Your jealous side is worse than mine." he mutters turning back to his plate. "Just so you know I did take the bike out. I took the bike to the pond. Dad was going through the garage at his old place and found two more." I tease. Blaise blinks as he takes in my words.

I turn to Draco and start nitpicking. He's been coughing this entire time and I can't tell if he's doing it on purpose or not. After dinner Blaise drapes an arm across my shoulders. "When you say your dad found two more of those bikes, one of those wouldn't happen to have my name on it would it?" he whispers. I turn to him with a smile and I can see the hope in his eyes. "I don't know. You want a bicycle right, that's a type of bike, right? Isn't that what you want?" I tease pinching his cheeks before walking away.

He catches up easily and picks me up. "Is teasing me fun Ellie?" he laughs. "Bout as fun as it is when you tease me. I think I now understand why you tease me so much." I giggle. He spins me around until I'm dizzy. I cling to him to so I don't fall down. "Do you think I'll convince my dad to give you the bike if you make me dizzy?" I tilt my head.

He smiles and leans closer. "You just looked really pretty so I kept spinning you. I know other ways to make you dizzy if you'd like to try those instead?" he offers. I blush and turn away. He picks me up carrying me the rest of the way to the common room. He holds my hand as we walk in pulls me onto his lap. I sit there quietly playing with his hands while he talks to Theo and Draco.

I play on my bed with Serenity and smile. Dad is grounded again but mum just gave birth and was a bit more lenient than she would've been before. Astoria bursts in with mail and shrieking excitedly jumps onto my bed. Serenity runs yowling under my bed and I hear her hissing disapprovingly.

Astoria drops down and coaxes her back out with a treat. I open the letter from my parents and let out an ear-splitting screech that makes both Astoria and Serenity run from the room. I roll around on my bed giggling like a little schoolgirl. Pansy picks me up squeals and all and carries me to the common room where she hands me over to Draco and Blaise.

Draco covers my mouth with his hand and I frown before biting him. He smacks my mouth repeatedly and I crawl into Blaise's lap pouting. He pats my back while smiling at Draco. "How am I the bad guy now? She bit me." Draco huffs. Blaise checks me and hums. "You look fine, so why are you pouting?" he smiles.

"I was interrupted." I frown. "What were you screaming about? We could hear you all the way up the stairs." Blaise taps my throat. I hold up the baby pictures. "That's my new baby brother Orion and that's my little sister Emilia." I point them out. Orion has really curly honey blonde hair and gray eyes while Emilia has black hair and blue eyes. Out of all of my parents' children Orion has the curliest hair and it reminds me of instant ramen before it's cooked.

Draco leans over and smiles. "Aren't you going to go show Lavender?" he wonders. I gasp and bolt from the room at top speed. I zero in on my cousin and tackle her to the ground shocking her friends. "Mum... newborns... pretty... cute... so adorable... precious?" I pant. She sits up shaking her head. "Breathe Ellie." she laughs. I show her the picture and she lets out an ear-splitting screech.

Her friends plug their ears. "Wow, it must be from the Brown side of her family." I hear Blaise mutter. "Aren't they just ADORABLE?!" we shriek. Blaise leans against the side of the castle watching us with a smile. We fawn over the pictures for a while then I have to go but I leave Lavender with the pictures.

The boys have one last training before the winter break and I sit in the stands watching and taking notes for Draco. Blaise drops down beside me and I prop my legs in his lap. "Did you get bored today?" I smirk. Blaise winks and tilts his head back. "Ah, because you're so good they ignore your laziness until the match!" I clap my hands.

He opens an eye and scoffs before closing it. "I was going to give you your Christmas gift early but you can wait." he teases. I slide over and put my head on his shoulder. "Please?!" I ask in the most adorable voice I can manage. He smiles and starts laughing. "How am I supposed to make you wait if you use that tone?" he laughs and pats my head.

"You cave because I'm cute." I wink. He pinches my cheek and kisses the top of my head. I whine and place my hands on his chest. "Fine, you're greedy today." he laughs. "WE are greedy every day." I smirk and kiss him. When I start to pull away, he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me back.

I stumble kiss drunk beside him back up to the school. "Wow, what'd you do?" Pansy scoffs. "Me? I didn't do anything." Blaise shrugs. I almost fall down and he scoops me up. "Are you done packing?" Pansy wonders. I nod. "I'm just waiting on my Christmas gift now." I smile patiently. "Bullshit!" Blaise mumbles under his breath earning a hit from Pansy.

I find a present on my bed in the morning and gasp excitedly and run out of the dorm. Blaise is sitting on the couch with a knowing smile. "You can't open it until Christmas." he reminds me. With a running start I flip over the couch and land in his lap. He raises an eyebrow and smiles approvingly. I pepper his face in kisses until the rest of the house wakes up.

"Where'd Blaise run off to already?" Theo wonders as we walk out to the courtyard. "I don't know. He had a real giddy smile on his face earlier. Ask his girlfriend." Pansy nods at me. I shrug nonchalantly. "I only thanked him for my Christmas present then went back to my room." I sigh watching my breath curl and fly away in the winter air.

"Are you sure? You didn't do anything but thank him?" Draco folds his arms. I stomp on his foot. "Don't act like that without knowing all the facts." I huff and walk away. Astoria runs to catch up with me. "Draco's pouting now. Happy?" she throws her arm over my shoulder. "I guess. I just don't like being questioned." I glare at Draco over my shoulder.

After the chaos of the day and Umbridge going 'missing' I sit in front of the fire playing my violin. The Inquisitorial Squad stumbles into the common room yawning. Most go to bed but a few fall onto the couches talking in whispered tired voices. "Shouldn't you be asleep?" Draco wonders. "I can't sleep. I feel like something is wrong?" I whisper. Ignoring the whispered conversations around me I let my fingers play whatever they wish to play.

I drop my bow and hop to my feet. I put my violin and its case and walk dazedly out of the room. I don't know where I'm going but I feel like taking a walk. I wind up at the lake and sit on the shore as tears spill onto my cheeks. "Ellie?" I hear Blaise call. "Miss Brown?!" I hear Snape call softly. I sniffle and finally turn to them. Blaise kneels down and wipes the tears from my cheeks.

We follow Snape to his office where he tells me that my father has died. I sit there my hands in my lap silently crying. Blaise escorts me back to the common room but I'm so distraught that I just stop walking, drop to the floor, curl up in a ball, and cry my eyes out. "Ellie?" Blaise whispers. I look up and he holds out his hands. I jump into his arms hiding my face in his neck.

I spend the next week in bed crying. Astoria crawls onto my bed. Serenity is already meowing sadly and nudging my face with her nose. "Ellie, you're worrying me. You're worrying Blaise and Draco to the point where they're irritating everyone else. Please get out of bed and come to breakfast, ok?" Astoria whispers. She leaves the room and Serenity crawls under my blankets.

I sit up and go to shower and Serenity follows me. I don't even bother to dry my hair and opt to go to the Astronomy Tower. My hair drips water down my back and my eyes drip tears down my face. Draco sits down next to me. "I heard your dad got arrested." I sniffle. He nods and I sigh. "Have you eaten yet?" he mumbles. I shake my head. He hops to his feet. "Come on then. Blaise has Serenity. You need to eat Ellie." Draco helps me to my feet.