The train ride home was a long one. Aidan, Leigh, and Hermione shared a compartment and talked most of the time. The rest of the time, they napped, because they never got enough sleep at school. When they reached the train station, each went their separate ways. Aidan was glad to see his parents waiting close by and he hugged each of them in greeting.
"Hello, champ. How've you been doing?" Sam asked.
"Yes, honey. We've missed you. How's school been?" Jennifer inquired.
"It's been great. I've missed you guys too," Aidan replied. He then looked around the platform. "Uh, Dad? How are we getting home?"
Sam laughed. "Well, I can assure you, your mother has made sure that Travel Tonic is out of the picture. There's a Ministry car waiting in the Muggle parking lot."
Aidan let out a sigh of relief. He wasn't looking forward to Travel Tonic that much. Sam and Jennifer led the way through the barrier and back into the Muggle world. In the parking lot, was a fancy silver car with two little flags sticking up the front. On the tiny flag was a fancy "M," probably for "Ministry." Sam and Aidan packed his things in the trunk and Aidan buckled into the backseat. With a tap of his wand, Sam started the ignition and they were off.
It was a car ride like Aidan had never had before. The car could jump other cars, fit through tiny cracks between buildings, cut through fields at lightning speed and even make letterboxes jump out of the way. It was incredible. They reached the house in no time.
The O'Reilly Mansion was even better than Aidan had remembered it. It was redecorated to portray a feeling of Christmas. The banisters lining the stairways were wrapped in holly and fairy lights. Every door had a wreath and every doorway had a sprig of mistletoe hung over it. The parlour was the best part of the house though. In there was the biggest Christmas tree Aidan had ever seen. At about sixteen feet tall, it was decorated from top to bottom with ribbon, ornaments, candles, and tinsel, all either white or silver. On top was an angel that appeared to be alive, looking about the room. In fact, everything in the house seemed white or silver. The colour was so pure.
After checking out the house and the decorations, Aidan trekked up to his room to unpack and get settled. Even his room seemed to be decorated, though not much. His once crimson sheets were replaced with gold and crimson ones. On the comforter was stitched a great Gryffindor Lion. Aidan smiled.
On the window seat was a nice-looking red Quaffle. It looked new and highly polished. His parents were obviously very proud of him becoming Chaser. Nothing else had changed though.
Aidan went back downstairs after changing and memorizing each aspect of his room, right down to the mouse hole in the corner. His parents were in the kitchen, drinking tea and talking softly. Aidan went and sat down next to them. Almost immediately after doing so, though, he was bombarded with questions.
"How was school?"
"Do you have many new friends?"
"Do you like your classes?"
"Is the food okay?"
"Wait!" Aidan almost shouted. He restrained himself in front of his new parents because he didn't want to look like a whiny kid. "Do you want me to tell you the whole story since I've gotten there? That would make a bit more sense than answering all these questions at once."
Jennifer beamed. "Of course, dear. Go ahead."
So he told them the whole story. He told them about his first lessons and how he did well in each of them even though he was just newly a wizard. He told them about making the Quidditch team and about Ron's jealousy. "And I've met this girl, Leigh Madeira. She's in Ravenclaw and she's really nice. I guess you could call her my girlfriend."
"That's great, son. You seem to be getting along great."
"I love it at Hogwarts, Dad."
"And you've even got a girlfriend! What's she like?"
"Oh, Mom…" Aidan trailed off. He was beginning to feel like a normal child, when you can't talk to your parents about anything because it's embarrassing.
"Please?" Jennifer begged. "Just tell me what she looks like."
"Well, she has blonde hair and these magnificent blue eyes. She's about five-foot-four and she's skinny. Not deathly skinny, but beautiful skinny. She has this way of making me feel so good around her and she's so spontaneous that…" Aidan stopped himself once he realised that he was going into the kind of detail that you'd rather not want your parents to know. "And she lives around here, too."
"She sounds er, just great," Sam said.
"You know, honey, you should really invite her over before the holidays end. I would sure like to meet her," Jennifer said.
"Sure, Mom. We were going to meet at some Muggle hamburger restaurant in town. She says she knows the whole city by heart. I'll invite her over after we go out."
"What did you say her last name was, Aidan?" Sam asked.
"Madeira. It sounds sort of Hispanic, don't you think? I like it."
"I think I know her father. Or at least I've heard of his name. Did she say what he does?"
"Dad, come on. We don't really talk about our parents' careers!"
"Right, right." Sam seemed a bit preoccupied. There was something about that name that made him feel weird. He didn't know what yet though.
Aidan went up stairs to read shortly afterward. He had found a book called Ten Points Could Be the Difference: Chaser Techniques that he desperately wanted to read. He figured that if he could learn and practice all the moves he could, he may have a chance to secure his spot on the team.
As he settled into bed that night, he thanked God for all that he now had, and for how well he had blessed him. He had Hogwarts, two parents that loved him, great friends, Leigh, and Quidditch. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
~*~*~*~*~*~
A heavy blanket of snow had settled in around the castle and Harry, Ron and Ginny decided that it was the perfect opportunity for a snowball fight. Harry and Ginny thought it would be great to gang up on Ron and quickly built a fort and artillery. Much to the couple's pleasure, Ron was outnumbered and soaking wet. He surrendered quickly.
As the trio retreated back into the castle, Ron, who was sulking from defeat, departed to the Owlery to write to Hermione. After saying goodbye, he pulled out a snowball he had hidden behind his back and smashed it onto Harry's head. He ran away laughing evilly. [A/N:: Can't you see Ron doing that? Haha~~!!]
Ginny couldn't help herself, either. Harry looked pretty funny with white snow melting onto his black-haired head. "He's an idiot," she said to cover up her mirth.
"Yeah, well, since you're his sister…" Harry then gathered a pile of snow and pelted it at Ginny. She ran through the entrance hall quickly and avoided any future snowballs. Harry ran after her as fast as he could. She had quite a head start so he fell behind. As he hit the seventh floor, he could see the portrait of the Fat Lady closing. He sprinted to it and said the password ("Pickled Newt").
Ginny was laughing hysterically on the couch in front of the fire. Harry ran to the couch and pounced on her. "You're going to get it," he said playfully.
"And what exactly am I going to get, Mr. Potter?"
"Well, I'm not exactly sure yet, Ms. Weasley, but I think that this will do for now." He leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips. Ginny closed her eyes. It was the single best feeling in the world. She was in love.
"Er, Harry, I'm not sure that that's punishment."
"You're too pretty to punish." He looked at her with a fire in his eye. He was the most sincere he had ever been with anyone. "I love you Ginny Weasley."
"I love you, Harry Potter."
They sat in front of the fire for a long time, just holding each other. It just felt so right. Ginny fit perfectly in Harry's muscular arms, and Harry couldn't help thinking this.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Yes, Wormtail. This is it. Azkaban is ours, our faithful Death Eaters will be released in moments."
"And the giants, Master?" Wormtail whispered.
"We will be meeting them in Bristol. That old fool Dumbledore just couldn't provide what the giants wanted," Voldemort said with a sneer.
"Yes, Master. Do you want me to go in now?"
"Yes, Wormtail. This should be a pleasant visit for my faithful followers," Voldemort whispered evilly. Wormtail whimpered and then turned into a rat. Voldemort stood on the outskirts of the island and watched the rat scurry away through the gates.
The inside of Azkaban was a horrible experience. People were screaming and Wormtail could feel the strength draining from his tiny rat body. Some though, seemed to sense his presence. "He's coming," they whispered. "The Dark Lord is coming back. He's coming to free us all." The dementors seemed to get excited too. They could sense that Voldemort would be back to free them.
Suddenly, Wormtail turned into a man again and a flash of red light immediately emitted from his wand. Voldemort could see it outside and he smiled when he saw it. "Let Dumbledore try and stop me this time."
The bars had vanished from the cells inside the prison and people were filing out into the halls. Wormtail guided them with his wand flashing. The dementors all gathered outside in a huddle of black cloaks. Voldemort went to meet them.
"Ah, my dementors. Are you ready to fully devote yourselves to me, to suck the very happiness from the world?" he asked quietly. The excitement in the group of dementors grew, and Voldemort took that for a yes. "Yes, we will be leaving for the mainland momentarily to meet the giants. Once my Death Eaters are gathered and ready," he grinned maliciously. "It will be time for my rise again."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"You know, you never told you lived in such a big house, mister," Leigh said playfully.
"You never asked," Aidan replied. The couple were on a date at a Muggle hamburger restaurant called The Purple Cow. It was different for Aidan to be back in the Muggle world since spending almost three months at Hogwarts. "You're going to come over after this right, to meet my parents?"
"Of course! I would love to meet your parents. You have to meet mine though."
"I will. Are they just as fabulous as you?"
"Why wouldn't they be?" Leigh said with a smile. Aidan kissed her.
"I couldn't imagine you coming from rotten parents."
"I don't."
"I know. You're a good role model. They have to be fantastic."
"You know, let's blow this pop stand and see the city. It's gorgeous this time of year."
"Why not? Let's go." Essex was buried in a blanket of snow. It was beautiful, and the snow glistened without the slightest speck of dirt protruding from the bottom. The Christmas lights that were wrapped around the street lights added to the festivity of the season. Aidan loved it.
Leigh led Aidan to the centre of town where there was a group of men and women singing Christmas carols. "I come here all the time," Leigh explained. "To hear them sing." It truly was a beautiful sound. Aidan loved hearing "Silent Night" in German.
"Don't you love it?" Leigh asked.
"I love it. I couldn't have asked for anything more, especially being here with you," he answered.
"I'm glad you like it. Besides, I'm broke," she added. Aidan laughed.
"You just never quit making me laugh."
"Hey, what do you think I'm here for?" she said, grinning mischievously.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Harry woke up suddenly. The familiar twinge of pain in his scar had awakened him. He was in Ginny's room (innocently, of course) and at first he did not recognize his surroundings. Once he had collected his bearings, however, he thought about the dream he was having.
**There had been a terrible storm, somewhere near water. The waves crashed against everything in their way. Out in the middle of the ocean was a large building upon a rock and Harry was standing on the shore, looking at it. Without warning, the whole sky was filled with red light, but not for more than a split second. When Harry looked back out at the water, the building was gone, as though it had never been there.** The next thing Harry knew was that he was awake with his scar hurting. He knew something was going to happen soon. The thing he had been waiting for all summer.
Harry looked down at Ginny who was sleeping peacefully, her auburn hair falling gently onto her face. He had come up in the middle of the night to see her. He didn't want her to feel lonely being the only fourth year girl to stay for the Christmas holidays. Seeing her there at peace made him feel a little better, though he couldn't push the thought away that danger was coming.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Note:: Like? I'm proud of it. Please REVIEW~!! I'm a little down, that's why this is taking me so long (that and ridiculously long and painful schoolwork!). I don't want to have to remove this story, because I've worked really hard on it. More to come (hopefully) Bye!