Disclaimer: I am not the owner of these characters!
*** Kudos to Hermione Weasley! Yeah for you! You were the first to review! I'm glad you liked the whole soul mate, written in the stars thing! I had a lot of fun thinking up of that little convo between Parvati and Mitch! Thanks for the review! Sugar Blossom thank you so much for telling your friends about my story! I feel honored! Thank you! And yeah! You logged in just to give me a signed review! I feel special! Thanks! Leah Weasley thanks for your review! It's always nice to see someone new…and hmm…my favorite Harry Potter character would have to be Ron. And I like Hermione. Oh, I like Snape too…! Amanda it's great to see your name again! Thanks for the awesome compliments on my story! It means a lot to me and feeds my ego…LOL! I hope you're feeling better! Thank you! HpFaNaTiCa surprise! This time I've got two chapters up for you all! I hope you enjoy them! Thanks! Hermiones-Twin about the whole Lizzie Gordo thing…lets just say they don't "get together" exactly…I don't watch the show either and when I do it's just to see those two interact! LOL! Aren't I horrible! Thank you for the review! It really means a lot to me! Lily Michelle what Parvati said about Ron/Hermione was to be taken anyway you wanted it…I kind of meant it as Parvati was "quoting" Shakespeare…you know how Romeo and Juliet were a "pair of star-crossed lovers" except that doesn't work exactly because they both ended up dead so…you take it whichever way you feel most comfortable (oh, and for the record, I doubt Parvati even knows who Shakespeare was). LOL! I hope you enjoy this next chapter! Danidancer LOL! I'm glad you enjoy the chapter! Thanks for the review (and the happy song)! HogwartsHoe I remember graduation! It was a lot of work! Well, hang in there, you're almost done! Thanks for reviewing when you have time and I understand when you don't! Thanks again! Good luck with everything too! Ron Is Mine thanks for telling me how to spell Gordo! I had no idea! LOL! I'm so glad you're enjoying this story and its direction! It means so much to me! Thank you! Americanangel thank you for the nice compliments! They are always nice to read! (EVERYONE GO READ HOW MANY WAYS by AMERICANANGEL-YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!) Thank you so much for everything! Vanilla Baby the funny this is, I never meant to create so many plot twists…they just…happened… But I'm glad you've enjoyed the story too! Thank you so much for all your reviews! Celeste LOL! I picture Mitch as a really hot guy too! Thanks for all your reviews! They mean the world to me! Hermionereincarnated thank you so much for telling your friends about this story! That is so awesome! LOL! I'm glad you're addicted to my story…it means I'm doing something right! Thanks! Angelic Ashley thank you so much for your review! And yeah! Another new reviewer! Welcome to the "family"! LOL, can I call us a family? I dunno…but whatever! Thank you, thank you, thank you! And alas, there will be some more romance! Shaunna I hope you had fun at your Senior Prom! I know mine was a blast! Thanks for your enthusiastic review and it's great to see you still love Mitch! Yeah! Thank you so much! Mina I adore you…I've got to admit it; you're just adorable and your reviews make me smile! I appreciate them so much! Thanks for everything! Fiona Goldfeet a review is a review is a review no matter how long or short it is so thank you! Lycr thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the quote at the end! Jenny hey there! Nice to see you again! Thank you for the nice long review! I appreciate it! AND I understand that college life is busy so I hope that you only review when you can and in the mean time that my story offers some sort of stress relief! Thank you! Triniroo I really like Parvati and Harry! I really do and I don't know why! Thanks for the nice little review! I appreciate it! Faye and her insane Yami Fairy another new name! Golly I feel liked right about now! I know you're only on Chapter 25 as I write this but I'd just like to say thanks! Maddy Leigh thanks for the nice review! I hope you enjoy these next two chapters! Soupcann314 thanks for your always nice reviews! They really mean a lot to me! Tigress33 you're only on Chapter 8 as I write this but I'd still like to thank you and say that I'm glad you accidentally stumbled upon this story! Thank you! Thank you to all my readers and reviewers you guys are awesome! I hope you enjoy these next couple of chapters!
Chapter 44: Truthfully
"This is insane," Parvati mumbled. "What am I supposed to look for? She has everything right here," she continued rambling to herself as her eyes searched for anything the great Hermione Granger may have left out nothing which at this moment was turning out to be exactly nothing.
"It's perfect," she continued quietly. Hermione had thought of everything, found everything and had written everything down with a precise immaculacy that Parvati was a tad jealous of. It was also making her a tad sick.
She rubbed her temples. Really, shouldn't Arithmancy be done with soon? Not only was reading so much giving her a headache but she was also beginning, or far past beginning maybe, to get bored. She didn't know how Hermione did it; how she could spend so much time reading but good for her.
"Good, you're still here," Hermione said as she breezed into their corner of the library. "I was afraid you might have already left," she continued.
"Not a chance in hell," Parvati muttered under her breath.
"Hmm?" Hermione asked as she sat herself down.
"Oh nothing," Parvati said airily. She passed the book and parchment to Hermione. "Do we really have to do this Hermione? Malfoy isn't going to make this easy for us, you know? In fact, he'll make it downright hard."
"And how do you know that?" Hermione challenged, as if she thought Malfoy would make this easy for them.
"I saw it in my tealeaves this morning," Parvati answered sarcastically.
Hermione's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of the water. "But…you didn't have Divination today yet," she protested.
"I was teasing Hermione," Parvati said.
Hermione blushed. "I knew you were," she said quietly. "Of course you were," she said.
Parvati wisely chose not to reply to this and looked away. "Anyway, I think we just need to do it. That seems to be the easiest thing for us anyway. We have Potions this afternoon. We should be able to get some of the ingredients then, right?"
The other young witch nodded. "Depending on what ingredients we use for this afternoon's Potions lesson. If we each take just a little bit then it should be fine, shouldn't it?"
Parvati groaned. "Knowing Snape he counts each hair of spider in his little jar," she said.
Somehow Hermione was able to picture Snape bending over his precious ingredients with tweezers in hand, counting each and every hair. "You're right; he wouldn't trust a spell to get it right."
Parvati giggled.
"What could be so funny that Granger would be desecrating the silence of the library?" Malfoy drawled as he appeared around the bookshelves.
Immediate giggling stopped.
Parvati raised an eyebrow at Hermione and winked. Hermione had to wonder what her roommate was up to. "Yes Malfoy and why would a Slytherin such as yourself be wondering what could be so funny between two Gryffindors like us?" she asked.
Malfoy gaped openly at them before turning around so fast he nearly tripped over the corner of the bookcase.
He left with the sound of their giggling in his ears.
Hermione was the first able to choke back her laughing and after a couple coughs and then sniffles she was able to speak clearly again. "Alright then, I suppose we should do our homework since we've thoroughly looked through all the information for the potion," she said.
Parvati stopped giggling immediately. "What homework?"
"For our O.W.L.S. and the Transfiguration paper that is due, of course," Hermione said in a tone that told Parvati she should have expected it.
"You know that O.W.L.S. aren't for another four months right?" Parvati questioned.
Hermione nodded. "Of course I know that! Remember the calendar I've put up in our room? Study time has just been wasting away!" she exclaimed.
Parvati shook her head. "Alright then. You do know the Transfiguration paper isn't due for two and a half weeks right?"
"Of course I know that!" She picked up one of the books she had brought in with her. "I can't believe I've already put it off for so long! That was completely irresponsible of me…" Her voice trailed off as she stood to look for another book.
Parvati hid a giggle. Some things never changed.
***
Natalie walked into the Infirmary just ahead of Mitch. She was humming a song she had loved for years as she tried to dismiss the worry that was consuming her. She honestly didn't know what to do.
She knew she should tell Carmen about Lee soon but when was the right time? Did she really want to potentially break her friend's heart as her friend lay helplessly in a hospital bed? She didn't think so.
But then, on the other hand, that whole hospital bed thing might be for her advantage. This way Carmen wouldn't be able to kill her at least, she figured.
She began chewing her nails even while she was walking in to see Lee. Carmen was, for now at least, sleeping. Or at least that's the way it looked to her.
Lee smiled up at her as she walked over to him. Behind their hands Lavender and Padma began giggling and whispering happily. Natalie could only imagine what they were thinking. But then again, maybe she didn't want to imagine what they were saying.
"Hey," she greeted softly. Her smile reached the corners of her eyes. "How are you feeling?"
He shifted uncomfortably in the bed. "I've been better," he said lightly but the pain was evident in his eyes.
Natalie's smile did not waver. She wouldn't let it waver. "It's alright if you don't feel well, you know," she told him truthfully.
"I'm just tired. And I'm sore," he added.
"Well you haven't really been eating or drinking anything recently. And you've been lying in the same position for a time now. Of course you're tired and sore," she replied reasonably.
There was a nice, comfortable silence between them. Lee kept looking at her strangely until finally she was sick of the weird looks and asked him what the deal was.
"I'm just…confused right now. What are you doing here?" he asked.
Still, her smile didn't falter.
Lee must have been embarrassed by his question because he began stuttering something.
"Lee," Natalie interrupted. "Just speak. I'm a friend."
His dark eyes looked into hers earnestly. "Well…it's just…you and I haven't spoken much in the past and now you're giving me all this attention. Don't think I don't like it…I do. Hell, I like it more than I like Fred and George's attention. You know right now they're trying to get me to test some new gag of theirs?"
Natalie laughed softly. "What does that possibly have to do with you and me?" she asked, redirecting his train of thought.
Lee shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought I'd tell you that. Anyhow, it isn't like I don't like you or anything…I think your smart and funny…and you've got great legs."
Natalie blushed a terrible shade of red. He wasn't the first boy to compliment her on her legs but it was embarrassing (in a good way) all the same.
"I'm sorry if I embarrassed you but it's the truth," he said looking directly at her. She could tell he wasn't lying.
"So I'm flattered you're here with me but what I guess I'm trying to ask is why would someone who looks like you go after me? I'm in a hospital bed, remember?" he asked.
Natalie smiled and nodded. "Yes I remember." Then she leaned in close to his ear. "I like you, silly."
From the other side of the room Carmen blinked back unwelcome tears.
How was that chapter? I hope you enjoyed it! It took me awhile to get these posted I know…but two chapters at once and I promise another one Sunday night! Yeah for me! Thanks for sticking with me guys! Please review!
The fighting part of the war is basically over, so now I ask that you all pray/light a candle/meditate/whatever-it-is-you-do for those who lost loved ones, no matter what side they were on. And I ask you give support to our government and I pray personally that you pray our government(s) make the right decisions in the coming days. I apologize if this request has offended you.
If you live to be a hundred, I would want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you.
~ Winnie the Pooh
