To Sbys: Thanks a Million again for your nice reviews!!! And sure enough I
won't ever get tired of hearing form you :-) I'm just so grateful that
there is someone who reads my stories and says something about them :-) !!
But please, if you find something that you can criticize on, make sure to
do so. I'd highly appreciate that too, especially coming from you since
your story is my absolute, rival-free favorite by now! I hope you do
continue with the next chapter real soon :-) !
And I hope that you like this chapter since I'm not so sure about it
myself. It's rather long, too. Anyhow. :-)
To Muffinlover: Thank you so much for your review! I am so glad you liked the first three chapters of my story! And if it wasn't for you and your nice first review, I wouldn't have continued writing it (and/or posting it) at all. So thank you so much for that! I hope you'll like the fourth chapter also. I'm not so sure about it yet :-( But please let me know what you think of it and tell me what I could be improving. I just noticed that you have posted two stories yourself so I'll go and read them as soon as I'm done with posting this chapter. Keep reviewing, I appreciate it so much!
Disclaimer: I certainly do not own any of the recognized characters mentioned in this story (although that would be nice *sighs*) They solitary belong to J.K. Rowling.
***
Still too distressed by Hermione's phone call to seriously get going and get ready, Harry remained sitting on the bench on the porch, propping his legs up on the chair in front of him. It would have never occurred to him that she would take his decision, to not visit the Burrow this summer, the way she did. But then again, - Harry thought, a smile appearing on his features, - he could never tell exactly what Hermione was thinking. Sometimes it felt as if she knew him inside out, and so did he, but then he found himself wondering what in Merlin's name was going on in that head of hers.
Truth be told, Harry realized that it wasn't too implausible for his two best friends to feel the way they did. He sighed heavily. His eyes closed, he felt a slight breeze, almost lovingly caressing his face, going through his hair, making it all the messier.
"It feels so good to have the sun warming you up like that," Harry noted subconsciously. Feeling so utterly relaxed, he dozed off.
*** "The Dark Lord prepares himself for the last and final battle. He has been brought back to life to be tremendously powerful. His desire for supremacy has been increased. He thirsts after the weapon that can, in due course, defeat his Nemesis. Beware, Harry Potter!"
Professor Trelawney's hoarse, croaking voice, so unlike her usually misty and mysterious one, penetrated Harry's mind. He saw her sitting rigidly in her armchair, eyes unfocused.
"The ultimate combat will be violent, ruthless and it will cost sacrifices. many sacrifices. Are you willing to make these, Harry Potter? Are you ready? For behold, the day will come! Now what are you waiting for? Get up; we were supposed to meet at 2 am!"
"What? What's going on? Let go of me, Professor!" Harry shot up, causing the chair to fall down, making a loud clanking noise, and the bench to slide against the wall, causing Professor Trelawney to withdraw her hand quickly, that before was resting on his shoulder.
Adjusting his glasses, sitting all crookedly on his nose, due to his sudden jump, he starred at the person in front of him. It was by no means Professor Trelawney. Although she did have a certain scared look on her face, surveying him in an apprehensive manner, as if worried that he might have an unsuspected outburst again. It was Grace.
"I am so sorry," she said. "I didn't imagine I would scare you like that. The backdoor was open and since you didn't answer the door, I mean, I just thought." She stopped, blushing.
Harry imagined that she probably felt like she had to apologize for just walking in like that, so he quickly reassured her.
"Don't be, that's ok. I'm sorry I didn't open the door; I just didn't hear you ring the bell. I must have dozed of. I'm really sorry. You know what, I'm really glad that you thought of coming through the backdoor. I would have been so mad at myself if I didn't meet you."
That established a smile on Grace's face immediately. She beamed at him, her eyes sparkling. This was the first opportunity for Harry to take in her appearance today. Her silvery blond hair was pulled into a ponytail that still ran down the half of her back. A few curls circled her oval shaped face, framing it elegantly. Her azure eyes reflected the sun beams as she fixed her gaze on Harry, carrying her smile in them as well. She wore a pink tank top with extremely small straps, revealing her small shoulders and plenty of her ivory colored skin. Harry blushed slightly as his gaze ran over her figure. She was so stunning in his eyes. Again he caught himself thinking that only a Veela could invoke feelings like that in him.
Grace laughed quietly, undoubtedly noticing how hypnotized Harry was by her. He hardly noticed. "So you were dreaming of some teacher? Some Professor is it? Yeah I know that teachers sure can bring about horrible nightmares." she finally said, causing Harry to jerk back into reality, suddenly nervously aware that he must have been goggling at her for quite a while.
"Yeah, I mean, y, yes," he stuttered, fighting hard to get a grip on himself once more. "She is quite a scare, you know. I thought that I was in class with her again and, um, I think she gave me intention." He frantically thought of something that might justify his strange behavior.
"Well detention is not that bad now, is it?" Grace smiled.
A vivid image of himself, sitting in an office in a tower in Hogwarts, decorated by vases of dried flowers and a collection of plates, each displaying a large technicolor kitten with a bow around its neck - and worst of all: writing down lines on a parchment with a razor sharp quill, with no ink and having the written words cut into the back of his hand, tracing his writing on the parchment with his own blood.
"No," he mumbled. "It's not that bad at all. I'm sorry if I scared you."
"That's quite alright", Grace promised. "Do you want to get going now? It's already fifteen past two!"
"Yeah, sure. Where do you want to go anyway?"
"Well I thought, maybe we could go to the lake nearby; you know the one a few miles south of Surrey. Then we could go on a boat ride or something. And my Dad told me that they have an ice cream parlor there, which sells excellent ice cream cones. But I'm sure you know all about that, don't you?"
Harry reflected on what she just said. So it sounded like they really had a decent place close to the dreadful location of where he spent most of his life, and every summer in the past. And he had never heard as much as a thing of it. Sure enough, the Dursleys went on what they called "Diddykins' treat - days" every now and then. Harry knew that Dudley got to pick something, whatever it was, and they would go on and do that so "Dinky Diddydums gets to relax a little from that stressful time at Smeltings school". But obviously they never took Harry with them. Although, he thought dully, he wouldn't have been surprised if they had taken him to this lake, getting their hopes up that he might drown at some point of time.
"Well no, I haven't heard about it to be honest. I spend most of the year at school, you know." Harry said, hoping that he didn't sound like a complete moron.
"That's alright, we'll see what it's like" Grace smirked. "But if we don't get going quite soon, we might not catch the bus to take us there."
With that she offered Harry her hand to pull him up from the bench he had fallen onto again, pulling him upwards.
"Ready?" she asked, smiling.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Harry said, returning her smile.
***
After a thirty minutes ride on a rather bumpy street in a hot and sticky bus, that reminded Harry of the Knight's Bus in several ways, for example the way it stopped to let people get on and of, having the other passengers nearly fall of their seats, they arrived at a picturesque lake, surrounded by soft wavy hills, occupied by loads of fluffy white sheep, making it look like a green side covered with little clouds.
"Isn't this place pretty?" Grace sighed, climbing out of the bus after him. Harry agreed with her. It really was a charming location.
They decided to first stroll around the lake for a little while before enjoying one of these famous ice cream treats. Leisurely walking around the lake, Harry listened to Grace's narrations about where she came from and what in this world made her and her family move to Privet Drive.
"My father was offered a job at the town counsel in Surrey, you know," Grace said, "and his position here is so much better than his previous one. Besides, my parents said that this was probably a nice place to raise your children. I have a sister who just turned 4 so she'll start school soon. And I'll be going to the local school here. Of course you don't happen to know anything about that school, do you?"
Harry shrugged. Certainly he heard about the local school in Surrey. For quite a long time he was sure he had to attend this school, which was a dreadful thought to him. He found himself reminded of how little he knew of the muggle world that he once considered the only one in existence really.
After they circled the lake, they decided that it was time for some ice cream. It was again an enormously hot day. They chose a table on the veranda of the ice cream parlor, having a beautiful view of the lake.
"Do you think there might be some sea creature in there?" Grace giggled. "You know, like the Loch Ness monster?"
"I wouldn't be surprised" Harry said earnestly, not exactly thinking of what she just said. He thought of the Giant squib in the lake at Hogwarts and the mer people he had to face during his second task at the Triwizard tournament. Harry was really not the person to be easily surprised by strange creatures, not having Hagrid as a friend who considered fire spitting dragons and gigantic spiders to be delightful pets. He was suddenly aware of Grace staring at him with confusion in her eyes.
"What do you mean?" she breathed. Harry was suddenly conscious of how his statement must have sounded to her. He tried to think of a good excuse but he was spared to find one because of Grace bursting into laughter.
"You can be so funny, you know that? You got me believing that you actually believed in sea monsters for a second! You should take some acting class in school because you're really talented!" She held her belly which seemed to ache from laughing so hard. Harry joined her, laughing too, although not entirely out of the same reason.
The ice cream was indeed tasty. Although the whipped cream didn't jump into your face when you first put your spoon into it, the cherry didn't make you float of your seat and hover in mid-air for a minute, and the almonds didn't hop around in your stomach for a while, - as they sometimes did in the magical world, - the ice cream was purely delicious.
Although Grace refused to accept it at first, Harry paid for both their ice creams with the muggle money he had brought along. He found it useful that he always had some with him, even though he rarely needed any.
Contently full of ice cream, they thought that it was time to rent a boat and row some around the lake. The boat rental was very close to the ice cream parlor. The owner of the boat rental was a spiteful looking man in his fifties, who eyed them suspiciously with his menacing little eyes. The ginger cat that was creeping around his feet completed the uncomfortable similarity to Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts School, who's most wished-for desire was so close to being fulfilled in Harry's previous school year: becoming the permission to whip students whenever he saw fit.
Nevertheless Grace and Harry rented a little boat for "two hours maximum" as the Filch-look-alike reminded them of unpleasantly.
Harry stepped into the boat first which wobbled dangerously as soon as he stepped into it. Being the gentleman, Harry offered his hand to Grace and helped her into the boat.
"Milady?"
Grace giggled and took is hand. Effortlessly she managed to climb into the boat and with ease situated herself on the other side, facing Harry.
"Ready?" he said, smiling. Although he never rowed before, he had an idea on how it was done and didn't think there should be loads of difficulties.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Grace grinned, winking at him.
"Ok, let's go then." Harry took the paddle and started moving them through the water strongly. Concentrating on the correct movement, on how to dip the paddle into the surface and how to move it through the water, he managed to get the little boat moving at noticeably speed.
He silently cursed this horrible Professor Umbridge once more for giving him a life time ban for Quidditch. He knew that if he had been able to practice all through the last year, he would have been in an even better physical shape. Noticing Grace staring at his arms, moving while rowing the boat, he inwardly grinned and thought that he might not be so much out of shape after all.
"How about taking a little break and sun bathe for a while," Grace asked as they reached about the middle of the lake. The boat was rocking slightly and the water was glistening in the sunlight as if entirely covered with crystals.
Harry agreed and pulled in the paddles, stretched his legs out in front of him and closed his eyes. He enjoyed the feeling of the sun on his face so much. He felt totally at ease. It felt like the sun's warmth was melting some of the icy pain in his chest that had been building up there for the last couple of weeks.
"So where did your parents go? I haven't seen them at all." Grace's voice pulled him back into reality and he opened his eyes, directing his gaze towards the girl in front of him. It hadn't occurred to him that she could have possibly thought that he was living with his parents! Of course, the Dursleys have been gone by the time Grace moved into Privet Drive, but still. It was a totally new experience for him to meet someone who didn't know that his parents were murdered by the dark wizard Voldemort, or at least know that they are dead!
He looked down, fixing his eyes on his shoes.
"They are dead. Died when I was still a baby." He didn't look up.
"I am so sorry," Grace whispered. "I didn't know."
"That's alright, you don't have to apologize" Harry said quickly, looking into her face that showed a lot of compassion. Strange enough it didn't bother him. Usually he didn't want anyone to pity or to feel sorry for him. But everything was a lot different with Grace. He felt comfortable in her presence, thoroughly enjoying her company. He came to realize that she was just as much a remedy for him as was the time he spent at the Dursleys without his irritating relatives at home, away from the magical world. He wondered if he had ever felt as comfortable with a girl before, besides of course with Hermione and Ginny.
"Um, do you mind putting some suntan lotion on my back?" Grace interrupted his thoughts. "I just get sunburned so easily."
"Um, no, of course not," Harry said, dazed. Again she had caught him off- guard, lost in his thoughts.
Grace moved cautiously closer to him, trying hard to keep her balance on the shaking boat, then turning her back to him and sitting down in front of him, so he had on knee on either side of her shoulder. This sudden proximity to her caused him to feel slightly nervous. He took the suntan lotion that she had pulled out of her purse and had handed it to him. Subsequent to this she pulled her long silvery pony tail over her shoulder, slid the straps of her top down on her arms to expose her back to him. Harry felt positively uneasy now. Facing Voldemort or his Death Eaters was one thing. But being this close to a beautiful girl was another. "The only thing they can do is kill you," Harry thought drearily, squeezing some of the suntan lotion onto his right hand.
The first time his hand made contact with her silky skin, he felt as if an electric shock went through his whole body. She must have felt similar for he felt her tremble slightly, almost undetectably under his touch. Biting his lower lip, he tried hard to concentrate on spreading the white lotion onto her back, trying hard not to marvel at the way her smooth skin felt under his fingers and the way her muscles tightened and relaxed. Trying to stay focused, he surrendered his attention completely to her and the suntan lotion.
After he finished spreading the lotion over her back, he daringly let his hands linger on her shoulders for a few more moments, enjoying the position of his hands on her skin.
Grace suddenly took hold of his left hand which was resting on her left shoulder and pulled it closer to her, pressing her lips on his palm for a brief second.
"Thank you" she said, turning around to him, smiling.
Harry's stomach did a sudden back flip. He was in a state of shock, speculating on how it was possible that this girl was able to confuse him repetitively.
Returning to her seat on the other side of the little boat, facing him, Grace asked "Now what are we going to do?"
"I don't know exactly. Well, we could go on for a little bit; maybe go over to the other bank?" Harry suggested.
"Nice idea." Grace agreed, examining the other side of the lake. "Looks really nice over there."
As soon as they reached their destination, they got out of the boat and quickly found a nice shady place under a few big oak trees.
"This is so lovely," Grace sighed, sitting down under the biggest of the trees, leaning her back against the trunk, spreading out her legs in front of her and glancing at the sparkling surface of the lake. "It's just beautiful."
Harry silently agreed. Not so much because of the beauty of the surroundings, but also because of the fact that it reminded him of Hogwarts and its lake to such a great extent. He sat down next to her, leaning his back onto the big tree as well. "Who could have figured that there was a place so similar to Hogwarts' lake in such close proximity to Privet Drive?" he thought, while his thoughts started wondering of again, as so often these last days when he let his mind relax completely.
"May I ask you something?" Grace enquired after a few minutes of restful, peaceful silence.
"Sure," Harry answered drowsily.
"How did you get this scar on your forehead? It really looks extraordinary!"
Within a second Harry was fully awake again, his mind racing and his pulse speeding up. Of course there wasn't a big problem with telling her some sort of lie, but being asked a question about his scar was something he couldn't take unserious.
"Well, it happened when, I mean," he had to be rather careful. He had to make up some plausible excuse for a lightning shaped scar centred on his forehead while not giving anything away which would result in a breach of the magical law, forbidding every action that might occur in the exposure of the wizarding world.
"This shouldn't be so hard," Harry thought, thinking frantically. He had to explain his scar to muggles before, why should it be so difficult now?
"I hurt myself when I was a small child." he finally said. That was partly true. Well, he didn't hurt himself, of course. But this should be enough to satisfy her curiosity. Or was it?
"Hmh, it's still very unusual looking," Grace went on, sure enough. But then she met his eyes, obviously seeing that he didn't want to continue on this subject and so she eventually dropped it.
The both of them went on talking a little about their experiences of going to a new school, finding new friends and adjusting oneself to a different surrounding. Now that certainly was something Harry could comment on. Only five years ago it was as if was planted into a whole new university, demanding a lot of adjustability of him.
"I hope it won't be too tough," Grace sighed. "I usually make friends quite easily. But I still hoped you would be going to school with me." With these words she directed her glance directly towards him, her azure eyes looking intensely into his green ones.
As soon as their eyes locked, Harry felt as if was stunned by an enormously powerful spell.
"And it's not only because I don't know anyone else," Grace continued, remaining her eyes fixed upon Harry's. Harry wondered for an instant if she was able to do Legilimency, the art of externally penetrating the mind while starring into the other person's eyes.
"It's mainly because," she paused,"- I like you, Harry Potter. You're so much unlike all the boys I've met before. You've got a somewhat mysterious air around you. But above all, I enjoy being in your company a lot. It's really sad that you'll have to go back to Scotland soon."
Harry gulped. That was unquestionably not what he expected at all. He felt his stomach give an involuntary lurch as he watched Grace reaching over, placing her hand on his own which was resting on his leg, interlacing their fingers. Looking up to him she smiled again then inclining her head until it rested softly on his shoulder.
Not knowing exactly how to react to all this and utterly surprised by her actions, he started to gently caress her fingers with his right hand, enjoying the feeling of her hair tickling on his neck and her warm body next to him.
To Muffinlover: Thank you so much for your review! I am so glad you liked the first three chapters of my story! And if it wasn't for you and your nice first review, I wouldn't have continued writing it (and/or posting it) at all. So thank you so much for that! I hope you'll like the fourth chapter also. I'm not so sure about it yet :-( But please let me know what you think of it and tell me what I could be improving. I just noticed that you have posted two stories yourself so I'll go and read them as soon as I'm done with posting this chapter. Keep reviewing, I appreciate it so much!
Disclaimer: I certainly do not own any of the recognized characters mentioned in this story (although that would be nice *sighs*) They solitary belong to J.K. Rowling.
***
Still too distressed by Hermione's phone call to seriously get going and get ready, Harry remained sitting on the bench on the porch, propping his legs up on the chair in front of him. It would have never occurred to him that she would take his decision, to not visit the Burrow this summer, the way she did. But then again, - Harry thought, a smile appearing on his features, - he could never tell exactly what Hermione was thinking. Sometimes it felt as if she knew him inside out, and so did he, but then he found himself wondering what in Merlin's name was going on in that head of hers.
Truth be told, Harry realized that it wasn't too implausible for his two best friends to feel the way they did. He sighed heavily. His eyes closed, he felt a slight breeze, almost lovingly caressing his face, going through his hair, making it all the messier.
"It feels so good to have the sun warming you up like that," Harry noted subconsciously. Feeling so utterly relaxed, he dozed off.
*** "The Dark Lord prepares himself for the last and final battle. He has been brought back to life to be tremendously powerful. His desire for supremacy has been increased. He thirsts after the weapon that can, in due course, defeat his Nemesis. Beware, Harry Potter!"
Professor Trelawney's hoarse, croaking voice, so unlike her usually misty and mysterious one, penetrated Harry's mind. He saw her sitting rigidly in her armchair, eyes unfocused.
"The ultimate combat will be violent, ruthless and it will cost sacrifices. many sacrifices. Are you willing to make these, Harry Potter? Are you ready? For behold, the day will come! Now what are you waiting for? Get up; we were supposed to meet at 2 am!"
"What? What's going on? Let go of me, Professor!" Harry shot up, causing the chair to fall down, making a loud clanking noise, and the bench to slide against the wall, causing Professor Trelawney to withdraw her hand quickly, that before was resting on his shoulder.
Adjusting his glasses, sitting all crookedly on his nose, due to his sudden jump, he starred at the person in front of him. It was by no means Professor Trelawney. Although she did have a certain scared look on her face, surveying him in an apprehensive manner, as if worried that he might have an unsuspected outburst again. It was Grace.
"I am so sorry," she said. "I didn't imagine I would scare you like that. The backdoor was open and since you didn't answer the door, I mean, I just thought." She stopped, blushing.
Harry imagined that she probably felt like she had to apologize for just walking in like that, so he quickly reassured her.
"Don't be, that's ok. I'm sorry I didn't open the door; I just didn't hear you ring the bell. I must have dozed of. I'm really sorry. You know what, I'm really glad that you thought of coming through the backdoor. I would have been so mad at myself if I didn't meet you."
That established a smile on Grace's face immediately. She beamed at him, her eyes sparkling. This was the first opportunity for Harry to take in her appearance today. Her silvery blond hair was pulled into a ponytail that still ran down the half of her back. A few curls circled her oval shaped face, framing it elegantly. Her azure eyes reflected the sun beams as she fixed her gaze on Harry, carrying her smile in them as well. She wore a pink tank top with extremely small straps, revealing her small shoulders and plenty of her ivory colored skin. Harry blushed slightly as his gaze ran over her figure. She was so stunning in his eyes. Again he caught himself thinking that only a Veela could invoke feelings like that in him.
Grace laughed quietly, undoubtedly noticing how hypnotized Harry was by her. He hardly noticed. "So you were dreaming of some teacher? Some Professor is it? Yeah I know that teachers sure can bring about horrible nightmares." she finally said, causing Harry to jerk back into reality, suddenly nervously aware that he must have been goggling at her for quite a while.
"Yeah, I mean, y, yes," he stuttered, fighting hard to get a grip on himself once more. "She is quite a scare, you know. I thought that I was in class with her again and, um, I think she gave me intention." He frantically thought of something that might justify his strange behavior.
"Well detention is not that bad now, is it?" Grace smiled.
A vivid image of himself, sitting in an office in a tower in Hogwarts, decorated by vases of dried flowers and a collection of plates, each displaying a large technicolor kitten with a bow around its neck - and worst of all: writing down lines on a parchment with a razor sharp quill, with no ink and having the written words cut into the back of his hand, tracing his writing on the parchment with his own blood.
"No," he mumbled. "It's not that bad at all. I'm sorry if I scared you."
"That's quite alright", Grace promised. "Do you want to get going now? It's already fifteen past two!"
"Yeah, sure. Where do you want to go anyway?"
"Well I thought, maybe we could go to the lake nearby; you know the one a few miles south of Surrey. Then we could go on a boat ride or something. And my Dad told me that they have an ice cream parlor there, which sells excellent ice cream cones. But I'm sure you know all about that, don't you?"
Harry reflected on what she just said. So it sounded like they really had a decent place close to the dreadful location of where he spent most of his life, and every summer in the past. And he had never heard as much as a thing of it. Sure enough, the Dursleys went on what they called "Diddykins' treat - days" every now and then. Harry knew that Dudley got to pick something, whatever it was, and they would go on and do that so "Dinky Diddydums gets to relax a little from that stressful time at Smeltings school". But obviously they never took Harry with them. Although, he thought dully, he wouldn't have been surprised if they had taken him to this lake, getting their hopes up that he might drown at some point of time.
"Well no, I haven't heard about it to be honest. I spend most of the year at school, you know." Harry said, hoping that he didn't sound like a complete moron.
"That's alright, we'll see what it's like" Grace smirked. "But if we don't get going quite soon, we might not catch the bus to take us there."
With that she offered Harry her hand to pull him up from the bench he had fallen onto again, pulling him upwards.
"Ready?" she asked, smiling.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Harry said, returning her smile.
***
After a thirty minutes ride on a rather bumpy street in a hot and sticky bus, that reminded Harry of the Knight's Bus in several ways, for example the way it stopped to let people get on and of, having the other passengers nearly fall of their seats, they arrived at a picturesque lake, surrounded by soft wavy hills, occupied by loads of fluffy white sheep, making it look like a green side covered with little clouds.
"Isn't this place pretty?" Grace sighed, climbing out of the bus after him. Harry agreed with her. It really was a charming location.
They decided to first stroll around the lake for a little while before enjoying one of these famous ice cream treats. Leisurely walking around the lake, Harry listened to Grace's narrations about where she came from and what in this world made her and her family move to Privet Drive.
"My father was offered a job at the town counsel in Surrey, you know," Grace said, "and his position here is so much better than his previous one. Besides, my parents said that this was probably a nice place to raise your children. I have a sister who just turned 4 so she'll start school soon. And I'll be going to the local school here. Of course you don't happen to know anything about that school, do you?"
Harry shrugged. Certainly he heard about the local school in Surrey. For quite a long time he was sure he had to attend this school, which was a dreadful thought to him. He found himself reminded of how little he knew of the muggle world that he once considered the only one in existence really.
After they circled the lake, they decided that it was time for some ice cream. It was again an enormously hot day. They chose a table on the veranda of the ice cream parlor, having a beautiful view of the lake.
"Do you think there might be some sea creature in there?" Grace giggled. "You know, like the Loch Ness monster?"
"I wouldn't be surprised" Harry said earnestly, not exactly thinking of what she just said. He thought of the Giant squib in the lake at Hogwarts and the mer people he had to face during his second task at the Triwizard tournament. Harry was really not the person to be easily surprised by strange creatures, not having Hagrid as a friend who considered fire spitting dragons and gigantic spiders to be delightful pets. He was suddenly aware of Grace staring at him with confusion in her eyes.
"What do you mean?" she breathed. Harry was suddenly conscious of how his statement must have sounded to her. He tried to think of a good excuse but he was spared to find one because of Grace bursting into laughter.
"You can be so funny, you know that? You got me believing that you actually believed in sea monsters for a second! You should take some acting class in school because you're really talented!" She held her belly which seemed to ache from laughing so hard. Harry joined her, laughing too, although not entirely out of the same reason.
The ice cream was indeed tasty. Although the whipped cream didn't jump into your face when you first put your spoon into it, the cherry didn't make you float of your seat and hover in mid-air for a minute, and the almonds didn't hop around in your stomach for a while, - as they sometimes did in the magical world, - the ice cream was purely delicious.
Although Grace refused to accept it at first, Harry paid for both their ice creams with the muggle money he had brought along. He found it useful that he always had some with him, even though he rarely needed any.
Contently full of ice cream, they thought that it was time to rent a boat and row some around the lake. The boat rental was very close to the ice cream parlor. The owner of the boat rental was a spiteful looking man in his fifties, who eyed them suspiciously with his menacing little eyes. The ginger cat that was creeping around his feet completed the uncomfortable similarity to Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts School, who's most wished-for desire was so close to being fulfilled in Harry's previous school year: becoming the permission to whip students whenever he saw fit.
Nevertheless Grace and Harry rented a little boat for "two hours maximum" as the Filch-look-alike reminded them of unpleasantly.
Harry stepped into the boat first which wobbled dangerously as soon as he stepped into it. Being the gentleman, Harry offered his hand to Grace and helped her into the boat.
"Milady?"
Grace giggled and took is hand. Effortlessly she managed to climb into the boat and with ease situated herself on the other side, facing Harry.
"Ready?" he said, smiling. Although he never rowed before, he had an idea on how it was done and didn't think there should be loads of difficulties.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Grace grinned, winking at him.
"Ok, let's go then." Harry took the paddle and started moving them through the water strongly. Concentrating on the correct movement, on how to dip the paddle into the surface and how to move it through the water, he managed to get the little boat moving at noticeably speed.
He silently cursed this horrible Professor Umbridge once more for giving him a life time ban for Quidditch. He knew that if he had been able to practice all through the last year, he would have been in an even better physical shape. Noticing Grace staring at his arms, moving while rowing the boat, he inwardly grinned and thought that he might not be so much out of shape after all.
"How about taking a little break and sun bathe for a while," Grace asked as they reached about the middle of the lake. The boat was rocking slightly and the water was glistening in the sunlight as if entirely covered with crystals.
Harry agreed and pulled in the paddles, stretched his legs out in front of him and closed his eyes. He enjoyed the feeling of the sun on his face so much. He felt totally at ease. It felt like the sun's warmth was melting some of the icy pain in his chest that had been building up there for the last couple of weeks.
"So where did your parents go? I haven't seen them at all." Grace's voice pulled him back into reality and he opened his eyes, directing his gaze towards the girl in front of him. It hadn't occurred to him that she could have possibly thought that he was living with his parents! Of course, the Dursleys have been gone by the time Grace moved into Privet Drive, but still. It was a totally new experience for him to meet someone who didn't know that his parents were murdered by the dark wizard Voldemort, or at least know that they are dead!
He looked down, fixing his eyes on his shoes.
"They are dead. Died when I was still a baby." He didn't look up.
"I am so sorry," Grace whispered. "I didn't know."
"That's alright, you don't have to apologize" Harry said quickly, looking into her face that showed a lot of compassion. Strange enough it didn't bother him. Usually he didn't want anyone to pity or to feel sorry for him. But everything was a lot different with Grace. He felt comfortable in her presence, thoroughly enjoying her company. He came to realize that she was just as much a remedy for him as was the time he spent at the Dursleys without his irritating relatives at home, away from the magical world. He wondered if he had ever felt as comfortable with a girl before, besides of course with Hermione and Ginny.
"Um, do you mind putting some suntan lotion on my back?" Grace interrupted his thoughts. "I just get sunburned so easily."
"Um, no, of course not," Harry said, dazed. Again she had caught him off- guard, lost in his thoughts.
Grace moved cautiously closer to him, trying hard to keep her balance on the shaking boat, then turning her back to him and sitting down in front of him, so he had on knee on either side of her shoulder. This sudden proximity to her caused him to feel slightly nervous. He took the suntan lotion that she had pulled out of her purse and had handed it to him. Subsequent to this she pulled her long silvery pony tail over her shoulder, slid the straps of her top down on her arms to expose her back to him. Harry felt positively uneasy now. Facing Voldemort or his Death Eaters was one thing. But being this close to a beautiful girl was another. "The only thing they can do is kill you," Harry thought drearily, squeezing some of the suntan lotion onto his right hand.
The first time his hand made contact with her silky skin, he felt as if an electric shock went through his whole body. She must have felt similar for he felt her tremble slightly, almost undetectably under his touch. Biting his lower lip, he tried hard to concentrate on spreading the white lotion onto her back, trying hard not to marvel at the way her smooth skin felt under his fingers and the way her muscles tightened and relaxed. Trying to stay focused, he surrendered his attention completely to her and the suntan lotion.
After he finished spreading the lotion over her back, he daringly let his hands linger on her shoulders for a few more moments, enjoying the position of his hands on her skin.
Grace suddenly took hold of his left hand which was resting on her left shoulder and pulled it closer to her, pressing her lips on his palm for a brief second.
"Thank you" she said, turning around to him, smiling.
Harry's stomach did a sudden back flip. He was in a state of shock, speculating on how it was possible that this girl was able to confuse him repetitively.
Returning to her seat on the other side of the little boat, facing him, Grace asked "Now what are we going to do?"
"I don't know exactly. Well, we could go on for a little bit; maybe go over to the other bank?" Harry suggested.
"Nice idea." Grace agreed, examining the other side of the lake. "Looks really nice over there."
As soon as they reached their destination, they got out of the boat and quickly found a nice shady place under a few big oak trees.
"This is so lovely," Grace sighed, sitting down under the biggest of the trees, leaning her back against the trunk, spreading out her legs in front of her and glancing at the sparkling surface of the lake. "It's just beautiful."
Harry silently agreed. Not so much because of the beauty of the surroundings, but also because of the fact that it reminded him of Hogwarts and its lake to such a great extent. He sat down next to her, leaning his back onto the big tree as well. "Who could have figured that there was a place so similar to Hogwarts' lake in such close proximity to Privet Drive?" he thought, while his thoughts started wondering of again, as so often these last days when he let his mind relax completely.
"May I ask you something?" Grace enquired after a few minutes of restful, peaceful silence.
"Sure," Harry answered drowsily.
"How did you get this scar on your forehead? It really looks extraordinary!"
Within a second Harry was fully awake again, his mind racing and his pulse speeding up. Of course there wasn't a big problem with telling her some sort of lie, but being asked a question about his scar was something he couldn't take unserious.
"Well, it happened when, I mean," he had to be rather careful. He had to make up some plausible excuse for a lightning shaped scar centred on his forehead while not giving anything away which would result in a breach of the magical law, forbidding every action that might occur in the exposure of the wizarding world.
"This shouldn't be so hard," Harry thought, thinking frantically. He had to explain his scar to muggles before, why should it be so difficult now?
"I hurt myself when I was a small child." he finally said. That was partly true. Well, he didn't hurt himself, of course. But this should be enough to satisfy her curiosity. Or was it?
"Hmh, it's still very unusual looking," Grace went on, sure enough. But then she met his eyes, obviously seeing that he didn't want to continue on this subject and so she eventually dropped it.
The both of them went on talking a little about their experiences of going to a new school, finding new friends and adjusting oneself to a different surrounding. Now that certainly was something Harry could comment on. Only five years ago it was as if was planted into a whole new university, demanding a lot of adjustability of him.
"I hope it won't be too tough," Grace sighed. "I usually make friends quite easily. But I still hoped you would be going to school with me." With these words she directed her glance directly towards him, her azure eyes looking intensely into his green ones.
As soon as their eyes locked, Harry felt as if was stunned by an enormously powerful spell.
"And it's not only because I don't know anyone else," Grace continued, remaining her eyes fixed upon Harry's. Harry wondered for an instant if she was able to do Legilimency, the art of externally penetrating the mind while starring into the other person's eyes.
"It's mainly because," she paused,"- I like you, Harry Potter. You're so much unlike all the boys I've met before. You've got a somewhat mysterious air around you. But above all, I enjoy being in your company a lot. It's really sad that you'll have to go back to Scotland soon."
Harry gulped. That was unquestionably not what he expected at all. He felt his stomach give an involuntary lurch as he watched Grace reaching over, placing her hand on his own which was resting on his leg, interlacing their fingers. Looking up to him she smiled again then inclining her head until it rested softly on his shoulder.
Not knowing exactly how to react to all this and utterly surprised by her actions, he started to gently caress her fingers with his right hand, enjoying the feeling of her hair tickling on his neck and her warm body next to him.