CHAPTER 2
"Good morning," said the cheerful voice from across the hedge. "Did you sleep well?"
Harry looked around to find himself staring into a pair of jewel- like sapphire eyes. Lost for words Harry stared as the rest of Sally's smiling pixie like face came into view over the hedge.
"Any plans for today Harry, only Mum will have me helping to unpack unless I can find an excuse to go out?"
"Uh no, not really," muttered Harry.
"Well how about you show me around the neighbourhood?" Sally said, seemingly undaunted by Harry's less than enthusiastic reply.
"Sure, if you like, though it won't take too long, Little Whinging is a pretty dull place." Harry said, warming to the idea of spending time with a pretty girl, "when did you want to go?"
"Let me go tell my Mum and I'll meet you outside in 10 minutes, Okay?"
"Uh sure, okay" Harry almost smiled his first genuine smile for weeks.
10 minutes later Harry was waiting outside Sally's front garden feeling a nervous excitement in his stomach, when Sally burst out of the door her long hair steaming behind her.
"So, where are did you want to see?" Harry asked.
"I don't mind, as long as it's out of view of any more packing cases!" laughed Sally.
They walked slowly up the street in silence, Harry nervous now that this had been a bad idea. What did he know about the area, unless you counted all the good hiding places he had found to avoid Dudley and his gang, when he was younger?
"Harry, why do you dress like that?" asked Sally in a quiet voice.
"Oh, I...it's just that.well." Harry tried to think of a way to answer this without embarrassing himself.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to blurt that out!" laughed Sally nervously "I always put my foot in it when I'm nervous."
Harry turned to her surprised to hear that she was nervous too. He found himself grinning like a fool as he said "Don't feel bad, it's natural to be curious, the thing is my Aunt and Uncle resent me a bit, so they don't like to waste money on me, that's why I get Dudley's cast off's."
Embarrassed to have admitted this he looked towards the library that had come into view and suddenly veered off towards it.
"Uh this is the library, if you're looking for books."
Sally smiled sadly at the abrupt change of topic and said "aren't there any shops or café's near here?"
"Yes just down the hill behind the library, but I.I forgot to bring any money with me," Harry stammered, hoping that Sally wouldn't guess he never had any money to bring, well not muggle money anyway.
"That's okay Mum gave me some before I left, let's go and get a drink or something" Sally smiled.
They walked down to the local café and sat outside with two large cokes and two sticky doughnuts. Harry forgot his embarrassment as they sat and chatted about the passers by and the weather and what it was like to go to boarding school, although Harry was careful not to mention anything specific about his school, though he did confirm that his history teacher was also dead boring!
Sally seemed to find this very amusing, Harry felt very light headed as he listened to Sally's delighted laughter. "You know I haven't laughed like that for ages!" panted Sally.
"I know what you mean" replied Harry darkly.
"Sorry I didn't mean to bring you down again, you looked really sad yesterday," said Sally tentatively.
"No I'm sorry, you don't want to listen to me mopping," replied Harry, "let's go for a walk round the park, it's a nice day" he said, desperate to recapture the light heartedness of a few moments ago.
"I lost my Grandma a few months ago, I was away at school and Mum and Dad waited until I came home to tell me, they didn't even let me go to her funeral," said Sally sadly. "I didn't get the chance to say goodbye. But then I don't suppose we really get the chance to say goodbye to anyone we love, do we? I talk to her some nights, when I look up at the stars, maybe that sounds lame but it has helped me, I feel as though she can hear me, you know what I mean?"
"I guess," replied Harry quietly "I lost my God father recently too, though I can't bring myself to talk to him!"
Sally reached out silently and squeezed Harry's hand, then without releasing it continued to walk through the park.
Harry couldn't think of a single thing to say, he was so aware of Sally's small hand in his, images of kissing her suddenly burst into his head, and he tried to take deep breath's to calm down.
"You know it's very pretty here," Sally commented.
"Ye.yes it is," answered Harry trying to sound normal.
"Let's sit here for a while," said Sally, veering over to a tall oak tree.
Harry sat down beside her, disappointed that she had let go his hand to sit down. He took several deep breaths' trying to figure out a way to re-take her hand casually, but nothing came to mind.
Instead he asked her "Where did you live before you came here?"
"Oh we lived in Birmingham, but Daddy's business transferred him here so we all came," replied Sally. "With me being away at school it doesn't really affect me that much, I kind of lost touch with most of my friends when I went away, they all went to the local comprehensive. You know?"
"Yeah," answered Harry, hoping he sounded convincing, he hadn't had any friends to loose touch with when he went to away to school. In fact just the opposite, at Hogwarts was the first time he had made friends in his life!
That night Harry lay awake in bed thinking about how relaxed he had been that day with Sally. It was the first nice day he could remember enjoying in a long time. Sally was unusual she made him relaxed and nervous at the same time. Not the way Cho had made him nervous. With Cho he had always struggled to find something to talk about. But with Sally he felt at ease talking and he was only nervous about the way she made him feel: worthwhile and interesting.
"Good morning," said the cheerful voice from across the hedge. "Did you sleep well?"
Harry looked around to find himself staring into a pair of jewel- like sapphire eyes. Lost for words Harry stared as the rest of Sally's smiling pixie like face came into view over the hedge.
"Any plans for today Harry, only Mum will have me helping to unpack unless I can find an excuse to go out?"
"Uh no, not really," muttered Harry.
"Well how about you show me around the neighbourhood?" Sally said, seemingly undaunted by Harry's less than enthusiastic reply.
"Sure, if you like, though it won't take too long, Little Whinging is a pretty dull place." Harry said, warming to the idea of spending time with a pretty girl, "when did you want to go?"
"Let me go tell my Mum and I'll meet you outside in 10 minutes, Okay?"
"Uh sure, okay" Harry almost smiled his first genuine smile for weeks.
10 minutes later Harry was waiting outside Sally's front garden feeling a nervous excitement in his stomach, when Sally burst out of the door her long hair steaming behind her.
"So, where are did you want to see?" Harry asked.
"I don't mind, as long as it's out of view of any more packing cases!" laughed Sally.
They walked slowly up the street in silence, Harry nervous now that this had been a bad idea. What did he know about the area, unless you counted all the good hiding places he had found to avoid Dudley and his gang, when he was younger?
"Harry, why do you dress like that?" asked Sally in a quiet voice.
"Oh, I...it's just that.well." Harry tried to think of a way to answer this without embarrassing himself.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to blurt that out!" laughed Sally nervously "I always put my foot in it when I'm nervous."
Harry turned to her surprised to hear that she was nervous too. He found himself grinning like a fool as he said "Don't feel bad, it's natural to be curious, the thing is my Aunt and Uncle resent me a bit, so they don't like to waste money on me, that's why I get Dudley's cast off's."
Embarrassed to have admitted this he looked towards the library that had come into view and suddenly veered off towards it.
"Uh this is the library, if you're looking for books."
Sally smiled sadly at the abrupt change of topic and said "aren't there any shops or café's near here?"
"Yes just down the hill behind the library, but I.I forgot to bring any money with me," Harry stammered, hoping that Sally wouldn't guess he never had any money to bring, well not muggle money anyway.
"That's okay Mum gave me some before I left, let's go and get a drink or something" Sally smiled.
They walked down to the local café and sat outside with two large cokes and two sticky doughnuts. Harry forgot his embarrassment as they sat and chatted about the passers by and the weather and what it was like to go to boarding school, although Harry was careful not to mention anything specific about his school, though he did confirm that his history teacher was also dead boring!
Sally seemed to find this very amusing, Harry felt very light headed as he listened to Sally's delighted laughter. "You know I haven't laughed like that for ages!" panted Sally.
"I know what you mean" replied Harry darkly.
"Sorry I didn't mean to bring you down again, you looked really sad yesterday," said Sally tentatively.
"No I'm sorry, you don't want to listen to me mopping," replied Harry, "let's go for a walk round the park, it's a nice day" he said, desperate to recapture the light heartedness of a few moments ago.
"I lost my Grandma a few months ago, I was away at school and Mum and Dad waited until I came home to tell me, they didn't even let me go to her funeral," said Sally sadly. "I didn't get the chance to say goodbye. But then I don't suppose we really get the chance to say goodbye to anyone we love, do we? I talk to her some nights, when I look up at the stars, maybe that sounds lame but it has helped me, I feel as though she can hear me, you know what I mean?"
"I guess," replied Harry quietly "I lost my God father recently too, though I can't bring myself to talk to him!"
Sally reached out silently and squeezed Harry's hand, then without releasing it continued to walk through the park.
Harry couldn't think of a single thing to say, he was so aware of Sally's small hand in his, images of kissing her suddenly burst into his head, and he tried to take deep breath's to calm down.
"You know it's very pretty here," Sally commented.
"Ye.yes it is," answered Harry trying to sound normal.
"Let's sit here for a while," said Sally, veering over to a tall oak tree.
Harry sat down beside her, disappointed that she had let go his hand to sit down. He took several deep breaths' trying to figure out a way to re-take her hand casually, but nothing came to mind.
Instead he asked her "Where did you live before you came here?"
"Oh we lived in Birmingham, but Daddy's business transferred him here so we all came," replied Sally. "With me being away at school it doesn't really affect me that much, I kind of lost touch with most of my friends when I went away, they all went to the local comprehensive. You know?"
"Yeah," answered Harry, hoping he sounded convincing, he hadn't had any friends to loose touch with when he went to away to school. In fact just the opposite, at Hogwarts was the first time he had made friends in his life!
That night Harry lay awake in bed thinking about how relaxed he had been that day with Sally. It was the first nice day he could remember enjoying in a long time. Sally was unusual she made him relaxed and nervous at the same time. Not the way Cho had made him nervous. With Cho he had always struggled to find something to talk about. But with Sally he felt at ease talking and he was only nervous about the way she made him feel: worthwhile and interesting.