Chapter 3: Animosity
"Harry, did you find Dumbledore?" Hermione was on the couch, but her inquisitive eyes were already focused on him. While he wanted to tell his friends the truth, he had an odd urge to keep the mystery girl to himself. He felt himself strangely possessive of the experience, as if it were a priceless treasure, meant only for his eyes. He felt guilty, but feared telling his friends would take away from of the magic of the moment.
"Oh, yeah, he was just running to the bathroom. I was talking to Cho Chang in the hall: that's why I took so long." His friends nodded knowingly.
"I hope she's over Cedric by now," Ron blurted, then blushed.
Hermione smiled, and softly added, "I'm sure that it would be all right to pursue something more than friendship with her. She's had a long time to consider past experiences." Shame reddened Harry's cheeks. He hadn't thought of Cho once since last year, but he hadn't stopped thinking of the girl in the white cloak since he saw her.
Hermione sensed his inner turmoil. "Ron, would you mind if I spoke to Harry for a bit?"
"Oh, sure." He got up from his armchair and headed toward the stairs. "Harry?"
"Hmm?"
"Wizard Chess tomorrow evening?"
"Oh, sure. Sounds good."
As soon as Ron disappeared into the boys' dormitory Hermione motioned for Harry to join her on the settee. "Harry, I know there's a lot bothering you- don't try to tell me otherwise. I want to help you. That's what friends are for."
"Are you talking about Cho Chang?" The heat of his face slowly crept down his neck and below his collar.
"Honestly, I'm not much help when it comes to relationships. I can't even handle one of my own." She looked away from Harry's face and stared angrily into the fire.
"Did things not go well at Viktor's this summer?"
She turned back to his green eyes. "Let's just say he was ready for things I wasn't. Besides, I couldn't stop thinking about-" stopping suddenly, she clapped a hand over her mouth.
Silence ensued until Harry's curiosity took over. "Thinking about who?" His cocky grin spread from cheek to cheek as Hermione squirmed in her seat.
"I was thinking about- none of your business. If I wanted you to know who my crush is, I would tell you. Besides, we're supposed to be talking about you."
His grin quickly disappeared with her dispersal of his question. He knew why he couldn't eat and was racked with nightmares. "Even if I explained, I don't think you would understand."
"Try me."
"I really miss… I really miss Sirius. I mean, if you ever need anything whether it's pocket money or advice, you can go to your parents. All I have is some sixteen year-olds."
Hurt flashed in her eyes. "Harry, I'm going to ignore that comment, because I know you don't mean it offensively. I understand. Sometimes you just need an older aspect on troubles in your life. Sirius was that for you. But you can't forget, there are still people- adults- that love you. What about Hagrid, Professor McGonagall, and Dumbledore? Even the Weasleys would be more than happy to give you some parenting."
"It's really hard to go to Hagrid and McGonagall and Dumbledore, because they're my teachers. I could end up asking something incriminating. Besides, they have their own worries. And the Weasleys are great, but I can't horde Ron's parents. No matter how much they care for me, they'll never love me as much as they do their own kids." He sighed and laid his head on Hermione's shoulder.
Absently stroking his hair, she replied, "You've been through a lot. I couldn't even list it all. It's especially cruel that, once you finally found a father figure, you lost him as well. You really deserve someone like that in your life. But you found Sirius when you were 13. It's very possible that you could find another person close to you. Even if it's not a parent, I'm sure you'll find true love. It will be a different kind of relationship, but it will help fill that void you're feeling."
"Hermione," Harry asked quietly, staring up at her, looking ever the small child, "is this as good as it's going to get? I mean, what do we truly have to look forward to?"
Tears came to her eyes. "Harry, you should never think that way. There are so many experiences ahead of you- things you never even imagined you'd do. You'll have your job, eventually a marriage, and perhaps even children of your own. To think that this is the best life has to offer is truly ludicrous." She laughed. "You couldn't possibly think that going to school with Draco Malfoy is the pinnacle of your life, could you?" Harry joined in her giggling.
They both headed to their respective sleeping quarters, but Harry stopped right before heading up the stairs. "You didn't see any new students in here, did you? I mean, someone besides the first years. Someone who got here between the end of the feast and when I got back?"
Chewing her lip, she replied, "No, if there is anyone new here, he or she would have to have gotten here before the Sorting Ceremony."
"Oh, ok. Sleep well."
"You too, Harry."
As he got to his dorm, moonlight revealed that his trunk and other luggage had already been delivered. 'House elves,' he silently figured, and pulled off his shiny, black shoes. Neville's noisy snoring, along with Ron's deep breathing told him that he was the only one awake in the room. Too tired to fully undress, he fell into bed with his robes still on and drifted into a sleep occupied with vivid purple eyes and the girl who possessed them.
***
Harry awoke to the sounds of activity. Ron and Neville were sloppily pulling on their robes. "Harry!" Ron shouted. "Hurry up, we missed wake up and we're going to be late!"
"Why didn't you get me up sooner?!"
"Don't you think we tried? I even poked you in the nose with my wand. You didn't budge." Ron was attempting unsuccessfully to yank his pants over his shoes.
"How about taking the shoes off and trying again?" Harry suggested sarcastically. "You guys can go down without me. I'll be a couple minutes getting dressed." He wanted to fix his hair and try to make himself look presentable, in hopes he would meet the mystery student. However, no amount of work would get his hair to sit properly atop his head. "Bloody mop," he muttered, resigned to having it mussed. He changed out of the robes he slept in, and made sure that all of his uniform was neater than usual. When it came to his tie, he had great difficulty. His shaking hands could not seem to get it straight. Despite not eating the evening before, his nerves had demolished any appetite. Nevertheless, after passing a rigorous inspection in the mirror, he headed to breakfast.
As Harry came into the Great Hall, he noticed a strange disturbance at the Gryffindor table. A large group of students, including those from other houses, as well as Ron and Hermione, were crowded around someone or something, talking loudly. 'What on earth is going on?' he wondered. Ginny was alone, sulkily sipping her pumpkin juice.
"Met the new girl yet?" She asked him moodily.
"New girl? What's so special about some first year?" he asked, before realizing it was probably the stranger from the dock.
"She's not a first year. She's in the same class as you. Oh, and she's foreign, she's funny, and completely gorgeous." Ginny flashed a glare that way. "She's not even been here a whole day, and already half the school is in love with her."
"Why are you so upset? She's probably part veela."
"Naw, she doesn't look like one. And to answer your question: just look at who's over there." Harry saw, in the crowd, Ginny's boyfriend, Dean Thomas. He seemed flushed, like some boy in puppy love.
"I'll go get him for you," Harry reassured, then went to gather his best friends. He tapped Dean on the shoulder as he passed. "Your girlfriend wants to talk to you."
"Oh, yeah…," he replied absently, "I'll talk to her in a minute."
Harry's curiosity took over and he stood on tiptoe to get a look at the new arrival. She was grinning ear-to-ear, apparently enjoying the attention. Her strawberry-blonde hair swished as she looked from gatherer to gatherer. "Yes, well, your hall is certainly larger than my old school's. Then again, we had a lot less students to fill ours." As she laughed, her cobalt blue eyes flashed. Harry had to admit, she was the prettiest girl at Hogwarts. Still, he was disappointed: he thought she might be the girl he had glimpsed in the dungeon.
He saw Hermione and cut through the swath of people to reach her. "What's so interesting?"
"Oh, the new girl. She's really nice. You should say hello."
"Does she have a name, or just go by new girl?"
"Her name is A.M. Kinter and she just transferred from some school in Canada. She would have been sorted, but she was feeling ill and stayed in her room since the time she got here."
"Oh… so, you want to go sit and eat something?"
"No," Hermione answered, not even looking at Harry. "I already ate, but feel free to grab something for yourself." Annoyance crept into the back of his mind. 'What's so special about this girl, anyway?'
"Ron," he said, trying hard to get his friend's attention. No response. "Ron," he called louder. "RON!" Yelling, Harry grabbed his friend by the arm.
"Geroff me! What's your problem?"
"What's up with everybody? They're all in love with this new girl."
"She's real nice and funny, too. She said she'd help me with my History homework later."
"I thought we were going to play Wizard Chess later. Besides, you don't even have homework yet."
"I'm sorry, I forgot. Besides, I know I'll have plenty of homework after today, and we can play Wizard Chess anytime." Harry was stung by his friend's words. Jealousy overtook him. After not seeing his friends for the entire summer, he thought they would want to spend time with him. But the way everyone was acting, he felt utterly dejected. Already he disliked whoever this A.M. girl was.
"Oh, hello." The sweet voice startled Harry from his bitter thoughts. A.M. was standing in front of him now, arm outstretched, waiting to shake his hand. "You must be Harry Potter."
"How do you know my name?" he asked suspiciously.
"Just because I'm from Canada doesn't mean I'm clueless. Besides…" she pointed to his forehead and the lighting bolt scar. "I'm A.M. Kinter-"
"I know who you are."
"Oh, okay." She looked confused and disconcerted by Harry's terse manner. "Well, it's nice to meet you. Apparently, we'll be taking some classes together. And we're in the same house. Oh, and I met your friends, Ron and Hermione-"
"Yeah, Ron and I were going to play Wizard Chess this evening," he interjected briskly. Harry was startled by his own actions. He had never felt this sort of unprovoked animosity, especially not toward someone he'd just met. Perhaps it was protectiveness of his friends, or just jealousy of the attention she received. While he disliked the amount of attention he got, he missed having it just as much.
"Oh, and I told him I'd help him with his homework! I'm really sorry, Harry. I'll just cancel." She looked genuinely apologetic, and Harry stifled his need to smile at the cute worry lines that appeared on her forehead.
"Fine, I'll see you around." He turned before she had a chance to reply and sat down next to Ginny.
"I suppose you're in love with her too?" she inquired.
"Not my type," he replied. He refused to pay attention to the butterflies dancing in his stomach, or the perspiration beneath his arms. Instead he turned to some sausage links on the table. As he did more dissecting than eating of his food, he searched the immense room. The girl was nowhere to be seen. 'Could she have just been my imagination?' He looked at the mess on his plate in disgust, and pushed it towards the middle of the table.
"You know, a friend of my mum's wouldn't eat anything," Ginny commented, pointing to Harry's leftovers. "Said it all made her ill. You know what was wrong with her?"
"What?" he asked absently, still looking from face to face.
"She was pregnant."
"So I suppose you want me to pee on a stick?" Harry tried his hardest not to join her pealing gales.
"Just thought I'd warn you." Harry got up and flicked her ear as he went by. Ginny just laughed louder.
As he walked around the room to get a better view of the other students, he noticed a large figure at the head table. 'Of course!' He ran to the up to the half-giant, excitement overtaking him. "Hagrid, can I talk to you?!"
"Well, Harry, what seems to be yer problem?" Concern gathered in deep wrinkles around his eyes.
"I have to talk to you in private."
Hagrid walked into the hallway as Harry following behind, and looked quickly to ensure they were alone. "What's goin' on?"
"Who was that girl you were with last night? I have to know."
"What girl? You mean one of the firs' years-"
"No, I mean the one in the boat. In the white cloak."
"I don't know what yer talkin' about." But his eyes shifted, and he was licking his lips. Certain signs of lying.
A girl Harry recognized to be in Hufflepuff walked past them, staring at the strange, reversed picture of a teacher being questioned by a student. As soon as she turned the corner, Harry asked, "Seriously Hagrid, who was she? I'm going to lose it if I can't see her again."
Hagrid placed his immense hands on Harry's skinny shoulders. "There was no girl last night, so the best thing to do is forget yeh ever saws her an' Dumbledore."
Harry grinned at his friend's slipup. "I didn't say Dumbledore was there."
Hagrid once again checked for any spies, got down on his knees to ensure no one would hear. "Harry, I don't know how yeh saws," Hagrid blustered, "but I guarantee it's a mess, so don't involve yerself. An' don't ask me fer information, because I can't tells ya."
"Please Hagrid," Harry was practically begging. The girl brought him to desperation. "Just tell me her name."
Hagrid looked him in the eyes, stone serious. "Just to know her name means almost certain death fer ya. Likes I said, it's best to forget yeh ever saws her." He turned away, despite Harry's calls, and returned to the head table.
Harry stood there in the corridor, even as students began filing around him, hurrying to their classes. He had been so close to what he truly wanted, but unable to grasp it. Certainly this girl wasn't as bad as Hagrid described. He remembered her sweet smile, and kind eyes, and could not imagine his old friend's warnings. Hermione finally found him still in the clouds and shook him from his thoughts. "Harry, don't just stand there. Can you imagine if we were late?"
"Huh? Late for what?"
"Harry, have you forgotten already? We have Snape's Potions class." Though he thought it impossible, his heart sank lower.