"I am the daughter of Earth and Water,
And the nursling of the Sky:
I pass through the pores of the ocean and shores;
I change, but I cannot die."

-- 'The Cloud' by Percy B. Shelley

My Immortal

Harry grinned. It was the first day of school after the summer holidays, and he had never been more thrilled to be back at Hogwarts.

He was sitting in a carriage on the Hogwarts express with Ron, Hermione and Neville. Ginny had just left, to find some of her fifth year friends. Rain was lashing on the windows, and there was a large pile of food on the floor. He was with his two best friends and another, who was fast becoming just as close to him as Ron. Strangely enough, Neville had become very close to Harry since last year. Since Neville had stopped being so afraid of everything, he was a lot more fun to be around. So he'd started hanging around with Harry, Ron and Hermione and that had been it.

And it was set to be the best year ever. Voldemort was back out in the open, which meant that his life was no longer in so much danger, and that everybody now knew he was sane. Harry smiled to himself. Yes. This year was gonna be good.

Harry was laughing and joking with his four closest friends, when Ginny burst through he door once more. Her face was flushed, as if she had been running, and when she spoke she was short of breath.

"Guys," she panted, swallowing. "Guys, you've gotta come and see this. There's a new girl!"

"Yeah," said Ron, looking intently at the cauldron cake in his hand. "There's new girls every year, Gin. There called First Years."

"No!" said Ginny, swatting Ron's arm. "She's not a first year. She looks about thirteen. And Goddess, have you guys gotta see her!"

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Neville remained where they were. Harry raised his eyebrow at Ginny dubiously. She rolled her eyes at him, then darted forward and grabbed his arm. She ran out of the carriage, pulling Harry after her.

"Come on!"

Harry glanced at Ron and Hermione, who reluctantly followed, Hermione pulling a worried Neville after her.

Ginny took them right to the back of the train, to the last few carriages that always seemed deserted for some reason. It was darker in the last section of the train, and had a somewhat haunted air to it. It gave most of the students the creeps. Today, however, the corridor was packed. Everyone was crowding around the door of the final carriage, craning their necks to get a better view of whatever it was that they were looking at.

"Come on, let us through! They haven't seen her yet!"

Eventually they reached the door, where Draco Malfoy was waiting with Blaise Zabini and Tracey Davis. Ginny pulled the foursome through the door, forcing those inside out, and closed the door before he could comment ("Excuse me, guys. Just a sec."). She pointed at a pile of old blankets and a Hogwarts trunk in the corner.

"There!" she said happily.

"Er, no offense, Gin," Ron said quietly, "but what is it we're supposed to be looking at?"

At that moment, the blankets rolled over, causing Ron to jump. Ginny grinned triumphantly. "There!" she hissed again. "I told you!"

It took Harry's eyes a few seconds to realise just what it was that he was seeing. When it finally registered in his brain, however, his breath hissed in sharply through his teeth. Hermione gasped. Ron just gawped.

A girl's face peeped out from inside. She was sleeping. If there were angels, Harry found himself thinking, then this is what they would look like.

Her face was heart-shaped, and as white as a ghost - almost translucent, too. Here and there, there were a few light brown freckles, scattered across her nose. She was very cute. Her sculpted cheekbones accentuated her face shape perfectly. Her eyelashes were long, thick and black. He could see that, even though the angel's eyes were closed. Because that's what she was to Harry already - an angel.

Hair as black as jet framed her lovely face, hanging in glossy ringlets. She was flawless, but for one thing...

Harry's eyes traveled up the girl's face, past her perfectly smooth eyebrows, to her forehead.

Shit. No fucking way.

He thought this last bit out loud. Ron shook his head.

"Way."

Neville stammered. "I d-don't understand...Harry.... Harry, she-"

"I know," Harry cut him off.

A scar.

Shaped like a lightening bolt.

End Part