A/N Okay, explanation for why this chapter was slow (well, slow for me anyway). First of all, school. But besides that, this chapter wasn't an original part of the story that I wrote. It was something that I added when inspiration struck while I was trying to fix my pacing problem. (Ironic timing for the review about the Firebolt though.) Then as I was reading your reviews, inspiration struck again and I had to add to the chapter. So I needed to write more on this before I could post it, and with all of my school work I just didn't have time. I hope it was worth the wait, and I hope it inspires you leave more reviews! Oh, about the body hair, well it grew back over time. It was only shaved. Not really a detail I thought about, just an interesting form of torture.
The next day Harry decided he should take Anna out. He felt like he had been neglecting her a bit, especially since she was leaving soon. He had asked Ron where he should take her, and Ron suggested he take her to Diagon Alley. Since Harry didn't know anywhere else in London, he agreed. They did decide that they would have to trick Anna into taking a portkey to get there.
When they arrived, Anna looked at him crossly. "That wasn't very nice."
Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, but it was the fastest way to get here."
"You could have at least warned me."
"Would you have come if I did?" Harry asked and Anna shook her head. "Well then I'm glad I didn't warn you."
"Why couldn't we have gone somewhere normal," Anna whined.
"Because we don't know of anywhere normal as you so delicately put it."
"Like you tried to find somewhere else to take me."
"Anna, if you don't stop complaining I'm going to take you to the airport right now and leave you there," Harry said groaning.
"Fine," Anna said as she began to walk away from Harry. He hurried after her, not wanting her to get lost in the wizarding world by herself. He had just caught up to her again when a young witch and wizard approached him.
"Why you're Harry Potter," the girl said excitedly.
"We learned about you in school," the boy added.
"Um, yes I am," Harry said lamely. He felt an arm on his shoulder and turned around to face a very attractive witch about his age.
"Hi Harry," the woman said.
"I'm sorry do I know you?" he replied confused.
She leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "No, but you can get to know me very well if you want to." She slipped something in his pocket and then walked away.
"That was odd," Harry said out loud and turned around to look for Anna. He caught a glimpse of her glaring at him from across the road. He was about to go after her when someone grabbed his arm.
"Hi sexy," a female voice purred in his ear.
Harry turned around, his face bright red. "Um, hi?"
"If you want a nice home cooked meal, just pop over. My fireplace is always open for you," she said as she gave him a piece of paper and walked away. Before anyone else could grab him, Harry ran to where Anna was waiting.
"Are you done with your admirers?" she asked him coldly.
"I have no idea what that was about," he said defensively. "But maybe now you'll believe the stories Ron and Hermione told about my life."
"Well I know exactly what it was about," she said ignoring his latter comment. She handed him the paper she was holding. There was a picture of Harry in the Leaky Cauldron on the front. Harry watched as the picture form of himself collapsed on the ground. He briefly skimmed the article and saw that the general gist was commenting on his return from the dead, and more importantly to the author of the article, how good he looked.
"Oh fuck," he whispered. He looked up and saw several other people staring at him, as if they were deciding whether or not they should approach him. "We should probably leave. I know you're not ready to handle this, and I'm not sure if I am. The article didn't mention the small fact that I don't have a memory." Harry looked around and saw something that put a smile on his face. "Quick, in here," he said as he dragged her into a store a few doors down.
"Oh Harry, it's so good to see you again!" Angelina Weasley said as Harry hurried into the store.
"Good to see you again too, but I'm afraid I have a small favor to ask," Harry responded politely.
"Anything, you're as good as family," she answered genuinely to which Anna snorted.
"Well will you help us get out of here?" he asked.
"Sure. Is the crowd getting to you?"
"Yeah, I guess today wasn't a good day to venture out with that article that was printed. Unfortunately, I didn't know about it until a few moments ago. I guess though it wasn't too bright to come to a wizarding area without a wizard," Harry said thoughtfully.
"But Harry you are a wizard," Angelina gently reminded him. Harry didn't respond, but she could see the sorrow in his eyes.
"Not to interrupt this oh so touching moment, but can we leave now?" Anna asked. "The crowd outside is starting to act like they're going to move into the store."
"Sure, the fireplace is right back here," Angelina said, opening the door to the back room.
Harry let out a groan. "I hate floo."
"I'm sorry, but I'm not going anywhere by means of a fireplace," Anna said stubbornly.
"Sorry princess, but it's your only option unless you want to walk," Angelina said in a fake sweet tone.
"Fine." Anna stormed into the back room leaving Harry and Angelina staring after her.
"She's not normally like this," Harry tried to explain.
"It's fine Harry. Honestly, I'm surprised you're taking everything in as well as you are."
"I'm trying. Now, let's get us out of here before Anna pitches another fit."
After their trip to Diagon Alley, Anna locked herself in her room. Harry tried to talk to her through the door, but she was giving him the silent treatment. After trying for what felt like an eternity, he gave up and went back downstairs.
"No luck?" Hermione asked sympathetically.
"No. I really needed to make things up to her, especially after last night, but I only made things worse," Harry replied sullenly.
"Well, in your defense, Ron should have known better than to suggest that you take her to a wizarding place. I may have rubbed off on him, but not nearly enough." Harry and Hermione laughed at her comment. "Can I ask you a question though?" Harry nodded his head. "Why do you feel so obligated to her when she's being so awful towards you? She's not even trying to understand what you're going through. She's really being quite selfish."
"Well you have to look at things from her perspective. She came here expecting for me to turn up empty handed, with the slight possibility of finding some family. She expected me to go home with her after two weeks, ready to start over completely; ready to start over with her. For her, this trip was about me finding closure, but for me, it was always about finding myself. Imagine her surprise to find out that not only did I have people who loved and missed me, but I was the hero for the world she didn't even know existed. Her dreams were shattered in a matter of moments."
"But Harry what about your dreams?" Hermione interrupted.
"Oh my dreams," Harry said, getting a far off look in his eyes. "I love my dreams. My dreams make me feel like I remember."
"Well that's a good starting place," Hermione said with a smile.
"Well, sometimes my dreams make me want to forget. I have these horrible nightmares sometimes that leave me screaming in my sleep," Harry said softly.
"You had those before you disappeared too. I couldn't blame you if you didn't want to remember everything about your life. You lived through some pretty horrible things, but you also lived through some great ones. I know I would take all of my bad memories if it meant I got to keep one of the special ones."
"It's just all so hard to figure out," Harry said softly. "I think I'm going to go outside."
"Are you going for a walk?" Hermione asked, trying to mask the concern in her voice.
"No, don't worry, I'm not going to go get lost or anything," Harry said with a smile. "I just want to go look at the stars. The stars have always been comforting for me; they make me feel at home, like there's someone looking out for me." Hermione didn't know what to say, so she just watched Harry walk out her back door. She wished there was something she could do for her friend, but she didn't know what.
"Hey Hermione," Ginny said, arriving in the kitchen with a pop.
"Hey Gin," Hermione replied, snapping back into reality. "How was your day?"
Ginny let out a groan and ran her hands through her hair. "Absolutely dreadful. I've been beating myself up all day over how I acted last night. I wouldn't blame Harry if he never wanted to speak to me again. Then I went to try and go talk to Colin, but he got called away on assignment. So he knows Harry is here, but I haven't gotten to talk to him about it."
"Well if it makes you feel any better, his day out with Anna went horribly. She hasn't spoken to him since they got back," Hermione informed her friend.
"I don't want him by default," Ginny said meekly.
"Well it's his choice to send her home and stay here with you, so I hardly think that counts as default."
"I just wish there was something I could do to help him; not for me, but for him."
"Maybe there is. He's outside, why don't you go talk to him," Hermione suggested. Ginny nodded, and with a deep breath she headed for the backyard.
Harry walked into the backyard and lay down on the soft grass. He put his hands behind his head and started to count the stars. He liked to think that for every star in the sky, there was someone in heaven looking out for him. He was out there for a few minutes when he heard someone walk up behind him. He didn't need to look to know who it was.
"Knut for your thoughts?" Ginny asked him quietly.
"Do you ever just wish you could fly away?" Harry asked. "Just soar amongst the stars, forgetting all of your problems. I think that would be the best feeling in the world."
"But Harry, you can," Ginny said softly. Harry heard a pop behind him, and he turned around to see that he was by himself. Confused, he lay back down on the grass. A few moments later, Ginny reappeared with another pop.
"Where did you go?" Harry asked curiously.
"To get something that would let you fly. You must not have read those books as thoroughly as you thought if you didn't pick up on the fact that you loved to fly," Ginny teased him.
"I guess I was just trying so hard to memorize all of the people I forgot to memorize the things about myself," Harry said with a chuckle. "Is that my broom?" Harry asked, standing up from the ground.
"Actually it's mine," Ginny said sheepishly.
"But you didn't have a Firebolt, I did," Harry said, examining the handle.
"Well you paid more attention than I gave you credit for, but this really is my broom. Yours is in on display at the Ministry," Ginny explained.
"So how did you afford this expensive broom," Harry asked curiously.
"Actually it was a gift. You should have seen the first Harry Potter Day. I was bombarded with cards, gifts, money. Of course, there were a few people who sent me howlers, a few who blamed me for your death, and there was even one that hexed me," Ginny replied quietly. "But now let's get you flying. Here, get on behind me," Ginny said putting the broom between her legs. Harry looked at her questioningly, but cooperated. Without warning, Ginny kicked off and Harry quickly wrapped his arms around her waist in surprise. He was at first startled by the feeling of not having the earth beneath him, but he soon lost himself in the feeling of flying.
"Wahoo!" he yelled into the sky, causing Ginny to laugh. She darted in and out of the low lying clouds, sending chills up Harry's spine. They stayed up there for an hour, but Harry felt like he could have stayed for eternity. When they landed, and pulled Ginny into a tight hug. "Thank you," he whispered into her ear.
"It's nothing, I love to fly as much as you do," she whispered back.
"That's not what I meant. Thank you for helping me, without pressuring me to talk about anything." Ginny pulled back from his chest and looked into his eyes. She was trying her hardest to fight the urge to lean in and kiss him right then and there. She felt like his eyes were piercing into her soul. She was trying to figure out what to say when he broke their gaze and looked back towards the house. She turned around to follow his gaze and saw what he was looking at. Anna was staring at them through the window in her bedroom. The moment was gone forever. "I should go talk to her," Harry said quietly.
"Okay," Ginny replied, her voice barely audible and her heart longing to beg him to stay. Instead she just watched him walk back into the house, praying that he wasn't about to walk out of her life again.
Harry gently knocked on the door to Anna's bedroom. He got no response, but found the door was unlocked. He entered the room and was surprised to see Anna packing her things. "You're leaving?"
"It's time," she said quietly.
"I don't want you to leave if you're mad at me," Harry said quietly, sitting down on the edge of her bed.
"I'm not mad at you. I'm just trying to nurse a broken heart," she said, sitting down beside him. "I haven't been myself since I've been here. I'm tired of being angry all of the time."
"So stay, get to know these people as the real you."
Anna smiled and shook her head. "This isn't my place. I don't belong here." She paused and looked him in the eyes, "But you do. I can tell. I've just been fighting it because I didn't want to accept it."
"I'm going to miss you," Harry said clasping her hand in his own.
"I'm going to miss you too. Well you still have to come back and get your stuff sometime," Anna said, still smiling sadly.
"It's not really my stuff, your parents paid for all of it."
"Don't be silly, they loved you like a son. Besides you have to come back to say good bye to them still."
"But you wanted them to love me like a son-in-law, didn't you?" Harry asked quietly.
"You know I did. I love you so much, that's what makes this so hard. But tonight, I was watching you with her, and you looked happy. I was jealous; I always wanted to be the one who made you look that happy. I'll just have to be satisfied knowing that you're happy, even if I can't be the one to make you that way."
"I love you too Anna."
"But you love me like a sister, I mean there's a reason why you took my family's last name."
Harry sighed. "You're the best friend I can remember having."
Anna laughed. "I'm the only friend you can remember having."
"But still..."
Anna leaned over and kissed his forehead. "I know, I know. It's really okay. I'm over my anger; I just need to move on."
"You deserve to be happy."
"And so do you. I'll just have to get used to the idea that I'm going to have to be happy without you."
"You can come back and visit me."
Anna sighed. "I really don't know if I can. I mean you don't just live in another country; you live in a completely different world. I'm just not sure if I'm ready to be apart of that world."
"Well then I'm just going to have to come and see you as much as I can," Harry said with a smile.
"She loves you, you know," Anna said, standing up from the bed.
"I know."
"Do you love her?"
Harry took a deep breath. "I'm not ready to answer that question yet."
After an awkward silence, Anna spoke up again. "I should finish packing."
"I'll leave you to it then. Good night Anna."
"Good night, Harry." Harry froze in the doorway and turned around to look at her. She had tears in her eyes, and the simple gesture of calling him by his real name touched Harry's heart. He smiled and her and left the room, finally knowing that he was truly ready to leave his life in Canada behind him.
Colin Creevey was shocked. He didn't know how things had gone wrong. He'd replayed the events of that night in his head a thousand times; he remembered throwing Harry's lifeless body into the ocean, laughing as it banged against the cliffs.
"Stressing over it isn't going to help anything," a calming voice reminded him.
"I just can't figure out how this happened," Colin answered. "I mean when I saw him I almost told him that I killed him. I was so shocked I couldn't think straight. If I had been thinking straight I would have killed him right then and there and dealt with it later. I was barely able to think straight long enough to send Ginny a note saying that I had left the country."
"So what are you going to do? Run away?"
Colin sighed. "No. I worked too long and too hard to get where I am to give up on the slight possibility that he knows what happened that night."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I'm not sure yet. But it's probably best if I can remain 'out of the country' until I can come up with a plan of action." Colin paused and let out a groan. "I thought I had put all of this behind me. I had a normal life again, I had her."
"Well if you lose her this easily, you must have never really had her."
"NO!" Colin shouted angrily. "I do have her! She's mine! She was just always a little stubborn when it came to seeing what was best for her! She just needs to be reminded again."
"Whatever you say..."