Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch
Chapter 3- In Which We Meet New Faces, Some of Which Will Have A Great Effect on the War to Come…
Marie Wythumith used to live in Hogsmead, in a little cottage off of Marlow Street. She would go out each morning, to her little garden in the back and she would watch the bird's come and go. She would watch the tiny wisps of clouds pass by. She would admire the spiraling towers of the castle. She loved living there. She had no fears or worries. She lived a simple life based on routine, and she was happy.
But now things were different. Since the return of You-Know Who everything she knew had changed. Her husband Donald, who she had met during her sixth year at Hogwarts, was an Auror. Naturally Donald had feared for her safety, in this much more dangerous world. He had decided, much to Marie's chagrin, to move both her and himself to Diagon Alley, nearer to the Ministry.
She hated it there. She truly despised it. She wasn't allowed to go out, not even into the street below to the shops. The streets below her were nearly empty all the time. Very few people were brave enough to use the streets of Diagon Alley since the battle in the Dept. of Mysteries. Every day, without fail, there was some sort of altercation between the Death Eaters, or people who supported them, and the various levels of Ministry workers and Aurors. Donald had even been involved once, although he escaped unharmed, most weren't so lucky. Fatalities had been rare thus far, but there was an unspoken and nauseating expectation that these skirmishes were about to intensify, if given the right spark.
This fact had nearly killed many businesses in the area. The only ones that seemed to be flourishing were the "Seers" and practitioners of Divination. They capitalized on this quite well, always ending their predictions with promises of death and bloodshed. These didn't help the morale of the wizarding world, but that rarely seemed to cross their minds…
All these things scared Marie. She was afraid of dying. Afraid that Voldemort would win. But most of all she was afraid that Donald would die, that they wouldn't be able to start a family.
It sounded selfish, and in reality it was. Perhaps it was the fact Marie was an only child, but she had always wanted a family. She cherished the idea of being a mother, of providing care for young children. She often fantasized of the day she would have kids running around the house, shouting and making noise. She smiled as she thought of family dinners about the large table she would buy for the dining room.
So each day she prayed for Donald's safety, for her safety. She prayed for the victory of the Ministry. She prayed for protection. She did this every day…
Chicago Illinois- USA
The young man walking through O'Hare Airport didn't look like the most powerful teenager in existence. To be perfectly honest, he looked like the kid you would see hanging out outside the local skate shop. His blonde hair, which normally fell down about his ears and neckline, was held under a skullcap, and his lower left lip was pierced.
He was wearing green mesh basketball shorts, with a black stripe up each side. On one side the letters SXE were printed in white, and on the other side there was 312 printed in white as well. He wore a black shirt, with a red X printed on it. His hands were taped up in black athletic tape, and each was marked in silver sharpie with an X. He carried only a plain black Duffel bag, and wore a smirk on his face.
"You leaving me sexy?" A young woman asked him as he passed. He turned to face the blonde, who appeared to be a few years older than him. His smirk turned into a full-fledged smile and he walked over to her and gave her a hug.
"Sorry Jenny, but yes I am. Finally got shipped off to boarding school." He replied with a slight chuckle.
"Where at?"
"England. Well, I think it may be Scotland… I dunno…" He lamented, shrugging. She smiled.
"To bad you're only sixteen, or we could have some fun before ya leave…" She said with a grin and a wink.
"I've told you, my hart belongs to someone else." He replied seriously.
"Who said anything about your hart?" She asked with a sly grin, causing the young man to laugh. "I'm gonna miss you Michael. Take care of yourself." She said giving him one last hug. He returned it in kind.
"I'll miss you to Jen. Don't worry I'll be fine. It's you guy's I'm worried about." The girl could have no idea how much he meant the last statement. "You be careful. I don't want to hear about you getting hurt."
"I will. See ya sometime." She said, a slight tear forming in her eyes.
"I will…" He said as he walked to his gate. He stopped at the entrance to the connecter. He closed his eyes and sighed. 'Please God,' he prayed silently. 'Let me be wrong. Let this feeling I have be wrong.' He took a deep breath and boarded the plane.
The stewardess showed him to his seat, a window seat in the fourth row. A few minutes later a man dressed in black and white sat beside him.
"Hello Father." He said to the Preacher. The man smiled warmly at him.
"Hello young man. How are you this fine day?" He asked with a smile. A red leather Bible sat in his lap. Michael looked out the window. They were climbing higher and higher. Michael watched the clouds for a minute or so, thinking.
"I'm not quite sure how I am, to be honest Father." He said quietly. He was looking at his hands that were folded in his lap.
"Well, what is going on in your life right now?" The Priest asked him kindly. "Why are you heading to England?"
"I'm heading off to a…boarding school. It's kind of a… security precaution." He said slowly. "I bring trouble. Not intentionally, It's just in my blood." He elaborated. The Minister nodded.
"Well, I can see this is a tough time for you. Do you know the Lord?" The Preacher asked him. Michael was somewhat surprised at the forwardness of the man, as most ministers he had met were a little more reserved around the younger sort.
Michael took his time before answering. He had known Him once, as Magic and Religion had mixed much more in America than they had in Europe, where it was almost unheard of.
"We have a… strained relationship." He replied. This was of course an understatement. He hadn't gone for Religion in close to two years, since his parents died.
"Ah. Well, I can see you don't want to get into particulars. I respect that. Perhaps you'd like to hear some scriptures?" He asked patting the Bible in his lap.
Michael smiled.
"Read on Father. I could use a good story."
Okay, sorry for not posting so often, but I kinda forgot about this… Oops. Anyways. I PROMISE this isn't your typical superpower new character story. This is Harry's Story. I know this. Michael is only a supporting character. If I start to stray from that, let me know. This chapter kinda plodded along. Don't worry, everything will start to get better… - KI