I Have A Feeling

Chapter 6: Why Are You So Happy?

When Harry returned back to school the next day, Hermione noticed that he wasn't as irritable as he usually was after being left at home for two weeks. "Harry, what's up?" Hermione asked. She walked up to Harry and sat down in the Great Hall.

"Nothing, you?" Harry said. Hermione shrugged. "I'm doing okay," she said. "But I do have my questions about you being happy." Harry looked at her.

"Why?" he asked. Hermione sighed.

"Because two weeks ago, you were overly-irritable, and now it seems like nothing could upset you," Hermione explained.

"I'll explain it to you later," Harry said.

"Okay," Hermione answered simply. She was not one to argue with Harry when he made an agreement with her.

Potter Residence

"Oh, James! Shut up!" Lily shouted. "Why do you have to go on about every bloody little thing?"

James sighed. "Because," he said, running a hand through his hair, "you're always yelling!"

"I wouldn't yell if you wouldn't get pissed off about me buying generic taco shells!"

"Well, they're stale!"

"They're not stale, James!"

"They are stale!"

"They are not!" Lily shouted. "I don't even know why I bothered to come back!"

James frowned. "Because Harry was sick," he said.

"I meant back to you!" Lily shouted, before slamming the door in James's face. James sighed. He went back downstairs. He flopped down onto the couch in front of the television, but didn't turn it on. He lay there, staring at the rotating ceiling fan.

It was hours until he realized that he had been counting the number of times he saw the fan go around. "879,384..." he muttered. "879, 388..." Lily stepped downstairs quietly.

"James, what are you doing?" Lily asked. James looked up.

"I'm counting the number of times the ceiling fan rotates," James explained quickly. Lily nodded in understanding before managing, "Oh."

Hogwarts

"Harry, can you please tell me now?" Hermione begged.

"No," Harry answered.

"Please?"

"No, I don't think I will..."

"Please?"

"Nope."

"Please?"

"Hermione, no."

"Come on! Please?" Hermione begged.

"No!"

"Fine," Hermione said. "I don't want to know anyway."

"Yes you do," Harry said.

"No, I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't! It was probably some ridiculous thing like getting screwed for the first time or something!"

Harry glared at Hermione, before pulling her into the girls' bathroom.

"Hermione, you can't tell anyone. Nobody's supposed to know," Harry said. Hermione's brown eyes gleamed with excitement. She stared at him expectantly.

"My mother's alive," Harry blurted out. Hermione's eyes widened. "Seriously. I got really sick over the holidays, and-Hermione, it wasn't anything serious...I probably had some weird flu-like thing. I slept for days. Anyway, when I got sick, someone called for my mother, and she showed up at Grimmauld Place. So...she told me why. It was for my protection. She didn't tell me while I was sick, but the night before I left, she told me. And... she kicked Stacy out, and she and Dad are having a lot of problems right now. Speaking of problems, I should probably write to them right now. I'll see you in a few minutes, Hermione. I have to go get ink."

The sudden spill of information was still water logging Hermione's brain.

Harry returned several minutes later with a bottle of ink. "Hurry up!" Hermione cried. "We're late!"

"Okay, okay," said Harry. "Have a heart attack..."

Hermione sighed, irritated. She grabbed his wrist and dragged him all the way to their next class.

"Hermione! I'm highly capable of walking myself!"

"Walking's not good enough!" Hermione snapped. "You have to run!"

Harry scoffed, and allowed himself to be strung along by Hermione.

When they got into the classroom, everything was silent. Hermione's cheeks turned red, and McGonagall said, "So nice that you could join us today. Have a seat. Now." Everyone stared at the two. They were both aware of the eyes that were on them, but they simply ignored them. They knew what everyone thought they'd been doing. Sickos.

Potter Residence

"Lily, sorry!" James called, as he knocked her hairbrush into the toilet. "I'll buy you a new one!"

"What are you talking about, Jims?" Lily inquired, stepping into the bathroom.

"I accidentally knocked your brush into the toilet," James said nervously.

"So?"
"So... I thought you'd get mad for me doing so."

"For knocking that brush into the toilet? No! I just want a new one!"

"Has anyone ever told you that you look like Kelly Preston when she has red hair?" James asked.

"Oh, shut up," Lily said playfully.

"Well, really..."

"When you're ready, go get me another brush."

James sighed. He wished he hadn't knocked the brush into the toilet. "And while you're getting ready, I'm going to get the old brush out of the toilet and hit you over the head with it!"

James's eyes widened in fear, and he ran out of the bathroom, half his face covered in shaving cream.

"I was joking!" Lily called.

"I know!" James called up the stairs.

Lily rolled her eyes. She used her wand to levitate the brush out of the toilet and into the garbage can.

Lily went downstairs. She looked into the other bathroom. James was leaning up against the wall by the toilet. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"You bitch," he said. "You tried to kill me."

Lily looked around wildly, looking for a reason he would say this. "What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

"You poisoned me."

"No, I didn't, James."

"You did too! I've been throwing up for the past day now! Ever since I ate those damn tacos!"

"James! I had the SAME TACOS YOU DID. I MADE THEM. DON'T BE STUPID!"

"How can I be stupid and dying at the same time?"

"Simple! I can kill you right now!" Lily screamed, before running out of the bathroom and up to Harry's room. She wished that Harry was home right now; she could talk to him. Just then, Harry's owl came in. "Hedwig," she muttered through her tears. She took the letter off of the owl's leg.

She read the letter her son sent her (which was very, very long.) It was sad, but... somehow, she wished that she could've been told that. Several lines had made her wish that she had never faked cancer. (i.e. "...missed you a lot..." and "if dad does anything stupid, tell him to shut his face, or you'll bail out Stacy/Sarah..." and "...hate dad for what he's done...").

Lily wrote back. She knew Harry would be able to tell that she'd been crying when she was writing the letter, but that didn't seem to matter at the moment.

Hogwarts

"Harry, I'm glad you wrote to your mother. Do you think Hedwig will be able to get there safely? I mean, she's really old," Hermione said at breakfast.

"Hermione, she's only six years old. I got her for my ninth birthday from Hagrid. She's not old," Harry said. Just then, Ron called from behind him. "Oy! Make room!" he said. Harry scooted over. He sighed.

"Look at all this great food!" Ron said happily.

"Ron, any food looks great to you," Harry said. "Where were you, anyway?"

"I was just... clearing my mind," Ron said.

"Ron, there's just one problem with your alibi," Harry said.

"What?" asked Ron.

"You can't clear something that's not there." Hermione giggled. Ron glared at her. Hermione gave a false frown. Harry could tell she was holding back a smile.

AN: Okay. Sorry I haven't posted in a while. My best friend died on Thursday, otherwise I would've posted then. But, I couldn't find the strength in my fingers after I pulled him out from under my mom's car by the tail. Okay? Post later. Suggestions welcome. Tell that ass who posted that last review to shut their face, and that they're lucky that they're signed, otherwise I'd delete that shitty review they put there. Honestly...