Chapter Ten

Jolting, Kate woke up in the Gryffindor Common Room, and her head pressed into Harry's neck. It was her dream that had woke her, but it was gone and Kate couldn't remember what it had been about.

Carefully, she turned her head. Harry was sleeping soundly, his lips parted slightly and his eyes were at rest under the lids. Kate was surprised by how she little she knew him and her immediate reaction to him. She didn't have the bone deep knowledge of him. Not like she had with Draco. Harry was… Kate didn't know what he was.

In their deep conversation, Kate had forgotten about the Garden and the Temple, even her haunting vision. They had wandered around the grounds, not near the Garden, of course, but around the lake and skirting the forest.

They had both lost their parents at the hands of Voldemort. Their parents had known each other. Kate's mother anyway. All of them. The Marauders: James, Remus, Sirius, Peter; and Severus, Diana, and Lily. Kate imagined the adventures and experiences they must have had, back when all they had to worry about was a homework assignment and the Hogsmeade trips. So far, she'd only heard about her mother and Severus and her brain tingled to know more. But for now, Kate realized, she had enough to deal with. If her vision was true, Harry could be a Guardian and that needed her attention at the moment. Had Draco's decision affected the Temple more than she'd expected?

After breakfast and much persistent convincing of Dumbledore, Kate and Harry took the short walk down to the village. Kate was fascinated by it. Hogsmeade was the only fully magical village in Britain left. There were so many strange and unknown beings walking unabashedly down the cobbled streets, Kate couldn't help but stare. There were also Dementors. Kate did not like these creatures. They were dauntingly tall and reminded her partly of the Grim Reaper. Harry told her in a haunted voice that they had the power to suck out one's soul with only a kiss, the Dementor's Kiss. They were stationed at the entrances of Hogsmeade for protection for the townspeople against Voldemort. Kate understood the precautions and why Hogsmeade needed protection, but she still couldn't ignore the heart aching chill that seeped through her when they passed into the village.

Happy and warm and in the sun once more, they strolled along the busy street hand in hand. Harry took her into the shops he loved best. After buying bags of candy roughly the size of their heads, they wandered out and into the busyness. It wasn't so much that they would eat all the sweets, just the fun of poking around the sugary-smelling shop and picking out the most interesting things they could find.

Resting their tired legs in the mid-afternoon, they sat on a bench tucked securely between large pots of colorful flowers.

"I'll be right back. I've got something for you," Harry said, interrupting Kate's peaceful state of mind. She watched his back disappear into the crowd and tried to push the memory of Draco from her mind. She thought about him a lot now. What with her reoccurring vision of the Temple, Draco was never far from her thoughts.

"What did you get?" Kate said, grinning at Harry as he handed her a bottle and sat down.

"Butterbeer." He twisted open her bottle, then his own.

"Is it any good?" Kate looked curiously into the open bottle and watched the frothy golden liquid swirl inside the brown bottle.

"Not only good. It's excellent. Try some." He took a deep swig of his bottle.

Kate followed his example and put the bottle to her lips and tipped it back. It was delicious. All buttery sweet, like the butterscotch Muggle candies her grandmother used to give her when she was young but richer. Instantly, if it was possible, she felt even more warm and happy than before. "It's amazing! I can't believe I've never had this before!"

Harry finished his swallow, smiling at her. "It's much better when the weather's cold. Warms you right up."

All warm and contented, wandered up and down the main street until it was time to go back for the night.

Most days, Kate woke with the sun and joined her grandmother for breakfast before venturing up to the airless rooms of Sibyll Trelawney. She knew what Harry thought of the woman: a fraud. Kate knew that was entirely possible, probable even, but she'd never met someone who openly talked about premonitions. Her mother had never even mentioned it and Helen refused to speak of it. It was past her; she was done with it and was glad. There was no changing her grandmother's mind.

"One must accept the vision. Go willingly into it and it will clarify and reveal its true meaning," she said one morning between sips of tea. Truthfully, Kate had never thought about this concept. And come to think of it, she's always tried to bring herself out of her visions to regain control.

"What'll happen if…"

"If you let yourself go?"

Kate nodded.

"I just told you." Sibyll was in a testy mood that morning. "It's meaning will reveal itself. Did you not say that you saw contradicting things, Kathleen?"

Kate nodded. So she had.

As July wore on, Kate and Harry spent more and more time together and soon they were inseparable. They did everything together. To Kate, this seemed like the perfect relationship. She and Harry loved their time together, they understood each other perfectly, and he made her feel safe and secure. Remus, Dumbledore, and the rest of the staff--with the exception of Severus--loved Harry like their own son and couldn't be happier for the star-crossed couple. That didn't hurt one bit. Kate thought of Draco and how much they'd fought the adults at the school to stay together. None of them thought it would last. At the heaviness of Draco leaving, they had torn apart at the seams. And, Kate thought miserably, they had been right.

Usually, they took a boat onto the lake to watch the sun set after eating dinner with Ron and Hermione. Harry would always row them to and fro, even through Kate's consistent offers to take her fair turn. Truth was, she like watching him steer them into the middle of the big lake burning with the tangerine lights of the sunset. He looked so strong and reliable.

"Harry?" Kate was leaned back and rocked the side of the boat gently with a bare foot.

He blinked away his thoughts and murmured. Harry had been thinking of Kate, as always. She was lying back in the boat, her eyes closed and her skin glowed in the slow dimming light. Kate looked like just like what he imagined an angel would look like in her simple cotton sundress. Her dark curly hair was illuminated, giving off lights of red, gold, even some pink.

"What will we do when summer ends?" She had been anxious to ask this.

"What do you mean?" He eased her up to a sitting position with a pull of her hand. Her hair fell over her shoulders and she tucked the curls behind her ears. Harry was beginning to see this was a habit she did when she was nervous or didn't know quite what to say.

"I mean… Oh, I don't know what I mean. We won't see each other much, Harry. What will you do?"

"What will I do?" he repeated.

Kate's words were spewing from her mouth before she could gate them off. "Because, if you wanted me to… I could meet you any time. Really, I could." She bit her lip and re-tucked a twist of hair.

Harry sighed and took her hands. "I don't know what we'll do, Kate. I don't know. All we can do is wait and take it as it comes." His voice was quiet, almost a hoarse whisper.

Kate nodded and this time, she paddled them back to shore.