Author's Notes: We're approaching the home stretch now. 150 points to the person who can guess the next chapter title…

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Before

"Post's here!"

It was a gloomy Friday morning in December – just two weeks before the Christmas holidays started. Ellie was sitting in the Great Hall eating a bowl of lumpy porridge. Her owl, Helga, swooped down beside her and dropped a letter in her lap. She stuck her beak in Ellie's bowl while Ellie tore open the letter. As she was hoping, it was a letter from Amelia about her Christmas plans. Ellie's eyes nearly fell out of her head when she read what Amelia had planned.

I thought it might be nice to go back to California over Christmas. You could see Jamie and I could see some friends…

Ellie could not believe her luck. She would be able to see Jamie again in two weeks! Good old Amelia!

That evening, Ellie had a lesson with Snape. Their lessons had been going better for Ellie since Snape had agreed to cut back on the workload. In fact, Ellie had been pleasantly surprised to find that a lot of what Snape had taught her was being covered in her lessons – and she was sailing ahead of her classmates. Pangs of guilt plagued her whenever she bumped into Jessica Healy – a Ravenclaw student who usually came top everything, apart from Potions. Ellie wondered if it was really fair that the only reason she was doing so exceptionally well in class was that Snape was giving her individual tuition. She had broached the subject with Snape, but he dismissed it as nonsense and said Ellie would inspire Jessica to work harder and that really she was doing her a favour. Ellie didn't feel entirely comfortable with this answer, but she didn't want to get into Snape's bad books again so she would have to live with some guilty feelings where Jessica was concerned.

After practising some incantations, Snape asked, in a casual manner, what her plans for the Christmas break were.

"I believe you stayed at the school last year."

"Yeah. Mrs. Manning was in hospital so I had nowhere else to go."

"I see."

"I'm going to California with Amelia this year!"

Snape raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Yeah! It's going to be brilliant to see Jamie again!"

"Indeed."

Ellie caught Snape frowning. A sudden idea occurred to her.

"That's not a problem is it?"

"What? Oh, no, of course not," Snape said in an irritated voice.

Ellie heard him mutter under his breath that sounded suspiciously like, "didn't even consult me…"

"You will have to make up the work you miss," Snape added, louder.

Ellie lowered her head in confusion. Should she write back and tell Amelia she couldn't come? She wanted to see Jamie so much though! She would only be gone for two weeks – that was six lessons. Surely Snape would not begrudge her that? He of all people knew how much Jamie meant to her. Of course, Ellie thought with a chuckle, that was one of the things Snape seemed to hate about Jamie!

Amelia was going to meet Ellie at the train station and then they were going straight to the airport. Ellie didn't get a wink of sleep the night before she left. She could believe her luck in getting to see Jamie so soon after the last time. She thought she would have to wait until at least the following summer.

Ellie called by Snape's office to say goodbye the next morning. It was not the embarrassing affair that her goodbye had been last summer, it was more like the awkward goodbye when she had left Snape's house after spending a month with him. She waited for some sign of affection from her father while he stared coldly at her. As before, he offered her a book before she left, which she promised to read before she got back. She left the office, disappointed. Still, perhaps it was too much to expect Snape to fit into a fatherly role. He seemed much more comfortable around her when he was playing the part of her professor. It just seemed to be his way. Even her mother had admitted in her diary that he was reserved. Ellie privately thought it was a wonder she had even been born! She still was not brave enough to read certain parts of the diary however, so she assumed that Snape could show some affection when he needed to. Maybe he just needed more time.

Ellie was delighted to see Jamie again. She flung her arms around his neck and he squeezed her tight. They chatted excitedly about Jamie's new school and about Hogwarts. Ellie waited until they were alone before she would talk about Snape.

"Go on then. From your letters it sounds like you're getting on all right," Jamie said.

"Yeah, he's not too bad. He's obsessed with making the best witch in the year, but he calmed down a bit when I asked him."

"Calling him 'Dad' yet?" Jamie asked, grinning.

"Only when I want to annoy him," Ellie replied with a wry smile.

"So, all the time then, yeah?" Jamie said, and they both laughed.

"He's quite paranoid about it actually. Remember that time in class I wrote to you about?"

"Oh yeah! I would have given anything to have seen his face!" They laughed again.

"I'd give anything to be back at Hogwarts you know," Jamie said, suddenly looking serious.

"You'd give anything for a lot of things," Ellie joked. It took Jamie a few seconds to work this out and when he did, he playfully punched her arm.

"You know what I mean!" he said, grinning.

"I thought you said you liked your new school?"

"It's not the same," Jamie admitted. Ellie nodded her head. Jamie hesitated before adding, "It's not the same without you." His face was red when he had finished. Ellie's cheeks turned a deep shade of pink. They remained silent for a moment.

"It's not the same at Hogwarts without you," Ellie admitted, keeping her eyes on the ground. Jamie smiled broadly, his face getting redder by the second. Ellie shot him a sideway glance and gave him a shy smile. Jamie moved his hand next to hers and, hesitantly, their fingers intertwined. Ellie shot another glance at Jamie, and he appeared to be moving closer to her. Her heart began to pound against her chest, but Amelia and Jamie's mum interrupted the moment. Their hands flew apart immediately and they both blushed a deep red. Amelia and Mrs. Logan realised they had interrupted something, and blushed themselves. Mrs. Logan seemed flustered all of a sudden.

"Um… dinner's ready," she said in a high-pitched, shaky voice, quite unlike her own.

When Ellie and Amelia had gotten back to the house Amelia was renting during their stay she brought up Jamie.

"He's a nice boy," she said.

"Um, yeah," Ellie stammered, wondering where Amelia was going with this.

"You must miss him a lot when you're at Hogwarts."

"Yeah, I do," Ellie said with another blush.

"Do you like this house?" Amelia said, suddenly changing the subject.

"Yeah," Ellie said, both relieved and disappointed that they weren't talking about Jamie anymore.

"It's really nice," Ellie added sincerely. She did like the house, and not just because Jamie's house happened to be a short drive away. The beach was only a fifteen-minute walk away, and even in the middle of winter this seemed wonderful to Ellie, who had lived in the middle of a town miles away from the sea for most her life.

"I'm glad you think so," Amelia replied, smiling.

"Besides, we're only here for another week, so even if I hated the house it wouldn't matter!" Ellie joked.

"Oh… yes," Amelia said, in an odd sort of voice, causing Ellie to give her a questioning look. Amelia ignored this and quickly turned the subject to Christmas, which was only a few days away. Jamie's parents had invited them to spend it with them, and Amelia had gladly accepted, knowing Ellie would have killed her if she had said no.

Ellie had a wonderful Christmas with Amelia and Jamie's family. Her thoughts did drift to Snape, and she felt guilty to think that she was spending the first Christmas since she had found out he was her father away from him. On the other hand though, he had not seemed too bothered about her going, apart from it interrupting his lesson plan. She had more guilty thoughts about the book he had given her. It was lying, still unopened, under her bed. She would have to look at it tomorrow.

Ellie and Jamie got to spend some more time alone together before Ellie left to go back to London for the last few days of the Christmas break. He came over to the house she where she was staying. Amelia had to go out, but since Ellie and Jamie were now thirteen, she thought it was okay to leave them at home.

They sat out on the porch at the back of the house. The weather was mild – a stark contrast to the blizzard Ellie had left at Hogwarts.

"I wish you could stay here," Jamie admitted, looking out over the back garden.

"Me too," Ellie said absent-mindedly.

"Really?" Jamie said, turning to Ellie.

Ellie realised what she had just said. As she thought about it, she couldn't say that she didn't mean it. She did wish she could stay with Jamie. She looked back at him, a thin smile on her face.

"Yeah," she replied. Jamie broke out into a warm smile, which Ellie returned. He began to move closer to her, just as he had at his house a few days before. As before, Ellie's heart began to pound furiously. She closed her eyes and waited expectantly.

"I'm back!" Amelia's voice could be heard from inside the house. Ellie and Jamie flew apart as Amelia walked out on to the porch. She stopped when she saw the red faces, which were staring intently at the grass.

"Oh! Sorry!" she said, and then glided back into the kitchen, kicking herself for not coming home five minutes later.

Saying goodbye to Jamie this time around seemed harder. Ellie fought back tears when she extracted herself from Jamie's bear-like hug.

"I'll write to you as soon as I get back," she promised. Jamie nodded, his eyes looking a bit damp.

"Well," Amelia said a few days later as they stood on platform nine and three quarters. "I hope you enjoyed your holiday!"

"I did. I loved it! Thank you!" Ellie said, hugging Amelia.

Amelia smiled at her.

"I'll write soon okay. I might come and see you too."

"Really?"

"Yeah! Be good!"

Ellie hung out the window, waving furiously to Amelia as the train pulled out of the station, then she sat back, thinking over the last few weeks. She wished she didn't have to wait another six months to see Jamie again. That seemed like forever.

When Ellie got back, she went to see Snape. He asked tersely how Jamie was, and then wanted to know if she had read the book. Ellie assured him she had, although she neglected to mention that she read most of it on the flight back to London, and she couldn't remember half of it.

Ellie enquired about Snape's Christmas. She had been wondering about whether she should give him a present, but had decided against it, at the time feeling that Snape may not appreciate a gesture like that. Now she found herself wishing she had. Snape had spent Christmas at Hogwarts, and from what Ellie could gather it didn't sound like he enjoyed himself at all. Feeling guilty, she began to wonder would he have had a better time had she stayed.

Amelia had not been lying when she said she would come and see Ellie at school. Ellie had only been back at Hogwarts one month when Amelia sent her an owl, telling her she would be at the school the next day. She mentioned she had something she needed to talk to Ellie about, which made Ellie very curious.

Amelia did arrive the next day, and Professor McGonagall kindly loaned them her office so they could talk.

"I have something important to tell you Ellie," Amelia began.

"What?"

"Um… I'm not sure how to tell you this… You remember my job – the way it's a bit unpredictable?"

Ellie nodded.

"Well, I've been offered a more stable job, something I think I would enjoy. It would mean I'd have steady work – no going back and forth all over the place. I'll be able to settle down."

"That's brilliant!" Ellie exclaimed.

Amelia gave her a weak smile.

"There's more. The job… the job is with those friends I went to visit over Christmas – you remember them?"

Ellie frowned.

"Yeah…" she said slowly.

"So anyway, it means I'm going to move out to California… permanently," Amelia admitted.

Ellie's face fell, and she began to feel sick. Amelia moving! What did that mean for her?

"Ellie, I want you to know, you're welcome to come with me, if you want to. I'd love to have you with me. I've talked to Jamie's parents about his school and it sounds wonderful. If you want to stay though, I'll understand."

"But, how can I stay if you leave? Who would I…?" Ellie began, and then it hit her.

"With Snape?" she asked.

Amelia nodded.

"I talked to him yesterday down in Hogsmeade. He says there would be some rules you would have to agree to, but he would be willing to let you stay with him over the summer. So really, it's your choice Ellie. Where do you want to live?"

Ellie's hands shook nervously. Where did she want to live?