Hello everyone!I know it's been a while, I think almost exactly a month since the last time I updated, and a do apologize for the. The holidays have been very rough and it's kind of a sad time for me and my family, so it was difficult to push through. But anyway, I hope that this chapter makes up for it, I tried to give you guys a good one for the New Year. I hope that you guys like this chapter, a lot of thought went into it, and please feel free to leave a review to let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: All things Harry Potter are not mine.
Chapter Eleven: Shooting Stars
MiaPOV
Mia let out a soft sigh and rubbed at her eyes, trying her best to stay focused on the roll of parchment in front of her that she was currently writing her essay on, which was already seven inches long, but she still had a long way to go before it was completely finished. This particular assignment was from Snape, and he has directed them all to write about the effects of some of the more terrible curses back during the days of the Second World War and what improvements have been made since then to treating them as well as defending against them. Mia remembered studying this era in History of Magic, about how a dark wizard named Gellert Grindlewald has rallied his forces to his side and set out on a very similar mission to Voldemort's, wanting to place wizards and witches above all, to defeat the Muggles before they had a chance to attack and persecute them just because they were different, because they were a threat. Some of the dark magic Grindlewald and his followers used were brutal, and many of them were still used today. Mia had been at this for a while now, since she had finished up tutoring Michael and a couple of his friends with their own defense homework, as they had gotten into the habit of doing two nights a week. She found herself thoroughly enjoying it, happy that she was able to help them understand whenever they had trouble. Once they left, Mia set herself up to get her own work done, and she's been holed up in her favorite corner of the library ever since, with two small piles of books on either side of her and her hand cramping up a little because of all the writing she has done.
Sighing again, she placed down her quill and leaned back into her chair, stretching her back a bit. Maybe this was a good place to stop for the night since the essay wasn't due until Friday. Besides, she needed to get back to the common room anyway—she promised to play Muggle cards tonight with Ron after he and Harry got done with Quidditch practice. With that in mind, she sat up straighter and then started to gather all the books she would have to put back on the shelves. Once she had them all in her hands, she left her table and then started to walk around the many shelves that lined the walls and pathways, and whenever she found where she had taken out a book, she would hold it up towards the proper section and then the book would magically float out of her hands and into the correct slot. She did this quite a few times before she began heading back towards the Restricted Section. Wanting to do proper research for her essay, Mia had gone up to Snape and asked his permission to check out a couple books from the Restricted Section of the library. The Dungeon Bat gave her his usual sneer and snarky comment before relenting, after demanding to know which books she would be taking and deeming them acceptable to read. The door leading to the Restricted Section was close by the Madame Pince's desk, and when Mia walked over, the older witch simply nodded at her and allowed the young girl to go in. Mia only had two books to put away in this section, so she located the correct shelves pretty quickly and rubbed at her eyes again, thankful that she was done her assignments for the night.
Just as Mia turned around to head back out into the main library, her hand knocked into a book that was protruding a bit farther out than the other ones on the shelf and it fell to the floor with a loud clang, seeing as there was a thing chain wrapped around it. Not wanting to have Madame Pince swooping down on her like an angry Vulture, Mia was fast in bending down to pick up the book so she can put it back, however when she had it in her hands, she saw that the tiny lock that was on the chain was broken, and the book fell open in her hands, making her raise an eyebrow in confusion. How on earth did the lock become undone? As far as she knew, any book needing this type of security could only be accessed by the Librarian. The book itself was very old, with yellowing pages and a worn out, black leather cover, and the few images on the page it had opened up to had Mia wrinkle her nose in disgust. She had no idea what kind of book this was, but she sure wasn't going to flick through and find out. However just as she was about to close it, the pages started to suddenly move of their own accord, flipping frantically until it finally stopped more towards the middle of the book.
"What the…" Mia muttered in surprise, wondering how the book managed to do that on its own. All at once she started feeling hesitant about holding it, the situation feeling awfully familiar to what Tom Riddle's diary had done just four years ago with Ginny. She herself had charmed her own books to flip over to where she had left off, but this particular book mad her feel uneasy about it, and she knew she had to turn this in to Madame Pince before anything else happened. Yet as she moved to close the cover, there was something on the top of the left hand page that seemed to catch her attention. From the very brief glances she could see throughout the book as the pages turned, she wasn't able to make out any sort of handwritten notes from anyone who may have looked at it, but on this one page there was a single word that was underlined twice: Horcrux.
"Horcrux?" Mia whispered, her eyebrows furrowing as the word itself sparked a sense of Déjà vu within her mind. "Where have I heard that before?"
For a couple minutes, Mia just stood there, trying to remember why this word seemed so familiar to her, and it frustrated her to no end when she couldn't come up with anything. She knows she has come across this word before, but where? She thought perhaps reading this paragraph about it would help her to remember, just a quick glance and then she could return it to Madame Pince. Holding the book more carefully in her hand, she brought the text a little closer to her so she could read the fading script.
"Many before have tried to find the secret to the ultimate power, to true, everlasting life," she read softly to herself. "Yet the darkest path, and the most destructive, could only be by the creation of the Horcrux, the divine and true answer…"
"I do not believe that is the school material you have been assigned with, Mia."
Mia gasped and nearly dropped the book as she whirled around to see that Professor Dumbledore was standing there, wearing bright purple robes and his twinkling blue eyes fixed upon her, his hands behind his back and a hint of amusement in his smile. Feeling herself turn red at being caught, Mia hastily shut the book and held it tightly in her hands.
"Professor, I—I didn't mean—well, the lock was broken, I was going to tell Madame Pince, but—I-I just—"
"Curiosity is not a sin, Mia," Dumbledore said gently as he moved over towards her. "But you should exercise caution."
"Yes sir," Mia muttered apologetically. "I've…I've never seen you in the library before, sir."
"Oh, I come here more frequently than most realize, the books in my office can only tell me so much," Dumbledore said, eyeing the book that Mia held in her hands. "What is it that you have found?"
"Well, I actually found it on accident, but I think this book may be dangerous," Mia said. "When I went to close it after it dropped from the shelf, the pages started moving by themselves, and I was worried it was something similar to what happened with Riddle's diary. But I saw a word in here that I thought sounded familiar to me, and I supposed I wanted to read a little about it. Although, I think maybe I shouldn't…"
"That would be a wise suggestion," Dumbledore agreed with a nod of his head. "You see Mia, there is magic out there that is meant to be kept in the dark, unknown to the naked eye, because what may sound like salvation could led to one's own doom. Some of these books are filled with knowledge that should kept locked away, which is why I have instructed Madame Pince to go through and remove the ones we find may be too much for the school's library, and I believe that may be one of them. Given the broken lock on the chain, this action may be long overdue. Here now, I can take if off of your hands and make sure that Madame Pince receives it for disposal."
"Thank you, sir," Mia said as she handed over the book to Dumbledore, and her eyes lingered on his blackened hand.
"Sir, may I ask, what happened?" she asked him.
"It's actually quite the thrilling tale, however I'm afraid it must wait for another time," Dumbledore replied with a smile.
"But sir, is there anything that can be done? I've made my own healing solution, it hasn't been used on spell damage to this effect, but it wouldn't hurt to try."
"My dear, sometimes you astound me with your kindness," Dumbledore chuckled, his eyes twinkling even more. "I assure you, it's being taken care of. Off you go now, you wouldn't want to keep Mr. Potter waiting."
Mia smiled at her headmaster and thanked him before she took her leave, heading out of the Restricted Section and making her way out of the library, and into the torch-lit corridor. As she walked, she went over her short talk with Dumbledore, and what he said about some magic being better kept locked away. He sounded as though he almost knew what that book contained and wanted to make sure it was safely put aside so no one else would come across it. The thought made her frown slightly, remembering the term she had discovered and knowing this was going to bother her until she figured out why it sounded so familiar to her. She was so lost in her thoughts that she nearly jumped out of her skin when she caught sight of something making its way around her on the right hand side, coming to a stop in front of her, making Mia cease walking for a moment. The initial shock she felt went away and a smile appeared on her face when she saw that it was a single red rose, floating innocently in the air before her and her heart swelled when she reached out and took it. She brought the soft petals to her lips and sniffed the lovely scent.
"Be still, my beating heart," she whispered before speaking more loudly. "You spoil me too much, Harry."
"I can't help it," came an amused voice as she felt a familiar pair of arms wrap themselves around her from behind. Mia's smile grew as she turned around and placed a tender kiss to her boyfriend's lips in gratitude.
"How was practice?" she asked him.
"It went really good, Ron's getting better every time, and I'm sure our first game is going to be a great one," Harry answered as he placed his forehead against hers. "I just couldn't wait to see you."
"How did you know I would be here?"
"Not that difficult to figure out, love. If you're not in the library, you're usually trying to blow up the girl's dormitories."
"Oh, shut it, you," Mia laughed as she playfully smacked his chest before they started walking down the corridor together, hand-in-hand. "You know, I actually ran into Professor Dumbledore while I was in the library."
"You did?" Harry said in surprise. "He's back, then?"
"Yeah, he was having Madame Pince remove some books in the Restricted Section, and I ran into him."
"What were you doing in the Restricted Section?"
"Taking out books for Snape's essay," Mia said. "And I came across one book that acted a bit like Riddle's diary, the pages were moving on its own."
"What?" Harry said with wide eyes.
"Don't worry, I gave it right over to Dumbledore," Mia reassured him. "He said those kinds of books should be placed safely away, they would probably do more harm than good. I was just curious because there was something familiar I saw in that book…anyway, it doesn't really matter. I wouldn't be surprised if he had another lesson for you soon. Are we still set for Friday?"
"Absolutely," Harry replied with a grin.
"What are we going to do?" she asked.
"It's called a surprise for a reason, Mia," Harry chuckled at her.
"Come on, just a little hint?"
"Nope."
"Pretty please?"
"Not going to happen."
"You're mean."
"But you love me anyway."
"It's kind of hard not to," Mia stated with a dramatic sigh and shake of her head. The two of them continued on with their playful bickering all the way up to Gryffindor Tower, where they gave the password to the Fat Lady and entered the common room, where everyone was settled in for the night. Mia could see Neville sitting over at one of the tables, carefully watering some sort of strange bush that had red thorns and blue flowers that seemed to chime like bells. Lavender and Parvati were gossiping in the corner, with Parvati giggling at her friend, who was beat red in the face as she glanced over towards the opposite side of the room, where Ron and Hermione were sitting. She raised her eyebrow at this but didn't say anything. Lately, Mia has noticed that Lavender seemed to be a little extra friendly towards Ron, and seems to want to talk with him more. For Hermione sake, she just hoped that Ron continued to stay oblivious about it. No matter how blind they both are, Mia knew that on some level, Hermione could feel her emotions for Ron starting to grow, and she hoped that they would see it sooner rather than later, because if Ron had been sour when Hermione was getting friendly with Viktor Krum in their fourth year, she could only imagine how Hermione would react if Ron were to get together with someone else, especially Lavender. After another kiss from Harry and shooing him upstairs so he could take a shower, Mia made her way over to sit with Ron and Hermione, with the former brightening when he saw her.
"There you are," he said, instantly reaching for the pack of Muggle cards that Mia had gotten him years ago. "What kept you?"
"Sorry Ron, Harry and I were just snogging in a broom cupboard on the way up," Mia said with a smirk, making Hermione laugh.
"Very funny," Ron said with a roll of his eyes. "You have the candy?"
"Right here," Mia confirmed as she reached into her bag and pulled out handfuls of chocolate and sweet toffees. "I hope you're ready to lose, Weasley."
"In your dreams!"
"And here they go again," Hermione muttered with a shake of her head.
…...
When Friday finally arrived, Mia felt both excited as well as curious for what Harry had planned for them today. The morning seemed to fly by on swift wings, and she was no closer to getting the plans out of Harry than she was before. All he told her to do was to meet him in the Entrance Hall at five o'clock and to make sure she wore warm clothing. Also, every time they met up during the day, he would give her another rose, just as he had done the other night, and he would fix her with that infuriating smirk of his, as though he knew the greatest secret in the universe, and she could tell he was enjoying the fact that it was driving her nuts. By the time their last class of the day came around, she already had four roses and she found herself eager for the day to be over. It's been a long while since she and Harry were actually able to go out on a proper date, so this was definitely a night to look forward to. Professor Slughorn had them make another complicated potion and with the help of his textbook, Harry was able to make the potion perfectly, much to Hermione's annoyance. It turns out that the previous owner of the book was someone called the Half-Blood Prince, as they had signed the inside cover, and whoever it was, they really seemed to know what they were doing because every time Harry followed the alternate instructions, his potion always came out on top.
"Perfect, as usual!" Slughorn exclaimed joyfully as he peered into Harry's cauldron. "Harry m'boy, such wonderful talent, you certainly take after your mother! Both you and Miss Thatcher receive full marks, most excellent work! All right now, for homework I want you all to write a brief summary of the history of the potion made today and how it is used in today's society. Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and I shall see you all on Monday."
With those final parting words, everyone started to pack away their things and began filing out of the room. Mia couldn't help the relief that washed over her, as it always did at the end of a long week, and just as she slung her bag over her shoulder, she saw Harry approach her from the side with a smile.
"Are you ready for tonight, love?" he asked.
"It depends on what you have in store for me," Mia replied.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll love it," Harry reassured her. "I just have to make sure everything is set up right."
"Harry, I hope you didn't go through too much trouble for tonight. You know you don't have to do anything big…"
"I know, but I still want to make sure everything is perfect," Harry said, a soft look coming into his eyes as he took her hand in his. "You deserve nothing less."
"Bloody hell, Harry, I think the girls have turned you into a complete gushy sap," Ron snorted.
"Honestly Ron, do you have any tact at all?" Hermione sighed, shaking her head with a hopeless expression on her face. Mia simply smiled at her friend's antics before leaning up to kiss Harry sweetly.
"Love you," she whispered against his lips. "I'll see you soon."
Harry grinned at her and then gave her another peck before he hurried out of the room, disappearing into the throng of other students. There was a content, giddy feeling swelling inside Mia's chest, causing her to smile to herself as she brought up the end of the crowd leaving the dungeons with Hermione and Ron, with the redhead laughing at her until Hermione smacked him on the arm, telling him to be nice. It was only just before four o'clock in the afternoon, so Mia still had plenty of time to get ready before she was supposed to meet up with Harry, and when she, Ron and Hermione reached the common room, she instantly went up to the girl's dormitory to jump into the shower. It seemed as though most of the week she would return from her classes covered in paint, dirt, or even both, courtesy of her Art classes as well as Care of Magical Creatures, so it always felt relaxing whenever she can step under the hot water to soak it all away. She didn't spend too much time in the shower though since she was working on a time limit, and when she stepped out into the dormitory wrapped in her towel she did her usual routine of figuring out what to wear. Harry had told her to wear warm clothing, so more than likely they were going to be doing something outside. Therefore, after about ten minutes of thinking and muttering to herself, Mia finally settled on a wine red, tunic blouse that had quarter length sleeves, along with dark blue jeans, and black boots. After brushing her hair, she used her wand to dry it out, styling it so her curls were loose and bouncy, deciding to leave it down. For the finishing touch, she clipped the locket Harry gave her around her neck, placed simple stud earrings in her ears, and put a touch of perfume on her wrists and neck. Once she finally deemed herself presentable, Mia grabbed her cardigan and scarf, placed her wand in the pocket, and then proceeded down to the common room where she found Ron and Hermione sitting together with their books and parchment on the table.
"Wow, you look great, Mia," Hermione said with a smile while Ron nodded in agreement. "I hope you and Harry have a good time."
"Don't let Filch catch you on the way back," Ron added. "That bloke can ruin anyone's night."
"Thanks guys, I'll see you later," Mia giggled, waving at them as she walked out of the portrait hole. She made her way down to the main staircase in record time, with only ten minutes to spare, and she smiled to see a familiar raven-haired boy standing by the oak front doors, hands in his pockets and a rucksack at his feet. When he turned his head towards her and their eyes met, Mia could feel her heart start to beat frantically in her chest at the sight of his smile, his green eyes piercing even from a distance. When she walked down the stairs and reached him, Harry immediately took her into his arms and gave her a tender kiss, instantly making the butterflies erupt in her stomach, fluttering about wildly.
"You look beautiful, love," Harry murmured as they pulled away from each other.
"You don't look so bad yourself," Mia commented as she took note of the navy blue, long sleeved shirt tucked into his black pants, with a dark gray jacket. "Who knew Harry Potter could look so sharp?"
"It's really Sirius' fault," Harry chuckled. "When he took me into London for my birthday, he felt that I was in desperate need for a new wardrobe."
"Remind me to thank him next time we see him," Mia teased. "So, now will you tell me what we are doing?"
"You'll see," Harry said as he reached down to pick up the rucksack and draped it over his shoulder. Mia raised an eyebrow at him but didn't say anything as she took Harry's hand and followed him outside through the front doors, into the chilly October air.
The grounds of Hogwarts were peacefully quiet as they walked along the grassy slopes, with the sun steadily making its descent over the hills and the darkening sky following close behind. Until then, the sky was a pretty mixture of bright gold and pink, with a light breeze that ruffled the leaves at their feet and made Mia move closer to Harry, burrowing her face a little deeper into her scarf. They talked for a bit as they headed out towards the Black Lake, and Mia excitedly told Harry about the portrait she was working on of Mrs. Brugger, and how it was almost finished. She still wasn't sure if she was going to keep it or not, because while she would enjoying having a reminder of her dear old friend, she knew it would make her sad as well, remembering the day of her passing. There was still some time to think about it, and Mia already knew what she was going to call it.
"Aphrodite?" Harry said curiously when she told him. "What made you pick that?"
"It's what her husband called her," Mia explained with a fond smile. "When they had met, it was at a ball and he called her Aphrodite since he didn't know her name. They didn't see each other again until after the war, and when they did, he said he finally found his Aphrodite. I thought it was fitting for my project."
"I couldn't agree more," Harry said before he had them stop just before they reached the Willow Tree they would frequently sit under. "Okay, close your eyes."
"Why?"
"Trust me."
Mia raised her eyebrow again but complied with his wish, closing her eyes and letting Harry guide her a few steps further before he had her stop again. He let go of her hand and she heard him rummage around in the rucksack for a minute, and how he kept walking around, making her even more confused as to what he was doing. Soon she heard him mutter something under his breath, and Mia's curiosity was spiked even more when she heard something like a spark igniting and then soon after, the sounds of crackling wood. After just a couple more minutes, she felt Harry take her hand again while placing his free one on her lower back, gently nudging her forward.
"Okay, you can open your eyes now," he said. Mia opened her eyes and a gasp escaped her lips when she saw the setup before her.
Perfectly nestled between the rippling waters of the lake and the swaying branches of the willow, there was a circle-shaped blanket that held a couple cushions, a bag of graham crackers and marshmallows, and two bottles of Butter beer. Also, there was a ceramic bowl that held a small fire, where the flames were already starting to dance among the branches and bits of wood inside. Along the sides of the blanket were also several small jars that held tiny flames inside, so by the time the sun finally set, they would still be bathed with the light of the fires. For the most part, Mia was speechless, and it took her a while to absorb it all before she turned to Harry with wide eyes.
"Harry, this is amazing!" she breathed, a smile quickly stretching across her face. "You really did all this?"
"Well it wasn't too hard, once Hermione explained to me how to safely set up a fire," Harry chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just grabbed the snacks from the kitchen, and I have an extra blanket too, for when it gets colder. I would have done a campfire, but I thought...maybe you wouldn't be comfortable around a big fire right now, so I thought this would do to roast the marshmallows. What do you think?"
"I think it's absolutely perfect," Mia answered as she pulled him in for a tight hug, more than touched at the thought Harry put into this. "I don't know how I got so lucky to have you."
"It's just a blanket and some marshmallows," Harry said, his face going pink at her words. "And are you sure the fire is all right? If it makes you nervous, I can get rid of it—"
"It's perfect," Mia repeated, putting as much meaning into her words as possible before kissing him. "I love you, Harry. Now and always."
"Forever and ever," he said, a smile on his face. With that being said, the two of them sat down on the blanket and themselves comfortable. Harry grabbed the extra blanket from the rucksack to drape around them and Mia was more than happy to snuggle herself closer to him, soaking up his body heat while reaching for a couple marshmallows. Within minutes, Mia and Harry were seated contentedly against each other, roasting their marshmallows in the fire with their wands and just taking comfort in each other. Mia sighed softly, a gentle smile on her lips. Even though it seems the world could be falling apart, it was moments like this that made her feel most at peace. She didn't know what she would do without Harry Potter. For a while they just sat there, watching the sun sink behind the clouds as night finally fell upon them, with the sky mostly clear and stars scattered about like bright, glowing confetti. The couple talked about everything and nothing, never a dull moment between them, and at one point Mia playfully suck a cool, gooey marshmallow to Harry's nose, laughing as it dripped onto his chin. She didn't know how long they sat by the lake for, but it didn't matter—she could have spent hours out here and not notice. During this time, Mia noticed that Harry would check his watch every once in a while and then glance up at the sky. The third time this happened, he actually smiled and Mia was surprised when he reached back to adjust the cushions before extinguishing the fire.
"It's time," he said.
"Time for what?" Mia asked, the confusion clear in her voice. "What are you doing?"
"Lay down," Harry instructed, leaning back so he was lying down with his head on one of the cushions, face up. Despite wondering what on earth he was doing, Mia followed his lead and laid down on her back next to him, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. When she turned her head towards him to ask, Harry simply grinned before pointing upwards. Puzzled, Mia looked up and her boyfriend's actions suddenly made complete sense. Her mouth dropped open in wonder as Mia saw a shooting star fly straight across the sky, followed soon by another one, then another until it was a steady shower of them, raining down from the heavens. The sight was so beautiful, and all Mia could do was watch in awe, taken aback by the incredible spectacle.
"Harry…how did you…"
"I honestly had trouble figuring out what to do for our date," Harry admitted sheepishly. "I know Astronomy was one of your favorite classes, so I looked through some books, hoping to find some inspiration. I read on a star chart that a shower was supposed to happen soon, that's why I picked our date to be tonight. I thought you would like it."
Mia was once again speechless, so all she could do was nod. It was silent between her and Harry as they watched the stars streak above them, their hands intertwined on the blanket. Time seemed to pass by way too quickly, and just as Mia felt the amazing display had just started, it was suddenly over, with the last star flying through the air and disappearing from sight as more dark, thick clouds rolled in afterwards, like a stage curtain. Even though she was sad to see that it was over, Mia still had a bright smile on her face.
"That was beautiful," she whispered.
"Yeah...beautiful."
Harry's hushed words made Mia look over to see that he was no longer looking up at the sky, but his sight was solely focused on her. Mia's cheeks immediately turned red with the way he was looking at her, and she hoped it was dark enough so he wouldn't see. After a minute of staring, Harry started to turn over so he could lean closer, and Mia found herself doing the same. The second their lips connected, she could feel her insides start to warm up, driving away the cold atmosphere. She could feel Harry trace his fingers across her cheek until they ran themselves through her hair, and she moved closer until her body was against his, with her hand on his hip and his enticing scent filling her senses. There was nothing to stop her from moaning softly as he deepened the kiss and maneuvered so he was partially on top of her, and she felt something familiar flicker inside her stomach. Before she ended up losing herself completely, Mia suddenly felt something wet drop into her forehead, but at first she was too much into their kiss to take much notice. However when she felt two more fall onto her hand, it caused her to pull away from Harry a little.
"What's wrong?" he asked, his breathing heavy. Mia was about to answer but when she glanced up at the sky, her eyes widened when she saw that the clouds had now completely taken over, hiding away all the stars and there was a distant rumble that reached her ears. Her eyes met Harry's and just as realization dawned on both of them, the rumbling noise sounded again and the next thing they knew, raindrops began falling all around them, starting off light, but as the seconds ticked on it became heavier. Mia gave Harry a startled look before they both shot up to their feet and made quick work of gathering all their things. While Harry rolled up the blankets, Mia extinguished the gladness in the jars and grabbed the leftover marshmallows. When they had everything stuffed back inside the rucksack, Mia took his hand and then the two of them started to race back up to the castle, laughing nearly the whole way.
By the time they finally reached the Entrance Hall, both sixth years were drenched from head to foot from the downpour, with water dropping from their hair and clothes, and their shoes muddy from the rush to get back inside. Taking one look at herself, Mia laughed again while pushing her wet bangs out of her eyes.
"Well, you have to admit that's not the worst setback we've ever had," she said.
"Yeah, it definitely could have been worse," Harry agreed, using his sleeve to wipe the water off if his glasses. "I still can't believe the first part of our date got rained out though."
"It's not so bad, we—wait, what?" Miss said in shock. "What do you mean the first part?"
"Come on Mia, what kind of boyfriend would I be if all I gave you for dinner was marshmallows?" Harry asked with a smirk, a gleam in his emerald eyes. "I made sure there was something to do after we watched the shooting stars."
"You mean there's more? Harry…"
"You can yell at me later," Harry promised, kissing her cheek.
"What am I going to do with you?" Mia sighed.
"Love me?"
"As if you give me a choice…"
Harry just smiled at her as he started leading her up the staircase, the two of them moving swiftly before they had the unfortunate chance to run into Filch or Mrs. Norris. They passed through the corridors together and even greeted Nearly-Headless Nick as he floated on by. There wasn't very many people out, so Mia figured they were probably in their common rooms or just finishing up dinner in the Great Hall. It didn't take long for them to head on up until they came to the seventh floor, and Mia was a little surprised when they stopped in front of a familiar stretch of bare wall, and Harry wasted no time in pacing in front of it three times. In mere seconds, the doors leading into the Room of Requirement materialized before them, resulting in Mia wondering what Harry was up to now. When they saw that the coast was clear, the two stepped inside the room and for the third time that night, Mia was almost blown away.
Having been used to using the Room of Requirement to practice their defensive basic, Mia had gotten into the habit of seeing dummies that looked like Death Eaters, shelves filled with books that held different types if counter spells, and Mia's hand-painted symbol for the D.A on the far wall. However, this time the room was set up as a cozy looking lounge area, complete with a small dining table that had steaming, delicious food along with a pitcher of juice. There was a sofa in front of a fireplace of to the left, and-to her amazement-an old fashioned, wind up record player in the corner, with candles lit along the walls. Mia let out a breathless laugh, hardly daring to believe Harry did all of this, and she easily leaned back into him when he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"I asked Dobby and a couple of the House Elves from the kitchen to help," Harry said. "I asked them to make some of our favorite dishes, and I had Dobby meet me outside the room after Potions today. That's why I had to rush off, to set everything up in here."
"Thank you, Harry," she said. "This is more than I could have imagined, I can't believe you did this for me."
"I would do anything for you, Mia," Harry said, using his hands to turn her around so she was looking straight into his eyes. "You do so much for me, more than you realize. After last year—when I almost lost you—I wanted to make sure you knew how important you are too me, you're the only thing that makes me feel sane and at peace most times. I know this year so far has been crazy, so the last I could do was give you a romantic night away from it all. No Voldemort, no school work, no Malfoy, no anything."
"You really are charming, Mr. Potter," Mia said with an adoring smile. "Maybe Ron's right, I think I am turning you into a sap. But I hope you realize you mean just as much to me."
"Of course I do. Any normal person would have ditched me after running into Fluffy in first year."
"I guess it's a good thing I'm not normal, then."
"You've never been normal, love."
"You're kind of ruining the moment, Harry."
"I think the rain already did that."
Mia giggled at him before giving him a peck on the cheek and allowing him to take her cardigan as well as her scarf so he could put it on the hanger with his jacket. He had her sit on the sofa to warm up and dry while he went to the dining table to get them some food and drinks. The sofa was actually quite comfortable, with Mia practically sinking into it as she sat down and she raised her hands to rub them in front of the heat of the flames. A smile came across her face as she thought about how wonderful the night has been so far. What with roasting the marshmallows, watching the stars fall from the sky, and now having a nice meal in front of the fireplace was nothing short of perfect. When Harry came back over with two plates of food in his hands, Mia suddenly realized just how hungry she was as her stomach started to grumble. They both dug into the delicious food, with Mia tucking her legs underneath her and the two of them chatting pleasantly with each other.
"By the way, have you thought about what you would want if you win the bet about Ron and Hermione?" Mia asked as she took a sip of the Pumpkin Juice Harry brought over.
"I'm still thinking about it," Harry replied before he smirked at her. "Are you saying you've accepted the fact that I'm going to win?"
"Hardly," Mia snorted. "Have you seen how annoyed Hermione gets when Lavender talks to Ron? It's only a matter of time."
"Not too much though," Harry pointed out, laughing a little before he abruptly stopped, making a face as his hand went towards his forehead, over his scar. Mia's smile instantly fell away and she sat up straighter as she looked over at him.
"Are you okay?" she said worriedly.
"Yeah," Harry muttered with a slight frown as he placed his plate down on the coffee table that was in front of them. "It's not pain like last year, nowhere near it. But there's still a faint prickling every once in a while-reminding me of this connection to him. I can't stand it."
Mia could see the frustration that was starting to take over Harry's features, and so she set her own plate down on the table next to his before reaching over and gently taking hold of his face in her hands, turning his head so he was looking at her. Moving slowly, she placed her lips on his forehead, right over his scar and gave it a sweet, tender kiss. Her lips lingered there for a moment before she pulled away, giving him a smile.
"Does that feel better?" she asked.
"Much better," Harry answered.
"Good. Remember, this night is just about us, no one else. Me and you."
With that being said, Mia gave Harry another kiss, putting as much love as she could into it, letting him know in her own way she was there for him, and she could feel him sigh into it, the tense muscles in his face relaxing. When she made to pull away, Harry quickly leaned forward to ensnare her lips with his and she couldn't help but giggle. Harry carefully nudged her lips apart so he could deepen the kiss and Mia couldn't suppress the shiver that went up her spine as he traced his hand down her back. Almost out of instinct, she pushed herself closer to him and he welcomed her into his embrace. She gasped when he slipped his hand under her shirt and began moving his fingers up and down, leaving a trail of goosebumps while his other hand started to massage her breasts. Her hands seemed to move of their own accord, moving from his face and down to the hem of his shirt, sneaking her own hands underneath and slowly moving them over his stomach and along his chest. Something very similar to a growl could be heard from the back of his throat as Harry's lips left hers and latched themselves onto the sweet spot on her neck, making her melt into a puddle in his arms. That familiar flare erupted again in her stomach tenfold, and she could feel a beautiful and terrible need arise within her, making her want to be closer to Harry in every way possible. Through her hazy mind, she thought about what was going on and after a very brief moment of indecision, she realized what she wanted and could feel her heart pound in her chest at the thought. She leaned her head forward until her mouth was close to Harry's ear, and whispered to him through slightly trembling lips.
"Love me, Harry."
All at once, Harry's movements ceased and she could tell her words took him by surprise. For a minute she was worried she put him into some state of shock, but then he slowly drew back until he could look right into her face. His eyes had darkened with desire, but were still wide as he started at her, his breathing slightly ragged. At first he seemed struck dumb by her request, but after a couple minutes he licked his lips and moved one of his hands to cup her face.
"Mia," he whispered. "Are...are you sure? We don't have to if you're not ready. I'll go as far as you want me to, I would never push you."
"I know you wouldn't," Mia said softly, placing her hand on top of his. "And I've never been more sure about anything."
"I've—I've never done this before… I'm not sure if you'll… If you'll like…"
"This is my first too, you know," Mia chuckled, finding it adorable at how flustered Harry was. "Trust me Harry, I do want this. I want this with you."
Harry still looked a little unsure, and his eyes were searching her face, as though he were looking for any sign of doubt or fear. Having him be so concerned about the finality of her decision touched her, and in order to show him that she was truly ready to be his, she took hold of her shirt and then slowly lifted it over her head, revealing her mint green bra, which had a tiny pink bow in the front that was no bigger than a pebble. She dropped her shirt to the ground and she could instantly feel her face begin to burn as Harry's eyes widened even more, taking in the sight of her before him. As of now, the nerves were starting to form and churn in her stomach, and with the good reason. This was the first time she had ever let a boy see her this exposed, and she knew that if they continued, he would end up seeing much more. However, even though she was nervous, she couldn't be more sure about this. This is what she wanted, and she couldn't think of anyone else she would ever want to have this experience with. Feeling brave, she took Harry's hand and placed it on her breast as she leaned forward to press her forehead against his, closing her eyes.
"Touch me, Harry," she said quietly, feeling him tense up at her tone. "Love me."
After about a minute, Harry finally responded to her, latching his mouth onto hers as he gently squeezed, making Mia moan into the kiss. His hands were becoming bolder, running along every inch of her that they could find, and somewhere in all of this, she managed to kick off her boots, hearing them fall to the floor. Her own hands eventually found the few buttons just below the collar of his shirt and she managed to undo them all even with her fingers quivering. She grabbed the hem of the shirt and then moved away from Harry long enough for her to pull it over his head. For a moment her eyes lingered on his chest, which had most definitely developed some muscle over the years and in the back of her mind she couldn't help but think that all these years of playing Quidditch have sure paid off. Seeing that his glasses had fogged up, she smiled before taking them off his face and placing them on the table before drawing herself back into his arms. A shiver of pleasure took over as she pressed herself up against him, his warm chest feeling marvelous on her still damp skin. She drew her attention back to his lips and then she could feel herself being pushed back onto the sofa, with Harry towering over her, placing his weight on his elbows and his hips between her legs, practically every part of their bodies touching.
Soon they had to break apart for air, but Harry's lips refused to leave her skin, moving over towards her neck where he began to kiss and suckle her skin, causing her to squirm beneath him. The feeling of desire and need was rapidly growing into a nervous excitement that took her breath away, and with every touch, every sound, she could feel herself surrender to Harry more and more. Mia was brought out of her thoughts as she felt Harry's hand make its way done her stomach and over the button of her jeans. It wasn't long before the button was undone and she let out a gasp of pure pleasure as Harry carefully reached under the fabric and touched her where she desperately needed it, her hips lifting off the sofa.
"H-Harry," Mia nearly panted. "Oh Gods…"
"Mia," Harry said huskily against her neck. "You have no idea what you do to me."
As Harry continued to touch her most sensitive area, Mia had to bite down on her lip to keep herself from crying out, gripping his shoulders for support. He began placing feather light kisses across her collar bone while his other hand slipped under her back, making her arch into him so his fingers fell over the clasp of her bra. It took a couple minutes of nervous fumbling since he was working with one hand, but once he had it undone, Harry slowly moved the straps down her shoulders and removed the garment from sight. Now with her upper half fully exposed to him, Mia could feel her face burn a bright shade of red and she suddenly felt very insecure about herself. She tried covering herself with her arms, but Harry gently took her wrist, shaking his head.
"Don't," he said. "Look at me, Mia."
Biting her lip again, this time due to nerves, she timidly stared up into Harry's illuminating eyes, which were looking over her with nothing but love and wonderment shining in them, taking in every part of her.
"You're beautiful," he said, his tone holding nothing but absolute sincerity. Mia managed to give him a shy smile before he leaned down to give her a soft kiss, their mouths moving in perfect sync with each other. As time passed, more clothing was removed to pile up on the floor, hesitant strokes became soothing caresses, and quiet gasps turned into ecstasy-filled moans as Mia spent the rest of the night in Harry's embrace, connecting to him in the most intimate way possible without a flicker of doubt in her mind.
…
The following morning, Mia awoke to the feeling of a strong arm wrapped securely around her waist and her back pulled up against a warm chest. Even through her closed eyelids, she could see the rays of the sun streaming in through the window, lighting up the room with its lovely morning glow. A quiet, contented sigh made its way past her lips and she smiled to herself, snuggling deeper into the cocoon of comfortable warmth she found herself in as memories of last night came to her mind, making her cheeks turn pink. It was soon made clear to her that she wasn't the only one awake because as she moved, she felt the arm around her tighten its grip just a little bit and she felt a kiss being pressed against the back of her head, ending up with her smile growing even wider. She started to adjust herself, turning over so that she was facing Harry, who was gazing at her with bright eyes and a small smile of his own on his face.
"Morning, love," he muttered.
"Good morning," Mia said, settling herself snug in the crook of Harry's arm while placing her own arm around his waist, over the blanket that covered their bodies. She was thankful that sofa was wide enough that the two of them could rest next to each other comfortably, although she certainly would have no objections if they would have to press closer together to conserve space. Harry used his hand to push strands of her ruffled hair away from her face and when she look up at his, she chuckled at how utterly wild it looked, much more than normal.
"And just when I thought your hair was already a hopeless case," she said in amusement.
"It's not my fault," Harry said with a grin. "This was all you, running your hands through my hair. Not that I minded, though."
Feeling her blush increase, Mia smiled in embarrassment and ducked her head a little, remembering how she had tugged at his hair last night. She was taken out of her thoughts when Harry said her name, and the playful tone his voice had gone away, replaced by uncertainty. When she looked up at him, she saw that he wore a worried, hesitant expression on his face.
"What's wrong, Harry?" she asked him.
"I'm…I'm sorry," he answered slowly. "I know I hurt you last night."
"Harry," Mia said softly, now understanding why he seemed so worried. "There's nothing for you to be sorry about. It's usually supposed to hurt the first time, at least a little."
"So, um, did you—I mean, well, did you—like it?" he stuttered, his face quickly becoming red. "It's just…I know that you didn't get to…not while I…"
"Harry," Mia laughed quietly, cupping his face with her hand. "Sweetheart, don't worry so much. Not all girls do during their first time, it's normal. Once the pain went away, it was nice at the end. Very nice. I meant what I said last night—there's no one I wanted to have this experience with more than you. Besides, you know what they say: practice makes perfect."
"Practice?" Harry repeated, looking completely dumbstruck. The comical expression on his face made Mia laugh again before drawing him in for a passionate kiss, pressing every inch of herself against him. She could feel Harry relax and then he started kissing her back just as eagerly, tangling his hand into her hair while she ran her fingertips down and across his chest, making him shiver. After a moment of snogging each other senseless, Harry drew away, only to trace his lips down a tantalizing path to the sweet spot on her neck, causing Mia to press her lips together to hold back a groan. Damn this boy.
"Harry, we…we should head back to the common room," Mia managed to breathe out without her voice wavering. "Ron and Hermione will be wondering where we are."
"Do we have to?" Harry huffed against her neck, and Mia smiled at the defiant, borderline whiney tone to his voice. "I'd much rather stay here with you all day."
"I would love that too, but you know what will happen if we don't," Mia reminded him. "Once Hermione forces Ron to run throughout the castle with her at least twice, more than likely with Ginny and Neville, they will go right to a teacher if they are not able to find us in here. Then word will get back to Dumbledore, who will then tell Hagrid, who will tell Sirius, who will proceed to blast away every rock and look into every crack in the wall until he finds us, with or without help from the other hundred Aurors who are on patrol at the school boarders. And I don't know about you, but I would rather be discovered with my clothes on."
Harry's response to this was a groan of annoyance and acceptance, complete with a dramatic head flop onto Mia's chest that had her laughing out loud at his obvious disappointment. After that, Harry reluctantly agreed with her before he lifted the blanket off of them so they could get themselves straightened up. Mia—still feeling a little sore from last night's activities—moved a bit slower as she sat up on the sofa, taking a minute to pull herself up and begin putting her clothes back on. When she pulled her top back over her head, she sat down so she could put her boots on, her face scrunching up just a little in discomfort as she bent forward to grab them. Harry, who had his shirt and pants on already, came over and helped her with her boots, earning a grateful smile from her. Once they were all set to go, they left the Room of Requirement together and started walking through the corridors, hand in hand and shooting each other bashful smiles the whole way. Mia felt the butterflies dancing gracefully in the very pit of her stomach, and a part of her was thunderstruck at what had happened between her and Harry last night. Of course, she had "the talk" with her mother back in the summer before her third year at Hogwarts, so she knew all of the do's and the don'ts when it came to being physically intimate with someone. Her mother always made sure to stress that she should never be pressured into doing anything she didn't want to, so she could see if she cared enough the person to want to surrender her virginity to them. But there was no doubt for Mia when it came to her decision to have sex for the first time with Harry, because when they had laid down to go to sleep last night, she had fallen asleep without an ounce of regret.
While she knew that last night hadn't been the mind-blowing experience that others girls in her house would gossip about to themselves—she doubted any girl's first experience was—she still thought it was amazingly perfect, sharing it with the person Mia loved more than anything, and that's what made it all worthwhile. And she was looking forward to being able to experiment more with Harry, to figure out their own do's and don'ts when it came to sleeping with each other. Practice makes perfect. The though made Mia blush as she continued walking with Harry until they came to the portrait of the Fat Lady, who raised an eyebrow at them as they approached.
"Casius Cintune," Harry said.
"There you go, dears," the Fat Lady said swinging forward to let them inside. "Oh, and you might want to straighten up your hair, young lady."
Mia felt her eyes go wide at the Fat Lady's observation and she quickly tried patting down her hair, gathering it in her hand and twisting it over her shoulder and hoping it wouldn't be too noticeable. As she and Harry entered the common room, they saw that it was fairly filled with their housemates, talking and joking with each other, just having a laid back morning. Mia realized she didn't know exactly what time it was and wondered if it was too late to catch some breakfast in the Great Hall. However, before she could think about it any further, the door to the girl's dormitory opened up and she saw Hermione step through, with her bushy hair pulled back into a ponytail and a book under her arms, as usual;. When her brown eyes landed on Mia, they suddenly became ablaze and she immediately stalked her towards them.
"Harry, if I don't make it, tell Ron he can have all my Chocolate Frogs that's in my bedside drawer," Mia whispered quickly under her breathe, hearing Harry snort just as Hermione reached them, with a hand on her hip and looking frighteningly like Mrs. Weasley.
"Where. Have. You. Been?!" Hermione demanded fiercely. "You guys never came back last night, I was getting so worried, especially when it started raining! I was about to go looking for you too!"
"Sorry Mione, we honestly lost track of the time," Mia replied apologetically. "Harry treated me to a nice dinner in the Room of Requirement and we ended up falling asleep in front of the fireplace. We didn't mean to make you worry like that."
Hermione glared at the both of them sternly for a moment before she deflated, her hand falling down from her hip, although her frown was still on her face.
"You two really scared me," she muttered softly.
"Sorry, Hermione," Harry said, looking truly sincere.
"It's all right, I'm just glad that you both are fine," Hermione said, staring at the two of them more curiously with that calculating look in her eyes. "Besides, you two have more to worry about right now with Ron."
"Ron? What about him?" Harry asked. As though on cue, the door to the boy's dormitory burst open and a very red-faced Ron was standing there, his eyes narrowed, hair dishelved and looking as though he literally just stumbled out of bed. When he caught sight of them, he stomped over before coming to a halt right in front of them, steam almost coming out of his ears. He opened his mouth, but no words came out and he shook his head in defeat. He simply pointed to Mia, then over towards the door he just came through before turning around and going back over to it, clearing indicating that he wanted her to follow him. Startled and con fused, Mia shared a glance with Harry before they went after the angry Weasley, following him up the staircase with Hermione behind them, a small, amused smile on her face. When they reached the boy's dormitories, Ron thrust the door open and then walked over to stand towards his bed, his face still red and crossing his arms over his chest, grunting in frustration. When Mia came over to stand next to him, her mouth dropped open and her eyes widened at the sight before her. Resting comfortably on top of Ron's bed, nestled in his Chudley Cannon's blanket, was Sapphire, who was currently feed seven tiny, mewling, adorable kittens, all of them clamoring over each other blindly to get some of their mother's milk with Crookshanks standing off to the side, swishing his tail back and forth and staring at them all with his bright yellow eyes. Ron glared heatedly at the cats before he turned to Mia.
"You owe me new bedsheets."
Soooo yeah...that just happened. Before anyone says anything, please remember, this is my first time writing something like this for others to see, so please go easy on me! I tried to make it as realistic as possible, seeing as this is Harry and Mia we're talking about. I tried to make it enjoyable as well as realistic, since this is teenagers having sex for the first time, and of course I was not planning on making it graphic, nor am I ever planning on making it graphic in these stories. What did you guys think about the chapter overall? If there's anything that could be improved or have any questions about, please let me know and I will see you in the next chapter! Have a Happy New Year my darlings!