Saturday, 19 November, 19:25 GMT 13 years ago
The second term was halfway over and Drew couldn't believe her 13th and final year before university was blowing by so quickly. She had taken on a challenging course load. She had Year Four Spanish with Profesora Rosana Maestro and Year Four French with Madame Nicole de Lacroix. She, Dean and Aston Baguio were in the same Advanced Calculus class with Professor Shinzo Hirokawa. Professor Cedric Jung was her Advanced Psychology instructor. She was currently taking two science courses; Biomedical Science with Doctor Kimberly Sharma and Professor Armon Kloetzel's Advanced Chemistry. She had one class that she registered for to keep sane and that was Professor Leonard Kovack's General Art class.
The last course on her schedule was the one for which she had a slight apprehension. Aston and Dean were in the class along with Phillip Martinez, Jr. The four of them had an interesting thing in common, they shared the same class and same professor for English for all four years. Professor Conner Ingles had referred to them as the Four Horsemen and regarded their Advanced English Language class as his best set of students in his twenty-five years of teaching.
As usual, Phillip had garnered top marks since the beginning of the course. In previous years, she would have stepped up to the challenge, but this year, she seemed resigned to staying in second position.
o-o-o
Thursday, 8 September, 10:33 GMT
Drew was unconscious for a week after healing Phillip. She was in and out of consciousness for parts of a second week. She woke up on the Thursday, feeling anxious about the aftermath of the situation. Her mother was at her side as Drew blinked.
"Hey," the Muggle-born mother smiled.
Drew started to break down, weeping as she turned on her side facing her mother. Hermione rubbed her back, consoling her.
"Everything is going to be alright, Drew," Hermione said softly.
"Is Phillip … Is he alright?" Drew asked.
"He's just fine, Drew. I used my scanner; no internal injuries or bleeding was found. You did good, Drew."
"He knows about us now," the teenager said as she lay back down on her back, looking up at the ceiling.
"I think we can trust him. Drew," her mother said as she touched Drew's cheek. The young girl nodded as she allowed her mother to help her up.
o-o-o
Saturday, 12 September, 13 years ago
Drew had insisted on not missing anymore classes. Her first day back to school was filled with trepidation. She thought she could feel everyone's eyes on her. Phillip seemed to not want to make eye-contact when they passed each other in the halls. Instead, it seemed he would be more enthralled with the conversations amongst his friends. She dreaded the possible idea that he had shared her secret with his clique.
Dean had reassured her that Phillip had not spread any rumors of Malfoy family secrets. He also reminded her that she was never one to care about what others thought about her. She smiled at him, grateful she had a friend like him.
o-o-o
Saturday, 19 November, 19:30 GMT 13 years ago
Drew looked at her watch as she heard the doorbell. She stood up from her seat on the couch and turned down the volume of the television to check on the door. Her mother had volunteered to work that weekend knowing her father was back at Hogwarts chaperoning the usual Hogsmeade weekend. So, she wondered, as the fire in the fireplace crackled, who would be out in the unusually cold three degree London November evening.
She peered through the peephole and took in a deep breath. 'Maybe he'll eventually leave,' she thought before the doorbell rang again. She shut her eyes for a moment before opening the door.
"Phillip?" Drew said as he looked at her visitor all bundled up.
"Hi," Phillip said as he blew into his cupped hands.
"What are you doing here?" she asked as she opened the door wider, letting the cold air in.
"I was," he stammered, "in the neighborhood."
"Come in," she said, more so to shut the cold out. He stepped into the foyer. She helped him out of his letterman's jacket. "We live in the same neighborhood."
He chuckled, allowing himself to warm up. He blew out a breath, welcoming the warmth. "I, uh, came to say, 'hi,'" he said.
She looked at him skeptically as she crossed her arms. "Okay? Shouldn't you be out on a date with girlfriend number eight?"
"I'm in between girlfriends," he said.
"I really did not need to know that," she said, her ears starting to blush.
"Get your mind out of the gutter," he smiled at her. He took in a breath before continuing, "We've missed you at tryouts."
"Seriously?" she looked at him incredulously. "Why are you really here?"
"I've come to play you for your tryout spot," he said matter-of-factly.
She laughed. "If there was anyone who'd want me as far away from that gym, it would be you, you do realize that, right?"
"I've never known you to walk away from a challenge," he smirked at her.
She narrowed her eyes at him, "Let's face it, you know the only reason why I tried out for the team last year was because our science marks were tied to each other.
"Neither of us has Professor Kaiser this year, so I don't know what sort of leverage you think you have on me."
He just smiled. She grew wary of him. "I don't know," he smirked. "I'm feeling my B in Food Science quickly falling to a C-."
She looked at him questioningly. Then she started to understand.
"I could always put it in Professor Zena Kloetzel's head to talk her husband into some sort of tutoring community service," he said.
"You wouldn't dare," she said softly.
"So, a game of Twenty-one, then," he canted an eyebrow. "If I win, you come to tryouts on Monday."
"And if I win?" she asked.
"If you win," he paused. "I won't bother you for the rest of the year."
"Deal!" she said taking in a breath.
"Okay," he smiled to himself. He placed his hands in the pocket of his breakaway warm-up pants. "I've got a key to the gym. It'll be a short fifteen-minute walk."
"Um," she said, hesitating. "We'll freeze our asses off by the time we get there. I've got a better idea."
"Are we going to teleport again?" he asked as he followed.
She turned to face him for a moment. He stopped in his tracks. "We'll head to the backyard."
"Well, unless you have a dome over your backyard, we'll be in the same predicament," he said as he stopped in his tracks as they reached the patio leading to the backyard. " Whoa."
"From the outside and from up top, the backyard seems to look like the rest of the neighborhood landscape," she said as she started to put her basketball shoes on. "The precipitation gets filtered away. Mum and Dad have enchanted the temperature to twenty-three degrees during the fall and winter months."
"Wow," he said as he stepped onto the wooden half-court basketball playing surface.
"I talked Dad into building it when I was five," she said as she dribbled the ball onto the court. "So, what now?"
"Same rules as usual," he said as he pulled his breakaway pants off. His blue jersey shorts matched his blue Wellesley Lions gym shirt. "First to miss the free throw plays defense. Make it take it. First to twenty-one baskets, wins.
"Ladies first," he said, handing her the basketball as she stood at the charity stripe.
She looked at the basketball for a moment before taking it. He walked behind her to the three-point line. She took a deep breath, took her usual three dribbles and shot the basketball. Swish. He took his turn with success. There were three more rounds of makes.
"Well, at least we know the time away hasn't made you rusty," he said as he bounced the ball to her for her turn.
She could feel his stare on the back of her neck. She felt a feeling of déjà vu. She dribbled the ball and blew out a breath. She shot the basketball which bounced off the rim.
"I got first," he smirked at her as he rebounded the ball. He dribbled up to the top of the three-point circle. He watched her take in a breath as she set up in defensive position. He bounced the ball to her, "Check."
o-o-o
The pair battled back and forth, exchanging baskets. Phillip was right, the time away from the game did not affect her skill set at all.
"My next score wins the game," Drew said, taking in deep breaths as the ball went through the net, giving her the 20 to 19 advantage.
"Just check the ball," Phillip said as he rebounded the basketball and passed it to her at the three-point line.
Drew bounced the ball to him and received the ball back. She watched him go into his defensive crouch, keeping his distance but staying close enough to be a nuisance on defense. She dribbled in and then turned her back on him trying to shield the ball from him. She backed into him, trying to get closer to the basket.
"You're seriously trying to back me down," he said putting his forearm into her back.
"Just shut-up and play defense," she snapped.
"I see I've gotten under your skin," he said as she spun on him trying to do a reverse layup. He blocked her attempt and chased the ball down. "You gotta get that weak shit out of here."
He dribbled to the top of the key and faced her. He took a jab step towards her and she retreated. He narrowed his eyes at her. He backtracked. She approached him cautiously. Then he exploded with a crossover, wrongfooting her. He soared to the basket, dunking the ball for the score.
"My next basket wins the game," he said taking in a breath as he rebounded his made basket.
She put her hands on her hips as she stood at the free throw line. She bounced the ball back to him. She looked into his face as he received the ball.
He dribbled forward and then turned his back to her. It was his turn to back her down. She put her forearm into his back.
"Dad says I should work on my hook shot," he said as he dribbled to the right of the key. "He said my fade away needs work, too."
He turned to face her up. She felt a bit unnerved with his banter. She retreated as he took another jab step. He dribbled back into the key and then felt the contact, their legs tangled. He concentrated on the shot as the two of them fell to the floor. Swish.
He lay on top of her for a moment. He propped himself up slightly off her. He took in a deep breath. "Twenty-one. I win," he said breathlessly as he looked down at her.
o-o-o
Saturday, 19 November, 19:50 GMT 13 years ago
"Good game, you two," the Muggle doctor said as she clapped.
"Dr. Malfoy," he said as he quickly stood up. He helped Drew to her feet.
"I brought two large pizzas home for dinner. I can only stay for a half an hour before heading back to the ER," she said as she watched the two teenagers squirm slightly. "I totally forgot Dad was stuck doing Hogsmeade this weekend.
"Why don't you two hit the showers before dinner," she said as she nodded her head towards the washrooms. "Phillip, just toss your clothes in the hamper before you step into the shower stall. The hamper will freshen them up while you're in the shower."
He nodded. Both Drew and Phillip watched the female doctor walk back into the house. They looked at each other. She shrugged at him as she pointed to the boys' and girls' washrooms.
o-o-o
Saturday, 19 November, 20:00 GMT 13 years ago
Drew stepped out of the shower and under the dryer. The Wizarding device dried her from head-to-toe. She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. She pulled her clothes from the hamper and put them on. She wondered what sort of inquisition her mother was going to put them through.
She stepped out of the washroom at the same time Phillip had done so. They both blew out a breath as they looked at each other. She nodded her head at the patio. He shrugged his shoulders as he followed her into the house.
The Muggle-born mother nodded at the children. They took their seats on the high stools around the kitchen island. Hermione Granger Malfoy placed two bottles of Gatorade in front of their place settings.
"I bought two Supreme pizzas," the Muggle doctor said as she pulled a slice onto a plate and handed it to her daughter. "You're not a vegetarian, are you Phillip?"
"No Ma'am," he said as she nodded. She served him a slice as well before serving herself another piece.
"You both looked pretty intense out there," the brunette witch said as she took a bite of her slice.
Phillip swallowed his piece of pizza, his ears starting to burn. "Drew's a great competitor."
Drew blew out a breath as she looked down at her plate. She took a bite of her pizza slice, trying to keep from joining the conversation.
"So, Phillip, how is your Year 13 going?" Dr. Malfoy asked.
"Uh," he said as he took a sip of his Gatorade, "It's been good so far, Dr. Malfoy. Dad has taken me on several campus visitations in the U.S. It's been pretty hectic."
"Which universities?" the older woman asked as Drew seemed to perk up to listen to his response.
"University of Florida in the south, University of North Carolina," he said. "Um, Georgetown in Washington, D.C. and of course my parents' university, Syracuse University, in New York. I'm kinda banking on Syracuse."
"All east coast schools," Dr. Malfoy said as she took a sip of her bottled water.
"Yes, Ma'am," the young man said. "They all have pretty good basketball programs."
"Drew, weren't you looking at some east coast medical schools as well?" her mother asked.
"Um," she said, almost choking, "Johns Hopkins in Maryland, Brown University in Rhode Island, Harvard in Boston and Columbia University in New York."
Phillip glanced at her for a moment. He turned back to his empty plate, before grabbing a second slice.
"Do you already have a major in mind, Phillip?" Dr. Malfoy asked.
"I figured I'd go Liberal Studies for a while. I'm not sure just yet. I'll probably hold off until I get inspired."
"Oh, to be young again," Dr. Malfoy smiled. "Keep up with your academics, especially during the basketball season. Getting into those schools will be no problem then."
Dr. Malfoy nodded as she finished her third slice of pizza. She wiped her mouth and took one last gulp of her water, finishing off the bottle. She stood up from her seat as she placed her paper plate in the trash and her empty bottle in the recycling bin.
She looked at her wristwatch which read 20:28 in the evening. She walked over to Drew and kissed her on the cheek.
"I'll see you tomorrow afternoon," she said to her daughter. "Nice seeing, Phillip. You should come to visit more often.
"Finish the rest of the pizza, you two," she said as she headed to the living room to travel by the Floo network. She said over her shoulder, "I have to head back to work. Goodnight you two."
Both Phillip and Drew heard her mother say the name of the hospital at which she worked. They heard a crackling from where they sat in the kitchen and then silence.
"Did she teleport?" he asked, his eyebrows raised.
"Uh, no," Drew said, "Floo network."
"I don't know what that means," Phillip said. Drew started to laugh.
"Come on," she said as she picked up the second pizza box and stood up. "Let's finish dinner out in the backyard."
He nodded and picked up their Gatorade bottles. He followed her out the patio door.
o-o-o
Saturday, 19 November, 20:45 GMT 13 years ago
The pair sat on the back patio that overlooked the wooden half-court. Both teenagers finished off another three slices each, almost emptying the box. They drank the rest of their bottled drinks.
"That hit the spot," Phillip said, burping aloud.
Drew laughed. Phillip joined in.
"It's a nice night out," Drew said as she looked up at the stars.
"Yeah," he agreed as he looked up as well. He took in a breath as he looked at her. He gulped. "I haven't been a very good friend to you lately."
She looked up at him, studying his face. She shrugged her shoulders. "It's alright, Phil. Geeks and the cool kids hardly ever mingle anyway," she said, half-jokingly.
"Very funny," he said. He hesitated before continuing, "I didn't know how to react, especially when you came back to school."
She looked at him and nodded. "It was a lot for you to process," she said. "I just want to thank you for not telling anybody."
"So, does Dean know about you and your family? I mean you two are joined at the hip," he said.
She nodded. "He's a Squib, too. Our families are old friends."
He nodded. He looked into her eyes for a moment then turned to look at the wooden floor.
"That night of the semi-finals," he said as he turned to face her. He watched her blow out a breath.
"You said you heard a pop," she began slowly. "I'm able to do a cursory diagnosis just by touch while I heal. You had a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament and your anterior was fully torn."
"That would have kept me out for at least a year," he said. "My life would have been ruined."
"So, dramatic," she said, smiling.
"No, seriously," he said. "I would have been sidelined for this year. Colleges in the States would never give me a second look."
"I was able to heal it before you slapped my hand away," she said. "But I was feeling it after that. I couldn't focus on the court. I could feel myself starting to burn up."
"You couldn't hit the broad side of a barn," he said. She laughed.
"Yeah, that's when I figured I should just try to get the ball to you guys to score," she said.
"Mum and Dad took me straight home, right after the game," she said. "I was still feeling it on the Tuesday."
"How long does that usually last?"
"The longest that I've been unconscious was one week," she paused and then shrugged. "That is before the night in the alley."
"How did you," he shrugged. "When did you learn about your gift?"
She blew out a breath. She looked at him. "Mum and Dad think I may have healed her of her cancer from within the womb. And then there was a healing incident when I was two; Mum had a chest wound that I healed. That's when they fully realized what I could do."
He nodded. "Thanks," he said.
"For what?"
"For using your healing gift to save my life twice; once on the basketball court and the other time in that alley."
"Your life wouldn't have been in danger if I hadn't turned down that alley," she said looking at him. "Phil, if you had died."
"Hey," he said as took hold of her hand. He blew out a breath as he realized what he had done. He gently patted it one last time before pulling his hand. "I didn't die, thanks to you.
"Your secret is safe with me, Drew," he said as he nodded at her.
She nodded a silent thank you. They both turned to look up at the quiet night sky.