"Honey! Harry's things are here!" Marie called from the living room.
"I'm coming!" Jamie called from her room upstairs.
Jamie was reading a letter:
Dear Harry,
I'm so glad Hedwig came when she did! Errol's messing up in all his deliveries! Why don't you meet us in Diagon Alley? We're meeting Hermione there and getting all our things tomorrow. Why don't you come? I sent floo powder so you can come yourself. Say it clearly this time!
Ron
Wondering what Ron meant by his last comment, she went downstairs, packet of floo powder in hand. "Mum, I'm going to Diagon Alley tomorrow, okay? I have to meet Ron and Hermione." She said, in Harry's voice. Dumbledore had to change her voice in advance.
"Already? I'm going to miss you so much! Go have a shower and go to bed early tonight, you want to be well rested!"
"Yes, Mum," she sighed.
The next day, Jamie turned into Harry and dressed in his things, took his trunk and got ready to go to Diagon Alley.
"Bye, Mum!"
"Bye… Harry," Marie answered, smiling.
Jamie threw the floo powder into the fire, stepped into the green mass, trunk in hand, and said, "Diagon Alley!"
In a whirl of fire and soot, she stepped out of the fireplace she was now in and found the Leaky Cauldron. "One Butterbeer, please," she ordered at the bar. Tom happily got it for her.
"Back again, eh Mr. Potter?"
"Er… Yep," she said uncertainly. "Have you seen the Weasleys?"
"They've got some rooms upstairs… They haven't come down yet, so you should see them later."
Jamie's heart was hammering against her chest. She was very nervous.
"Harry!" Hermione had just entered the bar.
"Hey, Hermione!" Jamie called. 'I can do this!' she told herself.
"How was your summer?" Hermione asked the person she thought was Harry.
"How good can it be being at the Dursley's?"
"Well at least you didn't get attacked again!"
"That's true…"
"Harry! Hermione!" Ron called them from the stairs, Ginny close behind.
"Hey Ron!" both said.
"Hey Ginny," Hermione said, looking around Ron.
"Hey," the redhead answered.
"How many OWLs did you guys get?" Hermione asked, pulling out her own.
They all read each other's OWL letters, drank each a Butterbeer and went to Gringott's. Jamie said she already withdrew her money, seeing as she already had money given to her from her mother, and the others withdrew their own.
"Let's go to the pet store," Jamie suggested after they bought all their things for school.
"Why do you want to go to the pet store?" Ron asked.
"We don't have anything else to do," Jamie said. In truth, she wanted a cat all her life and she never hesitated to go see them. Her mom was allergic.
"Might as well, I'm going to get Crookshanks some treats," Hermione said. Ginny had gone back to the bar with Mrs. Weasley.
They all went to the pet store. Jamie led them toward the cats.
"You like cats, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"A little bit."
"These are a lot nicer than yours, Hermione! Why couldn't you have gotten a normal cat?" Ron said.
"There's nothing wrong with Crookshanks! Is there, Harry?"
Jamie didn't know whom to agree with. "He's not that bad, but he's still not perfect…"
They both looked at her. "What? I'd rather not take sides!"
"You usually take Ron's side," Hermione said, cocking her eyebrow at her.
"Do you want me to take Ron's side? Do you want me to say 'Your cat's ugly as hell'? Because I can, if you want me to," she retorted. Ron laughed.
Hermione just rolled her eyes and headed for the cat treats. Jamie started to pet the black kitten that was looking at her, meowing. As soon as her hand touch its head, it turned pink. She withdrew her hand quickly, gasping.
"That kitten likes you!" the shop owner said from the counter.
"It's pink!"
"She's magic – she shows her mood like that."
"She? Hmmm…" Jamie was thinking whether or not to buy her. "Ron, do you think I should get her?"
"What? A cat? If you want, Harry, but I'm not taking care of it!"
"I think I will. How much is she?" she asked the owner.
"Seven galleons and three sickles, or five galleons if you can get her to turn purple and can identify why she's purple." He said. He flicked his wand and the cage opened. She was already counting off colors.
Blue-sad. Pink-love. Red-anger. Green-sick. Yellow-happy? Purple? Scared? Dizzy? Surprised? Playful? Sleepy? There were so many possibilities!
Jamie tickled the kitten, which attacked her finger and turned orange. Orange-Playful.
"Ron, what do you think can make her turn purple?"
"I don't know… Hermione! What do you think?"
"Not sure. Maybe if she's surprised or dizzy?"
Jamie shrugged and twirled the kitten around on the counter. She turned turquoise.
"How can we surprise her?" Jamie asked.
"I know! Sir, could I see that puppy?" Hermione asked the shop owner.
Hermione now had a puppy concealed behind her back. She popped it out at the kitten. She turned… PURPLE! Hermione put the puppy back and Jamie took out five galleons.
"She turns purple when she's scared or surprised."
"Exactly! Very good. That's five galleons, thanks. Enjoy your new kitten!"
Jamie went out of the store, new kitten purring and pink.
"I can't believe you bought a cat!" Ron said.
"Why not? You were the one saying Hermione should get a normal cat – now we have one… sort of."
Hermione didn't say anything. She liked the kitten, but she would never have pictured Harry with one.
The next two days, they ran into many DA members. Jamie noticed that a girl named Cho seemed extra friendly toward her. She obviously had her suspicions.
"Do you still like her?" Hermione asked Jamie.
"Cho? Nah…" she really didn't know what to say. Harry hadn't mentioned her at all.
"Who would like her? Crying all the bloody time!" Ron said angrily.
Hermione shook her head. "You're so insensitive sometimes, Ron!"
Jamie had to bite her tongue to not ask what happened. She would definitely write to Harry and ask him about it.
"Wasn't she crying when you two kissed?" Ron asked Jamie.
"I, um, don't really remember… I think so…" Jamie was really worried now. Harry warned her about Hermione being smart, and she was getting a calculating look that didn't reassure her.
They found a compartment on the Hogwarts Express the next day with Luna and Neville. Ron and Hermione left Jamie there, being prefects and all. Jamie felt uncomfortable. She didn't know what to say to them – she was expecting to be with Ron and Hermione all the time.
"Hey Harry," Luna said, peeking over her upside down magazine.
"Hey," she didn't know Luna's name.
"Harry, look what I made for Trevor!" Neville said, pulling out an aquarium with a big toad in it.
"Make sure it doesn't break," she said, not knowing Neville's name either.
They were relatively quiet – Jamie was petting Cleo, her kitten, Neville was adjusting his aquarium and Luna was reading her Quibbler.
"They've been gone a while," Jamie sighed.
"They're always gone this long, Harry," Luna said.
"Do you want to play Exploding Snap or something?" Neville suggested.
"Sure, how do you play?" Jamie asked.
"You've played before, haven't you?" Neville looked at her oddly.
"Well I forgot how to play!" she said angrily. Neville jumped at the sudden outburst. He explained how to play and they were playing their third game when Hermione and Ron came in.
"Being a prefect is a nightmare!" Ron said, sitting down beside Harry.
"Why?"
"We have to organize a Halloween ball. It's not that bad, Ron!" Hermione said. Ron just rolled his eyes.
Jamie didn't like the idea of a ball, disguised as a boy. She looked out the window. She saw a gigantic castle – They were almost at Hogwarts.
"We're almost there – we should change," she said. They all got changed and within ten minutes, they boarded a carriage that Jamie thought horseless.