Ch. 12 – Waiting All Day

Before this all happened, I had lots of friends and people who wanted to talk to me. Now, the only people left were Hermione and Mikel. Not even Cedric would talk to me. People whispered behind me and pointed at my back in and out of class. Whispering and pointing, because I was a coward, because I can't stand up for myself. "Don't worry," Hermione said, "it's not your fault." Mikel, though she hung around me, never said anything. I was desperately lonely.

And I couldn't decide what was the worst… being ostriched by everybody, or losing Ashlee. I hoped she was okay wherever she was. Perhaps she was trapped in a dungeon eating nothing but gruel. I shuddered as I thought about the possibilities, making it hard to eat breakfast. Normally she would sit on my left, but that seat was empty. In fact, most of the seats around me were empty, as if I had some disease that people contacted by sitting next to me! People could be so hurtful.

Somebody bumped into me as they walked by, making me spill my juice all over the table. I knew it was deliverable, since things like that had been happening to me a lot. I pulled out my wand and tapped the liquid. But, instead of vanishing it, it multiplied! The puddle grew and spilled onto my front. The orange juice clashed wildly with my lilac robes, and I knew even I couldn't pull it off. I tried vanishing it again, but the stain just got bigger. I started to cry, and people sniggered. That really set me off… now I was over the ledge.

"Funny? Funny, is it?" I yelled, standing up. "Funny that you've all made my life miserable by pulling all sorts of pranks on me? Funny that one of my best friends is gone forever, kidnapped by a madman? Don't think I don't feel bad about it! Because I feel it harder than all of you!" My voice my getting louder and stronger as I let out all my bottled genies. "She was my friend, and I would have gone to the very end with her!" I sat back down.

People muttered unintelligently, maybe about me being a total loon. Mikel smiled and took out her wand, cleaning me and the table up.

"I'm glad you said that," she said. "I think they all needed to hear that."

I smiled back. "Me too, that's why I shouted it."

We both giggled for the first time in a long time. We went to class, and everybody acted a little more polite to us.

"Bellaaa!" called a familiar voice. I turned around and saw Draco! "I'm tho thorry I ever doubted you! I tho hope you'll forgive me! You are beautiful inthide and out!"

I didn't say anything… I just captured him in a hug!

"Of course I forgive you! But I won't be able to forgive you if you mistreat Mikel!" I added slyly.

"Omg!" he exclaimed. "You know about that??"

"Yes, yes I do. I hope the two of you are happy with each other."

"Of courthe! It'th jutht wonderful!!"

But not everybody was so ready to take me back. Ron stayed as far away from me as he could, and some of my classmates still spurred me. Even Harry! "Bella," he said, "I know I held you down, but only because Hermione told me to. You should have sacrificed yourself."

Though what hurt me the most was Cedric's cold disappointment. When I tried to talk to him, he just looked at me deeply and harshly before walking away. I tried bringing him Firewhisky and chocolates from Hogsmeade, but he refused it all.

I was gazing at him from across the hall when the morning post came. I had a letter today! It was addressed simply to "Bella Swan, Hogwarts." I eagley opened the letter, wondering who sent it.

Dear Bella!

I know you're not going to believe this, but… this is Ashlee! I hope nobody's worried about me. I miss you all so much, and I wish I could visit. You're probably wondering where I am, so I'll tell you.

Hobogo has taken me out of England and to America. Right now, were living in Gotham, a really exciting place. I think he realized I'm not his daughter a while ago, but he is still good to me. He and I live in a small flat where he teaches me his way with Muggle crime (which he is very good at). He also isn't really a killer, just so you know. He's a very nice man!

Anyways, I really want to talk to you. Can you be at the common room fire with Mikel and maybe HRH? Nobody else, though! The rest of the world doesn't need to know that I'm a criminal mind!

—Ashlee 3

When I finished the letter, I was practically shaking. I gave it to Mikel to read.

"Wow, she's actually enjoying this? She's so weird. I love her. Isn't it a relief to hear that she's okay? Wow, I feel so much… lighter now, you know?" said Mikel, after she finished reading. "I can't wait to talk to her!" We'll go straight to the common room after dinner."

"Mikel, can you talk to Cedric for me? I really miss sitting with him and being with him. If it's not too much work, I mean." Maybe if Mikel showed him the letter, he'd come around!

"I can try later. He hasn't mentioned you to me or anything like that, but we'll see."

Through all of my classes, my mind was on talking to Ashlee! My teachers all commented that I was being so quiet in class, and I had to assure them that I was perfectly all right. Even Professor Snape suggested I take some sort of vomit to calm me down. I couldn't concentrate on anything or hold onto anything without squeezing it really hard. The last time I felt so excited was when Cedric and Mikel came to sit with us, and that ended up being one of the best things ever to happen to me!

Through all of dinner, I was shaking at warp speed. I wondered a lot if it was true or not, but I would have to wait until after dinner. I had never felt to impatient before! The minutes flew by so studiously as I sat in agony with my friends, also anxious. When the last of the food disappeared from the plates, I darted out of the hall at mock. The floor seemed to fly beneath me as I raced through the hallways, my heart racing.

Once in the common room after a quick reprimanding from the magic portrait door, I launched myself at the fire, the day of waiting finally over. Looking into the fire, I focused.

"ASHLEE!" I yelled to summon her. Within a few seconds, her head popped out of the fire!

"ASHLEE! I wish I could give you a big strangling, rib-cracking hug! I'm so happy to see you! You had me sooo worried!" Her face was like medicine!

"Bella! I'm just as happy to see you! I miss all you at Hogwarts!" She looked around the empty common room. "Lol, where is everybody else?"

I blushed. "I sort of broke the sound barrier to get up here from dinner. They should be up here soon!" As soon as I finished, I heard a bunch of footsteps speeding up the stairs! Impenetrable timing!

The door burst open, and Mikel, Harry, Ron, and Hermione burst through. They all took their seats by the fire and pelted Ashlee with questions.

Ashlee laughed. "Calm down! You want me to tell you all what happened or not?" This shut us all up.

"Sorry," said Hermione. "We're just happy to see you! We though you might be… dead!"

"Well, she's obviously not, so go on!" giggled Ron.

"Thank you," said Ashlee. "Okay… I'll start after we disappeared. Hobogo and I were in Gotham, where he lives. You know, in America," after she saw our confusion. "So, he's using me as part of an experiment!"

We all gasped in inference! He couldn't!

"He better not do anything to you!" ordered Harry. "Has he? Are you okay? Are you going to try to escape? WE'LL HELP YOU OUTTA THERE!"

"No, no, it's okay!" Ashlee threw back her head and laughed. "You hear footsteps?"

Indeed some people were coming up the stairs. What would happen if they saw Ashlee's head shouldering in the fireplace? Total disaster!

"Yes, but don't worry," said Mikel, pulling out her wand. "I know a spell." Raising it in the air as a group of students came in, she yelled, "MUFFLE!" Looking pleased with herself, she put her wand away.

"Um, what did that do?" I asked.

"Nobody will be able to hear or see us. Go on, Ash!" Mikel pleaded.

"Okay, right. Experiment. What Hobogo's going to do is wipe my memory. Then, he's going to find a Muggle family that looks like me, and wipe their memories. With me so far?"

We all nodded. Strange experiment.

"Then, he's going to make us all believe that I've always lived with them. Cool, huh?"

"That's like, murder!" I said, angry. "You're ok with that?"

"What's the point of the experiment?" asked Hermione. "I mean, every experiment has to have a point," she added in a matter-of-fact way.

"To see if I'll still be magical," counted Ashlee, as if peering over spectacles. "Cool, huh?"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Ron. "So you'll be, like, a lap dog!"

"No, Ron. The proper term is 'lab dog,'" corrected Hermione. "I mean, I guess that's interesting. When is he going to start?"

"I don't know. I'll talk to you guys before then, though!"

We all nodded. "Good luck," we said at once.

"Thank you all! And by the way… if you're mad at Bella, don't be. She's great. I just gave myself up because I wanted to spice up my life. Yeah, it sounds really stupid now. But I just felt like I had to go, you know? And I'm glad I did. This is really neat. So don't be mad!" She smiled, and her head vanished in the flames.

"Sorry," said Ron. "Now that I know, I can't be mad at you."

"Same," added Harry. "It was wrong of us to be mad at you! Next time, I'll think about it."

"Thanks," I said brightly. "But… I miss Ashlee."

We all looked down at the ground sadly in memory of our lost friend.