Ch. 14 – In With the New

As I sat with HRH in the common room, I stared blankly into space as I thought about Cedric. His beautiful head and perfect features that shined as brilliantly as a diamond, a really big one, floated around my head, making me miss him even more. The closest I had to him was Mikel. But even so, Mikel wasn't here. She was probably up in the Ravenclaw tower reading a book. I couldn't go that much longer without Cedric's affection. It was almost like I was addicted to it, like some sort of drug!

I heard Hermione flirting about the most recent exam she had taken, History of Arithmetic, distracting me from my thoughts.

"But what if I miss some?" she said wildly, nearly pulling her hair out. "I need to get all of them right so my teacher doesn't think I'm stupid!"

"Everybody knows you're not stupid, Herm. Don't worry about it!" comported Ron kindly. "It's okay to miss a few."

And so they went on back and forth until Hermione was completely relieved. I stopped listening and dreamed about being a vampire. Maybe I'd try to get one of the Diggories to make me one! Then I'd be beautiful and Cedric would love me again. Maybe that was it—he was a vampire, and I was not. At that very moment, I felt like a real leopard. The next time I saw Mr. Diggory, I'd have to ask.

Just then, Professor McGonagall came into the room with the devotion of looking for somebody. Something told me that it was I she was looking for.

"Bella Swan? I'd like you to accompany me to my office, and we shall discuss an issue that requires completion."

I had no choice but to follow her. I didn't say anything the entire way up—I was too busy wondering what she wanted to talk to me about. Did something go wrong with my exams? Was I in trouble for something? Was I nominated for an award? Lots of ideas bounced around my head as my feet plodded along, and they all seemed plausible. The suspense was killing me!

Once we got to the office, I sat down in front of the ornament wooden desk. Professor McGonagall looked at me with a concerned look, and I got worried.

"We know what happened between you and your father over Christmas break, and we don't like it." Her eyebrows drew together thoughtfully. "We think it would be in your best interests, magical or otherwise, to live somewhere else when you are not at Hogwarts."

"Yes, I think so too. He won't let me come here! I would have to go to a regular school and I don't want to." This is true.

"Well, perhaps you have relatives that would be more supportive of your… condition, perhaps?"

I had to think about it for a second. "No, he's my only family. I don't have anywhere else to go." Then, a delicious thought occurred to me. "Could I maybe… stay here over the summer? I promise I'll be good!" The thought of living in such a sordid castle me shiver with excitement! It was my favorite place on the planet, aside from Cedric's arms. The way he hugged and held me was utterly vining.

"I'm sorry, that cannot be arranged. Since there is no other family you can stay with, can you arrange something with a friend?" she asked, starting to sound concerned.

"Yes, I have a friend, Mikel Diggory—"

"And she would be able to provide lodging for you?"

Then I saw where this was going. "Probably, but I don't know. It's really up to her parents to decide, you know."

McGonagall smiled. "We'll give them a call and figure out if you can live with them."

"Wow, thanks a lot!" I ran out of her office, beaming from side to side. I was nearly back to the common room when I bumped into something like a statue, cold and strong. I fell back, landing on the ground. "Ouch!" I said, rubbing my head.

"Sorry," the statue said.

I looked up. It wasn't a statue. It was Mikel!

"Mikel!" I exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Just listening to you talk to McGonagall," she replied, a loaf. "I'm sure my father will say that you can stay."

"But how did you know that we needed to talk?" I asked, completely confused. "Did she talk to you earlier or something like that?"

"No, I got a ping." Before I could ask, she gave me the answer. "They, part of my brain, tell me when something is happening to one of my friends or family members. They tell me where I need to go, and I figure out everything I need to when I get there."

I stood with my mouth wide open, as if trying to attract midges. "And… all vampires get these… pings?"

She smiled, revealing ultra-white teeth. "No, just me. Each vampire has a unique talent, you know."

"No, I did not know." They never said anything like this in the textbooks! "What's your brother's ability?"

"He can read minds."

"Oh." I nearly fell to the ground in terror. If he could read my mind, I was in for a little trouble. All the things I thought about him and me doing… and he could read those thoughts? I wanted to die.

Mikel sensed I was terrified. "Funny you should ask. It's interesting, what he said."

My eyes bulged out of my head. "And he told you all the things I was thinking?" The things they must think of me because of the things I thought! And I thought that I was safe inside my head.

"No, that's the interesting part! You're the only one he's never been able to read. You alone."

"And that's… special?"

She nodded. "Extremely. I talked to my father about it, and he has plans for you."
"Cool, an experiment? Like Ashlee? What do I get to do?"

"Maybe you should wait until after school. He can tell you himself once summer starts."

Faster than lightning, she ran off, leaving me to wonder what kind of experiment I was going to participate in. Maybe it had to do with mind reading and Edward's ability. I, more than ever, could not wait to go to their house and live with them and be part of their family.

Thinking about experiments made me remember that I had a science exam coming up, and I promised I'd help Harry study. I had been talking to McGonagall and Mikel for ages, and it was nearly time for me to go. Running like a runner, I made my way back to the common room.

"Bella, there are you! We've been waiting for ages for you to get back!" Hermione said, sounding annoyed and relieved at the same time.

"Sorry, guys. I was… retained by Mikel in the hallway."

"Oh, it's okay. Anyways, what did McGonagall want to talk to you about, if you don't mind me asking?" asked Harry. I didn't mind.

"Well, you know how my father is rather anti-magic?"

"Yes," they said in unison.

"Well, she said that I could live with Mikel and her family when I'm not here! So instead of trying to explain magic to my dad, I can live with them!"

"Wow, neat!" said Hermione.

"Yeah, for sure! Well, over the summer, we're all going to be hanging out, and maybe you'll like to come! You can all meet the rest of my family," invited Ron.

"We'd love to," I smiled. Summer had never seemed to appealing to me before.­