I know I took a very long time updating but I've been really busy. Sorry! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 10

Harry's mouth fell open. He said nothing for a while. He simply stared into his wife's face.

Ginny Potter was still sobbing. She was holding her stomach, as if she wanted to protect the baby inside her. She had been trying to tell Harry for a few weeks, but the right opportunity had never come.

Now she was waiting for her husband's answer. Harry, however, stayed silent and didn't move.

"Harry, please say something," Ginny pleaded.

But it was as if Harry couldn't talk anymore. He tried to speak. Nothing came out of his mouth.

"Harry … say something. Please. Say something. Anything."

After a long, awkward silence, Ginny looked up at her husband.

Harry Potter's eyes were shining and a grin had appeared on his face.

As his eyes met Ginny's, he smiled even more. He bent down to kiss his wife.

And Ginny knew everything was going to be all right.

The man she loved was by her side.

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Alicia was fidgeting with the tip of her quill. She was trying to write a letter to her parents but she didn't know how to begin. She kept throwing out the bits she had written on the floor. Soon the floor was completely covered with crumpled papers.

"Alicia?"

Alicia turned around. Elisabeth had been watching her from across the room, a concerned look on her face.

Normally Alicia would have shouted at Elisabeth for disturbing her.

But now, she felt weak and lonely.

"Please, Elisabeth, can you come here?"

It was the first time Alicia had asked for help.

Elisabeth sat down next to Alicia.

And suddenly Alicia understood why people needed friends.

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A few days later, Ginny and Harry got a letter from their daughter. It had been a while since they had heard from Alicia. Ginny was the first one to read the letter.

Dear Mum and Dad,

As you probably know, the holidays are in five days. I would like to spend the first week at my friend's house, Elisabeth. Her parents are very happy to welcome me into their house. If I have your permissions, I will stay at Elisabeth's for a few days and then come back home for Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Alicia.

Harry nodded slowly as he read the letter, as if Alicia was standing in front of him.

"Perfect."

Harry folded the letter and spoke to his wife.

"It's perfect, he repeated, I say we give her our permission. That way it gives us a few more days to think about how to tell her."

Ginny nodded as she stroked her belly. She had always dreamed about a second child. But Alicia had been so hard to handle, Ginny had given up having a big family like her mother and father.

Now her dreams were all becoming true and she didn't want anything or anyone to destroy them.

Harry took a quill and a piece of parchment and sat down to write.

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Alicia gave a cry of joy. Elisabeth, who had been eating beside her, jumped.

"What's up?" she asked a little annoyed.

Alicia simply winked and waved a letter before Elisabeth's gaze.

Dear Ali,

Of course you can spend some time at your little friend's house. But come back as quickly as you can. Your mum and I have something to tell you.

Have fun!

Harry.

Alicia was very happy when she read Harry's first words. She didn't even glance at the rest of the letter.

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Elisabeth squeaked loudly as she spotted her parents at the gates. She ran over to them, giggling happily. It was obvious she had missed them a lot. Alicia sniffed a bit at this sort of behaviour. She would never act like that with her own parents.

"Ali, this is my mother and father, Elisabeth introduced them, Draco and Penelope Malfoy."

Draco Malfoy looked at lot like his daughter. He had the same pale face and blond thin hair.

Penelope Malfoy however, had curly black and a very dark skin.Her eyes werewide open.

"Mum, Dad, this is Alicia Potter."

Alicia shook Penelope's hand and then Draco's, smiling politely.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Penelope said, Elisabeth has told us so much about you! Is it true that you are Harry Potter's daughter?"

Alicia glanced over at Elisabeth. Elisabeth looked away.

"Yes, it's true. I am Harry and Ginny Potter's daughter."

Draco Malfoy chuckled.

"Isn't it funny, he said, that you two are friends! When we were kids, Harry Potter and I used to be enemies!"

"Really? Alicia said although she had expected this, why?"

Draco smiled at the memory. It was obvious he was no longer the man he used to be. Alicia noticed Penelope's hand on her husband shoulder as if she wanted to protect him. Elisabeth's mother was staring coldly at Alicia.

"Well, I think I was a bit jealous to be truthful. He was everything I wasn't. Good-looking, famous, popular, good at quiddich … that is part of why I didn't like him. But I couldn't stand the way he was always being so brave, noble and good."

"How well I understand that." Alicia said and she meant it.

She immediately felt that she had a connection with Elisabeth's father. Draco was a very open man and he didn't mind telling Alicia what his feelings were. He was going to be easy to handle.

But when Alicia's gaze met Penelope's she knew Draco's wife wasn't going to be that easy. And she also knew that, if Draco had changed so much, it was because of Penelope and the control she seemed to have over him.

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Alicia liked Elisabeth's family a lot. The Malfoys and Alicia were sitting around the same table, eating dinner. Elisabeth had twin brothers. Alicia liked them because they were always silent when she spoke and they always bowed when she passed. Elisabeth was laughing a lot, making Alicia jealous again. Alicia wasn't able to laugh so openly. Draco Malfoy was making a lot of jokes about his childhood. Again, when he spoke far too much, Penelope grabbed his shoulders protectively. Alicia knew that, if she wanted to know something from Draco, she had to get Penelope out of the way.

"Tell me, Alicia, how's your father doing?" Draco asked.

There was silence in the room. Penelope was staring straight at Alicia, her big brown eyes wide open again.

"He's fine," Alicia answered.

Draco nodded without a word. Penelope, who hadn't said a word for the last few hours, spoke:

"What I don't understand is how a Gryffindor and a Slytherin can become such good friends, she said, things must have changed over at Hogwarts."

And suddenly Alicia felt the need to talk to someone about her father. She knew the Malfoys were going to understand.

"Things haven't changed at Hogwarts, Mrs Malfoy, she said, I am not a Gryffindor."

"You aren't?" Penelope glanced over at her husband. Alicia noticed that Draco suddenly became very interested in his food.

"No, I'm not. I'm in the same house as Elisabeth, with all the Slytherins."

"I don't understand …"

Alicia sighed.

"It's simple really, she said, everyone expects me to be in Gryffindor because my whole family was there. But I'm not my family. I'm different. And I don't want to be someone I'm not. I only want to be myself. And I'm a Slytherin."

Again, no one spoke for a while. Then Penelope looked over at her husband.

"Alicia is right. We don't always have to do the same things as our family. We don't have to follow. We can choose."

Penelope wasn't talking to anyone in particular, but Alicia guessed that her words were meant for her husband.

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That night, Alicia heard Penelope and Draco whispering in the living-room. She crept out of Elisabeth's room, where she had been sleeping and hid in the shadows to listen to their conversation. She had done this many times, with her own parents.

"Don't think about that now, Draco …"

Penelope sounded worried.

"I can't help it, Penny;the little Potter girlhas brought it all back in my mind."

Draco Malfoy was sitting near the fire. His face was paler than usual.

"The dark times are over," Penelope whispered

"They may be invisible but they are still here." Draco replied.

"Draco …"

"I can feel them, Penny; I can feel them, deep into my heart."

"They are gone, Draco, you have to stop thinking about it."

"I have killed, Penny, how can I forget that? I have killed innocent children."

Draco's eyes were shining with tears.

"I am doomed, Penelope, he said. I can't live normally anymore. Harry Potter may have saved the world, but he couldn't save me."

Penelope was starting to cry at her husband's words. She looked so small and sad.

"What about me, she sobbed, haven't I saved you?"

Draco also began to sob. He stood up and took his wife in his arms and kissed her.

"You have done more than saving me, Penelope, he said, you have made me become the man I should have been. You have given me my daughter and my sons. You have given me respect and pride. You have given me love. I shall never be able to thank you enough."

"Tell me you love me, Draco, Penelope whispered, and that will be enough."

Draco smiled.

"I love you Penelope Malfoy, mother of my children, my wife, and my love for ever."

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Alicia went back to her room after hearing Draco's final words. She now knew she wasn't going to get any information about the Dark Lord from Elisabeth's father. Draco Malfoy was not the same man. He wasn't going to tell Alicia anything.

Alicia felt disappointed. But she couldn't deny the fact that she was having a good time with Elisabeth and the twins.

They played cards, flew around in the garden on their brooms, played with the boys' magic toys, watched movies and laughed at the muggles living nearby.

When it was time for Alicia to go back home, she didn't quite feel as if she wanted to return to her parents. She loved Ginny and Harry but she knew that Harry was going to speak to her about the Slytherins. And Alicia had become very protective of her beloved house. She wasn't going to stand it if Harry spoke badly of the Slytherins.

Sighing, she took a bit of powder from the pot Penelope was handing her and went into the fire.

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"Ali!"

As soon as Alicia arrived in her parent's fireplace, Ginny ran to her and hugged her tight. Alicia breathed in her mother's familiar perfume and felt a bit better.

"Mum, it's nice to see you again," she said hugging her mother back.

Suddenly Alicia felt a hand on her shoulder. She broke out of her mother's tight embrace and turned to face her father.

"Hello Alicia, Harry said smiling, how are you?"

"I'm fine," Alicia said.

"We have something very important to tell you …" Harry said, glancing at Ginny then back at Alicia.

"Right."

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Ginny and Harry made Alicia sit down on a sofa, smiling nervously.

"Your mother ..." Alicia's father began.

Ginny and Harry were standing very close to each other, facing their daughter, and holding hands tightly. Alicia looked from one to another, waiting. Why were they looking so happy and so nervous?

"… is going to have a baby." Ginny finished for her husband.

Alicia didn't react immediately. She blinked a few times.

"A baby?"

Her lips were incredibly dry. She licked them a few times as she tried to understand what her parents were telling her.

A baby …

"Yes, Ginny said still smiling, aren't you happy? You will have a little brother or a little sister!"

A little brother or a little sister …

A million thoughts flashed into Alicia's mind. She could feel the tears in her eyes.

"Great," she croaked.

And then she ran out of the house.

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Alicia couldn't believe her parents had replaced her so easily. She felt hurt and miserable. Had they decided to have another child just because the first one was such a disappointment?

Alicia had known that going to Slytherin was going to make her parents react strangely, but she had never expected this. She had always seen herself as the only child of the famous Potters.

You will have a little brother or a little sister …

She liked being an only child. It made her feel special and unique. A brother or a sister was only going to take away her parents.

Was she supposed to be happy about this?

Aren't you happy?

No, Alicia wasn't happy. She wiped the tears out her eyes and tried to stop sobbing. She wasn't going to show her parents how the news of a baby hurt her.

But when she looked up, ready to go back into the house, she fell face to face with a young boy.

"Hello," he said politely with a very deep voice.

Judging by his size, Alicia guessed he was about fourteen years old. He was grinning awkwardly.

"Could you help me?" the boy asked still staring at her.

Alicia was not in a good mood. She stared furiously in the boy's warm brown eyes and sniffed indignantly.

"No. I don't help muggles like you," she snapped.

The boy's grin faded. He seemed to decide that it would be best to ignore Alicia's last comment.

"I just moved in here and I can't find my way, he explained, maybe you could tell me where…"

Alicia pushed him out of her way.

"I already told you. I won't help you. I don't want to."

The boy smirked again. He had a very nice smile. Alicia hated that.

"If you don't help me, I'll knock on the door of your house and tell your parents I found a little kid crying on the street."

Alicia hissed under her breath. Her hand immediately slipped into her pocket, but she couldn't find her wand. Then she remembered that Harry had taken it before making her sit down.

She cursed loudly. That seemed to please the boy.

"So, do you want to help me now?" He asked innocently.

Alicia had no choice. She nodded, unable to say a single word.

"Well you see, the boy said, I just moved in this street. The problem is, I don't know which way to go now if I want to go to the supermarket. Could you show me the way, please?"

So Alicia was forced to accompany the boy to the supermarket, a few streets away from her house. She felt strange as he thanked her sweetly. She had never been controlled in her life, but the boy seemed perfectly happy to use her.

Before Alicia could ran back home, the boy called her again.

"Hey!" He cried.

"What?"

"You haven't even told me your name. If we will be neighbours, it'll be best if we know each other, don't you think so?"

"My name's Alicia."

"Cool. And I'm Mitch."

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Alicia didn't speak to her parents the rest of the day. She wanted to stay all by herself, alone with her thoughts.

Ginny and Harry didn't try speaking to her either. They knew that, if she found the need to talk, she was going to come to them.

Alicia stayed the whole time in her bedroom. She read a few muggle books but she didn't even understand what she was reading. She couldn't concentrate. She only thought of the new baby that had come so suddenly in her life.

She wondered if it was a girl or a boy.

If it was a boy, Alicia would be satisfied. Boys could never replace girls.

If it was a girl, however, Alicia knew she was not going to welcome the new baby.

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That night, Ginny and Harry had a very long talk. They talked for hours about their baby, and the changes there were going to be in their lives.

"Do you think it's a girl or a boy?" Harry asked as he stroked his wife's long dark red hair.

Ginny smiled.

"I have a feeling that it's a girl …"

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Alicia tossed and turned in her bed, unable to find sleep. Her bedroom window was wide open. She watched the stars shining in the dark sky and sighed. She knew she wasn't going to fall asleep any time soon.

Alicia hadn't stopped thinking about her new sister or brother.

As she climbed out of her bed, not really knowing what she was doing, she began to shiver. But she wasn't cold. She was scared and angry.

Ginny and Harry had gone to bed a long time ago. There was no light in their room. Alicia opened her bedroom door as quietly as possible. She tip-toed down the stairs and then made her way towards the front door. Making sure she was not making any noise, she turned the key in the lock.

The cold wind hit her in the face but Alicia did not care. She walked on the damp stone underneath her feet. She walked away from her house, away from her parents, away from the baby that she already hated.

She did not know what time it was nor did she care. She knew nobody was going to annoy her right now. Here, in the middle of the night, nobody was out on the streets.

Or so she thought.

"Christ, kid, what are you doing here?"

Alicia wheeled around. She narrowed her eyes, trying to recognize the dark figure in front of her.

Under the feeble light of the moon, she could see that the person in front of her was a tall boy with wavy brown hair, and a charming smile.

Alicia greeted her teeth as she remembered just who this boy was.

"That is none of your business, Mitchell," she snapped.

The boy smirked.

"I was just wondering what you were doing outside so late at night! And, eh, duh, it's Mitch, not Mitchell."

"Whatever. Leave me alone."

"Look, kid, I can't just leave you here now that I found you. I mean, I feel like it's my responsibility to bring you back to your parents."

"Damn it, leave me alone and stop talking to me as if I'm a baby."

Mitch sighed loudly as if Alicia was being a very naughty girl.

"How old are you?" He asked.

Alicia didn't answer immediately. Suddenly she felt very tired so she sat down on the pavement.

"I'm nearly twelve", she whispered hugging her legs to keep herself warm.

"Twelve? You're so small I thought you had to be eight," Mitch said laughing.

"Shut up, Mitchell."

Mitch laughed even more. He sat down on Alicia's side.

"What's your name again, kid?"

"Alicia."

There was a long silence. Alicia was staring at the stars, still thinking about the baby. She wanted Mitch to go away. She wanted to be left alone so she could cry as much as she wanted.

"So, tell me, how come you're here all by yourself?" Mitch asked.

"I could ask you the same question."

"I'm walking home from a party this guy was having. What about you?"

Alicia shrugged.

"I just wanted to take a bit of fresh air."

"Right. And you couldn't do that from your bedroom window or your own garden?"

Alicia smiled. The boy was a muggle but he wasn't stupid. Somehow she knew he was going to understand.

"It's just that everything is changing," she said.

"That's part of life, kid, growing up!"

"It's more than growing up, Mitchell; it's my whole life turning into a nightmare. I have to make choices. And my choices are not respected by my own parents."

"What kind of choices?" Mitch asked curiously.

"Well, you're a muggle, obviously I can't tell you."

"That's the second time you call me that and I don't even know what it means! Is that an insult?"

"It depends on the way you see it," Alicia answered.

"You're being kind of mysterious, Ali."

Alicia stopped breathing for a second. Her green eyes widened.

"What did you just call me?" She asked in a whisper.

"Ali." Mitch's eyes were twinkling under the light of the full moon.

"Only my friends and parents are allowed to call me that."

"And I'm not a friend?" Mitch's smile had vanished.

"No, you're a muggle!" Alicia cried standing up.

And before Mitch had the time to reply, Alicia turned and walked away. She could feel the tears coming back. She wanted her parents to hug her but that was impossible. Yet Alicia suddenly needed to be comforted by a person she loved.

"Elisabeth ..." She sobbed.

Author's note : Please tell me your opinion ! I want to know what you think about Elisabeth's parents, about Alicia's reaction, and about Mitch!