So we're gonna take a little detour here to get to know our stars a little better. Should only take a chapter or two before we're back on track. I'm just really falling in love with these characters and I hope you will too. Remember to leave a review to let me know what you think, how I could do better, and what I'm doing right with this story. Seriously, the little feedback I got on this story is a huge motivation booster.

Side Note: I am not British but I try to keep it all authentic for y'all. What Harry Potter would call football, I call soccer, or fake-football. I spell it mom, not mum. They aren't notes, they're bills. We drink coffee and toss the tea in the harbor. Never the less I have put forth an effort to to channel my pre-revolutionary war heritage and through intense Doctor Who marathoning I attempt to use the appropriate vernacular for this story. I apologize if I come up short on some areas.

Anyway, hope you wonderful readers enjoy.

Halfway through the summer before his 4th year at Hogwarts a jittery owl flew through Thomas' window during breakfast, dropping an envelope by his plate before flying off deeper into his house. This had surprised him at first until he saw the writing on the envelope. There was only one person he knew that would send him a letter with a heart at the end of his name. Fuck there was only one person he knew that would send him a letter period. Trudy. At the sight of her neat handwriting Thomas' stomach twisted and fluttered. He internally rolled his eyes at himself. Apparently he was a teenage girl overcome with a crush.

He opened the envelope to read the letter inside and chortled at the sight of the scribbled mess at the top of the page. Apparently Trudy was unsure how to start off her letter. Despite the intense effort to scribble out her initial attempts at a greeting, Thomas was still able to make out a few words.

Dear Thomas...

Hello Thomas...

What's up Tom!?

Yo!

Finally Trudy seemed to digress to her initial greeting, no discredit to her creativity with the others.

Dear Thomas,

First, let me apologize about the mess at the top of this page. I'm not really sure where we stand with each other so I'm not too confident with the correct way to greet you. I mean, I know you're not looking for friends but... I don't know. I'd say we aren't far off from that.(?)

Anyway. Just writing you too see how you're doing. And to test out my new owl. His name is Archimedes. Or just Archie for short. I hope he behaves. He sure does love people... Sometimes a little too much.

Right on queue Archie flew back into the kitchen and onto Thomas' shoulder, nuzzling his head into the crook of Thomas' neck. Archie's feathers tickled Thomas and drew out a small laugh. He took a small piece of bacon and fed it to the owl, petting the feathers on his head as the small fowl gulped it down. Once finished, Archie resumed his position perched on Thomas' shoulder cuddled into the hollow spot under his jaw. Thomas chuckled under his breath at the affectionate bird and continued reading.

I can't wait to get back to school. With every passing year I miss it more and more. The musky scent of the castle, Hogsmeade visits, seeing you, doing homework by the lake, quidditch matches, and even potions class. One of these days I swear I will get Snape to compliment my work! Maybe if I use a love potion on Harry Potter so he falls in love with Mrs. Norris... Just kidding of course.

Thomas smirked at the thought. He didn't know what was funnier, Potter in love with a cat or the idea of Trudy working up the courage to follow through on such an act.

I'm hoping for a quiet year. No possessed professors, escaped Basilisk, or Azkaban escapees. I could use a break from the excitement and just focus on school. I mean, after this year we need to start thinking about our O.W.L.s! I'd say that's a bit scarier than dementors prowling outside the castle.

I hope Archie gets to you in a timely manner and I anxiously await your response.

Once again there was a scribbled mess at the end of the letter suggesting that Trudy had just as much difficulty with the close of her letter as she did with the opening.

Sincerely...

Your friend...

Love...

From,

Trudy Thorne.

Thomas repeatedly turned the letter over in his hands, smile still present on his face. Trudy was... Something else. This introvert had ignored the barriers and social hierarchy set in place, come out of her shell, and gone out of her way to become friends with Thomas. She actually made an effort to become friends with him. Nobody had ever done that before.

But why? He had done nothing for her besides push her away. He didn't deserve a friend like that. She deserved much better company to befriend her. Not a cynical, rude, and apathetic Slytherin who would choose himself over her every time. With O.W.L.s coming up Thomas often contemplated the road his life could follow and possibilities that could present themselves. If he and Trudy did become an item, that would be awesome. Seriously, he'd love that. And if they became Hogwarts sweethearts and continue their relationship past graduation, even better. But what if he was given the chance to become an Auror?

It was his lifelong dream. Unfortunately, it was also a profession that required a lot of travel and time away. Not healthy for any relationship. Plus there was always the tiny ever present occupational hazard of DEATH, but whatever. The point is he doubted Trudy would be ok with all that. "Bitches love the idea of bravery but hate the possibility of losing a boyfriend. A woman may think adventure sounds great and may get turned on by the idea of it, but she really just wants stability in her life with her paramour, and the life of an Auror is anything but." That was what an Auror had told Thomas one day while he was helping out at the Ministry offices. Many Aurors had been through multiple marriages. Whether they were due to infidelity on either side or inability to cope with the distance and time away, lasting relationships just weren't a commodity for the Aurors. "Just the way it works out kid. As if you didn't have enough going against ya, you also gotta realize loyalty just isn't that common anymore. Just don't be like me and find it out the hard way by walking in on your fiancé bent over the couch getting rammed by some muggle."

Thankfully, Thomas thought to himself, Trudy is extraordinarily uncommon. Things could work out if we would both be willing to work for it.

Thomas had to remind himself he had only just turned 14 and he was getting a little ahead of himself with these thoughts about the rest of his life. He and Trudy weren't even an item yet. Hell, according to the letter he held in his hands, she didn't even think he saw her as a friend. Maybe he should just take this one step at a time, keep pursuing his goals, and see where this, whatever 'this' was, goes from here.

Thomas was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of his mother coming into the kitchen. "Whatcha got there Thomas?" she asked motioning towards the letter in his hands.

"A friend from school wrote me a letter."

"But you don't have friends at school." She replied nonchalantly as she waved her wand to begin cleaning the kitchen.

"Um... Thanks?" Thomas said drenching his words in offense.

"Hey don't get upset with me. Your words, not mine, remember?" Thomas had admittedly told his family he didn't have any friends when they asked if he wanted to go visit anybody over the summer. Point given to mum on that one.

"Well, I suppose I lied. She just got herself an owl and wanted to test him out." Without warning Archie flew from his perch tucked beneath Thomas' chin and flapped his way onto his mum's head. The owl leaned forward to look curiously at the woman beneath him, tilting his head to the side, perplexed at this new human. "His name is Archimedes," he finished with a grin as Archie recovered his balance and made his new perch in her hair.

"Well, I'm actually glad you lied to me." His mum said, going about her business as if an owl hadn't just made himself comfortable in her hair. "And um..." She stopped and looked directly at Thomas, "She?" she questioned with a smirk.

"Oh, uh, yeah. She. Her name is Trudy. Trudy Thorne. She's a Ravenclaw. I met her my first year but we didn't really become friends until last year. She's actually number two in the rankings so she's really smart. She's just shy and-"

"Who's shy?" Thomas was cut off by his father as he entered into the kitchen en route to give his wife a good morning kiss. He abruptly stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Archie on his wife's head. "Her?" He asked pointing to Archie.

"HE is Archimedes." Thomas' mother clarified pointing to Archie. "And he belongs to Thomas' friend from school."

"Thomas doesn't have friends at school." His father deadpanned.

"Seriously!?" Thomas demanded.

"Your words not-"

"Mine. Yeah, got it." Thomas grumbled.

"So who's shy?" His father asked once again.

"Trudy." His mother answered.

"Who's Trudy?"

"His friend."

"Who's friend?"

"Thomas'"

"I thought he's Archimedes."

"That's her owl."

"Who's owl?"

"Trudy's."

"And who is Trudy again?"

"OH MY GOD!" Thomas whined as he smashed his forehead into the table. Archie voiced his disapproval of the outbreak with a "hoot." He could hear giggling coming from his parents. When he looked up both his parents were looking towards him, his mother trying in vain to cover her smile with her hand, his father... Not so much.

They totally did that all on purpose.

"So... A friend..." His father mused once they have recovered from their incessant giggling, encouraging Thomas to explain how this miracle had come about.

"Yeah. She's... She's really nice." Thomas said as he absently stared off into space and traced his finger across the table.

"Pretty?" His mother asked?

"Beautiful." He replied without hesitation.

"Mmm..." His mother mused.

"Well, tell us about her." his father cheerfully requested as both his parents pulled up chairs and sat across the table from him, both wearing kind smiles and eagerness enlightening their eyes. Thomas took a full minute to replay in his mind his story with Trudy before looking up to meet their eyes. With a small grin of his own he told them everything that had happened since the beginning. He told them about the Slytherin bullies, Trudy's socks, potions class, how she approached him in the library and how he blew her off. He told them about Hogsmeade and how he smoothly worked his magic to hold her hand. That had earned a high five from his dad and a regretful "Oh my" and face palm from his mom. He told them how they promised to keep in touch over the summer, holding up the letter to bring them back to the present.

When he was done telling his history about him and his crush, Thomas met his parents gazes awaiting their reaction. His mother was the first to speak.

"Aw, our little Slytherin is still a softy." She antagonized.

"Yeah, what a pussy." His dad joked, earning a slap on the arm from his wife and a light chuckle from Thomas. "Well, sounds to me you should be working on reply and setting up a date."

"Oh, and I want to meet her." Said his mum as she and her husband left the table, Archie gave a hoot of agreement from his bed of hair.

It was times like these that reminded Thomas how much he loved his parents. He fought with them more often than not, especially after they found out he was a Slytherin and voiced their disapproval of his house. But their hearts were always in the right place. He never questioned their love and counted himself fortunate to have Jake and Tess Wombleton as his parents.

Thomas retrieved a quill, ink, and a roll of parchment to respond to Trudy.

Dear Trudy,

(See how easy that was?)

Trudy sat on her bed and giggled to herself as the read the first few words of Thomas' reply. She was hoping her mess of a scribbled greeting in her letter would be brushed aside and ignored. But of course Thomas would get in a few good natured jabs at her expense.

Your letter was a nice surprise this morning. Good 'ol Archie is already making himself at home. In my mother's hair mind you, but she doesn't seem to mind... Or notice... I don't know.

"Oh no..." Trudy groaned to herself as she looked over at Archie who was staring innocently at Trudy like he had done nothing wrong. "Behave!" She yelled at the owl, who answered simply with a hoot.

"Yeah, whatever that means..." She grumbled to herself as she continued reading.

What didn't go unnoticed was the fact I had actually gotten mail. The arrival of your letter set forth a series of events that lead to questions being asked and answered. Long story short, my parents know all about Ms. Trudy Thorne, the Ravenclaw who is just ahead of me in the class ranks.

Trudy's heart swelled. Thomas told his parents about her. A million thoughts flew through her mind. Thoughts like how much he told them, if he said he liked her, did the letter make her seem creepy? "Oh god! What if he told them about what I wrote in my diary!?," she thought out loud. Trudy thought that would be the worst thing to happen until she read the next line.

They want to meet you.

"Shit..." She whispered. She never swore. Her parents were adamantly against that kind of language. But she figured a situation like this called for it. She was never good around people, she would be terrible around the parents of her crush! Thomas must have realized the effect that little bit of knowledge would have on her because his next line quickly addressed her worries.

Don't worry. There's no rush to it for them. They even promised to not come in to King's Cross this year to give you space if that is what you desire. I may or may not have told them you're a bit of an introvert.

Sorry...

Trudy giggled at Thomas' empty apology. No he wasn't.

...No I'm not.

Trudy chortled to herself once more. She couldn't argue against the introvert accusation, and the fact Thomas cared enough to explain it to his parents caused a warmth to spread through her chest. It still surprised her a Slytherin could be so considerate. Then again, compared to other Slytherins, there wasn't much competition there.

Anyway, my summer is going by quite slowly. I agree with you. I'm eager for a new year to start. I'm curious to see who they will have as our DADA professor, how Potter will get away with breaking the rules again, and I am most eager to find a way to get you to hold my hand again... *wink*

A blush began to work its way across Trudy's face. Thomas would always furtively drop these forward and suggestive comments like it was no big deal, all to get a reaction from Trudy. Truth be told, she loved it. His expressive personality made up for her shyness. Everything about Thomas complimented her in a way that made up for all she wasn't. In short, he completed her.

I've been helping my dad at the ministry. Usually the boring stuff. Sorting papers and the such. I have been able to hang around the Auror office a bit. That's been awesome. Haven't gotten to actually get to know any of them, but still. I'll take what I can get.

It's been great hearing from you and I look forward to seeing Archie come through my window with your reply, right before he makes a nest in my mum's hair again. And I suppose it's only right for me to introduce my pet to you this year. His name is Wallie. He's a smelly rat and gets in all my stuff, but I love him anyway I suppose. You could say he's like family. I'm sure he will love Archie.

Sincerely,

Your friend,

Thomas.

P.S. What are you doing the week before school? I have 2 tickets to this quidditch World Cup, I figured you may want to go? I mean, it's kinda a big deal. Talk to your parents and let me know.

P.S.S. Yo? Really?

Trudy couldn't laugh at the last line of the letter. She was too busy trying to absorb the previous few. Thomas wanted to take her to the Quidditch World Cup! The idea had always interested her but she didn't want to go alone and she didn't have many friends to accompany her to such an event. She couldn't believe Thomas had to ask. He could have shown up the day of brandishing the tickets and she would have joined him without hesitation.

But, of course she would have to ask her parents. Trudy bit her lip as she thought about how her parents would react to her requesting to go to such a large event alone with a boy she was crushing on. They would no doubt have some reservations. But they knew Thomas was her only friend at Hogwarts and that had to be worth something. They were always encouraging her to be more sociable and get out to make memories. Especially with this gift of magic that so few in the world possess.

Her parents were skeptical to say the least when her Hogwarts letter came in the mail. They had thought at first that it was a practical joke by some reality TV series and had tossed the letter away. Then an old man in deep blue robes showed up at their doorstep holding several small boxes in his arms, requesting to discuss Hogwarts with the small family. When he was permitted to come into the house and sit in the family room the man introduced himself as Garrick Ollivander. He claimed to be a wand maker.

Mr. Ollivander sat with Trudy and her family explaining the existence of magic and magical folk. He told them that Trudy had been detected at a young age and put under surveillance by the Ministry of Magic in order to closely monitor the development of her magical capabilities. At first her parents scoffed at this until Mr. Ollivander asked if Trudy had a history of being present when strange things happened. Strange occurrences that they couldn't rationally describe. Her parents fell deathly quiet at this before her father began telling Mr. Ollivander about his daughter's admittedly unusual childhood.

When she was 4 there was an abnormally dry summer in London and the garden the Thornes usually kept had yielded little success. But one day Trudy was playing in the dirt and all around her small Tulips started sprouting from the ground. To say this had scared her parents would be an understatement. They watched the flowers grow from the ground and bloom. It wasn't even the season for tulips. Yet here they were, her mother's favorite flower, blooming from the parched dirt around her daughter.

When she was 7 Trudy had to walk home from school due to the family car being broken down. At about midday a huge thunderstorm rolled into London and there were scattered reports of flooding in the area. Unfortunately, Trudy had forgotten her jacket and rain boots at home that morning and had to walk home in her school uniform. Her father had paced back and forth incessantly until his daughter came through the front door. Imagine his surprise when she walked in the house dry as a bone with a smile so bright it almost seemed like it wasn't raining outside and the storm clouds had never existed. It was as if she defied everything negative about that day.

And just the year prior during Christmas time, when she was 9, Trudy and her mother were in London shopping for presents. They were waiting to cross the street when they witnessed what should have been a bloody and terrible disaster. A car had pulled over to the curb. A husband and wife with their newborn baby in the back. The husband was letting his wife take their baby out of the car while he would go search for a place to park. Just as the wife opened the back door to unbuckle the car seat, a double decker bus rear ended the car, propelling it 30 feet further down the street before they both came to a screeching halt right in front of Trudy.

Her mom said all she heard was her daughter say, "Please be okay," over and over as she clutched her mothers arms and sobbed into her sleeve. Her mom watched in awe as all the passengers of the bus unloaded from the vehicle, all without having a single scratch on them. As if that wasn't amazing enough, she turned her head to see the father coming around to comfort his wife who was holding their baby, still sleeping with her face the portrait of the meaning of calm. It was a damn miracle.

Mr. Ollivander only smiled at these stories before turning his attention to little Trudy. Her dark blue eyes shined in the dimmed family room and she kindly returned his smile. "My dear, you have such beautiful potential."

He began ruffling through his boxes as he explained that Trudy has access to this beautiful gift, but has little control over it. He promised Hogwarts would mold her into a witch capable of the acts that they had spoken of as if it were second nature to her. He then held a wand out to Trudy for her to take. A cherry wood shell with a Phoenix feather core. Mr. Ollivander explained that this is the tool of the Wizarding World and should be treated as such. He instructed Trudy to care for it, never misuse it, and always keep it close. He then promptly rose, gathered his things, and told Trudy's parents a school representative would be in touch to make arrangements for little Trudy to attend Hogwarts. After bidding farewell to all he then departed from the home.

That had seemed so long ago. She had looked up to Mr. Ollivander as a source of inspiration ever since. She respected the old man and often visited the shop every year when she went to buy more school supplies. He had remembered her by name and wand and was delighted to hear she had become a Ravenclaw like himself. He had never denied her time to talk and always had words of wisdom to share with her. She could never adequately describe how thankful she was for that man to show up on her doorstep.

Trudy was brought out of her ponderous meditation at the sound of her father calling up the stairs to notify her that dinner was ready. She unwittingly took the letter down the stairs with her and only realized her death grip on the parchment when her mother brought it to her notice.

"Oh, did your friend from school write back to you honey?" Her mother asked as she began filling plates with the shepherd's pie she had slaved over all night. It was Trudy's favorite.

"Yeah, uh-"

"Yes." Her mother interrupted. Her parents hated words like 'yeah', 'got', and 'whatever.' To them these were lazy words and could easily be replaced with more eloquent alternatives.

"Yes," she corrected herself. "I just got- um, received it today. Archie just returned about an hour ago."

Hearing his name, Archie flew into the small dining room and took at perch on Trudy's father's shoulder.

"Hey buddy," her father greeted as he pet the feathers on Archie's head. The small owl answered with a soft hoot as Daniel Thorne returned to his food. "So, what did your friend have to say?" He inquired.

"Uh..." Trudy stalled. She had to ease into the whole World Cup issue with her parents. She couldn't bring it up to quickly without warming them up first. "He wants to take me to the Quidditch World Cup the week before school." She blurted. Smooth Trudy. Just smooth. She bit her bottom lip in apprehension of her parents response.

"Quidditch?" Her mother asked with a frown?

"Magical sport. Similar to footy on broom sticks... Kinda..." Trudy didn't think her parents needed to know about just how physical the game could get. That might be a turn off for them.

"And how long will the game be?" Her father questioned setting done his silverware and interlacing his fingers under his chin, his matching blue eyes meeting his daughters.

"Well... That depends... It's been known to last days, sometimes weeks. But this year there's a really good seeker on one of the teams and if he catches the Snitch fast enough it shouldn't last more than a few hours." Trudy declared hopefully.

"Shannon?" Her father asked turning his head to his wife.

"Well all of what our daughter just said is truly lost to me but I don't see any reason for her not to. I'm sure you'll already be at work and with Trudy out and about I'll be able to pick up an extra shift that night and that should put us over to make the next mortgage payment." Her mother thought out loud.

"I agree," her father added with a small smile and wink to his daughter. He knew how much this would mean to her. The fact that her parents were so open to this made Trudy giddy with excitement. She couldn't wait to tell Thomas.

"However I do have one condition." Her father said interrupting her thoughts. "I need to meet this boy."

"Mmm," her mother mused, "I agree. If a teenage boy is going to be taking our daughter to a football game alone, we should be sure we approve of him. Especially if he's a Slithering."

"Slytherin." Trudy corrected.

"Yes that." Her mother agreed, meeting her daughter's eyes. "I understand you say he's different but from what you told us about that particular house of your school, I'm still a little apprehensive. I will also need to speak to his parents."

"What if he isn't ready to meet you guys?" Trudy asked. Dropping her voice and her eyes she then added, "What if he doesn't want to?"

"Then just explain to him that this isn't a scare tactic or anything like that. We are just taking care of our princess." Her father said with an empathetic smile. "If he can't understand that then I'm not sure I want you hanging around with him." He added.

Trudy nodded in acknowledgement. "I'll let him know."

She could only pray Thomas wouldn't be scared away by all this.

Once again, please review. :) I may or may not stalk the profiles of those who take the time to leave a little something for me.