Thank you all for reviewing and putting me on your favourite story/story alert. I had 15 emails from after my last chapter and it felt amazing. I usually have around 6-7. So thank you all! :D

I know this chapter is a bit shorter than the last ones have been; but I didn't want to rush thing. So I hope you'll enjoy it! :)

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Chapter 13

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Professor Slughorn turned to face the first class of the day. It was Thursday and professor Slughorn hadn't had the best night of his life.

"Merlin's beard!" he yelped and the paper in his hands flew all over the room. He couldn't help but get a cold feeling down his spine. It was the same girl he'd seen before; she was sweet, but that face and those eyes. Alice picked out her wand, waved with it and the papers lay them self on the desk.

"I'm sorry to have frightened you sir", Alice said.

"Class starts in five, how did you get in?" Alice looked back at the open door.

"Through the door, professor", Alice said with a soft smile at the confused man. She'd heard that if it was someone to get close to, teacher-way at least, it was him.

"Sir, professor Snape wanted me to give you this note before class starts", Alice said and gave him the note. She already knew what was in it; it was about her after all. Professor Slughorn read the paper quickly and smiled at Alice.

"Well, no need to send you out when you're here. Take a seat and I'll go fetch the others", he said and started trotting across the room. Two Slytherin girls, twins in fact, walked over and sat down by Alice's table. They had hard, neutral faces with dark eyes and dark hair. They didn't say anything; neither did they seem especially interested in the class.

"Hi", Alice said, both of them looked at her and then returned to their own thoughts.

"Alright, today I'm going to test you. Now I don't think any of you will succeed in brewing a perfect elixir to Induce Euphoria, but some of you might make a god try", professor Slughorn explained. "You'll find the recopies on side 89. You can all step forward. I've brewed the elixir for you to watch so you know how the end results should be." Since no one else made an attempt to step forward, Alice did so. The smell made her feel good and it had a happy, sun-yellow glow to it.

"I know you haven't made any potions before Alice, but try your best and I'll figure something out so you will pass your OWL in the end of this year", professor Slughorn said encouraging while giving Alice a gentle pat on the shoulder. Alice nodded and returned to her seat. She opened the book at page 89 and started picking out the ingredients. The instructions were vague and after adding the four castor beans it was supposed to take a light peachy colour before turning yellow. Alice's potion still had a dark shine to it. She felt disappointed, a part of her really wanted professor Slughorn to be as impressed with her as the other teachers was. The twin girl beside her had gotten the peachy substance that the recipe described, but Alice was to afraid of asking – the girl scared her a bit. Instead Alice picked out her wand, without anyone seeing, pictured the elixir she had in mind and taped once, lightly at the pot. The rest of the ingredients poured them self in the cauldron and the liquid took its perfect yellow colour. Nice! Alice thought, she knew it would work, but still.

"Brilliant Alice!" Professor Slughorn said. Alice hadn't noticed that he'd stopped behind her and had looked down her cauldron. She just smiled a shy smile as everybody in the class was now paying attention at her.

"Thank you sir", she said in a low tone.

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"That's rubbish Goyle, you are going to do this for me", Draco said and gave Goyle a sharp look. "You wouldn't even be here without me", he filled in as a hint to their lack of brain activity.

"But Malfoy..."

"Crabbe I've already told you!" They rounded the corner at the seventh floor and looked up at the empty stone wall. Draco started stepping back and forth alongside the wall.

"Draco?" He didn't turn, even though he knew whose voice it was. "Are you alright?" He stopped at turned at Alice. She looked on the two small girls to their right; how would she know it actually was Crabbe and Goyle.

"Fine", he said.

"I feel like you have been avoiding me", Alice said and took one step towards him.

"I have." He wasn't going to lie, it's not like it was of choice. He needed to figure this out and then he needed to fix everything; she couldn't know.

"Why?"

"Look, I don't have time for you and your concerns right now. Will you please just leave me alone?" He sputtered, looking down on the floor.

"You know what?" He looked up, she was angry. "If you want nothing to do with me, I want nothing to do with you. There's no need for you to speak to me again." She walked passed him and headed for the headmaster's office, her meeting with professor Dumbledore was just minutes away. Draco looked up after her; he knew she was hurt and he knew it wasn't the first time this week he was the cause of it. But it had to be this way, it was best.

"Chocolate fudge cake", she said and the stone figure stepped aside. She found the stair turning to slow; she wanted to get this over with. The door was open and Alice stepped inside the round room.

"Professor?" She noticed a big, flame colored bird sitting on a pedestal next to the desk. It looked at her with its big, dark eyes but didn't do much more.

"Alice", Alice turned around to face professor Dumbledore. "Please, take a seat", he said showing her to the chair next to the desk. He placed himself at the other side, while gently patting the bird twice.

"His name is Fawkes, he is a phoenix", Dumbledore explained.

"He's beautiful", Alice said while trying to remove her gaze from it.

"How are you doing Alice?" Alice looked at the old man; he was sitting calmly, looking over his half-moon shaped glasses. "Professor Slughorn was most impressed with you after today's lesion."

"It's hard", she started, not really sure what to say. "To fit in."

"Well it's only normal for a fifteen year old girl to feel out of place at times." Why did the word normal sting so much? Before she knew it anger built up inside of her.

"I'm not normal", she sputtered. Dumbledore just smiled at her.

"Of course you not", he said in the same calm voice as before. "Your very special, indeed." Silence followed between them, Alice felt guilty to have snapped at the old man.

"I can speak to snakes too, is that normal for someone like us?" Alice said. She wasn't sure if it was going to frightened him or make him impressed; either way it would be good. He didn't say anything. He just gave Alice a look she couldn't make out herself.

"Have you made any friends?" Alice understood that he knew really.

"I like Daphne Greengrass", Alice said, confirming what professor Dumbledore had in mind. "She's nice."

"And Draco Malfoy?" Alice looked down on her hands.

"He's not the same; he's not the boy I thought I knew…"

"It surprised me when you spoke so fondly of him when we first met", professor Dumbledore said, he watched the young girl before him intensely. "Forgive me, I don't know Mr. Malfoy very well, but the two of you seem so… odd."

"I'd already figured out that he'd be different when we got here and all his friends would be around, but I guess…" Alice made a pause, how much did she want to tell this old man? How much could he be trusted? "I guess I didn't want him to change, you know."

"He cares for you, don't doubt that." Alice looked up, how could he know anything of that matter? As if he knew what Alice was going to ask he said; "He's been asking the teachers about you, how you're doing."

"He has?" She found it hard to believe that, but professor Dumbledore didn't seem like the lying type.

"Yes, he's been very protective", professor Dumbledore said. "Could it be because of your father that he is avoiding you?"

"M-my father?" Alice stuttered. She couldn't look directly at the old man, how could he know about her father?

"Alice, I've been a professor here at Hogwarts for a very long time and I've lived even longer. There's no doubt about you heritage", professor Dumbledore said. He was probably right. Alice felt her chest pound, a redness she didn't want started crawling up her face. "And I've noticed that you are very alike otherwise as well."

"We are?" Alice smiled shyly; it felt good knowing she had her father in her.

"There's one crucial difference though", Dumbledore looked over his glasses and their eyes met. "Your capability of loving." Loving? Love? What was that supposed to mean?

"Before you go Alice I want to remind you of something", he said. "Our free will is one of our greatest weapons. Do only as you please… Daphne is waiting for you." He said and smiled. Alice felt a bit confused, but stood up and exited the room. As professor Dumbledore said; Daphne stood beneath the staircase waiting for her.