Chapter Ten - Yes

Sally's home was cozy. The two-bedroom flat near downtown London was tightly packed with trinkets, mementoes, and cat toys. In addition to Sally and her son, two cats also called the place home.

Sally's hospitality was nearly overwhelming. We barely made it over the threshold, and already she was offering food.

"I bet that hospital food was dreadful. Can I make you lunch? Do you still like ham?" Sally was already at the fridge.

"Yeah, ham is good.", I replied, not wanting to tell her that Mungo's food was actually very good. A solid nine out of ten, would recommend.

"How about some tea? I've got a new blend I think you'd like." Sally looked back at me over her shoulder. Enthusiastically I nodded my agreement.

And so twenty minutes after coming here, Sally, her two cats, and I were seated in the living room, sharing tea and mini ham sandwiches.

"A woman from the welfare office explained a bit about your schooling and some other things. That's not important right now." Sally broke off a piece of ham and fed it to one of the cats. "We don't have much time. The train leaves in seven days." The other cat jumped up on the side of the chair I was sitting in. I wanted to ask about what she learned. How much does the average muggle-born parent get to know? "I have most of your stuff from your old room in boxes in our bedroom, but they gave me a list of supplies you'll need for this year." The cat abruptly leaped over me and started pawing at Sally, seeing that I wasn't forthcoming with my ham. Sally hand-fed it a piece without skipping a beat. "Someone will be coming to escort us to your market to gather the supplies. They're worried that you'll still be targeted." Sally stopped talking. She looked as if she wished she hadn't said that.

"I know I'm in danger. No need to sugar coat it." I set my teacup down on the table and clasped my hands to my chest. "I'm not afraid." I wasn't fooling anyone, least of all Sally.

"I won't let anyone hurt you, love." Sally spoke confidently. I didn't have the heart to tell her how useless she would be against a wizard.

We continued talking about preparations. She knew quite a bit. Some things I didn't even know, like how muggle-borns still had to pay for tuition and all the required supplies. I had assumed the Ministry fronted the bill. They did have a fund for orphans and some poverty-stricken, gifted muggle-borns. Technically, I was an orphan now, I thought darkly. Alas, Sally had legally become my guardian and thus was responsible for me. I felt guilty.

Sally set up a bed for me in her room. "It's better if us girls room together for now.", she had said. I definitely wasn't going to protest. I went to sleep with my wand under my pillow.

Predictably, I dreamed about my old self again. This time I wasn't home. I also wasn't alone. Here I was looking down at my father and myself in the car.

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong? You haven't picked up your phone in weeks. I expect that from your sister, not you." He looked over, demanding an answer. There was no reply.

"Fine. Don't tell me. At least answer your phone so I know you're alive." Despite my uninvolvement in this event, I felt incredibly guilty. Despite all my issues, I at least tried to be the one my father didn't have to worry about. I always called to tell him things were going well. I avoided calling if I was having an episode, only going to him for help as a last resort. It was stupid, really. My dad was always the best at bringing me out of whatever mood I was in. A couple jokes, and I'd be laughing at how stupid the whole situation had been. In fifteen minutes I'd be back to normal, yet I avoided calling him, instead spending hours or days trying to pull myself up.

Not talking to him for weeks, I'd never do that to my father. My idea resurfaced in my head. What if this wasn't me? What if this was the real Tracy in my body? I couldn't touch her or interact with the scenery. She couldn't see me or hear me. How would I communicate with her? I at least needed to teach her how to answer my phone before my father went to an early grave.

The two of them sat in silence, driving to an unknown location. I woke up before I could see where they were going.

After breakfast, I had an idea of how I might communicate with maybe Tracy. I grabbed some blank paper and was looking for a pen when Sally's son, Percy, pushed past me. I found it funny that Sally Johnson would have a son named Percy. If you just change their last name to Jackson, I'd be having a completely different kind of adventure. Percy looked a bit like the Percy I was familiar with. He was a tall, fit man with short, messy, jet-black hair. He wore jeans and a plain tee-shirt. The only major difference was his brown eyes.

"Hey Percy, you got a pen?" I continued rummaging around looking.

"Yeah, hold on.", he said. I turned to face him. Percy reached into his pockets and pulled out a pen. "Here, catch." He tossed it to me. I caught it in one hand and pulled off the cap. No, sadly it didn't turn into a sword. I guess this Percy is just a normal human, I thought.

On the paper, I wrote in large letters, CAN YOU SEE ME TOO? I wrote the same question on each sheet of paper. Percy looked at me like I was strange. "Is there a reason you're wasting paper on that?"

"School project", I supplied. "Do we have any tape?", I asked. Percy decided it was none of his business and tracked down a roll of tape. I started sticking my large notes all around the flat. My thought was, if the real Tracy was watching me, she would see my note no matter where I was when she dreamed of me. Hopefully she would reply in the same way.

Percy was amused with my school project. Sally, on the other hand, was not.

"What on Earth are you doing?" She gestured to the walls.

"I'm trying to contact the astral plane." In a way, that's exactly what I was doing. When I dream, I can't interact with the world, and I can't be seen. It was kind of like how astral projection was described. Sally looked skeptical. "I'll take them all down before I go to school.", I added. Sally deflated, leaving me to my project.

The days leading up to my departure went by in a blur. Someone did indeed escort us to Diagon Alley. No one attacked me, much to my relief. I should have been awed by all the magic and wonder. Months ago, I would have killed to see it. I would have savored every moment. Instead, I watched my feet. I created my small, little world around me and got in and out as fast as I could. This was the same way I'd tackle going to the grocery store. I wondered what wonderful things I'd see if I looked up.

Each night, I'd look for a sign in my dreams of any indication that she saw me. I wanted confirmation that Tracy wasn't dead. If we swapped places, maybe we could swap back. Each morning, I woke up disappointed. No notes, no nothing.

I had nearly given up when on the night before I left for Hogwarts, I saw it. Written on my wall-length mirror in red lipstick was one word, YES.

A/N

That concludes the first part of my story. I couldn't help myself with that Percy Jackson reference. I hope even if you didn't get it, that it wasn't too jarring. Next chapter starts with the Hogwarts Express.