A/N: Hello, it's Saturday so I have another chapter for you. I used a lot of descriptions in this one, mostly from the Twilight book. I feel like I cheated a bit but I really needed it for the story. I promise it will get better in next chapters :) Anyway I think it's time to say again that all rights belong to Stephanie Meyer and also J.K. Rowling.

And again, thank you all for your reviews and PM's. They always make my day! :)

EDIT: 08/12/2018 Minor corrections made.

Chapter seven

I stared at the galleon like I was seeing it for the first time in my live. She was alive. My best friend was alive and she just wished me a happy birthday. I couldn't believe it. After a month and a half, this was my first contact with the wizarding community. Although the galleon wasn't good for long correspondence, so I didn't know how she had been doing or if the rest of her family was alright, this little message made me feel reconnected to my world.

I tried to think about a good reply to tell her how I appreciated that she'd remembered my birthday. I wanted to know more about her, about her family and about what had been happening in Britain, but I knew it would be too dangerous if I sent her a letter. I sighed. Finally I took my wand and, performing the spell Hermione had taught us long ago, I wrote a simple "thank you" on the coin. Then I tapped on it twice with the tip of my wand. The words shone brightly for a few seconds and then went pale. I knew the message had been sent because the galleon went cold again.

Then I remembered something else I wanted to do. I was seventeen. I could finally listen to the wizarding radio. I knew the code I was supposed to tap with my wand to tune in to the official British wizarding radio station. It was supposed to work from any place in the world so after a few minutes I was listening to a song that was unmistakingly a wizarding one because the singer was singing about love under a love potion. I smiled, feeling excited.

"I wish you a very good morning," said a male voice with a strong British accent. Of course it was morning in Britain because of the time difference. "It's six o'clock and we bring you the latest news. The new Minister for Magic, Pius Thicknesse appeals to all so called Muggle-borns who have received an invitation to present themselves for interview by the Muggle-born Registration Commission and still haven't done it, to do so by the end of September. All the so called Muggle-borns who refuse to report to the Ministry, will be considered impostors and arrested in Azkaban."

My good mood vanished. I realised, once again, how lucky I was to be here, in Forks. The radio presenter went on:

"The Minister also appeals to anyone who would know about the whereabouts of the Undesirable Number One, Harry Potter, who is a suspect in the Ministry break-in at the beginning of September, to report it to the Ministry of Magic immediately."

There was a short pause. Then he went on again:

"The newly appointed Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Severus Snape, has been making a good progress in establishing a new regime at said school. With the help of the two new professors, Alecto and Amycus Carrows, he has managed to succesfully integrate all new students that had been studying at home the previous years. As you already know, the attendance at Hogwarts is now compulsory for every young witch and wizard in Britain, who has been given their Blood Status."

I turned the radio off. I couldn't stand it anymore. Of course I knew about the Commission, it had been the reason why I'd come here in the first place. It had been the first thing the new Minister for Magic had done. Kingsley Shacklebolt, an Auror who worked at the Ministry and was a member of the Order of the Phoenix, had warned me and thanks to his warning and the help of the Weasleys I was able to escape a day after Voldemort had taken over the Ministry.

Still, hearing about it now was terrible. I felt so sorry for all the Muggle-borns that had to hide or otherwise be humiliated and arrested. And Snape was the new Headmaster of Hogwarts. I gritted my teeth in anger. Snape, the man who had killed Dumbledore, was now in his place. I felt sick.

Then I remembered the other bit of new information I'd just heard. Harry Potter had broken into the Ministry of Magic, probably with Ron and Hermione, though nothing had been said about the two of them. What had they been doing at the Ministry? I frowned. Whatever it was, it must have been important otherwise they wouldn't have risked being caught like that. But it was a good news. It meant they still hadn't caught him and he was alive and fighting. That gave me a bit more hope.

I spent the whole Sunday studying new spells. Charlie had gone fishing so I didn't feel bad about being shut in my room all day.

Since I hadn't done any schoolwork for my muggle school, Monday turned out to be horrible. The teachers asked me questions which I failed to answer again in both History and Math and I was actually dreading Biology, not only because I knew Edward Cullen would be there.

I had to remind myself that I'd decided to ignore him. Today it was somehow harder than last week, mainly because we were doing another lab and I had to rely on him again. He did most of the work and never talked to me. Good. I had what I wanted. He was now ignoring me too and it upset me. It was stupid.

When the bell rang I packed my things and was about to join Mike on our way to Gym, when something cold touched my arm.

"Bella?"

I turned quickly to face him before I realised what I was doing.

"What?" I blurted out.

"Are you angry with me?" Edward asked, his face solemn.

I frowned. I hadn't thought of an answer if he ever asked me why I was ignoring him. He was waiting for my answer.

"No," I finally said. "I'm not angry with you."

"So why are you not talking to me?"

"Because…" I paused, staring stupidly at the floor. "It's better this way." I mumbled and quickly walked away. I could feel his gaze piercing my back.

Rest of the week passed in pretty the same fashion. I wasn't getting any better at my school subjects mostly because I was learning and practising defensive spells every afternoon. On Friday the weather got better and even the sun appeared in the sky. Of course that meant that the Cullens went on one of their „camping trips". It was a relief for me because I didn't have to pretend that I was ignoring Edward. He hadn't tried talking to me again after Monday.

Jessica and Angela were planning a trip to Port Angeles next week to do some shopping and they asked if I wanted to join them. I wanted to look for a bigger bookstore than the one in Forks so I agreed. Even though I was officially adult now, at least according to wizarding laws, I still asked Charlie if he let me go in case he had something planned, other then watching baseball on TV. But Charlie was only happy that I found some new friends and wished me good luck with our shopping.

We planned our trip for Tuesday after school. It was sunny outside for the whole weekend plus Monday so I had surprisingly good mood, clouded only by the fact, that the Cullens were, for obvious reasons, still out of town. I tried to convince myself that it's really better that way and that I really shouldn't be upset about it. Therefore I stubbornly tried to think about other things, like my school subjects. I was slowly getting better at almost all subjects, except Biology (I was really bad without Edward's help and even Mr. Banner noticed) and, sadly, Gym. We did a lot of ball games and unfortunately muggle ball games didn't include flying. I tripped and crashed into other people a lot while running, and even though I was usually really good at scoring goals, I rarely did it now, because others learned to avoid passing me the ball, apparently afraid that I wouldn't make it. It was humiliating but Mike Newton had taken the role of my „savior" and always volunteered to be in my team.

Tuesday morning was sunny again. I dressed in a deep blue V-neck blouse, which Renée had bought me when I was staying with her in August. School passed rather quickly, only Biology dragged a little.

After school, Jessica followed me home in her old white Mercury so that I could ditch my books and truck. I brushed through my hair quickly when I was inside, feeling a lift of excitement as I contemplated getting out of Forks. I left a note for Charlie on the table, explaining where to find dinner, switched my scruffy wallet from my school bag to a purse I rarely used, and ran out to join Jessica. We went to Angela's house next, and she was waiting for us.

Jess drove faster than the Chief, so we made it to Port Angeles by four. I'd never really had the proper girls' night out, if you don't count the Hogsmeade trips, and the estrogen rush was invigorating. We listened to whiny rock songs while Jessica jabbered on about the boys we hung out with. She apparently had a huge crush on Mike but wasn't sure about his feelings. I bit my lip and decided not to tell her about Mike's suspicious chivalry in Gym.

Port Angeles was a beautiful little tourist trap, much more polished and quiant than Forks. But Jessica and Angela knew it well, so they didn't plan to waste time on the picturesque boardwalk by the bay. Jess drove straight to the one big department store in town, which was a few streets in from the bay area's visitor-friendly face.

They mostly wanted to look for some clothes and I could definitely use some new jeans so I decided to follow them and then go and find a bookstore. Jess then surprised me by asking about my dating history. When I gave her my honest answer, she and even Angela stared at me in disbelief.

"You've never had a boyfriend?" Jess couldn't believe it and I was taken aback by her reaction. I was only seventeen, I still had plenty of time to find a boyfriend.

"Well, once I had a crush on a boy but he was three years older than me and soon left the school," I said. It was true and also the only thing I never told Ginny. It had been one of her older brother, Fred, and I was afraid of her reaction. But since Fred had left the school and I'd stopped seeing him every day, the crush had soon been over.

"That's sad," said Angela quietly. I smiled at her, appreciating her concern. I really liked Angela. I would have prefered if it were only the two of us doing the shopping. I felt very comfortable around her.

I finally managed to find a pair of jeans I really liked so I paid for it and asked the girls where I could find a good bookstore. Angela offered coming with me but Jessica said she needed her help with picking a new skirt. I didn't mind though it would have been nice to spend more time with Angela. We agreed on meeting for dinner at a restaurant called La Bella Italia in an hour. The girls told me how to get there and Jess went with me to her car so I could leave my shoppings in there. Then I set off to look for the bookstore Angela had told me about.

I had no trouble finding the bookstore, but it wasn't what I was looking for. The windows were full of crystals, dream-catchers and books about spiritual healing. It would be a waste of time so I didn't even open the door.

I meandered through the streets, which were filling up with the end-of-the-workday traffic, and hoped I was headed toward downtown. I wasn't paying as much attention as I should to where I was going because I'd noticed a silver Volvo parked along the street and my thoughts immediately jumped to Edward. I was hopeless. Why couldn't I get him out of my head? Of course he was beautiful and intelligent and apparently a good person who tried fighting his terrible fate. But he was still a vampire although a good one. And there was also the little fact that he'd saved my life. I still didn't know why he'd done it.

I stomped along in a southerly direction, toward some glass-fronted shops that looked promising. But when I got to them, they were just a repair shop and a vacant space. I still had too much time to go looking for Jess and Angela yet, so I continued around the corner.

I started to realise, as I crossed another road, that I was going the wrong direction. The little foot traffic I had seen was going north, and it looked like the buildings here were mostly warehouses. I decided to turn east at the next corner, and then loop around after a few blocks and try my luck on a different street on my way back to the boardwalk.

A group of four men turned around the corner I was heading for, dressed too casually to be heading home from the office, but they were too grimy to be tourists. As they approached me, I realised they weren't too many years older than I was. They were joking loudly among themselves, laughing raucously and punching each other's arms. I scooted as far to the inside of the pavement as I could to give them room, walking swiftly, looking past them to the corner.

"Hey, there!" one of them called as they passed, and he had to be talking to me since no one else was around. I glanced up automatically and with my right hand made sure I had my wand in my pocket. Two of the men had paused, the other two were slowing. The closest, a heavyset, dark-haired man in his twenties, seemed to be the one who had spoken. He took half a step toward me.

"Hello," I mumbled, a knee-jerk reaction. Then I quickly looked away and walked faster toward the corner. I could hear them laughing at full volume behind me.

"Hey, wait!" one of them called after me again, but I kept my head down and rounded the corner with a sigh of relief. I could still hear them chortling behind me.

I found myself on a pavement leading past the backs of several somber-coloured warehouses, each with large bay doors for unloading trucks, padlocked for the night. The south side of the street had no pavement, only a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire protecting some kind of engine parts storage yard. I'd wandered far past the part of Port Angeles that I, as a guest, was intended to see. It was getting dark, I realised, the clouds finally returning, piling up on the western horizon, creating an early sunset.

I'd left my jacket in the car, and a sudden shiver made me cross my arms tightly across my chest. A single van passed me and then the road was empty. I thought about casting a warming spell over me so I looked over my shoulder to make sure, that I was alone. I saw, with a shock, that two men were walking quietly twenty feet behind me.

They were from the same group I'd passed at the corner, though neither was the dark one who'd spoken to me. I turned my head forward at once, quickening my pace. I was quickly thinking about my possibilities if they attacked me. I had my wand, sure, but they were Muggles. I would probably be able to protect myself by casting a protective charm but I just couldn't do it in front of Muggles. It was against the law and I would get into trouble. And I didn't know how to do memory charms so using a wand was out of the question.

My purse was on a shoulder strap and I had it slung across my body, the way you were supposed to wear it so it wouldn't get snatched. I didn't have much money with me, just a twenty and some ones, and I thought about „accidentally" dropping my bag and walking away. But a small, frightened voice in the back of my mind warned me that they might be something worse than thieves.

I listened intently to their quiet footsteps, which were much too quiet when compared to the boisterous noise they'd been making earlier, and it didn't sound like they were speeding up, or getting any closer to me. Breathe, I had to remind myself. You don't know they're following you. I continued to walk as quickly as I could without actually running, focusing on the right-hand turn that was only a few yards away from me now. I could hear them, staying as far back as they'd been before. I suddenly wished I knew how to apparate. It would have been so easy, all I would have to do would be turning around a corner and then I would disappear.

A blue car turned onto the street from the south and drove quickly past me. I thought of jumping out in front of it, but I hesitated, inhibited, unsure that I was really being pursued, and then it was too late.

I reached the corner, but a swift glance revealed that it was only a blind drive to the back of another building. I was half-turned in anticipation I had to hurriedly correct and dash across the narrow drive, back to the pavement. The street ended at the next corner, where there was a stop sign. I concentrated on the faint footsteps behind me, deciding whether or not to run. They sounded farther back and I knew they could outrun me in any case. I was sure to trip and go sprawling if I tried to go any faster. The footfalls were definitely farther back. I risked a quick glance over my shoulder, and they were maybe forty feet back now, I saw with relief. But they were both staring at me.

It seemed to take forever for me to get to the corner. I kept my pace steady, the men behind falling ever so slightly farther behind with every step. Maybe they realised they had scared me and were sorry. I saw two cars going north pass the intersection I was heading for, and I exhaled in relief. There would be more people around once I got off this deserted street. I skipped around the corner with a grateful sigh.

And skidded to a stop.

The street was lined on both sides by blank, doorless, windowless walls. I could see in the distance, two intersections down, streetlamps, cars, and more pedestrians, but they were all too far away. Because lounging against the western building, midway down the street, were the other two men from the group, both watching with excited smiles as I froze dead on the pavement. I realised then that I wasn't being followed.

I was being herded.

I paused for only a second, but it felt like a very long time. I turned then and darted to the other side of the road. I had a sinking feeling that it was a wasted attempt. The footsteps behind me were louder now. I thought about using my wand again. This was getting serious and I had to defend myself somehow.

"There you are!" The booming voice of the stocky, dark-haired man shattered the intense quiet and made me jump. In the gathering darkness, it seemed like he was looking past me.

"Yeah," a voice called loudly from behind me, making me jump again as I tried to hurry down the street. "We just took a little detour."

My steps had to slow now. I was closing the distance between myself and the lounging pair too quickly. I reached into my pocket and squeezed my wand. I was thinking about the spells I could use. I could confound them. I'd learned the theory of the Confundus charm just a few nights ago and if I managed to use it on at least one of them without the others noticing, then he might persuade them that I wasn't worth it and they might let me go. The problem was that I'd never used this spell and it was supposed to be quite hard. If I did it wrong, it could have some serious consequences. Of course I could stun them but there were four of them and I would be able to stun only one or two before the others freaked out. But maybe it wasn't that bad idea, I thought. It would give me time to escape and even if they blabbed it out to someone, no one would probably believe them anyway.

The thickset man shrugged away from the wall as I warily came to a stop, and walked slowly into the street.

"Stay away from me," I warned in a voice that was supposed to sound strong and fearless but my throat was dry so I sounded croaky like someone was strangling me.

"Don't be like that, sugar," he called, and the raucous laughter started again behind me.

As he walked slowly towards me, I started pulling my wand out of my pocket. I was ready to stun him as soon as he touched me.

But before I had the chance to do anything, headlights suddenly flew around the corner, the car almost hitting the stocky one, forcing him to jump back toward the pavement. I dove into the road – this car was going to stop or have to hit me. But the silver car unexpectedly fishtailed around, skidding to a stop with the passenger door open just a few feet from me.

"Get in," a furious voice commanded.