"Er… Draco?" The next day, Shiro brought up the nerve to confront Malfoy.
"O-oh, hello, Shiro…"
Shiro sighed. "Sorry I almost, you know, killed you…"
"That's, alright…" Draco replied. Nevertheless, Shiro could see he was holding his wand at the ready.
"Look… I know I said some awful things to you, but, some of it… I meant. I don't want to be your friend anymore, Draco. And I'm breaking our deal. Sorry," Shiro said calmly. Draco began to object, but remembering the previous day, thought against it.
"Well, I uh… Good-bye, Malfoy," Shiro said rather uncomfortably.
"Yeah. 'Bye, Ueda."There was the smallest bit of regret in Draco's voice. And with that, Shiro turned and exited the castle.
He wasn't even completely aware that he was walking. He had even less clear an idea of where it was he was headed. He just kept walking, his mind swimming with thoughts but none of them called to his attention strongly enough. He just kept walking, and walking, and walking, blind to his surroundings. It was a good 10 minutes into it that he realized he was walking in the Forbidden Forest. He came to an abrupt halt, his mind briefly going blank. How could he possibly have ventured so far into the forest without noticing it? Heartbeat increasing, he started to turn and head back, until something caught his eye. What it was, he wasn't quite sure, but it had a sort of magnetic effect. He set his back to the entrance and continued walking forward.
"Where am I…?" he asked in a whisper. He had been walking quite a distance, feeling as if he was in a dream or a trance. After a good amount of time, he'd stumbled upon a clearing. A strange atmosphere settled around the area. It was quiet… Too quiet…
"Shiro? Is that you?" Shiro spun around, his heart stopping for a moment then kicking to a super fast pace in a second.
"Satoshi…?"
Sure enough, Satoshi pushed back a tree branch and stepped into the clearing. He opened his mouth to speak, until there was movement from the opposite side. He immediately dashed to Shiro, holding out his wand. "Show yourself… Or, you know what, stay away from us," he demanded, gripping Shiro's shoulder.
"It's just me," a very familiar feminine voice called back. "Help, please, my leg is caught…"
Shiro ran over and grabbed the girl's arm, pulling her into view. "Geez, ouch… But, thanks, Shiro."
"No problem, Sakura." Sakura Ueda shakily brought herself to her feet, brushing off her knees.
"What are the odds that the three of us come here at the same time?" Shiro mused, bringing himself to smile.
"Not sure. Saki, were you chasing after a… wolf?" Satoshi asked hesitantly. Shiro felt both fear and wonder wash over him. A wolf? In this forest? Wolves always fascinated him; perhaps he'd get to meet the magnificent creature.
Sakura shook her head. "I was following, a…" She lowered her voice, as if embarrassed to say it. "A leopard."
A look of incredulousness filled Shiro's face, but Satoshi seemed to believe it. "What about you, Shiro?" he inquired.
"What? Oh, I wasn't following anything… It just felt like something was drawing me here."
Sakura tilted her head a bit. "How weird… I wonder what-" Shiro blinked, confused as to why Sakura's eyes were suddenly widened. He glanced over to Satoshi to see he had an identical expression. He slowly followed their gaze, and felt as if his insides had rapidly disappeared.
The siblings were no longer alone in the clearing. A wolf and a leopard- both at least 5 feet tall and 10 feet long- were standing in front of them. They didn't seem to be solid, though: they were a strange silvery-blue, and seemed translucent. However, they gave off a vibe that replaced the siblings' feeling of fear with one of comfort.
Something in Shiro's peripheral vision broke his gaze with the strange creatures. Sitting on a tree branch to the left was without a doubt Sana Ueda, smiling down at them. She, like the wolf and leopard, was silvery-blue and a bit see through. Shiro felt Satoshi nudge his arm and saw him point to the right. His finger led to Satoko and Sakito, sitting in a tree in the same state as Sana.
Shiro felt himself go pale. It couldn't be… It simply couldn't be… He gradually averted his attention to the wolf and leopard. They both bowed their great heads, and began to morph. Shiro cried out and stumbled backward when standing in their place was suddenly Sandra and Shotaro Ueda.
Shiro's mouth moved wordlessly, like a fish out of water. "Mum… Dad…" Sakura breathed. The figure of Sandra then spoke.
"Hello, Sakura… Satoshi… Shiro… My beautiful, beautiful children."
Satoshi found himself grinning softly; Shiro, on the other hand, had begun shaking his head, not a trace of color in his face. "No… N-no… You guys… You guys are DEAD! Th-there's no… avoiding that, you all died… This can't be real, it's not real…"
The figure of Shotaro sighed. "Sandy, I told you he isn't over his fear of ghosts."
"Don't say ghosts, love. We're spirits."
Shiro cried out, backing away. "NO! Stay away, stay away! Stay away from me!" he shrieked. Mrs. Ueda glided over and pressed her hand against his cheek. Tears immediately sprung from Shiro's eyes and, if possible, he became even paler.
"Shiro, my darling… I know you're afraid, but don't be. Remember what your grandpa used to tell you? If someone really loves you,"
"-they'll never leave you. Even in death," Shiro finished in a hoarse voice. He shook his head, throwing himself into the spirit's arms. Though her body was deathly cold, it sent an indescribable warmth through Shiro's body.
"You've all been through so much, especially you Shiro… I'm so proud of you all for staying strong…" Mrs. Ueda whispered, running her icy, fleshless fingers through Shiro's hair. Mr. Ueda took one step and floated over to them.
"We can't stay too long, for complicated reasons… But, just know that if any of you need anything, you can just come to this spot and we'll be here. You'll know how to get here," he told them. Shiro looked up at him, wiping his face on his arm. Sana and the twins jumped out of their trees, hugging their three mortal siblings. They smiled feebly and hugged them back, making room for their parents.
"We love you," all 8 of them said in unison. The Uedas stayed like that for a few seconds, staying silent so as not to ruin the moment with words. When they hesitantly broke away, Mr. Ueda put his hand on Shiro's shoulder.
"Before we go, I'd like to tell you something, Shiro… There's a girl in your school who's in love with you. And I don't mean she has a big crush or even an obsession, though there are some chicks like that. This girl doesn't realize it herself, but she'd fallen for you since the moment she first saw you. How do I know this? Well, one, I'm your dad. I know these things. Two, spirits have a special connection with certain things."
Shiro felt a bubbly feeling make its way through his chest. "In LOVE with me…? Really…?"
Mr. Ueda nodded. "I'll leave you to figure it out on your own. Trust me, you'll find each other. Well. Sakura, congratulations on being sorted into Gryffindor. You'll make a very fine witch. Satoshi, try to stay out of trouble and not knock up any girls. And Shiro? Stay Shiro." With a wink, he grabbed Mrs. Ueda's hand, causing him, his wife, and their three deceased children to vanish in a flash of light.
"That was… odd," Sakura murmured. Her brothers nodded.
"Guess we should be heading back," Satoshi suggested.
"Definitely." Huddling close together and taking each other's hands, the three living Ueda kids headed back to Hogwarts, their minds more crowded with indecipherable thoughts than ever.