Chapter 32: Fireworks

Zoey walked down the halls of Hogwarts heavily layered. Weeks had passed since her feathery surprise and every day when she wakes up in the morning she would run to the bathroom to check if the wings would grow back. It all seemed like the events were just a dream but Zoey knew it wasn't for on her bedside table was the feather she plucked out from the first time it happened. Zoey licked her lips as she loosened her collar. She was starting to sweat. She wore her undergarments with gauze wrapped around her upper half to cover the place where she saw her wings, and then she wore her uniform, a sweater on top and then her robes. For a change she wore her hair down so that it would cover her back.

Zoey took a breath of air as she tried to steady her beating heart, ever since the accident her heart had been hammering against her chest so much so that it hurt. It pained her inside to know that something unexplainable was happening to her. Something that she could not tell anyone for she knew they would not be able to help her.

Zoey knew that the wings that appeared by mist and disappeared all the same was that power, the power that each Emeraude held, the power that only she can control and no one else. Zoey wished that she could confide in one of the Emeraudes, ask them what was happening, and ask them to teach her how to control her power or at least tell her what it does. Zoey did not know what the wings signified. She did not know what they could do. The wings that she saw that frightening night were rather small and could not possibly hold her up if she tried to fly, sure, maybe they would grow bigger but Zoey did not know for no one could tell her.

She was alone.

She wished her mother were alive.

Zoey felt a slight jolt of pain in her back and jumped from it. She hissed under hear breath and pressed her back against the wall trying to apply pressure to it. She didn't know how it would work; she just hoped it would ease up. A soft mist began to surround her. Zoey panicked. A mist appeared before her wings disappeared and she was sure that they would reappear when the mist came back.

"N-no… please go away," she begged quietly as she felt something grow at her back. She lifted herself and smashed her back to the wall. She yelped in pain and fell to the floor. The mist was still surrounding her. She started to feel the same pain she felt all those nights ago. It was coming back. Zoey could swear she felt each feather growing out of her. "Not now… please," she begged.

Suddenly, voices came. She sucked in her breath as the voices grew louder and more recognizable. Her eyes widened. It was the twins. She heard their laughter as their footsteps drew closer. She tried to go further into the wall in hopes that they wouldn't see her.

They didn't.

Zoey licked her lips as she listened in on their conversation.

"So it will happen tonight then, in the Astronomy Tower?" she heard George ask.

"That's the plan," Fred replied, "Do we have everything that we need?"

"Of course we do… only one problem, how are we going to get Echo and Bridgit in there? They hate us," George then said.

"Easy, they stay in the Astronomy Tower practically every day. All we have to do is corner them and badabing badaboom!" Fred said with a clap of his hands.

George laughed, "Badabing badaboom?" he asked, "Where did you come up with that?"

"I don't really know to be honest," Fred laughed, "Come on we don't want to be late for potions, we can't afford to get a detention tonight"

"Right"

Zoey waited till their footsteps died away before struggling to stand back up. The mist disappeared when the twins came and Zoey thanked Merlin that it didn't come back when they left. Zoey let out a sigh as she got back steadily to her feet. She gulped and ran to the Great Hall. She needed to find Bridgit and Echo.


Zoey sighed exasperatedly. Dinner had ended and she still didn't find either Bridgit or Echo. It was like something was stopping her from finding them. Several times she had been late for class because she was looking for her two best friends but unfortunately for her she could not find them. She checked the library and the girl's bathroom, their classes and the Quidditch pitch. She could have sworn that she searched the entire school three times in search for the Ravenclaws. Zoey even considered looking in the Astronomy Tower but she was sure they weren't here for she had heard that it was on lock down because there was an accident of a first year almost falling off.

It was the second almost death in the Astronomy Tower.

Zoey shivered at the thought of someone actually falling off. It was scary.

Zoey left the Great Hall and headed towards a vaguely familiar direction. Zoey was heading to the Astronomy Tower. She swallowed hard when she reached the stairs. She took a few steps up before hearing her name being called. She whirled around to see Bridgit and Echo heading her way.

Zoey sighed in relief as Bridgit and Echo reached her, she was finally able to find them

"Where have you two been?" Zoey asked really curious on the matter. Why wasn't she able to find them?

"Ravenclaw Common Room," Echo replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Zoey was about to ask why but then Bridgit cut her off by asking: "Why do you look like a band of centaurs just chased you around the Forbidden Forest?"

"I was looking for you two," Zoey said curious as to what she currently looked like. Did she look that bad?

"And what do you know? You found us! Congratulations!" Bridgit said with a clap. Zoey laughed and shook her head. Echo gave a small chuckle as well.

"Why were you looking for us anyway?" Echo asked.

"I needed to tell you guys something," Zoey said, "I heard Fred and George saying… saying… Merlin… I can't remember it all but I'm sure they were planning something for you two up there." Zoey jerked her head towards the Astronomy Tower.

Anger flashed in Bridgit's eyes, "Are they really?"

"Those gidiots," Echo said palming her forehead as she did.

Zoey watched as the Ravenclaws pushed passed her and began to head up the stairs. Her eyes widened, "Where are you going?"

"Astronomy Tower of course," Echo said as she looked back at Zoey, "We're going to give those two a lesson on respect and sensitivity"

"Are you coming?" Bridgit asked, turning back as well.

Zoey bit her lip, "No… I'm not… but wouldn't you rather wait to teach them a lesson down here, on the safe ground?"

"Uhm, no because if we wait here they can easily deny anything," Bridgit answered before walking back up the stairs.

"See you later, Zwei," Echo started as she followed Bridgit's lead, "We'll give them a lesson they'll never forget"

"Br –" Zoey tried but it was too late, they already ran up the stairs and were out of hearing range. Zoey sighed as she turned around; there was nothing she could do. She walked away from the staircase.


When Bridgit and Echo reached the top of the Astronomy Tower they were rather surprised to see that it was empty. Zoey had said that the twins were planning something for them up there but at the moment the red-headed twins were nowhere to be seen.

They looked around searching under the limited objects within the tower. They were sure that if the twins were to hide they would have a pretty hard time since there wasn't much to hide behind. Bridgit and Echo stood still for a moment to think about where the twins could be. As they thought, they took the time to look up at the night sky and admired how beautiful it was.

Sadly, the beauty was interrupted.

"Hello there you two!" two voices that sounded incredibly alike said causing Bridgit and Echo to turn around.

"You!" the girls exclaimed upon seeing the identical mischievous grins of the twins.

"Hey, hey, hey, we come in peace," George said as he held up his hands to show that he was unarmed.

Echo furrowed her eyebrows, "We don't have time for this," she said making her way to the door.

George saw this coming and grabbed her by the waist before she was out of reach. "Now wait just a minute," he said as he pulled Echo closer to him ensuring both his and her safety. If he released her now he was sure she would hex him to the next century and back.

"Seriously, can you two give us a break?" Bridgit asked as she pulled out her wand. She was not in the mood for another one of the twins' pranks.

"Look, there's no need for wands," Fred started as he raised his hands up in defense, he too showed that he was unarmed, "Like George said, we come in peace"

"Well, that's rich! What are you two gonna do? Pull a prank and get us to forgive you so Zoey will too?" Bridgit yelled, knowing that, that was probably Fred's agenda

"Do you really look down on us so much?" George asked as he kept his hold on the violet haired girl. Echo, on the other hand, stayed still as she watched the scene unfold. This was about Bridgit. Bridgit was the one the twins wronged.

"Well –" Bridgit began to say but stopped when she saw the twins' expression change to hurt.

"We didn't mean to offend you the other night, y'know," Fred said, bowing his head in shame

"We just wanted to loosen up the situation because it seemed so tense, and I guess we didn't watch what we were saying," George added as he let his hold go on Echo. Echo walked over to Bridgit and stared at her two friends. They really did seem sorry.

"But… don't you know how much that hurt? When you said those things? You don't know anything about my family and even if you did, why would you even say that?" Bridgit asked the tears well up in her eyes. Echo reached to Bridgit, pulled back her hand a bit and then fully reached to Bridgit's back and rubbed it in comfort.

"Look, Bridgit, we're sorry. I guess – know we both seriously owe you two an apology," George started as he looked at the two girls

"Yeah, we really didn't mean what we said. Bridgit, think about it, do you seriously think we would intentionally insult another prankster in the world?" Fred asked, earning a smile from the Ravenclaws.

"Oh, they smiled, Gred!" George said with glee. He almost appeared as if he were eight years old again and got his first pumpkin pastry treat.

"I saw it, Forge!" Fred answered with the same amount of glee in his voice, "So, do you forgive us?" he asked looking hopefully at the girls.

The girls shared a look and thought about it. Do they really? Were the twins truly sincere in their apology? Before they could think further they heard something burst in the sky. The volume of the burst shocked the girls and caused them to look up.

Their eyes widened

Up in the night sky were fireworks of many colors. Green, blue, red and yellow decorated the velvet sky and lit the entire Astronomy Tower. The girls were in awe.

Fred and George shared a grin, satisfied with the Ravenclaws reaction.

Bridgit and Echo were amazed by the fireworks. They exploded in the sky and did not take the appearance of regular muggle fireworks. No, these fireworks took the shape of different animals and objects. One white firework took the form of a rabbit and it even hopped around a bit in the sky before disappearing.

Suddenly, a unique firework exploded in the sky and it brought a smile on the girls' faces.

WE'RE SORRY

The firework spelled in the sky and beneath it was the letter "W" indicating who it was from, W for Weasley, Weasley Twins to be exact.

Bridgit and Echo turned back to the twins and their smiles were still etched on their faces.

"We forgive you but –" Bridgit began

"You two have to treat us to a butter beer on the next Hogsmeade weekend," Echo finished, "Oh and some pastilles as well."

Fred and George shared a look before looking back at the girls. "Deal" they said and Bridgit brought them both into a hug, shocking them, while Echo watched in the sidelines, hugs weren't really her thing.

After a minute she released them and whispered in their ears, "By the way, my father was not a prankster, he was a muggle"

The twins shared a shook look as Bridgit went back to Echo and took her hand, running out of the Astronomy Tower.

"Where are you going?" the twins asked, following them to the door.

"Gonna look for Zoey!" Bridgit answered before running down the stairs. Fred smiled; Zoey was finally going to forgive him.


When Bridgit and Echo left her to go to the Astronomy Tower Zoey took this chance to explore the Hogwarts grassy grounds. Sure, she's been there plenty of times before but she never truly went beyond the Quidditch pitch, Hagrid's hut or the Greenhouse. She wasn't planning to go as far as the Forbidden Forest, heavens no, she was afraid of it, no, Zoey just felt like exploring within the bounds she was allowed to go.

Zoey did not care for time at the moment, it was late, and she knew she was late for her curfew, she did not particularly care. She kicked a pebble as she continued to stroll down the grassy path. She stopped near the Astronomy Tower and looked up. She knew she would not be able to hear Bridgit and the others conversing, or fighting if worse comes to worst, but she felt like it was better to stay near the area just in case someone fell. After all, it almost happened before.

The night sky was beautiful with its velvety touch and star lit sky. She remembered the days she was trapped in her dumpsite of a home and looked out the window in hopes that she would see something, something that would save her. Zoey gave a sigh, no one could save her. She was alone. It hurt her to know that even though she had all the friends she needed, she was still alone in fighting her battle. A battle she did not dare bring anyone into.

Zoey felt the mist come back. She closed her eyes as she felt the mist surround her; she felt the pain of her wings come back. She did not try to stop them

Maybe, she unintentionally thought to herself as she felt her clothes stretch as her wings grew bigger beneath the layers, maybe I can just fly away from all this.

Zoey let out a pained breath as she heard the fabric of her clothes rip. She had let her wings free. She felt light headed as the wings stretched out and reached to the tips of her hands as she stretched them out as well.

Zoey let her tears fall as her wings gave a few flaps. It was painful yet freeing. She placed her hands back to her sides and looked over her shoulders. Her wings were as white and feathery as before but this time they were bigger, much bigger. When she looked closer there was a tinge of silver to her wings. She looked down at her body and noted that the mist still surrounded her, though it was barely noticeable.

She jumped when she heard something burst. She looked up at the sky and felt her wings fold behind her and felt the numbing pain of them reentering her body. She felt a cold breeze on her back but she did not care. She was in awe. The starlit sky was now filled with the most magnificent fireworks she's ever seen.

Rabbits and lions and much more animals played in the sky in different colors. She felt herself smile at the badger that appeared in cool yellow. She licked her lips as happy tears came to her eyes. After all the animals disappeared into the sky they were replaced by a message.

WE'RE SORRY

The message read as the letter "W" appeared below it. She did not need to think much on who made the fireworks. It was obvious who did it and it was clear to her how Brigit and Echo reacted to it. Inside, she felt herself forgive the twins.

Zoey closed her eyes as she turned around. It was high time she head to bed, she was going to find the twins tomorrow. As she walked back into the castle she unconsciously brought her hand to her back and felt the skin. Not more feathers but she knew that it wasn't the last she'd see of them.

She stopped when her head throbbed and her eyes fogged. No, she cried, No, I – we got rid of you!


A few days has passed since the display Fred and George made for Bridgit and Echo and since then everyone returned to being friends. Zoey, though extremely stressed out, approached the twins the next day and surprisingly gave them a hug of her own. The twins looked at her in shock before grinning bashfully. They asked how she knew that they were forgiven.

"I saw that message last night," she said as she smiled tiredly and sat between them and listened to them talk about the upcoming Quidditch match.

It was a few hours before the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff Quidditch game.

In those few hours we bring ourselves to Bridgit's point of view before the game:

Bridgit was a big fan of Quidditch, she didn't deny that. She loved the feel of the wind on her face and she loved that there was a way to release stress while irritating a couple of Slytherins at the same time. But today, she decided to skip the Quidditch game and stay in the library.

Out of all the places in Hogwarts, the library was probably her favorite. She liked the smell of all the old books and the peace as well.

While she was walking through the stacks of book, looking for a potions book that she could use for her report, she saw a bushy haired little girl sitting in the corner with a big tomb in front of her. Bridgit walked over to the little girl and smiled when she realized who it was.

"Well, Hermione, what are you doing in here instead of being out there?" Bridgit asked, taking a seat on the chair in front of the twelve year old.

Hermione looked up and smiled at the familiar face. She really did like hanging out with Bridgit, she was smart but at the same time funny. She was never a bore to talk to.

"I was looking for something that could help in figuring out the monster in the chamber," Hermione answered, going back to her tomb.

"Let me help," Bridgit said happily. Hermione looked up at her and nodded with a smile on her face. She was happy that she wasn't alone anymore.

Bridgit got up from her seat, looked around the library and stopped when she came upon a book about serpents. She took the book out of the shelf and walked back to Hermione.

"What's that?" Hermione asked, looking at the book Bridgit was holding.

"It's a book about snakes from the olden times," Bridgit answered, looking for the page that she once saw.

"Why snakes?" Hermione asked, curiously looking at the older student.

"Let's just say that I have a hunch," Bridgit answered, finally reaching the page and laying the book out on the table for Hermione to see as well.

"A Basalisk?" Hermione asked, giving Bridgit a questioning look, "Why that specific snake?"

"Hermione, think about it!" Bridgit started, while Hermione continued to read, "When it looks you in the eyes, you're suppose to die but remember all the incidents? The water on the floor and even the Hufflepuff boy! It makes sense," Bridgit continued and Hermione stared at her in shock.

"You're right! The water on the floor could have prevented Mrs. Norris from seeing it full on, while Justin saw it through Sir Nicholas, but Sir Nicholas saw the whole thing but he couldn't die again! And Colin… his camera! You're a genius Bridgit!" Hermione said as the pieces started to fall together. She hugged the older girl.

"Oh, so I've been told," Bridgit laughed as she hugged Hermione back.

"Wait, hold on. It says here that it's at least fifty feel long. How is it moving around?" Hermione asked, looking at Bridgit questioningly once again.

Bridgit shrugged her shoulders and placed her book bag on the table.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked.

"I'm going to give you something," Bridgit replied, but as she was searing through her bag a little white fur ball fell out.

"What's this?" Hermione asked, looking at Shinji with a pout.

When Shinji looked back at her, Hermione took the dog in her hands and hugged it.

"He's teacup poodle, right?" Hermione asked as Shinji licked her cheek.

"Yup!" Bridgit answered, smiling at the scene, "His name is Shinji"

"It means 'believing' in Japanese, right?" Hermione asked

"Yes, I guess his name suits him very well," Bridgit answered a triumphant look on her face. She took out a mirror from her bag and smiled at Hermione.

"This is for you," Bridgit said as she handed Hermione the mirror.

"Why?" Hermione asked, placing Shinji on the table and taking the mirror.

"It'll protect you, you're a muggle-born and it's better to be safe than sorry," Bridgit answered, putting Shinji back in her bag. Shinji licked Bridgit's finger and obediently settled inside.

"Thanks…," Hermione said, smiling at Bridgit. It felt nice that someone, other than Harry and Ron, was looking out for her.

Bridgit then stood back up, "Well, I got to go now, Hermione. It was nice talking to you, but I really need to get back to the Common Room."

"Oh, okay," Hermione said as she went back to reading the page about the Basilisk.

"By the way," Bridgit started before leaving the table, "Do you ever wonder about the plumbing in this school?"

"No, why?"

"I don't know, Zoey just asked me that question the other day," Bridgit said smiling, "Well, I'm going to go now. Bye"

"Bye," Hermione answered, still pondering about Bridgit's question.


When Bridgit left Hermione there were many things that she didn't expect to happen next. She didn't expect that the Quidditch match would be canceled because of another attack, she did not know that soon after she left Hermione would be caught petrified with a Ravenclaw girl with a mirror in her hands, she did not know that there would be a risk of Hogwarts being closed and she did not know that Ginny would be dragged down into the Chamber where her skeleton shall stay forever.

Bridgit did not see that coming.


Gah! Long chapter!

Well, only one more chapter to go for their 4th year!

Special and incredible thanks to "ZoomSkater14" for being an amazing help!

Love you lots!

lol

I would also like to thank all of your for your lovely reviews and much appreciated favorites, alerts and questions!

Now for some Q and A's:

"TheAnnoyingOne97" asks: Is she growing wings?

-Yep, I do believe she is :)

"YukiKyoMomiji" asks: Is Zoey half bird or something?Is Zoey and Ginny going to be taken to the chamber?

-Lol, no she isn't XD and let's just wait and see :)

"Taka" is thinking that Zoey is part angel or something: Nope she isn't :)

"BookKailei" asks: Are you writing another story to this?

-Let me tell you all now that I will be writing until book seven and then after that I am planning to type up a sequel :) but as you can see we are still rather far away from that so please be patient :)

and I would just like to say to "wHaT's In A pEn-NaMe" that I find the terms "Zed" very cute. :D Awesome! lol

Now, hmm.. special congrats to HayleyParadox for surviving her first day of exams! Good Luck to the rest and good luck with your story! :D

Love you too!

XD

Now, don't forget to review and ask questiosn

stat tuned for the next chapter

I only own what I own!

(PS sorry for any typos. I've re-read this but you never know right?)