Cynthia awoke with the sunlight streaming through the soft sage green curtains. Normally she'd welcome the morning sun with at least a small smile. Today however she groaned loudly and rolled over, pulling her blanket over her head in protest. The girl felt sore in more ways than she ever considered possible. Oh, what the girl wouldn't give for something to ease her aches.

It had been a long restless night on her part. After her very long bath, she'd found her way to bed ready to pass out. Only, as soon as she tucked herself in, the very notion fled from her. She was wide awake. For hours she just laid there listening to the rain fall and her clock tick endlessly.

The girl had considered getting up to do something, but her body laughed at the idea. So there she waited for sleep to finally come to her. It must have at some point, or else she wouldn't have been reacting to the morning light as she was.

The young woman slowly opened her eyes and glared into the empty space in front of her. No point trying to get back to sleep. Best just get a move on.

Tea. Yeah, that's what she needed. Something warm to give her a boost.

Cynthia lay there a moment more before literally throwing the blankets off herself. The cold air nipped at her skin angrily. She must have forgotten to set the thermostat. The young lady groaned, sat up, and stared at nothing again. She methodically pulled her breath in and out trying to build the strength to move towards the kitchen.

One… Two… and she heaved herself up to stand. She stretched herself wearily for a moment. Always a good idea to start with a stretch.

"Ah!" She called out as a cramp settled in her calf.

She gingerly rubbed the area, trying to massage the pain away. It took several moments to settle the pain. Her legs were obviously quite tender from the night before and the cold spring air wasn't helping.

Throwing on her bathrobe loosely, she steadily made her way forward. The first thing she did was get the thermostat going. It was still a bit cold to leave off at night, but the girl didn't like the idea of leaving it on while she wasn't home.

Cynthia opened the hallway door, leading to the washroom. She tended to herself with her eyes practically closed, something her aunt had always laughed at. Before she knew it the young woman had somehow even set some toast and a herbal tea out for herself.

Cynthia sat on the couch with her knees pulled into her chest, holding a cup of tea in hand. She slowly sipped the warm liquid allowing it to pull her from the state of auto-pilot. As she became more conscious her eyes began to roam around the room remembering the night before.

The room held no signs of what had transpired, it was just as it always was. Cynthia needed to do some spring cleaning, no doubt. The kitchen was in need of a good scrub and the coffee table was riddled with things she could pack away. She was sure the shelves needed to be reorganized and probably dusted. And she needed to water her plants. Her eyes settled on a small shriveled and unidentifiable plant that sat near the front door.

This plant she'd had for only a few weeks. The girl glared at the little traitor. She'd spent good money on that thing, and it only lasted this long? The woman sighed. It really wasn't fair. There were several plants in the flat that were already dead and crispy, each needing to be disposed of.

The odd cactus her aunt had gifted her when she moved in had lasted the longest, but still died after a couple months. It was honestly a blessing when it died. It had the worst smelling flowers ever, often attracting insects into the house. Not to mention it was just hideous in Cynthia's opinion. The girl often compared it to a fuzzy looking brain, hence it was given the name Bryan, may it rest in peace. Honestly, she just wanted to enjoy a normal collection of houseplants, was that too much to ask?

Shaking her head, the young woman continued making plans for the day. It was Sunday, that meant no post to collect. She still needed to go out for a bit and get some fresh fruits. Heaven knows they spoiled far too fast here and needed to be bought in less quantity and more often if she actually wanted to eat any. She wanted the good stuff so she needed to get there before 10 am, that's when everybody else would swoop in.

Cynthia had learned very quickly after moving in to do her shopping as early as possible unless she wanted to spend several hours out 'chatting' to the locals. She didn't mind them that much, but she had other things to do.

Easter Holiday was here! She'd managed to survive her classes, and was ready for her two weeks off. With a smile she turned for her room. With that in mind the girl finished off her toast and set the dishes aside for later. As part of her morning routine the girl neatly crossed yesterday off on the calendar.

Sunday, April 8th, 1979

Cynthia dressed quickly, gave her hair a quick brush and set off for the local shops. Maybe she'd get a new plant while out…

It wasn't very long till Cynthia was back on her way home, arm holding a bag of delectable fruits. She walked absentmindedly thinking of the different things she wanted to work on over the Holiday. She wasn't the type of woman to spend the whole time cleaning! Perhaps she'd head back home for a few days, it had been a while since she'd gone to see her Aunt and Uncle.

The laughter of children brought her back to where she was.

Cynthia was back in the park. She felt her breath catch. All around her people walked and chatted away, none the wiser of what had happened here last night.

It felt kind of silly, but Cynthia couldn't help the feeling of worry that washed over her as she looked around. She focused her senses hard on the small morning crowd around her. She saw small light glows surrounding the people in varying shades and colors. Not a single one of them felt dangerous.

Cynthia's vision began to swim slightly, and a small twinge of pain throbbed behind her eyes. She stopped and closed her eyes. Trying to use her ability had brought back some of the pains from the monster she had sensed last night. Apparently, she needed more time to recover. At least no one ment her any harm here. Just having that peace of mind was worth the minor head ache in her opinion.

The young woman took a deep breath, steadying herself. This was her place, she loved this park. Cynthia needed this park! Being here made it easy to breathe. The girl always felt more energized after a good stroll here. Those creeps weren't here now, and might never be back. And if they did come back, she would just run like James had told her too. With that line of thought the young student nodded resolutely to herself.

She was Cynthia Edyth Jenkins, and no stupid men in funny costumes were going to ruin this lovely park for her! The young woman rolled her shoulders back, held her head high, and walked over to 'her' bench.

The young woman made herself comfortable, watching the people around her enjoying the park. Her bench had the best vantage point in the whole park. She could see everyone while relaxing peacefully under the shade of a large tree. Cynthia hadn't yet bothered to learn what kind of tree it was, but it had been struggling for years apparently. According to Martha, it was supposed to be cut down and replaced years ago, but the park managers were slacking. Cynthia kinda' hoped it wouldn't be removed for a good long while, but she didn't really have control over that.

Cynthia watched the world around her silently as the sounds of spring filled the air. It was still quite cold out, but that didn't seem to stop anyone from enjoying the rare sunshine. It was a gift, especially after the rain they'd had.

"I'm telling you, I've tried everything."

"We'll need to get someone else to come take a look then. This won't do."

"Sarah, dear. Stay close to Mummy."

"Hehehe."

"I can't believe she said that to you!"

"The nerve! Honestly, if I were you I would…"

Cynthia listened to the passing conversations. None of these people knew what had happened here only a few hours before. They were blissfully unaware. Perhaps this is what Sirius and James were trying to give her. The peace of not knowing.

How kind of them. She smiled to herself as she sent them silent gratitude, wherever they were.

The young woman only lingered a moment more, before her stomach decided she needed more than the toast from earlier. It had been quite a while since she had eaten. The girl set off, much on the same path she'd run the night before.

The rubbish had all been cleaned up, but there were still some odd scorch marks dotted around. In the sunlight the street was almost completely different. It made sense why the other park goers were none the wiser to her late night adventures. It wasn't until she came to a slightly familiar retaining wall did something catch her eye.

There. Something glinted deep in the shrubbery. She peered into the new growing foliage, and indeed something was in there. Retrieving it carefully she almost laughed at what she'd found.

A cracked pair of circular black rimmed glasses.

Voilà! Chapter 7 done and dusted!

I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see ya in next week!

((All rights to Harry Potter Belong to J.K. Rowling))