=.=

WALK THE LINE

Harry x OC

'for those that don't feel wanted.'

Chapter 11: Always

Song Choices: Hogwarts Legacy Theme

"I swear, every time I see you something's tried to attack you these days."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sar." Harry and Sarah had tucked away in the viaduct courtyard, trying to figure out what had happened to Harry during his detention. Had Firenze been right? Had Voldemort returned? But why hide in the forbidden forest? To stay close to the stone? To control Snape? Quirrell? Harry's head felt like it was spinning. This was beginning to be too much for the boy. Especially with Sarah staring holes into the side of the castle.

"And the centaur... he wanted you to be left for dead?" Sarah asked slowly. Harry shrugged.

"Probably written in the stars. Think it would be a noteworthy demise?" As soon as the words left his lips Sarah snapped her gaze to him. Sharp, unyielding. There was a silent rage as he back tracked himself. "Sorry, sorry, I just-"

"You're not dying on me, Potter." Sarah spoke so quietly he almost didn't hear the waver in her voice. Harry huffed, the corners of his lips lifting at the staunch response the blonde gave. While she may not always outwardly show it, Sarah had her own way of being protective and caring. He thought of the photo resting on his nightstand, the gift she gave him almost a year prior now.

"Going to fight the Dark Lord yourself?" He asked. Despite herself, Sarah raised her chin defiantly, the corner of her mouth betraying her as it tugged up slightly.

"If that's what it takes." She swallowed, then sighed. "Honestly, I'd say promise you won't do something stupid, but I know you'll break it."

Harry let out a short laugh. "Should start a business, guess what's going to attack me next. Fred and George would have a fun time placing bets on it."

"I think an advent calendar would be appealing." Sarah mused. They quieted as a group of Gryffindors walked by. They took one look at the duo and turned their heads. Sarah rolled her eyes. "Honestly, you Gryffindors care more about house points than anything else it seems."

"It was huge for Gryffindor. All the points I made for the match..." He trailed off, putting his head in his hands. There was something incredibly endearing about the image, as a small smile tugged at Sarah's lips.

"Well, I keep my promises." Sarah said softly. Harry looked up at her, confused and oddly charmed as a smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth. "You're still just Harry to me, Mr. Potter. Points or no points."

"How awfully convenient that my blunder gave your house the lead." He snarked, hearing a breathy chuckle leave Sarah's lips.

"Yes, it is rather convenient." Though nothing more was said on the matter as Sarah's thoughts turned to the creature in the forest. A surge of protectiveness loomed over her as she looked at the shorter boy. Her best friend would not be dying under her watch.

"You're thinking too much." Harry's eyes ghosted over her face. Her eyes always shone bright when she was thinking too internally, betraying nothing else but a neutral expression. Then her gaze drifted back to him, and he could see the volume of emotion behind those bright grey eyes.

Sarah's eyes drifted over his features now. From his straight nose to the dazzling green of his eyes, all the way to the scar on his forehead. Without fully realizing, she reached forward to brush a thumb over the lightning bolt. Harry didn't move, sighing lightly when he felt the pad of her soft hand trace over it. All at once, the dull throb vanished under her touch.

"Nothing bad will ever happen to you. Not while I'm here." She said softly, eyes bright with emotion. Harry reached up to grab her hand, lacing it with his own fingers. She marvelled as the green danced with emotions she didn't entirely understand.

Harry knew this was Sarah's way of loving someone. Protecting them, at a distance. He was of the fortunate few who ever felt this shining affection, and he treasured every moment of it. Deep in his chest he felt warmth blossom, and there was no denying that Sarah caused this. His thumb ghosted over the back of her cold hand.

"And I've got your back too." He supplied, seeing the curve of her lips return a little bit stronger.

Over the next week of exams, Sarah's mind barely got through everything. She was distracted, constantly looking for Harry to be sure he hadn't blown up or that he was being chased by the phantom in the forest. Cerus noticed her behaviour, but said nothing about it.

It all came to a head as Sarah roamed the castle one evening, wondering where Harry had gotten to, when he literally ran into her. She couldn't see him at first, as he was underneath the invisibility cloak. He grabbed her arm and hoisted her with surprising strength under the cloak. Sarah came face to face with Hermione and Ron.

"Come on! Not her too!" Ron huffed, but Sarah was stiff as a board trying to keep her calm.

"Weasley, still trying to put a tough act on when you almost wet yourself last we spoke." Sarah snapped. Hermione stared between the two, nervously twitching. Ron was the same height as the girl, losing any bravado that was gained with his usual height advantage. As he tried to speak, Hermione kicked his shin, making him jump.

Harry's hand, still on her shoulder, pulled her to listen to him. Sarah's eyes locked with his, barely a breath away from her.

"Whoever is going to steal the stone, is going to go tonight. So we need to get to it first." He told her firmly. Sarah's demeanour completely changed. She nodded, gesturing with her chin to lead. The two taller children walked behind, doing their best not to touch each other. Other than a brief interaction with Peaves, they made it to the third floor without provocation. When Sarah saw the giant dog, she hesitated. Ron gulped, but found satisfaction in the idea of Sarah being afraid of something.

However, when he turned to look at her, her eyes were shining with awe.

"He's beautiful." She murmured. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Of course you find the deadly slobbering beast pretty." He muttered. Harry escaped the invisibility cloak when he noticed something at Fluffy's feet.

"A harp?" He asked, hearing the soft melody.

"Someone's been here and put him to sleep already." Hermione supplied as the three escaped the confines of the cloak. Ron and Sarah split, standing on opposite sides as the blonde approached Fluffy. So this was the dog that startled them earlier? She couldn't imagine why, he looked adorable.

"If that's new, then that means someone's already here." Sarah said, looking at the trap door. Harry nodded, pushing Fluffy's paw out of the way. They opened the trap door as Harry turned to his friends.

"Right, the rest of you, go and tell McGonagall what's happened here." Harry said, surprising the trio.

"And leave you alone?" Ron scoffed at the idea. "We're in this together, Harry."

"Someone should tell McGonagall." Sarah admitted, looking at the door. Harry glanced at her. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Then you go do it!" As he spoke, an almost whimper broke from his mouth as Sarah's sharp eyes snapped to him.

"I don't plan to die today, and if someone has put this much thought it their scheme, don't you imagine they'd also have a plan if we followed? Which means a professor will be able to rescue us if we need it." Sarah spoke swiftly, leaving no room for rebuke. Ron swallowed whatever he was about to say as Hermione piped in.

"I'll go," she offered. They looked to her, surprised. "Sarah's right. I- Harry I don't think anyone should go alone, but now that we know Fluffy is asleep, we know someone is genuinely here."

Harry nodded, understanding.

Hermione left as the other three jumped through the trap door. The landing was padded by a dark plant, and while Sarah was initially relieved to not land on the cold hard ground, it quickly turned to concern as it began to wrap it's around her.

"What is this?!" Harry gasped, trying to free his wand hand. Ron squeaked as he sunk up to his waist. He tried to slap his wand against the plant, only to have his wand stolen.

"Devil's Snare." Sarah called, trying to remain calm. Ron huffed.

"Oh great, now we know the thing that's going to kill us. Brilliant!" He was up to his chest now. Sarah racked her brain, trying to remember what Devil's Snare hated, when she realized that the room they were in was dreadfully dark.

A light, that's what was needed! She raised her wand, feeling the tendrils wrap around her wrist.

" Lumos Maxima !"

The plant dispersed, dropping all three of them and their wands on the ground. Sarah managed to hold the charm as the boys righted themselves. She stood carefully, wiping dirt from herself as she checked on the others. Harry had a cheeky grin while Ron looked displeased being saved by her.

"Well done, Sar." Harry said, but Sarah enjoyed the displeasure on Ron's face more than anything else as she led the way to the next room. A buzzing, chittering noise could be heard from above them. Sarah came to a stop, staring at the ceiling. When the boys caught up, they were both baffled to find a plethora of strange insects glimmering as they swam around. No, not insects...

"Keys!" He saw one shut door and a broom resting nearby. "We must need one of them to open the door."

" Alohamora !" Ron tried anyways, but it did nothing. Sarah muttered "Nox" and looked around for clues while Harry mounted the broom.

"It probably looks different from the others, Harry." Sarah called as he raised up to meet the swarm. Harry flew for a while, eventually finding the correct key and- with some help from Ron and Sarah, found the one. The broom he was on wasn't nearly as fast as his Nimbus though, and Harry struggle to keep up with the swarm flitting around his head. Seeing this, Sarah reached out her wand.

"Harry, get down!" He obeyed, hovering over the ground. "Be quick, it won't hold for long. Impedimenta !"

The keys slowed, as if going through jelly, and Harry took the opportunity to catch the key and fly back to his friends.

"Where is Merlin's name did you learn all of these spells?" Ron asked, sounding suspicious. Sarah ignored him, following Harry to the door.

"Cerus taught me." Was all she supplied.

"And where did Cerus Sallow learn them?" But Ron's question was lost as they continued to the next room.

A giant chessboard. Sarah took one look and noticed several missing pieces, along with a graveyard of stone on the sides.

"Well well, looks like it's your time to shine, Weasley." Sarah said airily. The red head looked at her with a frown. Sarah raised a brow. "Wizard chess, don't tell me the Devil's Snare squeezed out all your brain cells now."

"I know what this is!" Ron cried, stepping forward to see the board. He too noticed the missing pieces. "I think I know what we'll have to do."

"We'll follow your lead." Harry said as Sarah also nodded. It surprised Ron that Sarah stepped in line so quickly. She snorted.

"Don't let us die, Weasley." Though he had a feeling Sarah would break the entire chess board before letting that happen.

They took their positions, and obeyed Ron as he guided them around. It was gruelling and unyielding, but Ron had kept them alive long enough. Sarah noticed though, how Ron was playing his own piece. The knight was moving in the way of the queen. It would spell disaster for him. Harry realized the same thing.

"Ron don't-"

"It's the only way! Do you want to stop Snape or not?" Ron cried, face pale. He looked to Sarah, fear in his eyes but determination etched across the rest of it. "I hope you're as brave as you look, Williams."

It surprised her, Sarah's eyebrow twitched upwards, but she nodded shortly at him. Ron ignored Harry's pleas, turning to make his move. The queen slaughtered him, dragging him off to the side as Harry checked the king. Then he bolted to Ron, checking him over.

"Is he...?" Sarah asked, but Harry nodded.

"Just knocked out. C'mon we- I don't want to but-" Sarah grabbed his hand and pulled him forward.

"Come. Hermione should have a teacher on their way." She assured. Harry squeezed her hand, then they parted as the duo entered the next room. They were surprised to see a troll on the ground, groaning. Sarah froze as Harry gagged at the familiar smell.

"Glad we don't have to fight that one- Sarah?" Harry's voice swam in her ears, but Sarah recalled the moment Quirrell ran in at Halloween during the feast.

"A troll?" She whispered. Harry looked at it too, bludgeoned on the head and passed out.

"Yeah, I would hate to fight one. It destroyed the girl's bathroom last time I saw one." He mused. Sarah swallowed.

"Each of these challenges were made by a teacher Harry." She looked to the doorway. "So if this is a challenge..."

He understood, worry clouding his brow.

"You- You don't think that-"

"Mighty convenient that a troll made it into Hogwarts and you saw Snape confronting Quirrell shortly after." Sarah said bluntly. They continued on, finding a potion trial as the next objective. Black flames covered the door they came from and purple flames the door they wanted to enter.

Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Two of us will help you, whichever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number hold only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:

First, however slyly the poison tries to hide

You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;

Second, different are those who stand at either end,

But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;

Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Fourth, the second left and the second on the right

Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.

"Brilliant. We're trapped- Sarah!" Harry stared in shock as Sarah took a bottle from the table. The smallest one, and checked it.

"This one." She explained, gesturing to the bottles. "It's the only one that's been drank from."

Harry glanced at it, noticing how empty the bottle looked compared to the others. His gut made him believe this couldn't be Snape now, because as awful as the man could be, he wouldn't have left any potion for them to follow.

"There's only enough for one." Harry said, looking at the drink. Sarah frowned, but Harry drank it before she could argue. "Go back, find the bottle that takes you back that way, and find the teachers, check on Ron for me?"

Sarah was silent for a moment longer, then she gave a hesitant nod.

"Be safe, Harry."

He moved forward, leaving Sarah to solve the puzzle. With a few more minutes Sarah picked up the round bottle to the right, relieved that the puzzle was significantly easier once she knew the potion that could take her forward.

However, as she entered the door to the Troll's room, she was horribly surprised to find a rather alert beast.

"Merlin." She groaned, gaining its attention as she stepped back into the potions room. It roared, spreading fowl smelling breath, charging at her. Sarah ran, tumbling out of the way several times as the mighty beast gave chase. Shattered glass littered the floor as she bolted out of harm's way. While she couldn't beat the creature in size or strength, she certainly could outrun it-

Until she was backed into a corner.

To her left were the purple flames, and to her right was a wall. Sarah swallowed, nervous. No one would come rescue her in time, so she steeled her nerves and gripped her wand a little bit harder. Timing had to be on her side as the troll stormed across the room towards her.

"Obscuro!" A blindfold wrapped around the troll's eyes, impeding its vision as Sarah flung herself out of the way. With its sight blocked, the troll crashed head first into the wall, breaking it down as the large body came flying through to the next room. Sarah grunted, landing awkwardly on several pieces of stone. Shouts were heard from the next room over though, and Sarah forced herself to stand. It hurt, something pinched in her left leg, but she ambled to the hole to see what was happening.

"Sarah! Run!" Harry came crashing into her, trying to pull her along. She didn't question it, turning to run with him. Before they could get far, ropes wrapped around both their legs, causing both children to collapse. Sarah grunted again as Harry winced loudly. Her legs were tugged, and soon Sarah found herself dragged across the rubble into the next room. The troll lay on the floor, out cold once again, as Quirrell used his wand to pull Sarah and Harry along. Sarah hissed in pain as she was pressed into a pillar. Wrapped to it so tightly she could only gasp for breath.

"Seize him you fool!" A hoarse voice whispered, and for the first time Sarah realized Quirrell wasn't wearing his head cover. As the man turned his back on her, she witnessed a second face protruding from his skull. The face was warped, snake like even, with red eyes that settled on her. For a moment Sarah stayed there, stunned, until she saw Harry fall to the ground.

"Harry!" She shouted, tugging at her restraints. She'd dropped her wand in the other room, her only other option was to try and shimmy the ring off her finger.

'Come on come on come on!' she thought as Quirrell advanced on her friend. Harry struggled to his knees, turning around to grab his wand, but in the same moment Quirrell kicked it away. His foot rested on Harry's back as the boy fought. Quirrell kicked him over, placing his heel in the centre of his chest. Wand directed at the boy.

"Kill him!" The second face demanded. But as he said this, steam rose from Quirrell's hands. The man gasped, dropping his wand as he let out a wail, backing away from, Harry. Boils and burns littered the skin of his wand hand. The other face witnessed the attack as Harry turned to look at Sarah.

With a heavy clang, her ring fell to the ground. Harry had never seen her eyes so fiery before. So filled with rage and disgust.

"Kill the girl!" The voice shouted. Quirrell obeyed, reaching for his wand despite his skin bubbling. The ropes on Sarah burned away, singing her hair and clothes in several spots. The blonde didn't take her eyes off the man, careful and fierce. Quirrell flicked his wrist, a snake flying out the tip of his wand, but the creature burned before it could reach Sarah, turning to ash.

Blood dribbled out of her nose. She ignored it. Harry tried to pull himself from the ropes, to little avail.

"Sarah Williams," the voice, Voldemort, hissed her name. "Such a stubborn mudblood!"

"Avada-" Before Quirrell could finish, his hands began to burn once more. He struggled, wailing, unable to keep his hands on his wand.

"Kill the mudblood! Kill her! Kill her!" Voldemort shouted. Quirrell screamed as he threw himself at her. His burning fingers wrapped around her neck, choking the life out of her. The burns scorched up his arms, reaching his shoulders. Sarah wouldn't stop, even as the corners of her vision grew fuzzy, she refused to yield. Blood dripped freely from both nostrils, Quirrell's skin scorched her neck.

Sarah screamed, and that seemed to be the point where Harry freed himself from the rope. He tackled Quirrell off of Sarah, where he touched made the man light on fire. It was the last thing Sarah saw, Harry standing over her, before everything went black.

Her head was pounding when she woke.

Sarah didn't recognize her surroundings at all. It was very bright, with high ceilings and a white curtain to her one side. One the other was a pile of every sour candy known to wizard kind, along with several sweets she'd never seen before.

Footsteps echoed in her head, thrumming the back of her skull to the point that she covered her eyes.

"Good good, you're awake, now drink child." A matronly voice said. Sarah blinked, opening her eyes a peak to see Madam Pomfrey. She did as she was told, feeling better moments later. Sarah sighed, sinking back into the mattress. She couldn't quite remember what had happened, all of it felt rather fuzzy in her head. As Sarah rested her eyes, she eased back at the sounds of the Madam working.

In a blink, it was evening, confusing Sarah further. How long had she been resting?

"It's been nearly a week, Ms Williams." A kindly voice said from her side. She slowly turned her head to see Dumbledore seated at her bedside. A surprising visit; she wondered what made her so special. The man held a twinkle in his eyes, observing her stack of sweets. "Forgive me, I was simply curious what sorts of sweets you might like. I never pictured you to be a sugar fanatic."

"I like sour things." She said monotonously. He chuckled, eyes crinkling in the corners.

"Ah, it would explain all the lemon flavours." Dumbledore said, easing back into his seat. His eyes grew more serious then and his mind settled. "I must say, I did not expect to come across what I did down in that chamber."

Sarah turned her head to stare at the ceiling. Memories of the stone, of Quirrell, of the burning sensation the coursed right through her all rose to the surface. She said nothing, wondering at what point he had arrived. Had he saved them?

"Quirrell died from his wounds shortly after I arrived." Dumbledore informed her, watching for a reaction. There wasn't any. Sarah continued to stare at the ceiling. "Whether it was by your hand, or Harry's, I cannot say."

"It was mine." She said quietly, not looking his way. She didn't know what he meant by Harry causing Quirrell harm, but she was certain her attempts to burn the man came with many consequences. Dumbledore hummed, taking a deeper breath.

"Yes I had presumed as much. Though I find it rather fascinating to see that your wand was in the other room at the time of the incident." Dumbledore said pointedly. Sarah didn't move until he called her name. Slowly, her bright ghostly eyes stared holes into Dumbledore's softer blue. "Tell me what motivated you to use such levels of wandless magic."

Sarah blinked once, twice, then took a deep breath.

"I've always been able to do it." Subconsciously, she played with her ring. Except it wasn't on her hand. Sarah raised the appendage to look at it, only seeing the scars caused by the ring where it usually sat. She frowned, but continued. "I have a ring that I usually wear. Mr. Sallow gave it to me. He said it would limit my magic, slow it down some."

She lowered her hand, looking at Dumbledore once more.

"Without it, I can do things. Make things move, or disappear. Turn people into animals, partly. Send them away if I wanted. I just had to believe it was real, and it would happen." she said calmly, as if speaking about the weather. The neutrality in her expression gave nothing away to what she was thinking, not even a little bit.

"You aren't the first to tell me this, Sarah." Dumbledore spoke patiently. "In fact, you remind me very much of a student who once attended Hogwarts."

"Someone like me?" She asked, though her face still gave nothing away. He nodded to her. Sarah looked back at the ceiling. "Were they... a good person?"

The silence that stretched on spoke volumes.

"They were a person who made all the wrong choices." The old wizard said after a couple beats of silence. Sarah visibly deflated. "Do you think you're a bad person?"

"I can be," she admitted. "I try not to, though."

"It is why you have the scars from the goblin metal, I presume?" Sarah's eyes flickered to Dumbledore, a fatigue in her otherwise youthful gaze. Without realizing it, she rubbed her hand over the damaged skin. "Goblin metal is very unforgiving in nature. It absorbs that which bathes it, becoming more powerful. Using magic at all with such a ring must be quite painful. I do not know many bad people who try so hard to be good."

"We Slytherins are, if nothing else, filled with ambition." Sebastian's words parroted from her mouth. Dumbledore hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"I think it is more than ambition that keeps you on the correct path, young Sarah." The blonde looked over to him when he said this, a smile on his lips. She frowned, the first time a spit of emotion crossed her face in their entire conversation.

"It is love that guides you, my dear."

Thoughts of Harry and Maggie danced in her head.

"Harry-"

"Is about to charge head first through that door, I believe. I should take my leave a let your friends come and visit." He took a moment to rise from his chair, towering above her bed. "Though I will part with this bit of advice-"

He cleared his throat, holding out something to the young child. Her ring. She took it, sliding it back into place, where it seemed to belong.

"Do not fear your emotions, Sarah. Feel freely, and control will come to you."

Looking happy with his words, Dumbledore left without Sarah saying a word of thanks. She wasn't sure if she should, admittedly. The man was beyond strange to her. From beyond the curtain, Sarah could hear familiar voices arguing with Madam Pomfrey. Then Dumbledore's voice insisting they be let through, followed by a flurry of running feet.

"Sarah!" Harry cheered, rushing up to hug her. The movement startled the girl, but in the next moment she hugged him back. A warmth bloomed in her chest, making her feel light and fuzzy. Hermione, Ron, Selene and Cerus rounded the curtain as well. Sarah watched Ron hang back while the others crowded her bed. Her skin felt hot from all the attention as Selene rambled out about how worried they had been.

"Cerus tried to camp outside the infirmary-"

"Shut it!" The brunette blushed as his sister spilled the beans.

"Harry would've too-"

"Hermione!"

"Merlin, you could've invited me along, Williams. I missed out on all the action. Heard you got your fair share though." Cerus' eyes flickered to Harry, who still had an arm wrapped on Sarah like his life depended on it. The younger boy realized this, finally letting go, his collar feeling a tad hot.

"It wasn't a planned adventure." Sarah admitted. Hermione smiled shyly at her.

"Harry says you were brilliant. You kept Quirrell away until Dumbledore arrived." The frizzy-haired girl said with a smile. Sarah looked down to the sheets of her bed, not used to praise.

Her friends stayed with her for a while longer. Even Ron joined the circle when offered some sweets. She learned that Harry had been in the hospital for three days before waking, and that Dumbledore had rescued them. The stone was destroyed, Voldemort escaped. To her surprise, the House Cup was won by Gryffindor by a small margin of five points. Despite Dumbledore gifting her fifty, it unfortunately didn't hold out for them. Not that Sarah minded really.

However, Madam Pomfrey shooed the group out, insisting that Sarah needed to rest. She'd been in bed for a week now and was given a small meal. Relief hit her when she smelled the roasted chicken. Her stomach hurt from being so long without food.

Two days later- and many visits from her friends- Sarah was finally released from the hospital wing. She was free of any lasting effects. No scars or wounds to be spoken of despite the burns she had endured. A testament to the Matron's skill. She never thought she'd say it, but she missed the routine of classes. Her grades were fantastic- though her dreadful herbology was just passable- and Sarah felt lighter on her feet for once.

People whispered about her in the hall. Some stared, others- like the Weasley twins- had no problem telling her how brave she must've been to take on a professor. She'd nearly forgotten that the whole school knew, feeling rather exposed in that moment. To her surprise, Neville appeared in front of her the same day she was released from the hospital. He bowed his head, looking nervously at her shoes.

"I was worried. Wanted to see if you were alright, but Madam Pomfrey- she scares me. She told me not to bother you, that you were resting." He stammered, but in the back of her mind Sarah found it rather endearing.

"Thank you, Neville." Sarah's voice was soft, but it gave the boy enough courage to look her in the eye. He was still afraid, the girl was tall and terrifying to behold in his eyes, but a shaky smile lifted to his lips. Sarah echoed a much smaller one, but her eyes were soft and somehow kinder than he remembered.

"Look at you, queen of the spineless." Cerus mused as he approached. Neville shrank instantly. Cerus shouted as Sarah slammed her heel onto his foot.

"Don't mind him, he's not house trained yet." Sarah stared pointedly at Neville. The boy was intimidated by the taller second year though and excused himself.

"H-Have a nice summer, Sarah."

"You as well, Neville."

"Merlin, you like being a mother duckling, don't you Williams?" Cerus teased. Sarah looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"Doesn't explain why you keep showing up." She countered. He huffed.

"Here I thought we were friends." He mused. Sarah scoffed.

"I feel like I'm your only friend." She said it as a joke, but the look on his face made her realize maybe there was some tiny truth to that. After all, he had shown her the Undercroft, something she had yet to witness anyone else knowing about, save for Selene. His sister thought it was too creepy to visit though, and never said a word to either of them. "I think you need better friends."

"I think I agree. Shall I hold tryouts?" He asked, matching her pace as they walked.

"I hear Malfoy needs another lackey, Goyle almost failed first year-"

"Some friend you are." Cerus scowled. He was surprised to hear a soft lilt of laughter come from Sarah's lips. A single string, a chuckle, but a melodious sound nonetheless.

"Evidently, why you need tryouts."

Despite the taunts, Cerus found the corners of his lips lifting. They moved on to other topics, like quidditch practice. He was adamant on her making the team next year, hell or high water, so that they could defeat Gryffindor once more. They spoke of Hogsmeade, and birthdays, and what to do over the months leading to their next school year.

With a pang of longing, Sarah realized their year was coming to a close. Then, a pang of want hit her as she realized she could see Maggie again.

To finish off their year, Sarah and Harry made their way down to the beach behind Hagrid's hut. Their unofficial meeting place.

"We'll have to find a better place to host meetings next year." Sarah said, gesturing her chin to the castle where the faintest outline of two first years could be seen. "My money's on Ron crashing the party within the hour."

"Honestly, I think you just love to hate on Ron, Sar." Harry laughed. She smirked, glancing sideways at him.

"There might be some truth to that." She admitted, though she still disliked the Weasley, it wasn't a hatred that the emotions stemmed from.

"Did you think our year would end off this way? When we stepped on the train?" Harry asked. Sarah crossed her arms, watching him skip stones on the water.

"That a homicidal Dark Lord would be after you? No, not really. I'm beginning to think I picked the wrong bingo sheet for the year." She mused. Harry laughed, earning a short chuckle from Sarah. Then she sobered, thoughts circling her conversation with Dumbledore. She hesitated, not wanting to ask, but somehow needing to.

"I have to ask, Harry. About- About what you saw me do. To Quirrell." She said slowly, carefully. Harry tossed a rock as far as he could, then looked at Sarah.

"No." he said immediately. She raised a brow. "I'm not scared of you still."

"Now I really do think you're touched." She teased, emotion clouding her voice. Harry smiled, stepping closer. Gently, he took one of the taller girl's hands.

"You said you want to protect me, and I believe it. I can't think of many people who'd toss themselves at a serial killer without a second thought just to protect me. I know I don't have the same skill with magic- not yet at least. But the least I could do, the only thing I can do right now, is promise," he squeezed her hand, watching emotions flare in her eyes. "No matter what Sar, no matter what happens or who we become. No matter if Voldemort comes back, or we live our days in peace. No matter if you or I go dark- well I doubt that's going to happen- but I promise, it's you and me. We'll walk this line together, 'til the end of our days."

At first, he thought he said the wrong thing. That his words had run away with him. Harry had been so filled with emotion as he watched his best friend fight for her life and he staggered under the ropes. He thought he might've lost her when he woke alone in the hospital wing. Even after Dumbledore's assurances, he couldn't leave until he saw Sarah.

Sarah Williams , who made Privet Drive bearable.

Sarah WIlliams , who had as much snark as he, sometimes more.

Sarah Williams , who brought magic to his life long before he'd ever heard a single spell.

His best friend, the person who he would jump through fire for. He loved her deeply, and as he watched tears roll down her face, Harry thought he'd said all the wrong things.

She pulled him close then, into a bone crushing hug. It surprised him, but Harry found his arms wrapping around her almost immediately after. She sniffled, and it was the first time he'd ever seen Sarah cry. He hugged her even tighter at the thought of those tears.

"Always."

Sarah's voice came out in a whisper. Harry settled, realizing the tears were ones of joy, and settled. The best friends stayed there, holding on to one another, long enough that Hermione and Ron decided not to interrupt from their spot at the top of the hill.

Hey y'all, thanks for reading.

Apologies if there is still some grammatical errors. I've been on a role lately. I will likely go back and edit them if I lose my muse, but my original aim was a chapter every five days, so I'm officially caught up! Admittedly, this chapter had no good middle point to split it, so it's longer. I also, admittedly, didn't care much for the trials and such, so apologies if it felt a bit rush (though the books make it seem very quick too). I am very excited for book 2. This story covers book 1 and 2, and book one only took up roughly 35% of the total story. Year 2 will be- eh, twenty ish chapters? Depends if my writing gets away on me or not! But I'm very excited for it. We'll learn a little bit more about Sarah's magic too down the line, though it will be a while. I especially love Ron adn Sarah hating on each other, it's like a pass time for them haha.

Also! If you ever find inconsisties between chapters, the edited version are on AO3 because their editing tool is WAY easier to us. FF takes so long to edit and it's annoying as hell. So I apologize if you ever see differences but important changes would be marked out or changed. It's mostly grammar and spelling or thematic writing styles changing.

Anyway, cheers.

cheers

Iland Girl.