Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction ❯ Harry Potter and the Green Flame ❯ You Make the Stars Shine Blue ( Chapter 3 )

The rest of the day passed with mostly smiles and laughter. Upon entering the common room, Harry challenged Ron to a game of chess so Hermione and I retired ourselves to one of the fluffy armchairs. She pulled out a book, which I was starting to notice was something of a hobby of hers, while I looked around the common room. Everyone else seemed to be enjoying the lazy Saturday as much as we were. There were card games and wizarding board games I'd never heard of and the occasional outburst of carefree laughter from group to group. It was a lot like being back home and lounging with friends and I took comfort in this small comparison.

"Hey, Morgan, did you take astronomy back in America?" Harry asked, bringing me out of my content daze.

"Yeah, actually we were the only magic school on the west coast that had a fully stocked planetarium. Why do you ask?" I eyed him questioningly.

"Well, aside from Mars being really close tonight, I have a few charts to finish and I was wondering if you wanted to join me later." I didn't even hesitate long enough to pretend I was considering it.

"Sure I'll go out with you. I mean outside with you in the dark. I mean tonight." I sighed and rolled my eyes, cursing at myself internally before blowing out a long stream of air. I smiled and started over. "What I mean to say is, I'd love to help you finish your homework tonight." I waited with baited breath for him to laugh and excuse himself from the group but of course that never happened. He was the perfect gentleman. He acted as if I hadn't just embarrassed myself beyond words and even smiled as if he were really excited by my acceptance.

"Great! I'll you meet in the Common Room at nine ok? Come on, Ron." They started to leave but Hermione stopped them.

"Where are you going till then?" She asked.

"We've got questions for Flitwick on the homework he gave us Thursday. We'll meet you guys at dinner." Ron answered and for the first time since I arrived Friday afternoon, he smiled at me before leaving.

"Ugh." I groaned and let my head hit the back of the armchair a couple of times. I had never been more embarrassed before in my life.

"Er, Morgan? What are you doing?" I heard Hermione ask from the other armchair. I didn't look up as I answered.

"I'm trying to knock some sense into my empty head." I muttered to her. She smiled.

"You like Harry don't you?" She asked with a knowing look on her face. I almost died right there.

"Of course not, I know him." I answered her back trying to sound abashed by her question. I failed horribly. She only smiled like she knew I was lying, which of course I was. "Oh, is it that obvious?" I asked her.

"No, I don't think so. Harry may be extraordinary in many things, but on feelings, he's just as daft as the next boy." I let go of a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

"That's a relief." She smiled and didn't day anything for a long time. It occurred to me then that with the boys gone till dinner; this was probably a good time to get to know Hermione. She was the only one I hadn't talked to alone other than the first day when we were rushing back from the common room to potions.

"You don't like me very much." I stated, much like I had with Ron earlier. She fidgeted uncomfortably before answering.

It's not that I don't like you. Actually it's quite the opposite. I find you to be very friendly and easy to get a long with and you have no idea how good it feels to have another female around." She said this all very fast and without taking a breath till the end.

"But…"

"But, I can't help thinking that there's something very wrong with this situation. I don't believe you have anything to do with the take over in Hogsmeade. But I also don't think it's mere coincidence that you're here. I think there's some underlying issue we have yet to uncover." She said this with a sigh and even though she was basically telling me she didn't trust me, I still felt as if she were on my side.

"I'm not here to hurt Harry, Hermione." I said for what seemed like the billionth time today.

"I know you're not. At least, I don't believe you think you are… if that makes any sense. What I'm trying to say is I think someone else has plans for you that we have to see, Morgan." She said while looking up in thought and picking at a place under her chin.

I couldn't bring myself to agree with her but I wasn't about to argue with her either. In a way, I had gotten an approval which means that, for now at least, I didn't have to worry about any opposition from Harry's friends. We were on the same page and it made me feel immensely comfortable as well as liked.

I didn't know why, but at that moment it felt as if I was supposed to be here and that Harry, Ron and Hermione were supposed to be my companions. I was exactly where I needed to be in life. It was a pretty intense feeling too. My skin started to tingle all over and it felt hot, as if I were standing right in front of the fire. But as soon as I noticed it and looked down, it disappeared. Hermione seemed to notice my concern.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"I don't really know, but I just got a super weird feeling all over. Huh, that was weird." I shrugged my shoulders and readjusted myself on the armchair. "Anyways, back to Harry." I chuckled a little. She just shook her head and smiled.

"Don't worry about tonight. Just relax and have fun. And don't forget to breathe." She laughed as I hung my head.

"Is he as nice as he seems?" I asked her after a moment.

"Even better than that, he's 100% real." She added. But that just made me stress even more. What if I'm not good enough! I started hyperventilating.

"I can't handle this kind of stress, Hermione!" This only prompted her to laugh again which wasn't helping my nerves at all. She shook her again and pulled her book back up to her nose.

"Just be yourself, Morgan. You obviously impressed him enough with that." She said from behind the book and I slumped in my chair, defeated.

Surely you have something halfway decent to wear!

This could not be happening. I had about ten minutes before I would be meeting Harry in the common room and still had yet to find an appropriate outfit for tonight. I was beginning to get frantic as I rummaged through my trunk and a small pile of clothes was building on the floor next to it. I heard the door open.

"Aren't you supposed to be meeting Harry soon" Hermione asked, coming to sit on my bed. This only made me rummage more, throwing clothes this way and that.

"I don't have anything suitable to wear!" I whined.

"What's wrong with what you've got on?"

"Frumpy!" I snapped and then stopped when I realized she was wearing an outfit similar to mine. "Well, what I mean is, I, um-"

"You have great social skills." Hermione said before smirking. Oops.

"Would you wear this on a sort-of date?" I asked her. She wrinkled her nose and I had my answer. "Well what do you suppose I should wear? All I have are jeans and t-shirts! I don't even have dress pants! Or a skirt!" I was beginning to sweat. Hermione came to my rescue. I was going to have to do something nice for her if she kept this up.

She picked up a blank tank top that was lying on top of the pile of rejected clothes and then found a white, short sleeve button up and tossed them at me. I held them up and considered them. It was a casual but cute combination.

"You're a life saver, Hermione!" She just grinned and waved a hand at me dismissively.

"Just hurry up and get down there. Don't want you to keep him waiting too long" I laughed nervously as I changed in the bathroom. I went over to the sink and hurriedly applied a little makeup before running back into the dorm for Hermione's once over.

"You look great, now go!"

I rushed out of the dorm and down the stairs, slowing just as I reached the last three steps so as not to look flushed. He was already in the common room, waiting for me next to the fire. He was talking to a girl a remember Hermione had pointed out as being Ron's little sister. Ginny, I think was her name. A small pang of jealousy erupted in the pit of my stomach that I quickly squashed. If he hadn't liked me even a little, he wouldn't have invited me to the Astronomy Tower tonight.

I went right to his side.

"Hello, Harry." I greeted him and was smug to see the girls smile turn a little sour as he greeted me enthusiastically.

"Hey, ready for an astronomy lesson?" He asked. The girl named Ginny frowned a bit.

"Definitely." I said with a smile.

He excused himself from their conversation and led me through the portrait hole. We walked for a while, going up many wide spiraling staircases till we reached what had to be the astronomy tower.

It was quite large as far as planetariums went. And there weren't any chairs either. It was just a large circular room with a few tracking devices lining the sides except for a pair of glass doors to the right. They led to a balcony that Harry was already heading towards. I followed him through the doors and looked up at the stars just in time to see a shooting star pass by.

"Make a wish, Morgan." Harry said to me and I did.

I sat lazily on the edge of the astronomy tower as I listened to Harry's quill scratch the parchment. He was almost done charting the movements of a group of stars and I'll admit I was feeling the weight of the end coming down on my shoulders. It was a beautiful night for star gazing, even better when you were sitting next to one of the hottest and most famous wizards in all of history.

It had an almost romantic feel to it that was just on the right side of ruined. I had walked out earlier just in time to see a shooting star and to make a wish. Without even realizing there was another step down onto the balcony I stepped out. As you can probably guess I took a tumble. I landed face down into the stone floor. Luckily my arms broke the fall to my face but my chest took the full blow.

I looked down at myself and rubbed the spot under my breasts that still throbbed. I'll have a bruise there tomorrow for sure.

I felt Harry's gaze on me and looked up to see him looking at me in amusement. I felt the jab about my unfortunate slip coming and decided to be as graceful as possible.

I stuck my tongue out at him with grand fashion and heard him chuckle.

"How was your trip, Morgan?" He was laughing a little harder now. I pouted in the opposite direction.

"It was lovely, thank you." His laugh rose another octave. I turned around and 'puffed' at him and he smirked. God that crooked grin of his took my breath away.

He looked down at his parchment once more before rolling it up and tucking it away inside his robes.

"You ready to head back?" He asked softly. I sighed.

"No" At least I was being honest. I didn't want this night to end. He shook his head at me and looked out over the grounds. It wasn't a full moon but a small sliver of it that remained cast a light glow on our surroundings.

I couldn't help myself; I stared, unabashedly at his figure taking everything in. From his untidy hair sticking up in all directions, to the soft slope of his nose, even to the small pout forming on his lips. He was really quite stunning in his good looks, but his posture suggested he was no where near aware of it. And then he looked over at me, and I was caught.

I tried to look away but I was stuck. His eyes were on mine. Those beautiful emeralds locked me in my place. I knew that our eyes were similar in tone but the depth in his made mine fade in comparison. I think I could stare all day into his eyes and never get bored. My breathing hitched a little, coming a little faster. He started to move towards me then, angling himself as if he were about to kiss me. Just as the distance was closing in, a soft 'meow' came from the doorway to the balcony. We both jumped away from each other, looking in the direction of the noise.

"Bloody hell" Harry said, all color draining from both our faces. Mr. Filch, the caretaker stood confidently at the door.

"What in the blazes were you doing up there, Potter?" Professor McGonagall was gesturing madly, her night cap starting to slip off in her fury. I looked over at Harry who had his head bowed in shame. Uh oh

"Professor, I was only finishing up some Astronomy homework that is due for tomorrow's class." He said simply. I looked back and forth between the two as if watching a heated tennis match.

"With a girl no less! Alone I may be more inclined to look past this but with another student, a female student. I can not let this go without punishment." Harry's head whipped up in shock.

"But, Professor, nothing happened! I was just showing her the Astronomy Tower!" But Professor McGonagall shook her head, her mind made up.

"Ms. Lennox, do you have anything to say for yourself?" She finally addressed. I was starting to think they'd forgotten I was there. I cleared my throat before answering.

"I'm really very sorry." How lame. In America, I had no trouble getting my teachers to look the other way. I always had a fantastic skill in persuasion. Tonight however, the magic was gone.

"Well I have no other choice but to give you both detentions. Saturday morning I would like you both to report to Mr. Filch's office. You'll have a two hour long detention to serve and Potter, Ms. Lennox. I advise you both to steer clear of late night homework sessions outside your common rooms in future. Off to bed the both you." She ordered us out of her office. Her lecture in homework session etiquette with the opposite sex left me feeling quite embarrassed. It made me feel as if we actually did do something un-becoming.

"I'm sorry you got in trouble again, on your second day at Hogwarts." Harry broke the silence on our walk back to the Gryffindor common room. He sounded sincere in his apology but it was completely unneeded.

How could I be sorry for getting to spend an evening with him?

"It's really alright. I don't regret it in the least." I assured him. He looked up at me with a small smile.

When we got to picture of the Fat Lady he stopped and turned around. His eyes found mine again, my knees going weak. Oh for the love of all that's holy!

"I just wanted you to know that I really enjoyed spending time with you tonight. Thank you for accompanying me. And I'm really sorry you got in trouble for it. Wackspurt." He muttered to the portrait. She muttered a few 'tuts', shaking her head at our lateness I presume. But I wasn't really concerned with it. I was too aware of the beating my heart was giving my chest. My breathing sped up as I walked through the portrait hole and into the common room.

"Really, Harry, it's no big deal. I had a lovely time as well." I tried in vain to sound nonchalant. As we neared the stairs he caught me by the hand, bringing my palm slowly up to his lips, kissing it softly before letting it go. My heart fluttered.

"I'm glad. Goodnight, Morgan." He took off up the stairs, leaving me dazed and trying to control the palpitations my heart was now going through. I smiled as I walked through the dormitory to my bed.

Tonight I took the time to get ready for bed. I grabbed my bag of toiletries and headed for the bathroom. I changed into my favorite set of night clothes and stood in front of a mirror as I brushed my hair out. I studied myself then, turning my body this way and that way, scrutinizing every inch from the top of my head to the tip of my toes.

I had never been one to be so confident in my appearance. No, that wasn't true; it wasn't a lack in confidence, but more a lack of acknowledgement. I never paid attention things like appearances back in America. I rarely primped myself for school nor did I pay attention to the newest fashion statement any of the boys would put on for the other females. I never cared. I wore my own style, sticking to what was easy rather than anything appealing to the male eye. But as I stared at myself in the mirror I discovered that things had changed a lot in the appearance department since my last school year back home.

I was still pretty skinny than what was normal for a girl my age, but my figure had filled out a lot. My hips were wider and swelled in just the right places which led to fuller thighs and a rounder bottom. My breasts had gotten a slight bit larger, not by a mammoth size, but enough for me to notice at least. Looking at my face I noticed that my cheeks were a little more round. My eyes, I was happy to notice, had maintained their shape. Large and baby doll like in appearance, my eyes had always been my favorite feature. They weren't a dark green or a faint pale green. They were crayola green as I used to say to my mom as a child. They were bright and irresistible as always. I smiled crookedly as I watched the girl in the mirror. It was a kind of hard to look away. Mostly because I was having difficulties in believing it was me. Though the differences were small in comparison, they were monumental to me. It made me realize that the idea of Harry Potter being attracted to me feel less unbelievable, as unbelievable as it still felt. Huh, imagine that.

I steeled myself away from the mirror and to a sink to brush my teeth, then quickly gathered my things and headed for bed. There was a definite pip to my step that I quickly scolded myself for. Don't get too full of yourself, Lennox.

As I curled up in bed under my soft blankets I couldn't help but smile to myself. My first two days at Hogwarts were a roller coaster of emotions and catastrophes. But at least at the end of it all, there was still something to look forward to in the up coming days. And I took strong comfort in this thought as I drifted easily to sleep.

By the next morning at breakfast, nearly everyone in Gryffindor knew about mine and Harry's unfortunate meeting with Mr. Filch. They also had a colorful array of explanations for what had really gone on up on the Astronomy Tower, none of them any where close to the truth. I overheard one girl whispering to her friend that Harry and I had been kissing passionately before being violently separated by Mr. Filch while others were commenting on how completely scandalous it was that we were even up there to begin with. Most of the stories sounded like a case of sour grapes, though that may be my ego talking.

I sat down across from Harry and reached for the pumpkin juice. "Good morning" I said to him and his friends. Hermione looked up and smiled while Ron merely nodded his head while he piled the food into his mouth. I raised an eyebrow as Hermione looked at him in disgust.

"Do you ever stop eating?" She asked him. He raised his head, looking between the two of us.

"What?" But Hermione just shook her head and sipped, lady like, on her orange juice and went back to reading her textbook. He went back to his food and I laughed and turned to Harry. He was looking over the morning edition of the Daily Prophet.

"Anymore news about what happened in Hogsmeade?" He looked up at me then, a grim expression on his face.

"No, there's nothing new. It's mostly just details on the clean up and the ever growing list of casualties." He sighed and flipped to the next page.

The rest of the day went by without much event. I caught up on some text book reading while my friends finished last minute homework. As we walked into the Great Hall for dinner I happened to notice a new face at the Headmaster's table.

"Who's that sitting to the right of McGonagall?" I asked, looking incredulously and feeling almost appalled.

"That's Professor Straybourn. He teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts." Hermione giggled a little as she said this. "He is quite unusual, what with the hair and metal in his face. I just stared at her in disbelief.

"Not to mention all the ink." Ron piped up.

"He's a teacher?" I looked back at him again, taking in his very strange appearance. He was young and muscular, with long black cords of ink spreading out from some unseen center point on his back. They wove intricate designs across his skin. He had bright, piercing blue eyes hooded with thick eyebrows, each pierced twice. And there was a stud in his nose which made me cringe thinking of how that must have hurt. His hair was bleach blond and spiked in perfect even rows. If he were a muggle it would taken him hours to achieve such perfection.

"He's pretty unorthodox in looks, but, Morgan. He's amazing. He knows what he's talking about, he's lived it. He was an aura for two years before applying for the position here. And Dumbledore has the up most respect for him." Harry added. I could tell by this call to the defense that it was his favorite subject and easily one of his favorite teachers.

"It's still a little shocking though." I giggled and took a seat at the table turning my attention away from the eccentric teacher. Harry shrugged.

"I suppose but just wait till you see him in class to make any sort of an opinion. Trust me; you'll be more amazed by his skill."

"When do I have that class next?" I asked, loading some food on my plate.

"You'll see him tomorrow actually. It's our first class and only class before lunch." Hermione said from behind her book.

"Do you always bring a text book to meals?" I asked, looking at her in amusement.

"Yes." Harry and Ron both answered in unison before Hermione could even look up at me. She rolled her eyes at them and smiled sheepishly at me.

"She's the smartest in our year, Morgan. If she's not carrying twice her course load in books she's in the library checking them out." Ron said with an almost fond tone to his voice. I could tell they both noticed this as they flushed pink immediately after.

"I'm glad you think so, Ron, thank you." She said shyly to him but went right back to her book. I looked over at Harry with a smile and he winked.

After dinner we went back to the common room, sitting at the same set of tables as we had earlier. It wasn't too long before we closed our books and head to our respective dormitories for the night. My head hit the pillow and I was almost instantly asleep.

After the blankets fell to the ground, Carter held the baby up towards the fire almost as an offering.

"I give you my first born, as a sign of my trust and the belief in your teachings. I ask of you to keep her safe and bless her with the magic of old. Heal her, protect her, keep her always in your grace, for the good our world relies solely on the magic you bestow on her this night." He ended his speech with a bowed head, arms still offering his daughter towards the fire.

"What you seek is close at hand. Trust in me and you shall be lead through your future darkness and into the light."

The voice seemed to come from no where and everywhere at once. It was all around the circle of hooded figures, it was in the fire and it was in the air. It was beautiful and entrancing, it sounded as if a choir of angels had descended upon them.

"Send her to me. Throw her towards my guiding light and I shall grant you what you seek. Only when you trust me fully will you gain the power of old."

There was an audible gasp as the meaning took hold within the group. It was meant that the baby be sacrificed? She was to be thrown into the fire?

"Surely you do not mean what I-" Carter began but was cut off.

"Trust me fully and I shall grant you the power to rid the Earth of all the darkness enshrouding the light."

Carter was torn between the love of his child and the love of his people. He looked back towards where his wife stood, transfixed with horror. I'm sorry, my love. I must act in favor of our world. And with that he closed his eyes and tossed her to the flames. He waited with baited breath for the screaming to ensue but it never came.

As he opened his eyes he was shocked to see that the baby did not in fact land in the fire, but was suspended above it as if floating. She fussed a little at the change in atmosphere but was otherwise unharmed. The voice floated amongst them once more.

"I shall now grant you the power of which you seek. Only when true darkness threatens to ensnare the light, will you have the ability to vanquish it all. Use it well."

I jolted awake, my breath coming in short gasps as my heart rate came back under control. Goosebumps erupted on my skin as I recalled what I had just dreamt.

"What in the bloody hell was that?"