Chapter 2
Once out of the Gryffindor common room, I found I could breathe normally once more. Potter sauntered beside me, occasionally shooting glances at my face. Beams of moonlight slipped through the high windows, accompanying us down the corridors. Thankfully, there were no misbehaving students to reprimand.
“You’re unusually quiet tonight,” I commented. His silence disconcerted me greatly, as his voice never ceased to ring in my ears.
He just grinned cheekily. “I’m savoring the silence, as it were. You know…just me and you, walking down a dark corridor with no one in sight…”
“Come off it, Potter. I’m not walking down this hall with you for any other reason than scholastic.” His closeness made my heart thump. Why was my heart palpitating? I don’t like Potter. He is a lazy, bigheaded git. Right?
Smiling wryly, Potter peered at me through his spectacles. “Okay, I’ll stop it, just for you. For now, at least.”
“Thank you,” I muttered.
A few minutes of quiet passed before I sparked a conversation out of pure irritation that Potter was assuming the silent role. “So, what did you do this summer?”
To my surprise, he flushed at this. I could still see the colour rising to his cheeks when he replied, “Quidditch, hanging around, stuff like that.”
Eyeing him suspiciously, I pointed out, “Why are you blushing, then?” A smile was edging the corners of my mouth. “Surely playing Quidditch and hanging out isn’t embarrassing for you, is it?”
“I’m not blushing!” Potter retorted playfully, looking away.
“Don’t you lie, now,” I warned, allowing myself to laugh. His face was still turned away. “You’re blushing and you know it.” Reaching up, I took a hold of his chin and forced him to look at me. “Yeah, there’s no denying it, Potter. You’re blushing. So now you can tell me what exactly you’re so reluctant to mention.”
Sighing, he surrendered. “Fine. I was volunteering at St. Mungo’s. My parents made Sirius and me go””
I laughed. “Sure they did, Potter.” Lowering my voice, I admitted, “I won’t deny that I think what you did was most admirable in the wizarding community, especially for a teenage wizard.” Only after did those words emerge from my mouth did I realize that I had praised Potter, something I had never done before.
“Why, thank you,” Potter said, looking just as taken aback by my compliment as I did. His tone of voice changed to a teasing note as he added, “Well, maybe my parents didn’t have a hard time convincing us to go…I’ve always had it in my heart to contribute to the ‘wizarding community’, as you call it.”
Cocking my eyebrow, I nodded. “Whatever you say, Potter.” After a pause, I inquired, “Why did Sirius go with you? He’s never struck me as the sort of person to help out at a hospital over summer holidays.”
“Oh, did you not hear? He’s living with me and my family now,” Potter said casually.
“He’s what?”
“Yeah, he ran away from his house”you know his family is a bunch of pure-blood fanatics”and came to live with us. It’s been great fun.”
Snorting, I replied, “I’m sure it has.” I tried not to think of the mischief the two of them caused, now that they were virtually inseparable. We had completed our round of patrolling and set back toward the common room.
The cessation of sound caught up to us once more. This time, I hoped Potter would come up with something to say. To my relief, he did.
“You smell.”
“Er, thanks a lot, Potter,” I said, half-amused, half-insulted.
Looking alarmed, Potter shook his head vigorously. “Not in a bad way; you smell like”like flowers.” Eyeing me, he added, “Nice flowers.”
I fought down the urge to giggle. “Well, thanks, I guess.” Smirking, I leaned my face into his chest and sniffed. “You smell like…I don’t know, but you smell nice too.” That was an understatement. He did smell heavenly, but I wasn’t about to confess that. I’d admitted too much already. Laughing at my absurdity, I commented, “Just forget what I said, Potter. I’m not making much sense tonight.”
Grinning, he replied, “You’re making enough sense…for me, anyways.”
We continued in silence, as the lull in the conversation had made itself known. Every now and then his shoulder rubbed against mine, not accidentally, I’m sure. For some strange reason unknown to me, it did not irk me like it would have on a usual day. When I gave him a questioning look he just grinned in that way he always did.
“I must admit, Potter, that you are considerably more pleasant when you’re not around your friends,” I told him honestly at the portrait hole. What was with it with guys and having alter egos? Tonight I sensed that I’d touched on a part of Potter that I had not noticed before, something under his usual performances.
Potter grinned once more. “That Potter charm working on you already, is it?” His hazel eyes were twinkling.
“I wouldn’t be so bold as to call it that.” I was losing my cool. I could feel it. Darn that James Potter, who had unnerved me thoroughly that night. Without another word, I crawled through the portrait hole and proceeded to my dormitory.