Sweet as Chocolate

Chapter 12

As I look in the mirror next morning, I pull up my shirt to see the cuts he made on me. It looks better now, but I'm still sore. I wonder how he's feeling. I leave it, and walk downstairs to The Great Hall with Alec and Jenn. 

"Did you sleep well?" Jenn asks me and Alec as we eat breakfast. Jenn is diving into her yoghurt - the first potion breakfast. "Yeah, I did. What about you two?" I ask her and Alec. Jenn nods, but Alec is far away. He's staring out in the air, not paying attention to us at all. I wave a hand in front of his face, and he straightens up, as if he was pulled out of his imagination.
"Mh?" He asks, blinking. "Did you sleep well?" I repeat the question for him.
"Uh, yeah, sure, whatever." He says, waving us off, and goes back to staring. He looks really tired, so we just let him be.

"Well, I'm heading to class, you coming Jenn?" Alec says, and stands up and follows her. Man, they learn fast. I think my schedule is difficult to remember, but they know it easily. "Yup, we'll see you later, Ellie." They wave at me.

"Are you ready, miss Flamel?" Remus says, leaning on the table. I look up at him and smile. In the distance behind him, I see Severus watching us, and I bite my lip looking at him. I turn my head to look at Remus again, and I nod, so we head out of the Great Hall together.

"Here, put these on." Remus hands me a set of goggles. "It protects your eyes from catching flies." He winks. I take them and put them on, I'm sure I look like a fly too. He puts his own set on, and mounts the broomstick. He looks around him, for my missing broomstick. But I'm that kind of witch, that has spells for everything. I reach my hand into the sky, and suddenly my broomstick flies into my hand. "Clever." He says, and I just smile. I mount my broomstick as well, and kick off the ground flying away.

When we reach the lake behind Hogwarts, I look behind me to see if Remus can keep up with me. He's right behind me, keeping an eye on me and every move I make. I fly down laying low, and see myself in the reflection in the lake. I look closer and see magical creatures under the surface. I smile, reach my hand down to the creatures following under me. "Be careful!" I hear Remus warn me from behind, but I choose not to listen. My hands break the surface of the water, and slide through the water, while I lean forward on the broomstick, flying faster. Something touches my hand every now and then, and I get that magical feeling of connection. I breathe in, feeling lucky to witness this, and out to make room for new experiences. I lean back up on the broomstick again, holding steady. My eyes catch the hill at the end of the lake, and I decide to land there for a break.

I jump off and sit down in the soft grass, laughing. I'm high on these moments of life. "You're crazy." Remus says and sits down next to me. I straighten up, and lift an eyebrow. "You're playing too safe." I challenge him. He snorts, shaking his head. "In what game?" He asks me, leaning back, resting. "The game of life." I reply. "To feel life, you gotta take some risks every now and then." I tell him and look down at the river. He sighs and turns his face to the river too. "Okay." He says, and gets up. "Then give me a risk to take."

I smile wryly, and I know exactly where we're going. I get on my broomstick, and so does he. I turn upside down, looking at him and locking my eyes in his. "We both know, you're too good a boy to break the rules." I say teasingly. He shakes his head, and straightens up.
"It's on." He just says, and things just became a little more funny, cause now he has something to prove.

"You coming or not?" He yells at me, flying fast forward. I overtake him easily, this broom is... fast. I make a sharp turn, and he keeps up. I fly directly into the Forbidden Forest, but slow down, cause I know, he doesn't like it here. I fly down next to him and smile friendly. "Don't worry, just trust me." I say. He nods, looking into the forest nervously. It feels like he has some bad memories here. And I'd really like to make up for that.

"Are you afraid?" I ask him, concerned. He looks around us, and starts to sweat. "N-no. I just... I just don't like it here." He says honestly. I appreciate him for being honest with me. "What if I could give you a good experience here? Would you let me then?" I ask him, taking out my wand. He looks around at our surroundings, and then at my wand. He nods and watches my movements closely. "I trust you." He says. I smile, and tell him to fly slowly next to me. He does so, and then I cast it: "Expecto Patronum!" I wave my wand, and my Patronus rabbit jumps along with us for a bit before disappearing under us. I fly up in the sky, chasing the last sun rays. "Come on!" I yell to Remus, and he flies next to me. "What did you do?" He asks, and keeps looking down. "Don't be afraid, just enjoy it." I grin, and stop flying. He stops next to me, and we look down.

"There she is... My little baby." I cheer as I see her broad wings fluttering towards us. Remus looks at me, then at Cora, and then at me again. I take his hand, making sure he's okay. I look directly into his eyes. "I've got you. Do not worry, just trust me." I say, giving his hand a squeeze.
Cora appears in front of us, and I can't help but feel like a proud mother watching her baby all grown up.

"Have you ever raced with a dragon before?" I ask Remus, and get ready on my broom. He grins, and copies me. "I'm up for a challenge." He says. I whistle to Cora, and we all lean forward, flying fast over the Forbidden Forest. I place myself next to Remus, and hold my spot there. Cora flies over us, and I reach an arm up under her and let my fingertips trace her stomach. "Remus, it's okay." I tell him, and he reaches a hand out for her as well. He touches her scales, and I can see in his eyes he feels the same kind of luck I do, around the magical creatures. "I touched a dragon..." He yells to me, not really believing his own words. I laugh at him, but I fully understand the excitement.

I look down under us, and see Snowflake and her herd. "Remus, look." I say and point down at the Forbidden Forest.He looks down and sees the herd of unicorns too. "This is amazing!" he says in awe.

We stop flying and hang still in the air. We decide to head back to Hogwarts before it gets dark. In this season, even the afternoons are dark and cold. We stroke Cora's forehead and say goodbye to her, before she flies home, and we fly back too.

"Remus, up here." I tell him, instead of jumping off now. He follows me and I dismount the broomstick as we reach the rooftop. He shakes his head at me, but follows. We sit down on the roof, holding our brooms, and looking up at the stars above us.

"I understand why you do it." He says and turns his body to face me. "I've never felt what I felt today with you." He tells me. And I'm glad he finally understands. We just sit there for a while watching the moon and the stars. The moon is half, but it lights the whole castle up anyway.

"May I ask how old you are, Ellie?" He asks with a low voice. I nod, and smile. "I'm 476 years old." His eyes grow wide, and doesn't really know what to say. I wait for him to let it sink in. "That's a really long time being alive." He says quietly. I nod, and I hear some sorrow in his voice when he says it. Most people think it's cool, and wish to be immortal themselves. However, this is not the case here.

"It can be very lonely too." I tell him. I decide to just be open to him now. He's already earned the title of being a good friend of mine, so there's no reason for me to hide anymore. He nods, understanding. "And, that's why you have gained anxiety?" He asks, concerned. I nod, slowly. "And who is Margot to you?" He starts, asking carefully. I lower my head, and rest my head in my hands. "I'm sorry, if I overstepped. Dumbledore told me about a Margot..." He says, putting a hand on my shoulder, comforting me. "It's okay, I'm just worried about her." I say. I sigh and sit up straight. I tell him about Margot and her childhood. About me being her guardian, about her brother, about her being old. And alone. Home in London. And me being here without her. It makes me sad to talk about her like this. "The day I left for Hogwarts, she asked if she could come, but I told her no. And some part of me just wishes, I brought her. I'm so afraid of coming home to Christmas, cause... What if she's not there?" My heart sinks, and I feel my eyes water. "I haven't heard from her in weeks, and I... I just have a bad feeling." I say, wiping away a falling tear.

"What if we brought her here?" Remus asks, scratching his chin. I look up at him. The man, who never breaks rules. "I mean, she's kept you secret her entire life. I can't see why not." A smile grows across my face, and happy tears start forming in my eyes. "Are you serious? She's a muggler, and it's against the rules..." I say, but Remus cuts me off. "We'll bring her." He takes my hand and gives it a squeeze. "Thank you, Remus." I say, and hug him tight, and he holds me for a while before we break the hug.

"When do we get her, then?" I ask him, and he just looks at me like: duh... "Now?" I ask, and he nods. "But I have detention with Snape. I can't just stay away." I tell him. He mounts his broomstick, and I mine. "Just, let me convince him." I say, but he looks at me sternly: "Are you sure, I shouldn't talk to him?" I look fast at him, and remember what Severus said about him not being the biggest fan of Remus. "I'll talk to him. Can we meet in your office?" I say, and he nods agreeing. We both fly down, and I hurry inside to Severus's office.

"Severus," I say as I run into his office. He smiles brightly when I come running to him. Catching my breath, I lean against his desk. I hold up a finger, to signalize him to just wait a second. "I..." I start, and stand straight up again. "I can't make it to detention tonight, but I'll make it up to you, I promise." I say, and smile at him. He frowns, and puts down his writing feather. "You haven't had detention for a couple of weeks now, Ellie. We just meet every night, we should probably call it something else, if you see it as detention." He smiles, but leans over the desk anyway, as if to keep me explaining myself.

"Can you keep a secret?" I ask excitedly. He nods waiting for me to start talking. I giggle for myself, just the thought of what we're about to do makes me complete. "Promise me, you won't tell? It's serious." I tell him, and he just smiles and nods at me. I think he can feel it too. Me being completely happy. 

"I'm going to get Margot." I smile. "She's coming here." His face turns from happy to concerned, and he falls back in his chair. "Who are you going with?" He asks with his low thoughtful voice. "Remus is accompanying me." I tell him. He thinks for a while, and then nods his head. "I won't tell, and I'll help you. But you must be careful, and stay safe. I swear, I will Avadra Kedavra Remus if you get hurt... Promise me, you'll be careful?" He says, and stands up to get close to me. "I promise, thank you so much, Sev. But please do not hurt Remus, he's just a friend to me." I say, and kiss his lips. He kisses me back, and tells me goodbye. I smile, and run out to meet Remus again.