Ophelia Black ~ Harry Potter fanfic

She Just Is

"Harry, there you are. You came," Professor Lupin greeted me upon my entry. "Are you sure about this, Harry? This is very advanced magic, well beyond the Ordinary Wizarding Level."

"I'm sure."

I had asked Professor Lupin for lessons on how to fight off dementors, considering how much they affect me and Ophelia. I want to be sure I can properly protect her—us—next time a dementor comes around.

"Well, everything's prepared. The spell I'm going to teach you is called the Patronus Charm. Have you ever heard of it? No?...Well, a Patronus is a positive force. For the wizard who conjures one, it works like a shield, with the dementor feeding on it rather than the wizard. But in order for it to work, you need to think of a memory. Not just any memory—a very happy and powerful memory."

A happy memory...

"Can you do this?"

"Yes."

"Very well. Close your eyes. Concentrate. Explore your past. Do you have a memory?" I nodded. "Allow it to fill you up. Lose yourself within it. Then speak the incantation, Expecto Patronum."

"—Expecto Patronum."

"Very good. Shall we? Wand at the ready." Lupin moved towards a chest in his office and started opening it as I prepared myself for what was going to come out.

As soon as the chest was open, a mass of black cloth and smoke emerged, revealing a dementor.

I felt my heart racing as I remembered my first encounter with one. How it had drained Ophelia, how they took the beautiful spark from her eyes, how they left her body cold and trembling. I would never allow that to happen again.

Regaining my focus, I thought of a happy memory and pronounced the incantation.

"Expecto Patronum!" Nothing... "Expecto... Expecto-expect..." and everything went dark.

* * *

"Here we go. Come on. Sit up. Deep breaths. It's all right. I didn't expect you to do it the first time."

I sat up from the floor with Lupin's help.

"That would have been remarkable. Here, eat this. You'll feel better," he said, handing me a piece of chocolate.

"That's one nasty dementor."

"Oh, no, no, no. That was a boggart, Harry. The real thing would be worse. Much, much worse."

I sigh as I sit back down. If I can't defeat a boggart, how am I supposed to face an actual dementor?

"As a matter of interest, what were you thinking? Which memory did you choose?"

"The first time I rode a broom." I remembered that day clearly. It was the most liberating feeling I'd ever had.

"That's not good enough. Not nearly good enough." Lupin shakes his head.

I stayed quiet, thinking about what else had made me feel the same way or even more.

"There's another. It's not a specific memory, exactly. Well, it is... It's the happiest I've ever felt. But it's complicated."

"Is it strong?" I nodded. "Then let's give it a try. You feel ready?"

"Just do it." I prepare my self as he unlocked the chest once again and the same dark-cloaked figure appeared. "Expecto Patronum!" Nothing...

"Expecto Patronum!" I let the memory consume me as I felt the spell protruding out of me. A bright light cast out of my wand, creating a sort of shield, pushing back the dementor as I moved it closer to the chest until it was finally inside. Lupin locked the chest and laughed proudly.

"Yes! Well done, Harry. Well done!"

"I think I've had enough for today," I laughed, exhausted.

"Yes. Sit down. Here. Eat this, it helps. It really helps. And just so you know, Harry... I think you'd have given your father a run for his money. And that is saying something." I smiled at that.

"At first, I was thinking of him. And Mum. Seeing their faces. Talking to them. But then I remembered my friend... Ophelia. And I remembered how every moment I spend with her, I feel this warmth run through me. The feeling I get every time I see her eyes or her smile, or when I hear her sing and laugh—she has the most wonderful voice. Did you know that?" I ramble on while looking at Professor Lupin, who just looked back at me with a knowing smile. "That's the memory I chose. It's not even a specific memory, actually. It's all just... her. But it's the best I have."

"And it's the best you'll ever have... A love like that is hard to—"

"Wait, wait—love? I mean, yeah, I-I like her and I do very much love her, the same way I love all my other friends." Lupin let out a small laugh as my heart rate picked up at the silly accusation. Me love Ophelia? I can't even imagine what us together would look like.

"Then why didn't you think about Miss. Granger?"

"It's different with Hermione..."

"What about Mr. Weasley? For all that I know, I would believe he's your best friend."

"Well, yeah, but it's not the same... he's my best friend, but Ophelia, she's my... she's just—she's just Ophelia. She's special. I can't really compare her to anyone else."

Remus's smile grew impossibly large, as if remembering something.

What Harry didn't know was that he really was remembering something. A conversation he had long ago with Sirius Black himself when he realized he had feelings for Portia.

"You totally like her!"

"Who? Portia?! Moony, I think you might be losing it. I mean... it's Portia, she's my—you know."

"What?"

"She's just my... she's just Portia. She just is. She's special, I can't really compare my feelings for her to anyone."

"My Merlin, Pads... you've fallen hard."

A sweet memory between the two friends. Who would've thought those two kids would end up the way they are now...

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A short cute little chapter to keep yall happy so you won't be mad at me for what's to come...🙃

This chapter made me want to start writing a Marauder's version of this fan fiction. Showing Sirius and Portia's love story. What do you guys think?

Anyways, that's all for now

XOXO, Brielle 💋