UDM: Free Falling II - Seconds Away (Harry Potter Fanfic)

Wish Upon a Star

—laughter—

Everything at school seemed normal, with all the students in the last year of primary school and every single one excited for school to let out for the summer. Eugene bounced a ball on his knee, letting out a laugh as friends followed after. His thoughts focused on trying out for the soccer team once he entered secondary. He grinned ear to ear with each resounding thud, only to be nudged by one of his friends.

"Demi May's looking at you," one of his friends said, leaning close. "Lucky?"

Eugene waved, swallowing as he did so, flashing his white teeth, yet perturbed at how she batted her eyelids at him right before one of the teachers pulled Demi and her friends aside. Still, as he headed into school, he could hear the teacher commenting on Demi rolling her waistband to try and make her skirt shorter, telling her she was too young for such nonsense.

He headed in, placing his soccer ball into the locker with his other things before heading to his desk, his eyes on a yet empty desk, the corner of his mouth twisting up at the thought of tugging at a pair of light brown braids which often resulted in the girl sitting in front of him turning and glaring at him with her hazel-green eyes, her mouth pressed into a frown.

Yet, she has to appear. He turned to his friend. "Hey, have you seen Whitechapel?"

"No," his friend said as the teacher began to call attendance.

Eugene listened, hearing the names of his friends Cory Decker, Phillip Callaghan, Andrew Simmons, and Demi May's friends Emilia Morris and Layla Weaver, yet didn't hear the teacher call out the name Lyra Whitechapel. When she finished, he raised his hand, swallowing.

"Yes, Mr. Simmons."

"Where's Whitechapel, I might ask?" Eugene asked as Demi May and her friends giggled. "She's not in class, but you didn't call her name either."

The teacher stared, then said, "I'm not at liberty to discuss the circumstances of other students, Mr. Simmons. Sorry."

He took a deep breath while Demi May giggled. "Good riddance."

"But you won't let her play with you anymore," Emelia said as Demi May looked right at him.

"As if you ever played with her," Cory said. "You three always picked on her."

"Well, she was one of those," Demi said, keeping her voice low so the teacher wouldn't hear and reprimand. "I'm glad they sent her back. She didn't belong." She turned to Eugene. "And you liked picking on her two."

"I didn't," he started to say, stopping short and remembering how he liked teasing her and tugging at the braids her foster parents put her hair up into, sometimes causing the gray-blue ribbon that matched their school uniforms to come out of her hair. Yet, he never managed to get her to say a word to him. He paused, lost in thought, with his mouth hanging open.

Phillip leaned forward. "Too bad you never got to tell her."

"What?" Eugene blinked, looking at his friend.

"You know, your crush."

Eugene swallowed, then looked at his desk. He didn't expect Demi to speak. "Why would Eugene like her? She was so—ugh!"

Her friends chimed in, yet Eugene couldn't help but feel ill at ease, remembering how he saw Lyra reading books he liked, that his friends wanted, yet he never tried talking to her about them. Eventually, the school day passed, the bell rang, and he headed home, hearing as he walked home with his soccer ball tucked under his arm rather than bouncing it on his knee as he had this morning.

"How was the last day of primary?" his mother called out cheerfully as he entered the house, shrugging his shoulders as he did so. She frowned, ruffling his blond hair. "Whatever is the matter?"

"Lyra wasn't at school."

"Oh. That girl you like?" his mother laughed. "I'm sure you'll see her next year when you move to the secondary building."

"I don't think so," he said, looking at the floor. "Something about being sent back?"

"You mean her foster parents?" his mother said. "Doesn't that mean she's with her real parents?"

Eugene took a deep breath. "Don't know. I never got to ask if she had any. I'm going upstairs."

"Okay. I'll call you for dinner."

He headed up the stairs, glancing over at his bookshelf, noticing his favorite books there before taking a deep breath, thinking the Harry Potter books might have been a good choice for talking to her. He glanced out the window, his blue eyes blinking as a star shot across the sky. "I wish," he took a deep breath, mentally begging as he did so. "I wish I had a second chance."

He flopped onto his bed, sinking in, then—

There was the sensation of falling, of staggering, but the place—

Eugene stood there, turning to look at the rubble of what looked like a burned-out house as rain poured down, confusion setting in, but as he turned, he caught sight of a familiar face, locks of blond hair plastering and framing her face while the makeup her mother let her wear ran down from the rain.

She looked around but then froze upon seeing him, running a hand through her wet hair as her pajamas stuck to her. "What..."

"What are you doing here?" he asked Demi May.

"I don't know!" she sobbed, stepping forward and grabbing onto the front of his shirt, sniffling as she did so. "One moment, I was at home, sinking into my bed for the night, and then next thing I know, I'm here." She waved her hand. "Where's here?"

Eugene looked around at the burnt-out remains, swallowing. "I don't know. I don't..."

And then, he caught sight of it, his breath drawing in tightly, the sight of a green skull in the sky above them with a snake coming out of his mouth. "No way. Absolutely no way."

Demi turned. "Wait, what is that? "

"His mark," Eugene said, jaw-dropping as she continued to cling to him. "We're in the world of Harry Potter."