GOLDEN HEART - James Potter

one

chapter i - shit
HOGWARTS,
19TH NOVEMBER 1977

Katherine Williams gripped the edge of the sink, her fingers turning white as the cold porcelain dug into her skin. She stared at her reflection in the cracked mirror of the fifth-floor girls' bathroom, her breath coming in shallow gasps. The room was empty, save for the flickering candle on the wall and the faint drip of a leaky tap, both of which seemed to mock the chaos swirling in her mind.

She couldn't stop shaking. Her legs felt weak, as though they might give out beneath her at any moment, but she couldn't move. Not yet. The small plastic stick she held in her trembling hand confirmed what her racing heart already knew.

Pregnant.

The word echoed in her head, over and over, a hollow chant that drowned out every other thought. She was pregnant.

James Potter's child.

She let out a ragged breath and closed her eyes, trying to make sense of it all. But there was no sense to be found, only the raw, unrelenting truth staring her in the face. The night of the Halloween party flashed before her eyes-the noise, the laughter, the haze of butterbeer and firewhisky, and James... James with his messy hair and easy grin, pulling her aside for a joke, a laugh, a moment of reckless spontaneity.

It had been a one-time thing, a mistake. A fleeting moment of poor judgment, fueled by alcohol and the heat of the party. She and James had never been anything more than acquaintances, barely even friends. And now, here she was, standing in a deserted bathroom, her whole world collapsing around her, because of one reckless night.

Tears burned the corners of her eyes as she sank down onto the cold tiles, the pregnancy test still clutched in her hand. She had to face the truth. She was pregnant. But worse than that-so much worse-James Potter was in love with someone else.

Lily Evans. Her best friend.

The thought sent a fresh wave of nausea crashing over her. Katherine had always known how James felt about Lily. Everyone knew. It was practically a joke around the castle-James, the cocky, charming Gryffindor, trailing after Lily Evans like a lovesick puppy, trying to win her over despite Lily's constant refusals.

Lily had rolled her eyes at him, had brushed him off with a laugh, but Katherine had seen it: the way her friend's eyes softened when she thought no one was looking, the way her smile lingered just a little longer than it should when James wasn't being a prat.

And now... now this.

What would James say if he found out? What would he think when she told him she was carrying his child?

A sob broke free from Katherine's throat, and she buried her face in her hands. She couldn't tell him. She couldn't tell anyone. But how could she not? This wasn't something she could hide, not forever. And when the truth came out-because it always did-what would Lily think? What would her best friend say when she found out that Katherine, her closest friend, had slept with the boy Lily had grown to care for, and worse, was now pregnant with his child?

Katherine's chest tightened painfully, and she gasped for breath, trying to calm herself, but it was no use. The fear, the guilt, the overwhelming sense of dread were too much to bear. She was trapped, suffocating beneath the weight of her own mistakes, and there was no one she could turn to for help.

"Crying, are we?"

The voice, high-pitched and eerie, drifted through the empty bathroom like a whisper on the wind. Katherine froze, her heart pounding in her chest. Slowly, she lifted her head to see the translucent figure of a girl floating near the sinks, her round glasses gleaming and her expression one of mild curiosity.