Him - A Harry Potter Love Story

Chapter Twelve

"Harry, slow down!" I cry out. He pulls me into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, walking to the corner farthest from the door.

"Hello, Harry," Myrtle giggles, rising up from one of the stalls. She glances at me and scoffs, her smile flickering to a pout. "I see you've brought a girl."

"Myrtle, please. We need some privacy," he says, his eyes narrowed in a cold glare that probably worries me more than it does Myrtle.

"Whatever you say!" She lets out a tiny hmph, obviously upset, before floating back down into the stall, presumably into the toilet.

"Okay, listen," Harry says softly to me. "I don't want you to freak out...but I'm pretty sure I know what's wrong with you."

My eyes widen a little bit. "You do?"

"Yes, and...okay, please, Cassie, don't be scared. I don't want you to worry too much," he whispers, biting his lip a little before he continues. "That first time you passed out, my scar was hurting."

I let out a small gasp, putting a hand over my mouth.

"And then later, when you were screaming, the same thing happened," he continues, his eyebrows furrowed as he tries to let this information out as gently as possible. "Then when you went blind, and saw the face and the lights."

I let out a sob, letting him pull me into his arms. I immediately know what this means, I know what Harry is trying to tell me.

"Harry..."

"I'm so sorry," he whispers. "I never wanted you to be a part of this all. And when you said you had seen a face, I knew it had to be him. He's gotten stronger, he's trying to get into your mind."

We stand there for a long time. I cry, just how I have been all the time lately. I hate crying, I hate showing that I'm scared. But one thing after another just makes me more and more terrified, makes me wish I could just stay at home, even if it meant letting my mother yell at me day after day.

"We should probably head back to the common room," I say quietly, pulling away from him. He quickly wipes away a tear from his own face, his head turned away as if he's worried I'll see. I've given up on trying to stop myself from crying - I know stopping will just make it worse when I start again.

"No, Cassie. We need to go to Dumbledore," he says. "I had to tell you first...I wanted to tell you when we were alone."

"I'm sorry for being so emotional lately." I wipe my cheeks off, new tears quickly replacing the old ones. "I wish I wasn't crying so much."

"Cassie, you've been through a lot lately," he says, taking a step toward me. I look up into his eyes, biting my lip. "I feel terrible...you've had three normal years, and then everything is suddenly happening at once."

"Don't feel bad for me...please. I don't want anyone to feel bad for me," I say. "I just want to stop having reasons to cry."

"I know," he whispers, pulling me into another embrace. After only a few seconds, he says, "We need to go. It's getting late."

I nod, letting him pull away from me. He wraps an arm around my shoulders, walking us out of the bathroom. Thankfully, the tears slow down as we near the stairs leading to Dumbledore's office. Harry somehow knows the password, the statue before us turning around into the staircase.

We walk up, Harry knocking on the door to the office. A few seconds later, it opens, revealing the headmaster. Harry doesn't have his arm around me anymore, but gives my hand a quick squeeze before letting go.

"Mister Potter, Miss Winters." He frowns a little. "Is something wrong?"

"We need to talk to you. It's an emergency," Harry says. He nod, stepping back and letting us in.