The outside air was blistering cold. The air poked at my skin with thousands of tiny needles. For that very reason, I was beginning to hate winter. It was almost relieving to step into the warmth of the Hogwarts Express. But, I was still shaken up about what had happened at the Burrow. Remus and Tonks had taken me to where they now lived together, while the others found somewhere else to stay. Even with all of that commotion, I still couldn't get the image of me hiding in the grass awaiting death out of my head.
Anyway, I had managed to find my own compartment on the train, which I couldn't have felt more grateful for. I wasn't really in the mood to hear Harry's constant obsessing over Malfoy, or Hermione's rants about Ron and Lavender being a thing. So, finally feeling somewhat at peace, I curled up in a seat, and stared blankly out the window at the snow.
Minutes later, the door slid open, causing me to look over. Of course, it was Harry, who was surprisingly alone. I was almost positive he'd have Hermione on his heels, but she was nowhere in sight.
"Mind if I sit?"
I gestured boredly to the vacant spot across from me, signalling that I didn't care.
He plopped down after heaving his trunk onto the luggage rack, beside mine. "You've been distant," He stated.
"Now's not the--" I was cut off.
"What's going on with you? One second you're holding everyone close, and the next you push them away. I'm worried."
"Nothing's 'going on.' Just leave me alone," I was already starting to cry. Boy, this whole 'almost dying' thing was really getting under my skin. I never cry this much.
"No, no, don't cry! I-I didn't mean to upset you..."
"It's not you. It's just what happened at the Burrow, and then the Christmas Party, and--"
"The Christmas Party? But you left."
"Yeah, because you humiliated me! I looked like an idiot, running around like a lost puppy!"
He sighed, and looked into his lap. "Right..."
"And all for what? For you to go hide from me with someone else?" I snapped.
His head shot up. "You mean Hermione?"
"Hermione?"
"Yeah. She was hiding from Cormac and I went to make sure she was alright. Violet, I would never do something like that to you."
I felt my heart rise, then sink again to my humiliation. "Wow...I probably look like an idiot right now."
"Just a little," The green-eyed boy teased, giving me a soft smile.
"Bloody hell, you too? I'm making everyone mean!"
We shared a quiet laugh before Harry came over and sat beside me. "For someone Tonks calls 'the sweetheart of the snake House,' you don't think very highly of yourself."
"Oh, shut up!"
"It's alright, though. You've got me to think highly of you."
Doing my best to hide my blush, I smacked him on the head and laughed. "Get out of my face, you flirt!"
>>>
Shockingly enough, I found the train ride with Harry quite pleasurable. Nothing about Voldemort was brought up at all, not even Malfoy. We simply talked about past memories at Hogwarts, and joked about Ron's relationship with Lavender. It felt strange hearing Harry talking about things unrelated to the evil in the world. Even after knowing him all this time, I was just beginning to realize that he was a normal boy living a life full of unfortunate events. The world had viewed him as some kind of God for so long, which had somehow blinded me.
When we arrived in Hogsmeade, we hopped off the train together, and went off to search for a carriage. When they came into view, I saw something strange. Black creatures with rubber-like skin and milky eyes were standing before each carriage. They reminded me of a freakish mix between a bird and a horse.
"Harry, what the hell is that?" I inquired, pointing to the creature.
"It's a Thestral," He replied. "You can only see them if you've witnessed someone's death."
I remembered last year when I rode on the back of one to London. To me, it was invisible, but that was before Luke died right in front of me. Now, here it was, as plain as day. Harry must've been able to see them as well, considering what had happened to him as an infant.
"Guess it wasn't very smart to let them pull the carriages," I mumbled, while approaching a Thestral near a vacant carriage.
"No, I guess not."
I gently patted the top of the Thestral's head, sighing. "We've all gotta be noticed by someone, don't we buddy?"
The creature blinked at me, before nuzzling its beak into my shoulder. I continued petting it, laughing as it licked my cheek like a dog. People stopped and stared at me, but I gave them no attention. It's not like they didn't already think I was insane. When I glanced over at Harry, he was also staring, but not in a negative way. He was just smiling all goofy like he always did. Just like he did when we were younger. Just like he did when I loved him.
