Off the Pitch

Chapter 7: Hogsmeade

"Oh, look!" George said and pointed to the crowd of people in the common room. "The first trip to Hogsmeade is next week." 

"To where?" I asked when we walked closer to the crowd. 

"Right, I forgot that you know nothing", George said. "It's an all-wizarding village near the school, we sometimes get to visit it on weekends." 

"With permission", Fred added. "We know the secret routes to Hogsmeade so we've paid a few extra visits." 

"Of course you have", I wasn't one bit surprised. 

"Haven't you got your permission slip?" George asked. 

"Oh yeah, that thing", I said, not knowing what the hell they were talking about. "I'll have to ask McGon– my grandmother about it." I looked at the the twins. They hadn't seemed to notice my almost-revelation, but I had sparked their interest in something else. 

"Your grandmother?" Fred frowned. "Where are your parents?" 

"Oh, um–" I mumbled. "They're... dead." 

The twins stared at me in shock. 

"Bloody hell..." Fred said. "I'm sorry." 

George looked at me with a worried expression and put his hand on my shoulder. "Sorry to hear that... are you okay?" 

"I'm fine", I lowered my gaze. It had been four months since my parents had died in a dragon accident in South America. I had spent the summer living with my grandfather in Canada, but decided to move to Britain to finish school and be with my grandmother. 

"So you're living with your grandma?" George asked. "What's she like?" 

"Well – she's great, honestly – but I only moved to Britain at the beginning of the school year, so I haven't necessarily lived with her yet", I explained. "I stayed with my grandfather for a few months after the accident – he lives in Canada." 

"Accident?" Fred asked in confusion. 

"Oh, yeah", I realized they obviously had no idea about anything that had happened in my life before I moved to Britain. "They died in a dragon accident in Brazil." 

The twins looked both impressed and uneasy. 

"That's – wow", George said. 

"Yeah..."

It honestly felt good talking to someone. What made the conversation less painful was the fact that the twins didn't pity me. I knew that they felt bad for me, but they didn't look at me like I was a little girl who couldn't manage on her own. 

"I think I better go send my grandmother an owl right away", I said. 

The twins nodded. "We'll wait for you here." 

I got out through the painting and headed to McGonagall's office. I felt my eyes get blurry from tears. Damn it. The conversation about my parents with the twins had been the first one I'd been able to get through without crying – well, nearly. 

I knocked on the door. 

"Yes?" McGonagall answered and the door opened. 

"Amelia! What a pleasant surprise", she said as I stepped in. 

"Hey, grandmother." 

"Everything okay, sweetheart?" 

"Yeah, I was just wondering if you had my permission slip for... what was it again? Hogsmeade?" 

"Ah, yes, I've got it here. I've already signed it. Obviously you don't need it but you know, it's less suspicious if you have it."