I'll Catch You (A Harry Potter Fan Fiction)

An Unforgettable Ride

The next few days leading up to the holiday break were tense all around. The girls had seen less and less of Acelynne, to the point where they weren't even sure if she was coming back into the room at night to sleep. She was more of a ghost than ever, slipping in and out of classrooms and corridors faster than they could bat an eye.

"Give her some time" Laura had said to Hermione later that night, when she insisted that they go see the Headmaster or McGonagall. "Maybe she just needs to see George and her dad. Maybe they can get through to her. If not, then we can go see Dumbledore."

The girls had agreed, giving Acelynne the greatest benefit of the doubt, but internally knew that there was little George or her dad could do. They held onto the tiniest shred of hope that a true Christmas Miracle would take place.

And that was why Kelly and Laura were shocked beyond belief when they turned the corner into their favourite train compartment, only to find Acelynne sitting by the window with her trunk overhead and a textbook on her lap.

Laura bit her lip and knocked on the glass, only to get the faintest turn of the head by Acelynne in recognition. "Can we sit with you?" The words felt foreign in her mouth, asking for permission to sit with one of her best friends.

"Of course" Ace responded, her voice lacking the crucial emotion that they were looking for.

The girls took their seats on the bench across from her and inspected her with weary eyes. Laura watched as Acelynne read each page intently, the passion for learning missing from her eyes. Kelly was less aware of Acelynne, too caught up in her own thoughts to think of much other than her situation.

"So" Laura broke the silence, crossing her legs and resting her hands in her lap. "I thought you weren't going home for the holidays?"

Ace lifted her head, taking in her friends before closing the book in her lap. Even in her half-aware state of mind, she could tell that she wouldn't get any studying done on this train ride.

"I didn't have much of a choice" she said nonchalantly. "You would know that." The annoyance panged in the back of her mind, triggered by the fact that her dearest friends had read her private post, had gone through her trunk. She was very relieved that she had moved her potions from her trunk to under her mattress.

"Ace, you know how sorry we are about that" Kelly broke from her train of thought to cut into her friends' conversation. Her eyes drifted to the window, immediately making her nauseous and causing her to look away. "We're just worried."

Acelynne cocked her head to the side and blinked. "Nothing to worry about. I'm just studying" she said before shifting her legs up onto the seat.

The girls immediately fell back into silence. Kelly and Laura knew it was much more than 'just studying', although they weren't sure exactly what it was. A large part of them wanted to smack their friend silly for not telling them what was going on. Another part, a much smaller part, wanted them to just sit back and hope Acelynne had the power to pull herself out of whatever she had gotten into.

As for Acelynne. She had gotten to the point where she couldn't quite remember why she was the way she was in the first place.

The silence was broken after ten measly minutes. Ten minutes that seemed like an eternity to the girls who still had a sense of time. The little old lady who pushed the sweets trolley came bustling down the corridor and came to a stop outside of their compartment along with a lengthy trail of first years.

Kelly's stomach growled loudly and she pushed off from her seat, her hand diving into her pockets to find spare change. "I'm going to get something to eat. You guys want anything?" Acelynne merely shook her head but Laura looked thoughtfully at the trolley for a moment before responding.