The Difference in Reality [A Harry Potter Fanfiction]

Summer of Year 4: Chapter 2

The sun fully set, and Sirius started a campfire. Deandra and Frodi had brought as much food as they could find, which didn't amount to much, but after a day or two of eating nothing, Willow thought they'd given her a five-course meal. They found a rather flat rock and placed it over the fire, then toasted their food. Willow ended up eating a roast beef sandwich. It was the best thing she'd tasted in what felt like years.

The adults continued to entertain themselves with boring chatter about what was going on in the world. Willow wasn't impressed; she didn't want to talk about anything except rescuing her friends. When they began to reminisce about their days at Hogwarts, she couldn't take it anymore, so she abruptly stood up and left the conversation. Fidget sensed her sadness and hugged her from within his pocket. His little black eyes welled with sadness.

"I know, buddy, thanks for trying to cheer me up," Willow whispered.

Fidget surprised her when he let out a defiant squeak. He clambered onto her shoulder, then onto her head. He grasped onto a stand of her hair and hung upside down in front of her face, crossing his arms with a huff. When Willow didn't react, he tickled her nose. That got her attention. She instantly burst out laughing, trying to pry Fidget off her hair, but not managing to budge him. The little bowtruckle refused to stop until Willow had collapsed to the sand from laughing so hard.

"You little- that's not- fair!" Willow gasped.

Fidget let out a purring sound that vaguely reminded her of chortling as he retreated to her pocket once more. Willow's face hurt from beaming, but that didn't make the delighted expression disappear right away as it usually did. She thanked God that she had her magical creatures to cheer her up. What did she do to deserve their innocent love?

"Hey, dummy, we already ran away. You don't have to do it a second time."

Willow whipped around. "Paige! I- sorry, I didn't want to talk about Hogwarts yet. My brain is already fried from this year."

The older girl crossed her arms, shrugging her shoulders. "You just don't want to deal with what happened; I get it."

Willow sighed. "I'm a terrible liar."

"No, I'm perceptive. There's a difference." Paige glanced off towards the moon, then traced its rays back to Willow. The older girl found herself watching the way they turned the younger Gryffindor's eyes to a silvery brown. She blushed when she caught herself staring. "Come on, let's go for a walk."

Willow and Paige settled in stride for stride, the sand giving way before their gentle footsteps. The water quietly washed onto shore in waves. Every once in a while, a splash would announce the presence of a fish. The singing of cicadas and the chirping of crickets tickled Willow's ears. A chorus of tropical frogs hummed in the humid night air. She could have sworn that she heard a beast bellowing far off into the trees, but it was probably her imagination; she simply missed the Forbidden Forest.

Paige's expression had fallen into a neutral pensiveness. Willow sensed that her gut was churning with a multitude of emotions that were bound to explode at any second. She watched the way her eyes alighted like a kindling fire, then dulled, as if doused with water, then repeated the process all over again. Paige's eyes. God, were they beautiful: a deep, knowing brown that reached into your soul, able to tell you all your secrets before you even spilled them. Willow would never stop loving Paige's eyes.

Movement from the older girl caught her off guard. To her surprise, Paige reached out her hand, not even looking in Willow's direction. The younger girl's stomach flipped when she realized Paige was begging her to hold hands. Blushing deeply, Willow complied.

She could have sworn sparks shot between their hands when they touched. Willow felt butterflies race through her stomach, sending electrical impulses ricocheting throughout her entire body. Her head went fuzzy for a moment, and her muscles tensed. But it only took a second for Willow to regain control of her body. Only her heart refused to listen to her, racing like she was doing sprint training. She glanced at Paige to distract herself.