Leaving England
That evening Brian spent the night. He walked Marissa back to her house after four hours of wandering through town, each buying a few books and more parchment. At the mention of dinner, Brian followed her into the house where Marissa found two plates waiting for her on the table, still warm and a bit early. There was a note from her grandmother asking her to visit, but to enjoy dinner with Brian alone.
`Points for Grandma Weasley,' Marissa thought to herself as she went about dishing out the pork chops while Brian found some milk for them to drink.
In the course of the evening, Brian ate dinner with Marissa, visited Molly and Arthur and after they returned to Malfoy Estate, a long conversation ensued. They both had snuggled up on the couch talking about a range of topics and before Marissa knew it, 11pm had come and gone punctuated by two yawns.
"Do you…want to stay?" Marissa asked hesitantly as they were standing up and stretching their stiff limbs in the living room. She glanced at him seeing him shove his hands into his jean pockets and for a moment they looked at each other and she gave him a shy smile, hoping he didn't think she was being to forward. She was just having a wonderful day and didn't want it to end. Being curled up next to him while she slept would be the icing on the cake for her.
Brian relaxed and studied her face as if making sure she was asking because she truly wanted him there, not because she felt the need to ask. Shyly she looked down at her sandals, then back up at Brian's face, seeing a small smile before he answered.
"I'd like that," he said just as hesitantly seeing a smile light up her face.
"Nox," she whispered and the lights immediately clicked off, leaving a pale patch of moonlight on the stairs.
"Come on then," Marissa said taking his hand and guiding him upstairs then to her room.
"This time tomorrow, we'll be at opposite ends of the hemisphere," Brian said softly letting go of her hand and watching her turn on the small light near her bed.
"I know." Marissa sat down and pulled off a sandal and let it drop with a soft thud onto her dark blue carpet.
Those two words summed up both their feelings of leaving each other. At lunch they had discovered that this potential
six week separation was the longest they would have gone without seeing each other. Christmas Holiday's were only
three weeks and during the summer, the families usually got together once or twice in between vacations.
Marissa slipped off her other sandal and kept her eyes averted as Brian slipped out of his shirt and hung it over her chair. She was still very self conscious about her body and knew she'd blush furiously if she looked up and saw him looking at her.
Slowly and a bit shyly they got undressed with Marissa managing to slip her bra off while she was still wearing her nightshirt. Brian watched from his spot on the bed, amazed, and asked how she learned to do that move. Marissa replied it was something every girl learned…but she couldn't remember when she figured it out. He asked if she had any other tricks up her sleeve (no pun intended) but Marissa couldn't think of any, leading Brian to wonder how girls could secretly get their underwear off. Marissa just rolled her eyes and tossed him a toothbrush that was unopened. Standing side by side brushing their teeth they elbowed each other, flirting, for a position at the sink. Brushing her teeth had never been more fun!
"This is the first time we've done this together…even being at Nott's we couldn't both fit in that bathroom very comfortably," Brian mused rinsing out his mouth. He met her eyes in the mirror and she smiled.
"Couples who brush their teeth together, stay together," she joked nudging him in the side. Her eyes stayed locked with his and she saw his hand come up and smooth her hair down her back not saying anything. Letting him gather his thoughts Marissa remained quiet with her hands resting on the sink, her right one still holding her toothbrush.
"We'll still be the same when we get back right? Relationship wise?" Brian finally asked his eyes searching her freckled face in the mirror.
"I'd hope so. I don't see anything changing…do you?" she answered quietly, feeling his hand combing through her wavy hair. The feeling of his fingers moving through her thick hair was relaxing her more and more. She broke his gaze to place her toothbrush back on the holder.
"I hope not. I really can't see myself not with you," he finally said, now wrapping his arms around her waist looking at her in the mirror. He propped his chin on her shoulder and watched her, watching him, simultaneously feeling her arms wrap around his.
"Me too," she agreed feeling totally vulnerable that she just admitted she pretty much needed him in her life. He didn't say anything; thankfully, he just kissed her ear, tugged her hair then left her to finish getting ready for bed.
Twenty minutes later Marissa had fallen asleep curled around Brian with her head on his shoulder, but he remained awake staring at the leafy patterns on her ceiling. He was fully relaxed and a bit tired but he wanted to savor the moment, remember how she felt pressed up against his side her chest rising and falling against him in rhythmic waves. As his mind drifted about from Marissa, to school to how he was going to fair in his internship he slowly faded into sleep, hoping her parents didn't decide to floo over the next morning to say goodbye.
As July 12th arrived and the sun streamed in through the slats in Marissa's window blinds, she and Brian slept on. And it wasn't until half past nine that Brian finally stirred and managed to find Marissa's bedside clock. Blinking rapidly he looked at the clock then out the window, realizing it was the latest he had ever slept in.
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"….apparently my father knew this but didn't bother to tell me. He thought I wouldn't want to come with Arnold being here. Maybe the thought would've crossed my mind, but I wouldn't let Arnold get in the way of my internship. Rright now I am more pissed that he kept it from me. I specifically asked him if there were other people coming I might know from Hogwarts or even Beauxbatons. "No" he had told me. Well, I guess he didn't lie since Arnold's recommendation came from his Potions Professor in Germany…but still. Sometimes I even hate that Malfoy trait…answering the question and giving no other information."
"Well, you aren't like that. Erin is mostly…and I'm sorry you have to hang with Bosse for five more weeks. Just don't let him near you."
Marissa thought about her reply, knowing full well she couldn't agree to that since the six students (Arnold from Germany, one from Beauxbatons, one from Durmstrang, America and Canada and herself) had to work together in some aspects. She decided to maneuver the subject away from her annoyance about the whole situation. Brian would want to fix it and it would bother him if she kept harping on it.
"Jealous?"
A second or two ticked by.
"I shouldn't be, but I am. Just the fact he gets to see you for the next month and I won't see you until your mum's birthday. So, yes…a little."
"My Grandma says absence makes the heart grow fonder."
"Then it'll explode by the time August 11th comes. Then we just have to go back for another week of internship."
"That's only "maybe" though. If we get done everything the Professor's require, we might be able to stay home."
"I thought of that. I am just being pessimistic. That way, if it does happen we can stay home, I will be even happier! Probably doesn't make much sense…maybe I was out in the water too long today!"
Marissa smiled to herself, reached back and rearranged her ponytail, trying to ignore the trickle of sweat moving down
her back.
"Well, my heart might explode then too…but at least we won't have to worry about anything if that happens (hahaha)."
"That would be a messy incident. Well, Marissa, I would love to write more, but I have to go read up on some plants we found on the shore. Ones I have never seen before! Plain looking little buggers but when mixed with dragons tears and a certain kind of water (ratio of salt to non salt has to be perfect) it can actually slow down the progression of Dragon Pox…something you might think about for your Flu Potion."
"Yeah…if you could keep that book or forward it to me somehow that'd be great!"
"When I'm done I'll either OWL it or bring it with me in August."
"Thanks!! Go read. I need to go take a "bath". I love you!"
"I love you, too. Talk to you tomorrow."
And with that, the writing faded so Marissa folded the parchment and placed it safely back in her trunk. Sitting on the edge of her cot, feeling the sticky still air envelop her, she took inventory of her small cabin she had to herself. Two windows, both open, a small fan, her trunk, a chest of drawers and a small bathroom. They had added some modern amenities since her father was last here and she owl'd to tell him about it, he had written back that she should enjoy it, when he stayed it was a tent and a communal bathroom. Thoughts of Brian and the plant he found filled her head as she went into her bathroom and began getting ready for her shower. She had already gotten a pretty good sunburn when she forgot to use the sun-block charm her first day here. Her hair was already lightening into a blondish color and she had more freckles than she cared to admit. And, she also had Arnold a few cabins down who was talking to her but, so far, had remained civil and hadn't been making any smart remarks about her and Brian. Claudia was home with his mother helping her move from a small flat in Wales to a small house outside of London.
Marissa took her tired, aching body through the motions of a shower and could not wait until she fell into bed. Bending
over and pulling up plants, lifting and moving cauldrons, constantly walking back and forth from the Potions
cabin/storage area to the large building they were working in, hiking through the trees to find the right kind of seed
to add to a potion, had brought her back to the shape she had been in when playing Quidditch. Lunch consisted of
sandwiches appearing where ever they happened to be and dinner was a group affair in the small dining hall. Marissa had
taken an instant liking to Jennifer Clark from America. Most of the others kept to themselves, except Arnold would
occasionally join them and acted like a normal teenage boy around Jennifer.
Getting dressed in her shorts and tank top, for bed time, she decided to go outside and hang up some laundry she had hand washed by hand, hoping it would be dry in the morning. Standing on her little porch she strung up a few shirts and shorts, letting her undergarments dry over her shower in the bathroom.
"Marissa," a voice called and she immediately recognized it as Jennifer's, a sixth year from Salem Institute who was in the cabin next to hers.
"Jennifer," she answered and turned to leaned on the porch railing watching Jennifer sit in a small chair through the dim light. "All clean now?"
"Yes I am. Took a nice cold shower since it's so damn hot here."
"It's Africa."
"I know, but I'm from Maine and it doesn't get this hot back home."
"Neither does England, so it's new to me also." Marissa crossed her arms and relaxed against the railing, listening to the strange noises in the night time. They were quite for a moment, each taking in the the foreign surroundings, seeing the moon rise above the trees when Jennifer broke the stillness.
"Here comes Arnold up the road." Jennifer pointed behind Marissa who turned around. Sure enough, he was walking casually up the gravel path from his cabin three doors down. Professor Snape had the cabin two lots down from Marissa and the one between them was empty.
"Hi, Arnold," Jennifer waved a smile apparent in her voice.
"Hi ladies. Any of you as sore as I am?" he turned up Jennifer small "sidewalk" and joined her on the porch.
"It's worse than Quidditch," Marissa admitted, startled to hear Arnold laugh.
"I don't play so I wouldn't know, but I'll take your word for it."
Jennifer kicked out an overturned crate for Arnold to sit on, which he did, leaning back against the railing so he only had to turn a bit to his left to see Marissa.
"Talk to Potter yet, Marissa?" Marissa couldn't detect any animosity in his tone so she nodded to him, then realized he probably couldn't see her in the dark.
"I just did. He said it's much cooler in Ireland than here," Marissa said carefully, not quite sure how he would react to any conversation about supposed enemy.
"Only five more weeks," Jennifer sighed, swatting at a bug that was erratically flying around her damp hair.
"Do you have a boyfriend Jennifer?" Marissa asked clued into the fact that Arnold seemed to take an interest in this American. Marissa's other reason for asking was in the hope if he and Jennifer got together then maybe Arnold would continue to be pleasant and continue acting normal…, `or would that be "strange" for him?' she wondered.
"No, not anymore. He was a Muggle and couldn't understand my life or why I had to come here. So, we split about two weeks before coming to Africa."
"I'm sorry," Marissa sympathized. Jennifer shrugged a shoulder.
"It would never have worked," was all she would add. "I guess you have a boyfriend from what Arnold just mentioned?"
"Yes, Brian. We go to Hogwarts together; known each other all my life…he's sixteen."
"Brian Potter? Potter sounds familiar," Jennifer mused tapping her finger against her lips. In the dim light of Arnold's wand that he had lit up, Marissa could see Jennifer's eyes narrowed as she struggled to place the name.
"Harry Potter's son," Arnold clarified and Jennifer nodded.
"Yeah, that's it." She nodded her thanks to Arnold.
And that was all she said. No gushing about Brian or Harry. No questions about what it was like dating the most famous wizard's son. She just left it alone as if she almost didn't know exactly who the Potters were. And that is what Marissa liked about her. She seemed to know when to acknowledge something and let it go, or when to continue discussing things…like Potions. She and Marissa already had one conversation about the use of Wolfsbane that lasted nearly an hour over lunch. Arnold had actually fallen asleep and Trent, the boy from Canada had tried to stay interested, but found the girl from Beauxbatons was much more interesting to look at for the last forty five minutes of their lunch.
"How about you Arnold?" Jennifer asked brazenly and in the dim light, Marissa saw him shake his head, his brown hair flopping onto his forehead.
"We just transferred to Hogwarts a few months ago," he said in his thick German accent.
"Who's "we"?" Jennifer questioned, leaning forward showing an interest in Arnold story.
"My twin sister Claudia. We moved back to England where my mother is from; my father died in Germany and we wanted to be closer to my grandparents."
Marissa never heard Jennifer's response; she was so surprised to hear Arnold talk about his father that she totally ignored their conversation. He had never said anything about either parent; she made a mental note to write Devon about it, telling him that it was true his father passed away. Pulling her back into the conversation were the words Muggle, accident and car; then she heard him mention his mother's name and Hogwarts in the same sentence.
"Your mum went to Hogwarts?"
"Yes," Arnold answered now looking at her squarely as if challenging her to ask who his mother was. Their little staring match ensued for a minute until Jennifer asked why they were looking at each other.
"Okay," Marissa sighed waving off Jennifer's question. "Who is your mother?"
"Marietta Edgecomb."
A beat of silence.
"Who?" Marissa asked, confused, not knowing the name at all. The name rang no bells, yet she was sure he wanted it to, or was telling her so she could go research who this woman was.
"She knows Harry…was in some group with him and her friend Cho way back when."
"Cho Chang?" Marissa asked stifling a laugh, relaxing against the railing. She tried to imagine Harry with anyone else but Hermione and it wasn't working.
"I think so. Weren't they an item or something? Chang and Harry?"
"I think…I'll have to ask dad if he knows Marietta…your mum. Maybe he knows about this "group" too." Marissa made another mental note to figure out who this woman was. Obviously, the name was supposed to mean something to her but truthfully it meant nothing.
Marissa excused herself at that moment, needing to sleep and also seeing that Arnold and Jennifer probably wanted some time to talk amongst themselves. Closing and locking her door, Marissa extinguished her lantern and climbed on top of the sheet, knowing it would just stick to her if she crawled under it. Rolling around for a bit, trying to get comfortable she slowly drifted off hearing Jennifer and Arnold's quiet voices next door until they too joined the land of the sleeping interns.
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