Albus Potter and the Healing Springs

 "Where have you been?" demanded Ronnie, as she saw Albus crawl through the portrait hole.

Albus took a good look around the common room and saw everyone staring at him and Ronnie. It wasn't like first years to gather a lot of attention and make a fuss in front of everyone so this was odd. When Albus looked at Ronnie, he could clearly see pure anger written all over face. Even the usually calm fire in the common room was blazing angry and it was perfectly reflecting from Ronnie's eyes.

"I was ..." Albus couldn't even finish his sentence. Bella's unexplained outburst had upset him greatly.

"Because I heard you were talking to that Slytherin girl," she hissed, needing no more introduction to scream at him; Slytherins always treated Ronnie worse than everyone else and she took a particular dislike in Bella.

"If you mean Bella, yes, I was talking to her," remarked Albus with slits. He hated that no one could see her for the angel she was.

"Look at how you caress her name," Ronnie barked. "As if you're blind to her evil!"

"What evil?! Maybe if you stopped judging her from what people tell you, you'd be able to see her true kindness!" exclaimed Albus. His tone was rising now and he was definitely angry. Ronnie tried a different approach. 

"Albus..." Ronnie started, clearly noting that aggression was not getting through to him. "Have you seen how she treats her own friends? Scorpius showed up with a black eye this morning! And he was trying to avoid her all day! He was terrified!"

"Well, he brought that upon himself," he said blatantly. He had no sympathy for anyone, especially a Slytherin, that was making false accusations on Bella.

"Oh really? Fine, have it your way!" Ronnie said, now building up her anger. "But for your information, don't think I didn't hear her screaming at you to leave her alone."

"You're just jealous because no one wants to talk to you! No one! You hardly have any friends! If it wasn't for me and Alex, you'd be all alone! You're just weird!" yelled Albus, unable to stop the words before he realized what he had said.

Ronnie lost her cool. She was three seconds away from punching Albus herself; however, she settled for the nastiest look she could manage and briskly turned away from him. Albus almost instantly regretted his words, but he knew that he couldn't try to talk to her again right after this argument and comforted himself with the fact that Ronnie doesn't like to be approached when she's angry anyways. And besides, he needed to talk to Alex.

Albus took one look around the common room again and realized that Alex wasn't there. He must be in the library. Great, he thought, more walking. Too many times did he walk all around this castle today, and he was getting sick of it.

Before he set out on that expedition, however, he decided to go upstairs and write a letter to mum and dad. Maybe it will relieve some stress. He made his way up to his trunk and took out a quill, ink, and parchment. He held the parchment in his hand and looked at it for a few minutes before he began to write. What was he going say? He didn't want to mention the fight with Ronnie or his parents would both think he was getting into trouble or something. He also had a fighting urge to ask his father Harry about all the "hero" rumors. He hasn't been in Hogwarts for that long yet and he felt like the whole world was just talking about his dad. Noting that writing this letter seemed to have convey more anger rather than to relieve it, he decided to start writing as soon as possible, before he began yelling at the paper, too.

"Dear Mum and Dad,

How are you? I'm good. I have two good friends, Alex and Ronnie. James is a prat as always. Can you please trade him for a dog? Maybe even a cat. How's Lily? Did she finally stop crying? Remind her that she only has to wait two more years until she comes! Anyways, dad, I really wanted to ask you a question. Everyone around here seems to think of you as some kind of legend, a hero. I know it's ridiculous but I just wanted to tell you for laughs; funny huh? Well I'll be going now, got loads of studying to do! Lots of Love!

P.S. Dad, I don't know if I'm terrible at potions like you were yet, because our Professor is missing. I do hope he comes; Alex is ready to teach himself potions if the Professor doesn't turn up soon. 
Love,
Albus"

Maybe Albus didn't have to ask Alex any questions about his own father after all. Plus, how ridiculous would the answers be? That he defeated who-knows-what? He giggled at the thought of it. Yes, his father was an auror, but that doesn't mean that he was some sort of hero. People work him up to be someone who saved the world or something. Albus just couldn't get the idea through his head. His father didn't seem like someone who was immensly brave. He wouldn't even let Albus, James, nor Lily out of the house alone. That was the main reason that Albus didn't already know anyone around his age who would be going to Hogwarts other than Rose. It felt great to be in Hogwarts because he could actually interact with other kids. His father had no reason to make him stay enclosed in their house for all these years, he was paranoid; not brave. But Albus did love him that way.

Alex walked into the room when Albus was about to finish sealing his letter. He was holding at least three books that were all extremely thick. Albus couldn't see how he was going to read all of those; he would never think of reading them at all. Alex plopped all the books on his bed as he delivered a look of great exhaustion.

"I just got this potions book because I'm beginning to doubt that Professor Slughorn is going to be coming back any time soon. I don't want to waste another day doing nothing! I wasn't sure which potions book would help, so I just grabbed these three," he said whilst handing the books to Albus. They were all kind of heavy and Albus had no intention on reading them so he handed them back. "So do you know where Ronnie is? I was hoping that she'd be in the common room so we could discuss the last Herbology lesson Professor Longbottom taught," asked Alex.

"No I don't, what happened was-" Albus said before the door flew open. In came a boy that Alex and Albus both recognized from their classes but never talked to. Albus never wondered who their other roommates were as there were two more beds in the dorm other than his and Alex's. The boy had ruffled brown hair and was taller than both Alex and Albus. His skin was freckled and he had a big pointed nose.

"Hello there," exclaimed the boy.

"Wait, what are you doing in here?" accused Alex, very confused. Intuition was telling him that this new guy was not someone he would take a particular liking to.

"Erm - I sleep in here...This is my dorm, too," snapped the boy, sensing the unfriendliness in Alex's tone.

"I never noticed you though, pardon me but, how is it that we've-" said Alex looking quickly at Albus waiting for a nod to reassure him that he hadn't seem him either; or maybe just a sign that Albus shared Alex's dislike for the boy as well, "-never seen you here. It's been a couple of days already and I would assume that if this was your dorm we'd have met you."

"Well I have seen you two here. I always come to sleep very late so you're both asleep by then. I'm Jake Webster by the way." said Jake very calmly, succeeding in keeping his tone light while throwing himself on his bed which was next to Albus'.

"We go to sleep at the designated times, why would you come here late? That's against the rules -" started Alex before rudely interupted.

"Yeah, yeah. Listen, I've seen how much of a goody-goody you are in class and I'm not up to listening to any more of it while I'm trying to relax." said Jake. This time, Alex was really getting under Jake's skin.

Albus knew that Alex could get a bit annoying but he would never say something like that to him. Especially if he didn't know him already. This was the first time the two have met and Jake was insulting him as if it was no problem. Albus was thinking about defending Alex but then he quickly spoke.

"Well then, I see where we stand. I guess I'll just be forced to tell Jones and Edwards if you're in bed late again," spat Alex. His temper was clearly rising, but he tried his best to stay calm.

"Okay? Have fun with that." said Jake before he closed his bed curtains and didn't say anything else.

Alex's hands were trembling as he stared at his wand laying on his own bed. But, he didn't do anything. He just grabbed his books and walked out of the dorm, slamming the door behind him. Albus didn't like Jake at all, but it wasn't his business to have a row with him after Alex left. Besides, Albus was already exhausted with all the arguments going on today. He more than anything wanted to just go to sleep and forget about all of it, but he had to deliver his letter before lights out. He grabbed the letter, his wand, and ran down the stairs not forgetting to also slam the door on his way out. In the common room he could hear Alex asking people if they'd seen Ronnie. She wasn't there. She's probably just in her dorm, Albus thought to himself. He climbed through the portrait hole and left the Gryffindor common room.

He was half-way to the owlery when he heard a loud scream. It was followed by a screech that didn't sound human, nor like any animal that he ever heard before. Albus went rigid, and then collapsed to the ground with his hands above his head. He peeked out slowly to make sure he was safe. When he saw no one, he leaped off the ground and started to sprint back to the common room, his mind racing miles ahead of his feet.

Down a few hallways Albus swore that he heard something and kept throwing himself on the nearest wall. He had his wand clentched tightly in his hand and was breathing heavily. For a moment he thought he saw something big and black, but he couldn't recognize what it was and it was quickly gone. Albus couldn't believe his eyes and was more than sure, or perhaps hoped, that he was just imagining all of this.

* * *

Albus could hardly sleep that night, and was also upset that he never got to send his letter. He knew that it could wait, but he couldn't get the image of that creature out of his mind. He didn't tell Alex, because he would surely think he was a lunatic; and Ronnie ignored Albus when he tried to apologize for their row yesterday.

It was really awkward for Alex because of his two friends not talking to each other but he still tried to include the both of them in one whole conversation. Albus never got around to telling Alex what happened between him and Ronnie, but it wasn't that hard to figure out that they were mad at each other. They were in the Great Hall and Alex was in the middle of the two. It seemed like the whole Great Hall was deep in conversation except that one little spot at the Gryffindor table where the trio sat. Alex was the first to speak.

"So we've got our first flying lesson today, Ronnie! Are you excited?" asked Alex with a smile. Flying never excited him, but if there was even the chance of making Ronnie happy, he'd force a smile.

"Yeah, I guess," said Ronnie dully.

"What about you Albus? Ready to get on that broom?" asked Alex with yet another forced smile.

"Not really," said Albus just as dull as Ronnie.

"Hopefully we all have a ton of fun!" said Alex hugging each of them from his sides as they both made no movement or expression.

The trio walked to their first flying lesson very awkwardly. Alex had to be in the middle again to keep the distance between Albus and Ronnie. Alex did try to talk to both of them, but it just wasn't working and there was no point in trying any longer so they stayed silent for the rest of the way there.

Madame Hooch was a very good teacher. Most of the children were able to mount their brooms within the first twenty minutes of class. This class had both Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs. Neither House was trying to outperform the other, which made the class fun for everyone.

One of the first to mount her broom was Ronnie. It didn't take much time until she was Madame Hooch's favorite student. She was flying circles around everyone and her long, blonde hair flew gracefully behind her as she did so.

Alex wasn't that bad, he was able to mount his broom after about ten minutes into the class. He wasn't flying around though, but staring around at the Hufflepuffs. His head was moving all over the place as if he were searching for someone.

Albus was one of the last people to mount their brooms. He felt ashamed and was so grateful that James wasn't around to see this. He needed extra help from Madame Hooch along with three other students. One Gryffindor and two Hufflepuffs. It was extremely embarrassing to see how well Ronnie was doing and how she merely laughed when she flew over him.

"You're Weasley's and Potter's son, aren't you?" asked Madame Hooch. The two boys and girl with them all gasped. Albus ignored them. "How are they?"

"Yes, and they're fine." said Albus very shyly. He knew what was coming.

"Your brother is an excellent flier. Took him a while, but he's great. I'm sure you will be, too," said Madame Hooch very enthusiasticly.

There it was; she said it. Albus knew that Madame Hooch was expecting him to be an amazing flier like the rest of his family. Unfortunately, he was the worse in the family and he had no way of hiding it.

This wasn't the only trouble in his mind though. He didn't know what it was going to take, but he knew it was going to be a lot in order for Ronnie to forgive him. He tried to remember what he said to her, but all he could remember was saying that she hardly had any friends. Everything he said was spur the moment and he didn't mean a word of it. Ronnie and Alex both meant a lot to him already and losing one of them this early would be dreadful.

"Everyone, please follow behind me as we slowly fly around the yard. Not to high now. Yes – nice – now lower your broom Cambridge," said Madame Hooch to the class. Everyone formed a sort of mob behind her and flied slowly together.

One Hufflepuff boy was flying around recklessly and couldn't keep his balance. It was as if his broom had a mind of its own.

"BLOODY HELL!" yelled the boy so loudly that Madame Hooch gave him a disgusted face in spite of what was happening to him.

"Cambridge, do me a favor and help that boy get it together!" yelled Madame Hooch. Ronnie quickly went to try to help the boy, but it wasn't easy. He wasn't able to stop and Ronnie was forced to tug him off his broom and bring him back to ground.

Alex was flying next to Albus and he seemed very nervous. Albus was terrified of falling, he was so afraid of heights. He had no idea how Ronnie was flying so well, especially since this was her first time and she had never even held a broom, let alone ride one. 

The class reached the other end of the courtyard and was making the turn to go back when Ronnie quickly flew in Albus' way which threw him off balance. He was dangling from the broom trying to pull himself up as Alex screamed for Madame Hooch to come help. Ronnie flew away immediately to blend in with the rest of the class and avoid trouble. Madame Hooch was on her way but Albus lost his grip on the broom and fell down.

Luckily for him, they weren't that much above ground but it was enough that he sprained his wrist. Madame Hooch quickly landed and tried to comfort Albus.

"Oh dear. We'll need to get you to Madame Pomfrey so she can heal you right away." said Madame Hooch in a sympathetic voice.

"Professor, I'll take him!" said Alex almost immediately.

"Alright Greenfield, take Potter to the Hospital Wing and tell Madame Pomfrey what happened. I'll be up there just as soon as class is over. You're a good friend, Greenfield," said Madame Hooch as everyone began to land.

Albus could see Ronnie at the front of the crowd of people looking very worried and guilty. She pushed herself into the crowd to hide from him when Madame Hooch complimented Alex for being a good friend. Alex grabbed Albus and walked him out of the courtyard back into the castle.

"So what happened between you two?! What could it have been that she'd be provoked to throw you off your broom!" yelled Alex as soon as they entered the castle and out of earshot.

"It's a long story," said Albus plainly. He wasn't feeling well and really didn't want to talk about what happened the day before.

"Well we have a bit of a walk until we get to the Hospital Wing so might as well make use of it," exasperated Alex. He was tired of forcing smiles and not being informed why he was even doing it.

"We got into an argument," said Albus hoping that was enough to keep Alex quiet.

He was wrong. Deadly wrong.

"Okay, well obviously! What exactly happened?" said Alex yelling at first but trying to calm himself down.

"She was critisizing me for talking to Bella Lestrange – the Slytherin girl – and I just didn't like it. Ronnie had no reason to talk badly about her, she doesn't even know her," said Albus now remembering all his anger. "And then I told her that that is why she hardly has friends. That attitude of her's surely gets annoying."

"Well has it occured to you that she was looking out for you? That girl, Bella Lestrange... I don't trust her. She doesn't seem like the kind of person you should be mixing yourself up with. Just her name; it gives me the chills. It sounds oddly familiar though, doesn't it?" said Alex while tapping his chin which indicated he was going deep into thought.

"Whatever, I don't even want to talk about this. Look we're here," said Albus now annoyed with Alex for disliking Bella too. He couldn't believe that none of his friends could see how great she was!

When they entered the Hospital Wing, Madame Pomfrey was already busy taking care of another student. The student was hidden behind curtains placed around their bed. When Alex closed the door, Madame Pomfrey took a moment to soar out from the curtains.

"Sorry for that boys, what can I do you for?" asked Madame Pomfrey very urgently.

"I sprained my wrist in a flying lesson. I fell from my broom..." said Albus very embarrassed but was glad there weren't many people in the room.

"Poor boy, now come here. What's your name?" asked Madame Pomfrey while escorting Albus to a bed where he sat on as she examined his wrist.

"Albus Potter," he said while trying to restrain from making any noises that showed he was in quite a bit of pain.

"Potter! Of course! Your father used to always come here, it was as if the Hospital Wing was his second dorm!" said Madame Pomfrey very jokingly while fetching for her wand.

Alex sat next to Albus trying to be sympathetic. "See Albus," he started. "No need to be ashamed or embarrassed! Your father used to come here all the time."

That didn't exactly make Albus feel better but he wondered why his father came to the Hospital Wing so much. Did he fall off brooms too? No that couldn't be it; he was a great flier.

"Here we are, now hold your wrist and you might feel a slight pinch," said Madame Pomfrey while pointing her wand to Albus' wrist. He felt the pinch she warned him about, but then felt completely fine.

"That should do it then. You can stay here for the last ten minutes left before next class. I need to tend to Mr. Jones over there," said Madame Pomfrey with a subtle hint of unenthusasism.

When she opened the curtains to go inside, Albus could see Taylor Jones laying there. He was all scratched up, and looked exhausted. He gave Albus a sad look before Madame Pomfrey closed the curtains and went back to tending him.

"I wonder what happened to him..." said Alex very shocked. He then added, "Oh and Madame Pomfrey, Madame Hooch wanted us to tell you that she'll be up as soon as class is over."

They heard her quickly say okay and they knew she was busy. Albus wondered if Taylor was the one he heard scream last night, but it couldn't be. That was all in his imagination. Or so he wished. He felt guilty for not telling anyone what happened when it did. But what could he be expected to do? He just wanted to forget all about it.

Madame Hooch came through the doors a while later and was pleased to see that Albus was already healed.

"There's nothing that Madame Pomfrey can't heal. So grateful for that witch," said Madame Hooch.

Albus wasn't paying attention to Madame Hooch but noticed eyes looking at him from the door. It was Ronnie trying to hide herself from them.

When Albus' eyes met hers, she ran away.