Explanations
EXPLANANATIONS
Pia and I snuck out of the old sports-room. We walked out of Hogwarts Proper and towards the forest. We walked across the rebuilt Brockdale Bridge and sat down under the trees on the other side.
“Where do you want me to start?” Pia asked me.
“Tell me everything. Tell me how Danger... I mean Ced becomes alive again when he nears you. Tell me why I don’t remember certain things… such as you being a first-year with me?” I asked.
Pius began to explain, “During my first-year here, Ced literally found me. One day I was in the girls lavatory washing my hands, and he just came up out of the sink thru the drain.”
“That’s certainly bold,” I said.
“Yeah,” stated Pia… "He almost gave me a heart attack!”
Pia went on, “Anyway, we talked... I was nice to him... that's all it took. All it took was somebody being nice to him.... somebody who liked him for himself.”
“But when Ced is near you, he becomes corporeal... alive,” I stated.
Pia smiled and said, “There's a reason for that. I was able to cast a spell on him. When Ced comes near to me, he shares part of my living essence.”
“I don’t understand,” I said.
“Whatever living force that animates a living person…. I share it with Ced when he’s near me,” Pia explained.
“I’ve never heard of a spell that does that?” I said.
Pia laughed softly and said, “That’s because there wasn’t one - I made this spell up myself.”
I looked over at Pia. She had a yellow sparrow sitting upon her shoulder.
“You made the spell up!” I exclaimed. "I've never heard of the such."
“I’m pretty good at making up my own spells. I think that’s why I scared my housemates, classmates, and professors,” Pia said.
“Ahhhh... That’s why you can identify so well with Ced. You both were treated the same way,” I said to Pius.
“Yes,” said Pius.
“You and I were always together. So there’s one thing vastly different from Ced and myself. I had you,” Pia explained.
We lay down on the soft green grass and gazed upon the clouds.
“Would it be okay if I held your hand,” I asked Pia.
Pia was still watching the clouds but said, “Of course if you'd like to."
I took Pia's hand within my own and it felt electric. It felt soothing, it felt wonderful, it felt blissful... it felt complete, it felt everything.
"But, I don't understand why Ced is a ghost. He was killed years ago and his spirit left to wherever spirits go?" I pointed out.
"That's because Ced is not a true ghost. He's basically a memory... or a memory-ghost. He's what's left of Ced... that's why he's here and haunts the old sports-room. That old sports-room hasn't been used since the Quidditch Gymnasium was built."
"He doesn't seem like the Cedric Diggory that I've always heard about," I stated.
"That's because he's only a distant memory. He's bitter about his death... and angry about how he's been treated since he became a memory-ghost. I've been trying to find a way to set him free... so he can reunited with his spiritual self."
I squeezed Pia's fingers and asked, "Why don't I remember you? I know for a fact that if I had ever met you before that I would remember you."
“I think the memory jinx is almost over. It was cast when we were only about ten years old. I believe your memory will return soon… unless you get a booster spell.
“That’s not going to happen,” I said to Pia. “Tell me something we did as first-years. I want to know.”
“We first met during Potions Class under Professor Slughorn,” began Pia.
“We had a break to go to recces right before Potions class. You and I were climbing a tree outside and then I fell and scuffed my knee. You jumped from the tree and kissed my scuffed knee.”
“Professor Slughorn walked by and caught us. He was furious and wrote us both up for acts of maliciously spreading a disease,” Pia solemnly told me.
“But… little kids do that all the time. He was silly to act that way,” I told Pia.
Then, suddenly something clicked in my mind.
“I remember that,” I said excitedly.
I was so thrilled that I was finally remembering parts of my past.
“I recall that Slytherin and Hufflepuff had Potion class together. Both houses had uneven numbers so we ended up partners.”
Pia only nodded in agreement.
“Oh my stars!” I said unbelievably. “You’re Pia! You’re Pia my potions partner during first-year!”
“Yes, you are remembering correctly,” Pia nodded as she glanced at me.
But, I was still curious, “Then why did they separate us… what was so bad that they split us up?
We were still lying down, but the tiny yellow sparrow was still standing on Pia's shoulder. Suddenly I found myself staring at it.
Pia's eyes followed mine and she saw the sparrow.
She looked at the sparrow and said, “Go away, Spiro.”
Pia then took a deep breath and blew it on the sparrow. The yellow feathers seemed to blow away then dissolve and the sparrow disappeared.
Pia turned back to me as if nothing had happened then began to explain.
“It was thought we had an unhealthy relationship. We always wanted to be together. You got to a point where you wanted the sorting hat to sort us together,” said Pia.
“But we were just kids back then,” I said, “I’m sure lots of kids want to be sorted with their friends.”
“Yes,” said Pia. “But you threw a wall-eyed fit. It was awful. They finally placed the sorting hat on you just to stop your tantrum.”
“What did the sorting hat say,” I asked him.
Pia stared up at the clouds watching them form shapes… move... then reform and make different shapes.
“It said,” Pia said glumly, “that you did not belong in Hufflepuff. It would place you in Ravenclaw if you wanted, but that was it."
I was confused. “But… but the sorting hat… it will place you in the house that you desire if you ask it. This doesn’t make sense.”
“Hmmmm…" Pia said as if surprised, “I didn’t know that… as soon as Professor McGonagall began to place the hat on my head it yelled out Hufflepuff.”
Pia withdrew her hand from mine… she laid on her side, laid her elbow to the ground and propped her head up with her hand.
“Exactly how do you know this, Albus?” Pia asked.
“Because my dad told me I could pick any house that I wanted and the sorting house would place me in it,” I explained.
“So you didn’t ask the sorting hat to place you in Gryffindor?” stated Pia.
I began to explain, “Well… to begin with I wanted to be in Gryffindor. It was the house that the Potter family was all sorted into. However when the sorting hat placed me into Slytherin, I was happy. I don’t know why, but that was the house I wanted to be placed.”
o0o
“But forget about all that,” I said, "why were we separated... why was a memory charm used on me to forget certain details about my first year?”
Pia frowned and looked at her right wrist where her watch was.
“I can’t stay for long… I have a class in just a few minutes.”
I wanted to tell Pius to just fucking ditch his class because I was ditching mine. But I couldn't do or say that to Pius.
“We spent too much of our time together... and we were on opposite ends of the spectrum. My family and your family were way too different for them to accept us as friends. I didn’t know part of your memory had been wiped until we met again in the library,” Pia said quickly.
“But, I want to know more… I don't give a fuck about all that family crap!” I insisted.
Pia thought for a second and said, “I have to work tonight… but maybe after nine p.m.... could we meet in the sports-room with Ced?"
It took me a minute to know that she meant ‘Dangerous Digs.’ ”
I didn’t really want to meet there because I wanted her all to myself – but I was desperate to see Pia again.
So I said, “That sounds perfect… I’ll be there.”
We both got up to leave, but before we crossed Brockdale Bridge I reached up and stroked her golden blonde hair.
Pia just smiled and said, “Don’t forget.... the lavatory at nine p.m."
“I will definitely be there,” I told her.