CORA
“Have you packed everything, Cora?”
“It’s not like I'll be away for three months” Cora answered at her mother’s question.
It was summer and it was great. She had been playing with Tyler almost every day and she had been calling Seamus and Dean even if they still send her messages through owls, but like any other summer the time had come for her to go in Scottland to her aunt Minerva McGonagall.
“That’s true” her mother said “But Scottland isn’t around the corner Cora so be sure to have everything.”
“Yeah” Cora said after taking a breath.
“What is it?” asked Vivianne sitting next to her daughter.
“Today’s Harry’s birthday” she said shrugging her shoulders.
“The Dursleys’ boy?” Cora nodded her head.
“The nice one” Vivianne smiled at her, before nudging her shoulder with hers.
“So?” the woman asked “You want to spend the day with him?”
“What? Mum, no” Cora exclaimed getting up from her bed starting to pace back and forth in front of her mother, that chuckled.
“I’m sorry” she said raising her hands “Speak up and I won’t make assumptions.”
Cora glared at her mother, before taking another breath.
“It’s not like we are best friends, but we got along when we were at Hogwarts” she had discovered many more sides of Harry Potter during their first year “But since we got back, I’ve never seen him. And today is the 31st of July.” Cora could feel her mother’s eyes on her.
“Have you asked him to hang out with you and Tyler?”
“Well, I would have” she said crossing her arms over her chest “But he is sneaky. I just saw him a couple of time. He waved” she said mimicking Harry’s movement “I waved back and that’s it.”
“I’m not getting if your angry or worried” Cora’s glare on her mother just deepened.
“Neither” she said “It was just to talk, mum!” Vivianne chuckled and that made Cora growl.
“You know what?” said Cora walking out of her room “I’m going for a run”
“Three hours tops, Cora” she heard her mother say from up the stairs “And try to calm down.”
Cora turned to the picture of her parents next to the door “A very funny woman you choose.” she said before exiting her house.
The day was beautiful, clear sky and a nice wind, the kind of day for a run. How she liked to run so much. Since they were little Tyler always wanted to beat her, but he never managed, anyway he always beat her with memory and reddles, Cora was terrible with that.
She ran down the street, feeling calmer already. In the distance she noticed Tyler’s house, but that day was empty. Tyler had gone to London to his grandmother since in two days it would have been her 81st birthday. Then she turned to the n°4 and she couldn’t hel3p but glare. She couldn’t understand Harry Potter. She had arrived at that conclusion. They got along. She was sure of it. He was cool. But then he disappeared. Just like that. And then he even waved at her, but nothing more. What was wrong with him?
She was ready to run again, but she stopped turning towards the Dursley’s house once again. She had to know what was wrong with him.
Cora walked towards the door and knocked. She waited for some moments before the door opened to reveal Harry, that looked at her with wide eyes.
“Cora?”
“Hello there, so you’re alive” she said sarcastically “Thought someone had kidnapped you.”
He looked back, before closing the door behind him.
“What are you doing here?” he asked quietly, making the girl frown.
“What are you doing?” she said.
“Nothing” he said shrugging his shoulders. She shrugged her shoulders too, mimicking him.
“Are you angry at me?” he asked carefully.
“No” she said “You’re just behaving strangely” silence fell between them and Cora studied him for a moment.
“I’m sorry I’ve acted strangely” Cora sensed that there was something that he was hiding, but decided not to push him on that.
“I was just passing by to say happy birthday” she said crossing her arms over her chest and Harry’s eyes widened.
“You remembered?” Cora just shrugged her shoulders.
“It’s just that in two days it’s Tyler’s grandma’s birthday” and that made Harry chuckle.
“Thanks.” Cora looked at him and shown a little smile before shaking her head.
“What was the best present?” she asked, but he frowned.
“What?”
“Ron’s, Penny’s, Hermione’s or maybe Miss Harvey’s?” at her question she noticed his eyes getting sad and that really confused her.
“Oh... nothing” he said kicking the dirt under his foot.
What was going on there?
During the entire year Harry and Ron had been inseparable. The Weasley boy even decided to remain at the school during Christmas to not let his friend be alone during the holidays. And Penny and Hermione where their shadows. They shared a deathly experience together, that kind of stuff made people bond.
And Miss Harvey looked at him like he was her own son.
“Maybe their presents couldn’t be sent by owls” she tried, but she wasn’t sure he was feeling any better. She observed him, he was so different from the boy in school. He was sassy, he was friendly, but right now in front of her there was the boy she thought was called Harry Dursley. She wouldn’t let this slide.
“So, what’s your program today, birthday boy?”
“Nothing special, honestly” he said with a little smile.
“That’s a shame I have to leave, or we could have spent the day together” that made him smile with a surprised expression.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“Scotland” she answered “I’ll be at aunt Minnie’s”
Harry let out a laugh, that made her chuckle too with a little frown.
“She doesn’t seem scary at all with that name” he said making her leaning her shoulders against the brick wall.
“She is scary enough believe me.”
Cora still had to find a memory of her aunt not being strict or quite scary. But in all honesty, Cora hoped to be like her as she become an adult. A woman that wasn’t afraid to say what was on her mind, holding everything together and quite terrifying.
“You’re going because your mother’s work?”
“Oh you know...” she said shrugging her shoulders “It’s like a little ritual of ours. I always go during vacations” Harry nodded his head with a little smile.
“How long will you be away?” Cora thought a moment.
“I’m not sure” she said “Probably I’ll come back in mid-August" he nodded his head silently. Cora looked down towards her watch.
“I’ve still got two hours and a half” she said “What to hang out?”
“I... I don’t know, Cora” he said glancing inside the house, but she took him by the wrist starting to pull him with her.
“We could go to my house and eat cookies” she said “I know it’s not a cake, but it could do.”
“I don’t want to intrude” he said, but she rolled her eyes.
“Come on, Harry, you don’t-” suddenly a noise made her turn towards the hedge making Harry bump into her, but she didn’t even notice.
“What was that?” she asked with her eyes fixed on the green leaves.
“What?” he asked making Cora pointing in that direction.
“There” Harry turned his head, trying to look closely, before turning to her with wide eyes.
“Could it be the dog-wolf?” that made Cora roll her eyes.
“The dog-wolf? Really? You’re scared of that too?” she asked with a scoff. She was used to Tyler fussing over that all the time. Every single strange noise was the dog-wolf for him.
“I’ve seen it once” Harry argued making her turning to him “It was really close!”
“It’s not it, Harry!” she said back making him scoff this time.
“How can you... Wait!” he said turning quickly towards the hedge with wide eyes “I think there something in there” Cora frowned at him.
“That’s literally the point-” Harry gasped making her gasp too.
“Have you seen that?” he pointed.
“What?” she asked trying to see if her eyes would catch something.
“There” he said pointing again “What was that?” he asked thoughtfully, but Cora hadn’t been able to spot anything. What could it be, the sound didn’t seem the one that a lizard would make.
“I know what day it is” Dudley’s voice made Cora growl to turn towards him, while Harry kept his eyes fixed on the leaves.
“What?” he asked as Cora saw Dudley walking up to him as she noticed that she was still holding Harry’s wrist, so she let him go.
“I know what day it is” Dudley repeated.
“Well done” said Harry “So you’ve finally learnt the days of that week” at that Cora couldn’t help but let out a laugh. It seemed likely.
“Today is your birthday” Dudley kept saying and at that Cora turned towards Harry.
“He’s so clever today, he’s scaring me” Harry turned to her with a smirk. But Dudley didn’t back down.
“How come you haven’t got any cards?” he asked maliciously “Haven’t you got any friends at that freak place?” Cora turned to him with a frown as she raised her hand, waving at him.
“Hello, I’m right here” she said noticing Harry turning to her, blinking his eyes half surprised, half happy.
“And you shouldn’t be” Dudley said in her face, but she just frowned.
“Really?” she said coolly.
“We saw you at the station with him and all those freaks!” he said before turning to Harry. Did him just called them freaks?
“Mum will be furious to hear you hanging out with her.”
“Better not let your mum hear you talking about my school” without getting upset turning again towards the hedge. It was like he was used to it. Did they call him a freak often?
“Why are you staring at the hedge?” Dudley asked suspiciously as he tried to keep his trousers up. A very fine sight, for sure.
“We are trying to decide what would be the best spell to set it on fire” Cora couldn’t help but look Harry with an impressed smirk “Right, Cora?” he asked turning to her, making the girl nod her head.
“Right” she said turning to Dudley to notice his usually fat pink turning white and his eyes got wide.
“You can’t!” he exclaimed panicked “Dad told you’re not to do magic. He'll chuck you out of the house and you haven’t anywhere to go!” Cora growled at him, trying to keep as calm as possible, but she didn’t believe that she would have managed.
“Jiggery pokery” Harry started to say, like he was casting real spells “Hocus pocus... squiggly wiggly...” and just with that Dudley made a dash towards the door screaming for his mother.
“That was brilliant, Harry” Cora said with a smile, making him do the same.
“Thanks”
Cora really didn’t want to bring that up, but what she had witnessed, she didn’t like it all. She knew that Dudley Dursley was a douchebag, and that his parents were strange, but how they were treating him it wasn’t right.
“That’s why you’ve been acting strange the all summer?” she asked at some point “They didn’t let you hang out with me?” Harry took a breath.
“They think I’m a freak and whoever is like me” he explained.
“That’s messed up.”
“Tell me about it” he said with a scoff, before Petunia Dursley’s voice rang from inside the house, making Harry roll his eyes.
“Now I’m in trouble” he said starting to walk towards the door.
“Are you going to be ok?” she asked, making him stop to turn towards her.
“Yeah, sure” he said nodding his head “I’ll probably got to do some choirs, don’t worry” Cora nodded her head before Harry spoke again “Thank you, Cora, for the wishes.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get a present” he chuckled.
“Doesn’t matter” he said “Have fun in Scotland.”
“I’ll see you when I come back” she said putting her hands on her hips “You’ve got a friend here, Harry. I’m at number 11. Whenever you need” Harry observed her before nodding his head.
“Thank you, Cora” she waved at him as he closed the door with a last smile.