A/N: Ta-dah! Another quick update for all you awesome readers!

I am very grateful for the reviews and I appreciate it a loooot!

I do not own Harry Potter.

Enjoy!

Chapter 7: Her imaginary boyfriend

"What the hell is going on here?" I repeat my former question. Angry.

Freaking outraged!

Cause he has his arms around him and she is staring at him with those wide blue eyes of hers that spark under the moonlight… Ok note to self. Stop thinking about the eyes of the person you plan on telling off.

"Hey mate, nothing is going on. I'm just visiting my girlfriend. So we really could use some privacy to…well you know…"No, I don't know! I don't wanna know. I glare at this Dan guy who stares back at me uneasy.

"I'm sorry but Alina, here, is not supposed to go out during night. Uncle-Charlie's orders." Who'd have thought they'd come in handy after all?

"Well, as far as I recall, you're not Charlie." She says through gritted teeth. I don't care!

"Then I'll just go call him." I threaten. Yeah, I could call him and see what he thinks about his favorite girl snogging a smuggler.

"Go ahead." Alina dares me. Oh, you think I won't? You think I'll jerk out? You're the one who should be jerking out. I narrow my eyes even more.

"Ok, ok, don't get mad man. We were just having some fun. Nothing wrong with that. I'll go now. See you some other time baby." Some other time? Not if I can help it!

The bloody Dan leaves quickly like the coward that he is but I don't mind him. My eyes are on her.

"This is your boyfriend?" I gaped at her. And feel the same anger I felt when I first saw them together.

"Yep." Still gaping.

"You're in love with a smuggler? Seriously?" A smuggler?

"I already told you so." Oh, don't even remind me of that. How could I have been so stupid as to think he didn't even exist?

But you'll have to admit people, all the clues pointed to that direction. I mean she kept going about how 'nobody could se him' and how 'he only showed his face to her' and blah blah blah…

"But…" I try to protest. 'Try' being the key word here.

"But what? Do you have a problem with that?" Wow! Ok, furious much? I mean I have had my fair share of angry outburst in my twenty-five years but this is seriously scary.

No, I cannot be defeated by her cute glares and her sweet –screaming, but sweet- voice.

"Damn right I do!" I adapt a more decisive tone. She was snogging a thief. She does not get to win this argument.

"I don't see why…" She spits in a way that would make my Slytherin friends beam and sigh. When exactly did that sweet and weird girl begin being so… aggressive again?

Well, never mind this…

"Because girls like you…" I interrupt. How shall I put this?

"Yes…" Girls like her, pretty and sweet and heart-warming, life-changing creatures are not supposed to… I mean…

"Men like him…" I stumble again. Jerk-faced, stealing, law-breaking bastards…

"Yes…" Men like him are not supposed…

"Girls like you are not supposed to love men like him!" I shout at her face. That's right!

Her face changes from angry to surprised and I can feel her stiffen even though we're at least three feet away from each other.

"And who are girls like me supposed to love? Men like you?" I sense a newly obtained pain in my stomach. Men like me? She was not supposed to mention 'that'! 'That' is something I'd rather forget… No matter how awfully nice and exhilarating it was to be close to her, breaths from kissing her, if I ever want to go on I'll have to forget of 'that'.

"No. Surely not. But he's a bloody criminal Alina!" I say earnestly. I mean fine she's an awesome person who could make anyone feel happy. Even self-hating, depressed, cynics like myself. So yeah… it's hard to say that anyone deserves her.

"It's not like he's a murderer or something. He's just importing material against the law. That's all." Oh, we both know this is a load of…

"Still a criminal." I sing-song. But not in a cute freakish way. In an angry, ironic way.

"So what? It is none of your business who I date and who I love. So cut it out." None of my business? But I care for her! I feel so helpless. Are grown up men supposed to feel so helpless? Don't think so…

"There's nothing for you to gain from this." She stresses her every word. Yeah, yeah, no need to point it out. I know. It's not like I wanted her to break up to have her for myself. I'm not that big of a jerk. Not to mention that she doesn't even like me.

"You should know better than think I do this for my own benefit." I mouth my accusation as she did hers.

"Should I? Aren't you the person who's never happy with anything? The person who likes no one? The person who abandons others up the bloody mountains because they're too different from him?" She did not just use this to shut me up. She didn't!

I cannot believe her! Being all nice to me after I saved her even though she knew I was at fault for what had happened and choosing now to throw it to my face. How… two-faced of her.

"Ok, you made your point, now let me see if I can make mine." I swallow hard. I will try to protect her for as long as I can. And she can do with me whatever she pleases.

"You're a great person. You have the potential to be anything you want and with anyone you want. So don't ruin your life by dating that jerk." I take a deep breath and inspect my job.

"Oh, don't glare at me. It's true he's a jerk. And not because he smuggles, but because he did not come here to see you. Because he cares for himself more than he does for you. Because -what the hell?- he left you here and run as soon as I mentioned Uncle-Charlie." What kind of loving man does that? Tell me please. Cause even I who have zero experience in love can see this is not it.

Suddenly my attention goes back to her. Because she has this dark look upon her face. Yes I said dark… cause well… there's not really any other way to describe it. It's not angry anymore, or surprised, or stiff. It's just … dark.

Alina takes a few steps coming right before my chest. Yeah, she's not really tall… She's small and cute and delica- … Oh shut up Al!

Focus!

She stares at me and I feel x-rayed (it is x-rayed right? I always forget how dad calls this).

Ow! Ouch, ouch, ouch… that hurt!

Damn it she slapped me! That girl! What is wrong with her?

I grab her hand to prevent her from attempting a new attack at me. What the hell?

I just wanted to help!

"What gives you the right to judge him? What gives you the right to judge me? To judge everyone! You think you're some sort of level-headed genius who is above everybody else." I-I…

"Well, you're not above us! Take my word for it. The only reason you cannot see anyone from where you're standing is cause you're all alone!" Agh...

"I might be a bitch and a nutcase and a victim but it's ok. I know I'll never reach your high standards anyway. Cause, you're a lawyer and you're independent and you're Harry Potter's son and you're just bloody amazing." I-I-I'm not… amazing.

"But I don't care! I don't care for you! I might have cared once but I've learnt my lesson. You can be as perfect as you like, to me you're still a nothing." Nothing… Nothing…

Yes, that's what I am. Once again she's figured me out. And I wondered why she didn't like me. Fool.

What is there to like anyway. She's right. I'm not above anyone else. I'm not amazing not even close. I'm a sickening sight, a pitiful sod.

Screw this.

All of this.

What am I even doing here?

James said I had to relax and think of others for once. Then he said I've changed. I've become a man. Bullshit…

That's enough though.

From now I'm not listening to anyone. I am what I am. I cannot improve. Let others save the world.

I have to leave. Now! I cannot hear more. Cause if I do I might not be able to stop myself from jumping off a cliff or something.

"Alina…" I whisper. Merlin I sound pathetic. I cannot … speak…

I cut my sentence half-way and turn away from her.

Then I start walking towards my tent and I see her doing the same.

…

Though when I actually reach the entrance, I feel the same old anger covering me. Not for her words though but for my own actions. My own life. Why can't I just be gone? Disappear from the face of earth… What more is there for me?

I freeze to the spot to rethink of my moves. I should go to bed, it's true but I cannot sleep.

Maybe I should take another walk. To think… Think of what though?

There's nothing to think of. Nothing.

But my thoughts are interrupted by loud voices.

I take a look at Alina's tent that is the last one in a long line of tents. The lights are off and I suppose she's sleeping.

Which means she hasn't heard the voices. That makes sense. Since the voices are probably coming from Uncle-Charlie's tent that is at the other end of the line.

I quickly make up my mind to go check out what is wrong. Perhaps I can prove useful.

I walk fast towards Uncle's tent. Lights are burning there and I can distinguish about six voices. One of them is surely Uncle Charlie's but the rest I am not sure of.

"Hey! It's me Albus, what's wrong? Can I come in?" I call out before entering.

"Come on in Albus. I think we'll need your help." My Uncle says in a strict voice that is nothing like him. I nod to myself and push away the curtain.

In the interior of the tent there are indeed six people. Now, seven.

Uncle-Charlie, Nero, Brenda, two people who look like Romanian Aurors and…dear Merlin!

No, no I don't mean dear Merlin is in the tent. It was just a surprise exclamation.

Him?

The smuggling bastard. Grr…

I glare at him and glare and glare… till I make a peculiar observation.

I'm not the only one glaring at him.

"What is going on Uncle-Charlie?" I ask defensively.

"Well, I was just coming back to my tent early and I found this man here stealing from me." Oh, damn! No, calm down Al, sure enough, he was going to get himself caught eventually.

"He is a smuggler. I have heard about him." Brenda adds in her so distinctive German accent.

"Oh!" I put in. Then the two law enforcement guys make some comments -which I cannot understand- in Romanian and Uncle-Charlie replies something in the same dialect.

"The Aurors say they had been looking for him everywhere. That's why they came very fast as long as I let them know." That would explain it.

"The bastard had been trying to steal those eggs you saved Al." Brenda says.

He what?!

That…

Damn it, he promised to her! He said he wouldn't take those!

The liar. That back-stabbing snake…

But it's her liar. Her boyfriend. The one she wants…

She would be so heartbroken if she knew…If he was sent to prison…

Suddenly I make a resolution.

"Did he take them away?" I ask quickly and curtly.

"Erm… no, he didn't have the time…" Ok, that is good!

"Then no crime was actually committed." I say thoughtfully.

"Well, he was going to…" I know, Merlin save me, I know.

"You don't know that." I cannot believe what I just said.

"But Al! He was in the tent holding them!" My uncle counters.

"Yeah, but he didn't in fact take them." What am I doing? I have no arguments…

"Al, don't be foolish. He's going to be tried tomorrow morning. The Aurors say they're taking him with them." Oh, crap. I cannot prevent him form being arrested anymore.

And I can't even say he was worth the try. He wasn't.

She was though.

I turn away and go to my tent.

And wanna hear some wise words?

If you don't feel like going to bed and would rather go for a walk… well… show some restrain and stay inside anyway.

Cause look where walks lead me.

I cannot say I slept last night.

I did stay in bed though. And good thing about sleepless nights? They get to plan your next move. Which is good.

I put on the only suit I brought with me here and pack the rest of my belongings. It's time to go. At last.

It feels like forever since I came here. Strange. I think that after all this drama and fights and rejections and more drama, and even though I think I'm leaving more depressed than what I came, I still will miss this place.

I take my wand and put the letter it took me two hours to write in my right pocket.

"Al!" Oh, no! And here I was hoping I could leave unnoticed.

"Uncle-Charlie!" I exclaim with fake enthusiasm.

"What are you-…?" Erm… I'm sorta leaving. I notice his surprised face and then nod in agreement.

"But I thought you were leaving tomorrow." Well, yeah…I was. Past tense.

"Scorpius is freaking out because of the wedding and I thought he could use some help." And that's one reason.

"He's having second thoughts?" Who Scorpius? Oh, don't make me laugh.

"No, he just realized his hair don't match with his tie." Or so he said… Idiot. Narcissist.

"Well, that's…" Uncle stumbles a bit.

"Weird, I know." I add. And as we look at one another we break into fits of laughter.

"What can I say Al? I think you've changed a great deal all this time. I'm glad. Really glad." That makes one of us…

"Thanks . I'll see you next week." I hug my uncle in a totally manly hug.

"Oh! Before I forget." I take out the envelope.

"Care to give this to Alina?" I say not even considering to look at him.

"Why don't you give it to her yourself?" Oh, here we go with the questioning.

"I have to go." That's right. I've got stuff to do.

"Ok, ok, fine." He shrugs. Phew…

I pick up my sack and Apparate to the nearby city from where I'm supposed to take the Portkey to London.

But before that there is one more thing.

I search the place with my eyes. No where did Brenda say it was…

No, no, no… Damn where's the sodding thing?

Oh! There it is.

I walk fast towards a large old building. I pass a guard or two without even greeting them.

I ask for instructions from an old bat-like woman behind a desk and move to the left as instructed.

I open a large wooden door and take in a breath. There in the front of the big room I spot two men speaking animatedly. Ok, that's the right room.

"Excuse me. Excuse me!" I shout making everyone jump up surprised.

"Sir, we're in the middle of another case now. You should wait for your turn outside." A suited middle-aged man replies.

"No, no! I'm not waiting for another case. I'm here for this one." I point out clearly.

"I'm here to defend Mr Dan Saders." I narrow my eyes. Good thing is it's going to be over soon.

Actually, if I have any skill at all, it'll be over very soon.

A/N: OK, ok thank for reading.

And please, please, please leave a review!

I'd love you if you did!

By the way, next chapter will probably be Alina POV, what do you say?

Kisses

Sarah