Forward In Time

Chapter Four:

EDITED Chapter Four:

"I can't believe you sometimes!  You're so selfish, how could you possibly be my daughter?"  My eyes widened as I turned to look at the speaker, a different picture and frame, but it also had my father in it.  

"W-what?"  My heart beat uncontrollably, and blood could be heard pounding and rushing through my ears.

"You are not my daughter.  My daughter would never think of going back to a time when so many people were miserable.  I don't want a daughter like that!"

I could feel my heart shattering and my hands automatically went up to clutch at the front of my shirt.  It hurt so badly, that it was hard to breath.  

"No.  I'm really sorry, it was just a passing thought!"  My eyes filled with tears and I could feel them cascading down my cheeks.  

"Stupid girl!"

Jerking awake, I kept my eyes squeezed close as my fingers dug into the blanket on my bed.  This was the third nightmare just like that, this week.  I hadn't gone back to see my father, terrified that I'd never leave again if I did, or he'd hate me like he did in my nightmares.  Anytime I thought of it, I just wanted to lie down and cry all over again.  

I wanted to know what happened to the calm, cool and collected girl whose only fear was the Dark Lord and her father not coming back from one of his 'missions'.  That girl, me, was now the biggest cry-baby I had ever had the misfortune to meet, and I just about hated myself for it.

"Are you all right?"

My eyes darted to look at the pretty girl on the bed next to me.  Her long brown hair was curly and looked amazingly silky while her light green eyes really stood out against her hair.  Her face was beautifully innocent with freckles dotted across the bridge of her nose and her eyes shown with worry, though she didn't know me.  

"Yeah, I'm fine.  Sorry if I woke you."

"You didn't, don't worry.  It was my cat, see?"  In her hands, she held possibly the most adorable thing I'd ever seen.  A small white kitten and a black nose with amber colored eyes stared up at me, it's whiskers were long and black, standing out against it's snow colored fur.

"He's so cute!"  I simply couldn't help myself as I cooed over the kitten.  I'd never had one before, because father was allergic, but I'd always wanted one.

"She, actually.  Her name is Echo, my younger brother named her.  I'm Cherish, by the way, Cherish Burbage," the girl smiled, with her hand outstretched for me to shake.  

I smiled, clasping her delicate, smooth and soft hand with my own slightly calloused one.  Her nails were grown out and painted beautifully with moving pictures of shooting stars moving across a dark sky on them, and I had to grin.  We didn't have that when I grew up.  

"Spencer Snape."

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"What are you doing?"

"Eating."

"That's not even eating, that's playing around with your food pretending to eat."  I glared at Cherish as she lectured me on the importance of breakfast before finally deciding to just shove a piece of egg into my mouth.  It felt slimey against my tongue and I felt the need to immediately spit it out but I held back, instead swallowing without bothering to chew it.  Disgusting.  

I shivered before deciding to try something different, if only to get Cherish to stop talking for a few minutes.  The diced potatoes looked promising and so I got a heaping spoonful and shoved it into her mouth, effectively silencing her.  

Grinning, I pushed my plate away before standing back up and heading out of the Great Hall, thinking of my newest friend.  Cherish was a pretty fun girl, she could take a joke just as well as she could give it and after knowing her for about three days, I could already safely say that she would be an amazing friend to have for as long as I stayed here. 

She was constantly harping on me to eat, reminding me so much of my father that sometimes it was hard to deal with, but I managed.  Echo had basically become my kitten.  It slept with me, I fed her and watered her, she loved to follow me around.  Except to the owlery.  The one time she did that, which had been the night before to see if the letter I had sent to James Potter had been delivered, an owl tried to eat her.  Needless to say, she nor I was very happy about that little accident.

"Hey!"  

The slightly familiar voice penetrated my giddiness and brought me to a sudden halt in the middle of the corridor.  It was obviously male, and while it sounded familiar, I couldn't seem to put a name to the face.

"Spencer!"  

As if of it's own accord my body spun around to stare at the man calling my name.  

I nearly didn't recognize him, nor the two men standing next to him either, but when I did it was as if a dam had broken and I launched myself into the speaker's arms.

"James!"

My small body was swung around as his arms enclosed around my waist and I smiled at the familiarity of his scent and his arms.  To be truthful, it was kind of like coming home.  

"What about me?"

I looked over at a man with dirty blonde and gray hair.  Remus.  Grinning from ear to ear, I demanded to be set down by James only to have the same thing happen with Remus.  By the end of our mini-reunion, my head was spinning and my heart was racing.  

Looking over to the third, and last, person, I recognized him immediately.  The only thing missing on his person that was identifiable was that now, there was no lightning shaped scar running across his forehead.  Did he even know who I was in this life?  

"Harry Potter."  

I wanted to hug him.  I wanted to throw my thin arms around his neck and squeeze him until I simply couldn't any longer...but I didn't.  I held back, despite my hands clenching and unclenching trying to itch the scratch that was annoying me.

"No hug for your dear old friend, eh Spence?"

"So...I know you, then.  I wasn't sure..."  My eyes watered as I calmly walked towards Harry freaking Potter, now a man and no longer a boy, yet his emerald eyes still glowed with happiness and his black hair still lay in a mess across his forehead.  

"I missed you.  I haven't seen you in a good while, Spencer," he muttered into my hair, his warm breath tickled my ear and his arms wrapped around my waist squeezed tightly, nearly cutting off all air supply.  

"So... not that I'm complaining but what are you guys doing here?  I didn't think anyone was allowed to visit the students during semester."

James clasped a giant hand over my shoulder and shook it lightly, but I still didn't move out of his son's grasp.  "You're not exactly a normal student, are you Spence?  Now!  Where's a good place to talk around here?"

Escaping Harry's arms, I took off down the hallways, yelling a quick 'follow me' over my shoulder, knowing that they would do just that.  I couldn't walk and wait for them, I was much to excited to be able to sit with them and have a nice, long, much-needed talk.