"What exactly did he mean 'blew up your aunt?'" I asked when Fudge left.
"Well, quite an interesting story, really," Bonnie said, fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "After Marge... did that to you and you ran away, she started taunting Harry, and then she moved on to how my parents disowned me and we both just... blew up. I imagined her as the fatty she was and then she just... inflated."
"Yeah, I thought the same thing," Harry said nervously as I surveyed them with the eyes I had just turned purple. I thought it made me more intimidating. "We thought we might get expelled. We ran away, and found you..."
"So you turned Marge into a balloon?" I asked skeptically.
"...Yes..."
I had no idea why they were so nervous. I never got mad when they did something ridiculously stupid... except for that time they lost our house points when they got rid of Norbert.
"AWESOME!" I yelled excitedly.
They both blinked, but before they could reply, Tom came back.
"Follow me, Mr Potter, Ms. Potter, and friend," said Tom.
Bonnie glared at him with loathing, something that looked really scary on her.
"I've taken your things up," Tom said, oblivious to the fact that he might die on the spot.
We followed Tom up to a handsome wooden staircase to a door with a brass number eleven on it, which he unlocked for us.
"This is for Ms. Potter and..." Tom gestured to Bonnie, who glared at him.
"Heart," spat Bonnie, she stomped into the room with one last glare and I heard a thump as she opened her trunk with force. Tom stared after her for a moment; he looked so confused, I wasn't sure whether to laugh or glare, so I just poked Harry's scar.
Tom and Harry left to go get a room for Harry so I entered mine and Bonnie's.
Inside were two very comfortable looking beds, an oak wardrobe, and sitting by the curtainless window was Unicorn, who I forgot I haven't been holding.
"Unicorn, you smart little kitty," I purred, scratching behind his ear.
"I never felt so ignored," growled Bonnie, punching her pillow. She had chosen the more comfortable bed, the jerk.
I went over to her and scratched behind her ear. “Sorry. Bonnie, you smart little Slytherin.”
She slapped my hand away. It stung, so I took a step back and rubbed it. “It was only the Minister,” I said comfortingly, grabbing Unicorn and laying on the stiff bed. "Who cares what he thinks? You're important to us."
Bonnie didn't seem reassured, quite the opposite, she looked devastated.
"Bonnie," I exclaimed, sitting bolt upright and running to her bed, hugging her tightly. "Bonnie... What's wrong?"
Bonnie hugged me back so tightly I felt as though I couldn't breath.
"Bonnie!" I gasped, my arms flaying as she squeezed tighter. "I can't breath!"
"I-I'm sorry!" wailed Bonnie. "It's just I was expecting something and it... it never came." She said the last words, her voice becoming emotionless.
"What were you expecting?" I asked, holding her at arms length and looking at her sternly. She just shook her head, burying her face in her hands. "Bonnie, what were you expecting?"
Bonnie sniffled behind her hands but answered. "I was expecting a letter from my family, my brother to be exact."
"Why?" I asked, trying to keep my voice less curious.
"He's going to attend Hogwarts this year," she admitted shamefully. "I thought he might want some advice from me, his older sister... But I was wrong!"
She threw her pillow across the room, trying to get her anger out but not succeeding.
"He ignored me ever since I was Sorted into Slytherin!" She growled, crossing her arms and legs so that it looked as though she would never be able to untangle. "If he ends up in Slytherin also he is not going to come crying to me! He can stay in the streets when he gets disowned for all I care!"
"Bonnie, you don't mean that, he's your brother," I said, putting my hand on her shoulder in comfort. "You won't be able to forget about him that easily."
"He forgot about me!" she yelled in defense. "Look at me! I've been living with monsters these past years!"
"Hey!"
"Not you!" snapped Bonnie harshly. "The Dursleys, all of them. Dudley, Petunia, Vernon, and now Marge comes-"
"Have you tried writing to them?" I asked, forcing myself to be calm. My time spent with Bonnie at the Dursleys was always looked at with good memories, but she seemed to find them all horrid. I couldn't stop myself from feeling a bit hurt.
"Me?" Bonnie asked incredulously. She got to her feet on the side of her bed. "I'm not the one who should be apologizing! They're the ones that should apologize! I did nothing-"
"You should write to them," I said, ignoring her deathly glare. "It would help, trust me."
"I'm not writing-"
"At least try," I said, getting to my feet to, but turning to go back to my bed where Unicorn was purring softly. "What do you have to loose?"
"My dignity," I vaguely heard Bonnie mutter, but I wasn't supposed to hear it so I ignored it.
We both slumped off into bed, Bonnie falling asleep almost instantly, but I laid awake.
I knew when Bonnie was lying, her nose twitches ever so slightly, almost as though it never happened. But I caught it, and that meant that she was writing to her family... but not sending it.
I fiddled with my locket unconsciously, staring out the window. The sky had turned an inky blue, thick and pretty. The soft breeze stirred the leaves in the few trees that scattered around shops in random places, once in a while a witch or wizard would sweep by, their traveling cloaks billowing behind them.
This sight made me tired, but I forced myself to stay awake. For the years I knew Bonnie, I felt as though she were a complete mystery. She was wearing a mask, hiding her true character. I wanted to know the true Bonnie, not the annoying, insufferable, brat that I loved.
Sometimes I felt as though I had truly seen the real Bonnie, but then she would change immediately, leaving me confused and angry. How was I supposed to help her, if she didn't tell me why she was hurting.
She said her whole family was in a line of Hufflepuffs, she turned into a Slytherin. There had to be a reason why she felt so apart from her family, because if she didn't, then she would have been in the same house as them.
The snoring grew more loud, telling me that Bonnie was now in a deep slumber.
Quietly, I got out of my bed and tip-toed to her trunk, there had to be a diary in here or something...
I've found it! Its not a diary, but something so much better, something that must have been gnawing at her for two years. She had written letters to her little brother, but she never sent them.
I grabbed the pile and sat on the window seal so I could read by the moon light.
I picked up the oldest letter there and read:
Dear Tommy,
I can't tell you how much I missed you, I've cried so much over this month. I never expected this from any of you, mummy or daddy, but the person I least expected it from was you.
Why did you betray me, Tommy? You're my little brother, remember all those times we spent together, hiding snakes under aunty's blankets, spraying daddy with the garden hose. All those fun things, and the only one I can remember the most clearly is the one I found most boring and you found most fun.
We used to lay in the backyard, right in front of our little lake. Day and night we would stare in the sky, forming shapes with the clouds and finding pictures in the stars. I knew you were going to be splendid at astronomy, you love stars. I know you do, and I envy you.
Your so care-free and peaceful, you were the families mediator even though you were the youngest. When I used to fight with Mum, you calmed us down, when Dad used to ignore me for days, you would point out the things I did for them and he would grin. Why did you change? Do you not love me anymore, did our parents forbid you not to write, or do you think I am the one who betrayed you?
I can promise that I did not. I never thought being a Slytherin would tear this already broken family apart, I thought only of myself, and for that, I am sorry.
I'm sorry, Tommy. I know you know how much I hate to say that word, which is one of the many reasons why me and Mum fought so much. But I will say it to you, because I love you. I took you for granted, only when you stopped sending letters did I realize how much you meant to me, I wonder if you miss me too, or if you're relieved that I am gone for good. I try not to think that, it hurts too much. It felt like a punch to the chest when Mum and Dad disowned me, and I am not going to heal anytime soon.
All my love, Bonnie Heart
I gaped at the first letter. This was not the Bonnie Heart I knew. The strong, unforgiving, most care-free person I knew. This was a broken girl, and I was at a lost for words. I put the letter down carefully. She seemed to be writing to her little brother, who she gave all her love to.
I had noticed that the letter didn't mention Harry or Hermione or Ron or me. This must be before she met us.
Reading this letter reminded me of the time I almost died, when I watched as Bonnie cried with Padma and Lavender in the Gryffindor girls' dormitory. That was the only time I had seen this kind of Bonnie and I struggled to keep the picture of her like that out of my head.
I began the next letter:
Dear Tommy,
Things haven't been any better, I can assure you that things have gotten far worse. The Slytherins have found out that I have a long ancestry of Hufflepuffs in my blood, and they have noticed that I am a blood traitor. They ignore me now, I am now truly alone.
I don't know what to do with myself half the time. The hole in my chest seems to ache more often. Once, at night, I found that I couldn't breathe. The girls in my dormitory called Madame Promfrey; they hate me but they were worried. It confused me.
Madame Promfrey came and told me to spend the night in the infirmary. She told me I just had a rough day.
I feel like something is eating me from the inside, I'm trying to find things to preoccupy myself with, and I can only find one. The creatures Hagrid brings, the Game Keeper at Hogwarts, they are so interesting. I think I would like to work with these creatures, probably become Care of Magical Creatures Professor.
I know this is short, but Pansy Parkinson has been trying to read my last letter for a week now, and I don't want her to catch me writing another one.
All my love, Bonnie Heart
She had formed a goal in this letter, which made me smile just a bit. She seemed to have been getting better, though she didn't admit it in the letter.
Again, she didn't mention me, but I knew it had to come up. I didn't hear her crying at night, I had thought she forgot all about them. But no one can forget their family, no matter how many times they fought.
The third letter:
Dear my beautiful little brother Tommy,
The hole in my chest hasn't healed, but someone is covering it up just a bit.
I went to Hagrids, because at first I wanted to play with his dog, Fang, but instead I ended up crying my eyes out about you and our parents. I wasn't humiliated, on the contrary, it felt really good.
I was about to tell him what I was crying about when a girl stormed in. She was a Gryffindor, so I think you would know that she wasn't in the least bit happy to see me. She wanted to talk about her problems with Hagrid, who was her friend, but Hagrid insisted that she listened to my story.
I told her almost everything, and she made me laugh. For the first time in many weeks I laughed. It felt so good I forced myself to laugh longer than necessary. It hurt but it still felt good to hear the ringing in my ears. Nixie either didn't notice, or didn't comment.
You would never guess who she is. Nixie Potter, yes, Tommy. The famous one who conquered the Dark Lord. I didn't care though, she was a nice person, pulled pranks and helped me feel almost normal.
She soon became my best friend, and my sister. But no one will ever heal me except you. All I need to do is hear your voice one more time, Tommy. I want to see you, have your grown? Are you still pretending that you have a beard? Because I can assure you that you do not.
I never stop crying, but it is becoming less. I don't want to forget you, but then again, I do. What will make this pain go away? Who will help me? I need your advice Tommy, when will you write to me?
Bonnie I-Give-You-All-My-Heart
I smiled, she had wrote about me, she had said that I was the first to make her laugh in weeks. I never thought I meant so much to her. I never knew she was grieving so much. I didn't know this serious Bonnie. But, then again, I liked her even more.
Fourth letter:
Dear Tommy,
I got so much friends all in one week.
Nixie and Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley, Fred and George Weasley and sometimes I talk to Dean Thomas, but only because his last name is so much like your first.
I cry less now, I laugh so much more. I don't miss Mum or Dad as much as I used to, but I miss you more and more each day. My little Tommy Heart, you are what I live for. I live in hope, when I used to live in fear.
I hope to see you one day, probably in Diagon Alley, or a tea shop, but I hope its soon. I used to fear that I will never have happiness again, how wrong I was. This isn't just happiness my friends are giving me, this is joy.
I belong with them, they are my new family. I don't need Mum or Dad anymore, though I know if they ask me to stay I would go immediately, but only to see your smile every day.
Do you cry for me? I remember you had that nightmare and you rejected Mum and Dad and demanded me to comfort you. You must have been so scared, because you are such a brave boy, but I was happy. I am glad that I fulfilled the loving sister I wanted to be ever since Mum sat me down to tell me I would have a younger sibling soon.
They hoped for a girl, but I hoped for you and only you. I pictured you in my head many times, whispered your name under my breath many times, you came out just how I wished. Do you think I did magic, or that it was a coincidence? I know you don't believe in those, for you there are no accidents, everything happens for a reason.
Which makes me think, is it my destiny to be disowned? Am I supposed to find my own path without help from your parents? I know who I am, I am Bonnie Heart. I'm not going to change for your parents, not anymore. I love you, but its my chance to prove myself, I am worthy of my surname, I will show all who doubted me, starting with Mum.
Bonnie Heart
She seemed more independent in this letter. She had stopped calling her parents hers, she started to call them Tommy's parents. They didn't just disown her, she disowned them.
This was the Bonnie that was lying on the bed next to me right now, the one snoring so loudly it could cause a stampede. But something about the way she wrote this was almost a lie, I could almost see Bonnie's nose twitch.
She lied in this letter, saying she didn't need her family, but she was only trying to reassure herself.
Fifth letter:
Dear Tommy,
I haven't written in a year, because you haven't written at all. You have betrayed me, Tommy, I thought you loved me. Was it a lie?
I feel so disgraced to be writing to you like the little eleven year old a year ago, but something terrible has happened.
My best friend and sister died yesterday, the Heir of Slytherin killed her. When I find out who he is, I'm going to kill him. He took my sister away, and he deserves to rot in Azkaban. I cried with Padma that night, we couldn't stop.
I never felt that broken since I'd been disowned, but this was worse. I never knew how much I loved Nixie, I loved her much more than a sister, she was like my other half. I wish I could hear her voice one more time, her laughter, see her fiddle with her locket, some of her habits that everyone but her notices.
Harry is taking it worse than I am, but I'm selfish right now, I'm glad he's suffering this time. He should know how the pain can stab you, he should know how it feels to cry so much you can't breath. He is sad about his parents, but he never knew them.
I thought Nixie was covering the hole in my chest, but she only made it deeper, this would never heal. I want my sister back, she might have left, but she took part of me with her.
I can't write no more, no words could describe the pain I am in, no one admitted it yet, but we need her, no one can survive without her, especially me.
Bonnie
Tears swam down my cheeks, I remembered when I possessed Bonnie, felt all her despair. She really thought I would never come back.
Sixth letter:
Dear Tommy,
Nixie is back, that was the only thing I could think when I saw her. She was back, and I thought she was gone. The loss of her had punctured me, but the moment I touched her it healed instantly, only leaving a soft ache that faded quickly.
Would it be that easy with you? I don't think so, it will take a long time before the hole you formed has healed, but I can wait. This is going to be the last letter I'm writing, Tommy. I'm not going to send it, but it is still worth the write.
I feel so happy Nixie is back, Harry almost cried, Hermione didn't even know she was gone because she was Petrified, no one told her.
Good-bye Tommy, I hope to see you next year, when you start your first year in Hogwarts. I can assure you that if you end up in Slytherin and get disowned I will not be your shoulder to cry on; you hurt me too much, little brother. I don't think I can forgive you, even if I tried. I'm sorry, but you broke my heart, and lately that has been happening too often.
Bonnie Heart, I hope you well
"Oh, Bonnie..." I sighed sadly.
Before I could even glance at the letter again it was snatched out of my hands, along with the rest of the pile.
I glanced up and saw Bonnie glaring at me with loathing.
"Bonnie, I-"
"You read my letters," she snapped coldly, folding them carefully and sticking them in her pajama pocket. "That's low, Nixie. Really, truly low."
"I didn't mean to be-"
"These were private!" Bonnie shouted, loosing her temper completely. "Private letters! It should have been obvious!"
"It was!" I insisted. "But I needed to know what you truly felt to help you-"
"I DID NOT ASK FOR YOUR HELP, POTTER!" yelled Bonnie in my face. "DID YOU THINK I COULDN'T DEAL WITH THIS BY MYSELF? BECAUSE I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT I CAN! I CRY ONE TIME AND YOU GET ALL WORRIED-"
"YOU CRIED PLENTY OF TIMES!" I shouted back, coming to my defense but also trying to comfort her at the same time. "MORE THAN YOU CAN EVEN COUNT - YOU WROTE IT IN THE LETTERS, BONNIE! I CAN HELP YOU!"
Bonnie just shook her head, storming back to her bed and hiding under the covers, not making another sound for the rest of the night.