Every Time I See You

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy needed to relax from the tension her friends had been giving her. Se could feel Maddie getting jealous of James. She didn't want her best friend to feel that way, to feel like a third wheel, and Amy might need to talk to her alone, without James around, and spend some time with her friend to let her know that Amy treated her just as equally as she did James. She couldn't blame Maddie though, she could understand why she didn't like James that much. She didn't mention her dislike for James, though, but Amy could see it from the way she acted and the tension she radiated whenever he was around. Amy hoped they would be able to resolve things. After all, they would have to be around each other for a whole seven years.

She sighed, suddenly tired. All classes had been to her were a distraction. And also essays. Well, so far Flying was the best class ever. And Charms. Though she had been distracted by her friend. She couldn't quite concentrate as much now, and she didn't know why she felt so attracted to James. There was something about him she couldn't decipher, couldn't put her finger on, and she didn't know what it might turn out to be. She really hoped Dan would be okay with this, but Amy thought that her twin liked James. Besides, it wasn't like something too serious was going to happen between them, right?

She decided going to the Student Lounge would be the better idea, rather than going outside. She wasn't feeling it today. She wasn't exactly in the mood to be around too many people, so as she entered the Lounge she took a seat on a sofa near the window. She propped up the book she brought with her on her lap and opened it, before starting to read. She wasn't that into the book - she was too distracted to know what she was reading - so if another student were to come into the lounge, first year or older, she would notice them. There were few students in the room. Amy didn't pay a lot of attention to them, she barely heard the chattering and noise they were making. She was too deep in thought. It was useless, trying to read words that weren't registering in her mind. Sighing, Amy closed her book and put her legs up next to her. She shivered, the room was a little cold and Amy didn't think of bringing a jacket with her.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James was having a good week. He was thrilled to be at Hogwarts and he was loving everyday. Although, it wasn't the magic or the qudditch that had made him fall in love with the school.Simply put he loved being at Hogwarts because of a certain blonde haired Hufflepuff. The thought of Amy made him smile, where ever he was and what ever he was doing, which wasn't always such a good thing. The only problem with Amy was proving to be her best friend Maddie, for some reason she had just not taken to James at all and it was causing a lot of friction between him and Maddie which wasn't good for Amy. James had been doing his best to be friendly and polite around Maddie but he was not getting in return what he was giving out. He could only do so much.

It was quite in the common room, not many people around so James decided to go out and have a poke around the castle. James hadn't seen much of the castle, maybe one day soon he would ask Amy to go exploring with him, it would certainly be great to spend more time with her out of lessons, and away from Maddie. One of the places James had heard about but not yet visited was the student lounge. He had heard it was good place to relax and meet people from all different houses so he thought he would go and take a look. James waled inside the student lounge, hoping to grab a sofa or chair by a fire and kick back, maybe talk to a new face. He hadn't expected to see Amy sitting by the fire when he walked in.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy had been relaxing for a while and she enjoyed it. She also liked the peace, and thankfully nobody was bothering her, at least for now. If she were back home, though... Amy shook her head to clear it. She wished she could just erase her old memories, the bad ones. Actually they made Amy who she was now, and she wouldn't trade that for the world. She had learned a lot of things from her bad childhood at school. Luckily Hogwarts had been good for her and she was really happy that she came here. She hasn't expected to make such nice friends already and she wanted to keep her close friends with her for life. They didn't exactly question her personality. They accepted the Hufflepuff girl as she was, which was an improvement in Amy's area of friendships. She also hadn't seen that coming - somewhere inside her she felt a flutter just thinking about him. James had been so kind to her; he'd made her feel so good about herself. Amy was curious to know why. She now knew she liked him in ways she couldn't understand herself, that has been obvious by the way she felt every single time he looked at her or even smiled at her. The girl sitting on the sofa by the nearest fire almost didn't notice James coming in the lounge. As soon as she made eye contact with him, she swallowed and waved, smiling nervously at him. She had no idea how long he had been standing there.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James didn't know why but when he made eye contact with Amy across the empty student lounge he felt a little nervous. James didn't get nervous, he would put on a smile and tackle everything head first but there was something about Amy that had a strange effect on him. Of course when they first met he had been his usual, happy smiley and charming self but that was when he had gone over to cheer her up and be her friend. He couldn't pick out the exact moment that changed, but he didn't look at her as a friend, he wanted something more. James didn't quite understand what it was he felt for Amy, but he knew it wasn't just friendship. She smiled and waved at him from across the lounge, her smile didn't look comfortable or natural, maybe she was as nervous as he was. He walked over to her and sat on the sofa beside her, "Hi," James said nervously.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy held her breath as James made his way over to sit next to her. She soon let it out slowly and quietly so as to not let him hear how nervous she actually was. She was a lot more than she was letting on. She smiled again at him, this time much more genuine and friendly than the first time she saw him walk in the student lounge. Still nervous, though. She was trying at the very least. Amy didn't want their friendship to go down the drain, who knew what could happen between the two but hopefully if they became something more than friends, she wouldn't want them to never see each other again. She had no idea where these thoughts came from, but they did and she liked them. It was satisfying, not that she would mention it out loud. Without realising it or doing it on purpose, Amy scooted slightly closer to James. She felt a bit cold and he was warm. She shivered and hoped he didn't notice though she knew he couldn't miss this tiny move as they were sitting pretty close to each other. "Hi James." She could hear the nervousness in her own voice.

 

[Professor James Cade]

The first thing James noticed as he made his way over to her was that she was holding her breath. He might not usually notice it with someone else but he had a habit of paying extra attention to Amy. He liked to take in her little movements and mannerisms. James liked the little subtle things that Amy did that made her her. James took off his jacket before sitting down on the sofa beside Amy, he had been getting a little warm so was glad for the chance to take it off, the lounge was quite cool which was a welcome thing for James. He wasn't sat for long when he noticed that she had scooted a little closer to him, James had originally wanted to sit closer but he didn't want to push his luck. He still wasn't a hundred percent sure how she felt about him, she might just be a little shy. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her shiver before she spoke to him. "Amy are you cold? Your shivering of course your cold, here take my jacket," James grabbed the jacket he had just taken off and handed it to Amy. In all honesty he had thought of an other way to warm her up but for now he would give her the jacket.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy gratefully took his jacket and put it on. That was better. "Thanks," she said. She didn't think someone was that nice, but her views on that obviously changed when she got to Hogwarts. "You know you didn't have to do that," she said, smiling at him. When James had entered the room, Amy had been nervous to see him, but all she felt now was comfort. It was an odd change, being nervous and then suddenly feeling comfortable, but she didn't mind it at all. "How has your day been?" she kept talking just to try and make small conversation. She didn't really know what to say. It wasn't that rare for her not to have anything to say to someone, especially not to a friend, but now she literally couldn't think of anything else to talk about. Amy stared into the fire, she always loved watching the flames. She could always think about anything and everything when she was near a fire.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James kind of chuckled when Amy told him that he didn't have to offer her his jacket. James didn't see it that way, his jacket was just sitting at his side, he wasn't using it and Amy was visibly cold. What other choice did he have? "Amy your cold and I'm not, of course I had to do it, besides it looks good on you," He smiled, James did like how his jacket looked on her, it was a little bigger on her than it was on him so it clearly didn't look like her jacket but for some reason he liked the look of it. It was a very strange thought for the young Gryffindor. "My day? Oh my day was boring, I've literally done nothing, it must have been one of the least eventful days since I've got here, this is easily the highlight, then again I think seeing you would be the highlight of any day," James paused. He actually couldn't believe he just said that. What he said was true but he mortified that he had actually let it slip out in front of Amy. "How was your day?" He asked hoping she would move passed his little comment.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy's face grew warm, she was getting used to it now as it happened every time she saw James. She knew she was very visible when she blushed, but it didn't matter now. She didn't care anymore. She smiled at him warmly, while saying, "Thanks, I like the jacket, I might keep it," she stuck out her tongue at him.

Amy's heart almost skipped a beat when she heard his second comment. She noticed his little comment and she muttered, "It's my highlight too". He was being really sweet to her and she was still clueless as to why he would be so nice to her. She snapped back to reality when she was asked how her day had been. "My day has been fine actually. I've been studying and relaxing, so all's good." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and saw he was still looking at her.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James saw Amy face go bright red, this was a common sight whenever he saw Amy and he often wondered if it was him causing it or if she was just shy and blushed a lot. Amy joked, or at least James thought she was joking, that she might keep his jacket. James just smiled at her, "You should, I like the way it looks on you," James smiled fairly certain that if he did blush, he would be doing so but he had never knowingly blushed. James wanted to point out Amy's blushing, make her feel relaxed about it but he wasn't sure how to go about it. He decided to raise his hand and place it gently against her cheek to feel the warmth. "Wow you might be cold but your cheeks are burning," He grinned sticking out his tongue in response to her doing the same. As she talked about how her day was James couldn't take his eyes off her, which was the case when ever he was in the same room as her and he thought she was beginning to notice this. "Amy..." James said cautiously decided to change the conversation, "I know you have some personal stuff from before you came to Hogwarts and I want you to know, if you need to, you can talk to me," James smiled taking her hand and gently rubbing his thumb against the back of her hand.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

As soon as James put his hand against her warm cheek, Amy couldn't help but smile at this little gesture. She saw him go pink, even if just a little, when he commented once again that his jacket looked good on her. If he was trying to impress her, it was working. She laughed. "That's because you're making me blush," she told him, still smiling. She couldn't break eye contact with him, she wanted to keep looking at him as he was doing with her. There was something that drew Amy to him and for some odd reason she enjoyed it. Every time she was with James, Amy felt comfortable which probably meant something even if she didn't know what yet. He changed the subject and this time she didn't feel like cutting him off about her personal life. Somehow, she wanted to tell him, just spill out everything, and she thought she would do this but she wanted to start slow, so that's what she did. "I know," she said softly. Then she spoke a little louder but only enough for James to hear and nobody else. Amy didn't like the thought of some other stranger eavesdropping on their conversation about her life before she came to Hogwarts. She took a deep breath. "Back home, before Dan and I came to Hogwarts, I...kids at my muggle school kept teasing me and making snide remarks about me. I never understood why. They would laugh and point at me - not too harshly - but they were saying things and singled me out because I'm different to them. And I think they noticed this. Of course they had no idea, and I didn't either at the time, that I'm a witch. So they continued, and the other day in the library, it was too much." She glanced at James, remembering why she was saying all of this to him. "But don't worry about it, it's in the past. I'm here now and much better off without them." Amy sent him another smile, a little less unconvincing than before. She sighed. "Clearly I'm happier here, with you and Maddie," she said trying to lighten the mood of their conversation as it had gotten a bit dull. She added "It does feel better getting it off my chest though," while still looking at James.

 

[Professor James Cade]

Even though he asked, James was surprised when Amy opened up to him. James could tell that what she went through prior to Hogwarts still weighed heavy on her mind, no matter what she said. He could understand why though he had never experienced it himself. Having grown up with magical parents James was not sent to muggle school so was never seen as an outcast by others, he did socialise with some of the kids who lived in his neighborhood but he was lucky that nothing ever happened when he was around them. There was very little James could say to Amy to make her feel better, mostly because she was trying to convince him that she was now ok, but he didn't believe her though he was happy to go along. "Amy, I can't imagine what that must have been like, but you're right, you're much better off now you have Maddie, you have your brother and most importantly you have me," He smiled hoping the emphasis would make her smile, a sincere smile not the one she was giving him to convince him she was ok. He hadn't known her long but he knew the difference between her fake smile and her real one, her real one melted his heart every time he saw it and anything less than that was fake. "I'm glad you got that off your chest, and I'm really glad you felt comfortable telling me all that, I know it couldn't have been easy to unload that on someone you just met, then again I'm not just anyone am I, I'm amazing," He smiled and winked at her, he enjoyed teasing her and he hoped that him doing so put her at ease.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy was glad to have that taken off her shoulders, she felt better but not yet like her usual self. She often found it difficult to get over something as big as what happened in her past, her childhood had mostly been ruined, and Amy couldn't be so comfortable around too many people for that reason. Luckily she still had Dan and her parents with her that had always supported her no matter what happened. She was a lot younger when teasing and bullying were the entertainment of muggle children during school. James was an exception. She knew it before she felt it that a smile was etched onto her lips. He was an exception to her not being comfortable around others. She liked the idea of spending time with him; him and Maddie to be precise. She could only hope they got along. Against her own wishes, her mind went back to James. Well not really against my wishes. She smiled at him again, she couldn't help it. She had to smile back whenever he smiled at her. She went as red as a tomato when he mentioned that she had him. Her heart leaped in her chest. "And you have me," she said cheekily. Amy thought it might be time for them to start teasing each other. She was going to play his game. "Of course I feel comfortable around you, why wouldn't I, it's the best feeling in the world." She may have said too much. She didn't know where the happiness came from all of a sudden, but her eyes were sparkling and her genuine smile was back on her face. She reserved this smile for special people and well...James was special to her. "You're amazing. And not just anyone," she agreed seriously, staring at him; she couldn't take her eyes off him and she hoped he didn't think she was weird. Her heart fluttered yet again when he winked at her. Somehow James was able to put her at ease with simple small talk.

 

[Professor James Cade]

"Amy..." James began as he looked into her eyes. He liked her eyes, if he wasn't careful he could easily get lost in them and lose his trail of thought. Though he didn't have much to lose, he wasn't much of a thinker on the best of days but when he was around Amy all his mental faculties were focuses on not saying anything stupid. "I'm really glad I have you," He quietly. He was mesmerized by her smile, he would need to find a way not to get swept up by her one day but the mean time she had an effect on him that must have made him look like a bubbling idiot to anyone but her. For some reason she seemed to like him and didn't seem bothered by his overly enthusiastic personality or by the lingering stares he seemed to aim at her. "You know its funny, I've only known you a few weeks but I feel like I've known you for years, you just make me feel comfortable, I've never met anyone who has that affect on me," James hadn't thought before he blurted that out but he never said anything more true. Amy had a way of making James feel comfortable, which was funny because her best friend Maddie had a knack for putting him on edge.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Ever since she was a little toddler Amy couldn't wait to come to Hogwarts after her parents revealed to the twins what the whole family really was, after a couple of magical incidents that took place with Amy and Dan. Now that she was here, she could see why it was such an amazing place to be - people were so much nicer, as well as the professors, and school was actually enjoyable for once. She never would've thought, not in a million years, that she would meet someone like James who she thought understood her - she hoped he did at least - and she had never thought that she would come across James this early in her education. Amy realised now how they'd been staring at each other in class and making fun of each other as if they had known each other since they were born. Was that a sign of some sort? She kept her eyes on him as he spoke. She loved the way he said her name."I feel the same way," she said softly.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James could have starred into Amy's eyes all day but he knew he needed to move the conversation along otherwise the two would sit in complete silence and that would be a little weird. "I hear there's a big Halloween feast coming up, it should be a lot of fun, I thought maybe we could go together, or maybe meet up there and dance and stuff," The Halloween feast had crept up on him but it was something he had been looking forward to since he arrived at Hogwarts but hadn't expected to be in a position to ask someone to the feast. Everything about Amy was unexpected, he didn't think he would meet someone who he connected with in such a way so early on in his time at Hogwarts. James was excited to see how their relationship will change and grow over the next few years. That is, he hoped that they would stay friends over the next few years and hopefully more would grow out of that friendship. He very much enjoyed being with Amy and there was something else going on he just wasn't completely sure what it was.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy smiled at him again. "I'd love to go to the Halloween feast with you, I think it'll be lots of fun," she grew excited just thinking about it. She had completely forgotten about the feast, she had heard many great things about it and she hoped it was going to be as amazing as they said. Maybe Hogwarts could get better, after all. Then something occurred to her. "James..." her voice trailed off. She realised what she had been feeling towards James this whole time, this whole semester she had known him. She wasn't sure if she should tell him or not, and therefore didn't collaborate with what she had wanted to tell him. She wasn't sure if he felt the same way and it might be too early still. Besides if they were going to be friends for the next seven years, or at least the next few couple of years, she didn't want to break off their friendship just because of how she felt about him. "I want to ask you something. Just out of curiousity," she said instead. "Sorry if it's personal," Amy continued flushing, "but...is there any particular reason you're being really nice to me? Sorry, it's just that...I don't usually come across nice people like you and Maddie. So I was just wondering, it's okay if you don't want to tell me," she said shrugging as if it didn't matter to her. However, Amy knew that deep down inside it did matter.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James by surprised by Amy's sudden question. He had never been asked why he was nice to someone before. Then again from everything he knew about Amy people outside her family being nice to her was a new thing. It was a difficult question to answer in a way. James had first approached her in the library because she looked like she needed a friend and he was feeling friendly. Since then it wasn't that simple, ever since the two spoke to each other there had been a spark and James just couldn't keep away from her. He needed to find a way to tell her all this without scaring her off. "Amy, i first came over because you looked like you neededa friend and I hadn't made any yet. But ever since I've not been ableto keep myself away, i dunno, I'm nice to you because I like you, you're fun to be around and, i like your smile, anyone with a smile like that is worth being nice to and...I just like being around you," James had to stopped for fear he had said too much already but he could have gone on, there still so much about her that he had mentioned. Her laugh, her eyes, James could sit there all day and tell her reasons why he was nice to her, why he was her friend, why he wanted more. There would be time for that later.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy had no idea what made her blurt out that question, but something did and she didn't really regret asking James. As soon as he told her the truth, Amy thought, wow. No one had ever complicated her the way he had just now and she liked it. She enjoyed the small talks she and Amy shared, just as much as the small compliments someone gave her. Especially about her smile and generally being around her. Her life was changing, she knew that already the moment she stepped into Hogwarts NZ, but it was still a nice feeling hearing them from someone outside of her family. Clearly she hadn't yet gotten used to feeling good about herself and she did want to change that. "I...couldn't have guessed. Wow." It wasn't often that Amy was speechless and when it was, it as usually because something big had been said. This time, something good had been said. She smiled at him again, not being able to keep it from James. "Honestly, I like being in your company too," she told him truthfully. She didn't want to hide anything from him if it meant she got to be friends with him for a long time.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James smiled, he was a little embarrassed after his long detailed explanation of why he was nice to Amy. While he was nice to most people there was something about Amy that made him want more, he wanted to be around her as much as she would let him. She made him feel good, she made him happy which wasn't true of everyone, Maddie for example did not make him happy but he would have to get along with her one way or another, though her hostility towards him did sometimes amuse him. James shouldn't have been surprised by Amy's reaction, she had been quite shy with him sonce they met so after his speech he should have expected her to be a little speechless, even so her reaction made him think that maybe he had saidbtoo much. James reached out and took Amy's hand and smiled at her. "I didn't mean to embarrass you, I tend to get carried away when I'm nervous and I'm not nervous often,"

 

[Amy Rosemary]

At this point, Amy knew there was no point in trying to hide her smile. She couldn't help it, it did add to the fact of how she was feeling all the time these past few weeks. Her heart skipped a beat when James took her hand in his, she felt safe and she felt warm, both inside and out. She looked at him, smiling. "No, it's okay, I...understand. I wasn't actually embarrassed, more like grateful for the compliments thrown my way." She didn't know why she did it, but a small laugh escaped her lips. Friends - best friends - should be able to talk to each other easily. She realised they were making it hard for each other, Amy knew for a fact did for herself anyway. It didn't have to be hard at all. She gave a sigh of relief and relaxed. Hopefully James and Amy wouldn't be so nervous around each other anymore.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James felt himself relax a little. There was something weird about hanging out with Amy, they both knew there was something between them almost to the point that things were sometimes a little awkward between them. "Ok well, get used to compliments because they seem to spill out of me when I'm talking to you," James smiled broadly at her. He did feel comfortable with her but sometimes he felt like he was watching what he was saying around her and he didn't like that, he wanted to be more relaxed and not have to think about anything when the two were together.

 

[Amy Rosemary]

Amy grinned at her friend, talking was getting easier and easier and she was enjoying the moments more and more the more time they spent together sitting on the sofa, just talking. James was one of the few people Amy could trust, at least she hoped she would be able to trust him fully by the end of the year. She cocked her head to the side slightly when he mentioned that she'll be getting compliments a lot more often than before. She loved it when he smiled at her, Amy was again completely aware that they were holding hands but she knew it didn't mean anything big, friends did that for comfort surely. "I'll try. So have you been enjoying Hogwarts so far? I know I have," Amy kept talking. She changed the subject casually to get the attention away from her. She still had to get used to talking about herself to someone else, it was never easy for her. She wondered how long it would be until she didn't have to feel bad about herself anymore at all. It might take months, years even. Hopefully talking to her friends and brother helped to not think about the fact as often as she normally did when she was by herself. "Thanks for that, by the way, it makes me feel a lot better."