Capítulo 4: RACHEL
It had been three weeks since Rachel had returned to Hogwarts, but she still hadn't finished unpacking her things. Actually, she had almost got everything out of the boxes. The last things were the pictures that she set every year. Those were special pictures to her, so she never left them at school when she went back home for the summer.
Rachel Harvey worked at Hogwarts as the school's counselor—a friend for the students, Dumbledore said to her the day she was hired. Back then, she wasn't too excited to have such a social job, but she needed to get out of her house, and now, nine years later, she was glad she had accepted the headmaster's offer.
She took the first picture that she saw when she opened the box. A little boy with pink and plump cheeks was smiling on his first birthday cake with the sign "Happy 1st Birthday, Harry" on it. On each side of him, there were his parents: a young woman with red hair and green eyes and a young man with messed black hair and round glasses around his eyes. Rachel smiled, running a finger on the boy's face. Those were happy days; maybe they all had to enjoy them more… while they could.
Rachel started to position the pictures, looking at them one by one before putting them down. She had taken all of those pictures herself, with a muggle camera. Indeed, all of the people in those were still, unlikely, the wizard's pictures, where who was in it moved. Even the portraits all around the corridors of Hogwarts were like that. Rachel remembered the first time she had seen them when she was just eleven. She was amazed, and she spent hours of her first year at the school of magic studying those people painted, who seemed to leave a normal life inside a portrait.
She smiled at her parent's faces in another picture. Rachel had taken it on Christmas Eve many years before. Her parents hadn't even noticed her doing it, and her mother always told her to choose another, but that was her favorite. Rachel took it and put it on the usual spot on her desk; then she turned to the box to look for the picture that she always put next to her parents.
I can't have forgotten it, she thought, searching in the box. Rachel put just a few photos in her study, the rest in her private chamber. They weren't a lot, and she couldn't believe the one she was looking for was missing. Suddenly, she noticed something on the floor, and she gave out a breath when she recognized the black fur and shiny eyes of the dog in the picture.
Rachel was looking at it when someone knocked at her door. She quickly put it down on its usual spot before turning to look in the mirror to check if she was presentable. Then she opened the door to see Minerva McGonagall standing there in front of her. Now Rachel knew that Minerva always wore a strict face, even if she was relaxed, but when that woman was her professor, she thought she hated her.
"Good morning," Rachel greeted her with a smile.
"Good morning, Rachel," the woman answered. "Professor Dumbledore wants to see you." Rachel nodded, closing the door behind her. If Dumbledore wanted to see her, it must have been important.
Albus Dumbledore was Hogwarts' headmaster, and he was considered, maybe, the greatest wizard of their times. He had been headmaster for a long time, since before Rachel studied at Hogwarts, but something was sure: they had been all very lucky to have him as a modeling role. He was very kind, wise, and smart. He managed to charm everyone with his words.
Rachel followed Professor McGonagall to Dumbledore's office. It was circular, full of books and enchanted paintings of the previous headmasters of Hogwarts. Rachel knocked to let the man know about her presence.
"Rachel, hello dear," he greeted her with the usual kind smile. "Thank you, Minerva," the woman nodded before leaving the room.
"Come here, dear, come here," she almost smiled. He had always seemed like a grandpa who was happy to see his grandchildren. "A lemon drop?" he asked once she sat on the chair in front of him.
"No, thank you, Headmaster." He smiled, shoving one candy in his mouth. Sometimes, it seemed like he offered candy just to have an excuse to eat one.
"I need you for a job," he said, chewing his lemon drop.
"A job, sir?" At her words, he nodded and focused on opening another candy.
"It's about Harry Potter." At the mention of his name, Rachel moved closer. He must have noticed because he looked at her over his glasses with light eyes before returning to his candy. "It seems that he didn't get his letter." How was it possible? She was there when Professor McGonagall had written his letter for Hogwarts.
"I'm sorry, let me rephrase that," the man said, having noticed her confused expression. "The letter had arrived, but it hadn't been opened." he ate his candy. "I'm afraid that Mr. and Mrs. Dursley didn't let young Harry read his letter," the Dursleys said. She had never spoken with Mr. Dursley, but she had met Petunia Dursley a couple of times. Petunia was Harry's mother's older sister. Lily Potter loved her sister, but they had never got along since Lily found out she was a witch. Petunia hated magic; she had always had. Rachel should have thought that she didn't want her nephew to study magic.
"I need for you to bring one for him and, if it's needed, bring him here. Of course, he will need help with his shopping in Diagon Alley." At those words, Rachel looked down at her hands resting on her lap. She wanted to see Harry, she really did, but suddenly a tight knot formed in her chest.
"Sir," Rachel said after taking a breath, "I don't know if I'm the best choice"
Dumbledore's lips curved in a soft smile, and his eyes were looking at her with that kind of gaze that he frequently reserved for her. The type of gaze that reminded her of too many things.
"I think you are the best choice for many reasons," he said kindly. "And you know it too," Rachel nodded, taking a breath. Seeing Harry again brought back many memories that she wasn't sure she was ready to face again.
"It wasn't your fault, Rachel." At those words, Rachel closed her eyes, nodding her head.
"Yes... I know. I know," She said softly.
"Then what are you afraid of?" the man asked, putting another Lemon drop in his mouth.
"Nothing, I guess," she said, finally accepting the candy Dumbledore was handing her.
"Moreover, you won't be alone," Dumbledore said with an encouraging smile. Hagrid will be with you," Rachel smiled. Hagrid and her had frequently talked about Harry in front of a cup of tea over the years. Rachel showed her best smile before standing up.
"I'll go get ready," Dumbledore seemed happy about.
"Sure, sure," he said, standing up and accompanying her to the door. "Hagrid is ready; when you have done, just go to him."
"Of course," She said with a smile "Good day, Headmaster."
She was about to leave when Dumbledore stopped her "Oh, there is just a little problem."
Rachel frowned. "What problem?"
She couldn't believe that the Dursleys had brought Harry in the middle of the sea. How could normal people leave their houses to go in the middle of nowhere?
Rachel walked quickly in the corridors of the school, and when she arrived at her study and opened the door, she stopped on her track. Before her, there was Severus Snape in his usual black cape and his serious expression. But then her gaze fixed on what he was holding in his hand: some of her pictures.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
The man before her didn't even look up in her direction. "Just passing by," Severus said, almost bored.
"In my study?" Rachel asked, trying not to be rude.
"Maybe you needed help with your… packing," Severus said almost mockingly. If she hadn't been so irritated by the fact that he was sticking his nose in her things, she would have even laughed.
"As you ever helped," she said. Severus Snape was a teacher at Hogwarts, the potion master. He was probably the best at potion she had ever known; she couldn't deny it. Even when they were just students at Hogwarts, Severus had a natural talent in that subject. But the two of them had never got along, not as children nor as adults.
"What do you want for real?"
Severus smirked. He could be very sinister sometimes. "I told you, just passing by," Rachel fought the urge to roll her eyes. "But then I got caught up with these," he said, showing her one of the few photos he had in his hands. You were truly a photographer," she said, putting her hands on her hips and taking a breath. "I remember you, always creeping around with that camera of yours."
He and she had very different memories of those days.
"Yeah," she said sarcastically, "I was the one creeping around."
"At least you had some kind of talent," he said with that smirk never leaving his face. "Especially…this one."
Rachel's heart stopped a bit when she noticed the picture Snape was showing her. Her body froze, watching the two people laughing at each other in the photo.
"Didn't know you still kept this," he said, watching closely her reaction, but she didn't drop her gaze. "What for? If I may ask."
Rachel looked at him for a moment before speaking again. "Being polite to you is never good."
"You? Polite?" Snape moved closer to her, showing her the picture in front of her eyes as she had never seen it before. "To be with him, you couldn't be polite."
Her hand moved fast, taking the picture away from his grasp.
"Get out," Rachel said bitterly. He did it; he had been able to make her snatch. He liked to do that, bring back school time, knowing how much she didn't want to talk about it.
"Did I say something wrong?" Snape asked mockingly.
"Now," she said, closing her hold on the picture. He just smirked before walking away from her and heading to the door. The moment he stepped out of the room, Rachel closed the door, slamming it. She closed her eyes, taking a long breath.
Severus had always been like this since school. When they were children, she thought that it was because of their Houses, but growing up, he chose nasty friends and a dark path.
Her gaze fell on the boy in the picture. He was seventeen, with a handsome figure and shiny eyes. She looked at a young herself being held close by the boy.
"Dark path," she muttered, looking at him. No one had ever seen that picture. She usually set it in one of her books. It must have fallen from it. Her mother had told her to get rid of it and… other things. Rachel had tried, but she never could.
Suddenly, a loud knock made her jump, and she quickly put the photo in her desk drawer.
"Rae," Hagrid's roaring voice came from the other side of the door. She moved to open it, and she faced the kind of tall man. Rubeus Hagrid was the gatekeeper of Hogwarts, and he was probably the kindest person Rachel had ever met. He was very tall, too tall for an ordinary person. Maybe his ancestors were giants.
"Hi, Hagrid," she said with a smile.
"Are yer alrigh'?" He asked with a frown.
"Yes, yes," Rachel answered, pushing aside bad thoughts.
Hagrid seemed happy by her words, "Good. I came here to wait for ya. I already feed Fang. Do you mind?"
"No, of course not," she said kindly. "I'll just grab my jacket, and we can go"
He laughed loudly, "Yer and yer muggle clothes." Rachel smiled. She never wore wizards' clothes; she felt more comfortable with her usual clothes.
"Oh," Hagrid exclaimed. "Yer got a gift?
"Gift?" He smiled.
"You are too focused on your work," he said. "Today is the 30th of July," she gasped. Harry's birthday was the following day; how could she haven't noticed that?
"I made a cake," Hagrid said, proud of himself. "Yer?"
She actually had something. She had bought it during the winter, and she was not even sure she would have ever given it to Harry. She knelt down beside her trunk. She searched in her pocket to find a little box wrapped in colorful paper.
"Oh," Hagrid said, "I can't wait for him to open it."
She smiled at his words. Rachel looked at the box, unsure of what to do. What would Harry have thought about a stranger bringing him a gift?
What he would think about Hagrid, a voice inside herself said. The sweet man didn't seem to think about it; maybe she shouldn't either.
"Do we go?" He asked her with a smile.
Rachel put the box in her bag, she would think about what to do when she saw Harry.
"Sure," she said before following Hagrid out of the room.
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