Emilia stood behind one of the statues near the Clock Tower, looking out for any Professors or Prefects wandering around. She was feeling nervous and felt constant shivers, not only out of fear of being caught after curfew. It was almost 11 and she kept glancing towards the spiral staircase, waiting for her boyfriend to come meet her.

The wait seemed like an eternity, she was playing around with her wand nervously and had to hide from Peeves who was flying around the passage between the Clock Tower and Hospital Wing, throwing the paintings and portraits off the walls, to the loud disapproval of the residents of said paintings. Every sound that she felt gave her little heart attacks, but she waited patiently, hoping to go unnoticed.

As Ash finally approached her and tapped her shoulder lightly she squeaked in fear and turned around, immediately overcome with embarrassment as she saw that it was only him. He chuckled quietly and raised a finger to his mouth to signal that they should stay quiet. He reached out his hand and helped her get back on her feet and led her up the staircase.

At the top of the Tower, instead of going forward towards the Hospital wing, he pulled her to the right, towards a locked wooden door with a water symbol engraved on it. He whispered his spell and the metal lock clicked inside and he gave her an encouraging smile and held the door open for her.

She stepped in and looked around jealously.

The Prefects bathroom was so much more luxurious and grand than the others. It was a long, rectangular room covered in white and teal tiles and extravagant marble pillars surrounding the pool in the middle, almost 5 feet deep, with countless golden taps going around the entirety of the pool’s sides, each tap having a different colored symbol engraved on it. On the other end of the room there was a great stained-glass window, reaching from the very floor up to the ceiling, with a beautiful moving mosaic of a mermaid brushing her hair. There were three gothic chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, tiny drops of melted wax from the burning candles dropping off of each.

The room was pretty dark and had a somewhat gloomy, misty aura, just standing there could be strangely hypnotizing but also very relaxing, it felt almost like a fever dream. She took another step into the bathroom and kept on looking around, and with the corner of her eye she noticed Ash closing the door behind them and starting to walk around the pool, turning on different taps, bubbly and colorful water immediately beginning to pour from each one.

‘I’m so jealous… This place is unreal! Why aren’t our bathrooms as grand as this one?’ – she turned to him and pouted her lip.

He chuckled lightly and walked back to her, before giving her a quick kiss on the forehead.

‘I guess being a Prefect has its privileges.’

The pool filled up unbelievably quick and after just a quick moment it was filled to the brim with steamy, bubbly water that smelled like a mix of every soap one could ever imagine, all mixed together.

‘Do you mind if I… hop in?’ – he asked with a sly smirk and pointed with his head at the pool.

The girl felt her cheeks burn.

‘Yeah… no… go on ahead.’ – she mumbled, visibly embarrassed.

Without even waiting for her to turn around, he grabbed his Quidditch jersey and lifted it up, showing off his slim and yet muscular body. All it took for her was just one quick glance and she felt butterflies fill up in her stomach and immediately looked away, feeling her heart beat quicker and her entire face turn red.

She heard the water plop behind her, realizing the boy had entered the pool already, and she heard a weak groan of pleasure as he descended himself in the hot water, relaxing his tired muscles and body.

‘You don’t have to look away, you know?’ – she could imagine the playful smile on his face, which still seemed new but was strangely captivating, as he spoke to her from the pool.

‘I just, uh, didn’t want to be disrespectful or anything…’ – she answered quietly with a shy tone.

‘Disrespectful? Of what? Love, I am your boyfriend, there is nothing you should be afraid of anymore.’ – he reassured her and hearing the word ‘boyfriend’ had yet again caused a pleasant tingle in her stomach.

‘Alright, I just… oh God, Ash, what happened to your arm?’ – she stopped mid-sentence and suddenly exclaimed, louder than she intended.

When she turned back around and took a look at the boy sitting in the deep pool, she immediately took notice of a big, dark, bloody bruise on his arm, that looked like both a cut and a bruised mark at the same time. Her eyes widened with worry and she walked up to the side of the pool and kneeled down to take a better look at it.

He tried to brush it off and shrug but as his arms moved he felt a wave of pain go through him and she saw it immediately, despite him trying to hide it.

‘I guess the Slytherin catcher brushed against me harder than I thought.’ – he joked but when seeing her serious and concerned expression he decided to explain himself. – ‘When I was about to catch the snitch he tried to snatch it from me and bumped right into me. Seems like I was too excited about us winning to even notice that little scratch.’

‘Ash, it’s not a little scratch, half of your arm is bleeding… Don’t you think we should take you to the hospital wing?’ – she looked at him worryingly.

‘I’m okay, love, promise. But if you’re really that worried about my ‘injury’ then we both know there is more that you can do than just take me to the nurse, correct?’ – he gave her a playful smile and she sensed some other thought hiding behind his eyes, but she was unable to name it.

‘I… I guess…’ – she took a moment to think. – ‘But you are not going to tell anyone about it, right?’

He gave her a deep, meaningful stare.

‘Emilia, love, just come here, please.’ – he looked her in the eyes as he asked.

She gulped nervously and took a deep breath before she raised up her sweater to take it off. The boy looked away respectfully, with just a soft smile on his face, waiting for her to be fully emerged in water before looking back at her.

The water was very deep and it reached her arms so none of her private parts were revealed and yet she still felt nervous knowing that they were both completely naked. She looked at her boyfriend and decided to fight her inner fear, told herself that it’s just Ash and she can trust him, and she proceeded to move closer towards him.

When she got close enough, he took her hands in his and looked her in the eyes once more, she could see her own reflection in his green orbs.

‘Emilia, I promise you that I will guard your secret with me forever. I understand why you do not want people to know. I know that you are the child mentioned in the prophecy, I figured it out the moment you accidentally healed my hand during our first Herbology class. I waited to see if you would actually tell me yourself but I understand why you didn’t. I know it is scary and you probably feel in danger. But just know… I’m with you, I won’t ever tell anyone and get you in any trouble or danger. You have my word. I’ve no idea what I’d do if something were to happen to you…’ – he looked away, visibly struggling to say more, almost as if he was about to cry. She has never seen him so vulnerable before, but it actually felt good to see him open up like that.’ – I wouldn’t let anything happen to someone I care about so dearly… to someone… that I love.’

Her eyes widened and her heart began to pound out of her chest. She just looked at him for a moment in complete silence, feeling her jaw lock itself as she was so nervous, but she managed to control her fear enough for her to open her mouth:

‘I love you too, Ash.’ – she whispered, her voice trembling slightly.

He was looking away with sadness until he heard her words. He immediately looked back into her eyes, almost as if he was searching for an answer, whether what he just heard actually happened.

‘You do?’ – he simply asked, still in a slight shock.

She just nodded and raised her hand to place it on his cheek. She was not usually the one to make the first move, she always felt too shy and nervous even though they have been close for a couple of weeks now, but it just felt right at that very moment.

Feeling her touch, he took his own hand and placed it over hers, a wide smile appearing on his face. He used his other hand to pull her closer by her waist and kissed her sweetly on the lips.

A pleasant warmth spread through her and that moment just felt so perfect, as if there was nobody else in the world, nothing else mattered besides them being so intimately close in such a gentle, loving way, surrounded by the steamy, hot water in that almost completely dark bathroom.

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She raised her other arm and placed it on his, completely forgetting about his injury, only to be met with a painful hiss as her fingers brushed against the scratched, bleeding skin.

‘Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry…’ – she immediately backed away, and looked at him with worry.

‘Hey, hey… It’s fine, love. I just didn’t expect it.’ – he reassured her and moved closer again and gently caressed her hair with his other hand.

She took a long moment to think before making her decision. She has already told Elle and Atticus, she was about to tell Ominis as well and most likely Sebastian and his sister when they would visit her in Feldcroft, so there was no reason to keep it a secret from her own boyfriend… Besides, he already knew, he just had not seen it in actual action. And now was the time to reveal it to him.

‘Listen Ash… Thank you. For, you know, respecting my wish to keep it a secret and understanding. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you right away… I guess I was scared. But I trust you. I know you would never try to hurt me or anything of that sort.’ – she leaned in and wrapped her hands around him in a loving, sweet embrace.

‘That’s right, love. You’re safe with me.’ – he replied, wrapping himself around her as well.

They stayed in an embrace for a short moment, before he leaned back slightly and gave her a gentle smile.

‘Alright, give me your arm.’ – she finally asked, reaching out for it.

‘Yes ma’am.’ – he obeyed with a playful smile, his eyes beginning to curiously study her every move.

He reached out his arm and she took a slow, deep breath, before starting to move her entire palms alongside the entirety of the wound. She closed her eyes to focus, feeling the familiar tingle of her magic growing in her and moving through her arms to finally escape through the tips of her fingers to attach itself to the injured arm, immediately closing up every scratch, the skin returning to its natural color from a painful pink.

The injury was not big enough to cause Emilia much pain, but she still felt an unpleasant, sharp, needle-like sensation in her own arm, right where his wound was.

When she finally opened her eyes, the scratch was completely gone, without even the tiniest scar. The white halo was almost all gone by then, and she looked at it for another moment before it completely disappeared. She then noticed Ash’s stare, he was mesmerized, he must’ve been watching this whole time, amazed, his green eyes were open wide and his mouth was slightly open but also there was a slight smile hiding in his expression. His hair has turned completely white, which actually seemed to suit him surprisingly well.

She smiled seeing the wet, snow-white strands on his forehead, and moved it to the side with her hand. He noticed her significant smile and looked down at his own reflection in the window next to them.

‘Heh… I was not expecting to get a new hairstyle as a reward for being such a brave boy.’ – he chuckled and started touching his own hair whilst staring at himself in the window’s reflection.

Emilia laughed at his joke and moved closer again. By that time she had completely forgotten about the nervous feeling she had in her initially, she felt so comfortable and safe with him, despite being in such an intimate position. She pulled him in for another hug, longing for the feeling of his warm skin against hers.

‘Well, it won’t last, it only stays this way for a couple of minutes usually…’ – as she said those words his hair began turning back into it’s original color, besides one single strand up front, which stayed white.

‘I guess not all of it.’ – he smiled at her. – ‘And… how do you know that it doesn’t? Have you done this to anyone else before?’ - for some reason she sensed slight jealousy, something unusual for Ash.

‘Yeah…’ – the sudden sense of guilt overcame her as she realized how disappointed he must’ve been, knowing that despite being her boyfriend, he was not told the truth first. – ‘I managed to help Elle, uh, Elle Moss. She’s in Hufflepuff, in her 9th year. I managed to permanently fix her eyesight, so she no longer needs to wear glasses.’

To her surprise his expression softened and he smiled proudly.

‘Really? Merlin’s beard, that’s incredible… I can’t believe you are lucky enough to be able to wield such an ability. It far exceeds anything the wizarding world has achieved, I mean, you know, Wiggenweld potions won’t do anything besides strengthening you up and making the injuries heal quicker and not even doctors can tend to more serious illnesses any better than Muggles do… And you do it at an instant! And so effortlessly… I just can’t believe it…’ – seeing how impressed he was caused a pleasant tingle to evolve in her stomach, but she tried to stay humble and not let it go into her head, no matter how nice it was to hear such appreciation.

He kept on smiling at her and shaking his head in disbelief for another minute before he asked:

‘Have you helped anyone else as well?’

She bit her lip thinking about Atticus. Ash would not like hearing about her helping him, she was sure of that, especially since it happened right after the troll incident which had caused him such nerves before. Despite feeling bad about it she decided it would be better off to not mention that to him just yet.

‘Not yet, but I asked Ominis Gaunt if I could try to restore his vision at least a little.’ – she answered instead, thinking about the next day’s plans.

‘Gaunt? I’ve noticed you hang out with him and Sallow quite often. Do you think you will be able to actually return his eyesight? Healing complete blindness seems like a much bigger challenge.’ – he questioned her, seeming genuinely curious.

‘I don’t know yet… But I want to try. Maybe he will be able to see to some degree at least, hopefully.’ – she revealed doubtfully, with an unsure tone.

He cupped her face with his hands and raised it to look into her eyes. He brushed her cheek with his thumb in a gentle and soft manner and gave her a reassuring smile.

‘I know you can do this. You will manage to help him and probably many others in the future. You’re the most talented and amazing person I know. I’m so lucky to have you in my life, love.’

His words felt like medicine to her worries, she immediately felt better, just hearing him speak and feeling his touch made everything else just disappear.

She stood on her toes and leaned in to kiss him, he welcomed it with a surprised exhale but the next second he eagerly kissed her back, more intensely than usual. Their tongues played together in harmony as their hands were wrapping themselves around each other’s bodies, pulling one another close. It all started escalating quickly, quicker than Emilia would expect, but she did not mind. She welcomed his enthusiasm with even more passion and straight-forwardness, which was surprising even to her.

She has never felt that way before, that very moment seemed magical with just how intimate and vulnerable it was, with how close they were, focused on nothing else but one another. Up until that moment their relationship did not go any further than kissing, and even those were not even remotely close to the passion and desire in which they made out just then.

The girl felt Ash’s hand reach down and squeeze her bum. Her heart was already pounding out of her chest and his touch made it almost explode. His naked torso was touching her own naked body, their skins were wet and hot from the steaming water.

Their kiss lasted for what felt like an eternity before she finally pulled away and looked into his green eyes.

‘Do you want to take this elsewhere?’ – she was surprised by her own boldness but the desire in her was stronger than the anxiety.

He gave her a sly smile and pulled her close by the waist, his lips just an inch away from hers as he whispered in a playful tone:

‘What do you have in mind, love?’

‘I have this special place in the Astronomy Tower… We could finish up our bath and then maybe go there together?’ – the words spilt out of her mouth quickly as she felt the excitement in her rise, seeing the boy understood exactly what she had meant.

He chuckled lightly and kissed her forehead.

‘I like that idea.’ – his eyes kept looking into hers as he agreed.

They quickly finished their bath and got dressed. Ash still looked away with respect as she left the pool and started putting her robes back on. He took her by the hand once they were ready and snuck out of the Hospital Wing, making their way to the Astronomy Tower slowly. They were walking up the spiral stairs leading up to the small hallway in which the door to the Room of Requirements was hidden, already celebrating not being caught by anyone with a bunch of smiles and silent giggles when they heard footsteps coming from the other staircase that led directly to the top of the tower.

Before either of them got a chance to look for a place to hide the door leading out to the hallway opened and a familiar figure walked out of it.

‘Atticus?’ – Emilia’s voice echoed through the empty hallway as she spotted her friend walk out of the darkness.

He seemed equally surprised to see both of them as well. He took a step closer and she had just then noticed a withered, school broom in his hand. Seeing this, Ash’s breath quickened as he stood there with pure anger in his eyes. With each encounter that both brother’s have had, he seemed to become more and more hateful towards Atticus.

‘Care to explain what you’re doing here?’ – he asked through his gritted teeth.

‘None of your business.’ – his brother replied annoyingly, trying to quickly pass through him but was stopped by his extended arm.

‘Not so quick.’ – the Ravenclaw boy’s brows narrowed as he looked back at the Slytherin. – ‘I’ve tolerated you sneaking out past curfew for far too long. But enough is enough. 50 points from Slytherin. And a week’s detention. I’ll have Madam Scribner assign you something in the Library.’

Atticus’ eyes first widened but then narrowed with fury.

‘Quick showing off your pseudo-Prefect power in front of Emilia, and piss off to be annoying someplace else, before I make you.’

‘Oh?’ – a sly grin appeared on Ash’s face. – ‘I, unlike you, don’t have to show anything off, since Emilia is already mine, which you’re obviously jealous of. But I guess it’s not my fault you’re so unlovable.’

Those words stung him like a needle. His breath quickened as he leaped in and punched his older brother so hard he fell back onto the cold, tile floor. Emilia immediately turned to him and saw his eye already turning purple, but as she bent down to help him up, he simply pushed her aside and got back on his feet, just to return the punch twice as hard. All of this happened so quickly that she didn’t even get a chance to react and try to separate the boys. Atticus’ nose cracked and bent to the side as the bone broke and he whined in pain, but still stood his ground and scoffed with pure fury, before quickly taking out his wand and snapping it through the air vigorously, the yellow bolt of magic at the end of it slashing through the air with a loud whoosh as it cut through Ash’s face, right across his nose, causing a few droplets of blood to fly to the side. He groaned in pain and squished his eyes, covering his face with one hand, and pulling out his own wand with the other. Just then, Emilia finally got a chance to react, and she jumped right in front the both of them, finally putting an end to this fight.

‘Enough!’ – she snapped angrily, her eyes pacing from one boy to another with a mix of disappointment and worry in her eyes.

Atticus used it as an opportunity to quickly get on his feet and retract, running down the hallway and disappearing in the darkness of the spiral staircase, leaving the broom on the ground behind them. Ash just looked at Emilia with an unfamiliar anger, never shown towards her before, right as he turned around and left the hallway as well. She stared at the empty corridor in disbelief, still managing to blame herself for what had happened and feeling tormented by the guilt. She quickly made the wish in her head for the doors to her hideout to appear, before rushing inside with tears already strolling down her cheeks. The living room was also mostly dark, but she managed to spot a small figure on the couch. As she creeped in for a closer look, she saw Elle, curved up in a ball and sleeping, with a pile of books on the coffee table next to her. She grabbed the crocheted blanket from the nearby armchair and placed it over her, before quickly trotting up the curved stairs and into her bedroom, where she plopped down on the bed, face down, and began to sob quietly into the pillow, filled with conflicting emotions.