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Cows Hear Everything REWRITE | ||||
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Category: Angst Valentine Challenge (2006-1) Characters:None Genres: Angst, Tragedy, Drama, General Warnings: Dark Fiction Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 4 Summary: Susan is a very wise cow- a cow that is, what you could say- observant. When she sees affection- she sees his eyes, the Stags eyes- the eyes of a man who, despite what his heart is telling him, might never return to his one and only. Written for the Angst Valentines Day Challenge. Hitcount: Story Total: 3632 |
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Written by Cori_b, a.k.a. Dead Cows Word Count: 2895 Dedicated to SIYE and to Moonhunter18 for the extremely short noticed BETA work As Susan watched the girl run out of sight she started to wonder… what was it like to be human and have so many emotions? Sure, she had to throw up her food a few times, but how hard could it be to be a human? Was it that hard to stand on your two feet, use your hands to hold utensils for eating, grasp a wand… but out of the many things humans could do one thing remained a mystery in Susan’s eyes- How could they love? Was love at first sigh possible, was thinking you had everything with a simple touch of the lips even likely? Susan knew nothing of this off set spell so many fell under- but one thing was certain… This was one of the good things about living on a slaughter farm… Susan had died young- so now, she traveled the world, as a ghost. Recently she had taken to the wizarding world and watching their absurd stick movements… but we are getting off subject. She had heard the raven-haired boy expose his heart to the young girl. He seemed quite nice; she could tell by his eyes. Of course the young woman had passed out on seeing his face, but the way he held her, the way he touched her… it was beautiful. Susan stared at the sky with detached interest. It was one of those days- a day when you just barely fade in with the crowd of meandering beings, when your grasp for learning anything at all is dismal and your mind is elsewhere, causing your surroundings to blend together. It was like you feel that nothing’s really happening, so why should you even be here? We all have those days, some of us call them our “Monday days”…and, tragically, this was Tuesday. Not only was it a Terrible Tuesday, it was also that long awaited and yet somehow dreaded - Valentine’s Day. Now, no matter how many different times Susan had contemplated the meaning of Valentine’s Day it seemed like every source said the same thing: Valentine's Day is a day for the exchange of tokens of affection Now Susan wasn’t brilliant, by any means, and she was no Hermione Granger, but she wasn’t stupid. She actually had a finely honed sense about people and their attitudes. Today, it seemed, had rushed by utterly too fast and without one mention of the word Valentine; at least, the Slytherins had been the only festive couples on this day of days. On the whole it seemed that this day had been filled with just a little too much tension. The male populations in Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryfindor had purposefully avoided their heartthrobs in order to keep to their original plan. Yes, for once in their lives the guys were one-step ahead of their significant others. Not to say that men are always clueless- that would be an understatement- but for once in the history of mankind, and Hogwarts in general, they had come up with the perfect plan. It had taken secret meetings and weeks of planning in the Room of Requirement, with the groveling of Zacharias Smith and the crying of Neville Longbottom until Professor McGonagall finally agreed to let the plan go any further. Sadly, her consent had come with a drawback- if one could call it that. Valentine’s Day was on a Tuesday, a day of learning- or so said McGonagall- so their idea would have to wait for Saturday. Consequently, many of the men felt it necessary for their affection to waver in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day. This “cover up” only disturbed the girls even more, sending their emotions into pandemonium. There is only one rule in life that a guy should know- never back away from your true love in order to keep her happy and safe. And, as expected, do you think this little…speed bump…got in the way of wandering minds and threatening tears? Not in the least. But what you are really asking now is “How does Susan know this?” Well, let’s go back to…six o’clock, before this whole ordeal unfolded. * A tear fell, a cry floated through the air, and a red head sighed. Susan, who had been resting near Hagrid’s desolate pumpkin patch, awoke abruptly to the complaining of Ginny Weasley and, to her surprise, Jayla Kimmel. A little further back was Hermione Granger, the know-it-all, and two Hufflepuffs Susan didn’t recognize. The sun was setting across the grounds and the girls were huddled together talking feverishly. “I’m sorry girls,” Jayla said. She had a small but beautiful voice that sounded like the melody of a Swedish maiden. She had stunning rust colored hair that made her beautiful blue eyes glow. She was of average height among the typical Hogwarts population but quite small compared to her thin and yet somehow beautifully lanky friends. Her facial expressions were what set Jayla Kimmel off from her Slytherin peers. If the truth be told, Jay had no idea how she had been placed in Slytherin, for she had enough willpower to not be forced into the Dark Arts and really enjoyed just about everything in life. She rarely ever strived for superiority, so Jayla assumed the Sorting Hat had in fact made a mistake. “It’s not your fault, Jay- stupid prats. What can you expect from boys, anyway? They pick your hearts up and drop them like Dungbombs,” This girl, in contrast to Jay, was tall and had olive skin. Her bobbed hair was adorned with two plain clips that kept her bangs out of her eyes. Lyndia Fox had beautiful brown eyes that could melt any man’s heart, with small specks of gold and green bringing out her eyes even more. No makeup was needed to make this girl beautiful. Lyndia was full of snide remarks about the opposite sex and had, quite frankly, given up on them all together. Why she had let her heart be trampled by a wizard yet again was not only a mystery to herself but to all her friends as well. It was clear to all that Jonathan Nott was not worth her time. “I still can’t believe they forgot. After the planning…” “…the reminding…” “…the cards…” “…the hugs…” “…the smiles…” “…and all the Proof that we are in fact girls…” “And let’s not forget to mention the threat to dance naked in front of them and leave them to finish each other off…” “They still forgot,” huffed a new member to the group. Luna Lovegood’s dirty blonde hair had been tied up in two pigtails that carried no volume what so ever. Her bland expression carried no emotion either. Luna’s Firewhiskey cork necklace laid limp and her turnip earrings looked like they were sulking. “I wish they would have just given us chocolate, or something out of a dream,” Luna stomped. The other girls chimed in with random sighs until Luna spoke again. “Jay- what would be your Valentine’s Day dream?” “Well,” started Jay, “I think that the best dream date I could ever hope for would start with him waking me up to a soft kiss and a little gift- you know, chocolate or a teddy bear. “ “Hopeless romantic,” Lyndia sighed under her breath, causing Blaire to groan. “As I was saying… We would walk hand in hand to Hogsmeade; along the way we would steal swift, chaste kisses, only preparing us for a beautiful brunch in a quaint little restaurant on High Street.” Jay stopped for a moment and sighed; she looked far out into the distance at the setting sun. “How beautiful,” Blaire mumbled under her breath. “My pancakes would be shaped like hearts and we would spend the rest of the day dreaming- and kissing, of course. When the day was done and we had returned to Hogwarts, I would want him to hold me in his arms by the fire, no matter what Draco Malfoy or that prat Pansy said.” Jay looked at her friends with raised eyebrows. “I poured my heart out; its your turn, Lynn,” Jay stared down her friend until she finally broke. “Ok, ok, ok; no need to get picky… Well, I guess mine would start out with a short breakfast in the Great Hall. We would sit next to one another and feed each other bits of pudding…” “They don’t serve pudding at breakfast,” Ginny muttered. “Ginny! This is Lynn’s dream, let her tell it — keep going, hon,” Jayla urged, giving Lyndia a supporting look. “So we would feed each other bits of pudding and then we would set off for a remote room in the castle. It would take a long time to find, mind you- in that time we would hold hands and talk about Snape’s class and how Professor Flitwick was bound to fall off his stack of books before long.” Lyndia stopped and smiled, something she had rarely done since her parents had died, back in October. “Once we found the classroom we would just talk, maybe summon a few candles and a comfortable throw. I think that would be nice,” Lyndia stated, making sure the girls were following her towards the castle that seemed so far off now. “Finally, we would talk the day away, a few kisses here and there, and a candle lit dinner, just him and me, anywhere… as long as we were alone and with each other,” Lyndia finished. Her eyes had started to glaze over at the thought of how romantic that would be if it were real. “And I’m the hopeless romantic?” Jayla asked, smirking. “Girls- lets face it. Men. Are. Not. Worth. Our. Time!” Blaire exclaimed, throwing the clips in her hair to the snow covered lawn. “One word- Dungbombs.” “Oh yes, they are,” Hermione said dreamily. She had propped herself on a tree near the entrance of the Forbidden Forest. “Well, that’s not saying a lot seeing as you and Ronald Weasley spent the entire day in a lip lock,” Jayla moaned. “I didn’t even think he had emotion. He never really watches what he says…who knew he could be…” “…so romantic?” Ginny finished, and Luna nodded. “I didn’t think he had it in him- Bill was always the charmer in our family.” “Well, at least they totally ignored us and didn’t try to remember and hide their daft impressions.” Lyndia butted in. “But tell us, Hermione- what did Ron do that made your day so special?” Lyndia raised her eyebrows, as if to say that anything he did couldn’t be all that great. “He did his homework- alone,” “NO!” Ginny gasped, apparently scandalized. “Yes!” “He only did his homework?” “Without help.” Hermione reminded. A blush had crept up her face and was rapidly spreading across her cheekbones. “That’s lame,” Blaire spat. “Well if looks could kill…” Hermione started. “Yes, we know- we would all have been dead by fifth year. Perfect Hermione Granger got Perfect Keeper Ron Weasley,” Blaire snorted and Hermione blushed. “Ron’s not all looks, you know,” Hermione defended. “Oh yeah,” Ginny started sarcastically “He is great in school,” “Ginny- that’s not what I mean. He- he’s caring. He puts me in front of all his needs, just to make me happy,” “How sweet,” Jayla whispered. “By the way… What was his homework?” Luna asked in her normal oblivious fashion. Her protruding blue eyes were glazed over and her gaze had fallen upon Susan. “I…erm- Historyofmagic,” Hermione said, a little too fast for the likings of her newly acquired friends. “No…I don’t think Ron has History of Magic; Harry does, um, didn’t anyway,” Ginny caught herself. “No, I s’pose not. Its not important,” Hermione retracted her words hastily… but it was too late. It had been a horrible predicament. He was gone- her life, her pulse, her love was gone. He hadn’t listened when she insisted that she go with him- hell, if she had gone there might not be a Voldemort anymore. A fight had broken out between Harry and Ron, splitting the Golden Trio into little shattered pieces of a lamp that could not even be repaired with the most complex binding charm. Consequently, Ginny had been left with her brother and Hermione and no word of Harry. He had left in the middle of the night after Fleur and Bill’s wedding, without a word to anyone. She hadn’t heard from him for seven months. For all she knew he could be dead, he could be cold, he could be sick; he could be with another girl. “I’m sorry, Gin,” Jayla comforted. Ginny and Jay had become good friends through the war; it had taken a toll on both of their families after the Himmels joined the Order. “It’s ok. I- I think I am going to go take a walk.” And Ginny walked away, her head down; though Susan could not see her face or hear a sound, she was sure the poor girl was crying. “Did I say something wrong?” Luna looked severely confused. “I really do feel bad for her. I mean, Harry was her life. She loved him, even if it was only for a few weeks.” Blaire looked thoroughly guilty. Her black hair had lost its shine and her spunk had drained away like water. “She hadn’t only loved him for a few weeks. It had been years, since she was first told the story of The-Boy-who-Lived, back when she was a child.” Hermione concluded. The girls did not look surprised; they just nodded silently and watched their friend walk away into the setting sun. “I can’t believe he did that to her, she’s heart broken,” Lyndia spoke up as they passed a stout and strong looking deer. “Aren’t we all, girls? Aren’t we all…” Blaire shot half-heartedly as they watched their friend walk into he distance. * “Stupid! STUPID PRAT!” Ginny screamed. Her friends were long gone, and she was starting to get chilly. Sadly, the hem of her cloak was failing under the wet snow, causing her socks to get very wet. The stars had appeared- and the wind had picked up quite a bit. A large tree with enormous leaves and wide branches had appeared out of nowhere. It seemed out of place but Ginny was sure it must be enchanted; the leaves were still a beautiful lime green. As Ginny neared she realized how tired she actually was. It was like a sleeping draught had been slipped in her mouth without her knowing. Ginny sat underneath the tree and tried to warm up. Her wand made a decent sized fire, just large enough to warm her toes and fingers. After a few minutes of contemplation Ginny heard a twig snap behind her. She turned around swiftly to find only darkness and the boarder between the Forbidden Forest and Hogwarts. Ginny shook her head and tried to calm herself down. It had only been a twig, after all. A few more minutes went by until she heard the snap once more. This time Ginny put out her fire and jumped up. Her pale face shone almost blue in the moonlight and her hoarse and heavy breathing made puffs of white steam come from her mouth. “Who’s there?” she called softly, trying to keep her voice strong and fierce. “Show yourself.” She demanded. It was probably a punk second year Slytherin just trying to see if he could tick off an older student, but no second year came forward. Ginny stared into the forest, trying to find some indication that there was a person in the woods. Then- just like that- a foot appeared from behind a rather large tree that hadn’t been there a moment before. Ginny stumbled back behind the tree and prayed to god she hadn’t just seen what she thought she saw. “Ginny,” a rough voice called. It was him. But then again, it wasn’t. Why would Harry be following her? “Maybe,” “I know its you,” “Harry?” “Yes,” “What was the last thing I said to you?” “You missed my lips by a kilometer.” “And do you know why I said that?” “Because I couldn’t feed you a pain draught to save my life.” * Ginny awoke hours later; she was cold, terribly cold. She was also soaked to the bone and her skin was clammy. Her nose was running and her fire had extinguished. But Ginny couldn’t remember falling asleep. She couldn’t remember being wrapped in a wool blanket, and she sure as heck didn’t remember a deer. But despite this all, all this weirdness... Ginny couldn’t help but remember his voice. She forgot all about the smoky black stag and ran through the freezing grounds back to the castle, leaving both the stag and the cow to look up at the stars. A/n: So- a little angst eh? FYI, Harry did not die- though I want to know your feedback on the story. The normal “That was great” is perfectly acceptable, but this time, maybe once- I could have some constructive criticism? I want to know where you thought this was going, if it caught you off guard–what you liked (and that doesn’t mean everything) and what you didn’t like. |
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