Whispers Of The Past, Tales Of The Future PV Simon Tilia Finished

Even though Simon enjoyed breakfast – in fact, it was one of his favorite meals of the day – he hurried to finish his cereals and sandwiches. What was the expression? 'Carpe diem'. Simon did not want to waste his weekends on sleeping, as most boys tend to do around his age, and not even the food in the Great Hall could stop his eager to make the most out of this day. He had finished all of his home works and looked forward to spend the weekend with his girlfriend.

He spotted Madi outside the Great Hall where she was waiting for him.

"Good morning, sweetie." He placed his hand on her chin and gave her a long kiss. "Yes, I think we better stay inside today."

They started their usual walk around the castle, holding hands and chatting. When they stopped to kiss in one of the corridors on the second floor, one of the sleepy portraits on the wall woke up and asked them to do that some place else in private. They looked at each other and started laughing before they continued to the next floor.

That was when Simon realized Madi had never been inside the Trophy Room before. Curious as she was, she wanted to go inside. Simon had only been in the Trophy Room at night and seeing the room in daylight was entirely different; the sunlight reflected in the trophies and glass cabinets almost blinded him. Either the house elves or some students on detention must have worked hard to make the trophies so perfectly shiny. It did not seem to be a single dust in the room.

"Wow, this place is so cool," said Madi.

"Told you so!" They walked around the glass cabinets, looking at the various trophies and shields. "I wonder what it was like when our parents went to Hogwarts. Well, everyone except my mother, of course. Speaking of which... You've never told me how your parents first met?"

OOC note: Simon and Madison's writers have standing consent to godmod each other's characters

Madison gazed around at all the Trophies in awe when she spotted one in particular that caught her eye "Woah Si look, that one has my dads name on it!!" Madi says, reading what the trophy was for, though in her head she knew what it was. "As I figured, it was because he was a Chaser for the Hufflepuff team when he was at school" Madi says with a giggle.

As she held Simon's hand and they kept walking, Madi smiled as she leaned against an empty wall and Simons lips met hers "I'm not sure, though it probably wasn't as full as it is now" Madi said as they kept walking and she saw more trophies with her dads name on it. She spotted a shield next to it with prefect names on there and spotted two very familiar names. "Both my mother and my dad were house prefects, I had no idea" Madi said, still holding Simon's hand.

Madi giggled as she remembered the story her dad told her "It was during their fifth year and dad was playing in a Quidditch match against Ravenclaw. During the game, he caught the Quaffle right before it hit my mother because he intercepted it from one of the Ravenclaw Chasers, who was also the team captain" Madi said with a smile as they kept walking through the Trophy room.

Simon soon stopped in front of an ordinary looking painting however, and after Madi gave him another kiss, one of many that they'd shared in the past 10 or so minutes, she asked him a question. "Um Si, I don't mean to sound silly, but why are we stopping in front of a picture?" Madi said in a whisper so that she didn't annoy or upset the person in the painting. Madi read at the side who the portrait was of. It was of Brutus Scrimgeour, the guy who had written The Beater's Bible, a book Madi's dad made her read when she was first learning about Quidditch.

Simon stopped and looked when Madi spotted her father's name among the Quidditch trophies.

"Wow, that's so cool! I don't think my dad has any achievements like that."

The fact that Madi's parents had been Prefects did not surprise him, although he figured that Mr. Bennett would have been the nicer one of the two. Mrs. Bennett was very strict about manners and rules. Now he had also learned that she was a blood purist, something that had bothered him for the last couple of days. When Madi told him how her parents first fell for each other, Simon silently wondered what Mr. Bennett saw in his wife. They both seemed so different from each other. Or maybe she was not always like that? Perhaps blood purism ideas and values were not always inherited but something that could grew steadily later in life.

After exploring the room, Simon lead her to one of the portraits, that of Brutus Scrimgeour. During his first year, he had found that it was in fact a secret passage between the third and fourth floor. That had come in handy a couple of times when he was about to be late for class.

"Um Si, I don't mean to sound silly, but why are we stopping in front of a picture?"

"Are you sure this is just a picture?" Simon gave her a cheeky smile. "I'm going to show you something."

He placed his fingers on the side of the portrait and with a 'Click!' it opened. Behind it was the tight passage leading up a staircase to the right.

"Shortcut to the fourth floor – access granted!" he said with a smile and pointed with his hand. "Ladies first."

"Wow, that's so cool! I don't think my dad has any achievements like that."

Madi looked at Simon and kissed his cheek "Hehe yeah it is. What kind of stuff did your dad enjoy doing at Hogwarts then?" Madi asked with a smile. Simon had told her a fair bit about his mum and a bit about his dad but not as much as Madi had told him about her mother and dad.

Madi looked at him curiously and was in awe when the portrait opened, though it did take her slightly by surprise so she jumped back a little. "Hehe, thank you kind Sir Madi said with a giggle. "Hmm, I wonder who else has used this before" Madi says before stepping into the tight passage and waiting for Simon, as the portrait shut behind them. She let Simon go first, since she didn't know where to go, and held onto his hand as they walked through the passage and towards the staircase.

Whilst walking up the staircase, Madi could sense from Simon's body language that something was bothering him. She stopped when they were on the same step and looked at him "Si, is everything ok, you seem like something's been bothering you. Please tell me so that I can try to help you. Afterall, we did both agree last week under the apple tree, that we'd be more open and honest with each other" Madi said gently, holding his hand and giving him a soft kiss on the lips.
Madi didn't wait to probe Simon too much so she waited until he answered her question. She stroked his hands and smiled, hoping to show him that she would listen and that she would try her best to reassure him, help him feel better and help solve whatever was bothering him.

"Honestly, I don't know much about my dad's time at Hogwarts. He was a bit shy when he was younger, but part from that, he hasn't told me much. I would guess he spent most of his time in the library or some distant place far away from people, not having nearly as many adventures and excursion as we've had." He shrugged his shoulders.

It felt a bit sad, thinking about how much his dad might have missed. But that was of course just a theory. Maybe there were things his father had not told him, things that he did not want Simon to find out that could inspire him to do any mischief. Well, it's too late for that now anyway.

When they went inside the secret passage and shut the portrait behind them, it got dark and cold.

"Hmm, I wonder who else has used this before."

"Oh, probably plenty of students, but," he said, "I've actually never met anyone else here when I've used the passage as a shortcut. I don't know if it's because people doesn't know that it exists or if it's because they simply choose to go with the standard routes via the Great Staircase instead."

As it got darker, his impulse to surprise Madi with a kiss in this secret setting was quickly replaced with thoughts and worries that came sneaking from the shadows. It was like everything that had bothered him for the last couple of days popped up inside his head. The letter from Madi's mother, for example, and Mrs. Bennett's attempt to affect Madi's choice of boyfriend.

"Si, is everything ok? You seem like something's been bothering you. Please tell me so that I can try to help you. After all, we did both agree last week under the apple tree, that we'd be more open and honest with each other."

She was right of course. He had been very supportive when Madi confessed to him that she got her period the other day and he had reassured her that she could tell him everything. But he was not always good at following his own advice.

Simon took a deep breath. "Well... I didn't want to bring this up now, but... I've been thinking a lot about the letter. The one you got from your mum." He paused, trying to prepare how to phrase it. "It's just that... I hope you don't feel too pressured from her. It would really suck if you, you know, changed your mind about me."

There it was. He said it.

Madi's heart sunk to the bottom of her chest. As she and Simon were just about to have this amazingly beautiful kiss in the secret corridor, he said it. Simon said what had been on his chest and Madi was speechless, she didn't know what to say. Did Simon think she was going to become like her mother? She could feel her mouth getting drier, her breathing got heavier and her eyes felt like they were about to well up with tears.

"Wh what. You think I'll turn out like my mother? If you d don't want to date me Si then that's fine but, I love you, and I always will regardless of how my mother feels about us. I told you this under the apple tree and I will tell you again, she could never change how I feel about you!! I love you Si, don't you get that?" Madi says, now on the last of the stairs and sitting, crying her eyes out. Did her own boyfriend really just tell her that he thinks she would turn out like her mother? A blood purist monster who put so much pressure onto Madi that she felt like she could crumble at any moment. Madi dried her eyes, stood up and turned to face Simon from the bottom of the stairs "I'm sorry for shouting Si, I shouldn't have, however I don't know how else I can reassure you that I won't become like my mother, but I won't. I don't want to be like her and I don't give a damn about what she has to say about us, I love you Si, so much that the thought of losing you would be enough to break my soul into a million pieces" Madi said, tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked up at the boy she loved more than anything.

Madi stopped at the top of the stair and there was a change in her tone that he found almost threatening. Clearly, he had upset her.

"N-no, no, you're taking it wrong." He swallowed. "Madi. Madi. Listen to me..."

But she continued talking, reassuring him that she loved him and that her mother was not going to change that. In a way, that was exactly what he wanted to hear, but judging by her tone and the tears that came flooding down her cheeks, he had both insulted and hurt her with his worries.

"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry," he said and sat down beside her, putting his arms around her. "And I still wanna be your boyfriend, regardless of what your mother says. I don't want to stop dating you. Don't you say stupid things like that. I love you, Madi. So, so much. And that's the thing... That's the reason I got... scared, I guess. When you read the letter to me. Because I don't want to loose you."

"I'm sorry for shouting Si, I shouldn't have, however I don't know how else I can reassure you that I won't become like my mother, but I won't. I don't want to be like her and I don't give a damn about what she has to say about us, I love you Si, so much that the thought of losing you would be enough to break my soul into a million pieces."

Simon dried her cheeks with his sleeve. Her eyes were red and her skin seemed hot from crying. "Come here," he said and stood up. When she did too, he gave her a long hug and held her tightly against his chest, rocking her from side to side.

"You're the best thing that ever happened to me. Don't you forget that."

When they let go of each other, he looked at her and gave her a comforting smile. Then he leaned down, closed his eyes and their lips met.

"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry," he said and sat down beside her, putting his arms around her. "And I still wanna be your boyfriend, regardless of what your mother says. I don't want to stop dating you. Don't you say stupid things like that. I love you, Madi. So, so much. And that's the thing... That's the reason I got... scared, I guess. When you read the letter to me. Because I don't want to lose you."

"I don't want to lose you either Si and I love you with all my heart" Madi said with a smile, moving closer to Simon and letting her head rest of his shoulder, even though her cheeks were still slightly wet from her tears.

Madi looked at Simon as he dried her cheeks with his sleeve. When he hugged her after they stood up, she felt her body instantly relax. All that fear and worry of losing Simon went away.
Madi giggled as he rocked her from side to side as they cuddled "hehe this feels like we're slow dancing, it's how my dad used to dance with me when I was little. After a Quidditch match that his team lost, he took me out onto the pitch, I was about 3, and he put my little feet on top of his, held my little hands and started rocking from side to side. He said that my little giggles, helped him feel better after the loss" Madi said, smiling up at Simon.Though of course I won't stand on your feet, I don't want to hurt you" Madi said with a giggle.

She couldn't help but smile as what Simon told her. She was the best thing that ever happened to him, it made her feel so special, so loved and so cared for. As Madi let go of Simon, he lent down and when they're lips met, Madi felt those fireworks come back all over again. They weren't massive like the first time they properly kissed, they were gentle sparklers but they burned just as brightly and were just as warm.

As Madi felt her lips depart Simon's after a while, she felt a blush hit her cheeks. "Shall we keep exploring or shall we go back to the Trophy Room, it's getting kinda chilly in here" Madi said, holding Simon's hand and resting her head on his chest, taking a nice deep breath in and out, with the smile she made whenever she felt safe and loved.

"I'm sure it wouldn't hurt if you stood on my feet, since you're light as a butterfly," he said jokingly and lifted her from the ground to give her a kiss mid-air. "And my mom did the same with me when I was little actually."

Madi seemed to feel better already and with the misunderstanding cleared up, their lips simultaneously searched for each other in the semi-darkness of the tight passageway. This would have been the perfect secret kissing spot if it was not for the chilly draft. Not even their kissing or the feeling of Madi's warm skin could prevent a shiver from running down his spine. Apparently, Madi was becoming cold as well and took the initiative to leave.

"Yeah, how about I show you the way out? Then you know which portrait to enter from the fourth floor, if you would ever need to use this route." He took her hand in his. "Come on, let's go."

They continued up the stairs. It was an old passageway with some broken steps here and there, and at one place, the stair seemed to tilt to the right. As they got closer to the back of the portrait on the fourth floor the temperature increased and some distant voices could be heard. Simon peaked through a little hole in the portrait.

"Okay, coast is clear. It's just two of the ghosts passing through the corridor. We wouldn't wanna spoil our secret shortcut to everyone, would we?”

He placed his hands around her waist and pulled her in for a last kiss. With his lips tightly pressed against hers he took a deep breath in. When they finally let go with a smacking sound, he gently pushed the back of the portrait and it swung open. They stepped outside and were embraced by the warm light of the corridor.

"This is it. You recognize where we are?" He took a few steps backwards and looked around the place. "So, where are we off to next?"