Annie and the Hiddy Hole

The request had popped up out of nowhere. Well, not really . . ..

It had started on the carriage ride back to the school with Professor Bashagwani asking Kerry how he'd felt since the "Incident", as the instructors called it. He'd said he was fine, of course. Then Lina had mentioned that Emma had woke up a couple of times during the night, but that she seemed alright as well, which led to Professor Bashagwani mentioning how brave they'd been, caught in the middle of the breach and then hiding before making their ill-fated run for the stadium--

And that was when Annie asked the question: "Kerry, where did you hide? Could you show me?"

And Kerry couldn't say no.

After putting their things away Kerry led Annie out to the "North Side", the area of the Institute north of the creek, and over to the Dark Arts House. Kerry felt some strangeness being back here. He hadn't felt anything Thursday when they'd arrived for class because . . . well, class with Professor Lovecraft would probably be stranger. But here, now, with no one around, it seemed so--quiet. And it was like this Monday as well, he thought, before the dueling happened.

"It's over this way, C'mon." Kerry led Annie off into the woods, right where he remembered entering them with Emma. He had a good memory for stuff like this. Sometimes he wondered if it was a bit of a curse, because it would have been easy for him to say, "Oh, man, I don't remember where we were," and leave it at that. But he couldn't because . . . that would mean lying.

And he didn't want to lie to Annie.

Only a minute or so after entering the woods Kerry found the log, and the hollow behind. The spot's got a few more leaves on it now, he realized, which given that the trees were defoliating would happen.

He walked around the log and sat in the depression, facing the direction of the wall. "And here we are," he said, helping Annie down. "The Famous Kerry/Emma Hiding Spot." He sat back and laughed softly. "Guarantied to keep the Death Eaters away." Kerry through an arm around Annie and gently pulled her closer. "What do you think?"

Annie was silent as she sat next to Kerry in the spot where he and Emma hid on the day of the attack. She stroked the hard and cold ground, disturbing the dead leaves as her fingers glided over them.

“Were you both very scared, Kerry?” Annie delighted in asking her father to tell her all about his scariest adventures when he was in school; enchanted by the terror, she would squeal with every minute detail. As the reality of how close she actually came to losing him dawned on her, she felt very different.

She snuggled closer to him, feeling his body heat radiate through her pale blue hooded sweatshirt.

Looking around, trying to bring back the memories, Kerry said, "I was scared; I mean, I felt something, but I thought it was just adrenaline or something." He cushioned Annie against him, his backpack on his left. "I think Emma was more scared than I was, 'cause she was the one who wanted to get hid."

Examining the woods, Kerry said, "I never noticed how quiet it was here, or how pretty. I just wanted to get us undercover, out of the way . . ." He flexed his fingers against Annie's arm, slowly, steadily. "I've never been in that situation before. If I'd really known that we could have died, I would probably had been like Emma." He nodded, the image of Emma's face, next to his as they lay on the ground, huge in his mind's eye. "She never said anything, just we needed to get out of sight. She was crazy scared--"

And the more Kerry thought about them out here that day, the more uncomfortable it made him.

Annie could sense there was more, but didn’t want to press him. She guessed it made him uneasy to think that his life might have ended right there, lying in a hollow with Emma by his side. It’s painful for me to think about that, she thought, and I wasn’t even here. She shook her head, wiping the image from her mind.

“That would make sense about Emma. Had you been properly prepared…you might not have gone at all.” She thought about that and grinned. “Probably not, though.”

It was time for Kerry to chuckle. "I probably would have," he said. "I can be dumb that way." He started to loosen up just a bit, but still felt the tension. There's only tension because of you, he thought. Yes, Emma had warned him, but that was Monday, and Monday was over and since then there'd been so much good . . ..

Kerry sighed, feeling like he was deflating. "I was more scared than I wanted to admit," he said. "I really didn't know what I was doing. I just wanted to protect Emma and get back . . ." Kerry felt he was on the verge of tears. "I'm not a hero, I only wanted to help, 'cause in my other world I never did that."

Jeez, this is so hard, he thought. "When Emma came in, what did she say?" He turned and looked into Annie's eyes. "What did she say about us out here?"

Annie began to tremble under his arm. She searched his eyes for what he was getting at, and realized…he was aching, and whatever happened out here with Emma was tearing him apart. Her hand stroked his cheek as she thought about that day his partner arrived in the triage, dazed from the dementor attack.

“She said I was lucky…” Annie breathed.

Kerry couldn't take it any more. When he heard what Annie told him of Emma's comment, it was all he could do to keep from sobbing. "When we were out here, we must have feel asleep," he said, his voice low and steady. "I woke up and I heard things--I think it was dueling. I saw people popping in and out up at the Dark Arts House.

"Emma was out cold. She'd snuggled in close to me; I mean, I think she did it instinctively. I don't remember it happening, which makes me think I was out a bit. Anyway, when I woke her I told her we had to get out of the area because I was afraid we were going to get found with people in the area. And so I started telling her my idea about going to the stadium and getting into the tunnels . . ..

"She kissed me. Right then." Kerry paused, then pushed on, sighing. "On the lips. She told me she was afraid she would die without kissing someone, and . . . I was it."

Kerry felt like he was ripping his own heart out. It was killing him to admit it, even though . . . "There wasn't anything I could say about it. I just got her to not freak out and calmed her down, and then we were up and moving. And then . . . well, there's the rest after that, at the stadium."

He closed his eyes, blinking back the tears. "I'm sorry. I sorry I did it. I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner." Kerry wiped his eyes and half-turned to Annie. "What really bothered me the most, though . . . is that she could have been the last girl I ever kissed." A few tears dropped again onto his shirt. "That bothers me even more, even now."

Emma…kissed him? Annie suddenly understood the emotion behind Kerry’s anguish here in the hollow, and she reacted the only way she knew how. She sat up on her knees and straddled his lap. Her hands rested on his chest as she inched her body closer to his.

The salty flavor of his tears played on the tip of her tongue while her lips kissed them away; she moved her mouth, lingering over his lips. A delicate breeze swept through the trees above, sending down a fresh shower of leaves…

Annie sat motionless—her breath coming in shallow puffs, her lips grazing his. She kissed him on the lips…But I’ve seen how it should be done. Her mouth parted as her tongue slid, first across his lips, and then probing further still. Annie’s world ceased to exist as she explored the taste of him, which was both sweet and wet. His body under her own urging her forward—his touch as greedy as her own.

She moved her hands, tangling them in his hair, and pressed herself closer still. A soft moan escaped her, the sound foreign to her own ears.

The seconds felt like an eternity in paradise. When Annie broke the kiss and leaned back, she lowered her hands to his shoulders and gazed deeply into his eyes--her entire body aflame.

“Kerry, it’s important that you tell me how you feel…right at this exact moment in time.”

Kerry was stunned. Figuratively and emotionally. There was no thinking about what to say, or how to say it. It was just . . . say it.

"That was the best thing that's ever happened to me, Annie," he said between sharp breaths. "That was a kiss. I never had a kiss like that. I never thought what it would be like. I could . . ." He slowly touched his lips. "That was like . . . so grown up, and . . .."

He didn't want to take again. He pulled Annie into him, slowly, letting her sink in. It was his turn to explore. I won't be as good, but there's plenty of time to learn. He knew he'd be awkward and clumsy, but he knew Annie wouldn't care. He knew he could spend hours doing this and she'd always forgive his faults. She might not always accept them at first, he knew, but she will forgive me.

He could taste her sweetness, her simply joy, her tenderness. There was more to Annie than he'd ever imagined. And it was all there for him, right now, given freely.

And Kerry accepted.

When he broke and gently separated them, he was dizzy. Just like the first time they'd kissed, really kissed, in the Tower Garden. While his head was still going 'round and 'round, he reached into his backpack and removed a small, gift wrapped package. "I was going to give this to you tonight," he said, "but you should have it now. Because this is how I feel right this moment."

Annie sat back on his legs, her eyes widening as she saw the small gift in his hands. “Kerry…” She took the box, stunned silent. Her fingers trembled as she opened the paper surrounding it. His kissing is probably as much to blame for that as his gift. I wonder if my skin will ever stop blushing…

As she lifted the lid and peered in, her heart stopped. “It’s a locket. Kerry, it’s the most beautiful thing anyone has ever given me.”

Removing the locket from the gift box, Kerry opened the clap and reached the chain around Annie's neck. He clicked it into place, letting it drop into place, resting pleasingly upon her chest.

"I hope you don't think I'm too crazy," he said softly, "but the jeweler put my picture inside the locket." Kerry felt himself blushing madly. "I wanted to get you something nice for your birthday, and . . . I thought this would be a good start."

Annie opened the locket and Kerry’s smiling face peered out at her. She smiled down at him as his picture winked up at her, and closed him back inside his new home over her heart. “It’s perfect,” she whispered.

She reached up and caressed his cheek. “Thank you.” Slowly she leaned forward, her new present dangling between them, and whispered, “I love you, Kerry. No matter what… And even if she would have been the last girl you kissed,” she brushed his lips with her own, “Know that you live in my heart.”

After Annie spoke Kerry gently took her and pulled her in tight against him. He didn't crush her, but rather held her firm so she couldn't slip away.

Pressing his lips against her, he slowly entered her mouth as she had done with him. It was a strange sensation, but Kerry found it so enjoyable. He also found himself responding in ways he'd never felt before. His heart rate went up, his breathing wanted to quicken, but he kept it under control.

It was other sensations, things he'd never felt throughout his body until now, that surprised him--and felt so good.

When he finished he looked Annie in the eyes and, thinking back to a similar statement, said, "That's my kiss, and no one will ever take that away." He positioned Annie so she rested upon his chest and held her there, letting her feel his heartbeat.