The Seven Potters

You can call this story cheesy or whatnot, but one of the most unforgettable days of my life was the day I read the final Harry Potter book. I wanted to share this now because J. K. Rowling announced today her return to the literature world. Happy for you ma’am.

Now that the introduction is all said-and-done, I’ll tell you the story in which most Potter fans can relate themselves to. As a fan I was obsessed with Harry Potter those days. How much our fictional hero is similar to me is quite uncanny. Long story short… It was nearly time for me to read the final Potter book and boy was I nervous.

As the release day grew near and near I couldn’t sleep even. The book was preordered and all, just like every time (I’m not taking a risk by not ordering) and there I was on the day of the release all holed-up inside a tuition class. I had come to an agreement with my mom the previous day; when I return home with the book, No disturbing me till I finish reading. And the class was over, I ran straight to the bookstore (stopped on my way for Thimira to pick up his book too).

I arrived at Gunasena, Kiribathgoda with a huge smile on my face. The sales lady made sure to point that out for me. I knew she understood. I paid the rest of my money, thanked the cashier and went outside. On the doorstep was a poor lady holding a baby. I remember thinking to myself that on this happy day no one should be left sad. Keeping just enough money for a bus ride home, I turned my wallet upside-down and emptied the rest of the money for the poor lady. I didn’t wait for the reaction because I took the next available bus and went home.

There was my mom waiting with a grin on her face. She knew of the promise and I darted upstairs to the shower and into my room.

With a deep breath, I opened the book and that’s all I can remember of any real life event.

I raised my heads just few chapters away from the finale, the clock told me I was reading for 6 hours straight. 11 ‘O’ clock… Nah! Not hungry… and I started reading again.

The reality hit me the very moment I finished the book. I closed it slowly and turned it over to take a look at the cover. It was over… it was all over. Years of waiting and it all came down to this. A huge dread swept over me. It was like saying goodbye to a best friend. I thought I’d be happy to finish the series but I was not. The realization of the series coming to an end was incomprehensible.  For the first time in my life, I felt without a purpose. I knew this had nothing to do with the plot of the book where many of my favorite characters are now dead. This was more than that. I went downstairs to see if I can scavenge something to eat, only to be surprise with a plateful of my favorite goodies and a bottle of Coca-Cola waiting on the table. It was my mom. She knew I’d need something to celebrate finishing the book. She knew how I felt about the series. She knew of the emotional attachment. Most importantly, she knew… me.

I ate what was on it, I ate it all. It was a very quiet “dinner”. I went back to my room, picked up the book on the bed and placed it on the last empty space of the cupboard holding the 6 previous Potter books. What a sight to see… all 7 Books united in one straight line. The huge smile returned to my face. With the smile intact, I closed the door… that’s all there is, there isn’t any more.