A/N: I don't own anything you recognize.
This is for the Harry Potter Fanfiction Challenges forum
Are you crazy enough to do it Challenge
731. (lyric prompt) "Hold your head up high, there's a world outside, that's passing by." – Dear Daughter – Halestorm
If You Dare Challenge
939 – Dancing in the Ruins
50 Prompts Hurt/Comfort Challenge
(scenario)running away from home
Word count: 688
Daphne slid the bow across the violin, the music filling the room. She closed her eyes, her feet slid across the floor. She had never danced like this before, never taken the chance, but tonight, tonight she needed to something.
Tears welled in her eyes. Her little sister, gone, just like that, a stray spell during the battle, a strangled cry and then silence. She swung her right leg, her toes pointed. Astoria loved to play, loved to dance.
Daphne knew the sounds coming from the violin were screeching, knew they weren't really music, knew her movements were nothing like Astoria's beautiful graceful dances. She sank to her knees, the violin clattering to the floor next to her.
"I'm sorry, Tori, I am so sorry," she whispered. "I tried so much, Tori, tried so hard to...I don't know, Tori. I can't be you, I can't dance, can't play, can't find the beauty without you," she sobbed against the golden plaque bearing her sister's name.
"You can't be her. You can only be you," a voice stated from behind Daphne. She raised her head turning slightly. A man was standing there, a young man, maybe her age. She knew she should have recognized him, but her vision was still blurred with tears.
"I'm sorry?"
"Mind if I sit?" he asked gesturing to the ground next to her.
"Sure, why not, I'm a mess right now." She slid the violin into her bag.
"I said you can't be her, your sister, you can only be you. That's what she probably would have wanted. I don't remember meeting her, but it seems to be a theme lately. I've tried to be so much for so many people, a silent secret, a good friend, a pawn for a madman's game, a savior to a world I never really fit into. I've realized now, after all this, I need to start just being me." Daphne blinked the tears from her eyes. The man she was talking to came into focus.
"And what does that entail?" she asked.
"Taking a step back, leaving England."
"Take me with you?" Daphne asked. A bold move, she needed to make a bold move, something to move on, something, anything.
"You want to leave?" She nodded.
"Yes, Harry, yes I do. I will never be able to move on, never be able to stop thinking about Astoria, find my own life, if I stay here. Please?" Harry nodded slowly.
"I'm leaving in the morning, sevenish, meet me at King's Cross station if you want to come." Daphne smiled as Harry helped her to her feet.
"I'll see you then, thank you," she whispered giving him a soft kiss on his cheek before walking away.
DHDHDHDHDHDHDH
Harry checked his watch. She was running late, maybe. He'd said sevenish. He was holding a single suitcase, was dressed in muggle clothes, and had swapped his gold for muggle money. There was nothing to connect him to the wizarding world. He'd even left his wand behind. He didn't want to need it or rely on it any more.
"Harry? I'm sorry I'm late, at least I think I am, I had to stop and change a few things." He smiled looking at Daphne. She'd managed to dress muggle enough not to draw attention. She was wearing a green jumper, a pair of soft looking black slacks, and was carrying a small suitcase. He gave it a look.
"It's not enchanted or anything, I promise. I took your words to heart, I left everything behind. I am fully ready to start over. Do I need to buy a ticket?"
"No, I've got one for you, I was hoping you'd decide to come. I could use the company."
"Where are we going?"
"The airport first, and from there, wherever we want. I'm not set on a place yet. Maybe America?"
"I've never been there, sure!" Daphne followed Harry as they boarded the train, for once her thoughts weren't on Astoria. They were on the man in front of her, the idea of flying in a muggle airplane, and wondering what America would be like.