The next thing Myka knew, she was standing in an empty public washroom still clinging desperately to Helena's arm.
"Did we just–" she faltered. Helena just nodded, extricating her arm from Myka's grasp and taking off her cloak.
"But you can't apparate until… Your license… We could have splinched!" Myka sputtered as Helena opened her shoulder bag, stuffed her cloak inside and pulled out a Muggle jacket.
"I taught myself," she explained simply. "The ministry doesn't track underage magic use carefully during the school year so I availed myself of the freedom of Hogsmeade trips to experiment. Not to boast, but I have become quite good at apparition. Now take off your cloak and give it to me." Still somewhat shocked, Myka did as she was told and Helena stuffed the cloak into her bag, removing another Muggle jacket. Myka took it and put it on, noticing the remarkable ease with which Helena was able to fit all of the clothing into her relatively small bag.
"Let me guess, undetectable extension charm?" Myka said, tugging on the bag's strap. Helena smiled.
"Bloody useful, although it can get dreadfully heavy when I overstuff it." She zipped her jacket, straightened her hat and planted her hands on her hips. "How do I look?"
Truthfully, Myka thought, Helena looked adorable. The Hogwarts uniform of black tights and a grey pleated skirt were perfectly appropriate for the season, and they passed as a rather trendy Muggle outfit when paired with the close-fitting brown bomber jacket Helena had brought.
"You look great," Myka said, swallowing the more flattering adjectives threatening to pass her lips. "How about me?"
"You're positively darling," Helena said with a smile, stepping closer to Myka and reaching out to adjust the collar on the navy double-breasted pea coat she wore. "It rather suits you, actually." Myka's cheeks coloured and Helena giggled, exiting the washroom.
Helena had chosen the apparition point well, as they found themselves in a small but populated grocery store where they were able to slip outdoors without notice. She had clearly done this before.
"So where are we, exactly?" Myka asked as they headed through the snowy cobblestone streets.
"Mortlach, Scotland." Helena inhaled deeply, shutting her eyes. "Not too far from Hogsmeade, but this is an entirely Muggle town of about 2000 people. Generally very quiet."
Myka nodded, looking around at the architecture. The town seemed pleasant and quaint, with taverns and family-run businesses lining the streets. There was a clocktower ahead that seemed to serve as the main intersection of the town, and it rang out in a cheerful chorus of bells.
"Oh, Helena…" Myka breathed in wonder, reaching out and linking her arm with Helena's. "This place is beautiful."
"I knew you'd love it," she said, looking up at Myka with such a joyful smile that Myka immediately broke out into a grin she was sure could only be described as goofy. Helena leaned her head against Myka's shoulder as they continued to walk.
"There's a little place just up ahead that makes the most wonderful cup of tea," she said after a moment. "May I treat you?"
"Yeah," Myka said. "I'd really like that." She bit her lip to keep from bursting out into the bubbling laughter of pure ecstasy that was rising in her throat, and Helena let go of her arm and turned to face her fully.
"I'll race you," she said, her signature look of mischief taking over. Of course Myka couldn't resist and they took off through the streets, laughing and slipping through the snow in the bright winter sun.
"How did you find out about this place?" Myka asked, sipping her tea from the dainty china cup the café had served it in. Helena looked out the window into the street, watching the pedestrians and the occasional car pass by.
"It was completely random, to be honest," she replied, toying with the handle of her teacup. "I more or less looked at a map and picked a place. Of course it had to be somewhere I could manage to be inconspicuous about it all, but I didn't want a big metropolis. Mortlach seemed as good as any place, and it has so much character."
"And great tea," Myka added.
"Cheers to that," Helena replied, raising her cup and clinking it gently against Myka's. As Myka raised the cup to her lips, she was consumed with watching Helena across from her. The delicate way she sipped her tea, the elegance of her fingers curling around the cup, the sultry raising of her eyebrows as she peered at Myka from over the rim… it was all too much, and Myka was completely taken aback by the sudden rush of affection she felt for Helena. When Helena set down her teacup and smiled, the fire in Myka's heart solidified with permanence she found hard to doubt. She settled into its warmth happily, not even noticing the sudden change in Helena's expression.
"What on Earth..." she remarked as she furrowed her brow, her gaze directed at a spot over Myka's shoulder. Myka snapped back to reality and turned around to see a glowing blue movement on the street in the distance. When she looked back, Helena was already on her feet and putting on her coat.
"What are you doing?" Myka asked.
"Going to investigate, of course," she said. "After all, we did come here in the spirit of adventure!" She dashed out into the street, and Myka barely had her coat buttoned when she stumbled out the door to follow her.
They jogged down the street towards the blue speck, which became clearer and clearer as they neared. A small crowd had gathered around the figure, which appeared to be a man enveloped in blue flame. He seemed curiously unperturbed by the phenomenon, simply turning his hands over and staring at them intently in utter confusion. Then, deciding to try and extinguish them, he plunged his hand into the snow. Myka and Helena watched in awe with the crowd as the snow melted around the flames, but they did not diminish in the slightest. Murmurs of worry and alarm began to rise from the crowd.
"Is that what I think it is?" Myka whispered to Helena.
"Bluebell flames," Helena said in confirmation as she looked up at Myka, who bit her lip anxiously and returned to watching the events before her unfold. She fingered her wand gingerly in her pocket, but Helena reached out to still her hand. It was too risky, she knew…
Myka soon had no need for her wand, though, because as suddenly as they had erupted the strange fire disappeared, leaving the man unharmed but rather frightened. He was approached by several concerned members of the crowd while the others drifted off in a daze in their own directions.
"Look over there," Helena said, pointing to the corner of the road. A dark figure retreated in a hurry from the crowd down the road, disappearing around a building. Without warning Helena took off in pursuit.
"Helena, wait!" Myka shouted, sprinting to catch up. Helena was hot on the person's trail and didn't slow down, but when she rounded the corner she found the sidewalk and street completely abandoned. Myka finally caught up and came to a screeching halt next to Helena, breathing hard.
"Where did they go?" she asked, and Helena just shook her head.
"No idea."
"You did say this was an all Muggle town, right?" Myka asked. "I mean, given what just happened, maybe there's a small wizarding community you didn't know about."
"I'm sure of it, though," Helena responded in a hushed and bewildered voice, scratching her head through her hat. "There's no magic here at all."
"Well, I think we may have just seen evidence to the contrary." Myka put her hand on Helena's shoulder. "Why don't we head back… Just in case. We don't want to make waves." After a moment, Helena sighed.
"You're right," she relented. "This is just so strange… Something's not right."
"I know," Myka said calmly. "All the more reason for us to let it lie."
Some part of Myka knew that her suggestion wouldn't be taken to heart, because curiosity perpetually glimmered in Helena's eyes and it would certainly spill over given time. Myka knew that Helena would probably drag her far too deep into something she could never understand, something that would get her into more trouble than she bargained for. She knew there would be no easy way out. But somehow, when Helena grasped her hand on the way back to the grocery store, it all ceased to matter. Just the feeling of Helena's fingers through the wool of her mittens was enough to calm Myka, to assure her that it would be alright.
Myka knew that whatever lay ahead would be an adventure.