A/N: A line in bold without quotation marks is something written. Thanks for reading and reviewing and special thanks to Shygui for being a great beta.
Love isn't a decision. It's a feeling. If we could decide who we loved, it would be much simpler, but much less magical - Trey Parker
Daphne had noticed the implications of her feelings and actions from the moment she had realized Harry was going to the chamber. She just hadn't wanted to acknowledge them. The next time she'd seen him in their private room, she just had to hug him, no other greeting would satisfy her. That was also the moment that she'd been forced to realize that Tracey had been correct. She fancied Harry Potter.
He was Harry Potter: The boy who lived, the Gryffindor Golden Boy and whatever other crazy title you wanted to give him. She didn't care about the titles, the fame and his probable great wealth. She cared about the boy who'd been abused and yet was able to contend with everything that a vicious fate cared to throw at him and still be such a good friend to anyone who offered to be his friend.
Harry was amazing and she'd known that for a while now. He was also an amazing friend and she now wanted to find out if he was an amazing boyfriend but she'd have to wait. As nervous as she'd been to find out if he fancied Weasley, she'd had to hide her reaction to his statement that he wasn't ready.
That wasn't shocking news. Her mother had told her that at this age, girls tended to be more mature than boys. It was, however, very disheartening. She wanted Harry as more than a friend yet for now, she couldn't have him. On the other hand, Harry as a friend was great too and she still had that.
She had tried to write off her feelings as just hormones. However, 'just hormones' would mean she'd be mooning over boys in general yet that was not the case. She still had great disdain for most boys and the ones that weren't gits still didn't attract her. One look at Harry Potter though and she was a puddle of love-struck goo. She was in deep and her stubbornness had let her be blindsided by this. Daphne Greengrass, the ice queen of Slytherin wanted and even needed a boy.
Part of her wanted to shake her head in despair but most of her was still exhilarated. Sure, she would have to bide her time but the boy she liked did like her back. He just wasn't as ready for the rest of it yet.
She had known how he'd react to her invitation for the summer. The way his so-called family had treated him made him feel worthless and unwanted. She had understood that but still she couldn't help but feel a little insecure when he didn't embrace the chance to stay with them immediately. By the end though, she knew how happy he was. That smile on his face told her a lot. She would remember that moment for the rest of her life, she was sure of that.
She was nearing the Slytherin quarters now and she still had to face Tracey. She just knew that Tracey would have several versions of 'I told you so' ready but she could take that. She had the memory of Harry's smile in her heart and nothing could take that away.
She gave the common room a cursory glance when she entered but she saw no evidence of Tracey. Without Daphne, it had been very unlikely that her half-blood friend would brave the unfriendly confines of the common room. She continued on to their dorm room and there was her friend, apparently peering at an essay with a book open beside her. As Tracey looked up at her, a friendly smile bloomed on her face and Daphne couldn't help but return it.
Tracey's teasing smile appeared as she asked, "So, how was your time with your boyfriend?"
Daphne sighed before replying. "Before he'd be my boyfriend, he'd have to be ready for dating."
She saw Tracey's face fade into disappointment. "He's not?"
Daphne shook her head somewhat mournfully.
"You're going to wait for him, right?"
"Of course."
Tracey gave her a dazzling smile. "Way to go, Daph!"
Daphne wasn't disappointed but she was surprised. "What? No 'I told you so'?"
"Nope. Just a hug." Tracey gave her a mischievous smile as she opened her arms and Daphne came in for a hug. Daphne may not have a lot of friends but she knew she was very lucky to have the ones she had.
Harry was having trouble controlling his big grin. In fact, his face was starting to hurt. He had to get this under control though, if he went into the common room like this, he'd attract too much attention. He stopped near Gryffindor tower and concentrated on what he'd tell his friends. He was a little concerned about both Ron and Hermione but for different reasons. He wasn't sure delivering his news would be easy and that took the smile off his face.
He decided that he was as ready as he'd ever be so he took a deep breath and entered the common room to see his three friends studying together in their usual corner. Also as usual, there wasn't anyone close enough to eavesdrop.
Hermione spoke up first when he sat down. "Any news?"
"Not really. We talked about what happened with it all – Voldemort, Dumbledore and Malfoy but haven't come to any conclusions yet. Her father will try to get Malfoy off the board of governors."
Ron was nodding and said, "Good."
"This next part can't get out to anyone."
His friends exchanged puzzled looks and it was Hermione who replied, "Of course, Harry. We already agreed to that."
"Daphne invited me to stay with her family this summer. I'm not going back to the Dursleys."
He could tell from her face exactly what Hermione was going to say. "But Harry, Dumbledore says you have to stay with your family for safety reasons."
He was putting a stop to his immediately. "Does he get to tell you where you live?"
"But, Harry…."
Harry got more intense. "Does he?"
He saw her begin to waver and she glanced at both of the other boys and apparently saw no support. She sighed and said, "No."
"He doesn't get to tell me where to live either. I have no guardian appointed, they checked. Dumbledore has no more say over me than anyone else."
"You're sure you'll be safe?"
He saw concern in her eyes so he eased up. "Of course. They're an old family, they'll be as well protected as any other and more than most. Daphne has told me about their wards and how careful her family has been."
He glanced at the others, Neville seemed calm and accepting but Ron was so pale that his freckles were really standing out. Harry asked, "What's wrong?"
"Does this mean you won't visit the Burrow?"
"This means it will be easier for me to visit, Ron. You're all still my friends, this just keeps me away from the Dursleys. It will be my best summer ever for that reason alone."
He saw Hermione giving him a contemplative look but then she just nodded and smiled but didn't say a word. Harry suppressed a sigh of relief. He checked the time and it was rather late already. He was pretty well caught up on homework so he decided to call it an early night and see if he could arrange things with Dobby.
That turned out to be easy as Dobby had access to his Gringotts account due their magical binding and he'd done similar things for the Malfoys before. The next day, he'd probably have everything he needed, including the last part of Daphne's gift. As a bonus, Harry found out that Dobby could get an account statement for him too. He'd probably need to budget to have his money last for five more years.
Albus Dumbledore nonchalantly walked the halls until he came to an unused classroom across from the charms classroom. He examined the door and then went inside to inspect there too. There were obvious signs of use as two desks had been cleaned and pulled together. The door had shown traces of both locking and privacy charms. The portraits had been correct, this is where Daphne and Harry were meeting.
It was interesting how quickly Harry was picking up on being more thoughtful and cunning, when he'd heard the story from the portraits of how Harry had manipulated Malfoy, he'd been impressed. Then engaging the services of a house elf had shown even more forethought. Harry was becoming more imposing and that was a good thing in general. However, he did wonder if Harry would figure out the secret of his scar sooner than Albus would like. He still seemed inclined to sacrifice himself if needed, just as his mother had done. He had probably miscalculated when he went by Harry's looks instead of the intelligence in his eyes. In an important way, he was his mother's son and not just for eye colour.
He was still surprised by this association between a Slytherin and a Gryffindor. However, he did recall that Lily and Roxanne, the mothers of these two, had seemed friendly when they had been in school. No matter how carefully one plans, an unknown factor can always undo it and that was the case here.
He briefly considered arranging a way to eavesdrop on them but eventually discarded it as his initial inclinations had been leading him astray and another path seemed indicated. Since his plan was in tatters, the prophecy must have some other way to fulfil itself. He'd just have to figure out how to ensure it was fulfilled the correct way. For now, he would content himself with watching from afar. If more active surveillance became necessary in the future, he'd see to it then so he left the room undisturbed.
Harry heard a minor disturbance among those at the Gryffindor table and looked around to see what it was about. Then he saw a rather pale Ginny walking uncertainly towards the table and she sat a short distance away by herself. She wasn't alone for long though as her twin brothers came over and sat on either side of her and she managed to look both annoyed and worried at the same time. However, her look turned more towards amusement as they bantered between them. It wasn't until she glanced towards Harry that she blushed, looked down and then started filling her plate with breakfast.
"She's been released."
Harry looked over towards Ron who seemed to be taking this too lightly in Harry's view so he spoke up. "We'll have to watch over her, make sure she's not alone if she has a nightmare."
That got Hermione's attention. "She has nightmares?"
Harry nodded and said, "I imagine that she has plenty of memories to trigger nightmares." Ron looked a bit ill, Neville looked sad and Hermione was nodding in agreement. Harry looked between them and suggested, "Maybe we should take turns being on call if she needs company at night."
The others nodded except for Ron who looked concerned. When he noticed Harry looking at him, he responded. "Yeah. I guess we should."
Harry's breakfast was interrupted again, this time by a strange owl. When he took the letter it turned out to be from the company that would harvest the basilisk. Since the owl was waiting, he gave it some bacon and the owl just looked at it like he had no idea what it was. Harry responded that he'd be available next Saturday morning and fastened it to the patiently waiting bird. When Harry saw the untouched bacon, he ate it himself.
They had DADA class that day and as often happened, Harry was called up to be part of Lockhart's 'play'. However, in this case he got to play the basilisk that Gilderoy claimed to have recently killed. Harry was tempted to insult him in Parseltongue but given his uneven record for actually speaking it, he decided not to try. He certainly didn't want another detention answering the ponce's fan mail. Harry noticed Hermione glaring at the professor and had to hide his amusement. If looks could kill, they'd need a new DADA professor again.
Things started to take an unsettling turn when Lockhart told Harry to stay behind after class. He gave his friends a concerned look and they were slow to leave and Lockhart finally had to shoo them away. Harry controlled his emotions with Occlumency and sat in his desk and eyed the professor warily.
"Now, now, Harry. No reason to be suspicious. This is just a little celebrity to celebrity talk."
Harry suppressed a groan. Not more advice on how to be famous, he'd had enough of that the first time!
"So, tell me Harry. How did you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Kill the basilisk, of course."
If he hadn't started using Occlumency to calm himself, he probably would have given the game away. Instead he played dumb. "How could I kill a basilisk?"
"That's what I asked you."
"What? What basilisk? I didn't kill any basilisk."
"Harry, Harry, Harry. There is no reason for such false modesty between us."
"I don't know what you are talking about." Harry did not like how Lockhart was acting. He may be trying to act nice and charming but he got the feeling that the man was very serious about this. He did not want this coming out, especially through Lockhart of all people. Besides, the man had already publicly taken credit for the deed, why was he after Harry about it? Harry had done nothing to dispute his claim and never planned to do that.
"Ah, Harry. You are much too tense. Here, I have just the libation for you. It's from my private stock." Harry watched dubiously as the professor poured something into a glass from a bottle he'd had in his desk. He'd gotten enough lessons on being careful from Daphne that there was no way he'd drink anything from him, especially while he was acting that way.
"Sorry, professor. I really don't have time for this. My friends are waiting."
That finally seemed to get through to Lockhart as he threw a worried look towards the door. The man was pretty obvious and Harry really wanted to get out of this situation. The man threw him a calculating look but then turned on his smarmy smile and responded.
"Quite right. I shouldn't keep you waiting. Off you go then, Harry. We can talk some other time."
Not if Harry could help it. He had to talk to somebody about this. Since he had Transfiguration later that day, the choice of who to talk to was easy.
Transfiguration class gave Harry a reason to be in a good mood again. Not only had he gotten an "O" on his essay, he'd been the first to get the transfiguration done although Hermione wasn't far behind. She just rolled her eyes at him as she grinned, he'd known she wouldn't get mad at him for doing well and it was obvious that she was pleased.
Harry was rather obvious about being in no hurry to leave at the end of class so Hermione came over to whisper, "Lockhart?" Harry nodded and she smiled and nodded back. When Ron looked confused she encouraged him to head out in front of her, which only made him more confused. He'd leave Ron to her as he had attracted attention from his Transfiguration professor who regarded him curiously.
"Are you anxious to meet for tea, Mr. Potter?"
"No, Professor. This is about a rather unnerving encounter I had with Professor Lockhart. He tried to get information from me about the basilisk even though I insisted I didn't know what he was talking about. It got even creepier when he tried to get me to drink something he'd had in his desk. He was trying to be charming but I became concerned about what he was up to."
He'd watched her as he spoke and she started out curious but became more concerned as he continued. When he was finished, she frowned and seemed to be deep in thought. Her face cleared and she looked at him seriously.
"This was bound to make the rounds of the rumour mill but this could be problematic. I have a suspicion about what he is up to. Do not worry, Mr. Potter, I will handle him. He won't give you any more trouble."
"Thank you, Professor. I was also curious about any school funds that accept donations. For example, helping poor students and for upgrading school brooms."
She gave him a puzzled look but she answered. "We accept donations for both. I'm sure your parents set aside plenty of money for your education but you should make sure you have enough for yourself."
"I'll be coming into some money soon so I won't be donating anything that my parents left for me."
She looked curious but didn't ask. "Very well, Mr. Potter. Anything you can contribute will be appreciated."
"Thank you again, Professor."
"Good bye, Mr. Potter."
When Harry got back to the dorm, he found a package on his bed. There was a flash of magic when he touched it and a parchment appeared on top of it. He knew what would be in the package so he checked the parchment first. It was a statement from Gringotts and he had to sit down as he realized that a budget was the last thing he needed to worry about. The vault he had seen was a small part of his holdings and was replenished to a level of 50,000 galleons every year. The numbers he was seeing for his other vault were so big it boggled his mind. He was rich; literally bloody, filthy rich.
Dinner was a little odd. Lockhart was very subdued and kept looking at McGonagall even though she seemed to ignore his existence totally. She must have had quite a talk with him but that was a brilliant thing in Harry's view. The twins tried to entertain Ginny like they had at breakfast but she was quiet and rarely reacted. As the meal went on, the twins looked at each other over her head more frequently, it was rather obvious that their plan was no longer working.
Harry had seen Ron glance at Ginny and the twins occasionally but he didn't say or do anything. Harry looked around for Percy but didn't see him. When Hermione gave him a concerned look, he knew she was thinking the same as him. Harry looked toward the Slytherin table but never saw Daphne looking their way. He had some homework to catch up on and he was thinking about how to approach Ginny himself so he hadn't contacted Daphne that day.
When Ginny was ready to leave, the twins, Harry's friends and even Percy gathered and went up with her. Harry could tell she wasn't very happy about it but he hoped she'd understand and accept it. Somehow the twins managed to clear a sofa and nearby chairs so the whole group was able to sit down together.
Feeling that she would be less likely to argue with him, Harry decided to start things off when nobody else seized the opportunity right away. "Ginny, if you wake up from a nightmare, we want you to wake one of us so you won't be alone." Ginny's reaction was to look gobsmacked and then to blush furiously. Harry was distracted from watching her reaction by the irritated voice of Percy.
"This is a family matter. This shouldn't be any of your concern."
Harry had to control his initial reaction but some of his anger came through in his tone. "Have you ever talked to Voldemort?"
Percy was obviously taken aback. "Well, no, of course not."
"I have. Twice. I know what that wanker is like. Do you?"
Percy didn't seem to know what to say and when he looked at his brothers, Harry did too. The twins were glaring at Percy and Ron looked irritated as well. One of the twins spoke up and unlike usual, there was no twin-speak. "Percy, if you want to be a pain in the arse, you can leave and the rest of us will handle this."
Harry saw Percy blushing and looking sheepish so Harry turned back to regard Ginny. She looked like she was pondering a difficult problem and when she noticed him looking at her, she asked, "Who exactly is included in this offer?"
"Everyone who volunteers." Harry immediately raised his hand and as Ginny gazed around, so did Harry. All of the Weasley brothers and Harry's friends had their hands raised as well. Ginny was looking impressed so Harry wanted to continue before she came up with some objection. "There's enough of us so you don't have worry about bothering any one of us too much. I'm first on the right, Ron is first on the left and Neville is second on the right."
One of the twins added, "First two on the right."
Percy added, "Second on the left."
Hermione was last. "All the way on the end but my roommates are heavy sleepers. If you ever need a girl's point of view, pick me. I won't mind."
Ginny was looking down and blushing. Harry waited a little while but she seemed speechless. He didn't want her to feel intimidated so he asked, "Are you OK with this? Will you wake one of us if you have trouble sleeping?"
Ginny looked a little teary-eyed when she looked up but her voice was stronger than Harry expected. "I'll do it and thank you. Thank you all." She looked at the rest of them at the end.
They chatted a little but broke up so she wouldn't feel overwhelmed. Besides, Harry had some homework to catch up on to keep his word on doing his best. The usual foursome reconvened at their usual table and quietly worked together. Harry managed to catch up entirely but felt tired at the end. It was getting close to bedtime anyway so he headed up as he wanted to write to Daphne. He didn't want to go the whole day with no contact.
He changed for bed, pulled his curtains, muttered a privacy spell and got out what he needed to contact Daphne.
Are you awake?
Of course, just finishing up an essay. How was your day?
Pretty good. Yours?
Not bad. I don't have any news, do you?
Some. Ginny was released and her brothers and my friends and I are going to be available if she has trouble sleeping. She has nightmares.
I can imagine. That git was bad enough just listening to him, I wouldn't want him in my head.
Also, Lockhart got a little creepy with me, he tried to get information about how I killed the basilisk even though I denied it. He even tried to get me to drink something. I talked to McGonagall about it and she must have done a good job of warning him off.
So that's why he acted weird during dinner!
Yes. Hopefully, he'll leave me alone during class. He keeps picking me for his plays.
He tried to pick me once. I gave him my best glare and he chose someone else.
Harry snickered, he could just picture her doing that and he had to tease her about it.
How Slytherin of you!
I was sorted here for a reason, Potter!
Do you have plans for your birthday?
Not really.
I could arrange a small party if you want.
Harry noticed a slight delay but she finally responded.
Who would attend?
Just our friends.
Could we leave Weasley out of it?
He kind of excluded himself with how he behaved. I'll take care of that.
In that case, it sounds fantastic. Our usual room?
Sure. You can tell Tracey, I'll handle the rest.
Sounds good. Thank you!
My pleasure. It's getting late so I better say good night.
Good night, Harry.
Harry put things away and since he'd already put up a privacy spell, he called Dobby as he had things to arrange and he no longer had to worry about budgets. This was going to be so fun!
Harry let Professor Flitwick's natural enthusiasm for teaching reassure him about how he would respond to Harry's request. By the time the class was over and his three friends hung back with him, he was pretty sure he'd get a positive response. He began to wonder if Filius had noticed them remaining when the small professor looked up from putting a book away and gave him a curious smile.
"Are you four going to ask me something or do you just like this room so much?"
Harry felt a little heat in his face but recognized it for the good-natured teasing that it was. He had been lollygagging, he ought to get to the point.
"We were wondering if you would mind giving us some pointers or even some training on learning to duel?"
That earned him an intrigued look from the professor. "Apparently, the subject must really appeal to you despite what happened in the sorry attempt at a duelling club by a certain other professor."
Harry felt even more heat in his face but was more determined than ever. "It's become rather obvious that Voldemort wants me dead. I think some preparation would be wise."
The diminutive professor's eyes narrowed before flicking to his companions. "First of all, there is a difference between duelling and fighting. There are no rules in fighting. I take it you three want the same preparation?"
Harry turned towards Hermione when she cleared her throat. "We're Harry's friends. Where he goes we go, especially anything involving Voldemort. When he faces him again, we will be there." Harry saw Neville nodding emphatically on Hermione's other side. Ron was somewhat behind with a determined look on his face.
A small smile appeared on Flitwick's face as he turned to look at Harry again. "You have very loyal friends, Mr. Potter. You need to treasure them."
"I do, Professor, I really do. If you do agree to train us, there are two more who would like to join as well."
"Really? And why aren't they here now?"
"They're in Slytherin. It would be awkward for them to be seen with Gryffindors openly."
A look of astonishment appeared on the professor's face. "And who might they be?"
"Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis. Obviously, we would need some discretion about us being together."
"I agree. Certain… elements within Slytherin would object strongly to such an affiliation. I would normally require some show of strong intent before attempting any private instruction but that is obviously not an issue in this case. Given everyone's busy schedules, I would suggest we start with one meeting a week on a weekend. Do you have a preference?"
"I already have a commitment for this Saturday but Sunday would work for me." Harry looked to his friends and they all nodded agreement.
"In that case, we can meet at 1PM on Sunday. There is a large unused classroom one floor up that was once used for this purpose. Hopefully, it can be ready for use with minimal work. Are you familiar with it?"
Harry pondered what he had found in his excursions the prior year and thought he knew which one he meant. "The one near the moving stairway?"
"That's the one. I look forward to seeing you and all of your friends on Sunday then. I'll bring a few books that you can borrow as well."
Harry knew without looking that Hermione must be intrigued by that. On the other hand, he was anxious to get his hands on them too.
Ron Weasley pondered the mess he'd gotten himself into. He realized that he was paying what felt like dearly for his poor reaction to the Slytherins. He was excluded from a future party with his friends and to make it a little bit worse was that there must be some treats involved that he'd miss as well. If he wanted to keep his friendship with the other Gryffindors, he'd have to up his game. The problem was, he was very bad at recognizing pivotal moments as he certainly hadn't noticed the one where he got into this trouble.
At least he was still invited to this excursion to harvest the basilisk. The Gryffindor foursome were making their way down to the entrance to meet the contractors who would do the work. Hermione was anxious for any historical significance in this but he suspected that Neville's motive was like his: being there for Harry. Well, they were a bit curious too, obviously.
He'd have to stick with Harry as much as possible and prove that he was still a useful and loyal friend. When the next important moment came, he'd have to do the right thing and not be sulky or irritable. He didn't know how much more of that Harry might tolerate. He felt that he was too close to exclusion and his margin for error was very narrow.
Daphne knew it was silly but she was worried about Harry returning to the chamber. He'd be with adults who knew exactly what they were doing and the monster was certainly dead so he and his friends would be fine. If she could be seen with him though, she'd be there in a heartbeat. This waiting was killing her. For once Tracey was supportive rather than teasing, at least she had that keeping her sane.
She barely suppressed her sigh of relief when she saw Harry was writing to her. Tracey's only reaction was, "I told you he'd be fine." She didn't even waste a moment throwing her a glare, she stared at her parchment as his message formed.
We made it back all in one piece. Unfortunately, other than the basilisk, there wasn't much to find there. We took a while as Dumbledore was doing detection spells all over the place and we didn't want to miss anything.
She frowned, part of that was unexpected.
Dumbledore was there?
Yes, he was curious plus the group doing the harvesting needed help with the portkey. It may have been outside the castle but it was still within the wards around the school.
I never thought of a portkey but that was a good idea. That place wasn't exactly a great place to work. So there was nothing else there?
Not exactly. We eventually found a suite and an office back behind the statue, behind the chamber where the basilisk lived. However, they were long abandoned and there was nothing of interest left there. We did find another way to enter the office though. There's a portal to the hallway near your common room. If you want to see it, I could take you that way.
She considered that but an empty office didn't seem all that enticing.
I think I'll pass. How did the others react?
Hermione was pretty excited but by the end even she was disappointed. It was kind of cool to be in the private chambers of one of the founders but there was nothing there. I was surprised by Ron, he was quiet and serious. He nearly swore when he saw the basilisk though. Neville was kind of like Hermione but lost interest quicker. Oh! I just thought of one more thing. It turned out that there could be stairs up and down the big pipe, we didn't have to slide down after all.
Ugh! Now you tell me!
You cleaned us up when we got down, it wasn't that bad.
I was teasing and you're right about the dirt. However, the slide down was a little scary.
Sorry, I didn't know about the stairs then.
Don't worry, I'm not angry. How did Dumbledore act?
He was excited at first. I think he might have been trying to get me to like him more or something. He did tell us a funny story during a boring part. When he was young, he was so focussed on using magical detection spells once that he walked right into a stairway without noticing and fell down a whole flight of steps. He called it a lesson on using your eyes as well as your magic. He was also pretty cautious, he kept conjuring a crowing rooster. I found it a little funny but Hermione was not amused.
No offense to Hermione but I think she needs a hobby. She gets a little too wound up.
You're probably right but I think she is getting better, she gave up on that SPEW stuff. Before the guy in charge left with the basilisk, he said I'd probably net over 3 million galleons for it. That's a fortune, isn't it?
You're not kidding, a whole family could live on that for decades and still have a lot left over.
Half of it is yours.
She tried but she couldn't stop her gasp of surprise, which caught Tracey's attention.
"Is something wrong?"
"Ummm…. No. I was just surprised."
Tracey narrowed her eyes at her. "So he's OK?"
"Yes, he's fine, they are all fine."
"Good."
Tracey still looked a little dubious but she didn't want to leave Harry hanging too long.
Daphne?
Too late, he noticed that she paused too long. How was she going to tell him though? This was so embarrassing!
Harry, this is a little embarrassing and I guess I need to explain this. It isn't bad so don't worry.
Now you have me worried.
Sorry! It's just that offering a large sum of money like that to me could be interpreted as offering a bride price.
She waited for his response but nothing came. Now it was her turn to wonder what happened.
Harry?
Sorry, I wasn't sure how to respond. I'm still not, actually.
You don't have to give me any of the money, you know.
You took half the risk, you should get half of the reward. Technically, you should get all of it.
No! I would never have done that without you. Half is more than fair. I will just have to figure out how to explain this without letting them know I went down there with you. I also have to make sure they understand it isn't an offer of a bride price.
That never occurred to me. I didn't know they still did that in magical society.
It's like marriage contracts, some families do and some don't.
If it's a problem, I could hold the money until you're of age. You wouldn't have to explain it at all then, right?
Right. Just let me think about it. You're very generous, you know.
No, I just want to do what's right.
Modest, too.
Are you trying to make me blush?
Is it working?
She laughed when he drew a smiley face and especially when he added some colour on the cheeks.
