Myka stood outside, wrapping her cloak close around her as she watched the students file out of the castle and down towards Hogsmeade. The joyous laughter and conversation rising from the crowd was indicative of the students' collective relief after the long week they had endured preparing for OWLs. Myka herself had hardly had time to see any of her friends, Pete included, but she told him she was staying in to study in lieu of joining him at Honeyduke's that afternoon– there really wasn't a tactful way to tell him that she would rather spend her Hogsmeade trip with Helena.
She hung back behind everyone, watching the last stragglers hurry after the crowd. But when she heard the castle door creak and saw Helena running gleefully across the deserted grounds, her heart leapt. Helena's hair flew behind her, a goofy grin on her face and her shoulder bag hanging off her arm as she barrelled towards Myka. She seemed not to even bother to slow down as she approached, and Myka smiled. When Helena crashed into Myka full-on, she wasted no time in throwing her hands around Myka's neck and pressing their lips together in a fierce and hungry kiss. Despite her shock Myka found herself reciprocating enthusiastically, and she buried her hands in Helena's hair and inhaled her scent.
"Well, that was a long time coming," Helena murmured against Myka's mouth, resting their foreheads together. Myka laughed.
"It's only been a week," she protested halfheartedly, pushing Helena's hair behind her ear and stroking her cheek. "Not even, if you count potions classes."
"Well, potions classes don't exactly allow for much of this." Helena kissed Myka deeply once more for emphasis, then took her hand and pulled her down the path. "To Hogsmeade!"
"To Mortlach." Myka smiled, squeezing Helena's hand and following her away from the castle.
Myka and Helena didn't let go of each other's hands until they stood post-apparition in the back of the supermarket once again, and Helena had to rummage in her magically expanded shoulder bag for the muggle clothes. Myka hurriedly stripped off her cloak, slipped her wand into the waistband of her skirt and put on the blue coat. Helena quickly did the same with her own wand and her brown bomber jacket, and they set out in the streets arm in arm.
"I quite like this," Helena said, leaning her head on Myka's shoulder as they walked.
"Yeah, look at us," Myka said. "Off to save the world from some unknown anomaly…"
"Well, yes," Helena said. "That, and spending time together."
Myka was unable to respond for the enormous smile that robbed her of the ability to speak, and they continued walking in silence until they arrived at the spot where the man had burst into flame at their last visit. The snow was melting and the cobblestones peeked through the slush; Helena let go of Myka to lean down and inspect them.
"There are scorch marks where he fell," she said, prodding at the ground. "But he was completely unharmed when he got up, do you remember?"
"Well, there wouldn't be scorch marks if they were bluebell flames," Myka said, rubbing her chin pensively. "And since they don't have any innate heat of their own, he wouldn't have been burned… But where did they come from?"
"Indoors, I would imagine," Helena said obviously, standing and facing the building the man had emerged from. "Brennan & Greeley Law Firm. Or rather, just the Brennan Law Firm…"
Myka looked up at the sign over the front of the building, which was white painted plywood with old-style gold lettering. It featured an ornate ampersand between the two names, and the words "law firm" in smaller print below. However, someone had begun to methodically scrape away the paint spelling out Greeley's name. Despite the apparent change in partnership, though, there was nothing particularly out of the ordinary about the office.
"Shall we go in, then?" Helena suggested casually, heading for the door. Myka grabbed her wrist in haste, eyes widening in panic.
"What?! We can't just waltz in there asking questions, Helena!" she insisted, tugging on Helena's arm insistently. "I mean, can you imagine? 'Hello, we're two runaway wizards looking for illicit magical happenings. Got any information?'" Helena let out a guffaw, shaking Myka's hand loose from her wrist and resting her hand on the doorknob of the law office.
"It won't be quite like that, Myka," she insisted. "Just trust me." And without any further debate, she opened the door and sauntered into the waiting room with Myka hot and anxious on her heels.
The waiting room was small and empty, with a bookish receptionist sitting behind a sturdy antique wooden desk. She looked up at the girls when they walked in, and she smiled pleasantly.
"Looking for something?" she asked. Helena nodded and clasped her hands together in front of her.
"Yes, actually," she said. "Has Mr Greeley vacated his office yet? He's forgotten something terribly important to him, and he telephoned me to ask if I could possibly retrieve it for him."
"And who might you be?" the secretary inquired, apparently more out of curiosity rather than disbelief.
"I'm his niece," Helena said, smiling beatifically. "And this is my best friend. We're on holiday from school in England and she's joined me." She looked back at Myka, who was desperately hoping that the look of absolute terror on her face could be passed off as vague bewilderment. Helena sighed theatrically and turned back to the woman at the desk. "I thought it might be a nice thing to do to come and help make sure Uncle's affairs are sorted given…" She scrunched her face in a piteous expression. "… all the business that's gone on lately."
At that, the secretary's expression immediately softened. "That's terribly kind of you two," she said, standing up and walking out from behind the desk to place a hand on Helena's back. "It really is very upsetting what's happened to him, isn't it? What a comfort to know he has family behind him at any rate. Here, let me just take you in…" She lead Helena and Myka behind the reception desk and down a short hallway that ended with two doors facing opposite each other. She unlocked the one on the right and pushed the door open.
"Feel free," she invited them. "If you need anything I'll be just out there. And do try to be quiet, if you please– Mr Brennan is working in the next room." She gestured over her shoulder at the other door. "Poor thing. He's been so torn up about Mr Greeley…" She shook her head regretfully before turning around and disappearing down the hallway. Helena promptly shut the door behind her and turned to Myka.
"Well, let's have a look, then!" she said, acting as if she hadn't just fabricated an entire backstory for them and snuck into some stranger's office. Myka scoffed.
"You can't be serious," she said in a low voice. Helena furrowed her brow.
"Of course I am! Just don't touch anything, darling. We don't know what we're dealing with. And be quick about it, since we're supposed to know exactly what we're looking for."
Myka, perhaps incapacitated by her disbelief at what had just happened, simply obeyed Helena and began to work her way around the room. It was mostly empty, with only a few stray books remaining on the shelves that covered the walls and the odd paperweight sitting on an otherwise vacant surface.
"See anything of interest?" Myka asked, studying a golden miniature of the Scales of Justice perched on the corner of the desk that dominated the center of the room. Helena shrugged.
"Not much," she sighed. "I think the only way we're going to get any answers is by talking to Greeley himself."
"And how are we going to do that?" As soon as the question was out of her mouth, Myka regretted asking it. She had come to know Helena's look of mischief well, and it was never more plainly on her face than that moment. Her stomach sank in worry as Helena opened the door and beckoned for Myka to follow her.
They emerged from the hallway and the secretary turned to face them. "Find what you need, girls?" she asked. Helena nodded and smiled.
"Yes, we did! Thank you so much for your help," she answered. "Now to visit Uncle, it's been so long since I've seen him…" She rummaged in her bag as she continued to babble, but the rummaging gradually became more frantic.
"Where is it?!" she said fretfully, shutting her bag in frustration and turning to Myka. "You don't have it in your pockets, do you?!" She checked her own and Myka dimly thought that perhaps she should follow suit. Before she could ever shake her head in a feigned answer, Helena had turned back to the secretary.
"Damn, I've lost it!" she cried. "You wouldn't happen to know where Uncle is staying, would you? I simply can't find the paper I had the address on!"
"Oh dear, calm down!" the secretary said, anxiously looking over her shoulder at the door to Brennan's office. "I can give you the address, you musn't fret…"
"Oh, would you? Thank you so much," Helena said gratefully. A moment later she accepted a post-it note with a scrawled address on it, and she and Myka were once again out on the street. Helena walked confidently ahead while Myka straggled behind, apparently in a mild state of shock. They walked three blocks away from the law firm before Helena hung back and fell into step with Myka.
"Admit it," Helena whispered coyly to her. "I'm good."
"Sure," Myka said grudgingly. "In an obvious kind of way." Helena smiled and interlocked her fingers with Myka's, swinging their hands as they walked.
"Perhaps," she replied smugly. "But you can't deny that you like it."
And Helena was right, for Myka couldn't hide the crooked smile that crept onto her face as they continued down the street hand in hand.