Omake 3: Small part 2

There wasn't much to do on the Catacombs, it was dark and Harry perceived movement around them, even if he couldn't really see anything before Shalltear made whatever was out there go away. Bored, he tried to entertain himself a little watching and comparing the length of the pointy rocks that were in the cave-like ceiling. Walking as he did this wasn't a very good idea though, so he tripped a couple of times, the hand that was still holding his own always quick to help him.

"Oh, I know!" Shalltear exclaimed before she bent down to pick him up, one arm under his knees while the other supported his low back "This way you can look at the ceiling all you like!"

She sounded very proud of her idea, and seemed happy to carry him around… Harry had wanted to protest, because he wasn't baby, he could walk on his own, he was probably too heavy for the girl that wasn't really that much older than him.

But instead of saying any of those things, all that came out was a soft "ok" because whether he wanted to admit it or not, this was the first time someone carried him like this, and he had always wondered what it would be like, because he had seen other children being carried by their parents sometimes… So he inspected the ceiling, oddly happy at the situation.

They stayed like this until they arrived at Shalltear's room, where a thick, sweet fragrance hung in the air. The girl had told him to cover his ears, so Harry couldn't really hear anything as she led him into a room with a small white table, and a couple of delicate white chairs around it. It had porcelain tea cups placed in front, filled with a bright red liquid, and the scent of tea filled the air. Harry knew this was prepared beforehand because he listened as she spoke with someone when they were crossing some sort of unstable hanging bridge, the instruction "not to look down" still in his mind.

They drank tea amiably, and the girl explained that she was a vampire and had no trouble carrying him around so Harry shouldn't apologize for that, which leads them to a whole new conversation where she explains her species, and the ones of the other people he had met.

"That's really cool Shalltear! You all are!" Harry keeps singing praises, awed by the amount of abilities and strengths the vampire just described to him. She blushes and giggles, obviously happy to continue her explanation.

Once tea time is over she takes them out again, now exploring the second and third floor. There's nothing much to see, but he's now entertained by Shalltear's conversation as they walk hand in hand towards the 4th floor. She seemed very interested in his stories too, about Hogwarts and the way he had learned magic; it seemed to be a new concept to her, the fact that he had been born weak and had gotten stronger with time.

"You were not?" Harry asks in confusion, looking up to her.

"I was created by the Supreme beings to be how I am, so I have never been different" was her proud response. She tells him this applies to everyone here, so he can't help but feel a little sad for them. Wouldn't they have trouble learning new things? If they had everything from the beginning, they would not understand how it was like to struggle to learn something, right?

Just as he's thinking this they finally reach the 4th floor, where he sees nothing but a giant lake, and a few pointy rocks around it. The difference is huge in comparison with the floors Shalltear keeps safe, since this place seems calmer and is better illuminated.

"Ah, Gargantua is the guardian of this floor, but being a golem I don't think it can serve as guide for Harry-sama… so I'll continue to be! Would that be acceptable?" she seems to shine with glee as she states this, so he only nods at her, not even sure of what a golem was and why it couldn't guide.

It's difficult to walk over the pointy rocks however, so he hesitantly raises his arms in a silent plea that is immediately answered by Shalltear's arms. He's disappointed that they can't swim in the giant lake, since is part of the "defense" of the place, but is happy to learn there's a swimming place on the 9th floor.

Shalltear points out the defense mechanisms of this floor, something she didn't do with her own, and the details are so interesting he loses track of time, finishing the tour quite soon as they walked around the giant lake. Harry is still in her arms when they cross the portal to reach the 5th floor, where the giant insect, Co-cy-tus was waiting for them.

Harry had had trouble with the names, but had done his best to learn them as Shalltear explained their species and strengths back in her room. He still had to say them slowly though.

This floor is cold, nothing but white snow surrounding them in the huge area. Harry shivers for a moment before his clothes get warmer by themselves, so he looks at his long sleeves in wonder for a second before looking up at the giant blue-gray insect.

The jaws were opening and closing without really saying anything, and his four arms moved up and down slightly before staying still once again. What was that about?

"Hadrian-sama" Cocytus quickly kneels in front of them, but his eyes are focused on Harry as he continues "May I carry you on my shoulders?" the tail is moving like an excited puppy, so he laughs merrily before nodding, the vampire placing him down reluctantly for a second before he's immediately picked up again.

The height of the insectoid is much greater, so Harry lets out an excited "ohh!" as he sees the snow surrounding them. The shoulder he is sitting on is wide enough that he's not afraid of falling down, so he moves his legs slightly as he points at a big sphere in the distance.

"What's that? It looks really cool!" he knew logically that the sphere was big, but he still extended his palm as if to catch it within his small hand.

There's a pause, where the giant insect doesn't say anything at all, only swaying the large tail and flexing the arms as if celebrating something.

"Co-cy-tus? Can you please tell me what's that?" he places a small hand over the cold head of the guardian, which seems to bring him back to the present. The giant insect sighs, releasing a cold breeze before answering

"That. is. where. I. live. Would. you. like. to. visit?"

"Yes please!"

The guardian carrying him moves easily on the snow, somehow managing to walk over it even when Harry was sure they were heavy. They should be sinking in, but were not… maybe the level of snow was not as high as it looked? When Harry saw it, he thought he would get covered whole in the snow, which was part of the reason he had agreed so readily to be carried around.

He also liked the feeling of being carried, even if he admitted it to anyone but himself.

He's distracted from those thoughts when they get closer to the snow globe, since now Harry could see six crystalline icebergs surrounding it. They passed them without pause however, going inside Cocytus home without a second thought.

The walls, ceiling and furniture seemed to be made out of ice, which made him think of a museum rather than a regular home. It looked very pretty, and was big enough that the giant insectoid could move around without hitting anything.

They came to what looked like a conference room, where some ladies were setting a few pastries and tea. The ladies didn't seem to be human either, with bluish-white skin and black hair, their dress was a pure white as they set up the refreshments in the small table. The cold claws of the warrior hold him carefully from the waist, placing him down reluctantly with a sad sigh. Harry didn't want to tell him he had already had tea with Shalltear, so he sipped slowly at the cup before starting to chat with the giant warrior.

He started to ask about the floor he guarded, since it seemed to be empty, but had been too big for him to really see anything.

"Other. than. my. home. there. is. only. Nazarik's. prison" as soon as the words were said Cocytus tensed and closed its jaws abruptly. The image of Hagrid mumbling to himself "I shouldn't have said that" came to mind, which made him giggle a little.

"Can we go?" he asked jokingly to the giant warrior, a small teasing smile on his face as he watched the insectoid move uncomfortably on his seat. The jaws opened and closed in quick succession, and he seemed to be looking everywhere but him, as if searching for the right answer.

Feeling slightly guilty, he took a small bite of the pastry before adding "Don't worry; I don't really want to go." All the tension leaves instantly the giant body, so he smiles shyly in apology before asking "Can we play in the snow for a while?"

At the affirmative answer he smiles happily at him, glad for the excuse he had not to finish the tea in front of him. Feeling playful, he stands up and starts to jog towards the entrance, yelling without looking back at the still seated insectoid.

"Come on! come on! catch me!" he taunts as the entrance got closer and closer. The first step he takes over the snow has him sinking down however.

He had been right, the snow covered him completely.

He raised his arms and tried to go back to the surface, coughing slightly once his head was out of the snow. It probably looked funny, since only his head and arms were on the surface, the rest of his body still trapped in the snow. He felt cold for a moment before his body got warmer by itself, as if he was surrounded by a thin magical skin that protected him from the harsh weather.

"Ahh. Hadrian-sama!" a couple of claws dug slightly in the snow until they found his torso, picking him up slowly until his whole body was free from the snow, hanging in the air. Cocytus seemed to inspect him in slight worry before sighing, bringing Harry closer to the cold chest.

Now, Harry liked to be carried around, but not like a baby! A giant arm was supporting him, the back of his head was over the joint of the arm, his back over the forearm, and his legs were hold by the huge claw. Another giant arm was petting the snow away from his clothes and hair, which made him feel embarrassed, so Harry hid his blushing face with his arms, wiggling to get free of the stable grip.

Cocytus seems to understand, because he puts him down on the entrance of the snow globe, apologizing. Harry wasn't an expert at reading emotions, but he felt worry at the depressed posture of the warrior.

"Co-cy-tus? It's ok, that was a lot of fun!" he said as energetically as he could. Stepping closer, he used both hands to hold one of the claws of the lower arm, since he couldn't really reach the insectoid's wrist.

Leading the warrior inside the globe again, he made him sit down on the sofa-like furniture made of ice before sitting at his right side. Once he was comfortable, Harry started to ask for stories, which seemed to raise Cocytus' mood a lot. He puffed up his chest and began to speak about a spar he had had against Albedo and Sebas, describing it as best as he could.

Harry didn't know who Sebas was, but didn't ask since the insectoid seemed happy to tell the tale, so he only made small, excited sounds in the right parts of the story. Eventually, the warrior finished the tale with a satisfied nod, crossing the upper arms over his chest

"You are really strong!" Harry said sincerely, which seemed to make the warrior puff even more. It was really funny, so he decided to add "You like to train a lot, right? Even when you're already so strong?"

"Indeed! Since. Hadrian-sama. is. an. outstanding. Magic. Caster" Cocytus said enthusiastically, uncrossing his arms as he looked directly at Harry "Hadrian-sama. needs. a. skilled. warrior. to. guard. his. body. therefore. I. will. take. charge. of. that. task." seemingly excited, the insectoid stood up, determination oozing in waves as he raised his four arms, looking upwards at the ceiling as if responding to a challenge "With. me. around. nobody. will. be. able. to. get. close. enough. to. threaten. my. Lord!"

Harry didn't know what exactly the warrior was imagining, so he only looked at him in awe as he continued

"Ohhh… That. is. correct. I. am. very. strong. I. will. not. let. weak. enemies. like. that. near. the. Young. Master. Hmph. Come. if. you. are. not. afraid. of. death!"

Cocytus' arms were moving as he fought imaginary enemies, which made Harry giggle and clap eagerly, thinking he was playing around. The sound seems to bring him back to his senses, the movement stopping suddenly as he straightened his posture.

"…Cough! Ahem. Then… I. believe. training. Is. Important" he said softly, avoiding Harry's gaze as he placed a claw behind his head. Harry nodded at him, agreeing completely.

"You can forget a lot of things if you don't practice them" he said with conviction to the warrior. "I had trouble learning so many spells, so I had to create a place to keep them"

Cocytus turns his head slightly, obviously not getting his example.

"Yeah, like, in my mind. I had to make a special place for them" He said, imagining the part of the mind palace were he kept that knowledge stored. The warrior still looks confused, so Harry admits defeat and lets the matter drop. He was very bad at explaining things, so maybe once he grew up again he could do it better.

"Mmm, anyway, I think you're right" he said lamely, now it was his turn to avoid the curious gaze, clearly embarrassed.

Cocytus doesn't pressure the issue, seating down beside him again before he continued to tell a few stories about people Harry didn't know anything about. He tries to pay attention at first, but starts to get sleepy after a short while. Harry doesn't know how or when, but he falls asleep curled against the warrior's side, not waking up until the following morning, oddly warm in the floor made of snow and ice.

AUTHOR NOTE:

Aaaand there you go! If I'm sincere with you this was quite difficult to write. Mostly because I couldn't think of anything fun to do in catacombs full of undead. Seriously, it's a writer's miracle they could get pass those. I honestly thought about abandoning Small-Harry but had a few reviews requesting it so, here we are haha.

Anyways, thanks for reading, we'll move forward in the story next chapter~

See ya' around!