Feng, ever the early bird, stretched and stepped out of her bedroom, making her way downstairs to the kitchen to make breakfast. She decided a simple meal of bacon and eggs would be just fine for today. As she cooked the food, she noticed Harry and Cerebella walk in, looking tired, yet extremely happy. "Well, you two seem to be in high spirits today." Feng chirped.
Harry seemed to snuggle back in towards Cerebella and murmered a happy "Mama." Feng dropped the plate she was holding with a gasp, her eyes going nearly as big as said dropped plate. She looked from Harry to Cerebella, then back again almost cartoonishly quickly.
"M...mama?!" Feng finally got out.
Cerebella gave her friend a proud smirk and hugged the boy tightly to her bosom. "Ya heard it right here, Feng! I'm his mama now." She said with a wink.
"Oh...my...gosh... So then he actually said it...?" The petite woman asked, a large smile slowly growing on her face. Cerebella nodded in affirmation. "Yay!" The pink-now-green-haired woman cheered as she ran over and hugged the two, making Cerebella laugh and Harry giggle at her girlish delight. "That's amazing~!"
"Yeah, I really is." Cerebella smiled, looking down at Harry, who was happily smoshed between the two women. She gently bounced her adopted son up and down in her arms. "Heh...Can you believe this, Feng? Me...a mom... I thought I'd be at least thirty before that happened..."
"Yeah... You and your bleeding heart." Feng replied, winking at her friend, who chuckled and playfully punched her shoulder. "Eek! Strength, Bella!"
"Don't care, hugging my boy." Cerebella replied, shaving back and forth with a happy grin as she looked down at Harry, who was in and out of sleep in her arms. "Wakey wake baby, time for breakfast."
"Mmkay mama..." Harry mumbled, stretching as he tried to wake himself up. "I'm awake now..." Cerebella kissed his cheek and sat him down at the table, choosing to take the seat next to him.
"Thanks for breakfast, Feng." Cerebella said to her friend, who was still massaging her arm with a pout. The juggler took her spot and began eating. Cerebella picked up a forkful of Harry's food and held it up to him. "Open wide!" She sing-songed, and Harry hungrily opened his mouth, allowing his mama to feed him. Feng laughed at the interaction between the two. It really was precious. This continued for some time until all of Harry's food was gone. Cerebella then focused on eating her own breakfast, and soon the trio had finished eating. "Okay...Almost time for work..." Cerebella looked at Harry. "So...today you learn magic with Beatrix... You ready for it?"
Harry's good mood changed to a timid, nervous demeanour. "Um...I...I think so... Um... She's not gonna hurt me...is she...?" He asked.
"Not unless she wants to be in a full body cast." Cerebella replied with a wink. Harry didn't like the idea of Miss Cerebella getting into a fight again or anyone getting hurt in general, but he understood what his mama meant, and he nodded, looking up at her.
"Thank you mama." He said, still ever so slightly timid about calling her that. Feng's eyes turned to hearts when she heard that however, finding it to be the cutest thing she'd ever seen or heard.
Cerebella chuckled and patted her boy's head, taking great pleasure in hearing those words. "Well, I guess we'd better get going." She held Harry up to eye level. "Let's get you dressed. Can't have you wearing your jammies everywhere."
"Ah, forget social stigmas and let him wear the pajamas. He looks too cute to take them away now." Feng said, waving her hand at the acrobat. Cerebella frowned, thinking it over before chuckling and shaking her head.
"As much as I don't want Beatrix to think I'm mocking her... you've got a point. He's WAY too adorable to take out of these clothes." Harry blushed slightly at their words and looked down, trying to hide his embarrassment as Cerebella scooped him up.
He nuzzled closer into his mother and smiled in content, causing her to chuckle as she carried him out the door. "Wait up!" Feng called after them, jogging forward to catch up.
When the trio reached the big top, the rest of the Cirques de Cartes were there, practicing their respective acts. Beatrix was near the corner, as usual, when she noticed the trio approach her. Though she didn't express it outwardly, she was clearly pleased...until she noticed Harry's outfit. "...Why is the kid still in his pajamas?"
"Cause he's cute." Cerebella replied with a shrug. Beatrix stared flatly at her before her palm met her face and slid down slowly. Cerebella snickered.
"Whatever." The magician rolled her eyes before addressing Harry. "So, little guy. Do you have any grasp on your gifts?"
"My...my gifts?" Harry replied. "What gifts?" Normally Beatrix would react in annoyance, but with both Cerebella being present and understanding a little of the kids past, she decided to play it safe.
"Your magic. Or the 'freaky stuff' as you seem to call it."
"Oh...Um...Not really...It just kinda, sorta...happens..." The boy mumbled softly. Beatrix frowned and crossed her arms underneath her bust.
"So you haven't had any practice whatsoever, huh? Well, guess that means I'm working with a blank slate then." The magician shrugged her shoulders. "So, I wanna start small, I wanna ask you some questions." Beatrix continued. "When your magical accidentally happens, do you feel anything? Warm, cold, anything like that?" Harry paused, thinking about when his magic had gone off. Sometimes it had happened when he was scared, and sometimes it happened when he was just trying to remain calm.
"Um. It happened a bit when I was scared." He replied.
Beatrix nodded. "Right, right, that's normal. It's a defense mechanism. Your magic does everything it can to protect you. Just think of it as an invisible guardian."
"Oh...Okay... Invisible guardian..." Harry nodded to show he understood. Cerebella chose that moment to step in and speak to Beatrix.
"All right, Beatrix, listen close. You'd better be nice to him, all right? He's seen some messed up stuff, and he's scared and shy. Don't do anything that'll hurt his feelings." Beatrix wordlessly nodded before turning back to Harry.
"Okay little guy, I want you to think about... hm..." the magician paused then snapped her fingers. "Something warm, either food, or a memory, just something that makes you feel warm. This'll help attach feelings to magic to make it easier to use later."
Harry thought about it. "Something that makes me feel...warm..." He said softly before closing his eyes and thinking hard. What made him... He barely had to think about it for a second. His mommy. His mommy made him feel warm. He thought of her and all the love she had given him so far. A tiny smile formed on his face as suddenly, a tiny orange light began to appear in front of him. When Harry saw it, his natural paranoia-about-magic kicked in and he gasped, making it dissapear.
"Wow." Beatrix blinked, genuinely surprised. "That was really good for your first try!"
"R...really?" Harry asked timidly.
"I mean, yeah! Most people need a lot more training to even summon a tiny spark! You got that without any issue, you've got some real power in you." Harry looked down bashfully and twiddled his thumbs, not at all used to being praised for the freaky stuff. Cerebella knelt down and hugged him close.
"All right, buddy, mommy's gonna go practice now. I'll just be right over there if you need me for anything, okay?" She asked, kissing his forehead. Beatrix's jaw dropped when she heard 'mommy', but quickly collected herself.
'Yeah, I guess if anyone would adopt him...' She mentally mused. 'Still, if I get to teach him, that's something.' Harry turned back to miss Beatrix, seeming to wordlessly ask what to do next. Beatrix looked back at him and nodded. "Okay, just do what you did before, except this time, try not to panic when you see the spark."
"Right...Okay..." Harry squeezed his eyes shut tight and focused as hard as he could, putting the images of Cerebella back in his head.
"Yes, there it is, keep it up..." Beatrix encouraged. "Whoa...Holy crap...This spark is HUGE!" Harry opened his eyes to see the large ball of magic energy in his fingertips.
"Now what?" Harry asked, slightly nervous.
"Toss it up in the air, as high as you can!" Beatrix instructed. Harry blinked then tried to throw the ball up into the air. The golden ball flew up, then burst into a beautiful shower of golden sparks. Beatrix smirked and crossed her arms as she watched the golden shower come down, feeling immensely satisfied at what she saw. "Not half bad, kid." She complimented.
"Um...Thank you, Miss Beatrix..." The magician nodded. This boy was a true prodigy. No doubt destined for greatness. To be the one to train him to that point... Why, by proxy alone, she would surpass Cerebella!
"All right, little man... You did great there, but that's just a basic spell. If you REALLY wanna seize control of your magic, we're gonna need to work on some of the bigger stuff. But hey...baby steps, right?" Harry nodded, this time feeling a tiny bit of pride with his accomplishment. Beatrix had him repeat the excercise a few times, and after a little bit, Harry seemed to be getting a better grasp of what to do. Beatrix smirked pridefully. "Excellent work. Now let's work on...transporting objects." She pulled out a small coin and held it in her hand. "Okay, watch this..." She put her hand over the coin, mumbled some words Harry had never heard before... And then there was a small burst of light, and when she moved her hand, the coin was gone. Harry looked curiously down at her hand, and she smirked and pointed to Feng.
"Uh...Hang on, I think there's something in my shoe..." Feng mumbled, removing her shoe. "...Ugh...AGAIN with the coin, Beatrix?!" She huffed, stomping her foot. Beatrix chuckled as she looked back down at Harry, producing another coin.
"Alright, now you try." She said with a smile, while Harry seemed apprehensive about it. "Aw, don't worry little guy. If you don't get it right the first time, that's okay." Harry looked up at her, then nodded his head slowly and took the coin. He put it in his palm and closed his eyes, focusing on Cerebella once again... It took a little bit more effort, but eventually, the coin vanished from his hand. Harry looked down when he no longer felt it in his palm and smiled.
"I did it!" He exclaimed, before frowning. "Oh...But...I don't know where it went..." Beatrix crossed her arms over her chest.
"It should be going where you were thinking about. So...It's probably hit Cerebella on the head right now."
"Ow!" Cerebella suddenly exclaimed. "Beatrix!" Harry's eyes widened comically and he seemed horrified of what he had done. He had hurt Cerebella! The woman who took him in, she would hate him now, she wouldn't want to be his mother, she-
"Sorry! The kid was trying some magic, I didn't explain it well enough!" Beatrix called back.
"Oh, never mind then." Cerebella replied with a wave.
"S-Sorry, mommy...!" Harry called over timidly. Cerebella just smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up. He sighed in relief, then turned back to his teacher.
"All right, let's give that another shot. This time, focus really hard on the place you want the coin to end up. Liiike... on that bench over there." Harry nodded, then held another coin. He focused as hard as he could... He imagined his adopted mother was seated on the bench...And the coin vanished. This was followed by an "Agh!" And a Crash! As Feng fell to the ground, instead of being Caught by Cerebella.
"Huh? What the heck?" Cerebella looked around wildly. And then the coin fell on her again.
Beatrix let out a snicker at seeing the accident. "Well, that's a bit of a problem." She said, trying to keep her amusement in check. "I told him to try and get the coin to the bench. Since his magic works best when he's thinking about you, he must have sent you there by mistake."
Cerebella blinked, then let out a low chuckle and patted her boy's head. "Aww, don't feel bad, little guy." She cooed, seeing his sad and scared expression. "Accidents happen."
"MMM!" The group turned to see Feng lying on the floor, her head lodged in the ground and her butt sticking up embarrassingly in the air. Cerebella laughed as she made her way over to where her friend was trapped, with one pull, she freed Feng, and accidentally tosssed her into the air. Harry, Cerebella and Beatrix watched the screaming Feng get launched through the tent, right outside, and when she landed, they heard a loud splat.
Cerebella slowly turned to look at Harry and Beatrix. "...Okay... So I'm just gonna... go and pull Feng out of the elephant poop now..." She said, trying not to laugh. Harry still seemed nervous, like he had had done something wrong. Beatrix noted this and gently patted his head.
"Hey little guy, you're doing great," She said with a smile. Harry looked up and replied quietly.
"Thanks..." He looked down again and twiddled his thumbs. "I gotta learn to control my fre-My magic fast... I just got Miss Feng hurt..." The boy mumbled.
Beatrix nodded. "Well, that's what we're here for. Just give it one more try, and this time, maybe keep your old lady out of it when you do it."
Harry looked confused. "My mommy's not old though... She's really young..." Beatrix shrugged, then handed the boy another coin.
"Okay, try putting it...in that ash tray over there." Harry nodded obiedently and focused once again, this time the coin disappeared, then appeared in the ash tray, nothing else seeming to go wrong. "Good job!" Beatrix beamed. She smirked lightly. "You catch on fast, kid. Even faster than I did when I was your age. Okay, now let's try the summoning charm..." She pointed towards a nearby bucket. "Accio bucket." Harry blinked as the bucket flew off the ground and landed at her feet with a clang. "Simple, right? Just focus on what you want, and it'll come right to you."
Harry thought about what he wanted to summon. He DID want to tell Miss Feng he was sorry... "Accio Miss Feng." He said in concentration. Beatrix smiled in amusement, knowing what Harry was trying to do, but he was probably still to small to transport someone in another ro-
Beatrix's eyes widened in shock and amazement as Feng suddenly appeared, now clearly drenched in water and was in the process of drying herself off. Harry seemed shocked himself, but neither one was as shocked as Feng, when she realized what had happened.
"AGH!" She exclaimed, trying to cover herself with her towel.
Beatrix burst into laughter at the sight of the smaller woman. "Oh my God, at this point you and Harry could just have a freaking comedy act, Feng!"
Feng pouted and covered herself up tighter. "S-Stop laughing at me, Beatrix, I'm having a bad enough day already!" The juggler whine.
"I'm...I'm sorry, Miss Feng..." Harry mumbled, twiddling his thumbs nervously. "I...I'm sorry I'm putting you through all this stuff... I'm not doing it on purpose..."
"Daw, it's fine honey." Feng cooed, doing her best to give a reassuring smile, trying not to be upset with Harry, and trying to hide her annoyance at Beatrix, both of which was much harder than expected because Beatrix kept laughing. "But... how did you do that!?"
"The kid... oh geez, hang on..." Beatrix wheezed, still laughing. "The kid's magic is AMAZINGLY powerful!" Harry looked down bashfully and tapped his index fingers together as Beatrix continued. "Seriously, his old family completely wasted his potential! I can only imagine what he'll be capable of when he's older!" Feng gave the boy a smile before feeling a chill run down her spine. She looked over and saw Talliesin's lecherous smile and tensed up.
"...I HAVE TO GO!" She shrieked before running out of the tent to finish her shower. Beatrix scowled at Talliesin and slowly ran a finger across her neck. He just smirked and mouthed something to her. She didn't know what exactly he said, but she knew it was yet another 'compliment' about her ass.
"Is Miss Feng Alright?" Harry asked, worried he had done something wrong.
"No, Talliesin's just... y'know what? Just avoid Taliesin as much as you can." Beatrix answered honestly, and somewhat annoyed. "Trust me little guy, you'll be doing yourself a favour."
"Oh, okay."
Beatrix turned to flip Talliesin the middle finger before turning her attention back to Harry. "Okay, so you got the summoning charm down pat. Try this one..." And so this went on for the rest of the day, Harry learning to perform simple, basic spells, most of which wound up inconveniencing Feng in some way, shape or form.
"Uuuuugh... Why me?" Feng whined, completely covered in honey and feathers, causing her to resemble a chicken. A few hours later and practice had finished, and Cerebella made her way back to her son. Smiling down at him as he and Beatrix were seated on the floor, practicing creating coloured lights.
"Hey honey, how's training?" She asked kindly.
"The kid's amazing Cerebella." Beatrix admitted, admiration in her voice. "He's picked up on things that would take others months or even years to learn!" Harry had no trace of fear or anxiety on his face anymore. After hours of getting used to his talents, he had a newfound appreciation for them.
"Mama, magic's not scary at all! Magic's cool!" The little boy exclaimed, tossing some colorful sparks into the air to create a firework show.
Cerebella chuckled and picked her son up in a hug. "Glad to hear it, bud." She looked at Beatrix. "Well, I have to say, I'm impressed. You didn't traumatize the little guy." Beatrix just rolled her eyes.
"Well, I'm glad someone actually knew how to help him in this case." She retorted. While Harry didn't understand what was said, Beatrix's eyes narrowed, somewhat agistated by the comment.
"Whatever." She muttered. Cerebella looked down at Harry and rubbed his back before turning to the approaching Feng. "Hey, Feng? Can ya take Harry back home? I want to have a little talk with Beatrix."
"Sure thing, Cerebella!" Feng said with a nod, taking Harry into her arms and walking away with him, cooing and kissing his face. Cerebella smiled before turning back to Beatrix.
"What's this about, moss head? I do something you don't like? I was being nice to your kid." Beatrix huffed.
"Hey, easy, Beatrix, I'm not mad... I just..." Cerebella sighed. "Look, Beatrix... We're both gonna be a part of Harry's life now... I'm his mom, you're his teacher. And since we're both really important to him, I don't want us to constantly be at each other's throat anymore. I don't know why you hate me, but can we please put it aside? For Harry's sake?"
"Alright." Beatrix replied with a shrug.
"Wh-What?! Really?!" Cerebella sputtered in shock.
"Fine, sure. Whatever." The magician replied. "If it helps the kid, it'll probably help his magic. But I need you to stop thinking every little thing I do is going to kill him." She ended flatly.
"Huh... I was not expecting it to be that easy... I was expecting you to throw in at least a few nasty remarks about me, heh... Well...Thanks, Beatrix..."
"Make no mistake, by no means does this make us friends. You're still my rival, and I'm aiming for your spot until the day I die." Beatrix said with her arms crossed under her breasts.
"Yeah, well, don't expect him to call you 'mom', and we're okay." Cerebella replied but then regretted what she said. Beatrix seemed a bit taken aback, but grumbled something inaudible and walked off. Cerebella sighed and shook her head and decided to go catch up with Feng and Harry, and to see how things were going. Her two favourite people besides Vitale were seated comfortably on the sofa, watching the TV. Cerebella smiled and joined them, pulling Harry into her lap. Harry let out a small, happy hum at being back in his mother's arms. "So, kiddo... How was your first day training with Miss Beatrix?" The tanned woman asked.
"It was kinda fun, mama. Miss Beatrix isn't as scary as I thought she was. She was actually really nice to me." Harry said, happiness evident in his tone. Cerebella smiled and patted his head.
"That's great to hear sweetie, but you know if she ever hurts you, you come to me, kay?"
"Okay mama. But I don't think she will..." Harry said, his voice full of childhood innocence.
Feng looked over at Cerebella and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'm with Harry, Cerebella. Beatrix seemed unusually happy when she was teaching him."
"Yeah, I noticed that..." Cerebella said with a light smirk. "Pretty weird seeing Beatrix actually happy, isn't it? I seriously thought he face would crack if she actually smiled." Feng chuckled and shook her head.
"Yeah... But she was right. Harry's magic was crazy! He was pulling you and I around like we were nothing!"
"You're not nothing!" Harry blurted out, trying to hug Feng, afraid he had offended her. This took the two women aback, and eventually they just laughed.
"No honey, it's an expression, it's like saying it was super easy." Feng explained calmly, returning the hug.
"Oh... Well... I DID have to concentrate really, really hard..." Harry said softly. "But... I guess it really wasn't that hard... But I'm sorry I hurt you so much, Miss Feng..."
Feng snorted. "You kidding? You have no idea how many times your mother turned my life into some kind of slapstick comedy routine when we were practicing." Harry giggled slightly, and Cerebella hugged him again.
"Don't worry about it squirt." The weightlifter said with a wide grin. "Accidents happen, and it's your first day! You're doing great!" Harry, for the first time in his life, felt pride swelling up in his chest. Finally, he had a reason to feel proud of himself! Cerebella noticed and messed up his hair. "Heh... Someone's looking pretty proud. Guess this whole thing's gonna be good for helping you build up self confidence." She said with a smirk.
"Thank you, mama." Harry said happily, snuggling closer to her, Cerebella giggled and nuzzled the top of his head.
"Hm. I think you need a bath." She smiled. "I can't let my son practice smelling all filthy now, can I?" Harry blushed slightly in embarrassment and nodded his head. Cerebella stood from the couch and began making her way upstairs to the bathroom. She turned the tub on, making sure the temperature was just right for a little boy, then carefully removed his shirt and set him in slowly. She winced. She had hoped the second time seeing the scars would be a bit easier... But it was just as horrible as it was the first time and furthered her desire to beat the boy's old 'family' into a red smear. She didn't show it though, instead she just grinned and beared it as she set Harry into the bathtub. He winced for a moment, then seemed to relax in the warm water. Sighing in content, Cerebella coated her hands with shampoo and set to watching Harry's hair. She noted that while it was much cleaner, it needed to be cut. Or at least styled, she thought he looked adorable with his longer hair, but it was too tangled to be a style. Well, she could deal with that later... Right now she would focus on cleaning him off... She carefully cleaned the shampoo out of his hair, taking great care not to get any into his eyes. Then she gently scrubbed down his entire body with a soapy loofah, which caused him to wince slightly. Soon enough, he was clean to her liking. She leaned down to kiss the top of his head and crossed her arms over her chest, deciding to allow him to soak in the tub for a little bit longer. She found a rubber ducky under the sink [Feng thought she didn't know about it] and handed it to him. Harry looked a bit confused by it, but when Cerebella made it squeak, she grinned at his giggle. Harry squeaked it, then giggled again, Cerebella thought his laugh was one of the cutest things she had ever heard. Harry was now pushing the duck back and forth, watching it float about, it was cute how he could be so absorbed in something so... mundane to some people. She leaned against the wall with a smirk, content to just watch her adopted son play in the bath. He really was too precious for words... She considered herself to be a very lucky woman. A good, loving family, a fun, stable job... And now, the cutest little bundle of love was her son. Harry giggled as Cerebella playfully splashed a little bit of water at him, he returned the gesture and managed to splash her a little, earning a laugh from the woman. This was what she had wanted, she never really knew that she wanted kids until now, but now... She knew this was all she wanted in life. She made a mental note to pick the boy up some bubble bath next time she went into town, knowing that he would love the bubbles more than the ducky. Soon enough, when she noticed him starting to get pruney, she patted his head. "All right, kiddo, I think it's time for you to come out of the tub now." Plucking him up, she wrapped him in a towel and set to drying him off. Harry began laughing as she dried him with the towel. Smirking at his laughing face, she twirled about with a smile before taking him back to their room and getting him changed into some more pajamas. This time she settled on a simple blue top and pants. Not quite as adorable as his tiny footed pajamas, but hey... pajamas were just naturally a cute look for a little kid.
She hugged her boy close and stroked his back, feeling him snuggle in closer. Gently, she rocked him back and forth in her arms. He became drowzy. "Good night, mommy... I love you..."
"D'aww... I love you too baby." Cerebella cooed, kissing his forehead as she gently lowered him onto her bed, tucking him under the blankets, Harry gave a tiny yawn and seemed to squirm for a minute, then dropped off to sleep. She gave her son's hand a gentle squeeze before gently placing his stuffed bear in his arms. Then, she watched with a fond smile as he cuddled it close. "Sweet dreams, buddy..." She whispered softly before planting a kiss on her adopted son's cheek, her heart melting when he mumbled out "Mama..." in his sleep.
Beatrix meanwhile, was twirling a knife with her magic, deep in thought. She was amazed boy how powerful Harry was, how did a little boy get magic so potent and powerful? She smiled, seeing how she seemed to have helped him in a way Cerebella couldn't, getting him over his fear of magic. She frowned though, she had sensed something rather off about him, not his shy and somewhat paranoid personality (which Beatrix had to admit, was kinda cute) but there was something buried deep inside, possibly unknown to Harry. It almost seemed like dark magic. And it was all buried deep within that scar of his... That scar was clearly not natural, and she wanted to get to the bottom of it. Buf she didn't know how to go about doing so... Well, all she could do for now is continue training the kid and gain his trust. Then, after that, could she try and figure out just what was up with that scar. She smirked slightly, remembering the look of absolute wonder in his eyes when he began to get control over his magic, it was as if some invisible and immovable weight had been lifted off of him, and for the first time in his life, he could finally have control over something. While she didn't want to admit to it, she had to concede that Cerebella was probably a big help in getting him to warm up and not be so terrified of his own shadow.
She sighed softly and crossed her arms over her chest. Yes, it was probably for the best that she didn't end up taking him away... Cerebella was mom material, and she... She was Beatrix. She looked down slightly at that and remembered what Cerebella had said to her after the first time she met Harry... How she would be an abusive bitch of a mom... Was it true...? She liked to tell herself she would be a better parent than her own mother, who abandoned her to live alone with a psychotic, controlling monster of a father... But would she really...? The knife fell as Beatrix found herself feeling... cold, not indifferent, the kind of cold that came often with sadness. She sighed, rubbing her arm somewhat. She knew she wouldn't do that to a kid... right? Well, she had accidentally terrified him, and attacked Cerebella... She groaned in frustration and clapped her palm against her face with an audible smack. She grumbled a curse directed at her own short temper.
"I'm sorry, kid..." She muttered to herself. Her pride would never let her admit it, but she genuinely felt bad for scaring the kid to the point of tears. Still, that was then. Somehow, despite everything, the kid decided to give her a chance to prove she wasn't as bad as she seemed. Beatrix had no intentions of ruining that, so if she had to play nice with Cerebella, so be it. Aside from Harry potentially being the next magical prodigy, it was nice to have someone else with magic, and Beatrix found she enjoyed teaching him. That was the first time she felt legitimately happy since...well...ever, really. Her own life experiences had embittered her to the world around her and resulted in her becoming quite hard to please. Yet little Harry Potter had managed it without even really trying to. Something about that boy was strangely pleasant. Ordinarily, she would have found his crippling shyness rather annoying, but for him, it just sort of...worked. Add to that his voice wasn't one of pride or snark, but one of hopefulness and genuine joy whenever she said he did something right, and while she'd kill someone before she ever said this aloud, the pajamas were kind of adorable. But if anyone tried to get her to say it, they'd probably end up with a mouthful of broken teeth. Shaking her head, she went back to sharpening her knives, feeling quite a bit lighter than she had before. Tomorrow she would teach Harry more...