29. Acceptance

"Hey Harry, bring a cup of ginger tea to table six." The voice came from Andre Mnir, owner and head chef of the internet café Haven. Andre was a blonde man of lithe frame, and a bit of a womanizer if Harry was honest.

"On it, sir." Harry stopped washing the dishes and began to make the tea. When he had made it to perfection, he placed it into a ceramic cup and carried it over on a tray. As he placed the order on the table, he took a peek at the customer. A smile etched unto his face as he saw her.

"Thank you, Harry." The Pale Lady was warm as usual. Slowly taking the cup she took a sip. "I had wondered where my tea partner had gotten off to."

"That's a bit of a funny story", Harry admitted. Being back with his relatives was far from a joy. As usual, they weren't very welcoming about his return. For once, he found kinship with his relatives. There was little desire on his side to be boarding with them again.

At the first opportunity, he had Dobby teleport him a city over. Roaming around where people had heard of his reputation, all fabricated by his relatives, would've been asking for trouble. Outside of their influence, he was met with more welcoming attitudes.

That was when he found this shop. Seeing that, he applied and hit it off with Andre. It would be a lie if he said he hadn't wanted to stay out of the house. Uncle Vernon's sister was going to come over soon. Her presence was just a major headache for Harry. She was either taunting him about his dead parents or letting her horrid dogs chase him around.

And she liked to call him a delinquent.

"Really? Well it is good for you to get out of the house. Besides, it just wouldn't do for you to forget about the 'normal' world. Take in the best of both worlds. Though I have to wonder, why work? I believe your inheritance would provide for you."

"I guess, but it doesn't feel right to use that money for silly things. I want to buy some new clothes."

That brought a chuckle to her lips. Resting her head on her folded hands, she whispered, "So you're at that age. Any occasion?"

"Nothing special. I just thought a change would be suitable, no more hand me downs. Consequences of puberty, I guess."

She didn't quite snort, but there was clear amusement in her eyes. Harry didn't believe for a moment that he had pulled the wool over her eyes. Reading Harry was just one of the many things she was adept in.

Buying clothes was just a means for Harry to appear more refined. With what he wore normally, he wouldn't be surprised if he was seen as slobby. Dudley's old clothing had to be nearly wrapped around his frame. While he didn't believe that she was as shallow of the Dursleys, Harry wanted to look respectable beside her.

Taking another sip of her warm tea, she spoke to him softly, "Be careful not to be in a rush to make changes to yourself. Growth takes time and care. And to be honest, I rather like who you are. But I'm sure you knew that already. I'll best be off, I'm becoming a bit of a distraction. How much for the wonderful tea?"

"That's alright, it's on me."

"My, ever so courteous. I shall graciously accept your generosity. I may have to return the favor one day. Good day, Harry." In a blink of the eye, she was gone. Though none of the customers seemed to pay it any mind.

Cleaning up the table, he returned to his kitchen cleaning duties. As he got to the sink, he saw his boss and made to apologize, "Sorry for taking so long, it won't happen again."

Andre merely shook his head, "No a lady takes priority over something meager like responsibility. A lady deserves one's upmost respect. If you hadn't offered to pay for her tea, there would've been a problem. Women are the jewels of this dull existence."

Harry didn't bother to continue listening. At any time, his employer could break out into his semi lectures about the wonders of the fairer sex. Though one thing bothered him, "How come you didn't greet her yourself. You're always ready to strike a conversation with an unmarried woman."

Andre looked at him like he was an idiot. "Although it pains me to say this, that woman was way out of my league. An admirer of women, such as myself, knows when they'll flop. And that woman is no joke. How you got onto her good side, I'll never know. But this is proof, I shall take you on as my disciple."

"No thanks, sir."

"Don't brush me aside, you brat!"

Things degenerated to the typical lecture on the necessity of understanding the female mind.