CHAPTER 10: FIRE AND ICE
Harry was watching her, and she shivered, not able to get her mind around that idea. "Malfoy was taken? It doesn't make any sense..."
"I know, Erif," Harry responded, leaning a little closer. "But what would they want with him?"
They were sitting in the vacant Gryffindor Common Room at around ten o'clock at night, closer to the fire than she normally ever wanted to get. No one wanted to stay around and talk about it, not even Hermione and Ron, but Erif knew she couldn't sleep. And she didn't really want to go up to the dormitory with Parvati, who was (naturally) very distraught over her sister's death. Erif felt numb to the whole situation... Once, long ago, she may have sympathized, but now...
In truth, she thought as she stared into the flames, the potion could only do so much. And in the fuss and bustle, Summer had forgotten to have the potion made...
She would endure. Summer had taught her preventative measures that she used often on her own mark, and they had helped Erif immensely so far.
She thought she was going to lose it when they had been herded into the Common Room to wait for news. It had reminded her so much of a time she had sworn to forget...
"Arlé, run with Jeremie and Pat! They need you now!"
"No, Mum, I'm not leaving you!"
"Take Pat, and go! He's coming…"
"I'm not hiding any longer, Mum! They won't find me in their pathetic and perverse game of hide and seek! I'm going out there and getting him…"
"Arlé, listen!" Her father's voice cut through their squabbling. "We'll do the standing, you have to continue the family line! Think of Pat, and Jeremie!"
"I'll do it, Dad."
"Thank you, Phoenix," he said softly, using his nickname for her. He turned her about and shoved her toward the nursery.
She opened the door and Jeremie followed her. His green eyes were as frightened as hers, and probably as big. Arlé picked up six-month-old Pat out of his crib, and turned to exit when her father slammed the door shut. "Stay in there, Phoenix!" He shouted, and she hid with Jeremie underneath the crib, nestling Pat in her arms.
She could hear from beyond the closed door, her father and mother's voices, echoing with another male's voice.
"Eric!" Her father's tone was that of pure disbelief. She gasped and put her fingers in her mouth to keep from screaming...
"My son," their mother cried, her voice raw. "Why?"
"You were once my parents. Now I have no father, no mother, just like my true master... Did you think that I would be your downfall? That your eldest son, the one you were always so proud of, would turn on you all? Well here's the answer to your question... Avada Kedavra!"
"Nooo!" She cried, and pushed Jeremie out their bottom floor window first. Eric slammed the door open, and she grasped Pat firmly in her arms before focusing on jumping out the window...
"Freesium!" Eric cried, and her body was locked in place, she couldn't move, couldn't twitch a muscle... He wrested Pat out of her arms...
"Erif? Are you sure you're okay?" Her mind flew forward almost a month, and stared at Harry, tears blurring her view.
"No," she croaked, and looked away, ashamed at showing this side of her again. With the burning in her cheeks came the burning of her mark again, and she rubbed it smoothly, trying to calm the tickling yet painful feeling of its call. If she ceded to it, she would most likely kill Harry with it, and if only for that reason she fought against it. "It's too much like..." She trailed off, not wanting to explain this to him...
"Tell me," he goaded softly.
"You won't want to hear it," she stalled.
"Try me," Harry said, and his green eyes locked with hers.
"Some other time," she said, looking away into the fire.
"I'm not going to be able to sleep," he said, "and I'm guessing you won't either, so... can I show you something?"
"Sure," she replied, arcing an eyebrow in wonder.
"I have to go get it, I'll be right back..." He stood from the armchair and walked around hers. She looked everywhere but the fire, which seemed especially hot and cozy now that Harry was gone...
* * *
Harry returned and found her staring into the fire, her eyes glazed and unfocused, one hand outstretched toward the flames ever so slightly.
"Erif?" He asked, and when she didn't respond, he touched her shoulder.
She jumped and spun around in her seat; her hand pulled back from the fire and when she looked up at him, it was her emeralds and within them, their fiery depths. He cocked an eyebrow at her, and she said, "Oh, you just startled me… I was thinking."
He could hear a lame excuse when he heard one, but kept his mouth shut.
He held up his "surprise" and handed it to her; she accepted it, and rolled it around her fingers. The round object clicked against her ring, and she held it up to examine it in the flickering light of the fireplace.
"What is it?" She asked slowly, rotating it around slower.
"I'm not sure what it's called, but we've dubbed it the 'Time Globe'." Arlé looked sharply at him and said, with more anger than she intended, "Divination objects don't work very well for me…"
"It's not really Divination... I mean, it tells the past, present, and future of a person." He took it from her and said, "We'll do me first..."
He pulled out his wand, and when he touched it to the globe, the object lit up and sparkled for a moment. The sparkles settled, and inside the globe tiny figures appeared...
Arlé looked up at him, confusion on her face. "It's going to show my past, future, and possibly the present..." He explained.
She nodded and looked back at it, and with a flash the globe exploded around them...
Flash--
The scene was that of the Great Hall, but there were orange, green, and red streamers draped along the walls. There were couples meeting each other out in the middle of the dance floor, as the band picked up their slow song. A boy with black hair met a girl with red hair in the middle, and their outfits were corresponding shades of emerald, to match their eyes…
"I hope Hermione and Ron make up their differences by the time this ball is done," the boy commented.
"I think they already have," she remarked, pointing her chin over his shoulder. He spun her around slowly and looked to see his friends dancing together.
"Finally…" He breathed.
"Yes. All is as it should be..."
"Except you and I."
"What?" she asked, pulling back her head from over his shoulder and looking him square in the eye. "I can't... I mean, I..."
He looked at her for a moment and then said coldly, "I understand."
"But you don't..." She said as they stopped swaying to the music.
"I understand enough." He let go, and they turned from each other, both with tears in their eyes…
Flash--
"Enough!" Arlé cried, reaching out and putting her hand over his own, pulling the wand away. She stood quickly and moved away from him.
Harry looked up at her, an offended look in his eyes. "This is just one possible future... You don't know that this could happen!"
She didn't respond, and he could tell that the little she had opened up had frozen over again. Her eyes were wet as she stared at the globe in his hands, and Harry sighed dramatically. Why was she acting like this? Whoever she was, whatever she was, he would accept her, if only she'd open up to him... He was getting tired of waiting, but no other girl had ever done this to him, to his heart...
"I'm going up to bed," she said after a moment, cutting into his racing thoughts. "I'll see you tomorrow morning." She stalked up the stairs, and he watched after her long after she had closed the door.
* * *
She flung herself on her bed, the tears that she had held back from Harry coming flooding out. I will not allow him to sneak into my heart... But she knew that he had already done so, and nothing she could do would ever erase him from her thoughts. Ever...
(*A/N*- Sorry this took so long, and that its so short... The next chapter is a bit longer but its at a bit of a cliffhanger right now and needs the chapter after it to settle things down... If you all want it tell me and I'll post it. Thanks, and please review!)
Harry was watching her, and she shivered, not able to get her mind around that idea. "Malfoy was taken? It doesn't make any sense..."
"I know, Erif," Harry responded, leaning a little closer. "But what would they want with him?"
They were sitting in the vacant Gryffindor Common Room at around ten o'clock at night, closer to the fire than she normally ever wanted to get. No one wanted to stay around and talk about it, not even Hermione and Ron, but Erif knew she couldn't sleep. And she didn't really want to go up to the dormitory with Parvati, who was (naturally) very distraught over her sister's death. Erif felt numb to the whole situation... Once, long ago, she may have sympathized, but now...
In truth, she thought as she stared into the flames, the potion could only do so much. And in the fuss and bustle, Summer had forgotten to have the potion made...
She would endure. Summer had taught her preventative measures that she used often on her own mark, and they had helped Erif immensely so far.
She thought she was going to lose it when they had been herded into the Common Room to wait for news. It had reminded her so much of a time she had sworn to forget...
"Arlé, run with Jeremie and Pat! They need you now!"
"No, Mum, I'm not leaving you!"
"Take Pat, and go! He's coming…"
"I'm not hiding any longer, Mum! They won't find me in their pathetic and perverse game of hide and seek! I'm going out there and getting him…"
"Arlé, listen!" Her father's voice cut through their squabbling. "We'll do the standing, you have to continue the family line! Think of Pat, and Jeremie!"
"I'll do it, Dad."
"Thank you, Phoenix," he said softly, using his nickname for her. He turned her about and shoved her toward the nursery.
She opened the door and Jeremie followed her. His green eyes were as frightened as hers, and probably as big. Arlé picked up six-month-old Pat out of his crib, and turned to exit when her father slammed the door shut. "Stay in there, Phoenix!" He shouted, and she hid with Jeremie underneath the crib, nestling Pat in her arms.
She could hear from beyond the closed door, her father and mother's voices, echoing with another male's voice.
"Eric!" Her father's tone was that of pure disbelief. She gasped and put her fingers in her mouth to keep from screaming...
"My son," their mother cried, her voice raw. "Why?"
"You were once my parents. Now I have no father, no mother, just like my true master... Did you think that I would be your downfall? That your eldest son, the one you were always so proud of, would turn on you all? Well here's the answer to your question... Avada Kedavra!"
"Nooo!" She cried, and pushed Jeremie out their bottom floor window first. Eric slammed the door open, and she grasped Pat firmly in her arms before focusing on jumping out the window...
"Freesium!" Eric cried, and her body was locked in place, she couldn't move, couldn't twitch a muscle... He wrested Pat out of her arms...
"Erif? Are you sure you're okay?" Her mind flew forward almost a month, and stared at Harry, tears blurring her view.
"No," she croaked, and looked away, ashamed at showing this side of her again. With the burning in her cheeks came the burning of her mark again, and she rubbed it smoothly, trying to calm the tickling yet painful feeling of its call. If she ceded to it, she would most likely kill Harry with it, and if only for that reason she fought against it. "It's too much like..." She trailed off, not wanting to explain this to him...
"Tell me," he goaded softly.
"You won't want to hear it," she stalled.
"Try me," Harry said, and his green eyes locked with hers.
"Some other time," she said, looking away into the fire.
"I'm not going to be able to sleep," he said, "and I'm guessing you won't either, so... can I show you something?"
"Sure," she replied, arcing an eyebrow in wonder.
"I have to go get it, I'll be right back..." He stood from the armchair and walked around hers. She looked everywhere but the fire, which seemed especially hot and cozy now that Harry was gone...
* * *
Harry returned and found her staring into the fire, her eyes glazed and unfocused, one hand outstretched toward the flames ever so slightly.
"Erif?" He asked, and when she didn't respond, he touched her shoulder.
She jumped and spun around in her seat; her hand pulled back from the fire and when she looked up at him, it was her emeralds and within them, their fiery depths. He cocked an eyebrow at her, and she said, "Oh, you just startled me… I was thinking."
He could hear a lame excuse when he heard one, but kept his mouth shut.
He held up his "surprise" and handed it to her; she accepted it, and rolled it around her fingers. The round object clicked against her ring, and she held it up to examine it in the flickering light of the fireplace.
"What is it?" She asked slowly, rotating it around slower.
"I'm not sure what it's called, but we've dubbed it the 'Time Globe'." Arlé looked sharply at him and said, with more anger than she intended, "Divination objects don't work very well for me…"
"It's not really Divination... I mean, it tells the past, present, and future of a person." He took it from her and said, "We'll do me first..."
He pulled out his wand, and when he touched it to the globe, the object lit up and sparkled for a moment. The sparkles settled, and inside the globe tiny figures appeared...
Arlé looked up at him, confusion on her face. "It's going to show my past, future, and possibly the present..." He explained.
She nodded and looked back at it, and with a flash the globe exploded around them...
Flash--
The scene was that of the Great Hall, but there were orange, green, and red streamers draped along the walls. There were couples meeting each other out in the middle of the dance floor, as the band picked up their slow song. A boy with black hair met a girl with red hair in the middle, and their outfits were corresponding shades of emerald, to match their eyes…
"I hope Hermione and Ron make up their differences by the time this ball is done," the boy commented.
"I think they already have," she remarked, pointing her chin over his shoulder. He spun her around slowly and looked to see his friends dancing together.
"Finally…" He breathed.
"Yes. All is as it should be..."
"Except you and I."
"What?" she asked, pulling back her head from over his shoulder and looking him square in the eye. "I can't... I mean, I..."
He looked at her for a moment and then said coldly, "I understand."
"But you don't..." She said as they stopped swaying to the music.
"I understand enough." He let go, and they turned from each other, both with tears in their eyes…
Flash--
"Enough!" Arlé cried, reaching out and putting her hand over his own, pulling the wand away. She stood quickly and moved away from him.
Harry looked up at her, an offended look in his eyes. "This is just one possible future... You don't know that this could happen!"
She didn't respond, and he could tell that the little she had opened up had frozen over again. Her eyes were wet as she stared at the globe in his hands, and Harry sighed dramatically. Why was she acting like this? Whoever she was, whatever she was, he would accept her, if only she'd open up to him... He was getting tired of waiting, but no other girl had ever done this to him, to his heart...
"I'm going up to bed," she said after a moment, cutting into his racing thoughts. "I'll see you tomorrow morning." She stalked up the stairs, and he watched after her long after she had closed the door.
* * *
She flung herself on her bed, the tears that she had held back from Harry coming flooding out. I will not allow him to sneak into my heart... But she knew that he had already done so, and nothing she could do would ever erase him from her thoughts. Ever...
(*A/N*- Sorry this took so long, and that its so short... The next chapter is a bit longer but its at a bit of a cliffhanger right now and needs the chapter after it to settle things down... If you all want it tell me and I'll post it. Thanks, and please review!)