Chapter 3
Help and Dinner
"So you finally woke up," Cedric smirked in reply to Harry's surprised greeting.
"Um. yeah. this morning," Harry replied, shaking himself out of his shock.
"Great. Let me give you the tour," Cedric said grabbing Harry's shoulder and leading him back the way he came.
"Thanks, but Nate and Kori already showed me around."
"No, they didn't. They showed you Main Street." Come to think of it they hadn't left the street that the hotel was on.
"What else is there?" Harry asked with genuine curiosity.
Cedric's smile broke into a wide grin, "A whole world. Come on."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Ginny knocked sharply on the door at the top of the stairs. She stepped through as it swung silently open and took in the space that was revealed. Her brother's mess of a room was even more cluttered than it usually was, as it held the majority of Hermione's possessions too.
Ron fell back onto his bed after letting his sister in and went back to staring at his ceiling. Hermione still hadn't raised her head from the book she had propped up against the headboard.
Ginny sighed in frustration. "You could at least acknowledge that I am in the room," she complained.
Ron waved a hand in her general direction, not moving his eyes from the ceiling. Hermione however closed her book and sat up. "What do you need, Gin?" she asked, forcing a pleasant tone of voice.
"I just thought that the two of you might like to know that mom and dad are downstairs right now discussing whether or not you need professional help in dealing with this."
Ron rolled his eyes and Hermione replied, "We'll be fine. It will just take time." The pleasantness was quickly fading from her voice.
"You will not be fine!" Ginny shouted with tears in her eyes. "You both hide up here all day and avoid everyone. Ron hasn't said a single word since he found out!" Ron raised a single finger in a rude gesture from his new position on his stomach with his head buried in a pillow. "You two are now fine!" Hermione opened her book again and continued where she had left off.
Ginny huffed off at being blatantly ignored, slamming the door shut behind her. The ghoul in the attic took the loud noise from the door as his cue to make as much noise as possible.
"She's right you know," Hermione confessed to the otherwise silent room. Ron didn't move. "We aren't dealing well," they sat in silence for a moment longer. "You only eat when I force you to," she paused again. "Say something."
The silence stretched out for so long Hermione was sure that Ron had refused her request, but minutes later Ron interrupted the passage she was on with a short and quiet statement. "Words seem pointless."
"What about food?" Hermione snapped. "Is it pointless too?"
Ron rose from his position on the bed and began pacing about the room. He stopped and turned to face Hermione. "I'll do something like eat or shower, or I'll think about reading or quidditch, and all that I can think is that Harry will never do these things again. Harry will never fly again. He loved to fly." The last sentence was barely audible, but Hermione must have heard, as she soon replied in a voice that easily told that she was now crying again.
"He is flying, Ron," she said through her tears. "Can't you just see him, spending forever playing quidditch?" A very small smile made its way onto Ron's face. "His mom and dad sitting in the stands with Sirius, cheering him on. He doesn't have the weight to the world on his shoulders anymore. I miss him so much, but in a way I'm happy for him."
Ron's smile melted quickly into a mask of anger. He glared at the girl on his bad for a long moment before opening his bedroom door and quickly descending the stairs.
"Oh yeah," Ginny said from the doorway, "you guys are dealing just fine." Hermione threw a nearby pillow at her, and collapsed back onto the empty bed.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Harry sat at a crowded table in the small kitchen of an old Victorian in what the residents call Southside. He, as well as all of his new found friends, was devouring the best meal he had ever eaten. or maybe it was just that he hadn't eaten in a week.
Cedric had spent the afternoon showing him around The Gate, which was what the small town was apparently named. He had told Harry a bit about the place, and introduced him to all of the friends he had made over the last year.
They started at a small dark shop just off of Main Street. At Cedric's call a large bald man with a graying goatee immerged from the back room. He was tall, and wore muggle blue jeans, a tee shirt, and a black leather vest. He would have looked right at home astride some mammoth motorcycle. He gave Cedric a hearty hello and a handshake before learning Harry's name and giving him the same greeting. The man introduced himself as Fillion Lee Frye, but Harry was to stick with just Frye. Frye was an artist, and after looking at a few of the weapons the man had created, Harry could tell why he chose that title. They were truly beautiful. Frye also happened to be the only resident muggle.
They moved on from there to a small market where they carried on a happy conversation with the young girl, Abby, who was working as a clerk there and the handful of customers who came through. Cedric seemed quite popular, but that wasn't really anything new. It had been like that at school too.
Their tour went on through most of the north end of town, before they crossed Main Street and entered the residential Southside. Cedric led Harry to the quaint little white Victorian he now sat in. Upon arriving there Harry was introduced to the owner, Mrs. Hall, and her daughter, Emmy, who immediately flung herself at 'Cedwic' and demanded to be carried piggyback.
Cedric, Harry, Frye, and neighbor by the name of Jason Tate, Abby, Emmy, and Mrs. Hall finished the meal set before them, and began to clean Mrs. Hall's kitchen as payment for the meal.
They were nearly finished when Cedric excused Harry and himself for the night. "I'll see you guys later. I'm going to show Harry the procession."
"It comes by every night. He'll see it eventually," Frye said as he stacked the last of the newly cleaned dishes on the counter to be put away.
"It's his first night here," Mrs. Hall countered as she tried to wrestle her two year old out of the shirt that had caught the majority of her dinner, " let him watch." Frye shrugged and continued cleaning.
"Thank you for dinner, Mrs. Hall," Harry said, grabbing the trash to take out as they left. She gave him a smile and a wink, and Cedric led him out of the house.
"Shouldn't take up long to get there," Cedric commented.
The air had dropped more than a few degrees since they had entered the house only two hours ago, and the sun was creeping closer and closer toward the horizon.
Harry looked around him as they walked, taking in his new surroundings as they head back toward Main Street. All of the buildings looked completely muggle, though a bit old.
A shape one of the rooftops, silhouetted against the sinking sun caught Harry's attention. "What is that?" he asked his companion as he squinted against the light, trying to add detail to the object.
"Sam," Cedric replied as though that cleared everything up. "He's been sitting up there for longer than anyone here remembers. I don't think anyone has ever seen him move. I don't even know what his real name is. We call him Sam because somebody thought he looked like a Samurai."
They reached Main and began walking west. They stopped as the sun disappeared behind the huge white castle, making it look as though the castle were glowing.
The sky quickly faded to black as the sun dipped beneath the horizon, but the castle only got brighter. Hundreds of beautiful white balls of light glided down Main Street and out into the dessert. On of the giant glowing orbs stopped in front of Cedric, and quickly moved on. Another stopped before Harry, and he immediately felt himself immersed in a pleasant warmth that he never wanted to leave. The light was offering him peace like he had never known. He looked over at Cedric. The older boy's expression clearly told Harry that he would be forgiven if he chose to accept.
He really wanted the peace that the light was offering, but he knew that there were still things that were being kept from him, things that he needed to know. He knew he couldn't rest until he knew what they were, and why everyone was so intent on him not knowing.
He reluctantly refused the light's offer and collapsed to the ground gasping as the warmth was snatched away. He lay on the pavement trying to regain control of his breath as he watch the ball of light approach another man down the road. It hovered in front of him a moment before enveloping him whole and moving on.
Cedric helped him to his feet. "Come on. Let's get you home." Harry leaned heavily on Cedric, feeling more than a little drained.
"Isn't the hotel the other way?" Harry asked.
"You can't go back to the hotel now."
"Where am I going to go then?"
Cedric smirked. "You're in luck. I'm in the market for a new roommate."
Harry collapsed onto the bare mattress, perfectly happy with sleeping on it in its present condition. "Would you get up?" Cedric scolded, kicking at the mattress beneath Harry. Harry drug his protesting body obediently from the comfort of the soft bed. Cedric tossed a pillow and case at him and continued digging through the closet. Harry put the cover on the pillow and listened to Cedric mutter about sheets.
"Sheets would be nice," Harry admitted, his voice slurred with exhaustion. "Cold."
Cedric emerged from the closet with his arms full of colorful material. "It'll wear off. For future reference, the quicker you reject the offer, the quicker you bounce back."
They made up the small bed, and Harry was about to climb in when something caught his attention.
"Barbie?" Harry asked as he stared down at the blanket covering his bed.
"Sorry. That's all I have," Cedric shrugged. "They are warm though, so they serve their purpose."
Harry pulled back the blanket and revealed sheets covered in little ponies. He shrugged. They did look warm. He took off his glasses and climbed in. His first day in Limbo had been very long. He was asleep before his head hit the Cabbage Patch covered pillow.
Help and Dinner
"So you finally woke up," Cedric smirked in reply to Harry's surprised greeting.
"Um. yeah. this morning," Harry replied, shaking himself out of his shock.
"Great. Let me give you the tour," Cedric said grabbing Harry's shoulder and leading him back the way he came.
"Thanks, but Nate and Kori already showed me around."
"No, they didn't. They showed you Main Street." Come to think of it they hadn't left the street that the hotel was on.
"What else is there?" Harry asked with genuine curiosity.
Cedric's smile broke into a wide grin, "A whole world. Come on."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Ginny knocked sharply on the door at the top of the stairs. She stepped through as it swung silently open and took in the space that was revealed. Her brother's mess of a room was even more cluttered than it usually was, as it held the majority of Hermione's possessions too.
Ron fell back onto his bed after letting his sister in and went back to staring at his ceiling. Hermione still hadn't raised her head from the book she had propped up against the headboard.
Ginny sighed in frustration. "You could at least acknowledge that I am in the room," she complained.
Ron waved a hand in her general direction, not moving his eyes from the ceiling. Hermione however closed her book and sat up. "What do you need, Gin?" she asked, forcing a pleasant tone of voice.
"I just thought that the two of you might like to know that mom and dad are downstairs right now discussing whether or not you need professional help in dealing with this."
Ron rolled his eyes and Hermione replied, "We'll be fine. It will just take time." The pleasantness was quickly fading from her voice.
"You will not be fine!" Ginny shouted with tears in her eyes. "You both hide up here all day and avoid everyone. Ron hasn't said a single word since he found out!" Ron raised a single finger in a rude gesture from his new position on his stomach with his head buried in a pillow. "You two are now fine!" Hermione opened her book again and continued where she had left off.
Ginny huffed off at being blatantly ignored, slamming the door shut behind her. The ghoul in the attic took the loud noise from the door as his cue to make as much noise as possible.
"She's right you know," Hermione confessed to the otherwise silent room. Ron didn't move. "We aren't dealing well," they sat in silence for a moment longer. "You only eat when I force you to," she paused again. "Say something."
The silence stretched out for so long Hermione was sure that Ron had refused her request, but minutes later Ron interrupted the passage she was on with a short and quiet statement. "Words seem pointless."
"What about food?" Hermione snapped. "Is it pointless too?"
Ron rose from his position on the bed and began pacing about the room. He stopped and turned to face Hermione. "I'll do something like eat or shower, or I'll think about reading or quidditch, and all that I can think is that Harry will never do these things again. Harry will never fly again. He loved to fly." The last sentence was barely audible, but Hermione must have heard, as she soon replied in a voice that easily told that she was now crying again.
"He is flying, Ron," she said through her tears. "Can't you just see him, spending forever playing quidditch?" A very small smile made its way onto Ron's face. "His mom and dad sitting in the stands with Sirius, cheering him on. He doesn't have the weight to the world on his shoulders anymore. I miss him so much, but in a way I'm happy for him."
Ron's smile melted quickly into a mask of anger. He glared at the girl on his bad for a long moment before opening his bedroom door and quickly descending the stairs.
"Oh yeah," Ginny said from the doorway, "you guys are dealing just fine." Hermione threw a nearby pillow at her, and collapsed back onto the empty bed.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Harry sat at a crowded table in the small kitchen of an old Victorian in what the residents call Southside. He, as well as all of his new found friends, was devouring the best meal he had ever eaten. or maybe it was just that he hadn't eaten in a week.
Cedric had spent the afternoon showing him around The Gate, which was what the small town was apparently named. He had told Harry a bit about the place, and introduced him to all of the friends he had made over the last year.
They started at a small dark shop just off of Main Street. At Cedric's call a large bald man with a graying goatee immerged from the back room. He was tall, and wore muggle blue jeans, a tee shirt, and a black leather vest. He would have looked right at home astride some mammoth motorcycle. He gave Cedric a hearty hello and a handshake before learning Harry's name and giving him the same greeting. The man introduced himself as Fillion Lee Frye, but Harry was to stick with just Frye. Frye was an artist, and after looking at a few of the weapons the man had created, Harry could tell why he chose that title. They were truly beautiful. Frye also happened to be the only resident muggle.
They moved on from there to a small market where they carried on a happy conversation with the young girl, Abby, who was working as a clerk there and the handful of customers who came through. Cedric seemed quite popular, but that wasn't really anything new. It had been like that at school too.
Their tour went on through most of the north end of town, before they crossed Main Street and entered the residential Southside. Cedric led Harry to the quaint little white Victorian he now sat in. Upon arriving there Harry was introduced to the owner, Mrs. Hall, and her daughter, Emmy, who immediately flung herself at 'Cedwic' and demanded to be carried piggyback.
Cedric, Harry, Frye, and neighbor by the name of Jason Tate, Abby, Emmy, and Mrs. Hall finished the meal set before them, and began to clean Mrs. Hall's kitchen as payment for the meal.
They were nearly finished when Cedric excused Harry and himself for the night. "I'll see you guys later. I'm going to show Harry the procession."
"It comes by every night. He'll see it eventually," Frye said as he stacked the last of the newly cleaned dishes on the counter to be put away.
"It's his first night here," Mrs. Hall countered as she tried to wrestle her two year old out of the shirt that had caught the majority of her dinner, " let him watch." Frye shrugged and continued cleaning.
"Thank you for dinner, Mrs. Hall," Harry said, grabbing the trash to take out as they left. She gave him a smile and a wink, and Cedric led him out of the house.
"Shouldn't take up long to get there," Cedric commented.
The air had dropped more than a few degrees since they had entered the house only two hours ago, and the sun was creeping closer and closer toward the horizon.
Harry looked around him as they walked, taking in his new surroundings as they head back toward Main Street. All of the buildings looked completely muggle, though a bit old.
A shape one of the rooftops, silhouetted against the sinking sun caught Harry's attention. "What is that?" he asked his companion as he squinted against the light, trying to add detail to the object.
"Sam," Cedric replied as though that cleared everything up. "He's been sitting up there for longer than anyone here remembers. I don't think anyone has ever seen him move. I don't even know what his real name is. We call him Sam because somebody thought he looked like a Samurai."
They reached Main and began walking west. They stopped as the sun disappeared behind the huge white castle, making it look as though the castle were glowing.
The sky quickly faded to black as the sun dipped beneath the horizon, but the castle only got brighter. Hundreds of beautiful white balls of light glided down Main Street and out into the dessert. On of the giant glowing orbs stopped in front of Cedric, and quickly moved on. Another stopped before Harry, and he immediately felt himself immersed in a pleasant warmth that he never wanted to leave. The light was offering him peace like he had never known. He looked over at Cedric. The older boy's expression clearly told Harry that he would be forgiven if he chose to accept.
He really wanted the peace that the light was offering, but he knew that there were still things that were being kept from him, things that he needed to know. He knew he couldn't rest until he knew what they were, and why everyone was so intent on him not knowing.
He reluctantly refused the light's offer and collapsed to the ground gasping as the warmth was snatched away. He lay on the pavement trying to regain control of his breath as he watch the ball of light approach another man down the road. It hovered in front of him a moment before enveloping him whole and moving on.
Cedric helped him to his feet. "Come on. Let's get you home." Harry leaned heavily on Cedric, feeling more than a little drained.
"Isn't the hotel the other way?" Harry asked.
"You can't go back to the hotel now."
"Where am I going to go then?"
Cedric smirked. "You're in luck. I'm in the market for a new roommate."
Harry collapsed onto the bare mattress, perfectly happy with sleeping on it in its present condition. "Would you get up?" Cedric scolded, kicking at the mattress beneath Harry. Harry drug his protesting body obediently from the comfort of the soft bed. Cedric tossed a pillow and case at him and continued digging through the closet. Harry put the cover on the pillow and listened to Cedric mutter about sheets.
"Sheets would be nice," Harry admitted, his voice slurred with exhaustion. "Cold."
Cedric emerged from the closet with his arms full of colorful material. "It'll wear off. For future reference, the quicker you reject the offer, the quicker you bounce back."
They made up the small bed, and Harry was about to climb in when something caught his attention.
"Barbie?" Harry asked as he stared down at the blanket covering his bed.
"Sorry. That's all I have," Cedric shrugged. "They are warm though, so they serve their purpose."
Harry pulled back the blanket and revealed sheets covered in little ponies. He shrugged. They did look warm. He took off his glasses and climbed in. His first day in Limbo had been very long. He was asleep before his head hit the Cabbage Patch covered pillow.