Chapter Nine:
"What are you doing?" A young muggle woman of about thirty-five asked a man of around the same ago who was kneeling in the middle of a garden in Paris, with a bag to his left. Immediately taken by the woman. The man stood to meet her eyes.
"Hello." He said coarsely.
"So you do speak English then?" She confirmed, smiling a little. He nodded and she repeated her first question. "What are you doing here?"
He cleared his throat and took hold of the bag. "I'm collecting rose petals."
The woman rose her eyebrows, "Why?" She asked.
"Come with me. I want to show you something." The man said slyly, beckoning her forward. And for reasons unknown to either of them, she followed the man. They walked through the gardens and as they walked, the man asked her, "Why are you in Paris?"
She sighed and said "Because my name haunts me in my hometown. It's like people there hear it and immediately they think, 'is that this happened to?' And 'Is she the one that did that?' It's a curse I didn't care to live with anymore."
The man nodded. "I get it. So what is your name?"
She smiled and studied him carefully, "Esor Azile." She answered softly.
"Eliza Rose." He recited back. "That's a beautiful name."
She looked at him confused but they had obviously reached the mans destination because he was motioning for her to sit down the bench of a large fountain in the center of the park.
"Have you got a recent cut anywhere?" He asked. "Like on your arm or something."
"On my arm. Why?" She asked. He didn't answer but she thought nothing of it. She was studying his movements closely. He motioned for her arm and she allowed him to grab it. He looked at the arm which had a cut midway up then his gaze wandered to the bag of rose petals. He held a hand of his under her arm and used his other, to get a petal from his bag. When he retrieved one, he gently placed it over her cut and held it in place with his thumb. Using his hand as a sort of cut, he dipped it in to the fountain and dripped some of the cold water over the rose petal.
"When you had a cut when you were little, did your mother ever tell you she'd kiss it and make it better. And even though it sounded ridiculous it always seemed to help anyway."
She regarded him curiously then answered, "She did that yes. What's your point."
While they were talking he had been rubbing the wet rose pedal over her cut lightly but now after she asked him this, he removed the petal. "H-how?" Eliza stuttered as she looked at her arm in disbelief. The rose petal had left a soft toned lip print and the cut... Was nonexistent.
"The rose petal has magical qualities." The man said softly, gathering his things getting ready to leave. "It's got healing qualities." He began walking off as the sun was going down, illuminating him in golden light. He paused in his stride and with his back still turned he told her, and she just barely caught what he said before he started again.
"They call it, The kiss of the rose."
Lily paused in her reading to examine her surroundings. She blinked a few times to get everything in focus then stood. She was still in the library but a lot less people were there then when she had arrived. It was starting to get dark.
"It's probably almost dinner." She muttered to her self as she gathered her things. She shoved the copy of Punka she had taken out into her bag and began out of the library. As she was walking back to the common room, she stepped into earshot of what sounded like an argument. From what she could here it sounded like,
"Give it back Redsing, I'm not going to tell you again."
"What are you gonna do about it huh Potter? Throw a book at me."
"Come on they're not worth it John let's go."
"Stop being so weak Snape."
Lily's breath caught in her chest when she heard Severus' name mentioned. Not completely interested in missing a chance to see him, she sped up. As she rounded the corner she was just in time to see Sirius backing up with James' and his own wand in his hand. Obviously they were the stolen objects. James and some other kid she assumed to be John Redsing were fighting on the ground and Severus Snape was watching the whole scene slightly discussed. When he saw Lily he frowned a bit, looked at Sirius, then at the two boys engaged in combat. He went forward and grabbed hold of Redsing while Sirius grabbed James and between the two of them pulled them apart. When Redsing was standing again, he shoved away from Severus. He had a bloody nose and a black eye. He glared at James how had almost identical bruises then stalked off with Snape following him. When they were gone Lily ran over to James and asked,
"Are you alright." He looked at her surprised as if he hadn't noticed her before and nodded his head at her. "I'm fine."
She smiled at him and then at Sirius who looked at her worried,
"Those guys have never bothered you before have they?"
"No." She answered. "Why?"
James sighed, "They're both idiots. Promise you wont ever approach them. Then we'll know you're safe."
"Severus Snape didn't seem so bad." She pointed out remembering that he had helped pull them apart.
"Snape? He's the one that took the wands to begin with. He knows a lot of dark magic."
"He's not the sort you'd want to befriend. He could turn on you at any second." Sirius muttered shaking his head.
"I don't want you to get hurt. Try to avoid him if you can OK?" James asked.
Lily smiled nervously at him and nodded her head in agreement.
"Promise?" He asked.
"I promise." She said weakly.
"What are you doing?" A young muggle woman of about thirty-five asked a man of around the same ago who was kneeling in the middle of a garden in Paris, with a bag to his left. Immediately taken by the woman. The man stood to meet her eyes.
"Hello." He said coarsely.
"So you do speak English then?" She confirmed, smiling a little. He nodded and she repeated her first question. "What are you doing here?"
He cleared his throat and took hold of the bag. "I'm collecting rose petals."
The woman rose her eyebrows, "Why?" She asked.
"Come with me. I want to show you something." The man said slyly, beckoning her forward. And for reasons unknown to either of them, she followed the man. They walked through the gardens and as they walked, the man asked her, "Why are you in Paris?"
She sighed and said "Because my name haunts me in my hometown. It's like people there hear it and immediately they think, 'is that this happened to?' And 'Is she the one that did that?' It's a curse I didn't care to live with anymore."
The man nodded. "I get it. So what is your name?"
She smiled and studied him carefully, "Esor Azile." She answered softly.
"Eliza Rose." He recited back. "That's a beautiful name."
She looked at him confused but they had obviously reached the mans destination because he was motioning for her to sit down the bench of a large fountain in the center of the park.
"Have you got a recent cut anywhere?" He asked. "Like on your arm or something."
"On my arm. Why?" She asked. He didn't answer but she thought nothing of it. She was studying his movements closely. He motioned for her arm and she allowed him to grab it. He looked at the arm which had a cut midway up then his gaze wandered to the bag of rose petals. He held a hand of his under her arm and used his other, to get a petal from his bag. When he retrieved one, he gently placed it over her cut and held it in place with his thumb. Using his hand as a sort of cut, he dipped it in to the fountain and dripped some of the cold water over the rose petal.
"When you had a cut when you were little, did your mother ever tell you she'd kiss it and make it better. And even though it sounded ridiculous it always seemed to help anyway."
She regarded him curiously then answered, "She did that yes. What's your point."
While they were talking he had been rubbing the wet rose pedal over her cut lightly but now after she asked him this, he removed the petal. "H-how?" Eliza stuttered as she looked at her arm in disbelief. The rose petal had left a soft toned lip print and the cut... Was nonexistent.
"The rose petal has magical qualities." The man said softly, gathering his things getting ready to leave. "It's got healing qualities." He began walking off as the sun was going down, illuminating him in golden light. He paused in his stride and with his back still turned he told her, and she just barely caught what he said before he started again.
"They call it, The kiss of the rose."
Lily paused in her reading to examine her surroundings. She blinked a few times to get everything in focus then stood. She was still in the library but a lot less people were there then when she had arrived. It was starting to get dark.
"It's probably almost dinner." She muttered to her self as she gathered her things. She shoved the copy of Punka she had taken out into her bag and began out of the library. As she was walking back to the common room, she stepped into earshot of what sounded like an argument. From what she could here it sounded like,
"Give it back Redsing, I'm not going to tell you again."
"What are you gonna do about it huh Potter? Throw a book at me."
"Come on they're not worth it John let's go."
"Stop being so weak Snape."
Lily's breath caught in her chest when she heard Severus' name mentioned. Not completely interested in missing a chance to see him, she sped up. As she rounded the corner she was just in time to see Sirius backing up with James' and his own wand in his hand. Obviously they were the stolen objects. James and some other kid she assumed to be John Redsing were fighting on the ground and Severus Snape was watching the whole scene slightly discussed. When he saw Lily he frowned a bit, looked at Sirius, then at the two boys engaged in combat. He went forward and grabbed hold of Redsing while Sirius grabbed James and between the two of them pulled them apart. When Redsing was standing again, he shoved away from Severus. He had a bloody nose and a black eye. He glared at James how had almost identical bruises then stalked off with Snape following him. When they were gone Lily ran over to James and asked,
"Are you alright." He looked at her surprised as if he hadn't noticed her before and nodded his head at her. "I'm fine."
She smiled at him and then at Sirius who looked at her worried,
"Those guys have never bothered you before have they?"
"No." She answered. "Why?"
James sighed, "They're both idiots. Promise you wont ever approach them. Then we'll know you're safe."
"Severus Snape didn't seem so bad." She pointed out remembering that he had helped pull them apart.
"Snape? He's the one that took the wands to begin with. He knows a lot of dark magic."
"He's not the sort you'd want to befriend. He could turn on you at any second." Sirius muttered shaking his head.
"I don't want you to get hurt. Try to avoid him if you can OK?" James asked.
Lily smiled nervously at him and nodded her head in agreement.
"Promise?" He asked.
"I promise." She said weakly.