Miss Moony would like to dedicate this chapter to witchfire37 for being the first reviewer.
Miss Moony would also like to thank Wind-DragonMasterZ, shazia)Riavera, Escagirl, Unknown-Dreams and peacockgal17 for reviewing.
To Wind-DragonMasterZ: (Nervous chuckles) So I did. Can we just pretend that Harry didn't have a chance to get that tattoo before the end of the war and his impromptu arrival in Emelan? Because I really don't want to have to go back and change that. Thanks for pointing that out, though!
Only one chapter left: brace yourselves!
------- I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good -------
Chapter 15
Daja, Tris, Briar and Harry were walking back to Discipline, Little Bear bounding ahead, when it started pouring. Tris, after frowning at Daja and Briar's complaint, swiftly directed the rain away from them, creating a bowl-like effect. Harry, as Briar had come to expect, was silent, lost in his own thoughts.
The rain-shield was more than big enough to cover the four of them, as well as Little Bear, who'd come scurrying back to Tris as soon as the rain had started, but Briar only took a moment to notice that Harry had dropped back, seemingly deliberately staying in the rain.
'Why don't you come here?' Daja asked curiously.
Harry met her eyes evenly, but remained silent.
It seemed that Tris had tired of the silence after a few moments, and she snapped at him, 'Do you want to get soaked?'
The whole group had stopped walking by now, and Briar watched Harry and Tris' exchange with slight trepidation, remembering their previous clashes in personality when Harry answered. 'I like the rain,' he said quietly, remaining stubbornly outside the shelter, and with shimmering water droplets running down his face and into his eyes, where he didn't bother to wipe them away, and plastering his hair to his head, effectively covering his scar.
The answer was unexpected. Even Tris, the weather witch, didn't like rain, and never hesitated to usher it away from her, when she couldn't hurry it on its way. It was Daja, though, who asked him why.
'It washes the blood away.' Briar sighed. The answer was simple, murmured, and matter-of-fact, just like everything else he said.
He dropped behind, and gestured for the girls to go on without him. When they were gone, he said to Harry, 'You're different, aren't you?'
Harry looked at him, and the darkness in his eyes seemed to lift. 'It took you this long to notice?'
'Just stating the obvious,' Briar answered. 'I have a talent for it.'
Harry laughed, a tinkling, musical laugh, that actually seemed to mean something, and Briar's heart lifted.
'You're going to catch a cold,' he said, and Harry rolled his eyes, taking out the stick that he'd carved earlier and tapping himself on the head with it. 'Impervius,' he said, and the water sprung away from him. He then turned and did the same for Briar, without even being asked.
It was at that moment that Briar made his decision. And once that'd happened, nothing short of the gods could make him change his mind.
-------
Harry sat in the room, looking through his photo album, and removing various documents from behind the moving pictures of everyone he'd loved in his own world.
His parents came first, along with the Marauders, and Lily's friends, and later pictures were full of happily waving images of himself, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Luna, Blaise, Seamus, Dean, etc, etc…
He was interrupted from his reminiscing by a the sound of the bedroom door creaking open, and he turned to see Briar standing there nervously, shifting from one foot to the other with one arm behind his back.
Harry tipped his head to the side in a gesture of curiosity. Briar grinned and entered the room, closing the door gently but securely behind him.
'Mornin',' he said cheerfully, but nervousness still lingered in his eyes.
'What's behind you back?' Harry asked bluntly, and it seemed to grow tenfold.
The grin became fixed, and Briar just managed to squeak out, 'For you,' before holding out two healthy flowers for Harry to take.
Harry met Briar's eyes, and his own widened in realisation. In the older boy's, he could see fear, anxiety, and something else entirely… something he'd seen before: In Blaise's.
'A lupin,' Briar said, meaning the flower, 'and a lily. You did say that they were your favourites.'
Harry could interpret the unasked question perfectly. 'And if you die, too?' he asked.
'When I die, they'll burn me. Then I can watch over you until you die in bed… as an old man. We'll be together again, then, won't we, Harry?'
Harry smiled, and blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes. He nodded, and took the two flowers from Briar's hand. 'I guess so,' was his only answer.
