Chapter 03
• Résolution •
Harry was having a difficult time.
It was sort of funny, that before now his life had been so ordinary, so smooth, so dreamlike, at least, the dreams he had of a good life. There were of course a couple of quirks in them, including a house-elf who had kept him going on in the world and made sure that he got everything he needed done. His life would be a lot harder without that elf, but even she had been grateful to leave behind the world then.
"Winky," he said, after closing his front door behind him. "I was wondering how much you know about Veela."
A little elf appeared around the corner, holding a tray of tea and biscuits. Harry smiled. She always was ready with hot biscuits, even if he was late. He still couldn't figure out how she did it, because the little elf rarely used magic anymore unless it was absolutely necessary. She seemed to get just as much fulfillment doing things without magic, and she was especially careful now, since they lived in the muggle world.
"Veela, sir?" she asked curiously.
Harry nodded. "I think I'm having a problem with one."
The round saucer-like eyes got even wider as Winky sat the tray down in the living room. "They is finding master?" she asked, very much displeased.
"Only one person found me, and I don't think she'll tell anyone else. However, I don't think she'll leave me alone either."
"She is knowing you?" Winky asked, sitting across from Harry. It was odd behavior for a house-elf, but it was one of the things that Harry had taught her to do, something which had taken a great deal of work too. She sipped at the tiny tea glass she'd set for herself, and waited for Harry to explain more. Winky, if anything, was one of the best listeners Harry knew.
"I met her once, a very long time ago. Her older sister was in the Triwizard Tournament." Harry glanced at Winky, but saw she was taking it as well as he had hoped. It had taken her a long time to get over the things that had happened to her, but she eventually had. Now, it didn't bother her as it once had. She was whole again, as some might say. Of course, it had been Dobby for the most part that had done the work, but Harry had been helping too. And, as Dobby's last request, Winky had taken to tending to Harry, making sure his life was the best she could make it.
"I pulled her out of the lake during the second task. She was a little girl then."
"Winky is remembering these things, she is remembering Dobby is doing things for Master, and helping Master win. She is hearing all about Master's bravery from Dobby."
Yes, Dobby would have definitely had to talk to someone about it. The little elf had never once doubted Harry, and had, of his own free will, stepped in front of a curse that surely would have killed Harry. He'd done it as a friend, and it was one of the few memories Harry had kept, because he knew he couldn't forget the meaning behind it.
"Well, she's all grown up now. And she says she loves me," Harry said, chuckling at the thought. "I wonder if she even knows what real love is. She is a veela after all, and they aren't exactly lacking in the lust department, but, how many of them have really experienced love?"
"You is judging," Winky said and Harry looked up at her, surprised she'd spoken back. There were some things he'd gotten her to quit doing, and some things he'd demanded she do, but talking back had never gone over well, even when she knew she was right.
"I'm not saying she doesn't love me, I'm not trying to judge her at all. I just think it's funny that she believes it. She's met me once in her life, how could she love me? Even if she believes it is true, is it? Does she really know what it is to love someone?"
Harry sipped his tea and thought some more about it. There was a knock on the door and Winky stood up, but Harry shook his head. Usually she answered it, or was near when it was opened, just in case. When he'd brought her to the muggle world with him there had been some charms he'd had to learn, and she'd had to learn that kept her from being seen as an elf. Instead she looked like a dwarf or midget depending on the person seeing her.
He opened the door and smiled. "Jamie, what an unexpected pleasure. I trust there's no problems at the school."
Jamie Dax frowned, she was having a hard enough time coming as it was, and he was making it even more difficult. "No," she said snippishly, "everything is perfectly fine there. I've come to talk about you and I."
Harry knew what she was there for, he could read it. It caused him to wonder if Gabrielle showing up might be a blessing in disguise. Jamie hadn't spoken to him, save a few words, since he'd proposed to her two months before. She had made it very clear then that their relationship was over, and he had stepped over the line. Now, she was at his front door.
"Can I come in or not?" she asked, glancing around, as if trying to see if someone else was in the house.
"We'd be glad to have you. I'm sure Winky can find another glass, she just served tea."
By the time they made it to the sitting room there was a glass waiting, and Winky was filling it. Harry ignored the look he received, because he knew Winky really didn't like Jamie much. Perhaps because of the way they'd met. Winky didn't hate her as much as when they'd first gotten to know one another, but there was still some strong dislike that Harry could see. It was a factor, but it was one of the few things that had held him back from asking, and eventually it had been outweighed by the good things.
"Is there something you want to talk about?" Harry inquired, finding his seat next to her and taking a biscuit. He wasn't going to push her, but he wasn't going to let this opportunity go either. If she was starting to think she was wrong, he wanted to make sure she saw everything he could offer yet again, in hopes that she might rethink her position.
"That woman at the school today."
"Gabrielle," Harry said, nodding.
"She said she knew you."
"She did, not well, mind you, but when I was younger I was very popular, and a lot of people knew me, all over England."
"You said your friends had died."
Harry closed his eyes for a second. He knew where this was going, and he didn't want it to make him look like a liar. "Gabrielle was more like an acquaintance. I knew her sister as well, who just so happens to be a bit closer in age, and was engaged to my best friend's brother before I left. I left because of everything that happened in my life, and when that attack killed nearly every person I had ever loved, as family, or as a friend, I couldn't bear to stay."
"What did she want?"
Harry wasn't exactly sure, but he had a pretty good idea. After everything she'd said to him he knew there were probably a few things she wanted. However, some of them he could come out and say. He'd been thinking about telling Jamie about the wizarding world, but he hadn't yet, and he wasn't going to until she'd accepted his proposal for marriage.
"A husband, I think."
Jamie's eyes widened and Harry could hear Winky shift happily at the woman's discomfort.
"You can't be serious. She knew you when you were kids, and now she's come looking for you to marry you?"
"Pretty much. She's used to getting anything she likes." Harry didn't know this was a fact, but it was a general rule, and so he applied it to Gabrielle.
"I can see that," Jamie said, pulling a folder piece of paper from her pocket. "I went into your office after school to see if you were still there, and found this laying on the desk."
It was a photo of Gabrielle.
Harry supposed he should have been more surprised that Jamie had gone over what he left on his desk, but he really wasn't, and he didn't care either. He was a bit angry that he'd done it, but he was angry at himself for letting it happen. He was slipping, that was stupid, letting someone see something he hadn't wanted to be seen. It wasn't like he was an Auror, but over the years he'd had a lot of training for many reasons, and he was losing it somehow.
"I believe there is a rule in class dealing with distractions, allowing a teacher to confiscate such distractions. I do not tolerate the students reading magazines. I assume this one was just not picked up at the end of class."
Jamie's eyes narrowed. "So you don't think she's pretty?" she asked.
"If I were to say she wasn't beautiful, I'd be lying. I don't see how this has anything to do with you. You no longer are involved in my life, remember?"
"Well, I just wanted to make sure everything was alright," Jamie said smugly and stood up, straightening out the jacket she'd not taken off. "I'll be going now."
There was no point in trying to call her back, Harry knew he'd made a mistake of letting her know too much of the truth. She no longer felt threatened, and so everything was back to the same... exactly where Harry didn't want it to be. Harry did watch her leave before turning back to his living room and sitting down heavily.
"Winky is thinking she is jealous." Winky said as she cleaned up the tea cups, stacking them carefully on the platter. "Winky is curious why."
Try and explain matter of love to a house-elf. That was rich. They didn't understand love the same way that people did. To them, at least most of them, love was something that resulted in little elves, and nothing more. There were some odd ones, like Dobby. He'd been more human somehow. He'd wanted freedom, wanted a life, and been in love with Winky. He'd been ready to do anything for her.
"Pretend I am a job, a job that you haven't got yet, something you think you want, but you're not sure. Then, another elf comes and does that job for you."
Winky's eyes lit up. "The Veela is wanting you like Misses Dax is wanting you?"
"You could say that."
There was a knock, and Harry stood to answer the door, wondering if Jamie had returned for some reason.
•
Gabrielle was in a bit of a bind. She'd checked on at least seven nearby residences, all of them were far too small and run down. Because of her situation, she couldn't be far from the school. She couldn't drive at all, and she needed a good bit of space, which meant she needed a house near the school. If she could apparate it'd make things easier. She'd even checked (before she came of course) to see if the town had any magic at all. It didn't. In fact, there was nothing for miles around.
She was standing in front of the eighth house, a house that looked as if a werewolf had taken up residence there. The place had been ransacked over and over again. Three layers of paint were visible depending on where one stood. Graffiti had been marked on the doors and what was left of the windows.
"I cannot do this," Gabrielle said heavily. It was getting dark and there was nowhere to sleep. She might have to walk until she found a cab or a man to 'convince' to take her to the other side of town so she could get a hotel room. She had no money with her that these muggles understood. None of them would take the Euros she had.
She had walked for twenty minutes without seeing anyone, when she spotted a figure getting in a car. It was a good distance down the street, so she picked up her pace and tried to get there before the person disappeared. The figure was in the car, and moving by the time Gabrielle got within range to make out who it was.
Stopping, she thought it might be better not to bother that person. However, as the woman passed the car slowed, Gabrielle received a look of contempt and a burst of emotions that made Gabrielle wonder where she'd been. There was rage and fear. Where there was none, a warm, comforting emotion had been moments before.
Gabrielle glanced towards the house she'd left and saw the back of someone's head, with an unruly rumple of black hair just before the door closed. Smiling, she straightened herself up, giving the car a glance before marching forward, intent on having another go at Harry.
•
When Harry opened the door, ready to listen to Jamie apologize, he was utterly surprised to find Gabrielle standing at the door. "Harry!" she exclaimed happily, throwing her arms around him. He didn't have time to react to her, and he gasped as the Veela charm bowled him over.
Gabrielle froze and then stepped back, when she saw his dreamy eyed look she cursed and took a deep breath. As she let it out, she closed her eyes and, almost as quickly as it had come, the feeling disappeared.
"Look, I'm sorry about that," Gabrielle said before he had the time to get angry. "I've been trying to find a ride, and so I had to turn it on in hopes someone would pull over."
"You can't apparate?" Harry said, his eyes narrowing. He was angry enough that he'd felt the charm full blast, and he wasn't sure about her explanation. He knew Veela couldn't turn off their charm completely, but it was much easier to deal with them when it was suppressed.
"No," Gabrielle snapped. It was a bit of a sore subject to her, and she really didn't want to discuss it with Harry.
"Why not get a cab?"
"No one likes my money," she pointed out, producing a wad of money for Harry to see.
"You're a witch, charm your feet to run fast and jog to wherever you're going." Harry said coolly. He began to reach for the door, intent to shut it on her, when Winky jabbed him in the back of his knee. He blinked and sighed, looking at Gabrielle was difficult, she was so attractive, even though he'd locked his mind down as best as possible.
"I quit school," Gabrielle revealed. "I am not much of a witch. Fleur did well as a half-breed, but I could not. Everything is so much harder than she had, and so, I decided to become a muggle and get away from everyone. It's easier this way."
"You get away from everyone by becoming a supermodel? Harry asked sarcastically.
"Yes. Being a model was quite lonely. It wasn't what I envisioned, but it was definitely lonely."
"Was?" Harry asked, a little curious by what she meant.
"Oh! I do not model any longer. I have another job."
"When?" Harry asked a bit surprised. It was the perfect job for a Veela. They absolutely adored the attention it gave them.
"I quit and started a new job five hours ago."
Counting out the time in his head, Harry figured it, and that was almost twenty minutes after he'd yelled at her. "You can't be serious," he said, startled. "It's quite a rash decision, something you should think about before making."
"I thought about it for three days before I came to meet you. Then, when you told me I had to leave, I decided."
"Would it be different if I hadn't told you to leave me alone?" Harry asked angrily. She was making decisions that he didn't want to deal with. She was disturbing his perfectly normal life, where everything had its place. Winky chose this moment to jab him in the knee a second time. Harry knew she was angry with him for being rude, but he was having a difficult time doing it. He had been celibate for quite a while, and just looking at her meant he was having difficulties turning off the voice in his head that told him to invite her in. It wanted him to be conniving, and make her do whatever he asked. He had always had that voice, and like always, he ignored it.
"You can't just leave everything you've been doing for the past year because you want to seduce me."
Gabrielle glowered. "I can do whatever I choose to do with my life," she said defiantly. "I am old enough to choose."
"You're what, fifteen, sixteen?" Harry growled, remembering she couldn't have been more than seven or eight when he first met her. It had only been eight or nine years since then. It was possible that she was eighteen, she did look it. In fact she looked much older than eighteen. Harry knew that it was a standard Veela trait, reaching maturation much faster than normal. After that, their growth slowed, and they aged extremely well. A fifty-year-old Veela would easily be mistaken for a woman in her late-twenties.
"I am turning eighteen in three weeks," she said irritably. "I am old enough to do whatever it is I want to do."
"Wow, eighteen," Harry said sarcastically. He remembered being eighteen. He had been the most popular person in the wizarding world at the time and all he wanted was for them to leave him alone. He had felt the exact same way she did. Winky poked him for the third time, but this time it had a bit of magic behind it, and Harry almost fell to his knees because it hit him so hard. He did tumble forward, right into Gabrielle.
Not quite ready for his body weight, Gabrielle toppled backwards and Harry landed on top of her. He found himself face to face with her, staring right into her eyes. Without thinking, he let himself do what he'd been wanting to do since the moment he saw her on stage. He leaned forward and kissed her. The kiss lasted a whole tenth of a second before something dragged him off of her.
"Harry!" he heard Jamie yell and he ducked, knowing what was coming.
Gabrielle was still lying on the ground, but didn't exactly look hurt, so Harry swiveled and made a beeline for a solid object. One thing he knew was that he needed something between himself and his ex-girlfriend. Gabrielle could take care of herself, but he wasn't so sure he'd be able to manage. "I thought you left, Jamie," he said quickly as she marched forward into his house without asking permission.
"Harold Evans!" she cried, trying to get a grasp on the collar of his shirt. "You are such a disgusting person!"
Harry knew he was in trouble now. She'd only called him Harold twice now, and the first time hadn't been a pretty scene. She called him that, because that's what all his documents said. Jamie made her way around the chair, and Harry scrambled to the other side of the couch which was a much larger object and quite a bit easier to defend himself with.
"You never called me disgusting before. I believe you were the one with some of the more questionable er... tastes," Harry teased, trying to take the edge off her anger.
It didn't work. In fact she only got angrier. Harry bent down as she hurled one of his lamps from a nearby coffee table. Winky sped across the room, trying to catch it, but failing without magic. She growled angrily and Harry was sure she was about to do something he didn't want. Gabrielle chose that moment to rise to her feet, and although she was flush, and a little rumpled, she looked in perfect working order.
"I didn't get your name before," Gabrielle said to Jamie.
Jamie turned on her, an evil glint in her eye. "Jamie, Jamie Dax. I happen to be Harry's girlfriend."
Harry was sure he should be offended, but he was hoping it would drive Gabrielle off, finding out he was already involved. He should have known that it would only drive the Veela further.
"This is your companion, Harry?" she asked him directly, completely ignoring Jamie.
Harry gazed over to Jamie, and smiled. If she was going to play with him, he was going to play with her. "No," he said truthfully. "We haven't been going out for almost two months now. She didn't like the idea of my proposing to her."
"Really?" Gabrielle said excitedly. "Good, then she won't mind if you let me stay for a while, until I find a place of my own."
"You can't!" Harry and Jamie said almost in synch. Harry had already known it was coming. Gabrielle had been leading towards it since she'd first knocked on the door. There was no way he could just let her stay, he wasn't sure if he could handle it. He'd already slipped once, and he'd been with her for less than an hour.
However, glancing back at Jamie, he felt some satisfaction in the horror that she showed.
"Harry, you must," Gabrielle said. "I simply cannot find another place that fits basic standards. You understand this. I can see that even you have made your place more comfortable. These Americans, they do not understanding standards of living."
There was no way that Harry was going to be talked into it. Jamie stood and almost hissed her next few words. "You are not allowed to stay at Harry's home."
It was the fact that Jamie seemed to feel she could run his life that caused Harry to rethink the matter. That and Winky repeatedly poking him in the side of the leg. At least Winky hadn't used magic. Harry hated to memory charm people, especially ones he knew.
"If I let you stay, you promise to look for your own place as soon as possible, right?" he asked.
Gabrielle nodded fervently and Jamie seemed aghast.
"You said you have a job, correct? It's nearby?"
"Very close." Gabrielle said, stepping forward eagerly.
"Alright. It's getting late. I'll allow it for the time being. I can't have you out on the streets. Who knows what would happen to you."
Gabrielle squealed and jumped at Harry, throwing her arms around him and kissing him on the cheek and making him blush. "We are going to have so much fun!" she said, and Harry had to wonder how much trouble he was going to get into with her around.