The Problem with Veela
Chapter Seven: A Breath of Fresh Air
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was not having the most pleasant of mornings. That was mainly due to his lack of sleep from the night before. Following Sebastian Delacour's little investigation, Albus had been stressing about his situation. While yes, it was true that he had taken some money from the Potter family vault, it was not for himself. It was mainly used to help keep the school running during the year before last, when the Chamber of Secrets was open. Many parents had pulled their children out of school, therefore the Ministry had reduced their funding as there weren't as many students. Albus suspected that Lucius Malfoy may have also had a significant influence in that decision. As such, Albus had taken a small yet significant amount of money to keep the school afloat from the Potter's vault. The goblins at Gringotts knew this, and understood why he had taken the , they did not know that he had not repaid the money back into the vault. This caused a dilemma for Dumbledore. He did not want to have Sebastian expose him to either Harry or the goblins. Harry would lose his trust in him and the goblins would be infuriated by his actions, giving them even more reason to hate the wizarding community. The elderly wizard stroked his beard silently and looked over at Fawkes.
"Oh don't look at me like that." He said to the phoenix, "You know I did it for the good of the school."
Dumbledore sighed and pulled open his desk. He pulled out a small packet of Floo Powder and headed over to the fireplace. Sprinkling some into the flames, the wizard stepped into the now green firepit and shouted "Gringotts!" He disappeared in a puff of smoke and stepped out of the fire into the large, grand atrium of the wizarding bank. He brushed down his long deep red robes and headed for the main desk. No other wizards or witches were around, but then again it was only around quarter to eight in the morning. He approached the large mahogany lectern to see an elderly goblin peering over the end of it at him. Dumbledore cleared his throat.
"Good morning, I'd like to just check over all the vaults I have access to."
The goblin surveyed him through a pair of half-moon spectacles, similar to the ones Albus often wore. His eyes darted up and down, as if trying to detect anything wrong with the wizard that stood in front of him. Finally the goblin replied.
"Which vaults would those be sir?"
"My personal vault, the Dumbledore family vault and the Potter family vault." Replied Albus, pulling all three keys out of his robes for inspection. The goblin took them and carefully studied each one.
"Everything seems to be in order, if you would follow Rattac please." said the goblin, gesturing to a younger, dark haired goblin by the door. Albus nodded his thanks and followed the instruction. Rattac smiled swiftly at the wizard before taking the keys off the goblin at the desk.
"This way please Mr Dumbledore." said Rattac as he hopped into one of the small carts that would take them down to where the vaults were.
They stopped first outside Albus' personal vault. He scooped a few handful of coins into his bag and tucked it under his cloak. He nodded at the goblin, indicating that he was done with that particular vault. They got back into the cart and headed for the next vault, which was the Dumbledore family vault. Albus stood back as Rattac opened the large door for him. He looked inside the room, checked everything and then stood back, satisfied. Rattac allowed a smidgen of confusion to flit across his face but it quickly dissipated.
"Now, the final vault please." Said Dumbledore. The goblin nodded and the pair rode the cart down a large drop and towards the Potter family vault. Dumbledore again, simply looked inside the vault before turning to Rattac.
"Could you please provide me with the details of the deposits and withdrawals." he asked. The goblin nodded and turned the key into a second lock on the door. It produced a small piece of parchment which he read aloud.
"There've been five withdrawals in the last 2 years. Each time a rather large amount. There've been no deposits back into it." the goblin read. Rattac made a mental note to discuss it with the bank manager. Something was a little off. Yet he did not let it show as he accompanied Dumbledore back to the lobby. Albus thanked all the goblins for his time before stepping once again into the fire pit to return to Hogwarts. Rattac approached the manager's office. He knocked twice before being told to enter. It was a spacious room, filled with various trinkets and goblin made weapons. A large spruce desk took up the majority of the room and another elderly goblin sat behind it.
"What is it Rattac?" said the manager, Emblett, without even looking up from his paperwork.
The younger goblin took a step forward and cleared his throat.
"I'm sorry to bother you Emblett, but I was wondering whether you knew that Albus Dumbledore has tak-"
"Taken money from the Potter's vault? Yes I am aware. I'm monitoring the situation closely. He has not seemed to spend any of the money for personal items so I have let it slide for now. However, we cannot let him keep taking money out of the vault willy-nilly. So if he comes to take any more, you are to stop him until he pays back some of the money he took. Merlin knows he should be able to with the vast amount of wealth he has in his personal account. And before you ask, the only other person eligible to the Potter's vault is either Harry Potter or his legal guardian with his permission. However, seeing that Potter is not of age yet and his legal guardians are Muggles, Dumbledore is the only one who can have control of the vault. The Potter's last will says so."
"Is it not theft?" Inquired Rattac. He was confused at why Dumbledore had gotten away with it.
"It is not." Replied the older goblin, "Dumbledore is in charge of the vaults at the moment, therefore it is technically his money. There is nothing we can do about it. When Mr Potter comes of age, he can ask for the money back and we'd step in and force Dumbledore to give it up to him. Does that answer your query?"
Fleur was not having a great morning so far, mainly due to her father's mood. He was being secretive and had a few violent outbursts of rage. All of which she could hear through her bedroom wall. Gabrielle had also noticed it and was constantly questioning Fleur about it, even though the older Delacour sister had no idea why her father was so angry. Fleur reassured her sister that it was nothing to worry about and that it's just his work. This seemed to satisfy Gabrielle who launched back into talking about Harry. Fleur rolled her eyes and smirked at her sister. Fleur knew how much the boy meant to Gabrielle. She thought back to how devastated Gabrielle had been after finding out that Fleur was in the Life Debt to her. The older Delacour sister had convinced a puffy eyed Gabrielle that she wasn't stealing him away from her and explained Harry would become her brother in law. This had perked up her mood considerably and she had spent the past few days prattling on about what she would do with her new brother. Fleur always admired Gabrielle's endless optimism and her ability to always have energy. At the current moment, Fleur was finding herself being more drained as her sleep pattern had been increasingly patchy. Many nights she lay awake wondering about everything that was going on. The tournament, Harry, the future. Sometimes it was too much to take. But Fleur was strong and she refused to be slowed down by these worrying thoughts, preferring to take them in stride. She'd done it all her life, but more so with nasty comments from other girls or animalistic things said by boys about what they'd "do to her". The many years of ignoring comments like this meant that Fleur was very good at simply putting them out of mind. Breathing out heavily, Fleur stood up and crossed the room to the door. Gabrielle grabbed her arm before she could leave.
"Where are you going?" She asked in French. Fleur pulled her arm out of her sister's grasp.
"I'm just going to get some air, I'll be back soon." The older Delacour sister replied. Gabrielle put on an exaggerated pout, forcing a chuckle to escape her sister's lips. Fleur winked at her sister before wrenching open the door and heading down the magically elongated corridor to the door to the carriage. She stepped outside into the morning air and breathed it in. It was a cool and crisp day but she still headed outside in only a t-shirt and jeans. Her feet crunched on the grass as she started walking, in no direction in particular. Fleur found herself heading towards the Black Lake, where everything had started. The sky was overcast yet there was a hint of sunshine trying to break through. Sighing softly, Fleur looked out over the tops of the Forbidden Forest. The trees stretched high up to the clouds, as if reaching for something that they could not quite reach. Her gaze made its way down towards the water, which was still and silent. It was rather peaceful on the shore but the French witch didn't fancy swimming in the freezing depths again in a hurry. She wandered over to a nearby willow tree and slid down to the ground and leaned her head back against the trunk. It wasn't very comfortable, but it provided respite from the ever encroaching walls of the carriage that she resided in. The powdery-blue carriage had been her home for the many weeks of the tournament yet she was starting to truly miss the freedoms of both Beauxbatons and her home. Fleur missed her mother, she hadn't been home to see her in quite a while and wondered how she was doing. Apolline Delacour was a tough witch and took no nonsense from anyone, but she also had one of the kindest hearts Fleur had ever come across. But when many of the hearts she came into contact with belonged to drooling boys it wasn't very hard to be better than all of them. Fleur smirked to herself as she imagined her mother fussing over Harry and how thin he is. The French witch's thoughts drifted to the black haired boy in question. She hadn't seen him for a day or two but she wasn't worried about him. Fleur knew that he could take care of himself. After all, he had managed to get through the first two tasks with relative ease. And then his world had turned upside down, even more than it had already been. She knew that she shouldn't feel guilty about it, but deep down, Fleur had been chastising herself for everything that had happened because of her incompetence with the Grindylows. But at least it was Harry that she was being forced to marry. Fleur had found herself becoming slowly more attached to the younger wizard, so when she saw him sitting on the opposite side of the lake with a blonde girl she was naturally confused and stood up rather sharply. He had not seen her, she could tell. Fleur smoothened her shirt out and started the march round the lake towards them. Obviously, her first thought had been that it could've been Hermione but quickly deduced that it wasn't based on her hair colour and lack of bushiness and how close she was sitting to Harry. Fleur breathed out slowly and brushed some of her hair out of her eyes. She did not know who this girl was but she was going to have some strong words with her. As she got closer towards the two of them, the girl pointed subtly at her and mentioned something to Harry. The wizard turned around and smiled at her but quickly paled when he saw her expression. He stood up as Fleur approached and moved away from the other girl. Harry opened his mouth, probably to greet Fleur, but she interrupted him before he could even make a sound.
"What's going on here?"
Harry Potter had not slept very well. He spent the night tossing and turning in his duvet, trying to think of something that remotely resembled a plan. The box containing the ring was still in his bedside cabinet, but he had double checked it was still there multiple times throughout the night. Thankfully, none of his other dorm mates had found it and had interrogated him. He did not fancy having that conversation with them. In fact, he didn't really want to speak to anyone about it. Not even Ron and Hermione. He loved them both dearly, but sometimes their advice was rather duff. He glanced at his watch, mainly out of habit rather than anything else. It had become stuck following it's ordeal in the Black Lake. Deciding that it would be best to get out of bed rather than fail to get any sleep, Harry threw his covers off quietly and dressed as silently as he could. Ron, Seamus and Dean were still asleep. Harry didn't imagine that they'd wake up before 10, especially on the weekend. Neville was awake but bleary eyed. He waved feebly at Harry, who returned it with a small smile. Neville grunted softly and rolled back over, which Harry took as his cue to leave. Silently, he crept down the stairs and through the common room. Clambering out of the portrait hole, Harry whispered an apology to the disgruntled Fat Lady. She did not appreciate being woken so early. Harry grinned at her before turning round and heading on his way. The castle was quiet, most of the paintings hadn't woken up yet. Making his way downstairs towards the Great Hall, Harry got a sudden desire to go to the Lake, rather than eating. He turned left in the Entrance Hall rather than right and headed out onto the grounds. The early morning dew was still on the grass and he pulled his hoodie tighter around him. The mornings were still slightly bitter this far north. Crossing the grass, he saw smoke rising from Hagrid's hut and cursed himself under his breath for not visiting his friend more often this year than he had. Especially considering how supportive Hagrid had been when his name had come out of the Goblet. That seemed so long ago now, so much had happened in between then and now. Harry sighed and looked over the lake, the sun was poking through the cloud and sent a shiny streak across the surface of the water. Something, or rather someone, caught Harry's eye. Sitting at the edge of the water, arms crossed over their legs which were tucked in to conserve body heat. Blonde hair, pulled back into a loose ponytail. Harry made his way over, before hesitating. They were out here for a reason, maybe they didn't want to be disturbed. Making his mind up, Harry turned round and was starting to walk back towards the castle when a voice called him back.
"I don't bite Potter. You can sit down next to me. Don't worry, I won't eat you."
Harry grinned to himself before spinning back round to see Daphne Greengrass smirking at him. He crossed over to her and faux bowed which earned him a wry smile from the Slytherin. She watched him as he sat down next to her. Harry didn't look at her, instead focusing on the water in front of him. She also shifted her gaze to the lake. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Harry feeling slightly awkward, before Daphne spoke.
"Thanks for the other day."
Harry took a moment to remember what she was referring to, but then it hit him. He smiled at the memory.
"Oh, no problem. I mean, I didn't do much, it was mainly Fleur." Harry said sheepishly. Daphne smiled softly and looked at her shoes. "But it's always nice to see Malfoy get a taste of his own medicine."
"Oh, I agree wholeheartedly." The Slytherin replied. Harry was slightly stunned, he hadn't ever really thought that other Slytherins hated Malfoy as much as him. He spluttered slightly but managed to get his words out.
"Why do you hang around him then?"
Daphne sighed. "Christ, Potter you really know nothing. Power. The Malfoy name is well respected in Slytherin. Most of us don't like Draco but we hang out with him so his father won't disgrace our families. Not all of us are evil, you know. We just, we have to look out for ourselves."
Harry nodded grimly, as her words sunk in.
"I've never thought of it like that." He admitted, cursing how narrow-minded he sounded. Daphne looked at him and nudged him on the shoulder.
"Don't beat yourself up about it. What's the saying, you learn something new everyday?"
Harry grinned at her and nodded. She smiled back at him. Harry stood up and dipped his hand into the water. He grimaced and removed it quickly. Daphne smirked up at him.
"Cold?" She asked with a slightly mocking tone. Harry's cheeks flushed slightly before he responded.
"Well, duh. Not exactly the Mediterranean. But it's less cold than when I had to swim in it." Daphne faux sighed.
"Oh yes, I forgot all about it, Champion Potter."
"Shut up." Harry said, indignantly, before flicking water at the Slytherin. She reacted quickly and dodged the droplets. She crossed her arms and glared at him.
"Do not do that again, or so help me I'll hex you into oblivion." She threatened. Harry raised his hands defensively and took to the ground again.
"Oh, I'm sure you would. I'd be a toad spewing fire." He said. Daphne scoffed. She rolled her eyes at him.
"You're so stupid Potter. Why a fire breathing toad? I'd simply make life worse for you in every way." She replied.
"How?" Enquired Harry. She shook her head at him.
"You don't want to know."
"Fine. I'll keep my distance." Replied the Gryffindor.
"Hopefully not too far." Daphne replied. Harry blushed a faint pink and looked away sheepishly. Daphne studied his features, trying to gauge what he was thinking about. Eventually, she turned her head back to the landscape that lay in front of them. A cool breeze swept across the lake, causing the water to ripple slightly and sending a shiver through Daphne. She didn't seem to notice. But the boy sitting next to her did. Daphne almost flinched as she felt Harry put his jumper around her shoulders. Tempted to shrug it off, Daphne looked over at him.
"Potter, I live in the dungeons. I can handle a slight chill." Harry grinned apologetically at her but she didn't give his hoodie back to him. He laughed to himself before picking up a small stone and throwing it out into the lake. It hit the water with a soft splash and sent another ripple across the surface of the water. Daphne sighed.
"Pitiful throw Potter."
Harry gestured to the water and the stones on the bank. "Please, be my guest."
Daphne threw a stone, it soared high into the sky and arched downwards and hit the water with resounding force. Satisfied with her throw, the Slytherin nodded and pointed at where the stone had gone in.
"Beat that."
Harry grinned at her before hurling another stone into the water. To Daphne's annoyance, it went further out than hers had. She responded by punching the Gryffindor's arm.
"Irritating boy." She muttered as Harry laughed. An awkward silence descended on the two of them as Harry's laughter subsided. It was only disturbed by the occasional call of a bird. Harry eventually spoke.
"So why are you out here anyway?" He asked. Daphne looked at him, opened her mouth to speak, but closed it, deciding that what she was going to say wasn't the right call.
"I-uh. None of your business." She snapped rather sharply.
A brief expression of hurt flitted across Harry's features before slipping away. He nodded and decided not to press the matter any further. After all, he was, to his surprise, enjoying her company. It was nice to be around someone new, rather than Ron, Hermione or Fleur all the time. His thoughts drifted to Fleur, and what was in his bedside cabinet. A wave of dread came crashing down on him and he lay down on the grass. He didn't want to think negatively, but he couldn't help it. The negativity often just found its way into his brain. Harry groaned quietly to himself. He'd deal with it later. Or at least he would've if Daphne's voice hadn't snapped him out of his mind.
"Who's that?" She said, pointing to a figure across the lake, heading for them. Harry recognised the hair colour and posture immediately and groaned again, this time loud enough for Daphne to hear him.
"What? Who is it? Wait, is that? That's the Beauxbatons champion. What's her name again?"
"Fleur." Harry murmured from beside her. Daphne snapped her fingers and nodded at him.
"Why's she coming over here?"
"Probably to murder me." Harry said, dryly.
"Oh no, if anyone gets to murder you Potter, that's me." Replied Daphne. Harry gave her a sarcastic thumbs up.
"Great, thanks. Good to know." He said. Daphne grinned softly at him and watched as Fleur approached. Harry stood up and smiled at her but it soon slid off his face when he saw her expression. He was about to speak when she interrupted him before he even got the chance. "What's going on here?"
Daphne spoke first, cutting off what Harry was about to say.
"We're sitting by the lake, talking. I'd say it's pretty obvious."
Fleur's face hardened and her lips pursed. Her steely gaze had shifted from Harry to Daphne as the Slytherin had spoken. The French witch did not say anything but instead gestured for Harry to follow her. The boy groaned to himself and followed her, but not before shooting an apologetic look at Daphne. She mimed his head being cut off and Harry chuckled to himself before turning back to Fleur. She led him for a few minutes, so that they were out of earshot. Turning round suddenly, Fleur started to grill him. She wasn't sure why she cared so much but she did.
"Who is that? Why are you out here so early? What's going on?" Her questions came as sharp barbs and Harry almost flinched at each one. He thought for a moment, not wanting to upset her further.
"That's Daphne Greengrass. The girl you helped in the Three Broomsticks. I don't know her that well at all, she was just out here when I came out. I couldn't sleep. I'm sorry." Harry replied, refusing to look anywhere other than his shoes. Fleur's hard expression faded and was replaced by a more sympathetic gaze.
"No Harry, I am sorry. I did not mean to sound so harsh and controlling." Fleur admitted. She could sense that even though they were closer than they had been, there was still a rift between them. Harry smiled softly at her, which she returned. Fleur pointed back to Daphne. "Off you go then."
Harry grinned widely, before grabbing her hand and dragging Fleur back with him. She tried to protest but he had a very firm grip.
"Come on, it'll be nice I promise." he said. Fleur sighed, rolled her eyes and allowed him to lead her back to where Daphne sat. The Slytherin looked up as they approached, her expression hardening slightly when she saw Fleur behind Harry, evidently she hadn't made a great first impression on the younger girl. Fleur came and stood next to Harry before speaking to the Hogwarts girl.
"I apologise for being so curt just now. I did not intend to be so horrible." Said the French witch. Daphne nodded at her, before she stood up, matching the other two.
"It's fine, don't worry yourself about it. Besides, I should be grateful after what you did in Hogsmeade." Replied the younger witch. The memory brought a smile back to Fleur's lips as it had done with Harry's.
"That was nothing," replied Fleur, "I know what it's like." She flashed the Slytherin a solemn smile which Daphne returned. Harry gaped slightly at the two of them, but he had been forgotten slightly by the two witches in front him. Daphne looked at the castle and then back at Harry. Rather awkwardly, she came up with an excuse to leave. The Slytherin thanked Fleur again and turned back towards the castle, looking back and flashing Harry a quick grin which he returned. Fleur watched this exchange intently, she wasn't sure what was going on but she wasn't sure whether she liked it. Harry turned back to face her, his smile faltering slightly when he saw her unsure expression. Many things flashed across his mind, including the box in his drawer. Suddenly, everything had lost its rosy tint. Harry's chest tightened and his breath hitched slightly in his throat. He could tell that Fleur was looking at him with worry but he ignored it. He mumbled a pathetic excuse to leave before almost running back to the castle. He managed to make it into a nearby empty classroom before sliding down the wall to the floor and putting his head in his hands. Tears threatened to come, but he managed to hold them in. Harry sat, in silence, alone with his thoughts. Had he really made his mind up the other day? Or was that just a lie to make himself feel better? Did he really want to throw away his future? Many questions flew through Harry's mind at supersonic speed. He knew that this wasn't what Fleur wanted either but he felt like it was worse for him. At least Fleur will have finished school, he'd have to be back for three more years. How could he have a stable relationship with her if he was always away? Harry knew he was being selfish, thinking about himself only, but frankly at the current moment he didn't care.
Time passed, not to Harry's knowledge and he soon was startled by Professor McGonnagall entering the classroom early to set up her lesson. She, rather understandably, was surprised to see her student collapsed against the wall in a heap, clearly in distress. While she tried not to favour students, Harry was among the few that Minerva cared for more than the others. Perhaps it was because of his kind-hearted nature or his lack of parental figures. She looked down at him, before shaking his shoulder slightly.
"Potter?" She said softly. Harry looked up at her in surprise. His eyes were slightly red and his hair was even messier than usual. He leapt to his feet and instantly began to apologise. The Transfiguration teacher hushed him and instead gave him an instruction.
"Do not come to my lesson today. In fact, take the day off Potter. Go and rest, I'll notify your teachers and explain that you're ill."
Hearing this, Harry shook his head defiantly. That's the last thing he wanted to do. "No, Professor I'm fine. I'm okay." But McGonnagall interrupted him.
"You are evidently not okay, Potter." She replied, "Don't look at me like that. You will do as I say. Go and do something to take your mind off this. Whatever this happens to be. Hold on, stay here." She walked out of the room and Harry had a brief vision of him sprinting away, yet he stayed where he was. Perhaps out of pure confusion at his professor's actions. She returned and handed him a key. He knew exactly what the key was for and grinned softly. McGonnagall smiled briefly at him before pointing at the door. Harry did what he was told and left the classroom and the castle entirely.
Crossing the grounds, he entered the Quidditch locker rooms and unlocked the broom cupboards. Extracting his Firebolt, he put the keys in his pocket and almost ran to the pitch. Swinging a leg over the broomstick, Harry kicked off into the air and immediately shot upwards in a sharp climb. He pressed his body to the broom, his robes billowing behind him. The wind ran through his hair and the cool air stung his face slightly, but Harry didn't care. He was free, with only his own thoughts dictating what happened. The Firebolt kept going until at last it pushed through the final thick layer of clouds. Harry rose and levelled out into a beautiful sunny sky. He at last, relaxed. Slumping slightly, he looked down. Hogwarts was a small speck and he could barely see it through the gap in the clouds. It was incredibly peaceful. There was nothing going on, rather than on the ground where everything seemed to be happening to him. The sky was still, the only noise around him was the wind blowing softly. Harry closed his eyes and felt the sun warm his face. It was nice, nothing and no one bothering him. Harry wondered if he'd like being a dragon, being able to fly for hours with nothing hanging over him. He changed his mind when he thought back to the Horntail, nothing about being a Hungarian Horntail seemed pleasant. Harry turned his broom skywards again, deciding now would be the best time to do something he'd always wanted to. Shooting upwards, he moved his legs up so that his feet were standing on the handle. He turned the broom towards the ground and urged it towards the ground. As it moved, he jumped upwards. Letting go of the broom, Harry was suddenly no longer flying, instead he was falling. He spread his arms wide, slowing his descent, never taking his eyes off his broom, which had begun to slow down now that it realised his hands weren't on it. Both broom and boy headed downwards, and once they had come through some of the clouds, Harry put his hands back by his sides and dived faster. The ground was starting to get closer, much faster. Harry reached out, grabbing his broom and swung his leg back over the handle. He straightened the broom out and managed to avoid the ground, only just though. Soaring over the lake, Harry dipped his shoes in, and regretted it instantly. The water had not warmed up since his conversation with Daphne and Harry's feet were now freezing. He drew his shoes back up out of the water and maneuvered his broom round towards the castle. It loomed and stretched up into the sky as he flew closer. Pulling up and gliding up alongside the Astronomy Tower vertically. He dived and managed to navigate his way through the castle's towers. He was pretty sure he saw Dumbledore looking out of his window as he flew past his office. The Headmaster had seen Harry also, and had smiled as he saw him go by. Harry shot past the Beaxbatons carriage and circled the Durmstrang masts before soaring off in a random direction. He flew for a while, watching as the mountains he had come from turned into forests and fields. Any sign of a Muggle town, Harry turned the broom away. He did not need a sighting of him on a broom to add to his troubles.
After about an hour or so, Harry turned his Firebolt back round and headed back towards the castle. He knew he had been gone too long, but for once in his life he didn't miss Hogwarts. Instead of hurrying, Harry slowed the broomstick down, instead taking in the scenery. The sun had come out while he was flying and cast a golden glow over everything. The hills below him shone and he headed down to them. Landing with a soft thud, Harry clambered off his broom and shouldered it. Walking through the longer grass, he felt very calm and still. It allowed him to gather his thoughts about what happened earlier and how he had felt, and more importantly acted. Especially towards Fleur. Harry groaned loudly as he remembered what he had been like. Storming off like that. Simply because he had talked to another girl. It was his fault. He had gone and talked to Daphne, and had enjoyed it. Harry knew that he was perfectly within his right to talk to a girl, yet he felt like a traitor. It felt weird. Despite not even being with Fleur, he felt a certain loyalty towards her. And it was this loyalty that had sparked his thoughts earlier. Harry knew that many boys his age would've been over the moon to have a beautiful girl deposited on them to be their wife, he felt like she was being forced on him. Which of course, she was. It just felt wrong to him. While he had enjoyed their date to Hogsmeade, many problems were starting to expose themselves to him. He had tried to ignore them, but they were starting to become prominent. He was certain that Fleur had noticed them as well. They were similar yes, in quite a few ways. But there was too much of a difference between them. Harry had noticed that around Fleur he almost became a different person, rather than being himself. He thought that it was perhaps a subconscious thing, to try and impress Fleur a bit more. He didn't like the fake persona. He felt too confident when it came out.
However, unbeknownst to him, Hermione and Ron were both discussing how Harry seemed more self-assured and in turn, happier. Ron had helpfully suggested that it was because he was friends with him again, which earned him a smack on the arm from Hermione. She rolled her eyes at her red-headed friend. He was rather daft sometimes.
"Do you not think it's obvious? It's Fleur." Said Hermione. Ron looked confused. He racked his brains for a rebuttal but instead settled on a question. "How do you mean?"
Hermione sighed, both her friends were so dense when it came to emotions.
"Well.." She started, before thinking about what to say, "Harry's always been quite quiet around others hasn't he. He's got more confident lately. I thought it was the support from the others during the tournament but it's pretty clear it isn't now. When he came back from Hogsmeade the other day, he was practically glowing. It's Fleur, she's bringing the best out of him."
Ron nodded, rather slowly. Hermione knew what it meant. He was agreeing but he still wasn't fully sure why.
"For goodness' sake Ronald, he's your best friend. Harry's never been great with the girls has he? Then again neither have you." Ron turned a bright pink as she said this, "So the fact that someone is interested in him for who he is, even slightly, has filled him with this new confidence that people want to be friends with him for more than The Boy Who Lived."
"We're friends with him!" Ron said indignantly.
"But that was before he truly understood the extent of his fame Ron." Explained Hermione. Ron closed his mouth and nodded. He understood what Hermione was saying, finally.
"Knowing Harry, he'll probably think it's a bad thing." Said Ron solemnly. Hermione nodded her head.
"Sounds about right."
Harry joined his two friends much later, at dinner. They had instantly questioned his disappearance but he simply told them the lie that Professor McGonnagall had told them. Ron accepted it while Hermione was slightly more sceptical, but she didn't press the matter further. Harry reached over and grabbed some food, he hadn't realised how hungry was. Flying for hours at a time can take a toll on the body he thought, as he stuffed a roast potato down his throat. Once he had finished his food, Harry joined in the conversation with Ron, Fred and George about something or other. Harry found himself not really listening, instead his eyes scanned the room and the tables. Having the Gryffindor table at the far right of the Great Hall had its benefits. For one, you could look for people without making it too obvious. Harry glanced over at the Ravenclaw table and locked eyes with a pretty blonde. Fleur smiled at him, which he returned, trying to look sorry. She laughed softly at his dismal attempt and was soon whisked away by Madame Maxime. Harry waved at her as she was led from the hall with the other Beauxbaton students. She smiled at him before disappearing into the throng of light blue robes. Harry sighed, looked down and ran his hand across the back of his neck. He looked up again and spotted someone else looking at him. He waved subtly at her which she grinned at. She pointed at Malfoy at the other end of her table and mimed his hair turning green. Harry laughed and gave her a thumbs up. Daphne Greengrass winked at him from the Slytherin table and Harry turned pink slightly. He got up and wandered out of the hall and up to Gryffindor Tower. On his way, he passed Professor McGonnagall who smiled at him. Harry nodded at her and returned the grin before handing her the key to the broom shed. She pushed it back into his hand.
"I have another one."
Harry grinned widely and took the key back and shoved it into his pocket. He made his way to the Fat Lady's portrait, gave the password and clambered through the portrait hole. Harry somehow made it through the Common Room without anyone questioning where he had been and went upstairs to his dormitory. Collapsing onto his bed, Harry fell asleep fully clothed, a large grin still plastered to his face.
(A/N: Wow, that was a long one. That was the longest chapter I've written so far. I hope you enjoyed it and I want to again apologise for how long it took to get here. There were quite a few different renditions and I kept having new ideas. I took a whole afternoon to finish it. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to get here.)
-A Headful of Ideas