Night Flying –or, What's in a Name
A HariPo fanfiction
by mew-tsubaki
Disclaimer/Note: The Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not me sadly. But I own this fic, so HA! This is for the 100 Prompts challenge by xXKissingSinXx. Using 3, 8, 12, 18, 22, 25, 40, 41, 46, 57, 60, and 79. Enjoy and review!
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Ch.5: Looking On the Bright Side
When the first month of our mission was completed, I couldn't believe it. I mean, only two weeks in and something big happens. Now, two weeks after that, things are quiet.
Too quiet.
…Yeah, sorry. I felt the cliché coming on, haha.
But it still doesn't bode well for us, I think, that we found a Dark Magic item and nothing's followed that up. I mean, where's its owner, come looking for it? Why haven't we found other items –ones even similar to it? And why hasn't the department figured out what the wand-thing I found is?
On the other hand… It's quiet and uneventful. I can actually get used to the idea of a semi-normal life. I know; if I wanted a normal life, I could've been something other than an Auror. But both of my parents were Aurors, and most of my god family is, so I feel like it's a) in the blood and b) a way of honoring everybody.
Hmm… Honoring everyone kinda sucks. I'm not whining, but who ever decided honor was such a big deal? Things are only as important as we let them be, I think. Ah, never mind. I think I'm just rambling now.
The third thing that's troublesome is that I've had very little screen time here with Lils. I've seen her from afar at Hogwarts, but I haven't had an interaction with her. Dammit. I know I have a job to do, but I wanna hang out with Lilu, too. Ahh… I guess I'm reverting to my teenage self, huh?
Screw it: Who wants me to go find Lily? Anyone? Everyone? Yeah, okay, I get the message! I'll take things into my own hands, no thanks to the author here.
Gotta go get my girl myself…grumble, grumble… Haven't spoken with Lils in how long…grumble, grumble.
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I had to wait for my chance until the first week of November. Sorry, folks. But that's when the first Hogwarts Hogsmeade trip happened.
I actually wasn't paying attention to seeing Lily when she came into Honeydukes. I'd been handling dozens of customers. I was pretty used to working for the couple that owned the store. I was even starting to think of myself as "Dulet." Yikes.
"Mr. Dipney? I'd like to buy some Ice Mice, but they're out of my reach."
"Yes, I'll be right –oh." I froze up and felt my hair change color. It was Lily with a very mischievous look on her face. "I-I'll be right there, miss."
She smiled, knowing she had me wrapped around her little finger –I think. "Thank you."
Luckily the old couple wasn't leaving me to handle all of the customers, so I was allowed to go onto the floor to "help out." I wiped my sweaty hands on the hand towel behind the register and guided Lily to the back wall. I reached up and grabbed her candy. "Anything else, miss?" I asked with a quirked eyebrow.
Lily laughed. "Do you realize what a hit your disguise is with the other girls?" she asked quietly. Really, she didn't have to be too quiet. It was plenty loud in the store.
I frowned at her. "No, it's not. I'm plain-looking." To prove my point, I covertly scanned the shop. Oh. Whoa, she's right. "Dulet Dipney" is a very bit hit. "Er, forget that. How's school been?"
She shrugged, her red hair falling over her shoulder. "Fine as usual. I'm awful at Potions, which Dad doesn't like but Fab thinks he could help me with it if I came for extra help."
I nodded. Harry had never been good at Potions, but Harry's mum had. I knew how much it bothered Lily to constantly be compared to her namesake, and it bugged me that Harry wouldn't let it go. As for "Fab"… Lily's referring to Fabian Weasley, an old school friend of mine (we had been best mates at Hogwarts). He's the son of famous Quidditch star Katie Bell and Lily's deceased Uncle Fred. He's my age, one of Lily's many cousins, and the Potions professor for Hogwarts. Hmm. I hadn't seen him in years. I wonder if I should visit him now that I'm in the area…
"I want to… Ah, forget it." Lily shook her head. She pursed her lips. "Do you think I should go out for the Quidditch team?"
I smiled. "Why not? You're an excellent flier." I turned to the shelf and grabbed an extra box of Ice Mice. "I found that out last time I was out flying myself, in fact," I muttered.
She reddened. "I'm sorry about that. I just needed fresh air, that's all."
I raised an eyebrow. "So that's the story you're sticking to? I'm not an idiot, Lily."
She glared and turned away. "Then why did you leave Victoire?" she retorted.
Uh, OUCH. Where the hell did that come from?! I thought she realized that was a sore subject for me. I honestly thought better of Lils than to sink so low as to kick me when I'm down. Well, we're all human, I s'pose. I turned away from her with balled fists, though, trying to calm myself. "Please pay the couple on your way out, miss," I spat through gritted teeth. I left her there and disappeared into the stock room to grab more supplies and work out a bit of my anger.
So what if I love Lily? It doesn't mean I have to like her all of the time. I just wish I knew why she chose to use that particular topic against me.
Whatever. I have more important things to do than twiddle my thumbs and care about her view of me. …
Does she really think I'm an idiot…? ;_;
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"They've had to classify it as a new object," Shrad told Reiya and me the next day. We were at the Three Broomsticks, nursing our firewhiskies. It was okay to talk aloud about our mission; we had cast an Anti-Eavesdropper Jinx on our table.
"Well, there are Muggle artifacts, Dark Magic items, non-Dark Magic items, and enchanted items." Reiya peered at him curiously. "What else could they have possibly contrived?"
"Muggle Dark Magic talismans."
I gaped at him after Rei gasped. "You're shitting me," I said.
Shrad raised is hands. "What do you expect? Of course it was going to be something strange and new. That thing you found was both!"
"But Muggles don't have any kind of magic!" I stated pointedly.
"Well, they have science, but that's nothing near to the magic of wizards and witches," Reiya remarked.
"They dubbed it as such because the item emits a kind of Muggle-made poison mist. However, they have to add in the 'Dark Magic' part because the mist's effects can't be repaired by magical means. And I don't mean standard magical means. I mean any. Weasley, Weasley (he meant Hermione Granger there –Teddy), and Potter tried it out with the rest of the higher-ups and found that the mist really does eat through anything and everything. But no known magic can reverse the mist's harm. It's never been seen before."
I rubbed my hand over my mouth, for I was left speechless. Could this day- No, I'm not going to fall for that again. I'm not going to finish that thought!
Shrad told us that he didn't know much more about the wand-thing –"Emulsifier," he'd corrected (apparently that's what we're calling it now) –and that nothing had been happening in Diagon Alley, so Hogsmeade was turning into a bit of a hot-seat right now.
When we left the little pub, I split from Rei and Shrad and marched out of Hogsmeade. I headed to the Forbidden Forest, taking in the crisp, fresh autumn air. Merlin, that helped to relieve some of my stress.
I shifted into my Animagus form, a fisher. Ooh, when I stretched out my muscles in my sleek furry body, I felt a hundred times better. I ran around a little bit, taking in the air and all the woody scents. Being something other than human is a lot of fun, I've decided.
I scampered up a tree and jumped from treetop to treetop. Yeah, I was in pretty good shape, considering I hadn't transformed in a while. I easily hooked my claws into branches like I had just been a fisher this morning.
After a few minutes of playing around in the Forbidden Forest, I edged around the forest edge and dashed across the expanse between Hagrid's hut and the castle. I scaled the stone wall and stopped at the first window. Ah, yes, the library. Some students were actually studying, some of the older students were being teenagers (if you catch my drift), and others yet were taking their Sunday afternoon nap.
I spotted a bit of red hair behind one shelf and smiled (well, okay, so fishers don't smile, but you know what I mean). Lily was grabbing some books with her fellow seventh year and cousin Hugo. Three of their other cousins –all seventh years –were at their table, too: Lucy, Roxanne, and Fred. Roxanne and Fred are twins, so I'm glad Roxanne wears her dark hair long, otherwise I wouldn't be able to tell her apart from her brother!
I scratched at the window when Lily passed by. She didn't notice me at first, so I scratched again and again until she did. Luckily only she saw me; with how loud I was, I was surprised no one else saw me and freaked. Anyway, she finally came over to the window.
'What are you doing here?' she mouthed.
I cocked my head, doing my best to be cute. Hell, I'd already forgiven her. Did she really have me wound around her finger so bad?
She grimaced and flushed, no doubt remembering herself of how she left things the other day. She opened her mouth to say something closed it, opened it again, and frowned. Her cheeks burned a red as deep as her hair. She hung her head.
I tapped the window twice and got her to look up.
'I-I'm sorry,' she mouthed, her eyes closed. Hey, she was a proud person. It took a lot for her to admit any faults and I appreciated that she was apologizing. 'I shouldn't have brought her up,' she continued.
I did my best to shrug. It's hard when you don't have any real shoulders.
'I won't hold it against you.'
I nodded.
'Victoire is a rightful bitch.'
I nodded eagerly with that.
She paused. 'Do you forgive me?' Her eyes were so big when she mouthed those words. Merlin, I get caught up in those teal blue eyes every time!
I nodded and touched my nose to the window. Her shoulders shook with silent laughter as she touched her hand to the other side. One of her cousins called her then, because she looked over her shoulder and turned back to me with a little wave. I nodded once more and she left.
I really wish animals could say, "Okay, bye now, I love you."
…hell. I wish I could say that as a human to her face.
I turned away from the window and scampered around the edge of the other library sills. I was just exercising now. However, I saw something that I didn't expect to see:
The Emulsifier.
Well, I guess not the Emulsifier. We had that in custody at the Auror Department. So this had to be another one. And it was in the hands of a male student who was tucked away in the dimly lit corner of the library. The colors of it were black, red, and purple, but that swirled design was a dead giveaway.
Hogsmeade was not the hot-seat. Hogwarts truly was.
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Another chappie! You guys are lucky! I'm actually feeling the creator's vibe to write this story, so YAY! I love Teddy. I partially feel like he forgave Lils too fast, but I also feel that he would because a) he's Teddy and b) he's too in love with her to stay mad at her for long. Or is he? Hmmm… *evilly cackles* I actually have an idea of what to do for ch6, so please look forward to it!! AND REVIEW!!! I thank you for all the reviews, but even more are better, folks! XD
-mew-tsubaki
P.S.-Thanks to merdarkandtwisty for the permission to use her OC Fabian. If you guys are curious about him, go read merdarkandtwisty's fic A Potter a Lupin a bond –it's great! (And I'm in love with Fabian, mdt! XD Kya!)
Thanks for being such an amazing Beta, Morghen! I told you I make mistakes! Really! XD
