Lesson Two: Worry not your Lion heart
The next morning Harry woke with a pounding heart, the nagging feeling of having forgotten something of real importance lingering in the back of her mind. The feeling lasted for about four seconds, before the remembered sound of wood splitting sent her mind on a lurching path of acceptance. She sat up, heart still beating like a sledgehammer in her chest, like it was trapped and wanted desperately to find a way out.
As the world righted itself she made herself not only recall what happened but accept it too, as much as her shaken mind was able to. Though all she wanted to do was cower in the ignorance of sleep, Harry forced herself to list the facts: yesterday people had died only inches from where she had been standing. She should be feeling horrible, but somehow she found herself feeling less and less the more awake she became. In truth all she felt was tired, both in body and in mind. Tired, grateful and a distant sort of sad, which probably said more about the kind of person she was than she was willing to admit - it probably didn't bode well for her mental state either.
She should get up, make herself some breakfast and wait for her parents to stumble out of bed, then spend the morning reassuring them that all was good. That she was fine, and definitely wouldn't be taking away any permanent damage from what had happened, so they really didn't need to worry about her. For a moment Harry almost wished that she could tell them the truth; that she'd been through worse.
Off course, she couldn't do that. So instead, like the selfish daughter that she was, she got up, got dressed and headed for the living room hearth. The flames, always so determined to send her sprawling towards her death feet-first, seemed gentler somehow this morning. Not only did she not fall on her way through, she could've sworn she felt them licking at her heels like some evil breed of puppy as she stepped out, their tongues hot and unnaturally dry. The feeling of their raspy warmth on her heels lingered as she dusted herself off (the ashes, at least, were just as indifferent to her plight as usual) which was a bit disconcerting, to say the least.
Magic behaving strangely around her never seemed to be a good sign.
A sense of wrongness stayed with her all the way from the Leaky and through the streets of Diagon Alley, only seeming to lessen as she reached the mouth of another, darker street bearing a very different name. As she stepped into Knockturn the shadows seemed to lengthen, and though she knew it to be an illusion - and an illogical one at that, the sun did not pick it's targets - it made her relax in a way that no other place could quite seem to manage. She didn't feel scared at all after so many years traipsing through the dilapidated alleyways, foolish though it may seem. For one, she quite appreciated a bit of darkness after all that she'd been through - it kept her on her toes, if nothing else. For another, she had Leo to look out for her.
Speaking of the devil...
Harry didn't know for sure how it happened. All she knew was that one moment she was standing at the mouth of the alley, soaking in the calm that just seeing him standing there waiting for her brought and the next she was in his arms. He hugged her close, as if to reassure himself that she really was fine.
Her first instinct was to tense up but when she tried to draw away he wouldn't let her. Eventually, she gave up. Strangely enough she found herself almost enjoying it, though the part of her so accustomed to the ruse cringed away from the contact. What must have been seconds turned into hours, every second more effective than any calming draught she could have brewed back home.
When she thought that enough time had passed she pulled away, gently but firmly. She already felt much more like herself than she had five minutes ago, and made sure to show her appreciation through a smile. He reluctantly let her go even though she could tell that he'd like nothing more than to keep her close, as far away from the dangers of the world as possible. Sadly enough for the both of them, she didn't think that his presence would be enough to keep danger away from her for long.
In her mind Dominion whispered laughingly, "Isn't that the way you prefer it?"
"Off course not," She frowned, not really in the mood for his games.
"Really. You are sure?" He asked with feigned surprise.
She considered the whipping sound she sent his way to be answer enough.
Unperturbed, the jewel's voice echoed laughingly through her mind once more. "We shall seee."
Scowling, she didn't realise that she had been acting weirdly until Leo took it upon himself to rouse her from her apparent daze.
"-arry. Harry!"
"What?" She asked, blinking innocently up at him.
He seemed about to say something but faltered, shaking his head and smiling softly, "Nevermind."
Harry shook her head slowly, studying him. He was acting strangely again.
"You can ask, you know. Not that I'm guaranteeing an answer."
She said it teasingly, and judging by the long-suffering way he rolled his eyes towards the sky he took her words for what they were; an apology. But still he did not press her. She sometimes worried that Leo was growing too attached to her - and consequently too forgiving - but right now he was her friend and she could see that he was curious about something that she actually could tell him about, for once. The fact that he didn't ask only served as further proof of his trustworthiness - so she did.
They walked as they talked. Harry told Leo about meeting Cora at the games (he didn't seem surprised), about the men in masks and the bodiless voice that had haunted her dreams that night, familiar and yet not. The things she did not tell him were largely unimportant, at least that's what she told herself. Some secrets weren't hers to keep.
It wasn't until there was a lull in the conversation that she once more began paying closer attention to their surroundings. At first she couldn't place what was missing from the scene, but the closer they got to the tavern the more she noticed that while the unmistakable sounds made by a boisterous crowd were travelling their way, the streets leading up to the Dancing Phoenix were largely deserted. Frowning, she sneaked a look around but what she saw only confirmed her suspicions; they were completely alone. She came to an abrupt halt.
"Leo." She said, careful not to inject too much meaning into her voice.
"Hmm?" He asked, the tune he had been whistling falling to the wayside as he turned his head to look back at her standing there. "Come on, lass. We haven't got all day."
She was about to protest but noticed the way his eyes travelled over the empty streets, vigilant but for the most part unconcerned. He seemed calm, and not in an I'm-faking-it kind of way, so she got herself under control and started up beside him again. Together they walked the last few meters leading up to the Phoenix doors.
She tried not to look too worried.
When Leo got to the door he didn't immediately step through it himself - a first sign that something wasgoing on - instead holding the door open for her, smirkingly waving for her to go through first. As soon as she stepped through she thought she understood why he hadn't wanted to go in first.
The inn was packed, not quite bursting to the seams but close enough that one had to do much maneuvering to be able to get anywhere at all. People of all ages were sitting and standing or just generally taking up space in the usually spacious inn. For the life of her, Harry couldn't understand why. What was so special about today? Had she missed something? Some obvious clue that everyone else seemed to have gotten.
"So, what do you think?" Leo asked once they had managed to find their way to a semi- empty corner wall to the left of the entrance (their usual table might as well have been on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, that's how unaccessible it was). All the other tables were already taken, but at least here they could talk without having to shout quite so loudly.
"Of what, your party? I must say, I didn't peg you as the type." She sniffed, half in jest but admittedly half curious too.
"What?" He looked confused for a second. " No!" He laughed incredulously and she could feel her own lips twitching in response. "These are your students. I thought you might want to introduce yourself."
The way he said it might have sounded flippant but she knew him well enough by now to see the nervousness hiding beneath the seller's smile. Leo didn't know if he'd done the right thing bringing her here today and it showed. Truth be told, Harry wasn't very sure herself.
"How?" She asked, stalling. "You couldn't have known that I'd come here today."
Eyeing her cautiously he answered, uncommonly quiet, "I heard about what happened, and I had a feeling that you might drop by today. Guess I was right." He shrugged, as if predictive "feelings" were the norm, not the rare exception.
Actually, she didn't actually know what to say to that either. Luckily Leo seemed more than willing to fill the silence.
"I thought you might like something to do today." He eyed her meaningfully, as though in reference to the hug they'd shared not even an hour ago.
She noticed that he didn't really meet her eyes as he said it, which left her with the distinct impression that he was embarrassed. Of what exactly she didn't know - he seemed unusually gifted at understanding what exactly a person needed at any given moment, so really he should have been used to these reactions by now. When he did finally look up she could feel him steeling himself for disappointment.
At first all she did was look at him as her mind raced but then, slowly but surely, she began to smile. Fondly and a little exasperatedly, but above all thankfully. And she really was thankful to have a friend like Leo, for whom friendship seemed almost synonymous with selflessness. She only wished she could return the favour.
One day, she promised herself right then and there, she would.
"You know, I think I would like that." She said finally. "Lead the way, your Majesty."
He scowled at her use of his royal title, just as she had known he would, but she wasn't fooled. As she moved to the front of the room and started to welcome anyone and everyone in sight, and even as the morning dragged closer and closer to noon, she watched him out of the corner of her eye.
He didn't stop smiling once.
- End of chapter Two -
A/N: Hi, sorry if you're confused. I decided not to continue the first part since Violet updated already and my drabble became moot. But I hope you like this part anyway, sorry there's no Caelum in it. Hope this helps tide you over until her next chapter. Love u, and thanks for the reviews I really appreciate them. Peace, love, Harriet Potter xoxo.
Updated A/N: Hi again, just wanted to tell you that I updated this chapter a bit since I wasn't very pleased with how it came out the first time. To anyone who reviewed the first time: thank you so much, and you will not be forgotten. Hopefully you'll agree that it was for the best after reading the "new" slightly less horrible version. Further explanations at about how I will do this moving forward at the end of the next chapter.