Serpentine Virtues Chapter 8
Yeah…it's been a long time hasn't it…?
Disclaimer: I own nothing and make no profit. I highly doubt someone would pay money for this anyways. This is also unbetaed and unedited, so all mistakes are mine.
oOo
Harry was incredibly exhausted when he woke to his alarm clock the same morning that he'd fallen asleep. He'd gone back to Ron and Hermione's place to grab his things, before checking into a Muggle hotel at around four AM, thanking Merlin that he had a Muggle credit card that came out of his vault at Gringotts. The goblins charged a hefty fee for the card, since they were automatically converting Galleons to pounds, but it was worth it at times like this. After entering his room, he immediately crashed onto the bed without even taking off his clothes, and was out like a light within seconds.
After stumbling into the bathroom to begin his daily hygienic ritual, he could clearly see in the mirror that he looked like shit.
'Eh. A few glamour charms should be enough to fix that up.' he thought, as he ordered room service. Taking a quick shower, he was just finishing up his daily hygienic ritual when the doorbell sounded. Opening the door, he took the trolley from the waiter, thanked him, and watched him leave before digging in to his breakfast.
After finishing his food, Harry still felt exhausted, and wanted to sleep just a little more. Seeing as there was still two hours before he had to get ready for the date, he adjusted his alarm clock to the right time before falling asleep once more.
He still felt lethargic two hours later, but he hoped that the extra two hours would help him stay awake and pay attention to Daphne. As an afterthought, he ordered some coffee from room service, hoping the caffeine would wake him up enough for him to make the date a success. Their relationship had suffered in the past few months while he'd been away, and they hadn't parted on the best terms, especially considering how irritable he'd been before he'd left.
He thought he saw hurt looks on her face at times, but he hadn't been sure. She hadn't been the Ice Queen in school for no reason, and Harry had no doubt that she was still a master at masking emotions.
He made sure to get to the restaurant early, and got to their little private table in the corner without any problems. It was nice that Daphne had chosen this Muggle Italian restaurant. In the Muggle world, he was not famous, and it made life a lot easier. He'd seriously considered going Muggle for a while after graduating, simply to avoid the stares and attention that he'd gotten for defeating Voldemort, but he stuck it out in the Wizarding World, for which he was immensely thankful. After all, that had led him to playing professional Quidditch, and Daphne. And Daphne was totally worth years of being stared at.
He sat there at the little table, slightly bored, thinking back to the days when there was nothing that messed with his brain when it came to girls in his life. Ginny had been his wife, and Daphne had been his agent. It had been so easy back then. Life had been simpler. He'd played Quidditch, and Ginny had wrote articles about his matches. Daphne had represented him, scoring him fat contracts in return for a percentage of the money. He'd never even realized that he'd held feelings for Daphne. Now, he felt like a teenager again, confused about his feelings, and trying to find the right girl for himself. He had hoped that he'd left that stage in life, but evidently, he hadn't.
Looking back at everything that had occurred while Ginny had been alive, Harry realized that deep down, he had felt…something for Daphne, even whilst married to Ginny. He'd sometimes stared at her in a way that wasn't entirely professional, and had held her hand for slightly too long whenever they shook hands, sealing some contract or some deal that they'd made. They also usually went out for lunch at least once a week, whenever Harry didn't have practice, and this usually resulted in more unprofessional talk and behavior, and their conversations were always slightly flirtatious.
And Harry also realized that he'd missed the flirting, and he had always wanted more of those brief touches, those little contacts that he'd had with her.
And that filled him with both guilt and longing now.
Ginny had been a faithful, loving wife to him. And he loved her. But by the time of her death, Harry had been spending more and more time out. It was partially because he'd gotten busier as a Quidditch player, playing for more competent teams that required more frequent practice, and more hours spent analyzing different teams. He'd also been asked to do many promotional events, charity signings, and other social events that ate up his time. Loathe as he was to admit it, he and Ginny had been growing apart slightly.
They hadn't been fighting. Oh no, their relationship was still a happy, loving one, and Harry routinely went to dinner at The Burrow, which had gotten a massive makeover after the Weasley children began earning money, at least once each month. But sometimes Harry felt a little estranged from his wife. Looking back on it, he realized that he'd barely talked to Ginny at all in the last couple of months before her untimely death. It saddened him to think that he and Ginny had been growing apart from each other.
He was torn from his musings when he saw Daphne enter the restaurant, and he was floored by her appearance.
Daphne was wearing a simple red dress that hugged her body and emphasized her womanly curves. It fell to her knees, and Harry honestly had a hard time looking higher than the chest line.
Still, he gathered himself, and greeted Daphne warmly, if not a little awkwardly.
"Daphne, you look wonderful!" he said, smiling at his female friend.
"Thank you Harry, you don't look too bad yourself. Although you look like you really could use some sleep. Are you alright?" She said, looking at him fondly.
Of course his glamours wouldn't work for Daphne. She was nothing if not perceptive, and no matter how hard he tried, he knew that there was no chance he'd be able to hide his tired state.
"I'm alright, Daphne, just a little frazzled. Have you read any newspapers this morning?" he asked, hoping that Daphne hadn't heard the news. It would give him a chance to tell a more watered-down, and more accurate version of what happened. After all, he definitely didn't trust the Daily Prophet to not embellish the events.
"No, why?" Daphne asked.
Harry had mixed feelings about telling Daphne what had happened. He had wanted to tell her about his feelings, and he wanted clarification on what their relationship would be moving. He also wanted to apologize for his attitude as well.
But he knew that he should tell her what had happened with his best friends before she found out about it in the Prophet.
"Ron and Hermione were attacked last night, while I was there." Harry began, but was immediately cut off by Daphne's gasp of shock and worry.
"What happened? Are they alright? Harry, is that why you're so tired? Are you sure you weren't hit by any stray spell?"
Harry smiled tiredly.
"Well, some unknown assassins evidently with a grudge against the Weasleys attacked and attempted to murder Ron. He managed to escape alive, although he is stuck at St. Mungo's as of now. As for me, I'm fine. The assassins were, surprisingly, not after me. In fact, I'm pretty sure that I surprised a few of them with my appearance…" Harry said, trailing off in thought.
Daphne sighed with relief.
"Is that why you look like you're practically dead on your feet?"
"Yeah, pretty much." Harry replied, a little ashamed that he was somewhat ruining their lunch date.
Daphne, sensing his discomfort, reached out and touched his hand gently.
"It's alright. Saving your friends is much more important than this little lunch meeting."
Harry sighed.
"I'm sorry Daphne, for everything. It's not been the easiest of times for me in the past few months, and I know I took it out on you. I'm really sorry about everything, and well… I kinda wanted to make up for some of the things that I've done today." Harry said, looking down at his hands.
Daphne was silent for a moment, and Harry got worried that she was going to be angry at him. Damn women. He'd fought a Dark Lord, been through one marriage, and still, still, he was clueless about women and their thoughts.
His fears were assuaged when Daphne placed a hand on his and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"It's alright, Harry. You don't have to apologize for anything. I know that, with everything that's happened, you aren't living an easy life right now."
Harry smiled at her. She'd always understood him well.
"But really, Daphne, I wanted this little date because, well, I wanted to tell you some things that have been plaguing my thoughts."
Daphne raised one perfect eyebrow.
"Oh? And what's bothering the Great Harry Potter?" she asked teasingly.
"You." Harry said simply.
Daphne was confused. Harry was confused because of her?
Harry caught the confused expression on Daphne's face and smiled. She looked so cute when she was confused.
"I've been thinking a lot these past few months, and I've realized… I really miss you, Daph."
Daphne smiled, a full-blown heartfelt smile that left Harry feeling warm and fuzzy inside.
"I've missed you as well. It hasn't been the same without you, and I miss representing you… and the money of course." She added jokingly.
Harry smiled. Money had never been an issue for either of them throughout their adult lives, but Daphne, representing Harry as his agent, had certainly earned a lot of money off him, and it had become a little running joke between them.
"I just… well… I'm absolutely terrible at this, but…look…" Harry tried repeatedly to tell Daphne exactly how he felt. Unfortunately for him, every single time he felt that the wording of his statement was inadequate when describing his true feelings.
"Spit it out Harry." Daphne said, giving Harry's hand a gentle squeeze.
Harry's mental war continued for a brief moment, before he sighed and began, "Daphne, you've been wonderful after Ginny's death,"
Daphne winced the reminder of that terrible event.
"—I wasn't the most pleasant person to be around, with the injury and the tragedy, and I'm still sometimes surprised that you're still here. And over the past few months, while I was at Hogwarts, I got a chance to think over some things. I realized a few things. I really like you, Daphne. There's something about you that I'm drawn to intrinsically."
Daphne's breath hitched at the words 'I really like you.' Her eyes widened, and her hand flew to her mouth. She was shocked. Had Harry Potter, the man whom she'd had a secret crush on for years, really said that?
"Harry…" she was at a loss for words.
Harry, unfortunately, misinterpreted her silence as rejection, and his head drooped.
"It's alright if you don't feel the same. I mean, this should just be a strictly professional relationship. I'm sorry, Daphne, I just had to let you know how I felt."
At that, Daphne cut him off.
"Harry, I…like you too. I have for a very long time."
Harry perked up at those words. "Really?"
"Yes. I felt so guilty, too, because I knew you were married."
Harry reached for her hand, which was resting on the tabletop, and covered it with his own, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"So, where does this leave us?" he asked.
Daphne smiled at him, the expression on her face brightening Harry's day immensely. He'd forgotten about his tiredness long ago.
"Well, I, for one, suggest another date."
Harry smiled back briefly, before his face fell a little. "Of course. But I have to be at Hogwarts and I don't think I can leave until summer. Quidditch is becoming even more serious now that it's spring, and I have to be there to pop in on some classes to share my experience and knowledge of spells as well."
Daphne thought about it for a moment.
"It's alright. For now, let's just keep in touch using the Floo and letters. We can get together a lot over the summer."
Harry nodded in agreement. The waiter arrived at that time, issuing what sounded like a rehearsed apology about how busy it was, and took their order. The rest of the lunch passed amicably, and Harry held onto Daphne's hand. All in all, it was certainly a very pleasant experience for the two of them. Daphne knew that Harry might still be a little hesitant on relationships due to Ginny, so she took it slow.
The bill arrived, and Harry paid, before leading Daphne out of the restaurant, arm in arm.
Harry escorted Daphne back to her house, where they said their goodbyes. They parted at Daphne's door, and Harry turned to walk outside of the range of the wards to Apparate when a thought suddenly struck him.
He turned, just as Daphne was about to close her door.
"Hey Daphne?" he called.
The door opened again, "Yes?" Daphne asked.
"I think I might be traveling this summer… I know you might be busy with your law firm, but if you get the time, I'd certainly like some company."
Daphne considered it. Summer was a pretty busy time for her. There were a lot of promotionals and other social events that required her presence. But Harry's offer was very tempting. A vacation, traveling around the continent, perhaps even around the world, together, with just the two of them, may be the perfect opportunity to explore their feelings for each other.
"I'll…think about it. If I can make time, I'll definitely come." Daphne replied.
"Great! Well, I'll talk to you through the fireplace later!" Harry said, grinning widely, before turning and walking with a spring in his step.
oOo
"Stupid useless idiot." Daphne muttered under her breath after the latest applicant left the room.
Daphne was searching for good, dependable lawyers to help her newly created firm. While she herself was doing quite well, she couldn't really compete on her own against larger firms like her old employers, McLaggen Enterprises. They had more connections, more clients, and a more famous reputation.
Unfortunately, so far, those who had applied to were either incompetent, or spent too much effort and time trying to get a peek down her dress rather than focusing on the actual interview.
Sure, Daphne had "lightened up" considerably compared to her Hogwarts years. She herself knew that. That didn't prevent her from hexing most people (Harry and Kevin were exceptions) who ogled her or tried to get a peek down her dress, especially when she was talking to them, and offering them a job.
Speaking of Harry, she smiled to herself at the memory of their conversation the night before.
The Floo roared up, and Daphne set down the contract she'd been studying for one of her clients.
Harry Potter's face appeared within the flames. Daphne smiled, and grabbed a short stool, sitting down in front of the fireplace.
"Hey Harry." Daphne said.
"Daphne, beautiful as always." Harry said in a fair attempt at being charming.
Daphne laughed, "I sure wouldn't mind hearing that all the time."
Harry's mouth dropped open in mock surprise, "Do you not hear that every day?"
Daphne smiled at Harry. This had been the norm for them, ever since Harry had returned to Hogwarts to continue teaching.
Well, the flirting wasn't always there, but they always enjoyed each other's company when they had their weekly Floo calls. They'd established that Saturday night would be when they'd Floo each other.
Daphne had quickly come to look forward to these calls. She was growing closer to Harry, and that crush she'd held for him for so many years was slowly beginning to develop into something more.
The evening continued, the conversation light and joking. Most of their weekend talks were like this, just two young people enjoying each other's company. It was a refreshing break for Daphne after hours and hours of paperwork, on top of meetings and conferences that she had to attend.
Finally, towards the very end of their discussion, late in the evening, Harry asked. He actually asked!
"Daphne, term ends on the twentieth. I've been thinking about a vacation to the Caribbean starting around the twenty-seventh. I know you're busy then, with all the summer promotionals that I used to hate, but if you can make some time, do you want to come with me?"
Daphne had been ecstatic. First and foremost, she hadn't been on a vacation in ages. The World Cup had been a quasi-vacation, but she'd also had to handle Harry's and other clients' schedules there, such as times to meet the fans, practices, etc. Second, it was a vacation with Harry. It was an opportunity to grow closer to him. She was determined to help him get through a difficult time.
"I'll definitely make time for that, Harry! Of course I'll come."
"Great." Harry said, smiling at her.
They stared at each other, neither knowing just what to say, when suddenly, a distant knocking sound was heard.
Harry frowned, "Who would be knocking on my door at this hour? I should probably get that." He said, almost regretfully.
Daphne nodded, "It's OK. I have to get back to some paperwork anyways. Good night Harry."
"G'night Daphne." Harry said, before his head disappeared with a 'Pop!'.
Daphne looked up just in time for her next applicant to enter, and was shocked to see who it was.
"Kevin?!" she exclaimed in surprise, not expecting the young man to be here, applying for a job with her. "What are you doing here?"
"Hi Daphne." He said, smiling shyly, "I'm here to apply for a job with you, of course."
Daphne was quite flustered at his appearance, and did her best to hide it. She hadn't even considered the possibility that Kevin would like to become a sports agent at her firm. Sure he'd wanted to become a sports agent, but new and inexperienced sports agents usually applied to larger firms to gain experience as an assistant to one of the sports agents that had already been established in the league. Kevin would be able to gain a lot of experience that would help him when he got his own clients. A small firm would require him to be thrust right into the world of contract forging, and some sports organizations would not be kind to him and his inexperience.
"I thought you'd apply to a bigger firm like McLaggen's. I mean, you apprenticed under Blaise there." Daphne said, still surprised at Kevin's sudden appearance in her office.
"I would, but they weren't hiring, and besides, I saw how the boss treated Blaise and I don't really want to work in that kind of environment." Kevin replied.
Daphne nodded, and then rubbed her hands together, "Well let's get on with why you're here shall we?"
Kevin nodded, and sat down in the chair opposite Daphne's desk.
The interview process took longer than most of the other candidates, mainly because Kevin had fairly good credentials, and would likely join the other four people that Daphne had, so far, deemed good enough to be a part of the firm. Finally, Daphne stood up and shook Kevin's hand, smiling brightly. "You're hired. You start next Monday."
Kevin smiled back, thinking of the wonderful opportunity to work with his amazing, gorgeous new friend.
oOo
The rest of the school year passed without much drama. Harry watched with pride (despite his supposed stance of being impartial towards all the Houses) as Gryffindor took down Ravenclaw 230-100 in the final match of the school year which brought the Quidditch Cup to Gryffindor for the first time since Harry himself had captained the team to the championship in his Sixth Year (although he did not play in the final match). The final few weeks of term found Harry happily demonstrating various spells in various classes whenever the professors requested him to be there.
However, for the first time in his life, Harry was not dreading the end of the term, for he no longer had to return to the Dursleys. Indeed, after going into hiding the summer after his Sixth Year, they had not contacted Harry, and Harry had no wish to contact his relatives either. They had made his life a living hell for seventeen years, and although he and Dudley had somewhat made up, he still had no wish to see them.
Instead, Harry was looking forward to his vacation. He'd decided on a trip to the Caribbean, figuring that even though it was an incredibly popular tourist place, someone like Daphne who'd grown up in a pretty traditional pureblood family would not have been there. After all, judging from Daphne's reaction to Seoul and Japan during the World Cup, she'd not been to very many places outside England in her life.
He'd planned to board a cruise, and visit the islands in the Caribbean Sea. He'd planned for a 2 week vacation before he had to go back to Hogwarts, for Professor McGonagall had decided to give up teaching Transfiguration the next year, and Narcissa had been perfectly willing to fill in, with Harry himself taking up the job of teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. McGonagall hadn't wanted to give up teaching Transfiguration, her favorite subject, but, like Dumbledore before her, she had found that the amount of time it took to perform her duties as Headmistress was too much, and she simply could not keep up with Transfiguration as well as her Headmistress duties. Therefore, she was relinquishing her job to Narcissa, who'd evidently proved to be quite adept at Transfiguration. Then again, Narcissa had proved to be quite adept at nearly all of the academic subjects, having achieved an astounding 10 N.E.W.T.'s at Hogwarts. Of course, having been married to Lucius Malfoy meant that she'd had to give up most of her academic dreams, but she'd expected it, having been born into the Black family. Of course, sometimes, secretly, she wished she could've been like her cousin Sirius, and turned her back on family, gave up everything, and gone after her dreams, but she was, of course, unable to do so. Now, Lucius and Draco had been mellowed after the war, and they'd not only accepted, but supported her decision to teach at Hogwarts.
Thus, Harry had to go back to Hogwarts to learn of the curriculum that Narcissa had been teaching, and he would also have to plan out the following year. While he still harbored dreams of returning to play professional Quidditch, he knew realistically that the best thing for him short-term would be to teach at Hogwarts, his first, and most treasured home.
Still, he was looking forward to his vacation with Daphne.
Harry finished fixing one of the last of the school brooms. He'd managed to convince the school to get rid of the old school brooms that he'd used during his first flying lesson at Hogwarts, pointing out that they could very well be a safety hazard, like what had happened with Neville during their first ever Quidditch lesson. He'd donated some funds himself to the school, and helped them buy some new Cleansweep Eleven brooms. While they had nothing on the elite brooms like the Firebolt II, or even the original Firebolt, they were still great brooms, and Harry had personally added some Locking charms to the brooms so that they would not take off unless the charm was lifted. He'd gotten the idea from Muggle trigger locks on firearms.
After a year of use, the Cleansweeps were looking a little worse for wear, and Harry had spent his time fixing up the brooms for the next year. Despite his job as the Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor, he would still be teaching Quidditch to the First Years, and refereeing games because of his Quidditch experience, so he was making sure that the brooms were still in excellent condition.
Finishing up the last broom, he placed his supplies into the storage shed, and headed back up to his rooms. Daphne had promised to Floo call to go over arrangements and logistics for their trip, and Harry was looking forward to seeing her again. They'd missed two Saturday night calls in a row, due to both of them being busy, Harry with end-of-the-year preparations for Hogwarts, which involved planning a celebration for the seventh years who were graduating, and Daphne with negotiating contracts for her clients who had been traded before the Quidditch League trade deadline.
He'd missed Daphne over the two weeks, and she'd been a part of his dreams often. While he was still feeling a little guilt over the fact that he would be betraying Ginny by being with Daphne, he also knew that Ginny would cast her feared Bat-Bogey Hex on him if he stopped himself from attempting to find happiness for her.
He headed towards his door, but stopped short at the sight of the woman waiting for him at the door. Aurora Sinistra, whom he'd struck up a close friendship with after he'd arrived, was waiting for him at his door. They sat together during meals, and sometimes Harry would even visit Aurora in the Astronomy Tower, but other than that one awkward time during Easter when she'd poked her head into the door, she'd never come to Harry's living quarters. He didn't know why she was standing outside.
"Aurora?" he asked a little hesitantly.
Aurora, who'd been staring off into the distance through a window, started, and turned around.
"Hello Harry." She said, smiling softly at him.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked curiously.
"Oh, well, it's kind of silly, but I wanted to congratulate you on your first year here. I remember my first year teaching, and it was hard to acclimate."
"Oh, thanks, Aurora. You've done a lot for me this year too, helping me deal with troublesome students and people who harbor a grudge against me for various reasons. It hasn't been easy, but you've always been there."
Aurora blushed at his words, and nodded. She'd developed feelings for her former student, and they were strong enough that she had no choice, but to admit them to herself.
She'd thought he was a fairly lazy student at Hogwarts, knowing that he was, at best, an Acceptable student at Astronomy, but his actions during and after the war had dispelled any negative feelings towards him. He'd saved her life in the Battle of Hogwarts when he'd taken out a Death Eater almost absentmindedly before disappearing off down the corridor that she'd been fighting in. Moments before, she'd been helping an injured student clear of some of the debris and wreckage caused by a giant when the Death Eater had appeared out of nowhere and Disarmed her. He'd been about to do a lot more harm when Harry had arrived and took him out. She'd managed to struggle to her feet, and help the injured student to the Great Hall. She didn't recognize her, but judging by her size, the student was most likely a First or Second year who had, for some reason, been left behind in Hogwarts despite the evacuation.
She'd never got to thank him. She highly doubted he even remembered, but she'd always be indebted to him for that.
Then, she'd gotten to know him better this year, and found a kind, charming, if not a little depressed person. She'd heard about his tragedy, indeed who hadn't? She'd never really brought it up, knowing he was a pretty private person, but one day, on a particularly bad day for Harry, he'd opened up to her. They'd already become good friends, and she'd comforted him.
He'd fallen asleep in her quarters that night, and Aurora hadn't seen Harry looking as happy as he'd been when sleeping. A soft smile had crossed his lips, and he'd whispered a name. Aurora had leaned forward, hoping to catch the name that crossed his lips, but he merely turned over and said no more.
So here she was, at the end of the year, contriving an excuse to talk to him, in an effort to find out his feelings. She knew he had a relationship with a former student, Daphne Greengrass, but she also knew that she had been his agent, and perhaps there was nothing there. It was the best she could hope for. She'd been alone for nearly 32 years, and she wanted to find someone right for herself.
oOo
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