A/N : As always everything belongs to JK Rowlings.A new story this time. Others will continue with time. Enjoy the chapter.

The Peverell's Vow

Chapter -1:Cross Roads

There were not many things that could penetrate the walls of Harry's mind, the walls that he built tirelessly with utter determination after he came to know about the word 'Legilimency'.

So, color him surprised when he saw beautiful flying white horses in the sky, moving in the direction of Hogwarts with a large sky blue coloured carriage behind them. The carriage was as large as a small house. It was highly decorated in small designs all over its surface. And the horses complemented its beauty.

He was left open mouthed for at least half a minute until Nott nudged him pointedly and raised his borrows.

Following the route towards the library, Harry shook his head as if to get his mind out of that embarrassing moment. While the sight of French arrival was bold and astonishing, he should not have let that get the better of him. It didn't paint a great image of Slytherin House if its members resembled gawking buffoons.

And if you did resemble them, well, it painted quite the depth of your character and people would know what to do to catch you off guard. Those who knew you would tend to keep a distance from you because you couldn't help to keep your wits which didn't help their cause at all.

It had taken him quite some time to get the hold of . It was frustrating to say the least but he never gave up. But looking back at the incident yesterday, he grudgingly admitted he had a lot to learn.

That he could admit. Even if it sounded bitter to his ears. He had to be in control of his wits. Because it was the only way forward if he wanted to survive in the House of Serpents.

Theodore was not a jolly person but observant he was. And observe, he did. Bless him for being who he was because he was not the sole observative Slytherin. And Harry was grateful for the head start he was given by Theodore because if Malfoy witnessed his miserable gawking expressions, he would never let Harry hear the end of it.

He would pick a thing or two for Nott during the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend he decided in the end. He was a good friend but a silent one. He never talked much. And it never bothered Harry because Harry was not much different from him. That's why they had some unspoken understanding. And the baggage they carried-

Stop. Harry shook his head. Now was not the time to be sentimental. No it was-

CRASH.

Harry found himself on his back with a body on top of him. His eyes clenched shut as if doing so could save him from bodily harm.

When he came to his senses he caught a sniff of an odd but calm fragrance coming from the person on top of him and he knew it was a woman. Harry cursed his fate for putting him in such embarrassing situations.

He opened his eyes and saw blue. He moved his head to catch the vision of the person's face. But his back ached with pain while moving and he groaned.

"Fu-...".This time he cursed openly but stopped amidst and went simply still.

At his proclamation, the woman turned her head towards him and returned his stare. Her eyes met his. And no matter how many words the world had, they couldn't describe what Harry saw. Not from this close. Not when her breath was gracing his face.

Yes, he saw her from afar after the French arrived. And he also heard her loudly complaining about the food during the feast and remembered her laughing openly during Dumbledore's speech. This was all Harry had on her as he concluded.

And there was also quite a ruckus among the boys of his house, definitely others as well, when they saw her but Harry didn't give his attention to that because he was already brooding over himself because of the incident some moments before. And he didn't have any wish for more.

Now, he could see what that was all about. Suddenly, he came to his conscience and berated himself for openly staring. But he was not the only one….. staring.

He felt her ethereal blue eyes on his face. He could feel her gaze roaming all over his features.He felt naked and exposed. And he didn't like the feeling. Not one bit.

Then he saw an odd expression on her face. As if she was expecting a response from him. He frowned as to wonder why she had that expression on her face.

At the same time she narrowed her eyes and frowned as well. This was getting out of hand, Harry thought.

"Would yo-... ".Harry felt himself squeak and stopped immediately. He cleared his throat while cursing himself and said," Could you please. … .?" Harry gestured at their state while trying to keep down the flush on his face because of the position they were in.

She came to her senses when she heard his voice, her eyes widened as she stood up immediately and stepped back a little while subconsciously adjusting her hair and her cloak.

Harry used that time to pick up his books and stood up with her hat in his hands as well. His back still ached with tingling pain but he straightened himself in front of her and tried to keep a straight face to deal with the fallout.

"My apologies,madame. I take full responsibility for this transgression as I was not paying attention to my surroundings. I hope you don't take it personally as it was not my intention to put you in such a position. I hope you don't hold it against me or my school."Harry said sincerely while giving back her hat.

"Apologies accepted,monsieur. Nothing bad 'append. But I hope you are alright because it is you who took the brunt of the fall." Said the girl with a soft accent when she accepted the hat.

Her eyes didn't leave his face for even a mere second and Harry felt uncomfortable under her gaze. She was assessing him. His words. His tone. Harry could respect that but he didn't have to feel good about it.

He waved her concerns away and said. "No, it's alright. As you said already nothing bad happened." He said with a reassuring smile." I was on my way to the Library-

"Library?" She asked curiously." Which way is it? "

"That way." Harry pointed behind her.

"I didn't see it when I passed that route."She said with confusion apparent in her tone.

" There are two more turns before it. Wait a second, you were not given the general map of the castle?"Harry asked in surprise.

"Oui." She admitted with a blank face.

"What?" Harry asked in confusion now. And she just raised her borrows at that.

"You didn't read the map, did you?" Harry asked her in a knowing tone as he began walking and she stepped alongside him.

"And spoil the fun. Non. I didn't read the map and I have no intention of doing so. I would rather discover things on my own." She said in a haughty tone.

Harry raised his borrows and said. "And get lost for hours? Hogwarts is a big place. Stairs are moving all the time. It takes a lot of time to get used to their timing. And don't get me started on the turns. What would you do when that happens? "

"Why hurry when I have time on my hand? And even if I get lost and when I say lost which means truly lost, I could call an elf." She said in a smug tone.

Oh, of course she could call an elf. Because she was not a first year like Harry once was. She was a guest in Hogwarts. Of course she was privileged to call for an elf. But the first years were not.

Man he was close to tears once back when he couldn't find the way to the entrance of his House. Thanks to McGonagall that didn't happen. Bless her. Harry shook his head.

"Oh, somebody got lost once. A terrifying thought. I even shudder to think about it." She dramatically shuddered and made a mock face of being afraid.

"I didn't." Harry grounded out his denial. His cheeks coloured. The incident was still fresh in his mind.

"Of course not." She said in a soothing tone."But I do understand your concerns. First years getting lost must be a common occurrence here. And if you think about it from their perspective, well-

" Alright! Alright! You got me."Harry said to stop her dramatic speculations. She won that round he grudgingly admitted while she laughed at his expression. And it did sound good. Her laugh.

No. Don't go there, he told himself.There is nothing for him there.

They moved in unison for some quiet moments. Both of them lost in their thoughts to give attention to the silence between them. She spoke first and broke into his thought process.

" So, what is your name, monsieur?"She asked in a soft voice. A simple question. Her baby blue eyes expecting his response.

Harry feared if she could read his secrets by just looking at his eyes. He felt that she had that kind of intensity in her eyes.

"Harry Potter." He responded while returning her gaze with as much courage as he could muster. His shields helped him maintain eye contact.

"Fleur Delacour." She said in her melodious accented voice and stopped just so she could extend her hand towards him.

Of course.

Harry bowed and gave a feather light kiss to her knuckles and stepped back.After that she began to move as if their introduction didn't happen at all.

"And your House? What house are you in?"She asked as she looked at him.

" Slytherin. Fourth year."He answered while nodding slightly, patting his books subconsciously.

She looked at him for a mere moment and then said," I am a sixth year myself. My last year, that is, in Beauxbatons."

"You don't have a seventh year there?"asked Harry in a surprised tone.

" Only if you want to be a scholar. Get a mastery in any subject in that year. No pressure of other subjects or the fear of multiple examinations. But if you want to follow a different route, you are free to do so."She said with a shrug.

"I could see the benefits of such procedure." Harry muttered to himself while her eyes gleamed and her face smug.

"And you give two times Ministry approved exams. What are they called, owl and new? New Owl? Hah!! " She laughed at her own joke.

"Hey!"Harry complained. Yes, her laugh was infectious and sounded good to ears. But he was not going to bear it if he was the butt of the joke. No sir. Thank you very much.

" It's not your fault. It's your ministry. They should think thoroughly before passing a law for the citizens or it is the citizens who should think how they want to be governed. So, you need not worry about getting the blame for something you didn't do. But you must worry about the outcomes because it is you who is going to live with it."She said frankly but passionately.

Harry shook his head. "Firstly, the OWLs are there to prepare us for getting an understanding about what is to come when it is time for NEWTs." He emphasized on the words.

"Secondly, after OWLs the subjects that we have passed with excellence show where our strengths and weaknesses lie. If you score high enough you could go for great careers. It just puts a clear picture of our prowess in magic-

" Doesn't that restrict one's options? Doesn't that create a wedge between those of lesser and greater magical understanding?"asked Fleur Delacour knowingly.

"I mean, isn't that the whole point? Those who adapt shall survive while those who don't shall perish."Harry responded.

"What of those who didn't have the environment to adapt while there were those who began adaptation from day one? What of those who remained in constant terror for they didn't know what they were? " She smirked while bombing him with questions.

" I know someone in my year who would prove you wrong on that note."Harry responded again.

"Just someone? Not many? Monsieur Potter we are talking about the public here, not exceptions. And let's say that that particular someone gets out of these walls and sees those who were at a lesser station than them at class level are getting more opportunities than them. Then what? Where does it end? What does that lead to? What does such a situation make them into? And what do they make of it? "She wiggled her eyebrows at him.

Now, Harry had no response. Because he never thought about it.Not Like that. Because he didn't have to.

" I never gave much thought to that. Not like that. I always thought of it as the way it is. Equal opportunities,that is."Harry said at last.

Fleur nodded slowly. "But isn't that what they want you to see? Isn't that their twisted way of manipulation so that the general public remain good by their side. But oppressed, helpless, and those of no background remain as they are.Where is equal opportunity in that? You come from a Pure-Blood family. It's easy for you to defend your position and get one if you get my meaning."She answered easily without any bite behind her words but her eyes sure had tightened.

Only a few yards away from the library Harry thought.

"But I am not a pureblood." Harry blurted out. "I am a halfblood. My mother was a muggleborn. So, I have faced a thing or two of what you are trying to point out.Especially in my house which follows the pureblood doctrine."Harry nodded to himself.

Fleur looked at him for a long moment. Then shook her head and said." I am sorry you have to go through that. Because I know how it feels when you are condemned for something that you have no control over. My apologies if I offended you in any way, like you said earlier it was not my intention to do so." She gave him a kind smile for the first time. And boy he felt good about it.

"It's alright. No harm done. Moreover I think it was an enlightening conversation. Just different than I usually have with someone. But you do realize you are gracing the political grounds there, right?" Harry asked with a teasing smile.

"It doesn't hurt to have an open mind which means not many things can surprise you. And I do keep an open mind." She said with a smirk.

"I shall do the same in future. You have given me a lot to think about, Miss Delacour." Harry said in front of the library.

"Please do so Monsieur Potter. You will see the world in its complex but true form. And this is your destination I presume." She pointed at the Library doors.

"The library, yes."Harry nodded.

" I shall leave you to your studies then Monsieur Potter."She said with a delicate gesture of her hand but didn't move from her place.

"You don't want to see the library?" Harry asked. Puzzled.

"No.Not today. Maybe some other day. Today I would like to walk around. Get a general idea of the castle." She admitted as she nodded to herself.

"I still think you should follow the map or have a guide by your side. It just keeps things in order." Harry suggested.

"I like disorder. Chaos. Mess. Pick your word. I greet it on my own terms then I make an order out of it." She said in her accented but haughty tone.

"Well, have it your way then. I hope you have a good time." Harry said as sincerely as he could.

"I will. And I am grateful that our paths crossed. There are not many who can finish two sentences in my presence. Holding a conversation is out of the question." Harry used his sheer willpower to keep his eyes from narrowing at the last sentence.

"We will meet again." She said as if she was stating the weather forecast.

"I will look forward to it." Harry said in a polite tone as one would expect a person to do.

"Good." She responded in a pleased but entitled manner.

They both looked at each other for quite some moments but Harry cracked first.

"Alright.Better claim my place before somebody else does." Harry said in a convincing manner and left to enter the library but he could feel her gaze burning on his neck.

Strange. He said in his mind.

As he was securing a place for himself, he looked back at the conversation he had. How it started from a simple introduction and how it ended on a very distinguishing note.

Harry could admit one thing in the end. Fleur Delacour knew her game and surely was not a normal girl.

Harry knew many girls in his year. Some were right barmy. Some were quiet. Some were straight rude like Parkinson. Some were gossip like Brown and Patil twin.

And then came Greengrass. Oh, he could still remember like it happened yesterday when he asked her to go to Hogsmeade with him.

The girl didn't even blink at him. It was maddening. He felt downright stupid because she didn't think he was worth a response. It was humiliating. In the end, he left without getting a response and made a right idiot of himself.

He had respected her since the first year. She had a certain aura around her that nobody messed with her. Like not even Malfoy.

And he really liked how prim and proper her lifestyle was. How disciplined her every move was. She was the epitome of the word 'Lady'. But after that day, he never said a word in her presence. Even if they were paired together in class.

Surprisingly, she never told anyone about that incident. Harry's respect for her grew even more. But there was not a sign for something more.

Something about Fleur reminded Harry of Daphne. Both of them were beautiful. Both were well mannered. But while Fleur seemed lively, Daphne was a quiet one.

Stop.

He was not here to think about them. Especially now. He had a lot of work to do. He needed to prepare himself for the upcoming Dueling Tournament. It was his only chance to know his limits.

While Uncle Reg had done an exceptional job at preparing him in harnessing his dueling skills. He needed a fight where something was at stake. Where he could lose and feel something. Where he didn't feel like he could do it if he tried something else next time. Because his parents didn't have the privilege of trying for the next time.

Without putting his skill at work, it was for nought.He needed diverse opponents.And it was not everyday when you get to participate in a dueling contest between three schools. It was a feather in his cap for him.

He knew his time would come.The day when he would extract the payment from those who took his home from him. His family.

But in the meantime he would prepare. He would watch from the sidelines and when they would be at their vulnerable, he would strike like the serpent he was.