It was jarring, to say the least, when Harry suddenly found himself drop-sitting on dry grass with the woodland smell all about him, while he had been drenched thoroughly by both the rain and the waves. Where was he? What – or who – had done this?
Standing up quickly, he took off to the nearby woods. There he tried to conceal himself by standing – quaking – behind a tree ringed by small-leaved bushes. But still, he felt all-around vulnerable even sheltered and hidden like this. – What had happened?
It did not help that he could now hear a pair of footsteps approaching his hiding place from inside the woods. Where should he hide now?
Before he could think of a solution, though, the outline of a person loomed just a yard away from him, and what dimly looked like a bundle was thrust towards him. Seeing that the thing was not retracted even after a long moment had passed, though, he at last reached out for it, his heart pounding.
It felt truly like a bundle – a bundle of clothing, if he dared guess. But what was it for? Was he meant to wear the clothes inside? Did that mean someone had watched him naked under the moonlight? (That was quite a horrifying notion to be had!) But again, he really had no choice in the matter. His body was by now dry, and his hair was just damp; and also, giving himself some protection by way of clothing was actually a good idea.
He moved aside to hopefully get more space and privacy, and began to untie the bundle. Finding a T-shirt and a pair of britches inside, he put them on, wondering at how they fit his frame; as if they were made specifically for him… (Another horrifying notion to be had, certainly.)
Harry got his second scare of the night when, as he was moving back to his former spot, the mysterious stranger seized his right hand and grasped it firmly. (It was as if that person had just remembered the social protocol, and was now adhering to it rather reluctantly.) He was not given chance to react too, because afterwards, without as much as a "Follow me," he was dragged by his wrist back into the clearing, then to the trees on the far side of it. (The person's gait was strange, though…)
After seemingly a long while, they happened on a larger clearing. There his semi-captor just stood in front of him like before, and Harry at last saw that the stranger was a female – a girl probably several years older than he was.
He felt himself blushing to the roots of his hair.
But stiff awkwardness once more set in, on her lack of reaction. In fact, it was as if she had been studying him impassively all along. What kind of human being did that?
– And where was his stone?
He had failed to realise that the blue stone was not on his person anymore.