Nothing is mine

This one's incredibly short as a chunk of it's only on my website because it's not for kids! But it's an important one. Those who've been paying super close attention to all the sneaky details I've been slipping in all this time might work something out from just the return of the Fleur PoV...

Mnemosynē's Mnemon

A gentle breeze swept through the cherry trees, rustling their leaves and flattening her pastel blue dress against her stomach; the ripe little red fruits thudded into the lawn, rolling down the grass slope.

If you were still here, there'd be no ripe cherries left to fall. Fleur caught the wisteria crystal hanging from her left ear, balancing it on the ball of her thumb. You were meant to be part of this. You should be here, teasing me, pretending to love the things I want when I refuse to want them like the silly little harpy you were. Hot tears blurred on her lashes. We will make the most of every moment you gave us, Gabby. No more hurting.

A quiet step scraped the stone patio. 'What are you doing here, mon Rêve?' Harry asked.

'Waiting.' Fleur tore her eyes away from the cherry trees and the small patches of grass beneath their branches. 'How are you feeling?'

'Mostly fine.' He raised one eyebrow. 'Are you okay?'

'I miss my little sister,' she whispered. 'And now we are not so busy chasing La Victoire Finale, I miss her all the more.' Fierce heat bubbled in her bones and little white feathers prickled along her arms. 'And somewhere out there, the shallow little people that thought it was right to steal her away are smiling.'

'It's quiet without her chirping up and little Katie scampering around, babbling away.' A small sad smile crept onto Harry's lips as he stepped forward, reaching around and taking her hands, his skin cool against hers. 'But you'll have your baby bird back soon, mon Trésor. As soon as Gabby's magic fades...'

'I know.' Fleur turned her back on the orchard, wrapping his arms around her waist. 'But I can't stand the thought of them out there, satisfied, happy, pleased that they got to destroy all her dreams so they could have theirs.' The heat flooded into her face, boiling in her bones. 'They should have nothing. Gabby deserved to be happy more than they do.'

A cold gleam welled up in Harry's green eyes and his face hardened. 'You promised them fire, mon Amour. And fire we'll give them.'

'And then the sunset,' she whispered, the heat fading and the white feathers slipping back beneath her skin. 'No more fretting. No more hurting. Like we promised Gabby.'

'You'll have your sunset, mon Rêve.' He pressed a light kiss to the tip of her nose, tickling her cheeks with his breath. 'Our little angel will never have to endure what we did.' Harry paused. 'You smell like cherry blossom again.'

Fleur glanced down at her wrists. 'Gabby's perfume. I bought it for her birthday, but she never got to wear it…'

'It smells very nice.' He drew her close, into the gentle warmth of his arms. 'It's strange not having you smell a little like marzipan, but I like this too.'

'Bon.' She apparated them back into the kitchen with a soft snap and twisted in his embrace, pulling his arms around her from behind. 'I saved the rest of these.' Fleur opened the cake cupboard with her bare foot. 'For after…'

'It's after now,' Harry murmured in her ear. 'What tasty treat did you stash, my bird-wife? Meringues? Eclairs?' A sombre note coloured his whisper. 'Clafoutis?'

'Gabby's macarons.' Fleur lifted the small, white box from the cupboard and tipped a purple one out into her palm. 'Purple is blueberry.'

'Is blueberry good?'

'Blueberry is good.' She took a bite, letting the sweet taste melt on her tongue.

'It's yellow now,' Harry said. 'Banana?'

'Lemon.' Fleur batted his hand away. 'Non. No thieving, mon Coeur.'

'I was only teasing,' he murmured as she bit the remaining piece in half and savoured the citrus tang. 'What is it now?'

'Red.' Fleur stared at it, a small lump swelling in her throat. 'Dark red.'

'Cherry.' Harry's embrace tightened, pulling her close against his chest. 'Je sais,' he whispered in her ear. 'Je sais.'

She blinked back the heat of tears and poked the macaron into her mouth, forcing herself to let the taste of cherry linger on her tongue.

'Je t'aime, Fleur.' He ran his hand through her hair in long, slow gentle strokes as the flavour faded. 'Je t'aime.'

'Of course you love me.' Fleur tilted her chin up and mustered a little smile. 'I am perfect for you.'

And I made sure you would love me. I made sure that when you despaired and gave up and ran away and came back, you wouldn't remember.

She wriggled around in his arms and studied the soft gleam in his green eyes. 'How much have you been fretting?'

A flicker of guilt passed through his face and a little rueful smile curved his lips. 'Just a little. Je te le promets.'

'About?'

'I don't know why it worked,' Harry murmured. 'I… find it hard to trust it. You understand.'

'As always,' Fleur whispered, cupping his cheek. 'I don't think you want to remember, mon Cœur, better to forget something that must have hurt that much if you can, non?'

'Perhaps…' He stared, drinking her in with his eyes. 'Part of me doesn't want to let you out of my sight, just in case you disappear. This all feels… fragile and thin, like it could just slip through my fingers at any moment.' His grip tightened on her waist and his eyes darkened. 'Will you somehow vanish, if I stop holding you? If I let go, do you just… disappear?'

'You're being silly, mon Amour.' A little shiver rippled through her as his gaze sharpened and a soft thrill fluttered in her stomach. 'Where would I go?' She weighed her words on the tip of her tongue, testing the sting of them. 'To find some other wizard?'

Harry's jaw clenched. 'And leave our little chick without her doting maman?' Ice crept into his eyes and his lips twisted. 'You wouldn't.' The cold melted from his eyes. 'You're testing me, aren't you, my sneaky bird-wife?' The corner of Harry's mouth twitched. 'Like you did before when you talked about seducing people for Les Inconnus. They've never done anything like that.'

Fleur offered him a small smirk. 'I have to make sure you're still mine, non?'

'Convinced?' Harry leant forward, grazing her lips with his. 'Or are you going to go share cake with another cursebreaker and wait to see if I panic?'

'As if you were not watching, waiting to see what would snatch me away from you. But nothing did, did it?' She pulled his lips to hers. 'Nothing will. Nothing can, mon Amour. Not now. You are mine—' Fleur smiled as his eyes slipped down from her lips and his thumb slid across her waist to rest on the hem of her underwear '—and I am yours.' She crushed her mouth against his, flicking the tip of her tongue against his upper lip.

Harry slid his hands under her shoulders and lifted her up, wrapping his warm arms around her and holding her tight, breathing her hair in.

'I'm still here,' Fleur murmured, tilting her head back and resting her cheek against his temple. 'Still yours. As always.'

He pulled her harder against him, his trembling breaths tickling her bare shoulder. 'I love you so much.' His whisper shook. 'There'd be nothing left if you disappeared.'

Fierce triumph flared in her breast. 'I will not disappear, mon Amour.' She pressed soft kisses along his embracing arms. 'Je t'aime.'

I am still your one perfect wish that came true. Fleur snuggled back into the warmth of his chest. As long as you don't remember, all will be well. She closed her eyes and smiled as Harry's lips trailed kisses along her shoulder. And why would you ever want to remember losing this?

AN: You can find my website and the rest of the chapter as well as all my other works and more via my profile!