Elements
Hippolyta and Sev returned to the bonfire, Sirius and Valerie had disappeared. They did not bond with anyone and nobody did it with them. They dried themselves, not only with the heat of the fire, but also their hair with their hands and the heating spell to hurry up. Meanwhile they were chatting.
"Have you seen, Prince?" she told him. "They are leaving us alone."
"Of course, they have had time to realize how they screwed up before."
"Alice hasn't said anything about you, huh?"
"Because Alice doesn't know anything," he deduced.
"I think that even if she had known, she would not have told it."
"True, I think so too. Do you know? In September I am removing Deborah as second. Maybe I'll put Alice in."
"She deserves it, she is the best warrior in the school," said the girl.
"Of course she is, she is better than me. This summer I will dedicate myself to making many friends with her, to getting to know her in depth. Also, I think it's good that the first and second are from different Houses, and even more so a Sly and a Gryff."
"Sure... Then at least say goodbye to her when we leave."
"Of course I'm going to say goodbye, also to the boys, it would be very rude to leave like that without saying goodbye," said Sev. "I'm going to say goodbye to everyone, also to Deborah, although I feel very angry with her."
"Don't be so angry with Deborah, Prince. Deborah lives for you."
"I don't doubt it, Hippolyta, but our characters are not compatible, she doesn't understand me."
"What zodiac sign is Deborah?"
"The twenty-fifth of July, Leo."
"Of course, she has said it before, that she turns seventeen that day," she recalled. "Well, fire and earth don't mix well."
"We are also fire and earth."
"True, I am Aries. According to Astrology compatibilities, we are not compatible."
"What I was telling you, nonsense. We get along perfectly," he said.
"Well yes, in that it is not right, but you will see how in the personal characteristics it is."
"And who do I get along with?"
"With the other earth and water ones," Hippolyta responded.
"Let me think about the birthdays I know. Ariel is Virgo, earth. Cecile and Valerie are Libra, air."
"Cecile is from the same twenty-third of September, the day the sign changes, perhaps she is a Virgo. It depends on the time of her birth, there are also astrological ephemeris, when the sun changes from one sign to another."
"Sure…"
"You have to ask her," she suggested.
"And maybe you are Pisces."
"I'm not, I already checked, I'm Aries."
"What time you were born?" Sev asked.
"I don't know the exact time, but it had just dawned."
"Wow… fantastic, the dawn of the equinox. It is not only a special date, but also a special time."
"What time were you born?" asked the girl.
"No idea."
"You have to ask your Mum."
"I will do it," he said. "I continue. Sirius is Scorpio, and Remus is Pisces, water."
"Compatible with you, both of them."
"Of course. Potter is an Aries, like you."
"Oh…"
"Andrew is Gemini, air. That's it," Sev concluded.
"Don't you know any more birthdays?" laughing.
"Yes, I know two others."
"Lily's," she deduced.
"That is. Aquarius, air."
"Incompatible. And the other?"
"Lauren's," he responded. "Pisces, but maybe Aquarius, it's February 20th at midnight, date change."
"Of course... you have to consult it too. I'll look at it for you tomorrow, also if I find out the time of Cecile's."
"Ask her now if you want."
"No, not now, I'm with you now," Hippolyta refused. "We'll talk tomorrow in the Great Hall."
"And now that I think about it, Ariel is also barely a Virgo, maybe he isn't, and he sure doesn't know the time of his birth. Don't ask him."
"Of course, I won't ask him. And you don't know about Anthony and Jack?"
"Well no, I don't even know my Mum's," Sev confessed. "I never gave importance to birthdays until I discovered the Celtic horoscope. And you deceived me well the afternoon we talked about our birthdays, you do give them importance."
"Indeed I deceived you."
They laughed.
"The compatibility thing is nonsense," he opined. "According to that theory, the Slys, water, would be compatible with the Huffles, earth, and we are the most incompatible Houses. We Slys are compatible with the Raves, there is a reason we sit together in the Great Hall."
"Sure… But the thing about water being compatible with earth has a reason, and that is that the earth needs water to be fertile."
"Of course... Like me with Lauren, she made me bring out the best in myself."
"It is about her that you have been talking to Sirius, right?" she asked.
"Yes lady."
"Well, you should know that the topic of talking about you came up to divert attention from what you were talking about, because Deborah was already wondering what you were up to."
"Decided, Deborah out on the street, she has become indiscreet," Sev said.
"I continue to tell you, the compatibility of fire and air is due to the fact that fire needs air to stay alive, if not, it goes out, like you when you have fanned the flames."
"Sure…"
"More things. The signs are not only divided into four elements, but also into three qualities: cardinal, fixed and mutable," explained the girl.
"And what does that mean?"
"Cardinals are people with initiative, who have a tendency to undertake, to start things. Fixed are those who stay with their feet on the ground, who dislike change, and mutable, on the contrary, who like to change very often and are very adaptable to change."
"Wow… And what sign does each quality have?" he asked.
"One of the three of each element is of a quality. It begins cardinal in the first sign of the zodiac wheel, Aries, and they alternate. Three qualities per four elements, twelve signs."
"How interesting. Let me think now if that is nonsense or not, according to the people I know."
"Sure."
"You are cardinal, with a lot of initiative, that is right for you and I think it is for Potter too," Sev began. "However, one of your characteristics of the Celtic horoscope is that you do not like changes, in that case you would be fixed quality. Do you like changes?"
"Only if they are for the better."
"Very good answer. Next, Andrew, we've skipped Taurus, so it's mutable's turn. Well, I think it's not right for him."
"I think so, he has adapted very well to Valerie hanging out with other boys," she said.
"You are right, in that aspect he is. Next, Deborah, Leo, we've skipped Cancer, so it's fixed turn. It is absolutely right for her."
"Indeed."
"Ariel, we are not sure what sign he is," he said. "If he is a Leo, he is fixed, I think he does have his feet on the ground, more than many adults."
"Well yes."
"And if he is Virgo he is mutable. Also, he adapts well to changes."
"Indeed," Hippolyta agreed.
"Cecile, the same thing, we don't know for sure, she can be mutable or cardinal."
"I think that both qualities suit her."
"I think that fixed too," Sev said.
"Cecile has very good qualities, huh?"
"Sure, you know, equinox tree. Valerie cardinal, of course, with a lot of initiative, she gets it right."
"And also, it is the most compatible sign with mine, because we are opposite signs, fire with air and both cardinals," she explained.
"Oh… and what would mine be?"
"When we get to yours we will think about it."
"Okay. Sirius' turn, fixed, it doesn't hit him much, it hits him much more mutable, because he loves to change partners, or cardinal, to carry out initiatives," he continued.
"Well yes, it's not right for him."
"My turn, Capricorn, we have skipped Sagittarius, so it's cardinal turn."
"Like me!" the girl exclaimed.
"That's why we are compatible, little one, and yes, I think it gets me right, more and more, I am a person with a lot of initiative. I wasn't so much before, huh? But more and more. So, the cardinal of water, which one was it?"
"One that we have skipped."
"I am from January, so it's from July, Cancer," Sev deduced. "I don't know any Cancer."
"Yes you do, it's just that you don't know his birthday."
"Of course, of course. I continue. Lily, fixed. She gets it right, she dislikes changes and adapts badly, you see what just happened to her."
"Indeed," she agreed.
"We have Lauren left, another one we don't know for sure, but she is another one who would have the three good qualities: entrepreneurial, down-to-earth and adaptable to change."
"Those who fall very close to another sign usually have characteristics of both."
"Oh… And you are just four great people," he said. "You, Ariel, Cecile and Lauren. Well, I see that the thing about qualities is not nonsense, huh?"
"Well no, it is not, and you will see the characteristics tomorrow, it is right for you and me in everything."
"Can't you tell me something now?"
"No, no, we leave it for tomorrow, otherwise we won't have anything to do tomorrow," Hippolyta suggested.
"Sure."
"Now what I'm going to do is give you advice for your date with Lauren tomorrow."
(How cute, I'll eat her.) "Okay," Sev agreed.
"Bring her to the beach too, she's going to love it. If there is leftover firewood from the bonfires, make a bonfire."
"It is going to be left over, there is still more than half left. And we were already thinking of doing it, even if we had to take the firewood ourselves."
"How do you keep the old man from catching you?" she asked.
"Why would he catch us?"
"By the Map."
(Wow… I haven't told her anything,) he thought. "How did you find out about the Map?"
"I already told you that I know everything. I talked Ariel out of it."
"Oh…"
"But he only told me because he knows that I am very trustworthy, that I love you very much and that I would never betray a secret of yours," the girl explained.
"But he does betray them. I'm going to have to tell him off too."
"No, Prince, don't do that. He loves you more than anyone, even more than me."
"Wow… that's saying a lot."
"If I love you it was thanks to him, think about that."
"And do you know why he loves me so much?" Sev asked.
"I don't know, Prince. Ask him, tomorrow when you talk to him."
"No, tomorrow I prefer to talk only about Lily. I'll talk to him about it in the summer, when we're more relaxed."
"Better," she approved.
"Tell me, how did it occur to you to talk him out of it?"
"Because I found out, by listening to conversations, about everything that happened that day when you didn't go to train and the malefics almost caught you. Remember that all of us third years came home from the Library together and you were at home instead of training."
"True."
"And that night there was a party, I spied on the escort," Hippolyta continued.
He laughed. (She's wonderful.) "Wow, wow…"
"Of course, and I couldn't explain how you had known not to pass in front of the Library because the malefics were waiting for you, so I asked Ariel, he had seen you use the Map that same afternoon."
"Did he tell you that same night?" he asked.
"No, no, later. It took me a while to convince him, huh?"
"Does he know that they ambushed me?"
"No, no, I didn't say anything," she assured. "That's why it took me so long to convince him, because I couldn't explain why I wanted to know."
"Always hatching plans, little rascal." He ruffled her hair, laughing. "Let's see, I haven't answered you. Lauren and I leave the house when everyone has already fallen asleep, we come to the door of the Room of Requirement and we turn back five hours to the Time-Turner Disillusioned, so that it coincides exactly with dinner time, when the old man is in the Great Hall and can't be looking at his Map."
"Of course… Well, I was asking you to find out what time you are going to come and if you will have time to see the sunset as well."
"We will have," Sev responded. "What happens is that we are going to be very tired, we will take a Stimulant potion so as not to fall asleep. Coming to the beach was her idea, because it was also her idea for all of us warriors to walk the Way of Stars when the war is over."
"Oh…"
"Of course, Lauren is the thinking head. When you finally meet you are going to get along great. She really knows how to make plans, not like you, she will teach you, she will. She taught me, that is why I have told you before that I am the earth that Lauren, the water, has fertilized."
"Sure…"
"And after sunset we will sleep here, next to the bonfire," he added.
"Not in your bedroom at the house?"
"No, she loves sleeping outdoors. Of the three times we have been here, only one night we have slept in the bed, the other two we have slept in the meadow behind the house with the furs and blankets that were next to the fireplace in the large room."
"Oh…"
"Under the stars," Sev continued. "Next summer, when you are recovered and you are no longer cold, I will do it with you too. How about?"
"Great… More advice I wanted to give you. Bathe in the sea too, so you can be salty like Valerie with Sirius."
He laughed. (I'm already imagining what the next advice is going to be.) "Okay, we will bathe, of course. I will teach her to play dead if she doesn't know how and to rescue like you rescued me."
"That is, that is, have a great time together. The last piece of advice."
"Let's see, say, I already guessed it."
"Do it with her tomorrow," the girl suggested. "A good farewell, she's going to spend the entire summer alone."
"Sure, honey, but that can't be planned. I'm willing, but we both have to feel like it at the moment. If we feel like it, we will do it, of course."
"Prince, take my advice seriously. If you don't do it, then you're going to regret it for two months, because you're going to miss her a lot," very serious.
"True, Hippolyta, you are absolutely right. I'll do it then, if she doesn't feel like it, I'll convince her, don't worry."
Once they were dry and dressed, they said goodbye to everyone and returned along the path towards the house, holding hands with their Lumos. They weren't talking anymore, they were both very tired.
Halfway there, during which she had walked slower and slower, Hippolyta said to Sev, "Prince… I can't take it anymore, and at this rate we will never get there."
"It's okay, I'll carry you."
"But you are as exhausted or more so than me."
"But I'm holding on, my love, come on, go up," he encouraged her. Sev crouched down so she could climb onto his back.
"I don't want to... you're very tired. Levitate me."
Sev laughed. "No, honey, I prefer to carry you, levitating you would be very ugly. Come on, don't think about it anymore, put away your wand and go up."
Sev put his Lumos in his mouth and Hippolyta climbed onto his back. He took her like that, less than a minute later she had fallen asleep, she began to dream, for a few minutes, that she was bathing on the beach, but during the day, with waves, with him.
He continued walking for another half hour, arrived at the house, went straight up to their bedroom, laid her on the bed, undressed himself, and undressed her as well. He put her in bed, he got in, he spooned her, hugging her, unbonded from her and fell asleep less than a minute later.