Dudley was sceptical. He trusted Harry – he was family, and a good friend – but this was just ridiculous. There was no way it could possibly be true. "You're not dating any of them?!"
Harry, blushing, shook his head. "No, they're just friends!"
Dudley stared in disbelief. When Harry had started getting all those letters, Vernon and Petunia were unhappy but resigned to allowing it. Dudley, however, was curious. And once Harry told him who the letters were from, he was excited.
"So as well as your 'best friend' Fleur, and your 'sister' Cheveu...", Dudley began.
"She is my sister!", Harry protested, though Dudley ignored him and continued.
"... and both of them are older, and very hot, by the way. As well as them, you're writing to Katie – older and hot; Daphne – looks similar to Fleur so must be hot; Susan – 'pretty'... so hot; and Hermione – you didn't describe her so I'll just guess that she's hot too", Dudley listed, Matter-of-factly.
Harry just blushed even deeper.
"...but you're not going out with any of them?! Harry – why?!", finished Dudley, unable to solve this paradox.
Harry felt like his face could well be brighter than the sun. "They're my friends. They're fun to hang out with, and I don't... I mean, I hadn't really... they're just friends!", Harry finished, lamely.
Dudley thought for a moment, and tried a different tactic. "Ok, who's the prettiest?"
"What?" Harry asked, like a cornered animal.
"You heard me. Which of your hot friends is prettiest?", Dudley asked. He had to admit, part of him enjoyed teasing his cousin in this way.
Harry looked for an exit to the conversation – or the room! – but found none within reach. And then, his mouth utterly betrayed him. "Fleur".
"Aha! I knew it! Do you want to kiss her?", Dudley asked.
The earth now betrayed Harry, for it refused to open up and swallow him whole, sparing him from the conversation.
...
Later, Harry tried to put the conversation out of his mind. He'd often heard his fellow Gryffindor boys talk about girls, and it was as if they were pieces of meat! Harry did not think of Fleur, Katie, or anyone else like an object to be devoured, so he tried to forget the topics Dudley had raised – especially the more... intimate ones – and instead think about something else. Like potions, or Quidditch, and definitely not kissing.
Thankfully, there was plenty to do back home with the Dursleys. Dudley had some new video games, including one about some eco-warriors saving the world from a giant meteor; the eco-warriors bit was ok, but the fact the characters could use magic was Harry's favourite, and it gave him ideas – was there a spell he could learn that meant he could shoot lightning from his hands?
Harry also enjoyed going into Greater Whinging with Dudley, as Petunia and Vernon had decided that they were both old enough to go. The shops (including one that only sold video games!) and burger restaurant were particular highlights, and Harry had to be careful not to spend too much money.
Towards the end of his time with the Dursleys, Harry also fitted in a visit from Katie, though given Dudley's mischievous smile Harry decided it was best to spend the day out somewhere. In the end, Katie and Harry went to Greater Whinging to see some shops and try another (for Harry) restaurant; and if Katie thought it was a bit like a date, she didn't say anything, and she certainly wouldn't describe it in those terms to anyone... especially not her mum!
...
Whilst Harry was having an enjoyable time with the Dursleys, Sirius was not having an enjoyable time.
Oh, the summer had started off well enough, Sirius thought – since Susan Bones had started Hogwarts, her aunt, Amelia, had more time on her hands, and Sirius had made a move on his gorgeous former schoolmate; a move that was readily accepted.
Honestly, he had tried to start something sooner, but realised quite quickly that Amelia had to prioritise Susan, and he had to prioritise Harry (and help Remus find work, and help Dumbledore overturn centuries of Pureblood rights, and...).
But yes, the summer had started off well, especially as he and Amelia felt they could "go public" with their relationship... Not that they would have had much choice, what with Remus figuring out very quickly what was going on. Of course, it was his fault for the two of them being... busy... for a bit too long on the day they were meant to pick up the kids from the express.
But his mood had hit freefall when he picked up the Daily Prophet one morning.
"MINISTRY EMPLOYEE AND PROMINENT WIZARD ARTHUR WEASLEY WINS DAILY PROPHET GRAND PRIZE!"
Oh, he was initially pleased for the family, but as he looked closer at the picture his blood froze, and an unbridled rage flooded his veins.
"No! NO! That can't be! He can't be!"
A pause, whilst Sirius studied the picture intently, and then... "The finger! That rat-faced bastard cut off his own finger!"
A stream of pure vitriol poured from Sirius' mouth, and by the end he was ready to charge to Egypt and murder the rat. But just before he did, he remembered another time he had charged off with rage; he had almost lost everything, and only because of Sebastian and Appoline was he not sat in Azkaban.
And then he remembered the promise he had made; that he wouldn't do something like that again. He sat, stewing, then decided what he would do. Picking up his mirror, he called into it. "Code Stag. Get me Remus."
...
Remus had been having a lovely morning, reading a light novel and sipping a well-brewed cup of tea. He was just thinking about lunch when his mirror glowed blood red and began emitting an ear-splitting sound. Rushing over, he picked up the mirror, ordered "on!" and saw the face of a man with murder in his eyes.
"Talk, Padfoot.", Remus said without preamble.
"This morning's Daily Prophet. Front page. Look at the rat.", Sirius instructed, barely holding his anger.
Without question, Remus reached for the paper – he'd read it already, but hadn't seen anything amiss – found the rat in question, then turned back to Sirius, disbelieving. "Padfoot... It can't... How?!"
"Look at his paw. Look at the traitor's right paw!", growled Sirius.
Remus looked again, then reacted in a nearly identical way to Sirius: creatively swearing his thoughts.
"Ok, how do we do it?", Remus asked.
"Preferably without leaving a body", replied Sirius with certainty.
Remus thought for a moment. "I think we should bring Sebastian and Appoline in. I'll call ahead, you get dressed, meet you there."
Sirius looked down, then remembered he was still in his dressing gown. Nodding at Remus, he ended the call.
...
"Enculé de ta mere!", exclaimed Appoline.
"Exactly. Can Sirius and I join you and Sebastian to discuss?", asked Remus.
Appoline, feathers showing along her arms, just nodded.
As Remus' face disappeared, she called "Sebastian! I need you!", and tried to calm herself enough for her feathers to disappear. It didn't work.
...
It was a mercy that Fleur had taken Gabrielle out for the day, so the four adults could speak openly.
"So how do we deal with Peter?", Sirius asked, his rage now merely simmering, not boiling.
"I'm about to say something that will make you mad, but hear me out", began Appoline. "We must first be sure of 'is guilt."
Sirius' face showed his rage was heating up, but he held his tongue and motioned for her to continue.
"We know 'e is a coward. But if 'e was under a spell that 'alloween night, and 'as been 'iding because 'e fears Sirius, then it would be wrong for us to simply kill 'im", explained Appoline.
Sirius had wanted nothing more than to kill Peter, but if there was any chance he was innocent then it was right to check.
"So what do we do?", asked Remus.
Sebastian replied grimly. "We brew Veritaserum, we find a way to contain 'im, we capture 'im, then see where we are."
...
Peter Pettigrew, a wizard currently in the form of a rat, was content. His life wasn't as comfortable as it was before his master had died, he would admit, but he was cared for and fed. And this holiday in nice, warm Egypt was just what he needed.
He had nearly dosed off in Ron's lap when he heard a strangely familiar voice. Peter tried to remember who it belonged to, but the sun's warmth was calling and he was too tired to think. The voice talked a little longer, then Peter heard footsteps approach; he hoped it was Percy, sneaking him another treat.
But when Peter opened his ratty eyes, he saw it wasn't Percy. It wasn't any of the Weasleys. It was someone much, much worse. "'ello, little rat. Would you like to come play with me and my friends?"
Peter squeaked in panic before a jet of light hit him.
...
"How did it go, my cherished?", asked Sebastian.
Appoline held up the cage. "Very well. The Weasleys are unlikely to remember the encounter, as only one was awake and the allure hit him hard. Peter tried to run, but I'd caught him unaware."
"Good. The others have the room ready", Sebastian stated.
Nodding, the two walked into the prepared room, closed the door, then locked it.
"Now remember, 'e might be innocent. We must determine that first before we do anything we could regret", reminded Appoline.
Nods all around, Appoline took the rat out of the cage, placed it in the middle of the room, and used her wand to transform him back into a wizard they all knew very well. Then, she woke the wizard up.
Peter came to and saw Sirius, Remus, Sebastian and Appoline staring violently at him, wands drawn and ready to strike.
"S...Sirius? R...Remus? S...S... Sebastian? A... Appoline? H...Hello f...friends", Peter stuttered, his eyes racing back and forth looking for a way out.
"Peter. We are going to dose you with Veritaserum and ask you questions. If you struggle, we will be forceful. If you don't struggle, we will be kind", explained Remus.
"V...Veritas...s...serum?", choked Peter.
"Yes. Like I said, if you struggle we will be forceful. And I will let Sirius define 'forceful'."
"O...okay", stuttered Peter, trapped.
...
Half an hour later, Peter was stunned and bound, Sebastian and Appoline were appalled, Sirius was livid, and Remus had thrown up. They all expected that Peter was guilty of betraying James and Lily, but the other crimes he had committed during his Death Eater initiation... those sick, sick acts he had forced a poor family of muggles to endure...
Once Remus had rejoined the group, all that was left was to decide Peter's fate.
"The obvious option is to turn 'im over to the Aurors", stated Sebastian reluctantly.
Remus shook his head. "No, too risky. We used to practise escaping capture during the war, and Peter is very good at it."
"Besides, what do they do with him? Put him in Azkaban? During my brief stint there, I was able to transform into my dog form, and no-one even noticed. He'd escape within a week", Sirius stated, assuredly.
Appoline's face hardened. "We deal with 'im ourselves, then? But 'ow?"
Sebastian's face took on an evil grin. "Is there a way to force Peter to remain in 'is rat form?", asked Sebastian.
Sirius looked confused. "Yes, I think so. But why would we want that?"
"I want 'im to meet two of our friends", Sebastian replied, a glint in his eye.
...
"Geoff! Wake up! It's feeding time!"
"Oh, bloody hell! I'm not ready, Barry. I can't eat another rat yet! Can't we just hiss at Idiot Simon and make him go away?"
"It's not Idiot Simon, Geoff", replied Barry, teasingly.
"It's not...? VOLE WIZARD!"
"Yep! Aren't you glad I woke you up?"
"SO glad! I feel starving already!"
A brief pause, and then Geoff asked an important question. "Wait, where's our Harry?"
Barry blinked. "What? He must be there somewhere!"
"Also, who's the new girl with Vole Wizard?", Geoff also asked.
"Whaaaat? What's going on, Geoff?"
"Hello Geoff, Barry. I am Selina. I'm here to translate today", explained the witch.
"Hurray! Dinner translation! Geoff, you're saved!", cheered Barry.
"What do you mean, I'm saved?", asked Geoff, confused.
"Well, Vole Wizard knows what I always have, but he can't know what you want to eat unless someone tells him", explained Barry, with surprising insight.
Selina chuckled. Did they just call Sebastian 'Vole Wizard'?!
"If I may interrupt, Vole Wizard has come today to ask you for a favour", stated Selina, sniggering a little as she used Sebastian's title.
Geoff and Barry cocked their heads. "What is it?"
"I'm told you know young Harry?", asked Selina.
"Wooo! Harry's the best!", cheered Barry.
"We're planning to adopt him one day", agreed Geoff.
"Well, this is a favour for him, too. You see, Harry's parents are dead, killed by an evil wizard but betrayed by one of their best friends – a wizard called Peter", began Selina.
"Booooo! Peter sounds a hundred times worse than Idiot Simon!"
"Yeah!"
"Well, Vole Wizard and his friends all believed Peter was dead, but really he was hiding as a rat for the last twelve years", continued Selina.
"Whaaat?!"
"See! Bloody rats!"
"A week or so ago, Vole Wizard and friends captured Peter. He's currently held captive in that cage Seb... Vole Wizard is holding", stated Selina.
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!"
"Serves the rat right! But what does Vole Wizard want from us?", asked Geoff, curiously.
"Put simply, he was hoping you would be willing to devour the rat"
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!"
"We hate eating rats. It's all we ever get fed", began Geoff. "But every now and then, Harry and Vole Wizard appear, and treat us like snake royalty, feeding us whatever we like", he continued.
"For them, I'm willing to get rid of their problem", Geoff finished.
"Are you sure, Geoff? You hate rat; I'll do it", offered Barry.
"No Barry, you have your vole. As for me... I've heard I get try wizard today."
Sebastian hadn't wanted any of the children to get involved in vengeance, so none of them knew what was happening, Harry included. He was lucky he had found Selina, another Parselmouth, to help talk to his favourite snakes.
But as Sebastian levitated Peter into the snake enclosure and woke him up; as he watched as rat-Peter fled in terror, only for one of the snakes – Geoff? – to devour him whole, seemingly savouring the experience, Sebastian thought that maybe one day he would share the memory. But only when the children were much, much older.
...
Harry had enjoyed the rest of his summer. After his four weeks with the Dursleys, he had spent his usual two weeks with the Delacours. He had made many cherished memories – taking Fleur and Gabrielle to Celeste's together, brewing more potions with Sebastian and Appoline, hearing all about Sirius' new (or not so new) girlfriend and practising his flying, going sightseeing with Remus, and best of all having a delayed joint birthday party to celebrate Fleur turning fifteen, Harry turning thirteen and Gabrielle turning seven.
Then, there was the visit to Gringotts to surprise Fleur.
"But why do you want to check our account?", asked Fleur, curious.
"Uncle Sebastian said the goblins were going to... invest?... our money. I want to know if we have enough for a big house yet!", said Harry, with a convincing deception.
Together Harry and Fleur, accompanied by Appoline, made their way to the front desk. "Hello Mr. Goblin, can we see our vault?", asked Harry politely.
Shredscalp, the goblin at the desk grunted. 'Not kids!', he thoughts, unknowingly mimicking a colleague from a few years ago. Unfortunately for Shredscalp, that other goblin made an appearance. "I will manage the children, if you wish", came the surprising offer from just behind Shredscalp.
"Oh by all means, Smashface", began Shredscalp. 'waste your time', he finished, in his head.
Smiling a shark-like grin to his colleague, Smashface then turned to the children. "Mr. Potter, Miss. Delacour, Mrs. Delacour, this way, please"
Fleur, remembering this goblin vaguely and having paid attention to the conversation, replied politely, "thank you, Smashface".
Shredscalp looked half outraged, half horrified as Smashface led Harry, Fleur and Appoline to their vault.
After they arrived and the vault opened, Fleur was stunned. "Smashface... where did all the extra gold come from?! That looks about twice as much as we had before!"
Smashface looked towards Harry; at his nod, he continued. "A large transfer was made from Mr. Potter's London vault. The rest has come from investments – which have done well over the last four years. Most of the gold you see is not actually available – it is invested. Magic allows you to see the value of your vault, but you can only remove the galleons that are not invested – about 10% of the value"
Fleur managed to overcome her shock, then asked the important question. "How... how much...?"
Smashface grinned. "Approximately 187,000 galleons."
Appoline, who was similarly shocked, managed to add, "Far more than you need for a house."
Fleur looked to Harry, conflicted. "'arry... How did you...? This is too much..."
Harry shook his head. "Uncle Woof said it was from convicted Death Eaters who had no family left or something – the money from their vaults was given to people who lost family in the war, like me. And like we agreed, half of all the money we receive goes into the vault", Harry replied confidently.
"But 'arry..."
Harry shook his head. "I don't need to have all this for myself. I want to share it, with you."
"Besides", interjected Appoline, "I'd guess about half of the money in the vault is because your Papa negotiated it for 'arry from the Basilisk corpse – Harry wouldn't have received anything otherwise. That means half the money came from your parents, and half came from his, if you think about it."
Harry hadn't thought about it like that before, but he was happy with that reasoning. Changing the topic, he turned to Appoline. "How much do we need for a good house?"
"No more than sixty-five or seventy thousand galleons", Appoline replied.
Harry turned to Fleur, and grinned. "Let's get Gabrielle a vault of her own!"
Both Fleur and Appoline started to feel wetness in their eyes; Harry was just so sweet!
...
Unfortunately, right at the end of the holidays, something terrible had happened. Harry had done something awful, and Fleur would never forgive him, he knew. He didn't plan for it to happen, but he was sure he had now betrayed her in the worst way. He had betrayed his best friend, and he felt awful.
It had happened that last morning before Harry returned to school. The night before, he and Fleur had gone to sleep as usual, though the night was unusually hot. In the morning Harry had woken up first, and he had looked across the room to where Fleur slept in her bed.
But that's where everything went wrong. For Fleur wasn't wearing her pyjama top. She must have taken it off in the night because of the heat, and she must have moved her sheet off of her as well, as Harry could see the smooth skin of her back and shoulder; he even had a teasing view of the side of something that looked very interesting. And in that moment, Harry's hormones hit him like a freight train.
He couldn't tear his eyes away. He was feeling something deep within him – like a hunger – that he'd only ever felt hints of before. Harry shook himself. He shouldn't be staring at Fleur like that! What would she think? He had betrayed her without realising, staring at her like some of his fellow Gryffindors would. Moving as silently as he could, Harry got dressed and fled the room.
...
Fleur was worried. Something had happened to Harry, and she didn't know what. He looked... guilty? Embarrassed? Whatever it was, he had been avoiding her all morning – which was unheard of! – and he wouldn't even tell her Mama or Papa what the problem was!
She knew it had to do with her, for she was the one he was avoiding, but she had no indication what could be the matter! Her Papa was due to take Harry to the station in half an hour, so she had nearly run out of time. Making up her mind, she decided she would have to corner him. They were best friends, and whatever it was they would deal with it together.
Finding him in their room, packing, Fleur walked in and shut the door. "'arry?"
Harry jumped at her voice, and turned slowly. "Fleur?"
She slowly approached him, but Harry looked terrified. "'arry? What is wrong? You've not been yourself this morning, and I'm worried."
Harry tried amateurishly to deny it. "Nothing's wrong! I'm fine! Everything's fine!"
Fleur gave him a stern look. "No, you're not. Tell me what's bothering you!"
Harry's resolve broke. "I'm really sorry, Fleur! I've done something terrible, and I feel really guilty, and I didn't mean to! It just sort of happened, and I stopped as soon as I could, but I've betrayed you, and you're being so nice, but you'll hate me when you find out!" Harry was panicking quite effectively at this point.
Fleur looked very confused. "What did you do?"
Harry was trapped. He had no option but to forge ahead, and let the judgement fall. "I woke up first, and when I looked over to you, you... you...". Harry took a deep breath. "You didn't have your pyjama top on, and your bedsheet had slid down, and I saw your back, naked, and I might have seen part of your... erm... and I tried not to look, but I couldn't! I really tried! And then when I realised I was staring I knew I had to leave the room.
"I'm so sorry, Fleur! I didn't mean to! I don't want to lose my best friend, but I was just awful!", Harry finished, despondently.
Fleur stepped right up to Harry, and he winced, waiting for the verdict. Suffice to say, Fleur's reaction was not what he expected. Leaning forward, Fleur whispered seductively in Harry's ear. "Did you enjoy the view?"
Harry's mind was adrift. "W...what?"
Fleur continued, with a huge grin on her face. "I said, did you enjoy the view, my cherished?", she whispered, her voice hot in Harry's ear, and her arms wrapping around his waist.
Harry had to hold Fleur just to stay upright. He felt like the world was spinning around him, and he couldn't keep up. He knew he must be ill, as his body felt so hot. "I... I don't..."
Fleur gently nibbled Harry's earlobe. "Did you enjoy seeing my naked back? Did you, my cherished?"
Harry moaned. He couldn't help it; what Fleur had just done to his ear had felt so good! "Yes", Harry admitted, his voice dry.
Fleur continued the torturous whispering in his ear. "Good. It's about time you found your desire, 'arry. You've kept me waiting a long time."
Harry couldn't think. Fleur's words and actions had blended his brain to mush. But at that moment, Harry's sanity was saved by a voice calling from downstairs. "Five minutes, my little fly!"
Harry regained a small portion of his senses. He took a step back, so he could look into Fleur's eyes. "Fleur, I... I don't know what's going on, but... but I think I really like it."
Fleur smiled joyfully at Harry. "We can talk later, through the mirrors. We have something important to decide."
Harry tried to blink some sense into his head – he mostly failed, of course. "What do we have to decide?", he asked dumbly, throat still very dry.
"How patient we are", Fleur replied enigmatically.
"Fleur! Stop stealing all of 'arry's time again!", came the seven-year-old whine.
Fleur kissed the very corner of Harry's mouth, and felt the shiver that ran through him. "We will speak soon, no?"
Harry nodded, blushing deeply, then steeling himself he leaned forward and copied Fleur's action – kissing the corner of her mouth. As Fleur's eyes filled with joy, Harry had no doubt she appreciated the action; perhaps as much as he had enjoyed performing it.
chapter 19
Cheveu had waved goodbye to her mum, pulled her trunk onto the Hogwarts express, and was immediately pulled into an empty carriage by Harry.
"Hey little bro, something wrong?", Cheveu began, curious.
Harry nodded frantically, then threw his arms around her before sitting down and fidgeting. Cheveu noted it was world-class fidgeting.
"Ok, something very wrong. Privacy wards?", Cheveu suggested.
Harry nodded once more, so Cheveu cast a privacy charm and mild notice-me-not charm.
"Ok, Harry, what is it? What's happened?", Cheveu asked, jumping straight to it. Harry, however, just opened and closed his mouth, struggling to put his thoughts into words.
"Well, that is serious. Come on, Harry, it's me. You can tell me anything, just start talking and we'll go from there", Cheveu encouraged.
"It's Fleur, and erm... this morning something happened, and I don't really understand it, and so I don't really know what to do. And then Fleur said some things I didn't understand, and now I'm really confused!", Harry rambled.
Cheveu gave Harry a concerned look; he knew how important Fleur was to him, and she hoped nothing bad had happened. "Harry, your sister's good but I'm going to need a little more than 'something' and 'it' to help you out."
Harry took a deep breath, and went for it. "I sort of saw Fleur topless, from behind, and then I couldn't stop staring, and I got all confused, and I think I'm... I think I like her."
"YES!", Cheveu shouted, gleefully. "Finally! You took your sweet time about that, Harry!"
Harry just stared at Cheveu, utterly unable to decipher her reaction.
"Oh, sorry, sorry! So what's the problem? You fancy your gorgeous best friend? That's not a big deal, especially in this case", Cheveu tried to reassure Harry.
"It is a big deal! But that's not the...". Harry cleared his throat. "It happened when Fleur was asleep, and then I felt really guilty so I just ran, and tried to avoid her this morning."
Cheveu's eyes were sparkling. "Wait, this is fresh as of this morning?!"
Harry nodded, so Cheveu asked, "then what?"
"Well, Fleur was worried, so she cornered me, then I tried to pretend everything was fine but she knew it wasn't, then I had to admit to what I'd done... you know, staring at her like that...", Harry explained, then paused.
Cheveu was almost bouncing on her seat. "Yes? And then?!"
Harry blushed. "She, erm... asked me if I liked what I saw. She got really close, and she was whispering in my ear, and I couldn't think, but when I said I did she said I'd kept her waiting or something."
Cheveu was giddy. "Yes...? What then?!"
"Well, Sebastian called up to say we needed to leave...", Harry began.
"NO!", cried Cheveu disappointedly.
"...so I told Fleur I didn't know what was happening but that I liked it. Then she kissed me right here...", Harry pointed to the very corner of his mouth, "...and I, erm, did the same to Fleur, then we agreed to talk later", Harry finished, blushing a little.
"Oh, so close!", groaned Cheveu, sitting back dramatically in her seat.
"But I still don't really understand it!", complained Harry.
Cheveu smiled ruefully, shaking her head. Was it always like this with first relationships? "Ok, let me explain really, really simply", Cheveu began. "Fleur adores you, you know that. But she is also really attracted to you, and has been since she was about 10. She..."
"What?! No she isn't... is she?", Harry asked, a swirl of emotions inside him.
Cheveu gave him a 'You're being an idiot' look. "Think about it, my dense little brother". That earned Cheveu a put-out expression. "You think Fleur goes around kissing everyone almost on the lips? Or holding their hand? Or cuddling up in bed?"
Harry shook his head quickly; he certainly hoped not!
Cheveu continued. "If you saw a girl acting that way to, I dunno, Ron – kissing him on the cheek, cuddling with him, holding his hand, hugging him every chance she got – what would you think?"
Harry thought about it. Really thought about it. And he reached the obvious conclusion. "I'm an idiot!". Cheveu nodded her agreement.
"Fleur's fancied me for ages!", Harry continued. Another nod from Cheveu.
"My gorgeous, sweet, loving best friend fancies me!", Harry elaborated.
"Now you're getting it!", replied Cheveu, cheerfully.
After a few minutes of consideration, a horrible suspicion started to grow in Harry. "Cheveu? You said holding hands, or kissing cheeks, or lots of hugs are signs someone fancies you?", Harry asked, worried.
"Yep! And gazing at you from a distance, touching your shoulder often, leaning into you, sitting really close to you. Or making more of an effort with how they look when they see you, or...", Cheveu continued.
"Wait, wait, wait!", Harry interrupted, his suspicion growing stronger. "That doesn't always mean someone doing those things likes you, does it?"
Cheveu shook her head. "Of course not. Family, for example, doesn't count – though family wouldn't kiss you right next to your mouth, or ask you seductively if you liked seeing them topless, bro."
Harry groaned again at the reminder.
Cheveu continued, "So you don't need to worry about me, or Appoline, or Gabrielle; we all love you, just not in that way." She shuddered, to make her point. "Of course then there are people who are naturally more affectionate with everyone, so it's harder to tell. People like Katie."
Harry sighed in relief. "Ok, so Katie doesn't fancy me then."
Cheveu smiled merrily – this was fun! "Oh no, Katie definitely fancies you; I just mean that if you see her hug the twins often it doesn't mean she likes them."
Harry felt... he didn't know what he felt! But of course, his loving sister was there to help Harry feel even worse.
"But it's not just Fleur and Katie, Harry. Come on, who else? Guess!", Cheveu asked eagerly, as if the question wasn't merciless.
Harry buried his head in his hands. After a few moments, a quiet "Susan?" was heard.
Cheveu nodded quite happily. "Yeah, pretty sure she does! Come on, who else?"
Harry looked up, horrified. "There's someone else?!"
Cheveu laughed, joyfully. "someone! You're so funny, Harry!"
Harry buried his face in his hands and groaned again. Cheveu asked again, merrily. "Come on, little brother of mine, who else?"
Harry mumbled his reply. "Ginny? Colin?"
Cheveu nodded again, her mood getting, if anything, chirpier by the minute. "Ginny definitely, Colin quite possibly, though that might just be hero-worship. A few seventh years from last year, though they've now graduated. A few others I think maybe, but none that I'm sure of."
Harry groaned. "What am I going to do?"
Cheveu smiled and replied. "You don't have to do anything, Harry. But I can offer you advice, if you'd like?"
At Harry's nod, Cheveu continued. "Firstly, don't go to Hogsmeade alone with a girl, unless you want it to be a date or you're very clear it's not a date. Secondly..."
...
Whilst Cheveu was having the best of times, enjoying Harry's suffering on the train, Sebastian and Appoline were making their own entertainment.
"And just through here, you'll find the snakes. We have several varieties, but the Burmese Pythons are my personal favourite", said the man.
"Simon is their favourite, too. If you watch, the two pythons will get really animated when they notice him!", said Simon's co-worker.
"Oh hell, it's Idiot Simon again, Barry!", groaned Geoff.
"Boo! Boo! He's rubbish, don't listen to him!", cried Barry.
"Wow, you're right! They really are animated, they must love you!", said one of the visitors Simon was talking to.
"Leave us alone, you rat-bringing sadist!"
"Rat monster! Rat monster!"
It was then that Appoline entered the enclosure, her allure leaking a little – just enough to ensure the group's attention. Sebastian walked up to Geoff and Barry, spotting the rat bones he scouted earlier.
"Vole Wizard! What are you doing here?!", Barry asked.
"Aww hell, he can't understand us, can he?", Geoff complained.
"Wait, did Vole Wizard just wink at us, Geoff?", asked Barry, confused.
"Look! He's holding his wand up his sleeve! What's he got planned?", wondered Geoff.
They didn't need to wait to find out. Sebastian didn't do much, really. No active magic, as that was not allowed in the presence of muggles. All he did was cancel a spell; and if asked, he'd say it was purely so that active magic wasn't present in a Muggle location.
"He didn't!"
"He did!"
"Come on, Idiot Simon, turn round and notice!"
"Vole Wizard is such a hero!"
"Excuse me, what are those bones in the enclosure", asked Appoline, playing her role.
"Oh, probably the snakes' last meal. They sometimes leave bones if they can't digest them properly, which is..."
"SIMON! ARE THOSE HUMAN BONES?!" interrupted his co-worker, panicking.
"Of course not, why would there be... HUMAN BONES! QUICK! CALL THE MANAGER!"
...
Harry was trying to follow Cheveu's advice. He had tried to act like nothing was the matter, smiling innocently as Katie hugged him tightly (she was so pretty! And why did she smell of strawberries? He loved strawberries; it wasn't fair!), Susan hugged him and let her hand linger on his arm for a few moments (she was so pretty too! And she had two really... no, don't notice them!), Ginny blushed when he said hello (Damn it!), and Daphne waved.
Ok, that last one was probably fine, Harry thought, but now he was paranoid! At least Harry knew that he had Cheveu to help; hopefully he could survive the term, then he could see the girl he really liked again. As he was thinking about Fleur, her voice called his name from the mirror. Harry, who had been sat on his bed, busy thinking, picked up the mirror with a sense of trepidation.
"Hi Fleur", Harry greeted, nervously.
Fleur giggled. "Oh 'arry, I'm not that scary, am I?"
Harry shook his head. "It's my feelings I find a bit scary, not you... my cherished". Harry would never admit he had practiced that line. He was also nervous about those last two words, though he meant them.
Fleur's face lit up, either at the term of endearment (though she had used it liberally in their conversations) or Harry's sentiment; Harry wasn't sure which. "And what are those feelings, 'arry?"
Harry gulped. "I... Well... You see..." Harry swallowed and tried again. He had practiced this bit too, on Cheveu's advice, though Fleur would never have guessed. "I know we're best friends, but I really like you, Fleur. I mean, like like you. You're so pretty, and kind, and sweet. I just... Yeah", Harry finished, a little weakly.
Fleur was beaming. This was what she hoped he was going to say. After years of waiting, her best friend finally fancied her!
"Do you know how long I've desired you, my cherished?", Fleur asked. Harry shivered at the word 'desired'.
"Erm... Cheveu, she said... I mean, I spoke to her and she helped me understand, and she said it might have been a few years?", Harry finished, nervously.
"'arry, I have desired you for over five years..." Fleur began. Wow – so Cheveu was completely right, Harry thought to himself. "...and that desire has only ever grown. I have dreamt about kissing you, and more, and a few times I've nearly just given in and claimed your lips with mine."
Harry had the feeling that if they had just had a few more minutes that morning, some of Fleur's dreams would have become reality. He cursed not having had a few more minutes that morning.
Fleur continued, "But that leaves us with a decision, my cherished. Should we start a relationship, or not?"
Harry looked confused. "Fleur? Why wouldn't we... I mean, I'd like to... if we could... you know...", Harry finished, blushing.
Fleur held a teasing smile. "Be boyfriend and girlfriend? So we could kiss, and explore each other? So I could show you what you only caught glimpses of this morning?"
Harry blushed deep red; was Fleur being serious? Would she really show him...? Before he could finish thinking, Harry's skull decided his brain was being too slow, and nodded quickly.
Fleur shook her head, still smiling a little. "I'm sorry, my cherished, I shouldn't tease. I really want it to, there's just one thing to consider: long distance relationships don't usually last, and Mama always said that we might want to wait before starting a relationship."
"That sounds like a terrible idea!", Harry blurted out, then blushed.
Fleur grinned. "That's what I said, years ago! But we can both think about it, and we can decide when we see each other at Christmas?"
Harry nodded his agreement, and the two moved to safer topics.
...
"Welcome back class! I hope you enjoyed your summer break. Hands up if you made some potions over the holidays", asked Jones, hopefully. About half the hands in the room went up, including Harry's.
"Well, that's not bad. And I can see most muggleborn students didn't, which is a shame but completely understandable – you don't want to risk the statute of secrecy, or get yourself injured by a badly-mixed potion!", Jones stated fairly happily.
"Ok, anyone brew anything we haven't covered in class yet?" Then, as Harry's hand eagerly shot up, "Yes, Harry, I know you have, of course. Anyone else?"
Shakes of heads around the room. "Oh well, nevermind. Ok, Harry, brew me something interesting, as I already know you've covered this year's strength potions in enough detail. The rest of you: spoilers, it's strength potions today."
Harry grinned, and gathered some ingredients. He had brewed the draught of peace a few times, and thought that would meet criteria!
As the lesson ended, Jones asked Harry to stay behind. Once the rest of the class had left, she beckoned Harry forward.
"Yes, Professor Jones?", asked Harry politely.
"You amaze me, Harry. I know you've had more formal instruction than the rest of the class, but you're already on the fifth year potions curriculum", Jones began.
"Now, I have an offer. If you'd like, I would be willing to provide some one-to-one Potions tutoring one evening per week, focusing on any gaps you have in your knowledge", Jones offered kindly.
Harry was confused. "Gaps in my knowledge? I don't understand, professor."
Jones grinned at Harry. "Well, how else can we ensure you're definitely ready to sit your Potion OWL this summer?"
Harry stared in shock. "My Potions... OWL?
Jones nodded. "Only if you're interested. Honestly, I was hoping you could finish your Potions NEWT by fifth year, then perhaps you'd be interested in a Potions mastery across your sixth and seventh?", Jones suggested.
Harry looked torn. "But wouldn't that be a lot of extra work for you, professor?"
Jones grinned. "Profitable extra work – I'll use my personal ingredient stores so that the finished potions belong to me and not the school, then we sell them and split the profit of anything you brew.
"Also, you happen to be one of my favourite students, so there's that, too", Jones finished with a grin.
Harry grinned back. "Ok, when do we start?"
...
A couple of days later, Harry was in the Gryffindor common room with Neville, Hermione and Ron, finishing some homework that Shacklebolt had set for Defence Against the Dark Arts. He was so focused on his work that he didn't notice anyone was approaching until they sat down next to him, close enough to throw an arm over his shoulder – which they did. The scent of strawberries told Harry who it was before the voice did.
"Hey Harry", Katie began quietly, so not to disturb the others. "Nearly finished?"
Harry nodded. Thankfully he had nearly finished, otherwise he wasn't sure he would be able to concentrate; was Katie flirting? Did she want to kiss him? Was this going to ruin their friendship? Why was one of his close friends so pretty?!
Summoning up heroic levels of concentration, Harry finished his last two paragraphs, then turned to face Katie. Damn it, she was so close he could count her eyelashes!
"Can we talk in private? Maybe go for a walk?", Katie asked quietly.
'Oh no!', Harry thought. "Sure, of course, let me just tidy up my homework", Harry replied.
Delaying only slightly, Harry dropped his work in his room and came back down the stairs. Then, apprehensively, he followed Katie out of Gryffindor tower. He didn't feel any better when Katie hooked his arm in hers.
Katie started speaking, a little nervously. "Look, I... Something's been different between us since we got back from summer, I can feel it", she began.
Harry opened his mouth to deny it, but Katie shook her head. "No, don't interrupt, this is hard enough as it is", she pleaded.
"I... I really like you, and have for a while. And I guess you've noticed, and you're finding it weird?", Katie asked.
Harry knew that wasn't quite it, but he wasn't going to tell Katie he thought she was pretty and his hormones were distracting him!
Katie didn't let Harry answer, continuing before he could reply. "But I know your heart's set on Fleur, so I'm not going to try and make any moves. I just don't want my feelings to stop us being friends – you're one of my best friends, and I'd be gutted if I lost that", Katie finished, desperately hoping she hadn't detonated their friendship.
Harry stopped walking and turned to Katie, who also stopped. Her face held such a look of hope – a sad and melancholic hope, but hope nonetheless. Harry did the only thing he could do - he pulled Katie into a tight, warm hug, right there in the halls of the school. "You're one of my best friends too, Katie. I'm sorry I can't give you a relationship, but I can give you a brilliant friendship. And I'm sorry I've been weird."
Katie hugged Harry back fiercely, and if a few tears leaked from her eyes, Harry wasn't going to comment.
The two friends talked some more on their walk, mostly back to their normal friendship. Partway round, Katie had an idea. "Harry, you, erm... You know I'm not the only Hogwarts girl who likes you, right?"
Harry, shuddered a little. "I, erm, yeah. So I understand."
"And you know those girls are likely to ask you to Hogsmeade on a date, right?", Katie asked. Then giggled, as she noticed Harry's second shudder.
"Hey! Don't laugh! I feel terrible about it!", Harry whined.
Katie shook her head in amusement; he really wasn't doing himself any favours, with how cute he was being. "Well, I thought... maybe we could go to Hogsmeade together?", Katie asked.
"Just as friends!", she quickly clarified. "And only if you didn't think Fleur would mind! But other girls might see it and assume otherwise, even if we said we were just friends, and that might stop you being quite so hounded", Katie explained.
...
Fleur didn't mind; in fact, she thought it was sweet that Harry wanted to check with her. The fact it might put off some of the other girls was a bonus.
Cheveu also thought it was a great idea, as long as Harry was really sure they were only going as friends... though she did resolve to check on them in Hogsmeade surreptitiously, just in case.
The Hogsmeade visit came up soon enough, and Harry enjoyed the time with Katie. It felt like her summer visits – just a fun day out with one of his best friends. They checked out Honeydukes ("yuck, don't buy those, they taste of cockroach" "what?! Ewww!"), Zonko's (you need to try the sugar quills!"), Scrivenshaft's ("I've written too many letters already"), Gladrags ("Erm, you might want to wait outside while I buy a few... things"), and the newest shop, Master Potions ("Wow, that shopkeeper really seemed to hate you" "Definitely evil").
Katie and Harry then enjoyed a late lunch in The Three Broomsticks, chatting about anything and everything like the good friends they were. And if some people had happened to see them and falsely assume they were on a date? Well, so be it.
Katie and Harry both felt relieved by the end of the day – not that the day was over, but that they had been able to enjoy the day in each other's company, without their hormones getting in the way. They both knew their friendship had not weakened this term.
...
The rest of the term passed without too much incident, with Harry managing to avoid letting on that his hormones were regularly going crazy – he'd even thought during one of his one-on-one Potion sessions that he found Hestia Jones somewhat attractive; a thought he promptly and mentally grabbed hold of, shot, and buried near the Earth's core.
But if his hormones were going crazy during the term, it was nothing compared to how they were as the Hogwarts express pulled into London. Harry wasn't even sure if he said goodbye to his friends (he did), but upon seeing Appoline he raced towards her, threw his arms around her in greeting, then impatiently waited for her to apparate them to the Delacour Home. Which she didn't; at least not straight away.
"Aunt Appoline? Where are we?", Harry asked, not recognising the street they were on.
"I know you're eager to see Fleur, and to finish your 'conversation' from the end of summer", Appoline stated with a smirk, "but first I wanted to talk to my Godson. So, we're here at a wonderful cafe a little north of Paris."
Harry blushed, correctly guessing that Fleur must have confided in her Mama. The embarrassment overrode Harry's impatience, so it was with very little protest that Harry followed Appoline into the cafe. After ordering their drinks and cakes, Appoline and Harry sat down at a secluded table.
"What did you want to talk about, Aunt Appoline?", Harry asked, dreading the answer. "Oh, not that I don't enjoy just spending time with you, of course! I love you dearly, after all".
Appoline smiled fondly at Harry. "As you have probably guessed, it's about you and Fleur. I wanted to tell you something, so you're properly informed."
Harry panicked, a little. "Is she ok? Has something happened? I was only speaking to her this morning, and..."
"Hush, my little cabbage, nothing is wrong", Appoline interrupted. Taking a deep breath, she began to explain. "Fleur adores you. She craves you. But she is torn; her heart wants you now, but her head tells her she should wait a couple of years until she finishes school.
"Harry, she is smitten with you. If you were to ask for a relationship, she would cave to the desires of her heart instantly. But in her head, she worries that such a relationship – given the distance – may not last, and that she risks losing her very best friend over it", Appoline explained.
Harry felt conflicted. He barely tasted the sweet dessert or the bitter coffee as he consumed them, deep in thought as he was.
Appoline understood that Harry needed the time to think, so they sat in thoughtful silence.
Eventually, Harry came to a decision. He knew what he would do. Thanking his Godmother for her advice, whatever he decided, the two left the cafe for the Delacour home.
...
"Fleur!"
"'arry!"
After an initial embrace – during which Harry had to wonder if she had always looked so good, smelt so good, felt so good – the pair raced upstairs to their bedroom.
This time, instead of cuddling, the pair sat nervously on the bed, inches apart, facing each other.
"So, what do you think?", Fleur half-whispered, her eyes shining and her allure gushing from her.
Harry swallowed, then replied, "what do you think?", his eyes flickering down to Fleur's red lips.
"I think I really want to kiss you", Fleur replied in that half-whisper, dodging the real question.
"But what do you think about a relationship?", Harry asked, desperately trying to resist his own desires long enough to finish the conversation.
Fleur hesitated. That told Harry the truth if Appoline's words. "'arry, I fear we should wait, by I have no desire to."
"Neither do I", Harry admitted quietly.
"But we should", Fleur stated, a little more confidently. To show how serious she was, she climbed onto Harry's lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"So we're going to wait?", Harry clarified, his hands running up Fleur's back and into her hair.
"Mmhmmm, we wait", Fleur agreed, leaning towards Harry, one hand now holding the back of his head, fingers threaded in his hair.
"Fleur...?" Harry gazed into her eyes, their lips only a few centimetres apart.
"Yes, my cherished?", came the reply, expectant and eager.
And then Harry closed the remaining distance, his lips softly moving against Fleur's. Fleur moaned in delight, her lips caressing his in return, whilst one hand gently held his head and the other pulled his body even closer.
Harry was in bliss; Fleur's lips tasted of vanilla, and her allure... Harry could taste that too, and he craved more.
Soft kisses turned to eager kisses, and eager kisses turned to passionate kisses when Fleur parted her lips and ran her tongue along Harry's. Now it was Harry's turn to moan, and Fleur knew she had to hear the sound again and again.
After a few minutes Fleur and Harry parted, lips pleasantly bruised, cheeks flushed and eyes sparkling.
"'arry?", Fleur began, when she had gotten her senses back.
"Yes, my cherished?", Harry replied adoringly.
"We need more practise; I think we're really bad at not being in a relationship", Fleur stated, mock seriously.
Harry giggled, then asked the key question. "So where does this leave us?"
Fleur, eyes still shining, replied. "I still think it's better to wait, much as I don't want to. But if we sometimes give into temptation and kiss like that again, I shall find a way to endure."
And to prove how well she could endure, Fleur kissed him again, and again, until Gabrielle's shouts and footsteps were heard. Maybe they just needed more practise in Not Dating, Harry thought. They had very recently become terrible at it.
chapter 20
Tom Marvolo Riddle would have passed out from the pain, if his wraith form was capable of doing so. As it was, he endured a level of suffering that crippled him beyond anything that had happened so far. Minutes later the pain receded a little, and Tom was horrified – he felt his very magic had weakened slightly, desperately struggling to sustain him as death had tried to violently drag him to the grave.
He had felt near death almost continuously over the last twelve years, but this... the most feared Dark Lord knew that if this continued his very magic would be at stake.
...
Gabrielle had been waiting very patiently whilst Harry and Fleur had their 'important conversation', as Papa had called it. When she was finally allowed to interrupt them, Gabrielle both shouted and raced up the stairs, and when she charged into Fleur's room it was to find them looking... suspicious. She couldn't figure out why, but suspicious was definitely the word for it. Probably.
Narrowing her eyes, she was about to ask about it when Harry's eyes grew wide. Then, a big smile blossomed on his face. Then he ran up to his little sister, picked her up in a big hug, and excitedly proclaimed, "Gabrielle! You've got your allure!"
Instantly distracted, Gabrielle half-blushed, half-grinned proudly. "I know! It arrived during the first few weeks of school, which Mama says is better so the school gets used to it earlier."
Harry wore a fake scandalised expression, though inwardly he was delighted. "You've had your allure for months and didn't tell your big brother?!"
Gabrielle stuck her tongue out. "So that it could be a surprise!"
Harry popped Gabrielle down, then held out his hand. Gabrielle's little hand found Harry's, but before going downstairs she turned and asked, "You're coming too, right Fleur?"
Fleur blushed then nodded. "As soon as I quickly brush my hair". It had, after all, gotten quite disheveled.
"'arry, were you playing with Fleur's hair again?", Gabrielle asked accusingly.
Harry merely shrugged guiltily, then led his little sister downstairs.
Sebastian and Appoline were waiting in ambush. "Where's Fleur, my angel?" asked Appoline, slightly apprehensive.
Gabrielle gave a dramatic sigh and explained before Harry could think of an excuse. "She's having to brush her hair, as 'arry messed it up!"
Sebastian smiled knowingly. "Oh did he? How did you mess Fleur's hair up, 'arry?"
"Yes 'arry, how could that possibly have happened?", asked Appoline with a grin. Internally, she was a little disappointed Harry and Fleur had apparently opted not to wait, though she could hardly blame them!
Harry blushed and struggled to find the words; where was Fleur when he needed her?!
"Well, 'arry must have been playing with Fleur's hair again, right?" Gabrielle asked. She was confused: Why was everyone asking Harry such an easy question? And why wasn't he answering?
"Right, 'arry?", asked Gabrielle again.
"Yes, do tell us my little cabbage, is that all you were doing?", teased Sebastian, grinning.
It was at that moment that Fleur came downstairs, her hair looking slightly less wild than it did a minute ago.
"Gabrielle, my angel, you were right! Fleur's hair does look messy! Fleur, we were just asking 'arry how that happened. Anything you want to share?", Appoline teased.
Harry and Fleur shared a look, both their faces the colour of a ripe tomato. Fleur, having expected the interrogation, had planned a defence. "'arry's hands messed up my hair, Mama", Fleur stated, careful not to tell a lie.
"Is that all? It looked as though you might have some news to share with your family", Sebastian hinted.
Harry and Fleur both shook their heads very quickly.
"Really? So nothing has changed? The two of you are still just friends?", Appoline outright asked. The two of them were being inadvertently adorable!
"Yes, Mama, we're going to try to remain just friends for now." Fleur knew she had misspoke as soon as her Mama and Papa's eyes twinkled.
"Oh? 'try'? Angel, has that become difficult? Perhaps you were finding that a challenge upstairs?" Appoline asked, her face grinning.
"Perhaps they were grappling with... 'the challenge'?", Sebastian intimated.
"Papa!" "Sebastian!" One voice scandalised, one fighting amusement.
"'arry and I were not grappling! We were just...", Fleur realised what she was about to say and stopped; unfortunately it was not fast enough.
"Just what, my angel?", asked Sebastian. Fleur's Mama and Papa were grinning at her like sharks!
A few moments of silence, as even Gabrielle understood that something important was about to be declared.
"We were kissing", Fleur admitted quietly. Harry stood next to her, and reached out to hold her hand in support.
"You mean on the cheek?", asked Gabrielle, confused. "Is that meant to be exciting?"
"No, not on the cheek, my little fly. Fleur means they were kissing like this:" Sebastian explained, then kissed him wife with a small degree of passion. Appoline didn't think that conveyed enough passion, so she lightly nibbled Sebastian's lower lip. Just for Gabrielle's benefit, of course.
Gabrielle's eyes widened, and turned to the accused. "You were kissing kissing?!" she asked, excited.
Harry and Fleur nodded hesitantly, then Fleur clarified. "Yes, but we're going to try not to again, and stay just friends until I finish school."
Gabrielle looked baffled. "That sounds like a terrible idea!" she exclaimed.
Appoline laughed, her lips still occupied with her husband's. "That makes three identical reactions", she noted amusedly, after pausing her kiss for a moment.
"Does that mean you're going to get married when you're older?!", Gabrielle asked excitedly. Harry and Fleur refused to look at each other, but both thought the idea sounded wonderful.
Appoline, granting a small mercy, replied for the new not-couple. "Not necessarily. Maybe, but not definitely."
Gabrielle looked a little sad. "But if they did, then 'arry would be my brother for real!", she declared.
Harry shook his head; Gabrielle still didn't seem to understand. He let go of Fleur's hand, crouched down in front of Gabrielle, and looked her carefully in the eye. "That wouldn't make me your real brother, my little cabbage. How could it? I already am your real brother, and I'll be your real brother forever."
Gabrielle looked surprised for a moment, then with happy tears in her eyes, she launched herself at Harry and hugged him violently. He had said similar before, but to hear it again and in such a way caused her much joy.
"I love you, 'arry", Gabrielle declared through her tears.
"I love you too, Gabrielle. And I always will", replied her big brother.
"And to prove it, I'm taking you to Celeste's", Harry added.
Gabrielle giggled through her tears. "When?"
"Well, lots more times. The next time is as soon as you put your shoes on, little sister", came the reply.
...
Fleur watched as Harry and Gabrielle left the house, holding hands and skipping away. He was so caring, and sweet. Every moment together made her love him more!
As Fleur turned round, she faced her parents, with frowns on their faces.
"Fleur?", began Sebastian.
"Yes, Papa?" she answered, nervously.
"We understand this is an embarrassing topic for you, but we need to know, truly. What is your relationship now with 'arry?", asked Sebastian, seriously.
Fleur fidgeted. "We are honestly going to try to resist a relationship for now. But Papa, it is so hard! I see him and I just want to kiss him over and over, and..."
Fleur took a deep breath. "I love him, Papa. I love him so much."
Appoline was glad to hear it, but her and Sebastian had a question they needed to ask. "Do we need to give 'arry his own room?"
"Mama?", Fleur questioned.
Sebastian asked more bluntly. "Do we risk you getting pregnant if you continue to share a room?"
"PAPA!", Fleur shouted, scandalised. Sebastian merely held his questioning gaze in reply.
Fleur shook her head emphatically. "Papa, we're not... We've only just kissed! And that's as far as we'll go until... Not that we're even planning to keep kissing!", Fleur rambled.
Appoline and Sebastian shared a look. "We're placing a lot of trust on you, if we let you continue to share a room. We would not be happy if that trust was broken", Appoline warned.
Fleur gulped, then nodded. But Sebastian had one more thing to say. "One other question. Again, we need you to answer honestly". He paused for a few moments, just to let sufficient dread permeate Fleur's skin. "How was the kiss?", Sebastian finished with a teasing grin.
Fleur didn't even mind the tease. A hungry expression passed across her face at the thought of the earlier kisses. "Oh Papa, it was wonderful! It's really not fair!"
...
Gabrielle was brimming with joy. Celeste's was just as good as she remembered – the Mille-feuille was delicious, as was the chocolate macaron Harry had let her have as a bonus; Harry and Fleur had kissed, and might even get married; Harry was excited about Gabrielle's allure, and his happiness about it was the only change in his reaction around her; Harry really was her big brother; and he was still willing to give her piggyback rides.
The rest of the holidays passed too quickly for Gabrielle's liking. She got to spend lots of time with her brother and sister, though there were a couple of times where she had found them looking suspicious; maybe they had kissed again! She also got to see Harry perform some magic with his Phoenix wand, which was so exciting, and best of all she was now allowed to join in with potion brewing, with Harry and Fleur teaching her for a bit!
But all too soon she was giving a big, clingy hug to her big brother, with earnest promises that they would speak soon.
Her sister got a longer hug from him, and a kiss that was right next to her mouth – did that count as a kiss kiss or not? She assumed not, but would ask her sister after Harry had gone. She would certainly have felt a bit weird if her brother had kissed her like that – ewww!
...
Back on the train, Harry reflected that he and Fleur hadn't done too badly. Oh, the first day had been a complete failure: they had kissed before Gabrielle had interrupted them, and then later that evening, after they had gone up to their room a little early, Fleur had pounced on him – she had claimed it was because of how sweet he had been with Gabrielle. And then after talking and cuddling for a while, Harry had been unable to resist kissing Fleur again before he moved to his own bed; and that was perhaps their longest and most loving kiss of the day.
But the next day they guiltily admitted that they would need to do better, and there had only been three other lapses during the two week break. Oh, and the one in the park. And the one at Celeste's, although how was he to resist when Fleur offered him a taste of her éclair, albeit from her mouth? So there had only been five additional lapses, which Harry was fairly proud of.
His thoughts were interrupted when Katie joined him in the carriage, followed by Hermione and Neville a minute later, and then Ron just before the train started moving.
"Have a good break, Harry?" Katie asked from her seat next to him, whilst Ron desperately tried to persuade either Hermione or Neville to help him with his Herbology and/or History of Magic homework.
Harry smiled; it was a very good break, though he didn't plan to share all the details with Katie! He was just beginning to reply – "It was good, thanks. I..." – when the door opened and an impatient Cheveu entered the carriage.
"Ok, spill! What happened over Christmas, Harry?" Cheveu demanded, her hair cycling through pink and orange. Then, seeing that Katie was in the carriage, her hair turned bright red and she exclaimed, "Oh hell... maybe not everyone wants to know."
Katie picked up the context quite quickly. "Oh, something happen between you and Fleur, Harry? I'm sure we'd all be happy to hear about it", Katie reassured, whilst hoping she had avoided hinting at her unrequited feelings to the rest carriage.
Harry glanced at Katie, who tried to give a cheerful smile. Resigned, he turned to Cheveu. "We... well, we erm... we decided to wait."
Cheveu's mouth fell open, and her hair turned bright orange. "WHAT?! Harry! Why?!"
Harry sighed at the question. "Because Fleur was worried that a long-distance relationship might not work, and she didn't want to risk it", Harry explained.
"Fleur said that?! And she didn't even try to kiss you?!" Cheveu asked, disbelievingly.
Harry blushed. "Well, Aunt Appoline told me Fleur wasn't sure, so I asked her when we talked about it", Harry replied, deliberately ignoring the second question.
Katie gave Harry a strange look. "But you're not going to date anyone else while you wait, right?" Katie didn't want to examine her emotions too closely, as she had no desire to know what her heart wanted to hear.
Harry shook his head quickly. "No, I'm not going to date anyone else. That would be... Just really unfair to Fleur and to the girl."
Cheveu flopped down onto an empty carriage seat dramatically. "I can't believe you haven't even kissed Fleur yet!"
Harry blushed, but kept silent.
"Harry?" Katie asked.
'Oh Merlin, surely Katie isn't going to be the one to push?!' Harry thought. "Yes?", he replied nervously.
"Did you and Fleur kiss?" Katie asked directly.
Harry blushed even deeper. All eyes in the carriage were on him. "Erm..."
Cheveu was baffled. "But you said you decided not to date!"
A part of Harry's brain wondered just how hot his face could feel. "Maybe I should've said we agreed to try to wait", Harry admitted.
Cheveu was there like a shark who had smelt blood. "How many times did you kiss, little brother?", Cheveu asked, perhaps slightly menacingly. He'd nearly gotten such an important detail past her!
Three times that first day, five more after, which made... "Eight", Harry admitted.
"You shared eight passionate, toe-curling kisses with your best friend?" This time, it was Katie who asked.
Harry nodded, his head now hiding behind the fortress of his hands, cheeks burning.
"High five!" Katie offered, bravely squashing her own emotions.
Cheveu laughed, a little relieved. Neville was stunned, but resolved to ask Harry about kissing girls later. Ron looked envious, but also resolved to ask Harry about kissing girls later. Hermione rolled her eyes, a small smile on her face. And Harry groaned, then high fived Katie's hand feeling a little embarrassed, head still hiding behind one hand.
...
Back at the Delacours', after Fleur had been dropped off at Beauxbatons and Gabrielle was busy playing elsewhere, Appoline had a question. "Sebastian, my heart?"
Sebastian smiled affectionately. "Yes, my love?"
"Remind me about your promise to Lily? About the cloak?" Appoline asked.
Sebastian smiled at the question. Though thoughts of that fateful Halloween were still desperately sad, remembering the happier days were now more positive. "Although James had a more... Marauder's opinion of the right time, Lily didn't want Harry to have the cloak until he really needed it, or until he passed his OWLs."
Appoline smiled, shaking her head. "Well, a promise is a promise, my heart. At least Lily was happy for us to use it, in the meantime!" Chuckled Appoline.
...
Hermione was in a good mood. She always was, after a morning of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. The fact that one of her best friends had taken the subjects with her was a real bonus.
As she gathered her things and turned to her friend in question, she found he was being approached by a mutual friend of theirs; well, a friend of his, a friendly acquaintance of hers – she really should get to know Daphne better.
"Hello Harry", greeted Daphne. "Hi Hermione", she added politely.
"Hi Daphne!" "Hello Daphne" came the replies.
"Could we talk in private after class?", Daphne asked, giving Harry a strange look. Hermione groaned internally. Another one?! Harry wasn't that fanciable!
"Of course, Daphne. Hermione, I'll see you in the great hall?", Harry replied, cheerfully clueless.
Daphne took her time collecting her things; even Professor Vector had left by the time she was finished. Daphne turned to Harry, and surprised him by taking his hand in hers. "Harry", she began, a sultry edge to her voice, "will you take me to Hogsmeade this weekend? I'd love to get to know you better." Then, just in case her desires were not obvious, she leaned forward and kissed Harry's cheek, uncomfortably close to his mouth.
"Wha... Daphne?", Harry managed to squeak. This was not what he was expecting! Daphne was a friend, and hadn't shown any interest in him before, he was sure!
Suddenly, a noise came from outside the classroom. Turning towards it, Daphne let go of Harry's hand, took out her wand and stalked towards the door. "WHO'S SPYING ON ME?!" She shouted, looking around the door and seeing two figures scarpering.
Daphne's shoulders relaxed, tension dropping off them. Heading back to Harry, she patted his arm affectionately. "Sorry about that, Harry. There are some pretty persistent Slytherins who want to get in my knickers, so I had to throw them off my scent. Now they'll think I'm after you, which gives me some time to deal with them properly", Daphne explained, casually.
Harry looked concerned. "Wait, what? I mean, erm, will you be ok?", he asked.
"I will now. I know I didn't give you much of a choice, but thanks!" Daphne replied, then gave Harry a brief hug.
Harry sighed in relief. "Good! I thought for a moment that you really fancied me. But you don't, right?"
Daphne cocked her head to the side. "You're attractive enough, and we're good friends, so if you'd shown me some interest I might've shown some back", Daphne admitted, perhaps flirting a little.
"But I know the second you finally woke up to your hormones", Daphne began, whacking Harry lightly on his arm, "you were already taken. Katie sure moves fast", Daphne groused, only half seriously.
Harry opened and closed his mouth, in shock. He hadn't realised that one Hogsmeade visit had worked so well.
Daphne, however, misunderstood. "Oh, don't look so surprised, you two were apparently all over each other on your date, and the Gryffindor twins even saw you making out!" she declared. They obviously hadn't, but had spread the rumour for fun; Daphne clearly believed it. "On that note, if you explained it to Katie, is there any chance she might let you take me to Hogsmeade, just as friends? It would really make my 'crush' more believable, and I'd like to see the village without being swarmed", Daphne explained.
Harry grinned. "So I'm like your bodyguard now? I'll ask and let you know", he replied. Of course, it wasn't Katie that he would ask.
...
Katie had found the situation hilarious when Harry had explained it to her. She had grinned when she 'gave Harry permission', though used it to extract another Hogsmeade visit with him; after all, why wouldn't she want to spend a day out with her (quite unfairly) attractive friend, even just as friends. It was lucky that students could visit Hogsmeade on Saturdays and Sundays, so her and Daphne had a day each!
Fleur found the situation funny, for which Harry was thankful, and she too was happy for Harry to take another of his friends to Hogsmeade. She trusted him after all, and from what Cheveu had said this Daphne wasn't even a contender like Katie might have been (poor girl).
Speaking of Katie, Fleur was thankful to the girl – she could have been trying to tempt Harry into a relationship, but Katie had seen his feelings for Fleur and had stood out of the way; and if Cheveu was right, she'd even tried to help others give up on him.
Maybe they could meet up over the summer? In fact, it might be nice to meet some of Harry's other friends; she very much planned for his friends to be her friends, after she graduated.
...
The Hogsmeade weekend was one of the highlights of Harry's term, and had apparently worked to put off some of Daphne's prospective suitors, according to her. Other highlights included Harry's Potion OWL studies going well – he would be ready well in time for the exams, according to professor Jones; getting to know his friends better (including the Sorting Hat, who Harry hadn't spent enough time with so far, and Susan, who seemed a little down about something); and continuing his uninterrupted Quidditch winning streak.
His Easter break had gone well too, and much to his pride he and Fleur had only passionately, frantically, toe-curling-ly kissed three times over the two weeks – once the first night (they were each desperate to know the other still felt as they did), once when Fleur had woken up very aroused and couldn't help herself (though she had stopped herself from going further than kissing), and once at Celeste's, when Fleur took a bite of her Pistachio Macaron, and asked if Harry wanted a taste (she hadn't necessarily meant the bite in her mouth, but as she melted into the kiss she didn't complain).
Then it was into the summer term, with Harry intent on enjoying the term as much as possible. There was just one problem.
"Uncle Remus?" Harry called into his mirror, on a particularly hot weekend.
"Hello Harry", came the reply a few moments later. "Miss me already?" They had only spoken a few days ago, after all.
"No, it's... Well, yes I did miss you, like I always do, but I called because I need your help, Uncle Remus", Harry rambled.
"Oh? What's the problem, Harry?" Remus asked, concerned.
Harry blushed; this was the embarrassing part. "It's... Uncle Remus, it's the girls! They're all wearing, well... less! Everywhere I look there's legs, or cleavage, or belly buttons... some of the older girls were even sunbathing in just a swimming costume by the lake!" Harry complained.
Remus put on a serious face, though inside he was a millimetre from bursting out in laughter. This was the first summer after Harry hit puberty – or was it puberty that hit Harry? – so this wasn't a surprise; it was, however, hilarious, and he would tell Padfoot later. "And you find the sight ugly?" he asked, deadpan.
"No! It's the opposite, Uncle Remus! I just want to keep staring, but I shouldn't! And then of course loads of my friends are just gorgeous, and they have, well, features my eyes just want to drink up, and it's not fair!" Harry whined, whilst blushing.
Uncle Remus did laugh at that. Harry was appalled. Well, it looked as though Remus would be tasked with explaining to Harry how to keep his desires under control; Padfoot would owe him quite a large case of brandy for this!
...
Harry was not the only one who had an uncomfortable conversation that term.
Sebastian and Appoline were enjoying the start of quite a promising evening together, beginning with a foot massage, when a voice called from the floo, "Sebastian? Are you there?"
Sebastian groaned, and Appoline rolled her eyes. "Go on", she murmured, "go be a hero again. I'll be waiting upstairs, but if you take too long I might start my pleasure without you."
Sebastian wiped the disappointment off his face with one hand, then answered the floo. "Yes Albus, I am. Good to 'ear from you", 'though your timing was terrible!', he thought.
Dumbledore's voice sounded cheerful. "Excellent! Could I trouble you to come on through? There's a conversation I'd rather have in person", he asked.
Acquiescing, Sebastian soon found himself in Dumbledore's office, lemon drop in mouth. After exchanging pleasantries, Sebastian got straight to it; he did have his wife waiting for him! "So what can I 'elp you with, Albus?"
"I'll start by saying this hasn't yet been announced, so I'll appreciate your discretion", Dumbledore began. At Sebastian's nod, he continued. "The tri-wizard tournament will be returning. The Durmstrang headmaster, Beauxbatons' own Madame Maxime, and of course myself have planned it for next year, to take place at Hogwarts."
Sebastian nodded his understanding, and motioned for Dumbledore to continue. "You may know about the previous tournaments' death tolls? We are hoping to avoid that this year, whilst still keeping the tasks exciting. I was hoping for your opinion on what was planned."
Sebastian smiled; to be the occasional advisor to Dumbledore was something he felt a little proud about. "Ok, describe the planned tasks."
Dumbledore did so: a magical creature to get past, an underwater rescue, a maze filled with traps. Dumbledore had started off quite pleased, but seeing Sebastian's facial expression evolve, Dumbledore suspected he was going to feel foolish again.
"Albus, what sort of magical creature?", Sebastian asked.
Dumbledore nodded. "That's still being worked out. Ideas range from dragons to trolls, though I'll admit I'm hesitant about the dragon option."
"I should 'ope you are more than 'esitant, Albus! Remind me what 'appened the last time a dragon attacked a wizarding area?", Sebastian challenged, a little horrified.
Dumbledore nodded; he had considered this, of course. "About thirty-five witches and wizards were killed", he admitted.
"And 'ow many dragon 'andlers are killed or seriously injured each year?" Sebastian continued.
Dumbledore again nodded. "Many. It's not considered a safe career. And if the dragons escaped containment...", Dumbledore raised, beating Sebastian to his next point.
"I shall continue pushing for more sensible options" 'though perhaps a little more strongly' Dumbledore finished to himself. Any thoughts on the other tasks?"
"The second task sounds reasonable, but 'ow will the spectators spectate? Without 'elp, they will be staring at a lake for an 'our", Sebastian pointed out.
Dumbledore groaned internally. A good point, and one he had not spotted himself. "A good point, and something I will resolve. And the third task?"
"What is stopping the contestants from mapping out the maze before'and? Or just flying over it? And 'ow will the spectators see what is going on?" Sebastian asked.
Now, Dumbledore felt foolish. Cheating was a tradition of sorts in the tournament, so such behaviour should be expected! "You make another good point. The other organisers and I have much to consider, Sebastian. Thank you, my old friend."
Sebastian was eager to return home, but had a couple of other points. "Two more things, Albus. About the age limit: what will stop an older student submitting the name of a younger one? Also, if this is to aid inter-school relationships, why not do more than just the tournament? You could invite any student from seventh year 'o wished to visit, you could 'ave a duelling competition, or Quidditch tournament..."
Dumbledore nodded, though internally he groaned. The age line he had planned on seemed like a good idea, but would be trivial to circumvent now he thought about it. In fact, taken all together, it seemed very likely that parts of the tournament would need to be re-planned, and if the organisers were going to do that, they may as well do it properly. Although it seemed likely the tournament would need to be delayed a year.
After Dumbledore had again thanked Sebastian for his time, Sebastian rushed home; he was delighted to find he hadn't taken too long.
...
One evening a few weeks later, Harry had a call on his mirror. "'arry, my cherished? Are you there?"
Harry had been sat in the Gryffindor common room, revising for his Potion OWL, but there was very, very little that would stop him responding to that voice. "Of course, Fleur. Shall I move up to my room? I'm in the common room at the moment."
From the opposite sofa, Hermione and Neville had a brief, and quiet, exchange. "Harry drops everything for her, doesn't he?" "Yes, but she's the same with him" "They're just adorable, aren't they?"
"Actually, I was hoping I could speak to a couple of your friends before we talk. I don't suppose Katie and 'ermione are there?" Fleur asked unusually.
Harry looked around and spotted Katie, as Hermione replied, "Of course, Fleur. Harry, pass me over while you go see if Katie's free." Hermione had, after all, finished her homework much earlier.
As Hermione's face appeared in the mirror, Fleur smiled. "'ello 'ermione. It's good to see you again."
"It's good to see you too, though can we please speak in French? I don't get to practise enough, and it is a nicer language", Hermione asked.
Fleur grinned. "Of course! Your French had improved considerably, by the way. Though how would you like an extra opportunity to speak French?"
Hermione gave a pleased smile at the compliment, then looked curious. "What opportunity?", she asked.
Fleur gave a hopeful smile. "I was hoping you might want to come visit 'arry and I in France over the summer, for a night or two."
Hermione's excitement rose quickly. "Could I really? I'd love to! Oh, but I'll be going on holiday in the summer with my parents for a couple of weeks – to France I think – but I think they'd be sad if I visited whilst we were away. But maybe if it was just for a night, and if we happened to be nearby, of course I don't know...", Hermione rambled, until Fleur interrupted.
"It's ok, 'ermione. I'll assume you'd like to, if we can find a suitable time? 'arry usually spends the last two weeks with us in France, so it would be some time during that period, and we can arrange for someone to apparate you over", Fleur replied, happily.
"Ok, that sounds good. And I think I'm going on holiday earlier in the summer, so that should be ok. Are you going to ask Katie the same thing?" Guessed Hermione.
Fleur nodded. "I was hoping to get to know you both better. I had thought of inviting Ron and Neville, but I'm not sure how they would deal with my family's allure", Fleur explained.
At that moment Katie came over. "Well, Katie's here, so I'll say goodbye, and hope to see you soon!" Hermione finished.
Hermione passed the mirror to Katie, who tried to smile warmly at Fleur. "Hello Fleur. Harry said you wanted to speak to me?"
"Oui, Katie. Could we per'aps talk somewhere we won't be over'eard?", Fleur asked politely.
Katie nodded, though she was nervous. Had she upset Fleur in some way? Was it about her trips to Hogsmeade with Harry? After taking the mirror up to her dorm, which was mercifully empty, she sat down on her bed. "What did you want to talk about?" Katie asked apprehensively.
Fleur let out a small laugh. "Oh Katie, it's nothing 'orrible, you don't need to worry. But I wasn't sure you wanted the rest of your 'ouse to over'ear."
Fleur continued, more sombrely. "I owe you a great deal of thanks. You 'ave been such a good friend to 'arry, and you 'ave been a good friend to me too: I know of your feelings for 'im, but you put them aside for me – a girl you didn't know. You 'aven't tried to tempt 'im into a relationship, though you're beautiful enough, and sweet enough so Cheveu tells me, that it likely would 'ave worked."
Katie blushed. "Harry obviously adores you, and he did so long before he realised. I could see you adored him too, so how could I steal that happiness away from one of my best friends?" Katie replied, careful to still smile.
Fleur smiled. "I would give you an 'ug if you were 'ere in France, Katie. Which is the other reason for my call: I understand if it would be too 'ard for you, but I would very much like to get to know you better. Would you come to France for a night or two over summer, to see 'arry and I? We're 'oping 'ermione will join us too."
Katie was shocked. She assumed Fleur would be weary of her if she knew of her feelings for Harry, but here she was opening her arms. A small, hopeful smile appeared on Katie's face. "I... I think I'd like that, Fleur. Getting to know you better, and visiting this summer."
...
The rest of the term passed without much of note, aside from rumours that Harry was dating Katie, or Daphne, or Katie and Daphne. Harry had tried very hard not to think about the latter of those.
Finally, the term ended, and Harry was feeling melancholic. Oh, there was much to be happy about: he had sat his Potions OWL and felt like it had gone well, and he had done well on his other exams; he continued to excel at Quidditch, much to the mock-disappointment of his non-Gryffindor friends; he had plans to meet up with two of his friends in France and introduce them to Fleur; and he had spent lots of time speaking to family and seeing friends. But this was Cheveu's final year at Hogwarts, and Harry knew that he would miss her dearly next year.
On the train ride back, Harry monopolised Cheveu's time. They spent the ride chatting away like the siblings they were, planning when to meet up (especially now Cheveu could apparate), and plotting some bonus weekends where Harry could break out of Hogwarts with the Marauder's Map and Cheveu could meet him in Hogsmeade.
Eventually, though, the train ride was over. After goodbyes and hugs to his friends and an extra-long hug for Cheveu, Harry spotted his Uncle Sirius, assaulted him with a hug, then felt himself apparated away to his summer holidays.