This Time She Won
"Are you sure you're okay?" Harry asked Fleur as the two of them walked toward the Beauxbatons carriage, giving her a glance.
"I already told you, I'm fine. Red acted fast. I should thank him," Fleur said, glancing for a moment at Red, who was still walking beside them, looking in every direction, alert. "It's not the first time I've seen something like that. After all, in our magical world it's normal to walk around with something in your pocket that can kill someone with a single spell. I was just a bit surprised it happened inside school grounds," Fleur added, trying to sound calm, but every now and then she kept touching her neck, even though she hadn't been hurt. She had seen how she had almost been killed in an instant. And the last time, she had been swallowed by a horrible, giant fish, barely escaping, only to be chased by it right after.
"Well, when you're a Hogwarts student you kind of get used to it," Harry said, trying to make it sound simple. But it really didn't sound simple at all.
"Ha… now I understand why you all make those jokes about Hogwarts being the safest school in the world," Fleur said, unable to stop herself from feeling a bit amused thinking about it.
But at the same time, thanks to those little stupid things, she seemed to calm down a bit more.
"I'm sorry… if I hadn't taken you there," Harry said, genuinely feeling guilty because, because of his stupid plan, she had almost been hurt.
Fleur looked at him for a moment, her eyes narrowing slightly.
They both arrived right in front of the massive Beauxbatons carriage, passing the small fences around it, stopping right at the doors.
"Yes… it's your fault," Fleur said in a flat tone, with a simple smile.
"Uh… ah… yeah. Well…" Harry hadn't expected her to say it so directly, which left him frozen for a moment.
"It's all your fault. That I was in danger. That I was in that place. That I ended up following your dragon to look for my pendant. That I keep thinking about you all the time without being able to control it. It's all your fault," Fleur said as she stepped closer to Harry, stopping right in front of him.
Harry, feeling her that close, went still, almost like a statue, looking straight at her without saying anything.
"Wait… what?" he said, realizing the last part of what she had said, as if reacting too late.
"It's because you're just a child," she said, shaking her head with exaggerated disappointment. "A child going through puberty… and with a big mommy complex. I don't understand how I could have fallen for you," she said, tapping the tip of Harry's nose with her finger, even making a little childish "pop" sound.
Then she turned around with a wide, victorious smile and quickly stepped inside the carriage, while Harry was left completely frozen, watching her back disappear behind the door, as if his brain hadn't fully caught up for a second.
"A chil—? What did you just call me?" Harry shouted, but the door closed right at that moment. "Wait… hey, come back out here and say that again," Harry yelled at the closed door, grabbing the handle and trying to open it. But it was already locked from the inside, and as a carriage built by Nicolas Flamel himself, even if Harry was a good alchemist, he wouldn't be able to open it unless he wanted to destroy the entire Beauxbatons home.
"Come out and say it again," Harry said, but the door didn't open again, while he kept shouting outside.
Meanwhile, Fleur, on the other side of the door, had a wide smile, feeling like for the first time she had won against Harry. She smiled softly for a moment.
"Idiot," she said before skipping lightly toward the inside of the carriage, heading to her room, looking genuinely cheerful.
"A child? She called me a child?" Harry said, looking like he couldn't take it anymore, turning toward Red as if looking for an answer. But Red just tilted his head slightly, confused, as if he didn't understand a single word. Seeing that, Harry let out a frustrated sigh.
"A child… yeah right," he said angrily, giving the door one last look before walking away with heavy steps, each one hitting hard. "This isn't over…" he muttered, irritated as he left.
Red looked at his master for a moment and started following him calmly, his tail swaying behind him.
And with all that, it seemed like no one noticed someone was on top of the carriage, watching everything with an amused, interested look, lying back and resting on one hand.
"Aah… they're both so childish. They really are perfect for each other," Luciel said with an entertained look, watching Harry walk away annoyed because of his cousin's words, before suddenly making a serious face.
"Wait… she locked the door? Then how am I supposed to get in now?" he said, realizing a rather urgent problem for himself.
…
The next day, during breakfast, as always, the students gathered in the Great Hall.
Hermione, who had arrived first, being the one who always woke up before everyone else, was already sitting there. And her gaze was fixed on the massive stack of pancakes in front of her, with maple syrup, her favorite. But the pile looked so big that even the other students, as they passed by, couldn't help but glance at it.
"Haa…" she let out a sigh as she looked toward the teachers' table, where her mother seemed to be staring at a stack just as identical, or maybe even bigger than Hermione's. Which could only mean that Pipi had cooked for them again, without really measuring the portions for a normal person.
"If I eat all that, I'm going to get fat…" Hermione murmured, a hint of complicity in her eyes as she looked back at her huge pile of pancakes.
Just then, suddenly, a soft hand appeared in front of her, and using a wand, a large portion of the stack was transferred onto the plate beside her. And on top of that, the lower part, with less syrup and the thicker pieces.
Hermione turned instantly, meeting Draco, who was now sitting beside her as if it were the most natural thing.
"Ah… oh, thank you, Draco," Hermione said with a soft smile.
Draco simply nodded with a faint smile, like it was nothing to him, as he used his fork to cut a small piece and take a bite.
Hermione couldn't help the slight smile as she looked at her plate, but she quickly cleared her throat.
"Did you come alone? And Harry?" she asked, since the silence seemed to last longer than usual.
"He was called by Sirius. Looks like something strange happened last night. Though I didn't really understand much, since Harry looked pretty annoyed, saying something about a child… and that this wouldn't just stay like this," Draco said simply, shrugging.
"I see…" Hermione said, as everything seemed to fall into silence again. And for some reason, the atmosphere felt a bit strange, with only the chatter of the students around them and the sound of cutlery against plates.
Hermione let her gaze wander around as she ate slowly, meeting her mother's eyes again, who now seemed to be eating her breakfast with a smile, looking at her with a truly amused expression.
Hermione quickly looked away from her mother, since it was very similar to the one Daphne had been giving her lately, only making her feel even more uncomfortable about the silence between her and Draco.
"Do you still need help with the mechanical birds project? If so, I have quite a bit of time today to give you a hand," Draco said, turning toward her for a moment with a soft smile.
Hermione saw Draco's smile, and with just the two of them there, she seemed to focus more on him. She had never really noticed it before, but Draco's eyes were a silver-gray, and, contrary to what they should look like, they had a gentle warmth. Though maybe that was only for his family and friends.
"I love…" she said.
Making Draco's eyes shift for a moment, his soft smile freezing for just a second.
"…I mean, I'd love to… yes, I'd love for you to help me," Hermione corrected herself quickly, very quickly, before turning away as she pressed her lips tightly together and lightly smacked her own mouth where Draco couldn't see her.
"Ha…" Draco let out a quiet laugh, his soft smile seeming to draw the attention of many people around them, who were briefly captivated by it, since it was actually rare to see him laugh. To everyone else, he always had that serious expression, like there was a wall in front of him, only showing that side to his friends and family.
"I see… then let's finish breakfast and go together," he said, not losing his smile as he continued using his utensils with perfect manners.
"Yes…" Hermione murmured, not too loudly, not wanting to lift her head too much, or maybe her flushed cheeks would be noticed.
Meanwhile, at the teachers' table, Susan kept chewing her breakfast, which had already disappeared from her plate without her noticing, as she simply raised her hand to her side, where Selene was sitting. Selene made a slightly annoyed face before pulling out a small jingling pouch from her pocket and placing it into Susan's hand.