Echoes of Time (Harry Potter)

December 25, 1943

Saturday Morning

"Ah, wonderful, wasn't it?" Elaine asked. "You see, the trick's in boiling the sauce down, I could show you sometime if that's something that'd interest you."

Harry nodded, "Sure."

As enjoyable as cooking could be, especially without having to feed the Dursleys, the last thing he cared about was receiving advice on the matter from Elaine - he didn't doubt she could cook well, even if she'd made self-deprecating remarks, as the girl was inherently gifted to do everything well. It was annoying, more so considering how hard he had to work for the knowledge and competency he held in comparison to her.

"Impatient, aren't you?" - Elaine sighed and stood up from her seat, stretching in such a way that gave Harry quite an eye full - "I suppose we could get to gift-opening, though you'll be needing to compliment my cooking before we leave the table - it'd be horrible manners if you didn't."

"Isn't it horrible manners requiring a guest to give you praise before you let them get up?" Harry asked back, his smile at odds with the question he asked.

"Bolder than usual, perhaps you took a potion before visiting me?" - Elaine tilted her head and tapped on her chin a few times - "No, I think not. You've finally gotten more accustomed to my being around you, which is perfect for the both of us, it'll make our future easier… Come along then, we'll get to our presents."

He'd most definitely be chalking that down as a victory for himself considering Elaine had let the matter drop, and as such, he stood up from his seat with a wide smile while gesturing for the girl to take the lead. With a raised brow, she did as much, though his strategic decision was distracted for a few seconds with the exaggerated sway of her hips. Despite her thin, tall build, she still knew the ways that worked him up.

"On the other side of your home, really?" Harry asked as the two walked through the various hallways of her beachside home.

"It was originally a dual-home, meant for two families of decent size with a small space between them," Elaine said. "Once I was given it, I had the two connected and the inner walls knocked down, thus creating a large enough estate for myself. So yes, in a roundabout way, the other side of my home is where I had our presents br- don't open that door."

During Elaine's long answer where one wasn't needed, Harry had been distracted by one of the many doors they were passing. It had a different wood used, one that was weirdly close to red with a handle that matched, and as soon as he'd reached for the handle, Elaine had spun around to stop him. There hadn't been any reason he'd wanted to enter the room he'd only wanted to touch the handle out of a queer curiosity - her reaction filled him with unease as soon as it was given.

She'd pulled him close until he was directly beside her, kept one hand tightly wound around his and led them off again; not once did she acknowledge why she'd reacted as she had, and he knew it had to be more than a sense of privacy.

He wasn't stupid, he wouldn't ask nor would he try going through the door with her in the home. As low as a chance at success such a task would have, even factoring in Zabbey's sudden appearance to save him, Harry knew the girl would be on him until he was dead or captured if it were remotely close to anything nefarious. Even if it weren't, her trust in him would be shot, and as such, she was more than likely going to order the others away from him… something he couldn't afford, least of all right now.

So he didn't ask nor try anything, opting to stay quiet until the two of them reached her designated 'gift' room. Nearly a dozen gifts were held in it, with one more being for him than for her to equal a total of thirteen.

"Unfortunately we've only a loveseat to share since the gifts are taking up the couch and chair, they're far too good to go on the floor," Elaine smiled disarmingly at him as she moved towards the single piece of unused furniture, doing so without bothering to give so much as one look over her shoulder at him.

Harry wasn't su- no, he knew Elaine was being incredibly trusting and indulgent today, the thing that eluded him about her doing so was the reason; she loved being near him and doing whatever it was that came to her mind, it wasn't any secret that she'd do anything that she fancied regardless what others would think so long as they couldn't hurt her standing.

The game he was playing now, was guessing what her end goal was.

He hoped to figure that out before leaving, and if he couldn't, he was sure it'd make itself known within the first month or two back at Hogwarts.

"That's fine," Harry answered after letting himself watch her seductive strut to the piece of furniture, hoping to give the illusion it worked (since it only partially had) before making his way to the small opening beside her - it didn't escape his attention that she'd still left her wand on the entire opposite side of the house, but it no longer provided the sense of security it had.

What witch or wizard was so confident, regardless of the company, without the tool that controlled and utilised their magic far beyond what wandless magic could?

"I could make some more room for you if you'd like," Elaine offered, not bothering to move to her side despite what she'd said.

Harry didn't bother acknowledging her offer and instead, plucked the closest gift he recognised as one that he purchased to place it in the girl's lap.

"You're fine - that's the first I'd like for you to open, I believe it's an appropriate starter."

Elaine's teasing smirk that'd settled on her face with her offer, one that was no doubt an ambush of some sort, left her face. What'd replaced it was an appraising look between him and the small package now occupying a spot on her things.

"Shouldn't I have you open something first? You've one more gift than I, it'd make more sense," Her argument, however polite it was meant to be, was only half-hearted in its attempt while she brushed her pale fingers across the wrapping paper.

"No, the order doesn't matter much to me, besides, you should go first after cooking such a wonderful dinner for us," Harry was working the girl over with his words the same way he'd seen her done to multiple people, he went so far as to use one hand to rub at her closer shoulder in a gentle-enough rhythm; she always pressed for contact, and by doing so, he hoped he could slowly take control of their interactions for the remainder of their time together.

"If you insist, my Harry," Elaine relented.

She then went about deftly unwrapping the paper rather than tearing through it until she pulled it off altogether, revealing the small object that'd been wrapped. Carefully, she pulled it out of the container, and despite the sharpness of it, he wasn't worried she'd do anything to him; Harry knew it wouldn't be her way any more than it would've been Tom's.

"Satisfactory?" He inquired, drawing her attention back to him.

"Very much so," Elaine quietly answered. "Such sharpness and beauty, the material feels charmed too - this couldn't have been a small price… you have my thanks, Harry, my potions work will be all the better thanks to you."

He smiled, satisfied with the gift he'd gotten her, as it matched the general idea he'd gone for; avoid books that would further her magical knowledge or anything similar, but if it helped him in learning from her, such as a new potions blade would, he'd do it. It wasn't like a new blade that'd make her cutting more precise would result in an explosion of knowledge from the girl.

"You'll open two next, so we're even," Elaine said in such a way that he knew there'd be no changing her mind; it was the first time she'd used that tone the entire day he'd spent with her, as not even her snogging plea had been all that demanding.

Harry nodded, relenting to her not-request as the girl placed the two packages in front of him, bending over purposefully to give him an eyeful more than he'd seen from her before. Again, he noted her attempts at distraction as well as the pleased look on her face when he'd glanced at it. Every attempt she made or exaggerated motion done was something that made him warier than the last, until finally, he'd keep his wand hand only an inch from said tool for all the remaining time he had in her home.

"Start with the smaller of the two, the bigger package can be done next," Elaine emphasized her point by sliding the smaller item closer until he picked it up off the ground and removed the lid from it.

Truthfully, he wasn't sure what he was looking at when he opened the container to see an unmarked book. He didn't allow himself time to speculate or otherwise get too distracted with it either considering the witch beside him, so he glanced at her with a questioning look in hopes that she'd spoil it for him - she did.

"It's a book on potions, and no, I didn't know you got me a gift in that same subject. I'll hope you don't take too much offence when I say this, but your ability in the potions classroom is far from exceptional as it should be - allow me to spoil two other gifts of yours too, by saying they're similar to this one for your other two troubled subjects, Arithmancy and Runes," Elaine's face and tone were ever so slightly condescending as she commented on his ability, or lack thereof, in relations to the three subjects that troubled him.

He bit his tongue and thanked the girl for the gift despite her comments, then, he moved on to the next package she'd given him; the larger of the two, and one that was far too large to be something related to either of the other subjects.

Elaine confirmed his thoughts too, saying, "One of the things inside I ordered for you the day you started our relationship - presumptuous as it may be, I can't help but think it's fitting."

Now, he was worried. There wasn't any chance it was a ring or something else that would make them be seen as more official, so it left him wondering what could be in such a large container. As such, when he slowly went about removing the tightly-packed top of it, he did so with no small measure of wariness, both of the girl watching him and the boxed item or items she'd given him.

Finally, when he ripped the top off and the side facing him fell over, as a result, he saw the gift or rather gifts, he'd been given by the girl as well as why she'd called it presumptuous; clothes were scattered about in a style that he knew matched her wardrobe, and despite the old look of them, they were infinitely more modern than those from the Peverell wardrobe. In addition to the clothes she'd got him, there was a ring similar to the one she was always wearing and touching, he didn't touch it straight away, something felt off about it, but he appreciated the gesture all the same. Lastly, towards the bottom and likely responsible for a great deal of weight the box had, was a large item of which he didn't recognise made out of various metals.

"You'll understand it eventually, though hopefully not too early - no need for such a serious look either, it's nothing that'll cause you grief," Elaine's smile given with her words was disarmingly bright, her teasing tone added to it making the effect all the more 'light' at face-value.

What followed the opening gifts they'd gotten each other were various sweets, minor baubles one figured the other may like, or in Harry's case, books with notes from Elaine on the subjects he was sorely lacking in. Those would be far more beneficial than any amount of clothing, jewellery or other items she'd gotten him, as he'd finally developed a more thorough understanding of the subjects that were constantly taking up a fairly large portion of his studying time. Normally, it wouldn't be all that bad, but he was meant to be working on his offensive magics and friendships within Elaine's circle more than anything else. That was without factoring in the problem of Walburga's presents or Slytherin's journals.

He was wholly overloaded with work, and that'd stay that way for quite a bit of time; at least until summer began, that way he'd be given time to work on the issues at hand while hopefully not creating anymore.

"One more for each of us," Harry commented once he put aside the second to last gift he'd opened. "Witches first."

Elaine looked at him indulgently, with a sweet smile on her face as she pulled the final object into her lap.

"Such a gentleman," She cooed softly as her hands went about undoing the wrapping of her final present.

Harry smiled back at her, letting the girl think her words had made him happier than they truly had - his thought process behind it was hoping she'd finally act on her plan… assuming she had one based on the behaviour she was exhibiting tonight. She had to have one too, regardless of how small or harmless it could be, she's Elaine.

"Ah, this can't be what my eyes think it is, can it?" Elaine questioned, one hand of hers hovering over the object for a few seconds before finally withdrawing it.

"It is," Harry answered as he carefully watched her reaction to the final gift he'd given her; it'd been a banger so he thought, one that was sure to make any witch swoon even if it wasn't magical in the slightest. He remembered a few times how the Twins would go on about jewellery and what it could mean to a witch, especially if it were meaningful to him.

Elaine turned her back to Harry, both hands going to move her hair aside after she slid the gift over to him. Her long, pale neck was completely exposed to him, as was the see-through manner the top-back portion of her shirt held.

"Would you put it on me for the first time? Such a wonderful, thoughtful gift requires an equally memorable first action involving it."

Harry watched the girl carefully for all of two seconds, keeping notice of how her hands were each holding a portion of her long near-black hair in plain visibility for him. Having her in such an exposed, potentially weak position before him had him feeling odd; it didn't feel wrong per se, only unnatural, as if it weren't something she'd normally do. Still, there wasn't anything she could surprise him with, not with how she currently sat, so he plucked the necklace from its ancient container and pulled it around her neck with a careful touch.

One snapping of metal later, the gift was locked in place around her neck; Elaine turned around to face him almost instantly.

"Hmmm," She thought aloud, watching Harry.

"Yeah?" He questioned.

"You're not bracing yourself," Elaine commented, her head cocked with her hair still going every which way, giving off an incredibly wild look.

"Why would I be?" Harry questioned, his unease getting worse when she raised a brow to add to her question look before washing it away altogether in favour of potentially the brightest visage he'd ever seen her pull.

"This gift was in your family for centuries, worn by numerous women and crafted by Goblins - from the poorest of witches to the most wealthy Pureblood Lords, all would know the value this single item contained, yet you've given it to me without a second thought," Elaine steadily moved closer to him in such a way he barely recognised it. "You ask why I expected you to brace yourself, as for my answer…"

He barely had a second to think before she launched herself at him, her mouth sealing over his with her tongue entering his mouth before his mind could even formulate any sort of plan. Her question made sense to him now, especially with her hungry, aggressive kissing and the sounds she was making in the process.

But the moment didn't stop there, as Elaine swung one leg over him into a straddle, her movements and grip on his face getting all the more aggressive with the sounds matching until she was almost growling while swiping her tongue across his.

Harry was half tempted to break away, if he could, to call for Zabbey to get him out of her house. Luckily such a drastic response wasn't needed for the enjoyable if slightly rough affection she'd given him, as it'd only lasted a few minutes and a half dozen gasps for air before she finally pulled away from him.

Elaine's wild look was worse now, the scarce lipstick she'd been wearing now smeared across her lips to match the wrinkled clothing and messy, frayed hair all across her face.

"Mmm, you still taste like cheesecake and strawberries," She crassly remarked in that husky, deeper voice of hers before swiping her tongue across her lips while remaining seated on the lower portion of his thighs.

"Uhuh," Harry answered, his thoughts jumbled as he focussed on making sure the siren in his lap didn't fully take away his ability to think.

Elaine laughed, staying in her new spot as she did so.

"Your final gift needs opening, would you like me to reach back and get it for you?"

Harry nodded his head a few times, his hands moving to grip Elaine's hips without thinking as the girl leaned back with a higher degree of flexibility than he'd have thought she possessed. Learning that how he did, with her body pressing down against his along with the small breathy laugh she gave once she fully resettled on him with the gift in hand made him have to mentally clear the fog that'd come back in full force.

"Here it is, Harry. You'll recognise it, I'm sure, though I'll hope you won't forget who gave it to you," Elaine pressed one last light kiss to the corner of his lips before settling back again to watch him open the gift she'd gotten him.

He hadn't a clue as to what it could be, especially with her saying he should recognise it; what did she have of his that he'd forgotten, or, what had his friends told the girl he liked so much that she'd make such a big gift out of it?

Quidditch seasonal tickets were his best guess, but for some odd reason, he doubted Elaine was all that into the sport.

"You know I won't," He responded before he did the one thing required of him to see the gift hidden within its storage; he pulled back the lid, and Merlin, he nearly had a heart attack when he saw what it was… surely it had to be fake.

"It's real," Elaine answered his unasked question, his mind quickly searching for any sign of a presence as it'd felt before and coming up empty.

"How'd you get it?" Harry asked, his hands not touching the small stone he'd only recently read about, assuming it was real as the girl in his lap told him.

"My family, the Gaunts, had held it for a very long time," Elaine's eyes were searching for his, so much so that the girl scooched back up on his lap to lightly run a hand down his face. "Once you returned, I knew it was only right that we gave it back to you… this leads into the talk I'd mentioned tonight too, as I'm sure you're left with no small amount of questions for me" - Elaine moved in to kiss his nose this time, pulling back altogether once she'd done that to snort while watching him - "Maybe less than my initial thinking would've prepared for, considering you're in possession of a book on my family thanks to Walburga ."

Harry nearly choked on air but managed to hide it quite well, or so he thought.

"How'd you know about that? I didn't tell anyone," His eyes, as well as his tone, were accusatory, though he remembered telling one girl, only one girl, about the book he'd been given a few months ago as well as the reason he'd not read from it.

"Tell me, Harry, do you think even half of Walburga's group answer to her?" Elaine laughed beautifully, grasping both of his hands with hers. "There's no need to answer that either because I can tell you quite easily, they don't. Far more of them are plants by me or one of those other groups that aren't quite mine yet - she's not half as good as she thinks she is with espionage or the like, only Daddy's money keeps her afloat."

Elaine's tone and the pressure of her hands increased as she talked about Walburga. He knew her well enough to know by now that, despite her semi-neutral appearance, she was seething with anger… that wasn't a very good thing considering he was fully alone with the girl. Her ability to enter his mind was worrying too, as he needed to make sure certain trains of thoughts stayed furthest from his mind lest she finds out absolutely everything about him or his self-assigned goals.

"Do you know what I've done with the book then?" Harry questioned, his tone as curious as he felt; he knew there should be no way she could tell, not unless the magic he'd picked up on the book had been truly vile or otherwise effective at doing whatever it was put there to do.

"Nothing," Elaine answered with a shrug of her shoulders, awkwardly moving their conjoined hands up in the process. "Or rather, you couldn't have done all that much with it aside from reading whatever text was on either side of it, as the enchantments set on it would've notified Walburga once you'd read from it."

"Why didn't you warn me?" Harry asked, adding a split-second later, "What's the magic she put on it?"

Elaine scrunched together her eyebrows before pulling one hand from his to flick him in the nose.

"Why would I warn you about a book that you had on my family when you didn't first come to me in regards to it? That was very naughty of you, Harry, though I'll let that one slide since you're so wonderfully important to me," Elaine's tone finally went back to the girlier, lighter one she used when serious or heavy moments were aside. "As for the magic she put on it? There isn't any - her incompetence saw to that. Overall, however, there's a charm placed on it that would alert her in some way once you'd opened it, hence her trying to pin you down while we'd been in Hogwarts. I'd imagine, though I'll not be able to verify lest you show the book directly to me or one of those I explicitly trust, that there's something more harmful on it too."

Harry removed his other hand from her grasp too, sitting up in such a way that removed more than half the space between them.

"Why now?" He questioned, this time his tone firmer than he'd used on her before, his body language matched too, as he'd tensed and forged his face in such a way that matched his tone.

"So serious," Elaine cooed, her soft breath hitting him in the face as she brought up a hand to pinch his cheek.

"Elaine," Harry said warningly, holding his ground while grabbing at the offending hand.

"Relax, Harry, there's no reason to be so angry with me - you're the one who didn't approach me for help if you'd care for a reminder. Let's not forget you could've come to me a whole lot sooner for other troubles you've been having too, not just for the studying we do for your benefit," Elaine finally withdrew from her position on Harry's lap. "I'd hoped to avoid our serious conversation until it was close to the time of your leaving, but there's no doing that anymore, is there?"

"No, there isn't," Harry agreed, standing up and moving a few feet away from Elaine while she lazily stretched out on the couch.

"You can stay seated, you know. No conversation between the two of us will be quite so serious to the point of avoiding comfort, you're already mine enough that there'll be no pulling away," Elaine's remark was made casually enough that Harry half thought she was going for another one of her awkwardly made jokes; when he took in the expression on her face, he realised the girl hadn't been kidding.

"I don't believe that's how relationships work, you know that too."

Harry moved a further half dozen steps away from her after speaking and finally sat himself down in the chair nearest to him - it was also the furthest from her.

"Mmm, there's much that I know, Harry. None of it matters to our relationship, we both know it to be far from what our classmates would share," Elaine smiled at him in a way that perfectly matched her carefree position on the couch. "Face it, Harry, you're as special as I am… more so, possibly. Do you think it was fate or some other reason you were brought to me? No, magic knew we could do wondrous things together, as witnessed by the connection I feel to you that I've still yet to figure out" - she held up her hand, denying him the chance to speak while raising her voice in case he still tried - "I will figure it out, of that, I have no doubt. Enough about that now, I'm sure there's something you'd like to ask me with how curious your expression is."

Harry felt frustrated and angry with her seizing the initiative in the conversation; the fact she'd known for so long about the book in his possession as well as the effects therein only added to the current negative feelings building up in his mind. When she added the 'connection' that she said she felt, one that he'd never felt before, his mind was thrown for even more of a loop until he'd clamped down on it all at once. He rationalised that she had to be lying, as he'd never before heard about any form of connection utilizing magic… a darker part of his mind told him it'd make sense; the dreams he'd had a few times in bed or the spiking of emotions randomly, neither of which felt like his.

Maybe that could explain the ease with which she read him too.

Merlin, he was losing it if he believed in that sort of thing; it was Elaine! She was known for her ability in class or with people, from deciphering lies to reading what was going through your mind with almost perfect clarity, there was a reason so many acted cautiously around her.

"Have you finished with your thinking yet?" Elaine asked, one hand held up in front of her face examining her nails while the other lazily played with the ring on her left hand.

Harry didn't bother responding to her question, he simply asked one of his own that'd been at the forefront of his mind since she'd finished her previous speaking.

"What do you think I'd like to ask you?"

"Harry, surely we're old enough that there's no need to play games whilst speaking. We both know where the other's been, surely you realise that by now?" Elaine laughed, though there wasn't any degree of humour in it. "Playing dumb isn't something I find attractive, though for you I'll make an allowance just this once - don't you think it was terribly convenient where we met that evening near the girl's lavatory? Perhaps you'd not have thought I'd see what was missing from that room in the back right, you're smarter than that though, aren't you?"

"You're not making any sen-" Harry was cut off by Elaine swinging into an upright position, her eyes crazier than he'd yet seen; it completed the wild look she'd taken from their moment earlier, though the affection was tucked behind a layer or two, or so he hoped.

"Lying is one of the things I hate most in this world, Harry," Elaine's voice was deep, warning plain to hear. "Disappointment doesn't come far after - Betrayal either. Why don't you look me in the eyes as you had when we first met? I'll see the truth of things, your mind arts are far too outdated should I focus rather than play."

"I'm not letting you into my mind again, you shouldn't have taken a look to begin with," Harry's voice was as steel, his muscles and the resolve he held matching the strength of the cold metal. "I don't know why you've decided to take so long in acting on all the knowledge you think you have, but entering my mind as you had the first time we met was a step too far for someone trying to appear as nice as you've been doing. Did you not think I'd hear the stories or see the worry people look at you with?"

He was ready to bolt with Zabbey; he could fight too, especially if the girl didn't have her wand close by.

"I knew you'd hear the stories, do you forget which house you were sorted into and who among them spent the most time with you? What action would I take against you? Is that what made you so worried around me during all the time we've spent together?" Elaine laughed openly. "You complete me. I know the one way to enter our hideaway, I know the ability you have if it meant you'd entered - I'll never hurt you, there's far too much riding on you being mine for me to ever do something so self-damaging."

Harry finally settled one hand on his wand, not caring if the girl saw it.

"Ahh, planning to wipe my mind, are you? I suppose it wouldn't be the worst plan, eliminating the knowledge I've built up in regards to you, though you'd be cutely naive to think there's not any form of plan on my behalf," - Elaine stood up and took a few steps towards Harry, the madness in her eyes finally gone, replaced with a look filled with emotions - "Speak. It."

He knew what she was referring to, and by now, he realised he couldn't lie to the girl anymore in regards to it - his mind was already racing with worry about what else she knew other than the journal or his ability to speak Parseltongue.

"Why?" He asked, raising his head in defiance.

"Because I told you to," Elaine replied, cocking her head and furrowing her brows at the lack of compliance.

"That's not good enough, Elaine. Why should I speak in something that you're assuming I know without being given a reason?" Harry knew he was playing a dangerous game considering who the girl was standing in front of him, but he was hoping her infatuation with him would make her confide in him more than anyone else.

"I've never heard another speaker," - She took one step closer - "Verification is needed that you're who you say you are," - Elaine took another step towards him - "Because, if you speak my language, I'll see you as my one equal… is that not benefit enough if you think you know so much about me? Have I not proven my ability to assist or share considering all I've done for you? We could do anything… everything."

"There can't be two Minister's of Magic," Harry said, reminding the girl of the ambition she'd shared with him.

Elaine shook her head.

"No, there can't be," She agreed. "Though that's not a position you want, is it? I remember what you said, 'Auror' - such a low job for one with your knowledge and potential."

"We're done," Harry finally said, standing up from his seat and moving in such a way that it was put between them.

Elaine's reaction was a shrug and a laugh.

"Putting off the continuation of this conversation, what little's left of it, will only mean I'll corner you in Hogwarts."

"You're not even sure if I'm the one that entered wherever it is you're thinking," Harry said, watching her expression shift to one of disregard. "If you knew for certain that I could speak whatever it is you're implying or that I've been to wherever you're thinking, you wouldn't have hesitated to say the names of either."

"Is that what you think, Harry?" Elaine questioned, her expression giving nothing away as she watched him curiously with what almost looked like a bit of pride snaking its way across her smirking face.

"It's what I know - you named the book for what it was, even going so far as to name the participants therein because you were confident with the source," Harry was on a roll now, his time spent in Slytherin finally aiding him against his enemy-girlfriend combination. "You didn't name the area, the journal's owner or what you were trying to have me speak in, but I'll hazard a guess it isn't French or something from the continent."

"Hogwarts then," Elaine said. "I'll know the truth of it when we return. If I've learned anything about boys, it's that you can't resist temptation."

"As I recall, it's you jumping on me by and large," Harry pointed out, getting one last win before he made his speedy retreat from the ang-amused, looking girl…?

"Ah, spending time with you always leaves me feeling refreshed and in a better mood than usual. You have my appreciation for that, despite the work you still need with your words. Perhaps I'll help you work your tongue during a few of our lessons," Elaine smiled widely at him and motioned with a nod towards his gifts. "Don't forget anything, or I'll be forced to hunt you down. "

Harry collected the items silently while under constant observation from Elaine, and only once he had every gift of hers did he ask one final question.

"Is there any actual reason you're so interested in me?"

Elaine's eyes flickered about on him, settling on no particular part of his body or clothes.

"I've already said it multiple times, though I suppose tonight my words were final, in a sense - you complete me, Harry, I'll figure out how eventually… Now, how about a final snog before you leave?"

Despite the serious turn the night had taken, he couldn't help but laugh, though that didn't change the fact that he'd finally seen her for the first time since being here.

He'd seen the real Elaine; cold, intimidating, intelligent, and a myriad of other worryingly strong traits that set his mind on edge. Harry wasn't sure if she were as evil as her counterpart, but he knew she was just as dangerous.

That night had been one that he'd never forget - her baking, the gift-giving and the final conversation would all stick with him from then on out. He knew he'd have to be better going forward, and truthfully despite all the studying he'd done, there was only one way to do that; signing his name in that book Slytherin had been so persistent with.

Maybe then he'd finally have a leg up on Elaine, though he felt if only for a few minutes, he'd taken control from her during the day together. Especially during the ending of their final conversation… he hoped he wasn't wrong in thinking that.

Even if he were, he had a little over a week until it was time to go back to Hogwarts.

That was more than enough time to continue his studies while at Peverell Manor, and more than enough time for him to communicate with the people he trusted most, but not fully. He couldn't trust anybody fully, not yet, though if any were close it'd be Sarah out of the lot despite her family's weird malcontent towards Muggles. Corene wasn't that far off, but his inability to read her was what had placed her beneath Sarah, at least for the time being.

His conversation with her tonight could change his disposition, it could do the same in regards to Aster and Reinhard too. If all else failed, there was always Sarah's friend group of Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and a few Ravenclaws to fall back on. It would mean he'd have to start fairly close to the start with a lot of new people, which wouldn't be ideal, but a group was better than no group.

December 27, 1943

Monday Afternoon

Yesterday had been absolutely grand… if you were a house-elf that loved an endless amount of work with little to no rest.

Unfortunately for Harry, he hadn't been a relative of Dobby in a past life, and as such, the day had been entirely too tiring as he assisted the elves in preparing for his visitors. From walking every inch of his property checking for potentially troubling items or rooms to assigning each elf a person as well as a list of rules made for that specific person, and finally, ensuring the rooms they were being given should they stay the night was free from anything important to the family.

By the time all was said and done, a majority of the day had been spent running around locking doors with runes or levitating objects from one room to another. One thought he'd had was not giving the guests of his the largest available rooms, but he'd shot that down during the hour he spent walking his property line.

Corene and Sarah both had given him very beautiful quarters - he hadn't even stayed with the Carrows either, yet they'd promised him the largest guest room in their Castle if he had! There was no way he could stick them with the simpler rooms, even if they were far easier to clean and sort.

Aster and Reinhard were given their own large rooms too, though theirs were nearby his while the two girls if they stayed, were in an entirely separate section of the house. Contrary to what one would think, that hadn't been his idea, it'd been Momsey's and Merlin that little elf could go on about impropriety!

It shouldn't have been too surprising considering the age of the Peverell name, but it went against her love of children and her discontent with a lack of work in caring for them.

Harry's train of thought ran off course when his Floo activated for the first of four times… assuming Sarah gained permission to come.

It shouldn't have been all that surprising who'd arrived early by half an hour either.

"Hello Harry," Corene greeted him. "You've a beautiful parlour room, the stone support beams match Hogwarts almost perfectly."

"Thanks, Corene, and it's good to see you," Harry smiled lopsidedly and bowed to the girl.

Much to his surprise, she flung aside formalities to give him a brief, light hug.

"My family wishes to extend their thanks for allowing us the privilege to visit one of your homes, I'd like to assure you our silence will be well kept too," Corene's eyes squinted in thought. "My father will likely brag about this in the next Wizegamot session, as he'll do the same for when you visited us, but you know what I meant, yes?"

Harry nodded - while it wasn't perfect, he understood to some degree the game of politics and how her family's standing would improve if he showed them as much favour as he currently had. He wouldn't be all that surprised if Sarah's family did the same, only without consulting him considering how talkative the Goldhorns seemed in comparison to the Carrows.

"Yeah, I get you," Harry answered, earning a small, grateful nod from Corene before he continued with a gesture towards the seat beside him. "If it's not too much to ask, would you care to join me in waiting for the few others joining us? I could always have Momsey or one of the elves show you your quarters if it's bothersome - we've got snacks on the end tables too, have whatever you'd like."

"You're feeling awkward, aren't you? Usually, you're not one to ramble… excuse me, I suppose I should continue working on my flaw of bringing attention to such things along with my attempts at humour," Corene shrugged and took a small dish with crackers from the table, adding a few slices of cheese to it from a larger dish from the table left of her.

Harry hoped his awkwardness wasn't showing so much that it was so easily picked up, but Corene always had a knack for reading people's body language more than Elaine had with their minds. That could've been a contributing factor to their friendship, but, Corene usually avoided making remarks about it whereas Elaine would answer your questions before they were asked.

In other words, Corene typically demonstrated constraint, so he wondered why she hadn't only seconds ago; was it that she felt closer to him, or had Elaine sent a post to the girl so quickly? Merlin he'd been going ballistic in his own mind since the conversation, it wouldn't do any good worrying about it over the bit of vacation he had left, not least of all with the guests he'd be having over - half his plan was seeing where the four of them fell in terms of loyalty to Elaine in hopes of being able to have them work more closely with him.

He felt like he had the advantage too, as Elaine being a year ahead of them meant he'd have sole access to the group of them for a whole year while at Hogwarts, or in Sarah's case, sole access to them from this point on considering Elaine's almost sole operating within Slytherin. She picked up the occasional outsider from the other three houses from time to time, but by and large, they were an untapped potential that he fully planned on using after developing a close core or inner-circle similar to what his girlfriend-enemy had done.

"Slightly," Harry finally responded to the quietly nibbling girl. "It's not often, and by not often I mean never before, that I have guests over. You're feeling a bit of the same though, aren't you?"

Corene finished chewing and, after swallowing, nodded with a faint smirk on her face while holding up a sideways hand.

"Slightly."

Harry laughed, his muscles relaxing slightly as he settled further in the seat - he was having his friends over, people he'd spent dozens if not hundreds of hours with already while at Hogwarts. Even if they were working alongside Elaine, the conversations they'd shared and the interactions between them had assured him to some degree, they wouldn't be working against him with hatred in their actions… he doubted they'd be judging him either, as three of them didn't have the ground to stand on in doing so and the other rarely showed any signs of emotion regardless.

"You said Aster and Reinhard would be coming," Corene spoke up, making him turn his head towards her as she continued. "There was another too, one that you'd not named and one I'm very sure isn't Elaine. Excuse my curiosity if you find it too intrusive, I'm simply too inquisitive as to who it is."

"Sarah," Harry said after a moment's deliberation.

Corene didn't have any reaction, be it positive or negative to his answer, though she did voice her thoughts.

"Goldhorn would've been my second guess, after Yaxley."

Yaxley. Harry wondered why the boy hadn't owled him since the start of the break, for even if he wanted to invite him, he doubted the time left would've been enough. Corene could know why the lack of correspondence was happening, but before he could ask, the second of his four guests arrived.

Loudly.

"Morgana, this place is huge!" Sarah's voice loudly exclaimed as she exited the Floo at speed, her head snapping around every which way to take in every modicum of detail it could. "Wow! You have so much artwork on your walls! Look at that bust, it has to be positively ancient! Harry, I can't believe yo- I mean, hi Harry, hi Corene."

"Good afternoon, Goldhorn," Corene greeted from her seat, the girl not bothering to get up or use Sarah's first name despite the girl's usage of hers.

Harry, on the other hand, stood up from his seat and hugged Sarah without a second thought; she'd done the same multiple times when he saw her, in a way, it wouldn't feel like a greeting between the two of them without some sort of physical contact - her words were too nice to not show her that kindness too.

"You came, wicked! I half thought I'd waited a bit too long to invite you, it's just been so busy preparing everything for guests, I don't understand how your family has so many over without going absolutely mental!" Harry meant it too, planning for four people may as well have meant he'd planned for an army, as that's what it'd felt like.

"Practise, that's all it is," - Sarah laughed and pulled herself from the embrace, pointing towards the couch on the other side of his chair - "That looks lovely! I think I know where I'll be sitting while we wait for whoever else is coming assuming I'm not the last one… oh, snacks too! Tell me you've got wine somewhere close by and you'll be my best friend for a month at the least!"

Harry shook his head much to Sarah's dismay.

"I can have some brought if you'd like, didn't think anyone would want some so early in the day."

"Wine goes with cheese and bread better than any other form of drink, Harry," Corene piped up, her head cocked and brows furrowed as if he were stupid for not knowing that.

"See?" Sarah added, plopping down on the couch while similarly staring at him.

That was all it took for the worry he had in regards to Elaine to evaporate, for the time being, as there was no doubt in his mind that the day his four friends were over would be very interesting. It'd be all the more fun if they stayed the night too, as no doubt there'd be a number of topics coming up that he couldn't have prepared himself for.

"You win," Harry said, sighing dramatically.

Corene dipped her head once while Sarah cheered loudly, the two of them didn't have a chance to verbally celebrate their victory before the Floo fired up twice in rapid succession and Harry was knocked well off his feet by a fast-moving object before something twice as heavy fell upon him.

"Hey Pev!"

"Hop… off… you fat arse…"

Aster and Reinhard had arrived - it was a good thing he hadn't invited more than four.