Reunion, part 2

Leonard had never been stuck in a tornado, but he was fairly certain this was as close as it gets, except with more noise, way more noise. "A tornado with chickens, or harpies..." he thought, looking around the table; said harpies were loudly cackling, prodding, groping and bickering, and for a moment he could've sworn they were actual birds.
Although the crowd was rowdier, he had been trained to deal with such people in Beauxbatons, and he graciously smiled and deflected conversations and compliments alike as he sampled the unknown dishes with gusto; his appetite had thankfully returned after finally meeting her, in spite of the gnawing feeling in the back of his head that he was celebrating too early.
"Hey! Remember the wager is to make her one of us, not to shag her!" a blonde girl suddenly grabbed the boy as he stared down a pie with protruding fish heads.
He slowly turned his head to stare her down disapprovingly but she didn't notice as she exlaimed "Stargazy pie! You want some? Don't be shy! It's good!" and cheerfully cut two large portions.
"Wait, no, that's too-!"
"Try it!" she grinned widely.
"Fine, but I'm pretty full already." he chuckled, cutting a piece.
The girl stared at him, analyzing his reaction, holding her face with both hands, smiling to her ears.
"Hm. Pretty much what I expected." he declared, snootily, her smile slowly fading from her face. "Really good!" he chuckled, her smile returned, with reinforcements, and she laughed loudly.
He felt a chill down his spine and spied Elise staring, she averted her gaze the moment his eyes met hers.
Clearly affected, his smile had a hint of fakeness as he turned back to his housemate. "Anything else I should try?"
"Not being such a tease..." she hissed quietly.

Ting ting ting
The Headmistress, glass raised, demanded the students attention, and with wide gestures announced the end of the feast, followed by dull instructions regarding the housing arrangements, the following of prefects and the deadliness of various things all over the castle.
"Wouldn't you want that addressed..?" Leonard wondered out loud.
"What's the fun in that?" asked another Slytherin girl.
"Not risking your life when you have to... Excuse yourself." he replied bluntly.
"Fair enough, but you know what's even more fun? Locking a Hufflepuff in a forbidden corridor!" quipped a boy, the whole group exploded in laughter.
Leonard joined in, pretending to find it amusing.
"Slytherin!" called a voice, and the students rose and followed.
Unsure what to do, Leonard's gaze alternated between the group and his prey, only to be grabbed by the arm by the blonde girl.
Elise had been staring daggers the entire time, only looking away when he glanced at her, which was noticeably often.
"Competitive, huh? Stop thinking about our little wager and immerse yourself..." the blonde girl said, pushing his arm into her breasts "In House Slytherin!" her black haired friend followed and grabbed his other arm, doing the same.
He could feel it in his neck, she was murdering them, spilling their innards all over the stone floor and devouring their flesh.
"She's watching you." whispered the blonde girl, with her signature smirk.
"Get a move on, lovebirds!" laughed a broad boy behind them.

Under the envious glare of his male housemates, Leonard was escorted by the girls to the common room, their shorter stature and slow pace making the endeavour more tiring than it had any reason to be; he followed along graciously but reluctantly.
The girls mentioned each other's names unusually often, in an obvious attempt to be remembered; both of them had clearly noticed the pretty boy had never even acknowledged them, and perhaps it played a part in their aggressive displays of affection. He simply didn't care, neither did he care if it drove them mad.
His mind was filled with her, he didn't even register how the Headmistress looked, or even what gender the Slytherin prefect was, the only thing that mattered to him right now was to be with her, alone, without squabbling harpies shrieking all around him for attention they'll never get.
Too busy playing pretend with the girls, he barely had any time to look around the castle that the Slytherin common room was already upon him.
"I wasn't expecting to sleep in the sewers." he remarked.
"Just wait until you get inside." said the much more reasonable black haired girl.
Surely enough, as the trio stepped inside, Leonard was welcomed by a sight he would love to call his home for the coming years.
"I... I'm impressed." he nodded approvingly, genuinely smiling for once "Not to mention I love the marine aesthetic... Is this a window to the lake? How wonderful."
He stood there in awe, smiling, and taking a stand against the strengthening grips around his arms, as each girl attempting to pull him towards something they wanted him to see.
After a short struggle, the blonde girl pulled him in her direction, either by sheer will or strength, and instead of showing him around she dragged him into the large couch, not before noisly kicking some first years off what appeared to be her usual hangout in the common room.
Arms sore from the admittedly soft grip, Leonard sighed in relief as he stretched them out before placing them on the backrest behind both girls.
"I was expecting you to take me on a tour." he remarked.
"Well, Leonard..."the blonde girl emphasized his name, hinting at something "It is a lot more fun when all of these... Brats are asleep." she pressed her body against his and put her feet on the table.
He stared her down, alternating between her face and her feet, a clear look of disdain on his face.
"Oops, hehe, I was stretching my legs." she giggled, embarrassed, as she took them off the table.
"How unbecoming of you." teased the black haired girl, she mentioned her name but he didn't pay attention.
"So, how long until we can have fun? I wouldn't want to keep you ladies away from your beauty sleep."
"At least a whole day." said an adult male voice behind them, the girls clicked their tongue.
"Megamelons, with me, please." what he assumed to be a professor gestured towards the back of the common room.

Rolling his eyes, Leonard mouthed a "thank you" as he was taken away from the possessive galliformes.
"Our ever-so-wise Headmistress has given me instructions regarding your accomodations." said the man, walking briskly in front of Leonard. "The Great Eupraxia Mole is a peerless gem, an unrivaled genius and an inimitable beauty." he recited flatly, with a hint of sarcasm, leading him further in.
"Good boy." chuckled Leonard.
"It should normally be your prefect's duty but the situation is... Out of the ordinary..." his voice trailed off as he looked around and stopped. "As such I have to step in personally, as your head of House." he produced his wand and wordlessly unlocked the door.
"Your room." he gestured.
Leonard bowed and stepped forward, only for the professor's arm to block him. "I treat each and everyone of my students like my very own children. You best be on your best behaviour with them." he hissed.
"I have done nothing but play along." the boy hissed back with a cocky grin. "I will, professor. Pardon my outburst." he quickly corrected himself.
The man wordlessly stared him down before leaving silently.
"His children ?!" he thought, enraged, the image of his dear Elise being nothing but a pariah, sitting by her lonesome, openly mocked; He tightened his fist as he stepped into the large room.

Finally alone, Leonard sat down in a comfortable looking armchair, his forced smile slowly melting from his face into a neutral, almost angry vacant stare.
He felt dirty, he wanted nothing to do with these girls, or anyone from that group ever again... Yet he knew he had to, for her.
The moment his thoughts drifted away from the overwhelming discomfort and relief, all that remained was her: He didn't see her enter the common room, he wasn't even sure she followed them.
Leonard's mind couldn't settle between the many emotions swirling inside his chest: rage, disgust, relief, joy... It was only when his gaze passed over the large wardrobe that an unusual sound interrupted his thoughts.
"Well, what do we have here..." he grumbled as he stood up, taking time to scan the room.
It was large, way too large for a single person, there could have been at least three more beds and space to spare; lavish with tapestries, carpets and furniture, the room managed to look and feel much warmer than an underwater dungeon should, although terribly empty.
His rounds around the room coming to an end, he finally approached the wardrobe, he tentatively knocked, waited, then slowly opened the two large doors.
"Empty as expected." he thought, only to interrupt himself upon noticing some light seeping through the sides.
"Sliding panel? Or maybe something else?" he meticulously inspected the back, his wand producing a soft glow.
"Sliding panel is it. How boring." he remarked, as he gently opened the mysterious passageway to the unknown.
Beyond the wardrobe, Leonard found a room identical to his, a very distinct difference suddenly made his heart race as he stepped out of the furniture: the fragrant smell of lavender.
Eyes darting around the room in a frenzy, he looked around for her.
Beyond the urgency, a wave of nostalgia filled his mind and lungs, it almost felt like too much of a coincidence, yet the large room did bear the signs of a girl, or an unusually fancy boy having lived in it.
Despite looking more lived-in, the dormitory looked just as empty as his did, and perhaps because of the implications, Leonard felt embarrassed by his own gaze, and avoided looking around too much, in spite of his burning curiosity.
Feeling his intrusion was utterly inappropriate, he walked back towards the wardrobe, only to hear an unusually loud turning of a page as he put his foot inside, as if beckoning him back in the room.

Trembling, Leonard walked towards the source of the sound, the smell of lavender gently guiding him along in case he were to get lost.
Huddled in a corner of the room, in an armchair and surrounded by books sat the reason for him being in this room, in this castle, in this country; she didn't look at him, hiding behind her book, she was a mass of a black dress, slightly wavy caramel hair and dainty hands gripping an oversized book titled "Secrets of the Darkest Art"
The boy stood in silence, unable to look away, to speak, to breathe.
"You looked so delightfully miserable in that armchair of yours." Elise spoke softly, her voice like a dream he just remembered.
All he could do was smile, she couldn't see through the book but somehow she knew.
Quietly, he sat down in a nearby armchair as he exhaled softly.
They didn't need words, not right now; not that Leonard could ever dream of finding them, or uttering them.
The only sound to break the silence was the soft rustling of the book's pages being turned.
Unbeknownst to the boy, Elise was grinning like a madwoman, overjoyed that her dear Leonard was finally returned to her, overjoyed that her dear Leonard was so unbelieably cute in his inability to even formulate a single sentence, overjoyed that after his display with those accursed human flobberworms he had looked so miserable, so relieved to be rid of them.
Another page turned, he could almost hear a soft humming giggle; tentatively, he glanced at the girl and noticed her just barely kicking her feet playfully.
"Oh, shoes." he noticed, before hurriedly taking his off, aplogetically; he looked back at the wardrobe to check for any mess he could have made.
Another page.
By now, Leonard had sat there long enough to know when the next page would be turned, and despite how much his mind wanted to race he couldn't help but relax and take it all in: this was a moment to be enjoyed, something he would remember forever, even if he was just as confused as a gnome being tossed.

A soft knock on the door interrupted their peaceful moment, and soon the Headmistress herself entered the room, a wide grin on her face, as if her plans had gone without a hitch.
"Oh, Elise, a young lady shouldn't read such literature... You should be practicing your Charms instead." she teased, but didn't confiscate the book that was obviously taken from the Restricted Section.
The girl's head suddenly popped out from behind her book to look at the Headmistress, who responded with an approving nod.
Leonard couldn't help but sneak a peek, a not-so sneaky, very stare-y peek into her large blue eyes, framed by slender and graceful eyebrows and...
His heart skipped a beat a the sight: scars, all around her eyes; he gripped the armrest hard enough that the old wood creaked in protest.
Long gone was the gentle and relaxed smile, images of how this could have happened raced in his mind, scenarii more improbable than the next followed one after the other.
Noticing the look on his face, Elise hid her face once more, and something clicked in the boy's mind: this is what she was hiding.
"Leonard Megamelons, could you tell me what you're doing, past curfew, in your female housemate's dormitory?" she asked playfully "Can't you see how red you've made her?" her words clearly made it worse as Elise hunched behind the book even more.
Back to his fake smile, he stood up, opened his mouth to apologize and take his leave but no words came out except for a very faint whistling, he didn't bother to make another attempt and simply left through the wardrobe.
"I will kill them..." he kept repeating in his mind, from the moment he left his chair to the moment he sat in his bed.

Creak
Like a trained hunter, his gaze snapped from his hands to the wardrobe, his face quickly changing from murderous rage to his well practiced fake smile, which faded into disinterest when instead of Elise it was the Headmistress that climbed out of it, looking like a giant from the maneuver.
"Intimate." she remarked, as she dusted herself off, more for show than cleanliness.
"I'm sure you've noticed the... Unusual arrangements I've made for you." she started "the both of you."
He nodded.
"And in spite of your efforts, I noticed you noticed something was amiss with your dear friend."
He clenched his fist and nodded, masterfully hiding his wrath.
The Headmistress sat down cross-legged on the table in front of him, looking like she owned the room, which she technically did.
"Allow me to give you peace of mind: it was an incident with an owl."
"An owl?" he looked up quizzically.
"An owl. Poor thing, on the very first mail day, the crazed bird went right for her eyes..." explained the older woman, in a pouty voice. "Of course something had to be done- no we did not cook and eat the bird, but something had to be done... She's a pureblood you see, her parents would have my head... If not them, the others..." she explained, puppy eyed.
"So I took the girls under my wings." she giggled "One is in my very own tower and other is down here".
"What about... The rest?" he asked, slightly angry.
"Well the girl is terrified of birds, there was little I or my teachers could do, after a few weeks of being unable to leave her room the rumours had already gone out of control..."
"And you call that taking accountability?" he raised his voice.
"Oh but it's about to happen my dear..." she emphasized the last word as she slowly bent towards him, grinning.
"Who do you think approved your transfer? Bent the rules to give you both these rooms, dragged her to the Great Hall for the first time in years..?" she counted with her fingers "I have done my part, now it's your turn, I hear you have quite a few galleons to gain for your troubles too..." she teased.
"I can't tell if you're despicable or wonderful." he held out his hand for a shake.
"Keep this up and I will be the former." she whispered, shushing him, before giggling "But I'll take that as a compliment!" she exclaimed, before standing up with a spin and walking to the door.
"Needless to say, if you were to abuse your... Privileges..." she hissed.
"I will make an Unbreakable Vow if I have to." Leonard held out his arm and the woman bursted out laughing.
"My dear, that won't be necessary, but it sure puts my mind at ease." she wiped away a tear. "Goodnight~"
"Goodnight, Headmistress." he turned towards the wardrobe and thought "Goodnight... Elise."

Noticing the door had been left ajar, he approached the passageway, only to be welcomed by the sweet scent; rather than closing the doors, he opened them, and found a single piece of paper with a lavender stem.
"I missed you." said the note.
Leonard had never been kicked by an equine but he imagine that was how it would feel if it felt good.
Shaking like a leaf, he produced a similar piece of paper and wrote back the exact same words.

"LENNY!" screamed the man, in a daze "LENNYYYYY!" he fell over, coughing.
"LEEEENNNYYYY!" he screamed again, stumbling in an alleyway.

Confused and dazed, Leonard woke up, alone, in his big, empty room; he grabbed his watch and sighed in relief before stretching and standing up.
Before doing anything else, he walked towards the wardrobe, brimming with anticipation: it was empty.
Smiling uncontrollably he quickly followed his well practiced morning routine, needing to rely on spells for water due to the unusual lack of plumbing, and after a thorough check in front of the mirror he finally left the room, quiet as a mouse.
Leonard peeked in the direction of the common room tentatively, trying to avoid running into the harpies, his spying interrupted by his arm being suddenly grabbed.
Cursing his fate for a split second, the boy quickly changed his mind when he realized who had grabbed him and wordlessly nodded to his friend, pulling her towards the common room, which was thankfully mostly empty.
Obviously not knowing his way, Leonard relied on Elise gently pulling his arm to find his way to his first ever class at Hogwarts, and luckily for his friend, it wasn't Charms.
The trip was much longer than he expected, and despite running into a non-owl bird, which made the traumatized girl grip his arm like a grindylow, she soldiered on, gaining confidence little by little, until the two of them finally reached the Transfiguration classroom.
Pulling his watch with his free hand, he opened it in front of the both of them so the girl could see without the need for either of them to speak, she looked but didn't say anything, and the pair waited in silence for the professor to open the door, or for the hallway to fill up with students.

Alone with Elise, sitting in front of a large stained glass window, Leonard didn't need to pretend to smile, and anyone who knew him knew this soft, gentle smile was the real one, he wanted to look at hers, badly, "She has to be smiling, too... Right..?" he wondered, not even sure of what should have been a certainty.
As if sensing his fidgeting, she gently rested her head against his shoulder, he relaxed instantly, there was no need to wonder.
Of course he remained concerned, but only about what was to come if the professor didn't let them in soon. Like a flock of seagulls they would circle around them screeching and pecking.
"They're making me dislike birds... I love birds!" he thought.
Surely enough, their signature cackling could be heard from a few corridors away, he rolled his eyes and sighed; Elise didn't react.

"Oh look, It's Leonard!" exclaimed the blonde girl "Are you ever without a girl on your arm?" she giggled.
"Not after yesterday." he smiled, looking at the harpy and her friend.
"Addicted already?" teased the black haired girl "That's what I call a Slytherin welcome! You know... A snake can break bones with its embrace..." her fingers climbing along Leonard's collar, and right on cue, Elise's grip strengthened to unreasonable levels.
"So I've heard..." he smiled, a little uncomfortable, the two girls oblivious to his predicament.
"So..." said the blonde girl, sitting down next to the boy's unoccupied arm. "Which one's the softest..." she whispered.
For a second he thought his arm had snapped, only for the pain to suddenly ease when the classroom door opened, much to his relief.
The blonde stood up, giggling and glancing at Elise, before pushing a Hufflepuff out of her way to the classroom with an expletive.
Sighing with relief, Leonard attempted to get up but was stopped by a pull on his arm, he sat back, stealing a glance at the girl who seemed to want to wait, he obliged.
Only when the very last student had entered the room, and the professor had come to check the hallway did Elise stand up, he pulled her along wordlessly, under the smile of the matronly red haired teacher.
"How wonderful to see you, miss Higgins." the woman seemed overjoyed.

With most seats taken, the duo settled next to the Hufflepuff that had previously been pushed; not wanting Leonard to be surrounded again, Elise sat next to the red haired girl and placed her book and wand on the table, all the while never letting go of the boy's arm.
Shocked, the girl stared at Elise longer than she intended before introducing herself to the pair.
"I'm Mirabel, it's so good to see you in class." she smiled gently.
"Leonard. I take it you two know each other?"
"...Not really..." replied the Hufflepuff, a little embarrassed.

"- Now if I see any of you attempt to Transfigure a bird I will have you expelled on the spot, is that clear?" barked the professor, having apparently introduced the class in the meantime, a few students turning around to look at Elise, much to her dismay.
With half of his attention focused on Elise, Leonard barely managed to pay attention to the otherwise interesting lecture on Animagi, an interesting subject for the very first class, no doubt to get the students more invested in the long term.
"- And although this claim is disputed, many witches and wizards believe the shape your Patronus Charm takes can be a reflection of the animal you will turn into once you complete the ritual... That is, if your Patronus really is yours." She looked Leonard in the eyes, much to his confusion "But that is something you will learn in Charms, not here." she smiled.
"Now because I can't have you leave this class without practice, each one of you will be distributed a broken item to be used by the first years, and your very simple task will be to repair it." the lady waved her wand and a trolley full of various objects slowly crossed from her desk to the back of the room, letting students pick up an item each.
After the long summer break, a surprising amount of students struggled with the task, some of them getting confused with the exact spell they were supposed to use.
To Leonard's surprise, Elise didn't struggle one bit, despite the teacher leaving her desk to check on her first.
"O-oh, you're already done." said the woman, bewildered.
"She has been practicing."
Leonard turned towards Mirabel, confused. "How would she know that..?" he thought.
"And you?" smiled the professor turning towards the boy.
Leonard wordlessly waved his wand.
"Effortless. Wonderful." she clapped quietly.
"They taught me well." he smiled.
"Oh! You're the transfer student from Beauxbatons!" exclaimed Mirabel.
All three of them stared at her in disbelief, she giggled nervously.
Turning back to Leonard, the professor half whispered "Could you come see me after class?." she glanced towards Elise, who was busy reading her book and grasping his arm; the boy nodded knowingly.

Little by little, the students completed their task and left the classrom, some of them, mostly Slytherins, not even bothering to return the fixed item to the trolley.
"Could you let go for a moment?" Leonard smiled. Elise obliged, reluctantly.
Stretching his arm, he made way towards the teacher's desk. "You wanted to see me?"
Adjusting her glasses, the red haired woman gestured towards a chair next to her desk, and a few seconds later put down her papers and looked at him with a smile.
"How was your first class? Have you had any trouble adjusting to the castle?"
"Pleasant, House Slytherin is... Quite welcoming." he massaged the arm Elise hadn't latched onto.
"I might not be your Head of House, but if you ever need anything, even just a conversation..."
"I gladly take the offer." he interrupted, smiling.
"Good, that is all." she smiled back, quickly returning to her papers.
Leonard nodded and walked back.
"Take good care of her. She's been waiting for you, and she needs you."
"Excuse me?" he turned around.
"Hm?" asked the professor, confused.
"...Nevermind." he furrowed his brow.
"That's creepy. Really creepy. Don't let it get to your head..." he thought, increasingly worried about the words he had just heard.

Waiting for him at their bench was Elise, a determined look on her face as she stared him down with a little v shaped smile, far less ashamed of her face.
She wordlessly grabbed his arm and walked him out of the room.
"I missed you." she whispered in his ear.