Chapter 36 : A Detour Worth Taking
"You should enjoy the little detours. To the fullest. Because that's where you'll find the things more important than what you want."- Ging Freecss
Despite the generally grim mood hanging over the school, if there's one thing capable of exciting a student and a professor alike, victim or tormentor, it's the holidays, they always put a little balm on even the most battered of hearts.
The past term had been rich in drama, but undeniably the worst year on record for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, a title that already carried its own curse. Even so, plenty of people were quietly hoping for the kind of "accident" that would ensure Professor Umbridge simply never came back.
The newcomers to the wizarding world had certainly been impressed, and had learned all sorts of exciting new things, but more than anything, they'd learned to fear what magic, that same wonder, could do when turned toward cruelty. Thankfully, the older students had done what they could to help, even if it hadn't always been enough to spare them from Umbridge's punishments.
In short, for absolutely everyone, these holidays had been long awaited, and Harriet was no exception. Aside from a few projects of her own, she'd decided she was going to properly relax for once too. Even given her rather unusual situation, getting permission to do whatever she wanted over the break hadn't been difficult, according to spymaster Severus Snape, the Death Eaters were still keeping a low profile before revealing whatever they were actually planning. Not that she would have accepted a refusal either way.
Soon enough, Harriet found herself back on the Hogwarts Express, watching the countryside blur past the window one more time, until the train finally pulled into King's Cross Station, just past midday.
"Take care of yourself and don't get into too much trouble, Mutsuko, you hear me? Kanako, I'm counting on you to keep an eye on her, all right?" Harriet said, after getting off the train and walking the two younger girls over to Mutsuko's parents. Apparently the two of them had hit it off so well that they'd already planned to spend the holidays together.
"Yes, big sister, I'll be careful." "I've got a few experiments to run. I heard there are dwarves somewhere near the Weasleys' house. I can't wait to see their forging technique!" Mutsuko said, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Those are garden gnomes, Mutsuko, not dwarves. They just dig around in the dirt and get thrown over the fence, there's no forge, no anvil, nothing." Harriet paused. "Actually, never mind. Knowing you, you'll probably find actual dwarves anyway. Have a good holiday." With that, she hugged them both and left, after saying goodbye to Hermione and Luna, who were still waiting nearby. The Weasley twins weren't there, they'd had to rush to the hospital to see their father, who was thankfully recovering well.
She'd already changed into proper Muggle clothes, so that by the time she crossed the barrier onto the Muggle side, she blended right in. At least she wasn't one of those wizards who wandered around the streets of London in full pointed hats.
By the time she reached the station exit, Yuna was already waiting for her, dressed in a simple cream blouse, high waisted beige trousers, and a small honey colored cardigan with buttons shaped like little bear paws. "Hey, there's the champion. You're finally back."
At that, Harriet didn't hesitate to pull her into a hug and plant a kiss on her cheek. "That's your reward. I'm not about to work you to the bone and give you nothing in return, am I?"
Yuna answered, dryly sarcastic. "Ah, well, in that case, all those sleepless nights were worth it..."
"Weren't they, though!" Harriet answered, thoroughly smug.
"Right, let's set that aside for now. Harriet Nicole Potter, get in the car, I've decided today's my day off, and I'm taking you with me whether you like it or not." She said it while pointing toward a car parked not far off, a modest little Fard Facus, nothing flashy or expensive, but well kept and clearly comfortable, the kind of practical, reliable car a young professional might drive around London without a second thought.
"Sounds good, let's go, I could use a bit of rest myself!" At that, Harriet nodded, more than pleased with the suggestion.
And with that, they climbed into the car and drove off, leaving the station behind.
"So, did you have fun this year at that famous school of yours?" Yuna asked.
"Better than the other years. Though I doubt anyone else could say the same. I did leave you a proper mess to deal with though, sorry about that." Harriet said, happy to see her wonderfully lazy best friend again. "I never would have imagined we'd actually meet one day, let alone end up working together... or rather, that you'd end up working for me." Harriet teased.
"Ah, keep that up and we'll be terminating the contract, Miss Potter-Black," Yuna said, lazily.
"I'm joking, at this point I don't think I could do without you. Anyway, I actually wanted to ask, how did you manage to get yourself established in wizarding society the way you did? I figured you'd just use the money and hire a spokesperson, not actually get involved directly yourself. It's a fairly racist society after all, and you're not magical, are you? You never actually explained that to me." Harriet asked, a little puzzled.
"That was the original plan, you're right about that, but let's just say that even though I'm not a magical being like you, I do have something that lets me work magic all the same. I'll explain that part properly some other time, once we actually sit down to talk business. Today, we relax, and I've got a surprise for you tonight." Yuna said, satisfied with herself.
"Oh? So what can you tell me about the plan for today, then?" Harriet asked, intrigued.
"Let's eat first, then shopping, then we'll head to the arcade for a bit of fun. In the evening, I'll take you to your surprise." Yuna said, playing at being mysterious.
"Fine, but I'm warning you, you've got me curious now, so it better be a good surprise." Harriet said, her usual composure slipping just enough to let the curiosity show through.
"You can count on it, I won't disappoint you." Yuna said, with a small, crooked smile.
The day passed quickly, the two friends finally reunited, simply enjoying each other's company. For both of them, the past while hadn't been easy, revelations and hard truths can only shake a person so many times before they need a real break. It was a day they'd both genuinely needed.
After a good meal at a good restaurant, they wandered without any real direction, deliberately taking every detour and stopping into all sorts of little shops along the way, with the greatest advantage any witch or wizard could ask for, a pocket fitted with an Undetectable Extension Charm, opening into an entire dimension inside, the natural enemy of every boyfriend's wallet, but the best friend of their arms. They took pictures at various spots along the way. It felt like revisiting something familiar, and a welcome escape from everyday life.
They spent a while playing Alley Fighter at the arcade, Harriet on one side, Yuna on the other.
"You're actually pretty good at this, Harriet, have you played before?" Yuna asked, mid match.
"Mmm, not much, I'm just naturally talented. Don't go looking for excuses for when you lose!" Harriet said, thoroughly smug. In truth, she'd never played this particular game in this life, and never on an actual arcade cabinet in her previous one either, it was a rather different experience for her.
"Ah, I never had any intention of losing. Play all you want, you're not beating me." Yuna said, and to be fair, she genuinely had a solid level, against anyone except Harriet. Whether it was one or the other, gaming ran in both their blood.
When the match ended with a win for Harriet, evening out the overall score to five all, she asked, "...Yuna, now that you've had some time to find your footing in this world, tell me honestly, do you regret it?" Harriet asked, curious.
"Are you really asking me that, just like that? Don't waste brain cells trying to feel guilty about it. I would have ended up in this world eventually, with or without you, sooner or later, that much was certain." Yuna said, looking Harriet straight in the eye.
"It's not that I'm worried... well, maybe a little, honestly. I didn't know who else to contact when I needed help, and you just seemed like the obvious choice at the time." Harriet said, her tone friendly. "Now that I think about it, though, you didn't just walk into this world quietly. You flat out kicked the door down." She added, sarcastically.
"Ahah, well, once I'm in, I'm not exactly the type to be polite about it and take my shoes off at the door, that's just not my style. But like I told you, the magical world and the mundane one sit right next to each other regardless, I would have ended up in it eventually either way... though if it hadn't been you who introduced me to it, who knows, maybe I'd have been safer, or maybe I'd have died the moment I figured out it existed at all. There's no way to know for sure, Harriet. So let's just say I'm glad it was you who reached out the way you did." She said it in the tone an older sister might use with a younger one she's fondly indulging.
"Don't take that tone with me..." Harriet said. "Yeah, fair enough. Better it was me, all things considered." She added, smug again.
"Let's go, it's time for the final stop..." Yuna said, once they'd finished playing, and they made their way back to the car.
While driving, Yuna asked Harriet to open the glove compartment and take out the papers inside. When Harriet saw what they actually were, even she couldn't help but look completely stunned.
"This... I asked you to make their lives difficult if you could. I wasn't expecting this. Okay, I'll admit it, this is incredible." Harriet said, once she'd composed herself again. What she held in her hands was:
A deed of debt assignment. A foreclosure notice. A forbearance clause.
All of it concerning a certain house at 4 Privet Drive, currently occupied by certain individuals.
"You know, Harriet, we've known each other a long time now. It was chance that brought us together, but it wasn't chance that made us this close." Yuna's expression stayed perfectly unreadable now. "When you told me you wanted them to suffer for what they put you through, I obviously pulled a few strings here and there to make sure some misfortune found its way to them. Financially, among other things, at least, they're at rock bottom now, and that house is genuinely the very last thing they've got left... though for that, I did have to dig around a bit.
Without quite realizing it, Harriet had gone tense at the sight of the address. It was easy enough to say you'd moved past certain things, especially now that she had more than enough power to do whatever she wanted with the Dursleys. But childhood trauma didn't just disappear because you'd grown up in spite of it. It needed to be confronted head on, beaten on its own ground, that was the only way to actually win. And Harriet, even if it might look otherwise from the outside, hadn't won yet. Not yet. "And... what did you find out, exactly?" she asked quietly, looking at Yuna.
"I'm furious," Yuna said, barely holding her rage in check. "That my best friend had to fight adults completely alone, from such a young age, just to earn a roof over her head and something to eat. I'm genuinely furious about it, Harriet, and that's exactly why I'm handing you every weapon you need. We're going to Privet Drive, we're going to their house, and you're putting an end to all of it. Either you send them straight to hell with this, or you save them. The power's yours." She finished, turning her focus back to the road.
"And you couldn't have told me you'd already done all this?" Harriet said, expression unreadable. "Shouldn't you have asked my opinion beforehand?" she added, a beat later.
"Well, it's a surprise after all, and I know you well enough to know you wouldn't say no. I'm not going to force you into it though, we can always turn back if you want." Yuna said, smug now. "So, are we doing this or not?"
Let's do this!" Harriet said, after a moment spent thinking it over, a fighting glint in her eye. She couldn't really hold it against Yuna for acting the way she had, if their positions had been reversed, she would have done exactly the same thing.