mahogany ; d.m

64 - alive

He caught her when they landed, else she would have been thrown to the ground. His arms cascaded around her shoulders protectively, but they let go too soon.

He stood vacantly beside her, watchful of her as she gathered herself together. She was flustered by the sudden contact with his body that she had been without for too long.

And she was so distracted by him that it took her a moment to clock in her surroundings. The two of them stood in the midst of a cabin with a rather grand interior. Very familiar, almost nostalgic. It gave her the strangest feeling.

It wasn't until she glanced to her left, catching the picture of a deep blue lake through several lattice windows which decorated the wooden walls, that she realised where she was standing.

The water of the lake glistened and sparkled beneath the sun, its reflection catching through the glass panes of the chalet. The sounds of the leaves among the walls and the fresh hints of eucalyptus aromas brought her immediately back to her childhood.

"Oh my god. How—? When—?" she gaped, gazing around in awe at her home from her childhood.

It appeared unchanged from what she could remember of it. The interior was all the same as it had been before, colours and accents, decorated with her mother's familiar rustic touches. And the lake that she had captured in her mind was more serene than she had ever recalled.

"I can't believe you remembered!"

"It's not something I could have forgotten," he said, modestly, amused by her astonishment.

"How did you find it?"

"I've been looking since the summer. There hadn't been much to do and I needed a—" his brows threaded together firmly. "—distraction. You said it was in the Lake District and I figured after Dumbledore's death, the protection on this place would have lifted."

She saw the emotionless facade flicker onto his face briefly when he mentioned Dumbledore, but recovered this, letting down his guard.

"I eventually found it a few months ago and reapplied the wards, added a few more. We're safe here."

She let out a breath she hadn't realised she was holding. It was what she needed to hear.

"You should have seen the dust," he chuckled. "Had to get a few House Elves to help me clean it all. They won't say a word, of course."

She couldn't really understand. After all, he said in the letter they wouldn't be with each other again.

"You did all this—why?"

There was no hesitation in his reply. Just pure sincerity and meaning in his tone.

"You know why."

Among the pain that dredged through her soul, her heart still managed to flutter all the same. The silence between them held enough tension to stop her heart.

"But you—you didn't want me anymore," she whispered, looking down at his hands. Anywhere but his eyes.

"What?" his tone was disbelieving.

"The letter."

His jaw clenched in strain as soon the words left her mouth. She couldn't assess his reactions as easily anymore. He was so different than before, it was harder to reach and grasp his soul. More torn apart than he had ever been. The deep shades of purple underneath his eyes displayed that.

His eyes squeezed shut temporarily, before they flickered open and he seemed to understand.

"The minute you went missing, I couldn't care less about the past," he affirmed, setting his jaw. "I knew you were safe in Hogwarts. I knew where you were."