CONFUNDUS; harry potter [UNDER EDITION]

CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

Lucca is on the floor.

Now, that isn't the strangest thing. He is familiar with the dizziness and the numbness of his body after waking up from random faints over the years. It's been a while, he recognizes. And still, he can't get used to the sickness in his stomach. A finger slides between his lips and the salty flavour awakens his senses. He opens his eyes. The blinding lights of the kitchen alert him. He hears his grandmother's screams and Aunt Fiona's answer, they are arguing. There are more voices and movements. Lucca still has the odd sensation he is underwater. His vision is blurry due the abrupt light, but once he manages to get past the uncomfortable illumination, he hears the conversation taking place nearest to him.

Alba's blonde hair is the first thing Lucca spots when he lifts his head.

"Hypotension is common in our family," she is saying in her cute little English to someone behind her. "He's fine. Nothing we haven't handled before."

"What about the curse?"

Lucca recognizes the voice and the accent and he groans, ready to sit up and throw his breakfast over them. His legs are lifted on a chair, too, and Alba seems to understand he is slowly coming back to himself as she helps him to sit properly.

A glass of water is thrusted into his hand and Lucca empties it in less than a second. "There you go, buddy."

"Thanks."

Lucca doesn't want to look at Harry's general direction because maybe his head is playing games. He needs a few minutes on the floor before Alba offers her hand and with her super strength, pulls him up.

"Well," Aunt Rosa sips her coffee, entertained. "That happens when Nora's recipes don't contain enough nutrients. So bad for a Healer, tut tut, that won't do, right?"

Why would she open her mouth?

"UNGRATEFUL WOMAN!" Nora bellows, Aunt Fiona stepping in between with her arms stretched out to avoid a murder.. "YOU COME INTO MY HOUSE AND BRING THIS —" and she points at Harry, who is standing on Alba's side, eyes open wide and frozen on spot, making himself smaller, "— DEVIL'S SPAWN INTO MY HOUSEHOLD! AND THEN DISRESPECT MY COOKING! I'VE WON BEST PIE FIVE YEARS IN A ROW —"

"Now, now, Nora," Aunt Rose looks unimpressed by her dramatics. "The lad hasn't done anything. If he truly were evil, why would he be on the side road collecting flowers?"

"HE MURDERED MY DAUGHTER!"

"Did he now? He's all skin and bones —"

"Nora..." Daniel carefully approaches his wife, concerned eyes staring at her. "My love, let's talk this through. The poor lad wants to apologise —"

"HE IS LEAVING THIS INSTANT!" Nora throws her hands in the air. "I KNOW HIS SORT VERY WELL. THEY COME HERE AND TAKE AND TAKE AND LEAVE NOTHING BEHIND!"

Harry chooses the wrong time to speak up, he mumbles, "I'm sorry —"

"SHUT UP, SHUT UP!" Nora screeches, switching from Spanish to her ancestor's tongue, Mapuche is a language Lucca hasn't mastered, but he is certain if she continues her magic will act up on spells and curse the lot of them.

Lucca thinks he'd better take Harry from there before his grandmother suffers a cardiac arrest.

He turns to Alba, who has this sour expression on her face, and she nods, almost understanding Nora won't see sense until Harry is out of her sight. She whispers something to Harry and points to the back door, Harry looks at Lucca and he simply tilts his head, inviting him to talk outside.