look me in the eyes and burn

Chapter 6 - Burning Flames of the Phoenix

Chaos. That's what greeted Hadrian the moment he re-entered his current lodging.

People were scurrying about, screaming across whole rooms or shoving past him with no regards, whatsoever.

And then, suddenly, it was still. Completely still and quiet and just like time had slowed down and finally, stopped.

Every eye was turned upon him.

Hadrian opened his mouth, closed it again and finally asked, "Is something the matter?"

Silence. And staring.

"Harry James Potter!" Exploded Molly Weasley suddenly. He flinched, "Where. Have. You. Been?!"

"At the trial?" He asked uncertainly. Shouldn't she know this?

"Albus was here an hour ago to inform us of his success in getting the Minister to drop all charges!" Informed him the woman, "So I ask again: where have you been?!"

So, okay, Hadrian was just going to ignore what Mrs Weasley said about Dumbledore being the one to achieve this and instead focus on the repeated question.

However, before he could as much as open his mouth to appease the red sister-banshee of a certain black one — as he was sure they must be related —, he was cut off by said woman.

"We were worried sick! Arthur said he wanted to pick you up after he was done and you were simply gone. Gone. Can you even image what we thought had happened? Death Eaters could have —"

"Mum, I think that's enough now." Thank you, George.

"Yeah, I don't think he did it deliberately. Aren't I right, Harrykins?" Absolutely, Fred, absolutely.

Mrs Weasley's face reached another shade of red when Hadrian finally decided to end this torture.

After all, more than one Order member had their hands pressed on their ears. Hard.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Weasley. I was not aware that you were so distressed. I was just... making a quick detour to Diagon Alley, nothing dangerous, I promise."

And even though it should have helped, it did not seem to do much. If anything, the rapid loss of color on her face worried him even more.

Had he done something wrong?

"You have gone to Diagon Alley? Alone?!" She gasped, "Without telling us! Or anyone! What if you had been kidnapped? Or killed? Harry James Potter, what do you think Dumbledore would say to that?"

Well, probably something along the lines of him not honouring his parents' sacrifice for him and being a child doing reckless things; all the while also comparing him to his dead father and telling him how he also always broke the rules.

Smiling angelically, he prayed for patience and opened his eyes wide.

"Really, Mrs Weasley, I was very careful. And I only went into Gringotts —" and the Post Office, and the Apothecary, and — "and Gringotts is safe. The safest place there is. Everything was fine."

He reassured not only the woman, but also every Order member and person in the room. But honestly, they were much too invested in his life.

Thankfully, it was not the red-banshee that spoke next, but the poor bloke that had to live with her screaming every day of his life. "I know you were worried, Molly-Wobbles, we all were." He touched her arm lovingly, "but nothing happened. So there is no need to alarm the boy now. He obviously wasn't aware of the dangers and it was reckless of him to do this, but we cannot change it now."