the school of extraordinary lovers

IX

"Hey Iris. It's Harry calling again. Heard from one of your classmates that you didn't go to your afternoon class. I know you don't usually skip, so— I'm officially worried. Like more worried than I was that one Christmas that made us swear off alcohol, remember? That didn't last, obviously, but you nearly dying scared the shit out of us for a good while. Not that I handled my alcohol much better, but I didn't blackout twice... Anyway, if you're needing space, I get that. I really do. Maybe just- if you could just call me or Niall or Tory and say so, that'd be good. Okay, I'll call again in a bit. I hope you're alright. Bye."

Harry drops his phone on the table, just as Niall lifts a chip from his tray, has a bite and tosses it down too. They sit in miserable, tense silence.

"The last time she did this, she at least told us she was running away," says Niall.

"That was in secondary school," Harry says. "And all she did was spend the day at McDonald's."

"Maybe we should check the nearest McDonald's, then."

It's only a joke, Harry knows, but his sense of humour is shot. "I'm pretty sure this is serious. She wasn't herself last night," he says. And he didn't help at all. "We could try a locator spell."

Niall looks affronted. "That's demon magic, isn't it?"

On the topic of demons and their magic, Harry rescinds. He hasn't disclosed his own dealings in the arcane and he thinks now isn't the time to start.

"Plus, it takes forever and the payoff isn't great. Or so I've heard," Niall says. "We'd get an approximate location, but if she's on the move, it's not all that helpful."

Harry chews his thumbnail, peering around the courtyard like the answers will manifest over yonder. His phone buzzes and he and Niall zero in on it.

'Charles will be outside Lysgrom at 17:00. If that works.'

Harry snatches the phone up before Niall can read it. "It's not her."

With no suspicion spared, Niall lowers his gaze and begins poking at his chips once more.

'might not make it. something's come up.'

'whatever'

Harry puts his head down on the table. He wants to sleep a dreamless sleep and he wants to do so for days on end. He's thought less about Louis today than he has all month, which is a blessing, but it's only because one of his best mates is missing.

And even then, all morning when he wasn't worrying about Iris, he thought about having to potentially cancel on Louis. He hoped that Iris would reappear in time, so that he wouldn't have to. So that Louis wouldn't assume that Harry was running scared.

But there's no avoiding it now. It's nearly the end of the school day and he won't be able to focus. He is scared of himself when he's with Louis. He can't think clearly when he's with him. Louis knows that, but Harry isn't looking to admit it.

"I think I need to go see my mum," Harry says. "You should stay in case she comes back and she's in bad shape or something."

"What kind of trouble do you think she's in?"

"I know she's in trouble," Harry says. Niall's unspoken but emphatic 'how' hangs in the air. "I've seen it. Like the way my mum sees things that haven't happened yet. It wasn't anything useful, but I just remember looking for Iris. And knowing she wasn't safe."

"And you've had these visions before?"

"Yes."

Niall pushes his tray to the side, giving up on the meal altogether. He folds his hands together atop the table. "Is there anything else you want to share with me?"