𝑩𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌 || h.potter

fifty-two || year 7 ✔️

The locket is on a tree trunk. Ron leans against a tree, looking pale. Amelia nods to Harry. He raises his wand.

"Dissendium!" cried Harry. The locket spins swiftly in place, but remains whole.

"Incendio." chanted Amelia. Flames engulf the locket and its metal flesh turns scarlet, but then the flames die.

"Expulso!" said Harry. The tree stump explodes, but the locket remains unmarked.

"Confringo!" Hermione frowns.
The ground beneath the stump craters, but the locket remains untouched. Hermione and Amelia lowers their wand, but Harry continues on, firing a succession of spells, looking almost possessed. Amelia studies him oddly until, finally, he stops. All goes silent except for the leaves shifting in wind above.

Then, slowly, another sound comes clear... a tucking. Coming from the locket.

"It's angry." stated Ron.

Hermione shivers. Harry steps forward, kneels down and takes the locket by its chain. It ticks. He slings it over his neck. Rises.

"What're you doing?" asked Hermione, Amelia sighs.

"We have to keep it safe until we can figure out how to destroy it." replied Harry.

"I can put it in my bag --" Amelia

"No." cut Harry.

"Seems strange, mate." Ron knits his eyebrows together. "Dumbledore
sends you off to find a load of Horcruxes, but doesn't bother to tell you how to destroy them. Doesn't that bother you?"

Harry studies the locket, whose ticking has slowed, then walks off. Hermione eyes Ron, who returns her glance, then pushes away from the tree and walks off slowly in the opposite direction. Amelia follows Hermione ,letting out a sigh as she walked.

"Mione." greeted Amelia, as she picks flowers, she doesn't know why, but she just picks the pretty ones.

*

Harry turns the mirror shard over in his fingers, then eyes Amelia collecting flowers in the distance. She looks beautiful. Seeing him, she smiles, waves, moves on.

The radio spits static and he tilts the mirror so he can see Ron. He looks annoyed, but holds his tongue and slips the mirror in his pocket. Noticing the locket, he slips it from his shirt, studies the fissures in the locket's metal skin. Suddenly he winces. The locket spills from his palm, dances upon the chain. The skin encircling his scar constricts.

Meanwhile, Amelia chats with Hermione.

"Hey, Mione?"

"Mmm?" She hums.

"I never thanked your parents." Amelia slowly spoke, picking her words wisely. "And...I regret them not knowing before we left."

"Oh, Mia." smiled Hermione. "They know how much Dalia had hurt you, and how much you've been tortured. And they want nothing but to see you safe."

"Thank you, Mione." smiled Amelia.

"You're always welcome." Hermione nods, she looks behind Amelia, which is Harry and her smile falls. "I think you should go and speak to him. I don't want to talk to him right now."

"Why?"

"I don't know," shrugged Hermione. "I think it's just best you should talk to him. You're his girlfriend after all."

"Right." Amelia nods. She walks over to Harry, who's eyes are close.

Harry's eyes flutter open. He sees Amelia, beautiful in the amber dusk, standing a bit away, studying him.