His Angel

Chapter 22

Things gradually turned back to normal. Harry was released after one day's rest under Poppy's care. He would have protested against it, but for once he merely nodded which unnerved Poppy when she demanded he take one day off to rest.

He didn't know what was worse; Tricked into taking a dangerous mind-addling potion which would have made him do something he'd sorely regret (he still couldn't help shuddering at the thought) or seeing Fleur again only to have her taken away the same day.

He was irrationally angry with Ginny. Right now the line between anger and hate was thin…very thin. She did this to him, she who was someone he'd trusted. She went too far. Despite Fleur's reassurances he couldn't help thinking what could have happened if he'd succumbed to it. He felt dirty…contaminated.

But what was making him even more angry with her was the fact that it was her actions which had Fleur running here. They had been managing it…just barely managing to get used to the empty feeling in their chests they always carried around. It wasn't that he wasn't happy to have seen Fleur…far from it, but to wake up the next morning to find her gone had reawakened the raw feeling of loss.

The downside of being on a bed staring at a ceiling was that he couldn't stop himself from thinking. By the end of the day he was not quite the same person he was just a few days ago. Whether it was for the better or for the worse remained to be seen.

When he returned to school he found that the rumor mill had been at work. It was amusing to find how people seemed to believe he was at fault. Fellow Gryffindors could be heard talking to people from other houses in loud voices about how they had seen him try to murder Ginny in their common room. While that hadn't been his intentions he couldn't exactly say that thought hadn't crossed his mind. Still the stories about it were circulating around Hogwarts and people all over were greedily lapping it all up in a way to drag his name further below what is used to be.

News was also circulating about him and Fleur. Evidently a lot of people had spotted her when she came to Hogwarts. Fleur did tell him that Professor McGonagall knew about them and that everyone else who were in the hospital when she came in knew too.

The rumors going around were somewhat accurate. Some knew he was 'marked' but that was the extent they knew. They didn't know what it meant. They only seemed to know that he and the former Beauxbatons champion are an item.

Some thought it was a waste, her having to be with someone like him. Some thought they deserved each other, her being a Veela which probably meant she was something sinister and him being…whatever it is they thought.

There was a notable loss in points from Gryffindor. Of course, the blame rested on him for that too by his housemates. He honestly had no idea how they worked that one out but Ginny wasn't helping clarify things either, she was moping around like someone had died.

Fred and George were rather reluctant to talk to him. They didn't seem to know how to approach him about what had happened. He could remember one of them pulling their wand on him that evening. He couldn't exactly blame them, after all he had no idea what he would have done to Ginny and if he did, there would be no part of him that would feel remorse.

Ron was the same as ever, if not more so. He seemed inclined to blame him for what happened. Him and the rest of them he thought wryly. Hermione seemed to have thousands of questions and she'd been trying to approach him only to be turned away by the icy glare he sent her way.