#Harriet Potter and the Stray Cat AU

[dearcat1]

[Unsteady shelves]

Part 1 of the Harriet Potter & the Stray Cat AU

Harri is bored. It's not something she had expected, to be honest. Though she probably should have. Magic makes people age slower, this is a fact. A fact that she had known. Peripherally, at least. Her magical core is on the same range as Dumbledore's and Tom's used to be. 

But looking at the way even her friends start ageing around her when she still looks just 17. It smacked her in the face mercilessly. Her core is bigger, she will age slower. It's starting to show. 

And she's so bored besides. 

Not even Hermione throwing interesting things her way has been enough lately. No matter that Harri's patience for investigation has grown greatly during the last 15 years. 

So she has opted for a change of setting. Italy was picked mostly at random, the bakery out of restlessness. She still has more than enough money to live comfortingly but Harri was never one to be idle. So a bakery it is.  

It's not in the best part of town. It's not even in a good part of town. It's in the middle of the slums, actually. That's no accident. Very few people will go looking for the famous Harriet Potter in a place like this. And, like it or not, folk in the slums have a very clear "I haven't seen or heard anything" mentality.

Better for her, honestly. Besides, the Italian Magical Ministry is far more relaxed about secrecy laws than its English counterpart. Something about an entire community of squibs using basic soul magic. 

None of that prepared her for finding the small beaten up form of a black-haired child trying to climb up the shelves of her bakery's kitchen. He can't have any ill intent, the wards wouldn't have let him in otherwise. Harri closes the door quietly behind herself, lips pursing as she observes the kid. 

He's going to fall. 

As soon as she thinks that, the kid loses his footing and tumbles down. Harri catches him just barely, arms pulling him up to her hip as she studiously ignores both the way she can feel his ribs and the ineffectual attempts at escaping her grip. "Careful," Harri admonishes, "that would have hurt." 

She's not sure whether it's fear or confusion that has him stilling, but still he remains all the way up the stairs and to her bathroom. Following pure gut feeling, Harri prepares a bath for him, water just high enough that he won't drown, and then lets him down cautiously on the cold tile. "Alright," she sighs after giving him a once over, "take the bath. Leave the clothes by the door so I can clean them for you." 

"Why?"

This is awkward. "Because your injuries will get infected if they're dirty." No cajoling, no soothing, just plain fact. Harri needs him compliant so she can take care of him, too much sweetness and he'll be suspicious. Her heart hurts. Harri ignores that studiously. 

The kid doesn't answer that, he just looks up at her with dark mistrustful red eyes, lips pressed tightly closed and arms crossed over his chest. But he does slowly move to check the water's temperature so Harri leaves him to that, closing the door softly behind her as she drags a hand through her messy black hair. 

What a mess. What is she even doing? Still, her gut feeling is usually somewhat reliable.

Ignoring all the self-doubt that has decided to come out now to play, she leaves some left-overs to heat up before taking the dirty clothes the kid left by the door. He didn’t run off at first opportunity, which is good. Harri leaves them to clean themselves up with magic and doesn’t bother trying to hurry up the process. 

Wet clothes are as good an excuse as any other to wrangle the kid into letting her feed him. A predictable excuse, too. So he’d probably fight Harri less on it. If he decides to fight her at all, he seems to be under the impression that compliance might be the path of less harm. 

It’s a start. 

The stone floors are cold to the touch, maybe she should add charms for that? Harri had only gotten them that way because the aesthetic reminds her of Hogwarts but now… it just doesn’t feel child-friendly? Too cold, too impersonal. Maybe her friends are right and she needs to start adding up some personal touches. 

A small crack takes her out of her thoughts and Harri goes to pick him up before she can think better of it. It’s just… the stone floors are cold. He doesn’t seem averse to it, though. Not if the way his hands twist around the fabric of her blouse is any indication. 

“I can lend you some of Teddy’s clothes while yours dry,” she offers and deliberately ignores the tenseness of him.

He does nod, though. And she takes that. Good enough. He’s dried up and clothed quickly enough and Harri takes it as a good sign that he willingly comes closer for her to pick up, settling on her hip calmly.

“Are you hungry? I’m heating up some left-overs.” 

That gets her another nod, a little more eager. She hides her smile against the top of his hair, taking advantage of the way he’s tucked his head under her chin. Harri knows what it’s like to be that age and hungry, though maybe not that hungry. And she has a people saving thing. 

It’s ok, isn’t it? What if this time ‘people’ turns out to be a small scrap of a child who somehow snuck up into her kitchen. He’s just hungry, she can understand that. “Careful,” she murmurs, “it’s hot, don’t burn yourself.”

[dearcat1]

Am I losing my mind or did Harriet Potter and the Stray Cat vanish off tumblr?

Uh, neither, I hope. Though judging by how this year is going, it might be for the best.

Tumblr:

1st Part

2nd Part

AO3 (Complete)