"The worse kinds of decisions are the one's where there is never a better choice, where you have to decide between those you care about, and your own morals. These are the kind of decisions which you never have a true choice in. If you're a nice person and you love your friends, you've already chosen to sacrifice your own well being for them. If you aren't, then you've already decided that they aren't worth giving into the demands for. If you're the second kind of person, you'll no doubt try and rationalize the decision; if your friends are threatened with violence you'll declare to yourself that you'll protect them, or that they will be able to protect themselves. If you're the first, then the only thing you can do is make the best of your situation."
The moment the doors opened, a gust of cold air hit Harry. Beside him Inari shivered lightly, the thin material of her negligee did as little to protect her from the cold as it did to conceal her body. Lara on the other hand seemed undisturbed by the chilly night air, despite wearing an almost replica of Inari's attire.
Beyond the door, the darkness seemed to held back only by the smallest of lights etched around the edge of a lavish garden. It was hard to tell with the little light that illuminated the grounds. Overhead a canopy blocked out the light of the moon and the stars except for a few beams of light which managed to break through.
"Would you prefer to finalize the details of your contract with us, or would you like to tour the grounds first, and stretch your limbs?" Lara asked as she glanced towards Harry.
"A walk would be enjoyable," Harry admitted, "But if it's all the same to you, could I get my Wa-"
"Your wallet?" Lara interjected, squinting her eyes at Harry, with a small smile upon her lips.
"That's right," Harry said slowly as he titled his head to the side and glanced at Inari, and then back to Lara.
Unseen by Inari, Lara inclined her head slightly.
"You shouldn't worry about your money," Inari said to Harry in an amused voice, "Especially since you're going to be working for us," she finished coyly, her eyes flickering between the area ahead and Harry's face.
Harry sent a questioning look to Lara, only to receive a slightly smug smile in return, as she explained.
"Inari is home schooled, so she doesn't get to meet a lot of people around her age," Lara smiled down at Inari, who wore a mortified look upon her face, "Specifically boys," the tall dark haired woman finished.
"Really?" Harry inquired, "I did my schooling in a boarding school," Harry mused, ignoring the latter part of what Lara had said.
"Wasn't it boring?" Inari asked curiously, "I've heard that they make you work almost all the time, and you barely ever get any breaks."
Harry frowned.
"Boring is pretty much the opposite of what it was, every year something always happened," Harry explained as he reached up and lightly massaged the back of his neck, "I doubt I was ever bored, except when I had to do my homework."
"I bet you're making that up," the younger girl challenged with a light smirk.
Harry briefly smiled and shook his head lightly at Inari, before he answered.
"My first year there, a teacher tried to steal a precious gem that the school was hosting for the year, it was a one of a kind," Harry said slowly as he reworked the actual tale.
"So modest," Lara murmured to herself, loud enough for Inari to overhear.
"Modest?" Inari echoed.
"He forgot to mention that he was one of the people who caught the thief," Lara divulged, taking a small pleasure in the way that Harry squirmed.
"That's impressive," Inari gushed, "But, you couldn't have been that old if it was your first year, how old were you?
Harry shrugged lightly.
"Eleven," Harry answered simply, ignoring the surprised look on Inari's face.
"And the year after that he managed to capture a very dangerous snake and save the school from being closed down," Lara explained helpfully to Inari.
"My friend Hermione did most of the work," Harry pointed out to Lara.
Lara arched an eyebrow at Harry challengingly.
"As far as I am aware you were the one that managed to kill the snake," Lara stated with a light shrug of her shoulders.
"Just how detailed were those files you read?" Harry asked casually, although he getting uncomfortable with the sheer knowledge the older Raith possessed.
Lara stared at Harry pensively for a moment, before allowing a smile to appear on her lips again. She moved closer to Harry and then lifted her hand up to his arm. She hooked her arm around his lightly and rested her hand upon his left bicep.
"They're detailed enough that I know where it bit you," the grey eyed woman declared with a smile of an unknown quality.
On Harry's opposite side Inari was getting slightly uncomfortable, which Harry took note of. He had no doubt that Lara had also.
"What about the other years?" Inari finally managed to ask in a hesitant voice.
"The next year I found out my Godfather who was in prison was falsely accused, the year after that I was illegally entered into a contest between my school and two others," Harry quickly noticed the Look upon Inari's face, "I didn't enter myself, another guy did, who was arrested for it."
Inari blinked perplexedly but nodded.
"The next two years.. Are hard to explain," Harry finished lamely, ignoring the disappointed look upon Inari's face.
"Come on, you could just simplify them like you did for those ones," Inari said with a small pout.
"Why are you asking all the questions?" Harry asked flatly.
Inari shrugged her shoulders in the same way Lara had previously.
"What do you want to know about me?" She inquired with a small grin.
Harry blinked, he seemed to flounder for a moment, before a random question came to the front of his mind.
"What's your favourite colour?" Harry asked postulated.
"Purple," Inari answered without hesitation.
"Right," Harry said with a strained voice as he turned away his head away from Inari and pried Lara off his arm, despite how comfortable it felt.
"You're no fun," Lara complained mildly, despite releasing Harry's arm without a struggle.
"So where are we going?" Harry asked after a few seconds of silence.
"To the mansion first of all, then I will be showing you around," Lara explained as her feet weaved over the neatly kept grass, "It is up to Inari what she does."
"I might join you," Inari stated after a few moments, "But if it gets too late I'll have to go to bed," she added on in an afterthought.
Harry ignored the banter between the two girls and stared ahead, past the small pathway through the thickest part of the foliage. The garden was becoming clearer, no doubt thanks to the light pushing through into the enclave.
"Where should we take him first?" Inari asked thoughtfully, "Maybe the lounge room, the one with the fireplace!" she exclaimed brightly.
"Or we could work our way inside," Lara said smoothly, a light smirk placed upon her features, "Starting with the swimming pool."
Inari deflated visibly.
"But it's even colder there," she complained, as she folded her arms across her chest.
"You are the one who wanted to tag along," Lara pointed out amusedly, "I'm sure Harry won't mind if it's just me and him."
"It's okay," Inari said grudgingly as she sent an irritated glance in Lara's direction.
"Don't I get a say?" Harry asked amusedly.
He suddenly felt stupid for a reason he could not express as both Lara and Inari turned their eyes upon him and stared silently.
"Guess not," he mumbled to himself.
The trees appeared to melt away the closer they got. Harry likened the experience to the first time he saw Hogwarts, although not even close to the degree. The view of the mansion put an imposing pressure over Harry. Where Hogwarts had given him a sense of warmth and wonder, the Raith Mansion filled him with a mild sense of foreboding.
It probably came from the vicious looking gargoyles stationed at each corner of the mansion that he could see. Harry switched his gaze back down to the area around him, which he, and the two Raith girls were walking through. They had exited from what looked like a forest. It opened up into what was obviously a garden. The garden that seemed to span for quite some distance, it was dark though, so Harry couldn't be entirely sure.
A bed of roses seemed to line the edges of the garden, as far as Harry could see, he couldn't decide whether the sight was impressive, or tacky. The vines which the roses blossomed on were old, some of them were almost as thick as Harry's thumb. At the bases of the roses a series of soft blue and green lights shone up against the rose vines. They cast eerie shadows and made the roses appear black. They also illuminated wicked looking thorns which seemed to sprout every so often. They gave off a heady scent, which seemed to perpetuate throughout the garden.
Neither Inari nor Lara seemed to be affected by the smell. They continued to walk on, ignorant of the poignant fragrance. Whether because they were used to it, or couldn't smell it, Harry could only guess.
"You know," Lara said idly to Inari, "It's going to be cold by the pool, are you sure you want to come?" she asked slyly, throwing a slightly lecherous glance to Inari.
Inari seemed to look confused for a moment, before her eyes flashed with understanding, her arms tightened across her chest momentarily, much to Harry's confusion. Lara laughed lightly, causing Harry's stomach to quiver momentarily.
"Lara!" Inari protested through Lara's laugh.
"Did I miss something?" Harry asked perplexedly, glancing between the two dark haired girls.
"No," Inari denied quickly, sending a warning glance towards Lara, who just continued smiling languidly
"Right," Harry drawled sarcastically, "So how far are we away from the pool?"
"It's just around the corner," Inari said stiffly.
It was, literally, Harry noticed as a he rounded the corner and was struck with a view of a gigantic pool, lit up with aqua coloured lights from beneath the water's surface. Although, Harry realized, it was probably the water that gave it that colour.
"Is that Thomas?" Lara asked rhetorically.
Harry's eyes flickered in the direction that Lara was looking. At the opposite end of the pool two people were sitting down at the edge of the water, with their feet dangling over the water.
One of the two was a girl, even from the distance Harry could see she had a beauty about her comparable to Lara, although she seemed to not be more then four years older then him. Her Black hair hung around her head with her fringe tucked behind her ears. Her face was hard to describe, it was both lovely to behold and sweet. Unlike both Inari and Lara the girl was wearing evening clothing; a black dress, it was not overly fancy, nor was it bland.
Harry's eyes slid across from the girl to the man next to her.
His blood ran cold.
"Did you say his name was Thomas?" Harry asked quietly, his knuckles had begun to turn white.
Beside him, Lara's visage took on a look of confusion, before her face morphed into a look of slight horror. The horror had no doubt come from the fact that as had happened when she had first met him, his magic had begun to react violently, following in suit with the sudden rage that had overtaken him.
It withered almost instantly, as an inexplicable burst of lust disrupted the flow of hatred. His magic died down again, becoming docile.
"Are you alright Harry?," Inari asked concernedly from a meter away, "You look like you just had an aneurysm or something."
Harry nodded blankly, before glancing sidewards to Lara, whose hand was lightly touching his shoulder.
"As I was saying," Lara said patiently, before gesturing towards the two people near the pool, "That is my and Inari's brother, Thomas Raith, and his friend Justine."
"Raith," Harry echoed blankly.
He grudgingly admitted to himself that Thomas did look like Lara and Inari, but he also resembled a certain Riddle quite closely.
"I'm leaving," Harry announced without warning.
"Why?" Inari asked surprised.
Harry turned his head towards Lara and looked her directly in the eye. Their eyes remained in direct contact for a split second, before her eyes flickered away. Lara inclined her head slightly.
"If you do not wish to stay, I doubt there is much I could do to stop you," she murmured formally, the relaxed posture she had sustained throughout the entire session faded away into stiff disposition. Her eyes, which had previous contained a measure of warmth seemed to frost over, "Shall we go and retrieve your belongings from the mansion?" Lara asked calmly.
Harry looked warily at Lara, before nodding.
"Have you had anything to eat?" Inari interjected quickly, " It's past dinner time, so we might be able to get something from the kitchens."
Lara stared at Inari silently for a moment, before she smiled and nodded.
"It would be rather uncouth of us not to offer you something to eat," Lara murmured, switching her gaze from Inari to Harry.
Harry's eyes however were still aimed at Inari.
He couldn't understand what kind of ulterior motives she had, if she had any. All he could see was a slightly nervous girl offering something to eat, after her family chained him up underground for no apparent reason. There were not a lot of things as uncivilized as that.
"Alright," Harry agreed after a few seconds of watching Inari fidget under his gaze, "On the way do you mind if I talk to Lara privately?" he asked with an amused smile.
There was a small amount of conflict in Inari's eyes, but it only lasted a second, before she nodded and turned to Lara.
"To the kitchens!" she declared enthusiastically.
"To the kitchens," Lara agreed with an amused smile, watching as Inari started walking towards the closest entry point.
"We need to have words," Harry stated calmly as he began to walk along side Lara.
His eyes flickered towards the opposite end of the pool, where the man and woman were sitting.
They were both watching silently.
"You're messing around with my head," Harry stated quietly, his voice laced with traceable amounts of anger.
"I am making sure you don't do anything you'll regret," Lara corrected Harry with a slight chill to her voice.
"Right," Harry said sarcastically, "You're causing bursts of lust in me for my own good."
"Both you and I know that this world is not as it seems," Lara said quietly, her eyes never straying from the back of Inari's head, "However, in my family, to become involved in that world, we must undergo a rite of passage."
A sickening sense of understanding filled Harry briefly.
"And Inari hasn't reached that point?" he guessed.
Lara nodded slowly.
"And if anyone tried to tell her before her time has come, they would find themselves dead, it has happened in the past." she murmured sadly.
A faint sense of pity, which had nothing to do with magic swelled up inside Harry. Lara, despite her looks, and the abilities she possessed, was still nothing more than a girl. A girl who cared about her sister, and didn't want anything to happen to her that she wasn't ready for, and it seemed she wanted to protect him-
A wave of anger hit Harry.
"You're playing me again," he seethed.
Again Lara's demeanour became cold.
"Calm yourself, or I will calm you," she declared, arching a slender eyebrow at Harry.
"I'd be calm if you would just be straight with me," Harry snarled through a scowl.
"This really isn't the place for that," Lara stated flatly.
A withering glare was Harry's only response.
"As soon as we're alone, I promise that I'll answer all the questions that I can," Lara said in a pacifying voice to Harry.
"Are you both done yet?" Inari called out from up ahead, she was already standing by the doors to the mansion.
"If I wanted to subjugate your will, we wouldn't be having this conversation," Lara continued with a pleasant smile, it didn't reach her eyes though; they told the real story.
"You Know," Harry drawled, "Intimidation doesn't work half as well when you're in a cute little nightie like that."
"And anger does nothing," Lara pointed out, "When the person you're angry with has seen you naked and passed out," she said slyly, glancing to the side at Harry.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Harry asked blandly, before what she said registered in his mind, "Wait, no you haven't!" Harry exclaimed heatedly.
"Haven't I?" Lara said, her face unreadable, besides the slight twitch of her lips, no doubt shown on purpose, "If you'd rather think that I allowed one of those men to undress you," she trailed off.
"Just shut up," Harry commanded, and much to his pleasure, she did.
"Must have been an interesting conversation," Inari said with a small pout, "I've been waiting forever," she complained half-heartedly.
"You could have gone ahead to the kitchens and made something," Lara pointed out with an affectionate smile.
"That would have been rude," Inari said with a cheeky smile, "I bet Harry is even hungrier after all that talking."
Lara looked slightly affronted.
"He hasn't complained yet," Lara stated in her defence, "And he was the one who wanted to talk," Lara protested in an avowing voice.
"I am kind of hungry," Harry interjected, with a small smile towards Inari. He received one in turn from the perky girl.
"I have just the thing, I ordered them in a while ago and I only just opened them tonight!" Inari exclaimed excitedly, "Do you like Hotdogs?" she asked with a grin.
Beside him, Larry seemed to cough unexpectedly. Inari sent Lara a light glare, before turning her smile back upon Harry.
"I guess so," Harry said slowly, sparing Lara a confused glance.
"You'll love them," Inari gushed as she beckoned for Harry to follow.
"I might go and get our guests belo-," Lara began to say, before Inari cut her off.
"Or you could wait until later, it isn't like he's going to leave straight after eating," Inari pointed out childishly.
"Very well," Lara murmured tiredly, beckoning for both Inari and Harry to continue walking.
Harry glanced back towards the pool, but couldn't see it.
"You're interested in Justine?" Inari asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"No," Harry said, shaking his head, "The man reminded me of someone," he explained with a light frown.
"Thomas?" Inari said helpfully.
Harry nodded.
"He's one of the few family members that don't weird me out," Inari mumbled sullenly, "Lara and Madeline are the other two, but Madeline is always around with her brother Madrigal, and he's a creep."
"Inari, did you forget that they're both visiting?" Lara asked exasperatedly, at Inari's surprised look she continued, "I had thought so."
"How long before they're here?" Inari bit her lip anxiously, "I want to see Madeline, but I can't stand Madrigal," she complained.
"They probably arrived while we were down collecting Harry," Lara told Inari, sending a brief smile to Harry, "They will probably be waiting in the lounge room for us to greet them still."
"Can't Thomas go greet them?" Inari asked pleadingly, "I'll go and say hello to Madeline when she or Madrigal go to bed."
Lara stared at Inari for a moment, before a chime like laugh flew from her lips, "Thomas can't stand Madrigal."
Inari licked her lips lightly.
"Well, we are entertaining a guest, aren't we? That's enough reason to, you know, forget to go and greet them," Inari declared with a small grin, a grin that Lara mimicked as she nodded.
"Are you both sure you don't want me to just leave?" Harry asked with an innocent-enough smile, "I can come back tomorrow when you aren't entertaining so many guests."
"You're not getting out of here alive, Mr," Lara teased him lightly, "Isn't that right, Inari?" she asked, turning to her younger sister.
"That's right!" Inari pressed, "You're a guest here, even if you were chained up before..." Inari trailed off, before looking pointedly at Lara, "You're going to have to tell me what that was actually about, if you both aren't... you know," she finished uncomfortably.
"Anyway," Inari exclaimed, "Let's go get you some Tofu dogs," she clapped Harry lightly on the shoulder," And if we run across the twins then you're our cover story."
"Tofu dogs?" Harry echoed worriedly.
"Don't worry, you'll love them," Inari reassured Harry, "They're low in calories, high in protein and are delicious."
"Could I just have a sandwich?" Harry asked hopefully.
"If you try one of the Tofu dogs and don't like it, you can have a sandwich," Inari said after a few seconds of debating, "But you'll have to cook it yourself," she finished firmly.
Harry shrugged lightly, either way it worked for him.
Five minutes later, after a small amount of walking and sneaking, done by Inari, Harry found himself in a stainless steel kitchen. The benches were made of marble, the entire kitchen was about as large as the Gryffindor common room, pots, pans, and other cooking instruments hung from a slab of wood that was strung up to the ceiling.
"Here you go," Inari said as she turned around and held out a plate to Harry.
It looked innocent enough, a normal hotdog. It even smelled normal, had the same Mustard and Tomato topping that was common with hotdogs. Tentatively Harry took the plate from Inari and picked the hotdog up off it. It was slightly warm, not to the usual hotdog warmth, but still edible.
Harry bit down on one end.
The first second was alright, the usual compression and then decompression of the meat.
A moment later, the taste hit.
Harry managed to keep chewing and to keep a straight face until he swallowed the first bite.
"What do you think?" Inari asked, flicking her ponytail back over her shoulder.
"It's interesting," Harry admitted, before taking another bite out of it.
It was a bit more bearable now that the shock of the flavour had passed, Harry decided as he finished.
"Thank you," Harry said with a brief smile.
"Do you want another one?" Inari asked innocently, reaching towards where she procured the first one.
"No!" Harry decline, a bit more forcefully then he would have liked to, "I mean, no thank you, I'm full," he corrected himself, earning an amused glance from Lara, and a light pout from Inari.
"So," Lara began lightly, "How do you plan to get back to London?"
Harry stared at Lara for a moment, before shrugging.
"I'll get in contact with the Embassy, I guess," he answered, before asking a question of his own, "Do you know where it is?"
"400 N Michigan Avenue," Lara answered without hesitation, "Although I feel obliged to tell you that without a passport, or any identification it will take a while to get back home, and due to your unique education, the British government will probably not allow you to go easily," Lara finished sympathetically.
"I see," Harry said slowly, "I suppose I'll need to find another way to get home,"
"You don't have to leave tonight," Inari said with a kind smile, "There are plenty of rooms here, even with Madeline and Madrigal staying the night," she wrinkled her nose when she said Madrigal's name.
Lara shifted slightly from behind Harry, causing both him and Inari to look back towards her.
"I might go and get your possessions, so that when you make your decision you'll feel less like this is a hostage situation," she explained with a smile.
Harry nodded.
"That'd be nice."
"I'll meet you both near the main stairs to the second floor," she said, looking at Inari, who nodded in return.
Lara gave both Harry and Inari one last smile before she left the kitchen.
"Are you sure you don't want another one?" Inari asked innocently.
"No thanks," Harry replied, "They tasted a bit weird, kinda bitter and sweet."
Inari grinned stupidly for a moment as her cheeks burned lightly.
"Did you do something to them?" Harry asked accusingly.
"Nope," Inari denied quickly, her grin and blush however, remained.
"I'm not going to die of poison, am I?" Harry asked suspiciously, it wasn't conveyed very well however, with the small smile upon his lips.
"I'd hope not," Inari mumbled to herself slowly, her grin slipping away into a gentle, and slightly offended smile, "Let's go and wait in one of the lounge rooms, they have fireplaces," she suggested through a shiver.
"Are you cold?" Harry asked, quirking his eyebrow.
Inari glared playfully at Harry, before she folded her arms across her chest.
"Shut up and go, or I'll force-feed you," she snapped lightly, before unfolding her arms and ushering Harry out of the kitchen.
Harry laughed lightly, gifting Inari with a small smile, which Inari instantly matched with a bright one of her own.
"Inari, are you in here?" an unfamiliar female voice called from just beyond the door.
"She is probably in a shower or something," a decidedly male whined lightly afterwards, "Can we just go and find Justine and Thomas?"
At first Inari's smile widened, before the second person's voice registered. Her smile instantly deflated afterwards.
"Pretend I'm not here," Inari said quickly, before she ducked behind the counter.
Harry turned towards the door, where the voices had called from, just in time to see a woman walk into the kitchen.
"Oh my," she said almost absently the moment her eyes landed on Harry.
She wore casual clothes, they weren't casual enough to detract from her looks. She looked like a more exotic Lara, with a hint of Inari, and something else, her skin had an almost golden tan. Behind her a man walked into view, he seemed to be bored, his face was slender, with stark cheekbones. He, like almost everyone else Harry had seen, looked like someone out of a movie. The man's dark hair was cut short, neat, and his eyes were a dark, deep opaque colour. They looked quite similar still, like twins.
The moment the man's eyes landed on Harry's, he let out an exasperated sigh and turned again.
"I'll be looking for Justine if you need me sis," he mumbled out with a discontent sigh.
"I do not believe I've met you before," the woman said in a slightly husky voice, as she began to walk into the room, "I definitely wouldn't have let you get away as you are," she murmured with a slightly crazed look in her eye.
"We haven't," Harry confirmed with a nod as he placed his weight against the counter behind him.
"My name is Madeline," she introduced herself, taking slow steps with a serpentine grace, her tongue moistened her lips lightly. Madeline tilted her head to the side, in a quirky fashion, "What's your name?"
"Madeline?" Inari called out, before her head popped up from behind the rows of pots and pans.
"Inari?" Madeline asked surprised, losing the seductive posture she had held, "Is he your boyfriend?" she asked, almost disappointedly.
Inari shook her head with an embarrassed smile. A smile briefly reappeared on Madeline's face, before it was extinguished as Inari continued.
"Lara brought him over from England, he's gonna work for her, or the family," Inari explained helpfully as she stepped out from behind the bench top and crossed the short distance to Madeline, giving the slightly older woman a hug.
"Lara did?" Madeline asked, seemingly sulking as she wrapped her arms around Inari and gave her a tight hug, "Is she seeing him?" Her eyes didn't leave Harry's at all during the exchange.
Inari shook her head lightly and stepped away from Madeline.
"Nope," Inari said with a smile, "Although, she had him chained up when I saw him an hour ago or so," she continued to explain, her cheeks flushing lightly.
Madeline's eyes flickered down to the top of Inari's head, before turning back to Harry's, significantly narrowed.
"You don't say," She murmured calmly, "I never did get his name." she said with a warm smile down at Inari, who couldn't see her eyes.
Inari opened her mouth, about to talk.
"My name is Harry," Harry answered, "And I'm not working for you or your family," he said to Inari in a slightly cold tone.
Inari turned her head back to Harry, her face sporting a hurt look.
"You said you'd think about it," she said frowning.
"I'm not working for your family right now," Harry repeated slowly, "I didn't say that there wasn't a possibility that I would."
"How about you work for me then?" Madeline asked as she stepped around Inari, her eyes staring intently at Harry, "I can think of something's which I could use you for," she murmured huskily, licking her lips.
"Did you just proposition to me?" Harry asked flatly.
"Madeline!" Inari exclaimed shocked.
"I was kidding," Madeline said as suddenly as Inari had spoken, turning back to Inari and smiling brightly, “It's nice to meet you, Harry," Madeline said formally, turning back to Harry and smiling at him and mouthing two words.
Harry blinked as Madeline turned away and began to walk out of the room. His cheeks were slightly flushed.
"I'll tell Madrigal you said Hi," she called back to Inari, who managed to shake herself out of her stupor just in time to call out.
"Talk to you later Madeline!" Inari waved at Madeline's back hesitantly.
"Is she normally like that?" Harry asked incredously as he turned back to Inari.
"Not usually," Inari confided with a shrug, "Lara was acting a bit weird also, maybe they have a thing for British people?"
"Your family is weird," Harry stated, to which Inari only nodded in agreement.
"On the bright side, I don't have to talk to Madrigal," she said with a smile.
"You really don't like him, do you?" Harry asked, before laughing lightly as Inari shook her head fiercely.
"You heard him talk about Justine and Thomas right? He keeps trying to seduce Justine and take her away from Thomas, even though they're cousins, and Justine loves Thomas." she explained vehemently.
"Not a moral guy than?"
Inari shook her head again.
"I don't think my dad or sisters like him either, Thomas certainly doesn't, and I bet Madeline only just puts up with him," Inari prattled on as she and Harry walked out of the kitchen.
"You know," Harry interjected with a decided innocence to his voice, "For not liking your cousin much you sure do talk about him a lot."
Inari looked insulted, she was quick to recover though.
"It isn't like you're giving me anything to talk to you about," she defended herself.
Inari fell silent beside Harry, giving him a chance to take in his surroundings. If he didn't know better he'd say he was at a lesser royals house, considering the vastness of it, and the contents- Not to mention that there were dozens upon dozens of pictures, statues, vases and other sorts of finery. Harry took particular interest in the few paintings of novelty, one of which contained a blood red scaled dragon surrounding a man, who was being crushed. It was a morbid design and looked like it was worth more then everything the Dursleys owned.
"Do you have a girlfriend?" Inari asked suddenly.
"No," Harry answered immediately.
Inari accepted the answer and became subdued, saying little to nothing until they had both arrived at a large set of stairs, which lead up to the next floor, Inari still seemed to be itching to ask more questions she remained silent for five minutes as they both waited, during which Inari chose to sit down on the stairs.
"Why not?" Inari inquired finally, looking up from her seat on the bottom steps.
"Because we broke up when I left school," the response came from Harry, as calm as he had been before.
"That's a silly reason to break up," Inari declared flatly, "You could have still visited her," she pointed out, taking a small amount of pleasure in the conversation.
"I was busy," Harry explained, his voice remaining level, despite a small amount of amusement creeping up inside of him, along with a small portion of annoyance.
"With what?" Inari asked perplexedly, as if she couldn't see anything more important.
Harry decided to answer with the truth, if not a slightly censored version of it.
"I was busy hunting down the man who killed my parents," he replied with a smile towards Inari.
Inari's smile became uncertain.
"You're kidding," she stated questioningly.
"Nope, ask your sister."
Much to Harry's surprise, Inari's reaction was mixed, he could see a healthy dose of wariness, along with a medium portion of wonder, and a small dose of fear. A terse silence set in, which only seemed to aggravate the negative emotions that composed Inari's reaction. In a split second however, Inari's disposition seemed to shift entirely.
"You must have been brave to do that," she stated with an abashed smile, "Do you think you'll ever catch him?"
"I already have."
Inari's newly reformed smile died under the smirk Harry had employed.
High above, the sound of two feet padding against the marble staircase made it's way to Harry's ears, along with the sound of something flying through the air, a something Harry's borne Quidditch reflexes allowed him to snatch out of the air, before it hit his face. The texture was familiar, it was his wallet, he realised a second before his eyes fell upon it.
"I guess the reporting wasn't kidding," a humoured voice murmured from above, a voice which Harry took a few seconds to connect with the woman from before; Lara.
Inari was up like a bolt of lightning.
"Was he really telling the truth?" she asked, her voice cloaked with faux calm, Harry didn't think it was fooling anyone.
Lara's eyes had narrowed as she had made her way gracefully down the stairs, with a bundle of clothes in her arms, along with a thin wooden box. Harry had to stop himself from jumping up the stairs and seizing it.
"About what?" Lara asked, her voice coated with a much more realistic calm, masking something Harry couldn't identify.
"That when he left school he tracked down his parent's murder," Inari paused, glancing to Harry unsurely, before transcending the few steps which separated her and her sister. She whispered into Lara's ear, from the way Lara nodded afterwards, Harry could only assume it was another question, one which Lara hadn't wanted to answer.
Inari turned back to Harry, her smile brittle.
"Well, I'll see you later," she said with an uneven voice, "If you decide to stay that is," she said quickly afterwards.
Harry almost wanted to laugh.
"Don't want me around anymore?" Harry said in mock hurt. Inari shook her head quickly.
"I didn't say that," she protested, before noticing the glint in Harry's eye.
"You're messing around," she accused him, shifting her weight slightly, in a fashion which Harry related to Hermione when she was about to berate Ron and himself. Inari actually made it look more inviting than foreboding though.
Harry only shrugged.
"Off to bed with you," Harry made small dismissing motions with his hands. He kept his smile on his face, and received only a soft glare in return.
"She really doesn't know anything, does she?" Harry asked Lara after a few moments as he watched Inari disappear into the second floor.
"I didn't know any more then she does at that age either," Lara said softly as she stared at Inari's back wistfully, "It was a terrible shock when I found out about it, and it will be the same for her," she trailed off.
"Do you wish you didn't know?" Harry turned away from Lara as he asked, choosing to look out the nearest window, at the relative darkness outside of the warmly lit house, "If you could make it so you could forget all of that stuff, would you?"
"No," Lara firmly stated as she turned her gaze upon Harry, "Knowledge is power, and I'd rather know about everything, than be ignorant of the truth."
"That's an interesting approach to it," Harry managed to say as he turned back to Lara.
"Would you?" Lara inquired curiously, her eyes slightly misted, "Forget everything that worries you?"
"I wouldn't," Harry said without hesitation.
Lara smiled.
"Would you like to go outside and talk a bit in the gardens?" she asked, her voice low and enticing.
Harry stared at Lara silently for a few seconds, before she spoke again.
"I'll answer whatever questions you feel the need to ask," she offered invitingly, shifting her weight as Inari had prior.
"Alright," Harry agreed before he gestured towards the door, "Can we get this over with?"
Lara didn't say anything, instead she simply nodded gently and began walking.
Both Harry and Lara walked in silence. Harry was going through all the questions he wanted to ask- That were relevant and had a point. There were plenty he just wanted to know out of curiosity, like how the hell they had managed to get away from the two Grey Cloaks. The scenario was flawed. There was no way she would have been able to save herself, let alone him along with her unless she was magical in some way, or had someone who did.
If she did though, then there would be no reason to keep him around. If she wasn't magical- Highly unlikely considering her abilities. If she wasn't a Veela, or had some magical blood in her, Harry was willing to eat his wand. There weren't any definitive answers from guessing, Harry quickly came to the conclusion of, especially considering his lack of expertise in the subject.
The Raith family could be a family like the Malfoy family, except instead of the children being born into the magical world, they were born into the Non-magical aspects of the world, Harry's mind rattled on. Encase they were not magical, in which case they would be ignorant of a world they had no connections, outside of their family to.
"You're thinking too much," Harry heard, causing him to look towards the source of the voice.
Lara was standing in front of a table made of fine metal wire twisted into lopping designs. Matching chairs spread around it. Harry took a moment to look around. He hadn't noticed it, but Lara had led him out into a terraced garden, it looked like it had been made during the renaissance. Faux ruins, ancient statues of god-like figures, and a design overgrown in a way to prevent seeing much at a time. Harry had half an urge to go about exploring it.
"Unless you'd rather we just stand here in silence?" she asked teasingly.
Harry shook his head and moved to sit down opposite Lara..
A terse silence set in, as neither Harry, or Lara said anything. It was awkward for Harry, there had not been a great many times where he had been in a position to demand answers, and fewer when someone was willing to give them.
"When I looked up information on you, I also took time to look into what you had called me before," Lara said without warning, "Veela, is what you referred to me as," she stated, "That was a highly appropriate guess considering how little you apparently know about the world outside of the closed walls your upbringing has sheltered you."
"Just because I was brought up by non-magical people doesn't," Harry began to retort without malice, before Lara spoke again.
"I was referring to your magical upbringing over the past seven years, and your ignorance."
At first it seemed like a condescending, and confusing statement, but the way she said it made it quickly clear that she had only stated a fact in her own eyes.
"That doesn't make any sense," Harry pointed out, "How does being taught about the magic world make me ignorant?" he demanded to know.
Lara sighed softly.
"I'm only going to tell you this once, so pay attention," she said sharply.
The sudden contrast in her disposition had Harry paying attention instantly, much to her satisfaction.
"The Wizarding world, as your kind refers to it, is only a small fraction of the unseen world," Lara began to explain. "There are many other factions, or societies, if you will, in the world. The one closet to your kind, outside of your own faction, which doesn't have a proper name, is the White Council. It is composed of Wizard primarily. They've taken it on themselves to get involved when someone breaks one of their imposed magical rules, in which case they usually execute the person. They usually restrained their activities to those with magic, thankfully.
They have seven laws, which are; "Don't kill another human, Don't Transform another human, Don't screw with a humans mind, Don't impede on a humans free will, Don't summon demons, Don't raise the dead, Don't screw with the time line. If a wizard breaks any of these laws they're executed at the earliest possible time."
"Seems simple enough," Harry murmured to himself, "Most of those make sense, but I don't understand why Transforming people is on there. Everything else makes sense." Harry left out the detail that he had broken the majority of the laws, "They seem open ended though."
"I paraphrased, the actual laws take up at least a hundred pages," Lara said with a smile, "They are the cause of the current war plaguing the world," her smile disappeared into a troubled frown.
"War?" Harry echoed, before mimicking Lara's frown, "I haven't heard anything about a war, or the White Council in fact. Considering that I've probably broken most of their laws It is a given that I should have."
"It's complicated," Lara said through a sigh.
"Your world is closed off from almost everything else in the world. As you don't know about the world outside of yours, the world at large, including most of the supernatural beings, do not know about your kind. In some ways it has preserved the way of life you've experienced since you were pulled into it."
"Before you even ask," Lara continued the moment that Harry looked as though he was about to ask a question- Which he was, "The reason I was able to find out about you is because nothing is absolute."
"What do you mean?" Harry asked perplexedly. The statement was innocent enough, but he doubted it was.
"While the worlds are separate, there are some bridges between them. An example would be, some of the people on your side of the divide manage to step outside of the usual playground where most of your type of wizards hang out in. They're usually the kind of people who try and expand their influence, like business men. No one else would really have the need to venture into the non-magical world, and have the chance to stumble across one of the other predominate societies."
"It has worked in the opposite fashion," Lara continued, "At times, from what I've read, some wizards have become powerful enough that they have attracted the attention of influential people on our side. When that happens, they are usually forced into a unique situation," Lara paused, and her eyes focused on Harry's, "As has appeared to happen with you."
"So someone decided I was getting strong and decided to kill me?" Harry summed up bluntly, "Or you decided you wanted someone around powerful to work for you," he continued after a second, his voice tinged with anger.
"No," Lara disagreed, "I do not believe that is the case, from what you've described, you were taken to the Nevernever and brought to Chicago without noticing, and not just anyone can do that. In fact it takes a considerable amount of skill to pull off.
"Who could manage it?" Harry interrupted his anger forgotten.
"My first guess would be a Sidhe, but that would require you agreeing to go with them," Lara paused at Harry's confused look.
"The Sidhe are basically faeries, you know Cinderella's Fairy Godmother? Like that except instead of getting nothing out of mortals they deal with, they usually end up with a whole lot more then they started out with, in most cases their souls. The High Sidhe have are beautiful beyond imagination," Lara shook her head and backtracked, "There are two courts which are currently ruling, the Summer Court, and the Winter Court, they both preside in the Nevernever."
Lara took a moment to pause and let Harry digest the information.
"Nevernever?" Harry pressed on.
"The Nevernever is the closet dimension to the one we live in, it's home to the Sidhe, Demons, ghosts, and that is just the small fraction we know of," She glanced around the Garden, "The Nevernever overlaps with our dimension, but their are many differences, time, space and even the very laws that govern our world are ever changing there."
Harry filed away that tidbit for later.
"You mentioned two different courts? The Summer and Winter, are they like good and evil?"
Lara shook her head with an amused expression.
"Good, and Evil, Love and Hate, they are things mortals created, the Sidhe don't feel any of them, or see it. They exist as forces of nature, literally." At Harry's speculative gaze she continued, "Winter and Summer are constantly in opposition, and their powers are tied into this world. Whenever they clash the effects span the globe."
"I'm getting off track," Lara admitted.
"In the current war, there are five main factions. The White Council, The Sidhe Courts, and," Lara paused, seemingly to think over something.
"And?"
Lara gave Harry an apologetic smile.
"And the White and Red Courts." Lara informed as she stretched against the bench.
"What are they?" Harry asked, before smiling sheepishly as Lara levelled a mild glare at him.
"I was getting to that," she reprimanded him lightly, "The most politically correct term for them by our standards would be vampires I suppose,"
"Vampires as in bloodsuckers?" Harry asked, his voice tinged with worry.
"Yes, and no," Lara answered, "The Red Court drink blood, but The White Court do not. The Red Court are certified monsters taking the appearance of humans, they have a special kind of magic which allows them to cloak themselves in the form of humans. In their true form's they are bat-like monsters, it's hard to describe them," Lara trailed off troubled, "One of their most potent weapons is their kiss," she laughed lightly at the look Harry gave her, "Their saliva has a highly narcotic effect. Ingesting even a small amount makes a person addicted, completely at the vampire's mercy," Lara sounded pensive as she finished.
"They don't sound like the vampires I've seen," Harry said as he scratched his cheek, "The only vampire I've ever seen was straight out of a lame horror movie, pale skin, long teeth, that kind."
"Your kind has a habit of trying to mimic supernatural creatures with their magic," Lara said with a troubled look, "I can only assume that the vampires you've met have been artificially created. The same appears to have been done with the Veela also."
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, "You think they were created to be like the Sidhe?" he asked with genuine interest.
Lara shook her head lightly.
"I was thinking about the White Court," she explained.
"Veela don't drink people's blood, not that I know of, anyway," Harry informed Lara, who smiled and shook her head.
"The White Court do not drink people's blood, they feed on emotional energy, on bit's of peoples soul, if you will," At Harry's shocked face, Lara continued, "Don't get excited, souls are ever renewing as long as they aren't too badly damaged."
"In The White Court, there are three main clans. The clan Skavis feed on despair, and Malvora feed on fear. The third clan feed on lust,"
A terse silent settled in.
"You're a White Court vampire," Harry said quietly.
Lara had lost her smile, she simply nodded.
"That is what I was feeling before, just before the two in the Grey Cloaks attacked, down in the cell when I was chained up, and when I saw your brother," Harry trailed off, before glaring hard at Lara.
"You've been eating my soul!?" he exclaimed accusingly.
Lara seemed shocked for a moment, before she shook her head in protest and let off a light laugh.
"I haven't, we need intimacy to feed," she assured Harry, "And it has been exceedingly hard to not do so to," she complained in a bemoaned manner.
"Do you get hungry every time you see something with a soul?" Harry asked blankly, ignoring the urge to move away from Lara.
Lara smiled again, and laughed.
"No, it's just virgins are very attractive to my kind," she admitted.
Harry's eyes narrowed, as he recalled Lara's words.
"That's what you meant by me being a Delicacy?" he asked incredulously.
Harry couldn't help it, he laughed as Lara nodded.
"I guess it's not because I'm British," Harry said to himself absently, before he refocused his attention on Lara, "So, I'm dinner?" he asked derisively, his hand sliding down to his pocket, where his wand rested.
Lara took on an annoyed disposition.
"No," she snapped, "I told you, I want you to work for my family."
"Why?" Harry demanded to know vehemently.
"Because," Lara began, her voice calm, "You're not a common type of person, you're not even uncommon. You're a grain of gold in a sea of sand. When you saved me, someone you didn't know, someone like me, someone you had no reason to save... That showed me what kind of person you are, and everything I've learned about your life up until now has done nothing to dissuade me from picking you," Lara's voice became slightly emotional as she continued, "You're the kind of person I know I can trust, where it counts."
"You don't even know me," Harry pointed out flatly, "The only reason you probably want me around is because I've basically killed an immortal wizard, and you want me to help you win the war you're fighting."
"Is Inari a vampire to?" he asked, just as Lara was about to protest to his declaration.
"No, I told you, she hasn't reached that point yet," Lara murmured softly, "That's why I want you to be around, so that you can protect her from becoming like the rest of the family."
An awkward silence set in. Harry didn't have anything to say to that. What could he say, her stated intentions were noble, noble as they came in fact. There was nothing he could pick apart from what she said.
"I guess I know why you're a porn star now," Harry mumbled blandly, he blinked in surprise as across from him Lara laughed.
"Why did you tell me about your family?" Harry asked quietly.
Lara shrugged lightly.
"I didn't tell you about my family, I just gave you the information you needed to draw your own conclusions," at Harry's look of disbelief, Lara continued, "The reason I told you what I told you, is because I do want you to remain, I want to give you no reason to distrust me."
"Other than the fact you're a vampire," Harry finished sarcastically.
Lara gave Harry a hurt look.
"I had assumed you'd look past that considering what your list of friends included," she said softly, "I suppose it is true, what they say about the Abyss," she finished with an almost wistful smile.
The comment actually stung.
"I'm nothing like Voldemort," Harry growled out.
He found himself standing up a moment later, glaring down at the dark haired Raith.
"I didn't say that," Lara said in an attempt to pacify Harry, "I merely said you've become so used to that attitude that you're taking it on yourself."
"You've come to expect a certain behaviour from people," she continued, ignoring the glare that was being directed towards her, "I had expected better from you, to be honest," she said in a matter-of-fact voice.
"But you don't know me at all," she admitted, the tone of her voice was changing, where it had been welcoming before it quickly became colder, formal, "You have no reason to trust my word, especially now considering you know what so many do not."
"It's not that I don't trust you," Harry said softly, his glare relenting, "I just don't want to be dragged into another war, especially one I have nothing to do with."
"You wouldn't be engaging in the war," Lara explained, a flicker of a smile appearing, "All I would have you doing is guard my family, nothing more, nothing less."
"And you'd have a rather lucrative salary," she mentioned offhandedly, before continuing at annoyed look upon Harry's face, "I of course know you cannot be bought, but considering how much danger you could be in it is only fair.
"And you'll get a great dental plan," she added in an after thought.
"Oh, a dental plan!" Harry exclaimed mockingly, "I've always wanted one."
"You're very obnubilating," Lara stated with a sigh.
"Obnubilating?" Harry asked, the foreign word rolling off his tongue slowly, "What does that mean?"
"It doesn't matter," Lara said dismissively, "What matters is what I can offer you to make you stay," she said.
Harry's breath hitched in his throat.
The entire time since he had woken up, Harry had been acutely aware of exactly how attractive Lara Raith was. Or so he had assumed. Within a fraction of a second Lara went from a highly appealing woman to the incarnation of desire, lust, and femininity. It wasn't just how she looked, the way her eyes sparkled like opals in the moonlight, nor was it the way the fabric of her negligé showed the not so subtle curves of her breasts, the negligé did a lot less to hide Lara's figure as it did prior, her chest was more prominent, as were her thighs, only just covered by the lavender silk. It went deeper then her physical appearance, and there was nothing at all magic about it.
On some level, Harry realised he was holding his breath. Lara slowly leaned closer pressing her lips to his ear tenderly.
"You can ask for anything," her words hit him like a sledgehammer, knocking him out of his stupor.
Anything was highly appealing, there was a lot of anything's that Harry could think of, and most of them involved the woman in front of him, the woman who was without a doubt one of the most desirable objects he had ever encountered.
"You're using magic on me," Harry managed to rationalize, his thoughts becoming clear again.
Lara smiled coyly and shook head, brushing her lips up against Harry's ear, "All me," her whisper sultry, almost intoxicatingly.
And without warning, her body tensed, causing the sheer intensity of the feelings in Harry's body to ebb away. The cause of the sudden change was evident in the form of a man's voice.
"Lara, that is no way to treat a prospective employee," the voice reprimanded, it was deep, unruffled, and as smooth as the silk that Lara's negligé was made of.
The man was about six feet tall, dark of hair and pale of flesh. He was dressed in a white linen suit with a silver-grey silk shirt and Italian leather shoes. There was a scarlet gem of some kind fixed to his left earlobe, though his fine, straight hair hid it until a cool breeze briefly tossed the dark strands to one side. He had long, spatulate fingers, broad shoulders, the eyes of a drowsy jaguar, and he was better-looking than Lara's brother- Thomas.
Harry's first instinct was to plead innocence, but he never got the chance.
Lara slowly leaned backwards off Harry, he could feel the tension in her body, before her lips left the vicinity of his ear she whispered a warning, "Don't say anything," and he didn't.
Lara sat up straight and smoothed her negligé before standing up and inclining her head in a stately manner to the older man, her face had slipped into a mask of neutrality. Harry couldn't see any of the tension that he had felt. Her eyes remained fixated on the ground in an almost abashed manner.
"I've been looking for you since I arrived, few of the servants said that they had seen you," the man continued to say, his eyes never leaving Lara's form, "Have you been well?"
"I have, my Lord," Lara replied in a docile fashion.
The man frowned in disproval for a moment. "This is hardly a time for formalities, little Lara. I've missed you."
"And I you, Father" Lara whispered almost silently as she stepped close to the man and kissed him upon the cheek.
The urge to plead innocence came back stronger than prior.
"And this must be Harry Potter," Lara's father said not missing a beat as his gaze travelled from Lara to Harry, "I must admit, I was surprised that you saved my Lara," his eyes didn't match his tone, they were alien, and detached.
"It was nothing," was the only thing Harry could think of saying, and as he said it he regretted it.
The older man's eyes took on an amused quality.
"Do not be so modest," Raith chided Harry lightly, "You managed to kill one of the Wardens and wound the other," he enlightened Harry, "You should be proud."
Proud wasn't the exact word Harry would have used to describe what he felt as Lord Raith informed him of what had happened to the two people who had attacked Lara. The two wizards had probably thought they were doing the right thing- They probably were. He had struck them down, even if he hadn't thrown the first proverbial punch. The worse thing was that he didn't feel at all sickened with what he had done.
"Would you satisfy a curiosity of mine?" Raith asked with a smile that for all intents and purposes was genuine.
Harry nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
"How did you end up here in Chicago?"
When in doubt, tell the simplest truth.
"I don't know to be honest, one second I was walking through a park in London and the next I was walking out into Chicago," Harry explained. Leaving out the 'small' details, such as May, and the Troll.
"Back to the matter at hand then," Raith stated calmly, obviously unsatisfied with the response, "Name your requirements."
"Requirements?" Harry echoed unsurely, "As in-"
"As in what you want in return for your skills," Raith explicated, raising an eyebrow to Harry.
"A virgin every night for the entire time I'm here," Harry demanded sardonically.
"Done." Raith's response was immediate, he was unperturbed, "Anything else?"
"I was joking," Harry said, slightly appalled.
"I wasn't," Raith declared.
Beside him Lara stood silently, her eyes flickering with unreadable emotions. Raith himself was calm and staring at Harry expectantly.
"I have no reason to work for you," Harry said flatly, ignoring the burrowing sensation Raith's eyes seemed to possess.
Raith remained quiet, his gaze focused on Harry's. Harry himself found it hard to keep eye contact with the man. "You will work for me, because you're a noble man, Mr Potter."
"Now see, something happened there," Harry stated, calmer then he actually felt, "There was a complete lack of connection between what you said, and what you intended it to mean," he pointed out.
"You're a vampire, and you want me to work for you, that wouldn't exactly make me noble. I don't see the logical connection there."
Irritation was being to show on Raith's face in a wintry expression.
"You work for me, and you'll have the chance to save lives," Raith explained, his eyes narrowing ever slightly.
"And if I don't?" Harry challenged, his chin held up.
"Then you'll have all the deaths you could have prevented on your head," Raith responded, his voice matching his expression.
Raith must not have been someone who got rejected often in any situation. Harry absently realised he was probably being a lot more level handed than he normally would, Lara's bemused expression beside him gave cause to that thought.
"Father," Lara interjected quietly, "If I may?" she reached up and touched him on the arm in an affectionate manner.
Raith's face seemed to soften, his eyes however remained the same.
"If you must," he stated, before turning away and walking back down the terrace, where two people stood motionless. One was a man, and the other was a woman. They could have been twins- they probably were, both had the same facial features, the only difference was their body shape, and their hair. Both of them turned away and flanked Raith as he walked away from the terrace.
"I should have realised he wouldn't let something like this go by without his oversight," Lara murmured softly, before she turned her gaze back upon Harry, a small amount of the woman he had seen before rekindled.
"I'm sorry Harry," she apologised, "I didn't want you to be forced into a position where you had no choice but to accept," the look in her eyes mirrored her words, they were clouded with the faintest traces of regret.
"I still have a choice," Harry said calmly as he regarded Lara.
Lord Raith had been intimidating, but Harry wasn't in any mood to be goaded into agreeing to throw his lot in. There was a morbid sense of interest in what would happen if he agreed.
"You do," Lara agreed, a frown marring her face, "But if you do not choose to accept he will take it as a personal insult, and react accordingly."
A feeling of dread was beginning to bubble up inside Harry's stomach, a very familiar feeling.
"He isn't kind, and won't simply cast his vengeance back on you," she explained, a pained expression overcame her face momentarily, "He wouldn't be satisfied with just destroying you, he'd seek revenge on everyone you associate with."
There was genuine concern in Lara's eyes, for who, Harry couldn't be precisely sure. he had somehow gotten into a situation in which either way he was ruined, on one hand he could join them, and be forced to do god knows what, or he could decline and others would suffer for it.
"Just the illusion of choice," Harry mumbled to himself with a great deal of enmity.
Lara's eyes lit up with recognition momentarily, before her eyes became passive again.
"For what it is worth, I did not want it to happen this way," Lara smiled apologetically.
"You'd rather I fall at your feet?" Harry snapped, losing his temper momentarily.
"Via my feminine wiles," Lara agreed, ignoring the outburst.
A host of thoughts and emotions were running through Harry, one of which was a curiosity aimed at what Dumbledore would think. He almost immediately regretted it when one of the key factors in Dumbledore's personality came to mind; Second chances. A grimace covertly covered Harry's face. There was many a time he'd have loved nothing more then to go back in time and break the old man's jaw for being so adamant about giving people second chances. Going anywhere near the ideal Dumbledore held close to his heart, lead Harry into territory that he'd rather not be in. Territory which was centred around the Vampiric Raith family.
"You look troubled," Lara's voice broke through his thoughts.
Harry gave Lara a flat look, she didn't take note of it.
"I get to be one of the bad guys!" Harry stated cheerfully, earning himself a frown from Lara.
"That's hardly called for," she said, her voice tainted with disappointment, disappointment which Harry felt shouldn't have been aimed towards him.
"Isn't it?" Harry challenged calmly, ignoring the nagging sensation in the back of his mind telling him that he had forgotten something.
"It isn't" Lara affirmed, "This war wasn't started by our side, it was started by the Wizards, they attacked one of the Red Court after being invited to a ceremony. The wizard later came back and killed the woman, along with at least a hundred of her court, and her estate."
Lara's tone wasn't patronising, or reprimanding, Harry almost wished it had been, it would have given him reason to feel the embarrassment he felt.
"Why are you so prejudiced?"
The question wasn't malicious, Harry quickly realised, holding back a stinging comment at the last moment.
Lara took the opportunity to further the question, "What changed between the time you befriended the Werewolf and now?"
Nothing had changed, but Remus Lupin had been a friend of his father. Harry closed his eyes, he felt a moral headache building up. The kind that actually made him feel some guilt over using dark magic to cut open Malfoy's face.
"Nothing," Harry admitted grudgingly, ignoring the smile of triumph Lara gave, "He was one of my father's best friends."
"You trusted him because your father did," her statement wasn't patronising, it held the same lack of judgement as her previous question.
Lara moved closer to Harry, until she was standing in front of him
"How about I earn your trust myself?" her hand came down onto Harry's shoulder; It was gentle and comforting.
"I'd like that," Harry admitted with a smile, a smile which Lara was quick to mirror.