Christmas-Blues (I) [Chapter 215]

~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~

Harry wiped off the steam from the mirror with his hand and stared at his reflection in the mirror before releasing a sigh. As usual, his hair was a mess, but he decided to leave it as that as he liked it more that way… |You look good as usual| His mom confirmed from inside his mind and her words made him smile.

|So, what is on the agenda today?| Lily asked after a small pause when Harry finally started to leave the bathroom.

|I have finally decided to make a break, Mom| Harry answered calmly, making Lily freeze. |It’s Christmas tomorrow and I want to take it easy for the next couple of days| Harry added as he started to take out clothes from his wardrobe.

|...Well, I am glad that you have finally decided to take a break| Lily hummed happily. It has been quite long since he had taken a day off. He had been running himself ragged since he gained his new powers. His new powers were both a blessing and a curse to him. |But what about Dumbledore and the students you took?| Lily asked, just to make sure.

|I wanted to deal with them today, but to be honest, I am not sure how to deal with them. A part of me wants to kill them for killing the members of Lost Garden, but I don’t blame them, at least, not completely… If I was in their place then I would have tried to fight back too| Harry admitted with a frown.

|Though I am not planning to let them get away scot-free after what they have done… Every action has consequences, but I am waiting to see what the Bulgarians are going to do| Harry finished with a nod of his head. |And as for Dumbledore, I have decided to let him stew for a couple of days before I finally pay him a visit. He is probably awake by now and he must be freaking out of his mind| Harry couldn’t help but chuckle.

Even Lily started to chuckle at his words… |Alright. So, what are you going to do?| Lily asked after she finally calmed down.

|Hmmm… I am not sure| Harry answered with an unsure look on his face before he finally finished getting dressed. “Dobby” Harry called out and the fanatical house elf arrived beside him with a loud crack.

“What can Dobby bes doing for the Great Master Harry Potter?” Dobby asked, looking extremely excited.

“Dobby, I am going out, so if anyone asks for me, tell them I am out and keep an eye on all the prisoners, especially Dumbledore. He might be disarmed, but he is still no slouch and shouldn’t be underestimated” Harry explained firmly and Dobby frantically nodded his head in understanding.

“Dobby won’t disappoint the Great Master Harry Potter sir” Dobby declared proudly, but Harry didn’t miss the fanatical glint in his eyes.

“Then off you go” Harry said and Dobby disappeared with a crack to carry out his duties with extreme diligence. As soon as the zealous creature was gone, Harry sighed in relief. Dealing with Dobby was always stressful as he wasn’t sure how many new titles Dobby was going to come up with. In that regard, Norton and Alef were way better, but for some tasks, Dobby was more suitable.

|Looks like he will keep adding new titles to your name as time passes| Lily said in an amused tone.

|You might be on to something there| Harry agreed with a grimace before he also disappeared with a soft crack. Moments later, he arrived at the bank of the Thames, away from the crowd as he didn’t want to be seen by anyone and started to walk along the shore… It was late December, so it was really cold and nobody could be seen in sight, but Harry was a wizard, so he could easily take care of the temperature.

|I remember the last time I came here, you know… It was with my parents and Petunia. We were both ten at that time, so none of them knew I was a Witch. Petunia and I were quite close at that time| Lily explained in a weird tone. To be honest, she didn’t know how to talk about the past when it was her who convinced Harry to kill Petunia and her bloated spawn.

It was not that she was regretting her decision or anything, but this place was bringing back a lot of old memories. |Did you miss her?| Harry asked her cautiously.

|Yes, I do… I don’t miss the bitch she turned into after learning that I am Witch, but I miss the kind and sweet girl she used to be before that| Lily admitted with a shrug. |By the way, you shouldn’t feel bad for what you did. The woman you killed was not my sister, there was nothing of my sister left in that horrid woman| Lily added just in case her Hadrian would start feeling guilty.

|I see…| Harry mumbled and decided to leave it at that. |I wish I could hold your hand right now| Harry said after a few minutes of silence.

|Ohhh… Hadrian| Lily cooed at his cute request. Yes, she would love that too… Yes, they could hold hands and even kiss inside Harry’s Mindscape, but to be honest, it didn’t feel real. They could feel the warmth of each other, but once again it didn’t feel real. |A few months more and if Hela keeps her promise then it wouldn’t be long until I have a new body| Lily tried to comfort him and Harry simply hummed.

|By the way, you know she is trying to seduce me right?| Harry asked, just to make sure. He may not be experienced when it came to women, but he wasn’t as dense as a rock. He could see that Hela was trying to hit on him.

|I know…| Lily admitted bitterly. |What do you think of her?| Lily asked curiously. To be honest, she wanted him all to herself, but she knew it wasn’t possible… Her Hadrian was strong and as time passes, he would keep getting stronger. Women always gravitated toward strong men and her Hadrian wasn’t going to be an exception.

|...I don’t know| Harry admitted, sounding frustrated. |She is not only beautiful, but she has everything I like in a woman, but she is not you| Harry answered and Lily couldn’t help but swoon at his words like a love-sick schoolgirl, but she managed to hold herself back from saying anything stupid and embarrassing.

|Hmmm…| Instead of saying anything else, she simply decided to humm. She might need to come up with something to let him know that even though she was reluctant, she had decided that she wouldn’t mind sharing him with other women… Hela was a Goddess and she was an extremely strong Goddess at that, it would benefit Hadrian to have her as his wife no matter how painful it was for her to accept that.

There was nothing she wouldn’t do for her Hadrian and if it was up to her, then he would have the world… No, the whole Universe… Whatever it takes…

<Line Break>

|I used to have one of these back at my parents when I was still at Hogwarts| Lily said longingly as she saw a picture of a gramophone outside a shop. After walking by the shore of the Thames for a couple of hours, Harry decided to head back toward the city as he was planning to have some breakfast.

|What happened to it?| Harry asked as he stopped to look at the poster.

|I don’t know, but Petunia probably threw it in the trash along with the records or something| Lily grumbled and an idea popped inside Harry’s head. He decided to buy a gramophone so that his mom could listen to his favorite music. He wasn’t sure if could get the same model or not, but he was most certainly going to get one along with all the records she loved to listen to.

It would be a nice gift for her… So, after having a quick breakfast from one of the stalls, and asking for some directions from the shopkeeper, he started to head toward the shop. Not many shops were open, but the streets were still filled with joyous people. Even the cops could be seen taking it easy.

|Hadrian, you don’t need to buy a gramophone| Lily tried to dissuade him for the fifth time from buying a gramophone so that she could listen to her favorite music. To be honest, she loved the gesture, but the records weren’t supposed to be cheap… It was a niche hobby or something as walkmans were more popular among the population right now.

| It's alright, Mom… You have done so much for me, let me do something for you too| Harry said as he finally arrived in front of the store. Thankfully, the store was still open and for the first time since he gained his freedom from the Dursleys, he didn’t think about the money he was going to spend, instead, he simply imagined the joy it would bring to his mother…