You’re my Candle

"Hiya, love." Oliver embraced Kayda the second she was within reach of him.

"Hi, Oliver." She whispered into his chest, his arms wrapped around her head, hands gripping tightly onto what they could.

They walked for almost an hour out into the highlands and woods surrounding Hogwarts Castle. Through low branches and tall bushes – they trekked a path they'd walked several times before. Wandering with seemingly no desired destination and talking about whatever random thoughts came to their minds had quickly become a routine for them in her second year — until Oliver Wood told her that he knew a place that he thought she might like.

He was right, of course.

It was their own place, that nobody else knew about. High in the mountains, lay a valley, a very small valley that they could walk around quite easily. In the middle sat a peaceful lake, and a rather weak waterfall trailing down the side of the mountain above it.

There were a few thin trees that dotted the cove and several broken logs surrounding a small stone circle with charred wood laying inside.

It was here that Kayda was able to be completely and utterly herself.

When they arrived, Oliver immediately laid down on the soft grass patch that Kayda was happy to see had been thriving in their absence from the area during the holidays.

"Come here, Kayda," he put his arms out to her, "lay down."

Kayda didn't hesitate, her head resting on his chest as his arms wrapped around her body that was curling up to his gently. Her eyes fluttered open and closed, trying to admire the nature around them but failing.

Her whole body flinched when Oliver's cold hand dipped beneath her top and brushed against her bare skin. He removed it immediately.

"Sorry 'bout that."

"No, it's ok." She laughed softly, "your hands are just freezing cold."

He chuckled, "ahh, in that case—" he pressed his whole hand beneath her top once again, making her jump at the chill, "I've gotta warm 'em up, don't I?"

They warmed up fairly quickly, and as they did, Oliver ran his hand over her back and side. He traced the scars there, humming softly as he did.

"Is that a new one?" He sat up quickly, shaking her suddenly, with his hand still pressed to her back.

"No," she smiled, her own fingers tracing where his own were, "that's from Grandpa." There was a hint of spite in her voice, she'd never called Orion that to his face.

"Shit, 'course it is." He sighed, apologising quietly as he laid back down and put his arms out for her again. "How's your first two weeks been?" He asked after a moment of silence between them.

"Alright," she sat up so she was laying on his chest, her elbows propping her up, "I told Freya about us, before we got to Hogwarts. She asked me to tell her a secret, so."

He looked up at her, his eyebrows raised. "I'm shocked I'm still standing."

"Don't get your hopes up; she just hasn't seen you yet." She laughed, hitting his chest gently.

"Do you think she'll tell the others?"

"No." Kayda didn't hesitate. "It wouldn't matter even if she did."

Oliver sat up, his hand raising to her cheek and caressing it softly. "What do you mean?"

With a small smile, she took his hand from her face and inspected his knuckles. They were scabbed over in some places where the blood had dried, but beneath it was deep purple and green bruises, much like the ones on Flint's face.

"Your little...incident with Flint, led to him telling the entire Slytherin table about us, my love."

"Fuck."

"Yeah, fuck." Kayda squeezed his hand. "They haven't spoken to me since, except for Freya and Theo."

"Assholes." He sighed. "They'll come 'round, I'll just have to make 'em fall in love with me – was easy enough with you."

"Careful, Wood." She laughed. "Why'd you do it anyway?"

"Oh, so Flint left out that detail."

Kayda shrugged.

"I heard him bragging to his team," Oliver sighed, his fingers intertwining with hers as he spoke, "he was being disgusting, claiming that he hinted to McGonagall that you guys had been –" he swallowed hard– "doing things...when you were late to Transfiguration."

Kayda nodded slowly, "Minnie picked up on that."

"I didn't listen to him for long, I'll be honest, but the others started asking what exactly you guys had been doing," Oliver wasn't looking her in the eyes, "he said that he kissed you – and that...he touched you." The words seemed difficult for him to say. His lips were a thin line, his expression hard and angry. "I hit him after that. Several times."

There was a chill that ran down Kayda's spine as she stared at Oliver. Her heart was pounding in her chest so loud she was surprised he couldn't hear it.

"I knew you wouldn't willingly do any of that, and I didn't think at the time that he could have been lying – until he started sobbing and screaming that he was making it up."

"You thought he'd–" She couldn't bring herself to say it. Oliver merely nodded, but he was looking at her again, his hand squeezing her own.

“I know you'd burn him alive if he ever got that close." He smiled.

She smiled back at him. "I'd probably just transform and scare the shit out of him."

"I'd pay good money to see that." Oliver laughed, a weight lifting off his chest. "He would absolutely pass out."

"You say as if you were any better the first time you saw Fabel." Kayda scoffed, rolling her eyes.

His jaw dropped, staring at her in disbelief. "I didn't pass out!" He reasoned. "Anyone would be somewhat afraid of that."

"Ahha, so you were afraid!" She grinned at him, tilting her head.

He wrapped his arms around her torso and stood up as fast as his body allowed him. She bounded her fists on his back all while laughing uncontrollably.

"I could literally kill you, Oliver!" She shouted as he walked closer to the body of water they'd been laying beside.

"You won't though." He teased. "I don't think you'd even burn me."

He laughed and he joked – but he knew, better than anyone, that Kayda was never completely in control of her abilities. She could stop herself from killing a man, but if an emotion overwhelmed her – only Merlin knows what would be unleashed.

The memory flooded his mind, the first time she'd shown him the dragon. Kayda had been in pain prior to the transformation, she'd not done it in months and Pomfrey lectured her for it.

He'd been there when the nurse did – he'd fallen from his broom and watched as Kayda put him back together again, thinking he was unconscious. No broken bones, no cuts or even bruises. People talked about it for weeks, and said it was a mystery. Dumbledore made him swear not to tell anyone that Kayda Black had used Fabelfyre to heal him, including her.

Weeks later, he asked her to go on a walk with him. She accepted and he took her to the small secluded valley they stood in now – and he asked.

"You should know...you don't have to keep it a secret from me anymore."

"Keep what a secret, Wood?"

His hand squeezed her own. "C'mon Black, you ain't that stupid."

"No, I am." She'd laughed.

Even at the time, she lost track of how many times she heaved air into her lungs when he finally spoke clearly and told her that he knew.

"You have to promise me that you won't be afraid." She'd muttered after a minute of silence.

"I could never be afraid of you." He'd whispered back.

"I'll hold you to that."

After a few more long breaths with her eyes tightly closed and her neck jarred back, the cool breeze brushed softly against her skin; dark scales began to spread over that same skin, a light golden glow flashing beneath them as they covered her entire body, seemingly replacing the clothing she'd been wearing with dragon skin.

Her bones started to change shape and she sank slowly to her knees, she knelt further so that her elbows and forehead were pressed against the wet grass with her legs folding beneath her as a pair of massive wings spouted from her shoulder blades.

After that, her body morphed and took on many frightening shapes, each growing larger and larger before she was able to stretch out two thick, scaled arms, which were arguably triple the width of Oliver's body alone, with terrifying talons on the ends of them.

Sat where she'd been stood, was a beautiful black-scaled dragon with a long, waving tail that ended with a sharp spike, four legs stretching out beneath it's slim body, four curving spears on each elbow. There were similar piercing spikes trailing from the tail all the way up its spine until it reached its neck, and on the joints and ends of its wings.

On its head, sat two large horns accompanied by several, much smaller, ones. Its nose was pointed and the end of it curved down over the mouth, much like its spine; there were tiny pricks dotted along the centre of its face, travelling between its golden eyes and over its head. Its jaw was defined sharply, Oliver was able to see when it was swallowing, by the skin beneath its jaw retracting whenever it opened its mouth. Its tongue ran along its sharp teeth. Said teeth did not all sit inside of its lips, instead several of the largest ones managed to spick out rather uncomfortably.

"Black?" He mumbled. "I'm not...shit, I am not afraid." He repeated under his breath several times.

Its head turned to stare at Oliver. She stood up slowly, growing taller by the second – she had to be five times taller than Oliver, the thick talons stepped closer to the boy as her familiar eyes pierced his skin.

"Holy Merlin." He breathed.

Her head lowered to be closer to his – he swallowed hard. She blinked and his head jolted backwards, his movement led her to retract slightly – he looked terrified. Her eyes locked on the floor, until something caught her gaze.

His hand. He had his hand stretching out towards her– he was shaking ever so slightly. With a short movement, she tilted her head and moved closer to his fingers. His hand made contact with her scales and he instantly calmed.

He spent time tracing his fingertips over each one of her scales, her horns and spikes – all of it. Even the scars dotted over her body. He was just admiring her.

"You are...incredible." He gawked, his lips turned up into an awe-struck smile. Kayda lifted her wings so that he could walk beneath them as his hands trailed along her belly – the softest parts of her skin. "How did you get so many–" he cut himself off, knowing she couldn't answer. His fingers were running back and forth over a large indentation on her side, just behind her wing.

A single moment passed and Kayda was stood on two feet again – her balance wobbly for a moment after transforming back. Oliver jumped slightly at how suddenly it had happened but soon cupped Kayda's face with his hands.

She stared up at him with a smile, her eyes still glowing a faint golden as he caressed her cheekbone and pushed her hair back behind her ear.

"I don't want to talk about the scars." She barely even said it, her eyes flicking away from Oliver's.

"That's perfectly alright." He smiled, nodding hurriedly and kneeling slightly so that she could see his expression.

He was staring at her with that look in his eyes that made Kayda's stomach ache– it was the shine within them that screamed a million different words in a hundred languages that Kayda couldn't even begin to understand. It was that type of gaze that she'd find people admiring the smallest paint strokes with, when they'd try to get as close to the artwork as they could to inspect every tiny detail.

And when he spoke, it was no different – it was like hearing his thoughts right out of his mind, like it wasn't his lips speaking to her. She barely caught it. "You're like nothing I've ever seen, Kayda Black."

Her jaw went slack and a corner of her mouth lifted as she squeezed her eyes shut.

─ « ⋅ » ─

"They can't hold a grudge forever," she sighed, glancing up the table at where the rest of her friends were sitting, away from her, Freya and Theo, "surely?"

"You'd be surprised how long Draco can pretend to be pissed for." Freya chuckled, following Kayda's eyes and waving to Pansy, who smiled back. "They don't really care about Wood, I think it's more the fact that you didn't tell them."

"I know but, can you blame me?" Kayda sighed, using her fork to push the sausage around her plate. "I mean, Nott – you don't give a shit?"

Theo shrugged, his mouth full of food. "I mean–" he swallowed it all down, "Wood seems fine, he beat up a Seventh year for you. Guy's decent in my books."

Freya smiled up at him before sitting up a little straighter and kissing his cheek quickly.

"He remembered exactly what to say." She laughed. "I'm so proud."

Kayda smiled, shaking her head slowly as Theo proceeded to argue that he wasn't told what to say. She, in turn, repeatedly said she believed him before her eyes locked onto Draco again.

"Don't worry about it, Black." Freya reached her hand across the table and squeezed her own. "The other's will realise he's being ridiculous and he'll be all on his own before you know it."

─ « ⋅ » ─

"Kayda!" Lillian Jones' voice carried up the hill so easily. "I was so excited when I saw that Hufflepuff's have Magical Creatures with Slytherin!" She smiled as Kayda reached her side and wrapped her arm around her shoulders gently.

"I see Aslan is attending too," Kayda smiled down at the orange cat huddled up in Lillian's arms, "which House is he in again? I can't seem to remember."

"Haha-" Lillian chuckled, faking the laugh, but the happiness in her eyes was very much real. "The other's on their way?"

"I think they're still at breakfast, I skipped – figured I'd steal some of whatever these creatures are eating."

Lillian scoffed. "You can't eat creature food. You're human, Kayda."

"Debatable." Kayda coughed. "Oh, look. There they are." She said quickly when Lillian's head snapped to look up at her.

"Black," Freya looped her arm with Kayda's the second she reached the taller girl, "where were you at breakfast?"

"Yeah, we both missed you so." Theo sighed, rolling his eyes.

Kayda laughed, knowing what he meant. "Frey, did you talk non-stop about me for half an hour?" She grinned at the blonde girl beside her, who tutted and stuck her tongue out at Theo.

"I may have." She chuckled. "I'd not seen you all morning." She leant to head onto Kayda's shoulder and spoke to Theo. "Forgive me for being worried, you heartless bastard."

Draco stepped forward and immediately began scratching Aslan's head. He paid little attention to the Hufflepuff holding it, but spoke in a pitch much higher than his usual voice. He paid even less attention to Kayda, not even bothering to look in her direction.

Freya leant around Kayda to do the same, except she was scratching under his chin. "I still think you should've gotten a Chimera and named that Aslan." She said to Lillian, for the hundredth time.