Chapter 26
After that Esme demanded to be entertained with an unmatched ferocity, Harry got a mischievous look in his eyes Draco knew wasn’t going to lead anywhere good. He sighs preemptively
“Esme, do you wanna learn how to fly a broom?” Harry's grin took over his face. Only the pure enthusiasm remained.
Draco hits his shoulder lightly, “She is four,”
“She needs a head start to get on the Quidditch Team,” Harry pouts.
“A decade is a little more than a headstart,” Draco shakes his head, “At this rate, you’ll lose the title of the youngest seeker in recent history.”
“Quidditch?” Esme asks, tilting her head slightly, “What’s that?”
Harry explains the game to Esme with animated motions recallong strategies and techniques that are far to advanced for Esme to even be considering right now but Esmelooks intrigued, fantastic, get the four-year-old interested in bludgers, brilliant. It’s a wonder no ones recognized Harry as the smartest wizard to ever live.
Harry ignores him, “How about it Esme?”
Esme nods enthusiastically.
“I guess I’ve been outvoted,” Draco sighs. No use in fighting it when they’re both set on it.
***
Harry feels like he’s vibrating with excitement, he places the broom on the ground next to Esme.
“Alright, Esme, hand over the broom and say ‘Up’,” Draco instructs, demonstrating the movement as Harry bounces on his toes next to him.
Harry has always loved flying, there’s really nothing like it, and to be able to teach Esme how to do it, well, Harry’s thrilled to be able to pass along something so perfect, he wonders if this is how Madam Hooch feels. Not that he’d trade his position in DADA for it.
It takes Esme a couple of tries to get the broom up off the ground but once she does she grins widely, she looks a little silly holding a broom that's double her size, so Harry shrinks it to a more reasonable size.
“Alright now push off the ground,” Esme floats a few feet above the ground, “Great job.”
Harry joins her in the air, “Alright, lean foreward a bit,”
Esme leans foreward and zooms off into the distance. Harry laughs and zooms after her. Only then does it occur to him he still can’t see for shit, he closes his eyes and focus’s on the world around him. He can almost feel the tug of the traces of his own magic in Esme’s .
He does his best to follow it and manages to keep a relative idea of where she is at anytime. He chases her for a good ten minutes before he manages to catch up.
“We left Draco,” Esme points out.
Harry nods thoughtfully, “Why don’t we go back and get him?”
“Race?” Esme asks eyes sparkling.
‘I’ve been playing quidditch for over a century Esme, I don’t think you’ll win.” Harry smirks.
She zooms off and Harry follows quickly. He stayed by her side for the entire thing until the feeling of Draco’s magic was strong.
“Esme, he’ll be a bit miffed if he knows I let you race me,” Harry says, looping around her.
“Shouldn’t have let me race you if you cared that much,” Esme says leaning foreward to pick up speed.
“You’re a devious little thing aren’t you?” Harry asks before pivoting his broom to be above her and hoisting her by her armpits onto his broom, “You are not getting me in trouble with him today.”
She struggles a little bit and Harry swipes her broom out of the air before it falls to the ground. When they land Draco’s arms are crossed with an unimpressed look on his face.
“I saw all of that,” Draco says frowning, “Professor Potter you can’t see anything and here you are racing a small child whilst doing a dangerous activity.”
Harry squints around and sees they have an audience. Harry bows dramatically.
“What can I say, Professor Malfoy, I couldn’t resist a good opponent.” Harry messes up a yawning Esme’s hair.
Draco threw both hands up and walked angrily back toward the room.
Harry hoists Esme onto his shoulders, “Draco,”
“You’re wasting magic.” Draco admonished, “And you put Esme in danger.”
“I had it covered I promise.” Harry tries to soothe.
“How could you possibly have known that,” Draco says walking into the room and transfiguring a small bed for Esme.
Harry sets the child into the newly transfigured bed and focuses on Draco showing what he sees. He knows it’s wasting magic but he needs to comfort Draco. He closes his eyes and faces in Draco’s direction.
Draco gasps, pulling away, “Can you see everyone’s?”
“Erm- Not really, I can see Esme’s and yours, but I haven’t really tried beyond that,” Harry explains.
“Can you see your own?”
Harry hadn’t thought about that, he closes his eyes and tilts his head into the direction of his own body. The magic pouring off of him was brilliant. There was so much of it too. But if there was that much his vision should be better.
He looks down at his chest where the magic was pooled and then looked back at Draco.
“I think, my magic is gathering in the wrong place, your magic flows through your body evenly, a little like blood but mine,” He puts his hand on Draco’s back and shares his view with him again, “It’s all bunched up,”
“Do you think you could try to spread it out?” Draco asks.
Harry hums a bit and focus’s on letting the magic flow from his chest to his finger tips, from his finger tips to the top of his head, and from the top of his head to his toes. By the time his magic was spread out he couldn’t see it anymore.
Harry opens his eyes, and his vision is perfect, he can see again, yet all he can focus on is Draco’s face. He can feel the fever coming on, his head is getting lighter by the minute and his skin hotter. Everything but his head felt heavy.
“Shit you’re beautiful.” Is all he can get out before he passes out