In a Cottage at Florence

The man groaned as they tried to regain their bearings. They clutched their helmet and pulled it off then turned to their side to collapse on the icy pavement.

Harry blinked in surprise as he saw the young features of the man—no boy.

He couldn't look any older than 17. With purple hair and some silver piercings. They also wore purple eyeliner and lipstick. Harry would pay to see them appear Before the Dursleys. He might get lucky and give Petunia a heart attack. Buh eh, the horse-faced bitch wasn't easy to put down.

He was the definition of the 'good for nothing delinquent freak' that the Dursleys compared him to. That made Harry like him already.

But a frown made its way to his face. This guy was still a kid. Does he even have a license to drive that motorcycle? 

"Careful kid, you just crashed your motorcycle. Are you hurt?"

Harry knew that the teenager couldn't be hurt since he caught and cushioned his fall but it was better to be sure.

"Skull-sama is not a kid!"

The teenager protested before jumping back to his feet as fit as a fiddle. It was like the kid didn't end up crashing his motorcycle in the snow and went flying into the air. Harry was worried about just how common this would occur when 'Skull' remained unaffected by the event.

"Skull-sama is the Great Immortal Stuntman! Not a child!", Skull yelled as he puffed up his chest with a proud grin, and Harry was nearly blinded by the sheer amount of cloud flames pouring from him.

It was potent enough that he could taste it in the air. Harry knew that he shouldn't be this sensitive to flames, he had read it in Viper's portfolio. 

It also had to do that he hid his own flames thus becoming more sensitive to the other's presence. If he let loose his flames here then he wouldn't be affected by this cloud's obnoxiously bright purple flames. But then he would be the one lighting up the streets of London like a damn Christmas tree.

This guy's cloud flames can't be normal. They were too powerful, just like how he felt Viper's flames were. And Viper was the best mist out there—or at least according to them, and Harry didn't sense any lie.

"Well Skull, I think you might wanna check your motorcycle over there", he pointed at the dark beaten-up motorcycle that lay on the snow on their right.

Skull's eyes widened with panic and he scrambled towards his motorcycle. He let out a pained wail as he saw the condition of his motorcycle.

Harry grew worried and approached the young male who was kneeling beside his motorcycle.

"Hey, do you need some help?", Harry pulled out his phone and began to search his contacts for what he remembered was some police number from the time he visited here a year ago.

They needed to call some contractor to take the motorcycle to the nearest repair shop. It looks like this one's engine is permanently shut down from either the incident or the cold. The front of the vehicle was also split into two and crumbled on the side. Overall it was a mess.

Skull looks like he was about to burst into tears and Harry did not do well with tears. 

The wizard was no rain but he learned that sky flames also had a calming effect on other unbonded elements. So he adjusted his necklace to allow for it to let the presence of his flames slipt for a moment to do his job.

His hand was soon enveloped in warm orange flames and he gently placed it on the teen's shoulder.

The effect was immediate as they fell over him and melted into a putty. Skull leaned and pressed himself to his side and soon Harry had again had a lapful of a purple teenager.

Harry would have let the younger man stay if it weren't for the fact that he was now sitting in snow and warming charm or not he was gonna freeze his buttocks off. Not to mention that Skull was only wearing his leather spandex instead of a proper winter attire.

He sighed before calling the police and reporting about the incident to have someone take the motorcycle and send it to the repair shop.

Harry felt the younger boy snuggle closer for warmth and froze when he saw the dazed look on Skull's purple eyes. 

'Shit, I overdid it. The kid's flame drunk'

There were three ways to stop being flame drunk. First was to wait it off for a couple of minutes and maybe even hours depending on the intensity of the flames. Second was to use their own flames to burn it out of their system, but that usually drains them afterward. And third, was to take a special and expensive pill for it.

Harry doesn't have that medicine nor does he think that Skull is capable of burning off his flame drunkness away. So he carefully lifted and maneuvered the teenager so Harry was carrying him on his back with Skull's hands sluggishly slung across his neck.

For all that Skull is just probably 17, the teenager was about the same height as Harry. Damn it, even with the potions he used after the war to fix the effects of his childhood malnutrition he still wasn't up to par with his height. But Andromeda did say that his father and mother weren't really that tall either so maybe I was just his genetics.

He placed a warming charm on Skull as well then tried to look for the nearest open shop. The snow was getting worse and the people around had left just earlier before the crash. Some shops also closed because of the lack of customers and the winter cold but Harry hopes that they at least have one shop open.

Harry was in luck when he saw an open small restaurant and carefully walked through the slippery street to avoid crashing on the ground. Especially since he had an important purple package on his back.

The slight chime of the bell at the entrance door announced their arrival and Harry sighed in relief when the heaters of the cafe blew warm air over him.

The restaurant had a homey feeling with it. With oak used on the floorboard and the furniture along with soft yellow lights that brought up warmth from the winter cold outside.

There were only two people inside. The shop owner leaned on the counter and another customer was chatting with them. Both women turned their heads towards them and gasped as they saw their snowed-on appearances.

"Oh my, come on in dear. It's freezing outside!"

Both left their seats and urged them to sit on one of the lounge chairs on the corner of the restaurant. The other customer urged him to take a sit and Harry first gently placed Skull on the lounge chair and then sat beside him.

But being both cold and flame drunk, Skull still clung to him and Harry was forced to stay still as the teenager leaned on him and used his shoulder as a resting place for his head.

The two women cooed at the sight and Harry tried to hide the blush forming on his cheeks. If it weren't for the fact that Skull wasn't a literal teenager and it was his fault for getting the bloke accidentally sky drunk then he would have pushed him off.

Harry hid his flames again and waited for Skull to regain awareness. He then had a chat with the two women and learned that they were a couple. The brunette Mabel was the owner of the small restaurant while her wife Anjayleen was a frequent customer and a writer.

Both didn't really expect any customers but left the shop open to change and put up some decor for the upcoming Christmas celebration.

They had a pleasant chat and were shocked when he said that– no they were not a couple or siblings. Skull was just someone he helped out after catching him from being flung over by his motorcycle after crashing it into the snow.

Mabel asked him if they needed to call the hospital but Harry shook his head since he had already cast a diagnostic spell to see if Skull was hurt anywhere else but it thankfully came back negative.

Soon his phone rang and the police called back to say that they had arrived at the incident point and were asking for their current location.

He told them about the cafe and shortly two police officers came in. They asked for the basics of the incident such as the time, people involved, and others. 

They also took note of Skull's drunk-like appearance but Harry wasn't going to let the teen get in trouble because of him and let a few Compulsion and Confundus Charm to divert the officers' attention and make them ignore Skull's condition.

Harry breathed out a sigh of relief when the officers left and gently pulled Skull over him. He was also told by the officers that Skull's motorcycle couldn't be salvaged and was completely scrapped. Harry then remembered the horrified expression on the purple-clad teen when he saw the condition of his motorcycle and didn't want to be the one to inform him of the fate of his precious ride.

An alarm lit up in Harry's head when he noticed that he was suddenly getting attached to a teen he literally just met 2 hours ago and only managed to get two sentences out of.

He turned on their flames and was shocked to see them mingling and mixing with each other. 

Then Harry felt a click. 

It felt like it was a minuscule feeling but also brought upon a multifold of emotions and feelings that flooded Harry. So minor yet so large, simple yet phenomenal.

Like a small universe in the palm of your hand.

Harry felt immense emotions that he knew didn't belong to him. The insecurity, fear, and hopelessness as well as the blind search for belongingness and attention. 

Purple flames flickered and surrounded him and he felt like a puzzle that clicked into place without any gaps or ridges. It felt like coming home. Finding family.

Harry felt warmwarmhappycompletecontent. He felt the soulbond connect and then he knew he had harmonized with the purple-clad self-proclaimed stuntman of a teenager.

But instead of feeling dread at having his soul tied to another person, Harry felt at peace and happy.

If this was what Harmonization felt like then Harry could maybe understand just why flame users are actively searching for it.

Skull woke up feeling better than he had ever before. He felt warm and safe. More importantly, he felt at home.

The empty space of his chest that he never managed to fill was overflowing with that warm feeling that made him feel like putty.

He felt connected and accepted in a way that he couldn't understand.

The last his mind remembered was performing that action scene for the upcoming movie that he was hired on. Many people knew of Skull the Immortal Stuntman in the entertainment circle. 

The best stuntman that can do miracles and survive anything. He also performs for the traveling circus that he passes by to show the great abilities of Skull-sama.

Then while riding his trusty motorcycle on the snowy street of London to find himself a hotel to stay in for the night, he remembered getting into an accident. Then it was a blur from that moment.

Like a drunk haze that he had experienced when he got drunk for the first time when tried some alcohol but it was very different.

He felt warmwarmloveacceptancehome and those warm orange flames that danced and tangled with his own purple flames.

Then he felt a click and the whole world got brighter and more beautiful than he had ever thought for it to be.

It felt like waking up from a long boring mundane dream. Skull felt like he had bared himself to the world. Cut open by his own flames and his inside shown to see all his fears, sadness, and insecurities. But then he felt those warm flames envelop and accept him. 

Accept every part of himself and love him because of it, not despite it.

It made tears fall from his eyes and his body wracked up in sobs from the sheer happiness that burned on his chest.

The teenager then felt a gentle arm pull him closer to the warmth and that was when he fell asleep.

When he opened his eyes the first he saw was an oak ceiling with warm yellow lights. It was then that he figured that he was laying on a soft couch with his head laying on something.

"You're awake, good. We really have a lot to talk about"

Skull turned his head and a red blush spread on his face when he saw that he was resting his head on someone's thighs.

He tried to sit up immediately in embarrassment but winched when felt vertigo. His head spun and felt dizzy.

"Whoa mate, careful. You're okay"

The distinctive British male told him while helping him back up. Skull felt the embarrassment come back tenfold.

"I'm alright. Nothing can keep Skull-sama down!", he cradled his head as he flashed a winning smile at the nice warmwarmorangehome person.

He heard a fond snort and felt a hand ruffle his hair before the man stood up from the couch.

"Okay then, I'll go fetch you a hot cocoa. Mabel left some at the table"

Skull nodded before letting out a yawn and stretching his arms up not unlike a cat and blinking his eyes awake.

He then looked around his surroundings to see where he ended up after the accident and was thankful that he wasn't sent to the hospital. When he gets into an accident his flames immediately heal him and by the time he reaches or is placed in the hospital, his wounds are gone. All that was left for him was a medical bill and a firm warning about 'wasting important time of professional health workers'.

Skull snorted and rolled his eyes. He never really did like those stuck-up doctors and their haughty know-it-all attitude. Those shitty white cloaks didn't try to bother healing Ma and the others back at the circus when they had a fall or incident during practice or performance. That was why they always had someone from the crew to learn a thing or two about healing.

Remembering his Ma, Skull felt nostalgic and grasped the necklace on his neck and rubbed the cold metal of the necklace between his fingers as he usually did to calm himself.

A metal circular frame with a triangle on the inside along with a single line that split the triangle into two. The last remnant of a big fancy family that Ma had before they all went and gone.

Now, this was nothing but a fancy good luck charm that Skull had.

Skull groaned when he saw the big pile of snow outside the small restaurant he was on and knew that his motorcycle was done for. He remembered seeing sweet Jacklyn's front shattered and his engine frozen. In the bits of his drunken haze, he recalled a couple of cops and that warmwarmnicesoft man talking with them.

Skull has lost a couple of motorcycles within the years of his job as a stuntman. It was part of the job. But that still doesn't stop him from getting attached and naming his partners in the great performances of Great Immortal Skull.

And while Skull wasn't broke. It still hurts his finances to keep losing motorcycles. But the pain is more to his heart than in his wallet.

Each motorcycle was a partner that went through his death defying stunts with him. That meant something. It was why he doesn't like using motorcycles provided by the set and preferred using his own. They just had to edit the final film to look like the motorcycle they wanted. Skull wasn't gonna budge.

He then heard footsteps coming closer and was prepared to show the greatest gratitude of the Great Skull-sama to the nice person that helped him out of the snow and had probably talked with the cops to have his motorcycle salvaged from the snow. God knew just how annoying it was to deal with cops whenever he gets into an accident.

But then Skull froze when he saw the nice person that brought him to the small restaurant. He blushed for a different reason when he saw those beautiful emerald eyes look at him warmly.

The guy didn't look much older than him and was very pretty. Raven's soft hair tousled like he just came out of bed and pale spotless skin. And his eyes. Skull couldn't look away.

Then the man smiled softly at him and then Skull saw the orange flames that emitted from the guy like his purple flame.

"You have flames too! We match!", He pointed his finger at the pretty person, and enthusiasm and relief coursed through him.

He wasn't alone! Someone else had these flames too. Well, his were purple, but still—

The warm person's eyes widened and they chuckled.

"You're a civilian too huh. I just found out what these flames were a week ago so I understand your confusion. I'm Harry. Harry Potter, it's nice to meet you"

Harry held out his hand and Skull shook it excitedly. He finally had someone to talk to about the flames and Harry gave him a nice feeling that made Skull want to be with this person forever.

"I am The Great Immortal Stuntman Skull de mort! Hated by death itself! Nice to meet you!"

The man's face contorted into a grimace before a tilt formed on the corner of their mouth and they started outright laughing.

Skull suddenly felt hurt and offended, his enthusiasm fell along with his flames flaring out in discomfort.

That seems to have shaken Harry out of his laughter and they placed a comforting hand over his shoulder.

"Shush, I'm not laughing at you. I think that your alias is very cool. It's just that I once had an 'acquaintance' with a name very close to yours, match it up with the title of 'Immortal' and the irony is enough to make me choke on my laughter"

The man's orange flame then tangled with his and playfully played with them as he felt warm and cozy again.

"Really?", he squinted at Harry and the man merely snorted in good nature before ruffling his hair again.

"Really", Harry confirmed before handing him out a cup of hot cocoa, perfect for today's weather.

"How long was I out?"

He asked as he looked at the early morning sky and snow that had already stopped falling.

"Well, the accident happened around 3 and you fell asleep three hours after that. Mabel, the owner of this restaurant, and her wife were nice enough to let us stay for the night here along with the heater and a couple of pillows, and a blanket. Both of them left just a bit earlier to buy some bread at the bakery on the other street. It's about 6 in the morning now"

Oh, that was weird. Skull usually doesn't get to sleep this long. About 11-12 hours of sleep was nearly impossible for him. He only managed to nap that long when he did a long stunt and stayed awake for two or three days straight. His sleep usually only lasted for some hours before he was up and moving again. 

It was nice. Sleeping this long with that soft warmth lulled him in comfort. Which brings him to their flames. 

"Um, about these flames. What do you know about it? I kinda just have this since I was a kid and hadn't really met others aside from you. And I feel weird too—but it's the good kind of weird! Like really warm, cozy and I really really like you kind of feel"

Wow, how eloquent Skull. He stopped the urge to place his hands over his face and moan. Just how many times was he gonna embarrass himself to Harry today? It was not his cool day today.

Yet seeing amusement dancing on those emerald eyes he couldn't bring himself to be annoyed.

"Okay, this might sound really weird and you might not believe it but here we go. I'm gonna explain about these flames. First is that they are called Dying Will Flames they are—"

And in a small restaurant that radiates warmth and home. Purple and orange flames danced and made a home for themselves. The wandering cloud finally found his sky. And among the snowing streets of London, a bond that would last for eternity was made.