𝗷𝗮𝗻𝗲, harry potter

˗ˋ 17

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
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-: fourth year :-

── IN WHICH HE FINDS SOMETHING

. . .

Clementine and Treacle. They had named them after a fruit and a syrup. 

The names had come about after Jane had pointed out the likeliness between the two kittens and them. Harry had been compared to a lot of things, but a kitten was another thing. However, he couldn't deny it.

When he approached the girl on the lawn, the first instances of similarities were obvious. The little ginger cat was trying to climb up Jane's top, and the brown one was fast asleep. And then their fur colours, and what seemed to be their personalities. The ginger kitten was Jane, and the brown one Harry. 

"We should name them after something we like. And it should go with their fur. We should keep that up." Jane had a small smile on her face as she held up the brown kitten, gently placing it down over his legs. "I'm pretty sure they're both girls, so we can go off of that."

And after a little while of consideration, Jane had announced she was going to name the ginger cat Clementine, and not long after that, Harry had chosen Treacle - his favourite dessert being, of course, treacle tart. 

The rest of the day was spent like how it was planned to do. They had spent a little longer in the sun, and then moved to help Flora when she decided she was ready. They were helping out in the library, one of the tallest rooms in the house with bookshelves lining each wall. 

"An even earlier addition of Pride and Prejudice!" Harry's head had shot upwards upon hearing the gasp, squinting slightly in the ray of sun as he found Jane. She was stood on one of the top rings of the rickety ladder - the ones that you always saw in the movies, that had little wheels on the bottom. 

Flora had disappeared to fetch them tea and cake, and whilst Jane was dusting books and very quickly getting distracted by the titles on the leather spines, Harry had been left on the library floor, keeping an eye on the two kittens sleeping on a cushion in a cardboard box. Whilst Jane was scouring through the books on the upper shelves on the library, he had been tasked with looking through several boxes of even more books, that had been sat in Jane's room in storage until they were brought back downstairs.

"Here, Harry, catch this." Jane called down to the boy, who's eyes widened as something came drifting down at him - it was the duster, and when he shaded his eyes from the beam of light, he saw Jane sitting on one of the rings of the ladder, book already open.

"Be careful." He warned, Jane snapping the book closed and placing it back on the shelf, practically sliding down the ladder and landing beside Harry. 

"Climbing trees helps your sense of balance, you know?" She replied. "How are Clementine and Treacle?"

"I do have the ability to look after pets, you know? I'm not completely useless." Harry retorted, the glimmer of amusement in Jane's eyes only growing. "But.. they're good. Still fast asleep."

"Find anything interesting?" The Everleigh girl asked as she stood over the kittens, reaching down and stroking Treacle behind the ears.

"Not much really, they're mostly non-fiction. There is a couple fiction in there as well, but I wasn't sure if you would like them." Harry barely even realised that he was voicing his thoughts to why he hadn't let her know about the books, but his ears tinted pink when he saw the smile that had formed on Jane's lips.

The girl extracted her hand from the box, twisting around various furniture towards where Harry was stood. "Hit me with your best shot." She told him. "Out of the fiction books in that box, guess which one I would like best." Jane challenged, sitting down on the only free space left on the sofa, coughing slightly as a cloud of dust appeared around her.

"I'll try my best." Harry replied, turning to the box. Although he hadn't known whether the fiction books within the box would be to Jane's taste, he had made sure to keep them at the top of the pile. "They're all classics I think, and I'm assuming you've read a lot of them."

"My fair share." Jane nodded. "But if you think I really won't like one, then just put it aside. Even if they're all rubbish, just pick out the book you think I'll like the most time." 

Feeling only a little pressure from the way she was watching him, Harry sifted through the books before pulling one out. "Emily of New Moon." He read from thhe rather decorative cover. "By L.M Montgomery."

"The author of Anne of Green Gables?" Jane sat up, rushing over to him. Their shoulders brushed as she peered over the book, fingertips grazing against each other as she pulled it from his willing grasp. "Oh Harry you've hit the nail on the head." The expression left her lips full of gratitude, glancing up at the dark-haired boy with wonder in her eyes. "How did you know?"

"Lucky guess?" Harry offered, but in reality whilst Jane felt as if she didn't know much about him given that he hadn't acted in a way that did, she had given him plenty of opportunity to learn more about her.

"Come one." Jane's hand wrapped around his and pulled him over to the sofa, carefully moving one of the boxes and sitting down beside him. Their knees touched as she opened the book, beginning reading it almost instantly.

Moments later, Angela approached the library with a tray of tea and cakes, even some of those biscuits Jane liked so much. She pushed open the door even further, but froze in place, eyes exploring the scene. 

The two teens curled up on the couch, a beam of sunlight shining down on them from the large windows. Jane's voice carried across to her, the girl clearly reading to Harry beside her - who was skimming the page with such a fond smile on his lips.

Slowly, she backed away, pulling the door back as far it could without making noise. Back in the corridor, she turned to see Flora making her way down the hall. No words were exchanged, but when Florence saw the woman shake her head and Jane's voice could be heard faintly, the pair retreated to the kitchen.

Not wanting to disturb the two.

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