Another Step

She was laughing. Laughing at how stupid he had been to really believe that was the reason. There was something worrying in what she had said though.

I've had friends who are Dark Followers and Death Eaters.

We're they still friends? Did Hitame still have communications with death eaters and dark followers, death eaters and dark followers that she could have told about Henry's whereabouts. It wasnt that he was missing, nobody knew where he was half the time, but if they knew he was with Sophia that couldn't be good. That wouldn't be good at all.

The information Hitame had told him about being an addict herself were completely ignored. Whatever had come out of her mouth Henry wouldn't be able to recall, he hadn't listened, instead his mind had began to race through who might know Hitame, which death eaters could know.

'Have you told anyone?' He asked, his voice shaking as he thrust down the sleeve of his robes again. 'Have you told anyone?' He asked a second later when she hadn't responded quick enough. The second time he voice was still shaking but louder, the child outside who had been peering through the windows at the owls jumped. He had to be careful or they'd be overheard.

He moved closer, hissing the words: 'Who knows I'm staying with Sophia?'

She thought her response would get something out of him. But she hadn't thought that it would be something like fear, at least that was what she thought she was seeing in him. He seemed afraid of anyone finding out that he was with Sophia. Was that because he was afraid they would do something to her as well as him or was it just because he was scared for his own life?

It could easily be both things though. Hitame turned away from him when he came closer to her, hissing the question at her. She took a moment before she answered him, "Besides Maura and Ryo? No one." she finally answered, turning back to face him. "I'm not stupid. I wouldn't tell anyone that you're with Sophia. I don't want her to get hurt because of you." she sighed.

"Besides, it's not like I tell people everything that happens in my life. Even if I was still friends with half the people I was before, they wouldn't know that you're staying in Sophia's house. That would be putting all of us in danger, since I live there too and by default I'm in on whatever she decides to do." She stiffened for a brief moment. She had accidentally told him why she was so disappointed that Sophia hadn't told her anything about Henry. She just hoped he didn't catch onto it.

A sigh of relief escaped Henry. That was good. He knew Ryo, or knew of him would be a better description. They had been in the same year at Hogwarts, sometimes even in the same lessons. Henry couldn't recall if they had been friends or not, Henry had been popular up until his sixth year there was a chance they may have been on good terms but now? Now they weren't friends but Henry knew Ryo wasn't a death eater, knew he wouldn't blab. Or so he hoped.

Maura knew, of course Maura knew she walked in the day Sophia had brought him back from the hospital. Maura would no doubt have told Hallie, they told each other everything didn't they? Hallie. Hallie was the link. Hallie was married to Theodore, Theodore was a death eater soon all of the death eaters would know that he had been staying with Sophia. How had he not realised this before? Unless Sophia had told Maura not to tell a soul, not even Hallie? Would it be wise to take that risk?

The death eater was now pacing, forgetting that Hitame was standing before him. Two months ago he wouldn't be in this situation. Henry wouldn't have found himself in a job, talking to someone affiliated with Sophia Granger, heck he'd probably have been high right about now. Curse Sophia. Why had he trusted her? Because he wanted to change? Or because Sophia made him think that he should change?

Henry hurried into the back room, emerging two minutes later with the keys to the shop, his coat and a bag.

'I have to go.' He told Hitame hurriedly, opening up the till and starting to empty the money into the bag.

He seemed like he was thinking, but about what Hitame would never know. Or maybe she already knew, but she just wasn't sure about it or was just plain oblivious to it. She had a tendency to be oblivious to a lot of things lately. That was something new, something that didn't seem to go correctly with the personality that everyone had seemed to know Hitame for.

She wasn't the type to be oblivious to anything. She was always cautious and vigilant about everything, but now.. there were a lot of things that escaped her. Like not knowing that Sophia was hiding someone in her house. Normally, Hitame would have noticed that something was up. Her behavior or just little things around the house would have set her off to the presence of someone else in the house. But she hadn't noticed anything, and that had made things much harsher for her when she had confronted Sophia about keeping it a secret.

Henry finally spoke, though his words caught her a little by surprise. "Why?" she asked abruptly, not caring that he would probably give her a rude response. She wasn't finished with him. And even though she realized that he probably wanted to get away from her specifically, she wasn't going to let him just run off without so much as a hint to where he was going.

Henry watched as the last few sickles slipped into his bag. He couldn't believe it was over, the high he had been living on the past two months was slowly sinking into the shadows. It hadn't been the high that Henry was used too, no drugs were inducing his happiness it was the fact he wasn't on drugs. He was high from life and it was all thanks to Sophia Granger.

He stopped, looking up to Hitame. Why? Why did he have to go? Because he had just realised that his life was in danger, but not only his but Sophia's and Hitame's too. Like Hit said she was involved in anything Soph did and an order member harboring a death eater was a crime. The Order probably wouldn't have been keen on the idea, called her foolish but the death eaters would see it different. They might blame her, go after her for converting Henry. Henry hadn't left the death eaters but living with an Order member, having access to information and not saying anything was enough to have him murdered, or at least handed to Katrina-Carlotta.

'Because the death eaters know. They know I've been staying with Sophia!' To anybody but Henry this wouldn't make sense. Sophia, Ryo, Hitame and Maura were the only ones that definitely knew but Maura would have told Hallie, especially if they were as close as they were at Hogwarts. How long would it be before Theodore Rookwood found out.

Nobody was aware of Theodore's allegiances to the death eaters, as far as they were concerned he was neutral. How mistaken they were and if Hallie had told her husband it mean't the death eaters would soon be finding out.

'I need to leave. I can't put her in danger!' He added, zipping up the bag and flinging it on his shoulder before advancing on the door.

'Get out of the way!' He called!

Hitame stared at him. The Death Eaters knew? The thought almost made her laugh again. Henry had begun to walk toward the door, and the Gryffindor threw herself in front of the door stopping him from being able to leave.

"Do you realize what you're saying?" she asked him. "If the Death Eaters knew that you were living with her, they wouldn't wait so long to attack. It would have happened a long time ago. Obviously, no one has said anything to any one of them, or anyone close to them." she added, crossing her arms over her chest. He was just reacting without thought, at least that's what she assumed.

He mentioned he didn't want to put her in danger. She assumed he meant Sophia, who else would be mean? The sixteen year old sighed. "So you'd prefer to break her heart by leaving?" she asked, allowing her arms to drop from their crossed position and looking him in the eyes. "How do you think she would feel if she found out that you just up and left? She doesn't care if she's in danger, she knows that she is. She knew as soon as she decided to help you and did that stop her? No it didn't." she stopped for a moment. "She saw good in you, and I guess I see why now. But she'd feel terrible if you left without so much as a goodbye. She doesn't want you to leave. So I wouldn't advise it."

The girl moved out of the way shortly after finishing her sentence. She'd said what she needed, if he wanted to leave then fine. She just hoped that he would talk to Sophia before he decided to disappear from her life.

Henry didn't move, he simply stared at Hitame, taking in her words. She had a point surely if the death eaters knew then they would have come knocking a long time. They had ways and it wouldn't take them long to know where he lived, how to find him, heck they could summon him if they wished. Unless they were biding their time, waiting to humiliate him in the next meeting? Perhaps out him and expect him to divulge her secrets. A part of him would do so, the part in his mind that needed protection but in all honesty Henry had hit rock bottom and was making his way back up, it would be as scary as hell to defy the death eaters but a part of him liked to hope he would divulge all Sophia's details... But would the truth keep him alive?

He dropped his bag and began to pace, trying to figure out whether or not the death eaters were aware he was staying with Sophia. Okay. So Maura knew and if Hallie did know would she have told her husband? Chances are she would, but then would Theodore Rookwood have passed it onto the rest of the death eaters or was he waiting, did he want to have a conversation with him first? It all depends on what Hallie thought on the subject.

No doubt she would be furious at Sophia, allowing the man who had abducted and tortured her to live under the same roof as her. Would she question his loyalty to the death eaters? Or question his loyalty to Sophia? Perhaps the latter, which mean't Theodore would get the information from a point of view that he was intending to snitch on Sophia... Why was he in this mess?

'I.' He said. 'I don't know what to do!' The pitch of his voice rising in panic, his palms getting sweatier by the minute and right now his eyes were dull and thirsty for a high. He needed drugs. Drugs would help him, he'd be able to escape his problem but that wasn't noble. It wasn't brave to shy away from his problems. Sophia had told him the sorting hat had placed him into Gryffindor for a reason, but did that mean he wanted to act like a Gryffindor? No. Yet, something in side of him was telling him to stay clean, face his hears, face the problem.

'They'll find out. They'll know sooner or later.' He finally said after some minutes of silent pacing. 'They could kill me! Kill Sophia, kill you! They'd kill me for betraying them and kill you for helping keep me hidden. They'd think I'd left the death eaters. I haven't. They wouldn't believe me though. But I haven't, I support them, I joined them for a reason. I tortured Hallie Cooper for them. Wouldn't they- but then- what if-.'

His pacing had quickening, his speech more disjointed and the bottom lip was heavily trembling. Air was gushing into his lungs quicker than it was exciting, sooner or later he'd faint from hyperventilation. Henry needed to calm down, he needed to go home and cool off.

The Gryffindor's hands curled into fists. She was already starting to get tired of his panicking about the Death Eaters. She understood his reasoning for it, he was afraid that he would die. That Sophia would die, and honestly she was scared that Sophia could be put in danger too, but she didn't care about herself. Much less did she care about what happened to Henry.

"And who cares if they find out?!" she screamed at him. Her patience was finally gone and she wasn't going to keep herself calm anymore. He was so concerned with what would happen to him that it actually kind of sickened her. But even though there was still some kind of concern for Sophia in there, she still didn't believe that he wasn't more concerned for himself than her.

"I thought you were supposed to be a Gryffindor! Gryffindors aren't cowards! They stare death in the eyes, and don't care if they're about to die!" she yelled at him, not caring if anyone heard her. "I'm tired of knowing that you're such a coward when you were in the House of the lions, the brave ones! Do you honestly think that Sophia would care if the Death Eaters found out? If she was forced to face death?" she spat.

"Do you think I care? I've already been face to face with Death! I've already died once!" she exclaimed, memories of the night Felix Barker tortured her and the moment she died flashing through her mind. It had been the most painful yet blissful moment of her life. But she had been able to be revived, just for more torture. But she had managed to live through it all for one reason, for Naomi. For the little sister who hated her now.

"I've died and been revived! So honestly, do you think I care if I'm faced with Death again?!" She sighed, trying to calm herself down just a little bit before she continued. "Both Sophia and I have faced Death. We've both walked out of it, and we're both definitely not afraid of dying again."

As Hitame spoke her words seemed to soothe Henry, slowing the speed of which he was pacing. She was right. He had been sorted into Gryffindor for a reason. At the time he had been brave but as time went by he'd slowly lost pieces of himself bit by bit. It was the addiction, it ate him alive sapping all of the good qualities Henry once had.

The past month those good qualities were starting to return, he was in limbo, an unusual transition. On one hand he wanted to slip, it would be so easy to forget himself and punish himself for all his bad traits but there was a part of him objecting. A part of Henry wanted to fight, to be the person he was and the death eaters shouldn't stop him.

'You're right.' He replied. Henry wasn't sure how much he believed his own words but the fact he'd agreed comforted him nonetheless. 'You're right.' He breathed once more. So the death eaters would find out, he would deal with the situation when it came. For now they seemed unaware, Hitame had been right, it they'd known then by now he would have known too.

'Thanks.' He muttered, walking behind the counter and sitting down on the chair.

'I'm sorry.' He told her, looking up across the counter. 'I'm sorry if I've not been much help, Sophia's just, being, well Sophia. She's helping me and I'm thankful for that. I didn't mean to ever come better you and her.'