Fleur found Leonard easy on the eyes, but they had not really gotten to know each other, so she could not call it liking yet.
They had spent too little time together to truly understand one another. If she fell in love under those circumstances, it would only be with a phantom, a shadow created by her own imagination.
Fleur had always cared deeply about the essence of love, which was why she hated it when people became infatuated with her because of Veela charm. That charm was like her own illusion, alluring and seductive.
But it was not really her. It was only the version of her that other people imagined.
And if she could see that so clearly herself, how could she fall in love with someone else's phantom?
"Why do you ask that, little Claudia? Do you like Leonard, so you're jealous?" Fleur teased.
Claudia looked up blankly. "I do like Leonard, but Sister, what does jealous mean?"
Little Claudia had absolutely no knowledge when it came to feelings, so she did not understand what Fleur meant at all.
She really had only been asking out of curiosity, with no deeper meaning behind it.
Fleur looked awkward. Talking about this with Claudia made her feel as though she were corrupting a little angel.
"It doesn't mean anything. I was just saying it casually." Fleur changed the subject. "Come on, let's hurry and finish washing."
The two of them soon finished bathing and came out of the bathroom in their nightdresses, cheeks flushed pink.
Their changed clothes were left in the basket inside the bathroom.
Fleur used magic to dry both her own hair and Claudia's. Then she coaxed Claudia to sleep before sitting down at the desk and studying the brewing process for the Draught of Living Death by the weak light of an oil lamp.
The method Leonard had suggested for handling Sopophorous beans had given her a few ideas.
Since she could not make any immediate progress in brewing technique, perhaps she could put more effort into how potion ingredients were processed instead.
But that was not the sort of thing she could figure out just by thinking about it. Fleur planned to read more books on potion ingredients and study their properties so she could judge how best to handle them.
In the stillness of the deep night, Claudia's soft breathing was especially clear. For some reason, listening to it calmed Fleur's heart, and even her studying became more efficient.
Just then, something like a glass bead fell out from somewhere and bounced across the floor with a crisp sound.
Fleur, half-dozing, looked up in confusion. In the next instant, the bead exploded, and a huge cloud of smoke burst out, spreading through the entire room like a tide and swallowing both Fleur and Claudia.
"This smell... Draught of Living Death?"
Having studied the Draught of Living Death for months, Fleur instantly recognized the familiar scent and realized something was wrong. She immediately held her breath, stood up, and tried to escape with Claudia, but the moment she got to her feet, dizziness hit her and her body swayed.
"This is bad... the potion's already taking effect."
Fleur braced herself against the desk, her emerald eyes going hazy.
This Draught of Living Death, somehow turned into a mist, was terrifyingly potent. Even without swallowing it, mere contact with the skin was enough to trigger the effect.
Even holding her breath could not stop it from working on Fleur, much less Claudia, who was already sleeping deeply.
It was an incredible discovery, but the sudden appearance of the Draught of Living Death at a moment like this could only mean danger.
Someone had come for them. If she fell asleep now, they were finished.
"No... I have to get out. I have to find help."
Fleur forced herself to stay alert.
This was the Leaky Cauldron, with Diagon Alley right behind it. It was the place with the highest concentration of wizards in all of London. As long as she could get out, there had to be hope.
At the very least... at the very least, she had to get Claudia out.
Grinding her teeth, Fleur drew her wand, aimed it at her own arm, and whispered, "Incendio."
Under her deliberate control, only a tiny flame shot from the wand and burned her arm.
The pain of the burn jolted Fleur awake, and the fire also destroyed part of the misted Draught of Living Death around her.
Using that moment of clarity bought by pain, Fleur rushed to the bed, scooped Claudia up, and made for the door. Just then, an instinct born of her Veela bloodline made her stop short, and she reflexively threw herself sideways with Claudia in her arms.
Two dark shapes flashed past. Thud, thud. Something struck the wall behind them.
Fleur's body could not keep up with her thoughts. In dodging, her left foot caught on her right, and she and Claudia tumbled to the floor in a heap. The fall made her even dizzier, and by the time she tried to get up, two strangely dressed figures were already standing in front of her, wearing bizarre devices over their faces that looked like pig snouts.
Wait...
She felt as though she had seen something like that before. In a Muggle movie, maybe.
Were these two not wizards? Were they Muggles?
How was that possible? This was the Leaky Cauldron, protected by one of the strongest Muggle-Repelling Charms there was. How had they gotten in?
"Target secured..." A muffled voice came from beneath one of the pig-snout masks. "It should be right. Beautiful as a legendary elf. But there are two, not one like the intel said."
"She's tougher than expected. She burned herself to stay awake, tried to run, and even dodged the tranquilizer dart."
"Take them both, right? Understood."
Who was he talking to? Who were they? What did they want?
Fleur felt heavy drowsiness invading her thoughts. Facing the two weird men walking toward her to seize her, she bit the tip of her tongue, and a strange light flickered in her eyes.
She was going to try hypnotizing them.
Veela blood had given Fleur more than beauty. It had also granted her exceptional talent in hypnotic magic. Combined with her wand, which had been made with her grandmother's hair, the effect of her hypnosis could even influence powerful magical creatures.
Even without her wand, hypnotizing a few wizards or Muggles should still be possible.
Simply put, she was going to turn the tables.
One of the pig-snouted men accidentally met Fleur's eyes and immediately fell into a hypnotic state. His movements slowed, as if he were struggling against his own subconscious.
It worked, and even more easily than she had expected.
Were these two really Muggles?
Fleur let out a breath of relief and immediately tried to hypnotize the other one too, but to her surprise, he never looked into her eyes at all. Instead, he kept his attention on the other pig-snouted man. The moment he saw his movements falter, he slapped him hard on the back of the head.
Without a wand, Fleur's hypnosis was weak. A blow like that was enough to snap him out of it.
The man who had just fallen under hypnosis instantly came back to himself. Not daring to look at Fleur again, he said in a low voice, "The intel was right. This girl's dangerous. I almost got taken in just now."
"None of these freaks are harmless. Ignore her. She can't hypnotize people many times like this." The other man still refused to look at Fleur. "A two-man team is enough to deal with her."
They had come prepared.
They were operating in pairs, one making contact with Fleur while the other watched the one engaging with her, specifically to stop the hypnosis from taking hold.
How could these Muggles know about Veela abilities?
Watching the hands reach steadily toward her, Fleur's face filled with despair.
Just then, two dark shadows appeared within the Draught of Living Death mist...