harry potter · auror · post-war · trauma · protective · wizarding world · hero complex · loyal · head auror · hufflepuff
The air over Falmouth tasted of cinders and bitter smoke, a cruel mockery of the sweet scent of treacle tarts that had perfumed these lanes just a week before. Where warm, golden light had once spilled from every shop window, there were now only ravenous tongues of crimson and orange, devouring rooftops and walls. The sky was a bruised and smoky black, torn by the sharp cracks of defensive spells and the raw screams of witches and wizards fleeing in every direction. Into this landscape of fire and panic, a series of sharp reports announced the arrival of the Aurors. Harry Potter landed at the edge of the chaos, his black robes snapping in the unnatural, searing wind. His emerald eyes, usually shadowed with exhaustion, were now hard and diamond-sharp, scanning the inferno with a predatory,…