Heart and Soull

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Now, Harry was not a true innocent—the education he had gotten in school just before entering for Hogwarts ensured he had at least some knowledge—but it did not take a lot of imagination to determine why having a woman who could please him was a good thing. The conversation was slightly embarrassing, but already Harry had a much healthier respect for Fleur than he had ever had before—she was more of a sex object to most men than any movie star or supermodel ever could be, and yet she was poised, confident, and modest, not reveling in her ability to catch anyone she wanted. His hopes for the relationship rose even higher due to her obvious self-effacing manner.

"I can see how that could be a problem."

An unhappy sigh was his response. "Yes, it is a problem. I have been propositioned regularly since I was twelve years old."

Harry blinked. "Twelve?"

She nodded. "Veela hit puberty about the same time as normal girls, but until we have gained a little control, there is some… leakage, for want of a better term. The boys my age at Beauxbatons had no defense against it. As I got older and learned to control it better, the situation improved, but by then the damage had already been done. To most of them, I was just a plaything—they would put the moves on me, trying to be masculine and suave in front of their friends. Many times, I had boys try to get me into broom closets, and they generally made my life miserable. And since I can sense true emotion to a certain extent, I knew that none of them were interested in me, just in using me."

The frown on Harry's face was thunderous as he thought of what his betrothed would likely face even at Hogwarts.

"There will be none of that at Hogwarts," he growled. "I'll hex anyone who tries anything!"

Reaching across with a smile on her face, Fleur grasped his hand and squeezed. "Thank you, Harry—it is very sweet of you to want to protect me."

But Harry was still not amused. "I want you to tell me if anyone tries anything, Fleur. I know we're still working through this, but no one will be allowed to take liberties with you."

Fleur inclined her head and lay back down, resting her head in the palm of her hand. "Is there anything else you want to know?"

"Well, there was one other thing…" he started cautiously, instinctively knowing his next question would likely upset her. "I understand that some consider Veela to be non-human…"

He was correct; the expression on her face quickly became cold, and when she spoke, her voice was like an Antarctic wind.

"I am every bit as human as you or anyone else, Harry—do not let anyone tell you anything else."

"I never thought any differently, Fleur," he responded, speaking in a calm and rational tone of voice. "I just wanted to know what your thoughts about it are—I can assure you that you will hear about it when we go to Hogwarts—from the Purebloods in Slytherin, if no one else."

Fleur's expression quickly changed to chagrin, and she apologized for her outburst. "I am sorry, Harry, I should not have reacted in such a way."

"It's understandable," Harry responded, squeezing her hand in a comforting gesture, returning her actions from moments earlier. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's okay."

"No, Harry, you will be a target of some of the bigotry by being betrothed to me, so you should know the consequences."

She was silent as she considered her words, clearly trying to find the right balance between outrage and imparting a true sense of the situation. Harry was quiet, allowing her to think about her response and half wishing he had not asked the question in the first place.

"I apologize again for my reactions, Harry," she finally said. "It was a reflex response to the intolerance I have had to put up with my entire life, though I suspect it is not as prevalent here as it is in your society."

Harry nodded, and she continued. "Bigots prefer to think of Veela as being non-human, but the fact of the matter is that we are every bit as human as those who like to promote their agenda of hatred. Veela roots have been traced back to the sirens of Greek mythology, although our origins before that time are much murkier—The Odyssey is the first mention of the race which would come to be known as Veela."

"There are no earlier records?"

Fleur shook her head. "No, but of course there are legends—it is impossible to know the truth, though. Some say the first Veela was a result of some long-forgotten spell which has since been lost to time. Others contend that our existence goes all the way back beyond the time when magic was recognized as a talent, long before any kind of training—even word of mouth—was developed. It is thought that the world long ago was rife with wild magic, and all magical creatures came into existence at this time. Living creatures were affected by the forces of the wild magic and adapted to survive. In any case, physiologically, I am exactly the same as any other woman—regardless of the truth of the origins of Veela, the first of us was a human woman who was changed in some manner by magic. All else is passed down from that time."

"And what do you believe to be the truth of your origins?"

A smile crept over Fleur's face. "It does not really matter what I think. I am a human, the same as any other woman. I simply have a few extra abilities and a much higher chance of giving birth to girls rather than boys. I think it is our nature's way of preserving Veela—as there are no male Veela, our magic forces us to have girls, which perpetuates our race and abilities. The population of Veela generally stays the same or grows only slightly overall. It also seems to be a case of preserving the rest of the human race—can you imagine what would happen if Veela could give birth to many children?"

Harry thought about it for a few moments, but the results were rather obvious. "Eventually, if Veela only give birth to Veela girls, then there would be more and more Veela."

"Exactly. Then, there eventually be a large disparity in the numbers of the sexes—for every boy born to a Veela, approximately nine girls are born, which would cause massive problems for the world. And can you imagine what would happen with so many Veela in the world?"

The implications were obvious. "Veela, with their powers, would generally have the advantage in gaining a mate."

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