i got a pocket, got a pocketful of sunshine

[backward]

There are many reasons Effy chose a hut close to the waterfall, the most relevant of which is that the sounds of water cascading soothe her, and perhaps also that it is relatively isolated, nowhere near as crowded as any given area of the Compound. Granted, she had to brave the rec room in order to find the book she is now reading, but thus far,

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[seek_to_end]

Harry was not always the most observant of boys. In fact, Hermione could have berated him daily for not paying attention in class or just generally in life. She likely would have too if she had thought it would have done any good. It wasn't that he couldn't pick up on things, as though he were physically unable. Despite his poor eyesight, during a Quidditch game he could keep his eyes and ears peeled better than anyone. He had proven that in nearly every game. But when not up in the air, Harry hadn't felt much reason to be so attentive.

The past year had changed that. The past year had changed a lot of things. So he started when usually he would have blinked dumbly, his gaze immediately searching out the origin of the shout.

Harry found Effy quickly, hidden away in the boulders like something guarded and that needed protecting. He wasn't sure if that was the case or not, but he did like the thought of her being protected.

"Hey," he called back, loud enough to be heard over the crash of the falls. His smile was tentative but eager. "What are you doing up there?" he asked with the slightest laugh.

[backward]

"Reading," answers Effy. Unwilling to shout except to get his attention, the response comes out no louder than usual, so she lifts the book for him to see in the event that he couldn't hear. One last drag of her cigarette and she puts it out on the moss, tossed in a narrow crack along with a growing pile commemorating all the other times she has smoked up here. One day, she may count them, but for now she's content to leave them here as if marking her territory.

Marking her page, Effy shuts the book and pushes into the same corner; she'll come back to it later, perhaps tomorrow or the next day, but for now she's glad enough not to need fiction as an escape from the boredom of everyday reality. Swinging her legs over the edge, she faces Harry, nudging as if to turn the question back on him, but as she isn't likely to be heard either way, she doesn't bother to ask it aloud. Instead, she glances down and tries to figure out a descent that doesn't end with her soaking wet.

[seek_to_end]

He caught the sound and shape of her words, but he needed the glimpse of her book to put two and two together and make a proper response. Nodding his understanding, Harry started to form the next natural question when Effy began to move.

He wondered at the cigarette she stubbed out. Usually he wouldn't have thought of smoking as more than an undesirable habit, but not one that bothered Harry particularly, just something he was supposed to dislike because "ugly" and harmful, and that he might say he disliked only because he didn't have enough strong feelings otherwise. But on Effy, it looked cool.

It took a few good seconds for him to realize that she was, wordlessly, asking him a question, too. It took a few more seconds for him to realize what that question was. "Oh, um." He wondered if she could even hear him, or was listening, and that felt important to him even if he had nothing particular to say. "Just walking around in circles" felt awfully stupid just then.

"Do you need help down?" he called instead. Nevermind the fact that he hadn't thought of how to help her down.

[backward]

She could use a hand, there is no use denying. Whether she will accept it, however, is a different matter altogether. But Harry differs from the majority of people here in that she likes him, might even trust him, although might take some time yet, and she can't quite understand why. He does, however, have in his favor the fact that he demands little of her, and seems to accept that she offers what little information she does on her own terms. He also doesn't seem to find her strange, and although she typically aims to unsettle, some reprieve from all that goes a long way.

"I was planning to jump," she shouts back with a shrug, a compromise between asking for help and staying silent. If he was a better idea, she's happy to hear it; if he only offers his help, she might just accept it.

[seek_to_end]

Harry did not have a better idea, and no worse ideas either. He couldn't begin to figure out how to get up to her, let alone how to help her back down again without both of them slipping and probably hurting themselves. Once again, he was reminded of how much easier life was with magic. But this wasn't impossible. In fact, he kind of liked Effy's idea.

Harry grinned up at her. "Afternoon swim?" She was fully dressed, but it wasn't like clothes couldn't just dry. "I.. honestly can't think of a better choice than that," he admitted.

[backward]

Afternoon swim it is. Anyway, she needs no encouragement, having anticipated this from the start. She even dressed for it - as much as Effy dresses for any occasion - in a somewhat uncharacteristic pair of denim shorts and tank top. Her boots are the sole complication, one which is easily solved; stuffing one sock into each shoe, along with cigarette case and lighter. She is careful to toss them away from where Harry stands, yet still far enough that they don't simply fall into the pool below.

Uncertain if the implication was that he'd join, Effy glances once more at him before driving in, bracing herself for the inevitable shock of cold water.

[seek_to_end]

Harry watched her take off her boots and toss them to shore, unsure what to do with himself. He would have caught her things, make sure they didn't hit the ground too hard, but she didn't ask him to. He would have made the move to join her in the water, but she didn't hint at any kind of invitation. Too much about Effy was still unknown for Harry to make assumptions, at least not without the aid of something else.

He fidgeted at the edge of the pool, trainers gripping the mossy cover of a rock, and ran his hand through his hair, waiting for her to surface. "How's the water?" he asked.

[backward]

The water is warmer than expected, yet refreshing all the same; she stays down under longer than is wise, eyes wide open and darting in every which direction, taking in as much as her vision under water will allow. The world down here is quiet and peaceful one, disrupted only by the splash of falls. There is a calming, hopeful quality to it all, one she never ceases to appreciate. It might be her favorite place on the island by far.

When she breaks through the surface, it's to gasp wildly for air, eyes now stinging with the effort to adjust once more. "See for yourself," Effy calls to Harry, a quick grin daring him on before she dips her head back into the water.

[seek_to_end]

That was as much of an invitation as anything, and a smile appeared on Harry's face in response, a warm feeling bubbling up inside. But then he faced a slight problem. Effy had little to worry about with her clothes, but Harry had jeans on which would only get heavy with water. It felt odd to start stripping off his clothes, showing a sense of preparedness, when Effy just leaped in so effortlessly.

Harry considered it as he toed off his shoes and socks, but ultimately he only hesitated long enough to set his glasses carefully in the relative safety of the crook of his shoe. "Look out!" he cautioned before getting a few steps into a run and jumping straight into the water.

[backward]

Floating almost flat on her back when the warning comes, Effy has just enough time to straighten up and swim away from the middle. Rather than close her eyes and anticipate the splash, she holds her breath and dips her head back under, watching as a flurry of bubbles sink Harry down to the bottom, then carry him at once back to the surface. "What's the verdict?" She asks once the obligatory gasping for air has subsided, both hands running through her hair out of habit.

[seek_to_end]

He surfaced, shaking his head and wiping water from his eyes though it did little to help him. When Harry blinked, he could make out Effy easily enough, but all her lines were soft and blurred. Somehow that seemed fitting, but he did squint to better his sight of her.

"Better than the lake back home," Harry decided cheerfully. "But that's not hard to do."

[backward]

"It's my favorite place on the island," Effy shares, something she herself doesn't realized until the words slip past her lips. She frequents the falls often enough, going so far as to base her choice in residence on its nearby location, and she hasn't regretted it yet. There's something about a waterfall, something almost mystical, both welcoming and relaxing, quiet and loud all at once. It's no wonder she found herself drawn here.

[seek_to_end]

"I can see why," Harry said honestly. There was something comforting about it, like camping by some rivers had been over the past year. The silence of some places got to Harry, but the roar and rush of water made it feel like they were less alone than they really were.

"I don't have a favorite place yet," he said, pushing himself into a floating position on his back, sort of. Harry was not the best of swimmers and his bottom or feet alternated sinking down in the water before he pulled them up again. "I'm still getting used to living in a hut."

[backward]

Following Harry's lead, she mimics his actions, then spreads both arms out in the water, wading back and forth with admittedly little effort. She closes her eyes once the sunlight proves too bright, and listens only to the soft splash of water against either ear against the louder backdrop of the falls.

"I'm getting used to living alone," she admits, but apart from the loneliness that seems to settle in late at night, this is for the best. It's been a while now since she's had to listen to her mother's muffled cries resonating from the next room, and that's a sound no one should have to get used to.

[seek_to_end]

Harry felt a surge of warm gratitude rise up in his chest, even though he felt sad at Effy's words. He shouldn't have, probably. Plenty of people lived alone; that in and of itself wasn't a terrible thing. But Harry knew he would have been miserable if he didn't have Hermione and now Ron to come back to every night. It helped him feel safe at night.

"Were you with your family?" he asked, genuinely curious. "Or did you live at school?"

[backward]

"The former," answers Effy, shrugging as nonchalantly as her shoulders underwater will allow. It's an unimpressive sight at best, but she would have tried regardless; she doesn't miss home, for the most part, and her family even less. Save for Tony, she doesn't care to see any of them again soon, they're best left back there to shout and bicker to their hearts' content.

"The hut's not so bad," she's decided; there is a definite appeal in the fact that it's hers and hers alone, not owned by her parents of passed down from her brother. "It's quieter than home," too, she realizes. No angry yelling in the mornings or loud music, just her and the birds.