“Put your cloths back on Harry. Please.” I frown at him, but he smiles. yellowed teeth glinting and viscous.

The table is set for two, but neither one of us sits. Dainty cupcakes and china filled with amber tea cool, forgotten. They look ridiculous in front of Harry's hulking frame and I wonder why I bothered.

He waves a massive paw at me. Gesturing that I come closer. I stay stationary. A safety precaution.

“I haven't seen you in years. Why did you ask to meet?”

He understands me, cocks his head to the side, and shrugs. Wordlessly asking me to follow, he holds out a hand. Dark leathery skin on his palm and coarse hair cover his arms and body. He is monstrous.

“Once you put your robe back on I'll come.” I feel like I'm speaking to a child.

Harry shrugs a tattered garment over his shoulders and ties a rope around his waist. It hangs lopsidedly to his ankles. I don't care how ridiculous it looks. At least he is covered and decent.

Words are not necessary. He turns, I follow. If I don't he won't leave and I'll have a permanent house guest. That gets tricky when he walks around in the nude, eats all the food, and scares the neighbors to pieces.

With a fleeting glance backwards I look at the table I spent so much time preparing. The untouched cupcakes decorated so carefully, the tea chosen specially for the occasion, the dainty china. All things I love, but wouldn't get an opportunity to see again for a long time. If I knew that at the time, I would have grabbed a cupcake for the road.

Harry's lumbering shape moves awkwardly and even though he is large, he is difficult to see in the dark. He leads me out of the house and into the woods. Normally a place I would be afraid of getting lost at night, but I know he won't loose me. In his own way he cares, as much as he can that is.

The lake becomes visible in its glittering glory. Seeming like something constructed by artists with gentle brush strokes and layers of paint. Harry waits for me beside the frigid water only a couple degrees above freezing, before walking into its depths. If I follow him I will become hypothermic in a matter of minutes. If I don't follow, he will come and drag me in.

“Wait” I gasp as the first splashes of freezing water seep into my bones.

Harry stops. Protected by his fur and size, he is unfazed by the chill. When I catch up he holds out his hand and I take it, shivering. He grins in victory and we descend into the depths.