In the end, Londo set up a pallet on the floor in Leonard's room for Leonard.
Yes, Leonard's room. In Londo's words, the guest slept in the bed. What kind of host fought a guest for the bed?
Leonard's room was spotless. It was obvious that before going to pick Leonard up, Londo had already cleaned the place top to bottom. After spreading out the bedding, Londo stared at Leonard with a hard, warning look.
"Don't go bothering that girl, understand?" Londo said seriously. "You're old enough now. Watch yourself."
Leonard rolled his eyes. Londo was just sticking his nose where it didn't belong.
"Alright, who are you making that face for? Go wash up." Londo smacked the back of Leonard's head again, then suddenly thought of something. "You're not going to help her wash up too, are you?"
"Of course not," Leonard said, rolling his eyes again.
Midgard had already taught Claudia all the basic life skills, so Leonard didn't need to worry about it. Bathing, washing up, all of that, Claudia knew how to do.
Besides, as a Unicorn, even in the heat she didn't sweat, and she never smelled unpleasant. She only carried that clean, fresh scent of grass and leaves. Even if she went ten or twenty days without a bath, she probably still wouldn't smell bad. She'd still be soft and sweet-smelling.
Still, if she was going to live in the human world, she needed human habits. During summer break, Claudia would definitely bathe and change clothes.
And those clothes had already been prepared by Midgard, packed into Leonard's suitcase. Dresses and undergarments in all sorts of colors were neatly arranged and ready to grab whenever she needed them.
That night, after washing up, Claudia climbed obediently onto the bed. Even though it was sweltering, she wrapped herself up in the blanket and only poked her head out, her eyes bright as she looked at Leonard.
"Alright. Be good and go to sleep. Tomorrow I'll take you into town to have some fun," Leonard said, patting her hair. Then he turned and lay down on the pallet Londo had made for him.
Londo wasn't going to sneak in at night to keep an eye on Leonard, and Leonard wasn't so desperate that he had to have Claudia clinging to him to sleep.
The kerosene lamp was extinguished, and the room fell into darkness. It was quiet inside, with only the chirping of insects outside the window.
But the silence didn't last long. Soon, Leonard heard a faint rustling sound in the dark.
Leonard sighed with a small, helpless laugh. Not long after, he felt a little hand tug his blanket open and slip inside. Something wriggled closer, then settled on his chest.
That fresh scent of greenery curled around Leonard's nose. When he lowered his head, he could see Claudia curled up on his chest like a kitten.
The Ancient Sprout wrapped around Leonard's right arm seemed to sense Claudia too. It slid down along his arm and draped itself over her, the silver veins in the green bud brightening and dimming as if it were breathing.
Thank Merlin for the Ancient Sprout. Without the physical reinforcement it provided, Leonard's still-developing body probably wouldn't have been able to handle Claudia's weight on him for an entire night.
As if she'd noticed his gaze, Claudia lifted her head. Her bright eyes shone in the darkness like stars.
Leonard smiled. "Alright. Since you're here, sleep properly. Tomorrow I'll take you out to play."
"Mm!" Hearing that, Claudia finally relaxed. She lay on Leonard's chest, listening to his heartbeat, and drifted off peacefully.
Her serene sleeping face and soft, shallow breathing were almost hypnotic. Before long, Leonard felt his eyelids grow heavier and heavier, and he followed her into sleep.
...
During summer break, Claudia's days could be summed up in two words: wandering and eating.
Leonard still had homework hanging over his head. Summer assignments weren't like regular homework. Even Leonard didn't have the privilege of being exempt.
Claudia, of course, had no summer homework at all. Every day she either dragged Leonard out to play, or stayed by his side and watched him do homework until he nodded off. Then, after he woke up, they'd go out together again.
Claudia liked going into town most, because the town had dessert shops that smelled sweet from halfway down the street, and fruit shops with every kind of fruit you could think of.
There wasn't much to say about the fruit shops, but the dessert shops here were far better than Hogwarts' kitchens.
Whenever they went into town, Leonard would buy her plenty of fruit and sweets she liked.
After they'd bought the treats, Claudia usually forced herself not to eat them right away. She would wait until she and Leonard got to the stream, then soak her feet in the cool water while enjoying her favorite desserts.
Lately, though, Claudia had fallen in love with something new: ice cream.
On a blazing summer day, one bite of ice cream, cold and sweet, and Claudia immediately fell for this treat she'd never had before.
Hogwarts wasn't without ice cream. But in winter it was far too cold, and Leonard didn't want Claudia eating anything that icy. In summer, ice cream was hard to carry around, so Leonard had never really had the chance to let her try it.
...
And watching Claudia eat ice cream for the first time was a treat all on its own.
She scooped up a tiny spoonful, then instinctively tested it with the tip of her nose. The cold startled her, and then she found it funny. When she took a bite, her whole little face practically lit up.
"Leonard, ice cream is really interesting," Claudia whispered.
"Do you like it?" Leonard asked, reaching over to wipe the smear of ice cream off the tip of her nose.
"I like it." Claudia nodded. "I want to take it to the stream and eat it there."
"You can't. It'll melt," Leonard said. "By the time we get to the stream, it'll be gone."
Claudia's face immediately fell. Not being able to enjoy ice cream by the cool stream made her feel utterly disappointed.
Leonard could only laugh helplessly. In the end, he asked the ice cream seller to sell him a small cooler, packed with ice and the ice cream. Then he took Claudia to the stream they always visited.
By the water, Claudia took off the new sandals Leonard had bought her and dipped her feet into the stream, savoring the natural coolness. She ate the ice cream Leonard had specially brought along, leaning against his shoulder and humming a tune that barely counted as a song. Every so often, she'd scoop up a little spoonful and feed it to Leonard.
The lazy, unhurried atmosphere wrapped around them, as if nothing in the world could reach them there.