Disclaimer: I own nothing that has anything to do with Harry Potter. All that stuff belongs to JK Rowling. I just wanted to play in her world a bit to make mine seem more fun.
Chapter 8
Harry and Hermione made their made slowly out of the stadium, mainly because there were some people who tried to get their own personal meet and greets with Harry Potter, much like Ms. Kelley and her daughter. It wasn't the first time Hermione wished she could Apparate directly from inside the stadium.
The pair finally made it out of the building and as soon as the fresh air hit their faces, Harry grabbed Hermione around the waist and Apparated them to her flat.
Desse was so excited to see Harry she jumped around their feet, effectively cutting off Hermione's escape from Harry's arms. Hermione blushed as she managed to disentangle herself.
"I need to take Desse out for a couple minutes before we go see Mr. Moore, if that's ok?" she asked. "Or I can meet you at his office."
"I'd rather wait for you," Harry admitted, blushing. "If you don't mind, that is," he added hastily.
"Not at all," Hermione agreed. "I'll try to make this quick."
Hermione and Desse made their way outside and Hermione tried to move her Crup along as fast as possible; which meant that Desse was taking her sweet time. The pair finally made it back up to Hermione's flat, where Harry was patiently waiting. They left the Crup behind and made their way to the rental office.
Hermione knocked on the outside door and waited for a muffled answer before opening the door. "Hi, Mr. Moore."
Mr. Moore smiled in response to his young tenant. "Hello, Miss Granger. What can I do for you today?"
"This is my friend, Harry," Hermione began. "He's looking for a flat."
"Harry Potter," Harry put in, extending his hand.
"Thomas Moore," came the reply, as a weathered hand grasped Harry's more youthful one.
"Good to meet you, Mr. Moore," Harry answered, shaking the older man's hand. "Like Hermione mentioned, I'm looking for a new place to live."
"Do you have any specific requirements?" Mr. Moore asked.
"Not really, but I am thinking more towards a two bedroom," Harry replied.
"Let me see what I have available," Mr. Moore answered. He moved into the inner office and needlessly pulled out a thick ledger to study. He already knew exactly which flats were currently empty; this gave him a little time to observe potential tenants and assess them.
Harry and Hermione waited patiently in his absence. Harry suddenly had the odd feeling someone was watching him, but as far as he could tell, it was just Hermione, Mr. Moore and himself in the room. He mentally shook off the feeling as a side-effect of his job; being constantly `on' was definitely an Auror-acquired trait.
Mr. Moore returned with his ledger and announced there were three flats available. "Would you like to see them?" he asked.
"That would be great," Harry responded, with a smile. "Thank you, Mr. Moore."
The first flat they looked at was fully furnished. Harry mentally crossed it off as his first choice; he already had furniture, so there was no need for a second set. Other than that, the flat was nice; lots of windows for natural light and two bedrooms. He imagined turning the smaller of the two rooms into an office or something similar. The location was really the only major downside - he would have people living above and below him.
The next flat was on the top floor. But that was the best feature it had to offer. It was nice, but the second bedroom wasn't large enough for an office and barely had enough room for a bed.
The final flat was also on the top floor, at the far end of the hall. When Harry walked in, he briefly thought he'd been lead into Hermione's flat; other than there not being any furniture, there were only slight differences in the layout. In his mind, Harry decided this would be the flat he would choose.
The three made their way back to the office. Mr. Moore offered Harry and Hermione a seat. Hermione was going to quietly excuse herself, when Harry took her hand and gently squeezed it, silently giving her permission to stay.
"Were any of the flats of interest to you, Mr. Potter?" Mr. Moore began.
"Yes. The last one we looked at seemed to fit what I need," Harry replied.
Mr. Moore opened his book to the correct page. "Alright, that flat has been available for just about a month. The only information I can legally tell you about the previous renters in that they didn't have any animals."
Harry merely nodded at this revelation.
Mr. Moore made a few notes on a sheet of paper and pushed it toward Harry. "This is the amount per month based on a twelve month or longer contract. The second number is the month-to-month rental, no contract."
Harry quickly added the numbers to get the total cost. "Ok. That is something I would like to do," he answered, smiling.
Mr. Moore smiled back. There was something about this young man he trusted right away; and Thomas Moore always prided himself on being a good judge of character. "I need you to fill out this paperwork and you will have your flat," he replied, pulling more papers and handing them -along with a pen- to Harry, so he could begin reading and filling them out. "I will leave you in Miss Granger's capable hands. Please let me know if you have any questions that she cannot answer. Although I'm sure that won't be the case."
Hermione blushed at the compliment. Harry grinned and began the tedious task of filling out forms and reading fine-print.
Almost 30 minutes after he started, Harry was ready to be done. Hermione had been very helpful and informative as she explained everything that needed clarification.
"Ok! I am finally finished!" Harry exclaimed. "Before I sign though, is there anything I should know that would prevent me from signing this contract?"
"No," Hermione answered confidently. "Mr. Moore is a great landlord and the area is pretty peaceful."
Mr. Moore returned to witness Harry's signature. "Thank you, Mr. Potter," he said, filing all the papers away. "And I believe these belong to you," he added, handing Harry a small chain adorned with two keys.
Harry shook the older gentleman's hand as he received the keys. "Thank you for your help, Mr. Moore."
"It was my pleasure, Mr. Potter," Mr. Moore replied. "Have a good afternoon. Please let me know when you have settled in completely."
Harry smiled in response. "I hope to be all moved in within the week, but I will keep you updated. Good day."
"Bye, Mr. Moore," Hermione added as she and Harry left the office.
"Goodbye, Miss Granger," he replied fondly.
Harry and Hermione exited the office in a dignified manner, but as soon as they turned the corner, they ran to the lift like giddy schoolchildren. As they impatiently rode the lift to the right floor, Harry was grinning uncontrollably and Hermione was smiling at his reaction. At the top floor, the doors opened and the pair sprinted down the hallway to his door.
Harry opened the door with the right key on the first try and stared at the empty flat; his empty flat. Next to him, Hermione giggled at the slaw-jawed look on his face. "Should I levitate you across the threshold?" she joked.
Harry grinned in reply. "No, that won't be necessary."
Without a word, he scooped Hermione up and spun her around, setting her down inside his new home. He kissed her cheek, his wide grin still in place. "I guess I just carried you across the threshold," he teased her back.
"I guess you did," Hermione smirked back. "Does that mean I can move my stuff into your spare bedroom?" she retorted slyly.
"Eh, maybe later," Harry replied nonchalantly. "I mean, I just met you a couple days ago. I'll need to know you at least a week, before I let you take over."
Hermione giggled at Harry's words. "Or we could just remove the floor of your flat and it would be a walk-up."
Harry smiled. "So I am directly above your flat," he guessed.
"Yes, you are," Hermione agreed. "So no wild parties or anything, you got it?" she said mock-sternly. "And no funny business, like making the floor invisible either."
"I'll be good!" Harry mock surrendered. "And if I do have a party, I'll make sure you're invited, so you can't complain," Harry retorted, poking her in the side.
"Touché, Junior." Hermione stuck her tongue out in response.
Harry merely grinned and looked around the flat, imagining where he would put all his furniture to get the most out of his new space. He made a walk through to the bedrooms and mentally arranged his new office and bedroom.
Hermione watched as Harry silently moved from room to room, seemingly in a daze. She smiled at the look of intense concentration in his green eyes. Harry was so wrapped up in his mental decorating, he didn't even notice Hermione giggling at him.
When he finally snapped out of his trance, Harry noticed Hermione's giggles. He grinned sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders. "Guess I got a little distracted," he confessed.
"It's ok," Hermione reassured him. "I was the same way. I couldn't wait to get started."
"I do want to get started, right away," Harry admitted. "But I know that if I go get everything from my place now, my current landlord will have sold the story to every major newspaper the moment I left. I should tell my family first, at least."
Hermione glanced at her watch and saw they still had a few hours to kill before they needed to be to the Potters' residence. "What do you want to do for the rest of the afternoon?" she asked.
Harry glanced over at his new friend, a gleam of mischief in his green eyes and a smirk on his lips. Hermione gulped audibly. "Oh boy. I'm in trouble."
AN:: I know, I know… I am so sorry there has not been any word from me for ages… I have so many drafts of this chapter written and nothing really seemed right. This is pretty much just a filler chapter, so I apologize for the length; the next ones will be longer. Thank you for those who have stuck by me and given me a kick in the pants.
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