CHAPTER TWO
REUNION
The lights in the hall seemed to brighten as Harry looked around in amazement. There was definitely a different feel about the place since his last visit. The dark and damp demeanor that had engulfed the house had been swept away as if a brooding spirit had been exorcised from the very walls. The paintings on the walls were gone, much to Harry's relief, and shelves bearing potted flowers lined the hall. The row of house elf heads was gone as if they never existed and pictures of the Weasleys and Harry stood in prominence. The occupants were smiling happily and waving as he remembered that last summer fondly.
Molly came bustling out of the kitchen, a look of worry on her face. She went straight-away to Harry and checked him over before enveloping him in a huge motherly embrace.
"Harry, are you alright? Did they hurt you?" She asked concernedly.
"I'm fine. Just a bit scared that they were able to get past the wards on my uncle's house. Nobody was hurt, well, maybe Malfoy's pride." He said this last part with a hint of satisfaction and a lopsided grin on his face.
Molly looked at him sternly. "Good heavens! I should have a word with Albus when we get the chance to speak next! Have you had anything to eat, dear?" She asked.
"Well ... um ... not really. I was going to grab a spot of something after my uncle's party but never got the chance."
Lupin entered the room just then with a look of relief on his face. "Harry! It's good to see that you're safe!" He took Harry's hand and shook it firmly. "When we caught wind of the attack from Severus, I got here as quickly as I could! It's a good thing that you were quick enough to get word to us. What happened, exactly?"
Harry relayed what he'd gone through. "Wait a minute, if they had put the time stop charm around the house, how is it that I wasn't affected?"
"That, Harry, is another of the wonderful side effects of practicing occlumency." The familiar, aged voice from the front door replied. "It seems you've been practicing."
"Professor Dumbledore! Yes, I have been practicing. It helps to keep depression and anger in check as well. I didn't think that it could have been so powerful." Harry stated.
"Yes. In actuality, the time stop charm merely freezes the mind at a particular point in time. Clocks also seem to be affected by that particular spell; it helps to set the illusion. When you are deep in thought or protecting your mind, the time stop charm cannot hold you as its thrall. It is the same with most other mind affecting curses as well." Dumbledore explained. "Come, you must be hungry and tired. Why don't you get yourself something to eat then head up to bed."
Mrs. Weasley put her arm around Harry's shoulders and led him into the kitchen where he was very happy to find that sandwiches and tea had already been prepared for him.
"Ron and Hermione will be here tomorrow, along with Ginny and Arthur." Molly told him. "They're looking forward to seeing you. When they heard about the attack Ron, Hermione and Ginny started plotting and planning in an attempt to rescue you." She laughed softly. "I do believe you have some of the best friends anyone could hope for."
"Yes, I do." Harry replied. Ginny? Ginny was ready to save me from death eaters? For some reason, that triggered a warm sensation in his chest that spread out to every part of his body and made his head tingle. What on Earth was that? He thought. Stifling a yawn, he finished off his tea and carried the plates to the sink.
"Now off to bed with you." The older woman said sternly. "You've had quite a night and I do believe you'll want some rest for tomorrow." Mrs. Weasley gave Harry a hug and a quick, motherly peck on the forehead and turned him out of the kitchen. "You still have the same room on the second floor, Harry. Your trunk should already be there. Goodnight."
"Goodnight." Harry said in the middle of a yawn. He walked out into the hall, which was now empty, and climbed the stairs to his room. Without bothering to take off his glasses or changing into his pajamas, he lay down on the soft bed and was fast asleep.
The sun filtered through the windows in the room, striking Harry square in the face. He squinted his eyes and slowly sat up, looking around the room blearily.
"Morning, Harry." Ron said cheerfully. "All right?"
"Morning, Ron." Harry replied. "When did you get in? What time is it?"
There was a soft knock on the door.
"Are you guys decent?" Hermione's voice filtered through the door.
"Yeah, come on in!" Both boys said at once.
The door opened and Hermione and Ginny both peeked in, looking to make sure that the boys were indeed decent. Having been satisfied with what she saw, she beckoned to Ginny to follow and they both stepped into the room.
Ginny shot a look at Harry then glanced away quickly. What was that about? Harry asked himself and he looked her up and down quickly, seeming to take in the pretty young lady she had been growing into. Ginny took her seat in an overstuffed chair next to his bed. He found himself blushing a bit and glanced quickly towards Hermione who had just sat down dangerously close to Ron.
His moment of embarrassment forgotten, he raised an eyebrow and grinned at the couple. "Is there something I should know?" He asked.
Ron's freckles disappeared with the sudden rush of blood to his face and Hermione's face quickly matched his. "We ... I mean ... It's just ..." They stammered together in a fit of embarrassed panic.
Ron cleared his throat and looked up at Harry with a sheepish grin plastered on his face. "Well, I asked Hermione out at the beginning of summer. We were going to tell you ..." Ron started.
"But we didn't know how you'd react!" Hermione stammered.
"Then the attack and the rush to get over here." They both finished.
Without thinking about it, Harry laughed out loud, tears rolling down his face. "And here I didn't think you'd ever get the nerve up to ask her! I'm sorry," he chuckled, "but I have been waiting for you two to get together for quite some time now!"
They were both shocked.
"When did ... How ... Where?" They stammered at their laughing friend.
"Hmm, let's see. I think it was during our second year. I could see the tension then. It was just after you had been revived, Hermione. You two were so awkward towards each other but I could plainly see what was going on!"
"Was it that obvious?" Ron asked.
"Yes it was." Ginny chimed in. "I was only eleven at the time and I could see it, even during the nights in the common room. Both of you were stealing glances at each other when the other wasn't looking."
They all laughed then. It was so good to laugh out loud for once. Happiness had been outside of Harry's reach for a while now and he felt he really needed this. He happened to glance over at Ginny at one point and noticed that even though she was laughing, she quickly looked away from him. She's got quite a dazzling smile there. I wonder why I've never noticed it before. Harry shook the thought out of his head. This is Ron's little sister! What am I thinking? He felt his face flush a bit as the laughter started to subside.
"God, I've missed you guys." He said. "Let's go get some breakfast! I'm famished!"
"That's the first good idea I've heard all day!" Ron blurted. Hermione elbowed him in the ribs causing him to cringe. "Ok, the second best idea I've heard today!" Ron corrected. And the laughter began anew.
One by one they filtered out of the bedroom and out into the hall. Harry reached for the doorknob and pulled the door closed behind him. They all headed down the stairs to start on breakfast and finish the rest of the summer holiday together.
The kitchen was a maelstrom of activity when they entered. Sausages, bacon, and eggs were gleefully sizzling away in pans, dishes were being scrubbed, and a plump, cheerful lady was sitting at the kitchen table knitting away at what looked to be Ron's next Christmas present.
"Good morning, everyone!" Molly beamed. "Sit down and have a bite. Ginny, could you help me with the plates, dear?"
"Sure, Mum." Came the reply.
"Harry, how did you do on your O.W.L.s?" Hermione asked eagerly.
"Well, I don't know how I managed it ..." He started, "but I seem to have gotten an O in everything but astronomy. I got an A there."
"You WHAT?" blurted Ron. "I only managed to get 3 Os. I didn't do so well in potions or astronomy. I got an A and an E in those."
"That's great, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed.
"How'd you do, Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley asked from the stove.
"She got perfect marks, Mum. Could you expect anything but that from her?" Ron said dryly, eliciting another elbow to the ribs from his girlfriend.
"It wasn't easy to get perfect marks, you know!"
Harry laughed. "That's true. If you remember how many times she had her nose buried in books and going over theory. At least it wasn't a repeat of third year!"
They all laughed.
"I don't want to play with time again." Hermione admitted. "I got far too confused with that schedule and everything else that happened. But it did help out in the end, didn't it?"
Harry felt his face flush when he remembered how he and Hermione had gone back in time to save Sirius and Buckbeak. That same pang that had been plaguing him since the attack on the Ministry and the loss of his godfather brought a slight mist to his eyes.
Breathe deeply. Clear my thoughts. Step back into the depths of my mind. He hated to admit it, but Harry would have to thank Snape and Dumbledore for teaching him occlumency. He snapped to the present and glanced around at the concerned faces watching him from around the table.
"Uh ... Sorry ... I just used some occlumency. It helps to keep the depression back." He explained.
"I'm sorry, Harry. I didn't mean to bring back any bad memories for you." Hermione looked like she had accidentally stabbed him or something.
"It's ok, really. I just need some time to get through this, figure things out, you know?"
Hermione nodded. Harry noticed that they were all looking at him still and he smiled genuinely. "So, when do we pad over to Diagon Alley for our sixth year books?"
"You'll be staying put, Harry." Lupin said sternly from the kitchen door. "We're going to make sure that you four are back in Hogwarts where it's safe. After last night, there will undoubtedly be another attempt and we can't take the risk. Molly, Arthur, and I will go and get what you need. If something happens, you can find Tonks upstairs and Moody in the study."
They all nodded and started into their breakfast. Ginny set her hand on Harry's shoulder as she set his plate down before him and he chanced a look at her face. She looked directly in his eyes and didn't turn away; a strand of her flaming red hair broke loose and fell across her cheek.
"You sure you're alright, Harry?" She whispered, sweeping the rogue tress from her face.
Seemingly in a trance, all Harry could do was nod weakly and offered a small smile of assurance. "I'll be fine, really. Thanks."
She smiled back and went about the kitchen fixing a plate for herself. What the bloody hell is going on?! I thought she was 'over' me and she was dating someone else? Why does she seem so pretty all of the sudden? Those questions would have to be answered another time as he noticed he was blushing profusely and his friends had stopped eating to look at him.
"Huh? Uh ... sorry ... Just practicing occlumency ... It's difficult to keep concentrating sometimes ..." He stammered an excuse.
He bowed his head over his plate and busied himself with slicing a sausage into small bits in an attempt to cover his reddened face and didn't catch Ron hide a smile behind a piece of toast, Ginny's own blushing face, or Hermione's look. Seeing the reactions of the four teenagers, the adults swapped smiles and went about their business.
After a few minutes of silent eating, Remus stood up and wished them well. "We'll be back in a few hours. Do not leave the house under any circumstances unless directed to by one of the Order."
"Is there anything special that you'll need while we're out?" Mrs. Weasley chimed in.
"I'll need some new quills and parchment along with these books." Hermione said, handing a piece of paper and muggle money over to Mrs. Weasley.
"Nothing for me, thanks." Harry added.
"Mum, I'll need new robes. The one's I have are frayed and rather worn." Came Ginny's request. "I wish we could wear something other than black!"
Molly laughed. "I'm sorry, dear. But that's what the school uniform requires. Besides, you only have 3 more years and you can get any color robe you wish! Anything you need, Ron?"
Ron shook his head and smiled. "Nothing for me, thanks. It's amazing but Fred's, or is it George's, robes fit me fine. It's amazing, actually. I'm surprised that they hadn't destroyed their robes with all their experiments!"
Laugher erupted at 12 Grimmauld Place and the adults took their leave to do the shopping.