Hello everyone.
I'll start by apologizing for the long absence… I have been struck with a rather vicious strain of illness, which unfortunately kept me from my computer for the better part of the last two weeks. I think being attacked by Dementors would have been more fun.
That said, I am well on the road to recovery now - thanks in part to a very good chicken soup which I have been served for the last eight days - and so I can again provide stories. I am aware that I am behind on a few reviews for several people (TheGreatFox2000, Tekvah Ariel to name a couple), so please be aware that I have not forgotten.
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With that, I present to you all chapter 20, in which Harry and Hermione make up, Harry reads a newspaper, they speak with their Headmaster, obtain some Animagus training, and Hermione speaks with both Talisien and her mother about a very important matter, while Harry receives a gift from Fey.
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Chapter Twenty: Padfoot, Moony, and Prongs would be Proud
Harry started to stretch as consciousness came to him again, but found such a feat quite impossible with the weight on his chest and right arm. He opened his eyes slowly to a head of bushy brown hair and smiled. She had stayed the night after all.
He reached down with his free hand and pulled the blanket that was over them up a little bit before returning his hand to her back, rubbing gently. She murmured after a few minutes, and then her head moved so she was looking up to him. "Morning, Harry," she managed. "Feeling any better?"
"How bad could I feel to wake up with a beautiful witch in my arms?" he whispered back, still smiling. He leaned forward just a little and kissed her forehead. "How about you? Are you still upset?"
"Only a little," she admitted. "And not with you," she added when she saw his smile fade a bit. "I take it you slept well, judging by that smile on your face."
"I had a good dream," he said, closing his eyes and seeing the image of the little girl who had been his daughter. "And it wasn't a nightmare. It was actually a good dream." As he spoke, he pulled her a little closer, enjoying both her warmth and the warmth of the blanket.
"That's good," she sighed, leaning into him and closing her eyes again for just a second before snapping them open again. "What time is it?" she asked. "And when did you conjure this blanket?"
Harry frowned as he thought about it. His internal clock was usually fairly accurate - that came about naturally when one rarely wears a watch - and he knew it was early still. Probably just after dawn, and he said as much. Then he shrugged. "I didn't summon the blanket," he admitted.
He was surprised by the look of fear in her brown eyes, and by the speed that she sat up. "Someone knows that I spent the night in here with you," she breathed. "Oh... this could be really bad..."
Harry set a hand on her arm and gave her a little squeeze. "Let's go downstairs and deal with what we have to," he suggested. "Besides, I suspect my tirade from yesterday will be more on everyone's minds than where you slept last night." `That, and it could have been Lupin, and I doubt he'd say anything anyway...' He felt her stiffen a little on the bed next to him, and he winced slightly. "Look, `Mione, I'm really sorry about that, you know that, don't you?"
She nodded as she tried to run a hand through her hair, but stopped at the many knots that she found there. "I think I'm going to have a run through the shower first," she said with a sigh. "Might help wake me up a little. Yesterday was a long day..." Harry nodded simply and waited for her to leave the room before getting up himself.
Once Harry had tied his robes shut and swung his sash over his head, he very carefully attached his dagger to his belt. After what his imagination was able to dream up last night, he wasn't about to take any chances with anything. He tucked his wand into the pocket closest to his hand when he was relaxed, and then left to go downstairs.
It was the second time in two days that he froze in the kitchen. Sitting at the table was Hermione's father, again reading the paper like he had been yesterday when he had talked to him. Harry noticed that there were several other papers next to him, but said nothing.
It took a few minutes before the older man seemed to notice Harry, and then all he did was look over the rims of his reading glasses as he folded the paper aside. "Morning, Harry. I take it you two have had a good long talk now?"
"We did," Harry replied with a solemn nod. "Thank you sir."
"What did I tell you yesterday?"
Harry smiled and shook his head as he took a seat at the table as well. "Sorry. Mike."
"Better."
Harry was about to reach for one of the Daily Prophets that was sitting on the table, but Mike's hand pulled them aside. "You'll want to look at these with either Mia or one of your professors," he explained. "I believe your headmaster is also looking for both of you this morning, so once she comes down, I suggest you go find him."
"Mia?"
"Daddy always calls me that," Hermione said from behind him, and he turned in surprise. He thought he had been listening, but the fact that she had snuck up behind him so easily meant otherwise. "That, or babe."
"Babe?"
Hermione smiled as she sat down next to him. "You are full of these one word questions today, aren't you?" She reached across the table to pick up the Daily Prophet, and then all traces of happiness faded instantly as she turned it to the front page. It was yesterday's paper.
"May I?" Harry asked quietly. The tone of his voice caused Mike to look to him in surprise and away from his wife who had just come into the kitchen. Behind her was Lupin and McGonagall. Hermione hesitated only for a moment before turning the paper towards him so he could read it.
No one said anything at all while Harry was reading. In fact, no one even moved, despite the fact that three people were standing in the doorway. All eyes were on the young wizard sitting at the table, reading through the articles carefully.
Once he was done, the anguish was obvious in his face as he pushed it away at looked up. The first thing he saw was Hermione, who was reaching out to hold him, and he accepted her arms gratefully. Several more very long minutes passed before they separated, and then Harry motioned for the three adults to join them at the table.
"We'll need to find a couple new members for the DA," Harry said into the silence. "It looks like we lost four..." He tried to say something else, but his throat was too constricted. Even if he did accept that it wasn't his fault - a fact that he still didn't entirely believe - it was still a horrific act.
"Because of their abilities, ten Death Eaters were captured and are being taken to Azkaban as we speak," McGonagall offered. "You trained them very well."
"Not well enough," Harry couldn't help but spit that out, and he took a deep breath as he looked to the table again. "But I guess it is better than nothing. No other Death Eaters were caught, right?" He then looked up and looked straight into his professor's eyes. "How bad off was St. Mungo's?"
He was surprised when his teacher broke their eye contact, for he had never known her to back down quite so easily before. "We don't know yet," she said softly. "The damage is still being assessed, and we are trying to find out who is injured and who has died without alerting Fudge to the Order's presence."
"Let me know, will you?"
"Of course, Harry."
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Once breakfast was over, as Harry had insisted on eating something before going to see the Headmaster, both he and Hermione excused themselves and made their way to the large downstairs study that was often used these days as the meeting room for the order. Harry found himself pleasantly surprised by Hermione's parents, who were nothing like he had expected, even after his brief run in with her father earlier.
They both seemed to care about their daughter a good deal, but they didn't once try to suggest that she was getting herself into dangerous situations, or even voice any concerns. Despite the fact that they were muggles and understood only what their daughter had told them about the magical world, they were very easy to get along with.
Perhaps that was one of the reasons that Harry didn't really feel like going to speak to Dumbledore once they had finished, but he knew that they didn't really have much choice in the matter.
After taking a deep breath, Harry pushed open the door to find their Headmaster staring into the fireplace while leaning on the mantle. It was the second time that Harry had seen him looking so... old. The aged wizard turned to greet them as he heard them enter, and both took seats across from him as he himself sat down.
"I believe..." Dumbledore began slowly, looking directly at Hermione. "That I will begin by appeasing some fears that you might have, Hermione," he said softly. "It was not your parents or anyone else who saw where you lodged last night... that was me. I do hope I didn't disturb you - it is so rare to see such purity these days, and I couldn't bare to break it."
"You... you're not mad?" Hermione asked in surprise. She had assumed that they would be getting an earful from whoever had found them, and Dumbledore's assurances, though welcome, seemed somewhat anticlimatic to her fears. "You don't mind the fact that I slept with Harry last night?"
"Since that is all you were doing... no I do not," he said solemnly, looking right into her brown eyes. Harry's hand on her knee caused her to look to him suddenly, breaking the eye contact, and Dumbledore blinked. "This is not the reason I asked you both here today, though," he added.
"Please, sir, I've had a rough couple of days," Harry said. "No mysteries or riddles right now, alright?"
Dumbledore observed Harry for a moment over the rim of his half moon spectacles, before smiling slightly. "It seems odd to hear you use that word, Harry," he said softly. "Riddles. Given that he is the cause of all your grief these days."
"Tom," Harry said with a nod.
"Indeed." Dumbledore then shook his head lightly and looked to both of them. "I have come to tell you two things today. The first is that the Order responded to the attacks made two nights ago, and did everything we could to stop the deaths. We failed in most places, but there were a few saved, thankfully. The Burrow is no more, but the Weasley's were not there anyway, and we did manage to protect Miss Lovegood."
"The Burrow's gone?" Harry asked in a whisper. It had been the first wizarding home he had been to, as well as the first place he had considered like a home, where he was treated like family. He knew all the Weasley's were strongly attached to the place, but both Ron and Ginny were especially. "Destroyed?"
"Do they know?" Hermione asked after a few minutes of silence. "Has anyone told them?"
"Several members of the Weasleys are in the Order," Dumbledore reminded them calmly. "Only the two youngest are not... so naturally they all are aware of the situation. Both the youngest Mr. Weasley and the spirited Miss Granger have asked to come here on New Year's Day."
"And?"
"We are planning on bringing several of your friends here, if that is alright..." came the reply. "Though we can't say just who right now."
"They asked to come here... that's good, right?" Harry asked Hermione, looking away from Dumbledore to the girl next to him. "That means they want to talk with us, right?"
"It sounds that way," Hermione said with a smile. Her smile seemed to melt the fear and horror away from Harry, and, after returning it briefly, they both looked back again. "What else, Professor?"
"I am afraid that I must insist on you both applying yourselves like never before in your studies with Minerva," he replied. "What she is to teach you in invaluable, and you must learn it quickly. It would be best if you could do so before the new year begins."
"You want us to learn to be animagi in eight days?" Hermione asked in disbelief.
Dumbledore stood and walked to the doorway before answering. "Minerva has often said that you, Hermione, are the brightest witch to ever grace Hogwarts with your presence. Please do not prove her wrong."
He opened the door to leave, but before either Harry or Hermione could even start to stand, their transfiguration professor walked into the room swiftly, shutting the door behind her. She was still wearing black robes, as both students had expected. It wouldn't seem right for her not to, after all, and they both doubted that she knew how to dress as a muggle anyway.
Hermione suddenly felt very self conscious wearing blue jeans and a white sweater top. Even though it seemed perfectly natural to her, and she was sure that Harry didn't mind, she still felt out of place with both Harry and McGonagall in robes.
Those thoughts went right into the fireplace as soon as McGonagall turned back to them. "We will start every lesson the same way," she said briskly. "Albus has told you how urgent our need has become, has he?" she asked in slightly kinder tones.
"Yes Professor," Hermione said, standing at once before the head of their house. "And we are both ready to learn whatever you can teach us." Harry stood up behind her and nodded in agreement.
"Very well," McGonagall said firmly. "Please sit on the ground and close your eyes. We will begin with simple mental focus exercises. I believe you are familiar with a few, Harry?"
The use of his first name caused Harry's eyes to snap open again, as he had been expecting her to call them both as she always did in school. He caught himself before he said anything on the matter, and shook his head. "No, I've never done any. Why?"
"Never?" she demanded in alarm. "Didn't Professor Snape teach you any focus to help protect your mind?" she asked, looking to him sternly as though she knew the answer.
"I don't think you want to know what our lessons were like, Professor," Harry said softly, closing his eyes again before he could see her reaction. "I still get sick sometimes thinking about them."
Although both kept their eyes closed, it wasn't hard to hear the witch pacing the room briskly, muttering under her breath in harsh tones at just what she would be saying to Severus the next time she saw him before she stopped in front of them again. "Fine. We will all start from equal ground, then." She sat down with them and closed her eyes as well. "As I said, we will begin every lesson the same way until you have both perfected the transformation, at which point it comes naturally and you will not have to worry. Clear your mind of everything but the sound of my voice, and then tone it out as you concentrate on the feeling on your body sitting on the floor."
Silence took over the small study, save for the sound of the wood crackling beneath the unforgiving flames. It wasn't long, however, that even that sound was drowned out as both Harry and Hermione took in deep breaths and tried the best they could to follow their professor's instructions.
"While you are concentrating on the feeling of existing, I will explain a bit about animals and your bodies," McGonagall's voice permeated the silence after almost half an hour. "Your physical body holds a great deal of energy, and makes up the shape of your being. It has been said that your true self is contained in your soul, or core, and that is the fact that we will be working with today. Your core is infenisimally small, and can fit in the smallest of animals, or can take up enough room to fill a dragon."
Silence again took the room as she allowed her words to sink in. "So in other words," Hermione spoke up, only her mouth moving as she continued to relax. "Our core fits our body's shape, regardless of what body we are using at any given time."
"Very good, Hermione," McGonagall said, allowing herself a small, unseen smile. "The core holds incredible power, but is also fragile. This is why one must never attempt more than a single animal form... the core could shatter under the strain of trying to fit more than two forms at once."
"How did you decide on a cat as your animagus form?" Harry asked. He was finding the relaxation exercise very helpful, and wished that he had had such a thing last year before - and after - Snape's lessons. "Was there a reason, or just instinct?"
"A common myth," McGonagall corrected. "I never chose a cat as my form, Harry."
"What?"
"Excuse me, Professor?" Hermione stressed the word Professor as she turned her head towards Harry, trying to tell him to be more respectful without speaking. "But I thought everyone chose their form - that's what we understood from talking with..." she trailed off suddenly before speaking Sirius's name, not wanting to upset Harry.
"Sirius told us that he chose to be a dog, while my father chose to be a stag, so they would be big enough to keep a werewolf at bay," Harry said urgently. "Remus told us that... Wormtail," he spit out the name. "Chose to be the small rat so he could slip through to hit the knot in the Whomping Willow."
"Indeed they did," McGonagall affirmed for them. "James and Sirius both chose to be the larger animals, while Peter picked the small one."
Hermione gasped as she realised just what their teacher was telling them. "So, we don't pick the animal, just the size we want?" she suggested. "And then the animal picks us, right?"
Professor McGonagall actually chuckled then before speaking. "Very good, Hermione. Ten points to Gryffindor when we return to Hogwarts." Silence took the room again before she clapped, startling both students out of their stupor and making them both open their eyes quickly. Harry's wand was also in his hand, though he didn't remember actually drawing it, and his other hand was on the hilt to his dagger.
When he saw their teacher simply standing up, he lowered his wand and removed his hand from the weapon at his side quickly as he shook out his head and stood up as well. "So what was all that about, then?" he asked.
"The calming of our minds helps settle our core so it will be prepared for the strain that comes with changing physical forms for the first few times. After that, it will be prepared for the stress, and the state of our minds won't matter," Hermione explained before McGonagall had a chance to answer.
Their professor nodded and opened her mouth to speak when a knock on the door interrupted her. She looked to the clock on the wall quickly and frowned. "Already?" she muttered. Shaking her head, she looked to both Harry and Hermione again. "For tomorrow, I want you both to have decided on the size of the animal you want. Peter chose very small, I chose a small animal, and Sirius and your father chose large animals. Make the distinction clear in your mind. Tomorrow I want to hear the reasons, too."
"Just before you go, Professor, I have a quick question," Hermione said just as their professor turned. When their head of house looked back, she went on quickly. "What about clothing and our wands?"
"And my dagger?" Harry added, suddenly concerned. He wouldn't be trying any more animagus training if he couldn't keep his dagger with him.
"Have no fears on the matter," McGonagall said firmly. "It will all become clear with time... time that we will be fitting in, don't worry. As for your dagger, Harry..." she said, trailing off as she opened the door. On the other side stood a figure cloaked in green who stood solemnly and silently. "I believe your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher might be able to help you understand it."
"I am here today, Minerva, because Kailyn told me that Miss Granger requested a moment of my time," Talisien corrected her. "I will speak with him later about what I know of the Oakrium." He then turned to the two inside. "I believe my mate wishes for a word with Mr. Potter," he added. "She is waiting in the kitchen."
"What about, sir?" Harry asked. It felt odd to be calling him sir after going for more than two months of calling him by name, but he was going by Talisien's lead, and he had called them formally.
"That is for you to decide."
No more words were spoken until Hermione and Talisien were alone in the study, and then the tall elf shut the door without appearing to move before turning towards her again. "Now then... what is it you require, Hermione?"
"I didn't expect you to come so soon," Hermione managed. "Not with all that has been going on with the Order recently, anyway."
"I do not involve myself with the day to day runnings of the Order," he explained. "Fey has asked for me to keep distant in this matter... she feels that I have risked my life against Dark Lords enough for even an elf's incredible lifespan."
Knowing his history as she did, Hermione had to admit that that was probably true, but she was glad that she hadn't heard any of that argument. Talisien didn't seem like the type to sit back willingly and not help when needed. "It seems a little trivial now, but..."
Talisien's hand cut her off, and he lowered his hood in the same motion to look into her eyes. "This is about the necklace that Harry gave you during the November Ball, is it?" When she could only nod, he smiled. "I believe I understand. I will see what I can find for you within my domain. You will have it in two days... is that soon enough?"
"I need it by the day after tomorrow anyway, so that would work."
"I'll do what I can," he promised. "Congratulations, by the way."
"For what?"
"For accomplishing something that almost no human has been able to master for the last dozen centuries. The ability to use inner magics effectively," he explained. "You unlocked Salazar's passageway on your first attempt, and didn't allow the ash to faze you much at all."
"It felt like I was being ripped in two after it opened," Hermione said. "What was that all about?"
He nodded for a moment, as though he had barely heard her, before actually replying. "That would be the ash I spoke of. Spellash. It is the reason that inner magics use is no longer taught... without the strength of mind, it would have torn you apart."
"So why could I use it if it is so powerful?" Hermione asked pointedly. "I mean, I know I'm a smart witch, people keep telling me that, but I know that I'm not a powerful one. Harry has more power in his little finger than I could ever hope for."
"That is not true," Talisien said firmly. "He has a different type of power. He is not bound by the spells that he casts, and makes them do what they have to. You, on the other hand, use every spell that you cast exactly as they are intended. Both are powerful abilities, and with your use of inner magics, your spells will only gain in power." He stopped as he put the hood back up on his cloak and turned to the door. "When the school year begins again, I will begin training you in the advanced healing methods of the elves... it is done with inner magics that you should be able to tap into."
"Thank you, sir."
"I will not help fight the war, child. That does not mean I won't help at all."
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Harry walked into the kitchen slowly, not entirely sure what the Lady of Noyadin wanted to speak with him about. He found her sitting at the table facing the fireplace, and followed her gaze to the red flames as they danced across the wood, devouring it slowly.
He heard her mutter something under her breath, but he couldn't make out the words. He could see the effects, though, as the flames suddenly roared with energy and some even licked out of the fireplace. The kitchen immediately started to get almost unbearably warm before the flames died down to almost nothing again and started in on the wood once more.
"Talisien said you wanted to speak with me?" Harry asked hesitantly, not wanting to interrupt her when she was so obviously concentrating.
She looked away from the flames, and he could have sworn that the fire followed the turning of her head as she considered him for a moment. "Actually, I believe he feels that you wanted to speak with me..." she said with a smile.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked. He wouldn't usually have asked such a simple question even if he was confused, because he knew he wouldn't usually get an answer. With the elves, though, his odds were much greater.
"I mean, child, that my mate believes you wish to speak with me about your intended," Fey explained as she stood up. The apparently living fabric of her dress shimmered red as she stood up, and Harry found himself reminded of the flames once more. "Something about the request that you made of my verdurne."
"Verdurne?"
"My granddaughter."
Harry thought for a moment, and then remembered asking her during the interrupted birthday party if Hermione could watch his training. "Something about Hermione watching me train with my dagger?"
"The Oakrium, child, and yes," Fey replied simply. "Do you truly believe that she would be happy just watching? My understanding of the girl is that she loves to learn... anything and everything that comes her way, so long as it isn't dark."
Harry shook his head as a grin appeared on his face. "I think she'd learn about the dark things, but would never use them," he corrected. "She'd learn so she could try to figure out a way to counter them."
"She reminds me of an old friend of mine," Fey offered after a few minutes of only hearing the fire in the background. "She just seems to have the same vibe. Of course, my friend didn't start reading everything in sight until after our journey was over and she started travelling with Ali."
"Greensleeves?" Harry suddenly remembered the name. "Hermione reminds you of your friend Greensleeves?"
Fey nodded. "She does indeed. Greensleeves was very open with everyone, and always wanted to learn. She drank up knowledge like your friend Ronald drinks butterbeer." Harry must have looked confused, because she looked away from him for a moment before asking another question. "Is there something on your mind about my old friend?"
Harry winced at the question. It was true that the elves would answer anything he had asked them so far, but they also seemed to have the uncanny ability to tell when he was curious. Much like Dumbledore, but with the elves and how they hadn't hid anything from him, he felt it wouldn't work to try to hide something from them. "Was she really in love with Ali?"
"It worked both ways," Fey corrected. "And yes." At Harry's continued confusion, she leaned closer to him and smiled softly. "Many look at it as a forbidden love, as no young could ever have come about thanks to their union - and not only because it was tragically cut short, either. However, love is as love is. Pure."
Harry considered this information for a moment before deciding that it really wasn't all that important for him to wrap his mind around. He knew some people thought that way, and he had nothing against it. "So how could you help Hermione learn what Kailyn is teaching better than just observing?"
Fey pushed a small object across the table, and Harry picked it up hesitantly. It was wrapped carefully in a red and white cloth that seemed very old. As he unwrapped it slowly, the scent of the ages came to him, almost as though the fabric was trying to tell some long forgotten story just by the smell.
Whatever that story was, however, was forgotten as soon as the fabric revealed what was hidden inside. There was a dagger, much shorter than the foot long bladed dagger at his own side, but a dagger nonetheless. This dagger looked rather simple and plain, but had a golden pommel and an odd rune etched into its surface. He drew it from the sheath slowly, and saw the rune repeated on the blade near the hilt. On the other side of the hilt was another rune, although this one appeared to have been carved into the blade after it was forged.
"Greensleeves found this blade shortly after she and Ali set out together on their own journey. Ali has held onto it ever since that journey ended... but recently she gave it to me. Hopefully it will bring better fortune to your intended."
Harry sheathed the blade again and wrapped it up once more. "Are you sure this is alright to give her?" he asked. When she nodded, he tucked it into his robes. "Thank you. I will give it to her later."
"I know."
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Just after Harry turned away from the door as he shut it behind him, he heard a gentle knock. Turning back, he opened the door to his room again and found Hermione standing just outside, looking a little nervous. This should have been enough to tell him that something strange was going to happen, but he didn't put two and two together right away.
"What's wrong, Hermione?"
She shook her head and looked up and down the halls quickly before darting into the room and closing it behind her. "Would you mind bending the rules a little... just for me?" she asked in a whisper.
Harry smiled and shook his head. "I guess Ron and I really have managed to corrupt you, haven't we?" he replied. "What do you need me to do?"
"You sure you don't mind?"
"Hermione," Harry said sternly, but his eyes showed he was teasing her. "If you don't tell me what you need me to do, then not only will I get more and more worried about how dangerous and terrifying I'm sure whatever it is will be, but it also will give me more and more time to listen to your voice in my head telling me to listen to reason."
Hermione couldn't help but giggle at that comment before sobering again. "It's not much... not really, anyway," she whispered. "I just want you to sleep well tonight."
"How is that -" Harry started before she cut him off.
"With me in your arms again."
Harry could have sworn that time froze suddenly, or at least slowed down to an almost unbearable level. He could hear his heart beating slowly in his ears, even though he was sure it was going faster than it ever had before, and he could hear the swishing of Hermione's eyelashes as she blinked to him.
Two blinks seemed to take forever, but it was all the time he needed to find his voice again. "Last night... we were together to comfort each other, right?" Hermione nodded, and he put a hand on both her shoulders, giving them a gentle squeeze and a little massage before going on. "Then tonight..."
"I need comfort!" Hermione blurted out suddenly. "If that's the reason you need, then I need comfort," she repeated. He knew instantly that she was actually alright, as looking into her warm earthy eyes, he could read her easily... just as easily as she could read him in the same manner. She looked away and sighed. "No... not really, I guess I don't..."
When she turned as though to leave, Harry tightened his grip on her shoulders, and she froze. "Could it be that my girlfriend just wants to cuddle next to me at night?" he whispered in a voice so quiet he could barely hear his own words. She nodded anyway, though, and he smiled. "I guess I should be honoured."
She frowned in confusion. "Why?"
Harry's smile broadened as he took a step away from her. "You're willing to break the rules just to be close to me!"
She took three very fast steps towards him until she was less than an inch away, glaring at him. "If it wasn't for the fact that I didn't want anyone to catch me in here... much less catch me in here asking to sleep in your bed - never mind how bad `Can I sleep with you?' sounds - then I would be forced to hex you with something very fierce."
"But since you are concerned..." Harry trailed off.
Her frowned vanished and she stood a little higher, pushing up on her toes to meet his lips with her own. In an instant he was holding her close to him, closer again as he responded to her desire. He felt her own arms wrap around him, and suddenly he found them both on the bed as his tongue started fighting with her own in a maddening attempt to become one with each other.
They both pulled away breathless, and Hermione looked away almost as once as a blush crept up her cheeks. "I guess I'd have to kiss you," she replied to the question that Harry had almost forgotten he had even asked.
Harry leaned in to kiss her again, and groaned after a moment as he pulled away just a little. "We... we shouldn't be doing this right now..." he said softly.
"I know," Hermione replied, pulling him back down to her. She actually growled softly to him when he pulled away again almost at once, and then she backed off quickly. "Sorry," she said, still a little breathless from their first kiss of the night. "I know, you said you want to take things slowly..."
"And you want to sleep with me here and now?" Harry asked in surprise.
She blushed again instantly, and shook her head quickly. "No... that's not what I was asking for," she said. "I just wanted some time to..." She trailed off, unable to finish her thoughts.
There was a long silence before Harry kissed Hermione on the nose and smiled down to her as he rolled off her to lay down next to her instead of on top of her. "I know," he reassured her. "I know. But for now... is just being here with me enough?"
"Are you going to change into your pajamas tonight?" Hermione asked in response. Harry shook his head.
"You don't have yours here, and besides, you said you'd feel more comfortable with us in our normal clothes." He then ran a hand through her hair gently. "But it this good enough?"
She responded by curling up next to him and resting her head in the little niche that she had claimed last night between the middle of his chest and his shoulder... right above his heart, he realised as he felt it beating against her softly, as though lulling her to sleep. Perhaps it was, too, for as he wrapped his arms around her to hold her, he felt her breathing steady and slow as sleep took her.
He wasn't long to follow as he focused on the sound of her steady presence.
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Looking back, Harry had to admit that their morning wake up could have been worse. In theory. It took him a few minutes to figure out just how that could have been possible before finally falling back on his enemy Voldemort.
If Voldemort had come to wake him and Hermione up, it would have been worse.
As it was, that was the only way he could think of that could have been worse as he found himself being lead into the kitchen by his godfather while Hermione's mother stayed upstairs with her.
"Well?"
Harry turned slowly to face Remus Lupin and took a deep breath. "Well what?" he asked as steadily as he could manage.
"What do you think you're doing sleeping in the same bed as Hermione like that?" he said in a loud, angry voice. "You're both barely sixteen for crying out loud!"
With a defiance that he didn't really feel, Harry held himself firmly. "Is this going to take long? I didn't even get to say good morning to her before I was dragged off!"
To his surprise, Remus actually was smiling as he started shouting again. "Don't take that tone with me, Harry Potter! You have to listen to reason and order every now and then, so listen good!" As the werewolf spoke, he sat down by Harry and motioned to a chair next to him. Once Harry finally sat down, a little confused, he spoke again. "I think that was loud enough to take care of her parents' concerns," he explained.
"What are you on about?"
"I just wanted to congratulate you, Harry. You're doing a bang up job in courting Hermione, and I figured that if they thought I was chewing you out so harshly, then they'd go easier on both of you in the future," Remus explained.
There was something about his tone that set wheels spinning in Harry's mind. The Remus Lupin that he had known several years ago as his Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would never have said something like that. In fact, there was only one person who would have... "You aren't Padfoot, Remus," Harry said softly, looking away. "So there's no need to try to be."
When silence met his ears in response, Harry finally forced himself to look back, and saw the shock in his godfather's face. "I know I'm not, Harry," Remus said softly. "And I wasn't really trying to take his place... but I thought you might want to hear the advice like he would have given it."
Harry smiled and shook his head. "I know how Sirius would have said it, Remus," Harry reassured him. "He would have suggested all sorts of locking and silencing charms to ensure privacy next time." He took a deep breath and looked into the older man's tired eyes carefully. "I wouldn't mind a Remus suggestion, though."
His ex-Professor sat back carefully, as though considering the request, and then smiled again. "Alright, Harry. There is only one thing that I can really suggest, beyond telling you to be careful and not do anything that you know is too much."
"And what would your suggestion be, then?" Harry asked after a long pause.
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"Wow," Hermione offered after a long silence took the room, only to be broken by the sound of Lupin shouting at Harry. "Sounds like Professor Lupin is really giving it to Harry, isn't he?"
"I doubt it, dear," Jane Granger said softly, sitting on Harry's bed next to Hermione. He daughter hadn't gotten out of bed yet, and was still dressed in her clothes from yesterday. That made Jane a little more comfortable, not only because she had just found her daughter sleeping in the arms of a young man, but because it made her feel a little more at home in her `muggle' clothes. "He's probably trying to make sure I don't go too hard on you. He said that Harry's used to being punished, and nothing he can say right now would be half as bad as some of what he's been through."
The phrase `I will not tell lies,' flashed through Hermione's mind, and she had to agree with her mother. "Harry's tough," Hermione said. "He'll be fine."
"You care about him a great deal, don't you?"
Hermione blushed and looked away rather than meet her mother's piercing gaze. "That obvious, is it?"
"I doubt my daughter would be caught in the bed of a boy she didn't have very strong feelings for, right?"
"So... you aren't mad?" Hermione asked, surprised by how calm her mother seemed. She had expected it to be much worse, all things considered. "You don't mind the fact that I was in here?"
"I was a little shocked," Jane admitted. "But I think I can understand. You've told both your father and I a bit about Harry before, so we knew it was coming eventually." Although she was talking calmly, Hermione winced at the statement. There had been a lot that she had left out over the years.
"He's done a lot for me over the years," Hermione said slowly. "And I didn't tell you all of it, either."
"You didn't want us to worry?" Jane suggested.
Hermione smiled. "I was going to say that," she said. "But it's true. I didn't. But now that you're here... you must know that it's a little more dangerous than I've let on in the past."
"Thanks to Voldemort?"
"Him too," Hermione said softly. "Actually, I guess it all comes back to him in one way or another. I told you about the troll in first year, didn't I?" It could get a little confusing every now and then as to just what she had told her parents, and what she had left out of her letters home.
"In first year, you were attacked by a mountain troll, but Harry and Ron saved you."
"Harry was the one who convinced Ron to help save me, though," Hermione pointed out. "But that was about as bad as anything I told you, right? About how I met two new friends?"
"But there's more," Jane said pointedly. "I take it, a lot more."
"That time in second year when I didn't write you any letters, I wasn't busy," Hermione said after a while. "I was petrified. Not scared - well, I was - but rather, more like a living statue. A basilisk caused it... and if not for Harry, than that thing would still be roaming the school, and would have killed students by now." At her mother's confused look, she quickly explained a bit about the dangerous king of serpents.
"A boy of twelve took down a creature like that?"
"We could hardly believe it either," Hermione admitted. "But that's what he faced in second year. He protected me... if not for him, then even after I was cured, I would have either been sent home for protection, or killed."
"One being no better than the other?"
Hermione couldn't help but smile at that comment - she had told her mother about her statement from first year already. "In third year... he protected me from Professor Lupin when he turned werewolf in front of us. He also protected me when we thought his godfather - Sirius Black - was a murderer. Not only that, but he held the Dementors at bay to protect both him and myself."
"The soul sucking things? How did he do that?"
"It is a very complicated charm," Hermione admitted. "A Patronus is the only thing that can scare off Dementors, but Harry did it. His was enough to drive off hundreds of them at once."
"It sounds like Harry is a very talented wizard," Jane pointed out, and she saw that Hermione blushed at the comment almost instantly, a fact that confused her. "But I suppose he has had help, right?"
"In fourth year, I helped him through that blasted tournament," Hermione explained. "And it was so wonderful to be working beside him so closely, even though it was horrible times. He had to go up against a dragon, mom!"
"Wasn't fourth year the one where you met Victor?" Jane pointed out, remembering the letter about the Yule Ball and the second task - she had never figured out what the first task was yet.
Hermione groaned and nodded. "Yes, mom, but it wasn't like that between us, and you know it. He wanted more, but he was too old. And besides..."
"Besides?" Jane pressed when Hermione trailed off.
"I had already started looking at Harry anyway..." she mumbled under her breath.
"What about last year?" Jane asked. "I mean, I understand about the danger at the Ministry and all, but it seems that Harry has done something each year just for you. You said in fourth he would listen to you above all others... so what about last year?"
"The same," Hermione whispered. "He would always seem to come to me when he had something he was having trouble with. He even listened to me when I asked him to check on Sirius before doing something rash." She looked away from her mother and sighed. "Last year, he was a true leader. You should have seen him leading the DA, and how adamant he was about going to the Ministry alone. He didn't want anyone else to be in danger."
Hermione barely noticed that she was fiddling with her bracelet, and that thought only made her think of her necklace as well, which she grasped for a moment before looking back up to her mother. There was something important that she had to ask before more time went passed.
"Mom?"
"Yes, dear?"
"If... if anything ever happened to me..." Hermione trailed off, trying to find the right words. She had no idea how Harry had managed it with Lupin, Fred, and George. "I mean, if something went wrong in this war... could you and dad look after Harry?"
Jane looked back to her daughter in surprise. "You think something might?"
"I wouldn't rule out the possibility," Hermione admitted. "On the other hand, I suspect Harry would rather die than let anything hurt me, so it could be a moot point anyway..."
"We will look after him if it comes to it," Jane cut her daughter off. "So have no fear."
A comfortable silence feel between mother and daughter then, one that both were used to in their many long talks over the years. Hermione slowly looked to her mother, trying to figure out where they stood after this morning. "Are you mad about this morning?" Hermione whispered. When her mother shook her head, she pressed on before she could lose her nerve. "Can I stay here again tonight? Or for the rest of the holidays?"
"Why?" Jane asked.
It was amazing how one simple word could make her world spin, and Hermione had to close her eyes to try and concentrate. A great, powerful feeling was rising up within her, and when she looked to her mother again, there was a small smile on her face.
"Because I love him."
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To make up for my lengthy absence, I will now leave a few hints as to things to come.
Chapter Twenty One: Wandless Magics
In this chapter, aside from more training in their animals (and we learn what both their forms are, exactly) we are also witness to a phenomenal surge of power from Harry when one of his least favourite professors comes by. After this, Hermione attempts to calm Harry down, and everything takes a spiral of confusion as Harry finds himself trapped in Hermione's memories, seeing things that she had never wished anyone to know about. When he finally escapes, he collapses, and Hermione has a heart to heart with her father about trust.
Chapter Twenty Two: Road to Recovery
As the title suggests, this is the recovery from the violation of Hermione's mind, where Harry speaks with her and tells her everything that he saw - he leaves nothing out, as he doesn't want to lose her trust. Then, after more training of course, Harry convinces her to look into his own memories after she gets upset at something Harry seems unable to say to her. She is left a sobbing mess, and he comforts her until she falls asleep in his arms.
Chapter Twenty Three: Willow
Willow is one of my favourite chapters that I have planned thus far - Harry gets a `new' pet. Ron, Ginny, Luna, and several others join them in Grimmauld Place as Hermione comes downstairs to show McGonagall her perfected animagus form. As she is not to tell anyone aside from Harry, she is forced to pretend to be a pet - Harry names her Willow. This deception is not going to be an easy one to maintain at all times, of course. Aside from this difficult dilemma, after Ron and Ginny make up with Harry and Hermione (in her normal state again), Harry begins talking with Crookshanks in front of everyone - as he had seemed to talk to Hermione while she was transformed. Is his parseltongue evolving? Just why can he talk with all sorts of different animals? And what is it about his animagus form hat lets him comprehend all languages he comes across?
That's about all I'm giving for now. I will say this about the last chapter - three of the four dreams are premonitions of sorts. Just to make you think, I guess. I also want to suggest that people be on the lookout for two chapters when they are mentioned in my bio - although I don't know what numbers they are, they are called `Did You Find Freedom?' and `Or Did You Break Free?' respectively. These two chapters will be near the end, and have not stopped haunting my dreams since I first saw them several months ago.
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Until the sun sets upon a broken world…
The Shadows
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