11. A Tor of the Shops.
The second half of the spring term saw the reactivation of the DA. There were now thirty two members and half of these were Gryffindors. The rest of the DA was formed with seven Hufflepuffs, six Ravenclaws and three Slytherins. Even with the inclusion of the Slytherins it was decided that using loyalty charms was unnecessary, the stakes were too high now.
Hermione was a little disappointed as she had found a charm that if broken would cause the traitor to speak backwards for the rest of their lives. Ron considered Harry's situation after he had heard about this, and as he watched her telling Ginny about yet another charm which made you lose a years worth of memories every hour, he thought she looked rather forbidding, really quite scary.
"Harry, are you sure you are going to be OK with Hermione? I mean look at her" he said.
"She gets very passionate about things she considers important" Harry replied "Fortunately it seems that I am one of those things, but I do worry that she thinks more of my safety than her own".
Ron still looked a little doubtful, "Well I think I will make an extra effort to stay in her good books from now on. I have no desire to end my life as a radish."
Harry spent extra time with Daphne Greengrass, Malcolm Braddock and Tracey Davis, the three Slytherin members. He wanted to know them as well as possible. It was hard, especially for Harry, to let go of six years of animosity toward that particular house.
By the end of the first week he was sure he could trust them all. The two girls were a bit of an anachronism, from their family histories neither of them should have ended up in Slytherin. Daphne's parents had been in Ravenclaw, whilst Tracey had one Hufflepuff and one Gryffindor to her name. Both families had been affected the last time Voldemort had risen, it was very strange, though it did occur to Harry that the Sorting Hat could have been playing games again.
Malcolm Braddock's family was Slytherin through and through. Some of his close relatives had been Death Eaters but his immediate family had kept very clear of all that.
Ron was against trusting Malcolm. "If your relations are bad then it's bound to rub off, he'll be a bad egg, you mark my words".
Harry studied Ron thoughtfully "Thanks a lot mate, next time I see my Aunt and Uncle I'll try and see how much of them has rubbed off on me".
"Bloody hell, Harry, I didn't mean…………." he got no chance to finish.
"No I know you didn't, but you cannot paint all Slytherins slimy. You, no we, all have to give them a chance.
Professor Aegis had taken the resolution of the Slytherins' plight one stage further. A temporary disillusionment charm was applied to them which became active when they entered the Slytherin dungeon this meant that their house mates would essentially ignore them, not that they paid them much attention before.
Harry realised that this could work to the DA's advantage as things may be said by other Slytherins in their company which should have been kept secret.
Harry was using the rest of the Tyr to help in teaching the DA. It improved their individual strengths and gave him time to see the general picture. By the end of the term Harry felt that the DA was beginning to gel, there were still many gaps and weaknesses to attend to but he was pleased with the progress.
Although Harry and Hermione had promised to see David and Natalie Granger as soon as they could, it had become obvious that this would not be until the holidays. On the last day of term Professor Aegis asked them to stay behind at the end of class.
"Well you two, I think it will be alright for us to travel to Avalon tomorrow after the train has left in the morning."
"Are we using a portkey like before?" asked Hermione.
"No we're using the nimbus limen; the arch is being watched and we don't want to draw attention to it just now." Aegis replied.
"How did he say we were getting there?" said Harry, as they left the classroom.
"The nimbus limen, Harry, the cloudy doorway, the mist" said Hermione, rolling her eyes as if it was the simplest thing to understand.
The following morning found the three of them in Aegis' office. The nimbus limen appeared as it had done before and they stepped into it and then out of it in front of the same cottage where they had met Lady Niniane. Harry loved this way of travelling, no disorientation, no cracked elbows and it was fast. The only drawback was that his glasses became clouded with little drops of water and he couldn't see a thing.
Cleaning off his glasses, Harry could now see the cottage and standing in the doorway were the Grangers. Hermione flung herself down the path and into a fierce three way hug.
Harry walked up to the happy reunion only to be instantly included. Mrs Granger hugging him as warmly as she had her daughter, Mr Granger stood back and held out his hand, Harry took it gladly.
"Good to see you again son" he nodded toward Hermione "Been looking after you OK?"
"Yes da…sir, really OK"
"Don't worry Harry, it took me ages to cope with my in-laws and we're not even that to you…. yet". David Granger confided.
Natalie Granger cast an eye over her husband and surrogate son. "Come inside and see our new home, as comfortable as any on our side of the division. This place is so relaxing; I could happily stay here for ever."
Harry and Hermione allowed themselves to be shown round the cottage. In truth they had only seen the main downstairs room before; it was a surprise how large the rest of the house was. There were five bedrooms upstairs and a bathroom. Hermione was given a room with a window looking out over the front and Harry's next to hers looked over the back garden.
Like many old cottages the ceilings were low and the doorways even lower. Harry cracked the top of his head several times before he learned the knack of ducking just at the right moment. That evening the four of them were sitting in a smaller downstairs room at the back of the cottage. Mr Granger had told them in a muggle home it would have been called a snug.
Harry and Hermione were curled up together on a sofa that must have had a distant relation living in the Gryffindor common room. Their 'Mum and Dad' had been telling them all that had happened since they had arrived. Their initial welcome had been a little muted as a lot of the villagers were very wary of them. There had been little contact across the division (that was what the islanders called the sideways shift of the Isle, which separated it from the rest of the world) for such a long time, that they had become rather unsure of any non-local.
However the Grangers' medical training and willingness to learn had gained them respect with the local healers and this had eventually spread to the rest of the islanders. Now they were accepted for what they were and were very happy with their situation.
Harry lay in his bed that night and spoke to no-one in particular "You know, I don't think I could find a nicer set of in-laws if I tried."
"That's a lovely thing to say Harry" said Hermione's voice much clearer than it should have been. He looked up but she wasn't there.
"Where are you?"
"In bed, Silly, I don't think these walls keep out much noise."
"Wicked... I love you."
"Love you too Harry, goodnight." Harry heard a silvery giggle from almost next to him; he sighed, smiled and closed his eyes.
The two weeks of holiday passed far too quickly for Harry's liking. Normally he was very glad for a holiday to end but this was not one of them. The four had spent nearly all the time together walking, talking, having picnics, being a family and generally enjoying the warm weather.
Harry and Hermione had several opportunities to explore the centre of the village on their own and renew their acquaintances with the shops. It was their first visit that caused Harry the most problems. He wanted to show Hermione the shop where he had bought the necklace, and if the truth be known, show Hermione off to the old witch who ran it.
He confidently led her past the bookstore, down across the square to the corner where the shop was, but it wasn't there. It wasn't just that it was a different shop, it really wasn't there. It was an empty space. Harry couldn't understand it, he paced back and forth explaining to Hermione that this is where it should be. He was making such a commotion in the normally quiet square that a wizard emerged from one of the adjoining shops to see what all the fuss was about.
"A jewellers shop, you are looking for a jewellers shop?"
"Yes," said Harry "right here, there was an old witch…, when we were here last year it was here."
The wizard thought, then seemed to make a connection, "You must mean old Eleanor Wicca. Yes that would be it, well, well old Eleanor, who'd have thought it."
"So where is she and where's the shop?"
"Well I couldn't rightly tell you that, you see old Eleanor's shop vanished."
"Vanished, but when?"
"Oh let me think, it would be about one hundred and fifty years ago now" he scratched his head in thought "yes that's about right."
"But that's not possible, I bought Hermione's present here last August."
"Did you now? Quite possibly you did. If she needed to sell you something then she wouldn't have let a little thing like one hundred and fifty years get in the way. She was a very powerful witch was old Eleanor." Said the wizard and shaking his head at the wonder of it all he retreated back into his shop.
Hermione could see the look of total bewilderment on Harry's face, and for once she was totally lost for words.
On the last day of the holidays the four were sitting in the meadow which stretched as far as the eye could see, the Tor and village at their backs. The field was a blaze of yellow, buttercups and dandelions thickly mixed with the green of the meadow grass. They had just finished a simple but delicious picnic and were starting to gather things up.
"Harry dear could you collect up the goblets for me?" asked Mrs Granger.
"No problem Mum" replied Harry as if it was the most natural response in the world.
Hermione gave a little gasp, her mother smiled; her father said "Well done son."
"Thanks Dad" Harry grinned.
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For another Hogwarts student the start of the holiday had been quite different. On the other side of the division, some seventy miles to the east, the portkey deposited a blond haired youth on the doorstep of a large house which had seen better days. Unseen by the muggles that lived around it Malfoy Manor was slowly decaying. Draco Malfoy, heir to the Lord of the Manor banged on the large door with his clenched fist. The house elf Kreacher opened the door.
"Ahh! The young master has returned from school. Kreacher wonders why he did not use his wand to open the door" his laugh was more of a hiss.
"It's none of your damn business why I do anything, Elf. Tell my mother I am home" Draco had put on his most superior tone. Inside he was worried, if his mother knew why he had no wand, he was in trouble.
The house elf scuttled down the hall to a door at its end, he opened it and bowed low to whom ever was inside the room.
"Mistress, the young master is back, knocking at his own front door like a common traveller" Kreacher announced.
"Draco come here instantly" he heard his mother's voice, then "Kreacher go!"
Draco Malfoy knew he was in for it by the tone of his mother's voice; he had no choice but to obey.
Narcissa Malfoy was tall, thin and blonde. She sat on a rather uncomfortable fancy chair looking as if there was a nasty smell under her nose. If there was, it was Draco. As she caught sight of him the rage in her boiled over.
"You worthless little worm, just you be thankful that your father is away, how dare you get caught by that jumped up magician who calls himself your Headmaster."
"It wasn't him" Draco confessed "It was something that Potter and his mudblood did, it caused our spells to backfire, Vincent is still in hospital."
"You think that makes it better?"
"No, but at least I'm not the only one who's had that happen when they've taken Potter on" he smiled but his victory was short lived.
His mother's face paled if that was possible, "You stand there wandless and have the gall to besmirch the Dark Lord's good name, you are either very brave or very foolish, Draco. Your father will not be held in that place for long, pray that you can correct your mistakes before you meet him again. Why did you come home anyway? You should have stayed at school as you did at Christmas. I have no time for you now. Stay in your rooms until it is time to return to school. Kreacher will see to you needs. Now go".
Draco looked both hurt and defiant as he turned away "Yes mother, as you wish."
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Harry and Hermione stepped out of the mist onto the lawns in front of the castle. Harry had made up his own name for this type of travel, he called it 'Demisting' and as they demisted Professor Aegis greeted them back.
"Hello you two, have a good holiday?"
"Wonderful" said Hermione.
"Great" said Harry "Oh, Mum and Dad said to say thank-you to you."
"Ahh" Aegis raised his eyebrows and smiled "Progress Harry?"
"Yeah."