~A/N> Hello everyone! Here's chapter four :) I have to say, this is my favorite chapter so far. I've
written some of chapter five, so hopefully I'll have it done by the end of the week. Thank you so much for all the
wonderful reviews, you guys are great!!
"Before we begin," Harry said as he pulled his wand from his back pocket, "I think I'd like to make
sure that we can talk privately."
He cast a silencing and locking spell on the room, which was good because Ginny was right around the corner listening. When she heard the locking charm take affect she stomped away to the Kitchen, hellbent on giving Lisa a hard time.
"Can I tell her now Daddy?" Lily asked, looking at Harry expectantly.
"Yes pumpkin," Harry said with affection in his voice.
"I wanted to tell you about my Mummy," Lily started, looking back at Hermione's face, "Because you're the only growned-up that has ever talked to me about her, besides Daddy. Not even Lisa will talk about her with me."
"Um, well that's because..." Hermione started and then stopped herself abruptly.
When she stayed quiet Harry looked at her and saw a very uncomfortable look on her face. "What is it?" he asked, suddenly feeling a bit uneasy.
"I don't know if I should say anything Mr. Potter," she replied, looking anywhere but at him.
"First off, please call me Harry, I don't like people that work for me calling me Mr. Potter," he stated, looking a little angry now. "And second, if there is something going on under my roof that I don't know about, I expect you to tell me."
"Well Si...H-Harry...it's just that on the day I started here..." she trailed off, a little weary of telling him.
"Yes?" Harry said, silently prodding her on.
"Miss Weasley told me that I was not to mention the late Mrs. Potter," she replied quickly, without meeting his eyes.
"I see," he said after a few moments of complete silence. James just sat staring at the floor while Lily and Hermione sat watching Harry's reaction. "That is something that we will discuss more later, I believe Lily was going to tell you about her and James' Mum."
"Right," Lily agreed with a smile. The little girl wiggled around until she had turned herself just enough in Hermione's lap so that she could look Hermione in the face as she spoke. "Mummy and Daddy met at Hogwarts, and after Daddy beat V-V..."
"Voldemort," Harry said since Lily was unable to pronounce it.
"Yeah, him," Lily agreed again, "they got married and had James. Then two years after that they had me. Mummy and Daddy came here and made it pretty for us and we had so much fun!"
"That's right pumpkin," Harry praised with a slight, loving smile.
Hermione watched the smile on Lily's face slowly disappear and when the little girl's eyes locked on hers, she teared up at the sadness she could now see in them. "Then last year..."
"It was almost two years ago now luv," Harry corrected, his own eyes and voice full of sadness now.
"Then almost two years ago," Lily said correctly, "my Mummy went to town to buy something and she never came home. Daddy said that one of the Bad Man's friends hurt her and she wouldn't be coming home again."
Hermione blinked, causing a single tear to gently slide down her face, and tightened her hold on Lily. The little girl lay her head against her chest and it was very quiet as the three Potters seemed to be lost in their memories. Her throat suddenly constricted by emotion, Hermione cleared it as quietly as she could and looking at Harry asked, "Did they catch the Bad Man's friend that hurt your wife?"
"Yes," Harry answered quietly, "It turned out to be one of Voldemort's minions that hadn't been rounded up after I defeated him eight years ago. I thank the Gods everyday that James and Lily stayed home that day, otherwise I would have lost them too."
It became strangely silent in Lily's pink and purple bedroom and when Hermione looked over at James her heart broke as she noticed that he had two tear tracks on his face. "Are you okay James?" she asked quietly as she gently placed her hand on his back for comfort.
Harry looked over at his son and immediately put his hand on his shoulder. Lily crawled from Hermione's lap over to her brother and hugged him tightly. "I miss her too, James," said the little girl sadly.
"We all miss your Mum," Harry said sadly.
James, who had awkwardly wrapped his arms around his little sister to return her hug, glared angrily at Harry over her shoulder with tears still in his eyes. Surprising everyone in the room he said in a low, raspy voice, "You don't."
When Hermione turned her shocked gaze from James to Harry, she noticed that Harry looked as if he had just been punched in the stomach, hard. "O-of course I do," he replied, surprised that his son had finally talked and yet hurt by what he had said.
Without saying another word, James let go of Lily and scooted back from her. With one last angry look at his dad, James stood up and made his way to the door. Putting his hand on the doorknob, he stood with his back to the three others and waited silently for Harry to take off the locking charm. Harry ran his hand roughly through his hair and sighed heavily as he watched his son just standing there. Feeling a mixture of emotions, he brought his wand out once more and unlocked the door. James immediately opened it once he heard the lock disengage and the next thing that was heard was the slamming of his bedroom door.
"Poor James," Lily said as she crawled into Harry's lap and hugged him next. "Don't worry Daddy, I know you loved Mummy."
"Thank you pumpkin," Harry said quietly as he looked over his daughter's head at Hermione who still sat staring at the door, one lone tear snaking silently down her cheek.
~*~
After the eventful afternoon, Hermione had made her way back to her room while Harry and Lily had gone down to dinner. She had heard James go downstairs shortly after the other two had and she could only imagine the tense atmosphere that would surround the meal that night. She already felt emotionally drained from all that had happened, so she had decided that she would forego dinner that night to relax until she had to get Lily and James ready for bed.
Now she sat in the comfortable armchair in the corner of her room with her legs tucked underneath her as classical music drifted quietly from her radio. Taking a deep, calming breath she closed her eyes and let the music wash over her, relaxing away the tenseness that the time spent in Lily's room had caused.
Her eyes popped open suddenly as someone rapped on her door. Sighing, she lazily got out of her chair and made her way to the door, expecting to see Lisa on the other side, asking if she would be joining them for dinner. Instead, she was surprised to see Cole standing there, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and looking much more handsome than she remembered.
"Hello," he said happily with a dashing smile, "Feel like a bit of company?"
"Sure," she replied, returning his infectious smile. Motioning for him to come in, she closed the door behind him and watched as he took a seat on her bed. Walking over to the chair, she picked the pillow up that she had set down and got comfortable once again.
"Rough day?" Cole asked as he took in her slumped shoulders and tired expression.
"You have no idea," she replied. When he just sat quietly watching her, she added, "There was an incident with me and Miss Weasley this morning...let's just say it wasn't pretty."
"I heard," he said, "Lisa filled me in when I came in from shift change. If it makes you feel better, you're the only person to work for Harry so far that has confronted Miss Weasley and not been sacked on the spot."
"Well, I guess that's something," she replied, giving him a slight smile.
They continued to talk about everything and nothing for the next hour, enjoying the other's company after a long day. When there came yet another knock on her door, Hermione looked at Cole wearily as she crossed the room and said quietly, "I really hope it's not Miss Weasley."
"That makes two of us," Cole replied in the same low tone of voice, causing her to smile.
She reached out and turned the knob, still looking back at Cole as he said something else that she didn't quite hear. "What was that?" she asked, swinging the door open.
"I didn't say anything," came Harry's deep voice, causing Hermione to turn around quickly.
"Oh Mr. P-I mean Harry," she corrected as she remembered his request earlier that afternoon, "I'm sorry, I was speaking to Cole as I answered the door."
"Cole?" Harry repeated, and then noticed the man in question as he leaned over and came into view behind Hermione. "Oh, hello Cole."
"Hello Mr...I mean hello Harry," Cole replied, correcting himself since he had been told to call his boss by his first name also.
"I'm um...sorry to interrupt, but I needed to speak to you," Harry said, bringing his gaze back to Hermione's. Noticing the slight pink tinge that blossomed on her cheeks, he realized that he suddenly felt annoyed for no reason. Not wanting to think about why he felt that way he said, "Come see me in my office in five minutes."
Confused by the sharp way he had said it, Hermione looked at him blankly and said, "Yes sir, I'll be right there."
After watching him stiffly walk away, Hermione closed the door and turned back to Cole, seeing the same confused look she must have been wearing mirrored on his face. "What was that all about?" he asked.
"I have no idea," Hermione replied, "But I should go speak to him right away."
She watched Cole as he stood up and made his way toward the door, noting the fluid way his body moved as he walked. Shaking herself from the thought, she smiled at him and said, "Thank you for keeping me company, I enjoyed our conversation."
"I did too," he replied, lightly placing his hand on her arm and giving her a friendly smile, "If you ever want to talk, don't hesitate to knock on my door, okay?"
"I won't, thanks," she said, and then watched as he made his way out her door. Trying not to think about how much she enjoyed Cole's company or her employer's strange behavior, Hermione walked over to her chair and sat to put her shoes on. Wondering for the first time since that morning if she may still lose her job, she thought over everything that had happened so far that day and mumbled quietly to herself, "Only one way to find out."
~*~
Harry made his way back to his study in a haze as images of Cole in Hermione's room kept flashing through his head. 'Why the bloody hell should I care?' he thought as he turned the corner, and bumped head on into Ginny.
"Harry!" she exclaimed, grabbing onto his arms, "Goodness, where are you going in such a hurry?"
"I'm sorry Ginny," he apologized off handedly, "Just had things on my mind and wasn't watching where I was going."
"Oh, okay," she replied, noticing the way he wasn't really looking at her. "Why don't we spend some time together? James and Lily are with Lisa, we could go snuggle up somewhere and talk, maybe snog a bit...it's been a while since we've had time alone."
"Not right now Ginny," Harry said with a hint of annoyance in his voice, "I have other things I have to do."
"Fine," she huffed, brushing by him, "When you decide to be nice to me again, come find me and we can have some fun."
"Whatever," Harry mumbled, continuing down the corridor.
Ginny watched him walk away, her eyes wide with disbelief, and just as she turned to make her way to the bathroom someone else collided with her. "Bloody hell, watch where you're going!"
"I-I'm sorry Miss Weasley," came the feminine reply, "I was just on my way to see H...Mr. Potter."
"You better not be one of the things he has to 'do'," she spat, spearing Hermione with her angry, narrowed gaze.
"W-What?" Hermione asked, only to have the redhead practically push her aside and stomp down the hall. Feeling really confused, Hermione continued on to Harry's office and mumbled, "Stark raving mad, that one."
Oblivious to Ginny's temper tantrum, Harry was in his study, pacing back and forth behind his desk. He felt on edge and uneasy, almost uncomfortable in his own skin. "What is wrong with me?" he asked aloud, talking to no one but himself. Running his hand through his now-disheveled hair, he stopped pacing abruptly when there was a knock on the door. "Enter," he bit out, swearing at himself for sounding as angry as he felt. Hermione hadn't done anything to make him angry at her, so what was it that was causing him to feel this way?
The door opened slowly and his eyes followed her as she walked toward his desk and sat in one of the chairs in front of it. Feeling too worked up to sit still, Harry stayed standing and put both hands on the back of his office chair. When Hermione just sat there, watching him silently, he took a deep breath and more demanded than asked, "Please tell me what it was that Ginny said to you about mentioning Luna."
"Erm, well...she came to my room the first day I was here, after I put Lily and James to bed, and said she needed to speak to me," Hermione replied, looking uneasy. "She walked into my room, shut the door and told me that in no uncertain terms was I ever to bring up the late Mrs. Potter around her, you, or the children."
"You don't say," Harry said after a moment's silence, "But didn't Lily say that you two discussed Luna before?"
"Well...yes, she did," Hermoine admitted, "Mr. P...Harry, I may be well out of line by saying this, but I believe that Lily and James have a right to remember their Mother. She brought them into this world, she loved them for as long as she could, and I just don't feel that it's right to ask them to forget her."
"Nobody's asking them to do that," Harry replied quietly with an edge to his voice.
"I beg to differ sir," Hermione said, "That's exactly what Miss Weasley is doing, and she told Cole and Lisa the same thing."
Harry bristled as she mentioned Cole and then turned to look out the window behind his desk to cover his reaction from her. Taking a deep breath and keeping his back turned to her he said, "Thank you for being honest with me...I'll see to it that this problem is rectified."
When he didn't turn around and stayed quiet for a while Hermione cleared her throat and asked, "Is that all sir?"
"Yes," he replied, "You can go."
Glad that she was in fact not going to get sacked, Hermione got up quickly and made her way to the door, wanting to escape the tense atmosphere as quickly as possible. Just as she was reaching for the door, she heard him say, "Hermione?"
Her movements stilled immediately, surprised to hear him use her first name, and when she turned to face him she found him watching her. Taking her hand off the door, she met his intense stare and replied quietly, "Yes sir?"
"I just wanted you to know that you're doing an excellent job with Lily and James," he said.
"Thank you sir," she replied and when he said nothing else she turned once more to open the door.
Just as she went to step into the corridor Harry said, "Oh, and Hermione..."
"Yes?" she asked again as she paused in the doorway.
"Don't call me sir."