CHAPTER 6 - Setting the Pieces
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters. All characters are creations of Joanne K Rowling, © 2007, to whom I am deeply indebted.
A/N: I'd also like to give credit to DrT (Triwizard Redux) for planting the "what if" seed of changing Harry's escape at the end of Gof. And special thanks to The Scribbler for the most excellent beta work.
Author's Note:
Pursuant to the Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988 and the Digital Millennium Copywrite Act of 1998, this work is copywrited, 2007, with all rights expressly reserved by its author unless explicitly granted. No portion may be reproduced in any fashion without the express written and notarized permission of the author.
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"Try to clear your mind, Harry. Don't forget. Take deep, even breaths." Sirius' voice was soothing as he tried guiding him in his latest Occlumency lesson. Hermione was in the other room, possibly concentrating like him learning from Remus.
He banished the thoughts of Hermione from his mind. Bitterly he thought, it seemed to be what he had been doing almost all the time now. He took a deep breath and tried to clear his mind.
"If it helps, think of your mind as like a room with numerous drawers and compartments. Try to hide your thoughts in each drawer. The room has a heavy vault door. That door would be your shield. Fortify it with everything you can think of."
"Legilimens!"
Harry felt a probing presence enter his mind, like a thief stealing in a dark house. The library swam before his eyes then vanished, followed by an image of his five year old self watching Dudley riding a new red bicycle jealously. Hurriedly, he shoved all the drawers and compartments of his mind closed. He willed his self to turn his back at the memory and moved to push the vault door closed. It was budging slowly and he could feel the probe sneaking in going for one of the drawers. He raised his wand at the probe.
He yelled, "Protego!" Then he pushed the vault door shut.
Harry opened his eyes, he wasn't aware he had closed them. Sirius was lying on the floor. "Uncle, what happened?"
"That is quite a shield you have there, Harry." Sirius said dryly, picking himself up.
"Oh, did I really cast that?"
"You did. The shield was good, the blocking needs work. You have to block me mentally. Though you are making progress, you're feeling the probe faster now. Pretty soon, you'll be able to raise your shields automatically at the first hint of invasion."
"Thanks. The mental images are really helping now. I think if I put my own touches on the room though, I'll be able to secure it more."
"Alright, we'll try to do that. Try to resume your meditative state. I won't guide you this time so you'll be able to concentrate by yourself."
Harry nodded and sat down on the cushions again. He took deep, even breaths and summoned the room image of his mind again. It was a big room with wood panels. He imagined bookshelves with every childhood memory he could think of. He sealed these bookshelves under a sliding panel that blended in the walls. He thought of the same white pad that Remus installed in their own library, the one which would only give him access to these memories. He then turned his attention to all his memories of his friends. When he first met Ron and Hermione, their adventures together. He organized these into a tall filing cabinet. The drawers didn't have any latch. It actually just looked like a metallic gray square standing there. He imagined touching the folder and a memory of their first Hogsmeade trip came out in a silvery folder. He filed it back, disappearing into seamlessly inside. He nodded, satisfied. One by one, Harry filed and guarded each memory. Each access was set to his touch only. He turned to the newest memories of Sirius and the summer. Of her. He sighed. He imagined a hulking vault at the end of the room. He locked these memories away. He again touched the middle of the blank vault door and an image of Hermione biting her lip as she checked his Transfiguration essay played out in front of him. He smiled and locked it in again. He fortified his main vault door. He imagined it like the doors of the Gringott's vault he saw. No latch or lock visible. Just traps inside for unauthorized presences that may dare touch it. He opened his eye slowly, still concentrating on his fortifications. He vaguely heard Sirius shout again.
"Legilimens!"
He felt the presence of the probe at once. He concentrated on the door. He felt the probe pushing it open. He pushed back with all his might. He felt the probe retreat. The image of the library solidified before his eyes.
"Brilliant, Harry!" Sirius shouted gleefully. "You did it! You felt it at once. You threw me out without spells!"
Harry grinned. He felt exhausted but triumphant. Sirius handed him a bottle of water. He gulped it down greedily, feeling as if he ran a marathon. "Now I only have to work on automatically summoning my shields without the meditation."
"That would be easy enough with practice. The first steps are always the hardest. Knowing there's a probe, summoning enough mental power to block it and throw it out, that's the hardest part. You can't really teach that since each mind is different from another and only the person learning can truly know how to do it. I could only guide you but your way is distinctly different from mine. But now that you've found your way how, we only need to harness it with practice."
"Do you want to talk about it?" His godfather asked quietly, referring to the newest childhood memory their lesson had unearthed. They had begun to have these talks about his childhood since they were usually the ones that are extracted first by the spell.
"Not really."
"I apologize again you had to live with them, Harry."
"You don't have to do that."
"Yes, I do. I was young, impulsive, and arrogant. If I had kept my mind at the time, I wouldn't have gone after the rat. You wouldn't have had to spend time with those horrible people."
"You were acting from your heart. Please do not apologize for that."
Sirius had no reply. He gazed at the young man silently.
"I think, I've figured, my childhood memories are the first ones that are extracted because they aren't the ones I think are worth enough to guard." He said softly.
Again, Sirius just silently nodded. Frankly, he didn't know what to say.
"They are horrible, yes. And they have left their mark on me. I am still dealing with how they may have affected me. But you've helped with that. You, and Ron and especially Hermione, have all helped. I didn't realize actually, she's been doing it since I've met her. And I've become… aware of these problems. And I am dealing with them. It's getting a little better everyday. I'm not saying they're going away. They're still there. I think they always will be. But that isn't what's important." He turned to look at his godfather.
"What's important are the memories I've formed since meeting all of you. They are the ones I'll give my life guarding."
Sirius nodded at his godson. Again, he's amazed at the change he had gone from a depressed and angry boy into the powerful and confident young wizard before him now.
I just wish I can take away the solemn look of his eyes just as easily as I've nourished him back from his neglected childhood. He shook his head regretfully. He can still see how Harry felt detached from everyone else despite the family they had tentatively formed this summer. He knew he couldn't banish his godson's loneliness alone. He needs something else. Someone else. But he knew that he couldn't tell Harry who or what he needs. There is another way but I'm not sure I can do it. So much can go wrong.
"Do you think I should take the prefect badge?" Harry's voice cut in his reveries.
"What do you want to do?"
"I'd like to but I'm not sure I can handle it. I don't want to take on too much."
"Ron and Hermione can help you out. Remus is telling me Ron's training is going very well. Whatever you guys said to him worked. He's working his bum off learning everything he could."
"That's great! I knew he had it in him. I'd like to continue working when we get back to Hogwarts, maybe we can ask for permission from McGonagall to have a certain period for training."
"That's a good idea. Remus and Tonks have taken to dueling Ron at the same time. He might not have the physical and magical arsenal you have but Moony says the boy has an amazing gift for tactical acuity. That's why they've decided to harness it by simulating fight situations. He's getting sharp at assessing each set-up and reacting instinctively. He's shown some Animagus abilities too, though not at prodigious as what you and Hermione have displayed. You will all start Animagus lessons at the same time. Hopefully you would have achieved full transformation by the time you get back to Hogwarts."
"I'll have a lot to tell him then when we visit him at the Burrow tonight. It will be nice to spend some time together again."
"Do you maybe, want to talk about something else?" Sirius asked him haltingly.
Harry tried to read his godfather. As usual, it produced no results. He turned away and sighed.
"You mean about her."
"You can't keep dancing around it and pretending it's not there."
"We're best friends. I can't risk it. I can't lose her."
"It might be something more, wouldn't you want that? Do you care for her?"
He looked at Sirius in disbelief. "You must be kidding."
"I meant, do you care for her more than a really good friend?"
Harry fell silent. "That's part of why I'm trying to keep everything the same as before. I'm not sure. We've grown so close, and I'm so used to being with her. She's making me lose sleep. I keep making excuses to touch her, watch her. I'm starting to think I might be a perverted maniac." He said dryly. "But what if it's not real? What if I'm mistaking these feelings I have for something else?"
"Don't you think you'd rather find out then lose your chance at something that could be really wonderful?"
"The risk is too great, I can lose her."
Sirius sighed. "Don't you think, Harry, that you should be able to trust her more than that? You have been through a lot. You said so yourself that your lives are intertwined so much you consider your life before meeting us - and her - as nothing more than requisite existence. I think you can count on your friendship to survive if you are mistaken. Which in my opinion, you're not."
Harry sighed. "She makes me feel everything. When she's with me, I feel like I'm with her. Does that make sense?"
"She makes you feel like you're here. Here, in this place, in this time, with us. She grounds you."
Harry just nodded. "But she's been my rock ever since. It's like the way it's always been but it's different. I can't throw away what we have just because I felt an itch that it can be something else. The risks are too great for me this time. I'm not even sure what I'm risking it for."
Sirius put his arm around the young man in comfort. He knew what his godson was talking about. It was eerily similar to a conversation he had with another raven-haired boy years and years ago though the circumstances of the two were miles different.
But the emotion they're describing was the same.
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"Harry! Harry!" Hermione shook her friend's shoulder to catch his attention; He turned to her with glazed eyes.
"Oh hi, Hermione. Are we leaving?"
"Sirius says we have about an hour. We're still waiting for Tonks."
He nodded then turned his head towards the window again.
"Are you alright?"
"I was just thinking."
Hermione bit her lip. She could tell he was reluctant to share but she also knew if she prodded him enough, he'd tell her what was bothering him. She raised a hand to his cheek and turned his face towards hers. His emerald eyes were clouded with uncertainty. She answered his gaze unflinchingly, looking for the hint on whether she should ask him to confide in her or not. Then she sighed and raised both arms to hug her friend.
It was not the time.
Harry buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling the light perfume of her hair. He knew she wouldn't ask. Not yet. Reluctantly, he released her and stood up.
"C'mon, let's join them."
Hand in hand, they silently went to the kitchen to join the adults. Sirius saw them walk in and raised a brow but said nothing. They each took a seat at the marble island.
"So Hermione, just tell them that you asked the muggles for a night off ok?"
Hermione nodded at the excuse they've agreed to give the Weasleys for her presence, though she really wasn't comfortable lying to the Weasleys about everything. However, she did trust Sirius and Remus enough to follow their advice and, in her unvoiced opinion, slight paranoia at the precautions they were taking. She did understand though that they had lost so much in the last war and they were doing everything they could to make sure they did not lose anything more.
At that moment, the fire in the kitchen fireplace glowed green. Sirius moved to catch his cousin. To his surprise, he caught a tall, black-haired, young woman dressed in tight, low-riding jeans and a sleeveless, V-cut black blouse instead. Before she could stand upright, his vantage point let him see quite clearly that she was wearing a pink, lacy silk bra over firm, full breasts. They were mesmerizing. The unfamiliar woman raised her face to look at the owner of the arms which caught her and Sirius forgot to breathe. She had the blackest, softest hair imaginable with a heart shaped face framing high cheekbones and the pinkest cupid bow lips. To top everything, her large doe eyes slanted at the ends were the mesmerizing color of midnight blue, almost bordering on black. She opened her mouth, presumably to ask who he was but was distracted by his cousin tumbling to the floor beside them.
"Just my luck, the day you decide to help me out of the floo and I bring someone with me." Tonks said as she looked up at Sirius still holding the young woman in his arms.
The visitor let out a musical laugh. She looked from Sirius, who seemed to have no intention of releasing her, to Tonks who was getting up from the floor. "Um, Tonks, did you forget to tell me anything about this mode of transportation of yours?"
"What do you mean?"
The woman looked at Sirius again; she seemed to be biting her cheek to keep from laughing. "Does is it really come with a personal catcher? And uh, how exactly would I get off?"
Tonks finally noticed Sirius' face and let out a huge belly laugh which seemed to shake the man out of his stupor. Blushing furiously, he released the woman in his arms.
"Well…"
The woman's eyes were sparkling with amusement. She held out a hand. "Hullo, I'm Lexie."
Something; some spark, took hold of Sirius. Almost without thinking about it, he took her hand and brought it to his lips and kissed it. "Enchante, Mademoiselle". She felt his warm lips on the back of her hand and her eyes lit up in a way that Tonks had never seen before.
Lexie looked at him with surprise and something that he might have read, in his earlier years, as genuine interest. His eyes held hers for a long moment, before the spell was broken.
Tonks' muffled laughter finally reached his now conscious brain. He angled his head to look past Lexie and saw the two teenagers and his old friend with their hands covering their mouths. They had been watching him all this time apparently.
"Um, I don't really mean to be rude or anything." Sirius' attention was wrenched back to the stunning black haired woman. "But I will need my hand some time in the near future."
Sirius' face colored like a tomato again as he realized he had not released her hand. He shook his head to regain whatever dignity he could muster and let go. "I'm sorry. My name's Sirius."
Tonks took the woman's waist and was also biting her cheek to keep from laughing. "Let me introduce you to the rest of the group now that my cousin has consented to let you go."
"Oh, is he the one you were telling me about?" Tonks nodded.
Sirius eyed Tonks warily. "What exactly did she tell you?"
Lexie's lips broke into a huge grin. "Oh, nothing. Just that you came from the other side. You're Sirius Black right?"
He nodded. Tonks motioned the others in the room. "And this is Remus Lupin. The two hyenas there are Harry Potter and Hermione Granger." Each person stood up and shook the newcomer's hand.
"Guys, this is Lexie Montenegro, my cousin from my dad's side. Her mum's my aunt."
A chorus of hellos greeted her.
Remus raised an eyebrow at Tonks. "You're a Muggle?"
Lexie looked at Tonks first then nodded. "That's what you call non-magical folks right? But don't worry about the secrecy statute. I'm family anyway. Uncle Ted told us about him and Aunt Addie's family long ago. Tonks is my closest cousin; we used to spend summers together when she came back from Hogwarts."
"Nice to meet you." Hermione said. "So what do you do?"
"I'm going to be graduated from the Cambridge University School of Law next year. I'm on summer break so I decided to stay for a spell with Tonks at her flat. It's been awhile since we've seen each other."
"Wow." Harry could see Hermione was impressed. He's heard of Cambridge Law, too. He knew it was a tough school to get into.
"So you're the boy wonder." Harry blushed at Lexie's comment while Hermione stiffened and imperceptibly moved closer. The older woman, it seemed had very sharp eyes, as she raised an eyebrow at the young girl's reaction. "And you're the quote unquote smartest bloody witch of her age." She then turned to Remus, her mouth quirked with a mischievous smirk. "And you, my friend, seem to be the strong and silent older man." Tonks blushed furiously while she pinched her cousin's arm. "Ow! That hurt, Nymphie!"
"Nymphie?!" All four pairs of eyes turned to Tonks. Lexie had the grace to look embarrassed and mouthed Sorry! to her cousin.
"Uh, she couldn't pronounce my name when we were kids. It stuck." She eyed the black haired muggle murderously.
"Nymph. I like it." Remus stared at the young Auror intensely. Tonks felt her mouth go dry. "It suits you."
Sirius cleared his throat. "Um, sorry about, um..." He gestured at the floo. "But uh, I assume you're coming with us."
The woman nodded. "Tonks told me you were visiting some friends. You won't mind do you? I'd appreciate the chance to meet some more magical people. Tonks and her mum are the only ones I know, besides Uncle Ted. It all sounds so fascinating though."
"It's no trouble, is it Uncle? I'm sure the Weasleys won't mind." Harry asked.
"Molly would revel at another mouth to feed." Sirius said, rolling his eyes.
Tonks took Lexie's hand. "You'll love the Weasleys. They're the epitome of a magical family."
Sirius led them to the floo again. He took some of the green powder and threw it into the fire. "The Burrow!"
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Lexie was in heaven. Or rather a noisy, warm, and very fascinating version of heaven. She loved everything about the Burrow. Upon arriving and being introduced to the Weasley family, Molly had taken her in one of her infamous hugs and then proceeded to berate Tonks for apparently "underfeeding" her. She was fascinated about everything in the house. Everything captured her imagination - from the magical clock of the family, to the kitchen, which seemed to function on its own, down to the knitting needles making a sweater with invisible hands.
"Enjoying yourself, are you?" Tonks sat next to her.
"It's all so fascinating! I had no idea it can all be like this. I mean, I spent summers at your house but this is just too much."
Her cousin nodded. "They are one of a kind."
"Now, let me get it straight. The one talking to the blonde is Bill right? And that's his girlfriend Fleur. The twins are Fred and George. The one who went up to his room is called Percy. Ginny is the only girl, and that one over there with Harry and Hermione is Ron."
"And I'm Charlie." Lexie turned to look at the redhead who was extending a glass with pale orange liquid inside. "Pumpkin Juice?"
She smiled and took the glass. "I never knew you can actually make juice out of a pumpkin. I was rather in the notion of them just for Halloween and grinning." She took a sip. "This is delicious! So what do you do?"
"Oh, I work with dragons. I usually stay in Romania. That's where we raise them."
"Dragons? Heavens, they're real?! Aren't they dangerous?"
As the witch and wizard regaled the young woman with details about the magical beasts, they failed to register a pair of dark eyes scrutinizing their every move.
"Careful, Padfoot. From looking at you, one would think you would like to tear Charlie Weasley from limb to limb."
Sirius' eyes snapped to Remus who was handing him a mug of tea. "I don't like how he's too close to her. This is all so new; he might take advantage of her fascination."
Remus nodded. "Uh huh, and the fact that you almost didn't let go of her earlier and have watched every single move that the woman has made has absolutely nothing to do with it." Sirius scowled at him and Remus laughed. Sirius shook her head and tried to school his features into a menacing glare but he lost the fight and laughed.
"You know me too well, Moony."
Across the room, the trio was also discussing the newcomer. "Blimey, she's a looker, huh mate?"
Harry shrugged. From the corner of his eye, he glanced at Hermione. "Yeah, she is."
Blushing, she turned towards Lexie, Tonks and Charlie. "Sirius hasn't been able to take his eyes off her."
Harry grinned. "That's true. You should have seen him when she first came out of the floo. He looked like someone punched him in the gut. I wonder if Tonks would start bringing her to the Barmy Hole." His eyes twinkled with mischief.
"That would be interesting. I'd like a chance to get back at him for his prank yesterday."
Ron turned to Hermione. "What prank?"
Hermione looked like a deer caught in headlights. Harry just turned red and was looking like he'd downed flobberworms. "Uh, some stupid prank he pulled on Harry and me as retaliation to the one Harry pulled on him. Oh my, Ron, you should have seen it! It was brilliant how he turned into a canary! Tell him, Harry." Hermione was frantic.
Ron narrowed his eyes suspiciously at his friends. Harry gulped and made a big show of telling how he had tricked Sirius into turning into a canary. Fortunately, Hermione's tactic seemed to work. Ron doubled up in laughter. "You should have seen his face!"
Hermione looked at Ron, breathing a discreet sigh of relief. She shook her head. She should have a talk with him soon but she had no idea how to bring their issues up without him running the other way. She looked at Harry and gave him a grateful smile. He gave her a grin back. A corner of her mouth turned up and she winked at him playfully.
Harry's breath hitched when Hermione winked at him. Winked! She had never winked at him for as long as he could remember knowing her. Then his eyes traveled down to her full pink lips when one of its corners turned up. They looked so soft. I wonder how they would feel if I kissed her? Harry's eyes widened. What the bloody hell is wrong with him? They were in the Weasleys' living room. How the hell can I think about kissing Hermione? Be honest, you pervert. You've been thinking about kissing Hermione since that night in the den. You've been thinking of doing a lot more than kissing her. Harry shook his head, unwilling to be thinking such thoughts about Hermione. He felt like he was violating her for some reason. Determinedly, he turned to Ron. "Hey, Sirius tells me you're getting really good at lessons."
Ron flushed. "Really? Well, Remus and Tonks have been amazing. They set up all these obstacles and when it's all of us, it's really brilliant. Mostly, it's been just me though. The twins are busy doing god knows what, they can't come to every lesson. But they have been frighteningly asking Remus for the books he's teaching from. I don't even want to think what they're planning to do with those. I think Dad figured out what we were doing. He's allowed Ginny to join me a few times but you know how Mum get so she still can't come regularly."
"I knew he would. I saw his face that night. At least, he understands how we need it. Have you started your workouts too? You look really well." Hermione teased him.
Ron turned an embarrassing shade of red. "Aww, Hermione."
She laughed. But her laughter caught in her throat when she saw the dark scowl on Harry's face. Her brow frowned. "Is everything alright, Harry?"
"What? Oh, yeah. Sorry. I was just thinking about my next shift at the Dursleys."
"Oh yeah, how's that going mate? Are they treating you alright?"
"Well, they're the same. It's all bearable though. I mean, I get to go home after a few hours. I usually just do some chores outside when I'm there. I mean, it's the whole point isn't it? So thankfully, I really don't spend much time interacting with them."
"And you shouldn't have to. They're abominable." Hermione pursed her lips.
Harry's eyes softened and he placed a hand on her upper arm. "Thanks." She looked him straight in the eye. He could lose himself in the chocolate depths of her eyes all night.
"Ahem."
Harry looked at Ron and grinned. "Sorry, mate." His friend actually raised an eyebrow at him in an eerily similar look of Hermione's. His blue eyes bored into his deeply as if trying to figure out something. A silly, errant thought that they might be spending a bit too much time together flitted through Harry's mind.
"Hey guys, excuse me for a second. I'd like some time with Ginny, ok?" The two boys nodded.
Harry's eyes followed her as she made her way to where the youngest Weasley was laughing with the twins, Charlie, Tonks and Lexie.
"She's changed." Harry's head whipped to see Ron also watching their best friend and then turned to him. "You have, too." Harry nodded his head silently.
Ron was looking at the happy group with Hermione. "Everything's changing, eh?" Harry looked at Ron as if seeing him for the first time. In all their years, he's never heard him talk like this.
He sighed. "It was bound too. Are you alright?"
Ron shook his head. "Everything is just different, is all. C'mon, let's join the fun." They stood up and joined the group in the middle of the room. As they approached, Hermione gave him a beaming smile and handed them both a butterbeer.
"Oi, Harry, Hermione here tells us you used our Canary Creams on Sirius. How was it?"
Harry grinned. "It was bloody brilliant!"
Suddenly smoke enveloped him. Harry felt cold all over, like someone abruptly dumped a pail of cold water over his head. He sensed a tingle of magic washing over his skin.
"What the?!" Everybody coughed and tried to wave away the fog.
When the smoke cleared, a huge silence enveloped the crowd as they stared at Harry. Then there was a camera flash and everybody started laughing loudly. He looked at Hermione in time to see her clicking more pictures with a small camera at him. "Hermione, what are you doing? Stop that! You're blinding me!" Thankfully, she granted his request. "What's everybody on? What's funny?" He said, turning to everyone. Tonks made wild gestures that seemed to indicate his clothes. He looked down and his eyes widened with horror. He was wearing a tight, baby pink, t-shirt with "I Heart Snape" printed in big red letters. And he was in his boxers, baby pink silk boxers, covered in fluttering multi-colored prints of Snape's face! He desperately tried to cover anything his arms can reach. He looked at Hermione and his eyes narrowed with intent. "Hermione!!" He bellowed. He was going to kill her!
His supposed best friend had tears coming out of her eyes from laughing as she made her way to him. She placed both hands on his shoulders and raised herself on tiptoes. Harry suddenly forgot what he was wearing. He thought he might even have forgotten to breathe. His hands automatically went to her waist. She didn't try to remove his hands though as she brushed her lips purposefully against his scar. It was so light a touch that he couldn't decide if he felt or imagined her kiss. He felt like his body was being suffused again with cold water and distantly he recognized the effects of a Disillusionment Charm being removed but what he couldn't explain was how the there came to be a swarm of butterflies in his stomach. He felt like he was being hypnotized by her twinkling, dark rum-colored eyes as she turned to look at him. His eyes closed involuntarily as he inhaled her very tantalizing perfume deeply.
"Open your eyes."
Harry complied and saw everyone was still laughing save for Ginny who was definitely not smiling and looking at both him and Hermione very speculatively. He mentally shrugged her expression off and looked down to see, to his relief, that he was now wearing his own clothes again. Hermione stepped back and sat down beside Tonks. "Scared now, Potter?"
Ron was aghast. "That was you?!" The twins were looking at Hermione with something bordering on respect. The young girl flushed and grinned sheepishly.
"Absolutely brilliant!!" Sirius called out from across the room.
"Sirius, you're supposed to be helping me!" Harry glowered at his godfather.
"Well, it was, you have to admit." Sirius' muttered comment was suspiciously audible.
Harry then glowered at his best friend. His supposed best friend. Hermione bit her lower lip. Harry narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Instead of looking contrite, she looked like she was trying to hold back laughter. Her action refocused his attention to her lips again. Harry groaned mentally as he remembered her light kiss. Then he shook his head and started chuckling softly. His eyes met hers and she finally gave in to a deep, throaty laugh. His eyes darkened as he took in the rich, sexy sound. His lips split into a satisfied grin. No one, if he can remember it correctly, has ever made her laugh like that.
"Absolutely petrified, Granger." He walked over to her and lowered to her eye level. "But of course, this means war." His eyes were twinkling madly with imagined mischiefs to come.
Hermione's eyes shone at the challenge in his voice. Then she held out the camera. "Ah., but I have proof." She smirked at him smugly.
"Ahhcck!" He tried to wrestle the camera from her. Hermione tossed gadget to Ron who promptly ran away.
"Ron!"
Molly and Arthur sat back watching as the young adults, and the not so young ones, chased each other passing the camera back and forth as Harry tried to catch it desperately, seeming to have forgotten that he could have just summoned the gadget to him.
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"What are you planning to do with all the time off?" Hermione asked Lexie as she joined her and Tonks for breakfast. All the boys were still asleep.
"I'm not so sure actually. It's the first summer I've taken off in a long while. I usually used my summers to take on some part time work or projects for extra money."
"When was the last summer we took together?" Tonks scrunched in concentration. "It was after my first year of auror training. And that was after your final year at uni right?"
"Uhuh. I took the summer off before law school."
"To work at that studio if I remember right. She's a dancer."
Hermione's eyes twinkled. "Really? I took some classes when I was younger. My mother made me." She made a face.
Lexie giggled. "I assume it was ballroom then."
"Right on one."
She smirked. "Well, you can get refresher courses then. I was a ballroom dance instructor." Hermione groaned but her eyes lit up with excitement. "You started enjoying them didn't you?"
"No one knows I took lessons so please don't say anything to the boys. I'll never hear the end of it. What do you teach?"
"Well, I leaned towards the Latin dances. Part of the heritage I guess."
"She's a mutt. Half-British, a quarter Spanish, and a quarter Brazilian." Tonks interjected as her cousin stuck out her tongue at her.
"You're just jealous that I have a tan all year round."
"True. And you should see her on the dance floor. She's phenomenal."
"Would you mind if we did do some lessons?" Hermione asked hesitantly.
"Not at all. I adore dancing. Though I can only do the tango and the salsa. If you're interested, I can also teach you a more modern Brazilian martial arts dance. Tonks told me you guys are heavy on working out this summer."
"What is it called?"
"Capoeira. It combines dance, acrobatics, music, and fighting techniques. Each lesson is set to ambient music that's heavy on the drumbeats and string instruments. It's very involving but also intensive. There's a lot of acrobatics involved like cartwheels, sweeps, kicks, that sort of thing. Capoeira requires balance and flexibility since the basic moves flow into one another while at the same time timing your moves with the music. It's highly meditative that way and great for your cardiovascular system."
"That sounds fascinating."
Lexie beamed. "You're in luck then. I've been studying it for some time. I'll be happy to help you learn."
"Help learn what?"
Lexie looked up as Sirius came in and her breath caught, He was wearing a white shirt over black pajama bottoms. The man absolutely dripped in sex appeal. His hair was rumpled and his eyes still had that sleep in look as he gave her a mind-blowingly sexy grin. Well, he sure knows how to use his charms, she thought dryly.
"Lexie's a capoerista. She's offered to teach me, says it's a great workout."
Sirius had an exaggerated look on his face "Merlin, now you're asking for more exercise? Have I created a monster?"
Hermione stuck her tongue at him.
Sirius laughed. "What's a capo-rays-ta?"
Lexie grimaced. "CA-PO-Ey-RA. It's a Brazilian martial arts dance. I've been telling Hermione about it and she wants to learn. I told her I'd be happy to teach her especially since Tonks told me you guys have been into physical training this summer. I'll be happy to include Harry too, if he wants."
Sirius' eyes honed on Tonks'. She stared right back at him with a determined tilt of her chin. He shook his head at her.
"So am I in the secret club?" Lexie droned tonelessly.
Apparently, he wasn't as discreet as he thought. He openly glared at Tonks, clearly meaning that they would talk about it later.
Sirius sighed. "You asked for it. We can spar this afternoon. If they want to take these lessons, I'd really like to see first if it's beneficial enough."
Lexie just rolled her eyes at him. "Men," she muttered under her breath.
*************************
Sirius couldn't believe it. The damned woman was kicking his ass.
Harry and Hermione were sitting in the dueling room totally entranced with the fight between the two. They had Protector charms applied so they wouldn't hurt each other but the fight was still taking its toll. Both were panting already as they stood in front of each other.
Suddenly, Lexie faked a right jab at Sirius who leaned back and moved his right foot to outbalance her. She dropped forward on both hands, her right arm blocking his foot while her left leg swung up from behind and connected with his face. She let her lower body propel her into a cartwheel and she was again on her feet facing him. Lexie was constantly lunging from side to side in ginga, which Lexie had told them was the most basic Capoeira move.
Sirius was fighting with a mix of Muay Thai and Aikido. Regaining his balance from the woman's kick, he was standing with his arms raised in defensive stance. Lexie sprang forward. Right before she reached Sirius, she dropped her upper body to gain momentum and propelled her left leg in an upper arch then fluidly swirled again, this time her leg sweeping downwards. Sirius had anticipated her move and moved out of the way of her foot.
Frustrated with failure to connect with her opponent, she twirled upright to swing another kick at him before launching into a roundhouse kick which Sirius ducked to avoid.
Sirius tried to kick her with his right leg but Lexie dropped into a split then twisted her upper body into a side cartwheel, dropping onto a position facing Sirius on all fours. Her right leg swung up again. Sirius leaned back. From her kick, Lexie dropped her upper body forward presenting her lower back to Sirius while still watching him from the vee of between her legs. He stepped forward to take advantage of what he thought was a vulnerable position when her left foot shot out forward. He blocked by taking hold of her leg. Leaning her weight on the captured leg, she kicked Sirius with her right. He staggered back but recovered quickly and moved toward her. Lexie back-flipped into a handstand and while staying upright, proceeded to pummel Sirius with several kicks which he blocked effectively save for one which again sent him backwards. Using the force from her last kick at Sirius, Lexie spun on one hand before dropping back and springing into an upright position facing Sirius again.
Sirius shook his head. "Enough." The woman had the audacity to grin at him smugly. The two teenagers stood on their feet and were clapping furiously, cheering Lexie. "I think they get how it's supposed to be. Besides," He gave her a charming grin. "My ego can't handle anymore. You're superb."
Her eyebrow arched and a corner of her mouth turned up. Damn, the man had appeal. Lexie shook her head. "Thank you. I have been studying it for a while now."
"You were absolutely phenomenal."
"Thanks, Hermione."
"That really was awesome. Can you teach us to move like that?"
"Um, I have to confess. That wasn't strictly capoeira. I took some martial arts lessons when I was a kid so when I started taking Capoeira lessons, my style was heavily influenced by that, or so my Mestre says. The thing with the discipline is that it's a complete chameleon so that it adapts to the purpose, background, and personality of the practitioner."
"They won't find it too hard, I think. It will blend well with the aikido and muay thai lessons they have."
Lexie quirked a brow again. "Training hard, I see."
Blast, the woman was too sharp for her own good. Sirius didn't know how to reply since he really wasn't thrilled at including a muggle that summer, even if she was Tonks' cousin. So he just flashed his most charming smile and carelessly shrugged his shoulders. "School bullies." Privately, he resolved to have a serious talk with Tonks as soon as possible.
She laughed disbelievingly. "Right. Well, chop-chop. Let me see what Sirius has been teaching you and let's try to correct them as much as possible"
*******************
Remus and Tonks were quietly talking when the kitchen door swung and in came two grumbling teenagers, followed a grimacing marauder and finally, by a madly grinning black-haired woman.
"She's worse than Sirius." Harry muttered as he took his seat next to Hermione who was already piling food on her plate.
"You wanted to learn." Lexie pointed out.
Sirius sat gingerly. Remus was stifling his laughter as he stood up and pulled up a chair for himself after surrendering his seat to Lexie. "Feeling old, old friend?"
Tonks patted her cousin on the back. "Good job."
Sirius glared at her while Lexie just gave in to full blown laughter.
"How can you people be so happy torturing others, particularly us, like that?" Hermione shook her head.
"Hey, you guys were the one saying you are pressed for time so I am giving you an intense crash course. Besides, you have those pink energy drinks of yours. I had to learn all these for years and with only painkillers to help me." Hermione rolled her eyes and then concentrated on eating once more.
"By the way, Padfoot," Remus held out a locket to Sirius. "I found this while I was cleaning the attic with Tonks a few days ago."
"Along with Kreacher's body. He was clutching it together with a picture of 'Auntie' Bellatrix."
Hermione's eyebrows furrowed. "Who's Kreacher?"
"So that's why we haven't seen him." Harry mused. "Kreacher was the Black's old house elf. He was as nutty as they come, kept mumbling to himself about traitors and half-bloods. He was pathetic but I felt kind of sorry for him, he wasn't really treated well. I tried to be nice but he was too messed up already, I guess.
Hermione nodded. Then her head snapped back. "Wait, Bellatrix as in Bellatrix Lestrange is your aunt?!" She looked at Tonks horrified. "The same mad, Death Eater Bellatrix who escaped from Azkaban a few weeks back?"
Tonks grimaced. Harry grasped Hermione's elbow gently. "Remind me to show you the Black Family tree later."
Sirius was still turning the locket over in his hands. "I haven't seen this before." He said, his brow furrowed.
"May I?"
Sirius passed the locket to Hermione. It was an old locket, heavy in her hand. She tried to open it but it wouldn't give way. She squinted at what appeared to be markings etched on it.
Harry watched as she bit her lower lip in concentration. Then she turned to him, holding out the locket. "What do you think of it?"
Harry grasped the locket. He turned it around in his hand just as Hermione had done, at a loss at what it was. He peered at the engravings. Suddenly, the markings seemed to move on its own before his eyes. He could feel himself being sucked in whatever was inside. His mouth moved of its own accord.
"SSSsshhkketh Lesshhhtkhanthe" The locket glowed in his hand and transfigured before his very eyes. A snake "S" carved itself on the front of the locket. Without warning, a sharp pain speared from his forehead.
"Harry!!"
Hermione's fading voice was the last thing he heard before darkness engulfed him.