Disclaimer - The world of Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling and various publishers. I make no claim to ownership.
A/N: Thanks to my beta Vettesr, and those kind enough to review.
Chapter Two: The Burrow
Mr. Weasley arrived at Number Four Privet Drive to pick up Harry and Hermione. It was still early in the morning, but they were ready and eager to leave. Hermione had flooed over, an hour earlier, and they had a talk about what they were willing to tell the Weasley's.
We have to let the Weasley's know about us, Hermione, Maybe just not as much as we've told Ron.
We have to be really careful Harry, It would be so easy to let something slip. The Weasley's are an old pureblood family. They'll be quick to pick up on anything we say. In particular, Mrs. Weasley is pretty sharp. According to Ron, not much gets by her. We can tell them that we are dating, that should be safe.
I don't know love, they're sure to figure that something is odd if they catch us talking to each other without speaking. I think we should tell them that we are soul bonded and have expanded powers, without really going into specifics. If they press us, we'll hold back as much as we can and refer them to Dumbledore.
Harry, maybe we shouldn't stay too long. This could quickly get out of hand. Maybe my parents would like some time with us and we can stay there.
Maybe we could spend a week with Ron, then the rest of the summer with your parents. Ron would like us to stay much longer, but I don't think we can chance it Hermione.
His relatives were glad to see him go, not even saying goodbye, although Aunt Petunia could be seen at the window giving a small wave and a sad smile.
"Hello kids, I see you're ready," said Mr. Weasley.
"Hi Mr. Weasley," they greeted him.
"Thanks for having us we really appreciate it," said Harry.
"We're glad to have you Harry. Ron and the twins talk about you all the time. I'm glad to finally meet you Hermione. Ron's grades wouldn't be anywhere near as good without you badgering him. Ron tells me that you two are dating. That's quite young, but I'm sure we won't mind. Mrs. Weasley might get a little sticky about it, but Ron tells us you two have good sense, so there should be no problems. Harry, you'll bunk in with Ron and Hermione with Ginny. Ginny starts school this year, so you two should get along just fine."
They loaded their belongings into an old Ford Anglia and Mr. Weasley drove off. When they reached the open countryside, Mr. Weasley flipped a switch and they were airborne. Another switch kicked in the invisibility booster. An hour later the arrived at The Burrow. Harry marveled at how Mr. Weasley had modified the car.
"Don't tell anybody Harry," warned Mr. Weasley. "It's an illegal modification, although just to the extent that I'm not supposed to use it to fly. Molly doesn't know that, and I'm not telling her."
"Molly?" questioned Harry.
"Ah, Molly is Mrs. Weasley, my first name is Arthur," said Mr. Weasley. "Best to get the formalities out of the way. Whichever way suits you best is alright with us."
"Thanks a lot Mr. Weasley, we appreciate the hospitality," said Hermione.
The moment they walked in, `Happy Birthday Harry' burst from the room. Mrs. Weasley gave them a crushing hug, Ron shook their hands, the twins let out a whoop, and Percy shook hands and congratulated him. Ginny's face turned red, and she shyly grinned at them, her eyes avoiding Harry. It looked like the youngest Weasley really did have a crush on Harry.
Recovering from the surprise greeting, they all moved into the living room. After everyone was seated, Mr. Weasley brought presents for Harry.
Harry blushed a deep red at all this attention and stammered thanks. Opening his presents, Harry was surprised at the thoughtfulness of the Weasley clan. None of it was expensive, but the thought behind the presents brought a glistening to his eyes. "Thank you all, this is really the best birthday I've ever had! Of course, it's the only one that anyone other than Hagrid ever acknowledged. I'm really touched."
Hermione had saved her present until last, and slipped it into his hand. He opened it and found a small gold Snitch on a pendant.
"Happy birthday Harry," she said.
"It's beautiful Hermione," he gulped. This was the best birthday ever.
I have something better for you later Harry, Hermione thought to him.
***
Catching Mr. Weasley alone, they stopped and talked to him in a quiet corner.
"Uh, Mr. Weasley, there's something you should know," said Harry. "We don't tell everyone this, and in fact only Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, your son Ron, and Neville Longbottom know this. We don't want it becoming general knowledge. From all that Ron has told me about your family, I feel I can trust you and Mrs. Weasley like family."
Harry, should we be telling him this just now?
Yes, Hermione, best let him know now, rather than he find out later accidentally.
"What is it Harry?" Mr. Weasley asked.
Harry gulped and began, "Ron has told you that we are dating, but there is more. Hermione and I are soul bonded. It happened on the train last year. We can speak to each other in our heads, and can do other things that others can't do."
"Soul bonded? I see," said Mr. Weasley, "that really can complicate things. I'll have to talk to Molly about this, I'm afraid she might put up a bit of a fuss."
"We have to remain in fairly close contact until the bonding is complete. We have been doing an ok job with that this summer, but we really felt like it is something that you should know. What do you know about soul bonding?"
"Well Harry, not too much since it's pretty rare. I've never heard it happening to ones so young. People usually soul bond thru a ceremony or the naturally occurring bonds are considered to be unbreakably married. Natural bonds usually form thru deep love and understanding."
"When we reach the final stage, we'll be considered legally married. Separating us for any length of time now would be deadly to us until we are fully bonded," Hermione explained. "We know it's awfully young, but Professor Dumbledore says there's no precedent for it. He's still researching it, but he suspects the castle holds the secret. We love each other and will have a formal ceremony some day."
Mr. Weasley stood there with his mouth open. He had never imagined what they had told him was even remotely possible. "Oh dear, oh dear," he said. "I'm not sure Molly will understand. She's a romantic, but this goes well beyond what she or I would ever be able to comprehend."
"Please try to accept it Mr. Weasley, we need you to understand. Even Ron doesn't know the full story," Harry stressed.
"Well, we'll give it a go, and see if we can work out some private time for the two of you," replied Mr. Weasley. "However, I must insist that the two of you act responsibly, we'll keep your secret, but watch out for the twins and especially Ginny. The twins may try to prank you, but Ginny has had a crush on Harry since meeting you last year. Please don't hurt her."
"Thank you sir," they both said. "We understand and we will be careful."
"How surprising! You can both talk in unison, something like the twins."
***
After lunch and a birthday cake, Harry and Hermione managed to sneak away, and made for a grove of trees at the edge of the property. Making sure they couldn't be seen from the house, they settled down on the soft ground.
Wrapping her arms around Harry, she pulled him close, they kissed, and deepening the kiss, their tongues danced against each other. Working her way along his jawline, she dipped her tongue into his ear, she then took his earlobe into her mouth and sucked it. Harry gasped with pleasure, She was starting to drive Harry wild and he was starting to get an intense reaction in his body.
Hermione's resolve also was weakening. Pulling away she thought to Harry.
Harry, we have to be careful, we can't go farther. In the Muggle world we would be in serious trouble if anyone caught us. If the one of the Weasleys caught us there would be big trouble. Panting, they finally lay back until their hearts slowed down. Rearranging themselves, they kissed long and passionately. Amazed at the response they were able to give each other, they lay back and rested for awhile. No words were spoken, and none were needed. Both knew that they went as far as they dared. The magic had almost pushed them past the point of no return. This was serious, how could they restrain themselves from the next step!
The soul bond again strengthened with the blue aura surrounding them.
Entering the house, everyone wondered where they had been.
Ron suspected, but didn't say anything.
Ginny piped up. "You guys just sort of disappeared, we wanted to talk and visit properly."
Fred and George suspecting something, teased, "Couldn't wait to be alone…"
"…with each other I suspect."
"What's this blue glow surrounding you two?" asked Mrs. Weasley.
"Blue glow?" inquired Ginny. "I don't see anything."
Uh oh, they thought, I hope Mr. Weasley will explain things to her.
The bond glow faded quickly and thankfully, no one else had noticed.
"Can we talk to you later Mrs. Weasley? We needed a little space to talk, so we walked to the edge of the forest," Harry lied. Well it was almost the truth. They didn't do much talking, but they did go to the edge of the forest.
"Molly, can I talk to you a minute?" Arthur asked his wife.
***
After dinner, they all went to the living room. Ginny was quiet, sensing that Harry was already spoken for. Disappointment lit her face and both Harry and Hermione picked up on it. Harry wondered how to make her smile again. She obviously had a crush on him. This was dangerous ground, since he had fully committed himself to Hermione.
Hermione read his thoughts and a plan formed in her head. She hoped to be able to direct Ginny's attention to Neville. Neville would be perfect for her, and Ginny would bring Neville out of his shell. That left Ron with nobody. But she could work on that later.
Harry liked the idea at once, and they started plotting how to accomplish this.
***
Later, Mrs. Weasley confronted the pair.
"Arthur tells me that you two have bonded," she stated. "Can you tell me more about this? It sounds very strange for ones so young."
"Uh… Mrs. Weasley…" Hermione started. "Harry and I formed a soul bond on the train last year. We don't know how or why it happened, but it's very strong and getting stronger. The blue aura you saw earlier is a manifestation of the bonding."
"Mrs. Weasley, how much did Mr. Weasley tell you about the bond?" asked Harry.
"Well Arthur told me the basics but I'm sure there is more that you haven't told us Harry."
"I'm afraid that what we told Mr. Weasley is all that we're allowed to say, and it must be kept in strictest confidence. Anything else, you'll have to ask Professor Dumbledore, I'm very sorry."
Molly wasn't happy with this bit of information, but sensing their reticence to explain more, sighed and let it go.
"Alright, I'll see if the Headmaster is prepared to tell me more. For now, we'll just pretend that you're a normal couple of children."
"Thanks Mrs. Weasley," they both spoke.
Whew, that was a close one, they thought.
***
The week flew by with no more close calls. They played Quidditch behind The Burrow in an open field, three a side. The twins and Ron were startled to see Ginny was good on a broom. She had been sneaking their brooms from the shed for years. Harry and Hermione with Ron against the twins and Ginny.
Strangely, they were evenly matched, since Harry and Hermione had better brooms. Their downfall was Ron, who acted as Keeper and let in just as many as Ginny did. It didn't matter how they switched positions, the result was very close each time. Harry found he was rubbish as a Keeper, and Hermione was only marginally better. The surprise was Ron. He improved his game considerably as a Keeper. Hermione was better than Harry as a Chaser, but only just. Ginny was excellent as a Chaser, which surprised everyone.
Harry and Hermione were able to slip away each day for a snog. Molly Weasley was still none too happy about Harry and Hermione and flooed Professor Dumbledore. The Headmaster visited Molly and explained that, while highly unusual, they were to be left alone. The magic had chosen them and interfering with it would be tantamount to killing the duo. After a furious debate with the Headmaster, Molly decided that Harry was a good kid and deserved the best she could provide. That settled, she could only sigh that Ginny would have to look elsewhere for her `Knight In Shining Armour'. On that note, Hermione planned to approach Molly with what she and Harry planned. She wanted Molly's help in defusing what could be a problem with Ginny. Molly would be better able to direct Ginny's attention away from Harry. There was no way Hermione was going to stand for any interference from Ginny to grab Harry for herself. It would not be an easy conversation, Hermione sensed that Ginny was headstrong and would not give up easily.
Later, Hermione approached Molly.
"Mrs. Weasley, may I have a word with you?"
"Certainly dear."
"Harry and I feel that there might be a problem with Ginny's crush on Harry. Ron told us about it last year at school, and mentioned she was obsessed with "The Boy Who Lived". Harry and I are together and it would be awkward if Ginny tried to break us up. That could have serious consequences for Ginny, since Harry and I are bonded. I wonder if you would mind if we directed her attention quietly to another boy in our year to take her mind off Harry? You know the Longbottom family, and I believe you've met Neville. I think they might get along better than Harry and Ginny."
"My dear, I try not to interfere with my daughter's life, but perhaps a gentle nudge might be appropriate. Ginny is very headstrong, so I'm not sure how effective I can be. I certainly don't want her to be hurt over someone she can't have. Neville is a nice boy, and she's met him and played with him in the past."
"Harry and I think that Neville might need Ginny in his life to give him more confidence. Ginny would be good for him and Neville might be just the person to help Ginny forget about Harry. Both are young enough to form a lasting friendship."
"I could invite the Longbottoms over for a visit at Christmas break, by then they should be closer friends."
"Thanks Mrs. Weasley, we'd rather avoid trouble before it starts. I'm glad you understand."
***
Everyone was expecting Harry and Hermione to stay for the rest of the summer, but Hermione informed them that they were expected at the Grangers next week.
"Mum and Dad wanted a bit of time with me since I've been away all year, and Harry has been invited as well. We'll probably see you in Diagon Alley before school starts, and on the train of course."
"I'm looking forward to really getting to know Hermione's parents," Harry continued. "After all, they have a right to meet the boy dating their daughter."
Ron smirked at this. `Right! Dating might not be the appropriate word though,' he thought.
Arthur and Molly wondered how much the Grangers knew. Surely they must know more than they did. Dumbledore was still closemouthed about the whole thing. Maybe she should meet the Grangers later for a visit and tea…
Later that day, after goodbye's were said and hugs all around, Harry and Hermione flooed to the Grangers.
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