Unofficial Portkey Archive

Anything for Harry: Chapter 4

Harry woke up in the morning to the smell of bangers and eggs. He noticed immediately that Hermione was already up. He was lying sprawled out, face down, covering the vast majority of the bed. The sun was beginning to peak over the house across the street. He reached under the bed and found his glasses. The world came into focus when he got them on. I should stop and get a new pair today as well. It had been four years since he had gotten these, must have Hermione make the next pair impervious as well. It had been wonderful not having to clean or worry about breaking these. He stretched then sat up. His scar was a dull ache today, maybe they could find some time today to work on Occlumency? He pulled on his jeans, pocketed his wand, and headed to the toilet.

Morning necessities taken care of he joined everyone in the kitchen at their only remaining table. Hermione was blushing for some reason when he walked in. She had Crookshanks in her lap and was eating a heaping plate of eggs. She was wearing a pair of hiking boots, jeans, and a long-sleeved red sweater with gold trim. The sweater rather accentuated her breasts and he found himself having a hard time pulling his eyes away from her chest.

Dan looked at him and asked, "You slept like a log I hear."

He took a seat, wrenching his eyes over to Dan. He felt his cheeks flush red as Dan's eyebrow rose in question. He looked down at the plate in front of him. It looked like something Ron would eat, three bangers, three eggs, two pancakes and a mound of hash browns. He nodded in answer to the question, "Yeah, I usually wake up a lot but not lastnight. I went to sleep then woke up to the smell of food." He picked up the fork and shoveled a mass of hash browns into his mouth.

Dan said, "Good to hear, always nice to get a good night's sleep."

Harry nodded and continued to chew. Emma and Hermione started laughing about something though. He hated feeling ignorant so he gulped some orange juice and asked, "Ok, what am I missing? Did I do or say something embarrassing in my sleep?"

Hermione looked at him, "No, You did roll over onto me at one point though. I shoved you pretty hard, I didn't realize it was you at the time, I started to apologize but you just kept sleeping."

Now he understood why they were laughing. He smiled innocently at her. "Guess it doesn't bother me when you push me around, even in my sleep." This started another round of laughing, which he joined in. He set to eating like he had not had a meal in a week. The rest went back to their meals.

Ten minutes later Dobby appeared. "Good morning Harry Potter sir and Misses. Should I finish with the storing of everything now?"

Emma answered him, "Yes, everything except the suitcases and school trunks as we discussed earlier."

Dan looked at his watch, "That taxi should be here soon to take us to Gatwick. We need to be ready dear." Emma got up and headed upstairs, Dan continued. "Harry, we may have all gotten off on the wrong foot so I just want to clear the air before we separate. Emma and I realize a lot of things are beyond our and your control. If the two of you can work out your relationship and finish this Tom fellow off I would be proud to walk her down the aisle with you waiting at the altar. If that doesn't put your mind at ease I have no idea what would." He took a final swig of his coffee and stood.

Harry said, "Thank you sir, I think that will help me a lot." He stood and shook Dan's hand. Dan stepped closer though and turned it into a one armed hug.

When Dan pulled back he said, "Trust one another, when everything around you seems uncertain you will at least have that."

Hermione stood, Crookshanks leapt to the floor and headed towards the front of the house. She hugged her father. "Thanks for supporting us. Keep moving around for the next year, certainly not longer than a month anywhere."

Dan nodded, "We will, your mother has an itinerary that is about fifteen months long already." He chuckled as he waved and walked towards the front door.

Before following Hermione towards the front door he finished his second banger and drained his cup of juice. Dan and Emma were sitting on their luggage while Hermione stood beside them talking softly. Crookshanks had found a spot on the top step in the sunlight and was looking regally down the street. "That was an excellent breakfast, who did the cooking?"

Emma looked around at him, "I, Dans' too lazy unless he's grilling something and Hermione can't cook a thing though she makes an excellent sandwich."

A black mini pulled up in their driveway and a skinny black gentleman climbed out. He was carrying a clipboard and met them at the edge of the porch. "Two to Gatwick, or is it four? I got enough room."

Dan shook his head, "Just the two of us."

The man nodded, "All right then. I'm Andrew, can I help you with your luggage Mrs.?"

Emma handed him the handle and said, "Certainly and thanks."

Dan and Andrew went to get the luggage in the boot of the mini, while Emma hugged Hermione and kissed her cheek. She then went and climbed into the back seat of the car.

Harry stood beside Hermione; her hand found his and their fingers intertwined. They each used their spare hand to wave as the car backed away and pulled onto the road. When it was gone they headed back into the house, Harry holding the door open for her and Crookshanks.

When they got inside he closed and locked the door. She called for Dobby. When he appeared she said, "Ok store the cars, and I really don't know what you can do with the food but empty the house please."

Dobby said, "Yes Misses." He briefly closed his eyes. A lot of little things happened all at once. Suddenly the house no longer felt like a home. Its spirit was gone. "Done Misses." Dobby turned to Harry. "Harry Potter sir just needs to call for Dobby's help sir."

"Yes, thank you my friend. I'll remember that."

Hermione scooped up her familiar. "Dobby can you take him to Arabella? She has several Kneazles already."

Dobby nodded but looked warily at the cat.

She nuzzled Crookshanks and told him. "Behave. I want to be sure you are safe and happy." She stared into his eyes for a minute before handing him over to a nervous house elf. Dobby vanished a moment later.

Harry walked into the living room and changed his shirt to the blue polo from Dan and sat on the ground to get his shoes and socks on. Hermione came in the room with him and pulled something from her trunk and slipped it around her neck then locked and shrunk her trunk. He watched her pick it up and put it into her jean pocket.

He stood from getting his shoes on then closed and locked his own trunk. She shrunk it without his asking and he pocketed it. When he turned back to her she was standing very close holding something out to him. He looked at it, it seemed familiar then he remembered it, "When did you get that back?"

"I swiped it at the DoM. It's just like the one I used third year. I didn't really have a reason at the time but it nearly fell into my hand so I pocketed it. With you-" She shrugged.

"But that's illegal."

She smirked, "Who would have thought it huh? Hermione Granger, top student and thief."

"But this could be bloody useful."

"That's why I wanted to come clean and make sure you knew about it before we got started on this adventure." She tucked it into her shirt and asked, "Ready?"

"Yeah, let the adventure begin!" He grinned at her then added, "Side-along me."

She stepped beside him and their arms wrapped about one another firmly. Suddenly they were being squeezed through a garden hose and were in a dark room. She pushed a door open in front of them and peered into the hall. Her hand followed his arm and pulled him along into the hallway, "We're in the library just up the street from one of our banks branches."

He smiled; leave it to Hermione to be able to apparate into a storage closet in a library. They headed out into the stacks and casually exited the building. They threaded their way down the street and into the bank where they joined the queue. When they reached the front she pulled the check from her pocket and endorsed it before handing it and her bank card to the clerk. The man looked at her expectantly she said, "I need to deposit half of this in my account and half in my parents please."

The man nodded and started typing things into his computer. His eyes bugged when he saw the amount of the check. "Just a minute please. I'll have to get the manager to authorize this, standard procedure for this amount. Are you planning on withdrawing any of this today?"

Hermione shook her head, "No I need a few hundred pounds but my balance will cover that easy enough. It will take what, four days for that to clear and be available?"

The man nodded, "Yes Miss, that's standard. Just a tic while I get the manager."

Harry saw him turn a key in his terminal and he took the key and check with him when he walked away. A minute later an elderly woman walked back with the clerk. She said, "I just need to see your ID Miss Granger."

Hermione pulled it from her front pocket and handed it to the woman. The man had re-inserted his key and the manager typed a few numbers into his terminal. She looked back up at Hermione, "Half into your account and half into your parents?"

Hermione said, "Yes, and I need to withdraw four hundred pounds please."

The woman nodded and typed in a few more numbers then wrote something on the check and handed it to the clerk. "Normally the amount is not available for four business days. Since it is a check from The Bank of London the entire amount will be available tomorrow. Michael will handle the remainder of your transactions, here is your ID and bank card dear, have a pleasant day." She handed the cards to Hermione.

He and Hermione both said, "Thank you." To her as she walked away.

Michael had a pair of receipts on the counter when they looked back at him. "This shows the full amount being deposited into your account, then the second one transfers half into your parents account. Just a moment for your withdrawal."

He punched some more things into his computer and another receipt printed out. He opened the drawer beside him and counted out the four hundred pounds. He handed the pounds and receipt to Hermione and said, "Have a nice day, Next please!"

They exited the bank and Hermione entered shopping mode. He lost track of the rest of the morning as they went from shop to shop. Once in a while she asked his opinion on something but usually he just stood there and held what she handed to him. When she told him to he went and tried everything on. She paid for everything with her credit card and they went on to the next store. The entire process was completely mind numbing to him. The next time his brain actually engaged they were sitting in a pub for lunch. The booth beside them held their shopping bags. They had not yet found a spot to shrink their purchases and put them into their trunks.

"Bangers and mash for me please, Sheppard's pie for her, oh and two tea's"

"How did you know I wanted the pie?"

He shrugged then answered, "We eat three meals a day together for ten months out of the year for six years." He shrugged again, "You pick these useful bits of information up from time to time."

"Good answer." The tea arrived, quickly followed by their food.

He cut up his bangers and mixed the pieces into the mashed potatoes. Between bites he asked, "How much more of this shopping do we need to do? I wanted to get my prescription checked at one of those one hour places."

She pulled a small notebook out of her back pocket and checked off more items from several pages. "We're almost done, camping gear next then we can find an optometrist for you." She took another scoop of her Sheppard's pie.

"Camping gear? I hadn't thought of that but it's an excellent idea." He saw her smile and they went back to finishing their meal.

After lunch they went into one of those family bathrooms and she shrunk all their purchases and they got them sorted into their trunks. Then they exited the family bathroom and walked next door into the camping supply store. She had a list of what they needed again so his brain detached from the actual activity at hand. The Optometrist was a few blocks away but by two Harry had his new glasses. Hermione had gone to the toilet in the optometrist and had stored all of the camping gear into her trunk.

They headed to Kensington Palace at 2:30pm and made it to the gates just a few minutes before four. They didn't see Bill, Fleur, or Ron anywhere. They started looking around the entrance area. He stood, looking out into the park over her shoulder, "Maybe Hedwig didn't get to them? She didn't come back yet."

Hermione lifted her chin and said, "She made it, here comes Ron."

Harry spun around, he barely recognized his friend. Bill must have helped him dress like a muggle. He was walking out from the palace grounds, camera hanging from around his neck and a white baseball cap stuck on his head. He saw them and lifted his hand in greeting, still too far away to say anything. They started walking towards him, through the gates. They met at a statue of some guy named William. Harry noticed immediately that Ron's usual goofy grin was gone, he looked serious.

By way of greeting he said, "Sorry, Bill didn't want to be seen in public yet."

Hermione asked, "How's he doing? He should be healed up by now."

Ron shrugged, "He's healed physically. Ginny says he took a big hit to his self esteem. He arranged for a room in the basement through Gringotts."

A group of tourists came up and stood in front of the statue. They moved off to the side so they would be out of the photograph. Harry saw Ron's eyes drawn to Hermione's chest and he deliberately stepped in front of her. Harry said, "Ok, lead on then." Ron turned and headed back the way he had come, around the palace to the right. They went in the main entrance. A small group was buying tickets to tour the palace.

Ron went to the right where a woman in a uniform was waiting by a door. He gestured to them and said, "These are my friends."

She nodded her eyes flickered, in recognition, to Harry's scar, "Wear these please," and handed each of them a sticker that said 'Special Guest'. Ron stuck his to his T-Shirt. Harry did the same and saw Hermione apply hers. Once they had them on the attendant opened the door beside her and led them down a short hall and finally to a narrow staircase that descended into the building. In spite of himself Harry took hold of his wand, certain Hermione would be doing the same. They came to a twisty hallway. The woman stopped, "Please don't wander around the building, I will return in thirty minutes to see if you are ready to leave." She gestured towards the first door on the left. It was open and he saw Fleur step from deeper in the room. She was dressed like a muggle in a long skirt and pale cream sweater, her Veela charm seemed to be subdued. She was standing just inside. The attendant hurried away, back the way they had come.

Ron walked into the room, Harry followed with Hermione just behind him.

Fleur smiled and said, "So good to see you again." She came and kissed him and then Hermione on both cheeks.

After she had released him Harry looked around. Bill was standing off to the side. He wore his dragonhide boots, black jeans, and a grey sweatshirt that said Newcastle United on it. His face was deeply lined with scars. Harry took a step closer to him and said, "Bill, thanks for coming." He turned back to Hermione, "Seal the door and make it private please." She nodded and closed the door behind her taking out her wand.

Bill spoke, "This room is protected already. Gringotts uses it for some contract negotiations. Just lock the door. That will activate everything."

Hermione threw the bolt on the inside of the door and turned back to the group. Harry turned back to Bill, Fleur had moved near him. They both stood expectantly. "Ron knows most of this already. First, this will change your lives for the next few months if not longer."

Neither of them reacted as he expected. Bill just shrugged, Fleur said, "Life is, how do you say it, fluid. Yes vat is it."

Straight into it then, "Dumbledore thought Voldemort had created six horcruxes. I was working with him last year to find and destroy them. I need your help to finish this so the bastard can be killed."

Fleur looked confused but Bill gasped and stepped forward. "So that's how he did it."

Harry nodded, "Did you ever hear the details of the Chamber of Secrets Bill?"

Bill shook his head, his ponytail flipping around. "No, I got the gist of it but not the details. You saved Ginny from possession by Voldemort." He suddenly hit the heel of his hand against his forehead, "She unlocked a horcrux didn't she?"

Fleur finally asked, "Vat is dis orcrux?"

Hermione answered, "Dark magic, basically a sliver of a person's soul can be instilled into an object. Until the object is destroyed they can never really die. I think the practice was begun in ancient Egypt or even earlier."

Bill nodded, "Disembodied Pharaoh's are fairly common in Egypt. Some of them have been floating around for six millennia or so. You said you were working on this with Albus, how many are left?"

"I destroyed the diary in second year. Dumbledore destroyed a ring, that's why his arm was blackened, something went wrong I guess. So that leaves four more. We think one of them is Hufflepuff's cup and another is Slytherin's locket. Then there should be something of Godric's and something of Rowena's. Dumbledore and I were recovering the locket the night he was murdered but it turned out to be a fake. They seem to be hidden in places important to Tom. For example the ring was hidden in the Gaunt family home, that's his mother's name by the way. The locket was in a cave near the orphanage where Tom grew up." He surprised himself how dispassionately he described the details. Hermione was standing very close to his left side her hand in his. He hadn't remembered that happening but it definitely helped. Ron was looking at it and raised his eyebrow but didn't say anything. Harry squeezed her hand and felt her answering squeeze.

Bill paced across the room and back, everyone seemed to be waiting for him. Finally Bill stopped pacing, "There are only a few objects of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw known, we would be looking for one that may have been known when Voldemort was at Hogwarts but vanished since then. You said the locket was a fake?"

"Yes, it had a note in it from someone who's initials were R.A.B. I've got it in my trunk but basically the note says that this R.A.B. took the locket and swore to destroy it."

"Ok so you want Fleur and I to help you track these down and destroy them?"

"Actually I just wanted your help, knowing you were a curse breaker. Hermione told me I had to include Fleur." He turned to Fleur, "Nothing against you, I just want as few people to know about this as possible. Right now the five of us are the only ones who know. If Voldemort learns what we are doing he will move them."

"Godric left behind the sorting hat of course, then there's his sword but that was just discovered a few years ago, we'll have to research that some more. Rowena had a circlet, quill, and a brooch. I think they're at Hogwarts. But we need to learn whom R.A.B. was and whether they were able to destroy the locket."

Harry asked, "What's going on with the Order?"

Bill had resumed pacing but stopped and looked at Harry, "What Order? Without Fawkes it doesn't exist. No one knows where he went. He may be looking for another he considers worthy of helping." He shrugged, "Basically the Order is dead. Moody and McGonagall are both still trying to coordinate efforts against Voldemort but none of us think any of it has a chance of stopping him." He plopped into one of the antique wooden chairs, "Without Albus." Bill looked up and his haunted eyes met Harry's.

Harry was shocked at what he saw, despair. Bill was one of the people he looked up to, to deal with this war. If Bill had given up then was there any hope? Hermione seemed to be reading his mind, she squeezed his hand hard. He looked into her eyes, no despair there, hope, faith and dare he even think it? Love. In spite of what was going on around them he smiled and kissed her cheek. He ignored the reactions in the room to tell her, "Thanks."

When he looked around the room Ron was sitting in the chair beside Bill his mouth gaping, Fleur was smiling broadly. Bill was blinking and trying to clear his eyes. Harry draped his arm over Hermione's shoulders and her arm went around his waist. "Now that my personal life is settled can we get on with killing the maniac?"

Fleur was the first to react, she came over and hugged them both, "Oh, I knew it, ven I met you I knew it."

Hermione said, "I'd love to tell you we've been hiding it for three years now but the truth is this started lastnight."

Ron stood, "So you guys have like slept together and such."

Harry started laughing, he felt then heard her join him. Ron was turning red and Harry could only laugh at her father's joke from lastnight. Ron took a step towards them, his fists coming up. Harry held his hand out and said, "Wait." Ron stopped and took several deep breaths. Bill was standing and had a hand on his shoulder, Ron tried to shrug it off but Bill's hand remained. "Sorry Ron, we're not laughing at you or even really what you said."

Hermione interrupted him, "You see Ron, Harry came to my house lastnight and talked to my parents. He convinced them to allow me to help and then convinced them to go on a world tour so they couldn't be killed during the war. Well with Dobby's help my house was cleaned out and packed up. My father decided to leave the fold out bed for Harry and I to sleep on. So technically-"

Harry finished for her, "Yes, we have slept together. Now if there is actually some reason for you to be mad at me or Hermione I want to hear it. You told her you did not want to date her, I do."

Ron shook his head and sat back down. Bill stepped between him and them. Before Bill could say anything Ron said, "Sorry. No, I have no reason to be mad at either of you. I guess Ginny will be pissed but I'm not going to be the one to tell her. You guys are my best mates. I'll support you and give you time together. Maybe I can help Bill with, never mind he has Fleur to help him."

Bill turned to his brother, "Just give it time bro. That Lovegood girl was hanging around you a lot wasn't she?"

Ron looked at Bill, "Loony?" He looked off into the corner, "She's interesting but, I went out with Lavender, she was nice but awfully clingy."

Bill turned back to them, "Ok, Fleur and I will help. I should take a leave from Gringotts, hate to give up the resources they have though."

"I don't think you need to do that. They seem eager to help me, I'll tell them I need your help, well both of you, against Voldemort."

Bill nodded, "Yeah that'll do it. They revere you even more than the Wizarding world does. Are you planning on using Grimmauld for your headquarters?"

Harry shrugged, "Not really we were going to go muggle, drop off of the Wizarding radar so to speak. Ron can be our go between, keeping us both coordinated. Oh one more thing, if you need to buy anything have Ron pay for it. I had Gringotts transfer fifty thousand galleons into his account. He needs to stop in and get a key for the vault. It won't show up on any balance report though."

Ron started sputtering but nothing coherent came out.

Hermione stepped in, "We need to search Grimmauld Place and then Hogwarts. We'll have to get McGonagall's permission to search the school. Oh, and we'll need to talk to Dumbledore's portrait when it wakes up. We need to find out where the orphanage is where Tom grew up and search it as well. Then there is Riddle manor in, um, Little Hangleton. Sorry one more I just thought of, the Chamber of Secrets. All of these places need to be found and searched. Sorry that's not a proper list, I'll get one made tonight if I can."

He patted Hermione on the arm and said, "Dumbledore said he had visited Tom at the orphanage, we may be able to get the information from school records though. The cave he took me to for the locket he said was near it. I could apparate to the area outside of the cave but I have no idea where in England it is."

Bill sat next to Ron again. Fleur sat elegantly in the seat beside him and put her hand on his knee, "So either we search all of these places together or split up into teams. There are some really useful spells I could show you that help a lot, it would take a week or so though. Bro you're with me. I'll teach you the spells while Harry and Hermione search Grimmauld Place. The three of us will go to Riddle Manor and search there for clues or a Horcrux." Bill stopped and looked at Harry, "Would it be alright if I took Moody, Remus, or Charlie with us to Riddle Manor? We won't tell them what we're looking for but I would feel better with their wands and Moody's eye involved."

Harry shrugged, "Take whoever you think you need. I won't pretend I have any idea how to do your job, that's why we asked you to help us. This has to go un-noticed by the public and the Ministry. What do you think about involving Tonks or Kingsley?"

Bill thought a minute but Fleur was the one who responded. "Nymphadora will follow Remus, Kingsley is on a special mission, protecting the muggle Prime Minister."

Bill continued, "So Kingsley is out of the picture for now. Tonks should be included if Remus is. I think both would leave the Ministry if you asked them to."

Ron finally put together a sentence, "Fifty thousand galleons?"

Hermione nodded, "Yes Ron, He did the same to me, though my money is in pounds, to pay for things in the muggle world."

Harry added, "I'm not of age yet so officially I can't do a lot of these things for the next month or so. In the mean time you two are. It's for the war but I won't take it back."

Bill stood and came to Harry and Hermione. He shook both of their hands firmly then said, "Ron's with us for now. We'll do some research and training then explore Riddle manor. Probably a week before we go there. I want to make sure Ron knows these spells before we go. I'll tell mom I need his help getting ready for the wedding. We'll send messages to Grimmauld, probably one of us but it could be someone else from the Order if it doesn't involve information about Horcruxes. Where will you be tonight?"

Harry looked at Hermione before answering. They seemed to be communicating exceptionally well without words today. She shrugged which he interpreted to mean it was getting late and they didn't need to go to Grimmauld place in the dark so he turned back to Bill and said, "Muggle London somewhere, we'll go to Grimmauld place tomorrow and see what's there."

Bill nodded, "Ok if we miss you we'll leave notes in the kitchen, they will be spell encrypted and the decrypt word will be marshmallow for now."

Harry looked at Hermione to see if she understood what this spell encryption was all about. She nodded ever so slightly so he turned back to Bill. "Ok that's fine. Can you guys keep Hedwig for now? I don't want to risk her being intercepted or killed. She means a lot to me."

Fleur answered, "She flew off a few hours ago, perhaps to return to you?"

Harry shrugged, "She'll show up when I need her."

Bill clapped Harry on the shoulder, "Be careful at Grimmauld Place. The Fidelius should be gone now so some muggles could move in or something more sinister."

Harry shook his head, "Not with Kreacher there. That's why we're not too keen on staying there."

Ron shuddered, "Better you than me mate."

"Thanks mate."

Bill said, "Ok our thirty minutes is up, let's get out of here, be careful and everyone stay in touch."

Fleur went and opened the door, her wand in hand just out of sight as she did so. Bill was just behind her and also had drawn his wand. Ron came up to Harry and said simply, "Hurt her and I'll kill you mate."

Harry met his eyes and said, "If I do you know she'll do it first."

Ron nodded and clapped Harry on the shoulder, "Ya I do. Luck." He followed his oldest brother out the door.

Harry and Hermione joined hands and followed him up the stairs and back into the lobby. Fleur was busy talking to the woman attendant who had led them down in French. It was a very fast conversation and ended with them hugging. Harry removed his 'special guest' sticker and dropped it into the rubbish bin by the door as he walked back outside. He stopped at the entrance, it was raining.

Hermione pulled an umbrella out from somewhere. It wasn't a large one but she opened it, hugged close to him and started walking into the rain. He quickly moved to stay in step with her. Their shoes and legs were drenched in a matter of minutes. The umbrella was only able to keep their upper halves shielded. They came to the gates of Kensington Palace and went left, back the way they had come. "Where are we going?"

She said, "I saw a Hilton on the way here, just across from the park. We might as well stay there tonight as anywhere."

"Ok, so long as we have a destination and are not just wandering in the rain for the heck of it."

She laughed as he had hoped she would. They spent the next ten minutes in the midst of the rain, it was slowly stopping. They crossed the street and sure enough there was a Hilton. It looked like they had taken a rowhouse and stuck a hotel in it without redoing the outside much at all. The signage was on the railings by the door not over it. The lobby was small, the clerks were behind a desk to the left, an elevator straight ahead and a staircase on either side of it, one going up and one down.

Hermione handed him the umbrella and stepped carefully to the counter. The clerks greeted her and they started working out the details of a room. He went back to the door and shook the umbrella out before folding it. It went down to about nine inches long when folded. He turned back into the lobby and walked to the counter, Hermione was just signing the paperwork. The other clerk handed her a pair of room keys. Hermione handed the keys to Harry and pocketed her bank card and identification.

For some reason the clerk behind the desk said, "Welcome back." To them as they walked away. He looked at Hermione who shrugged. The clerk must have been confused.

Harry went and pushed the button on the elevator, they got in and Hermione pushed 4 on the panel. He looked at the keys in his hand, 434 was stamped into the plastic fob attached to the keys. He pocketed one and kept the other one out. They found the room and he opened the door, handing the key to Hermione after he let them into the room. It was not a large room but would certainly work. There was only one bed. Without his experience from lastnight this simple fact would have terrified him. Now he merely absorbed it and moved on. Not enough room for the trunks. "I'm going to shove the bed to the wall so we can have a spot to expand the trunks."

She walked into the bathroom but kept the door open, "Do that, I'll expand them then I want to take a hot bath."

He heard the water start as he moved a lamp stand to clear the way for the bed to go against the wall. It was on wheels so moved easily. That accomplished he pulled out his trunk and set it on the floor then pulled off his wet shoes and socks.

Hermione walked back out of the bathroom. She had removed her boots and socks. He could hear the water running. She took out her trunk and set it beside his and expanded them. "I don't want to do any more magic than necessary. We'll leave our pants and shoes hanging up to dry overnight." He nodded in full agreement. She continued, "You should use the facilities while the tub is filling, get dried off. I'll be twenty minutes or so. I want to get a good soaking."

While he opened his trunk he answered her, "Sure just a tic." It took him a moment to find the right bag then he pulled a pair of red and gold sweatpants out that Hermione had picked for him earlier in the day. Ripped off the tag and dropped it into the rubbish bin as he headed to the bathroom. He closed the door while she was looking for something in her own trunk. He stripped off all of his clothes. His shirt was quite damp from the storm. He rubbed a towel over himself vigorously before he pulled the warm sweatpants on. He checked out the pockets in the pants, the front ones were deep enough to hold his wand. He moved it into the right one and grabbed his wet clothes. The room was fogging up as he exited. His glasses fogged over, without being able to see Hermione he said, "I need you to make this new pair Impervious when you get a chance please. I had totally forgotten that this normally happens."

He saw a shadow just in front of him and heard her laugh. Her hand went to his bare right shoulder, holding him in place.

He felt a light tap on his glasses, "Impervious!"

They cleared up instantly. She was grinning at him. His skin under her hand was much warmer than it should be. Before he could puzzle that out she had released him and slid past him into the bathroom.

She said, "I'll be out in twenty minutes, look over the room service menu on the desk, if you see something we'll like order it. Otherwise we'll go to one of those pubs on the next street over for dinner."

He said, "Got it."

She disappeared into the bathroom carrying a small bundle of clothes. The door closed but he didn't hear the latch thrown. Now it was his turn to puzzle over that unlocked door with a naked girl behind it. Scratch that not just any girl, the girl, no, the woman, who had said just yesterday that she wanted to have his children. His conclusion came fast to the debate though. She had respected his privacy so he would not disturb her.

He hung up his wet clothes in the closet with the provided hangers then made sure the door to the hallway was locked. He recalled getting new T-Shirts at some point this morning and after only a short look in his trunk he found them. With a new clean shirt on he sat in the chair and looked through the room service menu. They had Sheppard's pie, good enough. He found the number at the top of the menu and punched in the three digits. It was answered immediately and he placed their order. It was just turning 5pm so the kitchen wasn't busy yet. The food would be up in thirty minutes.

He walked to the bathroom door. It opened just as he was opening his mouth to tell her about dinner.

She stood there briefly stunned that he was right in front of her. She was holding a towel up to her chest for some reason and then spun to face the other way. She said, "Sorry to ask you this but I can't get my bra off. It's too tight or the clasp is broken. Can you undo it please?"

Hermione was asking him for help so he had to help. It just took him a minute to move. Her back was to him, she still had her wet jeans on but the only thing above her waist were the thin white straps of her bra. He took a step closer and his hands came up. He had never seen one of these so wasn't sure what he had to do. He looked at it, found where the two pieces came together just between her shoulder blades.

She came to his rescue as always, "It's a set of hooks, look between the fabric. You'll see what needs to be done."

He hesitantly looked closer and twisted the clasp to see it better. As she had said, hooks. He took the tabs and pulled them opposite one another, one of the hooks came free, there were still two more. He twisted a little more and saw the problem. A hook had torn and was not going through the loop right. He twisted it and both hooks came free.

She let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks Harry, I'm glad I bought bigger ones today. I've outgrown all the ones I own I guess." She turned to face him. He was just standing there, arms still up and he knew he had a dumb smile on his face. "Were you going to tell me something or peek through the keyhole?"

His brain snapped into action at last, "There isn't a keyhole. Sorry, no I was going to respect your privacy as you did for me yesterday. I called room service. Dinner will be up in thirty minutes."

She stepped closer, still holding the towel to cover her chest and kissed him firmly on the cheek. "Thank you Harry. I'll be out in twenty minutes or so. Thanks again."

He stepped backwards and pulled the door closed as he left the bathroom. He hadn't remembered shopping for bras at any point today. Maybe she had found some when he was trying on clothes? He heard the water stop running then some splashing. His brain was in overload mode. He went to lie on the bed to wait for her to come out or the food to arrive. Just as he lay down he decided he should be reading or doing something to be useful. He looked at the un-shrunken books in Hermione's trunk. There was one on Occulmency. He pulled out the thick tome and sprawled on the bed on his stomach tucking his feet under a pillow to warm them. He started into the first chapter trying desperately not to think of how perfect her back had looked and how he had wanted to run his hands over her bare skin.

A knock echoed at the door. He found himself standing in front of it so fast he wondered if he had apparated. He looked out the peep hole. There was a man in a uniform with a loaded pushcart. He twisted around and looked at the clock on the desk, 25 minutes, not bad. He turned back around and opened the door. The guy wasn't much older than Harry himself. "That was fast, thanks."

The guy started to wheel his cart into their room and said, "Welcome Mister."

Hermione came out of the bathroom, blocking the hallway for a moment. Harry saw she had her hair atop her head in a towel and was wearing a bathrobe that went down to her knees. Harry backed out of the way allowing the bloke to come in with his cart. Harry saw the cart would be unable to move past where he had shoved the bed against the wall. "Girlfriend wanted her side against the wall. I'll unload the cart."

Hermione was sitting on the bed, facing away from the hall door. She was leaning to the left and was working the towel between her hands on her dangling hair. Dark ringlets kept dancing free from the towel.

While he was shifting the plates and glasses to the desk he noticed the trunks were gone and she had covered the Occulmency tome. The tip of her wand was just peeking from between her robe and the bed's quilt. She smiled over her right shoulder at the delivery boy who had nothing to do while Harry was unloading the cart.

The boy smiled back and said, "Just leave the plates in the hallway."

Harry said, "Ok thanks," he backed the cart out of the room and Harry made sure it was locked behind him. When he returned to the room Hermione was still sitting on the bed working on her hair but their trunks had appeared again and her wand lay in the open on the bed.

He noticed the deep V-neck of the bathrobe showed only skin. There was neither sign of the peach nightgown he had seen her take into the bath nor the gold chain of the time turner. He was staring, he knew he shouldn't be doing it but this new aspect was fascinating. Her legs were crossed and the robe stopped just above her knees. Her knees, calves, and feet were bare and looked smooth as glass. He didn't realize she could be so sexy just sitting there drying off. That thought stunned him as readily as a stupefy and he collapsed into the chair across from her.

He wasn't sure how long he sat there staring at her legs. Eventually he figured out she had stopped moving. Her hands were on the bed and he knew he had been caught. Voldemort was nothing compared to the fear that gripped his chest. Would she be mad at him? Would she leave? He took a steadying breath and followed the white robe up, past the still damp ends of her hair that were draped over her left shoulder and up to her face, she wore that wicked smile.

She asked, "How are those hormones doing?"

Without thought he answered, "Raging." And it was true his heart was racing faster than when he was fighting the Hungarian Horntail. He could barely hear over the pounding in his chest. He felt like he could lift the building.

She smiled broadly at him, "Glad I decided to shave my legs then. Sorry I took so long. I had intended to be out in time to shrink the trunks before dinner came."

He gulped, "So that's why you're not wearing your nightgown?"

She nodded, "Yes, I had to hurry so I threw the robe on and came out."

His mouth went dry but the words came out anyway, "So you're like naked under that?"

The wicked smile returned in full force, "Yes. Did you want to see?"

Good thing he was already sitting, someone had hit him with a jelly legs jinx. "Are you trying to seduce me?"

The wicked smile vanished. Fire flickered in her eyes, "What if I am? I've never had anyone admire my body before you know. Everyone that's ever befriended me was always after my brain or as a way to get to you."

The killing curse went through him with that look and his world ended in that gaze. He leapt from the chair and knelt in front of her. He grabbed her hands in his, "Sorry."

The flickering fire dimmed, he tried again, "I have never taken your friendship for granted. I admit freely that I have been a git of a friend and will accept any penance you bestow upon me."

She pulled her right hand free from his and placed it against his cheek. "I know Harry. You've never made me feel that way and I do want to help you all I can. But I have much more to offer you than my brain. Would you like to see the whole package?"

"I, I'd be lying if I said no. I'm a teenage boy for Merlin's sake! I'm worried I won't be able to control myself."

She stood abruptly. He fell back onto the floor between the trunks. She walked to the desk where their food sat cooling. She opened the drawer and pulled out a pad of stationary and a ballpoint pen. She returned to the bed and sat facing him again. She wrote a sentence on the pad. The angle was wrong he couldn't read it from where he sat on the ground. She held out her left hand to him and he took it. She didn't pull him up as he expected but moved their hands so they were over the pad. She picked up her wand and put it flat against where their hands touched. She looked at the angle of her wand from another direction and adjusted it. He felt a sting in his hand and two drops of blood fell onto the pad, one from each of their hands. She said something else and the stinging went away. She released his hand, he rubbed it absently. Her wand tip touched the pad where their blood mingled and there was a bright flash.

She spun the pad and dropped it into his lap then stood and went to the desk where she uncovered the food. He tore his eyes away from her to finally read what was on the pad. "With this blood oath I grant you permission to lose control and do as you wish with my body."

Her voice penetrated his skull, "That's binding in any wizard court. Even if I tried to refute it, it would hold up as a blood oath cannot be cast under duress. Since I didn't use any names I used our blood to identify us. If you want me I'm yours Harry, body and soul."

The next thing he knew she was hovering over him telling him, "breathe Harry, breathe."

He was laying flat on the floor his glasses were gone, she was across him diagonally, her face directly over his. If he looked down he would look into her robe. He was looking into her eyes when he had that thought and she dropped her mouth to his and kissed him, hard. There was nothing tender or hesitant about it as she attacked him. He had no defense for her and truthfully he couldn't bring himself to think of fighting her off.

His mind went blank as his body reacted to her. His tongue drove into her mouth and battled with hers. They were evenly matched and the fight turned into a conflict of parry and thrust. He lost track of where the rest of his body was or what was happening. Everything was focused on his mouth and tongue and how they came together with hers.

She pulled back, clearly not in retreat but to regroup. He was grinning. She gave him that wicked smile again, and launched the second wave of her attack. Her mouth returned to his and while he was thus distracted her hand slid up under his T-Shirt to caress his chest. Fire followed that touch. He felt that monster stir in his chest again. No what he had felt before had been a Niffler compared to the Hungarian Horntail that now erupted from his chest.

With a grunt he pushed her up then sat up himself. He didn't remember standing but the next thing he knew he was laying atop her on the bed and was kissing her just as hard as she had been kissing him. She was moaning into his mouth and he completely lost it. He sat up and pulled off his T-Shirt, his sweatpants were bulging, pushing his erection into her leg.

Her robe had fallen open and her left breast was exposed. That shocked him for a moment; it was much larger than he had thought it would be. The nipple was small, pink and erect. He had never seen a breast before and the sight pushed him over the edge of reason. She flipped her robe completely open, he had entered heaven. She squirmed under his heated gaze; one of her hands reached down and rubbed against his bulging sweatpants.

Her voice was husky when she said, "Take me." She spread her legs wider and he saw pink within the soft brown curls.

He didn't need to be told twice. He stood and pulled off his pants. While he climbed atop her she guided him towards her. She pulled his mouth down to hers and kissed him savagely. He responded in kind and tried to thrust into her. They were not properly aligned though. She lifted her hips and pushed down on his butt. He slid home. She whimpered and bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. Her nails dug into the back of his neck and the small of his back where she clung desperately to him.

Through his lust he felt her pain and froze. She released his lip, tears slid from her eyes into her hair. Then she pulled him to her and savagely thrust her hips up, pushing him deeply into her. They struggled for a bit to find a rhythm, just when they did he lost it and exploded into her. She ground herself against him and made him keep moving for another full minute before he felt her shudder and clamp down on him tightly.

They stopped and just breathed heavily, both covered in sweat. His lip had dripped blood onto her neck, mingling with her sweat. He leaned over and licked her clean. She somehow found her wand and he heard her say, "Nox."

He lay upon her breathing heavy and drifted in bliss.