Return to the Manor
Harry glanced at his watch and sighed as he realised that it was time for them to depart. They had returned to Hermione's office after leaving the Leaky Cauldron and had spent the rest of the morning poring over Ron's notes but all to no avail. Just deciphering the seemingly random workings of his friend was proving to be impossible. Whilst Harry knew that he was not the most organised of individuals, Ron's workings made him seem almost as methodical as Minerva McGonagall in comparison. He now vaguely began to understand why he sometimes drove Hermione to distraction when things were not done in the prescribed manner.
He looked over to where Hermione was sitting and could tell immediately that she was nervous. He knew that she was not looking forward to returning to Malfoy Manor - the scene of her personal torture at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange - but he could not figure out a way to alleviate her tension. Whilst being good at deciphering Hermione's moods, he was not yet particularly adept at acting on them.
Besides, Lestrange was dead, he thought with no small degree of satisfaction. Hermione has nothing to worry about now. You just have to make her realise this.
'Are you OK?' he finally asked. 'It's just that it's time for us to get going if we are going to get to the Manor for twelve thirty.'
Hermione looked up from the file she was reading and nodded her head. She was actually dreading the return despite Harry's assurances that Narcissa wanted to make amends for what had happened to her the last time she was there. She had been brutalised by Bella and no amount of time and distance could completely eradicate that simple fact. It had been one of the worst experiences of her entire life, beaten only by how she felt when she heard that Ron had been killed and also when she saw Hagrid carrying what she thought was the dead body of Harry in front of the gates of Hogwarts. They were all moments that she would rather forget but she was conscious of the fact that they would remain with her for the rest of her life. But she also knew that if she did not go to Malfoy Manor today, she would be allowing Bella a victory of sorts - even in death. She had to prove to herself that she was still a Gryffindor.
She placed the file on her desk and stood to retrieve her coat from the peg. She could see the concern radiating in Harry's eyes as he regarded her.
'Don't worry,' she said softly. 'I will be fine. Besides,' she added with a smile, 'I have you with me, so what could possibly go wrong?'
Harry recognised the tone and despite his concern he smiled in return. 'Go wrong? With me?' He seemed to consider the question. 'Everything,' he finally replied, his grin widening. 'You have known me for nearly thirteen years, Granger; have you learned nothing?'
Hermione laughed and it made her feel better. 'Well, Potter; I was hoping that maybe your luck has finally turned.' She held her arm out in a crook. 'Care to escort a poor little girl into harm's way?' she asked coyly.
Harry smiled. 'Of course, my lady,' he replied, linking his arm in hers. They stood for a moment staring at each other, both lost in their thoughts. Finally Harry smiled again. 'Let's get this over with,' he said as he led them out of the door.
***********
A few moments later, Hermione and Harry materialised with a soft pop in one of the many rooms in Malfoy Manor. Hermione took a moment to get her bearings, surprised that they had been able to Apparate straight into the house, remembering that it was supposed to be one of the most secure locations in the country. She cast her glance around the room noticing immediately that it was very sparsely furnished. It contained a single bed, a rather battered looking old table and a shabby looking chair. There was no carpet or rug on the floor to cover the stripped wooden floorboards and there was only a solitary candle perched on a rough looking bedside cabinet to offer any light after dark. She was surprised by this, having expected the Manor to be richly decorated. She glanced at Harry and realised that he seemed to be reading her thoughts.
'It's my room; well, for the moment anyway,' he explained. 'It's how I was able to Apparate us both into the house. The wards protecting this place are almost as strong as those at Hogwarts but Narcissa keyed me into them. She also made it possible for me to drag you along too.' He smiled suddenly. 'Poor Lucius had a fit when he heard that I had asked the potential witnesses to come here. Apparently he was up half the night making it possible for people to find this place. Narcissa would have killed him had he refused.'
Hermione smiled at his comment, realising that even after all these years, he still took pleasure in annoying Lucius Malfoy. Some things don't change. Something else was bothering her though.
'Harry?' she asked, unsure how to phrase her next question. 'I thought the Malfoy's were well off?'
'They are.'
She gestured around the sparse room with a sweep of her hand, knowing that she did not need to vocalise her next question. Harry smiled.
'I wasn't too keen about staying here at first so I asked her for the most basic room she had and she gave me this. She seemed a little put out that I didn't want something grander but she never pressed me to explain. It used to be a servants room, so I guess it's appropriate. I am the hired help, after all,' he added, amusement in his tone.
'Why did you want a basic room?' she asked.
Harry shrugged. 'I don't know…I guess it's just what I'm used to these days. I suppose I wasn't too comfortable sleeping with the enemy so I made a point of trying not to enjoy the experience. I guess I just haven't got round to asking Narcissa for something better yet.'
'You like Narcissa now?' she asked. 'She's no longer "the enemy"?
Harry considered the question then smiled ruefully. 'Yeah; she's grown on me a bit. She really is a quite remarkable person and I know that she'd do anything for Draco. I guess she is everything a mother is supposed to be but there is a lot more to her than that. You should see how she deals with Lucius - she's definitely the brains in that partnership. And she is really sorry for everything that happened. I think Lucius is still the same as ever but I really believe that Narcissa has changed and is trying to make up for what her family did. She's made me very welcome here - I had nowhere else to go.'
Hermione considered this for a moment, knowing that she had to say what was on her mind despite the trouble it might cause.
'You know you could have stayed with me,' she said softly, trying to keep the hurt out of her voice. Harry looked uncomfortable.
'Well, I wasn't sure what sort of reception I could expect from you.' He looked at his feet. 'Besides; I wasn't sure if I wanted to see you then,' he added in a quiet voice.
She really was hurt by this comment. 'You didn't want to see me? You hated me that much?' she asked carefully. She knew that they shouldn't be doing this right now but she couldn't let it go.
Harry shook his head. 'It's not like that; not like that at all. Of course I never hated you. I could never hate you, Hermione. It's just that I thought you were still angry with me...let me finish,' he added, holding up his hand as he noticed her about to interrupt. 'I thought you were still angry with me and I was afraid that I might hurt you again.' He looked away for a moment and when he spoke next his voice was barely a whisper. 'I hurt you, Hermione. Really hurt you. I should never have abandoned you but I thought what I did changed you for the worse and I couldn't live with myself for that. I was afraid to face you again in case you were no longer the person you were.'
'But I'm not the same person. I've changed. We all have.'
Harry shook his head. 'Not in what matters you haven't. You are still the same loving, generous person you always were. Who else would have stuck by me the way you did?' he asked rhetorically. 'Now that I know this to be true I can live with what happened. But I didn't know this when I returned. That's why I agreed to stay here.'
She considered his words for a moment trying to decide what to say in response. Her initial reaction was one of anger; how could he prefer to stay here rather than see me? But then she remembered that he had been through as much pain and anguish as she had - in fact, probably even more. I wasn't rejected by those that love me. She had been very lonely since Harry had left but she'd had the Weasleys to offer some comfort. Harry had no one. Then she remembered just how fragile he was at the minute despite his seemingly relaxed air when he was with her. It wasn't worth risking the progress they had made together over something that could not be changed. And last - but by no means least - she was aware that she never could stay angry with him for long. Staying angry with Harry was like kicking a puppy. I should probably get mad about that too, she thought ruefully, aware of the irony. But whatever his reasons for staying away at first, those reasons were no longer valid.
'Why don't you come and stay with me now?' she asked suddenly, surprising them both. She noticed the astonished look on his face and decided to elaborate. 'I've got a spare room and whilst it's not as basic as this, I don't think it's too grand for you at the moment,' she added, trying to inject some humour into the situation.
'Stay with you?' Harry repeated.
'It makes sense when you think about it. We are working together at the moment and it might be an idea to stay in close contact. Time is precious and it would let us work longer on the case.' She tried to sound detached, almost as if it was of no concern, but her thoughts told a different story. Please don't reject me. I'm so lonely; I can't face the empty rooms anymore. Please.
Unknown to her, Harry was thinking very similar thoughts. His initial shock at the question had passed but he was still reeling. I can't; I can't stay with her right now. I'm not ready for this. He noticed that she was trying to appear unconcerned but he knew her too well; he could see in her eyes that she was fearful of his rejection and it occurred to him for the very first time that she might be as lonely as he was. He felt a sudden surge of love and pity for her, quickly followed by a feeling of self-reproach. He cursed inwardly, despising himself for his selfishness. Even now, I'm thinking about me first. This isn't about me; this is about Hermione! I owe her this; she has done everything for me; stuck by me despite all the fuck-up's I've made. Am I such a prick that I would deny her now, after everything? He finally realised just how selfish he had been to her; not just recently but all those times over the years when he had put his own and Ron's needs before hers. It was time for that to end. It was time I started acting like the friend I should be.
'I'd love to,' he finally replied.
'Really?' she asked, and Harry could detect the relief and hope in her voice. He smiled and nodded.
'Really. Thank you,' he added. On a sudden impulse he held out his hands and within moments she was in his arms as they embraced to seal their new agreement. Harry took his time to enjoy the sensation; squeezing her tight and feeling her hair as it tickled his neck. He closed his eyes, wondering how he had ever been so lucky to find a friend as true as the one he now held.
After what seemed like an age, he finally released his grip and looked down into her eyes. He smiled.
'C'mon,' he said softly. 'Whilst I would love to stand here like this all day, we have a murder to solve.' He noticed her smile at his words as they drew apart. He held out his hand and was pleased to see her take it without a moment's hesitation.
Giving her hand a soft squeeze, he opened the door of his room and led her to meet their hostess.
***********
Hermione found her emotions in turmoil as she allowed Harry to lead her through the long hallways of Malfoy Manor. She was nervous in these surroundings but found comfort in the strong grip of her friend. She was also trying to process what had just happened between them and congratulated herself for suddenly asking him to come and live with her. She had not intended to make such an offer but now he had accepted, she felt happier than she could remember for a long time.
And then he held me. She almost shivered as she recalled the experience. It was the same as when he had held her in Draco's flat and yet it was different too. She felt such a sense of belonging when he held her like that and it occurred to her again that she could think of nothing or no one that came close to making her feel like that. It was almost troubling in its way, but on the other hand, she reasoned, how can something that makes me feel so good, be bad?
She shook her head to clear away the thoughts and allowed her eyes to drink in the surroundings; the splendour and ostentation that was Malfoy Manor. She'd been wrong in her initial assessment; the Malfoys were not merely "well off;" on the evidence of the rich furnishings and antique furniture on display, they were absolutely loaded. No wonder Draco always strutted around everywhere like he owned the place. He probably did.
They finally arrived at a small drawing room and Hermione turned her eyes from her surroundings to focus on the three people who stood to greet her. She recognised immediately the familiar faces of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy but the third person she did not know. She took a deep breath.
'Ah, Harry. So good to see you,' said Narcissa with a smile. She turned her attention to Hermione. 'And so good to see you too, Miss Granger. You are welcome in my home. My husband you know, of course, but please allow me to introduce you to Vladimir Blackhouse, my family's lawyer.'
Hermione shook hands with Narcissa and the lawyer but noticed that Lucius made no attempt to do likewise. She ignored this slight for the moment, instead turning her attention to her hostess. It occurred to her that Narcissa Malfoy was nervous too, despite her calm demeanour.
'Please take a seat; there are some things I would like to discuss with you before we begin,' said Narcissa. Hermione allowed Harry to lead them to one of the sofas and sat down next to him. She did not let go of his hand. When she looked up she noticed that Lucius and Blackhouse were excusing themselves, leaving just the three of them in the room. Narcissa sat in an armchair across from them.
'I don't really know where to start, Miss Granger,' she began, 'so I suppose I should start by offering you my most sincere apologies for what happened to you the last time you were in this house. I regret that I ever allowed myself to get involved with such events and I can only promise you that I will endeavour to make amends for past mistakes.'
Hermione nodded her acceptance. 'Please; call me Hermione. Miss Granger makes me sound too old,' she said with a faint smile. She paused for a moment before continuing. 'If you don't mind me asking; why did you get involved with Voldemort? I can understand why you wish to atone, but I cannot fathom why you ever went down that path in the first place.'
She saw Narcissa flinch at the name and almost regretted her question. Even now he holds a power over some people. But in order for her to accept that Narcissa Malfoy was sincere, she had to try to understand the woman. Harry was always willing to give people the benefit of the doubt; she was somewhat more cynical at times.
'A fair question,' Narcissa finally replied. 'And one that Harry here has yet to ask me.' She licked her lips, clearly debating what to say next. 'It is hard to explain. At first we thought that he was the answer to our needs. You will be aware from knowing my cousin Sirius that the Black family held certain views about the way our society was run.' She shrugged. 'I was brought up in such an environment. I do not say this to excuse myself - Sirius proved that one was capable of choosing one's own path - I only offer it as an explanation for believing in the things I did. Unfortunately, once I and my husband had offered our support to the Dark Lord there was no going back. One did not resign from his service. When he returned I lived in fear for my son and for myself. I guess that it boils down to the fact that I never had your courage, unfortunately.'
'You did in the end,' replied Hermione. 'Harry would have died had you not lied to Riddle.'
'I did that to save my son,' replied Narcissa, her eyes flicking to Harry. 'I did not defy him to save Harry's life or to bring about the Dark Lord's defeat; I did it only because my son was in danger and because I knew Harry was the only hope of saving him. I am not proud to admit this but it is the truth.' She laughed bitterly. 'Hardly the most noble of reasons, wouldn't you say?'
'On the contrary,' replied Hermione, now convinced. 'I can't think of a better reason for finally defying him than doing so for the love of one's family. In the end you did defy him when he looked certain to win. That is all that matters and says more about your true beliefs than anything else. When it mattered - really mattered - you did what was right.'
Narcissa seemed to consider the words. 'Thank you for saying that, Hermione. I can see why Harry thinks so highly of you,' she finally replied. She took a deep breath. 'I want to stress again that you are most welcome here. I am more grateful than you will ever know that you have agreed to help my son. For that I will always be in your debt. But I should add that you would be welcome here anyway. I know that you are a true friend to Harry and that is sufficient for me to judge your character.' She smiled, turning her attention to Harry again. 'I know that Harry holds you in particularly high regard and that is all I need to know about you.' She smiled. 'I have come to grow quite fond of Mr Potter these past few days and I have learned to trust his judgement.'
Despite herself, Hermione smiled too. 'He does that, doesn't he? I could almost hate him for it if it wasn't for the fact that he's so damn likeable.'
Narcissa laughed. 'Yes; I have discovered that for myself. It seems Harry here has a certain way with people. He certainly knows how to bring the worst out of my husband,' she added ruefully.
'Hey!' said Harry. 'Am I invisible? Stop talking about me as if I wasn't here! Is this a female conspiracy or something?'
Hermione noticed that his cheeks were flushed red and she cast a quick glance at Narcissa who was doing her best not to laugh. Finally, she let herself go and laughed herself, releasing the nerves and anxiety she had been feeling. She mentally congratulated Narcissa for so adroitly putting her at ease and noticed that the older woman had joined in the laughter too. Harry looked distinctly nonplussed.
'Well,' said Narcissa finally, 'it's nice to finally meet you under happier circumstances, Hermione, and whilst I would like to chat further, I fear that we must go and greet our guests. It's nearly half past twelve.' She turned to Harry. 'I do hope you have something in mind, Harry; it would seem that your appeal has been more than successful. Apparently quite a few people have responded. I suspect the prospect of a large reward had induced some less than savoury characters to come out of the woodwork. I fear that we may need to come up with a way of rooting out the timewasters.'
Harry smiled having recovered his composure. 'Don't worry about that; I've learned a thing or two about people over the years. I think I can deal with this,' he added, getting to his feet.
Hermione stood too and found Harry standing close, staring straight at her. He leaned forward.
'Just go along with everything I say,' he whispered before turning and heading for the door.
She watched him go and was aware of a sense of bemusement as she tried to work out what he had in mind. She was also aware of a sudden feeling of loss as she realised that he was no longer holding her hand. Sighing, she turned to follow when she noticed Narcissa giving her a very shrewd look. She noticed a small smile play at the corner of her hostess' mouth and had an educated guess as to what amusing her. Flushing herself, she nodded to Narcissa and followed her friend out of the door, aware that the smile on the older woman's face had just broadened.
Damn it, Harry! How do you do it?
***********
A few moments later, Hermione found herself standing on a raised platform at the head of a vast room which she guessed must be a ballroom of some sort. When she had stepped through the door from the adjacent corridor, she had been gob smacked by the sheer scale of the room and the richness of the furnishings. What had really taken her breath away, however, was the number of people who had gathered in response to the appeal. She felt her stomach heave in disappointment.
'Harry!' she hissed. She waited until he turned to face her. 'There must be at least fifty people here! We don't have the time to speak to them all.' She noticed that Lucius Malfoy was watching them and it was with a degree of anger that she realised that he was regarding them with smug look on his face. She turned back to Harry, surprised to see him smiling.
'Don't worry; I told you I have learned a thing or two about human nature. Most of the people here are timewasters so I just need to get rid of them. I mean look at them; it's so obvious that some of them are here only for the money. They might as well have brought some shovels and sacks to show their intentions. Just watch,' he added, before moving to the front of the throng. Hermione shook her head, not fully understanding what he intended. She cast her gaze on the crowd of people standing before her and realised that there was quite a mix of personalities. Harry was right; there were more than a good few who looked a bit dodgy and she noted with surprise that there seemed to be a disproportionate number of young women - girls, she realised - in the room, many of whom were clustered in groups and giggling. She began to wonder if this had any significance before her train of thought was interrupted as Harry began to speak.
'Thank you all for coming,' he said in a loud voice. He was smiling as he regarded the host in front of him and did not seem at all perturbed. 'Before we begin,' he continued, 'I have a few announcements to make. First; it is my unfortunate duty to inform you that the reward on offer for information has been withdrawn. It would appear that I presumed too much when I made this available, for Mr Malfoy has made it plain that he has no such funds at his disposal at the moment. I can only apologise and stress that no attempt to mislead you was intended. If any of you have gone to any expense to come here today, please give your details to one of the elves and I will see that you are reimbursed for any reasonable costs.'
What is he playing at? thought Hermione, stunned by his words. It took a moment to realise what he was up to for after a few seconds, a collective groan could be heard from the audience and to her surprise, she saw that a considerable number of people began to file out of the room. It occurred to her that he had hit upon a perfect method of weeding out the gold diggers. Very clever, Harry.
She watched as Harry stood in silence as he waited for the last person to leave. At a stroke, he had removed over half of the people who had turned up. She glanced across to where the Malfoy's were standing and noticed that Narcissa was regarding Harry with a look of admiration whilst Lucius finally had the smug grin wiped off his face. She turned back as Harry continued and became aware that the room now had a distinctly… feminine aura to it. She could almost feel the hormones.
'I must add that whilst I had intended to interview you all personally, I have unfortunately received a summons from the Minister and must depart immediately. However, my very capable assistant, Hermione Granger, will be only too happy to speak to you all,' he added with a winning smile as he turned to face her.
Hermione flushed as all attention in the room was turned on her. What are you doing, Harry? I'm going to kill you for this! It was then that she heard a lot of high pitched squeals of disappointment and she found herself once again lost in admiration for what Harry was doing. She watched as nearly everyone remaining in the room began to leave and she realised that every one of them was a young witch. It occurred to her that they had only come along to be interviewed by "the great Harry Potter" and now that this opportunity had been removed, they were leaving in droves. She flushed even more as she noticed some of them cast her dirty looks as they filed out; jealous of her close relationship with their hero. When she looked up she saw that Narcissa was doing her best not to laugh at her predicament and when she turned back to face the crowd she noticed something else quite startling.
Only two people remained.
She turned back to Harry and saw that he was receiving admiring glances from Narcissa and Vladimir Blackhouse. He had a sheepish - almost embarrassed - look on his face as he turned to the remaining pair. He smiled broadly at them and she reckoned that this was the first genuine smile he had given since first entering this room. Well done, Harry.
'Might I ask your names, Sir, Madam?' Harry gently asked the middle aged couple who seemed to be in awe of their surroundings.
'It's Rodgers, Sir,' replied the woman. 'Elizabeth Rodgers and this is my husband Jack. He's a Muggle,' she added.
Hermione shot a quick glance at Lucius and noticed his lip curled in a sneer as he looked upon the remaining pair. He obviously was not enjoying having such company. Good.
'Well, thank you for coming Elizabeth. And there is no need to call me "Sir" - Harry will do. Now; can you tell me a bit about yourself?' he asked.
'Yes. Si…I mean, yes, Harry. I work as a cleaner in the same apartment building that young Mr Malfoy lives in and I thought you ought to know what I saw that terrible day. I thought the Aurors would have asked me by now, but they don't seem interested in the likes of us.'
She looked nervous, Hermione thought. Her eyes were darting around the room and she wondered what was causing the woman to feel such distress. She decided to try and help.
'Well, Elizabeth; Harry and I are certainly interested in anything you have to say.' She smiled. 'Why don't you tell us what you know?'
The woman seemed reassured by the friendly tone and took a deep breath before continuing. 'Well, I had just finished my shift and I was leaving for the day.'
'What time was this?' asked Harry.
'I don't know the exact time but it must have been about ten past one. I was just going home for my lunch.'
'And what did you see?' asked Harry.
'It was what I heard. There was raised voices coming from Mr Malfoy's flat - it was clear that an argument was going on.' She looked embarrassed. 'I like young Mr Malfoy - he's always quite civil to me and…well, I have to admit that I can be a bit nosy sometimes so I hung around to see if I could find out what was going on. I couldn't really hear anything, but just as I got closer, the door opened and a man stormed out. He didn't see me, but I saw him. I thought you might want to know.'
Silence greeted these words; a silence that you could almost feel. Hermione felt a rush of excitement within her.
'Would you be able to describe this man to us?' she asked, breathlessly, unaware of a slight commotion beginning behind her.
Elizabeth Rodgers turned and faced her, a strange look on her face, clearly still very nervous. 'I could have described him to you, but I don't need to anymore,' she replied.
'Why not?' asked Hermione, clearly perplexed.
'Because he's standing right over there,' replied Elizabeth, a look of determination on her face as she pointed straight at the ashen face of Lucius Malfoy.
***********
a/n Some of you may recognise the origins of the scene above from the TV series Lie to Me starring the excellent Tim Roth. I was much struck by it when I saw it and thought that the way in which Roth's character uses similar techniques to weed out gold diggers was worth repeating.