Author's Note: In the interest of not putting a giant block of text before the story itself, I have decided to move all of my author's notes from here on out to the end of the chapters. If you are one of the faithful readers of those, please look to the end of each chapter. As a result of this, I will also be discussing events of the chapter as well, so read them at your own risk.
Chapter 4
In Only Seven Days
July 17, 2011
11 AM
Harry Potter glanced at the large grandfather clock on the other side of the sitting room on the first floor of Number 12, Grimmauld Place as he paced around the room. Hermione had written to him to inform him that she and her parents would be arriving via floo at just after eleven in the morning. However, he couldn't help but watch the clock in anticipation, no matter how irrational it seemed.
Sirius, sitting on the sofa nearby, just chuckled at Harry.
"Harry, you know they'll get here eventually. Staring at the clock won't make the time pass any faster. In fact, it'll make it seem slower."
"I know, Sirius," Harry conceded, as he paced the length of the room once more. "But I can't help but wonder if they'll be able to get here or not. We still don't know if they were able to find out the secret from Professor Dumbledore."
"Harry," Sirius began as he shook his head with a smile on his face, "Minerva said that she would get in contact with Albus and get him to write down the secret for the Grangers. She was all too happy to be able to do something useful after being stuck at St. Mungos for so long. So if anyone can do it, she can. Don't worry, we'll find out if she was able to get that to them shortly."
Impatient as he was, Harry had to admit that Sirius had a point. After Hermione had written back saying that her parents would welcome the chance to stay in a magical house, the first concern was how they would get there. Grimmauld Place was still under the protection of the Fidelius Charm, with Albus Dumbledore as the secret keeper. However, due to the fact that he was supposedly unable to be contacted due to his exile from Hogwarts, the biggest issue was how to get the secret to the adult Grangers. Sirius had suggested that they contact Minerva McGonagall, since she always seemed to be the one who was closest to Dumbledore. If anyone could get in contact with him, she could. However, that had been more than a week before, and still they had not heard anything. Harry could only wait with baited breath as the time seemed to creep by. However, reminiscing about the previous few days and their activities did nothing to make the current time move any faster.
Sirius rolled his eyes as Harry continued to pace. "Harry, sit down," he said forcefully, motioning toward the seat next to him.
But before Harry could sit down, the oversized fireplace next to the large clock flared to life, green flames roaring into existence. A second later, a brown blur launched itself from the hearth at Harry, wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Oh, Harry, it's so good to see you!" Hermione exclaimed, clutching him tightly.
Harry quirked an eyebrow at Sirius, who struggled to suppress a grin, as the floo came to life once more, depositing two more figures, one at a time.
The larger of the two, who Harry assumed was Hermione's father, rose and dusted himself off, before taking in the sight of his daughter firmly attached to the figure of a teenage boy. He scowled lightly as he helped his wife up, but neither Harry nor Hermione saw this.
A moment later, Hermione released Harry, who awkwardly straightened his baggy shirt, not making eye contact with Sirius or the Grangers.
"Harry, these are my parents," Hermione began, introducing them to Harry. "This is my mum, Ellen," she said, as Harry shook her hand gently, "and my dad, Richard."
As Harry grasped the older man's hand firmly, Richard spoke. "You can call me Mr. Granger, Harry," he said authoritatively.
Ellen rolled her eyes. "No you can't," she said, contradicting her husband. You can call me Ellen, and you can call him Richard. It was the name he was given, after all."
"So was Granger," Richard argued under his breath.
"Don't pay him any mind, Harry," Ellen said sweetly. "He's just being a right berk. Thinks it's his job to scare any boy that might be friends with his daughter."
"Well, it is. It's in the father's job description, after all."
"I actually happen to agree with you, sir," Harry interjected somewhat nervously, speaking for the first time since the Grangers arrived. Richard's eyes widened at this. He wasn't expecting Harry to agree with him. "I really don't think it's so wrong for a father to want the best for his daughter. Besides, while I can't speak from experience, I expect its loads of fun too."
"I wouldn't know from experience either, Harry," Richard replied, his mood softening. "But the question is, are you going to let me find out?"
Harry didn't say anything in response, but instead turned crimson and looked away as. Hermione saw this and took action.
"Daddy! Is this how you're going to act during our entire holiday? If you keep this up, I wouldn't blame Harry for running away first chance he got!"
Ellen nodded in assent, as Sirius chuckled in the background.
"Oh honestly Hermione," her father replied, "I was just having a bit of fun with the boy! Testing him to see the strength of his character!" Sirius chuckled again at the somewhat flimsy explanation.
"Oh!" Harry exclaimed, hearing his godfather's laugh. "I completely forgot! This immature child over here," he began, gesturing to Sirius, "is my godfather, Sirius Black. And this is grim old place is his humble abode."
Sirius clutched at his chest. "Harry, you wound me," he mocked as he stood to shake the Grangers' hands. "Don't pay attention to Harry here. He likes to throw insults at me like quaffles. It's great fun for the two of us, but might seem a bit mean-spirited when we're around guests."
"Quaffle?" Richard asked, confused.
"Oh! Sorry!" Sirius exclaimed. "I forgot you might not know about quidditch. The quaffle is the ball used in quidditch, the wizarding sport."
"I thought that was the golden snitch?" Ellen asked, eyeing Hermione carefully. "At least that's what Hermione told us when she described the game."
Hermione turned away and blushed, an action that was becoming something of a common occurrence that day.
"Really?" Sirius asked, intrigued as he smiled mischievously. "Well, no matter. The snitch is only one of three different kinds of balls in quidditch. I'll have to explain it to you some time."
Richard and Ellen agreed as they noticed Hermione step away from Harry slightly, putting some distance between the two of them.
"Anyway," Sirius continued loudly, "maybe we should show you around, and teach you some of the finer points of living in a magical house?"
"Oh, absolutely!" Ellen exclaimed. "For years we've pretty much had to take Hermione at her word when it came to the magical world. Outside of when that Professor…what was her name again?"
"McGonagall," Hermione supplied helpfully.
"McGonagall. That's right. Outside of when she came to visit, and when we go to Diagon Alley, we don't really get to see anything magical. Of course we had to accept your invitation to stay here!"
Sirius chuckled. "Well, don't get too excited. I've stayed in the muggle world before, and we aren't too different in the way we live." He led the way out of the sitting room and into the foyer, where the portrait of his mother hung. "Now," he continued very quietly, "the first rule of staying in this house is to be very quiet in the foyer. See this?" he asked, gesturing toward the thick curtain. "This is the portrait of my thankfully deceased mother. The old bat was crazy, and that followed her into death. The portrait's crazy too, and if you wake it up, you will be regretting it for the rest of the day."
"Good to know," Richard replied skeptically as the group moved into the kitchen. "So that's one of those moving pictures Hermione's told us about?"
"Actually," Hermione began, launching into full lecture mode, "it's a portrait. See, wealthy witches and wizards can hire painters to paint portraits of them, and infuse those portraits with their personality and memories. That way, the family can literally still have a piece of the person after they've died. All of the Hogwarts Headmasters have portraits, which is quite useful, especially if the current Headmaster needs advice. However, in some cases, it is not always the best idea to immortalize a person in a portrait, such as with Sirius's mother. No offense, Sirius."
"None taken," he replied, shaking his head. "Remember, I was the one who called her an old bat and said it was a good thing she was dead."
"If you're unlucky enough to wake her up, she will scream at you," Hermione continued, "tossing all sorts of foul profanities at you, calling you unworthy-"
"Unworthy mudblood dares defile mistress's home?" a small, nasally voice interrupted her. The group turned around to see Kreacher enter the kitchen. "And she brought her pet muggles with her. Oh, mistress would be so displeased with Kreacher for allowing-"
"Kreacher!" Sirius bellowed. "Enough! These are guests in our house, and I will not have you speaking to them like that! Is that understood?"
"Yes, Master Sirius-Brat," Kreacher snarled. "Kreacher will not tell the muggle trash how unworthy they are to be in mistress's house. Kreacher will not tell the filthy mudblood and nasty half-blood that they belong in the gutters with yesterday's garbage. Kreacher will not tell-"
"Kreacher! You will not speak to anyone in this house except for me, understood?" The house-elf nodded. "Now, go back to your room until you are summoned." Kreacher scowled and disappeared with a pop, leaving the five humans alone in the kitchen once more.
"Sorry about that," Sirius apologized.
"What was that thing?" Richard asked, taken aback.
"That was Kreacher," Sirius responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "He's my house-elf. An unfortunate leftover of the black days of the Black family. I should tell you this right now: my family doesn't have the best history. In this house, there are remnants and reminders of their history supporting dark causes, so I will ask you to be careful. I've gotten rid of most of the dangerous stuff, but I might have missed something. So, when in doubt, ask. Now, I am sorry for Kreacher. He doesn't have the best social skills, especially towards non-purebloods."
"You can say that again," Harry muttered.
"Oh, before I forget, I also need to mention something," Sirius began. "There's going to be a meeting of the Order tonight, so we'll be having a bunch of extra people over. Sorry about that, but it was only something I just found out about earlier this morning."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked.
"It just slipped my mind. Anyway, knowing Molly, she'll drag the entire brood over here for it, and won't leave for a week. I've never understood that woman. She comes in here, criticizing my parenting skills, then takes over my house. I mean, I love her to death, but she will be the death of me."
"So much for a nice quiet week then, eh?" Harry asked as he cast an unsure glance at the Grangers. "Once the Weasleys get here, you won't be able to hear yourself think, let alone hear anything six inches away. It's like a sodding zoo. Not that it's not fun when they're around, it's just…different."
Despite Harry's and Sirius's downplaying of the situation, Ellen looked on the bright side. "At least we'll be able to get to know more of Hermione's friends," she offered. "I mean, we've already met the Weasleys, but it'll still be nice to get to know them a bit better."
Hermione, though, wasn't so excited. However, she didn't show it, and instead decided to pump Sirius for more information. "So what's the meeting going to be about, then? If it was called so quickly, it must be important."
Sirius shrugged one shoulder. "I don't know. Minerva called it this morning, that's all I know. Maybe it's her way of getting up to speed after she got out of St. Mungos, I don't know. All I know is that it's her call, since Albus doesn't seem to care to be around. Anyway, enough business. Let's show you your rooms."
July 17, 2011
2:27 PM
Richard and Ellen Granger found themselves in a spacious, yet sparsely decorated bedroom on the third floor of Grimmauld Place, unpacking their belongings for their week-long stay. Richard, for his part, was resting on the large bed, sitting up against the headboard as he watched Ellen unpack their clothes into the low, antique dresser on the wall directly across from the bed.
"Well, this certainly isn't the 'Gritz' Carlton to say the least," Richard commented, earning a groan from his wife.
"That was terrible Richard," she complained, referring to his pun. "Besides we're looking at a bachelor that has been cooped up in his family's ancient mansion, probably cleaning it out on his own. I hardly think that house-elf thing has been much help. At least it's livable, so I wouldn't complain too much."
"But did you see those heads on the wall? That's downright barmy I tell you!"
"I'll grant you that," Ellen replied. "But you know what? It's livable. We're only here for a week, so it's not like we have to live here for the rest of our lives. We wanted to know what it would be like to live in a magical home, so here's our chance. It's just not quite what I expected is all."
"You can say that again," Richard grumbled as he looked around the room again. In addition to the bed and dresser, there was a small table next to the bed with an old wind-up clock resting up on it. The only other feature of the room was the single window on the wall opposite the door, but it was blocked by heavy black curtains. The walls themselves were adorned with waist-high black wood paneling, and finished with gray and white wallpaper that seemed to be yellowing slightly. It was obvious that the house had fallen into disrepair at some point, and that Kreacher had not been much help is maintaining it. Despite this, it was evident that Sirius had attempted to make the house somewhat inhabitable during his house arrest, with the end result of most of the rooms being generally clean, if a bit aged and decrepit.
"It does remind me a bit of that hostel we stayed at that one time," Ellen said. "You know, the one in Gent when we were backpacking across Belgium before Hermione was born? It had the same feel as this."
Richard snorted. "Don't let that Sirius bloke let you hear that. He's liable to take offense at his house being compared to a hostel."
"Not bloody likely," Sirius said from the open door, poking his head inside the room. "I know this house is a right mess. I personally hate it myself, but it is what it is."
"Oh! Sirius!" Ellen shrieked, jumping back slightly in surprise. "We didn't know you were there."
Sirius shrugged. "I wasn't. At least until a second ago. Don't worry, I wasn't crouched next to your door like some crazed stalker or anything, listening in on every word. I was just walking by when I heard you saying that I wouldn't like my house compared to a hostel. Well, to be perfectly honest, a hostel would be a glitzy resort compared to this place."
"That's not true," Ellen responded in an unconvincing tone as she shifted her eyes to Richard for support.
"Erm, yeah," he agreed half-heartedly.
"You two would make terrible actors," Sirius informed them jovially. "I know the place isn't in the best shape, but for right now, I'm forced to stay here. So I'd better make of it what I can."
Richard and Ellen nodded noncommittally, causing Sirius to chuckle once more.
"Anyway, that's not why I came up here," he said. "I was actually wondering if you two wanted to sit in on the Order meeting tonight. Get a little perspective on what goes on behind the scenes in the wizarding world, if you will."
"Is that really our place?" Ellen asked tentatively.
"It is if I say it is," Sirius replied. "This is my house, after all, and you are my guests. And since this meeting is being held in my house, I get a say on who gets to sit in. I learned that lesson last year after Harry was left out of a meeting."
"We don't want to be an imposition," Richard interjected, seeing the insistent look his wife was giving him.
"And you wouldn't be," Sirius responded. "I just figured I'd invite you so you could have an idea of what's really going on out there."
Ellen glanced at Richard, who shrugged unhelpfully. She rolled her eyes at him before turning back to Sirius to respond. "We'll think about it," she said diplomatically. "That's not to say we're saying no, but that we just want to talk about it. I mean, I know that it's not really a big deal to sit in on a meeting, but let's just say that we don't want to feel out of place."
"I can understand that," Sirius empathized. "But the offer still stands. Let me know what you decide, since it's in only a few hours."
"We will," Ellen told him as he turned and left the room, leaving the adult Grangers alone once more.
When they were alone again, Richard spoke. "So," he began, "what do you think?"
"I told him what I thought," Ellen retorted, "so I would have thought you'd pick up on it too."
"Well, I kinda got what you were saying, but I wasn't sure if you were telling him the whole truth or whether it was just another situation like when you used the money excuse with Hermione."
"Whatever. Now, I personally think it might be interesting to go, but that's just me. I mean, we would be able to find out more about this world, which might let us relate to Hermione better."
"And I happen to agree with you," Richard replied. "I don't know why you didn't just tell him that when he was here."
"Because I wanted to discuss it first," Ellen answered. "But since we're in agreement on it, it was kinda pointless, wasn't it?"
Richard shrugged. "Ya'know, it can be kinda uncanny how well we tend to agree, even without speaking."
"That is true," she agreed. "We wouldn't have survived seventeen years of marriage if we didn't agree."
"So you're giving me full lease to make decisions without consulting you, so long as I think you agree?" Richard joked.
"Absolutely not! I don't know where you got that notion, but that's the last thing I wanted to make you think!" she huffed jokingly.
Richard snapped his fingers in mock disappointment. "Well, there goes my thought of quitting the practice and taking up the hobby of fixing up old lorries full-time," he added tentatively.
Ellen snorted. "Please tell me you weren't trying to test the waters there."
"Eh, it's not really worth talking about now," he replied, his tone of voice vaguely hinting at his sarcasm.
"You're not making me feel any better," Ellen said sarcastically. Richard laughed as she finished unpacking and slid their luggage under the bed. "But that aside, any bets on how Hermione'll spend the meeting? She wrote last year telling us that she wasn't allowed in, but that didn't stop her from listening in with the others. I don't know if she'll do that this time, but I'm willing to wager on where she'll spend the time."
"Don't you mean with 'who?'" Richard grumbled.
"Richard, I've already told you once, the overprotective father routine is outdated and doesn't become you. Give the boy a chance; he's a human being for Pete's sake. He deserves to be treated like one. And that little stunt you pulled downstairs, telling him he couldn't call you by your first name, didn't help matters any."
"I just thought it would be respectful for him to-"
"It wasn't respectful of you to say that. Now, it's very possible that Hermione will realize that she fancies the boy, and if she does, it's likely that he'll be in our lives for a long time to come. Is that really the way you want him to think of you? As some domineering, overbearing bully?"
"I think that's a bit harsh…"
"No it isn't. While you may not have been a bully downstairs, I could easily see it turning into that if you keep it up. While it might have been a bit hasty of us to invite him on holiday with us without getting to know him, we now have the perfect opportunity to do so. Don't waste it."
"Yes dear," Richard replied mockingly, causing Ellen to roll her eyes.
July 17, 2011
7:29 PM
Despite the fact that the Order meeting that evening was only supposed to last a short while, Molly Weasley had brought two of her children with her: Ron and Ginny. Just as Sirius had predicted, they had come with the intention of staying for several days, and as a result, were upstairs unpacking in their own rooms. Like with Harry and Hermione, Sirius had provided them with their own rooms this year.
In the meantime, as the appointed time of the Order meeting approached, Harry and Hermione had excused themselves to the sitting room to await word on the outcome of the meeting. They had both assumed that Sirius would inform them as to the contents of the meeting, based simply on his personality and past willingness to divulge sensitive information to the pair, as well as Ron.
"So did you manage to get your summer homework done, Harry?" Hermione asked seriously.
"Hey! You told me that you wouldn't pester me about that this summer, remember?" he argued, reminding her of her promise in his dormitory before the term had ended.
"I know, I know. But you haven't really said much since we got here, so I had to start a conversation somehow. Seemed like a good place to start."
"Of course, homework's always a good place to start with you, isn't it?" Harry joked tentatively, not wanting to seem like he was ridiculing Hermione too much. The last thing he wanted was to sound like Ron and only associate Hermione with homework.
"Don't even start, Harry," she warned. "I don't want my parents getting that idea about me."
"Huh?" he asked, confused. "You're telling me that your parents don't think school is important to you?"
Hermione shook her head. "No, they know school's important to me, and always has. But that's not all I obsess about at home. Granted, I've always been a bookworm, even before Hogwarts-"
"You're not a 'bookworm,' Harry corrected. "You just really…enjoy books," he finished lamely.
Hermione chuckled at his poor attempt at relabeling her. "Nice try, Harry. But really, I am a bookworm. I know it, and my parents know it. I'm not saying that like it's a bad thing. But when I'm at home, school and homework aren't the only things I talk about or do. I don't want my parents to think that I obsess about it so much that I'm pestering you about it is all."
"Sounds like your relationship with your parents isn't so cut and dry," Harry observed. "You never really talked about them, so I just assumed that your relationship with them was something like you, me, and Ron."
"You, Ron, and me," she corrected quietly, causing Harry to chuckle. "But no, it's nothing like that. It's just that…our relationship is complicated, to say the least. I don't usually talk about it though."
Harry looked at her curiously. "Why not?"
Hermione took a deep breath before speaking. "It's complicated," she repeated. She seemed to debate with herself for a moment about whether to continue. Finally, after a brief moment, she seemed to decide in favor of doing so. "You know my dad and mum are both dentists, right?" Harry nodded. "They own their own practice in Swindon and everything. In order to really understand, I'll have to start at the beginning."
Harry settled into the sofa and waited for her to continue.
"They met in school when they were about our age, and became friends soon thereafter, both of them belonging to the same group of friends. They remained good friends until they both went to university. Because they lived in a pretty small town, they, along with several of their friends, went to the same university. Now, depending on whether you talk to my mum or my dad, you will get a different answer as to who influenced who into getting a degree in dentistry."
"Who was it?" Harry asked.
Hermione shrugged. "I still haven't been able to get a straight answer out of either of them. Each one keeps telling me that they were the one to influence the other. I don't know the real answer. Anyway, because they were now in the medical program at the university, they seemed to split off from their other friends. As a result, the two grew closer. The rest is kinda self-explanatory. They were married two years later, when my dad was twenty-one and my mum twenty. At this point, my dad had gotten on as a dental assistant to earn some money to get through school, and my mum served as a secretary in the same office that he worked in. However, about a year after getting married, my mum got pregnant and eventually quit her job and school, leaving them with only a single income. My dad continued to work through university, even after I was born. When I was four years old, he finally got his degree and found a full-time position that allowed for much better pay. During this whole time, my mum stayed at home with me, completing the occasional correspondence course to keep working on her degree. But because money was so tight while my dad was in school, she couldn't do too much at one time. Finally, after my dad finished his degree, they had enough money to hire someone to take care of me while my mum went back to school full time. She finished her degree a few years later, and she and my dad opened their own practice together."
"Not to sound like I'm not interested or anything," Harry began, "but what does that have to do with you?"
Hermione stared off into space, as though contemplating her next move. "Well, you can pretty much see that life for my parents, at least early on, was no bed of roses. They worked all through uni, getting by and living paycheck to paycheck. Now they're successful and well-off, mainly due to their hard work early on. I guess I've always wanted to follow in their footsteps."
"And what's so wrong with that? Hard work and striving to make something of yourself isn't something to be ashamed of, Hermione. It's really just that: something to shoot for."
"Not at the expense of everything else. Contrary to popular belief, being a bookworm and wanting to do well in school are two very different things. When I was younger, my parents always pushed me to do well in school. What parents wouldn't though, really? When they told me their story, I guess it just reinforced to me how hard I should work. But at the same time, I've always got the message from them that school isn't everything. I think daddy asked me once, what good is success if I don't have anyone to share it with? But really, I wanted to please them so much, I guess, that I kinda ignored that. And you can see the end result."
Harry looked at her, perplexed, wondering what was so bad about the end result. From what he could gather, her hard work and bookishness had only been beneficial, serving to save both of their lives on several occasions. He had to tell her that, but before he could, he was interrupted.
"Harry? Hermione?" Sirius poked his head into the sitting room, only to find Harry and Hermione alone. He glanced at Harry knowingly, whose face slowly seemed to be growing red with embarrassment. "I think you're old enough to sit in on the meeting, don't you?" he suggested with a wink. They had not really discussed it, since Harry and Hermione had assumed that they would not be allowed into the meetings again this year.
"Are you sure?" Harry asked tentatively, disappointed at Sirius's entrance, but somewhat excited at his proposal. "I mean, Molly's gonna be there, right? So what'll she say about it?"
"I couldn't care less what she has to say about it. She's not your mother, and since I'm your godfather, I have the final say. As for Hermione, Ellen and Robert have given their permission for her to go too. After all, they're sitting in on the meeting as well."
"Huh?" Hermione asked, dumbfounded. "Why are they there?"
"I just thought it would be right to invite them," Sirius explained with a shrug. "After all, they're guests in my house, as well as adults. And whether they like it or not, their daughter is a part of the magical world, so I thought that they deserved to sit in on the meeting. And after a little while of thinking about it, they agreed."
"Fine," Harry decided, standing up and moving toward the door. "I've always wondered what you guys do in those meetings anyway. From the sounds of it, it sounds like a lot of strategizing, and not much else. I'm curious if there's a big chess board or map sitting on the table with little plastic men who you push around with sticks."
"Only in your perverse fantasies, Harry," Sirius retorted as Hermione stood and joined them as they walked toward the dining room, where the meeting was to be held.
As they entered the room, they saw that Ellen and Robert Granger, Minerva McGonagall and Molly Weasley were already seated. As soon as they entered, Molly's head quickly swiveled and caught sight of them.
"No! They are too young to be here!" she exclaimed, rising from her seat in a huff. She then regained her temper slightly as she addressed Harry and Hermione sweetly. "Now, this is nothing that you two need to concern yourselves with. Let the adults take care of whatever is going on. Go on, go enjoy yourselves. Don't let yourselves get bogged down in this mess."
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Molly, they're here because I invited them, and they wanted to come. Surely you don't believe that something involving Voldemort doesn't involve Harry, do you? And anything that involves Harry involves Hermione by default, so there we go."
"They are just children!" she shrieked, losing her temper once more. "Where do you get off thinking that you know what's best for them, Sirius Black? I'm of half a mind to-"
"Molly Weasley, sit down, and shut up!" Sirius roared. "This is my house, and Harry is my godson. His care is my concern, not yours, and I would thank you to kindly stick your nose elsewhere, because it does not belong in my business. Understood?" He paused for a moment to collect his wits. "Now, you two," he said to Harry and Hermione, "I think we should sit down. The meeting should be starting any moment."
Harry and Hermione sat tentatively, with Hermione to Harry's right and Sirius to his left. Ellen and Robert sat next to Hermione, in an unspoken attempt to shield her from Molly's wrath. For her part, the Weasley matron was still seething with rage, but wisely kept it to herself, instead deciding to use her face to display various unhealthy shades of red.
As they sat, a few more members of the Order drifted into the room, taking seats at various points around the table. It seemed, however, that not many members were present, possibly due to the short notice of the meeting. For now, Harry could recognize McGonagall, Snape, Kingsley Shaklebolt, Nymphadora Tonks, Remus, and Alastor Moody.
"I think that's everyone who told me they would be here," McGonagall announced finally, getting everyone's attention, "so let's get started. I'm sure you're all wondering what the reason behind this meeting is. Well, I can tell you that Severus was summoned by You-Know-Who several weeks ago, for some emergency meeting, however little came from that meeting. Now, late last night, Severus was summoned once more. This time, however, he tells me that there is something substantive to report. So, I will turn it over to Severus, to discuss what happened. Severus." She turned the floor over to the Hogwarts potions master, sitting down as she did so.
Snape stood, his black robes swirling around him as he did so. "I will endeavor to keep this simple and entertaining, since Potter has decided to grace us with his presence," he sneered, glaring at Harry. "Loathe as I am to admit it, Potter actually does have a role here tonight, despite the legitimate objections of some," he added, looking at Molly pointedly. "Just as the last term ended, I was summoned by the Dark Lord, along with a handful of his most loyal followers, to a special gathering. The Dark Lord had previously attempted to draw Potter to the Ministry, in an attempt to retrieve a specific, object of which we are all aware." Harry looked confused by this and opened his mouth to say so. "Potter, you will have to discuss that with the Headmaster," he added, anticipating Harry's question. "But, showing a rare modicum of common sense, Potter did not fall for the ruse, and saved himself, and anyone foolish enough to follow him, a great deal of trouble. He then brought the incident to my attention."
"We know this," Harry growled. "Get to the point."
"As always, Potter, you have no patience. I was simply giving the necessary background for those who are not fully aware of the situation. The Dark Lord was…most displeased by the fact that Potter did not fall for his trap. Now, as most of you are aware from my previous reports, the Dark Lord is neither patient nor is he even-tempered. He also suffers from extreme paranoia. As a result, he tends to overreact and assume the worst possible outcome to a situation. As a result, he read more into the failure of his rouse than he should have."
"What do you mean?" Sirius asked. "Does he think that Harry already knows about the pro-"
"Ahem!" Molly interrupted, clearing her throat loudly.
Snape glared at Sirius before continuing. "No, I am not insinuating that is the case at all. The Dark Lord is of the impression that Potter has developed strong occlumency skills, and is able of withstanding any of his mental attacks. However, having personally attempted to train Potter in the art of occlumency, I can assure you that this is not the case. The Dark Lord now believes that Potter was able to, in some fashion, reverse the attack and probe his mind, thereby learning of the trap."
"That's ridiculous," Harry replied. "I couldn't do that if I tried. I mean, I did see the vision of Mr. Weasley, but I wouldn't even begin to know where to start when it came to doing that again."
"Trust me Potter, I know this very well. Your lack of skill in occlumency was most entertaining, despite the fact that it wasted some of my valuable time. That aside, I will once again reiterate the fact that the Dark Lord is extremely paranoid. He plots, plans, and schemes for every eventuality, and analyzes every outcome. If he even catches a hint that his power may be in danger, he will take action. And that is what he has done."
"So what does this have to do with us then?" Harry asked, irritated at the small jabs that Snape had been taking at him.
"Fearing that the connection between himself and Potter is a potential liability, the Dark Lord has taken steps to protect his assets. While normally this would be standard behavior for the Dark Lord, I have found one action in particular quite intriguing. The Dark Lord has directed Lucius Malfoy to protect what he refers to as his most treasured possession. While I am not aware of what this object is, I am aware that it was previously under the protection of Bellatrix Lestrange. However, the Dark Lord felt that the protections on it were not sufficient enough to protect the object from Potter's roving mind, and has given it to Malfoy to protect."
"So what?" Harry challenged. "So Voldemort," he paused for the inevitable gasp from Molly and glare from Snape, "chose to protect his favorite toy. So what? Why's that so important?"
Snape leaned over the table, spreading his arms wide to support himself as he made eye contact with Harry. "Potter, your shortsightedness never ceases to astound me. Any object that is highly favored by the Dark Lord must have dire implications for the rest of the wizarding world. Undoubtedly, this is some kind of dark object that we know nothing about. But if the Dark Lord is willing to take such extreme steps to protect it, it is likely that it is key to his power or plans in some way."
"What do you mean, 'extreme steps?'" Hermione asked. "All you said was that he had taken it away from Bellatrix and given it to Malfoy. That doesn't sound too extreme to me."
Snape eyed Hermione's parents carefully before responding. "It is extreme, Miss Granger," he began with forced patience, "because of the circumstances. Lestrange has long been tasked with protecting the most treasured belongings of the Dark Lord, and she has chosen to do so by utilizing her Gringotts vault. The fact that the Dark Lord no longer views Gringotts as secure is troubling. However, that is not the most interesting aspect of this situation. As you are no doubt aware, Mr. Malfoy is extremely wealthy, and his wealth comes from several sources. However, the primary source of his wealth is the muggle gaming industry. Specifically, the casino industry."
"That makes no sense, though," Hermione objected. "Why would a devoted follower of Voldemort get involved in the muggle gaming industry? That seems to go against everything the Death Eaters believe in!"
Snape nodded thoughtfully, honestly appreciating Hermione's statement. "While normally I would agree with you, Miss Granger, the situation is not that simple. You are correct in your assumption that most Death Eaters would normally not get involved in the muggle world, Mr. Malfoy is not one of them. True, he despises muggles, and actively works toward their demise, but at the same time, he also a very intelligent man. He understands that the muggle economy is vast and waiting to be tapped, and he also believes that he can take advantage of weak-minded muggles by tempting them with games of chance. In this way, he is able to profit from the muggle world, while at the same time working to undermine it by sowing the seeds of addiction. He is then able to utilize these profits to fund the activities of the Dark Lord."
Hermione had to admit that he had a point. While it seemed to go against everything the Death Eaters stood for, once she thought about it, owning a muggle casino was actually just an extension of Death Eater ideals.
"So Voldemort gave this…item to Malfoy to put in his casino?" Remus asked for clarification.
Snape nodded curtly. "Indeed. At least, that is the insinuation that Mr. Malfoy made. However, that also puts us at a distinct disadvantage if we are intending to learn what the object is."
"And why's that?" Sirius asked.
"Because the property that Mr. Malfoy owns is in the United States. More specifically, in the muggle gaming destination of Las Vegas."
Sirius snorted. "What a perfect place for Malfoy to go. He's the scum of the Earth, so of course he'd choose Sin City."
"Choose your next witticism more carefully next time, mutt," Snape growled. "This is a serious situation."
"Is there any way you can find out what the object is?" McGonagall asked, speaking for the first time.
Snape shook his head. "As far as the Dark Lord seems to be concerned, the matter is closed. After the meeting last night, when Mr. Malfoy reported that the object is now in place in Las Vegas and that he would be traveling there to oversee the security measures, I doubt very much that the Dark Lord will discuss the matter further."
"Oh, I wish Albus was here," Molly moaned. "Then we could ask him what he thinks we should do. I mean, it would be easy enough to just forget about the whole matter and be done with it. But the Order exists to deal with situations just like this. We can't survive in a head-on battle against You-Know-Who and his followers, but we can work behind the scenes to stop him. That's what we're here for."
"Is there any way anybody can contact him?" Hermione asked.
McGonagall shook her head. "Unfortunately, every owl I try to send to him comes back undelivered. Every way I can think of to contact him has failed so far."
"Then how did you get the secret to the Grangers about Headquarters?" Harry asked.
"I didn't," McGonagall admitted. "I tried to send Albus a letter, asking him to write down the address for them, but it, like all of the others, came back undelivered. That usually means that either the person does not want to receive any post, or they are too far away for the owl to reach."
"Then how did you get the secret?" Harry asked the Grangers.
"Some large bird appeared in a flame in our kitchen this morning just before we were supposed to leave," Ellen answered. "It gave us a piece of paper-"
"Parchment," Hermione corrected.
"Parchment, and disappeared in a flame."
"That would be Fawkes," Harry explained. "So we know that the Headmaster was behind that, but it doesn't explain how he knew to send the address in the first place."
"Is anything Albus does explainable?" Sirius asked sarcastically. "I'm sure he knows what's going on, and has just chosen to stay out of communication on purpose. The only question is, why?"
"Unfortunately, that is not the issue right now," McGonagall commented. "With Albus unreachable, we must choose whether we will act, and how we will do so. So, I'm open to suggestions from everybody."
"If You-Know-Who thinks this object is important, then it obviously is," Moody commented from his vantage point leaning against the wall across from Harry. "We can't afford to let him keep control over it."
"Hold on," Shaklebolt argued. "We don't even know what this thing is. For all we know it could be his prized stuffed hippogriff from when he was a kid. I don't think we can assume that we have to steal something without knowing what it is."
Murmurs erupted from around the room as various suggestions were bandied about. Ellen, for her part, appeared contemplative as the others discussed the predicament.
"Whatcha thinking about?" Richard whispered in her ear, leaning over subtly.
"Just thinking," she replied cryptically. "About a way we could help."
Richard quirked a single eyebrow in curiosity at her statement. "What do you mean, help?" he asked. "Why is that our responsibility?"
"Like it or not, we're involved in this to some degree," she argued. "I mean, we aren't part of the magical world, but our daughter is. So to some degree, this does affect us. Besides, we could learn more about this world that's claimed Hermione." Richard appeared pensive. "Do you trust me?" Ellen asked.
"Well, yeah," he responded, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "But-"
"How do you like the sound of a trip to Vegas?" Ellen whispered, shutting him up. He didn't have time to respond before she raised her voice to address the rest of the group. "Then why don't we find out what it is?" she suggested, speaking before the entire congregation for the first time. All eyes in the room turned to her and her idea. "I mean, I don't know about you, but the sound of a trip to Las Vegas doesn't sound too bad to me."
Richard looked around the table frantically before leaning over to his wife and whispering in her ear. "What do you think you're doing?" he whispered angrily through clenched teeth.
"I just had an idea," she whispered back, before leaning away from him and raising her voice once more. "See, Harry, Hermione, Richard, and I were planning on taking a trip to the States in a week anyway. It wouldn't be that hard to change our plane tickets to go to Las Vegas instead of Florida. Granted, it might be a bit more expensive, especially on such short notice, but it must be doable."
Snape took a deep breath before making eye contact with Ellen. "Mrs. Granger," he began slowly, "forgive me if this sounds offensive, but how exactly can you help us in this situation? You lack any magic and would not be able to contend with Mr. Malfoy directly due to that…handicap."
Richard gritted his teeth as Snape insulted his wife, understanding why Hermione complained about this professor. "Then that is exactly why we are the perfect choices for this," he argued, joining Ellen's side. "Forgive me if this sounds offensive," he said, repeating Snape's words for effect, "but any one of you here would stick out like a sore thumb in Las Vegas if you went on your own. You said it yourself that this is a muggle casino that Mr. Malfoy operates. And any good spy knows that the best reconnaissance is performed by somebody who blends in. Ergo, we're perfect." He swallowed quickly before continuing. "However," he added, "don't think I don't see the benefit of taking someone magical with us. But I'm not really comfortable going with just a teenage witch and wizard to fill that role. No offense, Harry, Hermione."
Harry nodded the comment off, wondering why Richard was doing this.
"Richard, Ellen," Sirius began, "you're really willing to sacrifice your own holiday in order to go on some little survey mission for us?"
"Well, we wouldn't be going alone," Richard retorted. "We'd have to take some of you with us. But it wouldn't really be much of a sacrifice for us. We'd still be able to go to a prime tourist location and get some sun." He added this last part in an attempt to further justify his decision to the others, in addition to his wife.
McGonagall eyed Richard carefully, before shifting her gaze to Ellen, in an attempt to read her opinion on the matter, who nodded in agreement. "Well then," she began, "if you see it as no trouble, and if you can work out the necessary arrangements, then I see no problem with this plan. However, I want to see a list of who is going and make sure that wise choices are made. Otherwise, this plan may be in serious jeopardy. For now though, unless a better idea is put forth, we go forward with Mr. and Mrs. Grangers' plan. Severus," she added, "did you have anything else you wanted to mention?"
"I do want to mention that, despite the fact that the Dark Lord fears Potter's occlumency skills, that does not preclude the possibility that he will attempt further incursions into the boy's mind. Sending him away on holiday would not make matters more secure. In fact, the various…frivolities in Las Vegas may lead to further mental weakness."
"Then what do you suggest, Severus?" Moody asked. "You training him in occlumency further?"
Snape sighed deeply. "If he promises to behave himself, I will allow Potter one last chance to learn occulmency from me, in order to honor the Headmaster's wishes. However, if he were to betray my trust again…" he trailed off as Hermione glanced at Harry for clarification. He provided none.
"I won't allow it," McGonagall replied forcefully. "From what I know of your previous lessons, they were far from helpful, to say the least. But to be more accurate, they were bordering on abusive. There is no way I would subject Mr. Potter to that again."
"But the Headmaster-"
"Is not here," McGonagall interrupted. "But I am, and I have decided that Mr. Potter will not be attending any further occlumency lessons with you."
Snape smirked in rueful satisfaction, but did not sit back down, nor did he attempt to even feign disappointment at McGonagall's decision.
"Then if you have nothing further to add Severus, I do believe that this meeting is adjourned," McGonagall announced, "as that was the only order of business for the night. Thank you for coming, everyone."
As Harry and Hermione stepped out of the dining room at Grimmauld Place, they were immediately bombarded with questions from a pair of red-headed siblings.
"So what did they talk about?" Ron asked earnestly. "The twins weren't here, and I didn't bring an Extendable Ear of my own, so we couldn't listen in. What did they talk about?"
"Ron," Hermione began, "I don't really think we need to talk about it right this second." She watched as her parents walked by, headed toward the sitting room on the other side of the first floor.
"Harry! You'll tell us, right?" Ginny pestered, trying to pump Harry for information.
But he shook his head in the negative. "Maybe in a little bit, guys. But right now, Hermione and I need to go and talk to her parents. We'll catch up with you in a bit, alright? You are staying here for a few days aren't you?"
Ron nodded glumly. "Yeah, mum always makes us stay here for a few days after each meeting. Says it lets us get out of the Burrow for a few days, lets us get a change of scenery. Personally, I don't like the scenery here myself. Not that I don't want to spend time with you mate. Or you, Hermione," he added hastily. "But this house just gives me the creeps."
"I know what you mean, mate," Harry agreed as he slapped Ron on the back. "Anyway, we need to go talk to Mr. and Mrs. Granger. See you around later, alright?"
Harry led Hermione away from the youngest Weasleys and across the first floor and into the sitting room. As they approached, they heard voices engaged in a lively discussion.
"Well that was certainly a big decision for you to make on your own," Richard said, his voice tinged with spite. "Especially after what you said about partnership and teamwork earlier."
"Well, I thought that it was a good idea at the time. Yes I know it is a big decision, but I thought I was doing something important," Ellen argued. "Not to mention the fact that I let you know ahead of time. You didn't seem too opposed to the idea. I mean, I know we were planning on going to Florida, and I probably could have spent a bit more time thinking about it, but what's done is done. We can still back out, but then we'd have to explain that."
"Not that I want to do that, but don't you think that speaking up like that was kinda…hasty? We don't owe those people anything, yet we just volunteered to travel thousands of miles for them on some survey mission. Not to mention the fact that our holiday was supposed to be in only seven days."
"Alright, alright, I know you think I was irresponsible."
"That's not what I'm saying," he countered. "I'm not saying it was irresponsible. I'm saying it was unexpected. You know full well I've fancied at trip to Vegas for a while, so I'm not complaining about that. I just don't know why we're going for them. Really, it all comes back to that Harry fellow, since he is at the source of it all. It may not be his fault, and Lord knows I don't want to blame him for anything, but he is involved. It just seems like a lot to do for someone we hardly even know."
Harry and Hermione poked their head around the corner to get a better view, just in time to see Ellen nodding her head in agreement.
"All the more reason to do this," she argued. "What better way to get to know someone than in their own element."
"Vegas is his element?" Richard balked.
"I meant the magical world. Granted, we'll all be out of our comfort zone a bit, but there will be magic involved to some degree. Maybe then we'll be able to see him the way Hermione sees him."
"I'll admit that your idea has some credibility," Richard conceded. "But it does seem awfully thin. And I can't get over the fact that we walked out of that meeting having tried to solve all of their problems. We were supposed to be at that meeting just as observers more than anything else."
"Right, but I guess we're a bit more than observers now, aren't we?" she joked. "That aside, we can finally get involved in Hermione's life with this. We both know how disconnected we've been from her the past few years. Maybe this is what we need to finally get to really know her again."
"Another good point," Richard replied. "I guess I can see the logic behind it all. Not that I'm disagreeing, remember. It was just a bit of a rash decision, that's all."
"Time isn't on our side, remember? We only have a week before we're supposed to leave. But if we're gonna do this, you better make the most of it. This trip gives you the chance to make a good impression on Harry, not to mention get to know him better. Hermione could have just as easily invited him to spend some time with us at home, but the fact that she wanted him to come on holiday with us shows how much she really cares for him."
But before Richard could respond, Sirius entered from the other entrance into the sitting room. Harry and Hermione took this opportunity to enter as well, hoping to remain nonchalant and act as though they had not been eavesdropping.
"Are you really sure about this, Mr. Granger?" Harry asked tentatively as he sat down on one of the two sofas.
"Harry, call him Richard," Ellen suggested.
"Sorry…Richard," Harry amended.
"It's alright, Harry," Richard said confidently, his mood improved from a moment earlier. "And yes, I am sure about this. To be perfectly honest, I've been wanting to go to Las Vegas for years now, since I do like my share of gaming. This is just the perfect opportunity to finally do it."
"Daddy does like his card games," Hermione admitted. "He's played bridge for years."
Richard snorted. "Bridge," he repeated derisively. "I don't have anything against it. In fact, I really do enjoy playing it. But sometimes I almost wish it would stick its hand down the front of my trousers and have a little rummage."
"Daddy!" Hermione exclaimed, horrified at her father's comment.
"What?" he replied innocently. "It's true! Bridge can get boring. I've always wanted to play some other card games at a major casino, that's why I've always wanted to go to Vegas. This is the perfect chance, and I had to jump at it."
"So then how are we going to do this?" Harry asked.
"Well," Sirius began, "since you are doing this for the Order, I want to help. I'll be honest, my family is quite well off, and has historically used that money for some less savory purposes. I'd like to help out there."
"Well then, Sirius, since you're going to be funding part of the trip, you might as well come along then, right?" Richard suggested.
"If you insist," Sirius replied with a grin.
"What about the fact that you're still wanted?" Harry objected. "If the Ministry catches you, they'll have you kissed for sure!"
"Eh, I'm only wanted in Europe," Sirius replied nonchalantly. "Moony took the liberty of researching it for me, in the event that I wanted to run off to some tropical paradise and surround myself with scantily-clad women. So long as I get out of Britain, I'll be fine. And even that shouldn't be too difficult. The Ministry is full of quacks these days, and they're all completely useless. It should be a cakewalk to slip through their net. Besides, I've always wanted to give ol' Lucius a good stomping."
"While that is a pleasant thought to have, here's what I'm thinking," Harry interjected. "At the very least, I expect Malfoy to be well connected, even in America. So I have no doubt he'll have any form of magical transportation monitored. That rules out international portkeys and the international floo system."
"I thought we were just going to fly there like before," Ellen said.
"We can…and now that I think about it, we probably should," Harry concluded. "The only question is how many people to take."
"Well, I don't think we should take too many," Ellen opined. "The whole point of this entire thing is to stay under the radar. Bringing a small army with us kind of defeats the entire purpose."
"True," Sirius commented. "But I'm not gonna decide on numbers, since money isn't an issue. We just need to decide who's going and go with that. We can't go into this with a predetermined number already in our heads."
"Sure," Harry agreed as he shrugged. The others nodded slightly in agreement as well. "But the question is, who do we take?"
"Well, since it was the Grangers trip to begin with," Sirius began, "I think that they should be the ones to decide. After all, they'll be the ones who have to live with the decision."
"Oh, such a positive outlook you have on everything, Sirius," Richard responded dryly.
"I think that Harry and Hermione should decide, personally," Ellen suggested. "After all, they were the ones who were going to go on holiday with us to begin with, and they know all of these people anyway. I think they'd be the best people to decide on who to take and who to leave behind."
Harry and Hermione glanced at each other and nodded.
"Sure," Hermione agreed for the both of them. "I'll draw up some lists and charts and we'll go over them in the morning."
"Leave it to Hermione to draw up lists and charts," Harry muttered.
"She gets that from her father," Ellen explained. "Her good looks she gets from me, but the brains came from the other side. Although you might not always be able to tell…"
"Anyway…" Harry began loudly, interrupting Ellen's commentary. "I think Hermione's right, and we'll take a look in the morning, since it's too late now."
With that, the group disbanded and retreated to their respective rooms upstairs, eager to see what decisions the next day would bring.
End of Chapter 4
Author's Note: Well, because I am now putting these notes at the end of the chapter, I am able to write more and talk about more. You are not, however, required to read them. I hope that at least a few of you find these interesting or informative in some way, but if not, please let me know. Now, there are a few things I want to talk about in this note, so let's get started.
The first is that I want to congratulate the following reviewers for correctly guessing the name of this chapter in advance: acam, mckisab, and anonymous reviewer GodricG89. They all correctly guessed that the name of this chapter would be "In Only Seven Days," written by John Deacon and released on the Jazz album in 1978. Now, to give you a hint for the next chapter, you must bear in mind the fact that the next chapter will be mainly dedicated to Harry and Hermione sifting through their friends to find the people who would be best to join them. That's as much of a hint as I can give you, with the exception of the fact that I do not repeat chapter names.
I also want to take a few minutes to talk about the character of Dumbledore. I have read all of the reviews for this story, and I thank you all for each one. A few of them mention the fact that Dumbledore seems to be somewhat hands-off and invisible in this story. Trust me, that is completely purposeful. I do believe that the character of Dumbledore is a manipulative one, but that we do not always see his manipulations immediately. I also must stress that there will be, for lack of a better term, plot holes in this story, which are purposeful. Some minor aspects of this story are meant to set up plot threads in future stories I have planned. Do note that all of the major story threads will be tied up in this story, so do not worry about that. I am simply trying to sow the seeds for the other parts of this intended story. The Dumbledore story plays into that somewhat. When I sat down to write this story, one of the questions that popped into my mind was what he was doing during his entire exile from Hogwarts. That is a question I intend to answer, partly with this story, and partly with some others. In addition, some reviews have pointed out that Dumbledore would never allow Harry to live in an unsupervised environment or go somewhere unsafe without being constantly monitored. This begs the question, however, of whether Dumbledore would allow Harry to gallivant around the globe if he was being supervised. So, to sum up this section, I want to pose one question to all of you, one that relates to the character of Dumbledore: what if he decided to train Harry or give him some unique experiences while, at the same time, being monitored and watched over by Dumbledore personally? Now, I'm not saying that this is necessarily completely the case, but it is just something to consider.
Also, to answer a few other reviews, I do want to reiterate the fact that yes, Harry is socially awkward. That is why he is so confused about everything Hermione does, including signing her letter "love." Another point to discuss is the concept of the Grangers taking Harry on holiday with them somewhat…hastily. I completely respect this point of view, and I would normally agree with it if it were my own daughter and her friend we were talking about. However, in the case of this story, it just didn't seem to fit for them to visit at Hermione's house for a week. That is partially due to the fact that the Grangers had already scheduled this trip, during the time when Harry's birthday would normally be. The fact that his birthday falls during the trip played a part in the decision to allow him to come, and will play a part at the end of the story. In addition, the main reason why Harry is going on holiday with the Grangers is because that is central to the entire story. I had to send him out of the country in order for the story to even take place. So there is that to consider. Regarding the change in destination that occurred in this chapter, that is central to the entire story, since the story takes place in Las Vegas. I'm sure a good number of you can guess the general premise of the story by now, but that's alright. It's also alright that most of you may be able to guess what the "object" is, especially if you have knowledge of canon. But the fun in a story isn't in the destination, it's in the journey from point A to point B, and I am trying my best to make that as fun as possible.
I also want to ask about author's notes. I've noticed through reviews that many of you are actually reading these, which is great. But I want to know what is too much and where to stop. Are you actually finding these interesting? Or are you reading them out of pity? Let me know if they should be shortened, eliminated, or changed at all.
Anyway, I've rambled on long enough. I truly hope you enjoyed chapter 4 of this story, and I ask you to leave me a review telling me how much you liked it. I also hope you stick around to follow the rest of this story, since we're just about to start getting into the meat of it all.
