Chapter Three London Day Two
Disclaimer: Any characters other than Athena and any situations related to the book or any other Harry Potter related items belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers. I do not gain any money from this. I only write to relieve stress and to get the ideas out of my head.
A/N This is my second fanfiction but my first Harry Potter one. So if anything is out of character i apologize. "..."=talking '...'=thoughts *...*=text message/notes
Athena sat up rubbing her eyes as the sounds of the phone ringing brought her out of her slumber "Hello." She mumbled sleepily listening to the front desk reminded her of her scheduled wake up call. She threw the covers off before getting up and walking into the bathroom stretching her stiff and tired muscles. She started getting ready for the day not sure if she wanted to look at anymore pictures of the violence.
At Grimauld Place Harry was eating breakfast as Kreacher prepared a cup of coffee for him not totally awake. He looked at the paper in front of him glad to see no news about anymore Death Eater uprisings tired of the violence against muggleborns. Kreacher set the cup of coffee in front of his master wanting him to be more awake before he headed to the ministry for another day of work.
At Hermione's flat Hermione worked on making breakfast for her and Ron. She had ask Mrs. Weasley for cooking lessons along with recipes for Ron's favorite food wanting to be able to do something for Ron when they were married. Ron arrived at the flat via the floo system from the Burrow. He walked over to Hermione wrapping his arms around her waist as he kissed her neck happy to have breakfast with her before they had to go to work. Mrs. Weasley was not letting the two live together until they got married wanting the two to remain pure until marriage.
Hermione looked at Ron "Do you think Harry will ever get over Ginny?" she asked worried about her best friend since he hadn't really dated anyone since Ginny left him for Neville. She ate her eggs thinking about the cases and Harry.
Ron ate his breakfast he stopped for a second gulping down the food "I think he will get over her. Maybe with Athena he seemed to be focused on her. I mean I know she was lost but he seemed to give her more attention than I've seen him give a girl since Ginny." He went back to eating enjoying the yummy breakfast Hermione had made.
Hermione smiled softly at the insight Ron had provided she finished off her breakfast "That is true. Athena is a smart, beautiful girl who I think would be perfect for Harry. We can't try to set them up though or both will ignore the other because they feel pressured to be together." She took the dishes and cleaned them once done with breakfast before heading with Ron to her fireplace ready to go to the ministry.
Harry finished his breakfast before heading back to the ministry ready for another long day. Athena and Sam headed into the ministry both silently hoping to have a breakthrough in the cases not wanting to have to witness anymore attacks.
Hermione looked at Harry when she walked through the flames into the lobby "Hey have you seen Athena yet? There was something I wanted to ask her about."
Harry blinked "No I just got here. I was told that her boss was escorting her here so I didn't need to come get her."
Ron blinked "Is someone else escorting them? Last I heard all delegates from other countries had a ministry escort."
Harry 'I believe one of the senior Aurors is escorting them here." He watched the flames for any sign of Athena or her boss.
Athena walked out of the flames with her boss by her side she went over to Harry, Hermione, and Ron "Good morning guys. Ready to start work again?" she was wide awake after having a delicious breakfast.
Hermione smiled "Good morning Athena. Let's take a walk without the boys there is something I need to talk to you about concerning the case." She took Athena's arm and headed for the lifts chattering about something she had read in her notes.
Harry glanced at Ron as they headed after the girls not wanting to disturb the two as they talked "Do you think it would be a good idea to get involved with someone from the American ministry?" he asked quietly noticing Athena's boss walking near them.
Ron "Well I guess it would depend on who it was you would be involved with? Some people would probably be able to put up with the distance while others would probably not be interested. If you are speaking about a particular American lawyer then I think getting involved would probably be good. You haven't really been involved with anyone since Ginny."
Hermione sat down by Athena once they reached the conference room "So just curious but what do you think of Harry? Well besides the fact that he is famous and saved the wizarding world."
Athena was pulling out her notes she blushed faintly "Well before I was aware of who he was I thought he was hot and seemed really nice. I'm just not sure if I should be getting involved with anyone though."
Hermione smiled softly "is it because of the case? Ron is always telling me that I need to have a life outside of work and he is right. I think I might have stressed myself out if I didn't have Ron to help me wind down after work. I mean I want to get all these Death Eaters locked away so that we can finally live in peace but I don't let it consume me most of the time."
Athena looked up at Hermione "part of the reason is the case but there are other factors involved. Two months ago my boyfriend of two years broke up with me because I worked too much. He was cheating on me with one of the secretaries that worked in the ministry. I just don't think I'm ready to get involved with anyone else."
Ron looked up hearing his name called walking into the Auror department he looked up at his sister "Ginny what are you doing here?"
Ginny looked at her brother then Harry "Oh hey Harry. I'm here to help with the organization of the annual British and Irish League competition and work on organizing the next world cup."
Harry "Hi Ginny. Ron if you'll excuse me I need to go find out if Hermione has any news." He headed for the conference room not wanting to be around Ginny.
Hermione blinked surprised at the answer Athena gave "I know it probably still hurts but it has been two months. If you let the hurt keep you from going out with new people and dating then you'll find yourself alone. I'm not saying you have to date anyone here but I think it might be a good idea for you to try and go out on dates." She looked over her notes as Harry and the department heads walked into the room.
Ron looked at his sister "Of course you are here. You should go to your meeting. I need to go back to my desk and finish a report I was supposed to have done an hour ago." He headed off to his desk not in the mood to put up with his sister when he was trying to help Harry move on.
The morning turned to noon causing the department heads to call a break for lunch. Athena rubbed her temples feeling the stress due to the lack of progress on the case start to take its toll. Hermione looked at her worried she got up and went to get her some tea. Harry stood up and stretched he glanced over at Athena wondering if she was as stressed out about the case as he was. He had put all thoughts of dating in the back of his mind once he started going over details on the case.
Ron poked his head in the room "Hey Harry you want to go get lunch?" he glanced at Athena "you are welcome to join us Miss Blaze if you'd like."
Hermione walked back in she set the tea in front of Athena "here drink this. It will help with the headache and it is not a potion." She glanced at Ron "ready to get some lunch?"
Harry looked at Ron "sure lunch sounds good. I feel like I've been staring at the same thing for a while and it's not making sense." He glanced at Athena wondering if she was going to join them.
Athena glanced at Ron "Thank you for the invitation Mr. Weasley but I must decline." She looked at her tea cup before drinking it willing her headache to go away. As the pain started to fade away she looked back at the files spotting something she got out her notebook and started writing quickly.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione went out to get lunch. Athena's boss Sam went to order lunch for him and Athena used to her working through lunch. Athena worked starting to draw a map of the locations where people had been tortured or killed.
Ginny walked into the conference room looking for Harry and her brother she blinked spotting Athena wondering who she was since her ministry robes were different from the typical ones worn by Harry and Ron. "Hello. Where are you from? I can tell by your robes that you don't work at the Ministry of Magic here in London." She looked the girl over wondering if Harry or Neville would think the girl was cute.
Athena looked up at Ginny "Hi. I'm from the American Ministry of Magic. Can I help you with something?" her face remained blank recognizing the girl as Ginny Weasley wondering what a famous quidditch player needed from her.
Ginny eyed the other girl realizing she was competition for Harry "I'm looking for Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Have you seen them?"
Athena looked back at her notes "They went out to lunch ten minutes ago. I don't know when they will be back or where they went as I am not a secretary. If that is all you needed then please leave so I can continue working in peace." She let a bit of bite enter her tone at the end not in the mood to put up with someone distracting her from work to ask her questions as if she was a secretary.
Ginny frowned slightly "If you aren't a secretary then what are you doing in this room with notes? I mean it's mainly the secretaries who take notes or do research. Unless of course it is Hermione Granger but I doubt you are at the same level as Hermione."
Athena stood up she looked at the younger girl "I am the Deputy Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Department for the American Ministry. I am not a secretary and I will not allow you to treat me as such just because you are Ginny Weasley. Now please leave and go bother someone else who isn't working on an important case." She glared at the girl as her temper flared.
Hermione walked back in the conference room she looked between Ginny and Athena noticing the tense atmosphere "Ginny what are you doing in here?"
Ginny looked at Hermione "Well I was looking for Harry and Ron. I assumed this girl was a secretary because she was taking notes and hadn't gone out for lunch. Is this the American that Ron and Harry were talking about earlier?" she snidely glared at Athena not appreciating the other girl's attitude towards her. After all she was Ginny Weasley former girlfriend of Harry Potter and the chaser for Holyhead Harpies and daughter of the Weasley family.
Hermione sighed softly rubbing her temples "Yes this would be the American Ron and Harry were talking about. Just because she was taking notes and didn't go out for lunch doesn't mean she is a secretary. Honestly Ginny she is the American version of me if not better. I think it would be best if you left before Harry and Ron got back. I know Harry doesn't want to see you after you strung him along even if you were with Neville. Ron also doesn't need to deal with you playing around with his best friend."
Ginny made a squeak of protest before Hermione escorted her out of the conference room hoping to avoid any more confrontations between Ginny and Athena or Harry. Harry walked into the conference room he blinked at Athena wondering why she looked so pissed. Ron looked at Hermione as she escorted Ginny out of the Auror department wondering what his sister had done now.
Athena glared at Harry when he walked in before losing it quickly "Sorry I thought you were someone else." She looked back at the map she had drawn 'It would seem that the attacks are all happening within a 100 mile radius of the ministries. It was like they planned to attack these other places at similar times in order to get Aurors sent out so that they could infiltrate the ministries to gain some sort of information."
Hermione had walked back in her face lost all color "They probably want to get the lists of muggleborns and their addresses so they could rid the world of muggleborns." She sat down next to Athena looking at the map and the different times next to them. "I guess it is a good thing we have hit wizards as part of the Auror department or else the information could be at a higher risk of being discovered or stolen."
Harry let the two talk it out before blurting out "Who did you think I was that you needed to glare at me?"
Hermione "Ginny was in here insulting her before you came in. I escorted her out but she probably thought that you were Ginny." She looked back at the information gathered.
Harry walked over and looked at the information the two were discussing "We should take this to the Head Auror. I think this would be very helpful in the capture of the Death Eaters still out there."
Athena handed the map over to Harry blushing faintly as their hands brushed. She looked down at her other notes hoping that they would be able to find and prosecute the Death Eaters so they could finally live in a somewhat state of peace. Hermione watched Athena smiling softly when she noticed the blush that had graced the girl's face before going back to her notes comparing them with Athena's. Harry took the map heading to the Head Auror's Office hoping this was a breakthrough in the case. Ron looked up as Harry passed him before smiling at the possible breakthrough in the case.
A few hours later Athena, Ron, Hermione, and Harry were at Hermione's flat having coffee to celebrate the progress they had made on the case. Senior Aurors had been sent to locations near the ones that had been attacked looking for hideouts and Death Eaters. Ron put his arm around Hermione as he placed a kiss on the top of her head proud of his fiancée. Hermione looked up at Ron then smiled glad he was there in her life to help her distress after a long day of work. Harry looked at his cup of coffee keeping an eye on Athena out of the corner of his eye. Athena rubbed the back of her neck trying to ease the cramp that came from looking down at papers for a good portion of the day.
Harry looked at her "is your neck bothering you?"
Athena looked down nodding "I spent too much time staring at the papers that it somewhat cramped up." She continued to rub her neck.
Harry shifted slightly "If you don't mind I can probably help. I used to have to help some friends in the past with neck cramps." He mumbled a little nervous.
Athena blinked at him slightly surprised "That would be great." She turned so her back was facing him before pulling her hair to the front away from her neck.
Harry looked at the olive branch tattoo at the base of her neck before starting to knead the muscles in her neck working on removing the knots in her neck muscles. "So you have an olive branch tattoo?"
Athena kept her head down trying not to move not wanting to screw up her neck "Well the Greek goddess Athena's symbol was an olive branch and my parents named me after her so I figured why not get a tattoo with the symbol of my namesake."
Hermione blinked surprised "I was wondering if you were named after the Greek goddess or not. It's pretty awesome to be named after a goddess. So what are you going to do when the case is over or the ministries don't feel like we need to work together anymore?"
Athena closed her eyes for a moment "well I'll be here for the international law meeting since we are supposed to review and possibly revise some laws but after that I'm not sure. I'll probably take some time off to relax and maybe start going out on dates since I need to find a date for my ex boyfriend's wedding." She flinched slightly thinking about Madison and Alexander before relaxing and clearing her mind of any thoughts of the two.
Harry got the last knot out of her neck "all done." He let go and turned back towards Ron and Hermione thinking about needing a date for Ron's wedding.
Ron blinked "your ex boyfriend invited you to his wedding? Is it some sort of sick joke?" he glanced at Harry wondering if Harry had found a date for his wedding.
Athena glanced at Harry smiling "thanks." She turned towards Ron "I think it is seeing as we broke up two months ago then a month ago I got an invitation to his wedding. He was a self-absorbed jerk anyways probably wants to show me that his bride is better than I ever was." She made a face letting down her guard around the trio now that she felt more comfortable around them.
Hermione "Well I think he missed out on a good thing. Sure we work long hours to get the job done but we protect innocent people and that's truly rewarding. If they can't be proud of our accomplishments then they have no place in our lives."
Ron glanced at the time then at his fiancée "well I better get home before mom comes after me. I hate to leave but I'd rather not face the wrath of mom. Athena Hermione is right. If your ex boyfriend couldn't be proud of the work you did and would rather you have spent more time with him then he isn't worth a second thought. Sure I don't get to spend as much time with Hermione as I like but I support her and her accomplishments and she makes me proud to be her future husband." He gave Hermione a kiss before heading over to the floo and calling out the burrow disappearing in the emerald flames.
Harry glanced at the time "I should probably go. Do you need an escort Athena?"
Athena nodded "If it isn't too much trouble." She stood up glancing at Harry.
Hermione got up and walked over to the door yawning quietly the later it got. She gave Athena a hug before she opened the door "It's been great to hang out with you Athena. If you ever decide you want to move to London don't be afraid to ask to hang out. I know it's only been two days but I feel like we could be really good friends."
Harry walked out with Athena heading back to the hotel she was staying at. Athena looked around taking in the lights still amazed by the beauty of London.
Harry looked down at the girl beside him "so what exactly did Ginny say to you?"
Athena sighed softly "She assumed I was a secretary and talked down to me. She also insulted my intelligence but it's whatever. She thinks she's some big celebrity because she's the daughter of the Weasley family, a chaser for a quidditch team, and your former girlfriend. I guess she didn't like being talked to like a normal person and not some big person." She walked taking in the sights relaxing.
Harry rubbed his neck walking with her "I'm sorry about that. She may have moved on to Neville but she still likes to be seen with me for the publicity. I guess she heard Ron and I talking about you and assumed that you and I were together. In her eyes you are a possible rival so she was rude for that reason." He walked into the hotel with her feeling bad that he had caused her trouble.
Athena shrugged "She has no reason to be mean to any future girlfriends of yours since she is dating Neville. Honestly that's just wrong of her to string you along and try and prevent you from moving on." She looked around the lobby "well I'll see you tomorrow then. I'm just glad we made some progress on the case. It was nice to hang out with you guys." She headed for the elevator smiling.
Harry watched her get in the elevator before walking out he found an abandoned alleyway before apparating home. Athena locked herself in her hotel room before falling asleep for the night.
Song playing in the background while I wrote is: You Me at Six-Room to Breathe
