Chapter 3: Meeting the Reluctant Parents
The next morning, Harry and Hermione meet in the common room to head down to breakfast before the trip home. They are both very tired from not being able to sleep. As soon as they touch hands they begin to feel much better and get some of their energy back.
"It was hard to sleep without you Harry," Hermione says to him as they walk," I kept having to fight the urge to go to you all night long."
"It's probably our bond," Harry reasons," I think that is why we are both so tired. I expect we will have to be touching in some way until the bond stabilizes. We are too young to finalize the bond by consummation so we will just have to be together constantly until we are old enough. I think if we sleep together where we are constantly touching it will get better."
"I can live with that Harry," Hermione says," convincing my parents will be a problem. They barely tolerate me as it is."
"We will fix that soon enough if I understand the reason for their feelings," Harry says.
"You do." Hermione answers.
"Hermione," Harry asks," did you get your rings last night?"
"Yes I did," she answers," One of them I figured out easily enough, being a descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw. The other was a surprise as it is the Slytherin ring. Until this morning I thought I was a muggle born."
"We can go to Gringotts for a bit while we are on the train for a heritage test," Harry suggests.
"That's a good idea," Hermione agrees as they enter the Great Hall.
They sit at their usual place at the Gryffindor table and fill their plates with a full English breakfast. Ron shows up at fifteen minutes till nine, which is the cutoff time for breakfast, and tries to fill his plate up with too much food which again stops at two helpings. He groans.
"Not again, I'm starving,"
"You know what you have to do Ron," Hermione says to him," It's up to you to do it."
He just harrumphs again has he scarfs his food down his gullet as if it were all going to disappear on him any second. Harry just shakes his head and continues eating. After his third helping of bacon and fried tomatoes he decides he has had enough and looks over to Hermione.
"You ready my Lady," he asks her.
"I am my Lord," she replies, so the couple leaves the table and heads up their dorms to collect their trunks for the trip home. They both shrink them down to matchbook size and put them in their pockets. They meet again in the common room where hand in hand they leave through the portrait hole for the walk to the front of the castle and the awaiting carriages. Neville, Susan and Hannah are all standing there waiting on them to ride in a carriage together.
"Wait one guys," Harry says looking around," There is one more I want to join us."
"Not Ron," Susan moans.
"No, not Ron," Hermione says," Ah here she comes now."
"Luna!" Hermione yells out.
The small girl looks up at her name being called in surprise and cringes a little; wondering why anyone would be interested in her; especially after being picked on by everyone for the whole year at Hogwarts. She watches as the girl everyone thought should be in Ravenclaw runs towards her. Hermione slows to a walk as she approaches Luna and puts her right arm around her and leads her to one of the carriages where four other people are waiting.
"You're riding with us in the Thestral drawn carriages," Hermione says.
"You can see them too?" Luna asks.
"Harry and Susan can see them as well," Hermione answers," We all have something in common."
Luna looks up at her in surprise, wondering what the great Hermione Potter could have in common with her. Harry helps her climb into the carriage for the ride to the train station in Hogsmeade and then climbs in behind her. He and Neville had helped Hermione and the others board already. The ride to the station is uneventful and soon everyone is settled into a compartment at the back of the train.
The other three are looking at Luna who is quietly sitting in the corner after pulling out a copy of her daddy's magazine when the train starts on the journey back to London and platform nine and three quarters.
"Everyone," Harry says to the group," This is Luna Lovegood. She is the girl we were talking about last night who has an IQ of nearly two hundred. She gets picked on by her housemates because they don't understand how such a beautiful little creature like this can be smarter than they are. She single handedly racked up two thirds of all the points made by Ravenclaw this year."
"She is also one of the main reasons we are doing away with the houses," Hermione says to the group," With us children being grouped by age we can avoid being picked on by older students."
"Luna," Harry says to get the attention of the blushing girl," You will be a second year next year and probably one of the leaders for your dorm. At the very least, you can tutor some of the first years and help Professor Sprout with the other children. You are no longer going to be a Ravenclaw. You will be a Hufflepuff dorm student. In your third and fourth year you will be Gryffindor dorm student. You will then be back in Ravenclaw dorm for fifth and sixth and finally Slytherin dorm for seventh year. All points earned will go on your record and will count towards becoming a prefect and maybe even head girl."
"This goes for everyone in this room and on this train," Hermione says," There will be no more house rivalries that cause fights in the hallways and you will be able to make friends with everyone within your age group."
"Friends," Luna says dreamily," I've never had friends before."
"Well you have five now," Neville declares for the group, getting nods from Susan and Hannah.
Luna starts crying and Hermione sits next to her to comfort her.
"Remember when I said we all have something in common?" Hermione asks.
Luna nods with tears still flowing.
"We have all lost someone in our life that was dear to us," Harry says," Hermione lost her big brother when she was five and the rest of us lost our parents in the Blood War. Susan's aunt takes care of her and Hannah while I am living with my muggle relatives. Hermione's parents don't know it yet but they gained a son-in-law last night when she and I bonded. You now have five friends that will always be there for you. Talk it over with your father and if you want I can take you under the protection of House Potter. You can be Hermione and I's little sister."
Luna's eyes get real big," You would do that? You've only known me for a few hours."
"In a heartbeat," Hermione says giving her a hug," you may not believe this now but Harry and I know you a lot better than you think we do."
When Hermione says that, Luna's eyes go glassy and unfocused.
"The ones to vanquish the dark lord have been given to us from beyond time. With powers granted by the Creator of all Things the bonded immortals will unite families together and will cause the darkness to leave this land forever. They will go on to become great leaders and innovators and will bring the world into peace and harmony. The ones to vanquish the dark lord have arrived."
Luna's eyes clear up and she spots everyone staring at her.
"What?" she asks," Was it something I said?"
"Merlin," Susan whispers," She's a true seer."
"And only us five will know about it," Harry declares," I will not have her taken advantage of."
The goblins of Gringotts record the Prophesy along with the Unspeakables in the Department of Mysteries at the ministry. Both are excited with the news, while the people at the ministry just record the words, the People of the Goblin Nation know who they refer to and are looking forward to serving them.
ooOOoo
About one third of the way through the trip Harry and Hermione stand up to address their friends.
"Harry and I have to leave for an hour or so to go to Gringotts," Hermione informs them," We need to get something done before we reach London."
"How are you going to do that Harry?" Neville asks.
"We will phase to them," he says," It is our special way of travel. It is kind of like apparition but more like the transporters from Star Trek. Our ability also allows us to phase to and from a moving object such as this train."
"Must be part of your powers granted by the Creator," Hannah reasons.
"You are correct Hannah," Hermione says," We will be back shortly."
"Can you take me with you?" Luna asks.
"I think that is a great idea," Harry says," I think the goblins will want to meet you Luna. They hold seers in the highest regard, as do we."
Luna stands between Harry and Hermione and holds a hand of each while the rest of the compartment watch as they fade away silently. They fade back in inside a special room at Gringotts set aside for this purpose that the Potters know about. An alarm alerts the goblins of the arrival of the trio and one of the Kings guards enters the room and bows to them.
"Please follow me," he says," you are expected."
They bow back to the guard.
"Lead on honorable warrior," Harry and Hermione say in perfect Gobbledygook.
The warrior salutes them and leads them out of the room and down a series of corridors carved from the bedrock of London. They soon come to an ordinary door that opens up to an opulent office that is a good fifty meters deep and twenty five meters wide. There is a guard every five meters along both walls as they walk to the desk on the far end of the office. They pass a pit in the floor five meters by five meters with a sandy bottom that is two meters below the floor.
"It's called the Pit of Ascension," the goblin at the desk informs them," any goblin of a certain rank can challenge the current king and if they win they will ascend to the throne. Welcome to Gringotts. I am Ragnok Stonebreaker, the current King of the Goblin Nation."
The trio all bow low to the king and Harry and Hermione chant in perfect Gobbledygook," You honor us with your presence oh mighty one. May your vaults be filled with the gold of your enemies?"
"And may your enemies tremble at your presence and be crushed beneath your boots." Ragnok says in return," What can Gringotts do for you, chosen ones?"
Harry steps forward," We basically came to get a heritage test done and to claim the Potter rings from my vaults. Hermione and I were bonded and marked yesterday by the Creator. We are ready to take up the mantle of our heritage and destiny."
"Very well," Ragnok says as he sets two bowls and daggers on his desk in front of them," I need blood from each of you to fill the ink wells up to the runes along the edge. When the runes light up; that is enough. Place the quill in the ink well and it will use your blood to write out your blood lines."
(An: I read this procedure in another story and it seems like the logical way to do this, so I put it in here.)
"The daggers won't work on us," Hermione says," We found that out when we upgraded the wards at Hogwarts. We seem to be impervious to injury, but we have a way to fulfill your needs."
They each hold a hand over their ink well and clench it into a fist and squeeze. Drops of blood start dripping into the wells, filling them until the runes flare golden. They insert the quills and let them go as they seem to take on a life of their own. The quills soak up the blood and move over to two scrolls of parchment, where they start writing in fancy script. After about thirty minutes and several feet of parchment the quills become stationary and the scrolls roll up. Ragnok picks up the scrolls and sets one aside. He unrolls the one for Hermione and reads.
"You are definitely not a first generation witch, Lady Potter," Ragnok says," You already know you are descended from two of the founders so that means your parents are squibs with Slytherin on your father's side and Ravenclaw from your mothers. You can trace your ancestry all the way back to Moragana LeFay. You share vaults one and two with your husband and own vaults three and four. There are several minor family vaults that you are entitled to that have passed on without an heir. We will consolidate all of them for you into one larger vault to make it easier for you to get at your assets. The same goes for you Lord Potter. You also have several vaults along with vaults five and six."
"Whose vault is number one?" Harry asks.
"Number one is Merlin's vault," Ragnok says," it is also the vault for the Pendragon family. You may find some useful things in there."
Luna nods in a knowing way when Ragnok says that and he gives her a wink and nod of his own.
"You honor us with your presence seer," Ragnok says.
"Thank you sire," Luna responds," I asked Harry and Hermione if I could come with them. I'm Luna Lovegood of the most Ancient and most Noble house of the same name. I've always wanted to meet you and now I have."
She reaches out to shake his hand and when she touches him her eyes get all glassy again.
"You will have a long and profitable reign King Ragnok. No longer will the People be looked down upon by wizards. With help from the Chosen Ones you will bring the Goblin Nation into the light with all of the magical peoples of the world and stand by their side as they bring peace and harmony to all."
She lets go of his hand and her eyes focus once more. She blushes and curtsies to Ragnok, backing away to stand by Harry and Hermione, who are astonished by what they heard.
"Well," Harry says," I've never thought anything else about other magical peoples. As far as I'm concerned, if you can communicate and interact with others that makes you people, just like us. You're just different is all."
A knock sounds on the door and a young goblin runner came in. He hands some boxes to Ragnok with a bow and leaves, closing the door behind him.
"It is very refreshing to hear you say that young Lord." Ragnok says while holding out the main box for Harry to take," Here are the rings you requested."
Harry opens the box and puts on the Potter family ring. There is a brief flash as the ring recognizes the new Head of House and resizes to fit his finger. A smaller box holds the lady of the house ring which Harry puts on her right ring finger. The other box holds the Potter ancestral wedding rings. Harry places the wedding and then engagement band on Hermione's left ring finger and she places his wedding ring on his ring finger.
"Would you like to visit your vaults Lord and Lady Potter?" Ragnok asks.
"Not right now King Ragnok," Harry says," we have to get back to the train before it arrives in London, which will be in a few minutes."
"One last request before we leave," Hermione asks," Do you have a way we can access our gold without coming to the bank?"
"Yes we do," Ragnok says pulling out two black cards with a gold G on the face," I had anticipated you might want these. Just one drop of blood each and they will be tied to your vaults. They have anti-theft and fraud charms on them. If you lose your card, or it is stolen it will return to you automatically."
"Thank you sire," Harry says as he and Hermione allow a drop of blood on each of their cards." The spending limit is based on what's in your vaults. For you two it might as well be unlimited as I don't think you could spend money faster than your investments bring in. Good luck to you and I look forward to seeing you again in the near future. May your enemies fear you and run in fright from your might."
"And may your vaults be filled with the gold of your enemies sire," Harry and Hermione chant in Gobbledygook as they bow low to the King of the Goblin Nation, fading out as the last word is said.
Ragnok looks on in amazement and then chuckles to himself," Those two are going to be a delight to work with."
ooOOoo
Harry and Hermione phase back into their train compartment to be greeted by the rest of the group.
"How did it go?" Susan asks Hermione.
Hermione just holds up her left hand to show her rings, causing the other girls to squeee in excitement. After all, it is not every day that a thirteen year old girl gets to a wear diamond and emerald engagement ring, along with a wedding band. She holds up her other hand to show her Potter matriarch ring and Susan gives her a formal bow.
"Nice to make your acquaintance My Lady," she says formally, then giggles as only a young girl can.
Hermione smiles at Susan for her antics knowing she is a young girl having fun. Hermione may be thirteen in her body but she is mentally nineteen and happy to have friends this time around. She is dreading the end of the trip, but between her and Harry they have some news that should straighten out her zealously religious parents. She just hopes they will be reasonable and listen to them.
"You know Susan," Hermione says to her," you are the heir to a most ancient and most noble house as well. Along with Neville, Luna, Harry and I, and Sirius Black, we make up the five founding families of our society. We are all that is left of the most ancient and most noble houses. Harry and I also found out we are descended from Merlin for him and Morgana Lefay for me. This compartment represents the true nobility of the British magical world. People like Malfoy may strut around acting all high and mighty, but the truth is his family had to buy their way onto the Wizengamot as they certainly are not from an old British family line like we are."
She turns to Hannah," And we will always keep our friends close and protected."
Hannah blushes at the praise," Thank you My Lady."
"None of that My Lady business," Hermione says," we are amongst friends. We will only use our titles if needed; maybe to keep a few adults in line?"
The whole group laughs at that last line. Luna is getting the sense that she is finally fitting in and now has some true friends. An hour later the train pulls into the platform in London and the children all depart to join with their families for summer vacation. Harry and Hermione step down from then train and walk through the barrier to Kings Cross station where Hermione's parents are waiting. They give her a look of impatience as they wait for her to walk out to them. Harry notices his uncle Vernon also standing impatiently waiting as well.
"Wait here a minute Hermione," Harry says and kisses her on the cheek.
Hermione's parents both raise their eyebrows at the affection shown by Harry. They watch as he walks over to a fat man standing away from everyone else.
"Come on boy," they hear him say," Bad enough I had to drive all the way to London to pick up a freak like you. I suppose that little girl is a freak as well? She would have to be one of your kind, no one else would want to be around you."
"Go home uncle Vernon" Harry says to him calmly, despite the insults," I will no longer live with you. I came into my inheritance day before yesterday and am now considered an adult in my world. I will come by sometime during the summer to get you to sign emancipation papers for me, so I no longer have to live with you and put up with your nonsense."
"Why you insolent little brat," he says and takes a swing at Harry. Harry reaches out and catches Vernon's hand in mid swing, stopping it cold. Petunia swings her purse at his head and it just bounces off as if he didn't even feel it. Even Dudley tries to get into the act and only hurts his hand when he hits Harry.
"You know Vernon," Harry says to him as he holds his fist still while he is struggling to take it back," If you had just shown me some love, I would have been happy to share some of my wealth with you. As it is, you are going to get just what you deserve. Nothing."
With a small shove Vernon is knocked back on his bum as Harry walks away. The Grangers watch and hear the whole thing. They think the Bible says Hermione has to be evil because she is a witch, but she is still their daughter and even though they barely tolerate her they would never hit her. They watch as Harry walks up to Hermione and she takes his arm as they walk over to them.
"Mum, Dad," she says to them," This is Harry Potter, my best friend and more."
Harry reaches out to shake their hands, which they do to be polite.
"It's nice to finally meet the parents of the most beautiful person in the world," Harry says to them while looking her father in the eyes, sending a compulsion command," We need to have a serious talk about your daughter and your beliefs about her. You are walking down a road that will only lead to strife and heartache, without knowing all of the facts."
Harry leads them over to a secluded area where he turns to Hermione.
"Take us home," he says to her," Dobby can bring their car home in a bit."
"Okay Harry," she says and then turns to her parents," Each of you take hold of one of us and we will go home the easy way. We will explain everything once there as this is family business and no one else's."
Hermione's mother takes her hand, she takes her dad's hand and Harry takes Hermione's. They phase out from Kings Cross and into the sitting room of the Granger house in Crawley, which is a three story Tudor style home with a basement and large back yard that has a pool and hot tub. The elder Grangers cling to each other in fright from the unexpected mode of travel. Harry beckons them to sit on the couch while Harry and Hermione sit on the love seat across from them. Her parents notice how close they are sitting and are wondering if it is another thing about magic that they don't understand, thinking it must be part of their evil ways. They take in Harry's appearance with the shabby clothes that appear too big for him and notice his shoes are falling apart. They look away with disdain at his obvious poor taste in clothes. While they don't associate with their daughter too much, they at least make sure she has decent clothes to wear and a roof over her head.
"He must not have any money if he dresses like that," they think to themselves.
Harry and Hermione look at each other incredulously, having picked up her parents thoughts. Did they think Harry was supposed to buy his own clothes? He's only twelve for Merlin's sake.
"You really do hate me, don't you," Hermione whispers with tears forming in her eyes.
"Hate is such a strong word, Hermione," her mother responds," If we hated you we would have given you to an orphanage when your brother died saving your life. It was bad enough when that happened, but when we found out you that were a witch we just knew it was God's way of punishing us for Michael's death. The Bible says to not suffer a witch to live so…"
"STOP RIGHT THERE," Harry says holding his hand up as he comforts a crying Hermione," For someone as highly educated as you two, I can't believe I am hearing this. Have you not studied the history of the bible or who wrote it and when it was written? The Old Testament, Exodus 22:18, where that statement comes from was translated by someone who had an agenda of his own. The original Hebrew translation of that line says to not suffer a poisoner to live among you. Five thousand years ago, when those people were alive, someone going around poisoning their livestock or even poisoning someone's mind with propaganda was a very bad thing. The first five books of the Old Testament are stories that were passed down from parents to their children for ages until writing was invented and someone recorded the stories in whatever written form they had at the time. You know how stories tend to become more exaggerated and grand the more they are told. Who knows what the original events that inspired the stories actually were? The only entity that does know is the Creator of all Things, or God as you call him. To be sure, the Bible as a whole is a good guide book on how you should live your life. Now, the New Testament was definitely put together by people who had a political agenda. Mostly, they were trying to stay under the radar of the Roman Empire, so left out the more controversial writings of the time. You do know that the New Testament is a collection of short stories and letters written by various authors over a long period of time that were gathered together to make a book to allow the newly forming Cristian church to guide the illiterate people into believing as they do? It was even changing constantly until King James stepped in and authorized his quote, official version unquote, to make the Church of England conform to his wishes. It's been the official version of the bible used worldwide ever since."
Harry pauses for a few minutes as he conjures a tea set and pours tea for everyone. One lump of sugar for him, a dash of milk, not stirred for Hermione, two spoons of artificial sweetener for Mrs. Granger and straight black for Mr. Granger. The two adults look in surprise that he knows how they take their afternoon tea. After a sip Hermione snuggles into Harry, enraptured by his knowledge and ability to teach.
"Now, I want to bring up that Hermione and I both take the Creator's words seriously as a guide in our lives as well. It was one part of the Bible that made me realize that I love your daughter more than life itself. You saw how my Uncle treated me at the train station. Before going to Hogwarts I never knew what love was until a little girl gave me a page she had torn from her Bible. She told me that her mother had told her that if she lived by those words she would never get into trouble and would always be happy. I think, from what I can read in your eyes and what Hermione has told me that you have forgotten these very powerful words and I quote,
'Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.'
"1 Corinthians 13:4-8," Mr. Granger whispers with tears starting to form in his eyes.
"That is correct," Harry continues," Those words allowed me to put my feelings about Hermione in context as I didn't understand what those feelings were thanks to the Dursleys."
"You don't talk like any twelve year old kid I've ever known," Mrs. Granger says looking at Harry as she wipes tears from her face.
Harry conjures a handkerchief and hands it to her. She takes it with a nod.
"That will come later after we explain some more things to you that you need to know," Harry says," As you can tell, I'm trying to get you to see Hermione in a different light and when you get all of the facts I think you will. I don't truly believe you hate your daughter, or even dislike her. You are just like so many others who blindly follow what is written in the Bible and take it as absolute fact. I'm sure even the priests know the Earth is more than six thousand years old. The Bible is a good book to base your life on but it is only a guide. The problem with religion in general is it is man made. Each of the different versions of the Christian religion is based on that religion's interpretation of the Bible. The Americans practically have a church on every corner and they are all different in how they interpret what is written. Who's to say which interpretation is the correct one? The Creator just is. He has always been here and will always be here. It is not for us to say what he wants or needs us to do. That is why I call the Bible a good guide to live by. For that matter, the Koran the Muslims live by is a good guide for them as their culture is different than ours. Okay, enough of that. You get where I am coming from right?"
The Grangers nod to him and wait for him to continue.
"I'm going to ask you some questions I believe will help you to understand about Hermione and myself being magical beings versus being evil because you, and here's that word again, interpret the bible as saying we are. The first question; do you believe that God is all knowing, all seeing, all powerful and can't make mistakes?"
They both nod yes to that question wondering where he is going.
"Okay second question; do you believe that God created all life on this planet and created the universe?"
They nod again as this is what's been taught to both of them since they were very young.
"Good," Harry says," now think about this. If God can do all of those things then what would keep him from creating two types of life on Earth, say magical and non-magical beings. In his wisdom he must have had a reason? Being a witch or a wizard with real magic is not the same thing as the practicing of witchcraft that some non-magical peoples do. As long as they don't use that to harm others then there is no reason not to allow them to continue. Some of them are even looked upon as the wise men or women of their peoples. Mostly they are just well educated in the ways of their people and keep the younger ones from straying too far. The inquisition and the witch hunts from long ago was just a way for the clergy to weed out anyone that did not follow the teachings of the church and the state used that excuse to get rid of its political enemies. Not a one of the people that were legally murdered by the church was a true witch or wizard. They were too smart to get caught and could easily escape by dissaperation."
"Mum, Dad?" Hermione speaks up looking at each of them desperately," What Harry is trying to tell you is the fact that I can do magic doesn't make me evil. The people accused of witchcraft in the witch hunts were non-magical people just like you. It was superstition and fear of the unknown that drove neighbor to turn against neighbor. The person or persons that misinterpreted, there's that word again, that phrase from the Hebrew did it on purpose because that is what they wanted to believe. If it was written that way in the Bible it would give them the legal power needed to get rid of the enemies of the church and the state agreed as they could use the same to get rid of their enemies. The people back then were mostly illiterate and easily led. That is how the church became so powerful. It is still powerful, look how they have brainwashed you into not wanting to be around your own daughter."
With that she bursts into tears and runs up the stairs to her bedroom slamming the door behind her. The Grangers watch her run up the stairs with longing in their eyes. They want to believe Harry and she is right, they want to go to her, but don't know what to do to reconcile with her.
"See what I mean about strife and heartache?" Harry says as they turn back to him and his eyes harden. He pulls out Hermione's scroll from his pocket and enlarges it, handing it to her mother.
"What's this?" she asks.
"Hermione and I went to Gringotts today and took a heritage test to see who our ancestors were," Harry answers," That is Hermione's family tree. If you trace the line down you will find it goes all of the way back to Morgana Lefay, who was Merlin's apprentice. Yes, they were real people. The shock for you is that you and Mr. Granger are what some of the more surly pure-bloods call squibs. I prefer enhanced mundane myself, it is more dignified. What it means is that both of you have some magic, but not enough to use a wand. Unfortunately, this happens every now and then in a magical family. Your grandparents were probably magical and they didn't tell you about your heritage, so you had no way of knowing."
"Both of us grew up in St. Catherin's orphanage," Mr. Granger answers," we were told our grandparent were killed in World War Two and both our parents were killed in car crashes at different times. We met when we were seven at the orphanage. We became friends but we each believed in what the nuns taught us in school. They were very strict and it wasn't until we graduated from college that I got up the courage to ask Helen out on a date. We had a lot in common and decided to get married after a few dates. I'm afraid we are both rather like yourself in that while the nuns took care of us they couldn't show through example how to love like a parent. We've never told Hermione this and because of what we went through we would have never sent her to an orphanage. What you have told us this afternoon has changed a lot of our ideas about the church and the way we have been acting towards her. We want to love her, we just don't know how."
Hermione had crept back down the stairs when she heard them talking to Harry and when she hears that last statement she runs around the corner crying and hugs both of her parents.
"We'll figure it out together," she says to them through hers and their tears. After a few minutes she backs away from them and snuggles once more into Harry's side.
"Mum, Dad?" Hermione says while holding up her left hand," Harry and I have some other news to give you that will answer your question on how we seem to act more mature than we look. There is also another reason why we both agree that the Bible is a good guide to follow. It triggered everything that has brought us to this point. What we are going to tell you may sound a bit farfetched, but if you believe God, who we call the Creator, can do anything, then you will believe what we are about to say."
Hermione's mother's eyes go wide when she sees the wedding and engagement rings on her finger. Despite what they represent, her opinion of Harry's worth skyrockets. She just doesn't understand why he is dressed in rags. Then she remembers what Harry said to that fat man at the train station. This ought to be good. Her husband seemed to pick up on her thoughts as he nods to her and sits back to wait for her explanation.
"These are exactly what they look like," Hermione says," Yesterday at the leaving feast Harry and I bonded in what we heard the Headmaster say was a soul bond. To us we were just kissing each other to confirm that we were still actually us. I know that sounds kind of odd but just before the kiss I found myself in the hospital wing after de-petrifying myself and discovering I was back in second year again."
"You did that Hermione?" Harry interrupts in awe," You actually broke the petrification on your own?"
"Yes I did Harry," she answered," after that kiss in the common room I couldn't stand to be without you and I wasn't going to wait any longer, I had to get back to you. When I looked into your eyes I knew it was the real you and ran to you for another kiss."
"Wait," Hermione's mother interrupts," What petrification? Were you injured at that school again? I have a good mind to not let you go back if you are going to get hurt every year."
"It's okay mum," Hermione says," I got petrified by a Basilisk by looking at its eyes through a reflection in my mirror."
"You mean you had to use a mirror to get around the school?" Helen Granger shrieks grabbing Hermione to check her over for injuries," You are definitely not going back to that school. I know what a basilisk is and I'm surprised you didn't get killed."
"That's why I was using the mirror mum," Hermione sighs," There were several others that were petrified and I had to go to the Library to figure out what was causing it. I was with a fifth year prefect and she got petrified too. No one got killed. Besides, Harry killed the basilisk right after. Got bit for his trouble too and had to stay in the hospital wing for a while."
"Good on you son," George Granger says thanking God Harry was there to protect her.
"You're still not going back to that school," Mrs. Granger insists.
"It's going to be okay mum," Hermione emphasizes," that is part of what we have to tell you. Now where was I? Oh yea, Harry and I kissed and bonded in the Great Hall in front of the whole school. We actually glowed and floated two meters off the floor. The reason we wanted to reaffirm to each other we were the real us is because to us fifteen minutes earlier we were kissing in the common room of Gryffindor tower and it was nineteen ninety eight. We had just defeated the terrorist known as Lord Voldemort and Harry asked me to be his girlfriend, something I had been wishing for since first year. Those lines from Corinthians, is what started this whole deal. In my mind I am almost nineteen years old and Harry is eighteen."
"To help you believe this I will ask you another question," Harry says.
"Go ahead and ask," George Granger says, as it is starting to make sense how the two kids are so smart.
"Do you know what the mark of the Creator is?" Harry asks.
"Yes," Mrs. Granger answers," Despite our religious beliefs, I am a big fan of folklore and legend. The mark of the Creator is supposed to be an Ankh, and not just any ankh. It has to have rays streaming out of it and they have to be in seaming constant motion. Something no tattoo artist could fake."
Harry and Hermione walk up to the Grangers and turn their heads, pulling their hair aside to show their marks.
Mr. and Mrs. Granger gasp and get down on their knees with their heads bowed. Hermione grabs her mother by the arms and lifts her effortlessly up while Harry does the same to Mr. Granger.
"You are not to bow to us," Harry says," We are not worthy of it. We believe the Creator sent us back in time to prevent the war that killed so many innocent people. This war also made Hermione remove your memories of her and send you to Australia to keep you safe. With her knowing you were safe she could then fight by my side against the darkness. And believe me, she is a force to be reckoned with. She is second in power level only to me and with our bond she is now right up there with me."
"Dad, Mum," Hermione says while walking over to the fireplace. She picks up the wrought iron poker and bends it into a knot," You don't have to worry about me or Harry getting hurt. These marks tell us that the Creator blessed our bonding and has given us the power needed to complete our task. So far we haven't been able to hurt ourselves. That scroll Harry gave you required an inkwell of blood to work and we couldn't cut ourselves with the daggers provided. We had to will the blood to flow. What we found out through the heritage test is Harry and I are descended from all four founders of our school and from Merlin and Morgana Lefay, the two most famous magic users ever known. That means we own Hogwarts and with all of the vaults we acquired are now the richest witch and wizard in the world. You don't have to worry about how Harry is going to support me. One other thing that you probably won't like; the soul bond requires us to sleep together as we have to have skin to skin contact at least eight hours a day for the first few months of the bond. You don't have to worry about anything other than sleeping as Harry and I are too young to do anything else but sleep. We are married after all and even though in our minds we are old enough, we just have to wait for our bodies to catch up."
"After what you have told us Hermione," her father says," I think we can trust you."
She runs to her father and gives him a big hug," I love you daddy."
"I love you too sweetheart," he says," hugging you like this feels too good and I don't know why we ever doubted you."
Hermione walks over to Harry," And I love you with all of my heart Harry. Thank you for giving me my parents back."
She then proves her love by kissing him while pouring everything she has into the kiss. Her parents look on in awe as the two preteens take on a soft glow with the feeling of love emanating from them, saturating the room.
ooOOoo