The Harmony bond, chapter seven.
Disclaimer:-
To anyone who has been on another planet since 1997, this is to let you know that Harry Potter belongs to J., her various publishers and Warner Brothers. This story and any new characters belong to me.
In the previous chapter...
The social worker visited Harry's school and met the Dursleys. Harry was taken back to the Dursleys...
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The next morning was marked by a strange similarity between the Dursley and Granger households. Silence. In the Dursley household, in the absence of Dudley and afraid of the consequences, the adult Dursleys had simply decided to ignore Harry as much as possible. Harry, as usual, didn't speak unless he was spoken to. He wasn't allowed to cook any more which put Petunia in a bad mood, which, as she was afraid to take it out on Harry, she took out on Vernon, blaming him for allowing "her Dudley" to be taken away. To Harry's surprise, she actually gave him more food than before, if not as much as he had been given at the Grangers.
The silence in the Granger household was for a very different reason. Hermione, having supposedly understood the reason for Harry having to go back to the Dursleys, spent most of her morning in her room alone. Any attempt to get her to socialise, or go out, even to the library, was met with a tearful shake of the head.
The night before she had woken up frequently from the same nightmare, over and over again, a woman she somehow felt was her mother crying out. But it wasn't her mother, she knew that. And every dream ended with a horrible green flash of light and nasty-sounding laughter.
When Professor Dumbledore came to take Hermione to the Dursleys the next day (he had wanted to take Hermione the first time), he was surprised at the lack of enthusiasm Harry and Hermione showed when they met.
"Hi," said Hermione.
"Hi."
"How are you, Harry."
"Okay. You?"
"Okay."
Silence.
"Well, now I'm here, what shall we do?"
"Don't know. What do you want to do?"
"I asked first."
More silence from Harry.
"Well, if you two are okay, I'll see you both later," said the Professor. Unable to decide if their lack of enthusiasm to see each other was a good or bad thing, he left them together and apparated away. Perhaps the bond wasn't taking, although he'd never heard of such a thing happening before. If so, it would certainly simplify matters.
When he'd gone Hermione asked Harry, "Are they treating you okay?"
"Okay."
"Shall we go down the town?"
"If you like."
So they walked down to the town centre, nearly forty minutes walk. Without any clear idea of what they wanted to do, their time together dragged. They finally ended up in a café, where Harry had a coke and an ice cream, while Hermione had a tea and an ice cream.
"I'll bring some of my magic books next time," she promised.
Harry just nodded.
"I suppose we'd better be getting back," Hermione said, feeling slightly guilty at the feeling of relief that the visit was almost over. Perhaps the weekend visit with her parents would be better.
Once Professor Dumbledore had taken her home, she went to her room and cried.
"I thought he'd be so happy to see me," she explained to her mother later.
"And he wasn't?"
"No. And then we were bored."
"I'm sure the next visit will be better," her mother reassured her. "He probably just feels awkward you seeing him back there. How are they treating him?"
"Okay, he said. He didn't say much."
If Mrs. Granger thought it was unlike her daughter to be satisfied with an "Okay" without pressing for more details, she kept the thought to herself.
Unknown to each other, both children cried themselves to sleep that night.
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Hermione flooed to visit Harry each day, but they seemed awkward with each other and she had to admit that she wasn't enjoying the visits at all. Hermione's increasing sullenness worried her parents greatly.
The weekend visit was better, but not much. The Granger parents, who had driven down rather than using the floo, so that they could drive the two children to Birghton, as Harry had never seen the seaside, were as startled as Professor Dumbledore had been by the lack of enthusiasm from both Hermione and Harry.
"They aren't hurting you are they?" Mrs. Granger asked Harry quietly.
"No."
"Are they giving you enough food?"
"It's okay."
"They aren't making you cook or anything?"
"No. They don't even speak if they don't have to," he answered.
"I know it must be hard," Mrs. Granger said, determined not to cry in front of Harry. "But you know we love you, don't you?"
Harry turned to look at her, his eyes wide with surprise, then they quickly filled up with tears. "You love me?" he asked, chokingly.
"Yes. Harry. Hasn't anyone ever said that to you before?"
He shook his head.
Unable to speak, Mrs. Granger just hugged Harry close to her, trying to make sure he didn't see her own tears. Evil wizards or not, she decided, no child should have to live like this.
When they dropped Harry off at home, Mrs. Granger said quietly to her daughter, "I think Harry could really do with one of your special hugs right now."
Hermione got out of the car and raced after Harry, and startled him totally by hugging him tightly.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, but nothing like how embarrassed Harry was, Hermione said, "I'll see you soon," and ran back to the car.
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The following week two amazing things happened. One went almost unnoticed, except by Petunia Dursley. Halfway through dinner, Harry, pushed his plate away, saying he wasn't hungry, and he took himself to bed early. A startled Petunia decided to keep what had happened to herself. But if he was getting ill, they'd have to take him to a doctor this time or they'd be in trouble.
The other took place in London. Hermione, having read all the magical books she'd got when she went there with Professor Dumbledore, decided she wanted some more. From her brief use of the floo before, she knew you just had to say where you were going. She wondered if it would work for Diagon Alley. She threw down some of the powder the professor had left with them and called out loudly, "Diagon Alley."
A few minutes later, Tom the barman was showing her how to enter the alley itself and she quickly found the bookshop.
"Can't accept muggle money," she was told. "You'll have to go to Gringotts."
"Where?"
"Wizard bank. To change your money." He pointed in the direction of the biggest building there.
Feeling nervous of the goblins, Hermione took a deep breath and stepped up to the counter where one of them was working. "I'd like to change some money please?"
"So you have an account with us?"
"Er. No. Do I have to?"
"Not to change money, no. But you're a witch, you should open an account with us."
"Does it cost a lot?" she asked, thinking she didn't have a lot of money with her and wishing that she'd brought more.
"Not to open it, no. Give me your hand."
She put out her hand and was surprised when the goblin stuck a pin in her finger. "Ow! What d'you do that for?" she asked, sucking her finger.
"To make your key, so it will only work for you."
"Oh."
The goblin left her at the counter while he took the bloodied paper with him. He came back a few minutes later holding a key and looking surprised.
"You already have a vault," he said. "Your parents left it for you."
"But they can't have. I'm muggle born."
"As you wish, Mrs..."
"I'm not a Mrs.," Hermione laughed. "I'm Hermione Granger."
"That is what you wish to be called?" The goblin seemed puzzled.
"That's my name."
"As you wish, Mrs. Granger."
"Miss Granger," she corrected him.
He looked sternly at her as though he didn't approve. "As you wish. Now would you like to see your vault?"
"Yes please."
The crazy ride down to the vault would be something she would never forget, but the surprise at the end made the ride seem positively dull. He handed her her key. "Put your key in that key-hole," instructed the goblin. The key seemed to warm up in her hand for a moment, then the sensation was gone.
The vault door swung open to reveal piles and piles of gold, silver and bronze coins, and a lot of papers and golden cups and boxes of jewellery.
"There's got to be a mistake," she said. "This can't be mine."
"Gringotts does not make mistakes," the goblin sniffed haughtily.
"But it has to be."
"Do you want to make a withdrawal or not?"
"Er. Yes. How much do I need?"
The goblin's eyes rolled heavenward, as though he thought she was completely stupid. Hermione quickly grabbed a handful of the gold ones and said, "Okay, I'm ready."
She wanted to ask the goblin why he'd wanted to call her Mrs, but was too nervous to do so. She wished she hadn't interrupted him. It would have been interesting to know who he thought she actually was.
She felt a little guilty about taking the money from a vault that couldn't have been hers, but decided that she could pay it back after she'd asked Professor Dumbledore what it was all about. She was sure he'd know.
Thinking for a minute, she realised that she couldn't be sure that he'd actually tell her what she wanted to know. She was sure he'd told them the minimum he could get away with. It was time to do her own research on what had happened to her.
The bookshop was crowded but she finally found an assistant to help her. "Some weird things have happened lately, but I'm muggleborn, so I don't know much. A few weeks ago I found out I was a witch and there's some things I don't understand. But I don't know which books to look at."
"I'll help you if I can," said the friendly witch in front of her.
"Well, according to my parents, it started when I met..." she hesitated suddenly, thinking it might be best not to give his name... "this boy. And apparently I collapsed when we touched. The doctors couldn't move me away or I stopped breathing. And since then, during the day, I suddenly get sad or angry for no reason, when I'm not sad or angry. And at night, it's like I'm dreaming someone else's dream. Does that sound stupid?"
The witch didn't look as though she though Hermione was stupid. She looked astonished. Hermione didn't seem to notice.
"And another thing. Do Goblins normally try to call girls Mrs?"
This time she noticed the stunned look on the woman's face. "They called you Mrs? Mrs who?"
"I don't know. I stopped him before he could say the name. Does it mean anything? Or is it normal?"
"No," the woman replied. "It isn't normal. This boy. Is he a wizard or a muggle?"
"Er... A wizard. Is it important?"
"Could be. And do you have any feelings for him?"
"What do you mean?"
"Hmm. No. You're much too young. You say you suddenly feel sad or angry. Is this when he is sad or angry?"
"I don't really know. I think he's sad most of the time, and angry too."
"If you were much older, I'd say you were bonded. When wizards and witches get married, there is a spell which bonds them. If their marriage bond is strong, quite often they can feel each other's feelings to some extent."
"But I'm not married."
"Of course you're not. You're too young anyway. But it's odd. It sounds like some sort of bond. Are you close to this boy?"
"Not really. He lived at my house for a month or so, that's all."
Someone else was wanting the assistant's help, so she shook her head. "I don't really know dear." She turned to shout "Be with you in a minute," then continued to Hermione, "there's an old book back here. It goes on about all kinds of bonds, not just marriage bonds and family bonds, but also the rare ones like blood bonds. I shouldn't really let you have it at your age as it also includes dark bonds."
"Dark bonds?"
"Ones to make someone your slave. But you wouldn't want to know about them. But it's the only book we've got on bonds anyway, if you want it. It's been here for centuries. Most people are only interested in the books on marriage and family bonds, they are more modern, much easier to read..."
"I'll take it."
Hermione showed the books she'd already picked up on modern wizarding history, then handed over money the assistant asked for and left the shop.
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Author's note...
WOW! Over 200 reviews for the first six chapters. Thanks everyone.
Please review.
Brian