A/N: Hello! I'm here with another chapter all ready for you. I'm trying to complete as many chapters as I can, as I'm going on vacation next week and I don't know if I'll be able to do any writing while I'm gone. But I'll sure try to!
Disclaimer: This is a fanfiction, not an original story, all recognizable characters, words and places belong to JK Rowling. Plot and original secondary characters are mine. This story is not meant to be published for monetary gain.
Chapter 14 Surprising Truths
Hermione and her mother returned to the parlor half an hour after they had left the men to wash the dishes. The sounds of happy laughter reached them as they prepared to join the men.
Mrs. Granger smiled happily at Hermione. "Your father always enjoyed having Ron around." She said.
Hermione nodded, but a small frown appeared on her brow. She had noticed that both her parents liked Ron very well. In fact, her mother had made sure to clean up the house from top to bottom to make a good impression on the man that had been about to be their son-in-law. This created a lot of pressure for Hermione. She knew that they all wanted her to continue her relationship with Ron, but she was not comfortable with that idea.
She liked him well enough, she supposed, but in her mind, he was a stranger and she did not know much about him. She needed time. She needed time for her memories to return, maybe then she could think about continuing a romantic relationship with Ron Weasley.
Both men were sitting on the chairs next to the fireplace. It was a cold night and the fire was a nice addition to a nice evening.
"There you are my dears." Exclaimed Mr. Granger when he noticed them enter the room. "Join us near the fire." He offered his chair to his wife, while Ron did the same with Hermione. Mr. Granger pulled two other chairs to stand them nearby the ones the Granger ladies now occupied.
"We were speaking about Fred and George." Said Mr. Granger as he sat in the new chair. "Ron says that Molly is worrying about them."
"I imagine. Those two act more like five year olds than any other five year olds I know." Mrs. Granger laughed.
"Their store is doing good, though." Added Ron. "Mum is rather surprised about that, even if she's still not too happy that they left school to start it."
"That was rather bad of them." Said Mrs. Granger shaking her head.
"Why did they leave school?" Asked Hermione. She knew that Fred and George were Ron's older twin brothers, but this was the first she heard of the two fun boys not finishing school.
Ron laughed. "They didn't like the new Headmistress of the school."
Hermione frowned. "That doesn't seem like a good reason to leave the school."
"Well, no." Said Ron. "But even though they were the only ones who left school that year, there were many who wished they could do the same. The new Headmistress was not well liked."
"But they were so near to finishing school! If only they had waited a while." Mrs. Granger exclaimed, horrified about the idea of young people not finishing their education.
"They never really wanted to finish the year in the first place." Said Ron thinking about his older brothers. "They were already of age, they had the money to start their store, not to mention most of the stock needed to open it. The only reason they had returned to school that last year was because of mum. She was expecting them to do well on their exams and wanted them to continue on dad's footsteps and work for the Ministry. But what happened later with the new Headmistress changed their minds. They really didn't care about staying on and finish the year."
"Poor Molly. I know she was really disappointed when it happened." Mrs. Granger sighed.
"She was." Nodded Ron.
The fire was roaring warmly in the grate as the four chatted comfortably amongst each other. Hermione said little but listened attentively as Ron spoke warmly about his family and friends.
The image of a large group of people eating outdoors came to mind. She could see Ron and Harry and she was certain that the others were Ron's family, they all looked much younger than the last time she had seen them.
Hermione frowned, was this a memory?
"Something wrong, Hermione dear?" Asked her mother, pulling Hermione from her thoughts.
"Uh? Oh, no. Just…thinking." Hermione said.
"It's getting late, perhaps we should have tea now and then retire for the night." Mrs. Granger said looking at her daughter with a keen eye.
"You're right." Said Mr. Granger leaning back on his seat. "We have the whole weekend to catch up."
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Ron had a fitful night.
For hours, he stayed awake looking out the window thinking about Hermione. What will she say when they tell her about being a witch, he wondered, what will she do?
He knew it was a big revelation, one that had better be done soon. A witch couldn't go on without doing some sort of magic for long periods of time. He was rather surprised she hadn't done so; he had expected something to have happened by now.
He frowned. Why hadn't she performed any accidental magic? He asked himself. The Grangers would have noticed the moment it had happened if she had done so. The fact that she hadn't bothered him; did the curses had any effects they had overlooked?
The waning moon was waning and the sun was rising by the time Ron was finally able to sleep.
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Hermione was up very early the next morning. She wanted to be at breakfast before Ron arrived for the meal, it would allow her to observe him and maybe she could learn something about him.
She washed and dressed hurriedly. As she passed the guest room, she stopped to listen. She could hear nothing from inside the room. Was he up already? She wondered. A soft snore reached her ears. Hermione smiled. He was still sleeping.
Only her mother was in the kitchen as Hermione arrived.
"Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?" Mrs. Granger asked as she spied Hermione at the door.
"Fine." Said Hermione with a smile. "Need any help?"
"Just set the table, dear." Said Mrs. Granger as she turned back to the stove. "Breakfast should be ready soon."
"Where is father?" Asked Hermione as she walked to the cabinets were her mother kept the plates and silverware.
"Probably dressing. He likes to sleep late on the weekends." Replied Mrs. Granger. "He says it is the only time he can sleep longer than the rest of the week."
Hermione nodded and started to set the table.
The two women were already sitting by the table starting on their meal when Mr. Granger walked into the room.
"Good morning, ladies." He said cheerfully.
"Morning, dear." Mrs. Granger greeted her husband.
"Good morning, father." Said Hermione with a smile.
"Ron will join us soon, he was setting for the shower when I came down." Reported Mr. Granger as he took his usual seat.
"Good, I made enough for everybody this morning. I know the Weasley boys are rather ravenous in the morning." Smiled Mrs. Granger.
"In the morning and at every hour of the day." Laughed Mr. Granger.
Hermione smiled.
It wasn't long before they heard Ron coming down the stairs.
"Good morning." He greeted them as he entered the kitchen.
"Morning." The Grangers said.
Ron took the remaining seat, the one between Hermione and Mrs. Granger, and set to pile some food on the table.
"We thought we should have a chat this morning." Said Mr. Granger sending a meaningful glance at his wife.
"If you wish." Said Ron with a nod. "I have everything ready if we need it."
"What sort of talk?" Asked Hermione. She had noticed the glance her parents had shared and the slight thoughtful expression that had passed over Ron's face. Something was going on, and she didn't know if she should be happy about it or not. A wave of apprehension filled her, but she tried to push it out. There's no need to get worried, she told herself, it might be nothing.
"We thought that we should begin with some of those exercises the doctor said we should try." Said Mrs. Granger. "That way we might have something to discuss with her on our next session, on Monday."
Hermione thought that her mother's answer wasn't completely truthful, but she said nothing, she would found out soon enough.
"So how are Molly and Arthur doing with most of you kids out of the house?" Asked Mr. Granger changing the subject. "I think only Ginny remains at home now."
"Yeah. I think mum was the one that had the most trouble getting used to having us all out of the house. But our rooms are still kept as we left her. I don't think she has the heart to make any changes." Said Ron. "But we sleep at the Burrow once in a while."
"The Burrow?" Asked Hermione curiously.
"That's the name we gave our home." Replied Ron.
"That's a funny name." Smiled Hermione.
Ron shrugged. "Can't really remember why we called it like that, but it stuck and now we're used to calling it that."
The conversation continued, with several subjects flowing easily from one to another keeping them all entertained as they finished their meal.
"Why don't you two go to the parlor and we'll join you in a moment." Said Mrs. Granger as she and Hermione cleared the table.
"All right. We'll wait for you in the parlor." Said Mr. Granger leading Ron out of the room.
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"How do you think we should tell her?" Asked Mr. Granger as they each took a seat on the parlor.
"I don't know." Said Ron with a frown. "Maybe I should've asked Harry to come. He might have some ideas."
"How did he find out that he was a wizard?" Asked Mr. Granger curiously.
"Hagrid told him." Ron replied. "Harry said that he wasn't getting his letters, so Hagrid went to look for him."
"I don't think that would work here." Mr. Granger smiled wryly. "I have thought about this for so long, and I still don't have any idea how to tell her."
The two men were silent for a moment, lost in thought. Soon, the moment was upon them as they heard the ladies' voices coming toward them.
"I still think that we should try it. You never know, it might help." Hermione was saying.
"I don't know dear. We'll see." Replied Mrs. Granger.
Mr. Granger and Ron turned to look at each other with looks of resignation and nervousness. The time had come to tell Hermione the truth about her talents. The question was, how to do it?
"So, what will we do today?" Asked Mrs. Granger smiling.
"I don't know, what do you have in mind?" Mr. Granger smiled to his wife. Despite the many years they had together, he was still enamored of her as he had been the first time he met her.
"Well, I brought all the family albums out of the attic last night. I thought we could all look at them together and tell Hermione about them, maybe it'll help her." Mrs. Granger said looking tentatively to the others.
Ron shrugged. "If it'll help." He said, relieved that he didn't have to tell Hermione anything yet about the magical world.
"Of course, why not." Replied Mr. Granger, making room in the couch for his wife and daughter to sit beside him.
Mrs. Granger walked to one of the bookshelves, neatly arranged along one of the walls. She took one of the many books arranged there and brought it to the couch. She sat between Hermione and Mr. Granger, while Ron perched himself behind the couch to look over their heads.
"See this, this is the first picture we took of you after returning from the hospital." Said Mrs. Granger showing the first picture in the album. She smiled and looked over at her husband. "Do you remember, darling."
"How could I forget?" Laughed Mr. Granger. "I was so nervous, I was afraid I had forgotten to buy anything we would need."
Hermione smiled. She knew that she would not remember that time in her life, but it felt good to sit here with her parents and hear them reminisce about the past.
"Who's that?" Asked Ron, pointing to a couple in the next picture.
"Oh, those were my parents." Said Mrs. Granger.
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They spent a couple of hours laughing and exclaiming over the pictures on Mrs. Granger's albums. They had gone through a couple and were now coming close to Hermione's 11th birthday pictures when they stopped.
"Let's have a break." Said Mr. Granger, stretching his arms over his head. "I could do with a drink."
"Oh, I could too." Exclaimed Mrs. Granger. "I've never talked so much in my life." She laughed.
Hermione flipped the pages over, looking at each photo carefully. She couldn't remember everything that they had spoken about, but there were times when she looked at the pictures that it came to mind things that were happening in the background as the photos were taken. It gave her hope that her memories were returning. They were coming slowly, but they were returning. And she smiled with happiness. Everything would be fine.
"Hermione? Hermione!" Hermione was snapped from her thought by her mother's voice.
"Yes?" She asked looking at her parents, who were looking at her worriedly.
"Are you alright, dear? Do you want to go to your bedroom and rest a little?" Asked Mrs. Granger apprehensively.
"No, I'll alright." Smiled Hermione.
"If you're sure." Mrs. Granger said, still looking at her daughter with worried glances. "I'm going to bring a few snacks for us. John, dear, why don't you prepare the drinks?"
"Of course." Replied Mr. Granger as his wife walked out of the room toward the kitchens. "What would you like?" He asked
"Just a juice, dad." Said Hermione.
"The same." Said Ron when Mr. Granger turned his eyes on him.
"Alright. I'll be right back." Mr. Granger said and left the young couple alone.
Hermione placed the album on top of the others on the corner table, and turned shyly toward Ron.
"This must all be boring for you." She said shyly.
"No." Ron smiled. "It's nice to know a little about your childhood. You never mentioned much about it before."
"Didn't I?" Asked Hermione looking down at her hands. What was she suppose to say to this man? Did her parents leave them alone by design?
"No, we had other things to do in school than talk about our own childhoods." Ron smiled in reminiscence.
"Like what?" Asked Hermione.
"Oh, like getting Harry out of trouble." Chuckled Ron.
"Oh, was he a troublemaker?" Hermione smiled.
"Well, not really." Replied Ron sitting beside her on the couch. "He didn't really go and look for trouble. But trouble did seem to follow him."
"Okay, here we are." Said Mrs. Granger walking in with a small fruit and sandwich platter, followed by Mr. Granger with a four glasses on a tray.
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The parlor in the Granger household was full of laughter as late morning turned to afternoon. The sun was dimly shining through the wintry sky. November would now soon turn into December and the holidays were on their way.
But the group inside was not thinking about the holidays or the wintry cold that permeated the land. They were only thinking about Hermione and were full of hope that she would soon become the person she once had been.
The small break they had thought of, had become a full meal. The albums stayed forgotten on the corner table as the small group laughed from the stories told by Mr. Granger about his own childhood.
"Seems like you had a fun childhood." Said Ron as he drank his tea carefully.
"I did. It's nice to reminisce sometimes." Sighed Mr. Granger as Mrs. Granger chuckled with agreement.
"Indeed. You young people wouldn't be able to last a week if you had to live the way we did at your age." Mrs. Granger said.
"Oh, I don't know. My family's practices haven't changed much for generations." Ron replied.
Hermione seemed curious about this. "Why is that?" She asked.
Ron was thoughtful for a minute. "Well," he replied, "within our community people don't accept changes too easily. Or outsiders for that matter. Our customs have been passed from generation to generation and they had been the same for centuries."
Hermione seemed intrigued by this idea but didn't say anything more, as Mrs. Granger started to take the empty trays.
"I'll help you." She said and followed her mother out the room.
Mr. Granger turned to look at Ron. "We have to tell her." He urged. "Her mind is too quick and she will continue to ask questions."
Ron nodded. "I know." He sighed. "I think it will be best if you let me tell her."
"Of course. We'll stay in case you need us." Mr. Granger said.
They heard the voices of the women nearing the parlor.
"Well dears, should we continue with the pictures?" Asked Mrs. Granger as she and Hermione walked into the parlor.
"Maybe tomorrow." Said Mr. Granger. "It is time for Hermione to know about the special delivery she got on her eleventh birthday." He told her with a speaking glance.
Mrs. Granger looked apprehensive for a moment but quickly smiled down at her daughter, who seemed to sense the tension that invaded the others.
"A special delivery?" Hermione asked casting curious glances to her parents and Ron.
Ron sat nonchalantly on the couch. With a wry smile gracing his face. "Yes. A special delivery indeed."
Hermione frowned at Ron's tone of voice. Something was about to happen, she knew it and she didn't know whether it was a good thing or not.
"Ron will explain it to you." Mr. Granger said motioning to Hermione to sit by Ron. "He knows its significance much better than we do."
Hermione sat gingerly on the space beside Ron on the loveseat. Mrs. Granger sat slowly by her husband, waiting for Ron to explain.
"You see." Began Ron slowly. "You got a special letter on your eleventh birthday."
"A letter?" Hermione asked. What was so special about a letter? She thought.
"Yes." Nodded Ron. He was becoming more nervous by the minute. "There are certain types of children who get that letter when they turn eleven." He explained. "It's the acceptance letter for Hogwarts."
"Hogwarts?" Asked Hermione. "What is Hogwarts?"
Ron cleared his throat nervously. Mr. and Mrs. Granger tensed on their seats.
"Hogwarts is a school." Ron said. "Our school, Harry, me, my family, we all got the same letter when we turned eleven."
"Oh." Said Hermione. "Did you go to Hogwarts too?" She asked, turning to her parents.
"No dear." Mrs. Granger said. "We didn't attend Hogwarts, we were never invited to attend, only children with a special talent are able to attend."
Hermione frowned. "What talent? What is so special about this Hogwarts?" She finally asked.
Ron glanced nervously to the Grangers, who were looking at him with apprehension.
"Hogwarts is a school of magic." He finally replied. "Its whole name is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
Hermione looked confused. "What?"
"You're a witch Hermione." He said.
"Well." She exclaimed. "There is no need to be rude."
Ron laughed and the Grangers smiled nervously, but the tension that had gripped them seemed to leave the room.
Hermione looked at them with confusion. This didn't make any sense. "What is so funny?" She asked huffily.
Ron cleared his throat, trying to subdue his laughter. "I didn't mean it to be rude." He said. "I mean that you are witch, and a great one too. Top of the class for all seven years."
"I don't understand." She said. "Do you mean that I went to a school to learn magic tricks? Was this a sort of summer camp?"
Ron laughed again.
Hermione frowned. "Stop laughing." She exclaimed. "You are making no sense."
Mrs. Granger left her husband's side to sit on the chair arm by Hermione. "No dear. Hogwarts is a school for young people with the talent to create magic. Not the magic tricks that you see in television or magic acts." She explained. "We mean magic, with a real wand and incantations. Real magic."
Hermione still looked confused. How could this be? She asked herself. What were they all talking about? Was she dreaming? This just didn't seem real.
Ron took a long box from his pocket and presented it to her. "Open it." He said.
Hermione looked at her parents questioningly. After a nod from her father, she took the box from Ron and gingerly opened the lid.
Inside was a long polished wooden stick. It shined brightly on the dim light and at one end there was a sort of carved ridges around it, which she assumed was the end where it was meant to be held.
"I found it in the alley you had disappeared from." Ron said.
"What is it?'' She asked. She couldn't help the feeling of awe and sense of recognition that swam through her body. She didn't know what it was, but she did know it was important that she keep it with her.
"Your wand." Ron replied.
"Wand?" She asked.
"Yes. Take it." He said. Taking the box from her numb fingers and taking the slim wand from its folds.
Hermione took it gingerly with her thumb and forefinger.
Ron laughed again. "No, don't hold it like that. It's not going to hurt you, you know." He chuckled. "Grip it tightly in your hand."
Hermione took the wand into her hand. After a quick glance to Ron, she gripped it tightly. Sparks shot out the other end. Hermione screamed and let the wand fall to the floor.
"What is that? What happened?" She asked scared.
"That was nothing." Ron said as he retrieved the wand. "It's just letting you know that it recognizes you." He offered the wand once more, but Hermione refused to take it. With a slight shrug, he put it back into the wooden box.
Hermione still looked scared and looked at the wooden box with apprehension.
"It's not going to bite you." Ron smiled.
Hermione looked skeptical. "It shot sparks at me." She exclaimed.
"Not at you. Besides, they wouldn't have hurt you. You have done more damage with it than it has done to you." Ron said.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"The wand is your tool. Is the most important tool and weapon for a witch or wizard." Ron explained. "We cannot do much without it. Some of us are not used to living as Muggles."
"Muggles?" Asked Hermione.
"Non-magic humans." Ron explained.
"Like your father and I." Said Mrs. Granger. "We were really surprised when you received your letter, we thought it was a joke. Nobody in our family has ever been a witch or a wizard. You were the first."
"You mean it is rare for anybody to be a witch or a wizard?" Asked Hermione. She seemed now more receptive about the idea of being a witch, but it was obvious that she would now have a lot more questions.
"There is a large wizarding community in England and every city in the world." Ron said. "But we don't mingle with Muggles much. History has taught us that people are not really receptive of things they don't understand. There are families that can trace their magical ancestry for many generations, even to ancient times. Like mine. But there are others where they come from a long line of Muggles, like you, who become new members to the community as soon as you enter Hogwarts."
"And what do they teach at Hogwarts?" Asked Hermione, becoming more curious about this turn of events. Being a witch was not something she had imagined herself to be. For many months, she hoped to learn or remember something of her life. But this was something she had not been ready for.
"Oh, all sorts of things." Exclaimed Ron. "Hogwarts is where young witches and wizards are trained to become full members of the wizarding community. We learn Charms, Transfiguration, Defense, Herbology, all sorts of things."
Hermione looked confused again.
"Well, never mind. We'll explain it to you later." Ron said.
"Or maybe you'll remember." Said Mr. Granger, who had been rather quiet as the revelation had been made.
"Do you think so?" Asked Hermione hopefully.
"Well, you already had some memories about Hogwarts." Said Ron.
"I have?" Asked Hermione with surprise.
"Yes. That dream you had about the troll. That happened in our first year." Ron explained.
"You mean that big ugly thing that attacked me in a bathroom." She exclaimed with horror. "That was a memory?"
"Yes." Nodded Ron.
"What was it doing in a bathroom with me?" She asked. Her eyes were opened wide with surprise, but she was also happy to know that it was a memory. She was now hopeful that her memory would soon return.
"Well, it's a long story." Said Ron with some hesitation. "Maybe Harry can help with that."
Hermione thought that he didn't really want to explain, and maybe it was because her parents were there. Had she not been open with them about what happened at this school?
"Can you do magic then?" She asked Ron.
"Of course." He said proudly.
"Well, let's see it then."
Ron smiled. He clearly remembered the first time he had seen Hermione on the Hogwarts Express on their way to their first year at Hogwarts. She had said the same thing to him at that time. But this time, he thought, he know more spells and hexes than he had then, when the only incantation he had known was one given to him by one of the twins, which ended up being a fake incantation.
Ron took his wand from his pocket. He gripped the wand with a strong grip and with an easy wave conjured a vase full of exotic plants on the coffee table.
Hermione looked at the flowers with surprise. The orchids and lilies were quite extraordinary as their colors were some she was sure did not exist naturally. Striped and checked the colors from the flowers changed every ten seconds.
She looked at Ron with awe. Perhaps, she thought, all this was really true and she had studied at a Magic School after all.
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A/N: Here you go, another chapter done, sorry if there are any grammatical mistakes or misspelled words, as I did it in kind of a hurry just trying to have this chapter all ready to upload before I left. Thank you all for your patience, real life seems to intrude more often as you grow older than it did when you are younger. Enjoy the chapter!
Lady of the Lake