Hermione was already waiting for him when he stumbled out of the fireplace. She was curled up on the couch looking half asleep. Even after their 'nap' she still looked completely worn out. She sat up and smiled when she saw him.
"Hey." She said. He smiled tiredly and slumped down next to her.
"Hey yourself."
"How'd your little talk with Dumbledore go?" His smile dropped from his face, replaced by a scowl and she frowned. "I take it things didn't go too well. What happened?"
"Happened? The great idiot didn't believe me. He completely disregarded everything I told him! About the attack, about Snape trying to kill us and the old man just brushed it off. He actually thought that I had made it all up to get back at Snape!" Hermione's eyes widened and she shook her head.
"He didn't-he didn't believe you?!" she exclaimed incredulously, anger beginning to darken her eyes. Harry snorted and ran an agitated hand through his hair.
"No! He must have a damn good reason to trust Snape because from where I'm standing he has not done one thing to warrant any kind of trust. Especially after what I found out." Hermione peered into his face, the furious clench of his jaw and the flare of pain she could see in his eyes. There was more he hadn't told her.
"Harry...What did Dumbledore tell you?" He looked away, staring intently at his tightly clenched hands.
"You know how Voldemort heard the first part of the prophecy?" She nodded. He had told her everything. "Well it turns out the death eater that overheard it was Snape." Hermione blinked, and then blinked again. Slowly anger crept onto her face and she clenched her own fists, eyes flashing dangerously.
"Are you saying that Snape is the reason you lost your parents? That Neville?" she asked softly, angrily. That hook nosed bastard was the reason she had to see the man she loved in so much pain, to see the longing in his eyes every time he saw a picture of his family. Because of him Harry had to grow up alone and unloved. Anger and hatred enough to take her breath away flowed through her and she forced herself to take a deep breath. Not only had the man ruined her fiancé's life but he had tried to kill her little girl. To her Snape was just as bad as Voldemort and he was going to pay for what he'd done.
"Yes and I let him go." Harry hissed and jumped to his feet. His hands flew to his hair and he ran his fingers angrily through it. He had killed those other death eaters without thought but he had let both Snape and Malfoy go. He had them at his mercy and he let the chance slip away.
"Harry you didn't do anything-" he whirled on her.
"Exactly! I did nothing! I let him and Malfoy go!" he was furious but the anger was turned inwards, at himself. Guilt clawed at his insides and a profound urge to destroy something flared through him. He felt the now familiar feeling of refreshing cold flow through his veins and the lamp on the end table by Hermione exploded, raining shards of glass onto her. She quickly ducked and shielded herself from the debris. The anger slipped away from him as quickly as it had come along with the cold tingling in his body and the guilt intensified tenfold. He flew from where he was standing back over to Hermione, kneeling in front of her, not even noticing the shards of glass under his knees.
"Oh-oh god Hermione! I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean-" he stammered, anguished. Hermione removed her arms from around her head and sat back up, forcing a shaky smile.
"I-It's ok Harry." She tried to reassure him though her eyes were still wide with shock and to Harry's eternal pain, fear. He shook his head, his hands fluttered over her as if to check for injuries though never quite allowing himself to touch her.
"No, it's not ok! I could've killed you!" he paled, all color leaving his face, his heart clenching painfully in his chest. The thought of what he could've done, what he almost did nearly killed him. He had thought that this...power he had was a help to him, a strength but now...If he lost his temper he could hurt his family, he could kill them. If his heart only clenched before it completely stopped now, pain flared in his chest. Hermione saw the mounting panic in his face and she raised her slightly scratched arms and grabbed his face, forcing him to look directly into her eyes. She took a deep breath and forced down her own fear and panic.
"But you didn't." she said firmly. "You would never hurt me. You just lost control of your emotions."
"And what if I do it again Hermione? I could get angry and..." he shook his head, unable to finish his sentence.
"We'll just..." she swallowed and smiled another shaky smile. "We'll just have to work on it won't we?" she leaned forward. "I know you didn't mean to do that Harry." she said softly. "And Snape...he'll get his. As will Malfoy." she pulled away and Harry offered her a weak smile. He didn't know what to say, what could he say? Without another word he flicked his wand hand at the shards of glass that were once the lamp and the pieces flew from the floor and formed back into the lamp. By the time he had finished repairing the lamp Hermione had quickly healed the scratches and shallow cuts on her arms. She reached down and pulled him up onto the couch.
"Did Remus already know about Snape's" her face twisted as if saying the name left a bad taste in her mouth. "Involvement in your parent's death?"
"I doubt it. He definitely wouldn't have been as nice to him as he was if he had known and honestly...I couldn't bring myself to tell him." He hurried on when he saw Hermione open her mouth to rebuke him. "I'm going to tell him Hermione I just...couldn't. He and Tonks were looking at pictures of the baby and they just looked so happy." He shrugged. "I just couldn't ruin it. Not right then."
"I understand." she shifted closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder. "Did you find anything else out?"
"Not really he went on about protecting me, his usual lies, and that was about it." he reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out the picture Tonks had given him and handed it to Hermione. "This is for you." she took the photo from his hand and unlike him she knew what it was instantly. She squealed and a wide grin spread across her face.
"Oh! It's so cute!" she squealed again. Harry looked at her incredulously then down at the picture. Yep, it still looked like a blob.
"Hermione, its a spot!" she rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to more than likely explain to him the entire growing process of the baby when a jaw-splitting yawn interrupted her.
"Tired?" Harry asked her, an eyebrow raised, when she blinked the moisture from her eyes. She nodded, glancing up the stairs.
"Exhausted. Cattie woke up a few minutes after you left and once she realized you weren't here..." she sighed sadly and bit her lip, eyes worried. Harry winced slightly and the guilt came clawing its way back. "It took a while to calm her down and convince her you were coming back. She was so scared and I couldn't help her." her voice caught at the end and she bit her lip harder. Harry swallowed hard and looked up the stairs where his daughter was still sleeping. He hated the fact that she was in so much pain, that she was so afraid. He had to fix this.
"We need to talk to her." he said suddenly, shattering the silence he hadn't realized had fallen around them. Hermione stood up from the couch and nodded, she had been thinking the same thing. With the thought of his daughter in his head Harry followed Hermione out of the room and up the staircase.
She was still in their bedroom, curled into a ball in the middle of the large bed, her forehead creased and body rigged even in sleep. He had no doubt that she was having a nightmare. Swallowing past the sudden lump in his throat Harry stepped across the room and over to the bed. He gently let himself down onto the bed and placed a hand on the child's forehead. Her eyelids flew open, emerald gaze met emerald gaze and she flung herself into his arms. She buried her face in his chest and wrapped her arms as tightly around him as she could.
"I-I woke up and-and you were g-gone!" she sobbed, her small body shaking. "Mommy said you-you were coming back b-but I was so scared!" Harry tightened his hold on her and placed a kiss on her head.
"Shhh, its ok sweetheart. I'm here, it'll be alright." he murmured to her. She hiccupped and lifted her face from his chest, looking up at him with her flushed and tear stained face.
"Y-you'll never leave me again right Daddy? You'll always be there?" her voice was desperate and choked. Harry closed his eyes briefly, he knew there was no way he could promise her that and it hurt him more that anyone would ever know. He just pulled her back into his arms and pressed his face into her dark curls. He felt a soft hand on his arm and he looked up to see Hermione, her eyes moist. He smiled grimly at her, the lump in his throat shrinking and he took a deep breath. They were going to get through this. The three of them. As a family.
"Cattie." she lifted her head and looked back up at him. "Your Mum and I have something we want to talk to you about." she frowned slightly and looked between the two of them but nodded. She scooted off of his lap and settled back onto the bed.
"We need to talk about what happened in Italy, about your nightmares." Hermione began gently. Cattie paled and she shook her head.
"I-I don't want to talk about it." she said shakily and pulled her knees to her chest.
"I'm sorry love but we have to." Harry said firmly, squeezing her hand. Her bottom lip trembled but she caught it between her teeth and nodded.
"Can you...Can you tell us about the dreams Cattie?" Hermione asked softly. Cattie looked down at her hands and her eyes filled.
"My-my mum." she glanced at Hermione. "My first mum. We were back at the-the mall and those bad men came back and she was screaming and everything hurt and then..." the tears spilled over and rolled down her cheeks. "She just-she just stared at me like him." she shuttered, her eyes wide and haunted. She looked up at them. The lump in Harry's throat returned, bigger than before; she looked so lost, so scared. "And you didn't come! You didn't come to save me like before and I was all by myself! Forever and ever and I-" a ragged sob cut off her sentence and she bit her fist to keep them in. Hermione reached over and pulled the small girl into her arms.
"You know we never meant to leave you with him. If we had known..." she lifted the little girl's chin so they were eye to eye. "I need you to understand that we will never let anything like that happen to you again. We will never put you in that kind of situation again, do you understand?" Catherine nodded, some of the darkness leaving her eyes.
"And you'll never, ever leave me?" she whispered brokenly. Harry and Hermione exchanged a pained glance as she once again asked the question.
"Cattie..." Harry said. "We can't promise you that we'll be around forever but we can promise you that we'll try. We love you, probably more than you'll ever know and we'll try very hard to be there for you whenever you need us."
She sniffed. "Really?" Hermione smiled softly and ran a hand through the child's thick curls.
"Really."
"Is everything going to be ok?" Cattie asked.
"Everything is going to be ok." Harry answered her. He reached up and ruffled her hair. "Is there anything else you need Kitty-Cat?" She lifted her head from her mother's shoulder and a small, almost shy smile crept onto her face.
"I'm-I'm kind of hungry." Hermione checked the clock on the wall.
"I bet! It's past lunch time and you've been asleep all day." She stood up off of the bed, readjusting the child in her arms, and reached a hand down to Harry. He grinned and took her hand, standing up.
"Let's go, I'm starving!" Harry felt his heart warm when he heard Cattie's giggle. He knew that it would probably be a very long time before Cattie was completely healed, before the fear would fully leave her but for now…he was happy just to see her smile again. With a warm smile he allowed Hermione to pull him out of the room.
It was dark by the time Catherine had allowed herself to fall back asleep. While Hermione tucked her in her bed in her room, where she had insisted on sleeping, Harry walked the few steps to his and Hermione's bedroom. They had decided to get the business with the chess piece over as soon as possible.
Harry kneeled down onto the plush carpet surrounding his bed and pulled his bag out from under it. He winced slightly at the twinge of pain in his back. Hermione had healed it as best she could when they were still in Italy but it was still pretty sore. With another pained wince he pulled himself back to his feet and onto the bed, pulling the bag into his lap. With careful hands he reached inside and pulled out the heavy piece of marble and gold.
"Nearly got my family killed for this." He muttered darkly, glaring at the beautifully carved queen. He had literally dragged his family into the line of fire for this chess piece and he didn't even know for sure if it was even what they were looking for. If it wasn't the horcrux…he didn't know what he'd do. The click of the bedroom door closing pulled him out of his thoughts. He looked up and smiled at Hermione as she walked over to him.
"Cattie alright?" he asked.
"She's asleep, hopefully she'll be able to sleep better tonight." She sighed, sitting down next to him. "So, are you ready?" he ran his thumb over the cool marble.
"As ready as I'll ever be." He sighed. "I'll be happy when this is all over." He stood up and Hermione stood after him. She squeezed his arm.
"Me too." They left the dimly lit bedroom and stepped into the hallway. The short walk to the third floor was made in relative silence, neither Harry nor Hermione really in the mood to talk. Both Caterina and Bronson were asleep in their frames when they stepped onto the third floor; they passed the sleeping portraits and entered the dueling room. Hermione cleared all of the cushions from the center of the room, transfiguring one into a solid wood desk where Harry placed the chess piece. They stood on either side of the desk, looking down at the game piece. Hermione took a deep breath and slid her wand out of her pocket. She lifted it so that it was a few inches over the chess piece and began the spell. Her wand wove around it in a complicated pattern. Harry couldn't help but grin as he watched her working the spell; it never ceased to amaze him that she was able to memorize spells perfectly, her intelligence blew him away. Hermione continued the spell until the chess piece began to glow a bright red and menacing black. Harry swallowed reflexively and Hermione shuddered; even after seeing it before the dark aura was still unnerving, it still turned his stomach. Harry clenched his fist. It was the horcrux.
Somehow even with knowing that this was what they had been searching for it still didn't feel like it was worth it. He had thought once he knew for sure that it was really the horcrux he wouldn't feel so guilty and ashamed but if anything he felt worse. It wasn't worth the lives of his family.
"Let's get this over with." He said flatly. Hermione looked at him with sad eyes, knowing and feeling what he was feeling. After a lingering look at the chess piece she nodded.
"Manny." Hermione said softly. There was a sharp crack and the elf popped into existence.
"Yous called me Mistress?" he asked, smiling brightly. Hermione smiled warmly and nodded, repressing the urge to wince at the title.
"Yes Manny, we need to daggers. Could you get them for us please?" The elf nodded seriously and snapped his fingers. Instantly the wooden box appeared in his small hands. With reverence he handed it to Hermione.
"Thank you Manny."
"Yous is welcome Mistress. Is there anything Master and Mistress need?" he asked.
"No not right now. Thank you Manny." Harry answered him. The elf nodded again and with another crack he was gone. With the elf gone Hermione carefully placed the ancient box on the desk and she placed her hands on the thick golden latches. With a yelp she jerked her hands from the latches and brought them to her chest, eyes wide.
"Hermione! What happened?" Harry flew to her side. She pulled her hands from her chest and opened them with difficulty and obvious pain; she looked down at them in shock and Harry said a word that Hermione, if she wasn't in pain, would have smacked him for. Her hands were a bright, shiny red and blisters were already starting to appeared on her palms.
"I-I think it burned me." She said, sounding strangely thoughtful. Harry gently grabbed her wrists and led her over to the pile of cushions.
"Manny!" he called. The elf appeared next to them with a pop.
"Yes Mas-" his little hands flew to his mouth. "Mistress! What happened?!"
"The latches on the box burned her. Can you get a healing potion from the potion's lab?" Harry asked the elf hurriedly. The fear disappeared from Manny's face.
"No need Master." He leaned over and waved two fingers over Hermione's outstretched hands and the burn began to shrink and disappear. When it was gone he stood back up and smiled with satisfaction.
"The box burned the Mistress because she is not of-"
"Potter blood." Hermione interrupted. The elf nodded, beaming.
"Yes. Only those of the Potter line can open the box, or those who are married to a Potter." He leaned back over Hermione. "Would yous like a glass of water Mistress?" Hermione shook her head and stood up.
"No thank you Manny." The elf smiled and nodded at them then popped back out of the room. Harry shook his head and turned back to Hermione to see she was already walking back over to the desk, rubbing her hands together to get rid of the lingering tingling in her hands.
"Well, I guess you'll have to open it." She said. He snorted and walked over to stand in front of the wooden box resting innocently on the desk. After a wary glance at it he placed his hands on the latches. They flipped open smoothly and the box opened. Hermione stood next to him and warily reached into the box for two of the beautiful weapons. Just like before she pulled out Destruction and Purity. She handed Harry Destruction and he gasped slightly at the shocking feeling of cold fire, the feeling of being cleansed. Without a word they each took a spot on either side of the horcrux. He wasn't as afraid as before, this time he knew what to expect but the nervousness still filled his stomach. He looked across the table at Hermione, she nodded once and together they slid the blades across their palms.
Less than twenty minutes later they were clearing the floor of charred fragments of marbled and gold, all that was left of the chess piece. Harry was still grinning from the after affects of the daggers as he dumped the pieces into a small bag. He stood up from his place on the ground and stretched. The pain in his back and the tightness in his shoulders had disappeared completely. He yawned and scratched his head; even though all the pain was gone he was still bone tired.
"I exhausted." Hermione groaned, arching her back and yawning herself. Harry flicked his wrist, sending the cushions back to their places in front of the platform.
"You and me both, I feel like I haven't slept in days." He wrapped an arm around her as she yawned again, leading her out of the room. "Why don't you go on to bed and I'll check on Cattie."
"Sounds good." She stood on her toes and gave him a peck on the lips as they stepped onto the second floor. He released her reluctantly and continued down the hallway to Cattie's room. The door was cracked open when he stepped inside. Cattie was sprawled across her bed, blankets piled by her bare feet, and her lion and bear under each arm. The crystal dragon on her necklace was glowing, creating an arc of light around her bed, keeping the darkness at bay. He padded across the floor and over to her bed. He pulled her soft blue blanket back over her and pushed the dark curtain of curls out of her surprisingly peaceful face. She shifted slightly and her eyes fluttered open, a slit of bleary green appearing.
"Daddy?" she said sleepily. He smiled softly and rubbed her back.
"Yeah its me sweetheart, go back to sleep." He whispered. She nodded and her eyes slipped closed, instantly falling back asleep. He kissed her forehead. "Goodnight love." He quietly left the room, closing the door behind him. He knew it would be a while before Catherine's nightmares would completely disappear but at least for tonight she'd sleep peacefully.
Hermione was already dressed in her pajamas and in bed, damp hair pulled into a thick braid. She was lying under the blankets staring up at the ceiling, her eyes faraway. He could tell she was thinking hard about something by the way her brow wrinkled and she chewed her bottom lip. She sat up when he closed the door behind him, pulled from her thoughts.
"Is she still asleep?" she asked.
"Yeah, like a baby." Hermione nodded and settled back into the pillows. The thoughtful, worried look came back over her face. Harry kicked off his shoes and walked over to the bed then sat on the edge.
"What's wrong?" he asked. She had something on her mind and it was obviously bothering her. She propped her head on her hand and looked over at him.
"I was just thinking about the attack…how Voldemort knew where we were." Harry shrugged and for what was probably the thousandth time that day ran a tired hand through his hair.
"I have no idea. I've been trying to figure that one out myself."
"I think Snape told him." Hermione declared.
"Snape? How would he know anything about it?"
"Because Dumbledore did." She sat up fully and leaned forward. "I doubt Dumbledore hasn't been trying to keep tabs on us. I don't think he's been very successful before but when we used our real names to buy the plane tickets and to check into the hotel it somehow got back to him where we were. He being the trusting idiot he is more than likely told Snape exactly where we were and the bastard told Voldemort."
"So basically we led them right to us." Harry said flatly. He groaned and ran a hand over his eyes. One more thing to add to his already long list of mistakes.
"Next time we'll cover our tracks better." Hermione said, firmly. Harry shook his head and sighed.
"I'll be glad when there is no next time." He stood up and grabbed a pair of pajamas out of the wardrobe. Hermione opened her mouth to say something but…she didn't know what she could say. She sighed and settled back into bed, watching him until he disappeared into the bathroom.
Harry stripped quickly and stepped into the shower, the water instantly came on and steam quickly filled the room. He leaned forward into the hot spray and for the first time allowed himself to really think.
He felt like he was slowly losing control. The safe, secure, happy life he had begun to build was slipping through his fingers and he felt helpless to stop it. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists. He hated feeling helpless. He was training and training but he still felt like he was walking into everything blind, unprepared. He had to work harder; he needed to throw himself into his training, he needed to learn stronger and more dangerous spells. He had to learn how to kill. He lifted his head from the water, a new determination filling him. He wasn't going to let what happened in Italy happen again. Ever.
He stepped out of the shower and dressed slowly, already making plans for tomorrow. He wasn't going to slack off anymore. Next time he was going to be ready. The bedroom was silent when he left the bathroom and the lights were dim. Hermione was already asleep when he slid into bed next to her and not for the first time he thanked god for her. Sometimes he couldn't believe how lucky he was to have someone like her. She was beautiful, loving, and smarter than anyone he'd ever known. She and Cattie had made his life so much better and he was going to make sure nothing ever happened to them. He scooted closer to her, wrapping an arm around her and hoped for peaceful sleep.
Harry was jerked roughly from his not so peaceful slumber by a strangled scream. His eyes flew open and he sat up quickly. Hermione was sitting up, pale, hands over her heart, eyes wide, afraid, and full of tears. Her cheeks were wet and she was gasping for breath between ragged sobs.
"'Mi? What's wrong?" he croaked anxiously, reaching out for her. She turned to him with wild eyes and shook her head frantically. She kicked off her blankets and began to climb out of bed. "Hermione! Just calm down for a second and tell me what's wrong." His voice was stronger and he took a tighter grip on her arms, forcing her to look at him.
"I-I…" she sobbed. "I have to-to ch-check on Cattie." She pulled her arms out of his grasp and stumbled out of bed, nearly tangling herself in their blankets. She was already out the door by the time Harry had detangled himself from the covers and made it out of bed. He jogged after her as quietly as he could.
"Hermione!" he hissed to her back. She ignored him and yanked open Catherine's bedroom door. Silently cursing Harry followed her into the room. He nearly tripped over Trouble in his haste to reach her. Hermione, tears still streaming down her face, fell to her knees in front of Cattie's bed where the little girl was still sleeping soundly, safely. Her shaking hands flew to her mouth to try and muffle the gut wrenching sobs that shook her body and she leaned forward to rest her head on the bed next to the sleeping child. Harry slowly walked over to the bed and dropped down next to her; he pulled her into his arms.
"Hermione, baby…please tell me what's wrong." He murmured into her ear, rocking her gently and trying to calm her. She pulled her face away from his chest with a choked sob.
"It was- it was just a dream. Just a dream." She sobbed, more to herself than to him. Harry pushed her hair from her flushed face.
"What dream? What happened in the dream?"
"The death eaters, they-they were here. I don't know how they found us but-but they came through Cattie's window and…" she shuddered. "She was screaming and they were taking her and I couldn't move! I couldn't get to her! She just kept screaming for me and I couldn't save her! Then she was just gone and-and" she was crying so hard she couldn't get the words out. Harry pulled her back to him, his heart aching for her. He looked up at the bed they were still leaning on to see Cattie still sleeping deeply, the dragon still glowing gently around her neck and leaned closer to Hermione.
"She's alright 'Mi, she's ok." He whispered in her ear. "No one is going to take her away from us. Everything is going to be ok." He held her for a few more minutes, until she calmed down before gently wrapping an arm around her waist and helping her to her feet so they could head back to bed.
"Wait." She croaked, hiccupping. He stopped walking and looked over at her curiously. She stepped out of his arms and walked back over to the bed. She lowered herself onto it and placed a shaking hand on Catherine's wayward curls. She leaned close and rested her forehead against the little girl's. She closed her eyes and whispered something Harry couldn't hear. A goodnight? A prayer? He wasn't sure but after another long second she pulled away and stood back up. After another glance at her daughter Hermione walked back over to Harry and they left the room quietly. Harry paused in the doorway, glancing back at Cattie curled up under her blankets then to the picture window on the other side of the room. The irrational need to check all her windows and make sure they were locked suddenly crept over him. He shook his head and quietly closed the door.
"Are…are you ok?" Harry asked hesitantly as they stepped back into their bedroom. Hermione nodded quickly, a little embarrassed, and wiped away the few stray tears still on her face.
"I'm ok I was just…it was a bad dream." She chuckled humorlessly.
"Exactly. It was just a dream." He squeezed her arm gently and she gave him a grateful smile. They headed back to bed. Hermione instantly snuggled close to Harry and he wrapped his arms tightly around her. It felt like hours before either one of them was able to fall back asleep, Hermione's mind still plagued with the images of her nightmare and Harry trying to figure out how he could heal his family.
The morning dawned with deep gray clouds and rain. Harry cracked his eyes open and slowly began to wake up. He could tell it was still ridiculously early before even checking his watch but he knew there was no way he was getting back to sleep. After he had fall back into sleep last night his dreams had been plagued with nightmares. Images of the lamp exploding and Hermione not being able to avoid the raining shards of glass, blood dripping onto the floor and wide frightened eyes. There was Cattie under that desk but instead of Armand staring back at him with blank, empty eyes it was his little girl. He swallowed hard to force down the bile he could feel rising in his throat and slid out of bed. He forced the images away and padded across the cool wood floor to the wardrobe. He grabbed a pair of jeans, a white t-shirt and his shoes and took a quick morning shower.
When he stepped out of the bathroom Hermione was still sleeping so he quietly left the room. The only sound in the house was the soft pitter-patter of the rain on the roof and his own footsteps. He checked in on Cattie who was still sound asleep before heading down to the dining room.
Before he even sat down at the table a plate of hotcakes drenched in syrup and a steaming cup of tea appeared on the table. He grinned and sent a silent thanks to DeeDi. He sat down to his quiet breakfast, facing the glass wall of the dining room. Even with the rain and gray skies the view was still beautiful. He ate slowly, savoring each bite before letting it slide down his throat. He made plans for the rest of the day while he finished his tea; the one thing he knew he had to do for sure was talk to Remus.
His plate and cup disappeared after he set it back on the table and he pushed away from the table. Just as he was getting ready to leave the room the soft sound of feet slapping against the wooden floor reached his ears. He looked up to see Cattie standing in the doorway, rubbing her eyes, hair sleep tousled, and still dressed in her favorite pair of yellow and purple flowered pajamas. He grinned. She was so cute.
"'Morning Kitty-Cat. Did you sleep well?" she looked up at him with bleary eyes, obviously still half asleep, and nodded. She wrapped her small arms around his leg and leaned her head against his hip, yawning.
"Are you hungry?" he asked, placing a hand on top her head. She nodded but didn't released her hold on his leg. He bent over so he could see her face and had to bite back a grin. She had fallen back asleep. He carefully pried her arms from around his leg and scooped her into his arms. Her eyes opened and she looked up at him in confusion.
"Where are we going?" she asked sleepily.
"I am going to put you back to bed." He turned to bring her back to her room but she shook her head frantically and looked at him with wide eyes.
"No! Please Daddy I had a bad dream…I don't want to go back to sleep." She gave him her best puppy-dog look, the one that almost never failed when it came to her Daddy, it never worked on her Mommy. He shook his head but put her back on the floor.
"Fine, you can stay up. Let's get you some breakfast." She beamed happily and climbed into one of the dining chairs. A steaming plate of hotcakes and a tall glass of cool pumpkin juice appeared in front of her. She took a big bit of the fluffy cakes then looked up at her Daddy expectantly. He rolled his eyes playfully but sat back down. Another glass of pumpkin juice popped into existence in front of him.
"So, what are your plans for today?" he asked her as he watched her shovel down her breakfast. She swallowed a mouthful of food before answering.
"I don't know." She shrugged. She suddenly brightened, eyes twinkling. "Can we swim today Daddy?" she asked excitedly.
"I don't see why not." She squealed and continued shoveling in food with even more vigor than before. The weight that had been on his chest since they had left Italy lifted slightly seeing her so happy. He hated seeing that quiet scared child she had turned into.
"Slow down please love, we don't want you to choke." A tired voice said from the doorway. Cattie and Harry turned towards the voice to see Hermione stepping into the room, already dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved red shirt. Cattie nodded and slowed down.
"'Morning Mommy!" she chirped once she had swallowed, definitely more awake than she had been earlier. "Daddy said we can swim today."
"Really? Is Daddy going to swim with us?" Hermione teased, sliding into a seat next to her daughter. Catherine giggled and nodded promptly.
"Yep, we're going to make him." She stuck her tongue out at Harry and giggled again.
"Don't I get a say in this?" he grumbled, lips twitching. Both his girls gave him a stern look and shook their heads.
"No you don't." Hermione grinned. Her own plate of breakfast popped in front of her and she, much slower than Cattie, dug in.
After breakfast Hermione sent Cattie upstairs to get dressed for the day. They had decided they'd swim sometime after lunch which Cattie wasn't too happy about. She accepted it though after Hermione told her she was going to teach her some new spells today. At first Harry and Hermione were only going to teach her to shield herself but she was even more adept at magic than either one of them had thought. She breezed through the simple shielding spells they had taught her like they were nothing and she was begging to learn anything and everything they could possibly teach her.
"She knows more than your average third year." Hermione commented as they watched the little girl climb the stairs. Harry grinned proudly.
"She's your daughter." Hermione grinned in return.
"True. So, where are you going?" she asked, eyeing his shoes. Harry put down the glass of pumpkin juice in his hand and sighed.
"I have to speak with Remus."
"You're going to tell him about Snape?" he pressed his lips together and nodded. He figured he should get it over with as soon as possible.
"Did you sleep well after…you know" he asked as he pushed away from the table. Hermione drank the last of her cup of tea and stood up also, heading for the door. She bit her lip and nodded.
"For the most part." She sighed. "I don't think I've ever been that afraid before." She said softly. "It just felt so real." Harry placed a hand on her back, pulling her closer.
"But it wasn't. Cattie is ok and that in not going to happen." He said firmly.
"Not if I can help it." Cattie came bouncing back down the staircase, Trouble trailing leisurely behind, just as they stepped into the hallway. She was dressed in jeans with yellow butterflies on the pockets and a yellow shirt. She had even pulled her hair into a rather fluffy ponytail.
"I'm ready Mommy." She said, hopping off the last step.
"Good, we can get started as soon as you say goodbye to Daddy." The child frowned and looked at Harry with wide eyes.
"Where are you going?!" Harry smiled reassuringly.
"I'm only going to visit Uncle Moony, I'll be back before lunch." She eyed him for a second before nodding slowly.
"Ok, but you better come back!" she leaned forward and hugged him around the waist. "See you later Daddy." He leaned forward and kissed her soundly on the forehead.
"See you later Kitty-Cat." She released him and he leaned over to kiss Hermione. They ignored the usual 'ew' from Cattie. He pulled away and grinned at her.
"See you later 'Mi"
"See you later Harry." He waved at them before stepping into the family room. He could hear them climbing the stairs while he grabbed a handful of floo powder from the mantel. Cattie was questioning Hermione about fire spells, trying to convince her to teach her.
"No! I will not teach them to you, no way."
"Why not?" the child persisted.
"Because they're dangerous. Don't try that look on me, you know it doesn't work." He was still laughing when he stepped into the now bright green flames.
"12 Grimmauld Place!" he gritted his teeth against the urge to retch as the word spun around him. He'd have to remember never to eat before flooing again.
The room wasn't empty as he expected when he stumbled out of the fire. Malfoy had jumped to his feet when he saw the floo flare green, an anxious look on his face. His face darkened and he rolled his eyes when he saw who it was.
"What are you doing here Potter?" he grumbled without much venom. He sat back down on the couch and picked up the book he had dropped. Harry glared at the other boy and dusted the ash from his clothes.
"I'm not here to see you Malfoy. Where are Remus and Tonks?" the dark look dropped from Draco's face replaced by something close to worry.
"They're not here. They went to St. Mungo's a few hours ago." Harry stopped glaring at him and stepped farther into the room.
"St. Mungos's? What happened?" he asked frantically. Malfoy brushed his too long bang out of his eyes and sighed heavily.
"I'm not sure. Tonks woke up this morning and she said she felt weird and she was…bigger than she was last night."
"Bigger? What do you mean bigger?" Malfoy rolled his eyes to the ceiling.
"Bigger Potter! Larger, not small! They went to St. Mungo's to make sure she was ok." Harry dropped into an armchair across from Malfoy and shot him a glare.
"Why didn't you go with them?" Malfoy snorted and sneered.
"Yeah and someone sees me and tips of my father and he shows up to 'reclaim me'? Brilliant idea Potter." Harry gritted his teeth and grabbed the arms of the chair to keep himself from launching across the small space between them and wiping the sneer off Malfoy's face.
"I doubt that's the only reason you didn't go. You probably don't give a shit about what happens to Tonks or the baby." He shot back. Draco seemed stunned for a second; Harry could see his knuckles turn white and his teeth clench.
"Despite what you may think Potter," he spat, his voice cold. "I'm not a complete bastard. I care about Tonks and Remus. They took me in and they've been more parents to me than my own. Just because I'm not on bended knee kissing your ass doesn't mean I'm not grateful for them taking care of me. Now I really don't give a shit about what you think of me but I'm not going to sit here and let you talk about something you know nothing of." Before Harry could even think of what to say the fireplace flared to life with bright green flames. Both boys jumped from their seats as Remus stepped out of the fireplace.
"Remus! Is everything ok?" Draco asked, quickly stepping over to the man. Remus grinned and nodded, squeezing the younger man's shoulder.
"Yes, everything is just fine." The fire flared green again and Tonks stumbled out, Remus caught her before she could hit the floor. Harry's eyebrows shot up when he got a good look at her. Malfoy was right, she was bigger. The barely noticeable bulge that had been there yesterday was definitely visible now. Instead of looking like she was three months pregnant like she should she looked to already be in her fifth month. The bright pink shirt she wore barely covered her stomach.
"Harry!" Remus exclaimed, noticing him for the first time. "What are you doing here? Did Draco floo call you?" said boy snorted and Harry shot him a dark look.
"No, I came by to talk to you guys about something." He turned to Tonks, looking at her in concern. "Are you ok?" she nodded, grinning.
"I'm perfectly fine." She placed a hand on her stomach. "We both are." Remus led her over to the armchair Harry had vacated. She sat down gratefully and Remus sat on the arm of the chair. Draco and Harry were forced to share the couch.
"What did the MediWizard say?" Malfoy asked the couple, leaning forward.
"Well," Tonks began. "It seems that because of the werewolf blood the baby has he's growing a bit faster than your average baby. He should be here in November instead of February."
"He?!" Harry and Draco exclaimed in unison. The older couple grinned, Remus even wider than Tonks.
"Yep, we're having a boy!" Draco broke into a grin, the first genuinely happy one Harry had ever seen on his face, and stood up to hug Tonks.
"Wow that's…that's great! Congratulations." He congratulated them.
"Thank you Draco." Remus grinned. Harry stood up also and hugged them both.
"Congratulations! I guess we won't have to say 'it' anymore." Tonks slapped him on the arm.
"So, what else did the MediWizard say?" Draco asked, settling back onto the couch. Harry reluctantly sat next to him.
"He said that once he's born he'll grow normally physically but he'll learn to talk, and walk and such earlier than usual. By the time he's one that'll all stop and he'll grow the way he should." Remus answered. They talked a bit more about the baby before Remus turned to Harry curiously.
"What was it you needed to talk to us about, Harry?" Harry looked at the assembled people and once again debated rather or not to tell them, he knew this would ruin the happy mood everyone was in. No, he wasn't going to chicken out this time.
"Yeah…I wanted to tell you what happened in Italy." Tonks and Remus frowned at the subdued tone of his voice and even Malfoy looked slightly interested. Truthfully he didn't really want to talk about it in front of the other teen but on some level Malfoy had as much right to know about what happened, especially since his father was involved. With a deep breath to steel himself he launched into his story.
It seemed to take hours to tell the story and talking about it brought it all back. He could tell that Remus and Tonks were horrified but Malfoy's face stayed as still as stone. Well that was until Harry spoke of his father.
"My father killed her?" he asked, voice emotionless when Harry spoke of seeing Juliana's body.
"I think so." Harry answered him. The boy nodded and looked away. After a second Harry continued his story. The room was completely silent when he finished. Tonks had tears streaming down her face and Remus was staring fixedly at his hands, his face pale. Malfoy wasn't looking at any of them, he seemed to be caught up in his thoughts, no doubt thinking about his father. Harry took a shaky breath and forced himself to tell the one thing he was hesitant to say.
"There's something else...When I came over and I talked to Dumbledore and…" Remus looked up at him, he knew that this was something important.
"Well I found out something. Do you remember when I told you about the prophesy and how Voldemort found out where my parents were?" the older man nodded. "It turns out Snape was the one who told him." At first Harry wasn't sure Remus had heard him but then his face slowly began to change. His teeth clenched and his eyes narrowed, the usual warm amber color darkening into a near black gold. Tonks grabbed his arm.
"Remus, love look at me. You need to calm down." She said softly, rubbing his arm. He closed his eyes tightly, fists clenched and took a deep ragged breath. Slowly he unclenched his fists and his eyes opened. They were still dark but he didn't look like he was ready to launch himself out of the seat and hunt Snape down.
"Are you absolutely sure Harry?" he forced out.
"Absolutely." The man stood up from the arm of the chair. He paced a tight line behind the chair, clearly trying to calm himself down. Every eye in the room followed him as he tried to control his temper. None of them had ever actually seen Remus lose his temper, he was always calm and collected but right now he looked ready to explode.
"And Dumbledore continues to let him work at Hogwarts?! He kept him in the Order?!" he ran a shaking hand through his silver streaked hair. He was clearly talking more to himself than to them. He turned back to them abruptly. "He is not going to get away with this." He hissed fiercely.
"Going after him won't solve anything." Tonks said just as fiercely, already knowing what he was thinking. Her silver eyes bored into his, the two locked into a silent argument. Remus was the first to break eye contact. He sighed heavily and dropped back onto the arm of the chair. Tonks slipped her hand through his, squeezing it. He gave her a grateful smile before turning back to Harry and the still silent Malfoy.
"Thank you for telling me Harry." He said. Harry nodded, smiling wanly.
"It was your right to know." He suddenly needed to leave, he needed to be with his family. He stood up.
"I have to get going." He leaned forward and kissed Tonks on the cheek and shook Remus's hand. "Congratulations again you guys."
"Tell Hermione and Cattie we said hello." Tonks said as he stepped over to the fireplace.
"I will." He grabbed a handful of floo powder out of the jar on their mantel and threw it into the fire. After another nod to the small family he stepped into the flames. "Potter Family Cottage!"
He landed a bit steadier than usual, he didn't even knock in the lamp. The sound of low voices and giggles drew him out of the room and into the hallway. He followed the sound into the family room where Hermione and Cattie sat. They were sitting across from one another at the dining table. Hermione was waving her wand over Cattie's plate where a carrot stick was dancing across. Cattie was squinting hard at the plate, her own hand hovering over it and another carrot stick seemed to be trying to follow its comrade in the dance. She looked like she was concentrating hard on her spell but every couple of seconds a giggle would escape her mouth. He cleared his throat and both girls turned quickly towards the doorway.
"Daddy!" Cattie bounded from her chair and threw her arms around his waist. He scooped her into his arms and hugged her close. "You're late." She admonished him, wagging her finger.
"I'm sorry love, will you forgive me?" he gave her a exaggerated puppy-dog look. She tapped her chin, pretending to think hard.
"I forgive you." She giggled.
"Thank you!" he kissed her soundly on the cheek and put her back on the floor. He walked over to the still sitting Hermione and leaned close.
"Do you forgive me?" he whispered. She smiled slowly and leaned forward, kissing him softly.
"Now I do." She whispered. Cattie made a disgusted noise and popped her fallen dancer into her mouth.
"Mommy said we could go swimming once you got home." She was already edging towards the door, obviously trying to rush them along. Harry turned and looked at Hermione. She smiled and shrugged.
"Go get your suit on." She told the little girl. She squealed and sprinted out of the room and up the stairs. Harry and Hermione followed behind slowly.
"So how did things go?" she asked him as they walked upstairs.
"As well as can be expected." He sighed. "Remus was pretty angry though but I expected him to be. I found out some good news though."
"What?" he grinned.
"Tonks and Remus are having a boy." She squealed loudly, not unlike Cattie had, and clapped her hands.
"Oh my gosh I'm so happy for them! But isn't it a bit too early to tell?" he shook his head and quickly told her the story of what had happened that morning. By now they had made it to their bedroom.
"I've never heard of that before. I'll have to look it up." Harry snorted and walked over to the wardrobe. He clearly remembered Brita throwing a pair of bathing shorts into his pile of clothes. He shouted triumphantly when he found them at the bottom on the wardrobe. He pulled the red and black shorts out and threw them onto the bed where Hermione scooped them up curiously.
"I thought you didn't know how to swim?" he shrugged, blushing.
"I learned when I was about six. Some neighbors of the Dursley's had a pool party for their kid one year and they invited Dudley and me. The Dursley's couldn't leave me behind without it being suspicious so they ended up dragging me along. Anyway Dudley shoved me into the pool and" he shrugged. "it was either swim or drown." Hermione muttered something that probably wasn't very nice under her breath and shook her head. Every time Harry let one of his 'childhood' stories slip out she hated the Dursley's more and more. He didn't have one good memory from his childhood.
"If you know how to swim why didn't you swim with Cattie and I?" he blushed brighter and looked away.
"You." He could feel his face heat more when she raised a confused eyebrow. "It was just…I was trying to control myself around you and I knew seeing you in that…suit and being so close to you." He shook his head again. He looked over at Hermione to see her grinning looking inordinately pleased.
"I make you all hot and bothered?" she asked slyly, walking slowly over to him.
"Always." He answered, his voice low. She wrapped her arms around him and stood on her toes, slowly pressing her lips to him. He groaned slightly and pulled her closer. He could feel her grinning against his lips. They had just begun to deepen the kiss when there was a banging on the door.
"What's taking you so long?!" Cattie shouted through the door. Groaning, Harry silently cursed his daughter's always perfect timing. Hermione grudgingly detangled herself from his arms.
"We're coming!" she shouted back. She gave the pouting Harry and kiss on the cheek and grabbed her own suit out of the closet. "Get dressed before she comes in here and dresses you herself." She smiled at him and headed into the bathroom. Still grumbling Harry quickly undressed and pulled on his suit. Hermione stepped out of the bathroom just as he was pulling his t-shirt back on. She was tying the side of her bikini bottoms, Harry grinned when he saw her.
"Dressing up for me?" he teased. She rolled her eyes and smacked him on the arm.
"Cheeky." She took a pair of shorts out of the wardrobe and pulled them on. Harry opened the door and Cattie sighed dramatically.
"Finally! I've been waiting forever." She was trying to sound stern but the ruffled, polka dotted bathing suit kind of ruined it.
"Well we're here now, let's go." Hermione said, grabbing her hand.
It was still raining when they made it into the conservatory but it definitely didn't dampen Cattie's spirits. She ran full tilt down the stairs and didn't even pause before jumping into the pool.
"Cattie!" Hermione shouted, running after her. Harry laughed and sprinted after them. Hermione stopped at the edge of the water and peered into it, searching for the little girl. She surfaced at the far end of the pool.
"Come on!" she shouted to them. Harry grinned a slightly evil grin and bent over Hermione. She turned slowly and glared up at him.
"Harry don't you dare even think about it." He gave her his best innocent look.
"Think about what?" before she could scream he grabbed her by the arms and threw her into the water.
"Harry Potter!" she screamed once she surfaced. Cattie absolutely screamed with laughter. Laughing, he took off his shirt and jumped into the water. They spent hours in the pool. The few times Harry had been swimming, the birthday party when he was six and the second task, he had never had nearly as much fun.
They finally climbed out when the sun began to go down. They found big dark blue fluffy towels waiting for them when the got out of the pool. They didn't think to use a drying spell, they just wrapped themselves in the towels and climbed the staircase.
"Can we swim again tomorrow?" Cattie asked eagerly after they wished Bronson and Caterina goodnight.
"I don't know, we'll see." Hermione answered. Harry sent her ahead to her room to get ready for bed while he and Hermione headed to their own room.
"When did she become such a ball of energy?" Hermione groaned, throwing herself on their bed. Harry closed their door and dropped down next to her, stretching.
"When wasn't she?" Hermione laughed and rolled over, scooting close to her and laying a head on his chest. Harry swallowed and shifted slightly. Neither one of them were dressed in more than their bathing suits which meant her skin, nearly every inch of it was pressed against his. He forced himself to stay completely still, he had no doubt that she could feel his heartbeat speeding up. She scooted up, he head leaving her chest and coming to rest near his. He turned his head and immediately their eyes locked. He shifted again, pulling her even closer and almost on it's own accord his hand slowly traveled up her side. He could feel goosebumps rising on her warm skin and her breathing sped up. He wasn't sure which one of them leaned forward first but before he knew it their lips met. His tongue slipped into her mouth, her fingers tangled in his hair and her leg wrapped around his waist. Without thought he flipped them over, pressing her firmly into the mattress. His hands traveled down her sides and he gasped sharply when he felt Hermione's mouth leave his and bite his ear. He shot her a look and she giggled, grinning at him. His eyes narrowed. He was going to get her back for that. He trailed slow short kisses down her neck, stopping every once in a while to nip at her skin. He grinned when she gasped and arched against him.
"Cheeky." She gasped out as he moved to her shoulder. The strap of her suit fell down her shoulder as he continued to kiss her skin and he absentmindedly wondered if it was the bikini that drove him so crazy. She gasped again and gripped his shoulders. No, it was just her. His fingers were wrapping around the thin straps on her hips when a piercing scream tore through the house. Cattie's perfect timing strikes again.
He jumped off of Hermione and out of bed, Hermione following quickly behind, grabbing her wand of the bedside table. They sprinted down the hallway and to her room where they could still hear her screaming.
"Cattie!" Harry screamed when her room came into sight. Smoke was billowing out of the door and they could hear the roar of fire.
"Daddy!" she shouted back. They entered the room and were struck by what they saw. The heavy curtains that covered Cattie's huge windows were in flames, the little girl was backed against her bed staring at the fire with wide frightened eyes.
"What happened?!" Hermione screamed.
"I didn't do it!" the little girl yelled. Harry ran into the room and scooped the little girl into his arms. Both Hermione and Harry turned to the flames, Harry lifted his hand and Hermione lifted her wand. At the same time to powerful jets of water flew at the fire engulfing the drapes and the fire was quickly extinguished.
"Cattie what happened?" Harry asked, setting the child on the floor and kneeling in front of her. Hermione kneeled down next to them. Cattie looked away, suddenly looking very nervous.
"Err…oops?"
"Cattie." He said firmly. She bit her lip and nudged a book on the floor under her bed.
"Well I…I was trying out a fire spell-"
"Catherine Elise Potter! I thought I told you that fire spells were too dangerous!" Hermione exclaimed angrily. Cattie looked away again, fiddling with her hands.
"I know but…Daddy-"
"Oh no young lady, your mum told you that they were too dangerous and you did it anyway." She nodded, lips trembling.
"I'm sorry."
"I know you are but you still have to be punished." Hermione glanced at Harry and he shrugged. They've never actually had to punish her before. Hermione took a deep breath and looked sternly at the little girl. "No more magic for a week." The little girl's mouth dropped open and her eyes widened.
"But-" she stammered.
"No buts. Your mum and I are standing by your punishment." She pressed her lips together and nodded against the sudden rush of tears. "Now we have to clean up this mess." And he was right, the room was a mess. What was once beautiful soft blue drapes were now charred pieces of fabric littered around the room. The smell of smoke still lingered and the walls were dripping wet. Harry sighed heavily and ran a hand through his still damp hair. It was going to be a looong night.
A/N: Yay! I finally updated. I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter. I'm sorry it took so long but right after my computer got fixed I got the flu so I didn't get much of a chance to write. Also I apologize if anything sounds confusing, I was hopped up on cough syrup most of the time so I'm not quite sure how some things sound. Anywho thank you all so much for your patience and very supportive reviews, they mean a lot to me. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon and hopefully it'll be a bit more interesting. Thank you again for reading!