The Twisted Path

by Xetarma

When Minerva McGonagall discovers that Harry Potter's relatives intend to keep him from attending Hogwarts, she takes matters into her own hands. But when Harry comes to Diagon Alley one day early, it sets events into motion that end with him and his friend, Hermione Granger, sorted into Slytherin. Now the two of them must somehow tame the House of the Snakes.

19. Diagon Summer

Chapter 19: Diagon Summer

July 7th, 1993

Hermione had mixed feelings about vacationing in France. In a way, she was looking forward to it. She loved visiting other countries and liked France in particular. She could even speak a bit of French. It seemed like it would be fun. Yet she was also nervous. In some ways she just wanted to return home and spend a few weeks in the relaxing confines of her own home. Maybe try to invite Harry over for a few days. Vacation in France meant that she wouldn't have any chance to see him until she got back, which would probably be after his birthday.

Still, her parents had been planning this for a while, so it was too late to back out. And it wasn't all bad. Her mother had helped her pick out a new swimsuit, and Hermione had convinced her to get her a rather tasteful two-piece. Hermione was glad her mother trusted her to wear what she wanted, but in the back of her mind she was wondering what Harry would think of her wearing it.

Hermione was a bit puzzled about that. She'd never particularly cared what Harry thought of any of her other clothes. But the idea of Harry seeing her in this made her feel warm and tingly. It was something she hadn't really felt before. She felt it even more strongly when she imagined him liking what he saw. The whole thing was almost enough to convince her to try to get Harry to come along on their vacation, but she knew that probably wouldn't go over well.

The truth was that her parents were starting to come to terms with the fact that Harry was a part of her life now. They had accepted that Harry's aunt and uncle were completely incapable or unwilling to show him any love or affection. And they had also accepted that Hermione was going to do everything in her power to make up for that. It was all pitifully inadequate in Hermione's eyes, but she knew that they just didn't have the same feelings for Harry that she did. Much as she wanted them to see him as a son, they didn't, at least not yet. She felt that she was close to a breakthrough, and if she could get her parents on her side on this, she'd be able to help Harry far more than she could otherwise. She could give him a family, maybe not his family, but a family that loved him.

And so, she'd decided to not push things this summer. She didn't need to make Harry Potter a point of contention between her and her parents. She had accidentally mentioned that she had considered asking him along to her mother.

"It's probably for the best that you didn't," Helen had said.

Hermione had sighed, then said, "Not for the best mum. The best would involve Harry not having to go back to those horrible people."

Her mother had not been able to argue with that.

France proved to be wonderful. They were headed to the south of France to take in the sun, and Hermione was looking forward to it. She wasn't exactly sure she wanted to tan, but she did know that a little relaxation was in order. Daphne and Tracey had both made her promise that she wouldn't overwork herself this summer and come back to school no better than she'd left.

She'd found the beaches a bit more intimidating than she'd expected however. She'd been here before, but as a little girl. Now she found herself comparing her body with those of the women on the beach, and she found herself lacking. She knew she was still young, but she certainly didn't see herself coming in as well as many of these women. The fact that many of them wore much skimpier bikinis (or less!) didn't help matters. She felt a bit frumpy to be honest, and almost felt ashamed that she had wanted Harry to see her like this when so many of these other girls looked so much better.

Her father misinterpreted her mood, making little jokes about how she was being a bit closed minded. Her mother had suspected something else was off almost immediately.

"Feeling a little intimidated?" her mother asked after a few minutes.

Hermione nodded. "It's just… I don't look nearly as good as some of these women. I feel that I look like a little girl, but I don't feel like a little girl."

"Don't worry about it too much Hermione," said Helen, "You're only 13 years old. There's plenty of time for you fill out a bit. And even if you don't, there are plenty of things you can wear to make yourself look good."

"I know," said Hermione. She briefly considered dropping the issue, but decided to get to what was really bothering her.

"When I got this swimsuit, I…" Hermione paused as her face heated up, "Well I kind of wanted Harry to see me in it, if that makes sense."

Her mother smiled kindly. "Of course, it makes sense. He's special to you. And it would make you feel good to know he's attracted to you."

"But how would he be attracted to me when he could see this," said Hermione as she waved at everyone on the beach.

Her mother laughed, "I'm pretty sure that while this would embarrass him a lot, he'd be a lot more interested in what you were wearing."

"What do you mean? How do I compare to all these women? Some of them are topless for goodness sake," said Hermione piteously.

Her mother laughed. "I think I know Harry well enough now to know that once he got used to the topless women he'd adapt. They're just random people after all. You on the other hand are his best friend. If you started showing off for him, even wearing something like this, he's going to notice you because he cares about you. He might be embarrassed or intrigued. But he'd care more about you than some woman he's never met, of that I'm pretty sure. Not that I think you need to be doing that sort of thing yet."

"Aww," said Hermione jokingly. Still the conversation did make her feel a bit better. She did make a mental note that next time she came to the beach she needed something that covered a lot less skin. The tan lines this thing was going to leave would be horrendous.

With Hermione's insecurities out of the way she started to enjoy her vacation a bit. There was a bit of something in the back of her mind that was bugging her, but she was doing her best to ignore it.

On her third day, she and her family went to the beach again. Usually her parents set up away from other people, but today they dropped their beach towels near a group of four women. Well, one older woman, one middle aged woman, one teenage girl only a year or two older than Hermione and one younger girl. They were all blonde and all very good looking. Even the older woman looked beautiful. It was odd that her parents chose to sit there, so close to those women, but Hermione didn't mention it.

Laying down on her beach towel, Hermione began reading her book, which was a primer on arithmancy. Her mother had given her side eye when she'd seen her choice of reading, but she understood. To Hermione this was light recreational reading.

Hermione noticed their neighbors looking at them occasionally, but her parents didn't seem to notice. That was odd. Hermione stretched a bit, and her foot grazed her father's leg.

"Where did they come from?" asked her father suddenly, looking at the women.

"They were there when we sat down," said Hermione.

"They certainly were not!" said Robert, "I would have noticed."

"What are you talking about?" asked Helen, "There's nobody there."

That was odd. Hermione suddenly was having some suspicions about those women. However, that was overshadowed by the look she saw on her father's face. His eyes seemed almost glazed over and his mouth was going a bit slack. Was he staring at them?

"Dad, what are you doing?" said Hermione, pulling away a bit.

Robert's face immediately went back to normal. "Wha...where did they go?"

That sealed it. "Oh, they must be witches under a muggle repelling charm," said Hermione.

"Oui," said the middle-aged woman, who had walked over to them. Robert and Helen both started as she appeared in front of them. The teenage girl had followed as well. Robert's eyes started to glaze a bit again.

"Robert!" said Helen angrily.

"It is not his fault," said the teenage girl, "Ma maman is a half-veela, and I am... un quart veela."

"Oh!" said Hermione, "That explains it! Veela have an allure that drives men wild. A wizard could probably resist it, given time, but as Dad's a muggle he has no defense."

"It isn't as bad now," said Robert, still a bit dazed.

"That is because you no longer see my mother, who is a full Veela," said the mother, "My name is Apolline Delacour, and this is my daughter Fleur. The younger girl is Gabrielle, and my mother is named Isobel. My daughter cannot control her allure so well, and it magnifies the leetle allure my mother and I put out."

"Pleased to meet you. My name is Hermione Granger," said Hermione politely, "These are my parents Helen and Robert."

"I am most pleased to make your acquaintance," said Apolline, "We hide on the beach because our allure makes it a bit dangerous to just sit out in the open."

"I understand," said Hermione.

"Perhaps 'ermione would like to take a walk with me," said Fleur.

"Eet is too dangerous for you to walk alone!" said Apolline.

"I would not be alone! 'ermione would be with me!" said Fleur.

"She 'as barely completed second year, if that!" said Apolline.

"While you are correct," interjected Hermione, "I am second in my year at Defense. I can cast the Disarm, shield, stunning, body-bind, banishing, and breaking charms as well as stinging and freezing hexes."

Apolline looked impressed. "You can do all that and are only second in your year?"

Hermione shrugged, "I have to compete against Harry Potter. He's rather...dedicated at Defense."

Both Apolline and Fleur nodded in understanding. They had at least heard of Harry Potter, even if they didn't know many details about him. Hermione noticed that her parents seemed shocked that they had recognized his name.

"Is it that dangerous around here?" asked Helen.

"Only for a Veela," said Apolline, "Many men might try to impress Fleur, but if one does so in a way that scares her, she might lose some of her control over her allure. This can create a terrible cycle, where the allure makes the man more and more aggressive, while his aggression makes Fleur more and more scared, while her fear brings out more of her allure."

"I am not so easily scared!" said Fleur, "I will be fine with 'ermione."

"I'm fine with it," said Helen, "As long as you don't go too far."

"Very well," said Apolline, "Our laws here are not quite like England, underage witches can use magic as long as you are not observed by muggles. Do not hesitate to use stinging hexes if you feel threatened."

The two girls both promised to be vigilant, and then they grabbed their handbags which contained their wands, and they were off.

Hermione was very excited. She was off exploring France with another witch that was only a bit older than her! It was exactly the sort of adventure she had hoped for.

Initially Hermione asked a lot of questions about French magical society. Fleur was patient with Hermione, but it soon became clear that Fleur was getting a bit bored. So, Hermione switched to talking about the local city. Fleur was more interested here, giving Hermione lots of advice as to what parts of the city were worth seeing.

Fleur showed Hermione to some of the shops that were just off the beach. There were a lot of interesting curios and souvenirs, but also some genuinely nice clothing stores, though most of them primarily sold beachwear. Fleur and Hermione both tried on several bathing suits. Hermione tried on one two-piece that made her blush a little. That was one she was quite certain she wasn't ready for Harry to see her wearing.

As they left the shop, now changed back into their own swimsuits, Hermione realized that she didn't feel nearly as oddly walking around town in a swimsuit as she had thought she would. Part of it was because she was with Fleur. Most of the teenage boys looked at Fleur as she passed. Some of them she ignored, but others she winked at or smiled at. Fleur was rather well developed for a fifteen-year-old girl, so Hermione understood why she was getting the attention even without the allure.

"You don't seem to mind all the attention you're getting," said Hermione.

Fleur shrugged, "Teenage boys will lust after girls they like no matter what they wear. If I was covered head to toe in blankets, they would think it sexy."

"Must be nice to be wanted," said Hermione.

Fleur grinned at Hermione. "If you look a bit to your right, you might see that you 'ave attracted a leetle attention as well."

Hermione moved her head just a bit so she could see a boy, probably about her own age, trying very hard to not look like he was staring at her bum. At first Hermione's first instinct was to be horribly embarrassed. Yet this was almost immediately replaced by another feeling. No one had ever looked at her like that before. While she wasn't sure that she really wanted to be looked at like that, she also felt a little flattered. She turned to him and smiled. The boy turned completely red and fled.

Fleur laughed at that, and Hermione joined in.

"You 'ave never 'ad a boy look at you like that?" asked Fleur.

"My best friend is a boy who I'm pretty sure likes me. At least he kissed me," said Hermione. She noticed Fleur's eyes shine at that.

"He's still a bit young to be noticing me physically though," admitted Hermione, "He just gets embarrassed when anything like that comes up."

"That boy there was also embarrassed, and 'e definitely noticed you," said Fleur, "Your friend may think more of you than you think."

That idea seemed to cheer Hermione up. For a little while.

XXXXX

July 13th, 1993

Helen Granger was very worried about her daughter's wellbeing. For all her claims of being fine, Hermione was unusually subdued. She'd been strangely reluctant to get ready for the vacation to begin with and her insecurities about her body were a little bit worrisome. Not to say that it wasn't normal for a girl Hermione's age to pay attention to her appearance more than she had as a child. But she had gone from not caring about how she looked at all to being incredibly self-conscious about it, with, as far as Helen could see, no stage in between.

Hermione's day spent with Fleur had seemed to put her body anxieties to bed, at least for the moment. Hermione did still want to get her teeth magically reduced, something Helen was opposed to simply because she didn't think that Hermione should be modifying her appearance permanently at her age. If as she grew older Hermione still wanted to do it that was all well and good. But at her age it was important for Hermione to learn to be comfortable as herself.

Later that day, Robert had gone to pick up some food, and Helen had used the time to comb Hermione's hair. As they had been talking, Hermione again had brought up looking good for Harry. While she did think it was normal for a girl Hermione's age to be interested in what boys thought of her looks, there seemed to be something more to this. Helen didn't know Harry all that well, but he had never struck her as being shallow about a girl's looks. He probably was too young to notice Hermione physically at this point.

The conversation had turned up one interesting titbit. When Helen made her suggestion about Harry's relative lack of maturity, Hermione had blushed.

"Well I'm pretty sure he's noticed me to some degree," she had said, "He did kiss me."

Hermione's story about Harry trying to wake her up with a kiss seemed fairly adorable, and she understood that to a girl Hermione's age it probably seemed impossibly romantic. Helen saw things a bit differently, but she also knew that it was up to Hermione to decide if what had happened was inappropriate, and she clearly did not. Yet there was a nervous insecurity to everything Hermione was saying. It was as if the idea of losing Harry terrified her. It wasn't jealousy. Helen thought back to Harry's obvious attempt to alert her and Robert that something was wrong with Hermione at the train station. She'd been really clingy with Harry then too.

In the days after she spent the day with Fleur Hermione's apparent health got worse. Much worse. She seemed tired all the time, and she was constantly distracted. Even when going to old historic sites Hermione couldn't keep focused. Finally, Helen had had enough.

"Is everything all right Hermione?" asked Helen before she went to bed on the seventh day of the trip.

Hermione shook her head, "I don't think so. I've been having trouble sleeping. I had this problem for a little while at Hogwarts, but I found a way to deal with it. But… I'm having a harder time coping in this unfamiliar environment."

Helen nodded, "Is it because of you being petrified?"

Hermione nodded. "Sleep is really rough on me, because sometimes I can't tell the difference between being asleep and being petrified."

Helen nodded. She wondered if this had anything to do with her earlier insecurities. This sort of nervousness could manifest in all sorts of ways.

"So, what do you want to do about it?" asked Helen.

"Could you maybe sleep with me, in my room?" asked Hermione, "I hate to ask this of you, I know you probably want to spend time with Dad. But having someone there would help me so much. Especially if you could talk to me when I go to sleep."

"Of course, sweetheart, I'd be glad to keep you company," said Helen.

And so, Helen had started sleeping in Hermione's room. Robert hadn't noticed any of Hermione's problems at first, but by this point it was obvious something was wrong. He'd teased Helen a bit about abandoning him, but he hadn't meant anything by it. She knew he fully supported anything Helen needed to do to help Hermione.

For a few days' things had been better. Hermione had started sleeping better. She started paying more attention to the new places they were going. It looked like things had been taken care of.

So, Helen was very surprised when Hermione woke up screaming in the middle of the night.

Helen threw her arm around her daughter. "Hermione, it's just a dream! It's just a dream!" she shouted.

Hermione's eyes opened, and for a moment relief flooded them. Then she started to break down crying. "I'm so sorry mum, I don't mean to cause all this trouble," she sobbed.

"You're no trouble dear," said Helen, "You're our darling little girl. And don't forget it."

"It was so real!" cried Hermione, "I dreamt I was petrified, and I could hear that basilisk killing everyone. All my friends, everyone I loved. And I couldn't move a muscle. I couldn't do ANYTHING."

"It isn't real," said Helen, "The basilisk is dead. Harry killed it. Because of you."

"I spent all that time petrified, and I knew what the danger was and I couldn't tell anyone," Hermione continued to sob, "It was the worst part of my entire life, except, except…"

"It's all right dear," said Helen.

"I thought I was over this," said Hermione, "I thought I'd be fine."

"Hermione," said Helen, "Do you want to go home?"

"I couldn't ask that of you!" protested Hermione.

"It isn't an imposition at all," said Helen, "Nothing is more important than your well-being. Nothing!"

Hermione just nodded her head, then whispered, "I want to go home, mum."

Helen smiled at her daughter. "Then we will."

Hermione just clung to her mother.

XXXXX

July 14th, 1993

"I've been thinking," said Hermione as they sat eating a late lunch. The Grangers had flown home earlier that day and were now having lunch in London.

"Oh?" asked Robert.

"Maybe I should go to St. Mungos," said Hermione.

"St. Mungos?" asked Robert.

"It's the magical hospital," said Hermione.

"Maybe that's a good idea," said Helen.

"We could stay at Diagon Alley!" said Hermione, "that way it would be like a vacation, but we'd also be getting me some help."

Helen looked at Robert. It did sound like a better plan than heading home and just hoping Hermione would get better. They had considered getting her a muggle therapist, but had decided that it would be virtually impossible to tell any muggle therapist about what was really causing Hermione's issues.

"Well it looks like we'll get to spend some more time with you in the magical world," said Helen.

XXXXX

Harry had spent a little over a week living a life of relative luxury. No classes, no chores, just doing what he wanted to do, when he wanted to do it. It was liberating. He had done some of his summer coursework, but because he'd felt like doing it.

He had immediately realized he had the opportunity to get into a huge amount of trouble. He'd made a point of exploring the rather dodgy Knockturn Alley. His name did him few favors there, but being part of Slytherin did seem to command a certain respect there. There were all sorts of minor dark artifacts and magics there that Harry found interesting. Harry didn't really approve of dark magic, but he also realized that a lot of what was classified as dark was a bit subjective. In any case, knowledge of these things would be helpful in Slytherin, where plenty of students wouldn't hesitate to use them.

Harry had written extensively with Daphne. She had been by to visit, and he'd appreciated the company. He'd also run into Blaise in Knockturn Alley one day. Blaise's mother seemed amused that he was hanging out down there, possibly even approving. He'd sent a brief letter to Hermione saying that he wasn't staying at the Dursleys anymore. He hoped she'd get over her problems once she was on vacation with her parents. He'd been a bit more circumspect with her than Daphne though; he hadn't mentioned being kicked out of his home. He didn't want to add to her troubles.

So, Harry was very surprised when he heard her voice in the Leaky Cauldron.

"Oh, I'm sure no one will have any trouble helping two muggle parents get around if I'm not here," said Hermione, "Most witches and wizards are very accommodating, no matter what the purebloods want people to think."

Harry leapt to his feet. "Hermione?" he said excitedly.

Hermione gasped in delight. "Harry!" she said as she ran over to him and wrapped him up in a big hug. A hug he returned in spades. Hermione's parents both smiled at him warmly. He returned the smile, but then realized something was wrong. Hermione's breathing had gone ragged, and he realized that she was on the verge of tears.

Hermione's parents seemed to notice something was wrong, but before they could say anything Harry took action. "I'm in Room 207," said Harry to her parents as he led Hermione up the stairs and into his room, which he left unlocked behind him. Harry sat her down on the couch in his room.

"Is everything all right?" he asked.

Hermione shook her head and began to cry. She buried her head in his shoulder as he held her close to him, with one hand on the back of her head.

A few minutes later Hermione's parents came into the room. Hermione had calmed down a bit. "Sorry everyone, I just got a bit overwhelmed. I didn't expect to see Harry here, and in a way, it was a relief, but I wasn't really ready for that."

Helen Granger explained that Hermione had been having dreams about still being petrified while the basilisk killed all her friends.

Harry gave Hermione a chiding look. "You didn't tell me about the dreams," he said accusingly.

"I didn't want you to worry," said Hermione, "Everyone was already making too much of a fuss over me."

"Not possible," said Harry.

"We do have an appointment at St. Mungo's tomorrow Harry, but we'd be delighted to spend some time with you while we're here. If you'll be staying for a while that is," said Robert.

Harry shrugged. "I guess I'm here for the summer. I'd love to come with you, but I'm restricted to Diagon Alley at the moment."

"Oh?" asked Helen.

"Sirius Black, my godfather escaped from prison," said Harry, "But don't worry! Despite what everyone seems to think, he isn't coming after me."

"You sound awfully sure," said Hermione accusingly.

"I'll tell you about it sometime," said Harry. Hermione nodded, understanding that sometime meant when they were alone.

"Thanks for being so understanding," said Hermione.

"I'll see you later," said Harry.

Once Hermione and her parents were gone Harry couldn't help but do a little dance. Hermione finally had managed to get help. And he'd get to spend time with her this summer. Everything was looking up.

XXXXX

July 15th, 1993

Hermione left St. Mungo's with a serious disappointment at the state of magical mental health services. Magical healing might work wonders on physical injuries, or on magical mental maladies, but it was woefully out of date in terms of normal mental health options. She'd talked to a Mind Healer who had offered her a potion and talked to her about her fears. Aside from obliviating, there was little the Mind Healer could offer Hermione, and she wasn't about to erase her memories! To some degree Hermione thought she had a better grasp on things than she had before, but that was entirely due to her actually saying the things she was dreaming and worrying about out loud.

It was clear to Hermione that she had two issues. The larger problem was that to some degree she didn't quite believe that the basilisk was dead. She'd spent over a week just terrified that the basilisk would kill her friends constantly. It had to some degree scarred her. She needed to prove to herself that the basilisk was really dead. She wondered if she'd be allowed to see the basilisk's corpse.

The other thing was that she was scared about losing her other friends, through any means. This was especially true of Harry, who was her best friend. The basilisk dream wasn't the only one she'd had. She'd had dreams of Death Eaters attacking the school, of all her friends turning on her and leaving her. Hermione needed to deal with this, but she wasn't sure how she could during the summer.

The worst part was that the Mind Healer didn't have any idea how to help her. The woman had been very nice and the potion had calmed Hermione, but the woman had said that she wasn't sure what she could do other than give her calming potions. Calming potions were all well and good, but they didn't help Hermione while she slept. There was a potion for a dreamless sleep, but it was dangerous to use too often.

So, Hermione decided she would find her own help. First, she needed to deal with one obstacle.

"Oh, this really was so helpful," said Hermione, "I really do think I feel as if a weight has been taken off of my mind."

"That's great honey," Helen encouraged her.

Hermione smiled. "I think I'd like to try sleeping on my own tonight."

"Of course, honey, you know where to find me if you need me," said Helen. Her father gave Hermione a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

Hermione was fairly sure that she wouldn't need her mother tonight.

XXXXX

After Hermione had returned from St. Mungo's she had found Harry and the two of them had spent the rest of the day at Flourish and Blotts. Her parents were keeping a fairly close eye on Hermione so Harry didn't have a chance to tell her about Sirius. He'd need Hermione on his side to help trap Pettigrew. They ate dinner at a small restaurant at the far end of Diagon Alley. The Grangers were already talking of eating at places outside the Alley, which annoyed Harry to no end. There was no danger in Harry leaving the Alley, but how could he convince anyone of that? Harry decided he would place a floo call to Dumbledore the next day. Maybe the old man could help him.

He changed into his sleeping clothes, which at this point in the summer was just a long t-shirt and pants. As he was about to turn in, he heard a soft knocking at the door. He walked over to the door and opened it a crack. Hermione was there, in her pajamas.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Always," said Harry, opening the door wider to let her in.

"There were a couple things I wanted to talk about," said Hermione as she sat down on the couch. Harry sat down next to her, careful to make sure his shirt didn't ride up on him.

"So why aren't you worried about Sirius Black?" asked Hermione accusingly.

"My Uncle Vernon kicked me out," said Harry, "He did it after he found out that the man accused of betraying my parents escaped from prison. So, I left the house, and Black caught me. Right in Little Whinging."

"What?" cried Hermione in terror.

"Sirius didn't want to kill me," said Harry, "In fact, he was absolutely shattered by what had happened to my parents. According to Black, he wasn't the traitor, Peter Pettigrew was. But Peter killed a bunch of muggles and faked his own death to frame Sirius for all of it."

"Faked his death?" said Hermione skeptically.

"He cut off his finger to make it look like he'd been blown up. But Pettigrew was an Animagus and he transformed right after he blew up a gas main," said Harry.

"And no one noticed a random animal fleeing the scene?" demanded Hermione.

"His form was a rat," explained Harry.

"Appropriate, if true," said Hermione.

"A rat who would have nine toes, and would live for years and years past when a rat would normally live," said Harry, "You know, like Scabbers."

Hermione gasped. "That does make some sense. So, you believe Sirius?"

Harry nodded. "Why wouldn't I?"

Hermione shook her head. "You're so desperate to get away from the Dursleys, I understand that, and if Sirius were innocent it would get you out of there. Are you sure this isn't wish fulfilment?"

Harry shrugged, "Well, Sirius had me at his mercy, so if he wanted to kill or kidnap me, he lost his chance. I'm going to trust him until I get a chance to test whether Scabbers is an Animagus or not. If he's lying, then I can tell Dumbledore everything."

"I think that's dangerous, but I won't rat you out," said Hermione with a smile.

"Oooh nice one," said Harry.

"Harry, I'd like you to do me a favor," said Hermione, suddenly uncharacteristically coy.

"Anything Hermione," said Harry.

"Can you go into my mind and show me the dead basilisk," she pleaded, "I really need to know, really know, that it's dead."

Harry hesitated for a moment. He didn't want to give away Ginny's secret. But he had been practicing his Occlumency. He could just show her the basilisk corpse surely.

"Okay," he said, as he turned and put his legs up on the couch. He realized too late that he had just given Hermione a full view of his pants.

"Oops," he said, somewhat embarrassed. He didn't mind exactly, but he didn't want Hermione to think he was being crude either.

"It's fine Harry," she said, "We've accidently seen a bit of underwear on each other loads of times."

Harry nodded; that was a bit reassuring. Hermione held out her arms and Harry grasped her wrists and she grasped his. He looked into her eyes and slowly looked into her mind. What he saw was disturbing. Hermione was desperately scared that she was going to lose everything. He also saw that she'd been intrigued by Harry's inadvertent flash. He wasn't about to bring that up.

Slowly he thought of when he had opened his eyes to see the basilisk impaled on a stalactite. Then he pushed that thought towards Hermione. Something seemed to burn in her eyes as he showed it to her.

"It really is dead," she said.

"Yeah," said Harry. He could feel a large part of the tension leave Hermione's mind.

"Thank you, Harry," said Hermione, "I want to thank you for what you've shown me tonight." she said the last bit with a hint of amusement in her voice that set Harry's cheeks on fire.

Suddenly he could see Hermione, looking in a mirror, wearing a two-piece bathing suit. While it wasn't the most risqué suit, Harry had never seen so much of Hermione at once. Well, except for that one time...

"Hermione?" he asked.

"Doesn't it look good on me?" she asked as the Hermione in her mind turned around to look at it from the back. Harry could see the suit bottoms clinging to her backside.

"It looks great on you," said Harry honestly as he pulled himself out of her mind. That had been a little too much for him. And he was struggling to handle his feelings.

"Harry, do you find me pretty?" asked Hermione.

"More than pretty," said Harry.

"You don't have to lie to make me feel better," said Hermione looking down.

Harry sat down and put too fingers under Hermione's chin so she would look him in the eye. "You. Are. Beautiful."

And then, his state of undress and his general awkwardness made him blush.

She blushed even deeper than he had. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"I'm not," said Harry, "I get where you are coming from here. You're worried that you'll lose everything. You just want to know that there is a reason for me to stay with you. Even if I wasn't attracted to you, you'd still be my best friend. But I am, so I have lots more reasons to stick around."

Hermione smiled.

"I also saw that you want to spend the night here," said Harry.

"You didn't have a problem with it before," reminded Hermione.

"Your parents weren't a few rooms over at the time!" said Harry, "This isn't a good idea."

"Please!" begged Hermione, "You really do make things better for me."

Harry sighed. "I can never turn you down, you know that?"

Hermione laughed.

XXXXX

July 16th, 1993

Helen Granger was surprised by just how much better Hermione seemed the next day. Hermione had described her sessions at St. Mungo's to her, and while Hermione insisted, they had done a lot of good, Helen was sceptical. It sounded like Magical mental health was trapped in the nineteenth century, and she wasn't sure how a calming draught would help matters. Yet Hermione did seem to be doing better. This left two possibilities, either Hermione's problem was a lot less severe than they had thought (which was very doubtful given that Hermione had been willing to end their vacation over it), or Hermione was hiding something.

Unlike Robert, Helen had a sixth sense for when her daughter was being evasive. Robert thought that Hermione never, or at least rarely lied to them. But Helen knew better. Her daughter was smart. She knew that honesty was the best policy, because if she didn't lie, she couldn't get caught lying. She also tended to defer to authority for similar reasons. Generally working within a system was easier than working against it. But Hermione was also very opinionated and very stubborn. Once she became convinced that something was the correct course of action, she would stick to it almost completely heedless of the consequences.

Generally speaking, Robert and Helen supported Hermione's various stands. They wanted her to fight for things that she believed in. But there was a limit to their support. Hermione seemed to have a sixth sense about what her parents would allow and what they would not. And if she knew she wouldn't get permission for something, she would just do it anyway. And if she knew they would punish her for that anyway, she'd try to cover it up. She'd try to cover it up by not talking about it, but if that failed, she was more than willing to just plain lie. She just had to care enough.

Hermione was giving all the signs of covering something up now. And Helen was fairly sure she knew what she was covering up. Watching Hermione's interactions with Harry all day shored up her certainty. Hermione had clearly snuck over to Harry's room after she'd supposedly gone to bed. That in itself wasn't that worrisome to Helen. There were plenty of innocent reasons for her to do this. There were also a handful of reasons that Hermione would probably see as harmless, but her parents would not approve of. That was Helen's real worry.

Still, Helen had to admit that Hermione really was feeling better. Aside from an incident early in the morning where Harry had engaged in a very tense floo conversation with the Headmaster of Hogwarts, the two of them had seemed genuinely happy all day. Hermione had not appeared tired at all. In fact, she'd seemed positively ecstatic all day.

So that evening, after she let Hermione go to bed, she dressed in her nightgown and robe, and she waited.

"Coming to bed dear?" asked Robert.

Helen hadn't told Robert her suspicions. If she was right, he'd flip out.

"I'm going to check on Hermione in a bit here, I'm a little worried that she might be putting a brave face on for us," said Helen. It wasn't exactly a lie, but Helen's concerns went far beyond that.

After about twenty minutes, Helen left her room and went to Hermione's bedroom. She opened the door. Her daughter wasn't there. Well that wasn't a surprise.

She walked down the hall to Harry's suite. And she put her ear to the door. She needed to be sure.

"I can't believe Dumbledore flatly refused to let you leave Diagon Alley." said Hermione.

"He doesn't fully trust me I think, not after I called him out for lying to me about the horcrux," said Harry, "If I'm not at the Dursleys he prefers my mobility to be limited."

"Certainly, there are plenty of people who could volunteer to help protect you out there," said Hermione.

"I'm sure there are," said Harry, "The Headmaster doesn't seem to like factors beyond his control. That's why he lied to us about the horcrux."

"I wish there was something I could do," said Hermione, "you've done so much for me. Even now, letting me stay here. I know it's a terrible risk for you. If my parents find out…"

Helen grimaced. Well that answered that question. She almost tried to break down the door right then and there, but she restrained herself. Helen knew her daughter well enough to know she definitely wasn't pursuing a physical relationship yet. The most likely reason for all this was that Hermione felt that something about Harry's presence helped her. But that was conjecture. She needed to get in that room. She thought about knocking or getting help from the barman, but decided to try the latch first. Surprisingly, the door handle turned freely. Well, they were kids still. They were bound to make mistakes.

Helen swung the door open. Harry and Hermione were both in bed, but it was clear that nothing was going on. Harry was well away from her daughter, though he did have a hand on her shoulder.

Harry leapt to his feet, his face beet red. "Mrs. Granger! I'm not… I mean…"

"Mum!" shouted Hermione quickly jumping to her feet as well. As Helen expected they were both dressed in their pajamas.

"Don't blame Harry, Mum, it was all my idea!" said Hermione frantically.

Helen held up her hand calmingly, "I'm sure it was. Why don't we head back to your room and we'll talk," she said before turning to Harry, "I'll talk to you tomorrow morning. I'm not angry, you don't need to lose any sleep over me forbidding Hermione from seeing you or something silly like that."

"What about Dad?" asked Hermione.

"For the moment, what he doesn't know won't hurt him," said Helen.

Hermione nodded, then turned to Harry and gave him a quick hug, then left the room. Helen smiled. Even in trouble her daughter's first thought was her friend.

"Goodnight Harry," said Helen, "You really need to lock your door when you have a girl over."

Harry blushed even deeper, if that was possible.

Helen walked back over to Hermione's room. Hermione was sitting on her bed chewing on her lip. Helen sat down next to her.

"Be honest Hermione. You told me that you didn't need me to spend the night with you because you intended to spend it with Harry." she said. It wasn't a question.

"Yes," Hermione said quietly.

"Why was it so important that you be with Harry instead of me?" asked Helen.

"Because Harry was the one who was talking me through everything when I was petrified," said Hermione, tears streaming down her face, "Because you don't live in the magical world, so I'm not afraid that you are going to die to some monster. And because I know you are my parents and that you love me. I'm not afraid that you'll stop loving me!"

And then Hermione broke down again as she clung to her mother.

Well shit, thought Helen. Those were actually good reasons. Now she had to make sure her response was… hell she didn't really know how to respond to that! She wasn't happy about this, but as far as Hermione was concerned this was completely innocent. How could she make her understand what her concern was?

"Okay Hermione," said Helen, "Here's what we're going to do. Tonight, I'm going to stay with you. We can talk or sleep, or do whatever you want. Tomorrow if you need me to come sleep with you I will, under the same conditions. If you don't come to get me though, I won't come to check on you, do you understand?"

Hermione's face showed her utter astonishment. She clearly hadn't expected this. "I understand Mum."

"But I need you to promise, promise, promise me that whatever happens while we are here, you won't have sexual relations with Harry," said Helen.

"Of course not!" said Hermione adamantly, "You don't need to be worried about that."

"Oh yes I do!" said Helen, her tone clearly brooking no argument, "And before you go back to school, I want you to try to understand why that is the case. You were doing this at school too weren't you?"

Hermione managed to look a bit sheepish, "A bit," she said. Which to Helen meant regularly but not all the time.

"You need to understand that as you get closer to boys, your body is going to start getting, well for lack of a better term, urges," said Helen, "You might think you have a handle on things right now, but you have no idea how easy it can be for you to lose control. And you aren't ready for that. I think that as far as things are right now, that is unlikely to happen. But things won't stay that way. You and Harry are clearly attracted to each other."

Hermione nodded. "I understand," she said.

Helen shook her head. "No, you don't. But I'm going to trust you, because you are a smart girl. I'm going to trust that once you understand what I mean that you will stop putting yourself in that situation."

"You're not just going to order me to stop?" asked Hermione.

Helen sighed. "This does seem to be helping you. If it wasn't that would be the conversation we would be having. As it is, you have to be very, very careful."

Hermione sat silently for a moment. "Do you mind if I ask you some questions?" she asked.

Helen sighed in relief and smiled. "I was hoping you'd ask me that."

XXXXX

July 20th, 1993

Helen's talk with Hermione went on for over an hour. Some of it was Helen just describing some of the things Hermione would feel and have to deal with. She also gave some practical advice. While she certainly didn't want Hermione getting ahead of herself, if something did happen, she wanted her to have the least discomfort possible. Ultimately, she felt that while Hermione still didn't appreciate the problems she'd face, she wasn't likely to get into a situation where she was completely out of her depth.

The two went to sleep shortly thereafter. But Helen made sure to wake herself up early. She still had to talk to Harry.

She walked over to Harry's room and knocked on the door. "Come in," said Harry's voice immediately. Well he'd clearly been expecting her.

Harry was up and fully dressed. He rose from his chair as Helen entered. Oh, he was a smart one. He was being respectful, while at the same time showing off how prepared he was.

"Did you sleep well?" asked Harry.

"Yes, once I got to bed," said Helen, "I stayed up late talking to Hermione."

"Good," said Harry. Helen noticed that he didn't ask what they had talked about. She idly wondered how much of that conversation Hermione planned to tell Harry. She ultimately realized that Harry was probably eventually going to hear about almost all of it. Most of what she had said had fascinated Hermione, and Hermione loved talking about things that fascinated her.

"I just want you to know that I told Hermione how things are going to work going forward," said Helen, "She'll fill you in on things, but I did have some questions for you."

"Yes?" asked Harry as he gestured to another chair. Helen sat down.

"You like Hermione, don't you?" asked Helen, "I don't mean as a friend."

"I don't know exactly what I feel about her, other than that I care about her," said Harry. "She is more than a best friend to me but I don't know where that leaves us."

"Are you attracted to her?" asked Helen.

Harry somehow managed to not blush. "I think so," he said softly.

"Then you clearly don't view her as a sister," said Helen.

Harry nodded.

"Why did you go along with her plan?" asked Helen.

"I have a hard time saying no to Hermione," said Harry, "Especially if she's in pain. I won't apologize for helping her."

Oh, this boy was so much like Hermione in terms of his conscience that it was almost painful. He'd decided he was right, and now he'd stick to that through anything. Helen was actually pretty sure that she was starting to love this boy.

"Good for you," she said softly, "Just make sure you aren't the one who hurts her."

Harry looked her right in the eyes. "Never."

Helen nodded, satisfied. She got up and headed back to the room she shared with Robert. She absolutely hated lying to her husband.

XXXXX

The rest of the Grangers' time in Diagon Alley went smoothly. Harry had been mortified when Helen Granger had walked in on him and Hermione. But when Hermione had snuck into his room again the next night and explained things it did all add up. Helen wasn't dumb, she had to know her daughter was having problems dealing with her ordeal from last year, and she probably knew just how useless Hermione's therapy was. Hermione had been all too willing to discuss most of what she had talked about with her mother. Harry had been a bit embarrassed by that, but that was Hermione for you.

The rest of her time in Diagon had passed quickly. Tracey and Daphne had visited on the last day of her visit, and all the girls had gone shopping. They'd come back giggling a bit, and Hermione had been unwilling to say why. They had been nice enough to buy Harry some things from the muggle world, so Harry was inclined to mind his own business and just be thankful they'd come by. Daphne had revealed that they would hold a party for Harry at her house on his birthday.

"It took some convincing by dad. Dumbledore really didn't want you leaving here," said Daphne, "On the plus side, since it's at my place, Blaise will be there."

After Hermione left Harry had a lot of time to himself again. He began reading up on mind healing, and discovered that it was very behind the times. Someone needed to update the way magical society dealt with psychological problems. There was a lot of other information in those books as well. Harry was now a lot more knowledgeable about healing, though he only knew the barest first aid spells. He decided to show Hermione some of these books. Maybe they could help.

When Harry's party finally came, he had a great time. There was lots of food and cake, and of course all his friends bought him presents. Aside from Daphne, Tracey and Blaise, Hermione managed to floo into the party, as did Luna and Justin. The Weasleys were still in Egypt, but Ginny and Ron both sent him gifts. All in all, Harry considered it the second-best birthday he'd ever had.

From that point on, Harry was rarely alone in Diagon. Bryant Greengrass had managed to talk to the Davises as well as Blaise's mother. They all agreed that while Harry could probably take care of himself well enough, he did need some companionship. Most days one of his friends would go to Diagon to keep him company for most of the day. Daphne came the most often, and the two of them often talked about their plans for reforming wizard society. She and her parents even spent the night there once, though Daphne notably didn't sneak into his room, possibly because Astoria would have tattled on her if she had. Daphne wasn't really pursuing Harry anymore, but she would have liked scandalizing her parents.

Tracey came fairly frequently as well. She liked to talk Quidditch, but she was game for just about any other conversation. Strangely, one of her favorite topics of conversation was Hermione and Ginny. She seemed convinced that Harry was on the verge of dating one or both of them. While that was annoying, Harry had to admit that he was in some ways more comfortable around her than either Daphne or Hermione. Tracey was absolutely uninterested in him other than as a friend and it meant that things that descended into awkwardness with Daphne or Hermione could be laughed off with Tracey.

Luna came almost as frequently as Tracey. She had already spent the first month of her summer with her father going to foreign countries looking for strange creatures. Luna loved to just look at the creatures in the various pet shops, but she also liked to watch people. She saw a lot of interesting things with her aura reading. Like Tracey she seemed uninterested in pursuing Harry. Unlike Tracey, Luna seemed to try to amplify any accidental double entendre that Harry made, while acting oblivious to what she was doing.

Blaise was there the least, but he managed to come by a few times. The two of them largely spent their days talking Quidditch. They did have one quick conversation about Blaise's orientation. Blaise had managed to determine that his mother probably didn't know of his interest in boys, and Harry and Blaise managed to concoct a few ruses to keep it that way. Luckily Blaise was young enough that his not being interested in girls wasn't likely to be a problem yet.

Harry was sorry that Justin and Hermione weren't able to join him anymore, but he knew that it was impractical. What he was getting excited about was August 31st. That was the day the Weasleys would come to Diagon Alley to buy their school things. That was the day they would free Sirius Black.

XXXXX

August 31st, 1993

Hermione had arrived first on the 31st. Like the Weasleys she'd be staying the night tonight so that she did not have to make the long drive from home early in the morning. When the Weasleys arrived, Harry jumped up to meet them.

Fred and George saw Harry first.

"There's the man of the hour!" said Fred.

"Fancy you spending your entire break at Diagon Alley," said George.

Harry laughed, "I'd have done just about anything to get out of here to be honest." he said honestly.

"Good to see you mate!" said Ron.

Ginny was bringing up the rear with Molly. Seeing Harry and Hermione, she ran up to them and hugged them both.

"How are you doing Ginny?" asked Harry.

She glanced at Hermione. "It's been a bit rough, though after I talked to Bill I have felt better about things," she admitted, "How have you been doing Hermione?" she asked.

"I've had a few problems," replied Hermione, "Mostly relating to the fact that I was only partially petrified. I think I'm doing better now. I only get the bad dreams occasionally."

Harry made a split-second decision to get Ginny in on his plan. She'd be an extra wand if something happened with Peter. He motioned for the two girls to go to the side of the room.

"We have an issue Ginny," said Harry.

"Oh?" she asked.

"Has Scabbers been acting odd lately?" asked Harry.

"How did you know that?" asked Ginny, "He's been off his food for a while. Malfoy didn't poison him before we left, did he?"

"Let me guess, he started having trouble eating shortly after you heard the news that Sirius Black escaped Azkaban," said Harry.

Ginny gasped, "What are you suggesting Harry?"

"I'm suggesting that Scabbers is an Animagus named Peter Pettigrew." said Harry, "He betrayed my parents, framed Sirius for his murder and the murder of 10 muggles, and has been laying low at the Burrow ever since."

"Oh Merlin, it sounds like Black was right!" said Hermione.

"That little pervert!" said Ginny angrily, "I always thought that rat looked at me funny. Especially when I was starkers'!"

"Do you get starkers in front of the rat often?" asked Hermione.

"Why would I care Hermione?" demanded Ginny.

"We just have to invite an auror over while everyone is around," said Harry, "then we snatch Scabbers and use the Animagus revealing spell."

"Won't you get in trouble for that?" asked Ginny.

"Revealing an Animagus that's illegally sneaking itself into Hogwarts, one that is responsible for the deaths of my parents, would definitely count as self-defense," said Harry, "In any case, the Trace doesn't work properly in Diagon Alley. Too much random magic around."

"How do we get a hold of Scabbers?" asked Hermione.

"I don't know, it would be a lot easier if Padfoot was here," said Harry. Ginny looked at him curiously, but didn't ask more questions. The three of them kicked around a few ideas, but they couldn't come up with anything solid.

They decided to play it by ear. However, Harry could no longer see Ron. When he asked Molly where he was, she said he'd gone to the pet store with Percy to get rat tonic for Scabbers.

"No reason we can't go to the pet store," said Ginny. Harry nodded. The Weasleys would be buying Hogwarts things today, but Harry had already purchased his. He'd also purchased Hermione's things, though he'd been paid back by her father. Still, Molly, Arthur and the twins could make a start of things without Ginny.

They made their way to the pet store. Ron and Percy were talking with a clerk when they came in. Harry noticed that Percy was wearing the badge of the Head Boy. So, he'd gotten it after all. Harry hoped he'd learned from his mistakes.

Suddenly Hermione gasped. "Look at him!" she said, pointing at a huge ginger cat, "isn't he adorable!"

Harry smiled. The cat looked rather surly to Harry, but he did seem to have some character. One of the store employees walked up to them. "This one's been here a while. His name's Crookshanks. He seems to be part Kneazle, so he's been a bit hard for anyone to handle."

Hermione rubbed the cat's back, causing it to purr. That seemed to settle things to Hermione. "I'll take it!" she said excitedly.

"Are you sure your parents will be okay with this?" asked Ginny.

"They said I could get a pet this year," she said, "This one's perfect!" She pulled out a money pouch and before anyone could stop her, she was paying for the giant creature.

Harry just shrugged at Ginny.

They ran into Ron and Percy as they left the shop. Ron looked at Crookshanks suspiciously.

"Don't worry Scabbers, I won't let the mean cat hurt you!" said Ron.

"I doubt Crookshanks will have much chance to harm Scabbers," said Hermione.

"Oh, I heard you talking earlier, and when I saw you get that cat, I thought you were going to try to feed Scabbers to him or something," said Ron, half joking.

There was an idea, thought Harry.

"But if the cat's name is Crookshanks I must have misunderstood," said Ron, "Who's this Padfoot?"

The moment Ron said the word Padfoot, Harry, Hermione and Ginny all stood stunned. And it cost them. Scabbers immediately bit Ron's finger, causing him to drop the rat.

"NO!" said Harry drawing his wand. The rat darted into nearby Knockturn Alley with all five of the members of their little group following. Harry extended his wand and cast the spell Sirius had taught him.

The rat suddenly transformed into a very rat like man.

"Who is that!" said Percy

"Peter Pettigrew," said Harry, "The man who betrayed my parents!"

Every wand was extended towards Peter. "Surrender!" said Harry, "Surrender and we will make sure you have a fair trial. Or you can try to run, and Sirius Black will hunt you down."

"What are you DOING!" shouted Molly Weasley, "That's Knockturn Alley!"

The distraction was only for a moment, but it was enough. Pettigrew re-transformed into his rat form and darted into a hole in a nearby wall. And he was gone.

"NO!" shouted Harry angrily.

Percy spun around, "Mother! You just allowed a very dangerous wizard to escape us!"

"Sirius Black was here?" shouted Molly. Everyone in the vicinity stopped and stared at her.

"No," said Harry loud enough that most people could hear him. Most people seemed to dismiss the conversation and went about their business.

He dropped his voice as he walked over to Molly. "It was Peter Pettigrew."

"Pettigrew is dead!" said Molly.

"Mum," said Ron, "Pettigrew was Scabbers. He was an Animagus."

"That means that Sirius Black is innocent!" said Molly, but softly enough to avoid attention.

"And we have no proof," said Harry.

Author's Note: This was a long one, so I'll be brief. Sorry I couldn't clear Sirius, but I do need the dementors to go to Hogwarts for the rest of third year to work. Hermione still has some issues, but she managed to get past the very worst of it. I don't have a lot to say about the next chapter. Chapter 21 on the other hand...

Yeah, we're about to hit another batch of crazy.