Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters.
A/N: Thanks to MaeSilverpaws1, who is beta-ing this story.
Chapter Seventy-Four
Changes
Things had not gotten any better in the Black/Lupin/Potter house the next week where Harry had been grounded for becoming an Animagus. It actually wasn't so bad during the day when Remus was the only one home because Sirius was working. Harry had no problems socializing with the werewolf and acting as he normal did. However, whenever Sirius would come home he couldn't help but stiffen, and his moodiness wasn't helped at all when he found that Sirius was still upset. Remus really hated what was going on, though he tried his hardest to stay out of the argument between the two. He had learned years ago that most of the time if he got involved things only got worse.
Emmeline had come over to the house a few times and Harry would say as few words as possible to her or anyone else when she was present, which seemed to irritate Sirius more than ever. Harry wasn't really sure why he was acting this way, but he couldn't seem to help himself. He didn't like the idea of Sirius being with someone, and he had a feeling that part of the reason was because he feared that his uncle was going to leave. It didn't help one bit that Sirius was now giving him the cold shoulder whenever they were in the house together. Okay, so part of Harry understood that was only in response to his own chilled demeanor, but he wasn't thinking logically at the moment.
That was why he snuck out of his room on that late Saturday afternoon, climbing out of his window. It had really helped him that he could now turn into a wolf, because it was much easy to get onto the tree that was near his roof top. Once down the tree, he ran across the street to Hermione's house. He really wanted to talk to one of his friends about all of this and Hermione was the best choice… she was always good with feelings and explaining them to Harry. So Harry climbed up the tree next to her bedroom window. Since there were a few feet that separated the tree from the window, he threw stones at the window to get her attention.
"Harry?" Hermione gasped, opening the window and then moving out of the way when Harry turned into a wolf again and jumped into her room. "What are you doing?"
"I fancied a visit." Harry shrugged.
"I thought you were still grounded," Hermione pointed out.
"Hence why I came through the window," was Harry's answer with a grin.
"You really shouldn't be here," Hermione said biting her lip. "You'll only be grounded longer if they noticed you're gone, and they are going to notice."
"Then there's no point of going back now," Harry shrugged and Hermione sighed, he was trying to play it off, but she knew something was bothering him. Harry sighed too, realizing she'd figured him out and added; "besides, I just had to endure another torturous meal with Sirius and his girlfriend."
"You mean Emmeline, right?" Hermione questioned, sitting down in the chair for her desk as Harry sat on her bed.
"It figures you already know about that," Harry grumbled, he was almost hoping to see her be shocked by the news that Sirius had a girlfriend … he would have been entertained a little at least.
"Mum and Dad told me about her … they seemed to think she was nice," Hermione said and the only response she got from Harry was a grunt. "You don't like her."
"Don't know … I don't really know her," Harry said indifferently.
"Are you trying to get to know her?" Hermione pressed on and Harry made a face at her. "Harry you really should try to get to know her … she's obviously important to Sirius if he brought her over to meet you … if he told her about you in the first place. I mean, your location is supposed to be a s …"
"I know she's important to Sirius, thanks you very much," Harry said curtly. "I don't need a reminder about that as he's always with her. Either she comes over or Sirius doesn't come home until it's really late … or at all."
"This isn't about her, is it?" Hermione sighed, getting up so she could sit next to Harry.
"Not really, no," Harry mumbled softly. "What if he leaves … goes with this Emmeline person and starts a new family? Hermione I want him to be happy but … I don't think I could stand it if he …"
"He's not going to leave you, Harry," Hermione said just as softly as he was talking, though her voice was clear and filled with confidence. "He loves you Harry … you're like a son to him."
"Like a son, but I'm not really his, am I?" Harry said. "He can have the real thing now, can't he?"
"Yes he can, but what makes you think that would make him care about you any less than he does right now?" Hermione pointed out. "Harry, he's not going to stop loving you just because he has someone new in his life. He's always going to be there for you."
"You promise," Harry said looking straight into her eyes.
"I promise," Hermione smiled at him.
"Well you can't promise that, you're not Sirius," Harry pointed out, giving her a weak smile and she rolled her eyes. She knew that he didn't want to talk about this any longer but at the same time she had made him feel a little better … or at least she hoped that she had.
"Now that you're feeling better, you should probably get back," Hermione said.
"Trying to kick me out already and I've only been here for ten minutes," Harry shook his head. "Some best friend you are."
"Fine, stay, you're the one that's going to get into trouble," Hermione shrugged.
"Trouble is my middle name," Harry grinned at her.
"I thought James was your middle name," Hermione reminded him and he rolled his eyes.
"It's an expression and you know that," Harry pouted and then started smirking at her. "Now I was thinking that I might be able to help you out with something seeing as you've just helped me."
"I don't need help with anything," Hermione said looking at him questioningly.
Harry shook his head at his friend, she never liked admitting she was stuck doing something or that she needed him. "What about your Animagus transformation?"
Hermione grimaced before looking away from him. "I'll figure it out myself."
"Are you still afraid of heights?" Harry asked her. "I thought you got over that when we went flying on the brooms all those times."
"I'm not afraid of heights anymore … though I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to my first fight as an owl," Hermione admitted. "I'm not sure I'll know what to do when I'm flying on my own."
"You don't have to worry about that," Harry said. "The owl in you will know what to do. You just have to let its instincts take over you and …." he stopped there because Hermione had twitched when he mentioned letting the owl's instincts take over. "Is that it … are you afraid of letting the owl take over?"
"Argh," Hermione groaned, hating that he could guess her feeling so easily. "Sort of."
"It's not that bad, Hermione," Harry tried to assure her. "I mean it doesn't really change who you are … you just don't think as much, but go more on how you feel."
"That's not helping," Hermione pointed out to him. "I've never been good at following my feelings."
"Hermione, if you don't get over this, I'm not sure if you're ever going to change," Harry said honestly.
"Don't you think I know that," Hermione huffed. "I was this close to changing my head weeks before the final exams! All I had to do was let the change happen, but as I started to change into the owl and my thoughts became more blurred I was filled with panic. What if the owl took over completely and I wasn't able to turn back. And don't tell me that can't happen because I read about it in the books. It's one of the dangers of trying this transformation. It even warned that in some cases, you can't be turned back even by healers."
"I can understand your fear, Hermione," Harry said to her kindly, knowing for her that losing her ability to think clearly was a horrible thought. "But you are one of the most stubborn people I know …. you would never let an owl defeat you."
"Harry," Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's not that simple …"
"Maybe not, but as long as you're afraid of this you'll never be able to get over it," Harry said. "And I know you're never going to let yourself fail at anything."
Hermione shuddered when he said fail and she knew he was right. After all, wasn't she trying to figure out a way to make herself transform now, even if she was still terrify about what might happen. She wasn't going to let this beat her, but she didn't know what to do now.
"It's your fear that's keeping you back Hermione," Harry said softly. "I know you have the skill to transform into an owl and back again, you just have to believe that you can do it."
"It's not as easy as that," Hermione grumbled.
"Why not?" Harry shrugged. "Haven't you always said that the most important thing in casting a spell is believing you are capable of doing it? Why should this be any different? As long as you're afraid of what will happen when you become an owl, you'll never be able to transform. But if you believe in yourself … believe that you'll be able to hold onto yourself, I know you can do this."
"Well with that motivating speech, how can I not succeed," Hermione said sarcastically, though despite her words she was gaining more confidence in herself.
"I know, it was rather a good speech," Harry chuckled smugly. "I'm not the unofficial leader of Infinite Light for nothing."
"I think you're more like the official leader now that we told you about that," Hermione pointed out.
"Whatever," Harry made a face at that. "Why don't you try transforming now?"
"No … I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet," Hermione said. "Why don't we talk about something else?"
"What do you have in mind?" Harry questioned and then gave her an evil smirk that was filled with mischief and she didn't like where this would be going. "How about we talk about a certain red headed best friend of ours?"
"Er …" Hermione said, feeling her cheeks starting to burn, "what's there to say about Ron?"
"It's nice how you're mind immediately went to him," Harry said chuckling, his evil smirk widening and she feared that he might know something she was hoping no one would figure out.
"You said our best friend," Hermione tried to brush it off while rolling her eyes, but her cheeks were definitely betraying her at the moment by turning bright red.
"And we have lots of redheaded friends," Harry reminded her.
"But he's our best friend," Hermione shrugged, trying to avoid Harry's eyes and wide grin.
"Are you sure you don't want him to be more than just your best friend?" Harry questioned, waggling his eyebrows suggestively and she had to hold in a groan … he did know.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Hermione said trying to keep her voice even but she knew it wavered as she got off the bed to walk away from Harry.
"There's no point in denying it, Hermione," Harry told her. "I saw the way you were looking at him when you gave him Scratch's body … the way you held his hand …"
"I was comforting a friend!" Hermione protested.
"I'm sure you really wanted to comfort him …" Harry started to say.
"Harry Potter, stop that right now! Ron is my friend and nothing more!" Hermione huffed.
"But you want him to be more," Harry continued to teased, finding this much more entertaining than he thought it was going to be. A flustered, blushing Hermione was a rather funny sight.
"No I don't!" Hermione denied.
"You know it was hard to see that you liked him at first, what with you two arguing all the time," Harry went on and Hermione glared at him. "But after that last day … it was impossible not to notice."
"I don't know what you think you saw …" Hermione started to say and when Harry started to laugh harder than ever she decided to change tactics. "Well you're one to laugh … didn't I see you blushing over a certain Ravenclaw Seeker?"
That wiped the smiled off of Harry's face. "What …?"
"It was all over your face when she congratulated you for the win the day after the Quidditch final," Hermione pointed out, starting to smirk herself now.
"Er …" Harry didn't know what to say to that because he honestly had no idea that anyone notice how affected he was when Cho Chang had talked to him.
"You were so adorable …" Hermione continued to teased.
"I was not," Harry grumbled.
"What's the matter Harry, can't handling being teased … then I suggest you stop teasing me!" Hermione huffed.
"Oh … so you admit that you like him then," Harry said bouncing on the chance to get the upper hand in this conversation again.
"I didn't say that," Hermione groaned inwardly at giving him this opening.
"Deny it all you want Hermione, I know the truth," Harry said smugly and Hermione sighed, knowing that he was going to keep teasing her about this.
"You promise you're not going to tell anyone, Harry," Hermione said, changing tactics again.
"So you're admitting it then," Harry smirked at her.
"Are you going to promise or not?" Hermione didn't answer him.
"I promise that I will tease you mercilessly, but I won't tell a single person about this," Harry said, holding a hand over his heart to emphasize his promise.
"Git," Hermione shook her head and then said. "Fine, I admit it. I like Ron, now can you leave me alone."
"No … didn't I just say that I was going to tease you?" Harry rolled his eyes. "I still don't understand why you argue with him so much if you like him."
"He's so cute when he's angry," Hermione admitted and notice Harry made a face at that and decided to press the issue. She wasn't going to just let him tease her about this without making him suffer along with her. "His ears start to turn red and then his eyes get all stormy …"
"Argh! Hermione, when did you get all girlie?" Harry groaned.
"But I thought you wanted to talk about this," Hermione said in an innocent told.
"I wanted to tease you about this! I didn't think you would grouse me out," Harry complained leaning back onto Hermione's bed turning away from her. "It's not fair that you're the one that's having all the fun."
"I think it's fair," Hermione laughed and then continued on, sitting on her bed as well. "Didn't you want to know that when he thinks hard about something that his eyebrows furrow in the cutest way?"
"Please Hermione, no more," Harry said making a face again, though he started to laugh along with Hermione now.
"What is going on here?" Duncan Granger asked looking at Harry with narrowed eyes. The laughter died on the teenagers' faces as they first looked at one another and then looked at him. "As I recall, you're supposed to be grounded, Harry!"
"Er … yeah," Harry said getting up off of the bed feeling awkward with Mr. Granger glaring at him like that. Even in a situation like this, Hermione's dad was usually kinder towards him. "I better be going … see you later, Hermione."
"Yeah, see you," Hermione said and Harry left the room and made his way through the house. She then turned to her dad with raised eyebrows.
"Hermione! You are not to have boys in your room late at night … especially when we don't even know that they're in the house!" Duncan said hotly to his only daughter.
"Dad?" Hermione said looking confused. "Er … You know that was Harry, right?"
"Of course I know it was Harry," Duncan grumbled as if that explained his irritation.
"We were just talking," Hermione rolled her eyes at her dad's overreaction.
"He's still a teenage boy now …" Duncan started looking uncomfortable and angry. "You were laughing alone in bed together!"
"It's Harry! He's my best friend" Hermione reminded her dad again, though she was blushing because of what her dad had implied and the fact that her dad would be right if he was talking about her other best friend.
"Just don't be alone again!" Duncan huffed, walking away leaving her to stare after him in shock.