With a quiet pop Harry and Flora apparated to the outskirts of Ottery St Catchpole. "Here, it's just up the road." Harry pointed to what looked like an unpaved driveway winding its way through the hedgerow. It had been just after sunset at Flora's cabin when they finished with Voldemort, but here it was fully dark, though it wasn't so late that they looked out of place walking the streets. Even this tiny village still had a couple of people walking their dogs.
Flora glanced up the road then back at Harry. "I am not certain that this is a good idea."
"Where else can you go? Your step-mother will flip out if you show up in the middle of the night, with no explanation of where you were." Even though it wasn't really that late, Flora's step-mother sounded worse than the Dursleys - Harry didn't want Flora having to deal with her tonight. Or preferably ever again. "And the Weasleys are the most welcoming people I know – they'll put you up." Harry paused, "and they deserve to know what happened."
"And I should be the one to tell them?"
"It's kind of your fault, so yeah. You need to take responsibility." Last time she had kidnapped him, he had covered for Flora, and he got all the talking to and disappointed looks. It had really bothered him how the Weasleys were hurt by 'his' actions. This time, it was Flora's turn. After all, she deserved some sort of punishment for almost getting him killed.
But nevertheless he gave her a quick smile to take some of the sting out of his words.
Harry took Flora's hand and led the way to the large, ramshackle, impossible-looking house. Flora didn't even bat an eye at what looked like two houses balanced one atop the other, against all the laws of physics.
When Harry knocked, the door flew open immediately even though it was already 10 o'clock. "It's Harry!" Hermione yelled, enveloping the teen in a hug.
"And hello to you too. Can we come in?" It was at this point that Hermione realized at there was a second person standing close by Harry's side.
Before she could say anything though, Molly burst out of the kitchen, "Harry! Where have you been?"
She was so loud that Flora cringed away, but before she could decide if she should flee Molly also enveloped Harry in a huge hug. After a moment she let go, turning to Flora, "And who are you, deerie?"
"That must be Flora" Hermione reported.
"What happened, mate? Where did you disappear to? And don't tell me you went to a friends house again." This was from Ron, who was blocked in the house by his mother's back.
"Flora, I think you should explain, since you are the root cause." Harry stepped off to the side so that he wouldn't be caught in any friendly fire.
"We killed Voldemort. Mostly." Flora replied succinctly.
"Explain." This was from Hermione, sounding a lot less pleased than she was moments ago. Actually, her tone was downright arctic.
"No, wait. This is something that the entire Order should hear." Molly interpreted, "Go sit down in the kitchen and have something to eat while you wait. You can explain once we have everybody here, so you can do it just once, and we can all ask questions."
Harry and Flora took seats at the kitchen table, with Harry absently digging into the cookie jar while Ron caught them up on what had been going on here at the Burrow since school had ended, centering on Bill and Fleur's upcoming wedding. Much of this was news to Hermione as well: she had arrived at the Weasley's earlier today, but had been too distraught that Harry was still missing to listen to the family gossip.
Flora meanwhile took in the alien sight that was the Weaselys. The house was so chaotic that it was hard for her to process what was going on around her. People were talking over each other, jostling each other. But nobody was yelling and most of them were smiling. Molly was cooking something as one older Weasely read off a list to her for approval. It was like a scene from another planet. Out of sight under the table, Flora clutched Harry's hand as a life line.
Several Order members were already at the Burrow, as they were still using it as their headquarters. Within half an hour more had trickling in, including Remus Lupin and Tonks, who arrived together, so that the room started to feel very full even with the space expansion charms that were layered onto it. Almost all of the Weasleys were present as well, save for Percy.
After take a quick head count, Arthur nodded, "Ok, let's hear it."
With everybody focusing on Flora as she began her explanation, Harry noted how Remus and Tonks leaned in close to each other and held hands. It was almost like they were a couple, except that didn't make any sense.
Molly scowled as Flora described matter of factly her abduction of Harry from Hogwarts, but she restrained herself and didn't interrupt. Harry listened to this part with interest as well, as he hadn't know the exact details himself, since the first step had been Flora stupefying him (before using the Headmaster's floo to take him to her home and then port-keying to the cottage).
"Why did you do that? I thought you were Harry's friend!" demanded Ginny.
"I had to stay neutral," Flora began. As she explained the details of her perspective on life, Emmeline Vance stage whispered, "that girl needs a therapist." If Flora heard, she didn't react.
"Did you also shanghai Harry last summer as well?" This surprisingly insightful question was from Daedalus Diggle.
"Guys, lets stay focused on current events." Harry deflected. He wanted to finish explaining what had happened instead of attacking Flora. Then he could ask them the really pressing question: He wanted to know if Voldemort was truly gone.
But Flora had stumbled to a stop in her explanation, unwilling to lie but unable to voice the truth. She sat staring down at her hands but she could still feel the accusing gazes of Harry's friends hammering into her. 'It was for his own good.' The excuse sounded weak even to her. But what else could she have done? Everything outside of that cottage required Step-mother's approval.
Harry frowned, feeling bad for the petite girl. 'But she deserves this! She almost got me killed.'With an exasperated sigh Harry took over the narration, explaining how they had Imperio-ed a Dementor and used it to kiss Voldemort.
"How could you do that without us!" Hermione asked in a tight voice, betrayed.
"Harry, that was extremely foolhardy. You were lucky not get killed or worse!" Arthur added, to nods of agreement from everybody present.
"It was Flora's idea! And I had to make a binding oath to help her!" He glanced sideways at the girl to see if she would come to his rescue as he again skipped over her threatening to turn him over to Voldemort. But Flora just hunched down lower into her seat.
With everybody staring at her, she nodded, whispering, "It was all my fault."
"She wasn't in her right mind – she was very close with her sister," Harry defended Flora awkwardly. He wasn't certain what to say. On the one had, he wanted the Order to rip into Flora for doing something so stupid and dangerous, but on the other, he didn't want anybody hurting her.
"She's never in her right mind." Ron muttered, as at the same time Molly's eyes got large: "I forgot. I heard about that. Your sister was Hestia, right? You poor dear!" She bustled over to envelope the girl in a motherly hug, causing Flora to freeze in shock.
And just like that, all was forgiven as far as the Weasley matriarch was concerned.
"But is Voldemort really gone?" Ron asked Harry as Molly consoled Flora, mistaking her shock at the Weasley intimacy for grief. People were all starting to talk about this new revelation, and soon the room was filled with noise. "We know he has those Hocruxes. What if the next time the Dementor pees, out comes the soul? And then his Death Eaters can bring him back."
"I don't think Dementors' pee" Hermione corrected him.
"But what if they do?"
"They don't pee or poo," Harry insisted. "We asked."
"Harry, while it wasn't done in a way I would have ever recommended, I do think you did a very good thing," Remus Lupin interpreted the argument. "I applaud your quick thinking when you found yourself in an awkward situation."
"Awkward?" Hermione asked, puzzled.
"Awkward." Tonks repeated in a whisper, so that only the teens could hear. "As in dangerous. I know Flora is your friend, but she was distraught, and not acting rationally. It might not seem like it, but Harry's life was in serious jeopardy. As an auror, I've seen things like this before. Even family members who care about each other can lash out in a moment of extreme anger or grief, sometime even killing each other."
As Ron and Hermione turned to scowl at Flora, Tonks pulled their chins to face back towards her, "Hey. Don't go blaming her. She did something extremely foolish, but what's done is done, and she didn't hurt anybody."
Harry frowned. If they knew the full story… that she had been planing to turn him over to Voldemort, they wouldn't be so forgiving. But he didn't saw a word.
"I still want to know, is Voldemort gone for good?" Harry interrupted loudly.
"I don't know," Hermione sat down, "I've been trying to do some research, but there is almost noting on Horcruxes in any library."
"Whether he's gone or not, his followers are still around." As ever, Arthur was the voice of reason. "They have their plans. They are too well organized to just go their separate ways."
Tonks nodded, scowling, "we need to find some way to contact Snape. He's the only one that knows whats going on, on the inside."
"Hello, Flora dear," Emmeline Vance asked with unusual gentleness as she sat down next to the Slytherin girl, "Can I borrow your portkey to go check out the cottage? I want to see if I can find any clues." She carefully avoided mentioning Voldemort or dead bodies.
Flora nodded and passed it over. A moment later Tonks and Bill Weasely joined Emmeline as she headed outside.
Meanwhile, as the rest of the Order members started to discuss the logistics of contacting someone who didn't want to be found (Snape), Molly noticed that Flora was shaking. "Are you ok?" Despite Flora's nod, she added, "Hermione, why don't you take Flora upstairs – I think she should get some rest."
Arthur took that as his cue, turning to the rest of the Order. "Let's call it a night - we all have a lot to think about. Once we know more, we'll reconvene."
/\/\MLC/\/\
"So, what's your plan? I mean, will you be safe going home?" Hermione asked as she and Flora got ready for bed. Several order members were staying at the Burrow, but even if they hadn't been Molly thought it better that Flora share a room with Hermione, 'for her peace of mind'. It wasn't clear if Molly was referring to Flora's peace of mind, or her own.
"No. I'm not going home ever again." As soon as Flora said that, a spike of guilt shot through her. Step-mother had drilled filial obedience deep into her being. It was her duty to check in with Step-mother, and Step-mother had veto power over all her actions.
Hermione nodded. The answer made logical sense, but the concept of parents that wouldn't stand up for their daughter was completely foreign. 'It sounds as bad as Harry's situation'. At least Flora was legally an adult, so she had options. "Are you planning to come back to Hogwarts for your seventh year?"
"Yes. Step-mother wouldn't want to make a scene. She won't cut me off." But inside, Flora was less certain than she sounded. Step-mother wasn't always rational. But she had to go back to Hogwarts. Otherwise… She didn't know. She had always expected to go for all seven years, which would allow her to get a good enough job to let her be forevermore independent of Step-mother. She wasn't emotionally ready to come up with a new life plan right now.
Also, Hogwarts was where Harry was.
"Well, you should ask the Weasleys - you can probably stay here until school starts. Molly won't mind another mouth to feed." Hermione paused before adding, "I'm sorry about Hestia." Somehow the fact that Flora's sister had just died had gotten lost in all the commotion.
Flora nodded, "we shared a single soul. As in we always knew what the other was thinking about, we always knew where the other was. Lately we didn't always agree on everything, but we understood why we didn't agree. It was like having a second half of you. And now that's gone. Yet… I also feel like she's still with me."
Hermione nodded awkward. By nature, she was a hugger, but Flora was so… aloof that she didn't know if it would be ok or if it would bother the other girl. Instead she climbed up to the top bunk and turned off the light. It was quiet out in this part of Devonshire. The window was open, and the faint sounds of insects drifted in, but there was no sound of people.
Despite this, Hermione couldn't fall asleep – too much had happened. "Flora, are you awake?" She whispered.
"Yes."
Hermione stared up the ceiling for some time before finally rolling onto her side and calling down to the bunk bellow. "Do you like Harry?"
Flora hesitated, "I… something in me is broken. Used to be broken, I don't know. All I know is that I used to express myself wrongly. Now, in some ways, I am more complete, but in others more broken." She paused before continuing, "After everything that's happened, I don't know how I should feel about Harry"
Hermione made a soft sound of assent. Normally, she would have said something about how she hadn't asked Flora how she SHOULD feel, but how she actually DID feel. Or how overthinking your feelings was a recipe for disaster. But instead she stayed quiet. Inside, she was happy with Flora's lack of an answer, so she didn't push.
/\/\MLC/\/\
The next morning, when Harry came down for breakfast, Flora was gone. She had left a note thanking the Weasleys for their hospitality and snuck out before anybody else was awake.
"She didn't even take anything for breakfast!" Molly was incensed. "Harry, do you know where she could have gone too?"
Harry slid some kippers and toast onto his plate, "Yeah, probably. She really likes her family cottage - that's where we had the show down with Voldemort. She has free access to it, and nobody else uses it." He scowled down at his toast as he dabbed butter onto it, 'If she was up that early, she probably didn't actually get any sleep.' Not that it was his problem, but it still bothered him.
"Actually, I still have her portkey, and it's too far for most people to Apparate, so I doubt that she went there." Bill added sleepily as he shambled in to grab a cup of coffee – he had crashed at his parents, since he didn't have to be at work until ten today. "Though I can pop over and check."
"No, let her be. If she wanted company, she would have stayed here." 'She SHOULD have stayed here,' Harry stabbed his kipper angrily.
Bill nodded and sipped his coffee as Harry started on his breakfast. He waited until his mother was out of the room to ask, "so, is Flora your girlfriend?"
Harry coughed, choking on his food as he tried to answer. Instead he just shook his head no.
"That's a pretty strong negative" Bill smirked. "But you did stay at her cottage last summer, right?"
"No, I mean.." Harry sighed, "I don't think she's my girlfriend, but I don't know what's going on in her head. I think maybe that she thinks she is." 'Maybe she has a reason,' whispered a small treasonous voice in the back of his mind. When Bill just nodded sympathetically, Harry slipped into a comfortable monologue that he had developed over the past year, "I mean she keeps following me everywhere. She would just 'accidentally' show up wherever I was. She has been doing it all year. And then this happened!"
"But you went to visit her."
"Not of my own volition!" Except for over winter break.
Bill quirked an eyebrow at that, "Ok, I stand corrected." After a moment of thought, he added, "She sounds like a stalker. Next year, you should explain whats going on to your head of house. Have McGonagall talk to Flora about keeping her distance."
"Erg, ok. Incidentally what's up with Professor Lupin and Tonks?" Harry asked, changing the subject -this was getting into uncomfortable territory.
Bill snorted, "you didn't know? They got married a month ago."
"What? But Professor Lupin… " Harry didn't want to say it, but Lupin just looked so old and drab and worn out, while Tonks was a lot younger and more vivacious… They were such an unlikely couple.
"Don't judge a book by its cover," Bill quipped. Which was rather disingenuous of him, given that his fiancee looked like a super model.
/\/\MLC/\/\
Flora quietly opened the apartment door and tip toed in, stepping over scattered shoes. She peered into Step-mother's room. It was empty. With a sigh of relief she sat down on her bed. Maybe it would be ok. She was back home, like Step-mother always demanded.
She didn't want to be here. This wasn't home. But laying awake, staring at the ceiling at the Weasleys… It had felt like she was betraying something. A formless sense of guilt had enveloped her heart like Step-mother's fist. And there had been too many people there. Especially Molly Weasley – it was like there were ten of her, the way she had kept hugging Flora.
Flora pulled the blanket tight around her shoulders. Now everything would be back to normal.
Maybe that would be enough for Step-Mother.
Flora rocked gently back and forth as she waited for Step-mother to return.
/\/\MLC/\/\
The following weeks passed in normal domestic bedlam as Molly and Arthur prepared for Bill's wedding. Harry opted not to go back to the Dursleys (as what would be the point? The blood wards had collapsed last year, and it's not like there was anything or anybody at #4 Privet drive that he ever wanted to see again).
Fleur was still living in her apartment in London, but she came over most evenings to help with the logistics. Well, maybe 'help' wasn't the right word as she and Molly butted heads repeatedly over seating charts and color schemes and all the other wonderfully important trivialities of a wedding.
In the last week leading up to the wedding, things at the Weaselly home got more tense, as the adult Weasley children started arriving. Molly's composer slipped, and the normally domineering woman became a complete martinet. Nothing could take place in the house without her approval.
The wedding preparations intersected with Order members casting additional wards on the property, leading to a highly orchestrated chaos.
Harry did his best to stay out of the way as much as possible, slipping away as soon as whatever chores Molly had assigned him that morning were done. He would then go down to the town center (if you call a public library, a coffee shop and a single office building a 'town center'), and hang out there.
"Hey, you ducked out again?" Hermione slid into the seat opposite him at the coffee shop, a coffee in her hand. It was almost dinner time.
Harry put down his book. "Yeah. But you're aren't any better. Aren't you supposed to be helping crotchet doilies or something?"
Hermione rolled her eyes, "I really like Mrs. Weaselly, but I swear, her view of gender roles is antediluvian."
"You might have noticed, but all of wizarding society is stuck in the 18th century."
"Tell me about it. You know why Ron doesn't invite Romilda to any of our, ah, 'adventures'? Because he thinks she's a delicate flower that needs to be protected." Hermione scowled. She hoped Harry wasn't like that. She didn't think he was, but if he sided with Ron… She took a sip of her coffee nervously.
"In Ron's defense, she kind of is." As Harry spoke, Hermione shoulder slumped, "I mean she's worse than Lavender. She doesn't walk, she flounces. Though if she could weaponize perkiness, she would be lethal."
Hermione blew coffee all over the table as she exploded into laughter
"Ew, gross! I guess we don't need to weaponize you!"
"You!" Hermione pretended to punch Harry.
"Hey, when did you get so violent?"
"From hanging out with Ginny."
"Ginny? But she seems like such a nice girl."
Hermione quirked an eyebrow, becoming more serious. "She is a nice girl, but.." She shrugged. "You don't spend a lot of time with her, I guess, but she has a temper. Ask Ron."
Harry sat back and tilted his head to one side, "Now that I think about it, you're right. I'm just not used to thinking of girls as being violent. I kind of assume that it's a guy failing."
"It's not a failing. Being able to stand up for yourself is a good thing."
"I guess." Harry put his book away and took a sip of his own (now cold) coffee ."You know, we never sit and talk like this at Hogwarts. It's kind of nice."
Hermione froze, "Um, yeah. So what are you reading?" She turned the book around so she could get a look.
"It's nothing great – it's just a thriller. The library here doesn't have a good selection."
"Oh, I read that last summer!" They quickly fell to talking about books. Though Hermione had read far more than Harry, they had enough overlap to chat for some time.
"I spoke to Ron. He also thinks that we should put the Horcrux hunt on hold until we know if Voldemort is gone or not." Hermione finally switched back to a more serious topic.
"Yeah. It will be good if the pressure is off – we can finish our seventh year." Harry agreed. Even if Voldemort was only gone for a couple of years, that would give them more time to finish school and train.
"Anyway, we should head back." Because despite everything, Hermione did feel guilty if she didn't help out with the preparation, so she only took an hour off each day to go hang out with Harry.
As they headed back towards the Burrow, Hermione kicked herself. 'Why did I chicken out? That was the perfect opportunity to ask him out!'
/\/\MLC/\/\
Finally, August 1 arrived. As the wedding guests trickled in they were greeted by the Weasleys and the Delaceurs (who had arrived at the Burrow two day before), slowly filling the huge outdoor pavilion. When the ceremony started, Harry got to watch it from up front: he was seated with the Weasleys, disguised as a distant cousin (just in case the Death Eaters were still watching for him). After the tremendous amount of work that the preparations had entailed, it felt somewhat anti-climactic. Which wasn't to say that it wasn't a nice ceremony. He glanced over at Hermione - she looked enthralled. Or maybe wedding were just more of a girl thing. To him, the marriage was way more important than some ceremony. All of which made Harry think about what sort of girl he wanted to spend his life with - he knew that a lot of wizards got married right out of Hogwarts. But he hadn't even had a steady girlfriend. 'Maybe Flora," He finally admitted to himself, "but then again her whole family wants to kill me, so that's probably a no.' He would have to wait until they were back in Hogwarts before talking to her anyways, so he should just put it out of his mind for now.
He glanced to his left again.
Or there was Hermione. 'Nah. She just thinks of me as a friend.' And there was NO way in hell that Harry was going to ask her out. He'd make a mess of it, and she would end up hating him. He'd rather go three rounds with a Death Eater.
His musings were interrupted by cheering – he looked up to see Fleur standing side by side with Bill 'Oh, I must have have missed the 'kiss the bride' moment.'
"Come on Harry – they're going to rearrange the room for the reception." Hermione grabbed his elbow and lead the way off to the side. Thankfully, she wasn't the sort to gush over girly stuff, so he wasn't subjected to the sort of insipid conversation he could hear from some of the other witches as they talked about how beautiful (from the women) or romantic (from the girls) the ceremony had been. Soon, the room was rearrange with small round tables grouped at one side, and a dance floor at the other. Everybody crowded around the dance floor as first the Delacours danced with the their daughter, and then the Weasleys with Bill, and finally Bill and Fleur danced alone. After that, the major domo (Fred. Or possibly George) called for everybody else to come join them on the dance floor. Hermione turned to Harry, "Come with me!" And lead Harry out onto the dance floor.
"Ah, I really don't know how to dance," Harry awkwardly took Hermione's hand.
"You had the lessons for the Yule Ball.. That's more than I did."
They danced carefully, so as not to bump into any of the other couples – most of the guests had come out onto the dance floor for at least the first dance, including some rather elderly wizards and witches.
Harry looked around – everybody looked like they were having a good time – Fred was dancing with Alica at the far end of the floor, while Ron was catching up with Charlie (Romilda hadn't been able to come – her family was vacationing on the continent).
Harry and Hermione stayed on the floor for the following song as well. And the next. When that ended, Harry excused himself to go to the rest room. 'What am I doing? It's Hermione.' If she thought that he was hitting on her, she would get angry at him. And then there was Flora, 'But do I even like Flora like that?'
The answer to that was pretty obvious.
'But she left.' Harry angrily splashed some water on his face and went back out to the reception – they would be serving the meal shortly. He had just walked out of the bathroom when there was a ruckus at the entrance. Harry dew his wand and rushed over to see what was going on.
Kinglsey Shacklebolt staggered into the room, immediately casting Sonorous on himself. "Everyone, Minister Scrimgeour has been assassinated, and there have been multiple other Death Eater attacks. The Burrow is a prime target – everybody needs to evacuate. Now!"
Everybody started talking at once. Several people headed for the fireplace to flue out. Harry ran over towards Ron, swimming through the press of confused people. Before he got there he heard a loud GONG.
"The wards!" Bill yelled.
Arthur added, "Hey, everybody! Use the designated apparition points!" He waved his wand, and yellow balls of light lit up over cordoned off areas in each corner of the tent.
A panic erupted as people ran for the lit corners, knocking over the decorative balustrades set around them.
As Ron pushed his way through, there were flares of light from the south end of the tent. "Where do we go?"
"I'm going to delay the attackers so that people can evacuate." Harry ran for the south side of the tent. As he did Ron and then Hermione flowed after him, their wands out. Meanwhile, the press of people around them was thinning quickly.
They were just at the last line of tables before the south side of the tent when the wall in front of them caught fire and curled back on itself. Harry immediately tipped over one of the tables and took cover behind it and Hermione did likewise. Crouching down between them, Ron starting casting into the gap where the two tables abutted. After a moment Hermione and Harry joined him.
From the diagonally opposite side of the room Tonks and Remus Lupin added their firepower as they used an Engorgio-ed potted palm for cover.
The attackers apparently weren't expecting such stiff resistance, as they didn't try to enter, instead casting sporadic Bombardas. After what felt like an eternity but was probably a minute or two, Hermione nudged the boys. "Everybody's out. We need to go too, before the DEs get their act together." She held out the emergency portkey that she had made earlier from her bracelet (and which Bill had keyed to the wards).
"But we can drive them back," Ron began.
"No, we go now!" Harry grabbed Hermione's bracelet. The moment that Ron took hold of it, Hermione triggered the portkey, and not a moment too soon, as the east side of the tent exploded in a blast of debris.
/\/\MLC/\/\
"Where are we?" Harry looked around. It looked like London, but not a part he was familiar with. They were in a side alley, but just a few yards away was a busy thoroughfare filled with electronics shops and other stores. Even at this time of day there were shoppers aplenty.
"Tottenham Court Road. I visited here with my parents. I figured it was as far from the magical world as you could get and still be in England. Let's head up to a cafe and plan what to do next."
"Wait, we're dressed a little formal," Harry transfigured his clothes into a polo and pair of slacks. It took him two tries – transfiguration was delicate work, and a fight like that always sent so much adrenaline surging through him that it made it tricky. And Hermione had to assist Ron with making something inconspicuous (by muggle standards). In the end they managed to make their way out to a coffee shop without attracting any attention.
"We need to find out if we are being pursued," Hermione was the first to speak once they had ordered their coffees and sat down at a back table.
"Agreed. We can hide out at Grimauld place until we know for certain."
"But what about my mum & da? I say we go check up on them. They may need us to rescue them." Ron countered, glancing between the other two teens.
"It'd not safe to go back to the Burrow – the Death Eaters are certain to have left somebody there,"
Harry looked to Hermione for support.
"Or more like, set some wards to let them know that somebody's returned."
"But we have to start at the Burrow – how else are we going to find out what happened to everybody?" Ron didn't like how the other two were ignoring him. The two kept looking at each other as they talked, like he wasn't even here.
Hermione reached out and placed her hands over Ron's "I know you are worried about your family, but I think we're going to have to trust in them and their ability to take care of themselves."
"Speaking of family, I'm surprised that you're not worried about your parents - do you want to call them or something?" Harry asked.
Hermione shook her head, but didn't reply right away. After an awkward pause, she bulled ahead. "I, um, memory charmed them, and I got them to relocate to Australia. It was the only way to keep them safe."
"That seems… extreme."
"I know, but in my defense I didn't yet know that you had taken out Voldemort. And now it looks like maybe it was a good idea anyways." Hermione retorted defensively.
"So maybe we should wait," Ron acquiesced with a sigh. If even Hermione was willing to go to such lengths, he would also. "We can see if anything happens before the start of the school year. If there's nothing, we can go finish our seventh year, and you can go retrieve your parents."
"Let's define 'anything happens' as more large scale Death Eater attacks, or Voldemort making a comeback," Hermione clarified.
"Agreed. In which case we go look for the Horcruxes like we talked about." Harry was periodically looking past Ron to see if anybody suspicious came into the shop. At this time of the evening, it was mostly empty except for a couple sitting at the bar, chatting, and an older gentleman typing on a laptop.
Ron sighed and rubbed at his face, trying to kneed himself into alertness. These decisions were a lot more important than what to eat for lunch. "Are you certain Grimauld is going to be secure, if things do get bad?
"Its still under the Fidelis, and with Dumbledore dead, there is no one to give away the secret."
"I just hope that Kreacher hasn't filled it dead rats or something," Ron grumbled under his breath.
/\/\MLC/\/\
"Well, it's no worse that it was last summer." Hermione draped her purse over a coat hook. The trio had managed to make their way to Grimauld without any incident. "While we're here, I'm going to take a look in the library for any references on Horcruxes."
As she walked away, Ron turned to Harry, "That was quick. It's almost like she was planning on it."
"She probably was," Harry shrugged. "The Black Library will have a lot of dark books that aren't even in the forbidden section at Hogwarts. Come on, lets see what the situation for clothes is – I don't particularly want to spend the next week in the same tux."
"And food. Kreacher!" Ron commanded.
"Yes, bad master is calling. What is the mudblood wanting?"
"Kreacher, please don't leave the premises until we permit you to," Harry quickly interrupted, remembering the trouble the elf had caused last year. "But in the meantime, can you tell us how much food we have?"
Kreacher grumbled to himself for a bit before admitting, "With House Elf magic, you'se not running out of food."
Ron gave a sigh of relief.
"Harry," Hermione called from the library, "can you come give me a hand?"
"I'll go check out the rest of the house," Ron jerked a thumb up the stairs. They had done a fair job of clearing it of dark objects and pests when the Order had been using it as their headquarters, but there was no telling what might have snuck in (or what Kreacher intentionally placed about) in the interim. And there was the mundane dirt. Ron wasn't like his mum, but if he was going to be sleeping here, we wanted to make sure that it wasn't a complete mess.
Harry nodded and made his way into library. It was a well appointed room filled with books. Or it once was. Now, the paint was peeling, and many of the books had been damaged by mice. At least the charms to prevent moisture had remained intact, so there was no mold or other water damage.
"I can't pull any of the books off the shelves. You're the master of the house, see if you can." Hermione gestured in frustration at the closest bookshelf.
Harry obligingly pulled one down. "Hermione, I think its better if we start tomorrow, once we are rested."
Hermione shook her head no, "I can't sleep with everything up in the air, topsy turvy like this. It's making me anxious - I need to have a better idea of whats going on. That's not going to happen with the Death Eater attacks, but at least I can get a start on the Horcruxes. I won't take long, just enough to know if any of the books here are going to be useful."
Harry sighed, and pulled about half a dozen books off the shelves under Hermione direction before heading upstairs to to find a bed – it had been long day.
/\/\MLC/\/\
The following morning, after breakfast, the trio went back to the library. "So there wasn't much in the books I grabbed yesterday, but I did manage put together a list of references to look through next. Can you guys help me find out if we have any of these books on the shelves." Hermione handed Harry and Ron each a copy of a list of a dozen books.
As they started inspecting the book cases, trying to get a sense for how the books were shelved, Ron recoiled, "Ug, what's that!" He pointed at the corner of one the upper shelves. "I think something is nesting in there!" He whipped out his wand and carefully magicked away the pieces of shredded paper, sawdust and animal droppings.
"Harry, I found one. Can you get it for me?" Harry reached over and pulled the book Hermione indicted off of the shelf.
"I wish I knew how to key you into the wards so that you could get what you wanted yourself."
"Yeah, that would be faster, but at least this works." Hermione gave Harry a quick smile before going back to scanning the stacks.
"Hah!" Ron found another animal nest hiding behind the nook created by a leaning book, and proceeded to clean that out. Harry and Hermione exchanged glances. Apparently Mrs Weasley had left an indelible mark on her son's psyche.
By lunch time, they had another half dozen books, and Hermione was sitting on the couch reading, while Harry searched for more based on her instructions. Ron had given up and announced that he was going to send a flue message to any member of the Order that he could think of, starting with Shell Cottage (which Bill had just recently purchased). And after that, maybe he would take an inventory of the house. (Anything to avoid the library).
/\/\MLC/\/\
"Harry, come see if you can make any sense of this." Hermione handed Harry a book.
He dropped down onto the couch next to her and peered at the hand written manuscript – it was written several centuries ago. The English was baroque, and the writer had tried to seem more intelligent than he was by making the text even more impenetrable than it had to be. As he leaned back against the threadbare cushions of the couch, puzzling his way through the dense text, Hermione slid down so that her head was resting on Harry's lap.
"It feels good to stretch out!" She had already kicked off her shoes, but now she put her feet up on the arm of the couch. "I was getting stiff from sitting on this thing – the stuffing is all gone. And that font was giving me a headache." She gestured at the book in Harry's hands.
"Mmm," Harry replied noncommittally, trying to concentrate on the text. But Hermione had made it unnecessarily difficult. His gaze kept being drawn to the pretty head resting in his lap. After a half hour more of struggling, he finally put the book down and announced, "I think we should take a break and get some food. Kreacher!" He called out, "please bring lunch to the library".
"I think it's actually closer to dinner time," Hermione corrected him.
"Yeah, I lost track of time. There's just so much here! Half the books here deal with the dark arts."
"Hey, that's usually my line," Hermione joked as she sat up properly. Come to think of it, she was feeling a bit peckish as well.
"Yeah, after we have a snack, maybe we can get together with Ron and see if we can figure out who RAB was." Harry pulled out the locket from the cave of Inferni. Grimauld place would be a good place to start digging for that - he was almost certain that he had seen the initials R.A.B. somewhere in this house. Just as he did, Kreacher walked in carrying a tray of sandwiches. With a gasp, he dropped the tray. "Where did you gets that? That belongs to good maser!" He hissed.
Harry stood up, to keep the locket out of the house-elf's reach. "You know who owned this locket?"
"Ron!" Hermione called up the stairs, "we got something!"
Over the course of the next hour, they finally coaxed Kreacher into telling them the story of Regulus Black. Towards the end, Kreacher was sobbing loudly.
"Here, why don't you take this," Harry gave the house elf the locket before turning back to his two friends. "I think the locket – the real locket - was part of the junk we cleared out of the house back two years ago."
Kreacher gently took the locket, clutching it to his chest. "No, Kreacher rescued the locket. Kreacher had unfinished business with the locket. But then that filthy Mundungus stole it."
"What? Why?" Hermione asked, puzzled.
"Probably to sell it. Dung was always a petty thief." Ron explained. "I bet he pawned it off on some unsuspecting soul."
"Well, who ever has it is at risk. From the little I have been able to find, close contact with a Horcrux will at the very least cause some of the personality of the creator to bleed over. And with the main chunk of the soul gone, the Horcruxes probably be even more active than normal." Assuming that the artifact that the book has been describing was in fact an Horcrux.
"Cor, you mean they'll posses the wearer?"
"I don't know – I wouldn't think that there is enough of Voldemort's personality in there to do that, but it might create a 'Voldemort lite', with all of the negative personality traits." Hermione shrugged self consciously. She didn't like not having the answers.
"The Diary had a fairly complete personality. I spoke to it, and it acted like a human."
"You were 12 – I don't know how good you would have been at telling if the personality was normal." Hermione replied quickly, sounding defensive. "But the diary was also the first one that he made. He probably put more of himself into it than he intended. He probably used only a tiny sliver in the later ones, once he got good at the technique. Otherwise there would have been nothing left of him."
"And even that large a soul splinter had needed to kill Ginny to come to life," Harry shuddered at the memory. "We need to find the real locket and destroy it."
"Yeah, one of the texts did imply that wearing a Horcrux could cause it to parasites the wearer, killing them. Though the book wasn't clear if even that would bring the soul back to life or not."
"What would you like for dinner?" The somber mood was interrupted by Kreacher acting with unnatural cheer. "I can make a good meatloaf."
"Uhm.." Harry began when a knock on the front door interrupted him.