Chapter 16: Summer and Letters - Part II

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. However, I do own a copy of the books, and I'm in the middle of reading "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets." Don't question it.

Thirteen days Prior, July 3, 1992

London-Heathrow International Airport

Hermione was currently skipping along the terminal with her very full carry-on. Despite being excited for the vacation, Hermione was not pleased with the fact she was going to be six miles above the Earth for the next 2 1/2 hours.

Flying on a broomstick was one thing, she went slowly and never went higher than thirty feet. This was a 200 tonne aircraft that carried over 300 people, and she had no control over its movements. Nonetheless, the promise of three weeks of Madrid sunlight and scenery outweighed Hermione's fear of flying. So, after an exhausting nine hours, from Hermione waking up in her bedroom in Crawley to her falling asleep in a comfy hotel in Madrid, the Granger's vacation began.

It was relaxing for Hermione when the rooftop pool the hotel had was empty, letting Hermione practice her strokes in peace, the only audience being her parents. She really got to think about her life in that moment. In the year that she had known Magic, with July 1, 1991, being the day when Professor McGonagall had delivered her Hogwarts letter, she had been attacked by a troll, gained three best friends, learned the magic of, well Magic, uncovered a secret at Hogwarts, nearly got killed in the Forbidden Forest, and last but not least she faced Quirrelmort with Nate and Harry.

Nate. Oh, that was magical. Being told she was liked. And she even kissed him. On the cheek, mind you. She would never tell her parents that, though. Telling her parents, "I have a big crush on this boy and oh by the way I kissed him" would probably have been problematic. But it hadn't mattered. She knew he liked her, but after Christmas, it kind of just fell apart. After his (and rudely timed, I might add) revelation about Flamel, the group just started into a routine, forgetting all that was around him. Ron's annoying reminder about her feelings was… alright. Then her funny antics with Nate. They all had laughs that day. But now, it was a week later, and her family was residing in the heart of Madrid, enjoying the summer vacation.

After her morning in the pool was finished, Jean thought it was a good idea to tour some of the streets around their hotel. With no objections from Hermione or Dan, the happy family spent the remainder of the day touring block after block of Madrid life. That evening, Hermione was smiling widely. She had bought a pair of earrings of the Spain flag. "I look quite stylish," she told herself as she posed in her mirror. She decided right there and then to wear said earrings to Hogwarts, it'll certainly be a reminder of her awesome summer!

The Grangers waltzed around Madrid for the next two days before Dan pulled what he called the "fun" card: a five hour drive to see the most beautiful sight in the world (after his wife, of course).So Hermione changed into her swimwear, packed extra towels and a change of clothes, and that morning the Grangers headed off to the beach. It was about noon, and Jean and Dan were snoozing in their chairs while Hermione was splashing about when it hit her. Something inside her was hurting. Hermione had froze for a second, paralyzed by the immense pain she felt in that moment. And two images flashed before her eyes: A splattered wall full of a mixture of some kind, and a door nearly blown off its hinges. She felt as if she couldn't breath. And then, all of a sudden, it was over. Ten seconds of excruciating pain and it was over. The young witch paddled herself to the shore and collapsed on the sand, out of energy and out of breath. And it clicked inside of her. She knew that door. She knew that wall. There was only one place and one person that those images referred to: Nate was in trouble. At this point, her parents had woken up and rushed to their daughter, unsure as to what was happening. Hermione felt weakened, and asked to go home, a request Jean and Dan were both happy to fulfil.

By the time Hermione got back to the hotel, she was feeling a lot better. Mind you, she wasn't perfect, but she was sufficient when it came to basic health. She still held that nagging suspicion that Nate was in trouble, but unfortunately couldn't do anything about it.

Later on, Hermione would come to regret not asking to go home, but her parents did set aside nearly a month to spend Summer with her, and she wasn't going to say no. She did, however, hold that gut feeling of him until she would head back home.

"I'm still wearing those earrings though," she told herself.

Hermione decided to simply enjoy the rest of her summer vacation, even if thoughts nagged the back of her head. Assuring her parents it was a one-time thing, they warily agreed. Hermione made it up to them by wanting to tour more of the city. It was an offer that Dan would not let his wife refuse. All three Grangers ended that day with smiles and giggles, much of what the remainder of their vacation would end up being.

It was two days later, and Nate was currently eating warm tomato soup cooked up to him by his mum, as Anna was busy peppering him with questions regarding his friends. However, as Nate remained silent, Anna gave up trying. She hoped he would open to her when he was ready.

It was later that same afternoon that received a small letter from Astoria Greengrass. He wasn't able to pen a reply because as soon as he untied the small letter, her owl flew out the window again. He mentally prepared himself for the pain he would feel after reading it.

Nate,

Parents are planning to head to the Alley on your birthday. Daphne wants to talk to you. Meet her in Room 19 in the Leaky Cauldron at 3:00 PM.

Tori

Nate looked at his parents and asked if they could head to the Alley on his birthday, to which they happily agreed. Anna, however, was staring at him with curiosity painted on her face.

Around lunchtime on July 20, Pigwidgeon, Ginny's owl, fluttered her way into the Harrison's kitchen with yet another letter for Nate. This was a lot longer than his previous letter, but Ron explained he didn't trust Errol to deliver it to him. He again asked him to consider the party, and the fact that he, Fred, and George were planning to rescue Harry since he hadn't replied to any of their letters all summer. Nate sighed and went up to get some parchment to write a reply.

Ron,

I don't know about the party. I'm sorry. As for you "rescuing" Harry, be safe. If he wants the party, then I'll say yes. I'm not really in a state to do much, however if I let Anna write something she'll prolly tell you how horrible a friend I am.

Anyways tell your mum sorry, and I'm sorry too. My parents and Anna are going to do my birthday a few days early because of reasons. If you see Hermione before I do, tell her hello.

Nate

He carefully tied the letter to Pig's leg, just as Anna came with her own letter, this one on regular lined paper. Nate raised an eyebrow, but Anna glared death at him. She too attached her letter to the own and stroked its feathers before helping it out the window.

July 30 arrived in a whimper. Nate was still recovering from his self-incarceration, but was looking forward to tomorrow with his meeting with Daphne and possibly her sister Astoria. Nate was concerned, however, as even though Hermione should've been home by then, neither of her parents were letting him talk to her, which infuriated Nate to no end. It hadn't helped that he caught Anna on the phone, talking to Hermione in hushed voices, or that Anna was avoiding him altogether. The past week had made Nate feel lonely, with Anna spending less than the usual amount of time at his house.

It didn't help that Ron was yet to respond to his uncertainty about this joint party, but it really didn't matter. The safety of his friends took priority over his birthday, much as he loved his birthday.

His birthday. He smiled at that. Last year was the day he got his Hogwarts Letter, and it was the day all his superstitious actions finally made sense. He had read all the books from First Year four times now, and despite protests, let Anna read them too, even if she was a muggle.

He was surprised when Anna's "bed" (really a comfy spot on his carpet) was unoccupied but shrugged it off and assumed she was still angry at him over the letter or even his actions from earlier in the month.

He walked downstairs to get some water, and that's when it happened.

"SURPRISE!"

Nate jumped in shock, and he realize who was there. Anna, both of her parents, his parents, Hermione, and her parents.

Nate smiled widely. He wasn't expecting this at all. He thanked everyone and hugged his parents, Anna, and Hermione, and got hugs from Mrs. Granger and Mrs. Hooper.

He got some presents and was about to ask if that was it when Hermione made a subtle movement in the direction of Anna's parents and shook her head. Nate understood immediately. Anna's parents were the only ones in the room not familiar with Hogwarts, they believed Nate and Hermione went to a private school, Howards Academy. Nate nodded, understanding he would get his magical presents later on.

Anna got Nate a new quilt, she had stolen his after he left for the second term and conveniently forgot to return it. Not to say he didn't notice it, he did, but knowing Anna, he left it at that. Hermione got Nate a red and yellow bow tie, when asked why, she smiled and said "For the holidays." The Grangers gave the gift of cake, and his parents gave him several sets of pens and nice notebooks.

"Gee mom, thanks for school supplies on my birthday!" Nate said it sarcastically though everyone got a laugh and smiled. Anna's parents gave Nate 200 pounds, telling him to "get something special" for himself.

The afternoon consisted of Hermione recounting her vacation (conveniently leaving out the part about Nate, she would tell him that in private). She let her dad explain how great a drive it was to the beach, and how neither woman complained about his horrible sense of humor. (He got poked twice for this, but in all laughs)

Of course, they ate blueberry pancakes all throughout, courtesy of Ben's cooking. Boy, did Nate love Blueberry pancakes. All in all, considering what's happened in the past month, Nate could say his birthday was something special.

Nate was both excited and anxious about meeting Daphne at the Leaky Cauldron. For starters, yes, it was his birthday, but he was afraid of what he might hear from her. Nate could only hope as Ben and Emma drove him towards London that morning. They arrived around two, with Nate promising to be done by six at the latest. Both parents bid him good luck and drove off to sightsee London. Nate entered the Leaky Cauldron and ordered a butterbeer and chatted with Tom about the upcoming year at Hogwarts. He and Tom enjoyed a happy conversation, with both wanting an answer as to whom the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor is. As three approached, Nate bid Tom a good day, paid for his butterbeer, and headed towards the rooms.

Finding Room 19 wasn't hard at all, unless you count the three flights of stairs Nate climbed. He approached the door and knocked twice and waited. A few seconds later and the door clicked open and Daphne peered her head out the door. She exhaled her breath when she saw Nate and quickly beckoned him inside.

Despite being only twelve, Daphne was a half head taller than Nate, and that was only since June! Unfortunately for her, she looked like a trainwreck. Nate sat down and waited for her to talk.

"Nate, it's really, really bad."

He nodded slowly. "What happened, Daphne?"

She looked at him for a full twenty seconds before speaking again. "Revelio Corpus"

To Nate's complete shock, Daphne's right hand to right under her shoulder showed several lines of black, dark green and dark blue.

Nate looked straight at her. "What is that, Daphne?"

Her eyes started filling with tears as she spoke. "My dad didn't think starving me was good enough, so," she started sobbing, "he tried to break my wand arm several times. The marks are magical bruises, unfortunately they won't fade. I managed to heal the bones and muscles so I can still use my arm, but I'm going to have this charm over my skin to block the marks."

Nate tried to interrupt, but she put her hand up.

"Let me finish, Nate. This isn't the worst of it. Pansy is in a state of near terror now! I only saw her once and I do not wish to see her again in that state. She only managed to tell me that it would stop today as she had to look 'presentable' for Hogwarts, but I don't know what to do to help her."

"How do you need me to help?" Nate asked.

Daphne sighed. "She needs help, but her father forbids it and she isn't getting any help from her mum. Your friend, Susan, her aunt is the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I'm hoping she can get the help needed to help Pansy before it's too late."

Nate was starting to gather tears of his own as Daphne kept speaking.

"I read about the effects of the Cruciatus Curse. It can lead to permanent brain damage if not treated properly. And it's worse. Pansy could lose her nervous system too! She might lose the ability to feel pain because the Curse intentionally destroys the nerves to inflict maximum pain to the victim! There's a reason why its an Unforgivable!"

Nate nodded several times at that. "Why can't you use Tori's owl to send a letter yourself?"

Daphne looked down. "Because Tori has risked enough for me. She's my little sister! I tell her not to send letters because Mum and Dad monitor our owls. I won't allow her to be put under the same pain I'm being put through. She doesn't start Hogwarts for another two years for goodness sake!"

Nate nodded. "I'll send the message to Susan. I hope for all our sakes her aunt can help. I'm not really good with crying witches." He smiled a tiny bit, causing Daphne to gasp in giggles.

"Thanks Nate, I knew I could count on you." Daphne said warmly.

Nate just stood there looking at his feet. Daphne sensed there was something else on Nate's mind.

"What else is going on? I mean other than your birthday, of course."

Nate shook his head and smiled. "Nothing more than what you need to be concerned about right now."

Daphne nodded. "Alright, well, I guess I'll see you on the train?"

Nate nodded. "On the train."

With that, Daphne re-applied the charm and Nate silently exited the room. He made it back to Tom, and roughly five minutes later, a man and a woman entered the pub, clearly having finished their shopping in Diagon Alley. With them was who Nate could only imagine as Astoria Greengrass, a younger and much shorter version of Daphne. She gave Nate a subtle smile before following her parents up to the room Nate had been in several minutes prior.

Nate entered the Alley with the sole intention of buying books relating to the Ministry, particularly the Department of Magical Law Enforcement (or as he later knew it as the DMLE). He found two books and paid for them using nearly the rest of the money he pulled last year. On his way out of Flourish and Blotts, he saw who appeared to be a very dressed up gentleman on a sign.

Gilderoy Lockhart

"Magical Me"

Book Signing August 10

12:00 PM and 3:00 PM

Nate shook himself at the advertisement. He still did need to come back for his books this year, as he hadn't yet received a booklist.

Nate exited the Alley and in turn, The Leaky Cauldron just as Big Ben was chiming it's 5:30 tune. Nate walked down a few streets until he found a hot dog stand and bought himself a few hotdogs while he read and waited for his parents to pick him up.

Nate finished the first chapter of "The Department of Magical Law Enforcement: Origins Explained" by a Marcus Williams Sr. when he heard a honk in front of him. He looked up and smiled as his parents were waiting for him.

"How'd it go, kiddo?" Ben asked.

"Amazingly, dad. Amazing."

Author's Note: Thanks for reading and Happy New Year! My New Year's Resolution is to update regularly now, and I will hopefully be sticking to that this time! I am really excited for Year Two at Hogwarts, just two more chapters until the great castle becomes alive again! Au Revoir!

BC5