Though Harry stuck close enough to hear the phone if it rang, Hermione did not call the next day. Harry had worked through everything inside on the list of chores the Dursleys gave him by noon the day after, checking on the rune stone from time to time. It hadn't dimmed one bit nor cooled off. The trunk he had Hermione help him carry out of the attic had not opened for him, and the lock was beyond his ability to pick. Lost as to what to do, Harry started on his chores outside. The sky and not grown cloudy since the storm, and by now everything was dry again. Harry mowed what little grass survived and tended to the roses. He walked along the road for a ways, searching for the missing mailbox to no avail.
With nothing better to do, Harry composed a letter for Professor Lupin. He asked about him mom and the trunk, as well as the ward stone. Hedwig was out, so Harry set the letter down and pulled out his textbooks. If he had nothing else to do, then he might as well start his summer homework and the review for Flitwick and McGonagall.
Eventually Hermione did call- to invite him to study with her. He accepted, eager to get out of the house, and caught the bus to her place. He packed a few of his textbooks, but little more. Her mom greeted him and lead him to where Hermione was working. While he didn't have his Potions book, which she was working through, he did have his Charms and Transfiguration book, not that the tome did him any good. His copy was proven to be wrong by simple comparison with Hermione's. Hermione closed up Potions, reasoning that it served her no purpose to work on something he wasn't prepared to do yet, and they moved on. For Charms, Hermione had a strict 18-inch limit on the benefits and drawbacks of the cheering charm. Harry had no set length, just a prompt of the process of combining charms. What 'combining charms' was, it didn't explain.
Harry could see three ways of answering the question. Way one, he could write on what he did in the common room the last day of term, using the banishing charm and leviosa to sort and direct. Or, in a different direction, he could elucidate on the actual formal combining of charms. Such an example could be found in the simple ice cube charm, as it combined augumenti and glisseo, the water condensing and freezing charms. Lastly, he could compare and contrast the other two, discussing how they are similar in execution, but wildly diverse in their mechanics. Harry decided the final one was the best option, as it covered both bases. After lunch, they traded what they had and critiqued the other. While Harry normally didn't catch much mechanically wrong with Hermione's, he was a good sounding board for what was superfluous or restated. On her part, Hermione caught his numerous spelling and grammar mistakes. As had become the norm last year, without Ron there to run interference, they both were intrigued and wowed at the others knowledge.
"Harry, this is fantastic. While I find your first suggested method to be dangerously unpredictable, as you're effectively throwing two district streams of magic at an object without taking into account the other forces and effects, your second method sounds much more careful and precise." Hermione says, scratching at the paper with a red pen.
"Yeah, but just wait for the conclusion- the two methods are inherently identical in effect, even if they are diametrically opposed in nature." He says with a smirk, well aware that she'll be frothing at the mouth for his thoughts. "Your breakdown of the cheering charm is nice and concise, not much to cut out. You lag a little long on the long-term addictive effects but given the dearth of research in rehabilitating those hooked, I understand why. Advocating its use as a stopgap measure in extreme cases is brilliant, given the danger of messing with brain chemistry. I can't wait to see the rest."
An hour later, unable to stay still any longer, Harry closes his textbook and stands up.
"C'mon, Hermione. I've got to move around some, and I bet it'd do you some good too." He tugs her to her feet, and they wander in the Grangers' back yard. It's smaller than 4 Privet Drive but feels much more welcoming. The grass, while soft, is patchy and overgrown in some places. Hermione fishes out a tennis ball and they play catch for an hour or so. When her parent's return from work, he gets invited back with instructions to bring his potions book next time.
The next day they finish Charms and start Transfiguration. Hermione lays in the grass and compares the two editions of the textbook every time Harry has to get up and move around. Despite bringing alone his Potions text, they don't manage to get to it. But, they do finish Transfiguration.
The third day in a row studying with Hermione, Harry cracks. "Hermione, please tell me you have something besides schoolwork to do this summer?"
"Harry are you telling me you're bored?" she asks, looking over her book.
"I guess I am." He admits, flopping in the grass.
"I wondered how long it would take." She giggles.
"What?" He asks, voice flat."
"You didn't honestly think I spent all summer reading?" she says, poking him with her foot. At his silence she yelps, "Harry! You're worse than Ron sometimes." She ignored his squawk and continues on, "Lucky for you, I've only lived here my entire life. Do you know how to swim?"
"Not really." He admits.
"Be honest here, yes or no."
"No." he clarifies.
"Do you have swim shorts?"
"No." he says quietly.
"Hmm, well, maybe we still have my cousins tucked away from when he left them here." She muses, running upstairs and digging around. Harry follows her slower, and by the time he crests the stairs she's throwing them at him. "Try these on."
"They're a little loose." He calls from the bathroom.
"Dudley loose or just a little?" Hermione shoots back.
"Not that bad." He says, walking out in the palm tree print. Hermione hooks a finger in his waistband and tugs, ignoring his yelp.
"They're tight enough. Make sure to cinch the tie as tight as you can we don't want them sliding off." She says, closing the door to her room. "Grab a couple towels from the closet too. Not the nice ones." She says, through the door.
"The one's I'm used to?" Harry asks.
"Yeah. You don't want bath towels at the pool- overkill." she calls out. "There should be sunscreen in the cabinet over the sink downstairs. I'll be down in a moment."
Harry finds the sunscreen in the cabinet and moments later Hermione clonks down the stairs. She's got a large bag over her shoulder, he can see the edge of his transfiguration text poking out.
"Is that a good idea?" he asks, pointing at the old textbook.
"Oh, right. Disguise charms hadn't been invented yet." She grimaces and leaves it behind, stuffing the towels and sunscreen in the bag. "I brought you a pair of dad's flip flops. They'll be big, but easier than shoes. The pool is just one street over, so it shouldn't be too bad." Harry slips them on, and they are huge on him. But he can manage if he grips with his toes really hard.
"I think that's everything." Hermione says, scribbling a note for her parents on the off chance that they're home before them.
She opens the door and leads Harry out, locking up behind them. The pool isn't far, just down the road and over one. Harry and she arrive in no time, and she signs them in with little fuss. She finds them a pair of loungers not too in the shade or sun and drops her bag.
"Well, go on. Get in." she says, turning and pulling off her sun dress. Harry, who has never such as dipped a toe in a pool before doesn't do as expected and instead watches her. She's wearing a salmon sundress over a dark blue one piece. Harry can't help but watch as she pulls the light dress off, his eyes tracing the progress of the hem as it climbs up her legs and over her stomach, past her chest and over her head. She turns and sees him still standing there.
"Oh, you've never been to one of these have you?" she suddenly realizes. "Here, let me show you the rules." The pool is nothing special, just a small affair bottoming out at five feet. She leads him in to the shallows, telling him a story of her first few times coming here with her dad. He's nervous at first, but as she keeps talking and going deeper, he slowly forgets. Before he realizes it, Harry has been tricked into neck deep water. Hermione laughs when he says something to that effect.
"This is the best way to get you acclimated." She confesses, diving down and swimming off. "You should be able to stand from anywhere in here, so get comfortable in the water."
"Where are you going?" he asks nervously.
"I'm going to read some." She says, waving and climbing out of the pool. (Harry tries not to watch her bum drip water and sway away, but he can't look away.) He drifts nervously around for a while, paddling awkwardly around the edges, afraid to go deeper. It an accident that he's pushed out from the wall, a wild cannonball pushing him out as he's between shuffling. Harry panics for a split second before his feet scrape the bottom and he realizes that Hermione was telling the truth, that he can stand from anywhere.
"Hey dude, sorry about that! Didn't see you there." The boy says, popping up and wiping the water out of his eyes. "I'm Nate, what's your name?"
"I'm Harry."
"Nice. My friends and I are about to start up some volleyball, you want in?" the boys asks.
"I'm not sure how to play." Harry admits slowly.
"You don't! That's a shame that is. It's real easy, I'll teach you." Nate drags him to a shallower section. "Too deep and you can't get the height to play properly- not unless you've got mondo legs. Anyway, goal is to get the ball over the net, and have it hit the water on the other side. Three touches to get it back over without it hitting the water before the other side gets a point. You got it?"
"I think so." Harry says.
"Good. If you don't, it's just some points. You'll learn." Nate says, clapping Harry on the shoulder.
"Paul, we've got an extra, but he's new. That okay with you?" Nate shouts.
"You could have twice as many players and I'll still beat you." The other boy teases, tossing up the white ball. "Who gets first possession?"
"Let me take it. I want to show Harry how to serve." Nate says, catching the tossed ball. "Alright, hold it like this and pop it a good one." Nate explains, tossing the ball up and punching it over the net. Harry suspects this isn't the proper way to do it, but it works. Plus, he really doesn't know the sport so- he blinks, and the ball is coming straight for him. He smacks it, but it just spins and falls to the water.
"Point!" Paul roars.
"Good instincts Harry! Next time, closed fist or hit it with the base of your palm, not your fingers." Nate says, picking up the ball and tossing it over. Harry slowly adjusts to the rhythm, getting in a hit every once in a while. It isn't until two games later that he feels like he has a grasp on things.
"You're learning this pretty quick Harry." Nate says as they huddle up. "Score is three to 2, we're leading. Two points and we win this one. But they're close behind. Harry, I want you to cover the back. Get it forward but not over. I can spike it on them." Harry nods and wades back. The serve is quick and viciously low, just barely clearing the net. The return is equally fierce, and the game is on. Back and forth the ball flies, punctuated with loud claps of flesh on wet rubber. Nate almost gets a spike off, but one of the other team bounces it up. Paul jumps and smacks it, trying to spike it in return. Rather than hitting the water, the ball hits the lip of the pool and roll away.
"Good job Paul." Nate shouts, wading to the edge.
"This yours?" Hermione asks, standing at the edge and holding the ball.
"Yeah, thanks." Nate says, catching her underhand toss. "You're welcome to join." He offers.
"Not right now. Maybe when I finish this chapter of my book. Have fun Harry." she says, waving.
"Dude," Nate says, wading past Harry, "Your girlfriend is hot." The game resumes, but it isn't long before disaster strikes. Nate had the perfect setup for a spike to win the game, but one of the other team dove for it. They misjudged the distance, and the ball came down on their face. Hard. They popped back up , fine, but their nose was streaming blood.
"Foul!" Paul shouted.
"It was an accident." Nate protests.
"I'm fibe." The boy says, holding his nose. "Everythibs all goob."
"Go get your nose looked at dude. You're getting blood all over the ball anyway." Paul says, smiling at the boy.
"Yeah, thibs hurts. Ow." The boy says, dropping the ball and wading to the edge.
"Well, we're down a player." Paul sighs.
"What happened to double, and you'll beat me?" Nate teases.
"You got the kid with puma genes." He says, pointing to Harry. "Your reflexes are crazy." Harry just shrugs.
"Hey, pretty girl, your chapter done yet?" Paul suddenly shouts.
"Just finished it, actually. What's up?" Hermione asks, bookmarking her book.
"We're down a guy. Help us out?" he asks.
"Hmm, a chance to humiliate Harry? Sure!" She grins cheerfully.
"Hermione." Harry groans.
"Suck it up and take it." Nate says, elbowing Harry with good cheer. "We're still ahead. How good can she be?"
Down by two points and a good player, Paul wasn't expecting to win. Nate wasn't expecting them to lose. Harry and Hermione though, knew otherwise. The moment Hermione joined, Harry knew they were doomed. The first serve was an ace. The next bounced back and forth twice before being ruthlessly smashed down. In the span of three minutes, Nate saw his lead evaporate.
"Harry, we've got to do something. Go distract her." He orders.
Harry switches as asked but has no clue what to do. He and Hermione are across from each other, both ready to fight for the win. The ball is served by Nate and gets returned by Paul. Harry bops it back, counters Hermione's quick return and, feeling the second return shot, leaps up. Hermione, who jumped for a spike, is surprised by Harry's lunge and nearly misses her shot. But she twists at the last moment and send the ball crashed down behind him. She flops down over the net, crashing onto Harry. The pair surface, face to face.
"I win." She grins, eyes wild with the challenge.
"This time." Harry promises.
Both Nate and Paul wriggle their eyebrows, but don't say a word. "We've got to head home, but anytime we're here you're welcome to join in. Both of you."
"We should probably start heading back too, Harry." Hermione says, climbing out of the pool.
"Alright." He says, hoisting himself up and out.
"Did you have fun?" She asks as they dry off.
"Yeah, I did." He says, almost surprised.
"Best part?" she asks.
"You and Volleyball. The pool is nice but playing with you is loads better." Harry confesses.
She smirks, "You just like the view. I saw you looking a few times."
"It's more than just that. I like you- you're fun and competitive. I will win next time."
"Sure, you will." She says, slinging an arm around him. "Sure."
On the way home, they stop by a store and pick up lemonades. Walking down the sidewalk, sipping on lemonade, Harry asks a question. "Hermione? Can I ask for some advice?"
"Sure." She says, glancing over. "What's this about?"
Harry takes a deep breath, "it's about me and my life. When we were leaving Hogwarts, Remus talked to me about taking more control of my life."
"Harry, you're just a kid. There's no rush to grow up. Enjoy being young." She advises.
"You sound like Dumbledore." Harry says.
"Then that settles it. If I sound like him, then it's a good idea."
"I met an auror, Tonks, after the train. She wants my help-"
"With what? You're just a student. She's an auror. She has no business asking you for anything." Hermione says.
"It's the Black Family Magics." Harry continues, ignoring her interruption. "They want me to try to claim them."
"Harry, that's not right. From what I know, they're asking you to formally take up your heir status- to oversee your seat in the wizengamot. You don't need that pressure in your life. Listen to Dumbledore."
"If I don't then Malfoy gets them." Harry says quietly.
"Then Malfoy gets them. Big deal. He's a pompous arse, but that's all he is. With his grades he'll never amount to anything at all. He's harmless."
"But-"
"But nothing, Harry. You wanted my advice, you have it. Let this go. Enjoy being 13. Play quidditch and don't worry about the politics until later. We have OWLS in just one more year."
"Hermione-"
"No, Harry. You're too young to worry about this. Follow Professor Dumbledore's advice, and stick to school. This isn't your problem."
"I suppose I was old enough for the basilisk." Harry says darkly, his temper rising.
"Of course not! That was bungled by the ministry-"
"Did Dumbledore ever contact the ministry?" Harry asks.
"Surely, he had to, he's Dumbledore! He wouldn't not. Any headmaster of a school is required to report things like that."
"Funny. It never showed up in the prophet."
"I assume the Ministry suppressed it then." Hermione sniffs.
"and Snape? You can't tell me he's teaching by the rules."
"Professor Snape, Harry. And he's not ideal, but he isn't breaking any major rules…"
"Taking points for breathing? For me not helping Neville with his potion on the other side of the room? For being unable to answer OWL potions questions?" Harry snaps, his anger rising.
"I'm sure he had his reasons." Hermione says. "He is the foremost expert in potions-"
"Says who?" Harry snarls. "Who told you he was?"
"I read it in-"
"I also read the parselmouths are all evil and should be killed as soon as they are discovered."
"Well, Harry you've only met one other parselmouth, and well…"
"Really Hermione? And I suppose when they say that muggleborn's steal magic from purebloods, causing squibs, that has to be true too." He says pointedly.
The slap is unexpected and shakes Harry to his core. He never expected Hermione would- She wouldn't, but- His cheek burns, and he has to turn his head to look back. His earlier anger at her interruptions and dismissals banks and grows, and unbidden, his eye's start to spark.
Hermione looks at her friend and can't understand what just happened. She had been talking and he had said something so terrible and she- she- He takes a step forward and she can't help but flinch. The look in his eyes-
"Have a good summer, Miss Granger." Harry manages to bite out, barely keeping a lid on his fury. He turns and walks, heading for the bus stop, textbooks and homework forgotten. The whole ride home he gets dirty looks for the red mark on his face, but inside he's only hurt.
For her part, Hermione, sits on her front step and can't help but cry. It all happened so fast, she didn't even have time to think she just-
How could he say something so terrible?
When Harry gets back to Privet Drive, Hedwig is waiting for him with a letter.
"A letter for me girl?" He asks, eager to distract himself. He opens the letter and reads the first line.
Dear Mr. Potter, my name is Andromeda Tonks…