Chapter 157: A Changeable Sort of Day

It wasn't a small group that was waiting, back at Number 12, for a shopping trip. Harry and Ginny, Leonora and Ron, and Tonks and Remus, Teddy left with his grandmother, were all ready in Muggle clothing. Sirius had been inclined to laugh as he recounted his attempts to make Xenophilius realise that if The Quibbler published articles from hopeful kooks alongside Skeeters' stories, he'd be signing those kooks up to be hunted down by the Ministry (something Sirius had, thankfully, succeeded in convincing Xeno of). Regardless, turning his attention to creating portkeys, Sirius's good humour appeared to evaporate.

Two portkeys: one for Hermione to get to the Muggle shops, and one for her to get back home. Because Hermione, and any Tracking spell that might be on her, was the risk in the plan. Trying not to feel she was the weak link – and trying not to be aware her freedom had a deadline – Hermione tucked the teaspoon set to activate at three that afternoon into her pocket. At least Sirius had set it for three, rather than hours earlier. She'd get a bit of time out in the sunshine, then.

Sunshiny it was – enough for Hermione to find it thankfully hard to imagine a Dementor wafting through the streets. At Tonks's signal their portkey destination was clear, Hermione and Sirius arrived in a currently unused beach hut. It meant walking up to the street over one of the country's few sandy beaches, largely deserted on a cold and blustery day, but shone down on by a bright sun. Over Hermione's head, fluffy white clouds skipped along the baby blue sky. Closer to land, waves rushed, restless, up along the shore, creating fuzzy white lines in the dark blue. And the smell of the air… "Brisk Sea Breeze" if ever anyone managed to actually replicate that fresh scent in a candle.

It was a day filled with natural energy – a changeable atmosphere; the sun, here and there, shadowed behind fast-moving clouds; everything and everyone seeming to rush. Even, Hermione noted more irritably, their own party. Up ahead, Remus was leading their group in a power walk that belied a very recent transformation.

'Is it just me,' Ginny puffed to Hermione, hastening her relatively short legs up the hill, 'or is he in a hurry?'

Hermione had been thinking Remus's remedial potions did a great deal for his vitality. Sirius, though, had that same hurry. He'd charged himself with bringing up the rear. It wasn't working for him. His face dour and watchful, near jumping at shadows, his rapid pace had him striding up a few times to overtake Hermione, only to remember he'd decided he was watching their backs, and have to force his feet to slow right down again. It was starting to get on Hermione's nerves.

'I thought,' Hermione puffed back, 'part of what we were here for was to enjoy a bit of sun and air. I'm not enjoying much of anything right now – and this might well be my last chance out for months.'

'Bull-headed…' Ginny muttered, but didn't finish her sentence. 'Remus!' she shouted to the front of their party. 'D'ya think we can slow it down a touch please? We don't all have giraffe legs!'

It worked. With a little more prodding from Tonks, Remus slowed down enough for Hermione to actually be able to take in the scenery.

As England's supply of coastal resort towns went, this one was a pleasant example. It had that feeling of Victorian Era weekend pleasure spot, tourist trappings last updated in the '60s… it just seemed to have done it better. And, for that beach… As cold as it likely was, Hermione hoped she got a chance on the way back to feel real sand between her toes.

They passed on from the major touristy area, the buildings on either side of the street starting to sport what the Victorians had been better at: long-lasting and attractive stone architecture.

'That's nice,' Ginny said, nodding past Sirius's intensely watchful, lock-jawed face, at a broad boulevard hemmed by genteel row houses. A patch of sea could be seen at the end, encroaching into a space of green coastline.

Hermione hummed a mellowed agreement.

'I like this place,' Ginny went on. 'It's all…' She waved a hand, momentarily at a loss for description. 'Sea-bleached white and spots of brighter colours. I wonder…'

She sped up and caught hold of Harry's elbow.

'Hey, Harry, how do you feel about living by the sea?'

'Er…' Harry glanced at Ginny. 'Like,' he said slowly, 'here?'

'Not necessarily here,' said Ginny. 'Anywhere. A pretty white row house in a seaside village somewhere.'

'Er…' Harry said again, the sound more drawn out. Hermione's imagination added the sight of Harry's uncertain grimace to the back of his head. 'I don't really like the… sameness of row houses.'

'Well,' said Ginny, 'where do you want to live then?'

Harry shrugged. She frowned at him.

'I don't know,' he answered verbally. 'I've never really thought about it. Maybe…' He drifted off.

'Maybe?' Ginny prompted.

Harry gave another little shrug.

'Maybe somewhere like Godric's Hollow?' he suggested diffidently. 'Or… maybe somewhere out in the country. Away from nosey neighbours.'

Somewhere like his parents' house or the Burrow, Hermione clarified internally. She smiled a little as she shook her head, fondly amused.

Sirius's feet had crept him back up to level with Hermione. This time she felt his hand on her lower back. His attention was caught, however, by something over the street.

Tensing, Hermione shot a look that way. Though she searched, there was nothing concerning, as far as she could see. Looking back up to query Sirius, she saw he was no longer staring that way but glancing around.

'Seen anything?' Hermione asked him quietly.

Sirius gave his head a quick shake.

'Not yet,' he said, not optimistically. All the same, his grip became firmer around Hermione's waist, holding onto her.

Hermione didn't scorn him his need to keep an eye out. They all were doing that. She did wish, though, he could do it without such a stark look of hard worry on his face. That wasn't helping Hermione enjoy the outing. Any time his eyes landed on something for longer than a second, she got a jolt of fear. It was hard not to associate that, and the look on Sirius's face, with imminent danger.

Slipping from his arm, Hermione clasped his hand in hers. She gave him a smile when he shot her an uneasy look, and swung their hands between them. Sirius might not be acting like it, but Hermione could at least pretend they were out for a nice day.

They passed into a narrow shop-lined pedestrian avenue, then into the first large clothing retailer Hermione spotted.

Sirius, Tonks, and Remus might be acting like bodyguards, but Hermione found herself swayed by rack after rack of shoes. Her mission had been to find a pair of functional and comfortable trainers. But it was hard to pretend she wasn't tempted by shelf after shelf of high heels.

Sirius and his present utter lack of good humour didn't take long to tire of such questions as "But… will I ever actually wear them?" "Do you think they're impractical?" "They'd go far better with skirts than trainers do… Don't you think?". He provided her a cursory, 'I think you should get what you want,' followed that up with a brief concession of, 'I think you'd look nice in heels,' and then moved a short way away to pretend to look at a display of belts with Ron and Remus. Hermione saw Sirius cast more than one sidelong look out the front windows of the shop.

Hermione was glad she wasn't presently in a weepy mood, and glad too that, following up behind her, were Leonora and Ginny. While Leonora didn't much care for thick heels, Ginny took an encouraging shine to the very high, thick-heeled and rather collegiate black pumps Hermione was looking at.

'Ee isn't usually so steeff…' Leonora observed quietly to Hermione as she stood before the mirror in the black heels.

Hermione glanced over at Sirius, able to see him better now she was standing about four inches taller. Sirius, half-listening to something Ron was saying to him, was scanning the entire shop.

'He doesn't really want us here,' Hermione answered the implied question. 'I suppose I should be grateful he's keeping an eye out,' she went on, noting she was doing a worse job of that, 'but… I do hope he'll cheer up.'

The heels mightn't be a very practical choice, especially when she was here for maternity wear, but… Hermione evaluated them. They actually weren't uncomfortable, they did look nice paired with the skirt, and… they made her legs longer and her butt perkier. Perhaps the heels weren't the ankle-breaking variety she'd envied when she'd watched the tipsy woman topple on the other side of Grimmauld Place's square, but they screamed "young pretty woman going places" and Hermione wanted them.

'Hermione,' Ginny deadpanned, evaluating the shoes with her, 'yes.'

So Hermione added those shoes, plus two more of different varieties, to the sensible trainers in her basket.

Less enthusiastically, Hermione heeded Sirius's hurrying beckon to the maternity section and spent the next several minutes trying not to shoot down every suggestion he and Leonora brought to her attention.

'What's wrong with this one?' Sirius asked, his tone one of contained impatience, looking down at the… frock he'd pulled out.

What was wrong with it was that it screamed "time for you to be ugly now". In very loud patterned turquoise.

'It's… a sort-of princess cut thing,' Hermione muttered, pulling out the sides of the enormous waist of the dress. From all she'd seen first in Duds and Togs, and now here, it seemed the world expected you to give up on being attractive the moment you became pregnant. No need, Hermione supposed sourly. Biology had already done what it needed to. Pregnancy was, apparently, time to frump like a shrouded beach ball, hidden away from everyone's sight.

Wordlessly, Sirius stuck the blouse away. Another two minutes of fingering through depressing maternity wear, and Hermione became the one who was repeatedly gazing out the front windows of the shop, though she did it longingly rather than worriedly. She gained a modicum of comfort by looking down at her pretty shoes in the basket.

'Ere,' said Leonora kindly, taking Hermione's arm, 'I theenk we can make somessing else work.'

Leonora's plan seemed to be to rescue Hermione from the frightful bowels of maternity wear. And she had a lot of ideas about what non-maternity stuff would work to fit a ballooning body.

'See?' Leonora said, holding up a pretty auburn wrap dress. 'Ze sides are long enough to wrap around eef you get a beegger size. And I theenk you weell look fantastique in zis colour.'

Wrap dresses, simple dresses that were of a fabric light and stretchy enough to grow with her a bit, similarly stretchy tops that were long enough to not ride too high over a bump or flattering blouses with excess floaty material, skirts with elasticised waistbands or ones that would ride low on Hermione's hips, and even a couple pairs of very soft denim trousers that didn't look ridiculous with a stretchy waist…

Hermione took two heavy armfuls of clothes she actually liked to the change rooms. Only a few of Leonora's suggestions Hermione thought wouldn't work even in a larger size, but the vast majority of them likely would. Of the few that might not work…

Hermione studied herself in the dressing room mirror. This skirt had an inbuilt belt that could be let out several holes, and the top could stretch a bit. Even so, if Hermione did buy this outfit, it'd be a vanity purchase for now.

The top was a reddish orange, ribbed and fitted, with a v-neck that just hinted at increasing cleavage. The pleated skirt swished just to her knees and, in the high-heeled shoes Hermione had slipped on, her calves below it did look nice.

Her face looked a lot older than it had even a couple years ago. But dressed like this, Hermione felt like a university student ready to stride out into the world. It wasn't flashy, and, paired with the button-free blazer Hermione had hung on the "yes" hook, it would work as an outfit for an intern starting their career.

It wasn't any kind of party outfit, but it managed to scream both "young" and "far more mature than she had been when her ring had first been slipped on her finger".

Hermione hadn't bothered to do so with the other outfits, but with this one, she unlatched the stall door and stepped out. Leonora had, very helpfully, gone off to fetch Hermione a different size of the stretchy trousers, but Sirius was there. Ever hovering, he'd taken the chair near the exit to the dressing rooms.

He looked over as Hermione, walking quite steadily in the four inch heels, if she did say so herself, headed towards him. And he did notice.

With her only clothes for the past several months those out of a trunk packed for a mission, stylish hadn't been in large supply. Holding out her arms, Hermione showed off the outfit.

'It won't fit for long,' she said, 'but…'

Sirius's eyebrows had lifted. Looking sufficiently appreciative, he appraised Hermione from bottom to top, then gave a little nod. When he returned his eyes to hers, his hard look had eased, but the watchful part was still there. His face pulled into a small smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

'Well it fits now,' he said, 'and I'm sure it'll fit again later.'

'So you think I should get it?'

Sirius's smile came back.

'It looks great on you,' he answered, very earnestly, and, pleased, Hermione took that as her answer.

'I wanted to enjoy this,' Hermione said, pointedly but gently. Speaking more quietly, she added, 'We've got until three.'

Sirius sighed quietly.

'And while we're here,' Hermione went on, 'you should really look for a few more jeans and t-shirts.'

He did have a terrible habit of wearing out the knees of his jeans, and it seemed there were only so many times Kreacher could scrub paint out of them before they grew thin in places. Sirius sighed again, but he did get up to go look.

When Hermione came out with two crammed baskets, Sirius appeared to have taken her up on both suggestions. He was pulling a comical face at a pair of very baggy trousers he'd fetched out from a rack. His comment about the trousers had even managed to put a slight, indulgent smile on Remus's face.

'How would you even move in them?' Sirius was complaining. 'You'd have to wade.'

It seemed he'd completely missed the entire wall of folded jeans on the other side of the shop.

'Sirius,' Hermione said, amused, as Sirius stuffed the trousers back on their rack, 'you're in the teenagers' section.'

Sirius had found another pair of jeans. He contemplated them, then glanced up at her.

'Since when did even teenage boys start wearing skin-tight pedal pushers?' he asked holding the jeans up. They were artfully ripped and meant to be calf-height, Hermione could see, with the cuffs rolled up. And on Sirius they probably would be skin tight. 'And why would anyone,' Sirius went on, astounded, 'buy jeans that already have holes in the knees?'

Wondering what indictments Sirius would come out with against fashions when he had to go shopping with a teenage Monkey, Hermione turned him towards the normal jeans and suggested he'd have more luck there.

Hermione found Tonks and Ginny looking at toddler shoes, then, on afterthought, she wound her way back to fetch another blazer she'd seen, as well as a wrap cardigan. On the other side of the shop, it seemed Sirius was finished with finding jeans. Leaving Ron to hold them, Sirius was inspecting a flashy windbreaker. There was little chance, Hermione thought, that he was contemplating it for himself. She couldn't see him ever replacing the dragon hide riding jacket he had slung over one arm.

Her assumptions were right. Turning from the rack, Sirius hooked the top of the hanger neatly into the collar of Remus's patched and frayed tweed coat so that it hung down over the wizard's front. Sirius followed that with a thick tartan scarf he wound around Remus's neck, and then stood back to appraise the combination.

Remus had spent the morning reticent, blank-faced, and withdrawn. While he wasn't smiling, it did seem Sirius was at least annoying some of that out of Remus. The werewolf was giving Sirius a look as though daring Sirius to go one step further.

Sirius tried, with a flat cap he found on a rack. And Remus retaliated. The scarf was wrangled over Sirius's head, and the flat cap pulled down on top of it. It caused Sirius to stumble backwards into two women who'd been passing behind him. He lifted the scarf from his eyes, shot a look toward Hermione, out the front windows, then turned to apologise to the women.

'If Sirius can get him to buy a new jacket,' Tonks said, watching the two across the shop, 'I will kiss him.'

Sirius did appear to be attempting… something like that. He'd divested himself of the scarf and flat cap, and found, instead, a vivid orange parka he was attempting to sell Remus on.

'Do you reckon Skeeter does a Sirius as a beetle?' Ginny asked, clicking idly though a rack of trousers. 'You know, escape the Lovegoods and have a fly?'

'I'm not sure,' Hermione responded. 'It would be tempting,' she went on. 'You'd want to… stretch your wings every once in a while.'

'I was theenking…' Leonora said as Ginny considered either Hermione's response or a pinstripe pair of tight trousers, looking thoughtful either way, 'how ees eet weeth Animagus transformations when you're pregnant?' Leonora looked to Hermione, curious. 'Ees eet okay?'

Hermione had no idea.

'I doubt anyone's tried it,' said Tonks. 'There are so few Animagi. And you wouldn't want to be the first to give that a go with your own baby on the line, would you?'

'Erm… excuse me?'

All four of them looked around. The new voice was one of the women Sirius had bumped into. The other, Hermione noticed, was waiting shyly a short distance away.

The two women were younger than Hermione had initially unconsciously pegged them. Now she looked properly, she was pretty sure they couldn't be older than about sixteen. The one who'd spoken to them gave off a giggly, embarrassed air.

'Amy!' the other hissed at her, looking mortified.

Amy gave her a quelling wave as she quivered into a fit of giggles.

'My friend,' she said to Hermione, Ginny, Tonks, and Leonora, 'wants to know if you know that guy?'

They followed her pointing finger. On the other side of the shop, Sirius was battling Remus's arms down in an effort to hold an attractive duffel coat up to his front. Harry was looking through t-shirts (which was good, as he did need more). And Ron had buttoned himself into a sports jacket. He lifted his arms out in front of him and pulled a face at the amount of wrist doing so exposed. Where Sirius's stack of jeans had gone, Hermione wasn't sure.

'Nothing ever fits him properly,' Ginny remarked. 'I swear his arms are longer than is natural…'

'Which one?' Tonks asked, turning back to the girl with an amused quirk to her brow. 'The one with glasses who seems pretty normal, the one who can't find a jacket that fits, or the one who looks like he went a round with a wolf?'

Unsurprisingly, the girl shook her head.

'Erm… no…'

'Oooohhhh,' said Ginny, feigning sudden understanding. She jerked a thumb over her shoulder in Sirius's general direction. 'You mean the tall, dark, and sexy one who thinks he can cheer people up if he wrestles them into duffel coats?'

Sirius had actually gotten Remus into the duffel coat. It suited Remus very nicely.

'Yeah,' Amy giggled. 'Him.' She caught herself with a breath. 'My friend… like… wants to know if he's… you know? Single? 'Cause he's like… funny and stuff, isn't he?'

As Remus was giving Sirius an irritated sort of smile, Hermione supposed Sirius was presently bring funny.

'I'd say he's funny,' she agreed.

'He's like forty,' Ginny muttered under her breath. As she was right next to Hermione, Hermione heard. Whether Ginny realised Hermione could or not, she didn't go on, but Hermione understood what Ginny meant. She was a stretch for Sirius, and she was, at least mentally, far older than this girl.

'Well,' said Tonks, 'he has this on-again off-again thing with the wolf-wrestler.' Remus hadn't taken off the duffel coat. He had, though, gotten back at Sirius by holding a fusty-looking waistcoat up to Sirius's chest. Whatever Remus was saying had Sirius scowling. 'Balance each other out, you know?' Tonks went on. 'Got a little show going – every Friday at six. It's about a bickering old married couple. It's very funny.'

Hermione chuckled. She could see that all too well. She wasn't the only one who did.

'Zey are not laughing at you,' Leonora explained kindly to the girl. 'Zey are laughing at zem,' she indicated Sirius and Remus. 'But no, ee ees not seengle.'

'He's a dad,' Ginny added.

Well, not yet, and Ginny's words were rather contemptuous. But hearing it still gave Hermione a funny little swell in her chest that wasn't entirely unpleasant.

In that moment, Hermione could envision herself bragging a bit about Sirius. Letting this girl know a little more about the man she was admiring. The part about him being able to change into a dog would be a fun thing to tell the Muggle girl. Hermione almost wanted to see her face hearing that.

'Oh, okay.' Amy nodded. 'Out of luck Erin!' she called to her friend. Erin had already hidden her blushing face behind a nearby jumper, so she appeared to be taking it well. 'So,' Amy went on, with more interest, 'like, what about the redhead?'

Leonora changed on a dime. She seemed to grow in both stature and glower.

'Ee ees mine,' she pronounced, quite unkindly.

Amy's eyes grew wide and affronted. She held up both hands.

'Woah – okay,' she muttered, moving off. 'He's not that great,' she added in a vengeful undertone.

Leonora glared at her back. Hermione hid a smile by turning back to see Sirius actually wearing the waistcoat and looking far from happy about it. The good news, she supposed, was that it seemed Leonora really did care about Ron.

Though Hermione didn't think Remus had agreed to it, the duffel coat was in one of the many baskets they presented to the cashier. With some prodding, Remus discarded his tattered tweed coat and swapped it for the duffel before they left the shop. That single change did a lot to make Remus look more like some kind of aged action hero. Tonks made a low whistle, and, wonderfully, broke into a laugh when Remus shot her a fairly good-humoured glower.

Every one of Hermione and Sirius's purchases fit inside the pockets of his riding jacket, Sirius tucking them in, very casually, bag by bag, as Hermione tried not to snigger at the one Muggle passer-by who noticed. She gripped Sirius's hand and, losing her fight against amusement, laughed as the elderly lady stood stock still behind them, frowning hard at the utter lack of a bulge in Sirius's well-filled pockets. Sirius responded to it by turning around and flashing the elderly Muggle a very dashing grin Hermione was pretty sure did distract her. He waited until the woman couldn't see him before quickly sticking the last shopping bag into his pocket.

For all they'd started the day with worried hurry, it was shaping up nicely. A kiosk, set up on the side of the pedestrian avenue and bearing a great many humorous t-shirts, helped further. Hermione did, in response to one rather inappropriate t-shirt, have to explain what a gynaecologist was to the group of witches and wizards (Harry snickering quietly in the background, not inclined to help her), but it added extra good cheer to the early afternoon. Sirius had grabbed himself a few plain t-shirts from the first shop. In addition to those, he added two more t-shirts: one that said "I am currently unsupervised. I know. It freaks me out too. But the possibilities are endless!", and another that proclaimed "If history repeats itself… I'm so getting dinosaur". He did, at least, leave the one with the logo for a "Morning Wood Lumber Mill" behind, and the one that called Hermione grumpy.

Deciding on a fast food shop up the street for lunch, they headed that way. They had time enough for it, Hermione noted, pleased, when she checked Sirius's watch. And as they planned to take their lunch to sit somewhere, she might even get to eat it on the beach.

A furniture shop stalled her momentarily. Peering in through the front windows, her eyes landed on a standing mirror that was almost whimsical in wooden design. Beside it, there was a very pretty toddler bed; a handsome rocking chair… But then, if they bought any furniture, there was no way to get it home. Sirius's pockets were good, but they weren't that good. And, Hermione supposed, as Muggles couldn't find their home, it wasn't like she could ask for delivery either.

'See anything you like?' Sirius asked, stopping to look into the shop with her.

Hermione smiled, then shrugged.

'We'd have to arrange a… car with a flat part on the back to get any of it home,' she said, explaining for his benefit. Gripping his hand and pulling him after the rest of their group, she asked curiously, 'Can you drive a car?'

Hermione couldn't. Her parents might have taught her, there just hadn't been time.

'Sort of,' Sirius answered. Hermione frowned at him. He shrugged a little. 'Only tried once,' he said. 'Also,' he went on, more wryly, 'I stole it.'

'You stole a car?'

'Oi, Remus,' Sirius called, slowing. Rather than leading it with trenchant strides, the werewolf had moved to the back of their group. 'Tell Hermione I stole a car for a good reason.'

An amused expression slid into Remus's face. His eyes actually seemed to twinkle in the bright sunshine. For the first time, Hermione really thought Remus was laughing internally at Sirius.

'He stole it to give us all heart attacks,' he provided, speaking to Hermione.

'I did not!' Sirius complained, petulant. 'The complete lack of gratitude Moony! You're still alive because of me!'

Remus half-conceded with a tip of his head.

'For that particular occasion, that was, in large part, luck,' he said, genteel. 'It was,' he added to Hermione, 'something of a getaway car. And he drove it off the side of a river.'

'Onto,' Sirius said pointedly, 'a bridge. Onto a bridge,' he repeated, assuring Hermione. 'I didn't just drive willy-nilly off a cliff.'

From what Hermione gleaned, it was them getting away from Death Eaters in the first war, and it had been successful. Though, that Sirius had made it onto the bridge was something of a miracle, according to Remus. They – Lily, James, Chione, and Remus – had all been pretty sure they were about to die until the car (which Sirius had stalled about four times before getting the hang of the clutch) scraped its way over the side barrier of the bridge.

While Hermione listened to Sirius and Remus's bickering about that event, she didn't gain many more details about it than the fact Sirius had yelled, "Don't shout words at me I don't understand while I'm trying to make the thingy move!" in response to being tasked with doing up his seatbelt. She could imagine it, and she'd ask later, but seeing the fun in both old friends, Hermione decided against interrupting their "bickering old married couple" routine.

That Sirius was occupied with Remus had Hermione ending up walking with Ginny. Ginny cast Hermione a sidelong look, took in Leonora not far behind them as Ron and Harry walked on ahead, then asked quietly, 'Do you want to talk now? What happened? Why'd you hide away?'

In the bathroom, Hermione added silently for Ginny, feeling a new shock of shame. In the bright daylight, that dark period seemed entirely unwarranted, for all Sirius's assurances it hadn't been.

Feeling stupid and wishing she could take that dark period back – erase it entirely – Hermione pulled a tight smile.

'Tale for a tale?' she suggested evasively. 'Can I ask what your boggart was?'

Ginny scrunched up her nose and produced a small groan.

'You probably know already,' she muttered. Louder, she said, 'Can I tell you Ron's instead?'

'What was Ron's?'

'That mirror he and Harry found in your first year.'

It wasn't what Hermione was expecting to hear. She hadn't really been expecting anything, but that was even further from what she might expect.

'The Mirror of Erised?' she said. 'Why is he afraid of that?'

Pulling a grand shrug, Ginny said, 'Beats me. Maybe he's scared of his desires?'

'Or maybe,' Hermione postulated thoughtfully, 'of never attaining his desire? His goals?'

'No,' Leonora said, from just behind them. 'Eet ees not zat.'

They turned expectant looks on her, pausing to let Leonora catch up.

Leonora hesitated briefly, shooting a look at Ron.

'I weell tell you,' she said, 'eef only so you weell not believe ee 'as so… seelly a fear.' Leonora gave them something approaching an admonitory look. 'Ee ees terrified ee weell… do somessing very bad. Be weak or… corruptible – and make everyone turn zeir backs on 'im. 'Is family, friends – everyone.'

Sympathetically, Hermione grimaced. Ginny uttered a little, 'Oh…

'Oh!' Ginny said again. Hermione glanced at her. Ginny was staring up ahead, towards Ron and Harry, and her look was no longer sympathetic. 'Is that…?' she said, astounded. She didn't finish, instead indicating with a pointed finger.

Expecting danger, Hermione followed Ginny's finger with a sudden shock of fear.

But it wasn't anyone they needed to worry about. Not anymore. Below the bold red Woolworths sign just ahead were three people Hermione had barely glimpsed before, and hadn't thought she'd ever see again: a very rotund man with a walrus moustache, a brawny younger man, and a thin and perpetually stressed-looking woman.

Harry had noticed too. And he was already on his way over, despite the suddenly horrified stare his aunt Petunia was treating him to. The nearer Harry got, she seemed to quail, more and more, as though wanting to hide away behind her son.

'Did you know they were here?' Ginny hissed at Hermione.

'No,' Hermione answered in a rapid whisper, hastening to follow after Harry. 'I don't think Harry knew where the Order took them either…'

Largely as a result of Petunia's frantic patting of his arm, Harry's uncle Vernon had noticed them. It took Vernon about two seconds to go from unconcerned to appearing as though he'd swallowed a whole grapefruit and was now in a great deal of pain. In another second he'd acquired the look of someone with a very large belch fighting its way to the surface.

It belched itself up.

'Boy!' Vernon actually shouted, loud enough to make Muggle after Muggle look their way. Hermione flinched, but Harry seemed to have been expecting it. 'What – what –' Vernon blustered on, going red. 'What are you doing here?' he finally got out.

Harry held up the shopping bag containing his t-shirts. He nodded to the similar packets Petunia was carrying.

'In a shopping centre?' Harry said dryly. 'Same as you, I expect: shopping.' To his cousin, he said a simple, 'Hey Dudley.'

Of the three Dursleys, Dudley seemed the one least disturbed by finding himself face-to-face with Harry. Petunia had eyes huge and mouth tightly compressed, her gaze flicking from Harry, to Ron, to Ginny, to Hermione, as though scared they were about to curse her in the street. Dudley, in contrast, was eyeing them all in a way that could be called curious.

Vernon drew himself to the extent of his height. Hermione noted he was now shorter than Harry.

'Dudley will be starting at my firm,' he said, slapping Dudley too proudly on the shoulder. It looked like an obvious display rather than genuine pride. 'In finance and leasing. He's got to look the part!'

Dudley's face had pinched. He seemed markedly less enthused by the prospect. Harry fought a smile that wanted to stretch over his face.

'Finance and leasing?' he repeated, with restrained hilarity. 'Never have thought that'd be your dream job, Dudley. What happened to boxing?'

Dudley opened his mouth to answer, but his father got there first.

'Nothing wrong with a good hobby!' Vernon proclaimed. His mean little eyes narrowing, he sized Harry up. 'But every man needs a good and stable career!'

Vernon's assumption was clear, and Harry didn't bother to ignore it.

'Probably,' Harry agreed. 'I, of course, am an unemployed wastrel. Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.'

Satisfied, Vernon seemed to puff up even larger.

'Are these your… friends? From that… school?'

It was Dudley's question, and the almost friendly tone he'd asked it in surprised Hermione. It gave Harry pause too, though only momentarily.

'Yeah,' he said, hesitated, then went on, 'this is, er… Ginny, my girlfriend,' Harry said, indicating Ginny. 'Then, Hermione and Ron…'

Harry didn't continue. The moment she'd been introduced, Petunia had been surveying Ginny with abject dislike, her lip twisting. She wasn't scowling at Ginny anymore though. She was staring over their shoulders at something behind them. Harry looked around.

Remus and Tonks had stopped a short way behind them, but Sirius was coming over, and he didn't look amused any longer. Hermione shared a wary look with Leonora. She wasn't sure she wanted a confrontation on the street between Sirius and the Dursleys.

'You!' Petunia more breathed than said, staring up at Sirius. She was looking terrified all over again. Sirius's eyes landed on her and Petunia visibly cowered. Hermione could understand why. Sirius looked coldly furious, his stare frankly condemning; standing straight and very tall. Sirius was very good at knowing how to loom and glower and it made even Hermione feel dwarfed and shadowed next to him.

Vernon's bushy moustache was wafting without words. He found his voice and blithered a, 'But – but –' His jaw set in his flabby face. He lifted a stubby finger and pointed it from Sirius to Harry, then, stupidly, back again. 'You're dead!'

Sirius's eyebrows rose condescendingly.

'Is that a threat, Dursley?' Sirius shot a meaningful look at Vernon's finger. 'I'd put that finger down if I were you. You don't want it to turn suddenly into a sausage.'

Vernon snatched his hand away and hid it behind his back.

'You know,' Sirius went on, his tone insincerely light, 'when I heard you were having a child, I felt sorry for the kid, to have you as a father.' Sirius glanced at Dudley, Petunia trying to shrink away behind her son. 'Seems he managed to grow up a far better man than you Dursley, despite that. What I never expected was that you'd have a chance to try anything with Harry.'

'Sirius…' Harry said, quelling.

Sirius stared Vernon down as the man gaped like a fish and steadily went even more red – like watching a sped-up film of a tomato ripening to past its best-before.

'Know the mark of a true coward?' Sirius went on, venomous. 'Taking out your inferiority on a child.'

'Sirius,' Harry deadpanned, 'leave it. It's not worth it.'

Sirius's mouth shut, his jaw tight. Anxiously, Hermione checked he hadn't unleashed his furious magic on anything.

Vernon, however, wasn't silenced.

'Well – well –' the man faltered, his face turning a striking shade of aubergine. 'Well where were you?' he finally demanded, enraged. 'You could have come taken him any time you wanted – have at it! And what were you doing?' Vernon's moustache seemed to shiver, his eyes squinting tiny. 'Out murderingmad criminal – think you can tell me –'

'He's not a murderer!' Hermione snapped. 'Oh – for heaven's sake! You know why Harry was with you! Don't act stupid!'

Harry cast her a look. Then he seemed to sigh, as though regretting not just walking on and pretending he'd never noticed the Dursleys.

'I did actually let them think he was a murderer,' he said, very wryly.

Sirius had lifted his gaze from Vernon. His eyes, instead, were boring into Petunia. She looked away, grabbed Dudley's arm, and pulled.

'Let's go,' she said hurriedly. 'Vernon –'

'And you,' Sirius snarled, seemingly unable to stop himself.

Petunia froze, her bony fingers digging into Dudley's arm. She didn't meet Sirius's eyes.

'Lily always hoped you'd come round,' Sirius said, his voice low and hateful. 'Your parents hoped it too. This buffoon,' he jerked his head at Vernon, 'I never expected more from, but you. It seems your sister held far more regard for you than you ever deserved. Couldn't do it, could you? Not for Lily, not for your parents, and not for a helpless child. Your petty jealousy always meant more to you than that.'

Like she couldn't help herself, Petunia had looked up at Sirius. She quivered and Hermione thought her eyes had grown a little too bright.

'It's one thing I'm glad for,' Sirius continued, his condemnation crushing, 'that Lily wasn't here to see it.'

Vernon's fists had balled up, but punching Sirius didn't appear something he dared to do. Petunia had flinched away. She tugged harder on Dudley's arm.

'Come on,' she said harshly. 'Let's go.'

Dudley went a step before resisting his mother again. Petunia had more success with her husband. Though he stared apoplectic mutiny back at Sirius, Vernon let Petunia haul him away.

'Dudley!' he barked.

Dudley ignored him. Though intimidated, he was contemplating Harry, his blond eyebrows furrowed deeply.

'You did it then?' he asked. 'They told us it was all over.'

Harry didn't take the bitter opportunity to point out it was far from over. He gave a half-nod, half-shrug.

'Voldemort's gone, yeah.'

'But you did it,' Dudley insisted. 'Didn't you?'

Surprisingly, Harry broke into an amused smile.

'Yeah,' he admitted. 'Tougher than I look, eh?'

'Yeah,' Dudley agreed, sincere. He nodded to Harry. 'See you, then.'

'And you,' said Harry, returning the nod.

When the Dursleys had moved off, Harry turned and cast Sirius an exasperated look.

'I don't need you,' he muttered quietly to his godfather, 'to fight my battles for me.'

Sirius didn't respond. They gravitated back into a walk up the street, Sirius's face still cast in hard anger. Harry had it the wrong way around, Hermione thought. It wasn't Harry's battle Sirius had fought, but Sirius's own. One he'd probably wanted to fight for a long time.

'If they're living here,' Hermione heard Harry say to Ginny, 'then I pick somewhere on the west coast to live. Dudley's all right, but if I never see my aunt and uncle again, I won't be complaining.'