Disclaimer- I only own the new characters and the plot. I am making no
money from this story- believe me. I would know.
Going home for Christmas.
Hermione practically leapt onto the Hogwarts Express as the scarlet train pulled into Hogsmeade station. Since it had been decided that they would go to her house for Christmas, she had been very excited, and couldn't wait to get home. It was obvious that she preferred to spend the holidays with her family.
Ron and Harry boarded the train after her, a little more soberly. The three of them sat in their own compartment and played exploding snap as the Hogwarts Express wound its way south. Daphne was in another compartment with Lori and their friends Lara and Jake.
Hermione had just been up to the front to ask the driver how long it would take to get to King's Cross when Daphne came hurrying up the corridor towards her. She looked furious.
"Hermione! You will never *believe* what just happened." She said breathlessly, skidding to a halt next to her cousin. Her hands were balled up in fists and she sounded about ready to explode. Hermione frowned. "What? What's wrong?" She asked.
"We were just sitting there talking when in comes Draco Malfoy, without even *knocking*, and he grabs Lori by the arm and drags her out of the compartment. So we all…" The compartment door slid open and Harry and Ron poked their heads out, listening with frowns identical to Hermione's. Daphne carried on.
"So we all told him to leave her alone, and he tells us to shut up and stay out of it. So I went into the corridor after them, and he didn't even *look* at me, he just put his wand over his shoulder and said Stupidf… Stpifid… Stupif… well, whatever it was. And I dodged it and it hit Jake, who was behind me. But we don't know what to do and Lori's with him and she *can't* go home with them, she just can't! She looked so scared…"
Hermione glanced at Harry and Ron, who looked as helpless as she felt. What could they do? They had no right to stop Lori going home with her family, even if Draco acted more like a zookeeper than a brother- even though Lucius Malfoy was a Deatheater and would be furious his daughter wasn't in Slytherin. They couldn't prove anything. The only person they could help right now was Jake.
"Where's Jake?" Hermione asked urgently. Daphne pointed up the corridor. "In the next carriage." She answered. Hermione started up the corridor, closely followed by the other three. They found the compartment without any trouble- Jake's feet were sticking out through the door. Hermione slid the door open the rest of the way to find Lara, frantic with worry on the other side.
"Hermione! Thank god! What's wrong with him? Do you know? Can you help? What do we do?" She babbled. Hermione stepped inside the compartment and smiled at the younger girl. "It's alright Lara. He's only been Stunned." She pointed her wand at Jake, who looked like he was sleeping peacefully, and muttered, "Enervate!" under her breath. Jake woke up straight away, and sat up groggily. Daphne and Lara breathed simultaneous sighs of relief.
"How're you feeling?" Hermione asked Jake as he pulled himself up onto one of the seats. He shrugged, looking a bit confused. "Fine. What happened?" He asked curiously. "Malfoy stunned you." Hermione replied, standing aside to let Daphne back into the compartment. Jake frowned angrily- he had a witch mother, so he knew what it was to be stunned. Daphne cleared her throat.
"He was aiming for me, but I ducked. I'm sorry Jake." She said, biting her lip. Jake rolled his eyes. "Don't apologise. I feel fine. Where's Lori?" he asked, looking around the compartment. Lara glanced fearfully at Daphne, who looked down at the floor, gritting her teeth. Hermione exchanged looks with Ron and Harry, who both knew the same thing as she did- Lori was a Malfoy, and they had no right to stick their noses in Malfoy family business. Not yet anyway.
Daphne looked up at Jake. "She's with Draco." She said bitterly. Jake glanced over at Harry, Ron and Hermione. The rivalry between those three and Draco Malfoy was legendry at Hogwarts, in all the houses and in all the years. But at this moment in time, they didn't look ready to lead an all- out attack on Malfoy.
"Daphne, maybe you should come into our compartment. We're at King's Cross already." Hermione said. Indeed, the Hogwarts Express was already pulling into the station. Daphne frowned. "What about Lori?" She asked confusedly. Hermione sighed. "There's nothing you can do about it… I'm sorry, but it's true." Hermione added as Daphne started to protest. The train shuddered to a halt. "Come on." Hermione said, picking up Daphne's bag and handing it to her. "Wingardium Leviosa." She said, pointing her wand at Daphne's trunk. It soared into the air and hovered in between the cousins. Daphne pulled out her wand reluctantly and took the trunk off of Hermione. "Bye you two." Hermione said to Lara and Jake. "Merry Christmas." She added before turning and leaving the compartment. Harry and Ron turned and followed her, and Daphne, after saying her goodbyes to Lara and Jake, turned and followed them.
Harry, Ron and Hermione collected their things and got out onto the platform. Daphne was already there waiting for them, surrounded by cold, hurried students, getting off the train and saying goodbye to their friends. The students with magic parents were meeting them there; others were crowding over to the gate to get into the main station.
Hermione smiled at her cousin, who was looking very glum. "Let's go then." She said cheerfully. Daphne nodded and started to head towards the exit. They had to wait in the queue for about fifteen minutes, but finally they got through the barrier and were able to breathe again. Hermione immediately began to search the crowds for her parents.
"Hermione! Daphne!" Hermione, Daphne, Harry and Ron turned around to see Mrs Granger hurrying towards them, looking a bit rushed but with a big smile on her face. Hermione grinned and stepped forward to hug her mother. "Hi Mum!" She said happily. Joanne Granger beamed at her daughter. "Hi honey, how are you?" She asked. "Fine. Are you O.K?" Hermione replied. Her mother nodded, and then spotted Daphne.
"Well Miss Granger. Someone didn't tell us she was a witch." She said sternly. Daphne smiled sheepishly. "I could say the same thing to your daughter, Mrs Granger." She replied cheekily. Then she laughed and ran to give her Aunt a hug. "Hi Auntie Jo!" She said with a grin. Joanne smiled and hugged her niece tightly. "Hi Honeybunch. How was your first term?" She asked. Daphne nodded happily. "It was great. Apart from Hermione bullying me all he time, that is." She said with a shrug, sighing heavily. "Oh well. You can't have everything, can you?" Joanne said with a laugh. Then she turned to Harry and Ron.
"Hello you two. I apologise on behalf of my niece for having had to put up with her last term." She said with a grin. Daphne hit her aunt playfully on the arm and Hermione, Harry and Ron laughed.
"Thanks for letting us stay Mrs Granger." Harry said. Joanne Granger waved a hand dismissively. "It's a pleasure Harry. And for heaven's sake, don't call me Mrs Granger- it makes me feel so old. My name's Jo." She said with a grin. Harry and Ron nodded mutely as 'Jo' bent down to peer into Crookshanks' cage. "Hello trouble." She said through the wicker. She straightened up and spotted the owls, perched in their cages on top of Ron and Harry's trunks. Jo grinned. "Hi Hedwig, how are you your ladyship?" She cooed. Harry looked at Hedwig and laughed. His owl was ruffling her feathers and looking very smug; she loved any form of flattery. Jo grinned at Pigwidgeon. "Hey Pig! Haven't grown much have you?" She said to the tiny owl. Pig hooted in reply and hopped up and down on his perch.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Come on Mum, stop talking to the animals." She said. Jo laughed and straightened up. "Alright. The car's parked out front." She said, starting to head towards the exit. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Daphne followed her, waving goodbye to various people they knew who were still milling around the station.
They got to the car park and Jo pointed towards a dark-blue space cruiser parked nearby. Hermione's eyes widened. "You got a new car?" She asked in disbelief. Jo nodded with a smile. "Do you like it?"
Hermione grinned. "It's gorgeous! I always wanted one of these cars!" She said as they reached it. She bent down to peer through the window. Jo grinned. "I know." She said, unlocking the boot. She swiftly folded down one of the back seats to make extra room for the trunks. They put them all in, along with the book bags, and slammed the boot shut.
Hermione climbed into the front seat, Crookshanks' cage on her lap. Ron, Harry and Daphne climbed into the back, where they all had a separate chair and plenty of legroom- even with all the trunks in the car. The owls stayed in their cages, sitting on their owners' laps. Daphne smiled sadly. "I feel left out. I'm the only one without a pet." She said sulkily.
Jo grinned as she climbed into the driver's seat. "I'm sure your fish are missing you." She said sarcastically. Daphne glared at her aunt, but then just grinned. Hermione suddenly turned to her mum. "Where's Dad?" She asked. Jo grinned. "Nice of you to realise he isn't here. It only took you fifteen minutes." She said as she backed the car out of the parking space. Hermione smiled sheepishly. "He's at work, but he might be home by the time we get there." Jo said with a laugh.
They started to drive out of the station, but almost immediately hit a traffic jam- it was rush hour in central London after all. Hermione leant forward and began to fiddle with the radio. Daphne grinned happily. "At last! Some music." She said gleefully as a pop song blared out. Jo grinned at her daughter.
"Your baby's missing you." She said to her. Hermione smiled. "Is she? You have remembered to feed her, haven't you?" She said sternly. Jo nodded as they turned a corner and hit another traffic jam.
Harry leant forward. "What baby? What are you talking about?" He asked. Daphne grinned. "They're talking about Tallulah." She answered. "Who?" Harry and Ron asked simultaneously. Daphne smiled. "You'll see…" She said mysteriously.
Hermione's house wasn't very far from central London, but with the traffic it took them about forty minutes to get to her house. It was a semi- detached, quite large house, not very different from the kind on Privet Drive. There was no front garden- they had built over it to extend the driveway. However, there were plenty of bushes and flowers bordering the path, though not in bloom at the moment as it was winter.
Jo helped get all the trunks out of the car and then opened the front door. As she did so she looked at her watch and sighed in relief. "Luke will be here any minute. It's lucky we got here before him." She said. Daphne grinned. "That's a shame. It would have been funny to make him wait." She said. "Luke's your brother, right?" Ron asked as he dragged his trunk through the front door. Daphne nodded. "Not by choice though." She said.
Harry grinned. "I take it you don't like him then?" He asked. Daphne shrugged. "He's alright sometimes, but other times he's a complete prat." She said. Harry nodded. "Kind of like Ron." He said with another grin, dodging to one side as Ron tried to sock him round the head.
Jo laughed and turned on the hall light, closing the front door behind her. "Ben's not home yet." She said, taking off her coat and hanging it up on a wooden peg. She took the coats from Harry, Ron, Daphne and Hermione, and hung them up as well. Jo grinned at the boys. "Well, Harry and Ron, welcome to our house, otherwise known as the black hole, as you an never find anything. That's usually because Ben hides it though. Anyway…" She made her way down the hall, which ended in a staircase leading upstairs.
"Let me give you a guided tour. This is the door leading down to the basement, but you don't need to go down there unless Daphne is annoying you too much and you feel like locking her somewhere. The key's in the lock." She said, winking at Hermione, who grinned and shook her head slightly. 'Ignore her' she mouthed at Harry and Ron. Jo didn't notice. She opened the one other door leading off of the hall and went inside, switching on the light as she did so. It was the living room- and was large, cosy, had two overstuffed sofas, an armchair and a large coffee table. There was a fireplace against one wall, and in the opposite corner stood a beautiful, large piano. It was dark-wood, brightly polished and had carvings of vines down its legs.
"Tallulah!" Hemione said, walking over to it. "How's my baby?" She cooed, running her hand along the top of the piano. Harry and Ron watched her incredulously. "*That's* Tallulah?" Ron asked in disbelief. Daphne frowned at him. "Don't talk about her as though she's a *thing*." She said sternly. Ron raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.
Hermione laughed and sat down on the stool in front of 'Tallulah'. She smiled at Ron and Harry. "Tooey's been in the family for years. So therefore she's part of the family." Hermione lifted up the wooden flap over the keys. "She needs lots of love, polish, and if she's not played with, she gets very lonely." She said, her hand hovering over the piano.
Harry frowned. "Can you play the piano?" He asked in surprise. Hermione grinned and, quick as a flash, the hand that had been hovering landed on the keys and played a short, but distinctive tune. Daphne tutted. "Show off." She muttered under her breath.
Hermione smiled and was about to answer when suddenly the doorbell rang. She stood up, and Daphne sighed. "Here we go…" she muttered.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "He's not that bad Daph." She said. Daphne folded her arms and said nothing. Jo laughed. "Honestly." She said. "Anyway, from what Hermione has told me about Divination, I predict that either Ben or Luke is at the door." She said, heading back out into the hallway.
Hermione rolled her eyes and Harry and Ron laughed. "Careful, it could be a Grim." Ron called after Jo, causing them to laugh harder. Daphne looked confused. "Huh?" She said. Hermione shook her head. "Don't worry about it." She said, as the sounds of the door being opened came from the hallway.
"Hi Aunt Jo." A male, teenage voice said. "It's Ben." Daphne said sarcastically. Hermione giggled. They heard Jo speaking. "Hi Luke! How's my favourite nephew?" She said cheerfully. "I'm your only nephew." They heard Luke say. Jo laughed. "That's beside the point." She replied. "Go on through to the living room, everyone's here." "Everyone?" Luke asked confusedly. Daphne walked over to the door as her brother came through.
Luke Granger was almost as tall as Ron, but not quite. He had thick brown hair, but it wasn't bushy and was darker than Hermione's and Daphne's. He had bright brown eyes like them, though, and you could definitely tell they were related. When he entered, the first person he spotted was Daphne, and he smiled at his little sister. "Hi Dee." He said. "How was your, er, term?"
Daphne grinned. "Lots of fun thanks." She replied. Luke raised an eyebrow. "Did you learn how to pull a bunny out of a hat yet?" He said jokingly, but Daphne's eyes narrowed. Hermione cleared her throat and Luke looked over at her. "Um… hi Hermione." He said, turning a bit red. He glanced fearfully at Daphne, thinking he had said too much, and then suddenly spotted Harry and Ron.
"Um, hi." He said. Harry and Ron nodded at him, in that annoying way that boys always do, and he turned back to Hermione. "Friends of yours?" He asked. Hermione nodded and stood up. "These are my friends from school, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley." She said, pointing them out as she introduced them. "Harry and Ron, this is my cousin Luke."
Jo came in at that moment and sat down on the armchair. "So Luke, was you surprised when you found out your sister was a witch?" She asked casually. Hermione rolled her eyes, and Daphne snorted with laughter. Harry and Ron listened bemusedly. Luke stared at his aunt in surprise. "Um…what…how do you know? He stammered. Jo smiled. "You can't hide anything from your Aunt Jo you know." She said with a grin. Luke glanced over at Daphne, and then at Hermione, Harry and Ron. "Er…well, Jo, no-one else is really meant to…" Jo waved her hand dismissively. "They won't say anything, honestly." Jo said as they heard the front door being opened again. Hermione grinned and went over to the living room door, just as Ben Granger came through it.
"Hi Dad!" She exclaimed, reaching up to give him a hug. Ben Granger grinned and hugged Hermione tight; lifting her about four inches off the floor. "Hi Hermy! How are you Honey?" He said as he put her back down. Hermione smiled happily. "Fine." She said. Ben Granger put a hand on each of her shoulders and held her at arm's length, peering at her closely. "You haven't changed any part of your body this term, have you?" He asked. Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed his hands away. "Get over the tooth thing Dad." She said. Ben Granger grinned again and looked over at Daphne.
"Hi Daph! How's the newest witch in the family?" He asked with a wink. Daphne grinned and hugged her Uncle. "Hi Uncle Ben." She said with a giggle. Ben smiled at Luke. "Hi Luke. How are you?" Luke smiled back, though it looked like a great effort to do so. "I'm alright. A bit confused, but apart from that…" He said.
Ben grinned and turned to Harry and Ron. "Hi Harry, hi Ron. Sorry if I get you mixed up, but I'm like that. Sorry." He said with a grin. Jo stood up. "Well, come on you lot. Let's have dinner- it's already in the kitchen." She said, standing back to allow everyone to go through to the next room.
As they passed her, Jo grinned at Harry and Ron. "So, *can* you pull a rabbit out of a hat?" She asked. Luke stopped dead and stared at them. Hermione grinned at the startled look on her cousin's face and answered her mother's question. "I'll look it up in the library when we get back to Hogwarts." She said, causing Luke's mouth to drop open in surprise.
Hermione folded her arms and looked at Luke sceptically. "What's wrong?" She asked. "Surely you didn't think Daphne was the first witch in the family, did you?"
A/N- I am sooooooooo sorry that this took me so long to get up- please don't shoot me! It's just that I… I mean, I had to…… O.K, I don't have an excuse, but still, please don't shoot me!
Going home for Christmas.
Hermione practically leapt onto the Hogwarts Express as the scarlet train pulled into Hogsmeade station. Since it had been decided that they would go to her house for Christmas, she had been very excited, and couldn't wait to get home. It was obvious that she preferred to spend the holidays with her family.
Ron and Harry boarded the train after her, a little more soberly. The three of them sat in their own compartment and played exploding snap as the Hogwarts Express wound its way south. Daphne was in another compartment with Lori and their friends Lara and Jake.
Hermione had just been up to the front to ask the driver how long it would take to get to King's Cross when Daphne came hurrying up the corridor towards her. She looked furious.
"Hermione! You will never *believe* what just happened." She said breathlessly, skidding to a halt next to her cousin. Her hands were balled up in fists and she sounded about ready to explode. Hermione frowned. "What? What's wrong?" She asked.
"We were just sitting there talking when in comes Draco Malfoy, without even *knocking*, and he grabs Lori by the arm and drags her out of the compartment. So we all…" The compartment door slid open and Harry and Ron poked their heads out, listening with frowns identical to Hermione's. Daphne carried on.
"So we all told him to leave her alone, and he tells us to shut up and stay out of it. So I went into the corridor after them, and he didn't even *look* at me, he just put his wand over his shoulder and said Stupidf… Stpifid… Stupif… well, whatever it was. And I dodged it and it hit Jake, who was behind me. But we don't know what to do and Lori's with him and she *can't* go home with them, she just can't! She looked so scared…"
Hermione glanced at Harry and Ron, who looked as helpless as she felt. What could they do? They had no right to stop Lori going home with her family, even if Draco acted more like a zookeeper than a brother- even though Lucius Malfoy was a Deatheater and would be furious his daughter wasn't in Slytherin. They couldn't prove anything. The only person they could help right now was Jake.
"Where's Jake?" Hermione asked urgently. Daphne pointed up the corridor. "In the next carriage." She answered. Hermione started up the corridor, closely followed by the other three. They found the compartment without any trouble- Jake's feet were sticking out through the door. Hermione slid the door open the rest of the way to find Lara, frantic with worry on the other side.
"Hermione! Thank god! What's wrong with him? Do you know? Can you help? What do we do?" She babbled. Hermione stepped inside the compartment and smiled at the younger girl. "It's alright Lara. He's only been Stunned." She pointed her wand at Jake, who looked like he was sleeping peacefully, and muttered, "Enervate!" under her breath. Jake woke up straight away, and sat up groggily. Daphne and Lara breathed simultaneous sighs of relief.
"How're you feeling?" Hermione asked Jake as he pulled himself up onto one of the seats. He shrugged, looking a bit confused. "Fine. What happened?" He asked curiously. "Malfoy stunned you." Hermione replied, standing aside to let Daphne back into the compartment. Jake frowned angrily- he had a witch mother, so he knew what it was to be stunned. Daphne cleared her throat.
"He was aiming for me, but I ducked. I'm sorry Jake." She said, biting her lip. Jake rolled his eyes. "Don't apologise. I feel fine. Where's Lori?" he asked, looking around the compartment. Lara glanced fearfully at Daphne, who looked down at the floor, gritting her teeth. Hermione exchanged looks with Ron and Harry, who both knew the same thing as she did- Lori was a Malfoy, and they had no right to stick their noses in Malfoy family business. Not yet anyway.
Daphne looked up at Jake. "She's with Draco." She said bitterly. Jake glanced over at Harry, Ron and Hermione. The rivalry between those three and Draco Malfoy was legendry at Hogwarts, in all the houses and in all the years. But at this moment in time, they didn't look ready to lead an all- out attack on Malfoy.
"Daphne, maybe you should come into our compartment. We're at King's Cross already." Hermione said. Indeed, the Hogwarts Express was already pulling into the station. Daphne frowned. "What about Lori?" She asked confusedly. Hermione sighed. "There's nothing you can do about it… I'm sorry, but it's true." Hermione added as Daphne started to protest. The train shuddered to a halt. "Come on." Hermione said, picking up Daphne's bag and handing it to her. "Wingardium Leviosa." She said, pointing her wand at Daphne's trunk. It soared into the air and hovered in between the cousins. Daphne pulled out her wand reluctantly and took the trunk off of Hermione. "Bye you two." Hermione said to Lara and Jake. "Merry Christmas." She added before turning and leaving the compartment. Harry and Ron turned and followed her, and Daphne, after saying her goodbyes to Lara and Jake, turned and followed them.
Harry, Ron and Hermione collected their things and got out onto the platform. Daphne was already there waiting for them, surrounded by cold, hurried students, getting off the train and saying goodbye to their friends. The students with magic parents were meeting them there; others were crowding over to the gate to get into the main station.
Hermione smiled at her cousin, who was looking very glum. "Let's go then." She said cheerfully. Daphne nodded and started to head towards the exit. They had to wait in the queue for about fifteen minutes, but finally they got through the barrier and were able to breathe again. Hermione immediately began to search the crowds for her parents.
"Hermione! Daphne!" Hermione, Daphne, Harry and Ron turned around to see Mrs Granger hurrying towards them, looking a bit rushed but with a big smile on her face. Hermione grinned and stepped forward to hug her mother. "Hi Mum!" She said happily. Joanne Granger beamed at her daughter. "Hi honey, how are you?" She asked. "Fine. Are you O.K?" Hermione replied. Her mother nodded, and then spotted Daphne.
"Well Miss Granger. Someone didn't tell us she was a witch." She said sternly. Daphne smiled sheepishly. "I could say the same thing to your daughter, Mrs Granger." She replied cheekily. Then she laughed and ran to give her Aunt a hug. "Hi Auntie Jo!" She said with a grin. Joanne smiled and hugged her niece tightly. "Hi Honeybunch. How was your first term?" She asked. Daphne nodded happily. "It was great. Apart from Hermione bullying me all he time, that is." She said with a shrug, sighing heavily. "Oh well. You can't have everything, can you?" Joanne said with a laugh. Then she turned to Harry and Ron.
"Hello you two. I apologise on behalf of my niece for having had to put up with her last term." She said with a grin. Daphne hit her aunt playfully on the arm and Hermione, Harry and Ron laughed.
"Thanks for letting us stay Mrs Granger." Harry said. Joanne Granger waved a hand dismissively. "It's a pleasure Harry. And for heaven's sake, don't call me Mrs Granger- it makes me feel so old. My name's Jo." She said with a grin. Harry and Ron nodded mutely as 'Jo' bent down to peer into Crookshanks' cage. "Hello trouble." She said through the wicker. She straightened up and spotted the owls, perched in their cages on top of Ron and Harry's trunks. Jo grinned. "Hi Hedwig, how are you your ladyship?" She cooed. Harry looked at Hedwig and laughed. His owl was ruffling her feathers and looking very smug; she loved any form of flattery. Jo grinned at Pigwidgeon. "Hey Pig! Haven't grown much have you?" She said to the tiny owl. Pig hooted in reply and hopped up and down on his perch.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Come on Mum, stop talking to the animals." She said. Jo laughed and straightened up. "Alright. The car's parked out front." She said, starting to head towards the exit. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Daphne followed her, waving goodbye to various people they knew who were still milling around the station.
They got to the car park and Jo pointed towards a dark-blue space cruiser parked nearby. Hermione's eyes widened. "You got a new car?" She asked in disbelief. Jo nodded with a smile. "Do you like it?"
Hermione grinned. "It's gorgeous! I always wanted one of these cars!" She said as they reached it. She bent down to peer through the window. Jo grinned. "I know." She said, unlocking the boot. She swiftly folded down one of the back seats to make extra room for the trunks. They put them all in, along with the book bags, and slammed the boot shut.
Hermione climbed into the front seat, Crookshanks' cage on her lap. Ron, Harry and Daphne climbed into the back, where they all had a separate chair and plenty of legroom- even with all the trunks in the car. The owls stayed in their cages, sitting on their owners' laps. Daphne smiled sadly. "I feel left out. I'm the only one without a pet." She said sulkily.
Jo grinned as she climbed into the driver's seat. "I'm sure your fish are missing you." She said sarcastically. Daphne glared at her aunt, but then just grinned. Hermione suddenly turned to her mum. "Where's Dad?" She asked. Jo grinned. "Nice of you to realise he isn't here. It only took you fifteen minutes." She said as she backed the car out of the parking space. Hermione smiled sheepishly. "He's at work, but he might be home by the time we get there." Jo said with a laugh.
They started to drive out of the station, but almost immediately hit a traffic jam- it was rush hour in central London after all. Hermione leant forward and began to fiddle with the radio. Daphne grinned happily. "At last! Some music." She said gleefully as a pop song blared out. Jo grinned at her daughter.
"Your baby's missing you." She said to her. Hermione smiled. "Is she? You have remembered to feed her, haven't you?" She said sternly. Jo nodded as they turned a corner and hit another traffic jam.
Harry leant forward. "What baby? What are you talking about?" He asked. Daphne grinned. "They're talking about Tallulah." She answered. "Who?" Harry and Ron asked simultaneously. Daphne smiled. "You'll see…" She said mysteriously.
Hermione's house wasn't very far from central London, but with the traffic it took them about forty minutes to get to her house. It was a semi- detached, quite large house, not very different from the kind on Privet Drive. There was no front garden- they had built over it to extend the driveway. However, there were plenty of bushes and flowers bordering the path, though not in bloom at the moment as it was winter.
Jo helped get all the trunks out of the car and then opened the front door. As she did so she looked at her watch and sighed in relief. "Luke will be here any minute. It's lucky we got here before him." She said. Daphne grinned. "That's a shame. It would have been funny to make him wait." She said. "Luke's your brother, right?" Ron asked as he dragged his trunk through the front door. Daphne nodded. "Not by choice though." She said.
Harry grinned. "I take it you don't like him then?" He asked. Daphne shrugged. "He's alright sometimes, but other times he's a complete prat." She said. Harry nodded. "Kind of like Ron." He said with another grin, dodging to one side as Ron tried to sock him round the head.
Jo laughed and turned on the hall light, closing the front door behind her. "Ben's not home yet." She said, taking off her coat and hanging it up on a wooden peg. She took the coats from Harry, Ron, Daphne and Hermione, and hung them up as well. Jo grinned at the boys. "Well, Harry and Ron, welcome to our house, otherwise known as the black hole, as you an never find anything. That's usually because Ben hides it though. Anyway…" She made her way down the hall, which ended in a staircase leading upstairs.
"Let me give you a guided tour. This is the door leading down to the basement, but you don't need to go down there unless Daphne is annoying you too much and you feel like locking her somewhere. The key's in the lock." She said, winking at Hermione, who grinned and shook her head slightly. 'Ignore her' she mouthed at Harry and Ron. Jo didn't notice. She opened the one other door leading off of the hall and went inside, switching on the light as she did so. It was the living room- and was large, cosy, had two overstuffed sofas, an armchair and a large coffee table. There was a fireplace against one wall, and in the opposite corner stood a beautiful, large piano. It was dark-wood, brightly polished and had carvings of vines down its legs.
"Tallulah!" Hemione said, walking over to it. "How's my baby?" She cooed, running her hand along the top of the piano. Harry and Ron watched her incredulously. "*That's* Tallulah?" Ron asked in disbelief. Daphne frowned at him. "Don't talk about her as though she's a *thing*." She said sternly. Ron raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.
Hermione laughed and sat down on the stool in front of 'Tallulah'. She smiled at Ron and Harry. "Tooey's been in the family for years. So therefore she's part of the family." Hermione lifted up the wooden flap over the keys. "She needs lots of love, polish, and if she's not played with, she gets very lonely." She said, her hand hovering over the piano.
Harry frowned. "Can you play the piano?" He asked in surprise. Hermione grinned and, quick as a flash, the hand that had been hovering landed on the keys and played a short, but distinctive tune. Daphne tutted. "Show off." She muttered under her breath.
Hermione smiled and was about to answer when suddenly the doorbell rang. She stood up, and Daphne sighed. "Here we go…" she muttered.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "He's not that bad Daph." She said. Daphne folded her arms and said nothing. Jo laughed. "Honestly." She said. "Anyway, from what Hermione has told me about Divination, I predict that either Ben or Luke is at the door." She said, heading back out into the hallway.
Hermione rolled her eyes and Harry and Ron laughed. "Careful, it could be a Grim." Ron called after Jo, causing them to laugh harder. Daphne looked confused. "Huh?" She said. Hermione shook her head. "Don't worry about it." She said, as the sounds of the door being opened came from the hallway.
"Hi Aunt Jo." A male, teenage voice said. "It's Ben." Daphne said sarcastically. Hermione giggled. They heard Jo speaking. "Hi Luke! How's my favourite nephew?" She said cheerfully. "I'm your only nephew." They heard Luke say. Jo laughed. "That's beside the point." She replied. "Go on through to the living room, everyone's here." "Everyone?" Luke asked confusedly. Daphne walked over to the door as her brother came through.
Luke Granger was almost as tall as Ron, but not quite. He had thick brown hair, but it wasn't bushy and was darker than Hermione's and Daphne's. He had bright brown eyes like them, though, and you could definitely tell they were related. When he entered, the first person he spotted was Daphne, and he smiled at his little sister. "Hi Dee." He said. "How was your, er, term?"
Daphne grinned. "Lots of fun thanks." She replied. Luke raised an eyebrow. "Did you learn how to pull a bunny out of a hat yet?" He said jokingly, but Daphne's eyes narrowed. Hermione cleared her throat and Luke looked over at her. "Um… hi Hermione." He said, turning a bit red. He glanced fearfully at Daphne, thinking he had said too much, and then suddenly spotted Harry and Ron.
"Um, hi." He said. Harry and Ron nodded at him, in that annoying way that boys always do, and he turned back to Hermione. "Friends of yours?" He asked. Hermione nodded and stood up. "These are my friends from school, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley." She said, pointing them out as she introduced them. "Harry and Ron, this is my cousin Luke."
Jo came in at that moment and sat down on the armchair. "So Luke, was you surprised when you found out your sister was a witch?" She asked casually. Hermione rolled her eyes, and Daphne snorted with laughter. Harry and Ron listened bemusedly. Luke stared at his aunt in surprise. "Um…what…how do you know? He stammered. Jo smiled. "You can't hide anything from your Aunt Jo you know." She said with a grin. Luke glanced over at Daphne, and then at Hermione, Harry and Ron. "Er…well, Jo, no-one else is really meant to…" Jo waved her hand dismissively. "They won't say anything, honestly." Jo said as they heard the front door being opened again. Hermione grinned and went over to the living room door, just as Ben Granger came through it.
"Hi Dad!" She exclaimed, reaching up to give him a hug. Ben Granger grinned and hugged Hermione tight; lifting her about four inches off the floor. "Hi Hermy! How are you Honey?" He said as he put her back down. Hermione smiled happily. "Fine." She said. Ben Granger put a hand on each of her shoulders and held her at arm's length, peering at her closely. "You haven't changed any part of your body this term, have you?" He asked. Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed his hands away. "Get over the tooth thing Dad." She said. Ben Granger grinned again and looked over at Daphne.
"Hi Daph! How's the newest witch in the family?" He asked with a wink. Daphne grinned and hugged her Uncle. "Hi Uncle Ben." She said with a giggle. Ben smiled at Luke. "Hi Luke. How are you?" Luke smiled back, though it looked like a great effort to do so. "I'm alright. A bit confused, but apart from that…" He said.
Ben grinned and turned to Harry and Ron. "Hi Harry, hi Ron. Sorry if I get you mixed up, but I'm like that. Sorry." He said with a grin. Jo stood up. "Well, come on you lot. Let's have dinner- it's already in the kitchen." She said, standing back to allow everyone to go through to the next room.
As they passed her, Jo grinned at Harry and Ron. "So, *can* you pull a rabbit out of a hat?" She asked. Luke stopped dead and stared at them. Hermione grinned at the startled look on her cousin's face and answered her mother's question. "I'll look it up in the library when we get back to Hogwarts." She said, causing Luke's mouth to drop open in surprise.
Hermione folded her arms and looked at Luke sceptically. "What's wrong?" She asked. "Surely you didn't think Daphne was the first witch in the family, did you?"
A/N- I am sooooooooo sorry that this took me so long to get up- please don't shoot me! It's just that I… I mean, I had to…… O.K, I don't have an excuse, but still, please don't shoot me!