A/N: THANKS to all the reviewers! I picked up a lot more!!!! Hope you guys
like this!!!!
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The next morning Harry woke up feeling absolutely wonderful. He couldn't even describe how great if felt to wake up and be in the Weasley house instead of his aunt and uncle's house on Privet Drive. It was as though he were finally home. He grabbed his glasses from the table that sat between his and Ron's beds and glanced over to where Ron was sleeping. His watch told him that it was nearly 10:00. He was rather surprised that Mrs. Weasley had allowed them to sleep in so late, but he was grateful. For some reason, he had been absolutely worn out the night before, and crawling into the warm guest bed in Ron's room had seemed like heaven.
"Ron, wake up," he said, trying not to be too awfully loud. But then again, he knew how hard Ron was to awaken. So, when he didn't move, Harry tried again a little louder. "Ron! Wake up."
Ron rolled over and groaned. Opening one eye, he stared at Harry. Then suddenly, he sat right up. "Harry! I forgot that you were here! What time is it?"
"Nearly ten. Wonder why your mum didn't come up and wake us?" Harry stretched and put his feet on the cold floor.
Ron shrugged as he pulled himself into a sitting position. "Who knows? Who cares? Better to sleep in than to have her in here bellowing that I'm a lazy bum sleeping the summer away."
Harry laughed. "Come on. Let's go get breakfast." Just as he stood up, Ron hit himself in the head.
"Happy birthday, Harry! I nearly forgot what day it was!" He smiled at Harry as he, too, pulled himself out of bed and shivered as the cool air hit him.
Ron was right; it was his birthday. Harry laughed. "I really did forget!" Harry was fifteen that day. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Anyway, let's go get breakfast for real. I'm starving!"
So, both boys pulled on some clothes and hurried downstairs without even bothering to brush their hair. The first floor of the Weasley house was rather quiet. No one seemed to be in the kitchen or in the sitting room, either.
"I wonder where everyone is," he said to Ron as they neared the kitchen door.
Ron shrugged. "I dunno. Mum's probably shopping, and Dad's at work. I don't know where Fred, George, and Ginny are, though."
They got to the kitchen door and pulled it open.
"SURPRISE!"
Around the kitchen stood Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ginny. On the kitchen table was a fabulous birthday cake that Mrs. Weasley, herself, had baked early that morning before they had awaken. An assortment of breakfast foods such as sausage, bacon, a plate of scrambled eggs, and lots of fruit were on the counter. And sitting on the table beside the cake was a small pile of presents.
Harry was absolutely shocked. Never before had he ever had a real birthday party. The closest the Dursley's had ever come to throwing him one was a dinner party for Uncle Vernon's business associates which Harry wasn't allowed to even attend. He was thrilled at the surprise!
"Wow! Thanks!" He smiled at them all, and then turned to Ron who looked just as shocked as he did. "Didn't you know about it, Ron?"
Ron shook his head. "Nope." He looked up at his mother. "Why didn't you tell me?"
She rolled her eyes as she hurried over to hug Harry. "Because, Ron, you have a habit of not keeping secrets too well. We wanted it to be a surprise."
Ron, at first, appeared to be a bit insulted by his mother, but then he just shrugged his shoulders. "Open your presents, Harry!"
Mrs. Weasley held up a finger to stop him. "Wait. There's one more surprise as well."
Harry looked around wondering what it could be.
"Go into the sitting room." Mrs. Weasley held the door open for Harry and Ron to get into the sitting room where a fire was blazing in the fireplace. Neither of them thought anything of it, despite the fact that it was July. But suddenly a loud popping sound could be heard from that direction.
They both turned to look as someone appeared in the fire.
"Hermione!" It was Ron who was the first to say her name as she stepped out of the fireplace and dusted herself off quickly. She was the same Hermione they had seen in the picture in Quidditch Center. She was now dressed in a pair of dark blue capri pants with a lighter colored tank top, and her bushy brown hair was still extremely straight, though pulled halfway back and secured with a tiny clip. She was even wearing make-up just as she had been in the picture, and her skin was a nice tanned color.
She smiled at them both. "Surprise!"
"Hermione, I thought you weren't..." Harry was cut off as she walked up to him and gave him a tight hug.
"Happy birthday, Harry!"
"Thanks, but I thought you had to go to Ireland." Harry looked at her, puzzled.
She turned to Ron and met him with the same type of tight hug. Harry saw Ron's face turn a little pinker than normal as she wrapped her arms around him. He even looked a tad disappointed as she let go of him and turned back to Harry. "No, that was just to fool you guys into thinking I wasn't coming to stay. Mum and Dad are really going to Ireland, but they told me that I could come stay here if I wanted to instead, and, of course, I said yes. I wanted it to be a surprise, so I wrote and told you I wasn't coming." She looked at them and rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Of course, I'm not going to miss your birthday, Harry, and there was no way I was going to miss the trip to the coast next weekend."
"You're staying that long?" Ron asked.
Hermione nodded. "I'm staying until term starts, actually. My parents won't be back to Britain until September tenth, so your mum and dad said I could stay here and that they would see me off to school safely."
Ron was staring at Hermione as though he wasn't sure what to say next. Finally, he said, "Why do you look so different?"
Hermione raised a hand to her long brown hair. "Oh! Well, I got my hair straightened right before I left for Bulgaria at a Muggle salon. Do you like it?"
Ron shrugged. "It's alright, I guess," he answered nonchalantly. "What about your clothes?"
She glanced down and then back up at Ron. "What about them?"
"You don't normally dress like that."
"Oh. Well, Mum said that since my grades had improved so much in my fourth year that she would take me on a shopping spree at the start of holiday. I got a ton of new stuff."
Ron looked at her as though she were crazy. "Your grades improved from what, Hermione? Perfect to beyond humanly possible?"
Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "No, Ron. I made a B in potions third year. I worked extra hard last year to bring it back up to an A."
Ron glanced at Harry and shook his head while rolling his eyes slightly. He had barely made a D in potions, but he was sure that Harry, too, had just barely scraped by in that class. "Well, I'm sure it was a horror to see that B on your report," he said bitterly. "Probably ruined your whole summer holiday last year, eh?"
Hermione chose to ignore Ron and turned her attention back to Harry who was still shocked that she had shown up. "Your present from me is already in the kitchen, Harry. I had all my things sent ahead."
At that moment, Mrs. Weasley stuck her head back into the sitting room. "Oh, hello, Hermione!" Hermione smiled her reply. "If you kids want breakfast anytime soon, you better get back in here." She shut the door as she disappeared back into the kitchen.
"Shall we?" Hermione led the way into the kitchen followed by Harry and then Ron. Ron looked at Harry's disheveled hair, and suddenly remembering that neither of them had even glanced in a mirror earlier, licked his fingers and tried desperately to smooth his hair down a bit as they followed Hermione back into the kitchen, where she was being greeted by the rest of the Weasleys.
"Can Harry open his presents, Mum?" Ron asked as they sat back down at the table.
She shook her head. "Breakfast first and then cake and presents."
Ron and Harry, along with the rest of the Weasley's piled their plates full of all the breakfast foods set out. Hermione, however, reached only for the fruit and the bread.
"Don't you want some sausage, Hermione?" asked Mrs. Weasley warmly.
Hermione shook her head politely. "Oh, no, ma'am. I've given up meat."
Ron and Harry exchanged looks and then turned back to Hermione who continued. "I decided that if I can save just one animal by giving up meat then it will be worth it."
Ron snorted. "Started a new organization yet, Hermione? Gotten tired of spew, have you?" He was referring to the organization that Hermione had started last year in an attempt to free all house-elves.
Fred and George both burst into laughter, but Hermione ignored them. Narrowing her eyes at Ron, she answered him. "It's not spew, Ron, and you know that perfectly well. It's S.P.E.W. And no, I haven't gotten tired of it; I fully intend on starting to rally again as soon as we return to school. In answer to your other question, no, I haven't started a new organization. I don't intend to, either. My giving up meat is a personal choice I made for myself."
Ron rolled his eyes and whispered to Harry. "I bet she's just on a diet to look pretty for Mr. Viky boy."
Hermione, obviously hearing him, glared at him. "I am not on a diet, thank you," she said shortly.
Mrs. Weasley stepped in to stop the brewing argument that was sure to begin at any moment. "Ron, leave Hermione alone and eat your breakfast." She smiled at Hermione. "I think it's wonderful you've given up meat, dear. I'd do it myself if I had the willpower, but I just don't."
They finished breakfast without any further discussion of Hermione's new vegetarianism. Breakfast was quite uneventful, in fact. Surprisingly enough, Fred and George didn't pull any of their new tricks at the table. Ginny and Ron didn't speak to each other at all, both obviously still mad about the argument they had had the night before. And Harry and Hermione spent most of breakfast trying to explain to Mr. Weasley the difference between a VHS cassette and a DVD.
When they were finally finished, Mrs. Weasley cleared the table of the dishes with a wave of her wand and turned to Harry. "Alright, Harry dear. You may open your gifts now."
There were seven presents all together, and Harry didn't know which one to open first. Obviously knowing what Harry was thinking, Mrs. Weasley reached for one and handed it to him. "Here. This one is from Arthur and me."
Harry smiled at her as he took the present and pulled the wrapping off of it. Inside the box was a new sweater that Mrs. Weasley had knitted. She traditionally sent Harry a sweater each Christmas, but he was a bit surprised to find she had made him one in the middle of summer.
"It's supposed to get chilly quite early this year," she told him as she beamed down at him.
Harry nodded and smiled. "Thanks very much."
"Open this one next," Fred pushed a small box across the table at Harry. "It's from George and me."
Harry was almost scared to open the box, so he did so in a very careful manner.
George laughed. "We promise nothing's going to explode."
Harry opened the box the rest of the way and found what looked like a small coupon. It said, "Good for one box of Gender Jostling Jelly Beans to be used exclusively on Professor Severus Snape, potions Master." Harry couldn't hide the grin that covered his lips.
"What is it, dear?" asked Mrs. Weasley straining to see.
Fred jumped in to answer. "Oh, it's just an IOU saying we'll do his laundry sometime at school."
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley both eyed them suspiciously but decided to let it pass, as Hermione handed Harry a rather small box wrapped in gold foil. "Here, Harry. I picked this up for you while I was in Bulgaria."
Ron glowered at the mention of Bulgaria but didn't say anything. He watched as Harry opened the present and pulled out a glass display case. Inside of the case, a little stand held a golden snitch- the tiny ball that had to be caught for a Quidditch match to be won.
"Wow, Hermione!" Harry looked up at her with wide eyes. "Where did you get this?"
Ron strained to see what was so special about it, as did Fred, George, and Ginny. Harry handed it to Ron, and Ron let out a huge gasp.
"It's autographed by Mikel Graft!" Ron said, barely able to speak. Fred and George, too, let out huge gasps. Mikel Graft was the Chudley Cannons' seeker. The Chudley Cannons were Ron and Harry's favorite Quidditch team.
"I got it from a Quidditch memorabilia shop I was browsing in while Viktor was at practice." She paused. "It's from the World Cup seven years ago, so I know it's a bit old, but I thought you still might like it. I wish I could have gotten a newer one."
Ron nearly dropped the glass case he was holding when she said that, so it was a good thing both Fred and George dived to inspect it before he could drop it. Fred got hold of it first and held it close to his eye.
"Hermione, are you mad?!" Fred passed it to George. "Seven years ago was when the Cannons won the World Cup!"
Hermione still didn't seem to see what was so special about the snitch in the case. She had simply bought it because the wizard working the shop had told her that Graft was seeker for the Cannons, and she had heard Ron and Harry talk about them incessantly for awhile now. "Do you like it, Harry?" she asked, afraid he didn't because he hadn't spoken since he had first opened it.
Harry was still in shock. He nodded his head quickly. "It's really great, Hermione. Thanks!"
She smiled at him. "Good. I'm glad you're not too upset it's a few years old."
Ron rolled his eyes as he reached once again for the snitch which had now passed through both Ginny and Mr. Weasley's hands. "I can't believe it..." he muttered.
Ginny slid a present across the table. "It's not much, but I haven't got a lot of money saved up," she explained.
Harry took the box and pulled the paper off of it. Inside was what appeared to be a CD case. It had a picture of the Weird Sisters on it; they were a widely popular musical group in the wizarding community which Harry had gotten to hear the previous year when they had played the Yule Ball. "Wow, thanks, Ginny," he smiled at her, and she blushed a red that was just a shade darker than her hair.
"I know you haven't got a WWN hookup, so I figured you'd get a listen of the Weird Sisters this way. Dad got a man in Muggle relations to transmit it onto the Muggle music device." Growing up in a full-wizarding house, the Weasley children had never used anything like a CD player.
"Ooh," Hermione reached for a better look. "I want to have a listen, Harry." Hermione, like Harry, had grown up in a Muggle household. Both of her parents were Muggles, so she was the first witch in her family.
"Ron?" Mrs. Weasley waved a hand in front of her youngest son's face. When he finally looked up from the case he was still holding in his hand, she said, "Don't you have a gift for Harry?"
"Oh! Yeah..." Ron's face dropped slightly as he finally sat the snitch down and reached for a perfectly square box. He frowned a little as he handed it to Harry. "It's nothing compared to Hermione's..."
Harry just shook his head as he opened the gift. Inside was a box with the words "Baisley's Broomstick Booster." Harry had never heard of it before, so he turned to Ron for an explanation.
"Well, it's new, see?" Ron looked down. "I figured you might be able to use it because it's supposed to make any broomstick, even the Firebolt, go twice as fast." He wasn't speaking very loudly, and it was quite obvious to Harry that Ron thought his present paled in comparison to Hermione's.
"It's great, Ron! Thanks!" He opened the box and saw that it was filled with a silvery sort of powder. "Twice as fast you say? That's wicked! Thanks!"
Ron smiled a bit, obviously cheered by Harry's enthusiasm. "You're welcome."
There were still two gifts in the middle of the table. Harry reached for them and noticed that one was from Hagrid, the groundskeeper at Hogwarts and also the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, and the other was from Sirius Black, Harry's godfather. Harry opened the one from Hagrid first. It was, as it always was, a box full of his favorite sweets. Ron, obviously interested in that particular gift, smiled at Harry innocently as he slid the box closer to himself and started rummaging through it, picking out what he wanted. A note attached to the gift read:
Dear Harry,
Sorry I haven't had a chance to write, but Madame Maxime and I are off doing special business for the Ministry. We're both doing well, and I hope that you lot are doing great, too. I should be back in plenty of time for the start of next term, so I suppose I'll see you then. Once again, sorry 'bout the lack of communication- been a bit distracted here. Anyway, Happy Birthday and have a great holiday.
Hagrid
Harry handed the note to Hermione who was obviously interested in what Hagrid had to write, and then he reached for the last gift in the pile. It was rather heavy, and Harry knew before opening it that it was a book. He had received enough books as gifts from Hermione to know exactly how they felt wrapped in a box. When he opened the box, he found that he was right. A large book of spells rested amidst the tissue, and a note sat on top. Harry opened it and read:
Dear Harry,
I'm sorry that I can't be there, but as you know things aren't very safe for any of us these days, least of all me. You're probably wondering why I sent you a book of spells as your birthday gift, aren't you? Well, this book isn't a normal book of spells. It contains spells which many of the most advanced wizards and witches haven't ever succeeded in mastering- therefore, Hermione should get a load of use out of it as well. You'll find the most useful spells in chapter fourteen. There's one in particular I feel you absolutely must learn to perform- you'll know which one it is.
Wishing you a happy birthday,
Sirius
Hermione immediately reached for the book and opened it. "I wonder which spell he's talking about," she said as she hurriedly flipped to chapter fourteen.
Mr. Weasley stood up. "Why don't we leave that to later, eh? Have some cake."
Mrs. Weasley nodded as she cut them all a slice of cake. "Close the book, dear. It's not polite to read at the table," she said quietly to Hermione who reluctantly shut the book and reached for her slice of cake.
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Later that day, Harry found himself outside in a Wizard's Chess match- him and Ron against Fred and George. He and Ron were beating the twins horribly. Ginny sat in a chair beside the table watching, and Hermione was holed up in Ginny's room with her nose buried deep in the new spell book Sirius had sent.
Just as one of the twins' knights got his head cut off, Ron spoke up out of nowhere. "How did she do it?"
Four sets of eyes stared at him, wondering who she was and what she managed to do.
"Hermione," he finished, without having to be asked. "That snitch must have cost a bloody fortune! How'd she ever manage it?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and took that opportunity to speak to Ron for the first time since the night before. "Really, Ron. Have you forgotten that her boyfriend makes fifty thousand galleons a match? I think it's quite obvious how she managed it."
Ron glared at his little sister and then turned angrily to Harry. "She's right, you know? Viktor Krum bought that gift." He sneered matter-of- factly. "I think you should return it."
Harry shook his head. "No, Hermione's got money on her own. Her parents are both dentists, remember?"
All four Weasley children stared at him blankly, so Harry gave further explanation. "Dentists make a lot of money. If you have one as a parent, you're pretty rich. If you've got two for parents, you're very rich."
Ron glowered. "I still bet she sweet talked Krum into buying it," he muttered under his breath.
At that very moment, Hermione came running from the house at full speed. "I found it!" she exclaimed as she pushed the chess board aside and laid the new book of spells out on the table; curses could be heard coming from the discarded chess pieces as they flew all across the lawn. "Look right here. Chapter fourteen, just like he said."
Harry looked down to where Hermione was pointing. The book was open to a page where a spell simply titled "Wandless" was listed.
"It tells you how to summon your natural powers and the power of your wand even when you're not in physical possession of it," Hermione explained when she saw his puzzled expression. "In case you ever find yourself in a situation where your wand is powerless or you don't have it on your or something."
Harry immediately knew why Sirius had sent him the book, but he didn't want to say anything in front of Fred, George, and Ginny. Although he considered them to be good friends, they didn't know everything about his life like Ron and Hermione did. The thing he was thinking of now, though, was something Ron and Hermione hadn't even been told; he made a mental note to tell them as soon as he found himself alone with the two of them. His wand held a feather from the same Phoenix that Lord Voldemort's wand did. Voldemort was the Dark Lord who had killed Harry's parents years ago; he had recently come back into power, but at their last meeting, Harry had found that when his wand met its brother, Voldemort's wand, neither worked at all. Rather they connected in a strange sort of way. Harry had yet to reveal all the details of his last encounter with Voldemort to Ron and Hermione. It was still quite painful to recall.
"Wicked!" exclaimed George as he leaned in closer to examine the spell. "This could definitely come in handy."
Hermione snapped the book shut and frowned at George. "I don't think we should all be learning these spells, George. Sirius sent them for Harry's use, not ours."
Harry shook his head. "No, he wouldn't care. He'd want us all to be prepared in case something like that happened. And anyway, he said he knew that you, Hermione, would find great use of this book."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's all she needs- another fifteen pound book to bury her nose in."
Hermione, quite agitated, looked at Ron squarely. "You know, it's rather rude to talk about people in the third person when they're standing right beside you."
Ron looked back at her just as squarely. "Excuse me, Miss Granger. I forgot that you were the newly appointed manners mistress," he said sarcastically. With that, he got up and stormed away into the house.
Hermione watched him go and then sat down in his chair. "What's up with him?"
Harry shrugged. It was quite the normality for Ron and Hermione to bicker nonstop, so he didn't see why Ron had gotten annoyed so quickly. "I dunno."
"I know what's up with him," Ginny said, rather matter-of-factly. "Hormones."
Fred and George both started to laugh, and Harry felt himself getting embarrassed for Ron. He wanted to stop Ginny before she continued, but it didn't work.
Hermione looked at Ginny, shocked, and said, "What're you talking about- hormones?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and pushed a strand of her red hair away from her face. "Oh, isn't it obvious? Ron's been in a frenzy ever since he saw that stupid article that said that you and Viktor Krum had made it official!"
Hermione still stared at Ginny in a way that said she didn't follow.
Ginny continued to rave on. "And haven't you noticed that he's put on a ton of after-shave today? Holy shit! You can smell him a mile away, and he hasn't even started shaving yet." She said all of this as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"And?" Hermione was obviously still not getting the picture.
"Hermione, Ron likes you!" Ginny spat it out and sighed heavily when she finished, leaning back in her chair as though she were tired from performing a great task.
Fred and George really started to roll with laughter as their sister completed her theory. Fred even gave her a thumbs-up and a wink, as though to say, "Good job!" Harry wished desperately that Ginny hadn't just said that. Ron would be absolutely horrified!
Hermione just stared at Ginny. She didn't speak for a long moment, and then she finally said, "Ginny, are you mad? I would be the last person on this planet that Ron Weasley would ever fancy. I can assure you of that." Harry was thankful that Hermione hadn't gone all schoolgirl giggly like most girls would have when told that a boy liked them.
Ginny laughed, though. "Are you serious? You're really that blind?" She rolled her eyes and looked at Harry. "She should have seen him last night when he saw the magazine, shouldn't she have, Harry?"
Harry, hating to be put on the spot, shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't really notice."
Ginny immediately turned her attention back to Hermione, shrugging Harry's response off with a simple, "He's lying," and continued. "Hermione, I am dead serious. Ron nearly went mental when he read that you were Krum's girlfriend! He cursed me out using some words I'd never even heard before!"
"I happen to think she's right," George said, grinning. "Ron did appear to be a bit jealous of ole' Krum. That's for sure."
Fred nodded. "And he does smell pretty awful today, doesn't he? I didn't even know we had that much cologne in the entire house! He's never worn it before..."
Hermione just shook her head and rolled her eyes. "You're mad. All of you. You think that Ron likes me? Please!"
Harry decided to excuse himself then; he wasn't going to be able to take any more humiliation for Ron. "I think I'm going to head upstairs for a bit," he said as he turned and made his way toward the house.
"Harry, wait!" Hermione grabbed the book and took off after him, ignoring Ginny's "You're blind!"
When she had caught up to him and they were near the door, Hermione laughed nervously. "Can you believe that lot? I think they've all gone nutters."
Harry shrugged as they walked through the door and up the stairs to Ron's room. Hermione followed him in, and they found Ron sitting on his bed looking, for the millionth time, at the golden snitch in its display case. He looked up when they came in.
"Come to teach me more manners, have you?" Ron glared at Hermione who did her job of returning the look.
"No, as a matter of fact, I came up here because I need to talk to you two." She sat down beside Ron on his bed and Harry sat across from them on the one he was using. "I found something out while I was with Viktor that I think you might be interested in."
Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm not interested in anything that nit's got to say."
Hermione ignored him and continued. "I wandered around the city quite a bit while I was there since Viktor spent so much time at practice. And I heard things," she paused as though she were unsure of how to explain them. "I heard things about You Know Who that I don't think I was meant to hear."
Harry's eyes met Hermione's then. "What kind of things?"
She looked down, suddenly appearing as though she wasn't sure she should tell them at all. "Well, I was in a wand shop browsing, and I heard the shopkeeper tell one of his friends that You Know Who supporters were gaining such strength that they were soon going to be able to take back over. He was obviously a You Know Who supporter because he said something else that I'm not sure I should repeat. I mean, I don't even know if it's true." She looked up at Harry. "It's about you."
"What about me?" Harry wasn't surprised that he was the topic of conversation, but he wanted to know what was being said.
"Well, he said something like, 'When we get that Potter boy we're going to use him to restore power to our side. The Lord doesn't want him dead anymore.' I really don't know what it means," added Hermione quickly.
Harry was puzzled. "Of course, he wants me dead! That's all he's wanted for fifteen years now!"
Hermione nodded. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too. But it was so strange. He said that your death wouldn't do anything to empower their side." She frowned before she continued. "He said that with you being dead all of your powers would be useless, and he said that they needed your powers to help them..."
Harry sat looking at Hermione, unsure of what to say. Finally, he decided that he had to tell them. "I have something to tell you that you might find a bit odd," he said uncertainly.
Ron and Hermione both stared back at him waiting anxiously for the piece of information he was about to reveal.
"Well, a couple of things actually..."
"Get on with it, Harry," said Ron impatiently.
Harry nodded. "Well, do you remember our first night at Hogwarts? Remember how it seemed to take the Sorting Cap longer to sort me than to sort anyone else?"
They nodded, vaguely remembering.
"I never told you this, but the hat wanted to put me in Slytherin..."
Ron's mouth fell open. "You're not serious! Why would it do that?!"
Harry shrugged. "It said I would do well in Slytherin, and that Slytherin would help me on my way."
Slytherin was the house out of which more bad wizards and witches immerged than any of the other three houses at Hogwarts put together.
"Anyway," Harry continued, "I begged it mentally not to put me in Slytherin, so it finally put me in Gryffindor. But then I found out some other things as well."
"Like what?" Hermione was looking at him anxiously.
Harry glanced down and then back up at his two best friends. "Well, my wand..."
Hermione and Ron looked at him questioningly. "Yeah," Ron said with a blank look, "we know you have a wand...."
Harry wasn't sure what their reactions would be, but he figured that just coming out with it was the easiest way to go about it. "My wand holds a feather from the same Phoenix that Voldermort's does."
Hermione gasped and raised a hand to cover her now gaping mouth. Ron just stared at Harry as though he couldn't remember how to speak.
"So, that's why Sirius sent you the book..." muttered Hermione, her hand sliding from her mouth as she spoke.
Ron turned his attention away from Harry and to her Hermione who was sitting to his left. "What does that have to do with the book?" He knew he was in for a long explanation because Hermione never explained anything in a quaint manner, but at the moment, he just wanted to know what was so important.
Hermione shook her head disapprovingly at Ron. "Ron, do you pay attention at all in school?" she asked in the same fashion as a teacher might.
Ron nodded. "Yeah. At Quidditch matches and at meals." He seemed quite pleased with himself and shot Harry a smile which Harry weakly returned.
Hermione sighed loudly. "When a wand meets its brother, it's powerless to do any sort of harm. Harry and You Know Who's wands are brothers- they cancel each other out. Harry would need his natural powers if he were faced with You Know Who again. That's why Sirius sent the book."
Ron was surprised that she had managed to explain something in under twenty minutes, but he didn't say so. He was too intrigued by what she had just said to be snide. "So, how did you get away before, Harry? You know... back in June." Ron glanced down, not wanting to meet Harry's eye as he asked the question. The three of them had never really discussed what happened.
Harry was quiet for a moment, and then he answered. "Well, it was weird actually. The wands connected."
Hermione nodded, obviously knowing that connecting was the natural thing for a wand and its brother to do. "Yes, and I bet you saw the last curses cast from one of your wands, didn't you?"
Ron just gaped at Hermione. "Where do you get all this? I don't remember anything at all having to do with wands finding their matches and connecting."
Hermione just shook her head once again in a disapproving manner. "I read, Ron." Then she added snidely, "You should try it sometime."
Ron made a face at Hermione and turned his attention back to Harry. "Well, did your curses come out of the wands when they connected?"
"Voldemort's did." Harry suddenly became very quiet. "I saw that last of the murders he'd committed..."
"Cedric?" Ron asked, not noticing that Harry was being way too quiet.
Hermione, on the other hand, realized at once why Harry had stopped, and she glared at Ron and poked him rather hardly.
"Yeah," said Harry. "I saw Cedric." He was silent for a long moment. "Then I saw my parents..."
Ron understood immediately. Looking up at Harry, he quietly said, "I'm sorry."
Harry looked away, willing himself not to get too upset by the memory. He had tried hard not to think of it over the summer, but it was all coming back to him in a hurry. Absolutely refusing to even tear up, he shrugged. "It's okay. My dad told me to run as quick as I could back to the portkey when the wands' connection was broken, and that's how I got away." Biting his lower lip, he held back the tears which were stinging the ends of his eyes. "I reckon that's the only time I'll ever get to talk to them," he finished quietly.
Hermione and Ron sat not speaking for what seemed like ages. Ron was hoping desperately that Hermione would speak first and break the deadly silence, and he was quite relieved when she did. In a voice full of concern, she spoke softly. "Harry, I'm glad you told us. You do know you can tell us anything, right?"
Harry nodded without looking in their direction. He wasn't going to cry in front of them. He just wasn't. Getting to his feet, he headed toward the door. "I'm going for a walk," he said simply as he walked out of the room.
Ron and Hermione watched him leave but didn't get up to follow him. Instead, they sat in silence for awhile until finally Ron spoke. "I feel awful now."
Hermione leaned back against the wall and twirled a strand of her hair through her fingers as she looked off distantly. "He'll be okay."
Ron looked back at her. "I wonder why he never told us about the Slytherin thing."
"Well, would you want to broadcast it if the Sorting Cap had wanted to place you in Slytherin?" she asked, meeting his eye.
"Good point." Ron scooted himself back a bit and crossed his legs under him. Placing his chin in his hands, he leaned down to rest his elbows against his knees. "So, what do we do now?"
Hermione stopped twisting her hair and started playing with her fingernails instead. "I guess we don't mention it again until he's ready to talk about it."
Ron shrugged his shoulders lazily. "Yeah, I guess."
****************************
The next morning, Harry awoke to the sound of Mrs. Weasley screaming loudly from a room below.
"How many times do I have to tell you that you are NOT to have these pricing lists?! This is simply disgraceful!!" Her voice was shrill and quite obviously being directed at Fred and George who shared the bedroom under Ron's.
Ron, too, awoke as his mother started screaming that she couldn't believe that after having three highly successful children (Bill, Charlie, and Percy, of course) she was having to put up with two who were wasting seven years of education on what she termed "incredibly stupid rubbish."
Ron groaned as he pulled the pillow over his head in an attempt to block out his mother's shrieking. "All she does is yell!" he declared from under the pillow. "How does she even have any hint of a voice left?"
Harry laughed softly as he reached for his glasses and pulled them on. The room went from a blur to quite clear. "It sounds as though they've opened a howler," he said as he sat up. A howler was the most-dreaded piece of mail a Hogwarts' student could receive from home. It contained the sender's voice magnified a hundred times screaming shrilly.
Ron sat up wide-eyed and stared at Harry. "Don't even say that!" They both remembered all too well the time Ron had received a howler in their second year after he and Harry had crashed a flying car into a tree on the school's grounds.
As the years went on, though, the memory of the crash was actually becoming quite humorous. Smiling, Harry mentioned it. "Why did we have to be so stupid?"
Ron laughed a little and shrugged. "Flying the car seemed the logical thing to do at the time," he pointed out.
They both laughed about it, reminiscing, as they got dressed and ready for breakfast. Mrs. Weasley had finally stopped shouting and had obviously headed back downstairs to the kitchen. Just as they were pulling their shoes, a knock sounded at Ron's door.
"Come in," he called as he tied his shoe.
Hermione stuck her head through the door and then entered, still in her pajamas. She shut the door behind her. "What was all the shouting about?" she asked . "I woke up and heard your mother yelling her head off, and Ginny was nowhere to be found, so I didn't know what was going on."
Ron looked up at her, wishing a bit that she had bothered to get dressed before coming to his room, and shrugged. "I reckon Mum found a copy of the new pricing list Fred and George made for the new school year." Then he added, "Ginny was probably in there helping them."
Hermione looked a bit worried. "Oh yeah. I heard about the Weasley immunity..." she glanced at Harry. "Not too lucky for us, eh? I suppose we'll be the guinea pigs."
Harry smiled at her. He was in a much better mood this morning than he had been the afternoon before. "Just don't take anything from them. That's what I intend on doing."
"And don't take anything from Ginny, either," added Ron. "I think Fred and George have brainwashed her or something. She's acting as their little minion these days."
Hermione nodded as a puzzled look crossed her face. "Yes, so I've noticed. Ginny's changed a bit, hasn't she?"
"A bit?" Ron laughed. "That's the understatement of the year. She's an absolute different person." He didn't comment on how much Hermione had changed because, truthfully, just as Harry had said, she still appeared to be the same person underneath her new appearance.
Hermione's eyes widened, as she suddenly remembered something she had needed to tell them. "Oh! I can't believe I forgot to tell you!" She hit herself in the forehead. "You'll never guess who I saw in Bulgaria!"
Ron frowned, not really caring who she had seen in Bulgaria. Actually, he didn't care if she kept all the details of her trip quiet.
Harry, however, was interested. "Who?"
"Hagrid and Madame Maxime!" She plopped down onto the bed beside Ron, her eyes sparkling with the excitement of what she had to tell them. "And guess what they were doing!"
Harry shook his head. "I give up."
"Hagrid was buying her a ring!" Hermione nearly squealed as she finished.
"What?!" Ron turned open-mouthed to Hermione. "What was he doing that for??"
Hermione beamed. "He fancies her! It wasn't an engagement ring or anything like that, but still!"
"Wow," Harry breathed. "I wonder how big the ring was..." Madame Maxime was hands down the largest woman any of them had ever seen.
Ron and Hermione laughed, and Hermione continued. "But isn't that sweet? He told me he felt like he needed to get her a gift so that'd she know how he felt. Isn't it terribly romantic?"
Ron eyed Hermione, obviously wondering when she had turned into such a romance lover. "Be still, my heart," he said, grinning at her.
Hermione smirked and hit him in the shoulder. "Oh, shut up, Ron."
Ron laughed as he raised his left hand to the place where she had punched him- a bit harder than she had meant to, in fact. "Ow! That hurt!"
Hermione rolled her eyes and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "Well, that's what you get for making fun of me," she said matter-of-factly.
Harry was suddenly very glad that he was with his two best friends. Things were so different when he was with them than when he was anywhere else. Being with Ron and Hermione was like truly being at home somewhere.
Hermione, still pursing her lips in a faked anger at Ron, stood up then. "Well, I am starving. I'm going to get changed." She turned back to Ron and proceeded to swiftly kick him in his right shin. "Make fun of me again, will you?" she said with raised eyebrows.
Ron immediately reached down to grab his leg. "Hermione! Are you trying to kill me or what?" He rubbed his shin rapidly. "Geeze!"
Hermione ignored him and walked out of the room to change out of her pajamas. Harry laughed as Ron continued to rub his shin. "Did she really hurt you?" he asked, grinning.
Ron stared at him. "Tell you what. When we go down for breakfast, ask her to give you a nice kick in the shin and see how you like it."
Harry just snickered.
***********************
The next morning Harry woke up feeling absolutely wonderful. He couldn't even describe how great if felt to wake up and be in the Weasley house instead of his aunt and uncle's house on Privet Drive. It was as though he were finally home. He grabbed his glasses from the table that sat between his and Ron's beds and glanced over to where Ron was sleeping. His watch told him that it was nearly 10:00. He was rather surprised that Mrs. Weasley had allowed them to sleep in so late, but he was grateful. For some reason, he had been absolutely worn out the night before, and crawling into the warm guest bed in Ron's room had seemed like heaven.
"Ron, wake up," he said, trying not to be too awfully loud. But then again, he knew how hard Ron was to awaken. So, when he didn't move, Harry tried again a little louder. "Ron! Wake up."
Ron rolled over and groaned. Opening one eye, he stared at Harry. Then suddenly, he sat right up. "Harry! I forgot that you were here! What time is it?"
"Nearly ten. Wonder why your mum didn't come up and wake us?" Harry stretched and put his feet on the cold floor.
Ron shrugged as he pulled himself into a sitting position. "Who knows? Who cares? Better to sleep in than to have her in here bellowing that I'm a lazy bum sleeping the summer away."
Harry laughed. "Come on. Let's go get breakfast." Just as he stood up, Ron hit himself in the head.
"Happy birthday, Harry! I nearly forgot what day it was!" He smiled at Harry as he, too, pulled himself out of bed and shivered as the cool air hit him.
Ron was right; it was his birthday. Harry laughed. "I really did forget!" Harry was fifteen that day. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Anyway, let's go get breakfast for real. I'm starving!"
So, both boys pulled on some clothes and hurried downstairs without even bothering to brush their hair. The first floor of the Weasley house was rather quiet. No one seemed to be in the kitchen or in the sitting room, either.
"I wonder where everyone is," he said to Ron as they neared the kitchen door.
Ron shrugged. "I dunno. Mum's probably shopping, and Dad's at work. I don't know where Fred, George, and Ginny are, though."
They got to the kitchen door and pulled it open.
"SURPRISE!"
Around the kitchen stood Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ginny. On the kitchen table was a fabulous birthday cake that Mrs. Weasley, herself, had baked early that morning before they had awaken. An assortment of breakfast foods such as sausage, bacon, a plate of scrambled eggs, and lots of fruit were on the counter. And sitting on the table beside the cake was a small pile of presents.
Harry was absolutely shocked. Never before had he ever had a real birthday party. The closest the Dursley's had ever come to throwing him one was a dinner party for Uncle Vernon's business associates which Harry wasn't allowed to even attend. He was thrilled at the surprise!
"Wow! Thanks!" He smiled at them all, and then turned to Ron who looked just as shocked as he did. "Didn't you know about it, Ron?"
Ron shook his head. "Nope." He looked up at his mother. "Why didn't you tell me?"
She rolled her eyes as she hurried over to hug Harry. "Because, Ron, you have a habit of not keeping secrets too well. We wanted it to be a surprise."
Ron, at first, appeared to be a bit insulted by his mother, but then he just shrugged his shoulders. "Open your presents, Harry!"
Mrs. Weasley held up a finger to stop him. "Wait. There's one more surprise as well."
Harry looked around wondering what it could be.
"Go into the sitting room." Mrs. Weasley held the door open for Harry and Ron to get into the sitting room where a fire was blazing in the fireplace. Neither of them thought anything of it, despite the fact that it was July. But suddenly a loud popping sound could be heard from that direction.
They both turned to look as someone appeared in the fire.
"Hermione!" It was Ron who was the first to say her name as she stepped out of the fireplace and dusted herself off quickly. She was the same Hermione they had seen in the picture in Quidditch Center. She was now dressed in a pair of dark blue capri pants with a lighter colored tank top, and her bushy brown hair was still extremely straight, though pulled halfway back and secured with a tiny clip. She was even wearing make-up just as she had been in the picture, and her skin was a nice tanned color.
She smiled at them both. "Surprise!"
"Hermione, I thought you weren't..." Harry was cut off as she walked up to him and gave him a tight hug.
"Happy birthday, Harry!"
"Thanks, but I thought you had to go to Ireland." Harry looked at her, puzzled.
She turned to Ron and met him with the same type of tight hug. Harry saw Ron's face turn a little pinker than normal as she wrapped her arms around him. He even looked a tad disappointed as she let go of him and turned back to Harry. "No, that was just to fool you guys into thinking I wasn't coming to stay. Mum and Dad are really going to Ireland, but they told me that I could come stay here if I wanted to instead, and, of course, I said yes. I wanted it to be a surprise, so I wrote and told you I wasn't coming." She looked at them and rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Of course, I'm not going to miss your birthday, Harry, and there was no way I was going to miss the trip to the coast next weekend."
"You're staying that long?" Ron asked.
Hermione nodded. "I'm staying until term starts, actually. My parents won't be back to Britain until September tenth, so your mum and dad said I could stay here and that they would see me off to school safely."
Ron was staring at Hermione as though he wasn't sure what to say next. Finally, he said, "Why do you look so different?"
Hermione raised a hand to her long brown hair. "Oh! Well, I got my hair straightened right before I left for Bulgaria at a Muggle salon. Do you like it?"
Ron shrugged. "It's alright, I guess," he answered nonchalantly. "What about your clothes?"
She glanced down and then back up at Ron. "What about them?"
"You don't normally dress like that."
"Oh. Well, Mum said that since my grades had improved so much in my fourth year that she would take me on a shopping spree at the start of holiday. I got a ton of new stuff."
Ron looked at her as though she were crazy. "Your grades improved from what, Hermione? Perfect to beyond humanly possible?"
Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "No, Ron. I made a B in potions third year. I worked extra hard last year to bring it back up to an A."
Ron glanced at Harry and shook his head while rolling his eyes slightly. He had barely made a D in potions, but he was sure that Harry, too, had just barely scraped by in that class. "Well, I'm sure it was a horror to see that B on your report," he said bitterly. "Probably ruined your whole summer holiday last year, eh?"
Hermione chose to ignore Ron and turned her attention back to Harry who was still shocked that she had shown up. "Your present from me is already in the kitchen, Harry. I had all my things sent ahead."
At that moment, Mrs. Weasley stuck her head back into the sitting room. "Oh, hello, Hermione!" Hermione smiled her reply. "If you kids want breakfast anytime soon, you better get back in here." She shut the door as she disappeared back into the kitchen.
"Shall we?" Hermione led the way into the kitchen followed by Harry and then Ron. Ron looked at Harry's disheveled hair, and suddenly remembering that neither of them had even glanced in a mirror earlier, licked his fingers and tried desperately to smooth his hair down a bit as they followed Hermione back into the kitchen, where she was being greeted by the rest of the Weasleys.
"Can Harry open his presents, Mum?" Ron asked as they sat back down at the table.
She shook her head. "Breakfast first and then cake and presents."
Ron and Harry, along with the rest of the Weasley's piled their plates full of all the breakfast foods set out. Hermione, however, reached only for the fruit and the bread.
"Don't you want some sausage, Hermione?" asked Mrs. Weasley warmly.
Hermione shook her head politely. "Oh, no, ma'am. I've given up meat."
Ron and Harry exchanged looks and then turned back to Hermione who continued. "I decided that if I can save just one animal by giving up meat then it will be worth it."
Ron snorted. "Started a new organization yet, Hermione? Gotten tired of spew, have you?" He was referring to the organization that Hermione had started last year in an attempt to free all house-elves.
Fred and George both burst into laughter, but Hermione ignored them. Narrowing her eyes at Ron, she answered him. "It's not spew, Ron, and you know that perfectly well. It's S.P.E.W. And no, I haven't gotten tired of it; I fully intend on starting to rally again as soon as we return to school. In answer to your other question, no, I haven't started a new organization. I don't intend to, either. My giving up meat is a personal choice I made for myself."
Ron rolled his eyes and whispered to Harry. "I bet she's just on a diet to look pretty for Mr. Viky boy."
Hermione, obviously hearing him, glared at him. "I am not on a diet, thank you," she said shortly.
Mrs. Weasley stepped in to stop the brewing argument that was sure to begin at any moment. "Ron, leave Hermione alone and eat your breakfast." She smiled at Hermione. "I think it's wonderful you've given up meat, dear. I'd do it myself if I had the willpower, but I just don't."
They finished breakfast without any further discussion of Hermione's new vegetarianism. Breakfast was quite uneventful, in fact. Surprisingly enough, Fred and George didn't pull any of their new tricks at the table. Ginny and Ron didn't speak to each other at all, both obviously still mad about the argument they had had the night before. And Harry and Hermione spent most of breakfast trying to explain to Mr. Weasley the difference between a VHS cassette and a DVD.
When they were finally finished, Mrs. Weasley cleared the table of the dishes with a wave of her wand and turned to Harry. "Alright, Harry dear. You may open your gifts now."
There were seven presents all together, and Harry didn't know which one to open first. Obviously knowing what Harry was thinking, Mrs. Weasley reached for one and handed it to him. "Here. This one is from Arthur and me."
Harry smiled at her as he took the present and pulled the wrapping off of it. Inside the box was a new sweater that Mrs. Weasley had knitted. She traditionally sent Harry a sweater each Christmas, but he was a bit surprised to find she had made him one in the middle of summer.
"It's supposed to get chilly quite early this year," she told him as she beamed down at him.
Harry nodded and smiled. "Thanks very much."
"Open this one next," Fred pushed a small box across the table at Harry. "It's from George and me."
Harry was almost scared to open the box, so he did so in a very careful manner.
George laughed. "We promise nothing's going to explode."
Harry opened the box the rest of the way and found what looked like a small coupon. It said, "Good for one box of Gender Jostling Jelly Beans to be used exclusively on Professor Severus Snape, potions Master." Harry couldn't hide the grin that covered his lips.
"What is it, dear?" asked Mrs. Weasley straining to see.
Fred jumped in to answer. "Oh, it's just an IOU saying we'll do his laundry sometime at school."
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley both eyed them suspiciously but decided to let it pass, as Hermione handed Harry a rather small box wrapped in gold foil. "Here, Harry. I picked this up for you while I was in Bulgaria."
Ron glowered at the mention of Bulgaria but didn't say anything. He watched as Harry opened the present and pulled out a glass display case. Inside of the case, a little stand held a golden snitch- the tiny ball that had to be caught for a Quidditch match to be won.
"Wow, Hermione!" Harry looked up at her with wide eyes. "Where did you get this?"
Ron strained to see what was so special about it, as did Fred, George, and Ginny. Harry handed it to Ron, and Ron let out a huge gasp.
"It's autographed by Mikel Graft!" Ron said, barely able to speak. Fred and George, too, let out huge gasps. Mikel Graft was the Chudley Cannons' seeker. The Chudley Cannons were Ron and Harry's favorite Quidditch team.
"I got it from a Quidditch memorabilia shop I was browsing in while Viktor was at practice." She paused. "It's from the World Cup seven years ago, so I know it's a bit old, but I thought you still might like it. I wish I could have gotten a newer one."
Ron nearly dropped the glass case he was holding when she said that, so it was a good thing both Fred and George dived to inspect it before he could drop it. Fred got hold of it first and held it close to his eye.
"Hermione, are you mad?!" Fred passed it to George. "Seven years ago was when the Cannons won the World Cup!"
Hermione still didn't seem to see what was so special about the snitch in the case. She had simply bought it because the wizard working the shop had told her that Graft was seeker for the Cannons, and she had heard Ron and Harry talk about them incessantly for awhile now. "Do you like it, Harry?" she asked, afraid he didn't because he hadn't spoken since he had first opened it.
Harry was still in shock. He nodded his head quickly. "It's really great, Hermione. Thanks!"
She smiled at him. "Good. I'm glad you're not too upset it's a few years old."
Ron rolled his eyes as he reached once again for the snitch which had now passed through both Ginny and Mr. Weasley's hands. "I can't believe it..." he muttered.
Ginny slid a present across the table. "It's not much, but I haven't got a lot of money saved up," she explained.
Harry took the box and pulled the paper off of it. Inside was what appeared to be a CD case. It had a picture of the Weird Sisters on it; they were a widely popular musical group in the wizarding community which Harry had gotten to hear the previous year when they had played the Yule Ball. "Wow, thanks, Ginny," he smiled at her, and she blushed a red that was just a shade darker than her hair.
"I know you haven't got a WWN hookup, so I figured you'd get a listen of the Weird Sisters this way. Dad got a man in Muggle relations to transmit it onto the Muggle music device." Growing up in a full-wizarding house, the Weasley children had never used anything like a CD player.
"Ooh," Hermione reached for a better look. "I want to have a listen, Harry." Hermione, like Harry, had grown up in a Muggle household. Both of her parents were Muggles, so she was the first witch in her family.
"Ron?" Mrs. Weasley waved a hand in front of her youngest son's face. When he finally looked up from the case he was still holding in his hand, she said, "Don't you have a gift for Harry?"
"Oh! Yeah..." Ron's face dropped slightly as he finally sat the snitch down and reached for a perfectly square box. He frowned a little as he handed it to Harry. "It's nothing compared to Hermione's..."
Harry just shook his head as he opened the gift. Inside was a box with the words "Baisley's Broomstick Booster." Harry had never heard of it before, so he turned to Ron for an explanation.
"Well, it's new, see?" Ron looked down. "I figured you might be able to use it because it's supposed to make any broomstick, even the Firebolt, go twice as fast." He wasn't speaking very loudly, and it was quite obvious to Harry that Ron thought his present paled in comparison to Hermione's.
"It's great, Ron! Thanks!" He opened the box and saw that it was filled with a silvery sort of powder. "Twice as fast you say? That's wicked! Thanks!"
Ron smiled a bit, obviously cheered by Harry's enthusiasm. "You're welcome."
There were still two gifts in the middle of the table. Harry reached for them and noticed that one was from Hagrid, the groundskeeper at Hogwarts and also the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, and the other was from Sirius Black, Harry's godfather. Harry opened the one from Hagrid first. It was, as it always was, a box full of his favorite sweets. Ron, obviously interested in that particular gift, smiled at Harry innocently as he slid the box closer to himself and started rummaging through it, picking out what he wanted. A note attached to the gift read:
Dear Harry,
Sorry I haven't had a chance to write, but Madame Maxime and I are off doing special business for the Ministry. We're both doing well, and I hope that you lot are doing great, too. I should be back in plenty of time for the start of next term, so I suppose I'll see you then. Once again, sorry 'bout the lack of communication- been a bit distracted here. Anyway, Happy Birthday and have a great holiday.
Hagrid
Harry handed the note to Hermione who was obviously interested in what Hagrid had to write, and then he reached for the last gift in the pile. It was rather heavy, and Harry knew before opening it that it was a book. He had received enough books as gifts from Hermione to know exactly how they felt wrapped in a box. When he opened the box, he found that he was right. A large book of spells rested amidst the tissue, and a note sat on top. Harry opened it and read:
Dear Harry,
I'm sorry that I can't be there, but as you know things aren't very safe for any of us these days, least of all me. You're probably wondering why I sent you a book of spells as your birthday gift, aren't you? Well, this book isn't a normal book of spells. It contains spells which many of the most advanced wizards and witches haven't ever succeeded in mastering- therefore, Hermione should get a load of use out of it as well. You'll find the most useful spells in chapter fourteen. There's one in particular I feel you absolutely must learn to perform- you'll know which one it is.
Wishing you a happy birthday,
Sirius
Hermione immediately reached for the book and opened it. "I wonder which spell he's talking about," she said as she hurriedly flipped to chapter fourteen.
Mr. Weasley stood up. "Why don't we leave that to later, eh? Have some cake."
Mrs. Weasley nodded as she cut them all a slice of cake. "Close the book, dear. It's not polite to read at the table," she said quietly to Hermione who reluctantly shut the book and reached for her slice of cake.
************************************
Later that day, Harry found himself outside in a Wizard's Chess match- him and Ron against Fred and George. He and Ron were beating the twins horribly. Ginny sat in a chair beside the table watching, and Hermione was holed up in Ginny's room with her nose buried deep in the new spell book Sirius had sent.
Just as one of the twins' knights got his head cut off, Ron spoke up out of nowhere. "How did she do it?"
Four sets of eyes stared at him, wondering who she was and what she managed to do.
"Hermione," he finished, without having to be asked. "That snitch must have cost a bloody fortune! How'd she ever manage it?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and took that opportunity to speak to Ron for the first time since the night before. "Really, Ron. Have you forgotten that her boyfriend makes fifty thousand galleons a match? I think it's quite obvious how she managed it."
Ron glared at his little sister and then turned angrily to Harry. "She's right, you know? Viktor Krum bought that gift." He sneered matter-of- factly. "I think you should return it."
Harry shook his head. "No, Hermione's got money on her own. Her parents are both dentists, remember?"
All four Weasley children stared at him blankly, so Harry gave further explanation. "Dentists make a lot of money. If you have one as a parent, you're pretty rich. If you've got two for parents, you're very rich."
Ron glowered. "I still bet she sweet talked Krum into buying it," he muttered under his breath.
At that very moment, Hermione came running from the house at full speed. "I found it!" she exclaimed as she pushed the chess board aside and laid the new book of spells out on the table; curses could be heard coming from the discarded chess pieces as they flew all across the lawn. "Look right here. Chapter fourteen, just like he said."
Harry looked down to where Hermione was pointing. The book was open to a page where a spell simply titled "Wandless" was listed.
"It tells you how to summon your natural powers and the power of your wand even when you're not in physical possession of it," Hermione explained when she saw his puzzled expression. "In case you ever find yourself in a situation where your wand is powerless or you don't have it on your or something."
Harry immediately knew why Sirius had sent him the book, but he didn't want to say anything in front of Fred, George, and Ginny. Although he considered them to be good friends, they didn't know everything about his life like Ron and Hermione did. The thing he was thinking of now, though, was something Ron and Hermione hadn't even been told; he made a mental note to tell them as soon as he found himself alone with the two of them. His wand held a feather from the same Phoenix that Lord Voldemort's wand did. Voldemort was the Dark Lord who had killed Harry's parents years ago; he had recently come back into power, but at their last meeting, Harry had found that when his wand met its brother, Voldemort's wand, neither worked at all. Rather they connected in a strange sort of way. Harry had yet to reveal all the details of his last encounter with Voldemort to Ron and Hermione. It was still quite painful to recall.
"Wicked!" exclaimed George as he leaned in closer to examine the spell. "This could definitely come in handy."
Hermione snapped the book shut and frowned at George. "I don't think we should all be learning these spells, George. Sirius sent them for Harry's use, not ours."
Harry shook his head. "No, he wouldn't care. He'd want us all to be prepared in case something like that happened. And anyway, he said he knew that you, Hermione, would find great use of this book."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's all she needs- another fifteen pound book to bury her nose in."
Hermione, quite agitated, looked at Ron squarely. "You know, it's rather rude to talk about people in the third person when they're standing right beside you."
Ron looked back at her just as squarely. "Excuse me, Miss Granger. I forgot that you were the newly appointed manners mistress," he said sarcastically. With that, he got up and stormed away into the house.
Hermione watched him go and then sat down in his chair. "What's up with him?"
Harry shrugged. It was quite the normality for Ron and Hermione to bicker nonstop, so he didn't see why Ron had gotten annoyed so quickly. "I dunno."
"I know what's up with him," Ginny said, rather matter-of-factly. "Hormones."
Fred and George both started to laugh, and Harry felt himself getting embarrassed for Ron. He wanted to stop Ginny before she continued, but it didn't work.
Hermione looked at Ginny, shocked, and said, "What're you talking about- hormones?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and pushed a strand of her red hair away from her face. "Oh, isn't it obvious? Ron's been in a frenzy ever since he saw that stupid article that said that you and Viktor Krum had made it official!"
Hermione still stared at Ginny in a way that said she didn't follow.
Ginny continued to rave on. "And haven't you noticed that he's put on a ton of after-shave today? Holy shit! You can smell him a mile away, and he hasn't even started shaving yet." She said all of this as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"And?" Hermione was obviously still not getting the picture.
"Hermione, Ron likes you!" Ginny spat it out and sighed heavily when she finished, leaning back in her chair as though she were tired from performing a great task.
Fred and George really started to roll with laughter as their sister completed her theory. Fred even gave her a thumbs-up and a wink, as though to say, "Good job!" Harry wished desperately that Ginny hadn't just said that. Ron would be absolutely horrified!
Hermione just stared at Ginny. She didn't speak for a long moment, and then she finally said, "Ginny, are you mad? I would be the last person on this planet that Ron Weasley would ever fancy. I can assure you of that." Harry was thankful that Hermione hadn't gone all schoolgirl giggly like most girls would have when told that a boy liked them.
Ginny laughed, though. "Are you serious? You're really that blind?" She rolled her eyes and looked at Harry. "She should have seen him last night when he saw the magazine, shouldn't she have, Harry?"
Harry, hating to be put on the spot, shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't really notice."
Ginny immediately turned her attention back to Hermione, shrugging Harry's response off with a simple, "He's lying," and continued. "Hermione, I am dead serious. Ron nearly went mental when he read that you were Krum's girlfriend! He cursed me out using some words I'd never even heard before!"
"I happen to think she's right," George said, grinning. "Ron did appear to be a bit jealous of ole' Krum. That's for sure."
Fred nodded. "And he does smell pretty awful today, doesn't he? I didn't even know we had that much cologne in the entire house! He's never worn it before..."
Hermione just shook her head and rolled her eyes. "You're mad. All of you. You think that Ron likes me? Please!"
Harry decided to excuse himself then; he wasn't going to be able to take any more humiliation for Ron. "I think I'm going to head upstairs for a bit," he said as he turned and made his way toward the house.
"Harry, wait!" Hermione grabbed the book and took off after him, ignoring Ginny's "You're blind!"
When she had caught up to him and they were near the door, Hermione laughed nervously. "Can you believe that lot? I think they've all gone nutters."
Harry shrugged as they walked through the door and up the stairs to Ron's room. Hermione followed him in, and they found Ron sitting on his bed looking, for the millionth time, at the golden snitch in its display case. He looked up when they came in.
"Come to teach me more manners, have you?" Ron glared at Hermione who did her job of returning the look.
"No, as a matter of fact, I came up here because I need to talk to you two." She sat down beside Ron on his bed and Harry sat across from them on the one he was using. "I found something out while I was with Viktor that I think you might be interested in."
Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm not interested in anything that nit's got to say."
Hermione ignored him and continued. "I wandered around the city quite a bit while I was there since Viktor spent so much time at practice. And I heard things," she paused as though she were unsure of how to explain them. "I heard things about You Know Who that I don't think I was meant to hear."
Harry's eyes met Hermione's then. "What kind of things?"
She looked down, suddenly appearing as though she wasn't sure she should tell them at all. "Well, I was in a wand shop browsing, and I heard the shopkeeper tell one of his friends that You Know Who supporters were gaining such strength that they were soon going to be able to take back over. He was obviously a You Know Who supporter because he said something else that I'm not sure I should repeat. I mean, I don't even know if it's true." She looked up at Harry. "It's about you."
"What about me?" Harry wasn't surprised that he was the topic of conversation, but he wanted to know what was being said.
"Well, he said something like, 'When we get that Potter boy we're going to use him to restore power to our side. The Lord doesn't want him dead anymore.' I really don't know what it means," added Hermione quickly.
Harry was puzzled. "Of course, he wants me dead! That's all he's wanted for fifteen years now!"
Hermione nodded. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too. But it was so strange. He said that your death wouldn't do anything to empower their side." She frowned before she continued. "He said that with you being dead all of your powers would be useless, and he said that they needed your powers to help them..."
Harry sat looking at Hermione, unsure of what to say. Finally, he decided that he had to tell them. "I have something to tell you that you might find a bit odd," he said uncertainly.
Ron and Hermione both stared back at him waiting anxiously for the piece of information he was about to reveal.
"Well, a couple of things actually..."
"Get on with it, Harry," said Ron impatiently.
Harry nodded. "Well, do you remember our first night at Hogwarts? Remember how it seemed to take the Sorting Cap longer to sort me than to sort anyone else?"
They nodded, vaguely remembering.
"I never told you this, but the hat wanted to put me in Slytherin..."
Ron's mouth fell open. "You're not serious! Why would it do that?!"
Harry shrugged. "It said I would do well in Slytherin, and that Slytherin would help me on my way."
Slytherin was the house out of which more bad wizards and witches immerged than any of the other three houses at Hogwarts put together.
"Anyway," Harry continued, "I begged it mentally not to put me in Slytherin, so it finally put me in Gryffindor. But then I found out some other things as well."
"Like what?" Hermione was looking at him anxiously.
Harry glanced down and then back up at his two best friends. "Well, my wand..."
Hermione and Ron looked at him questioningly. "Yeah," Ron said with a blank look, "we know you have a wand...."
Harry wasn't sure what their reactions would be, but he figured that just coming out with it was the easiest way to go about it. "My wand holds a feather from the same Phoenix that Voldermort's does."
Hermione gasped and raised a hand to cover her now gaping mouth. Ron just stared at Harry as though he couldn't remember how to speak.
"So, that's why Sirius sent you the book..." muttered Hermione, her hand sliding from her mouth as she spoke.
Ron turned his attention away from Harry and to her Hermione who was sitting to his left. "What does that have to do with the book?" He knew he was in for a long explanation because Hermione never explained anything in a quaint manner, but at the moment, he just wanted to know what was so important.
Hermione shook her head disapprovingly at Ron. "Ron, do you pay attention at all in school?" she asked in the same fashion as a teacher might.
Ron nodded. "Yeah. At Quidditch matches and at meals." He seemed quite pleased with himself and shot Harry a smile which Harry weakly returned.
Hermione sighed loudly. "When a wand meets its brother, it's powerless to do any sort of harm. Harry and You Know Who's wands are brothers- they cancel each other out. Harry would need his natural powers if he were faced with You Know Who again. That's why Sirius sent the book."
Ron was surprised that she had managed to explain something in under twenty minutes, but he didn't say so. He was too intrigued by what she had just said to be snide. "So, how did you get away before, Harry? You know... back in June." Ron glanced down, not wanting to meet Harry's eye as he asked the question. The three of them had never really discussed what happened.
Harry was quiet for a moment, and then he answered. "Well, it was weird actually. The wands connected."
Hermione nodded, obviously knowing that connecting was the natural thing for a wand and its brother to do. "Yes, and I bet you saw the last curses cast from one of your wands, didn't you?"
Ron just gaped at Hermione. "Where do you get all this? I don't remember anything at all having to do with wands finding their matches and connecting."
Hermione just shook her head once again in a disapproving manner. "I read, Ron." Then she added snidely, "You should try it sometime."
Ron made a face at Hermione and turned his attention back to Harry. "Well, did your curses come out of the wands when they connected?"
"Voldemort's did." Harry suddenly became very quiet. "I saw that last of the murders he'd committed..."
"Cedric?" Ron asked, not noticing that Harry was being way too quiet.
Hermione, on the other hand, realized at once why Harry had stopped, and she glared at Ron and poked him rather hardly.
"Yeah," said Harry. "I saw Cedric." He was silent for a long moment. "Then I saw my parents..."
Ron understood immediately. Looking up at Harry, he quietly said, "I'm sorry."
Harry looked away, willing himself not to get too upset by the memory. He had tried hard not to think of it over the summer, but it was all coming back to him in a hurry. Absolutely refusing to even tear up, he shrugged. "It's okay. My dad told me to run as quick as I could back to the portkey when the wands' connection was broken, and that's how I got away." Biting his lower lip, he held back the tears which were stinging the ends of his eyes. "I reckon that's the only time I'll ever get to talk to them," he finished quietly.
Hermione and Ron sat not speaking for what seemed like ages. Ron was hoping desperately that Hermione would speak first and break the deadly silence, and he was quite relieved when she did. In a voice full of concern, she spoke softly. "Harry, I'm glad you told us. You do know you can tell us anything, right?"
Harry nodded without looking in their direction. He wasn't going to cry in front of them. He just wasn't. Getting to his feet, he headed toward the door. "I'm going for a walk," he said simply as he walked out of the room.
Ron and Hermione watched him leave but didn't get up to follow him. Instead, they sat in silence for awhile until finally Ron spoke. "I feel awful now."
Hermione leaned back against the wall and twirled a strand of her hair through her fingers as she looked off distantly. "He'll be okay."
Ron looked back at her. "I wonder why he never told us about the Slytherin thing."
"Well, would you want to broadcast it if the Sorting Cap had wanted to place you in Slytherin?" she asked, meeting his eye.
"Good point." Ron scooted himself back a bit and crossed his legs under him. Placing his chin in his hands, he leaned down to rest his elbows against his knees. "So, what do we do now?"
Hermione stopped twisting her hair and started playing with her fingernails instead. "I guess we don't mention it again until he's ready to talk about it."
Ron shrugged his shoulders lazily. "Yeah, I guess."
****************************
The next morning, Harry awoke to the sound of Mrs. Weasley screaming loudly from a room below.
"How many times do I have to tell you that you are NOT to have these pricing lists?! This is simply disgraceful!!" Her voice was shrill and quite obviously being directed at Fred and George who shared the bedroom under Ron's.
Ron, too, awoke as his mother started screaming that she couldn't believe that after having three highly successful children (Bill, Charlie, and Percy, of course) she was having to put up with two who were wasting seven years of education on what she termed "incredibly stupid rubbish."
Ron groaned as he pulled the pillow over his head in an attempt to block out his mother's shrieking. "All she does is yell!" he declared from under the pillow. "How does she even have any hint of a voice left?"
Harry laughed softly as he reached for his glasses and pulled them on. The room went from a blur to quite clear. "It sounds as though they've opened a howler," he said as he sat up. A howler was the most-dreaded piece of mail a Hogwarts' student could receive from home. It contained the sender's voice magnified a hundred times screaming shrilly.
Ron sat up wide-eyed and stared at Harry. "Don't even say that!" They both remembered all too well the time Ron had received a howler in their second year after he and Harry had crashed a flying car into a tree on the school's grounds.
As the years went on, though, the memory of the crash was actually becoming quite humorous. Smiling, Harry mentioned it. "Why did we have to be so stupid?"
Ron laughed a little and shrugged. "Flying the car seemed the logical thing to do at the time," he pointed out.
They both laughed about it, reminiscing, as they got dressed and ready for breakfast. Mrs. Weasley had finally stopped shouting and had obviously headed back downstairs to the kitchen. Just as they were pulling their shoes, a knock sounded at Ron's door.
"Come in," he called as he tied his shoe.
Hermione stuck her head through the door and then entered, still in her pajamas. She shut the door behind her. "What was all the shouting about?" she asked . "I woke up and heard your mother yelling her head off, and Ginny was nowhere to be found, so I didn't know what was going on."
Ron looked up at her, wishing a bit that she had bothered to get dressed before coming to his room, and shrugged. "I reckon Mum found a copy of the new pricing list Fred and George made for the new school year." Then he added, "Ginny was probably in there helping them."
Hermione looked a bit worried. "Oh yeah. I heard about the Weasley immunity..." she glanced at Harry. "Not too lucky for us, eh? I suppose we'll be the guinea pigs."
Harry smiled at her. He was in a much better mood this morning than he had been the afternoon before. "Just don't take anything from them. That's what I intend on doing."
"And don't take anything from Ginny, either," added Ron. "I think Fred and George have brainwashed her or something. She's acting as their little minion these days."
Hermione nodded as a puzzled look crossed her face. "Yes, so I've noticed. Ginny's changed a bit, hasn't she?"
"A bit?" Ron laughed. "That's the understatement of the year. She's an absolute different person." He didn't comment on how much Hermione had changed because, truthfully, just as Harry had said, she still appeared to be the same person underneath her new appearance.
Hermione's eyes widened, as she suddenly remembered something she had needed to tell them. "Oh! I can't believe I forgot to tell you!" She hit herself in the forehead. "You'll never guess who I saw in Bulgaria!"
Ron frowned, not really caring who she had seen in Bulgaria. Actually, he didn't care if she kept all the details of her trip quiet.
Harry, however, was interested. "Who?"
"Hagrid and Madame Maxime!" She plopped down onto the bed beside Ron, her eyes sparkling with the excitement of what she had to tell them. "And guess what they were doing!"
Harry shook his head. "I give up."
"Hagrid was buying her a ring!" Hermione nearly squealed as she finished.
"What?!" Ron turned open-mouthed to Hermione. "What was he doing that for??"
Hermione beamed. "He fancies her! It wasn't an engagement ring or anything like that, but still!"
"Wow," Harry breathed. "I wonder how big the ring was..." Madame Maxime was hands down the largest woman any of them had ever seen.
Ron and Hermione laughed, and Hermione continued. "But isn't that sweet? He told me he felt like he needed to get her a gift so that'd she know how he felt. Isn't it terribly romantic?"
Ron eyed Hermione, obviously wondering when she had turned into such a romance lover. "Be still, my heart," he said, grinning at her.
Hermione smirked and hit him in the shoulder. "Oh, shut up, Ron."
Ron laughed as he raised his left hand to the place where she had punched him- a bit harder than she had meant to, in fact. "Ow! That hurt!"
Hermione rolled her eyes and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "Well, that's what you get for making fun of me," she said matter-of-factly.
Harry was suddenly very glad that he was with his two best friends. Things were so different when he was with them than when he was anywhere else. Being with Ron and Hermione was like truly being at home somewhere.
Hermione, still pursing her lips in a faked anger at Ron, stood up then. "Well, I am starving. I'm going to get changed." She turned back to Ron and proceeded to swiftly kick him in his right shin. "Make fun of me again, will you?" she said with raised eyebrows.
Ron immediately reached down to grab his leg. "Hermione! Are you trying to kill me or what?" He rubbed his shin rapidly. "Geeze!"
Hermione ignored him and walked out of the room to change out of her pajamas. Harry laughed as Ron continued to rub his shin. "Did she really hurt you?" he asked, grinning.
Ron stared at him. "Tell you what. When we go down for breakfast, ask her to give you a nice kick in the shin and see how you like it."
Harry just snickered.
