Chapter 14 Holidays of Changes
"They are scared of you!" Laughed Ron to his best friend a few days after the match between Gryffindor and Slytherin.
Since that day when Hermione hit Malfoy with a Bludger in his genitals, the male population of the School tried to avoid her anger as much as they could. None of them wanted another one of those incidents. Everyone knew that even her best friends, Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter, were sometimes afraid of her temper.
"That will teach them to not disturb a Gryffindor who best friend was Harry Potter." Said Hermione with a smile.
The potion that would bring them to the place where Harry was, had been started and was on the first stages of the making. Wormtail and the Death Eaters weren't very ahead of them, thing that meant relief for them. It mean that both sides wouldn't reach Harry with a lot of difference.
"How is the Potion?" Asked Ron in a whisper to the girl.
"It's ok. We should be able to be there for Valentine or so." Said Hermione when both teens sat at Defense, their first class of the afternoon.
Their teacher, Arabella Figg had been an Auror before she took the job of watching Harry Potter at his relative's House. She had heard a lot of the friendship between the "Dream Team", as many teachers called Harry, Ron and Hermione, and their adventures together.
After the first few classes with them, she realized that both of them were powerful, but not as much as the missing member of the trio. They compensated the lack of power with other things: Hermione was the brain and Ron was the strategist while Harry put the power of the trio. In all of her times as Auror, she ha never seen a team work as well as they did.
"They would be a great team of Aurors together." Thought Arabella many times watching them work. She alike most of the School's staff, didn't know about that Harry was alive and where he was. The less knew about it, the better.
"Today we'll start with a new subject." Said the ol Auror writting in the blackboard the words: 'Patronus Charm'.
"Harry learnt it in third year, right?" Asked Ron to Hermione in a whisper watching the blackboard.
"Yes, he told me that his form was a Stag like his father." Answered Hermione remembering the night when she and Harry had saved Sirius from the Dementors.
"Do you have anything to tell, Miss Granger? Or you, Mr Weasley?" Asked Arabella who had heard the talk between the teens.
"We were saying that it works to defeat Dementors, Professor." Said Ron blushing a little.
"Also it works with Lethifolds." Added Hermione sure of her words.
"Has any of you seen a Patronus being performed before?" Asked Arabella nodding to the information.
"I saw it once in my third year." Said Hermione, aware that everyone was watching her and listening her words intently.
"Who casted it and which form had it?" Asked Figg with a curious smile.
"Harry Potter and it had the form of a Stag." Said the Prefect.
"Prongs?" Asked Arabella to Hermione in a whisper while the rest of the class gasped at knowing that Harry had been able to do it.
"You know...?" Asked Ron shocked with her words.
"I worked with him in my Auror's time. I found it out by accident. I sworn secrecy to that. I thought that James was the only one who was Animagus. A big mistake." Said the teacher with disgust. Ron and Hermione knew that she was talking about Wormtail.
"He told me once that Professor Lupin told him that his Patronus was like James transforming." Said Hermione nodding to her Professor's previous question.
"Very well. Mr. Weaskey and Miss Granger, 10 points each for Gryffindor." Said Arabella before she adressed to the rest of the Class: "Today I'll explain you how to cast it and we'll start with it. With some luck, some of you will be able to cast a Ptronus with a defined form."
For 40 minutes, the class started to talk about the charm, how to cast it and against what it worked. Then they started to try it. Most of the students weren't able to do much more than just a fog, no form.
Hermione tried to remember a happy memory and found it: the night when Ron and Harry had saved her from the Troll at Halloween of first year. Remembering how she felt after they did it, when all of them thanked each other for what they had done to save the other, Hermione pulled up her wand and exclaimed:
"Expecto Patronum!"
From the tip of her wand, came out a form: a Snitch that flew around the classroom for a few seconds before it dissapeared. Everyone, even Hermione, was shocked that she had done it with sucess at their first try.
"25 points for Gryffindor, Miss Granger." Said Arabella when everyone had recovered from their shock.
"Which memory did you use?" Asked Ron to his best friend when they left the classroom. He had done only fog.
"Halloween of out first year. The night when we became the best friends, remember?" Said Hermione going to Ancient Runes while Ron wen to the Common Room because he had free period.
"How could I forget it?" Said Ron with a smile before they parted their ways.
****
"Could I speak with both of you for a moment at my Office?" Asked Minerva to Ron and Hermione at dinner that day.
"Sure." Said Ron confused with this call. Neither he or Hermione had done something that should be punished.
"I want to make you a proposal. I want to train both of you to become Animagus." Said Minerva without preambles when she and the teens were sat at her Office.
"Is there any special reason for this, Professor?" Asked Hermione trying to hid her shock at the proposal. Ron was watching his Head of House with his mouth open widely, thinking that maybe he had heard her wrong.
"The trip. We don't know how dangerous is this place. We want to give you more chances at this. We, that is me and Professor Dumbledore, thought that this would be something helpful." Said McGonagall very seriously to her students.
"This is something... unexpected." Said Ron when he had closed his mouth and could think something to say.
"Do you accept?" Asked Minerva again.
"Of course!" Said both teens at the same time.
"Tonight, we'll know what is your form. We'll start the training next week. I don't have to say that one of the more important conditon that I'll put to train you, is that both of you will register yourselves at the OWLs this year, right?" Asked the Head of Gryffindor with a flat tone of voice.
"Yes, Professor, of course we will." Said Hermione while Ron nodded next to her.
"Who will be first?" Asked Minerva taking her wand from her robes.
"I will." Said Hermione with security.
"Animas Bestiarus!" Said the Transfiguration Teacher pointing her wand to the Prefect.
Hermione was involved in a withe light for a few moments before her shadow started to change and became a Lioness. Hermione almost jumped in joyness when she saw the forn. She was sure that it would be something like a cat or a felyne type of animal. It was obvious that she wasn't wrong.
"Now you, Mr Weasley." Said McGonagall repeating the process in Ron.
This time his shadow changed into a wolf. Ron looked it strangely. A wolf was the last thing he imagined he would became in his animagus form.
"I never thought you would become a wolf, Mr. Weasley." Said Minerva who had the same thoughts that the redhead.
"Neither did I." Said Ron with shrug of his shoulders.
"We'll train every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I'll talk with Miss Johnson to see the dates of Quiddicth Trainings. If she's as Mr. Wood, in the weeks before the next match, will train the team every night." Said McGonagall writing something at a piece of parchment.
"We'll start next Friday, right? Or on Monday?" Asked Ron eager to start his training as soon as they could.
"The sooner we start, the better. I'll wait both of you, this Friday after dinner here at my Office." Said Minerva dismissing the teens.
"Can we...?" Started to ask Ron thinking in his friends.
"The less people is told, the better. Tell those ones that you trust, no one else." Said Minerva knowing what Ron was going to ask her.
"Of course, Professor." Said Hermione with a nod before she and Ron left the Office and went to the Tower.
They found their friends studying at a lonely place of the Common Room. The twins, although, were talking about some products with Lee, while the girls tried to convince them to study.
"Guys, we know that you took your OWLs like a joke, but you can't do it with the NEWTS!" Exclaimed Katie exasperated with her yearmates actions.
"Now you know how I felt with Harry and Ron, Katie." Said Hermione with a simpathetic smile towards the Head Girl.
"What did McGonagall want with you 2?" Asked Alicia looking up from the Potion's book she was reading.
"Just propose us to be trained to become Animagus. Just that." Said Ron as if it was a minor detail.
"She WHAT????" Asked the whole team shocked with his words.
"She'll train us to become Animagus. She and Dumbledore think that it could be handy when we do our mission." Said Hermione. The rest knew that she talked about the trip to bring Harry back.
"It will be madness when he comes back. I mean, how will be explained that he "died", was buried and suddenly he returns again. I don't want to be the one who does it." Said Fred with seriousness.
"What if he doesn't want to come back?" Asked suddenly Hermione while the others were thinking about Fred's words.
"Why shouldn't he want to?" Asked Lee shocked with the suggestion of Harry not returning.
"Besides what Fred had said? I can imagine millons of things." Said Hermione simply.
"Like what?" Asked Fred confused.
"Guys, understand this. The theory of the Alternate Universes says, that a single event was changed between one and another Universe. What if that event was the night when Harry became the Boy-Who-Lived? What if his parents lived and he was the one who died? What if You-Know-Know died with him too and he never returned? Think about it. There are millions of possibilities." Said Hermione before she added: "I'm going to bed. See you tomorrow."
"Night, Hermione." Said Ron before she dissapeared through the stairs.
"She's right." Said Fred suddenly, thinking about what Hermiona had said.
"We'll have to wait till we are there and then we'll know what will happen." Said Ron with a yawn before he said: "I'll go to bed. Goodnights."
"Nights." Said the others while Ron went upstairs.
Now in the group of friends, there was a doubt that no one could answer for now: What if Harry didn't want to return to this Universe and chose the other one to live forever?
****
"What is bothering you, Miss Granger?" Asked Dumbledore to Hermione while the Prefect was doing the Potion one day.
"Nothing, Professor. It's just something I thought a few days ago." Answered Hermione adding some Mandragora's juice to the Potion.
"And it is...?" Asked Dumbledore curious.
"What if he doesn't want to come back?" Said Hermione with a sad tone of voice thinking about it.
Albus was taken back with those words. He had to admit that neither him, Minerva or Severus had thought in that idea. This changed everything. His idea was to take Harry back to his home. Now this could change everything and he had to admit it. It was good chance that his Grandson would choose the other Universe if it was better than this. And Albus knew that somewhere where he wasn't famous and could be another teen, would be like heaven for Harry.
"I must admit that I never considered that." Said Dumbledore taking a seat and watching the Potion brewing slowly.
"None of us did till a few days ago when Fred wondered how would be explained his 'return' to life after being 'killed' and buried. And you know as well as I do that he always hated the tittle The-Boy-Who-Lived'." Said Hermione very seriously sitting near the old wizard.
"What would you do if he chooses to stay there and not return here?" Asked Albus to the student.
"No idea. I have to see if I exist there. If the 'Hermione Granger' from there doesn't exist... probably I'll stay there. I guess I need a new place. And a new beggining would be more than welcome." Said Hermione after thinking in the question for a long while. She checked her watch and said: "Excuse me Professor, I have training in 10 minutes." Said this, the Prefect left the Dungeon and went to get her broom and went to the lockers.
"You heard it everything, right Severus?" Asked Albus to the shadows that were near his seat.
"I did. And it was a good question, Albus: What if Potter doesn't want to return?" Asked Snape leaving the shadows and becoming visible. He was there all the time while Hermione did the Potion to correct mistakes. Till now, he hadn't had to show himself to save the situation.
"Don't know. Our plan was to take him here and we would see how to explain all the situation with his death later. Now we have to worry about the chance of him not returning with us." Said Dumblededore with a sad tone of voice.
"What would you do if he doesn't return? And don't give me evasives, because you know what I mean. I know your relationship with him." Said Severus checking the Potion.
"Let him do what he wants. I've done a lot of mistakes with his life, I won't stop him if he chooses to live there." Said Albus not being surprised with Severus' knowledge about Harry being his Grandson. He suspected it since a long time ago.
"Don't you have a meeting with Arthur in a few minutes?" Asked Snape checking his watch.
"I'll see you at dinner, Severus." Said Albus before he left the Dungeons and went to his Office for the meeting with the Minister.
They had to talk about some subjects like policys and different matters involving the Ministry, but there were 2 that were the most important of all: the trip to the other Universe and what would happen with Hermione after the School's term. The last matter was almost solved. The Weasley family had already agreed to take her at their home and the teen had also accepted this.
"Sorry for the lateness." Apologized Albus entering at the Office. Besides Arthur were also his wife, Molly, one of his sons, Percy, and Minerva waiting for him.
"What's wrong, Albus? You look worried." Asked Molly watching the Headmaster.
"Something that could change everything and we didn't consider yet." Said Albus taking seat.
"What are you talking about?" Asked Minerva confused.
"What if Harry doesn't want to come back with us?" Said the old wizard.
Those words had an effect that could be compaired only with a bomb dropped at the meeting. The 4 adults looked shocked first with his words, but then they realized that none of them had considered that chance.
"This is his home! Why wouldn't he want to return?" Asked Percy not wanting to consider that idea.
"We don't know how is the situation there. Perhaps the things for him there are better than here. His parents alive, Sirius never being sent to Azkaban. The possibilities are millions. For this Universe, Harry is seen just as the Hero the people made. I'm not sure that he would like to change the possible peace he could get there for the fame he has here." Said Minerva thinking for a while.
"And all of us know the possible ramifications of his decission of staying there." Said Molly seriously.
"Ron and Hermione will do everything they can to be with him. They lost him once. They won't accept to lose him forever, no matter what we could tell them." Said Arthur.
"Miss Granger has told me that if Harry chooses to stay there and she can do it too, she won't return to this Universe. She'll be with him." Added Dumbledore with a serious tone of voice.
"And Ron will follow them. If he has to choose between his freinds and us, he'll choose them." Finished Percy knowing that his little brother wouldn't doubt between staying with his friends at another Universe instead of living with his family at this one.
"What started with the mission of rescue of a teen, now is the chance of losing 3." Summed up Minerva.
"Three teens that separated don't give all they can but together nothing stops them." Said Albus with a little smile.
"Now the question is: which will be our position about they leaving?" Asked Percy.
"Although it would hurt me more than anything, if Ron chooses to be with his friends at another Universe, I won't be the person who tells him no." Said Arthur to his wife and son with a serious tone of voice.
"How could we do it? If we forbid him to be with them, he'll hate us the rest of our lives." Said Molly, who didn't have the heart to do it either. Percy nodded to his parents' words. He agreed with them in every words they had said about it.
"Hermione has the right to take her own decission about this matter. She doesn't have any family left here." Said Minerva thinking about her top student and her choice.
"Harry gained his right a long time ago." Said Albus seriously.
"The only thing we can do now, is wait till Harry decides if he wants to return here or not." Said Arthur knowing that the matter wasn't in their hands anymore. Everyone nodded and the subject was changed to the ones that would be discussed at that meeting.
****
The rest of the month happened quickly and before they could realize it, it was the start of Christmas break. The whole Weasley clan, plus Hermione, would spend that time at the Burrow. For Ron it would be the first year without spending Christmas at the Casttle.
When Ron and Hermione had talked about Harry choosing the other Universe instead of this, the redhead had said that if he had to choose between being with his best friend there and staying here without them, he would follow them. He was sure that he couldn't survive without them alone.
"Bill, can I ask you a favour?" Asked Hermione to the eldest Weasley child when all of them were at the Burrow after the train's trip.
"Sure. What can I do for you?" Asked Bill curious.
"I need your help with something that has to do with numbers, business and banks." Said Hermione simply.
"i'm a curse breaker! I know nothing of numbers in Gringotts!" Excalimed Bill surprised.
"Don't worry. You do what I say and everything will be fine." Said Hermione with an evil smile.
"Hermione what do you have in mind?" Asked Bill not liking her smile.
"Payback, Bill, payback." Said the girl with bitter tone of voice.
"I'm sure that I don't want to know what you mean with that." Said the eldest Weasley boy now liking her tone of voice.
"You don't." Said Hermione before she asked: "So?"
"What do I have to do?" Asked Bill simply.
"Get a car for tomorrow morning. I'll tell you where we go at the car. Get some formal clothes. You'll need them." After she said this, Hermione went upstairs to the room that she shared with Ginny.
"I don't like this, I definitely don't like this." Said Bill to no one before he went to get a car from the Ministry for the next morning and get some formal clothes too.
The next morning after breakfast, a car was waiting for Bill and Hermione at the entrance of the House. He was wearing a black suit and she was wearing a formal dress. All of the Weasleys were surprised with this and asked them the reason of the clothing.
"The less you know, the better." Said Hermione simply entering at the car with Bill.
"Where are we going?" Asked the driver to the passengers.
"This adress." Said Hermione giving him a piece of paper with something written on it.
"Now, why do you need me?" Asked Bill curious while the car left the House and began to go through the streets.
"You'll know soon." Said Hermione with a flat tone of voice.
A while later, the car stopped in front of a high building. At the front of it, there was a signal that said: "Granger Enterprises Headquarters." It was very well decorated and had flowers and trees at the entrance.
"It has almost 90 floors." Informed Hermione to Bill who looked the building at awe.
"Wow." Said the adult while both of them entered.
"Identification, please." Said a security guard stopping them.
"I'm Hermione Granger, the half owner of this Enterprise. He's Bill Weasley and is coming with me. We are here to see Agatha Muther." Said Hermione seriously.
"Enter." Said the man after he checked their identification and called Mrs. Muther to ask her if she knew them.
"Press floor 50." Said Hermione to Bill when they were at one of the lifters.
"Who is this woman?" Asked Bill pressing the number 50.
"She takes care of the business on my name. She was my Grandmother's right hand and the only person here that I trust blindly in." Said Hermione while the lifter continued going up.
"You are the half owner of this?" Asked Bill remembering what Hermione had said to the Security Guard.
"I'm the owner of the 50% of the company after the deaths of my parents and my Grandmother. My Aunt, my dad's sister, owns the other 50." Explained Hermione before the lifter stopped at the floor 50 and both wizards went down.
"Hermione, honey!" Exclaimed an old woman hugging the whitch when they entered at an Office.
"Mrs. Muther. How have you been?" Said Hermione returning the hug.
"Very well, thank you. Surprised to see you here." Said the woman leading them to a private Office. At the door there was a signal that read: 'Agatha Muther. Accountance.'
"I came to take my whole part of the shares of the company and do this." Said Hermione giving Agatha a piece of paper.
"Your Aunt will suffer a heart attack with this." Chuckled the woman after she had read it.
"Can you arrange a meeting of the Council? I want to tell this ASAP." Said Hermione with an evil smile at the idea of her Aunt suffering a Heart Attack.
"I'll need 2 hours but I can do it. Is it ok for you?" Asked Agatha after thinking for a few minutes.
"It's ok for me. We'll go to take a walk and return in that time." Said Hermione before he motioned Bill to follow her outside of the Office.
"Could you fill me with some information of all this?" Asked Bill to Hermione when both of them were at the lifter a few minutes later.
"Not at the building. Like at the School, this place has ears and eyes everywhere." Said Hermione pointing to a security cammera that was at the lifter.
When they left the building, Hermione leaded Bill to French restaurant that was a few blocks from there. They asked a private table far from the noise and the waiter took them to the VIP part at the back of the place.
"So?" Asked Bill after they had ordered their food.
"This Enterprise was built almost 300 yars ago by my Great-great-great- great-great-great-great Grandfather. Since that day, it was inherited from parents to childs.
"For the last 15 years, the company was divided between my Grandmother and her childs, my Aunt and my Mom. My Mom hated the business and named someone to take care of his part in his name. That person is the Accountance we met a while ago.
"The shares were divided in 40% for my Grandmother, who was the President, and 30 percent for my Mom and my Aunt each. In case of my Grandmother's death, her shares would be divided between them, having each 50%." Explained Hermione while the food arrived.
"When your parents died, you inherited that 50%, right?" Asked Bill beggining to eat.
"Exactly. But there is a detail that is unknown to most of the people including my parents and my Aunt. You'll see, my Grandmother didn't have the 40%, she had 35%. The rest 5% were of another person. She took care of the business of that person herself never telling her childs about this." Said Hermione returning to her story.
"So, instead of having the 50% of the company, your Mom and your Aunt inherited 47.5%." Said Bill doing quick maths.
"You catch it quickly. Now guess who's the owner of that another 5%?" Said Hermione with an evil smile.
"You?" Asked Bill.
"Bingo. My Grandmother gave me those shares last Christmas for my 15th birthday. As it is in September and I'm at the School, she decided to do it at Christmas. Like last year I was at the School for the Yule Ball, she sent me a letter with an owl telling me this.
"She took care of those shares on my name, but not telling anyone about it. Besides she and me, the only one who knew it was Mrs. Muther who made all the papers to do this possible." Said Hermione finishing her story.
"In other words, you own the 52.5% of the shares of the company."
"Yes. I'm the owner. This will be told at the meeting that I called and my intentions for the company that are these ones." Said Hermione giving the piece of paper to Bill.
"This is what you meant with payback." Said Bill after reading it, not asking, stating it. Hermione just nodded and went on eating.
"The part that I don't understand is: what do you need from me?" Asked the wizard asking the question that had bothered him all day.
"I need someone form Gringotts to help me when I finish this. You are the only one that I know who works there." Said Hermione simply.
"I didn't know that the whitches were allowed here." Sneered someone near them, before Bill had the chance to say something else.
"I never knew that the bitches like you were allowed either. What did you do to enter? You flirted the owner as you do always, Aunt Kerry?" Asked Hermione turning to the woman who had spoken.
"Don't you dare to...!" Started the woman lifting her hand to slap Hermione but the teen stopped her pointing the wand to her.
"Don't tempt me. I know many things to make your life miserable. And my friend can make everyone forget that something happened here." Said Hermione pointing to Bill who looked surprised by the situation. A look from Hermione told him that if he didn't nod to her words, he would be dead soon, so he did it.
"Is there any problem?" Asked the owner of the restaurant going to the group.
"Nothing, we are leaving. I'll see you at the meeting of the Council." Said Hermione paying the bill and standing from her seat, being followed soon by her friend.
"Oh, I'll suggest you to take some painkillers, you'll need them soon." These words were said with a lot of anger that made Kerry be scared of her niece.
"Nice relative." Said Bill with sarcasm when he and Hermione were out of the restaurant.
"Lovely. Wait till you meet her husband." Said Hermione with a mix of sarcasm and bitterness returning to her family's enterprise for the meeting that was going to start in 45 minutes.
They went to the Council's Room and sat to wait the other members. While they waited, they started to talk about different things: the School, the Ministry, the trip that she and Ron would be doing soon and some other things.
Very soon all of the members of the Council were there and gave Hermione their condolences for her parents' death. She answered politely, though Bill noticed that many of her answers weren't hearted and there were alot of hipocrecy from her and the persom she talked with.
"I never thought that I would see you being hipocrit." Said Bill in a whisper to her ear.
"You become one being here, Bill." Said Hermione simply before the meeting started.
"Hermione could you tell us the reason of this call?" Asked Kerry with disgust watching her niece.
"Very easy. I'm taking the control of the company." Said Hermione with a smile to her Aunt.
"Hermione, you can't do it! You own 50% of it!" Exclaimed Steve, Kerry's husband, horrorized with her words while the other members looked shocked.
"You are wrong in that. Please, Mrs. Muther give them the papers." Said Hermione sitting again while the old woman gave to everyone a folder full of papers.
Everyone started to read them and their eyes grew wide as they did it. Very soon they realized how many shares of the company she had and that she was the owner. The silnce that there was there, could be described as the one of cementery during the night, deadly.
"Are these papers true?" Askled someone to Agatha after reading them for third time.
"Yes. Mrs Granger gave those shares to Hermione for Christmas last year. She took care of them in her granddaughter's name." Said Agatha sitting down next to Hermione.
"As the owner of the 52.5% of the shares, which makes me the owner of this Company, my fist decission is that the company will be sold. Good afternoon." Said Hermione before she stood and made her way to the exit.
"WHAT!!!????" Asked Karry and Steve at the same time shocked with their niece's words.
"The Company will be sold." Said Hermione turning to see her relatives with a look of pure hate.
"You can't!!" Exclaimed Kerry not wanting to believe those words. Around them, the otrher members were as shocked as her and her husband.
"I'm the owner. I can do whatever I want with the company." Stated Hermione returning to her seat. At her side, Bill and Agatha were in silence watching the exchange of words with some amusement.
"Think it better! This Company has been of the Family for 300 years and now you want to sell it?" Asked Steve while his wife sat at her seat breathing heavily.
"First, Uncle, you are not part of this family. You are just married to the biggest bitch of it. Second, as I said I can do it as the owner of the biggest part of the shares. If you want to keep it in the family, buy my part." Said Hermione with a hard look to her relatives.
"Put the price!" Said Kerry wanting to kill her niece.
"1.000.000 of Dollars each share plus the doble of the money you stole me this year." Said Hermione bitterly.
"It would be 56.500.000 of Dollars in case you can't do the maths." Added the whitch to her Aunt who was whispering with her husband.
"What money?" Asked Bill to Agatha confused with the last part.
"Hermione's parents had opened a bank account with 2.000.000 of Dollars for her if they died before her graduation. Kerry and Steve took the money and put it at an Account at their names. They stole her." Explained the old woman while they watched Kerry and Steve who went on with the low talks between them.
"We'll buy them." Said Kerry after 5 minutes.
"Take care of that money and put it in a new account at my name." Said Hermione to Mrs. Muther before she turned to her Aunt and Uncle and said: "I want it done in 5 days or you'll lose your chance." Said this she left with Bill following her.
"Don't talk to me for a while, Bill." Said Hermione to Bill at the lifter.
"Well done. You hit them hard." Said Bill before he shut his mouth for the rest of the trip back to the House.
****
That was the last time that Hermione talked about her family. She didn't want anything else to do with them after she received the money. Bill changed the Dollars to Galleons and put them at her Gringott's Vault. Now, it was very full of money.
Ron and Hermione, plus most of the Weasleys, had done a little trip to Diagon Alley to buy their Christmas Presents. The ones who would go, were, besides the 2 friends, Molly, the twins, Bill and Ginny. Their plan were to sepparate at the entrance and meet later to return home before dinner.
The entrance to the Alley, hadn't affected Hermione as much as she had feared. Mostly due to the fact that Harry was alive. Somewhere, but still alive.
"Let's go to Gringotts." Suggested Molly to the teens when all of them had entered.
After filling their moneybags with Galleons, Sickles and Knuts, the group divided to make the shops. Ron and Hermione went by one side, the twins by another, while Molly, Ginny and Bill by another.
"Flourish and Botts first?" Asked Ron to his friend when both of them were alone. She nodded and went to the bookstore.
There, they took their own ways and started to buy gifts for the Weasleys. Hermione bought "Poems and Songs of Love for teenagers" for Ginny, a book of cooking for Molly and a book of jokes for the twins. Ron bought some love novels for his sister and one about homemade things for his mom. They also bought a bag of quills for Arthur and Percy each.
In other shops, they bought some other gifts. Hermione bought a pair of boots for Charlie and a Black leather Jacket for Bill. Ron bought a pair of sleeves for Charlie and black sunglasses for his eldest borther.
When they had to buy the gifts for each other, Ron and Hermione decided to take different paths so they wouldn't spoil the surprise seeing the gift of the other.
"I guess he would like a new owl." Thought Hermione entering at the Owl's shop and starting to see some of the animals.
"Can I help you?" Asked politely a woman to Hermione.
"I'm looking for an owl for a friend. His one is too noisy and I'm sure he would like a quieter one." Said Hermione remembering Ron's complains about Pigwidgeon, or Pig.
"Let's see if we can find one." Said the woman with a smile before she and Hermione started to see the animal.
After almost 20 minutes later, Hermione had chosen a brown owl. It had blue eyes and was normal sized instead of tiny like Pig. The shoptender had said that the owl would be able to deliver big packages and travel big distances without any problem. Hermione had asked her to send the owl to Ron at Christmas morning to the Burrow. The woman nodded promising to do it. With all her gifts bought, Hermione went to the Leaky Cauldron to wait the others.
A few minutes later, at the place entered Ron with his bags at his hands. He sat next to Hermione and asked 2 Butterbeers for both of them while they waited for the rest of the family.
"What did you buy me?" Asked Ron to Hermione noticing that she didn't have more bags than the ones she did before they sepparated.
"You'll have to wait till Christmas to know it, Ronald." Said Hermione with a misterious tone of voice.
"Ok." Said Ron with shrug of his shoulders. He had found her gift at the Quidditch shop. It was a Snitch for training. He was sure that she could use it when she wanted to train a while without the team.
"Have you finished?" Asked Molly to the teens entering with Ginny and Bill, the 3 with bags of gifts at their hands.
"Yes, we were waiting for you and the twins." Said Hermione before Fred and George made their appearence with their own bags of gifts.
"Let's go." Said Bill taking some Floo Powder and leaving the Leaky Cauldron through the Floo Network, being followed by the others a few minutes later.
****
The Burrow had been decorated for Christmas by Molly as every year. Balls and garlands were evrywhere. At the living room there was a big tree also decorated with them. At the doors there were mistletoe.
"Wake up, sleepy head!" Shouted Ginny to Hermione at Christmas' morning shooting her a pillow on the head.
"Merry Christmas for you too!" Said Hermione shooting back the pillow to the redhead,
"Merry Christmas!" Said Ron entering at the room and hugging his sister and best friend.
"For you too, Ron." Said Ginny hitting her brother with her pillow.
"Hey!" Exclaimed Ron hitting her with Hermione's pillow.
"Get your own pillow!" Said Hermione smacking his shoulder and getting her pillow back.
"May I ask what's going on here?" Asked Molly who went to wake them.
"Let's hit Mom!" Exclaimed Ginny shooting her pillow to her mother and being followed by Ron and Hermione who started to laugh.
"Don't make me use it!" Threatened Mrs. Weasley with her wand at the hand to the 3 teens.
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Weasley." Said Hermione putting the pillow at the bed while Ginny did the same with hers.
"Merry Christmas for the 3 of you." Said Molly with a smile before she added: "Breakfast is almost ready. Get changed and go down."
"I'll get changed." Said Ron leaving the room and going to his dorm, so Hermione and Ginny could change their clothes alone.
A while later the 3 teens went down for Breakfast and found there to Arthur, Percy, Bill, Charlie and Molly. The twins hadn't gone down yet. The 3 took seat together and started to eat while Molly called shouting to Fred and George who appeared a few minutes later.
"Percy, will Penelope come to dinner?" Asked Arthur to his son after everyone had said the usual 'Merry Christmas' to the others.
"Yes, she'll eat dinner here tonight and I'll get dinner with her parents for New Year." Answered Percy with a smile.
"And Alicia will come too?" Asked Molly to Charlie.
"Yes. She'll come to dinner for both holidays." Answered the boy after he swallowed a pancacke.
"Add 2 plates for my guest." Said Bill a few minutes later when everyone went on eating in silence.
"Someone will come with you?" Asked Fred to his oldest brother surprised with his last words.
"I've been dating someone for a month or so." Said Bill blushing furiously.
"Do we know her?" Asked Molly with a bright smile at the idea of her eldest child being in couple.
"Fleur Delacour." Said Bill with a shy smile.
"The same Fleur that was at the Tournament last year at the School?" Asked Ron shocked.
"The one and only." Said Bill before he added: "She told me that she'll bring her little sister tonight. Her parents are in America spending some Holidays and won't return till New Year."
"We forgot to buy a few gifts." Whispered Ron to Hermione while Molly asked Bill why hadn't he told her about their visits.
"It's a bit late now. All the shops are closed today." Whispered back Hermione while Molly and Bill went on talking.
"Yes. They could have told us that they would come with their girlfriends." Complained Ginny joining their chat pointing to her brothers.
"It's their fault, not ours." Said Ron before he suggested a little Quidditch match to his siblings and Hermione who agreed and went to the backyard to play it.
After playing for almost 3 hours, all of them went down for lunch and to get ready for dinner. Ginny and Hermione helped Mrs. Weasley wirh the cooking while the other Weasleys continued with the normal activities: Ron played chess with Bill, Fred and George continued with their invents and Percy and Arthur discussed some things about the Ministry. Charlie had left saying that he would be back for dinner with Alicia.
At the middle of the afternoon, at the Burrow appeared the owl that Hermione had bought for Ron. The animal placed herself at the back of a seat while the whole family saw it a little surprised.
"Merry Christmas." Said Hermione to Ron pointing to the owl.
"For me?" Asked Ron surprised with the owl.
"You are always complaining about Pig so I though you would like a new and better owl." Said Hermione with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Thanks." Said Ron with a wide smile before he took the owl and went to his dorm to place her at the cage.
"I guess that now I can get Pigwidgeon for myself." Said Ginny with a tone of hope.
"If you want that little ball of feathers, take it!" Said Ron listening her words when he returned to the living room.
"Now I have my own owl!" Exclaimed Ginny hugging her brother in thanks.
"Everyday, that girl is odded and odder." Said Ron when Ginny went to take Pig to her room.
"You are not better than her." Laughed Hermione smacking his shoulder playfully. That smack meant the beggining of a pillow fight between the 2 teens to which Ginny and the Twins joined as soon as they saw it.
"Stop this childish behaviour right now!" Shouted Percy when he entered at the Living room 30 minutes later and saw 4 of his siblings and Hermione still fighting, none of them giving signals of wanting to finish it soon.
"Get out of here!" Exclaimed Fred hitting him with a pillow.
"STOP THIS FIGHT RIGHT NOW!!!" Roared Mrs. Weasley entering and seeing the fight and the pillows at the teens' hands.
"You are spoilsport!" Pouted George while he and the others put the pillows back at their places.
"Can't all of you behave according to your ages for one time and not as 5 years old childs?" Asked Percy to the group.
"I was 5 the last time I checked, and you George?" Asked Fred to his twin showing 5 fingers and talking with a childish voice.
"So am I." Said the others bursting out in laughter.
"Go and get ready. The others should be here soon for dinner." Said Molly to the teens with a little smile about their behaviour.
"We'll be back soon." Said Fred before he and the other went to their dorms to change their clothes and get ready for dinner.
"I wonder when will they grow up." Said Percy to his mother when both of them were alone.
"Not all of us can be as serious as you, Percy. They need some laughs from time to time." Said Molly before she added: "Come to help me at the kitchen."
****
A while later, the whole Weasley clan, Hermione, Fleur Delacour and her little sister, Alicia and Penelope were sat at the Table eating Dinner. While they ate the food, there were some chats among them: Percy, Penelope and Arthur were talking about something of the Ministry. Penelope worked at the Department of Magical Law and Enforcement. Fleur, Bill, Alicia and Charlie were talking about some music groups and were arranging something to do the 4 together soon. Fred, George, Ginny and Gabrielle started to talk about the Twins's products, while Ron and Hermione were listening the chats and joining this one and that one momentarily, but never taking part in one of them completely.
"I'm going to take some air outside, want to come?" Asked Hermione to Ron in whisper. He nodded and both teens took their jackets and went outside. It was cold and the wind blew a little hard.
"I missed the meeting here for Christmas." Said Ron when they were outside.
"I don't miss the ones with my relatives. The last time I went to one, I almost killed my family." Said Hermione with anger in her voice.
"Do I want to know what happened?" Asked Ron curiously.
"No, it's in the past and the less I think about it, the better." Said Hermione sitting in a chair that was there with Ron in the next one.
"Are you sure about the decission?" Asked Ron to his best friend suddenly.
"I have nothing left here, Ron. My parents and my Grandmother are dead. I guess I need some new place. Let's admit it, most of the School and the Wizarding Worlds sees me as Harry's best friend or his girlfriend. Those ones who doesn't, just sees me as a bookworm, a know-it-all, the teacher's pet or the one who can give the answers to their question or the Homework when they didn't do it." Said Hermione knowing that he talked about the chance of staying at the other Universe.
"Yes, and I'm seen just as Harry's sidekick or the Ministry's son. I guess that a new place would be good. Besides we have to admit that we are nothing without Harry. We are a trio not a duo." Said Ron with an unusual seriousness.
"Maybe Harry could get a better life there in these months that in all the years here, but he can't have forgotten us. We mean so much for each other to just forget us and not suffer in the process." Said Hermione sure of her words. Ron nodded in agreement.
"What are both of you doing here? Get in before you freeze!" Said Molly to the teens going outside and watching them sat in silence.
"She's right! I'm freezing!" Said Ron entering with Hermione and his mom.
"Is everything ok?" Asked Mrs. Weasley to Hermione in a whisper. The young witch noticed some worryness in her voice.
"I needed to clear up some of my ideas." Said Hermione with a smile before she stood near the fireplace to get warm.
"What do you think if we open the gifts? I think that someone here will be aslept soon." Said Bill watching Gabrielle giving a little yawn. The little girl blushed a little while the others chuckled.
"Let's open the gifts!" Shouted the twins going to the piles of gifts that were under the big tree.
Everyone went and took the packs with their names and they went to some place to open them in private. Ron and Hermione took their packs and went together to a little sofa a little far from everyone.
"This is for both of us." Said Ron taking the first package.
"Let's see what is it." Said Hermione curious.
Ron opened it and found a book. When he opened the first page, he found a picture of the trio laughing at the Common Room. The next pages were full of pics of the 3 friends at classes, at the library, the Pitch, Hagrid's hut and some other places at the School. Both of them recognized the pictures as the work of Collin Creevey. At the last page there was something writen on it:
"To remeber what you are and to never forget the last member of the group.
Hagrid."
"Remind me to thank him when we are back at the School." Said Hermione with a smile watching the pics. Ron nodded and they went on with the other packages.
"Mom, when will you understand that I don't like the colour dark red for my sweater??" Complained Ron opening his usual sweater from his mother.
"I always forget, Ron." Said Molly who never remembered to change the colour of the sweater of his youngets boy.
"She says it every year." Said Ron to Hermione opening Bill and Fleur's gift, a book about the best Keepers of the History.
Hermione laughed and went on opening the gifts. From Arthur he got a magicked CD player with some CD of the best groups of the wizarding world. From Percy, he got a new Quill. Charlie and his girlfriend gave her a book about Seeker's tactics. Bill and Fleur's gift was a book about the History of Beauxbatton.
"Now I hope you stop reading Hogwarts: A History and read something else," Said Ron when he saw it.
"You 2 are crazy!" Laughed Hermione when she opened the Twins' gift: a Beater's bat and a book about how to play in that position.
"You said that maybe you would change of position at the team the next year. It will help you to know how to play as Beater." Said Fred with an evil smile while his twin nodded.
"You are nutters!" Said Hermione still laughing, opening Ginny's gift: a pair of gloves for Seeker.
""What did you expect from them after what you did with Malfoy?" Said Ron opening Percy's gift: an Eagle Feather Quill.
"What are you talking about?" Asked Charlie curiously, while he opened the sweater from his mother.
"In the match against Slytherin, Malfoy taunted her for a while till she got tired. She asked me my bat and hit a Bludger aginst Malfoy." Explained Fred with another evil smile.
"The detail is that I hit him on his genitals." Said Hermione copying Fred's smile, opening Molly's sweater that was drak brown as her hair.
"Ouch!" Said all the males when she said the last words.
"Yes, McGonagall told me that the male population of the School told her to ask me to stay as Seeker in future matches!" Laughed Hermione opening Ron's Snitch and thanking him for it with a hug.
"I would have loved to see that!" Said Bill bursting out in laughter along Charlie and Arthur.
"Do you have Collin's pic with you?" Asked Ron to Fred and George while he opened Charlie's gift: a book about the History of Quiditch at the School.
"Which one? This?" Asked Fred with an inocent smile showing it to his family.
"Nice pic. Can you get me a copy?" Asked Bill while the whole family laughed with the pic.
"We'll ask a copy to Collin when we are back." Said Ron opening the twins' gift: a red dress robe.
"Thank Harry for it. It is part of a deal we did with him." Said George in a whisper when Ron thanked them.
"What deal??" Asked Molly listening his words.
"It doesn't concern any of you. It was between Harry and us." Said Fred seriously to his family.
"He didn't!" Exclaimed Hermione suddenly.
"He did!" Exclaimed the twins with a little smile and a nod of their heads.
"Can any of you explain what are you talking about, please?" Inquired Moly to the 3 with a demanding tone of voice.
"Harry gave them the money of the Tournament!" Exclaimed Hermione before she mumbled: "He lost the mind!"
"She's right." Said Fred confirming what she had said, both about the money and Harry's mind.
"That's how you got the money for the shop?" Asked Bill suddenly.
"Where else?" Said the twins with inocent smiles.
Whime Molly began to shout to the twins for accepting the money, Ron finished opening hs gifts. The twins gave him a bag full of their products, Ginny a Kit for his broom like the one that Hermione gave Harry 2 years ago for his birthday. Arthur gave Ron the same gift that Hermione's: a CD player with CD to listen music.
"Before we forget, the rest of the Team send you this!" Said Fred giving 2 little packages for Ron and Hermione.
It had a framed picture of the whole team, plus Oliver and Lee at the Common Room after the match against Slytherin. The 9 of them were sat toasting with Butterbeers and laughing while the whole House continued parting.
The whole family, plus the guests, continued opening gifts and talking till Midnight when most of them went to sleep with their gifts under their arms. Charlie and Alicia went to her House, while Penelope, Gabrielle and Fleur stayed at the House for that night.
****
The rest of the Hollidays passed in a blur and the 4 youngest Weasleys plus Hermione returned to the School and their normal activities there. For both of the fifth years, those ones were: Quidditch Training, going to Classes, doing Homework, continuing the Animagus Training with their Head of House and, only for Hermione, the making of the Potion that would take them with Harry.
Gryffindor would play in February against Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff had won to Slytherin by 250 to 150, after Ernie MacMillan caught the snitch under Malfoy's own nose. In March, Gryffindor would play against Hufflepuff and a week after Easter, Ravenclaw and Slytherin would play the last match of the season.
During Classes, all the teachers had made them work very hard, insisting that they would sit for their Owls that year. They also received a big ammount of homework at every class by the end of each of them.
"They want to kill us!" Complained Dean one day when the 7 fifth years were sat at the Common Room doing Homework. The rest of them nodded in agreement to his words, including Hermione.
McGonagall was satisfied with Ron and Hermione's work at their training. After a few lessons, both of them had started to master the art of the Animagus Transformation with ease, although Hermione found it easier than her friend, but neither Ron or Minerva were surprised with this. After all, Transfiguration was by far Hermione's best subject at the School.
"If everything continues like now, both of you will have finished the training before the trip." Assured the Head of Gryffindor to her students one night after the session they had had.
The Potion was going very well. Hermione read every instruction 3 times before she did something. Although she knew that Snape was there to act if something went wrong, she wasn't going to give him the pleasure of criticize her at this. She would show to the most hated teacher of the School, that she didn't need his help to do anything.
"You should stop watching me, Professor. I don't need your help and you know it." Said Hermione one night when she was at the Dungeons, without looking up from the Cauldron where the Potion was being made.
"How long have you known that I've been watching you, Miss Granger?" Asked Severus leaving the shadows and going to where the student was.
"Fow a while. More or less, a week after I started to do this." Said Hermione reading the recipe and adding some ingredients.
"I guess we underestimated you." Said a new voice entering at the Dungeon and listening the talk between the teacher and the student.
"You should never do it, Headmaster." Said Hermione closing the book seeing that the work was done for that night.
"Is everything in order here?" Asked Albus to the Head of Slytherin.
"As Miss Granger has said, she doesn't need my help." Said Severus leaving the Dungeon with a not happy look.
"I guess I hurt his pride. What a pity!" Laughed Hermione leaving the Dungeon with Dumbledore.
"He's not someone who likes to admit mistakes." Said Albus with a chuckle.
"Professor, Can I ask you something?" Asked Hermione suddenly while both of them started to walk towards the Hall for Dinner.
"Although you have asked me something, you can." Said Albus with a smile.
"When Harry woke up after the trial, he asked what we have been told about his summer. He said that besides the beating and the destruction of all of his things, something else had happened there. He didn't tell us. What was it?" Asked Hermione remembering the chat that she, Harry and Ron had had at the Hospital's room when the raven haired boy woke up for second time.
"It's not my place to reveal it. I know what he didn't say, but I think that he is the one who should tell it to you and Mr. Weasley." Said Albus seriously.
"Was it bad?" Asked Hermione confused.
"To know the answer to your question, watch your own wrists and you'll know what he didn't say that day." Said Dumbledore going to take seat at the High Table.
"Oh my God!" Exclaimed Hermione when she realized that Dumbledore meant that Harry had tried to commit suicide too.
When Hermione sat for dinner, she was still shocked with the revelation. She realized that the scars that she had seen on his wrists weren't because of the chains of the Chair where he had been sat at the trial, those ones were for the suicide attempt.
"Are you ok?" Asked Katie to Hermione worriedly noticing how pale she was in that moment.
"Can we talk alone somewhere?" Asked Hermione to the others in a low tone of voice.
"Sure, what's wrong?" Asked Ron worried.
"I found out what else happened to Harry this summer. You won't like the answer at all." Said Hermione touching her wrists in an unconscious movement without realizing what she was doing.
A few minutes later the whole group left the Hall and went to the place that had become their private place: Katie's private Common Room. If they weren't found anywhere, everyone knew that they were probably there.
"What did you mean with the other thing that happened to Harry this summer? I though that it was just the beatings and the destruction of his things!" Exclaimed Fred when all of the were sat.
"When Harry woke up for second time, me and Ron had a chance to talk with him for a few minutes alone. He said that something else had happened but that he wasn't ready to tell it in that moment.
"Today I asked Dumbledore about it and he gave me the answer. Not with exact words, but what he said was enough to realize it." Said Hermione with a sad and serious tone of voice.
"What did he say?" Asked Ron not sure if he wanted to know the answer.
"He said that if I wanted to know the answer to the question, I just had to watch my wrists. Guess the meaning of those words." Said Hermione closing her eyes.
"Harry tried to commit suicide too." Said Alicia after a long silence.
"Why weren't we told?" Asked Ron shocked.
"Ron, remember what Harry said. He would tell it when he was ready. We never recovered completely from his death. If anyone told us that he had tried to kill himself, it would stain his memory and neither or me would want to believe it. They tried to protect us." Said Hermione seriously.
"They were afraid also that after Hermione's loss, she would try it too." Said Alicia suddenly.
"Exactly." Said a new voice from behind the group. All of the teens turned around to see Dumbledore standing there.
"Be welcome, Headmaster." Said Katie when Albus sat in an armchair near the teens. Dumbledore nodded with a smile before he turned his atention to the rest of the team.
"Who knows about this, Professor?" Asked Ron.
"Myself, after all I was who found and brought him to the School, Professors McGonagall, who saw him, Madame Pomfrey who healed his wounds, Professor Snape and some of your relatives. No one else." Said Dumbledore.
"The less people knew it, the better." Said Fred seriously.
"Everyone thought that Harry had died that day at the Alley. Tell the world that he had tried to commit suicide would be staining his memory. He deserved some peace and the people who knew it, sworn secrecy. I'll ask you the same." Said the Headmaster with a very serious tone of voice.
"Of course." Said all of the teens with anod at the same time.
"You were worried that me or Hermione would do the same. That's why you didn't tell us, right?" Asked Ron not really asking it, he was stating the truth.
"Harry left 3 letters. One for each of you and a last one to everyone. I still have them, if any of you wish to read them, ask them. I'll give them to you." Said the old wizard to Ron and Hermione.
"I'm not sure if I want to read it." Said Hermione with doubt in her voice.
"I don't want." Said Ron flatly.
"It's your decission. I'm sorry if we did a mistake hidding this, but none of us wanted to take risks with you. We didn't have right to change the images that both of you had of Harry for this." Said Dumbledore to Ron and Hermione before he stood and went to the exit.
"Thanks for telling us. And I guess that you did the right thing hidding it. I'm not sure how I would have reacted if I knew it before." Said Hermione after thinking for a few moments. Next to her Ron nodded in agreement to her words. Dumbledore smiled to them and left the room to let the friedns talk alone.
None of them said much about this after Dumbledore left. They didn't want to change their Harry's image just for this. From that moment, it would be just a bad dream that had finished and all of them needed to see to the future and to the past.
****
For the first week of February, Ron and Hermione had both finished the training with McGonagall succeeding completely at the Animagus Transformation. As Minerva had told them, none of them would be registered till their OWLs or, in case they stayed at the other Universe, they would choose there when to do it.
"I must congratulate both of you. You had done in less than 4 nonths something that takes a long time to many people." Said McGonagall after the last session of training with the students.
"Thanks, Professor." Said Hermione with a wide smile while Ron blushed a little with her words.
The Potion was almost done too. Hermione had to add just a few more ingredients to it bagore the work was done. It had been decided that the 2 teens, plus Dumbledore, would leave a day after the Death Eaters would do it. In that way, Pettigrew and the Death eaters wouln't have a lot of advantage in the search of Harry. Leave at the same time or before them, could put Professor Snape in danger if they suspected that he had given the recipe to Dumbledore.
"If you stay with him there, just come to say goodbye and bring him to do it too. It's the only thing we'll ask you." Said Katie to the 2 fifth years one day when the group talked about the trip.
"And if you can bring him for our last match, much better. We would love to play our last match at this School with him as our Seeker." Added Angelina, while the twins, Katie and Alicia nodded to this request.
"Hey, does it mean that I am a bad Seeker?" Asked Hermione with a mocking tone and faking hurt.
"No offense, Hermione, but between you and Harry, we choose him!" Said Fred with a laugh.
"Yes, our genitals are at safe with him at the sky." Added George sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Yes, and if Harry plays, you can start to train as a Beater. We can send one of these to the Hospital Wing by accident and put you in their place." Said Alicia with an evil smile causing another fit of laughter.
****
"Ok, guys, this is our second match!" Started Angelina when the whole team was at the lockers for the match against Ravenclaw a few days later.
The Potion had been finished in Valentine's and today Pettigrew would travel to the other Universe, while Ron and Hermione would do it the next day. Both teens were nervous and anxious about this and for them, it seemed that the hours didn't pass quickly enough for their impatience.
"Hey, do you want to give the speech today as in the old times when you were the Captain?" Asked Fred to Oliver who was with them at the lockers.
"If she allows me to do it, of course." Smiled Oliver to the Chaser who nodded and went to sit while the former student stood in front of them and started to talk.
"Just a few things. Fred and George, do the usual work. Don't be as dangerous as your possible replacement. Madame Hooch will have the heads of the 3 of you if that happens." Started Oliver talking to the twins and Hermione.
"We'll do our best but we don't promise it." Said Fred with an inocent smile while his twin and the Seeker nodded sharing that smile.
"Girls, the same advice that the one for the twins, the usual work. All of us know what you can give an Ravenclaw's Keeper is nothing for you." Continued Oliver, this time talking ot the Chasers.
"Compaired with you, any Keeper at the School has something to stop us, Oliver." Laughed Alicia sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Ron, you are a very good Keeper. Watch Davies, he's the best Chaser of their Team." Said Wood to the redhead who nodded.
"And to me, stay as Seeker and don't change of positions anymore, right?" Asked Hermione with a smile.
"That and be careful of Cho. After Harry and Cedric, she's the best Seeker here." Finished the speech Wood before he put his hand at the center and was follwed by the others.
"GRYFFINDOR!!!" Shouted all of them separating their hand. The players went to the Pitch while Oliver went to sit again with Lee.
"Will you become a usual guest for the matches, Oliver?" Asked Lee to his old Housemate when the Keeper took seat next to him.
"If you don't want me here, I can leave, Lee." Said Oliver standing from his seat.
"And Madame Hooch gives the orders to the teams and they get ready to start the match." Said Lee putting a hand over Oliver's shoulder and making him sit again. He didn't mind at all his visit there, after all they had shared a House for 5 years and the Keeper had been the Captain that leaded the House to win the Quidditch Cup 2 years ago. Besides he knew about the sport as much as him and his comments were welcome there.
Madame Hooch blew her whistle and 15 brooms were in the air inmediately. Hermione and Cho ttok their usual places, watching the actions of the others and looking for the Snitch at the same time.
"Do you accept a third guest today, guys?" Asked Charlie entering at Lee's cabin and sitting with him and Oliver.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, it seems that the old glories of Gryffindor are missing the School's Pitch! Now besides the old Keeper Oliver Wood, here is Charlie Weasley!" Announced Lee to the crowd who turned to see there and saw the redhead watching the match.
"After what I was told about the incident of Hermione and the Bludger, I wanted to see her playing myself." Explained Charlie with a laugh while Katie scored the first 10 points to Gryffindor.
"And Katie Bell scores! Gryffindor in on the lead by 10 to 0!" Exclaimed Lee.
"Good mix of commentors, eh?" Asked Cho to Hermione with a chuckle.
"Poor McGonagall! If she has problems controling Lee, I don't want to imagine doing it with Wood and Charlie!" Laughed Hermione.
"My teammates, the boys I have to say, told me to ask you to stay as Seeker this time. They don't want to be harmed in their little toy." Said Cho while both Seekers went on doing their mission and watching the match at the same time.
"We'll see." Said Hermione with an evil smile, suddenly watching the Snitch and diving towards it. Cho seeing her dive, and watching also the little ball went after them too.
"And Granger and Chang are diving! It seems that they have seen the Snitch!" Exclaimed Lee watching their dives.
Both girls were head to head and none of them gave signals of resigning on their mission. The little golden ball was near the ground unaware of the actions of the 2 Seekers.
Suddenly a Bludger appeared of nowhere and both girls had to stop their dives and went up again. In those little moments the Snitch dissapeared of sight and couldn't be found again.
"Hermione?" Asked Cho to the other girl when both of them were looking for the little Ball again.
"Yes, Cho?" Asked Hermione not happy at all with losing the Snitch and angry with the Beater who had hit the Bludger.
"Do you think that Fred or George could give the bat to do what you did the last match? I want to kill one of my Beaters!" Said Cho angry with her teammate who had shot the ball and stopped them.
"Here you have!" Said Fred who in that moment was flying near them and heard Cho's words.
"You do it and the 3 of you will be expelled from the match!" Shouted Madame Hooch when she realized what Cho was going to do.
"Spoilsport!" Mumbled Cho angrily before the 3 players took their usual positions again forgetting the incident.
"It seems that Hermione's hit to Malfoy have convinced Cho to try to do the same with her Housemates!" Laughed Charlie watching the whole incident with an amused smile.
"If this continues like this, no one will want to be their boyfriends!" Said Oliver bursting out in laughter along Lee and some of the girls of the crowd.
The match continued with Gryffindor always at the lead of the score. The difference was never higher than 20 points. It was a closed and very fought match with the Beaters, Chasers and Keepers working at the top of their skills.
Suddenly, Hermione, who was at the usual spot looking for the Snitch, felt something at her left sleeve. She put her right hand under it and caught something. When she removed the hand, she almost fell from her broom when she saw that it was the Snitch. She pulled it up on her hand to show that she had caught it and Gryffindor won the match by 350 to 170.
"Can anyone explain me what has happened here?" Asked Lee confused while Hooch blew her whistle signaling the end of the Match.
"She caught the Snitch." Said Charlie as confused as him.
"How did you do it??" Asked the rest of the team to Hermione when the whole group landed a few minutes later.
"It entered in my sleeve, I put my hand to see what it was and I took off the Snitch." Explained Hermione with an inocent smile.
"Congratulations by the luckiest catch in the History of the School." Chuckled Hooch who heard her words when she went to take the Snitch and put it in the box of the balls.
"PARTY AT THE COMMON ROOM!!!" Shouted the team at unison leading the House back to the School.
****
"Nervous about tomorrow?" Asked Charlie to his brother and Hermione when the whole team and the 2 former students were alone at Katie's Common Room after the end of the party at the Common Room.
"What will happen tomorrow?" Asked Oliver confused.
"Do we tell him?" Asked Katie to the other, who nodded knowing that Wood could be trusted in this.
"Harry is alive and Ron and Hermione will go tomorrow to where he is now to bring him back." Explained Charlie.
"Or to stay with him." Added Hermione while Ron nodded.
"What the hell did I miss? The last time I checked, Harry died at Diagon Alley and was buried a few days later!" Exclaimed Oliver shocked and confused with their words and news.
"Calm down. The whole story is this." Said Hermione before she retold him everything that had been discovered after her suicide attempt.
"So, instead of dying, Harry was sent to another Universe and both of you will go there tomorrow?" Asked Oliver when she had finished her tale.
"Yes." Said Ron and Hermione with a nod at the same time.
"Just a question, how will be explained all of this to the world? His 'death' and burial was witnessed by a lot of people." Said Oliver.
"That is if he comes back." Said Fred.
"We don't know if he wants to return. If he does, we'll see how to do it when we are back. If he chooses to stay, the School will lose the trio." Said Ron with a serious tone of voice.
"You'll stay with him." Said Oliver when he finished.
"Yes, we will." Said Hermione with serious and decided tone of voice.
"I feel pity with your sister, guys." Said Oliver to the Weasleys.
"Why?" Asked the 4 redheads confused.
"She isn't titular at the team and maybe next year she'll Captain and will have to replace the whole team!" Laughed Oliver sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Poor Ginny!" Said Charlie laughing.
For another 2 hours the 9 players went on chatting, talking about the trip, what could happen in the other Universe, how would they explain everything if Harry came back and other things. Almost at 2.00 a.m. all of them decided to go to rest. Tomorrrow would be the day when many things would start to change.
****
The next day after Breakfast, Ron and Hermione went to Dumbledore's Office. They would leave from there. They had packed some clothes and other things in case the mission would last more than the expected.
When they arrived there, besides Dumbledore, were also McGonagall, Mr and Mrs Weasley, the twins and Ginny. The Weasleys were there to say Goodbye to the teens. While Dumbledore was there, Minerva would take his place as the Headmaster of the School. For the teens' absence, it had been said to the School that both of them would be at a Exchange Programme for an indefinited time. In that way, anyone would be surprised by their absence and any unwanted question would be asked.
"Remember what we asked you." Said Fred hugging his brother while George hugged Hermione.
"Good luck." Said Ginny hugging them.
"If you decide to stay there, come and say goodbye." Asked Molly hugging them.
"Don't worry, Mom, we'll do it." Promised Ron to his family and Head of House, before he, Hermione and Dumbledore filled 3 goblets with some of the Potion and drank it with a long sip.
****
The 3 of them felt as if their world was turned upside down and their bodies ripped and fixed again a few times before they landed. Dumbledore was the only one who hadn't fallen to the floor at their land and helped the teens to stand.
"This is even worse than traveling with a portkey." Complained Ron whose stomach threatened to show what he had eaten at the breakfast.
"I agree. After Portkeys and Floo Powder, this is the worst." Said Hermione trying to stop the diziness that she was feeling.
"Hw will we find Harry, Professor?" Asked Ron to Albus who was watching in silence the place where they had landed: near Hagrid's hut at the School's terrains.
Before they could answer, the 3 travellers saw 2 persons walking not very far from where they were. One of them was a girl, a fourth year by what they saw. She had red hair and looked a lot like Lily Potter. Next to her was walking a teen with black and messy hair. None of them needed to see him to know that he was:
"HARRY!!!"
"They are scared of you!" Laughed Ron to his best friend a few days after the match between Gryffindor and Slytherin.
Since that day when Hermione hit Malfoy with a Bludger in his genitals, the male population of the School tried to avoid her anger as much as they could. None of them wanted another one of those incidents. Everyone knew that even her best friends, Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter, were sometimes afraid of her temper.
"That will teach them to not disturb a Gryffindor who best friend was Harry Potter." Said Hermione with a smile.
The potion that would bring them to the place where Harry was, had been started and was on the first stages of the making. Wormtail and the Death Eaters weren't very ahead of them, thing that meant relief for them. It mean that both sides wouldn't reach Harry with a lot of difference.
"How is the Potion?" Asked Ron in a whisper to the girl.
"It's ok. We should be able to be there for Valentine or so." Said Hermione when both teens sat at Defense, their first class of the afternoon.
Their teacher, Arabella Figg had been an Auror before she took the job of watching Harry Potter at his relative's House. She had heard a lot of the friendship between the "Dream Team", as many teachers called Harry, Ron and Hermione, and their adventures together.
After the first few classes with them, she realized that both of them were powerful, but not as much as the missing member of the trio. They compensated the lack of power with other things: Hermione was the brain and Ron was the strategist while Harry put the power of the trio. In all of her times as Auror, she ha never seen a team work as well as they did.
"They would be a great team of Aurors together." Thought Arabella many times watching them work. She alike most of the School's staff, didn't know about that Harry was alive and where he was. The less knew about it, the better.
"Today we'll start with a new subject." Said the ol Auror writting in the blackboard the words: 'Patronus Charm'.
"Harry learnt it in third year, right?" Asked Ron to Hermione in a whisper watching the blackboard.
"Yes, he told me that his form was a Stag like his father." Answered Hermione remembering the night when she and Harry had saved Sirius from the Dementors.
"Do you have anything to tell, Miss Granger? Or you, Mr Weasley?" Asked Arabella who had heard the talk between the teens.
"We were saying that it works to defeat Dementors, Professor." Said Ron blushing a little.
"Also it works with Lethifolds." Added Hermione sure of her words.
"Has any of you seen a Patronus being performed before?" Asked Arabella nodding to the information.
"I saw it once in my third year." Said Hermione, aware that everyone was watching her and listening her words intently.
"Who casted it and which form had it?" Asked Figg with a curious smile.
"Harry Potter and it had the form of a Stag." Said the Prefect.
"Prongs?" Asked Arabella to Hermione in a whisper while the rest of the class gasped at knowing that Harry had been able to do it.
"You know...?" Asked Ron shocked with her words.
"I worked with him in my Auror's time. I found it out by accident. I sworn secrecy to that. I thought that James was the only one who was Animagus. A big mistake." Said the teacher with disgust. Ron and Hermione knew that she was talking about Wormtail.
"He told me once that Professor Lupin told him that his Patronus was like James transforming." Said Hermione nodding to her Professor's previous question.
"Very well. Mr. Weaskey and Miss Granger, 10 points each for Gryffindor." Said Arabella before she adressed to the rest of the Class: "Today I'll explain you how to cast it and we'll start with it. With some luck, some of you will be able to cast a Ptronus with a defined form."
For 40 minutes, the class started to talk about the charm, how to cast it and against what it worked. Then they started to try it. Most of the students weren't able to do much more than just a fog, no form.
Hermione tried to remember a happy memory and found it: the night when Ron and Harry had saved her from the Troll at Halloween of first year. Remembering how she felt after they did it, when all of them thanked each other for what they had done to save the other, Hermione pulled up her wand and exclaimed:
"Expecto Patronum!"
From the tip of her wand, came out a form: a Snitch that flew around the classroom for a few seconds before it dissapeared. Everyone, even Hermione, was shocked that she had done it with sucess at their first try.
"25 points for Gryffindor, Miss Granger." Said Arabella when everyone had recovered from their shock.
"Which memory did you use?" Asked Ron to his best friend when they left the classroom. He had done only fog.
"Halloween of out first year. The night when we became the best friends, remember?" Said Hermione going to Ancient Runes while Ron wen to the Common Room because he had free period.
"How could I forget it?" Said Ron with a smile before they parted their ways.
****
"Could I speak with both of you for a moment at my Office?" Asked Minerva to Ron and Hermione at dinner that day.
"Sure." Said Ron confused with this call. Neither he or Hermione had done something that should be punished.
"I want to make you a proposal. I want to train both of you to become Animagus." Said Minerva without preambles when she and the teens were sat at her Office.
"Is there any special reason for this, Professor?" Asked Hermione trying to hid her shock at the proposal. Ron was watching his Head of House with his mouth open widely, thinking that maybe he had heard her wrong.
"The trip. We don't know how dangerous is this place. We want to give you more chances at this. We, that is me and Professor Dumbledore, thought that this would be something helpful." Said McGonagall very seriously to her students.
"This is something... unexpected." Said Ron when he had closed his mouth and could think something to say.
"Do you accept?" Asked Minerva again.
"Of course!" Said both teens at the same time.
"Tonight, we'll know what is your form. We'll start the training next week. I don't have to say that one of the more important conditon that I'll put to train you, is that both of you will register yourselves at the OWLs this year, right?" Asked the Head of Gryffindor with a flat tone of voice.
"Yes, Professor, of course we will." Said Hermione while Ron nodded next to her.
"Who will be first?" Asked Minerva taking her wand from her robes.
"I will." Said Hermione with security.
"Animas Bestiarus!" Said the Transfiguration Teacher pointing her wand to the Prefect.
Hermione was involved in a withe light for a few moments before her shadow started to change and became a Lioness. Hermione almost jumped in joyness when she saw the forn. She was sure that it would be something like a cat or a felyne type of animal. It was obvious that she wasn't wrong.
"Now you, Mr Weasley." Said McGonagall repeating the process in Ron.
This time his shadow changed into a wolf. Ron looked it strangely. A wolf was the last thing he imagined he would became in his animagus form.
"I never thought you would become a wolf, Mr. Weasley." Said Minerva who had the same thoughts that the redhead.
"Neither did I." Said Ron with shrug of his shoulders.
"We'll train every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I'll talk with Miss Johnson to see the dates of Quiddicth Trainings. If she's as Mr. Wood, in the weeks before the next match, will train the team every night." Said McGonagall writing something at a piece of parchment.
"We'll start next Friday, right? Or on Monday?" Asked Ron eager to start his training as soon as they could.
"The sooner we start, the better. I'll wait both of you, this Friday after dinner here at my Office." Said Minerva dismissing the teens.
"Can we...?" Started to ask Ron thinking in his friends.
"The less people is told, the better. Tell those ones that you trust, no one else." Said Minerva knowing what Ron was going to ask her.
"Of course, Professor." Said Hermione with a nod before she and Ron left the Office and went to the Tower.
They found their friends studying at a lonely place of the Common Room. The twins, although, were talking about some products with Lee, while the girls tried to convince them to study.
"Guys, we know that you took your OWLs like a joke, but you can't do it with the NEWTS!" Exclaimed Katie exasperated with her yearmates actions.
"Now you know how I felt with Harry and Ron, Katie." Said Hermione with a simpathetic smile towards the Head Girl.
"What did McGonagall want with you 2?" Asked Alicia looking up from the Potion's book she was reading.
"Just propose us to be trained to become Animagus. Just that." Said Ron as if it was a minor detail.
"She WHAT????" Asked the whole team shocked with his words.
"She'll train us to become Animagus. She and Dumbledore think that it could be handy when we do our mission." Said Hermione. The rest knew that she talked about the trip to bring Harry back.
"It will be madness when he comes back. I mean, how will be explained that he "died", was buried and suddenly he returns again. I don't want to be the one who does it." Said Fred with seriousness.
"What if he doesn't want to come back?" Asked suddenly Hermione while the others were thinking about Fred's words.
"Why shouldn't he want to?" Asked Lee shocked with the suggestion of Harry not returning.
"Besides what Fred had said? I can imagine millons of things." Said Hermione simply.
"Like what?" Asked Fred confused.
"Guys, understand this. The theory of the Alternate Universes says, that a single event was changed between one and another Universe. What if that event was the night when Harry became the Boy-Who-Lived? What if his parents lived and he was the one who died? What if You-Know-Know died with him too and he never returned? Think about it. There are millions of possibilities." Said Hermione before she added: "I'm going to bed. See you tomorrow."
"Night, Hermione." Said Ron before she dissapeared through the stairs.
"She's right." Said Fred suddenly, thinking about what Hermiona had said.
"We'll have to wait till we are there and then we'll know what will happen." Said Ron with a yawn before he said: "I'll go to bed. Goodnights."
"Nights." Said the others while Ron went upstairs.
Now in the group of friends, there was a doubt that no one could answer for now: What if Harry didn't want to return to this Universe and chose the other one to live forever?
****
"What is bothering you, Miss Granger?" Asked Dumbledore to Hermione while the Prefect was doing the Potion one day.
"Nothing, Professor. It's just something I thought a few days ago." Answered Hermione adding some Mandragora's juice to the Potion.
"And it is...?" Asked Dumbledore curious.
"What if he doesn't want to come back?" Said Hermione with a sad tone of voice thinking about it.
Albus was taken back with those words. He had to admit that neither him, Minerva or Severus had thought in that idea. This changed everything. His idea was to take Harry back to his home. Now this could change everything and he had to admit it. It was good chance that his Grandson would choose the other Universe if it was better than this. And Albus knew that somewhere where he wasn't famous and could be another teen, would be like heaven for Harry.
"I must admit that I never considered that." Said Dumbledore taking a seat and watching the Potion brewing slowly.
"None of us did till a few days ago when Fred wondered how would be explained his 'return' to life after being 'killed' and buried. And you know as well as I do that he always hated the tittle The-Boy-Who-Lived'." Said Hermione very seriously sitting near the old wizard.
"What would you do if he chooses to stay there and not return here?" Asked Albus to the student.
"No idea. I have to see if I exist there. If the 'Hermione Granger' from there doesn't exist... probably I'll stay there. I guess I need a new place. And a new beggining would be more than welcome." Said Hermione after thinking in the question for a long while. She checked her watch and said: "Excuse me Professor, I have training in 10 minutes." Said this, the Prefect left the Dungeon and went to get her broom and went to the lockers.
"You heard it everything, right Severus?" Asked Albus to the shadows that were near his seat.
"I did. And it was a good question, Albus: What if Potter doesn't want to return?" Asked Snape leaving the shadows and becoming visible. He was there all the time while Hermione did the Potion to correct mistakes. Till now, he hadn't had to show himself to save the situation.
"Don't know. Our plan was to take him here and we would see how to explain all the situation with his death later. Now we have to worry about the chance of him not returning with us." Said Dumblededore with a sad tone of voice.
"What would you do if he doesn't return? And don't give me evasives, because you know what I mean. I know your relationship with him." Said Severus checking the Potion.
"Let him do what he wants. I've done a lot of mistakes with his life, I won't stop him if he chooses to live there." Said Albus not being surprised with Severus' knowledge about Harry being his Grandson. He suspected it since a long time ago.
"Don't you have a meeting with Arthur in a few minutes?" Asked Snape checking his watch.
"I'll see you at dinner, Severus." Said Albus before he left the Dungeons and went to his Office for the meeting with the Minister.
They had to talk about some subjects like policys and different matters involving the Ministry, but there were 2 that were the most important of all: the trip to the other Universe and what would happen with Hermione after the School's term. The last matter was almost solved. The Weasley family had already agreed to take her at their home and the teen had also accepted this.
"Sorry for the lateness." Apologized Albus entering at the Office. Besides Arthur were also his wife, Molly, one of his sons, Percy, and Minerva waiting for him.
"What's wrong, Albus? You look worried." Asked Molly watching the Headmaster.
"Something that could change everything and we didn't consider yet." Said Albus taking seat.
"What are you talking about?" Asked Minerva confused.
"What if Harry doesn't want to come back with us?" Said the old wizard.
Those words had an effect that could be compaired only with a bomb dropped at the meeting. The 4 adults looked shocked first with his words, but then they realized that none of them had considered that chance.
"This is his home! Why wouldn't he want to return?" Asked Percy not wanting to consider that idea.
"We don't know how is the situation there. Perhaps the things for him there are better than here. His parents alive, Sirius never being sent to Azkaban. The possibilities are millions. For this Universe, Harry is seen just as the Hero the people made. I'm not sure that he would like to change the possible peace he could get there for the fame he has here." Said Minerva thinking for a while.
"And all of us know the possible ramifications of his decission of staying there." Said Molly seriously.
"Ron and Hermione will do everything they can to be with him. They lost him once. They won't accept to lose him forever, no matter what we could tell them." Said Arthur.
"Miss Granger has told me that if Harry chooses to stay there and she can do it too, she won't return to this Universe. She'll be with him." Added Dumbledore with a serious tone of voice.
"And Ron will follow them. If he has to choose between his freinds and us, he'll choose them." Finished Percy knowing that his little brother wouldn't doubt between staying with his friends at another Universe instead of living with his family at this one.
"What started with the mission of rescue of a teen, now is the chance of losing 3." Summed up Minerva.
"Three teens that separated don't give all they can but together nothing stops them." Said Albus with a little smile.
"Now the question is: which will be our position about they leaving?" Asked Percy.
"Although it would hurt me more than anything, if Ron chooses to be with his friends at another Universe, I won't be the person who tells him no." Said Arthur to his wife and son with a serious tone of voice.
"How could we do it? If we forbid him to be with them, he'll hate us the rest of our lives." Said Molly, who didn't have the heart to do it either. Percy nodded to his parents' words. He agreed with them in every words they had said about it.
"Hermione has the right to take her own decission about this matter. She doesn't have any family left here." Said Minerva thinking about her top student and her choice.
"Harry gained his right a long time ago." Said Albus seriously.
"The only thing we can do now, is wait till Harry decides if he wants to return here or not." Said Arthur knowing that the matter wasn't in their hands anymore. Everyone nodded and the subject was changed to the ones that would be discussed at that meeting.
****
The rest of the month happened quickly and before they could realize it, it was the start of Christmas break. The whole Weasley clan, plus Hermione, would spend that time at the Burrow. For Ron it would be the first year without spending Christmas at the Casttle.
When Ron and Hermione had talked about Harry choosing the other Universe instead of this, the redhead had said that if he had to choose between being with his best friend there and staying here without them, he would follow them. He was sure that he couldn't survive without them alone.
"Bill, can I ask you a favour?" Asked Hermione to the eldest Weasley child when all of them were at the Burrow after the train's trip.
"Sure. What can I do for you?" Asked Bill curious.
"I need your help with something that has to do with numbers, business and banks." Said Hermione simply.
"i'm a curse breaker! I know nothing of numbers in Gringotts!" Excalimed Bill surprised.
"Don't worry. You do what I say and everything will be fine." Said Hermione with an evil smile.
"Hermione what do you have in mind?" Asked Bill not liking her smile.
"Payback, Bill, payback." Said the girl with bitter tone of voice.
"I'm sure that I don't want to know what you mean with that." Said the eldest Weasley boy now liking her tone of voice.
"You don't." Said Hermione before she asked: "So?"
"What do I have to do?" Asked Bill simply.
"Get a car for tomorrow morning. I'll tell you where we go at the car. Get some formal clothes. You'll need them." After she said this, Hermione went upstairs to the room that she shared with Ginny.
"I don't like this, I definitely don't like this." Said Bill to no one before he went to get a car from the Ministry for the next morning and get some formal clothes too.
The next morning after breakfast, a car was waiting for Bill and Hermione at the entrance of the House. He was wearing a black suit and she was wearing a formal dress. All of the Weasleys were surprised with this and asked them the reason of the clothing.
"The less you know, the better." Said Hermione simply entering at the car with Bill.
"Where are we going?" Asked the driver to the passengers.
"This adress." Said Hermione giving him a piece of paper with something written on it.
"Now, why do you need me?" Asked Bill curious while the car left the House and began to go through the streets.
"You'll know soon." Said Hermione with a flat tone of voice.
A while later, the car stopped in front of a high building. At the front of it, there was a signal that said: "Granger Enterprises Headquarters." It was very well decorated and had flowers and trees at the entrance.
"It has almost 90 floors." Informed Hermione to Bill who looked the building at awe.
"Wow." Said the adult while both of them entered.
"Identification, please." Said a security guard stopping them.
"I'm Hermione Granger, the half owner of this Enterprise. He's Bill Weasley and is coming with me. We are here to see Agatha Muther." Said Hermione seriously.
"Enter." Said the man after he checked their identification and called Mrs. Muther to ask her if she knew them.
"Press floor 50." Said Hermione to Bill when they were at one of the lifters.
"Who is this woman?" Asked Bill pressing the number 50.
"She takes care of the business on my name. She was my Grandmother's right hand and the only person here that I trust blindly in." Said Hermione while the lifter continued going up.
"You are the half owner of this?" Asked Bill remembering what Hermione had said to the Security Guard.
"I'm the owner of the 50% of the company after the deaths of my parents and my Grandmother. My Aunt, my dad's sister, owns the other 50." Explained Hermione before the lifter stopped at the floor 50 and both wizards went down.
"Hermione, honey!" Exclaimed an old woman hugging the whitch when they entered at an Office.
"Mrs. Muther. How have you been?" Said Hermione returning the hug.
"Very well, thank you. Surprised to see you here." Said the woman leading them to a private Office. At the door there was a signal that read: 'Agatha Muther. Accountance.'
"I came to take my whole part of the shares of the company and do this." Said Hermione giving Agatha a piece of paper.
"Your Aunt will suffer a heart attack with this." Chuckled the woman after she had read it.
"Can you arrange a meeting of the Council? I want to tell this ASAP." Said Hermione with an evil smile at the idea of her Aunt suffering a Heart Attack.
"I'll need 2 hours but I can do it. Is it ok for you?" Asked Agatha after thinking for a few minutes.
"It's ok for me. We'll go to take a walk and return in that time." Said Hermione before he motioned Bill to follow her outside of the Office.
"Could you fill me with some information of all this?" Asked Bill to Hermione when both of them were at the lifter a few minutes later.
"Not at the building. Like at the School, this place has ears and eyes everywhere." Said Hermione pointing to a security cammera that was at the lifter.
When they left the building, Hermione leaded Bill to French restaurant that was a few blocks from there. They asked a private table far from the noise and the waiter took them to the VIP part at the back of the place.
"So?" Asked Bill after they had ordered their food.
"This Enterprise was built almost 300 yars ago by my Great-great-great- great-great-great-great Grandfather. Since that day, it was inherited from parents to childs.
"For the last 15 years, the company was divided between my Grandmother and her childs, my Aunt and my Mom. My Mom hated the business and named someone to take care of his part in his name. That person is the Accountance we met a while ago.
"The shares were divided in 40% for my Grandmother, who was the President, and 30 percent for my Mom and my Aunt each. In case of my Grandmother's death, her shares would be divided between them, having each 50%." Explained Hermione while the food arrived.
"When your parents died, you inherited that 50%, right?" Asked Bill beggining to eat.
"Exactly. But there is a detail that is unknown to most of the people including my parents and my Aunt. You'll see, my Grandmother didn't have the 40%, she had 35%. The rest 5% were of another person. She took care of the business of that person herself never telling her childs about this." Said Hermione returning to her story.
"So, instead of having the 50% of the company, your Mom and your Aunt inherited 47.5%." Said Bill doing quick maths.
"You catch it quickly. Now guess who's the owner of that another 5%?" Said Hermione with an evil smile.
"You?" Asked Bill.
"Bingo. My Grandmother gave me those shares last Christmas for my 15th birthday. As it is in September and I'm at the School, she decided to do it at Christmas. Like last year I was at the School for the Yule Ball, she sent me a letter with an owl telling me this.
"She took care of those shares on my name, but not telling anyone about it. Besides she and me, the only one who knew it was Mrs. Muther who made all the papers to do this possible." Said Hermione finishing her story.
"In other words, you own the 52.5% of the shares of the company."
"Yes. I'm the owner. This will be told at the meeting that I called and my intentions for the company that are these ones." Said Hermione giving the piece of paper to Bill.
"This is what you meant with payback." Said Bill after reading it, not asking, stating it. Hermione just nodded and went on eating.
"The part that I don't understand is: what do you need from me?" Asked the wizard asking the question that had bothered him all day.
"I need someone form Gringotts to help me when I finish this. You are the only one that I know who works there." Said Hermione simply.
"I didn't know that the whitches were allowed here." Sneered someone near them, before Bill had the chance to say something else.
"I never knew that the bitches like you were allowed either. What did you do to enter? You flirted the owner as you do always, Aunt Kerry?" Asked Hermione turning to the woman who had spoken.
"Don't you dare to...!" Started the woman lifting her hand to slap Hermione but the teen stopped her pointing the wand to her.
"Don't tempt me. I know many things to make your life miserable. And my friend can make everyone forget that something happened here." Said Hermione pointing to Bill who looked surprised by the situation. A look from Hermione told him that if he didn't nod to her words, he would be dead soon, so he did it.
"Is there any problem?" Asked the owner of the restaurant going to the group.
"Nothing, we are leaving. I'll see you at the meeting of the Council." Said Hermione paying the bill and standing from her seat, being followed soon by her friend.
"Oh, I'll suggest you to take some painkillers, you'll need them soon." These words were said with a lot of anger that made Kerry be scared of her niece.
"Nice relative." Said Bill with sarcasm when he and Hermione were out of the restaurant.
"Lovely. Wait till you meet her husband." Said Hermione with a mix of sarcasm and bitterness returning to her family's enterprise for the meeting that was going to start in 45 minutes.
They went to the Council's Room and sat to wait the other members. While they waited, they started to talk about different things: the School, the Ministry, the trip that she and Ron would be doing soon and some other things.
Very soon all of the members of the Council were there and gave Hermione their condolences for her parents' death. She answered politely, though Bill noticed that many of her answers weren't hearted and there were alot of hipocrecy from her and the persom she talked with.
"I never thought that I would see you being hipocrit." Said Bill in a whisper to her ear.
"You become one being here, Bill." Said Hermione simply before the meeting started.
"Hermione could you tell us the reason of this call?" Asked Kerry with disgust watching her niece.
"Very easy. I'm taking the control of the company." Said Hermione with a smile to her Aunt.
"Hermione, you can't do it! You own 50% of it!" Exclaimed Steve, Kerry's husband, horrorized with her words while the other members looked shocked.
"You are wrong in that. Please, Mrs. Muther give them the papers." Said Hermione sitting again while the old woman gave to everyone a folder full of papers.
Everyone started to read them and their eyes grew wide as they did it. Very soon they realized how many shares of the company she had and that she was the owner. The silnce that there was there, could be described as the one of cementery during the night, deadly.
"Are these papers true?" Askled someone to Agatha after reading them for third time.
"Yes. Mrs Granger gave those shares to Hermione for Christmas last year. She took care of them in her granddaughter's name." Said Agatha sitting down next to Hermione.
"As the owner of the 52.5% of the shares, which makes me the owner of this Company, my fist decission is that the company will be sold. Good afternoon." Said Hermione before she stood and made her way to the exit.
"WHAT!!!????" Asked Karry and Steve at the same time shocked with their niece's words.
"The Company will be sold." Said Hermione turning to see her relatives with a look of pure hate.
"You can't!!" Exclaimed Kerry not wanting to believe those words. Around them, the otrher members were as shocked as her and her husband.
"I'm the owner. I can do whatever I want with the company." Stated Hermione returning to her seat. At her side, Bill and Agatha were in silence watching the exchange of words with some amusement.
"Think it better! This Company has been of the Family for 300 years and now you want to sell it?" Asked Steve while his wife sat at her seat breathing heavily.
"First, Uncle, you are not part of this family. You are just married to the biggest bitch of it. Second, as I said I can do it as the owner of the biggest part of the shares. If you want to keep it in the family, buy my part." Said Hermione with a hard look to her relatives.
"Put the price!" Said Kerry wanting to kill her niece.
"1.000.000 of Dollars each share plus the doble of the money you stole me this year." Said Hermione bitterly.
"It would be 56.500.000 of Dollars in case you can't do the maths." Added the whitch to her Aunt who was whispering with her husband.
"What money?" Asked Bill to Agatha confused with the last part.
"Hermione's parents had opened a bank account with 2.000.000 of Dollars for her if they died before her graduation. Kerry and Steve took the money and put it at an Account at their names. They stole her." Explained the old woman while they watched Kerry and Steve who went on with the low talks between them.
"We'll buy them." Said Kerry after 5 minutes.
"Take care of that money and put it in a new account at my name." Said Hermione to Mrs. Muther before she turned to her Aunt and Uncle and said: "I want it done in 5 days or you'll lose your chance." Said this she left with Bill following her.
"Don't talk to me for a while, Bill." Said Hermione to Bill at the lifter.
"Well done. You hit them hard." Said Bill before he shut his mouth for the rest of the trip back to the House.
****
That was the last time that Hermione talked about her family. She didn't want anything else to do with them after she received the money. Bill changed the Dollars to Galleons and put them at her Gringott's Vault. Now, it was very full of money.
Ron and Hermione, plus most of the Weasleys, had done a little trip to Diagon Alley to buy their Christmas Presents. The ones who would go, were, besides the 2 friends, Molly, the twins, Bill and Ginny. Their plan were to sepparate at the entrance and meet later to return home before dinner.
The entrance to the Alley, hadn't affected Hermione as much as she had feared. Mostly due to the fact that Harry was alive. Somewhere, but still alive.
"Let's go to Gringotts." Suggested Molly to the teens when all of them had entered.
After filling their moneybags with Galleons, Sickles and Knuts, the group divided to make the shops. Ron and Hermione went by one side, the twins by another, while Molly, Ginny and Bill by another.
"Flourish and Botts first?" Asked Ron to his friend when both of them were alone. She nodded and went to the bookstore.
There, they took their own ways and started to buy gifts for the Weasleys. Hermione bought "Poems and Songs of Love for teenagers" for Ginny, a book of cooking for Molly and a book of jokes for the twins. Ron bought some love novels for his sister and one about homemade things for his mom. They also bought a bag of quills for Arthur and Percy each.
In other shops, they bought some other gifts. Hermione bought a pair of boots for Charlie and a Black leather Jacket for Bill. Ron bought a pair of sleeves for Charlie and black sunglasses for his eldest borther.
When they had to buy the gifts for each other, Ron and Hermione decided to take different paths so they wouldn't spoil the surprise seeing the gift of the other.
"I guess he would like a new owl." Thought Hermione entering at the Owl's shop and starting to see some of the animals.
"Can I help you?" Asked politely a woman to Hermione.
"I'm looking for an owl for a friend. His one is too noisy and I'm sure he would like a quieter one." Said Hermione remembering Ron's complains about Pigwidgeon, or Pig.
"Let's see if we can find one." Said the woman with a smile before she and Hermione started to see the animal.
After almost 20 minutes later, Hermione had chosen a brown owl. It had blue eyes and was normal sized instead of tiny like Pig. The shoptender had said that the owl would be able to deliver big packages and travel big distances without any problem. Hermione had asked her to send the owl to Ron at Christmas morning to the Burrow. The woman nodded promising to do it. With all her gifts bought, Hermione went to the Leaky Cauldron to wait the others.
A few minutes later, at the place entered Ron with his bags at his hands. He sat next to Hermione and asked 2 Butterbeers for both of them while they waited for the rest of the family.
"What did you buy me?" Asked Ron to Hermione noticing that she didn't have more bags than the ones she did before they sepparated.
"You'll have to wait till Christmas to know it, Ronald." Said Hermione with a misterious tone of voice.
"Ok." Said Ron with shrug of his shoulders. He had found her gift at the Quidditch shop. It was a Snitch for training. He was sure that she could use it when she wanted to train a while without the team.
"Have you finished?" Asked Molly to the teens entering with Ginny and Bill, the 3 with bags of gifts at their hands.
"Yes, we were waiting for you and the twins." Said Hermione before Fred and George made their appearence with their own bags of gifts.
"Let's go." Said Bill taking some Floo Powder and leaving the Leaky Cauldron through the Floo Network, being followed by the others a few minutes later.
****
The Burrow had been decorated for Christmas by Molly as every year. Balls and garlands were evrywhere. At the living room there was a big tree also decorated with them. At the doors there were mistletoe.
"Wake up, sleepy head!" Shouted Ginny to Hermione at Christmas' morning shooting her a pillow on the head.
"Merry Christmas for you too!" Said Hermione shooting back the pillow to the redhead,
"Merry Christmas!" Said Ron entering at the room and hugging his sister and best friend.
"For you too, Ron." Said Ginny hitting her brother with her pillow.
"Hey!" Exclaimed Ron hitting her with Hermione's pillow.
"Get your own pillow!" Said Hermione smacking his shoulder and getting her pillow back.
"May I ask what's going on here?" Asked Molly who went to wake them.
"Let's hit Mom!" Exclaimed Ginny shooting her pillow to her mother and being followed by Ron and Hermione who started to laugh.
"Don't make me use it!" Threatened Mrs. Weasley with her wand at the hand to the 3 teens.
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Weasley." Said Hermione putting the pillow at the bed while Ginny did the same with hers.
"Merry Christmas for the 3 of you." Said Molly with a smile before she added: "Breakfast is almost ready. Get changed and go down."
"I'll get changed." Said Ron leaving the room and going to his dorm, so Hermione and Ginny could change their clothes alone.
A while later the 3 teens went down for Breakfast and found there to Arthur, Percy, Bill, Charlie and Molly. The twins hadn't gone down yet. The 3 took seat together and started to eat while Molly called shouting to Fred and George who appeared a few minutes later.
"Percy, will Penelope come to dinner?" Asked Arthur to his son after everyone had said the usual 'Merry Christmas' to the others.
"Yes, she'll eat dinner here tonight and I'll get dinner with her parents for New Year." Answered Percy with a smile.
"And Alicia will come too?" Asked Molly to Charlie.
"Yes. She'll come to dinner for both holidays." Answered the boy after he swallowed a pancacke.
"Add 2 plates for my guest." Said Bill a few minutes later when everyone went on eating in silence.
"Someone will come with you?" Asked Fred to his oldest brother surprised with his last words.
"I've been dating someone for a month or so." Said Bill blushing furiously.
"Do we know her?" Asked Molly with a bright smile at the idea of her eldest child being in couple.
"Fleur Delacour." Said Bill with a shy smile.
"The same Fleur that was at the Tournament last year at the School?" Asked Ron shocked.
"The one and only." Said Bill before he added: "She told me that she'll bring her little sister tonight. Her parents are in America spending some Holidays and won't return till New Year."
"We forgot to buy a few gifts." Whispered Ron to Hermione while Molly asked Bill why hadn't he told her about their visits.
"It's a bit late now. All the shops are closed today." Whispered back Hermione while Molly and Bill went on talking.
"Yes. They could have told us that they would come with their girlfriends." Complained Ginny joining their chat pointing to her brothers.
"It's their fault, not ours." Said Ron before he suggested a little Quidditch match to his siblings and Hermione who agreed and went to the backyard to play it.
After playing for almost 3 hours, all of them went down for lunch and to get ready for dinner. Ginny and Hermione helped Mrs. Weasley wirh the cooking while the other Weasleys continued with the normal activities: Ron played chess with Bill, Fred and George continued with their invents and Percy and Arthur discussed some things about the Ministry. Charlie had left saying that he would be back for dinner with Alicia.
At the middle of the afternoon, at the Burrow appeared the owl that Hermione had bought for Ron. The animal placed herself at the back of a seat while the whole family saw it a little surprised.
"Merry Christmas." Said Hermione to Ron pointing to the owl.
"For me?" Asked Ron surprised with the owl.
"You are always complaining about Pig so I though you would like a new and better owl." Said Hermione with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Thanks." Said Ron with a wide smile before he took the owl and went to his dorm to place her at the cage.
"I guess that now I can get Pigwidgeon for myself." Said Ginny with a tone of hope.
"If you want that little ball of feathers, take it!" Said Ron listening her words when he returned to the living room.
"Now I have my own owl!" Exclaimed Ginny hugging her brother in thanks.
"Everyday, that girl is odded and odder." Said Ron when Ginny went to take Pig to her room.
"You are not better than her." Laughed Hermione smacking his shoulder playfully. That smack meant the beggining of a pillow fight between the 2 teens to which Ginny and the Twins joined as soon as they saw it.
"Stop this childish behaviour right now!" Shouted Percy when he entered at the Living room 30 minutes later and saw 4 of his siblings and Hermione still fighting, none of them giving signals of wanting to finish it soon.
"Get out of here!" Exclaimed Fred hitting him with a pillow.
"STOP THIS FIGHT RIGHT NOW!!!" Roared Mrs. Weasley entering and seeing the fight and the pillows at the teens' hands.
"You are spoilsport!" Pouted George while he and the others put the pillows back at their places.
"Can't all of you behave according to your ages for one time and not as 5 years old childs?" Asked Percy to the group.
"I was 5 the last time I checked, and you George?" Asked Fred to his twin showing 5 fingers and talking with a childish voice.
"So am I." Said the others bursting out in laughter.
"Go and get ready. The others should be here soon for dinner." Said Molly to the teens with a little smile about their behaviour.
"We'll be back soon." Said Fred before he and the other went to their dorms to change their clothes and get ready for dinner.
"I wonder when will they grow up." Said Percy to his mother when both of them were alone.
"Not all of us can be as serious as you, Percy. They need some laughs from time to time." Said Molly before she added: "Come to help me at the kitchen."
****
A while later, the whole Weasley clan, Hermione, Fleur Delacour and her little sister, Alicia and Penelope were sat at the Table eating Dinner. While they ate the food, there were some chats among them: Percy, Penelope and Arthur were talking about something of the Ministry. Penelope worked at the Department of Magical Law and Enforcement. Fleur, Bill, Alicia and Charlie were talking about some music groups and were arranging something to do the 4 together soon. Fred, George, Ginny and Gabrielle started to talk about the Twins's products, while Ron and Hermione were listening the chats and joining this one and that one momentarily, but never taking part in one of them completely.
"I'm going to take some air outside, want to come?" Asked Hermione to Ron in whisper. He nodded and both teens took their jackets and went outside. It was cold and the wind blew a little hard.
"I missed the meeting here for Christmas." Said Ron when they were outside.
"I don't miss the ones with my relatives. The last time I went to one, I almost killed my family." Said Hermione with anger in her voice.
"Do I want to know what happened?" Asked Ron curiously.
"No, it's in the past and the less I think about it, the better." Said Hermione sitting in a chair that was there with Ron in the next one.
"Are you sure about the decission?" Asked Ron to his best friend suddenly.
"I have nothing left here, Ron. My parents and my Grandmother are dead. I guess I need some new place. Let's admit it, most of the School and the Wizarding Worlds sees me as Harry's best friend or his girlfriend. Those ones who doesn't, just sees me as a bookworm, a know-it-all, the teacher's pet or the one who can give the answers to their question or the Homework when they didn't do it." Said Hermione knowing that he talked about the chance of staying at the other Universe.
"Yes, and I'm seen just as Harry's sidekick or the Ministry's son. I guess that a new place would be good. Besides we have to admit that we are nothing without Harry. We are a trio not a duo." Said Ron with an unusual seriousness.
"Maybe Harry could get a better life there in these months that in all the years here, but he can't have forgotten us. We mean so much for each other to just forget us and not suffer in the process." Said Hermione sure of her words. Ron nodded in agreement.
"What are both of you doing here? Get in before you freeze!" Said Molly to the teens going outside and watching them sat in silence.
"She's right! I'm freezing!" Said Ron entering with Hermione and his mom.
"Is everything ok?" Asked Mrs. Weasley to Hermione in a whisper. The young witch noticed some worryness in her voice.
"I needed to clear up some of my ideas." Said Hermione with a smile before she stood near the fireplace to get warm.
"What do you think if we open the gifts? I think that someone here will be aslept soon." Said Bill watching Gabrielle giving a little yawn. The little girl blushed a little while the others chuckled.
"Let's open the gifts!" Shouted the twins going to the piles of gifts that were under the big tree.
Everyone went and took the packs with their names and they went to some place to open them in private. Ron and Hermione took their packs and went together to a little sofa a little far from everyone.
"This is for both of us." Said Ron taking the first package.
"Let's see what is it." Said Hermione curious.
Ron opened it and found a book. When he opened the first page, he found a picture of the trio laughing at the Common Room. The next pages were full of pics of the 3 friends at classes, at the library, the Pitch, Hagrid's hut and some other places at the School. Both of them recognized the pictures as the work of Collin Creevey. At the last page there was something writen on it:
"To remeber what you are and to never forget the last member of the group.
Hagrid."
"Remind me to thank him when we are back at the School." Said Hermione with a smile watching the pics. Ron nodded and they went on with the other packages.
"Mom, when will you understand that I don't like the colour dark red for my sweater??" Complained Ron opening his usual sweater from his mother.
"I always forget, Ron." Said Molly who never remembered to change the colour of the sweater of his youngets boy.
"She says it every year." Said Ron to Hermione opening Bill and Fleur's gift, a book about the best Keepers of the History.
Hermione laughed and went on opening the gifts. From Arthur he got a magicked CD player with some CD of the best groups of the wizarding world. From Percy, he got a new Quill. Charlie and his girlfriend gave her a book about Seeker's tactics. Bill and Fleur's gift was a book about the History of Beauxbatton.
"Now I hope you stop reading Hogwarts: A History and read something else," Said Ron when he saw it.
"You 2 are crazy!" Laughed Hermione when she opened the Twins' gift: a Beater's bat and a book about how to play in that position.
"You said that maybe you would change of position at the team the next year. It will help you to know how to play as Beater." Said Fred with an evil smile while his twin nodded.
"You are nutters!" Said Hermione still laughing, opening Ginny's gift: a pair of gloves for Seeker.
""What did you expect from them after what you did with Malfoy?" Said Ron opening Percy's gift: an Eagle Feather Quill.
"What are you talking about?" Asked Charlie curiously, while he opened the sweater from his mother.
"In the match against Slytherin, Malfoy taunted her for a while till she got tired. She asked me my bat and hit a Bludger aginst Malfoy." Explained Fred with another evil smile.
"The detail is that I hit him on his genitals." Said Hermione copying Fred's smile, opening Molly's sweater that was drak brown as her hair.
"Ouch!" Said all the males when she said the last words.
"Yes, McGonagall told me that the male population of the School told her to ask me to stay as Seeker in future matches!" Laughed Hermione opening Ron's Snitch and thanking him for it with a hug.
"I would have loved to see that!" Said Bill bursting out in laughter along Charlie and Arthur.
"Do you have Collin's pic with you?" Asked Ron to Fred and George while he opened Charlie's gift: a book about the History of Quiditch at the School.
"Which one? This?" Asked Fred with an inocent smile showing it to his family.
"Nice pic. Can you get me a copy?" Asked Bill while the whole family laughed with the pic.
"We'll ask a copy to Collin when we are back." Said Ron opening the twins' gift: a red dress robe.
"Thank Harry for it. It is part of a deal we did with him." Said George in a whisper when Ron thanked them.
"What deal??" Asked Molly listening his words.
"It doesn't concern any of you. It was between Harry and us." Said Fred seriously to his family.
"He didn't!" Exclaimed Hermione suddenly.
"He did!" Exclaimed the twins with a little smile and a nod of their heads.
"Can any of you explain what are you talking about, please?" Inquired Moly to the 3 with a demanding tone of voice.
"Harry gave them the money of the Tournament!" Exclaimed Hermione before she mumbled: "He lost the mind!"
"She's right." Said Fred confirming what she had said, both about the money and Harry's mind.
"That's how you got the money for the shop?" Asked Bill suddenly.
"Where else?" Said the twins with inocent smiles.
Whime Molly began to shout to the twins for accepting the money, Ron finished opening hs gifts. The twins gave him a bag full of their products, Ginny a Kit for his broom like the one that Hermione gave Harry 2 years ago for his birthday. Arthur gave Ron the same gift that Hermione's: a CD player with CD to listen music.
"Before we forget, the rest of the Team send you this!" Said Fred giving 2 little packages for Ron and Hermione.
It had a framed picture of the whole team, plus Oliver and Lee at the Common Room after the match against Slytherin. The 9 of them were sat toasting with Butterbeers and laughing while the whole House continued parting.
The whole family, plus the guests, continued opening gifts and talking till Midnight when most of them went to sleep with their gifts under their arms. Charlie and Alicia went to her House, while Penelope, Gabrielle and Fleur stayed at the House for that night.
****
The rest of the Hollidays passed in a blur and the 4 youngest Weasleys plus Hermione returned to the School and their normal activities there. For both of the fifth years, those ones were: Quidditch Training, going to Classes, doing Homework, continuing the Animagus Training with their Head of House and, only for Hermione, the making of the Potion that would take them with Harry.
Gryffindor would play in February against Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff had won to Slytherin by 250 to 150, after Ernie MacMillan caught the snitch under Malfoy's own nose. In March, Gryffindor would play against Hufflepuff and a week after Easter, Ravenclaw and Slytherin would play the last match of the season.
During Classes, all the teachers had made them work very hard, insisting that they would sit for their Owls that year. They also received a big ammount of homework at every class by the end of each of them.
"They want to kill us!" Complained Dean one day when the 7 fifth years were sat at the Common Room doing Homework. The rest of them nodded in agreement to his words, including Hermione.
McGonagall was satisfied with Ron and Hermione's work at their training. After a few lessons, both of them had started to master the art of the Animagus Transformation with ease, although Hermione found it easier than her friend, but neither Ron or Minerva were surprised with this. After all, Transfiguration was by far Hermione's best subject at the School.
"If everything continues like now, both of you will have finished the training before the trip." Assured the Head of Gryffindor to her students one night after the session they had had.
The Potion was going very well. Hermione read every instruction 3 times before she did something. Although she knew that Snape was there to act if something went wrong, she wasn't going to give him the pleasure of criticize her at this. She would show to the most hated teacher of the School, that she didn't need his help to do anything.
"You should stop watching me, Professor. I don't need your help and you know it." Said Hermione one night when she was at the Dungeons, without looking up from the Cauldron where the Potion was being made.
"How long have you known that I've been watching you, Miss Granger?" Asked Severus leaving the shadows and going to where the student was.
"Fow a while. More or less, a week after I started to do this." Said Hermione reading the recipe and adding some ingredients.
"I guess we underestimated you." Said a new voice entering at the Dungeon and listening the talk between the teacher and the student.
"You should never do it, Headmaster." Said Hermione closing the book seeing that the work was done for that night.
"Is everything in order here?" Asked Albus to the Head of Slytherin.
"As Miss Granger has said, she doesn't need my help." Said Severus leaving the Dungeon with a not happy look.
"I guess I hurt his pride. What a pity!" Laughed Hermione leaving the Dungeon with Dumbledore.
"He's not someone who likes to admit mistakes." Said Albus with a chuckle.
"Professor, Can I ask you something?" Asked Hermione suddenly while both of them started to walk towards the Hall for Dinner.
"Although you have asked me something, you can." Said Albus with a smile.
"When Harry woke up after the trial, he asked what we have been told about his summer. He said that besides the beating and the destruction of all of his things, something else had happened there. He didn't tell us. What was it?" Asked Hermione remembering the chat that she, Harry and Ron had had at the Hospital's room when the raven haired boy woke up for second time.
"It's not my place to reveal it. I know what he didn't say, but I think that he is the one who should tell it to you and Mr. Weasley." Said Albus seriously.
"Was it bad?" Asked Hermione confused.
"To know the answer to your question, watch your own wrists and you'll know what he didn't say that day." Said Dumbledore going to take seat at the High Table.
"Oh my God!" Exclaimed Hermione when she realized that Dumbledore meant that Harry had tried to commit suicide too.
When Hermione sat for dinner, she was still shocked with the revelation. She realized that the scars that she had seen on his wrists weren't because of the chains of the Chair where he had been sat at the trial, those ones were for the suicide attempt.
"Are you ok?" Asked Katie to Hermione worriedly noticing how pale she was in that moment.
"Can we talk alone somewhere?" Asked Hermione to the others in a low tone of voice.
"Sure, what's wrong?" Asked Ron worried.
"I found out what else happened to Harry this summer. You won't like the answer at all." Said Hermione touching her wrists in an unconscious movement without realizing what she was doing.
A few minutes later the whole group left the Hall and went to the place that had become their private place: Katie's private Common Room. If they weren't found anywhere, everyone knew that they were probably there.
"What did you mean with the other thing that happened to Harry this summer? I though that it was just the beatings and the destruction of his things!" Exclaimed Fred when all of the were sat.
"When Harry woke up for second time, me and Ron had a chance to talk with him for a few minutes alone. He said that something else had happened but that he wasn't ready to tell it in that moment.
"Today I asked Dumbledore about it and he gave me the answer. Not with exact words, but what he said was enough to realize it." Said Hermione with a sad and serious tone of voice.
"What did he say?" Asked Ron not sure if he wanted to know the answer.
"He said that if I wanted to know the answer to the question, I just had to watch my wrists. Guess the meaning of those words." Said Hermione closing her eyes.
"Harry tried to commit suicide too." Said Alicia after a long silence.
"Why weren't we told?" Asked Ron shocked.
"Ron, remember what Harry said. He would tell it when he was ready. We never recovered completely from his death. If anyone told us that he had tried to kill himself, it would stain his memory and neither or me would want to believe it. They tried to protect us." Said Hermione seriously.
"They were afraid also that after Hermione's loss, she would try it too." Said Alicia suddenly.
"Exactly." Said a new voice from behind the group. All of the teens turned around to see Dumbledore standing there.
"Be welcome, Headmaster." Said Katie when Albus sat in an armchair near the teens. Dumbledore nodded with a smile before he turned his atention to the rest of the team.
"Who knows about this, Professor?" Asked Ron.
"Myself, after all I was who found and brought him to the School, Professors McGonagall, who saw him, Madame Pomfrey who healed his wounds, Professor Snape and some of your relatives. No one else." Said Dumbledore.
"The less people knew it, the better." Said Fred seriously.
"Everyone thought that Harry had died that day at the Alley. Tell the world that he had tried to commit suicide would be staining his memory. He deserved some peace and the people who knew it, sworn secrecy. I'll ask you the same." Said the Headmaster with a very serious tone of voice.
"Of course." Said all of the teens with anod at the same time.
"You were worried that me or Hermione would do the same. That's why you didn't tell us, right?" Asked Ron not really asking it, he was stating the truth.
"Harry left 3 letters. One for each of you and a last one to everyone. I still have them, if any of you wish to read them, ask them. I'll give them to you." Said the old wizard to Ron and Hermione.
"I'm not sure if I want to read it." Said Hermione with doubt in her voice.
"I don't want." Said Ron flatly.
"It's your decission. I'm sorry if we did a mistake hidding this, but none of us wanted to take risks with you. We didn't have right to change the images that both of you had of Harry for this." Said Dumbledore to Ron and Hermione before he stood and went to the exit.
"Thanks for telling us. And I guess that you did the right thing hidding it. I'm not sure how I would have reacted if I knew it before." Said Hermione after thinking for a few moments. Next to her Ron nodded in agreement to her words. Dumbledore smiled to them and left the room to let the friedns talk alone.
None of them said much about this after Dumbledore left. They didn't want to change their Harry's image just for this. From that moment, it would be just a bad dream that had finished and all of them needed to see to the future and to the past.
****
For the first week of February, Ron and Hermione had both finished the training with McGonagall succeeding completely at the Animagus Transformation. As Minerva had told them, none of them would be registered till their OWLs or, in case they stayed at the other Universe, they would choose there when to do it.
"I must congratulate both of you. You had done in less than 4 nonths something that takes a long time to many people." Said McGonagall after the last session of training with the students.
"Thanks, Professor." Said Hermione with a wide smile while Ron blushed a little with her words.
The Potion was almost done too. Hermione had to add just a few more ingredients to it bagore the work was done. It had been decided that the 2 teens, plus Dumbledore, would leave a day after the Death Eaters would do it. In that way, Pettigrew and the Death eaters wouln't have a lot of advantage in the search of Harry. Leave at the same time or before them, could put Professor Snape in danger if they suspected that he had given the recipe to Dumbledore.
"If you stay with him there, just come to say goodbye and bring him to do it too. It's the only thing we'll ask you." Said Katie to the 2 fifth years one day when the group talked about the trip.
"And if you can bring him for our last match, much better. We would love to play our last match at this School with him as our Seeker." Added Angelina, while the twins, Katie and Alicia nodded to this request.
"Hey, does it mean that I am a bad Seeker?" Asked Hermione with a mocking tone and faking hurt.
"No offense, Hermione, but between you and Harry, we choose him!" Said Fred with a laugh.
"Yes, our genitals are at safe with him at the sky." Added George sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Yes, and if Harry plays, you can start to train as a Beater. We can send one of these to the Hospital Wing by accident and put you in their place." Said Alicia with an evil smile causing another fit of laughter.
****
"Ok, guys, this is our second match!" Started Angelina when the whole team was at the lockers for the match against Ravenclaw a few days later.
The Potion had been finished in Valentine's and today Pettigrew would travel to the other Universe, while Ron and Hermione would do it the next day. Both teens were nervous and anxious about this and for them, it seemed that the hours didn't pass quickly enough for their impatience.
"Hey, do you want to give the speech today as in the old times when you were the Captain?" Asked Fred to Oliver who was with them at the lockers.
"If she allows me to do it, of course." Smiled Oliver to the Chaser who nodded and went to sit while the former student stood in front of them and started to talk.
"Just a few things. Fred and George, do the usual work. Don't be as dangerous as your possible replacement. Madame Hooch will have the heads of the 3 of you if that happens." Started Oliver talking to the twins and Hermione.
"We'll do our best but we don't promise it." Said Fred with an inocent smile while his twin and the Seeker nodded sharing that smile.
"Girls, the same advice that the one for the twins, the usual work. All of us know what you can give an Ravenclaw's Keeper is nothing for you." Continued Oliver, this time talking ot the Chasers.
"Compaired with you, any Keeper at the School has something to stop us, Oliver." Laughed Alicia sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Ron, you are a very good Keeper. Watch Davies, he's the best Chaser of their Team." Said Wood to the redhead who nodded.
"And to me, stay as Seeker and don't change of positions anymore, right?" Asked Hermione with a smile.
"That and be careful of Cho. After Harry and Cedric, she's the best Seeker here." Finished the speech Wood before he put his hand at the center and was follwed by the others.
"GRYFFINDOR!!!" Shouted all of them separating their hand. The players went to the Pitch while Oliver went to sit again with Lee.
"Will you become a usual guest for the matches, Oliver?" Asked Lee to his old Housemate when the Keeper took seat next to him.
"If you don't want me here, I can leave, Lee." Said Oliver standing from his seat.
"And Madame Hooch gives the orders to the teams and they get ready to start the match." Said Lee putting a hand over Oliver's shoulder and making him sit again. He didn't mind at all his visit there, after all they had shared a House for 5 years and the Keeper had been the Captain that leaded the House to win the Quidditch Cup 2 years ago. Besides he knew about the sport as much as him and his comments were welcome there.
Madame Hooch blew her whistle and 15 brooms were in the air inmediately. Hermione and Cho ttok their usual places, watching the actions of the others and looking for the Snitch at the same time.
"Do you accept a third guest today, guys?" Asked Charlie entering at Lee's cabin and sitting with him and Oliver.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, it seems that the old glories of Gryffindor are missing the School's Pitch! Now besides the old Keeper Oliver Wood, here is Charlie Weasley!" Announced Lee to the crowd who turned to see there and saw the redhead watching the match.
"After what I was told about the incident of Hermione and the Bludger, I wanted to see her playing myself." Explained Charlie with a laugh while Katie scored the first 10 points to Gryffindor.
"And Katie Bell scores! Gryffindor in on the lead by 10 to 0!" Exclaimed Lee.
"Good mix of commentors, eh?" Asked Cho to Hermione with a chuckle.
"Poor McGonagall! If she has problems controling Lee, I don't want to imagine doing it with Wood and Charlie!" Laughed Hermione.
"My teammates, the boys I have to say, told me to ask you to stay as Seeker this time. They don't want to be harmed in their little toy." Said Cho while both Seekers went on doing their mission and watching the match at the same time.
"We'll see." Said Hermione with an evil smile, suddenly watching the Snitch and diving towards it. Cho seeing her dive, and watching also the little ball went after them too.
"And Granger and Chang are diving! It seems that they have seen the Snitch!" Exclaimed Lee watching their dives.
Both girls were head to head and none of them gave signals of resigning on their mission. The little golden ball was near the ground unaware of the actions of the 2 Seekers.
Suddenly a Bludger appeared of nowhere and both girls had to stop their dives and went up again. In those little moments the Snitch dissapeared of sight and couldn't be found again.
"Hermione?" Asked Cho to the other girl when both of them were looking for the little Ball again.
"Yes, Cho?" Asked Hermione not happy at all with losing the Snitch and angry with the Beater who had hit the Bludger.
"Do you think that Fred or George could give the bat to do what you did the last match? I want to kill one of my Beaters!" Said Cho angry with her teammate who had shot the ball and stopped them.
"Here you have!" Said Fred who in that moment was flying near them and heard Cho's words.
"You do it and the 3 of you will be expelled from the match!" Shouted Madame Hooch when she realized what Cho was going to do.
"Spoilsport!" Mumbled Cho angrily before the 3 players took their usual positions again forgetting the incident.
"It seems that Hermione's hit to Malfoy have convinced Cho to try to do the same with her Housemates!" Laughed Charlie watching the whole incident with an amused smile.
"If this continues like this, no one will want to be their boyfriends!" Said Oliver bursting out in laughter along Lee and some of the girls of the crowd.
The match continued with Gryffindor always at the lead of the score. The difference was never higher than 20 points. It was a closed and very fought match with the Beaters, Chasers and Keepers working at the top of their skills.
Suddenly, Hermione, who was at the usual spot looking for the Snitch, felt something at her left sleeve. She put her right hand under it and caught something. When she removed the hand, she almost fell from her broom when she saw that it was the Snitch. She pulled it up on her hand to show that she had caught it and Gryffindor won the match by 350 to 170.
"Can anyone explain me what has happened here?" Asked Lee confused while Hooch blew her whistle signaling the end of the Match.
"She caught the Snitch." Said Charlie as confused as him.
"How did you do it??" Asked the rest of the team to Hermione when the whole group landed a few minutes later.
"It entered in my sleeve, I put my hand to see what it was and I took off the Snitch." Explained Hermione with an inocent smile.
"Congratulations by the luckiest catch in the History of the School." Chuckled Hooch who heard her words when she went to take the Snitch and put it in the box of the balls.
"PARTY AT THE COMMON ROOM!!!" Shouted the team at unison leading the House back to the School.
****
"Nervous about tomorrow?" Asked Charlie to his brother and Hermione when the whole team and the 2 former students were alone at Katie's Common Room after the end of the party at the Common Room.
"What will happen tomorrow?" Asked Oliver confused.
"Do we tell him?" Asked Katie to the other, who nodded knowing that Wood could be trusted in this.
"Harry is alive and Ron and Hermione will go tomorrow to where he is now to bring him back." Explained Charlie.
"Or to stay with him." Added Hermione while Ron nodded.
"What the hell did I miss? The last time I checked, Harry died at Diagon Alley and was buried a few days later!" Exclaimed Oliver shocked and confused with their words and news.
"Calm down. The whole story is this." Said Hermione before she retold him everything that had been discovered after her suicide attempt.
"So, instead of dying, Harry was sent to another Universe and both of you will go there tomorrow?" Asked Oliver when she had finished her tale.
"Yes." Said Ron and Hermione with a nod at the same time.
"Just a question, how will be explained all of this to the world? His 'death' and burial was witnessed by a lot of people." Said Oliver.
"That is if he comes back." Said Fred.
"We don't know if he wants to return. If he does, we'll see how to do it when we are back. If he chooses to stay, the School will lose the trio." Said Ron with a serious tone of voice.
"You'll stay with him." Said Oliver when he finished.
"Yes, we will." Said Hermione with serious and decided tone of voice.
"I feel pity with your sister, guys." Said Oliver to the Weasleys.
"Why?" Asked the 4 redheads confused.
"She isn't titular at the team and maybe next year she'll Captain and will have to replace the whole team!" Laughed Oliver sending everyone in a fit of laughter.
"Poor Ginny!" Said Charlie laughing.
For another 2 hours the 9 players went on chatting, talking about the trip, what could happen in the other Universe, how would they explain everything if Harry came back and other things. Almost at 2.00 a.m. all of them decided to go to rest. Tomorrrow would be the day when many things would start to change.
****
The next day after Breakfast, Ron and Hermione went to Dumbledore's Office. They would leave from there. They had packed some clothes and other things in case the mission would last more than the expected.
When they arrived there, besides Dumbledore, were also McGonagall, Mr and Mrs Weasley, the twins and Ginny. The Weasleys were there to say Goodbye to the teens. While Dumbledore was there, Minerva would take his place as the Headmaster of the School. For the teens' absence, it had been said to the School that both of them would be at a Exchange Programme for an indefinited time. In that way, anyone would be surprised by their absence and any unwanted question would be asked.
"Remember what we asked you." Said Fred hugging his brother while George hugged Hermione.
"Good luck." Said Ginny hugging them.
"If you decide to stay there, come and say goodbye." Asked Molly hugging them.
"Don't worry, Mom, we'll do it." Promised Ron to his family and Head of House, before he, Hermione and Dumbledore filled 3 goblets with some of the Potion and drank it with a long sip.
****
The 3 of them felt as if their world was turned upside down and their bodies ripped and fixed again a few times before they landed. Dumbledore was the only one who hadn't fallen to the floor at their land and helped the teens to stand.
"This is even worse than traveling with a portkey." Complained Ron whose stomach threatened to show what he had eaten at the breakfast.
"I agree. After Portkeys and Floo Powder, this is the worst." Said Hermione trying to stop the diziness that she was feeling.
"Hw will we find Harry, Professor?" Asked Ron to Albus who was watching in silence the place where they had landed: near Hagrid's hut at the School's terrains.
Before they could answer, the 3 travellers saw 2 persons walking not very far from where they were. One of them was a girl, a fourth year by what they saw. She had red hair and looked a lot like Lily Potter. Next to her was walking a teen with black and messy hair. None of them needed to see him to know that he was:
"HARRY!!!"