Chapter 51
Good to Be Home
The entrance hall of the castle was empty and Harry's footsteps echoed strangely in the quiet as he approached the Great Hall. He was reminded eerily of his dream that he had recounted to Ron and Hermione only that morning although it seemed like it was a year ago. But then he heard the quiet laughter and speaking of numerous students and guests in the hall and he relaxed. He pushed open the door and stepped into the long, candle-lit room.
The tables were full to groaning with a wide assortment of dishes. Harry glanced up out of habit at the enchanted ceiling. It was showing a beautiful sunset and Harry took a deep breath. It was good to be home again. Harry approached the Gryffindor table and saw Ron and Hermione, then Cassie and next to her Ginny. Across from their group were Fred and George Weasley. It appeared Fred and George had appointed themselves the unofficial entertainment for the group as they both had their wands out and were entertaining the Gryffindor table by having two roasted chickens chasing each other up and down the table to the delight of most of the students. Giggling and laughter could be heard up and down the table. Ron, Cassie and Ginny were laughing loudly. Hermione had a look somewhere between amusement and disapproval. As Harry arrived, the twins grinned and guided the two chickens to their respective platters and had them lay back down. "Did'ja want some chicken, Harry?" At that, Ginny looked up at him, smiled and scooted over so he could sit down between her and Cassie.
Harry looked around at the rest of the house tables. No one was sitting at the Slytherin table. That was curious. Maybe they were protesting and eating in their common room - he wasn't going to complain. Dinner would be even more peaceful without them. Then he jumped a little as someone at the Ravenclaw table turned into a canary. Then someone in Hufflepuff followed and everyone at that table laughed loudly. Fred and George laughed, too. Harry shot them a questioning look. "People know what'll happen, but they don't mind." Just then, Neville himself sprouted feathers. Fred and George laughed even louder at this. He had been their original victim so it was funny that he was willing to do it again. After Neville molted and lost his beak so that he could be understood, he shrugged and looked down the table.
"They taste so good, it's worth it. It only lasts for a few minutes." Cassie smiled shyly down the table at him.
Harry looked down at the table and saw that a plate, goblet, and silverware had appeared in front of him. He looked over Cassie's and Ginny's plates to see what they had been eating. "What do you recommend?"
"Well, I had a sandwich and it was good. I was going to have the chicken but watching them race back and forth sort of . . . ." Harry grinned at Cassie, knowing what she meant. Seeing your food move could certainly make you wonder about eating it.
"They've got shepherd's pie, Harry. You like that, don't you?" Ginny reached over and pulled over one of the platters toward him. He helped himself to a little of that, feeling at the moment like he didn't have much of an appetite. Ron looked up from his conversation with Hermione and shoved a platter full of fried chicken in Harry's direction. Fred grabbed some fried potatoes from his end of the table and pushed them toward Harry. He helped himself to a little of everything and then looked up and down the table for the pumpkin juice. He was terribly thirsty.
"Hey, isn't there pumpkin juice?"
"You'll have to get some from the other end of the table. I think Cassie drank all of ours." Harry's eyes widened and he turned quickly to look at the guilty party. She flushed pink when she felt his eyes on her.
"It was really good, Harry. You were right." He laughed but before he got up to find himself a new pitcher, one appeared on the table next to his goblet. He poured himself a glass and drank it down in one gulp.
"Did you want more?" He pushed the pitcher over to Cassie. She bit her lip.
"I think I've had enough." George spoke up at that.
"I think she had about five glasses."
"Four. Okay, maybe five." Harry laughed again at the look on her face.
"Glad you liked it. Told you it was good."
"They've even got Butterbeer, Harry. It's down at the ends of the tables." Ron held up his bottle and Harry did a double take.
"They've never had that before. What's the deal?"
"Well," Fred answered, smirking, "Now that the adults are eating with you, they decided to give us something a little stronger than juice."
"Ha, ha. I'm sure that's it, Fred."
George spoke up, "Actually, he's right. They've got some Ogden's, too."
"What?!!!" Harry looked down the table and, sure enough, there was a bottle of the firewhiskey not far from George's elbow. "That's certainly a change!" Fred picked up the bottle and splashed a little into his pumpkin juice. Ron tried to grab it from Fred but dropped it instantly.
"Aaah." He shook his hand up and down like it had been burned. "Shocked me, stupid thing."
"It's got an age protection spell on it, you dolt! Did you think the professors would just set bottles of it on the table so you ickle babies can get drunk? Think about it!" George grabbed the bottle and splashed a little into his juice. Harry knew neither of the twins cared much for alcohol and he imagined they were just showing off the fact that they were now considered adults. Ron held out his glass.
"Pour a little into mine while you're at it, would'ja?"
"Ron!" Hermione grabbed his arm and tried to pull it back down. "Don't you dare. I'll tell your mother!" Ginny scowled down the table at her three brothers.
"Don't you two do that! I'll tell mum, too."
"Don't worry, Hermione, Ginny. We know better than to give this drink for grownups to ickle Ronnie-kins. Wouldn't want him to get out of control, right Fred?" George was smirking at Ron, who scowled. "Anyone want to test our new . . ."
"No!" was the unanimous response from the group.
"Oh, come on. It's a good trick." George held out a bag. Harry couldn't see what was in it, but he wasn't about to find out. Cassie looked curious and leaned forward to see into the bag. Harry grabbed her shoulder.
"Don't. You'll regret it. They were the ones who invented the canary cremes. The ones that make you turn into a big yellow bird!"
"Oh." She looked a little more hesitant but George shook the bag closer to her face.
"Come on, Cassie, give 'em a try. They're harmless."
"Cassie, don't do it. Never eat anything they give you. You'll regret it." She shook her head at George.
"I better not."
"Is he your boss? Come on, try it. Nothing will happen, well . . . . nothing too bad anyway."
"George, you should know that . . . ." Harry was just about to whisper that she was a Muggle so that they wouldn't insist on trying out some unknown thing on her but just then Bill walked into the hall and everyone turned to him. He was closely followed by someone Harry had been wondering about since the beginning of the battle - Remus Lupin. George tucked the bag into his robes and stood up to greet Bill.
"How's Charlie, Bill?"
"He's doing pretty well. Mum and Dad are ready to go back home. Come on. They can tell you more details."
"Hey, we want to know, too," said Ginny.
"He's really doing well. Pomfrey says he'll be completely better in a day or two. I'm sure he'd like to see you guys tomorrow. He's asleep right now." The twins arose to go with Bill. They said goodby to everyone.
They each reached over and gave Harry a poke in his arm and told him how good it was to see he was actually alive. Then they turned to Cassie. "It was nice meeting you," Fred said. George chimed in. "Yeah, you need to come by our shop sometime. It's in Diagon Alley, next to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. We'd love to see you again. But leave Harry at home. He obviously has no sense of humour. Here's our card." With that he handed Cassie a large purple and gold embossed business card. Cassie took it and, as soon as she touched it, a voice came from the card screaming. "Ow! That hurts. Let go of me!" Cassie jumped and dropped the card onto the table. The card then said, "Ha, ha. Just kidding. Be sure to visit Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes in Diagon Alley."
The twins burst out laughing. "Do you like our new business cards?" Fred asked between guffaws, "We changed them from the ones that made your hand shrivel up. For some reason people didn't seem to find the humour in that." Ron grinned while both Hermione and Bill rolled their eyes. Cassie looked down nervously at the card.
"Will it talk to me again if I pick it up?"
George smiled. "No, it only works once. You're safe now."
Cassie smiled back, picked up the card and the three brothers left the hall waving good-bye. "They are so funny! Those stories they were telling earlier, Harry! About the stuff they did here at school! I've never laughed so hard in my entire life! I think they must have made it all up, though. No two people could get into that much trouble." She smiled and slipped the card into her pocket. "Not that I'll ever get there, but the card is funny. Do you think it will work if I give it to someone else?" Ginny shrugged but Harry had other things on his mind. He turned his attention to Lupin who had just returned after going up to the head table to speak to Hagrid.
He smiled, rose from the table, and hugged Lupin, who gave him a big smile and hug in return. "How are you, Harry? It's so good to see you! You don't know how upset I was when we thought you were . . ." His voice trailed off and the look of pain on his face told it all.
Harry felt a lump in his throat as he nodded. "I understand and I'm sorry for putting all of you through that. It's just that . . ."
"I know." Lupin interrupted. "Dumbledore explained it to me." Harry nodded. He was aware of Lupin's inquisitive glance at Cassie. Harry turned and saw Cassie staring up at Lupin with wide eyes and then remembered he had told her about Remus Lupin's being a werewolf. He silently berated himself for having told her and hoped she wouldn't show the fear she was obviously feeling. He wouldn't want to embarrass Lupin for anything. He hesitantly introduced her, trusting that she was polite enough to at least act friendly.
"Remus, this is Cassie Robinson. I, uh, met her while I was hiding in London."
Remus smiled at Cassie and held his hand out. She looked intently into his eyes for a moment and then noticeably relaxed, smiled and took his hand. Harry smiled in relief at both of them as they shook hands. Remus smiled at the others sitting there, "Ron, Ginny, Hermione . . . It's good to see you." He put his arm around Harry's shoulders. I understand you're meeting with Dumbledore in the morning?" Harry nodded. "Great. I'll be there, too. We can talk more then. I'm busy . . . Dumbledore put me in charge of dealing with the prisoners." Harry looked surprised and Lupin gave him kind of a funny look. "Yeah, I don't know why either since it involves the Ministry. I think it's his way of thumbing his nose at their regulations. Trying to do a good job for him. Better run. Nice to meet you, Cassie." He smiled at her and then at everyone else and left the hall.
"He's really nice." Cassie said to Harry as they both sat back down at the table.
"Yeah. He's great." Harry smiled. "It was so good to see him. I missed him a lot." A moment later, the puddings appeared on the table. "Ooh, dessert. I don't know if I'm up to it." Ginny, however, helped herself to some chocolate cake and Ron was digging into the trifle. Cassie sampled a little of the apple tart.
"The food here is really good, Harry. Do you eat like this all the time?"
"Basically, yeah."
"Who cooks it? Is it all magic? How does it get up to the tables? Who washes the dishes after they . . ."
"Hey! Let me answer you before you work yourself into a frenzy!" She threw him a dirty look but let him talk.
"Hogwarts has house elves. They're in charge of the cooking. They work down in the kitchen and cook all the food. It comes up by magic. I imagine the dishes are washed by magic, too, although I'm not sure about that part."
"Elves? There's no such thing as . . . oh, never mind." Harry smirked at her a little as she today had seen giants and centaurs and flying broomsticks and a phoenix and all sorts of other things that yesterday she would have said didn't exist. Then he suddenly yawned, and his exhaustion pressed down on him.
"I think I'll head up to bed. I'm exhausted."
"We'll all go up," Ginny added and Hermione and Ron also stood. "It's been a long couple of days." Cassie remained sitting at the table, fiddling a little with her fork. She looked up a little pleadingly at Harry.
"What am I supposed to do tonight? Can someone take me home?"
Harry grimaced. "I'm sure we can find someone to . . ."
Hermione spoke up quickly. "You can stay here tonight, Cassie. We'll make sure you get home in the morning. Don't worry. But it's late tonight, and I'm sure you're tired."
"I am but I'm not sure that . . . I mean, my mum and dad . . . ."
"They're still out of town, right? Don't worry. Dumbledore'll make sure you get home tomorrow."
"Yeah. You can stay in my dorm. Everyone else is gone so I've got plenty of room." Ginny smiled broadly. "We'll have a great time. And you may even get some sleep." Ginny winked. "Oh, and Hermione, you may as well come join us. It'd be better than hanging out with Lavender and Pavarti, wouldn't it?"
"Gee, you're going to have to really twist my arm, Gin. I'll do that. All I care about right now though is having a really long shower and getting out of these clothes. Cassie's probably just as grimy and tired as I am. We didn't have pyjamas last night or anything so we've been in these since yesterday morning!"
"Well, let's head up. Oh, Cassie . . . do you think you're going to be able to sleep?"
"I can hardly keep my eyes open. I don't think I'll have a problem with it."
"Um, you don't think you'll have nightmares or anything? I mean, we're kind of used to the fighting and all, but . . . ."
"Oh." Cassie suddenly got a somber look on her face and Harry had a wave of guilt pass through him. He had done this to her. Her eyes, which had taken on their previous bright glint as the dinner had progressed, clouded over again. "I think I'll be all right. I wasn't right down in the fighting or anything. I'd rather not take anything that I don't need to."
"Okay, if you're sure," Hermione spoke up. "If you change your mind, just say. We can take you over to the hospital wing anytime."
"Hospital wing? You need a whole wing at the school?" Cassie was shocked. "At my high school, they have one room with two beds and a toilet." The other four laughed. That would never work here.
"Uh, well, yeah. Actually." Hermione flushed a little and Harry almost laughed at her expression. "We have a lot of accidents here. Learning magic can be a little . . . messy." Harry wondered if she would tell Cassie later about her experience being turned into a cat or being petrified but at the moment, Hermione let the subject drop.
"Ugh. I'd rather not know any more, thanks. I think I saw enough magic out there. It's pretty powerful stuff." Harry wanted to protest. So much of what she saw today was much more evil than anything they ever did at school, but then another wave of exhaustion broke over him and he decided that if they didn't go upstairs soon, he'd just fall over and sleep on the floor of the Great Hall. He wanted his own bed.
"Come on. I'm tired. I want to go to bed." The small group started up the stairs and Cassie looked at everything as they passed, not commenting. Her eyes were wide and she kept turning her head, trying to see everything at once. Harry remembered what it was like the first time he went this way and could sympathize with her amazed expression. They climbed and climbed. After the third long set of stairs, Cassie spoke up.
"I think you guys should invest in some lifts or something. This is exhausting!" Hermione and Harry laughed. Ron and Ginny just looked puzzled.
"A lift, Ron, like in the Ministry."
"Oh. Yeah. Those would be handy here. I wonder why we don't use them."
"They'd never work here, Cassie. No electricity. It doesn't interact well with magic. Notice we still use torches and candles. The ones at the Ministry must be specially charmed."
"I thought the candles and things were just for atmosphere. But this explains how you can eat all the heavy food and stay so thin. You wear it all off just going up to bed. I'm going to collapse."
"We're almost there. You can do it." They actually had two more flights of stairs before Harry finally saw the familiar face of the Fat Lady. She looked at him and did a double-take.
"I thought you were dead. But you don't look like a ghost to me."
"I'm not dead. I'm not a ghost either. I'm sure you'll hear the whole story later."
"No doubt. Password, anyone?" The Fat Lady looked at Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. She ignored Cassie completely although Harry wondered if that would be the case when a non-Gryffindor girl tried to pass through the portrait hole.
"Oh, yeah." Ron flushed rather red. "I didn't pick this, Harry, believe me. Um, 'Vengeance for Harry.'"
Harry blushed bright red. "That's great. Can we get that changed tomorrow? I refuse to give that as a password. Talk about sappy!"
Hermione sniffed and Harry got the distinct impression that she had been the one to suggest the password. He was surprised she didn't give it in Latin. That sounded like something she would do. He smiled at her. "Now I'm back, it's not necessary, Hermione."
"Obviously. It was set weeks ago." She sniffed again, and Cassie laughed. The Fat Lady looked at her for the first time as she swung open.
"Who is that? She's not a Gryffindor."
"She's my friend. Dumbledore knows she's here." Ginny spoke quickly and then added, "She's only here for one night." Then they all slid through the portrait hole, and Harry looked around the familiar common room for the first time in what felt like years although it had only been a little more than three weeks.
"What's all the black for?" All of the portraits had black bands around them and even the statues had black arm bands. There were black banners and black ribbons around the stair rails.
"Think about it, Harry." Ginny answered him, her tone fairly sarcastic.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. I keep forgetting I was dead. Um, look, do me a favor. If I ever really do die . . . don't do this. It makes me out to be some sort of hero or something. I'm just a kid. A kid with incredibly bad luck." All three of his friends pursed their lips but didn't answer him. Cassie was more outspoken.
"I wouldn't say that, Harry. I saw you today. You are a hero. And really brave, too. So you deserve it." At his look of disgust, she said it again. "You are. Don't sell yourself short." Harry didn't know how to answer this, so he didn't.
"Darn. I bet I've got to go get my trunk from Dumbledore's office. I should have thought of that before now." He wasn't sure he had the energy to deal with this right now. "Maybe . . ."
"Just come on up, Harry. You can borrow my pyjamas or something. Everything else can wait until tomorrow."
"Yeah. He's right. And Cassie, I have a nightgown you can borrow."
"I bet, since you sleep in . . . ." Oops. Cassie's eyes suddenly widened. She shouldn't have started that sentence. She forgot that Ginny hadn't been there during that conversation.
"Since I sleep in what?" Then Ginny's eyes widened and she blushed bright red. "Hermione, I can't believe you told them!"
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I just . . . I mean, Harry was wondering where his shirt was and everything . . ." That wasn't quite true. Harry hadn't even noticed it was gone but he was smarter than to say that at this moment. It would just be asking for trouble. Hermione was still stumbling through an explanation. "It just came out, kind of accidentally."
"Oh, I'm not really mad. It's just embarrassing. Do you want it back, Harry?" He shook his head.
"No. I'm sure you look better in it than I do." Ginny blushed and then laughed and soon all five of them were sitting on the couch and chairs, laughing probably more than the situation warranted, their exhaustion making them slightly punch drunk. A few moments later, they had all calmed down enough to say goodnight. Ron and Hermione hugged each other hard and kissed before they split up and each headed up their own staircases. Harry kissed Ginny softly. "Goodnight. I'll see you in the morning." Cassie was staring hard at the fire and Harry imagined that she felt a little self-conscious. He touched her arm. "You've been fantastic today, Cass. I mean it. You've been great." He bent and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Thanks for everything. You really . . . you're just . . . You really saved my life in London. You know that, don't you?"
Cassie nodded and kissed him back. "I'm so glad I got to meet you."
"Well, hey. This isn't goodbye. We'll see each other in the morning, okay?" She nodded again and followed Ginny up the stairs. Harry started up his own staircase. Ron had waited for him up one landing and the two of them climbed up the several flights of steps, entering the familiar dorm room which now said "Sixth Years" on it. Harry looked in and smiled. "It's good to be back, Ron. I sure missed this place."
"Yeah. I know what you mean. Oh, look. The elves were as efficient as ever. Hermione hasn't completely ruined them with her S.P.E.W. nonsense." Harry grinned in response. His trunk was in its accustomed place at the foot of his bed. He was glad he hadn't gone to Dumbledore's office. He would have been sorely disappointed at the wasted trip. All his things were here, all the clothes he had bought in London were folded on his chair. Even the pillowcase was folded on top. His invisibility cloak, Omnioculars, and even his broom, which he had left downstairs, were all in their accustomed places in his trunk. And then Harry saw a familiar sight. Hedwig's cage! It was empty but the door was open. He walked over to it and looked in. There was water there and what looked like some fairly recent crumbs from her favorite owl treats. Ron noticed where Harry was looking. "She's been living in the owlery but she comes down here periodically for treats and petting. She's missed you. Theoretically, she was supposed to help out the other school owls to earn her keep, but she's refused to carry anything. She just turns up her beak and turns her back."
Harry laughed at the image Ron described. He knew that owls were very strong magical creatures. He wondered if Hedwig had known all along that he was alive. He'd have to ask Dumbledore that sometime. He was distracted at the thought and sat down on his bed but then dragged himself up again. "I really need a shower. I'm filthy!" Ron joined him and they both headed to the bathroom for long hot showers and then Harry got on his comfortable pyjamas and collapsed onto the bed.
Harry had just slid under the covers of his four-poster bed when Ron laughed suddenly. "I do feel bad for you, mate."
"Why?"
"You've got your new girlfriend, your old girlfriend, and one of your best friends all together. They're going to be gossiping about you all night!"
"Do you think so?"
"I know so. They're going to be swapping embarrassing Harry stories all night long. And if they run out, they'll make some up. Ginny and Hermione are bad enough together, add Cassie to the mix and there's no saying what'll happen."
"Oh, great! That thought will really help me sleep, Ron. Thanks." Harry rolled to his side and then onto his back again His arm hurt too much to lay on it. Maybe he should have had Madam Pomfrey put something on it, after all. Then a thought occurred to him. "Hey, you're no better off!"
"What?"
"You've got your current girlfriend and your sister to tell stories about you! To someone who doesn't know you very well. They'll have a lot more to say about you than they will about me!"
"Oy! You're right. It'll be terrible! Thanks, Harry!"
"Hey, you brought it up." Before Ron could think of a suitable response, the door opened and Seamus, Dean, and Neville came into the room.
"Harry! It's so good to see you. You were fantastic today!" Harry greeted them warmly. They were truly good friends and he had missed them terribly. The five of them spoke briefly about what Harry had been doing. No one asked about Cassie, which Harry was grateful for. He didn't want to have to explain too much about her. Everyone was tired, though, and soon they all extinguished the lamps and shut the curtains around their beds. Harry closed his eyes, feeling sleep drift in on the edges of his consciousness. Then he realized that Ron was tossing in his bed. Harry listened for a moment and, thinking Ron had settled, again closed his eyes. He was again abruptly awakened by Ron's shifting and tossing. This went on for several minutes until Harry finally had had enough.
"What's the deal, Ron? Go to sleep. Aren't you tired?"
"Yeah, it's just . . ."
"He's not used to sleeping up here with us anymore, Harry!" It was Seamus, laughing as he spoke. "He's used to sleeping with Hermione!"
"Sleeping is the key word. We've just slept on the couch. Nothing else!"
"Yeah, yeah. So you say."
"I'm used to, uh, snuggling with her, that's all." Ron sounded kind of embarrassed and Harry thought he should - snuggling??? Gag! Especially with Hermione. Of course, the thought of "snuggling" with Ginny didn't sound too bad. And what he and Cassie had done the day before was probably even more than "snuggling" so maybe it wouldn't be that bad, after all. Harry listened to Ron tossing and turning for a few more minutes.
"Deal with it, Ron. I'm sure as heck not coming over there to snuggle with you!"
"Yuck!! No you definitely won't." Harry heard Ron's curtains slide open. "As if I'd let you. You're too bony. Hermione's all soft and . . ." Harry slid his own curtains open to face his friend, in the dim light just barely able to discern his outline.
"Please don't finish that sentence, Ron. I really don't want to know!" Then Harry picked up his extra pillow and threw it, hitting Ron square in the face. "Snuggle that! It's soft enough."
Ron just made a spluttering noise and pulled his curtains shut again. Seamus laughed loudly and Harry smiled into the darkness. His last thought as he drifted to sleep was that it was really good to be home.