Author's Note
Yes! Jade Daughter of Darkness it at it again. Look. A new fan fic. Wow! It only took me about two years. The seven or eight of you who did read The Daemon Pendants, I am sorry to say that there was only one chapter for that. I loved the beginning for it but now I'm stumped. Please feel free to do whatever you want to with it. Read it, add to it, review it; I don't mind. Here is my permission to screw around with it. Not that I think any of you will, but hey! There is a possibility here.
Unfortunately for the opportunists; this is MY story. So what if JK Rowling invented the characters and events? You are in my world now. Comforted yet? Thanks for listening to all this crap before the story gets started. I really appreciate all the support and reviews I get. Thanks to everyone. Love you all.
Jade
Disclaimer: Some, but not all, of the characters, situations and circumstances in the story belong to Joanne Rowling. No money is, or will be, made from this piece of fiction. But, just as a thought, maybe we should hold all written fan fiction against Ms. Rowling, at least until she gets her act together and releases the sixth book. Or else, maybe all fan-fic writers should compile their fan fiction into two books. Ms. Rowling, you have been warned! "fu fu fu"
Parings: Warning! Some mild slash references (sorry girls, no yaoi lemon; well, maybe a bit of lime if I get enough reviews ;)) RW/HP, RW/HG, HP/HG, HG/DM, DM/PP and a bunch more, all at once. This makes no sense right now, but don't worry, it will. After all, how else do you keep all your reviewers happy, unless you add a little complexity into your story? R rating for language and mature topics (think FAKE, vol. 2, act 5)
Chapter 1: Harry Potter
Harry Potter was not the happiest bunny at the petting zoo. In fact, he was down right pissed off. Sixteen years, as he had told himself many times over the past month, was seventeen years too long to spend with the Dursleys. His only issue was where he could go, if he wasn't stuck in Privet Drive. Ron and Hermione, he best friends at Hogwarts had said very little to him. They didn't speak about the Order of the Phoenix, unless it was a mild reference, such as "where we were last summer," and Harry was almost glad they didn't. The place in his heart where Sirius had been was still very raw; almost sore to the touch.
But, unfortunately for Harry, the damned Dursleys weren't the only ones ticking him off. Ron and Hermione, the people who for five and more years he had considered were his best friends, had found someone else in their lives; each other. It was the second week in July when Hermione finally told Harry that she and Ron had decided to go out. It was nice of her in a way, Harry had thought. At least she had bothered to telephone him and talk to him in person, instead of just sending a letter, or worse, not telling him at all. Dudley, however, had found it most amusing when Harry had received a telephone call.
The telephone, which was sitting on the kitchen counter, had vibrated and emitted two short rings in quick succession. Dudley had heaved himself out of the chair, that Uncle Vernon had to reinforce because of Dudley's massive backside, and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"
Harry, who had been pushing a bit of toast around on his plate, heard a high voice coming from the other line and before he knew what was happening, he had been handed the phone.
"Some Hermione bird for you. Ooh! Have you gotta a girlfriend?" Dudley's voice was brimming with mockery. Harry had taken the phone and held the receiver to his ear.
"Hello?" He could hear Dudley's hysterical laughter in the background.
"Hi Harry, it's Hermione. Was that your cousin?"
"The one and only"
"Well, tell him, from me, that I would much rather go out with you than him any day."
Harry had only laughed. The prospect of Dudley having any sort of girlfriend could send a Buckingham Palace guard into fits of hysterics. "Don't worry, I will."
"Good. Now there are two things I need tell you. Firstly, me and Ron have been in touch and, last week, Bill found a new location for the Order of the Phoenix."
Harry said nothing.
"I know that you are probably angry, and with every right, but we thought that it would be painful for you; for us as well. But we thought that it would be more pain for you if we didn't find a place. So there you have it. News number one. Please don't yell at me."
Hermione said all of this very quickly, as if it would be better the get it out of the way. To be honest, Harry really wasn't that angry. He could see her reasoning behind doing it and why she didn't happen. He was sure that she remembered their reunion after last summer just as well as he did and he had to admit that it wasn't a very pleasant memory.
"It's alright, Hermione," Harry said in his most calming voice, "I'm not angry, well, not that angry anyway" he was sure he heard a sigh of relief at the other end of the line.
"That's great Harry, as we, that is to say, me, Ron and the Weasleys, all want you to come and stay. Probably for the rest of the summer." Harry's heart leapt . "Don't answer yet, because, if you were angry with me before, you're going to shoot me after I tell you this."
"Go on" Harry's anticipation was rising. What in the name of hell had she done now?
"Well, I said that Ron and I were in touch, by owls, and in one of these exchanges, he†erm†he asked me out."
Harry was silent for a moment. Then finally, "And you said?"
"I haven't answered yet," He heard Hermione take a deep breath. "I need to know†well, I just don't know what to do. I mean, I knew it was coming, but-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you mean, 'you knew it was coming'?"
"I knew that he was going to ask me out, or that one of you would. I always had my suspicions that one of you liked me, but I was never sure which one. My suspicions were confirmed last year, you know, when you went out with Cho." Harry grunted. His dismal failure to understand girls was clear in his mind. "Well, I knew you liked Cho from the minute you set eyes on her," Which was indeed true. Harry was now getting vivid memories of the Quidditch game in their third year, "but Ron has never really liked anyone, other then that small infatuation with Fleur Delecour, but that was in common with just about all the boys at Hogwarts, so that really didn't mean much."
"Well," said Harry slowly, thinking out how he had started going out with Cho, "Do you like him? Ron, I mean."
"Ron? Well of course I like him, he has had his, um, aggravating moments," Harry knew she was referring to their third year again and Ron's accusations of Crookshanks, "but, of course I like him."
"Then go out with him."
Hermione was silent for a moment. "Do you really think so?"
"Of course I think so. If he asks you out, and you like him, then there is no excuse. If I had a problem, I'd yell at him, not you."
"And do you have a problem?"
"No." Harry said flatly. "I don't have any problems with it."
"You sure?"
"Damn right I am. Listen though; will you still want me at the new HQ?"
"Of course we will! And Harry?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks."
"May you have better luck at dating then I did."
Hermione laughed. "I'd better get going; Ron will want to know that you're coming."
"Ok, Bye then."
"Bye." Harry put the phone down and looked around. His aunt, uncle and cousin we all staring at him.
"Don't even ask." Harry said, turning to go.
"Your... your lot can use telephones?" Uncle Vernon asked the air.
"Yep." Harry replied, just to piss off his uncle. With any luck, he might not be there much longer.
Completed: Aug 24/04