Harry Potter and the Dead Sphere

By: Stokely

The disclaimer is in chapter one. This chapter is a bit more interesting... Hogwarts express and talking with old friends about future ones.

For Ghada, who liked my first chapter despite its crappiness.

Chapter two

Back to Hogwarts

They spent the rest of the morning touring the Granger house, which was quite a bit more fun than one would usually expect while showing someone around. The source of this fun was actually explaining to Ron how all the different Muggle gadgets worked. He'd already been introduced to the telephone, though he hadn't taken to it very well. The computer also proved difficult to explain, especially after Ron had tried to move the mouse by tapping on it with his wand. They had to flee the computer room after Ron had somehow managed to transfigure the mouse into an actual mouse, and then Crookshanks chased it around the room, causing destruction and mayhem in the usually orderly office.

Ron had also been quite bewildered in the kitchen when Mrs. Granger had called them in for lunch later that afternoon. He took special interest with the bread maker and the crock-pot. He had an unfortunate accident however when he'd pushed a button on the microwave and the door sprang open and bopped him on the nose.

The television on the other hand had suited Ron just fine and they settled into the living room and began sifting through Hermione's collection of Muggle movies. Ron and Harry had managed to convince Hermione that instead of watching her Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World tapes they should watch The Godfather, the three of them settled into the white leather couch and began watching.

However the movie was slightly tainted due to Ron's questioning them every few minutes about what the characters were doing. Eventually they abandoned the idea of trying to get through the movie and moved upstairs to Hermione's room.

"This is nothing at all like Ginny's room." Ron said as the two boys looked around. It wasn't what Harry had expected either. The walls were a light blue and bare save for a Hogwarts banner that Hermione had gotten Dean Thomas to make her last year, and a picture of her family. There was also a picture of the three of them in their fifth year at Hogwarts, but they weren't moving.

"I got Professor McGonagal to mugglephotofy them." She explained as she sat down on her bed. "I couldn't very well have my cousins up here, wondering why my pictures moved."

There was a desk in the corner with their Potions Essay on it and a huge bookshelf filled with Muggle books. Next to the bookcase was her Hogwarts trunk, and on top of that were a few stuffed animals, probably from her childhood. Her room was very plain. Harry had half expected it to have posters of Muggle or Wizard idols hanging on the walls, or maybe he was expecting more pink. He realized how very foolish that idea must have been considering how Hermione was.

Ron had wandered over to the bookshelf by now and was reading the labels of the books when his eyes fell upon a small wizard picture of Hermione and Krum waving happily and gazing at each other in a flirty manner; probably from her visit to Bulgaria.

"Looks like you forgot one, this one's still moving." He said in an almost snarky voice as he picked up the small picture and showed it to Harry and Hermione. Hermione blushed a furious shade of red before darting forward and grabbing the picture out of his hand.

"I, uh, I usually don't have it out." She mumbled as she opened the desk drawer and put the picture inside. "Mum must have taken it out while cleaning." Ron had his arms folded over his chest, which was not as skinny as it had once been. Mind you, he wasn't big, at least not horizontally. He crossed the room in only three strides and muttered something about getting his trunk. Next moment he was gone. Hermione sighed.

"Why does he always get this way whenever Viktor is mentioned?" She asked genuinely perplexed. She sat down on the bed next to Harry who shrugged. "We've already established that he's not a bad guy. I just can't understand why Ron hates him so much."

"Maybe it's because he likes you." Harry said, dead serious. Hermione burst into a fit of giggles.

"Ron, like me? That's ridiculous, honestly Harry! Ron and I can't stand each other!" she continued to chuckle. Harry shrugged yet again. It was then that her laughter began to die away. "You don't really think… I mean to say… Has he told you that he-"

"No, he hasn't said anything." Harry said as he wiped his glasses on his shirt. "He doesn't really have to though." They sat in a ringing silence for a few moments before the sound of Ron lugging his trunk up the stairs broke it.

"Really, Granger, do you think you've got enough stairs in this house." He said as he dragged his trunk into her room. Hermione turned pink for a moment but quickly replied.

"Says the boy who lives at the Burrow! Really, you'd think you'd be used to it." But she quickly fell silent and looked to Harry, who looked to her and then they both looked back at Ron in unison.

"What's up with you two?" Ron asked frowning ever so slightly.

"Nothing." Unfortunately they said this in unison which further incriminated them. "Come on." Hermione said briskly, "why don't we all go for a walk. I think it'd do nicely to get out of the house." Before Ron or Harry could answer she'd strode out of her bedroom and down the stairs.

The rest of the weekend went smoothly and lazily by. Harry enjoyed staying with the Grangers. He got to laze about, and though he cleaned up any mess he made, he liked the fact that that was all he was responsible for picking up. Saturday they took Ron down to Muggle London and showed him around before going into the Leaky Cauldron to get to Diagon Alley to get their school things. They also got heaps of Wizard and Muggle candy (Curly Wurly? What's it do, spin you round like a tornado? Ron had asked examining the packet carefully) and brought it hope that night, feasting on it while watching a few movies. Ron spent some of the day Sunday reading up on Apparating, since his test was coming up and he really wanted to get it as soon as he could.

Hermione and Harry had already completed theirs, but they'd promised Ron they wouldn't Apparate anywhere until he'd gotten his. This did not stop Hermione from Apparating upstairs when she suddenly remembered as they got into the car that she'd forgotten her new Transfiguration textbook.

It took around a half hour to get to King's Cross Station, the whole car ride was devoted to the three wondering what their seventh year would be like. When they arrived the two boys hopped out and volunteered to retrieve the trolleys for their trunks.

"What do you reckon Hermione's American mate will look like?" Ron asked as they began loading their things onto their trolleys and waited for Hermione to say goodbye to her mum and dad. Harry had been wondering the same thing actually.

"I don't know, don't really care do I? Just as long as I can stand her for a few weeks, that's all I'm looking for." He said looking down at his watch which now read ten to eleven. Ron sighed.

"Hope she's good looking." Harry raised an eyebrow at him. "What?" Ron asked with a small smile. "Can't hurt can it?"

"Alright you two, we'd better get a move on if we're going to get decent seats." Hermione said as she brushed a tear from the corner of her eye. Harry and Ron waved at Mr. and Mrs. Granger who were climbing back into their caravan.

"What's it to you how good our seats are?" Ron asked as the three began pushing their trolleys through the station toward Platforms nine and ten. "You're up front with Head Boy." Hermione blushed scarlet and absentmindedly tucked her Head Girl badge further into her pants pocket.

"Who IS Head Boy anyway?" Harry asked as they wheeled past the station master who was looking at them suspiciously. "Not Ernie Macmillian, I don't care if he did support me when everyone else thought I was off my cart, he's a bit of a snob."

"Worse would be Malfoy." Ron cut in. "It's not Malfoy is it?" He asked as his mouth dropped into a frown. Hermione laughed and shook her head so vehemently her bushy hair bounced.

"Oh no, Dumbledore's not that careless. No it's actually Anthony Goldstein from Ravenclaw. He's not really obliging actually but he is quite clever. A bit of a brainbox."

"The two of you should get on like a house on fire then." Ron said cheerfully as they finally came to the barrier between platforms nine and ten. First they checked to see that no one was watching. The station master was temporarily engaged with a mother who was trying to ask for a certain train, but her two children kept prodding the station master in – well in inappropriate places. The three took their opportunity and rushed through and onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

Steam billowed from the shiny engine, and The Hogwarts Express gleamed in polished gold print. Witches and Wizards were hurrying their children along, giving them rushed pecks and last minute instructions.

"Lord, it's a mad house round here." Harry exclaimed. "Come on or we'll never get a seat." Ron nodded and the three rushed onto the train (though they got temporarily held up when a second year girl had tried to rush in at the exact same time as Hermione, causing their belongings to get wedged in the door). When they made their way down the corridor and slid open the first few doors to find filled compartments, they finally came upon one with a friendly face.

"Neville!" Harry puffed, obviously quite relieved to see him. At first Harry had had to do a double take. Neville had acquired a bit of a tan and he was no longer the odd oblong shape he used to be. Harry supposed it had just taken him a bit longer to mature. He'd gotten broader in the shoulders and a bit skinnier round the middle. His face was the same as it had always been however and he offered his own grin to them.

Harry heaved his trunk into the compartment and Neville helped him stow it. Hermione came around next and she looked positively out of breath after all the kafuffle with the door and the second year.

"Here, I got it Hermione." Ron said as he dropped his own belongings and grabbed Hermione's trunk. He gave a loud grunt as he lifted the trunk out of her hands and up onto the rack. Hermione watched him, as did Harry and Neville, and she must have realized that her eyes widened, because suddenly she found her shirt sleeve quite interesting. Harry and Neville exchanged looks and they both smiled.

"Uhm… well, thanks Ron. Want me to help you with your things?" She offered meekly. Ron smiled and shook his head.

"Oh no, I'll be alright. Don't need any help with it. You go on now to the front, we'll see you later." Ron instructed as he kicked the side of his trunk. Hermione bit her lip, but nodded all the same and squeezed past him, continuing down the corridor determined not to look back. As soon as she was out of sight, Ron clasped his back and winced.

"Blimey, what's she keep in there? A corpse? C'mon Harry, help me with my stuff."

"I thought you didn't need any help, being the big strong bloke you are." Harry said smirking. Ron shot him a glare. Harry raised his hands. "Alright, alright, I get it. It's only funny when you're the one making the joke."

"Right." He said before they each grabbed an end of the trunk and heaved it up onto the rack. As soon as it was stowed the train gave a small jerk and they all looked out the window to see witches and wizards waving as the train began to pull away from the station. Neville wrenched open the window and he and Ron stuck their heads out, waving to no one in particular and jauntily proclaiming this was their last year. Harry merely grinned and shook his head.

Once the station was out of sight, they all settled back into their seats and watched the scenery as it blurred past them. The sunlight filtered through in rays that broke through a stormy sky, and patches of fields became a glowing green, separate from the darkness the clouds cast. Harry breathed a heavy sigh and slid further down in his seat. He was going home.

"So how was your summer Neville?" Ron asked good-naturedly as he fished out his Exploding Snap cards. Neville smiled as he moved forward in his seat so he could play.

"Excellent. Got to go with Great Uncle Algie to Mexico to study some foreign plant life they just discovered there. Got back a few days ago and…" at this he turned rather red and fidgeted, "spent the weekend at the Lovegoods's."

Both Harry and Ron looked up at this, and Neville turned even more scarlet. "Really?" Ron said appreciatively. "Good on you mate, how'd it go?" Neville shrugged, but his lips had begun to twitch upwards again.

"Alright." He said. "Mr. Lovegood was really friendly and welcoming, surprisingly." He sighed mistily. "And Luna was… well you wait, she's changed a lot." Ron raised his eyebrows at Harry and jerked his head at Neville, who was now sporting an obviously smitten expression on his face. Harry stifled a chuckle and just smiled. He was really very happy for Neville.

Before Ron could start handing out the cards, the door to the compartment slid open and another familiar red head peered around the corner.

"Thank goodness, it's crazy out here, I though we'd never find you!" Ginny exclaimed as she lugged her surprisingly huge trunk inside. We? Harry thought, but soon his question was answered as Looney Lovegood followed Ginny in. But she didn't at all look like the old Luna.

Her hair was still dirty blonde but she'd cut it so now it was only past her shoulder blades and was straight. Her huge blue eyes were still haunting but now had an almost seductive quality, now that her face had grown a bit sharper and more defined. She was thin as ever, but Harry noticed that she now was a bit more elegant in stature. Today she had onion rings dangling from her ears and some sort of thorny necklace round her neck.

Harry saw out of the corner of his eye that Ron's mouth had dropped open. Oh yes, Looney Lovegood had definitely changed a lot.

"Hello Harry. Ronald." She said in that misty voice that had stayed ever the same.

"Hello Luna." Harry said, but all Ron could manage was a weak nod. She smiled offhandedly at him before she and Ginny sat down next to Neville.

"Did you hear that Hermione's getting an exchange witch from America?" Ginny asked, not noticing that her brother was still gaping at Luna. Neville shook his head, as did Luna, the onion rings swinging wildly. At that point Ron must have realized that she was still the nutty girl she'd always been and his mouth snapped shut.

"When's she arriving, d'you know?" Harry asked Ginny, wondering if she'd thought to ask. Ginny smiled and nodded.

"Hermione just told me. Apparently she'll be coming tomorrow morning for breakfast. Got a horrible midnight ticket and won't be arriving until five in the morning." She said. Harry blinked.

"She's taking a plane?" he asked dumbstruck. It was Ginny's turn to look politely confused.

"What's a plane?" she asked. Harry took this to mean, no, the exchange witch was not taking a plane. "She's porting in, you know, with a portkey? But when it's such a long way away, you spend a bit of time in transit. Plus you've got to get through all that Wizport security."

"That's a nightmare." Ron added as he shuffled his cards. "Remember getting through Egypt, Gin? They thought Percy'd been trying to smuggle in a herd of Doxy, which turned out to just be one of your stuffed animals bewitched by Fred. They held him up for hours." Ginny sniggered at the memory.

"Does Hermione know whose coming yet?" Harry asked, becoming quite curious about this new witch. She would of course be spending a lot of time with them since she was Hermione's guest.

"No, that's the odd part; they still want it to be a surprise." Ginny said overcoming her giggles. "All they said was she would be coming tomorrow and be with us till Christmas break."

"That's a long piece." Neville said and the others nodded their heads in agreement.

They spent the next few hours of the train ride exchanging summer stories as well as guessing what Hermione's guest would look and act like.

"Well she's American, right? Well she could look like anything, I remember when I was up there on my way to Mexico, everyone looked all different." Neville said as they all nodded.

"I hope she's nice." Ginny said. "It would be awful to get someone like Pansy Parkinson, having to stay with us in the Gryffindor Common Room and in our dormitories." She stuck out her tongue.

"I hope she's not too much like Hermione." Ron said. They all frowned at him. "Well, one Hermione's plenty! Besides I hope she's really flashy and dangerous."

"And gorgeous knowing you." Ginny snorted. Harry's mouth quirked into a smile and Ginny groaned. "You've already told Harry that, haven't you?" She smacked Ron's forearm hard.

"Hey! It wouldn't hurt!" He said in his defence, recoiling from his sister.

"Yeah, well I hope she's a real troll just for you." Ginny shot back, still obviously disgusted with her brother. Luna, Harry and Neville just laughed. But in the back of Harry's head, he hoped she didn't actually look like a troll. Not that it mattered, he quickly reminded himself. It's just what Ron had said. It couldn't hurt.

An hour later, Luna and Neville had fallen asleep and Ginny looked as if she were on the brink of doing the same. It was grey and the rays of sun had since departed, making it a lazy dark day. They were lulled by the gloom and the train steadily racing along the tracks toward Hogwarts. A few minutes past four, Harry felt Ron's head slip onto his shoulder. Harry rolled his eyes and pushed his friend over so that he laid his upper body across the empty seat. Harry just continued to watch the scenery hurtle past and suddenly found that his eyelids were drooping. He laid his temple on the cold glass of the window and no thoughts filled his head but those of simple happiness as he surveyed his friends all dozing softly. Suddenly he heard something against the window. He looked up and the sky had opened up and droplets fell against the window. It was raining.

He heard the compartment door slide open and he turned, sure that it was Hermione who had finally come to check on them. But instead there was an unfamiliar girl standing at the door. She'd paused when she realized that the compartment was full of sleeping students.

Harry looked at her without really seeing her. His vision was blurry and he realized that he wasn't wearing his glasses. They were lying in his lap but he made no move to put them back on. He heard her mutter a sorry and she quickly shut the door. His brain was working at a slow pace and so he just let his head slide backwards onto the window again as his eyes fell shut and he fell to sleep.