Hermione smiled as she tried a dive. The feeling was wonderful. About ten feet from the Weasley's lawn, she pulled out of the dive. "Harry! That was fun!"
Ron grinned at Harry. "I told you it would be a good idea to teach Hermione how to fly."
Ginny flew over to where Ron and Harry were. "Did I just hear you say it was your idea to teach Hermione to fly?"
Ron visibly winced. "No. It was never my idea. The thought never even crossed my mind." Ginny glared at him and turned and began to fly away.
Harry grinned. He wondered what Ginny would do to Ron for revenge. "Oh Ginny!" He called at her retreating back. "I believe he did say it was his idea."
"Really Harry." She replied menacingly.
"Yep."
"Harry! Even though she's my sister, she will get revenge for that. Why did you tell her?" Ron bemoaned, with his face turned up at the sky, as if he was hoping to find an answer there.
"Because," Ginny began, "he's my friend."
"Yeah, but he's my friend first!"
"So?" Ginny said and flew over to Hermione. "C'mon Hermione, let's go in and help mum with dinner!"
"That's sounds good. Is it okay if I fly around for a bit?"
"Sure. Do you mind if I come with you? I wouldn't mind a chance to get away from these boys." She said the word as if it was a disease.
"Let's go then. I know a handy invisibility charm. How does being invisible sound to you?"
"Hermione!"
"Yes?" She answered sweetly.
"What would you need an invisibility charm for?"
Hermione blushed and looked at the sky. "Nothing."
"Mmm hmm. I believe you." Ginny replied with an unconvinced tone. Then she flew over to Hermione and held out her hand. Hermione tapped Ginny's hand with her wand and murmured "fio pelluceo" Ginny watched her arm as invisibility spread up it.
Hermione then performed the spell upon herself. "Try and do it to your broom." Hermione watched in satisfied invisibility as Ginny's broom became invisible. Then Hermione took her wand out and put the tip on the bridge of her nose and murmured "oculi quid pelluceo" She could now see Ginny.
Ginny couldn't see Hermione, so she asked, "Hermione where are you?"
"I'm over here, but don't move." Hermione flew over to Ginny and performed the same spell on Ginny. Now you can see what is invisible."
"Nice. I'll have to remember those spells for late night trips to the kitchens at Hogwarts." Ginny smiled.
"Where do you want to go?"
"Why don't we go and see where Harry is camping. Maybe scare the muggles a bit."
"Ginny!"
"Yes?" Ginny answered, managing to sound innocent.
Hermione laughed. "It sounds like fun. Only, we have to stay invisible."
Ginny sighed. "I suppose I can do that."
"Especially as you don't know the spell to take it off."
"Good point."
"Let's go and find the Dursleys!"
With that last statement Ginny and Hermione flew off towards Godric's Hollow.
Draco had wandered around the small tent and when he couldn't find anything to do, he decided to go for a walk. He thought about how Harry and the grocer had become friends and decided to go and try to make a friend. Draco went into his room and got a fresh pair of robes out of his trunk that his neighbor had gotten for him though his mother. Draco took a look around the tent and thought that the Weasley twins had done a good job enchanting the tent.
He decided to just take a few galleons with him and see if he could buy anything good in the village. Draco walked slowly through that woods enjoying the scenery. Stopping every once in a while to look at a poppy in a small meadow that he found, or to admire a particular rock in the brook that he was walking by, it took Draco about an hour to get to the village. He spent the next minutes ambling through the village in search of the Grocers. He found it next to a small café. For some reason Draco was nervous about entering the small shop. It's now or never, he thought resolutely. He squared his shoulders and walked inside.
"Hello." Draco said to the old man behind the counter. He looked somewhat like Santa Clause. He had a nicely trimmed beard, and thinning white hair that was trimmed very short.
"Hello. Would you be Draco Malfoy?" the man asked, his twinkling blue eyes staring directly into Draco's own.
Any thought that Draco had of denying his identity left Draco's mind immediately. "Yes. That would be me."
"Nice to meet you. Harry's told me about you. Says that he thinks that you'd make it on the side for good."
"Oh." Outside Draco seemed quiet and calm, but inside his mind was reeling. Harry said that? About me? He's not ashamed to be friends with me. "He's told you about me then?" A feeling like happiness bubbled up inside of him.
"Yes. As a precaution, if something happens to him while he's here, someone has got to tell you." The old man stated matter-of-factly. "The name's Kevin by the way."
Draco smiled. "It's nice to meet you Kevin." Kevin held out his hand and Draco shook it. "I don't know if you know it or not, but I don't have very many friends. Not real friends. I've a group of followers, but they aren't friends. They're just people who want to get in good with me, 'cause they think that I'll be in charge of them."
"Are you saying that you'd like to be friends?"
Draco grinned. "Yes, I'd like that. Harry and I have became friends, and I realized that friends are nice thing to have."
"That they are. Now, Harry told me that you and him were thinking of building a house. Is that right?"
"Yes."
"Well, it's a very complicated spell and it requires ten people. Cat, that's my wife, and I have decided to lend a hand. Now you really only need six more people. Do you have any ideas as to who else you might ask?"
"Harry is at the Weasley's. He was going to ask Ron and Hermione to help."
"Now you need only four more."
"Harry said that he might be able to get Ginny, Fred and George to help."
"Now you only need one more."
"I don't really know anyone else."
"There's my friend Algie's great nephew."
"Do you think that he would help?"
"Yes. I'm sure, especially since he has really improved his skills this past year,"
"Who is he?"
"Neville Longbottom."
"I don't know if he'd like to help me that much."
"If he doesn't want to help you, we can make it seem as if he is helping Harry. Would he be willing to help Harry?"
"Yeah. He and Harry are really good friends."
"Well now you've got your ten people. Now all you have to do is convince them to help."
"Kevin?" Kevin looked up from the accounting.
"Yes, Draco."
"Would you mind asking for Neville's help? I'd feel silly doing it, especially as I don't know him very well. "
"Of course. What are you going to be doing for the rest of the day?"
"I thought that I'd explore the village for a little while."
"That sounds fun. Do you have any money?"
"I've got a few galleons. Could you exchange them for muggle money?"
"Sure."
Draco handed the grocer three galleons and Draco got some muggle money back. Draco smiled his thanks and left.
"Hey Draco!"
He turned and asked Kevin what he wanted.
"I thought that I'd tell you that the ice cream at the café next door is really good."
"Thanks, I'll go over there and try something.."
Draco went next door and ordered a small coffee with a vanilla ice cream. After a few bite he smiled and thought that Kevin was right. The ice cream next door was very good.
Hermione swooped down into a clearing with a tent in it. Hmm, that's odd, wouldn't there be more than one tent? Dudley for sure would take up a whole tent to himself. Hermione relayed this thought to Ginny who laughed and then agreed.
"We should check it out."
"Most definitely."
Ginny and Hermione landed and leaned their broomsticks up against a large oak tree. They cautiously snuck forward and Ginny stuck her head in the tent. She laughed and said, "come on in Hermione, it's safe."
Hermione followed Ginny in and said how do you know that it's safe?"
"Have you ever been in the back room of Fred and George's shop?"
Hermione shook her head no.
"Well it's enchanted, and it looks exactly like this. They created a spell for it. In that spell are like a hundred protection spells."
"Why?"
"To keep people they don't want there away."
"Oh. And they enchanted this tent for Harry?"
"Must have. I can feel the protection spells. Can you?"
Hermione closed her eyes for a moment and opened them really quickly. "Wow."
"Yeah. I have a copy of everyone of those spells, they borrowed them from me."
"Why'd you have them?"
"Fred and George I've in the same house as I do. I don't want to wake up with an extra head or something." Ginny paused. "They put a swamp in Harry's room a while ago."
"You can feel that?"
"Yeah. I'm good at sensing magic. If it's been done around me before, I can usually find remnants of it that it left behind."
"Can you tell what happened with it?"
"Sure just let me.." Ginny's voice trailed off as she went into a trance. After a few moments she opened her eyes and burst out laughing. "They sent it to Dudley's room!" She exclaimed, laughing hysterically.
Hermione laughed along with Ginny. "I wonder what happened to the Dursleys" she asked Ginny.
"I have no idea. Why don't we go back?"
"Yeah, Ginny I don't want to get caught here. I'm going to leave Harry a note so he knows that we stopped by."
"Okay then." Ginny replied absent mindedly, looking at a book entitled Curses and Countercurses.
Hermione stopped at the desk looking down at the desk, seeing a note already there in the middle. She looked over the note it was addressed to Harry and very short. What interested he the most, was the signature.
Harry-
I've gone to the village to see Kevin and ask him about the house thing. Did you ask Hermione and Ron about the house thing? I think that we should make a loft, so there is storage, and if we can get the roof high enough, we can make a bedroom up there. I hope that you had fun At Ron's house. I borrowed you owl to owl someone, I hope you don't mind.
-Draco
"I think I've just figured out who 'we' is."
"What is it Hermione?" Ginny asked, looking up from the book that she was now reading.
"It's just that Harry said something strange. At least I found it strange." Hermione replied, not really telling her anything.
"That helps." Ginny said sarcastically.
Hermione laughed. "He said that we're going to build a house."
"And you were wondering who the other person is?" Ginny finished for her.
"Yep. I just found out, you'll never guess who."
"Okay then, since I'll never guess who, why don't you just tell me?"
"Malfoy. I'm sure of it."
"No way! Harry can barely be in the same castle as that git. No way would he be able to tolerate him."
"Actually," said a voice from the doorway, "He can."
The girls both turned to look at Draco Malfoy leaning against the entrance to the tent.
"Hello." Hermione said, to fill the awkward silence that followed Draco's three word greeting.
"Hello, Hermione. It's nice to see you. I believe that we got off on the wrong foot five years ago. Why don't we start over?" He held out his hand.
Hermione stared at his outstretched hand for a moment and thought about it. He appears honest, but he is a Malfoy.
Draco seeing Hermione's hesitation, I wrote you a letter. Things are sometimes easier to believe when you read them. I gave it to Harry's owl. Have you gotten it yet?"
"No. Actually I haven't." or then this would probably make a bit more sense than it s now, Hermione finished in her head.
"Yes. I suppose you haven't gotten it yet." Draco closed his eyes and snapped his fingers. There was a small pop of displaced air, and Hedwig appeared on the low coffee table. Her talons added to the many scratches on the table. The owl looked around the room, and seeing Hermione, she flew over to her and dropped the letter by her feet. Then the owl left the premises to go and wait the rest of the day out in a tree.
Hermione bent and picked it up. "Where'd you learn the spell?"
"It's a little something my father taught me." The veil on Draco's words barely concealed his anger.
"Would you be able to teach me?" Hermione asked eagerly, at the prospect of learning such a convenient spell.
"I'd have to go in your mind, 'cause you learn it if someone summons something when they are in your mind, or you are in your mind. It's similar to an accio, but it has many differences."
"Well maybe later."
"You don't trust me completely. Do you?"
"Well to be frank, no."
"Read the letter Hermione, it will help."
Noticing what sounded like genuine pleading in his voice, she could only comply and read the letter. "Okay," she said softly. "Is it all right if I sit down?"
"Of course. I forgot my manners. Would you two like a cup of tea?"
"Oh, sure." And "Thanks Draco." Were heard from both Hermione and Ginny.
Hermione settled into the couch and began to read, while Ginny stayed where she was in the beanbag chair, completely absorbed into the book by Professor Vindictus Viridian.
"Hurry Ron!"
"Harry my broom doesn't go that fast! Why are we going to your tent anyway?"
"Cause I want to show it to you. There's someone who you should meet."
"Ah. It is a girl, mate?" Ron said slyly.
Harry stopped short laughing at the idea of him and Draco. "No, not a girl, just a new friend. I think that it's important that you are okay with him. Can you promise me to be nice and keep an open mind?"
"Sure, I can do that."
"Thanks."
Harry an Ron touched down in the clearing in which the tent stood. They landed their brooms against a tree. "That's odd." Ron said to Harry.
"What's odd?"
"Harry I could have sworn there was two broomsticks there."
"Strange." (A/N: the invisibility spell is wearing off. It already wore off Hermione and Ginny. It wears off faster on people.)
Harry and Ron went into the tent.
The tent, just before Harry and Ron enter.
Hermione finished reading Draco's letter. She wipe a tear from her eye. Draco came in from the small kitchen with tray that had three willow patterned cups of tea on it, and a tea pot that was patterned with an interesting design that resembled a turtle's shell.
"Oh Draco, I'm so sorry." Hermione breathed. She rose and took that tray and set it on the coffee table, and gave him a hug. "Of course I'll be your friend."
Draco then realized that the bushy haired girl wasn't trying to choke him, she was giving him a hug. He hugged her back.
At that moment Harry and Ron came in. Harry seeing Hermione and Draco hugging, tried to push Ron back out of the door.
"What Have you decided that you don't want me to meet your friend after all?"
"Oh no, that's not is I just realized how... messy this place is." Harry finished hurriedly and shoved Ron back out of the door. "Why don't you fly around for a few minutes while I clean up."
"That's sounds fine Harry." Ron replied, a bit puzzled by Harry's behavior.
"Hi Harry, Hermione and Ginny stopped by for a bit."
"Thanks for telling me Draco, have you and Hermione become friends then?"
Draco smiled and replied with a pleased sounding yes.
"Well be sure to study, she's a real nag about schoolwork."
"Sounds an awful lot like my dad. Always bugging me about being the best of the best. When he found out that I was second-best to you, a mud- blood, excuse the term, bad things happened."
Harry having a pretty good idea about what sort of bad things had happened, changed the subject. "How do you think that Ron is going to take it?"
"I think that if we show him the letter, it might help. Could I be your friend too, Draco?"
"Thanks Ginny. I never thought that I'd ever have real friends. That's a good idea about the letter, but why don't we take my signature off of it?"
"Even better idea Draco. Any other ideas Hermione?" Harry asked.
"No Harry, only that Draco shouldn't be here when Ron comes in."
"That's a good point Hermione. Since I think that I hear him landing in the clearing, I'll go to my room." Draco left, trailing a flesh colored string after him.
A/N: Thank you for reviewing. The book that Ginny read, is from Sorcerer's Stone, pg. 80 in the American hardcover. The full title is: Curses and Countercurses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More). Now if only I had that book. The neighbor kids have been quite annoying of late.
Ron grinned at Harry. "I told you it would be a good idea to teach Hermione how to fly."
Ginny flew over to where Ron and Harry were. "Did I just hear you say it was your idea to teach Hermione to fly?"
Ron visibly winced. "No. It was never my idea. The thought never even crossed my mind." Ginny glared at him and turned and began to fly away.
Harry grinned. He wondered what Ginny would do to Ron for revenge. "Oh Ginny!" He called at her retreating back. "I believe he did say it was his idea."
"Really Harry." She replied menacingly.
"Yep."
"Harry! Even though she's my sister, she will get revenge for that. Why did you tell her?" Ron bemoaned, with his face turned up at the sky, as if he was hoping to find an answer there.
"Because," Ginny began, "he's my friend."
"Yeah, but he's my friend first!"
"So?" Ginny said and flew over to Hermione. "C'mon Hermione, let's go in and help mum with dinner!"
"That's sounds good. Is it okay if I fly around for a bit?"
"Sure. Do you mind if I come with you? I wouldn't mind a chance to get away from these boys." She said the word as if it was a disease.
"Let's go then. I know a handy invisibility charm. How does being invisible sound to you?"
"Hermione!"
"Yes?" She answered sweetly.
"What would you need an invisibility charm for?"
Hermione blushed and looked at the sky. "Nothing."
"Mmm hmm. I believe you." Ginny replied with an unconvinced tone. Then she flew over to Hermione and held out her hand. Hermione tapped Ginny's hand with her wand and murmured "fio pelluceo" Ginny watched her arm as invisibility spread up it.
Hermione then performed the spell upon herself. "Try and do it to your broom." Hermione watched in satisfied invisibility as Ginny's broom became invisible. Then Hermione took her wand out and put the tip on the bridge of her nose and murmured "oculi quid pelluceo" She could now see Ginny.
Ginny couldn't see Hermione, so she asked, "Hermione where are you?"
"I'm over here, but don't move." Hermione flew over to Ginny and performed the same spell on Ginny. Now you can see what is invisible."
"Nice. I'll have to remember those spells for late night trips to the kitchens at Hogwarts." Ginny smiled.
"Where do you want to go?"
"Why don't we go and see where Harry is camping. Maybe scare the muggles a bit."
"Ginny!"
"Yes?" Ginny answered, managing to sound innocent.
Hermione laughed. "It sounds like fun. Only, we have to stay invisible."
Ginny sighed. "I suppose I can do that."
"Especially as you don't know the spell to take it off."
"Good point."
"Let's go and find the Dursleys!"
With that last statement Ginny and Hermione flew off towards Godric's Hollow.
Draco had wandered around the small tent and when he couldn't find anything to do, he decided to go for a walk. He thought about how Harry and the grocer had become friends and decided to go and try to make a friend. Draco went into his room and got a fresh pair of robes out of his trunk that his neighbor had gotten for him though his mother. Draco took a look around the tent and thought that the Weasley twins had done a good job enchanting the tent.
He decided to just take a few galleons with him and see if he could buy anything good in the village. Draco walked slowly through that woods enjoying the scenery. Stopping every once in a while to look at a poppy in a small meadow that he found, or to admire a particular rock in the brook that he was walking by, it took Draco about an hour to get to the village. He spent the next minutes ambling through the village in search of the Grocers. He found it next to a small café. For some reason Draco was nervous about entering the small shop. It's now or never, he thought resolutely. He squared his shoulders and walked inside.
"Hello." Draco said to the old man behind the counter. He looked somewhat like Santa Clause. He had a nicely trimmed beard, and thinning white hair that was trimmed very short.
"Hello. Would you be Draco Malfoy?" the man asked, his twinkling blue eyes staring directly into Draco's own.
Any thought that Draco had of denying his identity left Draco's mind immediately. "Yes. That would be me."
"Nice to meet you. Harry's told me about you. Says that he thinks that you'd make it on the side for good."
"Oh." Outside Draco seemed quiet and calm, but inside his mind was reeling. Harry said that? About me? He's not ashamed to be friends with me. "He's told you about me then?" A feeling like happiness bubbled up inside of him.
"Yes. As a precaution, if something happens to him while he's here, someone has got to tell you." The old man stated matter-of-factly. "The name's Kevin by the way."
Draco smiled. "It's nice to meet you Kevin." Kevin held out his hand and Draco shook it. "I don't know if you know it or not, but I don't have very many friends. Not real friends. I've a group of followers, but they aren't friends. They're just people who want to get in good with me, 'cause they think that I'll be in charge of them."
"Are you saying that you'd like to be friends?"
Draco grinned. "Yes, I'd like that. Harry and I have became friends, and I realized that friends are nice thing to have."
"That they are. Now, Harry told me that you and him were thinking of building a house. Is that right?"
"Yes."
"Well, it's a very complicated spell and it requires ten people. Cat, that's my wife, and I have decided to lend a hand. Now you really only need six more people. Do you have any ideas as to who else you might ask?"
"Harry is at the Weasley's. He was going to ask Ron and Hermione to help."
"Now you need only four more."
"Harry said that he might be able to get Ginny, Fred and George to help."
"Now you only need one more."
"I don't really know anyone else."
"There's my friend Algie's great nephew."
"Do you think that he would help?"
"Yes. I'm sure, especially since he has really improved his skills this past year,"
"Who is he?"
"Neville Longbottom."
"I don't know if he'd like to help me that much."
"If he doesn't want to help you, we can make it seem as if he is helping Harry. Would he be willing to help Harry?"
"Yeah. He and Harry are really good friends."
"Well now you've got your ten people. Now all you have to do is convince them to help."
"Kevin?" Kevin looked up from the accounting.
"Yes, Draco."
"Would you mind asking for Neville's help? I'd feel silly doing it, especially as I don't know him very well. "
"Of course. What are you going to be doing for the rest of the day?"
"I thought that I'd explore the village for a little while."
"That sounds fun. Do you have any money?"
"I've got a few galleons. Could you exchange them for muggle money?"
"Sure."
Draco handed the grocer three galleons and Draco got some muggle money back. Draco smiled his thanks and left.
"Hey Draco!"
He turned and asked Kevin what he wanted.
"I thought that I'd tell you that the ice cream at the café next door is really good."
"Thanks, I'll go over there and try something.."
Draco went next door and ordered a small coffee with a vanilla ice cream. After a few bite he smiled and thought that Kevin was right. The ice cream next door was very good.
Hermione swooped down into a clearing with a tent in it. Hmm, that's odd, wouldn't there be more than one tent? Dudley for sure would take up a whole tent to himself. Hermione relayed this thought to Ginny who laughed and then agreed.
"We should check it out."
"Most definitely."
Ginny and Hermione landed and leaned their broomsticks up against a large oak tree. They cautiously snuck forward and Ginny stuck her head in the tent. She laughed and said, "come on in Hermione, it's safe."
Hermione followed Ginny in and said how do you know that it's safe?"
"Have you ever been in the back room of Fred and George's shop?"
Hermione shook her head no.
"Well it's enchanted, and it looks exactly like this. They created a spell for it. In that spell are like a hundred protection spells."
"Why?"
"To keep people they don't want there away."
"Oh. And they enchanted this tent for Harry?"
"Must have. I can feel the protection spells. Can you?"
Hermione closed her eyes for a moment and opened them really quickly. "Wow."
"Yeah. I have a copy of everyone of those spells, they borrowed them from me."
"Why'd you have them?"
"Fred and George I've in the same house as I do. I don't want to wake up with an extra head or something." Ginny paused. "They put a swamp in Harry's room a while ago."
"You can feel that?"
"Yeah. I'm good at sensing magic. If it's been done around me before, I can usually find remnants of it that it left behind."
"Can you tell what happened with it?"
"Sure just let me.." Ginny's voice trailed off as she went into a trance. After a few moments she opened her eyes and burst out laughing. "They sent it to Dudley's room!" She exclaimed, laughing hysterically.
Hermione laughed along with Ginny. "I wonder what happened to the Dursleys" she asked Ginny.
"I have no idea. Why don't we go back?"
"Yeah, Ginny I don't want to get caught here. I'm going to leave Harry a note so he knows that we stopped by."
"Okay then." Ginny replied absent mindedly, looking at a book entitled Curses and Countercurses.
Hermione stopped at the desk looking down at the desk, seeing a note already there in the middle. She looked over the note it was addressed to Harry and very short. What interested he the most, was the signature.
Harry-
I've gone to the village to see Kevin and ask him about the house thing. Did you ask Hermione and Ron about the house thing? I think that we should make a loft, so there is storage, and if we can get the roof high enough, we can make a bedroom up there. I hope that you had fun At Ron's house. I borrowed you owl to owl someone, I hope you don't mind.
-Draco
"I think I've just figured out who 'we' is."
"What is it Hermione?" Ginny asked, looking up from the book that she was now reading.
"It's just that Harry said something strange. At least I found it strange." Hermione replied, not really telling her anything.
"That helps." Ginny said sarcastically.
Hermione laughed. "He said that we're going to build a house."
"And you were wondering who the other person is?" Ginny finished for her.
"Yep. I just found out, you'll never guess who."
"Okay then, since I'll never guess who, why don't you just tell me?"
"Malfoy. I'm sure of it."
"No way! Harry can barely be in the same castle as that git. No way would he be able to tolerate him."
"Actually," said a voice from the doorway, "He can."
The girls both turned to look at Draco Malfoy leaning against the entrance to the tent.
"Hello." Hermione said, to fill the awkward silence that followed Draco's three word greeting.
"Hello, Hermione. It's nice to see you. I believe that we got off on the wrong foot five years ago. Why don't we start over?" He held out his hand.
Hermione stared at his outstretched hand for a moment and thought about it. He appears honest, but he is a Malfoy.
Draco seeing Hermione's hesitation, I wrote you a letter. Things are sometimes easier to believe when you read them. I gave it to Harry's owl. Have you gotten it yet?"
"No. Actually I haven't." or then this would probably make a bit more sense than it s now, Hermione finished in her head.
"Yes. I suppose you haven't gotten it yet." Draco closed his eyes and snapped his fingers. There was a small pop of displaced air, and Hedwig appeared on the low coffee table. Her talons added to the many scratches on the table. The owl looked around the room, and seeing Hermione, she flew over to her and dropped the letter by her feet. Then the owl left the premises to go and wait the rest of the day out in a tree.
Hermione bent and picked it up. "Where'd you learn the spell?"
"It's a little something my father taught me." The veil on Draco's words barely concealed his anger.
"Would you be able to teach me?" Hermione asked eagerly, at the prospect of learning such a convenient spell.
"I'd have to go in your mind, 'cause you learn it if someone summons something when they are in your mind, or you are in your mind. It's similar to an accio, but it has many differences."
"Well maybe later."
"You don't trust me completely. Do you?"
"Well to be frank, no."
"Read the letter Hermione, it will help."
Noticing what sounded like genuine pleading in his voice, she could only comply and read the letter. "Okay," she said softly. "Is it all right if I sit down?"
"Of course. I forgot my manners. Would you two like a cup of tea?"
"Oh, sure." And "Thanks Draco." Were heard from both Hermione and Ginny.
Hermione settled into the couch and began to read, while Ginny stayed where she was in the beanbag chair, completely absorbed into the book by Professor Vindictus Viridian.
"Hurry Ron!"
"Harry my broom doesn't go that fast! Why are we going to your tent anyway?"
"Cause I want to show it to you. There's someone who you should meet."
"Ah. It is a girl, mate?" Ron said slyly.
Harry stopped short laughing at the idea of him and Draco. "No, not a girl, just a new friend. I think that it's important that you are okay with him. Can you promise me to be nice and keep an open mind?"
"Sure, I can do that."
"Thanks."
Harry an Ron touched down in the clearing in which the tent stood. They landed their brooms against a tree. "That's odd." Ron said to Harry.
"What's odd?"
"Harry I could have sworn there was two broomsticks there."
"Strange." (A/N: the invisibility spell is wearing off. It already wore off Hermione and Ginny. It wears off faster on people.)
Harry and Ron went into the tent.
The tent, just before Harry and Ron enter.
Hermione finished reading Draco's letter. She wipe a tear from her eye. Draco came in from the small kitchen with tray that had three willow patterned cups of tea on it, and a tea pot that was patterned with an interesting design that resembled a turtle's shell.
"Oh Draco, I'm so sorry." Hermione breathed. She rose and took that tray and set it on the coffee table, and gave him a hug. "Of course I'll be your friend."
Draco then realized that the bushy haired girl wasn't trying to choke him, she was giving him a hug. He hugged her back.
At that moment Harry and Ron came in. Harry seeing Hermione and Draco hugging, tried to push Ron back out of the door.
"What Have you decided that you don't want me to meet your friend after all?"
"Oh no, that's not is I just realized how... messy this place is." Harry finished hurriedly and shoved Ron back out of the door. "Why don't you fly around for a few minutes while I clean up."
"That's sounds fine Harry." Ron replied, a bit puzzled by Harry's behavior.
"Hi Harry, Hermione and Ginny stopped by for a bit."
"Thanks for telling me Draco, have you and Hermione become friends then?"
Draco smiled and replied with a pleased sounding yes.
"Well be sure to study, she's a real nag about schoolwork."
"Sounds an awful lot like my dad. Always bugging me about being the best of the best. When he found out that I was second-best to you, a mud- blood, excuse the term, bad things happened."
Harry having a pretty good idea about what sort of bad things had happened, changed the subject. "How do you think that Ron is going to take it?"
"I think that if we show him the letter, it might help. Could I be your friend too, Draco?"
"Thanks Ginny. I never thought that I'd ever have real friends. That's a good idea about the letter, but why don't we take my signature off of it?"
"Even better idea Draco. Any other ideas Hermione?" Harry asked.
"No Harry, only that Draco shouldn't be here when Ron comes in."
"That's a good point Hermione. Since I think that I hear him landing in the clearing, I'll go to my room." Draco left, trailing a flesh colored string after him.
A/N: Thank you for reviewing. The book that Ginny read, is from Sorcerer's Stone, pg. 80 in the American hardcover. The full title is: Curses and Countercurses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More). Now if only I had that book. The neighbor kids have been quite annoying of late.