Chapter Four
Morning"You defeated Voldemort?" Emily said incredulously.
"Yeah. Didn't your mother ever tell you of Harry Potter the Great and Powerful? The Man Who Defeated the Dark Lord?"
Hermione entered the kitchen, the delicious smell of coffee and breakfast heavy the air. She looked toward the corner table where Emily was sitting, a large plate of pancakes and eggs before her, and Harry leaning back in a wooden chair, a small grin on his face and a cup of coffee before him.
"Mommy said Harry Potter was a great man. You don't look great." Emily responded with the bluntness only a four year old can muster.
"You're a cheeky little girl aren't you?" Harry said, laughing. He looked up and saw Hermione standing in the kitchen doorway. "Look it's you mum, ask her if I'm really Harry Potter."
Hermione smiled to cover up the ache that suddenly formed within her. She felt foolish, but she could imagine this scene being played out every morning. All of them together, talking over breakfast and laughing. Hermione cleared her throat trying to push down the unwanted emotion. 'I see you've been busy during the night." She said, noticing new charms emplaced around the house.
Harry nodded. "Yeah a few things I picked up. A couple of nasty surprises for people who come with intention of harming you or her."
"Is he really Harry Potter, Mommy?" Emily asked, shoving syrup soaked pancake into her mouth.
"Unfortunately he is." Hermione said, walking to the counter and pouring herself a cup of coffee.
Emily stared at Harry with big eyes.
"See." Harry said, teasingly.
"Why are you here?" Emily asked.
Harry smiled. "You know what happened to the curious cat, don't you?"
At the mention of cat a large ginger colored blob moved from the windowsill and ambled over the two. It rubbed against Harry's leg and meowed piteously up at him.
"I see the old man's still kicking." Harry said, pulling Crookshanks onto his lap. The large cat purred and settled upon it. "How old is he now? Sixteen?"
"Fifteen." Hermione said, picking up a plate and sitting down at the table.
"Mommy said I can have a kneazle when I'm older." Emily announced,
"Well, that'll be one lucky kneazle then." Harry said, petting Crookshanks. The old cat purred like a kitten, its eyes closed blissfully. Hermione wondered if she would purr like that under his touch, but she quickly shook the thought away.
"How is Hedwig? It's been years since I've seen her. Five years." Hermione asked.
Harry's face fell for a moment. "She's been gone for three years now. Got caught while we were in America. She was delivering a message to a contact when she got nabbed."
"I'm sorry." Hermione said, patting his arm.
Harry shook his head, shaking away the grief. "They paid for it in the end. The Great Empress Syrin and all her little band of minions." Harry said, an undertone of savagery in his voice.
"Are you an Auror?" Emily asked.
Harry shook his head. 'No. I'm what you call a free lance specialist."
Emily just stared at him, his words beyond her.
"I make sure that people like Voldemort don't come to power. Aurors chase criminals and the like. I hunt down dark lord wannabes. I put a stop to them before they cause any great harm to people." Harry clarified.
"I'm sure that Ron and Neville wouldn't like it that you're looking down on their professions." Hermione said. She paused for a moment, wasn't there something she was supposed to do today? She shook her head, whatever it was it would come back to her.
Harry smiled. "I couldn't care less what Ron thinks. As for Neville he's good at what he does, keeping England free of murderers and thieves. It pays for that nice little house he and Ginny have."
Hermione nodded, taking a sip of her coffee. She sighed with pleasure at it. She never knew anyone who could make coffee as well as Harry did. She'd done all she could to try and recreate it, but it was never the same.
"Still like the Harry Potter Blend of coffee?" Harry said grinning.
"It's far better than your attempt to bake anything." Hermione said, taking a bite of the food he cooked. 'Although you always knew how to make a good breakfast."
Harry laughed, a faint blush forming on his cheeks. He looked away, out the window and suddenly his demeanor changed.
"Do you have an Angel?" He asked suddenly.
"A what?"
"A Guardian Angel. Someone who watches over you." Harry said, his hands going for his wand.
"No. What is it?" Hermione asked, pulling out her wand. She grabbed Emily's hand and pulled her behind her.
"There's a Watcher Charm out there, almost hidden, but you can barely make it out." Harry said, pulling Crookshanks off his lap.
Harry exited through the back door, Hermione on his heels. "Stay inside Emily. You're safe inside." Emily nodded, eyes big. Crookshanks stood before her, sensing the mood and ready to attack anything that threatened her.
Harry stood over a hedge, frowning furiously. "Looks like that old bastard's keeping an eye out for you." He said, and then suddenly pointed his wand at the hedge. It sparkled and burst into blue flames. Hermione blinked and saw that the hedge hadn't been harmed.
"What was it?" Hermione asked.
"Dumbledore. He's been keeping an eye out on your and Emily." Harry cursed, shoving his wand back into his pocket. "He knows I'm here then."
There was a sudden screech and they both looked up. A large gray owl was flying their way, a letter clutched in it's claws.
"Damn." Harry muttered. "Get out of here, you damn bird!" Harry yelled, picking up a stone and throwing it at the owl. The owl neatly dodged the thrown stone and swooped at Harry, dropping the letter it held and then flapping quickly away.
Harry stood upon the grass glaring at the owl quickly speeding away. He suddenly sighed, his shoulders seeming to slump.
"What is it?" Hermione asked, looking at the letter lying upon the ground. Harry looked down at it for a moment and then cursed, kicking it away. It didn't go far.
"Dumbledore." Harry said simply. He walked away from the letter and back toward the cottage. Hermione paused, looking down at the letter. Through the years her contact with the old Headmaster of Hogwarts had been a tenuous thing. Though she had graduated the top of her class and was active in the going-ons of the Wizarding World, their paths never seemed to cross beyond Ministry gatherings, gatherings in which Dumbledore rarely attended anymore.
She wondered how often Dumbledore and Harry were in contact. Normally she would have considered such a thing to be a far fetched thing, but she had noticed his lack of surprise and knowledge of who the letter was from. This surely meant that Dumbledore and Harry were in communication regularly.
Hermione wondered how she should feel about that. She held no ill feelings toward Dumbledore, without him the war would have probably been lost. Unlike Harry she knew he had done the things that needed doing, and although she could not entirely embrace the things he had done, she accepted them. She accepted them the same way she accepted the things Harry had done and the things she had done.
Hermione shivered, disliking the line of thought she was upon. She quickly picked up the letter and followed Harry back inside.
Harry was sitting back at the kitchen table, Emily was back at her food and Crookshanks sitting happily upon Harry's lap again. It almost seemed as if nothing had happened a few moments ago. Hermione took a deep breath, feeling a little shaky from the sudden rush of adrenaline and fear; it had been years since she'd been scared. She glanced at Harry, almost five years in fact.
Was what he said true? That all the bad things seemed to follow him around? It sounded like nonsense to Hermione, but then again the evidence to the contrary was almost staggering. She had lived a peaceful life these last five years and the very morning Harry returns, the old fears and terrors returned.
Hermione sat down at the table, picking up her cup of coffee and slowly sipping it, all the while watching Harry. He didn't say anything or do anything that might suggest he was interested in the letter from Dumbledore, he just continued to drink his coffee and make idle chat with Emily, who was enjoying the company of another person even if it was another grown up.
"Go play in the living room." Hermione said, once Emily cleaned her plate.
"Mom." Emily began.
"Go." Hermione said sternly and Emily went, knowing not to object when she used her Voice. Crookshanks leapt off Harry's lap and followed her out. Soon the sounds of laughter and child play came from the living room.
"What's going on?" Hermione demanded, she paused, clearing her throat. She hadn't meant for it to come out so bluntly and heatedly.
Harry took a sip of his coffee. "Nothing." He replied.
"Then why are you avoiding Dumbledore? Why did you just leave his letter out there?"
Harry sighed. "You know Dumbledore and I don't get along. He's a scheming old bastard who treats people as if they were pieces on a chessboard. It's all for the common good, my ass.' Harry said. "I think he enjoys controlling people, just giving them enough info to keep them wanting more, pushing them in the right direction to do his bidding. Gods forbid, he actually dirties his hands fighting his own battles!"
Hermione nodded. This was a well-worn rant for Harry. One that could probably last for hours if allowed to continue. "What does he want with you?" Hermione asked.
Harry sighed, running his hands through his hair and closing his eyes. "I don't know and I don't want to find out. I don't want anything to do with that old bastard, not anymore. Never." He said, there was a fierceness in his voice that bothered Hermione.
"It must be important." Hermione said.
"I'm sure its very important. Usually saving the world kind of important." Harry said, looking down at his cup.
"I thought that was your job. Saving the world." Hermione said.
Harry chuckled dryly. "Yeah, like in those comic books. Me in my bright suit, battling evil at every corner. Never getting the chance to rest, to enjoy the life that I fight so dearly for. Always surrounded by death and destruction." There was utter sadness in his voice, Hermione reached over and placed a comforting hand upon his arm.
Harry looked up at her. "It's not that I hate Dumbledore. Well, I do hate him. It's the things he asks me to do. They're not normal missions, they're...destructive." Hermione looked at him in confusion. "I can take out any witch or wizard, easy, no problem. Just slag them and call it a day, but what Dumbledore gives me, they're not just a job. Every time I do something for him, it kills a little piece of me. I destroys what's left of me and slowly crushes all that I once was." Harry cleared his throat. "I...I don't want to go to him."
"Then don't." Hermione said, she gripped his arm. "This is you life. You've fought harder and longer for it than any witch or wizard known."
Harry smiled sadly. "The horrifying thing is that I'll do it. I'll go to him and I'll do what he needs done. It needs to be done and I guess I'm the only one to do it." He got up.
"Where are you going?" Hermione asked.
"I'm going to get the letter. Read it and then go." Harry replied.
Hermione dug into her pockets and pulled out the letter, lying it upon the table. "I don't know if I should give it to you or just destroy it." She said, staring at it.
"It's terrible how a little bit of ink and parchment can destroy lives." Harry said. "It destroyed what we had before."
"What?"
Harry sat down and picked up the letter. "The night I left I went to answer a letter from Dumbledore. It was the first time in five years, since we left Hogwarts that he had written me. There was this witch in Norway that needed to be taken care of, the only thing she was a little girl, barely thirteen. After that I didn't think I could come back to you. It felt too much like murder. This wasn't like Voldemort or the Malfoys. They were grown and they knew what they were doing, this was just a little kid who thought of the power she wielded and the death she caused as a game." Harry shook his head. "Every letter I answer it just gets worst. It just keeps escalating into harder and harder jobs. Things that don't let me sleep, that don't let me know peace. But it's the job I signed up for when I took up the role as Hero." Harry laughed bitterly.
Hermione closed her eyes. She had never known. She had never known all the horrors he had to face. Harry was right in the fact that their worlds never overlapped. That they lived entirely different lives. His was one of death and destruction. Of pain and terror. Her's was one of analytical thinking, of pure thought, and order.
"I guess its now or never." Harry said, tearing open the letter. A metal disk fell out and a small piece of parchment.
We need to talk.
Dumbledore.
'That's it?" Hermione asked.
"It usually is." Harry said. "I hate portkeys." He added, staring at the metal disk.
"Are you going now?" Hermione asked.
"Looks like it." Harry said. 'It's been nice seeing you Hermione. See you in another five years?" He asked, smiling.
"I should hope not. Emily'll probably want to see you again." Hermione didn't mention she might want to see him again also.
There was a sudden knock to the front door of the cottage. Harry looked at Hermione. Seconds later there was a screech of excitement and the sound of running feet. Emily burst into the kitchen.
"Mommy! Mommy! It's Uncle Ronny!" She squealed in delight.
Hermione flinched, suddenly remembering what it was that she was supposed to do today. She cursed under her breath.
Harry just watched her, a small grin on his face. "Looks like all sorts of people are dropping by today.