Chapter Forty

Owls and Elf

Harry stirred his coffee and watched the swirl of black flaked with a few crumbs from his half-eaten pastry. He imagined how it must feel to be a crumb, being sucked in the powerful spiral of liquid, going deeper and deeper. But when the motion of his stirring stopped, the crumbs would eventually float back on top, though smaller in pieces as they melt away into the dreg of his drink.

He wished he could melt away just like those crumbs. Melt away in work, forever busy with trying to catch scum that he could no longer have time to think. But work must end, and he had to go back to reality.

Was it already two months? It seemed so fast. He had traveled all across the Mediterranean in search of the members of an organization manufacturing illegal potions and selling them in the European black market. Last night, he and Maddy had finally apprehended the ring leader along with a large shipment of potions that they traced to Rome. It was the final leg of the mission and although he was tired, he wished it hadn't ended so soon.

He hadn't seen Ron or Hermione since the night of his transfer to a new body. Ron was confined to the hospital due to his numerous slash injuries and complications on prolonged cruciatus exposure. Harry however, couldn't bring himself to face him. He visited only when he knew Ron was asleep and Hermione wasn't around.

Chief Atalanta had granted him and Ron a month's leave from work along with full Auror status after the Black Castle incident. But Harry begged to be sent off immediately to whatever mission that came up. When reports of the crime ring appeared and Atalanta assembled a new primary investigative team, Harry had been one of the first to volunteer. Maddy, who was looking for some action, agreed to be his temporary partner since Terry had opted to stay at ARD. On the few days before he set off for abroad, Harry refused to come home to the Manor. He spent it bunking with the Fred and George at their refurbished flat above their shop.

Before he left, he sent Ron an owl with a single line:

Take care of Hermione.

There was no response. Harry didn't expect any.

Hermione, on the other hand, owled him several times. She kept asking when he would come home and gave glowing reports of her budding relationship with Ron, despite his being in the hospital for more than three weeks. Harry never replied. After about a month, she stopped writing altogether. Ginny, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and the twins were his only correspondents with the Weasleys back home, but all of them tactfully refrained from mentioning anything about his two best friends.

He stirred his coffee again, willing every single flake to disappear and watched with satisfaction as they slowly melted into black.

"Eef you want cold coffee 'Arry, do not order a hot drink and stir eet until eet turnz cold. I am zure zey 'ave ice for zat."

Harry shot up immediately and saw Maddy's arched eyebrows. He realized she was talking to him and he had been completely ignoring her. He managed to look apologetic. It was their first official date after all since he got a new body. It was only breakfast at one of the better muggle cafés in Rome but it was the one of the few meals they had that they could enjoy at leisure for a long time.

Maddy was a good companion. They were pretty good as a team and so far he managed well enough without Ron. He was beginning to feel like his old self again and revel at his individuality. This morning when he woke up, he told himself he'll tell Maddy he wanted to spend more quality time with her now that the mission was over.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I suppose I was just a bit tired. I think I could use a bit more sleep. Can I make it up to you tonight? Let's have dinner, your pick of the best restaurant in the city. Then maybe we could go around someplace quiet…"

Maddy shook her head.

Harry was suddenly worried he had said the wrong thing. Did he offend her? He hoped not, because even though he knew he didn't have strong feelings for Maddy he didn't want to botch his chance for a romance. He felt she deserved it at least. She was the logical choice. She already liked him, didn't she? Now was the perfect chance to have someone special in his life too. It was time to move on.

"Look, I'm sorry. I'm really not good at this. But we could do whatever you want. I really want to get you a lot better Maddy, as me without Ron."

Maddy shook her head and gave him a sad smile. "Eet eez no use 'Arry. I like you, I do…" She shook her head again. "I will alwayz be your friend 'Arry, eet eez just zat… Can we just stay zat… friendz?"

"If I hurt you, I'm sorry—"

She stopped him by placing a finger to his lips. "No, I am ze one who must apologize. 'Arry, do not be offended. You are very charming but what I feel… eet eez not for you."

It took Harry almost a minute to digest what she was trying to say before he realized she was dumping him and the reason was… "You're in love with Ron and not me?"

Maddy couldn't look at him straight, but she nodded.

Strangely, Harry felt no sting at her rejection, only enormous relief. And for the first time in months, he began to laugh.

"Are you alright?" she asked doubtfully.

Harry reached over the table and kissed her full on the lips for two seconds. "I'm fine," he finally said, still grinning. "I've never been better. You're right. We're just not going to work out. You don't know how relieved I am now that I know how you feel."

Maddy grinned back at him. "I am glad you feel zat way too. Friendz?"

"Friends. But tell me, how? Don't be offended or anything, I'm just curious. How could you possibly fall in love with just Ron? I was with him the whole time!"

Maddy giggled. "I do not know. Eet eez just when I am with you zhese last months, eet feels different. Ze zhings I like about Ronald are not in you. No offense 'Arry, but Ronald was… well, 'e was funnier."

Of course, the Weasley charm. It all boiled down to that. Maddy definitely liked Ron for his personality. She always seemed to enjoy his company more. He could maker her laugh for hours. Harry, on the other hand, was too somber. She didn't exactly complain but he could sense he bored her to death sometimes when they had their long talks during stakeouts without doing anything.

"But Ronald eez with 'er now," remarked Maddy seriously. "I am 'appy for 'im, and 'er."

Harry sighed in agreement.

"No more of zhis," Maddy said resolutely.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "Oy, the offer for dinner still stands. Let's go have some fun at least."

Maddy smiled. "Alright. What do we do?"

Harry shrugged. He didn't want to think of the prospect of going home to England when Ron still hated him. "Look, I'm thinking maybe we could use some more time away. You do have leave right?"

"Yes, what do you 'ave in mind?"

"I don't know, I'm thinking of taking that one month leave Chief gave us. Pick a country you want. It could be Australia or Africa for all I care. We'll go there, my expense. Sky's the limit," he urged then remembered something. Now that he was in de Lancre's body, he wasn't exactly sure he can access his own vault which was still under Ron's name. "Or at least limited to what my two months' full Auror salary can afford."

Maddy's eyebrows shot up. "Why are you worried with money? You are ze richest wizard in Britain!"

"Well, technically, not anymore. Ron is. Why? Is Lancry that rich?"

Maddy gave him a puzzled expression then rolled her eyes at him. "You do not read enough."

Maddy pulled out a copy of the Italian wizarding newspaper and Witch Weekly. The magazine caught his eye first. It had his photo on the front cover—or at least Orion de Lancre's body, with an old picture of himself during his school days on the inset.

"What the—!" he gasped as he saw the headline: "HE'S BACK AND HE'S HOT! THE-BOY-WHO-LIVED LIVES AGAIN!"

"How did they find out?" asked Harry.

Maddy laid out the Italian paper and discreetly tapped her wand to translate the words to English. An article in front was about the British Wizengamot declaring him "alive" again (though not without some confusion and a call for alternation of wizarding laws about "special cases" regarding the dead). It explained that he could now legally use the name "Harry Potter" and all his properties and possessions, including his inherited fortune from Sirius were reinstated under his name.

"Chief Atalanta 'ad to explain to ze Ministry everything, or else zey will convict you of multiple murders and azzempted murders, among ozzer crimes," said Maddy. "Ze Wizengamot decision only came out yesterday."

Harry was speechless for a moment. But then he realized this was all for the best. He had hated the idea of spending the rest of his life as Orion Pierre de Lancre. Now, he didn't have to, at least not in name anyway.

"This is wonderful then," he said. "But going back to my offer. This time, I really mean it when I say sky's the limit. Where do you want to go?"

Maddy smiled wistfully. "I 'ave always wanted to tour Italy. I am fine where we are. But not a month, 'Arry. Perhaps a shorter 'oliday—just a week or two—zhen we can go 'ome to England."

"Oh, alright," said Harry. It was better than nothing. Anyway, if Maddy wanted to go home early, he could always travel alone and use up the rest of his one month leave. It would be good for him perhaps to be away.

His reverie was interrupted with a screech. They both looked up to see a familiar snowy owl approach their table.

"Hedwig?" He wondered why she had come. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny usually paid for international post owls when delivering messages. Hedwig was a mainstay at Potter Manor.

People were starting to stare as the owl landed gently on their table and raised her leg up to reveal the parchment tied there. Harry shrugged at the curious onlookers. "Trained owl," he said as an excuse and the muggles appeared to take that as a good enough explanation.

He untied the parchment then offered the rest of his pastry to his extremely tired pet. He expected to see Ginny's or Mrs. Weasley's neat handwriting, but instead he saw a familiar untidy scrawl. He hurriedly opened it and read the short note:

Come home when you can, Harry. I forgive you.

Ron

Harry gave a grand sigh of relief. He felt as if a million worries were lifted off his chest. He cheerfully smoothed Hedwig's feathers and showed Maddy the note.

Maddy had just glanced at the note when there was another screech and another owl—this time a large brown tawny came down at their table. Harry heard a couple in the next table comment something about "odd owl trainers" in their direction.

The letter was addressed to Maddy and she eagerly tore at it.

"Eet eez from George," she said with curious surprise.

"What does he want?" asked Harry with equal curiosity.

Maddy began reading the letter. "'E says 'ello, and 'e wants to ask me to—"

Maddy abruptly stopped and quickly folded the letter nervously.

"What?" asked Harry. "He wants to ask you to what?"

Maddy shook her head. "Nothing, 'Arry, eet eez not important."

But Harry could still sense her apprehension. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Eet eez nothing… George only wanted to ask me out."

"Ask you out using international owl service? Sounds more important to me than that," Harry teased.

Maddy shook her head again and clutched the letter. But Harry's interest was set. "Come on, Maddy, tell me. And don't tell me it's nothing. I can tell you're hiding something."

Maddy sighed. "Eet eez just a party."

"What party?"

Maddy avoided his eyes and she almost whispered: "A wedding."

"Wedding? Why? Who's getting married?"

Maddy didn't reply, but Harry didn't need one. Her silence was answer enough.

Hermione savored the warmth of Ron's arms and looked up at his sleeping form. He looked positively innocent this morning, much like the boy she met on the train so many years ago. Gone were the worry lines on his face that she had been accustomed to seeing when Harry was with him and he appeared so much younger.

Hermione sighed blissfully as she recalled last night. Ron, in an amazing display she could hardly believe, went on one knee in the Burrow's living room and proposed marriage in front of his entire family. She didn't think he had it in him, especially since they haven't been together long. But it seems that the length they had been together hardly mattered. Now that Harry had a new body, they were free to open up to each how they really felt. He had been in love with her as long as she had been with him. There was no reason to delay a marriage anymore. It had been delayed long enough. Mrs. Weasley was ecstatic and had immediately set her mind on preparing for the wedding day next month. Hermione couldn't help but be infected with her good cheer. When they came home to the Manor, Ron had pulled her in a fit of passion that left her no time to say anything else, including the secret she had been so eager to tell him. But no matter. Such news would probably better off told in the morning while he had coffee.

The only thing that dampened her spirits was Harry. He still hadn't come home or written. She knew he wrote to Ginny and Mrs. Weasley, but they never relayed anything to her or Ron. Ron dismissed any of her worries on Harry and often told her Harry wanted a bit of time alone with his new body. But Hermione knew better.

A month ago, just a week after Ron got out of the hospital, she had gone up to Ginny's room to look for old reference books she left there, she found a letter addressed to her. It was from Harry and it told everything she needed to know. When she confronted Ginny about it, Ginny admitted that Maddy had handed it to her to give to Hermione. But after Harry got a new body, Ginny decided to keep it and let Harry decide what to do with it when he comes home. Hermione didn't tell Ron. But she realized why he tried to break up with her that day with the lame pretext of being with Maddy. That act made her admire and love Ron even more. As for Harry, she couldn't even think of being angry with him, even after what he did. She only hoped he could get over it and be happy wherever he was now.

Hermione dismissed her thoughts on Harry. This was no time to dwell on them. She kissed Ron's nose and slowly wriggled herself out of his arms. When stood up she immediately felt woozy and headed straight to the bathroom, positively ill. Just as she was finishing up, she heard a pop and Mickey appeared next to her with a glass of warm water and a towel.

"Drink," the elf said to her. Hermione accepted the towel and rinsed her mouth with the water. The elf continued to look at her with utmost concern and muttered that she should get more rest.

Hermione was baffled. Mickey had never served her this way, not unless Harry or Ron specifically told her to. Even though she was freed, Mickey never learned to decide to serve others on her own. She still had the "slave mentality" and continued to refer to Harry as her Master and obey only what he or Ron said. She seemed to think that since Harry and Ron pay her, they were the only ones she should serve. Most of the time, she stayed away from Hermione. The elf never liked her. But now, here she was eager to please and even anticipated Hermione's needs as if she was Harry. Was this a positive sign that Mickey was learning to get on her own?

"Mickey prepare good healthy breakfast," the elf beamed. "Good healthy breakfast for good healthy Mistress."

Hermione's mouth fell open. "W-what did you call me?"

Mickey shrank back like she used to when faced with Hermione and shook her head. "Mickey does not mean Master Harry's friend, no. Mickey means young Mistress. See, Mickey knows. Mickey knows the Potters."

Hermione struggled to figure out what the excited elf was saying. What could she mean by that?

Suddenly, Hermione understood and the shock made her knees buckle. Mickey was quick to assist her to a sitting position at the edge of the bathtub.

"Master Harry's friend must be careful. Yes, Mickey will take care of her too. Mickey is happy to serve for Mistress' sake."

She continued to fuzz around Hermione, but the young witch no longer took notice. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed.

A/N: Poor dear Harry, I abuse him too much. But don't worry, as I said before he will have someone to comfort him by the end of this story. Any guesses who she will be?

Sorry if there's a bit of delay in my update. I had to work on my thesis framework before my adviser kills me. I'm in the process of editing the last chapter and the epilogue and hopefully I will be able to post by next week. Thank you again for all your reviews. I'm glad you like this story as much as I did.