This chapter is so much more interesting than the others, and we're finally introducing the humor element here. Hope you like it!
thoughts
Chapter 5
A Couple of Shocking Discoveries
After having a great dinner prepared by Mrs. Weasley and Tonks ("Oh, you were so late in coming back, we figured you didn't want any. Just kidding!"), using the classic bucket of water over the door gag to get back at Tonks, and playing15 rounds of go fish with boring muggle cards, Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided it was time to turn in for the night.
"Yeah Hermione, we ought to got to bed, you need your beauty sleep," Ron joked.
"For your information, I thought we should go to bed because the adults looked like they wanted to talk about something," she argued.
"Well, in that case, we should have stayed there until one in the morning so they would be so tired they would let us in the meeting!" Ron suggested.
"Ron, I don't think they could ever be that tired. Goodnight Hermione."
"Goodnight you two. See you in the morning," she replied.
"Goodnight Hermione." Harry and Ron went into their room.
"Wait a second Ron, I just realized something: where is Ginny?"
"She's staying with Fred and George. They're using her as a guinea pig to test some new products for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes."
"And she and your parents are ok with this how???"
"Well, my parents don't know anything about it, and Ginny's getting paid for it."
"Okay then. Goodnight Ron."
"G'night Harry."
For the first time in a while, Harry woke up at a reasonable time and couldn't remember any dreams containing Sirius, people telling him it was his fault, or Voldemort. He thought that he was getting better at holding back his grief, but he didn't know that Remus had slipped some Dreamless Sleep Potion into his last Butterbeer. He looked up at the clock-it was 9 in the morning. That seemed like a good time to get up and have breakfast. He looked over to see whether Ron was awake, but he wasn't in his bed. Oh well, Harry figured, he probably already got up. So he got up and was about to go downstairs and eat when two pairs of hands pulled him into Hermione's bedroom.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"We have something to tell you," Ron replied.
"Okay, shoot."
"Well," Hermione started, "Ron and I used a couple of extendable ears..."
"Hermione?! You used extendable ears?" Harry cried.
"Yes, but that's not the point. The point is we heard the adults talking. Snape said that the Death Eaters are trying to figure out where Headquarters is and attack it."
"But Grimmauld Place is protected by all sorts of enchantments and wards and a secret keeper, isn't it?"
"Yeah, but Hermione reckons they'll still be looking for a new place for headquarters."
"What do you mean, Hermione reckons?" Harry asked with a suspicious grin.
"They realized we were there and took away the Extendable Ears," Ron replied dejectedly. "Well, enough about that, let's go have breakfast." So the three of them walked downstairs, trying not to look guilty, had some pancakes, and played another few rounds of go fish.
"Oh no!" Hermione cried.
"What, did you just realize you're holding 4 of the same cards?" Ron asked. "I hate these muggle cards."
"No, it's not that, Viktor's going to be here in 3 hours!" she announced.
"Um, so?" replied Harry and Ron.
"So?!" she screamed. "I have to get ready!!!" And she raced up the stairs leaving Ron and Harry to fight over her cards.
"Women," Ron muttered an hour later, when Hermione and Tonks were racing around the house looking for Sleekeazy's Hair Potion. "She's going over there for a few days, not a ball!"
"Well, maybe she just needs to pack it, just in case."
"Yeah, uh-uh."
"C'mon, let's go upstairs. I don't think we're really wanted here." Things only got worse for Hermione. She had everything packed and was almost ready when she let out a terrified scream. Ron raced out of the room to see what happened and came back laughing his head off.
"What?" Harry asked.
"Crookshanks was chasing Kreacher through the house and Kreacher took the mirror into the attic. Now they're going through the house screaming for a mirror!" At that point Hermione came into their room and started frantically searching Harry's trunk for a mirror. She let out a sigh of relief and muttered,
"Reparo! Oh Harry, you're a lifesaver! Why did you have a broken mirror in your trunk anyway?"
"You mean that's still in there?" he asked. Hermione nodded, showing him a newly repaired mirror. "That's a two-way mirror. I got it from Sirius."
"Oh," was all Hermione could say, and then she left the room.
"Hello," said the mirror enthusiastically.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!!!" Hermione screamed and dropped the mirror, which shattered.
"Now what Hermione?" Ron laughed. "Is one of you hairs not in the right place?"
"N-no, no, I just thought I saw something, but, no, everything's ok!" she replied, re-repairing the mirror and slamming her door after running into her room.
"Once again," Ron sighed, "women." Inside her room, Hermione was clutching her chest and telling herself that she was just seeing things. She looked into the mirror again, and didn't see anything unusual. She let out a sigh of relief and said to herself,
"You know you couldn't have seen Sirius, he's dead." She looked back into the mirror and saw, not her face, but Sirius Black's. However, he stopped her before she could drop the mirror again.
"Hermione, please, listen for a second before you throw the mirror on the floor! I'm not dead!"
"What?! Of course you're dead, you fell through the veil and everything!"
"That veil was fake! Somehow, somebody switched the veils. The one I fell through worked sort of as a Portkey, but it took a long time and I didn't take the veil with me! How long has it been, anyway? What day is it?"
"It's July 28," she whispered, not believing what was happening.
"Oh, I thought it was earlier than that. Oh well, never mind that. Hermione, I'm in a desert somewhere, and I ran out of chocolate frogs an hour ago!"
"Well, I would send you some Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, but I don't think the owl would survive"
"Sure, you care more about the owl than me! Thanks a lot! Just get me out of here!!!"
"Do you know which desert?"
"How would I know which desert I'm in??"
"Wait...how do I know you're really Sirius and not an imposter? Show me Padfoot." She looked into the mirror and saw a shaggy black dog looking back at her, panting heavily. "Okay, good enough for me. But how am I going to get you out of that desert?"
"I think the mirror has a locating spell on it. Just say, 'show me the other mirror' and it should show the location on a map."
"Ok, let's try this. Show me the other mirror." Suddenly a map appeared in front of her, a dot blinking in the middle of the Sahara Desert in Africa. "Great, the Sahara." Then she heard Mrs. Weasley's voice coming from downstairs. "Oh no!" Hermione cried. "Viktor is here!"
"What?!" Sirius shouted. "Viktor who?!"
"Viktor Krum, I'm staying at his house for a few days. Wait a second, why don't you just apparate here??"
"I can't for some reason, wouldn't I have tried that already? I'm not exactly enjoying myself here."
"Probably another little feature of that Portkey. Well, I have to go."
"Can you give the mirror to Harry? Nothing against you, Hermione, but I want to talk to him."
"I understand. Wait, I have an idea. I'll bring the mirror with me, I bet Viktor could apparate to you and get you out of the Sahara, and then you could be my birthday present to Harry! I haven't had any good ideas yet, and you would be perfect! You could stay with me in Viktor's house, then on the 31st you could come back with me and be Harry's present!!"
"Works for me, as long as Krum can get me out of this desert!" He spat out the word Krum.
"Oh come on Sirius, Viktor is really nice!"
"Hermione!" Tonks's voice came floating up from the first floor.
"Well, it looks like I have to go. I'll talk to you later."
"Right," Sirius replied as his face faded from the mirror. Hermione put it in her pocket as she went down the stairs, with Harry carrying her suitcase, to say hello Krum.
There. much longer than the other four. Review please!!!!!!!!!!
