Chapter 10: A Very Rusty Christmas
Hermione was both excited and apprehensive about her holiday plans. She was super happy and eager to spend Christmas with Harry and to actually visit the Rust District after everything he told her about it. At the same time, this was to be her first Christmas Day away from her family. She would be seeing them for the second half of the break, but it was still a very new and kind of scary experience for her.
For her own good, Hermione decided to focus on the exciting aspect of her Christmas break. "I'm really excited to meet all of the people you've talked about. Boss, Davey, your friends and even The Professor," she said to Harry after he again asked how she was doing. She had zoned out a little and he was worried she was bothered by their plan.
"I'm actually a little jealous of you, Hermione. I wish I could meet them all too," Hannah said with a slight frown.
Harry had thought about getting them to all meet real quick before everyone left, but Susan's aunt was picking her up and Harry didn't want to get the Head of the DMLE's attention like that. She would probably ask too many questions and he didn't really know her too well. Susan also agreed it might not be a good idea yet either.
Hannah was going to be picked up by her father at the platform before they side-along apparated away. He was taking her on his annual Manic Christmas Shopping Spree as she called it. It wasn't Last Minute Christmas Shopping, but he treated it that way.
"There's always summer break. Maybe we can all briefly meet then," Harry suggested.
"Maybe… My aunt might not be too suspicious if we tell her you're being picked up by someone you're close to in the neighborhood. I didn't think that would work for Christmas. She would wonder why your relatives weren't picking you up for some holiday fun or shopping," Susan said.
She was loyal to her friend and determined to keep Harry's secrets like they agreed on that first night. So long as he wasn't doing something evil or too illegal, like trying to take over the magical world, she would leave her aunt out of it. She could easily talk around such things without her aunt being too curious for the most part during the holidays. She wasn't worried about saying too much in that regard.
"It's a bummer we haven't made any progress on Nickolas Flamel," Hannah said with a sigh.
"Yeah. We had a feeling it would be tough to find anything about him. That's why we asked you two to help us out on that front. Thanks again for agreeing to help even if it is slow going," Harry said to her.
"Puffs stick together," Hannah said with a friendly smile.
"I'll try to carefully look into him while I'm at home. I don't think my aunt will care as long as I don't spend all of my time looking," Susan said. The door to their compartment then opened and the refreshment lady asked if they wanted anything.
[-] [-] [-]
Hermione was nervous and quickly grabbed Harry's hand as they walked through the barrier. She needed to hold it to focus on getting through to the other side. Now that she was moments away from meeting the people who were Harry's family, even if not by blood. She really hoped they liked her. Harry had assured her they would love her, but she wasn't so sure.
Harry liked to make her feel comfortable when he could. She guessed that was why he never complained when she grabbed his hand during the year so far. He might have turned red sometimes, but that was it. He also had no problem with her huggy nature. Hermione would admit she had taken advantage of that a number of times. It wasn't wrong or anything. That's what she told herself at least.
"There they are!" a cheerful voice said soon after Harry and Hermione passed through the barrier.
Harry let go of Hermione's hand now, even if she was reluctant to let him. He then gave a broad smile as he cheerfully called, "Davey! Boss!" The two students made their way over to the waiting Street Knights.
Hermione took in the sight of arguably the two most important people in Harry's life. Jett was definitely handsome. He was tall and well built and looked strong. He had dark brown hair and his hazel eyes were rather dreamy to a girl. He also had just a light amount of stylish scruff. He was dreamy. If Hermione hadn't already dreamed many times of Harry, and seen the green-eyed boy without his shirt, she might crush on Jett. Sure, he was older than her, but it would be no worse than a girl crushing on a singer or actor.
Looking to Jett's side she saw Davey. Hermione was thankful Harry saw the curly haired blonde girl as an older sister. If he didn't, Hermione would easily feel threatened by her. Davey was cheerful and seemed very friendly. She was only a year older than Hermione, but the girl was already developing physically. It didn't help matters Harry had talked about her cooking and baking skills a lot as well.
Hermione decided to put cooking on her list of things to talk to her mom about this summer. She needed to learn how to cook to catch up. They do say the way to guy's heart is through his stomach.
"This is Hermione," Harry introduced. Hermione gave a shy wave as she stood a little behind Harry.
"Aww… she looks so cute," Davey thought with a smile. "Hello, Hermione! I'm Davey. Harry has said a lot about you in his letters," Davey said cheerfully shooting Harry a quick grin.
"He does?" Hermione asked more interested than she meant to sound. She also felt more comfortable and confident and stepped out fully from behind Harry. Him talking about her had to be a good thing… Right?
Harry tried to play it cool, but Davey knew what signs to look for that showed he was a little embarrassed. "Mission accomplished! What kind of an older sister would I be if I didn't embarrass him a little in front of his crush?" she thought to herself with a small giggle.
It was actually Jett who answered Hermione's question. "Yes, he does. He mentions the others too, but you get plenty of letter space," he said. He then smiled to her and said, "I'm Jett by the way. I'm not sure if Harry told you my actual name or not. He always insists on calling me Boss all the time."
"He has mentioned your name once… Maybe twice?" Hermione said the last part pretending to be unsure.
"Then feel free to call me Jett," the young man said sounding almost hopeful.
Hermione smiled to him. "Thank you, Jett. But… I think Boss suits you better. That's what he always calls you, so It would feel strange otherwise," she said.
Jett gave an overly dramatic sigh. "Can't even get his friends to use my proper name…" he said shaking his head.
Harry chuckled. Davey giggled. Hermione even joined the blonde girl in giggling. "He specifically told me to greet you that way," she said.
Jett gave a half frown as he muttered, "I knew he'd do that." The others laughed again and Jett soon joined them. "Well let's get going, everyone. The van's waiting outside," Jett said. He picked up Hermione's trunk with little effort. "I'll carry your trunk. Harry can carry his and Davey would probably kill me if I didn't let her carry Hedwig's cage," he said with a playful grin.
"You're right I would!" Davey said with certainty. She then gave a big smile as she turned to the snowy white owl and said, "Hey girl! Nice to see you again."
Hedwig gave her a hoot in reply.
"I know! We should have definitely said hello to you first. Then again, they do say save the best for last," Davey replied smiling as she took the cage. Hedwig swelled at the praise and gave a loud hoot in acknowledgement.
"Davey and Hedwig are pretty close," Harry started saying to Hermione. "She looks after Hedwig while she waits for replies whenever I send letters."
"Ohhhh. I'm sure it is an enviable job. Hedwig really is beautiful," Hermione said. Hedwig gave her a hoot in affirmation.
"It is. The younger kids really love seeing her when she comes by," Davey said as they made their way to the van. Hermione was even more looking forward to Christmas in the Rust District. The van was in really good condition and wasn't old. It also had plenty of room for their trunks.
During the ride, Harry sat in front with Jett talking to him about the school year. Hermione and Davey sat in the first row of seats behind the front with Hedwig's cage sitting between them. Davey was listening to everything she could of what Harry said and Hermione would occasionally add her own thoughts.
[-] [-] [-]
The first day of Christmas Break was a wonderful blur for Hermione. She met a lot of people and got a brief tour of the Rust District. She was a might bit surprised to see so many people living inside the giant warehouse. It was in good condition, clean and surprisingly very homey and so large, but it was so different to her. All of the people were happy to see Harry again and most of them were pleased to meet her or at the very least polite.
It was only Cordelia who seemed less than pleased to meet Hermione. "So, you're Hermione?" the girl asked. Cordelia was pretty and she was a friend of Harry's. Cordelia had straight black hair and blue eyes. She also had a fair but healthy complexion.
"Yes… I am," Hermione greeted a little nervously. Cordelia wasn't someone who Harry saw as a sister. That meant she could potentially be competition in the future. Hermione wasn't sure why she took notice of such things or cared, but for some reason she did. She also didn't really want to be hated by the girl.
"It is good to meet another friend of Harry's. He is very important to us," Cordelia said.
Hermione was pretty sure that was a partial threat, or at least a warning. She replied with, "Yes, he is important to us as well."
Cordelia seemed to look her over. Hermione had a feeling the girl easily spotted someone with a crush on Harry. Cordelia gave a slight smile that wasn't unkind. "Then neither of us better hurt him," she finally said.
Hermione blinked in surprise for a moment. She then gave her own slight but not unkind smile. "Agreed," she said. It seemed after that Cordelia and her had come to some agreement. Hermione wasn't exactly sure what it was at the moment though. Cordelia was friendlier at least.
Once they had their dinner, courtesy of Davey obviously, Hermione's brain quickly moved "Learn to Cook" up to the top of the list for things to start once she was with her parents. She wasn't waiting until summer. It was also given a big fat "Urgent" stamp once Davey talked about how learning to cook from a recipe was only the beginning. A true cook, who actually made food tasty, required experience and experimentation.
Hermione decided she really needed the extra points in her favor cooking would bring. She didn't hate her body or anything like that. She was not just healthy, but in surprisingly good shape for a girl her age, even if they were a witch.
However… her hair was mess and a huge problem. Her teeth were too big and another huge problem. She spent too much time reading books, even if she didn't neglect the friends she had. She also wasn't exactly popular either. Not hated, but not popular.
She couldn't do anything about her hair or teeth. She wouldn't try to suddenly take after Lavender Brown or Parvati to become popular. She wasn't about to give up her favorite hobby all together either. So, knowing how to cook and being able to wow Harry, who had Davey's cooking on a fairly regular basis, would be a huge bonus that might make up for some of her negatives. It would be enough for her to stay in the running at the very least and not bring up the rear.
She had always been a bit curious about cooking in the first place anyways. Hermione noticed how much her dad loved her mom's cooking, when she had the time. Hermione loved it too and she loved learning so cooking would be fun as well. She hoped at least.
[-] [-] [-]
"Morning," Hermione said as she took it upon herself to wake up Harry the next day. He gave a stretch as he sat up and was again shirtless in his bed. That might have been part of the reason why she made a point of waking him up.
"Good Morning, Hermione," Harry said as he put on a shirt, much to Hermione's secret disappointment. He gave her a smile and asked, "How was your night?"
"It was good. Davey's room was nice and the bed comfortable," Hermione reported to him with a pleasant smile.
That had been a downside for her on the trip, even if she had expected it. She wasn't allowed to sleep in the same room as Harry here and instead shared a room with Davey. The pretty blonde girl at least left her alone last night.
Hermione had a feeling that wouldn't be the case tonight. She could just tell Davey was eager to have girl talk with her and wouldn't let her off tonight. Hermione didn't mind the idea too much, but she really hoped Davey wasn't going to want Lavender tier girl talk.
Lavender Brown had quickly made a name for herself as the head Gryffindor Gossip and First Year Supreme Girl Talker, if such positions existed. Lavender was fairly nice at least and she happily got along with girls in both Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, even from different years.
The Slytherins didn't really talk to Lavender much. They were too posh and too upper class for such things, even if they were just as bad as everyone else at gossip. They just kept it to themselves mostly.
Pansy Parkinson was probably the Slytherin equivalent of Lavender Brown. She was a little mean-spirited about it at times, as opposed to Lavender. Oddly enough Pansy wasn't too bad and she was actually almost tolerable, even for Hermione, when she wasn't trying to get Draco's attention. It was hard to believe Pansy wasn't always trying to get his attention, but it did happen often enough.
"So. What's the plan for today?" Hermione asked after a moment while Harry got up.
"First, I'm going to go take a shower. After that, breakfast. Then if you want, I can give you a more thorough tour or we can just hang out. Maybe even go somewhere around the area. I've told you the Rust District is safe. Two kids our age can almost always look around without worries," Harry said to her.
"Hmmm... I like all of those options," Hermione said with a pout to herself in thought. Harry, as usual, thought it was far too cute.
"We have a little time to think on it. Can't wait to have Davey's American Pancakes again!" Harry said as he gathered up his stuff to go and take a shower.
"She can cook American food as well?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"Davey cooks food from all over. She loves learning new foods to cook," Harry said.
"That's nice…" Hermione said a little less than enthused by this news.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked in concern.
"Yeah. I just find Davey to be pretty amazing is all. You've talked about her plenty, but she still has surprises it seems," Hermione said. She wasn't about to mention she was worried she wouldn't being able to hold a candle to Davey, even after she learned to cook.
"She has had quite the life," Harry said not expanding on that. "Time for my shower," he then said as he left.
"Do I wait here?" Hermione asked.
"If you want," Harry said causally.
"O-okay…" Hermione said in a slightly smaller voice as he left.
She blushed and looked around his room. There was something she really wanted to do for some reason and it was way too embarrassing. No one was looking though. She blushed deeper as she shifted a little uneasily. She swallowed nervously. She then quickly leaned over his pillow and took in a deep inhale.
She blushed as she momentarily smiled and thought, "Harry's scent…" She then blushed anew. "I can't believe I just did that… That's something Lavender would do," Hermione admonished herself out loud.
Lavender was also known for being more than a bit boy crazy by all of the girls. Hermione still took in Harry's scent once more anyways while blushing furiously. She then busied herself with looking around his room while sitting at his desk and waiting.
[-] [-] [-]
After breakfast, which Hermione decided had to be illegal because it was so good, Harry gave her a more in-depth tour. She loved seeing the School House. She found it kind of fascinating all of them attended it and it was a good size while still inside the warehouse.
It was also nice meeting The Professor and learning a couple of others earned their certifications while Harry was away. Now, they helped with teaching the younger kids. It was something Professor Lang was immensely grateful for.
Hermione also enjoyed seeing the Rust District Dining Hall which was spacious and decorated up for Christmas. "A lot of people cook in their homes, like Davey does, but there are still some who eat here," Harry explained.
"Boss, Davey, and I even make a point of doing so every so often. It is really nice seeing so many of the Knights coming together to eat. I guess I was already used to feasts like we have at Hogwarts in a way. We also host community events here from time to time. There will be a Christmas Eve Feast here for everyone."
"That is really nice. The Street Knights do have a different lifestyle, but it seems really nice in many ways," Hermione said as they moved on.
Harry showed her several other areas and even told her some of the future plans they had for their home base. Hermione was really impressed with everything they had going on here.
"What do you plan on doing with that large area?" Hermione asked when they came across a different area just outside of the home base warehouse. It was rather large, but Harry explained it was still part of the Rust District. There just wasn't anything there yet.
"Don't know really. It has a different feel to it than most of the area. I'm almost thinking it is latent magic or something. Not enough to harm muggles or anything like that, but most do sort of avoid it," Harry said.
"Ooo! Do you think it's warded or anything? Maybe it's some long forgotten magical place like Diagon Alley or something," Hermione thought in wonder.
"Maybe it was in the distant past. I don't think it's warded or anything though. I'm not even entirely sure it is magic instead of some other kind of energy. I actually plan on looking into it once we've learned more about magic at Hogwarts," Harry said.
"Maybe I can help you when the time comes. At the very least, you'll have to tell me all about what you find," Hermione said with finality.
Harry gave her a smile as she looked over the area once more from where they were standing. "I wouldn't have it any other way, Hermione," he said as she turned and smiled at him. "Do you want to next tour more of the area outside and around our home base? It is pretty cool," Harry suggested.
"I'd love that!" Hermione said cheerfully. "I'm really enjoying my Christmas Break so far, Harry. Thanks for coming up with this idea," she said before giving him a tight hug which Harry easily returned. They held the hug for a good while before they continued.
[-] [-] [-]
The next few days were a lot of fun for Hermione. She also used that time to get some extra Christmas presents. She loved how many shops there were with interesting selections in the area around the Street Knights' home base. Harry spent plenty of time with her and she really loved that. She met plenty of other people Harry knew too.
They even had a big group outing where they went to the arcade Harry talked about frequenting. Burns and Davey once again got into a heated, but friendly competition against each other. Hermione was honestly surprised how much fun she had at the arcade. She had never really thought about going to such a place. Harry even won her an early Christmas Present.
He got her a perfect sized stuffed gorilla wearing a stocking cap. Hermione was very thrilled at getting such an early gift, even if she made a point of containing herself. Davey still noticed Hermione's rather large and extra happy grin the rest of that day, which ended up a conversation they had that night.
Hermione knew the stuffed animal wasn't meant to be anything extra special. She still kind of pretended it was like they were on a date and Harry won it for her. Just like couples do in movies and books and on tv.
Hermione, Burns, Davey, Harry and Cordelia later went to the milkshake place the regular group frequented. Hermione really enjoyed that as well. She had friends at Hogwarts and she really liked Susan and Hannah, but getting milkshakes wasn't something you did in a Magical Boarding School.
This event was something Hermione thought only happened on tv shows. She had never been able to do something like this with other people, apart from her parents on really rare occasions. Having parents who were dentists meant you didn't really get to enjoy sweet things much.
[-] [-] [-]
When it was two days before Christmas, things were a bit different. The day started off well enough, but around lunch Harry was called to meet with Jett. Harry returned soon enough, but it was obvious something was on his mind. He wasn't really in a sharing mood either. Hermione asked him what was going on and he simply said it was Knights' business and she didn't need to worry about it.
Hermione might have gotten over that, but Davey was acting a little worried, even if she hid it fairly well. Hermione didn't like it. She made the best of her time with Harry instead of pressing him though. He told her it wasn't something happening until that night.
She wanted to pump him for more information, but she decided against it this time. If they were at Hogwarts, she wouldn't have let up on him. She would have kept trying with him to show her worry and to help. Here though, she just wanted to be close to him for some reason.
That night after Harry left, Hermione retired early to the room she was sharing with Davey. Davey was occupying herself with getting things prepped for Christmas, or at least that was her excuse. Hermione lay on her guest bed looking at the ceiling. She couldn't really bring herself to just read a book either.
She felt wrong oddly enough. She guessed it was because she was worried. This was the first time since school started she wasn't at least near Harry. Davey lived right next door to Harry so while they had some distance, she still kind of felt his presence or magic if you will.
The frizzy haired girl had grown too used to how Harry's magic called to her. She had embraced that call all this time while at Hogwarts. She even experimented with it a little. She noticed if she left her bed curtains open at night it called her more which felt nice.
She also usually had rather wonderful and embarrassing dreams starring him in those cases. Dreams she told herself she didn't like having, yet she would assure they happened a number of times.
Now though, it seemed like her magic was missing the call. Her worry was mounting more as well. She tried to ignore it, but she was feeling similar to how she did after first parting from him after Flourish and Blotts and waiting for him on the train. She wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but she knew it wasn't just a simple crush, even if she was crushing on Harry hard.
"I can't take it anymore!" Hermione thought to herself as she sat up on her bed. Things were probably tougher in this case since she could feel his magic or presence in the distance. It was there at the edge of her awareness. She felt like she had to go to it.
Hermione carefully sneaked past a very busy Davey. She was only able to do so because the pretty blonde was so pre-occupied. Hermione only dared try to go to where Harry's magic seemed to be calling from, because she had quickly learned just how safe the Rust District was.
She had been out at night plenty with just one or two other kids her age. The adults they met, even the drunk ones, were merry and pleasant enough. No one was starting trouble or anything. Hermione looked over to where the call was coming from and carefully made her way. She had a feeling tonight she needed to be extra careful.
[-] [-] [-]
Harry was sitting on top of a roof as he kept lookout over the area in front of him. Boss and a couple of others were handling a really bad and potentially very messy situation at the moment. His job was to just keep look out from where he was safely sitting. He would give out a signal if he saw a runner or someone acting very suspicious.
Harry and the others thought it was rather odd but fortunate how, despite having glasses, he actually had some of the sharpest eyes in the Knights. He was one of their best lookouts when needed. He was also a really good climber, since he loved it and was able to get to good positions. His current one was actually rather easy to get to, but only if you were looking for a way up.
The night had been quiet so far. Harry was thankful for that. If things went well, they would be able to take care of this potential problem tonight and tomorrow. Depending on how big it was, or if it needed to be handled with extra care, they may or may not get the local law enforcement involved.
Harry soon heard some small and quiet footsteps coming his way. He kept his guard up, but turned around. He was easily expecting it to be Burns. He was also a really good lookout even if he too was young. Harry however had not expected to see a head of frizzy brown hair when looked.
"Hermione?!" he asked quietly but obviously surprised.
"H-h-hello…" she said quietly in reply. She now realized this might not have been the best idea. Seeing Harry, her magic really seemed to leap for joy and she made her way over to him.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked with a frown. Hermione gulped but was glad it at least wasn't a full glare.
"I was really worried… You wouldn't tell me what was going on and Davey's been acting up too," Hermione said. There was more to it than that, but it was hard to explain. The atmosphere didn't help matters either.
"You shouldn't have come," Harry said.
"S-s-sorry…" she said in apology.
"This really doesn't seem like you at all," Harry said to her as his frown deepened. She wasn't one to just wander around like this.
"It's hard to explain," Hermione said. She guessed she would have to spill the beans to him now… If he didn't hate her for the rest of her life for this.
"Good going, Hermione Granger… Why didn't you listen to your brain and stay in the room? You're supposed to be the brightest Witch of your Age! Not sneaking out at night to meet some boy on a rooftop… No matter how romantic it seemed," she mentally scolded herself.
She couldn't help it though. Things were different with Harry. She always acted different around him in some way, even if it was usually small and not noticeable.
Harry might have said something, but just then he heard something behind him. "Crap…" Harry muttered. There was a runner and he was too far ahead for Harry to just signal. He was also on the move. "Later…" Harry almost growled to her before he took off.
Harry was really fast. He ran across the rooftop and hopped to another one. The runner below hadn't noticed him and was having to weave around some trash in the street waiting to be cleaned up tomorrow. The Knights may or may not have delayed trash pick-up for the area for this exact reason.
Hermione hadn't moved as she shamelessly blushed like some love-struck silly girl while watching Harry move like that. She was blaming it on her magic messing with her emotions again.
Harry was soon above the runner and then he moved ahead just a little bit. He dropped down right on top of the runner and pinned the larger man to ground with surprising success. Harry then let out a whistle that sounded like a bird you would find in the local area. There was a pattern to it, but it was only noticeable if you saw the person whistle.
Two larger men were soon in front of Harry. Hermione watched curiously as the three exchanged words. Harry then got up and the two men took the runner away. The green-eyed boy stood up and frowned for a moment to himself before he quickly ran back to his position and where Hermione was standing.
Harry's green eyes seemed to almost glow in the dark as he looked to her with some disappointment for a moment. He then sighed as he noticed Hermione shrink in on herself a little bit. "We'll talk later. For now, you're staying here. The Rust District is very safe, but not tonight," he said.
"I'm sorry…" Hermione said as she sniffed a little and fought back the tears threatening to spill.
Harry placed an arm on her shoulder and gave it an affectionate squeeze. "Just stay quiet for now and sit by me. Do not try to make conversation. If you happen to see someone else running like that, then get my attention. But only then. Hopefully we won't be here for much longer," he told her.
Hermione simply nodded as Harry sat back down. Hermione kept her distance for a little while. Eventually, she scooted closer and leaned on his back. She wanted the contact and Harry seemed to be receptive to it. She hoped maybe this would show him she was sorry.
At that moment, Hermione decided she would do her best to never disappoint him again or leave him alone. If she needed to stay back from something like this in the future, she would try to wait for him and ignore that call in her magic the best she could.
[-] [-] [-]
Harry was right it didn't take too much longer for whatever was happening to finish. There was an atmosphere of unease around them as they headed back. Boss said he needed to take care of some things immediately, but he would be seeing Harry in his office tonight. A messenger would be sent to Harry when it was time.
"I'm really sorry…" Hermione said with a sniff once they were alone. "I didn't think you would get in so much trouble. I didn't think it would be that dangerous of a situation either. You've talked about how safe the place is and I've seen it first hand while being here."
Harry gave a sigh as he wrapped an arm around Hermione. He hated seeing girls cry, especially ones he cared about and were beautiful like Hermione.
"There is a reason it is that safe here, Hermione. This just happened to be bad timing on your part. I told everyone we had to do some less than legal things to keep the Rust District safe like this, and we control the rumors about the place. Boss and some of the others were… interrogating a man tonight," he said carefully.
"What do you mean interrogating?" Hermione asked as she paused in her steps causing Harry to as well.
"Exactly that. You got a glimpse of the ugly side of being a Street Knight tonight, Hermione. It is necessary though. Boss tries to keep such things from getting too bad when gathering information. He is very persuasive when he wants to be and without using violence. He is also good at reading people and dropping subtle hints they don't usually even fully realize give them away. It can get dirty though," Harry said.
"Why not take it to the police then?" Hermione asked.
"We do when we can. Tonight, it was different. The man was with a powerful criminal organization. They have people with power in their pockets. Just like how Hannah and Susan mentioned a lot of the known Death Eaters do with the Ministry of Magic," Harry said.
He sighed, "As I said before, muggles have more of the bad than wizards and more of the good than wizards. As I'm sure you well know, it is easy for muggles to go through their life meeting very little of the bad it has to offer."
Hermione nodded in thought. She was lonely as a child, but she never really had it bad in the ways Harry was talking about now.
"We're family here. However… We've all been tossed aside, forgotten, or slipped through the cracks. We have it really good here in the Rust District and the Street Knights. We work hard to keep it that way. Even with things being as good as they are for us here. We can't go through our lives without coming across the bad every so often," Harry said.
He gave Hermione a smile. "It's all worth it though in the end," he assured her.
Hermione did feel better hearing that.
"Jett and the others will take care of things here now. They got what they needed. It seems we managed to again nip a problem at the bud," Harry said.
"But still… All of this so close to Christmas… Wouldn't it have been nicer to have it happen after instead?" Hermione asked. She wasn't sure it was absolutely necessary for it to happen now.
"It might have felt nicer at the time… But things would have been worse and tougher. Christmas is a great time for making moves, if you're part of the criminal element like these guys are," Harry said.
"But it's Christmas!" Hermione protested in shock.
"Exactly," Harry said to her pointedly. "If you want to take action at their level with the least chances of getting attention, Christmas and other big holidays are the most opportune time."
"Everyone, including even the law enforcement to a degree, is busy with celebrating the holiday. They aren't paying as much attention. They could even ensure their people were the ones mostly on duty during that day. You would be hard pressed to find someone who won't trade shifts if it meant they got to spend time with their family on the holiday," he explained.
Harry gave a sigh. "This group would have taken steps to further increase their foothold here and bring in more of their people and other criminal elements. We do what we can to make sure that doesn't happen. The people here are good people who have had it tough. We take care of them and do so as properly as we can."
"We don't want rich and excessively greedy people coming here and knocking down homes to make a new overpriced strip mall. We don't want extra fancy places that charge you a fortune for the experience of 'fine dining' while giving you food that is little better than a snack. We don't want companies chasing out people, who have nowhere else to go, just because some greedy business wants to prove they're better and don't need to follow around their competitors," Harry explained.
"Don't get me wrong. We aren't opposed to businesses coming here or anything like that. We just prefer to keep away the bad parts of the business world. We have plenty of businesses that open up shop around us. They help the people here. You yourself saw that when you went Christmas shopping," Harry said.
"True. I was really impressed with the shops here," Hermione admitted. She may love to read and all of that and she wasn't completely crazy about shopping. She still did really enjoy it.
"We like that kind of thing here. Leaving the rumors around that you mentioned back on that first night helps with that a good bit. At the same time, they also attract people with certain frowned upon interests… We deal with that stuff as well. The manner we do so depends on the situation," Harry said as they made their way back.
"I'm still sorry about getting you in trouble," Hermione told him.
"Boss will be giving me a lecture. Since I managed to take care of my problem so quickly, he won't be too harsh with my punishment. I might have to help a little extra for some time at most. It also might just be a lecture and nothing else," Harry said.
"But I caused the problem…" Hermione said with a pout as she folded her arms.
"You aren't a Street Knight though. You're my responsibility while you're here," Harry explained to her. He then gave her an easy going smile as he said, "A pretty enjoyable responsibility I might add."
"I'm even more sorry hearing that," Hermione said deepening her frown.
"What's done is done. Just keep this in mind in the future. I guess. I didn't think I would have to say anything about it to you. Then again it was very unlike you to come like that. What happened? It can't have been you were just worried," Harry said.
Hermione sighed and sat down on a nearby bench. She motioned for Harry to do the same. "It was more than that. It is hard to explain and I really hope you'll hear me out. I don't fully understand it myself. The strangest thing is this has been happening since we first met," Hermione said.
"Since Flourish and Blotts?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded. Harry was in thought. "What is it?" he asked to prompt her to start speaking again. He sat close to her hoping it would comfort her a little. She seemed to be really worried about this.
"Well… It is like my magic is calling to you… Or your magic is calling to me. It is really strange," Hermione said looking away while she blushed.
Harry was in thought as he re-evaluated things he noticed when interacting with Hermione and even to some extent the others. "I think I can see that," he admitted.
"I don't really know it all myself. But I really felt lost when you were away like that and I didn't know what was going on. My magic felt… lonely… maybe? I have gotten very used to being around you, Harry. It seems my magic has as well. I first noticed whatever this was over summer after meeting you. I thought it was something else at the time…" Hermione said.
"Like what?" Harry asked.
Hermione blushed briefly. "I thought it was… excitement at going to Hogwarts and finding out I was a witch… along with making my first good friend," she said.
It was partly true. Harry didn't need to know all of the details. Those would be too embarrassing to admit.
"I can see why you would think that. So, your magic was calling to me tonight?" Harry asked trying to get their conversation back on track.
Hermione shook her head. "No. It felt like your magic was calling to me. My magic was responding. It kept telling me I needed to find you. I needed to get to you… or something… This is really difficult," she said as she lowered her head.
Harry let her collect herself again.
"When I found you, I… my magic was really happy or something. That's why I approached you like I did. When I got closer and my magic seemed to calm down, I realized that it might not have been the best idea," Hermione said with a sigh.
The two fell into silence again.
After a moment, Harry spoke. "I think I've felt something similar, though not the same, to what you described."
"You have?" Hermione asked in surprise. She was beginning to think whatever this was went completely one way. She wasn't going to get her hopes up too high, since he said it wasn't the same. She was hopeful this meant something wonderful for them both. Maybe her crush wasn't going to end sadly.
"Yeah. I think it is something we can both look into sometime, even if we do so separately. I want to know more about this," Harry said.
"I do too…" Hermione agreed. She really wished he had said more, but this was a start to her.
"Just curious. Do you think it might have helped matters if I had told you more about what was happening? I couldn't tell you everything as it is Knights' business, but maybe I could've said something more if it would have helped," Harry said.
"I want to say yes, but I'm not really sure. It probably would have helped my nerves…" Hermione admitted.
"But it was something more than just nerves…" Harry added as Hermione nodded. "Still. It couldn't have hurt. I will try to better explain things in the future if I need to," he said.
Hermione gave a smile to that. She then gave him a tight hug. She felt as if she was soaking in his presence and warmth. She loved it! She hoped Harry felt the same way.
They might have held that hug longer. Things might have even surprisingly progressed. It was not meant to be though. It was at that time a woman came to Harry. "Is it time?" Harry asked.
"Yes. He will see you in his office now," the woman said before she dismissed herself as Harry thanked her for passing on the message.
"I'll see you later, Hermione. I'll be sure to stop by your room when this is over. I'm sure Davey will probably give me an earful as well. She has a tendency to hear what happens or at the very least have good intuition about what happened," Harry said to her.
"I'll wait with her… Maybe that will make things better. I'll tell her it's my fault," Hermione said.
"I already told you. You're my responsibility while you're visiting us," Harry said before walking off.
[-] [-] [-]
Things weren't that bad in the end. Davey did give Harry a really tight and long hug, but Harry assured Hermione this was normal when Davey was really worried. Davey did give Hermione a bit of the silent treatment that night and might have the next day. However, the Christmas Spirit worked extra hard on Christmas Eve and Davey didn't resist it.
The curly haired blonde was humming Christmas Carols all day pretty much. She only took a break from humming when she was either talking or full out singing them instead. Harry and the others took Hermione to the Christmas Eve feast the Knights hosted. The food was great. The company was even better!
"I know you pretty much said this was a good time for criminals, Harry. But I really love Christmas and it seems the Knights are really in the mood as well," Hermione said giggling in happiness to Harry so only he heard her. It wasn't hard given the liveliness of the people around them.
Harry smiled to her as he started clapping along to the current song several people were singing together in the middle of the dining area. "Well, we have guards out naturally. We will have plenty out tomorrow as well. Those guards are celebrating with family and friends tonight instead," Harry explained.
It made sense and Hermione would have figured this out on her own, but she was having too much of a fun time to bother with constantly thinking like she usually would. She was allowing herself this one indulgence. She might have also been a little drunk off the atmosphere. It was like someone had thrown a large Cheering Charm Bomb at the place!
That night Harry, Davey, and Hermione stayed up a good bit. They took turns singing Christmas Carols to each other. They even played a couple of games while Davey tuned in to a radio station playing Christmas music non-stop. They each had glasses of Eggnog without alcohol. Hermione got a little carried away and had three.
"I have to stock up! My parents are Dentists. They might not even have Eggnog this year," she claimed as an excuse. She did at least take her time with them, so she didn't get herself sick. She really enjoyed the sugar rush the three eggnogs gave her. The crash afterwards seemed to come around at about the perfect time for her to fall asleep for the night.
[-] [-] [-]
"Happy Christmas, Harry!" Hermione shouted as she jumped on top of Harry while he laid in his bed. It was her friendly way of waking him up.
"Okay! Geez! You really are excited for Christmas," Harry said in surprise with a chuckle.
"I am. Happy Christmas, Harry!" she said again.
"Happy Christmas, Hermione!" Harry said to her in reply. Hermione hadn't even changed out of her night gown before coming to wake him up. She reminded him of a very happy woodland nymph with her ever messy bedhead and bright smile.
"It looks like you got your Magical World Christmas presents," Hermione commented once Harry was awake enough to look around his room. There was a stack of presents at the foot of his bed.
"Did you get yours as well?" Harry asked.
Hermione nodded her head. "I did. I think presents work in a similar way our letters do. The professors don't address them. Hogwarts somehow just knows. I think in the case of presents they're just sent to us instead of being addressed and delivered," she said.
"Good thing the professors don't know where I live then. I'm sure Dumbledore would come here and probably tried to drag me back to the Dursleys or something," Harry said.
"I would hope not. I would try to claim he wouldn't, but he did put you there in the first place and they were terrible to you," Hermione said as she frowned at the thought.
"Let's not dwell on that. Happy Christmas," Harry said again.
"Happy Christmas," Hermione said with a big smile. She gave Harry a tight love filled Hermione Christmas hug.
Christmas was a fun and wonderful day. Plenty of presents were opened. Davey cooked up a great Christmas breakfast and served wassail. Boss came by to say hello briefly. He made a point of visiting everyone on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Christmas music was again playing on the radio and they had more Eggnog. Davey convinced Harry, Hermione and a few others to go around Christmas Caroling for a little bit. Several other people also came by to say hello and wish them a Happy Christmas.
There were plenty of children out playing and shouting in joy as they played with their gifts or wore their new coat or just enjoyed some Christmas Day fun. It even snowed so they got a white Christmas on top of everything else.
Harry and Hermione along with several others made snowmen and had a snowball fight. Another great surprise was Harry hearing how everything was taken care of and the criminal organization trying to make a move into the Rust District was dealt with and wouldn't be coming back. Jett then joined in on their snowball fight briefly.
It was a wonderful Christmas Day and it ended with another wonderful feast, but this time it was a smaller affair. Davey and Harry invited a few people over and everyone brought a dish or holiday drink of some kind, though most were for the adults only. It was all together a wonderful Christmas and new experience for Hermione.
By the time night rolled around, Harry and Hermione were exhausted. Eventually, the two fell asleep on the couch they were sharing near the radio as it quietly played Christmas music. In her sleep, Hermione snuggled in closer to Harry. He seemed to shift in his sleep to accommodate her. Both Hufflepuffs had wonderful dreams that night.
Davey decided they were too cute and too comfortable to wake up and move. She did take a few pictures though. The two would find out about that later.
Hermione loved having Christmas with her parents. She was happy she would be having a late Christmas with them and would get to see them again as well. However… she knew this Christmas in the Rust District with Harry, was one she would never forget and would always cherish.