I'd like to thank Balthazar23, Antar23, werewolfXZ, damadape, TheNarratingMan, WraithNX01, Vahktang, flixus, Lynix, TripsToTheRescue, fredfred and InquisitorCOC for betareading.
Chapter 36: The Solution
Godric's Hollow, Devon, Britain, July 19th, 1996
"It must have been terrifying to not know what had happened to your daughter. I at least had the ability to do something about it, but you were forced to helplessly suffer while waiting." Mr Black shook his head. "I don't know if I would have held up as well as you did, in your place."
"Thank you, Mr Black." Ellen Granger nodded with her best polite smile and took another bite from the roast.
She didn't like the man. Not at all. Mr Black was far too boisterous for her taste and yet had the same kind of attitude some of the aristocrats she had met during her time at the university had: an innate sense of superiority so ingrained, he didn't even notice how patronising he sounded when he tried to be friendly.
Of course, that wasn't exactly a rare attitude amongst wizards and witches, Ellen had found since Hermione had entered Hogwarts. They probably had some poets talking about a 'wizard's burden', too - she had never asked. But the attitude fit. She was half-expecting Mr Black to praise her as a 'credit to her race' like British colonialists tended to praise their faithful servants in those period pieces her mother had loved.
That would certainly set off Hermione. It was a wonder her daughter hadn't blown up at the man already - she had opinions about the British purebloods. Well, she was currently besotted with one particular pureblood. Or half-blood, at least technically, or so Ellen understood it. Though the boy had been raised in an old pureblood family and had all the connections expected from a pureblood, as Hermione had often mentioned in her rants about him. Father working in a high position at the ministry, godfather in the Wizengamot, Head of the Wizengamot a family friend…
Ellen knew an aristocrat if she met one. And so did Hermione. Of course, Ellen's daughter was probably not thinking straight. Or not thinking at all, if Ellen's memories of her own puberty were to be trusted. Hormones at work, as Ellen's mum used to say.
She took another forkful of the excellent potatoes so she wouldn't be expected to say anything, nodded to another slightly too loud comment from Mr Black, and glanced at Hermione.
Her girl was sitting next to Harry - and quite close. If they weren't playing footsie under the table, Ellen would eat her favourite houseplant. And she was well aware of what her daughter had been up to during the afternoon in Harry's room. Not that she could begrudge her that, of course. It was a romance straight out of those cheap novels Ellen hoped no one knew she read at times. A dashing hero facing evil pirates and monsters with the heroine… Any girl would have fallen head over heels for the boy if she had been in Hermione's place. That Hermione hadn't had a boyfriend before Harry hadn't helped matters, of course.
At least it seemed that Harry was as besotted with Hermione as she was with him. Ellen had been afraid that Hermione's first teenage romance would be with an unscrupulous boy exploiting her budding feelings; Ellen was familiar with the type. And while Hermione was the smartest girl Ellen knew, that didn't mean she was well-prepared to deal with that particular danger.
No, this relationship seemed to be a mutual amour fou. And between two people whom, two weeks ago, Ellen would have described as mortal enemies. A definition that Hermione would have likely agreed with.
No, Hermione could handle this sort of relationship. But the whole ordeal she had been through? That wasn't something Hermione could handle. And it wasn't something Ellen and Gabriel could handle, either.
"...and then I said: 'Do you think that'll stop me?'" Mr Black laughed at his own anecdote. To be fair, it had been mildly funny - at least the parts Ellen had followed.
"Anyway, enough about old history," Mr Black went on. "How are things at the Ministry?"
"We're still dealing with the pirates," Mr Potter said. "The trial's set up to start next week."
"What's the holdup?"
"The ICW is sending an observer, which means Fudge is hovering over Bones to ensure that everything will go perfectly."
"Fudge is…" Mr Black started to say.
"The Minister for Magic, we know," Gabriel cut him off with a smile. "Hermione keeps us up to date."
"Ah!" Mr Black didn't lose his smile. Point for him. "I should've known that, of course!"
Why? Ellen wanted to ask but glanced at Hermione instead. Her daughter was nodding. So, she probably had spoken to the man already. But then, why wasn't she on his case some more? Hermione wasn't the kind of girl who would accept being patronised by anyone, Ellen knew.
But her daughter had also become sneakier and more cunning since she started at Hogwarts. More diplomatic, as Gabriel called it. So, what was she planning?
"Anyway, now that we've been fed," Mr Black said as Lily sent the empty plates to the kitchen with a swish of her wand, "let's get serious. We have a number of subjects to discuss."
Ah. Now, they were finally getting to the heart of the matter. "That's true," she said. This was why they were here, after all - to help Hermione.
"What exactly is there to discuss?" Hermione asked with a frown. She held up a hand when Ellen opened her mouth. "I admit we're not perfectly fine, but we've found a solution to deal with our nightmares."
Harry nodded in agreement, Ellen noticed. She opened her mouth to ask what their solution was, but Rose was quicker: "You have nightmares?"
"Yes." Harry frowned at his sister.
"Having nightmares is perfectly normal after what we experienced," Hermione said.
"But what you experienced wasn't normal," Gabriel told her. He leaned forward a little. "So, what's your solution?"
"Sleeping together," Hermione told them. "It…"
"What?" Rose blurted out, interrupting her.
"It's not about sex!" Harry protested. "We already know that. But sleeping together - sleeping, not sex - helps with the nightmares."
"Exactly." Hermione nodded emphatically, though she was blushing a bit, Ellen saw. "It's not about sex." She took a deep breath. "We can sleep in our respective rooms, alternating every day. I think that would be most fair to everyone."
It wasn't as simple, in Ellen's opinion, but it would do. She also had no doubt that sex was part of it. Well, they were teenagers. But she still needed more answers. "How bad are your nightmares?" Just sleeping together wouldn't be enough to deal with severe trauma.
"No worse than on the island," Harry said. He looked at Hermione, who nodded as well.
"Yes."
"And how bad were they on the island?" Lily asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Not too bad," Harry quickly said.
"We managed," Hermione added.
Ellen had her doubts about that. "You were under a lot of stress and in lethal danger," she explained. "Often, the shock hits people when they're safe. That has been observed with soldiers." She didn't want to use the word 'trauma'. Hermione wouldn't react well to that.
Harry shrugged. "Well, we're fine. Mostly."
"We can handle it - with a little bit of help," Hermione amended. "We're not traumatised. We beat the pirates."
"Yes."
Ellen refrained from sighing. If only her daughter wasn't so stubborn and proud. It had seen Hermione through some bad times when she was younger and probably had been what allowed her to survive on that cursed island, but in this situation, it was no help at all.
"It's not a sign of weakness to ask for help. Or to accept help," Gabriel said.
"We do accept help," Harry replied.
"Yes," Mr Black nodded. "Mine, for example."
The looks Lily and her husband sent at their friend in response to this were a bad sign, in Ellen's opinion. "What exactly did you help them with?" Lily asked.
"I told them how they can sleep together at Hogwarts," Mr Black answered.
"And what exactly did you tell them?" Mr Potter asked.
"I told them to hire elves," Mr Black replied with a grin. "Like we did."
"Ew! You slept together?" Rose looked shocked.
"What? No!" Mr Black finally didn't look so insufferably smug any more. "We just sneaked out after curfew for... various activities."
"Like sex," Rose stated with a grimace.
"Not always!" Mr Black shook his head. "We were pranking people!"
"And having midnight 'tête-à-têtes'," Lily added in a flat tone.
"That was mostly your thing," Mr Black shot back.
Ellen cleared her throat. "Could we please focus on the fact that our children have nightmares if they sleep alone?"
"Yes," Gabriel agreed.
"Yes!" Rose nodded as well.
"So?" Hermione frowned. "We have a problem - I'll admit that - but we can deal with it." And did she frown when she admitted a problem! That hadn't changed since she had been in kindergarten.
But codependency wasn't exactly a good answer to a post-traumatic stress disorder, in Ellen's opinion. "I'm not certain that that will be enough," she said. "You might not realise it, but you have changed."
"Yes. You always carry your wand around nowadays," Rose said, "as if you're ready to hex people at the drop of a hat."
"Like Moody," Lily added.
"We haven't hexed anyone!" Harry protested.
"And we always carried our wands with us before - at Hogwarts, at least," Hermione once again chimed in. They were closer than Ellen had expected.
"Not like that," Mr Potter objected. "At least, I hope you weren't acting like that."
Judging by the glances Harry and Hermione exchanged, they weren't too far off, though - Ellen must have underestimated just how bad Hermione's feud had gotten. She looked at Gabriel. He winced as he nodded at her.
What else had they missed?
"Anyway, it's not as if we can go to therapy," Hermione spoke up. "We can't tell muggles about magic - they would assume we're crazy. And a therapist would see through any cover story."
"But you should talk about… your experiences," Lily said. "With someone who has had similar experiences. Talking helps - I know."
Lily had been through war. Civil war against a group of genocidal magical fascists, Ellen reminded herself. Magical death squads roaming the country - and targeting families like hers. Children like Hermione.
Mr Black nodded. "I've already offered to listen."
He had been in the war as well, Ellen knew. But she still didn't like the thought of him serving as a confidant for Hermione. Even though her daughter seemed to be in favour of the idea. "Aren't there any trained… Healers?" she asked. "People who have experience treating traumatised…" Don't say victims, she reminded herself. "...people?"
Hermione frowned at her anyway. "We're not traumatised."
"I'm not sure if going to St Mungo's is a good idea," Lily said. "The Healers tend to deal with traumatic experiences by removing memories."
"Oh." That sounded… "Does that work?" Ellen asked.
"Most people I know don't want to lose their memories," Mr Potter said. "Unless you do it quickly after the trauma, it's going to be a rough job. We've seen cases where a criminal tried to remove memories to remove evidence, but… they never manage to get everything, and that leaves traces. Good for Auror work, but not so good for the victims."
That sounded horrible! Ellen shuddered.
"We're not victims," Harry Potter hissed. "We won!" The pirates hadn't beaten them - they had beaten the pirates! Why was everyone insisting that they were victims?
Hermione nodded in agreement. "Even the Portkey was an accident, not a kidnapping attempt."
"James didn't mean that you were the victims of the pirates," Mum said, glaring at Dad. "But you did suffer a lot. Trust me - I know this. We won the war, remember? Yet we suffered as well. Especially after the war."
"But…" Harry pressed his lips together. That wasn't how it worked! If you won, things worked out! "We weren't even hurt. Not seriously."
"And we didn't kill anyone," Hermione added. "We have no reason to feel guilty."
Well, Harry did feel a little… conflicted… about the pirates. But it wasn't his fault that they were captured, Or pirates.
"It's not about winning or losing, Harry," Dad told him. "It's about dealing with… everything. That takes… I've seen people break trying to deal with similar experiences."
"We won't break," Hermione said.
Harry nodded. They had survived the island. They would get through this. Together.
"Of course not," Mrs Granger said. "But… you shouldn't try to make it harder for you. Just… just talk to people. Please?"
"There's no shame in accepting help," Mr Granger added. "Whether you need it or not."
That was true, but Harry couldn't help feeling that their parents were convinced that he and Hermione were about to have a nervous breakdown as soon as they smelt coconut or something.
"And leading psychologists agree that experiences such as those which you went through tend to cause trauma of various degrees," Mrs Granger added. "Studies also show such effects on the psyche of both soldiers and other survivors of violence or catastrophes,"
Hermione frowned at her mum. "But none of them posits that every survivor suffers from such effects, do they? It's not as if every soldier who fought in the war suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder."
"No. But it is known that too many refuse to get help even though this would markedly improve their life. Just because you are functional doesn't mean you're fine," Mrs Granger pointed out.
"Indeed. I'm not saying you need help - but can you exclude the possibility that you might have been affected more seriously than you might think?" Mr Granger asked.
"Are you telling me that I'm too biased to be objective?" Hermione was glaring now.
But her parents remained cool. "It's a common danger across many professions," Mr Granger said. "Lawyers shouldn't defend themselves, for example. I would say dentists shouldn't diagnose and treat themselves either, but that's already almost physically impossible." He chuckled, as did his wife.
After a moment, Hermione chuckled as well, though not for long. She pursed her lips, then frowned - and glanced at Harry.
And he was at a loss of what to say. All the muggle talk was a little beyond him. He didn't feel like he needed a shrink or whatever those therapists in the movies he had seen with Dudley were called. But they did have nightmares. And what harm could it do? More importantly, Hermione seemed to have second thoughts, too. "I guess talking to someone can't hurt," he said with a shrug.
Hermione stared at him for another second, then sighed and nodded as well. "Probably not." She turned to her parents, who, Harry saw, were smiling a little too politely - unlike his own, who were openly showing that they were relieved - and said: "Alright. Let's schedule some regular talks with someone who has lived through a similar experience. That doesn't mean that we need it; this is just a precaution."
"Of course." Mrs Granger nodded, but her smile had something… well, if Harry was aware of how much Hermione hated to admit being wrong, her parents would certainly know this as well. And how prickly she was when pressed.
"See? That was easy, wasn't it?"
Sirius, obviously, didn't know that, though. Harry closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. He'd have glared at Sirius if he thought it would be of any use. And if Hermione wasn't glaring at his godfather already.
"What?"
Mum sighed as well. As did Dad. The Grangers, though, just kept smiling. "And this is why you're not a good listener, Sirius," Mum said. She turned to Hermione and Harry. "You can talk to me if you want. I won't judge you."
Talking to Mum? And what did that mean, she wouldn't judge them? She was judging Harry all the time!
"My offer still stands," Sirius spoke up.
"I think we should talk to a few people," Hermione said after a glance at Harry. "Not just one. A wider range of experiences might help."
Harry nodded in agreement. He'd much prefer to talk to Sirius than to his parents.
"Though if we're to keep this up, then we'll have to make arrangements with Dumbledore for visits to Hogwarts," Dad said. "The Hogsmeade weekends are only once per month."
Once a month sounded good to Harry.
"And I think your two lovebirds would prefer to use their Hogsmeade weekends for something else," Sirius said.
That was a good point, in Harry's opinion.
"It shouldn't be too hard to arrange visits," Lily said. "This is a special situation. I'm sure Albus will agree with us."
"And if he baulks, then you can always exaggerate the danger from reflexive hexing." Sirius laughed. "Curse Malfoy a few times 'on accident', and dear Lucius will beg Albus to allow such visits."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Or he'll demand our expulsion."
"Well, yeah, but that won't happen." Sirius shrugged.
Hermione Granger pressed her lips together. Mr Black was far too cavalier about such a danger. Certainly, Malfoy had caught a hex or jinx before, several, actually, and not always because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, but deliberately cursing the git to convince Dumbledore that they needed special privileges? That was different.
Even though if any student deserved to get cursed, it was probably Malfoy. The arrogant rich git was a bigot of the worst sort, after all. Even Harry at his worst had had some redeeming qualities. Like his skill on a broom, at duelling, the way he smiled when he thought she wasn't looking...
She shook her head. "I don't think we should attempt to manipulate the Headmaster like that."
"I agree," Mrs Potter said, frowning at Mr Black.
"Really, Sirius? Trying to put one over Dumbledore?" Mr Potter shook his head.
"It was a joke," Mr Black defended himself.
"I'm not laughing," Mrs Potter retorted.
Mr Black rolled his eyes in a very immature manner. "I'll try to make a better joke next time. Anyway, I don't think this will be a problem. But if it becomes a problem and you can't get official permission, I can easily sneak into Hogwarts for a talk!"
Hermione had no doubt about his claim. Mr Black tended to boast a little, but the stories he had told her this afternoon - which Harry had already known - certainly had shown detailed knowledge of Hogwarts' grounds and defences. Better than her own, actually.
Of course, the wizard had had two more years to explore the school. It still vexed her that Mr Black knew more about such an important subject than herself. Well, she could do something about that. Now that Harry and she weren't feuding any more, they could focus on that instead.
After all, you never knew when you might need such knowledge. And it would help them to keep their skills sharp as well. So… "We can also sneak out of Hogwarts," she pointed out. "And once we learn Apparition, we can quickly travel to any suitable location as well."
Mr Black laughed. "That's the spirit!"
"You'd still have to deal with the trace," Mr Potter retorted.
Only until September, Hermione thought. But pointing out that she'd be an adult according to Wizarding Britain's Law while he'd have to wait for almost another year wouldn't be smart. And Mr Black would make a joke about older women, Hermione was certain.
"Not if we pick our locations with care," Harry told his father. "If we go for a stroll around the lake, we can easily leave and apparate home - or to Grimmauld Place."
"Exactly! I should teach you Apparition right now!" Mr Black smiled widely.
"We'll learn it soon enough at school," Hermione countered. Where Madam Pomfrey was ready to deal with any mishaps.
"Well, I wouldn't mind learning it now," Harry said. "It will make visiting easier."
Now, that was a good point. Hermione nodded. "Right. And it'll also allow us to… flee from any danger."
That seemed to convince her parents. The Potters, though, didn't look like they shared her views.
"Dealing with splinching yourself can be hard," Mrs Potter said.
"I can handle it!" Mr Black waved his hand.
It was obvious that this didn't convince the Potters either.
"What is 'splinching'?" Dad asked.
Hermione frowned - she had explained that to her parents before, back in first year. "It's what happens when you disapparate but fail to focus properly and so leave part of yourself behind."
"Like an eyebrow, or a hand, or a leg. Olev Parkinson once left a buttock behind!" Mr Black laughed.
Hermione's parents didn't. "That sounds dangerous," Mum ventured.
"It's perfectly safe," Hermione quickly told her. "We'd be learning it under supervision."
"Trust me, Mrs Granger, I can handle it!"
"I think I'd prefer it if this were taught by a… specialised instructor," Mum said, obviously trying to be diplomatic.
"We all would," Mrs Potter said. "But we'll have to do with whoever the Ministry will spare for the lessons. But that's not really the issue; the issue is that at Hogwarts, there's a qualified Healer available - and usually present during Apparition lessons."
"And if Harry or Miss Granger arrive at St Mungo's with a splinched body part, it'd be obvious that they were training Apparition without permission," Mr Potter added.
Perhaps they should, as Hermione had originally planned, learn Apparition at Hogwarts. "Once we have our first official lesson, we can train ourselves," she said. After all, studying ahead was completely fine.
Harry grinned. As did Mr Black.
And Mr Potter sighed. "I guess this is the best we can expect." His wife nodded with a similar expression.
Hermione pursed her lips. What did they expect? This was a perfectly sound and quite obvious course of action. They had a problem - although the extent of it was still up to debate - and they found a solution.
"So, you're fine with students sneaking out of Hogwarts?" Harry's sister spoke up.
"Of course we are!" Mr Black said, at the same time Mrs Potter said: "No!"
Harry Potter glared at his brat of a sister. So typical - she always wanted what he had, no matter the fact that she was younger and had to wait until she was his age! "We don't sneak out just because we can. We will do it because we have to. If we have to," he said.
"Really? You never sneaked out of Hogwarts before?" Rose sneered with a scoff.
Of course he had, but that wasn't important right now. "We're talking about next year," he told her.
"You are. I'm asking if you never sneaked out before."
"That's not relevant," Hermione cut in. "The circumstances are now very different."
So, she must have sneaked out in the past as well. Harry grinned for a moment.
Rose, of course, pouted. "So? It's still sneaking out!"
"The reasons for an action matter," Hermione told her.
"And we're older," Harry added.
"Rose," Mum said, "this isn't about sneaking out, but about dealing with the consequences of their kidnapping. We don't condone sneaking out of Hogwarts, but it might be the best solution or the least bad for them. And it's hypothetical - I trust that Albus will allow us to arrange visits, given the special situation of Harry and Hermione."
It hadn't been a kidnapping. Just an accident! Harry pressed his lips together - pointing this out wouldn't help right now. They might think he would want to sneak out of Hogwarts and visit Knockturn Alley.
"And they'll sneak out anyway!" Rose claimed.
Well, of course they would! But that wasn't the point either.
"Don't worry, Rose. Once you're Harry's age, I'll tell you how to sneak out as well," Sirius said.
"I already know how to sneak out!" Harry's sister retorted.
"Rose!" Dad shook his head. "This isn't the time for a tantrum. We have serious matters to discuss. If you can't act more mature, maybe you should head to your room."
Rose huffed. "Fine, I'll stay quiet while you let Harry do anything he wants!"
"Rose!" Mum shook her head. "It isn't like that, and you know it."
Harry nodded, which earned him a glare from his sister. But she shut up, at least.
Dad sighed. "So… we still have to discuss the press."
Great. Harry had almost forgotten about that. He wasn't looking forward to talking to the Prophet.
Hermione winced as well, and he reached out under the table to squeeze her thigh. She smiled back at him.
"Yes." Mum sighed as well. "The Prophet wants a story, and if we don't give them one, they'll make one up."
"They already made up a story!" Hermione hissed. "The things they wrote…" She shook her head, her ponytail whipping back and forth. "They made it look as if I was captured by pirates and sent to a harem!"
"Not quite," Sirius said. "They merely implied it." He nodded with a sad expression. "As I've been informed by the Ministry on several occasions, that's an important distinction."
Hermione frowned. "Did you try to sue the Prophet and lost?"
"Sue? What for? No. I attempted to revoke their license after they 'speculated' about an affair between myself and Angelica Zabini." Sirius snorted. "Alas, Amelia didn't see things my way, and without her backing, I would never have managed to gather a majority in the Wizengamot."
"You wanted to… force the Daily Prophet out of business, abusing your position as a member of the Wizengamot?" Hermione looked flabbergasted
"What abuse?" Sirius frowned. "It's perfectly legal! The Wizengamot makes the laws, after all. And I had cause, at least. Unlike Madeline Lestrange, who keeps trying to pass legislation against the sale of ice cream in Diagon Alley because Fortescue banned her from his parlour for being a bigotted old biddy."
Harry nodded - he had heard that complaint before. Not that he was worried - even most of the bigots loved Fortescue's.
Hermione, though, shook her head in apparent denial, and her parents looked as if they had never heard of this before either.
"Anyway," Sirius went on, "since James wouldn't let me simply curse the Prophet…"
"There are laws against that, Sirius. Laws I am bound to enforce."
"...we have to play nice with those bottomfeeders." Sirius sighed,
"As we agreed upon on the ship," Hermione reminded them.
"Yes, yes." Sirius grinned. "So, we need to work on your story! If it's juicy enough, the Prophet won't see any need to make up anything."
"'Juicy'?" Hermione narrowed her eyes at Harry's godfather.
"Nothing amorous!" Sirius quickly clarified. "But the story of how you struggled to kill a man-eating wyvern? And battled pirates? Presented correctly, that would be a tale worthy of the Lockhart series!"
"Yeah, right." Harry scoffed. "In those novels, Hermione would've been in a harem. And I'd have tamed the wyvern, which would've been a dragon."
"Oh, you want to be Lockhart?" Rose sniggered. "Harry the Ladykiller!"
"Rose! And Harry!" Mum snapped.
Hermione pinched his thigh. "What do you mean by 'presented correctly'?"
"Told in a way that's not trying to make the audience think it was not really dangerous," Sirius told her.
Harry winced, as did Hermione. They had downplayed the whole affair a little, after all.
Hermione Granger tried to keep from grimacing. They hadn't exactly lied about their adventures. They had told their parents what had happened. What they had done. From the start to the end.
But… They hadn't gone into some of the more questionable details. How close some fights had been. How terrifying the chases had been. How desperate they had felt at times.
She bit her lower lip. And now she was supposed to tell all that to the Prophet? To see it spread over the front page?
"Hermione," Mum said with a sad smile. "We know you. We know you were… holding back."
Dad nodded. "The difference between how you told your stories from Hogwarts and the way you told us about the island was quite obvious."
Mr Potter was nodding as well. "Yes. We're aware that you skipped over some things."
"We told you everything!" Harry protested. "We just left out some details."
"Important details," Mr Potter said. He smiled gently. "Harry, we've been in the war. We know how it is. And we met the pirates, remember? Their aim wasn't as bad as you made it out to be, for example."
Hermione pressed her lips together. "We weren't hit," she muttered. "And it's not as if we could tell how close a spell had come to hit us."
"Really?" Mr Black shook his head. "Harry at least should've known - I trained him myself for duelling!"
"It was a little confusing most of the time," Harry defended himself. "Not like in a duelling ring. And it was dark most of the time."
"Which doesn't really make things safer, does it?" Mrs Potter asked.
Harry let out a breath through clenched teeth.
Hermione shook her head. "It wasn't that bad."
Mr Black snorted. "I wonder what you would consider bad, then."
"Sirius!" Mrs Potter shook her head. "Telling the truth will help," she told them.
"To the Prophet?" Harry scoffed. "They'll put it on the front page! Everyone will know!"
"Know what? That you survived and won?" Mr Black grinned.
Hermione glared at the man. Turning their own words back at them like this? How dare he!
"You know how people will react," Harry tried to reason with them. "They'll ask for details, want to hear more, claim we were lying…" He shook his head.
"They'll do that anyway," Mr Black countered. "The difference is that if you tell the Prophet the truth, you won't have to correct your friends' assumptions all the time."
Hermione had to nod at that. "I really don't want anyone to think I was captured and placed into a harem," she muttered. "Even though it might be too late for that."
"Technically, the Prophet didn't claim that," Mr Potter pointed out.
Hermione scoffed. She knew her classmates. She knew how the rumour mill worked. "A few days from now, people will think Harry broke into the Sultan's harem in Constantinople to save me."
"Well, then telling them the truth won't make things any worse, at least?" Mr Black tilted his head.
"But it would also let them know what we can do," Harry protested. "You taught me that you shouldn't show your cards to the press!"
"I don't think knowing how you killed a wyvern and fought pirates on your broom will help any future opponent in the duelling ring," Mr Black said with a shrug.
"It's not about duelling," Hermione snapped. "Not really," she added with a glance at Harry. "But if people know what we can do, we'll be more vulnerable. Anyone planning to attack us will know what to guard against."
Her parents and the Potters exchanged glances as if she hadn't made a perfectly reasonable observation.
"I don't think you'll have to worry about another attack by pirates," Mrs Potter said after a moment.
"There haven't been any pirate attacks on British shores in decades," Mr Potter said. "I looked it up," he added when Mr Black stared at him. "And the last time a wyvern was spotted in England… Well, that dates back centuries."
"What we're trying to say is that you don't need to worry about such attacks. Certainly not at Hogwarts," Mrs Potter said.
"But there could be attacks by people trying to avenge the pirates," Harry objected. "They were caught because of us and will be hung."
Hermione winced. She didn't want to think about that. It was the pirates' own fault for being pirates, but… And her parents looked a little pale.
Mr Black laughed. "Oh, I'm sure you'll find new tricks before anything like that could happen."
That was a good point. Hermione nodded in agreement.
As did Harry. "Yes. You can teach us!" he told Mr Black.
Or give them access to his family's library, Hermione thought.
"I'm actually more concerned about a possible overreaction that sends Malfoy's brat to St Mungo's," Mr Potter said.
"Oh, I wouldn't teach them dark curses," Mr Black said, waving his hand. "And Poppy can handle everything else."
"That's not really any better," Mrs Potter said.
"Yes," Mum agreed. "I would like one year without having to talk to Professor McGonagall about 'hexing in the halls'."
"Or in the dorm," Dad added. "Or on the school grounds."
Hermione felt her cheeks flush. "That won't happen any more!" she protested.
"Yes," Harry added, wrapping an arm around her waist. "We're not going to fight any more."
"At least not each other," Mr Black said, chuckling.
Mrs Potter said something under her breath about 'Moody' that Hermione didn't quite catch.
"More training will allow us to judge situations better," Harry argued. "And it'll allow us to have more options than just sending Stunners at someone."
"Stunners are perfectly fine spells to use to defend yourself, Harry." Mr Potter narrowed his eyes.
"That wasn't what you said last year!" Harry shook his head. "You were mad at me for stunning Hermione."
Hermione frowned. She remembered that.
"That was before I found out what you can do when you really try," Mr Potter told them with a glance at Mr Black. "So, stick to Stunners."
Well, that was a sensible policy, in Hermione's opinion. Though there were threats for which a Stunning Spell was not a good counter. They would have to be prepared for that as well.
"We'll have to send Poppy a bigger gift this Christmas," Mr Potter added with a wry grin.
"And McGonagall." Mr Black's grin was not wry at all. He obviously thought this was amusing.
Harry Potter sighed as they entered his room. That had been a tiring discussion. "I'm sorry about this," he told Hermione.
"It's not your fault," she replied as she closed the door.
In a way, it was. He still felt responsible.
She sat down on the bed and sighed as well. "At least they listened. Our parents, I mean," she added.
"Somewhat," Harry said.
"They think they know best," Hermione agreed. "Even when they don't." She leaned back and looked at the ceiling. "Of course, everyone thinks that."
"Well, are we wrong?" Harry asked.
"I don't think so." She frowned at him. "Do you?"
He shrugged. "I don't feel like I'm about to have a breakdown. But… I feel better being with you. And we weren't in a war." They hadn't killed anyone.
"No, we weren't. And yet… it's true that such violent experiences can be traumatising." Hermione pursed her lips, as she usually did when she absolutely had to admit a mistake or a gap in her knowledge. "I don't think we're suffering from trauma. Not severe trauma, at least."
"But talking to Sirius helped." Even though this afternoon, Harry's godfather had mainly told them stories about his time at Hogwarts. Stories Harry already knew.
"Yes."
"I'm not looking forward to talking to Mum, though," Harry went on. Some things you didn't want to share with your parents.
"If only there were wizarding therapists!" Hermione scoffed. "It would still be a bother, but our parents wouldn't worry as much if they knew we were in professional hands. So to speak. They worry so much."
Harry nodded in agreement. "They treat us like we're about to have a crying fit."
"Or we're about to send curses at everyone nearby."
"Yes," Harry agreed. "As if we'd do that." Well, they wouldn't.
"No, we won't. But we need to train more. We need to be prepared to handle any situation," Hermione said. "So we can avoid mistakes. Potentially… harmful mistakes."
"Yes."
"I've got a few thoughts about a training regime, but I need to go over them with you - you've got more training in duelling." Hermione pulled a sheet of parchment out of her bag. Her notes from the discussion with Sirius, Harry realised.
"Let me see," he said, holding his hand out.
She handed the sheet over, and he quickly skimmed it. "That's a lot of spells."
"Yes. We have a lot of gaps in our repertoire," she told him.
That was true. "But we need a lot of time to train, too," he pointed out. "Spells we can't cast reliably in combat aren't very useful."
"Yes." She pursed her lips. "Arranging for a schedule that will allow us enough time for studying for school, and, well, other things, will be tricky," she added, biting her lower lip.
Other things… Harry felt himself blush a little. He cleared his throat. "Yes. But it's entirely possible. We did it before, didn't we? Training next to schoolwork, I mean." And during the O.W.L.s year.
"Yes. But we didn't have a relationship in addition to the other demands on our time," Hermione said. "We can't just, say, stop socialising with our friends."
"Of course not. But we can double-date with Ron and Lavender," Harry pointed out. "And hang out with them."
Hermione tilted her head and gave him a slightly exasperated look. "I do assume that we'll want to spend time in private, though." She blushed. "Outside the bed, I mean."
"Yes, of course," Harry quickly agreed.
"So, we'll have to budget our time. She frowned. "'Talking' will also cut into our budget."
As would Quidditch, but Harry thought it best not to mention that. "Well, we'll manage," he said. He peered at the list again. "I think we can cover the most important spells quickly."
"Some of them are said to be very difficult to master," Hermione retorted. "Such as the Patronus Charm. And others we will have to master enough to cast them under stress."
She was correct. Harry sighed. "It looks like sixth year won't be a time to relax before the N.E.W.T.s."
Judging by Hermione's unamused look, she hadn't planned to relax much even before getting stranded on the pirate island.
"Well, at least we can train together," Harry pointed out.
"Right." Hermione nodded with a smile. "I hadn't considered that. I should have, of course - it's quite obvious."
Harry suppressed a chuckle - he also kept getting surprised by how their trip, and the results of it, would change their lives.
He sat down next to her instead and hugged her. "So, it's manageable."
"Yes."
"And I think our friends will have to struggle to adjust to us as much as we did," he added with a grin.
"Definitely. Lavender's reaction was very…"
"...Lavender?" Harry cocked his head.
"Enthusiastic," Hermione corrected him with a glare before she sighed. "I guess we'll have to go on a double date soon. If only to, well, settle things with our respective best friends before we go to Hogwarts."
"Yes."
They remained sitting for a moment.
"So… should we..." Harry trailed off. It still felt awkward to ask, but just assuming would be worse.
She tilted her head, her lips twisting into a more coy smile. Then she blinked. "Did you secure the door?"
He gasped. "Merlin's beard! I forgot!"
Both jumped up and quickly cast a few spells each at the door - the last thing Harry wanted to see was his parents, or, worse, Rose, barging in on them.
"Whew!" he said, lowering his wand.
"That could've been embarrassing," Hermione agreed. She was licking her lips as she looked at him, Harry noticed. And she looked a little flushed.
He took a deep breath and leaned in, tilting his head to the side. She met him halfway.
Their clothes ended up on the floor before they reached the bed.