Dinner with the Delacours:
Harry and the rest of his party soon found themselves seated at the dinner table. However, Harry found himself rather nervous. He wondered if his casual behaviour would be considered uncouth and rude. However, Clementine had said there were excused? The French did not casually snack but Clementine had kept the little bits to eat coming all afternoon. She seated herself and confirmed Harry's suspicion:
"Make yourself comfortable. No formality this evening is necessary for you. Let the house-elves take of you. And please do take second portions if you desire, I am considering your dietary needs are increased."
As the elves began placing the dishes on the table, Harry soon found himself quite fascinated by the food. It was full of bright clouds, well-plated and aromas that hinted of carefully painstaking effort. Harry wondered if this was informal, exactly what was formal.
Clementine continued:
"I am genuinely tired, but I enjoyed the process. I finally have a reason to put my entire magical core to use. I have a feeling that your grandfather will benefit from increased mental capability. Hermione, I heard you were looking for a French pen pal?"
"I certainly would like that. I always wanted to learn the language."
"The French take pride in speaking French. However, I would like both my granddaughters to possess total fluency in English. It has served me well in my life - you will find that I speak English with high competency. I, however, had to learn as an adult. Also, my granddaughters have never seen much of the outside world. But after what I saw this evening, I want them to know about the non-magical world. I will take every advantage I can get. Who better than non-magicals? Although technically your magical education is much beyond your possible detractors."
"I understand what it is like to feel isolated. As long as both your granddaughters are willing to have us, I would not mind. We are a rambunctious bunch, however. Are you sure we would be a good influence?" Hermione questioned, as she grinned somewhat.
"I think so, or at least the good type of bad influence I suppose. Sometimes a little rebellion goes a long way. After all, when I received Hadrian's letter or rather Harry's letter, I immediately saw a kindred soul – a rebellious young boy cutting a path through society. I know Harry is on the way to upturning everything in England. His motivations vis-à-vis reminds me very much of our revolution."
"Well correct. How did you figure it from just the letter?" Harry asked, very impressed.
"I know what the English Gringotts magic feels like as I have been doing business with a lot of people there. More importantly, I could feel your magic in the ink. When I passed my fingers over your signature, I knew exactly what I was dealing with. I do have a century of experience after all. My magic tells me that you are good, honest and highly practical. I don't have to be cautious around you."
"Er – thanks for the compliment. I try to do my best with what I have been given. About the magic being carried by the ink, is that why quills and inkpots continue to be the standard? I was thinking about the traditions in the Wizarding world."
"Yes, the feather sensitises your hands to vibrations in the wand. But I think you and Hermione may not need that, your intent has taken over. Now my dear children, while our dinner is informal, locally here in France, I am known for being a shining beacon of French culture. Eventually, you will have to attend a formal dinner and I would like both of you to take a couple of etiquette classes with me long before that. When you arrive under such a circumstance you will be required to play the part. We love the drama and the theatre that happens when we eat. If you seek to be the best you can be, learn from me. I can tell you and your sister will be regulars here. You will get a lot of practice."
Luis walked into the room, now accompanied by a very beautiful and ethereal woman who Harry guessed was the mother of Fleur and Gabrielle. They all sat in the empty seats and the elves began to put the first course on the table. Harry noted that while Clementine continued to behave in a manner that he could consider "normal" for them, for the rest of the residents the full manners were in effect. Harry picked up on a few things and made a mental note of what he observed. Clementine formally introduced Apolline, who thanked both Harry and Hermione for the modified smartphone. Harry explained:
"Fleur and Gabrielle are welcome to watch our nightly experiments. I don't know if they have a designated bedtime but it would be interesting at least for both of them as we have a lot of muggle tools that we use. Mione, wanna try for a bracelet for both these ladies? Wonder if we can get it in before midnight?"
"Sounds like a challenge. Let Mipsy keep the tea and the coffee coming."
Apolline translated the conversation to her daughters and their faces took on an ecstatic look of appreciation. She informed both Harry and Hermione of their visitors for their nightly experiments. Clementine looked on and nodded, before informing Jean that the women would have a 'ladies only' conversation at one of the gardens, while Remus and Luis spent time with the kids.
When the dinner was finished, Harry and Hermione once again found themselves in Clementine's studio. Luis who was also quite curious decided that some time with Remus would be well spent. As Remus sat down, Luis began a conversation behind a privacy ward, while Fleur and Gabrielle observed Harry and Hermione.
"What is it like, being with your nephew and your niece? They sure are interesting?"
"It is a bit frightening. What you have seen is a mere fraction of what they get up to. They do experiments that are so dangerous that I supervise them so that I can have peace of mind. I can't speak about their projects but I will say an entire line of products may be coming soon."
"Excellent. If they are useful, make no mistake my government will certainly purchase them. I take it you were Hogwarts educated?"
"That seems like a lifetime ago, Luis. I went to school with Harry's father and…."
The conversation between both men continued behind a privacy spell while Harry and Hermione began their usual shenanigans.
"Alright Mione, let us look at the bracelet first. The idea is to assemble a generator from the pieces we have here. If it works as a proof of concept, then I can commit to something that is packaged more tightly. We don't have the best materials here, so rough and dirty will do."
Harry then looked at Fleur and Gabrielle under his mage sight and came to conclude that they were fairly powerful. However, it seemed like their magic was more temperamental from the way it radiated from their cores. He observed as the magic seemed to fluctuate with their emotions.
"Alright, you troglodyte what do you see?" Hermione asked.
"The magical aura radiates from their core. It seems to be within one meter of their bodies. We should be able to dump it into a power cell. The antenna shape might need tweaking."
"Hmm well, let us get started? See what happens?"
Hermione had instructed Fleur and Gabrielle to carefully wind some copper coils (with some translation help from Luis). When they were finished, Harry tested the continuity with a voltmeter and both of them checked out. Then this process was repeated the create some arm and leg bracelets that would force the magic to "sink to the ground" in a certain manner.
As the pair worked, Fleur found the tools interesting. She observed that Harry and Hermione possessed items that created heat and others that cut objects. She was surprised when she saw a vice mounted to the table. Upon usage of the tool, Fleur began to appreciate the immense skill in Harry's hands as he shaped many small objects quite easily with his pliers. The older girl also loved to see Hermione work too. She seemed to be the person that helped Harry when he was stuck.
Harry then asked Luis, "Are there silencing charms in this place? I need loud music."
"Sure, help yourself. As long as this door is closed, nobody will hear anything." Luis replied.
Hermione then took out a Bluetooth speaker and loaded their favourite playlist on Harry's laptop. Harry and Hermione as big-time metalheads began to blast Leverage's 2006 album, Tides. Hermione started with Fifteen Years to get Harry's blood pumping. It was one of his favourites. After they would alternate, and she would pick her favourite song.
It was late in the night and Apolline visited her girls to collect them for bedtime. She was greeted with loud heavy metal music blaring at maximum volume. Remus then explained that generally when they were on a particular trend of thought, it was best not to disturb them. Everyone left as Harry and Hermione continued to work.
By the time midnight had reached, Harry and Hermione were looking at a stubby, oddly built generator that was an improvised facsimile of his existing project. The device possessed connections for the arm and leg antennas that the girls had wound earlier, and in the proximity of the girls' aura, it would divert the energy from their aura into a power cell.
"Okay well let us call it a night. Later bighead." Hermione said as she yawned wide enough to swallow a whale.
"Grace? I need cuddles?" said Harry cheekily.
Grace appeared on Harry's shoulder as he laid back on one of the couches. Hermione took the other couch. Little did Harry know that the Daily Prophet article had already been printed and Harry would wake up to wonderful text messages.