Author's Notes:
Hi everyone! I'm so sorry for the late/missing update. My husband and I got married on the 23rd (our official wedding) and then went on our honeymoon. We only just got back on Friday and our house was an absolute wreck. I'm talking, like, we still aren't done cleaning. Anyway. The wedding was absolutely amazing. It was perfect and beautiful and the HP accents were just phenomenal. All the planning paid off and we had little issues. I think my most memorable part was our first dance. My husband surprised me with the song because I couldn't choose. He ended up choosing "The One" by Kodaline. Our secondary "first song" which we danced to later in the evening was "There She Is" by Frank Turner.
For our honeymoon we went to HP world in Orlando and Disney! It was so fantastic. I literally cried when I walked into Diagon alley. Literally cried. It was everything I imagined and more. Don't worry, we were safe and careful during our trip and Universal handled the pandemic like a champ. We felt very safe while there.
Beer of the Week: Nuttercup from Brew Link Brewing Company. This is a Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter that was absolutely perfect. It was heavy on the peanut butter and lighter on the chocolate which gave this beer a sweeter and more full-bodied flavor. It was robust and smooth but I felt it wasn't quite dark enough in color for a porter. I guess if my only complaint is color then this beer was stellar.
Reviews: Iwik: It's not my intention to paint Lucy as a good father. I certainly never thought of him as one. Narcissa, however, I do think is trying to do the best she can do without getting herself killed. She understands the danger to her life, and Draco's, is real and she's doing her best to keep Draco safe, loved, and happy while balancing the bad on the other end. I'm sorry I'm not doing this as well as you had hoped. I'm glad you like Ginny's addition! Midnitewanderer: I'm sorry to say I don't really address how Draco got away this chapter. I do, however, elude to it. that's something that will be more important in the future and will be brought back up. I guess you'll have to wait and see on the Hinny front! I'll definitely have to look into that story. I'll add it to my list. Hope you enjoy this update!
Potter671: I've always loved Draco as a character, even in Joanne's telling. He's so…complicated. Such a blank slate that, but for the catalyst in the 5/6th book arch, could have been an extremely different person and I love reimagining him. I'm so glad that you're enjoying my retelling! Smallwjl: I can assure you that there will be a confrontation there, but a full battle won't be for a very long time. I'm definitely looking forward to some Sirius/Abraxas beatdown though. Fhl1234: Thank you! And thank you for reading! Miniandminie: I'm so glad that you're enjoying my story! I hope that you continue to enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it! BashForFUN: Thank you! Winkingskeever: Ask and you shall receive!
Thank you everyone who has been a loyal reader for so many chapters now. I'm so excited to announce that we've reached 200 reviews! This is absolutely amazing and just so surreal for me! You are all absolutely amazing and remind me every day why I love writing this story so much. You all, those that just read and those that read and review, are the reason I continue to love writing my story. Thank you so much! Here's to 100 more reviews!
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Chapter Forty-Six: A Very Marauder Christmas
Harry shot up in bed, startled by a sharp rap on his door. He wondered what time it was as he looked around his room, the darkness was nearly impenetrable so he assumed it was still rather late. He reached out carefully to grab his glasses of the side table next to his bed just as he heard the rapping again, this time more fervently.
"I'm coming," he mumbled as he swung his legs out of the bed. Next to him, he heard a small rustle as Cocoa poked her head out from under the covers, her smushed face upset at the disturbance in her sleep.
Harry sighed and padded over to his bedroom door, carefully opening it and peeking out of the crack.
Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George all pushed their way into Harry's room, bowling him over in their haste to get through the door and close it before alerting anyone to their nighttime wanderings.
"Bloody hell!" Harry moaned as he lay flat on his floor. The room had been plunged into darkness once again as he lay there, his arm over his eyes.
The lights in his room suddenly burst on, nearly blinding him as he continued to lay sprawled on the floor.
"Oy, get up you lazy prat," Fred said as he yanked Harry to his feet.
"Didn't you hear the commotion downstairs?" George asked as he straightened Harry's night clothes.
"It was loud. Even Ginny and I heard it and we're at the end of the hall," Ron added, his eyes wide.
Ginny nodded in agreement, "I heard a lot of shouting. I tried to peek down the stairwell but I couldn't see anything."
Harry shook his head, his brow furrowing, "I didn't hear anything. I've always been a pretty sound sleeper though. It's hard to wake me up. Who was shouting?"
"It sounded like James, Lupin, and Sirius," Fred commented.
Harry noticed Fred's use of Remus' sir name but opted not to comment on it. He knew how hard it could be to change how you say someone's name and he was pretty sure Fred had taken Ancient Runes with Remus.
"What were they shouting about?" Harry asked quickly.
"Something about 'Had anyone heard from him?' and 'What in the world'. I'm not sure what—I'm not sure who they were talking about," Ginny said quietly, her voice distant, almost as if she were speaking from somewhere far away.
"Are you ok, Ginny?" Harry asked.
She glanced up at him, her deep eyes unfocused and distant for just a moment before clearing, "Yeah. I was just—thinking I suppose."
Just as Harry tried to respond, Ron interrupted them, "Should we find out what's going on? It must be important if they were down there shouting. I mean, really, they woke the whole house up!"
"Cirri—Cirri can you come here?" Harry called.
The group jumped when there was a loud crack and the small elf appeared with a frown on her face as she turned her large, glassy eyes onto Harry, "Master Harry! What is you needing this late in the evening? Isn't you children supposed to be in bed? You is needing to go back to sleep!"
Harry shushed Cirri and waived his hands in the air, "Cirri, be quiet, I don't want dad to hear you. We woke up because everyone heard shouting downstairs. Do you know what's going on?"
Cirri frowned and fidgeted where she stood, her eyes darting to the face of each of the children before her, "I is not saying, Master Harry. Master James is telling me I is not saying to anyone yet. They is treating him, sir."
"Him?" Ginny asked, her face white.
"I'm sorry, I is saying too much," Cirri said, bowing her head. Then, suddenly, there was a loud crack and Cirri was gone.
"Him?" Ginny repeated as she looked around the room at her brothers and Harry, "Him? Who's him?"
Ginny's head whipped around to look at each of them, her eyes pleading and scared. The boys simply looked confused and dumbfounded. None of them had any idea who the elf had been talking about.
"Well," Fred started as he looked at George.
"Let's go investigate," they said simultaneously as they looked at one another.
Ron, Ginny, and Harry all exchanged worrisome looks as Fred and George made their way quietly out of Harry's bedroom door. The three of them quickly followed Fred and George, not wanting to be left behind.
The five of them snuck from doorway to doorway as they worked their way toward the staircase landing, each of them taking their turn peeking their head out from the doorway to make sure the coast was clear. After the second door, they began making a game of it. Each time they made it to a doorway each person had to get into the room in some fun or interesting fashion. George had started the game by tucking and rolling into the room and springing up to his feet, his hand holding an imaginary wand that he used to scan around the room. This was met with enthusiastic and silent laughter from the group. Ginny had such a hard time trying to stay silent that she began to clap her hands and cry at the same time. By the time they reached the landing, each child was attempting to outdo the others. This culminated in Ron and Ginny coordinating for their final entrance with Ginny on Ron's shoulders so she could attempt to do a flip off of him. Harry burst out laughing when she landed on her bum. Her face was so shocked and bemused that she must have believed her improper landing was all Ron's fault.
Fred quickly helped Ginny get back to her feet just in time for the group to hide behind the wall next to the staircase before Remus walked—no, ran past. They waited quietly, making sure that no one else was going to run past the stairs before whispering to each other.
"What the bloody hell is going on?" Ron whispered, "I've never seen Remus run before."
"Something bad, I think," Ginny replied quietly from Ron's side.
Harry stood up straight, his anger getting the best of him, "Let's go find out. Something's happening in my house but I haven't been told what. Come on."
Harry strode confidently down the grand staircase, his green eyes bright with excitement and anger as he went. The others hesitated for a moment before following him. None of them had seen Harry this angry in a long time.
As they stepped out into the entryway the five of them stopped in shock as they took in the situation at hand. Harry's eyes widened in fear as he took in the pale figure lying on the chez near the front entry.
Ginny grabbed Harry's arm, her fingers digging into his skin as she stared and whispered, "Draco."
~ID~
Draco was feebly stirring on the chez. He could see through his eyelids that it was brightly lit wherever he was. He could also hear the loud commotion that was taking place all around him. He wondered silently what was causing such a ruckus.
He was so tired.
He was so hungry.
Draco's stomach gurgled again. He silently recalled how he hadn't eaten since that dinner with his grandfather. He recalled when his mother had attempted to get food to him, unsuccessfully, and how she had been disciplined as a result of her indiscretion. Grandfather had not been happy with that act of "insolence".
Draco wondered if he would be allowed to sleep longer. He was so tired and his body hurt so much. This couch was soft. As he cuddled into the warmth more, he could feel something warm laying on his forehead. He wondered briefly what that could be. It felt wet—maybe it was blood? That would explain why he felt so tired, so lightheaded.
He could hear people talking—it was almost as if he were floating in some kind of dream.
"What are you kids doing up?" an irate man asked.
Why did that voice sound so familiar? Did he know this person?
"Why didn't you tell us Draco was here? Is he ok?" an angry sounding boy shouted, "He looks so pale…"
Harry? Could that really be Harry? Did he manage to get to the Potters? The last thing he remembered was sitting in the chair in the locked room at Malfoy Manor. How would he have gotten to Potter Manor? They were halfway across the country from one another.
He could vaguely hear people conversing around him. He could hear yelling and muffled crying. Why was someone crying? Wait, was that a dog?
Draco couldn't stand the unknown any longer. Even though he was so exhausted he managed to crack his eyes open. Just enough that he could see who was standing around him. He could see a load of people with red hair, three with black hair, and one with bronze hair surrounding him. It was nearly suffocating. So far, none of them had noticed that he had opened his eyes, that he was aware of what was going on around him.
"You shouldn't be down here—why are you five even out of bed?" James snapped at the group.
"We heard shouting," Fred piped up, "We were concerned for our safety."
"Bullocks," Sirius said, "If you heard shouting you should have stayed in your beds."
"You should have come to get us when our friend showed up, half dead, on the doorstep!" Harry yelled at his fathers.
"No," James snapped, "You do not get to speak with me that way. You're angry, but you have no right to talk back to me like that and if I ever hear you speaking that way again, we're going to have a long talk.
"We didn't want to worry any of you until we knew what was going on. We still don't know what's going on and now the five of you are getting in the way."
Draco watched as Harry crossed his arms and begrudgingly asked James, "Will he be ok?"
James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, "We aren't sure what's wrong with him yet. If he doesn't wake up soon we're going to have to take him to St. Mungos. It could be any—oh god," James had just now noticed the grey eyes staring unblinkingly at him from the couch, "Draco! Draco are you ok?"
James rushed to Draco's side, his arms engulfing him as he spoke. Ginny's mouth dropped open at this development and she too rushed to Draco's side, her hand sliding into his as she watched him carefully.
Draco opened his mouth and tried to speak—nothing but dry air was able to escape his lips. He only just now registered exactly how dehydrated he was. He carefully licked his cracked lips with his dry tongue. Somehow, that only made the dry sensation worse.
Realizing the problem, Ginny's eyes widened as she turned to Sirius who was crouching beside her, "He's thirsty. I don't think he's had anything to drink in ages. Someone get him some water!"
Ron jumped up and ran out of the room and toward the kitchen in an effort to get some water for Draco. While he did that, James calmly conjured a cup and poured water from his wand into it and tipped the contents into Draco's mouth. He dank greedily, feeling like he was unable to get enough into his body. He had quickly guzzled the contents of the first cup, just in time for Ron to return with another glass. Draco greedily drank this second cup as well. Once he was done, everyone could see he had regained a substantial amount of color in his face.
Draco coughed and spluttered as he tried to sit up. All that liquid at once was hitting him, and not in a good way. He half sat up as he spluttered, James supported him and slapped his hand on Draco's back in an effort to help him.
"You good, Draco? What happened?"
"You can't just show up on the doorstep, looking like death, basically die in our arms, and then not tell us what happened," Sirius added dramatically.
Draco's voice came out in a rasp, as if he hadn't used his voice in several days, maybe even a week, "I—my grandfather came to visit for the holiday."
Sirius frowned, "Not from your mother's side, right? My uncle died years ago."
"Yes. Abraxas Malfoy. He's—not the nicest person."
"I remember him," Remus said, frowning, "Wasn't he a Voldemort supporter during the war?"
The five Weasley children shuttered as Draco continued, "Yeah. He's supportive of the old, pureblood ways. He—he wasn't happy that I was sorted into Ravenclaw. He made his displeasure known. I—they locked me in my classroom at home to discipline me. Mother tried to give me food but—"
Draco continued to explain what had happened when his mother had been caught trying to feed him while he was supposed to be locked away and how he had been too afraid to use his mirror on the off chance that that would be the moment someone decided to enter the room to check on him.
"I don't know how I got here. The last thing I remember was wishing I could get away. And then I was on your doorstep and everything was black."
Sirius' eyes hardened, dark and stormy, "So, what you're saying is, you hadn't had anything to eat or drink since, what, the night the train dropped you off until now?"
Draco nodded solemnly.
"Of course not. Why would Lucy Malfoy think that children need fed?" Sirius muttered to himself darkly.
"Come on," James said as he helped Draco sit up, "We'll get you some soup and some toast for the night and then in the morning we can discuss what to do with you."
Harry's head snapped up, "What do you mean, 'what to do with you'? You're not seriously thinking of sending him back to that sodding bast—"
"Language!" James snapped, "Just because he's one of those doesn't mean you need to say it. And, as much as I don't want to, yes, I am. Unfortunately, Lucy is Draco's parent and has rights that we aren't allowed to interfere with without permission from the Ministry. And that kind of permission takes time. He very well might have to return to Malfoy Manor in the morning. I'm going to guess that Draco managed to do some underaged magic to bring himself here, too, and his parents are already aware of that and are probably looking for him."
"What? We can't report the fact that they were starving him? They nearly killed him!" Harry shouted, "The Ministry isn't going to find that to be significant in any way?"
"Yes, they probably would. But the Malfoys are also an old, pureblood family and often those sorts of families have longstanding traditions that the Ministry won't go against."
"So, let me get this straight," Harry said slowly, "Even if a family is severely abusing a child, if they're pureblood and they can show some archaic family rule or whatever to support their actions, the Ministry won't help those kids? They won't step in and make the parents stop? How is that right?"
"It isn't," Sirius said darkly, "And it needs to change. You're right, Harry, it is archaic and it's dangerous. It wasn't that long ago when children would die because of this belief. It's only worst today because now it happens behind closed doors and is still sanctioned by the Ministry so no one knows it's happening. And no one talks about it."
"How do we change it?" Harry asked.
"What do you mean?"
"How do we change it? How do we force the Ministry to take all kinds of abuse, pureblood beliefs included, seriously and create sanctions against it."
"Well," Sirius started slowly as he thought, "We would probably have to present new legislation—and then the Wizengamot would have to vote it into law. It could be done—but the majority of the Wizengamot is made up of pureblood families so it probably wouldn't pass."
"Does that mean you won't try?"
Sirius looked at James, the grey eyes meeting the hazel, "No, it doesn't."
~ID~
Nobody slept much the rest of the early morning of Christmas. The children spent their morning sitting with Draco while he slowly recovered and rejuvenated while the adults were hurriedly contacting key people within the Ministry about the situation at hand. After getting the runaround from the Ministry, Sirius managed to make descript contact with Narcissa who gave her express permission for Draco to spend the remainder of the holidays at Potter Manor. From his understanding, no one else at Malfoy Manor had noticed Draco's abrupt absence from the home. This was, of course, the best possible outcome for the young dragon.
Finally, around five in the morning, as the sun began to rise for the day, the children found themselves sitting in the pool room and watching it through the glass wall that kept them safe from the frigid elements outside. Draco finally seemed to have more color to his normally pale complexion.
Ginny had her feet and legs in the pool as they sat and watched the sky begin to turn a bright orange color, her small head resting against George's arm and her eyes half closed. As she shivered, George slid his arm around her shoulders and rubbed her arm.
"We should probably get a few hours of sleep," George whispered as he felt Ginny drifting off.
Harry glanced at Ginny and then at Draco who was also beginning to nod off where he sat, "Yeah. Let's get everyone to bed. We can sleep for a few hours before it's time for breakfast. We don't have another room ready, so Draco can take mine—I'll go lay in the living room. Dad won't care."
Draco let out a loud snore at that moment, causing Ginny to jerk awake, her sleepy eyes wide, "What's going on?"
Fred let out a snort, "Nothing Ginge. We're all going to try to get a few more hours of sleep. Come on, I'll take you to bed."
Fred tried to pick Ginny up in his arms as she loudly protested. But once he had her cradled against his chest she simply smiled and cuddled back into him. Harry smiled at this sight—it was one of the rare moments when Ginny let anyone see her softer side.
Harry quickly showed Draco where he would be staying for the night before heading to the living room. Before he headed down, he checked to make sure all of his friends had settled into their beds for the next few hours. Satisfied that everyone was safe and sound, he made his way to the living room and tried, unsuccessfully, to get a few more hours of sleep.
He'd only had the opportunity to lay on the couch for a few minutes before he was interrupted by a loud banging noise from somewhere down the hall. Curious, he got up to investigate.
The banging sound got louder as he walked into the entryway. It sounded like it was coming from the direction of the library. As he got closer, he could hear two people talking loudly to one another. He could hear snippets of the conversation.
"Keep it down, Dora. Someone will hear you," Remus said in a harsh, barely audible to Harry's ears, whisper.
Harry frowned and wondered who Dora was. He quietly crept closer to the library door, being careful to stay just out of sight.
"Oh give it up, Remus. Everyone went back to sleep. Even Sirius curled up for a few hours! And I have to be at my parent's house soon."
Harry heard Remus sigh and heard glasses clinking on a table in the other room. Then he heard quiet. Carefully, he peeked into the room to see what was happening. The sight shocked him.
Inside the room he saw his Uncle Remus with his arms wrapped around a woman with spiky pink hair while they sat on the couch, their lips locked together in a deep and passionate kiss. Harry's eyes widened as he suddenly recognized the woman nestled in Remus' arms as Tonks. Surprise engulfed him just as curiosity and something else he couldn't quite place filled him. For some reason, he couldn't take his eyes away from the interlocked couple. The way they were holding each other was somehow fascinating to him. It wasn't until they broke apart that he suddenly came back to himself and realized that he shouldn't be spying on people. He quickly pulled his head back from the doorway and made his way quietly back to the living room, now wide awake.
Seeing that sleep would be impossible, Harry decided to head to the kitchen and see if he could have an early breakfast before digging into his presents.
As Harry walked into the kitchen he was surprised to see James already sitting at the breakfast bar, a mug of coffee in hand and a book in the other, clearly enjoying the silent, early morning.
"Morning dad," Harry said as he took a seat.
"Morning," James said without looking up, "Happy Christmas. Did you already open your gifts?"
"No," Harry replied as he poured himself some pumpkin juice, "I wanted to come get a snack. Maybe wait for some others to wake up. Everyone else went to try to get some more sleep before getting up for the day."
"Why didn't you as well?"
"I tried but couldn't sleep," Harry hesitated, "Did you know that Uncle Remus and Tonks were dating?"
James' eyes shot up from the book to look at Harry. He took a moment, silently thinking through his possible responses before moving the book away from his face, still holding it, to reply, "I was aware they had been seeing each other. I wouldn't say they're dating though. I don't think that's quite the word for it."
"What would you call it, then?" I mean, they're snogging in the library, Harry thought. He wasn't sure he should mention this fact. It seemed like the pair had been trying hard to keep this moment a secret from everyone else in the house.
"Well, I would say that they're very good friends. Ah—kissing friends."
"So they just snog? And they're friends?"
"Sort of, yeah."
"That's a thing? People do that?"
"Some people. Not everyone. Moony is—he has a fear of commitment."
"Why? He's a great guy. He and Tonks would make a great couple, I think."
"They would. We just have to wait and let Moony figure that out on his own, ok?"
By midmorning everyone was awake and ready to open their gifts. Even though they hadn't anticipated Draco joining them for the holiday, he still had a sizeable pile of gifts waiting for him under the tree as nearly everyone at the Potter house had purchased him something. He seemed pleasantly surprised at these acts of generosity towards him. He had spluttered thank you's to everyone and insisted that James needn't have gotten him anything after letting him stay for the remainder of the holiday. James had simply brushed it aside and told him he was more than welcome.
Everyone had a wonderful morning opening gifts and they were overall pleased with the hull that year. It wasn't until early afternoon that Harry managed to pull Ginny aside to give her his gift.
"What's up, Harry?" Ginny asked as he pulled her aside.
"I wanted to give you your present. It needs a bit of explanation so I didn't want to have you open it and not know what it was."
Ginny furrowed her brows, "What sort of gift requires directions?"
Harry grinned and held out a small, round package to Ginny and winked, "The interactive kind."
Ginny eyed him suspiciously as she carefully opened the golden wrapped package. As she slid the paper aside she was even more confused to see a small, round, compact mirror complete with hard powder that matched her skin tone.
"You got me make up? Mum will throw a fit!" Ginny let out a tinkling laugh as she examined the powder. She carefully used the poof to put some over the freckles on her nose and cheeks. She smiled at the effect it had on her complexion, "This is a lovely gift, Harry."
"Thanks! But the makeup is really only a disguise to hide what it really is. Just in case you ever get caught with it, it'll look like you're just doing your makeup."
"Ok, now I'm really confused. What else would I be doing with this?"
"You haven't figured it out yet?" Harry asked, surprised.
Ginny shook her head, "I'm not sure what it could—" realization dawned on her, "Wait, don't you have a mirror, too? And can't you talk to your dad with it?"
Harry grinned wickedly as he pulled his mirror out of his pocket, "Gin-Gin," he said in a singsong voice in the mirror.
Ginny gasped when her mirror suddenly felt hot in her hands. It wasn't an unpleasant sensation, not as if she had touched a burning stove, but it was warm, like a hot shower after a rainy day. She smiled when she caught sight of Harry's face in her mirror and then looked up at the real Harry, her brown eyes sparkling in the afternoon light.
"This is amazing, Harry! Now I can talk to you whenever I want this year!" She flung her arms around Harry's neck, hugging him tightly.
Harry blushed and carefully wrapped his arms around Ginny and held her tightly against him. As he breathed in, he was suddenly aware of how nice she smelled. Like something—flowery. He couldn't quite place the scent that briefly filled his nose while he hugged Ginny. Then, suddenly, it was gone and she was examining the mirror more closely.
"Is it only connected with your mirror?"
"No. You can talk to Uncles Moony and Padfoot as well as Draco and my dad. I wanted to make sure you could get a hold of an adult if you were ever in danger or…something," he trailed off.
"That's really sweet of you, Harry. It'll be nice to be able to talk to you and Draco whenever we want. Thank you—it's the best gift I got this year."
Harry rubbed the back of his neck, blushing. He wondered briefly why he was blushing. Why was it suddenly so warm in here?
"It wasn't a big deal. Uncle Moony did the charms and stuff for me and dad helped me find the mirror. I'm just glad you like it."
"You know, I still have to tell you what outfit you're supposed to wear this evening for dinner," Ginny said mischievously.
Harry's eyes widened, he had honestly forgotten all about their little bet from the other night, "Aw, Ginny, are you really going to make me wear something stupid?"
"Oh, no, Harry. I'm going to have you wear something absolutely stunning.
The sight that met them shocked them so deeply neither could move for a solid thirty seconds. Standing in the Potter living room, her hair held down by a large, wool cap, was Hermione along with Mr. and Mrs. Granger. Ginny let out a loud, very un-Ginny-like squeal and ran to Hermione, engulfing her in a bone-crushing hug as the girls reunited with one another. Seeing that the time to great her was limited, Harry quickly walked over and hugged Hermione, greeting her and whispering that they had news for her later when it was quiet again.
Just as Harry and Ginny were shocked to see the Grangers in the living room, everyone else was shocked to see Harry walk into the room. From an objective standpoint, Harry made quite the beautiful bride. Ginny had asked Sirius for help with Harry's outfit, having him transfigure one of her dresses into a Harry-sized princess style wedding dress. Sweetheart neckline included. Ginny had added glitter and beading to the dress, making sure it retained it's snow-white color which would look striking against Harry's black hair. She had also gotten a matching veil and a full bridal bouquet for Harry to carry with him. And he rocked the outfit.
He made no comment in regard to the dress or accessories. He simply strolled into the room, hugged Hermione and then went to socialize with Ron who, being the best friend he could be, didn't mention the outfit at all.
Once the initial shock was over, everyone continued on with their conversations.
Ginny smiled at Hermione, "What are you doing here? I thought you were skiing in France for the holiday?"
"Professor Lupin, Sirius, and James invited my family for Christmas dinner and my parents said yes! They hadn't seen everyone in so long, especially since finding out about everyone being wizards and witches, that they wanted to come and get to know a magical family. Mum says it will help us all adjust to our new life. They've been quite supportive of my abilities and my new world. What are you doing here? Last I heard you were supposed to be going to Romania to visit Charlie with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. And what on earth is with Harry's outfit? Is he aware he's wearing that?"
"Believe it or not, mum gave me the option of going with them or staying here with my brothers. I was really upset I wasn't going to get to see them over the holiday, so I told them I wanted to stay here. And they. Let. Me. Didn't even argue. Can you believe it?
"As for Harry. He lost a bet to me and this is his punishment. Don't bet against the princess of mayhem."
"Did they really? That's so surprising. Normally Mrs. Weasley is a bit—"
"Protective? Controlling? Demonic?"
Hermione smiled, "I think protective is the word. You're her only daughter."
Ginny rolled her eyes, "I've very aware."
"So what was this bet?"
"He bet me he could beat me in a swimming contest. I swam laps around him."
"I had no idea you could swim that well. That's fantastic."
"Oh yeah. I can outswim all of my brothers."
"So, why is Draco here? He told us he was going home for the holiday."
Ginny's eyes flashed at the mention of Draco's parents, "His dad and grandfather starved him for most of break. He showed up here early this morning, half dead from starvation and dehydration. James was able to get his mum to give him permission to spend the rest of the holiday here. Good thing, too, because it looked like Sirius was going to murder someone."
Hermione glanced over at Sirius who was giving a hearty laugh at a joke Mr. Granger told to the group, "Really? I can't imagine Sirius being angry at anyone. He's so—I don't know, cuddly?"
"He's certainly cuddly," Ginny said with a knowing glint in her eye, "He's also a little ruff sometimes."
Hermione frowned, "What does that mean?"
"Oh, nothing. He's just barking mad, I tell you."
"Is there some sort of joke I'm missing?"
Ginny laughed and whispered into her ear, "He's an animagus. He and James both are. James is a stag and Sirius is a dog. I think they're unregistered."
Hermione gasped, "They aren't!"
Ginny nodded, "Don't tell anyone though. Harry told me in confidence once. I used to like petting Sirius in his animal form."
Hermione's jaw dropped open but, before she could respond, James clapped his hands together to call the room's attention, "Hey, everyone! I've been told that dinner is done and we can start moving into the dining room."
There was a general commotion as every began filing out of the room and toward the rarely used dinning room. As they walked, a group of three people made their way out of the library and joined the throng.
"Oh! Tonks, Dromeda, Ted! I'm glad you three made it. I was beginning to wonder if you would make it."
"Sirius!" Dromeda cried as she made her way to Sirius and hugged him tightly, "Thank you for inviting us. We were surprised to receive the invitation and of course we were happy to come. We even brought Nymphadora. Thank you for including her in your invitation."
"It was no trouble, Dromeda. We love having Tonks visit our home. Come on, we were just told that dinner is ready. I have you three sitting near us if that's alright."
"That sounds lovely. Thank you, James, for having us for dinner."
"It's no problem Andromeda. It's our pleasure," James said smiling.
"And who might this lovely couple be? It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Andromeda Tonks, this is my husband, Ted, and our daughter, Nymphadora," Dromeda introduced as she pointed to each person individually as she spoke to the Grangers.
"It's wonderful to meet you," Jean said, "I'm Jean Granger, Hermione's mother, and this is my husband, Rick."
"How do you know the Potters, Sirius, and Remus?" Dromeda asked.
"Oh, our Hermione is friends with Harry. Apparently they all go to school together—that was a surprise to all of us!"
"Oh! You're muggles. I had no idea! My Ted is a muggle born. I'm sure he could give Hermione any advice she needed. Has she been adjusting well to Hogwarts? I imagine it's different than muggle primary school."
"Yes, I believe she is. She says she's been doing exceptionally well in classes and she has several friends already."
"No one has been giving her trouble for being muggle born?"
"What do you mean? Why would that be an issue?"
"Ah, well—hasn't anyone told you? Not all wizards and witches take too kindly to muggle borns. That prejudice has been changing in recent years but, not everyone has changed their minds on that front."
"People are prejudice against some people because they're born in a muggle family?"
"Some, not all."
"Remus," Jean called across the table, "Is this true? Do some magical people not take kindly to muggle born witches and wizards?"
"Ah, well—" Remus started, hesitantly, "That is true, yes. But I haven't noticed much of an issue at Hogwarts. Though, students are good at keeping that sort of thing quiet. If we professors hear any sort of slur or prejudice we do dole out detentions. We don't tolerate that sort of prejudice."
Jean turned to Hermione who was seated at the other end of the long table, "Hermione, is this true? Has anyone given you any problems because your father and I are muggles?"
Hermione's eyes widened, "No, mum. Everyone at Hogwarts has been rather excepting. Though, I don't flaunt the fact that I'm Muggleborn. I don't want to cause any issues, you know?"
"You'll let us know if anyone gives you any problems?" Rick asked seriously.
"Don't worry, Mr. Granger, we'll make sure no one gives Hermione any issues," Ron assured, "They won't want to mess with the three of us."
"So, Remus, how has your research been going?" Tonks asked casually from across the table as she slid down in her chair, getting more comfortable.
Smaller conversations broke out around the table as Remus responded, "Uh, it's going well. We've gotten more information on the history of werewolves and—" Remus' speech faltered as he felt something warm slide against his thigh. He quickly collected himself and continued, "And I think it will assist in tracing the origins of the disease."
"Oh, how interesting. Tell me more?" Tonks asked as she slid her foot up his leg and across his crotch.
Remus' eyes widened as he felt her against his crotch. He quickly glanced around the table to make sure that no one had noticed and then shot Tonks a dirty look, pleading her to stop her unwanted antics. Nevertheless, he told her about the research with frequent interruptions from her wandering foot and his overly responsive penis. As dinner went on his face continued to grow a deeper red. Somehow Tonks' actions had gone unnoticed and they made it to dessert without outside issue.
As the plates were being cleared, Remus hissed across the table as the felt the intrusive foot once again, "Stop it. Someone is going to notice!"
Tonks' eyes widened in feigned shock and innocence, "I don't know what you mean? Stop eating? Stop sitting here? I'm confused."
Remus pinched his eyes closed and whispered, "You'll be the death of me."
Tonks grinned wickedly at Remus as the pudding was served. She was very much enjoying the evening.
The rest of the holiday went uneventfully. Harry, Ron, and Draco told Hermione about their discovery regarding Flamel and the Stone. She was as shocked as they had been and then suddenly remembered reading about him in a book she had taken out of the library. She had inwardly kicked herself for forgetting such an important detail from a book. Draco had wondered if she actually believed that she had let the book down.
The Grangers had reluctantly agreed to allow Hermione to spend the last week of the holiday at the Potter house. the children spent their time playing games, watching muggle movies, and flying on the quidditch pitch. They even managed to convince Hermione to go swimming a few times. Apparently she wasn't a strong swimmer and didn't prefer the activity. By the end of the holiday she had gained tremendous skill in the pool and had no qualms about going for a dip.
It wasn't long until they found themselves back on the Hogwarts express, ready to get back to classes and learn more about the secret of the philosopher's stone.
End Notes:
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