A/N - Thanks so much for reading!

Chapter 19

Fixes

12 June 1998

Hermione stood with her hands on her hips, surveying the destruction in the dining room of Grimmauld Place. She doubted that much of it could be salvaged, even with the strongest repair charm she knew. Some of the dishes had been ground to dust, under Death Eater boots, no doubt. Looking at the twining snakes that swam around the edges of the plates, Hermione doubted very much that Harry would want to save it anyway.

She had intended to talk to him about it before she had come over here today, but both Harry and Ron had been coming home every night exhausted. They did little but eat supper and then fall into bed. Kingsley had even had them come in on Saturday. And even though Sunday was their day off, they'd done little but catch up on sleep and study. Hermione had to admit, she was proud of the two of them. If only they had been half as studious at Hogwarts.

Ginny was getting a bit cranky about the entire situation, rarely getting to spend any time with Harry. Hermione wondered why she didn't feel the same. It wasn't that she didn't miss Ron, she did, but she just didn't seem to miss him as much as Ginny did Harry.

Crouching down, Hermione sifted through the detritus on the floor with the tip of her wand. Finally deciding that repaired plates and glasses never looked the same anyway, she conjured a box and directed the entire lot into it. She would put it in one of the spare rooms and Harry could decide later what he wanted to do with it.

Once the floor had been cleared of broken crockery, Hermione fixed the chairs that were broken and righted them. The chandelier was repaired in a moment and a strong cleaning charm that she had learned from Molly swept through the room. Overall, it looked much better than it had even before the Death Eaters had vandalized the place. She still planned to do some deep cleaning the Muggle way, but it would do for now.

As she worked, her mind wandered back to Claire, David and Annie. Hermione had spoken to Sarah again and knew that Annie still had not been allowed to visit. Harry and Ron had told her that there was nothing the Ministry could do. Hermione had expected as much, but she had been disappointed all the same. Hermione had wanted to visit Amy again, but Harry had talked her out of it. He had suggested that she give it time and much as she didn't want to admit it, she knew Harry was right.

The situation was almost as frustrating as her initial search for her parents. Since Ginny had been busy at the shop this week, Hermione had been going into Muggle London and using the computers at the library. She wasn't completely unfamiliar with the internet; her father had gotten it installed just before she came home at the end of her sixth year. Despite everything that she knew was coming, Hermione had allowed herself a weekend of just enjoying being home with them and a good chunk of that time had been her father showing her how to use his newest obsession.

Still, she hadn't been able to find the information she was looking for, even with the help of one of the librarians. If her parents had moved anywhere in England, she likely would have found them in an afternoon. As it was, searching the whole of Australia was proving rather daunting, especially when she only had their names to go by. Names which had turned out to be much more common than she'd expected.

Sighing, Hermione turned her attention back to the dining room and crossed to the two windows that faced the street. She pulled back the thick, green velvet curtains. The windows were filthy, of course, but a quick spell had them sparkling. Furrowing her brow, Hermione banished the curtains altogether. The thin sheers that were left behind had seen better days, but they would do for the moment. The room was much brighter and inviting now. Hermione smiled and turned to make her way to the library. She had a book to find.

"Excellent, Mr. Coote," Remus said as Ritchie Coote held his shield against the onslaught of hexes and jinxes being cast at him from Devlin Summerby. Remus glanced at his watch. "That's enough for today." The two boys lowered their wands and the other four students looked up at him expectantly.

"I believe it is time for your Transfiguration class," Remus said and the students began to pack up their notes. "I will see all of you tomorrow." The group of six left the room, chatting to each other as they made their way down the corridor. Remus smiled as they left, feeling that his tutoring sessions had been going rather well. He remembered all the students, although the O.W.L. students had only been first years when he had been a professor. Realizing he didn't have another tutoring session until just before dinner, Remus decided to take a short walk on the grounds.

The full moon had been two days prior and Remus had transformed at home since Andromeda was able to make the Wolfsbane. Things had been near to normal this time, although the wolf had been more agitated than usual, something Remus attributed to the fact that Dora's scent still lingered. He hadn't taught yesterday, choosing to rest at home instead. Today he felt much closer to normal and he thought a walk would do him a bit of good.

It was a lovely day; the sun was out and there was a slight breeze as Remus made his way down the steps of the castle toward the Black Lake. As he neared the water, he noticed another figure walking towards the school from the gates. He shaded his eyes with his hand and squinted, trying to determine who it was. He smiled when he she got a bit closer.

"Hermione," he called as she waved, having recognized him almost at the same time. She smiled as she reached his side.

"Hello, Remus. How's the tutoring going?"

"Very well," he said. "The students are catching on rather quickly." Hermione smiled.

"I'm sure that has more to do with the teacher, than the students," she said. He blushed slightly but smiled at her compliment.

"What are you doing at the castle today?" he asked. "I didn't know Minerva had anyone working on anything today."

"She doesn't," Hermione said. "I was hoping she'd let me check the library for something."

"Ah," Remus said in understanding. "Well, I'm sure she wouldn't mind. She's in class right now, but I'm fairly certain Madame Pince is in the library." Hermione grimaced a bit and Remus chuckled remembering their encounter with the librarian a few days after the Battle.

"Maybe I'll wait until Professor McGonagall is done with class," Hermione said. "It is a beautiful day today."

"That it is," Remus agreed. "I decided to walk around the grounds a bit. Would you like to join me?"

"Yes, thanks," Hermione said with a smile. They fell into step together. "How's Teddy?"

"Growing way too fast," Remus said. "He was two months old this past Monday."

"That's right, I'd forgotten," Hermione said. "I can't believe it."

"Neither can I," Remus admitted. "But he's doing quite well and Andromeda adores being able to take care of him. It helps her, I think." Hermione nodded. "What have you been doing?"

"I went and visited the three Muggle-born first years last week," Hermione said.

"How are they doing?" Remus asked in concern.

"Claire and David are all right, considering, but it's Annie that I'm worried about. Her sister is keeping her isolated from the other two and when I tried to visit to see how Annie was doing, her sister refused to let me talk to her and told me not to come back. Then she slammed the door in my face."

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Remus said, putting a hand on her arm.

"I just want to help her," Hermione said quietly. "I understand why her sister is upset, but she wouldn't even listen to what I had to say."

"Sometimes, we can't help everyone, no matter how much we would like to," Remus said.

"I know," Hermione replied with a sigh. "Harry told me I should just give it some time."

"Sound advice," Remus said. They walked in silence for a few moments, enjoying the quiet of the afternoon.

"What about the search for your parents?" Remus asked after a few minutes. "Have you looked into that?" Hermione sighed again.

"I'm starting to wish I had given them a specific city in Australia, instead of just the whole of the country," she said.

"No luck then?"

"I thought that the internet might help," she said and Remus gave her a quizzical look. Hermione tried to explain it to him, but he wasn't completely sure that he understood. He was aware of what a computer was, but the internet was unfamiliar. It sounded quite fascinating, however.

"But even with all the information I can access," Hermione continued, "it's still been difficult. I don't know where to start looking."

"Perhaps the Australian Ministry could help," Remus suggested.

"Maybe, but I don't have any idea who to contact," Hermione said.

"Have you spoken to Kingsley?" Remus asked.

"Kingsley is much too busy to worry about finding my parents," Hermione said with a shake of her head.

"Perhaps Percy Weasley then," Remus said. "I've no doubt he would at least have the name of someone you could contact or if not, he would be able to find out." Hermione's brow furrowed in thought.

"You might be right," she said. "I'll talk to him tonight at dinner." They stopped near the beech tree that the Marauders had often sat under to study during their Hogwarts years. Well, Remus had studied. James and Sirius had tried to impress girls.

"Ron and Harry and I used to sit out here and study," Hermione said, wistful smile on her face. "Well, I studied at any rate." Remus chuckled.

"That sounds familiar," he said.

"Yes, I always guessed that you were the more bookish one of the group," she said with a grin. Remus nodded fondly.

"If they weren't planning pranks, they were trying to impress girls," he said. "One particular girl in James' case, of course." He fell silent, looking out over the water.

"You still miss them," Hermione said quietly. Remus simply nodded. Hermione shifted closer to him, so that their arms were brushing against one another and Remus was grateful for her simple attempt at comfort. They stood without speaking for a few minutes, Remus paying silent homage to his friends, before he pulled in a breath and turned towards her once again.

"What book are you looking for?" he asked. "Perhaps I can help." They took to walking again, this time back towards the castle.

"Harry and Ron have been so busy with Auror training and Ginny has been helping George at the shop this week," Hermione explained. "When I get frustrated with the search for my parents, I've been going to Grimmauld Place. I've been doing a bit of cleaning and organizing, trying to fix the damage that the Death Eaters did. I thought maybe Harry might like to live there some day." Remus looked at her in surprise. Hermione caught his expression because she continued quickly.

"I know, the place is horrid, but it's also Sirius' house," she said. "It's where Harry got to have a family, at least for a little while. If it was cleaned and redecorated, it might actually be nice." She bit her lip and looked at Remus hesitantly. He knew that she was unsure if she was doing the right thing. To be honest, he didn't know just how Harry would react to it.

"Have you talked to Harry about this?" Remus asked. She nodded.

"He didn't seem overly excited about it, but he didn't dismiss the idea either," she said. "That's what I've been trying to find. I want to figure out how to get the House-Elf heads and Mrs. Black's portrait off the walls." Remus looked skeptical.

"If even Dumbledore couldn't get rid of the portrait, I'm not sure what help you hope to find in the library." Hermione sighed.

"That's why I searched Grimmauld's library first," she said. "I thought that maybe the charm might have been in one of the books there, but I didn't find anything."

"We went through the library before the Weasleys moved in," Remus said. "There were plenty of books that we didn't want sitting around for teenagers to find." Hermione's eyes lit up.

"Do you know what happened to them?" she asked.

"I believe Dumbledore took them to store in his office," Remus said. "Minerva might know where they are." He glanced at his watch. "She should be just about finished with class now."

"Thanks, Remus," Hermione said with a wide smile before she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. She turned and hurried up the steps into the castle. Remus, feeling a bit disconcerted by her reaction, stood frozen for a moment, before he slowly followed her.

Hermione stepped off the stairs that led to the Headmistress' office with a sigh. The books from Grimmauld Place that Professor McGonagall had given Hermione had done nothing but make Hermione nauseous. They hadn't yielded the counter-spell she had been looking for and Hermione was beginning to think that the sticking charm had been Sirius' mother's own invention. If that were the case, Hermione would never find the solution in a book.

Of course, Hermione knew that the professor hadn't handed over all the books. There were more that Professor McGonagall had deemed absolutely unsafe for Hermione to even think about looking at. A few years ago, Hermione likely would have been incensed by this, however, she was well aware that there were books that would kill a Muggle-born just for touching them and she held no illusions that the Blacks wouldn't have had a few in their possession.

"Any luck?" Hermione turned to see Remus walking towards her.

"No," she said. "I spent an hour going through those vile books and nothing. I think one was covered in House-Elf skin." Remus grimaced.

"Yes, I think I remember that one. I'm sorry you didn't find what you were looking for."

"Madame Pince set aside a few books for me, but I'm not holding out much hope," Hermione said. Remus' brow furrowed in thought.

"You know, you might want to speak to Andromeda," he said. Hermione cocked her head in question. "I know she spent quite a bit of time in that house as a child. She was well aware of the House-Elf beheading tradition at any rate." Hermione's eyes lit up.

"I never even thought of that," she said with a grin. "Thank you, Remus!" For the second time that day, she threw her arms around him and hugged him. This time, he was a bit less shocked and patted her back lightly before she pulled away from him.

"I'm actually on my way home now, if you'd like to come with me," he said.

"Andromeda won't mind?" Hermione questioned.

"Not at all."

"All right, then," Hermione said brightly, following Remus from the castle.

"I have no idea about the portrait, I am afraid," Andromeda said. "That was after I had been disowned. The House-Elf heads though," she paused with a shudder. "While I was never present for a ceremony, Kreacher had been the House-elf since before I was born, you see, I heard all about it, in detail."

"Who on earth would tell you something like that?" Remus asked, horrified. Andromeda gave him a pointed look.

"Bellatrix," Hermione said grimly.

"Yes," Andromeda replied. "My sister often found joy in terrorizing Narcissa and myself when we were young."

"Do you know how I can remove them?" Hermione asked.

"You need House-elf magic," Andromeda said. "A House-elf directly attached to the Black line."

"So, Kreacher," Hermione said with a sigh. She knew the old House-elf was still working at Hogwarts and while his attitude towards her had changed somewhat, she doubted she could get him to do what she asked. He had wanted to have his own head on the wall at one point, after all.

"Yes," Andromeda replied. "Besides the wonderful practice of mounting the heads to the wall, a current House-elf was the one that was forced to do it."

"That's horrible!" Hermione exclaimed. Andromeda nodded in agreement.

"Yes, Bella said it promoted obedience or some such rot."

"So, Kreacher would know how to remove them?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," Andromeda replied.

"I know he wouldn't listen to me if I asked," Hermione said. "But do you think he might obey you, since you're a Black?"

"I am sure I could get Kreacher to do any number of things, regardless of my status on the family tapestry, but this is not one of them." Hermione's heart sunk.

"Why not?" Remus asked.

"Only the head of the family can give that particular order," Andromeda said.

"Harry," Remus said.

"Possibly," Andromeda replied. "Although, in this case, since Aunt Walburga's portrait is still around, Kreacher might defer to her."

"And there's no way that she would order him to do it," Hermione said with a sigh. "So, we're back to removing the portrait."

"It wouldn't hurt to have Harry try," Remus suggested.

"I really wanted this to be a surprise," Hermione said, looking dejected. Remus' brow furrowed. He understood about wanting to surprise Harry, but he wasn't sure why this was so important to her. Before he could ask, there was a cry from upstairs.

"I'll get him," Remus said as Andromeda made to rise from the table.

"I should go, Molly will be expecting me for dinner," Hermione said. "Thank you for your help, both of you."

"Of course, Hermione," Andromeda said.

"Good luck with the tutoring, Remus," Hermione said. "I'll see you later."

"Goodbye, Hermione." Remus gave her a smile and then turned to the stairs to tend to Teddy.

Hermione lay in her bed that night, contemplating her problem, long after everyone else was asleep. She suspected Andromeda was right in that even if Harry ordered Kreacher to remove the House-elf heads from the wall, he wouldn't do so as long as Mrs. Black's portrait would object. And Hermione knew she would object. Vehemently.

While Hermione had been looking for a charm that would remove the portrait from the wall, she had also been researching if there were ways to destroy it where it hung. Turpentine had been her first thought, but as the painting was magical, there were charms in place to prevent such a mishap. She had actually gotten a pocketknife and attempted to cut the thing from its frame, all while Mrs. Black shrieked in indignation, but apparently, it was warded against that too. She'd asked Bill about it and he had told her it was common with the old families to weave protection spells into the canvas to prevent younger generations from just slashing any relatives they hadn't liked. Attempting to burn it likely wouldn't work either, not to mention she risked setting the entire place ablaze in the process. Hermione sighed and turned on her side. The curtains certainly worked to quiet the portrait after an outburst, but they needed a way to keep it covered all the time.

Hermione suddenly sat bolt upright in bed. Why couldn't they just cover the portrait up permanently? Because of the portrait's placement on the wall in the entrance hall, Hermione could simply brick it over. The only thing she wasn't sure of was how it would affect the overall structure of the house. She knew it was magically enlarged. She would have to ask Mr. Weasley about it.

Hermione lay back down with a smile, thinking of the irony that she might get rid of the magical menace with a simple Muggle solution. Sirius would have loved it. She would have to speak to Harry about it now, though. Cleaning and doing repairs was one thing. She wasn't going to make major structural changes without his approval. Sighing in contentment, Hermione closed her eyes and let sleep finally claim her.

14 June 1998

"You want to what?" Ron asked.

"Brick over it," Hermione repeated. "I talked to your dad and he didn't think it would cause any problems with the structure of the house." It wasn't until Sunday, when Harry and Ron had the day off, that Hermione had finally found time to talk to Harry about her idea.

"It would definitely be an improvement," Harry said.

"Why do you want to, though?" Ron asked.

"I just thought Harry might like to live there someday," Hermione said.

"In that depressing old place?" Ron said incredulously. "Why would anyone want to live there?"

"Well, obviously, part of the plan is to fix it up so it's not depressing," Hermione said with an eye roll.

"Well, yeah, but why bother?" Ron continued. "I mean, Harry could buy a flat anywhere." Hermione caught Harry's slight grimace at the casual mention of his wealth and elbowed Ron in the ribs. Ron scowled at her as he rubbed his side. "That hurt."

"It was meant to, you prat," Ginny said from across the room. So far, she had been quiet about the matter of the house. She turned to Harry. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know," Harry said, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, I always thought I'd get a place of my own, sometime, but I never really thought of where." He sighed. "I don't know if I could, I mean, Sirius hated it there."

"Sirius had horrible history there," Hermione pointed out. "It really could be a nice house if it was redecorated."

"It is closer to the Ministry," Ron said, looking contemplative now.

"We can Floo and Apparate, mate," Harry said. "I really don't think distance makes a lot of difference." Ron shrugged as if he wasn't sure he agreed. "Besides, I kind of like staying here." He glanced at Ginny and gave her a smile.

"Sure, you do, because you can snog your girlfriend whenever you want," Ron said with a snort. "What about in September when Ginny and Hermione go back to school? Will you like it as much then?"

"Your mum is an excellent cook," Harry pointed out.

"True," Ron agreed. "But there's nothing that says we can't come here for meals. In fact, Mum would probably insist on it."

"What makes you think I'm going to ask you to live with me?" Harry asked. Hermione bit back a laugh, knowing he was kidding. The amusement on Ginny's face showed that she did as well. Ron however, looked shocked.

"Oh, well, erm, right, I mean, of course you'd want to live by yourself," he stuttered out as he turned red.

"I'm kidding, you git," Harry said with a laugh, throwing a pillow at Ron's head.

"Tosser," Ron scowled as he threw the pillow back.

"So, you want me to go ahead with it then?" Hermione asked before things to devolve into a full-on pillow fight.

"Sure, Hermione, give it a go," Harry said. "Even if I don't live there, it will be a vast improvement."

"Thanks, Harry," Hermione said, rising and giving him a hug.

"Whatever you need, let me know and you can take it out of my vault," Harry said, hugging her back. "I'll set it up with the goblins." Hermione stepped back from him.

"Are you sure that's wise?" she asked. The goblins were still furious about the destruction of the bank and the disappearance of their dragon, even after Harry had offered to pay for the damages. The last time he'd gone to the bank to try and get money from his vault, he'd been barred from entering. Thankfully, Bill was still able to use Harry's key as he had after Voldemort's return. Unfortunately, it meant that Harry hadn't been able to get into the Black or the Potter vaults, the latter of which had come into his possession once he came of age. While he still had plenty of gold in his personal vault, he had wanted to do an inventory of the contents of the other vaults, especially the Potter one.

"Right," he said. "Maybe I'll just have Bill take care of it for now."

"Good idea," Ginny said.

"Dinner!" Molly called up the stairs. Ron jumped up immediately and almost ran out the door.

"And he wants to move out on his own?" Ginny scoffed. Hermione and Harry chuckled as they followed their friend.

16 June 1998

Remus stepped into the house after Apparating into the back garden. Tutoring had again gone well that day and he felt quite confident that the students he had been helping would do well on their exams next week. He only had four days left to teach and he had to admit he would miss it quite a lot.

"Hello, Remus," Andromeda said as Remus walked into the kitchen. "How was your day?"

"Just fine," Remus replied, bending down to smile at Teddy who was in the infant seat sitting on the table. His son rewarded him with a return smile, then waved his hands in the air, hitting one of the toys Andromeda had floating in the air above him. Teddy blinked in surprise and Remus chuckled as he unbuckled the straps and lifted him out.

"There is a letter for you from the Ministry," Andromeda said as she stirred something on the stove. "Just arrived a few minutes ago." Remus frowned as he picked up the thick envelope with the Ministry's seal. He opened it and pulled out the parchment inside. When he reached the end of the letter, he sunk down into his chair and read it again.

"What is it?" Andromeda said, her brow furrowed in concern.

"I, I," Remus trailed off and shook his head, then handed her the letter, while grasping tighter to Teddy. Andromeda read it, her eyes widening. She gasped and brought a hand to her mouth, then lowered the letter moment later.

"Remus," she whispered. He looked up at her, still in shock. Teddy squirmed and finally brought Remus from his stupor.

"An Order of Merlin?" he questioned. "That is what it said, isn't it?" Andromeda nodded, tears in her eyes.

"First Class," she said.

"I don't, I don't understand," he said.

"Your role in the war, Remus," she said.

"But I didn't do anything more than anyone else," he continued, still mystified.

"Of course, you did," Andromeda replied. "All those times you went to the werewolves and risked your life doing so."

"But they still joined Voldemort," Remus said.

"You know that not all of them did," Andromeda said. "Those under Greyback's thrall did, yes, but there were plenty you convinced to remain neutral." Remus looked down at the letter in his hand again.

"I don't deserve this," he said.

"You do," Andromeda insisted. "And I will not hear another thing about it."

"But there were so many others," Remus protested.

"And they likely got the award as well," she said. She put a hand on his shoulder. "Please, accept this, Remus. You do deserve it." Remus pulled Teddy closer to him and leaned down and kissed the top of the baby's head as he stared at the letter on the table. Before he could say anything else, an owl flew in the window.

"It's another one," Andromeda said in surprise. She took the letter from the owl's leg and gave him a treat. Hooting gratefully, the owl flew back the way it had come. "It is addressed to both of us."

Remus knew, without Andromeda even opening it, what it would say. He breathed in Teddy's scent to try and calm himself as Andromeda opened the envelope. She pulled the letter out and opened it with shaking hands. Sinking into the chair next to Remus, she began to read, covering her mouth with her hand and tearing up again.

"Nymphadora," Andromeda finally said. "They have awarded her one as well." Bowing his head, Remus began to weep silently. "For her service to the Aurors and the Order and for giving her life in battle." When Remus finally looked up, there were tears running down Andromeda's cheeks. She reached out and took his free hand, grasping it tightly. She managed a watery smile.

"I am so proud," she said. "Of both of you." Remus couldn't respond, only grip her hand harder. They sat that way for a few minutes until Teddy began to fuss.

"He is likely hungry," Andromeda said, giving Remus' hand one last squeeze before she rose to ready Teddy's bottle. Remus wiped at his eyes, regaining his composure before he looked at the letter again. The ceremony was in just over two weeks, on the second of July, the two-month anniversary of the Final Battle. Remus sighed heavily into Teddy's hair, before shifting his son and accepting the bottle Andromeda held out to him.

The Floo flared green and Hermione looked up from the book she was reading as Ron and then Harry stepped from the fireplace. She glanced at the clock in the corner and realized they were home early today. It wasn't even half past four.

"You're early," Hermione said as she rose to greet the two of them.

"Yeah, feels good," Harry said glancing around the room.

"Ginny's still at the shop," Hermione told him and smirked as she saw his shoulders slump just a little. "She should be home soon, though."

"So why are you early?" Hermione asked.

"Dunno," Ron said. "Kingsley came by and said we deserved a break. Then he gave me these letters and told us to go home." Ron pulled a stack from inside his robes. Hermione's brow furrowed.

"What are they?" she asked.

"I don't know, but Neville got one too," Harry explained. "There's one for almost everyone. Kingsley said we should wait and open them together."

"It's not some kind of victory celebration, is it?" Hermione asked, her nose wrinkling.

"I hope not," Harry said with a scowl. "If it is, I'm not going."

"That's something Fudge would do," Ron said. "I don't think Kingsley would." Ron shifted through the pile, glancing at the names on the envelopes. "It's something official though."

"Maybe you should tell your mother," Hermione said.

"Yeah, there's one in here for her," Ron said. "Dad and George too. Oh, and another one addressed to Mum and Dad. Plus, one for each of the three of us."

"Why is there one for both your parents and then one for each of them individually?" Hermione asked. "That's strange."

"Who knows," Ron said with a shrug. "The Ministry has done stranger things."

"I suppose," Hermione said looking at the letters suspiciously. The Floo flared again and Ginny stepped through.

"You're home," she said in surprise when she saw Harry. "Why are you home?"

"Good to see you too," Harry said wryly.

"That's not what I mean," she said slapping him lightly on the arm. "I mean, what happened? Did someone get hurt?"

"No," Harry said. "Kingsley just sent us home early." He stepped towards her and took her hand. "Want a walk before dinner?" Ginny smiled.

"Sure, just let me tell Mum I'm home." She kissed him lightly before she left the room. Harry smiled after her.

"I'm going to go change out of my robes," he said. "Tell Gin, yeah?"

"Sure, Harry," Hermione said as he left the room. She turned to Ron.

"I'd ask you if you fancied a walk, but I don't want to run into the two of them doing Merlin knows what," Ron said with a grimace. Hermione chuckled and sat down on the couch next to him. He put an arm around her shoulders and she leaned into him.

"This is nice too," she said. They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"How's it going at Grimmauld?" Ron asked.

"I haven't started yet, actually," she said. "I've been going through telephone listings for Australia."

"Sounds…fun," Ron said. Hermione laughed again.

"It's dead boring, is what it is," she said. "But at least I feel like I'm doing something."

"Did that woman from the Ministry have anything to help?" Ron asked. Percy had been able to help Hermione get in touch with someone from the Australian Ministry and Hermione had spoken to her last week. The Australian Ministry didn't have any more contact with Muggles than the British Ministry did, however.

"She's one that gave me the telephone listings," Hermione said. "So far there's no Monica or Wendell Wilkins listed anywhere."

"I don't understand," Ron said, brow furrowed. "I thought that's where you sent them."

"I did," Hermione said. "There are plenty of Wilkins' listed, just with no first name or initial. There are also a few W. Wilkins. And then there's the possibility that the name was altered slightly to Wilkens or Wilkinson or something or that they changed their first names. Or maybe they didn't list their number at all."

"I thought everyone did," Ron said. "That's why they have those big books you can look it up in." Hermione smiled. At least she knew Ron had been listening when she explained to him how telephone books worked.

"You can have an unlisted number, if you request it with the telephone company," she explained. "Then your name isn't in the book."

"How will you find them, then?" Ron asked in concern.

"I don't know," Hermione admitted. Ron's arm tightened around her. She rested her head on his shoulder for a moment. "I'm probably going to have to make a trip there."

"I figured," Ron said. "When?"

"Not for a while yet," Hermione said. "I've still got some research to do to at least try and narrow it down. And it will take a while to get an International Portkey." Ron nodded.

"I should go have a shower," he said. "We were dueling all afternoon."

"Do you want me to give the letters to your mum?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Ron said as he stood. He held out a hand to her and pulled her to stand. Then he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her quite thoroughly. Hermione had a bit of a dazed expression on her face when he pulled away. He chuckled before he kissed her quickly once more. "I'll be back in a bit."

"What are they, Arthur?" Molly asked, nervously wringing her hands.

"Only one way to find out, isn't there?" Arthur replied, as he slit open his letter. The rest of those that had the letters did the same. Hermione, who read a bit more quickly than everyone else, gasped first. Molly wasn't far behind.

"Sweet, Circe," she said, bringing a hand to her mouth.

"Blimey," George said. Harry was silent. Ginny, who was reading over Harry's shoulder, gripped his arm.

"First Class?" Ron questioned. Hermione nodded, dumbfounded. She would have expected this for Harry, he had killed Voldemort after all, but for her and Ron? She wasn't sure what to think.

"Mum?" Ginny said.

"For service to the Order and actions during the Final Battle," Molly nearly whispered. "Second Class."

"Mine is the same," Arthur said, looking shocked.

"Mine too except there's also a bit in there about the products we developed for the Order," George said. "Second Class."

"Open the other one, Mum," Ginny said. Molly picked up the other envelope with shaking hands. She pulled out the parchment inside and began to read, starting to cry only halfway through. Arthur squatted down beside her and took her in his arms. Percy picked up the letter.

"It's for Fred," he said, lips trembling. "For service to the Order and giving his life for the cause." Percy paused. "First Class." Molly began to sob. Ginny, who was between George and Harry, put her arms around her brother's shoulders and George hid his face in her hair. Ron had gone white and Hermione gripped his hand. Harry had remained silent, staring at the letter on the table in front of him.

"Harry?" Hermione said quietly. She put her free hand on his shoulder in concern.

"I don't want it," Harry whispered.

"What do you mean?" Hermione said.

"I don't want it, Hermione."

"But, Harry, you," Hermione began. Harry shook his head.

"This isn't what I want," he said. Ginny looked up at him.

"But, Harry, you defeated Voldemort," she said. Everyone else at the table had turned to look at Harry. Even Molly's sobs had subsided. Harry looked around at all of them for a moment before he stood, shoving his chair back from the table.

"I don't want it," he insisted before he fled out the back door.