Chapter 12 – Parties
An: I do not own Harry Potter
"Harry!" Hermione screamed sitting up in bed frantically. It took her a few seconds to realise that she wasn't in the room of requirement. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her rapid breathing. She tried to hold onto some of the details in the dream but her mind pushed it away quickly. She was always good at remembering her dreams and she didn't understand why this one always faded so fast. She reached across to her bedside table where she kept the diary that she used to record the details of that dream. Sometimes if she reread her previous notations it would jog a memory of the dream.
She had no such luck today and put her diary back on the table next to the clock that told her it was 6:45am. She had slept for five hours which was far better than what she had been getting in the last few months. After her usual morning routine, she headed down to the kitchen for breakfast. She found Draco anxiously pacing in the kitchen while the house elves all watched their master go back and forth. She thought Misty and Dobby looked quite adorable as their heads turned from side to side, their eyes never breaking contact with the Slytherin wizard.
She knew Draco had to have been rattled by the events the night before. He had come across last night as disinterested but it must have reminded him of Crumpet. For Draco, finding Remus bloodied and beaten was a repeat of an incident that had happened six years ago after he got out of Azkaban but the only difference was that wizard hadn't survived. Draco had been staying at the Leaky Cauldron with his old cell mate from Azkaban, Phoso Crumpet. Crumpet was a kind old wizard who had been accused of stealing secret documents from the Ministry during the war with Voldemort. He had claimed that he was under the influence of the Imperius curse but they didn't believe him. He eventually admitted that Lucius had threatened the life of his granddaughter if he didn't provide them with top secret documents. Scared, the old man did the only thing he thought he could, he agreed. Phoso had not missed the irony that Malfoy's son was his cell mate.
The older wizard did not hold a grudge though and had helped the young Malfoy adjust to prison life. Considering Draco was extremely spoilt, there were so many shocks for him. Phoso had shared his food with him and given him advice on how to keep the Dementors away. They had talked a lot and when Draco was being released he pulled some strings so that Crumpet could be released with him. When Barteby had first made the initial offer to Malfoy it had been very tempting for him to fall back into his old criminal ways. It was actually Crumpet that had reminded Draco how hard life was in Azkaban and that he should do everything possible to avoid living with those Dementors again.
Draco wisely said no and continued about fixing his life. A fortnight after the initial confrontation, he had received a message to meet Barteby in Knockturn Alley. The Blonde would have ignored the letter if it hadn't come with Crumpet's family ring. Draco immediately headed out. Hermione spotted him heading into Knockturn Alley and assumed he was up to no good.
She was close enough to hear the anguish in his voice when he discovered four of Barteby's men using the cruciatus curse on his new friend. Crumpet was bleeding severely from the side and his features were barely recognizable because of the heavy bruising he had on his face. Crumpet pleaded with Draco to leave and not give in to their request. He told Draco that his life wasn't worth the rest of Draco's. This was the turning point in both of their lives. After everything the older wizard had done for Draco, he realised that it would have been very wrong to let Crumpet die to save his own skin. The young Malfoy drew his wand and decided to fight. The wizards tossed Crumpet aside and focused on Draco. The poor Slytherin was no match for them.
Hermione could hardly believe that Malfoy was standing up for someone but Slytherin or not, four on one odds were not good and she would not let a fellow wizard who was trying to do good, face those odds alone. She joined the fight without a second's hesitation. She was surprised to find that the Aurors joined at the same time and the wizards were subdued. They found out after the attack that they were going to kill Draco regardless of what decision he made. The Slytherin didn't care, he only wanted to attend to his friend.
Hermione found herself tagging along with Draco to St. Mungo's. She remembered the ghostly look on his face when he had been told that Phoso had moved on to the next great adventure. She felt something tug at her heart and an overwhelming compulsion to comfort Draco. She took him by the arm and led him into the muggle world. He hadn't even protested. He was introduced to his first cappuccino. She had expected him to call her a mudblood but he hadn't. Instead they spent the night talking about Barteby and how Draco wanted to make him pay for what he had done. It was that night that they decided that Draco would be a double agent for the Order and she would join the Aurors.
Hermione knew it wasn't because of her, or Luna or the Weasleys that he changed. It was because of Crumpet and the kindness that the man had showed him despite his history. He had been the only one willing to look past the Malfoy name and try to see the scared boy that resided inside. Hermione also realised that Crumpet sacrificed his life so Draco would have a good shot at living his. She could apply that to her life. Harry had left so he wouldn't drown her in his sorrows.
"Draco," she said softly interrupting his pacing. When his head lifted he could see that his eyes were red and bloodshot. "Is it Remus?" she asked fearfully.
"No, they said he would be ok," Draco informed her.
Hermione closed the distance between them and pulled him into a hug. "It's ok," she whispered into his ear.
"No it's not ok," Draco yelled pushing Hermione away. "Don't you get it! I killed her," he said.
"What?" Hermione asked. She had no idea what Draco was talking about but the agony in his voice was clear.
Draco pulled a piece of parchment out of his robe and threw it at her. Hermione caught it easily. It was a note from Primus stating that all traitors will be killed.
"I stole the second portkey from Priscilla. I seduced her and then took the invitation out of her robes while she was sleeping. Her battered body was found early this morning," Draco said in anguish.
"Draco, Primus did that not you," Hermione said gently.
"It was a consequence of my action. I may as well have fired the curse myself when I took the invitation," he said in anguish.
"You could not have known that he would have her killed," Hermione said approaching him slowly and taking both of her hands in his.
"But I should have! It's what my father would have done," Draco countered tears leaking out the side of his eyes.
"But you aren't your father Draco," Hermione said squeezing his hands gently as she pleaded with him, "You're better than him. The fact that it didn't even cross your mind shows how different the two of you are."
He pushed her away, "I'm going to spend a little time by Natalie."
Hermione watched him flee the kitchen.
"Mistress?" Dobby asked, the question about his masters state of mind was conveyed in Dobby's worried eyes.
"Don't worry Dobby. We'll take care of him," Hermione said.
St. Mungo's waiting room
Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna and Tonks were in the family waiting room. The healer in charge of Remus was waiting for the latest round of scans to be completed before she gave them a full update on Remus's status. They had only been told when they arrived that his condition wasn't life threatening. Tonks was on the verge of busting the doors down to see her husband when Harry pulled her into the waiting room. The healers needed to do their jobs and they wouldn't accomplish that if Tonks was in there with them. He distracted her by telling her about their time in the muggle world starting with the 2 years he spent as a DEA undercover agent in Colombia before moving onto the one year he spent working with Interpol in Austria.
"Harry with so much muggle experience I'm sure you can become an Auror quickly. We're really swamped. A new class is supposed to graduate in three months. I can talk to the trainers and see if I can get you in, that is, if that's still what you want to do," Tonks offered sincerely. She was seated facing the door so she could see the healers approach.
"I don't think I could do anything else," Harry admitted. After his talk with Hermione the night before, he was determined to become an Auror. He would not disappoint her again.
"Though there would be one drawback," Luna pointed out with a small smile.
"What's that?" Ron asked curiously.
"How would Harry feel being ordered around by Hermione?" Luna expounded.
"Oh that's not unusual, she bossed us around all seven years at Hogwarts," Ron stated matter-of-factly in a tone that Hermione was known to use.
Harry understood what Luna was trying to point out to him. It wouldn't be the same as Hogwarts. He wouldn't be the leader anymore. Hermione would be in charge and it would be her lead he had to follow even if he didn't like her orders.
"I can do it," The raven haired wizard stated with a determined look on his face.
Tonks gave him a small smile before standing quickly and rushing to the door. A group of healers was making their way towards the room. Harry instantly recognised Cho Chang. She was as beautiful as he remembered. She was also very taken if he was to go by the growing baby bump she had. He would guess she was six months along.
"How is Remus?" Tonks asked immediately.
"He suffered quite a few broken bones and a lot of muscle damage. Nothing life threatening, but he will be here for a while, especially with the full moon in three days. We aren't sure how the transformation will affect his injuries but we are hoping to have most of them healed by then," Cho said to her.
Tonks nodded solemnly, "Can I see him?"
"Yes, but only one visitor at a time," another healer instructed looking at the large group that had gathered around them to hear the update. "He's still pretty weak. He's in room 3 on this floor."
Tonks wasted no time, quickly rushing out of the room without a word to anyone. The group of healers followed after her but Cho decided to stay behind.
"So it's true. You are back," Cho said to Harry.
"You heard pretty quickly," Luna commented suspiciously.
"Front page of the Daily Prophet Lovegood," Cho replied acidly. Her lips curled in disgust and her eyes narrowed at Luna. Whatever prettiness Harry had seen before had disappeared completely from her face. There was definitely something wrong between her and Luna.
"You're a healer now?" Harry said trying to ease the tension that formed.
"Yes, it seemed like the right thing to do," Cho replied with a wry smile.
"It's hard to believe you know right from wrong," Luna quipped.
"Don't judge me on that high horse of yours Lovegood," Cho spat at her.
"You're lucky I have a healthy respect for life and pregnant witches or I would hex you into the next century," Luna threatened.
"Ladies," Ginny said getting in between the two. "We're not here to fight. I'm sure you have other patients to see Cho," she said looking at Cho before turning a stern eye on Luna, "We're just here to support our friends, Remus and Tonks."
Cho lifted her chin high, "It was nice seeing you Harry. Perhaps we could catch up sometime."
Harry gave her a fake smile, "Perhaps."
As soon as she was out the room Ginny rounded on Luna, "What was that about?"
Luna discreetly cast the muffliato spell before she started her explanation. "That snake and her best friend, Marietta Edgecomb, have held a grudge against Hermione since the DA incident. There's a renowned Healer here. He patched Hermione up quite a few times after bad missions. They started dating and it was getting pretty serious but Hermione was forced to break it off after he got Cho pregnant. Cho claims she was with him first and Hermione broke them up. Cho says he finally came to his senses and went back to her but a disguised Draco beat the shit out of him and he admitted that Cho had seduced him and the result of the one night stand was her pregnancy. He's an honourable man so he married her."
"That's horrible," Ginny said. It was hard to believe that Cho was capable of something like that.
Ron's face was stormy, "I might have to actually thank Malfoy for something," he said with clenched fists.
"We always take care of each other. It's how we've survived," Luna said.
A sombre mood fell over the room as they waited for Tonks to return.
"Ginny, do you want to work at the Daily Prophet?" Luna asked suddenly. It was a complete 180 from their previous conversation and it took everyone in the room a while to realise exactly what it was the blonde witch had suggested.
"Uh, I don't know. I worked for a beauty magazine once and I enjoyed that but I don't think the Prophet would have the same feel," she said as her perfectly shaped eyebrows creased in the centre of her forehead.
"You could write a beauty column. I'm sure it will be a welcomed change away from some the news the Prophet offers today. You might also be able to convince some of the writers not to be too hard on the Aurors, particularly Hermione. Marietta loves to run Hermione's name through the mud," Luna revealed.
"That little sneak works for the prophet now?" Ron interrupted.
"Yes, she's the real reason I think Ginny should get a job there. Cho will tell you she's an excellent reporter, always getting the scoop on big issues, like the death of a high ranking Ministry official last month but what we really want to know is who her sources are?" Luna explained. "I'm sure she's the one that wrote the article Cho referenced about Harry's return."
"So you want me to snoop around?" Ginny asked excitedly.
"No," Luna replied firmly. "I want you to work there and keep track of who Marietta meets. If we can find her source, we might be able to find Primus but under no circumstances should you 'snoop'," Luna emphasised. Mrs. Weasley didn't deserve to lose her only daughter especially considering that she had been gone for the last seven years.
Ginny's features fell, "That sounds boring."
"It's an idea and it's your decision what you want to do. I was merely suggesting a potential option that would help The Order," Luna stated.
Tonks returned and then they all took turns going into the see Remus before they left.
Ginny Weasley sat alone in the kitchen at Malfoy Manor with the Daily Prophet in front of her. She was seriously considering Luna's proposition. She had read the newspaper from front to back, something she had never done before in her life. Written across the front page was an article about the return of England's Hero, Harry Potter, with a very good picture of him in St. Mungo's. Ginny wondered if Cho had taken the picture. Luna had indeed been correct. The article was written by Marietta Edgecomb and the witch had lambasted the Auror department, particularly Hermione, and Magical Law Enforcement for the current crime situation. She went on to theorise that Harry's return was a good sign and that he had returned to save England again. Other reporters had also commented on England's hero and Ginny thought it quite pathetic the way they idolised Harry. She wondered if she had been that bad when she was in Hogwarts.
Luna was right about a beauty column improving the newspaper. It was filled with dreary, depressing stories and she had to force herself to read it all the way through. Many ideas had occurred to her on how to improve the paper and she quickly started scribbling her ideas down with a quill. After she had five pieces of parchments full of ideas in front of her, she realised she had found something she really wanted to do. She just needed to convince the Editor at the newspaper of hire her.
She had most of the evening to herself since Harry and Ron had gone to Hermione's mother's party. Ginny didn't really know Mrs. Granger that well so she didn't feel comfortable going. She knew they would return around 10pm since they had to attend the party that the twins were throwing in their honour so it would give her enough time to flesh out her ideas and prepare her pitch to the Editor.
"May I ask what's got you so busy?" a voice startled her from the doorway.
Ginny looked up and was met with a pair of warm brown eyes.
"Neville, what brings you here?" she asked glancing at the clock on the wall. She had been working for three hours straight.
"The twins' party, I told Luna I would meet her here," he explained to her from the doorway.
Ginny felt a bit disappointed when Neville mentioned he was there to meet Luna but she covered it with a smile. "Come have a seat," she said pointing to the chair next to her. She started gathering her parchment pages together. She had made quite a mess of the table.
"What is all this?" Neville asked taking a seat next to her.
"Research for a job," Ginny said with a wide smile. "So you're going to the party with Luna?" She queried as she gave him a quick look over. His hair was neatly combed and he wore a loose navy blue shirt that hid his round tummy nicely. It look really sexy on him. His complimenting black pants just added to his overall appeal.
"Yeah, Luna and I have an arrangement," he explained.
"An arrangement?" the redhead queried with an arched eyebrow.
"Not like that!" Neville responded horrified.
"You'll have to elaborate Mr. Longbottom," Ginny said in a prim voice.
The Herbology Professor sighed, "You have a mischievous streak just like the twins."
"Glad you noticed, now spill the beans on you and Luna," Ginny said dryly.
"Luna has … well …. she's not quite … no that's not the word. She's …. no that's not the word I want either … she," he stammered looking for the right words to describe the situation.
"Spit it out Neville," Ginny said impatiently as her fingers started tapping away on the table.
"She's afraid of men," Neville blurted out. "No that came out wrong as well. She's afraid of making the same mistake she made with Nicholas."
Silence descended the room as Ginny realised he was talking about the wizard that had created the virus that caused the death of her father. When Neville sensed she was comfortable he continued with his explanation.
"She likes me to approve of her dates. I was the only person that didn't like Nicholas and she feels that it was because on some unconscious level, I realised what he was truly capable of," he explained softly to her.
"So you're her lie detector then," Ginny surmised with a sense of relief.
"In a way yes," he replied after analysing what she had suggested.
"But wouldn't that affect your dating life?" the youngest Weasley asked curiously.
"What dating life! Who wants to data a Professor of Herbology at Hogwarts?" he said in a Professor like tone.
"Neville! Don't put yourself down. You might be surprised how many witches might be turned on by the fact that you're a Professor," she told him.
Neville's face blushed a bit and she could see that he was still a bit shy despite the confidence that he had shown her earlier.
"Would you be one of those witches?" he asked taking a risk he hoped would pay off.
Ginny started twirling a strand of her hair around her index finger. "That depends Professor, will you punish me if my skirt is too short?" she flirted with him.
"Well, Ms. Weasley that depends on how short the skirt is," Neville said leaning closer to her. He glanced at her red lips and back up at her brown eyes.
"Professor, I think it's short enough for a private detention with you," she flirted back. Her tongue darted out to moisten her lips and she was pleased when Neville's eyes snapped to the movement before he swallowed hard.
"My office, tomorrow night at 8?" Neville instructed leaning closer to her.
"Sounds perfect," she purred before she closed the remaining distance and kissed him firmly on the lips.
Mrs. Granger's house
Ron looked around the living room of Mrs. Granger's house and felt very uncomfortable. Most of the people at her party were in their late forties to mid-fifties. It was a gathering of single persons who had either divorced or lost a spouse. Despite the fact that some of these women were in excellent shape, Ron was a bit put off by the fact that they were old enough to be his mother. Needless to say, he was quite popular at the party though. The women were quite enamoured with him and his pocket was full of phone numbers. He wondered why it couldn't be this easy with women his own age.
Mrs. Knight was the woman who was currently engaging him in a conversation about the stolen suitcases that had been mysteriously returned to the police post at King's Cross. Of course, Ron knew the real story behind that but the woman kept prattling on about the thief and the untouched suitcases. She liked to solve mysteries and this one was irking her.
He glanced at the stairs and saw Harry sneaking upstairs. That was so not fair. He immediately excused himself from his present company on the excuse that he needed to use the bathroom. The woman's eyes dropped to his crotch and he really didn't want to know what she was thinking. His eyes quickly darted around the room for Hermione and saw her heading into the kitchen with an empty tray of appetizers. Luna was busy in the corner talking with one of the neighbours and Mrs. Granger had busied herself flirting with a lawyer she had met recently. The coast was clear. In two seconds flat he was at the base of the stairs and making a quick sprint up to Hermione's room.
"What's the score?" He asked as he opened the door and sat on the couch next to Harry.
"Australia has 30 more runs to make off of two and a half overs," Harry told him.
"Go Australia!" Ron shouted.
"Shut up. Are you trying to get Hermione up here?" A man with sandy brown hair asked.
"No," Ron replied sheepishly.
There had been only one other guy their age at the party. His name was Dray Crumpet and he was the son of a co-worker of Mrs. Granger. Like Ron, Dray was popular at these parties and he received repeat invites regularly. He couldn't turn Mrs. Granger down as she was a very important friend of his family and he agreed to endure these events. He said it wasn't that bad because half way through the night he could sneak into Hermione's room and watch sports on her large screen TV. Ron had a hard time believing that Hermione would have a TV in her room instead of a bookshelf full of books on some obscure area of magic but he was pleasantly surprised to find both the TV and a couch already positioned in the room.
The door opened and the girls came in glaring at the boys.
"A little help would be nice?" Hermione stated as she tapped her foot impatiently.
"The match is almost finished," Dray pleaded with adorable blue eyes.
"What's the score?" the brown-haired witch asked as she glanced at the top left hand side of the screen.
"Australia need 27 runs off two overs to win," Ron told her eagerly.
"You sound like you support Australia," Luna observed.
"I do," he stated proudly.
"Shouldn't you be supporting England!" Hermione pointed out indignantly.
"England isn't playing. They're playing against South Africa," Dray pointed out.
"Oh, so no Kevin Petersen then," she said disappointed.
"Since when are you into sports?" Harry asked curiously.
"She's not really into sports, more the sportsmen," Luna teased.
"Luna!" Hermione cried indignantly.
"Shhhh," everyone said to her.
A few minutes later the door opened again and an angry Mrs. Granger entered the room. She grabbed the remote and switched the TV off to loud protests from the guys.
"I don't care if the match is almost finished," the older woman told them angrily.
"But …." Dray started to say but was stopped with a firm glare from Mrs. Granger.
"There is a full tray of chicken wings in the kitchen that needs to be served Hermione. Luna, please refill some of the wine glasses, some people are beginning to sober up too quickly. Ron, Mrs. Lazarri is looking for you, Harry, Mrs. Crimply would like to continue talking to you about China and Dray, Mrs. Patrick would like to set you up with her daughter. Now get going!" she ordered sternly and all five left the room quickly.
The party lasted another hour before it came to an end.
"My feet are sore," Hermione complained as she propped her feet up on the chair next to her in the kitchen.
"I smell like wine," Luna said from the sink as she sniffed her white blouse which had a large red stain on it.
"Well, I have a date with Samantha Patrick," Dray informed them and Hermione and Luna both winced.
"I have a date with Mrs. Lazarri," Ron said trying to top the three that went before him.
They all looked at Harry next who lifted Hermione's feet off of the chair and sat down, placing her feet gently on his lap.
"What I had a good night," Harry replied.
"The night isn't over yet. There's still the twins' party to go," Dray said.
Harry and Ron looked astonished at Dray.
"You know the twins?" Ron asked.
Dray smirked at Ron and Harry thought that smirk was strangely familiar. Hermione was also suspiciously snickering along with Luna.
"Why do I get the feeling that there's something you're not telling me Ms. Granger," Harry said as he tickled the base of her feet.
"Harry, stop please," Hermione pleaded as she tried to pull her feet away from him.
"Not until you tell me. You've been glancing suspiciously at us all night," he said as he continued his assault on her feet.
"I'll tell you just stop please," she begged of him.
Harry's hand stopped his ministrations on her foot and she paused to look at her watch.
"Any second now," she said as her eyes stared at Dray.
Harry averted his gaze and soon found that Dray's face was changing. His eyes had gone from blue to grey and his hair was turning to a platinum blonde colour. His chin had become more pointed and Harry was now looking at the face of Draco Malfoy. There was a bright flash and hysterical laughter from the girls.
"Let me see," Luna said as she held out her hand for the camera.
Hermione gave it to her and laughter poured from Luna's small frame.
"Ron looks so adorable," the blonde witch cooed.
"Did you see Harry's face? He looks as though the world has ended!" Hermione told her friend.
From Harry's perspective the world had ended. He liked Dray. The man was funny and nice, most definitely not Draco Malfoy. How could he have gotten along with Draco Malfoy all night? He should have known though. Draco was supposed to be there and he hadn't seen him, that and the fact that the name should have been a dead giveaway. How could he have overlooked the obvious?
"You tricked us!" Ron accused Malfoy.
"If you're too dense to realise it was me, that's your problem," Draco drawled out.
"Dray please. You were getting along so well," Hermione pointed out.
"It's not my fault. I just thought that they would have realised at some point during the night, unless this means I'm a fabulous actor. Maybe I should go to Hollywood?" Draco boasted.
Harry's mouth opened and closed like a fish. He had so many questions, namely how Draco could act as a muggle so well. He hadn't made a single mistake that would have lead Harry to believe he was a wizard.
"Potter, surely you couldn't expect me to show up as myself. The Draco Malfoy in a muggle house! You never know whose around which is why I should get going," Draco said as he glanced out of the windows uncomfortably. "Oh tell the twins I'm sorry I couldn't make the party. I'll be by Natalie if you need me."
"You're skipping the twin's party?" Luna asked surprised but Draco never answered. He disappeared with a pop. She turned her confused face to Hermione.
"He's not in the party mood. He only came here because he fears my mother more than Fred and George," Hermione revealed.
Luna stared worriedly at the spot that Draco occupied.
"I'm going to get changed upstairs and I'll be back down shortly to join you," Hermione said.
"I think I'll go powder my nose," Luna said following Hermione out of the room.
Ron leaned back in his chair, "That's the universal female code for I want to go talk to my friends in private," he quipped.
Harry nodded.
Mrs. Granger found the boys alone in the kitchen.
"I can't tell you how happy I am that you're back," she gushed. "You are the missing pieces in my daughter's life."
"I'm sure Hermione doesn't need us to live a fulfilled life," Harry pointed out.
"I didn't mean it like that," Mrs Granger said. "Despite Hermione's accomplishments in this world, her life will always be mainly based in the magical world. I have accepted that. You two are very important to her. You are her first friends in the magical world. No one can ever replace that."
Both boys nodded. "What has Hermione accomplished in this world?" Harry asked curiously.
"Hermione has always been a very thoughtful child. Before we realised that Hermione was magically gifted, her father and I wanted her to go to the University of Cambridge to study. After her father's death she decided to go and study electrical engineering. It's how she figured out how to get muggle devices to work in the magical world. She was able to create a material that shielded the electrical components of devices from the magical force. I am very proud of her and it's much easier to tell friends and family that Hermione is an electrical engineer than she is a prominent member of the magical community."
"Wow," Ron said astonished.
"How on earth did she balance a first degree with her Auror training?" Harry asked.
"It was very difficult but Kingsley allowed her to take a lot of time away for her studies. He personally trained her at nights to pass the Auror test," Mrs. Granger said.
"I think it's time for Hermione to take a vacation," Ron said. "From all I've heard she's never taken one."
"That would be about right," Mrs. Granger reasoned.
"Ok we're back," Hermione said barging through the kitchen door. Luna looked seriously disturbed. Whatever she wanted to speak to Hermione about hadn't eased her worry.
They both gave Mrs. Granger a kiss on the cheek before dragging the boys over to the fire place. Soon they were back in the white room at Malfoy Manor. Harry and Ron both groaned at having to pass through the wards and Hermione mercilessly pushed them through.
"Maybe you should get some grubbly root from the kitchen to settle your stomach Ron," Luna told him on the other side of the ward.
The redhead wizard stared blankly at her.
"That sounds like a good idea. You take him to the kitchen while I show Harry my diary," Hermione suggested.
The two soon disappeared around the corner leaving Luna with Ron. She grabbed his hand and led him in the opposite direction to the kitchen where they found Ginny on top of Neville's lap in a passionate embrace.
"What the hell is going on here!" Ron yelled at the top of his lungs causing Neville to break the kiss with Ginny.
"Uh.." the poor wizard stammered in his defence while Ron's face swelled with anger.
"What does it look like Ronald?" Ginny glared at her older brother. She was a grown woman, why did her brother always have to do this when she was interested in a man.
The two siblings glared at each other before Ron broke the stare and headed upstairs.
Luna smiled at Ginny, "That certainly helped settle his stomach."
The Broomstick
The music was extremely loud as the six entered the club. It was unbelievably crowded and Harry wondered if Fred and George had invited the entire wizarding world. The club was decorated with various Weasley products and Harry had a sneaking suspicion that the twins were also using the party as a promotional activity for their new range of party products.
A horde of their classmates from Hogwarts surrounded Harry, Ron and Ginny to welcome them back. Ginny took the first opportunity to break free of the group with Neville and the newly formed couple found a nice dark corner where she hoped her brothers wouldn't find her. With six brothers to hide from she should have brewed herself some lucky potion because her chances were slim to none. Ron managed to steer his way out of crowd to the bar with a gorgeous witch on each arm leaving poor Harry to fend for himself.
An hour later Harry found himself tucked away on a sofa set that Hermione had conjured up in the back of the club. Her feet were back in his lap and he was massaging them for her. He enjoyed talking with his old classmates but it was clear that they had never stopped idolising him. Ron had joined them shortly afterwards. Luna had 'accidentally' dropped a couple drops of the twins new nosebleed drops in the drinks Ron had brought for his two 'friends', leaving him without female companionship. He was sulking on the sofa when Luna appeared.
"Let's dance!" a very tipsy Luna said as she grabbed Ron's hand to pull him on to the dance floor.
"I don't dance," Ron replied as he resisted her pull.
"Ron," Luna pleaded.
"Why don't you take Harry? He likes to dance," Ron said trying to get her attention off of him.
"But I don't want to dance with Harry, the finchworms might attack us. However, if I dance with you, we would be safe," Luna begged.
"Ron go and dance," Hermione instructed him.
"You're not my mother," he angrily replied to her.
"No but I'm sure I can get her here for you," the brunette responded quickly.
Ron glared at her before Harry too encouraged him to accept Luna's request. The redhead reluctantly agreed and followed the happy blonde onto the dance floor.
"She still likes him?" Harry asked as he eyed the couple. Luna was actively explaining to Ron how to dance in time to the music.
"Of course, they would be a perfect couple, if Ron wasn't so bull headed," Hermione responded as she smiled at the out of time couple.
"Maybe," Harry conceded before placing her feet on the ground. He stood and held his hand out to her. "Dance with me?" With a small smile she accepted and Harry tried to find an appropriate spot on the dance floor. They danced in silence for a while before Harry decided to talk to her.
"You know I missed you," Harry told her sincerely as a slow song started to play and he pulled her a bit closer to him.
"I know," she replied as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry that I hurt you," he continued.
Hermione placed her index finger over his mouth to silence him. "I don't want to talk about the past Harry. Let's just pick up where we left off. I'm your best friend Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of this generation," she said flashing him a dazzling smile.
"I'm your best friend Harry Potter and apparently England's Hero who's going to save you from the current crime wave!" Harry said in a fake super hero voice eliciting a chuckle from his dance partner. "But seriously, Tonks offered to get me in the training program with the current set of Aurors," he told her. She tensed in his arms.
"Harry that may not be such a good idea," Hermione started.
"Mione, let's just agree to disagree on this one. You've stated that you're vehemently against this and I've pretty much continued like normal and started doing it," Harry pointed out.
"You're right. Nothing unusual about that at all," Hermione agreed.
"True, it's beginning to feel like I never left," Harry said with a small smile.