A Siren's Call
Chapter 3
Several people in the house, especially Fred and George, were surprised to find Hermione and Ginny still asleep and in bed. It was breakfast after all and usually Ginny and Hermione were the first ones awake. And even though Molly warned them to leave the girls be, the twins still went to check on them anyway. When they entered the door they were surprised to find Ginny and Hermione cuddled up on the bed together.
The thought that came to both of their minds was how adorable they looked laying in one another's arms. And then another thought his them, I wish it were me. The twins looked at each other smirking before sneaking back out of the room, leaving them there in peace.
"Hermione, are you awake?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Hermione said, rolling over to face Ginny.
"Have you been awake for a long time?" Ginny asked.
"I'm not sure," Hermione said with a yawn, "Do you think the boy's saved us some food?"
"Doubtful," Ginny said, "but we could go see."
"Or we could call Kreacher and see if he'd bring us something," Hermione suggested.
"I think we've laid about long enough," Ginny said.
"Alright," Hermione said, stretching, before sitting up, "I'm up." before plopping back down on the bed and defeat. "Can I go back to bed now?"
"No," Ginny said, laughing, attempting to push Hermione off the other side of the bed. Hermione turned towards Ginny with her pillow in hand and brought it down onto Ginny's face.
"Oh, this is war," Ginny called picking up her own pillow and attacking Hermione with it. A few minutes later, the twins were knocking at the door and stepping inside to see what was going on.
"It's nice to see you two are finally up," Fred said.
"Did the princesses have a good beauty sleep?" George asked.
"Yes, thank you," Hermione said, throwing her pillow at them.
"So, you want to fight do you?" Fred asked.
Hermione just stood there giggling, as she stood there on top of the bed.
"I think she wants a fight," George said, looking at Fred. After a half an hour or so of fighting with the pillows, Fred and George left the room to allow the girls the chance to get dressed. They were then ushered down the stairs where Molly promptly fed them a humongous plate of food. Of course, Hermione was only able to eat half the food on her plate.
The twins and Ron quickly separated the food left on her plate between the three of them. Hermione watched as they devoured the food in minutes.
"Well now that we've gotten all that cleared up," Molly said, clearing the plates away. She turned to the girls, "what do you plan to do today girls?"
"We haven't decided," Ginny said, "maybe a game of chess, maybe a good book. What do you think Hermione?"
"I don't know," Hermione said looking at the boys, "what were you guys planning to do today?"
"A little bit of this," Fred said.
"A little bit of that," George said.
"Do you have something in mind," Fred said, wagging his eyebrows.
"Speaking of this," George continued
"And of that,"
"We replied to your note," the twins finished together. The very next moment an owl flew in and landed in front of Hermione. She gently took the note before giving him a piece of bacon.
"I'll read it in the library, and reply straight away," she said with a blush, "I also planned to finish a letter to my adopted parents. I also wanted to see if we could maybe go and pick up the rest of my belongings. Do you know when Cedric will be here?"
"Tonight," Molly said, "His parents are coming to the order meeting, and they'll be leaving him here afterwards. He'll be here till it's time to return to school."
Hermione hummed before asking, "What about Harry, when is he coming?"
"Not for another 2 weeks dear," Molly said sadly.
"I wish he was here now," Hermione said, sadly picking up a piece of bacon from her plate, "I don't think that it's all that safe for him out there. Whether he's staying with family or not."
"I know dear," Molly said, "I'll feel better once he's here. Ron's been going spare, not knowing if he's getting any of his letters. There isn't much to talk about with Dumbledore telling you to leave things out I imagine."
"He's probably sitting somewhere sulking," Hermione said with a faraway look, "Every time Hedwig brings a letter, he pecks me in annoyance."
Not that anyone knew it, but she had no idea how right she was.
…
Several things happened in the afternoon that Hermione was not expecting. She didn't expect to see Severus before the Order meeting. He arrived at 2 O'clock in the afternoon on urgent business. Only Sirius and Remus were privy to the conversation. Hermione sat in the sitting room silently wondering what the Potions Master could be so anxious about. Professor Snape was never anxious in public.
She also didn't expect Neville and his grandmother to arrive an hour after Professor Snape had. He was ushered into the sitting room, where Hermione was reading. Before his Gran rushed off towards Sirius's study. When Hermione asked what was going on, Neville just shrugged his shoulders. The boy didn't have a clue.
About 30 minutes later, Fred and George popped into said sitting room, scaring the daylights out of Neville and Hermione. The twins had been surprised that he was there of course and made a spectacle of themselves as per the usual. Neville and Hermione had a good laugh out of it. Of course, it wouldn't be until later that either of them realized that their hair was another color. The color was designed to change with your mood, however only those unaffected by the spell could see those affected. So, if the whole house were affected by the spell then no one would realize until an unaffected party entered the house.
Oh, they were in big trouble, well when Hermione figured out what was going on.
Around 5 O'clock Order members started to arrive for the meeting. Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Fred and George sat on the steps and watched one by one as they arrived, and then disappeared into the Drawing Room.
"What do you suppose they're talking about?" Neville asked.
"We can't get close enough to tell," Ginny said.
"After the second meeting, they put up privacy wards," Hermione explained, "that also means they can't hear what's going on out here. Unless Dumbledore designed a way to make it just a one-way silencing charm."
"Man, I'd like to be a fly on the wall during one of their meetings," Ron said, sitting next to Ginny, who was sitting further up on the steps. She was sitting between Neville and Ron.
"I thought Cedric was supposed to be coming," Ginny said curiously.
"That's what your Mum said," Hermione said flatly, "I wonder what's keeping them."
And then right after she finished speaking, Sirius came through the front door with Mr. and Mrs. Diggery, and Cedric who was following behind.
Once in sight Hermione jumped from where she was sitting and into his arms. He was startled for a second or two before wrapping his arms around her waist. "I've missed you," she whispered into his ear. She turned her head slightly before kissing him on the cheek. Legging go of each other, Cedric turned and reintroduced Hermione to his parents.
"Do you remember Hermione?" Cedric said.
"Pleasure to see you again dear," Amos said, "You've been staying out of trouble I hope?"
"Trying to," Hermione said, "but you know how Harry is, sir, him being a trouble magnet and all."
""I'd say you're just as big a trouble magnet," Amos said, chuckling at the girl's cheek.
Hermione blushed and turned towards Fred and George. They both winked at her before standing up.
"Hello Fred and George," Cedric said, stepping towards the stairs.
"Library?" Hermione asked Ginny and Neville.
"Library," they said together. Ginny and Neville had at some point started holding hands. They looked at each other before blushing. Hermione narrowed her eyes, they were hiding something.
Hermione smiled at her boys as they walked up the steps. Hermione's smile brightened when they all turned and smiled back at her.
Amos Diggery was confused by the exchange. He only knew a bit about what was going on. Though he understood Remus wanting to be sure they wouldn't tell a soul. He wanted the same for any daughter he had.
"That's the way it is," Remus said, breaking him from his thoughts.
…
Hermione and crew headed to the library, though they mostly finished their research. Hermione was now looking for any information she could find on how she might find her first Animagus form.
"I'm not finding anything," Neville said, "they all say the same thing. 'Animal forms cannot be forced or found, though most times they come when least expected, and mostly at the wrong time or place.'"
"Well, that's comforting," Hermione said with a sarcastic growl, "with my luck I'll turn during dinner."
Neville and Ginny laughed, "Not Funny," and Hermione huffed in annoyance, before she too busted into peals of laughter. Neville had imagined her turning into Seal at the dinner table, and of course Ginny imagined her to be a rather fluffy cat. Hermione on the other hand tried not to imagine anything but the picture of an Otter kept popping into her head. Of course, this only prompted them to make animal sounds much to Hermione's annoyance.
Looking down at her notes at the table, she sobered up once she saw her father's hand wring on one of her papers. Forced Mating's and Bonding's? were scrawled onto the pater with a question mark underneath it.
"I think we have other things to research," Hermione said in a voice that snapped Neville and Ginny from their musings. However, what they would later find would surprise them all.
…
Fred, George and Cedric were in the twin's room. They were discussing the information Hermione had found on mating.
"Did Hermione give you the ok to look at her notes?" Cedric asked concerned when Fred handed them to him to look over.
"She didn't say no either," George said.
"In fact, I'm sure she would want you to look at them," Fred said, finishing George's sentence.
He read through the notes, also noting what little information there seemed to be. He noticed something about a link and wondered if they would be able to communicate through it. "What else have you heard?" Cedric asked curiously.
"I heard mom ask Remus if it would be safe for her to return," George said, "I think it would be oddly suspicious if 1/3 of the golden trio didn't return to school."
"You always get caught when you try to hide what's going on," Fred said.
"Start acting like you've got something to hide," George said.
"And they will find out," the twins finished together.
"Always act surprised," Cedric added.
"Try to casually act defensive when accused of something you know you're involved in," George said.
"It always throws them off," Fred said.
After Cedric took some time to think about it, he asked, "why is everyone's hair a different color?"
"Experiment," George said with a smile.
"What does blue mean?" Cedric asked curiously.
"Excited," Fred said, wagging his eyebrows.
"Red is mad, Yellow is happy, Green in jealousy, blue is excited, and purple is in the mood."
"In the mood? Cedric asked.
"Horny," answered the twins, with a Slytherin worthy smirk.
"They don't know their hair changes colors with their moods?" Cedric asked, trying not to laugh.
"Nope," Fred said.
"We're charmed it so only people who aren't affected can see the change," George said.
"Devious," Cedric said.
There was nothing more said on the subject, instead they let Cedric in on the invention they were working on to hear what was happening in the meeting below the stairs.
…
At the meeting, Sirius and Molly argued about Harry having the right to know about the prophecy. ""It's about him, he has the right to know," Sirius bellowed.
"He's too young!" Molly exclaimed back. The rest of the order sat back and let them argue between them. Sirius was his god father; Molly was his pseudo mom. Neither could agree with the other.
Sirius spouted off facts, if you kept a Potter in the dark, they just ran in, headfirst without knowing all the facts. While being reminded about all the trouble, Harry, Ron and Hermione had gotten in during school. Telling Harry about the prophecy would keep him from rushing into danger headfirst.
Molly sputtered; she had not been able to come up with a response.
Dumbledore of course had his own reasons, but Sirius's argument caused him to have second thoughts about keeping Harry in the dark. He weighed his decision and concluded he would ask the two that knew him best, Hermione and Ron.
In the end, they decided different members of the order would take turns guarding the department of Mysteries against You-Know-Who.
After the meeting Molly called everyone for dinner, and Hermione sat between the twins and across from Cedric. Ginny sat between Neville and Tonks. Everyone else was scattered around the table.
At one point Tonks started making animal faces which kept Neville, Ginny, and some older members of the Order in hysterics. Hermione was trying not to let the pleasure of what the twin's hands were doing to her under the table get to her. Cedric was rubbing his socked foot up and down her leg. But it was when his foot went a little too far up that she abruptly stood. "I'm sorry," she said, causing everyone to look up at her. Trying to keep her cheeks from flushing, and her breath even, "I've just thought of something I needed to look up in the library."
Only Remus, Sirius, and Severus, expected that the twins and Cedric could have had something to do with her abrupt departure.
"Typical Hermione," Ron said, taking what was left of the food off her plate.
"Wait a minute," Ginny said, pulling Neville up behind her, "we'll come with you." Then she remembered her manners and turned towards the table, "Please excuse us."
Tonks and most of the others excused it as being young, Remus knew something was up and eyed the twins and Cedric carefully. All three boys pretended they hadn't done anything. Remus knew better; he had been a boy once too. He turned his attentions back to Tonks, she had been flirting with him, and to his surprise he found himself flirting back.
…
In the Library Hermione paced, trying to get the feel of Fred and George's hands out of her mind. She messaged her temples, she should not be thinking of such things, she needed a distraction.
"What's wrong with Hermione?" Ginny asked, leaving Neville to stand just inside the door anxiously.
"The twins touched me under the table," Hermione whispered, trying not to moan at the tingling feel of them still on her skin, "and Cedric's foot grazed..."
"Grazed what?" Ginny asked in an excited whisper, not understanding.
Hermione hitched her eyebrows before leaning in to whisper exactly what it was his foot grazed.
"OH!" Ginny said surprised, her face flushed bright red.
"How will I look them in the face again," Hermione said pleadingly, in a whisper, "I think I might die of embarrassment."
Ginny giggled at Hermione's reaction: She was acting like a normal, hormonal ridden teenager. "OK," Ginny said, waving Neville over, "let's get some tea, then we'll continue organizing."
"Sounds good," Neville and Hermione said at the same time.
…
Later that night, Dumbledore requested Ron and Hermione's presence in the sitting room for a private meeting. "You wanted to see us, Headmaster."
"You see, it's regarding your friend Mr. Potter," Dumbledore started, "some intel has come to our notice that Voldemort is after a secret weapon, which is housed in the department of mysteries. We have to keep this from him, for it is the secret to his defeat."
"and you want to know if you should tell Harry or keep it a secret like you kept Sirius being his Godfather from him or even that Voldemort was still alive in the first place and have allowed us to inadvertently fight him since the beginning of first year?" Hermione finished for him.
"Yes, exactly," Dumbledore said dumbfounded.
Ron just quietly laughed to himself in the background. "Sir, let me be frank," Hermione stated, "it's about him, he deserves to know. Not telling him important information could lead to more needless death experiences."
Dumbledore just nodded his head, his calculating eyes met hers, and he frowned. "If you think that it would prevent him from running off halfcocked."
"I do," she said.
"I will tell him," Dumbledore reluctantly agreed, before turning to bow out of the room. Clearly not liking what she had to say.
"Sir," Hermione said causing him to turn around, "You don't need to keep the cards so close to your chest. You have others around you that are capable of helping, otherwise why did you start the order in the first place?"
…
Draco Malfoy, who was currently sitting in his Godfather's sitting room, was still trying to digest the information his mother had just recently given him.
After Draco's mother told him about his aunt, the only aunt that he didn't know anything about, he was stunned. He didn't know what to say. He was even more surprised to find that he had another cousin out there somewhere; thought truth be told it was a rumor. He was even more surprised to hear that none of the Dark Lord's followers knew about it. "You can't tell a soul, Draco," his mother said, "to do so could mean death of worse for your cousin. Not to mention your father would lose what little favor with the Dark Lord that he has left."
Draco thought about it before replying, "Is it wise to trust me?" Draco asked wearily, "What if I let it slip?"
"Are you willing to take a vow not to tell a soul?" his mother asked
"Yes," Draco said.
After Draco swore to his mother not to tell a soul, they saw wisps of magic twirl about them. When it was done Draco asked who his cousin was. When Narcissa revealed it was Hermione, Draco promptly passed out onto the floor.
When Draco woke up again, he was in his Godfather's sitting room. "Tea Draco?" Severus asked, sensing the boy was awake.
"Please," Draco said in a husky sleep ridden voice," does my Father know I'm here?"
"I'm assuming so, your mother arranged it," Severus said. Draco looked at his Godfather for a moment. Severus sensing, he had something he wanted to say "Out with it," Severus said, "what's on your mind?"
"I'm not sure if I'm allowed to talk to you about..." Draco said trailing off.
"Yes, you may," Severus said, "I know your aunt and cousin, ask your questions."
"Your certain Granger is my Cousin?" Draco asked.
"Yes," Severus said.
"She'll never accept me," Draco said, quite dramatically, "Her friends will never accept me."
"She does, and she will," Severus said with a sigh, "When this war is over, everyone will know."
"I know your lonely Draco," Severus continued when Draco didn't say anything after a minute or two, "harder times are ahead. We'll play our part as it's expected of us, perhaps by some miracle we'll come out of this nightmare alive."
"We've surpassed nightmare Uncle Sev," Draco said with a smirk, "and we've fallen into Hell."
"So one Hell of a Nightmare then," Severus said, smirking before he stood to announce that he was needed elsewhere and that he would return after dinner. Of course, a house elf was to see to his needs. However, that did not help to quell the loneliness that Draco felt.
…
Lord Voldemort sat in the study at Malfoy Manor, behind Lucius Malfoy's desk thumbing his mail. Lucius was up to something; he just knew it. However, that didn't matter, he needed a way to get into the Ministry of Magic undetected. He needed to see the prophecy for himself. None of the fools behind him could come up with a feasible plan. He couldn't just walk in and take it without a plan, that would be foolhardy.
No, he needed something concrete, Prophecies were tricky. The prophecy could only be taken if it belonged to the person reaching for it. He had no way of being sure that he was in fact the Dark Lord the Prophecy was referring to; but then how many other Dark Lords were there 15 years ago?
A/N: Rewritten 1/3/2021
I changed the conversation that Cedric and the twins had in their room a little bit. I changed the conversation that Dumbledore had with Hermione and Ron. And a couple of other smaller details.
A sincere thank you to everyone who's reviewed, to those who've been following the story this far, and especially to those who have fav'd. I appreciate you very much.
P.S. I do not own Harry Potter nor am I attempting to make any money from this story. If you recognize it I don't own it!
