It had been three days since Hermione had met with Lucius Malfoy. For three whole days, she had been pondering on what she should do. Almost immediately after Lucius had left her office days before, she had gone straight to Grimmauld Place.
Harry needed to know what she had found out.
She and Harry became quite close after the War. Well, closer than they already were before. She told him everything, same as he.
Hermione had gone back to Hogwarts to finish off her 7th year, and Harry made the difficult decision to go back with her. He was offered many times to go train for the Auror Academy, but Harry had declined.
Everyone was quite shocked by this, but Hermione understood. Harry had spent almost his whole life fighting a dark wizard, while the other half was spent crammed in a cabinet under the stairs at the Dursleys.
Harry Potter was tired of fighting.
So, knowing that Ginny would be returning to Hogwarts too, he made his final decision. He wanted to spend more time with Ginny and begin to plan a future with her. He wanted to talk about the idea of marriage and children. Harry had always wanted a family. He always wanted to have children and watch them grow up; something his own parents couldn't do.
Two years after the war, Harry found out that Ginny was pregnant with his child. Hermione was so happy for him, and Ginny too. Harry was a great father, and Hermione loved being the aunt to baby James, as well.
Ron had left right after the war to play Quidditch. In the end, Hermione and Ron were just not meant to be together. They realized only a few days after their kiss in the Chamber of Secrets that they both wanted different things.
A part of her knew that she would never really forgive him for leaving her and Harry during the hunt for Horcruxes. She would never have left the way that he did. She felt betrayed.
The worst part was when she realized how easy it was for him to abandon her. Of course, she knew that he was influenced by the locket that he was wearing, but they all had worn it. He was the only one who let it take over.
He was the one who left.
When he had come back, she was so angry. She had tried to forgive him, but it was so hard to try and forget everything that had happened. He didn't truly love her, and she didn't think that she truly loved him either. They were great as friends, but anything more than that just wouldn't work out.
Ron had suggested having a long-distance relationship, but she didn't want that. She told him that he needed to go and do what he thought would make him happy, and it was not her. She knew that he was tricking himself into believing that she was the one for him.
Hermione theorized that he just liked the idea of being with her; but, once it would actually happen, he would hate it. Besides, she didn't have a problem being alone- in a relationship sense. Of course, it would be amazing to have someone who could keep up with her and truly love her, but she didn't need to be with someone to make her happy.
She had Harry, Ginny, James, and the rest of the Weasley family. She had friends from Hogwarts, and she had colleagues. She had so many people who loved her, and for right now, that was enough.
After Hermione graduated from Hogwarts, she was excited to see what this new life could bring her. But first, she needed to deal with her parents.
She had tracked them down in Australia and went to check on them. She was not sure if she was going to undo the obliviate spell that she had cast. When she saw her mother and father, walking hand in hand down the street, she smiled. They had looked so happy. Hermione remembered those smiles; only they were directed at her this time.
What had virtually sealed the deal was when she watched them return to their house. It was a lovely house, quite similar to their home in London. As they opened the door, an elderly lady with a smile was standing on the other side, cradling something in her arms.
They began speaking to each other, and she watched as the woman handed the bundle to her mother. As her mom clutched the blanket, she saw a small hand reach out of the blankets to begin grabbing at her mother's face. She sat back in shock.
She looked over to her father instead and watched as he dug his hand into his pocket to pull out his wallet. He quickly counted out some money and gave it to the elderly lady. The nanny, Hermione wagered.
Her parents had conceived another child while she was away.
Knowing this information, Hermione knew she couldn't bring herself to change their lives all over again. Of course, she wanted her parents to remember her, and she would love to have met her little brother or sister. But, there were too many issues with reversing the spell. She could try to reverse it, only for nothing to change, and they still wouldn't remember her. She could also try to reverse it, and end up wiping all of their memories completely. It was too risky.
So, she left them, but she always kept tabs on them to see how they were doing.
It was a little while later, after she returned from Australia and had boughten herself a flat in Diagon Alley as she was beginning her job, when she found out more information on that tiny bundle; the sibling that she would never get to know.
It was a girl.
Hermione had a little sister.
Hermione was now on her way to speak to Harry. She walked over to her fireplace that she had put in so that she could floo home quickly after a long day at work.
She grabbed some powder from the small bag she had tied around the mantle. She threw down the powder as she yelled out, "Number 12 Grimmauld Place!"
She stepped out into Harry's sitting room, seeing it empty. As she walked in the kitchen, she heard the sounds of little giggles, definitely from James. She would always recognize those delightful laughs.
She opened the door and smiled at the sight of Harry sitting on the edge of his chair, right in front of the highchair that James was sitting in. He sat there holding a piece of banana, making horrendous faces to get his son to open his mouth to eat. James was giggling, which made Harry laugh too.
Hermione walked over to the table and sat in the chair on the other side of the little boy. He had dark brown hair, a mix of Harry's black hair and Ginny's red hair. But his eyes were just like Harry's, a bright and brilliant green.
Harry had been startled out of his little feeding game when Hermione had sat down by James. He looked at her and smiled.
"Hey 'Mione, what brings you here? Did you have your meeting with Malfoy?"
James looked over at Hermione and stuck his arms out towards her, opening and closing his small hands; a signal for his auntie Hermione to pick him up and hold him. Harry noticed this, and grabbed James out of his seat, passing him over to Hermione. She took James with a bright smile on her face and gave him kisses all over, making him laugh.
She grinned, turned to look at Harry, and replied, "Yeah I just finished the meeting actually. I'm surprised to say that it didn't go as terribly as we thought it would."
Harry's bushy black brows raised as he heard this. "Really? Hermione, we are talking about the same Malfoy, right? Lucius Malfoy, the huge arse? How could you possibly have had a civil conversation?"
"Oh Harry, he wasn't that bad. Of course, it wasn't 100% civil, but when would it ever be? Plus, that's just how it is between him and me. We just irritate each other through snide comments half of the time we speak. But still, he did give me some information that I was not privy to."
Harry sighed and lifted his hand, motioning for her to continue speaking. "Well, lay it on me then."
"Harry, this is serious business here."
Harry opened his mouth to speak before Hermione held up her hand, telling him to save it.
"Don't even think of it, Harry James Potter. Don't you dare make a Sirius joke. I have heard enough of those to last me a lifetime! Please." She whined at the end.
Harry sighed and lowered his head in defeat. "Okay, okay. I get it. No jokes. Carry on then."
"Right, so basically to sum it all up for you, theboxesbringwizardsbackfromthedeadandIhavefiveofthemhiddeninmycabinent." She finished off with a large breath.
Harry sat back and looked at her with wide eyes. "Hold on, hold on. 'Mione, repeat that to me a little bit slower will you? And for Merlin's sake woman, breathe!"
She looked sheepishly at him and calmed herself a bit. "Okay, those three boxes I told you about? Harry, there are 28 of them, and each one belongs to a family of the Sacred 28. The boxes are ancient. They are passed down from generation to generation, but only on the male side. So, that box you found in Regulus' old room was passed down to him from his father, Orion. The cycle goes on and on until the bloodline dies out. The box is essentially designed for this problem. Inside the box, holds the power to bring back any member of the bloodline from the dead, but it can only be a male so that they can carry on the name. It is a second chance at life for them, Harry. The trick of it is, the box can only be opened by a powerful witch or wizard, who the box will need to accept as it's equal. The person needs to be able to handle the power that is given to them when they open the box and literally rise a person from the dead. They have to provide the box with a drop of their blood, and if they are powerful enough, then the box will open. Lucius said that it has only happened once, that he has heard of. It was a long time ago, with the Travers family. A witch opened the box and brought back the head of the Travers house. They formed a bond, which Lucius thinks is a soul bond, and they fell in love and had a child together which became the next heir to the family."
Harry sat there with his mouth open, completely baffled by the information he was just given.
"Hermione, this is not good. This is really not good. You're telling me that these boxes can bring back people from the dead?! This is crazy 'Mione! I don't even know what to believe at this point! Wait, back up for a second. I remember you saying something about having five of the boxes in your cabinet. Hermione, why did you say "five"? You've only told me about three of them! You have two more?! Oh Godric, Hermione. What are you going to do?! You need to destroy them! No, wait. You can't, sorry. You can't even get them open. But, you need to do something, 'Mione! Which five do you even have?"
Hermione peeked a look at Harry and muttered quietly. "I have the Black, Prewett, Lestrange, Rosier, and Dolohov familial boxes…"
Harry sucked in a sharp breath as she named off the last two. "Oh no, 'Mione… Oh, this is so bad."
The kitchen became silent until James grabbed a piece of Hermione's hair and tugged at as if he was playing tug-of-war. "Oww! James, what did you do that for?! Merlin, Harry. What have you been teaching your son! That hurt…" Hermione trailed off, rubbing her head to try and dull the sudden pain in her scalp.
Harry chuckled and grabbed James from her arms and swung him around in the air. Harry smiled brightly as he gushed to his son, "Brilliant job, James! I reckon that'll teach her not to hide things from your daddy, won't it? Auntie 'Mione is being a bit of a bad witch, now, isn't she?" He set James down into his high-chair and turned to look at Hermione.
"Harry, listen, I know I should have told you but I didn't have all of the information yet, and I didn't want you to worry more than you already were. I see now that it wouldn't have made much of a difference if I had told you earlier. Considering how you're acting right now… But, in my defense, I really didn't think it would be this dangerous, Harry." Hermione seemed to lose all hope at this moment and slumped over the table, her head hidden in her arms as she lay groaning.
At seeing this, Harry's eyes softened a little. He decided to give her a little mercy. Quietly, he walked over to her lifeless form and crouched down to the side of her. With one hand rubbing circles on her back, he tried to console his best friend.
"Hermione, listen, we will figure this out okay? Merlin Hermione, we defeated a bloody dark lord for six years of our lives! You've always had my back 'Mione, you know I'll always have yours too."
Hermione seemed to calm down as Harry continued to talk to her. Hearing his voice, and his optimism, soothed Hermione significantly. The millions of thoughts that were flying around her head began to settle.
Harry noticed this change in her, and knew that she needed this; she needed his reassurance.
"You're my best friend, Hermione. Merlin, you're basically my sister. You're a brilliant witch, so I know you will be able to do this. We will all support you, Ginny, me, basically all of the Weasleys, hell- even Ron will support you! Once he gets his head out of his freckled arse, I guess."
Hermione's body suddenly moved as she began to laugh, sniffling occasionally and wiping her eyes. She looked at Harry and smiled at him. He always knew what to say to make her feel better. She quickly threw her arms around his neck and gave him a long hug.
"Thank you, Harry. You know I love you, right?" She muttered into the shoulder of his shirt.
Harry laughed at this and replied, "Yeah, Hermione, I know. I love you too."
The sound of someone clearing their throat broke the two out of their healing embrace. Hermione looked up to see Ginny standing in the door of the kitchen, smirking.
"Is there something going on here that I should know about?" The redhead asked. "Harry," Ginny pleaded mockingly dramatic, "please, tell me it's not true! Tell me you're not cheating on me with your best friend! Oh, I couldn't bear the thought!" Ginny clutched at her heart as Hermione and Harry chuckled at the sight of her performance. "Please, my love. My dearest Harry, tell me you still love me!"
Harry stood up and walked over to his wife, setting his hands on her rounded stomach. He smiled at Ginny and began to play along. "Of course I still love you. You are my wife, the mother of my only child, and the one bearing my second! It's not what it looks like, I swear. She threw herself at me, love. I tried to get away, but she wouldn't let go! Please, I beg you, you must believe me." Hermione looked at both of them, laughing heartily.
She spoke between giggles deciding she would play along too, "and, scene! Great work everybody!" She stood up and began clapping. "Good show, it was lovely."
Harry and Ginny smiled as they clasped hands and took a bow. Ginny attempted, though her tummy ended up stopping her halfway.
Hermione walked over to her and gave her a warm hug. "It's good to see you, Gin. How are you and the baby doing?" She looked into Ginny's eyes, making sure to catch if any lies should come out. Ginny had a bad habit of acting better than she really was.
The younger witch looked at Hermione and grabbed both of her hands, smiling. "Really, Hermione. I'm doing good, honestly. I've been taking my potions, and I go to see our healer regularly." Hermione saw that Ginny was telling the truth and gleamed at her. "You know Ginny, really are a great mum." As she said this, Hermione began thinking about her own mother, and how great she was.
She always took such good care of Hermione. She would always make sure that she was fed, and Hermione always knew that she had a safe place to stay; in her old house. Suddenly, a thought struck her. She jerked out of Ginny's hands and looked at Harry frantically.
"Harry, I've got it! Okay, I know we don't have a permanent solution right now as to where we should keep the boxes. I can't keep them in the Ministry; it's too risky. But Harry, what if I took them to my parent's house?! I could bring them there and keep them safe inside until we figure out another place!" Hermione rushed out her words, as quick as she could.
She continued her ramblings at a quick pace. "After my parents left, I still kept the house. I warded it heavily and placed a Fidelius Charm over it. There are no more Death Eaters, Harry. Well, no more truly dangerous ones at least. But still, it's the perfect place! No one would even know. The last place anyone would look is in a muggle neighborhood."
She looked at Harry with so much hope. He couldn't bear to ruin it now, not after he had just helped her get it back. Plus, it wasn't a terrible idea. It's still risky, of course, but it is the best place they've got, so far.
Harry sighed and replied back to her enthusiastic words, "It's not the worst idea. But 'Mione, are you sure this is what you want to do? This is a rather rash decision…" He trailed off, waiting for Hermione to reply.
"Right now, I think this is our best shot, Harry. I can keep these boxes safe, and the sooner, the better. I'll just floo over to the old house and check that everything is still in place, especially all of the wards. After that, I'll quickly go back to my office and get the boxes. Then I'll go back to the house and start hiding them and placing protective charms and wards on them."
Hermione needed to get started as soon as possible. She quickly strode over to James who was sitting in his highchair watching everything happen. She bent over and gave him a kiss on his forehead, one on each eyelid, one on the very tip of his button nose, and one on each cheek. Hermione always did this to James, just as her parents did to her.
She turned around and went over to Harry, giving him a tight hug.
Ginny, who stood silently throughout Hermione's rambles, looked towards both her and Harry. "Uh, is anyone going to explain to me what is going on right now?" She questioned them, confused.
Hermione came over to Ginny next and hugged her. As she turned around to leave the kitchen to floo back home, she shouted over her shoulder. "Sorry Gin, I've got to leave! Harry will explain everything to you once I leave. I love you, Potters! I'll come over and let you both know how everything goes."
With that, she shut the kitchen door and grabbed a handful of powder, stepped into the fireplace and threw down the floo powder as she recited the address to her flat.
