A/N: HEY EVERYONE!! * On hands and knees (begging)* I´M SO SORRY I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN SOOOO LONG!!! (I HATE writer's block, by the way…) By the way, I'm really sorry to say that my updates will probably be even slower because I've just entered college… more or less. I am currently on vacation form my first semester in History. It was lots of fun and I really learned a lot!

Elfwyn: Thanks for your criticism, but you must wait for me to answer your questions. They are, after all, one of the main parts of the plot. I will only give you one clue: In my story, Harry wasn't born soon after James and Lily Potter married. As for Molly Weasley's role, you'll find out in this chapter.

Heroine of the Valley: Thanks for your tips, they really helped.

I would also like to thank the two-way mirror, Saitron Prince, Lady Rayvynne, and Sarmatianknaghtwannabe for their reviews. They keep me wanting to update.

This chapter is for all of you, my wonderfully curious reviewers, in thanks for your Reviews… and a very belated Christmas and New Year's present.

Key:

"……" speech

…stuff…: thoughts or mental monologues

# Parseltongue or beast speech#

Stuff…written stuff

Off we go!

"What a Hero Needs"

Chapter #5: Of Love and Friendship

Ron rushed up the stairs and into his bedroom. The room was as brightly coloured as always, walls painted Chudley Canon's orange, his beat-up mattress pushed against the far corner and his dirty clothes form the day before were still on the floor. He sat at the battered desk that had once belonged, as did many of his other possessions, to some great uncle, and began writing a long and heartfelt letter (A/N: Unusual for a guy with an "emotional range of a teaspoon," I know, but Ron is most certainly NOT emotionless. Otherwise, he would not be Harry's best friend.):

Dear Hermione,

I know you've been very worried about Harry, so you are the first one I thought to write to. Mum says she needs to have some sort of meeting with all those of us who are really close to Harry; she says it is extremely important…I think she knows something of whatever we always felt Harry kept hidden from us.

I feel Harry will need us now more than ever, sis…

Moments later, a beautiful brunette with curly hair that reached way past her shoulders read through one of her best friend's rushed, almost illegible, scrawl. As she read, her honey-coloured eyes widened. Once finished, she jumped up and ran downstairs and into the kitchen. The room's walls were painted a very light blue. The floor was tiled in blue and white to match the white countertops and cupboards and blue kitchenware. In one side of the room, Dr. and Dr. Granger sat at the table drinking tea. They both smiled warmly as they saw their only child enter the kitchen, only to meet the troubled look that marred her face.

"Hermione? Is there something wrong, sweetie?" Emma Granger's voice gave her concern away. The smart young witch sighed, she had always dreaded revealing every single detail of the magical world's to her parents, fearing they would take her away, were she would never see her boys again.

"Mum, Dad… There are some things you should know, things that I should have told you about from the very beginning. I know you'll probably be scared or angry, but please let me explain, O. K.?"

Her parents exchanged worried glances. Why did she seem so scared of their reaction toward whatever she said she had kept from them? They had always known Hermione wouldn't be able to reveal a lot of her experiences in the Wizarding World because of the laws that the Ministry followed, so why was she so concerned? David reached for her hand across the table and spoke gently.

"Why are you so scared, Hermione? We are your parents, honey. We'll listen to you no matter what because we love you unconditionally." He stood to crouch beside her and wiped the tears she hadn't even realized were spilling down her face with his thumb before hugging her tightly.

"Never forget that, my little princess," he added.

Hermione smiled tearfully at her childhood nickname, which made reference to her favorite movie's title. She had been five years old when an older cousin of hers had invited her to watch the film. Poor Hermione had so been deeply affected by the almost-orphaned-slave-little-girl's story, she had burst out in tears when, two days afterwards, her own daddy had said he was leaving on a business trip…

Flashback:

"Please, daddy," little five-year-old Hermione Granger cried while hugging her daddy's leg tightly, "Don't leave me, don't go and die." Her father, shocked at his daughter's demeanor, tried calming her down for a few moments and asked her what had made her cry. More tears, stutters and an explanation later, he laughed out loud and said in a gentlemanly voice:

"Little Princess Hermione has nothing to worry about. I'll come back in three days."

He had then kissed her forehead and left. The following days had been unending for little Hermione, so when he had returned calling out:

"Honey, little princess, I'm home!" As soon as she heard him call, his daughter ran and swang her tiny arms around his neck crying:

"Daddy, Daddy! You're back!"

The endearment had stuck since then.

End of flashback

The small family was now sitting in the living room, which was very homey and cozy, yet simple and understatedly elegant. Oak floorboards were hidden under a large deep blue carpet with ivy green decorations. The couch and sofa were a beautiful velvety dark blue with matching off-white and green pillows and a mantelpiece decked with family portraits and photographs decorated the fireplace. Hermione shook her head as if to clear it and took deep breaths as her parents took each of her hands while sitting besides her, keeping her between them.

Drawing another deep breath, the young woman began her story:

"I'm sorry I kept this a secret. I was afraid you wouldn't understand."

"But, why?" her mother asked, deeply concerned.

"I feared that you would take me away from Hogwarts and the Wizarding World," Hermione said. She then proceeded to tell them everything about Hogwarts and the adventures she had had with her two best friends as well as Harry's situation, surprising herself when she found it easier as her story continued. When she finished, her mother had tears running down her cheeks, while hr father sat stiffly, face pale and hands clenched tightly on his lap. They couldn't believe her daughter had gone through all that because people refused to act upon something. They may have had met Harry only shortly, but even then, they had seen the boy's gentle disposition and demeanor shine through, leaving them enamoured with him. They couldn't believe how such a loving young man could have gone through what he had at such a young age, and still be as kind and open-hearted as he was.

Silence reigned for several minutes until David finally calmed down enough so he could speak.

"You mean to tell us that Harry may probably have had an abused childhood and nobody even noticed? He went through all that trouble because there was no adult who even bothered to stop to listen to his concerns because 'he was too young to understand'? " By the end of this, both mother and daughter were staring in shock as David Granger became so furious his eyes popped out and his face turned a nasty red as veins throbbed in his temples. They had never seen him so mad. Hermione's chest constricted, she could almost feel how her heart swelled at her dad's anger and indignation for her best friend, for Harry's wellbeing.

It took several moments for David to calm down enough to be able to speak coherently.

"In that case, Princess, you have all our support," he smiled gently as Hermione threw herself at him, crying joyfully.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou." Her mutterings brought a chuckle to her parents' lips. David cleared his throat and laughed at his child's blush. "We will come with you and see if there is anything we can do. Just because we are not magical does not mean we can't do something to help the young fellow."

Emma stepped in, tears still flowing down her cheeks as she smiled beautifully while her husband held her.

"Harry is a really charming young man. I never told you so, but I am really happy that you found yourself such an incredible friend," she grabbed the witch's shoulder and squeezed it lovingly as she continued, "I've always been afraid that you wouldn't be happy after the children from around town seemed to reject you, sweetie. It hurt me so much to see you lonely."

Hermione squealed happily as she hugged her parents tightly in a three-way embrace. They stayed like that for a very long time, silent and enjoying the peaceful moment, before they separated as the Gryffindor asked:

"So… Where do we start before leaving for the Burrow?"

The Burrow, Friday 10:00 a. m…

In all its years of existence, which was saying something seeing how ancient the family home was, the Burrow's kitchen had never seen itself so overwhelmingly full with people. Surprising, really, considering the Weasleys' brood. They all sat or stood around the enlarged table in the expanded room, conversation was flowing and breakfast was quickly disappearing. The meal had obviously been excellently cooked by Mrs. Weasley, assisted by Ginny. Of course, Ginny had only set the table, considering Molly demeanor became that of a furiously protective lioness when it came to her domain.

Said matronly woman sat at one end of the table smiling gently as her eyes wandered across the room to her husband. The usually exuberant bespectacled red-haired man stood by the window, talking seriously to the Order members present. Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Kingsley Shaklebolt, and Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody all stood aroud Arthur, holding their drinks while talking lowly. Fred and George sat at the opposite side of the long wooden table, talking to the nmembers of the former Gryffindor Quidditch team, including Charlie, Oliver Wood (who now played for Puddlemore United team), Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell. Their hushed and excited whispers indicated that they were talking about the game they all loved to distract themselves. Bill sat alongside the dragon-handler, chatting with his girlfriend, Fleur Delacour, and Viktor Krum, who had turned out to be visiting his fellow former tri-wizard champion at her manor when Bill had asked the French witch for help. He had shocked everyone by letting his indifferent mask fall…

Flashback:

As soon as he finished expanding the Burrow's kitchen and living room, Bill rushed to his apartment through the Floo. He had to pack his things and ask for a transfer from Egypt to the Gringotts' branch back in England so he could support his family during the rapidly upcoming war. Just as he was packing the last of his possessions, an elegant silver-winged falcon flew through the open window and landed on his bedpost and, extending its leg, indicated that it had a letter tied to it. Bill immediately recognized the bird and cursed. He had forgotten he was supposed to be in a date with Fleur… two hours ago. Once more, curses flew out of his mouth.

His eyes flitted around as he took on an appraising look and turned around to untie the letter.

"Merci, Braconnier (1)," he said giving him a treat before letting him go and unrolling the scroll to read the letter. A few moments later, he nodded to himself and grabbed some Floo powder from the mantle and threw it into the fire. He was sure he could trust the Delacours, especially Fleur and Gabrielle, who had become very close to Harry after the second task, though not many people knew it. He knew the French witches had been exchanging letters with the raven-haired youth, eventually forming a brother-sisters kind of bond. It had been one of the very few things that had kept Harry from having a complete breakdown during Umbridge's rule at Hogwarts.

"Demeure (2) Delacour: Paris, France!"

Emerald flames wrapped Bill Weasley's body as he stepped in and snapped his eyes shut. He landed moments later and shook the ashes away. He straightened right on time, as he suddenly found himself being smothered by a mass of silvery blonde hair.

"Tu es ici, mon cher(3)," Fleur exclaimed.

"Hiya, love," he answered before wincing as she slapped his shoulder and proceeded to admonish his tardiness in rapid French. After she finished her tirade, she hugged him and looked up to his face. The curse-breaker smiled at the half-veela, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. Fleur noticed and knew something was wrong.

"Bill?"

The red head turned and sighed. He spoke in English, something that showed his state of mind, as he was used to speak French when in Fleur's home.

"Is everyone home? I'm afraid I bring bad news."

Fleur gasped and hurriedly led him to the balcony, where her parents and sister sat with the remnants of typically light French breakfast, chatting with a dark haired man Bill seemed to be incapable of remembering at the moment, considering he had his back turned.

Gabrielle, being the first to notice the couple's entrance, rushed towards them, arms wide open to hug Bill around his waist.

"Frère, je t'ai étonnée! (4)" Bill grinned as he spun little Gaby in the air, his in-laws watching in amusement. The dark haired man who accompanied them turned around, allowing the red head to see him clearly. The man had a crooked aquiline nose that had probably been broken several times and silky hair fell around pale features and rounded shoulders as black eyes stared at Bill. The curse-breaker was astounded. It was Viktor Krum! How was it possible?

Viktor smiled at Bill's shocked expression and proceeded to answer the unvoiced question before the English man could open his mouth.

"I never lost contact with Fleur or Harry. I have been writing to him through Fleur."

It was evident that the French veela was not the only one who had kept practicing their English. Bill shook his head to clear it of the cobwebs and greeted Mr. and Mrs. Delacour. After his girlfriend reminded of the reason he had come, Bill told them what had happened, turning to Fleur several times to apologize for having missed their date.

Fleur covered his mouth before he could apologize a millionth time and said:

"You had a very good reason to miss it, Cher. I do not mind. Is there something I-we can do?" She corrected herself after hearing her father clear his throat and feeling Gabrielle tugging at her leg.

Viktor stood and added, "I vont to help too," his accent was made evident by his distress, "Harry has become a good friend of mine, even if ve don't see each other much."

Bill smiled, gladly accepting the extra help. This time, the smile he gave reached his eyes. Perhaps there was still hope, after all.

End of flashback

Most of Harry's Defense Association was huddled beside the Quidditch players, whispering anxiously, Ginny, Ron and Hermione among them. Those absent were Marietta Edgecombe, who had NOT been invited after her betrayal, and Cho Chang, who had been kicked out, literally…

Flashback:

Molly had been ushering the arriving guests when she noticed Ginny, Neville and Luna glaring furiously at someone unseen. As everyone suddenly fell silent, the five of them stepped forward, their fiery looks never wavering. Following their line of sight, someone, probably Ron and Hermione, gasped. It was Cho Chang, Harry's almost-girlfriend, who had broken up with him on their first date for unknown reasons (A/N: rumors are not just the same as reality, are they? And really, there must have been some reason other than jealousy. I mean, Cho didn't really seem to know Harry… at all!). Only they did not seem so unknown now.

The Asian young woman seemed not to notice the trio's stares, which had been joined by Ron and Hermione's.

"Hey there, everyone," she greeted obliviously confident. She really seemed to enjoy the stares, confusing them with admiring looks.

The adults watched carefully, they understood that there was something Harry had kept silent about the 'Cho Incident' as he had come to refer to it. They wondered what had really happened between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Seekers, as everyone thought a 'wet' kiss and one date could not be enough to garner Harry's complete avoidance of Cho after Valentine's disaster.

The five friends approached Cho, who had just noticed their stormy vengeful expressions. She yelped as five wands appeared out of nowhere, pointing directly at her face.

"W-Wh-What's wrong guys?"

"You thought we would never find out, didn't you Chang?" Ginny enquired coldly. She smirked evilly as she saw the Ravenclaw girl shiver.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about, Ginny."

"Oh, really, Cho," Luna took over, "You must discuss private matters away from the halls, especially near the library where everyone coming out can hear you." Her voice had turned hard. Gone was Looney Lovegood, replaced by the brilliant girl who had followed the Defense Association's leader to the Department of Mysteries. Seeing Cho frown in confusion, Neville and Ron stepped ford and wrapped an arm around Ginny and Luna respectively.

"Come on, Chang—"

"Perhaps we could help you remember."

"You were talking to your dear friend, Marietta—"

"—just outside the library—"

"—right after you bitched out on Harry."

Finally realizing where things were going, Cho paled and turned to leave, only to have her arms caught tightly by Luna and Ginny. No one had seen them move as Neville and Ron continued their twin-play. Ron took up where Neville had stopped.

"I believe you told her something along the lines of 'That Potter bastard just ruined my plans… If he had followed through that lust-potion induced crush I would have been the Golden Boy's Wife.'"

Oh, yes. Cho remembered that conversation very clearly. She had tried to gain Potter's attention during that match back in his third year, her fourth, by using a Love Potion as perfume. Being the Amazingly brilliant Ravenclaw witch she was, she had added several extra ingredients that let her control the direction the smell-induced potion flowed, charming only the ones she wanted to. It had worked perfectly, seeing as she kept catching Potter looking at her with puppy eyes.

Hermione spoke up, shocking everyone by slapping Cho speaking so coldly, they could feel their hairs stand on end.

"You intended to charm him into sleeping with you," Cho froze as she heard her intended plan slip through the Gryffindor witch's lips, making it sound as cruel as it really was as her firm but quiet voice echoed in the dead-silent room, "You drank a Fertility Potion every time you saw him in hopes that he would act upon the spell so that you would be able to use his honor as a trap. You would make him see that marrying you was the best thing for both of you. Then you would divorce him and leave him penniless."

Cho became white as a ghost as every person in the room finally understood her attitude. White-hot rage was evident in every face present.

"H-H-Ho-How?" She couldn't understand how she had been discovered. Listening to her own plan coming out of Granger's lips made it sound really cruel… She had continuously told herself that it was only for the best… That it was the only way a ruined pureblooded Lady could redeem and give herself a real name in the Wizarding World.

"As to how we know," Hermione smirked as she interrupted Cho's train of thought, "Harry became even more silent after your last meeting and we tried to convince him to tell us what was wrong. When he finally gave up, he showed us a couple of empty potion vials… one of the labels read 'Love-Lust Potion', while the other one 'Soluzione della signora infertile (5)'. He said he had seen them fall out of your bag," she smiled sweetly and ended up with "I really didn't know Harry had been studying Italian…Did you Cho?"

That's when Cho Chang started shaking and gulped. I really messed up this time. She looked around at her fellow Ravens, only to find them pointing their wands at her, together with the rest of those in the kitchen-room.

"Just don't mess up with my kitchen, children… And someone will have to stop by the hospital."

Several curses and hexes later…

A horrified scream echoed through the halls of the disinfectant-smelling shiny white halls. A sick-looking bundle lay on the floor of Saint Mungo's entrance hall. Among the tentacles, warts, green spots and boils, there was a cardboard stating:

Is payback a bigger bitch than you are, Cho Chang?

End of flashback

A/N: Here are the translations. I'm sorry for any Cho-lovers out there, but she really got on my nerves with her attitude at Madam Puddifut's. I mean, first she seduces Harry into going on a date, right after a little kiss, and then she blows up on him because Harry said he didn't want to talk about Cedric. Okay, so Harry could have been a bit more subtle or understanding, but they barely talked to each other before and after the kiss and he (as I stated earlier in my plot) hadn't had the chance to properly grieve after the shock of seeing his fellow champion being murdered right in front of his eyes.

Braconnier = a poacher or illegal hunter.

Demeure = my French is not very good, but it roughly means 'manor', the French word 'maison' means 'house'. This means Bill called out 'Delacour Manor' adding 'Paris, France!' to imply an international Floo trip.

Mon =my, Cher =dear, so it means 'my dear'.

Frère, je t'ai étonnée! =Brother, I missed you! (A/N: at least according to the word processor's translation).

Soluzione della signora infértiles =infertile lady's solution (A/N: horribly unoriginal name, I know. I just couldn't think if anything else… at least I changed to Italian, didn't I? ; P)

Anyway, hope you liked this chapter. I expect to gain some inspiration and write a bit every other day to post the next one soon.

PLEASE REVIEW!!!!

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