DON'T OWN ANYTHING NOT EVEN THE PLOT

Chapter 3

Hermione.

His instincts told him it was Hermione Weasley,and his instincts were very active where she was concerned. What was she doing here on this precise night?What did she know,and how did she know it?What had her brother told her that he hadn't been able to communicate to Harry?

Harry needed to get answers,so he'd abandoned his men as they unloaded casks of brandy and hid them in the caves on the cliffs above the had to follow the woman.

The taproom was even Olivander stood before the fire that sputtered on the hearth,and Harry's gaze probed every corner as he scraped mud off his the innkeeper bustled out of the kitchen,wiping his hands on his apron."Hey,what are ye doing out tonight?"he demanded roughly."ye know_"

Harry swept his hat off and Olivander stopped in his that looked like horror flashed briefly across his rotund face,then he wiped his expression clear and allowed a slow grin to forward,he took Harry's cloak."m' delightful! M'lady assured me ye'd arrive."

"M'lady?"

"M'lady arrived yesterday,but she didn't expect ye for several days."

What was the man babbling about?Harry kept his face carefully mother was dead,his grandmother seldom left the manor,and they were the only noblewomen Olivander called"m'lady."In a neutral tone,Harry asked,"Didn't she?"

Chuckling,Olivander slipped behind the bar and opened the tap on a cask of Harry's favorite liquid swirled into the mug while Olivander said,"Aye,'twill be a surprise sure to please as pleasent as the surprise ye've given us." He winked and passed Harry the glass.

"Marrying the young lady, and at Narcissa Malfoy, too! We'd never have thought it of ye,m'lord but when love strikes as sudden as all that ,a man's got to leg-shackle the heifer before she's had a chance to think."

"My opinion exactly."Harry clutched the handle of the mug and wished he could clutch someone by the throat with equal 'd come in ,furious and determined, and been knocked completely awry by Olivander's babblings, now he found he was supposed to have married-and at Narcissa Malfoy. "Who knows about this?"

"Ah..."Olivander swabbed the length of the bar with a rag."Well ,to tell ye the truth, m'lord,word seems to have got out in the village."

"Now,how did that happen?"

Olivander scrubbed harder.

Taking a chance ,Harry used her name. "Did...Hermione ...mention this to many people?"

"Nay! She was as discreet as ye instructed,and told only me."

So it was Hermione who awaited him in the bedchamber course,she didn't realize her lord would ever truly arrive,but perhaps these events could be turned to his favor.

Leaning on his elbows,Olivander smiled at Harry feebly."But of course the women wondered, and i gave 'em just one hint, and before i knew it.." He flung up his hands in a helpless display. "Ye know women,m' 're terrible gossips."

"Damn!" Harry paced away from the bar. The whole village knew that their lord had supposedly married?Hermione Weasley had a lot to answer for, and the list grew with each passing minute."Gossip can be the cause of a lot of trouble .Did m'lady happen to tell you why I wasn't with her or why she didn't go on to Potter Court when it is so close?"

"Aye, m'lord ,she told me everything."