Disclaimer: Fighting among the Potter siblings may result in collateral damage to the Dursley family. I do not own Harry Potter.
Chapter 15: Holidays with the Grangers
Harry was still deep in thought as he and Lexi quietly entered number four. The Dursleys were focused around the television in the living room, the focal point of their lives. Both Petunia and Vernon completely ignored their entrance while Dudley merely gave them a sneer. It didn't matter what the Dursleys did or what they thought anymore. They were inconsequential in the big picture. They were merely a family of bullies and bigots.
Harry realized that it felt good to recognize them for what they were and how they didn't matter to him. As a young child, he had tried to earn their love and kindness. Obviously, all his attempts had never amounted to anything. For a long time, deep down inside Harry had desired their praise, approval and love. But now he was finally past that, he had people who loved him for who he was and didn't want him to change.
As Harry continued to walk up the stairs to his and Lexi's bedroom, Harry couldn't help the smile that crossed his face. The Dursleys might share blood with them, but family was more than a blood connection. It was love and friendship. Family was people who would support and help you. Family was the people in your life that gave you strength. For him, Lexi, Hermione and even Sirius were all the family that he currently needed.
Lexi grabbed Harry into a bone-crushing hug as soon as he shut the door. Harry could feel her body shaking in sobs as he held her close. She always tried to put on such a strong face in front of the world, yet she never held anything back from him.
"Shh," Harry whispered into her hair, even though she wasn't actually making any noise. Lexi and Harry had learned to cry without sound at a young age. "Everything is going to be alright. I'm going to be okay, you'll see. I bet Voldemort isn't even around anymore."
"I'm such a horrible person," Lexi whispered and her statement caught him off guard.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked his concern evident in his tone.
"I wish it was the Longbottoms," Lexi answered. "I wish Voldemort had chosen the Longbottoms. Then mum and dad would still be alive and we would have been normal magical children."
"We are normal, Lexi," Harry half-heartily replied. But he couldn't deny Lexi's bitter laugh at his statement.
"Harry, we've never been normal," Lexi said pulling away and wiping the tears away from her eyes. "And we will never be normal. Normal children don't have prophecies about them which require them to kill a dark wizard."
"You could be normal," Harry replied not meeting her eyes. "You could get away from all of this Lexi. You could go your own way and have nothing to do with me to keep yourself safe."
"Hush," Lexi said as she covered his mouth with her hand. "Don't even think things like that. We're family and we are in this together."
Harry pulled Lexi into a hug. He knew he should encourage Lexi to go her to not get involved, and to protect herself and her own interests. However, he was selfish enough to be glad that she wanted to stand beside him no matter what could happen.
~*~
Sirius nervously ran his hand through his hair as he darted up the small walkway to Remus' door. After the meeting in Gringotts, Sirius all but promised to come to visit Remus once the children were safely inside the Dursley home. Remus had been instantly concerned about the length of time it had taken the three of them inside and bank. Now he had to tell his only friend the troubling news.
The house his friend lived in was little more than a shack, being a werewolf was hazardous to one's financial wealth. However, as soon as Sirius stepped on the porch, everything about the humble home screamed Remus Lupin. The porch had been patched up, with a solitary rocking chair sitting on it. A small table was next to the chair and a well worn book was resting on it. Sirius couldn't help but chuckle at the nature of the 'serious' Marauder.
There was no need for Sirius to knock on the door since it swung open as soon as he was relatively close to it.
"Come it quickly," Remus said while pushing Sirius into the small entrance hall. Sirius couldn't help but notice Remus scanning the darkness of his yard, as if looking for someone.
"Did I catch you at a bad time?" Sirius began to tease. "Are you waiting for a hot date?" Remus looked momentarily taken aback before the stern expression once again crossed his features.
"This isn't a laughing matter, Padfoot," Remus began scolding. "I can't believe you could have been so irresponsible as to come here in your human form."
"Relax, Mooney," Sirius said with a boyish grin crossing his face. "You live out in the middle of nowhere. It's not like there is anyone around to see me."
"Padfoot," Remus began while shaking his head in anguish, "I didn't want to make you worry, but there have been people, most likely from the ministry watching my home since your disappearance act."
"What?" Sirius asked the humor slipping from his face. "How do you know?"
Remus just tapped his nose and Sirius leaned back against the wall contemplating this knowledge. Of course Remus could sense people near his house due to his advanced senses. Being a werewolf, Remus couldn't help but be bombarded by the intruders scents. But if they were watching Remus that meant the ministry thought his quiet friend was helping him while he was on the run from the law. As a werewolf, Remus had enough problems to deal with as far as the ministry was concerned. Sirius shouldn't be adding to his friend's burdens.
"Now don't be alarmed, Padfoot," Remus began while placing a reassuring hand on Sirius' shoulder. "I didn't smell anyone else out there tonight. Since it is close to the holidays, perhaps the ministry didn't have enough employees to continue surveillance on my home." Remus finished, while misreading Sirius' concern. At this point though, Sirius remained quiet on his guilt, he didn't need to throw anything else at Remus tonight.
"Sorry, Mooney," Sirius eventually replied while rubbing the back of his head. It was a nervous habit he had picked up during their Hogwarts' days. Lily had smacked him on his head one too many time for doing something stupid for the phantom pain to ever go away when he was in the wrong. "Umm, I came here to talk to you about what happened at Gringotts today."
"Yes, I was wondering what had kept you all so long," Remus said while rubbing his chin. "Let's go into the lounge and you can tell me all about it."
After sitting on a moth eaten sofa Remus had placed in what had to be the smallest room of his home, Sirius began to tell his friend all about the strange meeting he had with the goblins and his conversation earlier in the evening with Harry and Lexi. After he was done with the initial stories, Sirius began to unload all of his concerns to his werewolf friend.
"I agree with you, Padfoot," Remus began. "It does sound like the goblins are up to something. As far as I am concerned what they told you and the children in regards to the missing Potter fortune is absolutely hogwash. There is no way that other pureblood families could have taken any of the children's money, will or not."
"I know I'm horrible when it comes to legal things, but I'm no dummy," Sirius said unable to keep his frustration out of his voice. "What are they trying to do, especially telling children that Voldemort can return?"
"I don't know," Remus replied in a solemn tone. "All I can suggest is that you play along with whatever the goblins are up to at this point. It's not like an escaped felon and a werewolf can go to the ministry with this bizarre information."
"So, you are saying I should go forward with the plastic surgery?" Sirius asked hesitantly, he wasn't sure about that part of the goblins' plan.
"Yes," Remus replied instantly. "It's actually rather ingenious. It's too far below pure-blood and the ministry's notices for them to keep up with the latest procedures muggles have developed to change one's appearance. It may actually be the only way for you to live as a free man once again."
Sirius sighed accepting Remus' view on things. His friend really did have a point. However, he didn't feel like he could trust the goblins and he was afraid of them having something like the knowledge of him getting appearance changing surgery to hold over him.
"Alright," Sirius reluctantly agreed. "And in the mean time I can begin liquidating a few of the Black assets into muggle currency and institutions just in case there are any problems. You know our Marauder motto, 'always be prepared'."
Remus snickered, "I still can't believe you and James decided to steal the cub scouts' motto for our own."
"What?" Sirius complained defensively. "It's good for pranksters to be prepared, and they were cubs, you know like werewolves have cubs? To us it all fit!"
Remus burst out into laughter as the rest of the evening broke out into a time of laughter and joy. It had been far too long since the last of the Marauders had a chance to laugh and joke with one another and they spent several hours reminiscing and joking about the past.
After it was well into the night, Sirius finally returned to Privet Drive in his animagus form. He only paused to look up at bedroom window he knew was his godchildren's and he knew in that moment he couldn't be prouder of his godchildren. They knew what was in store for their family and they would not shy away from their responsibility to each other. James, Lily, Sirius thought to himself, look at your children and be proud. Help me protect them and give them the life they deserve.
~*~
The next morning was just like any other. No one, not Harry, Sirius nor Lexi brought up the discussion about the prophecy from the previous evening. Any outside would consider their little trio to be just like any other small family, two kids and their dog, enjoying a day at the park. However, the three in question were walking on eggshells. All three were afraid that at any point something would happen that would remind them of the prophecy, and that was one thing they all wanted to forget.
Due to the dire subject matter of the conversation surrounding the prophecy, Lexi had forgone mentioning her special acquisition from the day before. She knew Sirius would be extremely excited to have a wand to use again, but last night just wasn't the time to bring it up. It's hard to be cheerful or excited about something as silly as a wand when you were talking about a matter of life or death. However, since everyone seemed to be ignoring the prophecy at this time, Lexi thought it would be perfect to bring her new wand to the attention of Sirius and Harry.
The Potters and Sirius were walking through the snow covered park to their favorite meeting place. While it didn't seem like much, the grove of evergreen trees at the edge of the play park was the perfect place for them. The snow covered pine trees provided cover from the park and the road so that nobody would notice Sirius in his human form and it was a pleasant change from the Dursley home.
There may be a shed that Sirius slept in and spent most of his time in, while Lexi was inside the house, however, once she was outside and able to see Sirius the poor man just needed to get away from that shed. Lexi could completely sympathize with her godfather and his desire to be as far away from the shed as possible when he could. It reminded her of the cupboard she and Harry shared for most of their lives. While it was convenient and it was theirs, they had no desire to spend every waking minute in that shed.
Once they reached their special area, Harry pulled out his wand and cast a few warming spells on them as Sirius turned back into his human form. Their little clearing had an over turned tree trunk laid out across the middle of the clearing for them to be able to sit on, so they were not forced to sit on the snow covered grass. Harry cast a cushioning charm on the tree trunk so that it would be a bit more comfortable. As Harry performed his spell work, Lexi was memorizing the incantations and the wand movements. She just couldn't wait until she would be able to cast spells like that on her own.
"I've got something to tell you!" Lexi said once everyone had taken a seat. She was so excited that she kept bouncing around.
"What is it, pixie?" Sirius asked with a laugh in his voice.
Lexi momentarily frowned at the use of her new nickname, but her excitement over the wand didn't hold her back for long.
"When we were at Gringotts, I got a wand!" Lexi cried out, brandishing the wand from the sleeve of her jacket.
Harry and Sirius had gob-smacked expressions stuck on their faces. Lexi couldn't prevent herself from giggling at their silly reactions. It was just a wand, it wasn't like she took a priceless artifact from a vault or something.
"A wand?" Sirius finally asked once he regained control of his motor functions. "You got a wand? How?"
"I took it, silly," Lexi replied while still giggling.
"You took it from where?" Harry asked with narrowing eyes.
"Well, there was this toad-like lady who worked for the Ministry of Magic and was completely rude," Lexi began her story, while rolling the wand between her fingers. "She wasn't very careful with her carpetbag, which her wand was sticking out of it. When she wasn't playing attention since she was yelling really loudly at the goblins, I took it."
Sirius clapped his hands appreciatively at the end of her story. However, Harry just looked at her with a look of complete horror on his face.
"You stole a wand from a witch?" Harry asked his face never shifting away from his mask of horror.
"I didn't steal it," Lexi said dismissively. "I liberated it!"
"That is still stealing!" Harry said as he jumped off the log. "How could you do something like that? You could end up in jail from stealing from someone, did you ever stop to consider that?"
Lexi frowned and felt like she was about to cry at what Harry was saying. No, she hadn't thought about the fact that she could go to jail for stealing it. She was just concerned about herself and Sirius once Harry left. She was afraid about the way the Dursleys would behave once the wand was out of the house. Having her own wand that she could brandish at them when they stepped out of line was for her protection. Couldn't Harry see that it was better for her to have one?
"Now, now," Sirius began patting the near tears Lexi on the arm, "no harm, no foul. I'm sure Lexi didn't think about her actions when she took the wand. I doubt anyone would send a small child for jail for a simple misguided mistake. I'm sure Lexi had the best of intentions in mind."
Lexi couldn't respond. There was a lump in her throat that made it too difficult for her to speak. She never thought Harry would be mad at her for taking the wand. Lexi actually thought he may have been proud of her for her quick thinking. After taking a few deep breaths she was able to nod her head in agreement with Sirius's previous words.
"We need to return that wand," Harry stated without room for argument. "We can't keep it here, it isn't right. Some witch is probably missing that wand very much." After a deep sigh, Harry continued. "Lexi, you don't understand right now, but a wand is like an extension of a person. The wand chooses the witch or wizard that will purchase it, since it will be best suited for their magic. The witch that lost that wand will miss it like she lost her arm."
A horrified look crossed Lexi's face at the thought of taking someone's arm away from them. She truly didn't understand how important a wand was for a witch or wizard.
"Now, let's not be hasty," Sirius began before Lexi could comment. "What's done is done. Lexi do you remember the name of the witch you took the wand from?" At Lexi's negative head shake, Sirius continued. "Well it's not like you want to tell the wizarding world, that Lexi stole a wand, right Harry? We wouldn't want Lexi to wind up in Azkaban." Harry too shook his head in the negative.
"Then I guess we should keep this wand, however, I will be the one to take possession of it," Sirius said as he took the wand out of Lexi's hand. "Since Lexi should be punished in a way for liberating it. Now Lexi," Sirius said, wand in hand with a silly frown on his face, "no more stealing wands!"
Lexi couldn't prevent the smile that curled onto her lips as she nodded her head in agreement. She turned to look to Harry, only to see the disapproving look still on his face. Sirius might have been able to quickly accept that Lexi stole and move on, but Harry still looked like he was very disappointed in her for her actions.
Sirius gave the wand a few experimental waves as he performed some very simple spells. Lexi was quite amazed at the display since she had never seen her godfather cast any magic before.
"I wonder what the core is," Sirius said with a frown on his face. "It's not very compatible with me, however, it will get the job done." With those muttered words, Sirius began to perform some very complex transfigurations to the clearing. Providing arm chairs for the three of them to sit on. Far more complex than the spells Harry had performed.
Looking over at Harry, Lexi desperately wanted him to change his expression; however the look of disappointment remained. She really wanted his expression to change to one of him being proud of her, instead of the look of disappointment that marred his face. She was so angry with herself that he was mad with her actions. However, she really could be upset with herself for stealing in the first place. The problem was Lexi was proud of herself for taking the wand. She was just upset that she ended up disappointing Harry.
~*~
The call from Hermione had taken the Potter family off guard. Apparently Harry's best friend was a bit more cleaver than he ever gave her credit for. Hermione had been well aware that it was highly unlikely that the Potters had a place in the Dursleys' celebrations of the holidays, so she invited them to join her family for Christmas dinner.
Christmas morning flew by with a flash. When Harry had woke up, Sirius was waiting at the end of the sole bed for the Potter children to wake up.
"Come on," Sirius said in a bit of a whine as he danced from foot to foot. "It's time to open presents! It's been Christmas morning for hours!"
"What are you doing in here, Sirius?" Harry asked with concern. "You shouldn't be here, especially in your human form.
"Come on, kiddo," Sirius said with a boyish smile plastered onto his face. "You only live once. If life didn't have a few risks, it wouldn't be worth living."
However, instead of waking Lexi, the two men waited for her to wake up on her own. Harry didn't understand why his godfather was so excited about opening presents. It wasn't anything really important, but still his excitement was infectious as the time began for them to open their gifts.
Harry belatedly realized that his lack of excitement probably stemmed back to him never really celebrating the Christmas holiday. Since there was never a really big gift exchange, he didn't really understand what a big deal it was to some people. However, with each gift he opened from Lexi, Sirius, and even Remus, Harry grew more excited.
At first he thought the large amount of presents designated to him was a waste of money. He surly didn't need that many gifts. However, with each present he opened, Harry noticed Lexi and Sirius seemed very pleased with his reactions. They were just as joyful as he was to see that he had enjoyed their gifts. Perhaps receiving gifts was just as much fun as giving gifts.
Harry had spent a lot of time and truthfully a lot of money on his gifts for Lexi. The two of them had been denied the right to enjoy Christmas for so long he wanted to make this Christmas extra special for her. And apparently she wanted to do the same for him.
After all the presents were opened and everyone had time to thank the others for their gifts, the trio trooped downstairs to make a Christmas brunch.
Since things became tense with Petunia and Vernon, Sirius had been purchasing food for Lexi and Harry to eat. Sirius marked the items with magic marker 'Property of the Potters' that was placed in the larder. Harry had made it quite clear to the Dursleys that it would be in their best interest not to eat any of the food purchased for the Potter children. If you tell them it was made with magic, they wanted nothing to do with it.
Since Vernon, Petunia and Dudley were at Christmas mass it gave them plenty of time to make and eat a feast compared to what the three were accustomed to. All in all this had to be the greatest Christmas ever for Harry and Lexi, and it had just begun.
Harry just couldn't wait until it was time to go to the Grangers.
~*~
The Grangers lived in an average-sized home just outside of London, according to Harry. It wasn't a far bus ride, especially if you were taking the Knight Bus. Lexi was a bit surprised to see the same conductor and driver on the bus, as the day of their Diagon Alley trip, but Sirius, who was hidden with concealment charms, told her it was normal.
Since no one wanted to work on the holidays the company that owned the Knight Bus would petition the Ministry of Magic for Time Turners for their employees. That fact that there were devices that could rewind time had taken Lexi completely off guard. Especially since those devices were controlled by the Ministry of Magic. The idea that the ministry had the power to bend and change time and events to fit their will completely scared Lexi.
However, there wasn't much time to dwell over that. Before Lexi knew it, they had reached the Granger home. While Harry had described it to her as an average-sized home, it seemed anything but that to Lexi. As far as Lexi was concerned, the Granger home was a mansion.
Lexi was scared. These people were obviously better off than the Dursleys. What was a girl like that doing hanging around her brother? Was she only interested in him because of his fame?
But before Lexi could continue her line of thought, the door of the house flew open and a girl with bushy-brown hair ran out the door and crushed Harry into a hug. The girl wore a dress that had to be really expensive.
"Oh, Harry, I'm so glad to see you!" the girl, who must be Hermione cried.
"I missed you too, Hermione," Harry replied while breaking the hug. "This is my godfather, John Patrick Evans, and my sister, Lexi."
Sirius stepped forward and extended his hand towards Hermione. "Nice to meet you, Miss Granger. Please call me JP."
Lexi didn't think she would get used to Sirius's appearance. He was the same height and size that he usually was but his face was completely different. His eyes were green, and almond shaped. His lips were fuller than they usually were and his nose was a bit smaller than it should be. Not to mention his hair was blonde instead of its usual black.
"It's really nice, Mr. Evans," Hermione said flashing him a winning smile. Lexi had to stifle her laugh at the girl's buck teeth. The Grangers were dentists. Shouldn't Hermione have gotten them fixed? Besides, if she had buck teeth like that, you would never catch her flaunting them like that. She should keep her beaver-like teeth hidden.
"JP, Miss Granger," Sirius said while shaking a finger at her. Lexi didn't like the way Sirius was teasing Hermione. He was only supposed to tease her!
"Only if you call me, Hermione," Hermione replied without missing a beat. This was getting sickening fast. However, before Lexi could react, Hermione turned her attention on Lexi.
"I've heard so much about you," Hermione began. "I'm glad we finally got to meet in person." At that point Hermione pulled Lexi into a bone-crushing hug.
Lexi was beginning to freak out. What was this girl doing? They didn't know each other!
"Umm, nice to meet you too," Lexi squeaked out once Hermione let her go. She couldn't meet the older witch's eyes.
"These are my parents, John and Jean Granger," Hermione said not missing a beat. Lexi hadn't even noticed the two adults step on to the porch.
The greetings continued around the group as Hermione excitedly ushered everyone into the home. Lexi didn't know how to react to the hug she had received. The only people who had given her hugs in the past were Harry and Sirius. This was a new, uncharted situation for Lexi. All she knew for sure was that she wasn't comfortable around Hermione Granger.
~*~
Jean Granger was very proud of her very unique and brilliant daughter Hermione. Ever since she was a small girl, Hermione always proved to be above the curve and exceptional in every way. When she received a letter from Hogwarts School of Witch Craft and Wizardry, Jean knew that she shouldn't be surprised that her daughter wasn't just amazing, she was magical.
However, even though Hermione was extremely intelligent and always did well with her studies, her brilliance was also her downfall. Her primary school teachers were frequently outwitted by Hermione so it was no surprise that the other children were intimidated by Hermione's drive to excel in school. That being said, Hermione never had a true friend in all of her time attending school.
Of course some children were nice to her and frequently asked Hermione over to their homes to help them study or work on projects. However, once the term was over, her daughter never heard from those other children again. It seemed that most children Hermione's age had only wanted her for her brain, not her personality.
When Hermione had first written saying that she made a new friend, Jean was honestly worried that this other child only wanted her for her brain. But as the term progressed and Hermione began to share stories of how her friend Harry had helped her with her flying lessons, Jean suddenly wondered if perhaps this boy would turn out to be a true friend.
This Harry seemed to be different from any other child Jean had encountered. From what Hermione told Jean, Harry was seen as a bit of a celebrity in their world due to the fact that he survived some special spell. Harry seemed to like her daughter for who she was, and that endeared the young boy to Jean instantly. For a celebrity he seemed very down to earth, this seemed like a very good trait for a boy who was her daughter's friend.
Throughout their meal that evening, Jean was certain that at some point Hermione's face would split open due to all of the grinning that her daughter did. It was certainly good to know that her daughter was happy with the choices that she made in choosing friends.
And his younger sister was a sight to be seen. While Hermione had told her that the girl was two years her junior, the poor thing looked four to five years younger than Hermione. She seemed very quiet and shy, yet Mr. Evans seemed to bring a bit of life out of the girl, whenever she seemed a bit depressed. If Mr. Evans wasn't such a kind man, she would have sworn that the girl had been malnourished and abused.
All throughout dinner the Potter children were very polite. The entire time they showed the best of behavior. In all honestly, the two children acted like miniature adults instead of children. Perhaps that was why they seemed to get along so well with her daughter. What had surprised Jean the most was how familiar Hermione acted around the youngest, Lexi. Jean knew Hermione never met the girl before, but she was acting like they were good friends. Maybe Hermione had been writing to the girl during the first term?
"So, Mr. Evans," Jean began as they were finishing their first course. "How are you related to Harry and Lexi?" While Jean knew he was their godfather, she secretly wondered if there was another connection between them as well.
"Well, I'm their mother's cousin," Mr. Evans replied with a very charming smile on his face. "She and I were always particularly close, much closer than she was with her sister, Petunia. When both Harry and Lexi were born, she and her husband, James, who was also a good friend, named me to be the godfather of their children."
"That's very interesting," John replied jumping in on the conversation. "However, I thought Hermione told us that Harry lived with his aunt?"
"Yes," Mr. Evans responded with regret clear in his tone. "I was out of the country when Lily and James passed away. Therefore, both of the children were placed with Petunia, who doesn't particularly care for them. I'm currently in the process of taking custody of the children. I hope to have everything straightened out by the summer."
Jean slightly frowned at what Mr. Evans had just told her. That simply seemed a bit farfetched.
"Why doesn't Petunia like them?" Hermione asked much to Jean's shock and dismay.
"Hermione!" Jean began to scold. "That was a very inappropriate question."
"But a fair one," Harry replied in a low voice.
"You see," Mr. Evans began addressing Hermione's question, "Petunia had never cared for magic. She was quite jealous that Lily was a witch, while she was just an average muggle. That jealousy turned into a hatred of all things magical. Since Harry and Lexi are magical-"
"She hates them," Hermione said quietly, rudely cutting Mr. Evans off.
"Yes," Mr. Evans agreed before an uncomfortable silence filled the room.
This time Jean was unable to lessen the frown on her face. If he knew that the woman hated his godchildren, then why didn't he do something sooner? This was definitely something that she would have to look into. It was just too strange. For the sake of Christmas, she wouldn't do or say anything now, but once the holidays were over, she would have to get to the truth behind JP Evans.
Jean sighed as she realized that she was going to have to have another discussion about what was right and proper. Hermione could not go through life asking inappropriate question. No daughter of Dr. Jean Granger was going to be that rude.
But now dinner was done and Jean had to wonder how long the Potter children would be staying in their home. She had to admit each of the children had drawn her to them through their individual traits. Jean honestly hoped that the children would visit Hermione frequently on school breaks.
"Mum," Hermione began once the table had been cleared. "Can we go upstairs?"
"Sure, dear," Jean said with a smile. She was so glad that her daughter had a chance to experience some child-like pastimes such as playing with her friends in her room. It wouldn't be much longer before Hermione would be too old to do such things.
Hermione dragged both Harry and Lexi up the stairs to her room, and Jean couldn't help but chuckle. The children really were cute to watch together. After the children were out of ear shot, the adults moved into living room to enjoy an after dinner drink.
"So, Mr. Evans," John began. "Tell us more about yourself."
Surprisingly Mr. Evans looked as though John had suggested he crawl over broken glass. That was an interesting reaction. Jean made a mental note of it as she began to listen to his every word. She would dissect every part of his story to find the truth.
~*~
"Wow," was all Hermione could say in response to the story that Harry had told her. "Wow. I just can't believe it!"
The Potter child and Hermione were crowded around on the floor of the bedroom sitting on a few beanbag chairs that Hermione owned. She had explained to the Potter children that she loved sitting in beanbag chairs as she read books, they helped her relax. So, as Harry told her the story of his holiday, and all the crazy things that had happened, they sat in a small beanbag circle.
"Tell me about it," Harry muttered as he leaned further back in his seat.
"So your godfather, Sirius Black is downstairs having tea with my parents?" Hermione asked with a small grin on her face.
"Yes," Harry hesitantly replied.
"The same Sirius Black that is a wanted mass murderer?" Hermione asked with a bit of a giggle to her voice.
"Yes, but as I told you, he was innocent," Harry continued, clearly unsure as to what Hermione was going for.
But after he said that, Hermione burst into a git of giggles. "I'm sorry," Hermione eventually said. "My parents are just so straight-laced. I just can't imagine them ever having dinner and a long conversation with a wanted felon."
"Technically, he never had a trial," Lexi finally participated in the conversation. Hermione hadn't noticed till that point that the small girl hadn't said a word.
"Yes, I know that," Hermione said a bit dismissively. "It's still rather funny to me, even knowing that the wanted criminal is in fact innocent."
Hermione didn't miss the sour look that crossed Lexi's face. That was an unexpected reaction.
"I just can't believe what has happened since break," Hermione continued while watching Lexi.
"Tell me about it," Harry replied. "I even went out and bought some books on magical oaths and wards to see if Sirius had been telling me the truth."
"Oh, Harry," Hermione replied turning her attention solely on him. "From what you told me everything JP told you was correct. You really shouldn't worry about that."
"Yeah," Harry agreed while running his hand through his hair, something Hermione knew he tended to do when he was upset. "I came to that conclusion as well do to the books I bought. It's just a lot to take in."
"I understand Harry," Hermione replied although she distinctly heard a snort coming from Lexi's direction. "Perhaps things will be easier after you go back to Hogwarts. There will be some distance between the two of you, and you can try to get to know each other through letters. That way you won't feel like he is pushing himself on your family."
Lexi muttered something at that point, but it was too low for Hermione to hear. Harry, on the other hand, heard everything Lexi had said.
"That's enough, Lexi," Harry said with a hard edge to his voice. "That was uncalled for."
"Whatever you say, big brother," Lexi snapped in response before jumping up and leaving Hermione's small bedroom.
"What was that all about?" Hermione asked clearly confused by Lexi's behavior.
"I have no idea," Harry said as a dark look crossed his features. "She has been acting weird since we got here."
"Have I been a bit too forward with her?" Hermione began to fret. "I know I've never met her before today, but I feel as though I have known her for years. Perhaps I should have toned down my behavior a bit."
"Hermione," Harry said while placing a hand on her shoulder. "Whatever is wrong with Lexi has nothing to do with you. Don't worry about it. I'll figure out what was wrong once we get back to Privet Drive."
Hermione took notice of the fact that Harry was still not calling the Dursleys' house his home. She had hoped when Harry told her about Sirius, that perhaps he would feel as though he had a real home, but sadly that was still did not appear to be the case.
"Alright, Harry," Hermione reluctantly replied. "But you will let me know if there is anything I can do to help, right?"
"Of course," Harry said while pulling her into a hug. "You're family too. You are just as involved in this as anyone else."
A huge smile graced Hermione's features as she heard what Harry said. She was a part of his family. She loved her parents, but that didn't stop her from including Harry in her family. It didn't take away from her parents; the size of her heart had just grown to add Harry and Lexi as well.
~*~
After the got off the Knight Bus, Harry and Lexi said a quick goodbye to Sirius before they made their way into Privet Drive. Sirius seemed to have noticed the tension between the two siblings, if the worried look on his face was any indication. However, that didn't matter. Harry knew Lexi was pissed, and he was equally furious in return.
"Where have you been?" Vernon bombared them with the question the minute they walked through the door.
"We were out." Harry sharply replied. "Where we were is none of your business."
"Now see here-" Vernon began but Harry instantly tuned him out. There was nothing that Vernon had to say that would interest Harry.
Lexi seemed to be of a similar mindset as Harry as she pounded up the stairs. Harry could do nothing but follow her, knowing that they were going to have it out. Lexi was going to have to get over whatever issue she had with Hermione.
Harry walked into their bedroom and shut the door behind him. Lexi was staring out their sole window, but Harry knew she was breathing rather heavily.
"What is your problem?" Harry asked in a firm tone.
"How could you?" Lexi shrieked as she turned around. When she did, Harry could see that her eyes were brimming with tears.
"What?" Harry dumbly asked, he was taken off guard by her question. Regardless of what he told Hermione, he was sure she was Lexi's problem. Now it looked like he was the route of the problem and he didn't know how to react to that.
"How could you just betray Sirius and me like that?" Lexi began, her face was turning red due to her extreme anger. "How could you just tell her his secret?"
"Are you mad because I told Hermione about Sirius?" Harry asked trying to process what Lexi was saying.
"Yes!" She screamed. "How could you do that?"
"I tell Hermione everything," Harry hesitantly replied. "I wouldn't keep that from her. She's my friend."
"She is someone you've only known for a couple of months!" Lexi countered. "Now we have trust her to keep Sirius's location a secret. For all we know she could be contacting the Ministry as we speak telling them where he is. Within a hour Sirius could be gone!" Lexi wailed out the last word as she broke down into sobs.
What was wrong with her? Why was she getting all worked up over this?
"I trust Hermione with my life," Harry said as calmly as he could, still trying to make peace. "She will keep his secret."
"It wasn't… your decision… to make," Lexi said between sobs.
"Well, excuse me," Harry replied. "No one told me I had to get approval before I told someone about Sirius."
A dark look crossed Lexi's face and Harry was scared. He had never see his sister so angry before. Her tears instantly stopped and her hair started to rapidly change colors between black and red. Harry started to back towards the wall, unsure as to how to react to Lexi in this state.
"You freaking git!" Lexi hissed. "You are a complete ass!"
"What did you just say?" Harry asked starting to turn red. How dare she start calling him names? He did nothing wrong.
"You heard me," Lexi replied in a snide voice, "Ass!"
"Oh, like your one to talk, princess," Harry began throwing caution to the wind. He wasn't going to take being talked to like that from anyone, including his sister. "What were you thinking by befriending a murderous convict? I warned you about him, but you seemed to ignore my opinion and made friends with him and invited him into our lives. There was no way you could have known at that time that Sirius would not hurt you."
"I can make my own decisions," Lexi said with a stubborn look on her face. Harry realized by bringing up her initial befriending of Sirius, he had taken her off guard.
"And so can I," Harry countered. "I wanted to share that information with my friend and I did. I told Hermione about Sirius and she will keep it a secret. End of discussion."
"Like you can trust her," Lexi scuffed. "For all you know she only wants to be your friend because you are the Boy-Who-Lived. She's rich and maybe all she wants is the fame that the Potter name would bring her."
"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, more puzzled than angry.
"Come on," Lexi said throwing her hands up in exasperation. "You told me her family had an average-sized home, when in reality their home was easily two times the size of the Dursleys. Then she starts acting like she is my best of friend as well, trying to be all chummy with me. We were strangers, what was she thinking?"
"Hermione is very expressive of her feelings," Harry started in defense of his friend. Harry was a bit confused as to why he thought Hermione was rich. Her parents were both professionals so they lived well, but they weren't exactly rolling in the dough. "She has listened to me go on and on about you. She has been waiting to meet you for months. I've told you before, she's like family and she sees you too as family even if she never met you before."
"Well maybe I don't want her to be a part of my family," Lexi yelled. "I'm just fine with you and Sirius. I don't need some rich, pompous, know-it-all to pretend to care about me as well."
"How dare you?" Harry screamed seeing only red. "Hermione cares about us. You take that back!"
"No!" Lexi shouted, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "There is no way in hell you'll get me to take that back!"
"Well you're not going to make me accept Sirius," Harry countered. "I don't care if he is our godfather, I want nothing to do with him. We were better off without him!" Harry hoped his words would cut Lexi just like her words hard hurt him.
"And what about you stealing that wand?" Harry continued to roar. "Sirius obviously isn't a good influence on you if you are beginning to exhibit illegal tendencies since he came here!"
"You stupid prat!" Lexi cried as a loud bang echoed through the room.
"You FREAKS!" Vernon yelled as he banged on the door again. "Open this door immediately. I'm going to teach you proper manners!"
Apparently they had been loud enough to draw the attention of the Dursleys. Deciding to end this for the last time, Harry flew the door open, fingering his wand which was concealed in his sleeve.
"I don't know or care what the two of you were yelling about," Vernon began as he advanced into the room. "But I am going to show you what happens to freaks who don't behave in my home!"
"Petrificus Totalus," Harry shouted, fed up with listening to Vernon's rant.
Instantly Vernon Dursley turned as stiff as a board and fell to the floor. His eyes were wide as he started motionless up at Harry who was towering over him.
"I told you there would be consequences," Harry told the frozen man. "Both Lexi and I can do magic now. It's no longer open hunting season on the Potters, got it?"
While Vernon couldn't communicate, Harry wasn't going to take no for an answer. Using the levitation charm, Harry lifted Vernon off of the floor and moved him into the master bedroom and un-ceremonially dumped him onto the bed.
"This will wear off in a few hours," Harry said while leaning over Vernon to stare at him directly in the eyes. "The next time you threaten or hurt one of us, our response will not be temporary, it will be permanent." With those final words Harry marched out of the room.
"What did you do to him?" Petunia asked from the stairway, where she watched Harry move her husband into their room. Her fear was evident in her voice.
"I merely put him in a Full Body-Bind," Harry said as nonchalantly as possible. "He was lucky I was in a generous mood. I hope there will be no repeats of tonight's behavior."
"No… there shouldn't be," Petunia hesitantly replied. She had a sour look on her face as she said it.
"Good," Harry said with a nod of his head. "Good night, Petunia, sleep well." At Harry's final words Petunia looked sick. That was good, she had taken Harry's words as the threat he intended.
Petunia rushed into her room, and Harry was finally free to go back to his argument with Lexi. Now that he had been away for a few minutes, he already regretted some of his words to her. But Lexi had to see that she wasn't the only one making the rules. She had to know how upset he had been when he learned about Sirius.
However, before Harry could enter the room, Lexi was walking out with an arm load of blankets.
"Where are you going?" Harry asked very concerned with her behavior.
"Back to my cupboard until you leave," She snapped. "I can't stay here with you any longer. I never want to talk to you again!"
With that, Lexi pushed her way past Harry and headed down the stairs. Harry just looked on in shock, unable to understand exactly what had just happened.
~*~
A/N: Wow... I am shocked by the output of reviews last chapter. I'm still working through replying to all the reviews. Hopefully some of the things covered in this chapter will clear up some of the points. I never said the goblins were being truthful last chapter to Harry, Lexi and Sirius. Remember, Ragnok wants to use the Potters to be the catalysis another wizard civil war... I won't explain anymore but you should all be able to figure out why the goblins acted the way they did in the last chapter. If you can't just contact me. ;-)
Alright, enough author rambling... A huge thank you for everyone who reviewed! Thank you swanpride for your words of encouragement in helping me shape this chapter to where I wanted it to be. Also, thank you zephy for the last chapter you have beta-ed for me before your surgery. I spoke to her a few times this week over the phone and she is doing well and is resting at home right now for everyone who was inquiring as to her health. She will be back in a few weeks but I'll miss her till she returns.
From this point on, grammatically speaking I have no beta. Please forgive me if I make any huge mistakes. If anyone is interesting in helping beta for me please contact me. You've got a desperate author here.
Foria
Next Chapter: The Trouble with Hogwarts