Chapter 19: Whole Lotta Love
Harry looked up as Hermione entered the kitchen. Currently, he was putting the finishing touches on a letter to Gripclaw to set up a meeting whenever the Hogwarts letters arrived. The month of July was almost past and tomorrow would be the first of August. She had a glint in her eye that Harry didn't like.
"What are you planning, Hermione?" Harry asked.
"Oh nothing," she tried to sound innocent while tilting her head and peering at the ceiling, the ghost of a smile on her lips. "Would you be up for taking a walk? There's a park nearby and it would be nice to take advantage of the nice weather."
"Sure…" Harry said tentatively. She was still acting odd. Wrapping up his letter, Harry sent Hedwig off while Hermione got ready for their walk. Putting on his shoes, Harry joined her at the front door. Hermione locked up since her parents would not be home from work for a while yet.
"How are you feeing?" Hermione asked.
"I feel great, actually," Harry said, appreciating all the strength he had gained over the last two weeks. After another shopping trip to outfit Harry with summer clothes and replace the other clothes he had grown out of, Harry finally was able to take advantage of the pool. Hermione taught him how to swim and soon he was swimming laps in their moderately-sized pool.
"Good!" She smiled brightly. "Race you to the park!"
She was off like a shot, leaving Harry to chase after her. Hermione looked back at him, to make sure he was still following, laughing as she ran. Chasing her, Harry couldn't help but smile. It was nice to see straight-laced Hermione cut loose a little.
Try as he might, Harry knew he would never catch her. With her head start and a recent growth spurt giving her the longer legs, Harry couldn't hope to catch her before she reached the park which only gave Harry one thing to do.
Arriving at the park, Hermione turned to celebrate her victory.
"Haha I wi-oh!" She squealed as Harry tackled her into the grass.
"Sorry," he said, unapologetically. "I just couldn't stop in time. Thank you for breaking my fall."
Hermione smacked him in the chest as they laid in the grass, laughing like the children they were. Rolling onto their backs, they lay so their head and shoulders touched as they watched the clouds float by.
"Oh that one looks like a dragon!" Hermione pointed at a cloud.
"That one kind of looks like a Star Destroyer!" Harry exclaimed, pointing to another.
"Not you too…" Harry could hear Hermione roll her eyes. "It was bad when it was just dad…"
"What's not to like? It's the most epic story about good vs. evil!"
"So says the Boy-Who-Lived," Hermione elbowed him.
"Shouldn't that make me the resident expert?"
"Whatever you have to tell yourself," Hermione shot at him before making her voice deeper. "Such arrogance. You are just like your father."
"Don't do that again," Harry shuddered, turning to look at her. "You do that impersonation a little too well."
"Well Mr. Potter," Hermione switched to Scottish accent. "If you do not ship up, it will be 10 points from Gryffindor."
"I'm telling McGonagall!" Came Harry's ultra-mature response.
Minutes passed as they lay in the grass. Harry took a deep breath as any tension left his shoulders. It was nice to actually relax during the summer. Even though he helped cook and worked to maintain the garden, Harry actually felt appreciated for his work. It was no longer a task he had to do but a chore he chose to do to help around the house.
Harry closed his eyes and just basked in the moment until Hermione sat up next to him. Feeling suddenly less comfortable without her laying next to him, Harry looked at her.
"I think it's time we headed back," Hermione helped Harry stand up. Side-by-side, they moved for home. Enjoying the walk, Harry noticed Hermione suddenly seemed nervous.
"Are you okay?"
"Course," Hermione said, her eyes shifting around. "Let's just get home, okay?"
You're a terrible liar, Granger. Harry thought but he let the matter drop. She would tell him when she the time came. As they walked up the front walkway, Hermione was positively shaking. Growing more and more worried about his friend, Harry grabbed the key out of her shaking hand and opened the door.
"SURPRISE!"
Harry blinked in surprise. In the Grangers' living room stood Neville with his gran, Susan with Amelia, McGonagall, Pomfrey, Mr. and Mrs. Granger and, much to Harry's surprise, Hagrid.
"Happy birthday, Harry!" They all greeted him with joy. Harry looked back at Hermione who was gleefully clapping along with everyone.
"You did this?" Harry asked her.
"I figured we had 11 years worth of birthdays to make up for," she said, wrapping him up in one of her signature hugs.
"At least I don' have ter break down the door this year, eh 'Aarry?" Hagrid's voice boomed.
"Yeah but you also don't get to give Dudley a pig's tail," Harry leveled Hagrid with a playful grin. "I'm not sure which I prefer, to be honest."
"I 'eard what they did ter ya. I shoulda' rescued yer."
"There wasn't much you could have done, Hagrid," Harry said. "We all ceded to Dumbledore's wishes, I guess."
"One year," Hagrid said, beaming at the boy. "Amazin' how things 'ave changed innit?"
"For the better," He said, looking around the room.
Despite the fact the party was to be thrown for him, Harry had no idea how to actually act at it. No one had celebrated his birthday before and Harry was still uncomfortable being the center of attention. Looking around, he saw Susan standing in the corner of the room, looking uncomfortable. Amelia was chatting with Pomfrey and McGonagall, Hagrid was chatting with Neville and Hermione while the Grangers bustled around the room, playing host to everyone.
"Are you doing okay?" Harry walked up to her. "You look a little lost."
"To be honest: I'm not sure what I'm doing here," Susan told him.
"If it makes you feel better: I don't either," Harry said, making them both laugh. "If it wasn't my birthday, I would swear this party is for someone else."
"Well I am glad to be here," Susan said. "I know we're friendly at school but when Hermione invited Auntie and Auntie brought me along… I don't know. I've had a few friends but auntie seems to make a lot of them nervous. Even at school, I didn't really get to know anyone outside of school. Yes you and I have talked but I don't really feel like I know you.
Susan blushed at her statement.
"Sorry. That was rude of me to say."
"No, it was honest; we haven't really gotten a chance to get to know one another," Harry admitted. "Yet you are here at my first ever birthday party… and I am very glad to have you here."
"You really had a rough life before Hogwarts, huh?" Susan's gaze locked on his. "Auntie told me a little when she came back that night. It really shook her up."
"That's an understatement," Harry admitted. "There's so much we take for granted that I guess I've got a special appreciation."
"I don't know that I would have the same viewpoint. How do you keep yourself from becoming bitter?"
"Your aunt, among others. Hermione, her parents, McGonagall most recently. They have all given me a reason to hope."
"Well I certainly hope your party is a good one. I am glad I could be here for it."
"As am I. This year, we should make a better effort to spend time together. I feel like I spend a lot of time in our common room and don't really get to spend time with anyone from other houses."
"I would like that. Maybe we could form a study group to help in that area?"
"I'd like that," Harry smiled at her before heading back into the teeth of his party. Hermione lead him to the dining room where a pile of gifts sat waiting. Harry was overwhelmed.
Picking up the first gift wrapped in crimson paper, Harry saw it was from Neville. Tearing open the paper, Harry found book on defensive magic.
"I saw how frustrated you were last year with Quirrell," Neville said. "I thought this might help. Oh and thank you for your gift, by the way. I'm excited to see how muggle flowers grow in a magical environment."
Since Neville's birthday was the day before, Harry had sent him some lilies in honor of the godmother he never got to know.
"Thank you, Neville," Harry smiled at his friend. Moving on to the next gift which he saw was from Augusta Longbottom. Tearing open the paper, he found another book. Inside it were picture upon picture of two girls: a blonde and a redhead. A redhead with green eyes.
"When they were at school, nobody was closer than Alice and Lily," Augusta explained. "She made a diary of sorts of their years in Hogwarts with pictures of her and Lily. I made a copy of it for you to have."
"Thank you," Harry's voice broke as he looked her in the eye, tears glistening in both their eyes.
After the Longbottoms, Amelia gave Harry a wand holster.
"So you don't have to hide it in your sock again," she winked at him.
"Thank you, Auntie Amelia," Harry was starting to like that name.
Susan gave him a bar of Honeydukes chocolate, Hagrid a knit blanket with a snowy owl on it and McGonagall gave him a subscription to Transfiguration Today.
"I enjoy reading that and it always challenges me to keep developing my skills," McGonagall explained. "I thought you would enjoy reading it with a certain someone."
Her eyes flicked to Hermione who looked overjoyed at the prospect. After McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey gifted him a book on healing spells.
"Are you getting tired of healing me?" He asked her, cheekily.
"I thought it was time you learned how to heal yourself Mr. Potter," she returned.
Next, the Grangers stepped up with a big box. Setting it in front of him, they watched with a smile as Harry tore open the paper. Inside the box lay a black leather jacket. Taking the jacket out, Harry felt the stiff fabric. *
"Put it on," Richard said. "Let's see if it fits."
Richard grabbed it and held it behind Harry as Harry put his arms through the sleeves. Standing there in a white shirt, blue jeans and the jacket, Harry cut quite the figure. Hermione smiled warmly at the sight. Gone was the small little boy she had first helped in the station. Before her stood a healthy young man, surrounded by his friends and, yes, his family.
"Looks good on you, kid," Richard smiled. "It is a little bit big but that will give you a chance to grow into it."
After the jacket, Helen brought out a cake with 12 candles. As a group they sang happy birthday.
"Make a wish," Hermione told him.
I wish for a lifetime of moments like these, Harry thought as he blew out the candles.
From there the party wound down and the guests left one-by-one, Hagrid leaving last by way of a purple triple decker bus, until it was just Harry and the Grangers again.
"Thank you," Harry hugged each Granger in turn, taking all of them by surprise, especially Richard whom Harry had never hugged. "I wasn't expecting anything. Everything was perfect. How did you coordinate this?"
"I sent a message to McGonagall," Hermione smiles. "She coordinated with everyone. We ran Hedwig a little ragged this week but it was worth it."
At that Hedwig flew over and landed on Harry's shoulder to nuzzle him.
"Thank you, girl," Harry rubbed her head. "I appreciate it. I really do."
That night they sat and watched a movie, Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Harry laughed uproariously when he discovered the source of his mother's insults to Voldemort. After that, Harry headed to bed. As he was about crawl into the covers, he heard a knock on his door.
"Enter," Harry said.
In stepped his best friend, nervously holding a small package.
"Did you enjoy your birthday?"
"Absolutely. Thank you for everything you did. You're an amazing friend; you always have been."
"I wanted to give you this in private."
"Hermione…" Harry whined. "You already threw me a party…"
"And I wanted to do this," she placed the package into his hands.
Sensing the care she put into this, Harry slowly unwrapped the parcel to reveal a black velvet box. Opening it, Harry found a large knitting needle with something etched onto it.
Courage, Bravery… and Love
"It's a smaller version of the one you created on Halloween. If you hadn't been there, if you hadn't crawled up that trolls back. If you hadn't been the person you are, I would most certainly be dead. I wanted to give you something remind yourself of just how special you are and what you mean to me."
Harry felt the engraving with his hand, relishing the feel of the cold steel on his warm hands.
"Thank you, Hermione," Harry locked eyes with her. "You mean a lot to me. Thank you for being my friend."
"Always," Hermione said as she wrapped him into a tight hug. A warm feeling blossomed in her chest as he relaxed into the hug. Time lost meaning as they embraced. All that mattered was the other person.
Pulling apart, Hermione did something she had never done before. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
"Sleep well, Harry," she smiled at his vacant expression and stepped out of the room. The last look she got of her friend, he was running his hand over his cheek where her lips touched.
Boys, she rolled her eyes. They are rather oblivious, aren't they?
Tucking herself into her bed, she rolled over and promptly fell asleep, a small smile on her face as she did.
(You're starting to see Hermione recognize her feelings while Harry is just as oblivious as I was at that age.
*This jacket is also very similar to the one the Grangers give Harry in Strangers on a Train. Seriously if you haven't read it, go do so. Bonded4Life's second year is the finest second year of a fiction I have ever read, surpassing even J.K. Rowling. It is sweet, smart and brings tears to my eyes.)
