Harry and the Pirates, Chapter 22

Back to Britain

"I've got to say, it's good to be home," Hermione Granger remarked. She sucked in a lungful of smoggy, damp London air with every evidence of enjoyment. "I loved Roanapur, and can easily see why you boys love it so…but at seventh and last, I'm an English girl, and I'm happiest here."

"We understand," Dudley Dursley assured her. They had just arrived back in London the night before, accompanied by the Doctors Granger, who did not know very much about Hermione's stay in Roanapur. "We felt the same way when we got back to Roanapur."

"Well, this Miss Balalaika seems to have been a wonderful influence on both you boys," Hermione's mother commented, smiling at them warmly. "And she's given our Hermione ever so much confidence about what she can do with her life! Seeing her running that business of hers, Bougainvillea Trading, so easily gave Hermione ideas about what she'll want to do once she's out of school!"

Behind Dr. Granger's back, Harry and Dudley grinned mischeviously at each other. If her parents knew one-tenth of what she did and saw in Roanapur, they'd have heart attacks! Harry thought. He knew his cousin was thinking much the same thing. Before arriving in Bangkok to meet the Grangers, they and Hermione had carefully worked out just what to, and what not to, tell her parents.

Outside, a car pulled up. Hermione's father peered through the front window. "This must be the Weasleys!" In a few minutes, the door was opened and the Grangers were welcoming the Weasleys into their home.

Mr. Weasley looked around curiously. "I've seldom been in a Muggle home, except on business." At Hermione's questioning look, he elaborated: "I'm in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office at the Ministry. We investigate and confiscate Muggle objects that have been unlawfully enchanted. Like car keys that have been spelled to always vanish when the owner goes looking for them."

"Really?" Hermione's parents shared a glance; Harry couldn't tell what they were thinking. "Sounds interesting."

"I'll be happy to explain anything you want, Mr. Weasley. However, shouldn't we be getting on our way? We need our books, and there's a book signing at Flourish and Bott's I don't want to miss."

"Of course! Gilderoy Lockhart's signing copies of Magical Me, his autobiography. The store will be packed, between that and kids needing their textbooks. Please excuse us, but we've got to go!" With that, Mr. Weasley began herding the children toward the door.

"Of course! We'd come along, but we've a conference to get to; we scheduled it before we knew what else would be happening today. We'd love to accompany you, but we can't pull out; they're expecting a report on what we did in Bangkok."

Hermione hugged her parents. "It's all right, Mum, Dad. Diagon Alley's crazy this time of year anyway. Think of Christmas at Harrods. It's a madhouse. I'll take you back to Diagon Alley sometime when it's not so mad. How does that sound?" They hugged her back, and the Grangers released their daughter, who scampered down the front stairs and into the Weasleys' Ford Anglia.

Harry and Dudley had expected to be crowded, but the Anglia was bigger inside than it looked on the outside. In front, Percy Weasley was sitting between his parents, while in the back, Ron welcomed them warmly. "Harry! Dudley! Hermione! Good to see you all! I hope you had a wonderful time in Thailand!"

"Couldn't have been better, Ron! We'll tell you all about it later!" Behind the elder Weasleys' backs, Harry gave Ron a quick Slytherin hand-signal, meaning There's a lot to tell, but not here. Ron's eyes went wide and he nodded.

Behind Ron, Fred and George grinned, holding out their hands to shake. "You all look tanned! Thailand must agree with you!" said one of them; Harry could never really tell them apart.

"Thailand's wonderful. One of the best things about it is getting real Thai food again! The food at Hogwarts is good, but Harry and I get homesick for Thai or real Chinese food sometimes!" Dudley said. "Maybe over the hols, we can take you and Hermione somewhere to experience it yourselves!"

"He's right!" Hermione piped up. "The food there is heavenly! Mummy and Daddy both said that if they stayed there too long, they'd have to roll them onto the plane. They'd be perfect butterballs!"

From behind the twins came a giggle. Fred, or George, turned and said "Oh, this is our little sister Ginny. Come on out, Ginny!" He hauled a blushing red-headed girl out from behind him. "Geez, Gin-Gin, what's the matter with you? You normally never act this way!"

"It might be she's feeling shy at meeting Harry Potter," the other twin grinned. "She's been chattering nonstop about him all summer." At this, Ginny blushed even redder, and Hermione took pity on the younger girl.

"Come here, Ginny!" She gathered Ginny in close. "What House do you think you want?"

"I don't know," Ginny said softly. "I always thought that I'd be in Gryffindor, but Ron's letters about what you got up to in Slytherin make it sound such fun that I might want to go there."

"Well, the Hat doesn't get things wrong. You'll be in whichever House you belong in," one of the twins assured her.

"Of course, if you go to Slytherin, Mum will send you a Howler…"

"But we get those so often that a week without them is like a week without sunshine!" Both twins grinned.

From the front seat, Molly put in: "And you deserve them! Honestly, I could have died of shame when I got that letter about you stealing your little brother's butterbeer! Served you right that it was booby-trapped!"

"Well, they may have outsmarted us, but they also saved our arses from that troll with those Muggle contraptions of theirs!" The twin's statement caught Arthur Weasley's attention, and for much of the rest of the trip, Harry and Dudley were explaining Muggle weaponry to a fascinated Arthur.

"I'll want you to come down the Ministry sometime and talk to some people. Very few of us have any experience of these things, and your insights will be invaluable." At that point, they'd parked and were exiting the car, heading for the Leaky Cauldron. Harry braced himself; he didn't like the Cauldron much, since people there tended to gush over him. He knew all about the "Boy Who Lived" thing, but that didn't mean he liked it. He wasn't one and a half years old any more!

The Weasleys formed up and Harry found himself in the middle of the knot as they walked through the tavern and entered Diagon Alley. Sure enough, the place was badly crowded; Harry quickly spotted a bunch of people he knew from school. Fred, George and Percy were all soon absorbed into the friendly throng.

Hermione's face fell when she saw Flourish and Bott's. "Oh, look at that crowd!" she lamented. "How will I ever get my books?"

"Why don't we hit Gringott's, and get some money changed?" Harry had found out that he had a vault at Gringott's with money his parents had left him, but when he'd mentioned possibly using that for expenses while in Britain, Aunt Petunia had firmly forbidden it.

"Young people are to be supported by their elders, young man!" she had said. "I assure you, your late uncle left me very well-provided-for and my salary is quite adequate. I won't hear of you accessing that money until you're legally of age! Who knows what might happen if you did?"

Balalaika had agreed completely. "I am glad to see that Petunia takes her responsiblities seriously. I mean no offense, Harry; you're much more mature than many people your age. But twelve years old is too young to handle a fortune on your own. Once you are of adult years, then you may do as you please." Harry shrugged his shoulders. Between the money he'd saved from his salary and what Aunt Petunia gave him, he had more than enough to see him through the year.

Gringott's was less crowded than many places; the goblins enforced decorum on customers and workers alike. Hermione, Harry and Dudley were soon served, and shortly thereafter, they were back out in the Alley, their pockets heavy with Galleons.

"Where to, first?" asked Hermione. "Get some new robes? Mine don't fit so well any more."

The boys all looked at her. "Yeah," grinned Harry. "Getting a bit tight across the chest, we see!" Hermione scowled and gave Harry a playful slap on the back of the head.

Ron looked a little uncomfortable, and Harry noticed that he was flushing. "Er, you all go on ahead," he muttered. "I'm all right."

His three friends regarded him narrowly. Finally, after an uncomfortable few minutes, Harry nodded. "Right. We'll see you in a few." The three headed off to Madam Malkin's shop, and in answer to the questioning looks that he was getting, Harry muttered, low enough for nobody outside their tight little group to hear: "Ron's family's a bit hard up for the readies, and he's sensitive about it. I shouldn't have mentioned new robes."

"I think I know what'll be waiting for him on Christmas," Hermione muttered back. All three of them grinned conspiratorially. Harry made a mental note; he could find out Ron's measurements, and get them to Madam Malkin in plenty of time for some new robes to be made up. And Ron can't exactly turn away a Christmas pressie, now can he? This way, their friend would look good, as a Slytherin should, and his pride would be spared.

The three friends returned from Malkins' place an hour later, having made arrangements for their new clothes to be sent on ahead. The Weasleys were talking with a tall wizard they'd never seen before, one with a mop of frizzy white hair and a slightly crazed look in his eyes.

"Oh! There you are!" Mrs. Weasley beckoned them over. "Xeno, we'd like you to meet some of Ron's little friends from school: Harry Potter, his cousin Dudley Dursley, and Hermione Granger. They're all in Slytherin together." Harry noticed that she didn't say "Slytherin" as though it meant something squishy she'd stepped in on the street. She's getting better, I think. "Hermione, Harry, and Dudley, this is our neighbor, Xenophilius Lovegood. He publishes the Quibbler newspaper, and his daughter's a friend of our Ginny. She'll be starting Hogwarts this year, too."

"Pleased to meet you, sir," the three friends chorussed, lining up to shake Mr. Lovegood's hand.

"A pleasure to meet all of you. Ginny, here, was telling me about how you and your cousin grew up mostly in Asia, Harry. If you have the time, would you be willing to answer a few silly questions about the place? My paper specializes in things that the Prophet mostly won't touch."

"We'll be happy to, both me and my cousin. We didn't know we were magical till we got notified about Hogwarts, though. You say your daughter's going to Hogwarts this year? Is she with you?"

"She and Ginny went off to the ladies' together. And here comes Ginny now!" Sure enough, Ron's little sister was approaching. "Ginny, where is Luna?"

Ginny looked behind her. "She was right here, just now! Oh, Merlin, where could she have wandered off to?" She began to babble apologies. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Lovegood! She was right here behind me just a minute ago!"

"Luna!" her father called. "Luna!"

Mrs. Weasley clutched her husband's arm. "Oh, dear! Arthur, do you think she might have wandered into Knockturn Alley?" All the adults paled.

"What is Knockturn Alley?" asked Dudley.

"That's where the Dark Arts stuff is sold! It's a really dodgy place! Oh, Merlin, if Luna's wandered in there, I'll never forgive myself!" Mr. Lovegood looked distraught. "Ever since her mother died, she's all I have left! Oh, Luna!"

"Knockturn Alley's entrance is not far from where we were in the loo," Ginny volunteered. "Right down there."

"Right, then! I'm going in and seeing if I can find her!" At the adults' scandalized expressions, Harry explained: "Look, Roanapur has plenty of dodgy areas. Dudley and I both grew up there, and we're well used to dealing with that sort of thing. Hermione! You with us?"

"One moment, boys!" Hermione turned to Mr. Lovegood. "What does your daughter look like?"

"She's about my height, with dark-blonde hair worn to waist length, big silvery-grey eyes, and wearing grey robes." Ginny was looking pale, but she had clearly kept her head. "I'm going in with you!"

"Oh, no you're not, young lady!" Mrs. Weasley grabbed her daughter by the arm. "And that goes for you too, young man!" Ron looked abashed. "Knockturn Alley's dangerous!"

"We can handle it, Mrs. Weasley!" Before she could grab them, Harry, Dudley and Hermione were charging across Diagon Alley, pushing startled people out of the way, heading straight into Knockturn Alley.

END