Chapter 7: Family Reunited
Harry could feel the pressure and grip on his hand tighten as the door opened.
"Good morning, how can I help you?" the woman asked.
Hermione seemed to have completely frozen. It was up to Harry to improvise their way inside.
"Good morning, ma'am. We're very sorry to disturb you, it's just that… me and my girlfriend are a little lost. We arrived in the country yesterday for a long vacation and we have wandered a little far from the beach." Harry wanted to bite back those words as soon as he said them. Girlfriend. What's wrong with you? He thought.
The woman gave back a warm smile, "Well, I'm afraid you have wandered quite far out. The beach is about an hour away by foot. Would you like to see a map? I could also call the cab for you." She suggested.
This was Harry's chance, "A map would do just fine if you would be so kind to borrow us one." He answered.
"No problem at all." She opened the door wider to reveal the hallway, "Would you like to come in while I fetch it?"
Harry knew he had to be very careful. He decided to risk his chances, "Are you absolutely sure, ma'am? We wouldn't like to intrude anything."
The woman chuckled and waved her hand at him, "Nonsense, come in dear."
Hermione seemed to have unfrozen herself as she pulled Harry inside before he could react.
"Where are you from?" the woman asked politely.
"England," Harry answered, giving a quick smile.
"Ahh, I am from England myself. You can probably tell by the accent. We moved here with my husband a couple years back." She gestured them into the living room where Harry and Hermione sat down on the couch.
"I will be right back." She told them and paced to the kitchen, "Now… where did I put that map?" she asked herself.
"Hermione… you okay?" Harry whispered.
Hermione leaned closer to him, "I wasn't ready for this, Harry."
This made Harry's heart jump, "Hermione, there's no going back now. We're inside. We just need to get her to sit down and while I talk, get behind her and cast the reversal spell."
Hermione looked very tense for a while, it made Harry even more nervous. "Hermione, you can do this. I know you can." He squeezed her hand.
Hermione gave a nervous smile and nodded.
"Ahh, here we are!" came a voice from the kitchen.
"Honey, did you call me?" came another voice from upstairs.
She paced back into the living room and walked over to the stairs, "Come downstairs, Wendell! We have guests!" she yelled, and came over to sit down in front of Harry and Hermione. She rolled the map over the table.
"Did you say guests?" said Wendell, as he marched down the stairs, he linked his gaze with Harry and Hermione and then sat down next to his wife, he reached his hand over to Hermione who shook it, "Wendell Wilkins. A pleasure to meet you." He gave her a tight smile and did the same for Harry."
"Oh dear, I haven't even introduced myself, Monica Wilkins." She smiled and bowed her head to them.
Harry bowed his head back, "Harry Potter, this is Hermione Granger." He pointed to his companion.
Hermione gave something of a quiet whimper. She was about to speak when a large ginger cat jumped on her lap.
"Crookshanks. Bad boy, get off!" said Mrs Wilkins as she reached for the cat.
"It's okay." Said, Hermione, as she started to pet him. "I'm good with animals." She gave a weak smile.
"That's very strange," said Mr Wilkins, "He never greets strangers like that… you have a gift, young lady."
Hermione cleared her throat and looked towards Harry who seemed to have frozen himself.
"Right… we left the beach a couple hours ago… we were just sightseeing and then I realised that I couldn't see the ocean anymore." He started as he focused on the map.
"Well… the beach is just over here," said Mrs Wilkins, as she tapped her finger on the corner of the map. And we... are…" she drew her finger around the map and came to rest it a couple centimetres away from the beach, "right here."
"Excuse me, could I use the bathroom?" asked Hermione as she placed Crookshanks down on the floor.
"Of course you can, dear. Upstairs, first door on the left." She pointed to the stairs.
"Thank you," said, Hermione, as she stood up. She was about to start climbing the stairs when she looked over at Harry.
Harry knew he had to get her parents to focus on him, so she could cast the reversal spell. He slid off the couch and knelt down on his knees in order for the couple to look down at him. "So we need to go this way?" he asked.
"Yes, just over here through the high street, but I would really recommend a cab…"
Hermione used this opportunity to slip out her wand as she pointed it at the couple's backs.
"Memento!" she called out.
The couple raised their heads and turned around to look at Hermione.
"Hermione, dear… why are you pointing your wand at us? Come sit down, the tea is getting cold." She turned her head back to see Harry. Her eyes widened in shock as her mouth made an 'O' shape. Both of them were trying to speak but seemed to be too stunned as they studied their surroundings.
"Where are we?" asked Mr Granger.
"Hermione… what's going on?"
Harry looked over at Hermione who seemed to be shocked too. She slowly paced towards the couch and sat down next to Harry. "Mum… dad?"
The couple looked over at her, "Honey, could you please explain to us what spell you used? I know that you're seventeen now… but that doesn't mean you should throw spells at us." Said Mr Granger.
Hermione burst into tears of joy as she threw her arms around her parents.
This seemed to have caused even more shock, which Harry didn't know was possible in the current circumstances.
"Hermione, sweetie. Are you okay?"
Hermione muffled something into her mother's arms.
"We love you too, dear. But could you please tell us what's going on. Where are we?"
Hermione pulled back and sat back down next to Harry, collecting herself. Harry knew she was in no form to explain anything now, so he decided to start.
"Mr and Mrs Granger?" said Harry. He was glad to see that they reacted to that name. The couple rested their eyes on Harry.
"What I'm about to tell you is going to be quite surprising and you might have a hard time believing it at first… are you ready to hear an explanation?"
The couple nodded back at him.
"First, I would like both of you to tell me what year and month it is." He said.
The couple looked bewildered at first, but then Mr Granger looked back at him, "It's July. 1997" he told him.
Harry took a deep breath, "Today is the tenth of May, 1998"
Mrs Granger was about to say something when Harry stopped her, "Before you ask any questions… I would like to ask one more thing. What is the last thing you remember?" Harry asked,
"I called Hermione down for some tea. We were watching a documentary on Australia." Said Mrs Granger.
Harry looked over at Hermione who smiled at him and turned back to her parents, "Mum… when I came down for tea, I pointed my wand at both of you and I cast a memory charm. This charm erased all your memories of me. I also altered your identities and changed your names." she told them.
The Grangers seemed to be taking new information a lot better from Hermione. Harry figured they trusted her more.
"Why did you do that, sweetheart?" Mr Granger asked.
For the rest of the conversation, Hermione slowly paced through the events of last year. She told her parents everything; about Voldemort, about the Horcruxes and about the final battle. Harry nodded and muttered in agreement when the facts became almost unbelievable to reassure them.
"My God…" mumbled Mr Granger. "Hermione… why didn't you ever say anything?" he asked.
Hermione gave a weak smile, "I knew that if I told you about any of it, you wouldn't let me go with Harry. Besides, I couldn't risk Voldemort finding you. I had to keep you safe."
"That was incredibly brave of you, sweetie." Mrs Granger answered, then her eyes widened in shock, "My god, Hermione... we missed your eighteenth birthday!" she cried.
Hermione's shoulder's clenched, "I'm sorry mum... will it cheer you up if I said that I didn't celebrate it?"
Daniel smiled and shrugged, "I guess we could always just throw you a big party for you nineteenth..."
Emma sighed, "I guess we could..." but Hermione knew that it will take time for Emma to truly forgive her.
"You should be very proud of your daughter, Missus Granger. If not for her, I would have never made it. She saved me countless times." Said, Harry.
The Grangers turned to face him for the first time in a long while, Mrs Granger smiled at him.
"So you are the Harry Potter. You have no idea how much we heard about you from Hermione."
"Mum…" Hermione muttered, she was going scarlet.
"What? It's true. You speak about the bloke all the time!" Mr Granger chuckled, "It's great to have finally met you, Harry."
"Likewise, Mister Granger." Harry smiled.
"Well, I must say. We did choose a nice house." Muttered Mrs Granger.
"Harry and I came to pick you up. I decided to stay here for two weeks and help you pack. We could also enjoy ourselves for a while." Hermione explained.
"That's great, sweetie." Said Mrs Granger. "How long have you been in Australia?"
"We arrived last night. We're staying in a small cottage by the beach." Said Hermione.
"Interesting…" said Mrs Granger and smiled at both of them.
"Mum, honestly." Sighed Hermione.
"What? Am I supposed to ignore all this? We're going to have a 'girl talk' soon, I hope you know that."
Hermione buried her face in her hands and muttered something Harry couldn't make out. He simply chuckled.
"Hermione had a really tough time recently… she missed you both a lot. I think a private talk would do her good, Missus Granger." Said, Harry.
The woman smiled at him and looked down at Hermione, "We certainly will."
"Well… in that case… Harry, would you like to make some quick lunch with me? I think it's time we get to know each other. Of course, I know almost everything about you from Hermione. But it's great to finally meet you in person. And I'd love to hear about this 'Quidditch' sport Hermione mentioned once. It sounds rather fascinating." Said Mr Granger, as he got up and gestured him to the kitchen.
Harry was a bit nervous at first, but he gathered himself and followed Mr Granger to the kitchen.
The moment they were gone from the room, Mrs Granger sat herself right next to Hermione.
"Are you going out?" she asked, excitement in her voice.
"No, mum. We're not going out." She answered, impatiently. Then she remembered what Harry called her when he introduced them at the door. He called me his girlfriend… could that mean? No! He did it on purpose to get inside the house. She thought.
Her mum seemed to be studying her eyes for a short while, before realising she was telling the truth. "Well then get a move on! You were always crazy about him!" she said.
Hermione was blushing, "Mum… you don't understand. I have a boyfriend."
Mrs Granger's eyelids dropped. She sat there a while, with her eyes closed. "Please don't tell me it's that boy, Ron."
It took a while for Hermione to explain everything to her mother about her and Ron's 'relationship' which she didn't approve of.
"Sweetie, you know very well know that I do not have the right to choose your partner. But all I want is for my only child to be the happiest they can be."
"Yes mum, I know—" her mum's hand flew in front of her,
"Please, let me finish… All these years you spent at Hogwarts, every single letter you sent to us always had at least a sentence about Harry—"
"Mum—"
"Every. Single. One—"
"He has a girlfriend!" gasped Hermione. The words sounded heavy and tough to pronounce.
Her mum's face fell into confusion, followed by disappointment. "Oh…" she muttered.
"I mean… he had a girlfriend. But I think they broke up." Added Hermione.
"And you're in a relationship which you got into because you never got into one with Harry. And you feel like leaving Ron for Harry will be extremely cold and rotten." Mrs Granger finished. She seemed to be reading Hermione's thoughts and feelings right off her mind.
"And I don't even know if he likes me, anyway." Said Hermione. "Besides, Ron isn't that bad. I don't think I love him. But all that jealousy had to come from somewhere..." She muttered.
"Hermione, that boy has caused you more sadness and tears than Harry ever could, even if he tried."
Hermione didn't speak for a while, she was staring at the floor, refusing to make eye contact.
"Why did he break up with his girlfriend?" Mrs Granger asked.
"Well, Harry broke up with her last year in order to keep her safe… and after the war, he thought they could get back together but Harry hasn't been feeling the same way about her anymore. They had a bit of a falling out two days ago." Explained Hermione.
"What happened?"
"Harry didn't confirm this but I only had to look at him once to know the truth… It was because of me. They had an argument about Australia, I know it. I asked Harry if he would like to go with me because Ron didn't want to… He agreed of course." She looked down, "I think that they fell out because Ginny didn't like the idea of him going with me." She finished.
Hermione felt relieved to be able to share her feelings and thoughts. It reminded her why she loved her mum so much.
"And although this 'Ginny' didn't like it, Harry went with you anyway…"
Hermione looked up at her mum.
"Hermione, dear. Don't you see? This young man clearly feels more towards you than just 'best friend' feelings. He came with you all the way here, to help you get us back. And your so-called 'boyfriend' didn't want to come."
"I don't know what to think anymore…" she muttered and wiped at her eyes.
"Sweetie… you are the smartest person I know… Hell, when it comes to knowledge you probably have more of it than me. But darling, when it comes to love, don't listen to your head… listen to your heart." She placed her palm on Hermione's chest. "I know my daughter better than I know anyone else… and if I know one thing… you have loved that boy for a long time now. Am I right?" she asked.
Hermione raised her head in surprise, "How do you know?" she asked.
"When you came back from school after your third year… there was something different about you. I could tell. I knew it because I went through the same thing with your father. It was your face and your eyes. Your attitude. They all screamed the truth."
Hermione was shocked. It was true. She had loved Harry ever since they rescued Buckbeak and Sirius together. She always hid those feelings, because deep down, she knew that Harry Potter would never love someone like Hermione. Compared to Cho and Ginny, she was nothing. She was smart, but not near as attractive, not near as funny and interesting. She tried all she could to get closer to him in fourth year. And what did she get? Nothing.
"Hermione, whatever you're thinking right now… I want you to just stop and listen to me closely… You are a beautiful young woman. You are smart. You could be more relaxed and funny more often, I'll admit that. But you are a good person. I am not saying this from the perspective of a mother. I am saying this from the perspective of a woman who has known a person for seventeen years. If you love Harry… you deserve him."
"But what if he doesn't love me, mum?" Hermione asked.
"Hermione, I have seen the way that boy looks at you. The way he shields you with his body. The way his hand finds yours so quickly. The way you can communicate just by looking at each other. Not to mention that you think the world of him. If you don't give yourself a chance, you will never know. You have to try, Hermione. That boy makes you happy… and I want my daughter to be happy."
Hermione couldn't speak anymore. Tears were falling from her cheeks again, she wrapped herself around her mother.
"Thank you, mum."
"I love you, sweetheart."
"I love you too."
As she said this, she could hear voices coming from the kitchen, her mum pulled away and tapped at her eyes.
"Common, now. The boys made dinner." She smiled and pulled Hermione along.
Harry was really enjoying the presence of Mr Granger. He was a really down to earth guy. He likes sports, he's funny, and he is crazy about the wizarding world which Harry can only tell him so much about.
"So, as the seeker, can you actually score points too? Or is your focus mainly the snitch?" Mr Granger asked.
"Well, if I really wanted to, I could try to go for the quaffle. But that would defeat the purpose of the seeker. Besides, the game will not end until the snitch is caught." Harry explained.
"Fascinating" Gasped Mr Granger. He cleared his throat and his face turned rather serious, "Now… changing the subject a little. I must thank you for helping Hermione get here safely." He smiled.
"It was no problem at all sir, I've been really enjoying myself so far. And now that she has you back, things should start looking up for her too. She's really missed you both." Explained Harry, as he placed forks and spoons on the table.
"So, I'm going to assume that you and my daughter are dating, is that right?" He asked politely.
Harry's heart stopped. "Uh—"
"My god, that smells delicious!" Came Mrs Granger's voice. She entered the kitchen and walked up to the cooker, Hermione right behind her.
Judging by the red eyes, Harry could tell she's been crying. He walked up to her and brushed her arm, "You okay?" he asked.
"I'm fine." She gave him a weak smile.
"I hope those were happy tears…" Harry returned the smile. "Those are the only ones I want to see from now on." He whispered.
Hermione gave something close to a whimper and wrapped her arms around him, giving him a tight hug. Harry always loved hugs from Hermione, he loved the smell of her hair. The passion and caring which hid behind her hugs. They made him feel safe.
He was quick to realise that they were being observed and pulled away slowly.
He could feel Mrs Granger's eyes on him for a while before she turned to her husband, "Spaghetti, my favourite!" she said.
Dinner was very nice. Harry told Mrs Granger a little more about himself, being backed up by Hermione every step of the way. But it got a bit tense when she started asking questions.
"Tell me, Harry, do you have a girlfriend?" she asked.
Harry cleared his throat briefly, "Uh-no, no I don't." His answer seemed to have cheered up Mr Granger as his face lit up.
"I guess the young lad is being patient. Just like me until I found Emma." He smiled.
Mrs Granger smiled at her husband and turned back to Harry, "Have you had one before?" she asked.
"Mum…" came Hermione's voice.
"Oh, be quiet, Hermione. I'm just asking simple questions. You were saying, Harry?"
"Uh-yes. I had a girlfriend… last year. But we broke up." He said.
"I see… but you know what they say, Harry. In order to find true love, you must trip over some obstacles first." She smiled at him.
Harry gave a simple nod. The rest of lunch went quite smoothly. Hermione spoke more about the war and the Horcrux hunt which Mr Granger seemed to really enjoy listening to. Aside from the parts where Hermione was in Harm's Way.
They spent the rest of the day, talking and explaining everything. Hermione was in a great mood, the best Harry had seen her ever since. It seemed like all worries were gone. Almost all worries.
And before Harry knew, he was at the doorstep of their house saying goodbye.
"Mum, are you sure you'll be fine by yourself?"
"Of course, we will dear. It is our home after all" she laughed.
"Well, ok. Me and Harry will be back tomorrow morning, ok?"
"That's perfect, dear." She turned her gaze to Harry, "take care of my daughter, Harry."
"Mum!" cried Hermione.
"I will, Missus Granger." Said Harry, and smiled.
Hermione turned to him, blushing. "Let's go."
He followed her to the pavement where they waved one final goodbye and apparated back to the cabin.
As soon as they appeared Harry had Hermione in his arms, "Thank you!" she muffled into his jacket.
"For what?" Harry chuckled.
"For being there and believing in me." She pulled away to look at him, "If not for you… I don't know if I would be able to do it. When I saw my mum… it was so—"
"I understand, Hermione." Harry smiled at her. "You did great. I told you it would be fine. Now you can finally enjoy yourself, right?"
"Yes… we both can." She smiled back.
"Are you hungry?" Harry asked.
"No, not really."
"Me neither. After taking things easy for so long and then having so much take place in one day, I need a good night's sleep." He told her.
"Me too." She added.
"So did you talk about it with your mum?" Harry asked.
"About what?"
"The nightmares…" he began.
"No… not yet. I think I'll wait one more night. If they carry on after that, I'll speak with her about it."
"That sounds fair enough."
They stood there for a while, both staring into space.
"Well, I'll be in my room. If anything happens during the night, I'll come running." He said as he made his way past her.
She took hold of his arm, "Harry, you know you could always just ignore it."
Harry gave her a bewildered look, "You know I would never do that, Hermione."
She smiled at him, "I know."
"Goodnight, Hermione."
"Goodnight, Harry."
