Chapter 77
The house was silent, all the lights off.
"Huh," Oliver said as he looked around. "They must still be out with the horses."
"Is everything all right," Hermione asked, feeling a little uneasy.
"Oh," Oliver said. "Yeah. I'm sure everything's okay." He paused and chuckled, turning to her with a smile. "I suppose this was how Mr. Weasley felt when he was checking for us and there wasn't even an elf around."
"Oh, um," Hermione smiled uncertainly and with a bit of embarrassment. "Yeah, um, sorry about that..." she said, remembering the panic that she'd been in when she hadn't heard whether Oliver and his family had been all right after the attack at the Quidditch World Cup.
"There's no need to be sorry," Oliver assured her. "Oh, I told dad about Mr. Weasley notifying the Aurors while you were cleaning up for dinner the other night when mom went to check on you. He took care of it so there's no cause for unease. Besides, wouldn't it be more likely that the Death Eaters destroy everything if they'd been here? I mean, that's what happened at the Cup."
The door opened then, causing Hermione to jump in alarm, and she turned to see Hickory standing in the doorway. He spotted them and paused, calling outside, "Juni! They're back!" Turning, he stamped his feet and came inside, closing the door behind him. "We were beginning to think that something happened to you."
"Sorry we took so long," Hermione said. "Its my fault."
"Don't listen to her, Dad," Oliver said as the door opened again and Juniper came in. "It was an accident."
"What was an accident?" Juniper asked brushing some hair from her face as she headed to the sink and washed her hands."
"I -"
"Hermione fell," Oliver interrupted.
"Oh, dear," Juniper exclaimed, looking to her. "Are you all right?"
Hermione nodded.
"She broke her ankle, but luckily, we met Madam Pomfrey at the Apothecary and she was able to mend it," Oliver replied. "Though shedoeswant her to stay off her feet as much as possible for the soft tissue injuries to heal."
Hermione flushed with embarrassment.
"It was that uneven cobble outside Gringotts near the entrance to Knockturn Alley," Hickory suspected. "Wasn't it?"
"Yeah, it was," Oliver said.
"Blast!" Hickory thundered. "How manytimeshave I been on to the shop keepers and the Ministry itself to fix the street?"
"Too many times, dear," Juniper said.
"It may just beone spot," Hickory continued, "but it can bedangerouswhen the streets are so crowded."
"I'm surprised no one else has been hurt," Oliver said.
"Oh, don't kid yourself," Hickory said. "There's probably been plenty who've been hurt there that we've not heard about."
"Sounds like they're lucky there aren't any lawyers," Hermione said.
"Any what?" Oliver and Hickory asked nearly in unison looking at her in confusion.
"Oh, um," Hermione said nervously, wondering how to explain.
"Its a Muggle profession," Juniper said, coming to her aid.
"Yes, its, um," Hermione tried again. "Its when some one familiar with the law defends or - or attacks someone on legal matters who may not know about the laws. When I was learning about the Wizarding world before starting school, I read about Sir Thomas More, who lived from 1478 to 1535. He was a chancellor under King Henry VIII. I read that although he was a wizard, he acted as a lawyer within the Muggle world."
Hickory looked at her in confusion.
Hermione sighed. "It means that, if this was a Muggle issue, we could take this before the court and not only might I get a settlement for pain and suffering, because of negligence, the party responsible for the upkeep of the Alley would be made to repair the problem so it doesn't happen again."
Hickory looked from Hermione to Oliver. "Let me say it again," he said. "Smart girl. It's just too bad that's not how things work in the Wizarding world."
"I suppose for now," Juniper said. "Its enough that you're okay. This puts a bit of a damper on our plans to ride, though doesn't it?"
"Well, I don't know," Hermione said giving an uneasy smile, not wanting to let Juniper down. "I - I could be all right in a day or two."
"Well, until we know for sure," Juniper said. "I think its safe to say we need to follow Madam Pomfrey's wishes. That means you're going to be on your own while Oliver, Hick and I tend to the horses. Like you, it will take some time for Ash to be up and around, so Willow will be looking after him."
"You don't have to worry about me," Hermione said. "Just give me a book to read and I'll be all right."
"She's not lying," Oliver said with a smile. "In her first year, she stayed and read while I trained Harry in Quidditch."
"No," Hickory said. "It wouldn't be right to leave you alone, even if you had something to occupy yourself. Cherry should be available to assist you if you need anything while we're out on the grounds."
Hermione took a breath, about to protest, but then exhaled and nodded, knowing it was pointless to argue.
"So was that all that happened?" Juniper asked curiously.
"Well... no," Hermione said though her question didn't leave her feeling uneasy. "We had gone to Gringotts to exchange some of my money for my school supplies, but we were turned away."
"Oh," Hickory said. "Blast it all. I should have thought to write them a letter that you were staying with us and to let you make the exchange with Oliver present. I'm sorry. With Ash unwell and having to do all the chores around here ourselves, it slipped my mind."
"It's all right," Hermione assured him. "Madam Pomfrey was able to help us. She took most of my funds, I thought I'd given it all to her but it turns out I missed some so I still have some Muggle money left, but anyway, she took her payment for services out of the money I gave her and had the rest exchanged so I could get my supplies."
"Well, that was nice of her," Juniper said.
"Quite," Oliver said.
"So you were able to get all the supplies you needed?" Juniper asked.
"Yes," Hermione replied. "I, um, I'm sorry, but - Madam Malkin is sending my dress robes to Hogwarts when she has them done."
"Ah, so you decided to get your own dress robes," Juniper asked.
"I - I hope you're not upset," Hermione said anxiously.
"Oh, no, not at all, dear. Having your own allows you to save it among your keepsakes, after all," Juniper replied with a smile.
Juniper and Hickory excused themselves to go clean up and Oliver carried Hermione collieback downstairs to her room, giving her the packages so that she could pack them how she wanted to. He headed to their shared bathroom, giving her a chance to do what she needed. He wasn't gone all that long, but when he returned to her room, he found that she'd fallen asleep as she leaned against her closed trunk lid, her head lying on her folded arms.
Smiling, he shook his head and reached out touching her shoulder, and giving it a gently shake, but she didn't rouse from sleep. Kneeling down, he picked her up carefully, and stilled briefly as she leaned into him, wrapping her arms loosely about his neck and sighing deeply. After a moment, he moved to her bed and sat her down. Not wishing to disturb her, he laid her back as her arms fell from his neck and carefully removed her shoes as she turned to her side in her sleep. Moving to the closet, he drew out a blanket, shaking it open and laying it gently over her as she slept. He watched her a moment longer before turning to leave. At the door, he paused once again and turned back. "Sleep well, lass," he murmured before closing the door softly behind him.