Paris

~Paris -Chapter One ~

"Can It Be Real? Can It Be True?"

It still didn't seem real to Harry. After spending each summer that he could remember stuck on Privet Drive, he, Harry Potter, was actually going to have a true holiday. Each day when he woke up, Harry still had a moment, looking at the room that had been "his" for nearly fourteen years, expecting to have that hopeless feeling spread over him. Then his eyes would focus on the new furniture in the room and the shining wood floors. Then, when Harry's eyes rested on the bright orange that was the trademark color of the Chudley Cannons Quidditch team, he began to grin.

Being a most unusual, nearly fifteen year old male, didn't stop Harry's thoughts from immediately going to the picture in his mind of his best and now something more, friend, Hermione Granger. In this was he was just like any other teenager who had so recently discovered that his friend was, well, she had changed in all the right ways. Even alone in his room, Harry felt his face go a bit red as he couldn't help thinking that she had changed in all the right places too.

Unfortunately, before Harry could pursue these very pleasant thoughts ,there was a knock outside his door. "Haarreey! Time to be moving in there. The Grangers will be here in an hour. Come and have your breakfast."

Harry still winced at his aunt Petunia's shrill voice, so different from that of his mother. Until this summer, Harry hadn't known his mother's voice, except for the terrified pleading he heard when he was near one of Azkaban's dementors. Now, however, thanks to Hermione's mom, he had an audio tape of his mother's voice singing to him, only weeks before she was killed.

Yeah, life was very changed this summer. He'd be surprised if it didn't get better still, in the next few days. His suitcase was packed with the new clothes he'd received from Ivy Granger, Hermione's mom, this summer. These, along with a few things he had purchased himself, were the only clothes, aside from his Hogwarts' robes, Harry had ever owned that fit. For years, he'd been swimming in his porky cousin Dudley's cast-offs, supplemented by a few of Uncle Vernon's uglier things.

Everything was set, he thought. Soon they'd be flying across the strip of water that separated England and France. He couldn't help thinking how much more enjoyable the trip could have been if he could have taken Hermione and traveled on his Firebolt, but an underage witch or wizard was strictly prohibited from practicing magic in the summers, away from Hogwarts. Besides, he knew Chris and Ivy would prefer the group to travel together

. He had seen Ivy's look of excitement though, when she told him she'd ordered a Firebolt for herself. "It's a horrible extravagance for an older witch like me," she'd told him the day she sent in the owl with her order. "Still, it's the best and safest broom made. Chris insisted I order one, since I'll be assisting with the Quidditch training." She's paused a moment then went on, eyes twinkling, "Perhaps Hermione will want to take it over in a few years. We'll work on that, right, Harry?"

It was a nice thought, Harry had to admit. They'd be almost through with school in a few years. It would be nice for he and Hermione to be able to travel as they pleased, with equally matched brooms. Right now though, he'd better get downstairs, or the Grangers would be here, and Dudley would doubtless be boring them with some long explanation of his "important position" the the sweet shop nearby. Harry suspected Dudley's position mostly consisted of "taster". He'd heard Uncle Vernon complaining once that instead of bringing home money, Dudley had been told to bring money in to cover what he'd eaten that week.

Leaving his suitcase by the door, Harry walked toward the kitchen, where he could hear Dudley's whining voice."I don't see why he gets to go off with Hermione and her family. I'll bet if he hadn't always been nosing about, she'd have asked me instead."

Harry snorted, and heard Uncle Vernon say, "We wouldn't allow you to go off with those people anyway. I'm not saying the girl and her mother aren't attractive, but there's definitely something odd about the way that woman practices dentistry. I had her checked out, and she's been in a regular office for years but still....."

"Peculiar how much she looks like an old friend of my sister's, from her school days. But she was an odd duck, just like Lily. They were always up to some mischievous tricks, and making their sudden, unexplained little trips. Nearly drove Mum and Dad batty," added Aunt Petunia, "Although they claimed they were so proud of Lily's cleverness."

Harry knew he'd better go in, else he would be rolling in the hall with laughter. Ivy and Hermione, attractive? That was a bit short. And Ivy an odd duck? If Vernon only knew!!!! No, it was definitely best that he think Hermione's family were muggles, who just happened to have a few odd ways.

Harry rushed through a large plate of eggs, potatoes, sausages and toast, with a bowl of porridge on the side. "Nice eats, Aunt Petunia!" he remarked, attempting to hide a grin as he noticed the boiled eggs and dry toast on his cousin's plate, and Dudley's piggy eyes watching each bite that went into Harry's mouth.

"Those French may not feed you like your family does. You eat it all, Harry, there's no telling when you'll get another good English breakfast."

'Anytime Ivy decides to make one appear' Harry thought. This certainly was a change from past summers, when some days he'd been lucky to get a cold bowl of soup.He heard doors slam outside and knew the Grangers had arrived. Pushing his chair back, Harry said, "Thanks, back down in a few moments."

Running upstairs, he grabbed the final things: his toothbrush, brush and comb, which seemed to look at him hopelessly, knowing there was nothing they could do to tame his messy black hair. Then he picked up the brand new razor he'd bought the day before.He doubted there was any need to pack it, but...into the bag it went. Who knew? He wondered how Hermione would react if he should suddenly show the need for a shave. After the last few days, he thought she would notice immediately.

A laugh behind him made Harry whirl around, to find Hermione standing there with a totally unreadable expression on her face. "So, all set? Got some new things?"

"Um, yeah, a couple. Not sure why I bother with some of this stuff. Ever seen my hair look as if it had met a brush?" Harry asked Hermione, quickly shoving the razor down under his toothpaste. He still had the feeling she'd seen more than he intended.

"Hurry then, Mom and Dad are downstairs with your aunt and uncle, and I expect Dudley will be up here any moment, hinting again about how good it would be to have a holiday from work. I can just imagine his work. The only part that moves, I'll bet, is his mouth." Laughing, they went downstairs, where Chris and Ivy were edging toward the door, and Petunia and Vernon were doing nothing to encourage them to stay. Uncle Vernon, Harry noticed, was looking extremely nervous and kept rubbing his head, as if he expected to find a large bald spot

. Finally they were all in the Grangers' Range Rover, and heading for the station. "Hope you don't mind, Harry, but our plans have changed a bit. Instead of flying, we've decided to take the Eurostar" said Chris. "Since Ivy's ordered her Firebolt, she says she'd rather not fly in the mugggle way for awhile."

"And it's much quicker, Harry. For a muggle invention, it's an amazingly efficient way to travel." Hermione said, looking very serious, as if she was afraid Harry would be really disappointed. He was tempted, just for a moment, to act as if this ruined the trip for him, but Hermione's anxious look was just too much for him.

"Ah, Hermione, I don't really care how we get there. Just going someplace, being away from the Dursleys and maybe having an adventure that doesn't involve a near death experience, the travel method isn't important." Harry leaned back against the seat, closed his eyes, and said with a contented sigh," Good-bye Dudley!"

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Once they had settled into their seats on the Eurostar, Harry felt he just had to ask Hermione a question. "Hermione, is this the way your family travels all the time? 'Cause if they're doing it just for me, they really didn't have to go with the luxury trip.I'd be happy riding on any old train, ship or anything."

"Maybe it is you, a little." Hermione answered with a grin. "But let's not complain. Mom still seems to feel she should have tried to take you from the Dursley's sooner. So, we'll have an extra nice holiday, nothing wrong with that, is there?"

Harry shook his head and moved a little closer to her."It would be an extra nice holiday for me if we only walked around a new place, and maybe checked out some French food. Aunt Petunia is convinced they won't feed me well. Like she ever cared before!"

"Speaking of food..." said Hermione, "Mind going down to check out a few of the other cars? The food they serve isn't prepared by house elves, but it's good enough. I'd like to check on Crookshanks too, and maybe Hedwig would like to see us."

Harry got up and pulled Hermione up with him, "Yeah, poor things, stuck back there with those non- magical animals. I brought Hedwig some owl treats."

"And I've got some of Ron's favorites, dried spiders. Fred and George left a whole bag of them, I heard them say they were working on a special treat for him, so I hid the bag. "She grinned as she held up the bag that even to Harry looked like a horrible bunch of hairy squiggles . "Maybe they'll at least get distracted by something else, and leave Ron alone for a while."

"We can only hope! And I'll send them an owl with a new idea, maybe something else to eat, in case we run into Malfoy again." Harry pretended to shudder at the idea of seeing Draco before term started, but he knew he wouldn't mind having another of the twins' inventions with him, just in case.

They passed Chris and Ivy a little further back, having a glass of wine, and Ivy reading Witch Weekly, hidden inside a Tattler magazine. Chris, Harry was happy to see, had apparently decided to plunge into their world all the way, since the Daily Prophet was tucked inside his copy of the London Times. He could see Chris looked perturbed and asked, in a low voice, whether there had been disturbing news.

"No, just the opposite, Harry. Fudge is still insisting there's no reason to suspect Voldemort might return to power Any real news we should be aware of is being covered up." As soon as the word was out of his mouth, Chris looked shocked at himself. "Oops," he said. 'I'm afraid I've been listening to you and Professor Dumbledore talking far too much, Ivy. I'll be hearing from the ministry before I've even begun my, er, "course".

"Maybe you'd better keep it "He Who Must Not" for a while Dad," said Hermione, nervously looking around her. "We'll be back soon, just getting a snack, checking on our animals and exploring a bit."

"Don't wander too far," Ivy reminded them. "Remember this train travels anyplace from 150 to 185 miles per hour. The trip doesn't take long."

"We'll remember" said Harry, suddenly eager to have a few moments alone with Hermione. Who knew when they'd have a chance for a private moment again. IF he could call a baggage car full of animals, with Crookshanks staring at him suspiciously, private.

They continued through the cars, and Harry was amazed at the different cars, and the different types of accommodations. The Hogwarts Express having been alike in all the compartments, he realized afresh that Hermione's parents had gone all out to get them the best seats, and now weren't even upset that they'd decided to leave them to explore.

He pinched his leg hard and jumped, causing Hermione to give him a startled look. "Harry, what happened? " she asked, worriedly.

"Ah, just pinching myself to be sure this is real." he answered her, trying to give an evil leer. "And the idea of 'haffing the private time vith you, Hermy Own Ninny!' is making me vant to hurry along."

"Poor Viktor!" she said, trying to look as if she was feeling bad for the Bulgarian Quidditch star, but failing."Well, I do have to admit... " and she lowered her voice and bent to rub Harry's leg where he'd pointed to the pinch, "I won't mind having your arms around me. And maybe, just maybe, a kiss or two, Mr. Potter?"

"I think I can manage to fill that order, Miss Granger. Unless you'd prefer to unpack some of your books and catch up on your reading." Harry answered , trying not to break into a run at her words, but feeling he could fly back to the baggage car without a broom of any kind. He was happy to see Hermione looking as if she was having the same difficulty, so he took her hand and they began to hurry down the aisles that were not as wide as the ones in their own car.

Finding the baggage car, exactly as deserted as they'd hoped it would be, Harry and Hermione gave Hedwig and Crookshanks their treats ('Ugh, thought Harry, as Hermione shook out a pile of the spiders. They looked even worse out of the bag. Where had Fred and George gotten such huge ones?') Then looking around, Harry spotted a large box in one corner, covered in blankets.

"Um, how about sitting down back here for a few moments?" he asked Hermione, in what he hoped was a casual voice. Hermione, he noticed, had once again turned the very pretty shade of pink that seemed to have replaced her once magenta blushes. He wondered what had made the difference, then felt himself go a bit red, as he realized the difference was probably himself.

Hermione looked really happy, he couldn't help but notice. She sat down close to him, putting her head on his shoulder, giving him a chance to smell that delicious Hermione scent that he had finally realized wasn't perfume, or shampoo, but just Hermione. He sighed, without meaning to, making Hermione giggle."Tired already, Harry? Too much excitement for one day?"

"I'll take too much excitement any day then," Harry answered her in a husky voice. "And I'd say these should be called the deluxe seats, if anyone should ask me! Mmm, Hermione........ !" he murmured, as he felt her arms go around his neck, and he lowered his head to hers. The time passed, and neither of them had any idea, after a few moments, that there were any animals in the car, magical or otherwise.

Harry felt as if his head was full of a very pleasant mist, and he was grateful not to have to give any thought to his legs, since they felt like his arm after Gilderoy Lockhart removed the bones. He could feel Hermione trembling a bit, and realized with a start that they had probably been back in the car for quite some time.

Oh, Hermione felt so good in his arms, he thought. How had he been able to go all those years not having someone to hold him. He knew Hermione felt nothing like his mom would have, and yet he realized now how much he'd missed being loved as he grew up. Even thinking these somewhat sad thoughts, Harry broke into a large grin - he would enjoy making up for lost time by spending as much time as possible this way with Hermione. Who would have ever expected the bossy little bookworm to turn into this...

"Hermione,I guess you were right." he whispered. "I should have known."

"Right about what?" she whispered back, surprised.

"You once said that you do everything well," he said teasingly. "I thought you were making a joke at the time, but you weren't."

"Well, I......" she began, but was interrupted by the sound of the door opening, and the sounds of a man whistling. They froze, and watched as the uniformed man walked by the cages of the animals, checking each one. Since they weren't hidden by Harry's invisibility cloak, all too soon the man spotted them.

"Couple of lovebirds, eh?" he said with a smile. Then he looked more closely at them, and where they were sitting. "Bit young to be traveling alone, aren't you? And I don't suppose you have any idea what you're sitting on, do you."

"My parents are with us!" said Hermione, indignantly, "And we're fifteen, well, almost."

" Heh, how almost, young lady? " the man asked, with a twinkle." Few months I'd say."

"At any rate, " said Harry, attempting to appear strong. "What were we sitting on? Something very valuable? I'll be happy to pay for any damages, but I don't think we hurt anything."

"Perhaps not, but you may be having nightmares when you see what's under here." The man slowly pulled back the blankets, obviously hoping to scare them out of their wits. There they saw what had to be a coffin,but being so accustomed to living with ghosts, neither Harry nor Hermione felt the alarm the man was obviously hoping for.

"No one in there but still, you youngsters need to be more careful where you carry on. Ghost might have rose up and....." said the man, trying to look stern.

"Ah but we don't really......" began Harry, but stopped when he felt Hermione's foot come down hard on his own.

"Ooooooh, noooo!" Let's get out of here! You won't tell my Mom and Dad will you, please? They'd be so upset!" Hermione moaned.

Harry had to turn around, pretending to cough hard several times .Hermione was good, anyone would have to admit that, as he saw the man melt as she looked at him imploringly, tears ready to fall from her brown eyes.

"Now, now, young lady, don't cry!" he said in alarm."You, young man, take your young lady back to your seats, and we'll forget about all this."

Harry and Hermione nodded and they left the car, Harry still coughing and Hermione's shoulders shaking with what the train employee thought was fear, but Harry knew was muffled laughter.

As she walked by, he patted her shoulder comfortingly, causing Hermione to shake harder, and bury her head on Harry's shoulder, as if embarrassed. Harry didn't think they were going to be able to get away quickly enough, but once out of the car, Hermione straightened up and hissed, "Race ya to the food car!" before nearly flying up the aisle.

Snorting with laughter, so that he could hardly breathe, Harry followed, thinking, 'A great kisser, and one who can think fast! What more can a teenage wizard ask for?'

To Be continued......