Harry Potter and the Rise of the Phoenix

Chapter Seven: Diving Accidents

I am stumbling and falling
I need someone to lean on
Someone to solve my problems
~ Narnia: Inner Sanctum

Thia led the group of stunned and irate adults towards number four Privet Drive. Remus was explaining to Tonks exactly what they knew; she had met them on the way out of Hogwarts. Thia could tell that Tonks was getting angrier by the moment and made a mental note to keep an eye on her young Auror; this was not going to get out of hand.

Having reached the door, Thia knocked upon it. "No need for civilities, Thia," Tonks told her angrily.

"There's every need for them," Thia replied, turning as the door opened. Petunia stared out at them hesitantly. "We would like to come in," she told the woman, making sure Petunia did not think it was a request. Petunia nodded and stepped back.

"Vernon," Petunia called out. "They're here."

"Expecting us?" Remus asked with a bitter edge to his voice. Petunia ignored him and entered the living room. The group followed: Molly and Minerva took seats on the couch, Remus and Tonks stood in front of the huge living room window, Severus stayed near the door, and Thia sat in a chair near the one Petunia took. Vernon sat in the chair across the coffee table from her, looking at the unlit electrical fireplace; he was avoiding her gaze.

"We just found out that Harry knocked your son out," Thia started, keeping her voice calm and trying to convey a sense of apology. She shot Remus a glance when he grunted. Thia had spent almost sixteen years watching this family; she knew what was going to work and what would not.

She watched Vernon carefully; the man gulped and glanced at her guiltily for a split second. That was all it took to confirm Harry's suspicions. These people thought his suicide was their fault. "Is he alright?" Thia asked with false concern.

"Yes," Petunia answered softly. "Thank you for asking."

"I'm afraid Harry wasn't very forthcoming with the details," McGonagall said in a conversational tone. "If he was in the wrong, we want to see that he is punished justly."

"H-how is he?" Petunia asked. Thia was surprised that Vernon hadn't said anything yet. It would be a miracle if the man had learned to hold his tongue.

"He's hanging in there," she answered Petunia vaguely. "Neither here nor there, if you know what I mean." Petunia nodded slowly, clearly not understanding. "Could you tell us the details, Petunia? If Harry is attacking Muggles now, we'll have to put a stop to it." Harry's aunt and uncle traded glances. Vernon gave her the slightest shake of his head, causing Petunia to open her mouth. But whatever she was going to say was lost in the thundering footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Mum! Dad!" Dudley shouted, before turning into the living room. Not even looking around, he continued. "Can I go to Piers-is--" he stuttered to a stop as his eyes fell on Severus. None of the wizards or witches were dressed as muggles; Thia and Tonks were even in their Auror robes of bright white. Severus sneered at him and Dudley rushed completely inside the room and sat in the chair right next to Vernon's.

Dudley looked from Severus, who looked rather evil at the moment, to the furious Molly and Minerva, to the stern looking faces of Remus and Tonks, until finally his eyes landed on Thia. She wasn't sure what he saw in her face, but whatever it was, it made him gulp.

"Are they here to punish us for choking him?" Dudley whispered to his father, but in the silent room the words carried extremely well. Everyone, but Thia and Severus, shifted angrily.

"We'd like the details, Dursley," Thia told the man, her voice changing from casual to icy cold in a split second.

"What are you going to do to us?" Vernon asked obstinately.

"Legally, we can do nothing," Thia replied. "You are muggles, we are magical. We would get your government involved if we didn't have to bring Harry to them." Vernon sighed in relief, and Petunia sagged back into her chair.

"But that doesn't mean we won't do anything to you," Molly said, standing up. Thia knew Molly's temper was as hot as her hair was red. "You were given the opportunity to take care of a little baby, the opportunity to raise the boy as your own son. But you didn't. You abused him, you shoved him in a cupboard under the stairs, and you showed him no love!"

"We did not abuse him!" Vernon shouted back. Thia had known he wouldn't be able to keep his temper in check forever.

"We saw those bruises on Harry's throat, Dursley," Remus told him angrily. "Your son just admitted that you two were the ones that choked him. Harry told us what happened. If you don't consider that abuse, you're a sick, sick man." Vernon puffed up, insulted by Remus' words.

"I've watched that boy at school," Minerva continued where Remus had left off, her temper boiling, but kept right under the surface. "I would never have believed that he came from such... such..." words seemed to fail her. "From this! Watching him interact with his friends and classmates, and now knowing that this is where he came from, I see the few little things that make it painfully obvious. He's always expecting to be yelled at, the smallest amount of praise means the world to him, and he's never expected that people would love him, let alone show it."

"The boy has the biggest heart around," Tonks fumed. "And you decided to shove him to the side, never once showing him love. Never once did you tell him 'Well done' or 'Congratulations.' He always thought you guys would rejoice when you were told he was hurt and grumble when he survived a nearly deadly attack."

"Never!" Petunia's shrill voice denied. Then she deflated. "Did we drive him to it?" It was all Thia could do not to say yes. They were one of the causes but they weren't the major reason. That was Voldemort's crime.

"Of course it's your fault, you absolute imbeciles!" Severus informed them, his voice calm and unemotional. This tone of voice probably did the most damage. "Years of abuse do not just disappear. You've scarred that boy for life. His memories of 'family' will always include what you gave him and it obviously wasn't much."

"You were given the chance, the honor, of raising Harry," Molly said, standing again. Her hands were on her hips and Thia knew they were in for it. "You hit him! You starved him! You locked him in a cupboard! You put him down! You called his friends freaks! You called him a freak! I have never been more disgusted in my life! People like you give the ordinary muggles out there a bad name! You're filth! What were you thinking? That we would just turn a blind eye when you struck someone we all love? Harry is one of my sons! I will not let anyone get away with striking him! You, Vernon, you are the role model for your own son and see what you've taught him! Racism, hatred, violence, disregard for human life! How Harry hasn't blown you up I don't know!"

There was a ringing silence after Molly's words. Petunia to her credit was looking at her hands ashamed. Dudley sat stunned, but Vernon had turned purple in his rage.

"That boy did blow up my sister!" he shouted at her. "He's a lazy, good for nothing lay about! Don't give me this crap about him having such a great big heart. Never once did he give me or Petunia the respect we deserve!"

"You deserve nothing!" Remus yelled. "When have you done anything just for Harry? He wears Dudley's old clothes, even though they don't fit in the least. You never took him anywhere unless you absolutely had to! You only took him in because you received protection from Dumbledore in exchange. You gave him a bedroom only when you thought we'd punish you for the cupboard. You belittled him. You let your son use him as a punching bag! You're lucky he decided to protect you. He didn't want to trouble us with you! I'll never know why!"

"Do you want to know what Harry told me that Thursday morning?" Thia asked, but continued without waiting for a response. "He said that when he left, he didn't want to leave any traces of his presence here. He didn't do anything to stand up for himself or anything that would change your life drastically. He was willing to let you walk all over him because in a little over a week, he'd say goodbye to you forever. You just had to push too hard when he was at his weakest, didn't you?"

"The bloody idiot screamed all night, every night!" Vernon replied furiously. Every magical occupant in the room looked at him as if he had suddenly grown another arm. Everyone except Severus, that is.

"Of course he did, you oblivious ass" the ex-Death Eater sneered. "Had you cared to know, Potter spent about a month imprisoned. The Dark Lord has taken a strange liking to the boy, and Potter has suffered for it. The Dark Lord and his followers tortured him day in and day out. The boy has accumulated enough nightmares to make most people wet their sheets. Surely a little screaming is understandable." The Dursleys looked at him stunned. They obviously had been completely clueless about this. "No, I hadn't thought you cared enough."

"I don't know why you think he's so high and mighty," Dudley said matter of factly. "He admitted to me that he almost killed some girl named Ginny. That's a criminal offense." For one short second, the room and its occupants sat stunned.

"You worthless... idiotic... stupid boy," Tonks shouted at him. "Do you not get it? Harry was captured and tortured by the most evilest creature alive! He wasn't in his right mind when that happened, and it was during a battle, you pathetic dimwit. I can't believe I'm in the same room, breathing the same air, as you three! I like Muggles, bloody hell... half my family are Muggles, but you scum... No, you're worse than pond scum!"

Thia rolled her eyes. Though she agreed with the young Auror on every fact, she didn't believe that had been the best thing to say. "Look, what Tonks is saying is that there are mitigating circumstances that occur during war. That was one of those times. However, I'd have to agree on the pond scum comment."

"Now see here--" Vernon started, but Molly interrupted.

"No, you see here," she shouted. "We will be talking to Mary-Ann Grunning about the abuse. She'll do as she sees fit, but I hope she tells her husband and father-in-law." Molly muttered a simple jinx, causing disarray to rule the impeccably clean house. "Good luck cleaning this up." Thia knew Petunia never would be able to; the jinx would not allow it. "I have good information that Hagrid tried to turn you into a pig," she told Dudley. The seventeen-year-old boy clapped his hands over his bottom. Thia had to fight to hide her smile; that was just as funny as the twins swore it was. "I'd have to agree with his reasoning, you're too much like a pig to actually change more."

Molly muttered another jinx but nothing visible happened. If Thia hadn't recognized it, she would have thought it had failed. It was a jinx from a witch fad diet that had been popular when Thia had been at Hogwarts. The jinx would make each and every sweet Dudley would eat taste like ear wax until it was removed. Dudley would have a hard time finding a witch that would admit she knew the counter-jinx.

"Well, we best be going," Molly said, standing up. "We've got an owl to send to Mary-Ann after all. Goodnight, and may you have a horrible night."

Remus, Tonks, and Severus looked slightly clueless as Minerva, Thia, and Molly gathered them up and herded them out of the house. Thia wasn't surprised that they didn't know the jinxes that Molly had used, they weren't common ones. Remus knew the "mess jinx" because Sirius used to cast it on Remus' room whenever he would visit. It had driven her neat freak of a brother insane. But the other one was too old for Tonks and too feminine for the two men to know about. It was perfect!

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Harry was exhausted. It was Thursday, the Thursday almost two weeks after he attempted suicide. At about 2:45 AM that coming night, it would be exactly two weeks. Harry wasn't sure what to think of it. It seemed so much longer then two weeks, yet two weeks also seemed too short. Time was playing games with him, and Harry hated it.

He had started walking yesterday, but could barely manage the walk to the bathroom and back on his own. He was physically drained; his body was still recovering from the loss of blood and trauma it had gone through. Healer Quirke assured him that, though it would be a long journey, eventually he would recover completely. Nettle and Zane had returned to St. Mungo's two days ago when a strange and dangerous new charm was discovered. Quirke's specialty was curses not charms, so she stayed to supervise Harry's rehabilitation.

"Can you walk to me one more time, Harry?" she asked him, with a gentle voice. She stood opposite him, about seven meters away. Those few meters seemed impossible to cross, but he wasn't a quitter.

One slow step by one slow step Harry started to cross the divide, from his bed to the bed opposite. His legs were shaking and he knew that they would give out soon. And sure enough, about half way across, with nothing around to grab onto, Harry fell into a sitting position on the ground. He sat there, staring at the ground frustrated with himself. Failing like this was completely unacceptable. He punched the ground in dissatisfaction.

"Now, none of that," Quirke told him in a no-nonsense tone of voice. She walked over and helped him stand up. "You've done quite a bit more then I expected. Don't be angry with yourself." They walked over to his bed, and Harry sunk onto it gratefully. He swung his legs up and over the side, laying down with a sigh. "What do you want to do tomorrow?"

"I couldn't go fly, could I?" he asked hesitantly. "I mean, I wouldn't do any loop-the-loops, just fly in a circle, you know?" Quirke looked him in the eyes and then away.

"Let me ask the others what they think," she finally said. "But I'll fight for you, Harry. Flying is great for the soul. Now, chin up, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione should be back soon."

As if right on cue, the three walked through the doors and into the ward. They were talking excitedly about something and Harry saw a smile on Ginny's lips, a smile that had been lacking lately. Quirke retired to Madame Pomfrey's office to give the friends some privacy. "Hey, Harry!" Ron said brightly when he saw his best friend dressed in jeans and a t-shirt.

"How'd you do today?" Hermione asked, knowing that he had to have been walking.

"I made it to the bathroom and back, and over there and back a few times," Harry informed her shortly. He knew that if he didn't tell her quickly, she would keep prodding. However, he felt embarrassed by how little he could actually do, so he didn't really want to talk about it. "So, what did Dumbledore want?" he asked, trying not to let the bitterness seep into his voice with the name.

"We've got great news!" Ginny said excitedly. In her excitement, she sat on his bed and grabbed his hand. This was the first time she had touched him since the night of Wormtail's death, not last night, but the night before that. "We're going to spend the rest of the holidays at Hermione's!" she finished. Harry didn't hear a word she said, he was looking at their entwined hands. They fit together so... perfectly. Ginny followed his gaze and let go quickly. He looked up at her face, surprised. She seemed hurt somehow. What had he done?

"What?" he asked, realizing that they were waiting for his reaction. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear that." Ginny stood up, getting off the bed and sat down on the bed next to his. He had angered her, and he didn't know what he had done.

"We're going to my house for the rest of break," Hermione repeated looking from Ginny to Harry just as confused.

"That's sounds great," Harry replied, trying to be excited, but he couldn't help but think about the danger.

"It'll be fun," Hermione gushed out, her enthusiasm overwhelming him. "My parents are really excited about it. We'll probably be stuck inside, but everything important is on the first floor, so there aren't so many stairs for you to climb, like there are here."

"Ron," Harry said suddenly, "will you help me to the bathroom?" For some reason Hermione's comment had hurt.

"I thought you said you went a bit ago," Ron replied confused.

"I walked there a bit ago, just for practice," Harry lied to him. He sat up and got his legs off the bed. Ron stood next to him and helped support his shaky weight. They walked slowly to the other end of the ward and stopped outside the bathroom.

"They're a bit much, aren't they?" Ron asked, guessing why Harry had really wanted to go to the bathroom.

"Yeah," Harry admitted. "You don't need to come in."

"I wasn't planning on it, mate," Ron replied. "I'm not that good a friend." Harry smiled and entered the room, gripping the wall for support. Stumbling to the sink, Harry put his hands on either side of it and looked at himself in the mirror. His old scar stood out red against his pale skin. Turning his head slightly, Harry looked at the newest addition. At his temple was a black, spidery, dead looking scar. He raised his hand to it, touching it lightly. It dipped in slightly, and he grimaced as his eyes caught sight of the bruises around his neck. They really were a sight, even by Harry's standards. There must have been a lot of blood to cover them up.

He shivered, as the chill spread from his barefooted feet up. He rubbed his right hand up and down his left arm trying to warm it up. He grimaced even more as he felt more healed wounds and scars on the back of that arm. The pink, raised welts were small and all over his body, but, thankfully, they were rather scarce, except for the back of this arm. The biggest one was a ragged two by three inches in size, at the extremes. It was roughly square, but not quite. Smaller ones surrounded it, none of which were bigger then an inch square.

New physical scars to emphasis the emotional scars on the inside. There was a nasty one behind his ear from one of Draco's torture sessions. On his right shoulder was a ragged scar from Bellatrix that Healer had botched up on. Along the outside of his left calf was a paper thin line running straight up connecting his ankle to his knee; Harry wasn't sure who to credit that one to.

Realizing that he had been in there long enough, Harry moved to the door and opened it. Ron threw Harry's arm over his shoulder and they started the slow trek back.

"I told the girls to back off a bit," he said conversationally. "They hadn't even realized they'd been overwhelming." Harry smiled his thanks. "But, Ginny's a bit angry, I'm not sure why. I think you hurt her."

"That's what I think too," Harry replied softly. "I just wish I knew how."

"Can't help you there, mate," Ron replied. They fell silent as they got nearer to the girls. Ron helped Harry get situated and then went to stand next to Hermione, wrapping his arms around her waist. Harry smiled at them, glad that his best friends were so happy together. He glanced at Ginny and saw her smiling faintly, even enviously at the couple.

"When are we leaving?" he asked, looking back at Hermione.

"Saturday or Sunday, all depending on what Nettle and Quirke decide," Hermione answered. "Ronald!" she chided him, slapping at his hand. Harry realized Ron was pulling it out of the waist band of her jean shorts.

"What?" Ron asked innocently.

"You know what!" Hermione huffed at him. "You can't do that!"

"You don't mind when I--" Ron started but three people cut him off at the same time.

"Ronald!" Ginny said with a sickly green tinge to her face.

"Do not finish that," Hermione warned him, pulling away from him.

"That is way more then I needed or ever wanted to know," Harry spat out, disgusted by what Ron was about to say. His best friend opened his mouth to say more, but Harry put his hand up to silence him. "No, you've said more then enough, quit when you aren't so far behind." Ron nodded and closed his mouth.

"So, Hermione," Harry said, trying desperately to change the subject, "what's your home like?"

"Oh, it's in the middle of nowhere, and rather old," she started. "There's a bit of land around it, and the Order has been putting wards all around for about a year and a half now. Dumbledore is going to become the secret keeper for it soon, added security and all. We'll be safe there, and Voldemort wouldn't expect us to hide away in a muggle home. It wouldn't make sense to him."

"Yeah," Harry replied faintly. He doubted the monster would be that dense. "But what is it like?"

"I love it," Hermione said faintly, a smile that could only be classified as happy spreading across her face. "It'll be nice spending part of the summer there. It hasn't been safe to spend more then a week there, but now, it's as safe as anywhere else; more then most places. But you'll have to wait until we're there; I'm not even going to try to explain it."

"Alright," Harry replied. Quirke came out of Pomfrey's office, brushing soot out of her hair.

"Nettle agreed that you could take a leisurely flight tomorrow afternoon," Quirke informed him with a huge grin. Harry felt a grin spread across his face in answer.

"You're going flying without us?" Ron asked dumbfounded.

"Not unless you don't want to go," Harry replied. "Do you want to go on a 'leisurely flight' tomorrow?" he asked, looking at his three friends. Ginny and Ron nodded enthusiastically, but Hermione shook her head in a firm and unmistakable no. "Oh, come on, Hermione, please. It'll just be a simple circuit, no acrobatics."

Hermione looked at him doubtfully, and then up at Ron. Her boyfriend was pleading with her as well. Ginny just shrugged her shoulders, but Harry knew she wanted her best friend along. Even Quirke seemed to be for Hermione going out for a flight.

"Alright, I'll go."

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"How in the world did you get me to agree to this?" Hermione asked the next afternoon. They were standing right outside the Entrance Hall, brooms in hands. It had been a hike for Harry, but he had made it. He hadn't felt so alive for... for a long, long time.

"Because you're supporting me," Harry told her, mounting his Firebolt. He rubbed a hand along the handle, remembering the wizard that had bought the broom for him. "Let's go!" He took off and sped ahead, not climbing as he would have normally done. No one needed to tell him that flying was physically draining; six years of Quidditch practice had taught him that.

"Wait up, Harry!" Ginny shouted. His broom had easily outrun all of his friends' brooms. Harry pulled up and waited for them to catch up. "Thanks," Ginny said, stopping next to him. Ron was flying next to Hermione, whispering words of encouragement and advice.

"They really are perfect for each other," Harry said to himself.

"They are," Ginny agreed. Harry turned to look at her, surprised that she had answered him. "Were you talking to me?" she asked nervously.

"I guess," Harry replied. "I hadn't meant to say that out loud," he hurriedly admitted when hurt blossomed in her eyes. "Gin, we need to have that talk."

"Yeah," she agreed, not looking at him. "But, not now," she said after a pause.

"No, but soon," Harry agreed as Hermione and Ron caught up.

They flew one circuit around the Lake, talking softly. Harry wasn't just glad to be outside. He was glad to be on his broom, flying. He was glad to be with his friends. It's for moments like this that humans exist. Moments like this that make a life worth living. Moments like this proved to Harry that he had to live.

They were flying up to the Entrance Hall; Harry was exhausted from the energy it took to fly. Yet, as he neared it, he couldn't help, but feel a bit cheated. And he knew why. With a sly glance at his friends and then at the empty door of Hogwarts, Harry sped ahead once more and dove straight up into the bright blue sky. He let out a loud whoop and then pointed for the ground. The wind brushed through his hair and whistled in his ears. He started to pull up, but he didn't have enough strength in his arms to level out.

"Uh-oh," he mumbled, knowing that he was going to crash.

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Harry woke up slowly the next morning with a huge headache. A dull thud pounded in his head, but it wasn't that that had awoken him. It was the arguing and loud voices.

"You can't blame the boy!" Quirke was yelling at someone. "He's been stuck inside or in a Muggle neighborhood since the end of May! Of course he did it!"

"He promised he wouldn't!" Nettle argued back. "You promised he wouldn't."

"You honestly thought he wouldn't?" Quirke asked amazed. "That boy's a Quidditch player, a Seeker at that. You had to expect it!"

"Well, he can't leave Hogwarts until Monday now," Nettle decreed.

"I'm fine," Harry replied. "Except for this horrid headache. Could I get something for it? And my glasses, please?"

"Here you go, mate," Ron said, slipping them on. Harry looked around the room. Remus, Tonks, Thia, McGonagall, Molly, Nettle, Quirke, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were all in the room again. It hadn't been this crowded since the night he had explained everything to them.

"Am I in trouble?" Harry asked sheepishly. Harry swore McGonagall smiled before she answered.

"You did promise you wouldn't do anything like that," McGonagall said.

"I'm pretty sure I promised not to do loop-the-loops, Professor," Harry countered, trying to keep his face straight.

"See," Quirke told Nettle triumphantly. "That was no loop-the-loop, it was a dive. He did nothing wrong."

"He ran into the ground," Nettle replied dryly.

"That's because I misjudged the distance," Harry replied. "An honest mistake that anyone that hasn't been on a broom for months could make." Thia, Tonks, and Remus laughed loudly, scaring the others. Harry glared at them. "Be quiet."

"Oh, come off it Harry, we saw you dive after Tonks' wand on the third!" Thia got out around her laughter.

"Yeah, but they didn't know," Harry said with a sigh and a smile. "But now they do."

"So, now what's your excuse?" McGonagall asked.

"Well..." Harry thought for a bit. "I guess now... it's that I didn't do it right off the bat while I had the energy... Or, for doing a straight dive, I should have angled it. Then again... That's what I did in Australia. I haven't done a straight dive since the Quidditch game. Ron, Ginny, did I even do a straight dive during that game?" Everyone was laughing in the room and Harry knew Nettle was having a hard time staying angry. "Look, I'm sorry, but really, did you expect me not to dive at all?"

"Yes," Nettle replied. "But, then again, I was never much into flying myself. There's something about having crazy eleven year old boys chasing one around that just turns a person off of it." Harry smiled in understanding.

"Can I go flying today?" he asked, hoping against hope that she would say yes.

"I'm not sure," Nettle answered slowly.

"Come on, Nancy," Quirke haggled, "look at the boy. He's just asking to go flying." Nettle looked him in the eye and then nodded.

"But you're not leaving until Sunday at the earliest," she shouted over Ron and Harry's shouts of glee. "Now, let's see you walk."

Harry glanced at everyone in the room and then at his hands, mortified. He didn't want to go through that with everyone watching, it was horrifying enough when it was just Quirke and him. Thia seemed to catch on to that.

"Come on, let's leave them to their work," she told everyone. She started ushering the adults out, looking at Ron, Hermione, and Ginny significantly.

"Talk to you guys later?" Harry asked. "When we go flying." They nodded and left, hesitantly and a bit put out. Harry didn't care too much; it was embarrassing how little he could do.

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The strong arms of Remus and Thia caught Harry as the portkey brought them to the front yard of the Grangers'. It was definitely the home of two well-off dentists. The house harked of older architecture and the front garden was well cared for. Ron blanched at the sight and looked at Harry, who knew his best friend was thinking about how rich they seemed to be.

"Harry," Mrs. Granger said, pulling him into an embrace. He had been the closest to the door, thankfully. It meant less walking. He hugged her back awkwardly. "Ron." She hugged her daughter's boyfriend and Ron hugged her back, looking as uncomfortable as Harry had felt. She welcomed everyone, hugging Ginny as well, and shaking everyone else's hands. Remus, Tonks, and Thia were along as guards, but Harry could sense the other friendly eyes hidden around the house; they weren't fooling him. Molly was only here to see them settled in and then she was returning to Hogwarts--Grimmauld was too much for her to handle. Quirke was along as well, to look after Harry's medical needs and to continue the rehabilitation.

Mr. Granger shook everyone's hands and then led them inside. The inside was just as impressive as the outside, and Harry felt a bit put off by it. "Don't worry," Hermione told the stunned boys. "It's only like this in the front rooms." Ron repeated the 'front rooms' silently and followed Hermione down the hall. "I'm going to show them my room and where they're staying, okay Mum?"

"That's fine, darling," Mrs. Granger replied.

"I'll bring the luggage later," Remus told them before the teens left.

"The front rooms are only used for entertaining," Hermione replied. "The rest of the house is hardly like that." They walked down the hall and towards the end where Hermione opened a door. Harry was dismayed to see that it opened onto another hallway.

"Hermione," he said, stopping. Though he could walk alone now, he couldn't keep it up forever. "How much further?"

"Just a bit," she assured him. And indeed it was. The first door on the right opened onto her bedroom. "Sit on the bed, Harry," she instructed him. "If you take your shoes off you can lay down." He did just that, thankful for the reprieve. Once settled he looked around the room.

The dominantly pink and frilly wall paper and bed spread were covered by everything and anything non-pink and frilly. One full wall had floor to ceiling bookshelves built into it. They were filled with a collection of books, Harry could easily spot the heavily used magical textbooks and the paperback Muggle books. One desk of two had a computer, printer, and monitor on it, where as the other one had parchment, quills, and ink covering it. Posters of all types and sizes covered the flowery wall paper. Posters of Viktor Krum (signed of course) were the only magical ones. Muggle posters of unicorns, fairies, and other "magical" creatures were most dominating. Pictures of the true creatures were hanging next to the imagined ones. Sheets and bits of parchment also were stuck to the wall with push pins and others taped. Harry could tell some were print-outs from the computer, whereas others seemed to be parts of letters.

Hermione looked around her room slowly, a content smile playing on her lips. This was definitely her sanctuary. Ginny was looking at a muggle poster with several elaborate "fairies" on it. Ron wandered over to a wall that had three Krum posters on it, along with plenty of bits of parchment. He read one of them, and his jaw dropped.

"Oh!" Hermione gasped and hurried over, taking most of the bits of parchment down.

"What's that?" he asked angrily.

"Nothing," Hermione replied.

"Why'd you put his letters up there, with stuff like that written on it?" Ron asked outraged.

"Because he was my boyfriend when I put them up there!" Hermione replied, not backing down.

"Do you pin up letters from me?" Ron asked, fighting back. Hermione went scarlet. "You don't?" he asked, deflating.

"I--I keep them closer to me," she finally admitted. "I'm hardly here, and... I didn't want them stuck here."

Ginny ended the uncomfortable conversation by laughing outrageously hard. She had turned from looking at the fairies to read one of the computer sheets. "Which one is that?" Hermione asked.

"The frog one," Ginny replied. Hermione smiled in recognition and Ron hurried over to read it. He laughed, but eyed Hermione as if she was dangerous.

"Don't worry, I won't eat you," Hermione guaranteed him.

"Okay, this is making absolutely no sense to me," Harry reminded them. "And as much as I'd love going over to read it, I don't think I'll be able to get out of this bed any time soon." Ginny laughed and turned back to the sheet.

"'Once upon a time, in a land far away, a beautiful, independent, self-assured princess happened upon a frog as she sat, contemplating ecological issues on the shores of an unpolluted pond in a verdant meadow near her castle. The frog hopped into the princess' lap and said: Elegant Lady, I was once a handsome prince, until an evil witch cast a spell upon me. One kiss from you, however, and I will turn back into the dapper, young prince that I am and then, my sweet, we can marry and set up housekeeping in your castle with my mother, where you can prepare my meals, clean my clothes, bear my children, and forever feel grateful and happy doing so. That night, as the princess dined sumptuously on lightly sautéed frog legs seasoned in a white wine and onion cream sauce, she chuckled and thought to herself: I don't think so.'" Once Ginny was finished, Harry let out a chuckle, how very Hermione.

"My aunt sent that to me, and it made me laugh so I put it up," she informed them. "There are a lot of little gems like that around here."

"Yeah, like love notes from ex-boyfriends," Ron muttered angrily.

"Don't start that," Ginny warned her brother. "Krum isn't even talking to her since the Harpies beat the Bulgarian World Cup team and knocked them out of the running."

"Really?" Ron asked and Hermione nodded. "Why that little piece of crap." Harry had to laugh at that. Never had he ever thought Ron would be angry with Krum for not writing to Hermione. Around the desk with parchment, was a bunch of magical photographs. Harry could barely make out Ron, Ginny, and himself in them, along with Hermione in most.

"Hermione," Harry asked suddenly, as he remembered how empty the land had seemed to be. "How close are your nearest muggle neighbors?"

She smiled understanding, but shook her head. "Sorry, there's a village about a mile to the east, and there's nothing around to shield you from their eyes."

"That stinks," Ron muttered under his breath. "So where are we sleeping?"

"Ginny gets the room connected to my bathroom," Hermione explained, opening the door to a bathroom that connected with another room. Harry could see a bit of the soft blues and greens of the décor. "Ron, you'll get the room across from your sister's and Harry gets the one across from mine."

Hermione looked at the clock and stood up. "Time for supper, we always eat at 6:45. Let's get going."

"But it's only 6:30," Ron argued. "Surely it won't take fifteen minutes to get there, even if it was on the other side of the house."

"Maybe not for you," Hermione replied. "But Harry was tuckered out just walking here, which means he'll start the walk there already tuckered out. So we'll probably need to stop a few times along the way, which will delay us a bit and then it's always better to be early then late, particularly with dentists. So, let's go and no complaining."

Harry smiled as a wordless Ron followed Hermione out of the room. Ginny helped Harry get up off the bed, his shoes collected (he had tossed them aside carelessly), and tied up. She helped to support his weight, putting an arm around his back and the other on the arm he had slung across her shoulders. This was the most they had touched in the past few days. He seriously needed to fix the rift between them; she meant too much to him, he couldn't lose her.

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