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Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related concepts are owned by someone who isn't me. I will never seek or accept money for the circulation of this work. Especially this work.



Author's note: In trying to keep with canon events except where Holly has influence, I've corrected my error in the previous chapter about Ginny's boyfriend. She was seeing Michael Corner of Ravenclaw at this point, not Dean Thomas.



Holly Polter



Chapter: Jump Around

How big is a soul? It is infinite yet it shares space with countless other infinite souls. It weighs nothing, yet one soul can move planets if the influence of that soul reaches far enough. Still, to affect the physical one must be more than spiritual. You need to have something, to be something. Just a drop, even.

Or you can possess a microbe, make it eat its neighbor and build a drop of something from that.

With a little magic, a drop becomes two drops - one cannot create something enduring from nothing, but duplicating with magic is tolerated for reasons that evidently have nothing to do with physics or chemistry. The second drop consumes the first, or vice-versa, and it grows. After a while being a drop seems a bit dull, and one has enough mass to remember things, so one might decide to try out something with a bit more structure. Too complex and it'll fall apart, so one limits themself to building complexity after the eating and a bit of rest. More memories become available with the greater volume, and it occurs to you that life was more fun in the time before the big bang, as you refer to the time right before you realized your greatest ambition for the moment was to be a drop.

~oOo~

Ginny was pleased to find out that Holly hadn't been destroyed by Snape, but there was much still wrong with their world. "Okay, that's a little disconcerting."

The Sounding Stone recited Holly-the-ink-newt's scrawl in Holly's own voice; "My being amphibious ink?"

"That too, but... why would you know where we are now, rather than before?"

There was a pause, then the Stone echoed, "Oh. Oh, dear."

Harry said, "What is it?"

"Hmm... how shall I put this? What's the translation of 'Fidelius' in English?"

"They don't actually teach us Latin," Harry muttered.

"That might be a blessing in disguise, as many spell incantations end up being mis-conjugations of proper Latin. 'Fidelius' is related to 'Fidelity' which means 'faithfulness' or 'trust'. Who's the secret-keeper?"

"Professor Dumbledore."

"And how does the owner of the house feel about--"

Harry was bolting out the door and down the staircase before the Stone could finish its recitation.

"--said secret-keeper?"

Ginny turned back to look at the ink lizard with a scowl.

The representation of a head tilted in response, simulated eyelids blinking over the oblong drops positioned to suggest they were eyes.

"Holly, I'm a little confused. You said we should show Harry love, but then you went and ruined it for us."

"You can't blame me for that. From what I heard, you were both going to beg off to ensure that all the proper forms and protocols had been satisfied. I've been hoping for a chance to reveal myself when it wasn't just Harry in the room so he wouldn't assume he was going insane, but he and Sirius have been keeping opposite schedules when not drinking together. Interrupting you two just now was a tactically sound decision. Also, funny."

"Yeah. Funny. Anyway, I need to ask you something."

"Ask away, Gingersnap."

"It's about you. About you and... me."

"I heard you saying that girls were becoming interesting for you."

"I never even thought of it until you showed up! Did you do that to me or -- hang on, how do you hear anything? You don't have ears!"

"A newt doesn't have ears that stick out. Look closer and you'll see the ear holes, but the real answer to your question is that I hear sound with my whole body. Liquid's a very good medium for sound. I hear better than I see at this point. Of course that's usually the case, and I bet I won't find any miniature glasses that'll sit right on my head since I don't have ears."

"Huh. This has been the weirdest summer."

"Count your blessings- at least you're still a witch. As for me turning you gay, I doubt it, and certainly not on purpose. Besides, recent evidence suggests that you're--"

"Straight," Ginny tried to interject.

"--Bi-sexual. You just hadn't considered the option to see girls as desirable until you saw someone to relate it to. The good news is that your playing field has expanded slightly, and that gay sex has an advantage since pregnancy isn't an issue. The bad news is that most people who find out will think you're a) indecisive about being gay, b) acting outrageous as part of adolescence, or c) simply a slut."

Considering those options made her wince. "How did you handle it?"

"I was already being treated like Morgana's worst daughter, so 'slut' was just another sin-soaked feather in my cap. I'd love to help you explore this, but I'm quite limited now. Might as well keep your interest in girls under your hat until an opportunity presents itself."

A curiosity awoke in her. Ginny leaned forward to look closer at Holly's form. She reached out a finger to stroke beneath its chin. It felt soft and rubbery, even dry to the touch but warm. A thrill ran up her arm, and she smiled. The little thing stepped in to rub its head against her fingers.

Ginny's skin felt hot but it wasn't unwelcome. Thinking about the woman who caused it gave her another pulse of jittery excitement. It also was triggering a certain protective instinct. She said, "I'm glad that you're back, but I'm not sure everyone else will be. Mum hasn't been quite herself since that night, and I'm rather sure Hermione will be warning Harry to stay far away from you. She can be trouble."

Sparing some of her attention, Holly's tail scribed, "Don't I know it!" She continued rubbing against Ginny's hand though.

The sounds of someone struggling to run up the stairs echoed into the room, prompting Ginny to nervously step back from the shelf, feeling a strange flush of embarrassment for possibly being caught touching Holly.

Through the doorway she could see Harry lurch up the last steps, breathing with his whole body as he finally reached the landing and flopped onto his back. Two breaths later, Sirius appeared right next to him with a 'pop', startling them both.

Harry wheezed, "I bloody hate you."

"If you hadn't rushed off to run up the stairs, I would have offered to bring you along with me."

"You can (huff, huff) do that?"

"Side-along apparation? Sure."

"I bloody hate you, (huff) again."

From the corner of her eye, Ginny saw the designs scribed into the Sounding Stone aglow. Holly's voice projected, "Not to interrupt your brotherly bonding, but we have a time-sensitive issue at hand."

Sirius finished helping Harry to stand while squinting towards the shelf where the stone sat. He then leaned back and barked a laugh. "I already know the Stone is enchanted to sound like Holly, kids. If you're going to prank me--"

"Mr. Pink, is Bella's vicious dagger still secured on the second shelf of the glass and silver case?"

"Yes, it is, and-- mother of Merlin, it's really you!" Sirius' eyes popped wide and he rushed up, stepping forward in a slight crouch as he approached the shelf where Holly stood on the parchment. "And you're a... tar baby?"

"Ink imp."

"Never heard of it."

"I should hope not, as I created the first one under highly unusual circumstances. Listen, Sirius. The Fidelius charm is breaking down. You need to get Albus here as soon as possible and sort out the loss of trust."

"Why is this time-sensitive?" Ginny asked. "I mean sure, the house will be visible, but if no one is looking for it what's the rush?"

Sirius stood up straight to address her; "Those who used to come here are not aware that they have forgotten anything. If they become aware of it, they may decide to visit and see who was interfering with their memories."

"Who used to live here that would matter?"

"My cousin Narcissa Black and her sisters would spend summers and special events in the house. She's now known as Narcissa Malfoy."

Harry and Ginny both groaned.

"Not to worry," Sirius reassured them, "I've already sent the Headmaster a message. In fact, I should get back to the kitchen in case he calls."

Holly's voice amended, "You should also warn the underaged not to cast spells until the roof is fixed."

Harry had followed Sirius into the room as he finally caught his breath. He said, "How'd you contact him? I thought Phineas said the current Headmaster wasn't in his office."

"I sent him a Patronus messenger. You should learn how to do that."

Harry let out an exhale of frustration and said, "Well, YEAH! I wouldn't have had to run down to the kitchen and back!"

"You need the exercise."

"And you don't?"

Sirius grinned and said, "No," which was punctuated by the 'pop' of his disapparation.

"I bloody hate him, for the third time." Harry shook his head as he approached the shelf to stand next to Ginny. He said to Holly, "I don't know what to do. You're a lizard made of ink? How did you appear to be so real when we met?"

"Basics of transfiguration, Harry- proper visualization. I saw myself as the witch I was and formed to match that belief. I was just as real then as I am now."

"But now you're so small and... inhuman. Will you grow back?"

"No idea. It took me days to get this big and I seem to have hit a plateau."

"Well, what the fuck am I supposed to do with that?!"

Ginny tried to soothe him with a touch to his shoulder. He didn't shrug her away, so that was something.

Holly's words echoed from the Stone, "I didn't know what I was. Now I do- I'm not human. Fine. It's not the first time I've been accused of being a magical creature or even a monster for that matter. This changes the rules for me, but it does not change the goal. My purpose remains- I'm still here to help you. Please accept that I will always act in your interests as best I can."

Harry stood back and thought for a bit. He said, "How do we know that you aren't like a brainwashed creature like Professor Dumbledore said?"

Somehow the Stone was able to accurately reproduce the sound of Holly scoffing in protest. "I do not accept the idea that I have been programmed to be this person. I am Holly; no one in their right mind would or could come up with the bizarre circumstances that have ruled my life. It's just too perverse to have been designed."

Harry nodded at her reasoning. Ginny just continued to stare at her, fascinated.

The Stone's recitation continued, "I'm not a lizard, Harry. This is merely the best form I could make when I got to this size. In fact..."

The ink drew itself into a smaller bubble without limbs, tail or head. It wavered and rolled on the parchment for a bit, then sprouted upward into a pillar shape. The pillar softened and rippled until it formed into Holly, only a few inches tall and made of murky black and grey liquid.

Ginny smiled. "That's so cool."

"It's really you," Harry mumbled.

The mini-Holly made a gesture like kissing its hand and throwing that kiss out towards him. The ink then collapsed into a ball again, reforming into the newt shape.

The tail whipped around to scribe again, and Holly's voice echoed, "It's just impractical to keep that shape when this is much more functional."

Harry turned to Ginny and frowned, prompting a defensive, "What?"

"Why are you taking this so well," Harry asked, "and doesn't it bother you that she's this... thing?"

Rather than quip at him, Ginny took a moment to give him an honest answer. "No, it doesn't bother me. Maybe that's what growing up with magic means, but I know that Holly is the woman behind the voice, whatever form she takes. So long as she's still with us, we can work around the other problems."

"Work around them?" he protested.

"C'mon, Harry! You always hear people saying how anything is possible with magic, and seeing the stuff the twins come up with is fair proof of it." Ginny turned to look at Holly. "This is, too. It's amazing and brilliant and unexpected, but not unbelievable. Heck, if I get my body destroyed but still have enough life to stick around, I am definitely aiming to make a little ink body like this one."

"Start small, be patient and don't skip meals."

"Really?" Ginny snickered. "What did you eat?"

"Whatever I could swallow, so long as it had life to metabolise. Flavour isn't a factor until you decide to grow taste buds."

Harry grabbed a glass that he'd drained of pumpkin juice earlier and shook out the remaining drops clinging to the bottom so that they landed near Holly on the parchment. A long tongue shot out from her mouth, whipping around much like the tail did. It absorbed the fluid, briefly causing Holly's skin to take on an orange cast before reverting to charcoal grey.

"Yummy. Thank you, sweetie." The ink that appeared beneath her tail tip was noticeably darker.

"Holly? Look, about what happened in the library that night- I'm sorry. I was overwhelmed. I-- OW!"

Ginny had punched him in the arm and raised her fists to threaten a second jab. She couldn't help grinning, as well.

Harry shoved her in the shoulder in retaliation, protesting, "What's with--?"

"She told me to punch you if you ever apologised to her when she couldn't reach," Ginny said with glee.

The Stone echoed a less-sadistic explanation; "Don't throw your apologies around. I'm trying to teach you how to be awesome. You have to accept that making choices that affect a bunch of people are likely to hurt at least some of them. You can't make those choices if you're gonna feel all 'waaah' for every bump and bruise they cause."

"But I made a mistake!" protested Harry,"I said what made sense at that moment but it wasn't how I wanted to act!"

"Yeah, I got that. You lost control of your emotions and didn't act the way you meant to. Something to work on- you should value your mistakes as they provide a chance to learn. Despite that, you didn't do too badly."

"I got you incinerated!"

"No, you hurt my feelings and let me be arrested by a very polite lynch mob. Being 'executed' was about me and Snape. He wouldn't have bothered me at all if I didn't spook him by looking like your mum."

"But you are my mum... in a way. And why would that spook him?"

Ginny had been content to just listen, but this didn't add up for her. "She's your mum?"

"I'm his mother's not-quite-evil twin. As for Snape, he saw my worst memory and it provoked him somehow. I have some theories but he's quite a bit different from the one I knew."

Ginny interjected, "What do you mean 'the one you knew'?"

Harry lost his concentration on the topic and looked up at Ginny. He gulped. "H-Holly? Ideas?"

"Trust or don't trust- it's your choice, but remember that it's hard to take back secrets."

"Thanks a bunch," he replied sourly. Harry looked down at the floor and back at Ginny several times while she waited.

Harry's reply could mean so much to Ginny -positive or negative- that she was willing to be patient... to a point. "Harry, you asked us to support you," she implored, "and I can do that better if you let me in on what's what. I promise; you can trust me." Ginny could see he was close to a decision, so she left her last sentence to hang in the quiet.

After a bit Harry muled, "Y'know, you hit me a few minutes ago. I'm not sure that helps your case."

"I'd consider it a selling point," Holly scribed, "You should put more trust in the friends who will confront you if they think you're in the wrong."

"I just don't want to rush into this. Ginny, I need to talk with Holly, alone."

Ginny was two seconds from laying into him, but she bit back her anger. Instead she stuck out her tongue at him. That made him smile, so she added a taunt; "I dunno- you look like you're on the verge of another apology. Holly may need my services."

"I'll keep a running tally, Ginny. Catch up with you later."

She leaned over and pet the ink creature one more time, then gave Harry an unexpected wet kiss on the cheek before leaving the room.

For Ginny, nothing was more important than the fact Holly was back. Even kissing Harry came second in her list of 'Things making me happy right now'.

~oOo~

Harry's frustrating morning was making too much noise in his head; too many emotions were competing for precedence. Ever since Ginny had interrupted him he'd felt off-balance. First it was curiosity, then a bit of lust, some guilt, amusement, shock, fear, anger, joy, more anger... at the moment embarrassment currently 'had the floor'.

"I... uh... should probably explain that."

"I've seen kisses before, Harry. Yours with Ginny earlier was really hot."

"H-holly, I'm sor-- I mean... I didn't mean to betray you with Ginny!"

There was a pause before the lizard's tail started moving again. "How did you betray me, exactly?"

"By... by getting close with someone else. I kissed another girl."

"Harry, I understand your concern. It's very decent of you to consider my feelings. It doesn't apply to me."

"Why not?"

"Aside from the fact that I'm now five ounces of magic goo? I don't believe in hoarding affection. I'm not greedy about love."

Harry felt the sentences should mean something, but they weren't translating properly. "I'm not sure I understand."

"If a man and woman in love have a baby, and the woman says she loves the baby, did she betray the man? If she says she loves her sister, her brother, her father or even cups of hot cocoa, are these also sins of disloyalty?"

"She's not kissing the cocoa," Harry countered, "She's not having sex with her baby."

"I dunno... sometimes nursing can be very, very satisfying for everyone involved. Indecently so."

He couldn't help but squeeze his eyes shut and seethe, "Hols!"

"All I'm trying to point out is that I love certain people, but I don't expect them to only get love from me- in fact I'd ratherthey had more sources than me, since I tend to be suicidally obnoxious. Jealousy and I don't interact anymore. Monogamy is as mythical to me as the Easter Bunny. I know others believe in it, so I won't spoil their fun. I knew you would expect me to be exclusive, which was why Sirius was denied a kiss when he made a move on me. Primarily. I had other reasons as well."

As he took this in, Harry was reminded of the moment in the Atrium when Holly said she knew all along that he was going to face a full hearing. As then, he felt like she had been preparing him but without warning him what he was heading into, so that he could learn without feeling intimidated.

"You make it sound as if being with only one person is against human nature."

"Pretty much. If it were natural we'd stay satisfied when we'd found someone willing and compatible. Instead we keep sniffing after newcomers with nifty features. You trying to stay celibate for me is touching, but I find it almost as ridiculous as if you had promised to hop on your left foot for the rest of your life, to honour me. It's sweet, but really, really unnecessary, to the point of being embarrassing. Don't waste the effort- yours or mine. After all, I wasn't teaching you about sex just to keep you for myself. I want you to use your skills with others. Treat them well, and expertly, and I'll have done my job."

And there was the other shoe. It put their relationship into a different framework- one where 'teacher-student' was more important, more valuable, even more meaningful than 'lover-beloved'. He felt a clenching pain just below his ribcage. It literally hurt him to realise that she didn't see sex the same way he did, and yet he couldn't accuse her of misleading him because it also fit with everything Holly had taught him. As a lover she could make him feel good for a time, but as a teacher she'd given him ideas that would affect him for the rest of his life. She was both, and felt no shame in it. He recalled Holly saying, 'I threw out any rule that didn't have real, practical value.'

Harry dropped to sit at the edge of the bed, shaking his head as if there was water trapped in his ears. "How did you get to be like this?"

"I've been learning how minds work for quite a while, Harry. It changes your perspective on people when you realise how much ugliness is left unsaid."

"You mean you've been invading other people's minds for quite a while. You should stop that."

"Um, no. I mean, I suppose I could, much as you could stuff wax in your ears so that you don't accidentally overhear someone telling their friend a secret. I keep sifting other people because it comes naturally at this point, and I see many more reasons to continue than not. Much like you and your ears, though, I know to keep quiet about what I learn."

"How can you justify that?"

"My enemies did it first! I'm following in the flawed footsteps of my forefathers, Fate-wise. How else would Albus have known I was peeking around?"

"Y'mean he's a mind reader? I knew it!"

"More like mind-listener and the official term is a Legilimens, but I prefer the term telepath due to my interest in comic books. We're all potential telepaths, Harry. You just have to learn how to tune your antennae to it and be willing to intrude.

"Albus figured it out all on his own when he was very young in order to understand his family and others around him... and he never stopped. It gave him quite the advantage when learning from people rather than books, though credit must be given to him for having a mind that could leverage that access.

"Tom Riddle figured it out while trying to survive life in an orphanage during the Depression... and never stopped. Snape learned it... well, I'm not sure if it's the case here, but in my world, Lily learned it from Mrs. Flamel and taught it to Snape, who used it to better survive in Slytherin. It took him a bit to get it down to a reflex, but once he had..."

"He didn't stop. So he's been in my mind, too? Bastard!"

"Ugh. Harry, as a regular visitor to other people's brains, I can assure you that I always find out much less about what I'm looking for and so much more than I want to know about the person. It's like looking through their rubbish, not their secret journals, nor even their photo albums. It will increase your understanding of human behavior, but ruins the charm and mystique. No one is as innocent as they appear. It takes a strong stomach and a disciplined mind to handle seeing the truth of how people function."

"Are you still looking into my mind?"

There was a pause in the lizard tail's movement, and Harry looked up to glare at Holly.

"Harry, it can't be helped. From the moment we first touched, I've had a sense for where you were and when we touch I feel what you're feeling. Looking into your eyes to get more info on your life was easy, so much so that you didn't even notice. It's because I was in your head to begin with, or rather, just outside of it. My soul is... well let's say it runs at the same frequency as the one that protects you and keeps that taint in your scar from taking over your mind. We've twin souls, your mum and I, for obvious reasons. If it weren't for that I probably wouldn't keep coming back."

Harry's expression softened.

"Many wizards know that Legilimency exists but few really consider what that means. You can either accept that a few rude people like myself will intrude on your unprotected boundaries, or you can protect them. Most people will think you're paranoid to bother putting locks on your rubbish bin lids.

"I am paranoid! I've got good reason to be!"

"Which is why I'm teaching you how to bother."

"You're going to teach me to block telepathy?Cool."

"You're so funny... I'm going to continue teaching you how to manage and defend your mind. We've already started down this path."

"Y'mean the acting and masks thing?"

"Yes. The acting and masks thing. Officially it's called Occlumency."

Harry was certain he'd trip over that word. "What do you call it?"

"Defensive Mind Arts, or 'How to become a sociopath in fifteen not-so-easy steps'."

"You're trying to turn me into a psycho?"

"Well, not all the time but... yeah. I am. It's a skill you need to master if you want to get in on the big boys' game. Y'know who else knows this stuff?"

"Voldemort?"

"Not as a skill, no. He is a true psycho, so he never had to study disassociating from his emotions. Huh. Might explain why he's having trouble keeping you out. No, I'm referring to Professors Dumbledore, Snape, Flitwick, and Alastor Moody. They all have a working knowledge of Occlumency, to one level or another. They also have another thing in common. Can you guess?"

"They're all skilled... and old. Do they have a destiny as well?"

"Snape's not that old, and I was thinking more about a direct correlation. They're the most dangerous duelists in Britain. They can dispassionately evaluate a situation and act on it without being distracted by panic, anxiety or even pain to some extent."

"Is that why Flitwick always seems to be too cheerful? He's faking it?"

"No idea- it's not like I've ever gotten into his head. Good theory, though."

Even in the form of a blob of ink, hearing Holly's approval gave Harry a warm rush of pride, but then his mood soured. "If you're so jaded about people, how could you honestly say that you love me?"

The ink newt didn't write a reply for a minute, giving Harry entirely too much time to wonder how he could trust her if she answered as he was dreading.

The scratching on the parchment resumed. The stone echoed, "My God, Harry. Don't you understand? I've been through most of what you have, and I've sifted deep into your memories. I know you in ways no mother should and what startles me most is how you still have hope and trust and belief in others and care for your friends... and even your enemies. For all that Dudley has done to you, the thought of seeing him fall victim to a Dementor offended you. With how you were raised you shouldn't even believe that justice exists, yet you're more noble in your heart than any wizard I've met. How could I not love you?"

Harry's heart swelled.

"Our challenge, then, is to make you a bastard on the outside without killing the noble heart on the inside. First task- to see if we can build you a mental barricade spiny enough to keep out the Headmaster."

~oOo~

Sirius came up to check on Harry, which resulted in a brief conversation about how they planned to handle the Headmaster's visit. Sirius was then chased out of his room to allow Harry to focus on some sort of emergency meditation.

Sirius returned an hour before the Headmaster was expected, finding Harry crashed in the bed but still fully clothed. He was tempted to prank him awake, but Sirius knew it would be ill-timed. Instead he gave him a firm shake to the shoulder and warned him that Professor Dumbledore would be coming by very soon.

"You need to get your game face on."

His godson stumbled out of bed towards the loo while mumbling, "Working on it."

Half an hour later, Sirius was with the Weasleys sitting around the basement kitchen table when green flames burned high in the hearth, expelling the Headmaster into the room a moment later. His sky-blue and grey robes shook off the ashes 'automagically', as Tonks would say.

"Good evening, all."

Sirius squinted at him. "We'll see about that, Albus. Harry should be here any--"

As if on cue, Harry banged open the kitchen door and strode in. Before anyone could voice a greeting he said, "I'd like to talk with the Headmaster privately. Could you lot wait outside for a bit? Sirius, you should stay... and Mrs. Weasley, too, please."

Sirius was surprised by that, but seeing Molly look equally startled was reassuring. Once everyone else had shuffled out, the four of them gathered at the end of the table. Sirius sat at the head with Harry on his right side and Albus opposite. Molly settled into the seat on Harry's other side.

The Headmaster looked eager. "I'm not afraid to say, Harry, that I was very glad to hear that you wanted to speak to me."

Harry answered but kept his eyes aimed at the table between them. "This isn't a reconciliation, sir. We have a problem that I'm told only you can solve. Our Fidelius Charm appears to be failing. I'd like it if you could recast the charm."

Dumbledore looked concerned. "If the Fidelius is failing, that usually means that the secret has been betrayed by the secret keeper. I most certainly have not betrayed--"

Rather than have an argument over Dumbledore's culpability in recent events, Sirius interjected, "We have reason to believe that my losing trust in you has jeopardized the stability of the charm. It hasn't been broken, but the strain is showing. Don't ask how we know. It isn't important right now."

"Very well," Dumbledore accepted, but then his eyebrows drew together. "If the charm is failing due to distrust between us, as you believe, then how will my recasting the charm change things?"

"Simple," Harry said, "You won't be the secret-keeper anymore. That honour will fall on Mrs. Weasley, if she's willing."

Sirius snapped a look at Harry and hissed, "Are you mental? I thought we agreed you'd be the keeper. Why her?"

Harry turned slowly from staring at Dumbledore's hands to staring Sirius in the face. His expression was nearly corpse-like in its lack of emotion.

"You may not agree with Mrs. Weasley about many things, Sirius, but tell me if I'm wrong about any of this: do you think that Molly would ever betray you to the Ministry, or give away our secrets?"

"No, but--"

"Is Mrs. Weasley likely to be sent on dangerous missions that take her out of contact for long periods of time?"

"I suppose not, but--"

"And if our enemies were to capture her, do you think anyone in the Order wouldn't volunteer to go on the mission to rescue her? I certainly can count eight redheads along with myself who would break any law... or head... that interfered with getting Mrs. Weasley home safely. Even Percy would rally to that cause."

Mrs. Weasley was blushing to her ear tips and now let out a sob, throwing her arms around Harry's stiff shoulders. He remained impassive, staring Sirius down.

Sirius couldn't help but chuckle. "You are not James," he said, then added as explanation, "For that, I think I might trust you more as a leader."

Harry's expression threatened to break from its focused resolve, but Sirius could see Harry renewing his concentration before giving a sharp nod.

Sirius turned back to the Headmaster and said, "There you have it. We'd like you to recast the Fidelius with our new secret-keeper. In exchange, as with our original bargain, we'll allow the Order to operate here once more, though we'd prefer the Order wait until after the first of September to start meeting here."

Harry added, "Except Snape."

Dumbledore's placid smile turned to a look of concern. "Harry, I imagine that you might consider Professor Snape a murderer," he said, then paused as if trying to judge if his assumption was accurate. He continued, "But he was acting against what he saw as a threat to the Order. Professor Snape is loyal to our cause and I would like it if he was permitted this safe harbour."

Harry countered, "He acted stupidly, sir, and destroyed someone important to me because of his own... issues, not because of anything to do with the Order. Honestly, I don't care if you think it's unfair, or inconvenient. Snape isn't allowed." Harry then turned to Mrs. Weasley; "I want you to promise me that you won't share the secret with him, or hand out a written permission that might be used to allow him free entrance."

Molly nodded and replied, "I swear, Harry."

Sirius scoffed and said, "Do you?"

Molly let out a snort of irritation and said, "Is this the measure of your trust, Sirius Black? I said I swear and I meant it."

Harry looked first at Sirius and then back to Molly."One more time, do you promise not to tell the secret to or otherwise allow Severus Snape to know the secrets of this house?"

Mrs. Weasley turned back to him, raised her hand and solemnly swore, "I shall never allow Severus Snape to know the secrets entrusted to me. Any of them."

Dumbledore made a 'hmm' sound and then mused, "That's three times you swore. I suppose that it's not really debatable any longer. Very well." He stood up and said, "I will need to gather supplies and a bit of rest before we can fulfill this agreement. We'll meet tomorrow then?"

Harry, Sirius and Mrs. Weasley all stood as well. The Headmaster bowed, said, "Your servant," and promptly exited through the Floo.

Sirius clapped Harry on the shoulder. "How're your defenses holding up?"

"I feel like I've been standing at attention for four days straight. Did he even try to break into my mind?"

"Who knows? If you didn't feel anything I'd say he either didn't push hard or he didn't try because he could see you were working at keeping up a defense. Well done, Harry."

Molly Weasley had shuffled back to the larder to explore options for dinner. Harry verified she was out of earshot and then whispered, "That 'three-times sworn' thing; what happens if it's broken?"

"The oathbreaker feels a twisting pain in their gut until they confess to the person that they broke their promise."

"That's it?"

Sirius shrugged. "Yeah. We used to play 'Truth or Dare' under that vow. Still, it works because it's simple."

~oOo~

Molly returned from the pantry to find Harry slumped onto the kitchen table, eyes resting on his crossed forearms, his glasses lain on the table nearby. Sirius had wandered off, no doubt to find a bottle of whisky.

Over the next hour the rest of the family filtered in; Molly had started cooking dinner and her brood had followed the scent of baking bread, tarragon and thyme, gathering at the table awaiting either the meal or word on how the negotiation came out.

As things were coming along well in the cooking, Molly touched Harry's shoulder, causing him to jerk up from his doze.

"Take a moment to splash some water on your face, Harry dear," she encouraged. "I'll be serving up the soup by the time you get back."

He pushed himself to standing with an idle nod and went out the door, headed for the nearest loo.

Bill must have drawn the short straw, as he asked, "Can you tell us anything, Mum?"

"Well, I'd like to think Harry wouldn't mind my sharing, but just the same we ought to wait for him, so that we're all hearing the same thing."

With that discussion tabled, everyone relaxed into lighter conversations.

Molly was a bit concerned for how quiet everyone had gotten. A quiet family isn't a happy one. Thankfully the sounds of beloved chaos grew as the soup was steeping.

First there was Hermione's cat. Molly had always preferred cats, though dogs had their value as well. Crookshanks was large enough to qualify as a stunted lynx for as much mousing as he accomplished. Crookshanks had added liveliness in chasing something from underneath the table- one less rodent near her kettles was always welcome.

Of course her twin troublemakers were ever dependable to add life to a group. Just minutes after the cat had begun prowling, Fred's pocket let out a pathetic tuneless whistling, prompting him to accuse Ronald of trying to pickpocket him. George added his support but then his own trousers made a sound like some sort of foghorn, and there was no way that Hermione would have been trying anything with his pockets, surely?

Arthur arrived through the Floo in good cheer, giving Molly a welcome kiss and asking about everyone's day. Just as he was sitting down he stood again, exclaiming that Ronald's little owl had been occupying the chair and - of course, the owl then started racing in flight from one end of the room to the other.

Now, it wasn't that Molly felt that Nymphadora wasn't well-suited to the family given her own liveliness, but the poor dear would never survive active pranking by the children when her feet lived to prank her on their own. Two steps into the kitchen and her red-and-blonde striped hair followed the rest of her body to the floor. Miss Tonks protested that she had slipped on something slippery beneath her foot, but that was hardly likely-Molly had been certain to have the mops wash and dry the floors well before the arrival of the Headmaster.

It was to this grand cacophony that Harry returned with Sirius and Remus.

With everyone assembled, it was high time to serve some soup, but Harry called everyone to his attention first.

"We've agreed to open Grimmauld Place to the Order again. Since most of us are going to Hogwarts in a few days, it makes little sense to waste it as a resource. The Fidelius charm will be reapplied tomorrow and the secret shared with each of you before we leave for the station."

"Now is that not just a relief," Molly declared. "I was worried a bit there, but now that Professor Dumbledore is with us again--"

"Let me be clear," Harry interrupted, "the Underground Army is alive and kicking. We're a subset, a special group that is allied with the Order of the Phoenix, but our secrets are ours, and at some point I may ask you to act against the Order, for our sakes."

There was silence. Molly recalled that no one had scolded her like that since Charlie had declared his intent to give up Quidditch to learn about dragon-keeping. She felt as proud now as she did then, though of course one shouldn't lose all respect just for admitting that they may have overstepped their authority.

Molly held her tongue from following the more Prewett urge and said evenly, "I'm with you, Harry dear. I'm just pleased that we're... getting along with some people that I respect."

"Fair enough," Harry replied, and gave Molly a smile. The rest of the table seemed to grin as one.

It was Ronald of course who said what they were all thinking; "Can't help but respect a guy that can make Mum change her tone."

Before Molly could yell at him, Ron had bolted up from the table with an emphatic "Gyahh!" Grabbing a heavy pan from a hook on the wall, he smacked it flat against the table and his chair several times in a panic. He added a last smack with the pan before tossing it to the table, then stumbling back against the wall and breathing like he'd just run in from Devonshire. Everyone stared at him in shock.

"Biggest bloody spider I seen since Aragog just jumped onto my arm!"

Harry gave him a look, then lurched forward to lift up the pan- stuck to the bottom was a black tarry form, squished flat. The mass of it slid off the bottom of the pan to land on the table, spreading into a thick pool like spilled paint.

"That... was Holly."

Ron gaped like a fish, looking between Harry, the table, Molly herself, Hermione- anyone that might not hate him at that moment.

It was then that a thin black tendril rose from the center of the mass, reaching over to an empty white butter dish. One word was drawn on the plate before the tendril retracted back to the puddle.

'Ow!'

Sirius sputtered into laughing.

The black liquid drew together into a ball, then extended six protrusions that eventually formed into a head, four clawed limbs and a long thin tail.

The tail swept over the plate, taking away the existing writing and substituting, 'really, ouch.'

Arthur said, "Eh, Harry, are you saying that this... intriguing creature is your friend, Holly?"

Harry nodded. "I already said she's a spirit with a physical form. Pretty durable one, too. D'you think the Headmasters would let Peeves live if they could get rid of him?" He shared a wink with Sirius, who was still cackling.

On the table appeared new words; 'Dumbledore might.'

The rest joined Sirius in his laughter.

The Sounding Stone was brought down from Sirius' room along with a page of parchment. For the remainder of the evening they were reacquainted with Holly in a form that most agreed seemed much less provocative than she used to be.

~oOo~

In the process of everyone readying for bed that night, Harry conspired with Ginny to sneak off into the study beside the library. Once both were inside with the door safely Imperturbed, Ginny crossed her arms and tapped her foot.

Harry gave her a rueful smile. "I do trust you. Holly trusts you, too. She's gonna sit down with you to teach you some stuff; it's important that you study it. I can't tell you much until you've learned this. Okay?"

"Merlin, no, it's not okay! I mean, I'll be happy to learn from Holly but I think you should at least tell me who she really is."

Harry's face contorted, a mix of frustration, longing and remorse. Finally he gestured for her to lean forward and he whispered secrets into her ear. It didn't take long, and Harry explained why Holly's extraordinary origin made sense to him.

They leaned back and Ginny glared at him for a full minute, letting his anxiety grow as punishment for not explaining this earlier. She then smiled and said, "So I take it that you're not really a couple, and that your... that Holly approves of me."

Harry let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah. She's a fan. Says you've got a lot of promise."

Ginny grinned and grabbed Harry into a hug. She then leaned back and kissed him.

Deeply.

It became a lusty snog.

When they broke the kiss, both were grinning.

She cupped her hand against Harry's cheek and added a peck to his lips as a 'thank you'. She then stood up and moved to the door, prompting Harry to protest with, "Hey, hey- I thought... you wanted to go further."

Ginny blushed and admitted, "It'd be a fine thing, but I can't be your girlfriend right now. I'm still exploring, still figuring things out. When I get you... I'll want to keep you."

Harry sat back and considered this. "So, not 'no', just 'not yet'?"

"Yeah. Besides...," Ginny began.

Mrs. Weasley's voice echoed from behind the door, "Ginevra?! Where have you gotten off to?"

"-- my mother would kill you, and then where would our army be?"

Harry nodded in agreement and then covered himself in his Invisibility Cloak.

Ginny opened the door and answered her mother, "I was putting things back where they belong like a good girl, Mummy."

~oOo~

Dumbledore arrived in the morning. Soon after, he, Sirius and Ron's mum disappeared into the house somewhere. Ron had gone looking for something fun to do with someone, since it was only a few days before they'd be back at school. He found Harry sitting in his bed, reading, with a notebook by his side.

"You want to play some Exploding Snap?" asked Ron.

Harry replied, "I'm in the middle of this, and I think I may actually be getting it for once."

Ron grumped and sat down across from Harry.

"What?"

"I've been your best mate ever since we started at Hogwarts."

Harry squinted at him. "You still are."

"But you're talking with everyone but me and Hermione. Is this still about the letters?"

"No, Ron. I... I'm not angry- I'm focused. If you want to dig into this with me, that'd be great."

"Great! What're we doing first?"

Harry held up the book he was reading- 'Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration'.

"Oh. I thought, y'know, we'd be practicing curses or something."

"This somewhat relates, but maybe you could ask Lupin or Sirius for some better defense books. We need some tricks that Malfoy and his lumps won't expect. You learn them and then teach me."

"Sirius is busy, and I don't know how to teach magic."

Harry looked up at him and said, "Then ask Lupin to show you that, too."

Taking it for the dismissal it was, Ron left Harry to his studying.

When Ron found Hermione in the library a bit later she was sitting with her legs beneath her in a cute way that reminded him of a curled-up cat. She was reading - of course. He slumped into the sofa next to her, puffing up the rest of the cushion and jostling her out of reading position.

"Yes?" she said with irritation, but only enough that Ron knew he could ignore it.

"Harry says he's not mad, but then he made me ask Sirius for books to read. If he wasn't ignoring you as well, I'd suspect that you'd jinxed his brain."

"Some light reading can be quite enjoyable, even energizing--"

Ron grabbed her hand. She looked at him and he used this to catch her eyes. When he knew she was paying full attention he said, "I'm not you."

"I noticed." Hermione closed her book and gave Ron another look. "Perhaps I've missed something. You're right; you're not me. Reading is my pleasure, but I'd swear you find it painful. Maybe you should ask someone to instruct you directly."

"Yeah, well, everyone else is reading or writing or... hiding. I'm beginning to bond with your cat, learning how to chase butterbeer caps and enjoy sunbeams. Pretty soon the most you'll get out of me is a loud purr."

Hermione blushed and whispered, "That wouldn't be completely horrible."

Ron smiled but then let out a frustrated breath. "I can't just sit, y'know?"

"What do you enjoy doing when you can't go outside?"

"Stuff done with other people- chess, joking around, eating."

"There you go- ask your Mum to teach you how to cook."

"What? But that's witch's--"

Hermione's eyes flared. Ron was quick enough to recognise that his original thought might earn him a hex or ten if he finished it. His mouth snapped shut and he gave her a pained grin.

"Good idea," he said instead. "Think I'll go talk to Mum."

Not surprisingly, Ron found his mother back in the kitchen.

"Dumbledore gone then?"

His mum sighed and nodded. "The Headmaster is... a formidable sorcerer, but even he would be tired after that involved of a ritual. Sirius has gone to rest as well. Now off with you- I'll have something knocked up once I've caught my own breath."

"That's just it- I was wondering if you could show me how to do this stuff. You could take a load off."

"This stuff? What are you talking about?"

"Cooking."

His mum just gaped at him.

"What? I figure I'll be eating for the rest of my life; might as well find out how to make it enjoyable. I won't be at home or in school forever."

His mother blinked at him. He heard her mutter, "Can't be a boggart unless it's a very silly one... a bit late for a changeling to abduct him..."

"Mum... if it makes you feel any better, I'm asking because I'm THAT bored."

"Oh. Well that's fine then. Grab two of the large pots and fill them two-thirds full with water."

~oOo~

Harry went to bed that night looking forward to sleep... up until Riddle restarted his dream terrorism. Tonight's feature involved a very detailed and unforgiving view of the death of Marlene McKinnon and her family. No extraordinary abuses were used on her- they had simply made her watch while they Cruciated and then killed each of her family members first. Harry had pulled himself out of the scene somewhere around where Marlene was begging for them to spare her little brother if she'd let them use her body. Riddle had answered, "Is he worth so little to you, that you would offer something we already have and don't even want?"

He slumped his way downstairs, eventually curling up onto the sofa near the fireplace in the library.

Harry stared into the dying embers, trying to meditate since sleeping wasn't working out. In breaking out of his nightmare from Riddle, Harry had noted that his command mask slipped into place as soon as he could concentrate on it. While that cut down the panic he felt from being a voyeur to a multiple murder, it wasn't... aimed in the right direction. If most entries to a person's mind came from their eyes, this felt more like it was bubbling up from a well behind his throat.

He was visualizing a sewer grate to install over the well when he heard voices echoing from the hallway.

"... couldn't ask this during the day. Please, Tonks. I don't have a sister or even many friends who are girls."

"Yeah, but how'd you guess I'd be experienced with this?"

"I didn't! So you've been... with other witches?"

"Hermione--"

"I'm not trying to blackmail you."

"Good thing, 'cause I'd do horrible things to you."

"Is this... do you not want to because... I'm not... pretty?"

There was a pause, then Harry heard a rustle of clothes, followed by the quiet wet sound of kissing. He heard one moan, then another, followed by a gasp.

Hermione warbled, "Ohhh... what I'm I going to tell my parents? I think I'm... sorta gay."

"Not really. I'm just that awesome a kisser. You didn't meld to me or grab my arse or nudge our legs together. Of course, the real test would be for you to kiss a bloke for comparison." Tonks' voice rose as she added, "Think you could help with that, Harry?"

Hermione yelped as Harry stood up from the sofa to face them. Harry saw that Tonks was holding Hermione from running off with a tight grip on her wrist.

He stated, "I didn't come here to eavesdrop- I was here and you were talking."

"Yeah, but are you willing to help with the experiment?" Tonks asked with a wink.

"Yes. Love to."

Hermione stopped struggling and gaped at him.

He strolled around the furniture to join them so they wouldn't have to speak too loudly. He said, "That is, if Hermione wants me to. I don't know what she thinks of me right now. Wouldn't think she wants me to kiss her like you did."

"Yes, I would!"

"That's new," Harry replied, "I didn't think you saw me that way. Just tell me the honest truth- how do you see me?"

Tonks had released her wrist, so Hermione stepped closer to Harry and looked up at him. "It's changing, Harry. I always saw you as you, but now you're someone older. Someone more awake. Someone..." she turned away, looking at her feet instead of Harry, "...who doesn't need me nagging at him. I should just let you be. I'm bad for your army and I don't agree with--"

With a gentle touch beneath her jawline, Harry lifted her face and kissed her. Hermione kissed him back, despite her nervous and dry lips.

She broke the kiss and said in a rapid babble, "Of course it isn't that I don't believe in you, Harry, or that I think less of you but you have to understand that I'm surrounded by much more fanciable women and my focus was never on my looks so much as my words because my mother always told me to make sure they respect you before you give them anything, which I imagine would apply to either girls or boys that kiss me, not that three different kissers tells me much--"

He kissed her again, lifting her body against his and making very certain she felt the full weight of his passion in kissing her. He ignored her squeaks and moans of protest until her tongue was interacting just as wildly as his. Then, he broke the kiss and set her back onto her feet. She sighed. Then her legs gave out and she collapsed on the spot, collecting into a crumple sitting on the carpet.

Tonks asked, "So, which one stirs you better, now?"

"I liked Harry's," she said almost drunkenly as she clambered back to standing, "It was more... more... honest."

Tonks scowled at her. "Honest. Really."

"Yes," Hermione said. Her sense of propriety awoke and she turned wide-eyed to Tonks, sputtering, "Not that yours was dishonest, it wasn't, and I am ever so delighted to have you kissing me!" Then she turned to Harry, "I mean, not delighted, exactly, more like grateful, but Tonks' kissing was very professional, whereas --"

Tonks cut her off with, "Yeah, yeah we get it. Now, shut up about my lying courtesan's lips, willya?" Her expression of patience with a smile assured them both that Tonks was much more amused than insulted.

Hermione turned back to Harry and said, "You really do care for me?"

Harry's mouth went dry. After insisting that Hermione speak plainly, he couldn't bear to muddle things. "I... I think you're a pain."

Tonks let out a guffaw similar to a honking goose, then stifled it. Thankfully the portraits hadn't woken from the noise.

Harry glared at her, then explained to Hermione, "You're a brilliant, brilliant pain. I love you for it, but I would never want to be married to it. Not sure I could stand dating it, even. But I need you, Hermione. I need you to keep me honest. Everyone asks, 'Why isn't she a Ravenclaw?' but I can tell why the hat put you in Gryffindor. Your smarts aren't half as strong as your convictions."

Hermione just stared at him, blinking.

"That wasn't exactly nice to hear, I s'pose," Harry admitted, "You're not mad, are you?"

"No, no," she squeaked, "that was quite welcome." Hermione cleared her constricted throat and then stepped closer. Harry decided to interpret it as a need for a hug and opened his arms to give her one. Instead of her typical stranglehold, Hermione cuddled into his embrace. From where she had snuggled her face into his shoulder, she said, "I get that you don't want to date me. But would you be willing to put up with me for the night?"

"What, really? Why?"

"Because I want to. I want to repair what's been broken between us. And I've already humiliated myself several times over this evening, so I might as well charge forward. We don't have to do anything wild- I just want to sleep next to you so you'll know you can trust me."

Harry liked the sound of that, if only to try getting a full night's rest in a way he hadn't since Holly had lost human form.

"O-okay. Can't use either of our beds, though. Wouldn't do for us to be caught here in the morning. So, where?"

Hermione looked around the library, a bit distressed. Then she looked at Tonks and a growing idea lit up her face.

"Oh. Oh no! I like my bed here. It's so biiig and soooft and waaarm." Tonks' plaintive whine became a growl; "and /mine/."

"We wouldn't mess it up," Hermione promised, "we just can't go back to our own beds. It'll be the greatest favour I'd ask of anyone and I'm asking you- would you please be me for the night and sleep in my room next to Ginny?"

"Eh... I walked into this, didn't I? It's 'cause I can't say 'no' to a mission of love. Alright- take off your jammies."

"What?!"

"Well, I have to look like you and dress like you, don't I? I need to see the whole package."

Harry's smile and nod in encouragement didn't make Hermione any less nervous. "You- turn around, at least. And give me your dressing gown."

Harry handed over his bathrobe and turned his back to the girls but paid strict attention to the shifting of clothes, murmurs and a few giggles that reached his ears. When he was permitted to turn back, he was facing two Hermiones. One was dressed as before, though she was standing in a much more relaxed stance and had a saucy smile growing.

The other had his simple dark blue dressing gown tied twice around her. Her legs were exposed from above the knee, showing bare smooth skin from the hem to her ankle socks. Tonks' clothes had vanished somehow- no doubt Hermione didn't see a need to wear them and they couldn't be left there in the library.

Harry led the latter Hermione up three flights of stairs and into Tonks' room- a small bedroom with a smudged-over window but with a plush Queen-size bed meant for guests that the matriarch had actually liked. He gestured for Hermione to choose a side and she murmured, "You get in first."

He clambered over to the side nearer the window.

Hermione saw that he was settled but looking at her."Take off your glasses."

As he was turned away to put his spectacles on the bedside table, Hermione had dropped the bathrobe to the floor and leapt into bed and under the covers before Harry could see her in her underthings.

They lay facing each other. Harry reached over to move some of her curls away from her face. She grabbed an elastic from around her wrist, using it to bind her mass of curls into a ponytail anchored at the top of her head. Watching her bare arms and shoulders wrestling her hair into a bun was enjoyable - her skin was flawless and her movements titillating - but he kept his hands to himself. He could feel her nervousness.

He said, "I didn't assume when you asked to spend the night that you meant that you wanted to have sex."

"I didn't."

"But you also seem really nervous, like you're expecting me to molest you or something anyway. What would you want?"

"I want to be closer." Her pained expression put the burden on Harry to figure out what that meant. Perhaps it was the fear of returning to his nightmare or just a yearning for a different relationship with Hermione, but Harry resolved that he wanted to take this indecision on her part as far as he could.

"Turn around."

Hermione hesitated, but then turned her back to him. He reached his arm around her to lay it on her belly. With a pull he said, "Shuffle back against me."

She spooned up against him, her knickers barely providing a barrier from the feeling of the hard rod rising in his sleep pants. She let out an 'oh!' but made no other comment.

Noting that she continued to lie stiff and nervous, he said, "I have noticed that you're a girl, Hermione. I still respect your opinion."

Harry leaned up on a propped arm, letting Hermione's shoulders lay flat on the mattress. Her satin camisole clung to her skin, exposing every subtle curve in the moonlight. She moved a hand to cover her breasts but Harry grabbed her wrist and shook his head. Instead, as he moved her hand to pin it by her shoulder, he also reached down to gather the satin in his hand, dragging the fabric up to expose her breasts to him. The fabric tickled her skin as it was drawn across her chest and she hissed from the intensity of feeling.

"But you're definitely a girl."

They were mesmerizing, those breasts that were rising and falling with each of Hermione's nervous breaths. He was intrigued in how they swelled round up to the peak, tight to her chest as if gravity hadn't been able to affect them yet. Hermione pulled her arm out of his hand but rested it to the side, the hand curled next to her head on the pillow. She looked up at him, her focus jumping from eyes to lips to shoulders, and widening to search his face for a clue into what he was thinking or feeling or planning.

He leant down and kissed her lips. The hand he'd left resting near her wrist he now slid to follow her arm to her shoulder, his wrist just grazing across a bare nipple as he moved fingers along her collarbone.

Hermione's breathing grew quite heavy. Harry leaned back from kissing her to find her expression to be quite anxious.

"Hey, hey, relax. We won't do anything you don't want to. We can stop."

"That's just it, Harry. I'm not sure where I'd want to stop."

He moved his hand over to cup around her breast, flicking the nipple between thumb and forefinger. Hermione's panting came a bit shallow.

"Is this alright?"

"J-just... could you at least kiss me when you do that?"

Harry smiled. "Sure." He then leaned down while shifting his position and took the other nipple between his lips.

"Not like... ohhhh, God." Her shallow gasps were replaced by a pained whine. A lazy lick to her peak resulted in the nipple tightening to a nub and her threading her hands in his hair.

Harry could feel her legs moving together restlessly, but was enjoying her chest enough that he'd wait for her to ask him for more.

Her whine turned into short close-mouth squeaks, until she let out a loud gasp and said, "Harry, please... please kiss me, or touch me or let me go or--"

A light scrape of teeth closing on her nipple made her arch up from the bed. Harry used the moment to shift the hand away from massaging her breast, gliding down between her legs to cup her soaked knickers.

Hermione's fingers dug into his scalp but then pulled him away from her breast. Harry caught her look of yearning and shifted up to kiss her, a move that was answered by a hot tongue snaking between his teeth.

Harry rubbed and swirled his fingers against her knickers. She tilted her head back to break their kiss and hiccupped a pained moan.

He whispered in her ear, "I'm going to dip my fingers deep into you."

Hermione's eyes popped open in panic, but then she nodded.

Harry threaded his fingers beneath the fabric, soaked and glazed with her fluids, sliding between her nether lips and following the flow downslope to insert two into her channel. It was tight at the entrance, but there was room enough to slip his long digits in to the knuckle and curl his fingers up into the hot folds of flesh. Harry then nudged against her clit with the heel of his thumb.

That did her in. Harry's fingers were trapped in the furiously clenching channel while Hermione's hips lifted up from the bed and vibrated from the tremors of her thigh muscles seizing in spasms of ecstasy. Her arms flailed at the elbow, not sure where to grip but unable to stay idle.

She then collapsed, like every muscle had been turned off and left to twitch out a lingering static charge. Her legs were yet clamped in a bind, trapping Harry's hand at the apex of her thighs.

It took several minutes for Hermione's gasping, trembling and twitching to settle down. By the time Harry had pulled out his fingers, the witch was almost weeping against his chest.

Hermione surprised him then by grabbing his soaked hand. She drew it up to her lips, locking her gaze with his as she licked his fingers of their dewy glaze.

She stared at him a minute, then rolled away from him. She moaned, "I can't believe I just did that."

Harry drew her body back against his, spooning them together once more. He whispered, "It was brilliant."

"But I... I'm leading you on. I don't want to lose my virginity tonight." Her tone shifted to one of mild surprise."Though I have to say I've never been more tempted."

Harry was rock-hard and floating in a charged mist of desire, but a part of him didn't want her to do anything more. Asking for oral sex from her could be disastrous, a hand-job would feel tawdry and he was willing to honour her virginity. One other thought kept him happy with his level of frustrated desire.

Riddle's not attacking. I can feel that he's shut down the channel. This was enough to send him running.

Harry smiled and kissed the back of Hermione's neck. "Almost like a sister, I love you, Hermione."

She coughed out a scoff. "You just gave me the strongest climax of my life. Not something I would expect from my brother, if I had one."

"I'm getting comfortable being weird about my family."

Hermione pulled his arms tighter around her. "I love you like... I always have. Only now it's more."

Harry sighed, then kissed the back of her neck again. They lay quietly in that embrace.

It took an hour before either one could relax enough to sleep, but once they had it was the best sleep either had enjoyed in a week.

~oOo~

Meanwhile...

Tonks had left the two friends to explore possible benefits and slumped her way into the bedroom for young witches. As quietly as she could manage, she found the empty bed and slipped beneath the covers, suppressing a grumble over the narrow, stiff mattress and the thin covers.

She was almost convinced she'd made a successful sneaking until Ginny whispered, "Hermione?"

Mimicking the sound of Hermione's voice, Tonks said, "Yeah? Um, sorry if I woke you, Ginny."

There was a brief silence, then Ginny said, "Do you remember when I asked you about kissing another girl?"

Merlin, not again. Am I giving off some sort of Sapphic pheromone? (Gulp) "Um, yeah?"

"Have you changed your mind?"

"I... uhh... think you should talk to... Tonks about it, yeah. She seems like the sort that might have an opinion worth sharing. I mean, what would we learn, both of us kissing, no experience to speak of?"

She heard Ginny sliding out from her covers and felt the young girl prop her arms at the side of her bed, holding her up as she leaned down to face her in the darkness.

"But that's the thing. I am asking you... Tonks."

"Ah, bollocks. What gave me away?"

"You said 'yeah'. Never in my experience has Hermione said 'yeah', it's always 'yes'. Like she wouldn't insult the word by not finishing it."

"Good deduction there, red."

"Thanks. So where's Hermione?"

"Err... in another bed."

"Oh. Oh! Well, good on... wait, is it Harry or Ron? Do I dare ask if it's Sirius? She's not with the twins, is she? Or... Professor Lupin! Oh, I knew it!"

"Knew what?" Tonks exclaimed, "Remus isn't one to rob cradles, believe me!"

Ginny grinned at her. "More to that than just an idle observation. But if we're going to gossip, could you not look like Hermione? It's creepy."

"Honestly, I just want to sleep."

"...with Professor Lupin," Ginny added for her.

Hermione-Tonks lurched up, her wand in hand, the tip glowing red with an angry spell.

Ginny backed away with hands raised while saying, "Nevermind-it's-none-of-my-business!"

"Damn right," Tonks growled.

Ginny returned to her bed. Once settled, she said,"But if you asked him and he said no to you, he's a moron."

Tonks raised her wand, but then let it drop again. She whispered, "Damn right."

~oOo~

Holly woke Harry by poking at his skull with the tip of her tail. Once she had confirmed his eyes were fully open, she hopped out of the way so Harry could wake Hermione. The two friends shared a blushing look.

Harry whispered, "Let's not tell Ron about this."

Hermione nodded in agreement, adding, "Ever."

She leaned over to kiss him, then jumped when there was a soft knock on the door.

Tonks' voice wafted in, "You lot awakey? We should switch back."

Hermione skipped over to the door and opened it; a moment later two Hermiones were in the room, both saying to Harry, "Cover your eyes."

He did. A few minutes later Hermione was sneaking back into her room wearing her original bedclothes, and Tonks was wrapped in her own nightshirt, kicking him out.

Harry shuffled his way back to Sirius' room, finding his godfather sleeping in dog form as per usual.

Holly had jumped into the pocket of his bathrobe at some point, and jumped out of it to land onto the bedside table where the Sounding Stone and a scrap of parchment awaited.

"It's off to school for you, tomorrow."

"You're coming, too?" Harry said whilst rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"Of course, though I wonder if the enchantments over the school will notice me. You have a bigger problem."

"What's that?"

"Classes. How to conduct yourself as a center of attention when the mood is against you. And Snape."

A sour churning arose in his gut, quicker to wake him than any cuppa ever could. "Just hearing his name makes me want to kill him. I hate that man. I loathe him."

"Which brings us back to the Mind Arts. You can't kill him, yet, so we need to make it so you can ignore him. At least to the point that his presence is not a trigger for your rage."

"Hah! If it works, we should teach this to Neville, too. "

"I have a few ideas about how to help Neville, but they'll have to wait. As for you, while you've been through five kinds of Hell, your mind is still fifteen years old. The very idea of self-discipline for a boy that age is normally a joke, yet we shall be striving for that impossible goal. Your mask of detachment is getting good but you haven't really been provoked while trying to maintain it. You ready for the accelerated training?"

"What does that involve?"

"Pain."

Harry groaned, falling back onto the bed. He snarked, "I'm beginning to hate you as well, y'know. You're a messenger of doom."

"Oh, good. I was worried you weren't paying attention."

~oOo~