Chapter Text
Chapter 5
May 5
Harry POV
After an hour and a half of being led around by an emotional Mitzy with the rest of the group to get the grand tour and rooms, I finally got to go to the room assigned to me and close the door.
For a good minute, I just stood there with my head against the door, taking in what had happened in the last three days.
One day, my two best friends and I are out in the middle of nowhere, barely getting by. Next, we’re at Hogwarts, and my parents, Sirius and Remus, come back to life with all of their friends, who were meant to be my aunts and uncles before they all died when I was just a baby.
Then I run into Draco quite literally and I froze because I hadn’t seen him in almost a year and I had so much I wanted to say and also partially because he had looked great, definitely a lot better than I probably had after not being able to shower properly for a year and had also been starving thanks to our limited food source.
Then I killed Voldemort, and it was all over. The next thing I know is I'm waking up three days later, surrounded by sad aunts and uncles. Then I find out my parents aren’t even together, but my dad is actually with Regulus black, who had stolen the first Horcrux from the cave and was killed by Inferi. That very same Regulus Black.
Also, one of my almost uncles was Barty Crouch Jr, the very same one who had polyjuiced as Moody my fourth year, and as far as Dumbleass had told me, was the one to put my name in the goblet of fire, but to me, this was up to interpretation.
Then Hermione made me aware that the Malfoys were detained in the Ministry when they most certainly should not have been. Then I outed myself and Draco to everyone when they wanted to know why I wanted to get to the ministry so badly. Then I argued with Kingsley to let them go for thirty minutes before he had had enough of me, and just said to go talk to them. Then we tried to leave and got bombarded with reporters. And after all of that, we finally got to the manor.
That all happened basically in one day.
As I lifted myself off the door and took a look around the room I was given, I had to admit I liked it a lot, even though it was abnormally big. The room is bigger than the Dursleys’ whole house, certainly bigger than any room I’ve ever had before. The majority of the room was a calming emerald green, which would probably have Ron yelling in indignation.
As I finish that last thought, I straighten up and immediately feel like the worst friend in existence. I hadn’t stopped and thought of Ron not once in the day I was awake. I don’t even know where he is or what happened to the rest of the Weasleys. I would have to ask Hermione if she knows anything.
As I continue to take in the room, I look to the bed, which is honestly the thing I’m most excited for. The bed is probably big enough to fit 5 people side to side. The bedding is this light cream color with diamond-shaped detailing, and it has more pillows than I will ever know what to do with.
As I walk into the closet, I stop in the doorway. First of all, it’s massive, and second, there are already clothes in there. Thankfully, they’re not all stuffy pureblood clothes; there are some sweatshirts, sweatpants, and even pajamas. Jeans thank Merlin. And some other stuff which makes me very grateful when I realise I don’t have anything. Just the clothes on my back and my wand. Well, not my wand, Draco’s wand, but I don’t even think he noticed that I still had it.
Walking back into the room, I walk right up to the bed and fall face-first onto it. I lay there for a second before turning over and looking at the ceiling, trying to get comfortable.
Just as I was about to get up, there was a knock on the door, but before I could even get to it, Hermione busted in with a bigger smile on her face than I have seen in a while and her lips moving twenty miles an hour.
“Harry, oh my god, have you seen the rooms! They're giant, especially after spending the last year in a tent with you and Ron,” she says as she walks right in and sits in one of the armchairs next to the fireplace on the other side of the room. “I love your room, the green I feel is very you, even if you don’t think so, and Ron is probably gonna have something to say about it being ‘Slytherin green’. And have you seen the library! It’s huge, even bigger than the library at Hogwarts. I was looking around, and there was a signed first edition of Hogwarts: A History! Signed, Harry! And countless other priceless books. And-”
As I sit here and listen to Hermione talk about all her favorite things she has discovered so far about the manor, I just feel this overwhelming joy. Hermione had been my first friend after Ron. I love Ron, I do, but with Hermione it's different. In the fourth year when the bug bitch skeeter had been publishing those articles about Hermione and me, I had been disgusted. Hemione has always been more of a sister than anything. Whenever I just had to talk to anyone, she was always where I would go. She was the first person I had told about my being gay. Thinking back, she had said exactly what I had needed her to say.
Fourth year, December 15
My heart is beating out of my chest, and my hands are shaking as I sit in the back of the warm, toasty library, just an hour till curfew, with Hermione sitting by my side, reading another book, trying to figure out what the egg could mean for the second task.
She had always done that. Always gone headfirst into whatever problem Ron and I managed to get ourselves in. Norbert or Norberta the dragon in our first year. Just a year later, she had gotten petrified on her way to tell us that she knew what was in the Chamber of Secrets. Third year, she had been the reason Padfoot wasn’t put back in Azkaban , or worse, gotten the kiss. And now she is spending late nights in the library to make sure I don’t die in this tournament.
I will always feel indebted to her in ways she doesn't understand, even if she insists otherwise. She will always feel like the sister I never had, which is why I'm terrified to tell her something I have never told anyone, let alone admitted out loud.
“Hermione, I'm gay.”
“I already know, Harry," she says as she continues to read whatever caught her eye.
“I uh-eh- what?” I manage to stutter out as I almost fall out of my chair in shock, as she freezes and looks up at me, then winces.
“Ohh, I should've handled that more delicately, but I thought you would have remembered what you told me already. Like a month ago.” Hermione states, looking at me, confused. “ Remember the after party to celebrate you getting the egg after the first task,” I nod, “ Well, the older boys and the Twins thought it would be a funny idea to pissed off a firewhiskey when I had turned the other way, do you remember that?”
I nod dumbly, barely processing what she's saying.
“and so when I had found you again you were passed out in one of the arm chairs and you had looked so pathetic laying their I knew I had to bring you up to the dorm and when I had gotten you half way up the stairs, you had started mumbling stuff about you wanting to tell me something and that you were terrified how I would react and before I could tell you to wait and Tell me in the morning, it had popped out your mouth,” she said, miming me with a big popping sound.
“And so when I had finally gotten you to your bed and was taking off your shoes, I will tell you what I said then, and it will still be true now,” She said, looking at me with a small smile.
“I will always love you, and that fact will never change just because you like the opposite gender, and I know that in the Muggle world a lot of people still believe that it's wrong,” she continues as I look down at my lap, and tears fill my eyes.
“but in the wizarding world it's perfectly normal,” she reaches over and grabs my hand, tugging me to look at her, she also has tears in her eyes, “and knowing you were scared how I would react just makes me want to go give the dursleys a piece of my mind,” she finishes saying with a smiles as we both laugh and wiping our tears.
“Now bring it in,” she says with her arms wide.
“I love you, Hermione,” I say as I settle into her arms.
“I love you, Harry," she squeezes me, “ Now these books can wait for now, tell me who has caught your eye,” she laughs as I groan, thinking of blond hair and icy grey eyes.
And so, as Hermione finishes, what she's saying about all she's learned about the manor so far, I can’t help but smile widely at her because all I have wanted for her is the same love and happiness she has given me over the last seven years.
“What? Why are you smiling at me like that?” she says, looking at me, confused. “Do I have something in my hair?”
I shake my head, “No, no, I'm just happy you're happy here. Wherever I go, you will always have a place by my side. You're my sister Hermione, and I'm just so happy that it's over so that we can live without fear.
“Me too, Harry, you’ve been a brother to me since the first year.”
“Oh, and I wanted to ask you something. Where Ron and the other Weasleys” I say
“Oh, I knew I was forgetting to tell you something. The Weasleys are all perfectly fine. George had broken his leg and hand, so they are all at St. Mungos with him getting it regrown. Ron should be contacting us when he gets the chance,” she says with a nod.
Knowing the Wealeys are all okay makes me feel better because I would feel a lot worse if I were just sitting here while my best friend is dying in the hospital, but he’s thankfully not.
Before we can continue talking, Mitzy pops in to tell us that dinner is ready.
As we walk to the dining room, trying not to get lost, we continue to chat about little things until we reach the dining room, and what we see makes us pause.
Mum and Dad are sitting across from each other. On Dad's left is Regulus, and on his right is Sirius with Remus next to him. Then next to Regulus are Barty and Evan, and next to Mum is Mary. And then all just sitting there like it's a normal Tuesday takes my breath away. And from the sharp intake next to me, it does for Hermione, too.
As we continue to our seats, everyone starts to notice us.
“There they are, it only took them fifteen minutes, whatcha do get lost on your way down? I remember doing the same thing when I moved in after my fifth year,” Sirius says, looking at Dad.
Hermione and I find our seats, and that's when we notice the giant feast on the table.
“Oh, uh, yeah, Mitzy is excited to be able to cook for people again, so she might have gone a bit overboard.” Dad says, with his arm over Regulus’ chair, “But uh, don’t tell her that or there will be a big argument.”
“No, no, it's completely fine, I'm glad she's happy that we're here,” Hermione says with a smile, taking it all in.
So as we all settle in and everyone goes back to their conversations, Hermione and I look at each other and nod with wide smiles on our faces as we tuck into the feast. Getting the Malfoys out of the ministry is a problem for tomorrow.