"Harry Potter."
Harry's eyes snapped open as he heard the familiar voice call his name. He was sitting in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. The very much intact and undamaged Great Hall, surrounded by people who were young and alive. No traces of the war anywhere. Nothing could have kept the shock from showing on his face.
"Harry Potter!"
His head snapped around to look at the source of the voice. Albus Dumbledore stood in front of the head table next to the Goblet of Fire and was looking as stern and unsmiling as Harry had ever seen him.
Wait! The Goblet of Fire. I'm back in fourth year. Sirius is alive! Cedric is in the next room! I really can save them. I was half expecting my time with Ephialtes to be some kind of delusion.
"HARRY POTTER!"
A pair of hands pushed him to his feet. Looking over at the contact he saw a pair of worried brown eyes. "Your soulmate! I've just remembered: I'm pretty sure it was some Granger girl!" Ephialtes last words rang through his head almost causing him to miss Hermione speaking to him.
"Go on, Harry. You have to go up there." With another little shove Harry started walking. He was remembering how this year had gone last time around and trying to get comfortable in his younger body again and so missed most of the glares that were being aimed his way by the other students. When he came up to the headmaster he was handed the slip of parchment with his name on it and directed to the antechamber where he knew the other three champions were waiting. Still feeling a bit dazed Harry made his way across the hall. The sounds of the Great Hall cutting off abruptly as the door of the antechamber closed behind him was every bit as ominous as it had been the first time around.
Looking up he saw the three champions gathered around the fire. When he had been fourteen in mind and body he had been caught by how tall they were. With the mind of a war veteran all he could think was that they looked too young for what lay ahead.
"What is it? Do zey want us back in ze Hall?"
At Fleur's question Harry mentally shook himself. He needed to focus. He could gather wool when he was safe behind the curtains of his four-poster.
"No. Something's gone wrong." Harry said. He really didn't want to get into this. He knew the animosity he would be facing over the coming months and time travel or massive delusions apparently gave him a blinding headache. He still wasn't sure what had happened there.
"Well? What 'as gone wrong?" It was clear the Fleur was growing impatient with his poor performance as a messenger. She wouldn't be kept waiting much longer as Bagman came bouncing through the door. Unable to contain himself at this twist in tournament and, probably even more so Harry thought, the betting opportunities it afforded. He ignored the rotund former beater as he introduced Harry as the fourth champion in a contest that was named for the fact that there were only ever three. Should have bloody well tipped everyone off that there was something miserably wrong right there.
Fleur was just starting to work herself into a strop when the rest of the adults came into the room. Welcome to the sideshow. No charge.
"Madame Maxime! Zey are saying zat zis little boy is to compete also!" Harry couldn't quite suppress a twitch in his jaw at the 'little boy' comment. He knew there was a decent person under Fleur's act of being a quintessential French snob, had even met her, but damn, did that woman need to work on her first impressions. It didn't help that this comment was the other two headmaster's cue to get indignant about the situation. Well at least they're worried that a 'little boy' could upstage their champions. Wonder if I should take that as a compliment or an indictment of their own programs. He didn't bother to hide his eye-roll at Snape's pronouncement that he had been breaking rules since he got to Hogwarts.
"Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire, Harry?" Dumbledore asked studying him. Harry reflexively threw up his occlumency shields.
"No." Harry couldn't feel anything come up against his shields but certainly heard Snape's wordless scoff.
"Did you ask an older student to put your name in for you?" Harry had already started answering the question when something occurred to him.
"N-Wait?! You mean, that would have worked?!" he asked incredulously. Judging by the faces around him it actually would have. "That means you had something set up to deal with the possibility of someone being entered without permission right?" It was Bagman who answered him.
"Ah…well, who would want to enter more competition for a title they wanted, Harry?"
"I'll just take that as a 'no' then, shall I?" Harry groaned. "Should I also assume you have no method for dealing with unwilling participants?"
"We must follow the rules, and the rules state clearly that those people whose names come out of the Goblet of Fire are bound to compete in the tournament." was Crouch Sr.'s non-answer. Harry just snorted in disgust earning him a glare from Snape. Maxime and Karkaroff had their hackles up again and were arguing with the other organizers. Harry was forced to admit that from their point of view they had good reason to be angry with the situation.
They were interrupted by Crouch Jr. explaining exactly how he had entered Harry into the tournament. Harry had to admit, as ballsy moves went, this one was right up there with anything he had ever pulled. It was this interruption however that caused Dumbledore to force the issue and declare that Harry would have to compete. After the two foreign delegations had left in a huff Harry and Cedric were also dismissed.
Once they were outside Cedric spoke up, "So, we're competing against each other again."
"Honestly, Cedric, give me a quidditch match any day." Harry was pinching the bridge of his nose in an effort to relieve the headache he still felt. He knew the next question was coming but it still managed to annoy him.
"Will you tell me how you managed to get your name in?"
"I didn't, but apparently any prick over the age of seventeen who was given half a reason could have." Harry's tone was curt as he answered the Hufflepuff.
"…Right." Cedric didn't sound any more believing than he had last time but they had thankfully come to the point where their paths diverged and Harry was left alone for the remainder of the walk up to Gryffindor Tower. He really didn't feel like putting up with the same bloody questions all night and no one believing his answers. In fact he was tempted to just head over to the Room of Requirement and ask it for a place to spend the night. Find a way to get what you need. There are myriad options for the truly creative and determined. Harry froze mid-step as Ephialtes' words rang through his head for the second time that night. Find a way to get what you need. Harry continued his walk with a more confident stride. First chance he got tomorrow he was heading down to the kitchens to talk with Dobby and 'learn' about the Come and Go Room from the elf. He could do with some plausible deniability if he had to keep his future knowledge a secret.
The tumult in the common room was as bad as he remembered. All of Gryffindor, led by the quidditch team, wanted to congratulate him and know how he did it. It also didn't take long for Harry to get fed up with the whole thing. He decided on a slightly different approach to last time and climbed onto a table holding up his hands for silence.
"Quiet, you lot! Our champion is going to make a speech!" This proclamation led to a roar of approval before everyone settled down again.
"Thank you, Fred. Now then, I am going to say this one last time. I did not enter my name into the Goblet of Fire." Harry waited for the catcalls to subside before he continued on, "Professor Moody has a theory on how my name came out as the fourth champion, if you're interested go talk to him about it." Take that, you conniving bastard. Harry hoped the Death Eater would be inundated with requests from Gryffindors. It was petty, sure, but he wasn't sure unmasking the imposter at this stage was wise or even possible. "The judges did mention that all you would have had to do is convince an older student to enter your name for you." The expressions on Fred and George's faces were comical to say the least. They were clearly kicking themselves for overlooking this. "Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to bed as I don't really want to celebrate getting shafted into a deadly tournament."
His point made, Harry jumped down and headed towards the stairs to the boy's dormitories. The rest of the house was too shocked to stop him and he managed to make good his escape. Just before opening the door to the fourth year dorm Harry took a moment to prepare himself for the confrontation he knew waited within. Sure enough he hadn't taken three steps towards his bed before Ron was standing in front of him.
"So, congratulations." He hated that false grin his best friend was wearing.
"On what?" He knew he sounded bitter but the next few months were some of the worst times in his friendship with the redhead.
"You managed to get into the tournament. Even Fred and George couldn't do that. How did you do it?"
"Since you seem to have missed the announcement downstairs: I didn't. Someone else entered my name. If you want the full theory, talk to Moody." Ron's face took on a disbelieving cast.
"It's okay, y'know. You don't have to lie to me about it. You're already getting away with it. If you couldn't let me in on how you were going to do it you can at least tell me after the fact." Harry squared up to Ron and looked him in the eye as seriously as he possibly could.
"Ron, we have been best friends for three years. Do you really think that I would lie to you about something like this?" Something in Ron's expression wavered for a moment before it hardened.
"I didn't. Guess I know different now, don't I? Wormtail would be proud of you, the way you stabbed your friends in the back." Harry staggered back at the venom in Ron's voice. That last comment had been beyond the pale and something Harry had never imagined Ron capable of saying.
"Fuck you, Potter." Ron whirled away from his still shocked roommate and got into his bed wrenching the hangings shut. It took Harry a few moments longer to make his way to his own bed. When he closed his own hangings he quickly cast some privacy wards they had used on the hunt before letting himself go. He was shaking like a leaf from the rollercoaster he had just been on. From battle, to the afterlife, to the past is a lot for a body to take. Here in the privacy of his own bed he could finally start to assimilate and process what had happened.
To start with he wasn't at all convinced it had actually happened. The wards currently protecting him were certainly strong evidence; after all he couldn't remember learning them until 1997. That didn't necessarily mean this hadn't just been one great, big delusion. Just that that delusion surpassed anything he had ever heard of. Right. What had Hermione called it? Something about a razor and the easy explanation usually being the right one. He wasn't getting it exactly right but either way the concept wasn't helping him either. He just wasn't sure which of his two options was the more far-fetched.
Thinking of Hermione brought up Ephialtes' final words to him again. Your soulmate! I've just remembered: I'm pretty sure it was some Granger girl! He had never even heard of soulmates but assuming for the moment that they existed, how did he feel about Hermione being his? He considered this carefully. In his mind's eye he saw his best friend both as she was and as she would be. He remembered the things they had been through and would go through. In the end he decided it would be anything but a hardship to have her in his life for the next 155 years. He didn't know if he loved her of love was even part of the whole soulmate thing but, assuming it was, should he act on what might just be a delusion?
There just weren't any easy answers. Most of the questions were leading him around in circles. Okay, let's look at it this way: will it cost me more to follow Ephialtes' advice or ignore it? Overall there weren't any real problems with the advice the belligerent Reaper had given him. In fact the only bit he had any real problem with was the soulmate thing. He didn't like the idea that he and Hermione had no choice but to get together. He considered whether he should simply tell Hermione everything that happened and ask her to help him work it out. No. If it was real I can't tell anyone except my soulmate what happened and Ephialtes didn't exactly give a definite answer who that was. 'Pretty sure' might not cut it. Besides what if she decides she wants to date Ron again when sixth year rolls around? She might feel pressured to follow along with something that is at best still uncertain. I won't do that to her.
He briefly considered whether he was pulling a 'Dumbledore' and keeping information he should perhaps share. Dumbledore had something concrete he could share. Your evidence amounts to "I've apparently died a dozen times and we're fated to be together." Hell, it hasn't even managed to convince you. In the end Harry decided he would keep an open mind with regards to Hermione and at least act on the 'sound general advice' Ephialtes had given him, starting with that talk with Dobby tomorrow.
Now that he had made his decision and had the beginnings of a plan Harry felt much better about the whole thing. Taking off his glasses and getting changed he settled down for the night.
:-:-:-:-:
The next morning Harry got up early as he usually did. He felt a pang of anger and loss when he saw Ron's closed curtains. He knew that his friend would apologize after he had faced the dragon but it still hurt. Especially since Ron had been a lot more vindictive than he remembered. That thought sent a shiver down his spine. What if he had already changed things so much that Hermione wouldn't believe him? That would just make the nightmare complete. With a sigh he set off to breakfast, what would come would come and he would meet it when it did. Just like Hagrid had said a year from now.
His walk through the common room was uncomfortable. His talk with Ron was apparently not the only one that had changed the way he was treated. The Gryffindors that were sitting around seemed to be doing their level best to pretend that he didn't exist. He headed directly for the portrait hole; maybe he would get to speak to Dobby earlier than he thought. As he stepped through the portrait hole he came face to face with a most welcome sight.
"Hey. I brought you these." Hermione was standing in front of him holding up a couple of bacon sandwiches wrapped in a napkin. "Would you like to go for a walk?"
"Please and thank you." he replied, the obvious gratitude in his voice causing a pleased look to briefly flash across her face. The two friends headed outside to the lake. As they walked Harry ate his delivered breakfast. When they got to the lake they sat down and Harry began to tell Hermione everything that had happened since his name came out of the goblet. She was outraged that the organizers had apparently known this could happen and ignored the possibility. She smiled when he told her of his little speech in the common room and told him she had already heard all about it from Lavender and Parvati. She was appalled at Ron's comment.
"You do understand why he's acting that way, don't you, Harry?"
"I know that he's jealous, Hermione. The problem is that I really don't have the energy to talk him down. I'm going to be putting everything I have into surviving the latest Hogwarts madness. This has the potential to be as bad as the basilisk." Hermione looked like she desperately wanted that not to be true. "Besides, after what he said I'm not sure I could talk to him without punches being thrown. He's not the only one that needs to cool down before we try to fix this."
"That's actually very mature, Harry." He didn't take offense at the slight surprise in her tone and expression; it was a little unusual for him to mention that many feelings in one sentence. "Are you going to write Sirius?"
"I suppose I'd better." Harry sighed. He got up and brushed the grass off his robes before extending a hand to help Hermione up. "Do you happen to have a letter for your parents?" he asked her.
"I was working on one. Why do you ask?"
"I can't use Hedwig to send letters to Sirius and she gets huffy with me when I use other owls. If we send her off first with your letter it'll keep her happy. I'm not so long on friends right now that I can afford to tick her off." Hermione's response was to laugh most of the way to the castle at the relationship between her friend and his owl.
Classes that day were a nightmare. First was Herbology with the Hufflepuffs who felt wronged by Harry's selection as champion and weren't shy about letting him know it. That afternoon was Care with the Slytherins who were taking any and every chance to get a dig in. Harry didn't bother to hide his gratitude even a little this time when Hagrid believed him about the goblet.
After classes Hermione left for the library to finish her letter to her parents once again smirking at the reminder about Harry and Hedwig's relationship. Harry used the time to make his way towards the kitchens. After he had tickled the pear and opened the painting he was surprised that he wasn't immediately swarmed by elves but quickly realized that right before dinner was probably the most busy time of day for Hogwarts' hidden work force. There was one elf that was always going to find time to talk to his favourite wizard. Harry barely had time to brace himself before he felt Dobby slam into him and hugging his legs.
"Harry Potter Sir! You is here! You has come to visit Dobby!" Harry couldn't help but smile at the excitable little fellow.
"Hello, Dobby. I see you've found work at Hogwarts. How have you been?" Dobby released his hold on Harry and stepped back to look up at his saviour.
"Dobby has been looking for work for a long time, sir, but now that he has come to Hogwarts Dobby is very well, sir." The elf was beaming with pride.
"Why did it take you so long to find work, Dobby?" Harry asked, feeling a bit ridiculous since he already knew the answer.
"It takes Dobby a long time because he is wanting paying, sir. Wizards is not wanting to pay house elves. Dobby was almost giving up hope when he finds Winky. When Dobby hears Winky has also been freed he thinks to himself 'where is there being enough work for two elves?' And it comes to him sir: Hogwarts!" Dobby spoke very fast in his enthusiasm. The other elves in the kitchen backed away as the tale progressed looking very uncomfortable and embarrassed. Harry felt that Hermione's S.P.E.W. efforts were likely doomed with this lot. The one elf that didn't back away was swaying drunkenly on her stool near the fire and wailed loudly when her part in the story came up. None of this stopped Dobby for a moment.
"Dobby and Winky is speaking to Professor Dumbledore, sir, and he is telling Dobby he will pay Dobby. Dobby is getting one galleon a week and one day off a month." This prompted another howl of grief from Winky. "Professor Dumbledore is also telling Dobby and Winky they may call him whatever they wishes. We may even call him a…a barmy old codger, sir. But Dobby would never. Dobby is grateful to be working at Hogwarts."
"That's wonderful, Dobby! I'm happy for you!" Harry grinned meaning every word. "Do you happen to have a moment to help me with something?"
"For Harry Potter, Dobby always stands ready." the elf assured him seriously.
"In that case can you help me find a place where I can practice magic in private without anyone disturbing me?" Dobby's brow wrinkled in thought for a moment.
"One moment, Harry Potter Sir." he said before dashing off. Harry saw him talking to some other elves that looked like they were wishing he would stop bothering them. Harry felt for his little friend as he was receiving the same treatment from his own peers. Dobby had apparently gotten the information he needed as he once again stood in front of Harry, bouncing excitedly.
"Dobby has learned of the perfect place, sir. May Dobby show Harry Potter the way?" Grinning at the thought of what the Room would look like if he gave Dobby free reign in creating it, Harry agreed. Dobby led him out of the kitchens and up to the seventh floor and the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, chattering happily all the while about his long job hunt. When they got to their destination, Dobby beamed up at Harry and told him how to call the Room. Harry began pacing and started with the most obvious request he could think of. I need somewhere I can learn what I need to survive. His focus was such that he didn't notice the door forming until Dobby squeaked next to him.
"Harry Potter Sir has done it!" Harry was just staring at the door. He hadn't honestly expected that to work with such a vague request. Deciding to see just what he had called into being he opened the door. Inside the room was clearly divided into two parts. The first reminded him of the Gryffindor common room except the walls were lined with shelves stuffed full of books. A quick perusal revealed titles like The Healer's Helpmateand The Curse-Breaker's Companion as well as some more advanced sounding titles. The other side of the Room was set up like a duelling arena and Harry could see several training dummies.
"Dobby this is absolutely fantastic! Name your reward!"
"Sir?" Dobby looked shocked.
"This is beyond anything I had expected. You deserve to be paid for a job well done and since you did this job for me, not Dumbledore, I will be paying you. Name your price." As Harry beamed down at Dobby he was surprised to see the little elf looking very uncomfortable. "What is it, Dobby?"
"Dobby is having a wish, sir, but it is too much to be asking for this." Harry remembered what Dobby had done for him in the future and thought that any wish the elf had, Harry would do his best to fulfil.
"Not at all, my friend. If I can grant your wish I will do it." When Dobby's only reaction was to blush furiously Harry started to get worried. This behaviour was atypical of the Dobby he knew. "Surely it can't be that bad?"
"Dobby…Dobby…" the elf took a deep breath before saying in a rush, "Dobby wants to be Harry Potter Sir's elf!" Immediately he clapped his hands over his mouth, shocked at his own audacity. His tennis-ball-shaped eyes were wider and rounder than usual and for a moment Harry was afraid Dobby would flee the scene.
"Of course you can be my elf, Dobby. Would you like the same pay you've been getting from Hogwarts?" Harry didn't see what the problem would be.
"No sir, Dobby is wanting to be Harry Potter's bonded elf." Dobby whispered. Well, that was different. Harry knelt down in front of Dobby so he could look him in the eye.
"Are you sure, Dobby? I thought you enjoyed being free?" Dobby straightened up looking as serious as Harry had ever seen him.
"Dobby is sure, sir. Elves is not meant to be free, sir." At Harry's confused look he continued. "Elves is needing the bond to use magic, Harry Potter. Without it we is losing our magic and dying. But magic is always having a price. The price elves pay is to serve." That didn't make sense to Harry.
"But why should that stop you getting paid?"
"If Dobby is paid to serve then he is not paying for magic and the bond will not form, sir. Dobby wanted to be able to leave Hogwarts when Harry Potter finished school and hoped Harry Potter would bond with him." Dobby was blushing again as he admitted to the last part. Harry realized that the elf was putting all his cards on the table. He also knew that if he turned Dobby away he would feel like the lowest scum of the earth. Hermione is going to kill me.
"If that's the case then of course I will bond with you, Dobby. You will have to explain how though." Harry hadn't finished speaking before an ecstatic house elf slammed into his chest.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Harry Potter sir." Dobby was jabbering so quickly that Harry was having trouble hearing the individual words. The gist of it was loud and clear though.
"It's alright, Dobby. Now how do we do this?"
"Harry Potter must find his magic and push it out to Dobby." Harry closed his eyes. Finding their magic had been part of the first year curriculum. It was essential to be able to touch your magic if you wanted to cast a spell. When he found his magic he was momentarily surprised. There was a lot more of it than he remembered. Damn horcrux must have been parasitic. Time enough for speculation later, focus on Dobby! No sooner had he had that thought than his magic began to leak out towards Dobby. To Harry's senses it almost seemed like Dobby was a sponge, absorbing everything Harry pushed towards him.
"That is being enough, sir!" Harry's eyes snapped open at Dobby's interruption. When his focus stopped so did the flow of magic.
"Is it done, Dobby?"
"It is, sir." Deciding that he needed more information if he was ever going to keep Hermione from his throat Harry decided to ask his new elf some more questions.
"That's good, Dobby. Are all the castle elves bonded to the headmaster like this?" It seemed like a lot of work to go through every time there was a change of headmaster but he wasn't prepared to put anything past magical society.
"Oh no, sir. The castle elves is being bonded to the school itself. Hogwarts is having a great magical reservoir. Only personal elves is bonded to the staff." Dobby looked very sure of himself.
"But they are all bonded?" When he didn't immediately hear a response he looked over to once again find Dobby looking uncomfortable. "Let me guess: Winky isn't bonded?"
"No, sir. Winky is not wanting to bond to the castle and there is no teachers requiring an elf now. Winky is wanting a family again." An idea was forming in Harry's mind and he wasn't sure he liked it but if Winky's life and magic were at stake, not to mention her happiness, he knew he was going to do it.
"You were alright for a few years though, right? How long do we have to find someone for Winky to bond with?" Dobby perked up.
"Sir will help look for a family for Winky? Sir is too kind." Suddenly his ears drooped "Dobby is surviving because he is rationing his magic. Winky is not doing this. She is not having the will to live. Winky will die by the summer." Harry blanched at that pronouncement. Bugger.
"Dobby, would you mind if I bonded Winky. I'm not sure I really have enough work for two elves but I can't let her go on like this." Dobby had tears in his eyes.
"Dobby had hoped to ask the Great Harry Potter to bond Winky if he worked hard enough this year. Dobby was not wanting to presume." He punctuated his statement with a loud sniff. Harry sighed.
"Very well. I won't bond her unless she's sober though. This bonding feels like something you shouldn't do drunk." Dobby was nodding so rapidly his ears were flapping around on his head. "Can you take care of her for me?" More nodding. "Alright then that is your first job, okay?"
"At once Kind and Generous Harry Potter Sir!" with a pop Dobby had disappeared. Harry shook his head. He was going to have to talk to Dobby about forms of address. Harry sat down at the table the Room had provided and pulled out parchment, ink and a quill to write his letter to Sirius. He paused when he realized he was probably going to need the same discussion with Winky. Hermione is definitely going to kill me.
:-:-:-:-:
Hermione was worried. Harry hadn't shown up for dinner. She knew he was stubborn but skipping meals because of a bunch of gossips wasn't his style. As soon as she had finished eating she had begun searching. That had been nearly an hour ago. He's not going to run away. He never has. She was just checking an empty classroom when a familiar voice called her name.
"Hermione! There you are. Have you finished your letter?" Sure enough, there was the object of her search walking down the hallway like nothing was wrong.
"Harry! You missed dinner? Are you alright?" seeing the bemused look on his face shifted her questioning, "Do you have any idea how worried I was?"
"I'm sorry I worried you, Hermione. I was writing a letter to our friend and planning a training schedule to help me survive this year. And, yes, I'm alright." He was looking at her with that damn lopsided smile of his again. She wanted to stay angry but he had apologized and made her curious with his talk of a training schedule.
"Do you want me to look over your schedule? You know you tend to be a bit…relaxed about your schoolwork." She didn't want to offend him for the world but Maeve knew schedules were her thing. Her question didn't seem to have put a dent in that smile though.
"You can check my schedule later, Hermione. First things first, do you have a letter we can send with Hedwig?" After one more searching look she started rummaging in her bag.
"I have it right here." she said as she fished it out. His smile turned into a full on grin.
"Excellent! Let's go then." Harry grabbed her hand as he whirled around and she found herself being pulled along. She didn't mind. Not having to watch where she was going freed up attention she could devote to analysing her best friend. She had expected him to be much moodier than what she was seeing. He was almost relaxed and he definitely seemed collected and in control. It was as if he had learned something that took away all his insecurities and she couldn't imagine what it was. An abrupt stop and the release of her hand were signals to reassign some more attention to the world around her. While she had been trying make sense of Harry he had managed to get them both to the owlery. She had the uncomfortable suspicion that she had been staring at the back of his head the whole way. Thankfully she could always count on Hedwig to demand some of Harry's attention and he was currently busy rubbing his familiar's plumage. By the time he had turned to her to ask her for the letter to her parents Hermione had herself back under control. Watching Harry with Hedwig was a calming experience anyway. She certainly wouldn't like to have to say who took care of whom in that relationship. Harry might be the owner and the human but Hedwig could be downright mothering to him; and how many wizards took into account their owl's feelings when sending a letter? Soon Hedwig was winging off towards her parents to update them on the most recent happenings at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry watched her until he couldn't see her anymore. She knew the moment it happened because his shoulders slumped momentarily. He straightened right back up though and peered up into the gloom of the rafters.
"Which one of you wants to take a letter for me?" Hermione amused herself for a moment by imagining the owls discussing who would be risking Hedwig's wrath for taking a letter from her human but it didn't take long for a barn owl to glide and land on Harry's arm. Harry held out the letter to it.
"This needs to go to Snuffles, ok? Do you know how to find him?"
*prek*
"Good man. Here you go then." Hermione shook her head in wonder as she watched the real magic of knowing Harry Potter. Harry only watched the barn owl long enough to make sure it got under way. When he turned back to her he had that lopsided grin on his face again.
"C'mon then, let's go enjoy a few horrendously awkward moments in the common room before we go to bed." He offered her his arm and she just smiled at him and shook her head before taking it. She could get used to relaxed Harry.