The day after Harry and Hermione got home they found out that Sirius, Richard and Helen had bought all the necessary decorations for a thoroughly overdone Christmas, but had waited for the kids so they could help put them up. In practice it turned out that Hermione was the one who put everything up once she learnt that Dobby, Winky and Kreacher had put up the ward that blocked the trace. As she was casting Hermione had trouble imagining how life could get any better than this. It was Christmas, she was celebrating it with Harry and their families and her parents were able to see their daughter use magic for the first time. Harry just sat back with a cup of tea and enjoyed both Hermione's enthusiasm and her parents amazed looks at what their daughter was doing. When everything was in place the way Hermione wanted it she started showing off with little transfigurations around the house. Helen actually gasped when a piece of packaging she had been about to throw away turned into a delicate crystal flute.
"Hermione, this is wonderful. I can't wait until you can do this anywhere." Helen said as she ran over and hugged her daughter.
"This is nothing, Mum. Harry is even better than I am." Hermione tried to share the praise. As a result Harry found himself confronted with several expectant looks.
"I'm really not. Hermione is a much better student." Harry murmured while shooting his girlfriend a look for landing him in the centre of attention.
"Yeah, yeah, you're both staggeringly amazing. Now get on with the show, Pup. I need some bragging rights after you let Hermione do up the house." Sirius demanded with a look of childish glee on his face. Sighing in resignation, Harry drew his wand.
"You may want to hold that carefully, Mrs. Granger." he warned as he flicked his wand and cast a silent spell at the flute she was holding. Helen was not sure what her daughter's boyfriend was on about until she felt the crystal flute expanding and becoming softer. It quickly got impossible to hold with one hand and Helen slung her other arm under the thing and pulled it to her chest to keep from dropping it and was rewarded with a wet nose in her neck. Pulling back in shock she saw a chocolate coloured Labrador pup in her arms wagging its tail and yipping softly.
"Oh, Harry, he's absolutely darling." Helen crooned as she started petting and cuddling the enthusiastic little thing.
"Nononono! Do the Patronus, Pup. Show off a little would you?!" Sirius broke in earning an affronted look from Mrs. Granger who was clearly of the opinion that turning rubbish to crystal flutes to puppies was impressive enough to be getting on with. Harry just cast an exasperated look at his dogfather before raising his wand again. "Expecto Patronum." Prongs burst out from Harry's wand and Helen forgot all about the puppy in her arms for a moment. Both Granger parents looked on in awe as the glowing stag filled the room with positive feelings. Sirius looked extremely smug.
"Expecto Patronum." Hermione's otter joined Prongs, gambolling around the stag's horns playfully and raising the feelings in the living room further. Sirius' smug smile had slipped off his face as he watched the spectacle slack-jawed. After a while both the Patronuses faded away. Their casters had moved closer together while the adults were watching their magic and were now leaning comfortably into each other. Hermione noticed that the adults seemed to be coming out of a trance. She caught her father trying to surreptitiously wipe a lone tear from his cheek. Her mother was absently stroking the puppy Harry had transfigured and still staring at the last place the two magical guardians had been.
"No fair!" Sirius had apparently recovered as well. "How, by the ancients, are you able to do that too?!" His voice was filled with wonder despite his words and Hermione just gave him a knowing smile as she slipped her arm around Harry's waist.
"I have a very good Defence Professor." She said impishly as she looked up at Harry whose arm had come around her shoulders. He rolled his eyes playfully at her. After that Helen and Richard occasionally asked about the children's ability to perform different kinds of magic. Harry and Hermione responded with demonstrations and explanations when possible.
:-:-:-:-:
Over the next week the extended family dove headfirst into celebrating Christmas as much as they could. Everyone agreed that it was more important than ever to enjoy themselves while they could. Even so the spectre of a possible Death Eater attack would not be banished completely. Christmas shopping was done in disguises and the Grangers had to forego their annual attendance at a neighbour's Christmas party. Not one of them doubted that it was worth it though. As Mr. Granger had said: "Christmas is a time for family. As long as we have that, we have enough."
Christmas morning itself dawned idyllically. The snow outside was pristine and the inside of the cottage was filled with the smell of baked goods that Dobby, Winky and Kreacher had prepared for their family. When Harry came downstairs, Sirius had put on a recording of several wizarding Christmas carols and Richard and Helen were looking a little nonplussed at the lyrics to God rest ye merry Hippogriffs. Hermione was the first one to notice him leaning against the doorjamb as he took in the scene in front of him. She walked up to him and gave him a soft, lingering kiss.
"Happy Christmas, Harry." she said quietly, enjoying the happy wonder she could see in his eyes.
"Happy Christmas, Mi." Harry answered her just as softly as he carefully committed the moment to memory. This is what Christmas is supposed to be like. The serene atmosphere was unfortunately never going to last long though with Sirius around.
"Harry! Presents!" He shouted as he jumped the two teens and grabbed them in a hug. By the time Harry had extricated himself from the eternal man-child's arms Hermione's parents were waiting for their turn. Mrs. Granger reached out and pulled him into a caring, motherly hug, like she had been doing all week, as she wished him a happy Christmas and Mr. Granger clapped him on the shoulder as he did the same. Harry allowed himself to wonder briefly how his own parents would have greeted him on Christmas morning and came to the conclusion that he hoped it would be similar to what he had just experienced.
"Yeah, yeah, heartwarming stuff. Presents!" Padfoot whined at the rest of the occupants, earning himself a scolding from Mrs. Granger about the meaning of Christmas which didn't seem to dent his enthusiasm in the slightest. "I'm Father Christmas!" he called out joyously once everyone was seated around the Christmas tree. With a flick of his wand the presents were sent to their proper recipients and Sirius was free to tear into his own.
Harry just shook his head in fond exasperation at his godfather's antics before turning to his own pile. He felt the familiar anticipation that wrapped packages brought and, in stark contrast to Sirius, he carefully peeled the wrapping paper off of the gifts, savouring the moment. He took his time in between opening presents to observe the others in the room and thank them when he got to their gifts.
Sirius and Lupin had once again gotten together to get him the book set Practical Defensive Magic and its Uses Against the Dark Arts. Dobby and Kreacher had made him a scabbard that confused the rest of the occupants of the house, but that was clearly meant for the Sword of Gryffindor and Winky had knitted him a scarf. Hagrid had sent him that fanged wallet again and Fred and George had sent him a sample set of their products called The Marvellous Mischief Maker's Medley. Harry was just admiring the patchwork quilt Mrs. Granger had made for him when he heard Hermione gasp and looked over at her.
"Oh, Harry. That might be the most thoughtful gift you could have come up with." She was looking at the gift her parents had just opened that had been addressed to 'the Granger Family': a pair of seemingly innocuous mirrors that had the dentists looking at him hopefully. "They're communicating mirrors, aren't they?" Harry nodded with a small smile pulling at his lips.
"After Halloween it occurred to me that you might want to have a faster way to communicate than owl post. Just don't mention it to Hedwig." Mrs. Granger got up from where she was sitting and pulled Harry into yet another hug.
"Thank you, Harry. Hermione, is right: that is a very thoughtful gift." she said.
"I want to know about these...Self-Flossing Stringmints you included." Mr. Granger spoke up. Harry and Hermione spent a few moments explaining the magical candy that Harry had included as a joke to Richard's great delight. As they moved back to their own piles both Harry and Hermione realized that they only had each other's gift left. A quick and silent communication later and Harry opened his first. Hermione had gotten him a rune carving set that was meant for people undergoing an Apprenticeship in the field and a book on basic enchanting. Harry happily thanked her for the beautiful gift and urged her to open his. The package Hermione opened was a lot smaller and when she pulled the box out of the wrapping paper she gasped as she saw that it was the kind that would usually contain jewelry. Inside was a silver locket that had fine tracery engraved on it resembling blooming vines. Upon opening the locket, Hermione found a picture of herself and Harry dancing at the Yule Ball last year that she had never seen before and in the other panel was a magical picture of her parents waving at her. Looking up she could see that Harry was watching nervously for her reaction.
"I love it, Harry. Will you put it on me?" He smiled at her and gently lifted the locket out of her hands. Hermione turned around and lifted her hair out of the way. She felt the locket settle against her chest and Harry's fingers fastening the clasp in her neck. The feather light touches in her neck sent bolts of pleasure racing down her nerves. When Harry's fingers left her she had to fight down a mewl of disappointment. She gently touched the locket and turned around beaming a smile at her boyfriend. "Thank you, Harry." she said before they shared a soft kiss. Since she had no more presents waiting to be opened she curled up against Harry with her feet tucked under her and just enjoyed being with the people she loved most in this world.
The rest of the day was filled with Sirius' exuberance, Harry's wonder and the Grangers' joy. Dobby, Winky and Kreacher made the family a wonderful Christmas dinner and were eventually coaxed into sharing it with them. When Harry fell into bed that night he honestly felt that he had experienced one of the best days of his life.
:-:-:-:-:
Over the next week the group spent their time exploring the town where Harry and Sirius would live from now on. A visit to Arundel Castle was of course on the agenda and Harry and Hermione surprised her parents by getting them a guided tour by the ghost of Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. The Poet Earl was able to tell them a lot about how his father, the 3rd Duke of Norfolk, had run the castle. He was also able to tell them something about his cousins Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard and their husband who had had all three beheaded. Throughout the tour the ghost managed to graciously answer the various questions the Granger women were firing at him about his role as one of the two Fathers of the English Sonnet.
Arundel Castle was as old as Hogwarts, but much warmer in Harry's opinion. He still loved Hogwarts, but it was clear that Arundel had been a home for generations whereas Hogwarts had been a school. Lord Surrey told them that the current Duke of Norfolk and his family still held the castle as their seat and that his son held the title of Earl of Arundel until he succeeded his father as Duke. The tour lasted most of the day and at the end they were all warmly invited to return soon by Lord Surrey who had missed interacting with living people and was eager to repeat the experience.
Since they were staying at Sirius' house they also spent a lot of time playing in the snow, dodging pranks and laughing at the Marauder's stories of his days in Hogwarts with Harry's father. Two days before New Year's Eve, Sirius was avidly telling them the story of how he had spent a year watching Harry and Hermione. Harry knew that all Padfoot was really doing was leading up to a ridiculously embellished retelling of the night that he had escaped from the dementors with Harry and Hermione's help but one detail in the story stuck in his mind and wouldn't leave him alone. That night when Hermione and her parents were absorbed in their books, Harry dragged Sirius into his room for an urgent conversation.
"Sirius, I have a question for you and I think it may be important." When Sirius saw the level gaze with a hint of worry he was receiving from his godson the prankster persona seemed to run off him like water.
"What's on your mind, Pup?" he asked.
"I want to know how you got into Gringotts while you were on the run." Sirius blinked at the unexpected question.
"Why on earth do you want to know that?" he asked. Harry didn't answer but kept that disconcerting look aimed at his godfather. After a few moments Sirius folded. "Alright. There's a little known entrance that is used by the older families when they don't want anybody to know what they're doing." Harry's intense look turned into a scowl.
"The pureblood bigots, in other words." he growled out.
"Most of them are, yes, but you're forgetting that you're dealing with goblins here. What counts is that these people are rich. I'm not sure what the Potter account looks like after all these years but it's possible they'd let you in there too. Are you going to tell me why you want to know this stuff now?" Harry once again ignored his godfather's request for an explanation.
"Where is this entrance?" he asked, his scowl gone and the intense look of someone close to a breakthrough back on his face.
"Behind the Palace of Westminster, under the statue of Oliver Cromwell. You scratch the lion's ear and when it gets up you go down the stairs. There's a rumour that if your account balance is too low the statue will maul you. Now tell me why you want to know this." Harry waved his hand at his godfather.
"Just one last question: would Bellatrix know about this entrance?" Sirius' face blanched at that. His hands shot out and grabbed Harry by the shoulders.
"Absolutely not! You are not to go hunting my mad cousin, do you hear me?!" Sirius was shaking Harry as he tried to emphasize his point. "She's dangerous, Harry. You get landed in enough trouble as it is and this is more than even you would be able to easily handle. Promise me you won't go looking for her." Harry grabbed Sirius' wrists and pulled his hands away.
"I promise that I will not go looking for Bellatrix, okay?" he said in a firm tone. Sirius looked his godson over as if trying to spot a lie and then nodded jerkily.
"I'm holding you to that." At the quirk of Harry's eyebrow Sirius continued. "I mean it. If I even think you're going to do something like that I'll...I'll tell Hermione!" Harry blinked in surprise at the triumphant shout at the end.
"Calm down, Sirius, I meant it: I won't go looking for her. How about we go get something to drink from Winky instead, hm?" His reassurance seemed to be reaching Sirius and the old Marauder relaxed somewhat and agreed. As they were heading out of the room Harry couldn't help but think to himself I won't go looking for Bellatrix; but the Horcrux in her vault is a whole other matter.
:-:-:-:-:
The Hogwarts Express made its way back up to Scotland nearly a week into the new year. Harry and Hermione had received their patrol schedules in the prefects' compartment and had once again chosen to join Luna in a regular compartment. Hermione and Luna were eagerly comparing holidays while Harry leaned his head against the wall of the compartment. He wasn't really listening to the girls' conversation, but rather was immersed in a very pleasant memory of Hermione sneaking into his bedroom after everyone had gone to bed on New Year's Eve. Well, her parents had; Sirius had gone out to the pub after they had all wished each other a 'Happy New Year'.
He had been surprised at first and thought that maybe Hermione had been having a nightmare. He had held back the covers and allowed her to crawl into the bed. After only a few seconds of holding her, Harry had known that Hermione was in his room for an entirely different purpose. She had whispered in his ear that what you did on New Year's Eve was supposed to be an omen for how the rest of the year would go and that she knew what she wanted from the upcoming 366 days. They had agreed that they were not quite ready to 'go all the way', but Harry had gained a new appreciation for certain tastes and sensations. He was jolted back to reality when Hermione poked him in the knee and told him it was time for their patrol. Judging by the mischievous glint in her eyes she either knew what he had been daydreaming about or had been reliving the same memory.
Harry sighed theatrically and hauled himself to his feet. With a wink at Luna he strode out of the compartment with an air of mock resignation to begin his patrol. It took the two prefects a long time to patrol the whole Express as most compartments wanted a quick word with them about one thing or another. Neville was especially eager to show Harry his new cherry and unicorn hair wand. Hermione just hung her head and groaned about Harry being a bad influence when Neville told him that their plan for him to sneak out had gone off without a hitch. When they got back to the compartment they were sharing with Luna, Harry didn't have to fake his exhaustion and collapsed onto the bench. Hermione followed a split second later and landed half on top of him. Rather than complain about the sudden jostling, Harry shifted her to a more comfortable position and did his best to melt into his seat.
"Oh my, are the big, bad prefects tired?" Luna singsonged at them. Harry cracked open one eye to give his friend a glare that he suspected was less than effective. Giving it up as a bad job he closed his eye again and groaned.
"Remind me why we choose to share a compartment with someone who can't muster any sympathy for us hard-working, responsible authority figures?" He asked in Hermione's general direction and only got a grunt in return. "I'll take that to mean that your energy reserves are low and that it's time for lunch." Harry said. "Dobby! May we have some lunch, please?"
The three friends shared a pleasant lunch which saw Harry and Hermione recover their energy. The rest of the trip passed without incident and sooner than they had expected the Express was pulling into Hogsmeade Station. Harry and Hermione made sure to help the younger students into the carriages before taking one themselves. The feast passed in a blur for the tired students and they were all grateful when they were dismissed up to bed.
:-:-:-:-:
There was something about Hogwarts that had always seemed timeless to Harry. Maybe it was the fact that despite a war starting up outside its walls, classes continued uninterrupted. Quidditch practice was as brutal as ever, even though the game against Hufflepuff wasn't until the beginning of March. Harry still trained like a possessed man in the Room of Requirement, though Hermione had joined him in a clear effort to be ready to stand by his side should worse come to worst. Harry's Defence classes still proved popular among the majority of the students.
One notable exception to this rule was, of course, Ronald Weasley. Harry hadn't specifically banned the redhead from showing up, confident that Weasley would not be able to behave long enough to make it through even one class, but Weasley had apparently decided that he did not want or need any extra classes and that suited Harry just fine. He had expected Weasley and Brown to want some revenge for the loss of their badges but he was surprised to see them withdrawn and quiet. They rarely looked anyone in the eye anymore and their disruptive influence in the common room had dwindled to nothing. Harry learned the reason for this after a Quidditch practice two weeks into the new term.
Harry had been taking advantage of the clear crisp weather to get some extra flying in after practice. Busy as he was, Harry still wanted to take any opportunity to indulge in one of his favourite activities. It was just about the only time he had left where he was completely alone. Once he started to feel numb from the cold he headed for the dressing room. As he stood in the doorway he overheard the two Weasley twins talking.
"I'm still not sure that I even want to take anyone to the wedding. It's embarrassing enough as it is." George said, getting a grunt of agreement from Fred.
"Still, we don't want Mum to have even more reason to yell, do we?" came Fred's rhetorical question. Harry frowned as he tried to work out if Bill might have asked Fleur already. Just because Harry hadn't heard about it until the summer before sixth year last time around, didn't mean that the Weasleys wouldn't have known. Plausible as it sounded, that still didn't explain why Fred and George considered their brother's wedding embarrassing.
"I know, I know. We're not taking anyone who'll be at Hogwarts next year though." came the reply. Fred just snorted at George's remark.
"Why? Because they're not going to figure it out when Lavender or Ronniekins or both fail to show up next year?" Wait, Ron and Lavender are getting married? Aren't they too young? "Who's there?!" Harry blinked in surprise; apparently he had spoken that last thought out loud.
"It's me, lads." Harry said walking into plain sight. Fred and George shared a look before turning back to him.
"How much did you hear?" Fred asked in a heavy tone of voice. Both twins were standing there with slumped shoulders and defeated looks on their faces.
"I heard that you are embarrassed to be going to a wedding and that your brother and Lavender may or may not be coming back next year." Harry told them. Fred nodded wearily as George spoke up.
"Please don't tell anyone, Harry. I know you more or less hate Ron by now, but the castle doesn't need to know this."
"If you don't want me to say anything, I won't. Well, I might tell Hermione, but you both know she can keep a secret." Harry said getting a nod of thanks from George. "Just so we're clear on what this secret actually is: is Ron getting married to Lavender?" Both Weasleys grimaced a little and gave a stiff nod. Harry flopped down on one of the benches as he wrestled with that piece of information. "Why? I mean, I could have imagined them doing it after graduation, but you sound like it'll be happening soon." Fred gusted out a large breath of air and sat down on the bench across from Harry.
"You know how we lost that massive amount of points before Christmas? It turns out that Ron and Lavender got caught sneaking about and, well, playing Hide the Wand if you know what I mean." the redhead started. Harry nodded that he was aware of this. "It also turns out that the silly bugger forgot to use any kind of contraception." Harry's eyes went wide as he realised what that meant.
"So, Lavender's..." Harry trailed off, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. Fred and George just nodded unhappily.
"Her family's right mad about it too. They keep saying that they expect Ron to take responsibility and provide for her. We spent the whole of the Christmas hols listening to that or to our own parents going off on the rest of us to make sure that we know what we're doing." George said.
"By the time the hols ended, Mum and Dad and Mr. and Mrs. Brown had gotten the two of them engaged. Since the parents are signing off on the whole thing it's legal and Lavender will be the newest Mrs. Weasley after the Spring Break. Dumbledore's agreed to keep her on the rolls as Brown until the end of the year at least." Fred added.
"So the reason that they might not be coming back is that they'll be taking care of a child? Can't your mum help or something?" Harry asked, feeling a little stunned by the turn this had taken.
"Maybe. Both she and Mrs. Brown said that them raising the kid would make it more difficult for Lavender and Ronniekins to take over as its parents when they finally graduate, so they're reluctant to get that involved. The Browns and Mum and Dad are currently debating whether it would be better for one of them to get their N.E.W.T.s or for them to start working right away. It'll probably end up depending on how they do on their O.W.L.s. Wouldn't stop the wedding at this point either way." Fred said.
"Why don't they, um, abort the baby?" Fred and George both flinched.
"That's extremely dangerous to Lavender. If the baby's magical, and there's a good chance it is, its magic may lash out if it becomes threatened. You never try to get rid of a witch's baby since it usually ends up killing her." George said in a grim voice. Harry nodded wide-eyed.
"Like I said, I won't tell anyone, but I have to tell Hermione now. I think she and I need to sit down and discuss this whole magical pregnancy thing and she's going to want to know what brought it up." Fred and George livened up to something more resembling their usual selves.
"Something you want to tell us about yourself and the delectable Ms. Granger, Harrikins?" Fred asked.
"Or should we just go ahead and tell the firsties they're about to get a little brother or sister?" George added with an evil grin.
"Nothing like that, you twits. Not yet, at least. After what you just told me I'd feel much better being safe than sorry though." The reference to their little brother's predicament killed the teasing stone dead. Harry walked over to his locker and pulled out his toiletries and a towel. Just before he headed in to the shower he turned back to his teammates. "For what its worth: congratulations on your new niece or nephew. Teach them a few good pranks for me, yeah?" Harry turned and walked into the shower not seeing the impact his words had on the two Weasleys behind him. They looked like the notion of teaching a nibling pranks hadn't occurred to them before.
:-:-:-:-:
That night in the Room of Requirement, Harry and Hermione had one of the most embarrassing discussions in their relationship to date. After Harry had informed her of Ron and Lavender's situation Hermione sat there for a moment digesting what she had heard.
"We should probably start brewing a contraceptive potion just in case, shouldn't we?" She said eventually, a deep blush staining her cheeks. Harry's blush matched hers.
"I don't want you to think that I'm pushing you into anything, but yes, I think we should." Harry answered.
"You're not pushing, Harry." Hermione said softly. Neither teen was able to hold eye-contact with the other for long. "Why are we this embarrassed? I mean we've more or less done everything but...that." Hermione blurted out. Harry shrugged his shoulders.
"I think it might be because...sex has more consequences than what we've been doing. We never really discussed the other stuff beforehand, did we?" When Hermione shook her head he continued. "I think that those conversations would have been just as awkward if we had had them. This time we need to though. Let's see if we can find a potion that works over a longer period of time. That way it won't keep shoving itself in our faces and whatever happens can happen in its own time." Hermione give a single nod before reaching for a book that had just appeared on the table in front of them. Harry and Hermione managed to find a potion that would keep them infertile for thirteen lunar cycles and sent Dobby off to collect the ingredients. The potion would be ready in two weeks and they would have to take it under the full moon. The slightly awkward feeling of having named the possibility of having sex for the first time stayed with the two teens for the rest of the night.
:-:-:-:-:
As the year continued Harry couldn't shake the feeling that something was brewing. It had been a little over three months since the Azkaban break-out and Harry thought that meant that the former prisoners were likely to be recovered enough and antsy enough that they must be chomping at the bit to cause some chaos. Riddle might still want to plot his way into the Department of Mysteries to hear the prophecy, but Minister Bones' acknowledgement of his return would probably force a significant change in his strategy. Harry just hoped that the casualties would be limited when they found out what that change might be.
The thirteenth of February brought a welcome, lighter note to their days. It was Luna's birthday again and Harry and Hermione once again chose to celebrate with their friend. Like with Hermione's birthday they couldn't do it in the Room because several of the younger years were determined to join the celebrations for 'Auntie Luna'. They really are a bunch of little smart-arses Harry thought fondly as Luna's nickname, given to her after the twins had explained the inspiration behind their banner prank, flashed across his mind. He thought Luna herself would vastly prefer this nickname to 'Loony' though.
There were times during Luna's birthday party when Harry saw her look around in wonder at everyone there like she still couldn't believe that people would want to spend time with her. The sight tugged at his heart and he had to continually remind himself that things were better for his friend now to keep from going on a rampage against those who had bullied her. The party was a smashing success and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Harry and Hermione patiently waited for the stream of well-wishers to dwindle before they rejoined a beaming Luna.
"Are you enjoying yourself, Luna?" Hermione asked.
"Oh my, yes." Luna replied dreamily. "Though if it's not too much trouble I'd like a favour from you, Harry."
"Of course, Luna. Name it." Harry responded with a smile.
"A boy asked me to go to Hogsmeade with him next weekend. I think he's honestly being nice so could you not terrify him over this?" Harry blinked in surprise at this request. "From what I've heard big brothers tend to want to scare prospective suitors worse than a Blibering Humdinger wants to eat a Dirigible Plum. I do rather think of you as my big brother, but I'm worried that you might be a little too intimidating." Harry smiled at the thought that Luna saw him in that light.
"Alright, Luna, I'll keep my nose out of it." Harry said with a chuckle in his voice. "If he hurts you all bets are of though. Who's the lucky bloke?"
"Jimmy Peakes." Luna said, pointing at the boy in question. Jimmy happened to look up just in time to see Luna pointing him out to Harry and Hermione and paled drastically. When neither prefect made a move to come over he started breathing again. He had known that asking out the girl who was next to Hermione in Harry Potter's affections would be nerve wracking, but thankfully Harry didn't seem to be inclined to kill him just yet. Gryffindor courage had paid off after all.