After the Battle

Chapter 3

Hermione and I left the burrow at approximately 11am, we had explained the circumstances to Mrs Weasley, who had been previously unaware of the situation. She had apologized but Hermione had insisted that she had nothing to apologize for and wasn't to know of Hermione's worry. 

She was shaking as we got to the front gate so I took her hand and simply said, 'Where to?'

She told me to go to a cafe in Exeter. I obliged with out questioning her motives. CRACK. We apparated into a side alley and slid out before walking to the cafe which was a few hundred meters away.

'We need a plan', she said.

We sat for three hours contemplating how to go about this and eventually decided that we would apparate to outside her parents house in Australia and try to find out more about them in their new lives as 'Wendell and Monica Wilkins'. They were then to get into their house, by invatation of course, perform the charm and explain. Hermione was adament that they had to know everything.

We left the cafe at about 2pm and this time she apparated to outside Wendell and Monica's Australia house. It was 11pm in Australia when we arrived and so we crouched behind the bins and watched. At 11:24pm the only light on was switched off in one of the upstairs rooms which we presumed to be their bedroom and at 11:56pm a cat brushed past us whch caused both Hermione and I to jump due to our suspicous position. It was then that I rembered that my invisibility cloak was in my bag and so I pulled it out and put it over the pair of us. At approximately 12:30am a taxi pulled up across the street and a rather drunk couple stumbled out. It was then that Hermione and I agreed that there wasn't going to be anything important happening in the next few hours so we left to get a drink and a bite to eat.

We returned to our spot outside Hermione's parents house at about 4.30am to find eveything in the exact same way that we had left it. There was no movement either in the house or in the surrounding area until about 6am when post, milk and a paper all arrived in concession with a maximum of five minutes between the delivery of each. At 9am, by which time Hermione and I were starting to get tired - it would have been 12am in England, Wendall opened the door to pick up the paper, milk and post. We heard the faint noise of a boiling kettle and then a light flickered on in the front room. He sat at the coffee table with a cup of tea and started to read the paper. It was at this point that I noticed that Hermione was crying.

'What's the matter Hermione?'

'He used t-to d-do th-tha-t at home in E-eng-gland t-too', she spluttered. I reached over her shoulders to hug her as best I could in the confined space within which we were stood. 'There's mum', she said suddenly, 'Come on.'

'Hermione, wait. I thought we had a plan?'

'Just go with it Harry.' I silently oblidged and followed her to the front door. She hesitated, took a deep breath and knocked. Her mother answered the door.

'Hi, I was just wondering if my friend would be able to use your toilet?' she said, calmly as ever.

'Of course, do come in', she answered, 'Up the stairs first on the right she said to me'.

'Thanks.'

As I slowly ascended the stairs I heard her offer Hermione a drink. 'Oh, yes please', answered Hermione. 'Obliviate', she muttered. 'Harry, now', she shouted to me. Her father ran to the phone, to call the police I presumed

'Petrificus totalus. Hermione, you should do it.'

'On my way Harry.' She ran into the room, tears streaming down her face but the enourmous smile told me that she had indeed succeeded. Her mother followed closely behong sporting the exact same expression. 

'Good to see you again Harry'.

'Good to see you too Mrs Granger!' I gave her a grin. I walked over to Hermione. 'Are you ok?' I asked, 'Do you need a hand?' She shook her head and took a step backwards to comfort her mother. She took a deep breath and quietly performed the charm.

She stepped backwards and burst into tears.