15: Confronting the Dursleys

Chapter 15: Confronting the Dursleys

Hermione watched Harry, Ginny and Ron play Exploding Snap for most of the trip back to King's Cross, forming plans in her mind. From time to time she interrupted the game to ask Harry questions, making a mental list of things to do. Prioritizing and changing the order, calculating odds.

By the time they got off the train at the station that evening, she had everything lined up in a row...or very nearly.

"I probably should have warned my mum I'm going home with you," Ron said to Harry. "You too, Hermione."

"No, I'm going home for a couple days." Hermione adjusted the cat carrier and tugged the trunk onto its wheels.

"I thought you were coming with us. You agreed." Ron looked surprised and confused.

Harry just gave her a speculative look. "What's forming in that brilliant mind of yours?"

"I have to spend a couple days with my parents. They've been worried sick about me, and I've a few other things to arrange. I can meet you there Saturday though. I've some books to buy, research to do, plans to arrange. If you need anything, Ron can Apparate to my place, or you can send Hedwig." Hermione nudged Ron forward as he was still gaping at her. "Everyone is waiting for us, and after the delicious encounter we're about to have with the Dursleys, I need to have a chat with your dad, Ron."

"Did you just say delicious?" Harry asked. He narrowed his green eyes at her.

"Oh, yes, I'm going to enjoy it immensely." After everything they had done to Harry over the years, there was little she wanted more than a chance to put them in their place. Now she had reached her majority, she was in a position to do so, if they forced her to it.

When they came out of the passageway to the Muggle side of the station, Hermione's parents were waiting nearby. She rushed into their arms, giving hugs and kisses, offering assurances and asking how they were. Arthur stood nearby where he had been talking to her parents, and Hermione looked about for the twins. Thankfully, they weren't there, or she might have been forced to hex them on sight. It would be much more interesting, not to mention private, if she could catch them at home or work. She doubted she would dare to be as inventive in public as she might with fewer observers.

As the Weasleys began tugging at Ron's trunk, he cleared his throat and looked at Harry, then over to his parents. "Um, I thought you should know, I plan to spend some time at the Dursleys' with Harry. The next few weeks at least."

Vernon Dursley was standing nearby and turned beet red at the possibility. "You most certainly are not. You are not invited to my house. It is bad enough having him live with us without you inviting yourself over." He stalked over to the group so he could talk in a lower voice, hoping not to attract attention.

"I'll be joining Ron and Harry in a few days myself. Well, two, actually. I'll be by sometime Saturday morning with my things."

"But, Hermione, we've just got you home again." Jane Granger seemed unhappy with the idea.

"You? I don't know where you think you're going to stay, Missy. We've not the room for the other one. Where do you think you'll sleep? Dudley has the only other bedroom." Vernon looked apoplectic now.

Holding back a grin, Hermione pretended to be considering his question; she had been hoping he'd bring that up. "Well, there is always the cupboard under the stairs. Dudley could sleep there. After all, I'll only be there a few weeks, and Harry slept there for years."

Harry's lips twitched while Vernon's mouth moved but made no sound. Then Harry stepped in, obviously relishing the moment. "I'm afraid Dudley would never fit. I've not slept there for years, you know, and Dudley is at least four times my size. It's doubtful he could fit through the door."

Hermione tapped her lips with the tip of her finger and made a humming noise. "That is a consideration. Well, we'll work something out. So I'll be over before lunch Saturday..."

"YOU WILL NOT!" Vernon finally exploded.

Staying perfectly calm, and affecting a puzzled expression, Hermione answered, "Of course I will. I just said I would, didn't I? So how about we shoot for eleven, and I'll let you know if anything changes."

"YOU ARE NOT COMING TO MY HOUSE! WHAT WOULD I TELL THE NEIGHBORS?"

"Good question. You could always tell people the truth, that we're school chums of Harry's."

"No, I'm afraid that won't work," Harry said with a wave of his hand. "Everyone in the neighborhood thinks I go to a school for incurably criminal boys. You aren't a boy, Hermione."

"Yeah, and I don't think I want the whole neighborhood to think I'm a criminal either," Ron said.

"Right. So I guess we'll have to be relatives. We can be distant cousins who haven't seen Harry since he was a baby. Of course, we all would have been babies at that point. But anyway, now that we're growing up, the Dursleys have kindly allowed us to spend a few weeks visiting our cousin." Hermione had planned to take this course of action from the beginning, but couldn't help poking at Vernon a bit first.

"You're no relation of mine. I will never agree to that." Vernon's tone had dropped as he noticed all the speculative looks shooting his way. "And besides, neither of you two are coming with Harry. It's bad enough I had to raise him without having more of your lot in my home. What would I tell people about your families?"

"Ron's father works for the government, and my parents are dentists. What could be more normal than that? Besides, we wouldn't want to be known to be related to you any more than you'd relish the thought of being related to us. We're related to Harry on his father's side. And the bit about being distant relatives, Mrs. Weasley, aren't the Potters tied into your family somewhere?"

"Yes, of course, dear. James would have been my fourth cousin three times removed on my mother's side, and our second cousin once removed through marriage on Arthur's father's side."

"See, we are related!" Ron brightened at this thought and pounded Harry on the back.

"Perfect. Can't claim any wizard blood myself, but that should be good enough for anyone else. So, back to the issues at hand. Can we fit both boys' trunks in your car Mr. Dursley?"

"No need," Ron said before Vernon could answer. "We packed our things so the stuff we need right away is all in Harry's trunk and our extra books and stuff is in mine. My parents can take it home for me, and if I need some of it, I'll just pop over and pick it up."

"You won't be popping anywhere in my neighborhood," Vernon said with venom oozing from his voice. His eyes were starting to look a bit wild, however, as though he was trying to figure out how to bully his way out of this without getting hexed.

All this time Petunia had been standing by, watching the exchange like someone at a tennis game, her mouth hanging open in surprise at the young witch's gall and presumption. "That's right, he can't just pop back and forth between his house and ours. You can't do magic outside of school."

"Oh, but you see," Hermione said with a feral grin, fingering her wands so just the tip protruded from her sleeve where the Dursleys could see it. "Ron and I are of age, which means we can do all the magic we want. And on his birthday Harry...who is, I might add, a very powerful wizard...he'll be able to do magic too. And we know some rather imaginative curses."

"Hermione's a natural. She can do spells on her first try that fully qualified wizards take a lot of practice to perfect," Ron said. "And I've always said she's a bit scary."

Hermione brightened as if thrilled with the compliment. "That's true. You always have said that, haven't you?"

"Hermione Granger!" Her mother interrupted. "I did not raise my daughter to speak to her elders like this. Never mind virtual strangers."

"Sorry, Mum, but you didn't raise me to ignore injustice either, and the way these people have neglected and abused Harry is just beyond belief."

"I never laid a hand on him," Vernon said, though his eyes nearly bugged out at the suggestion.

Hermione leveled a long look at him. "Not all abuse is physical. Locking a teenager in his bedroom with little food for weeks and only letting him out for bathroom breaks does fit in most people's ideas of abuse. I wonder what your neighbors would think if they knew Harry wasn't a criminal and didn't attend a school for incurably criminal boys. There are lots of things we could tell the neighbors."

"Magical secrecy, Hermione," Arthur Weasley reminded her.

Molly Weasley's face was a mix of amusement and panic as she vacillated between enjoying the Dursleys' discomfort and worrying things might get out of hand.

"Yes, of course. Well, there are ways of shocking the neighbors without bringing magic into the mix. Of course, if the Dursleys only put up with our visit for a few weeks, we promise to keep to ourselves, stay out of their hair and not speak overmuch to their neighbors."

"That's blackmail," Vernon said.

"That's a promise." Hermione crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. She nearly smiled when she realized she was doing an apt impression of her husband.

"Very well." Vernon clenched his teeth. "See that you bring no attention to yourselves."

"Agreed." Since it's really not in our best interest to bring attention to ourselves anyway.

The Dursleys muttered as they stalked back to their car, Ron and Harry following right behind them. Hermione smirked, then turned to the Weasleys, who were arranging Ginny's trunk along with Ron's. "Mr. Weasley, can I speak with you for a minute? I have a quick question or two."

"Yes, of course. You go along, Molly." Arthur looked impressed and a bit bewildered. Molly Weasley turned to Ginny and helped her with her truck.

"Mum and Dad, I'll be right out to the car. Promise I won't be more than a couple minutes."

Jane Granger lifted an eyebrow at her daughter and gave her a look that indicated there would be lots of explaining going on in the next few hours. "Don't be long."

Holding back a sigh, Hermione turned back to Arthur, and they began walking out of the train station. When she was sure no one was paying attention to them, Hermione began. "I have just a couple quick questions and requests, if you can help us out. First, is Mrs. Figg's Floo connected to the network?"

"Yes, has been forever."

"Great. Harry's too young to Apparate, so I figured we may have to do some Flooing to get around here and there. Second, can you let the Ministry know that Ron and I will be living at the Dursleys for the foreseeable future and that any magic coming from that location is ours, not Harry's?"

"Of course, though they have already placed an Auror near his house for the time being to protect him. What else, Hermione?"

Aurors. Wonderful. That should make things interesting. "Well, I've been thinking. I know the Dursleys only have the three bedrooms, but I figured if you could see about borrowing one of those tents that we used for the Quidditch World Cup, I could stay in the back yard. That would alleviate some of the space issues and give the three of us somewhere private to talk, once I've applied appropriate wards to the tent, of course."

Arthur smiled "Got it all figured out, have you?"

"Not quite, but I'm getting there. One more question; are the twins still living above their shop?"

"Yes, though Molly has had them coming home at night the past few days. This whole thing has spooked her, you know. I don't imagine it will last much longer."

Hermione's smile grew feral. "What time do they get up in the morning? I have a bit of unfinished business I need to conduct with them."

Arthur looked as though he wasn't sure he wanted to answer her, but did so anyway. "They get up around eight."

"Great. Expect me about 7:30. Oh, and tell Molly I'd be happy to help her with the wedding in any way she may need."

"Right. I'll see about that tent when we get home tonight."

"I'd appreciate it."

They walked out into the hot and humid evening air. Hermione said goodbye to Mr. Weasley before turning toward the aisle where her mother stood waving her over.

"What was that all about?" her mother asked when they fell into step together.

"Just some housekeeping items." She looked over at her mother and noticed the dark smudges under the woman's eyes. That made Hermione feel worse than her recent bout against Vernon Dursley ever would. She hated that she caused her parents so much stress. "I'm sorry I've made you worry so much. I know the past couple days must have been horrible for you. I just couldn't leave before the funeral. I couldn't."

"I know that, honey. I can't imagine what you've been through, having your professor attack your Headmaster like that. That Snape must be a deeply horrible person."

"Funny how that keeps coming up." And now I really can't introduce my parents to him. How would I ever explain, even if I decide he's not quite as guilty as he appears? What have I gotten myself into?

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AN: This chapter was so much fun to write. I hope you enjoy it too! Thanks to my reviewers, and thanks again to my beta, MaevePotter!