Jean looked at her husband and the gaze that passed between them spoke volumes as any look between people who've been married over twenty years tended to do. Then she turned back to her daughter and sighed. "No, you're definitely not twelve. In fact we're not sure if you ever were twelve," She and her husband took a seat on the couch across from Hermione. "You've always been older than your years and now even more so."
Hermione nodded. "Now there'll be no more talk about me not returning to Hogwarts and dad, you'll not refer to Harry as 'that boy'."
"How would you pay for it?" Mr. Granger asked as he grasped for anything to argue with. "School I mean."
"Harry would pay for it," Hermione replied with a shrug. "In fact he'll probably insist on paying anyway."
"That b... I mean how?" Mr. Granger asked. "He can't even afford a decent set of clothes."
Hermione smiled. "You are judging a book by its cover dad and should know better," She paused as she spoke to her husband. "Harry I would like to tell my parents a little about your childhood, unfortunately my father is judging my boyfriend by how he looked."
"I trust you, but I don't want their pity."
"Respect is what they will give you," Hermione replied before answering her father. "I told you how Harry lost his parents when he was a baby and the whole boy-who-lived thing."
"Yes, so?"
"He was sent to live with his aunt and uncle; two people who really hate magic. For eleven years he was..." She paused to find the right word and finally settled on, "mistreated. While his cousin received mountains of gifts every year for his birthday and Christmas, Harry received nothing. Even his clothes are his cousin's hand-me-downs. He was never allowed to go anywhere or do anything a child normally does," Hermione took a moment as the surge of memories from Harry's childhood Miranda had given her welled up. "He...he suffered as no child should ever suffer from anyone."
A softness in her mother's eyes told Hermione that she understood what she was trying to say, but her father persisted. "What does this have to do with paying for you school?"
"When Harry joined the magical world he found out about his parents and also found out they left him a small fortune."
"Fortune?" Mr. Granger asked. "So why is he dressed like a vagabond."
"Isn't it obvious Richard," Jean replied to her husband. "He's hiding the money from his relatives so they don't try to take it."
"Exactly, but it's no longer a problem," Hermione said. "His godfather is now his guardian. These are the last couple of days he'll wear those clothes. In fact I'm hoping that we can take him shopping for new clothes," At the look her father was giving she continued. "Dad please just give him a chance. Harry is the kindest person you could ever ask for."
"But..." Her father started but found no words.
"Dear, just how serious is your relationship with the young man?" Jean asked as she repeated the same question she'd ask at King's Cross. "You're only sixteen."
"Actually eighteen, almost nineteen, but you can't know that," Hermione thought. She knew what her mother was thinking; she'd said it in the car. Her mother believed it was only a crush, a school romance. She glanced down at her ring as she ran her thumb over it. Then she looked back at her mother. "I'm sure you know this is a promise ring," She explained. "When Harry put it on my finger he promised that I was his future and I've never known Harry to ever break a promise."
"Hermione.." Her mother started.
"Do not try to make me choose between you and Harry," This time tears had come into Hermione's eyes. "Because though I love both of you dearly, Harry is my future as well."
"Dear," Her mother said, "First love is always a precious thing, but they rarely last. Your father and I, we just don't want you to get hurt," She got up from beside her husband and sat down next to her daughter and put her arm around her. "It's obvious you have your mind made up. It is also obvious that you are going to do what you want and there is very little we can do to stop you, but always know we're here for you," She looked at her husband with a glare that made it perfectly clear he was going to say something as well.
"Yes...well, I'll give the b-, I mean the young man a chance," Richard added grumpily. "Will he be visiting or are you planning on leaving us again this summer as well?"
The tone and words from her father made Hermione gaze sharply at him. It wasn't one he'd said the last time, but then she realized what the issue was. Her parents missed her. She spent nine or ten months of the year away at school and then last summer she'd left for Grimmauld place fairly early and didn't spend Christmas with them. In the last two years, she'd spent less than a month with her parents. She smiled as she wiped the tears away on her sleeve. "Harry wanted me to spend time with you this year," She said. "He knew I hadn't been and it was his idea."
"What idea?" Jean Granger asked.
"Well obviously we want to spend as much time together as possible, but as I said, he wanted me to spend time with you too. Winky, Dobby," Hermione called to thin air and immediately two cracks were heard as the two elves appeared.
Hermione parents jumped to their feet instantly in shock as the small large-eared, large-eyed creatures appeared out of thin air. It was one thing to watch their daughter disappear but entirely another to see something or two things appear from nowhere.
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