Seconds later, Hermione daintily stepped out of the floo with the second auror right on her heels.
Hermione smiled at him over the fact he was still on his feet and said, "You're obviously getting better, Harry."
Before Harry could respond, from where she was sitting at her desk, Marchbanks said, "Welcome Lord Potter, Miss Granger." She ignored the aurors, which was actually the right thing to do.
"Good morning, Lady Headmistress," both replied.
Harry added, "Thank you for agreeing to meet with us, Ma'am."
Giving a smile and nod back, Marchbanks indicated the seats before her desk and said, "Please, sit."
When both did as the two aurors took up positions near the door and to the side of Marchbanks's desk, she said, "I believe you have information for me. However, I believe I am safe to assume it is that you wish to withdraw from Hogwarts."
Somewhat surprised she'd so easily guessed, Harry replied, "Yes, Ma'am. That is exactly what we wished to speak with you about."
She gave a small smile back, seemed to hesitate while she thought something through and then said, "It may interest you to know that I have already been given permission by the School Board to fire Albus Dumbledore for breaching the conditions of his tenure.
"I have not done so, so that I can force him to remain in the school under threat that I will fire him if he keeps stepping out of line.
"Do you know why?"
Hermione gave a gasp of surprise and replied, "You've done that, practically placed him under house arrest, so he cannot bother Harry."
Marchbanks smiled and gave a nod. "If you can work that out, then you should also be able to work out when I am actually going to fire him."
"The day the school re-opens," Hermione promptly replied. "That's very clever."
Marchbanks gave another head tilt to Hermione in recognition and said, "Precisely."
She looked directly at Harry again and said, "I felt, keeping him out of your hair as much as possible was just a little something I could do to thank you for bringing everything to light, as you did."
Harry gave a huff of amusement, smiled and said, "It wasn't a little something, it was a big something. Thank you, for that."
Again, she gave a nod of acceptance. "Now that you're aware that Albus Dumbledore will not be within the castle... or even the grounds... on the day the school re-opens, I hope you might reconsider your unspoken as of yet desire to withdraw from Hogwarts."
After Harry and Hermione stared at one another for a long moment, where to Harry it was clear Hermione really wanted to return to the school, he turned back and said, "There's still the issue of Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes. I know Dumbledore can use him to flame travel―"
Marchbanks had raised her hand in a stop gesture and appeared to be smirking. That's what stopped Harry, mid sentence.
"Fawkes has broken his bond with Albus, remember?" she simply said. "I believe both that it was published in the Daily Prophet and that it had a lot to do with something you sent him."
Harry groaned about forgetting about the severed Phoenix bond but, on hearing it had something to do with something he'd sent the old git, both teens looked back with both hope and confusion. Marchbanks withdrew from under her desk blotter a sheet of parchment. And handed it to Harry.
When he accepted it and turned it to read it, he recognised it was the letter he'd sent Dumbledore after the old man tried to abduct him via portkey.
Looking up in shock he asked, "You confirm it then? My letter caused Fawkes to break the bond?"
She grinned and replied, "I believe it was Dumbledore's reaction to the letter that caused Fawkes to break the bond."
Harry gave a snort of amusement and continued to look down at the letter. That's when he remembered something. "Headmistress, do you mind if I take a copy of this? My prospective father-in-bond wanted a copy of it."
After Harry handed the letter back, Marchbanks created the copy and, without a word, handed it to Harry.
"Now, without Fawkes's aid, Dumbledore cannot enter the school," said Marchbanks.
Hermione cut in and asked, "What about the tunnels?"
Marchbanks froze, turned a direct look on Hermione and quietly asked, "Tunnels?"
Hermione gave a nod and said, "There's the tunnel that goes from under the Whomping Willow out on the grounds halfway between the mains doors of the castle and the front gate. That one goes into the basement of the shrieking shack. Dumbledore built that one back in the early 1970's.
"Then there's the one that goes from behind the hump-backed witch statue on the third floor to the basement of Honeydukes. No idea how long that one's been there. Or the one behind the statue of Gregory the Smarmy on the second floor."
Harry nodded and added, "There are others. I'll spend time later today, back at where we're staying, to write up a small report on all the ones I know of and see to it being handed to you later this afternoon."
With a rather intense focus on both teens she gave a slow nod and said, "That would be most helpful. Yes."
Harry said, "Consider it done."
"Harry," Hermione quietly piped up. "Without Dumbledore being able to enter the school..."
Harry thought for a long few moments and finally said, "We'll discuss it with your parents and with Sirius. You're still a minor, Hermione. It's their decision to make for you."
"And if they say yes?" she pressed.
Harry gave her a quelling look and firmly replied, "Then that is something we will discuss then."
Embarrassed, Hermione blushed and looked away. "Of course. Sorry."
She knew, but had in her excitement forgotten, she could not press this new Harry into a hasty decision.
_‗_
―==(oIo)==―
ˇ
After spending a little more time with Marchbanks, where she told them of many of the changes in staffing and what would be the required behaviour of staff and students, the two teens returned via floo to the Granger residence.
As soon as they did, Harry took Hermione aside for another 'talking to'.
"Hermione, you have to start to think about not pressing matters when we're in public," he firmly chastised her. "You knew you overstepped when you did it and you must curb that. Each time you do it, you make me look weak. And, as a daughter of Black now, you bring disrespect to Sirius each time."
With a sigh and with her eyes cast down, Hermione replied, "Sorry, Harry." Looking back up she added, "I'm just so excited about the idea we can return to Hogwarts, after all."
"I get that," he nodded. "But, you still need to curb your enthusiasm so it doesn't diminish your manners, alright?"
She nodded.
A moment later she smirked, leaned in, planted a tonsil-searing kiss on him and asked, "Am I forgiven?"
Trying to get his sudden blush under control after the near-eroticism of the kiss, he croaked, "Yes."
As she openly grinned back in mischief he added, "You're a bad girl for trying to distract me, like that."
"Trying?" she asked.
With a snort of amusement he grinned and replied, "Alright; actually distracting me like that."
Steering him towards the dinette, she allowed her hand to slip into his elbow and moved them forward. "Come - now we're likely to be attending Hogwarts, after all - we have planning to do."
As they walked, he gave a nod and said, "And I need to pull out the Map so I can list down all the tunnels at Hogwarts and send them off to our new Headmistress."
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