It\'s All Done With Mirrors

Chapter Two
Blast from the Past


The Leaky Cauldron, August 2010

But he didn\'t come, did he? He didn\'t love you, after all. And you just sneaked off, didn\'t you, Hermione? Without even saying goodbye to Harry, or Dumbledore, or McGonnagall, or Flitwick, or even -

\"HAGRID!\"

\"Well! If it ain\'t little \'Mione!\" The huge man fairly knocked me sideways as he grabbed my arm and started pumping it up and down, like it was one of the pistons from the Hogwarts Express. Shaking hands with Hagrid is always a little like being swung around hur hurricane - but I forgave him, of course. It was too marvellous just to see him, and to be wrapped suddenly in his arms and be on the receiving end of one of his bone-crushing hugs.

To save my ribs from certain pulverisation I pulled away and dragged him to the table by the window. Arid-rid-sized armchair was there, and I took a seat on the bench. For the first time in what seems like years, I was grinning like an 11-year-old.

\"But how are yeh? And where\'ve yeh been? Last I \'eard yeh was married to\" -

\"I still am.\" I changed the subject, hurriedly, as there was certain stuff I just couldn\'t face talking about. Like \'the past twelve years\' kind of stuff. \"Hagrid, are you still at Hogwarts?\"

\"I am indeed, Hermione, and yeh\'ll never guess what?\" he paused, and drew himself up even higher.

\"You\'ve been offered the position of Broomstick Mistress?\" I couldn\'t help that - it just slipped out.

\"Now, \'Mione, don\'t be daft. How\'s a huge fellow like me goin\' to get onto a broomstick? No. I would\'ve told yeh, but young \'Arry said...\"

\"Oh, come on, Hagrid! Just tell me!\"

\'This is the best day of my life,\' I thought happily. \'If only I didn\'t have to go home to *him* at the end of it.\'

\"Well, I would\'ve invited yeh to the wedding\" - my eyes widened - \"to Olympe Maxime, yeh remember her from Beauxbatons?\"

I nodded, smiling. How could I forget Madame Maxime, who was Hagrid\'s match in every way?

\"Well, we was married eight years ago, when she took early retirement from Beauxbatons, it took a lot of string-pullin\' from the Ministry, but we managed to get a license ter marry and also...\"

He paused, fumbling in his voluminous robes and pulled out a grubby envelope with string tied round it. And when he finally managed to untie the string from around the battered parchment, out slipped a photograph.

I took another sip of my firewhiskey. There was Hagrid, with a prouokinoking Olympe, and peeping from their robes were four faces. I was looking at the most wonderfully happy, smiling, grubby faces I had seen in years.

\"That one\'s Tempus, the big lad yeh see there. The two girls, they\'re twins, Olympe named em Verity an\' Prudence but they like Vera an\' Prue...an\' the little lad yeh can see there, he\'s called Xavier Albus Neville Harry Ronald.\"

Hagrid had the grace to look up apologetically. I swallowed, and smiled weakly, and he continued, \"Xav, for short, eh? As yeh might \'ave guessed, eh, \'Mione?\"

I felt my eyes welling up with tears. Hagrid looked alarmed, but I managed to smile through them enough to dispel his worried frown.

\"They\'re all beautiful, Hagrid. You must be so proud! Where do you all live?\"

\"At Hogwarts, of course! Minerva transfigured my little cabin into a great big place, with loads o\' room, and Olympe has taken over the Care o\' Magical Creatures lessons, although I get to muck in wi\' that whenever I want to!\"

He beams his big gentle smile, and I felt transported back to happier times. \"The girls are pretty good wi\' Xav. Though he does wander about where he shouldn\'t - nearly got whomped by the Whomping Willow only last week, Prue was so mad she pinched my umbrella and sent Xav flyin\' up onto the roof of the cabin so she could keep an eye on \'im! And Tempus,\" he took a deep breath, and out of sympathy so did I, \"is apprenticed to me as a future Gamekeeper!\"

That reminds me. \"Hagrid,\" I intoned, sweetly, \"are there other apprentices at Hogwarts?\"

\"Well now, let me see...Argus Filch took on Millicent Bulstrode\'s little brother, that was at the beginnin\' of the summer. He\'ll not do badly, shame \'e\'s a Squib, there was a lot o\' nastiness when that was discovered. Family disowned \'im, poor little bugg - sorry, young \'Mione - little beggar.\"

I nodded. I hoped he wouldn\'t turn into another Filch. The bitter old man had scared me all the way through Hogwarts. Not to mention the fact that he nearly caught me up to mischief every night of the week during my final year.

I listened to Hagrid as he rattled on: Madame Pince had apprenticed a Ravenclaw girl I think I might have gone to school with, but most laughable of all, Lavender Brown had been apprenticed to Sibyl Trelawney.

\"Professor McGonnagall is now the \'Eadmistress, of course, now that Professor Dumbledore\'s retired. Don\'t yeh look upset, now, \'Mione. That Wizard\'s earnt his rest, and at any rate, he\'s still up at Hogwarts, lendin\' the staff a hand wi\' a few things.\" He drank from a huge tankard of Butterbeer, and grinned suddenly. \"I know the Deputy \'Eadmaster\'s had ter push \'im out o\' the Potions Lab on several occasions. Got this idea in \'is head, did Dumbledore, that he\'d go an\' work for George an\' Fred...\"

Back to reality again, I took another sip of firewhiskey. The Deputy Headmaster, the Potions Lab, the advertisement...again, I was reminded that I should really be spending the day looking for a job.

Hagrid seemed to sense my mood change, and drained his tankard. \"Well, little \'Mione, I\'d best be gettin\' along. I\'ve promised young Xav I\'d ask Professor Dumbledore to teach \'im to read.\" He stood up, and so did I. He put a huge finger under my chin, and lifted my face. \"Take care now, won\'t yeh? Jus\' remember, yeh can always change yer life...and there\'ll always a place for yeh at Hogwarts...\"

He trailed off. I must have been looking at him strangely, because he then turned away, muttering \"Shouldn\'t \'ave said that.\"

Sometimes I wonder if he says that on purpose. It\'s always made me unspeakably inquisitive.


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Still the Leaky Cauldron, ten minutes later.

I sighed with trepidation as I opened the rolls of parchment that Honky had brought over.

Squinting, I discarded the first one. It was the Hogwarts advert. I grumbled at the waste of parchment - silly Elf had written it so large it covered the whole roll. I crumpled it up and threw it into the fire.

And the next one. Daft creature had copied out the Hogwarts advert again.

And again.

And again.

The whole bloody lot of them, in actual fact.

I put my head in my hands. \"That\'s what you get,\" I muttered, \"for trying to get someone else to do your dirty work. You\'ll just have to go out and stand in front of Flourish and Blotts again, and go through the whole list.\"

Getting up, I shoved my satchel onto my shoulder and wandered over to the bar to pay Tom for the drinks.


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Diagon Alley, August 2010

Outside, it was August-hot, and there wasn\'t a cloud in the sky. I leaned against a wall, eating a pumpkin pasty, enjoying the warmth of the sun soaking through my robes. Children ran riot everywhere, and among them I could see older Wizards and Witches moving slowly, laden with purchases, and - if I may say so - looking slightly supercilious. As if they\'d never felt that excitement before...as if they\'d never received that letter inviting them to Hogwarts!

I pulled out my compact - an heirloom from my grandmother, to check my teeth for visible residues of pasty. A movement across the street interrupted my dental duty, however, and I watched with scorn as a tall Wizard held the arm of a young boy. He appeared to be ticking him off for some reason. The poor lad\'s hair hung over his face as he bowed his head. I couldn\'t see the Wizard\'s face, but by the tense set of his shoulders I could have bet he didn\'t remember what it was like to be small and excited. Huh.

~ And you? Do you remember, Hermione? An hour or so ago you were sitting in the Leaky Cauldron glugging down alcohol like there was no tomorrow, glad to be out of the way of all those children. ~

I was startled again by that silken voice in my head. It made my head swim...and sounded strangely familiar, yet...not familiar enough, like an old favourite album played at a different speed. Shaking my head, I looked over to where the young boy who had been given a bollocking still stood, a Chocolate Frog halfway into his mouth. The older Wizard was nowhere to be seen.

Thinking that nostalgia is all very nice, but was unlikely to get me a job. I snapped my compact shut with a decisive click, and headed towards the other end of Diagon Alley.

I went into Flourish and Blotts to buy some more parchment. Honky poked her head round the corner and I treated her to one of my indignant glares. She vanished. I smiled. \'That\'ll teach her to waste my time,\' I thought grimly. \'If she hadn\'t wanted to write out the damn adverts, she could have just said.\'

Outside Flourish and Blotts, the window was completely devoid of advertising cards. A House Elf, not Honky though, whistled a rude little tune as he soaped the window opaque.

Oh, bollocks.

\"Have the positions all been filled?\" I asked the Elf. \'Oh, I am such an idiot, idiot girl for wasting time in the pub!\' I berated myself.

\"Pardon Noggy, Mistress. Noggy is a little deaf.\"

I really did not have the energy for this. I was close to tears, surrounded by children -

Don\'t go there, I pleaded with myself.

And I was about to go home with no job. To *him*.

I turned my face up to the sky, and whispered a charm to dry my tears. I thought I\'d felt someone touch my robes, but when I looked down, it was only that little boy, still munching on his Chocolate Frog, brushing past me without, seemingly, a care in the world.