Chapter 19 The Party

The week flew by, and Hydrus was a bit nervous. He had never really dated, not in this timeline or the last. The closest he had was the disastrous date with Cho and a few innocent ones with Ginny. He spent a good amount of time that week berating himself for getting worked up over someone he didn't really know and a date that wasn't really a date. He thought a lot on how he was going to react if her charge was Hermione. He was hopeful that if it was both the kids would get on well.

The weekend came and they were settled down to a breakfast of fruit crepes. Harry was tearing his thin pancakes apart and eating the sweet fruit inside, though keeping the mess to a minimum. He was getting really good with silverware and quite proud of that fact.

"So, ready for the big date?" Sirius teased with a wink as he sat in his chair and dished up some of the crepes. He had been ribbing the immortal all week.

"It's not a date," Hydrus snapped for the hundredth time, even though he had dressed nice for a day in the park. He was wearing a blue polo shirt, which brought out his grey contacts, and new black slacks.

"What's a date?" came the innocent question from the almost five year old, who was done with his fruit and picking at the rest.

"It is when two people who like each other share some time together," Remus answered, taking a sip of his tea.

"Like me and Neville? Or me and the 'easleys?"

"Those are play dates, which is technically a date, but not the kind we are talking about," the werewolf explained. "What your Uncle Padfoot is talking about is when two adults spend time together."

"Like all of you? You spend lots of time toget'er" Harry asked, still confused.

"Together," his uncle Hydrus corrected. "No, it's usually a man and a woman. We," he pointed at himself and the other two men, "spend time together because we're family."

"Ewww, you mean a girl?" the boy asked as he wrinkled his nose.

"Hey, I like girls," Sirius answered with a barking laugh. "You know Laura, right? You see her all the time. She and I date. I take her to dinner or a show and we spend time together." He wiggled his eyebrows, causing the other two men to groan and Harry to look more confused.

"Yeah, but, Laura isn't a girl. She's an adult," Harry said, firm in his belief that women weren't as icky as girls. Besides, Laura gives him hugs and candy.

"I won't tell her you said that," Sirius teased, mussing up the tyke's hair.

"Didn't I tell you, you're going to meet a new friend today?" Hydrus asked, tilting his head to the side. He was sure he told Harry that he was going to meet a girl.

"Yeah."

"Well the friend you're going to meet is a girl," the immortal said. Then firmed his voice and added, "You will be nice."

"Ewww, really?" again with the scrunched up face.

"Just give it a chance. I hear she really likes to read. You guys can talk about books," Hydrus offered in a much gentler tone. "Or you could play on the gym or swings for a while."

The green-eyed boy gave a heavy sigh and nodded his head. His Uncle Hydrus told him he had to be nice to everyone, unless they were mean first. "Is Neville tummin'?"

"Not this time. And it's coming not tumming," the eldest Black corrected.

"Otay," another sigh and the child turned back to his breakfast.

"Okay."

"O-kay."

The family finished their breakfast and got cleaned up. They donned their jackets and went to the park. Grace wasn't there yet, so Harry went to play with the few kids on the playground. Sirius sat with Hydrus and they talked about business. Remus stayed home, as usual, because he wanted to get some work done.

A half an hour had passed when the two men heard a small argument between and adult female and a little girl.

"But, why do I have to come to the park?" a determined child's voice asked.

"Hermione, we've been over this. You need to go and play every now and then or you'll get sick," was the exasperated reply.

The two came into view and Hydrus's breath stuck. He didn't realize it would affect him so to see the young version of his friend. Yet, there she was, her hair not quite as bushy and her front teeth not yet as pronounced. But there was no doubt it was Hermione. His eyes watered a bit, seeing the girl so young and full of life. He had fleeting thoughts as to what his Hermione was doing in the other timeline. Was she well? Did she set up dates for George like she said she would? Was her job still just as rewarding? Was she still befriending her parents? Seeing this younger version of her made him miss his best friend all the more.

It had sorta been like that the first time he saw the twins. Seeing Fred alive made the nightmares of the war come back for a week. Listening to the two of them finish each other's sentences had brought back memories and he had to see his counselor weekly for a month after that. He wondered if the same was going to happen now.

Triggers it was called, he knew them well after being back he had a few. This however was the most emotional he had gotten since his return. Hermione had been a bigger part of his life than anyone alive. She had been his anchor. He stood there trying to pull himself together, making a mental note to call the clinic.

"You don't have to play if you don't want to, but you need to be in the sun," Grace continued the argument; bringing Hydrus back to the present. Sirius gave him an inquisitive look and the immortal just shook his head and mouthed 'later'.

"I can be in the sun in the back garden," the child snapped, hugging her book closer to her chest as if it were a shield.

"Hermione, sweetie, try to make some friends," the blonde woman cooed, running her hand over her charges hair in a soothing gesture.

The little girl looked over the playground and her nose scrunched. "They're all boys." She hugged her book tighter and stomped her foot. "Boys are mean. They always make fun of me," she added with a sad tone.

"No, look there are some girls by the swings," the nanny corrected, pointing to the group of girls playing in the sandbox.

Hermione looked at the group with a bit of longing, but she didn't have any good memories of girls either.

Grace looked up and saw the two Blacks and a smile lit her face. "Come on, there's some people I want you to meet. Then if you want you can go and read under that tree over there," she said pointing to a large oak, just outside the playground near the benches.

The two females made their way to where the men sat. Hydrus and Sirius stood as they approached.

"Grace, it's good to see you again," Hydrus said as he took her hand and bussed the knuckles. "This is my cousin, Sirius," he said waving to the man on his left.

"Pleasure," Sirius said, also kissing the hand offered to him.

"Hydrus, it's good to see you as well," she giggled, making Hermione roll her eyes. "Sirius, it's nice to meet you. This is my charge, Hermione," Grace added pulling the upset girl forward. Hermione merely glared at the two men as if it were their fault she had to be there. Hydrus looked at the younger version of his friend and gave her a soft smile. "Hermione, be nice. Where is Harry?" she asked looking around. "I want to introduce them."

"Oi, Harry, come here a minute," Sirius called to the dark-haired boy. Hydrus, once again, pulled himself together.

"Tummin'" the child replied as he broke away from the group of boys and ran to his uncles.

"Harry," the immortal said when the boy was closer, "this is Grace and her charge, Hermione. Be nice."

"Otay," the boy pouted. "Hi. It is nice to meet ya," he added shyly.

"Oh, aren't you adorable," Grace said sweetly and knelt down to his level and held out her hand. When Harry shook it, like he'd been taught, she stood and said, "Harry, this it Hermione." Introducing her again and indicating the bushy-haired girl. "Hermione, this is Harry." She gave the boy another soft smile.

"Pleasure," Hermione said, ducking behind Grace. She didn't have a good history meeting other kids, they always teased her.

"Do you want to tum and play pirates with us?" Harry asked, peeking around the adult woman's legs.

"I've never played pirates before. Do you act like real pirates? I've read all about them and they are not nice people." She shuddered at the thought of boys and swords.

"Nay, it's all make-believe," Harry waved off her concern. "We're being good pirates and rescuin' 'amsels in atressed," he said with a huge smile. "You can be who we rescue."

"Don't you mean damsels in distress?" Hermione asked, thinking the boy must be stupid if he couldn't talk right.

"That's what I said," the green-eyed boy said, a bit confused.

"Hermione, what did I tell you about correcting people your age?" chided Grace as she gently lifted the girls face to look at her.

"That I'm smarter than most people my age and I have to be nice to them," quoted the bookworm. "But how are they going to learn if no one corrects them?"

"That is up to their parents or in this case his uncles. You're still a little girl and if you want to make friends you shouldn't correct people," Grace said softly, running her hands over that bushy hair. She always worried about the little genius making friends. The girl will start school soon and she wouldn't need a nanny anymore, so Grace was trying to instill some values on her before she left.

"Wow," Harry said, breaking the heavy mood, "are you really that smart? You read and everythin'? I am learnin' how to spell, and my Uncle Hydrus," he pointed to the oldest Black, "says I'm really good at talking for a four and a half year old." He puffed out his little chest and beamed with pride.

"That you are, Harry," the time traveler said, ruffling the ever messy hair.

"So, do you want to play with us?" Harry asked again.

"As long as I don't have to get dirty," Hermione sighed and handed her book to Grace.

The two children ran to the playground and Harry was introducing Hermione with wild arm gestures as the adults looked on.

"I'll go and make sure they play nice," Sirius said, with a devious grin, not fooling Hydrus for one minute.

"Thank you, Sirius. I do so worry about her," Grace sighed as she sat.

Hydrus sat next to her and there was an uncomfortable silence. Then he started a conversation about his business, keeping it non-magical. Grace told him that she would be leaving the Grangers when Hermione went to school. And the two talked for an hour, keeping an eye on the children. Hydrus asked why Hermione wasn't being homeschooled if she was so intelligent.

"Her parents want her to be around children her own age. They tried daycare, but Hermione was so far ahead of the rest of the kids that they teased her horribly. They hired me to try and curb her tendencies to always be the best, but it is in her nature," Grace sighed, feeling like she failed the child. "They feel that she has learned enough that they want to try again."

"Well, that can't be helped. Perhaps they should look into therapy. I speak from experience that it can do remarkable things," the immortal offered that secret softly.

Grace nodded her head to show she heard, but decided this wasn't the place to discuss such secrets. "I'll bring it up, but I doubt they will. They're so sure that it'll make her a better person if she just learns to live with the taunts," the young blonde sighed again. "The Grangers are good people, they just…" she trailed off, not sure how to explain her employers, without making them out to be bad.

"I get it," Hydrus said, patting her hand. "I'm sure they're lovey parents."

"Well, I'm hoping for the best. Now, is Harry going to school? You mentioned homeschooling," she said, taking her hand back with a blush. And the two talked about the benefits and the downfalls of homeschooling a child.

Suddenly there were loud voices from the jungle gym. "That's not right," came the bossy tone of a bushy-haired young girl. "According to the stories, you're supposed to untie me, throw me over your shoulder and take me away," she said from her place in the middle of the gym.

"I'm not big enough to put you on my shoulder," a blond-haired boy snapped. He looked to be a few years older than the other kids, so he probably thought he was in charge.

"Whoa," came Sirius's voice. "I'm big enough. I'll rescue the fair maiden," he said holding up his hands to prevent the argument from going further. He then proceeded to approach the girl tied up with what looked like a jacket.

"Oh, yes, well, I guess that works," Hermione stammered. It wasn't in her experience to have adults play with children. Grace had tried to get her to play with dolls and such, but she liked her stories and was unrelenting in her stance. This was the first time her nanny made her come to the park to play. Usually they just sat quietly and talked or read. And the playing continued until the fair maiden was placed next to the large tree. Hermione decided she had played enough for one day and came and demanded her book.

"You did very well, Hermione. I'm so very proud of you," Grace said with a big smile as she handed the book over.

"I actually had fun, maybe boys aren't as stupid as I thought," the little girl conceded as she took her book and went to read.

The boys played until lunch and Hydrus and Grace talked of nonessential things, while Hermione read her book. Finally it was time for everyone to go home.

"Harry has other play dates scheduled, however, we can come here on the last weekend of the month and meet up," Hydrus said softly. "It was great talking to you."

"I think we'll like that, maybe Hermione will learn more about playing with children the more we come," Grace said with a smile. "Here's my phone number, try to call in the evening after bedtime," she added as she rummaged through her purse for a pen and paper. She had her own phone in her room for privacy.

"If you have an extra piece of paper, I'll give you mine and you can call me anytime," the immortal offered. So the two exchanged phone numbers, Grace blushing the entire time, then she gathered up her charge and went home. Harry and Sirius joined the time traveler at the bench.

"I'm hungry," whined the youngest.

"Let's go home and eat. I'm really proud of you, Harry, you did good," Hydrus said, kneeling down to Harry's level.

"She's not bad, for a girl. She even let us tie her up," the child said beaming, proud of his new friend.

"That's wonderful. It takes a special girl to allow that," his uncle said as he stood and led them to the car.

"Next time can we bring Neville, or maybe the twins?"

"We'll talk about it when we get home."

They made it home and had a hearty lunch of cold chicken and a salad. The immortal led his younger self to the living room.

"Sit for a minute, Harry," Hydrus said as he sat on the sofa, pointing to the recliner and waited for the child to get comfortable. "You know we have to keep magic a secret from those that don't know about it, right?"

Harry nodded with a confused look, he hadn't told anyone about magic unless it was make-believe.

"Neville and Weasleys know this too, but all of you are very young and it is easy to let it slip that your family can do things that non-magicals can't do," his uncle explained, making Harry roll his eyes.

"I'm not 'tupid," the big boy said.

"Stupid. And I didn't say you were, I said you were young,"

"I played all day and didn't say anythin' about magic," Harry defended himself with a pout.

"I know, and I'm proud of you. I just don't want people to get mad at you if they think you're fibbing," Hydrus said. "Anyway, Hermione is a witch, but she doesn't know that, so you can't say anything unless you see her do accidental magic. Then you bring her to me or Sirius and we'll explain it to her and her parents."

"Is she really?" Harry asked excitedly and then his face morphed back into the confusion. "But why can't I tell her?"

"Well, the law says we can't tell her unless we see her do something magical," his uncle stated.

"That's 'tupid," the boy protested.

"I know, but it's the law," Hydrus agreed, not correcting the mispronounced word.

"Otay, can I go play now?" Harry asked. Grownups had too many stupid rules to learn.

"Yes, but if you have any questions come and ask any of us," Hydrus sighed, this didn't go the way he wanted. He was expecting more questions, but four and a half year olds had the attention span of a gnat.

"Otay," Harry said as he got down and ran up the stairs, until his uncle yelled at him and then he slowed down and made his way to his room.

"So," Sirius said as he claimed the recliner, "that's your plan, telling the Grangers that Hermione is a witch as soon as you see magic. Do you plan on telling Grace? She's not family to the girl so technically you'd be breaking the law."

"I know and it'll only be if we start something romantic that I'll tell her. She's a good person, and I'd like to get to know her better," the immortal sighed as he ran his hand down his face. Dating a non-magical was always touchy. The laws about it were confusing at best. He'd have to get in touch with his lawyer to make sure when and what he could tell her, if needs must.

"And if she's the one to see the magic?" came the gentle inquiry.

"I guess it depends on how she reacts," the dark-haired immortal said with a shrug.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see."

"How's the gambling going?" Hydrus asked, changing the subject.

"It's going good," the dogman answered, letting it go. "We're making a killing."

"Great. Do the goblins suspect anything?"

"No, not yet, they haven't figured out that we set up a ring," Sirius said with a mischievous smile. He felt it was a great prank on Gringotts.

"Wonderful," Hydrus said rubbing his hands together in glee. "We might want to back off for a while and do some gambling in the non-magical world. Then come back to the goblins later." He didn't want to start a rebellion, though he had faith that if one started this new and improved magical community would be victorious. Then new treaties would be made and maybe a human bank could be set up. One more thing to set up with the solicitor.

The rest of the day was spent leisurely, with only Remus doing any work. Hydrus received a call from Grace that night after the kids were in bed. The couple talked all night, telling about their lives. Hydrus did let her know bits of his unsavory childhood, without mentioning names. She just thought it was a bad orphanage. There were lots of secrets on his side, she could tell just from the missing information in his story. But she decided that they really didn't know each other well enough to divulge such things. By the end of the conversation they made tentative plans for a lunch date.

As time went on they got closer. They even utilized the London flat a few nights they had alone, mostly for home movie nights and cuddling. The nanny never asked the immortal why he had a separate flat. She came to the conclusion that all the men used it to get away from everyone. Hydrus confirmed that theory when he told her they couldn't go there, because Sirius and his girlfriend would be using it that night.

Hydrus met the Grangers, he liked them a lot. They were very professional, and worried about their daughter. He did bring up child counseling once, they said they'd think about it and the subject was dropped. He learned from Grace that they were seriously discussing it if Hermione's time at school went bad, which was a major relief to both of them.

Months passed and Hydrus was shocked that the nightmares didn't return. He gave credit to Grace's calm demeanor as his new anchor. Soon it was Harry's birthday. They talked to all the families they had play dates with and decided to go to the park near Hermione's house and have a party. There was a picnic area off to the side of the playground that had a few barbeque grills, so they'd set up there. Each magical family was sat down and it was explained that there were going to be non-magicals at the party.

Arthur, of course, was ecstatic about meeting them. He never was able to talk Molly into the working for Fun For All, because with the computers now in the Ministry everyone's jobs were much easier and they all got raises. However, he was a regular customer. The older Weasley boys understood and were simply happy to be out and about. Percy was especially eager to meet another smart person, even if it was a girl. The twins were talked to behaving and Hydrus, on the sly, gave them a few non-magical pranks to play with. Ron, who had come a long way with his jealousy, was happy to be a part of the party, even if there were going to be icky girls. However, there was going to be cake and that was enough for him. Ginny was really too young to care about any of it.

The Longbottoms were happy to join the festivities, and Neville was excited to meet more people. With his parents working all the time and him staying with a babysitter he only had Harry for a friend. He had heard of the Weasleys and they sounded like a bunch of fun.

So on the day of the party, Hydrus led the Weasleys to the park, Arthur driving his car, and Harry and Remus with the immortal. Sirius went and got the Longbottoms, giving them the location of the alley near the park.

The magicals set up the picnic area. The kids ran to the playground with Harry in the lead, even Percy want to play on the non-magical contraption.

"Bill, Charlie, watch your sister," Molly yelled, then discretely emptying a picnic basket of far more food than it should hold.

"I'll keep an eye on her, Molly," Sirius yelled back, and picked up the little girl and hoisted her on his shoulder and joined the kids on the playground, staying there to make sure secrets were kept.

Arthur was fascinated with the jungle gym and said he was going to set one up for his children. Hydrus manned the grill. Remus was at a loss as to what to do, since Molly shooed him off and Hydrus said he had it covered. So the werewolf settled down with a mystery novel. Frank and Alice were taking a nice stroll around the playground; they were basking in the nice feeling of the sunny outdoors.

Hydrus spotted the Grangers and Grace coming around the corner. Hermione was carrying a present and a backpack that probably had books in it. Dan carrying a picnic basket, and Emma carried the blanket. He waved them over and introduced them to everyone.

"Dan, Emma, Hermione and Grace this is Molly and Arthur Weasley. Frank and Alice Longbottom are over there" he pointed to the couple headed their way, "and you know Sirius." He pointed to the man who was pushing Ginny on one of the baby swings. "The quiet guy reading is Remus. We'll introduce the kids when we eat. Everyone this is Mr. and Mrs. Granger, their daughter Hermione, and their nanny Grace Banks."

All the adults shook hands as Hermione made a beeline to Remus to find out what he was reading. Dan put his picnic basket down and pulled out his contribution for the grill and took the one next to Hydrus. They started up a conversation about football as they tended their meats.

The women flocked together to tell stories about the children. Molly was having a difficult time keeping it non-magical. Arthur was listening to the two men manning the grills and marveling on the way they were cooking. Frank and Alice were watching the playground to make sure the kids were safe, it came with the job.

Hermione settled down next to Remus and pulled out a book, until Harry, in frustration, came and dragged her away. "Mione," he said as he pulled her to the playground, "it's a party— no reading. Tum on and meet Ginny, she's the only girl in all her family and she doesn't have many girl friends. She's only three, but she's otay."

"Harry, quit pulling me, I can walk you know," the bushy-haired girl snapped as she yanked her hand away from her friend. "And stop calling me Mione."

"But I can't say your name," the green-eyed boy whined.

"How hard is it to say Her-moin-e?" she enunciated.

"Hard," he argued back, still trying to pull her to the park. Soon their voices faded and the adults looked on with fond exasperations. This was a fight the two kids had all the time. Sometimes Hermione got Harry to read, other times the young boy got her to play, and so neither ever truly won. But it was cute the way they kept at it.

"I think it's adorable," Grace said as she sidled up to Hydrus.

"Yeah, it reminds me of a friend I had in school. She was very much like your Hermione," he said in tender reminiscence. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and turned back to the food. She remained at his side, watching the kids and talking about simple things like the weather and the last book she read. Hydrus nodded along and soon the meat was cooked. He looked to see that Dan's was done as well and they took the platters of finished barbeque over to the tables.

Molly, having the biggest mum voice, called the kids. Cheering and whines were heard from various children as they all ran to the blankets. Grace and Emma pulled out towelettes and made the kids clean their face and hands. The magical parents marveled quietly over the simple wetnaps. When all the faces and hands were washed they started in on the large picnic.

Many conversations were held, Arthur was even able to contribute to the non-magical talk thanks to his TV and movies. The kids mostly talked about the games they played that day and Ginny tried to talk to Hermione, but the age and intelligence difference made it difficult. When the time came for the cake, all the kids sang Happy Birthday with loud voices and smiles. Presents were tricky; Hydrus discretely cast a small spell to make none of them move. Like the poster the twins got Harry on Quidditch, now it looked like a normal poster for a fantasy game.

Hermione gave Harry a nice book on fairytales; her parents talked her into keeping it age appropriate. She had been going to give him the Tales of Narnia.

The uncles had decided to give Harry their gifts at home, since they were things that weren't on the market yet in the non-magical world, so they had no way to explain them.

Cake and presents done the children once again ran to the playground to play the game of Princess in the Tower, with Ginny as the princess since she was the youngest. Sirius was her guard, to make sure she didn't get hurt or run off. The younger boys fought the older boys valiantly with their pretend swords, and they almost got to the tower, with Hermione as their general. As she was dictating who went where, one of the older boys pushed her for being bossy. When she fell the boy who pushed her was knocked back by an invisible force.

Harry, enraged, yelled at the fallen boy and caused his face to break out in boils. The child screamed and Sirius, who was there just for that reason, quickly cast a counter spell, wiped the memory and grabbed Harry.

It wasn't soon enough for the parents watching. Yelling started and the non-magical parents of the child started screaming at Harry. The uncles, the Longbottoms and the Weasleys moved as one and soon enough peace was had at the park again, with all but the Grangers' memories modified. They all went back to the picnic area and sat the children down so their parents could calm them.

"What the hell was that?" Dan said in a frantic whisper to Hydrus, not wanting to believe what he saw with his own eyes. "Are you going to do hocus pocus on us too?" he asked worried for his family.

"No," Hydrus said firmly, cutting a glare to all the magical adults present. "We don't have to modify your memories, because," he took a deep breath and softened his face, "Hermione is a witch. It was her magic that knocked the boy down."

Denial came swiftly from all the non-magical adults, while the magicals looked relieved at the fact. Frank and Alice were especially thankful that they didn't have to fine their friend, however they were still a bit concerned about the nanny. The older kids talked rapidly to their newfound witch friend. Chaos was had for a few minutes, until Hydrus sent a piercing whistle over the group.

When he got the quiet he sought, he said, "This is not the place to discuss this. I'm going to take the Grangers, Grace and Harry to their house. I'm sorry the party ended on a bad note, however, we now have a new family to welcome in our midst." He smiled reassuringly at the confused and fearful parents and the contemplative Grace and Hermione. "Sirius, if you could see everyone home," he waited for the nod. "We'll catch up later. Frank, Alice, I assure you, I won't be breaking any laws." They gave him a trusting look and nodded.

The party mess was cleared and everyone said good-byes, leaving Hydrus, Harry and the Granger household to make their way to the house. Dan invited them in with a grim, yet determined, look in his eyes. They made their way to a modern and spacey living room.

There were two leather couches and three armchairs, scattered around a nice, large coffee table. The Grangers took one of the sofas, while Hydrus sat in the armchair facing them, with Harry on his lap. Grace took the chair next to Hydrus.

"I'm not sure I believe you, what happened in the park was… unbelievable. I doubt my own mind," Dan said breaking the silence. He was after all a professional and had a scientific mindset. Seeing magic was startling to say the least. His wife nodded in agreement. "How do you know Hermione is a… witch… magical… whatever?"

"I understand. I truly do. I didn't believe it when they told me I was a wizard," Hydrus said sympathetically. "I can prove it," he added pulling an older version of the color ball from his pocketspace, causing an intake of breath from all but Harry. "If any of you adults touch this, nothing will happen," he explained, handing the ball to Grace.

She took the ball and it remained white. She shook it, examined it and then shook her head and handed it to Emma. The toy was passed to Dan and they all looked at Hydrus in confusion. The immortal waved to Hermione and when she touched the ball it glowed green and said 'green', making the little girl squeal and drop the toy. Hydrus summoned the ball to him, making everyone jerk.

"This is a simple toy we use to prove who has magic and who doesn't. That's a story for another time though," he said with a sad smile. Though the ones in the toy store ran on squib level magic, Barkley's still used this one for the kids in St. Mungo's. They had rescued five children with it. He put it back in his pocketspace, once again making everyone gasp. The immortal sent a shy look to his girlfriend to see how she was taking the news. She appeared to be more thoughtful than upset.

"Are there books?" both Hermione and Emma asked, making everyone breakout with a small smile.

"Yes, but I have something better," Hydrus said and pulled out four book-readers and handed three of them to the adults. He gave the child's version to Harry to give to Hermione and said, "Take Hermione to her room and show her how to use this, okay?" The little green-eyed boy nodded enthusiastically, climbed off the lap, grabbed his protesting friend's hand and led her from the room. "Sorry, there are just things you should know that she really doesn't need to yet," he said sheepishly.

The three adults looked up from the book-readers and Emma asked, "What things?"

"There are laws that I must tell you about, and things you need to know before Hermione goes to school." He settled in his chair and started to explain about the wizarding world and all the rules thereof. How Hermione would be prone to accidental magic when emotional. He explained the readers and the books they needed to read. The Granger parents took it well, but not without many questions. They talked for an hour, Grace was quiet the whole time; she simply sat and took in all the new information. It made Hydrus nervous.

"Why aren't these… book-readers on the market?" Emma wanted to know.

"They will be, in the future, I'm sure, however, right now these run off magic, I don't have a prototype for non-magical ones. Besides they're not my invention," he stammered trying to come up with a reason. He couldn't tell them he was from the future. That was something they could never hide in their minds.

"If they run off magic, why can we use them and not the ball?" Dan asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"These run off ambient magic, which is in the air of any household that has a magical person in it," the time traveler stated with a shrug. "If you take them to your dental practice they won't work." It had taken a while to get them like that, but he had made a dozen that did, just for occasions like this.

A few more questions were asked and answered, and Hydrus expressed the need to maintain secrecy. They were going to have to sit Hermione down and explain it all to her. She was a very smart girl and would hopefully understand, given her need to get approval of authority figures it should be simple—he hoped.

When all the answers were given, for now, Hydrus looked at his still silent girlfriend and said, "Can we talk?"