Don't Look Back In Anger (Completed)

Chapter 7: No More hands In Pockets

Hermione certainly understood they were trying their best to be patient with her. She could see though both her parents were becoming more and more frustrated, yet she simply didn't have all the answers they were looking for. "Mum, I'm not being evasive here. I just don't know enough about house elves to answer all your questions."

Dan wasn't totally buying that. "What about you being 'Harry Potter's Grangy', I'd like to know how that came about?"

Seeing her friend floundering once more, Luna attempted to help. "What you have to understand is hero worship doesn't even come close to how Dobby feels about Harry. Dobby was trapped as a servant to the Malfoys. As you might imagine, Dobby wasn't treated well. Harry freed Dobby, and Lucius Malfoy attempted to kill Harry for doing so - but a free Dobby soon put a stop to that. Yet if you ask Dobby what the happiest day of his life is, I'll bet he'll say it was getting to work for Harry - not being set free."

Emma had turned around as far as her seat belt would allow and Dan kept checking both girls in his mirror as he drove, Hermione's mum and dad were really struggling to understand the subject of house elves. Looking at the couple, Luna thought Hermione was incredibly like her mother, except for the eyes. Hermione had her father's brown eyes. This was a mirror image of her boyfriend's situation, Harry was always getting told he looked like his father - except for his mother's eyes.

Luna's next part of her explanation helped Hermione's parents immensely.

"To Dobby, Harry Potter is the centre of his universe - everything else revolves around that one fact. Hermione is Harry's girlfriend, therefore 'Harry Potter's Grangy'. In Dobby's eyes, that also makes Hermione family, and by extension you both are too. Trying to follow Dobby's logic, and then compare that to the way we think, is a sure way to drive yourselves crazy. Elves just see things differently."

Luna deliberately refrained from mentioning that Dobby could easily see how close these two were, and that one day Hermione might be changing her name to Potter. Having shared Harry, and knowing how her friend felt about Hermione, she actually agreed with Dobby about that being a likely outcome in the future.

Both girls in the backseat could see each parent trying to get their head around this, Dan then attempted to put his thoughts into words. "Lets see if I've got the gist of this. Just because Hermione's Harry's girlfriend, these two little creatures consider us family - and will now be at the cottage tidying up?"

That drew a wry smile from Hermione. "Almost right, dad. House elves are at their happiest when they're busy helping their family, they are also magically very powerful. By the time we get to Grandma's old cottage there won't be a speck of dust in the house, the beds will have been changed and a delicious hot meal will be waiting on us. They'll even do the dishes after we've eaten, mum."

With no dishwasher at the cottage, Emma really appreciated that. Something else about this situation was bothering her though. "…and Harry's paying for all this? I don't think we can allow that, Hermione."

"Mum, Harry thinks we're being forced to leave the country because of him. That's so not the case, the death eaters would always have had the Grangers in their sights. I've been the top student in my year for the last four years running, and I'm a muggleborn - that blows all their 'purebloods are superior' shit right out the nearest window."

"Hermione, language."

"Sorry Mum, it's been a really, really hard year. Anyway, when we get Harry out of Azkaban he'll be attending Beauxbatons with Luna and me next term. I'm hoping the Grangers can extend their hospitality to cover Harry, and Luna too, for at least part of the holidays."