A Lonely Child

In Between

In Between...LinkinPark

Hermione woke up out of habit just after Harry woke up. She stayed in her room until he had left with Mr. Weasley. She was half way down the stairs to the kitchen when an owl flew in. She relived the owl of its note and ran to take it to Mrs. Weasley who was waiting with Sirius and Lupin for the kids to wake up. They would clean another room today or at least start the cleaning of it.

Hermione sat down in front of Lupin after handing the note to Mrs. Weasley and asked "How is Harry getting to the ministry?"

"In a thoroughly non-magical fashion, including using the guest entrance," Lupin had replied.

"We hope that it makes a better impression to the ministry," Added Sirius.

"Oh," replied Hermione.

Mrs. Weasley ran to find the family owl to Mr. Weasley concerning the letter she just read.

"Wonder what that was about," Said Ron who had finally come down stairs.

"There's a guest entrance to the ministry?" asked Ron.

"Yes there is it's an old broken telephone booth located somewhere in down town London. The telephone booth would transport them underground to the atrium," Explained Sirius.

"I wonder what it looks like," said Hermione thinking out loud.

"Nothing much just highly polished wood from floor to ceiling and a bank of fireplaces on one side for people who floo to work. There's also a fountain with a wizard and witch surrounded by various magical creatures all coins thrown in to the fountain go to St. Mungo's to help care for the patients that have no money to pay for their treatment."

"Everything alright Mum?" asked Ron.

"Everything's fine. I just hope that my letter got to your father in time I wanted him to invite Kingsley and some others to dinner tonight if they can make it."

"What if Harry doesn't get off?" asked Ginny who had also finally awakened.

"Don't be silly. Harry has Dumbledore on his side. He won't let Harry get expelled," Replied Mrs. Weasley with a harsher tone than she would normally use.

"What does Dumbledore have planed? Do you know?" asked Hermione

"Not entirely I only know he has a squib for a witness," Replied Mrs. Weasley with a grim look on her face.

"Harry will be fine either way Mum. He has you and everyone else in the order to look after him even if he doesn't want them too," Replied Ginny.

They all sat there in the silence and ate their breakfast after the twins and Cedric came down. Even Hermione's mind was blank except thoughts of Harry. She couldn't even recall the names on the list of names she started of who her dad could be; she could only think of how boring the train ride to Hogwarts was going to be without Harry.

"Have any of you been to the ministry visiting you dads?" asked Hermione trying to keep everyone's mind off of the herring but not really seceding.

The Weasley kids all shook their head no while Cedric said yes. "Really why?"

"It was a last minute thing before we headed to the world cup last summer. I'm really surprised that we made it to the portkey before you guys."

"Does it look like Sirius described earlier?" she asked.

"Yeah. Probably the only difference is the polished part I believe the charms to keep them that way have worn down a bit since the last time Sirius has been there," Replied Cedric.

"I quite agree. All though I would hate to have to go back there with the way fudge is even if I am ever declared innocent." Sirius said coming back down stairs.

"All right you six up stairs now. Got that room we have to clean. Oh Sirius be a dear and feed Buckbeak he was screeching earlier when I went to collect the twins laundry."

"I was just going to ask you where the bag of rats was."

"In the closet next to Buckbeak's room." she replied to him turning back to the kids to rush them up stairs to clean a room.

Sirius had run off to feed Buckbeak. He was glad that he didn't have to clean but he was sure that by the look on Hermione's face she had something on her mind. He was pretty sure it was Harry but he could never be a hundred percent sure there could have been something at the back of her mind that bugged her. Either way he hopped that harry would have his friends to comfort him if he lost and celebrate with him if he got of scot free (like they all knew he would).

The only thing they did to clean the room was dust the hard surfaces of the room and removed any thing that could have dark magic placed on it. They only had a half-full bag of objects an every surface sparkling slightly after the dusting they received. They all laughed (surprisingly including Mrs. Weasley) when Cedric walked across the room and tripped over one of Fred and Georges extendable ears that had been dropped by one of them. The twins looked a Mrs. Weasley thinking that they were going to get a lecture. "Later" was all she said to them; what she meant by that they really had no clue at all to the meaning.

Hermione snickered at that before she received a stern glare from Mrs. Weasley as she left the room. She stopped the snickering as Mrs. Weasley walked out of the room and continued once more as soon as she was out of ears shot.

"That wasn't a working ear was it?"

"Yes but it was a joke version of it," Said Fred.

"Joke version?" asked Hermione

"You hear insults instead of what the people are really saying. We were going to test them tonight but that's out of the question now."

"Ever think about putting an invisible feature on them so when you're listening in and someone walks in on you they don't get the idea that you were just listening to their conversation."