Chapter 20 Hermione's Plight and The New Halstead

Harry and Luna made it back to the castle in good cheer. The month in the mini Avalon had been one of the best times Harry had ever had. He and his girlfriend had hiked all over the place, even the mini mountain. It was beautiful and relaxing. All of his jumpiness was put away and he spent a lot of time meditating. He had never felt better in his life. He even connected better with his holly wand, and it was now almost as powerful as the Elder Wand. Nothing was more powerful than the Deathstick. However, only he could use it, so hopefully no one would try and kill him for it.

Luna was also completely relaxed. She was holding her boyfriend's hand and skipping toward home. She had moved into the keep, because her father went back to the Rookery right after the battle. The female teen had gotten some very good pictures of nargles and other creatures, and had studied the animals in their natural habitat. The sales of The Quibbler are going to go through the roof. Her arm had healed while they were camping, making things much easier, like snogging her boyfriend. She was pleased.

They were just headed to their rooms, to put the camping gear away, when they heard crying coming from the library. It sounded like a female in hysterics. So they adjusted their steps and went to find out who it was. As they got closer they could hear Merlin trying to calm whoever was crying.

"Hush, my dear, it cannot be as bad as you think. Come now, stop crying and tell Merlin what happened," the ghost cooed, trying in vain to calm whoever was there.

"I… I… it… I…" came Hermione's voice as she attempted to speak through her sobs, only to start crying harder.

Luna and Harry made their steps quicker upon hearing who it was. They came through the door and there she was. Her face in her hands and great sobs wracking her shoulders. She looked terrible, what little they could see from behind her hands was pale and splotchy, like she hadn't stopped crying in days. The ghost was hovering over her making shushing noises and trying to get her to tell him what was wrong. She was trying to answer, but her crying was hindering her. She would start to say something then break down in wails again, much like the conversation they had just heard.

Merlin looked up when he heard them and his face turned hopeful. "There you are, my dear. Your friends are here," he said as he drifted away to give the three room.

Harry ran immediately to his best friend's side, sat on the arm of the chair and gathered her in a huge hug. He ran his hand down her back and made shushing noises. He looked at his girlfriend with pleading eyes, hoping she knew what to do, because he was at a loss. He was never good with crying women. He knew this from the last two years and this was much, much worse and he had no idea about how to fix it.

Luna took in the situation and called Tippy for a calming draught. When the little elf brought it, she made Hermione drink it. She put the vial on the table, sat on Hermione's other side and ran her hand down the girl's arm.

When the curly-haired witch stopped her hysterics, the little blonde asked in a very calm and kind voice, "What happened, Hermione?" She had a pretty good idea of how the reunion played out, but Hermione needed to talk this through.

Harry moved back a bit, so she could talk, but kept his arm around her shoulders.

"Oh, it was horrible." The curly-haired witch sniffed and wiped her tears with her sleeve, then dug into her bag for a kerchief. "I went to see if they were happy and before I could find them I was arrested. All I did was asked someone if they had heard of a new dentist office from the Wilkins and the next thing I knew I was in cuffs," she explained, rubbing her wrist. "I'm not even sure how they found me. I was just in a café drinking tea, politely asking about my parents and then I was being taken to the police headquarters." She shook with the stress of it all; even with the draught she still felt the turmoil.

Harry was horrified; he had no idea how to react to that, not without knowing why. He simply held her and ran his hand down her arm.

"How did that happen?" Luna asked quietly.

"It seems that my parents' friends and coworkers didn't take their disappearance lying down," she explained, in a bland voice, when all she wanted to do was laugh hysterically. "They called the police and there was a search for them. One of them remembered that they always wanted to go to Australia and Scotland Yard wanted to see if they were on vacation, so they called the police there and asked them to ask around. They found them at a dental convention."

"What happened then? Why were you arrested?" Harry asked as he firmed his grip on her shoulders, offering her as much support as he could.

"Well, when they underwent therapy, because they didn't remember who they were or that they had a daughter. The clinic thought they were brainwashed, and I was the main suspect. It seems their friends had pictures and stuff. The police thought I drugged them and then conditioned them into believing they were someone else," she said, hanging her head, because it was mostly the truth as the doctors knew it.

"Go on," Luna said kindly when Hermione paused.

"They were trying to get me to confess that I was experimenting on my parents. They accused me of all sorts of things, even terrorism. It was terrible. I had to undergo some intense questioning. My background record didn't help, since I disappeared from society at eleven. They believe I was part of a cult. I finally had to use magic to get away," she said, tears rolling down her face. The draught was wearing off.

"How did you do it? They had to have taken your wand," Harry asked a bit confused.

"They did, and it was a bit tricky, but, when they left the room I used some wandless magic and opened the door. I believe the only reason I could was I was frightened for my life. Then I summoned my wand and then made my way out of the station. Before I left, I did my best to get rid of all the evidence, but computers are far more advanced than they were when we went to Hogwarts." She did what she could to make the system crash. She altered more memories and cast charms to confuse everyone involved. She grabbed up all the paperwork and fled. It was a nightmare and now she felt terribly guilty about the whole thing, but she had been terrified at the time and reacted.

"Oh dear, that doesn't sound good," Luna said as she too rubbed Hermione's back, trying to comfort the distraught girl.

"Did you get to speak to your parents?" Harry asked, hoping to cheer her up. After all, how bad could that have been? They must have understood, didn't they?

Hermione gave a self-deprecating laugh, which bordered on frenzied. "Oh yeah, that was just as awful as being held by the police. They threw all sorts of accusations around. They said I took away their free will and treated them like children. They accused me of not thinking they could fend for each other. And that I acted impulsively, and not like the rational child they raised," she said, wiping the fresh tears.

"Oh my," Luna said. "I am sure they still love you, Hermione."

"Yeah, they did say that they still loved me, but what I did would take a long time for them to get over. I have no idea how, but they said they would get in contact with someone and then forward a letter to me when they are ready to talk," the depressed girl stated in almost a monotone. She knew now that she had treated her parents little better than how Mr. Weasley would treat muggles. Perhaps she was now like all wizards and witches and had little common sense. She firmed her jaw and vowed to herself that that was going to change. She was going to make it up to her parents, no matter what.

"I am so sorry that it didn't work out better for you, Hermione. I'm sure they'll come around. They are your parents. How did they get their memory back?" Harry asked, once again hoping to lighten the mood. He figured if he asked an academic question that might make her less emotional.

"Oh, well, you see," she stuttered, trying to think of the easiest terms to word the complicated explanation, "the psychiatrist hypnotized them and they got their memory back. It seems that we don't remove the memory, just block it. So, when he put them under and made them start from early childhood and then asked simple questions like, 'When was your daughter born?' or 'What was the name your mum gave you?' and right answers would just pop up. It's really very fascinating, and I think we had better warn the Ministry," she answered, still sniffling, but she gave Harry a watery smile for his efforts.

Luna was riveted, being a pure-blood she had little to do with the muggle world, and hearing they could overcome magic, well that was brilliant. She would have to delve deeper into this. There had to be a way to counteract that particular treatment. Not that she approved of wiping anyone's memories, but they could be discovered if all one had to do was get hypnotized. Some muggles had strong minds after all. It was a pity most wizards didn't believe that.

"Are your parents staying there or returning here?" the dark-haired teen asked, once more trying to ease the emotionally charged room.

"They returned to Britain, since all their friends are here. They're going to restart their surgery, and hopefully they can find a new home. They sold the old one when I did what I did. They are pretty upset with me about that too. It had been my father's family home for a few generations," Hermione explained. She wanted to give her parents money, but she was just a student and had no funds. They probably wouldn't take it anyway. They were very, very angry with her.

"Well, you are more than welcome to stay here and help me and Luna with our project," Harry said, giving her an encouraging smile as he got up and moved to the sofa in front of her. Luna joined him and Merlin came back and took the chair next to Hermione.

"I do hope you have learned your lesson now, Miss Granger," Merlin said in a disappointed grandfather voice, once more reminding everyone of Dumbledore. "It is not right to take away free will," he added, his hands in a prayer like manner under his chin. They never did that in his time when wizards were more… well, not accepted, but known. He didn't approve of this method and thought that if the magicals of today would just not do magic where it could be seen then that would solve their problem.

"Oh, yeah, I will never, ever, do that again," Hermione stated firmly. Even if she went into law enforcement, she would never Obliviate anyone. "I'm going to write a letter to Kingsley," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Won't you get in trouble? I mean, you're not licensed," Harry asked, getting up and helping her stand.

"Merlin, I hope not," she answered, slumping her shoulders, "but, they need to know," she finished and straightened up. She was determined to make this right.

"Alright, Hermione, if you get fined, let me know and I'll cut you a loan," Harry said, rubbing her arm.

"Thanks, Harry, you're the best friend a girl could have," she said and kissed him on the cheek then got up, turned away and ran from the room.

"Damn it, I didn't see that coming," Harry said as he flopped onto the sofa.

"I did," Luna said softly as she curled in his lap.

"Huh," was all the answer she got. He should have known she would have guessed the outcome. Sometimes she just saw more than others.

"Let's put our gear away and see if anyone answered our letters," the little blonde suggested.

They did get a great deal of response and mostly positive. Halstead would flourish once again. Business would boom and people would be safe. It was going to be tricky doing what they were doing, but they were determined to make it happen, if for nothing else than to make Ashliegh's dream a reality. The contracts they had to sign for the new government were complicated, and they had to reword quite a few of them before all was said and done. It took a lot of arguing and promises, but they finally got what they wanted and could now move forward.

Hermione wrote her letter and got reprimanded. She was warned that if she ever did something like that again, she would be seeing the inside of Azkaban. It's only because there was a war on that she didn't get fined. She was relieved. Kingsley took what she said to heart and gave the letter to Kyle. It would be up to the DoM to handle that, which Kyle was now the head of.

Things were going well with the questioning. There wasn't a Wizengamot, yet, so it was up to the DMLE to hold the trials. Not a single Death Eater could buy their way out and now all of them resided in the new Azkaban. Snape was found innocent of war crimes, but did get five years in prison for the murder of Dumbledore, even if it was a mercy killing. It would have been more, but he had the memory of Albus tricking him. He was also forbidden to ever step foot in Hogwarts again.

Most of Tom's younger minions were let go. They were threatened to be in the battle and could not be held culpable. They were assigned to any living relative and those that were orphans were put in foster care, since they were almost old enough to live on their own. There were a few that had to serve time, but since they were teens they only got a few years.

The Dementors never came back and the magicals held their breaths that they would die out. It would take years of people hunting them to know that they did. Still a lot of homes and businesses added the happiness runes on their wards. The healers had been right; the rate of recovery was faster with those runes incorporated into the wards. Hermione and Babbling got a cut of the profits.

The new government was coming together beautifully. Many of the citizens were happy with how things were being run, though there were protests from the older families. Now there were all walks of life on the panel, but they weren't quite ready for the law making business yet. Committees were added to go over laws and abolish many of the biased ones. Most of the new body was young people, and they were determined to make the British wizarding world a great place to live.

The wizarding world was slowly rebuilding with loans from the Ministry. They were as low rate as the one Harry gave, with a balloon payment after twelve years. It was something in the paperwork that Harry had demanded. The few times the teens went to Diagon Alley, they were joyful to see it running. Not as well as the first time the male teen ventured there, but it was good to see the shops open and people bustling around.

Frank and Alice, not to mention Augusta who was in hot water with Frank, moved back to the Longbottom manor and lived well. Neville took the position of professor of the DADA and lived happy with Hannah at Hogwarts.

Seamus went abroad to find his parents, and had a much happier reunion than Hermione had. He decided to live there with them, in France. Dean went back to school and became an Auror.

Ron left, and Harry had no idea where to, not that he cared, but at least he didn't have to put up with the arguments. Ginny finished school and married Dean. She went on to live her dream as a Quidditch player for the Harpies. Bill and Charlie went back to their jobs. Fleur was mildly disappointed, but loved her husband enough to stay in England.

The Weasley twins were open for business again and they were a huge success. They also made Grawp a leg. It was a work of genius; it looked and acted like a normal leg, albeit a bit noisier. Hagrid was very thankful and the new St. Mungo's (which was in Diagon Alley now), commissioned them to make more. The twins were rolling in money. They were sad that their mother couldn't be there to see their success, but they felt she was looking at them from above, and she was proud. They were offered a place in the new Halstead, but politely declined when they heard the plans. They may take them up on it later, but right now their shop would be out of place.

"Harry," Luna said one day about two months after their vacation in mini Avalon, "what are you going to do with the Deathly Hallows?" she asked as she got more comfortable in his lap. They had just finished the final paperwork for the new Halstead and were taking a break in one of the hidey holes.

"Well, first I'm going to see if Sirius has passed on. It's something I've been meaning to do, but I've been a bit distracted. So, let's go to the portal room and call him," Harry said suddenly, giving her a kiss and then lifting her off his lap.

"Why the portal room?" she asked as she walked beside him.

"Well, if he is stuck somewhere, I'm hoping the Elder Wand can call him back," he said, not sounding sure of himself. He had no idea if it would work. He had asked Merlin, but the ghost didn't know. The Veil of Death was not the same as his portal. However, Harry was willing to try.

They made it to the room, which was put back into a ballroom, but they still called it by its other name. It would still serve its purpose in the times it was needed. The test was still there with Merlin being the ghost, but for now it was just a ballroom.

Harry sat in the middle of the floor, took out the stone and said, "Sirius Orion Black answer my call." He really hoped that no one showed, but was disappointed when his godfather's spirit entered the room. "Damn," the teen said, his shoulders sagging.

"What's up, pup?" the dark-haired spectral said, floating forward and sitting on the floor.

"I was hoping you'd be alive," the depressed boy said.

"Harry, it's been over two years, even if that was a portal, I'd've starved to death, not to mention died of thirst," he said in a gentle voice. He really hated to see Harry so sad, but there was little he could do about it.

"So the Veil of Death is not a portal?" Luna asked as she rubbed Harry's back. "Would you not have been put is stasis or something?"

"Well, it is a portal, the problem is that the inventor left this side open and there's no one on the other side. He was the first one to die," Sirius said seriously, glad for the change in topic. "I talked to him and he said he got it from some incomplete plans of his great-great-great grandfather. He never knew that you needed two people to open it. He just figured out a way to keep this side open." He shrugged in a 'what can you do' manner. "It opens into a void, and you die instantly from lack of… well everything."

"Still…" Harry started, once again hoping he could bring the man back.

"No, you have to let it go, Harry. It was my time and it most definitely was not your fault," the spirit said, poking the teen in the arm, causing the young man to shiver.

"So, there's nothing I can do?" Harry asked with puppy dog eyes.

"Don't look at me like that," Sirius said, pouting. "It's not like I make the call."

"Fine," Harry huffed, though you could see he was upset with it.

"Your mum and dad wanted me to say they are very proud of you. They believe you did the right thing not following Albus's plans," the spectral said with a huge smile.

"Really?" Harry asked, hoping that he could bring his parents next.

"Yes, really, but they also ask that you don't call them," making Harry's face and body fold with those words. "Not that they don't want to see you," Sirius said quickly, "but they feel it would make it harder to give up the Stone and the Wand. You dad says to keep the Cloak, it's been in the family a long time," Black replied, saddened once more to disappoint his godson.

"I'll think about it," Harry said, a bit upset that his parents were being logical.

"Oh, yeah, by the way, they really, really like Luna," Sirius said with a wink to the girl in question.

"Oh, thank you Mr. Black, or should I call you Stubby?" Luna asked, making Sirius bark with laughter.

They talked for a few more minutes and the strain started to get to Sirius so Harry let him go, albeit reluctantly. "Harry," the spirit said as he was about to fade, causing the young man to call him back, "you can use Merlin's portal to give Death a gift," he finished and then nodded his head that he was ready to go.

Harry said goodbye again and let him fade. He once more sat on the floor, deep in thought about that parting comment. "What do you think he meant, Luna?" he asked. He knew the answer, but wanted her opinion to see if he was correct.

"Don't be silly, Harry. You know good and well what he meant," she answered, smacking him in the arm.

"Right," he said, rubbing the spot. "Now all I have to do is figure out which one," he added, taking the Hallows out of his pouch and laying them on the floor in front of him.

"If you want my opinion, I say give up both the Wand and the Stone. Nothing good comes from them," she said firmly. "Both have a bloody past and they will be sought after for ages," she added, picking up the Stone, very tempted to use it.

Harry took it from her hands and nodded his agreement. He got up, shoved the Cloak back in his pouch, gathered the two items and made his way to the window. Using his holly wand he opened a doorway to nowhere and threw them in without another thought. "That's the end of that," he said as he let his wand fall.

"You did the right thing," Luna said as she cuddled into his side.

"Right, we have more important things to do then worry about fairytales," Harry said with a grin and the two took themselves to the library.

Months later, Luna's and Harry's plan was coming together. There were more people in the keep now and they were very busy setting things up. The houses had an overhaul, with much input from Merlin, and the village was put mostly back to what it had been, all but the loos (there was no way they were giving those up). Businesses were erected and soon there would be a pub. The couple couldn't be happier.

The castle also had a bit of an upgrade. Rooms were cleaned and polished until they shone. There were blocked off sections, barred with only a red and gold rope. There were public bathrooms installed and Harry was glad the house elves were the ones to clean them. Torches were made to look like they ran off electricity. People were hired on and they lived on the top two floors, which were warded to prevent anyone who didn't live there to know they even existed.

Merlin was also ecstatic about the venture. It was by his direction that their plans would be fruitful. He was absolutely giddy at the part he was going to play.

It was summer the next year when The Quibbler and the Daily Prophet both ran the same article on the front page. The headlines read:

The Slayers of the Dark Lord Turnout A New Adventure

The following articles, which Luna wrote, said they would be soon open for business. It laid out the plans for the fortress and the village and strongly suggested that no magic be used there. However Merlin would be happy to talk to anyone who paid the fees. Merlin's Halstead, as it was now called, was now a medieval village that catered to both magical and muggle. They would open in a month.

A week later, Merlin gave his interview with Xeno, and once more making the magazine fly off the shelves. He told of his battles and his time with Arthur. He waxed poetic on Halstead and his now gone apprentice, Ashliegh. He described Avalon as best he could and told them they were more than welcome to try and find it, but only the worthy ever would. He made sure that his journals, which he got back from Hermione, were copied and sold to fund the new venture. Harry got the copyrights.

They were passing off Merlin's Halstead to the muggles as a haunted castle and theme village. They advertised in the muggle papers as a new discovery and that for the price of admission you could come and visit Merlin's ghost. Most would believe that he was just special effects, though the diehard ghost hunters would flock to find out if he was real. They wouldn't be able to view him like magicals could, but they would get an outline and hear him speak.

They built a carpark, miles down the road from the fortress, outside the town there, and you would have to either hike or take a carriage to the keep. No cars were allowed there, if you brought one up you would remember something you had to do and leave. It had taken Hermione a week to come up with that ward. The town would also prosper from the influx of people, so they were more than happy to comply with their new quirky neighbors.

Tourist shops would be open in the castle, (on the fourth floor) along with the regular shops in the village. While the muggles could look in the village shops, they could only buy from the castle. The tourists could buy cauldrons, brooms, and clothes, along with regular medieval stuff. They were given the stories about how magicals and regular folks once lived together with little to no strife, until Uther became king. Story books were sold, most of them true, to the muggles in the guise of fairytales.

The magicals that lived there would tell the visitors of times of old and live in the village as medieval people. They would cook and clean, sew and barter and generally live like they mostly did now only with their magic hidden better. They were hopeful that any magic seen would be passed off as electronic, or misunderstood and brushed away. However, all the magicals had to sign a contract that stated they would keep the use of magic in their homes, which the visiting people could only enter a few selected ones, that didn't actually have anyone living there. They weren't made to take vows, since accidents happen, but were warned that they would be evicted if they didn't follow the rules.

Hermione was hired as a tour guide. She would take them around the castle and give them a made up history, except for the battles, they would just be toned down. She was also in charge of the library, making sure that the books stayed there, though that is where Merlin haunted during business hours. He would guard the room. Magicals were allowed to do research at night and checkout the books, but they were only allowed them for a week. Then the book would return to its place on the shelves. Her parents finally forgave her, but there was tension that had never been part of their relationship before. She spent most of her time working.

Wiccans were hired to run the meditation rooms in the towers. They would explain the runes and the rituals of old. They would work during the day and then go home at night using the portal or portkeys. Most of them were squibs and already had knowledge of magic, so it wasn't breaking the Statute to hire them. The ones that weren't squibs, Harry got permission to bring them in as long as they signed a contract to keep quiet. They also had shops in the castle.

The dining halls were left the same, though shrunk back to their normal size. But two long tables and benches were there. Food was served, in buffet style. It was all food from Merlin's time, so things like; whole grain cereals (both hot and cold) and rice for breakfast and meat (mutton, rabbit, chicken, game and such), thick breads and soups for lunch. Mead, whole milk and water were the beverages served. The dining halls were only open for breakfast and lunch, though they served those all day.

Hiking was allowed through the woods, but there were muggle wards on the mini Avalon and cache. The centaurs would remain hidden during the day. They were deeper in the trees. Remus was hired to take them around, since he and Teddy lived out there (Luna babysat). He was very happy with his new life, and made quite a bit of money. He would never have to buy his son second-hand clothes or school supplies.

There would be a six o'clock closing time; new wards were added to make sure that the muggles would leave at that time. Then the villagers and castle residents would be free to do as they pleased. The fees to the park went to the upkeep of the new Halstead, and some was put aside for savings in case war broke out again.

It was opening day and there were carriages already lined up to get in. Harry was in his and Luna's room on the sixth floor, putting on his period clothing. "Luna, dear, look out the window," he said as he pulled on his tunic.

"Oh, I don't need to," she said airily from where the wardrobe was.

"Why?" he asked as he turned to see her button up her dress magically. It was a pretty blue dress that bunched up on the sleeves and hung straight down her body, nothing flashy, just pretty. Her hair fell straight over her shoulders and she wore no makeup.

"The nargles told me," was her dreamy answer.

"Oh, did they tell you if we'd succeed?" he asked, coming behind her and kissing her hair.

"Silly boy, of course we will," Luna said, turning in his arms and planting a kiss on his lips.

"Of course we will," Harry said firmly.

And they did.