Chapter 34

Through the door Hermione went out, in walked what was clearly her mother. The familial similarities were too much for it not to be. The woman was smiling as she walked down the hallway towards them.

"Hello," she said, by way of greeting, "You must be Madam Pomfrey and Hermione's friends." She then indicated a door immediately to their left and said, "This way, please. We'll go into the parlour."

The three preceded Mrs Granger into a large parlour before she stepped in and, indicating the couches and armchairs, said, "Please, be seated. I'll go see if..."

Just then, through another door, in walked a teary-eyed but grinning Hermione, and what was clearly her father.

"Ummm..." she said, "Harry, Daphne, Madam Pomfrey, this is my father, Doctor Anthony Granger; and my mother, Doctor Celeste Granger." Turning to her parents, she introduced the others, "Mum, Dad; this is Harry Potter, Daphne Greengrass and Madam Poppy Pomfrey, our school healer."

"Call me 'Ant'. And my wife's 'Cele'. Healer?" asked her father, as his brain caught up and he was suddenly concerned. He took a closer look at Hermione with a father's eye, then shot a look at Harry before shooting another look at Hermione; particularly her tummy area.

Hermione, seeing the look, blushed and said, "No, Daddy; that's not what this is about!"

Daphne practically snickered.

"Certainly not," huffed Madam Pomfrey.

Ant looked a little abashed but weathered it. "Well, when my daughter suddenly comes home after only being away for a few weeks; and with a boy and the school nurse in tow..."

Understanding, Madam Pomfrey said, "Of course. But, no; that's not what this is about."

"Please, sit," said Cele. "I've just put the kettle on."

As everyone sat, Ant said, "So, we finally meet the Harry Potter my daughter's been writing us about since November three years ago."

"Daddy!" squealed Hermione before she blushed near crimson. Harry nearly matched her colour tone for tone as Daphne again snickered a little while Madam Pomfrey just smiled.

"Tell me, young man," asked Ant. "Did you really jump on the back of a... what was it?... a twelve foot tall troll that had managed to get into the school?"

"Errr... yes, Sir," said Harry, quite embarrassed. "It would have hurt Hermione, if I hadn't."

"And late second year?" Ant asked. "Something about a magical snake?"

"Yes, Sir," said Harry, squirming in his seat. "It attacked Hermione, see... A-and I wasn't going to have that."

"How big was this snake?" asked Ant.

"Errr..." replied Harry. "I'm not really sure. It was about... I don't know, really... about sixty feet long?"

"Mister Potter," gasped Madam Pomfrey, while Daphne looked at him in shock. "The basilisk was how long?"

"About sixty feet long, Ma'am," mumbled Harry. "About... three feet wide between the eyes."

The room sat stunned as Cele came back in carrying a tea serve on a tray. "What?" she asked, a little confused by the expressions on some faces. "What'd I miss?"

"Put the tray down, love, and I'll tell you," said a clearly shocked Ant.

When she placed the tray on the coffee table, he said, "The magical snake that placed our daughter into a magical coma, two years ago? It seems it was about sixty feet long and three feet wide between the eyes."

Cele gasped and her hand flew to her upper chest in shock.

Ant looked at Harry with a piercing stare and asked, "And, pray tell, how did you deal with it?"

Very uncomfortable, Harry replied, "I killed it. With a sword."

"With a sword?" exclaimed Daphne, beating the others by a half breath. "What sword?"

"The... ummm... Sword of Gryffindor," replied Harry, quietly.

"You've got the Sword of Gryffindor?" exclaimed Daphne.

"Well, no," Harry replied with a bit of a shrug. "The Headmaster has it now. It's in a case in his office."

"Let me get this straight," said Ant, trying to get his head around the news. "A sixty foot long, three feet wide, magical snake caused our daughter to fall into this magical coma. You got upset about that. So, you decided to go after it with a sword?"

"Umm... no," replied Harry.

Hesitantly, he then went through the basic details of what happened, that night, on the 29th May 1993.

"... and Fawkes carried all of us back up the pipe into Myrtle's bathroom," he completed. "That's it, I guess."

Ant didn't say a word. He just rose, walked over to a cabinet, pulled a bottle of scotch and a glass out of it, and poured himself a healthy measure into the glass held in a shaky hand.

"Errr... D-doctor Granger..." stuttered Madam Pomfrey.

Not even acknowledging the medi-witch - or correcting her for his name - Ant reached in and pulled another two small glasses out of the cabinet, before turning and walking back. He poured a healthy measure into all three glasses and handed one each to Madam Pomfrey and Cele.

Both ladies chugged them back. Ant held his for a little while as he placed the bottle next to the tea serving and sat back down.

"Harry," said Daphne. "I know it was big; but, when you said it was 'a big snake', I didn't know it was that big."

"What did I have to compare it to?" asked Harry a little defensively. "I had no idea how big a basilisk normally grows to."

Daphne sighed and just shook her head.

"Anyway," said Madam Pomfrey, clearing her throat. "That's not the reason we're here; and I need to get the children back to school."

Everyone sat up a little straighter; especially, Ant and Cele.

"What do you know about soul mates?" asked the medi-witch of the two adult Grangers.