Unforgivable Promises (Snarry story)

Chapter 6

The morning after Harry's rescue attempt, the students, now five with the recent addition of Neville, gathered around the kitchen table for breakfast. Harry eyed the urn of coffee that Mrs. Weasley refused to serve him while the other four went on excitedly about the previous day's adventure. He had not slept well at all. Voldemort was angrier than usual, and while Harry's growing proficiency as an Occlumense protected him from getting caught up in that anger, the spillover had caused him a full night of nightmares and fitful sleep. Across the table, Ron was boasting in Neville's place to Remus, explaining how the little town had jumped to Longbottom's defense.

"I'm sorry, Neville," Remus said. "I had no idea your grandmother didn't tell you what your parents had done. We'll fix that, though, I promise. Your parents left a legacy you should be proud of. Just about every member of the Order owes their life to your parents in one way or another, and I'm ashamed that you have to learn that now, after so many years."

Neville kept his head down and focused on his eggs. "Thank you, sir. I'd like very much to know more about my parents."

Remus was fully healed now, so stories would have to wait until he returned from whatever business he was being sent on this time. Harry smiled to himself, happy for Neville. He had spent eleven years not knowing how or why his parents had died, but they were so famous that once he was at Hogwarts it seemed the entire Wizarding World was eager to share stories with Harry. It was terrible that Neville had grown up in that world with no one taking the time to do the same for him.

To Harry's left, cutting her toast into symmetrical bite-sized pieces, Hermione was speculating on how the Death Eaters had found them with Neville and how Avery had summoned so many of his fellow dark wizards in so short a time. No one was really listening to her, though Mrs. Weasley made the occasional noise of agreement, mostly out of politeness, as she was absorbed in seeing that all the housework was being done and checking Ginny's letter to Dean periodically to make sure it didn't contain anything inappropriate.

"Ginny! You can't say that to a boy! Remove that immediately." Ginny scrunched up her nose and erased the offending lines with a quick spell. "You can't tell him that either. What if the letter gets intercepted?"

"But Mom, he wants to know where I am."

"Tell him you're on vacation, then, visiting Bill. He can forward any letters along. Honestly, you should know better than to talk about what's happening here."

Absorbed as the others were, only Harry noticed Tonks slip into the room and help herself to some toast. She sat down next to Harry with a smile and summoned a cup of coffee to her. Harry returned the smile and was about to ask the young Auror about Snape's latest Death Eater meeting but was interrupted.

"How do you kids do it?" Tonks asked.

"Uhm, do what?"

"This." She waved her toast at Harry's friends. "Yesterday, if I've heard right, those three," she said as crumbs flew in the direction of Hermione, Ron and Neville, "were cornered by roughly a dozen Death Eaters." The toast tipped towards Ginny, spilling some jam on the table. "She was knocked about by another, and you and Severus saved the bunch of them." Harry dodged some jam at the last part. "Following that, you were pulled into the mind of the most twisted being on the planet. And here you all are chatting about it like it was a Quidditch match." She shook her head. "How do you guys manage to be so normal about it all?"

Harry looked around at his friends. How screwed up does your life need to be that an Auror of all people asks you how you handle it? "Normal's whatever you're used to, I guess."

"Merlin, Harry." She stared at his scar and he turned his head. He hated when people did that, and one of the things he liked so much about Tonks was that she had never done it before. "What kind of life did he leave you?"