The next morning before anyone else had awoken, Jardin flew into the room upstairs and landed on the edge of Harry’s cot.  Hedwig, awoken by the soft thump the bird made, lifted her head from where it rested on Harry’s index finger.  She spotted him and flicked her tongue out angrily.

“Where were you?”

Jardin blinked at the snake’s tone.  He could fully understand her but he had not clue as to how she was to understand him.  So, instead of replying, he tilted his head, causing the snake to glare at him.

“Don’t look at me like an idiot!  You should have been here!”

Jardin blinked at her.

Hedwig hissed incoherently at him for a moment in anger then calmed down.

“Harry had a nightmare and you weren’t here!  It’s a grand thing to have wings, isn’t it?  Much easier to reach the cot!”

Jardin opened his beak in the raven’s version of a grin and spread a wing.

“Idiot!”

Hedwig shook her head at him.

“Did you know Harry had killed someone?”

That brought Jardin to attention.

< WHAT?! >

“Uhn…”

Harry’s eyes fluttered open and he pushed himself up on his elbows to peer sleepily at Hedwig and Jardin.

“What are you to arguing about?”

< She’s accusing me of not being here when you had a nightmare as though it’s a crime! >

“You could have done something about it!  You’re the one bonded to him, not me!”

< I couldn’t have done a thing but watched it play out! >

“You stupid, idiotic, pitiful excuse for a fowl!”

< Fowl?  FOWL!  HOW DARE YOU… >

“ENOUGH!” snapped Harry in Parseltongue and thought, eyes blazing.  As the two creatures stared at him, he grumbled, “I have a headache now from you two arguing.  Do you two even understand each other?”

< I understand her, > said Jardin helpfully.

“Stupid fowl,” muttered Hedwig.

Jardin fluffed his feathers angrily and growled, < You, my dear, are going to be my breakfast if you continue insulting me. >

JARDIN! snapped Harry.

< Tell her then! >

“Hed, stop insulting him.”

“Fine.”

Harry looked between the two creatures for a moment then collapsed back onto the cot with a moan.

“What a morning…”

/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

Ni,

Well, it’s past that day.  Y’know, the day Tyls died.  I dreamed last night about it.  Not my best night.  Then again, not many nights since…since that last task have been pleasant.

Now Hed and Jar are in an uproar and fighting with each other.  And Hed can’t even understand Jardin.  It’s insane.  Especially with me hearing both of them.  I’m thinking of silencing Jardin.  I had to do that when I met Fawkes.  Y’know, Fawkes calls him a snapdragon?

Do you think you can manage to spend the last two weeks before term with your aunt?  The Weasley’s are great…but I miss spending time with you and Mik and Mione.

                                                Hope your well,

                                                            Harry

“Jardin,” said Harry as he finished writing the letter and rolled it up, tying it with a piece of stray thread from his shirt.  As he tied it, he looked at the shirt.  It was one of his older one’s and was beginning to get rather small.  And threadbare.

< Yes? > said Jardin, not looking away from the staring contest he and Hedwig were having.

“Stop having that staring contest with Hed and c’mere.”

< Why? >

Harry turned on the cot to glare at Jardin, who was perched on Ron’s trunk.

“Because I have a letter I want you to take to Niamh.”  When the raven did not move, he growled, “Now.”

< Alright, alright.  I’m coming. >

He flapped his wings and made a short flight to Harry’s offered arm.  The teen tied the letter to the raven’s leg one-handed then went to the window, opening it and giving the bird a toss into the air.  He watched him fly off then turned and scooped up Hedwig off of the edge of his cot and headed downstairs.

There he found Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and Bill already in the kitchen.  As he turned to head into that room, his eye caught the grandfather clock.  The clock that had, instead of numbers, words.  And there was a hand for each of the Weasley’s.  Harry had never looked closely at the clock but now, for some reason, it caught his eye.  He switched directions and walked towards it, peering at the hands.

Fred, George, Percy, Ron, Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and Bill’s hands were all on Home; Mr. Weasley’s was on Work; Charlie’s was also on Work; and then Harry noticed that there were five extra hands besides the nine Weasley’s.

There was a hand for him, Niamh, Mika, Niamh, and – to his great surprise – his father.

Someone suddenly came up behind him and Harry looked over his shoulder to see Mrs. Weasley standing there, smiling at him.  She nodded at the clock and said, “I had Arthur take it and have those extra hands put on.  So I can know where all of you are.”

Harry looked at her for a moment then back at the clock.  His hand was also on Home; Niamh and Hermione’s were on London; Mika’s was on Scotland; and his father’s was on Hogwarts.

“You did this to keep track of us?”

Mrs. Weasley nodded and gave him a light hug.

“I did.  Now, come get some breakfast.  We’re going to Diagon Alley today.”

Harry smiled at that.  Now he could find Niamh something for her birthday…and Hermione and Mika.

And maybe for one day he could forget about his troubles.