"A lot of the Egyptian tombs and temples use consanguinity as an automatic pass key," the ginger headed man said, scrutinizing the parchment. "You have the original?"
"I do," Lichfield said, taking note of them getting close. "Analyzing it in depth could cause problems with the Statute of Secrecy though, so I'm not letting it go, especially since I spent the last hour piecing that together from a memory."
Hermione mused for a moment about the minor differences in language on this side of their divided world. 'From a memory' instead of 'from memory' was certainly peculiar, though not as peculiar as wearing a bathrobe out in public. Thinking back to yesterday though she had to wonder if he meant that he literally went into a memory in order to get it.
"There you two are," Lichfield said as she and Harry joined them. "I was beginning to think I'd have to send search parties."
"Now, now," the oldest Weasley said with a grin as he put the parchment away. "What she and Harry do in a place with so many beds while outside of your supervision is no concern of yours."
"The hell it isn't," Lichfield said with a look.
That was an oddly religious idiom for the wizarding world to have; she hadn't noticed them using it before. By that her mind meant, 'Please don't say it. Please don't say it. Please don't say it - please don't say it!'
"I can't really argue that he's a responsible last of his line if another Potter's on the way before either one of them is old enough to get married."
' Gah! Embarrassment overload, ' Hermione thought numbly as she let go of Harry's arm and stepped away from him. 'Warm and cuddly processes shutting down. '
The only upshot was she could practically feel Harry's embarrassment radiating off of him in waves. Perhaps now he could see why you don't mention that sort of thing in public. Hermione hoped everyone got it out of their systems soon so she could just have a normal date with her boyfriend.
"I'd appreciate it if we could hold off on the business talk today," she said with a bit of a tight throat. "Yesterday had quite enough of it."
"But I hadn't even gotten to the part where my supervisor thought I was a homunculus," the man who must be Bill said with spread arms as if he were wounded by not being able to tell the story. "Though if that were true I never would've gotten out of Egypt. Hi," he said, extending his hand to her, "Bill Weasley. You must be Hermione."
"Nice to meet you," she said, wondering why anyone would think he was an artificially created quasi-humanoid with magical powers. The back of her mind had to admit the description was more apt to describe house-elves than anything else. 'Great, ' she thought. 'Yet another theory to check up on. ' It had been so much easier when she had just seen them as slaves to be freed.
"Percy you know," Bill continued, gesturing to the brother further from him. "And this lump's Charlie," he said, swatting at the back of the red-haired young man next to him and causing him to turn around.
"Wha?" Charlie said with a mouth full of partially-eaten food.
He looked astonishingly like Ron at first blush, though more freckly and with somewhat more defined features. Very stocky for someone who was supposed to have been some legendary Seeker, he had more of the Slytherin Beater look to him that said he was virtually all muscle.
"Can't a guy shallow before he gets dragged into the conversation?" the man groused to his older brother. "A pleasure," Charlie said formally, taking her hand with a polite smile that made him look very different than Ron. "Don't take any of his shit," he said with a nod to Bill, though it too had the air of good friends who'd been separated for too long.
Hermione didn't know how to respond to that.
"What was it you were talking about with an enchantment?" Harry asked Lichfield, bringing up a subject that was quickly becoming a preoccupation for him.
"Sorry," the lawyer said, with an exaggerated look at her. "That's work talk, and I learned long ago not to piss off the Lady-wife. If you'll excuse me, I've got to take care of something."
Lichfield was making it very difficult to know what she thought of him. He had sent Mipsy to her, undoubtedly so she could learn more about house-elves first hand - which she still needed to thank him for - but then had her believe she was working for her too. And then there were the jokes, were they all in fun or were they clever evasions? As bogged down in details as they had been yesterday there was still the sinking suspicion there was a lot more he wasn't telling them.
"Well," Charlie said, brushing off some crumbs from the front of his robe. "Norberta sends her regards."
"Norberta?" Harry asked.
Lester made his way back to the table holding the sandwiches and butterbeer, wondering if he were brave enough to try one of those cheese and onion offerings. Falling in beside McGonagall, he wondered if the boy knew what he was getting himself into. If there was one woman the girl of his was most like it was this one here. Merlin knew trying to keep food orderly with so many people eating was an impossible task, but the wild wizard had obviously neglected to tell her that.
Her hand faltered a bit as she straightened the napkins, telling him she knew he was there. She was still cagey around him, well aware she was guilty of not doing her best and uncomfortable that he knew about it lest he bring it up. It wasn't like they had tumbled into bed or anything though, more like he had found her in a broom cupboard in midst of a Quidditch-fueled snogging.
"So," he said, cutting through the tension. "When's the guilt trip coming?"