The Refiner's Fire
Chapter 36 - The Astronomy Tower
By Abraxan
The Astronomy exam was the last one for the Sixth Year Gryffindors. They trudged up the countless flights of stairs to the Astronomy Tower at midnight, yawning and grumpy after many days and
nights of studying and exams. With this exam, it would all be over. Then they had a week of free time before they returned to their homes for the summer holiday.
Harry went up the stairs with mixed feelings. He was glad the exams were nearly over, but not that happy about the school year coming to a close. Ginny lived a long way from Privet Drive. He could Apparate out to visit her, or meet her at Grimmauld Place from time to time, but it wasn’t the same as seeing her every day. At least they’d be able to talk to each other privately with their rings. The only good thing about the coming holiday was that it was the last time he’d have to live with the Dursleys. With that thought lifting his spirits, he opened the door at the top of the Tower and went in to face his Astronomy exam.
When it was over two hours later, he, Ron and Hermione sighed in relief, along with the other students. As the students packed up their things and put the telescopes away, Professor Sinistra disappeared into her office, her arms full of their exam papers. A few moments later, as the students headed for the stairs, she re-emerged and called out to Harry, "Mr. Potter? Please remain behind afterwards. I would like to talk to you about your grade."
Harry’s grades in Astronomy had been absolutely fine, actually well above average this term, so this request sounded rather fishy. "Stay with me," he whispered to Ron and Hermione.
"Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, you are dismissed," Sinistra said imperiously.
"We’ll wait for him over here," Hermione said reasonably. They’d be out of earshot, but close enough to help him if something bad happened.
"I said you’re dismissed!" Sinistra snarled, behaving very unusually for her. She was normally reserved, polite, businesslike. She’d never shown any temper, even when disciplining Fred and George at their worst. Nobody had ever seen her angry, yet here she was, apparently beginning a towering rage.
"Professor, anything you say to me can be said in front of them," Harry assured her.
"I said LEAVE!" she snapped, her eyes flashing.
"OK, then, we’ll all leave," he said, backing toward the door where Ron and Hermione waited nervously, their hands in their pockets gripping their wands tightly. "If you have a problem with my grades, talk to Professor Lupin. He’s my guardian."
"I told you to stay and them to leave! Obey me!" she shrieked.
"Not tonight, Professor," Harry said uneasily. "Sorry. I’m exhausted and it seems you may be tired as well."
Sinistra pulled out her wand and pointed it at his heart. "You will not deny me. I’ve been waiting far too long."
"Sorry?" he said, shocked but already pulling his wand from his pocket.
Hermione and Ron ran forward and began to engage Sinistra in combat the instant Sinistra shot a spell at Harry, which he dodged by dropping and rolling. Harry leaped up, wand in hand, cursing his exhaustion-induced slowed reactions. He was surprised to see Crabbe and Goyle emerge from the professor’s office, wands out and ready to do battle as well. A simple Impedimenta charm and an Incarsarus later, Crabbe was out of action, his body wrapped tightly in coils of rope. Harry put a Silencio on him for good measure.
Hermione was battling Sinistra, meanwhile keening, "I’m attacking a teacher, I’m attacking a teacher" under her breath.
"That’s no teacher, Hermione," Harry called as he helped Ron fight Goyle, who had resorted to fists rather than his wand. "That’s Malfoy."
"Malfoy!" she cried, shooting spells as fast as she could. "Thanks, Harry!"
"I’ve got him," Ron said as Goyle fell to the floor, Stunned. Ron gave him a good kick in the belly as he shot ropes out of his wand to bind the massive Slytherin. "You help Hermione."
"I’ll stay, you go," Harry offered.
"You’re a much better fighter than I am," Ron insisted. "Go and help her! I’ll be right there!"
Harry didn’t need more encouragement. He ran to Hermione’s side just as one of Malfoy’s spells got past her blocking spell and felled her. The orange spell hit her in the chest, then hung oddly in the air for a moment as she fell, ending just as her head passed through its light, but Harry didn’t have time to wonder about that.
"You worthless Mudblood," Malfoy said in Sinistra’s voice. "You deserved that."
"And you deserve this," Harry snarled, sending a strong Expelliarmus at Sinistra, throwing her back to the parapet of the tower. Her head hit the wall with a loud crack, and Harry experienced a moment’s panic, thinking he’d killed her. But she staggered to her feet, Malfoy’s twisted sneer looking quite odd on Sinistra’s usually serene face. She aimed her wand at Harry and cried, "Avada Kedavra," but Harry had already thrown up a shield in front of him and Hermione’s still form. As the spell rebounded toward Sinistra, Harry dropped the shield and sent a spell to deflect the Killing Curse away from her. Sinistra’s spell hit the parapet behind her, knocking a several large stones from the battlement and the floor beside it. Sinistra lost her balance and fell screaming off the tower toward the rocky lakeshore one hundred feet below. Harry ran to the parapet and sent a Summoning charm after her, but it was so dark, he couldn’t see the falling body well enough to aim the spell properly. Harry leaped off the parapet, changing into a phoenix as he fell, and caught the woman’s body a mere dozen feet before she would’ve hit the ground. Sinistra struggled in the bird’s talons, sending curses and spells at it, fighting to be released and drop the rest of the way to the ground so she could run away. The phoenix dug its claws in more firmly and carried the struggling Sinistra back to the top of the tower.
Ginny arrived on her Firebolt, Gryffindor D.A. members in tow. "What’s going on? What happened to Professor Sinistra?" she asked her brother, being careful not to draw attention to the phoenix she knew was Harry.
Ron was at Hermione’s side. She was awake and on her feet, still a bit woozy but aware of what was going on. He wrapped a supportive arm around her and gazed into her eyes, praying she was attentive enough not to reveal Harry’s secret to the rest of the D.A. The phoenix, as if understanding what Ron was thinking, dropped Sinistra with an unceremonious thud and took off toward Gryffindor Tower. Ron turned, while still holding Hermione, and shot a Stunning Spell, an Incarcerous and a Silencing Charm on Sinistra as soon as her body hit the Tower floor. "You scream like a girl, Malfoy," he said scornfully.
"Malfoy?" Neville asked, bending over to look at Sinistra.
"Was that Merlin?" Colin asked excitedly, pointing after the departing phoenix.
"Erm, yeah, that was Merlin, Harry’s phoenix," Ron said uncomfortably, hoping Hermione was awake enough to stick to his story. "Harry called him to catch Malfoy — that’s Malfoy Polyjuiced to look like Professor Sinistra. Malfoy fought him all the way back up." He looked around and saw that most of them seemed to be satisfied with his explanation. "Thanks for coming, you lot. Let’s see. . .Neville, would you. . .oh, I need time to think. Hang on," he said, shaking his head as if trying to clear it. "What do we need to do first?" he asked Hermione, who was now holding onto his arm for support. She was looking around at the gathered D.A. members who stood, brooms and wands in hand, waiting for instructions, a startled expression on her face.
"What happened?" she asked uncertainly.
"I’ll explain later," Ron replied, patting her shoulder comfortingly.
"We need to get Professor Sinistra to the hospital wing," Harry said briskly as he came out of her office. He’d changed from a phoenix to a raven as soon as he’d flown beneath the wall and out of everyone’s sight, then flown into the professor’s office window, where he found her unconscious, bound and gagged. He rolled his shoulders uncomfortably, doing his best to ignore the pain in his still-healing scars. "She wasn’t just stunned. I can’t get her to wake up." He seemed to notice the others for the first time. "Hey, guys, I’m glad you’re here. We could do with your help. Ginny, could you look at the professor?"
"Of course," Ginny said, grabbing her medical kit off her broom. "Are any of you hurt?"
"Hermione took a bad hit," Harry said. "You’ll need to check her too, but I can’t wake the professor. I’m really worried about her."
"Neville," Ginny said, "You check Hermione’s wounds and do what you can. And we’ll need to check Harry and Ron too — they never admit it when they’re hurt."
"We do, too," Harry protested, but mildly. As Ginny headed for the office, he looked at the Gryffindor D.A. members and said, "Thanks for coming. How did you know?"
"Colin saw the spell fire from the windows of his room. He came to our room looking for you and Ron. We helped him look for you, and when we saw Ginny waiting for you in the Common Room, he told her. She rounded everyone up and here we are," Neville said proudly as he took his medical kit off his broom and walked over to examine Hermione.
"Good work, Colin," Harry said, clapping the younger boy on the back. "Thanks."
"I’m glad I was having trouble getting to sleep!" Colin said excitedly.
"Me too," Harry replied with a grin.
Harry went to see how Ginny was doing with the professor. Ron helped Hermione to a seat by the castle wall so Neville could check her injuries, then went to confer with D.A. members about their prisoners and explain what had happened.
Harry stuck his head out of the office door and said, "Ron, send an Adfero to Madam Pomfrey and Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall. Tell them what happened and that we need to transport four people off this tower — and the tower needs to be repaired. Thanks." He ducked back into the office to try to help Ginny with Sinistra.
"Make that five, Ron" Neville said nervously. "Hermione just collapsed when I touched the injury on her head."
"’Mione!" Ron cried, falling to his knees beside her. "What’s wrong?"
"Hurts. Dizzy. Don’t know. . .what spell he used. . .odd colour. . .kind of orange, but pinker," Hermione mumbled, obviously in pain. She began gasping for breath.
"Neville? What’s wrong with her?" Ron asked, appalled.
"I don’t know," Neville replied, working on Hermione frantically. She was writhing in pain and beginning to turn blue.
"HARRY!" Ron screamed.
"What?" Harry said, racing out of the office and skidding to a stop by his friend.
"She’s having trouble breathing. I don’t know what to do," Ron said, distraught.
"Can you fly?" Harry said, looking into Ron’s eyes seriously.
"You can fly. I can’t fly," Ron said in confusion.
"Take Ginny’s broom and get Hermione to the hospital wing right away," Harry explained, grabbing the Firebolt from where it leaned against the wall with the other D.A. members’ brooms.
"Oh. Yeah, I can do that," he said, taking the Firebolt from Harry’s hand.
"HARRY!" Ginny called from the office.
"What?" he said as he tried to help Ron arrange Hermione in front of him on the broom.
"Professor Sinistra — she’s getting worse. I don’t know what they did to her!" Ginny was rarely panicked, but seemed to be getting there now. D.A. members were talking in high, worried voices, not sure what they should be doing to help. It was getting very noisy on the tower.
"Everyone just STOP!" Harry said, spreading his hands out in a quelling gesture. They all stood looking at him. "OK. Ron, that’s just not going to work." Hermione was writhing in pain. Her action would make it impossible to fly safely on a broom. "Neville, you and Dean bring Professor Sinistra out here. Lay her next to Hermione. Ron, did you send the Adferos?" Ron shook his head while struggling to calm Hermione, his eyes wide and fearful.
"I’ll do it," Harry said. Silvery lights flew from his wand as he sent Adferos to Dumbledore, Pomfrey and McGonagall, telling them what happened, telling them he was bringing patients to the hospital wing and giving them a brief explanation of their condition, and that there were three prisoners on the Astronomy Tower under the guard of some D.A. members.
"Merlin! Help me!" he cried and his phoenix appeared in front of him in a bright flash of light. He looked around at his D.A. members. "All right, you lot. You’re going to see something that you may or may not have seen on the battlefield. It is very important that this remain a secret. Do I have your solemn word?" He looked around and saw nods of agreement everywhere. "All right then. Here’s what we’re going to do."
In a few moments, half the D.A. members were standing on the Tower, guarding their prisoners, while the other half were part of a strange convoy. Professor Sinistra and Hermione were both bound to stretchers Harry had conjured. These stretchers were being carried by three phoenixes, Merlin, Harry and Fawkes, who had arrived with Dumbledore holding on to his tail. Dumbledore bound the prisoners more securely and conjured a temporary cell on top of the Tower, before grabbing a D.A. member’s broom and following the convoy already on the way to the hospital wing.
Hermione was fighting her bonds, writing in pain, and very difficult to carry. Those on broomsticks would have been hard-pressed to manage her, so the two women’s stretchers were bound together and ropes passed up to the three phoenixes, which bore the burden together. Ron, Ginny, Neville and the others flew beside and under the stretchers, trying to keep them steady so they weren’t such a burden to the three birds and to prevent the patients from falling. The hospital wing’s biggest window was wide open when they arrived, and they flew inside with no mishaps. Harry changed back into himself and helped Ron release their patients. As soon as both women were settled into beds, Harry stretched out on the floor, panting with tension and fatigue.
"Harry? Are you all right?" Ginny said in concern.
"Tired," he said. "That was hard work. There’s no way we could’ve carried Hermione on a broom. She’s moving too violently. It was all we could do to carry her, and phoenixes are very strong." He looked up at the two phoenixes who were sitting on top of the curtains around Hermione’s bed, watching the activity below them with interest. "Thanks, guys," he said with a weary smile. He lay back on the stone floor, spread-eagled, still panting.
"I think you need some Pepper-Up Potion," Ginny said. "I’ll ask Madam Pomfrey about it when she’s done with them."
"K," Harry said, taking off his glasses and throwing his arm over his eyes as he rested. "How are they?"
"I can’t tell. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Dumbledore look very concerned about Hermione," Ginny replied.
"Did someone tell her about the orange spell?"
"Yes, Ron told her everything."
"Then all we can do is wait," he said, sounding exhausted. "I just need to rest. You go on and help Madam Pomfrey."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, baby, go on," he insisted.
Professor McGonagall soon arrived. "What happened?" she asked. "Why’s Potter on the floor? Is he hurt too?"
"He says he’s just tired," Neville replied.
Harry began moaning, his head rocking back and forth, his arms and legs moving restlessly.
"Harry?" Professor McGonagall said, stooping next to him, her face furrowed in concern. "Harry, wake up. Are you all right?"
He finally opened his eyes, looking blearily around him. "What? Professor?" He started to sit up, then grabbed his head, falling back to the floor with a thump.
"What’s wrong?" McGonagall cried, frightened by his pallor.
"Scar. . ." he whimpered.
"Harry?" Ginny cried, dropping to her knees beside him.
"He says his scar hurts," McGonagall said.
"I’ll bring some cool water. Hang on!" Ginny said, racing off to get a basin of water and a flannel. When she returned, she held the cool, damp flannel to his scar, which was so red it looked bloody.
Dumbledore came and knelt beside Professor McGonagall. "Let’s move him to a bed where he’ll be more comfortable," he said briskly. He levitated the moaning boy carefully onto a bed, then sent an Adfero to Remus. "His godfather should know he’s here," he said in explanation.
"He’s angry again," Harry murmured, his face screwed up in pain.
"Voldemort?" McGonagall said.
"Yeah. He just learned this plan didn’t work. He’s furious."
"Were you just asleep before, or are you injured?" Ginny asked.
"Asleep. I dreamed — he’s torturing Lucius Malfoy because this plan didn’t work either. They must have had someone observing the fight on the Tower, or else Malfoy was supposed to report in when he was done, I don’t know which. Malfoy needs some Veritaserum so we can get to the bottom of this," Harry growled, beginning to regain his strength.
"Do you have any spell burns, injuries, anything like that?" Ginny insisted.
Harry looked at her, then at Professor McGonagall, his eyes furious. "Malfoy was beating the crap out of me when I was carrying him back up the tower," he said with quiet, angry intensity. "He threw in a few spells too, but spells don’t affect phoenixes the same way they do humans. I don’t know what spells he was trying to cast. I was too busy trying to fly and not drop his stupid bum on the ground, the great prat."
"You’re beginning to sound like yourself again," Ginny said with a relieved smile. "You must be feeling better."
"Yeah," he replied, sitting up and shifting back so he was sitting up, leaning against his pillows. "A bit. Head still hurts. And my arms and chest are sore. And my back hurts. Those muscles haven’t regained their strength yet, and I did a lot of flying tonight."
"Let me see," Ginny insisted, already opening his robes and unbuttoning his shirt as she pulled it out of the waistband of his trousers. His chest was covered with spell burns and livid bruises. "Oh, baby! How did you manage to fly in this condition?" she said, aghast.
"Dunno. It needed to be done," he said, looking down at his chest with surprise. "Huh. I didn’t know that stupid git had it in him," he commented, then put his hands on his chest to start the healing process.
"Harry, are you all right? What happened?" Remus cried rushing to his godson’s bedside.
"I’m OK, Remus. Don’t worry."
"How can I not worry when I hear you’re in the hospital wing again?" Remus said, shaking his head.
"I’m all right, really. It’s Hermione who’s hurt," Harry said, his eyes filled with worry. "Malfoy got her with some weird kind of spell."
"Oh, no," Remus said, looking toward her bed. "Is there anything I can do?"
"No, Madam Pomfrey seems to have it well in hand," Harry assured him.
Remus seemed to deflate suddenly, sitting down and putting his face in his hands. When he’d heard Harry had been attacked on the Astronomy Tower, he’d panicked. He thought he’d seen something fall from the tower when he glanced out of his window earlier, but it was just a glimpse of something scarlet and black fluttering in the moonlight, like the Gryffindors’ black robes with their scarlet linings. He’d forced himself to be logical. There was no reason for a Gryffindor to be falling off the Tower. Their exams must have been finished quite a while ago, so the Tower should be empty. He’d kept trying to convince himself he had imagined what he saw, but his heart had stayed constricted in fear he’d tried vehemently to deny until he’d received Dumbledore’s Adfero. Now Remus wrung his hands together, trying to calm his pounding heart. He’d raced all the way to the hospital wing, regretting again that no one but a house elf could Apparate on Hogwarts grounds. Harry was fine. Hermione would be fine, he was sure of it. Calm down, it obviously wasn’t Harry falling off of the Tower, he scolded himself.
Meanwhile, Madam Pomfrey had her hands full trying to take care of Hermione and Professor Sinistra. She went to her fireplace and called St. Mungo’s asking for help. Her brother soon stepped out of the fire, medical kit in hand.
"Now what?" he said in an exhausted voice. "I’ve been working all night as it is."
"I’m sorry, Marcus, but neither Albus nor I can’t identify the spells that were used on these two," she said, indicating Hermione and Professor Sinistra. "Every so often, Miss Granger can’t get her breath. Her head is injured, too. She remembers a spell that was orange with a pinkish cast to it, but she didn’t hear the incantation. We don’t know what happened to Professor Sinistra, but we can’t wake her up."
Marcus bent to examine the two women. "We need to take them both to St. Mungo’s for treatment," he said seriously. "There’s a specialist in Dark spells there who will know what to do."
Arrangements were made to transport both of them immediately and soon the only patient left in the hospital wing was Harry, and he’d healed most of his wounds already. Madam Pomfrey gave him some potion to heal his other injuries and ease the pain from the abuse his still-healing back muscles had gone through from flying in his bird forms. Ron was bereft, his heart breaking that Hermione was in St. Mungo’s and he hadn’t been allowed to go with her.
"We’d like to hear the full story of what happened," Professor McGonagall said as Harry buttoned his shirt and obediently drank the potion Madam Pomfrey handed him. Dumbledore came to stand beside her and Remus.
"Harry, can you tell us what happened?" Dumbledore prompted.
Harry nodded. "There isn’t much to tell, actually," he began. He explained what he knew, and Ron filled in the gaps.
"It was you!" Remus cried when Harry got to the part where he had to dive off the Tower to save Malfoy’s life. "It was you! I was walking past my window and saw something black falling from the Tower and flashes of scarlet — all that just for a second. It looked like a Gryffindor’s robes and I told myself, ‘Harry can’t be falling off the tower. His exams are finished and he’s back in his dormitory.’ But it was you, wasn’t it?" Remus’s face had drained of all colour and he had to sit down hard. "I could’ve done something. I saw it happen," he muttered, shaking his head disconsolately.
Harry reached out and squeezed his godfather’s arm. "Remus, I’m fine. I did jump off the Tower, but as a phoenix — well, I turned into a phoenix partway down, I suppose. I changed while I was falling. I guess that would explain the black — my robes — and the scarlet — the phoenix. And you do know I’m quite fond of dives," he said with a cheeky grin. "It was kind of fun, except for the part where I caught Malfoy and saved his stupid neck, and then he fought me all the way back up."
Remus put his shaking hand over Harry’s. "I knew something was wrong. I knew you were in danger. I sensed it. But I didn’t act on it. I didn’t send you an Adfero to find out where you were. . ."
"I’m fine," Harry insisted. "Don’t blame yourself. I’m fine."
"Next time, I’ll act on my instincts, OK?"
"Yeah. That’ll be great," Harry agreed, smiling at his godfather. He turned back to Dumbledore. "I’d like to know how Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle managed to get out of Azkaban, onto the grounds and up in the tower, and with Polyjuice potion."
"As for the prison escape," Dumbledore said, "Voldemort, as you might expect, engineered it. He managed to blast a hole in one wall and free some of their comrades before the Aurors could stop them. The Aurors managed to stun or kill several of the prisoners trying to escape, but they were hesitant to kill students, so Draco and his friends made good their escape. As for how they got on the grounds, we will be using Veritaserum on Draco Malfoy soon, so we can get to the bottom of this. Azkaban has been secured again, and the binding spells that prevented the walls from being breeched have been reinforced with new spells. Since the Dementors joined Voldemort, he’s learned every secret of the prison, so breaking people out was easy for him, even without eyes. Being blind doesn’t make him powerless, unfortunately." Dumbledore looked very old and tired. "I’m so sorry this happened, Harry. You shouldn’t have to be on your guard all the time within Hogwarts. It hasn’t been a very safe haven for you this year, I’m afraid."
"It’s not your fault," Harry replied kindly. "And as you have reminded me several times this year, it’s not my fault either."
Dumbledore smiled briefly, then his face saddened. "I wish there was some other way than sending those boys back to Azkaban, but I simply can’t take the risk of keeping them here. I considered keeping them in our dungeons and trying to turn them around, get them away from Voldemort’s influence, but I shouldn’t put the rest of the students at risk. So, I’ll be sending them to Azkaban in the morning." He looked at Ron, whose face was like stone as he tried not to cry over Hermione being taken to St. Mungo’s. "I will make arrangements for the three of you," he said, pointing to Ron, Harry and Ginny, "to go to St. Mungo’s to visit Miss Granger in a little while. We need to give the healers time to work on her."
"Will she be all right?" Ron asked desperately.
"I believe so," Dumbledore said, his eyes filled with compassion. "It’s very late. Why don’t all of you go back to your dormitories and try to rest? I’ll send for you as soon as I know something." He turned to the D.A. members standing quietly around the hospital wing. "I cannot tell you how proud I am of all of you," he said. "You saw an emergency and went to deal with it right away. Well done! However, in the future, remember to notify some staff members as you’re getting ready, so we can get there quickly as well, all right?" he added with a smile. Seeing their nods, he wished them good night and sent them off to bed.
A short time later, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Neville, Dean, Colin, Dennis and the other D.A. members who’d flown with them trudged into Gryffindor Tower, dragging their feet in exhaustion. They arrived to find the Common Room full of excited Gryffindors, who’d heard parts of the story from the group who’d stayed on the Tower with the prisoners. They wanted to hear more details. Ron and Harry looked at each other. Neither one felt like talking.
"Harry, tell us what happened!" several voices cried.
"It’s late! We’re tired. You’ve already heard everything, haven’t you?" he replied in exasperation.
"Please?"
"Not tonight, all right? We’re knackered," Harry said, pushing Ron toward the dormitory stairs.
"Where’s Hermione?" someone asked suddenly.
Ron’s shoulders began to shake as he fought his grief. Harry put his arm around him and led him upstairs, calling over his shoulder to Ginny, "Fill them in, OK? So there won’t be more questions in the morning?" She nodded. "Thanks, sweetheart."
"I can’t lose her now," Ron moaned as he sat on the edge of his bed. "I can’t. I was beastly to her about revising so much. I was teasing her horribly the last few days, and griping. I haven’t told her I love her in ages!" He looked at Harry, heartbroken sobs wracking his body. "I need to talk to her! She can’t. . .she can’t. . ."
"She’s going to be fine, Ron," Harry said stoutly. "You’ll see. She’s tough. If she could survive that purple curse last year, she can certainly manage that wimpy little orange curse that Malfoy threw. Draco Malfoy!" He spat out the name. "He’s not a powerful wizard. His spells are nothing. She’ll be fine, you’ll see." He grabbed Ron by both shoulders and shook him, none too gently. "Buck up. She will be fine. D’you hear me?"
Ron nodded mutely, tears still streaming down his face. He seemed to collapse in on himself, bent over by grief. Harry pulled him into his arms and let his friend cry himself out on his shoulder.
"We’ve been through too much of this stuff to let it get us down, mate," Harry assured him. "She’ll be fine. You’ll see." He wished with all the power within him that he was right.
Harry noticed Merlin sitting on top of his four-poster. "Merlin? Could you do me a favour, mate?" The bird flew down and sat next to him on Ron’s bed. "Would you go to St. Mungo’s and watch Hermione Granger? Come tell us how she’s doing when you know something, all right?" With a flash of light, the bird was gone.
Ron sat up and looked at Harry, his eyes despairing and lost. "I don’t know how Ginny’s managed, all the times you’ve been so sick or hurt, when we didn’t know if you’d pull through. I don’t know how she does it. I just can’t."
"She’s a Weasley, mate. So are you. Weasleys are made of stronger stuff than most people, you know," Harry assured him.
"How do you know that?" Ron said, sniffling like a little boy.
Harry grabbed a handkerchief from Ron’s wardrobe drawer and handed it to him. "I know because my best mate is a Weasley, and the girl I love is a Weasley, and a lot of my dearest friends are Weasleys. Top drawer, every one. Strong people. Stout hearts. Good souls." He was running out of platitudes, but at least he’d managed to distract Ron. "Loads of freckles. Red hair. Fly like maniacs." His over-the-top descriptions of the Weasley family had finally caught Ron’s attention, both amusing and touching him.
"Thanks, mate," Ron said, wiping his eyes and blowing his nose.
"No problem. You know, Ginny has cried over me a lot — she doesn’t let the rest of you see it. She has a soft heart inside that fiery spirit of hers. Just like you," Harry said, poking Ron playfully in the shoulder.
Ron smiled a bit, managing at last to get some control over his emotions. "I should have asked for some Dreamless Sleep potion," he said mournfully. "I won’t sleep a wink tonight."
"Why don’t you change into the collie? Maybe you’ll feel better," Harry suggested.
"Could you do it for me? I don’t have the energy to manage it," Ron said sadly.
"Absolutely," Harry replied. Seconds later, the beautiful sable collie sat by Harry, its ears drooping and its eyes sad. It rested its chin on Harry’s shoulder for a moment. Harry wrapped his arms around the dog’s neck, letting the dog lean on him for a while. "I’ve got to go to bed, mate," he said quietly after a few minutes. "I’m shattered. D’you want to sleep on the foot of my bed like Sirius used to?" The collie pulled its head off of Harry’s shoulder and looked at him hopefully. "Well, come on, then." He got up and moved to his own bed, stripping to his boxers and climbing in as quickly as possible, too tired to dig out his pyjamas. The collie turned round and round and round for a while before flumping down on the bed. "G’nite, mate," Harry whispered. The collie whined in reply.
Neville and Dean saw the collie on Harry’s bed and asked no questions when they came to bed a short time later. They each patted the dog on the head quietly, trying to let Harry sleep.
"Sorry, mate," Dean said, scratching the collie behind the ears, then going to bed.
"She’ll be fine, you’ll see," Neville said, patting the dog nervously on the head. "I’m sorry I couldn’t do more for her." The collie raised its head and licked Neville’s face, making him giggle. "That’s kind of gross, since it’s you, but I guess you’re saying it’s OK, right?" The collie blinked, which was good enough for Neville. He was relieved. He had been afraid he’d be blamed for Hermione’s condition, but there really wasn’t anything he knew how to do for her. He appreciated Ron’s forgiveness. "Thanks. Good night."
Hours later, Harry was awakened by a solid thump next to his pillow. He woke with a start, reaching for his glasses, but there was something big, soft and feathery in the way. "Merlin?" A soft croon answered him. "How is she?" More crooning, which was accompanied by the dog’s whines. "Ron — Merlin says she’s better. She woke up a little while ago," Harry said, joy in his voice. The dog began bounding around on the bed, until a highly put-out Merlin retreated to his perch. The collie’s celebration was making Harry ache all over. "Ron! Ron, please stop! That hurts!" The collie was instantly still. "Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot I was the one who changed you. Hang on — you do want to change back, don’t you?" The collie blinked. "OK then." Instantly, the gangly redhead was sitting on the foot of Harry’s bed.
"She’s better? He really said that?"
"Yes, he said that. I wouldn’t lie to you about that kind of thing," Harry said, looking a bit aggrieved. "Please don’t bounce! I’m still sore."
"Sorry, mate!" Ron said, getting off the bed. "Sorry, Merlin! Thanks for bringing the news! I didn’t mean to bounce you off the bed."
Merlin merely ruffled his feathers and raised his head imperiously, showing Ron that he was being deliberately ignored. Ron climbed into his own bed feeling as though there might be some hope in his life after all.
* * * * *
"I’m telling you, he’s a fan after the battles," Harry told Ron as they walked down the street of Hogsmeade the next day. "I’ll bet he gives you a discount."
"I really hope so. I wish I hadn’t bought so many chocolate frogs on our last trip here. I just don’t have that much money," Ron worried. They entered the jewellery shop, Harry confidently and Ron hanging back nervously.
"Mr. Potter! Mr. Weasley! How nice to see you both," Mr. Joyero said. "What can I do for you today?"
"My girlfriend loves her ring, and Ron wants to see something similar for his girlfriend," Harry replied, prodding his friend closer to the counter.
"A promise ring, Mr. Weasley?"
"I’m not sure," Ron said nervously.
Harry said, "Excuse us a moment, please?" and pulled Ron back toward the door. "You don’t want to give a promise ring unless you’re certain you want to promise what it implies. I thought that’s what you wanted."
"I thought so too, but now that it comes to it, I’m not so sure," Ron said, looking a bit green.
"Then don’t rush into anything. Get her something else, not a ring," Harry advised him calmly. Ron nodded and began looking a bit better.
As they approached the counter again, Harry suggested, "What about another charm for her bracelet? Or just some flowers?" He looked at the jeweller and explained, "She’s not feeling well."
"Ah, I see," said the jeweller. "I remember the charm bracelet you purchased for her. Did she like it?"
"Yeah, she liked it a lot," Ron said, finally beginning to relax somewhat. He had been so convinced he wanted to buy her a promise ring, but now that they were in front of him, he wasn’t so confident. It would kill him if she rejected it. Better to give her something without quite so much of a commitment behind it until we’re both ready, right? he told himself.
"So, another charm for the bracelet? Or perhaps some nice earrings? You purchased a pendant for her for Valentine’s Day, didn’t you?" the jeweller offered, seeing Ron’s discomfort and indecision.
Ron nodded. "What’s left other than rings?" he said miserably.
"Let’s see some earrings," Harry suggested. The jeweller pulled out a tray full of gorgeous earrings, some in silver, some in gold, some in both metals. Some had beautiful gemstones inlaid in them. Others were lacy confections of metal.
Ron looked overwhelmed. "I just don’t know," he said. He reached out and gingerly touched a pair of earrings, each of which was a lovely heart shape made of swirls of filigree silver. A small sapphire gleamed a rich, deep blue amidst the swirls of metal. "Those are pretty," he said quietly. "What kind of stone is that?"
"Those are sapphires," the jeweller. "The birthstone for September."
"Hermione’s birthday is in September," Ron mused, pushing the earrings this way and that watching the metal and stone catch the light. Ron gulped, mentally counting his money. "How much?"
The jeweller looked at Ron and sighed. Here was the commander of Dumbledore’s Army, worried about having enough money to buy his girlfriend a bauble. "One galleon, three knuts," the man said, hoping his wife wouldn’t hex him for giving another hefty discount to these boys.
Ron’s face lit up. He had the money and twelve sickles left over! He could afford these earrings! "I’ll take them!" he said with a grin.
"Would you like any charms on them?" Mr. Joyero asked carefully.
"Oh. How much?" Ron asked, nervous again.
"Five sickles," the man said, giving Ron yet another huge discount. The ecstatic look on Ron’s face was all the reward the jeweller could ask for. Soon, the deal was done, the earrings charmed with good health charms and beautifully boxed and wrapped. Two very happy young men waved merrily at the merchant as they left his shop.
"Did you give those boys a huge price cut again?" his wife snapped as she entered the shop from the workroom in the back.
"Did you see his face? He’s the commander of Dumbledore’s Army. The girl he’s buying it for is his second-in-command as well as his girlfriend. They deserve a reward for all they’ve done. I’m glad I was able to help him out," Joyero said, still smiling at the memory of Ron’s glowing face as he paid for the jewellery and still had a little bit of money left over.
Ron and Harry were still standing outside the shop. Ron had opened the box to admire the earrings in the light. "They’re beautiful, aren’t they?" he said.
"Yeah, she’s going to love them," Harry replied with a grin. "You’ll get a BIG kiss for that present!"
The jeweller’s wife saw the boys talking, and the light in their faces. She also saw the battle scars still vivid on Harry’s face in the bright sunlight. "You did the right thing," she said slowly, sliding her arm around his waist. "I’m proud of you."
"Those young people are fighting a war none of us should have to fight," he said seriously as he pulled her close. "They’re protecting us, our children, our way of life, not just themselves. We should do whatever we can to help them out. This was something I could do to help them. I’m glad you understand."
* * * * *
"C’mon, Harry, let’s go," Ron said urgently, racing out of the dormitory. He, Harry and Ginny were going to meet Remus in the corridor by the Fat Lady’s portrait and use a Portkey to go and visit Hermione in St. Mungo’s.
"Coming!" Harry said, tucking in his shirt tail as he ran to catch up with Ron. Ron had been in a tizzy ever since breakfast, when Remus had told them they could leave after lunch to visit Hermione. Ron had got ready right away, and spent the remainder of the morning pacing and driving Harry and Ginny round the bend with questions about the time, about how he looked, about everything he could think of. At one point, Harry had threatened to turn him into a hedgehog if he didn’t relax a bit, but the threat had no effect. Hermione had been in the hospital for two days. The first day, she and Professor Sinistra had both been in critical condition, but now they were both improving.
"Everyone ready?" Remus asked as the three teenagers gathered closely around him. They nodded, making sure they were each touching the old tin cup that was their Portkey.
After the familiar jerk behind his navel, Harry closed his eyes to avoid seeing the spinning colours that accompanied travel by Portkey. He managed to land on his feet, just stumbling a bit when Ron fell into him, but he had to catch Ginny, who Ron knocked over completely.
"This way," Remus said, leading them down a hallway. They turned into a room halfway down the hall and saw Professor Sinistra in the first bed. Hermione was in the bed closest to the window, her parents sitting by her bedside. She appeared to be asleep.
"Hello, Professor," Harry said. "How are you feeling?"
"I’m much better now. I’m so sorry about what happened. I can’t thank you enough for rescuing me, Mr. Potter," she said with a rare smile.
"It wasn’t just me," he said modestly. "There were a lot of us involved. I’m glad you’re OK." He followed Ron and Ginny to Hermione’s bed. Remus stayed behind to talk to Professor Sinistra. He thought too many visitors at once might tire Hermione out.
"Hello, Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger," Ron said respectfully. "How are you?"
"As well as can be expected," Mrs. Granger said, obviously quite upset. "What in the world is going on at that school? How did this happen?"
"Erm. . ." Ron began, then looked to Harry for help. He just wanted to sit and hold Hermione’s hand, maybe kiss her when she woke up if she was up to it. He didn’t want to have to explain the war going on in the wizarding world to his girlfriend’s Muggle parents.
"I’ll do my best to explain things to you, if you want me to," Harry offered. "Perhaps we should go to the lounge at the end of the hallway so we don’t disturb Hermione and Professor Sinistra?"
"What happened to you?" Mrs. Granger asked suddenly, staring at the livid scars on Harry’s face.
"Erm. . .long story," he replied, blushing and dropping his eyes. He did his best not to look in any mirrors these days. He thought he looked like a monster with so many scars all over his face and body, but his friends insisted he looked fine. He knew the scars would heal eventually, and he was grateful people at school didn’t stare at him anymore, but the Grangers, of course, were shocked by his appearance. He took a deep breath and blew it out to calm himself. Ginny squeezed his hand supportively, knowing what he was going through.
"I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have. . .I don’t know what I was thinking," Mrs. Granger said, upset that she’d embarrassed her daughter’s friend.
"It’s OK. I know I look pretty gross," he said with a shrug.
"Do not!" Ginny said stoutly. Harry looked at her, a smile tickling his mouth, but said nothing.
"How is she?" Harry asked kindly.
The Grangers looked sadly at their daughter. "She’s not asleep, she’s unconscious. She woke up once not long after she got here, then lost consciousness again and hasn’t come round since," Mr. Granger said despondently.
"What do the healers say?" Ginny asked.
"They said we just have to wait and see," Mr. Granger replied. They had one child, just one, and she’d turned out to be a witch. OK, they could cope with that, but she kept being involved in odd accidents, so it seemed, and she’d managed to avoid telling them much about these incidents so far, to keep them from worrying about her. This time, she’d been seriously enough injured that they’d been called to the hospital. The Grangers hadn’t left her side for more than a few minutes since they’d arrived. They were confused and more than a little angry that such things went on in a school, of all places! They sighed, looked at each other, and stood together. "All right, Harry. Let’s go to the lounge. I’d like that explanation," Mr. Granger said.
As they left, Harry touched Remus on the shoulder. "Would you mind coming with us? I could do with some help," he murmured. Remus told Professor Sinistra he’d see her later and followed Harry, Ginny and the Grangers down the hall to an enclosed lounge with couches, vending machines and ancient magazines and newspapers. The room smelled of fear and sorrow and joy and relief, from all the people who’d sat there waiting for news about their loved ones.
"Would you like some coffee?" Harry asked kindly, heading for the flask on a table with baskets full of cream and sugar. At their nods, he poured coffee for each of the Grangers and served it to them, offering them cream and sugar. Any delaying tactics he could think of were welcome distractions, but he finally ran out of options and had to sit down and talk to them.
"You wanted to know how this happened. It would be helpful to know what you know about the things going on in the wizarding world right now," he began, sitting across from them and rubbing his hands together to relax himself.
"We know there’s a monster named Voldy-something who has started some kind of terrorist attacks on people. We don’t know why he’s doing this, nor why Hogwarts is involved," Mr. Granger began.
"Or why Hermione was involved!" Mrs. Granger added, sounding rather desperate.
"Um. . .what exactly has Hermione told you about me?" Harry asked nervously.
"That you’re a sweet boy, a good friend, a very powerful wizard. . .what else, dear?" Mrs. Granger said, looking at her husband.
"That you’re the best Seeker Hogwarts has seen in a century — whatever a Seeker is. Something to do with sports?" Mr. Granger offered.
"Yes. Has she ever told you about how I got this scar?" he said, pointing to the one on his forehead, since he still had others on his face.
The Grangers looked at each other. They’d always made an effort to not look at his scar. "Um. . .we’ve never asked her. We thought you probably got hurt when you were little," Mrs. Granger said, spreading her hands and shrugging.
"Oh no. This is going to take longer than I thought," Harry said. "Um. . .Remus?" he began, then turned back to the Grangers. "Oh, have you met my godfather?" They shook their heads. "I’m sorry. This is Remus Lupin. He’s our professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts." The adults shook hands. "And you know Ron’s sister, Ginny Weasley, right?" Harry said. The Grangers nodded at her.
"Harry, it feels as if you’re killing time," Mr. Granger observed wisely. "Why don’t you just tell us the story from the beginning so we’ll understand how our daughter became involved in this, and how she was hurt."
"Yeah, you caught me out. I was killing time. I can’t believe Hermione told you so little about me," he said ruefully. "When we first met, she knew more about me than I did."
"Wait a minute," Mr. Granger said. "You’re not that little boy who defeated a great Dark wizard, are you?"
"Yeah, that’s me," Harry said. "So you have heard some of it, then?"
"I thought that was a folk tale," Mrs. Granger said. "How could you defeat a grown wizard when you were little? How old were you?"
"Just over a year old. And nobody knows exactly how I defeated him. It was Voldemort. You said you’d heard of him." They nodded. "He sent a Killing Curse at me and it rebounded on him. It destroyed his body, but part of him continued to live. He inhabited various people and animals to stay alive until he could generate a new body a couple of years ago. A prophecy made before I was born said I would be the one who would defeat him, so he’s been trying to kill me all my life."
"Is that what that prophecy said?" Ginny asked in surprise. "You never told anyone."
"I told Ron not too long ago. It’s not the kind of thing I really want to talk about," Harry said, hanging his head.
"Tell us, Harry," Ginny said. "You may as well. The Grangers need to know everything."
He looked at her, studying her eyes deeply. "Everything?"
"Everything," the Grangers said together.
Harry sighed, pushing his glasses up and rubbing his eyes with both hands before looking at the Grangers, Ginny and Remus again. "It’s not pretty," he told the Grangers. "It’s pretty ugly, actually."
"Just get on with it. We want to get back to Hermione," Mrs. Granger urged.
"But we also want to know everything. Don’t leave anything out, Harry. We need to know," said Mr. Granger.
"OK. The prophecy said that I would be born and be the only one who could defeat him. I have to kill him, or he has to kill me. There’s no way around that."
"You have to kill somebody?" Mrs. Granger said, aghast.
"Do you really want to know everything?" Remus asked her warningly. "Because if you do, Harry is going to have to go through all kinds of torment remembering a lot of awful things."
"They deserve to know, Remus, but thanks anyway," Harry said, resigning himself to what he had to do. "Killing Voldemort won’t be the first time for me. I’ve been fighting him for years. In the last year, it became a full-fledged war. I’ve fought in several battles and killed people. Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Remus have all fought too, although Remus is the only one of them who’s killed anyone." He turned to Remus and Ginny. "I think I’m right in that, aren’t I? Ron and Hermione directed the battle, and Hermione wasn’t in the battle in France, and you were a Healer in the latest battle, Ginny."
"It wasn’t for lack of trying that I didn’t kill anyone," Ginny said fiercely. "I’m just not as powerful as Harry, and he won’t let the rest of us learn the Killing Curse and other fatal curses."
"I’m the one who has to kill — I don’t see any reason for the rest of you to have to do that. It’s not easy to live with," Harry said in a low voice, his face like stone. "And it doesn’t take a Killing Curse to kill someone. The first person I killed deliberately died from a simple Expelliarmus spell — she just fell back and hit her head." He hoped he wouldn’t have to explain that, as an eleven-year-old child, he’d accidentally killed Professor Quirrel. The rest of his story was bad enough without admitting he’d killed someone when he was still a little kid.
"You killed a WOMAN?" Mr. Granger said in horror, looking at Harry as if he was some kind of monster.
Harry did his best to control his emotions. "She killed my godfather," he replied stoically. "Remus only recently became my godfather. She tortured Neville Longbottom’s parents into insanity. They’ve been in St. Mungo’s mental ward for most of Neville’s life. They don’t recognize their son. The woman I killed has sent people after me to kill me numerous times this year. She even spelled Hermione to try to kill me, and that one almost succeeded, because I trust Hermione so much."
"She . . . What did she do to Hermione?" Mrs. Granger was horror-struck.
"She put Hermione under a spell that made her do things she didn’t want to do, including putting poisoned capsules in my skin," Harry snarled, angered by the memory.
"What happened to Hermione?" Mrs. Granger said.
"We removed the spell from her. She was fine after that," Harry said with a shrug.
"How did you survive the poison?" Mr. Granger asked.
"Magic," Harry replied shortly. Then he shook his head, fighting to get past his anger and do the right thing for his friend’s parents. "Hermione is my best friend. She’s a sister to me. I truly love her that way. I’m sorry to get angry while trying to explain this stuff, but it’s hard for me. I hope you can understand. I’m as upset about her being hurt as anyone." He sighed. "All right. Here’s the story from the beginning. Just let me tell it and then you can ask questions at the end, OK?" They nodded mutely. And so Harry began telling the story of his life, how his parents had been murdered, how Voldemort had tried to kill him, his shock at learning he was a wizard, his meeting Ron and Hermione and becoming friends with them, Hermione telling him a lot about the story of his life, since she’d read up on him and he didn’t know anything about himself. He told about the troll they’d encountered in their first year at Hogwarts, and how clever Hermione had been in the potions part of the path to the Philosopher’s Stone. He hit every important point of every story, making sure to emphasize how wonderful Hermione was as a friend and a witch, and that he’d tried to keep her out of harm’s way but she just insisted on being part of every adventure. When he got to the battle on the Astronomy Tower and told how Malfoy had sent a Killing Curse at her after hitting her with the orange curse, her parents shocked faces dissolved into tears.
"That one didn’t hit her, though. I shielded the two of us, so it rebounded on Malfoy. I had to send a blocking spell to deflect it so it wouldn’t kill him." Harry went on doggedly, telling how phoenixes had carried the stretchers to the hospital and about Healer Pomfrey saying both patients needed the specialist at St. Mungo’s. "And that’s everything. Now, if you have questions, I’ll answer them the best I can." He was exhausted. Telling the story had taken a long time, and he’d had to relive a lot of horrible old memories. He hadn’t even noticed when Ginny had stood behind him, put her arms around him and rested her head on the back of his neck, trying to comfort him, or when Remus had taken hold of his arm to let him know he wasn’t alone. He hadn’t noticed it then. But he noticed now. He turned his agonized face to Remus, then Ginny, forced a small smile on his face and whispered, "Thanks."
"If you have questions, I’ll do my best to answer them," Remus offered. "I think Harry’s been through enough. He’s been very open with you, which we all feel you deserve, but it’s very hard for him to relive these things, as I’m sure you can understand."
"The only question I can think of is why? Why do people follow this awful man? Why hasn’t he been captured and put in jail? Why haven’t any adult wizards captured or killed him?" Mrs. Granger said, her face distraught.
"The answer to all of those questions is, Voldemort is the most powerful Dark wizard the world has seen for a century or more, possibly longer," Remus explained. "Albus Dumbledore is the most powerful wizard in the world today, but he’s getting older, and it’s not his destiny to deal with Voldemort — it’s Harry’s, for some reason. Harry is already — close your ears or you’ll get a big head, Harry," he said with a teasing grin, hoping to make the boy smile at least a little, and Harry didn’t disappoint him. A small sad smile crossed his face as Remus went on. "Harry’s already the most powerful wizard Hogwarts has seen since Voldemort came to the school over fifty years ago."
He paused, seeing the Grangers still didn’t understand. "Being a powerful wizard isn’t just a matter of knowing the most spells. If that was the case, Hermione would be the most powerful witch in the country, I imagine — and she’s very nearly there, anyway," he said with a smile. "She’s brilliant and knows more charms and spells than most adult wizards. But magical power, like any other talent, is an inborn thing in many ways. Hermione is a very powerful witch and quite brilliant. She wasn’t born to be a fighter. I suspect she will be a teacher at some point, or a researcher. She will be wonderful at whatever she chooses to do, and whatever she does will benefit a lot of people, I’m sure. Ginny, here, is a very powerful witch, too, but she’s powerful in other ways than Hermione is. Ginny plans to be a healer — like a doctor, you know — and her talents lean that way. She’s spirited and brave, an absolutely brilliant fighter when she has to be, but she wasn’t born to be a fighter, she was born to be a healer, I think.
"Harry was born to defeat Voldemort, apparently. It’s not a fate his parents would have chosen for him. They were my best friends, James and Lily, and they were both powerful wizards. But when Harry was born, somehow they knew. I don’t know if they heard about the prophecy or just realized how powerful Harry was. Even as a little baby, his magic was amazingly strong. They did everything they could to protect him. They went into hiding. They put protective spells on Harry. They gave their lives trying to save him. This young man has been through more hell in his sixteen years than most adults will see in their entire lives. And he has more to face.
"Most people would collapse under the burdens he bears. He just gets stronger and stronger. One of his great strengths is his friends. Ron, Hermione and Ginny all contribute something important to Harry’s life. They often save him from harm, and they’re always there to help him recover when he’s hurt. These four young people make a powerful team. Harry needs a team to help him defeat the Dark forces of the world.
"I’d follow Harry anywhere he led me, and he’s less than half my age. If just anyone could capture Voldemort, it would have been done long ago. If just anyone could kill him, it would have been done long ago. But not ‘just anyone’ can do it. Harry, young as he is, bears the burden of having to rid the world of this monster. I wish I could do it for him. But I can’t, so I’ll just stand beside him and fight the very best I can to help him. That’s what Hermione was doing when she got hurt." Remus seemed to run down then.
A sad smile crossed Harry’s face. "You didn’t say what you think I’ll be when I grow up — if I live that long."
"You’ll be the finest Seeker any Quidditch team has ever seen," Remus said immediately. "And when you’re tired of playing Quidditch, you’ll either coach it or you’ll become an Auror, I suspect. You’d also be an excellent teacher. You’ve done wonders with the D.A."
"Quidditch coach, huh?" Harry mused. "I hadn’t thought of that one. Sounds like a lot more fun than chasing Voldemort all over the world. And Ron? What do you see him doing?"
"I think. . .he’s so brilliant at strategies and so on, I honestly think he’ll be the head of some big corporation — or Minister of Magic," Remus said with a grin.
Harry laughed out loud. "You’ll have to tell him that. He’ll get a kick out of it." Glad to find something to smile about, Harry turned back to the Grangers. "I’m sorry the story is so awful, but you asked for ‘everything’ and that’s what we’ve given you. Actually, we left out some details here and there. I could tell you about my awful aunt, uncle and cousin, or about some of the monsters Hagrid thinks are cute, but they didn’t seem to be a necessary part of the story."
The Grangers smiled timorously, unsure what to think. This handsome young man with his fading scars and his livid lightning bolt scar was a killer. He’d killed a lot of people — he had no idea how many, so he’d said, but he thought it was probably well over a dozen by now. Yet those killings were in self-defence in time of war, so it was OK, wasn’t it? And Hermione! What had she got herself into, becoming friends with these people? Still, if you were in a war, having powerful friends on your side was a good thing, right? They glanced at each other, not certain what to say or do next.
"Um," Mr. Granger began, then had to stop and clear his throat. "Er. . .why are children fighting the war? Where are the soldiers? The armies?"
"Wizards don’t have soldiers or armies as such," Remus explained. "The Ministry of Magic has Aurors, who are similar to policemen, I guess you would say, or spies, depending on their jobs. But there was a problem at the Ministry and they didn’t get Aurors sent out in time to help at the battles. This event on the Tower the other night was over with so fast, not even the Hogwarts staff or the D.A. members who saw it happening got there in time to help with the fighting." He looked at his watch, then at his godson and Ginny. "Why don’t we see how Hermione is? I know you two wanted to visit her for a while before we go back. We don’t want to tire her," he added to the Grangers, "so we won’t stay long. That is, if you don’t mind us visiting her."
The Grangers were quiet for a long moment. They looked from face to face among the three wizards gazing at them. Harry looked exhausted and heartsick, yet hopeful that they would understand his story. Ginny looked worried about Harry more than anything, and wore an expression that said she’d attack anyone who gave him a hard time. Spirited indeed. Remus looked tired, but also had a look that said, "Be unkind to this boy at your own risk." If so many people were so devoted to this young man, and they knew Hermione was very fond of him as well, he must be just as wonderful a person as Hermione always said he was.
"I’m sure she’d like to see all of you," Mrs. Granger said finally. "Please, enjoy your visit." She looked at Harry, who still looked worn out. She reached out and touched his hand gently. "Harry? Thank you. I know that must have been hard for you. I don’t understand completely why Hermione was injured, but I do know she didn’t do anything to cause it, nor did you or anyone except that Malfoy boy and that Volde-whosit. I hope the Malfoy boy has been arrested."
"He has," Remus assured him.
"Good. Then enjoy your visit. And try to keep us better informed about what’s going on at Hogwarts, all right?" she added to Remus.
"We’ll send you an owl whenever there’s news to share," he promised.
When they returned to the room, they found Ron in tears.
"What’s wrong?" Ginny said, rushing to her brother’s side. Harry stood on his other side and patted his shoulder, while looking down at Hermione, who was still unconscious.
"She’s. . .she didn’t know me," he said brusquely.
"What?" Ginny said.
"She didn’t know me. She woke up for a short time a while ago and she didn’t know who I was."
Author Notes:
Many thanks to Kelpie, my brilliant Brit-picker, and to Blakevich, Starfox, Pilar and Shawn for beta reading! Oh, and there's a reference to the "Philosopher's Stone" in this chapter - I know the movies and the American version of the books are all "Sorceror's Stone" but in keeping with the British flavour I'm trying to convey here, I went with "Philosopher's Stone." And a note to Dave in my Yahoo group - remember on April 29, 2004, you posted a joking comment about a "Die Hard" scene with Snape, the Astronomy Tower and Ginny's watch band?? This chapter was finished many months before you wrote that - your post made me laugh (no, Snape's not going to do a "Die Hard" off the Astronomy Tower - but your post almost made me put a spoiler about this chapter on the Yahoo board!! You'll see why when you read it.)