A/N: I'm back within word limits for this chapter. Yay! :)
Thanks to all who have reviewed, favorited, or alerted!
Characters and concepts still not mine. Sigh.
Chapter 4 – Birthday Party
Several weeks had passed since the trip into the Forbidden Forest, and Hermione had begun to accept that Percy Weasley probably was the traitor to the Order, and that he might well try to lure her out of Hogwarts. Strangely, she hadn't had another nightmare since that conversation with Snape, which made her wonder (briefly) if there was something to the study of Divination, after all.
Because of the potential threat posed by Percy, she had resigned herself to the likelihood that she would not be able to visit the Burrow as she, Harry, and Ron had tentatively planned on the Hogwart's Express at the end of last term. She was surprised, therefore, when Dumbledore summoned her to his office immediately after breakfast one morning to discuss plans for her to attend Harry's birthday party, which was to be hosted by the Weasleys.
"Do you think it's safe?" she asked. "You haven't caught the traitor yet, have you? Won't most of the Order members be there? Won't … whoever you suspect … be there?" She knew Snape wasn't supposed to have told her who the suspected traitor was, and she didn't want to cause trouble for him with Dumbledore by letting on that she knew. He wouldn't expect her to have caught the subtle distinction in his choice of language, so he would expect her to think it was an actual Order member, not Percy.
"Perhaps," Dumbledore said, "but it's highly unlikely anyone would try anything with so many members of the Order present, and we don't want to alert him that we suspect him. It would be highly unusual for you to miss Harry's party, so you really ought to attend."
They were interrupted by a knock on the door, and upon Dumbledore's call to enter, Snape pushed open the door and stepped through. He nodded politely to Hermione before addressing Dumbledore. "I suppose you're still intent on this madness."
"Now, Severus, you know we cannot tip off our spy."
Snape glared at Dumbledore. "She's too much at risk there. I urge you to re-think this."
"It's the only way, Severus. We'll all be there to keep a close eye on Hermione. She'll be perfectly safe."
"Half the people there won't even know who they're supposed to be protecting her from. You haven't even warned her who she should be cautious of. At least tell her that much." Hermione assumed that Snape was making that argument because Dumbledore would expect it of him, as he had as much as told her himself who was most likely a threat to her.
"She needs to keep her guard up around everyone, Severus, and telling her who we suspect will put her at greater risk if we're wrong."
"She can't be expected to keep her guard up around everyone, and her closest friends don't even know there's a threat to her!" Snape sounded truly upset, which surprised Hermione; even in light of the relatively comfortable working relationship they had developed, she didn't think he liked her much.
Hermione broke in. "Headmaster, perhaps it would be a good idea to tell me who you suspect, if it's someone that I would be otherwise likely to trust implicitly. I promise not to assume that no one else is a potential threat, but surely you can see that if you think someone like, say, Professor McGonagall, or Arthur or Molly Weasley, is a potential threat to me, I should be told. That way, I'll know who to be especially careful of."
"You really should avoid being alone with anyone, Hermione," Dumbledore said gently.
Snape snorted. "You're asking the impossible, Albus. Her friends will want to steal her away to catch up, and if she refuses to go, that in itself will be suspicious. Just tell her. I'll even go along to keep an eye on her, but it's too much of a handicap if she's completely uninformed."
"If you're there, Severus, I'm sure everything will be perfectly fine," Dumbledore insisted, and his tone made clear that the subject was closed.
As they left the Headmaster's office, Snape said quietly, "You do remember who you should avoid most assiduously, do you not?"
"If my reasoning in the Forbidden Forest was sound, then I believe I do, sir."
His lip quirked upward. "You have never doubted your reasoning before, Miss Granger; now is not the time to start."
She smiled at him. "Thank you, sir."
He stared at her for a long moment, his black eyes locked on hers. "For what?" he asked eventually.
"For looking out for me," Hermione said simply. "It's the only thing keeping my panic at bay."
He stared at her for several moments longer, his expression unfathomable. Finally, he said, "You're welcome." He turned and strode swiftly away, calling over his shoulder, "I'll see you after lunch. We're brewing Pepper-Up."
The day of the party dawned clear and warm. As she waited in the Entrance Hall for Snape, McGonagall, Hagrid, and Dumbledore, Hermione was anxious, but as she had told Snape, knowing he would be there was keeping her from panicking. She was sure Harry wouldn't be so thrilled to see him, however.
Snape arrived first, looking disgruntled as usual. Although, as she thought about it, Hermione realized he usually didn't look disgruntled lately. Apparently, this party was really making him unhappy.
He nodded a greeting, then spoke quickly and quietly. "I think you should tell your friends that we are specifically concerned for your safety, and that you are not to be left alone for any reason. Even if you cannot tell them who we suspect, they should at least know to look out for you."
"All right," Hermione agreed immediately. "I'll tell them as soon as we arrive."
"Good," Snape said. "Now, put this on." He handed her a barrette as he continued, "It's an emergency Portkey that will land you in my private chambers, which is – outside the Headmaster's office – the only place at Hogwarts that allows magical entry of any kind." Hermione assumed that had something to do with his status as a spy for the Order among the Death Eaters. "If you find yourself needing to escape, all you have to do is activate it. It is charmed to alert me when activated, so I will arrive right after you do."
Hermione quickly pulled a small hand mirror from her beaded bag, charmed the mirror to hover in front of her, and carefully pulled her hair back from her face. She fastened the barrette, then turned to Snape and smiled as she returned her mirror to her bag. "Thank you," she said. "It's very pretty." And indeed, it was lovely, made of mother-of-pearl and silver.
His cheeks flushed, and he said tersely, "It was the only thing I had that would be inconspicuous. No one would question a clip in that bushy mess of yours."
Hermione couldn't argue with that, so she laughed. "True enough. But it's still pretty, and it's still a very thoughtful thing to do, so I thank you."
He grunted. "You should keep it even if you don't use it today. Who knows when you'll need a quick exit?"
McGonagall and Dumbledore arrived just then, forestalling any reponse Hermione might have made, and Dumbledore immediately suggested that they go meet Hagrid along the way. He said, "I have the Portkey right here, so as soon as we get to the gates, we can be on our way." He showed them a sequined high-heeled shoe. Hermione suppressed a giggle, as she wondered where on earth he had gotten that.
Hagrid came hurrying up the path, carrying a large box. Hermione looked at it suspiciously, trying to find signs of movement within. Her gift for Harry, which she had purchased during the week she had been with her parents, was tucked safely in her beaded bag. She offered to shrink Hagrid's package, but he declined, looking decidedly nervous. She could only hope that whatever the animal was, it wasn't a baby chimaera or dragon or acromantula or … anything else that Hagrid probably considered sweet and harmless.
The party turned out to be a lot of fun. As Snape had predicted, Hermione's friends immediately dragged her away to catch up. She quickly told them about the threat against her, as well as Dumbledore's suspicions about the presence of a traitor amongst the Order.
"I bet it's Snape," Harry said darkly.
"It's not Snape," Hermione said.
"Of course it's Snape," Ron agreed with Harry, as though it were perfectly obvious.
"It's not Snape," Hermione said again.
"Who else would it be?" Ginny asked, but at least she sounded curious rather than accusatory.
"I don't know," Hermione admitted. "Dumbledore won't tell me until they have proof, but I know for sure that it's not Snape."
"I don't know why you constantly defend that git," Ron grumbled.
"Because it's not him," Hermione said. "He's the one who collected me from my parents and took me to Hogwarts. If it was him, that was the perfect opportunity for him to deliver me to You-Know-Who."
"Except Dumbledore would have suspected something."
"He could have told Dumbledore he got there too late," Hermione said firmly. "It's not him. Now, I'm going downstairs. Harry, they're probably waiting for you to start eating, so let's go."
Harry didn't look happy, but he did come along to rejoin the party.
Hours later, after they had all eaten and Harry had opened his presents (fortunately, Hagrid had stuck with a perfectly sweet kitten), they were all sitting around laughing and talking when Hermione felt someone watching her. The day had been surprisingly relaxed, probably because Percy hadn't been there. Apparently, he had too much important work to do at the Ministry to take a day off for Harry Potter's birthday party.
Glancing around now, though, Hermione saw that Percy had finally arrived. He didn't seem to be looking at her, but she felt uneasy just the same.
Just then, Snape approached. "Mr. Potter, the Headmaster has requested that we resume your practice in Occlumency, as well as other advanced defense skills, for your remaining year at Hogwarts."
Harry frowned sulkily. "I don't see why," he said, sounding ridiculously immature to Hermione. She elbowed him.
Snape sneered. "I've got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark –"
Harry broke in, "Do we have to discuss this now? This is a party, in case you haven't noticed."
Snape was about to say something, but Hermione jumped in. "Harry, you shouldn't be rude to Professor Snape. He's going to teach you skills that you're going to need before long."
Harry looked guilty, but didn't apologize, as Hermione thought he should. Snape looked at Hermione and said, "Are you ready to leave? We'd prefer to have you safe at Hogwarts before it gets too late."
"Yes, sure," Hermione said, glancing anxiously to where Percy had been standing moments earlier. He wasn't there anymore. She jumped when he spoke from behind her.
"Hermione! How good to see you!" he said unctuously. "I was hoping you'd take a walk with me so we could catch up!"
"Sorry," Hermione said, trying to hide her relief. "Professor Snape wishes to return me to Hogwarts now. Perhaps next time," she said, smiling. She took Snape's offered arm, and he led her to where Hagrid, McGonagall, and Dumbledore waited.
When the Portkey activated, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, thrilled to be getting back to the safety of Hogwarts.
Quote from GF: "'I've got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark - '"