Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, just my original characters.
Also, here's where the plot gets really tricky.
Still So Close to You
By Darkwing731
((-Chapter Nine-))
Rumor Has It
As quickly as February had sprung upon them, the days were ticking by, limiting Hermione's time to create an escape plan. After hours of lying in bed, staring up into the darkness, Hermione Granger realized some very troubling things about Lucius Malfoy.
He was powerful, no doubt. He had connections everywhere, it seemed, and his ability to obtain information was endless. He was also quite insidious, as he had caught her off guard by starting the rumor that they were dating. At first it just seemed obnoxious and irritating that Malfoy had started that, but then she realized something: Remus was only friends with her again because Lucius had Rose allow Remus to do so, and he had encouraged the rumor that he was dating Jane Lewis because if Hermione backed out, Remus would think that she, Hermione, was a liar and would never trust her again.
Therefore, if Hermione wanted to be with Remus again, friends or more, she would have to go along with Malfoy's rumor and yield to his devilish ways.
Or, Hermione decided, I can find my own way out of here.
And that became her plan: to find her own way out of 1979. While sounding very simple, Hermione knew it would not be that way. It meant discovering how she got to this time period in the first place, finding a means to reverse such magic, and also having an alternate plan should the need arise.
Naturally, Hermione began in the library. Though she knew she should start in the area of time travel, she wasn't quite sure what she would find. After about twenty minutes of browsing through dark and dusty shelves, she found a title that simply jumped out at her: Properties of Time Travel: Spells, Charms and General Magic.
Flipping through the pages at once, Hermione went to the Charms section, reading quickly. Time travel, the book said, is very serious magic that had been imitated and recreated throughout the history of time. While real time travel will leave marks, time traveling charms will only create memories for only the time traveler and no one else. The most commonly used time traveling charm is the Delirium Charm, in which the time traveler is thrown into a specific hallucination, or delirium, and attempts to complete a task in a pseudo-reality before being sent "home" a predetermined time—
Hermione stopped reading there, knowing that the charms section held no answers for her. Promptly jumping back to the first section, she read up on time traveling spells: Time travel has been present in history since the creation of magic. An anomaly among its brother and sisters, time traveling spells are simply to create, but very complicated to reverse. Jumps through time often create rips in reality, undermining all normality and most usually being quite destructive. It is nearly impossible to reverse a Time Traveling spell unless the time traveler leaves promptly the moment they have arrived, leaving only their pseudo-existence in that specific moment.
Panicked, Hermione skimmed the next few lines to look for spells that might perfectly describe her situation. Her eyes landed on one of the very first spells: Volo Viginti. According to the book, volo viginti would do the follow: very difficult and used very rarely, this spell will throw time travelers up to twenty years backwards. This spell cannot be reversed whatsoever, but under certain circumstances can it be ended and can the traveler return home. If the traveler is thrown to a time in which they have not yet been born, they will be returned home once they have been born. Another circumstance is—
"September," Hermione murmured; "I go home in September. In eight months."
Eight months? The thought sounded horrible and wonderful at the same time. So much could happen in eight months, so much that she couldn't predict or control or even begin to fathom. But eight months t that she had a definite time to go home and was not wondering about how much longer she would be here.
Technically Hermione had found her own way out of this disastrous time period. Waiting for the time to leave, however, would be much harder than she anticipated.
-x-x-x-
The day was finally upon her. It was Saturday, but more importantly, it was the Hogsmeade trip she was forced to attend. That morning, she awoke with a sense of foreboding, like a raincloud that had settled atop her shoulders. Anxiety had crept into her mind the night before, and now it loomed, worse than ever.
Rolling over in bed, Hermione covered her head with the pillow, not wanting to get up. She knew for a fact that neither Remus nor Lucius Malfoy could simply prance up there and pull her out of bed, so she was content with the fact of playing sick and staying behind.
No matter what Malfoy threatens, Hermione thought, though her stomach seized up at the thought of his potential knowledge.
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" asked a voice curiously. Hermione recognized it as Emma's as the Muggleborn lifted the pillow from her head.
"I'm sick," Hermione lied, "I'm not getting out of bed."
"I can take you down to the infirmary if you like," Emma offered, grabbing a brush from her bed stand and brushing her hair. Emma then inspected Hermione more closely. "You don't look sick to me. Are you just nervous for your date?"
"It's not a date," Hermione muttered bitterly, sticking her head beneath the pillow again.
"That's not what Malfoy's been telling everyone," Emma said matter-of-factly. "But if you're sick, you're sick. I'll go tell Remus that he should go on instead of waiting."
"Remus is waiting for me?" Hermione asked at once, head coming up immediately from the pillow.
"Yes, he said something about wanting to walk down with you to meet Malfoy and his girlfriend," Emma sighed. "But you're sick. I'll go let him know."
"No," Hermione said, sitting up; if Remus was waiting for her, and learned that she was backing out of this, Hermione was unsure of what would happen. "Just tell him to wait ten minutes. I'll get ready."
So, ten minutes later, Hermione found herself meeting Remus Lupin in the common room, biding thanks to Emma while wondering how the girl knew in the first place. Remus was dressed nicely, a scarf already tied around his neck in preparation for the cold.
"You didn't have to wait for me," Hermione said, feeling uneasy already.
"I just thought it would be nice to walk down together," Remus said with a shrug.
"Thanks, I suppose," Hermione said, tying her own scarf around her neck as they began their journey to the main foyer.
For a few minutes it was silent, and both parties were lost in their own thoughts. Finally Hermione decided to speak, though her words were tentative and careful. "I didn't want to come today."
"Because you were ill, I know," Remus concluded. But that's not it at all, Hermione thought. I didn't want to come and betray you, and betray everything by lying.
"I'm sure Malfoy will appreciate you toughing it out, however," Remus added, an undeniable bitterness to his voice. "Jane, I've got to know," Remus asked her suddenly; "Why Malfoy? Why couldn't you have chosen someone else? Anyone else?"
He's jealous, Hermione understood. And he's angry. Malfoy was right.
"It's complicated," Hermione said at last, thinking of Malfoy's last threat to her in the library. Did she dare defy the Slytherin and confide in Remus what she had been bursting to say all along? "I-I didn't really have a choice."
For a moment, Remus stared at her unwaveringly as if he wasn't really seeing her. "Didn't have a choice?" he repeated at last. "What is that supposed to mean, Jane?"
Hermione stopped in her tracks, taking Remus' hand into her own. He looked just as frightened as she felt, and for a moment, there was no pressure, no ominous feeling, no anxiety. Hermione felt at east knowing that she could finally confess something to him. "Malfoy knows that I—"
"Remus! Jane! Wait up!" called a voice from behind them, and like that night at the Astronomy Tower, the couple threw themselves away from each other as Emma ran down to meet them. "I forgot that I was going to meet Sirius, so I decided to catch up!"
What inconvenient timing, Hermione thought, glancing at Remus' dangling hand. She was just about to tell him everything, how Malfoy had threatened her, how he had known that Hermione was in love with Remus, how everything was complicated and terrible.
But, once again, Emma had thrown a wrench into her plans.
"We're supposed to go on a date too," Emma said happily as the three began to walk again. "I'd almost want to say, let's triple date, but I'm not particularly fond of Malfoy the way you are, Jane," Emma said, giving her a snide look.
Hermione could feel Remus staring at her, waiting for an answer, waiting for Hermione to reveal what she had almost revealed before. "I'm not fond of Malfoy."
"What a strange thing to say about your boyfriend," Emma said, looking to Remus for support.
"Strange," Remus agreed tentatively.
"He's not my boyfriend," Hermione growled.
"I mean I definitely understand how this whole thing works out," Emma said as if she hadn't heard Hermione at all. "The whole opposites attract and that love hate tension thing. It's great. Works out really well, from what I hear."
"It's not working out really well at all, actually," Hermione said, bristling. "Malfoy's spouting hogwash, I'm not dating him."
"Well why would he lie about dating you?" Emma said, very seriously; Hermione noticed how Remus was studying her, trying to catch any misgiving he could.
"I-I don't know," Hermione said, faltering under Remus' gaze. "But—"
"Because I know he's a pureblood and he's got a sort of bigoted background, but he's made an exception for you. That's what the word is, anyway," Emma said knowingly.
"He hasn't made an exception!" Hermione insisted desperately.
"But Emma's right, Jane," Remus said, his voice sharp. "Why would Malfoy lie about dating a Muggleborn if he wasn't actually dating you?"
"He just is, you've got to believe me," Hermione pleaded, on the verge of panic once again. Now she was certain that Remus did not believe her, that he doubted her for good. Had Malfoy planned this too? How she would set herself up for this trap?
"Sirius!" Emma said happily as they reached the staircase. Malfoy and Rose were by the bottom as well, separate from Sirius.
Hermione had stopped moving altogether, staring at the werewolf's retreating back as if it were a boat passing by her deserted island. She watched as Rose and Remus greeted each other warmly. Malfoy, on the other hand, had his eyes pinned on Hermione, a ghost of a smirk on his face. Remus and Rose turned to stare at her as well, and Hermione felt sickened as Malfoy held out a hand, beckoning her.
It was not Malfoy that made her move, but Remus; his icy glare was enough to make her stomach plummet, and was enough to put her mind into overdrive in order to figure out this mess. One way or another, Hermione would have to fix this. There were only two things she wanted, and without a massive effort on her part, Remus would slip away forever.
On the walk to Hogsmeade, Hermione's hands were cold and clammy despite her warm gloves. Her arm was draped grudgingly in Malfoy's, and her mouth was pressed shut. Rose and Remus chatted together about something, their hands intertwined and their steps simultaneous as they laughed.
"Don't look so miserable," Lucius told her, quietly enough so only she could hear. "Any girlfriend of mine should look more than ecstatic to be in my presence."
"You're a monster," Hermione found herself saying, her body shaking as much as her voice. She tried to jerk her arm away from him, but his hand seized her possessively.
"And you're scared," Lucius purred, tightening his grip on her arm.
"You can't blackmail me into this without consequence," Hermione warned. "Dumbledore will expel you—"
"Dumbledore is not part of my plan, Mudblood," he laughed. "Do you actually think you could go running off to him?"
"Yes, I do, and I intend to!" Hermione said angrily. "I will not put up with this—"
"Do you remember what I said in the library?" Lucius interjected, his voice a deadly soft. "Don't forget what you have at stake."
"You can't hurt Remus," Hermione hissed, "Rose would never do it."
"Rose is not my only weapon," Malfoy informed her, smiling again. "I have eyes everywhere. I have ears everywhere, and I have people to do my dirty work. Even Gryffindors."
Hermione was about to accuse him of lying, to deny this claim with a snarl when she remembered Peter Pettigrew. In just a year or so he would betray Lily and James to save himself from being killed. Was there a possibility he had already betrayed another friend?
"Yes, it's true," Lucius drawled. "And like I said, if you want Lupin back, you'll abide by my rules."
"I won't," Hermione choked out.
"No?" Lucius asked her, feigning curiosity. "I can destroy Lupin. And I can destroy you. There will be no hope for you, no hope for him. You will have nothing. Do you understand me?"
She felt sickened, but could think of no way to truly fight him. There was no solid evidence against him even if she did go to Dumbledore. What could the headmaster do for her? Anything would be enough, so long as Remus was safe and Hermione's secret was never revealed. But what was she to do until then? Play along with Malfoy's twisted lie? When could she escape him long enough to get to Dumbledore?
The thought troubled her all the way to Hogsmeade as she desperately tried to think of a way out of it. Perhaps this was all a farce, Hermione thought desperately; maybe in front of others, Lucius would not be so threatening. What if Hermione put him on the spot? Perhaps Malfoy would be so menacing that Remus would have to belief her previous claim, that she didn't have a choice. Or Malfoy might act his part brilliantly, making Hermione seem like a liar.
Was it a chance she could take? Or should she lie low and plan for another excursion to ruin his word?
As they walked on and closer to Hogsmeade, more couples appeared on the path with them; Hermione realized that people were giving her strange looks, like she was a Muggle that had wandered into the magical world. There was no question that it was because of Lucius, and a swift glance at his smirk confirmed his suspicions. How far had these rumors gone? Who had heard them? And what exactly had they heard?
Without warning, Hermione pulled her arm free from Lucius, shaken to her very core. "I'm not feeling well, I'm really just going to go back," she said loudly, making sure to catch Remus' attention, who turned around just as Malfoy's face contorted in anger.
To her relief, she saw that Remus' eyes went immediately to Malfoy, almost as if he wanted to assure himself that Malfoy was playing the proper part of the boyfriend. Lucius controlled himself well, and only Hermione could see the anger growing in his eyes.
"Why don't you take her back, Lucius?" Rose suggested, much to Hermione's dismay. "We wouldn't want you to be in an awkward place with Remus and me."
"I'm fine, actually, I can walk myself back," Hermione said at once before Malfoy could answer.
"I insist," Malfoy said, courteously stepping forward just as Hermione stepped back.
"No, thank you," she repeated firmly, knowing that Remus was watching the two very closely.
The thought to run struck Hermione as desperate and extreme, but perhaps very useful. If she turned and fled, Malfoy would be forced to chase her down, which would look suspicious, or would be forced to walk at a leisurely pace after her, allowing Hermione time to get back to the safety of her room without interference.
"I have a better idea," Remus offered, his voice cold, "Why don't you just get medicine in Hogsmeade and continue on?" His face was stony, and she felt nothing but panic. "We're almost there anyway."
"What an idea," Malfoy agreed, approaching her with readied hands. Hermione felt like a wild animal, cornered, and he the poacher, ready to trap her. Now more than ever she wanted to run.
But Remus glared at her, kept her still with his angry eyes. There was no escaping his judgment either way, she knew then; always would she yield to Remus Lupin, regardless of what he thought of her. There was nothing that could convince her otherwise.
Malfoy's hands clamped down on her shoulders. "I'll buy you something in town, darling," he purred, sending a shiver down her spine. "Let's go."
Remus and Rose turned around again, huddled closer in what Hermione presumed to be a dissecting talk about her strange actions. Malfoy, on the other hand, leashed her close with a tight arm around her shoulders.
"You should've run away while you had the chance," he hissed in her ear. "Don't try and play these games with me. I've got more than enough people to keep you in line. All you've got is Lupin, and he hates you already."
"I'm not going through with this," Hermione spat, trying to wrench herself out of his grasp. "I'm not your puppet—I'll scream if I have to—"
"I would think twice about that," Malfoy warned, locking his arm now around her neck, making Hermione gasp. "And besides," he said, smirking again, "How will you ever explain to your werewolf that your real name is Hermione Granger?"
Her gasp was loud enough to make Remus and Rose turn around quickly, but Lucius was clever enough to have pulled her into what looked like a passionate kiss, one in which Hermione's arms were helplessly pinned between them. The moment Remus turned around again, Lucius released her mouth but pulled her in tight as to keep from escaping.
Somehow, Hermione already knew all along that she was not safe. She knew that Malfoy knew her true identity, and she knew that he would use that to torture her, to bend her to his unyielding and demented will until he was satisfied. Until he had gotten everything he wanted.
"I know more than you would ever want me to know," he whispered, grinning against her neck as he planted a kiss there, against the skin freckled with goose bumps, blood coursing beneath in fear. She felt as if the span of her skin, the encasing of her vitality, was melting away, exposing her, wounding her. She had no protection anymore. Lucius grinned as tears began to well up in her eyes. Though she had tried to prepare herself, nothing could have prepared her for this.
"So, Granger, why don't we come to a finalized consensus? If you do anything out of line, any little thing that displeases me, I can do one of two things, your choice. I can start another rumor about you, one that will be heard by Lupin, or I can have your beloved werewolf injured."
"No," Hermione croaked, eyes wide with fear; even if Remus was the cause of this mess, she never wanted harm to come to him.
Malfoy chuckled and tapped her nose. "Then do as I say. Always. Do you understand me?"
But what did that mean? What did concealing her identity, her integrity, and protecting Remus mean, exactly? What did Malfoy want from her? Could she possibly agree but lie? Could she play his games back on him?
There was a terrifyingly large amount of things that could go wrong, and that would go wrong. There was no guarantee that Hermione could lie and protect herself well enough to deal with Malfoy's twisted desires, but she was willing to do whatever she had to in order to keep things smooth.
In order to be with Remus, somehow…
Hermione realized that she was losing sight of what she was actually trying to obtain: the boy himself. But when it came to his safety and his happiness, then of course she would preserve that first. But at what cost? At the cost of her own sanity and safety?
It didn't matter that Malfoy had this over her, however; Hermione would go to Dumbledore, whether she had to sneak up to the Headmaster's office in the middle of the night and bang on his door until he woke. Malfoy could not do this to her; Hermione would outsmart him, no matter what.
"Yes," Hermione whispered, knowing fully that she was resigning herself over to a miserable existence until this was straightened out. Somehow, she vowed, she would lash out and get back at Malfoy for this.
I am Hermione Granger. I can do anything.
"Good," Lucius said with a smile that did not reach his eyes. "Now turn around and walk with me into town. Make this convincing."
Hermione did turn around, but she was quivering with anger as they walked behind Remus and Rose; no sort of blackmail, no threat, nothing could force her to be convincing. Hermione Granger did not yield to the will of others; they yielded to her.
There was a frosty silence between the Muggleborn and the pureblood until both couples had finally reached the Three Broomsticks. They selected a booth, and while both boys went off to fetch their respective dates butterbeer, Hermione glared at the table, thinking of ways she could thwart Malfoy's plan.
"You know, Remus has got a lot to say about you dating Lucius and all," Rose said, her voice silky smooth but full of derision. Hermione did not want to look up, but found herself staring at Rose, wanting nothing more than to strangle the girl.
"So what," Hermione said, feeling bitter. "He's dating you, you're a Slytherin."
"I'm not talking about Houses," Rose replied, a taunting smile touching her lips. "Remus thinks you're a hypocrite. And a liar," she informed Hermione, the words rolling off of her tongue as if she had been aching to say them. "It's just so hard to deal with all the rumors he's been hearing. His dear old friend turned into a floozy."
"I'm not—" Hermione choked, feeling rage boiling up within her. "I don't even like Malfoy, he's a vile excuse for a human—"
"Might want to watch what you say, Mudblood," Rose purred as Remus and Malfoy returned; "Never know who might hear you."
As Lucius Malfoy pushed a butterbeer into her hands, Hermione realized with a jolt of fear that Rose was Malfoy's number one weapon, an immeasurable source of power, an undeniable threat. Rose was the person Remus trusted most, and was the source that was intentionally manipulating everything he knew about Jane Lewis.
To take down Malfoy, I've got to take down Rose Sanders, Hermione pieced together quickly; but that means I have to remove Remus from her grasp first. And then she understood, all at once, like a great blanket of cold had settled over her, that she would not separate the couple by herself. She needed outside help.
But enlisting others meant further exposing herself, and that in itself was a fatal risk to take. What if no one believed her? What if the rumors, encouraged by Remus' angry words, had gotten to everyone else that could potentially be an ally?
What if I'm already alone?
The rest of the time on the Valentine's Days date was spent in stormy silence as Hermione tried to assess her situation and determine any sort of solution. Aware only vaguely of Malfoy's hand on her knee or the arm around her shoulders, she tried desperately to close them all out.
But one thought would not leave her mind: how did Malfoy know? What was his source of information? She was desperate to find out just so that she could try and fuse it shut, so that nothing could seep out again. But getting that close, getting in that deep, could be very dangerous. She was very uncertain of what she was getting into, though she was aware Malfoy would be analyzing her every step.
Hermione needed someone else, but for exactly what she was unsure of. To separate the couple? Or just to keep Malfoy off her back? What did Hermione Granger really want right now? Was keeping her reputation more important than her potential safety?
Of course not… Hermione thought; But if I'm alone I don't know what I'll do. If my reputation is that bad, I won't have anyone to fall back on. And Malfoy would be waiting for me to break down.
It was an inescapable circle, a trap she could not get out of. Dumbledore would have to be informed the moment she returned to the castle, because if this went on any longer…
Dumbledore can't follow me around though, Hermione thought nervously; and there's no telling what Malfoy will do.
Then Hermione remembered James Potter; it was a surge of hope that ran through her, like the beacon of light high atop a lighthouse. James had promised to do something to keep Malfoy off her back. What would it be? Would it be powerful enough? Would he be willing to do it more than once if Hermione asked him?
But what if James had heard the rumors? Would he trust Hermione? Would he do this favor for her? What if James didn't believe her and Hermione was truly stuck defending herself, alone?
There was no telling what James would do, or wouldn't do. And there was no telling what anyone else knew. As soon as she was able, Hermione would have to seek out each of her potential allies individually and explain best she could what was going on, somehow without exposing her true identity.
But Malfoy had said there were Gryffindors that are working for were they? Were they close to Hermione? Was it Peter, or was it someone else? Hermione only knew for sure she could trust James, Lily, and Sirius, because in the future they had always remained true. Everyone else she had to remain suspicious about, not knowing what damage they could do.
"Well how was it?"
The voice startled Hermione out of her thoughts; blinking, she realized Rose was staring at her, a smirk splayed on her lips. Remus looked on, his face just as stony as before.
"What?" Hermione bleated, feeling trapped once more.
"I said my cousin goes to Liverpool Witches Academy," Rose repeated, exchanging a look with Lucius. "How was it for you?"
Liverpool Witches Academy? Hermione knew nothing of the place, only knew the mere fact that it existed; how foolish it was of her not to have investigated the school before now.
"Fine," Hermione supplied after a terse moment. "I-I enjoyed it."
"My cousin doesn't very much like their program selection. Very small." Rose was smiling in a devilish way, as if she was fully aware that Hermione knew nothing of the school. Clearly, she was setting the Muggleborn up for a trap, to make her look bad in front of Remus.
"It was all right," Hermione said, thinking rapidly for a way out. Feeling around for something to hold onto, her hand brushed up against her wand protruding from her cloak pocket. As quickly as she could, she shoved it up the leg of her trousers, hoping it would stay. Then, she stood abruptly; "Excuse me, I have to use the loo."
Though she expected Malfoy to put up some sort of fight, he moved without a word to let her through. Moving quickly to the bathroom, she felt a weight lift from her chest, as if it had been pressing down the whole time. The people and colors of the Three Broomstick whirled around her in a blur of color, and she felt dizzy as she finally made it into the private room. Clamping her fingers down on the side of the sink, Hermione's mind raced to create a solution.
There's a window in here. I could jump ship here without my cloak and run back to the castle.
The worst that could happen would be the catching of a cold, perhaps pneumonia if she was outside long enough. But the infirmary could cure that in seconds, and at the moment, Hermione was willing to risk anything to escape this situation.
Withdrawing her wand from her trousers, Hermione locked the door and headed for the back stall, examining the window. It was small and slim, but Hermione was not a large person and might be able to fit through it. Stepping up onto the toilet, Hermione pushed open the window and began to pull herself upwards.
Under normal circumstances, she would have been too weak to support her own body weight, but her heart was hammering with fear at the thought of being caught. Adrenaline surged through her veins and she knew that fitting through this window was not an impossible feat.
Her head and shoulders passed through without a problem; looking down, she could see that the ground was about five feet below her and emptied into an alleyway that led into the main street. Hoping she wouldn't break her neck, Hermione squeezed the rest of her body through the metal frame, her hips needing the most attention as she squirmed for freedom. Then, she ungracefully fell out into the snow, parts of her body throbbing in pain from the window.
Knowing that she would only have a matter of minutes before Rose went into the loo to check on her, Hermione began to run as fast as she could, ignoring the strange looks from all the people in the street. Very soon she became aware of just how cold it was, and how hard it was snowing. She was freezing, her fingers and nose quickly becoming numb, her feet blocks of ice.
She wanted to stop and ask someone for a scarf or perhaps even some gloves, but the thought of Malfoy kept her going. Naturally Hermione was frightened for Remus, knowing that jumping out the window of the Three Broomsticks was going to anger Lucius; Remus would certainly not be killed (that she knew for a fact), so she soothed her guilty heart with the promise that no matter what happened, he would survive.
It had been maybe twenty minutes by the time she finally arrived at the castle doors. Panting and sweaty, but shivering in cold, she stepped inside the main foyer and immediately began to head towards the headmaster's office. Nothing could stop her now.
Reaching the stone gargoyle, Hermione racked her brain for passwords. "L-L-Lemon drops… no? Pumpkin p-pasties? Chocolate frogs?" The gargoyle sprang to life, banishing some of the anxiety that had started to seep into her veins.
Then, sudden footsteps made Hermione turn quickly; there in the corridor stood a blonde girl that looked vaguely familiar; she was pretty but looked as if she smelled something unpleasant. She was also a Slytherin, and was slowly withdrawing her wand with not so nice intentions.
Hermione jumped onto the stairs just in time to avoid the hex the Slytherin had shot at her. Pressing up against the gargoyle, Hermione watched as the girl with narrowed eyes slinked away, the gargoyle protecting Hermione from harm.
Though her heart was pounding in her throat from the abrupt attack, Hermione felt angry; who was this girl and what exactly was she doing attacking Hermione? The answer became obvious within moments, however; clearly Malfoy had most of his house on the lookout for Hermione Granger if he wasn't around.
As the revolving steps slowly came to a halt, Hermione banged hurriedly on Dumbledore's door. The headmaster's voice of welcome was like warmth spreading over her whole body; for the first time in a while, she felt complete relief.
"Hello," Hermione greeted as she stepped in.
"Hello Miss Granger," Dumbledore returned, his blue eyes taking her whole body in. "Have you been swimming?"
"No, actually," Hermione said, releasing a chuckle bereft of humor. "I've just come from Hogsmeade, you see. I didn't have a coat."
"Well let me give you something to warm you up," Dumbledore offered, standing and going to a large cabinet adjacent to his desk. From it he withdrew a steaming cup that Hermione accepted without question, its contents warming up her very core. Additionally, he waved his wand once over her body and she felt all the moisture leave at once. "Now, it seems to me that there is some explanation on your part. You are very bright, Miss Granger, so there must be a good reason why you've come all the way from Hogsmeade without a coat in the middle of February."
"It's a long story," Hermione said, "But it is necessary that you know, Headmaster." Hermione struggled for a moment on how to begin, what details should be included and what details should be left out. "When I arrived in 1979 I took to a certain group of friends. James, Sirius, Remus, Lily, Emma, Peter… they were all very kind to me. I also found myself taking a fancy to Remus Lupin," Hermione admitted, fighting the blush on her cheeks. "But Remus was part of my future, and I did not want to complicate anything, so I lied to him and to my friends and said I did not fancy him."
She paused here, sipping her hot drink, trying to quell thoughts of fear and anxiety; Malfoy was probably on his way back from Hogsmeade now, he and Rose feeding lies to Remus about what Jane Lewis might be up to.
"During all of this, Lucius Malfoy made it clear that he had taken a liking to me," Hermione said, her voice small and full of shame. She hated Malfoy with every fiber of her being, and knowing that he was controlling her even in his absence sickened Hermione. "I, naturally, did not return the feelings. But Malfoy would not be turned down so easily. He began to spread rumors that we were dating, and everyone believed him."
"What a curious thing," Dumbledore murmured, his blue eyes caught in some distant thought. Hermione knew that he was piecing the information together just as she had.
"So then Remus began to date a Slytherin girl and also believed that I was dating Malfoy… No one will believe me when I say that I'm not dating Lucius. I didn't know what to do." Hermione gulped down the steaming hot drink and was glad for the way it scalded her throat, anything to keep her mind off of the information she was about to explain.
"Today I was forced into going on a double date for Valentine's Day," Hermione started. "I tried to tell Malfoy to leave me alone and that I wouldn't oblige with his rumors, but—" She broke off and was stunned for a moment at how turbulent this had become, how twisted and chaotic. There was no easy way out, there was no door she could close to end this. It was so complicated, so precarious.
"But?" Dumbledore asked.
"But Malfoy threatened to hurt Remus. And—and he knows who I am. He knows I'm Hermione Granger," she moaned at last, burying her face in her hands. How could Albus Dumbledore reverse this situation? What could the headmaster possibly do to keep her safe?
"And he said that anything that I try to do to protect myself, or to flush him out, he'll get me back in some way." Hermione paused, trying to ignore the fear that was not gripping her windpipe; swallowing back the lump in her throat, she added, "He promises to get revenge on me for even coming to you, Headmaster."
"I'm glad that you came regardless of his threat," Dumbledore said, with a very grave look in his eyes. "I will not allow my students to be bullied on such a level."
"So I'm not sure what I can do, or what you can do," Hermione said, hating how the mere thought of Lucius brought shadows of doubt over the Headmaster's power; "But I need something, anything. Any kind of protection. And honestly I'm frightened for Remus Lupin as well," she confessed. "More concerned for him than for myself. Malfoy is very aware that I care for him, and he's more than willing to injure Remus to get to me."
"Mr. Malfoy is far more clever than anyone gives him credit for," Dumbledore mused aloud. "And I think I am underestimating a number of students at my castle. It is unhealthy for someone his age to already wield this sort of control on the people around him, but even more so if what he is doing is dangerous."
"I don't know how he figured out who I truly am, Professor," Hermione said, "but I think Rose Sanders might know as well. I think they are both relying on a single source of information but I don't know whom or where or how…. How can anyone know this?" Hermione cried, exasperated. "And why does it matter so much?"
But Hermione did not need Albus Dumbledore to answer that question for her. The Muggleborn knew that if this source of information knew who Hermione Granger was, then they would certainly know who Harry Potter was. And that was something Hermione would rather die than reveal, because protecting Harry at all costs was the ultimate goal of their friendship, she knew.
"Hogwarts holds many secrets, Miss Granger," Dumbledore said, his tone more grim than mysterious, "Some secrets even I am not aware of. I knew of your time travelling only because I was forewarned in the past, but it would not surprise me if the castle brought another along with you."
"So you're saying that someone was thrown into the past alongside me?" Hermione repeated back, feeling overwhelmed by confusion as Dumbledore nodded. "They would know everything about our time together. But they would not be powerful enough here to make a difference with their information…"
Rapidly Hermione's mind began to piece together this suspect clue: if someone had travelled with her, they would have to be against everything that Hermione stood for, and obviously were evil enough to be in league with Malfoy… Maybe even Voldemort, Hermione mused. Whom did she know from her own era that fit the criteria?
"There are so many," Hermione murmured at last. "So many people could have travelled back with me. But so far, I haven't recognized any faces from my own time."
"Any secret Hogwarts has is not easily revealed, I'm afraid," Dumbledore said. "But I can assure you that it will not stay hidden for much longer. Travelers eventually double cross themselves by accident, perhaps even by simply existing."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.
"I mean that sometimes, time travelers do not go far back enough in time to avoid being born again, and sometimes cross paths with their adult selves before they realize what they're doing," Dumbledore explained. "You will luckily not do that, because your birth year is not until September."
"Which is when I'll go home, I think," Hermione said quickly. "I also did some research in the library, and think I might have been subject to the volo viginiti spell. I'll leave this time period when I am born in September…"
"Seven months," Dumbledore said quietly. "A lot can happen in seven months, Miss Granger."
"I know," Hermione agreed uncertainly. "But they don't necessarily have to be bad things. I need your help, Headmaster. Any sort of protection you can give me, or if you could just, well, expel Lucius Malfoy…"
The old wizard closed his blue eyes, his chin perched on his finger tips. Hermione had the sense that he was deep in thought, almost buried under the maze of his own mind. When he spoke, his eyes remained shut. "Unfortunately, without proper and indisputable evidence, there is nothing I can do to reprimand Mr. Malfoy. When you have physical evidence, our countless witnesses of some abuse or wrongdoing, come to me immediately."
"But you don't understand," Hermione said at once, feeling a thundercloud hover over her heart; "Malfoy won't let me out of his sight. I can't come to you after he's done something." Hermione's heart was racing in panic; did Dumbledore truly believe that she could watch some evildoing and then run and tattle without restraint or consequence? "Professor I had to climb out of a lavatory window to get back here! Can't you do something right away?"
"I'm afraid not," he replied quietly, his eyes open now. He examined Hermione in her terror and exasperation. "I do not doubt what you tell me, but accusations must have proper support."
Hermione tried to suck in a breath to calm herself down, but it was more of a broken gasp; she was terrified to leave his office, frustrated that the Headmaster seemed so powerless, and loathing Malfoy for having this much power.
"I'm afraid for myself," Hermione confessed. "And I am afraid for Remus. I don't know what to do."
"I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower, if you wish," Dumbledore offered, to which Hermione nodded; "And I can advise to never be alone unless you absolutely must."
"I don't have many friends, and I don't know who I can surely trust, but I'll try my best."
But even as Dumbledore walked with her back to Gryffindor Tower, Hermione knew somewhere deep inside her that her best would not be good enough; somewhere, somehow, Malfoy would find a way to catch her off guard.
Keeping careful not to keep eye contact with anyone in the hallway, Hermione was relieved when they finally reached the safety of the Gryffindor portrait.
"I expect to hear from you more often if the situation develops," Dumbledore said, giving her a pointed look as Gryffindors swarmed around them.
"Yes, sir," Hermione agreed; "Thank you for walking with me."
With a gracious nod, Dumbledore turned and left her there, disappearing among the students. Hermione went into the common room at once, a heavy weight lifting from her shoulders when she saw that Remus had not yet returned. Perhaps they had all stayed, she hoped, and she would have the rest of the afternoon free.
Snuggling up in her bed, Hermione picked out a book and tried to keep relaxed as she read in leisure, letting the comfort of the text wrap around her. In the book there was nothing to make her anxious, nothing to worry her, no predators to trap her, no men to make her heart race. It was another world that she could lose herself in without having to get involved.
As the shadows crept down the wall, and the hours passed by, the common room began to get noisier, and Hermione was tempted to go downstairs to see if Remus was there. During her reading it became clear that she needed to explain herself, to try and win him over before it was too late. Then she could explain what truly happened that day, how Malfoy had manipulated them all, that Rose was a terrible choice for a girlfriend—
Hermione was halfway down the stairs before she even realized it, so determined she was to make a difference in the complicated relationship with Remus. As she stepped into the common room, the chatter stopped instantly, and Hermione found not only Lily and Emma staring at her silently, but countless others as well. Remus Lupin, however, was not among them.
The air was thick with tension, and although she was inexplicably nervous, Hermione asked timidly, "Where's Remus?"
"Infirmary," Emma said flatly.
Blood rushed from her face. "What happened?" Hermione cried, a horrible feeling swooping over her as she pictured all the things Malfoy could've gotten away with.
"Feel down a flight of stairs," Emma said, her eyes narrowed. "Broke his collarbone and his forearm."
Nothing terribly fatal, Hermione realized, her drumming heart calming at once. Should she wait here until he was healed, or go and apologize now?
"Why'd you do it?" Emma blurted, now looking furious. Lily and the others stared back, their faces filled with anger that matched Emma's.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Hermione said in a small voice, knowing that somehow she was at the center of some terrible event.
"We're all banned from The Three Broomsticks now!" Lily broke out angrily. "You had no reason to do that!"
"I didn't!" Hermione cried, shaking now; all she wanted was to push past them and go to Remus and beg for his forgiveness and for him to listen. In fact, she made movements to do just that, but Emma stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
"Remus is out cold," Emma snarled, knowing Hermione's intentions, "And why the hell would he forgive you anyway? After what you did? He told me and Sirius about it."
"It's not what you think!" Hermione pleaded, tears now springing to her eyes. "Please believe me! I'm not lying!"
"Just like you're not lying about Malfoy?" Emma asked quietly, her eyes pinned to Hermione's.
Then, somehow, the Muggleborn knew that Emma was Malfoy's tool, that she was subtly planting these seeds of doubt in everyone's mind. Hermione's mind raced over the last day and how Emma was conveniently there to keep any progress from being made with Remus, and to spread the story of Hermione's apparent "crime". There was no other explanation, not when Peter wasn't around, not when Rose was by Remus' side.
And she would be there with him in the Infirmary as well, Hermione knew; I'd never get a moment alone with him.
Eyes sweeping the room, Hermione watched as whispers carried between friends, words that were lies seeping into the minds of her fellow Gryffindors, forever ruining any trust she could place in them. Having no idea what she did at the Three Broomsticks, and knowing that she could never win over Remus now without some sort of miracle, Hermione slowly turned around and retreated back into the Girls' dormitory, hating their eyes on her back, and hating herself for getting in this deep.
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Author's Note: well I hope y'all enjoyed that. I think I'll be editing and deleting some chapters for lack of their necessity, because this chapter speeds the plot along quite nicely!
Anyway, please review!
