A/N: I imagine the title to this chapter is what some of you will be saying as you read it. :) And after you've said "What Now?" you'll reach the end of the chapter and probably go..."Argh, why did it stop there?" (Or you might say "That's a load of crap I'm not coming back!" LOL)
I hope to keep updates going at least once a week...there's a few things taking my time up at the moment(including writing new material...I'm a lot of chapters ahead of this one). So any glaring mistakes, typos etc might be missed as I'm having to check through a bit faster than normal.
53: What Now?
The morning had been very normal, as normal as things got for Ginny and Hermione these days. They almost felt like they had always lived in the house at Godric's Hollow, had always gone through the morning routines and had breakfast together. It was a feeling of immense ease and comfort with each other's company.
Hermione and Ginny were very aware that they would soon have to go back to Hogwarts, it seemed inevitable; it would be going back to more pain and drama, but neither felt unduly frightened or apprehensive. They knew from the very start, that they were to go back, if they survived the challenges of the 1940s, so it wasn't a completely alien notion. They couldn't stay in 1945 and wish the world away, so there was no point getting upset over something they both knew had to happen.
Assuming they would no longer require their WAAF uniforms, Hermione and Ginny placed them back into the wardrobe that morning, where it had felt so long ago that they'd first tried them on. A few odd jobs later and they found themselves in the kitchen with a pot of tea brewing, waiting for the arrival of Dumbledore. As was his usual punctuality, the Professor walked through into the kitchen just after their agreed 12.30pm meeting.
"Hello!" he said. "It's good to see you both. You're well?"
"Yes, very much so," replied Hermione.
"The same as usual, sir?" inquired Ginny, pointing at the tea pot.
"Thank you."
The same familiar walk through to the sitting room, with the usual cups of tea was strangely comforting too. It had become a feeling of a favourite uncle coming to visit.
After Dumbledore settled into his usual armchair, with the two girls seated on the sofa, they all took a prerequisite sip of hot tea, all knowing they were thinking of where to start the conversation. As usual...again...they let the Professor take the lead.
"So," he said. "The first question is, do you have the real Cup?"
"Yes!" both Ginny and Hermione answered, at the same time.
"Wonderful!" Dumbledore said, with a genuine smile. "Might I ask you to indulge an old wizard and hear how you accomplished this? You visited Borgin & Burkes, yes?"
Hermione told him the story of their stay at The Leaky Cauldron, all the while trying to push aside the memories of kissing and holding Ginny, for fear of blushing or stumbling on something she'd rather keep private. She spoke of the multiple buying trips to the shop, though.
"I would like to have a look at those items later," the Professor said, interested in their purchases. "But it sounds like you had success right from the start. Borgin seems to have been enamoured by you."
"He wasn't the only one," said Hermione. "One day at the shop, the Saturday, might have ruined everything."
"What happened?" asked the wizard.
"We came face to face with Professor Slughorn and You Know Who," said Ginny, without being able to stop a little shiver.
"Merlin's shaggy beard!" exclaimed Dumbledore. "I had no idea your paths would cross, I didn't think he'd take Tom there until nearly the summer holidays! Did he see your faces? Did you talk with Horace? You have to remember exactly what you think he saw or what you said? It's important!"
This was the most agitated either of the women had ever seen Albus Dumbledore, who was always the picture of calm disposition in the face of the unexpected, usually.
"We were lucky," said Hermione. "We were able to use a quick glamour to hide our faces, and the small talk was only that. It chilled us to the bone though...especially for Ginny. That was the You Know Who she met in his Diary horcrux."
"And you're sure they didn't see your true faces?" the wizard still asked.
"We're sure," said Ginny. "We both knew how dangerous it might be if they had seen our real faces...dangerous for back in our own time. We didn't ask you, because it slipped our minds, but we changed our names for The Leaky Cauldron and the shop, before we left here too."
"Oh?" Dumbledore asked, still deeply concerned by the turn of events he'd just been told about.
"We thought that Massey, you know, The Hanged Man landlord, might have mentioned our names to You Know Who," explained Ginny. "And we didn't want to risk anyone feeling our names were familiar. As it turns out, I wouldn't trust Borgin to keep our names secret, so it's just as well we changed them. Even when You Know Who gets to work there, the names will mean nothing."
"Do you realize, you have just out-thought myself?" Dumbledore said, then smiled. "I never considered what you devised. It is terrible of me, and will teach me to think clearer in future. I do hope you know how vital your actions have been...just by changing your names? By having the presence of mind to conceal yourselves?"
"We thought it might be an issue, that's all," said a modest Hermione, not quite believing that they'd thought of something Dumbledore had missed. I wonder what happened to Massey? And whether he did tell You Know Who everything? thought Hermione, I don't think this Dumbledore would tell us, even if I asked...I can try. "Sir, do you know what happened to Massey? After he went missing in 1943?"
"I have my suspicions," the Professor said, before pausing, making the two women wonder if he was going to say anything else. "I could find no trace of him anywhere. But I've heard from certain contacts that the Ministry kept a close eye on Little Hangleton after the Riddles were murdered, and the story told by Massey's wife was that he ran off with some woman, as you told me the rumour had been, but that he had gone to London with her and died in a night of bombing. No body was found, which isn't unusual in those circumstances. How or where the wife came up with this story I do not know...perhaps a Ministry official posed as a policeman to inform her, suspecting things from the little I was able to safely tell them; I'm not sure we'll ever know. However, I believe, sadly, that Riddle murdered him, either that same day by some means, or the weekend that followed, maybe in Hogsmeade or further away."
"Oh," said Hermione, unable to think of anything to answer with. She didn't feel any sympathy for Massey whatsoever.
"Anyway, whatever happened it's been done. As has your brilliant forward thinking to change your names. Tell me of your meeting with Hepzibah," the wizard said, very much more calmly.
Between them, Ginny and Hermione relayed their meeting with Hepzibah Smith, and how they'd felt sad for her in the end. When it came to the swapping part of the plan, Hermione stopped.
"We...," the brunette halted.
"Yes?" asked an eager Dumbledore.
"We have a confession, Professor," said Hermione. "We used the Imperius curse. I used it on the house-elf and Ginny used it on Hepzibah."
When they had planned their methods before going to Welches Dam, the Imperius curse had seemed so simple, so tame and harmless, but sitting here with a wizard she respected so much, Hermione felt awful. Ginny had also begun to feel uncomfortable about it too. Where they had felt so attuned to each other and to their task, they now didn't feel so proud of themselves.
"We're sorry, sir," said Ginny. "We know it's an Unforgivable Curse, but we didn't know how else to do it. I know it sounds like we're trying to justify it...a thing that can't be justified, but we meant them no harm. It was just to send them to sleep for a few moments...,"
"It's exactly as Ginny said," Hermione added. "It seemed the safest, quickest and most harmless way we could do it. But...of course, it was wrong."
Albus Dumbledore studied the two young women for a couple of moments. He wasn't shocked by their confession, he had no anger, he just felt pure and simple pride. "Do not worry," he said, breaking the small silence. "You're not evil, you didn't act for a selfish cause. I'm not going to punish or scold you. You have done nothing wrong."
"But the Imperius curse,sir," said Hermione. "That makes us no better than You Know Who and his followers. Using it to be lazy, when they feel like it."
"Don't you see?" the Professor said, in a soft even tone. "You are better! Everything you have just told me, proves it. You knew it felt wrong, but the whole time your motives were not to harm, not to amuse yourselves or to use it for any other means than good. You cared when you used those curses. It meant something for you to even utter those words. No my friends, you have acted with more compassion and care for your actions than most witches and wizards I know."
Another little silence ensued, until Ginny spoke, "Do you need to see the Cup?"
"No, no," replied the wizard. "As much as I would like to, it's sometimes best to leave things I don't need to see or touch, well alone. After all, I know what it looks like from the replica I gave you."
"So," sighed Hermione. "When do we go back to our Hogwarts? I assume that's our next move?"
Dumbledore sipped from his cup of tea. "Yes and no."
Hermione gave a side glance at Ginny, who had turned to her, both showing an expression of 'what now?' or even 'where now?'.
Ignoring the ambiguity of the wizard's answer, for the moment, Hermione decided to question the burning issue, "I'm hoping you can tell us why we had to get the Ring and Cup, and what we've got to do with them now?"
"You have many questions, I know," said Dumbledore, almost sadly. "Of course you do. Brilliant minds like yours would want to know all they can, but...alas, I can not answer them."
"You can't answer them?" asked Ginny, her voice an octave higher in surprise. "Well...what the hell have we been doing? Why? How are we supposed to know what to do with the bloody items?" She quickly seemed to recognize that she'd had an outburst and blushed. "I'm...I'm sorry, sir."
"Don't apologize," he said. "I understand."
"Which is more than we do," said Hermione, in a quiet, cold voice. "I'm sorry too, sir, but we've been through so much, we feel we deserve to know what it's all about. This was supposed to be a plan you devised, how can we believe you sitting there and saying you can't answer our questions? Can't or won't?"
Ginny had reached across for Hermione's hand, trying to keep them both calm, when in reality their minds were overwhelmed by a spectrum of emotions.
"I can't answer them," Dumbledore said.
"Can't? But...it's your plan?" Hermione said, in disbelief.
"Remember when you left 1943 to come here? Well the me in 1943 didn't know a great deal, and neither does the me sitting here in front of you now. This whole plan and strategy was the idea of the me residing in Hogwarts, in June 1997." Dumbledore finished the last of his tea.
"Is that where we have to go next?" asked Hermione, very much more subdued.
"Yes," the wizard said. "Sunday 15th June 1997. You will find the answers you need from the me there. I've been very careful over what I can and can't know, so please forgive me if you have felt in the dark, I too have similarly felt it."
"That's the date," said Hermione. "Where do we arrive and what time?"
"You will arrive in the Headmaster's Office, at 10.30pm," replied the wizard.
"Is there a danger that someone might decide to visit your Office then?" asked Hermione.
"In this case, no," Dumbledore answered, evenly. "That evening I'm told I'll be undisposed, or possibly thought to be away, and my Office will be unable to be entered, not even the staircase will be available. No one will know of your arrival or departure and I'm told it will be very safe from intrusion."
That's more than can be said of it at the Battle, thought Hermione. Then she thought about Rowena's diadem. "Sir, are we also going back then, to Hogwarts, to look for...mmm...for...," she couldn't finish her sentence, because she felt as though her tongue had been flipped over and tied up.
Ginny looked at Hermione aghast, then found she couldn't say a word either, only her own series of, 'Hmm's'.
"Forgive me for doing that," said Dumbledore. "But I think you were about to tell me something about an object at Hogwarts. I must not know what it is...assuming that you do know its identity?"
Hermione felt her tongue come back to her a little. "Um...yes, we know what it is and where."
"That's all I need to know, the most I must know," said Dumbledore with a submissive wave of his hand, to completely relieve the tongue-tied spells he'd used. "For some reason my older self said, that should an object hidden at Hogwarts be mentioned in any way, that I must not know its place or identity. I've no idea why, I just have to trust the other me, like you two."
"Sir?" asked Ginny, desperately hoping she didn't feel her tongue go odd again. "You'll still know us when we first start Hogwarts, won't you? Even though we won't know you?"
"I will, but I can assure you, you will never know that I knew you." He chuckled then. "So do not expect favouritism to come to you...of course you won't know if it did, but I'll promise you I won't set you apart. I always trust to my instincts over difficult situations."
Blasted instincts again, thought Ginny.
Instincts! thought Hermione, almost amused.
"You'll know the us that were here too?" asked Ginny, deep in thought about the mysteries of time-travel once more. "I know we already know you in 1997, but I mean you'll know us from here, from 1943 too?"
"Yes, I will," Dumbledore said, smiling broadly at the intelligent questions.
"We put the WAAF uniforms back in the wardrobe," said Hermione, very much relaxed again, as they all felt the atmosphere of the room become less tense in the last few minutes.
"You can keep them if you want? A keepsake," the wizard offered. "After all, today is VE Day! Victory in Europe!"
"Um, no thanks!" said Ginny, half smiling.
"Oh well," sighed the Professor.
Next they went through the items they had bought at Borgin & Burkes. The items greatly interested Dumbledore, especially the dagger and the necklace of Andrasta.
"That's a very nice find," he said, as he studied the craftsmanship and hovered his wand over the hare pendant. "I think it possibly has some magical properties, I'm not sure what, though. I've never come across something similar."
"We didn't think it had any properties," answered Hermione. "We thought it was some kind of sales talk from Borgin. It's nice though."
"It does have some mild protective properties, I'm sure," Dumbledore told them.
"Anne Boleyn apparently gave it to someone else before she was executed, maybe she should have worn it that day?" suggested Hermione.
"It wouldn't have helped her," said the wizard. "She wasn't thought to be genuinely magical and she didn't die a magical death. Even so, no necklace or artefact can protect the wearer from ultimate and undisputed death. No, I believe the protection here is for a magically gifted person, to protect against minor magical harm, possibly against something small so the wearer can concentrate on bigger issues. It might deflect something small and annoying, like a Pimple Hex. Which is also why it would have been of no use to Boudica, especially as it's believed that hers was a battle death by very muggle means. I personally don't believe the Roman opinion that she poisoned herself to avoid capture. Romans liked to fall on their own swords when defeated, not Iceni...either way, there was no magical involvement."
"That's interesting," said Hermione, taking in all the information. "Anyway, that necklace, the ring of Elizabeth Woodville and the silver dagger are all we bought, and after we sold all the goods you gave us and had our expenses, we have around two-hundred and fifty galleons left in the purse." She handed over the purse holding the money to Dumbledore.
"Keep them," he said, handing them back, along with their purchases. "You never know, it might come in handy."
"But the gold, is too much," Ginny protested.
"Keep it, and if you succeed in your world, you can buy yourself something. Or at least buy a butterbeer. After all, I thought you might have to spend the lot, so I never expected any back."
A slightly stunned Hermione nodded her thanks, as she took back the items and put them into her bag. "When do we leave for 1997?" she asked.
"It is of course up to you, in some ways," said Dumbledore. "You can stay here a bit longer, although I would advise against leaving the house now, because we don't need to risk any small changes."
"That's what I thought," said Hermione. "We've been out of place for a long time."
"So, you may stay here a few days, or leave in a few minutes, I think you've earned the choice," said Dumbledore.
"I think I'd like to go today," said Ginny.
Hermione thought it over, and after the amount of emotions she'd just been through, she wanted answers now, more than anything. "I agree," she said. "We'll move on, this afternoon, perhaps?" she directed the question to Ginny.
"Fine with me," the redhead answered, also wanting the answers that had been anticipated and ultimately disappointed.
"Well, I must go," said Dumbledore rising to his feet.
They walked through to the kitchen with him, knowing it was for the last time, in this house. It made Ginny and Hermione both feel a certain sadness.
"It has been such a pleasure to meet you and work with you," the wizard said, kindly. "I'm so very proud of you both, and hope people will learn of what you've endured and accomplished, one day."
"I'll be happy just to live another day when we get back," said Hermione.
"If anyone can bring that about, and the other me has half the wisdom and wit he seems to think he has, then I don't doubt that you two can make that happen."
"It's been good to see you, sir," Hermione uttered, almost timidly, Ginny nodding her agreement, next to her.
"Always remember that life does throw up unexpected events, but that having been said, I'm thankful for every surprise," Dumbledore sighed. "Now, I must leave. I'm supposed to be having some firewhisky with friends at The Three Broomsticks, celebrating VE Day!"
"But it's a muggle thing?" asked Ginny.
"As I said before, many of us helped out where we could, we deserve a drink too, don't you think?" he laughed. "I couldn't be as active as some, but even ideas and suggestions are worthy help."
Placing a supportive, gentle hand on Ginny and Hermione's shoulders, he inclined a bow to each of them. "Farewell, and goodluck," he said, as he turned and left through the scullery.
A few minutes passed, with the two young women just staring at the place where Albus Dumbledore had been standing moments before.
"I didn't expect that!" said Hermione.
"Me neither, and another journey?"
"Yes, that was very disconcerting," sighed the brunette. "But I understand why it has to be done that way. We've been fiddling with a lot of elements in time."
"It would've been nice to be told that he didn't know much from the start," said Ginny.
"Maybe we wouldn't have had faith in him, and feared things more, then we might not have been so effective?"
Ginny turned to Hermione and hugged her. "We'd have been just fine. Nevermind, it's done now. You're okay for moving on today?"
"Absolutely!" said Hermione, who pulled back from the hug and placed a kiss on Ginny's lips. "I think we're due some answers! It feels like we've been short-changed today."
"Hardly!" grinned Ginny. "He gave us those items and the remaining galleons!"
"You know what I mean!" chuckled Hermione.
"Yeah, I want some answers," said Ginny. "Let's have some lunch, then get ready and go, shall we?"
"Agreed."
The anticipation of their next move, left them with only a moderate appetite, and they had mostly snack food for lunch, packing up a couple of items and a flask of tea to take with them.
"Oh good grief!" said Ginny. "We're still packing up food!"
"Old habits die hard," laughed Hermione. "But I like to be prepared too, so why not?"
"Precisely!"
They did a routine check of all the rooms in the house, making sure to leave nothing behind which they hadn't meant to, with both of their enchanted bags in their pockets. Hermione didn't find any more red bubblebath bottles, but it had become of little importance when thinking of where they were going next.
They stood in the kitchen dressed in their ordinary clothes, the ones they'd been wearing when they first arrived in Godric's Hollow in 1943. The clothes were much cleaner and mended, and almost looked freshly laundered.
Hermione and Ginny embraced and shared a slow kiss, not knowing if the time or place would allow them the luxury in the near future. Their arms wrapped around each other, as their lips passed messages of care and hope to one another.
Breaking the kiss after several minutes, they looked into each other's eyes, sparkling with want and of tears unshed. Hermione smiled at Ginny, then took the redhead's hand and led them out to the back garden.
Both of them stood in the familiar unkempt garden, wistfully gazing back to the house. "We never said 'goodbye' to Humphrey," said Ginny, beguiled by the situation, even though she did feel a pull of almost sentiment.
"Be my guest," said Hermione, amused.
"No, I'm not that desperate!"
"We never said 'bye' to Mrs. Haughty, either?"
"I do draw the line at her!" laughed Ginny, as she turned her head back to Hermione. "It's predictable, but I want to stay a little longer, now we're ready to actually leave."
"I do too," admitted Hermione. "But...,"
"But, if we stay a little longer, it becomes the day, then the night, then another day and...,"
"Exactly."
"It's not fear making me feel that," said Ginny, then she smiled. "Not much fear, anyway. It's just the unknown again, when this house has been such a retreat for us."
"I know. And here I get to be with you, with few complications," said Hermione.
Ginny thought on that sentence, then gave a laugh. "Few complications? Like being in 1943, then 1945, dressed between a WAAF and a dark arts antique collector, isn't complicated?"
Hermione had to laugh at that too. "You know what I mean!"
"Yes, I do. Well, shall we move now?"
Hermione retrieved the Time-Turner from her beaded bag and put the long chain around both their necks. "Just one more kiss," she said, as her lips met Ginny's.
Ginny held Hermione's left wrist firmly, as the brunette poised her wand over the instrument. "Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts, 2230 Hours, 15th June 1997, Movere!"
Immediately the scene of the untidy garden whirled away in a swirl of motion, as the two witches experienced the squishing and rushing and other sensations of their highly unconventional mode of travel.
The journey seemed to take longer than their most recent travel from 1943 to 1945, but that could have been the thought of the actual amount of years they were travelling, making them believe it was longer. Finally they felt their feet thump solidly onto ground, echoing as they landed, staggering and ending up in a heap on the floor surface.
"Well met!" said a familiar voice.
Hermione quickly looked at their surroundings, and was relieved to see they were indeed in the Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts. She removed the Time-Turner chain from around their necks, helping Ginny to her feet in the process, before putting the instrument back into her beaded bag. As of yet she hadn't seen Dumbledore, or where his voice had come from.
"Hello? Sir?" called Hermione.
With the words hardly leaving her lips, both women saw Dumbledore descend some steps at the back of his office, carrying a tray in one hand with three mugs on it.
"Hot chocolate?" he offered with a kindly smile.
Ginny and Hermione walked to the Headmaster's desk and took seats where Dumbledore indicated, and where he placed a mug of hot chocolate before them.
The Dumbledore they faced, was the one they knew best; the older and arguably wiser version, but so obviously marked by the passage of time now. Compared to the moderately sprightly Dumbledore, they had so recently left in 1945, it was almost shocking to view. It was like their favourite uncle had been ill and they'd only now seen him a few months after some disease had wasted his body.
"Everything all right?" asked the wizard.
"Yes," said Hermione. "It's all a bit strange...we only just said 'goodbye' to you in 1945."
"Ah, I see, totally understandable," the old man smiled. "To me, I said 'goodbye' to you fifty-two years ago. That's quite a wait for me! But here we are."
"We don't quite know what to say, or ask, sir?" said Hermione.
"That is why you are here, and I will do my best to answer your questions, maybe even before you ask them. It is time you knew just what we have planned and how you're going to try and make this work. It won't be easy, necessarily...tasks like this never are. It won't be pleasant, but you're both used to less than pleasant quests too. It will, however, be unexpected, and if you succeed, it might just win it."
They all took sips from their drinks. "But there are many things you have to know first, before you get to the final act, and many things to try to understand," said Dumbledore. "So, I will make a start. The Deathly Hallows..."
