Chapter 31
Hermione was shaking in fear, in anger, frustration, and in sadness. Never would she have thought that it would come to this. Never would she have predicted that Draco's task had been to kill Dumbledore.
She was furious with him, more than she had been before when he had dumped her. And she was still rather angry with him for that as well.
She was a mess, in all honesty, her mind racing with various fears and insecurities. She should have done something; she should have saved him when she should have had the chance. She should have forced him to have gone to Dumbledore, and begged him to save his mother. She should have saved him from having gone through with the task.
Instead, she had let herself get distracted. She had let her mind be filled with hopes and dreams that the two of them would be able to have a future together outside of the walls of the school; that they could be together, in a world without prejudice and fears, and where Voldemort was not terrorizing their every moves. And she had lost herself in that fantasy.
She had refused to see what was right in front of her; that while the two of them stood so strongly on opposite sides of the war by association of their peers and family, they wouldn't be able to have a future together.
And if only she had tried to help him; if she had tried to make sure he knew that he wasn't alone. If she had insisted that he tell her what was bothering him, and that she would stand by his side regardless. They might have still not been together, but at least he would have had someone so he wasn't alone.
And maybe if he had more people he trusted, Dumbledore would be alive still. Maybe then Draco wouldn't have to deal with the guilt of a death of a soul on his hands. Maybe then Draco would have been safe, and not in surrounded by Death Eaters all around him.
To see him fleeing the school, looking so broken and scared; so afraid that it broke her heart. She wished she could have gone to him, to have told him that she hated him a little bit for how he ended their relationship, even if she knew why he had done it. To let him know that she would always stand by his side no matter what happened, and that she would never truly be hate him.
She loved him too much to ever truly hate him.
A sob broke out of her chest, and she brought her knees close to her chest, trying to comfort herself. It seemed like all she did these days was cry.
"Hermione," she heard Harry call out for her, and looked at him standing right beside her. He sat down beside her, on the steps of the Astronomy tower, where Dumbledore had been murdered by Snape out of all people.
"I'm sorry," she said, hastily wiping her tears away. It didn't do any good to cry now; not when they needed to be preparing for what was to come.
"Don't be," he said firmly. "We just attended a funeral, Hermione. It's only natural that you would be upset about it."
"How could he have done it, Harry?" she whispered, "Dumbledore trusted Snape so much, and in the end he betrayed him. How could Snape have done that to him?"
"I don't know," her friend said honestly, as he wrapped an arm around him. "I hate him for it. I hate him for going through with it. Dumbledore begged him, Hermione," Harry's voice cracked slightly, "Begged him to help, to not go through with it. And I couldn't even move, because I had been frozen. I was forced to watch the entire thing, and there was nothing I could have done to save him."
She leaned into her friend, wrapping an arm around him as well.
"It wasn't your fault, Harry," she assured him, "Dumbledore did it to protect you; he didn't want you to intervene and to get hurt. He was trying to protect you."
They were silent for a few moments, both wondering what they could have done differently to have prevented this from happening; both wondering how things could have been if it played out slightly differently.
"Do you think he would have done it?" Hermione asked, in a near whisper. "Draco, I mean. Do you think he could have gone through with it?"
If Harry was suspicious over the use of his first name, he didn't say anything. Instead, he looked like he was far away in his thoughts, mulling over what had happened.
"No," Harry said finally. "Dumbledore offered him a chance of safety, to protect his mother and to make sure she would be safe. He offered that to him, even while in danger. And Draco was considering it. I think he might have taken it too, if it weren't for the fact that the Death Eaters showed up just then. He would have taken Dumbledore's offer to keep his mother out of harm's way."
She felt a few tears slip down her face just then, unable to keep it in any longer.
He tried to get out. He tried to do the right thing in the end, because he wasn't a murderer. Because he was still the same boy she had fallen in love with, who couldn't truly hurt another person as such. He wanted to be saved, but in the end it was too late.
She supposed it really was over then, and that thought broke her heart. With Dumbledore dead, she knew they wouldn't be able to come back to school the following year. She wouldn't be able to see him until after the war ended. She wouldn't be able to be with him for a while, if at all. Her relationship with Draco had ended; they were now on opposite sides of the war, and the safety of Hogwarts that had protected them so strongly from the real world was now gone.
Hermione stood nervously in front of the Wizengamot, ready to present her case, alongside the lawyer in her division who specialized in Medical Hearings. She had asked Loretta Cornhill if she would be willing to take a case alongside her, as while she was versed in laws regarding healing, it wasn't her specialty.
"Members of Wizengamot, today I address you as more than your positions. I address you as peers; as members who have had family members who were placed under the Cruciatus curse. As some of you have felt the effects of the curse first hand, you know all about the trauma that accompanies the effects of the curse, and the pain that lingers for years on end," Hermione began her speech. She had briefed the members ahead of time, so that they would have a decent understanding of what was going on today."
"I wish to lift the memory modification requirements that have been put into effect in prior years, or to at least make an amendment where this curse is concerned."
"And what would that be?" Tiberus Odgen asked her, as he looked down from his seat at her.
"Healer Johnson at St Mungos and his team have come up with an effective remedy to the Cruciatus curse. As you all know, there is no spell or potion that can completely remove the after effects of the potion. The pain from the memory lingers, and can cause phantom pains and convulsions from time to time," Hermione said softly, "His team has found that combining a modified obviating spell, which targets specific parts of the memory, namely the pain associate, when used in conjecture to mind healing, has proved to be an effective way to properly treat patients," Hermione said strongly, as she addressed the man, "And he has many successful cases, which I provided you with in your briefing. I myself can attest to the fact that his methods are successful."
"And how do you propose we modify the laws surrounding the obliviating curse on patients with this trauma?" A witch she didn't recognize asked her
"I propose we amend the law which in particular surrounds the case of using the oblivating spell on patients who are not mentally sound, and cannot consent to the procedure," Hermione said, earning a variety of comments of shock from the audience.
"And what would your new requirements be," another wizard asked her, scrutinizingly. "The laws in place are to protect the patients involved."
"I propose we make the amendment such that their legal guardians can give consent on their behalf," Hermione said, knowing that this was where it was going to get more complicated. It was going to be difficult to convince them, but she had to at least try when she was given the chance to.
"Patients who need surgeries urgently can have consent given by a family member," Hermione said pausing, "Their family can chose for them how they want to proceed."
"Their lives are in danger!" a wizard exclaimed, "It's done to save their lives. If they wait for too long, it puts the patient's life at risk! It's different for patients who are suffering insanity because of the cruciatus curse."
"But what kind of life are they living?" Hermione asked, earning her silence from the room as no one could respond to that. "I am not disputing the need for guardian consent in life threatening cases. I'm just arguing the point that it is permitted in extreme cases where the patient's life is at risk, but not in cases where the patient is so lost that they barely recognize their own name. In those cases, their care is left to their family; their family is left to pay the bill and to ensure that their loved ones are cared for. But they are not given the option to pursue a course of treatment which has proven to be effective on patients who have suffered under the curse. The researchers are not allowed to help so many others when they could."
She paused for a moment.
"Patients are driven to insanity because of the curse," she said looking at her audience, "Because of the extreme pain they suffer during the torture, they lose their mental capacities. The pain itself is enough to make the victim wish they were dead, and being user the curse for long periods of time causes insanity due to being unable to mentally process what is happening. They're in so much pain that escaping into a simpler place is the only chance they have. But the result means that they no longer are the same people they were before."
"I wish to call upon Neville Longbottom," Hermione said, earning surprised looks from the Wizengamot members. It was well known that his parents had been tortured and she knew they hadn't expected for her to have gone to him, despite their known friendship.
"Members of the Wizengamot," Neville addressed them. "As many of you know, two decades ago, my parents, Alice and Frank Longbottom, were tortured by Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Rabastan Lestrange. They were tortured because I was the other child the prophecy surrounding Voldemort could have concerned. They were tortured because they wondered if somehow my parents and I had something to do with Voldemort's fall back in 1981. They were tortured into a state of mind that they do not recognize me as their own son. They do not recognize my Grandmother, or any other members of our family. They do not even recognize themselves or each other."
He took a deep breath, and she knew that it was hard on him, "They have been staying at St Mungos all this time, as it has been all we could have hoped for them. But now, there is a chance that we can heal them that they can regain their mental capacities, and can come home, for the first time in twenty years. That they can be themselves again. They can finally meet the son whom they haven't properly known since I were a child. But this cannot happen without your help. This cannot happen without the lifting of the restrictions on the laws surrounding the treatment."
Hermione took the stand again, as the Wizengamot turned to her.
"We shall need some time to discuss this amongst ourselves," Griselda Marchbanks said to them, "We shall have a closed session, and will let you know when we are ready to come to a vote on the matter."
Hermione nodded as she turned, leaving the room as she and Neville reconvened outside, with his grandmother joining them moments later.
"I must say that I am impressed," Augusta said to her, "I have heard many things about you, Miss Granger, from my grandson throughout the years. That you've always been a true friend to him, and that you would take the world head on to fight the injustices of it all. It was no surprise that you became a lawyer."
She blushed softly, "Thank you," she said smiling lightly.
"It is I who should be thanking you," Augusta said to her, "I have come to terms with my son and daughter-in-law's current state, despite the fact that it has broken my heart. But to be given hope that there is even a small chance that they could come home; to be themselves once more. I hope that the Wizengamot votes in our favour."
"As do I," she said honestly, "The treatment helped me so much, and to think of what it could do for others would be astounding. It's really a medical breakthrough."
It was a little over an hour later when the doors opened once more, and Hermione was informed that the Wizengamot had finalized their discussion and were ready to put it to a vote.
"All in favour of amending the current laws surrounding the use of the obliviation spell when in regards to medical practices?" Griselda asked the room, and Hermione held her breath as she watched the hands begin to raise in the air. They needed a least twenty six votes for it to be a majority.
The votes were tallied, and Griselda spoke again, "All against amending the current laws surrounding the use of the oblivation spell in regards to medical practices?"
A few hands raised in the air, and Hermione felt her heart race.
"In a vote of thirty eight to twelve, the motion to change the current laws in regards to the use of the oblivation spell has been passed," Griselda said, and Hermione felt happiness rush over her, as they won their case. Neville came over and pulled her tightly into a hug.
"Thank you, Hermione," he said thickly, and she knew that he was so relieved that the law had passed.
Draco sat nervously in front Rose, as they on opposite sides of the table in Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. Rose was happily licking the cone of chocolate ice cream that he had bought her. He had insisted on watching Rose while Hermione went to court, saying that he loved spending time with her.
And he wasn't completely dishonest in his motives. He did love Rose; that much was for sure. But today, he had slightly ulterior motives as to why he wanted to spend time with the girl in question.
"Rose, I need to ask you for something," Draco said softly, and Rose immediately looked up at him in confusion, "I would like for your permission."
"Why?" Rose asked, looking at him carefully
"I love your mummy so much," Draco said, causing Rose to giggle, "She makes me extremely happy. But I also love you too Rose."
"I love you too, Draco," Rose said, beaming brightly at him. She had a spot of ice cream on her face, and it caused his heart to melt slightly.
"I want to marry your mummy," Draco said softly, "But I want to make sure you would be happy if I did so. Me marrying your mummy means we would live together with you, and be a family. Would you be alright with that?"
Rose looked a little wary, "When Mummy was married to Daddy, he used to get mad a lot. He used to yell a lot, and Mummy would be sad after. And he would always fall asleep when we were together. Will you get mad at Mummy and me if you marry her?"
Draco felt his heart break, knowing what she had gone through, "I promise you I will never get mad at you or your Mummy. We may argue from time to time, but I will never act the way your Daddy did. I will never hurt you or your mummy, Rose. You both mean the world to me, and I cannot imagine a life without the two of you in it. I love you both, Rose, but I will not ask your mummy if you would not be happy with the idea. I care about you and your feelings more than anything."
"Will you buy me more ice cream if I say yes?" she asked, perking up slightly, and Draco laughed inwardly at the Slytherinness of Hermione's daughter. He wondered if perhaps he was influencing her towards his former house slightly.
"How about this?" Draco asked her with a grin, "Regardless of what you say, I promise I'll buy you another ice cream another day. You already had one today, and we don't want you to spoil your appetite before dinner, now do we?"
Rose shook her head, smiling widely.
"I like you too, Draco," she said, "You can marry my mummy," she said with a tone of finality.
Draco smiled brightly at her, as his heart began to soar. Of course, he still had to still ask her but it meant the world to him that Rose believed him to be worthy of her mother.