PART 2

Ch. 23-Christmas

I DO NOT OWN THE RIGHTS TO HARRY POTTER

The train ride was not an easy one, Hermione spent most of it worried about her friends. When the train arrived, she held back, as she saw who sat in front of her. Draco met his mother and Rose's uncle waited for her. She hugged him tightly and he looked at her surprised.

"Did you miss me or was Hogwarts dreadful?" Her uncle joked, taking her bag.

"It was brilliant, but I haven't seen you in a while. Are we going home?" She asked him.

"Yes, your grandfather has invited all the relatives. They all want a chance to meet you." He said and turned towards Narcissa and Draco. "You are all more then welcome of course." He said and she smiled.

"I will tell Lucious, I'm sure Draco would love that." Draco nodded and the four continued to walk outside. Hermione left the train and found her parents, waiting by the car. They hugged her tightly and she looked at them sadly.

"What's the matter? What's happened?" Her mother asked.

"Mr. Weasley been hurt. He's at St. Mungo's' and I was hoping that I might join them and lend a hand as I can." She told them. They looked at each other and hesitated in answering. "Tomorrow morning?" She continued.

"If that's what you want dear." Her father told her.

"They are lucky to have you." She told them. Hermione smiled and thanked Merlin for her wonderful parents. She knew she was lucky to have them. The following morning, as she had no idea ho to find the Order's headquarters, she chose to take the Knight bus. It took her to the correct street, and she cautiously waited for it to leave before searching for number 12. It appeared to her as it had before, as if from out of no where and she climbed the stoop and knocked on the door. It was only a second when she entered the childhood home of Sirius Black. Everyone was surprised to see her.

"Hermione!" Ginny squealed and hugged her.

"How's your dad?" She asked.

"Mum says he's loads better." Fred answered.

"Thanks for coming." Ginny replied.

"Wait till Ron and Harry spot you." George said. Mrs. Weasley appeared, and she wore a bright smile on her face.

"Hermione dear, what are you doing here?" She hugged her tightly.

"There's no where else I wanted to be. How are you?" She asked and Molly squeezed her again.

"As good as can be expected dear. Why don't you go on up, the boys will be happy to see you?" She told her. Hermione rushed up the stairs but stopped abruptly when she saw Harry and Sirius and the next Landing.

"Hermione!" Harry hugged her. Hermione could not stop looking at Sirius and he noticed.

"Are you alright?" Harry nodded.

"Yes." He spoke. "Let's find Ron." He told her.

"It's nice to have you Hermione." Hermione hesitated but hugged him as usual.

"It's good to be here." She said to him. She hurried up the stairs to find Ron, who was especially happy to see her, but ultimately disappointed he and his father would not be meeting her in London. After seeing Mr. Weasley at St. Mungo's, Hermione and the other returned to Grimmauld Place, where Sirius had attempted to cook them a meal. Ms Weasley, thankful to him helped him fix it and Lupin, Tonks and Kingsley joined them. It was just like the summer with conversations easily flowing, although Hermione continued to be distracted. It wasn't until Ron brough up Umbridge, that everything changed.

"Horrible woman." Ginny agreed.

"Tell me, have any of you met her assistant yet?" Lupin asked and Kingsley and Sirius stiffened.

"You mean Primrose?" Ginny asked. "Yes, unfortunately." Harry smiled.

"Luna thinks she's not what everything thinks she is. Apparently, they talk quite often."

"That's highly suspicious." Harry adds.

"So, you don't like her then?" Sirius asked and Hermione could see something deeper in his question now. Otherwise, she was reading too far into things and letting her imagination run wile.

"I don't really know her, but anyone who can stand by Umbridge and all her evil tricks, can't be anyone good." Harry said and Sirius exchanged a look with Remus.

"I don't know, you'd be surprised what one would do to get out of a situation." Lupin added.

"One day, at Hogwarts, I pretended to be Filch to avoid getting detention." Tonks laughed and so did the others.

"If I recall, Sirius and James once ran through a classroom in their Animagus forms in order to postpone an exam." At that everyone laughed.

"Hey, we heard about that!" Fred added and Sirius smiled thankfully.

"All I'm saying is there are many reasons why people do something unexpected, don't write anyone off just yet." Lupin said. The conversation switched to another subject, but Sirius never stopped watching Harry. When dinner was over both Ginny and Hermione cleaned up the kitchen so Ms. Weasley to get to bed. She hadn't slept since Mr. Weasley was taken in. Hermione let Ginny go up to bed, promising to be up shortly. Sirius had left and only Remus remained, drinking tea by the fire.

"Professor?" Hermione spoke.

"Please Hermione call me Remus, I am not your professor anymore."

"You've been the best defense against the dark arts professor I've had." She smiled.

"Thank you. Tell me what's on your mind."

"I wanted to speak to you because something has been bothering me lately. I'm not sure you know this, but when there is a problem to solve, I can't get my mind off it until it's solved." He nodded. "Well, I've been putting together pieces of this puzzle and I think I've solved it, but I need you to tell me if I've done so correctly." She said nervously.

"Very well." He spoke. "Tell me."

"It's about Professor Umbridge's assistant Rose." He straightened up. "And Sirius." She spoke.

"What about them?" He asked.

"Is Sirius- "Hermione began. "Is he- "She couldn't make the words come out. She took a deep breath. "Is Sirius her father?" She finally said and Remus stared at her.

"Tell me how you could have put that together." He told her.

"I've spoken to her. The others don't know, but she has all these letters and passages from her mother's journals, and it mentions Sirius by his nickname." She rambled. "I just need to know if I'm right." Remus did not respond right away.

"We didn't know she existed, but we believe she is." Hermione had already assumed that fact, but to hear it confirmed her mind swirled.

"What?" She asked him.

"It's not my place Hermione, but you're so clever." He told her. "Amelia and Sirius were in love since their first year at Hogwarts, maybe before. They grew up together, they were perfect for one another. Until she up and disappeared a few months before Lily and James- "He stopped. "We didn't know why she left; we couldn't find her to ask. Sirius was heart broken and then he went to Azkaban, that is why he was so upset to hear of her death. He never knew why she abandoned him and now to find out she had a daughter. He just wants to know the truth." Remus explained.

"Has he spoken to her?" She asked but he shook his head.

"Dumbledore doesn't want us speaking to her at Hogwarts where the ministry can overhear. Sirius cannot leave as it is. It's far too dangerous with the ministry searching for him." Hermione nodded.

"She wants to find him, last I checked she didn't know who he was, but she was determined to find him." She told him.

"Do you mind terribly if we keep this information to ourselves for now? He's had so much disappointment lately. I don't know what he'd do if he found out she wasn't his daughter. He has hope that a piece of Amelia lives on in her." Hermione hesitated.

"She's very close to Draco Malfoy." She said to him, and Remus nodded along. "If you'd like, I can reach out to her and- "

"No, Hermione. Really. Thank you for coming to me, but I need to confirm things before we do." He told her and she nodded. "It's very late. You should go to bed." He told her and Hermione stood.

"Good night." She said and he waved her along. Hermione looked back and he had his hands on his face, looking defeated. It was an odd time to be at Grimmauld place, there was so much happening at once. Harry was being distant; Ginny was angry at him for keeping it all in. Ms. Weasley and Sirius were finally getting along. Remus was shaky and absent minded until he all but disappeared from the house. And Hermione felt like she was going to explode from keeping so many secrets. On a night like any other, she sat reading in front of the fire, while the other went to bed. Only an hour passed when she heard the arguments that were familiar to her.

"Get out of my way, Moony. What gives you the right?" Sirius asked in loud whispers. Hermione turned back and saw Lupin blocking the entrance to where she sat.

"Please Sirius, think this through." Remus begged.

"Move." Sirius told him, and he did, but she suspected magic when Remus ran in after him. "Hermione." Sirius sounded out of breath and Hermione stood.

"Yes?" She asked him.

"If I write a letter, can you deliver it to Primrose?" He asked and she stared at him.

"Don't ask this of her. You don't even know if it's your daughter." Remus begged.

"Her name is Primrose. Surely you remember Remus." Sirius said desperately. He turned back to Hermione. "During our first year, we were taught to make Rose's bloom, but I could not get the spell to work for me. I desperately wanted to give Amelia flowers, but I could only find Primrose's on the grounds at Hogwarts. I would give her Primrose's whenever the occasion called for it." He told her and she remained quiet. "Her middle name is Lily, isn't it?" He asked and she nodded, remembering her introduction. "Amelia and Lily were so close. They were practically sisters." He told her and Remus placed his hand on his shoulder.

"It could just be coincidence, Sirius." Remus begged.

"I have to know if I have a daughter out there and why Amelia would ever keep her from me." Sirius was more desperate than Hermione had ever seen him, including the time that he tried to out Pettigrew.

"If you write her a letter, I will make sure she receives it." Hermione says and Lupin stares at her.

"Thank you, Hermione!" Sirius backs away. "Thank you." He runs up the stairs, leaving Remus and Hermione alone.

"Hermione." He began.

"You have to let him try." She said and Remus nodded.

"Very well." They both stared after the place he had left.

Hermione walked towards the castle, her things in tow. They had arrived on the knight bus and were making their way towards Hogwarts. She felt uneasy and the letter Sirius had written for Rose, weighed heavily in her pocket. She didn't know how she would explain this to Rose or what she would tell Draco when he asked, but Lupin urged her to be cautious and Harry and Ron still had no idea. She didn't like keeping all these secrets from everyone, but as she had never gotten her confirmation, she didn't know how she felt. They left their things in their rooms and Hermione pretended to be so tired she needed to rest. She laid on her bed and worried. The train from Kings Cross would be arriving shortly. If she hadn't been worried the letter would arrive in the wrong hands, she would have slipped it under Rose's door and avoid any association with it. As it was Hermione was rather cautious these days and didn't dare to do something so foolish. The minutes ticked by and then a few hours and then she knew everyone was back by now. She joined the others for dinner and remained with the letter on her person. She could not eat as she watched everyone arrive in the Great Hall. Her yes transfixed on the door. She waited for Rose to arrive with Draco but was disappointed to find that he was alone, and she was no where to be seen. When dinner was over, she excused herself to wait for Draco, to ask about Rose, but to her surprise, she found the girl already standing in the hall.

"Rose?" She stared at the girl, who looked oddly different. Her skin which was already fair, was paler and her normal grey eyes, looked nearly black. They were vacant and wide as she stood there her hands clutched at her side. She wore a vacant look on her face and even her hair which she usually wore in a headband, was kinked at the end and her clothes were wrinkled. "Rose?" Hermione shook the girl, who jumped back so far, she nearly hit the wall. She noticed Rose was barefoot and her feet were extremely dirty. "What's wrong?" She asked her, she started looking around tears filling her eyes. Her entire body began to shake and finally her eyes rolled to the back of her head. "Rose!" Hermione called out. "Help!" She began shouting. She was not far from the great hall and eventually students and teachers alike came to see what the commotion was. Draco pushed past a group of people when he saw Hermione knelt on the ground.

"Rose!" He shouted fighting his way towards her. Professor Dumbledore was knelt beside her.

"We must get her to the hospital wing." He said to Professor McGonagall and before he could use magic, Draco lifted her and ran towards it. Dumbledore was right behind them, and Hermione followed closely behind. Harry and Ron joined her.

"What's happened?" Ron called out.

"She looked hurt, she looked possessed." She told them. As they reached the hospital wing, Dumbledore stood close to it as Madam Pomfrey hurried to the girl's side.

"Leave her with me Mr. Malfoy. I will take care of her."

"I'm not leaving her." He told her.

"Please, I need space." He spoke.

"Perhaps you can wait here, Draco." Dumbledore called out to him, and Draco begrudgingly walked back towards the now crowded entrance of the hospital wing. Hermione, Ron, and Harry lingered close by to Dumbledore, but Professor McGonagall and Snape had arrived and in tow Umbridge could be seen joining them.

"What happened to her?!" Draco said angrily towards Dumbledore, as if he was to blame.

"I was going to ask the same question." Dumbledore said. Umbridge looked between them and crossed her arms.

"Will someone please tell me what has happened?" Umbridge said to Dumbledore when her eyes fell on Rose. "Is that Primrose? Has she been attacked?" She looked at Harry. "Someone better speak up." She threatened.

"We were just trying to get to the bottom of it." Dumbledore told her. "I believe you found her in this state Ms. Granger?" Everyone stared at Hermione, and she nodded.

"I came out into the hall, and she was just standing there looking disheveled. I called out to her, but she didn't answer me, when I tried to reach for her, she jumped up and started to shake and then she just fell." She told them.

"Likely story." Umbridge scribbled things down.

"Dolores please." McGonagall spoke. "How did she arrive at the school? Was she on the train?" She asked.

"We didn't take the train Professor." Harry told her and Umbridge eyes them all.

"She wasn't on the train." Draco told them.

"When is the last time you saw her Draco?" Snape asked.

"When we got off the train at Kings Cross. We were supposed to join them for the holiday, but her grandfather said that plans changed, and it was only a family event. I haven't heard from her the whole break." He told them looking back at Rose's limp body.

"She wasn't wearing any shoes; her feet were muddy." Hermione said.

"And she has scrapes on her arms." Draco added. He took an unconscious step towards her. Dumbledore noticed. "I'm sure if you stay out of Madam Pomphrey's way, she won't mind you sitting close by." Dumbledore said low to him, and Draco pushed forward without another word. Umbridge tapped her foot.

"An attack on a ministry employee on Hogwarts grounds, Cornelius will want to hear about this immediately." Umbridge turned away.

"We don't know what's happened." McGonagall said but Dolores was already out the door.

"Let her go Minerva. We have more pressing matters." Dumbledore said.

"Should we reach out to her family, sir?" Snape asked.

"Yes, I will send word. Perhaps they can give us some insight." Dumbledore said. "As for you three." Dumbledore looked down at Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Try to keep yourselves busy with other things. We will get to the bottom of this."

"Yes, come now." As McGonagall guided them out, they could hear Snape and Dumbledore speaking.

"Search the grounds, see if you can find any break in our defenses." He said and Snape turned away and out the castle.
_

Draco sat unmoving at Rose's bedside for hours. He was stern that he was not going to leave until he knew she was alright. She had not awoken, and Madam Pomfrey had tended to her superficial wounds and have given her something to help heal any other injuries. He had fallen asleep in the chair at about midnight, when he was awoken by the sounds of yelling coming closer. The doors burst open to the infirmary and Draco jumped.

"You can't keep her from me, I am her guardian after all! Where is she?" Her uncle appeared at her side, after ripping down the curtain. He did not notice Draco standing there.

"Please sir, you will wake the other patients." Madam Pomfrey hushed him.

"I don't care about the other patients. Go and fetch the headmaster and have him explain why I am receiving word of this so late." She did not move. "Now!" She flinched back. For the first time, Alexander noticed Draco sitting in the corner. "Draco, I'm sorry you had to witness that. Would you believe that they did not tell me about this until an hour ago?" He asked, but Draco did not respond. An anger rang through him.

"What happened to her?" Draco asked.

"That's what I would like to know." He spoke. "Last I saw her, we were leaving her at Kings Cross, she wanted to walk on her own and then I get a letter, stating she's been hurt." He said unconvincingly. Draco eyed him; his wand was clenched in his hand. His uncle stared down at her, and he placed a hand on her head. "You can go to bed now Draco. I will stay with her now." Draco shook his head.

"No, I'm not leaving until she wakes up." He told him. Alexander smirked.

"You're very kind to do so, son, but I am here, there's no need." He told him. Dumbledore appeared and looked between them.

"You wanted to see me, Alexander?" He said to him.

"How dare you?" He yelled again. "How dare you stand there and speak to me as if you've done nothing wrong. My niece was attacked, and you give no word to her family?!" He asked.

"I can assure you that we contacted you as soon as we could. And we do not know what happened to your niece, nor where it occurred only that something had happened."

"My father has already contacted the ministry. We are tired of your irresponsibility and lock of respect for- "He yelled, but Dumbledore raised his hand.

"If you wish to continue our talk, then I'm afraid we must do so elsewhere, as I will not continue to allow you to disturb your niece or anyone else in this ward." Alexander looked at him astounded.

"I Am not leaving her side." He told him.

"Mr. Malfoy will stay with her, and I am certain will let us know the second she awakens." Dumbledore took a step back and the two men stared at one another for a moment.

"This is definitely not over." He walked ahead of Dumbledore. They left the room, after Dumbledore gave Draco a knowing look. Draco took Rose's hand and sat back down beside her.

"You have to wake up." He whispered. "You just have to." He spoke. She squeezed his hand and Draco stood up abruptly. "Rose?!" He called to her. "Can you hear me?" He asked. She opened her eyes slowly, taking in the scene before her. She looked very Fragile then to him.

"Draco." She said and her voice sounded Horse. "Draco, I have to- "She started to cough.

"It's alright, your safe. You're back at school." He told her as she tried to sit up. "No, please lie back. We don't know the extent of your injuries." He explained.

"The dark lord." She said and Draco froze. "You must- "She could not finish her train of thought and new panic set into her. She began breathing quicker and her body trembled. "Their coming back to him." She spoke. "Harry!" She screamed and then her eyes went dark again, and she began screaming. Draco dropped her hand as she flailed around.

"Help!" He called out to Madam Pomfrey. "Help, please!" He screamed. Madam Pomfrey came in with a bottle in her hand.

"Help me, Mr. Malfoy." She said and Draco held rose in place. "It's alright dear. This will help you feel better." She spoke.

"No! No!" Rose fought, but as the liquid entered her mouth, she began to stop thrashing against them.

"That's alright dear." She smoothed out her hair and readjusted her on the bed. "Poor dear." She said to Him. Draco laid her back on the bed and took her hand again. Her eyes were closing, and he felt horribly useless. Madam Pomfrey took the bottle and rushed away.

"Harry Potter mustn't give it to him, Draco." She said, as her eyes rolled back again.

"He mustn't give who what?" He squeezed her hand. "Rose." He called to her again, but she did not answer. He watched her now sleeping soundlessly and horrible dread set through him.