"Dumbledore wants to see you, it's very urgent…" McGonagall said to me at the end of the potions lesson.
"Professor Dumbledore?" I asked, racking my brain for any reason that I could be in trouble. I came up with hundreds, "Why?"
"It's better that he explains that, come on" I followed her out of the dungeon. Harry and Ron were waiting outside.
"Mr Potter? Mr Weasley? Do you have a habit of waiting outside the dungeons?"
"No Professor McGonagall," Harry replied, "We were waiting for Hermione"
"Well I suggest that you go to your next lesson before you are late" McGonagall said, offering them no explanation as to where I was going. I saw a slightly confused look pass over Harry's face. We had Transfiguration next.
McGonagall led me through parts of Hogwarts that I had never seen. Well, it's almost impossible to ever explore it all.
"Professor," I began.
"Yes?" She replied.
"Is Professor Snape going to be alright?"
"Of course," She said pausing, "He has a bad case of meninflutis, nothing life threatening" Soon we arrived at a stone gargoyle.
"Sherbet Fizzwogs" She said and the gargoyle came to life and moved to one side. The wall behind him split into two and I gasped. Out of the corner of my eye I saw McGonagall smile slightly at my amazement. Surely that was a good sign. It meant I wasn't in trouble. Or did it, I hoped it didn't. We climbed the stairs that were behind the wall. There were probably several hundred of them. By the time we reached the top I was so dizzy that I had to lean on the wall slightly. McGonagall knocked on the door, which I suddenly realised must be Dumbledore's office. There was a short silence during which she smiled reassuringly.
"Oh, um" I heard him mutter, "Come in" McGonagall opened the door and walked through it. I followed, still slightly dizzy from the stairs. He indicated to me to sit down but McGonagall made no attempt to. She stood by the side of the desk.
"The first thing that I would like to reassure you," Dumbledore said, "is that you are not in trouble." That's a relief, I thought, "This may seem like a rather odd question," He continued, "but do you know much about the muggle study of quantum physics."
"I…" I paused trying to think if I did know anything about it, "I think that I know a little bit about it."
"What about Quantum Chemistry?" He asked. I nodded, I had read that in a book and had understood that more than the quantum physics. I still had no idea where he was going with this conversation.
"Quantum Potions?" So that was where he was heading.
"Very little," I replied, "I read a little bit about it. Isn't it the study of potions and how atoms and molecules and the repetitions of their patterns can be used to change the magic…or something like that?"
Dumbledore hesitated before replying, "I believe so, or, as you said, something like that"
"Why, Professor?"
"Why do the repetitions of their patterns change the magic?"
"No, why did you ask?"
"Ah, now, I'll tell you, just promise me one thing."
"Ok?"
"What I am about to tell you is Top Secret, you mustn't tell anyone, not even Harry or Ron. Ok?" How very odd, I thought.
"Ok" I replied.
"I, we need your help. One of our spies has been discovered, so, we need to find a way of forcing the death eaters to forget what they know."
"But there are charms…" I said.
"Indeed but Voldemort can break them. There is no way that we could use the normal potions either, because large amounts of an extremely strong truth potion could break those. However Quantum potions could offer a way." I nodded slightly, understanding what he was saying.
"By changing the repetitions of the molecules it probably would be possible to prevent it being broken," I agreed, "but what do you want me to do?"
"I was hoping that you could do some research. You would have access to all areas of the library and the muggle studies library."
"I didn't know there was a muggle studies library," I said.
"Yes," McGonagall replied, speaking for the first time, "it contains muggle books on subjects such as quantum theory,"
"Why doesn't Professor Snape do this?" I asked. There could only be two reasons. One, they didn't trust him, two, his 'meninflutis' was worse than they were letting on.
"He's very ill," McGonagall said, "His meninflutis is very bad" I nodded.
"Ok. I'll have a go" I said, "I can't promise anything."
"Thank you" Dumbledore said, "If you could tell Professor McGonagall when you find something."
"You mean if I find something" I replied.
"I have great confidence in you." He said. Good, I thought, because I don't. "But I will understand," He continued, "If you cannot do this. This is a task that most people would have great difficulty with." I smiled weakly, that did not fill me with confidence.
"You'd better return to your classmates now," Dumbledore said, "The lesson's almost over and they'll wonder where you are" I looked a clock on Dumbledore's desk in amazement. It didn't seem like it had already been a lesson.
"Come on," McGonagall said, "I'll take you down." So we climbed down the hundreds of stairs and past the gargoyle. When we got to McGonagall's office she said, "You know where the common room is from here don't you?"
"Yes Professor"
"Good Luck, you'll be fine"
"Thanks" I muttered and walked off in the direction of the common room. I had only gone a few metres down the corridor when Harry and Ron came round the corner.
"Hermione," Harry said, "Where were you?"
"I was talking to McGonagall" I replied.
"This has been a really weird morning" Ron said, "We had McGonagall for potions and now we've had Trelawney for Transfiguration"
"Really?" I asked, praying that they wouldn't ask what I was talking to McGonagall about.
"What were you talking to McGonagall about?" Harry asked.
"Um…It's a long story," I lied, racking my brain for anything that they'd believe. Suddenly Malfoy appeared with Crabbe and Goyle.
"Who'd have thought it?" Malfoy asked, sarcastically, "Miss Goody-two-shoes in trouble"
"What do you mean?" Ron asked.
"Well why else would you have spent the entire Transfiguration talking to Dumbledore…"