When There's Nothing Else to Cling to

Chapter 2: When Fear Conquers Hope.

Co-written by GoldenPhoenix and WitchGirl

A/N: When there was a black out, me and GoldenPhoenix were inspired to write this piece. We were trapped in McDonald's for an hour! We had plenty of different titles for it and finally settled on this one.

Disclaimer: We own nothing!


"Get all the students back to their common rooms IMEADIATELY!" demanded Dumbledore.

"Sir, it's only a small power failure. It's nothing to-"

"Oh it's everything to worry about, Minerva. Everything indeed..."


Professor McGonagall had ordered all the students to go back to their common rooms and that was where Harry and Ron were now. McGonagall began to count to see how many people were in the room.

"We're missing someone! Where's Miss Granger?"

"We don't know, Professor, we saw her go to the library, but when we entered after her, she was gone," Harry told her. McGonagall's eyes widened.

"Stay here!" she ordered, and left the common room.

"Why do you think she's so worried?" Harry asked Ron.

"Dunno. Do you think something could have happened to Hermione?"

"If so, she can handle it... I think..."


"Is everyone accounted for?" Dumbledore asked the staff.

"Slytherin's all there," Snape reported, as if he thought the whole thing was a bit strange.

"Hufflepuff, too,"

"Every one's there in Ravenclaw," Flitwick piped in. McGonagall was silent.

"Minerva? Is Gryffindor full?"

"Headmaster, we are missing a young sixth year girl..."

"Who, Minerva, we need names!"

"Miss Hermione Granger, sir,"

"Then what I fear is true. So he has returned to Hogwarts..."


It was midnight and McGonagall was acting very strange. Whenever Harry and Ron asked her about Hermione, she would pretend she hadn't heard them. This was when Ron thought it was time to take action.

"Look, I know that Hermione can take care of herself, but there are times that even miss know-it-all needs help," he said to Harry, "And I'm going to help her."

"But Ron, we have to stay in the common room!"

"Oh please! You sound like Hermione!" and with that Ron grabbed Harry's arm, and pulled him up to their dormitory.

"Why'd you bring me here?" Harry asked.

"You don't expect us to go around the school saying 'look at us! Look at us! We're breaking the rules!' Do you? We need the invisibility cloak, you big git!"

"Gee, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning!" Harry said, taking out his invisibility cloak.

"OK, now let's go!" Ron whispered and he and Harry pulled on the invisibility cloak and sneaked out into the cold, dark hall...


Hermione went to where the fat lady was supposed to be, but no picture hung on the wall. There was just a hole leading into the next room. She entered and noticed that no one was here, either. The fireplace seemed unused and old and the room was cold and drafty. She felt as if she were in a deserted building and all the while, she kept hearing:

"Hermione... Hermione..." She could feel the chills running up and down her spine and she knew that each and every one of the hairs on the back of her neck was standing on end.

What is going on? she asked herself, but of course, there was no answer...

She felt very cold all of a sudden and held her robes tighter around her, clutching them as if they were the only things that kept her from loosing her mind. All of a sudden, she felt an ice cold hand slither onto her shoulder...


"Hermione?" Ron asked, tapping a girl on the shoulder, and pulling off the invisibility cloak. She shrieked in fright and jumped around.

"YOU!" Harry screamed, "What are you doing here?!" Pansy Parkinson glared at Harry and Ron with malice.

"I was looking for my cat! You idiots scared me! What are you doing here?"

"We were looking for our friend," Ron said, with the same nasty bite Pansy had spoken with.

"Yeah, some friend," she muttered, looking happy and walked off. Harry and Ron put the cloak back on and continued their search.


"Where was Miss Granger last seen?" Dumbledore demanded.

"She was seen by Potter and Weasley entering the library. When they went in after her, she wasn't there," McGonagall responded.

"Then that is where he did it. I want you to bring Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley to me," Dumbledore said and McGonagall nodded and headed to the Gryffindor Tower.


Hermione screamed as loud as she could and turned around, quickly. But her panic was for nothing for no body was there.

I must be loosing my mind! she thought. She was scared; more scared than she had ever been in her life. She didn't know where she was, she didn't know what was happening, and she didn't know how to get back to the Hogwarts she knew.

"HARRY!" she called at the top of her lungs, "RON! PROFESSOR!" but the sound just echoed through the large, damp, and unpopulated hallway. Empty.

"Malfoy?" she said, sarcastically, as if that were the last person to answer and hoping he wouldn't. She had no idea what to do! She just kept wandering deeper and deeper into the maze that was Hogwarts. Or was it?


"Did you hear that?" Ron turned to Harry.

"I think so..." Harry replied uncertainly. They had heard a scream as if from far off.

"You don't think-" Ron started.

"It sure sounded like--" Harry interrupted.

"Hermione," they said together and raced off to where they thought the voice had come from.


"Crabbe, did you say my name?" Malfoy turned to his big gooney in the Slytherin common room. His comrade just grunted and shook his large, empty head.

"Goyle?"

"Huh?" he grunted, not having paid attention.

"Never mind," Malfoy snarled spitefully and shook his head in embarrassment, "I know someone said something!"


"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T FIND THEM?" Dumbledore roared.

"They have gone! Disappeared! No one has seen them! You know, can't find means unable to locate! Do I have to spell it out for you?" McGonagall was very annoyed.

"I do believe that you don't understand the danger, Minerva! There are childrens' lives at stake here!"

"I don't see how! You know as well as I do that Potter, Granger and Weasley love to 'bend' the rules! There is no proof what so ever that that is not exactly what they are doing this time!"

"Oh dear Minerva, there is proof all around you. The torches won't light you say? And no single wand will agree to the 'lumos' command? That, my dear, is proof enough all ready without me having to remind you that three students have gone missing! It takes a very powerful spell to cause this much trouble... And unfortunately, I think I know who cast it..."