A/N: I see I have passed 100 for the amount of reviews so far. Thanks guys!

(This chapter is a bit mushy in one place, but nothing graphic)



Bertie Wooster – The ground I walk on certainly isn't worth worshipping but thanks for thinking so anyway!

Catsrule_Dogsdrool – Yes, I'm sure if we were both in detention Snape might be a little scared... "Yoo hoo, Sevvy…who's your tailor?" grin. Yes, Snape is still alive (it will be a happy ending but it might be a little rocky getting there!)

Meee! & Silver*Chime – My cliffhangers are bad aren't they? (looks mournful). I will try to behave in future.

Starlight – I'm glad you've found this story and I hope you will continue to like it.

Strega Brava – Glad to see you like Sailor Moon too, heh, heh.



Part 10

Dumbledore looked at Hermione gravely. "I'm sure you realise that time is of the essence – but never let it be said that I sent you to face Voldemort unprotected. It is fortunate that I went shopping last week.."

Opening a drawer in his desk he pulled out a small bundle of silky, iridescent cloth that seemed to gleam with its own light and he walked over and gave it to her. After accepting it Hermione peered at the cloth in surprise. "It looks like Harry's invisibility cloak!"

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes. It is the latest version of the invisibility cloak – it comes with the latest feature of adjusting to the size of its wearer. Even if Hagrid wore it he would have no complaints, I daresay."

Hermione thanked him and draped the cloak over her arm, where it seemed to whisper to itself as it hung there. Harry stood up, his face pale and they both looked at him.

"Hermione – I'm sorry for yelling before, but I can't let you face Voldemort alone. I couldn't. I'm coming with you" he said quietly.

Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "I'm afraid Hermione must carry out this task alone, Harry."

"Voldemort could kill her!" Harry said in desperation.

Hermione bit her lip and looked at Harry. "If I don't go, Snape could die!"

Harry looked at her, his green eyes grim. "So, you want both of you to die, do you?"

"Harry, I want to do this – right now there's no one else who can help him" she said determinedly.

Harry looked like he was going to argue further, then he sighed and gave up. "All right then, but I'm going to stay by the mirror….in case Voldemort comes through it."

Dumbledore nodded. "That is my plan also. If Voldemort came through into Hogwarts the results could be catastrophic." Then he went back to his desk and gently picking up Snape's wand approached Hermione solemnly and gave it to her. "I hope you can return this to its owner" he said gently.

Hermione accepted the wand with trembling fingers. It was dark and smooth with much handling and it tingled angrily in her hands then abruptly calmed, as if it sensed she was an ally. After she placed it carefully in a pocket she heard Fawkes trill.

"You will, Fawkes? Thank you. I fear they may be required" Dumbledore murmured and rummaging through one of his pockets he brought out a little green bottle. Walking over to Fawkes he took the cork out and held the bottle to the eyes of the phoenix. The beady eyes blinked then thick, pearly tears that were famous for their healing properties ran down the bright feathers to be caught in the bottle. When the bottle was full Dumbledore corked it and gravely thanked Fawkes, who gave a soft chirp in reply.

Taking the bottle of tears from Dumbledore, Hermione felt as though it was a weird kind of Christmas– first the invisibility cloak and now the gift of phoenix tears. What if she failed…no! she thought firmly. She would not fail. She refused to.

"I'm ready!" she said resolutely. Well, as ready as she would ever be, she thought to herself. Dumbledore nodded then courteously went to open the door for her. Hermione turned to look at Harry, who was gazing at her as if she had become a different person then gave her a puzzled, bemused smile.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do Herm, after this is over!" he muttered then he was following her out the door after Dumbledore. As classes had started there were not many people to stare at them, only the curious eyes of the living portraits to watch the three go by. The Deflector spell that guarded the room where the Mirror of Erised was housed was easily ignored, and when Hermione opened the door the astonished eyes of Professor McGonagall greeted her.

"Why are you here Hermione, and Harry too? What is the meaning of this?" she said sternly. Her face was strained and she was seated at a book-laden table that had been drawn up near the huge mirror (but not too near).

"I will explain everything my dear Professor" Dumbledore said calmly as he walked in after Hermione and Harry. "But at the moment we have a chance of success."

"I do not see how!" Professor McGonagall said fretfully, indicating the pile of thick books before her. "There is no mention at all of the way through or how to get back…Hermione, what are you doing?"

Feeling as if the Mirror of Erised was compelling her to draw closer, Hermione had shaken out the invisibility cloak and put it on, leaving her head uncovered (making her head appear to be bobbing in thin air). The chain of light ran from her chest into the mirror and the realm beyond it apparently, for the chain did not continue on through the glass into the rest of the room. Approaching the huge mirror (that now seemed to look dark and shadowed, despite the light in the room) she turned her head to look at Dumbledore and Harry for reassurance.

Harry's face was pale but his voice was firm. "Good luck, Herm!"

Dumbledore looked at her, his face grave yet kind. "Bring him back if you can, Hermione."

"I will!" she said determinedly and pulled the hood over her head, close enough now to the mirror for its Heart Desire spell to start activating. Hoping that she knew what she was doing, Hermione placed her hand on her chest where the chain of light exited and stepped forward...and went through the mirror as if it was mist. The world seemed to spin around her for a stomach churning moment then it calmed.

Hermione stared around her after she had stepped through. Another improvement of this invisibility cloak over Harry's one was that even when it completely enveloped your body and face, you could still see clearly around you. She could see clearly all right…she cried out, for she was standing on a black marble floor that was covered with skeletons! But they weren't Snape's bones she thought in wild relief, for they were old – many of them crumbled into pieces though a few of them had skeletal arms stretching out in mute appeal towards the mirror she had just travelled through.

These had to be the wizards who had gone missing in their search for the way through the Mirror of Erised, Hermione thought soberly as she picked her way carefully through the bones, saying a silent prayer for the long- dead wizards. They had found the way through all right – but not the way back. Would she be able to return? Turning to look back at the mirror she had come through she noted that it was the exact replica of the original, with a copy of the inscription inscribed on the frame, except for one detail. At the very top of the frame was a bronze circle. There appeared to be markings within it but they were faded…Hermione sighed. It looked as if a riddle was involved in getting back, but she couldn't afford to spend time on it at the moment.

The air was a bit stale but breathable, with a smell of empty rooms. Although there was a floor there was no ceiling – only darkness, and the only light source was that of the mirrors around her, each glimmering with a soft golden light. For surrounding her and the mirror she had walked through in a circle were five replicas of the Mirror of Erised, each containing a different, though frozen, scene. Through the gaps between the mirrors Hermione could see further circles of mirrors radiating outwards, apparently into infinity for no walls could be seen. The chain of light ran through one of the gaps between the mirrors and it was still white, she thought thankfully.

Fascinated in spite of herself Hermione walked to the nearest mirror, her footsteps making no sound on the floor. It contained a frozen image of a pretty, dark haired girl in the robes of Headmaster. Her eyes were malicious and the Slytherin logo was embroidered in numerous places over the robes. Hermione drew back in distaste and was about to take the cloak away from her face when she paused, for she suddenly felt as if she was being watched. Not by the images in the mirrors, but by a cold, evil presence that seemed to be all around her. There was frustration too, as if it couldn't quite see her. Hermione gulped, but there was no turning back now and she set off as quietly as she could, following the chain of light.

As she dodged through ever-growing circles of mirrors a part of her mind noted some of the visions in them as she passed them by. Many of them were boys holding Quidditch cups, others were cold eyed students glowing with power. Once she saw a cheerful boy in a bath of gold coins and Hermione couldn't help but smile.

The feeling of being watched had faded, leaving her in the silence. It was so quiet, as if nothing had made a sound in here for eons. It was slightly eerie the way her shoes made no noise and she tried to avoid looking at the floor, for the black marble was threaded with white veins that slowly undulated as if they were alive. She held her wand firmly in her hand and walked faster.

Later, after walking through yet another circle of mirrors and starting to feel weary she stopped abruptly and her heart leaped to her throat when she saw she had found Professor Snape at last. The chain of light went into a mirror no different from any others - and ended in the chest of the grim, dark figure contained within this particular mirror. Through the glass she could see him in a plain stone room that had a tiny window near its ceiling to let in light. However, the light seemed to be a sickly green/grey colour as if the light source was a malignant, dying sun. There was no sign of Voldemort anywhere…

Hermione saw in alarm that the professor was limping as he angrily paced his room. There were a few bruises on his face and neck and his eyes radiated a cold fury. What had Voldemort done to him, she thought in horrified compassion as she stepped up to the mirror, pulling her invisibility cloak aside from her face.

"Professor!" she called out to him, hoping that he would be able to hear her through the glass. He did so, for he stopped and turned to look at her. However, there was a furious expression on his face.

"So, Voldemort, have you sunk so low that you're impersonating my students now?" he hissed.

Hermione drew back in surprise. "It's really me! Dumbledore found a way for me to come through the Mirror of Erised to find you."

"You've even got Hermione's voice mimicked perfectly!" Snape sneered at her. "Even the concern in it sounds genuine."

Hermione's mind raced. She had to convince him it was really she. "Remember this morning when we were both late for class and I found out you had reduced the number of points from last night?" she demanded.

Professor Snape shrugged indifferently then winced as if it had hurt his body to do so. Hermione's anger towards Voldemort doubled. "Your mind reading trick isn't impressing me either…"

"How can I convince you it's really me?" she said in frustration then an idea came to her. Of course! She reached into the pocket where she was keeping his wand and then brought it out.

He stared at her in disbelief. "My wand! But it would burn your hand..unless.."

Hermione seemed to sense rather than hear the wand hum in recognition of its master and though it was in her grasp it jumped towards the mirror, making a clanging sound against the surface, jarring her hand and arm.

"Ah!" she cried out in pain, nearly dropping the wand. She sensed an irritated apology from it and then the wand glowed green and leapt forward again – but this time she and the wand passed through the mirror as if it wasn't there, into the room. The wand twisted in her hand and then leapt into the outstretched hand of the Potions master. Hermione staggered but stayed upright, brushing a lock of brown hair away from her face.

Professor Snape hissed a word and her legs suddenly felt rooted to the ground. He limped towards her, his eyes icy and placing the wands point underneath her chin forced her to look up at his bruised face.

"Time to settle this!" he said curtly and recited the truth spell. A tingle ran through her – she was now bound to tell him the truth until he took the spell off. "What is your true name – whoever you are!"

"Hermione Granger" she said clearly. His eyes went wide and he staggered back a step and after muttering a releasing spell, stared at her incredulously. "How on earth did you get here – and why?"

Countless responses went through her mind, but in the end there was only one thing to do. Feeling free to walk again she approached him, her heart pounding and gently touching his injured face pulled it down to her and kissed him tenderly on the mouth. Professor Snape froze and then uttering a low moan pulled her fiercely into his arms and kissed her hungrily in return.

The sound of amused, malicious laughter behind the couple made them pause….



A/N: Well, that turned out to be a longer chapter than I expected! Stay tuned for the next chapter..