Suicide and Secrets
Chapter Four
"N-no." Hermione said she went to run in but Draco stopped her and looked
around the room.
"Don't go in, it's a trap." He said looking around, and then suddenly Hermione saw a figure appear at the end of the hall. Hermione tried to look closer, but the figure hid in the shadows. Hermione looked at her parents then the figure. A sudden anger flashed over Hermione, she broke free of Draco's hold and charged at the figure but she ran right threw it.
"W-what is it?"
"A shadow, now get out of the room! Now!" He yelled. Hermione suddenly felt very cold, and frightened. She took one last look at her parents, before she ran outside.
"W-what's a shadow?" She said as she ran for the carpet. They leapt on and flew up, high into the sky.
"We should be safe here." He said looking at her a little worried. "A shadow, it's a creature which drains people, that's what happened to your parents."
"B-but I haven't heard of anything like that before." Hermione said trying to avoid looking down, or breaking down in tears.
"You wouldn't. There is only one left; it's not quite a magical creature. It was a man once."
"What do you mean?"
"It is a black ghost, a shadow. The wizard it used to be probably had some unresolved problems. That made him a shadow-like ghost, some wizard must have conjured him and sent him to kill your parents."
"Conjured? How? If they used a spell the Ministry should know."
"It's not a spell, a potion was used, you put it on the body of the wizards whose soul you want to resurrect, if they have a ghost form, they will come to you. But you would have to be a very powerful wizard to sustain it."
"What do you mean?"
"The shadow, it draws it's powers from the person who resurrected it. But it only takes enough to try and get a form; it drains its victims of their life-source. So it can get a form, and if it does-we're in serious trouble."
"How do you know about all this?"
"Because-it's a very old kind of dark magic, there are only two books in the world that have how to use the potion. One belonged to my father, but it was destroyed along with my home, the other is guarded at Hogwarts."
"But-that means someone already in Hogwarts has it, and killed my parents." Draco nodded. "Well, we should go to the Ministry first."
"Are you mad, Malfoy! Who knows what the Ministry would do to you!"
"But they will put you in there too if you don't report your parents murder."
"Alright."
When they went there the office had just barely opened. Carlo was standing there at the door he didn't look very happy to see Hermione. "Get in my office, the pair of you now!" He whispered angrily.
"Carlo, look we have to tell you something, it's my parents. They've been murdered."
"Well add them to the list," He said looking at Draco to Hermione and back again. "All the Auror's involved in the case, and their families have been murdered too." Hermione felt a little taken back.
"At the moment, the only people left alive knowing are us in this office, and the Minister of Magic. He has demanded it top priority classification. We can't risk any more murders."
"W-what about the Weasley's?" Hermione asked feeling very afraid all of a sudden.
"They've been put into hiding. The entire family, it took some encouragement to get Percy to go down. Their own Secret Keeper is unknown even to me, even to the Minister of Magic! That is how dangerous this case has become." He looked at Draco again. "There are some clothes in the next room, go put something on." He nodded and as he left Carlos closed the door. "Hermione my brother isn't happy about any of this at all. Ever since you began this case I had to ask him a lot of favors." Carol's brother was the Minister of Magic, Alexander Rio. "Hermione, I am going to have to put you in hiding until all this dies down."
"B-but what about Malfoy?"
"He will be sent back to Azkaban."
"Sir you can't-not yet. I know who the murderer is!" He looked at her in shock.
"Who?"
"There in Hogwarts, they used a shadow."
"A shadow? That is a myth, and no one can get into Hogwarts! Auror's have been sent to guard it ever since this Malfoy character escaped. He has it in for that school you know."
"Carlos look, one of them must be the murderer. Give me their names, please."
"I can't, it would then blow their cover."
"Just tell me this, are they inside or outside the school?"
"Uh-Hermione. Alright then, their outside and no one knows about them except the head master."
"But can they get in?"
"Only if necessary and Hermione please."
"Look-ask your brother he'll tell you."
"Hermione I am not asking my brother anything. All his best Auror's have died, your carpet has been seen, another thing to answer for, you took a prisoner without consent."
"I have consent! Look!" She showed him the piece of paper.
"Oh-alright. But still, Hermione this case has brought too many deaths we can't risk it anymore."
"You aren't risking anything! Not a thing! If you let this case go, then those deaths will be in vein."
"Alright, I won't drop the case. But if I don't see proof soon, I am going to drop the case. Have a small break, keep low profile, I'll let you take Malfoy, but only because I know he won't hurt you, but if he does, kill him. I'll take care of your parents bodies, you just do what you feel is necessary." She nodded then went to leave. "But Hermione what will you do if you find out Draco did murder Dumbledore?"
Hermione couldn't answer his question so she left. She knew Draco was innocent, something she felt. Usually she wouldn't believe in feelings only facts. But this involved a Malfoy, so facts didn't help much, because facts could just be lies. Also she saw his memories, it was proof enough of his innocence for her.
"Hermione! Wait! Please don't go by rug this time, can you take your car?"
"Alright!" She called out and left, she saw Draco waiting by her desk.
"Still so tidy." He said looking at her neat little desk.
"Come on, we better leave before Carlos changes his mind." She didn't know where she was driving too; she just kept driving eventually she stopped the car and pulled over, memories were rushing threw her mind.
"How did Carlos didn't ask me where my parents bodies were?"
"Excuse me?" Draco asked getting worried.
Hermione quickly turned the car around and headed to Brighten, and there it was Auror's taking her parents bodies, and Carlo telling them where to put them. "It was him."
"What?" Draco asked looking at her strangely.
"It was him, he killed my parents, and he killed the Auror's. He conjured the shadow." She said feeling a little strange.
"Wait a minute, how did he get the book?"
"I don't know. We are going to have to go to Hogwarts all right? Let's go."
"You can't just go on a train to Hogwarts."
"No, we will fly there."
"But how?"
"I know someone, who can help us." She said and turned the car around, heading for the Auror hospital. "Draco stay here. Don't move, don't draw attention just stay here." She quickly went inside, the nurse already knew her and let her straight into Harry's room. She looked at the gifts and everything surrounding him, she started to search for it. "Where is it? Ah! There it is!" She said grabbing Harry's old broom. She quickly ran back to her car when the nurse wasn't looking.
"What's that?" Draco asked looking at it strangely.
"Harry's broom, can you ride it?" She asked handing it to him.
"Sure-why though?"
"We're going to ride it to Hogwarts. Well to the Forbidden forest, but first I have to go back to my office." She got in the car and headed back.
"Well it's locked so what are we going to do." She flashed him a bobby pin that was holding her hair in a tight plait. "You are going to break in, why not use a wand?"
"Because, then the Ministry would know."
"Well doesn't it have protection spells or something?"
"Yes, against magic, not against Muggle break-ins." She beamed as the door opened she went in quickly and straight into Carlos office. She started searching the files. "Got it!" She whispered.
"What is it?"
"The files on your case." She looked threw it. "This is strange, it has only got one update in it."
"What's that?"
"The Auror's on guard of Hogwarts after your escape, nothing else. But it's the names that are strange, Jonathan McKenzie, Elle Kirk and Henry Justice. They're all retired, or resigned."
"Granger-that's not all. They were all under trial for suspicion of being Death Eaters."
"So?"
"So I knew them, they are." Hermione looked at the paper.
"Then why would Carlos send them there?" The realization suddenly hit her. "To get the book!"
"Well then, we're going to have to go to Hogwarts." Hermione couldn't believe what she was doing, going back to Hogwarts. On Harry's broom, stolen broom. With her supposed mortal enemy Draco Malfoy. Not to mention since being on this case, she had to get over her fear of heights. Yet, she couldn't and clung to Draco tightly. "Do you mind letting me breath just a little." He asked.
"Sorry, it's just I don't like heights." She said.
"Well don't worry we're here, where do you want me to land."
"Just, on the ground I don't care where." Hermione said squeezing him tighter as they flew down.
"So what do you want to do now? Why did we come here?"
"First before we let out suspicions get the better of us, we should make sure the book has actually been taken. Then we can decide what to do next, so do you know where it is?"
"Yes, but I don't know if we will be able to make it."
"Why not?"
"It is in Professor Snapes' classroom."
"Why would it be there?"
"Dumbledore trusted Snape with it."
"Why not another teacher?"
"Because Snape is the person who brought it to Dumbledore for protection." She looked at Draco wide eyes. All these years here she was thinking him pure evil and he handed over something that could have given him absolute power.
"How do you know all this?"
"You have my memories, you should know."
"What do you mean?"
"Once, thanks to your friends Potter and Weasley, I was yet again sent to Dumbledores office, I heard them talking about it."
"So do you know where in Snape's classroom it is?"
"No."
"So what were you planning to do? Just go up and ask him?"
"."
"Draco? You were! Are you mad!"
"Hey you're the one that decided to come here, got a better idea?" -+
"No."
"Well c'mon let's go to the dungeons before anyone see's us." She nodded, being a prefect had its advantages, she was given a secret passage to get to classes quicker. She took Draco down the long corridors, only nearly spotted once by a pair of teenagers to busy snogging to notice them sneaking past in the shadows. They made it to the room no hassle that is until they heard fast paced steps coming their way.
"Oh no-who is it?" Hermione whispered to Draco, he just grabbed her and took her into the storeroom at the back of the classroom and closed the door. He held his hand over her mouth, trying to stop the heavy panting escaping from her mouth. The footsteps came closer, and closer. Then she saw the door handle twist and turn, then she heard the lock of a key. She kept quiet as she heard the footsteps disappear down the hall.
"We are safe." She said going for the door, she kept trying to turn the handle but it wouldn't open-they had been locked in. "We're locked in." She began to weep.
"It's okay, relax. Snape always comes and checks early in the morning to make sure he has enough ingredients for the day." Yet Hermione couldn't stop the tears, she kept crying and crying. The tears she held back, her parents death, losing her friends, finding out someone she trusted was working for the dark side and now being stuck with no way out literally made her feel even worse. "What's wrong?"
"Everything." She said. "It's just, I lost my friends, I am going to lose my job I just know it, how am I ever going to be able to prove the Ministers brother is in league with Death Eater's! Not only that, I also a few days ago saw the only man I could ever picture myself with making out with some floozy! And it's my fault my parents died, I should have never taken this case!"
"I am glad you did."
"Why?"
"It gave me hope, I mean if someone who hates me as much as you do can believe me. It gives me hope."
"I don't hate you, not that much anyway." She smiled, looked up at Draco. She saw him smile at her, something she didn't think she would ever see Draco do outside of a smirk. "We may as well go to sleep. How long has it been since we have had a descents night's sleep."
"For me, years."
"I-I'm sorry."
"Don't worry, it's not your fault. Anyway if you do win this case then I won't have to go back there ever again. Unless I kill some other useless Muggle." He laughed. Hermione was a little shocked she'd never hear him say Muggle like that before. She curled up on the ground to sleep, Draco just sat there.
"Aren't you going to sleep?" "I'm just not used to sleeping without, you know being attacked for dreaming."
"Well I promise you this time you won't." He uneasily went to sleep, not long after so did Hermione. They were in such a deep sleep that they didn't even notice the storeroom door opening.
"Don't go in, it's a trap." He said looking around, and then suddenly Hermione saw a figure appear at the end of the hall. Hermione tried to look closer, but the figure hid in the shadows. Hermione looked at her parents then the figure. A sudden anger flashed over Hermione, she broke free of Draco's hold and charged at the figure but she ran right threw it.
"W-what is it?"
"A shadow, now get out of the room! Now!" He yelled. Hermione suddenly felt very cold, and frightened. She took one last look at her parents, before she ran outside.
"W-what's a shadow?" She said as she ran for the carpet. They leapt on and flew up, high into the sky.
"We should be safe here." He said looking at her a little worried. "A shadow, it's a creature which drains people, that's what happened to your parents."
"B-but I haven't heard of anything like that before." Hermione said trying to avoid looking down, or breaking down in tears.
"You wouldn't. There is only one left; it's not quite a magical creature. It was a man once."
"What do you mean?"
"It is a black ghost, a shadow. The wizard it used to be probably had some unresolved problems. That made him a shadow-like ghost, some wizard must have conjured him and sent him to kill your parents."
"Conjured? How? If they used a spell the Ministry should know."
"It's not a spell, a potion was used, you put it on the body of the wizards whose soul you want to resurrect, if they have a ghost form, they will come to you. But you would have to be a very powerful wizard to sustain it."
"What do you mean?"
"The shadow, it draws it's powers from the person who resurrected it. But it only takes enough to try and get a form; it drains its victims of their life-source. So it can get a form, and if it does-we're in serious trouble."
"How do you know about all this?"
"Because-it's a very old kind of dark magic, there are only two books in the world that have how to use the potion. One belonged to my father, but it was destroyed along with my home, the other is guarded at Hogwarts."
"But-that means someone already in Hogwarts has it, and killed my parents." Draco nodded. "Well, we should go to the Ministry first."
"Are you mad, Malfoy! Who knows what the Ministry would do to you!"
"But they will put you in there too if you don't report your parents murder."
"Alright."
When they went there the office had just barely opened. Carlo was standing there at the door he didn't look very happy to see Hermione. "Get in my office, the pair of you now!" He whispered angrily.
"Carlo, look we have to tell you something, it's my parents. They've been murdered."
"Well add them to the list," He said looking at Draco to Hermione and back again. "All the Auror's involved in the case, and their families have been murdered too." Hermione felt a little taken back.
"At the moment, the only people left alive knowing are us in this office, and the Minister of Magic. He has demanded it top priority classification. We can't risk any more murders."
"W-what about the Weasley's?" Hermione asked feeling very afraid all of a sudden.
"They've been put into hiding. The entire family, it took some encouragement to get Percy to go down. Their own Secret Keeper is unknown even to me, even to the Minister of Magic! That is how dangerous this case has become." He looked at Draco again. "There are some clothes in the next room, go put something on." He nodded and as he left Carlos closed the door. "Hermione my brother isn't happy about any of this at all. Ever since you began this case I had to ask him a lot of favors." Carol's brother was the Minister of Magic, Alexander Rio. "Hermione, I am going to have to put you in hiding until all this dies down."
"B-but what about Malfoy?"
"He will be sent back to Azkaban."
"Sir you can't-not yet. I know who the murderer is!" He looked at her in shock.
"Who?"
"There in Hogwarts, they used a shadow."
"A shadow? That is a myth, and no one can get into Hogwarts! Auror's have been sent to guard it ever since this Malfoy character escaped. He has it in for that school you know."
"Carlos look, one of them must be the murderer. Give me their names, please."
"I can't, it would then blow their cover."
"Just tell me this, are they inside or outside the school?"
"Uh-Hermione. Alright then, their outside and no one knows about them except the head master."
"But can they get in?"
"Only if necessary and Hermione please."
"Look-ask your brother he'll tell you."
"Hermione I am not asking my brother anything. All his best Auror's have died, your carpet has been seen, another thing to answer for, you took a prisoner without consent."
"I have consent! Look!" She showed him the piece of paper.
"Oh-alright. But still, Hermione this case has brought too many deaths we can't risk it anymore."
"You aren't risking anything! Not a thing! If you let this case go, then those deaths will be in vein."
"Alright, I won't drop the case. But if I don't see proof soon, I am going to drop the case. Have a small break, keep low profile, I'll let you take Malfoy, but only because I know he won't hurt you, but if he does, kill him. I'll take care of your parents bodies, you just do what you feel is necessary." She nodded then went to leave. "But Hermione what will you do if you find out Draco did murder Dumbledore?"
Hermione couldn't answer his question so she left. She knew Draco was innocent, something she felt. Usually she wouldn't believe in feelings only facts. But this involved a Malfoy, so facts didn't help much, because facts could just be lies. Also she saw his memories, it was proof enough of his innocence for her.
"Hermione! Wait! Please don't go by rug this time, can you take your car?"
"Alright!" She called out and left, she saw Draco waiting by her desk.
"Still so tidy." He said looking at her neat little desk.
"Come on, we better leave before Carlos changes his mind." She didn't know where she was driving too; she just kept driving eventually she stopped the car and pulled over, memories were rushing threw her mind.
"How did Carlos didn't ask me where my parents bodies were?"
"Excuse me?" Draco asked getting worried.
Hermione quickly turned the car around and headed to Brighten, and there it was Auror's taking her parents bodies, and Carlo telling them where to put them. "It was him."
"What?" Draco asked looking at her strangely.
"It was him, he killed my parents, and he killed the Auror's. He conjured the shadow." She said feeling a little strange.
"Wait a minute, how did he get the book?"
"I don't know. We are going to have to go to Hogwarts all right? Let's go."
"You can't just go on a train to Hogwarts."
"No, we will fly there."
"But how?"
"I know someone, who can help us." She said and turned the car around, heading for the Auror hospital. "Draco stay here. Don't move, don't draw attention just stay here." She quickly went inside, the nurse already knew her and let her straight into Harry's room. She looked at the gifts and everything surrounding him, she started to search for it. "Where is it? Ah! There it is!" She said grabbing Harry's old broom. She quickly ran back to her car when the nurse wasn't looking.
"What's that?" Draco asked looking at it strangely.
"Harry's broom, can you ride it?" She asked handing it to him.
"Sure-why though?"
"We're going to ride it to Hogwarts. Well to the Forbidden forest, but first I have to go back to my office." She got in the car and headed back.
"Well it's locked so what are we going to do." She flashed him a bobby pin that was holding her hair in a tight plait. "You are going to break in, why not use a wand?"
"Because, then the Ministry would know."
"Well doesn't it have protection spells or something?"
"Yes, against magic, not against Muggle break-ins." She beamed as the door opened she went in quickly and straight into Carlos office. She started searching the files. "Got it!" She whispered.
"What is it?"
"The files on your case." She looked threw it. "This is strange, it has only got one update in it."
"What's that?"
"The Auror's on guard of Hogwarts after your escape, nothing else. But it's the names that are strange, Jonathan McKenzie, Elle Kirk and Henry Justice. They're all retired, or resigned."
"Granger-that's not all. They were all under trial for suspicion of being Death Eaters."
"So?"
"So I knew them, they are." Hermione looked at the paper.
"Then why would Carlos send them there?" The realization suddenly hit her. "To get the book!"
"Well then, we're going to have to go to Hogwarts." Hermione couldn't believe what she was doing, going back to Hogwarts. On Harry's broom, stolen broom. With her supposed mortal enemy Draco Malfoy. Not to mention since being on this case, she had to get over her fear of heights. Yet, she couldn't and clung to Draco tightly. "Do you mind letting me breath just a little." He asked.
"Sorry, it's just I don't like heights." She said.
"Well don't worry we're here, where do you want me to land."
"Just, on the ground I don't care where." Hermione said squeezing him tighter as they flew down.
"So what do you want to do now? Why did we come here?"
"First before we let out suspicions get the better of us, we should make sure the book has actually been taken. Then we can decide what to do next, so do you know where it is?"
"Yes, but I don't know if we will be able to make it."
"Why not?"
"It is in Professor Snapes' classroom."
"Why would it be there?"
"Dumbledore trusted Snape with it."
"Why not another teacher?"
"Because Snape is the person who brought it to Dumbledore for protection." She looked at Draco wide eyes. All these years here she was thinking him pure evil and he handed over something that could have given him absolute power.
"How do you know all this?"
"You have my memories, you should know."
"What do you mean?"
"Once, thanks to your friends Potter and Weasley, I was yet again sent to Dumbledores office, I heard them talking about it."
"So do you know where in Snape's classroom it is?"
"No."
"So what were you planning to do? Just go up and ask him?"
"."
"Draco? You were! Are you mad!"
"Hey you're the one that decided to come here, got a better idea?" -+
"No."
"Well c'mon let's go to the dungeons before anyone see's us." She nodded, being a prefect had its advantages, she was given a secret passage to get to classes quicker. She took Draco down the long corridors, only nearly spotted once by a pair of teenagers to busy snogging to notice them sneaking past in the shadows. They made it to the room no hassle that is until they heard fast paced steps coming their way.
"Oh no-who is it?" Hermione whispered to Draco, he just grabbed her and took her into the storeroom at the back of the classroom and closed the door. He held his hand over her mouth, trying to stop the heavy panting escaping from her mouth. The footsteps came closer, and closer. Then she saw the door handle twist and turn, then she heard the lock of a key. She kept quiet as she heard the footsteps disappear down the hall.
"We are safe." She said going for the door, she kept trying to turn the handle but it wouldn't open-they had been locked in. "We're locked in." She began to weep.
"It's okay, relax. Snape always comes and checks early in the morning to make sure he has enough ingredients for the day." Yet Hermione couldn't stop the tears, she kept crying and crying. The tears she held back, her parents death, losing her friends, finding out someone she trusted was working for the dark side and now being stuck with no way out literally made her feel even worse. "What's wrong?"
"Everything." She said. "It's just, I lost my friends, I am going to lose my job I just know it, how am I ever going to be able to prove the Ministers brother is in league with Death Eater's! Not only that, I also a few days ago saw the only man I could ever picture myself with making out with some floozy! And it's my fault my parents died, I should have never taken this case!"
"I am glad you did."
"Why?"
"It gave me hope, I mean if someone who hates me as much as you do can believe me. It gives me hope."
"I don't hate you, not that much anyway." She smiled, looked up at Draco. She saw him smile at her, something she didn't think she would ever see Draco do outside of a smirk. "We may as well go to sleep. How long has it been since we have had a descents night's sleep."
"For me, years."
"I-I'm sorry."
"Don't worry, it's not your fault. Anyway if you do win this case then I won't have to go back there ever again. Unless I kill some other useless Muggle." He laughed. Hermione was a little shocked she'd never hear him say Muggle like that before. She curled up on the ground to sleep, Draco just sat there.
"Aren't you going to sleep?" "I'm just not used to sleeping without, you know being attacked for dreaming."
"Well I promise you this time you won't." He uneasily went to sleep, not long after so did Hermione. They were in such a deep sleep that they didn't even notice the storeroom door opening.