Chapter four.
Hermione and Harry arrived at St. Mungo's at around two in the morning. Since it was so late, there weren't many people there. A couple of witches and Wizards nursing various wounds.
One Wizard in particular was nursing a hand that didn't look like it had any fingers left on it. The fingers in question were in a jar on his lap, still squirming and moving. There weren't many others that bad, nothing more than an extra ear or eye.
The waiting room was long and it looked like it would be difficult to carry Harry's limp body all the way to the front desk. Hermione finally decided that it was stupid not to use magic, this was an emergency. Hermione conjured a stretcher and put Harry's body onto it. They continued to walk down the hall passing various portraits of current Healers and ones from years ago. The walls of the room were so white that the light reflected off of them started to hurt Hermione's eyes.
Hermione looked down at Harry's body, taking this opportunity to study every curve and crease of his face. She knew that she wouldn't have another chance to study him like this, without it looking funny. Harry would never like her the same way she liked him, there was no way. Harry could have any girl he wanted, he would never choose a bossy, bookworm. Never. She would just have to be content as having him for a friend.
She and Harry finally reached the desk with the witch behind it.
"Um, my friend passed out, in the middle of the night. Where should I take him?" Hermione asked timidly, very unlike her.
"Does the passing out have anything to do with a spell?" The witch asked in a bored monotone voice.
"Yes I think it does." Hermione said, a little more confidently. At that moment she was very glad that Harry had disillusioned his scar. There would be uproar if they knew that Harry Potter came in unconscious.
"Fourth floor Spell damage." She said irritably. Pointing to a lift behind the desk.
Hermione hurried to the lift and hoped inside. She mashed the fourth floor button and the lift creaked closed, and started to climb. The lift finally reached the fourth floor, Hermione could swear that it took forever to get up here. She rolled the stretcher out of the lift and into another large circular room, with doors all around it. There was a circle desk in the middle with a motherly looking witch sitting behind it. Finally someone who wouldn't just pass them by. She rolled Harry up to the desk, ringing the bell to get the witches attention.
"Excuse me but I need someone to have a look at my friend." Hermione said with urgency.
The motherly witch leaned over the desk to have a closer look at Harry.
"Hmm, yes he will need a Healer. I can call in one for an emergency, is this an emergency?" She asked in a Scottish accent.
"Yes, this is most defiantly an emergency. Can I use a fireplace I need to make a call."
"Yes of course dear."
Hermione rushed over to the fireplace in the wall. She kneeled down, grabbed some floo powder. She threw it into the fire watching it turn emerald green. Just like Harry's eyes, gosh she was worried about him.
"Albus Dumbledore." Hermione said with confidence. She now had a view of the headmasters office. As if by magic Professor Dumbledore walked into his office.
"Professor." Hermione said a little breathless.
"Harrysgottenhurtsomehowinhissleepandi'matstmungos." Hermione said all at once.
"Slow down Hermione. I will be there once I know what is wrong." He said with perfect calmness.
"Harry passed out at my house, and I don't know why. I think it has something to do with his scar. Were at St. Mungos right now." Hermione said trying to calm herself. She failed.
"Thank you for informing me Ms. Granger. I will be there soon."
"Thank you Professor."
Hermione decided that he wasn't the only one who should know about Harry's illness. She quickly looked out the window, Quarter moon. She could contact Harry's godfather, Remus Lupin.
She threw another pinch of Floo powder into the roaring fire.
"Remus Lupin." Hermione pronounced clearly, and stuck her head into the jade green flames.
"Uncle Lupin!" Hermione called through the empty living room. She waited a couple of minutes before Remus came into sight.
"Hermione," He yawned deeply. "What's wrong?" he asked after he realized what time it was.
"Harry's passed out at St. Mungos. Something happened at my house, he woke up screaming and then he passed out." Hermione said starting to lose her adrenaline. She couldn't stand to see Harry in so much pain. She could feel the tears ticking the back of her eyelids like the tips of a birds wing.
"Oh my god, I'll be right there. Give me a minute to get dressed." He said in a hurry.
Hermione withdrew her head from the now hot fireplace. She was full out crying now, she couldn't hold back any longer. She had always worried about Harry and Ron, but Harry was the one who would put himself in danger willingly. Harry never stood by and let someone get hurt if he could help it. That's why she worried about him. If something happened to Harry she wouldn't know what she would do with herself.
Hermione turned around and walked back to Harry. The nurse pointed to a room where he could wait for the Healer to arrive. She wheeled him over to the room and opened the door.
It was a small room with one chair and a bed. And the excruciatingly white walls, thank god the lights were dim. She levitated Harry's body onto the more comfortable bed. The stretcher made a soft pop and disappeared. Hermione sunk down into the chair, the missed nights rest getting to her. She wouldn't let herself fall asleep, she was the only one who knows what happened. The headmaster and Uncle Lupin would be here soon. Hermione decided that if she was going to stay awake she better do something.
"Harry, I know that you can't hear me, but..." but what? What was she going to say that wouldn't sound stupid. "but I know that you can push through this, ok? Don't give up, there are people out here who need you to come around, to come back to us. I need you to come back."
She was crying again, just thinking about the possibility that he might not come back was too much to bear. Hermione reached out and grabbed his right hand and started to stroke it slowly. All the while murmuring things to his inanimate features.
"I Love you Harry Potter and you better not leave me here by myself." Quickly her sadness and depression turned to hot boiling anger.
Voldemort did this, he did all this. He killed Harry's parents, and his godfather. He made Harry's life miserable time and time again. He was to blame for everyone living in fear of there lives. Fear that they will come home to the Dark Mark floating above their house. Fear, Voldemort created Fear. It was his biggest ally, it was his biggest weapon.
The cleverest witch in Hogwarts missed two very important things happening. A light started to issue from her body illuminating the whole room. For a full minute the light grew, while the thoughts of anger and hatred flashed through her mind. The second thing she failed to notice was the two people standing in the doorway.
Hermione finally looked up and saw the two people that she most wanted to see at that moment. Other than Harry of course.
Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin had arrived. Now she knew they were there, but she didn't know how long they had been there. Hermione ran and hugged Uncle Lupin and Professor Dumbledore in turn.
She quickly told them her side of the story, which wasn't much. About fifteen minutes later the Healer arrived and did a quick check over Harry.
"I don't see anything seriously wrong with him other than the burn on his left hand." The healer informed them. After he said this all three people present leaned over to look at Harry's left hand. Sure enough in the middle of his left palm there was a black burn. Nothing out of the ordinary, other than the fact that it was shaped like a lightning bolt, exactly like his scar. His scar had grown so hot that when he grabbed it, it burned an imprint into his hand.
"I think that he will be fine. He just needs some rest. I can have a nurse stay with him so you can go home." The healer said thickly. He had obviously been woken up to come here.
"No! I will stay with him tonight." Hermione said almost on top of the Healers sentence. "I want to be here when he wakes up." She said softly.
Everyone agreed and the Healer left Harry's room. Hermione bid the teachers good night, and they also left her alone with Harry once again. She sat down and started to doze just as the suns first rays poked above the horizon.
- - -
Harry's eyes fluttered open very very slowly. He first saw the bright white walls and ceiling.
'I can't be in the hospital wing already can I?' Harry thought
Harry felt a slight weight on his stomach and realized that Hermione was laying her head on his mid-section. I must have scared her last night. Then it his him, last night, the dream. His mind started to race as every minute detail came back rushing into his head. At least his scar didn't hurt anymore. But to his surprise his hand was throbbing.
He picked his left hand up and examined it; right in the center of his palm was a black lightning bolt burn.
His mind flashed again, he remembered grabbing his scar right before he passed out. His scar must have been burning very badly to have seared itself into his palm.
Harry felt much better now, he wanted to get up. But he didn't want to wake Hermione. She was sleeping so peacefully. Harry watched her sleep for some time. Thinking how beautiful she was when she was sleeping, he corrected his own thinking – she was beautiful anytime. Harry noticed that her cheeks were streaked from tears. He wished he could hold her and comfort her, but he knew that that was almost impossible.
He couldn't do that to her. He couldn't put her in harms way, if Harry and her became more than friends that would basically be putting the cross-hair on her. If Harry ever had a girlfriend then Voldemort would surely use her as bait. He wouldn't put anyone in danger, especially Hermione.
Hermione stirred.
She raised her head and he looked into Hermione's eyes. The deep brown pools seemed to suck him in and keep him there.
"Good morning." Harry said rather croakily.
"How do you feel? Does your scar hurt? What about your hand? What happened last night?" Hermione fired question after question at him. Her mouth was going a mile a minute.
"Slow down 'Mione." Harry said using the nick name he knew she loved. "I only want to have to tell the story once. So where's Dumbledore?"
"I can call him using the two way mirror, do want me to?" She asked
"Yes." Harry said.
It wasn't long until his godfather and his Headmaster were standing in the room once more. Harry reluctantly retold every detail of his dream from the previous night. Hermione started to cry as he told the part about the curse. Involuntarily he grabbed her hand and gave it a brief squeeze. That seemed to calm her down.
After Harry had retold the story he felt as if he had a great weight lifted off his chest. They all decided that they should go on as if this didn't happen, better for no one to know. So after some paper work was filled out, they portkeyed back to the Grangers Estate.
When they arrived they found something that they weren't ready to see.
The Dark Mark was floating above the rubble that once was the Grangers Estate. Harry sunk to his knees, for they didn't seem to support him anymore. He couldn't believe that Voldemort had done this. He knew it was true, no one but Death Eaters knew about the Dark Mark.
Hermione had also dropped to her knees, and was crying freely. He reached out and grabbed her by the shoulders and hugged her tightly.
Voldemort had destroyed Hermione's house and killed her mother, he had killed Harry's parents and his godfather. All the pain and suffering was his fault. It was ok that he attacked Harry again and again, it was his burden to bear. But now he had crossed the line, he had hurt someone he loved. It was time to finish this, for good.
Harry could feel the pure hatred running through his veins. Little did he know that right next to him Hermione was feeling the same way.
As if the sun went out everything got dark. But it wasn't because it was dark out; it was because the sun was dim in comparison to the light radiating off of Harry and Hermione. The light flashed through the yard, and onto the decimated house.
Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin watched in awe as the pair of teenagers; no adults, bathed in a white light.
"We have found them." Was all Dumbledore could say.
Hermione and Harry arrived at St. Mungo's at around two in the morning. Since it was so late, there weren't many people there. A couple of witches and Wizards nursing various wounds.
One Wizard in particular was nursing a hand that didn't look like it had any fingers left on it. The fingers in question were in a jar on his lap, still squirming and moving. There weren't many others that bad, nothing more than an extra ear or eye.
The waiting room was long and it looked like it would be difficult to carry Harry's limp body all the way to the front desk. Hermione finally decided that it was stupid not to use magic, this was an emergency. Hermione conjured a stretcher and put Harry's body onto it. They continued to walk down the hall passing various portraits of current Healers and ones from years ago. The walls of the room were so white that the light reflected off of them started to hurt Hermione's eyes.
Hermione looked down at Harry's body, taking this opportunity to study every curve and crease of his face. She knew that she wouldn't have another chance to study him like this, without it looking funny. Harry would never like her the same way she liked him, there was no way. Harry could have any girl he wanted, he would never choose a bossy, bookworm. Never. She would just have to be content as having him for a friend.
She and Harry finally reached the desk with the witch behind it.
"Um, my friend passed out, in the middle of the night. Where should I take him?" Hermione asked timidly, very unlike her.
"Does the passing out have anything to do with a spell?" The witch asked in a bored monotone voice.
"Yes I think it does." Hermione said, a little more confidently. At that moment she was very glad that Harry had disillusioned his scar. There would be uproar if they knew that Harry Potter came in unconscious.
"Fourth floor Spell damage." She said irritably. Pointing to a lift behind the desk.
Hermione hurried to the lift and hoped inside. She mashed the fourth floor button and the lift creaked closed, and started to climb. The lift finally reached the fourth floor, Hermione could swear that it took forever to get up here. She rolled the stretcher out of the lift and into another large circular room, with doors all around it. There was a circle desk in the middle with a motherly looking witch sitting behind it. Finally someone who wouldn't just pass them by. She rolled Harry up to the desk, ringing the bell to get the witches attention.
"Excuse me but I need someone to have a look at my friend." Hermione said with urgency.
The motherly witch leaned over the desk to have a closer look at Harry.
"Hmm, yes he will need a Healer. I can call in one for an emergency, is this an emergency?" She asked in a Scottish accent.
"Yes, this is most defiantly an emergency. Can I use a fireplace I need to make a call."
"Yes of course dear."
Hermione rushed over to the fireplace in the wall. She kneeled down, grabbed some floo powder. She threw it into the fire watching it turn emerald green. Just like Harry's eyes, gosh she was worried about him.
"Albus Dumbledore." Hermione said with confidence. She now had a view of the headmasters office. As if by magic Professor Dumbledore walked into his office.
"Professor." Hermione said a little breathless.
"Harrysgottenhurtsomehowinhissleepandi'matstmungos." Hermione said all at once.
"Slow down Hermione. I will be there once I know what is wrong." He said with perfect calmness.
"Harry passed out at my house, and I don't know why. I think it has something to do with his scar. Were at St. Mungos right now." Hermione said trying to calm herself. She failed.
"Thank you for informing me Ms. Granger. I will be there soon."
"Thank you Professor."
Hermione decided that he wasn't the only one who should know about Harry's illness. She quickly looked out the window, Quarter moon. She could contact Harry's godfather, Remus Lupin.
She threw another pinch of Floo powder into the roaring fire.
"Remus Lupin." Hermione pronounced clearly, and stuck her head into the jade green flames.
"Uncle Lupin!" Hermione called through the empty living room. She waited a couple of minutes before Remus came into sight.
"Hermione," He yawned deeply. "What's wrong?" he asked after he realized what time it was.
"Harry's passed out at St. Mungos. Something happened at my house, he woke up screaming and then he passed out." Hermione said starting to lose her adrenaline. She couldn't stand to see Harry in so much pain. She could feel the tears ticking the back of her eyelids like the tips of a birds wing.
"Oh my god, I'll be right there. Give me a minute to get dressed." He said in a hurry.
Hermione withdrew her head from the now hot fireplace. She was full out crying now, she couldn't hold back any longer. She had always worried about Harry and Ron, but Harry was the one who would put himself in danger willingly. Harry never stood by and let someone get hurt if he could help it. That's why she worried about him. If something happened to Harry she wouldn't know what she would do with herself.
Hermione turned around and walked back to Harry. The nurse pointed to a room where he could wait for the Healer to arrive. She wheeled him over to the room and opened the door.
It was a small room with one chair and a bed. And the excruciatingly white walls, thank god the lights were dim. She levitated Harry's body onto the more comfortable bed. The stretcher made a soft pop and disappeared. Hermione sunk down into the chair, the missed nights rest getting to her. She wouldn't let herself fall asleep, she was the only one who knows what happened. The headmaster and Uncle Lupin would be here soon. Hermione decided that if she was going to stay awake she better do something.
"Harry, I know that you can't hear me, but..." but what? What was she going to say that wouldn't sound stupid. "but I know that you can push through this, ok? Don't give up, there are people out here who need you to come around, to come back to us. I need you to come back."
She was crying again, just thinking about the possibility that he might not come back was too much to bear. Hermione reached out and grabbed his right hand and started to stroke it slowly. All the while murmuring things to his inanimate features.
"I Love you Harry Potter and you better not leave me here by myself." Quickly her sadness and depression turned to hot boiling anger.
Voldemort did this, he did all this. He killed Harry's parents, and his godfather. He made Harry's life miserable time and time again. He was to blame for everyone living in fear of there lives. Fear that they will come home to the Dark Mark floating above their house. Fear, Voldemort created Fear. It was his biggest ally, it was his biggest weapon.
The cleverest witch in Hogwarts missed two very important things happening. A light started to issue from her body illuminating the whole room. For a full minute the light grew, while the thoughts of anger and hatred flashed through her mind. The second thing she failed to notice was the two people standing in the doorway.
Hermione finally looked up and saw the two people that she most wanted to see at that moment. Other than Harry of course.
Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin had arrived. Now she knew they were there, but she didn't know how long they had been there. Hermione ran and hugged Uncle Lupin and Professor Dumbledore in turn.
She quickly told them her side of the story, which wasn't much. About fifteen minutes later the Healer arrived and did a quick check over Harry.
"I don't see anything seriously wrong with him other than the burn on his left hand." The healer informed them. After he said this all three people present leaned over to look at Harry's left hand. Sure enough in the middle of his left palm there was a black burn. Nothing out of the ordinary, other than the fact that it was shaped like a lightning bolt, exactly like his scar. His scar had grown so hot that when he grabbed it, it burned an imprint into his hand.
"I think that he will be fine. He just needs some rest. I can have a nurse stay with him so you can go home." The healer said thickly. He had obviously been woken up to come here.
"No! I will stay with him tonight." Hermione said almost on top of the Healers sentence. "I want to be here when he wakes up." She said softly.
Everyone agreed and the Healer left Harry's room. Hermione bid the teachers good night, and they also left her alone with Harry once again. She sat down and started to doze just as the suns first rays poked above the horizon.
- - -
Harry's eyes fluttered open very very slowly. He first saw the bright white walls and ceiling.
'I can't be in the hospital wing already can I?' Harry thought
Harry felt a slight weight on his stomach and realized that Hermione was laying her head on his mid-section. I must have scared her last night. Then it his him, last night, the dream. His mind started to race as every minute detail came back rushing into his head. At least his scar didn't hurt anymore. But to his surprise his hand was throbbing.
He picked his left hand up and examined it; right in the center of his palm was a black lightning bolt burn.
His mind flashed again, he remembered grabbing his scar right before he passed out. His scar must have been burning very badly to have seared itself into his palm.
Harry felt much better now, he wanted to get up. But he didn't want to wake Hermione. She was sleeping so peacefully. Harry watched her sleep for some time. Thinking how beautiful she was when she was sleeping, he corrected his own thinking – she was beautiful anytime. Harry noticed that her cheeks were streaked from tears. He wished he could hold her and comfort her, but he knew that that was almost impossible.
He couldn't do that to her. He couldn't put her in harms way, if Harry and her became more than friends that would basically be putting the cross-hair on her. If Harry ever had a girlfriend then Voldemort would surely use her as bait. He wouldn't put anyone in danger, especially Hermione.
Hermione stirred.
She raised her head and he looked into Hermione's eyes. The deep brown pools seemed to suck him in and keep him there.
"Good morning." Harry said rather croakily.
"How do you feel? Does your scar hurt? What about your hand? What happened last night?" Hermione fired question after question at him. Her mouth was going a mile a minute.
"Slow down 'Mione." Harry said using the nick name he knew she loved. "I only want to have to tell the story once. So where's Dumbledore?"
"I can call him using the two way mirror, do want me to?" She asked
"Yes." Harry said.
It wasn't long until his godfather and his Headmaster were standing in the room once more. Harry reluctantly retold every detail of his dream from the previous night. Hermione started to cry as he told the part about the curse. Involuntarily he grabbed her hand and gave it a brief squeeze. That seemed to calm her down.
After Harry had retold the story he felt as if he had a great weight lifted off his chest. They all decided that they should go on as if this didn't happen, better for no one to know. So after some paper work was filled out, they portkeyed back to the Grangers Estate.
When they arrived they found something that they weren't ready to see.
The Dark Mark was floating above the rubble that once was the Grangers Estate. Harry sunk to his knees, for they didn't seem to support him anymore. He couldn't believe that Voldemort had done this. He knew it was true, no one but Death Eaters knew about the Dark Mark.
Hermione had also dropped to her knees, and was crying freely. He reached out and grabbed her by the shoulders and hugged her tightly.
Voldemort had destroyed Hermione's house and killed her mother, he had killed Harry's parents and his godfather. All the pain and suffering was his fault. It was ok that he attacked Harry again and again, it was his burden to bear. But now he had crossed the line, he had hurt someone he loved. It was time to finish this, for good.
Harry could feel the pure hatred running through his veins. Little did he know that right next to him Hermione was feeling the same way.
As if the sun went out everything got dark. But it wasn't because it was dark out; it was because the sun was dim in comparison to the light radiating off of Harry and Hermione. The light flashed through the yard, and onto the decimated house.
Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin watched in awe as the pair of teenagers; no adults, bathed in a white light.
"We have found them." Was all Dumbledore could say.