Disclaimer: The characters of Harry Potter is not mine, they belong to one JKR. The plot, however, is my own.

A/N: Not a very long note now, I'm working on plot development. The long awaited chapter with the reason for Melody in the story is here. . . finally. With that said, on with the show!

Double Trouble

Chapter Twenty-three

Hermione threw a glare at the Head Table before stalking to her seat for breakfast. Melody trotted eagerly behind her, humming a weird little toddler song.

"Why so glum, Mya?" George spotted his girlfriend.

"I'm not glum." She replied, plopping down next to him, grabbing a piece of his toast and handing it to Melody. He gave her a lopsided smile.

"Sure ya aren't, and I'm the bloody Prime Minister." He wiggled his eyebrows.

"Pwime Min'ster." Melody sang, her cherub face smeared with butter from her toast. "Weezy Pwime Min'ster." She bounced in her seat.

"That's right Mel, I'm the Prime Minister." George went into baby mode as he chirruped to Melody. "You've got quite the vocabulary there, y'know." He gave the toddler another piece of toast. "Eat up. . . er. . . hey, you need a nickname."

"Nickname?" She looked at him questioningly, her eyes alight with curiosity.

"Yeah, I'm not going to go around calling you Mel. . . too common. Let's see. . ." He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "What's your middle name?"

She looked at him proudly. "Mawissa."

"Mawissa? Oh, you mean Marissa. Hmm. . . I like Ari. Yeah, I'm going to call you Ari."

"Ari?" She looked thoughtful for a moment, then grinned broadly. "I Ari." She announced to no one in particular. "I Ari!"

Hermione followed the conversation with a bemused look. "What is it with you and nicknames?" She asked George.

"Oh, well, in a house as big as mine, you have to have a nickname. We certainly can't all go around being called things like Percival." He snickered. "Or Ronald."

"What about me?" Ron sauntered in, followed closely by Draco and Harry.

"Too many Weezys." Melody nodded astutely.

"I absolutely agree, Ari." George patted the toddler on the head. Hermione smirked at Ron's look of confusion.

"Ari?" Draco looked from George to Melody. "Where did you get Ari from?"

"Her middle name is Marissa. Ari is a good nickname, very suitable, I believe."

"Oh."

"Mya!" Hermione grinned cheekily, stealing another piece of toast for herself. "Can't you get your own food?"

"What's the point, when yours is right there?"

"Thief."

"Yeah, but you love me."

"Do I?"

"Of course you do. . ." Hermione placed her head on his shoulder. "Don't you?"

"Of course I do." He whispered.

"Enough with the mushy stuff!" Draco groaned, seating himself opposite his little sister. "C'mon, there are children present."

"Yeah, chil'wen." Melody added, around a mouthful of toast.

"Melody, don't talk with your mouth full." Both Hermione and Draco admonished the girl, sending the group into a fit of giggles.

Snape glared at the table, feeling betrayed.

"Whazza matter Snivellus?" Sirius dropped into a chair next to the crabby Potions Master.

"Black, I would suggest you remove yourself from my presence. . . Molly Weasley is not here to protect you now!" Snape growled, turning his glare onto Sirius.

"Come off it, Snape." Both men turned astonished gazes at an irate Hermione Granger. "You should keep your voice down," She sneered, "Sound travels. I don't appreciate having you use Mrs. Weasley as means to a cut down. She has done nothing but be kind to you. . . and this is how you repay her? You should be ashamed! But then again, you're heartless, and in essence, cannot feel shame."

"Miss Granger, I will not tolerate this kind of BEHAVIOR!" Snape thundered, rising from his seat. "Forty Points, and a week's detention ought to bring down that fire."

"Git." She glanced at him coldly. "You would think that he would have learned some manners from our last encounter." She confided to Sirius.

"I can hear you, Miss Granger." His voice was deceptively soft.

"Good, because I heard you, and not only I heard that little comment, but everyone in the Hall did, including Mrs. Weasley's children. I think you owe them an apology." She retorted.

"Fifty Points."

"Apologize."

"Sixty Points. And detention with Filch."

"You know what. . . I don't need this. . ." She turned away from him, much to his irritation.

"Don't turn your back on me Miss Granger!"

"Oh, and what're you going to do about it? Take more points? Coward." She hissed, stalking back to the Gryffindor table, gathering her stuff. "Hide behind your Points. I'd be happy if you would do us all a favor and fall off the edge of the earth!"

Minerva glanced at her student in shock. What had happened to the sweet girl?

"Albus! Do something. . ."

She whirled around, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Why. Don't. You?! You accused Sirius of hiding behind Molly. Who's hiding now?" She turned again, stalking towards the exit.

"I will not stand for this! Petrificus Totalus!" Snape had his wand out before anybody could do anything. The spell rang in the stunned silence.

"Oh, and that's the best you could do?" Hermione turned around, shocking the entire Hall. She stood within a corona of white heat. "That's low, attacking a person's back, even for you." And she left, hot tears spilling down her face. * Why oh why did I do that?*

Snape stared at his wand as if it had bitten him. "Oh Gods. . ." He whispered, his face ashen. "What have I done?"

Sirius felt himself shaking. * What is wrong with that girl?!*

"Mya?" George looked at Melody, who looked right back at him. . . "What do we do about Ari?"

"I'm more concerned about what we're going to do with Hermione." Harry whispered, his scar throbbing lightly.

***

Hermione collapsed in the Library, her haven. "I didn't do that. . . this is not happening. . . I did not do that!" She repeated the litany until her nerves calmed somewhat. "Oh Gods. I did that. I taunted a Professor. I-Oh Gods! I all but forced him to use magic on me! What am I? Some sort of masochistic freak?" She wailed, burying her face in her arms.

A soft thud brought her from her reverie. A book sat open before her. "How in the-" Her eyes widened as she scanned the aged print. "Oh my!"

'A Goddess walks again,

Within the world of men.

In her care is a child,

Of blonde hair and blue eyes.

Surrounded by the Elements Four,

In the heat of the darkest night,

Will defend the only to Defeat,

The snake with the Forked Tongue,

Whose lies will deceive,

Those of purest thought and mind.

Beware the Serpents Tongue,

Beware the gentile means.

The Goddess sees this all,

And the End the child will bring.

So in the Dark and Light

This e'er approaching night,

Will find this Incarnate and Child

Will, in essence, decide the Fight.'

"Oh no, no, no, no, no!" She grabbed the book, her classes forgotten for the moment, "Oh dear Goddess, please, oh please don't say this is me! No!" But how could it not be? The blonde child, the Four Elements. . .

With a shriek, she departed the library at as fast a pace as her legs could possibly carry her, right to Dumbledore's office.

***

"Enter."

Hermione burst through the door, the battered tome clutched in her hands.

"Miss Granger, just the girl I wanted to see." The Headmaster looked grave.

"If it's about this morning, that will have to wait!" She exclaimed breathlessly. "This. . . now this we need to discuss." She slammed the book on his desk, opening. "Read that!"

Dumbledore smiled at her kindly. "Ah, I see. Well. . . I'm sure that this is a good thing."

"A good thing?" She flopped into one of the chairs. "How can this be a frigging good thing. . . this is basically saying that Melody and I will decide the fate of the entire world!"

"And what is your decision?" Dumbledore twinkled.

"I'd fight with Harry, of course!"

"Good answer, Miss Granger. Now, I see no problem with this."

She let out another shriek. "No PROBLEM!?"

"Yes, no problem."

"It's a bloody Prophecy, about me! Of all people, me, the shy bookworm. I didn't-"

"Ask for this, I know. . . no one ever does."

"This is Harry's deal, not mine! I don't want to! I want to fight, and get it over with. I don't want to be a pinnacle person! I don't need this right now! I have NEWTs for Gods Sakes!"

"Next year."

"But still-"

"Why waste the study time? Right?" He grinned, "Altoid?"

"Yes, give me the frigging candy, damnit! How can you sit there, all calm?!" She grabbed one of the little white mints.

"Well, the Prophecy isn't about me, is it?"

Hermione resisted the urge to smack the infuriating man. "No, Professor, it isn't."

"That's a good thing, right? Wouldn't want an old man like me being the Pivotal Character."

Hermione sighed. "But. . . She's just two. She doesn't understand what's going on."

"She understands more than you think. Now, I do believe you have a class to be attending, if that is all?"

Hermione groaned. "I have Potions now. . . Snape is going to kill me."

"Now, now, no he won't, though he might try to poison you."

Hermione snorted, "Thanks Headmaster. . . that was REALLY helpful." She muttered, gathering her stuff. "Well, I'd better go." And with that, she was gone.

"Fawkes, old buddy, I would say that was one of the more interesting conversations. She didn't even let me tell her that Severus apologized, and gave Gryffindor a hundred points. Heh. When will they ever listen to me? I am Omniscient." He laughed, giving the phoenix a friendly pat, his blue eyes twinkling.

*_____________________________________________________________________ *

A/N: Hah, finally, now we know why Melody is so important! Wow. I like this chapter, I'm not sure if you will though. It's strange, and disjointed, but I like it. Don't forget to RR.

Love,

~Me~