A/N: More A/N at the end of this chapter.
Disclaimer: Nothing here belongs to me so forget about suing.
~*~Dudley goes to Hogwarts~*~
Chapter 16
Hermione's ordeal
It was in an empty, dimly lit room. Nothing and no one was there except for a throne and two figures, one sitting down on the throne whilst the other one, a hooded figure, stood in front of the figure on the throne, motionless. Voldemort just stared at the hooded figure, examining him from where he stood, waiting for his messenger to come back from his 'task'. Then, after a short period of time, another hooded figure came in, bowing his head low.
"What news do you bring?" the Dark Lord spoke although his eyes never left the hooded figure that was there before.
"He was telling the truth, your evilness. The transporter centre was where as he had told us it would be," the messenger said, his head still bowed low. The Dark Lord didn't reply. Nagini, who was at her master's feet a moment ago, slithered towards the motionless figure slowly then she began to wrapped her body around both of the figure's feet loosely.
"Did you manage to capture the boy?" Voldemort asked suddenly, an evil smile played on his lips as he watched his serpent's every movement.
"No, my Lord. We are not sure what had happened there but when some of the Death Eaters went back to where the centre was, all of the Death Eaters that was sent there before were dead. None of them survived to inform us about what had happened," the messenger replied and the Dark Lord's eyes flashed.
"What do you mean you don't know what happened?!" Voldemort exclaimed.
"None of the Death Eaters left any marks on them in order for us to pin point what kind of curse were used against them," the messenger said again, his voice beginning to tremble.
"He's only a mere child! There's only so much curse he could throw at them! Find out what it is or you are the one who's going to be dead!!" Voldemort yelled.
"Yes, my lord," he replied before bowing his head again and darted out of the room. Voldemort leaned back against his chair as his eyes darted back to the other hooded figure that was waiting for him.
"You were telling the truth," he said simply and the figure bowed again.
"Always, my lord," the figure replied and Voldemort nodded his head slowly. Then, in parseltongue, he told Nagini to leave the figure alone. Reluctantly, the serpent slithered towards its master.
"I thought you were quite fond of the boy," the Dark Lord smirked.
"No, my lord. Never," the figure said. Voldemort studied the figure in front of him again and soon after, he stood up in one quick motion and walked towards the figure.
"Gryffindor? Explain," Voldemort asked simply.
"A mere cover, my lord. I will gain their trust this way," the figure answered and Voldemort nodded his head again.
"Very well. I am not going to tell the other Death Eaters about you yet. You still have to prove your loyalty to me. Now leave," Voldemort said after walking around the figure a couple of times and then walked back towards his throne.
"As you wish, my lord," the figure bowed one final time before walking out of the gloomy room. Nagini then hissed softly at her master.
"Yes, Nagini. This person will be my latest weapon against the boy. He won't know what hit him," Voldemort said and laughed evilly to no one in particular.
~*~
Lupin sighed softly to himself as he looked out the window. It was getting dark and, although it was still snowing heavily, he could see countless owls flying towards Hogwarts, each of them bearing some sort of warning from worried parents. Beside him, sitting on one of the only chairs in the room, Snuffles stood still, staring at the motionless figure on the bed, worried about what might happen to him.
"What's wrong with him?" Lupin asked without turning around to face the rest of them. Hermione, who had been sobbing softly against Ron's shoulder since Harry had fallen unconscious in the warehouse, looked up at the matron. Her eyes were swollen. The four of them (Lupin, Snuffles, Ron and Hermione) had just entered the room after Madam Pomfrey had told them it was okay to do so.
"I'm not sure, Remus. To tell you the truth, he's perfectly healthy but he's not responding to anything I do. It's like he's in a deep sleep," Madam Pomfrey said sadly as she gazed at Harry.
"Has Dumbledore been informed about this?" Lupin asked again after a short pause.
"Yes. He came in here through the other entrance before I allowed the four of you to see him. He then just rushed back to his office. He said something about the Dark Lord," Madam Pomfrey said. She too stood motionless at one corner of the room. All of a sudden, Hermione gasped lightly.
"Hermione, what is it?" Ron asked as he looked at the witch. Hermione, instead of answering Ron, stood up and brushed her tears away. Even Lupin and Snuffles gave her a worried look.
"I have to go. Please keep me posted on what's going on, okay Ron?" she said and Ron just nodded her head. After giving all of them a weak smile, she walked out of the room quickly.
'Why didn't I see it before? It was so obvious!' Hermione said to herself as she practically ran towards the study room she was sharing with Malfoy.
"Good evening, dear," said the lady in the golden dress in a soft voice. Hermione gave her a small smile.
"Good evening. Is Malfoy in there?" Hermione asked and the Lady nodded her head.
"Yes, Mister Malfoy is in there. He's been there since this afternoon. Mind you, his in one of his moods again," the Lady answered.
"Isn't he always? Anyway, thank you. Honey," Hermione said and the Lady nodded once more before swinging the door open. As Hermione stepped in, she saw Malfoy in his armchair in front of the fireplace, reading the diary Hermione had found earlier.
"Did you find anything?" Hermione asked him, not bothering to greet the Slytherin before hand. Malfoy didn't look up.
"Nothing much but the man's most private thoughts," Malfoy replied in a bored tone.
"Anything in there about the prophecy?" Hermione asked again as she sat in her own armchair.
"If there is, why would I say the thing I've said earlier?" Malfoy smirked. He was somewhat amused of her clueless state. But the Head Girl wasn't in any mood for games.
"Look, Malfoy. I know you don't like working with me and god knows how I despise working with you. But I have no choice or control. I was given this opportunity to become the Head Girl by the school and just because Snape thinks you're the most foul thing that's walking on two feet on the surface of this planet, you were chosen to become the Head boy and thus, my partner. I worked hard to get here and even though you think I don't deserve this, there are other people who think I am worthy of this responsibility. And I've accepted it. I've accepted the responsibility because I want to contribute something to the school. And if you don't feel like doing it then… go jump off the astronomy tower," Hermione yelled as she grab the diary Malfoy was reading. Malfoy then looked up at the angry Gryffindor and smirked.
"My, my. Since when do you blow up like that?" he asked and Hermione glared at him.
"Since one of my best friend's live is at stake. Now are you going to help me or not?" Hermione snapped and Malfoy studied the girl in front of him. After a few moments, he sighed.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Grab a chair and sit down. Unlike what I have said earlier, I've found some information that might point us to the right direction," Malfoy said as he gestured her to sit down. Hermione, who hesitated for a few seconds, then sat down.
"As I've said before, the diary contains a lot of the man's private thoughts but among those thoughts, this person had mentioned something about another man. He, being the other man, was never address directly. So, no name was given to this man. Actually, both men are a John Doe," Malfoy started off.
"The identities of both men don't actually concern us, Malfoy. Anything else we can use?" Hermione asked again.
"Actually, the identities of both men are a concern. The whole diary revolves around the both of them as well as their past. Well, at least that's what's written in English, anyway," Malfoy sighed as he leaned back against his armchair.
"What do you mean?"
"This guy, whoever he is, is damn smart. He wrote all the stuff he thinks he doesn't want others to find out… in Latin," Malfoy replied and Hermione stared at him.
"Latin? Latin as in the language that's practically dead Latin?" Hermione said.
"Yes Latin as in the dead language Latin," Malfoy replied and Hermione began to flip through the pages until she landed on one that was written in languages she can't quite recognize.
"This complicates things a bit," Hermione frowned and Malfoy nodded his head.
"Since the school doesn't teach how to translate them (A/N: Let's just pretend that Hogwarts doesn't teach the students how to translate Latin, okay?), we have to find another way of doing so," Malfoy said.
"Any chance you might know of any spells that can do the translation for us?" Hermione asked and Malfoy shook his head slowly. "Well, maybe Dumbledore know what to do."
"He can't. He has too much work in his hands already as it is. Ministry and stuff. Not to mention trying to get half of the wizarding community to see that Fudge's a fake," Malfoy said and after awhile, Hermione too nodded her head. Then, she looked around the room.
"At least we don't have to go far. There's probably something in here that could help us translate things in here," Hermione sighed. The both of them kept silence for at least a few minutes until Malfoy stood up.
"Where are you going?" Hermione asked as he watched him stretched himself.
"Great Hall. All the students are required to stay there for the night just to be safe. Dumbledore feared that the Death Eaters would probably try to attack tonight," he replied.
"Oh, I didn't know about that. Have the perfects been given their duty for the night?" Hermione asked and Malfoy nodded.
"I gave them their duties this afternoon when they arrived back from France. You really should get down there," Malfoy said as he walked towards his room.
"Hey, Malfoy. Wait up, all right. I have to go get some stuff. We can walk down there together. Besides, I have something to ask you," Hermione said as she too stood up and walked towards her own bedroom. Malfoy turned around and nodded once at her before entering his room.
Half an hour later, both of them were seen walking down the corridors towards the Great Hall.
"What is it you wanted to ask me?" Malfoy asked as they walked down the familiar hallway.
"It's about what happened today. So, what's with you and Jade? Since when do you date a Gryffindor?" Hermione asked and Malfoy frowned.
"That's a rather personal question, Granger," Malfoy replied.
"I don't care. Just, please, answer the question. I won't tell anyone if it's any consolation," Hermione said. For a few minutes, Malfoy didn't answer her.
"We're not dating, if that's what you wanted to hear. I've just known her for a long time. She's like a sister to me," Malfoy sighed and Hermione looked at him.
"Sister? But this afternoon… You said that…" Hermione stuttered.
"That I was dating her? That was just to get under Weasley's skin," Malfoy laughed.
"Well, that's not funny. Harry's been…" she trailed off.
"Well, he'd be happy to know that, if he's interested in her that is, he's not the only one who feels that way," Malfoy smirked. The both of them didn't say anything else until they arrived at the front of the Great Hall. Malfoy then walked towards where the Slytherins were without saying another word.
"Hey," Hermione said softly and Malfoy looked back at her. "Thanks a lot, Draco."
Malfoy just stared at the witch as she walked towards the Headmaster, dumbstruck. Then, secretly, he gave her the tiniest of smiles as she turned to look back at him.
~*~
For the next few days, Hermione had been locking herself up in the study she'd been sharing with Malfoy as she desperately tries to find anything that could help her translate the dead language. Malfoy, or Draco as Hermione had begun calling him, was there too, most of the time, when he wasn't doing anything else. Ron was worried about her since the witch often came down late for breakfast, ate a very small lunch before running off to god knows where and began skipping dinner like the word 'dinner' never existed. The thing that she hadn't skip so far was school, tutoring Dudley every night and the regular trip to visit Harry in the Infirmary.
"Hermione, are you alright? You don't look well," Lupin pointed out one day when the three of them had decided to visit Harry together. Hermione, who was lost in her own thoughts, looked blankly at the professor.
"What?" she asked faintly and Lupin sighed.
"She's been acting like this since Harry passed out," Ron said and Lupin nodded his head slowly.
"Hermione?" Lupin called her again as he placed a hand on her shoulder. Hermione then looked up at him.
"What is it, professor?" she asked.
"Have you been getting enough sleep at all? When was the last time you had a decent meal?" he asked her and Hermione smiled at him.
"Don't worry about me, professor. I'm fine. It's just that I have a lot to deal with right now but I'm beginning to cope. I should be alright," Hermione explained and Lupin nodded his head slowly.
"Are you sure?" he asked again. Snuffles, who had yet to leave Harry's side, walked over towards Hermione and placed his head on Hermione's lap. Hermione started to stroke his head.
"I'm sure of it. Don't worry about me," Hermione said again.
"Well, if you're sure… I have to go. I have another class after lunch that I have to prepare for. Take care, both of you," Lupin said before walking out of the room. Snuffles just lifted his head as Lupin left and then placed it back on Hermione's lap when he's gone.
"Hermione, you might have him convinced but I know you better than him. You're not okay. You have dark shadow under your eyes, you look like you've seen a Dementor and you've lost weight like you're trying to be a model. Not for the Witch Weekly but for the Undertaker's guide for the Dead. If you're telling me that you're fine then I don't believe you one bit," Ron said as he crossed the room and sat beside her on the empty chair.
"Ron, I'm alright. I just have this one project that I'm working on that's taking up more time and energy than I thought it would. Just trust me on this, please?" Hermione said.
"Herm, if you're trying to figure out what's wrong with Harry then I-" Hermione cut him off.
"If I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with Harry then I'll let you know. Until then, I just need you to trust me, okay?" Hermione said and Ron nodded his head slowly after he thought about what she had said. After giving Ron a smile, somebody came into the room.
"You?! What are you doing here?" Ron exclaimed as he shot up from his seat.
"I came to visit him. Why? Is that wrong?" the person asked.
"No, it's quite alright, Jade. Have a seat," Hermione said with a smile as she gestured to the empty seat next to her. Jade then walked towards Hermione and placed the chocolate she had brought with her on the small table beside Harry but she didn't sit down. Instead, she walked over towards Harry and looked down at him.
"Is he going to be alright?" Jade asked softly. Ron snorted and Hermione glared at him. She then got up with a sigh and walked towards Jade.
"He's going to be fine. Don't worry about him," Hermione said.
"But that's bad news for you, isn't it since you want him dead," Ron snapped.
"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed.
"It's true. She probably set the whole thing up with Malfoy so that they could hand Harry to Him. She's been dying to kill the guy," Ron yelled and Jade glared at him.
"I wouldn't do anything like that to him," Jade said and Ron laughed.
"Yeah right. You were probably in His hideout last night because you weren't there in the Great Hall. I looked for you but you weren't there!" Ron yelled again.
"I was not-"
"Yeah, you were not there!!" Ron yelled again.
"Ron, that's enough!" Hermione yelled and Ron quiet down. "Don't accuse her of something she didn't do. Even Dumbledore doesn't have the right to do that."
"But Herm, I-" Ron was cut off by someone screaming. The three of them jumped but was horrified when they realized that the one who was screaming was Harry. Snuffles, who had been watching the three of them before, jumped up and barked madly as Harry was struggling violently on the bed as if he was fighting someone.
"Harry! Harry wake up! Harry!!" Ron yelled as he shook Harry's frame hard but Harry was still struggling and yelling.
"Madam Pomfrey! Madam Pomfrey. Please! Something's wrong with Harry!" Hermione yelled from Harry's side as she was trying to help Ron calm Harry down. Tears were starting to form and soon started falling onto Harry. No sooner, the matron rushed into the room. Jade, on the other hand, was edging her way towards one side of the room, her face showed no emotions at all.
"What happened?!" she exclaimed as soon as she saw Harry tossing and struggling on the bed.
"We don't know. He started struggling all of a sudden. It's like he's possessed," Ron said. Both Ron and Hermione were trying to keep Harry falling from the bed. Snuffles, who weren't capable of doing anything, kept barking from behind Ron.
"Hold him still," Madam Pomfrey said.
"We're trying but whatever you want to do to him, you better do it quickly," Ron said again. Madam Pomfrey then picked up her wand and pointed towards Harry's forehead, with the help of Ron and Hermione, and muttered something under her breath. After a few attempts, Harry's body finally jerks upwards one last time before settling on the bed again, motionless.
"Is he alright?" Ron asked the matron.
"All of you, please get out of this room. I need to find out what's wrong with him. Out," she ordered. Ron then helped the shaking Hermione out of the room with Jade behind the both of them.
"This is all your fault!" Ron yelled right after they were out of earshot. Jade stared blankly at him.
"My fault? Why is it my fault?" Jade asked.
"You did this to him somehow! Harry was just fine until you showed up. You did something to him. I don't know what but I'm sure as hell am going to find out!" Ron yelled again. Jade, who felt her anger starting to rise up, took a deep breath to calm herself down.
"Look, if you wanna blame this on me, then go ahead. I don't give a damn. All I know is that I didn't do it," Jade said before she turned around and left the infirmary.
"Ron… Is he going to be alright?" Hermione sobbed and Ron turned around. Hermione was leaning against the wall, tears pouring from her eyes. Ron then pulled her into a hug.
"He's going to be alright. He's going to be fine," Ron replied as he let her cry against him and although they have school the next day, both Ron and Hermione stayed at the infirmary until dawn, Ron being the calm one for once as he tried to calm the sobbing Hermione down once again.
~*~
It was Saturday morning, a week after the Harry incident, that Draco finally exited his room and walked towards the study to help Hermione out on the diary. Halfway towards his study table, he stopped and stared at the sight before him.
There, Hermione was flipping through a book that he knew was from one of the shelves. Well, that was normal but this time, she was different.
She looked as if she was about to burst out crying any second.
"Granger?" he called out softly and Hermione looked up. Draco's mercury eyes met her bloodshot ones.
"You're up. Could you help me with this?" she asked as she handed him some papers with her shaking hands.
"Granger, did you get any sleep last night?" he asked as he walked towards her.
"No. I was reading some stuff that I think might be able to help translate that thing. I think I'm almost there," she said, her voice quivering slightly.
"Granger, get some sleep. You look as if you're going to faint," Draco said.
"No, I'm almost there. Are you going to help me or not?" she snapped. Draco just shook his head and walked to her side. He then grabbed her right upper arm firmly but gently and pulled her up.
"What are you doing?! Let go of me!" Hermione yelled but he wouldn't let her go. Instead, he began to shake her body.
"Hermione, snapped out of it! You're not going to be a big help if you passed out when they need you the most. Just snap out of it," Draco yelled and Hermione stared at him. All of a sudden, she started to cry again.
"This shouldn't happen. I should've done something back then. I should have helped Jade instead of pulling him back. I should have…"
"You should've let things go as they were suppose to. This happen for a reason and, whether you like it or not, you should let things go with its own course," Draco said. Hermione sniffed and looked up at the blond.
"Things happen for a reason," Draco said again before he let go of her and walked towards his own table. Without another word, he started to read what she was reading before and started to take some notes. He left her alone after that and the next time he looked up, she wasn't there anymore. Instead, he saw the door to her room was slightly ajar and saw, what hopefully was, her sleeping figure.
~*~
It was around late in the evening that Hermione finally left her room and walked towards the Great Hall where she promised Ron that she'd meet him. After Ron gave her a brief explanation on what Harry's current condition, which was he's still out cold, the two of them sat side by side with Dudley sitting across from Hermione. After about half an hour of doing their work, Ron's hand suddenly stopped moving and froze in his seat. Hermione's body language too suddenly tensed up and her eyes stopped seeing the words in front of her.
"Hermione, Harry's awake," Ron said softly as he turned to the Head Girl beside him. Hermione eyes widen. Ron, who was trying to finish his Potions homework, stopped writing while Hermione, who was busy tutoring Dudley, looked up from the book she was reading.
"You think so too? I thought I was just imagining stuff," Hermione whispered back at him.
"No, I know he's awake. It was the exact same feeling I got when you woke up from the coma," Ron replied.
"I don't know what you're feeling but all I know is that we should be in the infirmary instead of here. And we should get there fast," Hermione said and Ron nodded his head. Putting their stuff away quickly, Hermione smiled weakly at Dudley who was sitting the opposite of her.
"I'm sorry Dudley but Ron and I have to go. Can you finish your homework by yourself?" Hermione asked him.
"S-Sure. I can do it myself," Dudley stammered.
"Thanks. I'll come by later and check your work for you," Hermione replied as Ron and herself walked quickly towards the Infirmary.
"Do you really think that he's awake, Ron?" Hermione asked, her voice filled with hope.
"Herm, I don't just think. I know he's awake. Don't you think so?" Ron asked her as the both of them walked faster and soon broke into a run.
"I hope so. I really, really hope so," Hermione said, more to herself than to Ron. Ron led Hermione to the infirmary, the both of them running all the way, until they were standing in front of the close door.
"You okay?" Ron asked when they were standing in front of the door. Hermione just nodded her head slowly. After giving her a reassuring smile, Ron twisted the doorknob and opened the door.
"I was wondering when the both of you will show up," said a rather stick voice that could only belong to Madam Pomfrey.
"Is he awake yet?" Hermione asked eagerly and the matron smiled sadly at the both of them.
"Yes, he's awake. You two are the first to know about this. Snuffles wasn't here when he woke up because he's with Professor Lupin," the matron sighed softly. Ron and Hermione looked at each other and then turned back to the matron.
"That's good, isn't it?" Hermione asked, her voice held a hint of panic.
"Yes, that's good but…" Madam Pomfrey trailed off sadly.
"But what?" Ron asked back. Panic was starting to bubble up inside of him too.
"Maybe the both of you should go inside and find out for yourself," Madam Pomfrey said as she smiled sadly at the both of them.
Ron and Hermione smiled back at her and then Hermione led the both of them towards the same room she had once occupied. She could tell that Ron was nervous as hell, more when Madam Pomfrey said that thing about Harry. Stopping for a moment, she grabbed Ron's shoulder and squeezed it lightly.
"No matter what happened to him, we'll help him through it. What's going to happen to the three of us, we'll get through it together," she said softly to the redhead. Ron looked up and her and pulled her into a tight hug.
"I'm worried about him, Herm. I'm so worried about him," Ron said softly and Hermione rubbed his back soothingly.
"I know, I know. So do I but we've got to hang on. At least for him. I've learned that much since he passed out," Hermione replied and Ron nodded his head. The both of them broke the hug.
"C'mon, let's go," Ron said after awhile as he grabbed Hermione's right hand. Ron reached for the doorknob and then opened the door to the room Harry was in. The both of them then walked towards Harry nervously.
"Harry? Are you up?" Ron asked the youth that was sitting up on the bed. Harry didn't reply but looked at the both of them with a blank expression. Harry kept staring at the both of them like that for quite some time until a very small smile crept up onto his lips. Hermione, who couldn't contain herself any longer, burst out crying and pulled the stunned Harry into a hug.
"Harry, I'm so glad you're okay! You have no idea how worried Ron and I have been for the past couple of days. Don't you dare do that to us again!" Hermione sobbed against Harry's shoulder and Harry looked at Ron, his face puzzled.
"She's been under a lot of stress ever since you fainted the other day," Ron explained as he sat down on the bed next to Harry's right leg.
Harry kept silence until Hermione decided to let him go which was a good five minutes later. When she finally did, Harry glanced at the both of them although his face was still hidden from any emotions.
"How are you feeling?" Hermione asked, still sobbing. Harry just nodded his head instead of answering.
"Harry, say something. Anything. You've been quiet ever since Hermione and I came into the room," Ron said, frowning a bit. After a while, Harry kept looking from Hermione, to Ron and back to Hermione. He did this a couple of times before he finally spoke. Both Ron and Hermione wished he didn't because, instead of asking 'What happened?' which was what the both of them were expecting, he asked:
"Who are you?"
A/N:
There it is, your sixteenth chapter. I'm not sure if all of you like it but I personally hate it. I don't know about you guys though. Hey, I have an idea… Why don't you guys REVIEW and tell me what you think? Anyway, I finally decided to put in some HG/DM in there. Hope you like it. So, Harry can't remember who he is. I wonder why… Well, if you guys wanna know, wait for the next chapter.
Does anyone else think this story is weird or confusing? Cos if you do then tell me so that I'll try and make things more clear.
Oh yeah, I have some belated and early birthday wishes to shout out.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO:-~*Nadya a.k.a. Joy*~ ^~^28th Nov^~^
~*Yam*~ ^~^11th Dec^~^
~*Zue*~ ^~^17th Dec^~^
~*Snowwolf~* ^~^15th Dec^~^
~*Wolfsun*~ ^~^30th Dec^~^
~*Sha a.k.a. EyesWideShut*~ ^~^10th Jan^~^
~*Fiza*~ ^~^13th Jan^~^
So Happy 17th or 18th birthday to the seven of them. Well, I kinda know their birthdays cos they were my classmates. Anyway, to those who are celebrating their birthdays sometimes soon, I wish you a happy birthday too! May all your wishes comes true!!!!!
!!