Chapter Five

Of course, Harry could barely touch sleep that night. When the rays of sunlight tinted the sky in the window above his four-poster, he gave his pastime up for useless and changed out of his pajamas. Ron was breathing deeply from underneath a wad of blankets, so Harry snuck quietly down to the Common Room to see if anybody else was awake.

The Griffindor Common Room was just as he and Ron had left it the previous day. It was the loneliest Harry had remembered it being for a long time. It reminded him a great deal of the Dursleys' home on Privet Drive. Suddenly very tired, Harry lowered himself slowly into a gold and red upholstered armchair that stood turned gently towards the frozen hearth. As he sat, a slice of parchment protested from the sponge of the armchair's cushion. He stood up again and removed the offending parchment, wrinkling a corner of it in his fist. He was about to drop it on the floor for the owner to claim for later, when he recognized his name on the back half. He flipped it over in his wrist, and read:

Dear Harry:

I did just what you suggested: I wrote a long letter to Viktor last night. And you were completely right. I see things so much more clearly now that all my frustrations are out on paper. That means that I need to go for myself. I already talked to Mrs. McGonagall and arranged for all my homework to be sent to me by owl, so no one needs to worry about that. I'm going to be heading on broomstick most of the way, I expect, but I'm not as good with it as you are (or Ron, either. Now don't get all indignant because I didn't mention you!) so it will probably take me a while. Try to study on your own until I get back!

I'll be okay, really. And whatever you do, DO NOT COME AFTER ME! Harry, the only safe place for you is in Hogwarts with Dumbledore. I'll send you messages so you'll know I'm okay. And the letter I wrote to Viktor is still in this envelope, if you would please send it to him as soon as you can so he understands the situation. I would have sent it myself, but I wanted to be out before you were awake, because I know that you would have tried to talk me out of it!

I'll be back as soon as I know that Viktor is alright.

I'll be back soon even if he's not.

Signed: Hermoine Granger.

Harry bolted back into the boys' chambers to alert Ron. On his way in, he ran full tilt into Neville Longbottom who was just getting up.

"Sorry Neville," Harry mumbled and helped Neville to his feet.

"Getting used to it," he mumbled back and wandered to his trunk to dress.

Harry tugged viciously on Ron's blankets. "Ron! Ron! Wake up!"

"Oh for heaven's sake, Ginny. No more stories. How many times can you possibly listen to the Basilisk story? It-"

"RON!"

Ron rolled over lazily. "You killed the Basilisk, Harry. You lived. It's okay. Go back to bed."

"Ron, Hermoine's gone!"

Neville's Remembrall shattered on the stone floor.

"What!" cried Ron, finally coming awake.

"Did you do?" said Seamus as he sat up in bed, face inches from the broken glass.

Aware that half of the bunk house was now awake from the commotion and all within earshot, Harry passed Ron Hermoine's note and backed off to watch Neville frantically try to collect the splinters of his precious bauble.

"Too bad Hermoine's gone," said one a boy from one of the bunks. "She'd know how to fix it."

"What? Hermoine's gone?" said another voice from an unknown bunk.

"Our house is barely going to get any points then!" cried someone else, and a few laughed at this. Ron scrambled up beside Harry.

"Where was this?"

Harry told him.

"Guess that means she didn't actually want everyone to know about it then," Ron said sourly, and loud enough for everyone to hear. "And I'm sure that if someone did know about it, that they should not tell anyone. I bet she'd really like to see the Slytherin's scratching their heads wondering where she went." He added as an afterthought. Harry and Ron left the bunks knowing that Hermoine's secret would be safe, thanks to Ron. At least until ten o'clock when they were expected for classes. Potions. With Slytherin. Again. Harry shuddered wondering what Snape would say about Hermoine's absence. He mentioned this to Ron after the other was dressed in his school robes as they headed down to the Great Hall for Breakfast.

"Just pretend we don't know anything. And don't say anything. Just shrug. That's it. We'll be ready for his forked tongue! Nothing will get any information out of us. We are pillars of... support! Yes!" Ron bit self righteously into a handful of breakfast crisps. "He'll be frothing with wonder! It'll be like a splinter in his brain! He'll- EWW!"

Ron instantly ducked down next to his plate and turned a bright red.

"What?" said Harry, who had been staring at his empty plate the whole time.

"It's McGonagall," Ron whispered in a conspirative tone. "I will never, never look at her, Dumbledore, or the hallways ever again."

Harry forced a grim smile and continued to stare at his plate, wondering about Hermoine.