There are only 2 more chapters in this story, and I am working on a sequal, but I am not sure if I am going to post it here, because I don't know if it want to go through all the trouble of changing it from second person to first.
Chapter 14 - No risk?
Later that night I was sitting with Harry on the couch, staring into the fire and practically crushing the bones of his hand. I kept glancing at the entrance, waiting for Hermione to come.
"Relax," Harry hissed as I squeezed his hand particularly hard.
"Sorry," I murmured suppressing the urge to vomit.
"I might not even pan out, and if it does, she's not performing the counter tonight."
"Maybe I want her too…"
"Are you sure?" he whispered frantically.
"I kinda want to get it over with," I murmured.
"Twink," he warned, "you know I'm not one for rules, but maybe you should get Lupin to do it."
"What! He won't---"
"Listen," he grabbed your my, "I've been studying with Dumbledore, and this kind of thing can go horribly wrong. You can lose your mind."
"I don't care----"
"I do! I don't want to lose you over this, over Snape. Please, think about this."
"I have to know, Harry. Remus is part of the cover up, what makes you think he is going to do this counter spell?"
"Don't do it tonight, think about it for a couple days…..at least one," he whispered and kissed my cheek.
"So you can go talk to Dumbledore?"
"Talk to Snape," Harry said desperately, "he knows exactly what he did, so maybe he can reverse it, if there was anything done."
"Harry----"
"Just think, ok? I - Twinkle, I can't lose you. I-I can't do this alone." He whispered, making me pull him into my arms.
"Alright I will think about it, I promise. You won't lose me."
Suddenly the portrait was opened and Hermione rushed into the room, flushed and excited. "OK, I'm ready. And I found the way to unblock, if it was indeed obliviate."
I nodded, "alright, but you have to promise not to unblock, before asking me. Harry wants me to think about it."
"But--"
"I don't want to take the chance of her losing her mind," Harry interrupted.
"But--"
"I can't lose someone else I love--,"
"Shut up!" She said irritated, "There's no risk, I swear. She'll be incapacitated for…well I don't know how long, because it depends on how many memories are suppressed. She will come out of it though."
"Dumbledore said----,"
"That's where I got my information from! He did tell me that he told you that, because he didn't want you and -------- to do something rash when you found out."
"So I was obliviated?"
"We have to make sure that's what Snape did. He might have actually taken the memories out of your head," she said almost jumping up in down in her seat at the thought of performing such advanced magic.
"Go ahead."
Looking extremely concentrated she pointed her wand at me, "if nothing was done, nothing will happen," she told me before she murmured, "reveal," a sliver mist shimmered around my head for a minuet then dissipated. Hermione squealed and opened her mouth to do the counter when Harry spoke in a dangerous voice.
"Don't you dare," he growled lowly.
"Harry," I started, "it's not really your decision." I spoke quietly so that only Hermione and Harry heard me, not the rest of the common room, that had looked in my direction once the mist shimmered around me.
"NOT MY---You promised!!" he exclaimed standing up abruptly.
"Harry, please," I kept my voice quiet in hopes of calming him down and placed a gentle hand on his arm, "I promised to think, but what's the point, if there's no risk."
"Do what you want," he shook off my hand, "I don't care what happens." With that he stormed up to the boys dorm, but I knew he was listening at the balcony that over looked the common room.
"Why was the mist silver?" I asked Hermione as she prepared herself for the spell.
"Snape's signature. Ready?" Taking a deep breath I nodded. Pointing her wand at me again Hermione took a deep breath as well and murmured, "remember,"
I was vaguely aware that I fell from the couch and that Harry's name was ripped from my throat before the images took over my mind, leaving no room for anything else.
-----
Harry raced down the stairs to see Twinkle on the ground, in slight convulsions, with tears streaming down her cheeks. He fought through the crowd to get to her when someone called "Someone get McGonagall."
"No! Don't get anyone, she'll be fine," Hermione said desperately looking at Harry. Everyone seemed to look to Harry, the leader of Gryffindor -even at 6th year, to make the decision. Harry watched Hermione struggled to restrain Twinkle.
"Don't get her, yet. If she gets worse we will get McGonagall." He lifted the unconscious girl into his arms and carried her to the girls staircase.
"You can take her up. Even the founders knew there might be emergencies," Hermione spoke from behind him. Harry carried Twinkle up the stairs and quickly to her bed, before she could jostle herself out of his arms. He laid her on the bed, pulled a blanket over her and tenderly brushed the hair off her forehead as she let out a little whimper. Harry looked at Hermione with a scathing gaze.
"What is happening?"
The girl had enough sense to look slightly ashamed, "the memories are coming back. After this her brain will 'reboot' shall we say."
"What does that mean."
"It will turn itself off, then back on."
"WHAT!?"
"H-harry, trust me…."
"How the hell do you expect me to do that?!" he exclaimed looking down on what might be the next person who he loved to be taken away. Suddenly he rounded on Hermione with his wand, "undo it."
"I-I can't. We just have to wait it out." Suddenly Twinkle let out a low moan, of what sounded like pain.
"What about her?" tears filled his voice as he pointed to the girl, who was writhing on the bed.
"She's not in any pain. All she knows are the memories."
Harry kicked off his shoes and curled up to Twinkle, and to his surprise she clung to him. Putting his glasses on the night stand he turned to Hermione. "Go tell McGonagall what you did, Snape and Lupin too. She's getting louder, I don't know if you girls want to sleep in here." He said and watched her walk shamefully from the room before closing the curtains. He knew it was unfair to blame it all on Hermione, but the only other on he could was currently clinging to him like a scared child, trapped in her own mind.
-----
Hermione walked slowly to McGonagall's quarters and when she got there she knocked tentatively.
"Miss. Granger," McGonagall said surprised when she opened the door.
"Professor, I've done something incredibly foolish," Hermione exclaimed tears streaming from her eyes.
"Come in, child. Don't blubber out in the hall, like an idiot."
-----
"You foolish girl! Silly, stupid, girl! How could you? Don't you have any common sense in that head of yours?!" McGonagall exploded in a way Hermione could have never imagined.
"I talked to Dumbledore. He told me I could do it," she pleaded.
"Senile, meddling old fool!" McGonagall growled grabbing Hermione's wrist and dragging her from the room.
When they got to Dumbledore's office they found Snape and Lupin already seated, as if waiting their arrival.
"You old fool! How could you do this, with a clear conscious!" McGonagall burst into the office fuming.
"Hermione, please, explain exactly what happened."
Without looking up, Hermione told the whole story starting from when Twinkle had come to her the first time, up until an hour previously in the common room.
-----
"You had no right!" Remus exclaimed to Dumbledore, "as her guardian, I am the only one who could give consent!"
"Guardian?" Snape scoffed.
"You didn't sign the papers, Severus. That is not my fault." Remus turned to Hermione, "what were you thinking?"
"I wasn't. The only one who was, was Harry."
"That's a first," Snape grumbled under his breath, "You are a stupid little girl, Miss. Granger. I had had the hope that you were one of the few immune to the stupidity of your generation. Where is she?"
"In the dorm. Harry's looking after her." A few tears slipped from her eyes at Snape's harsh criticism. Remus walked over and wrapped an arm around Hermione.
"She is not the only on at fault, Severus. As much we I'd hate to admit it, we all are."
"The boy is right," Dumbledore said, "I know you thought you were handling it, Severus, but we failed to bring into the equation a teenage, female, mind. They tend to think differently from us."
"She would have remembered slowly, not been overwhelmed with the memories. Miss. Granger, do you know the extent to which her memory has been modified?"
"No."
"I was in her life for 5 years, the better which of 4 years, she had modified."
Hermione gaped at her professor, "How could you do that to her?"
"I had no choice, Miss. Granger. You will go and send Mr. Potter here." At that Hermione shook her head. "No? I do not believe you are in the position to refuse."
"I'm not, but Harry will not leave her," she whispered.
Dumbledore motioned for Hermione to sit down, "the only thing we can do now is wait it out, and hope she comes back?"
"Hope?" Hermione asked.
"She could decide she does not want to return to us," Remus said quietly, and Hermione thought he might be crying.
"You told me there was no risk!" she exclaimed.
"You should go to bed, Miss. Granger," McGonagall said lowly, "you have classes tomorrow."
"Where am I to sleep?'
"What do you mean?"
"Harry has Twinkle in the girls dorm, and he said we might want to sleep somewhere else."
"Why is that?" Snape asked icily.
"She is making too much noise, sir."
"I don't care where you sleep, Miss. Granger. Just get out of this office, you have done a terrible thing, I hope you learn from it." Hermione nodded and turned to go, "And Miss. Granger?"
She turned back, "Yes, Professor McGonagall?"
"You have detention for the next month. Dismissed."
-----
Twinkle was alternately clinging to Harry and pushing him away, and he could do nothing but lie there and listen to her strangled sobs and moans. Harry tensed as he heard the door open and someone pull back the curtains. He turned to yell thinking it was Hermione but when he saw Lupin sitting there, looking so sad Harry lost it as well. Lupin pulled him forward in a comforting embrace.
"She can't leave me," Harry told him.
"I know."
"She can't leave you."
"I know."
"I-I need her."
"I know."
"You need her."
"I know."
"I-I love her."
"I know. Harry it's going to be fine. Right now Snape needs to talk to you."
"No! This is his fault!"
"Not just his Harry. You need to go speak with him."
"I can't leave Crescent, alone."
"I will stay, Harry, go."
"I---" Harry sighed and leaned over to kiss twinkle on the forehead, to which she clung to him. It broke his heart that when he had to push her away, she whimpered his name so desperately. "Shh, I'll be right back. I love you."
As Harry walked to the door he turned and saw Lupin draw twinkle into his arms and burry his face in her hair. When she tried to push him away he thought he heard Lupin sob.
"Remus?"
He turned to Harry, hiding his emotions well, "Yeah?"
"She's been doing that all night. First she'll cling then push away."
Lupin nodded and Harry could see the relief in his eyes, "thank you Harry."
-----
"How is she?" Dumbledore asked Harry.
"She's trapped in her head, how would you be?"
Dumbledore nodded to Snape, "Mr. Potter, is there any reason why Miss. Black might not want to return?"
Panic swept through Harry, "Hermione said there was no risk."
"She was misinformed." Snape threw a scathing glance to the headmaster.
"I-I yelled at her. I told her I didn't care what happened.
"Why?"
"Because she promised to think about it, and maybe talk to you. Then Hermione came in and said there was no risk and Twinkle jumped at the chance."
"Well you had better find a way to tell her you do care, or she might not return."
-----
Harry raced back to the tower and stopped at the girls stair case, now that he didn't have an unconscious girl in his arms, he doubted he'd be able to get up. Deciding to make a try he ran with all his might and made it to the top of the stairs before they turned into a slide.
Making his way into the 6th year room he was shocked at what he found. Remus was sitting at the head of the bed, bleeding from scratches on his cheeks yet Twinkle was curled up on his lap, whimpering in fright.
"What happened."
"Bad memory. I'm sorry to say that Severus might be the only one to calm her down." Harry turned to go get him when Remus stopped him.
"I'll go, Harry. You stay with her, alright?"
Nodding Harry moved forward and pulled her from his arms. Remus kissed the top of her head and whispered, "come back to us, moon child," before leaving.
"Twinkle, you have to come back. I do care what happens you know. I love you. I can't do this without you. I-I need you to come back." Harry whispered in her ear, "Remus and Snape need you. God how Remus needs you. I don't think he could survive losing you."
"Mr. Potter, would you please leave us?" Snape spoke from the door way. Harry nodded and slipped from Twinkle's grasp. He turned back at the door to see Snape lower himself to the bed and stroked Twinkle's hair while murmuring soothingly.
-----
Snape sat on the bed and ran a soothing hand through Crescent's hair when she let out a whimper.
"Shh, darling," he murmured and at the sound of his voice she calmed and clung to him, "my little ladybug, come back to us."
"Daddy," she moaned clinging to him tighter and he drew a sharp breath.
"Oh, Merlin, little ladybug, please come back, I need to talk to you."
"Snape?" She asked sitting up and looking around.