Chapter 5

Meanwhile in the small, cozy room on the second storey of the Granger residence, their only daughter was sleeping fitfully fighting against the many dreams that invaded its peace. Finally giving up, Hermione Granger threw off her blankets and got out off bed, heading for the kitchen. Silently, so as not to awaken her parents, she drank a glass of water and returned to her bedroom.

But she still could not get back to sleep. Huddled in bed, under the warmth of the blankets, Hermione tried to close her eyes and willed herself to feel safe, happy and assured. But, no matter how hard she tried to convince herself that everything was alright, she could not help feeling a strange, revolting sense of dread that seemed to sprout from the pits of her stomach and reach her throat. But, that was up to the limit it reached. Somehow, she was unable to pinpoint exactly what was wrong or what was worrying her.

It had been like this since she had returned from Hogwarts after her fifth year there. The incident at the Department of Mysteries had bothered her more than what she could gauge as a natural reaction. She had been shocked at first and had been in a dreamlike state. She, Hermione Granger, Hogwarts brains and the voice of reason of the Trio, had been simply stumped and shocked by what had happened. She was the one who was supposed to be convincing Harry that Sirius was going to be alright. She was who was supposed to be hunting down books and digging out ways and means to save Sirius.

Yet, she had been able to do none of that. Seeing Sirius in that weak, helpless state made her feel small and insecure. "Yes, that is it. That is how I feel. Small and insecure. But, why? Oh God, why?" she moaned to herself. Sirius was Harry's godfather and only hope of a real family. Harry's reaction and feelings towards Sirius current state was thus perfectly understandable. On the other hand, Sirius was not actually related to her in any way. Her connection to him was through Harry. Over the two years that she had known him, she had grown to love him as a friend and was even in awe of him. She had yet to meet someone else who held the same fierce loyalty as Sirius. That was the thing that she most admired in him. His loyalty. But there was more. His still apparent boyish mischief, great sense of humour, and sharp intellect coupled with his sullenness when it came to old "enemies". He was all these and more. Hermione found all these qualities made him an endearing man – yes, that was Sirius. Simply a human but a most lovable human with all his faults.

Hermione didn't care what Snape thought about Sirius or even James Potter. Harry had told her about what he had witnessed in his pensieve. Snape could fool Harry with his tale about how he was a pitiful victim of the "cruel" duo. But Hermione knew better. Snape had been no saint himself. The things that the Marauders did to him were tit-for-tat actions for Slytherin pranks on the Gryffindors. Snape, along with Lucius Malfoy and some others, had also pulled merciless pranks on the more timid Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws and even on some Gryffindors . She had heard stories about them from Hagrid and Peeves. They would engage in the very same activities that Draco Malfoy did with Crabbe and Goyle. Taunting Muggle-borns, playing sadistic tricks on the more vulnerable students. Oh, no! Snape was just using that one incident to justify his grudge against the Marauders. Snape had been fascinated by the Dark Arts, fascinated enough to have joined Voldemort. If he had realized the grave error in his decision and had turned against the Dark Wizards, Hermione was polite and honest enough to acknowledge and applaud his bravery. But that did not give Snape the right to chastise others or make them sound evil and cruel, over something as silly as a childish prank.

James Potter and Sirius Black might have carried their mischief too far at times but they had grown up to be men worthy of love and trust. There were people who wished to keep James Potter's memory sacred and honoured. It was a reasonable desire and Snape's insistence on dishonouring it every chance he got at the very least infuriated Hermione. It was her reverence for school and teachers that kept her from lashing out at Snape.

Hermione sighed in frustration. "There has to be a way. A way to save Sirius and clear his name. And I will do anything to help Harry figure it out", Hermione promised herself silently. She didn't know why it was so important to her but it just was.