DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
NOTE: This chapter contains intense violence, possibly objectionable attire, and generally depressing events. Don't claim you haven't been warned.
Harry and Ginny walked with purpose and speed. With any luck, Hermione would be waiting for them in the common room. As they approached the top of the last staircase, they heard footsteps. They were moving fast, and in their direction.
For a moment, Harry tensed and reached for his wand, but a second later, Hermione appeared around the corner, looking just as surprised as they were.
"Oh, hullo there," she said with a little discomfort. "Harry, I— I'm dreadfully sorry about last night, but— I need to talk with you. Something is going on. All the Aurors are searching the castle. I'm worried about Ron."
"We know. Harry saw something," Ginny answered, "but we don't have the Map. We were just going to fetch it from Gryffindor Tower." Hermione looked relieved.
"I was going to suggest just that."
They all walked to the portrait where the Fat Lady let them in after giving them all a suspicion and alarmed look. Once inside, Harry immediately took charge.
"Ginny, you'll have to get the map. I need my mirror. Lupin should know about this." He looked at Hermione who had hung back by the portrait hole. "Hermione, try any detection spells you know to see if there is anything strange going on." Hermione smiled and nodded.
Ginny ran lightly up the stairs while Harry went to fetch his mirror from his trunk. In a moment he was back in the common room, where Hermione was waiting for him.
She was lounging on the couch in front of a freshly started fire. She gave him an oddly relaxed smile as he walked up to her. Harry paused as he looked from her to the fire. She was sitting just as calmly as if today were just another day without any essays to write.
"Hello again, Harry," she said. "Come over here, there is something we need to talk about."
Harry walked over to the couch. "If this is about last night, you don't need to say anything—"
"Just sit," she ordered lightly. Harry sat down and gave her a questioning look.
"Is everything alright?"
"It can be."
"What do you mean—"
"Harry!" Ginny called out from the stairs. "I've got the map."
Before Harry could even look up, Hermione was already shouting back. "Thanks, Ginny. Just drop it at the foot of the stairs, and then would you run back up and find my book of detection spells? It should be in my trunk."
Ginny turned and ran back up the stairs to the girls dorm.
Ginny gave Hermione a confused look. "I guess," she said with a frown. "Don't you want to check the Map first, in case—"
"Please, Ginny?" Hermione interrupted. "We don't have much time."
Ginny frowned and nodded. She tossed the map onto a nearby table before turning and slowly climbing back up to the girls' dormitories.
"What do you need that for?"
"I don't," Hermione responded calmly. "I just needed to talk to you."
"About what?"
"Ron," she answered. She was looking into the fire with a troubled look on her face. "I just don't know what to do about him."
"He'll be fine," Harry said, trying to be reassuring. "We're going to protect him."
"Yes, I'm sure he'll be fine," Hermione said with a dismissing wave of her hand. "The problem is that I'm starting to fancy someone else, and I'm not sure how Ron will take it now."
Harry stood up and started to walk away. "Hermione, this is not the time to do this."
"Why not?" she argued. "Ron will be out of the Hospital Wing soon. I want to do this now."
"I had one of my visions, Hermione," Harry said angrily. "I think they're inside Hogwarts—"
"Don't worry about that," Hermione interrupted him. "The Dark Lord would never allow any of his servants to kill you."
"That's not what I'm worried about and you know it. What if they're here for Ron?" Harry was getting very upset with Hermione's apathetic attitude toward Ron's safety, especially after yelling at Ginny and him the previous night.
"You can't save us all, Potter," Hermione said. The corners of her mouth twitched as if caught in a battle between a frown and a smile.
Harry felt a bit odd, and at the same time a chill went down his back. His vision dimmed and he could faintly make out the shadows of a robed figure crouching against a wall. It looked to be in a tall room, or a wide hallway, all too much like the one that led to the Hospital Wing.
The intruder had gotten into the castle.
The shadows faded, despite Harry's attempts to see them clearer. He knew what he had seen. A Death Eater was inside Hogwarts. They hadn't been in the Forbidden Forest, like the Aurors said. They were much closer than that. He felt it with more certainty than he ever had before. It was different than it had been, however. The shape of the person was dimmer and blurry, as if they were hiding themselves from Harry's mind.
Harry tried to work out what that meant. They had never hidden themselves before. They'd always shown exactly what they are doing. There is something different about this time. They weren't just here to send a message. Someone was going to die.
"Hermione... Something isn't right here. We need—"
"I already checked," she interrupted with a gentle voice. "There's no one around. The first and second years are in the Great Hall."
"Are you sure?" Harry was certain that he had seen someone inside Hogwarts.
"Of course," Hermione said, sounding almost annoyed. "That's why I sent Ginny to fetch that book. It isn't even up there. I just returned it to the library. It should give us plenty of time." Hermione stood and walked to Harry. She put one hand on his shoulder.
"Time for what?" he asked warily.
Hermione rolled her eyes and sighed, "Harry..."
"Wait a minute," Harry said as he slowly backed away. He looked behind him at the stairs to the girls dorms. They were empty except for the Marauder's Map, and completely silent. "Who exactly are you starting fancy?"
"Honestly Harry. You're almost as bad as Ron," Hermione laughed.
Her eyes stared directly into Harry's as her hands nimbly worked down the front of her robes.
"Does this help?" she asked smugly.
Harry's eyes opened wide. Under her robes, Hermione was wearing nothing but her skirt. He instinctively turned and closed his eyes. Against the black of his eyelids he saw the dark figure crouching and looking out of a window. He turned back to look at Hermione. Something bad was about to happen. He didn't have time for this.
"What are you doing, Hermione?" he hissed, suddenly aware of how this would appear. "We have to go!" His mind reeled with emotions: anger at the delay, fear of the danger Ron might be in, embarrassment at Hermione's behavior, and a extra dose of terror should Ginny walk back down the stairs. He stepped farther from his best friend.
"I'm sending a message you'll understand, Harry," she said in a patronizing tone as she walked seductively toward him.
"You're not acting like yourself... Is something wrong?"
Hermione's eyes fluttered, and she faltered. She looked at Harry, and for a second he thought he saw panic in her eyes. At that moment an imaged flashed in his mind of a shadow in a large room cluttered with tables and sofas. When the vision cleared, Hermione's eyes showed only confidence and annoyance.
"I'm so tired of being who I am, always doing the proper thing, always following the rules and doing what everyone expects," she groaned. "Ron was fine for a while, but he is so dull. And honestly, Harry, he's not going anywhere. Is it so strange that I might change my mind?" she asked in a solicitous tone.
"Yes, actually," Harry replied. "Her—"
Hermione smiled and with a quick movement, her robes fell to the ground and pooled around her feet. Harry retreated as he tried to look away while still keeping an eye on her. What was he supposed to do? Why was this happening now? There was something wrong about all of this.
"H-Hermione, you're acting a bit off. Quite a bit, really."
"Oh, what's wrong, Harry?" she asked, almost taunting him. "All these years we've been around each other, and you've never wondered? You've never had any dreams about me?"
Harry suddenly noticed the table near the portrait hole. The alarm bell they had set was covered. The covering looked to be a girl's shirt.
"Hermione," Harry asked in a purposefully calm voice, "why is the bell covered?"
"It annoyed me," she replied testily. "What is wrong, Harry? What more do I have to do?" She seemed impatient and kept looking around the room, though her breathing seemed erratic and shallow.
She shook her head. "Perhaps you are worse than Ron." Harry's eyes closed instinctively as Hermione's skirt dropped to the floor. He felt a moment of intense discomfort. If Ron were his brother, then Hermione was his sister. It wasn't right. He wanted to run out of the common room, but some deeper instinct told him that he needed to keep an eye on Hermione. Cautiously, he opened his eyes, glad that Hermione was still wearing her nickers. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus completely on her face.
She smiled and gave him a defiant look. Harry had almost convinced himself that this was some nightmare when Hermione's expression broke for just an instant, letting a single tear fall from her eyes.
The realization hit him. Hermione really wasn't herself. She wasn't even in control.
"Who's doing this?" he shouted. "Where are they, Hermione?"
"No one's— They—" She stumbled over her own words. Her eyes were growing redder as a pair of tears fell from her eyes. Her expression kept changing between sorrow, fear, bewilderment, and anger. Harry was suddenly assaulted by flashes of images of a hazy shadow with a raised wand.
Before the image cleared, he heard Hermione speaking with a clear voice again:
"No one else is here, Harry. I've wanted this for some time. I've been waiting for just this moment. We're all alone —for now."
Hermione walked to her robes and kneeled down to rummage through them. When she stood up again, she was staring at him oddly. For a moment, he was confused, then Hermione's face changed. Her lips were pulled into a cruel smile and her eyes glared maliciously at him. Harry tore his eyes from her face, only to find her wand out and pointed directly at him.
"Hermione, no!" he yelled as he reached for his wand. He had it out of his pocket when he heard Hermione's commanding voice.
"Abiego!"
Harry felt the spell strike him in the chest and he was thrown onto the couch. He was dazed, short of breath and his wand had been thrown from his grip and lay on the floor nearby. Hermione wasted no time in jumping on his lap and pinning him to the couch with more strength than he knew she had. Her wand was poking into his neck under his jaw, and Harry panicked at the thought of another Banishing Charm.
"No—"
"Silencio!"
He tried to shout, but he couldn't. Hermione gave a fiendish grin and immediately pressed her lips against Harry's. Harry tried fighting back, but between Hermione's abnormal strength and his own shock, his struggles accomplished nothing.
Then he heard a sound that stopped his heart beating. He heard the portrait opening and the footsteps of someone walking into the common room. His eyes shot open, and he saw Hermione's face, showing a mockery of innocent surprise. Harry couldn't see who it was, but he knew by the offset rhythm of steps that whoever it was was limping.
"Harry?" the newcomer called out. Harry's stomach froze at the sound of Ron's voice. His footsteps were cut short. "Hermione! What—"
Hermione turned her head to look at Ron. "Excuse us, Ron. We were in the middle of something."
Ron was furious and yet dumbstruck. His mouth moved as soundlessly as Harry's at first, though unlike Harry, he quickly found his voice.
"Hermione— Harry?" he said in a pained voice, "H-How... How could you?" His face was getting quite red, and it was apparent that his momentary sadness was returning to anger.
Hermione gave him an indifferent look. "Sorry mate," she said spitefully. "I just couldn't live with second best anymore." With that she leaned forward and kissed Harry more passionately than before.
Harry was disgusted, but Hermione was no longer paying attention to him and he easily shoved her off him. He had been expecting her to resist more than she had, but he found none of the unnatural strength she'd used to pin him to the couch. Hermione landed on the floor hard with yelp of pain. Her body curled up, hiding her face from Ron as she whimpered pitifully and smiled at Harry.
"How dare you, Harry! Incarcerous!", Ron shouted, and ropes immediately bound Harry from his shoulders to his knees. He then turned to Hermione. "What— Why?" he asked, with his wand trained on her now instead.
"We were just kissing— Well, we only got that far before you interrupted us," Hermione said as she gingerly stood up and held her arms across her chest. "It's your fault, really. You spent all your time with him, trying to keep him away from Ginny. Then you foolishly tried to save all the those students and ended up in Hospital Wing. After a few nights waiting for you to wake up, we finally realized our feelings for each other.
Ron's anger flashed in his eyes and a pair of books that were on the desk near him leapt into the air and flew at Harry. One struck the couch, but the other hit him in the chest. Hermione let out a short laugh and then looked at Ron in disbelief.
"Honestly, Ronald, did you think I'd pick you, if I could have Harry?"
Harry had been concentrating on his wand, and with a burst of will it jumped into his restrained hand. Hermione was facing away from him. What could he do to make Ron understand? Across the room, he saw the heap of white fabric that had been Hermione's shirt. She'd disabled the alarm. Why? There must be a reason. He clumsily pointed his want toward the bell, hoping that if he summoned the shirt it would raise the alarm.
Without turning around, Hermione's arm shot out and jabbed her wand at the table. "Reducto!" she shouted, and the bell shattered with a dull ring, shredding the shirt on top of it. Ron turned to stare at the remains, but Hermione acted as if nothing at all had happened.
"I mean, he's Harry Potter, and you're just another poor Weasley." she said. "Even Fred or George would have been a better choice. At least they have money." A smile spread across her face. "Oh, I'm sure Harry had his fun with Ginny, but how long did you think that would last? He's done with her and now someone better has come along."
Hermione held her arms out to both sides and walked toward Ron. "Take a good look, Ron Weasley. It isn't likely you'll get this chance again."
The sound of a muffled gasp came from the stairs and everyone turned to see Ginny standing on the final step with utter despair written across her face. "Harry?" her voice wavered. "It's not... She's—"
Harry pointed his wand at his mouth, hoped nothing would go wrong, and tried to remove the Silencing Charm. There was a tingle in his throat, and he didn't seem to be in pain.
"Run, Ginny!" Harry yelled suddenly surprising himself and Hermione, "They're here! Go! It's a trap!"
Ginny's eyes widened and she turned and bolted up the stairs. Only seconds later, the stairs shifted to become the smooth slide they had seen the year before. Harry sighed in relief. It was the first thing that had gone right today.
Harry could see the realization creeping into Ron's mind. Ron started edging closer to him. "Harry... What's going on?"
Harry struggled against the ropes. "I think— I think she's being controlled somehow," he said as he tried to free his hand. "Hermione, you can fight this!"
Hermione strode back over to pick up her robes and cover herself. She leaned over Harry. "Why?" she said to his face. "Why would I fight this? So I can end up without a Knut, stuck in that shack of a house with him and that tramp sister of his and whoever she's brought home that week?"
Harry stared back at her, with his own anger boiling up inside him. He didn't fight it. He could use it if he could control it. "Someone else is in the room, Ron," he called out. "He's controlling her."
Ron walked cautiously toward Hermione. "Fight it, Hermione. You don't have to do what he says." He clutched her shoulder, hoping it might help her.
As soon has his hand touched her, she lurched toward him and grabbed his arm for support.
"...Much harder..." she whispered. "It's— Not like... It's so much harder to fight..." she trailed off as tears ran down her cheeks. She looked into Ron's eyes and shook with the strain. "It's so much harder to fight when it's something you ... already want."
Ron let go of her and backed away as if she had slapped him.
"Don't listen to her, Ron!" Harry yelled, as he pointed his wand toward his chest. "It isn't her!"
He closed his eyes and shouted, "Difindo!" The ropes split at his chest and fell loose around him as he stood up. Ron was backing away from Hermione and she was pulling her arms through her robes as she pursued him.
"Whenever you look at me, Ronald Weasley, remember this: Remember that it was Harry in my dreams, not you. Remember that it was Harry on the couch with me, not you. Remember that I did this for him, not you. And most of all, remember that he was the one who made it all happen."
Hermione leveled her wand, "Incarcerous! Abiego!"
Ron was sent flying to the wall with ropes wrapped tightly around him. His wand was nowhere to be seen.
Hermione wheeled to look at Harry, who she found pointing his wand at her. Her robes were unfastened, but mostly covering her. With a smile and innocent look on her face, she leisurely walked toward Harry.
"Harry. You wouldn't attack me? There are other things we can do..."
"I don't think so. It's your turn. Incarcerous!"
"Abrumpo!", Hermione shouted in return, her face breaking into a grimace.
With a sound like ripping fabric and a thick, fibrous cloud, the ropes from Harry's wand shredded themselves before they reached Hermione. As the bits of rope fell to the ground, Harry saw Hermione standing still, wand raised and eyes full of angry determination.
Harry started circling Hermione, his wand out, waiting for any hint of an attack. He was feeling a sensation very much like the one he had before he and Ginny had dueled, only this time it was real.
"Oh, yes," Hermione said as she smile. 'Harry Potter, the great duelist. You stood against the Dark Lord and won a draw, yet you were afraid to fight me." Hermione casually circled him as well. "Admit it, part of you has always wanted this. You've always wondered, haven't you? How would Harry Potter fare against the cleverest witch in Hogwarts? It will be quite a show, I'm certain. I'm sure Weasley will enjoy it. Perhaps your red-haired harlot will join us."
"Expelliarmus!" Harry shouted, hoping to catch her unprepared. However, the spell missed her by inches.
"Well done!" Hermione laughed. "You aren't distracted, are you Potter? What will Weasley think?" Her voice was full of derision, but her eyes were filled with unshed tears.
"You can't win here," Harry replied, "and you can't kill me."
"That is not my task." Hermione's voice was hard and full of malice. She raised her wand and stared into Harry's eyes.
"Leave now!" he shouted. "Whatever Voldemort ordered you to do, I won't allow it."
"I truly hope so," Hermione replied as her wand slashed downward quickly.
Harry felt a sharp pain in his head as a chair which had been levitating over him crashed down upon him. He pointed his wand at Hermione, but hesitated. He couldn't hurt her.
Hermione shouted, "Morso!"
A sharp pain clamped down on his arm causing him to drop his wand. It did not linger, but the pain was intense. He yelled to the ceiling, "Is this how Tom Riddle shows his power? By using a Muggle-born witch to fight for him? He truly is a half-blood coward!" He reached for his wand and it jumped from the floor into his grasp.
With a scream, Hermione leapt forward and made a quick slashing motion with her wand. Harry put up his shield but the force of the strike was powerful enough to throw him against the legs of a large nearby table.
He slid under the table. "You wouldn't want to kill me. Your master would be quite upset." His head was still ringing from its collision with the wood.
"You're not the one I'm here to kill," echoed Hermione's response. "Reducto!"
He dove away as the table he'd been under exploded into splinters. He focused as much as he could, and quickly jabbed his wand toward Hermione.
"Rictusempra!"
Surprisingly, the spell struck Hermione, and knocked her off her feet, sending her into a stack of wooden chairs along the wall. Her landing was a bit more violent than Harry had intended. He quickly got to his feet and walked toward the tumbled chairs, hoping to see Hermione incapacitated with laughter.
Instead, she was pale and stiff. The sleeve of her robes was torn away where there was a deep cut along her shoulder. A thick red trail of blood was running the length of her arm. As she stood up, Harry felt his stomach clench. One of the smaller chair legs had snapped, and half of it was jutting out of Hermione's side, just below her ribs. She stumbled for a moment, then wrenched the piece of wood out of her side. It was bleeding freely but she ignored it. While Harry watched in amazement, she leveled her wand again.
"Fractus!"
Harry again put up his shield, and the curse bounced off and struck a chair, snapping a leg clean off it. He looked at Hermione and could see her trying to fight against the control she was under.
"I don't want to fight you," he told her.
She sneered back at him, "If you don't, Weasley will die."
Harry quickly tried to cast the full body bind on her, but she put up a shield even faster, and then aimed a curse back at him.
"Incendio!"
Harry jumped behind a chair, which burst into flames immediately. He quickly kicked it away from himself and toward Hermione. He had to find a way of stopping her, but he was having trouble thinking of ways to do that without hurting her. He tried to remember all the charms and hexes Hermione had taught him, hoping he could think of something that would stun her or put to sleep from a safe distance.
"Stupefy!" he shouted, but Hermione simply dodged it, and sent a candlestick flying toward Harry. It glanced off his shoulder sending spikes of pain up his neck and down his arm, nearly making him drop his wand again. As he dodged another curse, Harry decided that Hermione would agree that he had to stop her, even if it meant hurting her.
He pointed at a nearby chair and sent it flying toward Hermione. She seemed to ignore it right up to the moment it slammed into her and knocked her back into the wreckage of the other chairs. Ron cried out from across the room, and Harry turned to look at him.
Hermione saw the opening and leapt out of the chairs and started purposefully walking away with a hideous scowl on her face. As she walked she directed the chairs to launch themselves at Harry one at a time.
Harry ducked the first one, and managed to deflect the second, but the third slammed into his side. He felt a sharp, searing pain spread across his left side. As he turned, a fourth chair struck him in the back, dropping him to the floor. He quickly rolled away, and sat up in time to see Hermione walking toward him.
Her wand was already raised, and before he could move, a beam of read light lanced through the air. Harry was already shouting "Protego!".
Harry winced as he watched the beam of light suddenly pool in front of him and then shoot back across the room toward Hermione. It struck her in the thigh, and her legs were yanked out from under her, throwing her down to the floor onto her face.
Almost immediately, she got back up, with blood trickling from her nose and lip. With a flick of her wand, a splinter from one of the broken chairs stabbed into Harry's leg. Harry cried out in pain, and ripped the sharp piece of wood from his leg. It bled, but didn't hurt nearly as much as it had when the splinter had been there.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" she sneered. "Not bad, Potter, but you'll never win if you only play to tie."
"Expelliarmus!"
Harry hoped to catch her off her guard. The pain in his leg was intense, and he immediately realized that he hadn't been very careful with the spell. Hermione was tossed backward, her shoulders and head striking the back of the couch. She slumped against the couch and tried to stand up, but stumbled. She reached toward her wand, trying to summon it. Harry climbed to his feet and leveled his wand again.
"Ledus!"
A beam of silvery sparks jumped through the space between them and struck Hermione in the upper arm. There was a faint crack, followed by a short horrifying silence, and then a tortured scream. Hermione fell limp, sobbing.
"Harry..." she whispered between gasps, "...so sorry..." Her eyes blinked a few times as she sobbed, and then glazed over again. To Harry's surprise, she slowly crawled back onto her feet. Her broken arm shot out and her wand leapt to her hand.
"Iaculo!"
Harry automatically responded: "Protego!"
He felt a sharp burn on his right arm, but Hermione's left arm was bleeding steadily from a deep puncture just below her shoulder. She shakily pointed her wand at Harry again. He noticed that she was looking paler and weaker.
"Make your choice, Harry."
Suddenly a red beam shot toward him and he jumped aside, but was now pinned against a wall.
"Fractus!"
Harry put up a shield, and felt the curse bounce off it. He was rewarded with an echoing crack and pained scream as Hermione's leg gave out from under her. She fell to a kneeling position gasping in pain, but kept casting spells. Harry dodged a few books, and blocked another Breaking Hex but Hermione was pushing him back into a corner and he was running out of room.
"Difindo!"
He blocked it, but it rebounded and a fresh cut appeared across her stomach sending drops of blood falling to the floor. Hermione's mouth opened in a silent scream which eventually became a rasping moan. She seemed to stumble a bit, and her wand shook in her hand. She was almost close enough for Harry to grab her wand. With each hex, she got just a little closer. After one more, he could take her wand and end this. Just as he hoped, Hermione composed herself and raised her wand again. One last hex, he told himself, as he focused on Hermione's mouth.
"Protego!" he shouted as her mouth opened to cast another spell. The incantation, however, never came.
Hermione had stopped casting her spell. Harry scolded himself for acting too quickly, but it seemed to have worked. Hermione hadn't cast her spell. Perhaps he could just stall until help arrived.
That hope was quickly destroyed, when he failed to see any reluctance in Hermione's face. Instead, with steady resolve, she stepped closer to Harry and raised her wand to point directly in front of her.
"Hermione! What are you doing?" Ron yelled.
Hermione just ignored him. She closed her eyes, and took two deep breaths. When her eyes opened, they were filled with malevolence and concentrating intently on the tip of her wand.
Ron shouted from his corner, "Don't do it, he's got a shield—"
"Abiego!"
The hex rebounded almost instantaneously and sent her flying backwards. She hit a chair and a table before slamming against the back of one of the larger chairs near the fireplace. She crawled to her wand, gasping for air, and coughing blood.
"Harry, you're killing her!" Ron shouted.
Hermione struggled to stand. She was smiling, but her teeth were stained pink with blood which continued down her chin to her chest. He could tell that she was struggling to breathe, and her hands had already started to turn a sickly bluish color. With a shudder, the realization hit Harry. Ron wasn't the target. Hermione was. Voldemort wanted her to die fighting Harry. Harry lowered his wand.
"No. No more. I won't do it."
"It doesn't matter," she said with a hoarse laugh. "If you don't kill me, the Aurors will." She sent another chair sailing toward Harry. He ducked, and it only glanced off his shoulder, knocking him to the ground. He slowly pushed himself up.
"Iaculo!" Hermione shouted.
Harry felt a pain as if a burning hot knife had pierced his left shoulder. He dropped back to the ground. He could feel the warmth of his blood flowing down his arm and back, and as he raised himself up to kneel he could see a large crimson stain on the rug in front of him.
"What will the Aurors do..." she paused to pull another wheezing breath. "...What will they do when they come through that door... and find me standing over Harry Potter in a pool of blood?"
Hermione pointed her wand at Harry's chest. Harry knew she was too close. If he tried to block it, it would hit her. She couldn't take much more. He reminded himself that Voldemort would never let anyone else kill him, and closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable.
"Iaculo!"
Excruciating pain ripped through his upper chest. It was blinding and consuming. He dropped his wand, and fell back to the ground, trying to find some way to force himself to breathe.
Hermione stood over him. She was freely crying now, but it didn't stop her. "No..." she whispered as a stool slammed into Harry's head, and he closed his eyes against the red flashes of pain in his head.
"...Stop...please..."
Harry felt a hot pain envelop his right arm. It was burning, quite literally. He rolled over violently, hoping to smother whatever flames there might be, and praying that it might reduce the pain.
"It's not... much longer..." she said haltingly. "The Aurors..."
Harry's whole body hurt. The pain in his arm was more bearable now, but it still felt like it was on fire. So did his lungs and he was distinctly aware that the warm liquid between the floor and his cheek was his own blood. He forced himself to turn onto his side. His wand wasn't far away, but he couldn't reach it. His shoulder wouldn't work properly, and his right arm was completely useless.
Ron wasn't far. Maybe he could help. Ron, however, wasn't looking at him. His eyes were focused on Hermione. She had shuffled over to stand in front of him. Harry watched in horror as Hermione raised her wand again. He tried to shout —to say anything— but all he could do was gasp for air.
"Remember this, Ronald Weasley," she croaked. She tugged her robes open again. "Take a good look, and remember... Remember that this was for Harry. He was my choice. He was the cause, and he was the reason." Hermione raised her wand and pointed it at the center of her chest.
"No, Hermione, you can fight this..."
"What's the point in fighting?" Hermione said weakly. "He's going to die..." Hermione gave a single coughing sob. Hermione stared pleadingly at the wand in her hand, as if she were going to beg it to spare her.
The wand slowly inched toward her chest, until it poked into her skin. Her jaw opened and closed silently. She was trying to say something. "I l—", she started but choked. "I love—" she tried again, as her wand jabbed cruelly into her chest. "I—I loved... him."
Hermione sobbed and closed her eyes.
"Macula Exosus"
Her wand blazed with a orange light and a dark lighting bolt scar was etched down the center of her chest. She collapsed limply onto the ground arching her back in agony and gasping for air. She threw her head back, and let out a weak, piteous wail.
Harry watched as she slowly stopped moving. He couldn't even cry out. His muscles didn't obey him anymore. They seemed to be reaching for his wand, but he couldn't remember why.
He closed his eyes and felt warm. Not the burning of his arm, or the aching of his chest, or the sharp tearing pain in his shoulder, but a pleasant warmth. It was almost relaxing. When he looked up. He saw Hermione moving. Was this a dream? Slowly, Hermione climbed back to her feet. Maybe she would come over and help him. She'd always been there for him when he was hurt.
But she didn't walk to him. Instead she ambled forward, and aimed her wand directly at Ron's forehead. Harry watched passively as the color drained from Ron's face.
"You have to fight it, Hermione," he said. "You don't want this."
"Don't worry, Ron," she said shakily. "You'll live to see tomorrow. But before then, know this: I will die not because of Harry, but because of you. This is your punishment for being Harry Potter's friend. You finally get your wish. Many people have died to punish him, but I'll die to punish you." Ron's eyes closed, as the point of Hermione's wand touched the skin in the middle of his forehead. She was pale and trembled uncontrollably.
"Please, try to... forget... forgive..." she mumbled as her hand wavered and shook. "I'm so... so sorry."
Harry couldn't hear what she said, but he saw the flash of orange light, and heard Ron's shout of pain. Ron's head slumped forward, and Hermione stumbled and fell to her knees, causing her to scream in pain yet again. Harry watched passively as she stumbled back over to where he lay on the floor. He was still reaching for his wand, but it was hopelessly far away. Why won't it come to me? Harry thought, Am I all out of magic? Can you run out?
Hermione stood over Harry, and without warning, he saw a flash of light and felt the bones in his lower leg snap. He heard his own cries mixing with a pair of screams. For a moment, Hermione seemed to falter.
"...No... No more..." she whimpered as she unsuccessfully tried to stop herself from raising her wand.
Harry closed his eyes, and waited for the next curse.
"Stupefy!"
Harry's eyes blinked open. It hadn't been Hermione's voice.
There was a loud thud and Harry's eyes saw half of a robed figure slumping against the wall, not far from Ron. He heard the sound of another cloak falling to the ground, and saw a swirl of flaming red hair as Ginny ran toward the figure. The stairs to the girls' dormitories were stairs again, and Ginny was still clutching the Marauder's Map in her left hand. She bent over the cloaked man, then stood up and kicked the intruder viciously. Harry heard Hermione's wand fall to the floor next to him. A second later, Hermione dropped to the ground as well. Harry could hear her rough, gurgling breathing.
It was over.
He tried to feel relieved, but found that he wasn't sure what he felt anymore. Was he supposed to be happy? Why didn't he have his wand? Everything would be okay, if he could just find his wand. He'd had it this morning. The room was getting darker and colder. Why couldn't it stay warm? It was nicer when it was warm. Was it night already? Maybe he should just go to sleep. He could find his wand tomorrow morning.
Ginny walked over to where Harry and Hermione lay on the ground. Harry was reaching uselessly for his wand, which was at least four feet from his hand. Hermione held an arm across her stomach, covering the both the long cut, and the larger wound in her side. The tears had stopped, and as she struggled to breathe, she stared up at Ginny, shaking her head.
"I'm sorry..." she said. Her lips were covered in blood. "It wasn't... wasn't true... lies..."
"I know," Ginny said simply. Hermione nodded and took a huge gasping breath. Ginny bent down to pull Hermione's robes close around her, covering her new scar.
Ginny walked around to Harry's head and sat down next to him. She didn't say anything. She just took Harry's torn robes and covered him in them and tried to wipe the blood from his face. She reached for his wand and handed it to him.
"Ginny!" Ron called weakly. "Help... Help cut me out of this." When Ginny remained silent he called out to her again. "Ginny?"
But she wasn't listening. Ginny just stared at Harry and Hermione. She folded a large piece of parchment and put it in the pockets of her robes.
"The Aurors are almost here." There was little life left in her voice.
Ron sat helpless in the corner, an unwilling observer of the ruin before him. Hermione lay writhing on the floor. She was bloody and broken, breathing in erratic gasps against the pain. Harry was sprawled nearby in a growing pool of blood. He held his right arm to his chest, trying to protect it. His mouth moved soundlessly in agony as he clutched his wand tightly in his left hand. Next to him, Ginny sat nearly catatonic, with her knees drawn up to her chest, her hands clutching her own wand, and the wand of the attacker.
Ron sat motionless in the corner. His friends, his family, and the girl he cared for so much were suffering, and there was nothing he could do about it. The new scar on his forehead burned sharply. He tried to forget the things he'd seen and heard. He tried to tell himself they weren't true. He looked to where Harry lay nearly lifeless on the floor. Harry looked back at him and tried to say something, but instead his eyes rolled back in his head as his eyelids closed. Ginny sobbed and pounced on Harry, making him stay awake.
Hermione's breathing was getting shallower. She had stopped shaking, and was now lying almost completely still on the floor near Harry. Her words echoed in Ron's mind. He could tell himself that it had all been lies. All of it except one part. She'd been hurt because someone knew it would hurt him.
This is what it was like to be Harry Potter.
"They'll be alright, Ginny. I know they will."
Author's Notes:
Well. Not much to say about this chapter. I'll just sit and wait for the responses.
For those of you who've wondered if Hermione's been under an Imperius Curse for some time, the answer is still no. She obviously was during this chapter, but if I told you at which point it changed, I'd ruin my only fun secret that I have left ... well, I guess I still have the ending. No one would ever (ever, ever, ever) guess that.
I do also have to thank rdprice29 for her excellent advice on this chapter. Because she was nice and talked to me, she got to see the chapter early and provided me with some great feedback, which helped in making this chapter even more effective. I really can't express how much I appreciated it.
If any of you have questions about the chapter, or story in general, feel free to email me. I'll probably answer your questions.
Next, I was going to share something humorous: I got my first negative review. Some guy was upset because the story includes a relationship between Harry and Ginny. He thought it was good so he kept reading, but eventually it was just too much for him and he gave up. He wanted me to kill Ginny or at least hurt her somehow. I can't say he sounded terribly intelligent, but everyone is allowed their opinions, right? Well, he quit at chapter 11. Ironic. If he would have just stuck with it a bit longer...
Now: A teaser for the next chapter:
"When will it get better, Harry?" Hermione replied. "In a month? Two months? Will we still be alive then?" Hermione's voice was edged with a little desperation. "I can't tell if he's angry at me or himself, but it's killing me. I can see it in his eyes when he looks at me: the guilt, the shame, the fear... and the same look he gave me when I gave him that horrible scar."
"That wasn't you--"
"It /was/ me, Harry," she said sharply. "I remember it all. I just didn't fight it hard enough, and he knew that I wouldn't. He knew that I was too weak to stop it. How could he know? How did he know just what it would take? How can we fight that? And now..." Hermione's voice trailed off into a number of faint sobs.
And thus do we get to the real teaser. The next chapter is the death of my last real mystery. I'll be sad to let it go. Lots of people have been asking the right questions and not realizing that all of them are related:
How did Dolohov know Hermione couldn't resist the Imperius Curse? How does Voldemort know what's been going on? How did he know about Harry's necklace?
Of course, no one's asked the bigger question: Why did I pick that for the title of the story?
See you next chapter.