The Riddle of Jim Lillian
Part Two: Hermione's Tale
Standard 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.
WARNING: Major Character Deaths and harsh language
Part Two Summary: Hermione tells her side of the final battle and how she lost the love of her life.
5th June, 1998 Late afternoon:
"Miss Granger?"
The office remained deathly silent, even though there had never been so many people crammed into the oval room. Minerva McGonagall sat behind the Headmaster's desk and The Minister of Magic, Amelia Bones, sat to her right. Scattered throughout the room were Remus Lupin (looking as if he were about to collapse), Tonks, Arthur Weasley, Hagrid (who was continually wiping his eyes with a handkerchief the size of a tablecloth), and numerous faceless witches and wizards.
"Miss Granger?" Minister Bones repeated herself to no avail. The young woman sitting on the opposite side of the desk stared off into space. The only color on her face was her red eyes. Her bushy brown hair was more wild and unkempt than ever. The Minister continued in a kind and compassionate voice, "Miss Granger, I am sorry for your loss, but we need to know what happened today."
Her red-raw eyes kept looking past Bones as if she wasn't there. The Minister looked to her left at the new Headmistress for help. McGonagall nodded.
"Miss Granger," McGonagall said in a tone that sounded as if she was going to ask Hermione a question in class about the theory behind some spell.
"Yes, Professor?" Hermione answered in a dead, emotionless voice while she continued to stare at nothing.
"Hermione, dear, we need to know what happened," McGonagall said. Hermione responded to her in a dead voice,
"Voldemort killed Harry." A collective shudder ran through the people assembled in the office, save for Remus. While the strong ones like Bones and McGonagall made no sound when they flinched, the rest gasped aloud.
A fire ignited behind Hermione's eyes. She slowly stood, and the room became cold, filling with the presence of Hermione's aura.
"How dare you!" Hermione scolded them. She turned and faced each one of them. "The man I love gave his life to protect you from that monster! He died so that you could all live in peace. And yet you still cling to that childish fear of his name?"
She leveled her icy glare at Arthur Weasley.
"VOLDEMORT!" she shouted at him, and he winced. She turned to the Minister. "VOLDEMORT!"
Hermione fell back into her chair and sobbed as the adults hung their heads in shame. Her cries echoed through the otherwise silent room for what seemed like minutes. Arthur's face was buried in his hands when he felt a trembling hand touch his arm. He looked up into Hermione's tear-stained face.
"I'm… I'm sorry Mr. Weasley," she hiccupped. "I had no right to speak to you in such a manner."
Arthur cupped the young woman's face in his hands.
"You have every right. Because you are right," he said through his tears. "V‑V‑Voldemort and his minions have taken the life of my... my Ron and Harry, and so many others. We dishonor their sacrifice with our fear."
The door to the office opened, and Kingsley Shacklebolt walked in and up to Hermione. He pulled a wand out of his robes and handed it to her.
"Hermione, we found your wand…" Kingsley paused and put a reassuring hand on Arthur's shoulder. "We found it under Ron's body."
Hermione clung to the wand as if it was her lifeline.
"It's a miracle it wasn't snapped," Kingsley finished.
Hermione uttered a quiet, "Thank you."
"Please Hermione, can you tell us what happened?" Minister Bones asked. "Do you know why You-Kno... Voldemort attacked?"
"I think he found out the entire prophesy," Hermione replied. She noticed the Minister's puzzled look. "The prophesy that led Voldemort to try and kill Harry when he was a baby. Only a few of us knew it in its entirety."
"And you know it?" McGonagall asked in shock. She knew only part of the prophesy and thought it had been lost two years ago. "The whole prophesy?"
"Yes," she replied as she fell back into her emotionless voice. "Trelawney made it before Harry was born. It was told to Dumbledore in the Hog's Head. I suppose I can tell you all of it now seeing that it has been fulfilled…
"'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches ... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies ... And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not ... And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives ... The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies...'"
After a few stunned moments McGonagall spoke up, "That poor boy…"
"Of course it's all bullshit," Hermione stated flatly. McGonagall was taken back by her use of language. "The prophesy is bullshit. It said that 'neither can live while the other survives.' Seeing that they are both dead, it obviously wasn't true. Voldemort hunted Harry down, killing everyone close to him, just because some sauced-up cunt uttered nonsense about 'the power to vanquish' in a pub. Harry's life ended up as a nightmare for no reason.
"Somehow, Voldemort found out the contents of the whole thing and decided to act straight away," she continued. "Previously, the only thing holding him back from an all-out attack was his fear of Dumbledore and the prophesy about Harry. For all Voldemort knew, the prophesy could've said 'The One will kill the Dark Lord with his thoughts,' or some nonsense.
"Dumbledore was just as powerful as Voldemort, but much older, so he probably wouldn't have had the endurance to take on Voldemort and his Death Eaters for long. And Voldemort didn't know the full prophesy about Harry. But since the prophesy stated that 'either must die at the hand of the other' Voldemort didn't have to worry about that. The only problem that remained was Harry's wand; he wouldn't be able to duel with him because of it."
"Excuse me?" Bones interrupted.
"Harry and Voldemort had brother wands," McGonagall explained. "Their cores came from the same source, so whenever they would duel, Prior Incantato would basically cancel whatever spell each would attempt."
"So he apparently came up with a plan to destroy Harry's wand," Hermione continued in her dead voice. "But the problem was to get Harry away from his wand…"
4th June, 1998
The castle was eerily quiet. Normally the rooms and corridors were filled with hundreds of students. After term ended and the summer holiday started, only five students remained: Ginny, Ron, Neville, Harry, and Hermione. The five of them, plus Luna (she and her father went on an expedition to find Crumple-Horned Snorkacks in the Bahamas, or someplace like that, Hermione hadn't really paid too much attention), had become favorite targets for Voldemort and his Death Eaters. And seeing that four of them were going to be returning to Hogwarts in less than a week for their commencement ceremonies, Dumbledore decided to have all five of them remain, rather than risk their safety. Hogwarts was the safest place in the world after all.
It was a lovely summer day when they all decided to go outside and play a game of Quidditch, "they all" meaning Ron, Ginny and Harry. The three Quidditch fanatics talked Neville into joining, but Hermione was content reading a book from the viewing stands.
The teams were "The Weasleys," which obviously meant Ron and Ginny, and "The Prophesy Boys," an "in-joke" mocking the fact that Neville could have been the one mentioned in the prophesy instead of Harry. Neville was doing surprisingly well seeing that he could barely hold onto the broom. Neville had just scored his second unassisted goal, which was odd seeing that Ron was usually a "wall" when it came to blocking. Apparently Ron had a lot on his mind.
Hermione didn't even look up as she heard Neville's triumphant shout and Ginny's groan. She was quite happy reading, thank you very much. Her nose was buried in "Ridiculously Advanced Transfigurations: How to Transfigure the Untransfigurable" by Wilma Q. Shenker when she felt him watching her.
She grinned and felt a blush creep up her cheeks, as she knew he was just hovering a few feet away with a goofy grin. Hermione then heard Ginny's cry of joy and Neville's defeated groan to signify that the red-haired witch had just scored.
Hermione slowly looked up from her book to see the predicted goofy grin plastered on Harry's face. She unconsciously brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
"Hey, Boy-Who-Can't-Pay-Attention!" Ginny shouted, teasing Harry's moniker. She threw the Quaffle over Harry's head. "It's your turn!" Everyone followed Harry as he shot after the soaring ball.
Then she felt it, they all felt it, an invisible curse or hex being cast in Harry's direction. It had happened so fast that no one had time to react. His Firebolt bucked and began to shred into splinters, causing Harry to be thrown to the ground with a thud and crack.
In an instant Hermione was at Harry's side. He was groaning, and his left arm was twisted at an odd angle.
"That hurt," Harry said softly before passing out.
June 5th, 1998 early morning:
Luckily, Madame Pomfrey was able to mend Harry's broken bones within minutes. She had given him some potions for the bruising and pain and ordered him to stay in bed. Hermione also believed that the school nurse had slipped him a sleep draught because Harry fell asleep within minutes of downing the potions.
Hermione stayed by Harry's bed all night; Pomfrey knew better than to argue with Hermione when she had her mind so obviously set on something. She was awoken several times throughout the night when Ron would come down from the dormitories to check on their friend.
She awoke in the early morning. The morning sun's light danced across Harry's features, and she blushed as she thought how nice it was waking up next to him.
"He's not up yet?" Ron asked from behind her. She noticed that he had heavy bags under his eyes, clearly from lack of sleep.
"No, not yet," she said with a smile as she stretched. "You didn't have to check on him, you know."
"I know," Ron said with a shrug. "I was just worried. Here."
He handed her the book she had left at the Quidditch Pitch.
"Thanks," she said cheerfully, and she opened the book, trying to find her place. Ron walked around Harry's bed and placed his typical "get well" gift of a box of Chocolate Frogs on his nightstand. After she successfully located where she had left off in the book, Hermione looked up at Ron and said: "What would I do without you Ron?"
"You'd manage," he replied as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
Hermione noticed that besides the bags under his eyes, Ron was wearing a frown. It had just been a few days since his girlfriend left for a "fact-finding mission" with her father for his "newspaper," if one could call that rag a newspaper. And it seemed that Ron was feeling especially lonely and depressed ever since she'd been gone. He seemed to be doing nothing but spending most of his time by himself and brooding in the common room, rarely speaking to anyone.
"Ron, are you all right?"
"Yeah," he said in an indifferent tone. "I'm just tired."
Hermione rose and walked over to him. She placed her hand on his arm, and he dropped his head at her touch.
"Do you want to talk?" she asked as she rubbed his arm reassuringly. "Is it about you and Luna? Are you two ok?"
"Oh, yeah, just peachy," Ron said and raised his eyes to Hermione's. He continued with a forced smile. "Honestly, I'm just tired."
"Okay," Hermione said. "If you want to talk…"
"Honestly, I just didn't sleep last night much," he interrupted. "I'm just going to go back to the common room for a kip."
Hermione watched as Ron walked out of the Hospital Ward. She remembered Ron arguing with Luna to stay at the castle with him, but her father had been planning this trip for months, and she could not back out. Knowing how obstinate and sensitive Ron was, he was probably taking it as a personal rejection. Also, knowing Ron, he would see the error of his ways of thinking and come around in a day or two.
She turned her attention back to the slumbering form of the one she loved. Hermione smiled at the sight of the morning light causing his black hair to shimmer like a halo.
She sat back down and began to read her book. After a chapter or two, she looked up to check on Harry only to find Draco Malfoy lying in the bed.
Normally a sleeping Harry disappearing and being replaced by Draco Malfoy would have shocked and bewildered most people. But Hermione was an extremely observant witch so she noticed the telltale scar on the blond boy's forehead.
A jagged scar in the shape of a lighting bolt. She silently groaned to herself and went back to her reading.
One of Hermione's strong suits was patience. When someone would describe Harry, patience was not one of the terms one would use, especially when he was trying to play a prank on someone. Hermione could almost feel him open his eyes to see if she had noticed his little gag.
"I know you're awake, Harry," she huffed. When he did not respond, she looked up to see Harry's magnificent green eyes staring at her from Severus Snape's face.
"Then where is my 'good morning kiss', Granger?" he sneered.
Hermione smiled to herself, acknowledging that Harry was just as talented as Tonks in his ability to use his Metamorphmagus skills. Tonks had been talking with Harry the summer before his sixth year and found out that he had not gotten a haircut in over six years yet his hair had not grown either. That is when Tonks figured out his hidden ability. Dumbledore decided that only a select few people should know about Harry being a Metamorphmagus, the less the better. His theory being that keeping this ability a secret would give Harry a possible edge against Voldemort and his Death Eaters So, originally only three people knew: Dumbledore, Tonks, and Harry. After a few weeks of training with the other Metamorphmagus, Harry decided to share this information with Hermione. Harry and Hermione both thought it best not to tell their other best friend, Ron. They both knew that he would become irrationally jealous of Harry's new-found ability.
It was a shame that Harry could not change his two most distinguishing features: his infamous scar that Voldemort gave him when he was a baby, and to a lesser extent, his magnificent green eyes, which his mother gave him.
"Snape's" voice broke her train of thought. "Well, Miss Granger, where is my kiss?"
Hermione leaned forward and looked into "Snape's" green eyes.
"I would never kiss that face," she said flatly. "Snape" raised an eyebrow, and a crocked grin crept across his face.
"You're lying," he responded. Both Harry and Hermione had the uncanny knack to tell when the other was lying, but since Harry had mastered Occlumency and the basics of Legilimency, he had an unfair advantage. He was now a walking lie detector.
"You are lying!" he continued in mocking tone. "You WOULD kiss Snape! Snape, of all people?"
"Snape" made a retching sound. Hermione huffed.
"I know who you are, Harry," she said as she stood and placed her fists on her hips. "No matter who or what you look like, you will always be my Harry. And I have a 'thing' for green eyes if you must know."
Soft footsteps interrupted the young couple.
"Pomfrey is coming. Change back," Hermione ordered and watched as "Snape's" face melted and reformed into Harry's.
"I see that you couldn't leave without one more visit to the hospital," Madame Pomfrey said as she examined Harry.
"My future injuries just won't be the same without you, Madame," Harry joked.
"Well, it seems that everything is where it ought to be, so you may get dressed and leave now," Pomfrey said as she stood and conjured a privacy screen around his bed, blocking Hermione out.
Hermione waited outside while Harry began to dress.
"So what happened to my broom?" Harry asked.
Hermione heard a devious little voice in the back of her head telling her to peer in on Harry and see his bum. She fought the urge to obey.
"I was talking with Professor Flitwick about that," she responded and found that she had lost her internal struggle and was peering through the curtains. She was half relived and half disappointed to notice that her boyfriend had his back turned and his boxers on already. "He… um, said that it was a combination of two spells."
"No fair peeking," Harry joked as he turned and saw Hermione's eye in the gap between the curtains. Hermione blushed a red that would have made a Weasley proud and quickly turned. Harry laughed and said, "Please continue."
"Anyway," Hermione said a bit flustered, "the first spell was designed to separate the magical components of an object. The second shredded the object so much so that it would not be repairable."
"You can come in now," Harry said. Hermione opened the screen to find a shirtless Harry waiting for her. She unabashedly stared at his chest. Harry blushed as he tugged on his shirt. "So why would someone what to destroy my broom? Do you think it was a plan of Voldemort's?"
"I think Moody has been rubbing off on you," Hermione said, and Harry heard "Mad-Eye's" gravely voice in his head shout "Constant Vigilance!" Hermione smiled. "Not everything that happens to you is an evil plot by Voldemort, just most things."
She knew of course that it was most likely Voldemort; she also knew that Harry knew. Even though it was hardly likely that Harry would've been fatally injured from a fall and therefore beneath Voldemort, it still reeked of The Dark Lord.
"Then who?" he asked.
"Harry, every seeker in this school would 'kill' to ride that blasted broom of yours. Whoever did it probably did so out of jealousy. It could have been anyone."
"Like Malfoy."
"Not necessarily," she responded. A wry smile crept across her lips. "It could have been a Hufflepuff."
Both Harry and Hermione laughed at the thought of a "devious" Hufflepuff.
"I see Ron was here," Harry said as he saw the large pile of Chocolate Frogs sitting on the bedside table. "You could have woken me up."
"Harry, you were more than likely given a sleeping draught." Hermione put a comforting hand on his arm. "A herd of Hippogriffs could have charged through here and you would not have stirred."
"I know," Harry replied, and he held Hermione's hand. "It's just that I miss him is all. It seems that when we are together, he won't even look at me."
Hermione recalled that the once inseparable friends started to spend less time together over the previous summer holiday when Ron began to date Luna Lovegood. Then Hermione and Harry's feelings had finally blossomed shortly after the school year started. Ron split most of his free time between Luna and his Quidditch Captain duties, and much to Hermione's disappointment, nearly none of it on studying. Whereas Harry was forced to drop out of his Seeker position in order to free up more time for his special lessons with Dumbledore and his Head Boy duties. Hermione felt only a slight pang of guilt because she was able to spend more time with Harry due to her position as Head Girl.
"I know, Harry. But these things happen. Sometimes people grow apart," Hermione tried to explain. "You have those special Potions and Occlumency lessons with Dumbledore, which took up a lot of your free time. And our friendship has changed for the better, thank you every much by the way, so we spend more time together. Ron and Luna are a couple as well. And as for not looking at you when we're together, I think he finds it weird that you and I are dating," she chuckled briefly. "You know, I think he thought of you and me as being brother and sister. So when he sees us kiss it probably looks like a case of incest somewhere deep in his mind."
"He was my first friend you know," he said with a sad smile as he absently picked up a Chocolate Frog. "Hey, I know that you were watching me, so did you happen to see my…?"
"Harry!" Hermione whimpered in a mortified tone and her face turned a beautiful shade of crimson. "You had your back turned and your boxers on! I couldn't see a thing."
"Hermione, what I meant was 'watching me when I was brought in last night?' I was wondering if you happened to notice where they put my wand."
With a bashful expression, Hermione hid her face in her hands.
"You mean you're not talking about your…?" Hermione asked in an embarrassed tone.
"I don't know about you, but I'm talking about my wand; you know, made of holly, 11 inches long, phoenix tail feather core. Have you seen it?" Harry said as he waved his hand around as if he were performing a spell. She smiled guiltily and mumbled a soft "Oh."
"It was on the nightstand," Hermione said and walked over to the small table. She pushed the chocolate treats to the side and pointed. "I put it right there."
Harry knelt down and looked under the bed as Hermione stripped the mattress in a vain attempt to find it. They were distracted from their search when a long shadow crept across the bed.
"I hope I am not interrupting anything?" Albus Dumbledore said with a heavy‑hearted look in his eyes.
"Sir, we can't…" Hermione began.
"Not at all sir," Harry interrupted his girlfriend. He shot her a glance, and Hermione understood that Harry did not want to worry the old man with something as trivial as a misplaced wand. "Is everything alright, Professor?"
"No, I am afraid it is not," the Headmaster said with a sad sigh. "I have just received a most distressing package. It would appear that Voldemort and his followers have found out Professor Snape's true allegiance."
"What do you mean, sir?" Hermione asked.
"Severus Snape has been murdered," Dumbledore said unconditionally.
Hermione gasped and looked to Harry. She knew that Harry hated Snape and he still partially blamed the potions master for Sirius' death. Harry still believed that Snape could have given Harry a small sign that he had understood Harry's cryptic message of "He's got Padfoot at the place where it's hidden." Harry always felt if Snape had nodded quickly, winked, or any other small sign of comprehension, that the six of them would not have needed to fly to the Ministry that night and Harry's godfather would still be alive. Hermione was surprised to see concern in Harry's green eyes.
"Why?" was all that Harry said.
"For some time, Severus had been out of the loop, so to speak," Dumbledore explained. "He was receiving less and less useful information lately. The only recent information that Severus has been able to communicate was that Draco Malfoy took the Dark Mark."
"Excuse me Professor, but did he take it willingly?" Hermione asked.
"The Dark Mark is part of a voluntary bonding ritual, where the servant pledges his allegiance to the Dark Lord," Dumbledore explained. "The servant must choose, for whatever reasons, to bond with the master. Therefore one cannot be marked unwillingly. Regardless of Mr. Malfoy's intentions, Severus discovered that shortly after the Marking Ritual, his former student led a raid on a Muggle home in which five people were tortured and murdered.
"Several weeks ago Severus had heard rumors of a new spy working for The Dark Lord, and that this spy would have a huge impact upon the war's outcome."
"Any idea who?" Hermione asked. "Or what kind of impact?"
"None," Dumbledore slumped slightly as he continued. "I believed it was imperative that we find the identity of this spy. Therefore, I ordered Severus to find out who he or she was, and what kind of impact they would have on the war, by any means necessary."
"And he got… caught?" Hermione gulped. The Headmaster nodded.
"Sir, this package you received; what was in it?" Harry asked. Dumbledore studied the two teens briefly before he replied.
"Severus' wand, snapped in half…" Dumbledore paused. "I believe they sent his wand so I could identify the other two… objects."
"Sir?" Hermione asked even though she knew she would not like the answer.
"His heart and his tongue," he said with great sadness.
"His 'lying heart and lying tongue,'" Harry said barely in a whisper.
"Yes, a most powerful 'symbol'," Dumbledore replied.
"POPPY!" McGonagall's panicked voice startled the trio. Hermione saw the Transfiguration professor rush into the Ward levitating two bodies behind her.
"ALBUS! HELP!" McGonagall screamed.
Hermione, Dumbledore, and Harry ran towards McGonagall. Hermione heard Pomfrey curse.
"Minerva, what happened?" Albus asked as he examined Ginny's trembling body. Hermione was about to perform an Ennervate spell on Neville when Harry held her wand back. She shot a questioning look at Harry who just stared at Neville.
"Harry, why…" Hermione began to ask when he turned to face her; she saw a single tear escape his eye. Slowly, Hermione realized what had happened to Neville.
Hermione looked into Neville's wide, terror filled eyes and gasped. She realized that she had never really seen a dead body up close before. When Harry had dragged Cedric's body out of the maze during their fourth year, she had been quickly shoved to the back of the crowd. So, she had only heard about the harrowing expression on the dead boy's face, now she had seen it firsthand in Neville's.
Harry embraced her in a comforting hug. Hermione heard McGonagall explain to Dumbledore that she had come across Neville and Ginny in the Gryffindor common room.
"What about Ron?" Harry asked.
"He was up there with them this morning!" Hermione said as an image of an injured or dead Ron lying somewhere in the common room.
"I didn't see him," Minerva responded and hope sprang up inside Hermione.
Dumbledore began giving McGonagall orders while Hermione and Harry checked on Ginny. The red-haired witch attempted to speak but only sputtered out thick blood. She was pleading to the couple with her eyes, willing them to understand something. Hermione gently stroked the younger girl's hair, her fingers tracing the streak of stark white that now ran through Ginny's hair.
"I have to find Ron," Harry said, and Ginny began to groan again.
"You mean 'we' don't you Harry?" Hermione corrected him. Ginny was now shaking and crying uncontrollably. "He is my best friend, too."
"Hermione, I..."
Madame Pomfrey waved her wand over Ginny who stilled slightly.
"Miss Weasley is practically in shock!" the nurse scolded Harry and Hermione. "I do not need you two bickering in front of her!"
"Harry, Miss Granger," Dumbledore called out to them. Hermione noticed McGonagall rushing out of the Ward. The two teens walked up to their Headmaster as Pomfrey performed a healing spell on Ginny's tongue. "I fear that Voldemort is going to attack Hogwarts."
"What?" Hermione all but shouted. "Hogwarts is the safest place in England."
"I believe that Severus' murder and this subsequent attack on Miss Weasley and Mr. Longbottom were just precursors for a full scale attack." Dumbledore turned to face Harry. "I believe that you and Miss Granger should stay here. I will go and gather the rest of the staff and warn them."
Harry nodded and Dumbledore walked out of the Ward.
"I have to go find…" Harry said as he turned and saw the determined look on his girlfriend's face, "we have to go find Ron."
The two teens raced out of the Ward and up the steps leading to the common room. As they approached they noticed that the portrait of the Fat Lady had been nearly torn from its hinges. After they entered, Harry immediately rushed up the stairs to the boy's dormitory while Hermione looked around the common room.
Hermione's eyes found a small pool of blood congealing in front of the fire.
'This is where Ginny and Neville must have been attacked', she thought to herself. Realizing that McGonagall would have seen Ron if he had been with the other two, Hermione forced herself to move on. As she walked past the pool of blood her foot stepped on something that crunched.
She knelt down and examined a long and narrow pile of wood chips and splinters. The young witch picked up one of the lager pieces and scrutinized it. Her eyes bulged as she recognized this piece of wood. She had seen it in Harry's hand more times than she could count.
"Hermione," Harry called as he came out of the stairwell holding a worn piece of parchment. "I need your help."
He walked up to Hermione and held out the parchment.
"I can't activate the map without my wand."
"Harry, I found your wand," she said softly as she held up the tiny piece of wood for Harry to see. Harry paled as he saw the remains of his prized possession. "It looks like someone used the same spell on your wand that they had used on your broom."
Harry looked silently at the pile of wood chips in front of Hermione for a moment.
"Where's the core?" he asked abruptly.
"Excuse me?"
"The spell was designed to separate the components, right?" he asked. To which Hermione nodded. "Well all I see is wood, no tail feather… where is the core?"
"I don't know, whoever did this probably took it with them."
"Why?"
"I don't know Harry, maybe as a prize to show Voldemort."
Harry seemed to ponder for a bit before continuing.
"It doesn't matter now. We need to find Ron and this is the quickest way," he said and held the parchment to Hermione.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," she said as she touched the tip of her wand to the blank parchment. Ink magically appeared, and the Marauder's Map came to life.
Harry held the map in front of his face as he scanned it.
"I'm sorry about your wand, Harry," Hermione said.
"We'll worry about it later," Harry replied as he continued to check the map. "Besides, my invisibility cloak is missing, too."
"Who could have taken it?"
"I don't know," Harry's eyes widened. "Finally!"
"Is it Ron? Have you found him?" she asked. Harry nodded. "Where is he?"
"The Astronomy Tower," Harry knitted his brow. "Why would he be there?"
"I think he and Luna had a row before she left on her expedition," Hermione said as she headed towards the common room exit. "You know how moody he gets."
Hermione and Harry raced out of the common room and started towards the Astronomy Tower.
The couple ran in silence. She knew how pig-headed and jealous Ron could get and how it would get her ire up, but she had to go get Ron. The stubborn fool probably went up there this morning in a depressed mood and didn't know what was going on. She had to tell him what had happened to Ginny and Neville, and to warn him of the impending attack.
At the base of the stairs leading to the top of the tower, Harry called for Hermione to stop.
"Wait Hermione!" he held her back. "Something's wrong…"
A loud crash from down the hall drew their attention.
"What was that?" Hermione asked. Harry quickly scanned the Marauder's Map.
"Bollocks! It's Ginny!" he spat. "How did she get away from Pomfrey?"
Hermione pulled away from Harry and ran up the stairs.
"Harry, go make sure Ginny is okay. I'll get Ron," she shouted as she looked behind her. Hermione could hear Harry yell something after her, but she couldn't quite understand him.
She heard Harry running after her as she threw the door open and walked out onto the top of the Tower.
Hermione was, by far, the smartest witch in her generation, full of "books and cleverness." But she never would have predicted what she found on the Astronomy Tower that day, and it would continue to haunt her until the end of her days.
To Be Continued
Author's Notes: Thanks to my betas sasqch and Penelope78