Chapter 11: Old Wounds and New Worries
Harry managed to catch Hermione before she hit the ground; Madame Pomfrey was already at the scene.
"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" she reached Hermione; Harry had laid her gently on the grass, clutching her hand. "Oh dear, oh dear…what a scrap you've gotten yourself into," she muttered. She conjured a stretcher and began to move Hermione up to the hospital wing. "At least it's not you this time, eh Potter?" then she caught the sight of Ginny, her nose broken, blood streaming down her face, "Come along, dear, I'll fix you in a jiffy!"
Harry stayed by Hermione's side the whole way to the hospital wing, and Ron stayed with Ginny. Once they arrived, Madame Pomfrey quickly went to work on Hermione.
"You can let go of her hand now, Mr. Potter…there you go. Don't worry; she'll be fine. She just lost some blood and got a little over excited from the match," she explained. She pulled out her wand, said a few incantations, and started gathering medicines.
"I didn't know you could get over excited from Quidditch," Ron said.
"Oh no dear, you misunderstand me, it's not that. It's from her wound last year…much like your own; the effects will stay with her for a long time. I warned her not to exert herself too much; I told her to lighten her workload and to not do any heavy sports for at least a year," she said. "How are your scars, Mr. Weasley?" Ron pulled up his sleeve; the scars from the brain were still plainly visible on Ron's arm.
"They don't hurt," Ron said.
"I didn't expect them to, but those scars are deep; you'll have them for years to come," she said. Once she had done all she could for Hermione, she turned to take a look at Ginny. "Oh my! That looks awful, completely shattered, " she said. She examined Ginny's nose closer, evidently thinking of what the best course of action was. Harry suddenly remembered Krum's nose; would Ginny have to look like that? Harry stifled a laugh. "Ah, I know!" Madame Pomfrey rushed to one of her cabinets and came back with a small bandage. "This bandage contains Skele-Gro, it will rebuild your nose tonight," she said. "I'd like you to stay the night, just so I can monitor your recovery," Ginny looked as if she didn't like the idea whatsoever. "This is in your best interest," Madame Pomfrey added. Ginny nodded, let her apply the bandage, and grabbed a chair by Hermione's bedside.
Harry sat on Hermione's other side, waiting for her to wake up. He looked over his shoulder at Ron.
"You can leave, Ron. Enjoy the party and tell everyone that Ginny and Hermione are okay," he said.
"You sure, Harry? I wont leave if you want me here…" he started.
"Yeah, go on, we'll be fine," Harry said. Ron quietly left the hospital wing after giving Ginny a quick hug and Harry a pat on the shoulder.
"I guess all we can do now is wait for Hermione, seeing as I can't leave," Ginny said. "You should grab a bite to eat Harry," she added.
"No, I'm fine," he said in a daze.
"Harry…Harry, look at me," Ginny said. Harry looked up from Hermione. "She's fine, you can go," she said.
"No, I'll wait right here," he said.
Madame Pomfrey came around a short time later to check on Hermione, her cut was completely healed.
"I heard you talking, and I thought you'd appreciate these," she said, handing a tray of food to Harry and Ginny.
"Thank you," they said in unison. Hermione's eyes peeped open.
"Hermione?" Harry stood up and bent over her bed, "Hermione?" Hermione suddenly sat up, cringed, and lay back down again.
"Harry…I dreamt about you," she said, still groggy.
"Oh yeah?"
"You and I were flying again…it was so romantic…"
"You need to get some rest, Hermione, you need to build your strength," Harry said. Hermione smiled and fell back asleep.
By the next day, Hermione and Ginny were allowed to leave the hospital wing. Upon returning to the Common Room, Harry and Hermione assumed their usual position on the couch; Hermione resting against Harry, her head on his chest and his arms wrapped around her.
"I should get some homework done, you too, Harry," she said, pulling her bag over. She pulled out a book, propped it against her knees, and began to write an essay for Arithmacy. Harry stroked her hair as she worked, he didn't feel like finishing his homework. "Harry, I said you should work," she repeated, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay, I was just thinking that you didn't tell me that you weren't fully healed from last year. You could've really hurt yourself yesterday," he said. Hermione looked up at him.
"I'm all right, Malfoy is really the one to blame," she said. "I'm so lucky to have you; you're always looking out for me," she added before gently kissing him and returning to work. Suddenly on owl came in through the window, it was carrying a copy of the Daily Prophet. Harry grabbed it and read the front page.
Though facts are unclear, it appears that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is aware of a weapon that may make him stronger. The Ministry is tight on the subject, only saying 'We fear that there is something out there that we are not aware of and that it could be used against us'. Amelia Bones, who was recently voted into office, was overheard speaking with Albus Dumbledore on the matter. 'We should destroy it, Albus' the Minister had said. 'Unlike its counterpart, it cannot be destroyed' Dumbledore had replied. No one is exactly sure of what this weapon is or what it could bring. –Bobby Zimbrano.
Harry gasped, a new weapon? "Unlike its counterpart…" what did that mean?
"Harry? What's wrong?" Harry showed Hermione the article. "Hmmm, well it has a destroyable counterpart, how many things could it be?" she asked.
"It could be tons of things, Hermione," Harry said.
"Maybe Dumbledore will tell us what it is," Hermione said, hope in her eyes.
"I don't think so," Harry said.
"There has to be a way to find out! It has to be something undoubtedly evil, and something with a counterpart, so something good that has either been already destroyed or can be destroyed. Something Dumbledore knows about," Hermione said, sinking into deep thought. "I have an idea! Come on, Harry!" Hermione raced out of the Common Room, Harry in tow. Harry knew that they were headed towards the library; he was right.
"What is it, Hermione?"
"The Philosopher's Stone, Harry, it was made for eternal life. There is probably a stone to counter it, so in essence, it's the stone of death!"
"Very good, Ms. Granger. Even I didn't expect you to figure it out so soon," it was Professor Dumbledore. "Come with me, please," he said, he led them to his office. He gave the password to the stone gargoyles (Canary Crème) and escorted Harry and Hermione into the circular room. "Please, sit," he requested, motioning to the chairs in front of his desk. "I can imagine you have some questions for me," he said.
"What exactly is the weapon, sir?" Hermione prompted.
"It's a stone, like you figured, Ms. Granger. The opposite of the Philosopher's Stone, this stone is called the Serpent's Stone. This, like you had also guessed, is the stone of death. Not only can it kill, but also raise the dead to serve the wielder of it. You can imagine what would happen if Voldemort got his hands on it," he said.
"Where is it?" Harry asked.
"That, I'm afraid, I cannot tell you. You will learn soon enough, no doubt. But until then, you must be kept in the dark, we can't risk Voldemort penetrating your mind to find the stone's location," he said.
"Why can't this one be destroyed like the Philosopher's Stone?" Harry asked.
"The Serpent's Stone is made of pure evil, no spell on this plain can break it. In fact, most spells only make it stronger," Dumbledore replied.
"Why not keep it where you left the Philosopher's Stone?" Hermione asked. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.
"Ms. Granger, you are much too clever for your age," he said, "if you have no more questions, you may leave," he added, bringing an end to the conversation.
Harry and Hermione slowly walked to the Gryfindor Common Room. They were both thinking the same thing: with a weapon like that in the lower levels of Hogwarts, Voldemort will find out eventually and strike the school. Suddenly, this war seemed much closer than it had before.