Appearances Can Be Deceiving
Chapter 12: Penultimate Events
DISCLAIMER: Just in case you haven't got the point already, It's. Not. Mine.
A/N – I know the title is Penultimate Events, but the next chapter is not the last one. Slightly insane, you might think but I'm sure I had my reasons back when I named the chapter.
"Nothing." Ginny's voice came out squeaky as she attempted to hide the parchment behind her back. "I'm fine, why did…why did you just call me Weaslette, Harry? Only Malfoy calls me that."
He looked at her with a smirk on his face. Her eyes were too wide and her face was pale, he could see her looking nervously around the room, searching for a weapon or an exit.
"Come on, Ginny, I know that you know I'm not Harry, so don't try to insult my intelligence. Just hand over that pretty little map and I might consider letting you live. Tonight."
"So…what happens when I give you the map? You're not going to let me go free when I could easily tell Hermione and Ron about who you really are." She was stalling for time, trying to think of anything she could do to save herself.
"Good point. Oh well, I think I'll just hex you and dump you in the Room of Requirement with Potter. That should keep you out of the way until the potion's finished." He advanced on her, his wand held aloft.
"What did you do to Harry?" She asked quietly, tears falling down her face as she watched him toy with her, like a cat with a mouse, lifting the wand, almost uttering a spell, then lowering it as she flinched, only to do it again.
"Don't worry. Your boyfriend's alive. For now."
She opened her mouth to scream – surely someone would hear her. But before any sound escaped her lips he'd whispered a jinx and she collapsed onto the floor of the common room.
It was like the full body bind, she couldn't move, she couldn't speak but she could still think, see and hear what was going on around her.
Harry's grinning form came into view, impossibly tall from this angle. No, Malfoy, it's Malfoy, she reminded herself.
"I thought this would be more fun. You'll know what's happening. You'll be able to see me kill all your little friends. You'll be screaming inside your head and no-one will hear a thing."
She felt him grab her stiff legs and begin to drag her across the room.
"You weigh almost as much as Potter," he said conversationally as he pulled her through the portrait hole and down the corridor.
"Oh, shit." His face briefly registered panic as the sound of footsteps drew nearer to where they were.
Dropping her legs unceremoniously to the floor (Ow! That hurt, you git!) he plastered a look of panic and fear on his face.
"Help!" He shouted in the direction of the footsteps, which immediately sped up as they approached the corner which would bring the owner of them into view.
She wasn't any happier when Ron rounded the corner. Oh, great. He's gonna be loads of help. That idiot was convinced that this bastard was really Harry, despite spending a whole day with him. Mind you, Hermione didn't do much better.
Ron's eyes widened as he saw his sister's prone form on the floor of the corridor, with Harry standing over her, a concerned look on his face.
"What happened? Ginny!" He knelt beside her and she was touched to see that his eyes glimmered with unshed tears. "What's wrong with her?" He looked up at Harry's face.
"I don't know!" Draco replied, sounding almost as concerned as Ron, "I was just on my way to the library and I found her here like this. Help me get her to the hospital wing."
No! Ginny tried to scream at Ron, urging him to look into her eyes and see the truth there, Ron! It was him! Don't listen to him! You idiot! Why the hell would he be going to the library at this time of night? You definitly did not get the brains of the family!
Between them they dragged her to the hospital ward (idiots, haven't you ever heard of a Levitation charm?), where they left her.
She screamed silently as she watched their backs. Malfoy turned once, an ugly smirk stretched across Harry's handsome face.
Hermione couldn't believe what they were telling her.
"So, Ginny's in the hospital wing, God knows what's happened to her, and you two are sitting up here just chatting to me?"
Ron and Harry's faces were blank as they sat beside her on Harry's bed. "Well, we thought you should know. What else were we supposed to do?" Harry sounded indignant.
"Well, how about trying to find out what's wrong with her? Or who did it to her? Why?"
"Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell us anything! And do you really think whoever did it would just hang around and wait to be caught?" Ron's voice was harsh with fear for his sister and guilt because he knew what Hermione was saying was right, they should be doing something, but there was nothing they could do.
"I'm sorry, Ron," Hermione softened as she looked at his pale face, his freckles so clear in the candlelight. "I'm just worried about Ginny."
"Me too, but you know that if there was anything I could do I wouldn't be sitting here right now!"
"Yeah, I know. Sorry." All was quiet for a moment until Hermione swung her legs off the edge of the bed. "I'm going to see her."
"You can't." Harry told her glumly, "Madam Pomfrey said no-ones allowed to see her for at least a couple of days. She doesn't know what's wrong with her and says it could be passed on. We should all probably get some sleep and then we can deal with this in the morning."
She woke the next morning to a gentle tapping. Rolling over she noticed that the other side of the bed was empty and cold. Where was Harry?
The tapping continued until she noticed the grey barn owl shivering on the windowsill. Throwing Harry's robe around herself she went and retrieved the owl's letter, allowing it to fly back to the owlery.
Shivering, she made her way back to the bed and wrapped herself back up in the thick covers before opening the letters.
Dear Hermione
We're getting used to odd questions from you, sweetheart, but this was surprising. Anyway, in answer to it, both your father and I have no idea at all whether or not there was ever a witch or wizard in our families. My Grandmother used to tell me stories about her great great great aunt Mildred who used to go around telling everyone who would listen that she could see into the future but after she told everyone that the whole world was going to be underwater by the year 1900 they just dumped her in a mental institution and left her to rot. So the story goes. Sorry we couldn't be much help. How's school going? Write back soon.
Lots of love
Mum and Dad.
Hermione didn't know whether that helped or not. On the one hand, Mildred could have been a Seer, but there was every chance she could just have been a crazy old woman. That cleared loads up.
Instead of dwelling on it she threw on some clothes and went to find the boys, intent on visiting Ginny as soon as possible.
Making her way down to the common room she saw Ron's red hair sticking over the top of the sofa back. If things had worked out differently with Harry, would I be Ron's girlfriend now? If he hadn't gone away for the break would it be Ron I would have kissed? She pushed the thoughts out of her mind. She was Harry's girlfriend, not Rons.
But Ron's return made her already complicated life a state. All of the wonderings she'd had about him for the past seven years had been forgotten during her first kiss with Harry. And then she kissed him in the library…
Harry's head appeared.
"Hey Mione. Sleep much?" Ron turned too and she could see that, unlike Harry, who looked like he'd slept like a baby, Ron looked like crap.
"A bit." She just needed to spend more time with Harry and less time with Ron. She loved Harry. And he was great in bed.
"Think it's time to add the mandrake root to the potion?" He nodded to the simmering potion in the cauldron.
Hermione just looked at him incredulously, not noticing that Ron was doing the same.
"Harry, the potion can wait, I'm going to go try to see Ginny."
"Madam Pomfrey won't let you in. Me and Ron have already tried (stupid idiot dragged me up there at 7.30am) and she wouldn't let us in." (What a shame, I was seriously heartbroken, honest).
"I'm going to take a walk." Ron stood abruptly and began wandering over to the portrait hole, dragging his feet.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Hermione was worried about him.
"No, I want to be by myself, thanks though." She watched him leave, fighting the urge to give him a hug.
She rounded on Harry. "Why did you have to bring up that stupid potion? His sister's in the hospital wing and you're worried about turning frogs pink?"
Merlin, this woman is infuriating. "Look, Hermione, I just thought maybe he needed something to take his mind off everything. Sitting in the common room moping isn't going to do anyone much good is it."
"Fine, if it'll shut you up I'll put the stupid crap in the potion! I don't see why you can't do it yourself though." She stormed over to the table containing the cauldron, fire and all of the ingredients laid out ready. She threw the mandrake root into the cauldron, which hissed and turned a nasty shade of green.
Casting a dirty look in Harry's direction, she left through the portrait hole without another word to her boyfriend.
Peace at last, Draco stretched out on the sofa and watched the crackling fire contentedly.
As she walked past the suit of armour at the end of the hallway it rattled at her.
Stopping in surprise, she went back and stared at it. It clanked again. Suddenly something came shooting out of the visor hole and landed in her arms.
The potion bottle.
No time like the present she thought ruefully, remembering (eventually) that she had planned on testing out what was in it.
She found an empty classroom and took out her wand. Placing it in the mouth of the bottle until the tip touched the liquid inside, she whispered the necessary incantation.
Removing her wand she placed the tip of it, still glistening with the potion, onto a piece of parchment she'd placed on the desk. The potion ran off the wand until it was dry and formed the words Concentrated Polyjuice Potion before running off the edge of the desk to form a puddle on the floor.
She stood there frozen, staring at the spot where the words had been.
Polyjuice potion.
Why would Harry need polyjuice potion?
No…
There was no way…
Hermione was violently sick on the classroom floor.