Chapter 3/./ What Dumbledore Doesn't Know

That was not to be the last I would see of the Ravenclaw quintuplets. They had spread their rumor, and by morning, the entire school had heard of their crazy theory as to why Ron Weasley was dead. For the first time since the sorting ceremony, Hermione Granger decided to grace the school with her presence at breakfast. The entire hall was silent as she entered. She kept her head down as she searched for an empty seat at the Gryffindor table. She didn't seem to notice that all eyes were on her and not a word was spoken. The smallest of the Ravenclaw quintuplets, Claire (or was it Carrie?) slowly made her way to sit across from her. She looked up, questioning, obviously annoyed.

The girl burst out, loud enough for the entire room to hear, "DID YOU REALLY KILL RON WEASLEY!" Hermioned heaved a gigantic sigh, standing up and slowly making her way towards the door. The girl made her way back to her sisters, who all scolded her the moment Hermione was out the door. "What'd I do wrong?" she asked desperately.

I went back to the dormitory, hoping to find Hermione and talk some sense into her. The thought never crossed my mind to see if the rumor was true. Okay, maybe just once. But when I reached the common room, she was nowhere to be found. I went up to her room and knocked, but got no answer. I sighed, resolving to take a shower and then set out to look for her. I opened the door and heard a sniffle. I peeked in, trying not to be seen and saw Hermione sitting on the counter. Her back was to me, so I decided to leave her alone. I left, but not before I noticed a drop of blood spashing to the floor.

Back in the common room, I panicked. Was she hurting herself? Why was she bleeding? Who should I tell? The first person who came to my mind was Potter, but obviously, that would be a bad idea. He would probably chuckle. I took a deep breath, trying to reason with myself.

'This is Hermione Granger we're talking about. She'd never be a cutter'

"But she'd also never pass up an opportunity to answer a question in class"

"But she couldn't be a cutter"

"Or could she?"

I could tell her head of house, McGonagall! But she was away, on ministry business. And there was no way I could tell Snape. He'd be worse than Potter.

And then the solution struck me, and I immediately felt dumb for not thinking of it before.

Dumbledore.

I raced to the gargoyle, wondering what the password was, when the man himself came out of it.

"Professor! May I speak to you?"

"Of course, Mr. Malfoy. What is troubling you?" But he had Snape with him.

"Um.. Alone, Professor."

"Of course," he said, drowning out Snape's protests. "I will speak to you later, Severus. Come, Mr. Malfoy." We went up into his office, and he sat me down in front of his desk. "What is troubling you?"

"Well, you see..." But I didn't know how to start. "Do you know everything about this school?" I asked, suddenly.

"Not everything," he laughed. "But plenty enough. I know that all the students here are safe."

"Do you?" This seemed to anger him.

"I assure you, Mr. Malfoy, I know more about this school than you believe."

"Do you, Professor? Well how about the fact that one of your students is practically killing themselves, and you can't even see it!"

"Mr. Malfoy, are you implying that one of my students is trying to commit suicide? If you know something, please tell me so we can get them the proper medical care at St. Mungo's." I shook my head, sighing.

"I know nothing, Professor. Good day."

I descended from his office, horrified in knowing that that was a complete waste of time. Hermione didn't need St. Mungo's! She needed Potter and the Weaslette off her back, and for the Ravenclaw quintuplets to disappear into thin air. Suddenly, it became clear to me that to help her, I needed to do the thing I wanted to do most.

The only way to help Hermione Granger was to unravel her mystery.

With this newfound resolution, I decided to start as soon as possible. There were no classes that day, as it was a Saturday. I decided to pry as much information from people as possible. The most informative, of course, would've been Hermione Granger herself, but that was not an option. So, I decided to start with the next likely.

Harry James Potter.

"Hey, Potter," I said, coming into the library. He was sitting alone at a table, and Ginny was nowhere in sight.

"Hey," he said.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" I asked quietly, looking around. He shrugged. "It's about Granger." His green eyes flared.

"What about her?"

"Oh, I was just wondering if she had any family or anything?"

"Yeah. 2 muggle parents and a baby sister. But you knew about her parents?"

"Yeah.. I seemed to have put it from my mind. Started to wonder what spawned that thing." We both laughed, but my heart wasn't in it. The insult to Hermione hit me square in the gut, and I felt horrid. But it had to be done. "So, what's this I hear that it's her fault Ron's dead?" Obviously, I struck a nerve. Once Potter got started on how Granger was to blame, he wouldn't quit.

"It's true," he said, laughing. The laugh was sinister, cold. Nothing like the laugh of Harry Potter before the final battle. He started again in a soft voice. "She stayed behind at headquarters when we went to fight. 10 months of fighting, and she was at the Order headquarters the entire time. The final battle came, when I went up against Voldemort. You were there, you remember. It was the deatheaters' last stand. There were so many of them. Ginny and Luna were back to back, and Neville was dead. If Hermione had been there to back Ron up, he wouldn't be dead. She might, but he wouldn't."

So, Ron Weasley meant more to Harry Potter than their precious bookworm did. It surprised me at first, but settling back in, it didn't. He had seen too much to be the good boy he used to be. Killed too many people. The dark side of Potter that had come out recently had shocked me at first, but it made sense.

He was a killer. He had watched his best friends die. He had killed Voldemort, alone. Things like that change a person.

'Note to self: Add Neville Longbottom to list of known dead,' I thought, silently contemplating how I was going to begin my attack again.

"So, it's Granger's fault, eh?" He nodded. "That's too bad. Well, I'll see you around." I started to leave, but he called me back.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Oh, no reason." I smirked. "You gotta stay ahead of the gossip around here, or you'll be swamped." He smiled.

"Yeah. See you." I left the library silently, contemplating this new information. It had never occured to me till
now that, indeed, Hermione did not participate in the battle. But she did not strike me as one to be afraid of a few deatheaters.. She probably knew more advanced curses than they did. Probably invented a few. But I couldn't get past that. Hermione Granger wasn't at the battle. 10 months of battle, and we never saw her face.

Where had she been?

I believed it was time for another visit to my favorite (or not-so-favorite) Headmaster.

I went back to the dormitory, after visting the kitchens, just in case Hermione hadn't gotten food. I couldn't blame her for not going down to lunch. As I entered,I found Dumbledore sitting in the common room. Again, Hermione was nowhere in sight.

"Well, hello, Mr. Malfoy."

"Good afternoon, Professor Dumbledore. How can I help you?" I asked, setting the food down on the table and hanging my cloak by the door.

"Oh, I came by to see Ms. Granger about her choices for University, but it appears she is asleep."

"Aha. She must've had a rough night," I said, shrugging as though I didn't know. "However, Professor, I wish to speak with you for a moment. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course. Go right ahead."

"I understand that you were the Head of the Order of Pheonix."

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy."

"During the war... was there anyone left in the headquarters?"

"No, Mr. Malfoy. It is simply impossible. I made sure everyone was gone before I locked the place and disapparated."

"So, it is not possible that someone could've hidden and been left behind?"

"Not at all." A watch on his wrist suddenly started chiming, and a small hologram of Professor McGonagall appeared. "What is it, Minerva?"

"They're starting a food fight in the Great Hall, Albus. We need your help."

"Of course, I'll be there momentarily. If that is all, Mr. Malfoy?" he asked, returning to me.

"Um.. Yes, sir. Good day."

"Good day, Mr. Malfoy. And I'll be back an hour before dinner to discuss with you and Ms. Granger your decisions for University. Until then," said Dumbledore, and then he was gone.

It confused me. She could not have possibly stayed behind as Potter so believed she had. Could the Ravenclaw quintuplets have been right? I sighed, leaning back on my couch. It was going to be a long day.

A/N: Yet another chapter down! There was a lot of conversation in this one... Well, review! Reviewing is good for you, it cleanses the soul and is also a great source of Vitamin H.
While you're waiting for the next chapter (which shouldn't be too long, probably tomorrow or the next day at the latest) I humbly reccomend my other story, "Everything Changes". Soon, I'll be posting yet another story! But I'll tell you more when it happens.
So, another preview:

"So, Cassandra, is it?" She nodded. "Tell me everything you know about Hermione Granger."
"Oh, Mr. Malfoy. I have been waiting for you to ask ever since the first day we met." She tapped her perfectly manicured nails on the desk. "Where to begin, where to begin?"
"The beginning is usually best." She smiled.
"But of course, Mr. Malfoy. But of course."

Oh, and by the way...
to Miss Extraordinary: It is quite dark, isn't it? I didn't expect it to turn out as dark as it did when I first began the story, but I suppose it works just as well. It could be gloomier. Just imagine: Rain all the time... Everyone dead... Okay, even I'm not that depressing. haha, Ron IS deader than usual. I felt horrible killing him off, but it had to be done.. It was either him or Draco, and I don't think Draco would've been as constructive to the plot.

Until Next time!