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Chapter 8
Yes, Ginny did destroy all Hermione's belongings and helped drive her to nearly kill herself (Bellatrix and crew contributed more. Much more.) but Hermione is training in a professional role now. Brewing the potions for Ginny are part of what she would do for anyone in Hogwarts who needed it. Just as how Luna would treat any staff or student who came to the Hogwarts infirmary no matter who they were.
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The days passed quickly as Hermione maintained the antidote's grueling four hour schedule.
She summoned a house elf for her breakfasts and lunches, but managed to eat supper in the dining room each day with Luna and Neville.
She was exhausted, never grabbing more than 3.5 hours of sleep at a time on her mentor's couch. The only time she saw her dorm was when she showered and changed clothes in the afternoon.
When a week had gone, the Weasleys flooed to the infirmary with Ginny. Professor Snape gave her the antidote and everyone, including Hermione, watched and held their breath as she came back to life.
The first person she saw was Molly.
"Mum!" Molly burst into tears as she embraced her only daughter. Then she hugged her dad and her three brothers who had come along, Bill, Percy and George.
After giving her own hug to Ginny, Hermione turned to Severus with an exhausted smile. She was grateful that the antidote had worked and decided that it had been worth the effort.
He patted her shoulder. "You did well. Go eat a good lunch, since you don't need to rush. Then take a shower and a nap. I'll see you after supper."
The brunette yawned, nodded and headed to the Great Hall. It was 11 AM. She ate a plate full, savoring the freedom of not having to hurry back to the lab or listen for popping sounds while shoveling food in her mouth.
After taking a lengthy shower, she collapsed into her bed. She thought about Severus as she drifted off, remembering the feel of his lips on hers. They had kissed five times. Each one had been sweeter than the last.
At 6 PM, she rolled out of bed, dressed and went to supper. While they ate, she and Luna discussed the undercover surveillance they needed to do at Jigger's Apothecary. Because Professor Snape would be coming along, Luna agreed to come down to the potions office to work out plans for the sting.
Neville initially did not like the idea of Luna going undercover and potentially being unsafe. But he relaxed when Hermione reminded him that she and Luna could deal with any potential threat, even without the professor with them. With his expertise, they definitely were safe.
As Hermione watched over a cauldron of wound cleaner and diced ingredients, the plan was finalized. The Potions Master would wear Harry's invisibility cloak and investigate the shop while the girls requested an abortifacient and tried to ask as many questions as possible.
Hermione floo called the Weasleys, who gladly sent the cloak by owl. The Headmistress and Madame Pomfrey were also informed of the plan.
The next day after lunch, when Professor Snape had a free period, the three set out for Hogsmeade. Just before reaching there, he put on the cloak. Hermione giggled as she saw his footprints on the dirt path and nothing else.
"Just for that, I should make you gut flobberworms, Apprentice. I don't think Harry ever washed this thing. There's stains on here that I truly do not want to think about. It smells like Butterbeer and sweaty teenage boy and Merlin knows what else."
This caused Hermione to burst out laughing and she stopped to get herself together. But she couldn't resist a jab at her invisible mentor.
"You'd prefer it smelled like Essence of Murtlap or skunk cabbage? Or maybe the dungeon bat prefers the smell of bat droppings?"
"Just for that, I think I will scare up some flobberworms with your name on them."
Luna gave Hermione a knowing grin, enjoying the banter between the two of them.
"Seriously, get yourselves together. This needs to be a serious endeavor. Which one of you is going to say you're pregnant?"
"I am", stated Luna. "Then I'll try to ask questions about what's in it, how much to take and what to do."
"Just to warn you, Ginny said the witch called her a slag. Don't expect her to be classy and polite."
"Yes, I remember."
As the girls pushed the door open, the professor slipped in behind them. As he snuck past the counter, they slowly approached the glaring old witch manning the shop. Luna had managed to work up some tears.
"Ma'am, I need… I need something to get rid of this baby. My boyfriend said he pulled out, but he didn't. My pureblooded father will kill me and he'll kill my boyfriend. Please, you gotta sell me something!"
The greying, toothless witch rolled her eyes. "For Merlin's sake, is Hogwarts nothing but slags? Is that all you girls do is open your legs for every wizard who looks your way?"
She stomped to the back muttering about the lazy potions professor who should be brewing potions for all the girls he's sprogging up. From under the cloak, Severus glared at her. While she wasn't looking, he quickly grabbed a few vials of illegal ingredients and spirited them into his pockets for evidence. He also stole several vials of abortifacient after she had grabbed one. Spying the potions manual, he ripped out the page with the recipe on it and the rest of that particular section.
As she returned to the counter, the girls began to accost her with questions.
"What's in it?"
"Never you mind what's in it, it'll rid you of your little problem, that's all you need to know."
"Why is it red?"
"Because the Motherwort and the Black Cohosh made it red."
"How much do I take?"
"The whole damn thing, you want it to work, don't you?"
"I take it all at once? Then what do I do?"
"You need your ears cleaned out, lassy? I just said to take the whole thing. Now pay up the 15 galleons and get your whorish behinds out before I double the price! Don't come back here expecting no medical care, either."
Luna put the money on the counter and grabbed the vial of red liquid.
As they headed to the door, the lady yelled, "Tell that worthless potioneer of yours to make it himself next time if he can't keep it in his pants!".
Severus quickly followed them out the door as they left. No sooner had it slammed shut, then they heard wretching sounds.
The girls briefly glanced through the dirty window and saw the lady vomiting slugs.
When all three were out of sight, Professor Snape yanked off the cloak. The girls burst into laughter.
"Did you really just hex her, Professor?"
Severus donned a completely innocent look. "Why, whatever do you mean? Just because she said I was sleeping with students and called me lazy and worthless, you think I hexed her?"
"Yes!" The girls answered in unison.
"She probably hasn't seen the spider nests I set on her ceiling yet. Or the rats I conjured."
Luna returned to the infirmary and Hermione and Severus walked together to the potions office.
The brunette watched with amazement as her mentor pulled vials and ingredients and recipes from every pocket and fold in his clothing and robes. (If you're a Game of Thrones fan, think Podrick's visit to Tyrion in prison S4.)
"How did you manage to hide all those so quickly without her suspecting anything?" Hermione was shaking her head at the sheer amount of items her mentor had taken.
"Abscondere in sinum. It's a spell I invented in my fifth year." Tapping his wand on an empty vial, it flew into his pocket. "I was known as the Spellmaster. Whenever another Slytherin needed a spell or curse invented, they came to me starting in my first year."
"So that's why *He* wanted you? Because of your abilities?"
"Yes, because of that. He had his minions working overtime to recruit me my last three years at Hogwarts. It was the first time I'd ever felt included and accepted anywhere my entire life. I finally joined and received the mark soon after graduation. I started to regret it almost immediately. It wasn't until the Dark Lord threatened Lily that I turned to Dumbledore and started spying for him."
Shaking his head, Severus turned to the bounty on the counter. The illegal items and vials were stowed away in his desk with invisibility and locking charms. He picked up the abortifacient recipe.
"Welsh pine sap, Black Cohosh, Motherwort…" Severus shook his head again as he read the ingredients out loud. "And she had the bollocks to call me worthless."
"Are you taking personally the mutterings of a toothless old hag, Severus?"
"No. Of course not. I just can't get over the sheer incompetence and laziness of these cunts."
A twenty minute walk away, a toothless Morthelda Jigger had ceased vomiting slugs and was now furiously batting at the spiders dropping around her as rats ran over her feet. She hadn't even noticed that all the reproductive potion recipe pages were missing yet.
While Severus returned to his classroom for his afternoon classes, Hermione floo called the Headmistress and asked her to come to the potions office after supper.
Once there, they showed her the recipes and the illegal ingredients.
The next day, Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt arrived at the Headmistress's office by floo after being summoned and was given the illegal ingredients Professor Snape had confiscated. A raid conducted by Aurors later that week revealed numerous illegal ingredients and potions and the shop was shut down until further notice.
An owl was sent to the Weasleys that the shop that had sold Ginny the potion that had nearly killed her and then left her catatonic was closed. Ginny had returned home with her parents to further recover and they were all relieved at the news.
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Now that the antidote was completed, Hermione began studying for her NEWTs in earnest. When she wasn't in the potions office brewing, preparing ingredients or doing inventory, she was in the library. Her days began early, but she still made a point of walking out to the Black Lake every morning to meditate.
Just before the beginning of the four week holiday break, she took her potions NEWT. The other two would be taken when classes resumed. An instructor from outside Hogwarts had come in to administer her test, and Hermione had four hours to take it.
She was in the office that evening, bent over a cauldron of stomach soother, when the Headmistress came with the news that she had passed. In celebration, the three of them shared a toast with the bottle of whiskey Hagrid had brought the professor while they were brewing for Ginny.
While most of the students were gone, the infirmary did not need as many potions brewed. Hermione stocked up their supplies and continued to study for her Arithmancy and Herbology NEWTs.
The two of them also worked to research the many ingredients for the potion that would remove the Dark Mark, as well as sending Owls to the magical community in each area.
It was determined that the ingredients that would last the longest were the Saguaro cactus needles in Arizona and the Melaleuca alternifolia leaves from Australia. They decided to obtain those two ingredients during this holiday break and the rest over the Easter break.
The first trip was to Arizona, by port key. As the spinning stopped, Hermione looked around. They were in a desert. A mountain range stood nearby, the mountains purple in color. The sky was brilliant blue for as far as she could see. As they waited for the Minister, she looked at the beauty around her and savored every moment of the brief time she would get to spend in it.
A man in a large hat walked up to them and introduced himself as the Minister of Magic for the Southwest US. He welcomed them to Phoenix and led them through the desert.
"Now watch your step and mind the rattlesnakes."
As they walked, Hermione took in her surroundings, committing it to memory. The blue sky, the purple mountains, the cactus flowers. She loved the expansive stillness of the desert and hoped someday they would return.
When they finally reached a Saguaro cactus, she was amazed at how huge it was and how beautiful. It was as tall as Hagrid and had several 'arms' sticking out.
She retrieved a vial and pliers out of her bag and removed several needles, getting scratched a few times in the process.
They stayed out in the desert long enough to watch the sunset. The sky was awash in pink, purple and gold, with the mountains and cactuses silhouetted against it. Hermione once again committed the image to memory so she could bring it forward and focus on it during a moment of panic.
After labeling the vial and returning everything to her bag, they apparated into Phoenix. They ate at a muggle restaurant that night with the Minister and his wife. People around them seemed curious about their British accents.
Seeing the menu was in Spanish, they allowed their hosts to order for them. Hermione was given a glass of a white liquid called horchata. It was sweet and cool and more delicious than butterbeer.
That night they stayed in two adjoining rooms in a hotel outside Phoenix. Hermione heard coyotes howling in the distance at the very full moon. It was dark enough she could see the stars, just like at Hogwarts.
Very early in the morning, they apparated to the edge of the Grand Canyon and watched the sunrise. As the sun rose up over the rocks, Hermione stood up on her tiptoes and kissed Severus. Then she leaned her head against his shoulder. After the sun was above the horizon, they returned to Scotland.
That night, they took a port key to New South Wales, Australia. They landed on a large beach and were met by the Minister of Magic for NSW. He apparated them into a forest and led them to a tree with small needle-like leaves. Hermione collected more than the amount required just for good measure. She heard several different bird calls she'd never heard before. The trees were different than any she had ever seen. A furry animal not quite resembling a small bear peered at her from high up in a tree. She recognized it as a Koala.
It was summer here and the air felt hot and sticky. Nevertheless, she stopped for a moment and committed the scene to memory. Focusing on just her breathing, she briefly let a feeling of peace wash over her. Then she felt Severus tugging on her arm and they left.
Once again, they stayed in separate but adjoining rooms in a hotel in Sydney. In Phoenix, they had worked out a signal that Hermione would knock on the wall if she started to panic, but both nights went smoothly and she slept without a panic attack. It helped to know Severus was right on the other side of the wall and could use an alohamora to get into her room if necessary.
They returned to Hogwarts in the morning after watching the sun rise on the beach. The sky had been awash in orange, gold and purple, reflecting onto the water as large ocean waves crashed onto the sand. The sound of the surf was soothing, unlike when she, Harry and Ron had taken refuge near the ocean earlier that year in the safe house. Those waves had sounded ominous, because they were on the run for their lives. Now Hermione was safe, standing next to the man she loved and that she was sure she would spend the rest of her life with. She sighed as she felt a peace envelope her and Severus put an arm around her shoulder.
It was night time again in Scotland when they returned and deposited the ingredients in a safe location in the store room.
Hermione buried her nose in her Arithmancy book on the couch and fell asleep soon after.
When she woke up, she was leaning on Severus's shoulder and his arm was around her. She buried her face in his chest and savored the herby smell of his button down shirt as she listened to his breathing as he slept. She could feel his heart beating against her cheek.
Wrapping an arm around his waist, she saw the Dark Mark on his arm. It was the first opportunity she ever had to look at it closely. It was a dark green snake coming out of a skull and wrapping around it.
Hermione knew he had been younger than she was now when he'd joined the Death Eaters and received it. It was what he thought was right at the time.
But she also knew that he'd turned and started spying only a few short years later.
Her mind turned to Harry and Ron. They thought they were in the right when they killed Draco. Only afterwards did they realize how wrong they were. War had a way of bringing out the best in a person, or the worst.
What causes a person to become so devoted to a cause or an action, even if it's wrong, that they upend their entire life or someone else's?
Hermione was still pondering all this when Severus awakened. Before he'd even fully opened his eyes, he turned his left forearm face down to cover the mark.
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In a seaside prison hundreds of kilometers away, Lucius Malfoy collapsed into the ground clutching his chest. As he gasped for air, an Auror hurried down the cell block corridor. Just before the officer reached his cell, the blonde man fell unconscious.
As the Auror leaned over him to check if he was breathing, Lucius grabbed him by the neck and put him in a tight headlock. With circulation to his brain cut off, the officer fell unconscious quickly. The Death Eater quickly grabbed keys out of his pocket and ran towards the Lestrange brothers' cells.
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The towers flew past Harry as he sped around the pitch on his broom. He could feel the wind blowing his hair back and the sun on his face.
The snitch flew in front of his face, then flew away, so he chased it. Slytherin's seeker also was chasing it and trying to shove him away from it and off of his path.
Harry steered his broom upward, then dove towards the snitch. Just before he grabbed it, he felt a bludger hit the side of his head and he hit the ground hard on his back.
"How'd ya like that, Potter?"
He heard the voice of the Slytherin seeker, Draco Malfoy, taunting him, but it sounded louder and deeper. Older. Yet somehow similar.
"You fucked with the wrong Death Eater's son, Boy Who Lived to be a murderer!"
Harry opened his eyes. He wasn't on the Quidditch pitch. He was on the floor in a dark, dank cell in Azkaban. The voice belonged to Lucius Malfoy. The father of the fellow student he'd murdered. Harry steeled himself for yet another beating by Death Eaters.
A foot rammed into his lower back, another one into his chest. Someone grabbed his hair, picked him up off the floor and punched his face hard. Then they slammed Harry so forcefully onto the floor that the wind was knocked out of him.
Because his glasses were out of his reach, he could only see blurry figures. There were three of them, at least.
Someone straddled his chest and began pummeling his face and neck. Harry was finding it difficult to breathe with the weight on top of him. He tried to push the person off but it was no use, their knees were on his arms.
He could feel blood on his face and in his mouth, but was unable to swallow. Everything was growing darker and more blurry with each punch. He became aware of incredible pain in his face and his head, as well as his neck.
Suddenly, Harry heard shouts and saw streaks of green light. The weight on his chest was suddenly gone and the beating stopped. He laid still with his eyes shut, just trying to pull in enough air, but each breath was painful.
Soon, he was somewhat aware of voices around him and of his body lifting up. The pain was intense until a vial of something was poured into his mouth. Then another one and he fell into a deep sleep.
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Headmistress McGonagall was sitting at her desk in her office even though it was one in the morning. She had an uneasy feeling and could not sleep. After having rounded the dungeon and the house common rooms, as well as the infirmary, the Great Hall and many classrooms, she sat staring out the window thinking about Harry Potter. How had she missed how poor his mental state was? How had they all missed it?
Perhaps Harry and by extension Ron had felt that Draco's former Death Eater status should have precluded him from returning to Hogwarts that year.
A lynx patronus bounded through her window and stopped in front of her. Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt's voice spoke forth through the ethereal feline.
"Harry Potter has been critically injured at Azkaban. He is currently being transported to St. Mungo's under Auror guard. You are his emergency contact, he has no family."
Now the Headmistress understood why she had felt uneasy. She had cared for the boy, now a grown man, for eight years.
Early the following morning, she traveled by floo to the magical hospital. Because she was Harry's contact person, she was allowed to see him. He was in a magically induced coma and his face was unrecognizable. The healers assured her he would survive, but his recovery would be lengthy.
Aurors stayed at his bedside around the clock, to protect him and to prevent an escape.
Rabastan and Rodolphus Lestrange, along with Lucius Malfoy, had been placed in full body binds. They were now being transported to Insanus Domus, a North American wizarding prison in the far north province of Nunavut, Canada. Far away from Harry and Ron. Others were sent to a wizarding prison in Patagonia, South America known as Diablo Oscuro.
The youngest Weasley brother had been beaten by Death Eaters a few times but never to the extent that Harry was. The mark bearers had placed the blame for Draco's death on the young Potter.
Now the Minister believed separating Voldemort's followers was in the best interest of the wizarding world. This way they could be less likely to band together and create another threat. Because of this, he sent still more imprisoned Death Eaters to Whare O Te Mate, a magical prison in New Zealand and Malocchio wizarding prison on Poveglia island in Italy.
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When Professor McGonagall returned to Hogwarts from visiting Harry, she headed down to the potions office with a heavy heart. She knew Hermione would not take this news well, but she hoped the young woman's resilience would pull her through. The war had wreaked havoc on the mental health of so many students. She resolved to send off owls to many mind healers she knew, in order to employ at least a couple at the school.
As she descended into the dungeon, she heard a strange sound coming from the potions office. Laughter. It was almost a foreign sound on some days.
Knocking on the door, it opened for her and she narrowly missed being sprayed with water. Professor Snape and Hermione both stood in the middle of the room soaked to the gills and laughing.
"My goodness! What have we here?"
Hermione wiped tears from her eyes and attempted to answer. "I spilled an ingredient all over the floor as I was doing inventory. I tried to clean it up with a spray of water, but Severus made a noise just as I said the spell and I jumped and sprayed him. So he sprayed me back and it turned into a water fight."
"Well, I thank you for not spraying me, I already took a shower today. I will leave you to it."
The professor turned to the Headmistress. "Was there something you had needed?"
"Oh, yes…" She didn't have the heart to tell them of Harry's condition at the moment. "I just wanted to confirm with Miss Granger that she will take her remaining NEWTs on the second Monday in January."
"Yes, I am planning on that." Hermione noticed the sad expression in the Headmistress's eyes and narrowed her own in suspicion. "Is that all you wanted us for?"
"For now. Yes. I will see you two later." The bespectacled witch quickly made her exit before she gave something away.
Hermione and Severus exchanged a look, then he quickly cast a drying spell on himself and hurried after her.
"Professor! Professor!"
The Headmistress stopped on the stairs with a sigh and waited for the Potion Master to catch up.
"I've worked with you for decades. I know when something is wrong. What is it?"
"It's Mr. Potter. He was badly beaten at Azkaban. He's now in St. Mungo's in a magically induced coma. She looked so happy, I couldn't bring myself to upset her. Again. It seems all I do is bring the girl bad news."
Severus nodded somberly, studying a healing cut on his finger. "It seems there's been quite a lot of it this year.
"You will tell her for me?"
"Yes, I will. She seems to be getting stronger, but I know this will upset her."
The sound of a throat clearing made them both look up. "No need to tell me. I heard."
Hermione stood in the dungeon hallway, dry and paler than she'd been. "How bad is it?"
"The healers said he'll pull through but it will be a long recovery."
"I do not suppose I am allowed to…"
"No", the professor shook her head. "I was only allowed to see him because I'm the closest he has to family. I'm sorry, Miss Granger."
With a sad nod, the female member of the former Golden Trio turned away and walked back to the office, deep in thought. Since when had she ever taken 'no' for an answer, especially where Harry was concerned?