"Miss Granger, I wonder if I might have a word with you."
Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw him there. How on earth? She had just seen him in Transfiguration no more than twenty minutes ago. Had he followed her or something? More importantly, did he know about what had happened? She wasn't sure how he had found her, but it left her feeling highly unsettled.
Fearing that he might notice her panic, she forced herself to calm down, placing a hand to her chest to still the frantic beating of her heart.
"Forgive me if I frightened you," he apologized.
"Don't worry, I'm just a bit naturally jumpy," She waved it off. "Of course, lead the way Professor."
Retracing their steps, he led her back down the stairs and across the quad.
As she followed after the surprisingly fast-footed Dumbledore, she couldn't help but wonder why he wanted to speak with her. She had always been nervous about meeting with teachers to begin with, fearing that they would tell her some bad news about her grades, but oddly enough, that wasn't at the forefront of her concerns anymore.
The only reason that came to mind was that he had somehow found out about the snake encounter. It was entirely possible that one of the Gryffindor boys had run off to tell Dumbledore, perhaps while she was obliviating the others. At the time, she had been quite sure that all the same boys were present in the hospital wing, but she supposed there was a chance that she had overlooked one.
It was crazy to think that one annoying eleven-year-old boy was all it took to ruin everything. She hoped and prayed that the situation wasn't beyond repair…
They arrived back at the transfiguration classroom, which now sat vacant. Closing the door behind them, Dumbledore headed behind his desk and up the stairs to his personal chambers, motioning for her to follow.
She had only been in the Transfiguration Professor's Chambers once before, when Professor McGonagall had been it's resident. As expected, the room had changed quite drastically in appearance. The most obvious difference was that it lacked any and all feminine touches. Much like his future office, the walls were lined with all sorts of strange trinkets and a few awards, though not nearly as many as she remembered.
Her eyes were soon drawn towards the familiar phoenix that was perched on his stand next to Dumbledore's desk as always. Without even knowing what she was doing, she started to approach the bird, holding her hand out to him. Fawkes eyed her intently for a couple of moments before nuzzling his beak into the palm of her hand. She couldn't help but smile with delight as she began to stroke a hand soothingly down his head and across his back.
"Curious creatures, phoenixes are," Dumbledore remarked, "And even more curious is it that he would take such a liking to you."
Confused by his words, she turned back to face him.
"The phoenix is a pure-hearted creature. It does not allow just anyone to come near to it," Dumbledore explained. "Only those of noble heart and spirit can gain the affection of one."
Hearing that made her feel slightly lighter, as if a weight had been lifted from her chest. It was good to know that Fawkes trusted her.
Taking a seat behind his personal desk, he conjured up a chair for her to sit on the opposite side, which she took after a moment.
"Lemon drop?" he offered, holding up a bowl of candies.
She shook her head, "No thanks." She had never been overly keen on candy. It probably had something to do with the fact that her parents were dentists.
Popping a couple of lemon candies into his mouth, he set the bowl down and crossed his hands on the desk in front of him, assuming a more serious expression. He didn't speak for the first while, as he continued to stare at her like he often did. It was rather disconcerting to be honest. She could not read him as she could others, so there was no way of knowing what he was thinking.
"Miss Granger, do you know how we keep track of all the magical children in Britain?" he asked.
She shook her head, "I'm afraid not, sir."
It was true. She didn't know how they did it. To be honest, she had never really paid all that much attention to it. She assumed that there was some sort of magical process involved, but that was all.
"We have an enchanted list that adds names whenever a child starts showing signs of magic," he replied. "It was rather peculiar when your name showed up only weeks before my visit. At first, I thought that you were simply a late bloomer, as there have been a few such cases, but upon further investigation, that theory has proved unlikely."
She gulped, not liking where the conversation was heading.
"I am sure you have noticed my doing this, but I have been watching you and your friend, Mr. Riddle, ever since your arrival. You both seem to be remarkably intelligent and powerful for your age. I was simply wondering if you might be able to explain it all to me."
Of course he would have picked up on that. She should have known better than to think he wouldn't. Dumbledore was considered one of the greatest wizards in the world. While he may be a bit mad at times, there was no doubt that he had a brilliant mind.
She honestly didn't know what to tell him. The truth, or rather the full truth, was out of the question. No one could know how she had come to be in this time, not even Dumbledore. She supposed that even she would have to forget eventually, though she didn't like the idea of forgetting everyone and everything she had left. She hoped that she would, at the very least, never forget Harry and Ron.
"I'm afraid that I don't understand myself, professor. I've been performing accidental bits of magic for as long as I can remember. However... my parents had just died around the time you said my name appeared. Perhaps that has something to do with it?"
He nodded his head in understanding, though he didn't seem entirely convinced.
Hermione then went on to explain how they got bored over the summer and ended up reading through all of their school books beforehand. She even mentioned how they had tried a few spells on their own, quickly reassuring him that they had done it privately and that no one else had seen them.
"And what about Mr. Riddle? What do you know of his background?"
She shrugged. "Well, he's an orphan like me. His mother apparently died giving birth to him, and no one knows anything about his father, but I suppose he must be dead as well."
Dumbledore stroked a hand through his long beard. "What makes you think that?"
She had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. He wasn't doing a very good job of hiding the fact that he knew all about Tom and his family. Of course, she knew all about them as well, though she dared not let on that she did. How would she possibly explain her knowledge?
"I know that there's a chance he might still be alive, but I like to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. He's clearly not in Tom's life for a reason, and I would like to think that it's because he is unable to be."
He didn't respond to that at first, but nor did he stare at her. Instead, he seemed to be staring off into blank space. She got the impression that, though he was physically sitting before her eyes, his mind was many miles away from her.
"Has he ever expressed any desire to learn more about his family?"
She thought back on all the time she had spent with him so far. There had been a few times when he seemed to wish he knew a bit more about his parents. His father in particular, seeing as he had kept his old mouth organ with him.
Of course he was curious. It was only natural for a child to be curious about a family he knew almost nothing about, but he wasn't to the point that he was actively seeking information about them yet.
"No, not as far as I know," she told him. "I don't think he really cares all that much."
This seemed to satisfy him, as he nodded his head and got up from his seat to usher her out, "Well, I'll let you get back to your friends now. I believe I've taken up enough of your time."
She stopped to give Fawkes one last pet on the head before leaving his office and heading out of the classroom all together. It was only after the classroom door had closed behind her and she was back in the corridor that she allowed herself to relax.
Her encounter with Dumbledore had left her feeling mentally exhausted. So much so that her brain hurt just thinking about it. She could only hope that Dumbledore would be satisfied with what she had told him and leave her alone from now on. She didn't think she could handle another one of his interrogations anytime soon.
Without further delay, she made haste towards the Slytherin Dungeons, the promise of flopping into bed and resting before dinner urging her onward.
When she arrived back at her common room, she found that her friends were all there waiting for her. Abraxas and Cygnus were playing a game of Wizards Chess, while Tom sat nearby in a big armchair, already working on his homework from the day.
She smiled at the sight. A boy after her own heart. She honestly thought she would never see the day.
Druella and Rosaline, who had been chatting by the fire, came running up to her when they noticed her, soon followed by the boys as well.
"What took you so long?" Druella asked.
"Are you alright?" Abraxas and Tom asked at the exact same time.
"We were beginning to think that the Gryffindor's had kidnapped you or something," Rosaline remarked.
She shook her head, giggling slightly at the idea. She was tempted to reply that it had been Dumbledore who kidnapped her, but she didn't feel like explaining. It wasn't that she was necessarily keeping it from them. She would tell them, or at least partially anyway, once she had had the proper rest and time to digest all of it. With her current state of mind, she was having trouble making sense of everything that had happened.
"I'm fine, just a bit tired," she assured them. "As for the Gryffindors… I don't think we'll have to worry about them for a while."
At first they seemed confused by what she had said, giving her odd looks, but they gradually began to realize what she meant one by one. Tom, being the first to catch on and Rosaline being the last.
"What did you do?"
Rather than being outraged, they seemed happy… excited even… She supposed that this was the kind of thing that would impress Slytherins.
"Nothing that they'll remember," she said rather ominously.
Tom stared at her with such an intensity that it made her cheeks heat up. His eyes were sparkling like a kid who had just received the gift he wanted most of all for Christmas.
"Now, if you don't mind, I think I'd like to take a bit of a nap."
Moving past her friends, she crossed the room to the girls dormitory, the sounds of her friends laughing and calling after her with praise and thanks following her as she went. She still wasn't exactly proud of what she had done, but it was nice to know that they actually appreciated what she had done for them.
