DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter.
.
Chapter 20: What Happened in the Chamber
"'Hermione!' Ron groaned.
Hermione lay utterly still, her eyes open and glassy.
'They were found near the library,' said Professor McGonagall. 'I don't suppose either of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them...'
She was holding up a small, circular mirror.
Harry and Ron shook their heads, both staring at Hermione." -J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
.
July 2020
(the present)
"So, what was Severus like in your father's time?"
It was another day at the Department of Mysteries, office number two. It had not been a week yet since he arrived in this 2020, but he felt like he had been there already for eternity.
"Dad thought he was the bad guy."
Mr. Diggory snorted. "Bad guy Snape. Greasy Overgrown Bat of the Dungeons?" he asked in amusement.
Al nodded casually. "Yeah, according to Uncle Ron... and the books and papers."
Mr. Diggory frowned. "They would still call a war hero that?"
"No, only when the papers mentioned his Hogwarts teaching days."
Albus's eyes went to the framed photos behind Mr. Diggory's desk. There was a photo of five people who looked like in their twenties - two witches and three wizards. The two witches were wearing green robes with the St. Mungo's emblem and the three wizards were wearing dark blue robes with the Ministry of Magic seal. The photo was moving, of course, and they were all laughing together. Next to it was a photo of a young witch wearing a Hogwarts uniform. The witch's brown curls were like waterfalls on her shoulders. She was holding a book close to her chest, hiding the tie.
"She looks exactly like Aunt Mione, doesn't she?" he murmured.
"A Her-Mini," chuckled Mr. Diggory.
"She looks like that person I saw in my Dad's memories in the Pensieve..." He didn't mean to say that, but he couldn't help, given the strong resemblance.
Mr. Diggory gave him an inquiring look.
He swallowed. "Dad owns a Pensieve. He said it just helps remember and forget things at the same time... One day, my brother, James, and I saw a vial labeled 'second-year' memories. We poured it into the basin and... saw Aunt Mione's petrified body... She looks exactly just like Rose."
"So she'd been petrified, too, in another universe," Mr. Diggory mumbled, staring at the teacup he was holding.
"What happened during her second year in this universe?" he inquired.
Mr. Diggor placed down his teacup and gestured for him to sit on the sofa. He took the chair across from him.
"We stopped brewing in the basement sometime before the Christmas holidays. Hermione..." he smiled fondly, "bravely asked Severus where she can continue brewing and experimenting. Of course, Severus was astounded at first, but he always saw her potential. He had never seen anyone brew as good as himself, other than Hermione. She was just so... focused, she pays attention to details... She never stopped asking questions. She was a know-it-all."
"So Professor Snape also insulted her by calling her a 'know-it-all'?" he asked.
Mr. Diggory grinned and shook his head. "Merlin, I really can't imagine your universe. Severus still calls her a 'know-it-all' but it's not an insult. It's more of a nickname, really. Severus is a disciple of tough love."
Albus sighed, feeling a bit sad. "Someone once called Aunt Hermione a bookworm, and she wasn't happy about it." He would never tell him that it was his Uncle Ron who called Aunt Mione that.
"Here, Ian and Terrence call her a bookworm but they don't allow anyone to insult her using that name. One time, Ronald Weasley called her that when they had an argument. Sorry, but Ian and Terrence hexed your uncle. Hogwarts days, of course."
Albus's heartbeat doubled. "So what else happened in her second year?"
"Well, Professor Snape allowed her to brew in his potions lab and she started showing up in our D.A.D.A. study group, trying to figure out what was petrifying Hogwarts residents... She never stopped researching. One time, I wasn't there to escort her... I thought she was already with Susan and other second-years on the Quidditch Hufflepuff box... but when I arrived there, Susan thought she was with me. And the professors found her with my cousin, Penelope, outside the library. Both of them were holding compact mirrors."
"How did you feel when you saw her?" He remembered the shock on Uncle Ron's face from the Pensieve, but his dad looked sad. Albus actually wondered when or what year Uncle Ron developed feelings for Aunt Mione and if his dad ever cried during the times his female best friend almost died...
"I fell on the floor and I didn't realize until Ian and Terrence were holding me," he replied solemnly. "My heart crushed, especially when I heard Susan sobbing."
"Miss Bones cried? But... she was just..."
"Frozen. Yes. But she was Susan's constant companion - her sister." Mr. Diggory frowned at him.
Albus nodded slowly, but still thinking hard. "Did she find out it was a basilisk?" he asked almost absentmindedly.
"That, she did. Ian and Terrence could not actually believe that Hermione - our resident bookworm - tore a page from a book." He sounded amused, even after all those years. "She was clutching the crumpled page in her other hand."
"So, who killed the basilisk?" he asked.
"Your father, of course." The Unspeakable gave him a small smile. "My friends and I went to look for Potter and Weasley because we heard that Ginny Weasley was taken into the Chamber... so we told them what Hermione found out. Potter and Weasley insisted on going down the Chamber to get her... we helped. Hermione wouldn't want me and our friends to do nothing to help two second-years..."
His eyes widened. "You went down to the Chamber of Secrets with my dad and uncle?"
Mr. Diggory smiled and nodded. "Yes. But first, we cornered the brilliant man, Professor Lockhart. I assume you've heard of him?"
Albus nodded. "Pensieve memories."
"So he was a fraud. Your father, Ronald, Lockhart, and I went down. Ian and Terrence called for help - they went to Professor Snape and the headmaster."
"Professor Snape?" he wondered.
"Yes. He tutored me and Hermione... we already trust him that time."
"So, did Professor Lockhart still attempt to wipe off the memories of my dad and uncle?"
Mr. Diggory snorted. "Yes. And mine, too. Ronald's wand was broken. The spell backfired. Poor man, he lost his memories."
That made him laugh. "Some things just don't change. And then the ceiling got damaged and you were separated from my dad?" he guessed.
"Lockhart and Ronald were separated from me and Harry," the Unspeakable corrected.
"No way!" he exclaimed and smiled. "You went with my dad and saw him kill the basilisk?"
The Unspeakable nodded. "I didn't do anything much. Harry did all the work."
"And then the phoenix arrived?"
Mr. Diggory nodded. "Fawkes, the phoenix, arrived."
.
1993
(Cedric and Hermione's past)
Cedric was just relieved that Hermione was no longer frozen. She was chatting with Susan near the fireplace animatedly. The other second-years Neville, Hannah, Justin, and Ernie joined them.
When he returned from the Chambers this afternoon, he found Hermione on her hospital bed sitting and drinking some potions with Susan's help. His little cousin wouldn't leave Hermione's side and he understood. Hermione was Susan's best friend. The two witches were like sisters.
Cedric, Ian, and Terrence all approached Hermione's bed. Each of them hugged her. Even his two best mates, who were worried when Hermione got petrified, looked emotional when she greeted them.
He left her for a while to check into Penny. He thanked his cousin for being with Hermione that day in the library.
"I saw her alone," Penny told him. "I asked her what she was still doing inside the castle. She said she realized something and it could not wait... so I stayed with her. I would do it for anyone, Ced..."
And he remembered Penny teasing him. "She's important to you and she's a great person, always kind to everyone. Take care of her."
"Are you sure you're not going to tell her what you heard in the Chamber of Secrets?"
Cedric drifted from his musings because of Ian's voice.
He turned to his best friend. "She might feel bad..."
"'Course she will," commented Terrence who was holding a copy of The Daily Prophet beside him. "But she deserves to know the truth. No secrets, remember?"
"She just woke up today and she's too happy to be with us again," he reasoned. "I will tell her... but not today."
"Yeah. Not today," Ian agreed. "She might feel bad and sorry, even if it's not her fault. I mean... really? Ginny Weasley wrote about her jealousy in Tom Riddle's diary? Potter must really like our little bookworm a lot."
"But the good news is, she doesn't reciprocate Potter's feelings," Terrence grinned at him knowingly.