Chapter 21

Professor Dumbledore sat in his office and tried to write a letter. But he was too tired to concentrate enough on this task. He sighed heavily, rubbed his eyes and looked around his office. The former headmasters of Hogwarts were either sleeping or visiting other portraits, so Dumbledore was alone.

It was therefore his great joy when someone knocked on his door. "Please enter," he called and a moment later his favourite student came in. "Good evening, Harry."

"Good evening, Professor Dumbledore," the boy greeted politely.

"Do sit down," Dumbledore offered and Harry obliged. "What is on your mind, Harry, that you come visit me at this late hour?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably on his seat before he started speaking: "It's about Hermione."

Dumbledore tensed at once. "Is Miss Granger in trouble?" he cautiously asked.

"I'm not sure," Harry replied. "For weeks now she seems to be extremely depressed. She's hardly eating anything, she doesn't sleep well and she even doesn't study that hard and precise as she used to. Last week she even forgot to write her Charms essay and for her Transfiguration essay she only got an E!"

Dumbledore sighed. He had heard from Filius, Minerva, and other teachers how Miss Granger seemed to sink into a deep black hole and no one knew neither why this was happening nor how one could help her. Everyone was so concerned that they had discussed her behaviour last week in their monthly teachers' conference. All the time Severus had stared at him hatefully…

"We tried everything," Harry went on desperately. "We tried to comfort her or to cheer her up or even let her annoy us as she wishes but she won't even tell us what's bothering her and we don't know what else to do. We're just afraid that she will starve to death or not pass her exams." Harry looked at him gravely. "That is why I wanted to ask you if you maybe knew why Hermione is so depressed."

"What makes you think that I am aware of her problem?" Dumbledore asked with a neutral expression.

Harry shrugged. "I sometimes have the feeling that you know everything that's going on in the castle," he admitted.

The headmaster chuckled lightly.

"And if you do, sir," the boy continued full of hope, "please try and help her. We only want our old Hermione back."

In that moment Dumbledore had to make a decision. He had separated Miss Granger and Severus for several reasons (impropriety, it was against the rules, etc.) but most of all because he had tried to protect her. He knew Severus long enough to fear for her innocence and safety… But now Miss Granger was wasting away before his own eyes! That had never been his intention.

Dumbledore sighed and finally made his decision: "Don't worry anymore, Harry. I know what to do."

The boy smiled suddenly, thanked him over and over and left the office with not only hope but absolute confidence in his doings.

Dumbledore merely hoped that the boy would never find out why Hermione was so depressed in the first place…