Author's Note:

Thanks to ILRB80 for beta reading this chapter!

Chapter 11 - The Darkest Wizard of All

Last Time: Peter's voice grew high and mocking. "Oh Peter, Sirius had such a great idea. Won't you be our Secret Keeper Peter? Won't you be tortured for us Peter? Won't you die for us Peter?" Peter cackled, so loud and hard that his body spasmed, convulsed. There wasn't a drop of humor in Peter Pettigrew's laughter- only pain and hurt. "And I realized that James and Sirius had never considered me a friend. Just a… A rat… A pet to be looked after, a thing to be experimented on, a shield for The Perfect James and Lily Potter. They knew what they were doing was wrong, that's why they never told Dumbledore about how they'd betrayed me. About how James Potter couldn't stand to see his best friend Sirius Black hunted down and killed, but if it was only Pathetic Peter Pettigrew then it was alright.

"So I told the Dark Lord exactly where to find them, I framed Sirius Black, and I've never, ever regretted it."

XOXOXOX

"Oh," said Hermione simply, straightening. She was still quite frightened of course, but it seemed rather wise to keep that secret and try not to call attention to the fact that she'd implied Pettigrew to be a self-interested coward. And she'd read enough books to know that when a villain started monologuing the best thing to do was to let them. And most of the nonfictions agreed that if you'd had the misfortune of being kidnapped, the best strategy was to build rapport with the kidnapper. And she was quite aware that when she was nervous or frightened she had a tendency to go on and on like a wanker. And it seemed rather apparent that being a wanker might get her killed. And so it was probably best to keep things simple and say rather little. "So you're not a coward then?"

"It's strange, don't you think? That everyone thinks I'm a double agent and a coward. Seems like the very definition of an oxymoron, but being a coward is bad, and being a double agent is bad, and I'm bad, so who gives a rat's arse if the accusation is ridiculous," said Peter Pettigrew, smirking. "But no Hermione. I'm not a coward… Nor am I an idiot, as you apparently feared. Were you trying to manipulate me earlier?"

Her monologue earlier, about wanting a smart father, appeared rather on the nose and obvious.

"I'd rather not have an idiot for a father," Hermione said truthfully. Dad had a doctorate, and Hermione was proud of him for it even if it was just for dentistry. The world did need dentists afterall. She shuttered to imagine if Dad only had a Masters, or worse a Bachelors- and if he'd only graduated high school, why then she'd probably disown herself to be free of such an embarrassing relative. And if she really was related to some eugenecist murderer like Pettigrew she didn't know what she'd do. Perhaps go into hiding and come up with some fake name so nobody could ever guess her origins. It was all hypothetical of course, because her father was a Granger not a Pettigrew, thank God…

...Peter looked searchingly into her eyes...

Bugger...

She really hoped Peter wasn't a legilimens or she'd be quite dead. She needed him to think her his daughter afterall.

"Don't be afraid," Peter said soothingly, putting a hand gently on her back. "I'm not evil. I'm not a murderer. If my life hadn't been on the line I'd have never turned James in. I hated him for his betrayal- that wasn't a reason to kill him. Not that anyone would admit the truth of my position- they'd all act like they'd have done differently. They judge me, but they've never been in the position, but they'd still judge me a pathetic traitor! And Moony… Moony would know…" Peter sounded horrified by the prospect. "Why didn't James see? Why didn't he ask Moony? Me and Sirius were always so eager for mischief, but Moony… Why didn't he ask Moony? Because he was a werewolf? The Dark Lord offered him the world, and Moony turned him down- was never even tempted. How could James have ever doubted Moony- his one true friend?"

Peter's laughter could be mistaken for sobs. "I couldn't stand for Moony to know. I didn't want to go to Azkaban. If I didn't do something about Sirius he'd have killed me. I had no choice, you understand? I didn't want to kill the muggles, but I had no choice if I wanted to survive."

"I understand," Hermione murmured.

"Your father isn't a murderer," Peter Pettigrew wrapped her in a hug, his tears dropping on her frazzled hair. "You understand don't you Hermione? I'd have simply rewritten Poppy's memory, but she overpowered my Imperious, she fought me- I was just defending myself! If she'd just done as I'd ordered, I'd have simply rewritten her memory. She'd have considered me a normal rat, nobody would have died, and the Dark Lord would have never found out! Do you know how much easier things would have been if I were a murderer? Did you really think your little concession speech fooled me? I could have killed Master Ron at any time! But why would I? He was the best master I ever had: He fed me, he let me sleep as I pleased, and he never asked me to do anything unreasonable!"

Hermione nicked his wands off him, and pulled out of his embrace. She offered them back to him. "I trust you. My father is not a murderer."

"You do understand." Peter took the wands, his eyes softening. "Hermione, my daughter, a word of advice. When you try to frame someone, always punch up. When things go wrong people want to blame the top of the schoolyard. Nobody would ever believe that Neville Longbottom was the Heir of Slytherin. You should have gone after Harry Potter."

"Why are you telling me this?" Hermione asked carefully. "You're just going to erase my memories and replace them with fake ones. I won't remember any of this."

"I suppose I wanted to act like a proper father, just once. See what it's like. What life could have been like, if things hadn't gone so wrong." Peter chuckled and pointed Ron's wand at her. "Obliviate."

And Hermione knew no more.

XOXOXOX

Hermione was quite confused. It had turned out that her suspicions about Scabbers had been foolish, as she'd known all along. Oh how could she have possibly been so obtuse? She'd tested the rat, she'd gotten him to drink the sleeping potion, and cast the animagus reversal spell. Nothing had happened. Ron had walked in on her experimenting with her rat, and he'd gotten so angry- and so she'd cast a stunning spell on him. She'd have to explain herself to Ginny and Harry if she wanted to salvage their friendship.

So why was she looking up at Headmaster Dumbledore? Why was she in bed in a room full of peculiar knick-knacks she'd never seen? Why did the Headmaster look like he'd seen a ghost?

"Miss Granger," said Headmaster Dumbledore. "I'm pleased you've finally awoken. May I ask you what you recall of the events that took place this morning?"

"I've been put under a False Memory Charm haven't I?" Hermione asked testily- affronted that anyone would dare manipulate her memories. "Headmaster Dumbledore, I've delayed for too long. I think Scabbers is an unregistered animagus, and the true killer of Madam Pompom. You see I tested him this morning, and according to my memories- found him to be a normal rat. But discrepancies between where I find myself and what I remember lead me to believe that I actually found him to be an animagus, and he put me under a False Memory Charm."

Headmaster Dumbledore inclined his head. "Yes. Recent events have made all of that apparent."

Not quite the reaction she'd hoped for, she'd rather hoped for a certain award, but his statement implied that they had at least caught Scabbers. Hermione bit her lip nervously. "Will I be getting an award, or am I too late?" Headmaster Dumbledore regarded her silently, so Hermione tittered on, eager to prove her cleverness. "And I'm quite certain that Professor Quirrell is the Dark Lord in disguise- or at the very least one of his servants. I'd have told you all this earlier if he hadn't threatened me! So you see, I think it would be quite wise to place me under protection! And Ron, Ginny, and Harry as well of course. Also my parents- the Dark Lord probably likes to target families- from what I've read about him he seems rather terrible! And my Grandparents too, as well as my Aunts and Uncles… This is getting a bit long isn't it? Perhaps this was why so few were willing to oppose the Dark- But if you simply use a Fidelius Charm the scale of protection shan't be a problem! Although forcing my Aunts and Uncles to confine themselves in one place is likely infeasible- they still have to work after all. My grandparents have a pension though, so it shan't be a problem for them."

Hermione tapped her lips with her wand thoughtfully. She was finding this conversation most revealing. "The real difficulty of opposing the Dark Lord is funding isn't it? Magical Britain makes for a rather small tax base- and as I understand it, many of the wealthiest families supported the Dark Lord. I doubt anyone other than wealthy purebloods could really devote themselves to stopping the Dark Lord's forces full time. You should tap into the British Defense Budget- the muggle one I mean- that would solve your revenue problem."

"A clever suggestion." Headmaster Dumbledore smiled serenely. "Miss Granger, please do not think of this as an accusation- I am not angry with you- but can you tell me why you refrained from telling me about Scabbers the morning after you had discovered he was the culprit?"

Hermione was quite sure she was being tested. What was the best explanation she could give? Saying she'd been frightened would make her look weak, but of course she had eventually proven her courage by testing Scabbers. She could explain that she'd not been exactly sure- and that she didn't want to risk the humiliation of being so clearly wrong. That seemed rather vain though. She could claim she feared retribution from Voldemort's spy who had infiltrated the staff- but testing Scabbers proved that an obvious rationalization. The first option seemed-

"I only ask that you speak the truth," said Headmaster Dumbledore. "Or say nothing at all."

Should she say she'd wanted to impress Ron? That made her seem quite selfish, but in a good kind of way that perhaps Headmaster Dumbledore would find endearing. But he was a legilimens, and he'd be able to root out a lie quite easily.

In the end, there was only one answer which could satisfy him.

"I would never join Lord Voldemort," Hermione said proudly. "I'm on your side, Headmaster Dumbledore. Even if I am in Slytherin- I'm one of the good ones. Perhaps I did dally a bit long, but once I realized that Scabbers would escape if I further delayed- I took action. I'm still quite confounded by why I didn't just go to you with my suspicions- that would have been wiser, although the Sorting Hat did offer me Gryffindor you know? And Ravenclaw. I only went to Slytherin because I wanted to be in the same house as Ron and I thought that that's where he would go. I suppose you could say that I'm not a real Slytherin."

The room was filled with the clicking and clanking of the dozens of strange clocks in the Headmaster's quarters as the most powerful wizard in the world assessed her answer. Hermione hoped she passed his test, and she was sure she would- it had been quite the clever answer after all!

"Let me tell you a tale, Miss Granger." Headmaster Dumbledore frowned, his expression grave. "About the darkest wizard of all time. I am not speaking of Grindelwald. Nor even the boy who would eventually become Lord Voldemort. I am speaking of a wizard, far, far more terrible. Young, brilliant, he was the most talented wizard since Merlin himself. He did things with a wand that nobody had ever seen. And he plotted things more evil and horrible than anything Lord Voldemort has ever concocted. He was not so humble as to desire to rule over Magical Britain- no, this dark wizard would settle for nothing less than the entire world, magical and muggle."

Hermione smiled as the Headmaster labored. "Go on," she encouraged gently, rather touched that he would be so open with her.

"Lord Voldemort does not think himself evil. Nor, I believe, does he think himself good. Unless I am quite mistaken, and I rarely am in such matters, Lord Voldemort foolishly believes that morality does not exist. Grindelwald, I know, thought himself a good man. He truly believed that everything he was doing was for The Greater Good. But the darkest of dark wizards was under no such illusions. He knew his plans were evil. He was quite smitten with a young wizard you see, and told himself he was simply making his nefarious plans to impress his crush. It was all for love, he thought. Hogwash! Truly a despicable excuse! Perverting the most sacred of magics! Luckily for the world, the menace was killed when he was only 18... Although… My greatest fear is not that he shall return, but that he never truly died in the first place!"

"That's a horrible way to look at yourself," Hermione chided. "You're far better than Grindelwald or Voldemort! If not for you my muggle parents would be laboring under wizard rule or I'd be forced into some horrid muggleborn concentration camp! You're a good man Headmaster Dumbledore, and I shan't hear you say otherwise! Even if you were a wanker when you were young, you've clearly turned things around. Chin up."

Headmaster Dumbledore stared at her long and hard.

"I would recommend sharing your worries with Professor McGonagall. She would make you see sense. Actually, perhaps it would be more prudent to hire a licensed therapist. Self-loathing is quite unhealthy when bottled," Hermione advised loftily. " And while I'm quite pleased you're sharing with someone, I'm a mere first year student- if a little clever. I'm hardly qualified to act as your confidant. Personally, I don't have any idea what this has to do with me."

Headmaster Dumbledore looked thoroughly disgusted. "You did a truly wonderful thing this morning," the Headmaster said coldly. "Peter Pettigrew was found in the hall, unconscious in a pool of his own blood. He'd lost a hand. I found blood on a single sword, and your wand shows that you cast Wingardium Leviosa. The bones in both his hands were completely shattered, it is hard to believe that he could cast anything in such a state- much less a delicate memory charm. Nevertheless, that is exactly what Mister Charlie Weasley's wand shows. By all appearances, you bested a fully-fledged death eater this morning."

Pages of parchment appeared in Headmaster Dumbledore's hand, covered with Hermione's colour-coded penmanship. "Here you recorded your suspicions that Scabbers is in fact Peter Pettigrew. You cite his age and missing thumb as evidence, as well as a motive- one which did not truly exist with Sirius Black. You also wrote that you suspected that Professor Quirrell was and is Lord Voldemort in disguise, and that he's after something being guarded in Hogwarts- citing suspicious interactions with the man as well as the troll let loose on Halloween as evidence. I must say that I am astonished by this Miss Granger. I do not believe that any other first year- not Tom Riddle, not I, not even Merlin himself- could have done such a thing. You are- what's the muggle word... a genius Miss Granger."

"Thank you Headmaster Dumbledore," said Hermione happily. "But I'm really only a little clever."

"Do not pretend I was complimenting you," Headmaster Dumbledore snapped angrily. "Do not selfishly run from your responsibility and call it modesty!"

"Err…" Hermione squirmed uncomfortably. That seemed quite unfair! Capturing Peter Pettigrew, telling Headmaster Dumbledore what she knew, those were hardly responsibilities fit for a twelve-year-old, genius or not! Perhaps her motives had been less than selfless, but she had risked her life to see Pettigrew captured, and she shan't accept any criticism for her actions on the matter! Perhaps next time she'd do nothing, if this was the thanks heroining got her!

Headmaster Dumbledore closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, his blue eyes had regained their sparkle. "I am being too hard on you. You remind me of myself Miss Granger, and I would rather save you the pain of repeating my mistakes. But this was not one of them, you did a truly wonderful thing this morning! You should feel proud! I'd like to personally thank you on behalf of Poppy and Sirius!"

Hermione was rather confused. "Who is Poppy?"

"Madam Pomfrey."

Hermione scratched her head. "That's the nurse right? Um, I'm glad for they're thanks and all, but… I'll still be getting an award right?"

"Yes." Headmaster Dumbledore's smile was so forced it looked more like a grimace. "You'll be getting an award."

Hussah! She'd earned Headmaster Dumbledore's approval! Hermione leapt from her bed in sheer delight! All was well!

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Sorry for the delay. Work is picking up for me, so I'm no longer going to be able to release a chapter a week. One every two weeks is going to be the best I can do. Please favorite, follow, or leave a review if you enjoyed the chapter. There was a big hint at one of the deeper mysteries going on in the story, let me know if you caught it! Next chapter is going to be about the fallout for Harry and Sirius, and then Ron's reaction to everything that happened is the chapter after that. It's probably going to be an update every two weeks from now on. And now onto reviews:

James Birdsong - Thanks! I hope you keep reading!

Gja03 - I felt emboldened to make the flaws in the way Hermione sees Ron really clear, because I knew Pettigrew was going to wipe both of their memories right after. Thanks for the review!

ViviTheFolle - It sure did. I won't get into the specifics, but the way Hermione treated Ron isn't going to be narratively supported. Thanks for the review!

Iwik - Hermione didn't undo the petrificus totalus. Her magic was overpowered by Peter Pettigrew's. Taking him on in the first place was extremely unwise, which is one of the reasons Hermione is getting grilled by Dumbledore in this chapter. Harry was following Hermione's directions and getting Hagrid. Thanks for the review!