Harry was woken hours later by a gentle hand shaking his shoulder. He opened his eyes to a sea of brown hair and the warmth of another person's head tucked beneath his chin. He turned his head slightly to see the Madame Pomfrey standing over them. The elderly witch's face was paler than usual, with dark blotches from exhaustion under her eyes, but she seemed in good spirits.
"Is everything okay, Harry?" She asked quietly, as to avoid waking Hermione who was sleeping peacefully. Harry carefully shifted so that he was able to talk without speaking into Hermione's ear. He whispered back.
"She woke earlier… I don't think the Terror is gone. She got all shaky when I stepped away for a moment to get the potions." The mediwitch frowned at this information and cast a few gentle diagnostic spells on the sleeping girl's body.
"She could have had the Terror earlier tonight, but it's gone now. She may have some resulting anxiety at being left alone, however. It's easy to be nervous when disoriented and seemingly alone. Warmth helps her stay calm?" Harry nodded.
"I also gave her one of each potion and some bread and water," he noted, indicating the table beside the bed. "She was very tired so we went to sleep. Her hand looks okay too. "
"Good. She seems to be recovering quickly and might regain her sight sometime tomorrow. In the meantime, you both must stay here. The castle is in lockdown as the aurors are performing a full building investigation of the incident. It seems they caught traces of an adult death-eater being inside the Gryffindor tower at one point or another quite recently. The door to the hospital wing has been sealed and a password placed on the floo. You are both quite safe here, although you might get some company if we find the death-eater still in the building and a fight breaks out ," she warned. Harry nodded, his eyes drooping.
Hermione stirred slightly, but didn't move much. She seemed reluctant to wake. The healer smiled gently and let the two go back to sleep. Harry turned back to his original position and held Hermione securely in his arms, willing her to know that they were safe. She seemed to understand, if only from his body language and with a contented sigh, drifted back to sleep.
The next morning, Hermione woke quite slowly. Her entire body felt heavy, even her eyelids, so she kept them closed. A comforting warmth had wrapped around her and soothed her flu-like aches. She opened her eyes very slowly. Harry was lying beside her asleep, and she was staring at the small Gryffindor Quidditch icon on his shirt.
"HARRY!" She shouted, sitting up. Her companion woke, startled to find himself looking up into Hermione's clear, unclouded brown eyes. A smile split his face.
"Hermione! You can see!"
"Yes! Oh, I'm so glad!" She said, and hugged him tightly. "Thank you for being here with me, Harry. It means a lot to know that you never left."
Madame Pomfrey stumbled from her office, still sleepy from the previous day's work but very happy to see Hermione feeling better. She ran a few more diagnostic spells and found that Hermione's eyesight had been completely restored over the course of the night. Hermione still had aches, but they were mostly ignored by her for the moment as she was far too excited about her newly regained sight to be too bothered. Madame Pomfrey re-bandaged her hand, which was less swollen now.
"In a few hours, after you eat, you may try to stand and walk around," the healer informed Hermione. Now able to see, she could feed herself and after Dobby brought food which Hermione reluctantly accepted. She was still holding onto her S.P.E.W ideals, but her hunger and Harry's urging drove her to make an exception. Harry convinced her to eat slowly to keep from getting sick and they enjoyed an early lunch together in the hospital wing.
After they ate, Madame Pomfrey began trying to explain the situation outside the safe haven of the hospital wing.
"The school is no longer in lockdown, and you wouldn't believe what we caught in Hogsmeade. As far as we can tell from combining Harry's pensieve memory with evidence found on the death-eater, Hermione was attacked by Ron who was under the Imperious curse - that much you two have figured out. Ron is undergoing a comprehensive psychological evaluation in St. Mungo's and will be there all week. He was under the Imperious for a few days total. As for who put him under it in the first place and how… have either of you heard of the Animagus transformation?" Hermione's eyes lit up.
"Yes I have! Professor McGonagall transformed into a tabby cat during class once. I've heard that there have been unregistered Animagi as well. Is that related?"
"Indeed it is. Ron's rat, Scabbers, is actually an unregistered Animagus. His name… Peter Pettigrew." Hermione gasped, while Harry looked patently confused.
"Peter Pettigrew was supposedly killed by Sirius Black before… your parents died." Hermione said reluctantly. "So he survived?"
"Yes. In the confrontation with Black, Pettigrew cut off his own finger and killed the muggles to frame Black. We have had an opportunity to put Pettigrew under Veritaserum and have gained the whole confession. Pettigrew is a death eater closely connected with Voldemort, and was your parent's secret keeper. He betrayed your family to Voldemort, and Sirius was sent to Azkaban instead without a trial. He escaped in order to track down Pettigrew and exact his revenge after he learned the rat was acting as someone's pet in Hogwarts." Hermione held Harry's hand as the group fell silent, digesting the information.
"So… Sirius Black didn't betray my parents, and he didn't kill Pettigrew?"
"Not yet, anyway," Madame Pomfrey said with a wry smile. "Black has been sent for by owl to be released from his sentence. I think you'll be surprised to know, Harry, that he is your Godfather."
"What?" Harry exclaimed, "I have a Godfather? Does that mean I can live with him instead of the Dursleys?" Hermione looked as excited as Harry did, having heard some of the stories of his abusive childhood.
"You have a good chance," the healer said encouragingly. "This whole fiasco has to cool down before anything happens, however, and you still have the rest of the term to finish out." Nevertheless, Harry smiled at this glimmer of hope.
"And Hermione? Will she be okay now?" He asked. Hermione frowned.
"If you want to go back to the tower I'll be fine here, Harry. You don't have to stay, although it was really nice of you to do so for so long."
"I didn't mean that I wanted to leave," Harry said quickly. "I just wish you weren't stuck in here anymore. I'm the one who's supposed to be always getting sent here with injuries of some kind or other." He grinned and Hermione's face softened. "I've enjoyed spending this time with you, I really have, but as strange as it is, I miss going to classes, eating in the hall and studying in the common room. I'm pretty sure you miss it all too." She smiled and nodded.
"Now that I can see, things are a lot better. I can read up on anything we've missed. What have we missed anyway?" She directed this last question at the healer.
"Not much, I believe. The school was put under lockdown yesterday a few hours after the attack and lasted through the subsequent investigations. Although the lockdown is over classes won't start until Monday. Today is Saturday."
There was a moment of silence as they all thought about the new information, then Hermione spoke up.
"Can I try to stand up? I'd like to be able to attend classes on Monday." Harry smiled at his eager friend while Madame Pomfrey nodded. Harry stood up from where he had been sitting on the bed beside his friend and helped her put her legs over the side of the bed. Harry and Madame Pomfrey took Hermione by the elbows and helped her stand, and slowly reduced their support until they stepped back and she was standing on her own, a wide smile on her face. She took a wobbly step forward and started to fall, but Harry was at her side in a moment, helping her stay upright. She took a few more steps on her own and then turned to go back. Her legs nearly collapsed under her, but Harry caught her and guided her back to sit on the side of the bed. He sat down beside her.
"My joints are weak and sore…" Hermione muttered, "but at least I can get up. Thank you Harry."
"We can bandage your major joints, such as your knees and ankles so that you can walk, but you might not be able to walk without someone to make sure you don't fall for a week or so." Hermione nodded.
"I'll walk with you if you like," Harry offered. "You should have somebody to help you carry all your books even when you're not sick." Hermione mock-frowned and stuck her tongue out at him as he smirked teasingly.
"Where will I stay at night?" Hermione asked, "Do I need to stay here until the pain in my joints goes away, or can I stay in the dorms"
"You need to stay here, I think. Stairs are a particular danger with your joints hurting and bound the way they are. Also, Harry might have to stay with you if you have trouble sleeping through the night. Even though the Terror is not an issue anymore, it seems your healing has been accelerated by him being near." Hermione nodded thoughtfully, but commented nonetheless.
"Harry, if you'd rather stay in the dorms, I understand. I will be okay. Surely you wouldn't want to spend all your time with me whether in classes or up here."
"I don't know what else I'd do," the boy said. "Ron's away, and there's nobody else I like to spend time with anyway. Everybody else sees me as 'the Boy-Who-Lived' … not just Harry, a friend."
"What about Quidditch?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I may do that some, but to be honest you're far more important to me than flying around right now." Hermione's face broke into a wide smile.
"Oh Harry…" she murmured and hugged him tight. "You're the best friend anyone could ever ask for. They don't know what they're missing out on." Touched, he smiled happily and hugged her back.
Harry briefly visited the Gryffindor tower while Hermione was reading in her bed in the hospital wing. She had left her wand on the table they were studying at before the whole fiasco and she needed it to practice transfigurations and charms. As Harry was gathering the wand and a few books that had been left lying around, an orange blur rushed at him from behind and attached itself to his leg.
"OW! Crookshanks?" Harry looked down to see the furry mass sniffing at his pant leg and rubbing on it.
"Come here. Hermione will like to see you," he said and gently scooped the creature into his arms. Crookshanks made his way to Harry's shoulders, where he perched precariously and dug his claws into the boy's skin. Harry grimaced as he carefully made his way back to the hospital wing, trying to keep the cat balanced as he walked.
Hermione was both surprised and delighted when she looked up from her book in time to see Crookshanks leap down from Harry's shoulders and bound to her side. Harry rubbed his scratched shoulders while Hermione rubbed her cat. She graciously accepted her wand from Harry and offered to heal the scratches.
"Can you do that?" Harry asked, amazed. He'd never seen any healing spells like that in class.
"Yes, I learned it from a book last year. Come here." He did as she asked and sat down beside her. A few taps and whispered incantations and the burning scratches were gone.
"Amazing!" Harry exclaimed, running his hand over the now-smooth skin. "I wish I'd known that spell before. Will you teach me?"
"Certainly," Hermione said. "The spell incantation is Salutom, and you tap the wound with the tip of the wand. After you've practiced it for a while, you can heal a general area of cuts. It's a good spell for burns once you've learned how to do that."
"Thanks, Hermione. Watch this save my life someday."
"I hardly think a cat scratch will kill you," Hermione retorted, her eyes twinkling.
"You never know!"
Madame Pomfrey came in to change the bandage on Hermione's hand.
"Why don't you use the Salutom spell to heal that little puncture? That would help, wouldn't it?"
"There is residual poison in her hand and wrist," the healer explained. "It is best that it is allowed to drain as much as possible. The location does not warrant widening the cut as it might damage nerves or tendons in her wrist or hand, but the more poison drains out, the faster the pain and swelling in her hand will go down."
"At least it wasn't my writing hand," Hermione said as Madame Pomfrey wrapped up her hand again.
"Will you help me walk around some more?" Hermione asked her two companions.
"Let's see if binding your knees and ankles helps you walk," Madame Pomfrey suggested, and taught the two how to effectively wrap the joints. They obliged and she was soon on her feet again. Harry stood by her side as Hermione carefully and altogether unsteadily made her way to the other side of the room. She was starting to stumble on her way back but Harry stood close behind her and held her elbows for support until she sat again on the bed.
"The wrapping helped," the girl said. "It will take some getting used to, but I think it's a good idea."
Hermione lay back on the cushions and grabbed a book while Harry went off to Quidditch practice that afternoon. It was much safer for him now that instead of spooky, blackout-inducing dementors, the school was being monitored by a small residual crew of aurors, most of whom were avid Quidditch fans. Even though it was just a practice, occasional good plays were rewarded with cheers from the vigilant crowd.
By the time Harry made his way to the hospital wing, it was dark outside. He quietly opened the door and found his best friend fast asleep in bed with an open book on her lap. He carefully put a bookmark in it and set it aside on the table beside her bed. He pulled the blanket carefully up to her chin, tucked her limp hands under it and turned off the light beside her bed. He looked at her face, relaxed and with a slight smile in sleep, and could have sworn she was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. The way her skin shone in the moonlight through the window and the intelligence that lingered on her face even in sleep captivated Harry for a moment.
"Goodnight Hermione," he whispered, but didn't touch her as he didn't want to wake her. He checked in with Madame Pomfrey to make sure Hermione would be okay alone overnight.
"Harry, take this with you. It's something Arthur Weasley gave me before his department made it illegal. It's a set of magically modified wireless communicators. As you were raised by muggles, I'm sure you recognize it as being similar to a cellular phone. Leave it beside your bed so that if I need you to help me take care of Hermione I don't have to leave her to go find you." Harry took the device, thanked the mediwitch, and made his way to the Gryffindor tower. The atmosphere was sedated as many of the occupants were already asleep. By some stroke of luck, Harry had not encountered Filch or Ms. Norris on his way to the tower. It was far past curfew. He quickly showered and went to bed, not forgetting to lay the little device on a table beside his bed along with his wand and glasses. He drifted off to sleep, subconsciously missing the warmth Hermione had provided when he had held her close to fend off cold and fear for the past two nights.
(AN: That healing spell, Salutom, is original. I used Latin root words for heal - salu, and cut - tom. I've never taken a Latin class, so I'm sorry if the word order in this situation for Latin should be more like Spanish than English. Feel free to make suggestions and/or correct me.)