Chapter Thirty-four: Suspicions

"But I don't understand it, Hermione," said Tom uncertainly as he sat with Hermione in their hotel bedroom. "Over a month now, and all Fabian has been doing is taking us to different places and extracting our memories of what we see there. But we haven't seen anything important. We haven't had any battles or anything. What exactly is it the man is teaching us?"

Hermione sighed and rubbed her temples. She'd been too preoccupied all week wondering why she had not had a period in all the time they'd been in Paris. The answer was obvious, she just wasn't quite certain when she was going to mention it. She welcomed the idea of wrapping her mind around a different dilemma for a while.

"You know, Tom, maybe the problem is we're trying to second guess the wrong man," Hermione told him. "Fabian only took us under his wing on Dumbledore's orders. Maybe what we should be asking is, why does Dumbledore want us here, instead of with him? I mean, he's all fired up about researching horcruxes, and then suddenly sends us away just as we made a breakthrough. It doesn't make any sense."

"I know, Hermione, I've been thinking the exact same thing," Tom agreed. "I've been wondering if we might be able to pay a visit to the old man on the sly, see what he's up to."

"Normally, I would have just borrowed Harry Potter's invisibility cloak, but of course we don't have it right now," Hermione said.

"Invisibility cloak?" Tom scoffed. "You mean like in that silly story of the three brothers? You can't be serious."

"Oh no, it's definitely real," she assured him.

"The only cloak of invisibility I've ever heard of was in a children's story," Tom mentioned. "The three brothers."

"I've never heard of it," she told him.

"Well, I believe it goes like this: three brothers wished to get across a raging river and magically created a bridge. Death felt cheated because he usually claimed the souls that wanted across, so he tricked the brothers into thinking he was giving them gifts, so they would think they were safe from him. One brother received a wand that made him invincible in battle, but another man killed him to possess it. Another man used a stone to resurrect his beloved, but because she did not belong among the living, he ended his life to join her in death. The third brother received a cloak of invisibility which he wore for many years, then passed on to his son."

"Yes, I believe the cloak was passed on to Harry as well," Hermione speculated.

"Well then, what do you know about your friend's ancestry?" Tom prodded.

"I only know that James Potter does not yet exist," said Hermione glumly. "It's times like these when I wish for the Hogwarts library from my own time."

"Well, if not the Hogwarts library, what about the Ministry library instead?" Tom suggested. "They keep records of every birth and death there."

"Well, yes, I suppose they do, but we have no idea who might have had that cloak before the Potters," Hermione pointed out. "It will do little good to look if it's not in the possession of a Potter so we could at least narrow the search down."

"Well, let's pop over to England for a bit and see what we can find out," said Tom. "I'll never be able to sleep now."

"It's the middle of the night," she reminded him. "Is the place even open at this hour?"

"There's always ways around that," Tom said with a chuckle.

"You're insane," she told him. "What if we're caught?"

"We won't be, love," Tom said as he planted a kiss to her forehead. "Unless you've got a better idea?"

"Tom Riddle, you have utterly corrupted me," she told him as she got out of the bed.

Catching sight of her unclothed body, Tom said, "Wait a minute. We don't have to go right this very minute—"

"Oh yes, we do," Hermione insisted. "The sooner we go, the sooner we'll be able to find out what Dumbledore is up to. I don't trust him, Tom. Surely he's up to no good."

Hermione waved her wand, and both of them were fully clothed.

"Damn!" Tom grumbled good-naturedly, then stepped over to take her hand in his. With a twist, the world spun around, and when it all came right again they were standing in London.

"Now, the regular way into this place is right here," he said, indicating an innocuous looking tree stump. "However, given the hour, and the probability the place has been warded, the only way we'll be getting in is the Muggle way. We climb."

"You've got to be kidding," Hermione complained.

"Quiet now," he said. "We don't want to give away our position."

Hermione nodded and followed Tom as he stepped into a nearby tunnel and opened a hidden door just inside. The two of them stepped inside and grabbed the rungs on the wall, descending rapidly. Even still, it took the greater part of an hour to reach the bottom.

"I hope this was worth the effort," Hermione whispered. Tom put a finger to his lips as he led her into the underbelly of the Ministry Library. Hermione couldn't wait to see what they'd find inside.

#

"I'm sorry, my old friend, I'm really not sure where the two went," said Fabian into his flu.

"Well, you'd better figure it out, then," Dumbledore grumbled. "Those two know far too much to just allow them to muck about wherever they may please. What if they are captured?"

"Well, then I suppose we'll have to—eliminate them?"

"Only the girl is expendable," he cautioned Fabian, his fiery hand crackling as he moved. "We must keep young Mr. Riddle very much alive."

"For the Greater Good," Fabian agreed with a smile.

"Precisely," Dumbledore agreed.