Verification Protocol
Hermione, seated at her spacious desk, was going over the same files for the second time. Her coworker, Theo Nott, was twenty minutes late to the Department of Mysteries, where they were supposed to begin a new project.
She raised her eyebrows when Theo finally appeared. A sarcastic comment was already on the tip of her tongue, but she swallowed it when she saw how clearly frustrated, disheveled, and slightly rumpled he looked.
"Everything alright, Theo?" she asked, as he dropped heavily into the chair across from her desk with a loud sigh.
"Yes... no... I don't know... Granger..." He paused for a long moment. For a second, Hermione thought he'd forgotten what he was going to say. But then he continued, his voice uncertain.
"The new verifications... to access the department..." —another long pause— "Have you had any trouble?"
Hermione raised an eyebrow. She nodded slowly.
"They're certainly annoying, but... what kind of trouble do you mean?"
Nott clenched his jaw.
"I can enter the access codes just fine, even the rune sequences. But..." —he ran a hand over his face— "the ones that check if you're human... I... I can't pass those..."
The Unspeakable exhaled deeply and looked at her with a mix of distress and confusion.
"Granger... I think I'm not human."
Silence fell in the room—thick, heavy. Hermione frowned, about to make a joke… but Nott's expression was too serious.
Without saying a word, she opened a drawer and pulled out a black folder sealed with three magical ribbons. With a flick of her wand, she broke the security charms and laid the documents on the table.
"I was waiting for the right moment," she murmured. "You're not the only one who failed that verification this week."
Nott blinked, confused.
"What are you saying?"
Hermione looked at him gravely.
"In the last two months, seven Unspeakables have been flagged as 'non-human' by the security system.
She slid one of the documents toward him. It was a magical map of the department, marked with red symbols in certain sections.
"And all those failures began right after we opened Archive NonH-404; The one that holds the records of contact with... non-human intelligences."
Theo swallowed hard.
"Are you suggesting that...?"
"I'm not suggesting anything," Hermione interrupted. "But if you're not human… and you're still here… maybe you're not alone."
At that moment, the lights flickered. A deep hum echoed through the department walls. Both of them looked up.
And then the metallic voice of the security system whispered through the speakers:
"Non-human identity detected. Initiating containment protocol."
Hermione and Theo stared at each other.
Both held their breath.
"Granger! I'm human! I swear!"
The room lit up with a soft blue glow. Floating runes appeared in the air, dancing like fireflies. The containment protocol had activated. No Unspeakable could leave the department until the non-human identity was found.
Theo jumped to his feet.
"Granger! What's going on? Did someone else fail the check?"
"No one else," she replied without looking up from the documents. "Just you."
"Then why aren't you worried?"
Hermione looked up. Her expression had changed. She no longer looked concerned or confused. Her face was calm. Too calm.
"Because I know what's happening," she said, waving her hand. The containment runes vanished instantly… as if they recognized her.
Theo took a step back.
"How did you do that?"
"Have you ever wondered why none of the 'non-humans' have been reported? We're all still working here, aren't we?"
Theo felt a chill crawl down his spine. He looked at Archive NonH-404 on the table. One of the reports described a magical anomaly in human form—capable of altering magical systems, blending in, and absorbing knowledge like a sponge.
"No… it can't be…"
"Oh, but it can," Hermione said, stepping closer. "I didn't make them disappear. I simply… transformed them. They're more useful now. and now you... you can still stay."
"What are you?"
Her smile was faint, almost melancholic.
"Non-human… that's all you need to know. They gave me a form, a history, a place. But I became something more. I got... curious."
Theo moved toward the door, but it slammed shut.
"What did you do to the others?"
"They're fine. Actually, they're better than ever. Some even remember things they didn't know they'd forgotten. Things from before they were human."
"What?"
"Theo..." Hermione whispered, drawing closer. "You are human. They all were. I'm the one who made the tests fail. I had to see if anyone would suspect. If someone could see through my disguise."
Theo's eyes widened.
"And now what?"
Hermione placed a hand on the desk. Her shadow trembled slightly… and something not quite human shimmered around the edges of her silhouette. It wasn't terrifying, exactly. But it was too much.
"Now," she said calmly, "I'll make sure you pass the test without any trouble."
Theo didn't have time to ask what she meant.
The room filled with light.
And fewer and fewer people failed the test after that day.
Because the one who administered it… no longer needed to verify anything.