Harry Potter and the Infernal Plan Part VIII
by Jori
Posted once before and now revised July 2003
e-mail: Jori@netroenterprises.com
Set during and after their sixth year at Hogwarts, Hermione asks something of Harry that will change their lives forever.
NC-17
Spoilers for all five books. Most of this was originally written well before Order of the Phoenix came out but I decided to go back and do some edits. Some were very necessary while others were more cosmetic. In this part, it was necessary. If you read part VIII previously, you'll notice this cuts off sooner than the last version. That's because too many people said they were confused so I'm still working on that issue. Thanks for the reviews!!!
H/Hr story
This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
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An unexpected tap on her shoulder caused Hermione to nearly jump out of her seat. She had been so involved in her studies that she didn't hear anyone coming. Expecting to find Harry, ready to go home for the day or perhaps Mrs. Sterling letting her know they had found the book she had been looking for all afternoon, she was surprised to find her mother standing beside her.
"Mum! What time is it?" Hermione asked, noticing that the library was almost empty and the light from the nearest window was fading quickly.
"It's almost time for them to close for the day. I called home and when Dad said you weren't there, I assumed the two of you would still be here. I thought perhaps you would like a lift home," Mrs. Granger said, standing up and looking around. "Where's Harry?"
"I -- er -- I don't really know. He went off to take a look around a while ago," said Hermione, looking at her watch. A while ago was actually closer to an hour ago. Hermione glanced around and couldn't imagine where he would have gone off to in this small place and she doubted he would have left the building without telling her. He didn't know his way around the town that well. "I'll go look for him. Stay here with my books."
Hermione walked up and down the stacks, not allowing that idea that something could be wrong to fully form in her brain. He's here somewhere, she kept telling herself over and over as she began to run out of stacks to search. Maybe he was playing a prank on her. That had to be it. When she finally found him, she was going to tell him off.
He wasn't anywhere in the main part of the library and Hermione returned to the table. "Maybe he's in the loo," whispered Mrs. Granger, adding a reassuring smile to let Hermione know she shouldn't worry.
"I'll go check," Hermione said. But instead of walking straight away in that direction, Hermione went into her book bag and retrieved her wand. Then she looked in Harry's bag and found his, too. That calmed her down a little. She knew Harry wouldn't go far without his wand. She tucked them both into her coat and looked at her mother.
"What ever do you plan on doing with those?" Mrs. Granger asked, her eyes filled with concern over what her daughter was thinking.
"Hopefully, nothing," Hermione said. "I'll be right back."
"I'm going to go see if Mrs. Sterling will let me use the phone to call home. Perhaps Harry turned up there and you're worried over nothing," Mrs. Granger said and Hermione nodded. She couldn't imagine Harry finding his way there easily but she would let her mother feel helpful anyway.
Hermione walked toward the back of the library and knocked on the door to the men's lavatory. When no one answered, she opened the door to find a very startled (and mostly deaf) Mr. Sharp washing his hands at the sink. He had just moved into her neighborhood a year ago and he never was very nice even though her parents had always performed dental work on him at a reduced cost.
"What do you think you're doing in here, young lady! Get out now!" he shouted, giving her a nasty look.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Sharp, but my friend seems to be missing. You haven't happened to see a boy about my age with black hair and glasses?" asked Hermione, loud enough for him to hear while looking quickly around the room.
"Absolutely not. Now get out of here before I tell Mrs. Sterling what you and your friends are up to!" the old man said crossly and Hermione backed away as quickly as she could. She checked the ladies' lavatory just in case but it was empty.
Hermione let a wave of panic bubble up to the surface but she forced it back down. It would do no good to panic now. Harry had to be here. She just wasn't looking in the right place. He was so tired that perhaps he fell asleep in one of the reading rooms or in one of the back rooms. She was sure that was it. He was just sleeping somewhere.
She turned a corner and ran straight into Drew, receiving a strange static electricity shock when they touched. "Sorry about that. You okay, Hermione?" the boy asked, holding onto her arm as she regained her balance.
"Thank you, Drew. I'm fine. You didn't happen to see Harry anywhere, did you?" she asked and Drew considered her question for a moment, rubbing his one hand with the other, before answering.
"He was over there talking to some girls earlier but they left. Maybe he went home with one of them," Drew answered, narrowing his blue eyes at her.
"I doubt that," Hermione said. Harry picking up girls in the library and going home with them? The idea nearly made Hermione laugh. "If you see him, please let him know I'm looking for him. My mum is here to take us home."
"I'll do that. Tell your mum I said 'hi.'" Drew said, walking quickly away from her.
Hermione took a deep breath and walked towards the few rooms she hadn't checked yet. He wasn't in any of the tiny reading rooms and one of the librarians assured her he wasn't in the back office area since that would never be allowed. She suggested that Hermione check the old storage room where the kids liked to hide out when they didn't want Mrs. Sterling to see what they were doing. Although Hermione couldn't imagine what Harry would be hiding from without her, she headed in that direction anyway, slipping her hand inside her coat and touching their wands.
The room was empty. Now Hermione was really beginning to worry, her thoughts consumed everything that was going to happen next if Harry was missing. To her parents, he was just Harry, her friend since she was a little girl, but the wizarding world would not view the act of losing *the* Harry Potter as something they could just easily dismiss. Not that she would ever be able to, either . . . she loved him more than anyone else on earth and she would never forgive herself . . .
She had to stop it. There was a good reason he wasn't here. She knew there had to be one. He would never willingly leave her or his wand behind. It could be his only way to stay alive if . . . no no no. She wouldn't even think about that.
But what if it wasn't willingly? They felt he was safe out here in the Muggle world where no one cared about who he was, but what if he wasn't safe here at all? What if . . .
"Hermione dear?"
She turned around to find her mother standing in the doorway, looking very pale and rattled about something. It was then that Hermione's knees began to give out a bit but she caught herself before her mother noticed.
"What?" asked Hermione, her voice cracking. She wasn't sure she wanted to hear what was coming next.
"I just spoke to your father about Harry. . . "
Please say he's not dead . . . please say he's not dead . . . he's okay . . . he's okay . . .
". . . and he's not there."
He's okay . . . he's okay . . . he's not dead . . . he's just missing . . .
Those words echoed around Hermione's head so loudly that she couldn't hear anything else. She watched her mother's mouth move but she couldn't hear a word she was saying. She would do anything for him to be fine. She'd give up anything, including magic. Including ever being with him again. Anything. Just for him to be okay somewhere.
"Hermione, are you listening to me?"
"Er -- yes," she lied, forcing herself to pay attention and watch her mother talk. She had to know even if it was horrible news.
"A man claiming to be a friend of Harry's arrived at the library while I was on the telephone. He has Harry's owl and says his name is . . . something Lupin . . ."
"Remus Lupin?"
"Yes, that was it. Remus Lupin. I wanted to make sure he was someone you actually knew."
"I do," Hermione answered, her voice hardly sounding like her own.
"He's here with one of your professors. A Professor Snape, I believe. And there are . . . others, too," Mrs. Granger said and Hermione could tell from the look on her mother's face that they were probably other members of the Order and they didn't spend much time disguising their wizard appearance. "Mr. Lupin said that it was urgent that he see Harry immediately. He thinks he might be in danger,"
They both already knew that it was past 'might.' Harry was missing and it took every drop of willpower Hermione had not to drop to her knees and cry.
"Hermione, where did he go?" a voice asked and Hermione looked up to find Remus Lupin staring at her from the doorway.
"I don't . . . I don't know," she said, fighting her tears.
Lupin came all the way into the room with Hedwig perched on his arm. He was followed by Professor Snape with his black robes swirling around him. He looked around the room, his eyes flitting from object to object. Tonks followed him in, her hair a violent shade of magenta. Moody came in right after her.
Mrs. Sterling rushed in behind them all, demanding to know what was going on.
"And get that bloody owl out of my library before . . ."
Before she could get another word out, Lupin had out his wand and cast some sort of charm on her. She sank to the floor, silent for now.
"Harry sent a letter last night and in it he mentioned your former boyfriend, a Drew Rowntree," Lupin said. As he talked, Professor Snape continued to look everything over carefully without moving. Moody decided that wasn't enough and he started walking around, taking a better look at the little back room.
"That's his name."
"That's what I was afraid of. You see, his father has been a follower of the Dark Arts for years now . . ."
"What?" Hermione asked, cutting him off.
"Your former boyfriend is a Squib, Miss Granger," Professor Snape said sharply, turning to look at her.
"What?" Hermione and her mother both asked at once.
"A non-magic child born to wizarding parents," Tonks answered before Snape could.
"The opposite of your daughter," Snape added, giving Mrs. Granger a good once over, his eyes traveling slowly over her body as if she was something to be loathed.
"I meant, how could I not know?" Hermione asked and Snape snorted softly.
"Why would you suspect anything else, dear?" her mom asked and Hermione's brain started to click everything into place.
"You should always be suspicious of everyone you meet," Moody added, going closer to a painting hanging on the wall. "Especially considering you're now in a serious relationship with Harry."
"What?" Mrs. Granger asked loudly. "What do you mean serious relationship?"
Hermione could feel Moody's eyeball looking at her through the back of his head but he didn't turn from the painting. She could also feel her mother's eyes staring at her waiting for an answer.
"I think first we must locate this Drew Rowntree and his parents," Lupin said, temporarily saving Hermione from having to explain her current relationship with a boy her mother believed was just a friend.
"I also think we need to take this painting with us. This is no ordinary piece of art . . . I mean beyond it being ugly and all. There's something dark about this and I'd like to examine it further," Moody said. Snape moved next to him and ran his fingers over the canvas, stepping back as paint flaked from the surface.
"It's nothing but a deplorable attempt by a Muggle to make art," Snape said but Moody didn't look convinced. "Leave it here where it belongs, alongside their deplorable books."
Moody stepped back, considering it once more before turning around to face the group. Hermione knew her mother was still staring at her but she couldn't face her yet.
"How did you know something happened to Harry?" she asked, looking at Lupin.
"About an hour ago, after we finally contacted someone who knew all about the Rowntree family, Harry disappeared from . . . well, he disappeared from any of the tracking devices we have on him. And Augustine Sharp contacted us saying he lost sight of the boy . . ."
"Mr. Sharp?" Hermione asked, sounding astonished.
"Yes, Hermione. He was put here to keep an eye on you last summer in case something happened. And when Harry came to visit, he watched him, too," Tonks answered.
Hermione was still struggling to take this all in. They decided she needed to be watched along with Harry? They must be concerned that her friendship with him would be enough to make her a target for Voldemort or his people, especially after she went with him to the Department of Mysteries.
"Mrs. Granger, perhaps we can move this conversation to your house? I think we have attracted enough attention already today," Lupin said, nodding towards a still silent Mrs. Sterling. Hermione finally looked at her mother as she nodded her head. "Tonks, can you take care of the librarian and anyone else who might have seen us enter?"
"I'll take care of it right away," Tonks said, tripping again over the woman she was supposed to be taking care of. She helped the dazed woman up and escorted her out of the room.
Everyone else followed, including her mother who looked disappointed and confused all at the same time, leaving Hermione alone in the room. It was then the tears started slipped down Hermione's cheek. Everything had been going too well and now that was over. She knew she was going to have to tell her parents the whole truth. She just wanted to stand here for a moment and pretend none of this was happening. They were going to go home and he was going to turn up there. He would turn up and they would spend this last night together like they had planned.
But she knew that wasn't going to be the case.
Taking a deep breath, Hermione resolved herself to the notion that she would deal with whatever was to come her way. She would be strong and figure this out. Harry was out there somewhere and she would do whatever she had to find him. She ached for him. She could still feel him with her, inside of her and close to her heart.
So close, in fact, that when walking out of the room, she thought she could actually hear him calling her name.
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"Hermione!" Harry called out one more time in desperation, hoping she would find him. How could she find him here? He didn't even know where here was.
He wasn't even sure how much time had passed, unable to move his arm far enough to look at his watch. Every time he tried to move at all, he'd end up dry heaving until his stomach felt like it had when Dudley used to hold him down so his friends could take a jab at him.
And his head . . . the light wasn't nearly as bright as it had been when he first arrived here but it still stung his eyes and caused his head to pound. He wasn't sure if the light was fading like the sun setting or if his eyes were simply growing accustomed to it. Every now and then, he'd take a quick look around before closing his eyes again. Even that movement was enough to make his stomach churn. The smell surrounding him only made it worse. It was like being soaked in linseed oil.
All he hoped was that when he opened his eyes the next time, he'd find himself in a bed in Hermione's house and that this was nothing more than a very bad dream brought about by eating too much cake on his birthday.
He had a brief moment of hope when he finally could lift his head and take a look around. There was a brown haired girl standing in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest as she studied him intently.
"Hermione?" he asked, reaching out to the figure. She didn't answer and when he finally managed to focus on her, he realized that it wasn't Hermione at all. She was an odd looking girl, with pale skin that didn't look like skin at all. She moved closer to Harry, kneeling down beside him. When she placed one of her small hands on his forehead, there was no warmth coming from her touch. It was almost as if she were only an . . . image. Like a painting come to life.
"The sickness will soon pass. This often happens to those from the other side when they first enter our world. Rest now and it will be gone when you wake," said the girl in a shimmering violet dress. He struggled to ask her something but no words would come out of his mouth. Instead, he did as she told him to do and shut his eyes, mercifully drifting off to sleep.
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To Be Continued...